Notebook Experiments: Blueberry Muffins & Loving Your Neighbors
Experiment: Can blueberry muffins help score us some new friends?
Experiment Taken From: Notebook Entry 03.27.08Materials Needed: Please see
little momma & company for specific directions on how to complete this experiment. I did add a little special ingredient of my own this time to the mix and that was some freshly grated lemon zest and one squeeze of a lemon into the batter. It just added a little hint of something in the background, but didn't overpower that yummy blueberry taste! This ingredient is completely optional, but added a very fresh flavor to our muffins.
Results: I have been very inspired by Monica, at
The Homespun Heart, and her wonderful intentions of
being thoughtful and kind to their neighbors. When our new neighbors moved in next door, we wanted to welcome them in the kind of way that we would hope that we would have been welcomed into the neighborhood. What says welcome better than a big batch of blueberry muffins?
While I baked muffins, Ethan worked very carefully on a card for the new family. It had a picture of their house on the front and then a picture of our house inside. He invited them to "come over to our house sometime," which was so sweet and sincere that sometimes I can't help but kiss him.
He helped me make the surprise delivery and he was as proud as he could be! It was a great moment for both of us and a wonderful way to teach him how to share in some good old-fashioned hospitality.
Conclusion: The neighbors were so touched by our gesture, which made me very happy! It also was a fun thing for Ethan and I to do this project together.
I would have to say that this concluded another fabulous notebook experiment! I am hoping that I have started a movement of neighborly love- check out
Keeping the Kingdom First and how they
shared their love with their neighbors after reading my little tweets about my baking day. Her daughter is older and she was able to keep her occupied with this task and hopefully she has sealed herself a brand new friendship.
In this high-tech day and age, I was wondering if you know your neighbors? What kind of a relationship do you have with the people on your street? This is something I am trying to work on, but I find it can be very difficult to connect with others because everyone is so busy. How do you make those connections? Labels: Homemaking, Notebook Experiments, Recipes
30Comments:
"We connect occasionally with our neighbors over things like borrowing a tree trimmer or lawnmower. However, one of our favorite things to do is to celebrate holidays. So we have a Caroling Party each Christmas and invite four or five families (there have to be some families left to sing to). Then at Easter we conduct an Easter egg hunt for the neighborhood children. These events are never fancy, very casual and we try to make them fun. It has helped us get to know our neighbors a bit better. Also, we have a neighborhood yard sale each year and get to visit with some folks that we haven't met or rarely see at that time. Good post - I like your muffin idea!"
Michelle
"I think these kinds of connections are the whole point of life and something that tends to get buried by our too busy lives. Our neighborhood has a summer get together. Two families work together to plan the event and send out fliers. One family hosts in their yard/garage. Everyone brings a dish. In the winter we have a progressive dinner after Christmas, while all the houses are still beautifully decorated."
Richelle
"Such a great idea. When we moved in, our neighbors didn't really reach out to us. We have had to reach out to meet them."
MommySecrets
"Good for you - I think community building is so important, and food is a natural bridge for meeting neighbors.
We live in a neighborhood that's about 80% developed, so new people move in all the time. I've been visiting new families with my kids. We usually take cookies and a card with our names, kid's ages & contact info.
If they're willing, I also collect their contact info, so I've been slowly building a database/map of neighbors. It helps me remember names, and I have phone #s of neighbors to call for eggs, sugar..."
Amy
"Mommysecrets- That is an excellent idea too! We did include our contact info, but I love the idea of the compiled info for just such occasions.
Michelle- My best friend's neighborhood does a progressive dinner and I think that sounds like so much fun! That would definitely help with making connections."
Cara
"We're very social with our neighbors. It helps that the families around us have kids the same age as ours. Everybody is usually outside in the spring and summer months, and we usually find ourselves hanging out in someone's driveway as the kids play. We also have a neighborhood egg hunt and a "Deck Crawl" in the summer.
The neighborhood ladies also get together the first Thursday of every month for coffee at Panera.
We rely on our neighbors so much. I can call anyone to help with the kids or if we need to borrow something."
Toblerone @ Simple Mom
"In the country where we live, knowing your neighbors is very important. We live in a high-rise apartment, and our balcony is parallel to our good friends' balcony in the building next door. The way we met was by our family eating dinner on our balcony at the same time as their family. We would shout greetings to each other, and one day, we finally met on the street. Now we eat most meals outside at the same time, and we have a great friendship with them.
Though I have to say, your blueberry muffins make my mouth water! We can't get blueberries here in this country. So sad."
FireMom
"We know our right-sided neighbors very well as their kids run through our yard everyday. They're good people and we like them. A bit older than us but not by much.
Left-sided neighbor is never home.
We are just getting to know the new neighbors across the street. Their daughter is a few months older than BB. :)
But I'm still waiting for muffins!"
Mrs. Mordecai
"Like Richelle, we are having to reach out to our neighbors, because they don't really initiate contact. I think that baked goods are probably the easiest way to find an excuse to talk to them!"
Amy
"Simple Mom- No blueberries? Heavens! That really stinks. I love your neighbor story though- that is just wonderful!
I just love reading all of these stories about your neighborhoods. It is giving me some other ideas for ways we could be connecting!"
Lin
"I love reading these kinds of posts, about being kind, thoughtful and generous. It seems nowadays that much of the "old fashioned" neighborliness, kids actively playing and riding bikes outside, has been replaced by fear of the boogieman and computer/video games. How nice and refreshing to see some parents aren't locked up behind closed doors but are reaching out to others."
Scribbit
"Can I mention that I love your new profile pic? I'd love to get a real one myself rather than remain so ambiguous :) Love your hair!"
