A Birthday Party!

Fourteen years ago I looked like this...

and on December 20th I got this beautiful baby!

Isn't she sweet!?  That little sweater was from when my mom was a little one.

She was sooooo chubby and cute!

I actually had a hard time finding pics of her alone because Madison was always with her!

kissing her or....

showing her things - or just loving on her!

So fourteen years later...Lane wanted to have a game themed party.  We are big on themed birthdays around here...we have had pizza parties, sushi parties, ballerina parties, snowman parties...you name it we have probably done it...the difference now is - the girlies are capable of doing so much of it themselves! 

Lane made her own invites!  They looked like the packets from the Clue game...fantastic job Lane!

We decorated with our cool old games...

and people enjoyed playing with them!

I made some necklaces for party favors.

And...we made our worst cake ever!!!!!!! Now...I am not much of a baker - it is too exact of a science for me!  Lane and Madison however are bakers..but this cake was just not our best effort.  We tried to make a Twister game on a piece of chocolate - well for those of you who might be decorating cakes...painting with food colouring on chocolate doesn't really work.  Here's the evidence...

Although it does look a bit better in candle light - don't we all!?

 You see usually the Auntie Jenny makes the birthday cakes, but our Bethanne came home from college with a 103 fever and they had to stay home...so we made an attempt - and it was fine.

The birthday party was held at Papa's house because he has a very cool basement where all the kiddos can hang out!

After dinner all together, the kiddos ventured downstairs for some movies and of course - games!  They must have had fun because I heard that when the electricity went off at 6am they were still awake!  Good thing  the power went out - they finally took it as a sign to get some sleep.

Looks like fun doesn't it?

I made the traditional crepes for breakfast (or lunch!) the next day...or as we call them 'French Pancakes'..but there are no pics because I was manning two crepe pans and cutting up fruit and setting the table and....well, you get the idea. 

So my baby is 14...she is taller than me...and she is wonderful!!!!  Happy Birthday my Lane - I love you!


xoxo    Elizabeth  (Mom)

Snowflakes and Christmas Cookies!

Monday was cooking with Stacy and Tatum day - we have missed a few of our cooking days and so it was great to be together and cookin' again!

First we made a cookie from my childhood - Nutmeg Logs.  My Nonnie used to make these for us and they just seem like Christmas to me.  Well, in my usual fashion I went to get the recipe the night before we were cooking...and...I'm sure you already know...I couldn't find it!  Mind you it is somewhere in the house in a safe spot - but out of my reach for now.  So - on to the World Wide Web - and lo and behold someone else had lost their grandmother's recipe and she had sent out a plea to anyone who had the recipe to post it for her.  That right there is only one of the wonderful things about the internet!  Thanks to the WWW we were able to make Nutmeg Logs!

Apparently the recipe is an old Pillsbury one and we found it on www.christmas-cookies.com

Nutmeg Logs

1 Cup butter - softened
2 tsp vanilla
2 tsp rum flavoring (or rum!)
3/4 Cup sugar
1 egg
3 Cups sifted (or not ) flour
1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg (you can use the unfresh kind also!)
1/4 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cream softened butter with the flavorings.  Beat in the sugar, then mix in the egg.  In a separate bowl, stir in the flour, nutmeg, and salt.  Mix with the butter/sugar mixture.  Shape the resulting dough into snakes about 1 inch in diameter, and cut the pieces to 3 inches in length (we cut them a bit smaller so there would be more cookies!).  Bake on a greased cookie sheet for 12-15 minutes.  Remove to a wire rack to cool.  Frost with rum frosting.  Make grooves in the frosting with a fork, and sprinkle ground nutmeg on the logs while the frosting is still moist.  ( the grooves are to make the cookies look like little logs - when we are lazy we don't make the grooves...and guess what the cookies still taste great!)

Rum Frosting

1/3 Cup butter - softened
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp rum flavoring (or rum)
2 Cups confectioner's sugar
2 tbsp milk

Cream together butter, vanilla, and rum.  Stir in sugar and milk and beat until creamy.

You can see in this pic we started doing the little fork grooves and then got lazy!

This next recipe we found on Bakerella  - you must check out her blog she does such fun things!

Nutter Butter Balls

1 pkg Nutter Butter cookies
1 8 oz pkg cream cheese
Chocolate Bark or Chocolate Chips

1.  Finely crush all but 5 of the cookies in a food processor or put them in a ziploc bag and crush.

2.  Combine with cream cheese.  Use the back of a large spoon to help mash the two together.

3.  Roll the mixture into 13 (or so) balls and place on a wax paper covered cookie sheet.

4.  Melt chocolate in microwave (or double boiler) and dip the balls into the chocolate.  Tap off extra chocolate and set aside on wax paper lined cookie sheet to dry.

