What's Cookin'?

This little man's been in the kitchen cooking with Daddy.

He's helped make biscuits, pancakes, and last night he helped make sloppy joes.

Pretty soon, he'll be cooking us dinner un-assisted...

Okay, that may be a few years away; but a girl can dream, right?! ;)

And I see little Chloe is not far behind him!

Sassy Lashes

Sassy Lashes is the name of one of Steve Gonsalves' cats (of Syfy channel's original show, Ghost Hunters).

Betcha didn't know that! :)

 I watched a Q&A once where he talked about his cats 'Sassy Lashes' and 'Home Depot' and thought that the name Sassy Lashes was most definitively an unforgettable name for a feline friend.

Although I don't have a cat, I do live with a 'Sassy Lashes' of my own, as can be seen below:

 Let the dress up games begin!

I think we're in trouble now!

Seriously, can she get any cuter than this?!

Sunshine on a Cloudy Day

I've been sick since Saturday.

All day Saturday I kept telling Troy that I just felt so tired and that I just wanted to go to bed. I would clean up, do dishes, go upstairs to bring a wayward toy back to its toy box and just be utterly exhausted. By Saturday night, I knew what was going on. My throat started to feel sore and I felt like I had a lump stuck in it.

It wasn't until Sunday morning that I really felt awful. Sensitive skin (which I always get when I'm very sick), tiredness and a severe sore throat as well as working hard to breathe-- I had it all. I'm pretty sure that I have strep throat though I haven't been to the doctor yet-- WebMD says that it usually goes away on its own between 3-7 days in most cases with or without antibiotics. I'm holding out to see if this thing goes away and if it gets too bad, I'll be making an appointment for sure!

Anyway, Troy was a dear this last weekend and cooked all the meals and did the grocery shopping. He made sure I had soup and sore throat lozenges and took care of everything so I could rest. On Monday, he wrote me from work to tell me that he had a surprise for me, but wouldn't tell me what it was. At 3:00, the door bell rang and I peeked out our bedroom closet window to see who it might be.

I didn't recognize the car and almost didn't go to the door because we often have solicitors in our neighborhood and I hate telling people that I don't want/can't use their business. It wasn't until I saw flowers in the backseat of the car that a lightbulb went off in my head. I raced to the door and sure enough, there was a women standing there with the happiest arrangement of flowers I've ever seen.

Sure, it was overcast and the sun hadn't been out in days, but those flowers were like sunshine in my hands. It even had a foam sunshine propped amongst its foliage! I knew before I read the card that they were from Troy but the card confirmed what I already knew-- my husband is the sweetest thing! I am so glad that he takes such good care of our little family. That man would literally do almost anything for us and I love him for it. Hopefully, I'll feel better soon and can make it up to him by making him one of his favorite meals or something!

 Aren't they beautiful?

Addendum: Literally as soon as I got done writing this, Troy told me he had ANOTHER surprise for me! Apparently, he had gotten "them" yesterday as well and told me that "they" were out in the car, in the glove box. When I got out there, look what I found in the car!

I couldn't believe it! I had told Troy last year that I wanted to see The Chieftains in concert here in Dallas, but I wasn't sure if he had remembered. And, incredibly, last night I actually had a dream that I was telling someone about the concert-- and then he presented me with the tickets this morning! These are my Valentine gift but he decided to give them to me a little early. I am so excited! We'll be dancing irish jigs for sure next month! :)

Hypnotic Donuts

Have you ever heard of Voodoo Doughnuts from Portland, Oregon? I saw them featured once on Food Network on one of their hotspot countdowns and thought their doughnuts looked over the top yet strangely delicious. While thumbing through D magazine last month, I came across the Dallas equivalent-- Hypnotic Donuts which operates only Saturday and Sunday in a pizza shop. That's right, a pizza shop. They don't have a sign advertising that there are donuts inside but they have a website and a facebook page that tells whether or not they'll be open and what kind of special donuts will be on the menu. They only accept cash and there are no donuts in a case to peruse over-- they only decorate them by hand after you've ordered them which means you'll have to wait a bit, but they're worth it.

