Archives for July 2016

InstantPot Recipe – No Soak Red Beans and Rice

July 24, 2016 by Kristin Holt Duncan

InstantPot Recipe – No Soak Red Beans and Rice

Before developing this recipe for the InstantPot, I couldn’t find a good recipe for red beans and rice in the InstantPot that didn’t involve soaking the beans. I love a good pot of beans. White beans, black beans, red beans, they’re all good to me. However, my lack of planning can get me in trouble and I frequently decide to have beans too late to soak them. InstantPot to the rescue! I purchased one in February and I love it. After being afraid of it for a month, I got over my fears and started using it. Now, I use it at least once a week.

My crock-pot and I have been friends for many years, but the InstantPot is just so much faster!

Try this recipe the next time you need dinner on the table in about an hour.

1.5 lbs dried red kidney beans, rinsed and sorted through
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1/2 bell pepper, diced
3 stalks of celery, diced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 bay leaves
1 tsp pepper (I used smoked, but regular is fine)
1 carton veggie broth
2 cups water
1 splash of Worchestershire sauce (probably 1.5 tablespoons)
1 tablespoon creole seasoning
1 rope of beef sausage

Add all ingredients to InstantPot. Cook on beans/chili mode for 40 min. Use natural pressure release.

Serve over cooked rice.

Why I Won’t Buy From The School Supply List

July 21, 2016 by Kristin Holt Duncan

Why I Won’t Buy From The School Supply List

I’ve already seen it. Post and counter-post. Complain and complain about the complainers.

Must be July.

And school supply season.

Every year, I post the same thing to my personal Facebook. I don’t buy and send everything on the school supply list. Some years it has included such things as toilet paper, red pens for the teacher, dry erase markers, and paper plates. This year it’s mostly reasonable for my second grader, but some of my friends didn’t have the same experience.

My friend J, who has twins going into 5th grade needed 25 glue sticks.

Each.

In a regular class of 20, that is 500 glue sticks.

Where are those going to be kept? Much less kept neatly?

No. I have one kid in college. One who is going into 11th grade. And one who is going to be a second grader, even though he’s been in school for 5 years. That is almost 30 separate school lists. If I bought every single item on every one of those lists, I’d be broke.

No.

I know schools are underfunded. I know teachers have to buy school supplies. I KNOW there are kids who are underprivileged, whose parents don’t know how to shop the deals.

But that can’t be my only concern. I have to worry about my own kid and my own budget, and my own sanity.

So, if your school supply list includes duct tape and paper plates and toilet paper, I’m out.

And I won’t apologize for it.

Parenting – You’re NOT doing it wrong

July 17, 2016 by Kristin Holt Duncan

Parenting – You’re NOT doing it wrong

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It’s hard to be a good mother these days.

After all, everywhere you look tells you that you’re doing it wrong. From Facebook horror stories, to Pinterest worthy projects that ALL of the best moms are doing, there are a million and a half sources of THE BEST way to raise your children, all the while reassuring you that you are the WORST mother ever.

This blog is not one of them. I want to reassure YOU that you are doing the best you can. Parenting ideals change so rapidly, that all you can do is the best that you can do.

Way back in the dark ages, when I started raising children, there was no Internet to tell me the best way to do things. I relied on my family and limited knowledge and instincts to raise my first two children. I was a single mom, who worked full time, and sometimes went to school at the same time. I could only do so much in the 168 hours a week, 24 hours a day that I had.

However, now that my older children are mostly grown at ages 20 and 16, I can reflect upon motherhood with a little bit of clarity that first time moms of little ones aren’t granted.

Did my oldest two suffer because they doesn’t have a book signed by each and every one of their elementary school teachers? Or a hand-painted mural depicting their growth? Or any one of a thousand different craft projects that I had neither the time or money to create?

No, but they do have a healthy respect for each and every single one of their teachers. And do you know what else they have? A healthy work ethic because I wouldn’t and couldn’t hand them everything on a silver platter.

When my oldest first went away to college, there were more than a few boys in his dorm who were unable to wash their own clothes.

My kids started learning how to use the washing machine by the time they could reach the buttons.

And that’s okay.

Responsibility and chores never hurt a healthy child.

Biracial Hair Primer for Moms

July 14, 2016 by Kristin Holt Duncan

Biracial Hair Primer for Moms

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My daughter has the most gorgeous hair. Everywhere we go, people want to remark on it (and touch it, but that’s a subject for a different post). Her hair has always been a series of trial and error, for both techniques and products. I had a drawer full of stuff that just didn’t work for her hair when she was a baby, and now that she is 16 and managing it herself, I have a few tips that I’d like to share with moms who might be as clueless as I was.

Listen to other moms when they are giving you advice. While they are not your child’s mother, there is a good chance that they have been there, done that, and will save you a lot of time, money, and hassle.
Don’t be afraid to try new products. It’s just hair; it will be okay. Some of the stuff we’ve used the longest was the stuff I picked up on a whim. Currently, my daughter is using this shampoo and leave in conditioner.
Buy the good comb and brush. Trust me. Buying a cheap comb that will only break while you’re doing hair is not worth it.
Set up a routine early. Yes, I know it’s a pain. I spent hours parting, braiding, and combing hair before there were tablets and iPads. The VCR was my friend.
Set up a station that has everything you might need. For younger children, that’s rubber bands, barrettes, balls, beads, etc, in addition to your comb, hair cream, sleep caps, and brush.