Hamburgers - Secret 3 Meat Recipe

Hamburgers - The American Meal.  Come on Dad you need to have a special hamburger recipe or least one that only you take the time to mix up and grill outside.  This one is not for cooking inside, this is an outside on the grill only recipe.

I stole this idea from an article about meatloaf. The experts say that the best meatloaf combines three different meats.  I don't recall all the  reasons and I don't want to search for the article.  You can do that if you want.  Maybe sometime later I will search and update this article with the link.

Anyway, after making these burgers many times here is my recipe:

4 lbs ground meat

1/2 lb of ground lamb*

1/2 lb of ground pork

• Mix the meat together in a large bowl and use your hands.  Your kids will want to do the mixing for your.  I suggest you let them.  It is fun for them and cleaner for you
• Weigh out 1/3 lbs (5.3 ounces) of meat and roll into a ball. Weigh meat on a scale.
• Gently mash round blob of meat into a patty. I place the blob on a small plate and mash with my palm
• Place patties on a tray.  I separate the layers of patties with plastic wrap.
• Store in refrigerator until ready for use.
• Grill over medium heat until they are at your preferred doneness (my word)
• Add cheese for a minute or less at the end of grilling

Hanni helping to weigh the meat, while I mash into patties

Giving Instructions to the Cameraman

Making hamburgers is serious business

First layer down and stretch wrap applied

*Note - Lamb is expensive so I sometimes cut the amount to 1/4 lb and increase the pork to 3/4 lb.

Sheep in a Jeep - A Review

We love books.  We love reading and reading to our kids.  Every Saturday I take the kids to the library to check out another stash of books.  Most weeks we even return the books we checked out the previous week. (The next wing of the library may be funded by the fines I've paid)

This is the first of what I hope is a regular review of books.  Here the checklist  to make the Snider approved book list:

• It was enjoyed at some point by all nine children
• Scott and Gina enjoyed reading it to the kids numerous times without going crazy.  

It also helps if:

• Scott or Gina enjoyed it as a child and passed on the love to our own kids
• One of the kids loved it enough they purchased it for their own child/niece/nephew

So the honor of the first book review goes to --- Sheep in a Jeep by Nancy Shaw.

My grandson, Ezekiel, turned one this week and his Aunt Autumn bought this board book for him. When it was opened everyone said, "Oh, I loved that book".  

Sheep in a Jeep is a fun rhyming book with colorful pictures.  Five sheep climb into a jeep and take a wild ride down a hill.  I would read it at various paces and use funny voices.  It is a go to book if you are looking for short bedtime story.

The Girls

An earlier post explained our nicknames for the various grouping of our kids.  Here is a picture of the the girls - Elspeth and Autumn in all their cuteness.

First Birthday

I've lived long enough to father nine kids and just started being a grandpa a couple years ago.  Yesterday was this little guys birthday.

Happy Birthday Zeke!

Ezekiel Snider - 1 Year Old

Sleeping so peacefully. I can't wait for him to wake up so we can play.

Snider Rule #3 - Let's Have a Food Fight - No Thanks!

How to Ruin a Good Meal

My favorite time of the day ==> eating dinner with family and friends.  Lingering for over an hour eating, talking, discussing, sharing, and laughing. Time spent with people while sharing food is refreshing physically, emotionally and spiritually.

On the really good days, a wonderful aroma is lingering in the front yard and I catch it as soon as open the car door.  The sun is still up, the sky is blue and it is almost dinner time.  I'm getting hungry just typing this.

One thing that detracts from a pleasant meal is grumbling at the table.  It brings everyone down and deflates the person who spent time preparing the meal.  On the very rare occasion that Gina is too sick to cook, I can get apprehensive about planning a meal that everyone will like.  Back in the day with 11 people being fed each evening it was impossible to please everyone every night.  Most nights there was at least one person who wasn't going to enjoy the food as much as the rest of us.

Here is how Gina solved much of the angst and conflict around meals and children who could be picky eaters:

• Only prepare one meal that is shared by everyone
• You must taste every item on your plate. We want to develop an openness to new foods. Plus you learn that your taste change over time. What you once hated, you may enjoy when you get older.
• Only eat what you want and how much you want.  This is the number one way to avoid conflict at the table. With all our kids we rarely had any leftovers.
• Prepare a much loved dessert on nights we are testing a new recipe or it is challenging meal for several kids.  Gina was careful to put reasonable portions on the kids plate.  If she knew it was something they didn't like the portion would be small.  They had to finish their entire meal (or receive special grace) to get dessert.  This was an amazing way to motivate people to try something new.
• You don't have to eat anything you paid for!  Ok, ok I know what you are thinking but it was accepted by everyone. This was a special rule I came up with on the spur of the moment when being questioned by the kids about why my plate didn't have every item on it. I didn't use it very often but there are a couple things I hate, so I pulled rank on the kids.

I can't wait for dinner tonight!

Unsolicited Parenting Advice #1 - Get Off the Couch

It is always best to wait for someone to ask for advice before giving it. When I humble myself to ask for advice, it means I will listen.  

I'm gong to break that rule and tell you something that helped me be a better dad.  I don't remember who encouraged me in this but here it is...

Get off the couch.

• Get off the couch and go to your kids the next time you hear them arguing.  Don't call them over to you just get up and calmly walk over.
• Get off the couch and walk over to your wife and give her a hug.  Don't make her stop what she is working on and walk over to you.
• Get off the couch and get on the floor with your young children instead of sitting them next to you on the couch.
• Get off the couch and kick the ball around with your kids.

I was amazed at the difference it made in family relationships and it was good for my health at the same time.

Ok, I feel better now. That's off my chest.  I just get this way sometimes.

