This Christmas

We spent our Christmas weekend with my family at my parents' house.  Unfortunately, Brandon got sick on Friday so he was out of commission that day, but we had a great time regardless.

We spent a lot of time chasing around and playing with these girls:

Wearing matching pajamas:

Leaving cookies, milk and notes for Santa:

Opening gifts and playing with our new toys:

And how could we forget, re-enacting the Christmas story:

After our time in Pratt, we headed back to Wichita to celebrate Christmas with my dad's extended family.  We had a great lunch and played Dirty Santa with the whole crew.  While my cupcake stand was opened by my cousin who is in college at KSU, he rolled with it and thought it could be used as a shot holder...lol!  Luckily, my aunt showed him mercy and stole it from him.

Here is a pic of my dad's family, minus one sister and one brother.  Could the brothers look anymore alike?!?!

After we finished playing Dirty Santa, Brandon and I had to scoot out to go celebrate Christmas with his family.

We started out the afternoon watching "The Little Fockers", which was pretty funny.  His family has a tradition of seeing a movie on Christmas Day, so it was fun to be able to carry it on, even though we weren't together on Christmas.

After the movie, we headed back to his sister's house to eat pizza and open gifts.  This year, Brandon's parents wrote out Bible verses on slips of paper and before we opened a gift we had to read the verse.  All of the verses represented ways that they prayed for us this year and in the years to come.  This was a great way to remember why we celebrate Christmas and to slow the gift opening.


Pam and Craig opening their gifts:

Justin and Ashley reading their verses:

The boys got head lamps from Grandma Cathy:

We were definitely blessed this Christmas, so I will have to do another post to show off our awesome gifts!

Be Right Back.

We have been Christmasing all weekend, which translates to eating lots of food, enjoying time with our families, getting sick (well, Brandon anyway), playing games, watching movies, and relaxing.

Now, it is time for me to get our house in order, make a grocery list, do some laundry, disassemble Christmas decorations, and prepare for the new year ahead of us.  I will be back soon, though, with lots of pictures and fun stories to share!

Oh, and I'm going to live up my WHOLE WEEK OFF WORK by doing fun things with friends :)

Sharing the JOY of the Season

I love Christmas time at our church.  The music is always so touching and beautiful, the church is beautifully decorated, my heart flutters when the lights dim and the advent candles are lit, and the sermons are always so insightful.

This week's sermon was all about the shepherds who were told by God that the Savior had been born in Bethlehem.  You can listen to the whole sermon here, but I wanted to share a few of my thoughts after marinating on the sermon for a few days.

The shepherds werenot the "upper crust" of their society.  They wore tattered clothes, had a reputation of being thieves and partiers, and were pretty much the lowest on the totem pole.  But, God chose to tell them of Christ's birth.  He chose the broken people to spread the good news of Christ's birth.  After they were told the news, they decided they wanted to go to Bethlehem to see this thing for themselves.  Once they got to Bethlehem and realized that what God had told them was true, they began spreading the news like wild fire.  They told everyone they came in contact with that the Savior had been born to a virgin.  They shared the news with JOY!

Often times, we as Christians are nervous or apprehensive to share our faith with others.  Whether it be out of embarrassment, fear of rejection, or lack of answers to hard questions, we sometimes think it is just better to live our lives and hope people see a difference rather than to shout it from the mountain that we love Jesus and we are going to have eternal lives in heaven because of the gift Christ gave us.

One of our pastors gave us a great analogy to put this into perspective; if we were to find a cure for cancer today, we would tell as many people as we could and we would become VERY rich.  So, why is it that Christ has given us a cure for death and we are hesitant to share the steps to be cured?

As I've pondered this thought this week, I have felt very convicted.  Why can't I be more like the shepherds?  I mean, they had a lot to prove, given their reputation, but they shared anyway.  They weren't afraid of what others might think because they wanted to share the joy with everyone.  I can only hope that I can somehow make an effort to share the joy of the season as much as possible.  Because really, who wouldn't want the ultimate Christmas gift??


