Princesses

I've had friends who have little girls tell me of the struggle with the princess phenomenon. I would love to have a little girl someday but I don't look forward to contending with this princess movement. It's been nice knowing that Wes is content with dirt and trucks.

Below is an article that was linked to one of my KC friend's blog. I think it really sums up the problems with promoting this princess mentality and gives an alternative attitude for our girls and for ourselves as adult women following Christ. The article quotes largely from another writer. That writer had read a book that I read with my small group several years ago. There were some things I questioned about it then and since then, more and more questions have come up. It is good to know that others felt the same way about the book. I'd love your comments!

http://www.scriptoriumdaily.com/2011/06/02/why-disney-princesses-are-bad/

Taylor's Table - Chicken Stock

I've been watching the movie Julie & Julia this evening while giving my first go at hand quilting. As for the quilting, I need a lot more practice. Since what I am working on is a real quilt I plan to use on my bed and not just for practice, I took out what I had tried. It just wasn't very pretty. Now, if only I could sew a straight line on my sewing machine! Even with lines drawn! All I have to do is connect the dots, so to speak, and still, I can't manage a straight line! It does look better than the hand quilting attempt though.

Anyway, while watching the movie and after this attempt at hand quilting I was inspired to finally write an entry on making homemade chicken stock. I've been meaning to do this ever since I started "Taylor's Table." Here are some things you might be wondering... Why make homemade chicken stock? Isn't it a lot of work? Is it really worth all the trouble? I once wondered these very same things. After learning the benefits of this scrumptious staple and having worked out an easy way to make it, I rarely, if ever, buy chicken stock from a store. I'm a homemade chicken stock snob. :)

Why make chicken stock at home? Have you ever read the ingredients on store bought broth or bouillon cubes? Here are the first few ingredients in beef cubes - salt, hydrolized vegetable protein, corn syrup, sugar, beef fat, monosodium glutamate. Need I write more? On the other hand, homemade stock is VERY good for you. It has natural ingredients which feed, repair, and calm the small intestines, it heals the nerves, improves digestion, reduces allergies, relaxes and gives strength. For more information on this read Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon. Furthermore, making stock at home saves money and is the backbone for many recipes. Not to mention, if you cook the whole chicken in the broth, you have all that cooked chicken you can use in other dishes like chicken pot pie, chicken casseroles, chicken tacos or burritos, pizza, etc. (Stock is made only with the bones of a chicken which makes the broth more clear, whereas, broth is made with the meat as well and is not as refined and more cloudy. Stock is what professionals use to make sauces and other things that Julia Child would make that I haven't venture to try yet. Sometimes I make stock; usually I make broth.)

Isn't it a lot of work? Surprisingly, as you will see below, chicken stock/broth can be very easy to make and store!

Is it really worth all the trouble? Besides all the benefits that I wrote in the response to the first question, homemade broth tastes really good!!! Also, because it makes so much, you almost always have some available. By the time you run out, you need more cooked chicken meat anyway.

So how do you make it?

1. Purchase a good chicken. I either buy a rotisserie chicken, an organic chicken if the budget allows, a grass fed organic chicken if I really have a big budget (these are much better for you! but I've only bought one) or just an ordinary chicken from the local mega-chain store for .98 a pound. Honestly, there is not really difference in outcome where taste is concerned.

2. Clean the chicken. If you want to make a stock, roast the chicken first (I'll post a recipe for this later) and eat it, or take the cooked meat off the bones and use it in a variety of ways.

3. Put the whole chicken, or the bones of the chicken in a stock pot. Fill the pot with cold water. Then, chop up a few carrots and celery, add an onion cut in big chunks and add a bay leaf or two. To save time with this, when you use the vegetables for other dishes on other days, take what is left over after chopping (the onion skins, the ends and peelings of the carrots, etc.), toss them in a ziplock bag and store them in the freezer until you make stock. Then, pull it out and simply dump it into the water with the chicken.

4. Bring the water to a boil. When it starts to boil, use a large spoon to scoop out the foam. Then, reduce heat and simmer for at least 2 hours. Keep in mind that the longer you cook it, the more flavorful and nutritious it becomes. I have cooked it as long as perhaps 12 hours and as little as an hour.

