My mom asked for the recipes I've been using lately and I decided to make her a cookbook for her birthday (as I write this it's the end of Oct and I'm still not done. Sorry mom!... Maybe I can get it done by Christmas. Part of my problem is that our old computer hadn't been upgraded since 2006 and was running REALLY slow and our hard drive was dying so Word wouldn't save anymore. Ryan's mom hooked us up with a new one when she was visiting in Aug. Thanks Diane!!! Now to figure out where I backed-up the cookbook file and find some time sit down and add my recipes!)
I used to like to "collect" kitchen gadgets a lot more than I liked to cook, but I'm really enjoying cooking a LOT lately. It seems like I have a theme going almost monthly. First it was sourdough, then green smoothies, homemade snack foods (e.g. graham crackers, cheese crackers, wheat thins, etc), now it's pulse breads, and it think sprouts will be next. I was exited to find there was a term for my food hobby: I am a foodie!
I've been using my old AF headset to grind wheat. One of our old neighbors was in my squadron and I used to think it was a bit weird when I saw him mowing the lawn wearing his headset. I'm not sure why it didn't get packed away in storage, but it does work well as hearing protection.
These are some of the things I cooked in April. Originally, I was just putting random photos in the cookbook, but most of them were of my kids eating sweets (like cotton candy, otter pops, etc). A few of the photos matched the recipes and then I wanted them all to match. This is getting to be a way more in-depth project than when I started. I don't feel ready to publish a cookbook yet! I still have so much to learn.
Ryan says I'm totally "granola" when it comes to food. I'm really still in a process of evolution. It worries Ryan when I say I haven't arrived yet. I still have 2 extremes: I eat very healthfully during the day and then after the kids go to bed I binge on processed sugary foods (it's especially bad b/c Ryan brings junk food home from the MTC that missionaries are getting rid of before they head out to their missions and now we have all the Halloween candy coming in).
I think I need a tortilla press (especially if I want to stop buying store bought ones -- homemade ones taste so much better), but I haven't found the perfect one yet and I want to wait until I know if we're going back to NE or how big my kitchen will be when we get where we're going.
These are my mom's "morning glory pancakes". Benjamin loves them but says they're better when grandma makes them (mostly because it means grandma is around).
Lime/Mango Biscotti. They tasted a lot better after a couple days when the flavors had melded. I love biscotti. Yum!
I missed posting this photo from the day after James' birth, but I thought it was applicable here (and saw it as I was sorting through photos this evening) because James was getting a taste of what he was getting into as a Lewis brother very early on.
This afternoon, Benjamin scammed a temporary tattoo from Alexander (I'm not that into temporary tattoos as it is and they normally disappear from our house before the boys can get to them, but that's another story). Anyway, Alexander was tired, but got really upset that Benjamin had applied the tattoo to his own hand. Benjamin felt bad and tried (unsuccessfully of course) to rub if off his hand onto Alexander's. Then, Benjamin not knowing what else to do wrote Alexander a "love note" as an apology:
I think it means "Alexander, I love you THIIIIIS much!" I love our boys.
