Maxwell 41: Taking a Short Vest Rest

[Hane]

56 minutes ago, HerNameIsBuffy said:

You know what annoys me?  They got Jesse an ice cream maker because "he's not eating refined sugar and loves homemade ice cream."

As I'm also off refined sugar and love ice cream I'd love to know how they make it.  That could be actual, useful, blog fodder.

@HerNameIsBuffy, the absolute best one-ingredient ice cream substitute I’ve ever made: mango sorbet. I took ripe, juicy mangoes, peeled and pitted them, puréed them in the food processor, and “ice creamed” them in the ice cream maker attachment of my KitchenAid mixer. (You may want to run the pulp through a strainer first to get out any fiber that’s in it.)

I may have mentioned this before, but this summer I’ve been making breakfast smoothies out of frozen fruit, oat or almond milk, a little ground flaxseed, and maybe some spinach. It’s like milkshakes for breakfast!

[HerNameIsBuffy]

1 minute ago, Hane said:

@HerNameIsBuffy, the absolute best one-ingredient ice cream substitute I’ve ever made: mango sorbet. I took ripe, juicy mangoes, peeled and pitted them, puréed them in the food processor, and “ice creamed” them in the ice cream maker attachment of my KitchenAid mixer. (You may want to run the pulp through a strainer first to get out any fiber that’s in it.)

I may have mentioned this before, but this summer I’ve been making breakfast smoothies out of frozen fruit, oat or almond milk, a little ground flaxseed, and maybe some spinach. It’s like milkshakes for breakfast!

I don't have mangos atm, do you think cantaloupe would work?

[Hane]

1 minute ago, HerNameIsBuffy said:

I don't have mangos atm, do you think cantaloupe would work?

It might be worth a shot, but cantaloupes are more watery than mangoes, though it sounds refreshing. Ripe bananas might be a good addition to add creaminess.

[IsmeWeatherwax]

@HerNameIsBuffy I made raspberry frogurt the other day. Just frozen raspberries ( its what I had ready) and low fat greek yogurt, whizzed in the blender and in the freezer. You could always add honey but I like greek yogurt as is

[HerNameIsBuffy]

I love you guys.  I've made the one "nice cream" recipe I had which was frozen bananas, a little almond milk, and unsweetened cocoa and it came out okay but I need to branch out.

[fundiefan]

2 hours ago, Bethy said:

Don't hold your breath. There was a birthday blog post years ago (probably at least eight - it inspired me to buy an ice cream maker, and I'm pretty sure I had it in 2012) in which chocolate custard was mentioned. Someone commented and asked for the recipe and Steve (who was doing most of the comment responses at that point) fired back with a fairly snippy "You wouldn't like it, it doesn't contain sugar" response - and no recipe. 

ETA: Found it on Wayback - https://web.archive.org/web/20120506065133/http://www.titus2.com/blog/index.php/2012/04/27/josephs-birthday-in-pictures/#comments 

There wasn't a single question Steve actually answered on that post. "You wouldn't like it", "I wouldn't recommend it", "we're very busy (and posting a recipe is too far outside the schedule) so we'll see (if we'll share)". 

God, I sometimes forget what a complete dick he is. I apparently fall into a haze of not exactly thinking kindly of him but as seeing him as a resentful old man. Instead, he's an ugly, nasty, angry old man. 

[freejugar]

Judging by only this entry, the blog posts used to have a bit more effort in them instead of being just a photo dump. The writing was better too. There used to be way more post comments, I guess people stopped commenting after Steve's curt replies.

Edited August 16, 2020 by freejugar

[mango_fandango]

Yeah, Steve is always so rude in his comment replies. Teri and Sarah make more of an effort. 

[browngrl]

On 8/15/2020 at 12:21 AM, MamaJunebug said:

bedroom just makes me extra sad. Dunno why. 

