A Cold and Warm Day

I love the beauty of sunrises. It's God's promise of another new day. I took this picture this morning - I was trying to capture a snapshot of the cold. It was very cold this morning. When the school bus pulled into our yard it was -36 with the windchill.  But inside the house this morning, the goodness of home made soup, ready to take the bite out of the cold, was simmering on the stove. Ready to provide inner warmth.

The soup wasn't for my family though. I carried it out to the cold car, drove to the school, warmed it up again with 2 other big pots of soup. Ready to bring warmth and  nutrition for our "once a month hot lunches" prepared lovingly by the moms on our local school community council. What a great day for hot soup! Almost half of the student body had pre-ordered their hot meal.  This month's meal consisted of home made soup, sub sandwiches, and yogurt and fruit. I grabbed the opportunity to wheel the food trolley to the classroom of the youngest kids at the school. It would have been difficult for them to balance all the containers without spilling.

I enjoy the camaraderie between the moms working in the kitchen. It's a time to catch up on the latest news. Laugh. Talk. Talk. Clean up. It's almost a shame that my 2 year term on the school council will be up in June. I enjoy going to the school and seeing all the students and staff.  It's good to be able to serve them by feeding them.

My time at the school today seemed to fly by. I made enough soup; we will be having the extra tonight for supper. And if you have a hankering for corn chowder here's my recipe.

Heather's Corn Chowder

3-4 slices bacon - fried brown and crispy, then crumbled
2 - 3 med. potatoes - cut into small chunks
1/4 small onion, chopped fine
1 tin cream of mushroom soup
1 tin creamed corn
1 creamed corn tin filled with milk
salt and pepper to taste

Boil potatoes and onion in pan that bacon was fried in. Remove and strain when done.
In another pot combine soup, corn, milk. bacon, salt and pepper. Warm through completely. Add potatoes and onion when cooked. Cook and stir until chowder starts to bubble. Serve immediately!  Enjoy!