Name Change

For the five of you who actually read this blog, you may notice that I've changed one of the names in the header. As I mentioned awhile back, H's nickname of Moose just wasn't sticking for some reason. I don't know what it is but we just can't seem to call him that. It's almost contrived.

One name I've noticed that S uses a lot is Chunky Monkey. And it's so true, y'all. He really is a chunky monkey. Oh, the boy has fat rolls everywhere and aren't we thankful for those fat rolls, especially since he had absolutely no fat on him when he was born. So we're sticking with Chunky Monkey, at least for the time being. If he's anything like his father (who was 11 pounds at birth, by the way), he'll thin out as he gets older.

Maybe this name will stick!

I Have No Title But it is a Funny Story

On the way home from school yesterday, both K and L were crying. (Then H started in so all three were crying which made me want to cry. But I digress.) That means, at least in our house, that they are extremely tired and in need of a nap. K didn't sleep long but did play very quietly in her room. She was quiet enough to allow L to sleep. For quite awhile.

When she got up, L came in my room and said, "Mommy! There's something in my bottom!" This is a phrase I do not enjoy hearing as it could mean so many unpleasant things. She was crying and I was convinced that she had messed in her pants. So I, begrudgingly, turned her around, prepared for the worst.

She did, indeed, have something in her bottom. It was the daddy from her dollhouse and a Snow White bedroom slipper. I'm guessing she put them there for safe-keeping or maybe she was just saving them for later. Wouldn't want K to get her treasures!

Soup-Tacular

I found this link on BooMama's website and thought it was a fabulous idea. Even though it's not that cold where we live, it's definitely soup season. I'm posting two recipes that I love. They are both hearty and delicious although one is a little, um, richer than the other. Enjoy!

Beefy Lentil Soup

1lb ground beef
1C dried lentils, rinsed
1C sliced carrots
1C sliced celery
1C diced onions
1C cut up cabbage or green beans or corn or any veggie you want
1C finely chopped green pepper
1pkg beef ramen noodles-discard flavor pack
2 lg beef bouillon cubes or 2Tbls "Better than Bouillon"
46oz V-8 juice
4C water
1bay leaf
Salt & pepper to taste

Brown ground beef. Add chopped veggies & cook until soft. Add remaining ingredients. Cook on high until mixture boils about 10 minutes. Reduce heat & simmer 1 1/2 hours.

Note: You can use ground turkey in place of the beef and it's just as good.

Chili Blanco

1 pound great northern or navy beans, soaked overnight
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, poached and shredded
6 cups chicken stock
1 small onion, diced
4 cloves garlic
2 (4oz) cans mild green chiles
2 tsp cumin (or more to taste)
2 tsp oregano
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 cups Monterey Jack, grated
1 cup sour cream

Sauté onion in olive oil until translucent. Add drained beans, stock, garlic, chiles, cumin, oregano and cayenne pepper. Cook at a simmer until the beans are tender (this can take several hours).

Just before serving, add the chicken, cheese and sour cream. Mix well and continue cooking until the chicken is warmed through.

Serve with fresh cilantro, salsa, sour cream and cheese.

Note: You can use two cans of drained, rinsed white beans if you don't want to deal with dried ones.

H is 7 Months Old!

I can hardly believe the month of November has come and gone. H is growing so rapidly weighing in at a whopping 19 pounds, 3 ounces. He's smiling and giggling a ton these days. He's also discovered faces and his own feet. We're still working on solid foods and we get some really interesting faces when he tries new tastes. It's very funny and very cute. He has a way of melting my heart, no matter how tired I am. It is a joy and a blessing to have him in this family!

Christmas Preview

I took several photos of the kids today trying to get a good one for our Christmas card. I did get a good one but I'll post that one after the cards go out. In the mean time, I thought I'd share this one because it's just too sweet to share. Plus, there's a story behind it.

When I was pregnant with H, I really wanted to get a couple of "belly" shots since it was to be my last pregnancy. One shot I really wanted was of the girls kissing my tummy to be followed up after H was born with one of them kissing him. Well, the belly shot never happened but the follow-up did. Plus, I got to fool around with my new editing software, playing with the black and white feature. It was so fun!

At Long Last, Pictures!

I know I've been horribly delinquent posting pictures of our family as of late. The truth is that S got me a new computer for my birthday and I hadn't, until today, figured out how I was going to load pictures onto the computer without the software that came with the camera (that is long since gone). It turns out, though, that with the special software that came with the computer, I don't need the camera software.

Anyway, on with the pictures...

The box H's new stroller came in

Sassy McBritches (to borrow a phrase from BooMama)

L's Thanksgiving program in which she actually participated (unlike her sister)

The girls with their new friend, Boo

Our New Friend

When I was about 7 years old, some friends of mine came to stay with us for the weekend when their parents went out of town. (I realize now what a luxury that is!) We were out in the backyard when we spotted two peacocks that had escaped from the zoo nearby. My friend, Bo, ran inside to tell my mom. He said, "Miss Pattie! Miss Pattie! There are peacocks in the backyard and I'm not lyin'!" We still laugh about that today.

Fast forward to yesterday afternoon. After lunch, I forced the girls to go outside and play. I don't know what is going on with them but lately they haven't been interested in playing outside. They do their best to come inside every 30 seconds for various reasons, the most popular being a trip to the bathroom. They were outside for all of a minute when they came running inside and K exclaimed, "Mama! There's a turtle on the back porch! A real live turtle!"

I told them not to touch it and went out to inspect it. Sure enough, a small box turtle had found his way to our porch in search of food. He was covered with dryer lint (from the load that was, at the time, being dried) so I cleaned him off and put him back in the grass. The girls wanted to touch his shell and I told them they could as long as I was out there with them. K decided that we needed to name him "Boo" because that was a good boy name. Not sure where that came from!

We watched Boo for the next hour or so as he made his way back to the porch, across the length of it, then back out into the yard. The last I saw of him, he was digging under some leaves, trying to find a worm. Every now and then, K would say, "Where's Boo?" and then try to find him. L said that he left our yard to go explore the neighborhood.