Tool of the Year 2012

All our kids share the same bathroom. When all 9 were living here it was a little crowded. Just imagine for a moment 9 people figuring out the shower schedule.  There was never a dull moment in the main hall and the negotiations could get heated.

One result of so many showers (besides a high electric bill for heating the water) - clogged drain.

This tool has saved me $100's . You need one of these!  It cost about $15.

Earlier this week I had a drain problem and got to rent this bad boy! ($50 for 4 hours)

It was fun and easy to use but it didn't solve the problem. So I bought a nicer version of my trusty hand powered unit.  I upgraded to the $30 model.

Trust me you need one of these.  You can thank me later.

Plumbing as a Family Project

Saturday night I decided it was time to tackle a long neglected project (there is more than one of those on my list).  The slow flowing kitchen cold water faucet needed to be repaired.  Actually, it needed to be fixed 5+ years ago. This was THAT project, you know the one you keep putting off because you just know it will take far longer and far more patience than you have at any given moment.  This was guaranteed to take at least 2 trips to the hardware store.

For some unknown reason, Saturday night was the night I started working. After spending over an hour wrestling with it I gave up discouraged. I mean beaten!  Two visits to the store and nowhere close to getting it done.  The only things accomplished was an inoperable faucet in the kitchen. Gina was relegated to getting water from the laundry room sink.

The next day I spent three or more hours getting it fixed.  I decided to have a good attitude and take a few pictures along the way.  

The first couple pictures tell you this is not good. Anytime a sawzall is required fro a plumbing project you are in big trouble.  I spoke with an experienced plumber and he told me sometimes that is the only way to get the old plumbing off.

Hanni and the Sawzall

Peter helping to saw off the old plumbing

Peter climbing under the sink to check things out

The new faucet is in place and running so much better.  Everyone is thankful it is finally working right.
What I learned:

• My wife is very patient to wait so long to get this project done
• I should have started this a few years ago. It wasn't that bad.
• I get less discouraged and frustrated if I make the project fun and include the kids.

I need to take a picture of the new faucet and add to the end of this post!

The Boys, The Girls, The Littles

We are not a normal family. That is not something we celebrate or aspired to.  It just happened. The fact we have nine kids is just the tip of the iceberg of our atypicality (a new word).  One part of our family culture is giving group names to sets of our children. 

The Boys - Silas, Paul, Nathan, and Luke 

The oldest four.  We started saying this after just the Paul was born.

The Girls - Ellie and Autumn

So stunned to have girls they were promptly named this to distinguish them from The Boys.

The Littles - Abe, Peter and Hanni

They aren't real fond of this name but of course the older siblings call them this all the time.

These pictures started me thinking about The Boys:

The Boys 2013 - Luke's Wedding

These guys spent hours upon hours playing together.  It is heart warming to seem them interact as adults.  After a few years of becoming individuals and adults they are once again able to hang out together and have fun.

Being a parent is hard work but these pictures show a little of the reward.

Yes, We Spent a Week's Vacation in Arkansas!

We kicked off the 2013 summer fun with a trip to Arkansas.  Here we are getting ready to leave for Portland.  We left Wednesday afternoon because our plane left PDX at 5:45 am.  That is early for this crew.

Everyone looks happy except that Abe doesn't want to be hugged by Peter.  Autumn already has her sunglasses on even though she has a sweatshirt on.

If you are wondering why would anyone go to Arkansas for vacation, perhaps this picture helps explain. My parents live in Hot Springs Village - a gated retirement city.  Their house is on a beautiful lake and it is like visiting an upscale resort.  

View from Balboa Lake looking at my parent's backyard

Here is another picture taken from the boat but a little further away.

Ellie and Jer were able to join us for a few days before they headed back to Mississippi.  They had just spent 2+ weeks storm chasing in the Midwest. Ellie is pregnant and was craving strange food during the enitre time.  So here is a picture of where she liked to spend time. The dinner table. Just kidding.

  
Before they left town we took a few pictures.

  
With that beautiful lake right outside the door we spent as much time on the water as possible.  Here are a few more pictures.

Getting Ready, Life Preservers

Couldn't go on the boat without a checking phone first

Hanni and Dad getting ready

Grandpa patiently driving the boat

Getting Pulled around

Autumn and Ellie - We had to go slow because of the baby

Abe and Pete getting ready

Being a Dad has Changed from the '60's

My experience growing up in the 60's and 70's definitely backs up this infographic.  I have very few memories of my Dad being around. Dad's spending more time with their children is a good thing.  Dad's spending time with their children and teaching them Jesus loves them by their words and actions is the best.

Dad Duty Changing with the Times (via Visual.ly)

Parent's Don't Know What Happens When They Sleep

Last week was vacation week.  We jumped in a plane and traveled far away to a place far different than Oregon. Gina, Autumn, Hanni, Peter, Abe and I enjoyed Arkansas and my parents.  

This is the view from my parent's back deck:

That is indeed a beautiful lake.  What you don't see is the boat dock just off to the right that houses the boat we can take out anytime we want.  Staying with my parents is like staying in a nice resort.  

On the trip back to Oregon, I fell asleep.  I always fall asleep when flying.  There is just something soothing and I can't stop myself.  On the long leg of the trip, I had the pleasure of sitting next to this fine young lady.  

As I lay peacefully asleep, that innocent looking travel partner grabbed my Nexus 7 tablet and took a few pictures.  I didn't see these until a couple days after arriving home.

Hanni has a knack for capturing me at my best.

Doesn't she look satisfied with herself.  I'm just glad my beard hides drool!

Here is another one of me passed out!

The Lesson:  Your kids are capable of things you never imagined.  Just expect the unexpected and enjoy them!  I always think my kids are more innocent and serious than they really are. And I underestimate their capability to accomplish both constructive and silly things.