Christmas Cookies

We did our annual Christmas Cooking baking over the weekend. The favorite is a Greek cookie "Koulourakia" that we call "Twisters". The whole crew got in on the cookie making festivities. Here are some fun pics of the revelry.

 Happy Holidays!!

The finished product...YUM!!!

Hanging with Andy the Elf

Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeee's Baaaaaaaaaack!

Andy the Elf has returned to our house this year and has had a great time hiding from us all and creating just a little bit of Elf-ly mischief!



Andy Toilet papered our Tree!



Andy left a present when A & a had been especially nice (Home Alone Blu-Ray!)

Andy made a new friend ;)

hanging out...literally!

Raiding the Candy Bowl!

Riding on Rudolph!

Thanksgiving week...

This Fall has really flown by. I still kinda feel like I am looking forward to Fall but hello!  IT'S THANKSGIVING WEEK!!! I feel like I just put up my Turkey day decorations and now I'll be taking them down in 4 days. Boo Hoo! I am really excited about how they turned out this year. With the amazing built-ins that Jeff made this summer I have so many more areas to create!

I thought I'd share a look at our Thanksgiving decor before it comes down to make room for Christmas stuff on Friday.

Ugly gold thrift store frame spraypainted a metallic brown framing scrapbook paper

Acorns found on the U campus
 (I refused to pay $12 for a bag of them at pottery barn!)

Scrap wood, Mod-Podge Scrapbook paper and design cut out on the cricut

Mr. Mauger

Last night I was talking with my Hubby about my Blog. The fact that I haven't put pictures of him on it came up. I thought I was protecting his privacy by not posting about him for all the world, but it turns out I was kinda hurting his feelings... He said "It's like you're a single mom or something." Not my intentions at all so without further ado here is my Hubby Jeff (or since my brother is named Jeff too sometimes called "Jeffie"). He is a Great Husband and a wonderful father and will no longer be excluded from my posts (be careful what you wish for honey :) )...

My Husband Jeff

At a UTES game (we are both Alumni)



With his little guy



in Wisconsin this last September

AWESOME and Easy Orange Chicken

It is a rare occasion in our house that I make Chinese food anymore. When pregnant with Big A I had a major aversion to all Chinese food. As soon as he was born, I started liking it again. He however hates Chinese food. I have tried many things, rice, noodles, fun apps it doesn't matter Big A hates it. This latest recipe was REALLY good! Simple to make and very flavorful. Big A said "Mommy, this is NOT very delicious!" but don't take his word for it (It IS yummy!)

Easy Slow Cooker Orange Chicken
Ingredients:


Ingredients



• 3-4 boneless chicken breasts, chopped into small chunks
• 1/3 cup flour
• olive oil
• 1/2 T salt
• 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
• 3 T ketchup
• 1/2 Can frozen orange juice concentrate thawed (6 oz.)  

• 4 T brown sugar



Put Flour and chicken in a ziplock bag,
seal and shake to coat chicken.



Add olive oil to skillet and brown chicken
(Don't worry about it being fully cooked
as it's going into the slow cooker)



Mix all remaining ingredients to create sauce





Put browned chicken into slowcooker,
cover with sauce and stir to coat.

Cover and cook 5-6 Hours on Low, 2-3 Hours on high



Serve with your favorite Asian sides...
rice, noodles (or both!)

Argggg Pirates hate Chinese food Momma!

FOUR!!! ...and we are not talking golf

I am not sure how this has happened. Alexander just turned 4. I specifically told him not to grow up so fast, yet here he is four already. Maybe if I give him a time out he'll stay 4.

He had a great birthday. We started the day out and about at his favorite haunts (McDonalds and Toys R Us). Then we had a little party, his favorite food (Mac & Cheese and Pizza!) with loads of Scooby decorations. A great day for a wonderful boy.



4 years old and CrAzY!!



Major House upgrade...$50 and 2 evenings!!!

We have been putting a LOT of time into upgrades on the house. Lots of little interior things (a few bigger remodels these last couple of years) and really putting in the hours in the backyard. In doing this we have neglected the front.

When we moved in our house had the white siding and grey tone bricks it still has today but the accent siding was a light teal blue (ick!). We re-painted it a deeper blue and were happy. A few years later I grew tired of the blue and "surprised" Jeff by repainting the accent siding a sage green, thankfully he liked it. The sage green was not rustoleum brand and faded pretty good over the next couple of years. That is where we were faded, dingy green.

We went to Home Depot and actually agreed on a new color choice (Oil rubbed bronze, metallic!) by rustoleum and got two quarts for the siding and 2 spray cans for the shutters. We also picked up some snazzy new brushed nickle house numbers to replace the tired old wood ones. That and a few brushes (the metallic paint totally ruins brushes) and we were out the door for less than $50.

 We spent 2 nights painting (could have done it in one but forgot we lose the light a little after 7:00 and started too late). The results....a totally modernized feel. A huge difference for very little money and a little elbow grease.

Before

Before

Before

After

After



After



Adventures at Gardner Village

Gardner Village here in Salt Lake does an AMAZING job of decorating for Halloween. You literally can't go a foot without seeing a pumpkin, witch or other Spooky sight. It is the perfect place to let the kids roam and the BEST location for some Halloween themed pictures...