These Are a Few of my Favorite Things

my Nigella measuring cups, my french rolling pin, and Cranberry Ribbon Apple pie

Also, rubber lizards (left) really make the pie taste better. But I won't tell you how I use them, because I don't want to give away all my piemaking secrets.

To me, fall = pie.

I'm sure my family is missing out on some pretty sweet summer berry pies, because making pie crust in a hot kitchen just does not appeal to me. But when there's a little coolness in the air (southeastern US translation: it's not stifling hot anymore), my thoughts turn towards cutting in, rolling out, and all the other motions that come with sealing up a homemade pie.

This weekend I made two of the pie listed below. Fresh cranberries are still a little hard to find, so you might want to hold off for a couple weeks before trying it yourself. And please don't skip the step at the end with the milk-coated, cinnamon-sugared crust. To paraphrase Garrison Keillor, "Heavens, [it's] tasty."

Cranberry Ribbon Apple Pie
from Epicurious.com

1 1/2 cups plus 1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup 100% cranberry juice
2 cups cranberries (about 8 ounces)

2 pounds Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, thinly sliced
1 3/4 pounds Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, thinly sliced (I used Fujis; Galas are also good)
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 Butter Pie Crust Dough disks (or your own recipe)
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 teaspoon milk
Pinch of ground cinnamon

Vanilla ice cream

Stir 3/4 cup sugar and juice in saucepan over medium-high heat. Add cranberries; bring to simmer. Reduce heat; simmer until almost all liquid is absorbed, stirring often, about 25 minutes. Cool. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and chill.)

Toss all apples, flour, lemon juice, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, and 3/4 cup sugar in large bowl to blend.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Roll out 1 dough disk on floured surface to 13-inch round. Transfer to 9-inch deep-dish glass pie dish. Trim overhang to 1 inch. Spread cranberry mixture over crust bottom. Top with apple mixture; dot with butter. Roll out second dough disk on floured surface to 13-inch round; drape over apples. Trim overhang to 1 inch. Press crust edges together to seal; crimp. Cut 1-inch hole in center. Brush crust with milk. Mix remaining 1 tablespoon sugar and pinch of cinnamon in small bowl; sprinkle over crust.

Bake pie 15 minutes; reduce oven temperature to 375°F and bake until crust is golden, about 50 minutes. Transfer to rack; cool at least 2 hours. (Can be made 6 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.) Serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream.

The Gas Crunch

For those of you out of the area, I thought I'd link you to Charlotte's reporting on the most significant local news story this week. It seems to be buried underneath the national economic news this week, justifiably so.

We've been seeing empty gas stations all week, and lines at the stations that actually have gas. Police are usually stationed at the ones with gas, since people have been getting testy in line. Our cars were never in danger of running out (like most of the people making those long lines, probably), and now that the crunch is easing a bit, David went out this morning and filled the tanks in both cars.

If all else fails, he has his bike and I hardly go anywhere!

Because it's Friday

...and because (here) it's rainy and windy and the perfect day for it, please enjoy Sense and Sensibility.

On my blog.

Because you can.



(I'm not sure why it's saying it's not available; if you click on it, you will be directed to Hulu, where it plays just fine :-) )

And then try to wrap your head around the fact that at this moment, Ang Lee is directing a movie on my grandfather's farm. Starring (among others) my grandfather's cows and goat. If my grandfather knew that the movie also stars a gay couple and a transvestite, he would probably drive them all off with his tractor with a shotgun in hand.

So let's just not tell him, OK?

Welcome to Bermuda, Where the Weather is Fine but Everyone is Fifteen Minutes Late

Allow me to propose a theory here. There is a mysterious time vacuum between my kitchen and my garage door (they are adjoining spaces). It's like the Bermuda Triangle. It destroys fifteen minutes anytime I am going anywhere.

Example: We aim to leave at 9:15 on Sunday mornings. At 9:15, all the children are dressed to the shoes, have their hair combed, their teeth brushed and have their Bibles in hand and ARE STANDING IN THE KITCHEN. The baby is neatly fastened in her carseat.

Then, some stuff happens. I'm not sure exactly what, but it has to do with forgotten items, misbehaving children, and seat belts.

We back out of the garage, look at the clock, and say, "how did it get to be 9:32?!"

It's Been Many, Many Weeks

There will be no dressing up tonight, but there is a giant barrel of cheese balls waiting to be made into some sort of Office Olympics event.

Question for Other Homeschool Parents

Do you do a beginning-of-the-school-year shopping trip for clothing with your kids? Or do you just try to pick up fall/winter clothes along the way?

I ask this because I grew up doing the traditional back-to-school shopping at the end of summer, but I attended traditional school. Up until now, I've gotten by with doing end-of-season sales (stocking up for the following year). But this year, it seems like my kids have so few fall clothes...I started thinking that maybe we should do a little back-to-school shopping next year.

