December....To-Do.......family events

Well Christmas is right around the corner. I'm not sure about you but in our home traditions are huge. We have traditions from my family and Isaac's family that we picked to carry on to our own family. Then we have OUR traditions that we have started together. This will give you a small glimpse into the things that are happening over at our house this holiday season. I would love to hear about or see what your family is doing this season.

Merry Christmas

November
30. Make a Paper Countdown chain.

December
1. Write and mail letter to Santa. Turn on Christmas lights after Dinner
2. Watch a Christmas movie with Christmas Popcorn. (The Polar Express 3-D)
3. Make ornaments...Take Christmas pictures.
4. DISNEY Christmas event
5. Camp out in living room with hot chocolate and smores reading Christmas stories.
6. Put up K's tree and decorate it (his personal tree with decorations of his favorite charters collected since he was born or ones he's made..Winnie the pooh, Elmo, Dora,Nemo, cars,Toy story)
7. Make Snowflake garland
8. Snowman crafts
9. Donate Can Goods
10. Watch Home ALONE
11. Drive around and look at Christmas lights in our Pj's with Hot Cocoa
and popcorn
12. Snow Day on the parkway
13. Shop for and drop off Toys for toys for TOTS
14. K shopping day
15. Cookie Baking Day and decorating
16. MAIL OFF ALL CHRISTMAS GIFTS to family..Cookie delivery day for Friends
17. Christmas Lights in the Park
18. Bake gingerbread house.
19. Holiday Cleaning..The day we clean of the toys shelf's from outgrown/broken toys (Donate or toss)
20. Finish Wrapping the gifts
21. Christmas clean up..Our gift to our community
22. Christmas Show
23. Bake bread
24. Bake Cookies for Santa..Christmas Eve Pj opening..Night Before
Christmas Story
25. Christmas..Cinnamon Rolls..Bible Story..Stockings..Tree

Thanksgiving Menu

OK I know I had just started posting our menus and then LIFE was crazy for a couple of weeks. My Dad came into town to go to Disney with us. We had a ton of fun but now life is getting back on track.

This evening I actually had the time to think about our Thanksgiving Dinner.

Turkey
Yam/mellow dish
homemade Lemon zest green beans <-- K is helping
homemade dinner rolls <-- K is helping
homemade stuffing
Olives
Cranberry's
sparkling cider and wine

Desserts
Pumpkin Pie <-- K is making with daddy
Apple Pie <-- K is helping

We cook BIG for just a family of 3 but we have all the goodness of the holiday and then we get to enjoy it for the next month..LOL OK not really about a week is about how long it all last. Makes for some yummy lunches and some great add In's for other meals through out the next week.

*HOMEMADE pretty much means we use nothing from a BOX or Can. Most the time it's my recipe or one that was passed down to us from family or friends. Oh and almost always healthier.

We'll take our Thanksgiving stroll on the beach, watch the parade, watch the game, play family games, talk about what we're thankful for etc.... Enjoy your Thanksgiving next week.

Halloween Treats..MOM made goodness..BEWARE will gain weight by looking at photos :o)

Halloween Treats 2009.

On Halloween we have a tradition of having Pizza and then I make some some special treats with the kiddo for after trick or treating. We have a rule of NO Halloween candy that night. Normally K finishes early and then we all have fun outside waiting for trick or treater's eat pizza and play games and hand out candy to all.

This year K and I made Chocolate covered Marshmallows and then added Halloween sprinkles. and then I whipped up my famous (in our house) candy bar cookie mix up trifle. I even made this mix up to go along with Halloween by using Orange and black..YUM YUM YUM In the trifle there are chunks of goodness through out the whole thing. Always a bite or goodness and figuring out what candy bar or cookie that you just consumed.

Menu Planning Monday November 2nd - November 8th

Monday: November 2nd
Breakfast - Yogurt and Fruit
Dinner - Scalloped Potatoes, Asparagus, Buttered French Bread

Tuesday: November 3rd
Breakfast - Cereal
Dinner - Crock Pot Meal (From scratch)

Wednesday: November 4th
Breakfast - French Toast
Dinner - Spaghetti and garlic Bread

Thursday: November 5th
Breakfast - Muffins and fruit
Dinner - Fix'em Omelets (Everyone puts in their own yuminess), Toast

Friday: November 6th
Breakfast - Cereal
Dinner - Baked BBQ chicken, mashed Potatoes and Salad

Saturday: November 7th
Breakfast - Bacon and Eggs
Dinner - Subway Subs

Sunday: November 8th
Breakfast - Cinnamon Rolls (HOMEMADE)
Dinner - Chicken Noodle Soup (From scratch) and grilled cheese

SWEETS:
Nothing special this week DUE to Halloween

Pumpkin Carving 2009

Pumpkin carving for the 1st time (For K that is)

Yeah he's 5 and just carved a pumpkin for the 1st time. You see we live somewhere HOT, HUMID and Salt in the air. So we just got the fake pumpkins or the little ones for inside the house. This year we took the leap and let him carve a pumpkin as this year was the 1st year he had actually asked for a pumpkin. I was waiting as I knew they would rot if we carved them to early. So week of Halloween we carved away....The photo's will show you how they turned out.

1st time feeling the inside of a pumpkin..he wasn't crazy about that so daddy got to pull the insides out for him.

BUT..........................................

Then you ask hubs if he's ever eaten the string things from the pumpkin and he takes a handful and takes a bite. So guess who had to give it a try. Mind you this is about 5 sec's before K spit it all out in the trash. Ewe is what K said as soon as his mouth was clean.

Here are the pumpkins

K enjoying his Goofy that he carved 50% of

I and his crazy Pumpkin

And then my etched Minnie Mouse.

We all had a great time carving and etching pumpkins together.

Halloween Social 2009

Halloween Social 2009

This year was our First year of attending this neat event. All the kids 2nd grade and under met at a local church pumpkin patch and then the local police shut down the road so all the kiddos could put on a short parade to the rec. center. Once at the rec. center we we're met by some of the local Lions club and PAL members with a warm greeting. Once inside the kids went wild with music, a dance floor, bounce house, lots of games and lots of prizes to win. They then walked around with buckets of treats for the kiddos to put into their bags to take home. After a little while there was cookies and punch. K loved it all, he's a wild one. Loving to dance like his mama and loving all the games like his dad. About 2 hours later we got K out the door where he was given a goodie bag filled with some treats to go. By this time he was ready for a late dinner at McDonald's. He had so much fun he ate some apples in the car and then went to sleep for the night.

Umm what is he pondering in this photo? or what's with the glare

Pumpkin Patch and Trunk or Treating 2009

Pumpkin Patch and Trunk or Treating 2009

Just a Photo K took. He LOVES to take photo's..and he's not to bad at it.

Trick or treating Bag HOMEMADE

No Sew Trick or Treating Bag.

I saw this really cute Trick or treating bag over here and wanted to make one for my son. I don't have a daughter yet so finding cute things for boys is just about unheard of. Since I didn't want to haul out the sewing machine I just used iron on adhesive. Since this was for a boy I left off ribbon and just cut everything out straight. I did add some black puffy paint around the edges to minimize fraying.