Returning to Normal

This past week Emily and I began to return to normal. As we put my mother's passing and the Christmas break behind us, we dove back into school and Cook Book Club. The theme for January was soup, so I made Bean and Bacon soup. Strangely enough as much as I cook, I had not made this type of soup before. I thought it turned out quite well and have decided to add it to my repertoire of often used recipes. Emily made striped delight which went over quite well. It is a dessert I used to  make quite often but hadn't made in a while, so it was a refreshing change. It is the perfect dessert for a party or get together. Here is the recipe in case you want to try it.

Striped Delight

1 cup flour                                                              ¼ cup sugar

1 cup ground nuts                                                    2 TBS milk

½ cup melted butter                                                 1 container whipped topping

1 pkg cream cheese softened                                    2 boxes chocolate pudding prepared

Combine flour, nuts, and butter until well mixed and press into the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan. Bake for 20 minutes in a 350 degree oven. When cool, mix cream cheese, sugar, milk, and whipped topping until smooth and layer on crust. Chill for at least thirty minutes. When chilled, prepare pudding according to box and pour over top of cream cheese layer.  Chill until pudding is set. Cut and serve.

Emily also made a birthday card for one of her friends. I know I'm probably partial, but I think her drawing abilities are quite good for an almost twelve year old.

 

And by coincidence, the book I chose to review this week, although not about returning to normal, is about returning. It is a follow up picture book to Tammi Sauer's, Your Alien. The first book was fabulous and this second book is equally wonderful. Your Alien Returns is the story of the alien taking his boy home for a play date. It is a story of working to fit in and not letting differences become hindrances to friendship. The illustrations are a bonus and add incredible dimension to the story as all good illustrations should.

Well, that about wraps it up for this week. Join me next week for another exciting episode, same crazy time, same crazy channel. Also be sure to drop by Literacy Musings Mondays for more great blogs as well as my personal website Fun With Aileen where you will find more on reading, writing, and my very own chapter and picture books. And finally, you can find me on twitter @AileenWStewart if you want an extremely brief glimpse into my days. 

 

Getting Back In The Swing of Things!

After Emily's and my recent trip, this past week was spent getting back into our home school routine, back to choir, and back to taking Emily to Wednesday church. I caught up on laundry, grocery shopping, and I readied for a weekend book event with one of my besties Deborah Boerema. Together we are known as the Story Sisters. I promote my five books and she promotes her Christmas story, The Innkeepers Dog.

I have always loved the Christmas hymn, The Friendly Beasts, and Deb's book is very similar to that hymn. Her main character, Thaniel the Spaniel, is the only animal that missed the birth of Christ, and he feels like he isn't special. However, the innkeeper's son and the other stable animals soon help him to realize that each of us is special. Deb has been having a bit of trouble with Amazon keeping her book stocked; but if you contact her directly, I'm sure she would be able to send you a copy should you want to purchase one of your own!

 

I finished up my very last batch of apple butter and made a snowman jar jacket for one of the jars I am going to give as a Christmas gift. All it takes is a little felt, a little thread, and some Velcro. First I took two pieces of cream felt and measured how high and how wide the pieces should be to cover a pint jar. Next I cut out an orange carrot shaped piece for the nose and two red circles for the cheeks. I sewed them on with a blanket stitch, stitched on some eyes and a mouth, and then blanket stitched the second piece of cream felt onto the back so the face stitching couldn't be seen. At first I didn't know how to make a blanket stitch, but a video soon had me stitchin' away. lastly, I attached the velcro to the edges and wrapped my jar. A small round piece of Christmas fabric over the lid and under the rim made my snowman look like he was wearing a hat.

I also read a book my library just purchased, and since I know the author Tammi Sauer on social media, I was super excited to find this book. As I began to read, Your Alien, I was reminded quite a bit of Laura Numeroff's writing style. But although similar to the "If You Give Books", Tammi's story was unique as well. It was a beautiful story of the power of hugs and was superbly illustrated. I personally am a super huge fan of hugging, so I would definitely recommend this book for kids of any age.

Well, that about wraps it up for this week. Join me next week for another exciting episode, same crazy time, same crazy channel. Also be sure to drop by and join the Literacy Musing Monday Link Up where you will find other great blogs, or my personal website Fun With Aileen where you will find more on reading, writing, and my very own chapter and picture books. And finally, you can find me on twitter @AileenWStewart if you want an extremely brief glimpse into my days.