Leftover Days

I have always had mixed feelings about the days in between Christmas and New Years Eve. After all the excitement of Christmas has passed, Dec. 26-30 can be a bit of a letdown until the next party arrives.
As a child, I used them to write thank you notes (one of my favorite things to do as a child), play with my new toys, and spend my Christmas money.
As a teenager, these days were sometimes boring and sometimes fun. One year (I forget which--sometime in the late 90's), Christmas vacation was extended by several days due to blizzards and extremely cold weather. Instead of hoping for a snow day, you could almost hear an audible groan rumble through town as students heard over the radio announcements that we would all be home and away from our friends for yet another day. It was on one of those days a bunch of us girls from around town gathered outside and went sledding on the best hills we could find. It was so much fun to play like a child outside in the snow again.
As a college student, Christmas vacation was especially nice because of the semester schedule. There was absolutely nothing at college that would require my attention for a good three weeks. I was a nerd who used every Spring Break writing research papers to get them done ahead of time, but Christmas required no note cards or stacks of books (that's how we did research 10 years ago). It was also wonderful getting together with friends and watching movies, playing games, and laughing into the wee hours of the morning.
What have these leftover days been like this year? I have to say that it has not been bad at all. We have all been sleeping in (until 7:30am). The boys have had a steady diet of playing outside, playing downstairs with their toys, watching TV, and playing Wii. They have been together constantly and have gotten along surprisingly well. Teresa spends most of her time on my heels every time I dare take two steps away from her and whining. You gotta love two year olds! So, that isn't such a great part, but the rest has been alright. She's still cute, so she has that going for her at least.
It looks like we will have a pretty tame New Year's Eve this year. We will have my side of the family's Chrsitmas celebration at our house and then will hit the day early as David and I leave early in the morning on January 1 for a little vacation. We will return January 5.
If I don't get back to the blog before then Happy New Year and I will "see" you when I get back!

Digging Out

David started the process of digging out early Sunday morning.

It was finally time to wear the new Christmas outfits!

Aren't they just so cute and innocent? :o)

A Merry Little Christmas at Home

Some 2009 Christmas Eve Memories

The snow moving crew (Landen, Nathan, & cousin Carter) was on the scene all day ensuring safe travel around the driveway!

Teresa loved "Baby Bear" that she received from her godparents. She didn't even get to the rest of the goodies inside the present until the next day.

Teresa is also now ready to open her own restaurant!

Merry Christmas to all . . .

and to all a good night!

Sneaky Snacker Strikes Again!

Last night David and I rearranged our living room a bit. We found our sneaky snacker is still on the loose!
First David found a whole dark chocolate and a wrapper behind the entertainment center. I could not tell if he was saving it for later, or if he decided dark chocolate wasn't his thing.
Moving a seldom-used recliner uncovered five sucker sticks, a dried up piece of cheese bread, and assorted other candy wrappers.
Oh, Nater! What are we going to do with you?

Easy Dressing

What's Christmas without a new recipe? My mom shared this one with me over the phone this morning. It was a hit for our little Christmas supper tonight.

Easy Dressing
1 box stuffing mix--prepared as directed on box
1 can creamed corn
1 can cream of chicken soup (or any cream soup)

Mix together, pour in casserole dish, and bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

More Lovely Things on Christmas Day

I did not make it to listing 100 things I love by Christmas, but I am still going to post them as they come to me. Here are some more:

21. Christmas lights
22. Christmas trees
23. after-Christmas sales
24. presents wrapped and waiting under the tree
25. when the blizzard we've prepared for finally arrives and we are all safe at home
26. gratitude
27. admiring the talent of professional photographers
28. fleece blankets
29. Hawaiian pizza
30. palm trees

From Christmas lights to blizzards to palm trees . . . that is a pretty all-inclusive list!
Yes, the winds began to blow during the night, so we had the quiet Christmas at home with our children as we had expected we would do today. After struggling with some problems with being thankful in previous years, our kids were so thankful and happy with everything they received this year. It warms a parents heart to hear, "That's what I always wanted!" (Especially if it is something as simple as a pair of Spider-Man pajamas.)
The day flew by after we entered the world of Wii and tried out some new games. We had an early Christmas supper of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and cranberries. Then all three kids were in bed shortly after 7pm.
It was definitely and out-of-the-ordinary Christmas, but a very nice one nonetheless. I hope yours was much the same!

