Preserving: Freezing Strawberries

There are two ways (that I know of) to freeze strawberries.  The first option is to freeze them whole.  Hull the berries (by cutting off the leafy top), rinse them well with water, drain them well, place them on a cookie sheet (not touching each other) and then put the cookie sheets in the freezer.  Once frozen, take the strawberries off the sheets and put them into containers to be kept in the freezer until you're ready to use them.

 

I tried this method the first year we had enough strawberries to squirrel some away.  I didn't like it.  As the berries thaw they get mushy and don't retain their vibrant color well.  To be honest, I didn't know how to use them.  I guess I thought I would make pies, but I'm spoiled and prefer fresh strawberry pie, so the thought of making pie out of these soft, dull-looking berries did not appeal to me one bit.  (Now, if you have had great experience freezing your strawberries whole, I welcome your input in the comments section below.) 

I head-over-heels prefer the second option- freezing crushed strawberries.  There are countless uses for the crushed version and while some people may suggest adding lemon juice (to prevent browning) and/or sugar (for flavor), I use neither.  The color remains vibrant, even after thawing, and sugar?  Strawberries do not need sugar.  At least that's what I think.

Putting them up this way is a cinch to do and is a great way to get your kids involved in preserving.  Later in the summer when so much is done over a hot stove and canner, you may not want your little ones close by.  Get them involved wherever you can- this is a great place to start.

Freezing Crushed Strawberries

Start by hulling the fresh, ripe strawberries.  Also trim out any bad spots.

I like to then place them in a colander in my sink.  Once your colander is full, rinse the berries really well, shaking them around a bit, so they all get a good washing.  Don't worry about bruising them- you're going to crush them, remember?

Place the washed, hulled strawberries in a large bowl.  Using a potato masher, or a fork, crush those berries.  It's up to you how much crushing you (or a little person- here's where you bring in the kids!) will do.  You can choose to crush them just a bit, leaving large pieces of strawberry, or crush them to smithereens which will lead to more of a strawberry sauce.

Ladle the crushed strawberries into containers, making sure to leave 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch of head space (room at the top), so when they freeze they won't heave the lids off.  Cover with lids and freeze.

We wear our aprons high in this family.

To use, simply thaw and spoon over plain baked oatmeal, granola, ice cream, pancakes, waffles, Strawberry Brunch Souffle, etc.  Or add to Tishy Fuloo, smoothies/popsicles, Strawberry Frozen Yogurt, or Strawberry Bars.

One more thing.  Don't forget to reserve some of the loveliest berries for eating fresh.

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The Tale of the Back Garden

Once upon a time, a lady owned an old farmhouse.  She lived in it for a few years and then had an opportunity to travel in Europe (lucky lady).  She decided to rent out her farmhouse while she was away.  Along with the farmhouse was an acre and a half of land that needed tending, so the lady struck up a deal with a landscaping company.  They would use the back part of the property to park their equipment and, in exchange, they would keep the lawns trimmed and in good order for the tenants.

The lady went to Europe.

At some point, the landscape company decided that instead of just parking their equipment on the back of the property, they would also bring all their garbage from home (and who knows elsewhere) and dump it there.  Rats came and started showing up in the neighbor's yards and trash.  Some neighbors set out poison to attempt to control the rat problem to no avail.

Eventually, the lady came back and decided to sell the farmhouse.  She and her new fiance did a good job of repainting the interior of the house, emptying the many outbuildings and clearing away the mess in the back.

When a new little family, consisting of a husband, a wife and an almost-two-year-old Sam came to see the house, they were smitten.  There was room for a garden, maybe some animals and space for their little family to grow.  One thing was a bit unclear.  In the back section of the property was a large area where it was obvious dirt had been moved around.  The little family suspected that maybe there had once been a mobile home that sat there or something else that had been cleared away.  It was not until later that someone told them about the garbage.

The little family bought the house and moved in in the month of January.  Once spring came along, they began scouting a place out back for their first garden.  Soon, though, they realized it was not a good place for little boy Sam to play.  There were beer bottles and all manner of trash sticking up from the ground all over one half of the back section.  In one day, the husband and wife cleared at least three bags of visible trash and glass from the area (that wasn't visible a couple months before).  Every year, more trash surfaces.

