Christmas Tour

Did you know there are 361 days until Christmas!  That thought either makes you giddy or makes you groan.  I love planning for Christmas.  I bought a few things for next Christmas already when my mom and I went craft/birthday gift/grocery shopping yesterday.  I thought I'd post pictures of the house for my sake and yours.  I was rather fond of my decor placements this year (most of them, anyway) and I will most likely forget what decorations went where so this will help me remember!  (I have collected so many things over the years, tweaked, refurbished, etc..) I also thought ya'll would like some inspiration for next year...you know, in case you're in the mood to do some decor shopping for next year!  *wink*

View from the road.

The side porch.  See the sled?  That was mine when I was a child.  There's a larger one on the front porch that was my brothers.

This sled wreath will welcome you in!

Come on in!

I made this stacking/collapsible snowman years ago.

This little tree in the living room is decorated with tiny quilt square ornaments.

I love these skater/snowman guys -- I've had them for 8 years now!

Decor above the couch.

My little school desk all spruced (ha!) up for Christmas.

Welcome to the kitchen!

This room has a theme.  Gingerbread and yummy treats!

 

My hubby installed power cords to the tops of my cupboards!

I like to decorate the kitchen with "kitcheny" things!  Can you see the cookie cutters?

This tree is decorated with little cutting boards, rolling pins and gingerbread men.

Jars of gumdrops and peppermint sticks!  Yum!

Somehow the dining room became the "Nativity Room"...there are about 4 sets.

A dear sweet older friend gave this set to me years ago.  So special!

 

I switched the Advent Garland to the dining room windows. (They were a little bare.)

The office hutch gets a little snow village. 

  See the little church in the middle?  I bought that our first Christmas 16 years ago!  I've been adding to it, but it's difficult.  These are a certain brand that was sold in JoAnn's fabrics years ago.  I think it's Dickens somethingerother.  It's not Dept. 56, but something else.  I've found a few on eBay.  I saw some at a garage sale this summer but she wanted too much for them (in my opinion).  If you want to know I can go down in the basement and look in the storage tote, but right now I'm feeling a bit lazy. *smile*

The main Christmas tree lives in the office.

We take this picture every year!

This is a tree in the kiddos' play room.

The bathroom gets a little sprucing up, too!

Thanks for touring our home!  I'm going back to Christmas break so I'll write more again in the new year!

Chicken Carbonara

This last week was such a whirlwind!  I hope ya'll had a nice Christmas!  We had a crazy week!  The week before we had plumbing (a-hem) issues and had to have our septic tank pumped.  Then last week Sunday night our furnace bit the dust so it was replaced on Thursday.  Eek!  So glad for financing. We plan to get it paid off in the next year or two (can you say "tax returns"?).  We kept warm with the propane fireplace and heater in the play room and also a few space heaters during the day.  At night we had a few space heaters that the company had loaned us (they were very safe and up on dressers) to keep us warm.  We did manage to finish our Christmas shopping and enjoy our time with family and friends.

So I know I had planned on taking the week off, but I just had to share with you a recipe!

I had planned on fixing our usual Christmas dinner (I wrote about it HERE), but then decided to switch it up a bit.  We had a family pow-wow to see what everyone wanted.  My goal was to spend less time in the kitchen and more time enjoying the day.  So we came up with and Italian meal.  Hubby grilled chicken Christmas Eve day in preparation.  My mom is on a gluten-free diet so she had corn noodles and grilled chicken with pasta sauce.  The semi-picky eaters had bow tie pasta with sauce and meatballs (I used canned sauce and frozen meatballs).  Then I whipped up some Chicken Carbonara!  Hubby loves that dish from the Olive Garden so I searched for a copy cat recipe.  One of the blog readers shared a link to Olive Garden's website where they actually share the recipe there!  Can you believe that?!  I tweaked it a bit (imagine that?!) and it was a hit! You can also make this shrimp carbonara as well (just marinate and saute the shrimp instead of chicken).

