The season begins!

I love the day after thanksgiving..we get started with all the fun christmas traditions!
Last night, we went out at dark and got our tree!! It was fun to bundle up and go out and pick THE ONE. The men at the lot were so nice. All the proceeds went to helping the needy. They also gave Reid a hot dog to enjoy while we got the tree ready.

After we got home and ate dinner, we began the setting up fun. Var missied it, she went to bed early, but Reid really enjoyed it this year. He chose his favorites and hung them too close to the ground and liked the ones from when he was a baby.
The pics are from this morning, as I forgot to take pictures last night (again!!)

Tonght, Mark and I are watching Elf. It comes on in a few minutes so we need to get the boy to bed. Time turn turn on the kettle for hot cocoa!

Thanksgiving

Here are a few pictures from thanksgiving...they are of Reid and Mark flying the airplane after dinner. I didnt think to take any other pictures :)
It was SO funny watching Reid try to throw it. He would hold it steady and then chuck it right to the ground. I included one photo of him trying to catch it...you cant see the plane, just Reid's pose.

Dinner was with Mark's family. Very relaxing and yummy. We are so blessed with our family and friends and church. God's grace is so overwhelming to us, its hard to list a few things we're thankful for. We are looking foward to a new year as our family will be growing into FIVE!!!

Hope everyong had a great day and was reminded of God's kindnesss to them. Enjoy getting ready for Christmas!!!

Thursday Dinner

Vegetarian Chili.
A much loved dish around here. I was happy for a cold night to serve it.
I cooked brown rice in broth to go with it. We topped it with cheddar and sour cream. Reid ate TWO bowls...very good compared to his lack of appetite the past couple nights. Var loved it too. I only took a picture of Reid's dish because I was busy sewing at the table while they ate. Mark and I ate later.

try it on!

Grandma, this one is for you. Look at Reid wearing my old costume! If only I had the hat to go with it. Do you have it somewhere??
Also, Vara trying on her new sweater we found..she gets all spunky when I put it on her. She must really like it. Sorry about the hair in her face :)
Love you!
G

Wednesday's "dinner"

Okay, this is the strangest one I think we've had yet. It's all because Ive been craving this for days! And Mark is sweet to accept it as a meal, instead of an appetizer (which is what it's intended for). The kiddies just had leftover ziti, they dont mind!
Ta-da! Seven Layer Dip...no need for plates either.
Dinner is served!
Oh, dessert tonight was Hot Cocoa...yummmm! (sorry, no pic)

Tuesday's Dinner

I was just about to start tonights meal when I realized I havent posted last night's yet...

We had Baked Ziti(rotoni?? actually) and salad. I havent made this dish since our first year of marriage when I ruined it. I just threw everything into the pan and baked it, assuming all the pasta and broccoli would cook in the oven. Well, it didnt and it was awful!
This time turned out much better. :)

I sauted italian sausage with onions, peppers, zuchinii, and squash. I added a can of tomatos and then pasta sauce(NOT from scratch) Mix and bake .... voila!
Vara still likes salad, so she had some with her pasta.

Recent Projects

We love art in our house...in any form. Here are some of our most recent creations-

Last week at JoAnn's, Reid picked out an ornament to paint. Of course, Vara wanted one, too. So here they are painting away. Reid helped Vara by handing her a new color and putting the other color away in the cup. It was fun watching them make a mess, knowing we'll hopefully have these ornament for years.

Last is my christmas gifts to Reid and Vara. Im making them "Monster Pillows". Reids is stuffed and V's still has to be sewn together. Mark and I saw something like these for sale in Winchester for about $40 each!! We decided I could try it myself.

Monday Night Dinner

This is a little late, but oh well.
I wasn't up for cooking last night. The kids ate Annie's MacN cheese and broccoli. Mark and I had leftover Pumpkin Soup and cheesey cornbread--YUM! (if you are interested in the soup recipe, let me know and Ill post it)

I caught Vara eating like this..I think she was tired but she looks really bored.

Trick-or-treating Chicken Bone

This year, Mark fulfilled his dream of seeing Reid dressed as a skeleton. Vara was a puffy little chicken. We laughed so much looking at her. She was very bouncy and did lose a lot of feathers. She even tried saying "trick-or-treat", something like "dee-deet".
We walked around in Mark's parents' neighborhood. It was a fun hour.