My Favorite Experiment. Ever.

Let me preface this with: I love cream soda. I love it. Mucho. My sweet D loves cream soda as well. I am a MAJOR fan of Henry Weinhard's Root Beer, so I figured I'd be a fan of their cream soda.

Wrong.

It tastes like bubblegum. It smells like bubblegum. I like bubblegum, but not in my cream soda.

I was at the store last night and decided to conduct a little experiment when I got home.

WalMart sells IBC.
Winco sells Henry's and Stewart's.

 We begin with Henry Weinhard's -

As you can see this beauty is sportin' a lot of foam. That doesn't necessarily mean that it has more carbonation, however. It looks good; a nice golden color. But, alas, it smells like bubblegum.

And it tastes like bubblegum. Yuck.

Carbonation was pretty good though. It had a moderate bite, which I feel is important.

I want a big bite in my Sprite, but not in my cream soda. It needs to slide down the throat.

Mmmmmm... 

 Next in line: IBC. A little darker color, no foam at all. I was worried about the carbonation level, but my worries turned out to be un-warranted. The carbonation level was slightly higher than the Henry's, but it was perfect! The taste was better than Henry's as well, but it still wasn't on the money. It had a slight chemical-mixed-with-wintergreen taste. Not as bad as it sounds, but not ideal either.

 And last, but definitely not least, we have Stewart's. I'd never tried Stewart's before. I was skeptical.

I. Was an idiot.

Stewart's was like liquid gold. The taste was perfect, the smell was perfect, the carbonation level was perfect.

The taste almost reminds me of honey. Smooth. Subtle.

Bliss in a bottle.

No chemical taste, no bubblegum taste, just sweet goodness.

Money. Big money.

You want some now, don't you?

I can't blame you.

Miscellaneous Remarks: There were several things I found interesting while I was perusing the list of ingredients on each bottle.

1. Henry's and Stewart's have  identical ingredients except for one: their flavoring agent. Henry's flavors with "pure vanilla bean extract" (surprising!) while Stewart's flavors with Quillaia Extract.

2. Henry's and Stewart's both have a preserving agent. Necessary. Understood. However, IBC has THREE preserving agents. Yuck.

So there's the tale of the cream soda folks. My personal favorite is - BY FAR - Stewart's!!!

Look Ma, no Tide!

So, Jon's brother was here when I made this.  Later when they were off together, Daniel asked, "Why would you WANT to make laundry soap?"

This is a reasonable question, and one that others have asked.  Jon responded pretty much in the way I would have.  1.) So we know how. 2.) So we can save a few bucks. 3.) Because it's COOL!

OK, so our definition of cool has changed since we were 17, but this is what ranks as cool in our household these days.  Don't judge us.

First, grate two bars of ivory soap into a big pot.  I used an enamel stock pot.

Add 3 quarts of water and heat slowly on medium for about 30 minutes or until the soap is all dissolved.  The instructions say try not to boil, but, well, I went outside to garden and it boiled.  It didn't seem to hurt it though.

Take the pot off of the stove and add 1.5 cups of washing soda (not baking soda) and Borax. Mix until dissolved.  Both of these can be found in the laundry section of the supermarket.  Our Wal-mart doesn't carry the soda, but our local Western Family grocer does, and it's cheaper there than we found it online.

Once it is dissolved, add two more quarts of hot water and stir.  Transfer it to your five gallon bucket and add three gallons of cool water.  This will gel up to an egg flour soup consistency, or a bit firmer, and it takes a cup per load.  I keep a wire whisk down in the laundry room to stir it up once in a while. I love it because it doesn't have a scent, and I'm pretty sensitive to perfumes.  When we do whites, I add a scoop of oxyclean and it seems to be working well.

And look at us! We saved $9.50.  How cool is that?

Here's the thing...

Just thought I would juxtapose Laura's and Mom's surroundings with mine.

 

OK, so maybe I'm exaggerating a wee bit.  The point is, it has been a long, dark, cold (-20 for a week!) winter and I am more than ready to complain about the heat and wasps and lack of water.

I planted tomato starts, among other things, yesterday, though, so things are starting to look up...

Spring Has Sprung...

Spring has sprung. How do we know? 

The bees are out and about.

Shrubs are blossoming.

Flowers are blooming.

We are all wearing rubber boots.

We are digging Winter Beets! Yum!

We are planting peas.

There is dirt on the stroller.

Daffodils are King.

And old gives way to new in the Herb Garden...

Aaaahhhhhhhhh... Spring.

A Father's Tradition

 

The father-son relationship is an interesting thing. I can't say I truly know what it's all about, because... well... I'm not a son. Nor am I a father. Quite the contrary, actually. However, I'd like to believe that I'm an observant sort of person, woman as I may be, and I have come to observe that the father-son relationship is an interesting thing. 

So there. 

My husband, D, has this hammer. We call it "Daddy's Hammer", which is, in all actuality weird, because I call D "Daddy" but we're not referring to D when we talk about "Daddy's Hammer" at all. We're referring to Edmund Kay Cherry, D's father. 

Clear as mud? 

Good. 

See, "Kay" Cherry passed away on February 28th, 2003, just 5 short months after I lost my own dear padre'. And Kay left all sorts of wonderful legacies for D and his brothers. Many have found their way into D's personality, including but definitely not limited to: D's love for ingenuity, his knack for building things from the ground up, and his respect for hard work and earning what you're given. Some of Kay's heirlooms, however, are physical... like "Daddy's Hammer".

This is D's work trailer. It's a beautiful thing.

This is D's workbench. It's a beautiful thing.

Above the workbench hangs two semi-identical hammers. How can two things be semi-identical, you ask?

I'll show you...

