Cookie Baking Weekend (Dec 16-18) - Christmas Party

Ok, I admit it, I took on too much.  I was exhausted but I did have a fun weekend.  I took a half day on Friday and started getting the house ready and the baking racks set up for two full days of baking.  Shea cleaned (and cleaned) the house and cleaned up the outside.  He even made pork ribs and beyond delish...pork shoulder but... Mom and Don and Rose all came over on Saturday and helped bake.  Suzy, Kendyl, Ethan, Jeff, Janine and their kiddos came over and all helped decorate cookies on Sunday afternoon.  I baked from 5a to 11p on Saturday.  Sunday, I baked from 5a to 5p and then the oven got shut down and there was a mad dash to HIDE cookie baking evidence for the party that started at 6.  Thank you to all that helped!  It wouldn't have been done without you. 

Sadly, there are no other cookie pictures as we didn't think to take a picture...Ooops.  And there were some incredibly pretty decorated ones from the kiddos.  Anyway, it was our first combined party since our wedding and it was a great turnout.  We ate Shea's pork with all the fixins, of course there was cookies everywhere and the white elephant was hillarious.  Here's a couple of the pics!

Suzy's Birthday December 12th - Transyberian Orchestra

For Suzy's birthday, Suz, Rose, me and Shea all went to Transyberian Orchestra.  It was awesome.  So weird that I've watched this show for more than 15 years... I must be getting old lol.  The show included fireworks, flamethrowers, people walking over our heads and two separate concerts a Christmas story and a rock concert...oh did I forget to mention the snow too.  Anyway if you've never been...go, its so worth it!  Check out how close we were...Rose has an in...She's a member of the club...now I am too!

Anyway after the show Shea and I rushed home to feed the puppies and then headed over to my office party, John and Judy Rice are awesome hostesses and their white elephant was hillarious.  We took home Missletoe socks and a Merry Texasmas plackard, too funny.  Wine, delecious food and friends!  An enjoyable dinner even though Shea and I ended up at the "kids table" in the kitchen...so what we got to eat first lol.

Here's Judy's recipies:

Chicken ala King and Corn Bread with Broccoli

Ingredients:

Two 6 oz. cans sliced mushrooms – reserving ½ cup of the liquid

1 cup diced green pepper

1 cup butter or margarine

1 cup flour

2 t salt

½ t pepper

2 cup half and half

2 ½ cup chicken broth

4 cups chopped chicken – boiled and deboned

2 jars (4 ozs.) chopped pimento

Cook mushrooms and green pepper in butter 5 minutes.  Stir in flour, salt and pepper and liquid into mushroom mixture.  Cook over low heat stirring mixture until it reaches a boil stage.  Continue stirring until thicken.  Add chopped chicken, pimento stirring slightly to mix.

Corn Bread

Ingredients:

1 box frozen chopped broccoli – thawed and drained

1 stick butter or margarine

1 t salt

6 oz cottage cheese

1 large onion – chopped fine

4 eggs beaten slightly

1 8 oz jiffy corn bread mix

Stir all above except muffin mix.  Add mixture.  Stir only until blended.  Bake 30 min in a 9 x 13 pan for 30 min at 400 degrees.  This is thick, if you prefer a thinner corn bread…use larger pan.

Parmesan Puffs

2 loves of white bread - cut with small biscuit cutter – no crusts

16 ounces cream cheese

2 T grated onion

1 cup mayonnaise

4 T chopped chives

½ t cayenne pepper

½ cup parmesan cheese

Spread mixture on top of round.  Freeze – bake frozen 400 for 8 minutes until bubbly and golden.  Serve immediately.

December 11th - Candy Day

Our Martha Steuart Candy Day

As always I imagine big and drag my friends into it.  After taking family pictures with Santa Clause, we hurried home so I could start the candy making process.  Before Rose, Lita and Lori arrived, I had made several barks and fudges.  Then we all made chocolate covered pretzels, hay stacks and the finale as it were…globs of red and clear sugar…I mean…candy canes…homemade candy canes.  My fingerprints grew back a couple of weeks later.

Here are some of the recipes:

Fudge

3 cups (18 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk

Dash salt

1/2 to 1 cups chopped nuts (optional)

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

LINE 8- or 9-inch square pan with foil, extending foil over edges of pan.

