Updates

How did I fail to mention that we moved?  AGAIN!  A house across the street from Mom and Dad went up for sale this summer and we just couldn't pass up the deal.  With a lot of help from Dad we went for it.  We're renting the house from him while our other house is on the market.  It's more than twice as big as the house we bought and we have nearly a half an acre of land.  And of course we have the BEST neighbors ever.

Neglecting my blogging.....

I can't believe all of the creative things that have been going on that I have missed blogging about.  I have to admit that sometimes I read other blogs and feel a little inferior and so uncreative.  But then I realize that creativity is relative and subjective.  For instance I did come up with this:

Plus I've been all kinds of creative in the kitchen now that we have a big kitchen with lots of counter space.  Thanks to a tip from a friend I got a great deal on a yogurt maker at Tuesday Morning.  Sophia and I love yogurt and yogurt smoothies but I am hesitant to give her the flavored yogurts they sell at the store, plus buying so much of it was getting pricey.  So I ventured into the world of making my own yogurt.  Attempt #1 was a disaster, it didn't set at all in 8 hours.  Turns out an instant read thermometer is not the best for making yogurt. ;-)  All of my poor little active cultures got killed off before they even had a chance.  Attempt #2 was OK.  Edible but really runny.  That's what I get for meeting a friend for coffee and leaving Joe in charge.  Lesson learned.  Attempt #3 was declared a success by all!  I even made a batch for Dad, who had never had plain yogurt.  He added a little agave nectar and frozen berries and it was perfect.  I put mine in smoothies with frozen berries, honey or agave nectar, flax meal, and OJ.  Yummy!  Sophia prefers hers mixed with a teeny bit of honey and layered with frozen berries and granola.  I have also used it instead of sour cream.  I love that it's so versatile and easy to make.
I also got a food dehydrator that I'm still testing out.  For my first go round I did pineapple rings, green grapes, and fruit leather with applesauce and blueberries.  The fruit leather was a hit Sophia ate the whole batch in one day.  I know I probably shouldn't have let that happen but I was just so happy she loved it and that it was a success.  The pineapples didn't turn out so well.  12 hours and they were still pretty juicy.  I sliced them in 1/2 inch slices per the "cookbook" and that was probably too thick.  Next time I will go thinner and try to rotate them more often.  The grapes were a complete failure.  They started to turn a little brown but that's about it.  They didn't even start to wrinkle after 12 hours.  Guess I'll have to play around with that one a little more.