The Urban Homemaker Blog

Category: Family

  • Tribute to Mom

    Tribute to Mom

    The Urban Homemaker is epitomized in my own mother.  I took it for granted, as a child, and foolishly thought most homes were like mine, with a mother who cooked supper every night, baked the best cookies and cinnamon rolls, and actually said she liked doing laundry and ironing!  I did wonder at times why some of my elementary classmates hounded me to trade my lunch for theirs.  🙂

    Mom became an urban homemaker when she and Dad married and settled in a big city out West (where her asthma was supposed to be better), far from their families, and the rural lifestyle in the East where they were both born and raised.  Despite being raised in a large family, in the country, my mom says she wasn’t much of a cook when she got married.  By the time my sisters and I came along though, as far back as my memory serves me, Mom’s food was wonderful!  My dad would take us all out “for dinner” (39 cent hamburgers and French fries) once every two weeks when he got his paycheck, so Mom had ample time and experience to hone her cooking skills.  She made food from “scratch” as it was less expensive than the boxed variety.  She did not own fancy cooking tools, or even a dishwasher (my dad said he had four dishwashers and didn’t need any more)!    After our outing at the burger joint, we would go to the grocery store – Dad would hand Mom $40 cash, and she would buy two weeks worth of groceries while the rest of us waited in the station wagon, listening to the radio and enjoying our time with Dad.

    So… times have changed, yes.  We have been liberated and don’t have to do the mundane cooking and cleaning that was once a natural, necessary task for us.  It’s become easy, acceptable, and excusable to let the restaurant chains feed us more often than we cook.  Losing the art and skills of homemaking has cost us more than just monetarily; it has deprived us of our innate ability to nurture our families, and it has led to a nation of many unhealthy people.

    In a review in Eating Well magazine of Michael Pollan’s latest book, Cooked:A Natural History of Transformation, Pollan says, “Cooking is key to changing our health and the environment.”  When asked about a person who just doesn’t have time to cook, Pollan replies, “Well, that same person has an hour for yoga or surfing the Web.  We put pressure on the kitchen to save 10 minutes to do something else.  I’m just arguing that it’s important – for your health, your family life and your sanity”.

    I am truly grateful for my mother and for her beautiful portrayal of homemaking.  We don’t all have a mother like mine, but we can all be inspired to learn and grow, and transform the way we look at the task before us of raising a healthy family.

    So…what’s for dinner?  🙂

  • Making Playdough At Home – A Recipe For FUN!

     

    Although my own children have outgrown this activity, we still get to enjoy it now and then when entertaining other young ones!  It never fails to bring smiles, and is a safe, economical remedy for those “winter doldrums”!

    This recipe, which I’ve had for years, is easily made, with simple ingredients you have in your cupboard, and keeps very well.

    Homemade Playdough

    1 cup flour

    1/2 cup salt

    2 T. vegetable oil

    2 t. cream of tartar

    1 cup water

    Few drops of food color

    Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan.  Cook and stir until the mixture leaves the side of the pan and changes consistency.  Dump out onto plate, or counter, and let cool enough to handle.  It is fun to work with when it is warm and very soft and does not require extra flour on hands or table like some recipes do.  This playdough stays soft and fun for a long time if it is stored in a zip-top plastic bag.

  • Lessons from the Beehive- An Urban Homemaker’s Review

    The Bee Keepers!

    I am fast entering into my 5th year of homeschooling 3 incredible kids! Our journey with their triplet pregnancy, birth and life has taken us on a God given Vision of teachin’ them! I love it! I think I learn more the second time around. I jokingly refer to this year as my second term in 4th grade.

    What do you all want to study this coming year?

    That is a question I pose every year.  The answer was BEES! This year it is the whole family who is into finding out more about bee keeping and understanding of what takes place in one of those “boxes,” in a nameless field, that we drive 60 mph past most days!

    Carol J. Alexander, who I know through her blogging on http://EverythingHomeWithCarol.com, wrote a book and coincidentally asked if I could review. What perfect timing as I have no materials to shape this learning venture, other than Mr B. out on the highway who has been a bee keeper for his whole life. We have a field trip planned, but for me- “Cape Wearing, Busy Supermom”- I need a bit of an outline and Lessons from the Beehive is just that.

    What Lessons from the Beehive IS:

    Bee Ball
    • 50 lessons bee related in math, language, science and more
    • A spring board or starting point to mesh bee learning with school
    • information that turns on the brain in a research kinda way
    • Listed resources found on the web
    • a framework to lapbook using science, geography, math, home ec, art, etc.
    • encouragement to delve into bees!
    • Supplier listing for beehive management
    • Interest sparker!

