Shopping, bubbling and countdown… March 29, 2009

Hi there!

Today I went to a new toys store recently open next to my home and I found they were having an Easter sale.

So, I had to have a look!

And I found this great activity book for my girl: MASTERING BASIC SKILLS FOR KINDERGARTEN.

This is a nice book with tons of fun activities! It is priced at 9.99$ but I got it for 3.99$ !

I love shopping like that!

Well, we also spent some time bubbling again! Cecilia can’t have enough bubbles, she really enjoys this activity…

And, some news, I got my plane ticket today! I will be gone April 21st.

Yep, I can’t believe how fast the time went those last 6 months!

I am looking forward to go to France and see my family and of course my hubby, but I will also miss all the wonderful friends I made here, and my church too…

I guess we can’t have everything we want at the same time!

So, dear readers, I am in the countdown now to fly back to the old continent, and I will keep you in touch with everything!

Thank you so much for all the kind comments I received through this blog, it has been a new, exciting and great experience! And I hope it will keep going.

Have a nice week end!

blessings

Baking bread, french style March 28, 2009

Hey, how are you?

Yesterday I baked some bread. I love this recipe, it is easy, and the bread is really really good!

So, if you want the recipe, just keep reading!

FRENCH BREAD

You will need:

- 1 1/2 tbsp dry active yeast
- 1/2 cup warm water
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- 2 cups warm water
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1/2 cup oil (olive or vegetable)
- 6 cups flour

How to:

Ok, if you are a first timer in making your bread, don’t be afraid! All you need to do is make sure your yeast is active. For that, when you put the yeast in warm water, it has to “bubble” a little bit (or a lot).

Then you have to make sure that you are using warm water. I don’t know the temperature, what I do is let the warm water running and when I can’t stand my finger because it is too hot, then I fill my measurement cup with the water. Does that make sense to you? Anyway it works for me!

So, you will begin by mixing the sugar, the yeast and the 1/2 cup warm water. Set it aside.

Take a big bowl, and put the salt, the oil and the 2 cups warm water. Then add 3 cups of flour. Mix well. I do everything by hand but if you want to use a processor it is fine.

So, now take a look at your yeast. Is it bubbling? Is it creamy? Fine, you can add it to the bowl.

Mix, mix well. Add the rest of the flour and keep mixing.

This dough is sticky, so don’t panic, that’s OK. When you can have a big ball of dough which stays together, take a clean bowl (big cause it will rise), put the dough in it, cover with a clean cloth and let it rise for an hour.

It will double size. Take the dough, put it in a floured counter top or cutting board. Flour your hands, be generous, it is still sticky!

Preheat your oven at 400F.

Now comes the nice part, knead the dough, you have to pull out the air. How I do it? Make like a flat square pushing down hard, then fold it in half and half and repeat. Knead the dough rolling it, making a ball, flatten it, and again a ball. Add flour to your work surface to avoid sticking.

Take a big cookie sheet, put some flour on it. Now you can shape your bread. You can cut it into 2 or 3 loaves. Make a flat rectangle with your dough, and then roll it, like a snake. Repeat with each loaf. Put them on the cookie sheet.

With a wet knife, make some cuts on the top to help rising while baking.

Let them “rest” for 15 minutes. Bake your bread for 30 minutes at 400 F. If you want a nice color, after 10 minutes baking, brush the top with a beaten egg.

That’s it! A little time consuming but isn’t it smelling good? When you will be used to it, you will do this recipe in the blink of an eye!

I found this nice website if you want more recipes, they also have a forum where you can find helpful tips! THE FRESH LOAF.

I hope you liked this recipe and you will give it a try!

Leave your comments!

This post was part of:

and also

Hooked on stylish bed & breakfast in the French Riviera! March 27, 2009

Today, I want to share with you some of the most gorgeous places to stay around my home town, in the French Riviera.

If you are planning a trip there, you have to read this post, and book a room in one of those charming bed and breakfast!

I definitely love bed and breakfasts, they are a great way to meet people, and live the real life style of the country you are visiting.

But sometimes you can also have bad surprises with b&b!

So, here is my Top 5 of the best places to stay in the French Riviera. Design, gorgeous locations and views, etc… sont au rendez-vous!!

1- LE DORTOIR, a lovely bed and breakfast, the decor is very modern and elegant, and it is my top choice because of the location, it is in the heart of Nice. A perfect place to visit, walk in the old city, go to the beach,etc…

2- VILLA PANKO is great place, and it is located in one of the most exclusive area of the French Riviera, in Antibes. This little town is the first yachting place of the world, you can admire the multimillionaire yachts and villas, as well as visit the famous “marche provencal“, an open market place where you can find all kind of typical goodies of this area.
Antibes was also the town where Picasso spent all his life, you can visit his museum which is located in an old castle: Le Chateau Grimaldi.

3- LE ROQUEBRUNE is perfect for those of you who are seeking breathtaking views, and it is located very next to Monaco, in case you wanted to go shopping at Chanel!

4- LA PARARE is a stunning place with an amazing architecture, perfect for those lovers of old stones! The decor is so stylish and the surrounding absolutely gorgeous.

