L.I.F.E As A Host Family

One Easter Sunday back in 1995 my husband and I were driving to my mothers. While we were driving I was reading the Star-Ledger and came across a tiny 1"x1" ad advertising the need for "Home Stay Families" for the L.I.F.E. program at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Madison, NJ.  While I don't remember the exact wording at this writing, all I remember is that it was enticing enough for me to cut it out of the paper and call the day after Easter.

After some 98 students from 1995 to 2001 I can tell you that was the best phone call I ever made.

At the time I was a stay at home mom and owner of "Leslie's Family Day Care" so it was easy for me to coordinate the daily goings on of being a host mother.

When people speak about 'host families' they often think about high school programs where one student goes abroad while the international student comes to the U.S. Typically, one will think of this program strictly for high school students. This was not your average 'Exchange Student" program. In fact, these students enrolled in L.I.F.E (Language Institute For English) through Fairleigh Dickinson University's International Student Program.



Many of the students we hosted were between the ages of 14 and 50!

Our students stayed with us anywhere from two weeks up to eight months!  The requirements of the "Home Stay" family basically asked that we provide a safe and happy home, supply a bed and breakfast and possible transportation to and from the campus.  That was easy!  However, what we didn't count on was so many fascinating experiences, memories and feeling like 'substitute' parents for many of these students.

We had students from around the globe including:
Germany
Korea
Japan
Switzerland
Brazil
Spain
Venezuela
Taiwan
Turkey
France
Chile
Saudi Arabia

While the school tries to prepare you for your host family experience, there is no preparation for something like this, it is such a life changing adventure that it brings perspective to your own life and the lives of your children. The stories, the life styles, the experiences and comparisons from country to country is just a fascinating, eye-opening experience. The holidays they spend with you, "What is Halloween?, St. Patricks Day? What are these special days we were asked time and time again.

One of my fondest memories of the entire adventure was waiting for our new students to arrive by the limo directly from the airport. You just never knew who would land on your doorstep. Imagine our surprise when one of our earlier students arrived with spiked hair, black leather clad from her neck down to her toes wearing a spiked collar. It was then that I received one of those 'eyeballs' from my husband, which really meant, "OH MY!"  After the collar was taken off and the leather was shed, it turned out that this particular student was just like all the rest of them.. A great visitor who touched our hearts.

We learned so many different things about living in other countries, how, in many ways our core beliefs and daily routines are somewhat the same, but in some countries so vastly different.  We learned that the French students needed robes when walking around the house, the common sign for all students to make when getting their picture taken was the peace sign.  We learned that the only way to make rice is with a rice machine - period. We learned that so many countries enjoy eating french fries with a combo of mayonnaise and ketchup.  We learned that so many countries enjoy more fresh vegetables, fruit and pasta than beef and potatoes. 



For me, the benefits of being a host mother were enormous especially with the memories each and every one of these 98 students gave to my daughters. You can't learn that in school, you can't read it in a book, you have to live the experience. For me personally, not only was it often a series of comical events, but also tear filled memories especially when it was time to say good-bye.  One other great benefit to me was my stuttering habit disappeared because I had to speak so slowly to some of our visitors that in time my stutter passed for good!

Before we received our first student it was absolutely necessary for me to get my house in order which included making a form so that each student could fill it out with their address, birthday, foods they liked, foods they didn't like, allergies, etc. This helped me tremendously. If you are considering becoming a host family I would strongly suggest you do the same. I also put a lovely notebook in their bedroom called, "The LIFE Journal". Every student that ever stayed with us wrote us a letter, a note, or thank you before they left. This book has only two blank pages in it which I will save to one day write a special passage in and give it to my daughters summing up our memory as a family and as friends to so many kind and wonderful visitors.  

This post is dedicated to all 98 students we made feel at home in the Boss residence, of then, 225 Garfield Street - in Berkeley Heights... You are in our happiest of memories and are waiting until our paths will cross again.