Anyway, obviously this is not of dire importance, but I am curious.

Happy Birthday Jonathan!

He's a big three-year-old today!

Please Send Help Immediately.

Dear blog readers,

Ever since my mother was told by her friend Nicole that you can stick a bow to a baby's head with corn syrup, she has gone off the deep end with the sticky bows.

At this time, I am unable to grasp my hands in a productive way. Your assistance is appreciated.

Love,
Madeleine

Traffic Jam

Abraham posted this on his blog this morning. It made me laugh really hard. I love that they did this. Because if there's a new giant bridge around, what you should you do? You should go CROSS it, of course.

(It's the new bridge in Minneapolis that opened this morning.)

Miss America I am Not

Sunday morning I came downstairs after getting dressed for church. I was slightly happy that I had fit into yet another (different) skirt and had found a brown top to go with it. As I was tying Jonathan's shoes, Cameron entered the room and said, "Wow, Mom, you look like a park ranger."

Cue this mental image:


Hmmm.

I collected myself enough to say, "Oh, really? Is that good?"

Cameron nodded eagerly and Ben said, "I think you look really nice." Then Andrew piped up, "Yeah, Mom! You look like a gentlewoman." (He grinned as he said this, because I often tell them when they look like little gentlemen.)

So then this picture flashed into my mind:


OK. Still not on the cusp of fashion, but whatever. I prefer this association.

Then last night I was getting ready to go out for coffee with a friend and David told me I looked like this man:

Huh?

Maybe I need less brown and olive green in my wardrobe?

Goodbye, Danios

I haven't updated you on our fish family recently, but it is now down two members. Our danios, Daniel and Danielle, have passed from this world and gone to a watery grave.

Both deaths were suprisingly unemotional. Most of the children gathered around and said, "yup, he sure is dead." It reminded me a lot of this.

As we flushed casualty #2 this morning, Andrew informed me that we should get "die-proof" fish.

Pinch Me, I'm Still Sleeping

Maddie's wakeup time these past few days:

Sunday 4:30 a.m.
Yesterday 5:30 a.m.
Today 6:30 a.m.

At five weeks?! Really?! Is she going to make it this easy?!

Chatsworth Train Accident

The train accident hit a bit closer to home for us because a member of our beloved SoCal church was one of the casualties. We did not know Doyle Souser, but he leaves behind a grieving family: a wife and three teenaged children. Please keep them and the family at Faith Community Church in Oxnard, California in your prayers. You can read more at Kat's blog and Christina's blog.

Big Girl

We went to the ped for Maddie's one-month checkup today.

She's the size of an average 3-month-old.

12 pounds, 22 1/2 inches

Linkage

• Another great post in Shannon's "What I'd Like For You to Know" series: this one is from a mom of a child with cancer. "It’s not fun to be the crap-meter by which everyone else measures the misery in their lives."
• Amy posts on being real. This rang true with me, since yesterday I sat in the dentist's chair and heard the assistant call me "SuperMom." My reply was, "No. They totally beat me today." If only I could be that real all the time.
• Anyone who went to a Christian college will recognize the personalities in Jon's post on "The 5 Types of College Chapel Speakers." It's a funny read for everyone, though.

Overheard

(Family watching the US Open)

Cameron: Ben, I think a good way to win at tennis is for one player to hit it so far that it's hard for the other player to hit it. But please don't tell anyone, because this is my tennis secret.

_____________________
(This one has the alternate title of "Mother or Con Artist?")

(Mom emptying dishwasher while boys eat lunch. Madeleine begins to cry.)

Jonathan: Mommy, Madeleine is crying! [he is the only one who calls her by her entire name]
Mommy: It's OK, I will feed her just as soon as I'm done emptying the dishwasher.
Ben, watching Mom: Wow, Mom, you are fast at that!
Mommy: Yes! If you practice, maybe you can be as fast as me someday!
Ben, totally buying it: Yeah! Or FASTER!

More pictures

Mom's going to hate me for posting this picture but it's the only one I took while they were here...

I am so cute in my sun bonnet

This was about two weeks ago...it's amazing how much she has changed in that time!

Andrew talking to his sister this morning

And lest you think that it's all sunshine and flowers and girly clothes around here, there's still an awful lot of this:

One Month

She just started giving smiles on Friday.

For Those Who Are North Carolina Geography-Challenged

Well, if we're going to be frank, I fit that category in many ways.

But that's not important right now.

My point here is that we are HOURS from the ocean, and we are not in danger of being swallowed by a rising tide due to Tropical Storm Hanna's arrival tonight.

