Thanksgiving Traditions.

Our Thanksgiving tree grew each day in November until, on Thanksgiving morning, it was all full.



I had Thanksgiving morning all planned out. After Ben woke up, I would bring him into our bed and the three of us would snuggle and giggle and stretch and wake up slowly with no place to be. We do this on weekends, and it is one of the sweetest times we all spend together, so I was looking forward to getting a "bonus" snuggle in on Thanksgiving.

After we were all awake, I would make a cinnamon roll recipe I found on Pinterest, which promised to be quick, easy, and delicious. Then, we would all gather around the Thanksgiving Tree and while we enjoyed our decadent, sugary breakfast treat, we'd read the things we'd written on the tree and reflect on all of our blessings.

Once we'd licked our fingers clean and our last blessing had been counted, we'd migrate to the couch and watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, which is really nothing like I remember when I was growing up, but I still can't bring myself to stop watching it because, after all, it's a tradition. Broadway numbers and shameless NBC sitcom plugs be darned, Ben will grow to love the parade the way I did!

That's what I'd planned. Starting Thanksgiving 2011 and repeating every Thanksgiving to come. A tradition.

Ben woke up fussy on Thanksgiving. I fed him and brought him into our room and instead of cooing and smiling or playing games on the pillows, he just fussed. Disappointed but not deterred, I went to the kitchen to bake these.



They were easy and quick and really, how could dough, butter, sugar, and syrup in any combination not turn out great?

I pulled the rolls from the oven and dumped them out to cool and went to start cutting our tags off the thanksgiving tree.



I'd tied them on really well. Perhaps a little too well? I didn't want to tear them, so before long I was just frustrated, untying, then clipping, untying, then clipping... the rolls were getting cold.

After clipping all 492 tags off of our little tree, I carried them and our plates to the living room floor. We sat and ate and read through what we'd written. Ben vacillated between trying to eat the tags and playing in the firewood basket next to the fireplace.



Perhaps expecting a 7-month-old to participate in a family tradition is asking a bit much.

We hurried and finished and turned on the parade. It really does get worse every year. It wasn't long before Tim was watching football and I was scrubbing sugar and syrup out of my bundt pan.

So, the morning wasn't quite as romantic and seamless as it had played out in my mind, but our Thanksgiving Tree tradition is off to a good start. It really was fun to take some time, just the three of us, and reflect on all the great things God has given us this year.



What more could we ask for?

Warm & Wonderful Corn Chowder

Much to my chagrin, Tim doesn't like soup. Tim is a great sport and he'll eat whatever I make without any complaints, but when I ask him, he'll tell me he "doesn't prefer soup." Every time it comes up, I wail something along the lines of, "But I loooooove soup! Why don't you like soup?!?" He always says he prefers to chew his dinner. I don't know why I take it so personally.

I've convinced myself that someday he will change his mind, so I continue to try different soup recipes regularly (usually using less of the liquid base to make it more chunky and less soupy) and hope to gently lull him over to the land of soup-lovers.

This delicious, warm, wonderful, chunky, hearty, spicy corn chowder is one of the exceptions. Every time I set this soup on the table, I get nothing but great feedback, even from my non-soup-loving hubby. This soup is great for a ladies' lunch or a Sunday dinner on a cold winter day. Put it in a bread bowl and your life will be forever changed.

I've had a few friends ask for this recipe lately, so here it is:

"Chunky Corn Chowder"

- 5 strips of bacon
- 30 oz can corn
- 15 oz can cream corn
- 8 green onions
- 5 potatoes
- 2 tbsp flour
- 3 cups whole milk
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 2 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 4 oz can chopped green chilies
- Salt and Pepper, to taste
- Cooked, shredded chicken (optional)

- In a large stock pot, fry the bacon pieces until crisp. Remove from the pan, leave the drippings, and set aside.

- Peel and chop the potatoes into bite sized chunks. Slice the green onions very thin and separate the greens from the whites.

- Place the potatoes and the white scallion pieces into the stock pot and cook over medium heat until the scallions have softened (about 2 minutes).

