Deck the Halls for $100 or Less

The arrival of this Christmas season has been highly anticipated by yours truly for two years now. Travis and I have spent the last two Christmases with his family in California and though I've had a great time and they've more than gone out of their way to include me in their family, something felt like it was missing. The first time we went to California I was both ecstatic and anxious to meet my then fiance's family and celebrate Christmas with them. In all honesty though, I was desperate to be leaving my mom at Christmas time. I mean, no mom should be without her favorite child on Christmas! (ha ha ha) On top of that, I was worried about how my mom would handle not having me there on her third Christmas since my dad had died. Being the youngest of seven, I know my "growing up" (don't laugh) has been hard for my mom and that our first Christmas without each other would be tough for both of us.

It was. It was different to celebrate Christmas without all the traditions I grew up with: biscuits and gravy with twisted orange slices and hot cocoa for breakfast Christmas morning, an individual serving size box of sugary cereal, fruit, nuts, yogurt, string cheese and five pennies wrapped in wax paper in my stocking, belting Christmas carols around the piano with my siblings, watching plays my nieces and nephews made-up, having a Christmas bush (for some unknown reason my dad always cut the top of the Christmas tree off to make it fit in the house) and loads of laughter. Because I grew up with all these things, it doesn't feel like Christmas without them.

This year we're staying at our home for Christmas and not only is my mom joining us, but it's our beautiful little boy's first Christmas! Hence my anticipation. Last month, however, I realized that our Christmas decorations were more than a little sparse. This just wouldn't do. I began brainstorming, budgeting and bargain shopping.

I figured we could manage to spent $100 on decorations, not including our Christmas greenery. I grew up in Oregon, so a real Christmas tree and wreath are must haves. So during the last month I took many bargain hunting trips when I needed a break from studying, "researched" Aunt Martha's archives and came up with my game plan. So, without further ado, I bring you...(drum roll)...Deck the Halls in $100 or Less!

The Outside Door

Real Wreath...................Costco.........................x1...................$15
Ribbon............................The Dollar Store....... x2...................$2
Jinglebells......................The Dollar Store........x1...................$1
Berry Picks....................The Dollar Store........x2..................$2
Gold Sash.......................The Dollar Store........x1...................$1
Fake Garland.................Wal-Mart...................x1...................$5

*I already owned: Christmas lights, wire and I bought the grapevine at a garage sale this summer for $1

Total: $26

The Christmas Tree

Christmas Tree...................Rite Aid.................x1............$25
Star Tree topper.................The Dollar Store..x1............$1
Kix (Garland)......................Smith's...................x1...........$1.25 (sweet sale, huh?)
Cranberries.........................Smith's...................x2...........$3
Plastic Candy Canes...........The Dollar Store...x2...........$2
Lights...................................Rite Aid..................x2...........$5

*I already owned: a few sentimental ornaments

Total: $37.25

Homemade Tree Skirt
Fabric....................Wal-Mart...........x1.............$5
Gold Pleats...........Wal-Mart...........x1.............$3
Green Thread......Wal-Mart...........x1.............$1

*I already owned: a sewing machine ;o)

Total: $9

The Bookcases

Panoramic View. Oooo Ahhhh!

Close up of far left bookcase

Close up of my stocking hanging on the far right bookcase

My gingerbread house

Note: I wrapped our picture frames in brown paper and then decorated them as presents using ribbon scraps and things that I had on hand. Uber cheap and very cute. The stockings are an idea I lifted from good ol' Martha herself. She used a stocking template on old sweaters and wah-la!, beautiful stockings. The top of the bookcases are covered with extra bows from our tree and some lights I already owned. I made the gingerbread house with Melanie over Thanksgiving and I think it's my favorite decoration.

Gold Tree...........................The Dollar Store.........x2............$2
Different Gold Tree..........Smith's.........................x1.............$2
Gold Star on Present........Smith's.........................x1.............$2
Star Tree............................The Dollar Store.........x1.............$1
Big Gold Bow......................Hallmark.....................x1.............$2
Sweaters.............................D.I. (Goodwill)............x4............$10
Red Thread........................Wal-Mart....................x1.............$1

Total: $20

The Top of the Piano

Note: I wanted to put something here that we could light up and highlight the beautiful picture of Christ that our friend, Tom, gave us for a wedding present. I don't own a creche and haven't finished the nativity wall quilt that I started when I was 16, so this is what I did to highlight the real reason for the season. When the candles are lit, the bulbs inside the jars sparkle and really draw your attention to the picture of Christ. I love it!

