First: the other day I was looking at my girls and I was once again blown away at how beautiful their eyes are. I am sorry the pics are a little fuzzy, but I just had to capture the moment so I can remember their shinning eyes forever.
Next: have I mentioned Lily has started gymnastics. I might would say she is a natural. She loves it and does very well. I had started her in a mom and tot class but no one else ever showed up so they moved her to the preschool class. Her body isn't quite ready to do everything the 3 and 4 yr olds are doing but I am amazed at how well she is keeping up. (My father expects to see Lily in the Olympics someday)
Here is one of those cute random moments that I love. Erin has a plush flower and decided to sleep with it one night. When I peeked at her before going to bed myself I laughed and thought Erin is growing a garden in her bed.
One of the biggest events of this Nov. (if not the biggest) was James' 30th birthday. I know I can't believe I am married to such an old man :). Anyways I decided it ought to be a bit more special than the average b-day so here's what we did. First James received 30 presents for his 30th birthday. (Granted a package of socks was separated to make 3 presents and a box of popcorn was separated to make 8 presents etc. it was still pretty exciting.)
Present #30 was pretty cool though. It was a childhood dream come true, a train to wrap around the Christmas tree.
I also made James his favorite dinner. Navajo Tacos. 
And instead of a birthday cake I made sugar cookies then decorated them to look like his favorite game "Settlers of Catan". If ever you are in the mood to play the game give James a call he would love it!
The day before Thanksgiving we had some old friends visit from out of town. So we gathered a bunch of us together and had a game night. It was so much fun and full of great laughs. I took a few pics of the games but I am not happy with any of those pics so you will have to settle for some of the snacks we had. First James loves cheese, so he put together this way yummy cheese board.
And I love chocolate so I made these Chocolate Almond Cheesecake bites. Just the thought of them makes me drool (I am serious, I have never drooled over a food until I met these little guys, mmmmmmmm)
And last but most certainly not least, THANKSGIVING!!! Okay I am pregnant so my life is revolved around food at the moment (if you haven't already noticed). So I am afraid you are only getting pics of food for this portions of the post. This was my first year hosting and cooking Thanksgiving dinner. James' parents and brother came so it was a small but good group. I am very pleased with the way it turned out. So step by step here is what I made: Cranberry slush drink (a tradition at my families thanksgiving dinner) It is super easy and yummy, just freeze a cranberry juice, slice it up and add sprite. Yummy
I made this little appetizer (another Baird tradition) to snack on. A spinach artichoke cheese dip. Again it was yummy.
This is my favorite way to eat Broccoli. I swear I ate it at my Grandma Bairds once and that's is where I discovered it, but no one else I talk to seems to remember it there, so who knows. Anyway I just steam broccoli add some ranch dressing, peanuts and raisins. I love it.
This is my mothers famous dish and a Thanksgiving staple to me. Sweet Potatoe Pie. While it has enough butter, brown sugar and cream in it to be a dessert, we eat is a side dish.
And here is my favorite food. Mashed potatoes, just the thought of them makes me melt. Here is what I add to my mashed potatoes to make them so delicious: butter, buttermilk, ranch mix, chicken bullion, garlic, salt(not to much the bullion adds near enough) and pepper. I also add some regular milk if it needs a little more moisture.
Here is the first turkey I have ever made. It was so tender that it fell apart as we moved it from pan to platter. It was super easy. I just stuck a whole onion in the cavity for flavor, basted it with olive oil and put it in a roasting bag. Easy and delicious.
Now for pie. Yes glorious pie. James' fav and one of my favs is Coconut Cream Pie so it naturally made its way onto the menu. And yes is was as good as it looks.
I also made this Carmel Pecan Pumpkin pie. Oh I was excited to try this, but then I was a little put out. I think the nutmeg I used was to old and gave it a bit funky of a flavor. Of coarse after I found this recipe that adds cheese cake to the mix and sounds even yummier, so next time I try this I am using that recipe.
When all was said and done this is what the table looked like. Well I need to go eat something now. I am hungry again.
Hope you all had as great of a Nov. as we did. I am now getting super excited for Christmas!
I made this little appetizer (another Baird tradition) to snack on. A spinach artichoke cheese dip. Again it was yummy.This is my favorite way to eat Broccoli. I swear I ate it at my Grandma Bairds once and that's is where I discovered it, but no one else I talk to seems to remember it there, so who knows. Anyway I just steam broccoli add some ranch dressing, peanuts and raisins. I love it.This is my mothers famous dish and a Thanksgiving staple to me. Sweet Potatoe Pie. While it has enough butter, brown sugar and cream in it to be a dessert, we eat is a side dish.And here is my favorite food. Mashed potatoes, just the thought of them makes me melt. Here is what I add to my mashed potatoes to make them so delicious: butter, buttermilk, ranch mix, chicken bullion, garlic, salt(not to much the bullion adds near enough) and pepper. I also add some regular milk if it needs a little more moisture.Here is the first turkey I have ever made. It was so tender that it fell apart as we moved it from pan to platter. It was super easy. I just stuck a whole onion in the cavity for flavor, basted it with olive oil and put it in a roasting bag. Easy and delicious.Now for pie. Yes glorious pie. James' fav and one of my favs is Coconut Cream Pie so it naturally made its way onto the menu. And yes is was as good as it looks.I also made this Carmel Pecan Pumpkin pie. Oh I was excited to try this, but then I was a little put out. I think the nutmeg I used was to old and gave it a bit funky of a flavor. Of coarse after I found this recipe that adds cheese cake to the mix and sounds even yummier, so next time I try this I am using that recipe.When all was said and done this is what the table looked like. Well I need to go eat something now. I am hungry again.Hope you all had as great of a Nov. as we did. I am now getting super excited for Christmas!
3 comments:
You forgot to mention that you would need something to eat again after viewing the pictures of a sexy turkey! Looks like you were busy and had loads of fun!
Good times for sure, Liz. And a belated happy birthday to James!
Wow Liz! It looks like you were an amazing Thanksgiving hostess! I wanted to make that cranberry slush drink too, but we didn't. All your food and goodies look delicious. Looks like you sure made James birthday special and fun. My mom did the same gift idea for my Dad's 40th b-day; I remember putting a sock in a gift bag and things like that too! How fun!
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