Dinner Success!

As the parent of two preschoolers and a baby, I am always on the look out for a good, family-friendly recipe. Generally I call the meal a success if I don't hear, "You're the worst mommy ever" for making my poor child eat some vile concoction or "This is nasty" without him having even put any food into his mouth. (I will not mention the name of the guilty party, but I'm sure faithful readers can guess!)

So...the past two nights I have considered the following meal a winner, though I did hear "This is nasty" this afternoon--but I'm going to say it was more because we ate at home rather than going to Arby's after church. Yeah, that's it!

Wintertime Vegetable Chili

1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cubed
2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
1 medium onion, diced
3 tsp.-3 Tbsp. chili powder, depending on how spicy you like your chili
2 14-oz. cans diced tomatoes
4-oz. can chopped mild green chilies
1 tsp. salt, optional
1 cup vegetable broth (I used chicken and it was fine)
2 16-oz. cans black beans, drained and rinsed
sour cream, optional (I didn't do this b/c I don't like it and b/c I am dairy-free right now)

1. In slow cooker, layer ingredients in order given--except sour cream.
2. Cover. Cook on low 6-8 hours, or until vegetables are tender.
3. Stir before serving.
4. Top individual servings with dollops of sour cream.
5. Serve with crusty bread. (I made yummy biscuits with coconut milk!)

There you have it. I hope you enjoy it if you make it--I think this will be one we make again. Caroline seriously gobbled it up! She ate half of my bowl--crazy!

Membership has its privileges

At least, membership to the Children's Museum. Last night the museum was open late for members so we took advantage of this opportunity to see the Jolly Days exhibit, which included a miniature train, Santa, a slide on the staircase, and an area for babies to play. The beautiful thing about going at night was that we didn't have to wake up early (they also have these at 9am on the first Saturdays of the month) and we were able to enjoy it without having to deal with all of the crowds. We will definitely be doing this again!

Some of the favorite things of the kiddos at the exhibit--the train and a spinning cylinder filled with jingle bells

Our experience with Santa--Grant would not even come close but stayed in Ryan's arms in line

Grant was so excited to go down the slide by himself. He was right at the line, and one man would not let him while another woman would. He was quite upset by that--poor kid. Jack, however, slid down like a pro!

The boys love the carousel and rode on it 3-4 times in a row.

Caroline even got in on the action with her parents!

Jack's latest interest is Toy Story so imagine his awe when he saw this life-size cut-out of Buzz. We also had a picture of him appearing to "worship" Buzz, but I opted to post this picture.

Christmas Program

Here is the progression of our attempt at a family picture. The top one came first, then came the one with Jack's back, followed by Jack leaving the scene. Oh well.

The boys had their preschool Christmas program at school on Wednesday night. I have no good pictures for two reasons: 1. Ryan didn't have a good angle to get pictures and 2. my boys were either sitting on the ground the entire time (yes, that is my child, the sitting thumb-sucker!) or hidden by a girl who is entirely too tall to be standing in front of my son!

The program itself was fine--lots of songs, running/spinning/crying children, and food following. However, the best part of the program was the reflection that Ryan and I had afterwards. It's so easy to wish the days away--to think that it will be so nice when the kids are older, sleep in, eat dinner, are not so needy, etc. However, these five years have flown. There will be a time when my boys will not want to sit and hold my hand. They will not sign "I love you" to me. They will not say, "Carowine" or "he-woh" (that missing "l" sound is so cute). We won't get the cute crafts. We won't hear the mispronunciations that are so precious (today a tobaggon was called "kabob"). I need to take the time to appreciate and redeem the time that I have with these children. The days are defintely long but the years FLY by faster than I realize!

So...this is not so much about a Christmas program as much as it is about the realization that these years when we have Christmas programs to attend are limited and precious.

Chuck E. Cheese's fun

Last Friday we attended a birthday party for a boy in Jack's class. The party was at Chuck E. Cheese's so the boys, of course, had a great time. This blog is purely for those who want to see pictures of my adorable children!





The boys love this helicopter ride. I remember the first time Jack discovered this and couldn't reach the pedals. Hmmm...I guess he's grown.