Happy Homemaker Cookbooks

The theme for today is about cookbooks. Have you ever taken a count of the amount of cookbooks you have in your possession?  I have an entire bakers rack full of them and a stockpile of more in a cabinet. I must have 100 in total!  But, how many times do we actually use each and every cookbook?  Not so often I bet. Isn't it funny how we will page through a cookbook and find one recipe that sounds good so we buy the entire book? Only for it to be opened maybe once a year, if that?


If you're a cookbook collector and a happy homemaker, I'm sure you have your 'favorites' like me.


What are my favorites?

 "What's for dinner?" Favorites

The Settlement Cookbook - Treasured recipes of seven decades. The famous all-purpose cookbook for beginner and expert. Appropriately has the saying, "The Way to a Man's Heart"

Best Recipes From the Backs of Boxes, Bottles, Cans and Jars - This cookbook has an enormous amount of recipes that you often see on the backs of soup cans, cake boxes, etc. Have an abundance of something in your cupboard? Check out this book as it will give you some ideas on how to use it. My favorite recipe from this book is Tangy Meatloaf. A winner every time!

Easy Home Cooking Slow Cooker Recipes - Since I am a "Crock pot" cooker and admittedly have two of them, I am always scouting for new crock pot recipes. Even though this cookbook doesn't have a lot of recipes in it, the featured ones are delicious.

Bread Machine Winners

Electric Bread - I started with this book many years ago after receiving my first bread machine. It has a great selection of everyday bread recipes to speciality breads. The ingredients are easy to find as well.

More Electric Bread - What more could a person ask for then to receive another bread machine only after burning out the first one from overuse!  Then, came the next installment of More Electric Bread filled with even more delicious bread recipes and gourmet specialities!

Down Home Goodness

Out of the Frying Pan - Into the Fire!!!

Editions 1 & 2

Recipes Presented by the BHFD

Ladies Auxiliary

This is the type of cookbook that you just want to leave on your counter top. It's the one that you refer to the most often. It's the one that you recognize the contributors name because it's that type of cookbook that has special memories, cherished recipes from friends. It's the one that you can feel the love from. 

The Berkeley Heights Ladies Auxiliary was founded in 1953 and is still active today. These wives are second to none as they support the many fine members of the Berkeley Heights Volunteer Fire Department.  Through the years they have had many fundraisers but the creation of their cookbooks is still talked about today. The first edition was published in 1977 and the second followed in 1996. Who knows.. maybe a third edition is in the works? One could only hope!

Kitchen Necessity

The Kitchen Companion - This is the ultimate guide to cooking and navigating in the kitchen. I have referred to this book countless times for the answers to questions such as:

How long to marinate? ~ Blanching and Parboiling ~ Substitution recommendations ~ Storage times ~ What's good with what..  It's like the favorite tool in the toolbox..

Cooking on the Web

           

Even with all the cookbooks at my fingertips, I still visit one of my favorite websites for great recipes and tips. I love to read the reviews and how other readers have suggested changes to existing recipes. It's a valuable resource worthy of checking out.  Looking for a new recipe? Go to AllRecipes.com

Have I wet your appetite for some delicious new recipes? You can click on the names of the cookbooks and see them on Amazon.com to see further reviews of my choices.  Do you have a favorite cookbook? Let me know.. I can always make room on my bakers rack for a few more...

I'm a Houseplant Junkie

Yes.. I'll admit it.. I'm a "Houseplant Junkie" who can't get enough of them! No matter what store I go into whether it be a Home Depot, Lowe's or even my local Shop-Rite, I always seem to meander over to the 'floral' department just to see 'what's new'.  When I travel to Home Depot or Lowe's with my husband we will often get separated and the code word or 'department' to find me in is "houseplants" where I'll rescue one - two - OK, I'll fess up, the last time I was there I did buy FOUR new plants, but they were small, and I was looking to fill a certain narrow windowsill. Yes, my trip was successful, however, there were no tags in them so it's any one's guess what they are except, "beautiful to me".

