snow, etc.

It was a doozy!

2+ feet of snow hit our area last weekend, along with wind and drifting.  Our church was cancelled for the first time in the 14 years I've been going there!

Saturday night Rod took the boys out snowmobiling on the roads - you couldn't go in the fields without getting stuck - they loved saying that they were on the 30 bypass on snowmobile.  Now, over a week later it's melted down to a reasonable amount and snow and they can snowmobile in fields and yards. 

It took the goats awhile to warm up to this stuff.  The dog loved it at first snowflake

 

Supposing it'll melt this week with upper 40's - 50's in the forecast.  sounds good to me! 

The boys were so ready to get back to school.  We had to do 4 consecutive school days at home.  Which, to a homeschool mom is nothing.  But to this part-time home school mom of 4 stir-crazy boys, it was torture.  In fact, the one day I said forget homeschool, we're going bowling!  Thankfully, this week is back to normal and we can all have that healthy space from each other. 

Over the weekend Brad was chosen as one of the Lancaster Newspaper Contest winners.  All area elementary schools can participate in either a writing or drawing contest.  Brad designed an ad for Stauffer's of Kissel Hill.  Almost 2,000 students participated in one way or another, (either writing or drawing) and Brad was one of about 30 selected!  It was exciting for him.  He got a $20 cash prize, a $20 gift card to Stauffer's, and will be in the newspaper on March 9th.  Thank you daddy for your creative input into the project!

This month, February, is a little more active then usual.  I'm hoping that means it'll go by quicker :)  A trip to MA, sleepovers for the boys, hockey game, school parties, and church things are on the agenda.  Hoping the boys stay healthy.  It's often this time of year where their bodies realize they aren't getting their vitamin D!  I don't know, does that even make them sick?  Who knows.  But we're thankful for an overall good winter.  Just some sore throats and low-grade fever here and there. 

I'll leave you with a recipe our family enjoys.  Sweet and Sour chicken, just like the Chinese restaurants serve....without the MSG!  I'm sure you can substitute honey for the sugar, but hey, we do sugar. 

Sweet & Sour chicken
3-4 boneless chicken breasts
salt & pepper
1 cup cornstarch
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup oil

sweet & sour sauce:
3/4 cup sugar
4 T ketchup
1/2 cup white vinegar
1 T soy sauce
1 tsp. garlic salt

Preheat over to 325.  Cut the chicken into cubes.  Season with salt and pepper.  Dip chicken into the cornstarch to coat, then dip into the eggs.  Heat your 1/4 cup oil in a large skillet and cook the chicken until browned but not cooked through.  Place chicken in a 9x13 greased baking dish.  Mix all of your sweet and sour sauce ingredients in a bowl with a whisk and then pour evenly over the chicken.  Bake for one hour and during the baking process turn chicken every 15 minutes.  

*I don't need to bake it that long, just keep an eye on it.
*serve with rice
*it's delicious, enjoy!