    What Lessons from the Beehive is NOT:

    • It is not a manual on beekeeping
    • Not  a manual for diagrams- but sources for that are listed

    So as we start this year, bees are a hot topic and on the agenda. I can see using Lessons for the Beehive to help navigate my way through an area of study that we’ve never been in before. It is a good and right place to start. The review of the little book has made going to the library very purposeful! I can see speaking “bee” for the next 4 mo. and making a super (aka: the little white boxes on a nameless field, along the highway, we all drive 60 mph by) to complement our endeavors to be beekeepers and be knowledgable well before we get to the actual hive! May it be so!!!

    You can get Lessons from the Beehive from Carol, www.LessonsFromTheHomestead.com.

    Buzz you later, Kathy

     

     

  • Urban Homemaker ~ How are you Managing?

    I will be the first to admit that I am over stretched in what I do and accomplish in a day. Yes, I do plenty that is good and right, but what I want is where my Lord wants me to be.  Over the last several weeks I have heard the same things that are from the mouths of my peers, other Urban Homemakers,  just like me- probably just like you too?

    We have “10 things”<please insert your own list, but it may look like this: work, feed, clean, canning!, garden work, bill paying, dog washing, piano lessons, meeting off-site, laundry, dishwasher, etc> that we think need to be done in the course of 10 minutes. Seriously, that sounds fabricated and not rational. Thats the point.. My driving-ness (if that is a word, but you get me?) fabricated the need for those 10 things to be done in the next 10 min. and it isn’t rational! Heavens! I am my own worst enemy and this is the well worn path to tearing me apart.  Let me interject that there are a ton of fun and wonderful things happening, yet He has my attention in the area of “needing improvement” and I am persevering to get this right.  All those things that seem so important can just stay where they are! I mean they are there even when I forget about them! Heck, they might even be there to mold and shape me into the woman I am meant to be.  Hope so! Such the process isn’t it?

    Here are 2 quotes that I have heard in the last few weeks that have STUCK! and they keep STICKING..

    1. The Volunteer Lady who met us at the JEFFCO Action Center in Lakewood, CO. said “Never come here thinking you will accomplish all that needs accomplishing. The work never ends. There is always more to be done.”

    2. From a dear, sweet friend of mine: paraphrased somehwat: “I want to “mother” instead of “manage” – and I’ve been managing instead of mothering.”

    Quote 1 & 2 both have changed my thinking. It is a mindset challenge for me. I can do all the tending I physically do, but the mindset behind that seems like it has to be done NOW rather than seeing it for what it is- it is an endurance walk in life. The “work” will always present themselves, and tasks will continue.. If I “attempt” to finish all those things with the mindset of finishing and nothing else, I find myself MANAGING. When I manage I get crabby, tired, fried.. or please insert your own yuck feeling/action of choice here. Of course, if I am in that mode of managing how can I possibly “mother” in the way I should?

     

    Don't look too far off from today- that other grass to be cut is for another day!

    This morning Hubby and I set out to take an hour or so off and be together. Instead of managing another (HA!) task we did an 11 mile bike ride and breakfast in town. It was glorious! As we came down the hill towards home I saw the photo illustration of my whole theme here.. So have a gander at the pretty cut grass and lines. Think of yourself as the tractor and everything that needs to be done (the grass) and just do the few lines you set out to do. Know that you may not accomplish everything in 1 day, but it may be ongoing(see grass surrounding cut grass). Also notice the tractor is turned off and not moving. Yes- there is a purpose in that too! Other things besides the grass need to be done instead of cutting, i.e. bike riding with Hubby. The grass will grow and it will be cut. I am thankful for the neat rows that I can see, but be careful not to look beyond too far as the field goes on and on and that is for another day!

    May you be encouraged to have a different mindset and may you whole heartedly Mother rather than Manage!

    Kathy

     

     

  • Whole Grain Crackers… Garlic too!