Unexpected Blessings

This is not the Christmas I had planned. I am sure several thousand families throughout the midwest can say the same thing today as a major storm (supposedly) moves in.
Our family went over to my husbands' parents this morning with the intention of staying just until after dinner to beat the bad winds and snow home. It turned out that the winds held off until this evening. We had a fun time with everyone there, but in the process I missed out on Christmas with my family because of the storm everyone thought would arrive this afternoon.
I felt sorry for myself for a little while, but not too long. I really love my parents/brothers/sisters-in-law, niece, and nephews. I am thankful that we live close enough to have our impromptu Christmas together, even if it isn't what any of us really planned on doing today!
God has truly, truly blessed us.
Although this might not be the Christmas you had planned, take a little time to see the blessings around you--even if it is someone you hadn't expected seeing on Christmas Day!
Thank God that no storm can keep us from celebrating the birth of his Son wherever we are.
Merry Christmas!

You Gotta Believe.

Enjoy a classic from the New York Sun first run on September 21, 1897. Thank God for the writer who answered this little girl. Santa most certainly lives and lives and lives in those who do even a little to make another's world brighter.

"DEAR EDITOR: I am 8 years old.
"Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus.
"Papa says, 'If you see it in THE SUN it's so.'
"Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus?

"VIRGINIA O'HANLON.
"115 WEST NINETY-FIFTH STREET."

VIRGINIA, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except [what] they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

You may tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, VIRGINIA, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.

No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

Mean Mom

I had to be a mean mom this morning. I have written about Landen's tendency to lose articles of clothing--namely gloves--on his way to/from or at school. I have to be tolerant since I have also lost a pair of gloves this winter and had similar misplacing tendencies as a child, but my Landen has a talent for misplacing things--and never finding them again--like no other.
Yesterday he wore a brand new pair of gloves to school. Last night he walked in the door and told me, "They must have fallen off." Grrrrr!!!
His dad has threatened him that if he lost one more pair of gloves, he would go without until he found them. Well, this morning was that test.
David was out pushing snow from our yard, so it was up to me. At first I was going to be nice. Landen had found another pair of gloves on the floor and the mitten clips we had found in the entry closet. Based on their packaging, the clips look quite vintage, but are in brand new condition. As I was clipping the gloves to his coat and giving him a lecture about being responsible for his things, finding them, etc., he told me, "You just have too many gloves around here."
Well, I solved that problem in a hurry. The gloves stayed here and Landen left for the bus. He wasn't happy with this mom, but maybe it will be the motivation he needs to realize this house isn't an endless fountain flowing with extra pairs of gloves.
Tough love is tough on both of us, but sometimes it is necessary. I am sure it won't be the last time.

Fun Times Outside

"Substitute" Gingerbread Cookies

Landen requested that we make gingerbread cookies last week. Despite my hesitation taking on such a project, I found a guaranteed "easy to roll" recipe online and started mixing up the dough on Saturday morning.
The only problem was I found too late that all of my recent baking has taken quite a toll on the baking cupboard! I had to subsitute a few things--even half of the required molasses! Thankfully they still came out smelling and tasting like gingerbread, so all of the substitutes didn't affect the outcome too badly.
Here is my recipe (with substitutes if you want them to taste just like mine). :o)

"Substitute" Gingerbread Cookies
1 cup white sugar
4 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp groung nutmeg (Oops! A quick run to the pantry revealed that my only reserve spices were chili powder and allspice. Allspice smelled similar, so I used my last 1/2 tsp of nutmeg and another 1/2 tsp of allspice. I know that only adds up to 1 tsp, but I was afraid to add too much of a spice that wasn't even in the recipe.)
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup molasses (I found online that dark corn syrup can be substituted, so I added a 1/2 cup of syrup to my last 1/2 cup of molasses.)
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup margarine, melted
1/2 cup evaporated milk
3/4 tsp vanilla
3/4 tsp lemon extract (I have never had lemon extract on hand, but saw one recipe reviewer added almond extract to hers. I couldn't find my almond extract, so I used 3/4 tsp amaretto liqueur.)
4 cups flour

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease cookie sheets. In a large bowl, stir together the sugar, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda. Mix in the melted margarine, evaporated milk, molasses, and extracts. Stir in the flour, one cup at a time, mixing well after each addition. The dough should be stiff enough to handle without sticking to fingers. If necessary, add up to 1/2 cup more flour to prevent sticking.
Chill dough in refrigerator before rolling. Roll out onto a floured surface to 1/4 inch thick. Cut out shapes and place on prepared cookie sheets. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven. Let cool a few minutes and then remove to cool on wire racks.
We learned that the dough must be very cold and more flour needs to be sprinkled on it when cutting them out, even if it doesn't seem like it is sticky.
These are best with frosting and are great for dunking!

