....fun at Nienie's

wrestling with uncle kk
being held in a head lock by uncle kk

trying to escape from uncle kk

chillin' with aunt kelsey and playing on her phone

watching cartoons from the bed

notice the tiny christmas tree in the background,

beautifully decorated by g and m

painting a cool picture

playing a game on Nienie's iphone

trying to "climb" up the inflated mattress daddy

propped up against the wall

sliding down

trying to get all of the buddies to "climb" up the mattress

(after nienie said, "let's don't jump and slide down the mattress,

someone might get hurt")

buddies are no longer "climbing"

now they're being "tossed" up the mattress:)

and yes, the zebra tent is up again! these boys really know how to entertain their nienie.

and....look who doesn't look so much like a puppy

anymore.

she's getting so big and has such a sweet personality!!!

Outside Fun...

I always enjoy the kids visits over the holidays since it gives us several extended days to be together. This year was extra enjoyable for me since the hubby and I have been "kid- less" in the house since August. G and M had fun in the back yard while enjoying some fresh air. They are absolutely the sweetest little boys!!!

And now, M can join big brother on the swings!

He's holding on tight so Nienie can let go of him long enough to take pics.

G is "King of the Swing Set" thanks to the cool stick he found nearby.

I just love these boys to pieces!!!

Aren't those the sweetest faces? I think so!!!

Thanksgiving at Deda's.....

Thanksgiving was so different this year with 4 little ones running around the house. It was so much fun to watch them all interact with each other. Kinsley turned one in October and she was stylin' in her cute coordinated outfit, complete with a pink matching bracelet! She has sure come out of her shell.....

It looks like Morgan is flirting with Bobo in this picture. I was so glad she could visit us from Texas, I miss seeing her. Morgan will turn 1 mid-December.

Here's Gavin, always a smile on this cutie's face. He likes his grandma!!!
He turned 1 in October.
The day was pretty enough for the kids to play outside for a bit. Morgan is
happy that Aunt Sissy took him out for some fresh air.

Love this picture, he's trying to figure out how far he can reach....

Kinsley, Grayson and Morgan are having a picnic, how cute is that?

Grayson is counting down, playing hide-and-seek. I think Caleb was

supposed to be hiding in this picture.
It's interesting to see my photo's change from pictures of food and Thanksgiving decor to all little, tiny people. They are just so entertaining!!! I'll try to get pics of the adults at our next gathering.

Can't wait til Christmas!!!

........busy, busy, busy

Mr. G.

Just popping in for a quick "hello". We had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend with family. It's such a let-down after they all leave. (How would you feel saying "good-bye" to these two sweet faces?!) The house goes from being busy and noisy to very still and quiet. So, I jumped right in to decorating for Christmas. I still have quite a mess, so I'll update soon. I need to make a path to the bedroom so I can get some sleep!!!

Little M.

this weekend.......

Jamie sent me a pic of Grayson with his decorated tree. He was so excited to help! I love this photo---thank you, iphone!!!

I did a bit of scrappin'. You can see the results at the end of this post.
(Oh my, after previewing this, I realize how messy my desk is!!)

Trimmed my hair a bit, saved some $$$

Wrapped belated birthday gifts for my great-niece and nephew.
They both turned 1 in October.

Melody loved hanging out on the table to see if she could possibly get into any trouble!!!

She would have, but Kelsey rescued her, she spoils her......

Another completed layout.

I got a lot accomplished this weekend, more than usual. Did a bit of Christmas shopping, both in stores and on-line. Baked some cookies, put some in the freezer to save for the kids visit at Thanksgiving, otherwise they would all be eaten by the time they get here.

Thinking about putting up my Christmas tree so it will be ready to decorate after Thanksgiving. Grayson said he wanted to help...........Jamie used to be my big helper, she must be passing on her talents to him!

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

bits & pieces.....

