Wordless Wednesday on a Thursday :)

Yummy muffin recipe

I am baking some muffins using the squash I received from the CSA co-op.  I am always looking for ways to use less sugar, or natural sweetners, in my baked goods.  This muffin recipe came from my friend Amy.  Thanks Amy, we've enjoyed it!

Muffins 

2 eggs
1/2 c. coconut oil
1/3 c. honey
1 can pumpkin (variations 1 1/2 c. mashed banana, or canned squash)
1 T baking powder
2 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
2 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. nutmeg

Preheat oven to 375. Beat eggs until frothy. Add coconut oil, honey, and pumpkin and mix briefly. Mix dry ingredients together and then add to wet mixture. Fill 12-cup muffin tin (no need to grease or use paper liners). Bake for 13-15 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. 

Yield: 12 muffins or about 40 mini-muffins 

My little thumb sucker!

Elise has been trying to get her thumb in her mouth since birth.  And now that she is getting better at coordinating her hand movements, I think she's got it!  So cute!!!

Ronnie was never interested in sucking his thumb, or even pacifiers.  So I don't mind that Elise wants to do it since it seems to be a good way for her to soothe herself.  Maybe she'll be a better sleeper too?  We'll see! :)

CSA produce week 10, the final post

Well this week ended our CSA co-op for 2009.  Here is what we received in our box: tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, green beans, okra, hot peppers, cucumbers, parcel, two varieties of squash.

This photo is of one of the squash received, it is called Kabocha squash.  It is very similar to a pumpkin, yet sweeter.  I am excited to have this one, and I plan to bake it in the oven and scoop it out and use it in a sweet bread recipe!  Yum!  I'm ready for the fall squashes and pumpkins and all the yummy foods that come with the fall produce.  I am glad our farmer's market goes through October so that I can take advantage of some of these yummy fall veggies from our local farmers.

Wordless Wednesday

CSA produce weeks 8 and 9

So I didn't get around to posting about my CSA food from last week, or this week even.  And I have no photos either.  Oops!  I will try to remember off the top of my head what we got the last two weeks.  Tomatoes, lots of squash, sweet corn, green peppers, hot peppers, green beans, onions, purple hull peas, garlic, new potatoes......I can't think of what else, but I am sure I am missing something.

Next Tuesday is our last week for the co-op.  All in all I have enjoyed getting a half bushel box of locally grown, organic produce.  But I don't think we will be doing it next year.  Most of the time it was just too much produce for us to eat ourselves.  I gave a lot of it away to my friend Casey.  And my freezer has tons of green beans in it, and I am about squashed out!  I think I will better off just hitting the farmer's market each week and getting what I need.  Nothing will be wasted, and I will get exactly the veggies/fruit I need for our meals.  We are only 4 miles from the farmer's market, and it goes from May all the way through October.  So even though next week is my last co-op pick up, I can still hit the farmer's market for the next 2 1/2 months!

Wordless Wednesday

Washed, waxed, and detailed by my hubby.  And he conditioned the leather interior.  I have a great husband who works hard! :)  I am LOVING our minivan!!!

And the winner is..............

Nichole at Abounding Blessings!!  Congratulations Nichole!  Contact me via e-mail with your address so I can send the bracelet to you!

I am sorry I was a day late in finishing my bloggy giveaway.  Its been a busy week here!  Stay tuned for another post with more info about my Cookie Lee jewelry business.

Wordless Wednesday

Okay, so not totally wordless.  This is our new (to us) Honda Odyssey!!!  I LOVE it!!!!!!!!!

Come on in and enter my bloggy giveaway!!!!!!!!!

For this bloggy giveaway, I chose a photo holder bracelet.  I know that most of you who follow my blog are mommy's, and anyone else could use it for a photo of any special person in their life.  So here is how you can enter to win.  Pay attention, you can have more than one entry!

First, just put a comment on my blog (not on the Facebook note for those of you reading this on Facebook) stating why you would like to win this bracelet.

For those of you who have a blog of your own, post about this giveaway on your blog adding a link to mine, then come leave another comment letting me know you've done so.

And, for those of you on Facebook, put this contest (with a link to it) on your page either in your status, or in a note.  And come back and leave a comment letting me know.

The contest is open until Friday, August 7th.  I will choose the winner then.  I will either use the random number generator on-line, or draw names out of a hat the old fashioned way.  Not sure which yet. :)

Our first garden tomato!!!

Okay, now don't laugh!  I know this thing is tiny, but you have no idea how excited Casey and I are to see something actually GREW in our garden!!!!!!  We had almost given up hope that we would get anything out of it, then suddenly, a few of the plants began to shoot up just a bit.  So we are now hoping for at least some tomatoes, green peppers, "maybe" (and that is a big maybe) green beans, and either squash or cantelope, not sure which it is.  I'll post again when we have more food coming from the garden!

For those of you who may not follow my blog on a regular basis, my friend/neighbor Casey has pitched in with me on the garden this year.  Since I was pregnant when we started it, and due in May, I knew I could not do the garden by myself (Ron gave up after last year, LOL!) And Casey is due in September, so we are sharing the work load. 

CSA produce week 7

I'm a bit late at getting this out since I will be getting this weeks produce on Tuesday, but hey, better late than never! :)  Last weeks box contained:  onions, tomatoes, hot peppers, egg plant, green peppers, squash, cucumbers, purple hull peas, green beans, and sweet corn.  I made another chocolate zucchini bread last week.  SO yummy!  I also used some squash in my stir fry, with the onions and green pepper.  I plan to make my casserole again with the purple hull peas, we really enjoyed that.  Only 3 weeks left of the CSA, then its back to grocery store veggies.  Or better yet, I just need to go to the farmer's market on Tuesdays or Fridays and buy my produce there!

Article I wrote for my friend's blog

My friend Michelle had asked some of us if we would like to participate in discussions on her blog by writing an article.  The subject is about being "quiverfull" or not, etc.  So feel free to visit her blog HERE to read my article.  And be sure to check out the comments after it.