Homemade Wheat Rolls

Whole Wheat Rolls

1 1/3 cups milk

1/4 cup water

2 tablespoons honey or sugar

4 teaspoons butter

2 cups whole wheat flour

2 cups bread flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

I put all these ingredient in my bread maker on dough cycle.  (2 lb loaf) When it is finished kneading the bread for me.  I divide the dough into 12 dough balls and let rise for the final time.  I bake at 350* for about 20-25 minutes.  I turn out of the pan and butter the tops and let cool.

I suppose you could hand do some of this or use your kitchen aid and the dough hook.

Other things I do to use some food storage is instead of milk use water and 3 tablespoons dry milk powder.

I grind my own wheat flour when I'm feeling ambitious.  (like tonight, my electric grinder is great!)

I'm taking these rolls tomorrow for work for our annual Thanksgiving staff feast.  It's always fun to break bread together.

Let the Thanking Begin

 This cow chalkboard has been a part of our family kitchen decor since we have been married.  I was decorating in cows way back when and acquired this chalkboard.   Many a days did my kids stand on chairs to be able to write on this board, especially Kayla.  Kayla keeps us updated with her moods or such as the weeks go by.  I am thankful for those little messages.  How awesome is it that my 15 year old loves her family.  When I was her age I wanted to be any where, but home.  Can you tell she is happy at home?  I can, what a gift!

An extra chair has been pulled up to our dinner table, because it is often frequented by a friend of Kota's.  This boy has been missing in action from the youth group of our church for years.  Hasn't come on a Sunday for a long time (years).  They met up at Kota's new school rekindled the friendship and now he often stays over.  He has joined our seminary group and has been coming to church.  I am thankful Heavenly Father loves that boy and my son enough to allow this friendship to happen.

Bucky as we loving call this mount, is a reminder that my daughter can do anything her brother does.  I am thankful she has that spunky personality that will carry her through life.  It is those personalities I often gravitate to.  I hope she can support others in the future with her willingness to be happy.

In this tough school year there are so many things to complain and worry about, that often I have to make myself find something good about what I am doing.  An item presented itself to me the other day, on a particularly hard week...A student, who is one of my bright shining stars, brought me a picture she drew to hang on the board where I hang their work.  It was a picture of a little seed who was being watered and growing into a beautiful flower.  The art in itself was incredible for her age of 12.  Then I caught the message: thank you for helping me to grow Mrs. Crawford.  I am thankful for a loving Heavenly Father who prompted this little girl to let me know that my efforts are worthwhile.  Even though what is in my face daily is tough and negative, there are positive things going on in the room. 

So in this season of thankfulness, I am starting early, shutting out the preseasonal other stuff, and just being thankful for what is good in my life.  The thanking has begun!

11-11-11

Our grandpas that passed away this year were WWII vets.  Grandpa Beninghof served in the Army and was stationed in Panama during the war.  He told us a lot of tall tales from back in the day.

Grandpa Souleret served in the Marines and was proud of it.  He bought Kota a Marines licsence plate to hang in his room.  He always told Kota if he joined any branch of the service to make sure it was the Marines.

Today at school we had a Veteran's Day Assembly.  Our choir director did a fantastic job on this.  My favorite part was the last song.  The kids were singing a song thanking the veterans and at the end they each held up a sign with a Veteran in the audience some living, some who gave their life in combat.  Ah! the tears sure did sting the eyes.

Happy Veterans Day.  Thank you to all who have and will serve protecting our freedoms and country.  We sure to love you!

Feeling Rushed...Does it make Me a Grinch?

 I am feeling like I'm missing out on the Thanksgiving experience every time I walk into a store.  I really enjoy the bountiful harvest, the idea of being thankful for what I have, the traditional Thanksgiving dinner.  I like living in the holiday of the moment.  However, when I walk into the store, Christmas carols...Already?

Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas.  The thought behind it, the celebration of the Savior's birth.  The giving versus receiving, the carols, the love....but can't we live in the moment. 

Does that make me a.....

?

Sunday Drive

We decided to take a drive today and enjoy the fall splendor and the beauty of our earth.  It was just what I needed.  Nature often brings peace to my soul and gives me the energy to continue.

