Merry Christmas

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Little Drummer Boy, a guitar and 2 girls

At our Church Christmas party we had a talent show. It was fun to see talent I didn't know existed in our neighborhood. Everyone did a great job.

Mark played his Native American Flute but I didn't film it because the lights were low and he didn't show up. I wish I'd gone ahead and recorded it so you could hear it. I'll have to get him to play for me again and record it at home. I bought it for him last Christmas. He was able to play me Happy Birthday on it 4 days after he opened it. He plays it beautifully. He taught himself from the DVD and songbook that came with it.

Carly and Rachel worked very hard on their song. Mark worked with them for hours on the harmony parts. They tried several different versions. Rachel had a hard time because she has not had the choir experience that Carly has had. Mark really helped her to push her voice out stronger. It was really cool to hear them progress. They were pleased with their performance in the end.

You can hear Mason trying to get on my lap and "see" in the camera. You can hear little kids running around and playing but I hope, most of all, you'll be able to hear my girls singing.

I'm so proud of their hard work and their willingness to overcome their fears.

I am UNashamed

to admit for breakfast today I had a lovely cup of Stephen's mint truffle hot chocolate and a tasty gingerbread man.

YUM!

Merry Christmas!!

My wish is their command

On my last post I admitted I was having a little trouble with my eyeless angel. I love her to bits but thought maybe with two little eyes I might even love her more. Matthew, a.k.a. Mason's spycaptain, and his very covert wife Emily sent me an email tonight with several possible solutions. Again, I ask the question.....

what do you think?

The anxious angel. Can't you just hear her laughing nervously, wondering if her star is crooked?

The Tammy Faye angel.

Now she looks familiar..... Where have I seen her before?

This is more along the lines I was thinking of.... but now that I've reviewed my options.....
Maybe I like her just the way she is.

New

So I added 2 new ornaments to my tree this year that I love.

The first one I bought in Minnesota this summer at The Christmas store. It's from the "Snowbabies" line of ornaments. I think it's hard to see the detail in the photo but it's a little snowbaby sucking it's thumb and holding a blankie. The blankie looks like it might be part of the sculpted ornament but it's soft and cuddly. I fell in love with it as I have had 2 of my own fingersucking, blankie-loving babies.  Mason had just given his blankie away and given up the finger sucking habit along with it when he turned 5 in May.  I bought his 1 month later in June as I was feeling nostalgic about my baby growing up.

This angel was given to me by the stake primary presidency. They gave one to our whole presidency on our last sunday as a presidency. It wasn't that they knew we were going, they are just very, very nice like that and were giving all the primary presidencies a little Christmas gift. We were all released this last Sunday. The ornament was a perfect send-off.  I love stars.   I know she has wings momma but she's so pretty. I love her. I do think she needs eyes however. Just little dot eyes. I may just have to get out my sharpie if my feelings about it become any more compulsive....

We will also add another ornament on Christmas eve. We began a Christmas tradition a few years ago when I made this countdown nativity.  There are little holes where all the numbers are.  The star is on a peg and you move it down the pillar til you get to Christmas day.  We set this out on Dec. 1st and we have a palm-sized glow-in-the-dark star.  I begin by performing a secret act of service for someone and hiding the glow-in-the-dark star under their pillow.  The person who finds the star does a secret act of service for someone and hides the star under their pillow and so on.  After you have done the service you find a time when nobody is around and move the star down the pillar to the next day.  Yes, we have times when the star does not move and I have to remind everyone to look under their pillows and remind them we can not get to Christmas day without the service.  Sometimes the star changes hands 3-4 times in a day if we need to catch up and everyone is actively looking under their pillow throughout the day.  

On Christmas eve, besides the traditional reading of the Christmas story, we talk a little bit about the star and what it represents.  

Some of our thoughts:

The star proclaimed the birth of the King of Kings and was a sign that had been foretold.

There were probably many who did not notice the star or if they noticed did not understand what it meant.  

The wisemen were watching for it.  They knew it when they saw it.  They were prepared to follow it.  

There's a great article in the New era this month about the star that I'll probably incorporate.

We then unveil a new "Star ornament" on Christmas eve and place it on our tree.

This was our first one.  It is olive wood, made in Isreal, and has a tiny nativity carved in the center of the star.

#2

#3

#4?????

I can't decide between these two for this year.  You can help me decide by voting.  The top one has a bronze colored disc in the center.  on one side is a depiction of Mary and Joseph traveling on the donkey and on the other side you see the city of Bethlehem and a tiny wiseman on a camel at the bottom on his journey to see the babe. The words around the disc say "silent night, Holy night" on one side and "all is calm, al is bright" on the other.

What do you think?

Got snow?

We wanted to make a snow man! 

We found out this snow was NOT snow man snow.  IT wouldn't pack.

I assume this is what the skiers call "powder"?

But it tastes good!