Here it is from my house to yours!

Chicken Carbonara

Marinated Chicken or Shrimp
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 1/2 tsp. chopped garlic
1-2 lbs chicken strips or large shrimp, peeled and devained

Sauce
1/2 cup butter
1-1 1/4 tsp. chopped garlic  (I used the jar kind)
2 Tbsp. bacon bits (I used the jar kind)
4 1/2 tsp flour (all purpose)
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (I used the kind in a can)
2 cups heavy cream (I used whipping cream)
2 cups milk
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp salt

Topping

2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated
1  cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/4 cup crushed butter crackers
1  tsp chopped garlic
2 tsp melted butter
1 Tbsp parsley, chopped

Chicken (or Shrimp)
Marinated chicken strips (I cut them in small strips so the little ones could eat them easily and so more of it went around) (or Shrimp) from step 1
1 cups roasted red peppers, cut into small strips
1/8-1/4 cup bacon bits (again...jar)

Cooked Pasta
1 - 14 oz boxes of any long pasta on package (spaghetti, linguine, etc.) cooked using instructions


DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350ºF.

Marinated Chicken (or Shrimp)

• WHISK extra virgin olive oil together with hot water, seasoning and chopped garlic.
• ADD the chicken strips (or shrimp).
• COVER and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes

Sauce

• MELT butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and bacon bits.
• SAUTÉ for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
• ADD flour, Parmesan cheese, heavy cream, milk, pepper and salt.
• USE a wire whisk to whip all ingredients together.
• BRING to a boil. Reduce heat and allow to simmer.

Topping

• COMBINE Parmesan, mozzarella, crushed crackers, chopped garlic, melted butter and chopped parsley in a mixing bowl.
• STIR until well blended. Set aside.

Chicken (or Shrimp)
(I grilled the chicken, but next time I'm making it this way with the red peppers and bacon bits)

• PREHEAT large skillet. Add chicken (or shrimp) to pan. Add red peppers and bacon bits.
• COOK for 3 more minutes or until cooked on both sides and internal temperatures reach 165ºF for chicken and 155ºF for shrimp.
• ADD sauce (from above) Stir until well blended.

Plating

• PLACE hot, precooked pasta on a lager serving platter (I used a 9x13 baking dish and it was FULL!). Top with chicken (or shrimp) and sauce.
• EVENLY distribute topping over top of chicken (or shrimp).
• PLACE in broiler until top is golden brown.
• SERVE immediately and enjoy.

This was soooo delicious!  I hope you give this a try!

I'll be back some time this week to share our Christmas decor photos since it plum slipped my mind!  Go figure!  Hugs to all!

Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room

Hubby and the kiddos are on Christmas break now and I thought I would be, too.  Christmas Blessings to all!  See you again in the New Year.  (I'll still be on Facebook...I'd miss ya'll too much!)

kathyhoward.org

- - -

"Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord."  Luke 2:11

How to Roast Your Turkey

The family watched "How to Train Your Dragon" this past weekend so I thought it was an appropriate title. Do ya'll ever do something silly (like name a turkey roasting post after a movie?) and you just laugh and laugh at yourself?  Me?  Guilty. A. Lot. 

So the day before Thanksgiving I found a recipe online for some things to put in your bird's belly to make it heavenly.  Well since it was the day before T-Day and we had already done our shopping I had to use what I had. Which meant improvising.  A. Lot.  Yep, this recipe looks nothing like the original.  Hubby was impressed.  Did I mention that it's hard to impress him with a good turkey?  Yep.  It is.

This is the recipe that I came up with Thanksgiving MORNING!!  Eeeekk!


Clean the bird, pluck pin feathers, yada yada...all the boring stuff.
(Oh, don't forget to take out the bag with gizzards...it's really gross if you don't and it makes really good gravy so I hear.)

