Party Day - NOT Halloween

The family Halloween party day, which included pumpkin carving, cookie decorating, gourmet ghoulish lunch (that's GHOULS, not goulash), jigsaw puzzles, movies, costume planning, and games, was a big success. We're thinking we may have started a tradition.
The first game was a very competitive Tattletale Donut Dunk. Tie (carefully) powdered sugar mini donuts on a stick/broom handle. The pairs of contestants must be on their knees, hands behind them. On the count of three, the donuts are duly attacked. Donuts are wiley little critters. And they leave their mark where ever they smack you. The first person to gobble their donut down is the winner of that round.

While the pole is reloaded,
the cookie decorating continued.

Jayden (AKA baby werewolf) was voted the slowest donut eater. And the one with the most powdered sugar marks on his face. It's hard to gobble a donut on a string when you are giggling.

Jayden giggles a LOT! You have to be careful of that during this competition - you can inhale powdered sugar up your nose, as a couple punks found out.

Not only are they not following the rules, Collin was caught RED HANDED cheating by using his hand to stuff the donut in his mouth!

The day ended VERY late. The second game was Five Crowns, our favorite family card game. With eight people playing it took TWO HOURS. We were proud of the two youngest punks, they made it to the last hand. And so did the rest of us - it was a marathon.

We went through a couple of quarts of Monster Munchies.

That was one L- O- N -G card game...

We staggered to bed full of goodies, happy with enjoying such a fun day together, and grateful to have each other as family. Life is good.

Creepy lunch...

It's all Jayden's fault. You know those magazines at the grocery checkout, with pictures of fancy food and decorations? Well, I should know better by now than to let the Little Chef within 10 feet of them. He found some nifty Halloween stuff, including these recipes, which of course we had to make. Immediately. Good thing we had designated Wednesday as the family Halloween party day.
Lunch entree was Creepy Crawlers Pizza, with Zombie Potion (which Max claims turns him into a frog...oh my)and Monster Munchie Mix.
The pizzas, even though gruesome, are actually pretty good. Very filling, though - we usually use two whole ones for lunch, and barely made it through one. Brent didn't mind, he had the second one for dinner on his way to work.

If you want to tackle one of these goodies, here's the how-to: you can use a store-bought cheese pizza (or two); frozen curly fries; pimento stuffed green olives and black olives; hot dogs cut in half then sliced length-wise into quarters; ketchup.

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Put pizza (s) on low rack on baking sheet, put curly fries on higher rack on baking sheet. Bake both about 12 minutes. Pull pizzas out but leave on rack, load on fries, sliced hot dogs, and olives. Bake another 10 minutes (until hot dogs start to brown and curl - stange but true). Remove from oven, drizzle artistically with ketchup "blood", and serve. Yum yum. Yeah. Weird, but pretty tasty.

The Monster Munchies are the basic Chex mix, with added pretzels, Halloween candies, gummie spiders and bats and worms, M & Ms, etc. A mouse or two adds to the attractive mix.

Zombie Potion is simply Ginger Ale or lemonade or whatever, with green food coloring added. Plop in a scoop of rainbow sherbert, hang a gummy worm on the side, and you have a wicked potion. Watch out for frogs.

If you have a crew of punks like this lurking about, the goodies will disappear, pronto!

We had a great time constructing, eating and laughing over our creepy lunch. Halloween, here we come!
(No, they didn't eat the olives - except Than; he likes the black ones. I like the green ones. So it was all good, thank you very much.)

What the...?