MELT chocolate chips with sweetened condensed milk and salt in heavy saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat. Stir in nuts and vanilla. Spread evenly into prepared pan.

CHILL 2 hours or until firm. Remove from pan by lifting edges of foil. Cut into squares.

MICROWAVE METHOD

COMBINE chocolate chips with sweetened condensed milk and salt in 1-quart glass measure. Cook on HIGH (100% power) 3 minutes or until chips are melted, stirring after 1 1/2 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients. Proceed as above.

VARIATIONS

CREAMY DARK CHOCOLATE FUDGE: MELT 2 cups miniature marshmallows with chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk. Proceed as above.

MILK CHOCOLATE FUDGE: OMIT 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips. Add 1 cup milk chocolate chips. Proceed as above.

CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER CHIP GLAZED FUDGE: FOLLOW above recipe using 3/4 cup peanut butter chips instead of nuts. For glaze, melt 1/2 cup peanut butter chips with 1/2 cup heavy cream. Stir until thick and smooth. Spread over chilled fudge

I made milk chocolate, dark chocolate walnut and peanut/candy corn (which was my fav)

Almond Bark Pretzels

1 pkg almond bark (flavor of choice)

1 bag pretzels (stick or twists)

In microwave or pan on stove, melt the almond bark (3 min), slowly, do no scorch or burn.  

With chopstick or fork, drop the twisted pretzel (fork for sticks), into the melted almond bark. Turn until covered, lift out of bark and place on waxed paper lined cookie sheet, leaving space between each. Let cool, then put into plastic bags or decorative containers.  To make festive for holidays, add a few drops of related holiday food coloring, and flavoring extracts to white bark.  We made snowmen using the long sticks

HAYSTACK COOKIES

12 oz. Pkg. Butterscotch chips

12 oz. Jar peanut butter

9 oz. Can chow mein noodles

Melt chips in a saucepan, add peanut butter and remove from heat. Stir well. Add chow mein noodles. Drop by spoonfuls onto waxed paper. Allow to cool thoroughly.

ALMOND BARK - PEPPERMINT CANDY

2 lbs. White almond bark

melted chocolate chips as a sedond layer (optional)

1 1/2 c. Crushed peppermint candy

Melt white almond bark on top of double boiler (never add water as it curdles the white almond bark). It takes about 10 minutes to melt thoroughly and will be very thick. Crush either peppermint candy canes or peppermint hard candy in blender until it is powder. Meanwhile, line a cookie sheet with tin foil. Mix hard crushed candy with melted white almond bark. Spread on lined cookie sheet. Let it dry and chop into pieces.

ALMOND BARK CLUSTERS

2 lb. Almond bark

2 c. Cap'n Crunch peanut butter cereal

2 c. Rice Krispies

2 c. Miniature marshmallows

2 c. Dry roasted peanuts

Soften almond bark in 200 degree oven (or nuk for 3 min). Stir together. Add cereal, marshmallows and peanuts. Mix well. Drop by teaspoon on waxed paper will harden as they cool. If mixture starts to harden, soften a few minutes in oven.

ALMOND BARK KRISPIE TREATS

1 (12 oz.) almond bark

1/3 c. Peanut butter

2 c. Miniature marshmallows

3 c. Rice Krispies

1/2 can peanuts, dry roasted or Spanish

Melt bark in microwave in a glass container 5 minutes at medium power. Add peanut butter; cook 1 minute more. Mix up good. Mix in large bowl marshmallows, Krispies, and peanuts.

Pour almond bark over dry ingredients and stir. Pour in greased 13 x 9 pan (can add Fruit Loops along with Krispies).

ALMOND BARK CRACKER COOKIES

1 box Ritz crackers

Peanut butter

Almond bark candy (white chocolate)

Melt bark in double boiler. Spread peanut butter between crackers (like sandwich). Dip in melted bark. Set on wax paper to cool and dry. Easiest to just use fingers to dip.)

WHITE CHOCOLATE ALMOND BARK MIX

1 (12 oz.) pkg. white chocolate chips

1 tbsp. Crisco

or 1 bag white choc chips and 1 block white bark

1 bag Cranberry-Walnut mix (Cranberries, Raisins, Walnuts, Almonds, Pumpkin Seed) from https://store.vendingnut.com/

Combine chocolate chips and Crisco in double boiler. Heat until melted. Remove from heat and stir in mix. Spread in waxed paper lined 13 x 9 inch pan. Chill 45 minutes. Break in bite size pieces.

