Jenn's Blog

1 Make a list of things you can see without getting up: Cloth diapers that I'm hopefully going to sell. 1 hand warmer I knit up for Chelsea. A glass of water.
2 How do you style your hair? I usually flat-iron it or sometimes I'll flip it out a little bit.
3 What are you wearing now? Jeans that I am finally able to fit into after TWO years and a purple long-sleeved shirt.
4 Do you have some sort of secret superpower? I read minds.
5 What's the last thing you read/are currently reading? The Best American Essays
6 Do you nap a lot? Nope. I did a lot when the boys were babies.
7 Who was the last person you hugged? Ben. He just got home from a (SATURDAY) meeting.
8 What's your current fandom/obsession/addiction? Exercising. Wii Fit
10 What was the last thing you ate today? Trail mix.
11 What was the last thing you said aloud? How was your meeting? (see number 7)
12 What websites do you always visit when you go online? Facebook and Gen's journal.
13 Last thing you bought: New nose jewelry from an MDC mama.
14 What are you listening to right now? Ben noisily unpacking some gizmo. The baby monitor.
15 What's the last song that got stuck in your head? Today by Joshua Radin
16 If you could have any superpower, what would it be? The ability to fit more hours in the day...or to do more in a day.
17 What is your favorite weather, and why? I love spring. I love when it's JUST starting to warm up and you know that it won't be cold forever.
18 How are you? Hopeful.
19 What's something you'd like someone to say to you right now? I'd love to have a girlfriend call me up and invite me to go do something.
20 Say something to the person who tagged you. You're the best, Genevieve.

Merck decided that all their MMR vaxes will now contain cells from aborted fetuses: http://www.onenewsnow.com/Culture/Default.aspx?id=381740

There may be an alternative in the future: http://www.cogforlife.org/

We finally got a chance to hash out plans with Brandon and Erin last night and we have a set date for a Texas visit. Feb. 6-16ish. They warned us that the weather is all over the map down there, but even their lows have got us beat by a mile, so no complaints here. Chelsea is going with us and will be able to watch the boys a few nights so that we can go out kids-free!!!

Someone posted the link to this website in my comments and I've liked what I've read so far. Lots of good information on keeping kids safe and healthy without being hysterical or causing unneeded worry.

www.safemama.com

We had a great Christmas! We attended the Christmas musical at church, on Christmas Eve. It was a great show. Then we headed straight over to Ben's parent's house and had a wonderful dinner and then opened gifts. Both boys had a blast. Luke LOVED opening gifts and Gabe loved looking at his new toys. We just had a really enjoyable time. Chelsea decided to stay home with the cat and relax and watch a movie. I missed having her around, but I'm sure she (and Fluffy) enjoyed some peace and quiet.

Christmas morning, Luke woke up and I heard him say, "Wow, he was HERE". Tee hee. He was so happy with all of his gifts and stocking stuffers. Both boys played and played and played alllll morning long.

Ben gave me a Wii Fit so I was super excited about that. I've played it every day now and I really enjoy it. Ben's favorite gift was a marquee sign that his parents and I got for him. Luke has told us a dozen times that his favorite present is "his" cat. Gabe loved everything he got and everything Luke got.

We've been total bums these past couple days. Ben has been working from home and we've been watching The Office reruns and snacking on Christmas cookies and just relaxing. Tomorrow my family is coming over which will be nice.

Happy Holidays!

...and his name is Fluffy.

We found the perfect kitten on our Freecycle group. We finally decided to for sure get a cat for Christmas. I was just getting ready to call the shelter and decided to check my email (see procrastination does pay off!) and saw a post offering 2 male kittens. I emailed the poster and gave her some details about our family. She sent us some pictures. I was thrilled because he is already neutered and litter box trained and is completely free! We just had to drive down to Ste. Genevieve to get him. Oh, and he's a long-hair, which we LOVE. Just proving, once again, that God cares about the details.

The boys love him to death and are just so excited about him!

