Jared and jaffa cakes

Every since he learned about Jaffa cakes on yogscast awhile ago he has been obsessed with them. Unfortunately we haven't been able to find them here in the US. But Jared did something even better, he found a recipe for them. I'm not sure how close to the original they are but I do know they are fun to make.

For this recipe Jared had to make a few conversions, so math was used. Kitchen math is my favorite as an unschooling mom. As an adult kitchen math is what I use on a daily basis, my kids use it right along side me.

Cooking does lead to some disappointment, nothing is ever as perfect as it appears in pictures.

The results were tasty though and that is what matters.

First step: converting the recipe, cell phones make this job a piece of cake. 

Then, measure and mix the ingredients. 

Into the oven to bake. 

The cookie part is done. 

The finished product. 

The inspiration. 

If you are interested in making your own jaffa cakes the recipe can be found here. http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/homemadejaffacakes_91480

Making dinner

Josh loves to help make dinner. It's fun and educational. Tonight he helped make the buns for our pulled pork. We had to divide the dough, we divide it into 14 so everyone can have two. He helped roll them and then helped put an egg wash on them. He also helped cut up the zucchini. So glad he is a great helper and that he loves cooking.

Best laid plans

You know what they say about best laid plans...yeah they never end well.

We've been sick, like annoying upper respiratory illness sick. It sucks and my house just feels icky despite constant cleaning.

We did manage to get out a little last week despite the sickness that infected our home in the later part of the week.

Josh and I went to the zoo. He wanted to see the meerkats. I used to worry about gathering up all the kids for outings but now I realize there is nothing wrong with just taking one child someplace special. So Josh and I went to the zoo, we had lunch together and laughed about monkey butts. We watched the lazy otters sleep and were unsuccessful in our search for the elusive sloth. Most important was we had fun together.

Hannah and I managed to go shopping. What girl doesn't love to shop? Actually she hates shopping but she had an inkling that cheesecake was in her future. Anyhow this was the boring kind of shopping. We needed dog food, some bread, kitty litter, laundry soap (yeah I know I need to make my own), and toilet paper. Real exciting shopping. We did get cheesecake though so the trip was a success. Hannah and I both love listening to loud music in the car so there was a lot of that too.

Another highlight was a mini mission we hosted at our house. We are mormons so missionary service is important and kids learn young to sing the song "I Hope They Call Me on a Mission"which is really irrelevant but it was the first thing that popped in my head. It was a fun activity that had the youth aged 12-18 receiving mission calls to various countries and then headed out to host homes to share a meal and a spiritual message.

Silly me thought it would be fun to host a group of kids, it slipped my mind that I had four children of my own that needed to be at four different homes throughout the city all while preparing a meal. After a little fanagling I managed to get all the kids to their various host homes and also managed to prepare a tasty indian meal. It was a wonderful night, we had three lovely young ladies at our home. None of them had ever had indian food before and they seemed to enjoy it. We had jasmine rice, lentils, naan bread, chicken curry, and an eggplant and tomato dish with veggies fresh from the garden. The food was wonderful as was the company. My kids visited "Korea", "Calgary", "China" and "America" and all enjoyed their experiences.

Here is the recipe for the chicken curry, it's a simple crockpot meal and to make it easy for a quick night meal I cut up my chicken before throwing it in the freezer. http://tastykitchen.com/blog/2011/03/slow-cooker-coconut-chicken-curry/

And here is the recipe for the eggplant, I read the comments though and sliced my eggplant into rings before cooking it, I like my eggplant with a little more shape. http://allrecipes.com/recipe/indian-eggplant---bhurtha/

Four of us were able to visit our local community fest, we listened to some polka, fed a llama, learned about owls, ate some fries, and saw some police vehicles and wondered why exactly we need assault vehicles in our sleepy town. Our visit was short though because we realized we were not feeling too hot.

Hoping that this week will be a little more exciting, with less sickness and more outdoor time. I have a bunch of tomatoes that need to be cooked into sauce and canned. The kids are thrilled for the start of our homeschool co-op later in the week. And the weather is supposed to be toasty tomorrow so a beach day might be in order.

Intro to the zoo

Last year I had every intention of keeping a blog to show just what we do each and everyday. Unfortunately life got in the way and it just didn't happen. Our oldest son was extremely ill and we spent months visiting doctors, I will admit I also spent months sitting and crying and trying to figure out just how I felt. In the end though I am grateful for that year of chaos, it helped solidify why we do what we do, why we live the way we live.

Now that that is out of the way I'd like to introduce us. We are a family of seven. I am Danielle, a housewife and mother extraordinaire to a brood of five children. Along for the ride is Mike, my husband of 19 years and an amazing piano technician. Together we try to get through each day without too much insanity. Our children are Kyle (17), Hunter (15), Jared (14), Hannah (12) and Josh (11).

Our interests are varied. We like to camp, travel, dabble in photography, tune pianos, tinker, build, garden, write, play guitar, draw, play minecraft, play cello, study latin, play bass, build computers, play mellophone, cook, play french horn, skateboard, jump on the trampoline, read, play accordion, and many many more things.

We love life and try to be as Christ centered as we can. My main concern as a mother is that I have happy, healthy, kind, and loving children who know how to laugh and have fun.

We are a unschooling family (mostly) which is a form of homeschooling for those who might be wondering. We learn through a mix of life experiences, classes, books, and real life situations. Our oldest child has chosen a little different path and has chosen to remain at the local high school where he is a senior. So in many ways we are still a part of the system which doesn't always sit well with me. Our 15 year old son also attends class at the local high school but only for band class, he also participates in the marching band. And just to keep me us on our toes our daughter is in the orchestra at the local middle school. Up until four years ago all of our children attended public school but due to life smacking us upside the head we went down a different path...a path that has changed our life and made it all that more wonderful.

Thanks for reading and I hope you come back for updates.

Testing...or perhaps a brief glimpse into my mind

In an attempt to simplify my not so simple life I think I shall join the blogosphere.

Here is where I will post about our lives in the hope that I will see beyond the doldrums that is our every day life.

So here goes nothing. And in all actuality it will be nothing until "school" starts up again in the fall.

As Hannah likes to say "toodles!"

As a side note, my grammar sucks and while I will try to be mindful please forgive my frequents lapses as I am not perfect, despite what I tell my husband.