"These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full" -- John 15:11

Fa la la la la

Tis the season to be jolly and boy have we been having a jolly good time!  In the past couple of weeks, we/I have:

• had two office Christmas parties
• hosted my BUNCO group Christmas party
• we've organized 216 gifts for our church's Angel Tree and packed 108 food bags with our small group
• attended the VIP opening of the new Warren IMAX Theatre that Brandon worked on
• gone bowling (and I bowled the best rounds of my life!!) with people from Brandon's office
• had a date night out that included looking at Christmas lights
• hosted a fun girls Christmas dinner and gift exchange

And, it's not even Christmas yet!  Thankfully, we have 99.9% of our shopping done so we aren't having to worry about running around too much more.  I also have a lunch with a couple of my college friends, we have dinner with Brandon's sister and her husband, and Brandon has an office Christmas luncheon left, but that is all very manageable compared to the past week!

Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures at our office parties, my BUNCO party or of our small group packing up the Angel Tree gifts, but I do have a pics of the IMAX opening and our girls night.  I also have a couple of recipes to share, so bear with me!

For my BUNCO party, I made a really yummy punch so I thought I would share the recipe here in case anyone is needing a good, refreshing and not too sweet punch for a Christmas gathering this week:

CRANBERRY-RASPBERRY GINGER SPLASH

6 parts Ocean Spray® 100% Cranberry & Raspberry Juice (could also use Cranberry-Pomegranate juice)

1 part orange juice, chilled
4 parts gingerale, chilled

In a pitcher, mix Ocean Spray® 100% Cranberry & Pomegranate Juice and orange juice. Stir in gingerale. Fill with ice and serve.


In recent years, our small group has helped with the Angel Tree ministry by making dozens and dozens and dozens of cookies to hand out along with the gifts.  We have always enjoyed making the cookies, but this year we were all so busy that we couldn't find much time to make cookies, so we decided to make up some food bags to pass out.  We also talked about how this is a Christian ministry, but we weren't doing much to spread the word about Jesus with these families, so we found the poem below, printed it out and attached it to the food bags with a candy cane.  I think it is a fun poem that also talks about Jesus:

Look at a CANDY CANE, what do you see?  Stripes that are RED like the BLOOD shed for me! 
WHITE for my Savior, Who's sinless and pure! 
"J" is for JESUS, My Lord that's for sure! 
Turn it around And a staff you will see --- 
Jesus, my SHEPHERD, Is coming for me!

The IMAX opening really deserves a post all of it's own, but I thought it would be fun to show a few pictures of the building.  Brandon and his team put in so much time and effort and got this building built in less than six months!!  Pretty amazing!!

This past Thursday, the Warren folks had a huge VIP preview party and we were lucky enough to score an invitation.  It was definitely fun to be there with the movers and shakers in the city and to experience the theatre for ourselves, but the movie selection was not up our alley.  TRON Legacy 3-D was the movie and to be honest, we wouldn't recommend it to others.  But, like I said, it was more about the experience than the movie.  Here are a couple of pics from the evening:

{In the limo on the way to the party....yeah, that's how we roll!}

{The project team - Evan (assistant superintendent), Don (head superintendent), Brandon}

{Ready for our 3-D movie experience}

Finally, tonight I had the privilege of hosting the three girls from our small group for a nice dinner and gift exchange.  I've known each of the girls for different amounts of time, but they honestly are some of my best friends.  We've seen each other through a lot and they each have blessed me in so many ways.  I'm so thankful God brought us all together and I hope our friendship continues for many years to come!

{Christy, Emily, Ali, and me}

I wanted to make this dinner special, so I used my china and I had the following menu (links for all but one of the recipes are included):

• Filet Mignon in Mustard-Balsamic Vinegar Sauce
• Rosemary Roasted Potatoes
• Garlic Parmesan Green Beans
• Chocolate Banana Brad Pudding 

The filet recipe was so easy and very tasty, thanks to my aunt Sharon's recipe in our new Bohn Family Cookbook (more about this later!).

Filet Mignon in Mustard-Balsamic Vinegar Sauce
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 beef tenderloin steaks (filet mignon)
½ cup chicken broth
4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

About 30 minutes before serving, preheat oven to 425 degrees. In ovenproof 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat, in hot oil, cook filet mignon until browned on all sides, about 6 minutes. Place skillet in oven, bake about 5 minutes for rare or until desired doneness. Remove meat to warm platter; keep warm.