I don't usually decorate for Fall. It' so close to Christmas, I would rather save my energy for putting up the tree, wrapping packages, shopping, baking. etc. This year I broke my rule just a tiny bit. We have secret pals at school and I received a huge basket filled with Fall/Thanksgiving decor. So, I put together a table arrangement for the dining room table. Of course, first I had to get rid of all the paperwork, bills, papers to be graded, catalogs, (you get the idea). It defeats the whole purpose to decorate and still leave all of our junk laying around....Anyway, it makes the house look a little more festive.

Also on my "to-do" list: laundry.....

Baking snickerdoodles for Kelsey, of course, Roger and I had our fair share too....

A little scrappin'...Here's my table while page is in progress:

Page layout completed.....

And another page complete....

Now if I can get papers graded, decide on what's for dinner, and get a little knitting in, I can call it a day!!

Gobble, Gobble...

Here's a layout I did with pre-Thanksgiving pics. Since Jamie couldn't travel during the holiday season, I spent extra time at their house. I visited about a week before Thanksgiving and Grayson and I made turkey cupcakes. He had a lot of fun decorating (and eating!), the evidence is on his face!!

My Turkey Report....

I realize this is a little late, but I just haven't had the time or energy to update since hubby got home from Mumbai. Things are finally settling back down now, so here we go........ I promised to report back on how the Thanksgiving turkey turned out. As I mentioned in a previous post, I tried a new turkey brine this year, and it turned out really yummy! Last year was the first time I tried a turkey brine. To tell you the truth--I'd never even heard of brining a turkey! I'd always just popped it into a large cooking bag, and let the oven do the rest. Easy enough! Anyway, last year I saw a recipe that sounded interesting over on Pioneer Woman's blog, http://thepioneerwoman.com/, and decided to try it out. It's certainly not as easy as marinating chicken breast, but it was worth the wrestle. I usually cook 1-2 pounds of chicken at once---but my turkey weighed 20 pounds, and hubby wasn't home to help lift it! It wasn't a pretty sight to watch, but it turned out really tasty! Here's the recipe, for next year of course, if you're interested.

ORANGE TURKEY BRINE
1 (12 fluid ounce) can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 orange, sliced
1 lemon, sliced
1 lime, sliced
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
3 cloves garlic
2 bay leaves
1 cup kosher salt
1 1/2 gallons water

DIRECTIONS
Combine the orange juice concentrate, orange slices, lemon slices, lime slices, thyme, pepper, garlic, bay leaves, salt, and water in a large stockpot; bring to a boil. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature. (Adding ice cubes will hasten this step.)
Wash and dry your turkey. Make sure you have removed the innards. Place the turkey, breast down, into the brine. Make sure that the cavity gets filled. Place the bucket (I used a large cooking bag and placed it in my roasting pan) in the refrigerator. Allow turkey to marinate 1 to 2 days before cooking. (I left mine in for 24 hours) remove the turkey carefully. Drain and discard the excess brine and pat dry.
Cook the turkey as desired reserving the drippings for gravy. Keep in mind that brined turkeys cook 20 to 30 minutes faster. (recipe from http://allrecipes.com)

One more chance...

Crawford Market (above)

Since Thanksgiving isn't celebrated in Mumbai, there will be no turkey dinner for hubby. At least that is what he was told. But, slipped under his door this morning was a note from the hotel that they would be serving a holiday dinner. So, maybe he'll get some turkey after all. Just in case, I've been informed to freeze a nice portion of our feast for him to enjoy when he returns home. Since the offices will be closed here in the United States on Thursday, the offices in Mumbai will not be open either, all of the correspondence is routed through the U.S. system. They've promised him (with the rest of his group) a day trip on Thursday, a shopping excursion hopefully, since they will all be off work. He isn't for sure what is planned, but they are scheduling a trip into the city. He's really looking forward to it, so I hope he sees a lot more than he did last weekend. Can't wait to hear about it!!

Off to create my turkey brine. I found a new recipe that includes oranges, limes, and lemons. hope it taste as good as it sounds. Last year was the first time I used a brine, and I purchased a mixture from Williams Sonoma--it's a lot of work, but worth it. Just a little more challenging for me this year since hubby isn't here to help me lift the 22 pound turkey in and out of the fridge, and then in and out of the oven. I'll let you know how it turns out...