5- L’ORANGERAIE DE LA BARONNE is lovely and offers a real “french riviera life style”, with a lot of open spaces, outdoor areas, it is a good choice if you want a quiet place to relax.

So, here we are! My Top 5 of the best Bed & Breakfasts in the French Riviera!

That’s what I am hooked on today!

I hope you liked this post, if you do so, leave a comment!

A bientot!

This post was part of: HOOKED ON FRIDAY.

Raising a princess… March 26, 2009

Today’s post is about my journey trying to raise my daughter properly. This includes a daily fight against advertising, other people, and myself!

It is not easy those days to raise a girl to become a godly woman, who respects herself and others, a true princess!

You know, my daughter is in the “princess stage”, she is a princess. She is always speaking about her growing up, getting married to a prince like Dad and they would have 4 children!

It is cute to listen to her!

Though, the other day, she was telling that to a woman that I know, and this woman was shocked.

She told me how she didn’t think that was  nice for my daughter to “make her think she would find a prince and get married to him“. You know, she began telling me how Walt Disney movies were bad, that girls should think about studying to have a carrier and be independent woman that would not need a man to live and take care for her.

A true feminist!

Obviously, I don’t agree with that. I will not enter in the “why” , it would be a really long post for you to read!
What I told this woman is that I like the fact that my daughter thinks she is a princess, and I will teach her that if she wants to find a prince some day, she should act like a princess.

Do you know what I mean?

I am constantly fighting the powerful advertising we can see everywhere promoting a violent independent woman, who is considered just for her body, and the (vulgar)  sexy way she is dressed.

This very same woman that I portrayed will then tell you in a pseudo-feminist pledge that it is all a lye, princes don’t exist anymore and she can’t find a single man that is kind, gentle, respectful etc… Basically, men are all mean and sexually obsessed…

Well, girls, be realistic, if you want a prince, act as a princess!
Snow white (my daughter’s favorite) was not dressed like a br*tz, she was not messing around while waiting for the prince of her dreams.
No, she was kind and gentle, she took good care of the house, cleaning and baking pies, and making sure all the dwarfs were Ok.

You know, I always use to say that one of the most important things in life is coherence. If you expect something, you have to act and think in the way that will allow you to get what you want.

Don’t expect in a man the qualities you don’t have yourself. If you don’t respect yourself, don’t expect a man to do so.

If you think your body is more important than your brain, don’t expect others to watch and value your brain! and on and on…

I found this interesting article from the American Psychological Association about the fact that girls are “sexualized” and how that affects their image of themselves etc… You can read it HERE.

Wow, I am apparently not the only one who thinks this bad image of women is wrong!

Well, my hope for today is that my daughter will grow up thinking she is a princess, and acting as a princess, and I am sure she will find some day a nice prince who will respect her and will see her as the princess of his heart.

Raising girls is not that easy those days but we have to be faithful and pray for our girls to grow in the grace of the Lord and find themselves to be daughters of the King, which means they are true princesses!

Have a nice day!

Crepes: my childhood recipe March 24, 2009

Today, I want to share one of the most appreciated, easy, versatile and yummy of all my recipes!

Crepes! They are like pancakes but thinner, and we love them.

I like to eat them filled with fresh fruit and chocolate or cream, with just some marmalade or sugar, or in fancy dessert like crepe cake.

We also love them salty, with ham, mushrooms, eggs, oregano and more…

They are a big part of my childhood, I remember my grandma used to do them for us after school. I like to do them for my family often, especially for a Sunday dinner. I do a batch of salty and then some sweet. They are always a hit!

So don’t be afraid by crepes, give it a try and experiment with them! Here is my recipe:

CREPES

You will need:

- 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 3 large eggs
- 1 tbsp sugar (or salt)
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 cup water

How to:

In a large bowl mix the flour, the baking powder, baking soda and sugar. Make a hole in the center and add the eggs. Beat well. Then add the milk a bit a time, mixing well to incorporate it. Then add the water mixing well.

For french style crepes, add some brandy and 1 tsp orange flavor (eau de fleur d’oranger).

You will need a nice non stick skillet. Heat it, grease it a little bit (I use coconut oil) and pour about 1/4 cup of this dough, moving the skillet to allow dough to expand. When the dough is done (about 2 minutes), take the crepe and flip it to cook the other side (about 1 minute).

You have to know that the first crepe is ALWAYS not good, I don’t know why but that’s the way it is. The second is much better!

At the beginning, you will have to try several times, until you find the right amount of grease, heat, dough, and time. The experience is key to make good crepes, that’s why grandma’s crepes are always the best!

I hope you will enjoy this recipe as much as I do! Have a nice day…

This post was part of:

Ultimate blog party 2009 is on! March 24, 2009

I had to share that with you! How exciting is that!

Check out 5 Minutes for Mom to know more about this awesome blog party. They have a lot going on this week, with “real life” party, tons of blogs posting and partying, and of course tons of great prizes to win!

For first timer here, first I am so glad you are here! Thanks for visiting, I hope you are feeling comfortable in my “virtual home”. Take off your shoes and relax!