- Sprinkle in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, about 1 minute.

- Pour in the milk, chicken stock, Old Bay, thyme, parsley, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Stir well. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly.

- Reduce heat to low and simmer for 12-15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Add corn, chicken (if using) and green chilies. Cook over low heat until heated through, about 5 minutes.

- Garnish with scallion greens, bacon, and cheddar cheese and serve.

This is the perfect soup to warm you up on a cold night. The cayenne gives it a bit of a kick, so reduce or omit the cayenne if you're not into the spice. Adding chicken will make it a pretty complete meal. If you really want to throw caution to the wind, use heavy cream instead of milk. You won't regret it.

If you make it, let me know how you like it!

Camped Out.

Last weekend, Tim and one of his best friends went camping. Tim would probably camp every weekend if not for... well... me.

Granted, there are different types of camping. The men in my family spend most of the year planning a giant camping trip in the Montana mountains every summer. They talk about what food they'll cook. They discuss rainfall and river levels and how that bodes for fishing. They make lists, multiple trips to the store, and then spend an entire day packing and repacking several trucks full of supplies. Everything is hauled out of basements and attics- sleeping bags and tents and bungee cords and lanterns and tin plates and silverware and bug spray and tarps and ponchos and fishing vests and hatchets and... They even take an espresso maker and a lawn chair with a toilet seat built into it. I don't really understand the allure of dragging half of what you own out into the woods to enjoy without a shower, but they seem to love it.

The kind of camping Tim prefers is the kind he did this weekend. Just two guys facing the bitter elements of North Texas with nothing other than a couple of packs, a tent, and a small cooler full of essentials. They roasted hot dogs wrapped in bacon. Must be a guy thing.

The guys were only gone for 24 hours, so I stayed home and hung out with Ben.

Camping?

How do I feel about camping?

Pretty much the same way Jim Gaffigan does. The one and only panic attack I've ever had happened while I was camping. That was the night I realized I may suffer from a smidgen of claustrophobia. Note: a "2-Man Tent" does NOT comfortably fit two average sized people. And don't even get me started on being the person sleeping farthest away from the zipper. It was like sleeping in a coffin. I could hyperventilate just thinking about it.

In short...

Baby Of Mine.

This little muffin is seven months old today.

From your head to your toes
You're not much, goodness knows
But you're so precious to me
Cute as can be, baby of mine

Saying "Thanks."

Dear Jill and Violet,

I've put off writing this note for almost seven months because I've been so overwhelmed by the idea of using mere words to say "Thank You!" All month long, our family has been hanging "leaves" on our Thanksgiving Tree, and when I put your names on the tree yesterday, I knew it was time to buckle down and write this note.

I simply cannot overstate how thankful I am for both of you and the kindness and compassionate care you provided for our little family back in April. I took Bradley classes and I was bound and determined to have a natural birth. When my water started leaking and I didn't go into labor on my own, things quickly deviated from my plan. I was induced and I was scared.

For the first twelve hours, Jill was my angel. Jill, you acted as both a nurse and a doula- encouraging me, comforting me, getting me popsicles, even rubbing my feet with lotion. You made sure I had everything I needed and you did absolutely everything you could to make me comfortable and help me through. You never wavered when I doubted myself or the situation. You were so sweet and so patient. You were truly an answer to the prayers we'd been praying up until that day. God knew exactly what I would need when things didn't go according to plan and He gave me you. After 13 hours of hard labor and 32 hours without sleep, I decided to get an epidural. I wrestled with feeling like I'd failed. You continued to sweetly encourage me, even after all the hard work you had done in the previous hours to help me work towards a natural delivery. I am so, so thankful for you.

Violet, you came on duty shortly after I received an epidural and I was resting comfortably, but still disappointed that the whole experience wasn't going as I'd hoped. You were kind and encouraging. You made me laugh and helped me get past the things that were beyond my control and you got me really excited about the birth of my son. I am so thankful that you were on my team that night/morning. After 25 hours at the hospital, I delivered my son- my whole world- and you were standing there next to me. You will always be such a huge part of our story.

