Back-to-School :: 2022-2023
It’s been well over a month now since we started the new school year, but I wanted to go back and add these pictures to the blog anyway. The kids love looking back at the archives to see the pictures from over the years…
Chili for a Crowd
I was searching my blog for this recipe and found that it was still tucked away with a couple hundred other draft posts that have never been finished… Time to finally hit that publish button! It’s not a meal that I can eat due to my food intolerances, but our kids love it, especially our teens and young adults. When we hosted the older boys’ high school soccer team’s end of season party, just before moving out Oregon in 2018, it was the meal they requested, along with cornbread and pumpkin pie. It’s perfect for fall weather and I’ll be making it again soon for All Hallows’ Eve.
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 lbs ground beef
- 2 chopped onions
- 1/2 cup green peppers – chopped
- 1/2 cup celery – chopped
- 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
- 3 cans (16 oz) diced tomatoes
- 3 cans (16 oz) kidney beans
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 1/2 teaspoons oregano
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Directions:
- Saute ground beef, onions, pepper, celery and garlic. Drain fat.
- Stir in remaining ingredients. Cook over medium heat until it comes to a boil – 5 to 8 minutes.
- Reduce heat to low. Simmer 30-40 minutes.
- Serves 10.
Note: When I don’t have fresh bell peppers on hand, I use the Melange a Trois (Red, Yellow & Green Bell Pepper Strips) from Trader Joe’s. So easy and convenient when I’m in a hurry and need bell peppers for a recipe.
I usually follow the recipe as listed for just our family, or double this recipe when we are having company for dinner, and cook it in my beautiful cherry colored Staub Cast Iron 9-qt Round Cocotte.
Little Saints Preschool :: I Belong to God
The fourth time I started Little Saints: A Catholic Preschool Program with Classical Disciplines by Cynthia Blum back in 2016 I said:
I’m not sure how much of the Little Saints Preschool Program we will actually get to this year… However, considering it could very well be the last year we have a pre-schooler (our “baby” will turn five in December… how did that happen?!), I’m going to try and fit some of it into our schedule.
In addition to “I Look Like… ” (using a mirror) and “I Sound Like…” (recording them answering questions) we also enjoyed a Photo Album Family History Tour. Next I pulled out the “Parts of the Body” Learning Game I cut out about twenty years ago… Can you believe I still have it?!
1 pkg Namaste Foods Spice Cake Mix
3 eggs
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup oil
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 fresh apple, grated or chopped (skin left on is okay)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Powdered Sugar (optional for dusting)
Directions:
Heat oven to 350˚ F. Grease and flour a cake pan. (I choose this Cross Shaped pan for the feast day.) Combine all ingredients and mix well. Bake for approximately 35-40 minutes. Cake is done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes and remove from pan. Cool completely and then dust with powdered sugar.
*This cake can also be baked in a 9×13 pan for 35-40 minutes, a bundt pan for 45-50 min, or 2 -9″ round layers for 30-35 minutes.
State-by-State Baking :: Delaware Peach Galette
- All-purpose flour, for dusting
- 2 refrigerated pie doughs (from one 14-oz box)
- 1/2 c. granulated sugar2 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. cornstarch
- 6 medium peaches, pitted and sliced (about 6 cups)
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice
- 2 tbsp. heavy cream
- 1 tbsp. coarse sugar (like turbinado)
- Vanilla ice cream for serving (optional)
F is for First State Teacher’s Guide (pdf)
Delaware Notebooking Page from United States Maps
State-by-State Scrapbook
State-by-State Scrapbook :: Delaware
Early October Daybook
Outside my window…
I’m sitting at a little table next to one of the windows of Coeur d’Alene Coffee Co at the moment! Our 15 year old had a six hour shift at work and the older girls all encouraged me to spend sometime downtown, instead of driving back and forth today, and take advantage of the opportunity to catch up with work and maybe even put together a blog post or two… I think I remember how! 😉
Definitely thankful for everyone’s health and healing from all the little scares and injuries… It has been a year! The other morning, after driving my husband home from an early morning “trigger thumb” surgery (exercise injury that never healed) and while waiting at the pharmacy for his prescription, I started making a list of some of the medical issues this year…
- January: Covid again (hit me hardest and still dealing with fatigue, some of the kids were also sick), then (Chiquita) dislocated her knee again (second time for that knee, third time overall), plus bad bone contusion on foot (Twinkle Toes)…
- February: Split chin that was able to be glued instead of stitches (15year old)
- March: I fell for the third time in a month due to dizziness (wondered if it was all triggered by January sickness?)… this fall, down a couple steps onto concrete garage floor, resulted in a hip injury plus a TFCC tear to right wrist and left me in a cast like brace for 2 months. I’m still in Physical Therapy working on core strength and other issues.
- Also March: At that point I decided everyone needed to be caught up on Well-child visits… We have an amazing pediatrician who actually made a house-call for the appointments which was so awesome! Unfortunately those check ups led to an Echocardiogram for our baby girl (Joy – she is fine, but having dealt with possible heart surgery with Rose years ago, I was a little stressed…) as well as a spine x-ray for scoliosis for another daughter (she is still on the edge of mild and doesn’t need to do anything more at this time)… Then it was to the eye doctor for glasses (Chiquita).
