A Walk in the Woods, Part 2

I've been workin' on the raaaillroad, all the livelong day.....

During a break in the recent rains we've been enjoying, we got out and took a hike in the woods near us. It was a beautiful fall day, warm in the sun with cool air, bright blue sky, everything I've been missing for the past several years.

Look at that sky!

I find nature can be so inspiring, even if it's manmade.

That's a joke, son.

At a glance, everything seemed to have come through the rains and flooding just fine.

But upon close inspection, we could see that the forest got flooded up to our waist height.

All the leaves were muddy.

But near the river, it was obvious the water had risen over our heads, as this bridge is that high. You can see it's covered with debris washed up by the floods.

Fall is on the way!

Apples!

Last weekend, we went with some friends of ours from Singapore, the Bridgemans, to go apple picking. This was an outing I looked forward to every fall when I still lived in California, and missed terribly while I lived in Singapore. And, being the kinda tech-saavy girl that I am, I brought my camera with no batteries. So, I don't have pictures of the tiny little orchard we went to, or of how beautiful the blue, cloudless sky was, or of how wonderful the weather was. I can't take pictures of the temperature, anyway. But it was a lovely day and I was so happy.

We were warned that the orchard had suffered a hail storm (on May 15th!) so the apples were pocked, but still tasted good. We found that to be very true.

So with a huge quantity of apples (and a gigantic pumpkin, to boot), I started hunting for recipes. Apple butter is a bit too complicated, I think. So my first apple endeavor was applesauce.



I pulled all the winesap apples from the basket for this recipe; they are tart and perfect for cooking.

The flesh is almost hard, and very white. And the peels can be so dark, I almost thought they were plums when I went to pick them.


The recipe called for 3 or 4 pounds, and by hitting a conversion site online, I found that that was about 2 quarts, peeled and cored and quartered.




Here they are with the rest of the ingredients: a 3" piece of cinnamon stick, 4 peels of lemon rind, the juice of a lemon, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup white sugar, and a cup of water. The recipe allowed that not all of the white sugar need be added, but I had tasted these apples and knew they were tart and so I added the full amount. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 30 minutes, and voila!


Apple mush! Now remove the cinnamon stick and the lemon peels which are hard to find but also hard where everything else is mushy.
Last year, when I went to clean out my mother's house, I inherited a food mill. I use it to make mashed potatoes now and then, and it is great! Now I used it to make applesauce, and it worked like a charm.




Have you ever had hot applesauce? I never had, but I have found a new love.


Home made applesauce is very similar to store bought, except perhaps it's a bit denser. I think Motts says they use gravenstein apples, but the winesaps make such a great flavor contrast: tart/sweet.
This was such an easy recipe, I hope you will try to make your own applesauce. I have so much, I may try to make an applesauce spice cake with some of it. We'll see. It was delicious with cottage cheese and walnuts for breakfast this morning, too.

The Chattanooga Farmer's Market

On Sundays after church, we have been going to the Farmer's Market downtown. Even though it has been very rainy, many people still make it there because it is so fun, and also, there is a roof on the pavilion where it is held.


It is not only a farmer's market, but also a craft show, and there's food and usually live music, too.




The last time we went, I had a delicious steak taco.




Then I went and got one of these potato chip things. Very decadent, also very delicious.



The veggies are always beautiful and tempting.






But maybe it's weird to have a bell pepper match one's dress.



More temptation.

On this day, we only bought some apples and tomatoes. The tomatoes will be made into a delicious fresh soup, and the apples?



They were used appropriately.

Labor Day Weekend

Sunday, after church, we ate at an organic pizza restaurant called Lupi's Pizzeria in downtown Chattanooga. It's a funky restaurant with art for sale on the walls and eclectic music playing on the speakers. The pizza was delicious - the crust was perfect and the sauce was fantastic. We only had a cheese pizza, but next time I may add some veggies. There WILL be a next time. Finally good pizza.

Then we made our way over to the farmer's market. I've been to this particular market twice on visits with my sister and couldn't wait to bring my husband there, too. They have veggies for sale, but it's also a craft fair, and they sell cooked food, and there's a variety of live bands playing, too. I always come away from this event feeling inspired - either to cook, or to make something, or to perform. I'm so glad that we're living so close to it, I'm sure we'll go for the rest of the year every Sunday after church.

Well, of course I couldn't resist buying some veggies.



Baby yellow crook-necked squash, bell peppers in burgundy, orange and red, and a gorgeous eggplant.

On Monday, I packed all these veggies up, plus a lot of other little things, and carted them all up to my sister's place. We had a Labor Day Picnic. I think this is the first time our two families enjoyed a holiday together - even one so innocuous as Labor Day (innocuous for me and my husband, since we're unemployed). The crook-necks got cut in half, seasoned with olive oil and lemon pepper and grilled to perfection. The peppers were roasted. The eggplant was admired and almost became part of one of my sister's paintings. She made hamburgers from meat she ground herself, sesame marinated chicken, corn with basil butter (OMG) and we had a food orgy. I brought some mole verde I had also bought at the farmer's market, and it was scarfed up on chips. Some of it made it onto my sister's hamburger. I had a bacon cheeseburger with basil butter.
Are you drooling yet?