The D magazine told us that they're open only from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. and that they sell out of donuts fast so it was a mad rush last Saturday to get the kids loaded up and out the door to make the half hour drive over to The Pizza Guy pizza shop where Hypnotic Donuts likes to hide on the weekends. When we got there, they were all out of white cake donuts which made me sad because I really wanted to try the Lucy in the Sky with Lemons which is a white cake donut with lemon frosting, crushed lemon heads and white chocolate.

Troy and I decided to try the Reverse Oreo which is a glazed donut with chocolate frosting topped with large chunks of Oreo cookie, the Roof of the Mouth which is a chocolate cake donut with chocolate frosting and large chunks of Reeses Peanut Butter Cups (wholly rich-ness!), the Morning Breath (my favorite) which was a chocolate cake donut with chocolate frosting and covered in Junior Mints and a Turtle donut which was a chocolate cake donut with chocolate and caramel frosting and chocolate and caramel drizzle. We also got the kids a Homer which is a glazed donut with strawberry frosting and loaded with sprinkles on top. 

They also make biscuits as well and they are even bigger than the donuts and have interesting yet tasty combos. Troy fetched himself one called Maribeth's Just Born Bonus which was a biscuit with fried chicken, tater tots and peppered white gravy. He inhaled that thing in about 5 minutes!

 So needless to say, we'll return again for sure with cash in hand ready to wait for our crazy combo donuts! Let us know if you want to visit-- we'll take you there! :)

On Christmas Day in the Morning!

I love the excitement of Christmas Eve and the anticipation of Christmas morning. It's one of the few times that I feel that exhuberant boisterous joy that I felt as a child where you're too ecstatic to sleep and where you're beyond excited to pass out the gifts you've gotten and to see what surprises await you. Troy and I were beside ourselves for the kids to wake up and to let Christmas morning commence, but collectively they both decided (on the one day that we were all up and ready to go) to sleep in.

At 8:30, they were still not awake so we tiptoed upstairs, softly called their names but there was no stirring these cherubs! Finally almost a half hour later, our sleepy heads decided to emerge.

Chloe really did not know what to think of all the hoolabaloo. She took everything out of her stocking, inspected it then generally spent the rest of the time on the outskirts of the living room with her fingers tucked in her mouth and her blanket pulled up to her chin. I think with everything going on it was just too overwhelming for her. We managed to pull her back into the fray a couple of times, but she really didn't get what it was all about. I'm sure she'll catch on next year!

Peyton was thrilled with his new camera, his dungeon and knights set, and the play laptop computer his Mimzy and Sir Grandpa got him. His Grandmother Linda also bought Peyton and Chloe a whole new wardrobe-- there were many beautiful things for Chloe and many outfits that make our handsome little guy look sharp. Thanks Linda! (They wear something you bought them every day!)

Both of the kids got books from my Uncle Bruce and his wife Chris which Chloe wanted to read on the spot! In addition to that, Chloe was spoiled with a drum and musical instrument set and a Fisher Price doll house. Mimzy and Sir Grandpa also got her a miniature play laptop too!

 But really, I think I was the most spoiled of all. Troy knows my love of books so he got me an Amazon gift card to read to my heart's desire. If that wasn't enough, he also got me a Cricut paper cutter, new p.j.'s, and a new workout outfit.

 Troy got some much needed new shirts and blue jeans, a talk on CD that he's been trying to hunt down for forever, and a television series on DVD that I thought he'd enjoy.

The shirt above is a joke between Peyton and Troy. Troy often tells Peyton to 'Hold your horses' when Peyton wants something right away. This shirt says 'Hold Your Horses' and shows the silhouette of a person hugging a horse. At the bottom it says 'Even Horses Need to be Held Sometimes'.

Hilarious.

My Mom loved seeing all of the excitement of Christmas morning!

 Speaking of my Mom and Dad, my parents spoiled us GOOD. There was a Wii for me!!

