Thanks for being so responsive to everyone's questions. It is amazing to me that you do it with your busy household. I remember a picture you had a while back of chicken kotlety. I have a recipe for gribnye (mushroom) kotlety which are VERY good, but would love yours for the chicken. Let me know if you've already posted it somewhere else. Thanks!
I'm not sure if I have posted it but I will share it now.
Russian Cotlyeti (sp??)
2 pounds ground beef
2 eggs
1 medium onion finely chopped
2 tablespoons of Pappy's seasoning or seasoned salt
1 large potato finely grated
4 cups of finely crushed corn flakes
Mix everything except corn flakes. Shape into patties and coat with crushed corn flakes. Add a little vegetable oil to a frying pan and fry cutlets around 6 minutes on each side depending on how thick. Test one by cutting into it to make sure it is done. Enjoy!
Amy said...
Hi Christine!I love your digest! I have a few questions for you too!!
#1 - Have you shared your borscht recipe before? I'd love to try it!
#2 - How do you handle all your family photos? I know that you have the camera around allll the time - so what do you do with the photos? Do you store them online?
#3 - Do you give your kiddos allowance?
Loving the pictures! You are so blessed to have such a wonderful family!
Take care!Amy
(1) I make 3 gallon batches of borscht around five times a year and freeze it in Ziploc baggies. Each time I make it different depending on what I have and what is on sale. Sometimes I use Beef stock and other times I use beef broth. Sometimes I omit certain vegetable or prepare the potatoes differently. I can't really post a recipe now because it is easier when I am actually making it to write it down, which I promise to do next time. I make the tomato based version not beet--- but I think it tastes better that way.
(2)We store our photos on two external hard drives.
(3) We don't give our kids an allowance for everyday chores but we will give them a set amount of money for doing a job above and beyond helping around the house like cleaning out the garage, getting wheel barrels of rocks, or wiping down all of the kitchen tables and chairs with furniture polish.
Anonymous said...
I have a question! Do your kids know about your blog? Do any of them read it? Do you ever think about what might happen if they found it themselves?
Thanks! -Elizabeth
Yes, my kids know I blog. The older ones can check it out at anytime. I am honest and what I blog is not a surprise to any of them. They are quite open to my sharing because I try to get permission from them first which makes them feel like they have a say and if they are a little hesitant about my sharing, your comments always affirm my telling them that people appreciate our family being real, which then makes them more than okay with my blogging. Sometimes I hear, "Mom, you want me to grab the camera so you can blog about this?"
Cindi Campbell said...
I have a question I am wondering how you handle eating inbetween meals? It is driving me crazy. Is it just not allowed in your family? I just don't know where to draw the line they are still little 4,6 and the baby 16 mths.(she eats all day of course). How does it work in your large family? Cindi Campbell
I allow two snacks in between breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They are midmorning and afterschool. That is the time time to eat and if the kids aren't hungry then, they can save their snack for later as long as it is not right before a meal. If I allowed it, Jonny would snack on snack foods all day and never eat a normal meal.
Kathy said...
I notice you had 531 visitors on your blog yesterday. I wonder if that's 531 separate people or 100 of us checking back to read the comments five times : )
Hmmmm, I wonder that too. I so enjoy reading all of your comments....... and likewise I hope you enjoy mine when I get the chance to stop by.
The Kaysers said...
You cut Annalyn's hair? Great job, I am impressed, it looks good and very much like Ramona! :)
Yes, I did, and thanks for all of the compliments. I have never went to beauty school or anything, but I have always enjoyed doing anything and everything with hair. I used to trim and color my Mom's hair when I was younger. Now, I cut all of my kids' hair and John's too. Sometimes I use scissors, but I love how my Robocut can cut the boys' hair really fast and sucks up the hair at the same time. Every once in a while I will take one of the girls to SuperCuts if they want a cut that I am not familiar with. I watch the stylist cut my daughter's hair and then I can cut it the same way from that point on. I guess you can call me a cheater.
Anonymous said...
I think it is inappropriate to have the audio version of this post. I made the mistake of clicking it since there was no warning with my child in the room. Perhaps you should be more responsible to AT LEAST put an advisory warning, but I don't think it should be an audio post, full stop.
To this I think Christie and Kathy said it best.....
I don't think Christine needs to put warnings on her own family blog about when to listen to it aloud and when to read it. It is her blog. It's easy enough to scan it first.
I agree, this is her blog. I do not allow my children to look over my shoulder and read her blog. It is a blog about her family and many things that are discussed are not for children to be reading. As with any media, we are the ones responsible to use discretion.
Thanks girls!
mommaof4wife2r said...
i will pray...and pass along in our adoption community. I'm torn here...and i will be quiet about my beliefs...and pray.
