I Lied

Before, I mentioned that the tree wasn’t gonna get decorated until after Thanksgiving. 

But now, the bottom two feet of it look like this: 

I later heard Cash say, “The dinosaurs want to go to Jesus’ birthday party!”

Mid November Nothings

1. i haven’t blogged for a long time.  lack of motivation.  sorry three readers that i have. 
2. we spent halloween with the chicago cousins.  ‘twas fun.  jeffy babysat so sister and i could do lots of shopping.  i like him for that. 
3. except for when we got home one evening my kid was pantless in the driveway. 
4. cash is so stinkin’ cute sometimes. 
5. he still loves to cuddle me and asks if i am happy.  he really wants me to be happy.  i love it! 
6. he’s still seems so little to me.  love it again. 
7. my big sis got her referral for her baby girl from ethiopa, and i couldn’t be more excited.  i can’t stop looking at baby girl clothes for her.  she should be here early next year i believe. 
8. we’re still trying to move, but no bites on the house yet. 
9. not sure how well this for-sale-by-owner-thing is gonna work.  we’ll probably get more aggressive the first of the year.
10. the boys have been begging to put up the christmas tree and i finally gave in today.  although we aren’t decorating it yet.  i am determined to leave it alone until after t-day.
11. this getting dark at 5 o’clock is not for me. 
12. grant and i have been playing a lot of the old school super mario 3 lately.  we would like to challenge some friends.  anyone interested? 

Grant’s Fav Meal

On the Menu:

The Pioneer Woman’s Steak Bites

Cheddar Biscuits

A Green Vegetable, just for good measure

Cheddar Biscuit Recipe

1/2 lb Bisquick

1 1/2 oz shredded Cheddar

5 1/2 oz water

Mix it all and plop a dozen balls onto a pan.

Bake 10-12 minutes in a 375 degree oven.

Meanwhile, mix

2 TB melted butter, 1 tsp garlic salt, & 1 tsp of parsley

Brush over freshly bakes biscuits. 

So easy, so delish. 

Hometown Parade

Perfect weather.  Team spirit.  Cool trucks.  Free T-shirt.  Lots of candy.  Political stickers.  Marching bands.  Funny college kids.  Popcorn.  M-I-Z chants.  Familiar faces.   Endless high-fives.  

Naps on the way home:)

Operation: Decrapify the House

The idea of packing up our stuff and moving out is getting a little more real every day. 

Our first mission:  Pack up all the crap and hide it, so that someone will think the house is cute and will want to buy it. 

Mission 2:  Sell the house to that certain someone.

Mission 3: Live in Grandpa’s house while we save money and build a new place. 

Mission 4: Never move again? 

A few questions, a few prayers

• have more kids?
• public or private school?
• adopt?
• go back to school?
• be foster parents?
• get a job?
• build a house?
• sell our house?
• how will this affect that?
• will that strain us?
• emotionally, mentally, financially?
• does this decision make us selfish?
• will we feel guilty if we don’t?
• is it okay to be confused?
• to change your mind?
• to disagree?
• to cry about it?
• should i get new boots? (kidding)

feeling blessed and worried at the same time.  that’s all.

and feeling like a season of prayer is coming on.   

So I got a haircut the other day…

So I got a haircut the other day, nothing major, just a trim and some bangs.  And in hopes of raising my self esteem, I asked the little boys what they thought of it.

Jagger:  I love it a lot!  You look so beautiful! You’re the most beautiful mommy!  Can I have some cookies?

Cash:  Mommy, I don’t like your haircut!  I don’t like the down part!  Take your haircut off! 

Um, moral of the story is: A 5-year-old knows how to talk to a woman when he wants something.  A 3-year-old, not so much. 

And maybe “the down part” of my haircut isn’t so good?

They wanna be cowboys

Last weekend we headed south to celebrate a few family birthdays with Grant’s side of the family. 

Highlights of this trip include:

Staying in a hotel & jumping on the beds

Pushing buttons in the elevator

Birthday cake

And riding horses

(And for some reason, I only have pictures of that last one!)

A big thanks to Uncle Steve for putting on his cowboy boots and taking the boys out!

After the rain

 

 

Chocolate Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies… or Why My Pants are Tight

I couldn’t decide on a title. 

Anyway,

Chocolate Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies!  A couple months ago I discovered my most favorite and easiest way to make Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies…. CAKE MIX.  Yeah, the recipe is on the side of the box, so this isn’t exactly groundbreaking.  But to me it kinda is. 

You need all this:

The recipe on the box call for nuts.  But I think nuts are stupid.  So I threw in some Andes Mints.  They are so smart… and delicious!  And x-nay on the vanilla, it’s not needed. 

And then about 7-10 minutes later, you have awesomeness.  About 3 dozen awesomeness-es, actually. 

They are delish!  I may or may not have eaten a couple dozen in a day or two. 

*ALSO* if you decide to save some of the cookie dough in your refrigerator in a log shaped form in a Ziploc bag….. your 5-year-old will later say “Mom!!!!!! Someone put POOP in the fridge!”

Here’s the recipe I use and love:

1 Box Duncan Hines Chocolate Cake Mix (other brands don’t turn out as well, I’ve found)

1/4 C brown sugar

1 stick-o-butter, melted

2 eggs

1 C chocolate chips

1 C mint baking chips

Combine first 4 ingredients, add in chips. Plop spoonfuls onto your baking sheet. 

Bake at 350, 7 minutes on a pan, or 10 minutes on a stone.