5.  Once dry refrigerate and enjoy!

These are such an easy cookie and soooooo yummy - a bit like a Reese's cup.

At lunch time we made snowflakes...who knew it would be so hard!?

We had lots of fun laughing at our attempts - we got backwards snowflakes, falling apart snowflakes, square snowflakes...everything but real snowflakes.

But, we were determined...and with the help of Cathe Holden at Just Something I Made we finally got there!

We used these diagrams...

and made up some of our own...

So, thanks Stacy and Tatum for another fun cooking day - we are looking forward to coming to your house next week to make our biscotti tree!

Now go and make some Christmas cookies!  You know you want to eat them!

xoxo     Elizabeth

Christmas confession....

 They say that confession is good for the soul - and Cathe Holden of 'Just Something I Made' got me to thinking the last time I read her blog....(click above for her Christmas confession)

I love making memories with my girlies - what I realize as they get older is that their memories and my intention for their memories is not always in sync. 

My oldest, Madison, told me the other day that her earliest memories of decorating the tree were of Lane and her sitting on the couch watching me hang the ornaments!!!!!!!!

And you know, she is right, I am sad to say....but here is my side of this sordid tale.

I have for as long as I can remember collected glass ornaments - vintage and new.  You know the ones...very delicate with lots of colours.  Sometimes they are beautiful tear drop shapes, sometimes they are birds with a single soft feather for a tail.  I have some flamingos, a wheel barrow with flowers, a tiny birdhouse and many old beauties that I have found at antique stores, garage sales or thrift stores.  Now, in my defense these types of ornaments are easily broken...and it took me many years to gather enough to fill an entire tree...so..........when my girlies were little I always gave them each a little tree to put their own ornaments on (and I purchased a special new ornament for them each year as did their Grammy and their Auntie Jenny).  In my mind this was wonderful and exciting - their own trees to decorate with their own unique ornaments.

In their minds Mommy got to touch and hang all the pretty ornaments and she made sure that they touched none of them!  I think that the girlies have forgiven me my foolish ways - but just to make sure this Christmas the tree is all their ornaments!  There is not a one of Mom's forbidden ornaments to be found on the tree.

Madison and Lane - the tree is gorgeous and I hope this makes up for the trauma I caused you each Christmas as you drank eggnog, listened to Christmas music, and watched me trim the tree!

Can you see the photo in the background - that's my Nonnie and Honey (grandparents)!

What does your tree look like?  Do you have a favorite ornament that is hanging on it?

The offer still stands to come over for a Christmas drink!  See, the Santa mugs are ready to go!

xoxo    Elizabeth

Back from the Land of the Sweets!!!!!!!

Well, Nutcracker totally eclipsed everything else as usual, but well worth it and we are working our way back into real life!

 
These pics are from my friend Stacy as I was unable to get any good ones! Thank you Stacy!!!!!!!!

The show was fabulous - all the girls worked so hard and danced so well......they are an amazing group.

Here are the Arabian dancers - look at those gorgeous wings in the back...they came all the way from Egypt!

Speaking of Stacy...here is her daughter Tatum doing her Doll dance.

Lane did the Soldier dance this year.  Isn't that the cutest tutu!?

A fantastic job - her first solo!

This is the Flowers dance and the Rose Queen, our Chelsea!  She did such a beautiful job and look at that lift!  My girlies and I redid her costume this year .....

Here is a close up of it - the girlies helped me sew every one of those leaves and flowers on one by one!

Madison in Flowers.  She has been doing this dance for about 6 years and it is one of her favorites.

My girlies again...Lane played the maid this year - and this is Madison in Snow.  She has to be on pointe to be as tall as Lane! 

This is our Galaxy's first year in the Nutcracker - the Mouse year!  She was a perfect little mouse of course!

Now the Christmas Season has officially begun for us and we have some time to focus on decorating the house and making the presents!

So come on by for a Hot Toddy or some Eggnog in a Santa cup!!!!!  We'd love to see you.

xoxo     Elizabeth

Last Minute for Nutcracker!

It is almost time!!!!!!!!!

Everyone is very excited!!!!!!!!

The little Ginger Babies have practiced...

The candies are ready....

The cakes have been 'baked'...

and we have a new Christmas tree!  Hand painted by our own Wendy Bright!

The rifles have been prepared and are ready for battle...

the costumes have all been hung with care...

the Rat King has been crowned...

and the bunny has arrived!

Nutcracker is just around the corner - and we are in a frenzy of fun and chaos!

Rehearsals every night, sewing everyday, and good friends all around us!  What could be better!?

Think good thoughts for all our ballerinas come Friday and Saturday - and if you are in the area - come and see a wonderful Nutcracker!

xoxo    Elizabeth