Chunk up (by chunk I mean chunk...nothing precise.  Not diced, not cubed...those are too small.  Not quartered either...those are too big.  Somewhere just right. (Did I remind you of a favorite bedtime story? Hmm..) ... where was I?  Anywho...chunk up an onion, a carrot, an apple.  Yes, an apple.  Really!  Throw those in a big bowl and sprinkle on some rosemary ("some" meaning about a teaspoon (I used the store bought...not fresh at all.  If you use fresh (fresh meaning home grown and dried -- I realize it's winter) use a lot less...like 1/2) then drizzle about 1/4 cup-ish lemon juice (I used the bottled kind.  Hey, I was working with what I had, remember?)   Place those in the cavity of Mr. (or Mrs.) Birdy.

For the outside of the bird melt some butter ...eh, 1/2 stick-ish? sprinkle on 1/4 tsp. sage, 1/8 tsp. thyme, and 1/4 tsp. rosemary (again...store shelf kind).  Rub that on the outside of the bird.  Roast however the package tells you.  They are pretty close when they say however many minutes for however many pounds.  Make sure you baste a few times at least.  I also roast mine breast side down.  Very juicy white meat that way.  I know it's not too pretty to look at but taste buds always trump our vision at our house so we do it that way. *wink*

Well that's about it.  I know...I'm either really early for next Thanksgiving or kinda late in sharing this advice with you, but I have been known to roast a Turkey for Christmas and I thought if anyone else was as odd eccentric like me they would want to know what I discovered.

Gobble Gobble!

O Christmas Tree -- Part Two

I found the memory card for the camera!  

Here's my favorite picture!!

O Christmas Tree

Last week Saturday the guys went to acquire a tree while the gals made cookies.  They hiked the tree farm, rode the tree train, drank some hot cocoa, and then bought one that was grown in Michigan and trucked down to our tree farm.  They had fun and this is a splurge we plan for each year, so it's all good.  I shared pics of our cookie making and decorating adventures last week so I'll share our tree decorating adventures today.

(I am so bummed!  I just put the camera card in and the only pictures on it are from a violin/piano recital the next day.  I think it's time for a new memory card.  And I had a really nice picture of all the kiddos on the stairs by the tree.  Oh well....I'll retake that one soon! Our oldest has been snapping a few pics over the last few days so I'll share them with you.)

Cinnamon Rolls

I usually make the bang-on-the-counter kind of cinnamon rolls.  Kendra at Preschoolers and Peace shared this from scratch recipe with me.  I made it for Thanksgiving morning.  How good was it?  Well let's just say my family won't let me make the bang-against-the-counter kind of rolls again.  Yes, they're that good!

Cinnamon Rolls
Dough:
1 T. dry yeast
1 C. warm milk
1/3 C. white sugar
1/2 C. melted butter
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs
4 C. flour
Dissolve yeast in warm milk. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Knead into a ball. Let rise until double in size. When ready, roll out to about 1/4 inch thick. Spread with filling.

Filling:
1/4 C. butter, softened
1 C. brown sugar
3 T. cinnamon

Spread butter on dough evenly. Sprinkle sugar and cinnamon over dough evenly. Roll dough up. Slice roll into 1 inch slices. Place on a greased pan. Let rise again until doubled. bake 10 min. at 400 degrees.

Icing:
1/2 C. butter, softened
1 1/2 C. powdered sugar
1 oz. cream cheese
2 T. whipping cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Beat until fluffy. When rolls are hot, spread lots of icing on them.

If baking in the morning make the dough, let rise, then make the rolls.  Instead of letting them rise again, just wrap them up and put in the fridge.  The next morning put them in the oven while it's preheating.  When the oven is preheated start the timer.   Makes a 9x13 pan...about 16-18 scrumptious rolls!   

These are soooo delicious!   The best!  

Cookie Fun!

I've mentioned before that when it comes to cut out cookies I like to take the stress out of it and make them with a mix.  My girls make them now, actually, with some help from good 'ol Betty Crocker!  

