Spinning Plates, Baking Cookies and a New Toy!

Hey Friends! So, it may appear as though I’ve been less active on the platform lately, but in reality, I’ve been busy with some behind the scenes preparations.

No, the cookies aren't the behind the scenes preparations, but cookies make everything better, right? I'll get to them!

I often compare my crazy life to a circus act. You know the one, the performer who comes out with a calm, friendly demeanor, but totally loses it by the end? The plate spinner! Yes! Except, I try to not lose it every day—just once in a while, right?

But in all seriousness, what I relate to in that act is how before getting a new plate spinning, the performer checks in on all the existing plates and makes sure they’re all going at a good speed before adding a new plate to the mix. This is me.

With homesteading, homeschooling 4 kids, cooking for a crazy list of food allergies and having hubby working from home (meaning kids need to be kept outside or quiet inside for part of the day) I’ve got plenty on my plate, or rather plenty of plates spinning.

Speaking of plates, check out this plate of cookies! Yummiliciousness right there!!

Then there are the ferments, water kefir, dairy kefir, sourdough (2 types: Whole wheat and GF) and whatever lacto-fermented veggies I’m tinkering with at the time. So, when I decided to start blogging, it took me a while of tending to my spinning plates, making sure they were all doing what they were supposed to be doing before I jumped in. Then, after seeing all the possibilities and opportunities available through Steem, I began to broaden my horizons a bit! I went from just blogging about the homestead and allergy-friendly recipes to doing a couple DSound and DTube posts.

And you know what? I’m loving it! It’s such a wonderfully supportive community and I’m really enjoying pushing myself out of my comfort zone and sharing what I am creating with the community. So, in that theme, I recently purchased a Blue Yeti microphone with a bit of leftover birthday money! (Thank you @coruscate for the recommendation.)

I am so excited to start using it, but I’m trying to find the time to play with it without neglecting any of my other plates. It may take a few days, maybe even a week or two, but I will be sharing my new toy, um, I mean tool very soon.

Seriously, do you see the little golden brown spots on top? Those are like little drops of caramel-toffee-ish yumminess! You would not know there were no eggs in these scrumptious morsels!

In the meanwhile, here are some delicious cookies I whipped up for the kids a few days ago. Wildstyle was beside herself! She kept saying how they tasted and felt like real cookies. I had recently made some banana chocolate chip cookies that she also really enjoyed, but these took a cup of boiled dates blended into the batter. This resulted in a chewy texture with an almost caramelized bottom with just the right amount of stickiness when biting through.

As I was throwing the ingredients together, I remember thinking that I should jot it down in case I wanted to post about the cookies, but I was trying to get them finished before the kids came in from sledding and the baby woke up. Time was not on my side, so I hoped I would remember, and just pushed through. Sadly, I do not remember the exact measurements, but I do know that when I added potato starch, I accidentally dumped the bag so it filled the measuring cup and spilled into the bowl, so the measurement would have been off anyway. (Does that only happen to me? I should seriously know better by now.)

I hope you enjoy the cookie photos, the plate spinning metaphor and I do recommend adding a cup of boiled dates, cooled and blended into a cookie recipe sometime.

The boys decided to “help” with the photo shoot. I think they ended up eating their weight in the extra “misfit cookies” as it was the only way to keep them from eating the props!

One of my newest "plates" is also the goal for me to start getting to bed earlier. Yes, that is a plate, because it’s something I have to give my attention to in order for it to happen and become a priority. I don't know exactly how it will happen as that is when I tend to do most of my posting, writing, commenting, editing, etc, but I'll figure it out. Here’s to new beginnings!

I chose @Crowbarmama as a handle because I believe in doing the best you can with what you have on hand. The crowbar is a multi-purpose tool. You’ll notice my photography is a bit rough, my grammar is not the most polished, but as a homeschooling, homesteading mama of 4, if I waited to take my photos until the light was perfect or re-edited my posts a 5th time ( I shoot for 3 drafts), I would never get a post out!

Don’t sweat the small stuff, just Crowbar it!

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