Favorite Thanksgiving Recipe~priddymomma

Hey guys!  I know this is a little strange, since today is Halloween and all, but this week, we’ll be sharing our favorite Thanksgiving recipes.  Hey.  If the stores can have Christmas stuff out now, then we can talk about Turkey Day, right?!  

I love Thanksgiving, and I make several dishes.  My favorite thing to make, smell, and devour though is cranberry sauce.  Before you roll your eyes, hear me out!  I make cranberry sauce with tasty honey crisp apples cooked up in it.  SO much better than the tart sauce with orange peel most households eat.  A million times better than jellied cranberries!  The kids love it, and leftovers are fantastic on pancakes!  It’s super simple to make, cranberries keep practically indefinitely before cooked, and you get to impress your relatives with your amazing culinary skills.  What’s not to love?  Leftover cranberries are beautiful and can be used in a centerpiece.  Lucky you!  I even have some pictures on hand from a few Thanksgivings ago! 

Cranberry Applesauce (as seen in Parenting magazine November 2008) {photos by me!}

 

Okay...so maybe it looks like gore.  But it is delicious!

Prep:  15 minutes

Cook: 15 minutes

Yield:  6 servings

3 cups (or 12 oz.) cranberries

2 apples {I recommend honey crisp.  I’ve tried others, but these give the best flavor.}

2 cups sugar {white sugar.  Brown sugar can be used if you want a more syrupy sauce}

¾ cup water

¾ cup apple juice

1. Place cranberries in a strainer; rinse and pick them over, removing any stems or blemished berries.  {Kids can help!  It takes forever and it’s BORING, so I def recruit help.  Look out for soft berries and pitch them as well.}
2. Peel, core, and dice the apples. {I make hubby do this while my son helps me sort the berries.}
3. In a large saucepan, bring sugar, water, and apple juice to a boil.  Add berries and diced apples.  Boil, stirring continuously, for 10 minutes, or until berries pop. {When the berries start to pop, don’t be alarmed.  Also, be warned that it is going to begin to smell amazing very soon.}
   
4. Cover and refrigerate for 3 hours, or until chilled.  Serve cold. {This is amazing to make up the day before Thanksgiving.}

How Kids Can Help:  Measure ingredients; check the berries; dice apples with a small plastic knife {stay out of the way, sleep, clean the bathroom…}

Per serving:  328 calories, 0 g fat (0 g saturated), 2 mg sodium, 0 mg cholesterol.

Happy trails!

Books!

Hello!!
I am so sorry I have not blogged in a while, but I am back:)

We have been insanely busy.  Just the past month, aside from the normal--school, work, babysitting, and just trying to have some family days, we have had two weddings, a funeral, some crazy family problems that I'm not going to get into and I wish upon no family, kids had the chicken pox, I has the stomach flu, been working on some other time consuming stuff that is a result of the previous family issues that I mentioned, and my father was admitted to the hospital for bacterial pneumonia. AND my Brother is getting married tomorrow! ahhhhhh!

So enough of the mumbo jumbo excuses for not blogging....here we go.

Unfortunately, I do not read books....well sometimes I read the books for my classes, but most of the time I do not actually read word for word or the whole book. I can however, give a review of the last book I read for one of my classes. It is called Gifts: How Children with Down Syndrome Have Enriched Our Lives. Edited by Katherine Sober. This book consists of 63 stories from mothers about their child. It is very inspiring to read these stories. Some of the women talk about how they were towards others with disabilities before they had their children with Down syndrome. They regretted what and how they thought. Some of the women knew when they were pregnant something was different, and some received tests and found out before their child was born. Those who had a test were given a choice whether to terminate their pregnancy because their child would have Down syndrome. I do not understand how someone could make that choice just because their child may be different. People with different abilities are some of the most amazing people in this world. Some stories were funny, some were sad, but all the stories had a good message.
            
I would recommend this book If you:

• Like reading stories about other families
• Are a mother of or know someone with Down syndrome
• Like to read many short stories
• Like true stories
• Would like to know a little more about Down syndrome

 I really enjoyed reading Gifts. I hope I have the chance to read more books like this. Actually, I hope to have the chance to read more in general.

