At Considerable Cost

Mama let me learn to cook with Jiffy blueberry muffin mix.   I learned to measure, stir, set the oven, and check for doneness.   When I was ready, she let me bake homemade muffins from her 1956 Betty Crocker cookbook (now a favorite keepsake).   It was the book she bought for her college freshman home economics class.   I spent hours sitting and looking at the illustrations in that book, dreaming of the delicious dishes.   I also loved the hints and tips for the 1950s homemaker.   From muffins, I was ready to move on to cakes, tapioca pudding, and cookies.   Later, we would build on those skills. Today, E. had her first solo baking session with applesauce spice muffins from scratch.  She was proud, I was proud, and I think Mama would be proud.   E. says she wants to be a pastry chef...or a nun.  I didn't think to take pictures until she began scooping the batter into the pans.  I think she was most proud of cracking the egg. Ready to bake! After

 On Valentine's Day, I found myself thinking about real love, or charity, as described in scripture: Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, (love) is not pompous, it is not inflated, it is not rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury, it does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endu res all things. Love never fails.  1Corinthians 13:4-7 People hurried around me and the familiar sounds of a rail station were muffled in the distance.   Above the noise of the hand dryer before me, I found myself suddenly overcome with thoughts of someone who had hurt my family a great deal .   The first time I sat and told a priest our story in regards to this person, he was shocked.   I remember him telling me that what had been done to us was such that I should not count on forgetting after forgiving.   He gave me hope, though, that the p

Tonight, I tried two new dishes that I found on the back of a box of Quaker barley.   They were both delicious and we will have frozen soup in the freezer for future meals.   I used ground turkey in the vegetable soup.    The barley is filling and can help lower cholesterol.   I copied these straight from the Quaker web site.   Check it out for more recipes: http://www.quakeroats.com/cooking-and-recipes/content/recipes.aspx HEARTY VEGETABLE BARLEY SOUP (contains beef) Frozen vegetables make this soup extra easy. Ingredients 1/2  pound lean ground beef 1/2  cup chopped onion 1  cloves garlic, minced 7 cups water One  14-ounce can no-salt-added tomatoes, undrained, chopped 1/2  cup Medium QUAKER Barley* 1/2  cup sliced celery 1/2  cup sliced carrots 2  beef bouillon cubes 1/2  teaspoon basil 1   bay leaf 1  9 ounce package frozen mixed vegetables Preparation In 4-quart saucepan or Dutch oven, brown ground beef. Add onion and garlic. Cook until on

It has been a while since my last Tuesday Folder post.   Like everyone, we have been busy the past several months.  T.-One-Shoe is Two Say that five times fast!   T. turned two on New Year's Eve.   Like his sisters, he had a quiet family celebration for his second birthday.   We were going out of town, so I had to pick up Toy Story cupcakes.   He was so excited and he really enjoyed the icing.   That's my boy!    He's like his daddy in that his birthdays have been clouded by death and illness of family members, but it was still a celebration of the gift he is to us. Special Aunts and Uncles In December, we went to Uncle Bob's memorial service.   Uncle Bob is the husband of my mom's older sister, Betty.   He was such a kind, generous man.   He and Aunt Betty were a great support to us after my mother passed away and my dad's dementia worsened.   I will be forever grateful to them.   As we approached the funeral home, we saw the Model A car