7 Quick Takes (#29)

1) Our new Table Centerpiece!!  

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2) I know I'm like a broken record, but it keeps coming up: Recently, an inquisitive 9 year old asked me if I wanted more kids.  I told her that Yes.  Without a doubt.  I would LOVE to have more kids.  And then she asked, "But aren't you scared that they won't get any attention if you have so many kids?"

So I asked her - "Does it look like Roman doesn't get any attention??"

Elena entertaining Roman while I cook dinner

Leo "taking care of Roman" while I change Elena's diaper.

Each and every time I change Roman's diaper, the kids pull up a chair to play with him. 

Naturally her response was "No.  He looks like he gets lots of attention."

And the reality is, he gets more attention than Leo ever got.

And even more attention than Elena ever got.

So why do the majority of people find this reality to be so hard to understand???  (Not just the sweet 9 year old, who, when I offered her some milk to go with her cookie, asked me if it was regular milk or *cringe* milk from my boobs...)

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3) Their new action figures:

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4) Jason went fishing the other day with our neighbor.  He had to wake up at 4:30 to get out there.  When he got home, our friends were here to hang out for a bit so he waited to take a nap.  At some point in his delirious stupor, he let Elena play with his wedding ring.  

Our friends left and Jason went up to take a nap. He realized when he woke up that his ring was gone.  He spent the next 3 days turning our house upside down (cleaning it as he went - SCORE!!!) but wasn't able to locate his wedding ring.  He even tried a few of my rings on to see if they would work until he found his ring. Uhhhhh....no.

A few prayers to St. Anthony went unanswered until yesterday morning when the kids opened their Shoebox Restaurant.  Elena dropped something inside the shoebox and when Leo opened it, he said "Look mom - A ring in there?"

I looked but didn't see a thing!  We emptied the entire box and found Jasons ring at the bottom buried under tons of shoes.  HOW DID LEO SEE IT?!?!  Thank you St. Anthony!!!

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5) In the last week, conversation has led me to bring up this Bosch Mixer twice!  I wouldn't say this is on my "Wish List"...but rather my "Bucket List".  At over $400, I'm not sure I'll get it into my kitchen until I'm old and gray.  But I'm hoping to get it sooner so I can start making sourdough bread on the regular.

Bosch Universal Mixer

Are there any kitchen tools you can't live without that are under...let's say $50?

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6) Speaking of kitchens, this is what I call a kitchen with an identity crisis

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7) This is the snack of champions!  Homemade Beef Jerky!!

Beef Jerky
1 lb grass-fed chip steak
Marinade
1/4 cup pineapple juice
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Directions:

Salt and pepper your chip steak.  Add the marinade ingredients to a gallon ziploc bag and give it a shake.  Toss in your chip steak and marinate in the fridge overnight.  In the morning, turn your dehydrator on at 145 degrees and layer the chip steak in single layers (no overlapping).  We lined the bottom of the dehydrator with aluminum foil to catch the drips but there really wasn't much.

Depending on the thickness of the beef (ours was super thin) it should be ready in 6-12 hours.

Store in your refrigerator and enjoy!!

Thank you to Jen for hosting and have a great weekend everyone!!