It is still Beautiful if it isn't perfect.

G
I have been really pondering this quote from a favorite blog of mine lately. I think that it is a matter of choice to look at a scene in all of its imperfections and choose to concentrate on the beautiful.

We've had a lot of snow this year. Last week, we got another 8 inches. N and G went outside to make a snow lady. (All major characters are girls to G.) When they came back in, the snow lady was made, but it was far from perfect; Short and fat with no neat round balls. Evidently, the snow was too dry and it wouldn't pack into balls so they mounded it into a big heap and then carved out the figure. Mismatched hat and scarf with carrots for the whole face completed the character. G loved her snow lady, but N was very disappointed in the snow. It just wasn't the picture perfect snowman.

I smiled when I saw the lady. She was beautiful. She represented a father spending time outside with his daughter. She graces our front yard like a snow Michelin tire. Why look at what she isn't when there is so much to appreciate in what she is. Our short and fat snow lady is absolutely beautiful.

C's Statements of Fact

C makes these wonderfully, obvious simple statements of fact:

"Sometimes when it gets really cold outside, the pond freezes into ice."
"It is cold outside during winter."
"Snow melts and makes my clothes wet."

I just love it when he does it. It is like I can see the gears in his head clicking. He just declares these statements one at a time out of the blue. You can't tell when one is coming, and an awful lot of them come after a ride in the car. He has been thinking and has finally figured something out. I can't wait until he gets in school and starts taking a science class. What kind of conversations are we going to have then?

Snow, Freezing Cold & Sore Tooth

It has been a week of snow, freezing cold & a sore tooth. The kids just don't believe they have to zip up their coats or shoes or hats or gloves, and then 5 minutes later, they are freezing. Throw in a sore tooth and the week has been exhausting.

Out of the mouth of babes

I conducted a New Year's Interview of my kids, and it was fairly enlightening.

C says his favorite toy, book & animal is FROGS.
G's favorite TV show is iCarly.
Their favorite restaurant is Denny's? Who knew?

Here is where I got the idea, and I plan on saving these and comparing year to year.

In fact, I think I'm going to have them sign their names so we can compare their autographs from year to year.

Kimberly's Jambalaya

I made this for New Year's Day, and served it with a salad and whole wheat rolls. It was a big hit. After reading several recipes, this is what I put together:

2T Olive Oil (or just enough to saute veggies)
1 med onion, diced
3 med green onions, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
Seasoned Salt
Garlic Powder
3 T parsley flakes
3 T minced garlic
1 T dried oregano
1 T dried thyme
1 t onion powder
1 t cajun seasoning
1 T dried basil
1/4 t cayenne pepper (optional)
6 oz tomato paste
1 can Fire Roasted tomatoes
3/4 c brown rice
1 pkg Uncle Ben's Wild Rice & seasoning packet
1 # turkey smoked sausage, cubed & browned
1 # chicken, cooked & shredded
7 c chicken broth or combo of chicken broth & water
1 # shrimp, raw, peeled & deveined

Heat olive oil in stock pot on medium-low heat. Saute onions in oil and sprinkle with salt & garlic. Cook onions until tender. Add green onions and peppers as you chop them decreasing the stove to low. Add spices and garlic to onion mixture. Stir in tomatoes and paste. Taste to check spices. Add more spices if necessary. Be careful not to add too much cayenne pepper because it will become spicier as it is absorbed into the dish. Combine well. Add rices, including seasoning packet from wild rice. Add turkey and chicken with liquids. Combine well. Bring to boil and then simmer covered for 25 minutes or until rice is tender. Add shrimp and serve when shrimp turn pink. Be careful not to overcook shrimp because they will become rubbery.

This is better the second day, and it freezes well.

Let me know what you think if you try it. I like a lot of spices and I always add spices to whatever dish I'm making so if you usually like the level of spice in a cookbook recipe, then you might want to tone the spices in this down.