Ok, there isn’t much to this week but I still have to come up with some plan;). Since we are all coming off a stomach bug I am going to try and keep it light or at least not fried or tomatoes.
NerdDad found this. It is cute and funny. Need I say more?
So who are we loosing this week? Based on how the last few weeks have gone I am predicting Jennifer. Who knew that Eli and Richard Blase were freinds? Eli was best man in his wedding!
NerdDad has been mentioning some of the issues Mexico is going through right now and how it isn’t really being talked about very much. I have to be honest, I did really have a grasp on it at all. And I am assuming I am not the only one.
There is this great piece from FabiusMaximus that has lots of resources talking about some of the problems facing Mexico right now. It really looks like they are having a small civil war. That takes a toll on both the people and the economy. I was shocked to read in on of the excerpts that 14,000 have been killed in 3 years of their war on drugs. I already had heard different tidbits that said Mexico’s economy is in free fall.
Why aren’t we doing anything about this? People yell and scream about immigration but if you were in the middle of this wouldn’t you do what ever it took to insure the safety (and feeding) of your family? Now I am not condoning illegal immigration at all, but…
Shouldn’t we do something? I don’t know what and on the whole I do believe that the US should keep its nose out of other countries business but… These are our neighbors and if they fall what kind of effect with that have on us? Our economy? Our security? Not to mention just the humanitarian side of it. I think this is a time that our national interest is the same as Mexico’s because we would come in on the side of the government against drug lords. So what is stopping us?
I find this all a bit frustrating.
This is something I try to always have on hand during the holidays but it is great all year. It keeps for quite a while if you keep it in an airtight container so it is great to pull out for those drop in guests or to take as a hostess gift.
Ingredients
1 cup popcorn kernels, popped
3 cups unsalted whole skin-on almonds (about 1lb), toasted
1 cup sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 stick unsalted butter
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp kosher salt
(To the almonds you can put them on a cookie sheet in the oven at 250 degrees. Cook 15 minutes until you just start to smell them. Or put them in a skillet on the stove top and cook them on medium/low until you smell them. DON’T LEAVE THEM, NUTS BURN EASILY)
Process:
Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Put popcorn and nuts in a large bowl and set aside. Put sugar, corn syrup, butter, cocoa powder, and salt into a sauce pan. Cook over medium heat until mixture comes to a gentle simmer (about 5 minutes). Make sure to stir the mixture. Then pour the sugar mixture over the popcorn and nuts. Don’t pour it all in one spot; try to cover the popcorn and nuts. Toss until it is all coated. Put the mixture on rimmed cookie sheets. Bake, stirring every 20 minutes, until the mixture is almost dry to the touch (about 1 hour). Then cool completely on the cookie sheets. Store it in an airtight container.
Outside my window the son is shining brightly.
I am thinking of how I need to make my Christmas to do list!
I am thankful for the cuddliness of my kids!
From the learning rooms: We are starting the week off with our KinderBach, then Bible Study and Math. I hope to do some Thanksgiving projects with the kids too!
From the kitchen I am going to make burritos for the freezer out of homemade refried beans.
I am wearing comfy sweats.
I am creating a fun Christmas gift for the NerdPie!
I am going to run a few errands with the kids and get my free wipes at Target.
I am hoping to get stuff done!
I am hearing my dear husband getting the kids up.
One of my favorite things is Christmas music.
A few plans for the rest of the week: get the MOPS newsletter out, modify my blog design, clean the house up a bit!
(For more Daybooks go check out The Simple Woman’s Daybook)
*** Repost! This was discussed last week at my Women’s Bible study and was requested so I am reposting it! I originally posted this back in January of 2008.
This has been floating around out there so it wouldn’t surprise me if you all have seen it. All my MOPS girls have it on their Myspace pages. But I post it for any who haven’t. When I first saw this skit I was a little harsh on it. I saw the Christ representation standing unable to get to her. But upon rewatching, you see Him pulling and when she has fought with all she has and has no more He intervened. Be prepared to shed a tear. I have every time I have watched it. Christ is waiting for us and our focus to be on Him. When it is and we use our strength to move towards Him, He will do the rest we need.
**Warning: this deals with real issues, not in graphic but obvious imagery. So don’t watch with kids unless you are ready to answer a couple of questions.
Only 1 week until Thanksgiving week! So I need to start getting things done and keeping dinner planned and simple will help.
Ok, I admit it. I am enjoying our Kinderbach journey even more this month than last month. One of the things I like about it is its flexibility. I had to go have surgery this month so it really cut down on how much school (and Kinderbach) we did but that isn’t a problem and I love that. But back to the music!
I am loving watching my kids learning with Kinderbach. They sing, clap, dance and do art! It is great that it uses so many forms to teach the musical concepts. We are learning about real musical concepts as the kids are learning about ”walks” being quarter notes and beats.
We also have become familiar with the train stations on the piano keyboard. The kids are really stoked because there are also songs to go with both Dodi’s houses and the train stations that they can play. In addition to giving them an awesome sense of achievement they are also working on fingering!
I can’t wait to see what this next month’s musical learning has for us! If you haven’t checked out Kinderbach for yourself go over to the Kinderbach site and look at the first couple lessons that are for free! But be warned, you might fall in love to and have to subscribe;).
I have decided to take another tack about Top Chef. More snarky, less explanations, and a little assumption that you all have seen it. Tell me if you like this style more….