The back garden earlier this spring (where the dump used to be).

They decided to plant their garden in the non-trashy section, but as the years went on, they needed more space.  A new garden was made in the garbage section, with more trash being excavated.  Thankfully, the dumping was household garbage instead of hazardous materials.  Even so, each year the earth will heave up and spit out what doesn't belong and every year, the little family (that isn't so little anymore) will whisk it away.

Jamey planting this spring.  I love him.

Now, in place of the dump, we have a garden.  Instead of rats, we have birds and rabbits, green beans, corn and potatoes.

The back garden in summer and Somersault's cute little rear end.

That makes us (and the land, if it's possible) happy. Pin It

Preserving: Freezing Spinach

Do me a favor, please, and take a look at the top of this page where is says "Home, Who I Am, Preserving...."  This post along with all the other ones I will write this summer and fall that have to do with preserving will be found on the Preserving page (there are already several links there).  I am hoping this will be a resource for those of you who are interested in learning how to can and freeze produce this summer.  My goal is to show lots of pictures of the process along with step by step instructions.  Here we go!

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You have three choices when it comes to freezing spinach.  You can blanch it by plunging washed spinach in boiling water for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, then drain it well and freeze it.  You can steam spinach for about a minute, drain it and freeze it or you can choose the method I use which is to freeze spinach raw.

Blanching and steaming spinach wilts it and therefore saves on space if space is an issue for you.  I like freezing mine raw.  Even though it takes up a bit more space, there is very little prep work at both ends (prepping and using) and this is a good thing.

Green in the winter months is important.  I don't worry much about scurvy.  I worry about food boredom.  Spinach in the winter helps with that.

Freezing Spinach Raw (my version)


Place fresh spinach in a large bowl and cover with cold water.  Using your hands, pretend you are a washing machine and your spinach is the clothes.  Agitate the water to loosen the dirt and any insects still hanging around.  Drain and repeat.

 

Place a clean kitchen towel in another large bowl (or out on your counter).  Tear the spinach by the handfuls into small pieces, discarding any stems you come across.  Place the torn spinach on the towel.  Cover spinach with the towel and now pretend you are drying your child or dog's hair.  Don't worry if you scrunch it up.  Your goal is to get as much of the water off the spinach as you can.

 

Fill a gallon zip lock bag with the clean, torn and dried spinach.  Tap the bag on the counter to help it settle and go ahead and shove as much in as you can, like you're stuffing a feather pillow that you want firm.  Once the bag is full, close the bag almost all the way, then lay it flat and press out as much air as you can, like you're deflating an air mattress.  It's okay to press down on the spinach, too.  Now, zip it up and toss it in your freezer.

When you're ready to use it, don't thaw it first.  Reach in and pull out however much you need, then place the frozen spinach directly into soup or your saute pan for a quick cook (a few minutes on high heat is all it needs).  Add it to your favorite dish, dip, quiche, strata, crepe, shells...you get the idea. Pin It

Odds & Ends

Remember these Oatmeal Rolls?

We discovered a new favorite way to eat them.  Slice them in half, then toast them lightly (a toaster oven works great for this).  Spread a little bit (or a lot) of butter on the halves and then sprinkle the buttered sides with parmesan cheese.  Put them under the broiler until the butter and cheese are bubbly and lightly browned.  A large salad and two halves of these parmesan rolls is a delightful lunch indeed.

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My sister gave us a waffle maker that she earned with points at her grocery store.  This coincided perfectly with some New York pure maple syrup that a friend traded us for eggs.  Guess what we've been eating a lot of?  Yep.  Waffles.  Did you ever try stirring some maple syrup into some crushed strawberries?  I think you should try it.  About 2 cups crushed strawberries to 1/4 cup maple syrup gives you enough topping for 8 waffles.

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Remember my Grandma's Granola?  Well, ever since I first made it I have been scheming as to how I can incorporate some chocolate into it without adding sugar.  I think I figured it out.  Add 1/2 cup cocoa to the honey and mix it well before adding it in.  It's mild, but it is most definitely chocolate.  It even turns the leftover milk in your bowl to chocolatey.  And, strawberries on top?  Let's stop before I have to go out and get yet another bowl. 