    I had a bit of a personal challenge this morning.  I said to myself, “If I can make pretty darn tasty bread, then I should be able to make crackers!” So here is my morning journey…

    I started with this Wheat Cracker recipe from www.AllRecipes.com and made my changes:

    Plain Whole Grain Crackers:

    1 3/4 C  7 Grain freshly milled

    1 1/2 C unbleached white flour

    3/4 tsp Real Salt (Coming soon to Urban Homemaker)

    1 C Water

    1/3 C Olive Oil

    Sea Salt for topping

    Into the Bosch outfitted with Cookie Paddles and then the setting to 1 as I poured the liquids into the dry ingredients. By the time I set my measuring cup down the ingredients were mixed. Roll this amount of dough onto parchment for 3-4 cookie sheets. 2 cookie sheets worth will give you a thicker, softer- less crispy cracker. 3-4 sheets will be the thinness required for the cracker to be cheese spread worthy! Both thicknesses were incredible in taste and are currently being devoured!

    Helpful Note: Roll dough onto parchment paper. Makes transferring to a sheet and prepping for the next round~ easy! I used 2 types of rollers a Wood Pastry/Pizza Roller and I used a standard 13″ rolling pin.

    Once rolled out I scored the dough with a pizza cutter, knife, or whatever tool you want. Each cracker was stabbed with a fork.

    Into the oven 350 degrees for 18-20 min until browned. Watch it! Depending on your type of oven, convection or not, and how the temp is~ just watch so it doesn’t burn.

     

     

    The end result was beautiful. This is the plain variation with a thicker roll out. I spread the dough on 2 sheets and got a breadier, yet slightly crispy cracker. It is delightful and the salt on top is perfect!

    Step 2.. Make a second batch and this time load it with 1- 1 1/2 T of garlic granules or powder and parmesan cheese (1/2C). I used Organic Garlic Granules from www.StrawHatFarms.com . They grow and process several varieties of garlic on the certified organic farm right in Montrose, CO. Chet and Karen Byler are friends of ours and I love their garlic! I bought the glass containers of garlic powder and granules and then refill in bulk. Please see their website for shipping details.

    ** Note: if adding extras like a parmesan cheese add about 1T water more to keep the dough moist.

    Here is the second batch: Garlic, Parmesan Cheese 7 Grain Crackers. They were rolled thinner than my plain batch and covered 3 cookie sheets. There is a crisp and they are completely addicting when eaten with a cheese spread. I took this photo of them cooling so you can see how much in in 1 recipe when using 3 sheets. This was comparable to emptying 2 boxes of store bought crackers.

    There you have it.. My personal cracker challenge and thumbs up across the board of family members.  I love that I know what went into our crackers and that nothing unpronounceable was in my ingredient list.

    Till the Next Challenge, Kathy

  • Plastic Eggs, Little Kids and an Object Lesson


    I came up with this idea with a little help after hiding little plastic eggs in our backyard Saturday night while the house was sleeping. It has never been warm or dry enough to do a little hunt in years past and since my “Littles” are getting older, I wanted them to have this experience.

    I am one blessed Mama to have 3 young children to know and confess a relationship with Jesus. He being raised from the dead is right where our faith starts! I want them to understand so they can live in that relationship their whole lives. To have them know and understand early in life is AWESOME!

    I’ll get back to Easter morning, my children are waking, the coffee pot is brewing, and I open the blinds to find our little “Dixieland” dog carting around a yellow plastic Easter egg. The slider opens, I say “drop it,” ~ she does. The yard is covered with about 5-6 eggs and their contents. I manage to put back all but 3 emptied eggs.

    The hunt begins, then it hit me. ~ Children don’t forget the empty eggs!”

    In my mind they represent the empty tomb! There are 3, an opportunity for all 3 of my children. I hope and pray they will pick them up.

    I hear “They aren’t valuable Mom,” “Nothing of value is in them Mom,” “We’ll get them later Mom.” I reminded them a few times and then said no more.

    So I run inside and collect three $1 bills and wait.  ~ “So did any of you get the empty eggs?” “No”, but then the light bulb goes on in one of our son’s face. He knows!!! Then our daughter~ she knows!  And then the other son. He knows too! YES!

    They acknowledged they all missed a “valuable” opportunityto collect something (an empty dog licked egg) that was the most valuable!  That empty egg represented an opportunity to see the message of the Risen Christ; our best gift! The reason we believe.  They also missed the $1 that each empty egg represented.  They also understood that I asked a few times and then stopped asking.

    No one got the dollars that glorious Easter morn, the empty eggs were picked up, yet they still got “it.” They got that the most valuable was maybe the least desired or not shiny. They got that the empty eggs could represent a narrow gate and only a few get them. ~ Remember they stood there with baskets filled with several intact eggs (the wide gate).   They got it as they played hide the eggs and left 1 or 2 open so an opportunity missed could be found!

