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Lilypie Kids birthday Ticker
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Another Confession
Yes, I have another confession for you. This is a risky one. One that may mean I have to turn in my girl card. I'm not going to see Sex and the City.

Nope, have no interest. I don't begrudge any one who is excited. In fact, I'm a little jealous, but that's okay. When the series started, we didn't have HBO. Even after we got HBO, I never really tuned in to the show. I saw a few episodes, and I liked them. It just never seemed to come on when I was looking for something to watch.

Because of this, I never really got emotionally invested in these four ladies.

I hope all of you who went last night or plan to go soon have a wonderful experience.Don't forget to sign up for my Popcorn Giveaway!

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Friday, May 30, 2008
Favorite Ingredients Friday!
Before I get started, don't forget to add your comment to my giveaway post. Wouldn't you like some free popcorn?

Here it is Friday again, and once again, I wasn't ready. My excuse this week is the same, the ending of school. Today is it. Yesterday I gave my last finals. Today, I'm grading them and cleaning my room. Summer vacation is hours away.

This is a recipe I made a long time ago. It's super easy and pretty good. I'll admit to not being a huge fan of pineapple things. I love fresh pineapple, but am just meh about it in cooked dishes. I know I'll be making them again because they're really child-friendly. I can see Sera helping me make these very soon.

Pineapple Upside-Down Biscuits
Paula Deen

1 (10-ounce) can crushed pineapple
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, at room temperature
10 maraschino cherries
1 (12-ounce) package refrigerated buttermilk biscuits (10 count)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Grease 10 cups of a muffin tin. Strain the can of crushed pineapple, save juice for later. Combine the pineapple, sugar, and butter, and mix well. Divide the pineapple mixture among the muffin cups. Place a cherry in the center of each muffin cup, making sure cherry hits bottom of cup. Place 1 biscuit in each cup on top of sugar and pineapple mixture. Spoon 1 teaspoon reserved pineapple juice over each biscuit. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until golden. Cool for 2 minutes. Invert the pan onto a plate to release the biscuits. Serve warm.

Be sure to visit the Favorite Ingredients Friday home to find more great recipes!

Past FIF recipes:
Tomato Chicken
Greatest Hits: Enchiladas de Pollo and Old-fashioned Peanut Butter Fudge
Almost Cabbage Rolls
Guacamole
German Chocolate Pie
Carne Asada & Sour Cream Tortilla Casserole
Dorito Salad
Shrimp Stuffed Potatoes
Apple Cake
Mocha
Vegetable Beef Soup
Stuffed Cabbage Soup
Raspberry Pie & White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Pie
Breakfast Granola
Shrimp Creole
Lazy Man's Lasagna & Apple Cake
Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
Jim's Favorite Jelly Cookie
Eye of Round Roast
Mozzarella & Tomato Sandwich
Marcia's Taco Soup
Chicken Parmesan Casserole
Cajun Baked Catfish
Jim's Snickers Pancake
Crawfish Monica
Grilled Meats and Vegetables over Saffron Orzo
Crockpot Red Beans
Better Than Almost Anything Cake
Fruity Sangria
Outrageous Brownies
Enchiladas de Pollo
Lescó
Catalina Chicken
Croissant French Toast
Corned Beef
Sloppy Joe, Mac 'n Cheese Casserole
Shredded Chicken
Baked Bean & Burger Casserole
Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie
Crab Rangoon
Sausage con Queso and Ro-tel Cheese Dip
Blueberry Multigrain Coffeecake
Banana Bread
Bananas Foster
Old-Time Beef Stew
White Chocolate Snack Mix
Gorilla Bread
Ginger Shrimp
Roast Chicken
Tex-Mex Chicken Taco Soup
Shrimp Mold
Pasta Puttanesca
Pork Milanese
Pumpkin Dip
Oven-fried Chicken
Best Bundt Cake Ever
Hot Dog Casserole
Chicken & Rice
Peanut Butter Fudge
Omelets in a Bag
Shrimp Boil
Apple Cheese
Pulled Pork BBQ

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Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Freaky Coincidence or Conspiracy!!
In order to put forth my conspiracy theory, I have to make a confession. I started watching a really bad reality show over the last few months. I had not seen it in the past, but happened upon a marathon of last year's episodes. It's like watching a train wreck. I can't help myself. Every Tuesday at 9:00pm EST, I turn to Hell's Kitchen. It's awful. Gordon Ramsey spends the majority of the time yelling and just short of having a stroke. The contestants are uniformly unqualified to be in a professional kitchen. It's at the opposite end of the spectrum when compared to Top Chef.

Except for this...

Two weeks ago on Top Chef, Nikki was told to pack her knives and go home. The following episode of Hell's Kitchen had Nikki's doppelganger, Rosann was eliminated.

Last week on Top Chef, the only Asian chef, Dale, was eliminated. Last night on Hell's Kitchen, the only Asian chef, Louross, was eliminated.

::cue Twilight Zone music::

SCROLL DOWN TO PARTICIPATE IN THE FREE POPCORN GIVEAWAY!

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Sunday, May 25, 2008
Giveaway - Healthy Snacking!
We love popcorn around here. Yeah, I know it sounds like a cliche being in Indiana and all, but it's true, we love popcorn. In fact, it may be Jim's favorite food. We always have it in our pantry, and the first thing he does at the movies is buy the biggest tub they have.