This was the boys' favorite game during our most recent visit. It was a driving game. Obviously the boys couldn't reach the pedals, but thanks to Ryan, they were still able to play. Grant did surprisingly well--I guess they have been paying attention to their mama's great driving!

And here is Grant driving Miss Caroline (a.k.a. American Girl). She looks like she was having a great time, but I'm not quite sure what was commanding Grant's attention--probably another ride!

My own American Girl!

I got an American Girl catalog a few weeks ago. I am not quite sure how I got on that list, but it was fun to look at all the dolls and imagine what Caroline will be like in a few years. So, imagine my excitement when a co-worker gave this outfit to me for Caroline! She is my very own American Girl doll--except so much cuter and sweeter! And she actually kept the hat on all day! It is so much fun having a little girl after having two precious boys.

Trolley love

My sweet boy Grant loves all things vehicular: trains, cars, trucks, and, apparently, trolleys. We found our trolley ornament from San Francisco while we were unwrapping the decorations for the tree. Grant immediately latched on to this trolley and decided to hang it on the tree...and did several times.

Hmmm...this looks like a good spot.

Perfect!

Let me just sit back and enjoy it.

Well, actually this side of the tree may be better.

Well, maybe just one more move...

What cracks me up even more is that he just loves to sit, suck his thumb, and look at the ornament. It is so cute!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

On Friday night we went on our annual tree-buying adventure. I'm not up for the whole tree farm thing--Home Depot is good enough for us at this point. Here is how our Christmas tree buying excursions usually go. We inevitably go on a bitterly cold, windy day, and Ryan searches to find the perfect tree while the boys and I freeze and finally go into the store, only to come out to give approval to the winner. This year it wasn't quite as cold, but we still went into the store until the boys disovered the lawn mowers sitting out by the trees. They rode on the lawn mowers while I tried to keep Caroline warm and kept asking Ryan if he had found "the one" yet. Ryan is very detail oriented and likes things to be perfect. I enjoy the end product but not the process. We are a good match like that.

It worked out well that we happened to also get our first real snowfall on Saturday while we decorated the tree--very Norman Rockwell (or something like that). The boys took a break from their tree "decorating" (I think they each put one ornament on the tree) to go play in the snow. I love that they are able to have fun together now!

Jack pulled Grant around in the sled that is 4 years old and too small for Grant. Really, Caroline should be riding in it. However, it was very sweet to see them playing nicely! (And I think Grant was happier than he looks in the picture!)

Caroline looked longingly at her brothers having fun in the snow, but there was no way I was taking her outside. It was way too cold!

Caroline's favorite part of decorating was trying to pull everything out of the bin. She just looked too cute in this picture to not post it!

The final product--I don't think this picture really does the tree justice. It looks prettier in person!

Grant's latest obsession

Last year (I think but am not quite sure) we received this gift from Ryan's grandparents. It's a Christmas tree that has a train that runs on a track through it. As soon as Ryan brought it out, Grant was hooked. He sat there for literally 2 hours watching the train go around on the track. At one point I called him to come eat dinner, and he said he had to watch it go into the tunnel--hmmm...like he hadn't already seen it at least 100 times? It is pretty funny to watch. The problem is that he also thinks that it is HIS. He will not let anyone else touch it or even LOOK at it. If Caroline comes close to it he immediately grabs it and moves it to a new location. Jack touching it elicits the same reaction (usually accompanied by a scream). However, I was able to get a picture of the boys sharing the view of the train. They look so cute!

Thanksgiving Fun!

So this Thanksgiving was a bit different. We were not even sure if we'd be able to go to my parents' house because Grant had been sick Tuesday night. However, since no one else had gotten sick by Thursday morning we decided the coast was clear as far as the flu and that we could safely travel without infecting my family (who has fallen victim more than once to one of our plagues!). Unfortunately, about 2 hours after we arrived, Jack was hanging over the toilet and spent Thanksgiving either sick or sleeping. Here is a picture of him buried in Ryan's lap--poor baby!

Caroline enjoyed her first Thanksgiving! The girl LOVES turkey. She gobbled (pun intended!) it up. There wasn't much else I could give her that was dairy-free, but she did enjoy the pumpkin and banana bread I made. Yum!