And it works for Kindergartener vs.  wimpy Mommy  snowball fights.  They disintegrate the second they touch you.  Now that's what I'm talkin' about!

Why we didn't let Carly out of her room all day and how to eat for a week on 14 lbs of smoked turkey.....

Well, the $7.50 we spent on that after Thanksgiving bird was money well spent. We ate smoked turkey for a week!

Day one:  Steaming smoked turkey with baked potatoes and green beans

Day two: We made  Grandma Lowe rolls which took a few hours but was so worth it when we  used them to make turkey sandwiches for diner.

Day Three: We made "Cream soup".  Easy and delicious.

   3 chicken breasts: boiled and chopped.  (I usually use my stock of cooked, shredded chicken/turkey in the freezer.) Save broth from boiling chicken and add 4 cans broth.  (I just  mix up chicken bouillon/water to fill my pot.  I never measure it.)

1 box white/wild rice pilaf mix. Cook according to package directions. (I use rice a roni)

1 16 oz package frozen mixed veggies (preferable the one w/o the lima beans. uggh)

3 ribs thin sliced celery

1 onion, chopped fine.

garlic, optional. (not in original recipe but I like it in mine. I use a teaspoon or two of the bottled minced garlic

1 small container cream

1.  Sautee celery/onion in small amount butter or pam.

2. Add broth, meat, rice & garlic and simmer 20 minutes.  

3.  Add cream just before serving

Day 4: Chicken enchiladas salsa verde style

I just sauté 1-2 green peppers and 2 onions.  I add one small can diced green chilies and a lot of chopped, cooked turkey/chicken. (2-3 cups I'm guessing here) Stir together on md. to meld the flavors a bit and fry the meat a little.

I then roll the meat mixture w/a little cheese in corn tortillas that have been softened by spraying them with pam and heating in my toaster oven on low or on a skillet just til they are pliable.  I dont' like the dipping them in hot oil method.  Too much oil and too much popping oil on my tender skin!

I mix one large can of green enchilada sauce with one 12 oz can evap milk and pour over.  It usally is enough sauce to make one 13x9 pan and one smaller pan that must be around an 8/11 or something.  I do put a little sauce on the bottom of the pan before placing my rolled enchiladas in them.  Then pour the rest over the top.  Sprinkle with cheese.  Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 20-30 min.  If you like them saucier shorter time, if you like them crunchier go longer.

Day's 5-7: Leftover soup and enchiladas for lunches/afterschool snacks and nobody's cooking nights.  Carly/Rachel/Jacob had turkey sandwiches in their lunches mon-Thurs.  You remember Samantha does not like sandwiches.  "They just taste old"

And in answer to your question Amanda.....

We didn't REALLY keep Carly in her room all day.  It was just a joke for my family.  When Carly was a little girl, probably about 6 yrs old, we were in Wyoming for my Grandpa's funeral.  My whole family (my parents, my sisters, nephew, etc) was divided amongst a few hotel rooms.  Mark wasn't able to come with me because of work.  One night Jacob who was about a year old then wouldn't give it up and go to sleep.  I was sharing my room with my sister and my big girls.  I didn't think it right to keep them all awake so I took Jacob out to my van and sat with him in there with the motor idling so I could run the heater and listen to Harry Potter on tape in the stereo.   In the morning, as early as I thought people would be up, I hauled Jacob back up to the room.  Passing through the lobby, I observed their "continental breakfast" offering.  When I got back to the rooms I mentioned to the family who were awake that there was not much of a continental breakfast, that it looked like old doughnuts and coffee was the extent of it".  Carly placed her hands on her hips and stared me down.  

"MOM!"

"What Carly?"

"I don't think you should be talking like that!!!"

I was in no mood to be chastised and said very impatiently "Talking like what Carly!!!!???"

"Well when you talk like that it makes me think you're gonna smoke a coffee!!!!!"

I could not see the humor at that moment and said "Carly you don't smoke a coffee, you drink it.  You SMOKE a cigarette!"  

in a slightly smaller voice "oh"

She's never lived it down, however, as my family is quite fond of using it in conversations whenever it seems to apply.  She is a bit chagrined when we bring it up which happens to be quite OFTEN.  She was even more chagrined when she discovered that Auntie Emily who is married to my brother has introduced the phrase to her side of the family and they use it quite regularly as well.  

ahhh... out of the mouths of babes!  

Hi Amy, It's Jamie

Amy.. this is what I was talking about . We have the Hamilton Beach 18 qt roaster.

I know we did not pay $60. I think you'll find them closer to $30 around the holidays. You definitely need space to store it for most of the year but if you cook turkeys a lot it's worth it to have it to free up your oven. I have been so pleased with how the turkey's come out too. It's tender and moist. yum! We've also used it for ham.

