It's a slow process. We don't have our tree up downstairs yet, but I have the kids' tree up in the playroom, and I've done most of the other decorating throughout the house. Rhett and I worked on the Nativity set and the mantle yesterday and the Dicken's Village today. I hope to have our tree up by the end of the weekend. Here are a few pictures around the house:
Mom's Thanksgiving lunch list--all yummy!
I love Thanksgiving! Wednesday evening we drove up to my parents' for the holiday. That night Dad grilled steaks and we celebrated my birthday with red velvet cake! (I can't post pictures right now...more on that later.) R loved blowing out the candles, and A planted her whole hand into the delicious cream cheese icing and loved it! I was thinking how much fun she is going to have eating her first birthday cake in a few months. My sister and her family arrived Wednesday night too. After the kids went to bed, Mic & I helped Mom in the kitchen until almost midnight. Thursday morning was crazy around the house as we finished up things for lunch and all took turns getting dressed while others watched the kids. My grandparents came over and we had a wonderful meal together. I am so grateful for my family!
We came home yesterday afternoon. When we walked in the house, we noticed that the clocks were blinking in the kitchen so we just assumed that the power had gone out for a while during our trip. But then we realized that the TV in the living room was dead, the heater upstairs wasn't working, the power was still out upstairs, the phones & cable modem were out, and the lawn sprinkler box was messed up. There was a big storm on Wed. afternoon (we drove through some really heavy rain), so I guess lightning caused all this damage! :( Lane was disappointed that the football game hadn't recorded, but he was able to catch the last few minutes and the overtime. He spent most of the evening working on the things that were broken...the heater company has 24 hour service, so a repairman came out and fixed the circuit board for a depressing $400+. Someone is scheduled to come out to work on the phones, internet and TV on Monday. I'm just so thankful that the lightning didn't cause a fire! I'll post Thanksgiving pictures after we get our home internet working again...I can't do it here from L's work laptop.
This morning we went to breakfast at Cracker Barrel, then L's parents came up to visit for the day. They had not seen the kids in a while...they were excited to see A crawling, pulling up on things and waving. It was great to be able to spend time with them today.
Hope you had a great holiday!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Friday evening I gave R & A their baths and then sent R back downstairs to hang out with Lane while I put A down for bed. When I came downstairs, Rhett met me in the kitchen to tell me that he'd found a Band-aid for his sore finger...and then he casually added, "...and I cut my hair." That caught my attention. I looked up from whatever I was doing and immediately saw that a large chunk of hair was missing off the top of his head. Thankfully he stopped after just this one part, but it didn't look good. I'm just thankful that he didn't hurt himself with the scissors. Obviously, I shouldn't have had scissors where he could get to them. I asked Lane where he was during the haircut, and he said that he'd heard R digging around in the bathroom drawer, so he yelled in there to ask what he was doing. R replied that he was looking for a band-aid, which seemed normal and like something he could handle without assistance. Oh well...as I said, I'm just glad he didn't get hurt. His hair grows quickly. I've moved the scissors, of course.
So there wasn't much I could do about it over the weekend (I assumed I'd only make it look worse if I tried to cut it), so I waited until Monday morning and called Debbie--our family hair stylist--to see if she might possibly work us in before Thanksgiving (when I'd hoped to make a Christmas card photo of the kids). Luckily, my sister was having her hair done there today, so she told us to come in while M was under the dryer and she'd work on R's hair. When she saw the gap, she said, "Girl, you know we're going to have to just buzz it all off, don't you?" I told her that I was hoping for more of a "blending", but she said she couldn't really imagine him being able to sit still enough for that approach (she was right). The good thing is we can wait a few extra weeks before his next cut!
Here's the before shot (it doesn't really show the problem area very well):
And after (I think he was actually very proud of his haircut):
Tonight we had a Thanksgiving potluck with our Community Group from church. I have many things to be thankful for this season, and one of them is this group of friends! They are all special to me!
I took rolls, cranberry sauce and this dessert, Double Chocolate Mocha* Trifle. It's a recipe I got from my friend Stacy last year. We also had ham, sweet potato casserole, broccoli rice casserole, salad, green bean bundles and coconut cream pie.
Here's the recipe:
1 box brownie mix, bake as directed.
1 3/4 cups cold milk
2 pkgs. (3.4 oz.) white chocolate instant pudding and pie filling
* 1/4 cup hot water
* 4 tsp. instant coffee granules
2 cups Cool Whip
1 bag crushed Heath bar toffee bits (I actually used 2 bags tonight because I love these!)
In large bowl, whisk pudding mix into milk until mixture begins to thicken. Dissolve coffee granules in hot water; add to pudding mixture, mixing well. Fold in Cool Whip using spatula. Cut brownies into 1 inch cubes. Layer 1/3 of brownies into bottom of trifle bowl. Top with 1/3 of pudding mixture, pressing lightly and 1/3 of toffee bits. Repeat layers two more times. Chill 30 minutes before serving.
*I eliminated the coffee portion of the recipe...Lane and I aren't huge coffee-flavored dessert people.
Here are the recipes I mentioned a while back in another post "Pokeno at our house":
Chicken Little Strips
several chicken breasts, cut into strips
Combine:
1 1/2 c. buttermilk
2 T lemon juice
2 T worcestershire sauce
1 T soy sauce
1 T paprika
1 T Greek seasoning
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
garlic salt-dash
--Add chicken to above mixture and refrigerate overnight.
--Drain.
--Roll chicken in a bowl of:
plain bread crumbs
jar of sesame seeds
place in 9x13" baking dishes
Melt:
1/4 c butter
1/4 c shortening
Brush over chicken.