Blog Book

Well, I said it was my dream to publish a book. It seems I don't even have to find a publisher anymore! With just a few clicks I can review my own book and order it from http://blog2print.sharedbook.com/blogworld/printmyblog/cutestblog/index.html. I am SURE it will be a best-seller. Ha!
My sister-in-law sent me this link several months ago and I saved it until the end of the year to actually check out the site this morning. It took less than a minute to upload my January entries and "page" through the book online. It even creates its own table of contents. Since I started blogging in January, I have decided to print the entire year, much like my mother-in-law does with her best family photos from each year.
When I first started my blog, my brother-in-law commented that it would be a good way to remember what has happened in our family. I hadn't anticipated it, but that is so true! This blog is my creative outlet, but also a scrapbook of daily events I otherwise would have forgotten. So often I would tell people cute things one of the kids said and they would say, "Write it down!" Well, I never seemed to find the time to put pen to paper, but it has become much easier to just log on and blog it.
Thanks for sharing in my 2009 blog journey. Stay tuned for wifeandmomunderconstruction--the book. :o)

Big Girl Bed

Yesterday we said goodbye to an old friend--our crib. We've been through a lot together--3 babies and many, many nights of sleep and afternoon naps. Even David crawled in it one night to calm Landen down. Landen used to crawl in with his baby brother and sleep there until we went to bed and moved him to his own bed. Yes, our crib served us well, but it was time to move on to bigger and better things.
Surprisingly, it was not as an emotional experience as I had expected. It makes it easier that we just have it stored downstairs and I can go and "visit" it whenever I wish. :o)
Parting with our baby "stuff" has been a slow process for me. I have lent our other baby gear & baby girl clothes to David's cousin and his wife who just had a baby girl. My best friend's little boy is the proud recipient of our little boys' clothes. I am more than happy to get more use out of these things . . . I'm just not ready to completely say goodbye forever just yet. If I ever do manage to get into quilting, I hope to make a quilt out of some of their baby clothes. But, that will be many, many years down the road.
Teresa was not yet crawling out of her crib, but she was crawling into it--climbing up on a chair, hoisting herself up and over the rail with a death-defying dive, tuck, and roll onto the mattress below. It really was quite terrifying to watch.
Mostly, though, I was excited to get her into a bed so she could use her new quilt. I designed a quilt last summer and it was already completed in November. It was a group effort. My design and fabric choices were combined with very talented ladies in Faulkton and a wonderful long-arm quilter in Aberdeen who made it a reality. It is a fun quilt that resembles a Mary Jane shoe. My mother-in-law said the pattern needed a more catchy name, so I have decided to name it "Sweet T."
Teresa loves it. As she moves downstairs someday when she is a bit older, I plan to decorate her room with her various baby shoes. She just loves shoes. I don't know how she got to be so girly, but I love it!
She spent her first night in her bed last night and it was a success. Now she will have even more room for all of her stuffed friends!

What is that SMELL?

Ah, the mystery smell. Few things are as terrifying especially when children are involved.
I woke up this morning and noticed a strange smell throughout the house. The garbage? No. The kids' rooms? Nope. The dishwasher? Not there either!
I finally tracked down the smell to the living room. Where could this sour milk/dead mouse/poopy diaper smell be coming from in that one room?
Then, as I crossed in front of the entertainment center looking for forgotten sippy cups my nose zeroed in on the culprit--my houseplant.
It is a beautiful houseplant that David once bought for me. I have managed to keep it thriving for several years. (This is probably due to the fact that it prefers dry soil.) It really does like it when I remember to water it with cooled leftover water from boiling green beans, spinach, or broccoli.
Well, it seems the leftover broccoli water from last night must have contained some bits of broccoli. That was the AWFUL smell coming from the plant.
I immediately plugged in a new air freshener. I sprinkled just a bit of baking soda on the soil (not recommended, but I had to do SOMETHING) and covered it with a new layer of potting soil. I hope that helps or I may just have to re-pot it altogether.
David came in a little bit ago and said, "It smells like a poopy diaper in here."
So, I did the only other thing I could think of. I baked cookies.
That should help mask the smell for a little while.