Every year the "men" (my hubby and the boys) enture out to cut the tree and the "women" (my mom, our friend Autum (we joke that she's our adopted daughter), the girls, and I) make cut out cookies, decorate some and leave a few for the younger men to decorate while Daddy is getting the tree settled. 

We usually make pizza,  have chips and soda, and watch a taped version of "Winnie the Pooh and Christmas, Too".  (I taped it years ago when Noah (now 13) was just a baby.  It's kind of become a tradition to watch it every year on this special day.We'll have to break down and by a dvd copy some time, soon!)  Anywho...here are some pictures that we snapped during the course of the day.

 

Hubby snapped this pretty picture so I thought I'd share it with you!

Christmas Menu

Did anyone else flip their calendar over the other day and discover a full December calendar?  Phew!  It's all fun and busy and I love it!  So for today's post here's our Christmas menu!

First of all I have to tell you that Christmas Eve we will have my in-laws over and my brother-in-law.  You know what we eat?  Pizza!  Yep!  We order pizza!  It's been our tradition for years.  I love it!  My MIL makes some yummy cookies and brings crackers and cheese, and dip, and I make some desserts.  We use red paper plates, plastic cups, and paper napkins.  It's divine!  We can focus on the evening!  The kiddos usually get a movie from either the grandparents or their uncle so we watch that after food and gifts and Christmas Eve service.

Then Christmas morning I usually make Pillsbury cinnamon rolls.  I made some from a recipe for Thanksgiving morning.  They were delicious!  I'll post the recipe soon, I promise!

While the rolls are baking the kiddos open their stockings from us.  After breakfast we read from the book of Luke, pray together and then slowly one by one enjoy the gifts.  Our kiddos enjoy exchanging gifts (I'll share how we "shop" for them in a later post.) along with hugs and thank you's.  Then us big kids (my mom, my hubby, and I) pass out our gifts to the kiddos and each other.  It's a lot of fun.

Then we enjoy our afternoon meal:

Ham and Popeye (No, not pot pie...check it out, really!) (recipe HERE)
Smashed Potatoes (recipe HERE)
Green Beans and Bacon (recipe HERE)
Crock Pot Mac-n-Cheese (recipe HERE)
For hubby's sake I might make some Stove Top Pork stuffing.  Original, I know.  *wink*
Homemade Rolls  (recipe HERE)

Pie!  Pretty much a repeat of Thanksgiving! 
Pumpkin Pie Squares (recipe HERE), Creamy Peach Pie (recipe HERE), a gluten free blueberry pie for my mom (I bought a gluten free crust mix...I'll try my hand at from scratch after the holidays.), and Blueberry and Cherry Pies (recipes HERE).  My original pie crust recipe is HERE, but I've found a new love.  I'll post that soon, too!  I'll have my little helpers in the kitchen, again!  That'll be fun! (We'll make them a few days before Christmas.)

After our feast we'll play games, take naps, play with our Christmas goodies, and enjoy each others' company.  Then later we'll nibble on left over ham and what-not.

Yep...that's pretty much it!  Isn't food bliss?  *sigh*

**Note**  I have at least one kiddo down with a bug as I write this (Thurs. afternoon).  I plan to post my answers to your questions on the "Just Ask" post for Saturday...unless I'm down for the count, too.  If you don't hear from me for a bit, you'll know why.  Pray for us, ya'll!  *smile*

Queen of the Castle: Week 49

We're on week 49 of Queen of the Castle.  We're a week ahead, but that's just fine, we'll start over at week one in January and work until we get to where we started HERE.