To skillet, add chicken broth, vinegar and mustard. Add some cornstarch to chicken broth if you prefer a thicker, gravy-like sauce. Over medium-high heat, meat mixture to boiling, stirring constantly and scraping until browned bits are dissolved. To serve, spoon sauce over steaks or serve sauce on the side.

Three out of the four recipes were new recipes that I had never tried.  Thankfully, these girls are used to being my guinea pigs and are willing to try out all of my new recipes.  In my opinion, all of the recipes were quite tasty, but I am a little biased!

So, there you have it.  Play-by-play of what we've been up to.  I absolutely love this time of year and as much as I long for some down time, I've loved every minute of the past couple of weeks.  It really doesn't get much better than spending time with friends and creating memories!

Christmas Questions

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? A little of both, but mostly wrapping paper. I love mix and matching papers and ribbon.  It is one of those opportunities to bring out my floral skills :)

2. Real tree or Artificial? Artificial (and we got a new one this year! hip hip hooray!)

3. When do you put up the tree? Usually after Thanksgiving. This year it went up the Sunday after Thanksgiving.

4. When do you take the tree down? Usually between Christmas and New Years

5. Do you like eggnog? NO. WAY.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? The one I remember most vividly is my Barbie house

7. Hardest person to buy for? My Dad

8. Easiest person to buy for? Brandon

9. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, a beautifl Willow Tree Angel set.

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? One of my favorite things about Christmas is receiving all of the Christmas cards and pictures from our friends and family so it is only right for me to reciprocate the thought.

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Hmmmm...I can't really think of anything.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? Miracle on 34th Street

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? In December.  I just can't get myself organized enough to start any earlier.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? No.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Everything in sight?!?

16. Lights on the tree (colored or clear)? Clear lights

17. Favorite Christmas song? O Holy Night or Silent Night

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? We usually travel to one set of parents house during Christmas, but always find another time to celebrate with the other set.  This year we will be in my home town for Christmas.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? Yes, but only because of the song..."You know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer..."

20. Angel, star or ribbon on top of tree? None of the above.  I have some sprouty sticks that come out of the top of the tree. (I need to post pics soon)

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas morning with my family and either Christmas Eve or sometime during the day on Christmas Day with Brandon's family.

22. Favorite children's Christmas song? I guess I don't know how children's songs differ from regular songs...

23. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? The grouchy people.

24. Favorite ornament theme or color? This year we are doing green and silver

25. Turkey or ham on Christmas day? I prefer Prime Rib, but I think we're having ham this year.

26. What do you want for Christmas this year? I never have trouble coming up with a list.  One of the big items this year is an iPod Touch.

27. Does anyone in your family dress up as Santa? No. But my mom and I saw a Santa suit when we were shopping last weekend and I suggested she should have my Dad do it this year.

28. Age you discovered who Santa was? Honestly, I don't remember at all.  I know I still believed the year I got the Barbie house because in later years, my mom confessed that they stayed up all night putting the little stickers on all of the appliances since Santa doesn't deliver unassembled toys.

29. Eggnog, hot chocolate, or apple cider? Peppermint Hot Chocolate

30. Traditional colors (red and green) or other colors? I love the traditional red and green, but it just doesn't jive with the colors in our house, hence why we went with green and silver this year.

Just Like Peanut Butter and Jelly...

Tonight, I made a recipe containing these two ingredients:

{I used the generic version of Nutella}

You may be asking why I combined Nutella and pumpkin and honestly, the recipe probably only caught my eye because a couple of my friends have been telling me how obsessed they are with Nutella.  I have never used it before, but that ALL changed tonight thanks to this recipe for Pumpkin Nutella Cake.

Here it is right after I put it in the oven:

And here it is right after I took it out of the oven:

And I couldn't resist a close up of the gooey Nutella goodness:

I definitely recommend you try this recipe this Christmas season, or anytime of year for that matter!  This was delicious and it was small group approved!

Pumpkin Nutella Snack Cake
{Recipe courtesy of Two Peas and Their Pod}
  2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon fresh nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 cup Nutella

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugars until smooth. Beat in the egg and vanilla until well blended. Add the pumpkin puree. Reduce speed to low, and mix in the flour mixture until just combined.

