Showing posts with label winter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label winter. Show all posts

Monday, January 04, 2010

Christmas 2009

We had a lazy family day with lots of fun, movies and food. Oh we painted the master bath too but that wasn't fun.

The best was watching the older kiddos enjoy the youngest squeals of excitement with each opened present. She would exclaim, "ooohhh! Just what I always wanted!" Very entertaining.

Santa left some press-on nails:



The afternoon held the movies for us. I was amazed at how empty the town was. Not even McDonalds was open.

After Avatar and The Princess and the Frog, we headed home and made the best French Onion Soup. So good I can't even remember what else we had.

Baby needs more diapers after the Christmas feast:


Grammy sent this Princess ensemble

Tuesday, December 08, 2009

The Best Potato Leek Soup


I love serving soup. Then I get to yell, "Soup's on!"

This is seriously the best. This soup could be eaten in any fine restaurant. Add the appropriate ingredients even if it sounds wrong.

Ingredients:

Olive Oil
One half a tube of breakfast sausage (like Jimmy Dean)
one half a tube of spicy sausage
5-6 small to medium baking potatoes peeled and diced
3 large leeks cut in half length wise then rinsed and sliced thin
1 large diced onion diced
Enough chicken broth to cover (about 6-8 cups)
3 bay leaves
1/2 cup Heavy cream (or any type milk to reduce calories)
Vanilla
Balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

Pour 3 TBS of Olive Oil in a large heavy soup pot.
Brown the sausage. Add your sliced leeks and onion and cook for 5 minutes while stiring. Add bay leaves and your potatoes and enough broth to cover.
Bring to a boil then reduce heat and cook until potatoes are fork tender.

Add cream, and a dash (about a table spoon of each) of vanilla and vinegar. Just do it, you can thank me later.

Salt and pepper to taste.

If you would rather omit the sausage, please add a dash of Tabasco at the end. You need a little spice to even out the sweet.

You can either remove bay leaves or state before serving with a very British enthusiastic voice, "if you get a bay leaf in your bowl, you have good luck for a week!"

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Texas Snow Day!




This is how we play in snow down in these parts.

Sledding and snowball fight!

It was just as fun as the real thing and we didn't have to knock crusted ice from our mittens or wring out our cold and wet socks.

Saturday, January 03, 2009

Well, we went on an unplanned road trip to St Louis for Christmas. I haven't been able to get back into the groove of things since then.

I could write a book on our trip but I will give you a few highlights instead.

All eight grand kids in matching jammies Christmas morning.
We drove 14 hours Christmas Eve to arrive in time for Christmas morning. We showed up at about 4am Christmas morning. I was exhausted but it was so worth it to have our kids spend this holiday with their cousins.















Raita and I took most of the kids to the frozen golf course and goofed around. We didn't realize you weren't supposed to go on the golf course. OOPS, don't tell anyone.

















Sibling rivalry still exists after 30.......














and the girls still like to do pyramids.














Grandma Noriko and her two seven year old granddaughters.
















The City museum is a must if in St Louis.




























And finally, we went on a family hike.

Monday, December 22, 2008




So, my mom was supposed to be here yesterday but they are snowed in. Portland is getting a huge dump of snow and ice. Who knows if they will make it here or not. Here are some of the pictures I have gotten from her snow situation.