Thanks for reading, I hope everyone has a great week!

Top 10 Surprising Books~priddymomma

Hope you all are doing well!  This week is top ten books that surprised me.  Here we go!

10. )    

The Hunger Pains:  A Parody by The Harvard Lampoon

I was so disappointed with this book.  It is supposed to be funny and mock The Hunger Games.  It was just terrible.

9.)       

Into the Wild (Warriors series book one) by Erin Hunter

This is a book series for kids about cats.  I was lacking reading material one day, walked past it in the library, and thought what they hey.  I read the entire series.  It turned out to be full of action and quite interesting.

8.)       

The Stand by Stephen King

I was expecting the post-apocalyptic scenario.  I wasn’t expecting the supernatural tone.  So good.

7.)       

A Series of Unfortunate Events (complete work) by Lemony Snicket

I confess I saw the movie first.  The books are tragic and hilarious, and the ending is absolutely depressing.  I’m not sure if I recommend it or not, to be honest.  It made me feel too much.  Boo feelings.

6.)       

The Da Vinci Code (Robert Langdon book two) by Dan Brown

Amazing book, and great movie!  Dan Brown writes books that keep you thinking long after you’ve closed them.

5.)       

Message in a Bottle by Nicholas Sparks

Stupid book had me sobbing all over the place.  I recommend it if you hate happy endings. 

4.)       

Mockingjay (Hunger Games book three) by Suzanne Collins

There were so many plot points towards the end that just blew my mind.  Great read.

3.)       

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter book seven) by J.K. Rowling

No list of surprising books would be complete without Rowling.  All of the series by right should be here, but Deathly Hallows is my favorite and thus takes the cake. 

2.)       

Cold Days by Jim Butcher (book 14 in Dresden Files series)

Page turner with several twists, and is 14^th book in the series but best yet.  I have no idea when the next comes out but I’m pulling out my hair here.

1.)       

The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan (book three in Heroes of Olympus series)

If you’ve read anything by Riordan, you know he’s a master plot weaver.  But the literal cliff hanger at the end had me reeling and tossing the book across the room.  Jerk.  DON’T MESS WITH MY PERCABETH!!!

Top 10 Books That Surprised Me

Hello! I'm a day late for mine but I'm back! :) I've been moving and working a heck of a lot, but I'm now back into a groove. :). This week we're discussing ten books that surprised us. 

1. The books of Pellinor by Alison Croggon. One of the few young adult fantasy novels that hasn't been made into a movie yet, these aren't just a typical YA read. The prose in these novels was so well written it reminded me greatly of Tolkien. Definitely a must read. 

2. Divergent by Veronica Roth. The Hunger Games started me down the path of dystopian fiction, and this series just encourages that love of the genre. Set in dystopian Chicago, it's my favorite, even topping Suzanne Collins' work, in dystopian fiction. 

3. Birthmarked by Caragh O'Brien. Besides being written by a woman whose name is the most Irish I've ever seen, this book is spectacular. It too is a dystopian fiction, but it explains why; the severe environmental destruction of the country caused a group to create the Enclave. Global warming, not war, caused this bleak world. It focuses on a young midwife, Gaia, and her fight against the Enclave. 

4. Rose Madder by Stephen King. This book TERRIFIED me. Yes, I know King's work is meant to terrify, but this one just did it for me. I had NIGHTMARES because of this book about a woman fleeing her sadistic abusive husband. I can't even LOOK at a tennis racket the same. 

5. Code Name: Verity by Elizabeth Wein. This book (as well as #6) are all about the World War II era. This book gave me chills. It is in the viewpoint of "Verity," an Allied agent who is captured by Nazis in Vichy France. Pure enjoyment. Though have some tissues.

6. Anne Frank and Me by Cherie Bennett. I read this book early in high school and it remains one of my favorites. Truly, I cry every time I read it. Nicole Burns understands how important the Holocaust is, but has no attachment to it and thus no real feelings until she's suddenly thrown into occupied France as a Jewish girl. 

