Already?

Yesterday we returned home from our last trip of the summer. When we got home we headed outside after dinner, the kids anxious to play with their neighbourhood friends. As we sat there visiting with our neighbours in the cul de sac, it occurred to me just how chilly it was. It smacked of fall. Where has time gone?

Unbelievably enough,  next week we begin the school year, being teachers, with a couple of days of work. Sigh. I know work is necessary for survival, but really, it does get in the way of a lot doesn't it?Certainly it doesn't lend itself well to maintaining my pastimes this summer: cooking lots of new things, constant play dates and trips to the beach, reading stacks of books as high as my head, gardening. This summer was lovely. I think I'd love retirement.

Last night I also picked through my garden, and pulled out MONSTER carrots. Lots of monster carrots. See, I've never had much luck growing carrots, so this year I planted a ton, in hopes some of them would grow. And grow they did. This begs the question, what does one do with a bazillion monster carrots?

Well, add together impending busy schedules, and monster carrots, and the sum is clear: soup. I grew up hating soup. HATING soup. You know the kid that takes a mouthful of food, then runs to the bathroom claiming a desperate need to pee, then spitting the food into the toilet for a good flush? That was me with soup. I still am not a huge fan of soup, but I'm certainly more amenable to it than I was in my youth. These days I'm happy to make my own brodo, chicken soup and pureed veggie soups. They are handy to have in the freezer and really, when eaten with a big thick piece of lovely bread and butter, are delicious.

Where else does one go for inspiration these days than Pinterest? Want a million recipes for soup- there's your source. There I found this one which looked great:
http://joythebaker.com/2011/04/carrot-apple-ginger-soup/

This became my guide for what went in the pot. It turns out I'm more like my mum than I realized, and in went the kitchen sink. You have to use things up somehow right?

Here's what I came up with:


Ingredients: (serves a lot. When I make soup, I make soup. There will be enough to freeze at least 4 freezer portions to serve 2 people). 
-6 large carrots, peeled and chopped into chunks
-2 small yams, peeled and chopped into chunks
-1 medium onion
-3 large cloves of garlic, grated
-4 inches of fresh ginger root, grated
-Optional: beets (I used 1 small red beet, and 2 medium golden beets)
- 3 apples, peeled and chopped into chunks
- Vegetable broth (I used 2 tetra packs 900ml each)
-cinnamon to taste
-nutmeg to taste
-salt and pepper to taste
1. In a large pot, heat 3 or 4 tbsp of olive oil. 
2. Saute onion until translucent and fragrant. (About 3 minutes)
3. Add garlic and ginger. Saute another 4 minutes or so. 
4. Add carrots, yams, beets and saute about 5 or 6 minutes. 
5. Add broth and bring to a boil. Allow to simmer for another 10-15 minutes, until veggies are soft. 
6. Transfer the soup into the blender and puree in batches. 
7. Return the pureed soup to the pot and add the spices, tasting as you go. 

Because I was making this with the thought of feeding it to an upcoming guest who is vegan, I opted not to saute the onion and veggies in butter, but used olive oil instead. I like butter though, as it is creamy and smooth. Also, I didn't use chicken broth, which I would have most likely otherwise. 

Using yams makes it very creamy and smooth. The apples lend sweetness to the soup, but not distinct apple taste. The beets are nice for colour, but don't taste at all, which makes it possible to feed it to my dad (who does not have the beet gene). It is delicious. It would go down nicely with a grilled cheese sandwich with prosciutto and pickle in the middle (not to toot my own horn but, I make the best grilled cheese sandwiches in the world- ask my sister). There is something that makes the things you grow yourself taste better than that which comes from the grocery store. Those carrots are deeeeelicious, and the beets are so tender and yummy too. Try it out, you won't be sorry. 



Happy trails!

It never stops...

What never stops, you ask? Well, let's put it this way. It is early August. As a teacher, my reaction to back-to-school flyers and commercials is palpable. My stomach turns, my eye starts to twitch, and worst of all that vein in my temple starts to pulsate. Don't get me wrong, I really love my career, but geez... can't we all just relax for the full two months?

