Goodbye 2010...

This was a fun New Year's Eve project...I made this mosaic tonight & it made me so happy as the memories came flooding back ~ 2010 was a great year for us. Nothing specific, everything in general. I just feel so thankful.

Even though there is a small bit of sadness in leaving this year behind, we're looking forward to 2011.
Goodnight & we'll see you next year!

Enjoying Lazy Days...

These days we're...

relaxing at home & enjoying the fact that we are well again

remembering happy memories of our Grandpa Ben...he would have been 96 this week

decorating our gingerbread train (we did a village last year!)

enjoying yummy meals together....thanks Mom & Dad for even bringing over supper one night!

playing Skip-Bo junior with Benjamin

sleeping in - something our kids haven't let us do in quite a while

little climber up on a little box in order to reach over for the hunny pot [containing racecars!]

Playing on Papa's team

this is serious work

the finished product...great job Russ & Benjamin!

rhubarb cobbler & ice cream!

Winter Solstice

Happy Winter! It was at least 77 degrees today.

+Instead of playing in snow piles, we played in leaf piles for an hour this afternoon.
+Instead of drinking hot chocolate to warm our tummies we ate frozen hot chocolate to cool off this evening (our version of this recipe) ++YUM++
+Instead of bundling up, we're pulling out short sleeved shirts again.

Even if it doesn't feel like winter, we are thoroughly enjoying every minute of Benjamin's winter break.

For those of you who are experiencing "winter",

stay warm!

Taste Testing: Polenta Stuffed Poblano Peppers

4 plum tomatoes, halved
1 red onion, cut into wedges
1 tbsp olive oil
4 poblano peppers, halved lengthwise & seeded
1/4 tsp gr cinnamon
salt & pepper
1/2 cup instant polenta
1 10oz pkg frozen coren
1/4 cup soft goat cheese
4 scallions, sliced

1. Heat broiler. Toss tomatoes & onion in oil. Place onion, tomatoes, & peppers (cut side down) on sheet & broil until tender & charred, 5 to 8 minutes. Stir onions & turn tomatoes & pepper half way through.
2. Heat oven to 400 degrees. In food processor, puree tomatoes, onion, cinnamon, 1/2 tsp salt & 1/4 tsp pepper until smooth. Spread half of the sauce in 9x13 pan. Arrange the peppers in dish, cut side up.
3. In medium saucepan, bring 2/14 cups water to boil. Add 1/2 tsp salt. Whisk in polenta. Cook, whisking constantly until thickened (3-4 min). Stir in corn, cheese, & scallions (reserve 2 tbsp for later).
4. Divide potenta among peppers. Top with remaining sauce & bake until heated through (5-10 min). Sprinkle with remaining scallions before serving.

Enjoy!

Recipe for Wednesday's post

Super easy & wonderfully moist...we loved them!

Cranberry Cream Cheese Snickerdoodles
•1 (17.9 oz) pkg Betty Crocker Snickerdoodle cookie mix
•1/4 cup butter, softened
•4 oz light cream cheese, softened
•1 Tbsp water
•1 egg
•1 cup dried cranberries
1.In the bowl of a stand mixer, pour in cookie mix. Remove packet of cinnamon/sugar mixture and set aside.
2.Add butter, cream cheese, water, and egg to cookie mix and blend until smooth.
3.Fold cranberries into the dough and chill dough in refrigerator for 15 minutes.
4.Place cinnamon/sugar mixture in a bowl. Scoop spoonfuls of dough into cinnamon/sugar mixture and coat with mixture.
5.Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 375 for 8 to 9 minutes. These cookies will not go brown. Cool on cookie sheet for 1 minute.
6.Place cookies on cooling rack and cool completely. Makes about 3 dozen cookies

Happy 1st Birthday!

Today is Miss Madelynne's birthday! How is that possible?

It seems like yesterday these two were toppling over on each other...

Happy Birthday Sweet Girl!
We love you!

Peekaboo...I see you!

I love how our little guy plays peekaboo with us...even at the table with messy hands. Thankfully he's easy to clean up since there isn't much hair up on top!

Wordless Wednesday

another baby bundle

Nope, not for us (tricked you!) but for Jesse's family...we are so happy for them! What a special treat to meet little Nelson and have some time with his family.

I'm so sad...this is the only picture of me holding Nelson! Maybe next time his tummy troubles won't be so upsetting to him.
2 friends
cuteness!

a house full of boys!

Taste Testing from our kitchen

Soft Gingerbread

Cooking spray

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp ground ginger

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp coarse salt

1 large egg

1 cup molasses

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup lowfat buttermilk

1/2 cup unsweetened apple butter or applesauce

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 cup golden raisins, optional

frosting

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Coat 9x13" baking pan with cooking spray.

3. Whisk next 7 ingredients together in medium bowl.

4. Place egg in large bowl, whisk until blended.

5. Add next 5 ingredients.

6. Add dry ingredients & stir until just mixed.

7. Stir in raisins.

8. Pour into pan & bake for 40 minutes.

9. Cool & frost with your favorite white frosting.

Our version:

• We don't have whole wheat pastry flour in our pantry, so used ww flour instead.
• I used pear sauce instead of apple sauce [from our homemade baby food stash]
• I cut back on the molasses from 1 cup to 1/4 cup to make the flavor more mild for the kids

Our thoughts:

• Loved it! The texture was still moist but a little heavier with the ww flour.
• Benjamin thought it had chocolate in it (since it was a dark color)...he devoured his piece!
• Just the right amount of sweetness to make it 'dessert'

Color of the Week: Red

Red...it's warm & cozy & I love the color it adds to life!

