Wonder Oven Magic

I took a class at church a few months ago and was amazed.

It was a cooking class. The bread was moist and delicious.

The instructions spotty.

My desire to learn--high.

I came home with a pattern and a few website addresses.

I eventually gathered my tools:
left over fabric
a bean bag chair
locking top large plastic storage bin
large stock pot that would fit...
...3 metal juice cans

The pattern, though strange looking, sewed up surprisingly easy.

I laid out a sheet and filled up the two odd shaped pillows with the beans from the chair.

When they were just full enough I put them in the storage bin.

And then I started cooking.

Mix up the bread as usual, place dough in the cans and let rise a bit in the stock pot filled half way with warm water, cover and secure each can and turn up the heat. Put the lid on the stock pot and tie in place while letting it boil for 10 minutes. Transfer to Wonder Oven and let set for 2 or more hours.

Delicious hot, moist bread that will melt in your mouth, never overdone.

The same directions for soup or stew. Fill the pot with soup ingredients, boil for 10 minutes with lid on pot. Place in wonder oven and leave for 2 or more hours--hot dinner when you are ready.

Today I am painting, but I am not worried, dinner is in the Magic Wonder Oven doing it's thing waiting for dinnertime. I may be a dirty mess, but a hot delicious home cooked dinner will be ready when we are.

15 minutes on the stove and a roast, 3 loaves of bread or a large pot of stew is hot and ready to go when needed--from 2 to 6 hours later--no more fuel needed.

Perfect for camping.

Perfect for a busy day.

Perfect for a hot summer afternoon.

I am still learning, but I have experimented enough to know that magic comes from this wonderful box sitting in my kitchen.

I may live in the modern age but there is still quite a lot I can learn from my pioneer forebears. They got up in the morning and prepared for the day's travel by putting a hot pot in the hay box so dinner would be ready to eat when they stopped for the night.

I have a magic box and wonderful things appear when you open the lid.

Family Home Evening

Last night we were invited to share Family Home Evening with my son and daughter in law. They live on the other side of the city and we do not get to explore that side of town very often.

We went and had the most delicious and inexpensive sno cones at a little place called Pelicans. The line was long but went quickly, I guess everyone in that part of town knows what a great deal it is. On this side of town we have a little drive through from the same company, but it is NOT crowded. I guess the word has not yet spread about the delicious great deal that is right here under our lips.

Before our sno cone treat we had a summer favorite--a hot dog cook out. Our lesson was based on the scripture of the candle and the basket--hiding ourselves or talents under a bushel. As the evening progressed we continued that discussion about choices and consequences and I started thinking about my nephew that I am so proud of.

My nephew made some poor choices in high school and continued on that path for a few years after. So bad were his choices that one day we saw his face and name on America's Most Wanted. He had chosen some friends that were not a good influence, and opportunities to change his friends and actions were ignored. It was a sad time for our whole family. He was raised well and had loving parents, he just made some youthful poor choices with powerful consequences.

After the last giant episode was worked through he finally realized that he needed to change friends and to make good choices every day. The whole misunderstanding was because of the friends he kept and it cost him greatly. He made a giant step backward toward his youth and upbringing. He made new friends, moved and changed his employment. Eventually he met a wonderful girl and last year they were married. He now has a good job and a wonderful outlook. His whole countenance has changed. I am VERY PROUD of him. He is a happy man and I am happy for him.

I am so thankful for the opportunity of each new day and the chance to make new choices. Sometimes hiding our talents under a bushel is the poor choices we make and taking the basket off of our head and starting to think clearly is the result of major consequences for poor choices and a blessing in disguise.

Life is one round after another of choices and consequences with the opportunity to learn. Each new day is another chance to try again to make choices that make us happy.

The sun is shining today, there are chores to be done, grand babies to kiss and choices to be made--I hope I choose wisely.

It was a great Family Home Evening--Thank You