My name is Elodie, I am a French 24yo girl, happy mom to Cecilia (4 yo) and wife to Jose. I am currently living in Arizona, and began this blog 4 month ago to help me practicing  my English!

Feel free to browse my blog, here you will find recipes, posts about homeschooling, faith, homemaking, and more…

We also are in middle of an interesting series about Natural Healing, if you are interested check it out HERE.

I hope to see you soon around here!

And for my followers, thank you for being around, I hope you can win some of those fabulous prizes on the Ultimate Blog Party 2009!!

The list of prizes is HERE. Isn’t it awesome? What would you like to win?

Here are my favorites in order of preference:

- 1: a 100 $ gift certificate for either Pedal cars & retro or A rocking horse to love (I would love a doll house for Cecilia!)
- 7: a Ergo baby carrier valued at 163 $
- 2: a Sydney Andrews bracelet (I love her designs!)
- USC 35: a pouch style baby sling
- 71: flip flops for Mom and Daughter, aren’t they cute?
- INTL 31: ABC Bible memory verse songs from Sonbeams
- 83: a 25 $ gift card for EcostoreUSA
- 30: a 25 $ gift card for WeeBgreen
- 58: A Kitchen Aid artisan stand mixer valued at 349.99 $ !!!
- USC 45: a pair of shoes from Eleven Collection Spring/Summer ‘09, I love their shoes!!

I would also love 19, 21, 22, 46 (Target gift cards) or 47, an Amazon gift card.

But there is a lot more out there!

Go and check it out now! The party is on until March 27th.

I am a super hero! :) March 23, 2009

I am a super hero!

Thanks to Mrs Fussypants, I discovered this great link, if you want to make yours, here it is: The hero factory.

You can choose the colors, outfits, and more. The machine automatically will generate your super name!

Isn’t that awesome? It made my Monday!!

What about yours?

Menu planning, how it can help you and your budget March 23, 2009

Hey, I hope you all had a terrific week end!

Today I want to share with you some tips to build menu planning and shopping lists. If you are not an adept of menu planning yet, you will see all the many advantages to do it.

I do my menu planning each Monday morning. To do that efficiently, I use my recipes, sometimes also the adds from grocery stores to see what is “special price” this week, and those charts:

You can download them for free in a PDF file HERE.

Menu planning is great for several reasons. First you will feel better avoiding the daily question ” what is for dinner tonight?” by printing your menu planning and putting it on your fridge or some place where everyone can see it.

You can preparing stuff by advance and so save a lot of time. You can prepare your shopping list at the same time and so save money by buying just what you need and eating just and all what you bought.

If you want to go further, you can prepare menu planning monthly, and set a a cooking/baking day. You will save a lot of time doing that. You can prepare a lot of meals and freeze them, so you then just have to heat them for dinner!

Menu planning is also very good to keep you well with a diet. Writing down your menus, you can see exactly what you eat, calculate calories, and “oblige” you to eat what you previously planned. No more “I don’t have anything prepared for tonight, let’s order a pizza”…

Well, I think you will have some idea about what is menu planning and how it can help you greatly in your daily life.

I hope this post was useful!

This post was part of:

Hooked on volunteering! March 20, 2009

Today I want to share what I am hooked on! It is volunteering!!

During this spring break, I have been with my friends and her daughter (and mine), volunteering in the association CARE PARTNERSHIP, a great place that helps a lot of people in the East Valley.

They have a small clinic, a lot of activities for children, a food bank, and much more.

It all begins 15 years ago in the backyard of a small house, now thanks to a lot of volunteers and workers they are still there, with great facilities, and doing so much for their community.

It has been a very nice experience for me and my daughter to help there. We just went 2 days this week but it made a difference.

If you are bored in your house some days and don’t know what to do, why not find a local association in your community to go help, it is always so rewarding, and they are always thankful for your time and effort.

Depending on what sort of association or work, you can maybe bring your kids with you like we did. What a great time for them to help some people, and realize that some others don’t have all we have and are not as lucky as we are.

You can browse websites like VOLUNTEER MATCH to find a volunteering opportunity in your area.

So, that’s what I am hooked on this week!

To find out what people are hooked on, visit HOOKED ON HOUSES.

Largest Annual Outdoor Easter Pageant in the world! March 17, 2009

It is the largest in the world!

It takes place in the Mesa Arizona Temple Visitor’s Center.

It is organized by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

And I will be there to see it!!

I can’t wait to see this amazing show with my daughter!

The performances are April 1-2 and 7-11 at 8:00 p.m. in English and April 3-4 at 8:00 p.m. in Spanish.

To avoid the crowd and go earlier, we plan to go see the dress rehearsal which is March 31 at 7:00 p.m.

If you want more info about this great event, go to EASTER PAGEANT.ORG, or visit the LDS PAGE FOR THIS EVENT.

If you wanted to visit Arizona, this is a good excuse, and the perfect weather now too!

Oh, and it is absolutely FREE, which is a blessing! Thanks to the more than 800 volunteers who make this possible.

Would you like to come?

Are you planning to attend this kind of event for Easter?

Leave a comment!