Granola ready for the oven.  Chocolate on the left, regular on the right.

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My brother's sunflowers are up!  The first couple weeks after he planted were very dry around here, so the first planting is a bit spotty.  The second and third plantings have been getting adequate rain and it shows.  Jamey and my brother built a road side stand out of an old door that turned out great.  Keep your eye out for it along our road later this summer!!

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Okay, I haven't done this before, but I can't help myself.  Have you seen these party flags?  Talk about ingenious.  Maybe folks have been making these for eons, I don't know, but I love the idea.  Forget disposable decorations, people.  These are just lovely.

Photo courtesy of Gigi's Joy

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One more thing I have to share.  My baby now says "Uh-oh", "Mama", "aye-aye" (not as in pirate-speak, as in giving love) and "dat dat" (for what a duck says).  I couldn't not share.  I'm her mama.

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My Journal

I've always wanted to keep a journal and I've made numerous attempts at it over the course of my life.  I've failed every time.  The one journal that I have successfully kept up with since 2003 is my Canning Journal.  It's more than just a canning journal.  It includes what we've froze, dehydrated, phone numbers of orchards, lists of bushels bought from where and at what price, notes about what foods not to can again, etc.

It's supposed to look like denim.  How cool is that?

This is how it flows.  Starting in 2003, I listed what we put up.  As we moved from dabbling in preserving to counting on it as a major food source, the flow began to also include what we had left over in the spring so I could get a handle on what we had a surplus of and therefore what I wouldn't need to put up as much of that summer.  You follow?

This time of year, I draft my list of what I want/need to put up during the coming summer.  Not only does it include the items, but the goal amount of each item.  I come up with these specifics by determining how much of each item we went through the year before (spring to spring).

 A section of 2008's tally

For example, in the spring of 2009, we had 10 quarts of tomato sauce left in the pantry from the summer of 2008.  We went on to can 21 quarts during the summer of 2009.  We have only a couple quarts left (except for the 6 pints of sauce I bartered with a friend for).  This means we went through about 30 quarts spring 2009 to spring 2010.  That means, I need to put up at least 30 quarts- most certainly more than 30- to get us to next spring.

These calculations give me a idea of what to shoot for.  But shooting doesn't always make it happen.  We froze 21 quarts of crushed strawberries last year and by the looks of our strawberry bed this year, we aren't going to get anywhere near that amount.  So, I adjust as we go.  Less strawberries means we need to pick more blueberries and so on.

One calculation that about gave me a heart attack was that we went through (ate!) 48 jars of jam (mostly half pint sizes).  Granted, I give jam away as thank-you and hostess gifts, use it to flavor yogurt, etc, but still.  48 jars!  (THAT, my friends, is going to change.)  Since strawberries are a bit scarce this year, I will not be making strawberry jam- I will be crushing and freezing what we don't eat fresh.  And, instead, I will can more grape jam. Our kind neighbors let us pick as many as we want from their over-abundant vines.

The moral of this story:  Keep a canning journal.  Don't freak out.  Adapt. Pin It

Just a Heads Up

Occasionally, on Saturdays, I will be posting about swag bucks.  If you want nothing to do with them, that is A-OK.  I don't want you to read something that means nothing to you, so click away and I will see you on Monday.  Have a wonderful weekend in the meantime:-).

After One Week of Swag Bucks...

It's been a little over a week since I joined swag bucks (if you have no idea what I'm talking about read this first, then come back) and so far I have earned 1,871 swag bucks (1800 of which I've already redeemed for $20 in amazon.com e-gift cards to spend as I please).  If you've signed up already and are curious as to what I am doing or if you're on the fence about joining, here is some more information for you.

Before I begin, let me remind you that swag bucks is free, there is no obligation to buy anything and no penalty for giving up on it if you hate it.

That said, here is what I've done this week...

1) After signing up, I downloaded the toolbar (Go to swagbucks.com, log in and click on "Toolbars" at the top).  It takes up a half inch strip of space at the top of your screen.  I was hoping they had something like this because if there wasn't an easy place for me to search, I knew I'd forget to search swag bucks.  I have been doing on line searches just like normal, just in the swag bucks window.

