The Wisdom of Young Wally

When Wally was nine years old, we made a big move from the Gulf Coast to the East. Ward and I were very absorbed in everything involved with that--getting the house ready to sell, finding a new place, packing, etc. But most of all we were involved in helping Theo, who was six at the time, deal with the coming change. He was very worried about everything and expressing that the only way he knew how--by acting up. Unfortunately daily notes from his teacher became the norm during this time.

After a few weeks of this whirlwind, we realized that maybe Wally needed some attention too. We sat down with him one day and said that we had been paying so much attention to Theo and the move, we hadn't even asked him how he felt about everything. This is the reply he gave us.

"When you first told me about moving, I was upset. I didn't want to leave my friends and my school. But then one day, I laid down on my bed and thought about everything. First I thought about every bad thing there was about moving and then I was done with the bad stuff.  Then I thought about the good stuff like having a bigger yard and seeing snow. And the good stuff is the only thing I think about now when I think about moving and it's okay."

I was inspired at the time with Wally's method on how he handled his worry and still am. Since then, I've tried to remember his example. When I'm worried about something, I try to think about what is really bothering me and causing the worry. Then I think about if there is any action I can take to change it. Next I try to look at the positives of the situation and focus on those. Or to paraphrase young Wally, "First I think about all of the bad stuff and then I forget it. Then I only think about the good stuff."

How do you calm your worries?

Food Waste Friday and True Food Confessions--August 30, 2013

It's time for Food Waste Friday, when the Frugalgirl encourages us to post pictures from the previous week of wasted food from our household. This accountability hopefully will help us to be more careful with our food and maybe save some money. Also, I am using this public forum to encourage us to eat out less which includes better meal planning. You can follow how we are doing in this endeavor by reading True Food Confessions.

This Week's Food Waste

Cottage Cheese and Chicken Soup

The cottage cheese turned green before we finished it. I knew the container was too big when I bought it, but the price was so good. A rookie mistake made by an old pro. Also, last week I was sick for a couple of days and had 1/2 can of chicken soup--our favorite go to with an upset stomach. However, when I felt better, the soup didn't seem so appealing any more. So there it sat in the back of the fridge until it was time for it to go.

This Week's True Food Confessions 

Do you ever have a hard time remembering what you did yesterday? Sometimes I can't remember what I  did even that morning. So sometimes, I can't remember what we had to eat over the last week--like now. But I'll take a stab at it any way. Last night we had meatloaf and a couple of days before that we had chicken and noodles with chicken left over of a roasted chicken. Another night was a frozen pizza. The treats of the week were fresh salads, watermelon, and peaches. Oh the peaches were heavenly. I love peach season. 

Picture from Browneyed Baker.

I didn't make a new recipe this week, but I tasted a wonderful one at work--Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream. This is not ice cream with chunks of cookie dough, but the ice cream tastes like chocolate chip cookie throughout.  It was rich, creamy, and delicious and didn't require churning with an ice cream maker. I may make it this weekend. My friend that made it said that she got the recipe years ago off a bag of a bag of chocolate chips, but I have reprinted it below from Food. com.

Toll House Quick Ice Cream

By children from A to Z on July 16, 2007

0 Reviews

• 
• Prep Time: 30 mins
• Total Time: 24 hrs 30 mins
• Yield: 1.5 quarts

About This Recipe

"I haven't made this but it sure looks good. I found this in the Nestle cookbook I have. No ice cream maker necessary. Cooking time is chilling time."

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 3 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 cup mini chocolate chip
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

1. In a small heavy gauge saucepan, combine brown sugar and butter.
2. Bring to a boil over low heat, stirring occasionally; boil 1 minute.
3. Remove from heat.
4. In blender container, combine eggs, vanilla extract and salt; cover and blend at medium speed for 30 seconds.
5. Gradually pour in brown sugar mixture; blend at high speed for 1 minute Set aside;.
6. Cool to room temperature.
7. In a large bowl, beat heavy cream until stiff.
8. Fold in butter/sugar mixture.
9. Fold in chocolate chips and nuts.
10. Pour into foil-lined 9x5x3 in loaf pan.
11. Cover with foil; freeze until firm (several hours or overnight).

