Italian Gravy

I’ve been asked for my recipe for Italian Gravy ie. Spaghetti Sauce so many times I decided to go ahead and publish it. I got this recipe from my good friend Kerri a true Italian Momma.

Italian Gravy Recipe

5 sweet Italian Sausage links
5 hot Italian Sausage links
1 lb Beef Stew meat
1 chunk of Pancetta
1/2 cup olive oil
3 sliced cloves of garlic
1/2 chopped onion
1 can of tomato paste
2- 28 oz cans of tomato puree *
2- 28 oz cans of crushed tomatoes
28 oz of water
1 tsp salt
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 large bunch of fresh chopped basil
1/4 cup fresh chopped oregano

In a large pot brown meats in olive oil until deep brown. Add garlic and onion cook until onion is softened. Stir in tomato paste and cook until paste darkens. Add canned tomato puree, crushed tomatoes and water scraping the bottom of the pot getting all the browned bits. Bring to a boil.  Add salt, red pepper flakes, fresh chopped basil & oregano. Simmer for 4 hours stirring occasionally.

*I only use store bought pureed and crushed tomatoes when I don’t have any left over from my canning.  I usually buy Organic Muir Glen brand but I also love the Cento brand.  Unfortunately I’ve never seen Cento have Organic.

Italian Gravy

Betsy

I’m learning so much by making these little dolls!  I tried to make Betsy have this extremely long body but it totally didn’t work out!  She was a flopsy Betsy.  So I stitched her waist a little smaller and put an apron around her. Perhaps I might of been more successful if I would of taken maybe something like a wooden spoon and wrapped the wool around it as a spine of sorts. I think she’s still kind of cute but I’m not crazy about the hair.  It looks a little too much like a wedding veil.  LoL  It was either this white though or a bright blue yarn that I had, so I gave this a try.

The next doll is going to be a lot smaller.   I’ve also been debating back and forth with myself about whether or not to put faces on them.  I’m afraid I might totally ruin them so I’m holding off until I’m sure.  Thoughts?

I have to say I’m getting a LOT faster at threading my sewing machine though.   If I didn’t have a bunch of housework to do and a child to entertain I would be doing this all day!  It is so much fun and such a great learning experience.

Feel free to offer me as much advice as you have.  I’m really doing this all by trial and error.  It would be nice if somebody who actually is a doll maker could give me some pointers.

Happy day to all of you!  Now go do some handwork!

Little Olivia

I’ve been wanting to try to make a waldorf doll for a very long time.  But being extremely limited in both craftiness and sewing I would look at patterns and totally psyche myself out that it would be too hard.  But last night I just decided to try to make one without the hoopla of following a pattern.  This is what I ended up with.

I hand sewed the whole thing which took a little longer but it was good practice I think. Which of course I need a lot of! The bottom of the doll is filled with rice.  I don’t know if that was such a smart idea but it just felt nicer than putting beans in it and I wanted it to be weighted.  The arms and head I used some beautiful Eco Wool from http://www.weircrafts.com that I bought a very long time ago.  I also have all the fixings to do a real Waldorf doll from there too.  I just have been too afraid to start.  However having gotten my feet wet by creating Olivia I think maybe I might just give it a try!   The best part of the whole experience was Kate coming home from Kindergarten this afternoon and saying,  ”Ohhh Mommy she’s sooo cute!  I’m going to name her Olivia.”  I was so thrilled I started doll #2 this afternoon.  Who knew it would be this much fun!  I’m learning so much too.  I just might have a new little hobby.

Rhythm of the Home There are some seriously talented women in this world! Rhythm of the home is filled with inspirational crafts, recipe and sharing.  It’s one of those places you can hang out all day… if you had all day that is.   Those of us with little ones can dream though right?  The hardest part will be limiting myself to the amount of time that I spend there dreaming and wishing I had the crafting gene.  Who knows… maybe I will be able to overcome that disability and become a crafting queen?  LoL  For now I hope all of you can enjoy Rhythm of the Home as much as I have.  Oh and BTW… they are having an awesome giveaway right now so make sure you enter!    I’m hoping that Kate and I win Julia Daby’s little Calliope doll!  She’s adorable!

Kate with her Papa on her 4th Birthday

Happy August to all!   I can’t believe how long it’s been since I’ve last posted.   Life has been busy.  Kate has been enjoying summer camp and we have LOVED meeting other parents and teachers at the school.  It’s just the most wonderful confirmation that we have chosen the right school for her and us.  So in the spirit of Waldorf… kind of…. I thought I would post the photo of Kate and her Papa in front of the banner I made out of felt a few years ago.  It couldn’t have been more simple and is holding up very well.  I decided that since it was so much fun and so easy I might actually start making them for holidays and seasons as well.  I hope you all enjoyed your summer.   If anybody is interested in a little more detail photos let me know and I would be happy to take some close ups.  Have a blessed August!

