It Takes A Village & Crock Pot Beef Stew
Mothers really were not built to raise babies not only by themselves, but with only a partner. For millions of years, a woman had much more than just her husband to help rear her young... This whole idea of 'it takes a village to raise a child' is exactly how we're supposed to live.
Helen Fisher
Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be raising my children in a province so far away from my Sister and Brother's children.
My Sis and I were/are close. We lived together for almost 30 years. I always thought our kids would go to the same schools, that we would do Sunday dinners together and that we would help raise each other's children. That's just not the way life has turned out.
Right before Christmas, I was chatting with my Sis on our weekly date night/Facetime and she sounded really down. Her and my BIL had been working nonstop, they were travelling separately for the careers and they have 2 kids that are really active. At the end of the conversation she said, "we're just trying to get through it."
That made me a little worried. I said, "try to get through it with a smile ok?" and she just chuckled.
3 months later Ninja and I were discussing out Family Day Weekend plans when we came up with this great idea, I should fly to Cochrane and look after my 2 Nieces for the weekend so my Sis and BIL could go away for the weekend and relax, recharge, rest and reconnect.
You see, Ninja and I do this at least twice a year. We look forward to having a night away here and there and especially look forward to our weekend getaways together. They keep us connected and positive when things get tough. We get to do this because we live with my Dad and down the street form my In-Laws.
My Bro lives in Winnipeg with his In-Laws and his Mom.
My SIL lives in Winnipeg with her Ex-In-Laws and her Ex.
My BIL lives in Edmonton with his In-Laws.
Everyone has a family member that will look after their kids for a night or 2. Everyone except my Sis.
We live here and her In-Laws live in New Brunswick. They have made a great group of friends that act as their village when it is an emergency but they don't have any family there to say, "let me take them. I got it. I will look after your children like they are my own."
Everyone needs help sometimes but not everybody is able to ask for it. It is only family that knows when they are needed. Only family will think outside their own immediate families and help when nobody has asked them to.
It takes a Village and even though we are 646 kms away from each other I will ALWAYS be her Village.
When I got married I got a portrait made of the 2 of us as kids. She keeps it in her bathroom and every night while I was getting ready for bed, I looked at it. I read it. The saying on the picture was true then and it is true now. I will always need her AND I will always be there when she needs me 💛.
This week on How Was Your Week, Honey? Ep 106: Best. Sister. Ever. We record via Skype while I’m away in Cochrane, AB watching our 2 nieces. Topics include: phone dictation, live arrests, the benefits of self-employment, feeling at home, the snowflake ball, Waterton, top 40, Alva, and Valentine’s Day! Check it out HERE!
I have been trying ever since then to make a beef stew that is comparable. I have tried many recipes, some I have shared on here and some weren't worth sharing. All of them are good but none of them are the same.
This one is super good and the easiest stew recipe yet! You don't even brown the meat and yet the beef is tender and falls apart in your mouth. This is perfect for those colds days and snowy evenings. Enjoy!
Crock Pot Beef Stew
Adapted from Iowa Girl Eats
Servings: 8
1-1/2lbs stew meat, cut into bite sized pieces
1lb potatoes, chopped
1 cup mushrooms, cut into quarters
2 carrots, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, pressed
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
2 bay leaves
4 cups beef broth
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup frozen peas
Add flour to a bowl then add a ladleful of cooking liquid and whisk until smooth. Pour back into crock pot then stir well to combine and cook on high for 30-45 more minutes, or until broth has thickened.
Add peas then let sit until heated through, 5 minutes, before serving.
I missed putting out a new post last week. That rarely happens but I honestly had nothing to say. The after effects of the worst cold in history hit me hard and it took a full week to catch up with life. The only thing I did worth mentioning was go out with the Ladies for drinks. YogaBesty, HLBesty and PACBesty have been crazy busy for the past 5 months with College. I am so proud of them as they ALL passed their course and ALL of them got jobs right away! Even though I was still under the weather, after 3 months of planning, we all could get together on this 1 night and I needed to buy them each a drink and cheers to their hard work!
This week was the Snowmaggedon. It snowed all week which means Ninja and Dad were out shovelling… All week 😳
HBear participated in her 1st Curling Bonspiel! She loved it and can’t wait for the next one!
