A Wise Man

JBS was in his school's Christmas program the last day of school before Christmas Break. All the girls were angels, all the boys were shepherds plus a Mary and Joseph and 3 Wise men. Somehow JBS landed the part of one of the 3 wise men. For 3 weeks we practiced his line, "We saw a star in the East and we have come to worship him." JBS was ready for his big moment.

Gambo and Poppy arrived just in time for the show. We were all in the sanctuary as the kids paraded in and into their places. Of course, I had my eyes fixed on JBS, who is laughing and carrying on with his buddy, one of the other kings.

So tells the tale of the life of being a mother of a boy. Babe leans over and asked, "Who is that kid JBS is talking to?" Talking to? JBS was in near hysterics as he practiced his burps. I could hear him make a burping sound and say, "Excuse me." Burp. "Excuse me." Yes, this is my precious angelic toot. A normally well-behaved toot. The toot that was chosen to be a wiseman. The toot that is standing on his platform burping in front of the whole school and getting the biggest kick out of it all.

I guess it could be worse. Is tooting worse that burping? I am sure I will see that day, too.

She Growed!

We have now been away from Tulsa for a year and apart from JBS's first true love, Miss Z, for a year and a half. He has named his stuffed animals after her, one of his plastic cows, we talk about her often. I just keep thinking that his 4 year-old brain cannot retain the thought of her for very long...especially since she was 3 when we left her.

Well, the day arrived that we received her Christmas card in the mail with her cute picture on it. I was so excited to show JBS what had arrived. I handed him the card and said, "Look what arrived today, JBS!" He looked at the card blankly and asked who it was. I was shocked. He guessed, "Is it Go-Go?" JBS! It isn't Go-Go, look again! Again, he said, "I don't know. It's Go-Go." I said, "JBS, it's Miss Z!" He stared long and hard at her picture with a furrowed brow. He finally looked up at me after a minute or so and asked, (and I quote) "Why she growed?"

The Final Word on Food

Babe's family came and went and strangely, the silence is deafening. We had a lot of fun, but man am I pooped. We really enjoyed having Babe's family here for the weekend and his extended family here on Sunday. After preparing food for two weeks, I am not exactly sure what to do with my time. This is the final word on food...

While Babe graciously agreed to officially be in charge of Christmas Dinner on Saturday night, I contributed the Olive Cheese Bread and this amazing Martha Stewart Chocolate Peppermint Trifle. It was far better than I ever could have imagined. White chocolate mousse, chocolate pudding and cake, chocolate syrup with Godiva Liqueur. It was so good.

The final touches on the "Day of Appetizers" includes one of my favorites, Bruschetta...a fabulous recipe from my friend, Jessica, in Tulsa...

I learned how to make "Yummy Punch" from my friend, Kimberly. I was particularly proud of the ice ring. I am sure nobody noticed it. The punch bowl was a wedding gift from The Paper Girl :)

We had a deli meat and cheese tray with croissants...

A Christmas staple in my family, Chipped Beef Dip with Fritos...

A new recipe that I really liked, Ricotta Stuffed Roma Tomatoes...

My mother-in-law's special request, Artichoke Dip...yum.

One of my favorite things to cook when taking food to a party, Meatballs (with Chili Sauce and Grape Jelly)

The homemade fudge, toffee and Peppermint Bark. OK, I admit, I got a little help with the Peppermint Bark from Williams-Sonoma.

The Sausage Balls, Cream Cheese stuffed Jalapenos and Franks in a Blanket. Yes, the Franks in a Blanket were a special request AND they were from Sam's, but they really are quite good.

I forgot to take pictures of everything and missed a couple things. I was so tired by the end of the evening last night I could barely lift a finger. My sweet sister-in-law and mother-in-law cleaned up everything and did the dishes while I sat in a complete lifeless daze wondering how I ever made it through.

I am thinkin' pizza for our upcoming Christmas celebration. The kitchen will miss me dearly for the next few days. or weeks. Maybe a month...

