Friday Things
1.ย Things continue to be busy here with a toddler and an infant, but weโre falling into a little bit more of a routine. Although, that quasi-routine is constantly upended by an 8-week old who most days prefers to only nap for 30 minutes in his crib, and would rather be held or snuggled up in a wrap. I remember going through phases like that with Joseph (in his case, he only liked napping in his swing!) and thinking that he would NEVER sleep in his crib and I would NEVER be able to get anything done around the houseโฆ this time around, I have the good fortune of the memory that these things are short-lived and to just enjoy each day as much as possible. I really canโt complain, though โ Dominic has been sleeping for 6 to 8 hour stretches at night for the last two weeks, which is AMAZING. Iโm finally feeling rested again!
Plus, Iโm officially cleared from my doctor โ I can lift Joseph again, my incision is completely healedโฆ getting back to normal :)
2.ย Iโm currently at the tail end of my maternity leave, which means Iโll be getting back into the kitchen on a more regular basis in a couple of weeks.ย Tell me about the recipes youโre hoping to see in the new year!
3.ย You may remember that a couple of weeks ago I shared some crazy stories that made us think that perhaps Einstein was still hanging around with us. Well, since then, Joseph received a puzzle that, when you move pieces, it makes sounds (this one). For nearly two weeks, every single morning, with us being nowhere near the puzzle, one of the sounds go off. The dogs would always get fed at 7:45 in the morning, and Einstein would ALWAYS start begging way earlier than that. This puzzle has gone off between 7:25 and 7:45 every.single.morning. My husband did some reading about how those puzzles can tend to go off on their own because of the magnets, but this is the ONLY time it makes noise on its own. So crazy!
4.ย This story about Coletteโs cookie business is so incredibly heartwarming. It looks like you can order cookies online, too!
5.ย We havenโt really chatted since the holiday โ if youโre in the U.S., how was your Thanksgiving? Tell me about the best thing you ate! We had such a great day at home with lots of family; I shared a ton of photos in my Thanksgiving photo diary if youโd like to take a peek :)
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6.ย Did you do any Black Friday or Cyber Monday shopping? I havenโt done a lick of Christmas shopping yet, which means I really need to get my butt in gear getting organized!
7.ย Thanks so much to everyone for your feedback on the new site design! Itโs been a long time coming, and weโre still doing a little fine-tuning, so please bear with me if things look a little funky for another day or two โ I appreciate your patience! :)
8. Whatโs on your holiday baking list this year? Iโm planning to make my peppermint bark today so I can nibble on that for the next few weeks โ my one must have each year!
9.ย We donโt have a lot on our DVR right now, so tell me all about your must-watch holiday movies and shows!
10. TGIF! I hope you have a bright and merry weekend!
I get goose bumps reading about things happening that makes you think Einstein is near by! I truly think he is there watching over the boys. I meanโฆWHY not!! Love the picture of the boys! Thank you for sharing with us. The best thing I ate on Thanksgivingโฆ.well, next to the turkey, probably my daughters cranberry sauceโฆI canโt get enough of that stuff. (your pecan pie bars were soo yummy too) My computer has been down for a while so kind of late posting this. I am going to start my Christmas baking this week and probably start with
cranberry breads (going to make that cranberry pound cake into two bread loafs) and homemade toffee.
I have a long list of โgoodiesโ I plan to make though! Wish me luck!
Good gosh we had a great Thanksgiving and made a few new recipes, one was called Cream Biscuits, I would have been happy just having those. So glad you have been released from your doctor, ha. Those boys and Duke are a wonderful sight to say the least. I want Josephโs toes, hee. Precious toes. Really liking your new web design, still playing around with it. Good job, happy holidays. Thanks
The website was fine todayโฆ I donโt know why I was having an off day with your siteโprobably my computer (or me).
Anyway, thank you for the pictures (I always look forward to the daily BEB)!
Like someone else already said, I could hardly tell you were on maternity leave as it seemed you kept up so well with your write-ups and pictures. ย You are definitely a โsupermomโ with darling boys!
Take care, Pam
Most precious little one ever.
Glad your back up and running your blog. I was beginning to worry after a few days.
