Dreaming of Paradise

It's spring, and when I say it's spring I mean it finally feels like spring in Wisconsin.  I just came in from mowing the lawn for the first time.  The weather has finally turned a corner.  Every year around this time the wheels in my mind start turning the soil in my garden.  I'm a dreamer, I dream big, and I dream often.  Sometimes I need the people around me to pull me out of the clouds.  When I envision what I want my garden to be I see flowering trees, beautiful willows, perfect gravel pathways, colors of deep plum and bright yellow, a white picket fence strewn with morning glories, and peonies a plenty.  Unfortunately to obtain all of that would cost an arm and a leg, so I'm forced to edit that vision.  I don't mind editing though it helps to make the big goal much more obtainable.   Baby steps and the appreciation for what I do have is a much healthier approach as spring arrives each year and brings a flood of new dreams along with it.  What good is it if you get everything your heart desires the moment you want it?   If you're interested in starting a garden but have no idea what you're doing, don't fret, I had no idea either and I'm still here.  I do have just a couple of tips though.  Read on if you're interested.

• Be prepared to work and work hard (hopefully I didn't just scare you off).  It is such rewarding work, you feel tired and worn out at the end but you get to see practically instant results as you start to transform an area.
• Start small, don't think you'll be able to transform the entire front and back yard in one season, unless you're paying others to help you out.
• Make sure you read up on what plants and flowers are native to your zone.  Also, research if there's a pest you'd like to keep out, there are plants that can deter certain insects and even animals from approaching your garden.  We planted a bunch of lavender last year because we read that they can help deter mosquitoes. 
• Plan.  Don't just grab a shovel and start digging.  Call diggers hotline to know where underground lines might interfere with your ideas.   Draw out a plan on paper, or better yet, try your hand at google sketchup (it's free!) to help you visualize the layout.  
• Check out your local city or town center and see if they have a recycling center.  Often times you can get free wood chips, mulch, and even compost.
• Have fun and take it one step at a time.

“The many great gardens of the world, of literature and poetry, of painting and music, of religion and architecture, all make the point as clear as possible: The soul cannot thrive in the absence of a garden. If you don't want paradise, you are not human; and if you are not human, you don't have a soul.” 
― Thomas More

Dutch Asian Chicken

Ingredients:

·      3 ½ lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs

·      a dash of Goya Adoba Seasoning

·      Salt to taste

·      Pepper to taste

·      ½ Tbs soy sauce

·      ½ Tbs Teriyaki marinade/sauce

·      1Tbs Asian Hoisin Sauce

·      1 medium yellow onion chopped

·      1 stick of butter

Heat a dutch oven over medium high heat.  Melt butter in the bottom of the pan.  Dice onion and sautee in the butter.  Season chicken thighs with salt, pepper, and Adoba to liking.  Add chicken to the dutch oven and allow chicken to brown.  Stiring occasionally to get all sides.  Add a half bottle of stella artois beer and deglaze pan.  Add ½ Tbs soy sauce and ½ Tbs teriyaki and Hoisin Sauce.  Cook on low for two hours covered stirring occasionally.

I mixed in a half bag of frozen peas five minutes before serving.

This recipe is super easy and amazingly delicious, full of flavor and super tender.  My entire family loved it including my four picky little ones.  Enjoy!

One cannot Think Well, Love Well, Sleep Well, If one has not Dined Well.

It's Friday, the sun is shining, and the meatballs are baking.  Life is good.  Friday Night Meatballs usually begin on Wednesday for me, but this week I've been holding steadfast to my spring cleaning goals, so the meatballs were put on hold until this morning, and what a beautiful morning it is.  Tonights tradition is more about people coming together more than anything else, it's about family, it's about friends, it's about neighbors.  It's about trying to hang onto something that has been a fading tradition in our society, although now that summer is almost here, I'm hoping people get together a bit more.

    I would encourage anyone to start their own tradition of inviting people over once a week to catch up.  It's not as difficult as you would think, it's very enjoyable and I quickly learned last fall that I couldn't wait for the company.  I recommend letting your guard down a bit though, don't fret over the house or over the little things, most people don't care that you have toys strewn across the floor.  That's the greatest thing about people, most of us have been there, or soon will be and we understand that life can be messy.  So put on your aprons, invite some friends over, let the kids be themselves and play, and just reconnect.  If you don't feel up to it, then come on over to our house one of these Friday nights, no judgements here, just good company and good food.

    I have one secret ingredient I add to my meatballs and that's raisins.  Does anyone else do this?  I've been making them this way forever.  I think they help make the meatballs moist and the sweetness balances out any spiciness from the crushed red pepper.  I also think it might be a Sicilian thing.

