Tammy's Recipes

(Joshua's Grilled Chicken Pizza,
which we served to guests on Friday)

No matter how much I try to prepare in advance, there always seems to be some last-minute chaos when we're expecting company. I already know better than to plan a bunch of foods that require last-minute care, since I can't visit with folks while I cook without forgetting something important.

But somehow, usually a number of things conspire together to ensure that the floor isn't too clean, the dishes aren't all caught up, my clothes sport a few stains, and my humility level remains intact.

Friday was one such day. Guests were scheduled for 11:30am lunch.

Thursday evening about 9 o'clock, our neighbor knocked on our door and handed me several gallons of dark red sour cherries. She asked me if we could make her two pies with part of them. I appreciated the food, but was already envisioning the many hours of labor required to wash cherries, pit cherries, make pie filling, make pie crust, and assemble the pies.

I got the children off to bed (our summer hours are shorter on sleep than our winter ones!), washed dishes, and cleaned up the kitchen. I was feeling a little overwhelmed knowing that we had to be ready for company the next morning, along with doing up all the cherries (which looked like they wouldn't keep for more than a couple of days... and the next day was Sabbath!).

I went to bed about 1am, leaving a note for Joshua about the cherries and the next day's menu (pizza, fresh bread, cherry pie!).

My AMAZING husband got up early and started on my work. When I awoke at 7am, Joshua had ground flour and made two loaves of bread, made pie crust, and washed the cherries. We pitted the cherries (we both worked for about 1 1/2 hours to pit them all!), finished the pies (recipe coming soon), and then started on the grilled chicken pizza for lunch. My pies were filled too full and ran over in the oven, so I had to clean that before we could bake pizza.

Joshua and I worked as fast as we could all morning and at 11am we were starting to wipe down the table, take out the trash/compost, sweep the floor, etc. I was still in my cherry-spotted shirt and my hair hadn't been touched. As I stepped out the back door with the trash, our guests arrived.

Oh, well, I guess it's not like we're the only people who make a mess of the kitchen when there's work that needs done.

And it's a good thing we have company regularly... it gives me a sort of "deadline" and keeps me on my toes! :) Also: see Meredith's related thoughts here. :)

I guess I'll be doing some dishes tonight.

And folding laundry.

Anyone want to keep me company on the phone tonight (~9-11pm EST) while I work? Email me with your number. :)

Edited to add:

This morning -- the sunlight shining in on my clean kitchen as cream of wheat cooks on the stovetop. :) Even better? I hardly remember the stacks of dirty dishes because I was having a lovely conversation with a long-time blog reader Lyn. Thanks, Lyn! :)

Besides the obvious -- good fellowship, laughter, and fun times -- hospitality has a few other perks that make me anxious to open our home regularly.

Motivation.

Motivation to clean, tackle piles of clutter, and clear the counters.

Motivation to cook an especially delicious meal consisting of more than just 3 things.

Serving a meal with many items (for example, salad and/or soup, main course, bread, vegetable, fruit, dessert) is a fun treat... and such a variety almost surely ensures some leftovers for the next day.

Of course, a 5- or 7-course meal is certainly not a requirement in order to practice hospitality. But because I do keep our daily meals fairly simple, it's fun to have something more elaborate every now and then -- and dinner guests is the perfect motivation! :)

Our menu for yesterday's guests:

Grilled Chicken Salad (a cool summer salad that we made entirely in advance; my mom has been giving us lettuce from her garden, so it's "salad season" for us!)
Italian Cheese Bread (an all-time favorite!)
Waldorf Salad (brought by our guests)
Baked Beans (on the stovetop on low heat... too lazy to dig out the crock pot!)
Fresh strawberries (courtesy of our kind neighbor's garden!!)
Disastrous two-layer chocolate cake

There was enough salad, beans, and cake leftover for our lunch today. (I did make more cheese bread to go with it!) We still have baked beans in the fridge for another snack/lunch.

