Making Resolutions

Going to make my post short and sweet tonight. December is proving to make blogging nearly impossible. But, I plan on making a resolution starting in 2010, regular blogs! It makes me happy, keeps me connected and allows me to brag about my kids! Okay, just kidding on the last one. Since Christmas is in 2 days, I am planning on not blogging until at the earliest, next week. Have a Merry Christmas all! Stay warm and safe, it looks like a massive storm will be taking over the continental U.S.

Snow Day

Today was a snow day! The kids were off of school, we were not surprised. The weather was nasty.

I have a great kids. They helped their dad shovel the driveway this morning, which was so nice. Especially because our snow blower died this morning. Yes, that's right. Time to dip into the emergency fund again. For those who do not live in the Midwest, I need to emphasize that a snow blower is a necessity around here. I would love to say that a simple shovel will do the job, but it will not.

After helping their father they spent the morning building snow forts, snowmen, having a snowball fight and playing with their dogs in the snow. They had so much fun, I did not hear any fighting while they were playing. Maybe we need snow everyday.

I took advantage of the day and baked, baked, baked!! We have fudge, 5 types of cookies, pumpkin bread and cranberry bread. My youngest daughter was a great help today. Her siblings spent their day off with friends. No surprise I guess. At ages 11 and 12, I guess the company of friends trumps the company of parents any day. I am trying very had to accept that fact.

After several hours of baking, Maeghan and I played a 2 match of Monopoly. She beat me! I can't believe it. She is 7 years old and she has a very real concept of money management and real estate. She gets it. She did not just beat me, she kicked my ass!

Dinner tonight was a batch of Butternut Squash Soup and homemade bread. I made the soup, my husband made the bread. It was a delicious meal that was perfect on such a cold, snowy day. Dessert, cookies from this afternoon's baking marathon.

Our upcoming weekend is packed. My daughters have Christmas parties and my son is having his birthday party. Sunday we are going to see The Nutcracker in downtown Milwaukee. After the show we plan on walking around the downtown to look at the lights and enjoy a winter day by Lake Michigan. It should be a perfect day.

December

This month is proving to be busier than I imagined it would be. I guess I should not be surprised. The holidays are quickly approaching. I work in retail, for a candle store, during the busiest shopping month of the year. I have 3 kids who understandably want Christmas and all the pleasures it has to offer. We have been invited to parties and we are throwing a couple parties of our own. Throw on top of that the tickets I bought for The Nutcracker, A Christmas Carol, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever and Annie, and we have a busy month!

This time of year always creeps up on me. I always plan on baking, making homemade Christmas cards, wrapping the gifts like Martha Stewart and making a grand Christmas meal. But, time is always an issue. The cookies are often times made from premade Pillsbury dough, I order picture cards from Walgreens, throw on some wrapping paper at the last minute only to go out for Christmas Eve dinner. Remarkably, what I end up doing works for us, and I am happy in the end.

So, this year, I am going to do what I can with the time I have. If I have to use premade dough, I will do that without guilt. I will enjoy the holidays this year and worry about perfection next year.

Happy Thanksgiving

Going to keep my post short and sweet. Happy Thanksgiving! We all have so much to be thankful for. I am eternally grateful to my wonderful family. I have a great husband and fantastic children. My life would not complete without those 4 perfect people in my lives.

Today I had lunch with a good friend. It was so nice to get out with an adult, go to a restaurant that does not have crayons on the table and have a nice conversation. We had a lovely time, I can't wait to do it again.

After lunch we went to a little Italian market nearby and bought those fun (and not so frugal)foods that you cannot find at your local grocery store. The store was great. Italian music was playing in the background and the smells, oh the smells. The store smelled like heaven, nothing is better than Italian food. Next on the agenda, a trip to Trader Joes, which is frugal. I stocked up on canned pumpkin (for my son) and other odds and ends that are so much cheaper than the alternative at the grocery store.

Tonights frugal meal is split pea soup in the crock pot and bread. With the holidays quickly approaching, I need to stick to cheap dinners for the family.

It is a cold and windy day here in Wisconsin. Winter is just around the corner.

How to make edible Brussels Sprouts

Tonight for dinner I did the impossible! I made Brussels Sprouts, and I liked them. To get why this is a big deal, one had to understand how much I truly hate Brussels Sprouts. They taste awful, the remind me of little brains and they smell terrible. As one can see, I have a very strong opinion about them. But, our CSA sent them in our last box. Since I do not like to waste food and I believe in frugal living, I was forced to prepare them for tonight's dinner.

This is how I made them. Cut the Sprouts in half, saute them flat side down in oil until they are browned, put them in a baking dish, smother them in balsamic vinegar and bake until blackened. They were delicious, crunchy and tart. I did not detect the taste of sprouts and they smelled like balsamic vinegar, delicious.

Dinner tonight was a nice occasion. We all ate together, at the table. Talked about the day and had many good laughs. My son told us about Super Hero's he is creating based on Pastries. He has hero's based on cupcakes, brownies, croissants, bread, etc. He had so much fun telling about his creations. It was the perfect end to a wonderful day.

S'mores

Tonight, after a very long day of raking, we built a fire outside and made s'mores. What a treat. Eric and I did indulge in such a sweet treat, but we had all the fixins for the kids.

Tonight was one of those perfect fall evenings that I think you find only in the Midwest and Upper East Coast, no offense to the rest of the U.S., I am just biased. Crisp, cool air and the smell of all the burning leaves made it very pleasant. It was a nice, quiet night as a family. We sat on our patio, around the fire pit with our dogs and talked. Can you think of a better way to spend a Saturday night? Now, I blog a little with my tea, getting ready for a bubble bath. I love fall.