To Boldly Go . . . to Peppermint Bark Brownies

A relative of a relative posted a link on her blog to someone who had a recipe for these brownies on her blog.  I guess that's why they call it the web, right?  Well, here's my production: (that's a drum roll you hear in the background, in case you were wondering)

These were very delic, using Martha Stewart's brownie recipe.  So, how do you serve a dressy brownie like these?  With peppermint ice cream and homemade chocolate sauce, of course.  

Overall, I really liked this recipe.  I wouldn't use Martha's brownie recipe, though, I'm happy with my own.  Plus, I'd double the amount of chocolate available for the two layers, at least the white chocolate.  I liked the idea in the blog of how to cut and serve the brownies, making them even more dressy, but I don't know what BJ would say if I ever pulled out a ruler to cut a pan of brownies!  

A Holly Jolly Report

We had one of our best Christmases ever this year.  And (surprise, surprise), it had nothing to do with the packages under the tree.  (But don't get me wrong, those were great fun . . . thanks, everyone, for your love and generosity).  I think my kids got the idea this year that Christmas is about loving everyone around us and being generous with our time, talents and resources.  Every year my family does a service project, most often we donate to a "Bishop's Storehouse" where bishops can send families in need to shop for Christmas.  Bug was totally into it, Belle did very well and Guy didn't understand why the man at D.I. was taking his toys away.  We'll keep working on him!  After that we had a great night of family, food, stories and games.  I honestly don't think anyone would have noticed if we hadn't opened one present.  (But, again, we did, and they were fabulous.  Thanks, everybody!)

A Boy And His (well, his Grandparents') Train . . . Priceless.

Christmas Eve was a fabulous day.  A huge storm had been promised on Christmas Day so we visited with my parents just in case we couldn't see each other the next day.  It was so great to be relaxed and calm and just have a chance to visit.  Oh, yeah, and there were presents.  Great presents!

I think my favorite Christmas memory was listening to Bug and her Grandpa play "chopsticks" on the piano.  I tear up everytime I think about it.  My kids have the incredible blessing of having the best four grandparents ever.  

In the evening we had a cyber-Christmas Eve.  What a blessing to have web-cams where even if our family is half-way across the world, we can still be together.  We sang, read scriptures, told stories, laughed and cried (literally . . . would you expect anything else of me?).

Christmas morning was a typical child's Christmas: chaos.  There were puzzles and books and clothes and candy and dolls and balls and candy and candy.  I always insist that there at least be an orange involved somewhere in the mess!  

Really, I promise, there's a house here somewhere.

After all of our storm-planning, the snow didn't arrive until evening.  So, Grandma and Grandpa came to our house, too.  It was great fun, but full of chaos and a very cranky, over-stimulated three year-old.  We were lucky to have Erin and Kara with us not just for Christmas Eve but the next night as well, due to our late-arriving storm.  Thanks, Mother Nature!

We were blessed with an amazing Christmas, one that I will always remember as a favorite.   We hope yours was just as great!

A Christmas Photo Shoot

Take One:

Really, Guy. And I thought my girls were dramatic.

Take Two:

Not bad, group. But do you think we could all look the same direction?

Take Three:

Well, two out of three isn't bad, I guess.

Take Four:

And we have a winner! Merry Christmas, everyone! Have a fabulous week.

Self-Portrait #1

Apparently the self-portrait obsession is genetic, and does not skip a generation.

Deck The Halls

It was the elementary school Christmas program tonight.  This was our first year participating, so I wasn't sure what to expect.  What I got was a zoo.  600 kids, 2,000 parents/relatives all with at least two cameras and a camcorder in tow, all vying for prime picture-taking spots.  It's a jungle out there, people.  But it really was a great night, one of those memory making moments I'm working really hard to build up with the kids. 

We had a fun night and enjoyed having Grandma and Grandpa with us (they were presented with medals for being the best sports at a grandchild's school event).  We're screaming into the yuletide home stretch and I must say I'm enjoying Christmas so much more this year.  Slow down, make memories, enjoy the season, bake a lot, watch Christmas movies, read Christmas stories, look at all the Christmas lights, enjoy this great time of year.

Speaking of baking (well, sort of) I made myself a batch of this delic stuff tonight.  To give away, of course.  Oh, don't worry, I'm not a selfless baker/cook.  My batch is coming up tomorrow.  This is a great carmel popcorn.  Do not ask for the recipe unless you're prepared to look the other way as you combine obseen amounts of butter and sugar.   This batch is for the girls' teachers and Bug's piano teacher.  They're welcome.

Up next on the baking schedule, spiced nuts and Christmas bread (minus the pectin . . . sorry, Mom).  Stay tuned!

A Ghost of Christmas Past

Meet my old friends, my Department 56 Dickens Christmas village. We haven't put this out for about 6 years now because we had small children and nowhere perfect to put it. But after a visit to a friend's house and seeing her village on the floor, 6 children under 12 notwithstanding, I got brave! The Guy helped us put it out, and both BJ and I told him "Now Guy, we don't touch this, right?" about a million times. I did notice our firemen had been rearranged after my shower this morning, but no damage done, so we're OK.

