When I Grow Up...

Friday, July 31, 2009

I think we now know what career Grace is considering when she grows up: Proctologist.
I never dreamed just how interested and curious she would be regarding Garrett's pieces and parts. Poor little guy.



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Drive-In Fun and More!

Saturday, July 25, 2009

We had our first official "outting" last night. We hit the Aurora Sunset Drive-In for a night of Ice Age 3... and we had a good time. We swung through Richard's Hawgwild BBQ in Aurora on our way there for our tradition of BBQ nachos. We hauled those over to the drive-in and dug in. Then it was off to bigger and better things for Grace. She loved the drive-in's playground. We hit one slide right after another until we'd worked our way all the way up to THE BIG ONE. She played hard until dusk set in. Then it was time for something Grace has never seen before... the biggest movie screen EVER! She loved it. Sitting under the stars with a little breeze and nice temperatures... we couldn't have asked for a better evening!

Grace has also been busy doing other things... she and Daddy took a day and went fishing at the Monett city park pond. Grace even caught a fish with her brand new fishing rod!


She's also been quite a helper in the garden and kitchen. We have discovered that she is quite the little corn shucker! With all her help in the garden, we've been able to make lots of our "garden skillet" dinners. Those are pretty much a mix of any ripened veggies from the garden along with the occasional pork, chicken, or venison mixed in. They are yummy!

picklewart.blogspot.com

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Splish Splash, Garrett Took His First Bath!

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Garrett's first bath... it started out a little wild with much crying... but then he hit his zen and decided that warm sudsy water felt pretty OK! He almost looks morose and solemn here, but trust me, I think he really liked the warm water. Pictures...

http://picklewart.blogspot.com/



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Beautiful Day on the Farm

Friday, July 17, 2009

We've had a great day here on the Goff farm... lots to do and lots to have fun with. So, I thought I'd share and post some pictures on the blog of our day today!

Pictures from the garden...

Our sweet potato arbor.

A beautiful spaghetti squash.

My sprawling pumpkin plant.

A fruiting Lemon Boy tomato plant.

Towering corn.

Can't wait to eat this sweet cantaloupe!

Some pictures of the new "baby" chickens... they're more like teenagers these days...
This is one of our Auracaunas... she's a buff and is quite fluffy (notice her "cheeks"), so we call her Buffy. Apologies to my cousin...

A couple more of the "babies"...

And here's how I manage to get any gardening done... I LOVE my Baby Bjorn pack. And so does Garrett...

Daddy talked Grace into washing the garden tractor.

Daddy cut out Garrett's room decor and decided to don it in an attempt to scare Gracie... it didn't work. She totally busted him!

With such an abundance from the garden, I'm having to start putting away excess... so I pureed some for the freezer.

And when the day was done, Courtney whipped up a fabulous stuffed squash for dinner!

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Cucumber-Cream Soup

Wednesday, July 15, 2009



This is a recipe I've been using each summer since planting a garden. It's from my cousin's tea room in Eureka Springs... Spears Victorian Sampler Tea Room. It's a great way for gardeners to use their over-abundance of cucumbers... and it always seems like there's an abounding crop of cucumbers! So, here it is complete with pictures in this blog post (with slight alterations from myself):

Cucumber-Cream Soup



6 medium cucumbers, peeled, seeded, & chopped
1/2 small onion (original calls for a whole onion)
3 Tbsp. Butter
1/4 C flour (a bit more for a thicker soup)
3 C chicken broth
1 C whipping cream




In large saucepan, cover & cook cucumbers
& onion in butter about 15 min. or until tender. Stir in flour. Add chicken broth and whipping cream; cook & stir until thickened and bubbly. Pour half of the mixture into blender.

Cover and blend until mixture is smooth. Set aside. Repeat with remaining mixture. Cover and fully chill. Garnish with additional cucumber slices if desired. Makes 10 to 12 servings.