 And a smoker for Troy!

 And my Dad joined in the fun too. He and my Mom exchanged iPads so they were very merry. :) The things we got them weren't nearly as cool. ;)

And I got the steam mop I've been wanting to get!

Overall, it was a VERY merry Christmas. I hope your Christmas was ever so merry too!

Christmas Eve Pajama Party

It's a tradition from when my Mom was a kid passed down to me and now continued on with my little chicks. Every Christmas Eve, the children get to open ONE gift from under the tree. It's always new Christmas p.j.'s for all. And this year was no different.

I think I have quite the little hams on my hands, don't you? :)

Chloe was so wiggly that Peyton had a hard time posing with her! I think she was more excited about p.j.'s than Peyton was.

And of course, we didn't forget about Santa either! We left him plenty of homebaked goodness and a glass of milk to wash it down with.

Coming up next, Christmas morning!

Peyton Sings with Angel Wings

Peyton's preschool puts on a Winter Program every year in December and this was his first time to shine in it. We were asked by his teachers a while back to send in a white sweatshirt with him to school and then about two weeks later, it was sent back home with the cutest little angel on it made from Peyton's hand and foot prints to be worn for the program.

His Early Preschool class sang two songs; one about angels and the other, the ever tried and true 'Jingle Bells'. I had noticed the practice sheet for the song about angels in Peyton's classroom one day but thought it was just a poem until I heard his class actually singing it.

The words were:

I like snow.

Falling down.

I can make snow angels.

In the snow.

On the ground.

Angels all around.

Angels all around.

For the most part, Peyton had a deer-in-headlights look about him, but every now and then he would put his arms up or bounce to the music with his friends. It was so cute to hear all of those little voices out of key and tumbling all out of place up there in the front. It was so darling!

When it was all over, Peyton was so excited to see that Daddy had made it to see him sing! It was in the evening right at 7:00 so I wasn't sure if Troy would be able to make it on time but he came just in the nick of time and didn't miss a second of it. Peyton's first performance was unforgettable. So proud of my big boy!

2nd Annual 'My Favorite Things' Party

'Brown paper packages tied up with string, these are a few of my favorite things...'

I first fell in love with the notion of 'Favorite Things' parties when I attended one while I was still living in New Orleans. Our host, Allison, had invited each of us to her home where she served us cold chicken salad, cucumber punch and oreo balls while we talked and laughed and each swapped 'things'. It was a good excuse to get the ladies together and have a good time, then go home with new things to enjoy.

The idea is to decide on a budget, say five dollars each for five items (for a total of $25 spent) which was how I was first introduced to a favorite things party, but my favorite way to host a favorite things party is for everyone to buy 3 items at 10 dollars an item (for a total of $30 spent) because then everyone leaves with more substantial things.

Everyone comes with their 3 items all wrapped up and ready to swap. We all write our names 3 times on three slips of paper, put them in a bucket and draw three new names. These names are the people who you will be receiving goodies from! It's so fun and interesting to see what everyone will bring and a lot of times, I end up going out after the party the next day to pick up some goodies that I didn't end up drawing because I want to try the items myself!

In October of 2009, I hosted my first party in my new home state of Texas and invited the friends I had gotten to know. They loved it so much that they asked me if I'd throw another. So, in November of 2010, I hosted another one-- with more friends, more goodies and more fun.

It was a hit! It looks like this might be a yearly tradition now, which I don't mind a bit. It really is a fun time for all.

I had a lot of fun baking up goodies for the party. I made homemade Caramel Apple Cider and whipped up some brownies, served sliced apples with caramel dip, and there were plenty of satsumas to eat as well.

I also made Cranberry Cinnamon Chip Bars, Apple Cider Spice Donuts, and Easy Pretzel Turtles! The donuts were a HUGE hit with everyone. Very delicious and easy to make.

All of the ladies chatting before the big reveal.

 The loot. :)

 Everyone had such a good time! See you next Fall!