Ladies, I cannot tell you how important your job is and what a difference you make in the lives of your patients. For you, I'm sure April 17th (and 18th... and 19th) was just another day at work. You may have been tired, you may have been having a bad day, things might not have been great at home, but I never would have known it. You treated my birth like it was the most important birth you'd ever attended- and for me, it was!

I regularly thank God that you were both on duty the day Ben was born, and I pray (what are the odds?) that you'll both be there when we welcome our next little baby into the world some day. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Love,

Meagan

This is the thank you note I FINALLY sat down and wrote to my labor and delivery nurses this morning. I will write a similar one to the midwife who was an equally wonderful part of Ben's birth.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, who do you need to write to today?

Color, Color, Color.

I'm in craft mode and there's no telling when it may end.

Tim and Ben humored me and helped with this print for Ben's bedroom.



It took a few tries to get exactly what I wanted. I tried the paint in different shades of gray and eventually decided I wanted bright colors to match Ben's room.

(In case you can't tell, the green hand is Tim's, the light blue is mine, and the dark blue is little Ben's.)

I honestly couldn't have imagined how difficult it would be to get a 7 month old's hand print. While I attempted to paint his little hand, he grabbed and squeezed the sponge brush, making paint drip everywhere. When I'd finally adequately covered his hand with paint, I couldn't get him to open his hand so I could press it flat. All Ben wanted to do was grab at the paper, so Tim had to hold Ben and both of Ben's arms while I attempted to pry his little hand open and press it flat against the paper. It was quite a sight.

You can see that Ben's print is smudged a little, but I don't mind. Every time I look at it, I'll remember him as this busy, active little guy that we just can't hold down.

While Tim was gone camping this weekend, Ben and I made some crayon art for his room. I found a few bright chipboard animals and pulled out crayons that match them. I lined them all up on a canvas- red and black next to the tiger, yellow and brown by the giraffe, etc.



I glued all the crayons in place...



Then I went to work with the hairdryer. I thought it would be pretty mindless, but the darker colors melted much faster than the lighter colors, and although I hadn't realized it until now, I don't think my hairdryer distributes heat evenly. It took a little bit of finesse to get everything melted evenly and straighten out a few of the colors that splashed all over, but we got it.

Note: Ben doesn't like the hairdryer and cried the entire ten minutes it took me to melt the crayons. Sorry, Buddy, but the crafting must go on!



Once the crayon had dried on the canvas, I glued the animals in place and hung it on the wall. Ben LOVES looking at all the bright colors and seems to have recovered from the trauma of the hairdryer.



Ben's room is slowly becoming more and more bright and personalized. He adds such color and fun to our little home.

Prayer Jar 2.0

I posted a few weeks ago about the Prayer Jar I made for Ben, and I got lots of great feedback on it. I can't take credit for the idea because I found the "Prayer Pail" on Pinterest, but I was forced to make the project my own because I didn't want to spend money to buy supplies I didn't already have. Anyway, we've been using the Prayer Jar every night and it's been a great tool for us, even with Ben being so little.

I've made a few "modifications" to the original project. Who would have thought such a simple project would require so much fuss?

1) I was having trouble getting regular acrylic paint to stay on the jar itself. A friend suggested I try this:


The enamel paint does stick to the glass much better than the regular acrylic paint (which didn't stick at all) but when I tried to write on the dried paint, the marker rubbed the paint right off the glass. It's still better than it was, and I suppose it's as good as it's going to get.



I also added some new sticks to the jar. I originally had just listed family members, but I decided adding some more groups will be a good teaching tool as Ben gets bigger.


(Not pictured: I also added "Our Church" and "Our Pastors.")

I look forward to talking to Ben about why and how we pray for our country, our neighbors, etc. I'm hoping we'll use this Prayer Jar for years to come!

236.

