Category: Children

Saturday Sweet Talk…

Wiwohka4 Comments

I’ve had sort of a rough week when it comes to food, so I want to give a disclaimer, here. **All testing and results may vary, as I’m not certain if my skills, my stomach, or my taster were behaving properly!**

My baking adventures started out seemingly normal. I gathered up all my ingredients, recipes, and cooking tools…

And, yes, you heard me correctly when I said recipes, plural, meaning more than one…

You see, I found this recipe for a delicious looking Pumpkin bread, but then also saw a recipe for Cream Cheese Frosting. Unfortunately, I can’t have dairy. So, I had this notion that maybe Tofu might work as a comparable substitute for the cream cheese.

There’s a huge number of frosting recipes available using Tofu as a substitute for the cheese, so the assumption was made that it should be a success… right!?

Wrong!!!! I’ve never smelled something this vile in all my days, aside from Salmon, Slime, or that Vietnamese fish sauce stuff. Now, I don’t know if it’s just me, what with my health issues, or if it was truly that rank! I didn’t have the heart, nor the stomach to ask my husband to sacrifice his taste buds… so I tossed it! It smelled like a combination of playdough and that Paper Mache glue we used in elementary school.

I went ahead with the Pumpkin bread idea, opting for a simple maple glaze of my own creation. I’ve shared the bread recipe I chose, below…

Classic Pumpkin Bread

Homemade Pumpkin Bread is a favorite Fall recipe that’s loaded with warming spices and packed with tons of pumpkin flavor. It will make your house smell so good that you’ll forget you just bought a pumpkin spice candle! This delicious pumpkin bread recipe is super moist and both gluten-free & dairy-free.

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time1 hour hr

Cooling Time10 minutes mins

Course: Bread

Cuisine: gluten-free

Keyword: pumpkin bread

Servings: 2 loaves

Author: Thriving Gluten Free (thrivinggluten-free.com)

Ingredients

  • 3-½ cups Gluten-Free 1 to 1 Flour
  • 2 cups Pumpkin Puree 1-15oz canned pumpkin
  • 4 Eggs
  • 2 cups Sugar
  • 1 cup Oil I use avocado oil
  • ⅔ cup Water
  • 2 teaspoon Baking Soda
  • 1-½ teaspoon Salt
  • 1½ teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
  • ½ teaspoon Ground Cloves

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°
  • Generously grease two loaf pans.
  • In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices.
  • Beat eggs and sugar in a large bowl or stand mixer on medium speed.
  • Add the pumpkin, then slowly add oil and water. Beating well after each addition.
  • Add the flour mixture and beat on low until well combined.
  • Pour the batter into prepared pans, dividing evenly.
  • Bake for 1 hour or until the center comes out clean with a toothpick.
  • Let the loaves cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes and then turn onto a rack to cool completely.

Did you know that those plastic Ice-cream tubs work great for mixing bowls? Use it if you got it… that’s what I say!

Anyway, I followed the recipe verbatim (exactly as was written), except that I used Olive Oil. Well, I did also switch out the two bread pans for a single 12 inch spring form. (Some of the best places to find specialty cookware is Goodwill, believe it or not!)

It did have to be baked for 80 minutes, in contrast to the 60 minutes for two bread tins that the recipe reflects…

Voila!

Now, I must confess that I used my husband as my taste tester this week… don’t blame me, blame the Tofu! You guys, I couldn’t get that smell out of my head, or out of the apartment for the entire day. It was awful!

To be fair to vegans around the globe, I think that I may have an aversion to Tofu, along with the Salmon that I mentioned earlier. Memory has a funny way of messing with you, sometimes. And, many people use Tofu in a number of ways, swearing by it! So, if you would, kindly go easy on the Tofu community. Let’s just call this one Operator Error, and move on.

All that I did here as a substitute for the frosting, was to make a simple drizzle with 1/8 cup Maple Syrup (any brand will do), 1 cup powdered sugar, and 2 tsp of lemon juice.