This week's chapter is titled "Christmas is Here! Last-Minute Ideas".  Author Lynn Bowen Walker shares a few fun stories about past gingerbread house bombs.  She lets us in on a little secret -- graham crackers!  Our family has never made gingerbread houses. I don't even go there.  I know my limits.  Instead we have a blast rolling, cutting and decorating sugar cookies.  A few years in a row we made gingerbread cookies until I wised up and realized that no one...not. a. one.  likes gingerbread. Well except me, but I really don't need to eat 4 dozen gingerbread men, women, and children.  So we decided to make sugar cookie cut-outs from scratch.  It was back-breaking mixing and rolling, etc., so I've had yet another realization that we will decorate cut-out cookies we use good 'ol Betty Crocker sugar cookie mix from now on.  It makes the process ten times easier. Yes, I love home made sugar cookies but if you want someone other than Oscar the Grouch in the kitchen then try the mix.  It's o.k., really.  *wink*

Now, if you really are planning on gingerbread houses, Lynn suggests the following essentials:  graham crackers, tubs of white frosting (you'll need glue of some sort!), and lots of decorations such as M&Ms, jelly beans, chocolate chips, Tootsie Rolls, gumdrops, Life Savers, Tic Tacs, mini marshmallows.  There are a gazillion possibilities!

Lynn also suggests a cookie swap for some baking variety in your home.  I've always thought that was a great idea!  I may have to do that some time...

Lynn also suggests to start thinking about inexpensive gifts for babysitters, teachers, neighbors, etc.  Hand made gifts are great and I personally think consumable gifts are the best.  Jams, jellies, cookies, breads, treats, soaps, bath salts, etc. are great!  It's something someone will use...if not the receiver of the gift then certainly someone in their home. 


Lynn shares a few reminders of things that need to be done and soon!

*Mail Christmas packages (I've got a few to mail out but it won't be until some time next week!  Aaahh!!)

*Put card writing into high gear (Mine are done!  woo hoo!)

*Wrap gifts as you purchase them. Save receipts in one place.  (I've got a lot of shopping done, but none wrapped.  I need to get on that soon!  Or I'll end up being a night owl a few days before Christmas...we don't want that!)

*Make wrapping paper.  Use brown paper bags, old Christmas cards, etc.  (I buy wrap after Christmas for the following year...it saves my sanity. Although I do need I bit more, I think... "Oh brown paper bags!!")

*Wrap gifts with oversized artwork your kids may have made at school.  (There ya go!  I'll do that!  Cha-ching!)

*Start Advent wreaths or calendars.  (My tutorial is HERE and they are for sale HERE... just sayin' *wink*)

*Buy extra nylons if you're attending any dress-up holiday parties.  (Tights for your little girls, too!)

*Make sure the kiddos have appropriate clothes for whatever outings you have planned.  (If everyone but little Lucy has a Christmas shirt but her she'll feel a little left out...better make a list and check it twice!)

*Plan Christmas menus.  (I plan on posting my December menu here soon...and a Christmas menu post, too!)

*Get kids to help decorate.  (This year I only had a few helpers...the youngest three.  As you can imagine they weren't super helpful but they had fun and we got a few things done together.)

Enjoy the next month or so of activities...

soak it all in and enjoy it with your family like it was your 

first and your last Christmas. 

- - -

"So Jesus said to the twelve, 'You do not want to go away also, do you?' 

Simon Peter answered Him, 'Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life.

We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.'"  

John 6:67-69

Merry Chrismas!

Our Christmas cards are going out this week so I thought I'd "send" yours to you!  *wink*

 

  

AND A BLESSED NEW YEAR!

~ ~ ~

FROM OUR HOUSE TO YOURS

"And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth."

Luke 1:14

Seven Layer Salad

Image from simplyxmas.wordpress.com

I am making this for a Christmas party so I thought I would share it with ya'll!  Don't worry, it doesn't have a single calorie in it.  They're all married...with lots and lots of babies!  *wink*

Seven Layer Salad

Prepare the following ingredients and layer in a large dish.
(I use a large rectangle Tupperware that way all layers are
spread out and everyone can get a taste of all the layers.)

1 head of lettuce washed and torn in small pieces
1 green pepper diced
1 1/2 cup diced onion
10 oz. bag frozen green peas (cooked, drained, and cooled)
 Mix together 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise and 2 T. sugar
1 1/2 cups mild cheddar cheese
1 lb. bacon  cooked and crumbled

(Sometimes I add some chopped raw broccoli and cauliflower in with the peas...making it more than a seven layer salad.  That's o.k., though, I don't think anyone will count. *wink* )

Let it sit overnight.  Drain before serving if necessary.  Toss together lightly.