- April: My husband injured his left hand and was in a splint for awhile hoping that would fix the issue (it didn’t). Put the older girls back in PT for their different knee issues hoping to build muscle (one keeps dislocating her knees and the other had knee surgery last year for a torn meniscus/golf injury).
- May: Braces (Rose)
- June – The fourth the fifth knee dislocations for poor Chiquita… I switched her to my physical therapist and thankfully it hasn’t happened again since! If it does surgery may be in her future.
- July: Rascal’s wrist was acting up, following a wrist injury in May of 2021… I sent him in for an x-ray… Scaphoid break that healed badly leaving a hole in the middle of it… Complicated surgery with a bone graft and 6-12 month recovery to follow… Two days before his surgery a friend accidentally hit him in the face with a ping pong paddle, cutting through his lip and breaking off that front tooth again! Ouch… Meanwhile my husband walked into a chair breaking his toe and James stepped on a wasp a day or two after returning from the Holy Land causing his whole foot to swell. (Somewhere in here I started joking about needing to bubble wrap EVERYONE!)
- August: Covid again – this time following a road trip to Oregon, mainly hitting our 15 year old and re-triggering extreme fatigue for me. John’s cast came off and he moved into a removable cast till at Christmas, just in time for his final semester and writing that thesis! (right hand too, and he is right handed of course) He also stepped on a wasp and had his foot swell. It’s almost comical at this point!
- September: Bee sting and strained back for me… switching back to some simpler PT exercises.
- October: Our anniversary was Sunday and (Chiquita) our 17 year old made a lovely brunch after Mass. After serving everyone and filling her own plate, she accidentally dropped it with the edge hitting her big toe… I took her to the urgent care (not broken thankfully, but a subungual hematoma) and while we were there I had them x-ray her wrist too. It had been hurting since a golf tournament two weeks prior… Doc came in and said nothing about the toe but rather “So… tell me about what you did to that wrist?!” Sprained and slight fracture! This girl has had the roughest year… At that point I did start crying/laughing when she was getting her wrist fitted… The fourth this year!
I am thinking…
Pretty sure that list above has a lot to do with why I am so tired and overwhelmed this year… Trying to persevere and offer up all these extra little crosses, but it sure can be hard sometimes.
Learning all the time…
Despite it all, our school year is off to a great start. I hope yours is too!
St. Therese, Holy Guardian Angels, St. Francis of Assisi, Our Lady of the Rosary… So many favorite feast days this time of year!
Our annual Michaelmas Cupcakes, Rose Cupcakes and a Keto Cheesecake for St. Therese, Apple Puff Pancakes for the feast of the Holy Guardian Angels, and our annual Wolf Paw Cookies for St. Francis of Assisi… this year it was all completely planned and pulled off by my older girls with no encouragement or direction from me!
I am working…
I am still working around 25 hours a week or so as Corporate Secretary and Treasurer for my dad and brother’s electrical business back in Oregon. Hard to believe it has been six years since I went back to work but definitely grateful for the extra income, being able to work remotely, and the additional income to help pay college bills, medical bills, and some of the other “extras”.
a (very large) file folder with all of our digital pictures. I have been working on it for a couple months now and still not finished sorting through and moving them to one place from a few old computers and an external hard drive. I just take way too many pictures!
I am going…
to try my best to start posting regularly again, but last time I said that life started spiraling out of control! I have so many things I would have loved to record here and just never seem to be able to make the time now that our children are adults down to toddlers and don’t all take an afternoon nap each day like they did when I first started blogging here over fifteen years ago. 😉
I am hoping…
we can make it through November and December without any more illnesses or injuries! 🙏🙏🙏
I am praying…
the rosary, especially during this month of October which is dedicated to the Most Holy Rosary.
lots of fables and picture books to our littlest two. We have been working on Primary Arts Language as well as some of the themes in the Little Saints Preschool Program and they love every minute of it!
from Joy in Suffering which I happened to pick up during my husband’s Holy Hour on our anniversary (which is sandwiched on the day in between the new and traditional feasts of dear St. Therese) last Sunday. We didn’t get to go out to dinner or anything, but the adoration hour together was perfect!
Around the house and One of my favorite things…
I love finding pictures on my phone or camera that one of our children took!
- Attending a wedding on Saturday
- Dinner with friends on Sunday
- Catechism on Monday
- Hockey on Wednesday
- Physical Therapy on Thursday
- Haircuts for older girls on Friday
- Bridal Shower next Saturday!
A little peek at our anniversary…
Holy Land Pilgrimage Part 8 – Kerak Castle Crusader Fortress
Day 13: Wednesday, July 20
Travel day to Amman. Departing Wadi Musa, we will visit Kerak Castle, one of the largest crusader fortresses in the Holy Land dating to c.1140. From there, it will be a scenic drive back to Amman for check-in at our hotel. Dinner and overnight in Amman.