"The deadliest weapon in the world is a Marine and his rifle."
- Gen. John Pershing, U.S. Army

"The safest place in Korea was right behind a platoon of Marines. LORD, how they could fight!"
- Major General Frank Lowe, US Army

"I am convinced that there is no smarter, handier, or more adaptable body of troops in the world."
- Winston Churchhill

"You cannot exaggerate about the Marines. They are convinced to the point of arrogance, that they are the most ferocious fighters on earth- and the amusing thing about it is that they are." - Father Kevin Keaney, 1st Marine Division Chaplain; Korean War

"I love the Corps for those intangible possessions that cannot be issued: pride, honor, integrity, and being able to carry on the traditions for generations of warriors past."
-Cpl. Jeff Sornig, USMC; November 1994

"The Marine Corps breeds its own steel magnolias: gentle, gracious, loyal, but with hearts as strong and brave as the men they love."

“Freedom is not free, but the U.S. Marine Corps will pay most of your share."
- Fred Dolan

Being a Marine wife is adventure. A heart both swelling and breaking. It is tough good-byes, long days, lonely nights, and breathless homecomings. It is numbing. Gut-wrenching. It is the irony of being married to one of the strongest men in the world and having no one around to open the jelly jar. It tests marriages, wills, and faith. It is worry and wonder. It is crumbling and rallying. Gentle, quiet strength. Hope. Unspoken, inexplicable camaraderie. Pride. So, so, so much pride.



One of the greatest honors of my life is being a married to a Marine. I am thankful for my husband, those who went before him, those who fought beside him, and those who continue the fight. I am thankful for the Marine wives who waited with me and became lifelong friends in a manner of weeks. I am thankful for the tradition, the honor, and the accomplishments of the Marine Corps. I am thankful to be part of the family.

Happy 236th Birthday to my Marine and the United States Marine Corps.

Pinterest Party

A few weekends ago I had my very first Pinterest Party! I sent an evite to some friends who are on Pinterest and asked them to come over and bring the supplies they would need for a project so we could craft together!

I'm always up for crafting. I also needed a good excuse to make this cake:

It was delish. Really, really delish.

After I'd eaten a piece (or two... or something close to that) of cake, I got started on the mobile I made for Ben's room. I found the tutorial on pinterest (via this blog) and although it was a bit more tedious than I imagined (apparently I'm not great at cutting out circles) I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.



My Mom had the embroidery hoop, and I already had the ribbon and all the leftover fabric from Ben's bedding, so the only thing I had to purchase was the HeatnBond, which was about $2.50. Not bad!



Erica made a wrapped "N" like this one:



Lauren painted some canvases for her dining room, and LynnAnn made an adorable birthday banner for her little guy's upcoming party. I wish I'd taken some pictures, but we were just too busy crafting!

The party kicked off at 7:00, and I figured everyone would finish up about 9:00. Wrong! We had such a great time (and spent so much time gabbing) that we were just wrapping up around 11pm. As a matter of fact, while we were crafting, the Texas Rangers were on TV losing the World Series in the 7th game of the series, and we were so distracted by our crafting that none of us cried. Not even a little.

Side note: Perhaps if Tim began hosting craft parties during Cowboys games, Sundays wouldn't be so painful for him? I'll have to remember to mention that to him.

In short:

1) If you love crafting, you should throw a Pinterest Party

2) You should have at least one, if not two (or three) baked goods at said party, because, well... why not?

3) Allow plenty of time for gabbing and crafting

4) Make sure you have lots of space for everyone to spread out and work. (I covered my kitchen table and kitchen island with butcher paper).

5) Send me pictures of your crafts. Did I mention that I love crafts? I did? Okay.

Does God Hate Christmas?

If you're looking for something to help you maintain focus and perspective this Christmas season, allow me to offer a suggestion.

"Does God Hate Christmas?" is a fantastic December devotional with short, meaty entries for each day in December. Each study will challenge you to reflect on where you invest your time, thought, and energy during the holiday season.



You don't have to take my word for it, though.

Does God Hate Christmas? is a heart-warming devotional guide for the Christmas season. Each morning I felt as though I was unwrapping a precious gift of God’s truth for my life.

