GO STEELERS

IT IS TOUGH TO BE A STEELER FAN LIVING IN TEXAS. BUT TODAY THE BOYS ARE ROOTING HARD FOR THEIR TEAM. WE HOPE THEY CAN MAKE IT TO THE SUPER BOWL!

HEALTHY EATING FOR BUSY FAMILIES

For the new year I have pushed to eat healthier in this house. It is so easy to slowly move to convenience foods when the schedule gets tight but most of the time they are not very good for you. My husband and oldest son have a "sensitive palate" so it can be a challenge to find something healthy that they like. So over the next few weeks, I thought I would share with you some quickly made dinners that my family loves and are good for you too. In turn I challenge you to post some of your healthy family favorites too. I am always looking for new quick & healthy recipes to try for my persnickety bunch so please leave a comment if you post something yummy so I can try it out. So here we go for this week...

Garlic Lime Chicken
from nutritionist Leanne Ely "Saving Dinner"

1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon thyme
6 boneless skinless, chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons lime juice
1/2 cup chicken broth

In a small bowl, mix together the first seven ingredients. Sprinkle mixture on both sides of chicken breasts.
in a skillet heat butter and olive oil together over medium-high heat. Saute chicken until golden brown about 5 minutes on each side. Remove chicken and add lime juice and chicken broth to the pan, whisking up the browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Keep cooking until sauce has reduced sightly. Add chicken back to the pan to thoroughly coat and serve.

My boys love this with mashed potatoes and a green salad. I skip the potatoes and have quick seared fresh asparagus instead. Just cut the ends off of some fresh asparagus. Quickly sear it on a hot cast iron pan brushed with olive oil for 4-7 minutes depending on how crisp you like yours. Remove from the pan and squeeze a lemon wedge over and sprinkle with kosher salt. It taste so fresh and wonderful!

I can have this on the table in under 30 minutes with ease. It is gobbled up in less time than that I assure you!

SADIE AND ME

We went to see Marley and Me tonight. It was a very cute movie. It would have been even better had they excluded a few bouts of bad language. If you've ever loved a dog with all of the mess, stress and joy they bring, you'll love this movie. We came home to find Sadie...

NO, I DID NOT DO ANY FANCY MANIPULATION TO THE COLORS IN THIS PHOTO.

SADIE'S FEET ARE INDEED GREEN AFTER SHE CHEWED UP A MARKER IN ANDREW'S ROOM AND LICKED HER FEET. GOOD THING THEY ARE WASHABLE. I'M OFF TO GO GIVE SADIE A BATH. :-)

CATCH UP POSTING

OK, ONE LAST CHRISTMAS POST HERE. I HAVE BEEN VERY BEHIND GETTING MY PICTURES DOWNLOADED TO POST. I COULDN'T GET MUCH FURTHER INTO THE NEW YEAR BEFORE I SHARED OUR CHRISTMAS EVE & CHRISTMAS MORNING PICTURES. NOW IF I CAN GET ALL OF THE CHRISTMAS BOXES OUT OF THE LIVING ROOM! :-) MARK PLANS TO MOVE ALL OF THE CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS TO THE NEW HOUSE WORKSHOP INSTEAD OF LUGGING THEM UP THE ATTIC STAIRS JUST TO BRING THEM BACK DOWN WHEN WE MOVE LATER THIS YEAR.

NEXT WEEK I WILL HAVE SOME PICTURES OF THE HOUSE WITH THE SIDING COMPLETE...IT IS SO PRETTY! IT IS REALLY STARTING TO FEEL LIKE A HOME...ON THE OUTSIDE :-P

CONVERSATIONS WITH ANDREW

I love my time in the car with the boys. Now that they are both in school, we don't get as much of that time as we used to when they made the 30 minute commute with me to Ronda's house. Well, this week the boys have gone to Ronda's since they are out of school. Today it was just Andrew and me since Mason stayed to work on the house (notice I did not say yucky house...that will be another post soon!) with Mark. Andrew asked me to tell him about my sisters. There are a lot of them so he likes me to recount them and he smiles as he thinks of each one. I went through all 9 of my siblings and Andrew said, "Mom, is that a lot?" I told him it sure was and it is a lot more than most people have. He then said, "You're a lucky girl!" I smiled and said, "You're right, I am blessed to have so many brothers and sisters." He then said "I'm happy for what I have." referring to his own brother and remembering our constant reminding to them that they need to be grateful for what they have instead of always asking for more. This was one instance where I was happy he was grateful but touched that he wanted more. I just spent the holidays telling my sisters and in-laws that I felt like we were at a point where I was content with the size of our family and the fact that we had no more diaper bags & all the other paraphernalia to carry around. Now this momma is feeling the tug on her heart because another little heart is wanting more to love in his family...who knows, maybe he will be happy with another dog!

HAPPY 2009

IT'S HERE! NOW WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WITH THIS BRAND NEW YEAR? I'M GONNA DO SOME THINKING ABOUT THAT MYSELF...BUT FOR NOW, I'M OFF TO BED AFTER A LONG NIGHT OF WILD PARTYING WITH MY NEIGHBORS. A NIGHT OF BOARD GAMES AND WII, WE'RE CRAZY I TELL YA!

