Getting back in the routine of things…

13 Tuesday Aug 2013

Posted by Kelli in everyday stuff, heart and soul, RaMbLiNgs

Hey there. Is your day going well? I sure hope so. We are trying to get back into the school groove around here. It’s not too long until we will be in full swing. Does summer go by faster the older you get? When I was a kid…it lasted forever. I don’t want to leave you there though…because routine is good. It makes us appreciate the laid back times and gives us a reason to party during break. 😉

The silver in my hair, (Lets call it silver…it sounds so much more sparkly than gray.) is testifying to the fact that my kids are growing up. I told the Mr. yesterday…that someday it will be just he and I and the dogs here. Ha! He looked a little sad. We both enjoy our kids…like crazy. We will probably be those grandparents. lol!

Last night was open house and the kids were excited. When they are excited…then I am excited for them. I do love my quiet time…and my “me” time….but in moderation on that last one. My favorite time of day, during the school year, is when they climb into the vehicle to come back home.

This post is starting to sound a little melancholy…and I don’t want you to be sad. How bout this? My kids are going back to school…and while they are gone…I’m going to do projects and cook fun things…and do laundry and go junking and go to the grocery store and PARTY HEARTY!!! ha! Whew…pulled us up out of that one…huh!?

Have a wonderful day, Sweet Dirt Roaders!

Partying it up! 😉

mmmMonday! Here a Pepper…There a Pepper…

12 Monday Aug 2013

Posted by Kelli in Culinary Style, Yum for the Tum

≈ 5 Comments

Hey Friends! Happy mmmMonday! I hope that you had a good weekend. We did. Lots of refreshing and that was what was needed. My husband might disagree with that…because he was needing to mow and didn’t get to…and it was getting on his one last good nerve. It’s been so rainy here…you almost have to watch the sky and then run out and mow when you can. Rain is good though…and that brings us to our point today. It’s time to do a little canning around the Farmhouse…because we are getting overloaded with veggies from the garden.

You know…I’m writing this post in the wee hours of the morning, for one because I couldn’t sleep and secondly…because when the day gets started…I’m going to be in the kitchen, working. So because of that, I don’t have pictures of today’s canning process. I will have to save those for another post. You will wait…right? I knew that you would. You are kind like that. 😉

I’m planning on searching the internet for a good, pickled banana pepper recipe. They are doing really good this year. So are the cukes and the squash. Some years I have made lots of pickles and some years I have pickled squash and green tomatoes. This year…the only thing that I have pickled were beets. Our summer has been fast and crazy this year. Mainly, we have given veggies away. That is okay. That is even more rewarding than putting it up for yourself.

Are you crazy about canning? Canning is work, isn’t it? It’s something that has been passed down to me and I love it. It’s so satisfying when you hear those jars sealing. I love seeing my hard work in those pretty jars. There is something very humble, yet proud, in a long row of canned veggies. A good kind of proud. Maybe it’s more of a thankfulness that rises up inside. Thankful to God for the harvest and thankful that you are able to put something away for your family to have in the future. My sweet family, they cheer me on with the canning. That makes it all worth while. I hope that our girls pick this up and enjoy the busyness in their own kitchens someday.

From way out on the dirt road, with hopes of inspiring you a little…

Rainy Day Baking

08 Thursday Aug 2013

Posted by Kelli in Culinary Style, Yum for the Tum

≈ 5 Comments

I have been in the baking mood. Have you? It seems like that it has rained here for weeks. I am not complaining though…because in Missouri…we sometimes have really, really dry summers. I think that it’s just throwing everyone off a tad…because it looks like fall outside. Of course then you step out into the humidity and you are all like “Nope. Still summer.”

Ethel, the mixer above, (I just named her this week.) is my right hand gal in the kitchen. My husband bought her for me, for Christmas one year…and talk about excited! She is definitely a workhorse. She twirls my egg whites and sugar into meringue…while I just stand there…filing my nails. (Just kidding…I don’t have nails…to file. Well…I have fingernails…just not long ones. Didn’t want to freak you out.) 😉

Do you have a stand mixer? They are amazing. If you don’t have one…I highly recommend saving your egg money or your quarters or just being really good so you can get one at Christmas. They are truly wonderful for those hard to stir batches of cookies. I just give ol’ Ethel the flick of a switch and she does it for me.

This week we have made zucchini muffins and cherry cobbler. I’m kinda in the cookie baking mood right now though, which is funny because I am more of a pie baking kind of gal. One pie and you are done. When you bake cookies…you are in the kitchen for like, ten years. (Okay..slight exaggeration.) I’m telling you..it’s this rainy weather. No wonder people diet in January. From the first day of fall until then…they are baking cookies. 😉

I hope that you have a wonderful Thursday, Dirt Roaders. I hope that you bake cookies and pies and that your little kids smile with crumbs around their mouths. I think that the Proverbs 31 lady would approve. I would say that she had yummy things waiting on her crew when they came home. I love to do that. I love…loving my family through food.

Waving at you with my oven mitt on… (not really)

p.s. A big shout out to my friend Sue Joyner. Your words of encouragement…brought home by my husband yesterday…were wonderful. Thank you for your kindness. It was just what I needed. I shall….blog on. 😉

A Little Fall Dreamin’…

06 Tuesday Aug 2013

Posted by Kelli in fluffin' the nest, Simply...living

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Hey Dirt Roaders! Guess what? It’s rainy here. It’s rainy and cozy and I have an Apple Strudel candle burning…and Cider Mill warming in the Scentsy pot.

Now where did that come from? Ha!