Glad all is well. Tried your cooked apple pie for Thanksgiving. Needless to say, it was outstanding
Would love to see a good recipe for vegetable lasagna
Enjoying the new site! ย It looks great! Your boys are adorable (including Duke of course!). Thatโs so weird about the puzzle!!? As for recipes for the new year, I just got an Instant Pot (after seeing your heads up on Facebook that Amazon had it on sale! Thank you!), but now I donโt really know what to do with it! Any ideas for that would be appreciated, and I know itโs a huge fad now, so lots of people probably would appreciate some tips and recipes for it.
I sure hope when my little one is born he sleeps more than 30 min a day but that is good your getting some sleep at night. Iโd much rather have a good nights sleep but also want him to sleep more during the day. I just canโt tell what he will be like yet he seems to be kicking all hours of the day right now! The best thing we had on Thanksgiving was turkey and dressing my mother in law made, it was so moist and I think it was the best Thanksgiving dinner Iโve ever had. We turned up the oven because it didnโt seem to be cooking fast enough and that did the trick it was done perfectly at 4pm right on time! I made all the sides except the dressing and Iโm usually more of a sides person they were all fabulous! I added cheese and bacon to the mashed potatoes to kick them up a notch, they were SOOOO GOOD! I wonโt be doing much cooking for Christmas this year because we are going to Denver to do something different since its always so warm in Texas. We are going to spend Christmas Eve with some friends and drive home on Christmas! We hope it might be a white Christmas (EVE) for once because it never snows in Dallas this time of year. The only thing besides football Iโm watching right now is This Is Us which is really great!
I finally got internet in our new house, just in time to see your beautiful website! Love it! If you have Netflix, give The Crown a try; itโs about the early life & reign of Queen Elizabeth II. So good!
Glad Iโm receiving Friday Things once againโฆfor a few weeks, the emails just stopped. ย I finally resubscribed and all seems to be good again. ย Havenโt quite woeka s out th new design, I just usually go,with the flow as I use it. ย One other person mentioned they miss the logo of the 50s style brown-eyed girl and I agree with that as it thought it was cute. ย As always, l love the photos of the kids and doggie and of course the food!
Hi, I have a question. On your video it shows you cooking on a single burner, is there one youโd recommend for home use? Thank you for your great web site, I love the recipes and the family photos, including the dogs. I also hear from pets who have passed on, just open your heart, they are still around. Happy Holidays to you and your family
Hi Linda! I actually outsource those videos; I donโt have a single burner at home, I just use my regular stove. Iโm sorry I couldnโt be of more help!
There is nothing better than babiesโ toes and a puppyโs face! ย Those little feet of Joseph and Dominic, side-by-side, are so sweet. ย And Dukeโs face is begging for a hug and kiss. ย I was wondering, too, what heโs looking at outside? ย What a great story about Coletteโs Cookie business. ย This was the first Iโve seen or heard about it, so thanks for posting it. ย Have a great weekend!
I honestly donโt remember what he was looking at, but maybe the neighborโs dog! :)
I admit to having a shameful weakness for cheesy, formulaic Hallmark Christmas movies and I actually own โA Golden Christmasโ 1 and 2 on dvd so I can watch it every year.
The new site is lovely! As for tv shows, if you havenโt been watching โThis is Usโ I highly recommend it. But make sure you watch the first episode before you watch any others because thereโs a great twist to it that will be ruined if you donโt. Their Thanksgiving episode was terrific. :)
We LOVE โThis is Usโ โ what a great new series!
Gilmore Girls reboot on Netflix is a hoot! The TV series was one of my favs and I was pleasantly surprised at how well done the Netflix 4 episode season was. ALL the characters made appearances and the inclusion of current events was a sooooo fun!!! I want more!!!
What is your pup looking at outside??
Iโm not sure actually! Probably the neighborโs dog, if I had to guess based on the direction heโs looking :)
The Crown on Netflix is a must see.
YES!!! SO good.