I agree. What really bugs me is how easy it would be to fix things up - particularly for people with lots of potential helpers and people who know how to do electrical/sewing/hanging pictures etc. It would not cost that much either. I suggest: 

1. instead of those tiny photos buy some big canvases and let the children paint bright happy pictures

2. sew up some duvet covers in child friendly prints or if they could make some covers using a patchwork of scraps from old clothes or left over fabrics 

3. add more lighting - even a few extra lamps would brighten things up without the worry of rewiring or hanging new lights

4. if they wanted just a bit more work they could paint all the furniture to be uniform colour that is brighter than a yellowish wood stain. 

5. add a few pillows or plants if they were feeling fancy

[usmcmom]

Since we’re talking about frozen treats, these freezer pop bags are wonderful. I  made some “popsicles” when my daughter was sick with COVID. I made strawberry/peach and pineapple/orange. Just blend your fruit, add liquid and sweetener as desired (honey works) and freeze in the bags. They are really good and refreshing. 
 

I hope to try some frozen coffee pops soon; maybe some yogurt pops. 

[fundiewatch]

In the comments Steve says they do decaf, so no worries about the addictive quality of caffeine. I really thought the girls were drinking caffeine and now I’m even more sad for them. 

[Black Aliss]

5 hours ago, HerNameIsBuffy said:

I don't have mangos atm, do you think cantaloupe would work?

Anything works. Within reason, obviously. But I make strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, and watermelon sorbets so canteloupe should work fine. I even freeze fruit in season to use for these because it doesn't matter that the fruit gets all mooshy when it thaws. Just toss it into the blender, add the sweetener of your choice--could be honey, fake sugar, powdered sugar (because it dissolves faster)--to taste, and freeze. A shot of something alcoholic will keep your sorbet from freezing rock solid if you don't eat it all in one sitting. I use eaus de vie from the same fruit if I have a bottle handy. Rum works well with just about anything. Tequila with my cucumber-lime sorbets. . .vodka can go into any of them. Just a shot per quart of fruit.

3 hours ago, fundiefan said:

God, I sometimes forget what a complete dick he is. I apparently fall into a haze of not exactly thinking kindly of him but as seeing him as a resentful old man. Instead, he's an ugly, nasty, angry old man. 

If there were any kids on his block who weren't his grandchildren he'd be out there yelling, "Get off my lawn!"

6 hours ago, HerNameIsBuffy said:

You know what annoys me?  They got Jesse an ice cream maker because "he's not eating refined sugar and loves homemade ice cream."

As I'm also off refined sugar and love ice cream I'd love to know how they make it.  That could be actual, useful, blog fodder.

Here you go! https://www.davidlebovitz.com/honey-ice-cream/

Any honey would work in that recipe. Don't let David intimidate you into searching out chestnut honey. I always go to David Lebovitz's website second when I'm looking for an ice cream recipe. First place I look is in his ice cream cookbook, The Perfect Scoop.

[llg1234]

5 hours ago, HerNameIsBuffy said:

I love you guys.  I've made the one "nice cream" recipe I had which was frozen bananas, a little almond milk, and unsweetened cocoa and it came out okay but I need to branch out.

Not sure if you like pineapple, but I love this recipe! It also has mango in it though, lol

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipe/261424/pineapple-nice-cream/

[lilith]

Not only is Steve incredibly snippy and rude when replying to comments, he was also notorious for editing comments when he used to deal with them. Sometimes totally changing the meaning of the comment by selective editing. Steve is absolutely awful and the whole nightmare of Maxhell is entirely his fault. He’s not just a smiley starving grandpa with some outdated gender roles, he’s a control freak who found a belief system that gave him total control and, over the years, refined it to preclude any spark of joy.

[MamaJunebug]

57 minutes ago, Black Aliss said:

If there were any kids on his block who weren't his grandchildren he'd be out there yelling, "Get off my lawn!"

Wouldn’t surprise me if he does yell that at his grandchildren. Not on the schedule? Off the lawn!!