Then I got a call this morning saying I had left my camera at her house. Oh boy. 57 miles away. Not that it would have helped this post: I only took one picture. But subsequent posts are going to be a bit boring until I can figure this out.

All in all, despite the camera left behind, we had a great time. Thanks, Melody!

Our Ikea Trip

Yesterday my hubby and I drove down to Atlanta to go to the Ikea I have visited twice with my sister. We got up early and, expecting the drive to take 2 hours, left at 7:30 so we could be there when the restaurant opens at 9:30 We love eating breakfast at Ikea. The trip only took 1 1/2 hours, tho! So we drove around Marietta for a bit; my husband lived there for a time before we met. He showed me the giant chicken at the KFC there and I took a picture on my phone. I don't know how to get those pictures onto the computer yet. But, luckily, a Google image search turned up this:




The beak opens and closes and the eyeballs rotate. Totally funny.

Some of the things we got there were:



New bedding! This pattern has a completely forgettable name - I don't speak Swedish! But I have loved it for a while. I was happy to note that the fabric is a bit softer and smoother than many of their duvet covers. Anyway, we love it.





And I got some of these tumblers. I left all my drinking glasses in Singapore, and altho I inherited some decent stemmed glasses, the bowl was just too small to have a big drink from. These are good for me because I am notoriously clumsly, and they are hard to break.




This was completely unnecessary. But it was ORANGE, and so my husband just put it on our cart. It was in the As-Is, and the stain is a bit wimpy. Methinks it will get painted, but probably not orange.

We got a bunch of other little things, not very interesting to post. And as we were checking out, I turned around and said to my husband, "I don't feel really good at all." It felt like flu, but today I feel pretty good, so maybe not. Then we just headed home and I went to bed. Today was a better day and now I am going to make some yummy food which I will blog about tomorrow.

Greetings from Chattanooga

Why doncha sit a spell?

We finally unpacked the cord that will allow me to download some pictures, so why don't I show you around?

Here's our new home.

Of course, I'm kidding. These are pictures taken nearby, of Audubon Acres. It's a wildlife park we visited, and it's close enough to go all the time, if one wanted to do that.

Here's a more accurate picture of what we've been living with.




But, who wants to look at boxes? We sure don't, so we've been finding lots of excuses to get out of the house when we can. Lacking furniture and storage solutions, we've found lots of excuses to go out. Today will be more unpacking, and tomorrow will be more going out.

My daughter seems to be finding her way in high school. She attends Ooltewah High School (pronounced Oo-de--wah) as a freshman, and aside from having to get up at 5 am (ouch!), she seems pretty happy.

My husband and I have put out lots of applications and resumes, and will keep doing that, but so far we haven't found jobs. At this particular moment in time, I'm not very worried. At other moments, I find myself quite anxious. But really, after all we've been through in the past four years, living in Singapore and all that attended that life, I don't feel like I have any right to worry. I have been taken care of and will continue to be taken care of, and that's all I need to know.

But your prayers are appreciated.

The past couple of days have been rainy and cool. I'm sure you know how happy that makes me feel. I'm currently sitting in my living room with the sliding glass door open, quite comfortable. It's stop raining for the moment, but the sky is grey, so we may get more rain.

Here are some pictures I took on our recent hike at Audubon Acres.



Not sure what kind of flower this is, but it was hiding in the grass.




Isn't this inviting? One of the things I really missed when I was living in Singapore was going for a walk in the woods. Of course you can walk in the woods in Singapore, if you like sweating. It's so humid there. It was humid in these woods, too, but not nearly as bad.




I forget what creek this bridge spans; I think it's the Chickamauga. I can't get my mouth to say that word correctly.



Everybody needs friends, right?



And speaking of friends, these two trees struck me with their closeness yet obvious difference in their bark. I'm aiming at some profound statement about unity in diversity here, but I'm not quite making it.






Tomorrow my sister is coming down and we are having A Day. Hopefully we will both remember to take lots of pictures so we both have something to blog about.

Finally, A Post!

Dear Friends and Followers,

I am so sorry to have put my blogging on hold, but with all the indecision about my future going on I really had nothing useful to say except how frustrated I was and all that. Not fun stuff to read. But I finally have news to share, and so here goes:

We are, after careful consideration and lots of prayer, moving back to the United States. We will fly into Phoenix, visit with my husband's family in Arizona for a few weeks, and then drive east to Chattanooga, Tennessee, where we will be putting down roots. 

For at least a year, maybe longer.

