The Book Used to Teach Snider Children to Read

A recent post had this picture:

Two Cute Young Girls

Peeking out in the lower right corner is the book. That is the book used to launch 9 Snider children into the world of reading.

Link to Where We Bought It in 1990

Picture of the Day

Snider's in Arizona circa 1994

There are a few clues to this being taken when we lived in Phoenix.  The biggest clue is the lack of clothing, it is rarely warm enough in Eugene for all of us to be that sparsely dressed.

I love the looks on everyone's face.  Happy times.

Good Infographic on supplements

Yesterday I went to the dentist for a cleaning and they took my blood pressure. Once again it was high.  It's always high but this time it crossed my mind to maybe do something about it.  How that actually works is I ask Gina and she tells me what I should be doing.  I trust her completely in this area and know she recommend something practical and healthy.  While all that was going on in my head I recalled this chart..

Here is a description of the chart:

"This image is a “balloon race”. The higher a bubble, the greater the evidence for its effectiveness. But the supplements are only effective for the conditions listed inside the bubble.  

You might also see multiple bubbles for certain supplements. This is because some supplements affect a range of conditions, but the evidence quality varies from condition to condition. For example, there’s strong evidence that Green Tea is good for cholesterol levels. But evidence for its anti-cancer effects is conflicting. In these cases, we give a supp another bubble."

Link to the source : Snake Oil or Effective Supplement

Beards are Cool

As a long time beard wearer, I think they are always cool and in style. 

Link to original poster - Beards

A Picture from the Beginning - We are Blessed

We met at college in 1981. Here is the earliest picture of us together.

Scott & Gina 1982

This was taken the next year. Boy do we look young and thin.  Gina is still that thin but I am far from it.

Scott & Gina 1983

 A few years ago we took an anniversary trip to San Luis Obispo.  The city were we met.  While there we ran into an old friend - Eric.  He introduced Gina and I back in the Fall of 1981.  I will forever be thankful to Eric for that kindness

With Eric - The person who told Scott "You have to meet this girl"

Here we are last summer.  Still rejoicing and thanking God for each day we spend together.

Scott & Gina 2012

Oregon - Signs Things Are Looking Up

Oregon is an amazing place to live, and it seems more people are discovering it.  I hope many generations of Sniders have the benefit of living here.

One of my favorite places - Heceta Head

This recent article in Forbes gives a rundown on the places people are fleeing, and why they are moving to greener pastures. As you might expect people are leaving the rust belt and Northeast for the sunny places - South and Southwest.  One thing you may not expect:

"One big surprise from the study is Oregon, which is the second most popular state with 61% inbound migration. Although it’s not the typical temperate climate of a retirement spot, Stoll believes hipster city Portland may be attracting both older individuals and young people with its mix of economic growth, cutting edge urban planning and scenic landscape."

Some statistics about Oregon.  A great place to live and work.

Picture of the Day

This is a fun picture.  Everyone seems so happy with the exception of the youngest child  - Abe. There is a companion picture to this one that has Abe removed because he was fussing too much!
I'm not sure where this was taken. We were living in Eugene because Abe is in the picture and he was born after we moved to Oregon.  I don't recognize the couch or the room.
Does anyone know?....
Update - The picture was taken in Phoenix, while we were visiting my parents.  The couch is in their beautiful home.

Wine Buying Tip #1

I enjoy wine and I really enjoy finding a good wine for an inexpensive price. My price classification:

• $15 - $20 - No more than once a month on my budget
• $10 - $15 - Once a week at the most.  I tend to stay in the under $12 range
• $5 - $9.99 - Everyday drinking

Defining a good wine is more difficult because everyone has their own taste.  But if I am pushed against the wall, this list is a good starting point. (from a post on Blog Your Wine ) 

To me, a good wine” must satisfy 5 primary points (listed in order of importance):

• A price that, when compared to the taste, would have lead you to believe it could/should be more expensive. 

• An element of “excitement” and “complexity” that almost urges you to take another sip.

• A balance of fruit and savory notes (or primary and secondary elements, as I like to call them).

• An elegant and fairly extensive finish.

• A “sense of place” i.e. it tastes like where it comes from (a Chianti that tastes like a Chianti, not like a Napa Cabernet)

There are also some wine importers that do a fantastic job selecting wine.  They go to the growers, taste the various barrels of wine and select only those that meet their quality level. Once you find an importer you trust, you have gone a long way toward unraveling the mystery of how to select a wine from the wall of wine you encounter at the store.

Two importers I trust completely.

1. Kermit Lynch -  He has never steered my wrong.  For my palette, any of his wines is fantastic.  His wine is not always cheap but it is always spot on. Here is what his artwork looks like. 

2. Jorge Ordonez - A wonderful selection of Spanish wines.  Spain is a great place for value wines.  His artwork looks like :

We All See Couples Like This

We see this couple when we go to a restaurant. The couple eating together but not saying a word to each other. Each living in their own bubble  You look at them and think, I don't ever want to become that.  Existing together but not living joyfully together.

This touching, Oscar nominated, short film touches on that theme.  Well worth the 10 minutes watch.

HT: Tim Challies Blog 

"This is a fantastic short film with a great message. “After many years of marriage, Walter and Madge have grown apart: he lives on the floor and she lives on the ceiling. They live separate, parallel lives, never talking, barely even looking at each other. When Walter tries to reignite their old romance, it brings their equilibrium crashing down, and the couple that can’t agree which way is up must find a way to put their marriage back together."

Picture of the Day - Abraham

Dad helping Abraham out in a time of need.

Different Cups

 Seeing this picture makes me smile. It gives me a happy feeling.  