Old Glass Bulbs................... D.I. (Goodwill)..........x4...........$2
Gold Ornament Tree..........Family Dollar............x1............$5
Candles.................................The Dollar Store.......x8............$8
Canning Jars........................D.I. (Goodwill)..........x4............$1
Gold Sash.............................The Dollar Store.......x1............$1
Table Runner......................The Dollar Store.......x1............$1
Ribbon..................................The Dollar Store.......x1............$1

*I already owned: a few regular size canning jars

Total: $19

Christmas Card Display
Picture frame..............D.I. (Goodwill).........x1............$2
Ribbbon.......................Michael's...................x1............$3
Gold Glitter Spray......Wal-Mart.................x1............$3

*I already owned: a hot glue gun

Total: $8

Table Centerpiece
Picture frame...................D.I. (Goodwill)............x1.............$1
Feather Boa......................JoAnn's........................x1.............$7
(I don't think the boa should count since I'm just waiting
for an excuse to wear it out on the town.)
Red Picture Frame..........JoAnn's.......................x1.............$2
8x10 Photo.......................Costco..........................x1.............$1

*I already owned: green craft paint and paintbrushes

Total: $11

Grand Total: $130.25
Total without Greenery: $90.25

Yippee! I came in under budget! I think you'll agree with me that our house looks festive and darling (smile and nod). But it wouldn't be complete without the giggles and squeals that Ethan fills our house with. This year, not only do I get to spend Christmas at home with my mom, but I get to enjoy it as a mom. That's enough to make all my days merry and bright.

P.S. I gave up trying to get all formatting to line up. Sorry!

What's Christmas Without Sugar Cookies?

Four years ago, during my first semester at college, I needed some Christmas Spirit in a bad way. Finals were weighing down on me, a boy was making me miserable, it was bitter cold (-9 degrees in the morning) and I missed home terribly. I mulled over the situation and realized that what I needed was some Christmas cookies. No easy drop cookie would suffice, I had to break out the big dogs and roll out some Christmas sugar cookies. Now, this was no easy task for me. As much as I love cooking, I think rolled cookies are about the most pointless, aggravating things on earth. Let me explain:

1. Generally, cookie cravings are sporadic and insatiable .
2. Rolled cookies have to be chilled for at least three hours before you dare attempt to roll them out. Why? Otherwise the butter is too warm and the edges burn. I've tried several shortcuts and none of them work. You have to wait. (Unless you use Crisco which is a heinous offense that I won't speak of.)
3. Mess factor. Not only do you have your standard cookie mess to clean up, but then you have to flour your work surface, flour your rolling pin and don the apron because it's impossible to not flour yourself in the process.
4. Tick... Tock... Tick... Tock... Good sugar cookies are a day long project. That's sad.
   

As you can see, exhibits 2-4 greatly postpone the fulfillment of 1 which is why sugar cookies infuriate me. Yet, I knew that nothing else could do. I was trapped. I went to www.epicurious.com and searched for a sugar cookie recipe, surveyed my prospects and picked what seemed to be the most promising recipe. Having been softening butter while I searched, I got straight to work.

I'll never forget the first bite of that dough. A euphoric trance slipped over me and my worries melted away. I'm not much of comfort food eater, but boy, these cookies defy all my logic. My self-control, which is usually reliable, goes right out the window. With every tasty morsel I said, "Yikes! This stuff is pure butter. I'm stopping after this piece. " And the cookie dough said, "Eat me Kristin. I'm yummy. I make you happy." And I said, "Okay. I guess you know best cookie dough."

A tradition was born. I have to make these cookies at Christmas and limit myself to making them only then. Even now, I can't stop eating the dough. Don't get me wrong, the baked version of the cookie is out of this world too. They have the ideal butter cookie crumb and crunch that's accented perfectly by the clean zing of the lemon and orange zest. The only problem is that most of the dough never makes it to the oven.

Tammy, Becky, Katie and Robert came to see my house decorated for Christmas and decorate cookies with me today. Because I knew they were coming I was able to overcome my desire to eat all the cookies. Though, for a minute, I did think I could get away with blaming it on Lexie. I mean, doesn't this expression just say:

"Mmmm.... look at the cookies. I'll just jump on the table and nibble a little.
You know, quality control."