If you try to search more often, it doesn't help you.  In fact, that can keep you from winning.  I like this feature because it takes off the pressure to search, search, search.  Don't, don't, don't!  With normal searching, I have been winning between 20 and 50 swag bucks a day (just by searching).  You won't win every time, or every day, but don't be discouraged. I've found that searching 3-5 times in the morning (then stopping for a couple hours), again in the afternoon (then stopping for a couple hours) and again in the evening before bed gives me at least a couple wins a day.

2)  At first I went hog wild and also signed up for a bunch of special offers (look under "Ways to Earn" at the top of the website for "Special Offers") that earned me swag bucks (getting e-newsletters, watching short promotional videos, etc.).  These are all well and good and do give your swag buck account a boost, but they aren't necessary. In fact, the only special offers I do anymore are watching short video clips when they pop up on the homepage (scroll part way down- they can be found between the two yellow arrows when they are available).  I also answer the daily poll question (under "Ways to Earn", click on "Daily Polls") which earns you 1 swag buck.  I also look for the swag code when I think about it (to learn about swag codes, click here, and click on the "swag code" tab).

3) I told my friends about it, including you!  When someone signs up because of you, you earn bucks along  with them when they win on searches (up to 1000 swag bucks).  Just make sure they sign up with your unique link.  You can find this by logging in to swagbucks.com and then clicking on the purple "Promote" link along the left hand side.  This will give you your "referral link".  That is the link your friends should use to sign up.

If you feel weird telling your friends about it, don't!  You can still earn swag bucks just through searching.  You will earn swag bucks a little slower- but they are still swag bucks and can be traded in.  Maybe once you've cashed in for a couple gift cards, you'll feel more confident sharing swag bucks with friends.  But, it's up to you.  If you want, it can be your little secret:-).


So, that's it!  Ready to sign up?  Once you do, make it a habit to search in your swag bucks window.  You won't win swag bucks if you don't search!  And, if you want, tell a couple people about it and watch your swag bucks grow:-).

One more thing.  It's corny, but you're going to really start liking this guy's face.  I'm just warning you.

And, I highly recommend reading up on some really helpful tips and rules that you need to know about.  This site and this page are excellent places to start.

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Have You Ever Seen This?

About a month ago, we were studying insects that go through incomplete metamorphosis. You, know. Instead of having four stages (egg, larvae, pupa, adult), they have three (egg, naiad or nymph, adult). Many female adults of the incomplete metamorphosis variety lay egg cases. Our book encouraged us to go out and see if we could find any- in bushes, under leaves, etc.

I remembered seeing some kind of egg case attached to the bush right outside our school room window. It was in the bush where a praying mantis hung out all last summer, so I was secretly hoping it was a praying mantis egg case. We found a couple other cases, put them in jars and set them on the counter to observe. When I had a chance, I looked up pictures of praying mantis egg cases and sure enough, that's what what the one from the bush was.

On Thursday of last week, I had checked the jars in the morning.  There was nothing going on.   Less than two hours later, one jar caught my eye and look we what saw...

It was amazing! The jar was swarming with praying mantis nymphs (which look like mini versions of the adults) falling out of the case and crawling all over the inside of the jar. Here are some pictures and a video for you.

Once we had our fill, and out of fear that they might start eating each other (which they are capable of), we kept a few and let the rest outside. Some we let crawl into my ever-aphid-infested rose bush (they love aphids) and the rest Jamey took to the garden.  We're putting these babies to work.

The ones we kept inside weren't doing well. They were too small to handle the adult flies and other bugs we gave them for food. Really small bugs are hard for kids (and grown ups) to find. If you ever have a chance to watch them hatch (which I highly recommend) I would advise letting them all go right away.  We let go the few we had kept a couple days later.

Our Creator never ceases to amaze me. Pin It

Three Cheers for Special Occasions!

While I really am enjoying life without sugar, I also really look forward to the special occasions when I know I'm going to allow myself something sweet.  My dear sister-in-law's birthday is today (Happy Birthday, Kim!), so I invited her and my brother over for dinner the other night.   She may love chocolate as much as I do, so I knew her birthday cake would be chocolate, but the question was what kind of chocolate.

