Kaake Family Blog

  I combined a few recipes I've seen online to make this lovely dish.   There were a few criteria that I needed to hit for this specific recipe.  1. It had to be fast.   2. It had to be easy. 3. It had to be tasty. My Lyme disease is kicking my butt.  My brain fog has been at an all time high and my energy has been at an all time low.  While not vegan myself, I do eat many vegetarian or vegan meals per week.  It's good for my overall health as well as my heart health.  I was up one night craving some good vegan food but my favorite vegan restaurant wasn't open.  So...this was born.  I hope you enjoy it.  It took me under 10 minutes to put this together. Vegan Broccoli, Rice and Cashews with a Spicy Nut Butter Sauce Serves 2 Ingredients: 1 package microwavable pre-cooked brown rice 1 cup fresh or frozen broccoli, chopped handful cashews, raw or roasted, salted or unsalted - your preference salt Spicy Nut Butter Sauce Ingredients: 1/4 cup nut butter 1 teaspoon minced garlic 1

I have been making monthly posts on facebook with book recommendations.  But...when I came to the month I'd be posting about my favorite kids books I couldn't narrow it down to just a couple.  So, how about a blog post.  I won't get too chatty.  Below are great books for boys, and girls, young and old.  Enjoy!  Please tell me what your favorite children's books are in the comments.  I'd love to add more to our personal reading list. Early Readers/elementary: Caps for sale The giving tree Pete the cat Catbug The boy who gave his lunch away The Little Engine that Could Curious George Winnie the Pooh Beatrix Potter books Serenity books Ivy Cottage by E.J. Taylor The jacket I wear In the snow How groundhogs garden grew Stone soup The boy that cried wolf The jingle in my pocket Heidi Little house on the prairie The wild robot The Lion, the witch and the wardrobe Mandie and the secret tunnel My Fathers dragon. Pinocchio The prince and the pauper Dragons - lege

A couple days ago I had enough energy to do some cleaning in the basement.  Oh that dark hole in the ground that I almost never enter for various reasons.  It holds many things; some of which include my memories in print as well as items.  The reason for the clean out; I figured it would be easier if I separated my husbands belongings in one area of the basement, and mine in another.  That way we could much more easily access what we wanted.This kind of cleaning and reorganizing is bittersweet.  I am the spouse who doesn’t just like but needs order.  Everything has a place and when something is not in that place my anxiety rises.  I don’t do well in anything remotely resembling chaos when it comes to possessions.  So, in walking down the steps to our dungeon I knew it may be hard in some ways but when it was all said and done, I’d be happy.  I’d feel a burden lift.  And lifting it certainly did; but in ways I didn’t expect. If you have a space like this you share with a

                                                  Here we are trying the last 3 burgers on the menu.  It's kinda sad we're almost done.  Maybe we should move onto the salads and other items?  My friends Tonya and Stephanie (different Stephanie this time) met me for lunch.  I tell you what, aside from the food it's so nice to have good company,  and that they are!  We laugh, get weepy (ok that's me), listen, give advice, talk about God.  It's SO good! Anyway you're here for the reviews so here we go.   First up is the Our Burger.  We told Stephanie we only had 3 burgers left and I wasn't ordering the Impossible Burger so she only really had 2 to choose from if she wanted in on the sharing action.  lol!  She chose the Our Burger which is "1/3 lb burger, lettuce, tomato, onion, government cheese, Paul's housemade signature Wahl Sauce, & pickles."    Again with the toasted bun - this is something this restaurant does that is so, so good!  Th

As a little girl my first trip to the library was like a dream.   I love books and the fact that there was a place with more books than I could fit in my bedroom was so exciting!   My first library experience was in 2nd grade in public school.   At first I was so overwhelmed I didn’t know where to start.  But over time I found some of my favorite books.  My first memory of books I was very into in 2nd grade was The Littles.  They were little people (I was always the smallest in my class), and they did fun and extraordinary things.   From there I read Mandie books, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Hobbit, Nancy Drew, Trixie Beldon and so many more.   I was whisked on adventure after adventure in the safety of my bedroom.  33 years later and here I am reading more than ever.   Fact - did you know 95% of kids in my sons class have never been to a local library? Fact - 1 in 4 children in America grow up without learning how to read.    I could list so many more facts but at t

We use amazon a lot here.  Being sick every day of my life, amazon makes it so much easier to shop whether it's for me, my family or for gifts.  I love watching youtube videos of other people's favorite items, so that gave me an idea.  Why not do a blog post of mine!  Rubbermaid Modular Food Storage Cereal Container with Flip Top .  This is the perfect size to fit large boxes of cereal in.  I've had my first one for years but just ended up getting a second one because we love it so much!  No more stale cereal!    Nissin Chicken Ramen Noodle - I saw these on a youtube video and had to get them for my kids.  You need a large bowl to make these in, in order to put all the water recommended in it.  We also added some vegetables and topped with sriracha.  My boys said these were the best ever.  I thought they were good but not "the best".   Sistema To Go Collection 1.18 oz. Salad Dressing Containers .  These have worked great for my boys lunches!  I needed somet