• my thick, warm Eddie Bauer sweater (only $9, I love a good bargain!)


• family pictures to be sent out


• fresh tomatoes from our garden (& Grandma's too)


• a beautiful red poinsettia...thanks, Mom!


• recently finished project...decorative blocks for our shelves...coordinating with a picture that Benjamin requested we display again in our living room. We love this one...cousins holding baby Benjamin (Thanksgiving '05). Wow...they've grown so much.

Last week, this post would have been much different. Red...for bumps & bloody lips! Fortunately this week we've been less accident prone. Hope it stays that way.

Stay Warm inside & out!

Wordless Wednesday

Trevin Russell: 15 months!

My goodness...where do I begin??!! If he's awake, he's moving (he hardly ever sits anymore). If he can reach it, he'll get it. If he sees someone else do it, he'll do it. If he doesn't think you heard him or got the message, he'll try again much louder. If he doesn't take good day time naps, he'll sleep all night long (not complaining about that one!). If we're eating it, he wants some too. If he loves you, he'll give you the best smiles & neck squeezes. If he isn't sure about you, he'll run & hide his face in our laps. If his brother is at school, he doesn't laugh as much but is still content to be with us. Speaking of brothers...if his brother has it, he wants it. I find myself telling him 'no' so much more than I ever did with Benjamin. Of course his interests include: light switches, electrical outlets, phones, keys, the vacuum, etc. Why do we need toys??

Words: Mama, Dada, lickle (tickle) and his own jibber jabber

Foods: everything (except the typical food hazards for a 1yr old)

Sleeps: 2 short day time naps & usually sleeping all night long

Teeth: 6...maybe more soon?

Oh yes, he keeps us on our toes...I feel so worn out by the end of the day. But it is worth it and we all love him so much!

Pardon...

Please bear with me as I muddle my way thru a blog makeover. Progress has been slow...2 steps forward & 1 step back. I'm learning as I go!

Happy Birthday to Mason & Chase!

These 2 special boys had a fabulous party. Benjamin has been talking about it ever since. Since returning from Ireland, the twins have introduced Chuggington to Benjamin. Haven't you heard of Chuggington? Evidently he has taken quite an interest in these new trains because he spends time everyday coloring the Chuggington trains in his 'thank you coloring book'. Impressive!

little musicians

Music...

expresses feeling and thought, without language;

it was below and before speech, and it is above and beyond all words.

~Robert G. Ingersoll

Flavor of the Week: Peppermint

While the weather around here isn't feeling quite like winter, we're enjoying this flavor of winter...peppermint!

I highly recommend this tea! It isn't just herbal peppermint...it's a decaf green tea with a wonderful smooth mild mint flavor. I was absolutely delighted to stocked up again after not being able to find it for a few weeks. I got to last 2 boxes at Target. $1.77 a box...you can't beat that price!

Our hands are clean & smell yummy too!

Last but not least....a sweet splurge.

We rarely buy Oreos, but this limited edition sounded too good to pass up. You should have seen the smile on Benjamin's face when I showed him the package. Guess we'll have some help eating these up!

Trevin's Turkey

Thanksgiving Week

Here are a few pictures of our week...

enjoying the outdoors
smiles at the Thanksgiving dinner table

group violin concert

Thankful from our hearts...

"We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have."

~ Frederick Koenig

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving Day...filled with good food, company & fellowship! We certainly did. Pictures to follow...

Leaves

Interesting Days...

No dull moments for us...

- both boys have ear infections (Trevin's 1st ever & Benjamin's 2nd)
- the temperature keeps creeping up into the 80s each day
- we have worker company
- I survived my first week back to work (only 9 hours...but it feels more like 20!)
- Trevin is addicted to light switches, cords, & telephones (when did he lose interest in all our toys??!!)

But we're surviving & looking forward to slower, more relaxing days very soon!
Happy Thanksgiving to each of you!

Fun times

While Amy & family were here, we used our Sea World passes once more this year. The boys loved it and Trevin was fascinated by the animals this time.

Looking very grown up
Meeting a new friend at Sea World

Drake, Skye, Benjamin, Ethan, Devon, & Damion

Drake, Benjamin & Damion

14 months

Cousin Fun

Candyland with Papa!

I can't get enough of her...from her full head of hair, her blue eyes, her cute babydoll features, to her tiny toes. It is so fun to have her (oh..and her Mom & brother too!) here.

Looking Up

While he looks up, the rest of us look down,

we watch & wait to see what he'll do next.

While he looks up, the rest of us look down,

he watches & waits to see what we'll do next.

Welcome Home RLMC&M!

Our dear, dear friends are back from Ireland. From all they've said about their trip, it is obvious they left a part of the hearts over there. But we are so happy they are back!

I didn't get a picture of the 3 musketeers...they were much too busy for that sort of thing. But I did get this picture of our little munchkins. I love how their little hands are holding on to each other. It makes me think of friends - friends who hold on, who help hold us up, & keep us close...thru the calm & storms of life.

Roar!

Benjamin poses with our silly faces.

I love how Benjamin's pumpkin turned out - a little ghost!

Benjamin's good friend at school & his teacher's assistant