Family and Consumer Sciences formerly known as Home Economics

Last year it was announced that the school district that I live in will not be offering Family and Consumer Sciences to junior high students any longer.

I did not pay attention to what will be replacing these important classes but I would guess it might be world language or something "academic".

I would like to know why it is more important to focus on academics when we live in a society that is filled with children that need to learn how to take care of themselves financially and nutritionally?  These two components of FACS (There are many others, family, children, homes, fashion, clothing, etc.) are enough reason alone to sustain programs. 

We live in a society where we can get anything that we want on the Internet. Unfortunately, the mere fact that you can find a recipe does not mean that you understand the vocabulary of the recipe or how to make that recipe.

We have a society that does not know how to balance their financial accounts and therefor do not track their spending.  They do not make a financial plan, they do not know how to make a file with records, and they do not know how to write a formal letter to obtain a job....and I go on and on.

We have families that are so busy they don't know they importance of family time at the table and making meals in their home.

If you are in a area where Family and Consumer Sciences might be on the chopping block please support your local program and tell people why you think it is important.  When you hear someone say "it is just cooking and sewing" please correct them because the things that are taught in FACS are life long and will stay with people their entire lives.

If you have kids that are focused on an academic education versus a comprehensive education please consider a FACS course for your child.  The learning they do will make a lifelong impression.

With love from your retired FACS teacher,
Jane

Just another photo from our lovely vacation.  :-)

Healthy Snacks from my past

I was thinking about being a kid and summer.  I remember so many days spent outside, playing kickball, riding bikes, playing hide and seek, hop scotch, building carts, playing marbles and so much more.  I hope I created memories such as these for my kids. 

We had snacks too.  Snacks that were rarely preprocessed and most often right from the garden.  Yes they involved sugar but the sugar was light and they were loaded with nutrients. 

One of my favorites was sliced tomatoes with sugar lightly sprinkled on them.  They were always fresh from my Mom's garden and rich with flavor.  I don't know why we put sugar on them but it sure was a tasty snack.  We also had rhubarb in our garden and were allowed to take a stalk with a little cup of sugar and dip the tip in the sugar before each tart bite.  We have a picture of my sister at a young age making a face while eating rhubarb that reflects the true story of rhubarb's flavor.  I guess I would say it was the same as a sour patch but with nutrients.

Mom also always purchased a couple of crates of peaches when they were in season and froze them.  She pretended not to know that we took them from the freezer and ate them like freezies .  Yum!

I am not saying my mother never baked cookies, cake or other sweet treats but we didn't have those things all of the time.  She was over weight and did not want that for us.  She was very cautious of making sure that we ate healthy all of the time.

I know time is always an issue when preparing food but these three items are great snacks and can be purchased as easily as we pulled them out of the garden. 

Try something fresh for your family.

With love from your retired FACS teacher.

Jane 

Family and vacation thoughts

I stopped posting while on my trip across the Midwest and West.  I had two issues.  One, technology connections were not great, and two, I saw something at Yellowstone that hit home for me.  It made me think about why Family and Consumer Sciences is so important to me and what family is all about.

While on our way to visit the wonderful "Old Faithful"  we stopped at a waterfall.  A mom was directing her, about 10 year old twin boys, to their car after viewing the fall.  I heard her say, "No, you can't play your games, we are not doing technology on this vacation."  I smiled and poked my husband.  Told him I liked that comment and was proud of the mom for taking a stand and sticking to it.  I know as a mom children are professionals at trying to get what they want.  But, she was good too.

Teddy Roosevelt national park in North Dakota.  Our first stop!

We also were lucky enough to stay in the wonderful Lake Hotel at Yellowstone.  We did not have wi-fi, a phone, air conditioning or a television set.  It was the most expensive hotel that we stayed at but had the least amount amenities available.  I loved the hotel because it is rather old and is kept to most of its original glory. (Teaching housing and interior design has given me a great appreciation for architecture.)  I squawked when I was not able to post my daily Facebook picture but I survived and so did my husband.  Once we settled we were able to enjoy the view and the beautiful hotel.  We also realized how expensive it must be for our park service to maintain the grand old place.

My point is, don't be afraid to take technology away from your children this summer.  Toddlers, youth and teens.  It is often easy to pretend they are fine but you really know they have been playing games a bit too long, you just want a few more minutes.  I have been there, I remember.