And my house is still cleaner than it was all last week!! ;) I'm in the middle of several projects that have gotten me a little behind in my regular cleaning.

After posting a picture of my messy kitchen, I turned off the computer and went to nurse Ruth. I almost just went to sleep then, but I wasn't sure I could endure waking up to such a disastrous kitchen with no clean dishes for breakfast.

The kitchen looks so much better!! I even took out the trash and made up a to-do list for tomorrow. Yay! :) Now I'm not dreading getting up in the morning. :)

It's been a while since I've shared a "works for me" type of idea/tip, but today I thought I'd write about how I've gotten the lists and clutter under control on my kitchen counter!

See how lovely my clear counter looks? In the interest of full disclosure, it fills up with dirty dishes every day... I do not maintain a miraculously clean kitchen all day! But, aside from dishes and food stuff, that lovely stretch of counter likes to collect papers. Lists. Bills. Stuff-I-will-deal-with-later kind of things.

So, I came up with a plan. All lists now get written on post-it notes, usually one or two notes per day. I usually have one post-it with big things that need done that week, and another post-it or two with my daily reminders, jobs, etc.

The post-it notes go on my cupboard doors, leaving the counter clear. I would send you to a free sample box of post-its, but that freebie is gone now... sorry! :(

You can make your post-its last longer by turning them over and writing on the back, too. See? :)

I also have my daily routines/schedule written on a dry erase board which is hung in the kitchen. Hanging things on walls sure frees up lots of extra counter and cupboard space, I've found!

(Click to enlarge)

This is what keeps me on track. I write menus on the left, as I described in this post about menu planning with a white board. The top has my morning and evening routines, and the bottom has some general times for meals and bed. :)

It's really simple, but the post-it lists and the dry-erase schedule have helped me immensely to stay focused while fighting paper clutter! :)

I love a clean house! It never stays very clean, though. :) I kept very busy today and enjoyed seeing my very dirty house start to sparkle. ;)

I went to bed extra early last night (8 pm) so that I could get an early start. Amazingly, the children didn't wake up until 6:30 am, and I had already taken a shower, made breakfast for Joshua and myself, done a load of laundry, and cleaned the porch! :) (Read more about my day...)

I guess I'm not the only one whose home is suffering from neglect... today I need to do some plain old cleaning, which is what Crystal also suggests in her challenge for today! Somehow the days just slip past, and I head to bed thinking yet again "I'll have to clean the bathroom tomorrow..." :)

This is my bag of cleaning supplies: a small spray bottle of vinegar (for cleaning glass), a spray bottle of natural all-purpose cleaner called Tough and Tender (which was given to me and I love it!!), a few old rags (which I use to clean the bathroom and mop the floors), and a microfiber dusting cloth.

My younger brother convinced me to buy this microfiber cloth on sale at the hardware store where he works. I love how well it works, and it's easily washed for lots of use. I still dislike dusting, though. I guess the novelty wears off after a while... ;)

This nifty little free sample came in the mail last week. It's going to encourage me to finally dust all of my furniture. (Edited to add: I was not impressed with this. Oh well!)

The house is quiet. Joshua's in the shower, and I hear Ruth squeaking (I'll have to go feed her!). I got up super early today, because I really need to get some housework done today -- the dirt is driving me crazy! :) I'll report back later -- hopefully this afternoon, but you know how that goes -- it'll probably take me longer than I expect! ;)

Two weeks ago, Crystal's Making Your Home a Haven challenge was tackling a pile somewhere in the house. This was my pile. I took a picture of it that day. And finally, today, I got it taken care of... completely!!

This is such a relief, since this box of papers, scrawled recipes, empty teabags (don't ask!), and website-related notes/lists was taking up precious counter space in my kitchen... and I rarely even touched the papers inside.

Having clutter on the counters bothers me (a LOT!), and so I've been on a mission to reduce what gets kept on our kitchen counters. Too many recent days have found my kitchen counters COMPLETELY filled with stuff.