This is one of BJ's favorites, our hotel. Love the doorman?

I'm glad I dusted this guy off. The kids already love it and I can tell it's going to be a fun new tradition to pull it out and set it up. I'm also glad we gave him a break, too. It felt like we were opening something completely new last night. I think I'll put a few more things away and pull them out in about 5 years. Great way to save on the shopping bill!

On 8 more shopping days left!

Priceless

-- Reflections is over! I only had one mom come up and question the judging. She started the conversation with "I don't want to be one of 'those' moms, but . . ." and then proceeded to be just that. But overall I think it went really well.

-- We celebrated St. Lucia day today. Well, Bug served breakfast. We're going to continually add to our St. Lucia traditions. What a great way to stretch out Christmas!

-- A great big snowstorm with nowhere to go!

-- A rousing game of "Grocery store" taking over the whole house. I'll let you know how well the cleanup goes!

-- Christmas is coming and I'm actually ready for it, not stressed out about how much I have to do!

-- Comfy pajamas and no reason to take them off!

-- A new crochet project and a complete lineup of Christmas movies!

Watch for those priceless moments in your life. They pass by way too fast!

Ebert & Roper . . . & Me

OK, so I saw "Twilight" this weekend with my sister. Giggle, giggle.




This was my sister's third viewing. But I'm not judging. It really wasn't a fantastic movie, but I would go again. Two hours of giggling and knowing glances with my sister. I was twelve again watching "The Man From Snowy River." Only four people on this planet get that reference and they've all been sworn to secrecy.

My favorites about this movie:

-- The casting. I think they did a good job capturing Edward, Bella, the Cullen clan, Charlie and Billy.

-- The soundtrack. Very cool. I'd own it. Hint hint.

-- The "Edward/Bella" chemistry. Wow. I loved the first seen when Bella goes into Chem. class and Edward looks like he's going to throw up. It just gets better from there.

-- Charlie. Nothing like a small-town Sheriff cleaning his gun, drinking beer and then introducing himself to the boyfriend, shotgun at his side.

Nice try, guys, but:

-- Edward's hair and the hand-me-down girl's coat he wears. The mother in me wanted to spit in my hand and flatten his hair. And for all the money the Cullens have, you think they'd have spent money on the coat, even if he didn't need it!

-- Edward's jumping and scaling of trees, and the "diamond skin" look. Sorry, it was just weird.

-- Carlisle's skin in the opening scene. It only bugged me at first, and then got better, so all's forgiven there.

The best thing about this movie was it helped me finish "Breaking Dawn." Not a fan of that book, at all. But that's another post for another day . . .

On a completely unrelated note Christmas is coming together quite nicely around here. We're to wrapping stage (it only took me 10 years to get this organized about Christmas!) and we're ready to go. Next week I start baking! I'm determined to try some of mine and BJ's Christmas favorites. Wish me luck! Have a great week, everyone.

Everyone's Doing It . . .

Both Erin and Bri have done random lists on their blogs, and since I'm running dry right now on "bloggable" material, I thought I'd give it a try, just so you don't miss me too much!



-- Our Thanksgiving was great but I really feel like I shortchanged this important holiday. We were so busy cooking turkey, eating (way too much, twice) and decorating for Christmas, I did not take even one picture! Feeling more than a few guilts about that one.



-- I will create a new blog design this week, you hear me! It's a matter of personal pride now.



-- I have every phobia you can name . . . water, enclosed spaces, open spaces, heights, public speaking, should I go on? I added a new one recently: that I will die and some well-meaning relative/neighbor will go to my house to clean and open a cupboard or closet. It's a great motivator, however. My closets have never looked better! My sister and I have a pact that we are the only ones allowed to clean each others houses if we have a stroke. Don't judge me!



-- We are 90% done with our Christmas shopping! This is a first for us and we're both busting with pride on our organizational abilities. Of course, if we go into the storage room and see all of the presents from Nana, alphabetized and categorized by age and favorite color, we realize we've gone some room to improve.



-- I volunteered to chair the PTA Reflections Contest at our elementary school this year. Why didn't anyone warn me?



-- Dark Chocolate is good for your heart and therefore considered a member of the fruits and vegetables food group in our house.



-- Bug "found out" about Santa this year. This kid is just so smart! Sigh.



-- My sister has seen Twilight twice since it hit the theaters and I'm going with her this weekend. My mom would probably say our time would better be spent cleaning out our closets. She'd be right!



-- I think I was born about 120 years too late. I love going to Gardner Village, This Is The Place State Park and watch reruns of Little House on the Prairie and Avonlea. I have a secret urge to darn socks and churn butter.



-- I am a closet country music fun. Remember "Go Team Shelton!"?



OK, there you go. Now I'm off to clean a closet so I can die in peace!