Then, all I'd have to say is, "Lexie! Eh-eh! Well can you believe that? She ate two dozen cookies!" But my conscience won and I constrained myself to eating only a couple cookies before they arrived and the cookies were successfully frosted, sprinkled, and saved from my ravaging.

Ethan and Robert had a fun time playing together and I continue to get a kick out of how different they are. Robert now weighs 20 lbs. and Ethan just eeked past 15 lbs. Ethan is an incredibly active, exploratory baby and Robert is mostly content to be where you put him and take the world in. They've cemented my belief that babies are born with personality.

Becky and Katie had a great time decorating cookies, but my personal highlight came when every girl's favorite subject came up: boys! I was decorating cookies for my friend Natalie that has a 4 year-old boy and I told Katie he could be her boyfriend. She accepted this new assignment and exuberantly decorated a cookie with mounds of frosting and double sprinkles for him. When they had to get ready to go Katie desperately pleaded to be able to take her cookie to her boyfriend. Tammy told her no and her little heart was so crushed that she burst into tears.

Becky turned beet red when I asked her if she had a crush on a certain boy who shall remain nameless. I'm guessing from her reaction, evidenced by her face color matching the sprinkles lid, that I'm right.

I, of course, had to catch these moments to share with their kids, or better yet their husbands, in the future.


If all the afore mentioned merriment doesn't make you want to try out these cookie than I don't know what will. The recipe is below. I know you'll need it.

Citrus sugar cookie dough

2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 teaspoons grated lemon peel
1 1/4 grated tangerine peel or orange peel
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 large egg

Sift flour, baking powder and salt into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter, lemon peel and tangerine peel in large bowl until light. Add 1/2 cup sugar and 1/4 cup powdered sugar and beat until fluffy. Beat in egg. Add dry ingredients. Using spoon, stir until mixture forms dough (dough will be soft). Divide dough into thirds. Gather each third into ball; flatten into disks. Wrap each disk in plastic and refrigerate until firm, about 4 hours. (Can be prepared 2 days ahead. Keep refrigerated. Let soften slightly, if necessary, before rolling out.)

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously flour work surface and rolling pin. Place 1 dough disk on work surface (keep remaining 2 dough disks refrigerated). Press rolling pin into dough several times to flatten slightly for easier rolling. Roll out dough to 1/8- to 1/4-inch thickness, frequently lifting and turning dough to prevent sticking. Using assorted cookie cutters dipped into flour, cut out cookies. Transfer cookies to ungreased nonstick baking sheets, spacing 1/2 inch apart. Gather dough scraps together and reserve.

Bake until cookies turn brown on edges, about 15 minutes. Let cookies stand on sheets 1 minute. Using metal spatula, transfer cookies to racks and cool completely.

Repeat rolling, cutting and baking with remaining 2 dough disks as described above, being sure to cool cookie sheets before making each batch. Combine all reserved dough scraps and shape into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap disk in plastic and freeze until firm enough to roll, about 30 minutes. Repeat rolling, cutting and baking as described above. Store cooled cookies in airtight container at room temperature until ready to decorate.

Back to the Blog!

Okay, okay, I guess I fully deserve any chastisement that I receive for not keeping the blog updated. But in my defense, I haven't exactly had loads of free time, or any to be precise. Since we got back from California our lives have been CA-RAZY! I never even successfully blogged our first vacation with Ethan, but it was so long ago now that it seems ridiculous to try. So, I'm moving on. Here's the update since our last entry.

• Kristin finished her classes. Whew! I have one more final to take, but the bulk of it is over and this merits a huge sigh of relief. Independent Study is a lot harder than I anticipated. Not because the classes themselves are more challenging, but because of the complete lack of a teacher/student relationship. Maybe that isn't as big of a deal with hard sciences, but with English it's vital. For example, one of my teachers asked for a one paragraph explanation of the effect of industrialization on the Romantic Period. I wrote 5 lengthy, thorough sentences and put a lot of work into the whole assignment. He gave me a C+ and wrote a little note next to the paragraph that said, "Write more." As if the grade didn't peeve me enough, his lack of feedback made it even worse. If you want more, ask for 2-3 paragraphs! He only wrote one other negative thing on my assignment and yet I got a C+. Considering the fact that its the worst grade I've gotten in college and it had no explanation whatsoever, it was a little infuriating.

