Big Moment for Little Miss

Up until December 7th, Natalie was dead set against getting her ears pierced.  Then we bought her some clip-on earrings and the possibility of ALL THOSE EARRINGS swayed her decision.  She made the decision that she wanted pierced ears.  But boy-oh-boy was there quite the scene at home after she made this decision.  LOTS of crying and carrying on, but she wasn't changing her mind.

 

The next day we were at the outlet mall, and discovered that there was a Claire's there.  She said she was ready, so we went in and made her earring choice selection.  Then reality set in, and the tears and worry resurfaced.  But she still didn't waver on her decision.  She pulled through like a champ, and I'm so proud of her she's been very diligent in cleaning and caring for them.  Plus she looks so stinkin' cute with her new sparkle!  P.S.  "Free piercing" with purchase of earrings = $50+!!! 

 

 

 

Santa's Surprise

We flew home from Las Vegas on Christmas day, picked up all the kids on the way home, and came home to a surprise from Santa! 
Great Wolf Lodge here we come! 

We also got several surprises from Pickles, who has severe separation anxiety, destroyed an entire box of Kleenex in Michael and my bedroom along with a basket and a pile of Mike's pants.  There was several various household items that he hoarded by his food dish, and just general disarray of the house.  All from a little orange cat.

Christmas Cookies

Of all the Christmas goodies to choose from, sugar cookies are my Achilles heel.  In fact, I make them for any holiday I can. 



Before I reunited with Michael, I didn't know that there were mixes for sugar cookies, I've always made them with the only recipe I've ever known, and on the only recipe card I've ever recognized written in my mothers handwriting. 

Last weekend, I made a triple (yes, triple!) batch of cookies.  I have another (triple) batch of dough chilling in the refrigerator this morning because we made short work of all those cookies! 

I don't have a magical go-to icing recipe, I'm always searching for the icing recipe that hardens, yet tastes good; and I have always wanted to have perfectly piped and color-saturated cookies.  But I'll settle for delicious over beautiful every time. 

 

Last night, I decided I wanted to make some chocolate-walnut fudge.  I meticulously followed Grandma Alice's handwritten recipe for "Fail-Safe Fudge" in her beautiful cursive handwriting.  Mike and I snuck 3 pieces each after the kids went to bed last night. 

 

I love to cook and bake.  It's good therapy for me (much like blogging is), which have both been in increasingly less-frequency now that I'm working full time.  I love my job, but I'm also very conscious of what has been sacrificed for it.  Christmastime is a good time to remember the joys of blogging (we have so much fun stuff going on in our lives!) as well as baking for family and friends, and remembering those who instilled the joy of baking in me. 

 

 

"Myrita Henry's Sugar Cookies"  I'm not positive who Myrita was, I believe she was my Grandmothers neighbor in Bakersfield... I'll have to ask my mom to remind me.

 

 

Makenzie's cookie decorating skills are the finest in the family.  Seriously.



Everyone has their own work-stations... decorating the cookies is a family affair, nobody can ice that many cookies alone!  And the payoff is that everyone gets to choose which cookie they're going to eat first!