"Daddy's Hammer"... a sturdy Craftsman Hammer from ages ago...

D's Hammer... a sturdy Craftsman Hammer from January 2010. But it's not just any Craftsman Hammer. It's an identical match to Daddy's Hammer. Oh my heart.

 

I hardly believed him when D told me he found Daddy's Hammer in Sears. Daddy's Hammer is D's favorite, for obvious reasons. But it won't last forever. I don't think. 

These hammers have a great arrow-like pattern on the handle. My favorite part!!

Have I mentioned how handsome my husband is? I mean really... *drool*

And that his beard gets me every time... *sigh*

Back to the hammers...

Fathers, leave your sons something they can be proud of.

Who am I kidding?

Wives... tell your husbands (you know - the ones not reading this blog) to leave your sons something they can be proud of.

Give them traditions they can pass down to their own children...

Because you know where this new hammer will go when D and I grow old...

The Daily Food Log

I keep a Daily Food Log. I started this when I found out I was pregnant with Bubs, and it's been a huge help! Not only does it make me accountable so I don't eat junk, but it helps me keep track of what I eat so I get enough servings of each of the food groups.

When I first started using these forms, the first things I realized were that a) I did a lot of snacking without noticing, and b) I was eating adequately in all areas except vegetables! I love vegetables! So I fixed it.

The other really great thing about using these is that I can keep track of my water intake, which is really important while you're pregnant, and even more important while you're breastfeeding! 

Even if you don't stick with this program for more than a month, it's a great way to get into the habit of eating right. So try it!

If you missed the previous link to the Food Logs I designed, here it is again: Laura's Food Log.

Happy Eating!!

CHERRY Family Newsletter: 2010

Dear Family and Friends,

Where in the world has 2010 gone?!? This year has been filled with miracles and blessings and a little heartache… we hardly know where to begin!

As you all know, we were so excited to announce that I was expecting in February. The Lord blessed us with an absolutely healthy and uneventful pregnancy and delivery. I loved being pregnant, and hope to do it again soon! I was able to resign from my position at Agnes Stewart Middle School in June, and we have made arrangements so I can stay home with our children. (I would like everyone to know that D is my HERO for letting me do what I have always wanted to do: be a homemaker!)

Our first son, Trenton Dee Cherry, entered this world on November 11 at 6:09 p.m. He has been an extremely healthy and happy baby so far. He’s growing very fast – in the 95^th percentile for height, and the 85^th for weight. At just 5 weeks old, he weighs in at a whopping 14 lbs! He loves to hear our voices, and started smiling at us very early on. We could not be more thrilled with parenthood. This is truly a divine right and calling.

Several dear family members have crossed the bar since last Winter. Most of you know that my oldest brother, Joe, passed away at the beginning of December last year. Then on December 31^st, Joe’s youngest son, Mickey, was in a car accident and passed away in early January. They were both buried next to my father in the cemetery on Greenwood Drive up the river from us. On September 11^th of this year, we lost D’s Grandfather, Chet. He was 10 days shy of his 90^th birthday and still as lively as ever! He was buried in St Johns, Arizona where he lived for years. We are so grateful for the support and love that was shown us during these times of grief. How grateful we are for our knowledge of Eternal Families! 

The Spring and Summer proved to be a challenge in the Agricultural department. Oregon, as well as other parts of the Nation, experienced odd weather this year. Winter was mild and dry, to say the least. Spring made up for it, however, with large amounts of rain. Our crops had an extremely difficult time getting started and surviving. We salvaged what we could, and the Lord blessed us with enough to carry us through Winter. However, we are looking forward to a much greater growing season in 2011. Trenton has to start learning the tricks of the trade sometime, right? 

We’ve been blessed with healthy livestock again this year. We have pigs, as always, and there have been several – I use that term loosely – additions to the Jasper Farm. In April, we received a very noisy package: 35 peeping little things. Chicks! We raised 20 meat birds (had quite the experience getting them into the freezer), and 15 egg layers. Among those little chicks we had one rooster – whose name is now “Woosta” – and he is HUGE! Then one of our hens decided it was time to hatch babies (in November?!) and sat on a nest under the barn outside the coop, so we have the last surviving chick from her escapades. In September, we picked up a bummer bull calf from our Relief Society President. His name is Chester. He is large and you can’t go within 100 feet of him without getting attacked, aka without him slobbering on you. 

D’s business (D&L Cherry Construction, llc.) has done very well this year. D has been busy nearly non-stop since it’s infancy, and when he’s not working away from home, I keep him busy on the farm! He prays for work for several reasons. The honey-do list is one of them. He has work lined up well into next year and is so excited about some major projects he’ll be tackling soon!

Last January, D was called to the Elder’s Quorum Presidency. He is serving as First Counselor, and is thoroughly enjoying his work there with the other men. Our ward has been growing exponentially! We are now the largest ward in our Stake, and our Sacrament Meetings are filled with the sounds of new babies. At one point there were 14 families expecting at the same time!

I was serving with the youth up until recently. I was released from the Young Women’s organization right before the baby was born to tackle another calling. I am now the ward Provident Living Specialist, concentrating on food storage, emergency preparedness, self-reliance, and frugal living. As you can imagine, I love this calling, and immediately called D to serve as one of the Committee Members. I need my partner in crime always!

We are absolutely amazed at the ways in which the Lord provides for us when we trust in Him. How grateful we are to know of our Father in Heaven’s Plan for His children. How astounded we are that he sent His Only Begotten Son to break the chains that bind us. We have seen His hand at work in our lives. We have felt of His pure love for us individually, and pray that we can continue to grow as an Eternal Family for a very, very long time.

From our Hearts to Yours,

The D&L Cherry Family