I headed over to Smitten Kitchen, one of my very favorite food sites and found something that sounded perfect- Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake.  Three layers of chocolate cake covered and layered with peanut butter cream cheese frosting, topped with peanut butter chocolate ganache...  Hey.  Snap out of it now.  Stop day dreaming about cake and read on.  Oh.  Maybe it's just me day dreaming. Sorry.

I planned on following Deb's recipe to the letter, but the sour cream I thought was in the fridge wasn't, so I used plain yogurt instead (it worked just fine).  And, I sprinkled the left over chocolate chips on top of the cake.  As if it needed more chocolate.

Deb warns that this cake is rich.  Let me just say this cake goes quite a bit beyond rich.  This is not your everyday cake.  This is a special occasion cake- not just because of the superb frosting and ganache, either.  This is no hum-drum chocolate cake- it's super moist and super tasty.  Man.  I wish there was still some left.  No, I don't.  Yes, I do.  No, I don't.

 

Oh.  I have one more recommendation if you're considering making this.  Refrain from eating any of this cake within four hours of bedtime.  Unless you want time to write about 5 blog posts in a quiet house. The chocolate and sugar kept me up until 3 am.  It was totally worth it.

And, while I fully enjoyed my little tryst with this cake, I'm back on the no sugar wagon.  It really is a good place for me to be.

I must say a very special happy birthday to Nora, my niece.  She was born around 3am this morning:-).

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Growing Up & Moving Out

It was a very productive week in the garden thanks to Jamey having a week off.  Jamey planted and I weeded.  I have def weeding skills, you know.  Almost all of our little plants that we started from seed made the big move into the garden.  Planting amidst our straw mulch is simple- pull it aside (first photo below), dig a nice little bed (second photo- note the happy worms) and plant (third photo-in goes a basil plant).

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In addition to planting, Jamey and the big kids drove over to our local livestock auction house (when it was closed) and loaded the trailer with good, old fashioned, aged  livestock manure.  Sam and Sadie both helped shovel it onto the trailer (they volunteered, mind you).  Once home, Jamey placed piles of it around the garden, ready to be worked into the soil as he planted. Check out this article on using manure as fertilizer.

 

Sphagnum moss was added to the sweet potato hills to help break up the clay-y soil.  The center hill towards us below isn't quite finished yet- it needs more mounding and straw.  Then, it will be ready for sweet potato slips- the only thing that isn't planted yet (I think....).

Below are rows of green beans and one of our happy potato plants.  Straight rows are so boring.

Here are more plants nestled into their new homes.  The straw is kept pulled back a bit to allow them plenty of light and air as young plants.  As they grow larger, the straw can be tucked in underneath to help retain moisture.

Peas to the left, strawberries to the right, peppers and some of the tomatoes in the middle.

As of just last week, we had to cover plants because of frost.  Keep your ears and eyes on alert for frost warnings.  Just because your plants are safely tucked in the earth, doesn't mean you're done.  You have to look out for those babies:-).

P.S.  We've been eating small hand fulls of strawberries!  The season's first fruit (that you can eat by itself- sorry rhubarb) is finally here! Pin It

On Why I Love It

Everyone has heard the benefits of breastfeeding for the baby.  That's not what this post is about.  While I'm still nursing my last biological child, I wanted to record some of my very favorite things about it while they are still fresh in my mind.  My nursing days are numbered.  I can't think too much about that because it makes me sad.  Instead, I'll focus on the positive.

Before I get started, I want to say two things.  First of all, I want to acknowledge that not every woman who wants to breastfeed her child is successful.  While this can sometimes be due to a mother giving up a little too soon because things not going well, situations also occur where it's just not working.  Neither mother or baby are at fault.  Something happens and the baby is unable to get the nourishment they need.  I personally know more than one woman who tried everything she could to make it work and ultimately had to chose formula over nursing because her child wasn't thriving.  I am all for advocating nursing, but we must be gentle with our words and opinions.

The second thing I want to say is that a lot of the experiences below can occur while bottle feeding your baby, as well.  Nursing is my experience, so that is what I am writing about.  With all that out of the way, here are my favorite things about nursing my babies...

1) I love that nursing is like siphoning calories out of my body at a time when my body can stand to lose a few.  Okay, more than a few.

2) I loved those moments when my babies were newborns and the house was full of company and I would get to steal away with them to find a quiet place to nurse.  At a time where everyone wants to hold the new baby, these were precious occasions where the two of us were alone.