4. Spread batter evenly into the prepared pan. Drop tablespoons of Nutella all over the pumpkin cake batter. Swirl in the Nutella with a knife. I wanted the Nutella to stay towards the top, to act as the frosting, so I swirled gently.

5. Bake for about 35-40 minutes or until the sides pull away from the pan and a toothpick comes out clean. Place cake on a wire rack and cool completely. Cut into squares and serve.

This combination of flavors is just as good as peanut butter and jelly, I promise!

Bargain Hunter Wanted

Maybe it is the time of year with all of the sales at the stores or maybe it is because I keep hearing about all of these great deals that people are getting or all of the money someone saved by using coupons, but I've decided I want to learn how to be a bargain hunter.

I am not the type of person who can plan my grocery list based on the grocery store sales or travel around the city to different stores to find the best deals.  I just don't have the patience for that.  I also can't bring myself to face the dreaded Wal-Mart because I don't want to battle the masses of people who are there meandering through the aisles as if they are the only people in the store. 

I've tried clipping coupons before but find I clip them for things I don't really need and end up spending money on unnecessary items just so I can use a coupon.  Or even worse, I forget the take the coupons to the store.  Our grocery store did have a brilliant idea, though.  They decided to track what we buy at the grocery store, using our shopper's savings card that we scan before each purchase, and they send us coupons based on the stuff we buy regularly.  However, we only get them about once a quarter. 

The other thing I'm horrible about is on-the-spot deals.  Just like this weekend.  My mom and I were out shopping and I needed to get some face wash.  Well, my face wash costs $18, but if I spent $35 I had the choice of picking out a free half-size bottle of face wash or a mask.  So, I went ahead and got a spot remover just so I could get the free gift.  This might have been a deal if I was already planning on getting the spot remover, but in my instance, it was not a deal. 

I wish, more than anything, that I could actually learn the art of bargain hunting.  I know my husband probably wishes the same thing, too.  If there was a bargain hunting class, I would definitely sign up.  Or, if there was a person willing to give me private lessons I would love that even more!  I would also accept any tips or tricks anyone has to share.  In the mean time, I will just keep living vicariously through others.

Weekend Wrap-Up

We had another busy weekend, as usual for us.  My parents were in town on Friday so after work, we headed to my cousin's first basketball game of the season.  The game was at my mom's alma mater (SE High School) so we had fun razzing her about her high school days!  The game was supposed to have been a tough one for my cousin's team, but they ended up winning and played a great game!  After the game, we went out to dinner with my parents and then we came home to watch what was left of the Wildcat's basketball game.  My mom and I ended falling asleep on the couch, which is pretty typical for us, so we didn't see the end of the game but the Cats did win!

Saturday morning Brandon had to get up early for work and my parents and I took our time getting up and around.  My mom and I were planning to do some shopping and my dad headed back to Pratt.  Mom and I had a few things we had to accomplish on Saturday including finding me an outfit for the grand opening of the Warren IMAX Theater that Brandon is building (more about this later!).  Let me tell you, we had a horrible time trying to find an outfit.  Either stuff wasn't fitting right or we just couldn't find anything that wowed us.  Finally, on our last stop we found an outfit that I think will work.  Brandon was a little unsure, but once I get it all put together with jewelry, I think it will be very fun.  However, I will wait to show pictures until after the event :)

Mom and I had fun shopping and spending time together.  We always wind up getting distracted and finding things that are not on our list and we always do a lot of laughing!  I am glad she lives close and can come to town to spend the day with me.

After our shopping day, my mom had to head home so Brandon and I just hung out and relaxed the rest of the evening.  He has had a few pretty stressful weeks recently, so it was nice for him to just hang out.  I made dinner, we got our Christmas cards ordered and got a few other little things done that have been on our list for a while.  We capped off the night, dare I say it, cheering for the Sooners in the Big 12 Championship football game.  As much as we don't like the Sooners, we dislike the Huskers even more!!  We joked that this was the first time and most likely the last time that we will cheer for OU.  It is satisfying to us that of the last eight times the Sooners have played in the Championship game, they have only lost once and that was to the Wildcats back in 2003 (this was also the night of our first date..awww!)!! 