My husband gave it 2 thumbs up, and if he likes it gluten-free, you will too!

As for me, maybe it was the Tofu, or quite possibly the Barium sludge I had to swallow the day before, but I don’t know if pumpkin and I can ever be friends again, seriously!

Next week should be far better, as I’m going to tackle a gluten-free, dairy-free, cinnamon roll, or sweet buns, if you like. I’ve never worked with yeast in gluten-free baking, so it’ll be a bit of a learning curve.

Hey, if you’re game, I am! Why, a young King David slew Goliath, with not but a stone and sling, so I am confident that I can challenge a loaf of bread, with not but Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 flour!

Gluten-free bread baking, here I come. Wish me luck…

Tuesday Tinkering…

Wiwohka5 Comments

As most of you already know, I’ve a new granddaughter arriving in late November. Can you believe that she’s almost here? As my mind, my heart, and my soul are wrapped all around this little bundle of blessings, I can’t help but want to include her in this part of my life, so that you might be a part of our journey.

With this in mind, I’ve been toying with differing ideas in regards to creating an Avatar just for my little Sugar Plum! As far as a real baby name, her mamma says they’re torn between Maize Anne, or Laney Grace, but they won’t make their pick until after she arrives. So, for now we stick with her nickname… that’s the Sugar Plum part.

Now, beings that I love making an Avatar that truly reflects the personality behind the image, I’ve been working toward some ideas that I think might be really adorable.

Ok, so my daughter and her husband are the equivalent of urban homesteaders. Within the humble space of a typical city dwelling family, they’ve a passel of chickens that lay the most wonderful eggs, and a glorious garden, overflowing with delicious fresh produce. My son-in-law loves to garden, as well as, raising chickens… and both of them work full-time! Honestly, I don’t know how they do it… but, I sure couldn’t be prouder!

Lets look at what we have to work with for our adorable Avatar? They’ve a boatload of pets, including four dogs, and two cats. The picture above is one of a baby with features of a kitten, but let me show you some of the other initial images Norbert (My AI) offered…

If I want to make a new creature with the features of animals and humans combined, Norbert throws a fit. Honestly, I think ai programs can easily mimic something already created, but when you ask it to come up with something new and unusual… they fall flat! Well, at least they do for this writer, because I don’t want the Norbert to lead my ideas. I am the content creator, the one who sees, imagines, and writes out what she sees. All I desire the image program to do, is to follow my descriptions. I don’t want someone else’s stock photo. I want an image of what I imagine… not Norbert!

Before I move further into the creation process, I must ask your opinions on several possible directions to follow, here.

The biggest decision to make before proceeding, is to either accept or reject the idea of using a human feature, at all! I don’t think I’ll be able to successfully add more than one animal feature to the image, without it greatly distorting the avatar’s features. Rather than an image with three differing species types, I end up with something warped and mutilated, with extra appendages and glaring flaws.

I did really enjoy the baby combo with kitten ears.

But, then again, I really like the tiny white kitten, even if it’s not photorealistic.

See my dilemma?

I have the same problems with most of my creature avatars. The program really tries to keep them all animated and plastic, unless I get lucky. There have been those images that really hit perfect on the first run, but most often not, when it comes to mixing image types. Hey, I never said I was an expert at this stuff. Personally, I just want to write… but, it is what it is!

Oh well, it’s not like I have to be in any hurry, right?!

Slow and steady wins the race, as they say, so I’ll just keep working at it, for now. If you would, could you simply leave an answer in the comment section, as to whether we should continue with the baby idea, or one of the others?

If you really want to go hog wild, you can help me create our virtual Sugar Plum. You can do that by giving additional creative ideas, and/or suggestions. Then we can really make something special!

My list is too long…

Wiwohka3 Comments
Daily writing prompt
Who are your favorite artists?
View all responses

I realize that I’ve said this before but WP really should try harder with some of these prompts! I mean, come on…. why can’t they give us a little more direction, than simply saying “artist”? How can I even break my list down into reasonably smaller lists, in order to pick my favorite in that category? See my problem? The struggle is real, my friends!