ALMOND BARK CANDY

1 lb. chocolate

1 bag choc chips

1/2 c. honey roasted peanuts

Melt chocolate until smooth. Add peanuts. Pour onto wax paper - this will be a thin candy. Let cool then break into pieces.

Anyway for a first time candy making day...it was a lot of fun...my poor kitchen did take a beating in the Month of December though!

Visiting Fountain Place and Santa

We got up early on Saturday so the pups could meet with Santa and so we could get some family pics.  The kitties were excluded as they don't travel well.  Poor kitties.  Here's a link to my facebook pictures of the pups with Santa and a few pics of our Martha Stewuart Christmas Candy & Crafts.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2871809557232.152238.1319676789&type=1&l=2a3d1cfa1f

 

Thanksgiving and the Beginning of December

So its been a while since I wrote to you.  Things have been pretty busy with the new addition to our home.  Bailey, our new pup, has brought a little excitement, if not destruction, to us for the holidays and we’ve been enjoying it even when we’ve been arguing over who has to take her out at night when its cold outside.  Regardless, she is a super sweetie and hopefully, on Monday, I’ll be able to add Santa pictures of the puppies.

Thanksgiving

Shea and I hosted Thanksgiving this year and it was stressful.  But on the upside it was a joy to have family and friends at the house, use my china and eat left overs…yummmm. 

Chuck and Mom carving turkey

Shea bought me flowers and we got to use my china...even the gravy boat!

Lots of food, we had it on the table and on the counter.

Pies, pumpkin, pecan, pecan sweet potato, cherry, blueberry, chocolate, coconut & strawberry rubbard

If it weren’t for Mom and Don coming over the night before to help with the turkey and dressings, I’m not sure I would have gotten it all done.  I do have to say…it was funny to see Shea and me struggling with a 20+ pound turkey trying to corral it into the roasting pan.  Both of us were saying things like should we…and responding with I don’t know I’ve never done this before…anyway.  Although tired I did enjoy the day and Lisa Christensen’s wine addition was delish. 

Once everyone left, Shea and I lay on the couch watching TV while the puppies played and I finally got to look at Thursday’s ads.  Mom decided it wasn’t worth it to shop on Thursday so I headed out myself to Walmart…what a nightmare…The parking lot was full and so were the parking lots of all the stores around it…people were parking on the other side of the freeway and walking over…luckily I found a space on the side of Walmart (ever the optimist to even try) and since there were no carts…ended up making 3 trips in and out hand carrying items.  The first was toys for tots, the second was niece and nephew gifts and the third was for everyone else.  Boy did my arms hurt after lugging all that out to the car.  People were crazy and I think a little drunk.  I’ve decided if they do another Thanksgiving night opening that I won’t be part of it…So that was at 10p and by 11p, I was at Super Target in a line that wrapped ½ way around to store.  I played angry birds on my iphone for an hour while waiting.  By the time Target opened at 12a, the line was doubled…Luckily, they were only letting 50 in at a time so it wasn’t crazy like Walmart.  Got in and out fast and went to bed so Mom and I could start shopping at 6am.

Black Friday

Wow what a difference, we missed the 4am openings so were following the crowds…and there were no crowds.  Whats weird is that we got we were searching for.  Bestbuy, the parking lot was almost empty and Mom found all three items that she had wanted.  All of which were on sale.  We then went to Bass Pro Shop…when we walked in, there was a line to the entrance…we grabbed our donuts (thank you bass pro) and headed over to the item Mom wanted…both of us were in agreement if it wasn’t there we weren’t waiting in that line…but come to find out there was one left; it was the model opened for viewing…As Mom waited for the box, the guy came racing out to let us know he’d found 6 more … way cool and even better, by the time we walked up to the front there was no line.  Next was Bed Bath and Beyond…again store was nearly empty and there was no line.  Every store we went to the lines were 2 deep or less…we just kept getting good parking places and finding all of our sale items…WOW.  It was a really good Black Friday and we were done by noon.  That night, Shea and I went and saw the Muppets…Great movie. 

Saturday

Shea and I started putting up our trees (yes plural).  I’ll get pictures up soon.  But the house looks great.  That evening, we went over to Rose’s where I hope she continues to have her “Christmas Card Party” although Shea and I were the only ones who actually worked on our cards (thank you Suz for helping with the stamps.  Got most of them done while we watched Buddy the Elf, A Christmas Story and the Grinch…and we got to eat Rose’s yummy Chili.  It was great.

