Tomato bliss!

There are some recipes that I can only eat & REALLY enjoy to the maximum in the summer time. 

I guess that I am a bit of a tomato snob.

The tomatoes from the grocery store are just not the same as the ones from my garden.  Their taste isn’t as delicious.  I have a crowded garden this year with 30 some tomato plants & they are ripening for our enjoyment!

There isn’t the same desire on my part to run in from the garden and just slice up a tomato(or two) & sit down to just eat & eat & eat.

I am trying to avoid most sugar and processed carbs.  Now that doesn’t mean I don’t cave to an occasional Pepsi or slice of bread but this seems to be helping me whittle away at those pounds I gained after hip surgery in January. 

So when the kids have pizza or something else I am avoiding I will pull out some tuna.  They don’t enjoy tuna salad so this works out perfectly.  It is a very fast & filling lunch.

Tuna & Tomato Salad

1 small can or pouch of tuna

1-2 Tbsp Miracle Whip

1 tsp pickle relish

1-2 tomatoes

Lettuce(romaine, green leaf & spinach)

Prepare lettuce by washing & tearing.  Mix the tuna, Miracle whip & pickle relish.  Arrange lettuce & sliced tomatoes on plate & top with tuna mixture.  EAT!

Harvest time Adventures

Some times life just moves too fast.  For the past month I have been scrambling to keep up with all the “adventures” we’ve been having(hence the 3 weeks there haven’t been any posts!).   We are cramming the most we can in to the last “free” days that are available before the regular routine is upon us at the end of August. 

I love this time of year because we are taking all the great food available from our garden and others and freezing it or eating it up!  The kids have been a wonderful help this year as we process these blessings to save for when it is cold and nasty outside.

A friend gifted us 60 ears of yummy sweet corn & the kids helped worked it up.  I have such memories of my grandma’s sweet corn. . . mmmm

 

The end of July is when we get our yearly delivery of yummy blueberries.  Elizabeth was a HUGE blessing when she sorted and bagged for the freezer the ones we didn’t snarf eat right away.

 

And of course we’ve been harvesting from our own garden, tomatoes & peppers.  Joshua helps me to find the tomato worms & get rid of them.

 

Of course we are canning tomatoes to use in chili and soups this fall.   

The refrigerator has been crammed so I had to get creative in how to store the tomatoes I had skinned but not canned.  Hey it worked!

Make it Work! Athlete’s Foot

There has been a battle going on at our house.  Michael has had blistery itchy toes on one foot for a while.  He never could fine the time to head to the doctor & have it looked at during the school year.

“Athlete's foot is a very common infection that affects mostly men and young people. Athlete's foot attacks the area between toes, soles of feet fingernails and toenails. This infection is cause by a fungus called tinea pedis it lives off the dead skin cells, and thrives in moist, warm places, such as gyms, locker rooms, showers and swimming pools, Athlete's foot is also very contagious and is transmitted by coming in contact with wet floors, or by touching infected shoes or socks. “ source

Luckily it wasn’t so bad to make him miserable(probably why he couldn’t find the time—HA!)

But in the hot weather as he has been sweating more and it was getting worse & spreading.  So Dr. Mom started searching on-line for any kind of home or natural remedies we might try.  Let me tell you that there are a TON of pages to search through! 

One recommendation I saw over and over was to soak the foot in apple cider vinegar!

I LOVE vinegar.  It has so many uses! 

Michael has been soaking his foot daily in the apple cider vinegar and I am happy to report that the blisters are healing and the swelling & redness have been greatly reduced.  It isn’t cured but I have every confidence that if he can keep up the routine for another week or two that it will be GONE!

Home cures are so much less expensive than prescriptions & doctor visits.  Just another great way to MAKE IT WORK around our home!

The beginning of the end

Well I changed my 2 month family calendar today.  August is on the board with school start dates & all.

There were several groans & lamenting all around.

Me included.    There are lots of projects to do & vacation time to take before Michael moves back on campus.  We will miss College Boy when he moves out.  There are always fun things happening with him around.

It is hot(REALLY HOT) here in mid-MO.  I think the heat may be affecting my almost 20 year old’s brain power.  