Hopefully we can remember that technology is a tool not a constant way of communication.  (Pet peeve, two young people out to eat looking at their phone instead of talking to each other.)  Remember some of the things that you did when you were a child that kept you busy.  Introduce those things to your family and make traditions for your people just like you may have had as a child.  If you didn't have that family time in your past, make the memories now for your family.  You will see that those simple memories, that you create, will be lasting for everyone.

While we were on vacation it was my aunt's birthday.  She left us in 2008 but us cousins remember her with such fondness.  She was single and never had her own children but my cousins (15 of us) and my cousins children (32) all remember her for her kindness, love and strength.  One of my cousins suggested that we post memories of her on her birthday.  It was so special to see those memories but the thing that stood out was that every memory was steeped in SIMPLE tradition.  Hikes in her town, playing the game button-button, (for many generations), picnics in her back yard for any occasion, learning the different plants in her yard, always told to come again when we left, talks at her kitchen table, making stone soup and so much more. 

Keep your family strong and keep it together, in whatever form your family may be.  Family and tradition will keep those deep roots around you when things get difficult and you feel you might topple over.  Those roots will help you pull up your strength when you need it in the future. 

 

A stop along the way of bear tooth pass.  One of my favorite parts of our trip.



With love from your retired FACS teacher, Jane

 

 

The adventure continues

We have had such good luck with weather.  We landed in Medora, ND and checked into the room and the sky poured.  Other than that rain has not been an issue.   After a tour of the Teddy Roosevelt park on day three we traveled across much of Montana and stopped in Billings for the night. 

We stopped at Pompy's Pillar and saw William Clarks signature in the large rock.  Cool!

Jane

Yellowstone vacation begins

My husband and I take a motorcycle trip annually.   I will be posting from my phone along the way.  Editing will be worse than ever.   HA, HA.

We went from the twin cities to Fargo. Not much excitement but had a lovely snack in downtown Fargo before the big rain cloud opened up.

We will be hitting Medora today and then Billings before the park.

Today our goal will be to dodge raindrops and wind.

With love from your retired FACS teacher,
Jane

Practical Information-Zesty summer salad dressing

I was watching T.V. while sewing today.  I was tuned in to "Rachel Ray".  I rarely watch T.V. and I never change channels so I very seldom see her. 

There are times when I see her demonstrate a recipe and I think,"Wow I made that with mom." 

That is the beauty of Rachel Ray.  She has recipes that are simple, they taste good and she does not advocate that she is chef wonder girl.

Today she said something that brings the FACS profession home.  Someone asked her what her favorite indulgence food might be.  She said she does not believe in restricting herself from food.  There were 3 things she pointed out.

1.  Food should be from scratch and not processed.
2.  Food should be eaten in moderation.
3.  You have to move and have exercise in your life.

That is it.  That is what it boils down to when we feed our family.  There are recipes and meal that are easy to make but not packaged and processed.  Challenge yourself to make foods from scratch.  If you are uncomfortable start a little bit at a time, one or two times a week.  Then eat as a family, and don't take no for an answer.  Make some changes in your families lifesyle and you will see a difference in health and happiness.

Here is a quick, easy, zesty summer salad dressing that I use on salads.  You can make it ahead of time and store it like salad dressing out of a bottle.

1/4 cup lime juice (you may use lemon, it will be slightly tarter)
1/2 cup mayonnaise with olive oil
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper

With love from your retired FACS teacher, Jane

A grand potato grilling idea from Megan!

Recently my husband and I visited our son and his girl.  We had a lovely meal on the grill with burgers, shrimp and veggies on skewers, corn on the cob and baked potatoes on July 4th. 

Megan started slicing the potatoes crosswise and lengthwise in 1/2 inch squares but leaving them connected at the bottom.  She wrapped them in foil, she filled them with a little butter, salt, pepper, one clove of garlic each, olive oil on the bottom and then sealed them up.  I said, "better get these on the grill, they will take forever".....but they didn't.  It was the quickest, tastiest baked potato I've had from the grill in a long time.  1/2 hour or less.  I asked, "Where did you get the idea?"  She said she didn't know, she just thought it up.  That slicing made the potato bake quickly, and the simple toppings simmering in the potato gave it a lovely flavor.