More Food...

Cooking is all I speak these days. This is what we have been up to...

Cake balls for Aunt Jenny's birthday...

Peanut clusters...

Chocolate fudge (with nuts!)...

Oatmeal Caramel Bars (from the fab Texas Ties cookbook)...

White Texas Sheet cake (also from Texas Ties Cookbook) and it is to die for. I got that cute tree plate at a gift exchange this week...

I don't remember a Christmas that I have ever not had Spritz cookies. You really can't eat just one...

Let's talk about my Cheese Straws. I was making this simple recipe when Babe suggested I go get dinner. (Unfortunately for my family, I have been baking so much that I have neglected to make them dinner for a week.) I said "No Problem if you will finish up my Cheese straws." The instructions were very simple: Use the cookie press (that was already full of the dough) and make them about as long as a french fry. Cook them for 8 minutes and they are done. Here are my cheese straws...

Can you see how dainty they look. Somewhat like a sea-urchin, a little spiny and delicate...
When I returned home, the house smelled of burnt Cheese Straws and I found these:

Are you thinking what I am thinking? Cheese turds is more like it. Cheese turds will not fly! Evidently he burned the first batch and got tired of using the proper form. So, he put the biggest tip on the end and came out with these... What part about my instructions was so difficult to understand?!#%@

Thanks, Babe, for that help. It was great. Really.

Christmas Tree Sans Flash

So sorry for the late post. The in-law's started to arrive today plus cooking, plus JBS's Christmas program at school. 11pm is my first moment to sit at the computer...

So, I posted a picture of my Christmas tree last week for Aubree's blog. I immediately got a call from a crazy pregnant woman who told me I had to take a picture so she could see the lights. It has taken me until now to get it together to do that. I can't disobey a prego friend. After all, I am so stinkin' excited she is goin' to be a Momma. Here it is, girl!

Gotta catch some sleep before the cooking bonanza really begins in the AM...

The Angel Tree

Being in a new town and a new home this Christmas, everything about our tradition is new and different. For example, all my decorations had a special "home" in my house in Tulsa. This year, decorating has taken a lot of trial and error finding the perfect spot for everything. And so goes our tradition of getting an Angel off a local Angel Tree.

JBS may not remember, but we get an Angel off an Angel tree that is JBS and JLS's age either at Wal-Mart or at our church every year. Here, we don't know where all the Angel Tree's are. I commented to Babe on Sunday that we really needed to get an Angel off the Tree at church since we hadn't done this yet. JBS, of course, wanted to know what that meant. So, I told him that every year we get an Angel off the tree so we can give gifts to little boys that either don't have anyone to give them gifts or their parents can't afford to do it. I watched as it sank in.

Last night, as we were cooking away together, JBS walked in the kitchen with his "Waiter Tray" and said, "Mommy! We need to get an angel off the tree for a little boy that needs a toy!" Being somewhat distracted with the making of Cake Balls, I agreed. The next thing I know, JBS walks in the kitchen with an angel ornament off our Christmas Tree and says, "Here, Mommy. Here is a beautiful angel for a little boy who doesn't have any toys."

He definitely got an angel off the tree! Sweet thing...

Advent Services

I have attempted now 3 times for the 3 Advent Sunday's to have a family advent "service" at our house. I had no expectations except to begin a nice tradition in our family. So far, total chaos, but quality family time for sure. Understandably, the boys are smitten with the "fire". As soon as the candles are lit they are begging to blow them out. Really, I am not so sure they have retained anything about the meaning of Advent or Jesus, but praying we know how to do. Here is Toot #2 with Cheerios oh-so-close prayin' his little heart out. I would have interrupted the prayer had I gotten a better shot. Try praying and taking a picture at the same time...Please forgive me Lord for being distracted!

Please note, this is the only time JLS is silent. I am sure the Lord appreciates that, too!

