Recipes in the Making

As noted on our recipe page, we actually test our recipes.
Sometimes it takes time.

Tester recipe - Blue Cheese Potato Salad

A lot of the times we grow our own ingredients.

Seed Potatoes

We're so hardcore.

Most of the time it's just trial and error. 

Sweet Tea for kombucha

Don't disturb the kombucha!

Just wanted to share the love & effort we put into creating really good recipes to share. :)

Thea

Fair Winds and Following Seas

This year I will be 36.
A fairly respectable age I think. Not too old, not too young. I've accomplished a few things with much more on the to do list.

At 36 you are a "grown up". You work a job, pay bills and care for children.
Yet at 36 you still need a parent. I guess I am discovering that as I raise teenagers today. The job is truly never ending.

Later this summer my dad, will have been gone for 8 years. Yet it feels like he left me just yesterday.
He was my best friend.

Thea & Her Dad 

My parents divorced when I was 9 years old and at that age I chose to live with my dad who was 52 at the time because I think from the moment I was born I was following his shadow's every step.
As you can imagine raising a daughter on your own with a revolving door of wives/stepmothers created some interesting experiences during my formidable years. I know he did the best that he could and today I am so thankful for the person that he was.

I could spend hours upon hours gushing about what a great dad he was to me.
How much I miss my daily phone calls that usually consisted of what was on sale at the grocery store. How now I can't resist taking the time to chit chat back to "grandpas" who remind me of my dad at the post office.
I really miss him.

In the weeks before my dad's death I was lucky enough to care for him in my home. They were hard days, no one likes to see their strong parent become feeble, sick and unable to use the bathroom without aid. In life things eventually come full circle. My dear dad cried when I had to help him in the bathroom, he had tears in his eyes saying to me over and over again "I'm sorry Thea" because he needed help.  In my eyes there was nothing to be sorry about. He had cared for me my whole life, it was my turn to be care provider.
It was a very hard time and I still cry about it now.  Hurt like that never goes away, but like any broken heart the sting lessens with time.  Sorry and condolences seem like the appropriate thing to say to a friend in a time of loss, but as the receiver I know no words can uplift you.  No words can bring resolve.
You are supposed to hurt and morn. Losing a parent is losing a part of you, a big part.
Your heart will swell with sadness and memories. Embrace it and think warmly of the one you are letting go. They know you loved them.

--
This post is dedicated to two of the greatest dads.

Big Al Starr - 1933-2004

Capt'n J. Wood 1948-2012

"Fair winds and following seas" to them both always.
Extra love to my fellow daddy's girl.

#1 Way to Stay Married

Is to have your own bank account.

Your husband will not understand that a bottle of foundation that you must by to aid you in keeping the "the we first met look" costs $24. Just like you don't understand why he spends $50 on some man thing that he seems to have 40 of.

Frankly, arguing with each other over personal items isn't worth it. Money is second to communication issues as to why couples argue and divorce. Often those two coincide with each other.
My mother in law (who has been married for 39 years) was the one who actually shared this secret to martial happiness with me. There should be an account for each other for your personal spending and then there should be a shared account for shared expenses like the mortgage/rent, utilities, groceries, kid activities etc.

Why should you have separate accounts? Its to keep your personal identity in a shared relationship.  Neither of you will dictate each others personal spending which gives room for you to be you. When you first meet you like each other for the individuals that you are and make the choice to come together to compliment each other. I think often that aspect gets lost over time.
With having your own account you won't need to ask your husband if you can spend $100 on a new pair of shoes. You've saved your own money and can treat yourself to those new shoes. It works both ways too. Even if you are a stay at home mom/dad you should have your you money.

As someone who used to be in the financial world accepting responsibility for shared expenses of course should be top priority. You do need a place to live and food to eat. But you should be treated too and having the capability to spend your own money on small things you enjoy can be really empowering.
I know many at this time are struggling with income and expenses but even if you can cache away $5 here and there for yourself it can do wonders. Sell some of your kid's clothes at a consignment shop? Great! Turn that money into a little shopping trip to the thrift store and snatch up some "new to you" clothes. Or save it for a girl's night out with friends, you get the idea.

I think and have seen a lot of ladies and gents get "lost" in relationships that are dominated by money issues. That leads to arguments and resentment.  Balance with financial matters are so important no matter how much money you have.

-Thea

Out and About

*Say it with some Canadian flair!*  Out & aboot.


Well that's what we've been. Not in Canada, but not too far from it.

Thea, Alaskan JoAnn & Jenny

When a friend from Alaska flies down you have to drop everything and have a little mini vacation. I mean it's pretty much like Santa coming down from the North Pole right?