If you're interested in the woman who started the original "Friday Night Meatballs", here is the link: http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/08/simpler-entertaining-friday-night-dinners-end-loneliness-how-to-build-community-after-having-kids.html

SPRING CLEANING: INSIDE & OUT The Five day plan to reach inner peace

Time to let some fresh air into this house. I'm wrapping my hair in a bandana and putting the kids to work (as long as they are interested). It has been a long winter and beautiful weather is right around the corner. I want to be able to jump head first into summer, enjoying the things that are most important in life. I want to play in the warm sunshine with my kids, and grill out every evening that the weather allows, I want to enjoy coffee on the deck in the morning, and hear the kids echoing into the evenings, I want to get my nails dirty in my garden, and can some beautiful tomatoes, and make my own jam. I want to get full of sand from the beach and I don't even care if it gets in the car. I'm sure everyone has their own list of incredible activities that make summer hands down the best season, for me it's just simply the warmth.

Onto the task at hand. I want to be ready for when it's finally here, because every year it hits like a freight train and is gone in an instant. I'm spending the next five days spring cleaning both inside the house and out, but I'm hoping to also spend the next five days reflecting as I work on the important things in life, and giving thanks to God for each and every blessing, so perhaps a little cleaning of the soul as well. Life is moving fast and I want to be present in the moments that lie ahead in the beautiful summer that is fast approaching. Below is the list of actual cleaning projects I hope to tackle, so that this summer I can enjoy the little things in life with a greater appreciation. For me, knowing that the kids aren't being raised in total filth helps.

Day 1: Time to tackle the bedrooms: Vacuuming, mopping, dusting, folding clothes that have been stuffed into drawers, clearing out what has been outgrown.
Day 1 Spiritual Focus: The Gifts God has granted me in the form of my amazing husband and my beautiful children.

Day 2: Bathroom bleach down and comet scrub. Clean the appliances in the kitchen, inside, outside, and underneath.
Day 2 Spiritual Focus: I'm not perfect, forgive yourself and move forward, be grateful for God's unending, unwavering love.

Day 3: Finish the laundry and put it away. Vacuum, mop, and dust the downstairs living areas.
Day 3 Spiritual Focus: Find contentment in the little things, stop trying to fill any voids with stuff and focus on my relationship with God.

Day 4: Moving to the outside: rake the garden beds of debris, till up raised bed to prepare for planting, and clean the garage.
Day 4 Spiritual Focus: Share with the kids, don't be afraid to talk about my own shortcomings openly and how Jesus heals us all.

Day 5: My least favorite area to tackle, the basement.... our basement took a beating this winter because our family went through a mini renovation as the result of a small house fire. The basement became the dumping ground for miscellaneous boulderdash. This will probably consume the entire day.
Day 5 Spiritual Focus: The road less traveled, sometimes we have to give up control to God and be open to his plans.

Well that's the list. I'm hoping to not miss a beat and stick to the plan. Happy Spring cleaning!

A Time for Meatballs

I tried to start something at the end of last summer...  My intentions were to bring people together.  The platform to accomplish this was "Friday Night Meatballs" and it was going really well, but then things were put on hold due to an unexpected bump and a little "smoke" in the road.  That bump helped to solidify my understanding that we all need Friday night meatballs in our lives.   We all seem busier than ever, more stressed than ever, more exhausted than ever.  Have we taken on too much? Are we over worked compared to previous generations?   Or is it that we have simply made time spent together as friends, as family, as neighbors less of a priority?  Why? I think it's important to come together to reflect, to converse, to lean on one another and be present in our own lives and in the lives of each other.  Our generation is working hard and we are accomplishing great things, but at the same time I would argue that previous generations worked really hard also, and accomplished amazing things, but somehow, someway they still made time with family, neighbors, and friends a priority.  Why are people now a days distancing ourselves from one another, making excuses, and putting up walls?  I could sit and wonder endlessly about the differences of todays world in comparison with say my great grandmothers world.... She survived the great depression and then some.  So enough wondering for the time being, it's time to act.  Friday Night Meatballs is officially back on and that's all there is to it.  Just as before, any and all people are welcome to attend.  Just let me know by Wednesday if you'll be a part of our renewed tradition.  Feel free to come as you are, the house might be a mess, the kids will be loud, but the food and company are free.  Feel free to bring something to share, even if it's just conversation.  We can't wait to see you all and catch up once again.

There is a season for everything, a time for every occupation under heaven: A time for giving birth, a time for dying; a time for planting, a time for uprooting what has been planted.  A time for killing, a time for healing; a time for knocking down, a time for building.  A time for tears, a time for laughter; a time for mourning, a time for dancing.  A time for throwing stones away, a time for gathering them; a time for embracing, a time to refrain from embracing.  A time for searching, a time for losing; a time for keeping, a time for discarding.  A time for tearing, a time for sewing; a time for keeping silent, a time for speaking.  A time for loving, a time for hating; a time for war, a time for peace. Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8

There's a time for gathering, and that time is now, Friday night meatballs is back.

Our first Friday night will be April 17th around 6:00 our limit is 10 adults please respond if you would like to come.