Roasted Tomato and Ricotta Crostini

I found this recipe on Martha Stewart's website this week and pinned it so that I would remember it. A couple of days later, The Today Show had a guest chef who made these same crostini and they looked so good. I had to try them! They were super easy to make (but the tomatoes do take a little prep) and so delicious! I altered the Martha Stewart recipe by adding basil and garlic because everything becomes twice as good when you add those two magical ingredients.

Crostini means "little toasts" in Italian and is basically toasted baguette with any type of topping. Bruschetta is a common favorite, but these are a tasty mix between bruschetta and a caprese salad. The hardest part is finding a good baguette. Do you know where I can find an authentic French baguette in the U.S.? I miss that crunchy outside and soft, chewy, flavorful bread inside. All for less than one Euro on any street in France. We just don't make them quite like the French. Mmmm, I love bread!

All you need:

• grape tomatoes
• fresh basil
• ricotta cheese
• baguette

Things you probably have on hand already:

• olive oil
• garlic
• salt
• pepper

I brushed the baguette slices with olive oil and broiled both sides. Then, I rubbed them with a fresh clove of garlic and topped them with ricotta, basil, and a few of my roasted tomatoes. YUM!

A Triumph over Decorating Paralysis: Part Two

*To see the background for these projects, read part one here.

The first big decision was made and I was feeling pretty good. Turning the idea of a theme into a concrete plan, however, was a long and tricky process. Turning that plan into an actual room took even embarrassingly longer. Part two of my triumph was overcoming the infinite choices of fabrics and paints to get some color on the walls and some curtains on the windows.  

1.  Start with the fabric. If you’ve ever seen an episode of Sarah’s House on HGTV, you know that when decorating a room, you absolutely must start with the fabrics.

2.  Visit every local fabric store trying to find the perfect fabric (one that is both adorable and affordable). If you don’t find anything, scour the internet until your eyeballs bleed and then become overwhelmed by the millions of options.

3.  Create a digital image of the room so you can cut/paste pictures of different options. This will help you visualize your options. Mull over them for a few weeks, narrow your choices, and eventually pick one (even if you don’t ultimately follow it exactly).

Make sure you're OCD about lining up the squares of fabric
on the curtains so they look as realistic as possible.
These fabric samples are courtesy of fabric.com.

4.  Pull the trigger and order the fabrics. Stop second guessing or wondering if there’s a cuter fabric out there for a better price. If you do, you’ll wait too long and the main fabric you were going to order will be out of stock and you’ll have to pay more to order it from a different website (D’oh!).

5.  Choose a coordinating color to paint the room. I chose gray.

6.  Realize that the color you chose only slightly narrows down your actual paint options (seriously, do you know how many shades of gray there are? Trust me, there are more than fifty).

7.  Talk to the really nice lady at the paint store and let her help you hone in on a shade. The color you thought you wanted (found from a cool pin about the perfect neutral colors to use in your home) will probably look too green when compared with the yellows you plan to use. Paint Lady will have the answer and even explain the differences between the aisles and aisles of paints that they offer.

I chose Ozark Shadows from Benjamin Moore.  It's a medium gray so it's dark enough
you know it's gray but not so dark it makes the room feel like a cave.  I loved it!

8.  Watch a bunch of online tutorials on how to paint a room (some of these will contradict each other and they will most likely assume you are not a beginner who knows absolutely nothing about painting, so see step 9).

9.  Make several calls to your sister to fill in the blanks. She will also be able to provide you the moral support necessary to purchase all the materials and actually get started painting (which, it turns out, is a lot more difficult than it is in The Sims).

10.  After a few days of hard work, sit back and appreciate your masterpiece (and try not to worry about that message from your landlord telling you that the color you just used to paint the room is too dark and you need to choose a different color… but that’s a story for another time).

In part three I'll reveal the fabulous curtains I made with the new fabric! (Spoiler Alert: They pretty much look just like the curtains in the sample room pic above).

Photo credits:

paint buckets

shades of gray

ozark shadows 1

ozark shadows 2

ozark shadows 3

relaxation

A Triumph over Decorating Paralysis: Part One

Remember when you were little and everyone used to always ask you what you wanted to be when you grew up?  Like me, your career of choice probably changed many times as you were figuring out your interests, hobbies, and skills.  When I was in sixth grade, it seemed everyone wanted to be a veterinarian, a marine biologist, or an interior decorator.  At one time or another, each of these seemed to be my destiny, too.  Why, I’ll never know.  I don’t like animals enough to plan on ever want a pet, I rarely go swimming because I hate having wet hair and dried out skin, and I suffer from SEVERE decorating paralysis (it’s totally a thing; Google it).  Thank goodness we don’t have to pick our future when we’re 11. 