5. Strain out the chicken, vegetables and bay leaves. If needed, you can use the broth right away; however, it might be kind of greasy.

6. To take out the greasiness, put the whole pot in the refrigerator for a day or two (I've left it in the fridge for as long as two weeks and it somehow still smelled and tasted wonderful!). The fat will coagulate on top. Simply skim it off the top.

You will probably have way more broth than you will be prepared to use right away. I have made as much as 20 cups of broth at one time. So, after a few failed attempts and broken jars, I've found an easy way to store the broth for later retrieval. Here's what you do... Pour your broth into ice cube trays. Pop them in the freezer until the broth is frozen, then store the cubes in a ziplock bag especially for freezers. 8 cubes make a cup, give or take a bit. This way, if you need two cups or eight, you can easily get what you need without having to thaw out way more than you need.

And that's it! Enjoy!

Addendum to a Previous Entry

Earlier I wrote a blog entry entitled "I'm Just Wondering" kind of as a vent of my frustration over the lack of availability of quality, simple toys. I just want to write to say that I have found some great toy stores that do sell quality toys.

Some of them are local to this area, just little shops in the villages tucked in and around the big trees and big houses of this great city. Another great store is called The Learning Tree that I also found tucked here and there around our area. I think it is more of a nationwide chain but it is still not one of those mega toy stores. It was quite a pleasure to look around in there. So, I don't feel quite so frustrated with the toy selection out there. Check out the Learning Tree and/or look up local toy shops in your area for a better selection than you will find at Target, Walmart and Babies R Us/Toy R Us.

Taylor's Table - Awesome Granola

I have tried different granola recipes that have been okay but not really keepers. However, I have now found a keeper! It is super easy, too. It is from Family Feast for $75 a Week that I checked out from the library in an effort to keep grocery prices down. The book has lots of great tips and many good recipes.

We like to eat this granola with yogurt, on our cereal (Cheerios and Shredded Wheat), or in our oatmeal.

Easy Granola (This is the book's recipe, halfed).

6 cups oatmeal

1/4 cup flour

1/2 TBS cinnamon - 2 tsp.

1/4 tsp nutmeg

2 cups of goodies (in the last batch I had a mix of 1 cup of sliced almonds, chopped pecans and sunflower seeds & a mix of 1 cup of dried currants, cranberries and chopped apricots).

1/2 cup of honey

1/2 cup of oil (I used light tasting olive oil)

1. P reheat oven to 325F. Grease 2-3 large baking sheets with cooking spray.

2. Combine oats, flour cinnamon, nutmeg & goodies

3. Combine oil and honey in 2 cup glass measuring cup. Microwave on high 2 minutes or until hot. Pour over dry ingredients & mix well.

4. Spread mixture over baking sheets; bake until light to medium brown, 15-20 minutes each - bake each pan individually for best results.

5. Let granola cool completely. Break up. Store in air tight container for up to 4 weeks.

ENJOY!

Streams in the Desert

Recently, to our great joy and delight and surprise, we were able to finally bring Wesley's adoption to a close. Naturally, whenever an adoption is finalized, the adopting parents and all other relatives are ecstatic but in this case words cannot express our relief and greatest joy because it was a contested adoption. The finalization brought to a close a six month journey of frustration, confusion, and fear about what would really happen in the end. It seemed like we were walking through a very dry desert. We could not bear to think of having to give Wesley up but at the same time we also had to think about it. Needless to say, God taught us a lot through the process. Here are some things in brief that put in our hearts as we sought His heart in the matter. These were streams in the desert for us.

1. Continually we felt the Lord asking, "Do you trust Me?" See, we had really felt that the Lord had led us to adopt after years of struggling through infertility and just because it was something that had been on our hearts for years, and for me, even while in high school and perhaps earlier. We prayed for God's timing to adopt, which agency to use, that God would guide the right birth parents to us, that the child given as a gift would be the one God chose for us. It seemed that through all the circumstances and decisions, we felt we had followed God. "Why then this unexpected struggle, Lord?" Repeatedly the Lord replied, "Do you trust Me? Or He would simply just say, "Trust Me."