My memories of popcorn go way back. My mom would buy Jiffy Pop in the aluminum pie pan with the long metal handle. I loved shaking that thing over the stove top and bursting open the giant aluminum bubble that was filled with popcorn. One year, we learned how to make it using a large pot and lid because we made popcorn balls to give out for trick or treat. It took hours, and I loved every minute of it. Add caramel coating and nuts to it, and you have another favorite snack. Or you can add parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes for a more grown-up treat.

The best thing that ever happened to popcorn, however, has to be the microwave. In two minutes or less, you have a steaming bowl of savory goodness. Don't think so? Try popping one at work, you'll see people appearing from every nook and cranny. The kids at school go nuts when we smell someone making popcorn in the teacher's lounge.

Orville Redenbacher has some great products to help you enjoy this snack and stay healthy. There's the SmartPop line, and my favorite, the mini-bags. They were kind enough to send me this great Orville Redenbacher bowl and some sample bags of popcorn.


Within minutes of opening that box, Jim had the first bag popped and was chowing down. In fact, he ate both samples before I could get a picture. He used the coupons they included to go buy some more for me.

Since this is the last week of school, I'm celebrating, and you're invited.

The nice people at Orville Redenbacher have offered two gift sets including the bowl and samples to readers of this site. We'll also award five additional readers with a sample of the popcorn.

How can you win? It's easy, just comment and link back to this post. If we show enough interest, maybe I'll be able to host more giveaways. Sounds fun to me!

In your comment, answer one of the following questions, or visit Orville Redenbacher, then come back and tell me which is your favorite product they carry and your favorite popcorn story.

· What are some ways you get your kids to eat healthy?
· What snacks do your kids view as healthy?
· What snacks do your kids reach for when they are hungry? Is healthy a factor?
· Do you ever ‘trick’ your kids into eating healthy? If so, how?
· When do you enjoy popcorn? With your family? Watching movies? Alone time?
· Do you have any family memories associated with snacking (a special snack)?
· Do you have any fun ideas/recipes for incorporating popcorn into your diet?

The winners will be chosen randomly on Sunday, June 1st. This giveaway closes at midnight on Saturday, May 31st.

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3 Word Sunday

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Saturday, May 24, 2008
To Remind Us All

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Friday, May 23, 2008
The Silver Lining


To every tragedy lies a silver lining. This one is a major shift in the attitude of the Chinese towards adoption. There has long been a societal disapproval of adoption. The earthquake seems to have caused a monumental shift in thinking. Though it will take months to get organized and make sure there are no relatives available, the people of China are already signing up to adopt the Earthquake orphans.

I don't want to sound like a case of "I have my child. Who cares about you?," but I can't help but be pleased to see that the stigma is leaving. International adoption was just a tiny drop in the bucket of children available for adoption. Wouldn't it be wonderful to see them all find a home?

Favorite Ingredient Friday - sorry, got so busy this week, that I didn't get a chance to pick a recipe. I'll be back next time!

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Thursday, May 22, 2008
Say It Ain't So, Padma!
A terrible reality show injustice has occurred. Slimy Spike and Prune-faced Lisa are still in the competion, and Dale, inarguably one of the top three chefs in the competition, is gone?

Now I give you that he had a bad night, but he's been one of the top, if not the top, winner of the challenges to date. Yes, he's volatile. Yes, he's passionate. Yes, he can be a self-described jerk. (Okay, he called himself worse, but this is a G-rated blog.) People complain that he doesn't work well with others. That's not true. He was great with Richard and Stephanie. He just can't work well with incompetant, arrogant people who make mistakes and shout sabotage. People who focus more on hurting their competitor than proving themselves capable. People who have no business being on that show still. I'd take Nikki over Spike and Lisa any day of the week.

Spike has hidden in the middle of the pack the entire competition. His only concern is covering his butt and not being held responsible for anything. Lisa has been on the bottom three for the last eight (correct me if I'm wrong) challenges. She is terrible. She also refuses to ever take responsibility for making a bad dish or a bad choice. It is always someone else's fault.

I do think that the judging should take into account their previous performances. If it ended up as a toss up between Lisa and Dale. Dale's successes (one just last week, and he came in 2nd in the quickfire) should have given him the edge. Lisa has had one success the entire competition and that was so long ago. Neither she nor Spike deserve to be in the final four. I think this came about because two of the regular judges were not there.

Good luck, Dale! You were robbed.

And on another reality show note, good for David C. Now, someone please do an intervention for David A. and let him have some normal kid time. Please?

Now for a more serious comment.

Deepest condolences to the Steven Curtis Chapman family whose 5-year-old daughter, Maria, was killed in a tragic accident. Maria was one of three children adopted from China by the Chapman family.

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Wednesday, May 21, 2008
AI Finale
Another season is wrapping up, and you know what I realized?

I want them both to lose. Impossible, I know, but I do.

Why? You ask.

David C. is ready to go right now. He could record an album and hit the concert road. He doesn't need the controlling aspect of being THE American Idol.

David A., poor poor David A. He's like a lost little puppy dog trying to please his master. His voice is amazing, but he needs life experience, preferably away from his father. He looks so miserable and beaten down. He will be eaten alive by the industry. He will be turned and twisted and marketed every way possible. His dad will sell him to the highest bidder, and then he'll end up in rehab or worse.

This is only my opinion, and I hope I'm wrong.

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Tuesday, May 20, 2008
An Earthquake Story

This is one I found especially moving.