The three of us pictured above go way back. We go back to when one of us was a tomboy (Thea), one of us wore Cosby sweaters (JoAnn) and the one looked exactly like the girl from the Poltergeist movies (Jenny). We all "cashed in" our mom tax* cards and spent a few days together in our home town.

As always it was a hoot. But these were involved so it pretty much was going to be a hoot anyways.

Jargaritas!

Oh the joys of candy bars for dinner (because there's no kid forcing you to eat veggies) and tall glasses of alcohol for dessert it was good stuff.

We'll be back with some recipe posts, tutorials & a few tales too.

xo-Thea



*Definition of Mom Tax - A cut/portion of something that a child attains that a mom should get a cut of. For example: Halloween candy. A mom should be able to "tax" her child for the candy - (i.e. take a small portion of said child's candy because she just drove her all over 4 neighborhoods to attain that candy).  Or another example is Mom Days - or a couple hours even. Just enough to relieve some stress and recuperate & get revived. Mom Tax - feel free to use that at will.

Recipe - Fast Pho (Vietnamese Noodle Soup)

It has been a while since we've posted a recipe here. Honestly, I haven't created any new dishes as of late. Lots of kid activities have been happening on the home front. So I go into survival mode of cooking things I know how to whip up at times like this. This is the most popular recipe I've shared on my personal blog. It's also one of my family's favorites.
--

Originally posted on MAY 04, 2010

Fast Pho Recipe

I am a huge (mega HUGE) fan of Pho.  

It is an uber tasty Vietnamese noodle soup dish.  My friend Jackie introduced me to Pho about 10 years ago on one of our lunch excursions. The tiny bistro was in the Seattle International District - we only worked a couple blocks away from there. I remember that the bistro from the outside smelled of coriander and other wonderful smells. I'm a total dork and I remember every detail of places I've eaten that I ate something wonderful at...anywho-

Traditionally the broth for Pho takes hours to make. Beef or Chicken bones are simmered with whole onions and other spices to achieve that rich flavorful soup base.

I wanted to create a faster version of this soup for me and this is what I came up with.

~Pho Bo~ (Beef)

Things you'll need:

Fresh ginger root - 1 inch chunk peeled

1 32oz carton of beef broth (Chicken or Veggie broth could also be used instead)
4 cups of water
1 large yellow onion finely sliced
3-4 tablespoons of Chinese Five Spice Blend
1 bay leaf
1 small bundle of fresh cilantro tied together
3 tablespoons of Fish Sauce (I use Filipino Fish Sauce but Thai Fish Sauce is readily available in regular grocery stores.)
1 lb of beef finely sliced (chicken can be used instead for Pho Ga)
Lime juice
Salt & pepper to taste
1 package of Rice noodles (Bahn Pho)

Toppings:
Fresh cilantro (chopped)
Sliced radishes
Lime wedges
Mung bean sprouts
Sriracha Sauce aka "Rooster Sauce"
Red onion finely sliced (I actually used chopped green onions because I like them better)


What to do:

In a large pot warm up your sliced onions. Just get them "sweating".

Then add your water, broth, ginger root, bay leaf, cilantro bundle and fish sauce. Cover & simmer for at least 15 minutes on medium heat.

Fresh ginger root.  You'll need to peel it for this recipe.

Simmering ^_^

Two different styles of fish sauce- Filipino style on the left. Thai style on the right.

After about 15 minutes add your Chinese Five Spice blend to the broth and a healthy squeeze of lime juice. Give it a good mixing and do a taste test. If its on the bland side add a bit of salt and pepper to it or add a bit more Five Spice if you like the taste. (I do!) Turn your heat down to medium low and cover and simmer again for about 10 minutes. 

Meanwhile- you can prep your toppings:

I always soak my bean sprouts in very cold water. (Mung Bean Sprouts are the best!) Soaking them in the cold water makes them crunchy. My kids like to snack on them plain :)

Slice your radishes and onions. Wedge your lime (but its okay to use presqueezed lime juice too)

Back to the soup:

This recipe was originally posted on May 24th, 2010 - please disregard the date on the packaging above.

My Asian grocery store has thinly sliced meats readily available so I totally cheat on this step. Maybe you can too? Lots of grocery stores offer thinly sliced meats for stir fry. 

Add your meat to your broth and cover yet again for about 5 minutes.

Prepare your noodles by washing them in cold water. 

Add your washed noodles to the soup 5 minutes after you add your meat.

Give things a good stir and cover one last time and cook till the noodles are soft. (About 5-10 minutes - I didn't time this step very well- sorry!) 

