Thursday, February 29, 2024

Weekend with the grands

 Leon was home for the weekend and we celebrated his birthday!!  I can't believe he's 12 already!  AND he has a girlfriend now...  As of Tuesday.  

They grow up so fast.

Anyway, on Saturday, I took Leon out for the morning.  We stopped at Walmart first and I let him pick out his birthday present and a cake.  He opted for a store bought instead of me making him one.  And that's ok.

Then Pizza Ranch opened at 10:30 so we hit it up for a brunch/early lunch. And since the buffet wasn't completely set up yet, he and I hit the arcade where he made a killing on this one.  He came away from the arcade with a whole bag of prizes.  I didn't know they had bags back there!


The gift I gave him was a bike.  We weren't celebrating until Sunday but the weather was SO nice that I figured he'd want to get going on it right away.
He had resisted riding a bike all his life because he was afraid of getting hurt.

He took to it like it was 2nd nature and had it mastered in 5 minutes. SERIOUSLY!


He rode all afternoon and until it got dark Saturday and only spent about 30 minutes at the computer the whole day. WIN in my book!  Aggie and I went on a walk with him around the big block and every 50 feet or so, he'd circle back around us so we wouldn't be too far behind.


However, this bike COULD break my bank.  He rode up to Casey's for a treat at least 2 times. sigh.  Next time, he can ride to Meri's and ask HER for a treat.

We had a house birthday dinner for him that night.  Jen bought some fancy cupcakes and we played a game that he got.  I was surprised that I "got" the instructions after a few rounds!  Sometimes those newer games flummox me.  We played again with everyone else the next day too.

On Sunday morning, his legs hurt but after church and an Aleve, he was back on his bike until we celebrated with cake and ice cream later.  Ryan, Jen, Aggie, Maddy, Matthew, Meri and (bf) Ryan helped us celebrate and play the game.


Kevin acting like he owns the place...


Aggie on the yard with Jen, eating leaves.  I took her on another stroller walk with Leon on his bike, shortly after this pic.


So it was an eventful weekend but I still didn't get a chance to sew.  Maybe over lunch today!

Friday, February 23, 2024

Food for Thought

 I got so caught up in the unflattering pic that Meri took of me yesterday that I forgot entirely that I'd take a couple pics too!  But they're flattering.  Shoot.


Here is one of Aggie and Jen a week ago.  It's amazing what you find on your phone when you're bored!
Aggie is enjoying a book from Christmas.  For the record, she thinks it tastes good too.


I made some sourdough dough last night and let it sit in the bread machine all night. It's ok, it's supposed to be sour...  And made English muffins this morning.  Jen enjoyed one for breakfast as did I.  The only things wrong with them, in my opinion, is that they're too thick and I didn't have corn meal to sprinkle on them.  I'll pick some up and try it again.


And I made sourdough crackers and more dehydrated sourdough with the discard from this morning.  I'm probably STILL doing it wrong, but I am a rebel. That's what I do.


Has anyone else felt bloaty after introducing sourdough to their system, generously?  I've been like this for a couple days now. and yeah, I've eaten my share of the various types lately.

hmmm.  Something to think about while I enjoy my crackers.

Thursday, February 22, 2024

Baking into Oblivion - Someone STOP me!

:) For those who said they like the Aggie pics. WHEW! Cause that's all I got! 
 Well, that and sourdough.

Meri's daycare, that she's the chef at, had a family potluck night on Tuesday.  Aggie and I joined her and (bf) Ryan for the feast.  Yummy food! 


 And good company too, to a point. LOOK at the pic Meri took of me! hmm.  Just plotting out my payback.  Just watch yourself Meri!


Maddy had car troubles on the way, so she turned around and went back home.
I'm sorry we missed you Sweetie!

AND then Sourdough...  It's all the rage these days! I've got actual pounds of the natural yeast, coming out of my ears!  Not literally.

The discard sits in the fridge, waiting for me to make crackers or something else. In my spare time, I browse sourdough discard recipes. :) 


Today, I realized that my discard jar was pretty full so I spread some out on carefully cut parchment that fits my dehydrator.  It's on the lowest setting for 3 hours or until it breaks apart.  Then voila!  Shelf stable sourdough starter!  Someday, when I rehydrate it, I'll let you know how it goes.
I found out later, it should have been freshly fed starter.  sigh. I'll try it anyway.


I've got two active ones on the counter.  The one with the band is mine and named Seymour.  The other is going to a friend tomorrow and she can name it whatever she wants.  


I pull out 100 grams of starter each morning and put in a clean jar.  The rest goes into the discard jar in the fridge.  

Then I feed the 100 grams of starter with 100 grams of flour and 100 grams of purified water (any kind really as long as it's not tap - if it is tap, let it sit for 24 hours to release the chlorine).  Give the mix a good stir and by mid afternoon, it's grown double and bubbly and ready to start something.  OR it can sit until tomorrow morning and I'll do it again.

The jars are a BOOGER to clean with the dried on starter. The dishwasher can't do it, it's like cement.  So I soak them in hot, soapy water and tackle it with a SOS pad and get it all off before putting it in the dishwasher.

I've been using my bread machine for the kneading!  I'm not baking it there though.  I use the kneading cycles for 25 minutes, twice.  Then pop it out into a pan to bulk ferment until the next morning on the counter, covered with a towel.  Then pop it into a banneton basket in the fridge until the next morning and bake it. The basket is what makes the rings. I waited two days in the fridge the last time and someone pushed a can of something on top, deflating it.  so here it is after I baked it this morning.  Not terrible but not as poofy as it could be.