 We stopped at a place just south of Mifflin.  The site of the Copus family massacre.  I've always wanted to go back there, but never took the time.  I am always interested in local histories.

 It was just a little headstone.  No plaque or story to tell the the visitors what happened.  See the link if you're interested.


This bridge is important to my family as well as this lane.  My great, great grandparents owen this farm at the turn of the 20th Century.  This little farm outside of Mifflin, Ohio was part of the Crider family.  My great, great grandma was Mary Alice Crider and she married Charles Steigerwalt, they had 8 children.  This bridge was how they went into their farm back that now over grown lane.  In the past this was know by people as the Steigerwalt bridge...now it's just driven by, barely noticeable to those who aren't looking for it.

 I can just imagine horse drawn wagons and model Ts driving across this during the industrial revolution time period.  I can see my great grandpa and his brothers laughing and working in this area.  They had instant relief in the creek from hot summer days.  Lazy fishin' spots right in walking distance from home.  It reminds me of the Walton's.

The bridge has been dead long before I was born.  Replaced several hundred feet away by another.  Also going over it is now I 71 connecting Cleveland and Columbus.  It was interesting walking back to the bridge today.  Kyle was reflecting about all the history we whiz by when driving on an interstate highway and never really think about all the things that did happen or could have happened in that particular area.  Just like my great, great grandparent's place, it is just a shell of a long gone generation.

T G (goodness) I F

I am so thankful it is Friday!  I feel like I muscled my way through this week.  36 parent teacher conferences, 14 no shows and phone calls later, I'm done!  Whew!  I'll be looking forward to the Wednesday before Thanksgiving off as our comp. day for the extra hours.

I'm also thankful for Kota.  He came in on his day off from school today to help his mom.  He worked for 4 hours labeling the reading levels and putting stars on all my books that have a reading quiz on our Scholastic Reading Counts program that I just learned how to use.

I am thankful this is my first Friday not to dash off to a football game.  I'm enjoying my children and a mostly clean house because they were able to do some chores tonight!  Now, I might get my yard mowed one more time before the snow flies. 

I am thankful that we will have a mostly normal, quiet, run-of-the-mill week for awhile...until basketball games start.

Here's to a happy, restful, get a lot done around the house weekend!

Things That Go Bump in the Night

By request from Yaya, and in Spirit of Halloween, I'm going to give you a tale of a Haunted House...mine.

Disclaimer:  You may believe or not, as for me, well; I believe it.

I live in an old Victorian House built in 1874, in the small village of Hayesville.  The house we bought belonged to the town doctor: Dr. Kendig.  It was a jem of the day, it has it's own servent quarters, two front doors; one for the parlor and the fancy guests featuring the walnut spiral staircase.  The other for the everyday folks and patients to enter. 

After living here for awhile and doing a lot of remodeling we settled into our lovely large house.  We heard rumors from people that a person hung themself from hooks in the servant quarters, but dismissed it because we had the town historian in our family...and well, she said it was the grocery store not our house that had happend.

We spent many months in our house enjoying our preschool and toddler-aged children at that time.  One morning, I was on my way down the spiral staircase and headed to the lone bathroom to shower for work.  As I rounded the spiral and was looking out into the kitchen I encountered a man standing by basement door.  This is a bit scary, I turned to yell at my husband that someone was in our (unlocked) house and in those few seconds, he disappeared.  No doors were opened and no one was in our house upon thorough inspection by my husband.  (Specter or morning hallucinations?  You decide.)

One more (cause Kayla thinks this is creepier than the above story)

One night while sleeping in my bed I awoke to a noise in my room.  Im used to this because Kyle is a loud snorer and often it is him who awakens me.  This night, Kyle was still sawing logs when I glanced around the room.  At the foot of my bed was leaning a little boy, under aged 5/6 just watching me.  Well, I don't know about you, but it startled me and when I wimpered he disappeared.  Needless to say, I awoke the buzz saw to inspect the room to make sure no one was in our house... Upon inspection only sleeping kids, the one's who should be there.

That is a couple of many of my spooky stories for this house.  We (my kids and I) have learned to live with these sightings and feelings that we encounter often.  But, never have we felt threatened or abused by our spiritual guests.  (Who knows, maybe we're the guests.)

Whether you believe or not, is up to you. 

Happy Halloween!