Your toppings!

Don't forget the hot sauce- c'mon be brave.

After the noodles and meat are cooked its time to eat! Be careful not serve your family or yourself that bay leaf and bundle of cilantro.

~Pho Ga (Chicken)~

Enjoy!

xo-Thea

Only The Good Notes

I'm assuming you've all seen the incredibly sweet scene of The Holiday I pasted above.
"I used only the good notes."
What's a girl got to do to get a guy to say that to her? I just love that scene.
Music can simply melt you into pieces. Good and bad pieces of course.
Some songs can take you to a place you once lived, a time with good friends that happened decades ago and even bad times that you wish you could forget.

Yes, I am that girl that fell hard for a guy who played music and was in band. I thought I'd get that info out of the way. So those of you who have had bad experiences with musicians you can just quit reading now.

Music is not only a wonderfully expressive art but it is a language as well.  There are about a million studies and reports for the benefits of kids playing music.  They learn a skill not everyone has, they learn to read music and how to keep a beat/rhythm. Most importantly they learn how to express themselves in a new way.

My youngest child (blonde ponytail) playing the violin at a concert recently.

I did "make" all four of my children take orchestra. I know some of you are totally cringing at the idea of screeching strings filling the air in your homes, but honestly it hasn't been so bad.
A lot of schools now cut the music and arts programs due to funding. I think that is really sad because as with life in general you should have hard work to do yet balanced out with fun stuff like music & art.  The one huge noticeable benefit that my kids seemed to have received from all the music lessons they've had, is that they are all excellent in math. Each one of them has different levels of talent with music but they all know the language of music. My youngest who has only been playing for a few months took it upon herself to research the theme song to Zelda and taught herself how to play it.  She didn't ask for help, she just researched it out of curiosity.  That really made me smile and feel proud. Curiosity like that is really admirable.

Varieties of music fill the rooms of my house daily. My teenagers, one in particular likes to make music and gets serious about classifications of genres and styles. It's really like a bad sitcom around here somedays, but they have learned to appreciate sounds and music. Sure some of it is the crap you'd hear if you turned on the radio but they are teenagers. We all assault our parent's ears with horrible music from our teenage years, it's a rite of passage.

I won't lie to you and tell you music lessons even the school classes aren't expensive. They are. I about shit myself when I saw how much a violin was. You can buy instruments used, lease them and some schools offer financial aid or other loaning programs for them. Choir is beneficial as well because you learn to read music there too. With the popularity of Glee many schools have brought those back too.  
I do get asked often about my kid's music classes because its now viewed as something "fancy", maybe it is but my kids have really benefited from it and it does show in other areas of their studies. I feel like the expense has been worth it. We also have passed down instruments so that was really cost effective for us.
Mom to mom here promise me that if your kid comes home with a flyer for a music program at school promise me you'll take it seriously. It's not about raising little rock stars but allowing your child to learn a new language and explore life through sound.
C'mon you know on somedays you walk around with a theme song of the day in your head! At the very least you have sweet car solo singing sessions. It feels good right? Music is awesome.

xo-Thea

A Year Later

While many of us Americans were grumbling about our spring ahead in time yesterday, it was a day of remembrance in Japan.

One year ago an 9.0 earthquake shook Japan. A massive tsunami followed. It was absolutely devastating. Many of us watched the surreal horror live via newscasts. Many lives, homes, farmlands and more were lost.  200 children lost both of their parents and 1,200 lost one parent to the earthquake/tsunami.

I have personal & professional ties to Japan and I grew up in an area where there is a potential for a  tsunami if a big earthquake hit. This all hits home for me.

In the aftermath discussions of this horrific event one question that was repeated over and over was "Are you prepared for an event like this?" My honest answer was no.
I didn't really have emergency supplies or plans for my family if a big emergency were to occur.
I'm really not a doom and gloom type of person, I do like to be prepared for anything though. (You should see my mega purse!) With my kids getting older and driving themselves about, I realized I should have a plan.

All families should.
Here's Ready.gov's  Build a kit link. It has a list of supplies, food and water you should have on hand.

For those who have driving teenagers they should have a little kit for their cars in case of any accidents or emergencies. Make sure they know how to use any tools that you may include in that kit.

Washington State's Emergency Management Division has a list of emergency publication topics that are downloadable online.

I picked up this book: Just in Case: How to be Self-Sufficient when the Unexpected Happens By Kathy Harrison

It has some great information & tips.
Having a plan for the just in cases could be a big benefit to you and yours. Add it to your to do list if you haven't already.

Thea