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Kelleher will be on the ballot in Luzerne County Council race

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Why Americans are waiting longer than ever to buy their first home

<p>Hello from our home to yours!</p><p>Motherhood: What is more demanding yet fulfilling and rewarding?</p><p>Austin is swiftly growing out of his baby stage and keeps getting sweeter by the day, if there is such a thing. At 9 months old, he crawls all over, exploring everything as he goes. His curly brown hair matches his daddy&#8217;s. Everyone says he also looks like Daniel which tickles me. His big blue eyes can&#8217;t help but win one&#8217;s heart in an instant.</p><p>You never have to guess how he&#8217;s doing; he wears his feelings on his face. It&#8217;s like my mother keeps saying &#8212; &#8220;He is an intense person.&#8221; What he does is done with his whole heart. When something excites him, he stiffens his entire body, waves his arms and wrinkles up his little nose.</p><p>I can&#8217;t help but wonder if his expressive ways and actions might come from Daniel&#8217;s side of the family; while they tend to disagree and think it&#8217;s from my family. Really, who cares where it comes from? We all love him to pieces, his dramatic character and all.</p><p>We&#8217;ve been having fun teaching him new sounds and words. His favorite right now is &#8220;uh-oh.&#8221; Right before dropping something to the floor, he starts saying &#8220;uh-oh.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Dada&#8221; and &#8220;daddy&#8221; were the first words he learned to say and he uses those quite frequently. Austin absolutely adores Daniel. The highlight of his day (and mine as well) is when Daniel comes home from work. As Julia starts chanting &#8220;Daddy&#8217;s home!&#8221;, Austin gets all wound up with a pleading look on his little round face. He waves his chubby little arms, beckoning Daddy to pick him up.</p><p>At times while Daniel is washing his hands at the sink, both children are right there, each clinging to a pant leg, waiting to be held. I love watching their happy, content faces as he nestles both of them onto his lap.</p><p>Julia does great in helping entertain Austin. He laps up the mother-like love she showers on him. Right now she&#8217;s at the stage where she thinks she&#8217;s big enough to carry him around but unfortunately her mommy and daddy don&#8217;t think she&#8217;s ready for that.</p><p>Julia also does well in helping me wash the dishes, hanging up little pieces of laundry, and she is learning to sweep the floor. This forenoon she helped me by washing green beans and putting them in jars for me to can. Of course, at 3 years old, she needs assistance and extra direction. I try to remind myself that even though I may need to later redo some things, having her help me is not in vain. It&#8217;s all about learning to be a willing helper and working together.</p><p>The last several weeks she loves pretending to be a guest at our house. Following is a typical scene:</p><p>&#8220;Knock, knock.&#8221; And then I hear a sweet little voice as someone raps on the front door.</p><p>Leaving work in the kitchen, I hurry over to the door and open it to see my little darling on the porch steps, clutching her doll.</p><p>&#8220;Come on in! I&#8217;m happy to see you!&#8221; I greet her.</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;m going to visit you and stay here for the night!&#8221; she eagerly informs me. &#8220;Do you have a bed and clothes and food for a girl my size?&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Oh, yes, we have everything a little girl needs. Just come on in. We&#8217;re so happy to have you!&#8221; I affirm her.</p><p>&#8220;I will be here to help you. I&#8217;ll take care of Austin. I brought a gift along for him,&#8221; she excitedly informs me, holding out a little gift bag stuffed full of his toys.</p><p>In spite of the daily challenges and demands of motherhood, there is nothing I&#8217;d rather do than care for the family God has given us. I find myself continuously asking God for His guidance and blessing on all of us.</p><p>This week I&#8217;d like to give you one of Julia&#8217;s favorite recipes. It always seems to be a hit in coffee breaks or tea parties.</p><p><strong>Sour Cream Raisin Bars</strong></p><p>1-1/3 cups quick oats</p><p>1-1/3 cups flour</p><p>&#190; cup brown sugar</p><p>&#190; teaspoon baking soda</p><p>2/3 cup butter</p><p><strong>Filling:</strong></p><p>4 egg yolks</p><p>1 cup white sugar</p><p>1 tablespoon cornstarch</p><p>2 cups sour cream</p><p>2 cups raisins</p><p>Combine crumb ingredients. Pat 2/3 of crumbs into a 9-inch pan. Combine filling ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a roiling boil. Pour filling over crust and sprinkle with remaining crumbs. Bake at 350 for 15-18 minutes.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Julia&#8217;s Sour Cream Raisin Bars with some extra candy added on top! </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_Julias-Sour-Cream-Raisin-Bars.jpg</photo1><caption1>Julia&#8217;s Sour Cream Raisin Bars with some extra candy added on top! </caption1><photoCredit1>Amish365.com </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Gloria Yoder, Amish Cook</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Gloria Yoder is an Amish mom, writer, and homemaker in rural Illinois. The Yoders travel primarily by horse-drawn buggy and live next to the settlement&#8217;s one-room school-house. Readers with culinary or cultural questions can write to Gloria at The Amish Cook, P.O. Box 157, Middletown, Ohio 45042. Gloria&#8217;s column appears weekly.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Amish Cook: Julia’s favorite Sour Cream Raisin Bars