10 Things old teens do (that make me shake my head)

10.  Call to see if I have time to bring him lunch

9.  Thank me & his sister for the awesome lunch(it was leftovers)

8.  Move computer to nearest flat surface so we can eat supper at the table—bathroom?

7.  Play ninja at the park in the 95+ weather

6.  Watch a zillion Dr. Who movies

5.  Go film a movie with friends in the 95+ weather

4.  Build a fire for movie & make it really big

(did I mention it is really hot here?)

3.  Play Pass the Pigs with his younger brother & sister at WAY past their bed time—okay I guess I did encourage this one

2.  Work on a speech for class at 6:30 in the morning out in the driveway

1.  Sleep with the window open because he is cold—the air is on & the vent in the bedroom is open

As much as Michael baffles me at time, I am so thankful for my oldest son.  His laugh, the random piano moments that happen, watching movies until late & feeling that all my chicks are under one roof again.  It has been a growing, learning time in the last year so it has been good that he came home for the summer. 

 

Organizing Time with Teens

Last week I posted about spending time with teens.  The question was Can Teens be . . . .

Noisy—certainly

Encouraging—what?

Have love for all ages—are you kidding?

I wanted to address this because I had a friend on Facebook who was horrified amazed that Steve & I would willingly spend time with a group of 25 teens for a couple of hours! What do you think of when you imagine spending a couple of hours with teenagers?

Steve & I have been privileged & blessed to help guide an ever changing group of pre teens & teens in an activity called Bible Quizzing.  I have said this many times but I will repeat.  These kids are the best kids in the world.  There are few thins I am more thankful for and I wouldn’t trade my time with them for anything. 

However they are teens & it is a huge help to approach this activity & any activity with teens with a plan.  If you let them they will get off track & follow whatever bunny trails they can find!

HOW to organize time with teens

1.  Purpose/goal—This applies to adult activities too!  If there is not a focus then the time will be fun but not necessarily productive. 

Since chaos is not our idea of fun, we’ve discovered that it is absolutely necessary helpful to have a purpose.  Here are some questions to ask.

What are we trying to do?

How long will this keep their attention?

What can we do to break up the time?

2.  Time break down—2 parts are essential

Fellowship—build this in to your time because if you don’t then the teens will do it any way & you will be frustrated. 

It seems best to give them some time at the beginning of the meeting to greet friends & chat for a bit.  That way they can reconnect before we get to work.  Often we will be setting up & greeting people also during this time!  Let it be fun but be ready to guide them to the next part.

Goals & Projects—there needs to be a purpose for your meeting.  Know what you want to do & how long it will take.  Explaining the plan to the teens is a great idea because it lets them know what is expected.  Rewards are good too.  Time to be social again at the end if they work hard is always a good reward.

NECESSARY elements in time with teens

1. Leadership—This is SO important. It is work to organize time for teens to be together. Often by utilizing several families skills and talents the work of running an organization can be delegated. By working together the leadership can set long term & short term goals. Rules can be established & it creates a place of safety for kids to be involved.

2.  Parental involvement & support—One of the reasons that Bible Quizzing is successful is that parents are directly involved.  There are more parents that help than ones who drop off their kids.  Everyone knows the purpose & goal.  There is a lot of work that goes on at home prior to our meeting times so the parents often want to see the end results at the meetings.

3.  Routine—We meet on certain days of the month.  It is consistent and there is little change.  Also each meeting has a routine.  Fellowship time(5-10 minutes), Quiz 1, 2(1 hour), Team meetings or devotion(20 minutes), Quiz 3(15-20 minutes), Clean up time(10 minutes.

4.  Communication—Reminders, updates, calendar changes are all vital for keeping everyone on track.  An initial calendar and information sheet that is available on paper & then can be emailed. 

After that most communication is done via email.  It works to have each person reply & if a family doesn’t reply then a quick phone call can be done to verify they have the necessary in formation.

These ideas are geared toward any teen activity.  However if you are interested here are 10 Reasons Bible Quizzing is WORTH it!  Hope this helps you as you navigate the teen years & I encourage you to get involved in your teens lives and the activities they are enjoying.

My prayer for my children—Fear not. Stand firm and see the deliverance of the LORD.  Exodus 14:13