Apple Fritters, Oh My!

Posted on October 12, 2021February 21, 2023 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

So, I feel like I’m pretty good about seeking out homemade versions of recipes that are a little out of the ordinary recipe repertoire. But, apple fritters had never crossed my mind as something to make at home. For one thing, apple fritters aren’t on my radar. When I’m around apple fritters at a food establishment, that usually means I’m around donuts. And I have my favorite donut that I stick with for my once-a-year indulgence. But when my daughter suggested we make apple fritters for the first day of fall this year, I was excited to try. And, let me tell you, these are delicious!! We have definitely found a new tradition for autumn. We’ve made them twice already, and I am eagerly waiting for the next opportunity to make a batch. They’re fairly simple to make, although my first batch did get a bit overcooked and my second try was a bit undercooked (easily remedied with a few minutes in the oven). I highly recommend these, at least once! But I think, like for us, it may just become a new favorite treat.

Daiquiri-Homemade Virgin Daiquiri

Posted on October 11, 2021February 21, 2023 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

Recipe link

Ok, so last summer we indulged in these chocolate drinks quite a bit, but this summer we were all about these daiquiris! SO delicious! We always have enough left over in a batch to make 4 popsicles too, so we always have a nice little treat the next day as well.

Here’s what I do differently:

1/2 Tbsp of lime juice from a bottle (I get the lime thing, but it’s not my fav)
3 Tbsp of maple agave syrup (cuz, why not?)

I’ve also run into days where we really want these, but we don’t have the coconut water or kombucha. (I mean, who really has these on hand all the time?) So, I have substituted water in place of coconut water and fizzy “seltzer” water in place of the Kombucha with perfectly yummy results. My biggest concern on these is just that I really grind up the ice and strawberries to eliminate choking hazards, since the kiddos drink these through their reusable straws.

So refreshing and simple. Love the left-over popsicles. And, seriously, having these at any food establishment would run you some big bucks. My kids love this treat, and it’s a great incentive on sluggish homeschool days. (I try to stress that most kids at public schools aren’t sipping on daiquiris while they do their math, but I don’t know that homeschool kids can really grasp a world where they don’t get to snack during lessons and go potty whenever they want. ha)

Fold-Over Bags

Posted on October 7, 2021March 4, 2023 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

Fold-Over Bags video

Theses are one of my favorite sewing projects! Very simple and quick to make, these are great for replacing plastic storage baggies. You can sew them in a variety of sizes and upcycle materials to make them. But they are also super great for using as fabric gift bags. Just tie a bow around the top or the outside, and you’ve got an easy, eco-friendly gift wrap!

Hobbit Day

Posted on September 25, 2021February 22, 2023 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

September 22nd marks the shared birthday of Bilbo and Frodo Baggins. Of course, the LOTR enthusiasts debate how the Shire calendar matches up with ours and, therefore, think the birthday falls on a different day. But, for plain folk like myself, I’m just happy to have a day to celebrate hobbits.

In other years, Hobbit Day has merely been a mention from me at the dinner table. But, as I’m edging out of survival mode, I thought this would be a great year to do something fun to celebrate. There are a million and a half great ideas online (and I ‘pinned’ some of them here), but we started simply this year.

We began the day with apple cider, since Hobbit Day lined up with the first day of fall. Then we made Lembas bread. Wow! Way better than I thought it might be. Very simple ingredients too. (We didn’t have chia seeds, so used two eggs in place.). We wrapped these in green fabric ‘leaves’ and headed out for a mini picnic amongst trees.

I brought one of our copies of The Hobbit, of course, and we had hot apple cider and Lembas bread while I read. I had made a pair of hobbit feet the night before, but since they needed adjustments, they didn’t make it on the journey. We did, however, choose hobbit names, using some of these little charts.

We also translated some Elvish and wrote letters to each other the best we could. Then we sealed them with sealing wax, which proved a great lesson in trial and error, since I didn’t know what I was doing and we didn’t actually have the proper equipment. I held a flame up to old crayons to get the ‘wax’ and then we tried everything from carved corks to rubber stamps to pencil tops with no erasers to get the designs. Nothing seemed to work very well, but it sure was fun trying.

We watched some of Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit (just the opening) and Lord of the Rings (just the opening, after the prologue). There are great tours of people visiting Hobbiton on the YouTube. And, of course, I busted out my tin whistle for a little hobbit theme music.

I’m glad to finally be celebrating Hobbit Day!

Here are some of the things I look forward to in future years:

–More Hobbit feet (obviously)

—A whole day of food

–Definitely making a Gandalf hat

—Hobbit door cookies

—Making this awesome miniature

–Reading more of the books together as the kids get older, sharing favorite parts, etc.

–Watching more of the films when the kids are older

–More decorations!!

(These are the ones we currently have around the house:)

-A Hobbit door I made out of cardboard

-A Hobbit scene I decoupaged onto an old cupboard door I found at ReStore

-This silhouette I found on Etsy

-This sign I made and sell on Etsy

Looking forward to more Hobbit Days in the future!

Little Women

Posted on August 7, 2021February 22, 2023 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

Little Women (1868-9) by Louisa May Alcott

In my 20s, pre-husband and kids, I went through a phase of reading this book every winter. It was one of my all-time favorites. I loved that tradition too, but haven’t quite been able to get those 562 fine print pages into my life since mamahood. I adored Greta Gerwig’s approach to the story, and I’ve loved reading about Alcott’s life–wow. I’m really, REALLy hoping to visit Orchard House soon, but we’ll see. Having not read through the book in over a decade, I feel ill-equipped to make too many remarks at the moment, only to say that if you’ve never visited this book, I highly recommend you do. I recently read a modern, young reader take on the story, which I also loved, Littler Women.

Last year Orchard House was offering some virtual tours which helped support them through the shut-downs. They were so fun to watch, and what a great place to support.

I just found these vintage paper dolls, which I also had to share.