I love Christmas cookies! Yum! Here are some of the cookies we made this year:

Peanut butter cookies
chocolate chip cookies
peanut butter chip cookies
chocolate covered pretzels
white chocolate covered pretzels
brownies
corn flake wreaths

And my favorites:

Chocolate-covered Cake Balls: bake a cake (boxed is fine). Let it cool and then crumble it up in a large bowl. Stir in one half to a whole can of frosting and then form into balls using a melon-baller or a cookie scoop. Freeze overnight and then dip in chocolate. You can use any combo of cake mix, frosting, and chocolate to make different kinds and colors of cake balls. And they are sooo tasty. We did chocolate cake with chocolate icing and covered with chocolate almond bark. And then we did a vanilla cake with buttercream icing and covered it with white chocolate almond bark. Next year I'm going to make a ton of these and arrange and decorate them to make snowmen.

Thin Mints Knock-offs: add peppermint flavoring to melted almond bark and cover Ritz Crackers. I think these are just as good as Thin Mint cookies!

Chocolate-covered, peanut butter filled Ritz Cracker Sandwiches.

Anytime Spice Cookies: (thanks to Gen) I use this spicy recipe instead of the usual sugar cookie recipe. We cut out shapes and then decorate with home-made icing. They really add color to the plate.

Chocolate cookies with M&Ms. Yum.

Chocolate cookies with mint flavoring and chocolate chips. Super yum.

and the best one of all: Peppermint Jo-Jo's covered in white chocolate. Trader Joe's has a wonderful cookie that only comes out this time of year. It's called the Peppermint Jo-Jo. It's basically an Oreo (but healthier) with a small bit of crushed peppermint in the cream filling. Cover those in white chocolate....mmmmm, heaven in your mouth!

We make up tons of these cookies and pass them out to neighbors and then take trays to every holiday party we are invited to. It's great because I never have to think about what I'm going to take anywhere. I just pull out a tray and go. Easy Peasy. The only downfall is that you spend MONTHS will yummy tempting cookies in your freezer!

Chelsea and I have been baking and freezing cookies since October and we have sooo many tasty ones to nibble on. It's terrible! I'll be so glad when they are gone! Thank goodness Christmas comes only once a year!

We are pretty much done with holiday preparations. I've wrapped all the presents we have so far. A few more might trickle in, but we are pretty much good to go. I have all the stocking stuffers. We decided to do my family Christmas party on the Sunday after Christmas so that Jacob can be with us. He had to work Thanksgiving and has to work Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I told everyone to bring a finger food and a dessert and that way I don't have to try and coordinate a big Christmas dinner. Too much $$ and stress.

We got the Christmas cards out and I've really been enjoying all the cards we've received. I LOVE getting Christmas cards and save all the pictures in a special scrapbook.

Anna and Tiza are going to spend a few days with us. She left her husband (and about time) and needed to get away from home for a bit. Some days I think we should replace our front door with revolving doors! I'm glad to have her here. I hope this is the beginning of a new chapter in her life and it's good to be able to spend some time with her and Tiza.

Tomorrow is Church. And we'll deliver our cookie plates to the neighbors. Maybe find an activity in the evening to get us out of the house. Christmas Eve we are going to a short musical program at church and then we'll head over to Ben's parent's house for dinner and presents. Christmas morning we'll open Santa's gifts with the boys and then just hang out around the house. Then my family Christmas party on Sunday. That's it. No craziness. No running around. Just a nice, peaceful holiday with family!

Tonight we attended the wake for my Aunt Sandy. She passed on this week after a year-long battle with cancer. I haven't blogged about her mainly because I just don't have the right words to do that sweet lady justice. From what I was told, she did pass away at home, with my uncle at her side and was without pain. Praise God for that!

What will be left when I've drawn my last breath,
Besides the folks I've met and the folks who know me?

I heard those song lyrics the other day and thought of Sandy. I know life isn't a popularity contest(and if we are true to our faith and ourselves there may well be plenty along the way who don't think much of us) but over all I think a lot can be said about a person by what they meant to the people around them. And Sandy loved and was well-loved by many. Easy-going and down to earth. Kind and sweet, but always genuine. Never fake or phony. A beautiful woman inside and out.

So good-bye for now, birthday buddy. I know we'll see you again. Until then I'll raise my McDonald's coffee and toast to you.

May you rest in much-deserved peace.

We got a tree today. We went with a Scotch Pine from the nursery that did our recent landscaping. They were so nice! All we did is point to the tree we wanted and paid for it. They trimmed the trunk, netted it, tied it to the van and we were good to go. We got it up and lit and decorated right away. Both boys had a blast putting ornaments on the tree and just admiring it. I'd put a picture up, but it really needs to be straightened!!