• Bill and Connie came to visit for Thanksgiving weekend and we had a great time. We went to the Joseph Smith movie in SLC, toured Logan and, my personal favorite, visited the reindeer farm in Corrine. The reindeer farm is operated by one family and they put up darling kiosks of North Pole scenes, cut-outs for pictures, their reindeer and other critters and they even have a visiting Santa with an authentic beard for pictures. Check it out!
  

Dasher, Prancer & Vixen

Santa's Elves

Reindeer Quality Inspectors

The Big Man meets The Little Man

• Lexie reverted to her bad behavior and chewed the binding off one of Ethan's books when I was running an errand. Furthermore, she committed the crime while sprawled out on the couch. I can't talk anymore about this because it disappointed me too much.

• Several home improvements took place including getting a new outside door for the side of the house, finally getting a door for Ethan's room and getting a dog house for Lexie. (The result of her misbehavior when she's inside alone.)

• We mailed all our Christmas packages and cards! Check your mailboxes!

• Ethan eats in his big boy highchair. Do any of my siblings recognize his highchair? That's right, I recovered our old highchair and feel nostalgic every time I put Ethan in the highchair that I used as a baby.

Ethan enjoying his new hang out

• Ethan jumps! Grandma and Grandpa Fixmer got Ethan a Johnny Jump Up for Christmas and we had to open it early because he loves jumping right now. It took him a couple days to figure it out, but now he loves jumping in it. I have a video of him jumping to posts, but I'm waiting for YouTube to upload it.

• Travis' classes finish this week. Please keep him in your prayers. He has presentations and tests on Tuesday and Friday. It's been another grueling semester and he's very ready for a break.

• We've all had our run with a horrible bug. Of course, we were nice enough to give it to Melanie, Mom and Dave at Thanksgiving, too. There's no fever, but lots of coughing, sneezing, sore throats and runny noses.
  

• We went to Melanie's Christmas party and had a blast. We saw Happy Feet, watched the kids decorate cookies, sang around Mel's new piano while Steve displayed his amazing skills, ate incredible food (ham, potatoes au gratin with gruyere and fennel, brocollini, asparagus, and beans, rolls, croissant bread pudding and banana pudding), opened gifts (mittens that Melanie knitted for all the nephews and nieces, and The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook for the adults) and laughed a lot.
  

• Our house is decorated for Christmas! This topic will be further expanded tomorrow in a post dedicated entirely to the decoration of our first house for our first Christmas in it! Yippee!

Okay, I think that's pretty much everything. I'm sure I forgot things, but I did my best. Thanks for being understanding and I hope I don't encounter such a long absence from the blog again.

Our Baby Dragon

Prompted by Anne, I'm finally posting the picture of Ethan in his darling Halloween costume. As you can see he was a two-toothed dragon and a very ferocious one at that! Like all good dragons, he even had a princess to protect.


I just couldn't help myself. :o)

Crazy Life

I'm writing this short post to let everyone know that we are alive and well. Our trip to California was extended from Friday until Tuesday and we had a blast. While there, both of Ethan's bottom teeth came in! I'm going to post pictures of our trip later, but the highlights were:

• Introducing Ethan to the ocean
• All the good food (that undid all the work I've done to lose baby weight)
• Good times spent with Grandma Grace, Grandpa Milt, Aunt Carolyn & Uncle Sean (Paradise Cove, manicures and pedicures, high tea, The Assistance League, etc.)
  
• Meeting and spending time with Dave & Jo
• Milt's new plasma TV and the DVD he made of the Bean family
• Dinner with Paul & Alex
• New shoes!
• Shopping at Trader Joe's and Whole Foods

Okay, that's all I remember right now and as you can see I have a lot to tell, but unfortunately Travis and I both got majorly behind in school. My classes expire on the 29th of this month and I'm definitely in a crunch to get them done. I'll try to update the blog, but be patient as this is an incredibly crazy time for us. We love you all and apologize for our delinquency.

Today is...

Monday: Cleaning
Well, the picture to the left pretty much sums up Monday. As you all know, the basement flooded last week and so the carpets needed to cleaned. I figured that I would rent the Rug Doctor in the morning and surprise Travis by having all the carpets done when he got home from work. Let me tell you, that Rug Doctor is one beast of a machine. I think I'm a pretty fit chick and my arms were whooped for two days, plus it left me nearly deaf. But the job got done and we saved money by doing it ourselves so I can't complain...too much.

