Twas' the Day Before Thanksgiving

Twas the day before Thanksgiving and all through the house, 

Children were lounging with nary a care. 

Most hadn't even brushed or combed out the snarls from their hair.

School work was canceled, 

Mom's pleas to pick up ignored. 

Would someone please at least let the dog out the door?

The kitchen was gearing up for pies, rolls, and dough. 

Parents were thankful for mild weather with no snow.

Outside trailed the kidlets, 

woof barked the dog, 

Ma flour'd the table, rolling out pastries with her mind in a fog.

The prime rib was thawing, a reminder set to season.

Mom going through her menu, much larger than reason.

No Turkey here, we ranchers in Montana prefer beef!

What can I make today? How long to reheat? 

If I cook enough now maybe I won't need to do it again 'til next week!

2020 marked the first year I cooked everything for Thanksgiving. As a college student I was known to make a turkey sandwich, or benefited from a friend dropping a plate off at my work. As a single working woman, I came home for the big extended family Thanksgiving. Gradually bringing more than napkins and bags of chips.

Since being married and raising a family I have only missed one Thanksgiving, due to some sort of plague, and my little fam brought me home a plate of fixings. Because my MIL made them.

This year the decision was made to stay home. So I got to cook for the 8 of us. The menu was supposed to include my Grandma's rolls, but I didn't get them made. I was also supposed to have roasted brussel sprouts, but the Hubby vetoed them.

I tried my hand at pie dough with a new recipe. Roughly 8-10 years ago I gave up and just bought premade. I haven't decided what I will do going forward. The pie crusts turned out flaky and delicious...I don't like rolling it out and struggle getting a remotely round shape.

Prime Rib

Mashed potatoes (I think this recipe is why the Hubby proposed) 

Pine Nut cous cous

Grape Broccoli salad (a recipe I have tweaked to perfection) 

7 layer salad with hard boiled eggs added

Homemade Cranberry Sauce (Pioneer Woman Recipe)

Beehive rolls (local grocery store)

Relish tray: sweet peppers, carrots, celery, dill pickles, okra pickles, olive, grape tomatoes w/french onion dip

Crackers & Chips 

Pecan Pie

Mini pumpkin pies

Mini cherry pies

Sparkling Grape Juice

Barefoot Riesling 

The littles and I enjoyed leftover mini pies for breakfast. No soggy bottoms!

Unexpected Discoveries

In the last week or so, we have had drama in our house. We have a 1.5 bath house. The laundry room has a half bath, stool and sink. We banished the boys to that bathroom long ago, around the time Bear was potty training and the twinks were itty bitty and we were so sleep deprived our hair hurt. Good times.

Anywho, now that we are done with potty training, it turned into the boys using the laundry room bathroom and the girls the main bathroom. Unless one is occupied. A household of 8 people, it happens.

Sunshine potty trained beginning of October. We still have accidents fairly often, typically right before bedtime. The coveted - All Day with Dry Roonies Reward just minutes out of reach. 

Anywho - the children had full access to the bathroom. Always a sketchy situation for toddlers. The Hubby had taken apart my Dyson to deep clean/investigate why it wasn't working. For some reason this meant washing in the bathtub and then leaving all parts and pieces on the bathroom floor by the heater vent to dry - conveniently located directly in front of the toilet. Where multiple curious children have a need to go multiple times a day. Generally unsupervised. 

I was tired of tripping over the parts, they seemed dry. Or as dry as I was willing to let them get, I was regathering pieces for 3 days and over it. I moved everything into the bathroom closet. 2 days later Hubby discovered they were moved and lectured kids about not touching things and lost parts. I glared and said I moved them. He had the Bug fetch O-rings, reassembled the vacuum...and left both the standard and matrix boxes of O-rings in the bathroom. The next morning the Bug caught Sunshine flushing them by handfuls down the toilet.

I locked the deviants out, and started trying to sort O-rings. I soon lost interest and threw them into a ziplock bag. I expected an angry husband that night, instead I got one that giggled and said at least she only opened one kind and didn't mix the standard and metric. The ziplock bag and two boxes are still living on my dresser. Why things never get put away is a rant for another day.

In the next day or so, the toilet clogged. Not that big of deal, plunged and moved on with life. But, then it continued to clog. Like every time or every other time it was used. We plunged, husband used a snake. We banished all children to the laundry room bathroom. 