I need to practice with the cute little cuts and slice.  I have a couple lames but they're basically just razor blades on a stick. *lame*


So mistake #1 for me, don't have it stuck in the fridge for 2 days.  And mistake #2, Put it in a some kind of container with a loose lid when in the fridge.  In case someone shoves things in the fridge. :\  
Oh and I forgot to spritz the top with my water spray bottle!  That helps with a crispy top.
Oh well, live and learn and in the meanwhile, eat your mistakes.

Mistakes taste pretty dang good with peanut butter.

 I have made several loaves so far (ok 5) and with each one, I realize what I could have done different.  and then forget what that was the next time I make it.  I'm planning on starting some sourdough English muffins tonight to cook tomorrow morning.  Jen gave me the idea.  AND she gave me the starter kit.
It's all HER fault!

My favorite way that I've found to bake the loaves without burning them is to use Robb's cast iron dutch oven and a cold oven to start.  


There are so many conflicting instructions online, it's hard to find anyone consistent!  But if I follow the conventional method, preheat the oven and pans to 450 degrees, then bake for 20 minutes with the lid on and 20 with the lid off, it's a hit or miss.  Mostly miss, because every time I try that variation, it's either burned on the outside and/or somewhat doughy on the inside.

SO, here is my secret that someone mentioned on my rebel sourdough fb group.  I've tried it a couple times with success.  I've got a pizza stone on the bottom rack of the oven. It helps keep the heat from pulverizing the bottom of the loaf.  And make it a clean stone!  I'll tell you about that another day but suffice it to say, it'll smoke you out.
  
I put parchment or a silicon flap thing under my bread dough into the lid of my dutch oven, then use the big part as the lid.  I stick it into a cold oven and turn the oven on to 425 degrees.  Leave it for 50-60 minutes, then uncover it.  Careful!  Don't burn yourself!  Then if it's not dark enough on the outside, continue baking it uncovered for another 7-10 minutes.

Stick a thermometer into it and it should register at least 200 degrees. DONE!
Let it cool for at least an hour before slicing it up.

I bought a covered loaf pan that I'm going to try someday.  Not sure how to use that yet.

Has anyone used one that looks like this?


I'm looking for more ideas.
Because you know me!  I can ALWAYS add a hobby to my repertoire!

Tuesday, January 30, 2024

BeReal or Don't

I figured I needed to take a break from Aggie pics for a couple days.

Here is when the house was relatively clean!  Last Thursday, for my ladies Bible study that I hosted.


Sorry you missed it!
Don't you love the BeReal app?!  The real selfies...  You only get 2 minutes so no makeup!
Like I ever anyway...

Today I plan to spend some time working on Leon's room.  He's only here on the weekends right now and asked if we could switch things up in there, including moving the bed, bookshelf and getting a desk out of there. yeah....  Not sure where the desk will go but I have room in the garage for the time being.

Monday, January 29, 2024

Beaches

Ok, Ok!  I take a LOT of pics of Aggie!  She's cute!  Why not?!
Today is her 6th month birthday and look!  She's got a solid butt!


It might be the cloth diapers.
And it's not ALWAYS stable...
 

But she's growing up!  

And look what I found this weekend at a thrift store!  Identical plates to the ones I remember from my youth!  My Violet Iris corelleware from our wedding is getting worn out and mostly chipped or broken up.  But I keep my eyes open for more and while looking for some linoleum to fix a bathroom, I found this!
SCORE!


It was a great weekend.  I got a lot done on my to do list on Saturday, which included watching Dirty Dancing with my bestie as well as another movie last night virtually with my other bestie!  And for THAT bestie, I wore our matching socks.



Shocked? Yeah, I wouldn't expect anything less.
Leon was too!  I was driving and my phone beeped with a message so he checked it out for me.
"GRANDMA!  I didn't think you EVER said that word!"
Let me tell you kid...  I have 6 sisters.  It's been said.

And if any of my sisters are reading this, It's always been in a loving manner and to your face.

Thursday, January 25, 2024

Hey Dude! Where's my...

I had a beautiful morning yesterday!

Cup compliments of my bestie, who gave me 90% of her Rae Dunn collection when she moved.
I pick whatever one fits my mood for the day. :) I've got a lot.  Tomorrow can be Bah Humbug!

I got to enjoy breakfast with an Aggie view while her mom got things together for the day.  


I had a couple pieces of toast with my cappuccino and the toast was totally the wrong breakfast for me!  I usually have an omelet.  So when I got up from my desk for a break mid morning, I just felt wiped out and didn't feel like cleaning up the kitchen.

There were leftover doritos, so I made some nachos and went back to work.  Going back to work was a good idea, as it was total *heck* the rest of the day.  Work crisis' right and left...  Ugg.

Back on the dieting wagon soon!  I'm just not sure where I parked it.

Tuesday, January 23, 2024

Infamous Baby Stories

 She's growing by leaps and bounds and now drinks the rest of her bottle like a hamster.  She's just TOO busy to merely SIT in your lap to drink.  Do they make bottle holders for hamster babies?


And Frank was looking for attention and flopped down right in front of her.
Well, he was asking for it...


She's about a week from figuring how how to crawl and then WATCH OUT!

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