And sadly, as much as this is the case, I'm guilty of the perpetual moving hamster wheel. What I mean is, I'm always thinking about school. I was beyond thrilled in July when on holidays at the lake, I went into a new dollar store and scored some super cool new classroom decor for a steal. I was really excited when a box arrived on my doorstep from Long & McQuade containing all the music my students will perform this year.  This morning I spent a good couple of hours planning and prepping a new fun bulletin board for back to school (I'm thinking a huge painted Mr. Incredible with comic book star bursts saying "Music is Incredible"... got to find ways to appeal to boys particularly- what better way than through a superhero?) This is all proof positive that teaching is not a 10 month of the year, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. job. I challenge anyone who thinks that way to come hang out for a while.

I have to admit, the artistic/creative part of teaching elementary music (make no mistake, I'm a high school teacher by training and find it so much more instinctual for me), is one of the things I love the most. I've discovered how visual smaller children are. They respond so well to bright, beautiful spaces. I've learned they are more likely to take risks in an inviting space. I've learned that they love those things which are tactile and manipulatable. All these tools are not simply a matter of interior design, they really do go a long way to ensure that their learning is play based. The kids tend to forget that they are learning. Actually, when it comes right down to it, I'm sure high school students would respond well to this also, I just never seemed to have time for such things like that between festivals and musicals and concerts and trips and... and... and...

This week I've also devoted at least 10 hours crafting for school purposes. My friend Lisa came over for Stitch n' Bitch night. It had been a stretch of rather hot weather. You know, the kind of weather that is suffocating, and thus zaps you of all reasonable intelligence and energy.  I had intended to get cracking on a rather wonderful lunch bucket for the boys. The pattern is a beauty, and seemed simple enough. But when Lisa arrived and I set out to do it, I stood there staring at the instructions with a glazed over look on my face. They may as well have been instructions for assembling Ikea furniture. I could not for the life of me figure out what to do. Sometimes you got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em, know when to walk away, know when to run. I walked away. But, one cannot waste an ever precious stitch n' bitch night, productivity was still required. I pulled out my enormous stash of felt and got working on a craft that is brainless, but time consuming.

One thing I've loved using with my kindergarten and grade 1 students has been felt songs and stories. They love them. I have no idea why more so than anything else, but they all delight in these things.  I had my dad make me a large framed board, Ethan painted it for me and I used spray adhesive to cover one side with craft felt (yep, it is a family sweat shop that I run). Periodically I will cut out the pieces for a song or story that I use in class. My collection was small: I had done Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Bill Martin, Five Green and Speckled Frogs (Raffi's version), Five Little Pumpkins Sitting on a Gate (Raffi again) and Must be Santa (good old Raffi gets a lot of love in my classroom).

Felt stories are super easy to make. Simply cut the shapes out of felt and you're done. And don't get me wrong, everyone knows I'm not artistic. With the world at our fingertips it is easy to find clip art and graphics that are easy to replicate. I like to add the details with fabric paint, and sometimes googly eyes or pom poms. Over the last few days I've added 5 felt sets to my small collection. I like to use felt bits for cumulative songs or stories (you know, ones that have lists in them ie... ho ho ho, cherry nose, cap on head, suit that's red, special night, beard that's white) or counting songs where you sing the same thing several times (ie. Five little... any number of things from pumpkins to frogs, to monkeys).

True to form, my own kids loved the sets I made. If I was a nice mum, I'd make a board for at home and some sets here, they'd love that. But it is time consuming, and I'm nothing if not too lazy to do the same thing twice. But one could very easily make a good at home version. An Ikea poster picture frame without glass would work nicely. Or a travel version on a small cookie sheet (oooh.... and that way one side could be a magnet board too!) would be fun too. If you have small kids, guaranteed this would be a hit. Or what a fun birthday gift- with the pieces in a fun little drawstring bag?! Endless possibilities with this project.

Here's the final tally of my work this week:
1) Chicka chicka Boom Boom (by Bill Martin)














2) Slippery fish (Charlotte Diamond)

3) There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly














4) A Hunting We Will Go













5) Nativity set (to be used with Raffi's There Was a Little Baby)


One website I've come across which had a bazillion template sets was www.makinglearningfun.com.

And after 10 hours of cutting and painting, suffice it to say I won't be doing any more felt stuff for a while. Albeit satisfying and cute, it is rather mind numbing too.