I have so many lists of my favorite things, I could rival Julie Andrews from the Sound of Music! She was able to sing her favorites into one beautiful song… just one! Are you kidding me?!

Why just last night, I watched the most amazing videos of this young woman who can make complete reenactments of differing scenes from CGI movies, like The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and similar movies. She was so bright, I thought. Her husband was too!

In the same evening, I also watched music videos from past episodes of The Voice… such talented voices, oh my goodness!

I once toured the Bellagio Hotel, down in Vegas. Their entire lobby ceiling was covered with Chihuly Glass. Good lord, that man’s talented!

There’s nothing I enjoy more, than touring different art museums, historical sites, and the like, just to view the differing talents gifted for our enjoyment, and pleasure.

The definition of artist is as follows, according to Google…

An artist is a person who creates art, using skill and imagination in mediums like painting, sculpture, music, or writing. The term also applies to skilled performers, such as actors and musicians, and more broadly to anyone who is exceptionally skilled or expert in a particular area, like a “scam artist”. 

Key aspects of the definition:

  • Creation of Art: The core definition involves producing works of art that are primarily subject to aesthetic criteria. 

Skilled Performer: The term can refer to public performers in the performing arts, like a trapeze artist or a jazz artist. 

Exceptional Skill: It describes someone who is very good at something, demonstrating exceptional skill, such as a “strikeout artist” or a “scam artist”. 

Subjectivity: What constitutes art and who can be called an artist is often a subjective matter, with definitions ranging from professional endeavors to passionate hobbies. 

Broad Application: The word can apply to a wide range of artistic disciplines, including visual arts (painting, sculpture, photography), performing arts (music, dance, acting), and other creative fields like storytelling. 

Why did I go to all the trouble of sharing the entire page of information, you might be asking yourselves? Well, to be honest, I got super excited when I saw the last part of the definition… the part about Broad Application… you guys, we’re all in here! We’re all artists, and I have Google for my proof! See? There at the very end, it says “storytelling”. That’s us!

I spend hours each day, visiting all of your different sites, reading your art, and appreciating the gift God has bestowed on so many of you! You guys are absolutely Supercalafragelisticexpialidotious!

And, I’ve got Google to back me up on that!

su·per·ca·li·fra·gil·is·tic·ex·pi·a·li·do·cious

/ˌso͞opərˌkaləˌfrajəˌlistikˌekspēˌaləˈdōSHəs/

adjective: supercalifragilisticexpialidocious; adjective: supercalifragilistic

  1. extraordinarily good; wonderful.

While you let that sink in, I’ve left some cookies to keep you company…

One of those words just doesn’t belong…

Wiwohka1 Comment

Have you ever asked Google for a list of words that sound like other words? Well, I did!

  • Affect and effect, Lose and loose, Assure/ensure/insure, Lie and lay
  • Their vs. There vs. They’re, Accept and except, Advice and advise
  • Then and than, All together and altogether, Desert vs. Dessert, Flaunt vs flout
  • Further and farther, It’s/its, To and “too”, Breath/breathe, Capitol vs capital
  • Stationary and stationery, Who vs. Whom

Honestly, where did they come up with all these different words, anyway?

Now, I know that being an ant and all, I’m supposed to be super smart. But, just like people, it takes me a good bit of time, patience, and a lot of work to read and write.

If I’m to become a famous journalist one day, it won’t be easy… but so worth it! Meemaw says that nothing worth having is ever easy, and the hard work makes for a strong character. Though I don’t really understand why I need big muscles just to read and write, I’ll take her word for it. I mean, she’s been writing for a good bit. And she CAN sail a big pirate ship, all by her onesies… well, almost all by herself. The point is, I think she’s fairly smart so I’ll take her at her word.

