Happy New Year!

Wishing everyone a healthy, happy and prosperous year!

Here’s to the bright New Year, and a fond farewell to the old; here’s to the things that are yet to come, and to the memories that we hold. ~ author unknown

Meet Otis

As promised, we got the boys a puppy. We adopted him from a local animal rescue. He is a Black/Tan Coonhound and Cur. He weighs 19 lbs. and is only 11 weeks old, he is gonna be a big boy. He is spoiled rotten already breaking the rules, by being allowed in the kitchen! How can you resist those puppy dog eyes!

The Real Deal!

After several days of sledding in the yard, we braved the frigid temperatures(real feel was 7*) and took the boys to a true sledding hill in a metro park close by. Jay decided he would be the videographer and I would go with the boys. After the steep slippery climb to the top, I looked down and wondered what I had gotten myself into. Oh well, here goes, I was there and had to be brave for the boys. WOW!! The hill was steep and just a bit icy so it was incredibly fast! I screamed the whole way down, Jay has that on video for the whole world to hear! Lane very quickly caught on and started down on his belly. Bryce on the other hand was alittle more apprehensive, he preferred going down together with me or sledding on the kiddy slope. What fun it was to sled again, but my rear was just a tad sore the next day or two. Brought back memories from my childhood in the Midwest.

There was 4 different runs

Lane at the bottom.

Lane speeding down the hill.

Bryce waiting his turn.....

...and down he comes!

COSi museum

Sunday held special memories too. We enjoyed special meeting that morning and a yummy lunch afterwards at Red Robin. Then on the the COSi museum in Columbus. Still dressed in our Sunday best we spent three hours trying to take it all in. The boys loved the hands on approach this museum encourages. It has been ranked the #1 Children's museum in the US by Parents Magazine! We'd love to go back again sometime.

Skeleton made of mesh....

A little big, but he wanted to get on.

The boys playing checkers outside the market in the olden days.

Trying out the old buggy.

Gasing up the VW bug.


Lane working tediously to line up the lasers.

The picture is somewhat dark, but that is Lane looking out the submarine window. SO exciting that they got to go down inside a real sub!

Bryce in the Sub window watching Lane operate the underwater rover....wow! So cool!

Playtime!

Homemade play dough and trains were a big hit for all the kids. Lane enjoyed helping Auntie Lisa make play dough and then coloring it too. Bryce and Grant enjoyed playing with the trains and Legos.

Lane's snail

Watching a video from the library.

Lane mixing colors into the play dough.

Brooke telling Uncle Jay all about the story and Grant listening in.

Trains, Trains and more Trains!


Everyone listening to the naptime story.

Grant hopped in bed with Bryce one morning.

Sledding

Friday morning all the boys were outside in the snow. Uncle Jeremy joined them adding to the fun!

Lane and Uncle Jeremy

Uncle Jeremy giving Lane and Bryce an extra push!

Grant all smiles with Lane hanging on in the back!

Uncle Jay and Brooke staying on the inside.....I was outside taking pictures and video freezing myself!

Wild Lights at the Zoo!

The first evening we arrived in Columbus we went to the Wild Lights at the Columbus Zoo! It was very cold, but we enjoyed the indoor exhibits and the LED lights throughout the park!! What an awesome zoo, sure wished we could have enjoyed even more of it and when the weather would be a tad warmer.

All bundled up....happy cousins and one sleeping!

Lane, Brooke, Grant (sleeping), and Bryce

Pretty lights

Conch shell

Chocolate chip starfish.

Uncle Jay, Grant and Bryce at the touch pool.

Shark in the Aquarium

Giant fruit bats....a little freaky!

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

Sugar High

Our second grade aide makes the best sugar cookies around! Then decorates them tediously. Every year she gives each of us second grade teachers a decorative plate of cookies! They don't last long at all! You can see why, they not only look good but they are even better!!

Wordless Wednesday

Dear Buster

You will be greatly missed by all four of us! You were a wonderful four-legged friend.

Christmas Goody

These are one of my favorite Christmas treats. But what makes them even better is that they are so easy!

All you need is:

Wheat Thins crackers

Creamy peanut butter

chocolate almond bark

Spread peanut butter on a wheat thin and then cover with another cracker. Melt chocolate and then dip crackers in. Drizzle with white chocolate. Let cool.

Pippin' Hot

..........Spelt bread out of the bread machine. Any takers??? I have tried several different recipes this week and even combined a few to find just the right taste. Plus learning my bread machine and which setting is best. I think I finally have it figured out! At least it seems that way because the loaf is quickly being consumed!

...and here with plenty of butter!

Recipe if you are interested:

Spelt Bread

1 1/4 cup warm water

2 tablespoons of vegetable oil

1 tsp. salt

3 Tbsp. honey

3 cups spelt flour

1 cup bread flour

2 1/2 teaspoons yeast

Add these ingredients in the order specified by your bread machine manual.

Borrowing from a Friend

I am borrowing this recipe from a great friend of mine and her other cooking blog. They sound both delicious and different. I know she won't mind me sharing her recipe and her blogs!

Hot Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 sticks Salted Butter- at Room Temperature
1 cup White Granulated Sugar
⅔ cups Packed Light Brown Sugar
2 whole Large Eggs
1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla
3-¼ cups All-purpose Flour
4 packages (1 Oz. Packets, NOT Sugar-free) Hot Chocolate Mix
1 teaspoon Salt
1-¼ teaspoon Baking Soda
1 cup Each White, Milk, And Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Cream butter and sugars until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined. In a separate bowl, combine flour, hot chocolate mix, salt and baking soda. Add to wet ingredients in 3 to 4 parts, making sure all is incorporated. Fold in chips. Chill the dough for an hour or so. Scoop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Let cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan.

Ravenous Appetite

After 6 days of minimal eating, only soft things, his appetite has returned with a vengeance! He is eating everything from cucumbers(in the picture), to queso dip and chips! So glad he is beginning to feel better. He had a virus that went south, as they say! He developed an ear infection Monday, bronchitis and ulcers in his throat, and a fever over 103* by Tuesday. Scary to say the least. All I could think about was our stay at Sutton's Children's Hospital in January for a very similar illness(pneumonia). Luckily we avoid that this time!

He is on the counter in this picture because he is watching bread rise in my bread machine. He is ready to eat some of it too!

Spiced Orange Pomander Balls

This year I helped the boys make pomander balls with oranges and cloves. I do this at school with my second graders during our Christmas Around the World unit. This tradition comes from Great Britian. They make the house smell so nice and they are pretty to look at too. If they lose their scent, you can put them in the sun for a few hours or in the oven for an hour at 110'. I remember my Mom doing this as a child with oranges and lemons, too.

Bryce's

Lane's