Cookin' Mama

If you can believe it, I sort of stalled out this weekend on cooking. Babe and I went Christmas shopping for the boys on Saturday and Sunday JBS had a birthday party...all the time disappeared! However, I did get a few things accomplished...

We pre-made and froze gingerbread cookies. When the boys' cousin arrives at the end of this week we will have a cookie decorating party! (aka giant mess) But, isn't that what memories are made of?

I mentioned I was making Ree's cinnamon rolls and I got quite a response from that. I will say this for my first attempt. It was far more successful that I expected. It was a far bigger mess than I expected. They tasted amazing. Worth every minute of that ENTIRE day!
This was the finished product with (what I think to be) my cute gift stickers I mentioned in Penelope's Pitstop.

I made another new recipe that I had ripped from a magazine...Turtle Bars. Oh my goodness, are they good! YUM!!
An old friend of mine in Tulsa that has since moved away gave me the recipe to Peanut Butter Blossoms and they are the best of this version of cookie that I have ever put in my mouth. YUMMY!
So, I have a day or so lull in cooking, as I am now finished with the pre-made to freeze food. Now, I get to clean the house. Unfortunately for me, our wonderful cleaning lady came prior to all the cooking mess...

My Tree

I promised my friend, Aubree, at The Southern Family, that I would join her Christmas Tree link today. I never do these, put she pulled at my heartstrings. So, here is my tree. I hate that the flash goes off, but I don't have time to figure it out in between Cinnamon Roll batches and round #2 of Sausage Balls.That lovely awkward shaped present under the front of the tree is from Babe...to me. Peculiar, yes. Merry Christmas!

The Commencement

Yes, holiday cooking has begun at my house. Since that is all I am doing between wrangling the toots, that is all I have to talk about. My in-laws are coming next Thursday. We will have Christmas Dinner Saturday night and Sunday, Babe's entire extended family will be gracing our house with their presence. (20 plus) That will be a day full of appetizers galore. We are really excited to have everyone come see our new home and celebrate Christmas together.

While I don't have a picture of my first recipe I conquered, I swiped one from Ree at The Pioneer Woman. In fact, I swiped a few of her recipes for my holiday festivities. One of which I am making today. I first made Bacon-wrapped Jalapeno Peppers. They were actually pretty easy to make. I bought a box of Jalapenos at Sam's and made the entire box in an hour. Cooking, of course, excluded.

Next, I made the all-time standard, but always a crowd pleaser, Sausage Balls. A great filler on the appetizer table. And they freeze well!

While those were cooking, yet another recipe from Ree, Olive Cheese Bread. (a double recipe) This we will eat with Christmas dinner. What I love most that Ree does for the freezing incompetent like me, is that she tells me what can be frozen and at what step to freeze it. I never know what freezes well and whether or not to freeze before or after cooking.Before I went to bed last night I made some fabulous White Lasagna which comes from the Texas Ties cookbook. (A really good cookbook and Christmas gift at that!) This way at least one meal is complete for when Babe's family arrives. I will be working on so much more that I won't have time to think about dinner!This morning the toots and I began our Cinnamon Roll adventure. This is the last thing I am making from The Pioneer Woman. However, I have been on the receiving end of those cinnamon rolls from her Mom and they are worth every minute of the full day project. I just hope I can duplicate. During my first try this morning, I was trying to explain to JBS what "boiling" meant. So, I grabbed my handy candy thermometer and had him watch the temperature rise. We thought we were good until I pulled the thermometer out of the pot. At some point the glass on the tip of the thermometer had shattered and the mercury bulb was swelling to a point of shattering. Thus, I had to dump it out and start over. I just don't think I wanted to chance mercury poisoning for my cinnamon roll recipients...no?

Let's just hope this doesn't set precedence for the day of cooking ahead of me. Until tomorrow!

It Snowed!

Unfortunately, I have no pictures to document the snow, but it was really snowing last night! I have no heavy coats, whatsover, as whodda thunk I needed one in Houston? I did, however, bust out with my cute gloves and went to dinner with the girls. When I left the restaurant, it was dumping snow. I kid you not. The burb, which I got to use my seat warmers for the first time this year, said, "ICE" on the thermometer. Ice? What's that? I live in the tropics!