I've missed a couple of days - we've been busy wrangling Halloween costumes, planning parties, feeding punks...I don't know why, they think they need to eat at least three times a day, and usually more like four or five.
The camera has been busy, too, I just haven't had a lot of time to even look at the results. But I had to share this one with you. In case you need a Halloween decoration. This is the ONLY thing I'm putting up for Halloween this year.
Here's the scoop: get two battery-operated closet "tap lights" (I got these on sale, 2 for $3) they are about 8" across; cut out two yellow circles and two smaller black circles from construction paper - use double sided tape to stick them together then stick them on the lights. Using a permanent marker (the other kind just rubs right off the plastic - speakin' from experience, here) draw iris lines and then some realistic veins out to the sides of the lights.
Here's the fun part: using wide clear packing tape, tape them rounded side facing the glass, to your window - somewhere that will make an impact on visitors or passers-by. When it gets dark, push on the back,the "tap light" will come on, and you have MONSTER EYEBALLS! They're pretty effective in a dark hallway, too - or coat closet - or bathroom - anywhere you might want to scare the pants off someone.

I'm thinking of putting them in the back window of our car when we drive to a friend's for a Halloween bash Friday evening. We're taking a bunch of kids T or T in a nearby village. I bet we get noticed. Just hope it isn't the local constable...

The more I look at these, I'm thinking they might be better than a watch dog. And cheaper to feed, depending on how long the batteries last.

Key Play

Pianos and punks aren't always happy partners. Particularly boy punks. So when Than and Collin started composing their own music before the end of their first year of piano lessons, you can imagine the surprise they dealt their instructor, Annie. She was delighted and encouraged them, even had them play their own compositions for Recitals.
Moving to the farm made the commute for lessons difficult. We all loved Annie, it was not easy to say goodbye. Carrie sifted through her homeschooling and league contacts, and found a wonderful new instructor who actually WOULD COME TO THE HOUSE! That really counts when you live 35 minutes from anywhere.
Betty's first lessons with us were a success, we hired her on the spot. She now has four students at one stop, which also helps her out with driving logistics. Have I mentioned, how much we love our country life?! We meet the greatest people.
In addition to his regular lesson music, Than has focused on learning some pieces by heart, currently it is "Red River Valley". He also got his own Christmas music book, and has been warming us up for Christmas sing-a-longs.

Collin mentioned to Betty how much he liked composing his own music. So she challenged him to have a new piece for her each week. One time he forgot, and whipped something out the hour before lesson time. When Betty heard it, she commented on how good it was, she could tell he had spent some time on it. Collin was torn between accepting the compliment as it was, or admitting that he had forgotten his assignment! He does do some awesome compositions.

Betty will sometimes play duets with us, and that's really fun. She is also taking us to the next level, of being more particular about the note counts, hand position (as she is coaching Collin, below, to have more arch to his fingers), and dynamic notations. Having a new instructor can be a good thing, as you learn different techniques and work with new music.

Lee has started piano this year. He had been playing guitar, but a new instructor hasn't surfaced here yet. So he is taking his music interest in the path of his brothers for now, which won't hurt his guitar playing, either. Lee is fun to sing next to at church, he wants to keep track of the notes and words and does a good job at it. Dad conducts the music during church, which is a good example for the boys.

Annie was an excellent instructor for the boys, getting them started and nurturing their love of music. It's nice to have another instructor with the same passion and patience for teaching youngsters. And not-so-youngsters.

After a year off, I've picked up my music again, playing my little keyboard here at the cabin and getting over to practice on the piano at the farm house as often as I can. Music practice of any kind is purported to be an excellent exercise for brain preservation. I have discovered while playing back through my piano book as review to get back on track, that my brain REALLY needs this stimulation. With songs I knew well a year ago, it has now been difficult to get my left hand to follow my right hand again. And the damper pedal? Don't even go there. Three things at once causes a major traffic jam in the synapses.

K-I-S-S-I-N-G

Carrie loves Leo...

yessiree...

K-I-S-S-I-N-G;


We won't tell Brent.