3) I loved working out the early kinks of nursing with my babies.  Sam had trouble latching. Miriam had trouble being patient and waiting for my milk to letdown.  While this work was difficult, tiring and emotional, I felt (even at the time) that I was laying down some expectations for our relationship.  I was committed to helping them, working with them until we had things sorted out.  When we had success, there was joy (with tears, on my part) all the way around.

4) I loved those first moments when my babies realized that I was attached to the place their milk comes from.  When their eyes wander up to my face and make the connection.

5) I love (and I tear-up as I write this) the moments after nursing when my baby lies satisfied and calm in my lap, when she babbles to me and we carry on a conversation, eyes locked together only inches apart.  When she snuggles and giggles and I wonder how long it will take for me to lose these memories.

6) I love when those babies reach up and touch my face and hair or hold onto my fingers while they drink.

7)  I love that nursing my baby makes me stop.  Stop during my otherwise busy and bustling day.  Stop to sit and bond and cuddle.

8) I love the quietness of the nursery while nursing.  Quietness that doesn't come often during my day.  Quietness in which I can think things over and pray in peace.

9)  I love that I don't have to sterilize bottles and nipples, warm bottles, or wash bottles.

10) I love to see my older children pretend to nurse their baby dolls (yes, even Sam did this when Sadie was a baby).

11) I love it when Miriam falls asleep while nursing.  It's the only time I get to hold her when she's sleeping anymore.  She's like her mama in that she prefers her bed.  But sometimes, after a long bout of play, I get to watch her heavy eyes bob and finally close as she lies in my arms.

12) I love how I can measure her growth by comparing the length of her body to the width of mine, remembering when she was only slightly longer than the width of me and now watch as her legs extend past my arms and drape over the arm of the chair.

These are the memories I don't want to forget.


Don't get me wrong, adjusting to sore nipples and engorgement in the early days is tough.  But, by the time all that is getting better, you and your baby are likely in a wonderful routine and pattern.

This routine and pattern has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life.  At 11 months, Miriam is still going strong but I have already begun to grieve for the end of this stage in mothering.  It's really been that rewarding.

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If you are looking for a wonderful resource on breast feeding, my favorite is Dr. and Mrs. Sears' The Breastfeeding Book: Everything You Need to Know About Nursing Your Child From Birth to Weaning.  It was my breastfeeding bible of sorts.  Not just before the birth and at the beginning of our nursing journeys, but all the way through. Pin It

A Pig Named Ham

Our farmette and the farmhouse two doors down used to be in the same family many years ago.  That family raised hogs.

Up until a couple months ago, our two farmettes possessed (between the two) three cats, a dog and a whole mess of chickens. But about two months ago, our neighbors decided to return to their farm's roots and buy a pig. Their intent from the start (hence naming the pig Ham) has been that this pig will fill their freezer in the fall.

I thought I would introduce you to Ham. Now, don't get all sentimental on me, okay? Unless you are a vegetarian (or don't eat pork), you must know that the bacon, sausage and ham you eat comes from, well, pigs.   And if you're careful about where you buy your pork, it may come from a happy pig, like Ham.

This is another example of raising an animal in a pleasant and dignified way- providing it with plenty of fresh air, sun, room to run (and buck! Did you know they buck?!), entertainment (Ham has a toy ball in his pen) and love (our neighbor scratches his back for him). Their kids see first hand where their food comes from and this instills a respect for food and the creatures that provide us with that food.  It's all about making connections.

Ham has already doubled in size and he should double again (at least) before harvest time. I think he's rather cute, don't you?



I'm still on a sheep kick.  If I could choose to keep another animal, it would have to be sheep. For their milk (which leads to cheese) and their wool.  I guess I could name the mama Feta, couldn't I?  If you could have any (non-traditional pet) type animal, what would it be? Pin It

My New Job

I just got a new job.  I started two days ago and so far, it's been easy and, actually, kind of fun.  I get to stay home in my yoga pants.  I get to decide when I work, if you can really call it that.  For my efforts, I will be earning free gift cards to use on whatever we need.  That's pretty great considering we have no other means of income for the next year and by next year at this time, our savings may be as depleted as our pantry is right now.

