Recipe Box: Apple Butter

Can also be found here: July 2008 Newsletter

Recipe Box –Apple Butter

Ingredients:
Apples, cooked until soft and strained – need 2 ½ quarts or 10 cups
5 cups white sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cloves
1 tsp allspice
½ cup lemon juice
1 qt apple cider

Directions:
Cook in oven at 350F for 3 or 4 hours or until thick stirring frequently.
Put in 7 pint jars.

Can be served with freshly baked bread, toast, bagels or crackers.

It also tastes wonderful as a side dish for most white meats and is especially delicious served warm on top of ice cream.

Football Training starts......

Football training has started.... It's not practice so they're not doing plays or anything like that. They're conditioning - jumping over the green things on the ground, running around them, lifting weights, doing calisthenic exercises and stuff like that. Lucas is the one in the red shorts with black tank top.

I usually hang around during the two hours and will walk around the school or take the kids to the pool in the school. Since the summer has started, it's just beautiful outside.

Lucas love lifting weights and here is what he can currently lift:

Deadlift 305, Bench 225, Squat 250 and Powerclean 135

His coach wants him to go up 100 pounds in every lift in one month. He's up to the challenge, though.

Teach yourself some history

I used to homeschool my children and because we're not wealthy, I would use as many high-quality free resources as possible. The other day, as I was doing some cleanup on my computer, I came across a huge list of Internet sites that I would use to help create the kids curriculum. Just for fun, I've listed the historical sites here. When I did the timeline I found out the median household income was $8,300 and I'm not even that old! I haven't caught up to my mom yet. LOL

History
Read about the Crusades. This was a time in history of great religious fighting. In fact, in the movie Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves with Kevin Costner, he actually has just come back to England from fighting Muslims, which is why it’s so unusual for him to bring Morgan Freeman (as Azeem) back with him.
This Country of Ours: This is a story all about America and how it was founded. It almost reads like a story book instead of a boring old history book. As you read, you can actually be transported back in time and feel like you are part of whatever place is being discussed.
Year by Year timeline. Go back and remind yourself what events happened when you were born, when your hubby was born or just pick a random year in history for fun.
The Oregon Trail Learn more about a journey from Oregon to California which occurred in 1846. Imagine yourself as a pilgrim watching out for Buffalo and different Indians. English History. Many Americans can trace their history back to England. If you’re interested, this site provides information for a timeline, some information regarding historical figures and political history in the 1700’s.

Black Squirrels in Ohio

In Salem, Ohio, they have black squirrels, which is pretty strange. Most squirrels are grey in color, but these are not. They even stand still when you get close to them, so they're evidently used to humans. Here's a picture of one.

Happy 50th Anniversary!

Happy 50th Anniversary to Charles and Marie.....

We enjoyed seeing you and spending the day with you in celebration.

Baseball Season is so much fun!

Here are pictures of Michael at baseball. So far the team is doing pretty good - they're 5-4 and they've got a pretty young team overall. Their age group ranges from 9-12 and some of the teams they play have almost all 12 year olds. We have about four 9 year olds and some have never thrown a baseball before.

It's funny to watch the teams lined up against each other when half of our team has to look up at all the other players. Not Michael though - he's one of the taller ones.

Father's Day is only two weeks away!

The June 2008 newsletter is out. Since I devoted May to Mother's Day quotes, I devoted June for Father's Day quotes. Here is my favorite:

By the time a man realizes that maybe his father was right, he usually has a son who thinks he's wrong~~ Charles Wadsworth

Isn't this the truth?

You can find the entire newsletter here

Recipe Box –Lemon/Lime Drink Base
Ingredients:
3 limes
3 lemons
1 cup sugar
1 cup white rum or apple juice

Directions:
Slice lemons and limes
Add sugar and rum
Using a spoon, press on lemon and lime pieces to help release juices
Soak overnight in refrigerator

When ready to serve, add one spoonful of base per glass.

Then, choose any of the following options for finishing the drink:
1. Add ice cubes and water
2. Add carbonated water with mint sprigs
3. Add orange, berry or cranberry juice
4. Add a maraschino cherry with some ginger ale

Enjoy!