September is inevitable isn't it. And there is something to be said for routine. But tomorrow, I'm going to read a book.

Happy trails!

PS: My garlic is ready- woohoo! I do so love to garden...

This could work, maybe... just maybe!!

So those of you who've been here before will be well aware of the fact that I'm a hopeless failure at producing kids who eat well. My kids are energetic, smart, articulate, funny, gentle, playful and a myriad other fine qualities, but they STINK at eating. And by stink I mean, one in particular has the horrendously powerful weapon of the ability to woof his cookies on demand when the food is not pleasing to him. He's indiscriminating too... he is equally resistant to the normal sweets a child loves (ie. jelly beans, gummy bears, popsicles, juice) as he is to the stuff I want him to eat (fruit, veggies etc.) The other child is pretty decent when it comes to food, but has learned from his brother that it is ok to pull Ghandi-style hunger strikes, making the most dedicated and well versed Satyagraha practitioner look like a hack. It is exasperating in all kinds of ways, and I've tried so many tactics from hiding nutrition, to making dishes themselves special, yelling, screaming, crying, begging. Aside from the first on that list, which is insanely labour intensive, all tactics have been more or less, completely ineffectual. The doctor's advice was to wave my white flag and serve peanut butter at every meal if that is what they want. Eventually, she says, they'll get over it and want something more. Right. Thanks so much for that gem.

We just returned from holidays, where I experienced the most embarrassing event. One son, who shall remain nameless, would of course never eat anything when we were out for dinner, so as usual I didn't force the issue, and brought a hot dog with us as I always do so as to avoid ugly behaviour. Well, this time differed from other family dinners as there was a wee girl of 5 years who saw him eating the hot dog, and she pulled a fuss, refusing to eat a beautiful meal that she normally would have gobbled down, until her mum made her a hot dog too. I've lost count as to how many times I apologized for this, but it was high for sure. My ears still get red with embarrassment now. And then the frustration starts. Why??? Why the heck won't they eat?

So, I've stewed (those who know me know that I am nothing if not a total stewer), for days now, and have come up with a new tactic. The one I've avoided until now because all the "experts" and books tell you NO WAY. It is a simple principle, age old in fact. Bribery. Don't judge me... would you go to work if you weren't being paid to? Let's be honest.

This morning in a last ditch attempt to reduce the number of different foods I cook at any one given meal, I printed out a chart with 35 squares on it. Here's the deal: each time the boys eat the meal that we eat, or at least a selected portion thereof, they get a sticker in a box. 35 stickers, and the prize is $20 and a trip to a toy store. GASP. Yes, I said $20 and a trip to a toy store. Those of you with kids who eat well, go ahead and click your tongues in disgust. I'd be doing the same thing too. If I hadn't tried everything already, I wouldn't be reducing myself to this.

Today's menu for us was chop salads, with sliced chicken breast, blueberries, strawberries, celery and avocado. I was successfully able to get one child to eat one slice of cucumber (which was an enormous accomplishment if you know the child), applesauce mixed with vanilla yogurt (more fruit there than he's eaten in 2 months), and slice chicken breast (I know... not in nugget form- amazing right?). The other child ate the same chicken, his weight in blueberries and a good two inches of cucumber. This is what is classified as a successful meal in our house. So successful in fact, that I'm blogging about it. And what's more, the most resistant of children said to his brother "Chicken is good to eat, you should try it". No vomit invited. I couldn't be more proud if he climbed Kilimanjaro.

I've also finally discovered the power of desserts. One book I read and took as gospel years ago now, said always served dessert with the rest of the meal. You shouldn't teach kids that some food is more valuable than others, otherwise they'll value dessert over healthy choices. I just woke up. Some food is more valuable. That's why you have to eat it FIRST. Duh. The boys ate quickly when presented with three possibilities for dessert: chocolate soy ice cream, pudding or a rice krispie square. Anyone who knows my kids has seen how long it takes for one in particular to eat anything, usually FOREVER, but this meal was one hour top to tall, and chock a block with things that he's normally rejected with more fervour than you can imagine. I'm a happy proud mama...

Happy trails!

PS: I'm considering bribery as a potty training tactic too... sigh... one day these problems will seem insignificant right?