It was the third day after the quake already. The rescue workers were still looking for survivors. They knew with each minute passing by, the chance to find someone alive gets slimmer. They were overworked. Since the quake, many of them had been working constantly, without having any good sleep. The roads to these mountainous towns and villages were destroyed by the quake-induced mudslides. They did not have machinery to work with. All they had were shovels and their bare hands. But they were still looking for survivors.

Click here to finish reading

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Monday, May 19, 2008
Update from Half the Sky
All the stories are touching, but as a teacher I was especially moved by Zhang Huibing’s story.



Dear Friends,

It’s Monday afternoon here in China. As I write this, the entire country just held 3 minutes of silence to commence a 3 day period of national mourning. It began at 2:28 pm, marking the very moment the massive quake struck in Wenchuan County, Sichuan. Flags flew at half-staff, the people wore white flowers and, heads bowed, held hands. Across the country, horns and sirens wailed in grief.

There are 32,477 people confirmed dead, more than 35,000 still missing.

Sadly and predictably, we are getting more information about children newly orphaned. We are now bringing together people and resources to prepare and train caregivers to help children through the next difficult phase of recovery. Unlike emergency relief (not our specialty but we're learning fast!), this is an area where HTS does have great expertise to offer. We will give all we can to these children who have many hard days ahead of them. I will be sharing our plans as they evolve.

Meanwhile, we continue to focus our attention on the most urgent needs of affected children – children in institutions and children orphaned or displaced by the disaster.

What follows is our most recent news. I’ve posted a few photos on our
website: http://halfthesky.org/work/earthquake08.php and will update as more arrive.

Ziyang Social Welfare Institution – Building sustained severe damage.
They care for 48 children, 20 of them under four years-old. They request 50 cribs and cots, bandages, 10 milk pots, children’s clothes, 100 sets of bedding, bowls, spoons, chopsticks, toys and stationary supplies.

Deyang and Nanchong Social Welfare Institutions both have received notification that they should prepare immediately to receive newly orphaned children. All the children are living in tents. HTS will provide additional tents, beds and other requested items.

Guangyuan SWI – The children remain in tents. They were notified that they will be receiving several newly orphaned children (perhaps 50-60) very soon.

Shifang saw many of its schools destroyed, hundreds of children and their teachers buried. They sent us this heartbreaking story during the rescue efforts at Hongbai Primary School:

“‘We found him!’ Teacher Zhang Huibing’s body was finally discovered, frozen in a posture of pushing against the door frame. According to the students saved by him, when the earthquake happened, Teacher Zhang was on the platform of the classroom on the second floor, which was very near the door. He yelled to the students, ‘Run outside! Hurry!’ And he somehow held the door frame up with both arms as the children ran out, one by one.
Just as all the students were safely evacuated, the building collapsed on him. Teacher Zhang, who was only 30 years-old, had a four-year-old child of his own.”

As I mentioned in my last note, Mianyang has become a major refugee center. Of the more than 20,000 refugees in the city’s Jiuzhou Stadium, “scores” of them are young children. We are told, but this is not confirmed, that the entire center area of the stadium is reserved for toddlers and infants. Most are said to be from Dujiangyang, Beichuan and Mianzhu. Ma Lang is on her way to Mianyang now, so we will learn more soon.

Many children who have lost or become separated from their families are being brought to Chengdu, but not yet to the Chengdu Children’s Welfare Institution. Some have been taken to the Sichuan Children’s Center (an after-school and weekend activity center for children.)

About 30 children, from Yingxiu and Dujiangyang, were taken a Chengdu city park, the Qingyang Sports Center, which has been converted to a refugee camp. Some children have been united with family members. We’re told that some from the media are actively trying to reunite families. Most of the children in this camp who survived were in their teens. They told us that many younger children in their town did not survive because those in the primary schools and kindergartens were napping when the quake hit and could not run.

The youngest camp resident was 16 days-old. The military police made a special effort to bring her and her very young mother down to the camp from Yingxiu. The baby was only 11 days-old when her daddy perished in the earthquake.

Perhaps today's most heartbreaking story was about some of the 70 injured children who’d been carried down from the affected areas to Huaxi Hospital. Most of the children were reunited with parents or relatives; some were even well enough to leave the hospital after treatment. But a few children remained alone and unclaimed.

They were required to sign their own consent forms so that the doctors could amputate their limbs to save their lives.

Half the Sky spent much of the weekend purchasing requested supplies and shelter, organizing distribution and continuing to assess needs. In addition to the much-needed and wonderfully generous monetary donations from our amazing community of supporters, we have been flooded with offers of in-country help from from volunteers.

As you can imagine, many requested items are getting harder and harder to come by. Just today we doubled our refugee tent order to 200 – all that was available immediately – and already have requests for more. Shoppers in Chengdu have begun filling a no-longer-habitable room at the Chengdu CWI (Children’s Welfare Institution) with everyday goods destined for hard-hit areas. Others around China are working on fulfilling our giant shopping list. Some are flying in to Chengdu, hand-carrying items from our medical wish-list. Our wonderful friends at Gung-Ho Films, a Beijing-based film production services company, are offering logistics support, including shopping, shipping and door-to-tent delivery!

I can’t really express how moved we are by your generosity and your trust in Half the Sky to ensure that the children benefit from your gifts.
Today 3 more HTS Beijing staffers and 2 Gung-Ho staff traveled to Chengdu to help facilitate our relief efforts. We all feel privileged to be able to help.

