Homemade Oatmeal Bread

The thunder and lightening have just collided outside and the rain is absolutely down pouring!! 

This sort of weather makes me feel the most productive inside on a cozy day. 

Addy is taking her nap, I'm home from work, Cocoa is barking because he doesn't know what to make of the war zone happening outside. My menu planning is done for the next two weeks and doesn't require me going to store more than probably one more time for some small perishable items. Praise the LORD!!

My peppermint bark candle is lit and I'm baking homemade bread. 

Good day. 

Blessed day. 

Did I mention I'm listening to Christmas music?! 

Yeah, well last night I needed to regain some sanity after a super rough night with Addy (read terrific two's were reeking havoc). The sort of night that moved a friend to stop by just to give me a hug and let me cry on her shoulder. Yeah, one of those mommy nights. 

So...Christmas music and creating a playlist of about 1500 songs in a Christmas playlist was most definitely necessary last night. 

But that was last night. And now, the time was well spent as I'm all cozy inside. 

As Miss Stacy told Anne, "Tomorrow is always fresh with no mistakes in it...yet." 

So, here's the recipe for the Oatmeal Bread. I've tweaked it a bit over the years of making it. And I want to make it more often, buying less bread from the store. Less horrible ingredients that I can't pronounce. This recipe only has six ingredients, plus water! 

And it makes one loaf. 

(Ahhhhhh Mahalia Jackson just came on the playlist!!! 

Ohhh the memories of Christmas' growing up! )

Oatmeal Bread

1 c. boiling water

1. old-fashioned oats

1 package (1/4 oz.) active dry yeast

1/3 c. warm water

1/4 c. honey

1 T. butter (melted)

1 t. salt

2-3 c. white-wheat flour (you can use all-purpose too)

Melted butter

Additional oats

Combine the oats and boiling water in a glass bowl.

Dissolve the yeast and warm water in a small bowl. 

Add the yeast and honey, butter, salt and 2 cups of flour to the bowl. Mix. Add enough flour to form a soft dough. I usually use about 2 cups total.

Knead the dough on a lightly floured mat till smooth, about 5 minutes. 

Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and turn once to coat the top. I preheat my oven to 350 degrees, cover it with a dish towel and let it rise for about an hour or more or until doubled in size.

Meanwhile, check on barking beagle who remains put out by the thunder and lightening and
torrential down pour outside.

Skip this step if you don't have a barking hound dog.

Once the dough has risen, punch down in the bowl and remove.

Shape the dough into a loaf shape.

Place in a greased loaf pan.

Brush melted butter over the top of the loaf and sprinkle with oats.

Pre-baked amazingness...

Next, when sleeping toddler awakes, provide a project to occupy the time while the bread bakes in a 350 degree oven for about 50 minutes, or until lightly browned.

This project was a birthday present from her Great Uncle and Auntie and cousins. She LOVED it! And hasn't stopped playing with the finished bag, carrying her babies around.

Showing off her finished project.

After bread has baked, sit and stare at it while it cools.

Smell it.

Breathe it in.

The whole house smells amazing...

Nothing like it.

Fresh.
Homemade.
Bread
No added nothing.

I like that.

When reality sets back in, place toddlers babies in her car, snuggled in for a cold walk when her Daddy comes home.

And then dinner is served! 

Slice the bread...

Dish up the hot Turkey Chili!!!

The chili was a freezer meal I previously froze so talk about an easy dinner to throw together.

Rain Makes Me Reflective

The weather outside is seriously frightful as I sit to write this post. 

Not that I'm complaining. 

This is the sort of weather I crave and get sort of slap happy over. 

Ridiculous? 

Maybe. But I am a true Northwestern girl. 

Give me more of this cozy weather and I'm content. 

Rain makes me reflective. 

I'm sitting here remembering and reminiscing. 

I've known Josh for over nine years now. Two years of dating. Seven years of marriage. 

I've been a mom for over two years. 

I've been a foster mom for 10 months. 

I've been a daughter for 32 years. 

A daughter-in-law

A sister and a sister-in-law. 

I'm an auntie to four very wonderful kiddos. 

I've been a pastor's wife for over seven years. 

I've been a part of teenagers lives for around 13 years. 