Amy
"Scribbit- Oh, thank you so much! My profile pic has definitely needed updating. Ryan took this picture and it will be my profile picture for everything now :) Thanks for the compliment!"
Katy
"LOL thanks for your comment on my blog...about the chicken!!! ROFL! It made me laugh about the pillow...haha! Have a great thursday! :)"
Lori Beth
"When we moved in almost 2 yrs ago, our neighbor to the right brought us dinner the second night we were here!! And our diaganol backyard neighbor brought us pumpkin bread b/c she said she knew we prob didn't have anything in the house yet to eat for breakfast..so sweet. Our neighbor to the right just closed this week and has moved, so I am excited to pay it forward and welcome the new home owners. I just may steal this blueberry muffin idea. Thanks!!"
"I really appreciated your post on connecting with neighbors. Maybe it's because I live in a small town, or maybe it's the fact that i am home with the boys- I think having a friendly neighbor is crucial. We have made friends with neighbors across the street from us- Older and husband has Alzheimers's. Wife cares for him at home with help of her family. I take the boys over to visit and she sends them bday cards and cards for the holidays- so sweet. Jakesmom"
Stacy at Exceedingly Mundane
"That's a wonderful thing to do, especially to get your son involved. What a great thing to teach him. Loved his card, very cute and creative :)
We're blessed to have moved into a new subdivision about the same time as many of our neighbors. In the first couple of years, we really got to know people, as everyone was always outside, getting their yards and landscapes going. For more than 8 or 9 years, I baked at Christmas and took to the neighbors, but haven't done that as much lately. One has diabetes now and another has other health problems, so I'm not quite sure what is allowed and not. We have new neighbors on one side that we've barely met (that house has a high turnover rate, they're the fourth family in about 12 years).
Great post and great question. Now, I want to go make something with blueberries!"
Amy
"Lori Beth- I hope you will pay it forward and share that experience with your family. Let me know if you try the blueberry muffin recipe and what you think!
Stacey- I bet moving in at the same time helped with connecting with others. I think that it is harder in older neighbors because you don't know who got there first :)"
MamaGeek
"You BET food is the way! Man I wish you were my neighbor.
Sadly, our neighbors seem to move in and out a lot due to corporate relocations and what not. There are only a handful we know 'well'.
P.S. Love the new profile image!"
PinksandBluesGirls
"I have to say... when we first moved here 2 years ago I made it my mission to get to know the families that lived around us. My husband and I made boxes of cookies and went around and knocked on doors. The best part was that the families around us have all lived here for years and years and years.. so they were excited about a young, new family coming in. And it has been great... since we did our first intros... we have had the best time becoming friends with the people all around us. It's wonderful. A lot different than NYC!!!
- Audrey"
Ali
"wow. how can i be your neighbor?? because...um...YUM"
April
"I love the homemade card idea,very sweet!"
Hello, I'm Sally.
"We just bought our house over a year ago and it has turned out to be a great street! The neighbors are very friendly, there are about 6 houses that we know well. I'm actually thinking of doing a block party this summer. Passing out a flyer and just having everyone grill out in their front yards so we can migrate around and be social. Then we can get to know more people on the block.
Yeah, food is always a great way to connect!"
Emily
"Do you love the blueberry muffin recipe Amy? That is one of MY favorites!"
thehomespunheart
"Hi Friend!
I loved your experiment! Good for you for reaching out to your new neighbors - and what a cute card your little helper made! :)
I've been desiring to go beyond just dropping something off at my neighbors doors. I'm thinking maybe a tea for the ladies or gathering on the porch.
I'd eventually like to have a Bible Study in my home for our neighborhood. I've been reading a GREAT book lately called "A Life That Says Welcome" by Karen Ehman. You'd love it!
I love your notebook experiments! Great job!"
Sarah
"too often because of technology we forget how to really connect and communicate with others. I have recently become a huge baker. I bake for everyone! The neighbor across the hall, the family downstairs our outdoor crew,etc. I know it makes a difference. Our one neighbor recently passed away and her daughters relayed to my husband and I how much the cookies we would periodically bake her made her day...life is too short not to love your neighbor!"
Amy
"Emily- That is my new favorite blueberry muffin recipe because it isn't sticky sweet so I can justify eating six :) Thanks so much for sharing that recipe and I hope I sent some traffic your way!
Monica- I can't wait to see more of your neighbor challenges. It has truly been inspiring to me. Thank you for sharing your experience so I can be a better neighbor. :)
MamaGeek- Thanks for the compliments on the profile pic. Ryan will be thrilled since he took that picture :)"
*carrie*
"Amy! We're once again on the same wavelength. I just wrote about this topic and planned to post it on Tuesday!"
Adventures In Babywearing
"Ok, first of all I want some and need some of those muffins NOW.
We are close with our next door neighbors (we only have them on one side- we live on the end) as we are the same age, have kids the same age, & used to work together, actually! We are the type of neighbors where we don't hang out, but are always available if anyone needs anything like an egg or cup of sugar or safety pin (just did that last week) and also when it's nice out we'll sit in chairs and talk while the kids play. Our neighbors directly across the street are friendly and cordial, but that's all we really know in our neighborhood!
Steph"
Misslisslee
"We live in the country, but know all of our neighbors within a 1/4 mile radius. However, we had noticed that our neighbor across the street (in his 80s) had much more family than usual visiting. When my husband stopped in to say hello, we were mortified to learn he had been in the hospital for more than two weeks and we hadn't known it! Major egg on our faces, and we will be more regular in checking on him in the future."
Experiment: Can blueberry muffins help score us some new friends?
While I baked muffins, Ethan worked very carefully on a card for the new family. It had a picture of their house on the front and then a picture of our house inside. He invited them to "come over to our house sometime," which was so sweet and sincere that sometimes I can't help but kiss him.