Tuesday: Wash Day (Warning: The following is a poop story)
Since Ethan started solids he hasn't pooped nearly as much as he used to. That's a good thing because it brought it him down to the level of most regular (ha ha) babies. However, the few poopy diapers he's had have been doozies. I won't recount the first story because Mel's already laughed enough at my expense with that one. But this time I was home when it happened and I thought, "Wa ha! Mommy was right here when it happened and I've prevented a potential disaster!" I put him on the changing table, went to pull his pants down and "it" was everywhere. I couldn't even get his pants off. I panicked! Needless to say, the clean up wasn't pretty and it involved a hosing off, a long wash for Ethan and new outfits for the both of us. (Yes, "it" was that bad) After I got him a clean outfit and put him down this is the look he gave me:
Is it just me or is he saying, "Mommy that was fun, huh? You're the one who always says, 'Beans don't do half jobs.'".

Wednesday: Sleep
This is Ethan's new favorite way to sleep. Head touching crib bumper and feet touching crib bumper. Isn't it cute?

Thursday: Big Eyes
During play time today Ethan was being particularly cute. He was practicing sitting up while munching, perhaps the word gumming is more appropriate, down on toys Aunt Mel has given him. I shot this picture and fell in love with his eyes. Click on it to get the larger version and you'll see what I mean.
Suddenly I found myself wanting to give him whatever he asked for. New toy? Okay! Want to go for a walk? Okay! Cookie? Okay! Wait a minute... Ethan had turned into:
Puss in boots! See the resemblance? The only impersonation I've seen that is better, is Lexie when she sits by our knees begging for table scraps with her eyes (A trick she learned from Sassy). Fortunately, Ethan started playing with a new toy and forgot about the eye tricks.
Friday: Nap
Ethan hadn't been sleeping very well this past week and he'd been waking up from his second nap early and very grumpy. Sometimes when he's onery the only position he likes to eat in is laying down. I laid down next to him, fed him and he conked. When I came back to check on him he looked like this:

*Sigh* College education fund? Okay! Love and hugs all your life? Okay!

Saturday: Daddy Day
Ethan and Daddy walked Lexie in the morning and they were both too elated for words.
Travis calls this his "Look at me I'm a flippin' little dolphin, let me flip for you!" pose. I call it adorable. (P.S. Bonus points if you know what movie the above line is from) Later that night Ethan got super cranky. As in "Nothing In The Whole Wide World Can Make Me Happy Right Now". We tried everything and then wondered if he might be teething. We'd thought he might be teething before and when we gave him a washrag with an ice cube in it he spit it right back out at us. Today we had different results.
Ethan went through 4 ice cubes right after each other. Who knows if teeth are really coming, but it would explain some of his fussiness this week and I did feel some little pokies coming through his gums this morning. We'll keep you posted!

P.S. We're off to LA tomorrow and we're all so excited!

Ethan Loves to Rock n' ROLL

Breaking news: Ethan started rolling this week! The little man has been performing the back to sides maneuver for a while, but this Tuesday he completed a 180° rotation from back to belly. His form was beautiful and earned higher marks than babies twice his age. When he finished, the crowd (read: Mommy) begged for more and Ethan kindly acquiesced with not one, not two, but three encores. We're entertaining offers from multiple sponsors right now, but we'll keep you updated with who we sign with.

"Yeah! Did you guys see that? I'm totally in control here!"

"Okay, now who wants to tell me how to get back?"

I Love Rice Cereal

Well, this has been a rather eventful week and there is much to report from our homefront. Here we go! Ethan turned the Big 04 on Monday and I was anxiously awaiting feeding him his first solids. That day Ethan and I went to lunch with our friends Nancy and Bekah Bennett. Bekah and I share a certain affinity for corndogs (I know the foodie in me should be ashamed of this, but I'm not). I told Bekah that after her brother and sisters were back in school we'd go get corndogs for lunch, so it was time for me to own up to my promise. We went to Smith's because they have a little eating court and they had some healthful salads we could choose from too. Good times were had by all and I introduced Bekah to jo jos, which was a proud moment for me. As we left the store I headed to the baby food aisle where I purchased my first ever box of rice cereal. As you can see, it was a beautiful moment.