It makes me think you're gonna smoke a turkey

After Thanksgiving I found some fresh turkeys on clearance at Smiths for 49 cents a lb. I picked up 2. We froze one and Mark decided to smoke one that weekend. We had roasted one and deepfried one for Thanksgiving so smoke was the only way to go this time around. It's an all day thing.
Mark is really, REALLY, really into injecting his birds. This all metal injector is the way to go. Our deep fried TG bird was injected with a cajun seasoning and the outside rubbed with a cajun dry rub. I was really annoyed he'd chosen to go with the cajun because he did a cajun bird a couple years ago and I hated it. I felt a bit affronted he wouldn't go with something I liked too, like a nice lemon-garlic. He said he was going with a different cajun flavor.... a cajun garlic rather than a hot cajun like last time. I was still mad and slammed a few cupboards to make my point. He pretty much ignored that.

We WERE having a 2nd turkey that I got to season any way I liked. We have one of those plug-in, sit-on-the-counter-top turkey roasters which I highly reccommend. Your turkey comes out tender and your oven is free for whatever else you need to cook that day. I used a dry seasoning rub I got from my friend Melissa years ago. I have used it on roast chickens before but never a TG bird. Mark injected my roasting bird with melted butter and we put onions, celery and a quartered orange in the cavity. I rubbed a little oil on the skin and then patted on my dry rub.

Savory Roasted Turkey
1 T Italian seasoning 1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp season salt 1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp dry mustard 2 bay leaves

The recipe indicates this is for a 12 lb turkey. I doubled it for my 20 lb bird and it was just fine.
I sprinkled 3-4 tsp of the seasoning inside the bird w/my doubled recipe.  For a single recipe, it calls for 2 tsp sprinkled inside the cavity.  You put the bay leaves inside the cavity with the onion/celery/orange.

You might think the seasonings would be too strong for the juices for making gravy but the drippings always make wonderful gravy. My gravy was the best ever this year. Yum. I'm starting to drool just thinking about it.

After our fabulous TG dinner when I was pulling all the meat off the carcases of our birds to refrigerate, I decided to try a bit of the cajun bird I'd been disdaining all day. Nobody was watching. I had made such a scene I didn't want him to SEE me try it. um... I liked it. yeah... The garlic cajun was yummy. I ate a little more. mmmm.  He came into the kitchen.  I swallowed discreetly. "It was good Honey and really different from the last one, I wish you would try it!" His kind concern did me in. I confessed, "oh... well, I just did actually. it's good......" Wisely, he simply smiled and said "oh, good, I'm glad you liked it".

We had some Martinelli's sparkling cider left over from our TG celebration so Mark decided to inject this smoking turkey with the cider and melted butter. He's all about wild experimentation.

You've got to soak your wood chips for a couple hours before you start. You don't want them to burn, you want them to SMOKE!

After appropriate soaking time, you start your charcoal. You lay your wood chips on top of this compartment thingy. (hey~ if you want a technically correct "how-to" on smoking you'll have to talk to Mark)

Then you put this middle part on......

Make sure it's nice and tight.....

I'm not sure what he's doing here... Is he pouring water on something?

Transferring the 14 lb bird......

Cover the smoker and wait about 8 hours....

Ahhhhhhhh.........

And that's how you smoke a turkey folks.
(We didn't let Carly out of her room all day)

incognito

Hold still Mom.  I need to take your picture.  

No, I can't go to bed tonight.  I am going spying.  I am meeting Uncle Matthew because we are a spyteam.  You can't go mom because it is really really dangerous.  

Don't worry.  It is not dangerous for me and Uncle Matthew because we are wearing our spy clothes and we are so brave.  

I guess if you mix enough plaids you become invisible.  That must be a spy trick I just don't quite understand.  I'm totally diggin the rambo headstrap.  Now  THAT'S brave.

Big Windy of the day

Mason: "Do you know what I do at night mom?

Me: "umm... sleep or play with your toys by your nightlight?"

Mason: "no.  I don't hardly ever do those things.  I dress up like this and go out and kill all the bad guys. That's what I do at night!"

More Wind:

Apparently, Mark is spending his extra time training for the Men's olympic Gymnastic team. Or as Mason put it so eloquently.... My dad does somersaults in tight pants for medals.

And we didn't even watch the olympics this summer! Where does he come up with these?  At least Mark has replaced being dead with something more exciting.

I know he told his primary teacher a couple more but I can't remember.  Andrea??? 

addendum:

About 5 min. after I first published this post we had this exchange...

He comes downstairs when he SUPPOSED to be in bed. He is wearing a medieval green velvet w/gold stripes head ring around his neck, one black high heeled boot,a black cape, his pj pants, his paper crown from yesterday's primary lesson, and holding his bow of course. 

Mark: "why are you wearing Samantha's boot?"

Mason: "It is my spy boot"

Mark: "get to bed"

(I follow him up to make sure....)

Me: "get those dressups off and get to bed"

Mason:"I can't, my spy captain said I have to go spying tonight"

Jacob: "maybe he said you could go later"

Mason: (ripping off dressups) "oh yeah! he did say I could go later"