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Things around here have been phenomenally crazy for the last few weeks. I can’t believe that it’s been nearly two whole weeks since I last posted.
We have so far:
Visited with my brother (Caleb) and his girlfriend, Alison who came home for a week.
Visited with my brother (Jared) who came home from college two times during the last couple of weeks.
Visited with my sister (Anna) and her family, who came home to participate in all the visiting (see above) and celebrate our mom’s and Bessie’s (my niece, Anna’s daughter) birthdays – (see below).
Started raising cockatiels with my brother (Zion).
Met my uncle from Chicago at a local(ish) campground.
Camped.
Hiked.
Fished. (Okay, only a little, but as my uncle says… “Fishing requires patience, but fishing with children requires the patience of an angel).
Uploaded and edited roughly 1400 photographs.
Celebrated my mom’s 49th birthday.
Celebrated my sister-in-law’s 46th birthday.
Celebrated my niece’s 3rd birthday.
Celebrated Easter Sunday.
Changed 224 diapers.
Had/have a bad cold and a case of hives (mine!).
Attended a play.
Prepared roughly 42 meals.
Washed around 746 loads of laundry.
Washed 300 loads of dishes in the dishwasher.
Had a picnic.
Did major grocery shopping twice.
Took a mass family picture involving 20 individual and wiggly people.
Played at the park.
Juggled three fussy babies.
Figured taxes. Repeatedly.
Bought two cars.
Cleaned up approximately 29 spills.
Visited the Science Center.
Put out four oven fires.
Had two tires repaired.
Potty trained a two year old.
Mopped the floor. Once.
Learned of two separate and potentially serious car accidents involving my parents and my brother.
Photographed most of the above.
It all started out so… civilized.
Marme and Granddad brought the girls some Valentine’s Day balloons last night, and they have been the most exciting thing that has happened to the girls all week.
I made a replica of the breakfast which Dan and I shared (in bed, back then) on our fist Valentine’s Day together.
We had Eggs Benedict (my all time favorite breakfast, in case you’re wondering), but this time on homemade English Muffins, with asparagus…
and chocolate covered strawberries, though this time I made chocolate fondue and we dipped them as we ate them. So much easier! Strawberries and pineapple have been a part of every Valentine’s Day we’ve shared.
The infamous pink latte, with pink steamed milk for the girls…
Dan and I set the table last night before bed.
We actually have colds today, and Kinsley ran a fever off an on last night. It’s tradition, you know.
Looks fairly civilized, right?
Look again. Sophie really enjoyed the fondue. She eventually ended up shirtless, because she can’t stand a stain on her clothing. Strange girl.
Dan had an upset stomach, because he took a zink tablet on an empty stomach.
Kinsley’s dinosaur family made an appearance.
Grandma had dropped by with chocolate hearts for the girls.
Which they very much enjoyed.
In fact, Sophie found them downright inspiring.
We very much enjoyed our breakfast together, even though Dan and I often feel that we’re observing the residents of a loony bin, destined to be residents of a loony bin ourselves, as a result. What would we do without them, though?
I thought of several utterly corny names for this thing (names like “Whole Latte Love”…groan…), but I decided that since I stumbled on to the concoction quite accidentally, and since it requires no genius whatsoever, I’d stick with the plain old common sense name… The Pink Latte.
I made this using my Most Wonderful Thrift Shop Purchase Ever, but if you have any way to get a shot of espresso (or even really strong coffee will do – my French Press makes coffee nearly as strong as my espresso machine), then there are Ways of recreating this lovely beverage. (After writing most of this post, I’ve decided that the alternative methods will be a second post, since this turned out to be so long and “technical”)!
I should admit that what I ended up with is not even a true latte. It’s actually a cappuccino. A cappuccino is one third espresso, one third steamed milk, and one third frothed milk. A latte is one part espresso, and either one or two parts steamed (not frothed) milk. I’ve included directions for both.
Perfect Foamed Milk:
(Photo credit – DeaPeaJay)
Always froth the milk before pulling the shot of Espresso, in order to have your coffee at it’s hottest. The milk will retain it’s temperature for longer than the Espresso.