Grant and Aunt Melanie bonded. She loved tickling him, and he loved telling her to stop (but really meant for her keep going). It was so cute! We are going to be sad when she moves far away!


Our family tradition is that the boys get to do the dishes after the meal. Grant loved standing on a stool and watching Papa do the dishes. Maybe Grant will be able to help in a couple of years...

One of our favorite parts of the weekend was seeing Caroline and Barrett (my sister's baby) interact with each other. Barrett is exactly eight weeks older, and they were so cute together! Here they are eating breakfast together.

And here Caroline is eyeing Barrett's food.

Jack, Grant, and I made these place cards for our dinner. Jack even wrote some of the names. He chose who got which ear of corn, too. It was sweet--too bad Jack didn't get to enjoy dinner with us!

Grant thought the rolls looked like a hat. This kid cracks me up!

We went to St. Charles, where they have people who walk around in character and pass out cards. Jack likes to collect the cards. He is the kid in the orange coat. I like how the card looks like it's glowing!

Here is Mimi with two of her grandbabies. We loved Barrett's out-of-control hair. Someday Caroline will have hair, too!

And one more picture of Caroline, this time in her Christmas jumper. The bow probably stayed on just long enough to take this picture!

I have so much to be thankful for this year. As I've heard of friends who have had hard times, it makes me thankful for my family, friends, home, job, church, and so many other things. This is a great time to remember all the blessings I've been given. Thank you, Lord, for all of it!

Gobble Gobble

For your Thanksgiving viewing pleasure, here are some pictures of my beautiful turkeys! :)

We have had a week of illness so we're hoping and praying that we all stay healthy through the night so we can celebrate the holiday with family. Grant missed his preschool Thanksgiving celebration because he threw up last night, so instead of wearing his Thanksgiving hat, he is holding a picture of a turkey he made at school last week. Jack is dressed in his Thanksgiving garb--well, a head-dress and bead necklace. I am just thrilled that they are both looking at the camera and don't look too dazed and confused. These boys crack me up!

An unfortunate mispronunciation

This post is mostly serving the purpose of a heads-up for anyone who may interact with Grant soon. Let me also say that Ryan and I do not curse. Ever. Well, at least not out loud... (I feel I must confess it really depends on the day as to how many words enter my thoughts, but no one else hears them. And I suppose I can't speak for Ryan when he's not around me.)

ANYWAY...Grant is now talking and loves playing with trucks. The problem is his pronunciation of the word "truck" sometimes sounds like a certain curse word. And, of course, it's not a lightweight curse word. So, for anyone who may hear this in passing and wonder, what did that boy just say? Yes, it does sound like THAT word, but, trust me, it's not. Hmmm...at least I don't think it is...

Jack's cornucopia of thanks

For school Jack had to decorate a cornucopia with things for which he is thankful. Never one to waste the energy on frivolous art, he cut to the chase and listed and drew one thing: Jesus dying on the cross. I guess if you are going to be thankful for something, that is the most important thing! (And yes, if you see a stain his paper, that is coffee. He is the son of two teachers and still has dirty homework--ugh!)

nine in nine out

"Nine in nine out" is an organization that tries to raise awareness of the importance of babywearing. They say that your baby is held for nine months in the womb and should be held for nine months outside of the womb (or something like that). I personally LOVE wearing my babies and am thankful that I started when Jack was just a newborn by putting him the Baby Bjorn. I have since bought a Moby Wrap, a Kozy mei tai, a Hotsling, and an Ergo. I have to say that the Moby is my favorite for newborns and young infants, and the Ergo is my favorite for older infants and toddlers. Here are some pictures of Caroline in the Ergo--doesn't she look happy?

the front carry

the back carry (I haven't done this one as much but will as she gets older--she likes pulling my hair when she's on my back!)

my 9-month-old all snuggled up

So now Caroline is nine months. Seriously, how is that possible? She is so much fun and is such a blessing to our family! I'm so glad that I've been able to wear her a lot in the past nine months, especially because it's hard to spend much focused time on a third child. I am so in love with my little girl!

Happy 9 months, baby girl!