As I drove home with the snow in the headlights, I got a warm place in my heart. It FINALLY felt like Christmas.

Of course, it was 73 degrees the day before, so none of the snow stuck.

Today

Today, JLS and I were mad hatters running all over town during JBS's half day of school. We were able to get a new "Hoy" (horse) for JBS, as his first one was "taken" from our front yard along with our car seats and 2 boxes of Junior League Cookbooks. Another story. He desperately missed riding his stick horse that cloppity-clops with JLS, so I promised him I would find another.

We also drove to Spring to pick up a piece of glass. I never thought I would be so excited about a piece of glass, but this special piece of class should fit on the counter of my butler's pantry. It will hopefully prevent destruction. Too bad my whole house can't be "destruction-proof".

We zipped home, deposited the glass and zipped to Sam's round #1. Please don't tell Babe how much I spent. However, it was the first trip for Christmas baking. I was especially delighted to have enough time to drive back across town to my house to deposit the cold things before we picked JBS up at school. From there, we went on to HEB to spend more money on food. (Yes, me and both toots, ALONE.) Again, only round #1 of grocery shopping. Making and freezing. Making and freezing. The story of my life.

So, Christmas baking/cooking has commenced in this house. Time is short, but I will try to keep you posted! "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas..." Oh! And it is 35 degrees in Houston today! Word has it, it was snowing in Cypress (about 10 minutes from here).

I can't be sure they have ever seen snow before to know if they know what they are talking about...

Earth Mom Take One

You may laugh and think I am nuts for calling myself Earth mom, or you may laugh and think I am crazy for just now "getting it". This is the story. I have become a huge fan of my nutritionist. Most of you who read my little blog know that I have Crohn's disease. For over ten years I have struggled with incredible pain, lots of drugs and a few surgeries. I have had doctors that I love and that are very good doctors attempt to treat me. However, after ten years of having medication thrown at me, I am sick of it. No one has healed me, yet. I take lots of drugs and especially in the last year of stress, I have had terrible abdominal pain. Blinding pain that got me to the point of trying ANYTHING to help me. Even visiting a chiropractor.

Babe, too, has his own struggle with chronic allergies. He is one of those people that is just allergic to everything. His allergist here recommended he see this nutritionist/chiropractor here about his allergies. Well, Babe thought he was pretty good and signed me up to go to address my Crohn's issues. This is a big step for me. As a trained therapist, chiropractors haven't always been the highest on my list, as I often saw patients that were injured from bad chiropractors. That is the key. There are good ones and bad ones. Just like doctors or mechanics or cooks! So, I was skeptical. VERY skeptical.

He gave me a special blood test that determined specific vitamin deficiencies that I had. Having Crohn's I have given tanks of blood, but no one has ever looked at my vitamin deficiencies. He looked me in the eyes when he saw my results and told me he could put me in remission. If you have been on the receiving end of my grief this year, you would understand that my eyes welled up with tears and I told him skeptically, but with great hope and through tears to do it. NOW!

For a month, I have been taking vitamins specific to my deficiencies and I haven't felt so good in years. I haven't had a blinding attack since I saw him, either. So, I am sold. I love the holistic approach. I love that he wants to get me off my meds eventually. I love that he has a plan for me. His theory is that everything comes down to the intestinal tract. If your intestinal tract isn't healthy, more than likely, you aren't. This pertains not only to GI disorders, but migraines, allergies (food and seasonal), sleeping disorders, heart health, cancer, the list goes on. A huge light bulb is glowing in my head.

So, the earth mom part is that today JBS has a sinus infection, but he feels fine. So, I am taking the probiotic approach with him to repair his intestinal tract in an effort to heal him before he needs antibiotics. I am giving him probiotics and starting the Sambucol, that I love so dearly, 3 times a day. It sounds crazy, but the science adds up. It's all about the immune system and the immune system is directly affected by what we eat (or don't eat) and what passes through our intestinal tract to break it down or build it up. It's mind boggling and very exciting for someone like me.