The one thing I know about frothing milk, is that everything should be COLD to start with. I like to pop the frothing pitcher in the freezer for a few minutes while I’m getting everything ready, and sometimes I even pop the milk in the freezer for a minute or two as well.
I used about 1/2 c. cold 2% milk (I think you could get away with less). I used 2% because I like the feel of the higher fat content in my coffee, but I think that skim milk is supposed to be the easiest to froth “perfectly”. I added 1T of Davinci’s Classic Raspberry Syrup. I really used it because it was the only syrup I had on hand, and it turned out so pleasantly pink that I saved the rest of it for Valentine’s Day.
(Photo credit – Steve Kay)
All you need are two fairly basic items: a stainless steel frothing pitcher (though when I was unable to find mine once, I successfully used one of my Fire King mugs), and a cooking thermometer.
Put the milk in the cold pitcher, insert the thermometer, and place the pitcher under the steam wand. Make sure that the steam wand is just below the surface of the milk, and open the steam valve fully.
If the surface of the milk becomes “violent” and large bubbles begin to form, then move the nozzle deeper into the milk and turn down the steam just a bit. The goal is to get even, tiny bubbles, which means that the milk is developing a velvety texture. It won’t take long till you will be able to tell by the sounds alone if the milk is foaming properly.
Allow the milk to double in volume, and turn off the steam when the temperature hits 140*. The temperature will rise a bit more even after you’ve finished frothing the milk. The foam on top will always be a bit cooler than the steamed milk underneath.
If it’s a true latte your after, then you want steamed milk. This is accomplished by putting the wand closer to the bottom of the milk, and steaming till the milk reaches about 160*. Gently bang the pitcher of milk on the counter top to get rid of the extra air. The texture should be more creamy and thick, like whipped cream.
Never try to re-foam, or re-steam your milk as this will simply water it down.
Perfect espresso:
(Photo credit – romanlily)
They say that the most important thing about a shot of espresso, is the grind of the coffee. For a pump style espresso machine, the coffee should be very fine, with a texture somewhere between flour and table salt. In a basic home burr style coffee mill, it should take about 20-25 seconds to get the proper grind.
(Photo credit – Angeluzzo)
The correct amount of coffee (dose) for one shot of espresso, is 1/4 to 1/2 oz of coffee per 1 to 1 1/2 oz water. I usually use my double shot portafilter and make two shots at a time.
(Photo credit – tonx)
Measure coffee into the portafilter, and tamp.
(Photo credit – DeaPeaJay)
Tamping is very important because if the coffee is packed too lightly then the brewed espresso will be light and watery, lacking flavor and body. If it is packed to tightly, then the brewed espresso will have a scorched or burned taste. The “perfect method” seems to be to tamp the coffee four times, and a “North, South, East and West format on the inside diameter of the portafilter.
(Photo credit – tonx)
When your coffee is properly tamped, you will know when you dump the spent grounds. If you spot “worm holes” in the wet coffee pack, then it was tamped too lightly and the water has found weak spots in the coffee. Ideally, the spent coffee should be able to be knocked out of the portafilter while still maintaining a solid “puck”.
Assembling the Perfect Cup:
I often microwave my cup, filled with water before I brew the espresso, because I like it to be as hot as possible, for as long as possible.
(Photo credit – CoffeeGeek)
Brew the espresso directly into your cup. Use a large spoon to block the foam at first so that the hot, steamed milk pours out of the pitcher first. Pour no more than 1/2 cup steamed milk over the espresso. Spoon the foamy, satiny milk on top of the cup.
Additions:
I mentioned the Raspberry Syrup. That’s what made mine so perfectly pink. (Can you tell how much this thrilled me?)
For a mochaccino, add about 2T chocolate syrup to the milk before frothing. The chocolate adds texture and froths beautifully.
Once the milk is added to the espresso, and it has been crowned with the creamy foam, you can garnish it with shaved chocolate, cinnamon, nutmeg, or a maraschino cherry.
Enjoy! There are few things in life as fine as a good cup of coffee!
Being as large as an elephant, having two rambunctious children running around shrieking like banshees, I don’t feel very romantic at times. However, I always want holidays to be special. So, I’ve been thinking of ways to make our Valentine’s Day special.
I plan to:
Change the sheets. All through the house. Clean, lavender scented sheets are such a treat!
