another bread post

Check these babies out!!Nice, beautifully risen loaves of bread. I was so excited! The dough felt wonderful and was very elastic as I worked on it. I was sure I had accomplished what I sought after. A non-dry, crumbly loaf of bread. Imagine my disappointment when, after it had cooled, I cut it and this is what I got:

Crumbs! Dryness! What am I doing wrong??? The recipe I used called for 4 Cups Whole Wheat Flour and 2 Cups All-Purpose Flour. I did exactly what the recipe said to do. Then, I set my timer and kneaded it for the 10 minutes it said to and added flour if it got too sticky like the recipe said to do. I let it rise til doubled, twice, like the recipe said. I made sure I didn't let it rise too long to prevent drying. Then, I baked it until it sounded hollow when I thumped it. I even put a pan of water in the oven as the bread was baking since I had read that that could help prevent dry loaves of bread. But, still, I got dry, crumbly bread! Any suggestions?

i need a recipe(s)

Help! I've been trying to make granola for the past two weeks and everytime I do it comes out bland and just nasty! I think it's because all the recipes I'm trying only have honey as the sweetener. Now, I'm a honey fanatic, but honey doesn't seem to be doing the granola justice! Does anyone out there have a good granola recipe they've used before with success that calls for brown sugar and maybe a little bit of honey? Or maybe just all brown sugar in the granola?

Thanks for your help.

painting of the day

Title:

Auguste Reading to Her Daughter

homemade fish sticks

In my quest for healthier and possibly cheaper eating, I tried my hand at making my own fish sticks. I basically followed this recipe minus the wheat germ since I don't have any. So, I started with the spices in one bowl: I was out of old bread to make bread crumbs, so I toasted a few pieces of bread

then I crumbled them up and toasted them a bit longer in the oven. Then I added them to the spices.

Next, I prepared the fish; I used Tilapia.

After all the fish was cut up and the flour, egg and breadcrumbs/spices bowls were ready I began dipping.

Okay, so, because it got to be such a process and I wasn't pleased with how coarse my bread crumbs were, I decided to use corn meal with the spice for the breading instead. I also, to save time, mixed the flour and corn meal together and just dipped the sticks into the egg and then into the breading. It seemed to work just fine and came out with a better looking fish stick too!

The finished product looks pretty yummy! I didn't serve them after I made them so I put them in a baggie and am storing them in the freezer for a busy lunch or supper time.

house boat

On our venture out and about on Saturday, we saw this beauty of a boat! James thinks it might be an office boat, the kind that businesses can rent out to have office parties on. Whatever the case, whether it's a house or party boat I think it's awesome!

It was docked about 3 minutes away from where we live in the bay near where all the cruise ships park and depart.

happiness is

A cup of iced coffee from Starbucks! I always feel so spoiled when I get a rare coffee from Starbucks. We don't frequent Starbucks because it simply isn't in our budget.

But, when you've got one of these floatin around the house just waiting to be used,

you can't very well ignore it's calling! Nothing like a free coffee from Starbucks to brighten my day!

not so good with the witty titles

But the dancing kids??? Love it! I just don't get tired of watchin my kids get their groove on. Cracks me up everytime. They are so serious about it and have so. much. fun!

painting of the day

Title:

A Kiss for Baby Anne

I'm thinking this was either Ms. Cassatt's sister and niece or a dear friend and her daughter. Either way, they were willing posers for her paintings many times.

princess and me:: phone pics 1

We took this picture in July when I was visiting Princess and her family.

phone pics 2

Naomi decided to read a book on the kitchen floor while waiting to take Berry Well and Vitamins last night. The book is a counting book so she was "counting" the cats. I believe that she counted 11 cats. Hmmm....

dapper dude:: phone pics 3

James was working on his laptop after work last night. We went over to his mom's house so this was taken from my phone in her screened in patio.

eleanor and naomi:: phone pics 4

The "twin" cousins were loungin outside grammy and grandad's house watching their older siblings splash in the sprinkler! This was taken from my phone in July.

three babes in a tub:: phone pics 5

From my phone...

painting of the day

Title:

A Kiss for Baby Anne

painting of the day

Title:

Agatha and Her Child

view from the top

James took these from the roof of our building. I love how these pictures capture James' love of boats since each photo has one in it.

i just love this

The music, the sweet polar bears; it's all so beautiful!

mary cassatt painting of the day

Title:

A Baby Smiling at Two Young Women

my new love

I've recently fallen in love with the painter, Mary Cassatt. So, I will be loosly posting a Painting of the Day by Mary Cassatt for a while. I just have to share these beautiful paintings of mothers and their babes with you. Maternal Kiss by Mary Cassatt

daddy's girls

As soon as James got home from work last night, he sat in his chair to relax.

But the girls had other plans for daddy. Playtime on daddy's lap......and arm.

who would've thought

This little red wagon that Henry is borrowing from Rahul

would be used as this...

You do know what he's doing, right?

man! these are the days...i guess

Lots of days I get aggravated, frustrated, bored and tired of the same routine every. day. I always knew I wanted to be a wife and mama. I do know I am blessed with these three blessings, but man! Sometimes! I just want to throw in the towel! James says that I find more pleasure in the kids than I do frustration, and he's right! However, for some reason, the bad days seem to stick out more to me than the good ones. I know that raising and training and loving selflessly is what I'm called to do. I just didn't know it was going to be so hard. Would I trade this job or the kids for something else? Not on your life!

So, this morning, when I ran into this video on youtube with the kids crowding around me trying to take it in too, I got teary, choked up. (I'm turning into a sap in my old age!) The paintings by the late and extremely talented Mary Cassatt just did me in! That, on top of the beautiful music and the sweet scent of my children's hair wafting to my nose. I thought, as I fought to keep control, that this is what it's all about! Cuddling, sharing, loving, teaching your little ones all these cool things about life and music and art (even if it is through a youtube video) is so special! No one else can nurture your children or care for your children quite like you can and I am happy to do it, even amid all the days I just want to be done! Because, truth be told, these are the days.

sleepy girl

This sleepy girl is attempting to fully wake up after her nap. Do you see the marks on her face from her blanket?

"healthy" cookies

Well, I tried my hand at a recipe I found online that seemed easy and healthy! They are also very, very yummy and come out soft and chewy!

Whole-Wheat Honey Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 C. Honey
1/2 C. Butter
1 Egg
1 t. Vanilla
1 T. Milk

1 C. Whole-Wheat Flour
1/2 t. Baking Soda
1/2 t. Baking Powder
1/2 t. Salt
1 t. Cinnamon
1/2 t. Ginger
1/4 t. Nutmeg

1 C. Rolled Oats
1 C. Chocolate Chips (or to make them uber healthy substitute for raisins!)

Cream butter and honey. Add egg, vanilla and milk and stir until combined and creamy.
In small bowl, whisk all dry ingredients together and add to wet mixture. Stir. Add oats and chocolate chips. Mix.
Spoon 1/2 T. size balls onto cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

Try it, you'll like it!

days of summer-- 15

Squishing your bare feet into the sand and hunting for the perfect seashell is a beautiful occurrence during summer days in Florida.