    So if the dog ever gets your eggs have this idea for a teachable moment! It is exactly why there is an Easter to celebrate in the first place!

    Happy Easter folks! Kathy

     

  • An Urban Homemaker’s Breakfast: Part II

    One of my homemaking goals is to use what I have and enjoy the process of finding the recipes which are now becoming traditions.  Breakfast is also a favorite mealtime and I have recipes that I am asked to share over and over again. These items may use a same basic ingredient at times, but when you buy in whole grain bulk embrace it!

     

    Special Pancake- aka German Pancake, Puff Pancake:

    This recipe is often requested and I make it for guests or just on Saturday mornings when I have more time. I have everything to make this and by the time the oven preheats the batter is ready to go and once again I have used one of my favorite kitchen tools: The Vita-Mix Blender. For small batches of flour, I can quickly mill the soft white wheat for this recipe in the dry blade container and then switch to the wet blender container and mix my batter!

    We triple this recipe as our family of 5 will eat it! I use a Superstone: Deep Dish Baker and a 9×13.

    Preheat oven at 425. Spray pan with olive oil, smear bottom of Deep Dish Baker with 1 T coconut oil or butter.

    Into blender:

    3/4 C milk

    3 eggs

    1/4 tsp salt

    1/2 tsp vanilla

    2 T sugar

    1/2 C freshly milled soft white wheat ( or 1/4 C white flour & 1/4C  hard red or white wheat) (Lighter the flour , lighter the rise of the pancake. More whole wheat the denser the pancake, but just as yummy!)

    Mix till blended, pour, then bake! This recipe serving will fill a pancake pan. Double it or triple it and use bakeware sizing which is appropriate, i.e. 9×13= doubling, deep dish baker=single, both= triple!!!

    Favorite toppings include- but not aren’t limited to: syrup, lemon juice and powdered sugar, vanilla yogurt and fresh berries, jam of any variety. Yogurt with jam is our favorite!

    There is more!

    On the go?- Make it ahead! or heck, surprise everyone and take it camping already made! I made this dish for 10 of my closest triplet mom friends who came for a girls’ “Mother’s Escape” Weekend, i.e no kids, no husbands, just us girls! and it was a hit. I take it often to brunches with an empty bowl to take home. It is yummy..

    Cold Porridge!

    I make this for visitors with a blender muffin and fresh fruit! You make this recipe the night before guests or for a camping trip. It is welcomed all through the day!

    1 C oatmeal- ( can sub 7 grain flakes)

    3/4 C milk

    1/4 C nuts of choice (almonds, pecans, hazelnuts, seeds: pumpkin!)

    1/4 C sugar

    1 large GREEN apple (unpeeled coarsely grated)

    1/3 C raisins or currants (optional)

    2 T lemon juice

    1/2 C plain yogurt or vanilla

    Mix into a pretty batter bowl , cover and refrigerate over night. Garnishes: fresh whipped cream, honey, nuts, muesli, and fruits. This makes 4 large helpings. I double this for when guests are present.

     

    May you enjoy-    Kathy

     

     

  • An Urban Homemaker’s Breakfast

     

    May I be completely honest? I am burned out with the same old, same old breakfast items and due to the fact that I own a plethora of whole grains I might as well move beyond baked goods and stretch the proverbial wings.  So here is my creativity for 2 breakfast options for the busy and not so busy “Urban Homemaker” come the wee hours of a work/school day… Let me back up and provide a bit of background: I have 2 big boys and 1 big girl, all age 8, and all three grow so fast I am shocked at the difference from a few months ago to now. I also feel motivated as I was when they were born to put into them the good things in life and leave out the bad as much as I can. In doing so, I happen to enjoy the pay off and the cost savings with living “granola like” and making my own. Also, I find myself a worker-bee right about dinner time through bedtime and can prep these breakfasts the night before and then place the welcomed postie note on the coffee pot so my dear Mr. Urban Homemaker can preheat the oven on occasion! The other night my croc pot was on making the house smell WONDERFUL.. I  simply got motivated by a friend’s FB request for croc pot recipes:

     

    Slow Cooker/Croc Pot Apple Spice Steel Cut Oats

    2 cups diced apple 2 Cups Steel Cut Oats 1 cup dried cranberries 1/4 cup almond meal 1/3 cup finely chopped pecans 3 cups water (Filter it! Multi-Pure water filter) 1 cup milk 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice 2 teaspoons butter Directions

    1. Combine the oats, apple, cranberries, almond meal, pecans, water, milk, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and butter in a slow cooker. Stir it up good, and then lid on-don’t touch till morning! Cook on Low overnight for 8 hours.
    2. I start this at 11pm for an 8am eat…. adjust if you have to be out of the house!