Still clogging. After the test flush fine-ish, usually kinda. Sometimes holding down the handle it slowly flushed, but still wasn't working right. I was sent to buy a toilet auger/snake...our snake was deemed not good enough. Husband went to work and couldn't find a clog. Main bathroom now used for only showers.

8 people sharing a bathroom stinks. 8 people sharing a bathroom with a newly trained toddler leads to lots of frustration. Husband decided we needed to remove the toilet completely to investigate. Twins still using main toilet and not flushing. Horrible flood on my bathroom floor. We moved the stool to the tub and tipped it over. Ran water throw it, from the shower head and filling my big stock pot and dumping. Flushed some little turds and pieces of toilet paper. But didnt seem to be a clog. Husband used the toilet auger again. Then new wax seal down and toilet replaced. Test flush a-o-kay. I bleached, scrubbed, mopped and disinfected the bathroom surfurces and bathtub. Then went to bed.

Heard muttering and banging from the bathroom. Then husband roars directed towards the littlest 3. After round # "I lost count" of snaking the now very clean inside and out toilet, he had finslly worked out the stick from an xylophone. An xylophone? Huh.

My money is still on Sunshine. She makes sure we replace toothbrushes more regularly than 3 weeks. In the middle of this on going clogged toilet debaucle I found floating toothbrushes in a near overflowing unsanitary toilet. At least the toilet flushes. We have now decided the laundry room is the kids bathroom...until the toddler masters opening doors I expect the parents bathroom to be a less scary place.

Kids are blessings. They are blessings. They are blessings. They are blessings.

Halloween 2020

Friday afternoon the kids and I hit the down town trunk or treat and mainstreet businesses circuit. We went with a friend and her two boys. 

My little skunk wanted to scamper off and was constantly being chased or carried. Big sister Elsa declared she would share candy and carry the bag. The Twinks, aka Fox and Unicorn also decided they wanted to share and the fox toted around their candy bag. Spartan Locke (Halo baddie) and the Wraith (who was supposed to he High Volt but his mother didnt have her act and craft supplies ready intime) were both capable and happy to have their own bags for goodies.

We didnt hit all the businesses but enough to keep the dentist in job security.

Then came Saturday, the actual day of Halloween! We decided we would just hit family inside of going door to door. Plus it is reminiscent of my childhood. Living in the country we hit a handful of neighbors. Drove to 4-5 places, spent a half hour visiting on then on to the next hacienda. 

We hit Grandma's first. Because Aunt C and Uncle R were getting ready to go out to supper and the boys hadnt been returned from the farm by their father. We turned on the garage light, and set a chair with a bowl of candy underneath and headed out. I couldn't find bug's Wraith costume and still didn't get the ambition to whip up the costume he actually requested. (Mom Fail)

I love getting the kiddos picture with Grandma each year. Bug went as a Farmer for the rest of the night, because he was still dudded up for chores. The Big D changed at grandma's. All in all happy kids, plus we kidnapped Dad and made him come with us. We only slightly regretted that choice after he stayed and visited with one of his Uncle's after we loaded up in the car for the next house...and continued to wait for another half hour. Luckily the kids had bags full of sustenance, sugary, crumbly, sticky making Mom vow no more food in the car ever again sustenance. 

Phew. Happy Halloween. 

What constitutes a beard anyway?

Overheard kids talking at the table. We eat in shifts, the girls and I at normal suppertime, the boys and husband at whatever time it is they get home from the farm.

Boyos telling a story of milking a cows, I didn't really catch it all.

Bear: was it Uncle N? The one with the beard? 

Bug: they all have beards

Bear: uh-uh Dad doesn't 

Big D: Yes he does, it's just not as long as Uncle N's. Even Uncle K has a beard!

Exhibit A:

Evidence of Dad's current beard. As far as a contest between the brothers I guess he doesn't win.

Always Find Something to Smile About

A pictures from this week that make me smile. The house is a mess, the kids are cranky and miss school and friends, my back is giving me grief, I don't get to go to Mass.....but the sun came out, the kiddos have been able to play in the backyard, and man oh man do I love having a houseful of kids. Sometimes they even act like they love each other.

Blankie Woes

Today is day..I lost track of self quarantine...or is it lockdown or stay home orders? Not sure. 

What I do know if that one of my little Twinks discovered a hole in her blankie and is very sad and begging her domestically challenged mother to fix it. I have some ideas involving thread, but first reached out to her auntie whom is a crochet guru.

