Baking bread and an unfortunate hand

I made bread from scratch yesterday! I'd been following Amanda's adventures in bread and this recipe finally made me tell myself, yes, you can at least try this.

There was a point in the dough mixing where I wasn't sure if it was all going to come together right, because I was sifting and mixing and sifting and mixing and it felt like it was taking forever, and I had remembered hearing on Food Network or somewhere that over-mixing would make bread tough and dense, or maybe that was pancakes, anyway, I started to get worried. Then the kneading wasn't going very well, and I was waiting for that lovely, smooth, elastic ball of dough that you always see on the cooking shows, and it just wasn't happening. I thought I'd better quit while I was ahead and let it rise.

That part was so cool! I left this ball of dough in a covered bowl, and went to get Jamie out of his crib (great timing on his part, he woke up from his nap just as I decided I'd better be finished kneading). He sat pleasantly in his high chair as I cleaned up my floury mess, and then we played a while, and after about an hour I peeked in the bowl, and the ball of dough was twice as big! I know this is what is supposed to happen, but to see it actually happen was just too neat. Then I formed it into two loaves (I had halved the recipe) and let them rise in their pans. I think I could have let them rise a bit more, but all in all, I think they were okay. And Amanda? I don't know about that "hollow sound," either. I thumped them, but I couldn't tell.

But, man! When the loaves had cooled and I cut off that first slice of warm bread and put real butter on it and put a bite in my mouth -- well. I will be making bread again. Amanda, thank you for the annotations. I think they made a world of difference.

In other news, I have injured my right hand. Not badly enough that I can't get things done, or type, but knitting is fairly uncomfortable. Uncomfortable enough that I need to take a break from it for a week, then re-evaluate whether I need to see a doctor or not. I was trying to put Rose's old car seat in the trunk, and it slipped out of my hands and fell into the trunk, and it all happened so quick I'm not exactly sure what happened, but I think my fingers got yanked backward by the strap as the seat fell. There was no bruising or swelling, but it's painful when I squeeze my hand into a fist or try to grasp anything firmly, especially in my ring finger and palm just below my ring finger. Anyhow, it hurt right away, as soon as the seat yanked my hand, so I know that's how I hurt it, and not through some repetitive injury issue. That's a bit of a comfort. :/

The bright side is, I've had books piling up because, as much as I love to read, most days I pick up the knitting first when I've got a moment free. These are the books I've currently got in my pile: A Meeting At Corvallis by S. M. Stirling, Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World, The Shop On Blossom Street by Debbie Macomber, and The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs. So I figure I can make my way through at least two of them while my hand is healing.

One reason I love the internet

I just read Sarah's review of a parenting book by Dr. Ray Guarendi. The book is called You're a Better Parent Than You Think!: A Guide to Common-sense Parenting. The review was a good one, and very timely, as I'm starting to find myself reacting to some of Rose's behaviors with frustration and anger. She and I are a great deal alike, which I know adds to the frustration. I'm hoping that the book will give me some insights into how I can react appropriately to her, or better yet, be proactive in what I do and say to help her act better. Sarah points out that in the text of the book, Dr. Ray uses the term "good sense" rather than "common sense," which I like very much since it seems common sense isn't really all that common!

Anyway, back to why I love the internet. First, the whole concept of blogging as a means of "regular people" sharing information and opinions. Next, as soon as I had read her post, I went to The Library Network for my area, checked to see if it is available, and it is, at a couple of the libraries. I placed a hold on it, and I'll receive an e-mail in a day or two, as soon as it's been delivered to my local library. All within a matter of minutes! I love the internet.

7 Quick Takes Friday

With thanks again to Jen, for letting me participate.

-1-

I started a hat yesterday. Twice. I have to start it a third time this morning. Here's to hoping it goes better today.

-2-

I have to keep a notepad nearby to jot down any thoughts throughout the week that I may use for 7 Quick Takes Friday. My mind seems to go absolutely blank when I sit down in front of the computer to write. The same thing happens on Facebook when I go to fill out my profile information. "Interests? What are my interests? Do I have any?" Ridiculous.

-3-

Blogger won't remember me. When I check the remember me box, I still have to enter my e-mail and password the next time I come back to make a post or check my blogs. Google remembers me just fine, so what's wrong with Blogger? If anyone has any insight, please share.

-4-

I've been following Flylady for about 3 years now, on and off. Lately it's been off, what with the expected disruptions to our routine that a newborn brought. But now that we're settling into a new normal around the house, I've been re-incorporating some of her ideas back into my housekeeping. I don't follow to the letter, but I can really live with the idea that a little bit of work every day is better than killing yourself cleaning like a crazy woman a couple times a month.

-5-

I want to strongly recommend this book: The Green Beauty Guide (here's a good review). Even if you're not heavily into organic buying (I'm not) and even if you just check it out of the library (I did, but I'm going to buy it soon), it has some very important information about how the beauty items you use can affect your health. If you are a parent, I must even more strongly recommend reading it.

-6-

Our little downtown bakery closed earlier this fall, and I'm still sad about it. They were so wonderful there, they knew us by name, and their breads were simply beautiful. Someone has since taken over who doesn't even bake, they have all their breads and pastries shipped in. I went in once since this new management and haven't gone back. It smelled like smoke in there, cigarette smoke! and he didn't even know what pumpernickel bread was! I said, "Brown bread, dark brown bread." "This is brown," he said, motioning to the wheat bread. Wheat! Wheat is nothing like pumpernickel and you run a bakery? Argh!

-7-

The good news is, we kept in touch with the lovely woman who made the cakes there. We've always gotten Rose's birthday cakes from that bakery, and when we learned they were closing, we made sure we asked Amy for her number. She is going to make Rose a blue cake. Rose has been hoping for a blue cake since right after her last birthday (her favorite color is blue). So it's going to be blue frosting with four white roses and some holly. I'm so glad.