Rachael Eliker's Blog, page 21

A Wonderful Father

As usual, things are running behind around here and because of a massive family reunion, a newborn baby and his five siblings, a farm, and life in general, I'm late singing accolades for father's day. If anything, it's given me a chance to figure out how I would sum up Jack as a father, husband, and man in general. Hint: he's awesome. Daddy and Peter.Jack has been through this new parent thing with me six times and it never gets dull. He's patient with me while I'm grumpy and hugely pregnant,...

Cinnamon Swirl Raisin Bread

My grandma was the queen of bread baking back in her day and I remember going to her house many times and being given a warm slice of cinnamon swirl raisin bread, which always felt like a special treat. I wanted to share that with my kids, so we whipped up a batch. Serve as a side to Poor Man's Stew and you've got yourself a hearty meal!

Round Two

It's been a few years since we've had a designated boys night/girls night but when the opportunity came for Henry and Jack to go camping with some friends, they jumped at the chance, leaving the rest of us girls (and Peter...funny these campouts always happen when I have a brand new baby at home, ha!) at home. That doesn't mean we don't have our own fun.
After smothering (sometimes a little too literally) Peter with affection, we made our very own personal pizzas. Most of them turned out decor...

Whipped Cinnamon Honey Butter

We wanted to thank our girls' teachers with a little something and since sending bread for Christmas gifts have been a big hit, we decided to make a big loaf of bread to put in the teacher's lounge. Before, we've sent them with apple butter but since it's not fall, we didn't have an abundance of apples at home. Instead, we made this delectable whipped cinnamon honey butter (if you've ever been to Texas Roadhouse, you know what it is), and it was a big hit. We sent a jar with the loaf of bread...

2019 Summer Bucket List

What are your summer plans?School's out and after a few boring things (think groceries and doctor's appointments), we're ready to have fun! Since I love checklists and want to make sure I'm an intentional mother who's more present while my children are at home with me, we've come up with this list of things we'd like to do during the precious ten weeks they're home from school. Plus, maybe it'll distract them from bickering too much.

School's Out!

It felt like only yesterday that I was sending all three of the older girls off to another year of school at their tiny country school. I blinked, and their entire kindergarten, 2nd, and 4th-grade careers are already over! For all their hard work, they're each smarter, wiser, and have more friends, and have grown and matured in ways that astound me.
The school supply dump.They hopped off the bus, excited at the prospect that summer break brings them--unlimited swimming, staying up late to catc...

Remember

Of all holidays, one of my favorites is Memorial Day. Sure, there are other more exciting holidays, like Christmas or Halloween, but Memorial Day is a simple day that doesn't incur a lot of stress or require a lot of preparing. All that it truly requires is for us to remember. Jack teaching Kate the art of rib rub in preparation for smoking them.One of the other benefits of Memorial Day is it's a guaranteed day off of work and school and when that happens that means we have fun together. And b...

Grilled Pizza

Most Friday nights at our house mean homemade pizza BUT with near 90-degree weather and a broken air conditioner, the last thing I wanted to do was heat up the oven. Grilling pizza was the perfect answer! It made crunchy, chewy crust and kept the house from warming up. Plus, it was ready faster than if I'd put it in the oven. We'll definitely be using this technique again!

To Make:

1 batch pizza dough (here's our go-to recipe if you're looking for one)
Olive oil
Favorite pizza toppings

P...

Double Digits

When Jack and I got married, we were excited at the prospect of welcoming children into our home as soon as we could. Apparently, Evelyn didn't get the memo because two years into our marriage, we were starting to lose hope we'd ever have kids. So, we decided to buy a dilapidated old house in Iowa while Jack went to school and I worked. It wasn't a month after we moved in that we were up on the roof, putting on the last few new shingles while I felt incredibly nauseated. I figured it was due...

Motherhood Means...

Such a happy newborn!Better late than never, but happy (SUPER belated) Mother's Day (I get a free pass for being tardy, having a newborn, right?)! Though every day is mother's day around here (I'm positive the world would implode if mom, a.k.a. me, went missing), it is appreciated when we get to celebrate things that are sometimes taken for granted.
Around here, motherhood is always very prevalent, probably because I'm in the thick of it at this point of my life. I'm not the only one eith...