My Little Life

And a horrible mother. Confession: I hate Halloween. At least this year I do.  I don't recall quite the loathing  of Halloween that I'm experiencing this year, compared to years past. I'm not sure that I've ever really enjoyed  Halloween...maybe when I had one wee little child to spend all day dressing up and getting all cute and excited to reach sugar highs of epic proportions, but I think, as I've added more children to my "need to get ready" list and more costumes to dream up/buy/plan, that Halloween has become, well, a burden. Somewhere along the way, it lost it's luster. It went from being a sparkly, glittery party day to a cobwebby, dark, musty smelling event that I trudge through and put up with for my kids. Know how many Halloween decorations I have out? 0 Yes, big, fat Z-E-R-O. Sure, life has been a special kind of crazy these last few months, so I s'pose I could blame it on that, too. In any event, I just settled 4 tired, ...

This? It's one of my favorites! It's also a recipe that I've been able to replicate with success for my family...which leaves me feeling totally accomplished and a little bit hopeful that someday I might be half as good a cook as my Gram! Beef Stew...the very definition of "comfort food". First off...as with anything delicious, start with a hearty glob of Crisco...add in a glob of butter, which I didn't take a picture of but TRUST ME, we did it. When your oil/butter is nice and hot, toss in a single layer of beef and brown. Make sure not to crowd the pot, as Gram says, "You want to BROWN your beef, not cook it."...listen to her. She knows what she's doin'. With each "batch" of meat you put in the pot to brown, put a good layer of salt... And pepper onto  the raw meat. Just sprinkle on enough salt and pepper so that each piece of meat is covered...nothing precise about it! We'll teach you to be a "dump ...

Big fat smiley face. What a week it's been! The Mr.'s brother and his family arrived on Wednesday, I worked Thursday and Friday and welcomed a new nephew, Saturday we tested sound, met for final 50th Anniversary plans and had a huge family get together and then yesterday was the big day. Up at 7:30, everyone primped and prettied, to church for photos, mass, straight to ballroom to get set up for guest photos and then we could play! We did this: For every guest that came in, then had them sign the guest book which was a photo album with space for writing next to each photo! So the guests photo will go next to their signature! Then, my talented sister-in-law taught the grandchildren a cute little hula...my in-laws were married in Hawaii while my father-in-law was stationed there for the Navy. Check it out...at the 0:27 mark, it's rather cute! You're smiling now, too, aren't you? :)

This, is my sweet newborn nephew who has been terribly and inappropriately nicknamed "Frankenstein" by my baby brother because he was due on Halloween. We're a nickname-y family...hopefully this one won't stick! Baby C. There's something that I love so much about baby frowns.  He is the sweetest little guy and I am already planning on when I can snuggle him again...

Oh my friends...I get to snuggle my sweet little nephew again today. I'm sorry, you might be bombarded with nephew photos, forgive me. I'm pretty sure that I've discovered a new profession...Birth Story Photography. Combining my two loves into one career? Ohmydearheavens...where do I sign? Okay...so, I'm currently enjoying a tiny slice of piece and quiet while I write this...hubs has 4 younger kids visiting with cousins, big boy at my parents watching various sporting events...so for a couple of hours, I'm going to listen to...nothing. Except for the clackity clack of my keyboard as I type. And edit photos. *swoon* To the linky! Welcome to Five Question Friday!! You've come to the right place if you want a fun, easy post or if you've suddenly discovered your muses are totally captivated by their new nephew and can't be disturbed from snuggling. Rules for 5QF:  Copy and paste the following questions to your blog post, answer them, then watch...

Guys, I'm a new aunt!! Squeee!!!!!! My brother and sister-in-law had the MOST adorable little boy today (more on that later) and while I have oodles of nieces and nephews on the Mr.'s side, there's just... something  about him being a blood relative that's different! I love him. And, he's super cute. Not that I'm biased or anything. Anyway, I s'pose you're all waiting for the sneak peek so I should quit gushing about the baby, right?! Okay, here we go! Welcome to Five Question Friday!! You've come to the right place if you want a fun, easy post or if you've suddenly discovered your muses are completely captivated by their new nephew and prefer that you don't interrupt their snuggling time. Rules for 5QF:  Copy and paste the following questions to your blog post, answer them, then watch for the linky post to appear Friday morning and LINK UP! Oh, and remember (pay close attention...this is the important one)...HAVE FUN! Questio...

I was looking forward to morning. Morning could not get here soon enough. That's saying a lot for this Night Owl. I HATE mornings...but last night? I couldn't WAIT for morning to come. Wanna know why? Lemme show you... Oh, sweet Mother of Jesus...DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS?! Last Christmas, this was a new creamer flavor that I FELL IN LOVE with. Like, to the point that when it was nearing the end of the season and stores were running out, I'd buy out a stores supply and freeze it. It lasted me until...well...I don't remember but it wasn't long enough. And then this year's seasonal flavors started arriving and I'd look...but no Warm Cinnamon Sugar Cookie...and I'd keep looking and looking and looking everytime I went to a store and then...AND THEN?! Last night Pal and I ran to WalMart on a late night shopping trip and VOILA! There it was! Calling my name. Sitting so nicely on the shelf, just waiting for me. I r...

Raise your hand if you love breakfast food!! *Raises hand* One of the reasons I think I love breakfast food is because my husband is the "breakfast dude" around our house...I can NOT make eggs like his. No matter how hard I try, I just can't. But what that translates to, is that he cooks! Yay! Gram and I decided to do a "make ahead" breakfast dish...perfect for baptism day, holiday mornings, or when you're having overnight guests! Who doesn't love make ahead meals?! First up, cube some bread and place in a 9x13 baking dish: Now, dice up your peppers! We did all 4 colors for a little pizazz, but truth be told, you couldn't even see the yellow and orange...although they taste great! Sprinkle them over the bread. And, dice up some onion...then sprinkle that over the peppers/bread. Breakfast meat next...we used Johnsonville Brown Sugar and Honey sausage, but I think this would be PHENOMENAL with some Jimmy Dean HOT ground brea...

Viruses are virtually contagious. I'm quite convinced that when you sneeze on your computer, your germs are wireless transmitted through the air to far reaching areas of the world. Just pay attention, you'll see...someone tweets about a fever and WHAMMO, now your kiddo has it. Someone blogs about being run down with a cold and SHAZAM, you're laid up in bed with a box of Kleenex and a bag of Luden's. Oops, sorry about that sneeze I just sent to you over the Interwebs. You, um, might wanna wash your hands now. Or take some Vitamin C. Stock up on Kleenex. And Luden's. Maybe even get some ingredients for chicken noodle soup. You're gonna need it. Being that you just read this post and all. Consider yourself officially inoculated. Yours truly,