Weekend in Review: Christmas is almost Here

I want to recap each of my Christmases separately (I have five this year)... so part of the weekend will include that.  I can't say this entry will really be that interesting in general... mostly not a whole lot went on this weekend.

Let's see... on Thursday night Dan was a sweetheart and grilled for us - delicious brats and hot dogs from Kenrick's.  Michelle came over and we exchanged Christmas gifts.  I really wasn't going to get her anything, but she's like the world's easy person to shop for and I found a beyond cute gift.  Plus she most likely losing her job soon... so it was I'm sorry your station was bought and Christmas gift.  She got me a board game that I'm excited to play.  We watched Project Runway together and by watched I mean we talked through most of it.

On Friday I met my dad for lunch and to pick up some Christmas gifts that he wanted me to wrap.  We went to lunch at First Watch - it was great to connect with him one on one before Christmas.

That afternoon Dan and I ran to a few stores and spent the night in.  We wanted a movie - The Purge.

Saturday Dan spent the day hanging out with his friend so I enjoyed a nice day at home by myself.  It was awesome and I didn't do much of anything, although I finished wrapping Christmas gifts.  I also did my cake balls - updated post coming on that as well.  After Dan got home we ate a low key dinner and watched Apollo 18 on Netflix.

Sunday was my dad's family Christmas.  After I got back from that we watched We are the Millers and headed to bed.  We haven't been doing as much lately (hey the cold weather will make you want to stay in!)

Favorite Christmas Songs

I thought it might be fun to run down a list of my favorite Christmas songs.  It's completely possible I've left something super obvious off the list... so... and I usually don't like to rank things, but whaddya know?  I went ahead and ranked them!

So enjoy this little bit of Christmas cheer!

#10)  I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas by Bing Crosby - It's a classic!!

#9)  All I want for Christmas is You by Mariah Carey - I know it's a stupid song but no other Christmas song gets stuck in my head quite like this one!

 

#8)  Rockin Around the Christmas Tree by Brenda Lee - it's a classic and upbeat

 

#7)  Jingle Bell Rock by Bobby Helms - see comments from above :)  I do think of these songs in the same realm and sometimes think of them as the same song haha

#6)  The Christmas Song by Nat King Cole - this is a classic and I think really describes Christmas like no other... sure no one really roasts chestnuts on an open fire, but really it's pretty sweet.

#5)  Christmas Don't be Late by Alvin and the Chipmunks - I love cutesy Christmas songs, and slightly different ones... you'll notice that theme in the top five.

#4)  Carol of the Bells by Trans-Siberian Orchestra - This sound is epic.  I love it!

#3)  Mele Kalikimaka by Bing Crosby - I love this Christmas song gotta love a beach feel.

#2)  Feliz Navidad by Jose Feliciano - I love how this song is upbeat.  It also reminds me of a Sesame Street Christmas thing where they are ice skating

#1)  I want a Hippopotamus for Christmas by Gayla Peevey - I love the lyrics in this song, so freaking adorable and much better than All I want for Christmas is My two Front Teeth.  Seriously my favorite.

Do you think I missed any great ones?  What are your favorite Christmas songs?

Merry Christmas!

Fantasy Survivor: Results

Another season of Survivor has come to an end.  Blood vs. Water was an amazing season.  Honestly in the beginning I wasn't really sold on the returnees competing against their loved ones... especially when there were so many twists.  But this season was amazing - top ten for sure!  I'd have a hard time ranking the seasons since I don't remember all of them... but it's been entertaining!

So we have to recap who won this edition of Fantasy Survivor.

Going into the finale were SEVEN possibilities (three of which were at redemption island)  Of those seven - two were Michelle's (Hayden and Monica) and five were mine (Gervase, Tyson, Tina, Laura M and Ciera).  About 15 minutes into the episode Hayden was gone so Michelle was down to one... poor thing!

Either way... who was the winner?  Did Michelle pull out an impressive win?  NO! The winner of Survivor Blood vs. Water was

TYSON!!

Some people probably didn't like how he came across on the show at times... but he absolutely deserved to win.  I was totally happy with this since I've enjoyed watching him on other seasons and he was probably the person I was most excited to see come back.  Sure, I didn't pick him first or even second... but sometimes I play the who Michelle won't pick game.

It's always bittersweet when a season comes to an end.  Love to see how it all finishes up but it's sad that it won't be on for a couple of months.

Next time we play the Survivor Fantasy game we'll have a new member of - Susan!!  I think it will make the picking and playing even more fun!!

