Monday, October 31, 2016

...Happy Halloween...and Trunk or Treat...

...so...Happy Halloween...

...let me just say that I can hardly believe that it's Halloween...in the 'where-did-this-year-go?' kinda way...and you know what Halloween means...

...that's right...Thanksgiving and Christmas are just around the corner...and then the year is over...

CRAZY!!!
...anywhooo...whatever is Scout doing with that box...
...and what's that pile of goodies...with eyeballs...

...right again...it looks like the Cookie Monster melted in our den...HA!
...but he didn't...that's the Trunk decoration for Trunk-or-Treat...

...and it was so easy...and fun...and quick...and cheap...(it cost $2 for two blue tablecloths...we had everything else...paper plates....black construction paper...tape...black flannel...cardboard...and straight pins)...

...so here's how it all came together...

1) First we pinned the black flannel to the top of the trunk...and then just draped it over the outside bumper...
2) Then we just wrapped the first tablecloth around the trunk door hinge and pinned that in place...and stretched it tight over the top and wrapped the other corner around the other trunk door hinge and left the other side hanging down over the opening...
3) Then we just bunched up the hanging down part and taped it underneath to the trunk...
4) Next for the bottom part...we wrapped a corner of the second tablecloth around the same trunk door hinge...but instead of stretching it tight...we draped it loosely to form the bottom part of the Cookie Monster's mouth...and attached the other side to the other trunk door hinge...
5) Finally, we pinned the cardboard cookies and crumbs to the black flannel... and taped the eyeballs to the top...

...seriously the entire thing took about 20 minutes...
...then we carefully drove the Cookie Monster over to the Church parking lot and parked him beside all the other Trunk-or-Treaters...and we were ready...
...we had a lot of kids come through and Trunk-or-Treat...and then they got to play lots of games and activities...
...and there were tons of food and snacks in the picnic shed...

...and a bonfire too...but apparently I didn't take a photo of that...our Scout and some other Eagle Scouts built and manned the fire for safety...so I totally should have gotten a photo...
....the little kids really liked the Cookie Monster trunk...
...and we had a bucket of vegan treats...
...and in between Trunk-or-Treaters...I started a new prayer shawl....so I'll share that soon...

~Wishing you a lovely Halloween!

Saturday, October 29, 2016

...W.I.A.Y. ...and the very last of the Vegan Buffalo Mozzarella...

...since I did'nt do a regular What I Ate Yesterday this week...I thought I'd do it this weekend...

...we have certainly made good use of the Vegan Buffalo Mozzarella...
...and we used the final two balls as Vegan Cream Cheese...and it was perfect on a Vegan Everything Bagel...
...it certainly is a versatile Vegan Cheese...and it's one of the best we've tried/made...

...of course...on a pizza...
...as Mozzarella on Bruschetta ...
...as Vegan Saag Paneer...
...as Cottage Cheese...
Lunch - Progresso Tomato and Basil (which I almost boiled over in the micro...ooops), Toasted Vegan Cheese Sammie, Tea
...the weather has remained CRAZY warm for this late in the fall...and the Man was grilling again...and made some Sriracha Tofu...it's just tofu with Sriracha Sauce on it...and it was a little to spicy for me...
Dinner - Sriracha Tofu, Vegan Potato Salad, Vegan Baked Beans, Brussels Sprouts

...your turn to inspire me with what you ate yesterday...

...oh...and the Movie...my turn...we watched Today's Special...just a totally sweet film...nothing really bad happens...a little predictable...but a sweet movie to watch with teenagers...

...so...it's also your turn to inspire me with a good movie...

~Have a lovely day!

Friday, October 28, 2016

...at the pumpkin patch...and after...

...we finally made it to the pumpkin patch...
...the kiddos chose their perfect pumpkins...
...and then transformed them into Darth Vader...
...and Jack Skellington...

...have you carved your pumpkin yet?...

~Have a lovely day!

Thursday, October 27, 2016

...Easy Vegan Two Ingredient Almost Fat Free Biscuits...

...I didn't think I'd do a full What I Ate Yesterday post...because we had a super busy day yesterday...Kitten went to the vet and was spayed (she's recovering nicely)...so two trips there...(I'll do a Kitten update post soon...she's a sweetie)...and we just stood around the kitchen counter before Church last night and ate supper in a rush...I had leftover baked tofu, leftover green beans and a vegan cheese quesadilla on a homemade tortilla...no photos...and I have no idea what the Man ate...and Scout was not home...