Today, we got up and headed to church.  My friend Ali is in charge of the Angel Tree ministry at our church and we have been helping at the table in the foyer for the past couple of weeks.  After church, we had a birthday lunch for one of my aunts and then I had a hair cut and Brandon took a Sunday afternoon nap and watched football.  This was our last free weekend until Christmas so we are definitely soaking up all the free time we have!

An Update

Click here for a "live" update from Lindsey, the girl I know who is battling cancer for the third time.  I continue to be amazed by her strength and obedience!

Thanksgiving 2010

Well, here I sit on Sunday night as the Thanksgiving weekend comes to a close.  I always dread Sunday nights, but a Sunday night after a long holiday weekend is especially dreadful!

We had a wonderful and relaxing Thanksgiving weekend.  We spent the weekend with Brandon's family and enjoyed several rounds of dominoes, a lot of food, Black Friday shopping and just time spent together.

Brandon's sister's husband had to work on Thursday, so we had our Thanksgiving meal on Friday.  But, on Thursday, we spent the day cooking, playing games and planning our Black Friday shopping trip.  Pam and Ashley had a few things they wanted to buy but I was just going along for the ride.  We had lasagna for dinner that night and some really yummy brownies for dessert.  We also played a few rounds of dominoes and the boys smoked us girls.  At least Ashley won one round :)

Pam and Ashley got up REALLY early on Friday to start shopping.  They were up and out of the house by 2 a.m. to hit the early-bird sales.  I was in such a deep sleep I didn't even hear them leave, but I did meet up with them around 5 a.m.  We had a great time shopping, got some great deals (that must be kept a secret), we each got a new purse and we just enjoyed our time together.  I had planned to take pictures of our adventures, but we got so busy shopping I completely forgot!  Brandon and his dad met us a little later in the day, but they didn't hang with us for too long.

After we got done shopping, we came home and pulled together our Thanksgiving meal.

{The three cooks!}

We put a turkey breast in the crockpot and that was a life saver!  The oven was freed up for other dishes and the turkey was so tender and juicy.  We had so much food we could have fed twice the amount of people, but it all made for great leftovers (at least on Friday...none of us wanted to touch the leftovers the rest of the weekend!)

I guess you could say the meal could be summed up below:

After we finished cleaning up the kitchen, we headed to the park to take a family picture.  Ashley has been wanting to take pictures in our favorite team shirts, so this weekend seemed like the perfect time.

Clearly, the dogs were not very interested in the picture taking.  I think they were actually thoroughly embarrassed that they were wearing shirts in public.

After the picture taking, we came back home and pretty much vegged out the rest of the day.  After all, a few of us had been awake for quite some time!

Saturday morning, we slept in and then Pam and I went to a wreath making class at a local garden store and the boys headed up to Brandon's job site for a while.  Pam and I had a blast making fresh wreaths (again, I meant to take pictures but got so focused on the wreath making that I forgot to snap a pic) and they actually turned out pretty good!  We met the guys back at the house before heading out to do a bit more shopping.  Later that night, Craig's sister and her husband stopped by to visit and then it was time for everyone to leave.  Pam and Craig headed back to Newton and we headed to bed :)

Today, we went to church and came home to put up Christmas decorations!  I got the Christmas tree assembled and decorated while Brandon put the lights on the house.  We still have a few more items to do, but we got a good start.

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and enjoyed the time with family and friends!  Only a few weeks until Christmas!

Here Come the Holidays

With Thanksgiving weekend closing in, it is time to usher in Christmas!  We plan to put up our decorations tomorrow, but in the mean time, I found this little questionnaire that I thought I would share!

1. What is your holiday wish for your family?
My holiday wish for my family is that we all create lasting memories and treasure our time together.

2. What is your Christmas morning tradition?
Growing up, our Christmas morning tradition involved getting up early to open our see what Santa left us in our stockings and then we would proceed downstairs to read the Christmas story from the Bible and open the rest of our gifts.  After we opened gifts, we would usually eat breakfast together and then get cleaned up and drive to Wichita to spend the rest of Christmas Day with my mom's family.  Now, our Christmas morning traditions are different each year because we rotate holidays with each of our families.

3. If you could ask Santa for one, completely decadent wish for yourself, what would it be?
The ability to travel wherever I want to and whenever I want to.

 4. How do you make the holidays special without spending any money?
I love to cook and entertain and love to go the extra mile to make guests feel comfortable and loved.  I also just like to get together with friends and family to spend time together and enjoy the spirit of the season.


