7 Quick Takes

1. Since we have been home I have been on a search for a few good Paleo muffin/bread recipes to become my go-to recipes. We have had two winners so far - Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins and Hummingbird Bread. I'm particularly picky about gluten-free bread recipes, but these were amazing. They also received rave reviews from Zach, Ryan, and Tony (who doesn't really count because he will eat anything. Eggy coconut flour bread? Devoured.). 

 

2. I have never used Jen's Saint Name Generator before, but somehow ended up using it the other day. It gave me Jane Frances de Chantal. I knew the name, but next to nothing about her. But for some reason I almost cried reading what she is patron of on that first page. On Catholic Culture's page, it says that Abandonment to Divine Providence (Jean-Pierre de Caussade) changed her life. I have it sitting in my nightstand drawer, a gift from my Grandma some time ago. Time to read it? I think so. Zach got Joseph Moscati, a medical doctor in Italy in the early 1900's. I thought that was pretty cool, given the profession he is pursuing.

3. Evie rolled over the other day! She hasn't done it again, sadly, but she gets close. She has also been doing stomach crunches trying to sit up. Makes me laugh. Zach thinks she will be sitting up soon.

4. Zach has taught Tony to say, "Evie Evangelini." Cutest thing ever. It comes out more like "Evie Bangelini." The "lini" makes me think of Sister Evangelina in Call the Midwife. I don't know why. I'm looking forward to March when that comes back on. I love that my favorite shows on Masterpiece are staggered - I have Downton right now, Sherlock starts on Sunday (it's short, though), and then Call the Midwife will begin once those are over. At some point in the very near future I should be picking up Person of Interest Season 2 on DVD from the library...needless to say, there will be a PoI marathon over here.

5. I ordered seeds for our garden! I felt like an idiot last year buying the bean and pepper plants. But perhaps their success is what I needed to spur myself into action to do it myself. I didn't go terribly overboard - kale, lettuce, cabbage, tomatoes, squash, bell peppers, beans, and a couple of herbs (they didn't have many). I'm praying it is all successful. I need to get a grip on gardening while we live in a place with beautiful soil. I ordered from Clear Creek Seeds, which is owned by a traditional Catholic family, which makes me happy.

6. Coming soon to our backyard farm: RABBITS! The hutch is ready, we're just working on sourcing food for them, and finding the breed we want, within a reasonable driving distance.

7. I'm kind of trying to do the Motherhood and Jane Austen book club. I doubt I will be successful, but it sounds like so much fun. Embarrassing confession: I haven't read all of Jane's books. Even more embarrassing is that I can't remember which ones I have read (I know Persuasion and Northanger Abbey...can that be it??).

7 Quick Takes Friday

1. The Christmas tree came down this week. It almost made me sad because the needles were still so soft and beautiful. I was ready to have my house back, though, and it was close enough to Candlemas.

2. Taking down my tree made me realize a flaw in my thinking. I had been planning on leaving all of my Christmas stuff at my parents when we move to New York. I thought, Why bother moving it back and forth? We'll be back in Virginia for Christmas. Then it hit me, what if we get stuck in New York for Christmas? Classes start back at the beginning of January (the 5th or so), so we will only have a few days of actual Christmas decorations. It's just a couple of extra boxes. I can't put life on hold just because we're not going to be "home" for three years. My Mom has a spare artificial tree that she said we can borrow while we're gone. I feel much better about it.

3. On Sunday we met up with our old friend, Jon. Mom and Dad brought Teddy out and we all had dinner at Whole Foods. It was a lot of fun, despite the awful crowd. Afterwards Zach and I went see The Adventures of Tintin. I was surprised at how enjoyable it was. I know that Tony will love it when he grows up - there's enough action and guns to make any little boy happy. It's hard to find clean movies for kids these days.

4. Tony and I attended the March for Life on Monday. It was quite the adventure between the crowded pub, Union Station, and losing Christine.

Tony and Uncle Kevin at the pub

5. This afternoon I found that Dollar General carries Hylands Teething Tablets. I still have part of a bottle, but I didn't know what I was going to do when I ran out. (Maybe make a trip to Whole Foods? I don't know if I could cope with the crowd again.) I have to attribute his sleeping through the night to them. There was one night I didn't give him any before bed and he kept waking up crying. Finally I woke up enough to find the bottle and give him a couple. Peace reigned again. (Thank goodness because I have trouble letting myself take naps.)

6. My family is going primal. That excites me so much. Both of my parents have food allergies and making the commitment to change the whole family's diet will make it so much easier for them. A slightly off-topic side note to that: my Mom made a great discovery today. Tuna salad with avocado instead of mayonnaise. It was delicious. The only thing it was lacking was salt. Tuna, avocado, squirt of mustard, wrapped up in romaine lettuce. If you have grapes, throw a few of them inside, too. I'm not a big fan of mayo, and we don't buy it (we don't eat sandwiches so we don't need it for them, but commercial mayos are made with soybean oil, so that's a big no-no). Avocados on the other hand are so good for you, and we've been buying a couple almost every week.

7. On the topic of food, Fr. B. got three geese last week. He gave us two of them. Zach roasted one of them on Saturday, and it was so delicious. Not at all greasy. It tasted like a cross between steak and lamb (Zach refers to them as "flying steaks"). We put the other one in the freezer for a special occasion. Zach has been out on the river hunting twice in the past week to try to get more. I would love to have a goose to make on Christmas Day. And Michaelmas.

A happy weekend to all!

Much love,
Jess