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Trying to Stay Cool on Hot Humid Days

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Guest Columnist
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Lovina’s Amish Kitchen
Lovina Eitcher,
Old Order Amish
Cook, Wife &
Mother of Eight

 

I should be starting supper but it is so hot and humid again today. I don’t even want to think of cooking. Maybe it’ll cool off when the sun goes down and then I’ll probably make something easy. Today I washed our laundry then also washed Ervin and Susan’s laundry. It is almost dry. I still have a few pieces hanging on the porch. It looked like rain so I didn’t want to take any chances of getting the clothes wet again. 

 Friday I spent the day at daughter Elizabeth’s house helping her with her work. They hosted church services again at their house on Sunday under a tent. I peeled and chopped over ten dozen hard cooked eggs and ten pounds of hot dogs. This was used for egg salad for the church lunch. I also cleaned her windows. When Allison, 5, heard I was coming she said “Grandma gives us candy when she leaves cause she misses us. She’s so nice.” Haha!! She’s such a petite little blond-haired, blue-eyed girl. Abigail is at the age where she wants to earn money. She wants to sell vegetables from their garden by the road. Elizabeth told her she needs to wait until they have all they need first. I am hoping Elizabeth and some of her children (and maybe even Tim) will go along to the book signing in South Bend Indiana on Saturday. If Abigail is along she can practice money by selling cookbooks for me. Haha!! 

Tim and Timothy (TJ), 6, picked some banana peppers and zucchini for me to take home with me. TJ seems to enjoy helping his dad in the garden. It sure makes Grandma feel special when the children all want to sit beside me at lunchtime. Andrea, 3, reminds me so much of Elizabeth when she was a little girl. All the children wanted to help me chop the eggs and hot dogs. Although I could’ve done it faster, it’s nice that they want to help. Abigail told her siblings if they are naughty in front of grandma she will write about it in her column. Sweet innocence of little children. 

 On my way home from Tim’s on Friday I stopped at Ervin and Susan’s house to get their dirty laundry. Saturday was rainy so I didn’t get it washed until today. From Friday night until Saturday night we had 2 1/2 inches of rain.  

On Sunday in this church district there are three little boys that share the same birthday. Grandson Ryan turned 6. Niece Emma and Menno’s son Menno turned 5 and his cousin Austin turned 7. Austin wasn’t there but I think that’s neat that they all share the same day a year apart. On our way home from Tim’s on Sunday we stopped in at Ervin’s again to see how they were doing. Daniel Ray and Verena had picked up their five oldest children and brought them to church. They also took them to see the parade in town on Saturday. Jennifer, Ryan and Curtis drove home with us. I was glad to get to hold baby Sharlene. She is eleven days old and weighs 7 pounds and 15 ounces now. She reminds me of Jennifer when she was a baby. She can make all kinds of expressions. I could have sat there longer and held her but Grandpa was ready to get home.

I will share the recipe of Pickled Red Beets that we serve for our church lunches. 

 God Bless!

PICKLED RED BEETS

10 quarts raw beets

5 cups white vinegar

12 cups water

6 cups sugar

4 teaspoons salt

Boil beets until tender for 10 to 15 minutes then drain and peel. In a large pan, heat beets and mixed brine (vinegar, water, sugar and salt) until brine starts to boil. Ladle beets and brine into jars leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Wipe jar rims with a dampened paper towel. Adjust lids and process in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes. If the vinegar is too strong you may adjust the brine to 1 cup to every 3 cups of water. Note: Canning times are subject to change according to USDA regulations. For the latest canning times check your county extension office or the National Center for Home Food Preservation website. 

Lovina’s Amish Kitchen is written by Lovina Eicher, Old Order Amish writer, cook, wife, and mother of eight. Her three cookbooks, The Cherished Table, The Essential Amish Cookbook, and Amish Family Recipes, are available wherever books are sold. Readers can write to Eicher at Lovina’s Amish Kitchen, PO Box 234, Sturgis, MI 49091 (please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for a reply); or email [email protected] and your message will be passed on to her to read. She does not personally respond to emails.