     

    Another FAVORITE: Banana Baked Oatmeal

    I got the original recipe from Sonrise Mountain Ranch in Cimarron, CO. I have tweaked it some to fit our preferences! But they get all the credit. Spray a 9×13, preheat to 350 degrees In Mixer, place the following: 1 C Coconut oil (sub. Olive or your choice) 4 Eggs 1 1/2 C Sugar 1 tsp Cinnamon 6 C 7 Grain flaked (can sub Oatmeal) 1T +1tsp Baking Powder 2 C Milk 1 C Mashed bananas ( about 2 medium) 1/2-3/4 C Chopped nuts * Mix all ingredients together, bake for 45 min at 350 degrees F. ** Kid-friendly version: mix all, but the nuts, together, put into pan, sprinkle chopped nuts on half, bake for 45 min *** Can make this the night before storing in the fridge. ****Toppings: Syrup is always good, but Vanilla yogurt +/- berries are fabulous! I mainly serve it with yogurt. This baked oatmeal is a favorite year around, at potlucks, made into muffins and frozen and used for an on the go breakfast! We love it for lunch and a midafternoon snack! Leftovers are fought over. So there you have it.. Two options for everyday or a special day, using the healthy whole grains your body needs to fuel it till lunch! May they soon become a family favorite and a tradition that brings the family together!

     

  • Pumpkin Spiced Latte: for Free!

    I have figured out the best way to keep my house picked up and to have the occasional “Pumpkin Spiced Latte”- for free! A friend just emailed out that the wonderful fall spiced latte is back in town!

     

    Well then, I must explain, so you, Ms Urban Homemaker, may enjoy one too!

    The Jar: Plain, Simple, and brimming with items with a $.25/ea bounty on their heads.

    At the end of most days or at least an hour or so after the first and only warning I might give to the collection of nick-knack toys here and there on the floor, I go hunting! I pick up handfuls of little toys that are my eye sore or end up in my sweeping pile- OR the very toys I step on barefoot in the dark no less and I place said items into the jar.
    The jar collects many wonderful items! They gleam from the glass! They call to their owners who long ago forgot to put them in their place! The guilty party in this house happens to be a trio of 8 yr olds who can and do forget to pick up after themselves.

    Fast forward days or weeks later and a bit of the jar catches their eyes. They know the jar can’t be opened without ransom. So the prized, long, lost item is found and the $.25 ransom is paid. Often I get generous (especially when I know a Nerf gun fight is being prepped for) and hold a 5 for $1 sale. Oh my boys love this; I made, literally $5.75 last week.

    Bottom line: Yes, I occasionally reward my efforts and my cleaner home with the occasional well desired Pumpkin Spiced Latte, but it also is a nice way to return the cash back to the kids by offering them to work a chore for money. That money can and does go around and around, but man, I hold out for the latte.. especially now that I heard they are back in town and I have a long night ahead.

    ~I will warn.. The ransom payment is often painful for the guilty, so ransom cash flow happens not too often, but when it does, may you enjoy!

    Kathy

     

     

  • Potato Tradition

    Every 2nd week of a new school year we find ourselves mourning the almost gone summer months.

    Every 2nd week of a new school year it is time to break the mold and HARVEST POTATOES!

    I love harvesting potatoes and you know my kids do too. Their motivation and attitude quickly changes and we find ourselves in the almost sleeping garden full of produce which needs preserving and picking.  My little ones left their desks with Language Arts complete only to be told to head to the garden.

    What For?

    For a potato adventure!  ~ and Science for the day!

    As we dug through the dirt I tried impressing upon them the slang phrase “pay-load!” But in their sweet way I heard shouts of “Hay-load! Hay-load!” every time I forked up a clump of dirt only to find a “pay-load” of potatoes!

    I can’t say whole heartedly that I am looking forward to the next season, but boy! ~ this is truly a tradition that is in its 3rd year. It really is in the
    little things that memories are made and looked forward to the next time.

     

    So the next time:  Let’s just say that this particular son has prepared the soil for a winter harvest and he has already asked me to pick up a bale of straw. I just think we might get behind that idea and make another tradition: Winter Potato Harvest.

     

    For Now, enjoy your harvest & hope it is a potato harvest!

     

    Kathy