7. Everneath by Brodi Ashton. A supernatural romance! The ending gets me, and I need to find the next book in the series. I'm just chomping on the bit. 

8. Pure by Julianna Baggott. Another dystopian fiction, involving a nuclear attack on the country. The elite were all sent to bio domes that protected them from all radiation while those outside became mutated. I loved this book. I'm not sure how realistic it is, but it is entertaining.

9. Hana Yori Dango by Yoko Kamio. Okay, okay, this one is not a NOVEL, but it is a book. It is a manga series from Japan about a poor girl named Makino Tsukushi standing up to the elite F4- 4 uber rich boys who set out to ruin fellow students if they are slighted. It's a fun read and there's even live action tv shows based on it. (Granted, they are Korean and Japanese, but if you're cool with reading subtitles, you'll enjoy it! I recommend the Japanese version, personally.)

And because "surprising" could also mean "surprisingly bad", my last book is a book I couldn't believe how terrible it was (in my opinion--- if you like this book, great! But I hate it.)

10. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. This novel did not really mark itself as a romance, so I was a bit surprised when I started reading it. It started out fine, a book about a newlywed getting sent back to medieval Scotland on her honeymoon, but once it got to Claire, our protagonist, getting married to a second guy, getting beaten by her new husband (because she didn't listen to him when she was trying to leave to go back to her time!), and the wholly unnecessary male rape scene at the end, I was disgusted. Ugh. This is the LEAST romantic novel I've read (and I've read quite a few!)

Xoxo, 

Kimberley

Best Family Vacation~priddymomma

Princess Cheerio is 18 months old.  We haven't gone on an official vacation with her yet.  This summer, we went camping.  While it was still fun, I thought we had to build an ark.  These pictures were from one of the rare sunny post-rain moments. 

We went camping at Tippecanoe River State Park in Winamac, Indiana right after I found out I was pregnant with Princess Cheerio.  That stands as our favorite family vacation.  The weather was great, Cheerio Champ loved being outdoors, and we did some real bonding as a family.

I ended up sleeping rather a lot as I was exhausted from the first trimester of pregnancy.  We couldn't do nearly as much hiking as we wanted, because the mosquitoes were terrible on the trails!  But it ended up being so relaxing and fun.  We didn't anticipate how much we would enjoy just being there and being outside.  The campsite there had plenty to see and a playground for Cheerio Champ to visit.  The bathrooms had tree frogs, which Cheerio Champ thought was awesome.  And the long car trip was pleasant as Cheerio Champ loves car rides.  Oh yeah.  Our car battery died overnight as well, but we got a jump from a friendly camper and made it home just fine.  All-in-all, it just goes to show you that the road bumps are the parts that make a trip memorable.  If your vacation isn't going as planned, there might just be more fun in store than you could have imagined. 

Terrible Twos and Temper Tantrums~priddymomma

Hey guys!  Did ya miss me?  I posted on my "Bits of Everything" blog about where I was last week

Sock Drawer Surprise

On top of that awesome fun, I was also sick.  Still am, actually.  The thrills!

20 minutes later and someone will be crying  *sigh*

 Anywho, enough of my lame excuses!  We're here to talk terrible twos and temper tantrums!  I feel like just referring you all to Tori's post from Tuesday.  She and I have kids around the same ages.


The first thing you need to keep in mind is that "terrible twos" is just a title given to a stage that starts right around 18 months and ends somewhere around 18 years.  Parenting has a lot of limit-setting.  Your kids are going to surprise you with random awful things they have never done before, and it will probably be while you have company.  Princess Cheerio just hit 18 months five days ago, and it was like some switch just flipped somewhere in that little brain of hers.  That switch must be labeled "destruction", because if you could see my living room right now...actually, I'll take a picture just so I can post it.

Yeah.  That's not a reenactment, folks.  And that was all her.  AND it has been partially cleaned by my son!