So, what I am doing?  I'm swagging.  (Can I say that?  Does that even make sense?)  My dear friend, Mavis, who has been a reader of this blog of mine since almost the beginning and whose comments you probably see now and again, introduced me to swag bucks.

In it's simplest form, you sing up here by filling in your information.  Then, you download (don't be scared- it's nothing freaky and won't mess up your computer) the swag bucks toolbar.  It will show up near the top of your screen and in it is a new place to search the internet (an alternative to searching google, yahoo, etc.).  Each time you search, you have a chance to earn swag bucks (sometimes you earn 1, sometimes 11, sometimes many more).  You also earn 30 swag bucks just for signing up.  The swag bucks can be redeemed for gift cards, merchandise, etc.  There are lots of other ways to earn additional swag bucks, but only if you want to.  (Swagbuck tips and frequently asked questions.)

Here is what I am doing.  I am going to use their search box only when I need to search and I'm going to answer their new poll every day (this earns you 1 swag buck).  ONLY when I have extra time (eg: after the kids are in bed), will I browse the site further to discover all the other ways I can earn swag bucks (which includes shopping in their store when you need something, taking surveys, etc).

My goal?  To see if we can make it to next spring using swag bucks.  For gifts, night time diapers, etc.  Mavis' plan is to earn enough gift cards to pay for all her Christmas shopping this year.  That's some holiday cheer, no?

Another great thing about this new job of mine?  There's no interview.  Ready?

YOU'RE HIRED!!  Congratulations!  I'm so proud of you:-).

Now, go sign up for swag bucks and let's see if we can't all save ourselves a few dollars this year. Pin It

A Food First, For Me

When given a choice of where I'd like to go out to eat, I always, always, always, choose an ethnic restaurant.  Thankfully, where we live, there are many choices, but that can make it difficult to choose.  Do I feel like Indian food?  What about Ethiopian?  Thai?  Vietnamese?  Mexican?  Greek?  Chinese?  Peruvian?  Or Japanese?  When I go out, I want to eat food I can't or wouldn't make myself.  And I thought that during the last 16 or so years of living here I'd tried just about everything.

Well, in addition to being introduced to thousands of drugs (and by "introduced", I do not mean he was trying them out), the thrill of competition that is Foosball and hip-young-college-student lingo during his past few years of pharmacy school, Jamey was also introduced to sushi.  He would come home raving about how he and some friends had gone out for lunch to a sushi place and tell me how delicious it was and how he knows I would love it.  I didn't know whether I should be excited for him or jealous because while he was eating out, I was home trying to feed three kids and get a bite in my own mouth every once in awhile.

Finally, an occasion arose.   My brother and his wife were babysitting all three kids so the two of us could go out rotation shopping.  Jamey needed shoes, ties, undershirts, dress shirts, pants, socks- the works.  We finished earlier than we thought we would and after spending that much student loan money, we thought, what's a little bit more?  (That is a terrible way to think about money and thankfully, we do not think this way very often.)  He surprised me by driving us to a sushi restaurant in town I didn't know existed.

Can I just say how much I love sushi?  I think I always loved it, even before I tried it.  I just knew I would like it.  Jamey knew, too.  And we were right.  These photos aren't the best, no offense to Jamey's new (and very first ever) cell phone (another rotation necessity).  This is what our shared platter looked like...

 

Below is the California Roll (Avacado, Crab, Masago).  Masago is the orange stuff which is capelin (a fish)  roe (eggs) ...

Eel Roll (Eel, Cucumber)...

Shrimp Tempura Roll (Avocado, Cucumber, Fried Shrimp)...

 

Texas Roll (Avocado, Crab, Shrimp, Masago, Cucumber, Amango Sauce)

I know I am one of the last people on earth to try sushi, or so it feels.  If you haven't tried it yet, please give it a go.  The wasabi paste you mix with soy sauce to dip your sushi in is potent stuff, but you don't have to dip at all if you don't want to.  The flavor of the sushi rolls I tried was very mild and very delicious.  It's a little pricey, so sushi will be reserved for very special occasions.  Do you know of anyone else who needs to go rotation shopping and needs some company?  I could go along.  You know.  If they are going out for sushi afterward.

What else have I been missing?! Pin It