Sunday

Rose and I went to Casa Manana to watch Santa Clause…YUK, the music was horrible and it wasn’t like any story I’d heard of for how Santa became Santa.  Whatever.  Rose and I suffered through it and survived. We even agreed that we’ll try another one next year since we liked Rudolf so much last year.  After that I went over to Lita and Chuck’s as Shea was hanging with them, while the dogs had a play date.  Boy were the pups tired.  Poor Prince could barely move on Monday.  Always enjoy visiting with Chuck and Lita.  It was a great weekend!

First Weekend of December

Our first weekend in December was spent cleaning and decorating.  I’ve got more to do but as early as it is…we’re in pretty good shape…we even have decorations outside this year though I need to find a place for our plastic Santa…he’s a cutie and find the gooses’ outfits…Right now they’re naked cause I can’t find the Santa outfit … not sure what I did with it.  We also attended a Veteran Show that our dance teacher put on in Wylie…It was very small townish and there was a lot of sweet spirit.  My favorite part was the guys with the riffles where the leader actually walked up the rifles like it was a stairwell.  Too cool.  So most of the Christmas cards have been mailed, most of the decorations are up, most gifts are wrapped and have been mailed to out of town family.  I’ve even got my lighted village up this year.  I think Shea thinks I go over board…he’s right.

Bailey, the new addition to our family

Saterday, the plan was to clean up the house for Thanksgiving company.  Shea was going to clean the fish tanks and I was going to re-sort out the kitchen but first I wanted to go to the Rowlett house to gather up some more kitchen items that needed to be incorporated into our home...of course we never made it to the Rowlett house.  First we stopped at Firehouse Subs for lunch, then we stopped at the Petco to check out the puppies...Shea and I had discussed getting a second puppy and I had told him we really should wait until after the Christmas holiday since we had thought about going to Cinci...  Well since we're not going to Cinci until spring that issue was resolved so there was really no reason to hold back on the search.  Shea had mentioned seeing a full blood german shepard on Petfinder but when we called the pup had already found a home.  We went to the Rowlett Petsmart and checked out their adoptable doggies, we stopped at the Rowlett pound and found an adorable brown lab mix named Bravo with the possibility of adopting and then we went to the Sachse pound, which is were Shea found Prince.  Bailey (previously unnamed was one of the few quite dogs there).  I took an instant liking to her because of her pretty face (racoon markings lol). 

Prince

Prince and Bailey begging

Bailey with her new squeaky toy

Prince is just a little jealous but he is enjoying the extra treats

She's super sweet in temperment but she needs to be trained...  Specifically, she likes to get onto the couch and she jumps on people...and of course being one and having probably spent most of her life in someone's backyard she isn't potty trained.  Poor Shea is having to clean up mess #2 because I left her unattended after I left... We've agreed until she's potty trained that she can't be left alone outside her crate...  Shea had me practice with her for about a 1/2 hour when we arrived getting her used to her crate.  She now runs to the crate (as does Prince) because I give them a treat if they go in...  We've yet to introduce her fully to the cats as we've blocked of the house...that should be interesting.  As for Bailey's name.  I was looking in the Bs for girl names and it was one of the first ones I named.  Shea instintly took a liking to it and so did I.  So naming was easy.  Welcome to our family, Miss Bailey.

Prince (left) and Bailey (right) waiting for a treat

Yes its late but...things to do. etc. - Wedding Rehearsal and Dinner Picturebook

Hi all, there was another 50% coupon at shutterfly that had me workin late into the night to finish a photobook.  I still think there may be some more pictures of the wedding rehearsal and dinner but I don't have em!  Anyway, I still have fond memories of both even if the rehearsal did drag on a little.

Here's the Shea & Julie Wedding Rehearsal and Dinner photobook:

share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8EbMXDdu1bNnw

 

On unrelated news, Rose and I are going to see Antonio Banderez aka Puss in the Boots on Friday and on Saturday, Rose, Suzy and I are walking in the American Cancer Society's Breast Cancer walk at Ranger stadium...I of course will walk the entire way.  Rose and Suz like to run the last block or so.

 

Talk to ya soon.

 

Juls.