I made Rosemary Pork Tenderloins for Thanksgiving dinner this year, because Iโd had severe strep throat for a solid week before Thanksgiving, and I felt too exhausted from that to deal with a turkey. Iโve made the tenderloins many times, so can pretty much make them with my eyes closed,, and my family loves them. My family was perfectly fine with having tenderloins for Thanksgiving dinner. HOWEVER, my 27 year old new son-in-law LITERALLY almost cried when he got to my house on Thanksgiving and heard that I wasnโt making a turkey. LOL! I know he loves my Rosemary Pork Tenderloins, but heโs VERY attached to the traditions he grew up with, and a turkey is the way his family ALWAYS did Thanksgiving, so he was crushed, LOL. He finally got over it and genuinely enjoyed the tenderloins, but ONLY after Iโd agreed that if he bought a turkey (which he went back out and did Thanksgiving morning), Iโd cook it for him on Saturday when he came over to watch football. So I cooked the turkey with sides on Saturday, and we had โThanksgiving Round 2,โ and all was well, LOL. Honestly, I normally cook a brown sugar/pineapple/maple syrup ham on Thanksgiving, because some in my family prefer that to turkey, but on Thanksgiving from now on, I believe Iโll be cooking both a small ham AND a big turkey! :)
I love the new web design! Itโs very pleasing to look at! Thank you so much for sharing you and your family with us. I canโt tell you how I look forward to Friday Things! I adore the pictures of the kidsโ my girls are grown (25 and 21, but still living at home) and itโs so nice to read your stories and reminisce! Plus, I canโt get enough of puppy pictures! I do believe that you are not crazy and Einstein is hanging around. Always the protector!
Thank you again for sharing with us.
It makes my day (especially Friday!)
~Christine
That picture of your boys is adorable. ย It brings back memories of mine more than 20 years ago. ย I had to laugh a bit when I read that your maternity leave is almost over because you have done such an excellent job keeping this blog going even with a new baby that I forgot you were technically on โleaveโ.
ย Itโs obvious your update was time consuming and well thought out. ย I was a bit taken back by some of the negativity yesterday. ย I will admit it took me awhile to mess around with it and figure some things out but Iโd say thatโs because I am not the most techno-savvy and had nothing to do with the new design. ย Already today I am enjoying it a lot and finding my way around all the new features. ย However, I love you blog, your recipes, your pictures and how involved you are with us, your readers so it wouldnโt matter to me how you choose to layout your site, I am not going anywhere!! ย
I am hoping to see more family recipes, recipes that are nostalgic to you and take us back in time as well, I love your savory recipes as much as your sweets so maybe more savory options. ย I do remember a Karat cake (thatโs the correct spelling) that my aunt used to make but have misplaced the recipe. Do you have anything like that? ย My mom used to make Butter Rolls for breakfast on Christmas morning that were a real treat. ย They baked in a buttery sauce that turned into a custard like sauce. ย Very fattening but so good as a special occasion treat. ย Iโd love if you have a recipe for it. ย I just remember LOTS of butter being involved as well as whole milk. ย I have also always been ย intrigued by recipes I see for Caramel Cake but am never sure what recipe to try. ย Any suggestions? ย Finally, please keep telling your stories and sharing your Friday things and your Saturday updates. ย I love ย seeing the menu for your Sunday dinners and would love the recipes for those meals. ย I also just want to say thank you for always responding quickly to questions and your willingness to help. ย Please keep up the good work and never stop blogging!ย
The boys are so handsome together! My favorite thing from Thanksgiving food was hands down your sausage, apple, sage stuffing/dressing- was a hit with the relatives. I have hit some sales but have more shopping to do. I knowvwe will make sugar cookies, chocolste chip cookies and I plan to make some turtles. Might make some bark too..not sure what else. Have a good week. Love the new look
It certainly seems clear that Einstein has a strong spirit and that he wants you to know he is not going anywhere! I hope you and your husband are letting him know he is still part of the family.
I saw the original news story about Colette on the local news not that long ago. Last night, the station did an update. Colette has received orders for thousand of cookies and has secured a commercial kitchen location and some help so she can get the orders filled. She said she is sending out notes to those who placed orders asking them for patience as she works to fill the orders. She is one amazing young woman and I hope she is able to secure a Shark Tank like mentor.
Finally, the new site looks greatโฆwelcome back from maternity leave!
I enjoy your website and seeing pictures of your boys. ย I also enjoy your recipes. ย I would like to see some low fat recipes. Thanks