I'm Dreaming of a Healthy Christmas

Once upon a time, I didn't think it was possible for anyone to have the stomach flu on Christmas Day. I thought there had to be some sort of exemption on that day. Colds were allowed, but certainly not something as uncomfortable as a stomach bug.
Then came Christmas 2005 when Landen was 2 years and Nathan almost 2 months old. We made it through Christmas Day alright. Then we went on a fun family trip to the Black Hills with David's family. All was well for a couple days. Then the stomach flu snuck into the cabin. By the time it had run its course, only a couple of people were spared. It was truly the gift that kept on giving.
The next year brought a beautiful Christmas morning interrupted by Landen coughing on camera and then announcing, "I puked."
The next year brought the exact same thing--only that year Nathan joined in. (Uncanny--and gross--I know.)
Last year Teresa & Nathan both came down with an intestinal bug near the beginning of December that lasted a full seven days for each of them. Of course they staggered their infections, so we were having "fun" right up until the night of December 23. Then God smiled on us and gave us our first healthy Christmas in years. I was ecstatic and genuinely grateful.
On January 2, Teresa & Nathan succumbed to yet another bug. My first reaction? "Happy New Year."
Certainly our family had to be the only family to have such a terrible track record for this sort of thing on Christmas.
Not so! It seems Erma Bombeck and I have yet another thing in common.
Her column, "The Kids are Sick--It Must Be Christmas" ran on December 18, 1970:
"The other day Bruce complained. "My head hurts and my nose is stuffy."
"Ridiculous," I said. "It's too early. Christmas is a week away."
Normal people can always predict when the holidays are near at hand. There is an air of excitement, the smell of evergreens, the ringing of bells, the singing of carols. There is a saying at our house. "We got measles. It must be Christmas."
Down at the Laundromat, I am known as Typhoid Mary. "What are you having this year for Christmas?" they ask as I sort my clothes.
"Well, I've got one exposure to chicken pox, one who has had mumps only on his left side, and two just throw up to keep things interesting."
It's never serious enough to be a real emotional drag, but I've forgotten what real Christmases are like. I cornered my friend Donna Robust and begged, "Tell me again about Christmas at your house."
"Well," said Donna, "on Christmas morning I get up first and--"
"Start going through the yellow pages to find a drugstore open," I said, my eyes glistening.
"No, no"--she laughed--"I turn on all the lights around the Christmas tree. The I ring the sleigh bells and--"
"I know, I know." I said excitedly, "it's pill time. You give one a spoon of Coke syrup, another an aspirin and the baby a suppository for nausea."
She shook her head. "I summon them all around the tree to open up their presents. Then, after breakfast, we all get dressed--"
"Can you imagine that" I sighed. "Everybody dressed!"
"Then we go to church, and that afternoon we have fifteen or twenty people in for Christmas dinner."
"Once I saw my dad on Christmas. He slid two batteries under the door for a robot monster that didn't include them."
"I bet that was nice," she said.
"Oh, and another time the doctor dropped by to check on us and brought in a bit of snow on his boots. The kids went wild."
"Maybe this year things will be different," said Donna, patting my hand.
"Maybe so, " I sighed, "But tell me again about how you all get dressed and go out . . . ."

Maybe this year will be different. After all, I think we've already paid our dues for the year. We all took our turn with a mild stomach bug before and after Thanksgiving.
Thank goodness we have had our immunizations for chicken box, measles and mumps. At least that is one less thing for us to share!

Feeding the Geese

One of the best parts of visiting Pierre is the lake near the state capitol. Geese, ducks, and huge fish enjoy the water year 'round and love when visitors bring them bread and popcorn snacks. They are definitely not shy. One goose came right up and "talked" to us. We think he was saying, "More popcorn, please!"
We didn't have to worry about our kids keeping all the popcorn for themselves. Landen took one taste of the plain air-popped corn and said it tasted "horrible." As you can see, the geese and ducks thought it was very yummy!

O, Christmas Trees!

Every Christmas season the South Dakota State Capitol is filled with Christmas trees. The boys loved them, but Teresa seemed a bit intimidated by this "forest" at first!

Family Movies

My sister is a great judge of movies--especially family movies.

The first she told me about was "Meet the Robinsons."
I had thought about buying the movie for our family, but I didn't know if it was appropriate as the previews had looked kind of . . . um . . . silly. However, after she assured me it was appropriate for small children and had a great message, I just happened to find it in a bargain bin at a local convenience store as I was buying my coffee one Sunday morning. We watched it that night and it really was wonderful. The message--KEEP MOVING FORWARD--is one with which I frequently struggle and need to be reminded to do from time to time. It is such an imaginative, funny, reminder that our world is always changing and the best is yet to come.