Out of all the research I’ve done this morning, guess what word got me? I’ll let you in on a secret… it’s not any of those words I just listed… no no. Let me show you what the answer was to my question to Google about words that sounded like other words…

Words that can be confused with other words, known as confusables or commonly confused words, include homophones (sound alike, different meaning, e.g., “there,” “their,” “they’re”) and words that are similar in spelling or meaning (e.g., “affect” vs. “effect”). Examples include “to/too/two,” “accept/except,” “principal/principle,” “lose/loose,” and “than/then”

Out of the entire answer from Google’s AI, while I was planning on discovering the difference between all those words I showed you, I found myself knocked off the highway by the word confusables!

Why did they go to all the trouble to invent all those difficult words with long and confusing definitions, if they planned to one day start moshing words together just for the sake of it? Confusables? I’m confused, so I guess the word does it’s literary job of turning words into confusables. Now I’m not even sure if it’s sunny out or just sunshiny. Do I simply tell you I’m hungry, or am I free to suggest that I’m feeling apetizable… I mean, let’s just throw out all the rules, why don’t we.

Maybe asking Google for help isn’t always the best way to learn…

Some things never change…

Wiwohka15 Comments

Daily writing prompt
What is your favorite hobby or pastime?
View all responses

When it comes to favorite hobbies or pastimes, I’ve led a very full life. Fortunately for me, having children to use as my excuse, I was able to shamelessly buy myself all manner of games, books, craft supplies, and the like… all under the guise of “it’s for my kids!”

As time marched on, however, my kids grew and moved away, so I became a closet crafter, for a good while.

Then, as age crept onto my hobby scene, my fading eyesight and arthritis stole much of my hobbies and pastimes, which included things like photography, gardening, painting, horse wrangling, camping, hiking, and the like. The list really does go on and on.

But, the one hobby that began when I was small… you know… my Easy Bake adventures in baking… some things never change!

Cookie?

Saturday Sweet Talk…

Wiwohka5 Comments

With the fall season rushing to fill our senses, and our kitchens, with warm and comforting October favorites.

My favorite flavor’s during October center around apples, caramels, and those delectable crumbly cobbler style muffins and cakes.

I decided to start with the apple’s, as they go so well with fall spices and syrupy drizzles, which are my weakness.

Personally, I believe that an apple can make or break the flavor combinations in certain styles of bakes. While many apples are plenty sweet, tart, and juicy when you eat them raw, things change when you bake with them. If the apple isn’t tart enough to stand up to all the sugary flavor, the apple flavor gets drowned out, if you know what I mean.

So began my mission toward successfully baking a gluten-free apple cake from scratch… no more store bought box mixes! It was time…

First, I needed to find a recipe that I could follow for a flavorful apple cake, and gluten-free. Honestly, I see amazing videos on Facebook all the time, which is where I watched a woman make these jaw-droppingly glorious Apple Crumble Muffins. The down side was that it wasn’t gluten-free, and also made with muffin tins, which I don’t have unless my girlfriend brings hers over when she comes for Sunday Coffee/Tea.

So, I headed back to Pinterest, which is God’s gift to all DIYer’s!

I realized that an apple cake or bread was the better choice for this recipe, as using a muffin recipe can have unpredictable results when converting it to a bake in a cake or bread tin. I decided on a cake recipe, as I want to save the bread one for a pumpkin dessert I’m attempting to bake for you, on a different episode.

While I was forced to make numerous adjustments, which I will share as we go, under no circumstances do I wish to take any credit away from those that came before.

Here’s the original recipe and link, as I’m certain that this recipe will be just as wonderful, if not better than mine. Be sure and check it out…

High Protein Apple Crumble Cake (Gluten-Free!)

Make this Gluten-Free Apple Crumble Cake and fall obsessed in minutes! This high-protein dessert is a dream come true for so many reasons; it’s decadent without being heavy, it’s gluten-free and easy to digest, it’s sweet but not going to spoil your sweet tooth and it’s just downright beautiful! It’s packed with warm spices and the addition of protein powder makes it a nutritious choice, perfect for enjoying any time of day and sure to become a seasonal favourite.