Weekend in Review: Snow and Survivor

These weekends are going by pretty fast... can you believe there's only 2 more weekends in 2013... mind. blown.

These last few weekends have been pretty low key and this one was no exception.  I'll talk more about my Friday-day in another post (hopefully... I really want to take on a post about my mom's Christmas cookie baking problem... but I'm just not sure I will be able to... we shall see).

The bad news about Friday (and the 13th to boot) was that my car did not pass inspection.  I had this weird fear it wouldn't (I worry ok?) but I really didn't think there was any reason why it shouldn't pass... but it failed.  Turns out my car is leaking fuel from the top of the tank.  After I was annoyed and asked the mechanic office where I took it what was wrong and how it could be fixed the mechanic himself called me back to tell me he found information online that this might fall under a recall for my car.  He told me that I should probably investigate that before I put any money into determining and fixing the issue... so that's what I did.

I did remember that I got a letter back in March about a possible recall.  Basically they were fully recalling/fixing the problem in certain states... where it's hot and can cause the fuel tank to crack more easily.  In the other states they are fixing the problem if it comes up.  I called the dealership on Saturday and have an appointment for Thursday.  I'm hoping/praying that the issue is covered under the recall and I don't have to pay... You'd think a fuel leakage problem and a recall that involves fuel leakage would be covered - so I'm very hopeful.  The letter also explained things to look out for which include check engine soon light is on (mine isn't) and fuel smell in the car (never noticed that and no one else has mentioned it)... so I'm at least happy that there hasn't been any reason why I should have noticed this issue sooner... maybe happy isn't the right word, but yeah...  So stay tuned for the conclusion of this story.

That night Dan and I went to a concert of a band he knows at the Duck Room at Blueberry Hill.  It was nice... but I had a headache so that part wasn't as fun.  Nothing too interesting to report on this night.  It did start snowing a bunch, so that was fun to drive home in.  It was pretty to see the next day though.

On Saturday we did some random errands and including some online shopping.  I had a little helper...

Yep... Quina actually flew to me... and then sat on my shoulder for like 30 minutes.  She didn't even try biting my ear or anything... she just hung out up there... so that was nice.  I wouldn't say she likes me yet, but I'm calling it progress!

 

That night Dan made us dinner - we went to Schnucks so I was able to get a fancy cheddar onion bun.  Yum!  He also made bacon with brown sugar (so so good) and baked potatoes.  Nothing about this meal screams healthy... but whatever

On Sunday I didn't to a whole lot during the day - mostly cleaned and did laundry.  That night Susan and Michelle came over to watch the season finale of Survivor (I guess I owe you a post on that).  It was so much fun watching it in a group.  I ordered pizza and Susan brought over some amazing dips including Spinach Artichoke Dip and Caramel Apple Dip... so so good - I ate WAY too much!  I had a fun time hanging with the ladies though.  We are planning to get together for the premiere and finale again next season... and seems like Susan will be joining our Fantasy Survivor game!

Baking: Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies

I decided that I wanted to make a cookie with caramel... so I googled around and found these.

They are delicious!!  I need to get better about reading the full recipe (not just the ingredients) ahead of time... because I made the dough two Sundays ago, and then realized that the dough needed to chill... so that turned into finally baking them two weeks ago... and finally blogging about it today...

They were delicious!  They are a soft, bigger cookie.  The first one I ate I thought I had added too much salt.  But the ones I've eaten since then are perfect!

Ready for some craptastic pictures?

I thought they looked so adorable on the pan

In the cookie jar

Really yummy and totally crappy picture

You may be asking what is this a picture of?  Well it's the inside of the cookie duh!

I'll be making these again!

Weekend in Review: Family and Hockey

On Thursday night I was suppose to go to a late night happy hour with a couple of friends... but then the bad weather moved in... and we decided to postpone.  It made me sad I wouldn't be gobbling up food and sucking down beers with good friends... but I was happy to stay in on a snowy night and watch The Song of Music Live on NBC.  I love musicals and the Sound of Music is one of the best.  It's awesome when you know all the songs and it's just a big sing-a-long with myself... that would last for days let me tell you.  I'm still breaking out My Favorite Things from time-to-time.  Was the acting great? Not really... Did Carrie Underwood live up to Julie Andrews?  Absolutely not - but who in their right might thought that would happen?  It's Julie Andrews for crying out loud... let's set reasonable expectations here.  My expectation was I would enjoy it for what it was - and that's exactly what I got... well, I actually enjoyed it MORE than I expected... so bam!  And now I'll step off my soapbox...