Christmas Part 2

One more post to document our Christmas celebration. We had a really fun time together doing the simple things. The Christmas Eve candlelight service at our church is always so special to me. It starts off our official celebration. After the service we come home and have an appetizer dinner and open presents. We all sip on a wonderful Christmas wassail as we open presents (I'll be sure to post the recipe next year). The boys are busting at the seams to tear into their first gift.

WOW, NANNY AND POPPY! A MP3 PLAYER IS JUST WHAT THIS BIG BOY WANTED. JUST LOOK AT THAT BIG SMILE.

THESE BOYS LOVE THEIR MUSIC!

MASON GAVE ANDREW THIS PIRATE HAT THAT CAME WITH AN EYE PATCH. HE PURCHASED THE "PIRATE" TEETH SEPARATELY...TOO FUNNY.

GO LONGHORNS!

SANTA COMES IN THE QUIET OF THE NIGHT!

WOW! MY SHAKE & GO CRASHERS ARE SO MUCH FUN. THERE IS NOTHING LIKE LOUD CARS CRASHING ON THE TRACK AT 5AM.

SANTA EVEN FILLED A STOCKING FOR SADIE! I THINK THAT EXCITED HIM MORE THAN HIS OWN GIFTS FROM SANTA.

SADIE ENJOYS HER SQUEAKER. THANKS SANTA!

WE HOPE YOU ALL HAD A CHRISTMAS THAT MADE YOU SMILE!

CHRISTMAS PART 1

Christmas was fast and furious this year. Oh but what a fun ride!
Of course the boys had lots of fun with their cousins from Colorado.

SAY CHEESE JOSH!

BROOKIE PLAYS WITH THE LITTLE PEOPLE NATIVITY

THE BOYS ARE PLAYING HARD

AUNT WAWEE MAKES A LITTLE MAGIC SNOW...

AND OUR SOUTHERN BOYS ARE MYSTIFIED

We kicked off Christmas week with a ride on the Polar Express. We had so much fun as you can see from the slide show below. The dancing chefs made everyone feel so welcome and part of the fun. All you could hear were giggles and laughing of children as they rang their bells and sang Christmas carols. It was a great way to dip your heart in Christmas cheer and get rid of any Bahumbug feelings you had.

We started a new tradition last year to make one of the boys presents something we do together as a family. Mark and I both agreed that the things we remember most from our childhoods are the thing we did, not what we had. Last year we went to see the Children's Theater production of the Nutcracker. The boys enjoyed that but I have to say that Mom probably enjoyed dressing everyone up for the theater more than they did. ;-) After our ride on the train we were in the car on our way home when Mark said, "Boys, mom did good this year, huh!" They yelled "yes" in unison and my heart jumped. They were completely in Awe of the massive steam engine and the sound of that train going down the track. I do wish my father could have come to enjoy that time with the boys. He worked for the Illinois Central Railroad for over 30 years and tells the boys all kinds of wonderful train stories from his years on the tracks. We may have to repeat this trip next year since it was such a hit. I have a feeling this is something the boys won't outgrow since dad had just as much fun as they did! If we go again, I'm wearing my pajamas too!

THE STOCKINGS WERE HUNG BY THE CHIMINEY WITH CARE

IN HOPES THAT ST. NICHOLAS SOON WOULD BE THERE.

The boys are all nestled snug in their beds as we wait for Santa to come. I don't know who is more excited every year, the boys or their parents!

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

Laura loaded up the kids and headed to Dallas to pick up Jake at Love Field. I armed her with a map to the airport and assured her she would miss the bulk of the afternoon traffic. I kissed the babies and my sis and they were on their way. She called about an hour later, the car engine light had come on and it was slipping out of gear. She called our friend who had fixed her car and he immediately got on the road to get pick up the car and his wife followed behind in her SUV to bring Laura and the kids back to my house. Laura was blown away at that kind of service. She said, "I don't think the Ford dealership would have taken care of us like that." Jake rented a car at the airport and headed for our house too. When everyone was back at my house, we had an all out laughfest. This story just was too incredible.

Friday afternoon the car was ready. As it turns out, a transmission line had come loose during the radiator repair. Just one of those strange things. I had lunch with Laura, Jake and the kids one last time before they headed home. They both commented on the kindness of our little community. It made me proud to be a part of this community. Everyone treats each other like neighbors and family and that doesn't go unnoticed by people accustomed to "city life". God has blessed us richly with the relationships we have built here.

You will all be glad to know that Laura and the family MADE IT HOME SATURDAY! I was so glad to see her home number on my caller ID. She said she almost cried when she saw her house. I told her she needed to rent Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. She would see it in a whole new light now.

I LOVED my time with my sister and her kids. The circumstances were INSANE but we were truly blessed. We even managed to get Jake here for one night. I know God's hand was on every minute of this crazy sequence of events. When we went to church last Sunday, I had chills because I know our pastor was speaking directly to us. He was saying how Joseph had plans for his marriage and future. He did not plan for his future wife to be pregnant (he wanted to leave her quietly) and to have to trek her across the country to a place where they had nowhere to stay except a BARN. Oh, and have the baby there! God kept telling Joseph to have faith in Him, He had a plan. Boy were we learning what that meant this past couple of weeks!

I know you are wondering where the train come into this story? Well, Mark and I are taking the boys to the East Texas Historic Train Depot to ride the Polar Express tonight! We will wear our pajamas, drink hot cocoa and head to the North Pole. They have been looking forward to this soooo much. It is the kickoff to our Christmas week.