Well,  I jumped on that idea and asked if I could share her tasty grilling idea on my blog.  As you noticed she said, "Yes".  Thanks Megan and Luke for a nice July 4th celebration and a great meal on the grill.

 I highly recommend you try it.

 

Potato sliced and baked on the grill....MMMMM





 

Will love from your retired FACS teacher, Jane

A quick summer salad

With the summer finally here (remember I am from the Midwest) I thought I would post a quick summer salad that is easy to take out and about for a neighborhood or family gathering.

1 cup chopped red onion
1 large tomato chopped
30 pieces of turkey pepperoni cut in half
1-6.5 ounce jar of marinated artichoke hearts drained and cut in half
1-3.5 ounce jar of capers drained
1/2 cubed cheddar cheese
4 ounces of pasta (any shape)  cooked, drained and cooled
2 to 3 Tablespoons of olive oil (can be flavored)
2 to 3 Tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
Pepper to taste

I used spaghetti as that is what I had in the house.  Bows or elbows would be the best looking.

Assemble the ingredients in a bowl mix, cool and serve.  Serves 4 to 6. 

With love from your retired FACS teacher, Jane

Officially the Summer Begins as AAFCS conference ends, and rub recipe!

For me summer starts after the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences Conference.

This year was particularly a rush because I had one day between leaving for the conference and the "Nation Festival of Breads" contest.

As a person that will no longer be in the FACS classroom I am still very much in touch with Family and Consumer Sciences and will continue in many of the roles that I have in the organization. 

I have been a member of the Obesity Prevention Community this year.  The team, lead by, Dr. Ingrid Adams,  put together a pre-conference that was rather successful.  (That is Ingrid at the podium)

We also initiated a connection with the HBO team that produced the DVD set "Weight of the Nation".  The company generously donated 500 copies of the series to partner with members to help prevent the obesity crisis.

I am also actively involved with the Public Awareness and the Elementary and Secondary Educators communities. 

Both groups are active in promoting the work that Family and Consumer Sciences professionals do in their field. 

As a FACS professional I am personally concerned about the elimination of FACS in my community (Woodbury and Cottage Grove) and others across the United States, at the Junior High School level.  Although many have the attitude that health and food preparation can be learned outside of school it has been evident that this is not taking place in today's ever changing society.  I hope that parents and families begin to realize that basic education that will be used in daily life is as important or even more important than developing brain power for a future career.  Sustaining family through proper food and communication will never be out dated or go away.  I hope to begin offering at home courses to help these families educate their children about healthy food preparation.

Below is a picture of some (there are more) of the dedicated, hard working Minnesota professionals that attended the AAFCS conference in Houston. 


I always attend the textile exhibit.  We get to see outstanding work done by students and professionals.  The picture below is a recycled project, done by a student, using feed sacks.  I love it!

 

This photo is my conference roommate and friend, Kathy.  She is a very dedicated retired professional who donates her time and effort passionately to AAFCS.  This year she worked with the mentoring team with the new group the "Leadership Academy".  These seasoned professionals will be guiding new professionals in their careers.  An outstanding program for everyone.   

I am off to "enjoy" summer.  Baking, canning, grilling, riding motorcycle, vacations.  I can't wait. 

Here is a rub recipe that I got from the T.V. show "The Chew" by Carla Hall.  Of course it has been modified with my own twist.  I really like using the coffee as a flavor enhancer.   We make this in large batches and use it all summer long.  So easy and saves so much money.  Those prepared rubs you can purchase are very expensive and very easy to put together.

Rub Recipe:  Place on meat and poultry ahead of time for great flavor

1/4 cup finely Ground Coffee
1/4 cup Brown Sugar
2 Tablespoons Chili Powder
1 Tablespoon ground Pepper
1 Tablespoon Smoked Paprika
2 Tablespoons Salt
2 Tablespoons Garlic Powder
1 Tablespoon Onion Powder
1 Tablespoon Italian Seasoning

Mix together and store in container.  Use as needed.

We start with the 4th of July and no real plans.  I know what ever it will be it will include family and fun.  Then we are off on our annual motorcycle trek.  This year it is Yellow Stone National Park.

Fun, fun, fun. 

With love from your retired FACS teacher, Jane