If you would like to donate to Half the Sky’s Children’s Earthquake Fund, it would be great if you would do so at Global Giving as (even though they take 10% for processing and we do not (100% to the kids but at cost to our
programs) it allows HTS staff to focus on relief efforts while keeping our programs going.
http://www.globalgiving.com/pr/2100/proj2086a.html

If you prefer to donate directly to Half the Sky, of course that’s fine.
Here are the various ways: You can donate by calling Half the Sky (+1 510
525 3377) or on our website:
http://give.halfthesky.org/prostores/servlet/Categories?category=Children's+Earthquake+Fund


Many companies have announced they will match employee gifts for earthquake relief. Please check to see if your company will double your gift!

If you would like a Canadian tax receipt, please donate at
http://www.canadahelps.org/CharityProfilePage.aspx?CharityID=s86248

If you would like a Hong Kong tax receipt, please call us at +852 2520
5266 or online at
https://www.paydollar.com/b2c2/eng/charity/payInfo.jsp?charityId=4947

Thank you so much for your kindness and concern.

with love,
Jenny

Jenny Bowen
Executive Director
Half the Sky Foundation
www.halfthesky.org

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Spirit of Childhood
No, you're not seeing double. 5 Minutes for Mom is hosting another photo contest. This one is supposed to represent the spirit of childhood. I immediately thought of this photo I took yesterday morning. What could represent childhood more than playing outside and getting all dirty on a pretty Spring day, even if the high was only 55.

1st place wins a Wii. I think we need a Wii, don't you?

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Sunday, May 18, 2008
3 Word Sunday
Though it's still been pretty cool around here with highs in the 50 and 60s, we did have three sunny days in a row. The only rain came over night on Saturday. Finally, Sera's been able to play outside a little bit. She loves the outside. Look at that picture...her hair's a mess; she has dirt on her face; and she's as happy as can be. I love it!


We finally got to the doctor on Friday for her 2-year check. Sera is now 32 1/2 inches and 24 lbs, 4 oz. She's between 10 & 25% on the American charts, but, hey, she's on them! She's grown 4 1/2 inches and 6 pounds, 6 ounces since we've been home. She's gone from wearing 6-9 month clothes to 18 month clothes. The doctor proclaimed her the picture of health and said her next well child check would be at 3. She's either on target or ahead in all areas. We've been so very lucky.

We also had a repeat of last weekend's success. Woo hoo! She gets such a proud look on her face when I start singing the big girl song. It's absolutely inane as I made it up myself, but she gets a kick out of it.

As for that great picture I posted Friday evening, I wish I could take credit. The place where I held Sera's birthday party had just opened. It was an established business, but they'd just increased the size of their cafe adding a candy store, cafeteria, play room, and party room. They'd asked if I minded a photographer from a regional magazine taking photos for a magazine layout. They only ended up using one from the party in the magazine. The great shot of Lily with the chocolate-covered pretzel. They had a few more on the website, including the one of Sera with her birthday cupcakes. The photographer is sending me a disk with all the photos. I can't wait to see the rest. What a great way to record Sera's first birthday party.

We have two more weeks of school, and then it's summer vacation time. Well, summer vacation for Sera and me. Jim will be teaching summer school through June. We have some big plans for July, including a trip to Utah, Mackinaw Island, and Indianapolis. We'll be driving to all of them. Yikes!

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Friday, May 16, 2008
The First of Her 15 Minutes
Photobucket
This was taken at Sera's birthday party. Click on the picture for a surprise.

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Update
We've gotten word from multiple sources confirming that everyone at Sera's orphanage in Liang Ping is okay. The building does have structural damage as one wall collapsed and there are large cracks in others, but all the people are okay.

The orphanages in China are called Social Welfare Institutes or SWI. They house orphaned children and senior citizens. It is wonderful that no one lost their life. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the nearby elementary school.

The other day, I posted a letter from Half the Sky with a link to their site. They are collecting donations to be used to help the SWIs and the children affected by this earthquake. Since then, I've received another email from them. They are now requesting that donations be given to Global Giving

I've added their widget to my sidebar. Click it any time to donate.

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Thursday, May 15, 2008
Which Of These Things Is Not Like The Other?
Last night's episode was awesome. My top four were the top four. My bottom three were the bottom three. There's usually somebody up on the chopping block that I want to see make it through to the next week. Not last night. They could have sent all three home, and I'd have been a happy camper.

SPOILER ALERT!

The bottom three were Spike, Andrew, and Lisa. I have not cared of any of them since the show started.

Lisa seems to be a decent cook, but she has the nastiest attitude I've ever seen. She's a girl in serious need of anger management. She's also exhibiting some signs of paranoia. I really don't think anyone sabotaged her rice last night. I think she got busy and forgot to turn it down.

Spike is just Spike. He was more concerned with playing the game than with putting out good food, and it almost came back to bite him in the end. He got lucky. I don't care what you say Spike, no palate is ready for olives and grapes.

And Andrew...good ole Andrew. The man who once threatened that the only way he'd leave Top Chef is if security guards came and dragged him off stage. Well, he took it like a man and left with his head up high. I'm not convinced that only his head has been high this season. He gives manic a whole new name. His dish sounded just awful, but more importantly, he refused to follow the rules. He was determined to do it his way. In some situations that would be commendible; in a competition, it's suicide.

I love Richard. He's a natural leader. He's polite, compassionate, and innovative, and he seems to be putting out some awesome dishes.

Stephanie was an early favorite. I still like her a lot. My only concern with her is whether or not her nerves can handle it. She seems to get rattled sometimes.

