Happy Birthday Grandma

Happy Birthday Grandma!!!

We hope you have a wonderful day.  

Wish we could be together but know that we are thinking of you and sending lots of hugs your way!

Love,

Jacob, Jennifer & Jerry

Freezer Paper Stenciling

I've seen this done on several blogs and wanted to try it out.  I saw a shirt like this when I was pregnant and thought it was so cute but I wouldn't buy it because it was $30.00.  I just couldn't spend that much on something that would only be worn for a few months.  So now, almost 3 years later, I made the shirt. Well I bought the shirt at Wal-Mart, for only $3.50 (that price I can live with) and I put the design on it.

Notice I put stitches on the shoulders:)

Here's how I did it:

* I printed out what I wanted on the shirt on regular printer paper and then put the freezer paper over it   

   (shiny side down) and traced the design onto it.  

* Then you have to cut out the design.  

* Next you get your iron and ironing board and you put the shiny side down onto the shirt and you iron  

   over then freezer paper until it is stuck to the shirt.  

   (Don't forget to save the little pieces, like the inner parts to the letters - those have to be ironed on too  

   or it won't look right) 

* I sponged Tulip soft fabric paint in matte over the stencil, let it dry then peeled the paper off.

I hope this makes sense. I can't wait to find some cheap short sleeve shirts to put more designs on.  

You might notice that Jerry is standing on the table - this is the only way I could get him to let me take pictures of him in the shirt.  In the first picture he is saying cheese.

More Snow!

I am so ready for spring.  I'm tired of the white stuff and shoveling our drive way.  It hasn't even been the good snow for building a snowman and the wind makes it no fun to be outside in so I would like to be done with it and the warm days to be here soon, please.  Jerry's favorite thing about the snow is eating it and Max loves to put his bone in the snow and the dig for it, which is really funny to watch.  So in some ways it has been fun.

So since it's -15 degrees out I decided to make my favorite soup,  

Smoked Sausage, Butternut Squash and Wild Rice Soup

I found this recipe on The Food Network courtesy of Emeril Lagasse and I love it (Jacob even likes it).

I thought I would share the recipe, which I modified a little and I also cut the recipe in 1/2.

Smoked Sausage, Butternut Squash and Wild Rice Soup

Ingredients

• 2 medium butternut squash, about 3 to 4 pounds, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch chunks
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 12 cups chicken stock
• 2 1/2 cups chopped onions
• 1 cup wild rice
• 3/4 pound smoked sausage, such as kielbasa, cut into 1/4-inch
• 2 cups fresh corn kernels
• 1 1/2 cups half-and-half
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves
• *curry powder to taste - this is optional, I added this to the recipe

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Season the squash with 1 tablespoon of the oil, salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet and roast for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until tender. Remove from the oven and cool completely. In a blender or food processor, puree the squash with 2 cups of the chicken stock. Puree until smooth and set aside.

In a saucepan, over medium heat, bring 4 cups of the stock and 1/2 cup of the chopped onions to a simmer. Stir in the rice and cook until the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed, about 1 hour, stirring occasionally with a fork. Remove the rice from the pan and cool. In a large saucepan, over medium heat, add the remaining tablespoon of oil. When the oil is hot, add the sausage and brown for 3 minutes. Add the remaining 2 cups of onions and corn. Season with salt and pepper. Saute for 3 minutes. Add the remaining 6 cups of stock and squash puree. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.Skim off any fat that rises to the surface. Stir in the rice and continue to cook for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in the half-and-half and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the parsley and serve.

*I add curry powder when adding the rice and added less chicken stock because I wanted it thicker.

I'm a BIG boy!!!

Yay, look who is potty trained!  Actually, he has been trained since we got back from Christmas.  We've been working on this for a long time, since last spring.  He showed a lot of interest when we first started then decided he wanted nothing to do with it.  After reading a lot about it I decided to stop pushing the subject for awhile but would always take him to the potty when he wanted to go and of course praise him and make a big deal about it.  Then came the holidays and travel and I figured I would really start working with him again once we got home and things were back to normal.  I didn't have to do anything, he came home and decided on his own he was ready.  Wow, that was easy!  Do you know how much money we are going to save now that we don't have to buy diapers.  I have a few diapers left and we use them only at night but once we are out there's no buying more until we have another baby in the house.  He's only had a few accidents at night but mostly wakes up with a dry diaper and usually wakes up saying potty.  

He is such a BIG boy.  Now we just need to get his bed converted to a full size bed and we're done with the baby stuff for awhile (hopefully not too long though).

Happy Anniversary Mom & Dad!

Here is to 34 years of memories together.

You are amazing people and we love you 

very much.  We wish you another 34 years

of more happiness, love and great times!

Happy Anniversary Mom & Dad!!!

We love you!