5 from 1 vote Print Pin

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Servings: 8

Author: Teri-Ann Carty

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 1 hour hr

Total Time: 1 hour hr 15 minutes minsCook Mode

Prevent your screen from going dark

Equipment

  • oven, 8″ springform pan
  • mixing bowls
  • measuring spoons and cups
  • offset spatula
  • rubber spatula

Ingredients

Apple Crumble Cake Ingredients:

  • 3 eggs room temperature
  • ½ cup sugar coconut sugar works in this recipe too!
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • ½ cup olive oil
  • ½ cup milk
  • 1¾ cup gluten-free flour blend
  • ½ tsp xanthan gum omit if your flour already has it
  • 1 scoop Botanica Protein Powder (¼ cup)
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • ½ tsp ginger and nutmeg
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 medium apple diced

Crumble Topping Ingredients

  • ½ cup oats
  • ½ cup gluten free flour
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • ¼ cup pecans chopped
  • pinch of salt
  • ¼ cup butter melted

Optional Icing Ingredients

  • ½ cup icing sugar
  • 1 tbsp cream
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp vanilla
  • pinch salt

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350d. Grease and line an 8”pan with parchment paper and set aside.
  • Add oil, sugar, eggs, milk and vanilla to a bowl and whisk to combine.
  • In a separate bowl add dry ingredients and whisk to combine. Add dry to wet, whisking till you reach a smooth batter. Add chopped apples and fold them in until combined.
  • Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing it out with an offset spatula.
  • Make the crumble topping by adding dry ingredients to a medium sized bowl.
  • Pour melted butter on top and stir to combine. The crumble should hold together when squeezed.
  • Scatter the top of the cake evenly with the crumble topping.
  • Place in preheated oven and bake until a skewer comes out clean from the centre of the cake and the cake is golden brown, 45-50 minutes.
  • Let the loaf rest in the pan for 15 minutes before removing the springform ring. Carefully transfer the cake to a wire rack to cool completely.
  • While cake is cooling make the glaze. Add glaze ingredients to a small bowl and whisk to combine.
  • Once cake is cool drizzle the top with the glaze and enjoy!

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 542kcal | Carbohydrates: 72g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 14g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 88mg | Sodium: 783mg | Potassium: 143mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 43g | Vitamin A: 334IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 155mg | Iron: 2mg

https://pin.it/63l3i4tHk

**Disclaimers** My cooking skills, ingredients, and baking tools are all based on real world baking! Not everyone can afford most of the high end name brands, or the organic labeled ingredients that triple the price simply by saying the words Gluten-free, Dairy-free, and the like. I also don’t think that the craftsmanship of said measuring cups and spoons, pans, trays, and/or cooling racks need be a deal breaker. I once watched a video of a guy making an entire burger on a clothing iron, and I would have eaten it! Rule for today is… sometimes ghetto get’s the same result! It depends on how hungry you are for somethin sweet, I guess.

Now, back to the bake…

So, with recipe on board, I set about my task of mastering the Apple.

I chose SugarBee for our apples, though you may have your own personal favorites.

As you may have noticed, there was far more sugar sweetening in the recipe, than apples, in my opinion, so I did some changing in regards to that drizzly sugar syrup topping. I also didn’t have any safe protein powder to add, as many use wheat and I don’t have the one she recommends. If any of you do this recipe and use the protein powder, please let me know how it turns out. I may go back later and try doing it with said powder added, just to see.

What I decided to do was add an extra quarter cup of my gluten-free flour to offset the moisture. I also did a radical change to the crumble topping, so watch for it, as we go. Alright, let’s do this!

First things first… we need to prep. A clean baking environment, breeds success…

I absolutely do pray that God gives me success, when baking. I need all the help I can get!

Apples peeled and diced. Half were set aside to be mixed into the cake…

The other half were turned into an apple compote, with quarter cup sugar, quarter cup brown sugar and quarter cup plant-based butter. I used Country Crock…

I didn’t make any other changes to the cake recipe, aside from the protein powder. I used Oat Milk in mine, but she says that you can use any plant based milk. I took the apples that were set aside, tossed them in some of the cake mixture, and then mixed them into the cake mix.

