THE look.  Every mother has one.  Perhaps the eyebrows are raised and her head shakes slowly.  Maybe she squints her eyes and purses her lips.  Or maybe her foot is tapped and she looks expectantly.  Every mother’s look is different, but one thing is certain – every child knows his mother’s look!  I’m not talking about looking like the Wicked Witch of the West, but a loving, yet firm face that says you mean business.

That look can speak at a time when words can’t be spoken – like at church.  When a child is misbehaving, simply looking down the pew and giving THE look tells them all you would say with words. When you’re in someone’s home and your child is beginning to say or do something unkind or rude, it takes placing your hand on their arm and looking at them for them to know they need to stop what they’re doing right now.  When you’re engaged in conversation at the grocery store and your child is interrupting you, turning and giving them a look should stop the behavior.

What is behind THE look?  It is time at home teaching.  Talk to your child while you’re preparing dinner together about how to behave in church, about the invitation you have to have dinner at The Smith’s house next week and how to be kind while there.  Tell them about your trip to the grocery store or the mall and how you expect them to behave while there.  Teaching them and talking to them beforehand will  prepare the way for what you expect of them in each of those scenarios.  If they “kick out of the traces” a simple look will say, “Remember what we talked about at home?”  A slight shake of the head will say,”That is not acceptable.”  Then, when you get home you can reinforce THE look by reviewing the teaching.  “Did you remember not to beg and whine for a treat when we were at the grocery store?  I looked at you while I was paying because you were disobeying what I’d asked you to do.  What will you do the next time we go?”

Many kinds of misbehavior can be taken care of beforehand by another means – preparation on your part.  If you’re going to the grocery store, why not take some Goldfish Crackers in a ziplock bag and let your child eat those while you get your groceries?  Take a bag of toys and/or books in the car with you only to be looked at when at appointments.  Get  some felt books at the Bible book store only to be played with during church services.  Make up some car games and toys to keep them busy while traveling. 

Parental teaching is key to how our children will respond to situations.  Talking to them  and preparing beforehand won’t stop all misbehavior, but it will certainly help!  Things will be so sweet you know what you’ll find yourself saying?  There’s no place like home!

See you in church!

With love,

What about your little nest?  Are the eggs (your children) under your watchful eye, your listening ear, your teaching tongue?  They will do best that have their momma there to love and care for them, rather than frequently flying to be somewhere else. Even if you have your children with you, if you’re constantly on the run, it makes teaching much more difficult.  A nest is a secure place in which to consistently gather your brood.  Don’t abandon the nest; it’s God’s gift.   It’s a thought to ponder.

With love,

I love little children, and I enjoy having families of young children over for dinner.  We had the joy of having a young family over yesterday that have two adorable little girls.  I wanted to please their young palettes too, so I tried to plan my menu with thoughts of what children like.  It’s hard enough for children to be the  guests in someone’s home without having to eat something weird, you know?  So, especially for the sake of the girls, I tried to stick to basics – chicken, mashed potatoes, corn on the cob.  Simple flavors for young taste buds.

I also try to have a place for the children to sit where they feel comfortable.  I remember how tense I felt when my girls were small and someone had us over and would seat the girls at a table with beautiful linens or pricey dishware.  It made me so on edge.  I want the children to enjoy the meal and I want the parents to relax too.  If something spills, it’s okay.  Pulling out some toys or other items they can play with after the meal will allow their mom and dad to be able to visit leisurely. ( I just realized how much like a grandmother I sound! ) 

I made my old favorite – Katie Brown Chicken.  We tend to have more repeats for Sunday dinner than we do for weekday meals.  One reason is that not everything can be left to cook while you’re at church, and it takes too long to cook some foods once you get home.  The meal I fixed yesterday can be ready almost within minutes of walking in the door.  That’s always a good thing for hungry adults and hungry children!

Ina Garten says to try to have a great dessert, because that’s what everyone remembers!  I made a peach cobbler, but for my young guests, I had ice cream cones.  They were sweet young guests, offering plenty of thanks.  Their mom and dad have taught them well!

Here was my whole simple Sunday menu:

I hadn’t made a peach cobbler in a long time, but since this is peach season and I had gotten some perfect peaches, I made up a recipe from Southern Living.

2-crust pie crust

I used my standard recipe – 2 C flour, 1 tsp salt, 3/4 C Crisco, ice water.
4 cups peaches
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 C cornstarch
1/2 C water
2 T butter or margarine, melted
1 large egg
2 T milk
1 T sugar

If you boil the peaches for 30 seconds, the skins will slide right off

Peaches with sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, water and butter added.



Messy, but homemade!





Jamaican Banana Bread

2 T butter or margarine, softened
2 T 1/3 less fat cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1 cup mashed ripe banana
1/2 cup fat free milk
1/4 tsp imitation rum extract
1/2 tsp grated lime rind
2 tsp lime juice
 1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted
1/4 cup flaked sweetened coconut
Cooking Spray

Topping:
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tsp butter or margarine
2 tsp lime juice
1/8 tsp imitation rum extract
2 T chopped pecans, toasted
2 T flaked sweetened coconut

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2.  To prepare bread, beat 2 T butter and cheese at medium speed of mixer; add granulated sugar, beating well.  Add egg; beat well.
3.  Combine flour, baking powder baking soda, and salt.  Combine banana and the next 5 ingredients.  Add flour mixture to creamed mixture alternately with banana mixture,beginning and ending with flour mixture; mix after each addition.  Stir in pecans and 1/4 cup coconut.
4.  Pour batter in an 8 x 4 inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray.  Bake at 375 degrees for 1 hour (mine only needed 45 minutes).  Cool in pan 10 minutes, and remove from pan.  Cool slightly on a wire rack.
5.  To prepare topping, combine brown sugar and 2 tsp each butter and lime juice and 1/8 tsp extract in a saucepan; bring to a simmer.  Cook 1 minute,stirring constantly.  Remove from heat.  Stir in 2 T pecans and coconut; spoon over loaf.

If that recipe doesn’t suit your fancy, here’s another one from Cooking Light that we LOVE.  You can’t go wrong mixing chocolate and bananas, so you know that Marbled-Chocolate Banana Bread will be yummy!  Go here to find the simple recipe. 

I’m not really a big eater – unless one of the foods offered is POPCORN.  This is my favorite snack, though I don’t let myself eat it very often because of my piggishness love for it.  I found a recipe to update the old standard buttery snack.  The recipe is called  Sweet and Salty Popcorn.  It’s lighter in fat and calories than caramel corn, but still really good!  It was very simple to make.  Here are the steps and instructions:

Pop popcorn to make 10 cups.  I pour popcorn into a Corningware bowl, covering the bottom of the bowl with the kernels, cover it with a lid and microwave for 3 minutes – no oil or butter.

Whisk together, then microwave for 45 seconds, or until bubbly.  Place popcorn on a baking sheet that’s been sprayed with cooking spray, then pour the sauce over popcorn.  Toss to cover.  Bake at 250 degrees 25-30 minutes, or until crunchy.  (It will get crunchier as it cools)

I made paper holders and served it to company that came over.  Fyi, I sprinkled salt into the bag of popcorn after it was cooled.  I thought it needed a little more of the salty taste. 

Hope you enjoy these new takes on some old favorites!

See you in church Sunday!

With love,