Marine biology does look pretty glorious.

I think I finally crossed “interior decorator” off my list the summer after The Sims came out in 2000. I spent far too many of my lazy summer days playing this extremely addicting game in which you create a family of Sims by choosing what they look like, what they wear, and their personalities.  You then use money that they earn at their jobs to build and decorate a house for them from scratch.  I found the decorating fun, entertaining, and actually pretty overwhelming.  I mean, do I start with the cool black and white tile?  Or find something that matches the fun, bright red wallpaper?  Or maybe I should decorate around the sleek and modern lime green sofa.  There were just so many options!!   And the paralysis tells me that once I pick something, I can’t change it.  The direction is decided and the only place to go is forward.  So DON’T SCREW IT UP!

See the black and white tile?  I told you it was cool.

This is the same pressure I feel when I try to look at shower curtains, rugs, and bookshelves.  The paralysis means I have a very hard time knowing how to start decorating my home.  I contemplate various colors, themes, and styles and then worry that once I start, I will hate it and be stuck with it.  So, I generally put off making a real decision for as long as I can.  And then I usually end up sticking to neutrals.  You can’t go too wrong with neutrals, right?

When I found out we were having a little boy, I was so excited to turn our spare bedroom into his nursery… until I remembered that I am awful at decorating.  The Pinterest boards were crushing me with their millions of cute options.  However, I now live to tell the tale of how I overcame those overwhelming feelings and prevailed over my paralysis to create a room that I am quite proud of, thank you very much.  In honor of moving in one week, I want to share this beauty that I finally finished just before Memorial Day (I know, he was born before Christmas!). 

It took me several months to finally settle on a theme.  I knew I wanted something more gender neutral that didn’t scream “BABY!” and came across one theme that never seemed to leave the back of my mind.  I think I fell in love with it because it always reminds me of my own childhood and my mother.  She often sang songs to me when she tucked me in for bed and throughout the day.  She loved to sing “You Are My Sunshine” and started leaving the last word of each line for us to sing.  She would sing, “You are my ___” and we were supposed to fill in the blank by singing, “sunshine.”  It was a fun game that always made us smile.  Sometimes, when my younger brothers were in a cantankerous mood, they would fill in all the blanks by shouting, “nothing” instead.  It usually made us giggle until no one was grouchy anymore.

I have always planned on sharing that song (and tradition) with my own kids, so I loved the idea of doing his room full of yellows and sunshine.  Deciding on the theme really got the ball rolling and gave me lots of ideas for the projects I wanted to complete for his room.  I was so excited to have him here.  He certainly was the bright spot of my year and continues to make me smile every day, when skies are gray, blue, and everything in between.  

Some inspiration

Love this print

Blueberry Eyes

Having a baby is the best way to make new friends. I can't go anywhere without a stranger stopping to peek in the car seat and flash a goofy grin at my little guy. I can't blame them. I mean, he is the cutest baby that was ever born. Sometimes, he even grins back. They usually then chat with me for a minute to comment on how quickly they grow up, to brag about their sweet grandkids, or to reprimand me for not having socks on his feet. I've come to enjoy these short conversations. I love the smiles and joy that my baby brings, not just to me, but to just about everyone that he meets.

Last week I was checking out at a local grocery store. Leo was shopping with me in his car seat (taking up most of the shopping cart) as usual. The cashier peered in, got a huge grin out of him, and melted. "He's got blueberries for eyes!" she exclaimed as she smiled at him. She was an instant friend.

I loved her description of his eyes. I've always thought he had really pretty eyes, but could never do them justice when I tried to describe them. They're a deep, dark blue and they shine in the middle. They look just like blueberries and they're even the right size! I think about blueberries every time I look at him now.

I had so much fun taking these pictures of my newly 6-month-old. He was cracking me up with all his goofy faces. He is becoming more and more aware of everything and everyone around him. With blueberries for eyes, I have no doubt that he'll continue to make friends everywhere we go.

Look at those goofy faces!

He generally finds eating his hat and tie is way more fun than wearing them.