[Tangy Bee]

I believe that's why they bought that playground equipment. None of the Maxwell grandkids have to go to a regular park. No chance of interaction with children who aren't raised "holy". To be fair everyone wants their kids around good people, but regular good people will never be good enough for Steve Maxwell.

[Cults-r-us]

I know a lady who said the Maxwells were in their church or homeschooling group years ago. She says they seemed so normal. She had no idea they developed their joyless, cloistered compound with 15 minute schedule blocks, invented their own religion, wrote books sharing their wisdom + be rude to their followers.

[bluelady]

New post up.  It's Teri's birthday.  Sarah makes sure to include that Teri loves her "married sons and their wives"

What a strange thing to say.  

Also, she's good at chopping vegetables? You know what would be better than a birthday post filled with random, strange "facts" about Teri that seem to have been pulled out of nowhere? A nice anecdote about a time where Teri made some kind of impression on Sarah or taught Sarah something (something beyond using a pizza cutter for lettuce). I know Teri struggled as a mother but there must be something.

[nelliebelle1197]

The bizarre political/ religious/insane rants by the fathers at Chelsy’s sister’s wedding this weekend got me thinking. The Bontrangers are Trumpers, like the insane kind.  But I just cannot see Steve Maxwell voting for Trump. Steve is a damaged man, but he is also an intelligent man who has allowed his damage to over come healthy critical thinking. But Steve is also a very proper, moralistic thinker.  I just cannot see him being okay with a thrice married pussy grabber. I know the Maxwells supported Ted Cruz in 2016, which actually fits them. I just cannot see them transitioning to Trump because he is the R on the ballot. Thoughts?

I am not saying they voted for Hillary or would pick Biden- I am wondering third party or write in.

[fundiefan]

I don't know if it's entirely because Sarah's writing is so stunted or if they truly don't know how to express happiness/joy without an agenda. Both, probably.

That birthday post about Teri was rather pathetic. She loves her married sons? Well, isn't that special. I be no one else loves their married sons quite the same godly way. Of course she homeschooled for 30 years. That is Teri's tagline. And she equips the girls at home - equips them with what? Certainly not confidence or independence or skills beyond a schedule. 

 

[Melissa1977]

19 hours ago, HerNameIsBuffy said:

You know what annoys me?  They got Jesse an ice cream maker because "he's not eating refined sugar and loves homemade ice cream."

As I'm also off refined sugar and love ice cream I'd love to know how they make it.  That could be actual, useful, blog fodder.

I do it with greek yoghurt, banana and unsugared cocoa power, but I put 1 little spoon of sugar for each banana, because I'm healthy but a bit sinner, too.

10 hours ago, Cults-r-us said:

I know a lady who said the Maxwells were in their church or homeschooling group years ago. She says they seemed so normal. She had no idea they developed their joyless, cloistered compound with 15 minute schedule blocks, invented their own religion, wrote books sharing their wisdom + be rude to their followers.

They were more normal years ago. Nathan dated Melanie without a chaperone! In addition, they had robotic, well-behaved children too scared to move/talk too much. Probably the lady you know thought they were a deeply conservative family.

[SPHASH]

According to Sarah's post they are in the mountains.  My birthday message for Teri and anniversary message:

 

[freejugar]

Oh so not even COVID can stop the regularly scheduled Colorado vacations?

[Melissa1977]

41 minutes ago, freejugar said:

Oh so not even COVID can stop the regularly scheduled Colorado vacations?

They don't approach anybody there, and even pack the food in Kansas before travelling, so covid is not a huge risk for them. Also, all their activities are outdoors, in big open spaces. 

[Alisamer]

1 hour ago, freejugar said:

Oh so not even COVID can stop the regularly scheduled Colorado vacations?

As far as "vacations" go, they're so insular that theirs is probably pretty safe. Same place, same cabin, same mountains, food from home, etc. It's only the trip there and back that has any real risk.

It's not like they meet people, see new places, or God forbid learn something new!