When Travis got home from work that day he shared the news that ATK is sending him to Los Angeles on October 16. That's when I had the brilliant idea that Ethan and I should go with him! Travis' work is paying for his ticket, the hotel and a rental car so all we had to pay for is my ticket. Travis flies out on Delta that morning and Ethan and I fly out on Jet Blue that afternoon. We're hurriedly trying to get ahead on school and are super excited to visit Travis' family in the area and introduce them to the Little Prince. That night, Ethan got his first helping of solids. I've been holding out hope that rice cereal would help Ethan sleep through the night. We've followed the Baby Wise strategem and yet our baby just doesn't want to sleep through the night. I thought at one time that he was waking up out of habit and consulted the book which recommended letting him settle himself back down and trying t hat for three nights. The first night Ethan screamed bloodly murder for over an hour, the second night only twenty-five minutes, at which point I was hopeful, but then on the third night he hit the hour mark and I was in tears, so we threw that idea out the window. He always wakes up famished, takes a vigorous full feeding and goes right back down, so I've been hoping that rice cereal would keep his tummy happy and full and let him, and me, sleep longer. Ethan loved the rice cereal and gobbled it right up!
The best part was how he was super happy after he had his first helping. Here's a video of him giggling with Travis, who proposed that, "Maybe he's happy because he's been so sick of your low-fat breast milk."




However, he was awake and hungry again at 2:00 A.M. I don't have any pictures of Tuesday or Wednesday, because that's when our basement flooded. Travis discovered it when he came from work and cleaned it all up. The plumber came on Wednesday and we couldn't get the trap downstairs to replicate what it had been doing: overflowing every time we flushed the toilet. He snaked our pipes and I'm praying we don't have to replace them. Our next task is get rid of the nasty, musty odor that it left downstairs.
Thursday night, Ethan went down at 9:30 P.M. as usual and didn't wake up until 4:00 A.M. I was so elated to run on more than 3 consecutive hours of sleep! But it got better. Friday Ethan didn't wake up until 6:30 A.M. That's right everyone, my baby slept through the night! Wait. It gets better. Saturday Ethan didn't wake up until 6:30 A.M.!!!!

I LOVE RICE CEREAL!
Apparently, Ethan does too because look how happy he is to eat it.

Saturday was wonderful because Travis and I went on our first BIG TIME date since Ethan was born. We drove into Ogden and saw a matinee of Open Season, which was funny but relied too heavily on bathroom humor for being a kid's movie and left us wondering why Pixar seems to be the only animation company that knows how to develop a storyline. Then we went Boccia's D'Italia for some amazing Italian food. The Boccia's moved to New York from Italy in the early 1900's and started a restaurant in Little Italy. Their youngest son moved to Utah and opened a restaurant in Ogden. This place is a no frills establishment that relies solely on its incredible food. Their decorating philosophy can be summed up in two words: Frank Sinatra. Pictures, posters, books, autographed memoribilia and, of course, the songs wafting through the dining room. I got cheese ravoili and the pasta was fresh and smooth, the cheese rich, but not overpowering and the sauce was too good for words. With every bite I took, I could see some Italian Nona nursing the pot of gently simmering tomatoes, garlic and onions and adding spices until it tasted just right. It wasn't a taste I could reproduce, which makes it a homerun in my book. Not to mention that the piping hot breadsticks they brought to our table were thick and topped with garlic olive oil and parmesan. Whenever our basket ran low our waiter, whose name was Glen, but in order to make the story more authentic I'll refer to him as Gino, promptly brought us another basket of hot breadsticks. The meal was magnificent and because Gino was talking with "The Boss" it took him a while to bring us our check so he sent us with a complimentary cannoli. Needless to say, the next time any of you visit us, we're taking you to Boccia's. I took this darling picture of Ethan and Lexie this morning. Lex loves to hang out around Ethan when he's playing and just watch him and sniff his ears. That's right, sniff his ears. Travis and I had to laugh at how this picture makes Lex look huge. I guess we have to keep in mind that Ethan is only 13 pounds and that'll give us the necessary perspective.

Banana Bread

This is my faithful banana bread recipe and one that I find highly nostalgic because it was the first Cooking Light recipe that I ever used. That's right folks, this is the recipe responsible for my obsession. I've never had this fail on me and every time it produces a beautiful loaf that tastes even better than it looks. My favorite thing about this banana bread is that it doesn't contain any Crisco, my arch enemy, which leaves a pithy residue on the roof of my mouth. This banana bread is moist, sweet and carries the perfect level of butter and vanilla flavor. I guarantee that after you try this recipe you'll never use your old banana bread recipe again.