He also enjoys making out with Sophie.

"Okay, mom, this is getting boring..."

Among the Hidden

Among the Hidden (Shadow Children #1)
Written by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Ages 8-12

Luke is a third child in a country where it is illegal to have more than two children. Due to overpopulation and lack of adequate food, he has stayed hidden from the world his entire life, afraid the Population Police will find him. However, Luke's world changes when he notices a new face peeking out the window of a neighbor's house where he was sure everyone had left. As he discovers a new friend, he must decide how much he's willing to risk to stop hiding.

I heard about this book 12 years after it was published. It wasn't until I was a fourth grade teacher and just about every student in my class was raving about it that I became interested. I figured there must be something to it to get the entire fourth grade to be so excited about a single book. But despite the many recommendations, I'm just now getting around to reading it a couple years later (I blame the endless stacks of papers to grade and planner to fill). While it was entertaining and enjoyable, I did not love it. It seemed simplistic and lacking. Even though it is a children's book, I felt there could have been a bit more meat to it. The story addresses several important issues but stays fairly shallow. Perhaps I need to read the rest of the series to get the whole picture, but I finished this one feeling a little disappointed.

However, it is wildly popular among fourth graders and sometimes you've got to jump on the bandwagon when they're excited about reading. Here are a few of my ideas on how to use this book in the classroom:

Read Aloud: The story is a pretty quick read with lots of short chapters (perfect for filling 5 or 10 minutes and still finding a good pausing spot). It is very engaging and would hold the attention of the class. Haddix leaves most chapters with a good cliffhanger (one of my favorite moments of teaching is when you close the book at the end of read aloud and the class, in unison and completely devastated, shouts, "NOOOO!!!") making this one an excellent choice to share together.

Government: In my fifth grade class, we spent a good chunk of time studying the American government: the three branches, bills and laws, the election process, etc. One issue in Among the Hidden is that of overpopulation. The law limiting families to two children is the solution provided by the government which led to lots of problems. It could be a lot of fun to use this issue in a mock classroom government. How would they solve this problem? What would the effects of their decision be? Let them discuss, research, present ideas, and vote on a solution. This would include skills in debate and public speaking and the students would seriously love it.

Literature Circles: Although I didn't love the book, I cannot deny that Haddix skillfully uses cliffhangers to suck you into the exciting world that she creates. Some good discussion questions could be: How does she help you relate to the characters? How is this world different from ours? How is it the same? How does she get us so excited to read the next chapter? I would love for the students to find their favorite cliffhangers and share them and discuss what makes them good. This would be fun to incorporate in their own mystery stories, too.

Writing: This would be a fun novel to use when discussing the use of cliffhangers and how to make your story more interesting for the reader. Students would enjoy revising stories they have written (possibly mystery stories) to include cliffhangers. Many of my students were always working on their own novels and could also incorporate this into their own writing.

Overall, I would give this book a 6 out of 10.  It was engaging and a fun, quick read. Though it lacked the depth of some of my favorite novels, I enjoyed reading it and I know it was a fourth grade favorite at my school. It could be a good one to encourage students who have difficulty finding books and help them get more excited about reading.

Cheesecake Bites

Here's the recipe!

I have an interesting relationship with cheese.  I can really enjoy a good cheese.  I think I learned this during my 18 months in France.  The French make cheese like Americans make cereal.  They have an entire refrigerated aisle dedicated to every kind of cheese you can imagine.  I was always amazed at the variety and selection of cheeses. One of my favorite things to do was browse the selection and choose a new cheese to try that week.  When visiting Paris with Jacob, I asked him several times if we could just buy a chunk of cheese from a farmer's market and a fresh baguette for lunch.  It may be my absolute favorite meal.

However, I don't seem to appreciate melted cheese as much.  I have been slightly disappointed in the world-famous Chicago Deep-dish Pizza.  Don't get me wrong - It's good.  It's just that the deep dish is filled with melted cheese.  And it turns out that Chicagoans don't really like sauce on their pizza which is actually my favorite part.  I feel the same about quesadillas and really gooey mac and cheese.  I just don't like eating a mouthful of melted cheese.  

But back to the good stuff.  I love that Jacob can appreciate a good cheese like I can and sometimes we'll buy a fancy cheese and pretend we're back in France.  You can find some really good ones here, though the selection is generally quite a bit smaller (and we have yet to find a really good, authentic baguette!).  This weekend we wanted to share our love with some friends and hosted a "Cheesy Game Night" where each couple was invited to bring a yummy cheese to share.  We ended up with quite a good spread and some seriously yummy snacks.  