The forecast right now is 3-5 inches of rain, 20-30 mph winds with gusts of 35 mph.

The most pressing warning I have heard is that people shouldn't take out small watercraft on the lakes tomorrow. I think if someone wants to take out a small watercraft in that weather, then alcohol must be involved.

I have battened down the hatches.

Translation: I have taken the patio umbrella down and laid it on the ground.

Because you should have heard the noise the day my parents' umbrella got caught in a gust of wind and shattered their glass table all over the brick patio.

I look back on that experience now and think, "boy, am I glad that I was not the parent that day." I hate sweeping up glass.

Saturday AM UPDATE: The forecast is now "a few showers." Looks like the left turn that Hanna was supposed to take didn't happen. Chance of rain 30%.

Stone Fruits: Good, Day or Night

When setting up the nursery, I must admit one of my favorite parts has been arranging that little side table beside the chair I sit in to feed the baby. I usually put a few books, my lanolin cream, burpcloths, the mylicon, and anything else I might need during nighttime feedings, arranged in a basket, so it feels like a little retreat. Anything to make those weary early morning feedings more pleasant.

In addition to these things, I always had a little lamp on that table. News flash: it's dark in the middle of the night, and if you're going to be able to read, unless you have super batlike powers, you'd better have a little light source. Not too bright -- you don't want the baby to think it's daytime -- but just a little glow so you can see the page.

Well, I don't have a lamp this time. I was lucky to get a chair in the room in time, because my trusty rocking chair had been soundly destroyed by the younger set's attempts of rocking to the moon while standing up...but that's another story. The point is, I needed somewhere to sit; that was the more urgent need.

I didn't push on the lamp issue, because all the lamps in the house were in use and I finally had to admit that while the thought of reading while nursing a baby in the middle of the night is a poetic one...the soft glow, the warmth, the good use of time...I don't retain a darn thing of anything I read after, say, midnight.

So I'm sitting in the dark, with only the nightlight to keep me company. Here's the dangerous thing about that: I could easily

• (a) fall asleep and drop the baby;
• (b) fall asleep and sit there all night and turn a half hour feeding into a several-hour affair; or
• (c) stay awake and think about how miserably exhausted I am and how I'd much rather be in my bed.

This week I had an inspiration. Why not use my iPod?! I could listen to all those podcasts I've been missing while I've been missing my morning workouts. GENIUS!

So there I was, two nights ago, listening to Lynne Rosetta Casper and Nigella Lawson discuss different ways to cook with stone fruits. At 3 a.m.

And I had to laugh at myself, because...who does that?!

The good news is, I didn't have any dreams about Insane Plum Man coming to kill me or anything. So I guess the pregnancy crazy-dream hormones are leveling off.

Overheard

Pressing questions posed to me at dinnertime tonight by Cameron:

• Which weighs more, a male lion or a car?
• How many meals a day should an Emperor penguin eat in order to weigh as much as a male lion?

So, anybody can just jump in here with the answers...

We Interrupt This Prolonged Silence for a Post

Oh, sorry. You were asleep, weren't you?

We started school this week. Go ahead, roll your eyes at my overoptimism starting school with a three week old in the house. So far we're surviving. In fact, I'm kind of thankful for lots of things to do to amuse the children. The unscheduled, unstructured summer was wearing me out, Olympics or no.

Cameron is in second grade this year. He's done with reading instruction, taking on harder readings for school, and forging ahead in math. As usual, my most difficult task will be keeping up with him. His memory is amazing...I assigned him a poem Monday morning to memorize for this term, and I think he's already done with it. Now we'll work on delivering it in a pleasant way, instead of machine-gun fashion.

Ben, a first-grader this year, is starting to really impress me with his listening abilities. His attention is growing keener every day. I am thrilled with his narrations. His handwriting is excellent (so glad I waited instead of teaching too early like I did with Cam!), and his reading developed more even as we took time off over the summer. I'm a little nervous about math this year with him, but he surprised me last year and I know he could do the same again this year.

Andrew is growing more and more interested in school and all that happens there. He wants to learn to read in the worst way (we will begin this year, but I haven't started yet!), and he's memorizing a poem each term as well. At breakfast, his little voice is always the first to pipe up with the answer to the boys' catechism questions and memory verse recitations.

Jonathan is always coming along behind, eager to join in whatever we're doing. And although he's showing some three-year-old...ummm...spunk...lately, if addressed properly, he sees the joy in obeying without complaint. The challenge with him usually lies in convincing him that he's not seven like Cameron is.

And little Maddie...she's doing everything someone her age should be: learning to control her head and neck, napping, eating, burping, spitting up, filling diapers, and showing promise in her nighttime sleeping abilities.

Pictures have been sorely lacking lately, I know. They're coming!