Digital Edition 08.06.25

By
tammiehoeme
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Digital Edition 08.06.25

Just a Little Light: The Greatest Story Never Told

By
Dawn Phelps
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Dawn Phelps
Columnist

 

My dear sweet Aunt Helene was one of the most beautiful people I have ever known.  When she died in her eighties, she was still strikingly beautiful, still as slim and trim as when she was teenager.  She had dark hair, brown eyes, high cheek bones, and was a stylish dresser.  She was also totally beautiful on the inside as well.

 

She took a genuine interest in each of her nieces (of which I am one) and nephews when we met for our Humphrey family reunions each June.  She also took time to write us letters during the year—very newsy letters—and she called us often.  She was proud of us; she encouraged us in whatever we were doing.

 

She knew I was interested in writing, so that was a topic that she and I generally discussed each year which included her dream of writing a book that she intended to call her Precious Memories.

 

I believe she had the intelligence, knowledge, and skill to write her book.  She had historical documentation, a treasure trove of hundreds of letters from her siblings from years past.  She had kept them all—letters that held many stories of adventures.

 

For instance, her oldest brother, my Uncle Ennis, left home when he was 15 and hitchhiked to Hollywood, California, with the intention of becoming an artist.  And he did!  He painted portraits of actors and actresses for billboards for movies before cameras were widely used.  He later took up photography and sold some pictures to National Geographic Magazine along with his writing.  Now that’s big in my book!

 

So, each year at our family reunion my conversation with my Aunt Helene went like this.  I would ask, “Well, Aunt Helene, how is your book coming along?” 

 

And she would answer.  “Well, I have 15 pages done, but I keep revising them.  I just can’t seem to get it right.”

 

And I would say, “Why don’t you forget about getting it right and just write—it can be edited later.”

 

Then the next family reunion, I would ask her, “How are you doing on your writing?”  And she would tell me about her 15 pages and how she kept revising them, that she just could not get it right.  I was concerned because time was passing, and Aunt Helene was getting older.

 

When she was in her eighties, she developed cancer and was admitted to hospice.  While she was still very alert, I talked to her on the phone.  I asked her about her Precious Memories, and she still had intentions of writing them.

 

So, I said to her, “Do you have a tape recorder?  You could just dictate your book while you are resting in bed.  But she did not, and she died with only 15 pages of her book written.  

 

I believe it would have been an amazing story to leave behind, especially for her family.  Her book would have been an accurate historical documentation of her siblings’ lives and stories that may now be forever lost.

 

My Aunt Helene is gone now, and only a small percent of her book was ever written.  But she taught me a valuable lesson.  She taught me to not put off those projects I want to get done before I die.

 

It is so easy to put things off and never accomplish what you meant to do.  I understand that, because in my own busyness, the days, weeks, months, and years have flown by at warp speed.  I am making progress on my writing goals, but I can’t seem to get them done quickly enough at 83—writing takes time and lots of editing!

 

So, if you have a story to tell, “just write” it or dictate it.  Editing can be done later to get it “just right.”  So, get busy and write while you can! 

 

An African proverb says, “When an elderly person dies, a library is lost.”  Time goes by like a blink!  If you don’t get those computer keys clicking, you might be like my dear sweet Aunt Helene and leave this earth with your “greatest story never told.”  

 

*NEW:  The Miltonvale Writer’s Club will meet at 7:00 the 1st Wednesday of each month at Tootle Books.  Pastor Sam Flick will lead the group.  Everyone interested in writing (poetry, fiction, stories, books, or whatever) is welcome!  Just come and write!

 

[email protected]

Time For Football

By
Guest Columnist
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Richard Shank
Columnist

In these early days of August, it is hard not to think of football at all levels as another season is soon to start. 

My old alma mater, Kansas State, is primed to start the season across the pond in Dublin, Ireland, again perennial rival Iowa State. It is a must win for Kansas State to start a season with a team picked to compete for bragging rights in the Big 12 Conference. 

The other day I caught myself thinking of my college years watching games in K-State’s Memorial Stadium before the move in 1968 to what is now the Bill Snyder Family Stadium. 