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: 1 (1179 g)
Servings Per Recipe: 1

Amount Per Serving

% Daily Value

Calories 3208.8

Calories from Fat 2467

76%

Amount Per Serving

% Daily Value

Total Fat 274.1g

421%

Saturated Fat 140.3g

701%

Cholesterol 1020.4mg

340%

Sugars 155.0 g

Sodium 1522.1mg

63%

Total Carbohydrate 183.1g

61%

Dietary Fiber 12.0g

48%

Sugars 155.0 g

620%

Protein 36.4g

7

 

A Second Look--August 28, 2013

We had a few wonderful days of cooler weather that lulled us into thinking that maybe fall was here. However, real August days returned with temperatures in the 90's with high humidity soon enough. The flower workhorses of the summer have continued to add their color. Some of these include blanket flowers, marigolds, celosia and coneflowers. Acutally most of the coneflowers have finished blooming and the goldfinch are starting to enjoy their seed heads.

The bird feeder has had a lot of activity and is interesting to watch as we see which birds don't mind sharing and which birds would rather have everything to themselves. We had a particularly aggressive male house finch one day that thought it was his job to keep other birds away. This is not typical for the finches as there are usually several there at the same time. And speaking of aggressive birds, I think the baby blue birds are still in the nest. When I got to that part of the yard today, the parents were dive bombing me from two directions. Enough so that I couldn't go into the lower part of the yard to take a Second Look. I guess technically I could have, but the birds aggressively whizzing within an inch of my head scared me. Has anyone seen the Alfred Hitchcock movie The Birds?

Here are a few things I saw this week during a Second Look.

Estate sale

There was an estate sale last weekend at a house near where Miss Landers lives and we made a visit to it as a family outing. Theo was looking mainly for tools and I thought Wally should be looking for things to outfit an apartment. Ward and I weren't sure what we were looking for but thought we would know it when we saw it.

The man who used to live in the house lived to the ripe old age of 90 and had plenty of time to pursue his favorite hobby--finding bargains at thrift stores. Therefore there were plenty of clothes and dishes and tools. Not out for sale, but he also had books signed by Einstein. That made for an eclectic accumulation of things to say the least.

Ward is starting to redo this table we purchased.

I concentrated on kitchen things for Wally because he thought he already had what he needed--some plates, bowls, and a pot. I added a few more things like measuring cups, cooking spoons, and a cookie sheet. He wandered around and found things that he thought the other members of the family might be interested in. Ward was a little overwhelmed with the whole thing but was happy when he found a table with just tools. Theo was the one who was focused. He carefully considered most things he saw.

The bargaining styles of the family were just as different as their shopping styles. Wally did no bargaining because he did no shopping. I generally paid what was marked on the items, but tried to group items and get a discount on the whole lot. Ward paid whatever was marked on the item and hesitated about buying things that weren't marked. And Theo was there to get a fair price--for everyone. For example, when he asked the elderly woman running the sale how much the clock on the mantel was, she suggested $5. He said he would feel better if he paid her $10, so he did. And so it went. I wasn't sure if I were proud of him for doing what he thought was right or thought I needed to give a lesson in second hand sales.

All in all, we were happy with our purchases. Wally got a few more things for his kitchen and Theo got a clock and some tools. Ward and I got among other things a side table, measuring cup, and a box of new drawer slides. Now it's time to fix up, redo, and put away our new treasures.

What's your bargaining style at second hand sales?

Thankful Sunday--August 25, 2013

I am thankful for my sisters.

I am very lucky to have three sisters. Who else can I say pea sheller or Mrs. Schoolcraft to and get a knowing nod and a smile? Thanks to Mother and Daddy for giving me the gift of these sisters.

(In case you're wondering, I have no brothers.)