Oh my. There is another one. My apologies to those that are squeezing the last drop out of summer. We are too…..I just LOVE to decorate for fall….so I can’t help but dream a little.

Are you feeling the brisk breeze and the warmth of a fluffy sweatshirt…right out of the dryer?

Okay….okay. I know that it’s barely August. I’m not trying to rush you. We all know that time seems to pass too quickly as it is. I guess we could look at it more like…I’m just giving you something to look forward too.

~~Autumn Wishes~~

Love from our dirt road to yours,

mmmMonday! Aunt Bonnie’s Squash Fritters

05 Monday Aug 2013

Posted by Kelli in Yum for the Tum

≈ 2 Comments

There was a little lady…that didn’t live in a shoe…yet she had so many squash that she didn’t know what to do.”

Is that ever you during gardening season? Squash of any kind, once you get it to growing and if you can keep those pesky squash bugs away, will go crazy.

During my Paw Paw’s hospital stay a couple of weeks ago, we had plenty of time to visit about our gardens while sitting in the waiting room. You know how looooooooooooong that can be. Thankfully, the subject of squash came up and my great-aunt Bonnie shared some of her “squashly” wisdom with me. Not only is it a new recipe…but it’s also a way of preserving the abundance of your harvest. That is a win/win in my squash book. Okay…I don’t really have a squash book…but you know what I mean. 😉

Now…I have to throw in these facts: Aunt Bonnie did not give me a recipe. She is from the generation that thinks that cooking is just common sense…so just go do it. I will explain it to you…like she explained it to me. I know…but sometimes ya just gotta wing it.

Aunt Bonnie’s Squash Fritters

Shredded Zucchini

(This is the preserving part. She told me that you can just grate your zucchini and put it into freezer bags. Then when you want it…just pop it out of the freezer and thaw!) Awesomesauce right? Right!

Egg (eyeball it)

Bread crumbs (I don’t remember if she told me this part…but surely she did.)

Parmesan cheese

Oil

Directions: Thaw your frozen zucchini. Then mix it with enough egg and bread crumbs to form little patties. Also add in Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Fry in oil of your choosing. I would say that she probably uses veggie oil or canola. (Like I said…her generation is not into specifics.) Fry until browned on both sides.

It’s funny. This is my kind of recipe. I guess after years of picking the brains of the older generations…I have learned to cook like this too. It’s just sort of common sense. I’m sorry that this blog doesn’t really cater to the precise cook. I guess I’m just casual in the kitchen. I love it that way though…when it comes to cooking a main dish. Now of course, baking is a different story. You need exact measurements. Sometimes it’s frustrating to get a dessert recipe from the older ones…but I really appreciate the simplicity of their day. I also appreciate my grandmothers straining their brains to help me write their dessert recipes down. It has been a challenge at times…but after some practice…I am now able to make fluffy meringue with the best of ’em. Whew!

I hope that your mmmMonday! is wonderful. May your supper be filling this evening, Dirt Roaders. May you go to bed with a contented smile of your face…giving thanks to the Provider of it all. After all….He loves you…and has your best interest at heart.

From our dirt road…to yours,

p.s. I didn’t grate my zucchini. My daughter and I used my handy dandy new Martha Stewart peeler with the julienne blade. I love it. I had wanted that three pack of Martha Stewart peelers from Macy’s for a long time. I finally caved. (Btw: This is not a paid post….this one is on the house.)

Happy Weekend!

02 Friday Aug 2013

Posted by Kelli in fluffin' the nest, heart and soul, sCoRiN' some JuNkItY JuNk, Simply...living

≈ 4 Comments

So tell me, Dirt Roaders. Are you going to go junkin’ this weekend? Junkin’ is fun. It’s relaxing and it’s a thrifty hobby…most of the time.

This little jar was a junkin’ find. If you follow me on Instagram (alongthedirtroad) you have already seen it. It came from the thrift store. It wasn’t as cheap as I would have liked…but I’m sure that it was way cheaper than I would have paid…if it had of been new.

I will not be junking. I have a wedding to attend and coordinate. Wish me luck. This is the first time that I have had this job in a wedding. Actually…keep the luck…just say a prayer for me…please. 🙂

Maybe you are going to pull out your fall decor? Is that jumping the gun? Maybe. My MIL and I were talking about this though…and we both love to decorate for fall. It’s our favorite. So…you know…it’s your house…do whatcha want. I may wait a while…but…that doesn’t keep me from picking up a few things here and there.

Whatever you do this weekend, I hope that you enjoy your home. I hope that you find little things to do that make you feel cozy and thankful to God above for His provision in your life. After all…we just borrow these things for a while. Isn’t it fun though? That ol’ Proverbs 31 gal…she had it right…making things cozy for her family. I believe that her bunch loved coming back home to her. By the grace of God…I want it to be that way for mine.

Smiles!

The Great White Kitchen Debate…and a Goat

01 Thursday Aug 2013

Posted by Kelli in Culinary Style

≈ 11 Comments

Have you ever gotten a wild hair? You are just sitting there all like…minding your own business…and all of the sudden you want to paint something?

Sometimes I have these wild hairs…and then sometimes I mull things over for months before I act on them.

We have been having The Great White Kitchen Debate around here. I love kitchens that are all white…but my family is very attached to the Russet Rose. So I have come to a conclusion. I asked my husband for a beadboard backsplash for my birthday. It’s coming up you know. So is my one year blogging anniversary. That sounds like a good reason to put new backsplash up. For now…the Russet Rose will stay. The bead board will “farmhousey” it up in there. Someday…I may break out the white paint…but not right now.