Dale is one of the controversial ones. So many people hate him and want to see him gone. Not me. I think Dale is right up there with Richard and Stephanie with his cooking talent. His Achille's heel is his temper and lack of maturity. When he works alone or is partnered with the right person (Richard), he puts out some amazing food. He can self-destruct though when he's partnered with chefs he doesn't respect. See Wedding Wars.

Antonia is the dark horse here. She's been coming up the ranks. She started out as just mheh for me. Her dishes seemed okay. Not great, not awful. Then I got annoyed with her attitude when she and Lisa were paired for the whole Polish sausage debacle. She's bounced back since that episode and done very well. I'm wondering how much of that attitude was influenced by Lisa. And should a Top Chef be that easily swayed by another chef?

I know this isn't my usual type of posts, but I've really gotten into this season of Top Chef and no one around here watches it, so I don't have anyone to talk to about it. That means you get stuck listening to all my thoughts. Lucky you!

And sticking with the food theme, I actually one two prizes in the last week. One from 5 Minutes for Mom's two weeks of toys giveaway, and the other from A Chelsea Morning. Notice the food theme in both gifts? How funny. You watch, I'll turn Sera into a foodie in no time.

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Tuesday, May 13, 2008
More News
Knowing that this is happening in the county that was Sera's first home just makes this all the harder to read. That's nothing, however, compared to how difficult it is for those experiencing this first hand.


This is the primary school in Liangping County. The middle section remains standing while the sections on either side have collapsed. If you look closely, you can see the blackboard on the remaining wall.

Rescue workers digging through the rubble. The latest numbers state 5 deaths and over 100 students injured.

What can we do? Here's the scoop from Jenny Bowen of Half the Sky:

Hello again,

During the past several hours Half the Sky has been working hard to get more information about the children impacted by the Sichuan and Chongqing earthquake. We know that it is not only children in welfare institutions who are in trouble. We know that hundreds of children have been separated from their families, have lost their parents, are hurt, traumatized and in pain. We know we must help; we have been working to figure how best to do so.

We have just a little bit of news. There have been hundreds of aftershocks, one reported to be as strong as 6.0. Children have again been evacuated from the Chengdu institution. Relief workers have arrived in the epicenter, Wenchuan. The Ministry of Civil Affairs (this is the ministry that HTS works with and also the agency responsible for disaster
relief) has been unable to reach orphanages in the most affected areas:
Mianyang, Zitong, Deyang and Aba. There are other welfare institutions in the affected areas but no others that house children. Each of the four institutions above houses about 100 children. We believe they will need help. We will continue to watch and wait.

Many of you have asked us to set up an emergency relief fund, like we did during the winter storms. Given the nature of this disaster and the fact that help for children may well be needed outside welfare institutions (where we have a direct line) we have waited to set up such a fund until we had absolute assurance that we could put a system in place to deliver the aid where it is most desperately needed.

Half the Sky takes the designation of a donor-restricted gift seriously – that’s our promise to you. We understand that when you make an emergency donation, you put your trust in us. We have spoken very carefully about this with our colleagues at the Ministry of Civil Affairs. We now have their promise as well.

In cooperation with the ministry, we have now set up the Half the Sky Children’s Earthquake Fund. Your donations to the fund will be used to provide emergency and long-term relief to children affected by the disaster. Relief will include emergency shelter, food, and medical care for children orphaned or separated from their families. It will include temporary or long-term foster care or, when necessary, temporary institutional care.

We have a commitment from the ministry that we will receive regular updates on the use of funds and, most important, the well-being of the children.

Within a few hours we will have available a dedicated donation site. In the meantime, if you wish to make a gift to aid children in Sichuan and Chongqing affected by the quake, you may donate through our website, www.halfthesky.org. Please note that your gift is for earthquake relief.

I will give you more information as I receive it. Please don’t write to ask about the situation in specific locations. I will tell you everything I know.

Thank you for caring so much about the children.

with love,
Jenny

Jenny Bowen
Executive Director
Half the Sky Foundation
www.halfthesky.org

Half the Sky was created in order to enrich the lives and enhance the prospects for orphaned children in China. We establish and operate infant nurture and preschool programs, provide personalized learning for older children and establish loving permanent family care and guidance for children with disabilities. It is our goal to ensure that every orphaned child has a caring adult in her life and a chance at a bright future.

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946
9 4 6 is the new 1 2 3. Just ask Sera.

She's been repeating 1-10 for a while now when I say it, but now she's starting to count for herself. It's funny because she always starts with 9 4 6.

One thing that has remained true since day one is Sera's love of music. On Sunday, when we were out to dinner, the restaurant owner brought out this unusual Chinese flute and played happy birthday for another guest. Sera was transfixed.

She especially loves singing and will often prompt us to sing by saying, "daddy, aye yi." Believe it or not, we know this means she wants us to sing. She's always sung along, but it was more monotone. Yesterday in the car, she started singing. It just sounded like gibberish at first, but it was obvious it meant something to her. She actually was singing different notes instead of just shouting aye yi yi over and over. She switched to a new song and I heard this

winka winka eha are
uh oo are
and her next song
ock ee, baby
She was so excited when I guessed correctly and joined her in singing.
Can you guess these two classic songs?

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Monday, May 12, 2008
Earthquake

I went back into my archives to pull out this map I had posted before we travelled to China. I circled all the cities where we stayed. If you look closely at the Chongqing circle, you'll see than Chengdu is just north. This area was very badly affected by the earthquake in China.