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe banana (about 3-4 bananas)
1/3 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350°.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk.

Place sugar and butter in a large bowl, and beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 1 minute). Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add banana, yogurt, and vanilla; beat until blended. Add flour mixture; beat at low speed just until moist. Spoon batter into loaf pans that have been coated with cooking spray. (Note: I fill mine only 2/3 full because these rise a lot) Bake at 350° for 40-50 min. for a mini pan and 1 hour for a regular size bread pan, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.

This recipe makes one large loaf or three mini loafs.

A Picture for Scott

No commentary I make can capture what this picture does. It is truly worth a thousand words. At least.

Turkey Meat Loaf with Sun-dried Tomatoes

I found the base for this recipe on my beloved epicurious the other day and decided to give it a whirl. I'm not a fan of meat loaf, for really no reason other than its name: meat loaf. It just sounds disgusting. Plus, I have a hard time thinking anything should be baked in a bread pan other than bread. But nonetheless, I got a good deal on ground turkey breast and wanted to do something unusual, for me at least, with it. Boy, was I ever shocked by the result. This is simply delicious. Travis and I both wolfed it down and it'll definitely be a repeat item. The pine nuts are the one ingredient that I wasn't so sure about, but they are irreplaceable to this recipe. They add an indescribeable texture that's incredibly satisfying and combined with their slight nuttiness, left me digging for the pine nuts like little nuggets of gold. Overall, the meat loaf was bursting with refreshing flavors, moist and a welcome change from the standard meat loaf. You have to give this recipe a try.

1 pound ground turkey
1 onion, chopped
1 cup fresh breadcrumbs
1 egg, beaten to blend
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
12 sun-dried tomatoes, soaked in boiling water for 10 min. and chopped
1/3 cup milk
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary or 1/2 teaspoon dried, crumbled
2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano or 1/2 teaspoon dried, crumbled

Preheat oven to 375°F. Combine all ingredients in large bowl. Season with salt and pepper and mix well. Transfer mixture to 8 1/2x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan. Bake until loaf pulls away from sides of pan and top is golden brown, about 45-50 minutes.

Serves 4.

Our Week in Photos

This last week was a busy one. Travis has a big test today and had a grueling homework assignment due last Wednesday, so he spent literally every spare minute studying. I'm behind a couple days in my classes so I, too, spent every spare minute studying. Of course, Ethan keeps us having fun and if it weren't for him we'd probably be certifiably crazy by now. Here's the play by play:

Monday: Here is a picture of Ethan at his snuggly best. Sometimes he gets sudden onset fatigue and instantly becomes a little magnet. I love it!

Ethan's Halloween costume arrived today and Travis and I couldn't resist taking pictures. However, so we don't ruin the Halloween pictures we'll have,
I'll reveal little tidbits of his picture until Halloween.
Anyone want to guess what he is going to be?

Tuesday: We had our wonderful neighbor, LaRaine Nelson, over for dinner. She is so kind to us and crocheted the beautiful blue and white blanket that Ethan is modeling.

Wednesday: For the first time ever, Ethan was able to hold on to his toys as he played!
He was so darling as he tossed his hands back and forth,
engaging in what appeared to be a game of
"Keep Away From Mommy", yet never dropped his rattle.
One minor victory for mankind. One major victory for Ethan!


Thursday: Last weekend we picked all the pumpkins from our garden and today we had the perfect weather for a photo shoot with our big pumpkins and our
little punkin. Here are our favorite three pictures.
P.S. Paul, see Ethan sporting the beanie you got him? I love it!

Saturday: We went down to Mel's to dogsit and Tammy came over to pick up some things we had for her. Ethan and Robert got to play for a little bit before Tam had
to take off and Travis snapped this adorable picture of them.
Can you believe Ethan is six weeks older?
Neither can I!

Bonus: On Friday night, Lexie was a little needy for some lovin' and cuddlin'. Travis and I spent some time scracthing her and playing with her before we went
to bed, but apparently it wasn't enough. We knelt for prayer and Lex
came over and snuggled down inbetween my legs. I died laughing, and
Lexie didn't budge until I moved her. I think she likes my silky pajamas.