Peanut Butter Balls

Some people around here call these "Buckeyes".  Not in this home.  You see, to us a Buckeye is an Ohio State fan and since hubby is a University of Michigan grad the word "buckeye" can not be uttered in this home.  (FYI, OSU and U of M are totally not BFF's. *wink*)  So in this home they are simply Peanut Butter Balls.  K? Glad we're all clear on that.  Moving on...

These are a must in our home around the holidays.  We have a couple of girlies with peanut allergies so I always make sure to make something else that's yummy and melt-in-your-mouth chocolatey for them to eat.  Early in our marriage (after I'd learned to cook) hubby assisted me (ie., coated the pb balls in chocolate) in making a TON of these for Christmas gifts.  It was like an I Love Lucy episode.  I was Lucy and he was Ethel.  There was chocolate everywhere.  We were definitely well preserved in chocolate!  So we packaged them up and rolled our ways to our home town for Christmas where everyone loved their gifts!   I say rolled because our packaging efforts were more like "one for them, two for me" sort of deal.  I think I gained 10 pounds that night!  It was o.k., though, because I was expecting our first baby. *wink*

So...anywho...here's the recipe!

Peanut Butter Balls
1/2 cup peanut butter
3 T butter, softened
1 cup sifted powdered sugar
1 11 oz. bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 T shortening

Stir together peanut butter and margarine.  Gradually add sugar, stirring til combined.  Shape into 1-inch balls and place on waxed paper.  Let stand about 20 minutes.  Melt chocolate chips and shortening.  (I place it in the microwave for 30 second increments stirring each time until melted.)  Cool slightly.  Dip balls into melted chocolate; let excess drip off.  Place on the waxed paper and let stand until it's dry and solid.

Makes about 30 or 10 if you make it the way we do... one for you, two for me.  *wink*

Advent Garland

I'm so excited to share this craft with ya'll!  I made this a week or so ago when we were all a little under the weather.  I had lots of little helpers in the dining room...they were stamping their own goodies while I was making this.  It was (as a good friend says) "Big Fun"!  If you aren't feeling super crafty I have a set for sale over at my etsy site.

I bought two packs of small brown kraft bags at Michael's coupon!).

I cut the top of 25 bags with scalloped decorative scissors.

(I know some families start Advent right after Thanksgiving but we start 

Dec. 1st...that's just the way we've done it. If you want to start the last Sunday of November then adjust accordingly but if you purchase my set it will be with numbers 1 to 25.)

 

Then I punched 25  1 1/2 " red circles.  And 25 1 3/8" kraft cardstock circles.

Using four different types of background Christmas paper I cut 25 2" squares.

I stamped the numbers 1 through 25 in red ink on the kraft circles.  I mounted those in the center of the red circles. Then I mounted those in the center of the squares.  Make sure you alternate the background colors.

 

Then I folded the top scallop down about 3/4".  

 

Next I put seven of the same treats in each bag...but different treats for each day. (For us Dec. 1st might have seven Smarties, Dec. 2nd might have seven Hershey's Kisses, etc..)

(We have seven children...if you have two kiddos then use two treats.) 

Place a Scripture reading  slip in each bag (make sure you put the right number in the proper bag).

You can download mine and print below.

Advent Scripture Reading

Then hang a line of yarn or jute twine on windows.  I used my living room and office room windows. (They are connected rooms so I felt it flowed fine that way.)  That way they are out of reach of little hands but can still be seen!  Use clothes pins to hang the bags.  I used regular clothespins for this picture but I'll use mini clothespins when I can get to the store to get them.  They're much cuter that way. If you buy my set you'll get mini clothespins.

There you go! A fun and inexpensive way to celebrate the Advent!

Make this yourself or purchase it HERE!