Sera is from a small village called Liangping. Liangping is in the northern point of Chongqing Municipality and was badly affected by this earthquake. It's the site of the collapsed school that, as of a morning report, had killed four elementary school students.

I know Sera has relatives in this village. She could easily have relatives in the school. I've been upset all day at the thought of it. I know that the organizations that provide help in China will be rallying soon. As soon as I have word, I'll post links for those who'd like to help in the relief effort.

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Sunday, May 11, 2008
3 Word Sunday


On Friday, Sera gave me a Mother's Day card with this picture on it. It's my new favorite. They took pictures of all the kids in the daycare and made these cards. We've had a great weekend. We went out for a nice Italian dinner on Friday, and then to the drive-in to watch Speed Racer, which was...interesting.

Based on the amount of food Sera has eaten over the last three days, I think we have a growth spurt in our near future. She ate two slices, yep two, of the appetizer pizza we ordered. When the salad arrived, she dove in for the carrots. Then the entrees came and she ate several bites of chicken and about six full pieces of broccoli. Not six bites, six pieces, plus she ate two slices of bread at the beginning of the meal. That one meal was the equivalent of over two days of food for her usually. The eating didn't stop there. On Saturday morning, I made a single serving of grits and two eggs for us to share. She ate more than half of that. I just can't figure out where she holds it.

We also had our big milestone on Saturday. Now don't think that I don't know that we've just started down this long road, but it was still a huge first step.

We'd planned to go to our first baseball game of the season today, but the forecast is a high of 55 with rain. I don't think so. Instead, we're hitting one of our favorite Chinese restaurants. They're hosting a Mother's Day buffet. Unfortunately, we just learned they'll be closing soon. The owners are retiring, the building will be torn down, and a hotel built there instead.

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Saturday, May 10, 2008
Don't Mess With Us
And yes, I sent two emails myself.

E! Online

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Here's the Poop, err...Scoop!
Months ago, I bought a potty chair very similar to the one pictured here. At Christmas, the Fishers gave Sera a Dora potty chair. We have Dora upstairs and the plain one downstairs.

At first, Sera was fascinated with them. I'd take her diaper off, and she'd sit. Then I'd hand her a square of paper, she'd "wipe," and we'd wash our hands. I didn't push too hard because her daycare isn't really set up for potty-training. I planned to let her get used to the idea and work on it this summer. She was enjoying sitting on the potty so much, I decided to try some pull-ups. Big mistake. She hated them. She then quit wanting to sit on the potty. Whenever I asked her if she needed to potty, she'd shake her head emphatically no. I didn't want to traumatize her about it, so I backed off.

Sera's not subtle when it's time to go, if you know what I mean. Her face turns red, and you can easily tell what she's doing. All along, I'd ask her if she needed to poopy in the potty when she'd make that face. Every single time, I got the emphatic headshake.

This morning, Sera was running between Jim in the kitchen and me in the living room. She was chanting something. I finally figured out she was saying mommy, potty over and over. I asked her if she wanted to go potty and got that headshake. But then she came over to the couch and started making that face. I asked her again. Again with the headshake, but then she looked at me and said, "potty" and took off. I followed her to the bathroom fully expecting her diaper to already be loaded. It wasn't.

She sat on the potty, and she pooped. Sera pooped on the potty! We clapped, we cheered, we called daddy to come see. I, briefly, considered grabbing my camera, but decided that might be crossing a line. And then we clapped and cheered some more.

Now, I know we're not done. We're just starting down this path, and we still have three weeks before summer break, but still...

SERA POOPED ON THE POTTY!

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Friday, May 09, 2008
Favorite Ingredients Friday!

One of my big plans for the month of June is to do some major purging. It's amazing how quickly you can become surrounded by stuff that you don't really want. Jim gave me an early kick-start by finding a bag of old loose cooking magazines and a box of binders filled with more and pulling them out of the closet. I'm going through them and just getting the recipes I actually want out.

He'll be thrilled because I found a lost recipe. When I first made this recipe, it reminded him of an old favorite dish at a Chinese restaurant where he used to live. I made the adaptations from his memory of the meal and made it several times for him, and then I lost the recipe. I thought I'd made it from a Taste Of Home cookbook. Apparently, it was in one of their magazines.

Here's my version of their recipe:

Tomato Chicken

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 T+ butter
1/2 lg onion, large chop
1/2 lg green pepper, large chop
2 cans Condensed Tomato Soup, undiluted
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1/2 c water
2 T brown sugar
2 T vinegar

In a large skillet, cook chicken in butter until browned on both sides. Remove from pan. Add more butter, if necessary, and saute onions and peppers for just a few minutes. They should stay a little crunchy. Add remaining ingredients, and bring to a boil.

Cover, and reduce heat. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.

Be sure to visit the Favorite Ingredients Friday home to find more great recipes!