After lightly spraying my 9 inch cake pan with Olive Oil spray, I poured the cake mixture into my pan.

Here is where I went off the reservation… and a miracle happened!

I took all of the apple compote, liquid and all, and poured it on the top of my cake mixture. Looks reckless, doesn’t it? I didn’t stop there, though…

I filled that bad boy all the way to the rim of the pan with the crumble mixture, minus the pecans (I didn’t have any) from the recipe above. I was so worried that it would overflow before the sugar had a chance to caramelize and soak into the crumble mixture that I put a dish under it to catch the spills.

I realized early on that 350 for 45 – 50 minutes wasn’t going to get it done for this monstrosity, so I baked this apple crumble bomb at 380 for a whapping hour and 15 minutes… I know, right?! What was I thinking?

I think sometimes God loves to show favor on His children in some of the smallest, and most unexpected ways… that’s part of why I love God so!

Don’t ask me how, but I watched a miracle unfold, right before my oven eyes…

The only way that I can describe this would be to suggest one combine the most deliciously moist and flavorful apple cake/pie they’ve ever had, with the chewiest and gooiest apple oatmeal cookie known to mankind!

It was so heavy that I had to use two plastic plates from the Dollar Tree just to flip it over and out of the cake pan…

The apples didn’t sink to the bottom, nor was the cake stodgy or too bready, even after placing that pie filling on top, before baking.

I know the lighting is terrible, but I hope you get the idea… light and fluffy, with a caramelly crunchy topping.

I wouldn’t dream of taking credit for this amazing recipe, nor do I wish to forget the video from Facebook that gave me the idea for the compote, so please be sure to visit this site, as well. You never know, perhaps you’ll want to make them, too. https://www.facebook.com/reel/1226523166181722

I would have to say that this experiment in gluten-free baking was quite literally, The Bomb! Mee-maws Apple Bomb, that is…

Heffalump or Woozle…

Wiwohka5 Comments

If someone were to ask if you wished to be either a Heffalump or a Woozle, I bet it would be a good minute before you could confidently answer. Well, maybe it’s just me, beings that I’m quite small and have only just begun reading through the Winnie The Pooh series.

Ok, so maybe I’m somewhat large for an ant, but I was only just born last summer, and it did take me all winter to learn my letters and sounds. If I’m to be any good at writing, I gotta figure a good many things out on my own… that’s what journalists do, you know.

We do a good amount of reading, interviewing, and gathering up the facts, before we put things down on paper… or keyboard.

Please don’t say anything, but I may have gotten in over my head with this Winnie The Pooh business. You see, I sort of made a big deal about being able to read books all by myself, and assured Mee-maw that I didn’t need her help.

Things were going fine, til I got to the part about Heffalumps and Woozles…

Are you kidding me? That’s not fair!

As I’ve been told, time and again, Google is my friend, so I went to said friend. But, now I’m more confused than when I started. I’ll try to explain.

Ok, so according to Google a Heffalump is like an adorably chubby Elephant that can fly, but only when you’re dreaming, I guess. A Woozle is apparently meant to be a Weasel, but cuter, and also flying like the Heffalump… and again, only seen when you dream them.

Time out! Am I the only one whose never seen them before, aside from these Winnie the Pooh stories? How come Google knows about them, and I don’t?

Or, better yet, when did Google ever get the chance to interview the dreamy little stuffed teddy bear, hmmmmm? Answer me that!

Ok, ok, ok… let’s say that I buy this whole Google meets Winnie the Pooh stuff. If I accept that Google got it right, after questioning the teddy bear, I am expected to believe that Elephants can indeed fly, as well as Weasels… but, apparently, only in my dreams. Or does that mean only the teddy bear can see them when he’s dreaming… this is so confusing.

