Floodwaters, Sippy-Cups, and Coffee mugs

      Damon is growing. He eats more snacks. He has more energy than ever! And he is now over 4 and a half years old. Too old to be so dependant on his beloved sippy-cups. While I agree there are convenient, if not appropriate, places for him to use his sippies (in the car or for water by his bed), for the most part he needs to start drinking from a regular cup. We began this process a few weeks ago. We started by replacing his milk sippy cup at lunch and dinner with a plastic tumbler. While he tried so hard to be careful and use two hands, there were sticky spills at every meal. But we kept practicing...and then there was the flood.
      For the first time in over 7 years, our basement flooded. Our basement has weathered it's fair share of storms, and we've been fortunate that this is the first time.   So in the aftermath of the"Great Flood of 2011" ," we are still in clean-up mode. We've been going through boxes of treasures, deciding what is worth keeping, and what is junk. The flood certainly decided for us on many items...things like my entire personal library of books were destroyed. My husband's libraries of CDs and sports VHS tapes were also total losses. So we've been in sort of a state of re-evaluating what is important and what is just stuff.   In all this digging through boxes, I came across my collection of coffee mugs.  I've been collecting them my entire life.  There are mugs from almost everywhere I've traveled.  Places like the Strausburg Railroad, Williamsburg, Disney World, and even one from The Bahamas.   As I was sorting through all of these mugs, and deciding which ones were especially memorable or unique, and which ones were just mugs, it suddenly occurred to me that this might be an option for Damon and his milk.

Enjoying a snack and drinking from his mug.

     In typical fashion, Damon chose a coffee mug from the Strausburg Railroad with a whimsical train on it.  He feels so grown up using his coffee mug.  He's since chosen 2 more mugs: one from Myrtle Beach and another that has his adorable 4 month old face all over it.    And we've thrown away 2 sippy cups.   So in the morning my son and I sit at our kitchen table drinking from our mugs...juice in his and coffee in mine.  He's growing up way to fast! 

Hamburger Noodle Soup

     So on this rainy day, I've got a crock pot full of yummy soup cooking.  It'll be cooking and making my house smell delicious all day, and will be ready to greet my family with warm, yummy goodness at day's end. 

(for the slow-cooker)
8 servings
1 lb ground beef (or turkey)
2 medium onions , coarsely chopped
1 stalk celery, cut into 1/4" slices
1 envelope onion mushroom soup mix
1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
6 cups water
4-6 c. frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
2 c. med. egg noodles

In a large skillet, brown the ground beef until thoroughly cooked.  Drain well.  In a slow cooker, combine cooked ground beef and all remaining ingredients, except mixed vegetables and noodles; mix well.  Cover; cook on low setting for 6-8 hours or until onion is tender.  Stir in thawed vegetables and egg noodles.  Increase to high setting; cover and cook an additional 15-20 minutes or until vegetables are crisp tender and noodles are tender. 

Peaches and Cream!

Peach Upsidedown Cake
Yield: 10 servings

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 c. peaches (sliced)
1/2 c. chopped nuts ( I prefer cashews or pecans)

4 eggs, separated
1 tsp vanilla
1 c. sugar
2 tbsp. butter, melted and cooled
3/4 c. flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp salt

Home-canned peaches

Melt the 1/4 cup butter in a round cake pan.  Stir in the brown sugar until combined; spread evenly in the bottom of the cake pan.  Arrange peaches atop brown sugar mixture; sprinkle with nuts.

In a large mixing bowl beat egg whites and vanilla until soft peaks form.  Gradually add sugar.  Beat until still peaks form.

In a small bowl, combine egg yolds and 2 tbsp. melted cooled butter; stir into egg white mixture.  Add flour, baking powder and salt, 1/4 cup at a time.  Stir by hand (with spoon).  Carefully spread batter atop peaches.

Peach Picking 2011

Bake at 325 40-45 minutes or until done. Cool pan on wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully invert cake pan and cake onto serving platter. Cool cake 30 minutes. Serve warm with whipped cream!

Sugar and Spice

Apple Pie
Yield: 1 pie

Ingredients:
pastry for 2 crust pie
4-5 tart apples
1/2 sugar
dash nutmeg
1/3 tsp. cinnamon
1 tbs. flour
1 tbs. butter
2 tsp. lemon juice


Mix together sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, and flour.

Quarter apples, peal, and slice.  Arrange half of the apples in pie crust.  Sprinkle with half of the spices.  Repeat, keeping apples near center. Sprinkle with lemon juice and dot with butter.

Make small gashes in top crust to allow steam to escape.  Brush edges of bottom crust with cold water.  Add top crust, trim edges, and flute edges with finger to seal.

Bake at 450 for 15 minutes.  Reduce heat to 350, and bake an additional 35 minutes.

Apple Picking 2011