Pancake heaven

First, I need to apologize for not getting a shot of the pancakes. But I have an excuse. They were being devoured so fast, the motion would have been a blur - not a good photo prospect.
Max scarfed down 5 large and 1 teeny tiny pancake and tried to convince me he was still hungry. Jayden happily ate 4 large ones, and I was able to eat one, inbetween taking the hot cakes off the griddle for the punks.
The pancake frenzy was triggered by the fresh apple butter. If you've never enjoyed warm apple butter, try to imagine the aroma of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and allspice, mingling with sweet apples, baking in a low temp oven so that all that obscenely luscious scent has hours and hours to premeate the cabin top to bottom, and even out on the porch before you open the door.
If this was a scratch-and-sniff screen, you would be needing a new moniter by now...

and if you LICK this screen, there could be even more serious consequences.

Robin Hood is alive and well in Wisconsin

With just a little imagination (which these guys have plenty of), picture tunics, pointy caps with maybe a feather, and a rowdy band of ruffians (waiting in the wings) and here we are in Sherwood Forest - AKA the back field of a Wisconsin farm.

The punks are in their second season of archery. A group of their homeschooling buddies meet with them every Thursday afternoon at the archery range for instruction, practice, and fun and games. Their impromptu practice at the farm was fun to watch, and impressive in their professionalism. They are being taught well, with safety foremost.

The bows they use are Genesis Youth compound bows. According to the info on http://www.genesisarchery.com/ (which is based in Longview, WA - isn't that ironic), "youth bows have zero let-off with the capability to adjust from 10 to 20 pounds of pull. These bows are ideal for kids of all ages due to flexibility of their draw lengths, ranging from 15 to 30 inches." This was explained to me with great seriousness when they got their own bows last year - its a good thing I had owned a compound target bow a number of years ago or it would have all been Greek.
(Note: making points as a Gramma is an ongoing challenge; I'm very blessed to have had so many great life experiences in the past that help keep me on the upper end of the chart - and when all else fails, making cookies with them is a fail-proof fallback...)

Robin and Little John prepare to demonstrate their skill at piercing inanimate objects. Namely the official target. Moving targets, as in cats, chickens, brothers, are out of bounds.

This photo is my favorite. (Hey - one out of fifty...that's average for a photographer, I hear.)


Although all the boys are right-handed, its interesting that Collin is left eye dominant, and shoots better with a left hand bow. He keeps his bow at a higher pull-weight than Than does, which is fortunate for Lee; he and Than can share a bow, saving mom and dad considerable bucks.
Than explained the Range Master's whistles. 1 = fire; 2 = have your bow ready, standing at the fire line (demonstrated below); 3 = retrieve arrows from target; 4 = STOP FIRING immediately. I was impressed that they kept themselves disciplined as taught, with Than providing the whistle (good pucker, there).

When at the fire line, the bows are held with one end on the floor or a foot - the punks seem to use their foot, which is a good thing because they do their home practice either in the big barn or outdoors and you can just imagine how a bow end could get mucked up...

There is also a correct way to carry/transport your bow, demonstrated by Lee.

Carrie just got new targets. These are pretty nifty - the black target is backed by bright green, so the strikes really show up. There are little black circles in the corners to cover the holes, but the boys informed me they hit so many times that there aren't enough circles, so they just use them for little targets (and if you believe THAT one....) The old round bales which had been left on the farm before we came are still coming in handy, this time as a target backing.

Nocking the arrows becomes a smooth operation, with a lot of practice. And just let me tell you, if you release with the bow at a bit of an inward angle, you get an almighty stinging whack with the string right across your inner arm - talk about soreness. I always used an arm guard...the punks are too tough for that, they tell me. Although I saw Lee grab his arm once, and I knew exactly what had happened. Ouch. My arm cringed in sympathy.

Nice form, guys.

Collin....COLLIN! WHAT ARE YOU DOING??? NO, NO - NOT THE GOOSE, NOT THE GOOSE...
Umm - oops. The Canada geese have been using the air path over the farm as a flyway south. That may change... Goose for Thanksgiving, anyone??

What was Little John's son's name in the Robin Hood movie? Wulf? Trivia question of the day.