What if I want to see them when I dream? Can I? And, more importantly, do I want to see them? Google says that they represent fear and/or anxiety, well, at least that’s what I think it’s saying. Here, I’ll show you…

What follows are the actual definitions from Google’s AI:

A heffalump represents a childhood fear of the unknown, an imaginary creature stemming from the word “elephant” as mispronounced by a child, often depicted as a large, monstrous, or scary beast. While first described as an unseen, dangerous “heffalump trap” in A.A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh books, the concept was later expanded in Disney’s adaptations to include the real, friendly, and less frightening Heffalumps and Woozles, ultimately becoming a symbol of overcome fears and prejudices. 

A woozle represents the unknown, a manifestation of unfounded fears or anxieties, as depicted in A.A. Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh where the characters chase their own tracks, thinking they are Woozle tracks. This concept extends to the “Woozle effect,” where weak, unverified evidence is repeatedly cited, leading to the mistaken belief in a fact or urban myth, such as in political or public health misinformation. 

Wait a minute… how did we get from fluffy purple elephants and pink Weasels, to the White House?

I will agree that elephants can be easily frightened, and weasels ARE rather high energy and anxious creatures, but to compare them to a politician… that’s taking things a bit too far for my liking.

I did like the part about overcoming fear of a thing, and also about truth over here say, as far as the whole misinformation thing goes.

Me? I’m only an ant, and a young one, at that! Somehow, even if I hadn’t gone to all the trouble of looking things up, I think that the book does a fairly good job of helping me figure things out… and it didn’t need a politician to do it! Just sayin.

I better give you some goodies, like Mee-maw does when she gives her two-cents on a thing…

My family is here for a visit, so I hope you don’t mind sharing… they don’t!

I did them anyway…

WiwohkaLeave a comment
Daily writing prompt
List three jobs you’d consider pursuing if money didn’t matter.
View all responses

Many will say that my choices of Love, Life, and Laughter, aren’t really jobs. Some will say that my answers are more emotions instead of careers. Well, let’s think on that for a moment…

Take love, for instance! If you’re the one pursuing love from another, I bet you’d argue that money comes into play! Don’t get me started on the average cost of a wedding! As a woman, I’ll be the first to admit that if money were no matter, my wedding would be over the top! Just sayin.

After Love comes Life…

Children have to be some of the most expensive things on the planet, aside from a space shuttle, maybe. There are hospital bills, college funds, and 18+ years of financial responsibility. I haven’t even begun to touch on the cost of feeding said passel of hungry mouths, nor have I had a chance to expound on the amount of cleaning, teaching, disciplining and raising up of those little beans.

This is where the Laughter arrives! How many can say that their careers bring them joy, like holding one’s baby for the first time, or watching their prodigy butcher a musical piece of Mozart at a piano recital. Both activities bring forth joy and laughter that cannot be bought with gold or silver!

The careers of Loving, Living, and Laughing are quite far away from being free, nor inexpensive, but oh so worth it! I’ve given over 35 years to loving, living, and laughing. I sacrificed the money, time, energy, emotions, blood, sweat, and tears to fulfill those three careers, with few regrets… and none of them were my loved ones!

Don’t forget your cookies…

You ARE like those you associate with…

Wiwohka4 Comments

Brands, that is…

Daily writing prompt
What brands do you associate with?
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Ah, the good ole days…

Once, there was time when a girl could eat whatever she wanted, with reckless abandon. She wasn’t tied down to just any old brand. And she never had to worry over what brands she chose to associate.

There was a time when she loved to celebrate with her closest associate, Mr. Folgers…

Alas, those days are gone.

There were the days of joyful indulgences with her most frequent of associates… you may know them. Folks used to call them the Tillamook Gang, but to me, they were my friends. I think I miss Cheddar the most, as she was most often in the kitchen…

Well, as I mentioned at the beginning of this, you are like those you associate with! Unfortunately, they weren’t the best influence, so I had to give them up.