Watching my first K-State game with Kansas University was what could now be called a laugher. On October 29, 1966 the Jayhawks arrive in Manhattan with a 2-4-0 record to play the winless Wildcats featuring an 0-6-0 record. Broadcasters dubbed the game the “loser’s bowl.” One even went so far to call the game the “toilet bowl.” 

The most prophetic broadcaster whose name escapes me said the teams were so far down that the game could end in a tied, which it did with a 3-3 score. Soon, both teams bid their coaches farewell. 

Three years later, K-State’s football fortunes were on the rise thanks to Coach Vince Gibson who arrived in town with a southern drawl and proclaimed, “we gonna win because we have good kids.” “And, we ain’t going to be embarrassed,” Gibson promised. 

On October 25, 1969, the 11th ranked Oklahoma Sooners came calling and were unexpectedly thumped 59-21, thanks in part to 380 yards passing from Junior Quarterback Lynn Dickey. Dev Nelson, the legendary voice of K-State from that era was announcing the game yelling into the microphone “Dickey, Dickey, back, back” as the Osawatomie native performed his magic setting a new Big 8 record for passing. 

Bud Wilkinson, Oklahoma’s former Coach, was broadcasting that day for CBS Sports, and when handed the K-State/Oklahoma score, he turned to a staff person and said, “somebody check that score” signifying he could not believe what had just happened. 

A harsh three-year penalty was levied against K-State in 1970, which stopped K-State’s rise in the football world. I always wondered how perennial football powers seem to escape NCAA penalties and probation, but that seems to be the norm. 

In 1988, the offensive coordinator from Iowa University was hired to coach Kansas State which was the start of a Hall of Fame career. Today, Coach Chris Kleiman continues that tradition as he starts his seventh year as the K-State skipper. 

This past Saturday, Larry Brown, a K-State running back from the 1960s was inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame in a ceremony held in Topeka. Brown was a year ahead of me at Kansas State and his story is one worth repeating. 

As the story is told, Brown graduated from high school in the Pittsburg, Pennsylvania area where he was a standout player. Still, he was short on offers to continue football. Finally, the coach at Dodge City, Kansas Community College made him a scholarship offer, contingent on him making the team as a walk-on player. 

Soon, he was halfway across the nation in Dodge City where he, as a blocking back, not only made the team but earned honorable mention All-American status during his sophomore year. 

Gibson was amassing some great recruits including Dickey, and was anxious to make Brown a Wildcat, an offer he accepted. 

During the 1967 season, Brown was a blocking back and a year later elevated to a running back where he ran for 406 yards on a 4-6-0 team, which then was a respectable season for Kansas State. 

Legendary Coach Vince Lombardi, who earlier retired from coaching at Green Bay, returned to the sidelines with what is now the Washington Commanders. During the eighth round of the 1969 NFL draft, Lombardi selected Brown as the 191st pick. 

Lombardi knew Brown was something special, but noticed he was often late getting into action following the snap of the football. Lombardi ordered hearing tests for Brown which confirmed he had a hearing impairment in one ear. With a  hearing aid built into his helmet, that problem was solved but the coach had one more issue to solve. Brown had a propensity to fumble the football, so Lombardi had a solution for that too. Lombardi required Brown to always carry a football with him. People who met Brown on the street probably wondered why he was always walking with a football in hand.

With that being done, Brown ran for 888 yards in a 14-game season and was second in the voting for Rookie of the Year, and then was selected to play in his first of four Pro-Bowls. 

Lombardi died of cancer before the start of the 1970 season and Brown lost his football mentor, but his greatness as a professional running back was just beginning. 

In 1972, Brown was named the NFL’s Most Valuable Player and led the league in rushing with 1,216 yards. 

In a career that spanned eight years, Brown rushed for 5,800 yards, caught 238 passes for 2,485 yards, and scored 55 touchdowns. Injuries shortened his career and he retired in 1976. 

After retirement, Brown had business careers with E.F. Hutton and Xerox. 

