I am really hoping that I can arrange to get out of this place soon. I couldn’t have known what it was like moving from so far away and when we got here with all our stuff in tow, there was no place else for us to go and I thought we had already signed a lease, but there is a chance that through some oversight, there is no lease and if there isn’t, there is a chance that a former landlord may rent a house to us. We are still looking into it and there are other places but this place is familiar, I have lived in it. It has a fenced backyard and it is workable. It isn’t huge and I have to make some adjustments, but I can make it work and the rent is low enough that I can purchase things to make it work and it is bigger than our last two places. It may not be ideal, but there are no surprises and it is more ideal than any place we have had lately. And honestly, I am excited at the prospect of moving there. I liked it there and it feels like going home.
Archives
Keep your fingers crossed!
There is a chance that we will be able to get out of this lease and out of this scary neighbourhood. I haven’t said much on here, but this neighbourhood scares me. I won’t let Lilly go out to play and this apartment building is filled with scary people. But we may have a chance to not only get out of our lease but to get into a HOUSE which is close by but believe it or not in a MUCH better neighbourhood. Keep your fingers crossed for us that it all works out. I am really excited!
Quick Curry Chickpeas and tomatoes
I made a yummy lunch today. It was easy and so much better than I thought it would be. In a saucepan I combined:
a little olive oil
1 can chickpeas (with a little of the liquid left in it)
1 package of grape tomatoes
1/2 cup corn
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp tumeric
1/2 tsp cayenne
a little salt
a little garlic powder
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 Tbsp maple syrup
Combine all ingredients and heat through. I personally enjoy mashing a few of the chickpeas and leaving the rest whole.
Pinterest Finds
Wandering Aengus’ good friend moved into town. He is staying with us until he gets a place of his own. He is really helpful and the kids like him, so it isn’t any bother at all. (and he shares my love of coffee!) Today they have taken Lilly (10 years) to a medieval event here in town. I cooked up some medieval fare for them to take with them and stayed home to take care of all the littles. I took advantage of this time to get some extra cleaning done. And now they are all in bed and I am surfing around Pinterest for a few minutes before Reed wakes up for his next feeding. Here are some things I found:
- Dry Up Grease Stains with Plain White Chalk
- Spicy Chickpea Burgers
- Mexican Bean Salad
- How to upgrade furniture with paint and hardware
Taco seasoning recipe
I was reading this site and found a really great taco seasoning recipe, I also remembered a couple of other ones that I used to use. I figured I would share them all here.
The best taco seasoning recipe ever
Taco seasoning mix #1
Author: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/taco-seasoning-i/detail.aspx
Ingredients
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
In a small bowl, mix together chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes, oregano, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper. Store in an airtight container. Season to taste.
Notes
Make 3 or 4 times what the recipe calls for to season to taste and save some in a jar for next time.
For 1 meal try adding 2 TBSP of the taco seasoning mix for the right amount of flavor and kick.
Taco Seasoning #2
1 t. chili powder
3/4 t. paprika
3/4 t. cumin
1/2 t. onion powder
1/2 t. salt
3/8 t. garlic powder
pinch cayenne
Combine and add to 1 pound browned and drained hamburger. Add a little water, if desired. This will be drier than taco meat made with a commercial mix due to the lack of thickeners. It tastes just as good as the store bought kind and is a lot cheaper to make. Makes enough for 1 lb. hamburger (4.5 carbs for the whole batch)(4-6 servings – 1 carb each)
A package of Taco Bell taco seasoning has 18 carbs and Old el Paso brand has 30 per package.
Mix up a bunch of this and put it in a small jar. Just measure out 4 teaspoons of the mixture per 1 pound of hamburger. See recipe below.
Taco Seasoning #3
This recipe makes enough for about 6 meals:
2 T. chili powder
5 t. paprika
4 1/2 t. cumin
1 T. onion powder
1 T. salt
2 1/2 t. garlic powder
1/8 t. cayenne
Mix and store in a small jar. Mix well before measuring. Makes 24 teaspoons.
1 t. = 1 carb
2 t. = 2.5 carbs
3 t. = 3.5 carbs
4 t. = 4.5 carbs
5 t. = 6 carbs
6 t. = 7 carbs
8 t. = 9.5 carbs
VARIATION: Add a tablespoon or so of Taco Bell restaurant-style sauce to it to taco meat after draining the fat and stirring in the seasoning. It made it a bit more like it was made with a taco seasoning mix. It was juicer and held together better. The carbs in Taco Bell sauce are minimal, but be careful of the Ortega brand taco sauce. It has a lot of sugar in it.
Rose, Berry Yummy Breakfast and Recipes
It’s a good thing we understand Rose because life would be pretty frustrating for her if we took her at her word. She says everything backwards to what she intends. She needs things to be a certain way but when she tries to explain to us that something is wrong, she says it the opposite way. She says the door is closed when it is open and she wants it closed. She says the light is off when she means that it is on and she wants it off. She says, “Sisser, let me OUT!” when she means that she is out and she wants IN! She says things backwards all the time. She also loses her ability to verbalize altogether when she gets upset.
For breakfast this morning I made Very Berry Pancakes. I wanted to make a lot so I doubled the recipe.
Pancakes
Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
1 cup almond milk (or milk of choice)
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 cup berries (I used quite a bit more)
Preparation:
Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl until well mixed.