On Friday, I decided to go ahead and brave the weather to take my grandma pajama shopping.  I'm not sure if I've talked about this before but ever since I was 16 I have taken my Grandma shopping to buy all the kids pajamas for Christmas (yes, I'm still a kid, I don't think I'll ever outgrow the getting PJs from Grandma thing).  It's our little tradition and I really do enjoy it... although Grandma has become less decisive over the years and I do try to force her to make decisions for the kids haha.

This year since the weather was more crappy and Grandma doesn't get around as good as she used to, I asked my sister to come along to help out.  She thankfully agreed and I have to say it was so much easier having her there.

We went to lunch first and then went over to Target and got all the PJs we needed.  Lindsey, Grandma and I had a lot of fun - I do enjoy spending time with Grandma and my mom told me later that Grandma really enjoyed her day with us too - so that meant a lot to me.

Friday night we stayed in... Dan actually grilled burgers (with bacon) (in the snow) and make mashed potatoes with Bearnaise (not Burmese) sauce.  It was awesome.  He's a great cook!!

Saturday was one of those days where it feels like nothing is really planned and then I suddenly have stuff to do all day.  My day started out with some cleaned and general chores.  Then I finally started my Christmas shopping.  It was fun to start purchasing all the things I've thought about getting.

After that I got ready and my dad picked me up.  He wanted help putting up their Christmas tree.  He was already in the neighborhood to pick up my Grandpa who would be staying with him.  So we headed up to my dad's and put the tree up while he stressed out over the Mizzou game on TV.

Around six my dad took me downtown to meet Dan, Kyle and Michelle for the Blues game that we bought tickets to earlier that day.  We got a fairly good deal and it was fun - especially to take Michelle to her first game... sadly the Blues lost... although we did get to see them score - so yay for that.

Sunday was a totally easy day... just lounged around the house.  I did some cross-stitching, grocery shopped and make Italian Beef.  I also made cookie dough (finally baked them last night, I'll be back to share about that).  I finished off the day by watching the Amazing Race finale.

Overall it was a wonderful weekend!!

O Christmas Tree

After two years of sitting in a cold, sad storage unit - my Christmas decorations are out and lovingly displayed around my house.

I actually did the decorating the weekend after Thanksgiving, but I'm finally getting around to posting about it.

I'm an artificial tree lover... I'm not sure why... just am... here's my new artificial tree I got from KMart for about $35... it's nothing fancy, but I didn't want anything fancy.  Also, when I was putting it together it really reminded me of the tree my grandparents had that I would help put together each year (with the color coordinated slots)

Did make me super itchy fluffing it though

 

Okay... here's were my side note is going to come.  This is what a tree should look like.  My tree is filled with ornaments that mean something to me, and over my life I plan on adding many more.  I don't think Christmas trees should be color coordinated or how some people call them 'my pretty tree'.  A tree should be filled with memories and fun things... not all gold balls or whatever... it's just my two cents, but it's one of those things I feel strongly about...

Isn't she pretty?  I had extra silver garland which is why the rest went into the camel.  Camels are sorta Christmas-y anyway

Another special note:  Almost three years ago we divided up my grandma's ornaments.  This was the first time they made it on the tree since they were in storage the last two Christmases.  Also, the garland is from my grandparents tree which I love as well.  It just makes me so happy to have so many memories in one place.

The other side... someday I want to make a pretty tree skirt.  Also since it's lit up you can't really see, but that's a Santa lamp

Every time I walk past the tree is makes me smile... I just stop and stare and think - it is perfect

Here's a close up.  I love the purple bird with the long neck and the spiderman and all the glitter

A different side - my ice skater from my Grandparent's tree and a beer can that Dan added

Somewhere along the line I got the peppermint candy lights - they are perfect.  I thought originally I wouldn't have enough to look good, but they are perfect

All lit up in the dark

RECIPE: Southwestern Stuffed Peppers

I was on my way home from work early on Thursday (they let us out early due to the inclement weather) and thought it was probably a good idea to have some food in the house... you know if it really did get that bad out...

I have the hardest time making up my mind on what to make for dinner.  I usually go with the same old things (tacos, pasta, frozen meal)... but I decided to make stuffed peppers... and not only that I kinda sorta made up my own recipe.

It is loosely based on this recipe... mostly because I didn't know times and such...

First I browned my ground turkey

Then I added some spices... paying zero attention to how much I put in... I also added a packet of taco seasons (not pictured)

Then added a can of black beans (drained and rinsed) and a can of Rotel (I didn't drain, but should have), and some frozen corn (not pictured) and added some water and let it sizzle together

Cored the peppers (yes, I got rid of those extra seeds that clung on for dear life

Arranged neatly in a baking pan



Filled up the peppers - it only used about half of what I made and baked them

Here's what they looked like out of the oven



Added some cheese and ate - yum!

