little lovelies handmade

I was lucky enough to find these carolers at the thrift store this summer. I had been keeping them in the garage until the holidays and they were the very first things I (gleefully) pulled out when I decorated for Christmas. Now everything is packed up and put beck in the rafters, but these sweet singers are staying with me. They are in my office area now and fit right in whistling for me while I work. Added cool is that the kids say the little blonde haired girl looks like me, which only makes me love both my real kids and the ceramic ones even more.

They make a mother proud...

 

Yes, those are my children sitting on the floor of a warehouse club store watching tv under a blanket. We were in the checkout line and they wandered off, I turned around and there were my children sitting on the ground tucked under Lily's blanket watching a movie.

Elves came and took Christmas away.

Elf, originally uploaded by glitterandgrunge.com.

The worst part of the Holidays is all the clean up. I was lucky and a Christmas elf packed up Christmas for me. She didn't put it up in the attic though. A bigger elf is needed for that.

Have a Happy New Year!

Can I really blog from my phone?

You know, this is almost too easy! Apparently I can blog from my phone. Maybe I will actually do something with my neglected blog now that I can do it on the go. Uploading pics is way easier too. How does it look from the readers perspective?

We're a Happy Bunch

 

The top picture especially cracks me up because the kids posed themselves and their hand placement screams Olan Mills, lol! For the record I don't think I have been in an Olan Mills since 1990. The bottom picture is Charlotte and her cousin. They are 2 months apart and Charlotte just LOVES her cousin. It's a happy day when she gets to play with babies her own size.

I think I'll Keep Him

 We have been married for eight years this past July. Here follows a list as to why this man is a-freakin-mazing...

1. He married ME, didn't he?

2. He has a patience that can only be described as God given. I mean, he married ME, didn't he?

3. He is more than willing to entertain whatever wild idea I have from more kids (or not) to business ventures to crazy vacation ideas. He won't always agree in the end to do these things, but he will always hear me out.

4. He lets me hold the tv remote.

5. He truly truly loves me and our kids the way Christ loves the church.

6. He models for me and our kids what a loving, comitted, mature Christian father and husband looks like.

7. He shows me grace every single day.

8. He lets me buy his clothes and only complains a little when he has to wear them.

9. He's cute.

10. He is 110% supportive of my business and everything I do.

11. He is funny (though it did take me roughly two years to figure out his dry sense of humor).

12. He introduced me to Three Amigos. That right there is reason enough to love this guy.

My Little Soccer Stud

Tyler had soccer camp for one week this summer. It was in the evenings from 5:30-8:30 pm (can you say HOT!) but it didn't seem to really bother him. He just loved being out there playing with other kids. The last night he came home and showed me how he could "dribble" down the hallway. He enjoyed the camp, but really isn't ready for organized sports. Makes me glad I didn't sign him up for soccer yet - we can burn him out on sports another year.

Fake Crepes

My kids are definitely MY kids. They expect something sweet at least once a day, and can you blame them? We did have s'mores for lunch yesterday. Someone (I'm not naming names) did set their expectations for sweets early on in their lives.

One afternoon they wanted a treat and we had no treats in the house, but we did have tortillas, chocolate chips, and PB&J, which I used to make yummy fake crepes. I'm sure I am neither the first or the last mother to make treats like this, but I'll just pretend I am.

Fake Dessert Crepes (which are called such only because I can't spell quesadillas correctly according to my spell check, which has no alternative to offer other than "gorillas")

tortillas
chocolate chips (we use dark chocolate)
peanut butter (natural, no sugar added)
jam or jelly (apricot preserves in this case)

Spead PB on one side of a tortilla, spread jam on top, sprinkle chips and fold over.
Cook over med heat until chips are melted.
Eat and try not to get the mess all over you face.

Also try marshmallow fluff. I haven't yet, but it sounds good. So try it and tell me. Also try Nutella. I have tried that and its so good that I know I can't have the stuff in my house anymore - I'll eat it morning noon and night. Not that that's bad or anything...

The Other Half of That Turkey Pasta Salad

So that other bit of turkey from the tacos ended up in this pasta salad. No measurements here. Just add what you like so it tastes how you like it

1 lb of pasta, shells, macaroni, spirals - whatever you have
1 can diced tomatoes
green beans from farmers market
feta cheese
kalamata olives
ground turkey
italian seasoning, salt and pepper to taste
olive oil and balsamic vinegar

cook and drain pasta and remove from pan to a large bowl
cook green beans how you like to (either steam them or boil them in a shallow pan in an inch or so of water)
open can of tomatoes and dump the whole can, juice and all in the pasta
chop olives and green beans and add to bowl with feta cheese
add seasonings, olive oil and vinegar to your liking

When I make this, it usually is enough for one lunch or dinner for four and several lunches for my husband during the week. Very precise, I know.

Poor Man's Tacos

This might be a food blog around here for awhile. You all don't mind do you? I have found that being in a tight spot at the end of a pay period yields culinary creativity. For the most part I don't mind the challenge. This week I decided to blog about last weeks food. This is partially driven by the fact that I am trying to eat right and exercise and all that good for you crap.

End-of-the-Pay-Period-Raid-the-Fridge-Tacos
makes about 6-8, with some turkey leftover for another meal.

1 lb ground turkey
1 cup salsa
1 cup shredded cheese
sour cream
salad greens
tortillas

Brown the ground turkey and drain fat, add salsa and cook off the liquid left in the pan. Spread a tablespoon of sour cream on a tortilla and top with a handful of salad greens and cheese and a heaping spoonful of hot from the pan turkey. Wrap em up and eat it. Then make one for everyone in the family and eat the rest sitting at the table like civilized people.

Avoidance by way of Culinary Distractions

There are worse ways to avoid cleaning your craft area, no? It's one of those things where the pile is getting worse before getting better and I had to step away for a bit. And naturally food seemed like a much better idea. It always does...Ty and I made carrot cupcakes and I wanted to share. 

Carrot Cake Cupcakes
1 cup (8oz can) crushed pineapple in its own juice
3 cups whole wheat flour (white flour is fine, though)
2 cups sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
2 large eggs
1 egg white
1/2 cup safflower oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups coarsely shredded carrots
1/2 cup applesauce

Heat oven to 350. Drain pineapple and reserve the juice. In a large bowl whisk together the dry ingredients. Make a well in the center and add the reserved pineapple juice, eggs, egg whites, vanilla and oil. Beat at medium speed until blended. It will be a dense mixture. With a spoon stir in the carrots, pineapple, and applesauce.

Spoon mixture into muffin tins, bake until a toothpick stuck into the center of a cupcake comes out clean, about 22 mins. Remove to a wire rack to cool 2 mins. Serve warm. Makes 24 cupcakes.

* I prefer to use whole wheat flour and bagged pre-shredded carrots. This keeps the cupcakes from getting too moist. They tend to completely fall apart if they are too moist. I also like to add raisins and walnuts to the batter (1/2 cup each) but my kids won't eat raisins and my husband won't eat nuts in baked goods. If you have a not-to-sweet cream cheese frosting they are ah-may-zing with a little frosting and crushed walnuts sprinkled on top.