Gingerbread Houses

We had decided to have a competition with gingerbread houses.... girls versus boys, who could make the better house.

Josh and Donovan, putting the walls up...

Audri working the icing bag...

As we started decorating...

...something awful happened. Neither of our houses would stay upright! The walls kept caving in on the "girls" house, and the roof kept slipping off the "boys" house.

We admitted defeat, and decided to just eat the gingerbread instead!

Donovan enjoying the roof of his house...

Audri eating the wall of her house.

It was a great idea, but our execution left a little to be desired. We had fun, though, and are continuing to enjoy our project! :)

Decorating for Christmas

We had planned to decorate for Christmas the first weekend of December, but spent so much time celebrating Josh's birthday that we didn't have a chance! So, tonight we were able to decorate the tree, hang the stockings, and prepare the house for the week's festivities!

Donovan and Audri hanging the ornaments...



Josh, Donovan and Audri setting the presents around the tree... with plenty of shaking and guessing as each package made it's way from the table to the tree skirt!


The kids and I in front of the tree... you can't really see the tree behind us, but it's there!

We hung lights and garland around the patio doors, wrapped lights and garland around the post in the entryway, hung the stockings and set up the nativity set... all while drinking sparkling cider. It's been a wonderful evening!

Banana Bread

I purchased bananas a couple of weeks ago with the intent of letting them get brown so I could make banana bread. I happened to mention that earlier this week to a co-worker, who brought me her bananas as well. SO - this afternoon I baked! I had enough bananas to make 14 loaves of banana bread... a few were plain, a few had nuts, a few had chocolate chips, and a few had nuts and chocolate chips. While I'll be taking most of them to work tomorrow to share, Josh and I had to share one of the loaves after dinner. Obviously, we chose a yummy loaf with all of the goodies, heated up our slices, added a little butter, and then needed a fork to enjoy our "dessert". :)

Josh's Birthday

Josh's birthday was Friday, and we spent the entire weekend honoring him! Luckily, the kids were with us, so all of us got to spoil him! Friday night (once we picked up the kids) we did some shopping and Josh was able to use his gift cards to buy some new clothes that he wanted... he'll be quite handsome in his new slacks, dress shirts and ties!

Saturday we spent wandering around town, checking some of his favorite stores (The Army/Navy Store, Cabella's, Best Buy, etc...) and picked up a few small things along the way. We had dinner at Joe's Crab Shack and completed the evening by playing our new Monopoly game for the XBox... yes, Josh won. :)

Today, we had a big country breakfast (blueberry pancakes, eggs, fried potatoes and sausage gravy) and spent the morning relaxing, playing games, and enjoying our time together. We were all able to share reasons that we love him, and tell him how much we are grateful for him.

All in all, Josh certainly felt appreciated! He's a wonderful man, and I am blessed that he is my husband.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. It is a time for fellowship, friendship, family, food, and gratitude. It also doesn't include the stress of gifts and the expectations that can come with giving and receiving something tangible. Thanksgiving affords me the opportunity to refocus on what is truly important.

Of course, the food is an important part of the day! :) Josh and I don't have the kids this year for Thanksgiving, so we decided to spend a quiet day together. I still wanted to cook a big meal, so we're having some friends over Saturday and I'll prepare the full meal... today is a smaller version of our favorite fall foods; cornish game hens, stuffed squash, and pumpkin pie. :)

The wonderful part of it all is that there is no schedule, and no rush, so we get to eat whenever we want; I made us breakfast around 11, and have some yummy snack and appetizers for us when we're hungry again in a few hours. Dinner will be whenever we are ready to eat it; I'll probably get everything in the over around 5, but don't feel the pressure of watching the clock and timing everything just right. Today is shaping up to be a perfect day!

Olive Garden

Yesterday was a pretty busy day for me; work, a baby shower (that I provided the food for), a housewarming party, homework, housework, and family time. I had planned for us to make pizza's for dinner, but decided that a dinner out sounded like a better idea.

We debated ideas, from fast-food burgers followed by bowling or the $2 theater, but decided a nicer meal would be perfect; we rarely eat out, and the kids are not used to going anywhere with cloth napkins. :) SO - to Olive Garden we went.

It was a wonderful meal; Josh and Donovan had the seafood alfredo while Audri had the chicken alfredo. I branched into the rosemary crusted steak toscano... all preceded by the wonderful salad (refilled for us once) and the breadsticks. The kids practiced their manners, and we all left feeling happy and full.

I think nice family dinners may have to happen more often! We didn't end up eating until 7, which was a bit later for us, but we enjoyed the ambiance, food, and company so much we didn't leave until 9! We had a wonderful server (who was well tipped!) who was generous with his time and his beverage refills. It's nice to enjoy an evening with one's family...

Pumpkin Pancakes

A friend of mine mentioned that she made pumpkin pancakes last weekend, and all week I have been wanting to make them! We ended up swapping weekends with the kids, so they won't be here until next week, but I didn't want to wait that long to make and eat pumpkin pancakes. So, I made them this morning anyway! I'm sharing the recipe because they are so scrumptious!

Whisk:
1 1/4 cups flour
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

In a separate bowl, whisk together:
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Fold mixture into dry ingredients. Cook pancakes about 3 minutes per side and serve with butter and syrup.

SO - since I didn't use all of my canned pumpkin for these delicious pancakes, I think I'll make some pumpkin chocolate chip cookies this afternoon!