One of the bigger items on the holiday bucket list (or, in this case, cookie jar) is to make goodies galore. Last year, we found a sweet (haha) spot of four recipes that are perfect to make for a few hours on a Saturday afternoon. Since it worked so well last year, we decided to try it again this year...but this time around, we had a few issues. :)
My mom made her fantastic sugar cookies from scratch, and the kids (mostly G) helped decorate them. They turned out great! Ava wasn't really interested in decorating cookies and instead wanted to help me make the fudge. I choose to believe that the fudge came out extra smooth and creamy due to Ava's excellent stirring skills when the butter and sugar were being heated up. Good job, kiddo!
I had a small cooling issue with the Christmas cookie bars and had to do another round of baking with the same pan, and then we used leftover M&Ms and icing to hold it all together, lol. Scott said they were amazing and he loved them, so maybe they taste good (but look a little strange...oh well!) The chocolate cookies with a candy cane kiss turned out great, except one rolled off of the baking sheet as I was putting it in the oven and plopped on the bottom of the oven. There was some fear it would bake there and turn the house smokey, so I used some master scooping skills and sent it flying across the kitchen where it landed on the floor and looked like a "pile of poop" according to the kids. So...only one casualty there, ha!
We all had a good and snowy and very cold week! We had a team potluck on Thursday (yum) and then our all-company holiday lunch (double yum) on Friday...prime rib and all sorts of great food to eat up. Thanks, Patterson! About halfway through eating, though, I got a call from G's school that he wasn't feeling well, so I left work and picked him up. We headed straight to the dr office and confirmed he does not have strep (there is a LOT of strep and flu going around his school, so it's best to be safe.) We think he just has a cold/cough, so he's going to have to tough it out (no fever!)
The kids have one more week of school, before they get TWO weeks off for winter break. Lucky them! I'll be off of work 12/23-1/1, so I'm super excited to have some downtime at home where we can sleep in and be a bit lazy. :) I mean, Christmas and New Years are in there, of course, but there will be a lot of days spent hanging around the house, I hope! I did promise G I would take him to a movie, so maybe we can sneak it in one of those days. Yay!
Scott has become the hero of the neighborhood with his new snow plow. He clears out driveways, and everyone is so thankful. With the plow it only takes a few minutes, but saves a ton of time for everyone so they don't have to shovel. I feel fortunate that I married someone who is so generous with his time.
This afternoon, Ava and I are heading to the Minnesota-themed Nutcracker performance at a theater in Burnsville. My parents are joining us, and then we're going out for an early dinner at Vivo's in Apple Valley. I'm looking forward to this traditional holiday activity (for me.) When I was growing up, we used to see The Nutcracker every year, and it became ingrained as a Christmas tradition for me. This should be a great way to end the weekend! (Scott and G will be hanging out, doing "guy stuff" at home...although, Scott said he might take G shopping for Christmas gifts, so that will be good bonding time for them.)
My mom made her fantastic sugar cookies from scratch, and the kids (mostly G) helped decorate them. They turned out great! Ava wasn't really interested in decorating cookies and instead wanted to help me make the fudge. I choose to believe that the fudge came out extra smooth and creamy due to Ava's excellent stirring skills when the butter and sugar were being heated up. Good job, kiddo!
I had a small cooling issue with the Christmas cookie bars and had to do another round of baking with the same pan, and then we used leftover M&Ms and icing to hold it all together, lol. Scott said they were amazing and he loved them, so maybe they taste good (but look a little strange...oh well!) The chocolate cookies with a candy cane kiss turned out great, except one rolled off of the baking sheet as I was putting it in the oven and plopped on the bottom of the oven. There was some fear it would bake there and turn the house smokey, so I used some master scooping skills and sent it flying across the kitchen where it landed on the floor and looked like a "pile of poop" according to the kids. So...only one casualty there, ha!
My aunt Steph gave the kids these cute Christmas plates...and they were used last night to serve up holiday treats for dessert.
We all had a good and snowy and very cold week! We had a team potluck on Thursday (yum) and then our all-company holiday lunch (double yum) on Friday...prime rib and all sorts of great food to eat up. Thanks, Patterson! About halfway through eating, though, I got a call from G's school that he wasn't feeling well, so I left work and picked him up. We headed straight to the dr office and confirmed he does not have strep (there is a LOT of strep and flu going around his school, so it's best to be safe.) We think he just has a cold/cough, so he's going to have to tough it out (no fever!)
The kids have one more week of school, before they get TWO weeks off for winter break. Lucky them! I'll be off of work 12/23-1/1, so I'm super excited to have some downtime at home where we can sleep in and be a bit lazy. :) I mean, Christmas and New Years are in there, of course, but there will be a lot of days spent hanging around the house, I hope! I did promise G I would take him to a movie, so maybe we can sneak it in one of those days. Yay!
Scott has become the hero of the neighborhood with his new snow plow. He clears out driveways, and everyone is so thankful. With the plow it only takes a few minutes, but saves a ton of time for everyone so they don't have to shovel. I feel fortunate that I married someone who is so generous with his time.
This afternoon, Ava and I are heading to the Minnesota-themed Nutcracker performance at a theater in Burnsville. My parents are joining us, and then we're going out for an early dinner at Vivo's in Apple Valley. I'm looking forward to this traditional holiday activity (for me.) When I was growing up, we used to see The Nutcracker every year, and it became ingrained as a Christmas tradition for me. This should be a great way to end the weekend! (Scott and G will be hanging out, doing "guy stuff" at home...although, Scott said he might take G shopping for Christmas gifts, so that will be good bonding time for them.)
Ava made this slightly creepy mask this past week...very odd...
George (the elf) is usually out in the open, but on Friday, he decided to hide in the flowers!
Happy chilly Sunday!
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