Now, after learning to let go of that which is a bad influence, I cleaned up my kitchen and now have a new circle of brands to hang out with… the healthier kind!

At first, it wasn’t so easy. Meeting new brands that behaved far differently than my old brands was difficult for a time. Strange names and unusual characteristics made me feel very self-conscious and intimidated, not to mention a bit scared. Change is never easy, but for the sake of healthy associations with brands… it had to be done!

Now that I’ve taken the time to get more familiar with her, Chiquita has become a very loyal brand, faithfully supplying me with a better association with potassium, and the like…

Chiquita was so genuinely helpful and giving, she actually introduced me to the Foster Farm Girls…

You know, associating with them has done wonders for my health, seriously!

There is, however, one brand that has been my friend since my earliest days. My mother actually introduced me to them, first. I was only about five years old, when my mother bought me an Easy-Bake Oven. I’d never made cookies before. I’d only ever seen my mother do it, but she was now handing over the spatula, so to speak!

I was placed upon a stool that had been stacked with several Yellow Page telephone books. Before me sat my brand new oven, all the little trays, sprays, spoons, and such. But the world turned on it’s axis, when my mother handed me a large bowl filled with cookie dough! It wasn’t just any cookie do, however, but the original recipe from Nestle Toll House Morsels package… that was all it took!

From that little oven, came some of the best cookies I’ve ever tasted! Now, perhaps it was the sugar rush that kicked in, or even the bit of caffeine from the chocolate chips, hitting the bloodstream. The point is, I was hooked… not just on cookies, but on the Toll House brand!

I’ve had occasion to use other brands, but I always come back to Toll House! Whenever I see their packages, I’m immediately transported back to my childhood days… the good ones, though they be few. Thank you, Toll House!

I bet you guys are glad I kept this brand. I wouldn’t serve you anything less than wonderful… hugs

Barnyard Blues…

Wiwohka3 Comments

I awoke this morning, to questions that don’t seem to have satisfactory answers, as far as deciding on what to write for my normal Friday post. I’m going to be fully honest when I say that Barnyard Business episodes may not be the right fit for WordPress.

While my heart wants to continue with the stories, the response on WP has not been what I’d anticipated. Now, don’t go getting your feelings hurt or anything, because I’m certainly not blaming any of you.

The imaginative stories I come up with are really meant for children, and let’s face it, there aren’t any little ones knocking on my WP door. If folks are reading any of them to their children, I’ve never had any comments or such that might reflect someone’s interest.

I published a children’s book, but it was mainly for testing the waters. I think I’ve sold one copy, but I wasn’t surprised. My books are meant for children’s hands, not in the form of a futuristic Etch a Scetch!

This will be my third Christmas spread that I’ll be putting together, and as you already know, nobody ever seems to show up for the party. You can be butt hurt about this statement, or you can simply accept it as truth. You all have busy lives, I get it! Plus, the bottom line for this site is to reach hearts, not collect back pats and overly wordy accolades… it’s not about me!

Unfortunately, I have a tendency to make it more about me than about sharing the Gospel. Maybe it wasn’t my primary reason back when I started… but it is now, more than ever! I try not to overdo it, but let’s face it… that’s what the cookies are for, right?

As I am the president of my own Overthinkers Anonymous Club, it’s important that I make no rash decisions about a thing. Prayer comes first, then looking at said thing objectively, follows. After that, I write my thoughts down, usually here on WordPress. Any following steps come into play, once I receive your feedback. You may or may not even realize how important you are, in terms of what I write, how I write it, and when I publish said thing.

You are my family, and your thoughts matter to me, especially when it comes to what I put on this website. Why? Because you are important to me… very important!

I really would appreciate your feedback, as to whether or not I continue with any of my children themes, here on WordPress. It may be a situation where I simply journal on WP, but pull all of my main character episodes to a different venue. My desire is to write that which is useful for your edification, inspiration, encouragement and overall blessings. If it needs changing, so be it! I love you enough that I’ll write however I must, if God can use it to reach your hearts!

Hugs