The Blame Game

Okay, so how many of you play the 'Blame Game' with your spouse?
Here is our latest episode:

Noah is dressed, and finally so am I. Isabella is fed and in her carseat, ready to go.
I can't find my keys anywhere, so I call Jaime at work.

"Honey, where are the keys?"-me
"I don't know, I gave them back to you"-J
"Well, I've looked everywhere, and I can't find them, they aren't where I usually put them"-me
"I gave them back to you... remember?"-J

I hang up, look some more. Still can't find them, and now Isabella is screaming. We wanted to go to the library. I call Jaime again.

"Are you SURE you gave them to me? Remember YOU had them last!!"-me
"I gave them back to you."-J

click, I hang up.... look some more. Isabella is getting louder, Noah is getting impatient, and so am I. I still can't find the keys, and my blood is boiling. I decide to call Jaime a third time.

"You had the keys last! I remember, you gave me the spare, not the regular house keys!"-me
"I did??? OHHH check my jacket pocket in the closet"-J (very calmly I might add)

No keys. I yell at him, and hang up again. Then I had a great idea... why don't I check my purse again??? Part of me didn't want to, because I had just yelled at Jaime and convinced him he had the keys last... but I finally caved in and looked through my purse. Guess what? There they were, just sitting in my purse waiting to go to the library. HAAA

Needless to say, I felt awful, called Jaime back to apologize, and we had a really good laugh about it. Lucky for me he is very even tempered, forgiving, and has a sense of humor!

Munchies

Today we received a huge box from Nana and Tutu. In this huge box were several gifts for all of us. OHHHH, the anticipation. Noah is beyond excited. Remember that when you were a kid? Seeing your gifts under the tree, but you weren't allowed to peek, touch, or even breathe on the gifts? I know we always tried to inconspicuously tear a tiny piece of paper, so that we might guess at what was wrapped. Also in our box of goodies, were some eatable treats from Hawaii... things we haven't been able to find here. Or some things we can find, but under a different brand and it just doesn't taste the same. Included were Iso Peanuts, Kaki Mochi, and a huge bag of Organic Gummy Bears. I thought the gummy bears were an interesting twist. My in-laws know that we try to eat organic... sooooo they bought organic candy. To be completely honest... they taste awful. Even Noah, knowing that they were candy, wouldn't eat them. What a kind gesture. We are extremely grateful to have goodies shipped to us. I especially like when my mother-in-law sends me Big Island Cookies... my favorite!

What's for Dinner?

I ask myself this question daily... usually at about noon. Then I put it off until later... and again, I ask myself, 'What's for Dinner'? This goes on till about 4 or 5pm, then I start to panick, ransacking my cupboards for anything that is quick and easy. Just something to fill our bellies for the night.

Since Jaime stayed home from work today, I thought I'd leave it to him, (sneaky right????) NOT!!! Since I wasn't willing to eat spaghetti again, he came up with something really clever... SANDWICHES! (Yes, there is a hint of sarcasm there) So I thought we'd have soup and sandwiches.

What kind of soup should I make? I decided I would once again try to make Butternut Squash Soup. A friend brought it over for dinner a few weeks ago, after Isabella was born, and it was so delicious. I've never really been a fan of the squash family, but I thought this was so good. I made it for Thanksgiving, but it was too thick. I tried again tonight... but have decided maybe I don't like this soup so much after all. I need a certain someone to make it for me... because she made it just right!

Anyhow, here is a decent recipe for those of you who enjoy Butternut Squash.

Butternut Squash & Ginger Soup

Chop:

1 butternut squash
1 small onion
1 small potato
1 carrot

Saute chopped veggies in 2 tablespoons of butter for 5-10 minutes

Add broth or water, enough to cover veggies.

Cook for about 40 minutes or until everything is soft and cooked.

Puree in blender or food processor with a piece of fresh ginger (optional)

Salt and Pepper to taste.

Blanket of White

Late yesterday evening, we got more snow! So much that school is closed for today. This time it was 'real snow' not that icy slushy stuff from a couple of days ago. We played well into the night, past Noah's bedtime! After living in tropical Hawaii for so many years, snow in our yard is a real treat!

Jaime and Noah, after rolling around in the snow.

Last but not least, our lovely Isabella.

Hey...what's that white stuff?

As we were decorating our Christmas Tree, I looked outside and couldn't believe my eyes! It was snowing!!! And still is. So exciting! Seattle doesn't really get all that much snow, I'm sure it will all be melted by morning.

This was the only picture that shows the snow... guess it was just too dark out. SNOW!!! I love it!

My 'Hawaiian Husband' is in denial that summer is over, and is still trudging about in his shorts and bare feet. ( I know he's cold because he's wearing his ear warmers) HAA

The Best Ever?

Okay, so our family is addicted to home-made chocolate chip cookies.
It's a cold and wet Friday evening, so Jaime and Noah headed to the kitchen and started baking. Jaime swears these are the best cookies he's ever had!

Recipe:

2 sticks butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar

Cream sugar and butter

2 eggs- Beat in

2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt -add in

Dissolve 1 tsp of baking soda in 2 tsp of hot water-add

3 cups flour
2 cups chocolate chips

Bake at 350 for 10 minutes

Happy Thanksgiving

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

We enjoyed a nice afternoon at Jeremy & Fatima's house eating and playing Jenga.

Our menu included:

Turkey (the obvious)

Butternut Squash Soup

Mashed Potatoes

Cranberries

Red Cabbage (German style)

Apple & Pear Tart

The table was beautifully set!

500 Years???!!!!!

With a new little one in the house, I've started to rethink the whole 'disposal diaper' issue. The average diaper takes about 500 years to breakdown. YIKES! Cloth diapers are out of the question, as laundry is my least favorite chore, but I have recently learned of 'gDiapers'. The idea is baby wears little 'gpants' which are machine washable and have a removable, flushable liner, made out of natural fibers and are 100% biodegradable. HMMMMM
Has anyone ever tried these?
www.gdiapers.com

Kozy Kitty

The nurturing bug must have bitten Noah, for he has carefully tucked in his stuffed animal affectionately named 'MAMA KITTY' for the last week or so. This way she's cozy and comfy all day while he is at school.

For Me?

A few days ago Jaime and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary. After a week of pondering how to celebrate this year, with Bella crying and Noah tugging at my legs saying "mommy, mommy, mommy watch this, watch this... is that cool?" I decided having dinner on the table every night was going to have to be celebration enough. In the past we've celebrated by making yummy treats for each other. With Bella being only 5 weeks old, and Jaime working so much, I figured he may just forget it all together... but he didn't.

Instead he surprised me with a beautiful box of Dilettante Truffles. How lucky am I?

They were absolutely delicious!