Agitating Advertising

So, I just discovered that my favorite restaurant lets children eat free on Wednesdays.  Whoopee!  So we go on a Wednesday and sure enough there is a sign outside that declares "every child eats free!"   We have five children so this is a very exciting prospect for us and we just might be able to afford eating out more often now.  We ate (scrumptious by the way), our waiter was wonderful, we paid - and then we took a look at our bill in the car.  Time to go ask what the deal is because the amount seemed excessive considering "every child eats free."  Inside, we are told that one child per paying adult eats free (AFTER we've eaten and AFTER we've paid).  That is SO NOT what the sign outside the door says!


So, I go to Walmart where they are selling donuts for 58 cents each - or buy 12 for $4.50.  I consider this a good deal and box up 12 hand-picked donuts.  The lady at the checkout charges 58 cents a piece.  I tell her they are 12 for $4.50.  She tells me that is only if you buy the pre-packaged donuts.  I say no, the sign says 58 cents each or 12 for $4.50.  She does not agree.  She gets an associate and instead of going over and reading the sign, they agree between themselves that it's 58 cents a piece for hand-picked donuts and $4.50 for the pre-packaged.  In order to keep me from arguing with that, they invite another associate over who heartily agrees with them.  I am willing to accept that I misread the sign.  But NO ONE went over to read the sign.  So I said I only wanted six then, not twelve.  So I did make things a tiny bit difficult.  I got back in my car and just couldn't accept that I had misread the sign.  I went back in and sure enough - 58 cents each or 12 for $4.50 (hand-picked mind you, no pre-packaged in sight).  Then I had to decide that it wasn't worth making a fuss about or staying mad about for any longer than ten minutes (or eleven and a half minutes . . . )

Photo Projects!

I love taking pictures of flowers. This is the latest project I completed on Shutterfly. Set of 4 - 2 x 2 magnets.

Back of the Box Cooking

While at a friend's house I caught sight of a cookbook in the kitchen on the bookshelf.  It was just what my last post talked about - Back of the Box Cooking.  It's a cookbook of recipes from America's best-loved brands.  I'll have to borrow it and test it out.  Do you have it?  What do you think?

Back of the Box

Sometimes I actually make the recipe listed on the back of the box.  The other day I made the recipe on the back of a Bush's Black Beans can.  The only reason I eat a typical salad (one with lettuce greens) is to have the Ranch Dressing.  And I never eat macaroni salad of any kind.  So when I happen upon salads that are healthy and tasty (and lack lettuce greens), I want to spread the word.

This is easy (but has at least five ingredients). Don't know that small children will like it, but it's tasty and healthy. So here you go:

 

 

 

1 can (15 oz.) Bush's Black Beans, drained and rinsed

2 cups mango, diced (about 2 mangos)

1 cup sweet red bell pepper, diced (about 1 pepper)

6 green onions, thinly sliced

1/4 cup cilantro leaves, chopped

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon olive oil

hot sauce and salt to taste

Combine ingredients in a bowl. Toss and serve. (from http://www.bushbeans.com/)

 

Mute Mind Musing:  A lot of people don't make a recipe if it has any more than three ingredients.  When I look at my recipe book of things I really like, most of the recipes have about five or more ingredients.  I find that the more ingredients, the tastier the finished product.  Yes, I have four children and yes, I don't always have time.  But being in the kitchen and trying new things is something I like to make time for.  I love it when I can add another recipe to my recipe book of favorites (always a bit involved or extravagant) and no-fails (simple things the kids like). 

 

I haven't had much luck with the recipes on the "back of the box."  My mother-in-law and my sister-in-law each made a "back of the box" recipe that have found their way into my recipe book.  So I thought "back of the box" recipes would be winners no matter what.  I think this is the first of many that I've tried that I actually liked.   The only other one is Triple Cheese Bread from the back of a King Arthur bag of flour. 

Words and Pictures

If a picture is worth a thousand words,
why is the book always better than the film?

Teach the Young Women to Be Keepers at Home



Baking Bread and Etiquette at the Dinner Table

My two little girls just completed "Little Women Camp."  Two young women, one 18 and the other 20, offered this morning camp to girls ages 8 to 12.  The little girls were taught by the older girls ettiquete, baking, dancing, knitting, boating and even horse-back riding.  The older girls even played little girl games with them. 



Setting the Table

What I really appreciated about the whole concept was that these young women voluntarily put themselves in front of these little girls as role models.  They contributed to the effort that every mother makes to teach their little girls to become little women.

Take-Home Notes

It was a perfectly lovely idea, God-inspired I am sure.  I can't wait to see how the lessons of the past week play out in my daughters' lives this summer.  Thank you for Little Women Camp.



Leave your shoes at the Door