Bake at 350 for about 40 min.
Serve with plum sauce:
Heat over low...
1 jar red plum jam
1 1/2 T prepared mustard
1 1/2 T prepared horseradish
1 T lemon juice
Cheesy Potato Casserole
8-10 medium baking potatoes (don't peel yet)
1 (8 oz. ) shredded cheddar
1 (16 oz.) sour cream
1 1/2 sticks margarine
1 bunch green onions, chopped
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. white pepper
Cook potatoes in boiling water for about 30 min. until tender. Cool, peel and grate or cube potatoes. Fold in remaining ingredients. Pour into greased 9x13" baking pan, bake at 350 for 45 min. to an hour. Yield 10-12 servings.
Every time I see a thorn tree I get chills because they remind me of the story of Jesus’ crucifixion. I saw this one today and was humbled again by God’s love and grace.
“Then the governor’s soldiers led Jesus away into the palace and called together the whole company of soldiers. They put a purple robe on Him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on His head...Then they led Him out to crucify Him.” -Mark 15:16-17, 20
R had his first dentist appointment this morning for a regular cleaning/check-up. I’d really tried to build it up as an exciting event, so he wasn’t nervous at all...in fact he watched the clock ALL morning asking if it was time to go yet. He did great--he carried on a conversation with the nurse and did everything she asked. She and the dentist were both super nice to him. They took the time to explain what they were doing so he wouldn’t be nervous, asked him to choose his toothpaste flavor, etc. They counted, and he has 20 handsome, healthy teeth!
After the appointment, I took him to Purple Cow for lunch for being so good (and the dentist gave him a coupon for a free ice cream cone...gotta keep their office in business I guess!). It was a fun lunch date--they were both so sweet.
I’m just now downloading pictures from last week. Monday night I hosted our monthly Pokeno. We had Barb’s sesame seed chicken strips, scalloped potatoes, salad, bread and a dessert from Fresh Market. I’m going to post the chicken and potato recipes later (they’re downstairs)...so check back if you’re interested...I think they’re both good dishes (MK, I put the butter in the potatoes this time!). 
The red sign is the hostess gift that I bought (the person who wins the black-out round of the night wins the hostess gift). I got it at my aunt’s store (Gift-tiques) in Flippin. They had several different signs for Christmas, and I thought they were all pretty. It’s partially covered by the ribbon, but this one says, “Glory to God in the Highest!” I really wanted to keep it for myself! :)
Another new skill...clapping! She goes back and forth between clapping and waving--she thinks they’re both great fun!
This might be a record for most blog posts in one day. I’m tired...goodnight!
Last night I went with my sister, aunt and cousin to see one of our relatives (Alanna) in Barefoot in the Park at The Rep. I enjoyed it SO much. It was hilarious and fun--I think I was laughing louder than anyone in the theater (except maybe my sister). We had seats in the front row so we were able to see all the facial expressions so clearly which made it even better. Alanna and the other cast members were wonderful! Unfortunately it ended today or I would highly recommend going to see it!
(Lisa R., if you are reading this I wanted to tell you that the guy who played Paul in the play looked JUST like your brother--or at least my sister and I thought so, and we told my Aunt Judy at intermission and she thought so too (she remembers him from teaching at Salem). He doesn’t favor his as much in the bio picture on the website, but on stage he looked like his twin!)
Yesterday Lane and I participated in a tour of our new church (still under construction). Our first Sunday there is scheduled for May ’08. It was really really exciting to see it. I’ve felt disconnected from the building process because it is on a newly developed campus, and I’ve only seen the construction from the road quite a distance away. It was great to have the opportunity to walk through the building and get an idea of what it will be like to gather there as a church family in the near future.
We had a great sermon today, Blessed to be a Blessing. Tim talked about how we are all called to by God to share the love of Christ with our community and with our world. He shared an example about a guy he met (or heard about?) at a conference not long ago who is a business entrepreneur who is building this concept of sharing Christ’s love into his business model. He makes shoes, and for every pair purchased, he donates a pair to a child in need. They showed a video during church today, and seeing the faces of some of the children was amazing...I think I might purchase Toms Shoes for everyone on my Christmas list this year!
They look super comfortable...I like this pair:
She officially started crawling last Tuesday night! She had her 9 month check up on Thursday. She weighs 21 lb. 14.6 oz. and measured 28.5” long.
Again, every appointment just reminds me how blessed we are to have healthy children! She got the first half of her flu shot. I need to take R in for his...which I dread because he is old enough to fear shots now. :(
Bogart borrowed R’s cowboy bandana after his last bath. We took him to the vet Friday for his check-up, so Rhett put his leash on him and “tied” him up to the fireplace while he got his pants on. I thought it was funny because Bogart was standing there patiently while R got dressed.
Friday night we went to a surprise (70’s theme!) birthday party for our good friend Brad at the skating rink. His wife Leslie and his mom did a great job putting together a fun night. I think the last time I went skating was my senior year of high school on a regional ball trip!? After a few laps around the rink, it sorta came back to me, but it hurt my legs much worse than I remember at 18! The clothes were hilarious. My dress was actually from 1969 I think--I found it in my Grandmother’s closet last time I was home. Mom wore it to her high school Home-Ec. teacher’s wedding! I said something about it not being from quite the right time, but Dad said, “Believe me, the clothes were ugly in the late 60’s and stayed ugly for many years--it will work just fine.” We had such a good time. Hope you had a great birthday, Brad! Thanks for including us in your celebration.
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