Imagine Childhood : Magic & Memories That Last a Lifetime

... tell me a story: halloween stories for all

Today is the day, we hope you are ready! Ghosts and goblins, fairy princesses and scary witches abound, it's Halloween! But before the epic trick-or-treating begins we pulled together a few of our favorite stories, just perfect for the day:

Merlina: Poor Merlina just can't seem to get the spell to help her friend right, and the adventure they go on to find a solution is fun and sweet, proving that sometimes the simplest answer is the best one. Autumn is full of colorful magic, and so is the story of Merlina and the Magic Spell, written and illustrated by Daniela Drescher.

Zen Ghosts: The crunch of fallen leaves, crisp cool weather, the warm glow of Jack-o-lanterns all mean one thing, Halloween. And nothing goes better with Halloween, then a good ghost story. Zen Ghosts by Jon J Muth is just that. Part fun and whimsy, part mystery and suspense, Zen Ghosts gets the goosebumps going while keeping the scary dreams at bay. 

Shadow: Sometimes, when just the right amount of light hits a vacuum cleaner, it can transform in to elephant...shadows are a magical thing that transform ordinary objects into a wild world of adventure and curiosity in this picture book by Suzy Lee.

Where the Wild Things Are: In this Caldecott Medal winner. Max, a wild and naughty boy, is sent to bed without his supper by his exhausted mother. In his room, he imagines sailing far away to a land of Wild Things. Instead of eating him, the Wild Things make Max their king. This special commemorative edition celebrates 40 years of Sendak's classic tale.

The Dark: For all those little ones who find the dark just a little bit scary, and for big kids too.... what if the dark meant more than the absence of light? What if the dark were someone? Laszlo, dressed in blue footie pajamas, his hair precisely parted, is afraid of the dark, and thinks precisely that. For Laszlo the dark mostly lives in the basement, but one night, when his night-light fails, it arrives in Laszlo’s room. Filled with wonderful illustrations and delightfully spooky narrative, The Dark is the perfect bedtime read.

 

From our family to yours, we wish a you all a safe and very Happy Halloween!

 

~ Jordan

 

* Last time in Books and Stories: Dragon Feathers

... barn stories: spooky morning

This morning was a reminder, that All Hollows Eve is just around the corner. The farm was cloaked in fog, the mountains, the barn and the horses outside were all invisible.

All that my senses could retrieve, was the howling of a pack of Coyotes close by, and the flap of a owl's wing just over my head as I entered the barnyard. It was a little bit spooky. I wondered how the horses in the paddock felt, they could barely see each other!

The moon was a sliver not shedding much light, but gleaming through the moisture of the fog. All was clear and bright when looking straight above.

As I approached the barn, I could hear the rattling of the door, that was a little bit spooky too!  It was Sky inside bumping the door with her nose, I didn't think she could reach the door from her stall, her neck stretches much longer than I thought. I think she might have known this morning was different from inside the barn.

When I got back up to the house, and looked at the pictures I had just taken, this was was the first to greet me.  A glitch in my camera made ghostly a photo of Flo, fitting all the spooky pieces of my morning together just right.

 

To just a little bit of spookiness, and a lot of fun... Happy All Hollows Eve!

 

~ Deb

 

* Last time in Barn Stories: Harvest Time

... for the love of mac-n-cheese

Yesterday was one of those rainy, cold, and gloomy fall days. The kind that make you want to cuddle up in bed and never leave. For the first few minutes after my alarm went off I seriously considered it, and then I thought of something else, something just as warm and comforting...



... a classic, with a smokey, green twist...



... and a family trick...



...layered and mixed, then baked to oohey, gooey, cheesy perfection.

Yep, on a day like yesterday (and today too) only the best Mac-n-Cheese will do.

My Mom always made the best mac-n-cheese. The homemade, from scratch, bechamel sauce, heavenly kind. And then she went and made it better by mixing the noodles and cheese together, and then adding the bechamel sauce at the end. This somehow kept the stringy, gooey, awesome cheesy-ness intact, and I loved it! So that's where the base of this recipe comes from, from Mom, and from love... here goes!

The base: 1 lb parboiled noodles (of your choice), 2-3 cups shredded white or yellow cheddar, bechamel sauce (I subtract the onions, and I add a 1/4 tea. of freshly grated nutmeg), baked until its hot and bubbling, and awesome.

The above base recipe is great for kids, it's simple and easy, and enough to make everyone happy. I wanted to be more than happy. So I added these lovely ingredients:

- 1-2 bunches kale (2 if the bunches are small), centers removed, finely chopped

- 1 onion, finely chopped

- 4 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled.

- 3 cheeses: 2 cups Sharp White Cheddar,1 cup  Asiago, 1/2 cup Pecorino Ramano (but honestly, add as much cheese as you deem fit!)

- 1 1/2 cups Panko Bread Crumbs

Once I had grated my cheeses, and parboiled my noodles I cooked the bacon, removed it from the pan and set it aside. Then I added my onions to the same pan (can't waste good bacon grease!) and sauteed them on medium-low until they caramelized, about 12-15 min, removed them from the pan and set them aside. Next I added a bit of olive oil to the same pan and sauteed the Kale over medium heat until cooked through. Then I browned the bread crumbs in the pan. Once everything was set aside, I set to making the bechamel sauce (remember, no onions and add 1/4 tea. freshly grated nutmeg). Now that I had all my add-on's, it was time to assemble. This got a little messy, and I probably could have done this part better, but I was too far along when I realized it, woops!

I buttered my baking dishes, one bigger for the loaded mac-n-cheese (9" x 9"), and one little one for the original version (super kid friendly). Next I added a layer of noodles, then a layer of cheese, then onions, then kale, and finally the bacon. Then more noodles and more cheese. This is where it got messy, mixing it all together and keeping it in the baking pan. I suppose you could have done this in a large bowl and then add it to the pan, but again, that did not occur to me, so I made a mess. And it got a little messier when I poured the bechamel sauce over the top and slowly worked it into the noodle mixture with a wooden spoon. (Yes, this could all be done in a large mixing bowl, but this was more fun). Once everything was evenly mixed I dusted the top with 1 cup of the bread crumbs for the big dish and 1/2 a cup for the small, added some more cheese for good measure and popped it in the oven at 350 degrees F, until everything was melted and bubbling (about 35 minutes).

The result was better than I could have hoped for, it was completely satisfying, and completely perfect for the dreary fall day.

With the Kids: Invite the kids to pick their favorite cheese. Talk about what the word aldente (Italian for "toothsome, or "to the bite") means so they can tell when the noodles need to be drained. Pick out one extra ingredient to add to the kids mac-n-cheese. Have the kids mix all the ingredients together in a large mixing bowl, if it gets messy, laugh it off! Have fun sitting together, while everyone enjoys the same meal, made their way.

 

 Enjoy!

 

~ Jordan

 

* Last time in Recipes: Six Homemade Halloween Treats

. . . nature walk: torres del paine, chilean patagonia

This week's Nature Walk comes to us all the way from breathtaking Torres Del Paine National Park in Chilean Patagonia. There, Allison and her family explored the hills, valleys, and icebergs and met a few beautiful animals along the way. Thank you so much Allison for sharing your wonderful trip with us!

If you would like to contribute to our weekly Nature Walk series, you can learn more about submitting photos here, or you can also visit our Nature Walk Group Pool on Flickr to add your adventures to the collection.

Thanks again Allison for sharing!

*Last time in Nature Walks: Jenner, CA

...weekend zen

xox

~ i.c.