I am so obsessed with them that I even propagate them to make more! Pothos and Ivy are great volunteers for such a purpose as they literally have new roots appearing monthly just waiting to set foot and start anew! I have started them in water or just by sticking them in a new pot of soil. Notice I wrote 'soil' not, 'dirt' as the word 'soil' sounds better than dirt, plus soil, has more nutrients in it than plain ole' dirt.

Whenever my husband comments on another 'new aquisition' I will always remind him of the benefits of houseplants. Such as:

• They brighten up a room with living energy and color.
• They help to keep the air in the room clean. No doubt cheaper than an air purifier!
• They make people calmer and more optimistic.
• Believe it or not there was a study done in the University of Agriculture in Norway that found that houseplants can reduce fatigue, coughs, sore throats and other cold related illnesses by more than 30 percent! Of course, if you search on the Internet enough you'll find a study to support any reason to spend money.

Some of my indoor plants are not 'technically' considered 'houseplants' but during the winter, I bring them inside and keep them thriving so that by next Spring, I can put them back outside. Typically, all houseplants are considered to be tropical in nature, but these two are especially so and I am thrilled that they have accepted my care for them while on this indoor sabbatical. 

Passion Flower
How I do love this plant when it's in full bloom in mid summer. The flowers are so intricate and will often have a light, pleasant scent. When I brought this plant inside it was half the size that it is now. You'll note it's the plant in the middle of this photo with the homemade branch trellis. Needless to say I'm "passionate" about this plant!

Australian Tree Fern

This big boy is everything that the tag said it was going to and more! I have fallen in love with this specimen and love the fact that it keeps producing wonderful fronds every two weeks.

They unfurl out of the center of the plant and just keep unraveling until a large beautiful frond appears.
When I wake up in the morning and look at this plant, I can't help but say, "G'day Mate"!

In case your wondering, I have a majority of my houseplants including my two tropicals in a very well lit room which receives sun from almost every direction during the day.

Ever try putting houseplants in a terrarium? It's a cool idea and looks great too! I love cyclamen and smaller ferns in them as they love the humidity.

My latest addition to my houseplant addiction is actually my most beloved plant as it was given to me by my mother who received it from her mother. This plant came all the way from Germany as a small cutting. Low and behold it is a Hoya plant which is a very slow growing plant as you can see by the size of this plant which is now well over my age of 47!

If you're a "Houseplant Junkie" like me, I have two links for you to further your addiction. 

One is a blog called "Plants Are the Strangest People" 

The second website that I've purchased several houseplants from online with great success called "Hirts Gardens"

To end this post here's a picture of a bud that's going to open soon.. Can you guess what it is?

Flower Pot "Les-Rippe"

You may be thinking I misspelled the word, "Recipe" however, the term
"Les-Rippe" was coined by my wonderful husband many years ago after finishing a delicious meal I had made and when he asked, "if I followed a recipe?" I quickly responded, "No. I made it up!" Thus, the term "Les-Rippe" was started!

While I have an entire bakers rack of cookbooks, I often will 'amend or add' to an existing recipe to make it my own. More often it works than not. Rarely do I change the basic ingredients especially in cakes or bread machine recipes as there should always be an adequate measurement of what the test kitchens have called for in order for the cake or bread to rise to the occasion.  However, it's the 'extra's, the tasty items, spices, and extracts' that I'll add to or change depending on my mood or simply I'll make substitutes. I've never been afraid of making substitutes, and you shouldn't either!

Right about now is when I start to get a tad itchy about getting my hands back in the dirt as I am an avid gardener. In order to cure my 'wholly' for the day, I decided to refer to my standby Flower Pot Cake.

Let's begin with "Flower Pot Cake" by "Les-Rippe"

What you'll need:
Terra Cotta Flower Pots - This recipe will make (1) 6" Pot and (1) 4" Pot

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
4 egg yolks
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup eggnog or milk
2 cups cake flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. each of sugar & cinnamon for topping
4 over ripe banana - sliced thin
3 over ripe pears - cubed

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350' F degrees. Cream butter well, add sugar, continue beating, add yolks, vanilla. Mix thoroughly. Add eggnog or milk alternately with flour and baking powder. Beat well.