School is moving along and HBear turned in her science project on the skeletal system while SBean had her 100 days of school celebrations. She wanted nothing to do with dressing up like she was 100 though 😂
Ninja has been busy with Peach City Radio and he has been training his team to get his program, Speak Out, up and running.
This past week, we celebrated Valentine’s Day! The Girls got their annual Valentine's book and chocolate while Ninja got me gorgeous roses, chocolates and a Nintendo!!! He also dropped off a double cheeseburger and a candy to me at work ❤️. I got him a digital caricature of the 2 of us podcasting 😂.
Before lunch HBear’s, KBesty, who had moved to Calgary this past summer, came to pick HBear up for the rest of the weekend! It was wonderful to see them again and they had a great weekend together!
For the rest of the day we hung out inside and had a picnic lunch, did some play doh, and got ready for a nap. Then we did puzzles, had pizza for dinner, and more cuddles!
The next day, it was still freezing outside so we played Candyland, I gave SweetPea her very first bubblegum, CabbagePatch tricked me into a chocolate treat, more play doh, and then nap time. We had a relaxing evening and a wonderful bubble bath.
On Sunday they went to the Grandma Spa 😉 and got ready for the Snowflake Ball! Ninja was the most handsome date 😍. I ordered SBean a beautiful flower crown for the ball but she was having none of it LOL that girl is very particular in her sense of style 😂
The Snowflake Ball was a hit! Ninja and SBean had a great time!
Our flight home was good. HBear got pulled into security again because she tried bringing slime in her carry-on LOL but other than that we got to sit together, the skies were clear so we could see the beauty of the mountains, and when we got home we got to have a family hug!
This week was the Snowmaggedon. It snowed all week which means Ninja and Dad were out shovelling… All week 😳
HBear participated in her 1st Curling Bonspiel! She loved it and can’t wait for the next one!
School is moving along and HBear turned in her science project on the skeletal system while SBean had her 100 days of school celebrations. She wanted nothing to do with dressing up like she was 100 though 😂
Ninja has been busy with Peach City Radio and he has been training his team to get his program, Speak Out, up and running.
This past week, we celebrated Valentine’s Day! The Girls got their annual Valentine's book and chocolate while Ninja got me gorgeous roses, chocolates and a Nintendo!!! He also dropped off a double cheeseburger and a candy to me at work ❤️. I got him a digital caricature of the 2 of us podcasting 😂.
On Friday HBear and I caught our flight out to Calgary. Of course I forgot to check us in so we had to sit in different rows 😒 AND of course HBear was randomly selected for a full check at security 😒.
When we landed Sis and BIL took us out for an awesome Mexican dinner!
That evening we had a short visit with Sis and BIL before they took off for a romantic/relaxing weekend away.
The Girls and I woke up early, had breakfast, hung out with HBear and played games.
Before lunch HBear’s, KBesty, who had moved to Calgary this past summer, came to pick HBear up for the rest of the weekend! It was wonderful to see them again and they had a great weekend together!
For the rest of the day we hung out inside and had a picnic lunch, did some play doh, and got ready for a nap. Then we did puzzles, had pizza for dinner, and more cuddles!
The next day, it was still freezing outside so we played Candyland, I gave SweetPea her very first bubblegum, CabbagePatch tricked me into a chocolate treat, more play doh, and then nap time. We had a relaxing evening and a wonderful bubble bath.
While I was away Daddy made a yummy steak dinner, they went out for breakfast, had dinner at Grandpa and Grandma’s and SBean got a new LOL!
The Snowflake Ball was a hit! Ninja and SBean had a great time!
On my last day in Cochrane we had breakfast, played more games, and then said goodbye 😢. It was easier to say goodbye when I know I get to see them soon for spring break!
Our flight home was good. HBear got pulled into security again because she tried bringing slime in her carry-on LOL but other than that we got to sit together, the skies were clear so we could see the beauty of the mountains, and when we got home we got to have a family hug!
It was an amazing weekend full of memories and getting to know my Nieces so much better. Thank you so much Sis & BIL for allowing me to watch over your most treasured possessions 💛.
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