New blog

I'm excited to say that I'm moving over to a new blog site, thanks to Mr. Amazing Brian who got it all sorted out for me. So if you care to see the new posts (starting with my new favorite chocolate recommendation), go to

thethankfulheart.wordpress.com

Hope you take a look...

Maple Oatmeal Scones

One of my favorite pastimes up at Ani and Brian's cozy house in SF is to leaf through her collection of cookbooks. And what do you know?--it often pays off with a recipe I just can't wait to try! So in the oven it goes, right there in Ani's kitchen. This one is from a book titled Flour by the author Joanne Chang, who operates the Flour Bakery in Boston. Warm and hearty with whole oats and a just sweet enough maple glaze. Here's the yumscious recipe with a few adaptations.

MAPLE OATMEAL SCONES

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/4 cups old fashioned oatmeal

(not instant or quick cooking)

2 tsp. baking powder

2/3 cup pecans, chopped

1/2 cup currants or chopped dried apricots

1/2 cup butter

1/3 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup maple syrup

1 egg

Mix the flour, oatmeal, baking powder, pecans and currants in a bowl. Cut in the butter using a food processor or a pastry blender by hand. Then in a separate bowl stir together the cream, syrup and egg. When they are blended, stir them into the dry mixture. The dough will be soft and sticky enough to drop by spoonfuls onto a baking sheet sprayed with Pam. Makes 8.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown

Take them from the oven and cool ten minutes before you drizzle on the maple glaze.

GLAZE

1 cup powdered sugar

3 tab. maple syrup

1 tab water

Drizzle the glaze over the scones with a spoon and serve warm, although, I promise, they are still yummy later when they've cooled.

San Francisco with Jenon

Just back from another trip to SF to see our kids. But this time it was a little different. I headed up the Interstate 5 with my dear friend Jenon. We walked and ate and hiked and ate some more--and caught up with the 5 SF kids...

Highlights:

#1. Visits to Laurel's fun new photo Jojo offices, Ani's impressive new office space and a little time at facebook to catch up with Jessica--summer plans and wedding news.

#2. Multiple, memorable meals--sunset dinner at the Beach Chalet, our "second breakfast" at Crepevine, warming dumplings and lionshead meatball soup at Shanghai Dumpling King, delectable Spanish dinner including Laurel's potato tortilla around Ani's table, and Aaron's invitation to a beautiful Palo alto place (oh, the garlic fries!!)

#3. Hikes with Jenon--around Land's End in and out of the woods toward the Golden Gate Bridge, up-up-up the hill to Grandview park (thanks Brian!), a wander through Golden Gate Park ending at a lovely, quiet lake, and an intrepid hike in the oh so very beautiful Muir Woods--redwoods along a bubbling stream.

#4. Touring AA & J's new Menlo Park home--traditional and charming in a quiet wooded neighborhood, and finally getting to drop in at Laurel's new home sweet home--her cozy room and the whole truly beautiful house.

#5 And a few miscellaneous memories-- Touring the lovely Dolores Mission, shopping on Irving street with Laurel, a Sunday afternoon in the DeYoung Museum, and Sunday morning at the City Church.

Thanks Ani and Brian for taking good care of us as you alway do-- love your beautiful, cozy home. Thanks Laurel for showing us around town--and being the best Trivial Pursuit partner. Thanks Aaron and Jessica for the chance to catch up and see you new house. And thanks, thanks Jenon for being the best travel buddy. We had a fine, full weekend together.

Thinking over 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

This summer I'm trying to get my old brain to hold a few Bible verses that have become dear to me. Starting with 2 Corinthians 4:16-18.

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is see, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporal, but what is unseen is eternal."

Just when I was "losing heart," I happened again upon these verses. When my trust in God wavers, my heart is lost over things I wish I could change, but cannot.

Just looking in the mirror reminds me about the wasting away part--59 years of living does wear a body down a bit. And also there's a friend who is starting on the journey of breast cancer, so much more severe. So our inward renewal--every day--is my hope, an eternal hope.