To go with all the salty snacks, I wanted to make something sweet and found these delicious-looking Chocolate-Covered Cheesecake Bites on Pinterest (because I DO love a mouthful of cheesecake).  The recipe was easy to follow, not too difficult, and turned out SO GOOD.  I was quite relieved that we had a few leftovers.  I will most definitely make these again.  These bites are not a last-minute kind of dessert because you do need to make the cheesecake the day before and freeze it.  But none of the steps were terribly time-consuming and they came out looking pretty good if I do say so myself.

  

I stuck pretty close to the recipe, though I did slightly more cream cheese and slightly less greek yogurt (a little closer to the original recipe that she followed).  I only dipped about a third of the cheesecake bites, left a third plain, and drizzled chocolate and peanut butter on a third.  I have never thought to put coconut oil in the chocolate to thin it out (I've only ever used shortening).  It worked so well and gave the chocolate a slight hint of coconut flavor which tasted really good.  I would definitely recommend making these.  You will not be disappointed.

Inside Out and Back Again

Inside Out and Back Again
Written by Thanhha Lai
Ages: 8-12

This is a historic fiction about a ten-year-old named Ha who grows up in Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Because the country is becoming dangerous, she must flee with her mother and three brothers to the United States. The story reveals her physical and emotional struggles as she becomes a student in Alabama who sticks out in every way. We learn about Ha's experiences, her hopes, and her memories through a series of poetic journal entries.

I really enjoyed this one! I actually didn't know it was poetry until I opened to the first page to begin reading. While I wasn't so sure about it at first, I soon began to love that her story is told through poems. It has a simplicity in it. I am no history buff and don't know much about Vietnam or the Vietnam War, but I found this story a great way to get a little background into the culture and country. You still don't get many details about the war, but you do get many snapshots of life in Vietnam. Ha teaches a little about the food, religion, and customs of Vietnam through her journal entries. I also enjoyed the narrator, Ha. The scary and exciting and sometimes-heartbreaking story is told through her young eyes. She is very easy to relate to; Each of us has felt like an outsider trying to fit in at some point in our life. She is a sort of hero, not necessarily because she does anything extraordinarily heroic in the story, but because she faces real problems with courage and patience. 

There are so many ways I would use this book in my classroom. It is filled with teaching opportunities! Here are a few ideas I had while reading and reflecting:

Bullying: There is a very evident theme of accepting those different from us. Ha shows up to a new school where she looks, talks, and behaves differently from everyone else. Most of the children make fun of her or stay away from her, but a few important characters take the time to get to know her and help her. This would be a great book to help children think about how their actions can affect others and what they could do to help include others instead of isolate others. 

Making Inferences: This would be a great tool to use in reading comprehension while teaching the skill of making inferences. Ha uses her journalistic poetry to give us clues about things that happened during her day or how she is feeling. The book is filled with entries that would be fun to discuss with a class. I would read through an entry and decide together how she was feeling or what happened. Then, using the text, we could identify the clues Ha gives us that helped us figure it out. 

Poetry: This is a verse novel, narrated through poetry. It is a more abstract form of poetry, quite different from a lot of the poetry that we read and wrote in my 4th grade class. I think students would enjoy trying something a little less formulaic. I love that each poem is like a journal entry and she keeps them short and simple. Each one has a very specific subject (usually evident from the title). Some stood out to me as having a bit of a pattern that could help students get started. These would make fun lessons: 

• "Birthday Wishes" (p. 30): In this entry, Ha reveals some of her hopes and wishes that she wouldn't say aloud. She begins, "Wishes I keep to myself" and then lists seven wishes, each in its own stanza. She ends with an eighth stanza that begins, "Mostly I wish..." Students could follow this pattern and share some of their own wishes through short, descriptive lines. 
• "Not the Same" (p. 232): Papaya is a repeating symbol of Vietnam for Ha and she describes it several times. This poem is written after she is given some dried papaya and tastes it for the first time. It would be a fun poem to talk about adjectives and to let the students write their own poem using some juicy, descriptive words of a favorite, a hated, or a new food they have tried.

I would definitely recommend this book. As a read-aloud, a class novel, or a bedtime story, it would be a great one to read and discuss together.