The Sparrow's Home: Life is hard. God is good. We need each other.

Awesome Party Games!

June 16, 2016 by Susan Leave a Comment

My family loves games. I wrote recently about strategy games that we all enjoy. And that’s a feat, considering that my husband and boys are pretty serious board-gamers (or “dork-gamers” as I affectionately call them). We have found several games that we all enjoy and not only do we play them frequently, but we just about always have one out somewhere in the house.

Besides strategy games, though, we also love a good party game! Scattegories, Taboo, Catch Phrase, Apples to Apples and Balderdash have been regulars for a long time.

I have a list of games for you today that you might not have heard of and are going to want to try. If you click on the pictures of the games, you can read more about them.

Sweetened Condensed Milk Cookies: Maybe the Easiest Cookies Ever

June 15, 2016 by Susan 25 Comments

Easy. Frugal. Versatile. Freezer friendly. Delicious. These easy cookies are made with sweetened condensed milk and are the perfect blank slate for customizing.

Most cookie recipes are not difficult, but this one somehow manages to be even simpler somehow. And since no one wants to use half a can of sweetened condensed milk, it makes a pretty large batch of cookies. A batch large enough that I usually end up freezing half the dough for later.

No complaints about that from me.

Cookie dough in the freezer to pull out on a chilly day?

Yes please!

Made at their simplest, they are a buttery vanilla treat. But being the blank slate that they are, the recipe lends itself to customization.

Easy No Sew Curtains

June 14, 2016 by Susan 2 Comments

My dad is kind of a jack-of-all-trades. I’ve written about how he has helped me with various furniture upcycle projects for my home. I have an island, a light fixture, and a headboard thanks to his ingenuity.

He also sews.

I never knew it was weird for dads to sew until I started getting looks when I would mention it. I took mission trips to Mexico in high school and college on which the ladies had to wear dresses, in keeping with the tradition of the village we were going to. Every year, my dad sewed me a few new ones. Boy did that get laughs when I told the Mexican ladies!

I realized a few years ago that as much as I’d like it to be so, my dad isn’t going to be around forever and I didn’t have a clue how to hem, stitch, or sew a thing … aside from buttons. I took the required sewing class in 8^th grade home economics and have a pillow to show for it. But without someone standing behind me directing me, I was at a loss.

So Christmas that year became about sewing. I got a machine and learned how to use it. I’m still no expert, but can sew a (relatively) straight line. I’ve made some simple projects with success.

I’ve been thinking about sewing some curtains for a while.

Easy Summer Lemonade and My Costco Shopping List

June 13, 2016 by Susan 2 Comments

Summer is here and that means it’s lemonade time! During the cooler months, I buy an extra gallon of raw milk and keep homemade chocolate milk in the fridge. But in the summer, I like to lighten things up. And so lemonade makes its appearance.

It’s so easy to make from scratch, and it tastes so much better than the powdered mix. Try it, you won’t go back!

Lemon juice is one of the things I always stock up on when I hit Costco. I thought I’d share some of the other things that are Costco stock up staples at our house.

Laundry Lessons

June 8, 2016 by Susan 2 Comments

Isn’t it wonderful to have women in our life who go before us and leave a trail? I feel like it’s what Paul was talking about when he wrote his instructions in Titus 2 for the older women. We need that sometimes, don’t we?

I have always looked to those who were just ahead of me, with kids a bit older, for parenting help. Don’t we all?

Ideas. Strategies. Possibilities.

A lot of times it had to do with expectations for my children. I would hear a friend talking about what chores her child was doing, and would think, “hmmmm, I wonder if my boys could be doing that?”

I had a “hmmmmm” moment when my sister told me that she had her kids doing their own laundry in elementary school.

I don’t hate doing laundry. However, I started thinking about my sister’s system when the sock situation began.

Lasagna Bolognese with Bechamel

June 7, 2016 by Susan 3 Comments

This lasagna has cheese oozing between layers of meaty, saucy goodness and tender pasta. If you’re looking for a twist on a classic, try this!

Lasagna is one of those things that has about as many variations as the vast number of cooks that make it. A quick search brings up a list including Chicken Alfredo Lasagna, Spinach Lasagna, Vegetarian Lasagna, Mexican Lasagna, Cajun Lasagna and even a number of dessert versions. I’m pretty sure I’d enjoy just about all of them, too.

When it comes to what people consider “traditional” lasagna, although not as many, there are certainly a number of varieties.

Most lasagna I’ve had, and made, has layers of pasta, meat, sauce, cheese and fluffy ricotta cheese (usually mixed with an egg to help bind it). I make a lasagna like this in one of two ways. Either with meat or with lots of veggies (this usually shows up in the middle of summer with goodies from our CSA).

But I also have a slightly different style that I find myself making most often. It doesn’t use the ricotta. Instead, you make a creamy white sauce (a béchamel) that makes it the ooiest, gooiest yum fest you can imagine.

And that’s my purely scientific observation.

Since it’s not a variety that most people have tried, I thought I’d share the recipe with you today.