2. We have learned through all of the roads of infertility and adoption and even with other situations and circumstances that we are not in control. Try as we might to have things work out the way we want, God has another plan, better than ours. It is good and we just have to let go and trust Him. (See #1) God does what He does beyond our comprehension, all for His greatest glory. We see now how much He was glorified in this in our lives and in the lives of others involved. We pray that continues.

3. Do what you feel the Lord is leading you to do even if it is the hard thing, isn't the normal course of action and doesn't make sense and the outcome isn't what you'd hoped and prayed for or even expected given that you thought that you were doing what the Lord wanted you to do and therefore the outcome must be in your favor. We did feel the Lord guiding us to do something very hard, that wasn't normal and didn't really make sense. In doing so we thought the outcome would have brought a positive answer for us given that the Lord had led us to do it. However, that was not the case, initially anyway. The adoption continued to be contested and we were crushed. We didn't understand why the Lord had led us to do this specific thing with all the anxiety it involved if it only brought about the same result. Again, the Lord said, "Trust Me." In the end, we clearly see how God very much used the route He lead us down to make a difference even if the result was quite delayed.

4. Related to that and all other points, God will display His power, love and glory by doing what only He can do. He certainly did this in this case.

5. Fight for what God has entrusted to you but hold it with an open hand. We came to realize how very much Wesley was/is a gift from the Lord. We knew this already but the reality of it became much more stark when we realized the gift could be taken away. And yet it was still a gift. We were given the responsibility to be good stewards of this precious gift and that too became much more real knowing that we might only have him in our arms a short time longer. We still had to be his loving parents for the time given to us to do so, to shower him with love and as stewards of what was entrusted to us, to fight for what we thought was good and right for Wes. And yet we had to realize that all things given to us are not ours really and are indeed never given with the promise of permanence except for salvation. As He has taught me about other things, even my own breath and life, we have to hold everything with an open hand, trusting that the Lord holds all things in His hands much more firmly than what we are allowed to hold and that He holds them forever. We can trust Him even when it doesn't make sense and it seems heart-wrenching to think we might have to let go.

6. As in other roads we've been down, He continues to teach us that God is enough. Nothing satisfies, nothing brings greater joy than the gift of His grace. He is enough for our sorrow and our hope, for our weeping and rejoicing. He gives us everything we need, and much more, and loves us perfectly although we in our imperfection, do not usually understand.

7. Also, we've seen how we have a faulty view of God and ourselves. I cannot really put this into words right now, it is something still formulating and digesting and will probably will be for all the days of our life as we continue to grow and learn more about God and ourselves in this fallen world.

8. Lastly, we've learned not to hesitate to bring those we love and who love us along on the journey as support and encouragement. The prayers and support of His people have lifted us up many times out of our sorrow and fear. We need each other desperately.

It is strange how, on the day we went to court in February, before we knew there would be a good outcome, that we both felt a peace. We were anxious, but there was a deep peace in knowing that God really was in control and that we really could trust Him. That only came by His grace and much, much, much wrestling and weeping and questioning.

If you're struggling through something, keep seeking. God will reveal Himself to you, perhaps in unexpected ways, but in fulfilling, satisfying ways that brings great unexplained peace beyond what you could imagine. He is faithful to Himself and to His people. You may not see the purpose of your weariness or even a good outcome but He will reveal Himself to you to be a good and loving Father, trustworthy and faithful, firmly holding you forever.

Two good books we've read are A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis and Streams in the Desert. C.S Lewis makes no bones about how he feels about his suffering and it is soul-healing to read how a godly, devoted man seriously wrestled with God in his grief. Streams in the Desert is a daily devotional that walks the reader through dealing with suffering, full of writings and hymns and poems from thoughtful, godly people of long ago.

Also, our church just did an 8-week sermon series on suffering leading up to Easter. It was very good! You can listen to it here - Suffering Series

Einstein Quote

Here is a great quote I heard on a PBS special on very elderly people. One man quoted this as part of his success in staying alive so long (most of these people were in their 90's and older1!) - keeping the mind and imagination strong. This encourages me because I love to create and imagine. I hope I never stop and can still keep doing so when I'm 90!