Peel and chop the pears, peel the banana's and slice thin.
 < GARDENING TIP >Don't forget to put the skins in your composter as well as the egg shells!

To prepare your flower pots, put a small piece of aluminum foil at the bottom of the drainage hole to prevent leakage.  Spray inside pot generously with Pam, or coat with shortening.

Fill the flower pots with the batter up to about 1-2" from the top. Put an even amount of both pears and banana into each pot, pushing down into the pot so that it sinks into the batter. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon.







Put flower pots onto a baking sheet and bake for 50 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean. 

Serve warm or at room temperature. Simply delicious with a dollop of vanilla ice cream on top too! 

Enjoy! Look forward to more "Les-Rippe's" coming soon!

Silent Snowfall of Alexandria

Snow is falling
Go look outside
Snow is falling
The old landscape it hide

Snow is falling
What a beautiful sight
Snow is falling
It sparkles in the light

Snow is falling
Soft cotton wool flakes
Snow is falling
A white blanket it makes

Snow is falling
Short flowers disappear
Snow is falling
The cold is here

Snow is falling
Its time to play
Snow is falling
Lets make snowmen today

December 27, 2010

Alexandria Township

New Jersey

My Room With a View

In every house there's a room that you find yourself loving the most. In mine, it's my kitchen. It was a toss up between my den and my kitchen, but when I really think about it, the kitchen is the place where so many of my life's happenings take place. It's the place where conversations are started and ended, good news is read when opening my mail, laughter is heard and good food is cooked that warms our hearts! It's the room with a great view!

While my kitchen may be small, it encompasses everything that I need when speaking about a kitchen. So, it doesn't have a lot of bells and whistles, but it has two things that I consider to be the two most important aspects when designing a kitchen. 1) Storage cabinets & 2) Counter space. For a small kitchen, it has both!  In my previous house, I had a much larger kitchen, but when I look back, the kitchen space was larger, a.k.a. 'floor space' but did it have the cabinets and counter space? No. Thus, the old saying, "good things come in small packages' kind of relates here.  It's all a matter of the design.

What do I love about my kitchen? I love the view! How can you not? In any season it is breath taking. In spring and summer, I get to see the green grass and flowers on my patio. In fall, I am enamored by the beautiful kaleidoscope of fall leaves and in winter, I am blissfully covered in white fallen snow.  It's my room with a view to all the seasons!

While reading my posts, you'll learn that I am a Feng Shui believer, or trying to be.. Did you know that in Feng Shui your kitchen is the part of the home that nourishes and sustains life thus being the most important part of your home. The kitchen is also a feng shui symbol of wealth and prosperity.

A good feng shui kitchen leads to a good spirited chef, which, in turn, leads to good energy meals for a happy family. If it's one thing I love to do is cook and bake so I'm following this aspect for sure.


If you're looking to add some good 'chi' to your home, start by following these Feng Shui tips in your kitchen:

• The kitchen should have several levels of proper lighting, be airy and spacious, clean, bright and welcoming. For good feng shui, keep the kitchen simple and do not overload it with gadgets. Keep clutter at bay.
• Fresh flowers bring beautiful uplifting energy to your kitchen. Place a bowl with fruits, a vase of flowers, or a living plant on your kitchen table, windowsill, or wherever the layout of your kitchen allows.

My kitchen is the heart of my home. It's the 'hub' where all good things happen. When life isn't so good, it's also the place where hugs are found the most. There's a saying that I love "In the childhood memories of a good cook, there's a large kitchen, a warm stove, a simmering pot and a mom".  In my heart of memories, I can vividly remember my "Oma" cooking in her kitchen and smelling the good aroma's of German cooking that filled the home and the trait that she passed down to my mom who still cooks and warms any kitchen she enters today. 

Do you have a kitchen filled with good memories and "Chi"?