Rodney the Recycled Robot

Once upon a time  there was a mommy and a little girl who needed a project while the daddy was away on a business trip.  Not just any project but a project that involved getting messy, painting, & finding a second use for common things that usually end up as trash.  Like tissue boxes, empty tp rolls, aluminum foil, caps and little odds and ends.

We had a lot of fun and it really wasn’t that messy.  It was the first time I did paper- mâché with Katie and I was surprised she didn’t really want to touch my homemade paste!  Can you imagine?

Rodney pre assembly stage

We went through the recycling and dug in the junk drawer to find things that looked interesting.

Goopy Rodney

We taped his body parts together first and then to make him a little more sturdy, and to add a little more fun to the project, we decided to make our own paste out of flour and water.  Kate loves to measure, pour, and stir so she loved that part.  She also tore all the strips of paper up.  Since she wasn’t too keen on touching the paste I just let her tell me where to put the pieces on him after she gave it a try.

Rodney chills out on top of the microwave for the evening and dries.

The next morning I tried to get Kate to just let me cover Rodney completely in foil but she REALLY wanted to paint him so… we did.  I was surprised that she was so patient with letting him dry overnight.  Not so patient the next morning about wanting to paint him as the next photo shows.  Still in her pj’s and her hair hadn’t even been combed yet.  Since it was just us girls having a slumber party we kind of chilled out a bit and didn’t get dressed until later in the afternoon.  Slumber parties are suppose to break all the rules right?

Rodney getting his first coat.

Kate chose a beautiful shade of blue.  It took a couple of coats to really cover him well.  He actually probably could of used a third coat but we were ready to start decorating him.

Rodney ready to save the planet from the evil garbage dumpster

Rodney powered up and ready to take on the wasteful!

Rodney is a work in progress.  Katie and I are collecting things that look like they would be useful tools for him and of course we’re still looking for the perfect shoes.  For now Rodney is watching over our kitchen to make sure we’re not throwing away anything he or we could use for a second time around… and on occasion many other times.

Designer Frederik Roijé's "Breed Retreat"

Frederik Roijé should definitely get some type of award, if he hasn’t already for designing one of the coolest chicken coops I’ve ever seen!  I’m not an expert of raising chickens and I’m not sure it’s function is as good as it’s design but I just have to say how impressed I am by his ingenuity and design aesthetics.   Now if only our community hadn’t passed a no backyard chicken ordinance.

A couple of weekends ago we were fortunate to have our friends two daughters stay with us overnight.   They have attended a Waldorf School since Preschool and are two quite remarkable young ladies.  Polite, kind, wonderful with Katie and a couple of the brightest kids I have ever met.  Both of their parents are intelligent as well, but I really think that they are a shining example of what a Waldorf education can be for somebody.

Sophie age 12 spent some time with us describing her experience of Waldorf.  One of the things that she said was that they memorize the stories about the topics they are learning about.  She mentioned multiple subjects, physics, Greek Mythology, Creation stories from various religions, etc. etc.  It really made me think about my public education and how little I can remember and why that is.  I think it stems from the memorization of things, testing, and then not building upon them.  Nothing flowed together so once you proved that you memorized it, then it could be forgotten and onto the next topic.  My understanding of Waldorf is that as they are learning and memorizing the stories they flow together and are interconnected.  It is also all done at along with the developmental age of the child wherever they may be not just their age.

I was surprised that as we wound down for the evening and the girls were coloring with Katie that Emma, age 10 was reading a book that I recently had read, “Water for Elephants” by Sara Gruen.  A 350 page novel.  Any concerns about Waldorf kids not learning to read soon enough just got blown out of my radar as an issue at all.

Some of the other things they are learning to do or have learned are handcrafts.  They’ve carved their own spoons out of wooden blocks, which must of taught them a great deal of patience but also could be a great metaphor for how your decisions shape your life.  They know how to knit, crochet, embroidery, draw, and they are learning to play the violin and the piano.  They both learned to speak Spanish in the 3rd Grade.

I just can’t help to think, “Wow how lucky is any child to be able to attend a Waldorf School?  I really hope that we get to have the experience of Katie attending.  I think she would just flourish going there.  I know I would have.

Go take a look over at the SimpleMom website.  They are having an awesome giveaway.  Below is their description of the site:

“Simple Mom is a productivity blog for home managers. It’s like Zen Habits wearing an apron. If we want to get things done and be fully present for all the things that are most important to us, we have to keep things simple.

This blog is a catalog of the resources, tips, and lessons to make that happen. When we find solutions for cutting everyday life clutter, we’re taking care of our family, our home, and ourselves. I believe that when Mom (Dad, too) is doing well, the whole family thrives.”

I’m really looking forward to learning ANYTHING that will make life a little less hurried.

Simple Bites is now offering a fantastic gift basket giveaway in celebration of their new site. It’s focus is all about bringing families together for meals and cooking simple healthy food. Go take a look and then come back and tell me what you think. I’m really excited to read what they come up with.