January 7, 2012

I’ve recently been spending a lot of time in the kitchen. Now it isn’t because I’m a great chef or a magnificent baker but I do enjoy trying new recipes and it is always encouraging when the whole family enjoys them.

For Christmas I received 3 new cookbooks: A Buddy Cake Boss cookbook, a family book written by my Aunt Lydia, and a CakePops cookbook. I’ve really enjoyed baking goodies and decorating them since Perry’s first birthday so getting a cake pops book and a Cake Boss book was such a treat. So far I’ve made cookies and some cake truffles, from these two books and when there is time I’m looking forward to making a cake and decorating it with my new circuit cake decorator…also a Christmas present from my momma.

From Aunt Lydia’s book we have discovered Bacon Cheese Burger Meatloaf, Tater Tot Casserole, Sausage Balls and a failed Peanut Butter Pie (which I won’t give up on). These were all a big hit with all four of us which is exciting because I’m not an exciting cook and I often get bored with dinner. I’m always up for new easy recipes!! I just discovered a new pancake recipe from the ParentLife Magazine that I will share. They are super sweet and do not even need syrup although my two little ones require syrup on their pancakes regardless of what they taste like. Enjoy one of my newest discoveries…

Berry Smoothie Pancakes
1cup vanilla yogurt
1 banana sliced
1/2cup strawberries sliced
1/4cup blueberries
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup 100% whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 large eggs

combine yogurt and berries in blender set aside
combine flours and baking soda in a large bowl add eggs and smoothie mixture
…this comes out really thick and I like thinner pancakes so I added some milk till I liked the texture…

Youth Christmas Party December 19, 2011

We just got home from the FBC Youth Christmas Party. One baby is asleep and the other is on the way. I thought I would take a moment to share about our evening. I realized the other day I’ve never shared pictures or stories from our youth events…probably because I’m not able to attend many of them. Good news, I got to go to the party!

We are so thankful to all those who opened their homes and to the many others who provided the delicious food. We had a huge spread of appetizers at the Culver’s home which quickly disappeared. Perry threatened to stay at their house…I almost let him . We went from here back to church where we were served dinner which was also yummy. After dinner the students exchanged white elephant gifts. I’m not really sure how many students were happy with what they took home seeing as how the budget was $5 or something from home. However, Perry and Macy were thrilled with their gifts. Perry stole used basketball trophy and if I know him he’s sleeping with it right now. Macy ended up with a necklace and Tierra although she didn’t really open any presents. After some good laughs at gifts like a roll of toilet paper, which believe it or not was stolen a few times, and night crawlers we headed for dessert. Once again we were greeted by quite a spread of yummy, gooey, chocolatey goodness.

We really are enjoying our time with the students. It has been difficult for me at times to make connections and spend the time that I want to with them, mainly because I always have 2 little ones following me around. But, the time we do get to spend is full of fun and laughter. I’m very thankful for the way the love and play with PB and MZ, as a matter of fact, Perry will be talking about riding in the church bus with the big kids for a long time! Merry Christmas from the FBC Students.

Girly Girl December 15, 2011

Macy is turning into quite the little girl. She usually spends the morning walking around the house with her jewelry on or sporting her new tutu.

This morning I couldn’t help but snap a few pictures as she sat in the rocking chair with her baby and blanket. So, I thought I would share this sweet moment with you!

Disappearing Act December 15, 2011

The ornaments on my Christmas Tree have started disappearing. I’ll let you guess who the culprit is…nope it isn’t Perry. MACY wouldn’t leave the tree alone. This girl is fearless and stubborn.

So, I set the little hands in the house to work making ornaments they could touch and play with. They turned out super cute and we had a blast making them together. I guess the looked too cute because I started finding ornaments with lick marks and pieces missing. The homemade ornaments started disappearing because Macy

continued to try and eat them.

Needless to say we quickly grew tired of re-hanging ornaments on the tree and telling little hands no. So, our tree is only halfway decorated. It is KILLING me to have a half decorated tree, but we are much more relaxed so it is probably worth it. Maybe next year we can decorate the whole tree.