Lee is like whipcord, he is rock hard with muscle. This kid is in motion all the time, not an ounce of fat or flab. No matter what physical endeavor he tackles, he is poetry in motion.

This was Collin's bulls-eye. Lee does it pretty often. Once, at a competion, he was totally disgusted that he got a bulls-eye during the practice shots, and missed it in the match!

Than shows a good release, holding the pose until the arrow hits the target. Sort of like the follow-through swing of a golfer or bowler..They each have their own arrows, with distinctly colored flights (feathers, for you uninformed). Than's are white, Lee's are neon green and orange and Collin has neon yellow and orange. Makes it pretty clear who hit where when they go to retrieve arrows from the target.

Oh yes. You want to know just what Jayden and Max are doing while the rest of the Brothers are target shooting. They are part of the Merry Band, too, only they are off practicing with their swords. Honest. Any stick will do. Although there are some pretty fancy swords in various corners around the cabin and porch. Duct tape makes anything better...

Notice the arrow in one of the little corner patch circles...that was on purpose, I'm sure...yep, good shooting, couldn't do it better myself. That bulls-eye is pretty nice, too.

The Brotherhood of the Arrow have a good time together. The bows have been a great investment.

Uncle Pat and honorary Uncles Ty and Jarrod would be proud.

Nightmare on Elm (um - Box Elder) Street

PART ONE
It was a dark and stormy night.
THEY came creeping into sight...

PART TWO

The HORROR - OH THE HORROR...

you really don't want to know any more.

Apple-sass

I just plain feel sorry for anyone who hasn't experienced the fun and yumminess of canning. Today I tackled a box of apples - MacIntosh to be exact, which are one of the best sauce apples.

Appropriate tools make any job easier, and this one is a doozy. It's Pampered Chef's apple peeler-corer-slicer, which comes mounted on a little stand. This thing peels, slices and cores apples in seconds. Max loves to turn the crank on it, especially if the slices are going to end up on his snack plate, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. He can do the whole thing himself, thank you very much.
One of the advantages of using the apple gadget is that the apples cook up faster than if you just quarter and core them. I ran a sharp knife through them a few times to cut the slices up, poured in about a cup of water, and cooked them at medium heat to prevent any scorching.
It only took a couple of stirs with my trusty wooden spoon and in about 10 minutes the apples had cooked down soft and sweet.
The Foley Food Mill is another favorite canning gadget. It squishes the soft apples through a screen and keeps any remaining peels, etc. in the kettle side. If the apples had only been quartered and cored, which is a common way to do them, the peelings pile up and you spend a bit of time emptying them inbetween batches. This way, there is only about a quarter cup of peelings and stuff left, after doing the whole kettle of apples. I do love my gadgets!
Did I mention I love canning? There's an element of satisfaction in having everything all lined up, organized for fast action, all the ducks in a row - um, maybe that's a bit of an obsession? Anyway, here we are all ready for action...waterbath canner steaming, applesauce steaming, lids steaming, jars steaming. I fill the jars using a canning cup ( no bottom, fits inside jar rim) to keep the jar rim clean, check for dribbles before slapping on the hot lid and screwing on the ring. Into the waterbath for a 20 minute boil.

The Macs are a nice apple to work with, they cook up quickly, need little sugar. I put a tasty amount of cinnamon in this batch, after taking a sample over to the testing crew at the farm house. Upon their approval, back to the cabin to finish the job.
The final count was 17 pints of tangy sweet apple sauce. With just enough left for a bowl of warm sass for the cook~ the rewards of canning are sooooo nice!
And speaking of sass - THIS stuff is REALLY sassy! It's the jalapeno jelly, and Whoa Nelly, is it good! I keep finding new ways to use it. For dinner I spread some on a tortilla, piled on some rotisserie chicken slices and jack cheese, topped with another tortilla and toasted the quesadilla on both sides in one of my castiron frying pans. Yep, it's good stuff...
I think the next taste test will be the peanut butter sammich.