My commentary: After years of altering and trying different ways to cook this (many times due to a lack of ingredients), this I have come to conclude:

1. Do not substitute water for chicken broth... it makes for a somewhat tasteless soup
2. You may substitute half and half or even milk for cream if you're watching fat content... but it really is best with the whipping cream
3. Do not skip de-seeding the cucumbers... the seed hulls really do change the texture of the soup... and the same goes for peeling the cucumbers as well.
4. Do not make the same mistake Courtney did and fire up the blender on a high speed right off the bat... you'll be wiping cucumber soup off the ceiling... :-)
5. We made a double batch in these photos... great for storing in the fridge or freezer for another night.



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The Family Grows...


Well, we're a week and a half into this new season of a family of four, and things are going well. Garrett's sleeping pretty good at night. Grace is being a good big sister. Daddy's figuring out how to hold both kids. And mommies re-learning how to multitask... on a whole new level! A little stressful at times, but definitely worth it. More pics below the blog post...




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Garrett Theodore Goff is Here

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

7 lbs 11 oz
22 in long

Garrett Theodore Goff decided it was time to come... at 2:00 AM Sunday morning... that's when it started! So, off to the hospital we went... some surgical prep and a C-section later, he arrived at 6:02 AM Sunday, July 5 2009.

And he's as cute as a button. Of course, there's no bias here...

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All Things that Sparkle and Crackle

Saturday, July 4, 2009


We had our big Independence Day blowout on Friday night. And a blowout it was. Good food, good sparkles, and big bangs galore.

Even Papa got in on the action a bit... well, mostly from his chair... directing everyone else... and complaining about the camera flash...


Grace didn't care for the bang nearly as much as the sparkle, so she spent part of the time on Daddy's lap hiding under a sheet.
The other part of the time, she spent on Grandma's lap... (mommy has no lap right now!)

She eventually did begin to warm up to the idea of all the boom and
bang. She made the rounds from person to person and ended up livin' it up with cousin Elijah. They played in "forts", in tents, and finally got a little tired... tired enough to pause long enough for a picture on a lounge chair. They're quite a pair!
All in all, we had a lot of fun... even the 9 mos pregnant lady!!

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  • Teaching the Trivium - Bluedorn
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  • Get Wisdom! - Ruth Younts
  • Little House on the Prairie series - Laura Ingalls Wilder
  • The Pursuit of Holiness - Jerry Bridges
  • Primal - Mark Batterson
  • Hipster Christianity - Brett McCracken
  • Gospel Powered Parenting - William P. Farley
  • Five Things Every Christian Needs to Grow - RC Sproul
  • When People are Big and God is Small - Edward T. Welch
  • Chosen by God - RC Sproul
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Reading it Now!

  • The New Read-Aloud Handbook - Trelease
  • Honey for a Child's Heart - Gladys Hunt
  • Little House in the Big Woods - Laura Ingalls Wilder
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Past Reads

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  • Mary Pride's Complete Guide to Homeschooling
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  • What is a Healthy Church Member? - Thabiti M. Anyabwile
  • Feminine Appeal - Carolyn Mahaney
  • Shepherding a Child's Heart - Ted Tripp
  • Crazy Love - Francis Chan
  • When Life is Hard - James MacDonald
  • Food and Love - Dr. Gary Smalley
  • For Women Only - Shaunti Feldhahn
  • For Men Only - Jeff and Shaunti Feldhahn
  • The Gospel for Real Life - Jerry Bridges
  • Living the Cross Centered Life - CJ Mahaney
  • Captivating: Unveiling the Mystery of a Woman's Soul by John and Stasi Eldredge
  • Wild at Heart: Discovering the Secret of a Man's Soul - John Eldredge
  • Dare to Discipline - Dr. James Dobson
  • The No-Cry Sleep Solution - Elizabeth Pantley
  • Parenting is Not for Cowards by Dr. James Dobson
  • The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel
  • The Strong Willed Child by Dr. James Dobson

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