Hidden Food

I have to learn code so I can use my own fonts.  I have SO many!  I like this plain one okay, but I'd love to dress it up.  Alas, not possible right now. : (

Mary Claire came home sick again today!  She's had that tummy ache since Saturday, and hasn't been able to eat.  She has no fever, no throwing up, and no weird poop.  I took her to the doctor, thinking it really could be something.  At our house, nothing is impossible!  The doctor told us to try Zantac (he says maybe acid reflux?) liquid 2x a day, and come back Monday if it's not better.  He also gave us a prescription for dissolving Zofran for when she's so sick and she can't eat or drink (especially when she's high or low!).

She was asking for a Zinger this afternoon, so I'd say she's at least 50% better!

I have been working on some items to donate for Springdale High's choir.  My friend is the choir director, and she's having a silent auction to raise money.  I made two monogrammed cups:

And I was working on making a white bath towel with an appliqued SHS, but I'm having trouble.  I don't know why the design on my jumpdrive won't show up on my sewing machine...  I'll keep working on it.  I've never done appliques with my embroidery machine, but I'm always up for learning something new!  I've heard that you just put the fabric on top of the item you are monogramming, then cut the fabric from around the stitches.  I know, it can't be that easy, but I'll let you know if I ever get it to work!

And while I'm laboring away on my computer/sewing machine, here's Ethan.

Just "working" away!  He tells me he's writing Happy Birthday and Congratulation notes for Mommy and Daddy and Everyone, and that he needs to mail them away to people.  He used most of a post-it pad, but I was glad to see him stay so focused for so long.  He's not crazy about writing (or coloring or drawing..), and I can't help him.  He's left-handed, and it's hard to teach when you are right-handed.  We colored lots last night, and he's trying to learn to stay in the lines.  We also worked on drawing people, since he's not-so-good at that (well, he just scribbles for people), but we'll keep at it.

You can't really see it, but his shirt says, "Bad Hair Day" with a spinosaurus, and I thought it fit him well today.

Alrighty, folks!  I have now made the Chicken Rice Soup from Double Delicious.  It took me two days, but All in the Name of Healthy. (I would totally suggest you take two days, since my entire family walked in our house yesterday-at different times-and told me how sTiNkY it was!  (It was the day I made the purees to go in the soup: Hidden Food.  I made cauliflower and carrot, and bagged them.  Apparently the cauliflower smelled super-gassy!)

This is the big head of cauliflower-it took forever to get into it-the green at the bottom was so stiff, and then they were packed tightly!  I had to just cut into a :stalk: to get into the thing!

Albino Broccoli

My first strainer-works in any size pot!  You have to keep the water level below the bottom of the strainer, or it'll leach out your vitamins!

My slightly fancier steamer!

All those carrots made just one cup of mush puree.

Obviously, cauliflower is full of hot air.  Remember the really full blender before?  It cooked down to this.

And here are my finished purees!

So..I finished the soup today, but I didn't take a picture.  All the chunky chicken, rice, and veggies were at the bottom, so it looked like orange-y water.  It tasted okay, not great.  I don't think I'd make it again.  I also made her cheese bread (I'm sure she called it something fancier) with bean paste (kinda like hummus: white beans, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper) and mozzarella on bread.  It was pretty good, but I'd toast the bread first next time, so it's crunchier.  I broiled it in the oven on a cookie sheet, so the bottom was just bread.  It was all just okay, nothing to write home about.  Sometimes all the work is for naught.  Yes, I still learned (that my sweet husband will eat anything I make, and that sometimes Clay will, and rarely Mary Claire.  Ethan gobbled up his cheese bread, but didn't like the soup.  Mary Claire was skeptical-she kept picking off the cheese asking what was under it.  I don't know why Mrs. Seinfeld hides beans-my kids love them!  I think they'd prefer to just eat them.)