Following his rookie year in pro-football, Brown returned to Kansas State to deliver a commencement address to students. A packed house was in McCain Auditorium that day to hear Brown’s presentation. 

Brown chuckled as he told the story how his coach in college admonished him to make certain he finished his degree as he was not cut out to play pro football. 

Brown seemed proud that he had defied the odds, and that he should be.  

Lettuce Eat Local: Here’s A Butter Idea

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Guest Columnist
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Amanda Miller
Columnist
Lettuce Eat Local

I stood there quietly, processing for a few seconds. “And she just…eats it like that?” 

This was a few years ago, but the memory holds strong. I was going to watch some friends’ kids for the evening, putting the children to bed before their parents came back, so we were going over their bedtime routine. I didn’t have kids yet, but had been babysitting for 20 years, and everything was making perfect sense — up until this point. 

My friend was explaining, with full nonchalance, that her young daughter might ask for some butter before bed. She opened the fridge and showed me where the sticks were, but location was the least of my questions. I kept waiting for the bread or bagel or any sort of carrier to be mentioned, yet none ever was. I seemed like a child myself as I had to have each step spelled out for me — unwrap butter, cut off chunk, hand to girl — and I still felt unprepared. Was this normal?? 

As it happened, she did ask for butter as a bedtime snack, and it all went as smoothly and naturally as possible…at least on her end. For some reason it was still just such a weird idea to me that it was like I was watching myself going through the motions, and while I wasn’t exactly disgusted, I certainly was not jealous of her nighttime treat. She, however, thoroughly enjoyed it. This sweet girl stood there in her pajamas in the kitchen, happily nibbling on her tablespoon-sized chunk of butter; then she was ready for bed. 

Little did I know this moment would change my life. 

Because now, years of my memories are filled with images of my own pajama-clad children eating their nightly butter. It’s crazy to think of how much bedtime butter our family has gone through, simply because of that one babysitting instance. 

As with so many things in parenting, once there are actually kids in the picture, we might have to swallow our previous words. (If only they could all go down as creamily and saltily as butter!) Once I thought about the reasoning, healthy fats to help satiate the kids’ bodies and brains overnight, the steps of giving bedtime butter made a lot more sense — and if it helps the children sleep, by all means, feed it to them! 

I don’t know that it actually helps them sleep better or longer; it might all be placebo. I just looked the idea up for the first time, and apparently it’s trending on social media right now; catch up, internet, you’re years behind. The “experts weighing in” have conflicting opinions, of course, but we don’t care anyway, because a smidgen of butter isn’t hurting my littles and it helps at least emotionally in our heading-to-bed routine. 

We’ve modified the practice to fit our household, turning the butter into “butter buttons”: mixing still-soft fresh homemade butter with some flavorful additions, spooned into little dollops and kept in the freezer. In the years of age two and three, Benson probably only went a handful of nights without his crucial routine of two butter buttons alongside his bedtime stories; frozen grapes have taken its place over the summer, but Kiah is picking up where he left off. 

Sometimes I eat one, too, because they really are rather tasty. Turns out it’s a butter way to end the day than I would have ever thought. 

Bedtime Butter Buttons

These melt-in-your-mouth buttons are a great treat for any age. What they lack in aesthetics, they make up in flavor and nutrition. They are also a great way to get kids helping in making their own snacks, and Benson loves to give his opinion on which ingredients to add, to help portion them out, and of course to assist in taste-testing to see if we’ve reached the proper ratio. (We just throw all the ingredients together and mix until it tastes right.) Working with kids plus butter can get a little messy, but it’s all worth it. Especially if they sleep all night then. 

Prep tips: obviously you might not be in the routine of making butter, but you don’t have to have a dairy farm to make it — email me if you want to know the simple method I use. 

8 ounces butter, preferably local but any will do; room temp

optional: 4 ounces peanut butter 

¼ cup cocoa powder

2 tablespoons local honey

optional: dash of cinnamon

salt to taste

Mix all ingredients together until smooth; take a taste and adjust to your preference. Portion out on a plate or baking sheet in small “buttons,” and freeze until firm. Transfer to a container and keep in a handy spot in the freezer.

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