Snippets

Today we, as promised last Fall, went to a local Big Cat rescue, where the following conversation took place. (as posted to Facebook).

At Turpentine Creek Wildlife refuge:
Me: What do think that tiger is thinking about?
Elijah: He's thinking about eating me.                                     

Inspired by our Mennonite friends, I have ordered some proper headcoverings, hand-made steel hair pins, and a catalog from GVS in MO. Not willing to wait, however, Taryn managed to make my hair into a bun today and it stayed up all afternoon. I put Nayysha's up yesterday, and it stayed up 2 days.  fun!

I've also ordered replacement chicks, to come in March, ants for Ced's ant farm, and some seeds and plants for the garden.

We've all had a bit of cold, so there is a good deal of coughing and throat-clearing going on. Daniel has decided that is a means of communication and will deliver a very fake, very dry cough throughout the day as needed.  He has also started making noises by patting his hand against his mouth, and love it when we do the same back to him. And he sucks his own toes, and bites as a way of showing displeasure. One trick that drives Taryn batty is that he tries to roll over while he is being held. I finally figured out that he's simply trying to move or improve his view (because that's how he does it when he's on the floor), but it makes for some awkward positions in our arms.

And finally, my new-favorite Teriyaki sauce:

Bring 2/3 c Aji Mirin (Japanese sweet rice wine) to a boil; simmer for 10 minutes.  Add: 4 1/2 tsp rice vinegar, 1 tsp sesame oil, 1/3 c white sugar, 7 cloves garlic (minced), 1 T minced fresh ginger, a dash crushed red pepper flakes, and black pepper to taste. Simmer 5 minutes. Cool and use as a marinade or as desired. (when I made this I was almost out of wine, so only had 1/2 c, and didn't have any rice vinegar at all - I don't remember if I substituted regular vinegar or just left it out) This is wonderful!