Deprive the children of sleep. Wake them early on Saturday, make them run laps around the yard, and refuse them their naps. Then maybe they’ll go to sleep at a reasonable hour and stay in their beds, which would give Dan and I time to read a book… at least.
For breakfast, I’ll set the table with my white table cloth, pink rose petals, and little heart candies scattered about. I plan to make my little secret (not for long) pink latte, and I will also serve the girls warm, pink, frothed milk in dainty tea cups.
Write Dan a love letter. I used to do this much more regularly, but lately it seems like we’re more like fox-hole buddies trying to survive the battle of raising children together. If I get the chance to remember how wonderful my husband is, it just goes a long way to making the whole day glow.
Light lots of candles. Of course, they all have to be as near to the ceiling as I can get them without starting any fires, but it should still create a romantic and cozy ambiance.
Play some Spanish Guitar music. We used to play this in our cozy little honeymoon trailer, and it just sounds like romance, to me.
Light some pinion incense. See above.
Bathe children and lather sweet smelling lavender baby lotion on their itty bitty selves. Inhale deeply.
Set out a basket of clean, fresh smelling throw blankets in the living room.
Get cozy in the evening and read our newly acquired (library) copy of Wind in the Willows together.
So, that’s the plan for now. How do you make your Valentine’s Days special?
These pics are from her actual birthday, which was simply a quit-ish evening at home. We had pineapple on her birthday, which she didn’t actually request – there’s just something about Sophie’s birthday and pineapple. I consumed about ten pineapples during the few weeks before she was born. When I was in labor and Rachel came, she happened to have a pineapple in her van and as soon as Sophie was born, she cut it up and brought me a bowl of it. I think I may have eaten the whole pineapple then, too.
She was given a large box of very nice hand-me-down clothing, which happened to arrive on her birthday. Hand-me-downs are just about as good as it gets, for a girl! She loved the pajamas, especially the sock monkey bathrobe.
Of course, there had to be more bike-riding to finish off the birthday evening.
We’ve had so many celebrations lately that I can’t find time to get the pictures uploaded and posted! Sophie’s birthday has had the running theme of Hippos. It’s a huge part of her life right now.
Here’s a collage from Sophie’s birthday party at my parents house…
Notice the shiny red tricycle. It’s a gift from Marme and Granddad and the gang. Now the girls each have one, and the living room has become a race track of sorts. The only good thing is that neither of them can really peddle, but then on the other hand, if they suddenly (and accidentally) become very proficient at peddling, they can’t really steer, either….
To Dan, it seems like just yesterday that he attended Nathan’s first birthday party at a park in Florida. Just yesterday, he remembers teaching Nathan how to go between the G and C chords on his guitar, only to be instantly surpassed by his natural talent.
Happy Birthday, Cyclops! We look forward to what this year will bring!
Gentile da Fabriano (1423) Tempera on wood, Florence
The random picture above has nothing to do with our lives at the moment, which is pretty much the subject matter of this post, however I saw it a while back and was fascinated by the detail.
I’m sitting on the couch, surrounded by mass mayhem as I write. Today is Sophie’s birthday, and among many other fantastic gifts, she was given a shiny red tricycle by my parents – so, she and Kinsley are zooming around the living room.
We’re getting ready to ice the cupcakes, and then at some point soon, we’re going to start the bittersweet task of taking down the Christmas tree, and saying goodbye to all of our cozy decorations.
Yesterday we had a mid-wife appointment, where we learned that my iron was up to 12.4, which we are thrilled about! Today I’ve begun the long-avoided task of compiling the labor and birth bags. Somehow getting that good news about my iron, and getting Christmas behind us, has gotten me prepared to start thinking about the arrival of The Boy, in earnest.
More birthday pictures to come, hopefully later this evening…
This humorous little family was handmade by my family – aren’t they talented?
First, they managed to induce the gourds to grow two summers ago. See, this is where I’d already be lost. Nothing very productive ever comes from my gardens.
But then they managed to dry the gourds (called penguin gourds, by the way) for over a year(!) without losing them. This would be the next problem I would have, since I lose everything.
To top all that off, they manage to come up with this amazingly creative and charming idea, and then implement it!
I come from such a talented family. I often wonder what happened to my portion of the talent.