...but...I can show you what I ate for breakfast...because it was AWESOME!...
...just two ingredients...Self-rising flour and vegan yogurt...that's it!...
...I drained my homemade yogurt because it was a little bit watery...but you probably won't have to do that...
...then I poured the 'whey' back into the yogurt maker...because I don't really care how watery the yogurt that I'm using to make new yogurt is...and measured out the yogurt for the biscuits...
...then added the SR flour...
...mixed just until moistened...don't overwork...
...turn dough out onto a floured board...
...fold over a couple of times and pat into a circle about 1/2 inch thick...
...cut out some biscuits...
...make sure you dip your cutter into the flour...this dough is kinda sticky...
...I baked mine on parchment paper...but if you're not going to you might want to lightly oil your pan...
...have your oven preheated to 450° F...(232° C)...
...and bake until golden...about 10-12 minutes...
...serve hot...we had some delicious homemade grape jelly with our light and fluffy biscuits...

Two Ingredient Almost Fat Free Biscuits

Ingredients

1 1/2cups self-rising flour (plus more for flouring surface)
1 1/4cups plain vegan yogurt

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450F. Mix just until dry ingredients are moistened and dough forms. Turn dough out, sprinkle with flour and pat dough into a 1/2-inch thick round. Dip a biscuit cutter in flour and cut out biscuits. Bake 10 to 14 minutes, until light golden brown.  Serve hot.

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

...our new tea pitcher...

...kinda loosely fits the W.I.P. Wednesday theme...and I'm saving the border on my sweet little blue baby blanket for Saturday when our N.O.A.H. group will have our fall retreat...I'll finish it there...
...you've seen this milk jug before...it was a free 'antiquing' find in North Dakota and we've used it so often for soymilk...sadly it's ingenious red solo cup lid cracked and wouldn't hold anymore...and new red solo cups are a slightly different size (bigger) and won't seal...arghhh...
...so once again I went on a hunt for a new lid...and I found one on an off-brand jar of olives...so I packed it full of aluminum foil and spray painted it red...

...y'all know how 'matchy-matchy' I am...
...shiny new red lid...we could have used it white I know...
...but this milk jug is even better for iced tea than for milk...because the little half moon ice cubes from our freezer...slip right in...
...pop the new lid on...
...and we're good to go...the handle is still very handy...

~Have a lovely day!

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

...a visit with Grandma...and a walk down memory lane...

...I'm still trying to get y'all caught up with our busy month of October...
...no visit 'home' is complete without a visit to Grandma...she'll be 101 on her birthday in March...

...while we were chatting...I said that would be an even bigger deal than turning 100...and she chuckled and said...'we'll see'...so CUTE!...
...Scout changed her whiteboard to the correct date (it was fairly early in the morning and it hadn't been changed yet)...'cause she asked what was going on that day...and we looked at her calendar and saw that there would be a movie at 2 o'clock...and she said she didn't want to miss it...again...so funny and CUTE!...
...Mom must periodically change the photos on Grandma's framed bulletin board...as there was this new one that I hadn't see before...

...didn't they used to take the loveliest photos?...so glamorous...not sure we'll look at our 70's and 80's photos years from now and think they were 'glamorous'...
...then back at Mom's...we were looking for a photo of Grandma's Lamp...and found some old photos of Scout...I always think it's funny to see myself in a photo...as I'm usually the one taking the photos...

...a fairly tiny Scout here hunting Easter Eggs at Grandma's house...funniest thing about the photo is Chox standing up like a weasel watching us off to the right...and Mom...I can't tell if she's pulling weeds (always a gardener...you know)...or hiding another egg...
...Scout got his first hand-me-down bicycle from his Grandma...and this was his first ride...
...Scout and his Grandma at 'Grandparent's Day' when he was in kindergarten...

...all so sweet and nostalgic...
...and speaking of nostalgic...we drove by the Church where we were married...
...we often do that when we're visiting...it's just a mile or so out of the way...and I just love looking at it...so many happy memories...
...and here we were on that very Church doorstep...so many years ago...stepping into our new life as a married couple...

~Have a lovely day!