Princess Cheerio has made it her new mission in life to throw all papers and scatter all books within her reach.  And if she can't reach it, she gets mad and FINDS A WAY!  Enter chair scooting, block stacking, and my favorite, bookshelf climbing.  Just today she tore my living room a new one, scattered the papers off my desk (which really annoys me, btw), pulled an exercise DVD down that I just received in the mail and proceeded to chew on and then throw it, lost my place in a book I was reading (grr...), tried to destroy the Wii and DVD player at the same time, attempted to climb the baby gate because big brother was in the kitchen with mom and dang it I am hungry NOW!, ran from me when it was finally time to eat, dumped her cereal bowl on her head (twice), had a meltdown because she couldn't have the Halloween decor I was hanging on the ceiling, threw her bed lovies and blanket on the floor instead of sleeping, and took off her pants the moment I wasn't looking just because she could.  I probably missed something.  And before she was so sweet all the time.

Part of that is indeed because she is developing a greater emotional range.  We have been encouraging her to use her words.  Today, that resulted in daddy trying to wrestle her into a diaper while she screamed, "I'm MAD MAD MAD MAD MAD MAD MAD MAD!"  In that case, I don't think words worked out too well.  I would have liked a better explanation, for one thing.  Second, that much was kind of obvious by the screaming, red face, and flailing.  Just saying...

During that event, it would have been more useful to have her practice taking deep breaths.  I highly recommend the deep breathing technique for your toddler or for yourself when you toddler touches that forbidden object JUST ONE MORE TIME!  

The number one thing I can tell you is something you are probably already doing:  love your child.  Sometimes the tantrums and the mischief are just attention-seeking behaviors.  When they are at their rottenest and least loveable, that is when they need the most loving and understanding from you.

Catch ya next week, folks!  See ya!

Terrible Twos and Temper Tantrums ~ Tori

All kids go through it. Even the most sane, loving, well behaved child will eventually enter the terrible stage. It's a fact of life. But the thing is that it isn't just two year olds! It's threes, fours, and yes sometimes fives! Not having a child at the age of six (just yet, give it another month) I'm not sure if it continues after that, but I guess we shall see. (I'm hoping it begins to taper off. LOL)

For my oldest son, he didn't start his terrible stage until he turned three. Then we had the terrible threes, but for my youngest son we are definitely in the terrible twos.
I can't blame them really, as children are growing out of infancy they start testing their limits. This can end in a good and bad way. Of course we all want to get our way. Who doesn't? But as they begin to test their limits and are moving around relatively unassisted on their own they begin to hear that dreaded word...NO! That's not a word that has a happy place in a toddler's vocabulary. Well not when it's being told to them anyway.
Toddlers are also dealing with more emotions than ever and how to handle those emotions is key. Often they don't know how to handle how they are feeling or they cannot explain it. This is where we as parents need to help them with that. There are methods for each kind of tantrum. Not saying any of these methods will work 100% of the time but they sure can help.

• Talking- If your child is old enough to understand what you are saying sometimes the calm approach is best. Discuss how your child is feeling and why. When my son gets upset I tell him to take a few deep breaths before he explodes.
• Re-direct their anger and discuss other ways they can express themselves that doesn't involve throwing a fit. Again discuss how they are feeling and why.
• Sometimes ignoring bad behavior can also have a positive effect. As long as your child's behavior isn't hurting anyone (other than maybe grating on some nerves) just take a deep breath and let it go. Say calmly and simply "No you are not getting that toy today" and leave it at that. They are throwing the fit to get the attention and bad behavior is not rewarded.

Every child wants to be in charge, but the key is to let them know that no matter what you are still the one in charge and that isn't going to change. Tantrums will still happen but will either decrease in severity or how often they happen. My oldest son knows better these days than to argue with me over getting a toy when we go shopping or getting this or that. He knows by now that when I say no it means no and crying or screaming about it will do no good.
My youngest son however has not grasped this fact yet and probably won't for a little while still. He is still learning and coming into his own. Eventually though he will get it.

So don't get stressed when your child is screaming at the top of his/her lungs. Don't be embarrassed. I guarantee there are other mothers wherever you are that have been there and done that. Don't let anyone make you feel bad about it either because tantrums are just a normal part of your child and having a child. They are going to happen whether you like it or not. It's normal and even healthy that your child is developing, testing limits, and learning his/her own sense of self. Take a deep breath and push on, the tantrums won't last forever.