I have a few friends who have remained true and part of my journey faithfully for more than eight years. True friends who have stood the test of time, endured pain with me and rejoiced with me. 

And I them. Friends who remain, even when we have disagreed. 

Friends I'm thrilled to learn from and I hope they desire to learn from me as well. 

I'm learning to pick my battles. 

I still get passionate about a lot of things. But there isn't much that is worth the loss of relationships. 

I dislike fronts and faces. 

I prefer true authenticity. 

When people are real, it makes me want to be real back. 

Rain makes me reflective. 

I've grown up in a Christian home. 

I've grown to love and crave the presence of the Lord and His Spirit. 

I've moved beyond the rules and the should and should not's. 

What I desire is a life without compromise with room for grace and truth. 

Sometimes I live my life in the gray when things aren't spelled out exactly. 

I don't do well with boxes and compartments and making everything fit just so. 

Relationships aren't always organized but often messy. 

I've learned that people matter to God. 

At the end of the day how a person looks really says very little about who that person truly is and what they have endured in their life. But maybe it says something, very small. 

Sometimes my life seems like a big fat dichotomy

I've been poor and rich at the same time. 

I've known emptiness and been full to overflowing. 

I've grieved and celebrated almost in the same breath. 

Simple things have always satisfied me. 

Paper, pen, candle. 

I've not been one for fancy jewelry or extravagant trips. 

I haven't been to Europe or Hawaii or Africa. 

I prefer a rustic log cabin and a big fire place roaring in front of me. 

I'm learning what rest and Sabbath truly look like. 

I'm learning that just because a day or an event is organized in hopes that the Holy Spirit will show up, that he can't be found in the noise or the clatter, but in the whisper. 

But this rain really makes me so very reflective. 

Life is too short. 

And there are far too many victims of injustice to desire living in a victim mentality all our lives. 

When children suffer, I feel as though my breath stops. 

When the unexpected happens, I question a lot. 

When abuse happens in the name of God, I cry and mourn and become quite passionate. 

I wrestle and rest. 

I think and my brain hurts. 

I can't figure it all out. 

I feel lost and yet hopefully found. 

Rain makes me reflective. 

I think back and yet I dream forward. 

I hang on to hope. 

I die a little every day. 

I see glimpses of Him every day. 

In my daughters giggle. 

In my husbands musings. 

In my mothers pain. 

In my fathers injustice endured. 

Glimpses. 

Reflections, like the rain. 

Rain reminds me of what can be washed away. 

Of beauty in Fall leaves that shrivel away into the dead of Winter 

and arise again in the newness of Spring. 

Rainy Days, Stained Glass Leaves, Candy Land and Ice Cream

Some rainy Fall days just have to be satisfied with cuddles and a good book. 

I snapped this picture of Addy in our rocking chair. She has affectionately come to call it, 

"snuggle rocking chair." On this particular day, she gathered some of her favorite books, her favorite bear, Alice and a few blankies and planted herself in the chair while I folded laundry. 

She was simple adorable. 

She read to Alice her new favorite book, 

"If you give a Moose a Muffin." 

"Alice. Moose Muffin. Okay?" she said. 

And some rainy days you attempt a walk in the midst of a break in the weather. 

And get caught in the rain. 

Nevertheless, other rainy days, you make pretty things to hang in your window. 

This craft project began with tracing the biggest leaf I could find on our walk. 

Before I cut it out, we glued on different fall colors of squarely cut tissue paper. 

I placed a dot of glue at different places throughout the leaf and let her pick what color she wanted where. 

Josh came home from work to help us finish it up. 

When we had it covered, I cut it out. 

Rainy days are also great for learning how to play a new board game: Candy Land. 

She beat her Daddy more than once...just sayin'. 

I hung the leaf in our window and it looked like a stained glass window 

when the light shined through. 

And finally, a few pictures of some Adventures with Josh and Addy: 

A Daddy date to the library. 

They both wore camo. 

Josh opted out of the pink accessory color. 

And lastly, sometimes an after dinner trip to the store for ice cream is nothing short of a necessity. 

Thank you Josh and Addy. 