And best of all fixing my eyes on the unseen. I love all the things I see around me, our home, the faces of people I adore, the sun on our maple trees, sweetpeas on the table, a slice of tart on a plate. How can I remember that all that is so short lived and not forget to fix my eyes on the eternal? God, help my small faith to have the "assurance of things unseen."

Egg Plant Parmesan

More often than not when we got to an Italian restaurant my Larry orders Eggplant Parmesan. and last week at Norma's house she served up a great dish of it. So when Larry came home from Sprout's and dropped a large shiny purple eggplant on the kitchen counter, I called up Norma for advice.

Here it is:

EGGPLANT PARMESAN

1 lovely plump purple eggplant

1/2 cup flour

2 tab. milk

1 egg

Italian bread crumbs

Mozarella cheese

parmesan cheese

your favorite spaghetti sauce

olive oil

Set out 3 bowls. In the first spoon in 1/2 cup flour, in the second 1 egg beaten with a couple tablespoons of milk, in the third a cup or so of bread crumbs. Slice the eggplant into slices 1/2 inch thick. Heat the olive oil in the pan. Dip each slice in the flour, coating both sides, then coat with the egg mixture and then cover with crumbs. Set into the hot oil until brown --about 4 or 5 minutes on each side. Don't have the heat on high or the crumbs will brown before it cooks clear through. As they finish set them on a paper towel to absorb extra oil. Put a nice thick slice of mozarella on each piece. Top then with spaghetti sauce and then parmesan. Arrange them on a baking dish and put in the oven at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes to melt the cheese. In the meantime you can warm the bread and make a luscious green salad and dinner is ready. Hearty, homey meal in less than 30 minutes.

Summer Goals 2011

So I sat in our last teachers meeting, listening intently I assure you, (I'm pretty certain my principal will never read this blog) and wrote out my list of "Summer Goals." Ten glorious weeks of unfettered hours, long lazy days of dilly dallying over breakfast, puttering around the house aimlessly, reading under the maple tree... Forget all that. I have totally once again filled up my schedule with my annual LIST! But I have to admit it all sounds like big fun. Here it is:

SUMMER GOALS 2011

#1. Read 10 books (and I have got some great ones on the stack! new Tim Keller, David Lebovitz, An Chi Min Pearl Buck biography...)

#2. Blog twice a week

#3. Have friends over for a meal once a week --breakfast, lunch or dinner.

#4. Meet and pray/walk/eat breakfast with Debbie and Jackie every Tuesday morning

#5. Finish two quilts-- For AA & J's wedding and for new baby Sittig

#6. Attack my (other!) list of house projects --starting with the family room redo.

#7. Buy & wrap the Christmas gifts for the Shanghai family.

#8. Plan & do as much as I can for a post wedding party for Aaron & Jessica (after the wedding we'll have the adorable grand-girls here so have to plan ahead)

#9. Three Bible study friends events & once MOPS girls dinner

#10. WALK- Monday with Diane

Tuesday with Jackie

Wednesday --walk and bagels with Mom and Lu

Thursday with Shawna

Saturday with Jenny

#11. Go see the kids in SF... twice

#12. Mom's Super birthday weekend with the fam--give her the time of her life!

#13. Visit my school kids and invite them to VBS --plan, prep, teach VBS

#14. Change rooms at school (waiting to hear on that one)

#15. Spend a long reading weekend at Big Bear with Larry

So that's it--my summer. Sound full and a bit frenetic but also full of fun. So far we've eaten spaghetti under the maple tree with friends (new fresh recipe-delish) and in ten minutes I'm "hooking to the sewing machine" (as my grandma would say) and sewing up a quilt top. Summer--looks like it's going to be a good one.

Years End in Third Grade

Just in the door from the last day of the school year. It was a good one. Having a 3rd/4th grade combination class gives you a lovely roomful of kids. They were a bunch of little work-a-holics, always beavering away. And really so much fun! I will miss them one and all.

But at this point I always have a few regrets. So I'm making my list for next year--goals for improvement. It really comes down to knowing the kids better and giving them just what they need-- and not just with reading and math. They learn a lot about life and the world in 3rd grade... It's a big job.