“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.”

Go do something imaginative! :)

Books for Little Ones

Up, Down, and Around by Katherine Ayres (gardening)
The Fathers are Coming Home by Margaret Wise Brown
1,2,3, To the Zoo by Eric Carle
Head to Toe by Eric Carle
Sleepy ABC by Margaret Wise Brown
Little Cloud by Eric Carle
I Love My Daddy by Sebastien Braun (precious, precious, precious!!)
I Love My Mommy by Sebastien Braun (also precious!)
Whose Mouse Are You? by Robert Kraus
Counting in the Garden by Kim Parker
Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert

Denise Fleming
Nancy Tafuri
Byron Barton
Sandra Boynton
Lucy Cousins

In the Tall, Tall Grass, Denise Fleming

In the Small, Small Pond, Denise Fleming

What About Bear?, Suzanne Bloom

Count!, Denise Fleming

Blue Goose, Nancy Tafuri

Goodnight, My Duckling, Nancy Tafuri

Maisy books, Lucy Cousins

Amazing Animals Series, Tony Mitton and Ant Parker

Does a Kangaroo Have a Mother, Too?, Eric Carle

The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Eric Carle

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, Bill Martin, Jr. and Eric Carle

Polar Bear, Polar Bear, Bill Martin, Jr. and Eric Carle

Panda Bear, Panda Bear, Bill Martin, Jr. and Eric Carle

Baby Bear, Baby Bear, Bill Martin, Jr. and Eric Carle

Counting Cockatoos, Stella Blackstone

Bear At Home, Stella Blackstone

The Cow Who Clucked, Denise Fleming

Barnyard Banter, Denise Fleming

All Things Bright and Beautiful, Ashley Bryan

What a Wonderful World, George David Weiss and Bob Thiele (Illustrations by Ashley Bryan)

Sleepy, Oh So Sleepy, Denise Fleming

Bear Wants More, Karma Wilson

Tip Tip, Dig Dig, Emma Garcia

Goodnight Gorilla, Peggy Rathmann

The Busy Little Squirrel, Nancy Tafuri

Faraway Farm, Ian Whybrow

Machines At Work, Byron Barton

The Three Bears, Byron Barton

Boats, Byron Barton

Trains, Byron Barton

Planes, Byron Barton

Trucks, Byron Barton

My Car, Byron Barton

Where’s My Duckling?, Nancy Tafuri

Little White Duck, Lyrics by Walt Whippo (Illustrations by Joan Paley)

If You Give a Moose a Muffin, Laura Joffe Numeroff

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, Laura Joffe Numeroff

If You Give a Pig a Pancake, Laura Joffe Numeroff

If You Take a Mouse to the Movies, Laura Joffe Numeroff

Who’s Awake in Springtime?, Phillis Gershator and Mim Green

Spring Things, Bob Raczka

This is the Farmer, Nancy Tafuri

Sleepy ABC, Margaret Wise Brown

Goodnight Moon, Margaret Wise Brown

The Runaway Bunny, Margaret Wise Brown

Big Red Barn, Margaret Wise Brown

Mama Cat Has Three Kittens, Denise Fleming

And the Train Goes… William Bee

Leo the Late Bloomer, Robert Kraus

Silly Little Goose, Nancy Tafuri

The Big Storm, Nancy Tafuri

Hurray for Fish!, Lucy Cousins

The House that Jack Built, Diana Mayo

We’ve All Got Bellybuttons, David Martin

One Little Seed, Elaine Greenstein

Color, Poem by Christina Rossetti (Illustrations by Mary Teichman)

Sandra Boynton board books (Barnyard Dance, Pajama Time, etc)

Poems and Rhymes

Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes

A Child’s Garden of Verse, Robert Louis Stevenson

Counting Kisses by Karen Katz

Where is the Green Sheep? by Mem Fox.

We're Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury.

Jamberry by Bruce Degan.

The Mitten by Jan Bret

Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You? by Dr. Seuss

Go Dog, Go by Dr. Seuss