Thanks for all of your prayers for this family. Sadly, after just one lead, I have had to tell this family that I am not able to help them find a new family afterall. This is my first time of not being able to find a family for a child that is being disrupted. *Sigh* My heart aches. This commenter posted the way I feel....... I think these children are redeemable.
Jill said...
this is so very tragic...I pray that these children will find a family that will love them and teach them in a way that they need so desperately.Christine...in your opinion...do you think this brother and sister should be separated to heal properly?
I believe that these children could heal while staying together, although it is not my place to make this kind of decision. Also, crazy and reckless as it sounds, I would take these children in a heartbeat meaning that their issues do not scare me. I honestly and humbly trust my Lord could help these two children overcome this horrible tragedy.
Torina said...
I agree that CPS involvement is not a good thing. The system in nearly every state is tragically broken and without a direct placement into a family, these children will almost undoubtedly end up in group or residential care.Door alarms and 24-7 line-of-sight supervision is needed for these children. If they do attend public school, they will need a 504 Plan (or IEP) that states that supervision is required at all times. It is not the end of the world. They are children and have learned these behaviors. A family knowledgeable about parenting children with sexualized behaviors is important. Though it is necessary, love will not cure these children. Neither will God. Faith helps, and you certainly need it, but the kids will need a ton of structure, guidance, and supervision.
I respect what you have to say, but I do disagree with you on one thing. From experience, I do believe that God and love can cure these children, but by cure I do not mean get rid of the sexual ideas completely, but realize that they are wrong, repent, and go on to live wonderful lives. These children didn't just up and think to sexually act out.... they were exposed, taught, and most likely victimized themselves. We have no idea what their motivation to act out is and we have no idea if they just consider this common practice coming from a country where it is the norm from what I have been told. Until they were found out, I don't know if they had ever been told that sexually acting out was wrong.
Karen said...
wow, I found the link to your blog from another site. I am sad for these two children. The couple who adopted them made a promise to be their forever family. I do not think they should be allowed to turn their backs on them because the children have "problems". What if it was one of their Bio children who started acting out sexually? Surely they wouldn't place them up for adoption.
I understand how you feel. I would love if you would take the chance to go back and read my tags labeled "adoption disruption". I think you would better understand why this happens.
Annie said...
By the way, Christine - I feel somehow that you are on a "blog roll" you are making blogging a priority? I don't know, but I truly look forward to my visit to your home every day.
Yes, I have made it a priority because it is the one thing that I do for myself that brings me great enjoyment. Ever since I made the Ukraine Train book, I am even more motivated because I will be able to make books for each of my kids by downloading posts with their name in it so they will each get a book about their life growing up. I am excited that I will be able to give this gift to each of my kids, and I hope it will be treasured----- I know I would have loved to have something like this.
Peta G said...
Hi Christine thanks for visiting my blog and leaving a comment. This may sound odd but what is Tri-tip? Is your butter baked bread the same as bread and butter pudding? my kids love that and peach cobbler too and they seem to go further in a large family don't they.
Tri tip is a wonderful cut of meat that is less expensive then nice steaks yet better quality than other cuts that cost the same. It is very tender when cooked right and for some reason, it is us Californians meat of choice when we decide to throw a barbecue. We love it! My baked butter bread is nothing but a loaf of bread sliced in half, spread with butter, and baked in the oven till it is hot and crispy.
Peta G said...
Christine, can you post your recipe for Polska-Kielbasa please. It looks yummy.I googled it but there are so many different versions I think I will stick with yours. thanks
LOL. My recipe is so darn easy I hardly consider it a recipe at all. I slice up Hillshire Farms kielbasa and red potatoes and throw them in a pan and fry it until the potatoes are cooked. Right before serving, I season with coarse pepper. How simple is that? But it is yummy!
Erica said...
I have never had bread pudding before! You have to share your recipe! LOL!!
Okay, okay, you have twisted my arm enough. Again, this is a simple recipe. After trying 7 or 8 different recipes, I went ahead and made up my own. I like this one because it is simple (no overnight), light, and doesn't have cinnamon which allows me to pair it with any pureed fruit sauce that I want like pureed strawberries, pears, or fruit cocktail.
Bread Pudding
1 loaf of stale bread cut up
6 eggs
3 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
1/2 cube butter
Melt butter in a 9X13 baking dish in a 400 degree oven for 4 minutes or until melted. Beat together everything but the bread. Add bread and mix gently until the bread is completely soaked with the egg mixture. Pour into the baking dish and bake at 400 for 20 or so minutes until golden brown on top. Try not to overcook or it will be dry. Top with fruit puree and whip cream.