Now I have a sad and begging little girl that wants to go to Auntie's house right now to get her beloved blankie fixed. Not understanding that 4 children running fevers within thr last 48 hrs and 1 child that has puked with the last 24 hours and 5 children with leaky noses and cough means we arent welcome visitors. Also technically we are only allowed contact with each other.

Kinda wishing iron on crochet patches were a thing. I can plug in an iron.

March Madness...Baking

The Hubby's birthday was Friday. He is pretty easy to please. He always requests an angel food cake with his grandma's recipe for egg yolk frosting. I misplaced the frosting recipe this year. Before you feel to bad for him, his mother is also making him a cake on Sunday. We have 4 birthdays within 5 days and are doing a group celebration at the farm. In Hubby's side everyone, with the exception of Uncle K, like angel food cake (with the famous frosting) for birthdays. So he really isnt too deprived from the cake I made him. He'll get the coveted frosting soon enough.

We celebrated 35, by  giving him a pass on the no meat on Friday lental rule, and went out to eat. He ordered steak. The kids ate ravioli at home and stayed up past bedtime watching a movie. Hubby and I finished date night by driving out to the farm to put a newborn calf in the barn.

Saturday Bear and I baked her birthday cake masterpiece. She wanted a half and half cake. Half chocolate and half vanilla; half flowers and half mermaid. So after the boy-os and Dad left for the farm, we got to baking. 

I cheated and used box mixes. Devils Food and a plain White mix that we added vanilla to. Then we made 2 kinds of frosting. Swiss Meringue Buttercream and American Buttercream.  I used the first for a crumb coat and inbetween the cake layers, and for the Mermaid/Vanilla half of the cake.  Now I am not a fan of American Buttercream, for me it is too sweet, however it is the most recommended for using with Russian piping tips. Also, it will be a 6 year olds birthday cake, so overly sweet frosting will probably be fine. However, the swiss meringue is stiff enough I think it would have worked too.

I used candy melts in silicone molds for the big flower cake toppers and piped green leaves with more frosting. The mermaid side has a cute figurine as a topper that birthday girl will get to keep.

Bear and I are both pretty proud of how our creation turned out. She picked the flower tips and colors, and helped put on the candy pearl bubbles. Bear is a natural at egg cracking, and might be in line for a breakfast helper promotion. Only one dropped egg and zero shells in all the ones she cracked. She is also an expert spoon licker and quality controlled the cake batter and frostings. Hell of a hand.

Effective Reminders

Bear had class snack duty on Thursday. It's like the teacher knows me. She makes a cute bulletin board.

Adventures in Toddler Hygiene

Admist growing fears of coronavirus, you will find store shelves devoid of toilet paper. You will also find my children rolling on the ground in public restrooms and licking shopping carts. Here's  hoping my adamant handwashing and pushing of multi-vitamins agenda wards off germs.

Past data indicates not. It isn't so much that my whole household is always sick and catches everything. More the fact that at least one person seems to have something at all times. Also, with a household of 8, the numbers just aren't in our favor. What with half the kids in school and the other half rolling on public bathroom floors and licking shopping carts. Good times.

We were in the Big City today for Sunshine's 15 month appointment. She is 20 pounds and inches. 40th and 20th percentile respectively. Happy healthy growing little thing. Hit all milestones and gave us a reason to get out of the house and see what germs out of town offers.

Calving 2020

March 5th kicked off calving season at Sandstone with a bull calf. I have tried to convince my husband that we should name the first calf of the year. For several years now actually. He isn't as excited by the idea. So I brought it up to the kids, 2020's first baby is officially named Haywire. The Big D picked the name and the little sisters ratified it. Apparently we are still on hay related bovine names. If you recall past seasons bum calves: Haystick, Haystack and Haybale 1 & 2.

March 7th, a second calf was born. Also a bull.

Today, the big excitment of March 8th, is watching the calving camera and waiting to witness a live birth. Bigger news than a giraffe in the zoo. Dad spotted a heifer getting ready to calve before leaving to do morning chores. 

Then the heifer was moved to the barn. So the watch party ended early.

The camera is a new addition to the operation, and until the main herd gets ready to start calving it saves driving to the farm for night checks. It also allows the Hubby to keep an eye on the cattle weekdays when he driving water truck. Fun stuff.

Happy calving ya'll.