Past FIF recipes:
Greatest Hits: Enchiladas de Pollo and Old-fashioned Peanut Butter Fudge
Almost Cabbage Rolls
Guacamole
German Chocolate Pie
Carne Asada & Sour Cream Tortilla Casserole
Dorito Salad
Shrimp Stuffed Potatoes
Apple Cake
Mocha
Vegetable Beef Soup
Stuffed Cabbage Soup
Raspberry Pie & White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Pie
Breakfast Granola
Shrimp Creole
Lazy Man's Lasagna & Apple Cake
Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
Jim's Favorite Jelly Cookie
Eye of Round Roast
Mozzarella & Tomato Sandwich
Marcia's Taco Soup
Chicken Parmesan Casserole
Cajun Baked Catfish
Jim's Snickers Pancake
Crawfish Monica
Grilled Meats and Vegetables over Saffron Orzo
Crockpot Red Beans
Better Than Almost Anything Cake
Fruity Sangria
Outrageous Brownies
Enchiladas de Pollo
Lescó
Catalina Chicken
Croissant French Toast
Corned Beef
Sloppy Joe, Mac 'n Cheese Casserole
Shredded Chicken
Baked Bean & Burger Casserole
Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie
Crab Rangoon
Sausage con Queso and Ro-tel Cheese Dip
Blueberry Multigrain Coffeecake
Banana Bread
Bananas Foster
Old-Time Beef Stew
White Chocolate Snack Mix
Gorilla Bread
Ginger Shrimp
Roast Chicken
Tex-Mex Chicken Taco Soup
Shrimp Mold
Pasta Puttanesca
Pork Milanese
Pumpkin Dip
Oven-fried Chicken
Best Bundt Cake Ever
Hot Dog Casserole
Chicken & Rice
Peanut Butter Fudge
Omelets in a Bag
Shrimp Boil
Apple Cheese
Pulled Pork BBQ


And Confused
*Claire is totally dead!




*not a spoiler as it's only my opinion, and I could be wrong. Knowing this show, I am.

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Thursday, May 08, 2008
Secret Vices

Okay, I've gone down the AI path, so it's time to let you in on another of my reality show vices. I love Top Chef. I stay up too late every Wednesday night in order to watch the newest episode.

They have some really amazing chefs on this season, and they have some really whiny crybabies, too. Tonight's quickfire was a relay. I love the contests where they have to actually show their culinary skills.

Do you watch Top Chef, too?

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Tuesday, May 06, 2008
My Predictions - UPDATE
Will win - David A.

Should win - David C.

Dark Horse - Syesha

Over-stayed their welcome - Jason

UPDATE: Have you ever seen anyone more relieved to be voted off? He was so ready to go. I think he was sandbagging his own performance.

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Monday, May 05, 2008
Smile For Daddy
Last week the new stroller that Jim ordered arrived. Sera was just as excited as he was when he came in with the big box. But then what kid doesn't love a big box? She was very upset when it wasn't put together in time to go for a walk on Wednesday. Daddy promised her they'd go Thursday after school.

On Thursday, Sera and I came home from school. I let her play outside in the driveway in her Lil Tykes car for a bit because it was such a pretty afternoon. Then we came inside to play until daddy came home. About 15 minutes before he got home, she suddenly remembered the new stroller that was sitting in the middle of the living room. She climbed in, put her arms through the straps, and settled in to wait.

I told her to sit still because I was going to get my camera and take her picture for daddy. She gave me a thumb-filled uh-huh. Can you see those filthy knees? She played hard outside at daycare, too.
She looked so serious in the first picture. I knew we had to try again. I then asked Sera to smile for daddy. I love how you can see her smile in her eyes, but this still wasn't right.
This time, I asked Sera to take her thumb out of her mouth and smile for daddy. I got the smile, but that thumb stayed close by. After a little more resting, she climbed out. Within minutes, daddy came home. I was glad I had taken these photos to prove how eagerly she'd been waiting for him.

They headed to the gas station to put air in the tires and took off around the neighborhood. I think they're both going to really enjoy this.

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Sunday, May 04, 2008
3 Word Sunday
We headed back to our favorite summer treat last night. It's a little early and a little cold, but we went to the drive-in and watched Iron Man. Jim went out on Friday and saw it with friends, but liked it so much that he wanted to see it again last night. We did actually try to find a babysitter for Friday, so I could go with him, but it didn't work out. We made a bed in the back of the van hoping that Sera would play there until she fell asleep. It didn't quite work that way. She does much better when it's warmer and she can play outside. I think having us sit inside the van instead of on our camp chairs outside was too distracting for her as well. She had a late night for her, but a fun one.

I treated myself to an old favorite I haven't had in years, a corndog. Believe it or not, they're just as good as I remembered.

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Friday, May 02, 2008
Wowza!!
When we started down this adoption path, my sister, Marcia, learned that her neighbors were adopting from China also. They've just been a step behind us in the process. Who knew they'd have to wait so much longer for their wonderful news? Last summer when Sera and I travelled south. We finally got to meet them. They're wonderful people, and my sister and brother-in-law's closest friends. So close that they've bought land and are building side by side so they'll still be neighbors.

Their news finally arrived today, and it's TWINS!

Congratulations Susan & Jonathan

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Favorite Ingredients Friday - Greatest Hits Edition
As usual, I can't limit myself to one entry. I'm going to include two. The first, enchiladas de pollo, is my favorite dish; the second, old-fashioned peanut butter fudge, is the one I get the most hits on. My site stats show several visitors every day because they've Googled this recipe. I even still get comments on it after all this time.

Please comment if you've tried either recipe and let me know if it worked for you.