Days of Red Plaid, New Boots and Pesto Steak Pizza

Rainy days make me want to curl up surrounded by candles and do some writing or read a good book. Sometimes those days are just a fantasy in my mind and no matter how much I dream about it, it's just not a reality. But Addy and I have been enjoying being home a lot more these days. I'm trying to venture out a little less and group our errands together or do them on days I'm already out with work, etc. Addy has also mentioned she just wants to stay home too, which is pretty cute. 

So this particular day called for red plaid for me. 

I was happy. 

And for Addy, it meant wearing her new pink boots she got for her birthday. 

I love this girl. 

These boots were made for walking...

So we walked. 

And she enjoyed throwing rocks in a formally dry pond. 

These days the weather is changing all the time...

This week, I made another batch of basil pesto which inspired a meal at the bottom of this post. 

And speaking of inspiration, we were inspired to whip up a taco pizza, inspired by Pioneer Woman in her latest Food Network episode. 

No regrets here...it was fantastic! 

And the second half of the dough went toward our Basil Steak Pizza (below). 

This week, I received a new cookbook I ordered in the mail. 

I'm super excited about Lisa Leake's work on her blog first and now in her first cookbook. 

The goal: cutting out processed foods from her families diet in 100 days. 

I've learned so much about how our food is made, food labeling, the food industry and some surprising culprits that have given rise to many health problems and diseases. 

Eventually, I'll share some of those revelations here on the blog. 

For now...here's the cookbook in all of it's pretty glory! 

Josh and Addy have had some fun times together lately. 

They took a walk to a park while I was at work one day. 

Addy is loving going down the BIG slides by herself these days! 

And her and Josh headed out with our friends for a double daddy/kid date, their first ever! 

I had such high hopes and excitement for this adventure for them...

I took a shower and decided to spend a little extra time straightening my hair...it's the little things these days. And then I went to a coffee shop to read (also a simple luxury...). 

But after about an hour there, I found myself distracted. I use to look forward to those moments to myself in a coffee shop, journaling, writing, reading, sipping on a hot mug of coffee. 

These days, I get so excited for those moments and when they come, I feel lonely and can't focus. 

I saw a little girl walk in, Addy's age, and she was wearing the same sweatshirt that Addy has. 

I saw Mom's juggling two, three, four kids. 

I saw friends walking together and stopping for coffee. 

I saw families hanging out. 

It just made me feel out of place, in a weird way. 

And then I got a text from Josh: "Guess who got car sick?!" 

And that was it. 

I texted back and didn't hear anything. 

I assumed the one who got sick was Addy. 

Since she had just finished a week of being tummy sick with me, my first thought was, "oh goodness, it's back." But Josh was convinced it was just car sickness (a first for Addy). 

I gathered up my stuff and ran home, thinking they were already home but they hadn't made it yet. I quickly changed my clothes, thinking she would be covered in vomit, pulled my hair back and made sure the bathroom was cleared so I could throw her in the tub and hose her off. I grabbed towels and watched for them to get home. Don't you think I could work in the ER???

Well they arrived a few minutes later, Addy and her car seat weren't covered in vomit. She was calm, the dad's were calm. I guess they had already gotten things cleaned up. It wasn't as bad as I had expected. Josh wanted to take them to the park so they did. 

Finally, a new family favorite recipe to share after all of that excitement. 

I shall call it: 

Pesto Steak Pizza. 

We grilled up some steak in a simple rub. 

I grabbed a few tomatoes from our garden that is still producing many of those beauties! 

I zested some lemon and lime and squeezed the juice in along with some cilantro. 

We had some leftover homemade pizza dough in the fridge I needed to use up. So I very rustically rolled that out and added some homemade pesto with melted butter. Then I baked it at 450 degrees for about 10 minutes until it bubbled up a bit and was cooked through. 

Josh sampled the steak. 

My jealousy grew as he made this face and ooo'd and awed...

Josh sliced up the very delicious and very tender steak. 

And pause for a commercial break as Addy would like to show you her latest empty spice jar from mommy. She loves using these in her kitchen for "cooking." 

And now back to our regular broadcast...

Steak...mmmmmm 

When the crust was baked, we topped it with strips of steak, tomato mixture and spinach. 

Oh

My

Steak

SOOOOO delicious! The crust was kinda like a soft pita. 

It was a quick dinner to throw together and we all loved it! 

And the fact that Josh and I cooked it together I really loved!