Let me backpedal a bit and say that my husband got accepted at his school, and my daughter got accepted at her school. But, with the economic situation being what it is, it seemed like a bad idea to move us to Germany with no job and little prospect of finding a job as nobody speaks German. We tried to find funding in the form of a scholarship, but things just didn't work out. Most of the scholarships for the coming year had already been awarded. So, we will return to the states and try to figure things out from there.

There are so many things to do, but God seems to be working a step ahead of us. I only have to think about the next problem I need to solve when the solution appears. But, because we are dismantling our lives, I am certain that I will really have to put my blogging on hold. This morning I put my etsy shop in vacation mode until August 1, and I think that is a wise time frame to put my blogging on hold for, too. We are leaving Singapore probably on July 2, so I think by the beginning of August, we should be settled in our new home - or at least I will have internet access at my sister's house - so I should have lots to tell you by then.

Thank you for being more faithful than me! Have a wonderful summer and I will talk to you all soon!

Blessings,

Brooke

Some Welcome News

This morning my DH received two emails from the University of Potsdam.

They were both in German and had to be translated. Funnily enough, the first one informed us (in German, no less) that he would be permitted to submit his dissertation in English. However, he will have to submit a 10-page conclusion in German. Given the availability of translation software, this should not be a problem.

But this is not the acceptance letter we are waiting for, which he needs in order to request scholarships.

The second letter was from the International Scholar's office, to alert us that some forms are still missing for matriculation, but we knew that and we can do that after we arrive in Germany.

All of this is strangely anti-climactic seeing as we've been waiting for so long to find out where we're going from here. There are still hurdles to be jumped before we are certainly going to Berlin, but we are one step closer. I am having a hard time feeling anything about it, but I guess maybe I will later.

Limbo is not a nice place to visit, even for vacation.

Girl's Day Out

Yesterday, I took my daughter to a newly-opened mall. There isn't much to do in Singapore if you want to stay out of the weather but go to the malls, and they are always opening new ones.
Well, this mall had a little kiosk called The Frosting Room. They sell cakes and cookies and pastries, all beautifully frosted. And they also sell cakes that you can frost yourself. They set you up with a little lazy susan to work on, and give you several colors and dried frosting flowers and let you go.
I suggested to my daughter that she might want to spend part of her birthday doing this with her friends, and idea she readily cottoned onto, but there was no special occasion for today's cake, so she just played around.




The frosting is a whipped cream frosting, and the brown is chocolate. The cake is vanilla, three layers, with fruit in one layer - red dyed pineapple and mandarin oranges. It was really very delicious and not gooey at all. Unfortunately, the cake is frozen when they give it to you, so you can't eat it right away.



We sat in Starbucks and snuck a couple of pieces - they really don't like you bringing outside food into the restaurants here, but we had to have a taste. It was a fun thing to do!

Beating One's Head Against the Wall

Yesterday was a day of failed attempts. A day of not quites. One of those days where one must spend the creative energy that is building under the surface, yet every creative enterprise leaves one wanting.

So, I started the day making a batch of cookie press cookie dough. Standard Christmas cookie recipe, and it needs to be refrigerated so I thought I'd just make the dough and my daughter and I would cook them later. So far, so good.

Then I decided to make a cookie from Gourmet's site. They have the most popular cookie for every year since 1940, and there were some that looked interesting, so I wanted to try. The cookie of choice was the Cranberry Pistachio Icebox Cookies. Here's their picture.


I think you can see why I wanted to make them.

Here's what mine looked like:



Ahem. Not quite.
Well, the recipe has to be chilled for 2 hours, so I spent lots of time goofing around with them, and then I wasn't happy with the result.
Why wasn't I happy? Well, the dough is so crumbly, and you have to chill it and then slice it, but those are whole pistachios and cranberries in the dough. Not very easy to slice with crunchy, chewing stuff in there. So it was a total mess. Those two cookies up there are probably the only ones that looked like that. The rest are not very pretty at all.
I realized, too late, that the problem was that I substituted shortening for the butter. I also substitued equal for the sugar, but I don't think that made the dough much different.

Moving on...

While the cookies were baking, I attempted a paper craft.
I have this picture on my desktop currently:


And I've been looking at these star lanterns thinking I could probably figure out how to make one. I had a failed attempt two days ago that left me better educated and more determined. Then I found a pattern online, and after running out and buying more red paper, I made a template and tried again.


Sure, it looks pretty good here. But it's not.


It's in the gluing of this last spoke that things are coming apart at the seams. Literally, I have a tear somewhere in there.


And then there's this little bubble.

Sheesh! Can't I have one thing I attempt work out?

So, by now it's nearing 3:00. I haven't showered yet, let alone brushed my teeth. So I took a break from the creative stuff and when I came back, I decided dinner was going to be the thing that worked out.



Ratatouille's Ratatouille worked out just wonderfully, even though I cheated on the recipe. Instead of all the rigamarole with the tomato sauce, I just used some traditional Prego with some red wine and balsamic vinegar added.



And it was delish.

Phew!