Enchiladas de Pollo - my favorite

1. 2 whole chicken breasts
2. Water
3. ½ small onion
4. 1 bay leaf
5. 8 peppercorns
6. Salt
7. ½ med onion, chopped
8. 3 T grated Parmesan cheese
9. 4 oz. Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (1 cup)
10. 1 (4 oz) can green chiles
11. 1 (13 oz) can tomatillos, drained
12. ¼ c cilantro
13. ¾ c whipping cream
14. 1 egg
15. Salt
16. ¼ c vegetable oil
17. 8 corn tortillas
18. 4 oz Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (1 cup)

Place chicken breasts in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add water to cover, onion, bay leaf, peppercorns and salt to taste. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 45 minutes or until tender. Cool chicken in broth. Drain; reserving broth for another use.Shred chicken, and mix with chopped onion, Parmesan cheese, and Monterey Jack cheese (1 cup). Add salt, if necessary, and set aside.

In a blender or food processor, combine green chiles, tomatillos, cilantro, whipping cream, and egg. Blend until smooth. Add salt to taste.Preheat oven to 350. Heat vegetable oil in small skillet. Using tongs, place each tortilla in hot oil until softened, about 5 seconds. Drain on paper towels, and place 1/8 of filling in center. Roll tightly, and place seam-side down in baking dish. Pour cream sauce over top, and sprinkle remaining cup of cheese.Bake for 20 minutes or until heated through and bubbly.

Note: I usually double this recipe, and freeze one before baking.

Old Fashioned Peanut Butter Fudge - Reader's Favorite

2 cups sugar
2/3 cup milk
2 Tbsp corn syrup
pinch of salt
2/3 cup peanut butter

Combine first four ingredients, and cook together until it reaches the soft ball stage. Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter. Pour into buttered 8”x8” or 9”x9" square pan. This will set up quickly. Let cool, and cut into pieces.

Peanut butter can be smooth or chunky. You can use any kind of milk: whole, 2%, 1%, skim, even evaporated milk diluted with water. I used smooth peanut butter with 1% milk.

At the softball stage, this fudge is soft, but will hold a shape when cut. If you like your fudge a little firmer, cook it a little longer. My candy thermometer wasn’t working, so I cooked it over medium heat until the bubbles looked thicker and slower and not foamy. I was given this advice on a cooking board, and it worked great!

Be sure to visit the Favorite Ingredients Friday home to find more great recipes!

Past FIF recipes:
Almost Cabbage Rolls
Guacamole
German Chocolate Pie
Carne Asada & Sour Cream Tortilla Casserole
Dorito Salad
Shrimp Stuffed Potatoes
Apple Cake
Mocha
Vegetable Beef Soup
Stuffed Cabbage Soup
Raspberry Pie & White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Pie
Breakfast Granola
Shrimp Creole
Lazy Man's Lasagna & Apple Cake
Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
Jim's Favorite Jelly Cookie
Eye of Round Roast
Mozzarella & Tomato Sandwich
Marcia's Taco Soup
Chicken Parmesan Casserole
Cajun Baked Catfish
Jim's Snickers Pancake
Crawfish Monica
Grilled Meats and Vegetables over Saffron Orzo
Crockpot Red Beans
Better Than Almost Anything Cake
Fruity Sangria
Outrageous Brownies
Enchiladas de Pollo
Lescó
Catalina Chicken
Croissant French Toast
Corned Beef
Sloppy Joe, Mac 'n Cheese Casserole
Shredded Chicken
Baked Bean & Burger Casserole
Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie
Crab Rangoon
Sausage con Queso and Ro-tel Cheese Dip
Blueberry Multigrain Coffeecake
Banana Bread
Bananas Foster
Old-Time Beef Stew
White Chocolate Snack Mix
Gorilla Bread
Ginger Shrimp
Roast Chicken
Tex-Mex Chicken Taco Soup
Shrimp Mold
Pasta Puttanesca
Pork Milanese
Pumpkin Dip
Oven-fried Chicken
Best Bundt Cake Ever
Hot Dog Casserole
Chicken & Rice
Peanut Butter Fudge
Omelets in a Bag
Shrimp Boil
Apple Cheese
Pulled Pork BBQ

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Thursday, May 01, 2008
Raise The White Flag
Yep, that's Sera's new favorite outfit. Smashing, isn't it? It does cut back on laundry. That's also minutes after I opened her new Graco playset. She literally bounced at my side as I put the pieces together. Granddaddy and Grandma Nora did good. She loves every piece in this set.

Sera's always been fairly cooperative in the morning when I combed her hair. This week she fought me every day. She fought me over brushing her teeth. She fought me over her shoes. She fought me about her hair. A couple of mornings I just gave up and ran a quick comb, but left off the pigtails. The problem is that even after her haircut, her hair still just falls in her face. Her daycare teacher did her hair the two days I didn't. Sera will cooperate later in the day. I think this is her way of trying to get control on our rushed mornings. I get her up at 6 and we're out the door by 6:30. I could get her up earlier and slow the pace, but I figure letting her sleep until the last minute is better for her.
This morning, I won the battle, but she may have won the war. Usually I let her brush her teeth first, and then I take over. Her brushing is more like sucking on the toothbrush. Today, instead of taking over, I just put my hand on hers and guided her. That seemed to work for one day. I'll need more than one success to call this technique a winner.

But then it was time to go downstairs and do her hair. The way she resists is she becomes boneless. She flops on the couch or over my leg or across my chest, but she will not sit up and let me fix her hair. Today, I was getting frustrated. Instead of losing my temper, I told her I'd give her an M&M if she let me do her hair. She instantly sat up and sat still. She even let me turn her around so I could put in two pigtails instead of one on the top of her head. When I finished, she looked at me and said, "num a num?" I gave her three and we both got in the car and headed happily to school.

I think M&Ms are numma, too.



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