The most recent favorite is "Horton Hears a Who." I had wanted to take the boys to it last summer, but for some reason or another it didn't work out. We have the older cartoon on the same video as "The Grinch" cartoon, so they have seen that version several times. I had never watched the entire thing.
Then one day as I was changing the boys' beds and Nathan was watching it in the living room above, I heard some great wisdom drift down the stairs--A PERSON'S A PERSON NO MATTER HOW SMALL.
As we were flipping through sale ads on Thanksgiving, Amanda assured me that the new version was again very suitable for young children (not all Seuss remakes in the past have been).
Yesterday it came from Netflix and we had a family movie night. It is very cute--Horton can do GREAT things with his ears--and again the central message is repeated at the end--EVEN THOUGH YOU CAN'T SEE THEM OR HEAR THEM AT ALL, A PERSON'S A PERSON NO MATTER HOW SMALL.
A pro-life message? I choose to think so. A reminder that we need to look out for each other--especially the "little" people? Definitely.
If you want to have a family movie night, need to entertain the kids while you get a little holiday baking done, or still have a movie lover on your Christmas list these are two wonderful choices. Don't forget the popcorn!

Tasty Treats

This morning brought another COLD day, so it called for some mom & child cooking time again. I found a very yummy recipe for these treats and was even able to use some of those Oreos I had been hoarding!

Mint Chocolate Cookie Crunch
1 1/2 bags chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
1/2 (20 ounce) package chocolate cream-filled sandwich cookies, coarsely crushed
2 cups crisp rice cereal
Melt chocolate chips and add extract. (I used a bag of Nestle Dark Chocolate & Mint Chips and then another cup of chocolate chips in place of the extract.) Mix with cookies and cereal. Scoop onto wax paper and let set.
And . . . the best part

. . . licking the bowl!

Funny Nathan

Last night on the way to Religious Ed (a.k.a. "Church School"):
Landen: Why do I have to be a shepherd two years in a row?
Nathan: Do you want to be Spider-Man?

This morning:
Nathan: Can you make this big train track?
Me: Maybe Dad can do that for you after dinner.
Nathan: No, I want YOU to!
Me: Why me?
Nathan: Because you're MOM!

Molasses Crinkles

I was SURE I had posted the recipe for Grandma Rosemarie's Molasses Crinkles at some point this past year, but I can't seem to find it anywhere--even using the handy-dandy search tool I just added!
These cookies are a must-have for cold winter days. They smell and taste delicious and pair wonderfully with a cup of hot coffee. Grandma always had plenty of these in the freezer for anyone who might stop by.
Nathan, Teresa, and I mixed up a batch of these this morning. This time we mixed some red and green sugar with the white sugar to make them more "Christmasy." They were more than happy to be my sugar-rolling elves!

Molasses Crinkles
1 1/2 cups shortening
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup molasses
4 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cloves
2 tsp ginger
4 1/2 cups flour

Cream shortening and sugar. Add eggs and molasses. Add dry ingredients. Mix and drop by spoonfuls into a small bowl of white sugar. Roll in sugar, put on greased baking sheet, and flatten down. Bake at 350 for about 8 minutes. They crack open nicely on the top.

Another Try at Chai

I am on my third batch of chai tea mix. I have made it a little differently each time, but I like this way the best. It is basically back to my original recipe only using french vanilla creamer in place of the vanilla/caramel creamer. It is still not as delicious as The Daily Grind, but it fills in the gaps between my trips to Aberdeen.

Chai Tea Mix
1 cup dry milk powder
1 cup powder creamer
1 cup powder French vanilla creamer
2 1/2 cups white sugar
1 1/2 cups unsweetened instant tea
2 tsp. ground ginger
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. cardamom

Put into blender to make powder. Use 2 heaping teaspoons in each cup of hot water.

Snowy Sunday

We've had a few snow flurries come through today. There's just something about winter weather this year that makes me hungry for hot chocolate and Oreos. I have a cup of hot chocolate beside me, but so far I have resisted the Oreos. I'm not sure how long I'll be able to hold off, however. Somehow I ended up with 3 packages in my pantry. I must have known that winter was coming and I needed to stock up on cookies as well as the apple & pumpkin goodies I have in the freezer!

I'm Still Here!

I apologize for lack of posts lately! With corn harvest finally wrapping up (just one more truckload to get out tomorrow) and State Oral Interp (an excellent rating for our team), I haven't had much time to write . . . or think of what to write!

More Things I Love

I'm not sure if I will make it to 100, but here's another 10.

11. cozy winter nights at home
12. cheering for the winner of a close game
13. laughing
14. a quick wit
15. Mark Schultz' music
16. surprises in the mail
17. desserts of ALL kinds
18. South Dakota wines
19. Hobby Lobby
20. scented candles