More halls… So cool to imagine knights and other medieval folk walking down these halls just going about their daily life!
Still a little confused as to how this place got taken over…
Not the worst place to spend a birthday! 22 today!
A couple of the guys in our group offered to buy me a drink to celebrate.
Day 14: Thursday, July 21
Departure day for the US: early morning transfer by our private bus to Queen Alia Airport for the return flight home.
After 3AM Mass we headed to the airport to leave for the U.S.
Back Stateside!
First time in Seattle… (that I remember)
Holy Land Pilgrimage Part 7 – Petra
Day 11: Monday, July 18
Travel day to Jordan. After crossing the Jordan River on the Allenby Bridge/King Hussein Crossing, we will drive through the Jordanian desert up the mountains of Moab to Mount Nebo, where Moses saw the Promised Land before he died (Deut. 34). In Madaba, we’ll visit St. George’s Church to see the oldest extant map of the Holy Land, a 6th century mosaic; and then we’ll visit a modern mosaic workshop to see how mosaics are made in the same tradition. After lunch, we’ll drive through the desert towards Wadi Musa (the Spring of Moses) and Petra. On the way, if there is time, we will see the fortress of Machaerus where St. John the Baptist was imprisoned. Dinner and overnight in Wadi Musa.
Day 12: Tuesday, July 19
We will spend the day exploring Petra (Isaias 16:1), once a thriving center of trade and commerce, and the place where the Magi acquired their gold, frankincense and myrrh on their way to adore the Lord. It was the capital of Arabia Petraea, the “Arabia” where St. Paul spent three years after his conversion (Gal. 1:17-18) and began his ministry to the Gentiles. It became a holy place of martyrdom under the persecution of Diocletian at the beginning of the 4th century, hosted numerous Church councils and synods after 343, and eventu- ally converted entirely to Christianity after a miraculous rainfall sent by God in 423 to end a four-year drought, at the prayers of the holy monk Bar Sauma (Son of Fasting) and his forty compan- ions. We will have a chance to learn about the local bedouin culture here, as well as reflect on salvation history, evangelization and the spiritual desert, and the importance of daily conversion. Afterwards we’ll visit Moses’ Spring, where Moses struck the rock and water came forth (Num. 20:1-13), and Mount Hor and the Tomb of the holy Prophet Aaron (Num. 20:22-29). Dinner and last night in Wadi Musa.
Also… new fit for the desert.
Got my swim in! Felt so good after hiking around for 3 hours in 104 degree weather.
Such a FUN day!!! So sad this trip is almost over. 😢
Holy Land Pilgrimage Part 6 – Mount Carmel on the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and David & Goliath
Day 9: Saturday, July 16 and the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
On our Lady’s holy feast day, we will drive north to Haifa to visit Mount Carmel and the Stella Maris Carmelite Monastery, the center of Carmelite spirituality throughout the world. Underneath this church lies the cave where lived the holy Prophet Elias. After lunch at the Monastery, we will drive down the coast to Caesarea Maritima, which was an important center for Christianity connected with the Apostles and Church Fathers: Saint Peter, Saint Paul, Zacchaeus, Philip the Deacon, Cornelius the Centurion, Origen, Eusebius, and even the origins of the Nicene Creed. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.
Our last day in Jerusalem. After Holy Mass, we will visit the Israel Museum and see the amazing 22,000 square foot model of the Old City of Jerusalem as it was at the time of our Lord, as well as the Shrine of the Book that houses the Dead Sea Scrolls. We will also visit the Elah Valley where David slew Goliath (1 Kings 17), learn how he did it, and how to sling a stone in the same manner. We’ll then have a free afternoon to rest, re-visit holy sites in Jerusalem, and explore the Old City before we depart for Jordan the next day. Dinner and last night in Jerusalem.
🔥
Holy Land Pilgrimage Part 5 – Jerusalem
Day 7: Thursday, July 14
Golgotha, also known as The Place of the Skull, has been traditionally recognized has the place where Adam — the first human — was buried; and when the rock split during the earth quake Christ’s blood flowed down the crack and over the skull of Adam washing him in the blood of Christ cleaning him from his sin.
Holy Land Pilgrimage Part 4 – Bethlehem
In the morning, we will journey to the hill country of Judea surrounding Jerusalem to visit Ein Kerem, where lived Zachary and Elizabeth, the parents of John the Baptist (Luke 1). At the top of the hill stands the Basilica of the Visitation, where Our Lady met Elizabeth and pronounced her “Magnificat”, and at the bottom is the place where Zachary prophesied his “Benedictus”. Then we will journey to Bethlehem to see the fields where the shepherds received the “good tidings of great joy” (Luke 2) and visit the Basilica of the Nativity, where our Lord was born. Under that Basilica, an ancient monastery, lies the grotto where St. Jerome lived for 34 years, producing our monumental Vulgate translation of Holy Scripture, as well as numerous scriptural commentaries and theological works. Dinner and overnight in Jerusalem.
Jesus’ Birth Place – Bethlehem
0 Comments