Now, here's where the Housekeeping Hints part comes in. In that pile of papers were these two books -- Heloise's Housekeeping Hints. They have different covers, but are the same book, and I got them both at rummage sales some time back. As in... over a year ago.

My plan all along was to write a review of the book (with some tips for you!) and then give away the two copies. So, read more for my review and some excerpts, and a chance to win one of the books!

I have been using a very loose "schedule" (more like lists!) thanks to Crystal's inspiration, and it's worked quite well for me. This weekend, I made a few changes to the "schedule", which will hopefully help things to run even more smoothly! :) (Read more...)

Today started out with high hopes (on my part) of doing a few homemaking-sorts of things... after all, Crystal hosts Making Your Home a Haven every Monday, and I'm really getting left in the dust!! My kitchen counters are packed with junk, and the other day when I tried to set something on top of the fridge, dust bunnies flew down onto my head.

So today I was really going to be on the ball. I decided I would do my projects in the morning, take pictures, and then spend some of Eliyahu's nap time posting on my blog about it all. Then I would take a nap myself, and have the rest of the day free. Haha!! That didn't exactly happen. ;)

Task number one: Give Ruth a bath. She smelled like sour milk! Yehoshua and Eliyahu helped run the bath water, and watched closely while I bathed her. Here she is in her long-sleeved onesie (a great invention for winter babies!) right before her bath. I don't have any during-pictures, because I can't quite manage two toddlers plus a camera while bathing a newborn. ;)

Yehoshua got to pick out Ruth's clean outfit. He loves this blue turtle sleeper. :) After I nursed Ruth, she fell asleep. I put her in her bed, got the boys busy playing, and jumped in the shower. Even though I hurried, Eliyahu got antsy and Ruth woke up before I was done! At least I got a shower. :D

Now, the laundry part. This was going to be so easy. (haha!) Read more...

I have really been enjoying Crystal's blog series this week focusing on making our home a haven! This post was one of my favorites -- but all of them have been really encouraging and good, so be sure to go to her blog and check them out! :)

I thought I would share a few pictures and write about how I've used this challenge in our home! Morning routine, before and after shots, and things I'm thankful for -- Read more...

A reader asked this question after reading about the pumpkin I did yesterday:

So on a day like this.....is your house a disaster or did you do your chores before you started on the pumkins? What does a typical day look like housework wise for you?

Good questions! :) When I spend a good part of the day canning (or doing any other sort of major cooking projects!), I don't have a lot of time for "everything else". Read more...

Last Friday, I went to a semi-annual rummage sale at a church here in town. A heaping bag full of things is just $1, and so many times I have come home with special answers to prayer -- things we had needed. :)

This time, I was excited to find a couple maternity shirts, clothing for Yehoshua, a jacket for Joshua, and this beautiful, shiny, stainless steel serving tray.

I usually pass quickly through most of the household trinkets, but this tray caught my eye. Heavy, and so shiny that it's like a mirror, I decided that there just has to be a practical use for such a nice tray.

I'm not sure I want to save it for use only when we have guests (which is about the only time I put food on some special sort of serving platter!), so I'd love to hear suggestions and ideas for incorporating this bit of "loveliness" into our home! :)

Can you tell I'm more of a "cook" than a "decorator"?! :)

Making homemade greeting cards is something I really enjoy doing! It's relaxing, and the recipient of the card is always excited about a more personal, homemade card -- no matter how simple. And after pricing greeting cards in the store, I just can't spend that much money on something that's not nearly as fun or sweet as a homemade card!

In former days (e.g. when I had only one child!) I always had a nice little stash of homemade cards, just waiting to be sent. Before Eliyahu was born, I made several dozen thank-you cards to use after the birth and in later months, while I was occupied with my two little ones.