Does that seem a little strange?  It is just a picture of cups on our kitchen counter.  Yes that is true but it means more than that.  Each cup is different and belongs to one our our kids.  We started this tradition when the kids were little. To keep the dish washing load down, everybody had a different color glass.  It was washed in the evening wash (unless it got dirty for some reason).  Now it is fun to buy a new cup for the married in kids.  It means you are a Snider - part of the big, messy, fun family.

Happy Birthday Gina

Gina turned 53 on February 1.  Here she is getting ready to blow out candles on her vegan blueberry pie.  When we first met in 1981 she was vegetarian and now she is back to that diet except this time vegan.

I'm thankful everyday that we are married. She is amazing.

 She did blow them all out on the first try.

How to Repair Anything

Maple Syrup Recipe

 

As promised in my pancake recipe post - here is my maple syrup recipe.  I found this in the More-With-Less Cookbook.  Over the years I gradually decreased the amount of sugar to eliminate the problem of sugar precipitating out after sitting in the refrigerator.  I love sugar as much as the next guy but figure if it is precipitating out  it is wasteful and reducing the amount won't affect the taste.

Warning - once you try this you will never want to go back to Mrs. Butterworths! 
And I loved that stuff when I was a kid.


Recipe

3 - Cups Water
1 - Cup Brown Sugar
4 - Cups White Sugar
1 1/2 -  tsp Maple Flavor
1 1/2 -  tsp vanilla

• Measure water into sauce pan
• Measure sugar (white and brown) into sauce pan
• Stir
• Turn heat on high and bring to boil

Boiling Maple Syrup

• Turn heat to Low
• Cover for 1 minute - Time is not critical just want to make sure all the sugar is dissolved   Sometimes I don't cover the pan and just let it boil.  
• Remove from heat and let cool for a couple minutes
• Measure vanilla and pour into pan
• Measure Maple Flavor and pour into pan.
• Stir

Here is our beloved syrup container - an old peanut butter jar

Our Beloved Syrup Container

Now your ready enjoy!

Peter (and Hanni) In Blueberry Land

Look at these two.

Gina took this as Peter and Hanni headed to bed.  They just finished watching Phineas and Ferb while munching on a frozen blueberries they picked last summer. Hanni's right hand was almost entirely blue from pulling berries out of the bag.

A great children's book inspired the title of this post - 

All our kids enjoyed this book and Autumn reads it to the children she babysits.Guaranteed to please!

Pancake Day - A recipe

In honor of National Pancake Day I present my own recipe.

Almost every Saturday morning I get up and make pancakes for everyone. I estimate that on more than 90% of the Saturdays since 1990 I have cooked up pancakes.  That would be 1076 pancake mornings.  So this recipe has been field tested and changed through the years.

A couple notes about this recipe.  I only use whole wheat flour and we grind our own flour.  I realize that is a little hard core but once you meet Gina you will understand.  I grew up with Bisquick pancakes and it took me awhile to appreciate the whole wheat flavor. Now, I would never go back to the bland tasting Bisquick.  Whole Wheat All the Way for me.

Recipe:

Dry Ingredients
4 cups whole wheat flour - I prefer to mix half pastry flour and half bread floor.  Their is real division in our family over this mixture but this half and half is ok with everyone
4 tsp of baking powder
2 tsp salt
2 Tbs of Brown Sugar

Wet Ingredients
4 Eggs
3 1/2 cups Milk
1/2 cup plain Yogurt (If you have Orange Yogurt use that - it really cuts down on the bitter flavor of whole wheat that bothers newbie whole wheat eaters)  You can skip the yogurt and use more milk if you don't have the yogurt available
4 Tbs of Butter

Directions:

1. Measure out 4 level cups of flour into a large mixing bowl.  For best results whisk the flour before measuring. You want some air in the flour
2. Measure out the baking powder, salt and brown sugar into the mixing bowls.
3. Whisk all dry ingredients together well.
4. Heat up your skillet now and melt the butter in the skillet.  While the butter is melting.
5. In a separate bowl measure out the milk. (Actually I use a very large measuring cup to mix all the wet ingredients.
6. Mix the eggs yogurt and milk together.  When butter is melted add to liquid and mix well.
7. Pour wet ingredients into dry mixture.  
8. Mix only until their are now more dry ingredients.  Lumps are good but not huge lumps. It should be runny not thick.  The batter will thicken up as it sits
9. Let mixture set for 15 minutes before using.  Bubbles will form on the surface.
10. Now you are ready to cook.
11. Enjoy

I also make my own maple syrup. 

Old Photographs #2

Sisters -  Ellie was so happy to have a sister to share life with.  Here she is holding Autumn.  Autumn is young in this one, she can't hold her head up. 

Here are they are a few years later.  Autumn is so happy and Ellie looks like she just did something wrong.  I also see the Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons on the couch.

Looks like Luke did something wrong but this is his typical look.  I think he is holding Elspeth.

If only Abe was still this happy when the cat was sitting on his lap.

A couple really rare sites.  First Babbo. He is with Silas in this one.

Add caption

And Scott with no beard and only two kids. 

Family portrait taken in Phoenix.  We never had money for portraits. This one was taken right after Luke's birth.  The occasion was the church directory.

Taken on one of the most beautiful days I've experienced on the Oregon Coast.  Short sleeves and you can see forever.

Conviction or Condemnation

Mars Hill Church in Seattle puts out some great information.  I ran across this today and it caught my attention.  Recently a young married man and I were talking about this subject.  It would've been great to have this available to help explain the difference between Conviction and Condemnation.

The Link ==> Conviction vs Condemnation