Day to Day Adventures

Finer Things Friday: New Year’s Bash!

Kim1 Comment
Almost 20 years ago I married in to this crazy family/clan of people who LIKE to play games together—a lot.  Pre-marriage the game I played the most was solitaire.  So going to a New Year’s Eve party where all they do is play games and eat was umm… sorta overwhelming for a few years.  Now I wouldn’t miss it.
Changes over the years
There are more of us—like just over 40(28 of those are grandkids of varying ages)
The kids are getting married or bringing girlfriends/boyfriends
The aunt/uncles are older(& some still act like teenagers)
Sometimes extended family shows up
Traditions 

Grandma’s punch
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Little kids playing
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Two people taking pictures of each other
Nancy’s cheese ball
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Big kids playing games
Dan’s sausage balls
Crackers/cheese/meat
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Sweets & yummy stuff
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Confetti at midnight(messy but fun!)
New Years’s cinnamon rolls--I am in charge of breakfast New Years morning—because as many who can stay the night.  So I am working on a huge batch of cinnamon rolls and the Sausage Egg Quiche is in the freezer.  We always have a SLOW morning & play games all New Year’s day too.  By the time we go home everyone is TIRED.  It is a blast though!
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The recipe I am using is based on Pioneer Woman’s recipe.  I don’t use her frosting & I used white wheat flour.  Not much of a healthy improvement but there are things that cannot be changed!
Cinnamon Rolls(makes a huge batch!)
1 qt milk
1 cup oil
1 cup sugar
2 packages Active Dry Yeast
8 cups white wheat flour(plus 1 cup set aside)
1 tsp baking powder(heaping)
1 tsp baking soda(scant)
1 Tbsp salt
1/2 to 1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
cinnamon
Heat milk, oil & sugar until scalded(heat until just before it boils).  Turn off heat and leave to cool until lukewarm to warm—about an hour.  Sprinkle 2 packages of yeast in to milk mixture & let sit for a minute.  Gradually add 8 cups flour & stir.  Cover and let rise for at least an hour.  After hour, add one cup flour, baking powder, baking soda & salt.  Stir mixture together.  You can put this in the refrigerator(overnight or a day or two) at this point if you don’t have time to roll it out.   Just punch it down if it starts to overflow your pan.
Take half your dough & roll it out to form a rough rectangle.  This will be pretty thin.  Drizzle 1/4 to 1/2 cup melted butter over the dough.  Sprinkle 1/2 cup of sugar over dough followed by a generous sprinkling of cinnamon.  Starting on one of the long sides start to roll the dough in a neat line.  Keep the roll pretty tight as you go.  Pinch the seam to seal it.
Spread 1 tablespoon of melted butter in a foil cake or pie pan.  Cut the rolls about 3/4 to 1 inch thick & lay them in the buttered pans.  Repeat with the rest of the dough.  Let the rolls rise 20-30 minutes, then bake at 375 degrees until light golden brown, about 15-20 minutes.
Traditions in a family are important. 
They draw us together & keep us close. 
To me this is a truly finer thing.
To post your finer things go to Amy’s Finer Things
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Top 10 Things Homeschooled Children will Tell their Kids(mine anyway)

Kim7 Comments
10 Things Home School Kids will say - DaytoDayAdventures.com

10.  My classroom was on the couch, at the table, outside, on my bed, on the deck under a sheet. . .

9.  PE = bowling, riding bikes, soccer, swim team

10 Things Home School Children Say - DaytoDayAdventures.com
 

8.  My teacher had parent teacher conferences in the bathroom.

7.  I walked to school barefoot.  And if I was lucky I got to stay in my pjs all day.

6.  I played a games, dressed up and did my phonics worksheets at the same time.

10 Things Home School Children Say - DaytoDayAdventures.com
 

5.  I cried in class & sometimes my teacher cried too.

10 Things Home School Children Say - DaytoDayAdventures.com
 

4.  Field trips were really cool.

10 Things Home School Children Say - DaytoDayAdventures.com
 

3.  Every summer at the library we would have scavenger hunts.

2.  I cut up a frog on the kitchen table.

10 Things Home School Children Say - DaytoDayAdventures.com
 

1.  I had snow days in September & April.  YEAH!!

Hope you enjoyed this fun list!  What will your kids say about school many years from now?

Related posts



Batch Cooking for College: Sloppy Joes

Kim2 Comments

Life is resuming its normal pace around here.  We aren’t baking dozens and dozens of cookies for friends.  The frig is empty because of the snow over the weekend and I MUST go to the grocery store soon. 

Michael heads back to classes in a couple of weeks & he’s requested some frozen meals to take along.  I have been trying to involve Elizabeth in the planning stages of meal preparation more so she can work towards doing this on her own down the road.

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We brainstormed this morning & here is what we came up with for this weeks menu & the batch cooking we will do.

This week

Sausage Egg Quiche & Spice Muffins x 2

  —1 family meal & 12 individual size portions

Sloppy Joes(recipe below) x 5

  —2 family meals & 18 individual size portions

Taco meat x 3—18 individual size portions

Taco Soup x 3—1 family meal & 10 individual size portions

Next time Chicken is on sale

Broccoli Chicken Pie

Turkey Noodle Soup

Chicken Quesadillas

This will allow Michael to take a stash back to school.  I also plan to share some meals with another college student who attends our small group at church.  It will also give me a few meals in the freezer for the days ahead.  It is nice to have a quick meal available for those CRAZY days when I don’t have time to stick something in the crockpot.

My Sloppy Joe recipe is not one I have in a recipe book—this has frustrated Elizabeth & dear hubby so I wrote it down for them(and you).  Enjoy!

Sloppy Joes  serves 6

1 lb ground beef

1/2 cup chopped onion

1-8 oz tomato sauce

2 T quick cooking oats

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tsp garlic salt

6 wheat buns

Brown meat & onions.  Add remaining ingredients except buns.  Simmer until the mixture isn’t runny.  Toast buns &  top with meat.  Yummy with fresh vegies & fruit.