Tuesday, December 22, 2009

It's all a blur...

or should I say smudge?

Much to my dismay, every single picture taken on my camera this weekend has a smudge in the lower left corner.  I think this happened while I was taking pictures of the girls last week with their gingerbread house.  Darn icing.

But the memories are still salvageable.
Although I am soooo thankful we're getting a new camera soon.  The red and glowing eyes in these pictures were so bad that I didn't even bother to try and doctor them up.

Friday started with a visit from an international celebrity to our MOPS (Mothers of Pre-Schoolers) group.  She had some *fabulous* giveaways!  But since I neglected to bring my camera, you'll have to see this post for some great pictures (and recipes!).

On Friday evening we headed out to an Ugly Sweater party for a night of debauchery.  Okay, so maybe "debauchery" isn't the right word since it was with the Young Families class from our church (which is hands-down THE BEST group to be a part of!).

I had slaved for hours over a sewing machine trying to make the perfect ugly sweaters (since my last-minute trip to the Salvation Army proved that there must've been more ugly sweater parties going on...).  And when I say "slaved for hours over a sewing machine," what I really mean is that I stapled felt and tinsel to the sweaters.  Yes, I did say stapled.  I didn't want to waste good time and thread on some ugly bally sweaters that were just going to end up in the trash anyway!  So stapling seemed like the easiest, fastest method.


As you can see there were many sweaters much cooler than ours.  Although I'm pretty sure Liz (far right) just dug that one out of her maternity bin.

At the sake of offending anyone, we use the term "ugly" very loosely.  Pretty much any Christmas sweater fits into this category, no matter how cute.  So please don't be horrified if you see one of your own sweaters in these pictures.  We're not saying it's "ugly," just Christmasy!









Even Tate got in on the fun with his one and only Christmas shirt.








Pastor Mike (left) actually wore this seater in high school.  A genuine Z-Cavaricci, folks!  He even wore his LA Gear hightops too!  I think he's hoping that 80's mens' fashions will make a comeback.  Good luck with that...


A party isn't a party without lots of good food, and this party had PLENTY.  I was bummed when I ran out of room on my plate and couldn't sample all of the delicious creations.

I made these Ranch Sausage Stars.  Chad and I love them, and I guess we're not the only ones since they were completely demolished by the time we left (much to Chad's dismay).  They're really great to make if you need an easy yummy appetizer.  So, I've included the recipe.
Oh, and if you've never used wonton wrappers before, they're usually found in the refrigerated fresh produce area.


Ranch Sausage Stars
1 package wonton wrappers (or egg-roll wrappers cut in fourths)
1 pound cooked sausage
1 cup ranch dressing
1 1/2 cups monterey jack shredded cheese
1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese
a little oil

Preheat oven to 350.  Place wonton wrappers in muffin tins (mini muffin tins will work too - I always use 2 regular muffin tins and 1 mini one).  Brush a little oil over the wrappers.  Place in oven for 5 minutes.  Meanwhile, mix the sausage, ranch and cheese in a bowl.  When wrappers come out of the oven, remove them from the tins and place on a cookie sheet.  Put a spoonful of the mixture in each one and put back in the oven for 5 more minutes.  Enjoy!

And lastly, on Saturday we were able to attend the wedding of a good friend.  Actually, it was my high school best friend's brother, but that family was like a second family to me since I spent much of my high school life there when we weren't hanging out at my house.  My parents served as the host and hostess, so we were all really tight.  The best part was that I was able to reunite with my good ol' buddy, Dawn.

Another highlight of the wedding came from my poor little Addie.  She was trying so hard to sit still during the beautiful ceremony when I looked over and saw tears running down her face.  "What's the matter?"  I asked.  "I'm just sooooo bored," she pouted.  I had a really hard time trying not to laugh.  She brought new light to the expression "bored to tears."

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

any apron fans?

I'm really hoping to win this apron:


But if I don't win it, I hope one of you does!

Check out This Heavenly Life for your chance to win!

And don't just stop there... I encourage you to read her blog.  She is an amazing writer.  Her wit never ceases to amaze me.

And no, I'm not just saying that so she'll pick me...

But it'd be cool if she did!  ;)

Monday, December 14, 2009

weekend update


Let me warn you...

Lots of pictures of cute kids to follow...

Brace yourselves...


A true chef always samples her work.


Tate has really gotten into the Christmas spirit.


Okay... maybe not.


He sure is cute though, isn't he?


Nana and Baba came for the weekend.  Addie and Millie had a ton of fun making cut-out cookies with Nana Lois!



We found this sad and lonely little reindeer sitting on our hearth.


So we sent the elves to cheer him up!


BFF


Tate's all dressed up and ready to go to church!


The girls had their Christmas program Sunday night.  Addie's in the front row, second from the right in the black/white plaid dress and red tights.  She did wonderfully.  We don't have a picture of Millie here - it's on my parents' camera, but she was super cute too.  Even though all she did was stand very still.  :)
(Notice how the kids' eyes are glowing in these pictures?  No, it's not a special effect I wanted to try... it's the results of a very old digital camera... but I heard word of a new one coming our way very soon...!)




This morning we decided to tackle the Gingerbread House.  Notice the kit?  There was no way I was going to make one from scratch.  That's what kits are for, right?!
(Also notice Addie's wearing a dress.  She would wear a dress 24/7 if I let her.  This one just happens to be too short for church, so we let her wear it around the house.)

We thought it looked better without the chimney, so of course we had to eat it (plus several of the decorations...)



The finished product - even better than the picture on the box!  :)



Daddy took Addie out on a date tonight to see The Princess and the Frog.  She was super-duper excited!


And Millie wasn't jealous at all...  She got the stage All. To. Her. Self.

Hope you all had a lovely weekend as well!

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

oh, the weather outside is...


FRIGHTFUL!


But the fire is so delightful.


And since there's no place to go,
Let it snow...


let it snow...


let it snow!


When we finally kiss goodnight...


How I'll hate going out in the storm...


But if you really hold me tight...


all the way home I'll be warm!

Well, it doesn't show signs of stopping...


But I've brought some corn for popping.
The lights are turned way down low...


Let it snow...


let it snow...


let it snow!

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

a change in taste...

Wouldn't it be amazing if this tree was dwelling in my living room?


Or would you think I was the world's best decorator if this gorgeous tree was mine?


Would you want to be my best friend if my tree looked like this?

(Although Chad would absolutely never ever allow a peacock feather tree into his home for sure... but I did just buy a peacock feather wreath for my sister-in-law's birthday and it would look absolutely fabulous with this tree!)

But I'm glad those aren't my trees.

Why?

Because then I wouldn't have this beautiful "Adeline Original" ornament adorning my tree.


Or this, made by Emilia's sweet little hands.


And who could resist Addie's colorful snowflake?


And Millie's too (although she got tired after putting on just one bead...)


And none of those trees is good enough for this cute little face.


So yes, those trees above are beautiful.  Before having children, I would have loved to have had a tree like one of those.

But nothing is as beautiful as the masterpieces my children create.

I guess my tastes have changed.



Thanks, Remodeling My Space, for the pictures of the above trees. They really are beautiful.