16 comments:
Hi Christine. Thanks for answering my questions. Your bread pudding sounds the same as our bread and butter pudding. I will be trying your recipe of it though.
I will also be trying out the Polska-Kielbasa as soon as I figure out where I can get Hillshire Farms Kielbasa. ( I dont know that I can get it in Australia) thanks again.
Christine-
I am legally blind. I can see form and colors. I can read when the text is very, very large.
I have a very old computer and cannot affort assistive devices so "surfing" non "blind friendly" sites is very difficult.
Several months ago my friend informed me of your site. She would print out your newest posts so I could read them with a magnify box.
When I was informed of your audio option I was thrilled. I was so thrilled.
I can easily make out the audio icon with my (not so) computer magnify option, click on it, and listen to it! I can do this all on my own time, in my own home. I can listen to posts as soon as your blog is updated.
I honestly cannot comprehend how anyone can find your audio option offensive...or weird.
Sighted individuals can briefly check these posts for content. You can easily see the pictures, the titles and the links.
Blind individuals cannot "check" a post before hand. However, we can listen to the title of the post and...most importantly we can press "stop" if we find the post is something someone--besides ourselves--should not hear.
Sighted and blind individuals have to be responsible when they go on the internet. If you,the reader find something that you do not want your child to read(or hear) it is *your*responsibility to make sure it does not reach your child.
If *I* a "poor blind" mother(to five children) can go on this wonderful site, check that the posts are appropriate(I have shared all but the abortion and political posts with my eldest) and share them with my family...then you the sighted parent can *easily* do so. It is your responsibility dear reader, not christines...and if you had/have such a problem with her posting you can do a very simple thing....stop reading.
Christine, I wanted to thank you. Your audio option has made such a difference to me. I get such joy every day checking your site...and listening to it in my own time.
Thank you again. God bless you and your amazing family.
Claudia Baker
(this is claudia's husband. I am the one who typed this. I am sorry for the anon post, I do not have a google account but if we plan on commenting on further posts we will open one.)
I liked Claudia's answer, but I will add my comment too. Headphones. Most computers have a headphone jack - and often, the audio sound better through headphone jacks than cheapo standard computer speakers. :-) Thanks for the recipes!
Tri-tip is called Brisket Everywhere outside California... :-)
Every time I read about you fixing dinner or someone asking for a recipe, I think "I need to write that down"...and then things get busy and I forget. Reading all these recipe requests today made me think....you need to start a recipe blog: Cheap and simple meal ideas for a large family! I am always looking for new ideas and since one question we always get asked is "How do you feed a large family?" (and mine is no where near as large as yours), I think it'd be a great resource. You could get other people to submit recipes too.
As if you don't have enough to do every day, right? lol
Just wanted to let you know that I tried your taco soup idea the other day. It was a big hit! Thanks for the suggestion.
Next up... bread pudding. That sounds yummy.
Thanks for sharing all of your YUMMY recipes!! I will be trying them for sure!!
Wow, I am so behind with your posts. Great receipes thanks for the Q & A I always love learing more.
I always enjoy your Q&A, too.
Question:
Is your family "into" being" eco-friendly? What kinds of things do you do to be "green"?
Hi Christine!
Thanks for another great digest!
I think that you could easily add the "recipe" label to your post - that way folks can go back via labels and look for some of your yummy recipes!
I can't wait to read about borscht the next time you make it!
Take care!
Amy
Thank you for stopping by my blog. I have enjoyed reading yours, both sites. The stories you shared are wonderful. The love you and your husband have for your children is breathtaking. You inspire. I will be back often. Many blessings.
I love bread pudding with raisins! My husband does not like it nor my son in law. Its a texture issue.
jenn(and others)
Tri tip is *NOT* brisket.
Brisket comes from the lower chest of the cattle while Tri tip comes from the bottom sirloin.
If a butcher tells you that brisket and tri tip are the same they either are trying to cheat you or they are misinformed.
Brisket has a unique texture all it's own. Flaky,tender somewhat dry and mild.
Tri tip however is chewy, moist and has a very beefy flavor.
Fran
I had to laugh at the poll question. This was my biggest issue in driver ed. I am left handed, and left footed. I learned to use only my right foot in an automatic. But, then I learned to drive a stick. My left foot went "pedal happy" and whenever I drive an automatic, I use my left foot for the break! Besides, my reflexes are much faster on my left side. SO if I had to break in order to avoid hitting a little squirrel, my left foot is likely to find the break faster! Lol.
I had to laugh at this recipe. How on earth do YOU ever get a loaf of stale bread?!? LOL ;)
half a cube of butter? Does that mean half a stick of butter? I want to try this.
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