Those cards have long since been used, and I just hadn't taken the time to make any more. Sadly, this has meant that I've only made cards for very special occasions (like weddings or something!) and I've written very few thank-you cards in the past year. :|

I realized that my main problem was that I was making unique cards that each took about 30 minutes of creative energy. While I love sitting down to a table full of stamps, ink pads, paper, glue, scissors, and all that -- it's not something I can do while the children are awake. And an entire evening (after bedtime for the babies!) spent making 4 or 5 cards isn't really something I can budget my time towards right now.

So, I came up with a simple, two-color, three-stamp card that I can make in larger quantities. Now, I can spend 5-10 minutes here and there, working on some portion of the stack of partially-completed cards, with minimal supplies on the table (i.e. no inky children!!). :)

Read more for photos and instructions for making the cards!

I received this question from Tania:

I was interested in making the cleaning supplies (I'm guessing you mean the homemade scouring powder! ) and detergent, but came accross these articles about Borax.  Just wondering what you thought.  It this still safer than store bought cleaning supplies?

Hi, Tania! :)

First, let me say that borax is toxic, and shouldn't be stored where children have access! Just because it's "natural" doesn't make it non-toxic, or as safe as something like baking soda. :) So be sure to read the box and use care when handling borax. :)

Second, now, I agree that the page you sent me a link for makes borax sound rather dangerous! Do I think it's safer than using Comet to cour my sinks? Yes, because in my experience, the bleach in commercial scouring powders is just as dangerous (or more dangerous... just Google that one too! ) and I had difficulty getting my sink/shower completely rinsed after scouring with Comet. I would rinse and rinse and rinse, but there was still gritty, bleach-smelling residue. My homemade scouring powder rinses easily and I don't feel as though it lingers like the commercial scouring powder did.

If you want a safer scouring powder, you could always try just baking soda and salt! Or, purchase some sort of all-natural one if you live near a health-food store. :)

About using borax in laundry detergent -- laundry detergent from the grocery store should be stored away from children and has warnings about possible eye and skin irritations. Treat your homemade laundry soap in the same way! :)

To be honest, I am not any expert on borax and its safety. :) However, I've found that many, many ingredients in household products have questionable levels of safety. (Just Google for information about triclosan, sodium laurel sulfate, talc, etc.)

It's my personal opinion that something like my homemade scouring powder (borax, salt, and baking soda) is better for us than using the commercial scouring powders that I have used in the past. :) But definitely, do your own research, and come up with a solution that you feel is best for your home and family! :)

Last Friday, I decided to mop our kitchen floor, Bethany-style!

The floor was pretty dirty. I vacumed it and then told the children to get ready... because we were going to be mopping the floor "a special way" and they were going to help!

The results? Probably the funnest, cleanest mop-job I've ever done. :)

Read more for photos!

Crystal blogged about her method of storing shoes, and asked for others' ideas. Here's what works for our shoes!

On our back porch, we have a small metal shelf. One shelf is for parent shoes and one shelf is for child shoes. My boys seem to have a lot of pairs of shoes... they were all hand-me-downs!

We don't wear shoes inside the house, so storing the shoes by the back door makes them easily accessible and easy to put away when we get home.

I keep my shoes pretty simple. I have a pair of sandals, a pair of flip flops, walking shoes, mowing shoes, and house slippers. I spend the most time barefoot though! :)

I generally wash the dishes right before bed; I like to wake up to a counter full of dry, clean dishes that I can put away in the morning! :)

Because of my dish-washing method, I usually end up with a small amount of fresh, hot water after I've rinsed my last few dishes.

I add a little soap to the water, and use my dish cloth to do a quick-mop in the kitchen. You know, the spots like under the baby's high chair, or by the 2-year-old's seat... just a little section or a few dirty spots. If I'm really energetic, I might end up mopping half the floor, rinsing my rag in the sink as needed.

Then, I let out the water, wring out the dish rag, and put the rag in the dirty laundry basket. I get out a clean dish cloth for the next day. ;)

I use my hand-held vacuum for crumbs after meal times, and doing this quick-mop before bed results in a fairly clean floor for the next day. I usually dread mopping the "whole kitchen" but doing a quick-mop works for me! :)