You wouldn't believe the success stories he shared with me pertaining to kids with chronic upper respiratory issues. It's all about the gut. You must be good to your gut. So far, I am a complete believer. No one has been able to stop my pain in the last year, rather 10 years. I was only given "emergency pills" to take when I had a moment of distress. (ie near death experience in my opinion)

The jury is out. Stay tuned for the results. I think I can make a believer out of you.

It's Been A YEAR!

It is hard to believe, but December 6th marks one year that we have been in Texas. It seems like yesterday that we pulled out of the driveway on 23rd street to make the long tearful trek to our corporate apartment in Katy. I still get that sinking feeling in my gut when I think about that dreaded apartment. It was nice, but never was it home. Every weekend we came up with something to do to get out of the apartment....the Zoo, the Aquarium, museums, visits to see our dog, Toley. It's kind of nice to have had that interim apartment so I can put all my moving sadness there and leave it.

A year later, we are in a different town, with a different job, with a different house, and with a different outlook. (and Praise the Lord, one less house!) While I still get sad when I think about my wonderful friends and comfortable life in Tulsa, I know that I can make more friends here. We have a home that I love and everyone is a year older. While that is stating the obvious, it's hard to believe we moved here with JLS in a baby bed (no longer) and JBS was only 3. Now my precious toots are almost 5 and 2 1/2. I reminded myself of that many times this year, as I found myself wishing the year away. I knew in a year I would have a place to call home and more stability, but I also knew I was wishing away the fun and CRAZY years of the boys' childhood.

JBS has been adamantly requesting leaves to roll in and snow to play in. Unfortunately, we don't get leaves in the Piney Forest of The Woodlands and I am not sure it has ever snowed in Houston. I can't make snow, but we did just plant 3 maples trees last weekend that will hopefully grow into trees with beautiful fall colors and provide enough leaves for a romp and roll. The needles just aren't cutting it.

Wonder what next year will bring? I am hoping for far less stress, greater peace and close friends. And maybe a few more leaves...

God is GOOD. ALL the time.

What Did You Say?

As I was working on the computer this morning, JBS came up to me and asked, "Momma is there orange pouring out of my head?" as he pointed to the top of his head? Well, no, JBS, there is no orange pouring out of the top of your head. Why do you ask? "I hit my head and I think it's bleeding."

Evidently, not red, but orange is the color of blood in JBS's head. And, it is pouring, no less.

Fear not. The ambulance did not have to be called. No red or orange or any other color, for that matter, was discovered pouring out of his head.

Praise the Lord.

Thanksgiving at the Lake

Going to the lake in the Fall is just as wonderful as visiting in the summer. There may not be heat and skiing and swimming, but there is cool air, hiking, hunting for animals and playing in the woods. Here's a few pics from our time at the lake. It was good for the soul to breathe a little cold air. Yesterday in Houston it was 77 degrees. (ugh!)

The boys spend more time outside playing in the Fall than they do in the summer heat. One thing for sure, this family's blood has already thinned. We were coooold!

Big Daddy hauled the Jeep to the lake for lots of driving time....

The boys hiked Big Daddy's trails. This would be "The Pretzel" as BD named it...because the limbs have grown to look like...a pretzel!

We played at on the shore of the lake, skipping rocks/throwing boulders....We towed Babe's boat out of storage and let the motor purr a little. It doesn't get used so much anymore....:( The two "hear no evils" weren't so impressed with the sounds of the motor.

For any of you who are Penelope's Pitstop fans, here is the Plasma Car in motion...

My last and final picture is of, well, my little sister, Sally. Big Daddy threw bumpers in the lake for her, which she loved. I caught this funny looking shot of her as she jumped off the dock...There's just something about the Lake in the fall...