Mix in the almond milk, berries, and oil and beat together until batter is smooth.
Drop 1/4 cup of batter at a time onto a hot oiled griddle, or well greased frying pan over medium high heat. When bubbles appear on the surface of the pancake, approximately 3 minutes, flip, and cook the other side for another 2 minutes. Enjoy!
I have been looking for some new vegetarian recipes to try. Here are a couple that look really good and I want to try.
Sweet potato and lentil patties
1/2 cup brown lentils
1 sweet potato about 400g, chopped
1 medium carrot, chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon of each ground cumin and corriander
2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons of finely chopped parsley
freshly ground black pepper
Boil lentils for 20 – 30 minutes or until soft, drain. Cook carrots, sweet potato and onion until soft, drain and mash (personally I would saute the onions then add to the mix). In a large bowl add combine the lentils, cooked vegetables, parsley, soy sauce and spices, mix well. You will have to use your own judgement at this stage, if the mix is too wet add some bread crumbs or rolled oats. Shape into patties, either burger size or smaller, coat in flour, oat bran or bread crumbs. Place in the fridge for half an hour or more, to firm up. Cook in a frying pan with a little oil until browned on each side. Serve in a burger or with a salad or in a wrap.
Taco Style Lentils & Rice
3/4 cup dry lentils
3/4 cup brown rice
4 cups tap water
4 bouillon cubes
2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
In a 2-quart saucepan bring the water to a boil. As the water is heating, add the lentils, rice, bouillon, chili powder, cumin, onion powder, and garlic powder. Bring the whole thing to a nice fat boil. Reduce the heat to low. Place a lid on the lentils and allow the mixture to simmer for about 45 to 50 minutes. The water should be mostly absorbed. You may serve this as it, topped with a little vegan cheese if desired. Or you can use it to fill burritos or tacos instead. Both ways are very tasty.
This can cook in the crock pot on low for about 6 to 8 hours instead. I’ve never cooked it on high, so I’m not sure how quickly it would cook that way. I suspect about 3 hours would be enough.
Spicy Chick Peas
Here’s a really quick and easy meal…you could use any type of legume/vegetable/spice blend and just follow the basic instructions. This is more of a method than a recipe and can be varied greatly, depending on what you have at hand. You could use beans instead of chick peas and any variety of vegetable that is in season. It is a very quick, frugal and nourishing meal when served with brown rice from the fridge.
You’ll need….
a chopped onion
2 crushed garlic cloves
6 teaspoons of Moroccan spice mix(or curry powder)
1 x 450gm can of chick peas(garbanzos)
1 x 450gm can of chopped tomatoes
1 cup of chopped zucchini….here you could use any fast cooking or pre-cooked vegetable. even frozen vegetables
handful of currants(or any other dried fruit)
pinch of dried chilli flakes(optional)
Gently fry the onion and then the garlic in about 2T oil
Stir in the spices and stir fry for at least 2 minutes to release all their flavour
Mix in the chick peas, tomatoes and vegies and stir well ( I put about 1/4 cup of water into the tomato tin to wash out the last of the tomato juice and dilute the dish a little)
Cook for about 20 minutes or until the vegies are tender, check to see if it needs salt or pepper.
You could serve it with lemon or lime juice, harissa paste or preserved lemon on a bed or rice or couscous, over cooked potatoes or pasta.
The Good and Bad
First the good stuff:
- My babies are all wonderful. My boy sleeps better than any baby I have ever known. My girls are sweetness defined.
- When Wandering Aengus took Lilly out this evening, the babies all went to sleep and I got the house tidied up! I love looking around and seeing tidy.
- My blood pressure has come down a little and I was able to go from 15 pills a day to 11 pills a day.
- I have been having fun planning two new unit studies for us to do, one on Earth day and one on Farms. I love this part of homeschooling.
Now the Bad:
- I hate how my stomach looks right now! It looks like a very large underinflated balloon! I really need to get back to getting in shape. This has led me to the decision that as of next grocery day, I am back on a diet and getting healthier again.
- I have been overdoing it a bit and I am pretty sure it is effecting how my inside incision is healing.
Cleaning ideas
I was doing research and I came across some cleaning ideas that I had to share!
Here is what I found:
Back at it
I am getting back at my life again. It feels good to be back at it. I am making changes and reorganizing schedules and feeling good to be stretching that way again. We will be starting back at homeschool next week and our plan is to include unit studies again. Our first one was one on farming by request from Lilly. And the local homeschooling group is going on a field trip to Ross Farm in May, so that will be a great reinforcement of what we learn.
A Mom of Four
I am loving being a mom of 4. I have managed to catch up on my housework for the most part and my girls love my baby boy. Rose is always concerned when she hears him cry, she comes running and asks, “Is he okay?” It is sweet.
I sometimes talk to him when I am cuddling him. It is such a nice time sitting in the dark in his room, cuddling and feeding him. I was talking to him yesterday, telling him about the family that he is joining. It is a noisy house, but a house filled with games of tag, and stories, and tickles and hide and seek. With three fun-filled, loving, big sisters I think it will be a wonderful place for him to grow up.
Our landlord sent out a paper saying that everyone was getting an inspection today. I have never had an inspection and I have no idea what to expect. It makes me nervous, but there is nothing I can do about it. The house is clean and tidy. . . . well clean and as tidy as you can expect with four kids running around messing it up behind me.