Full Recipe:

1 pound of ground turkey
1 packet of taco seasoning
1 can of black beans (drained and rinsed)
1 can of Rotel (drained)
1 cup of frozen corn (or whatever looks right)
Cumin
Garlic Powder
Crushed Red Pepper
2 bell peppers
Mexican Cheese

Brown the meat.  Add the taco seasoning, black beans, Rotel, seasonings, and corn.  Add some water (whatever is on the back of the taco seasoning packet).  Cover and let simmer

Cut the peppers in half and core them.  Place in baking pan.

Fill each of the peppers with the meat mixture.  Add some water to the bottom of the pan (the recipe I linked to said 1/3 cup - I had a LOT of water left at the end, so I think a 1/4 a cup would be enough, maybe even less).  Cover the pan with foil and bake at 350 for about 45 minutes or until peppers get soft.  Remove the foil and add cheese and put peppers back in oven for 5 minutes.

Serve them up and eat!!  Like I said, I only used about half of my meat mixture.  The other half would be good for tacos, nachos, or anything like that.

Weekend in Review - Thanksgiving

Well, I didn't finish out the last couple of days of November... but really I didn't know what to write about - I really felt like I was stretching it towards the end anyway....

This post will be funny to me... because it was a long 4 day weekend... which should mean a long post, but I'm going out on a limb to say it's not going to be that long...

Anyways... on Wednesday night Dan and I went out to dinner to Drunken Fish.  I bought a deal awhile back from LivingSocial and we finally used it.  I like sushi, but I like normal not crazy weird sushi.  We ordered an appetizer of pot stickers (so good) and four different rolls - my favorite the philly roll, a superman roll (Dan's choice), a spicy tuna roll and BLT roll.

We couldn't leave without getting my favorite dessert either - fried strawberry cheesecake cut into cute sushi piece - OMG so good!!  (it didn't last long enough to take a picture!)

We didn't do any drinking or anything crazy like Thanksgiving Eves of the past... we just came home, watched TV and went to bed... I guess that's how 30 year olds (almost for me) roll

On Thanksgiving I woke up a decent hour, which meant I got to watch part of the Macy's Day Parade.  I like the beginning the best when they do Broadway numbers and the Rockettes dance.

We went to Dan's grandparent's house to celebrate Thanksgiving.  I brought some of our pumpkin cookies and they seemed to go over well.  It was fun being around his family.

On Friday Dan ended up being off work... so we did one crazy black Friday shopping trip... and by that I mean we went to Petco which wasn't crowded at all... (we needed dog and cat items).  We did get these free adorable antlers for the dogs... of course they won't sit still long enough to get a photo... here's the best one I got...

Yep... not even cute

We went to a couple of other places... and then we were done... we did make some excellent sliders for dinner... and by we I mean Dan.

On Saturday I woke up to my eye being all red, goopy, and sore.  I was pretty sure I had pink eye... which I haven't had since I was a kid.  It was so strange to go to bed feeling fine and wake up to red, nasty eye.  In hindsight I don't think it was actually pink eye... but some type of eye infection or something?  It was red all day Saturday and most of Sunday, but it's looking fine now.  I'm still just wearing glasses so I don't aggravate it... but it stopped being gunky by Saturday night... so that was relief.  That's all I'll say about Saturday, b/c it was that exciting...

On Sunday we did the traditional cemetery visits.  My family met at my house to see it (some hadn't yet).  Then we headed to Jefferson Barracks to see my grandpa, Lindsey's dad, Billy's grandparents, and my grandma.

Happy snowmen went on all the graves - this is my Grandpa's

We like to put something different than flowers or the 'traditional' grave site arrangements... plus this snowman just makes you happy don't you think?

We then went to the other cemetery - Shepard Hill - to visit my uncle, great aunts and uncles and great grandparents.  We finished off by going to Cracker Barrel, per tradition.  It was a lovely morning spent with family remember those we have lost.

After all the pancakes we went our separate ways.  My mom was nice enough to ride to a few stores with me to find a Christmas tree.  I found one at Target I wanted to get, but couldn't find it in a box anywhere... I ended up getting mine from K-Mart for $34... it's cheap, but all decorated it's beautiful (pictures to come in a separate post).  I also decorated for Christmas... of course I thought I had more decorations... but I don't, someday I will!!

That was my weekend... see pretty darn low key and uneventful for it being a long, holiday weekend!