Gratitude

I have much to be thankful for this year. We've been prosperous in a time of economic disaster, we live in a beautiful home in a beautiful neighborhood, we have good friends and loving family, and we (mostly) have our health. But there is something I am more thankful for than anything else today: Adam.


Adam is my whole world, and despite the fact that I thank him multiple times a day for everything he does, it doesn't diminish the fact that he does so much to get me through every day. I can't go more than a couple of hours without having an almost irrisitable urge to talk to him about something (which I'm sure is often annoying to him, but he humors me), and he holds my hand and rescues me through all the most difficult things (breakfast, diaper changes, getting kids into the car--you know the really terrible trials I suffer).

He may not know how much I think of him, that I depend on him because I know how amazing and talented he is, and that his opinion means everything to me. And I'm pretty sure he doesn't know how sexy he is as he snuggles the baby, reads the kids a story, or lights up when he sees just the perfect toy/book/game/clothing article for one or the other of them while shopping. He is my rock, but also my best friend, and the only man I ever wanted to share everything with.

And for that, I am grateful.

Blah, blah, blah . . .

I really should be writing a gratitude list, or sharing some profound thought about Thanksgiving. But I'm not. Because I am just so tired. I've been on my feet all afternoon making food for tomorrow. Not that I'm complaining, don't get me wrong. I love to cook and eat and Thanksgiving is a giant excuse to cook and eat (maybe that's what I'm thankful for today, that I have a great excuse to try a bunch of new recipes). But I'm still too tired to think coherently. So, I'll post some pictures of what I've been making.

Oreo Triple Layer Pie

Banana Cream Pie

I've also made sausage, apple, and cranberry stuffing, two sweet potato casseroles, and hot dogs and scrambled eggs (for dinner--very gourmet, don't you think?). Pictures and recipes (and gratitude) to follow.

Die Trying

Today I was driving behind a businessman talking intently on his cell phone, probably about something very important. In lettering at the top of his rear window was the motto "Die Trying." I thought it was an interesting life motto, and not the worst out there.

It made me wonder if I had to boil my life into a short phrase what it would be. I'm not sure yet. I'll think about it.

What about you? Do you have a motto in life? What is it?

The Full Monte

Friday night Anne and Jeremiah and I went out for dinner at Copper Creek Pub & Grub. It was very busy, but the food was (mostly) really great. Our reason for going was Anne's craving for a Monte Cristo. I had never had or seen a Monte Cristo, so this was something I wasn't going to miss: turkey, ham, Swiss and American cheeses, battered and fried and served with powdered sugar and raspberry jam.

Anne said it tasted like "breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert in a sandwich," or "savory stuffed French toast." I tasted it, and I have to agree, it was pretty amazing--really delicious in a surprising way.

I had a turkey and avocado sandwich, that was absolutely perfect in every way.

And Jer ordered the special: fish and chips. Unfortunately, when he bit into his fish he was unpleasantly surprised to find salmon under the batter. A weird choice of fish for fish and chips, for sure, and not in a good way when you don't like salmon (like Jer).

It was a fun experience, and interesting to try somewhere (and something) out of the ordinary.

Start the Countdown . . . 5 DAYS TO GO!

One of my favorite holidays isn't a holiday at all (for most people): Black Friday.

No, I'm not crazy. I thought Adam was when he first went after we were married. Then he convinced me to go, and I got hooked. Let me set the scene for you.

We're in my mother-in-law's sitting room, furniture moved back, newspapers and sprawling family spread wall-to-wall Thanksgiving afternoon, everyone calling out items to add to the list. After finding everything we need, we figure out who is going to what store, who will be watching which children, and go home to set our alarms. There is usually a bit of subterfuge going on, since so many of the items are gifts for the shoppers, so it takes quite a bit of organizing to get it all figured out without giving away any potential gifts.

Adam usually wakes up (or stays up) until midnight to get the items online that will be the most difficult to get (it often requires multiple browsers open, with shopping carts already full and ready to click "checkout"), but the rest of us sleep in until about 4 am. Then we call the sleepyheads who miss their alarms and drive around to pick them up and drop each other off at our respective stores.

Finally, we arrive at stores to wait in line and shiver under our warm coats, gloves and chat amiably with the strangers in line all around us. We swap Black Friday lists and war stories, plan our routes to the prospective items and where we'll meet once we find them and then--WAIT! THE DOORS ARE OPEN! Time to run!

About 15 minutes later the items are paid for and we set off for our second-string items and/or choose a store in which to browse the leftovers. By about 7:00 am, the shopping is done and we meet the remainder of the family shoppers for breakfast to gloat or bemoan over the items we found or not, and laugh about all the crazy people who were racing to fill their carts with 12 Barbies, 10 food processors, and 20 RC cars.

So, have I convinced you? If so, here's a great site to get you started: Black Friday Ads. And either way, Black Friday is coming in

5 more days!

See you there! (And please don't laugh at me if I'm still in my pajamas. I promise not to laugh at you. Or even what's in your cart. Unless you have more than 10 of something.)

What you can do with some fabric, an old foam mattress and a funnel . . .

. . . and some old pressed leaves, dollar store frames, and a screamin' deal at Kohl's . . .

And this was what it was all for:

This is what I've been doing for the last couple of days: getting ready for Baby Curry. Anne and I have had so much fun decorating the nursery! We had the shower today, so there is very little left to do to prepare for him to come, so we are urging him to hurry on his way here!

(Stuff I've Forgotten to Blog About - Day 5) Ode to Crescent Rolls

One of the things I discovered a couple of years ago was crescent rolls. Once again, I may be late to the party, but do you know how great they are?! There are so many things you can do with them. We actually usually buy the WalMart brand reduced fat rolls, so they aren't quite as expensive or unhealthy. (As much as I love them, I do recognize that they aren't the most healthful of foods, so I try not to use them too often. But they are dang convenient.)

Although I do often make them as directed on the package, as plain old crescent rolls, more often I use them in a recipe. Here are some of my favorite ones:

Cheese Rolls
Thanks to an old friend, Marina Johnson, this is our favorite way to have crescent rolls: I slice cheddar or Colby jack thinly, and roll up inside the crescent rolls, pinching to seal in the cheese as it melts. Cook as directed on the package. When we're having pasta and I've forgotten the garlic bread, I'll sometimes do a variation on this using mozzarella and sprinkling with garlic or Italian seasoning and Parmesan on top.

Pigs in a Blanket
1 pkg (8) hot dogs
1 pkg (8) crescent rolls
cheddar cheese

I make bite sized pigs by cutting the hot dogs and crescent rolls in half. I layer a small slice of cheddar and then a hot dog on top of a roll, and then roll up large end to point, like a regular crescent. I pinch the dough to keep in the cheese, but the dogs stick out on the ends. Bake at 375 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

Pizza Pinwheels
Another great appetizer or lunch, I found this recipe at Allrecipes, and used it at a party. The key to this is using a good pizza sauce. (I can't help you there, though, I make mine and it's a "dash of this, dash of that" type recipe. This time it needed a bit more dashes, 'cause it turned out a touch bland.)

Chicken Puffs
Everyone I know loves these--except our family. Well, as usual, I liked them, Adam was okay with them, but the kids vetoed them. So, one to try? As long as your kids aren't as picky as mine.

Breakfast Pizza
This recipe wins the award for most creative use of crescent rolls. This was soooo yummy. I've been trying to come up with an excuse to try it again. Maybe during the holidays.