Michael Wierick
Executive Pastor
Fielder Road Baptist Church, Arlington Texas

Not only is it a great read, but it's affordable. For $10.00, you can buy one for yourself and give some as gifts.

As if all of that isn't enough, the book was written by my sweet, beautiful Mama.

You can order your copy (or several dozen, if this resounding endorsement has inspired you to do so) here.

If you order now, you'll have your copy in plenty of time for Christmas. When you receive your book in the mail, bake some of these cookies, curl up with both of them, and enjoy.

Dishes.

This is what our kitchen looks like:


Okay, well not exactly like that, but our dishwasher is broken. I would like to contend that one really doesn't realize how many dishes one's family uses on a daily basis until one's dishwasher is broken.

Tim spent about thirty minutes doing dishes yesterday. I did today's batch while Tim dried. I broke a sweat. I don't know if that says more about how many dishes I actually washed or about the kind of physical shape I'm in.

My hands were getting pruny while I scrubbed dried salsa out of a bowl. The longer I scrubbed, the more sorry I felt for myself and my poor, miserable, desperate lot in life.

By the time I moved on to the coffee mugs, I'd managed to end my pity party and shift focus to what a spoiled rotten brat I am.

Instead of complaining about my broken dishwasher or the cost we will incur to fix it, I with be thankful for:

- The dishes
- The friends who bought us the dishes as wedding presents
- The hot water I am washing the dishes in
- The food we ate off the dishes
- The friends we shared the meal with
- The sweet husband who would dry dishes next to me any day of the week

Gobble, Gobble.

My Mom has a gift for making each holiday festive and fun. She allowed Anthony and me to be as involved as possible in decorating and preparing for each celebration.

In November, Mom would cut a big brown turkey out of construction paper, complete with a red gobbler and skinny little legs. Then she cut out dozens of red, yellow, and orange feathers. The turkey got taped up on the pantry door, and every day in November we'd take a feather, write down what we were thankful for, and meticulously place the feather on the turkey's back. By Thanksgiving, the turkey looked good enough to eat.

I imagine one day I'll do pretty much the same thing for Ben, but I went a different direction this year since I stink at drawing turkeys and his handwriting still leaves something to be desired.

This year, we went a bit simpler and made a "Thanksgiving Tree."



I cut a few small branches off the oak tree in our front yard and put them in a vase. Doesn't get much easier than that. I cut scrapbook paper into squares, punched a hole in each piece, and cut up some twine. Every day, each of us writes down something we're thankful for and ties it on the "tree."



Granted, Ben's not really pulling his own weight on this little project. Every evening, I think of something that has made Ben smile that day and I write that on a card for him.


We are enjoying this daily ritual so much, we might just have to do it year-round.

My Happy Place.

Seriously, what's not to love? Thank you, Pottery Barn, for this Christmas inspiration.

That is all.

Except... I will say that that I don't think November 2nd is too early to begin listening to Christmas music. If you begin singing, "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year," on November 1st, you have approximately 55-ish days to sing and celebrate, which seems about perfect to me.

That is all.

Supermarket Sweep.

Dear Ben,

You are at such a fun age right now, and almost every day we get to celebrate a "first." Today was your first day to ride in the front of the grocery cart while we went shopping.

I usually carry you in the Baby Bjorn while we shop, and I would have today, too, but I left the baby carrier in Daddy's car over the weekend. I decided today was as good a day as any to pull out your cart cover and take it for a spin. You may still be a teeny bit small for such a big seat, but you did pretty well.

So much to look at!


Hey, this isn't so bad!


You are such a good helper to Mommy, and today you wanted to help hold my grocery list. Since I needed to look at my list, I let you hold a box of cake mix for me, and that kept you occupied for about eight whole aisles. You just loved the bright colors on the box.


By the time we checked out, it looked like you were ready to go home for a nap. I would think this whole "side/recline-in-the-front-of-the-cart" thing would be horribly uncomfortable, but you were totally relaxed.


You are such a great little buddy, and I'm thankful for every day we spend together.

Love,

Mommy