5. What holiday tradition have you carried on from your own childhood?
Since we don't have a family yet, I haven't really been able to carry over too many traditions, but one tradition I still enjoy (and we still do with my family) is to read the Christmas story on Christmas morning.  It helps us focus on the real meaning of the holiday and not just the gifts.   My mom once tried to start a new tradition of making egg rolls on Christmas Eve but after one year of making them we quickly stopped because it was a very time consuming process.  

When Brandon was growing up his family always had German meatballs after midnight mass on Christmas Eve and they still get together, albeit earlier than midnight, to keep this tradition alive.

7. Where would you go for a Christmas-away-from-home trip?
My parent's lake house.  It is so beautiful there and so peaceful and if it snows, it is exceptionally serene.

Thankful

This Thanksgiving I am thankful for:

Jesus Christ dying on the cross for my sins * a loving husband * good jobs (that we still have) * a loving family * cute nieces who make me laugh * a wonderful family-in-law * good friends who are so special to us * good health * our freedom and those who protect us in order to keep that freedom * a cozy home that keeps us warm * my puppy and his crazy antics * Twitter * space heaters  * Netflix * cookies * non-junk mail mail * a dishwasher * Starbucks * Crate and Barrel *.

Of course I had to throw in a few practical items to be thankful for, but seriously, this year I am so thankful for our health, our families and the promise of a future with Jesus.  We have seen time and time again that our life here on this earth is so short and that we take a lot of things for granted.  I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving and cherishes the time with loved ones!!

Bringing NYC to ICT

It is a well-known fact that I LOVE NYC!  Hands down one my favorite vacation spots of all time.  I probably ask Brandon at least once a week if we can move to NYC for just one year.  I just want to live there for a short time so I can experience the real NYC life, appreciate it and then come back to good ol' Kansas where everything is normal,  but Brandon isn't exactly on board with that idea so I just get to live vicariously through friends or friends of friends who live in NYC and enjoy my visits.

But, when I heard that the Radio City Rockettes were coming to Wichita, I was so excited and made mention of it to Brandon.  Being the sweet husband that he is, he purchased the tickets without me knowing and planned an entire date night that was capped off with the show!

On Saturday night, he told me we had dinner reservations at Luciano's, my favorite Italian restaurant in the area (it is actually located in Mulvane) and very reminiscent of the cute little Italian restaurants in Little Italy.

{Photo courtesy of Luciano's}

We had an awesome dinner and practically had to roll ourselves out of the restaurant so we could make it to the show!!

We arrived at the Intrust Bank Arena in plenty of time to find our seats among the throngs of little girls in attendance.  The stage curtain was a small replica of the famous curtain at Radio City Music Hall and the Rockettes, while a smaller group as well, were just as amazing as I remember them on the big stage!

{We weren't supposed to be taking pictures, but Brandon broke the rules for the sake of the blog!}

My favorite scenes were the tour of NYC (they literally had a double-decker NYC tour bus that moved around the stage with a "virtual" tour of the city on the screen behind them) and the final scene that showed the history of the Rockettes.  The dancers were in beautiful costumes that reminded me of the costumes they wore in the early years and the routine was a very traditional kick line. 

I literally smiled the whole night!!  Brandon did a great job of bringing NYC to ICT!
 

Counting My Blessings

I have a really fun Weekend Wrap-Up to post and I will get to that, but I have something on my heart that I need to share.

This has been a tough year for us and for many people we know.  We have lost dear loved ones, we have watched others battle disease, we have watched people experience both of these things at the same time, and we have watched people lose jobs.  Yet through all of this, we have been protected from most of these harsh realities.  But tonight, I was reminded again about how blessed we really are.  

There is a girl I know of from OBU (I didn't really hang out with her when I was there, but I know who she is) who has the most faithful spirit and total trust in God, yet has had to face a myriad of trials in the past couple of years.  She has had breast cancer.  TWICE.  She has had all of the surgeries that go along with breast cancer.  I believe she had a hysterectomy (yes, she's my age) and now lives with the reality that she will never be able to have children.   To go through all of this, all of the emotions that go along with these issues and to live to proclaim her faith in God is amazing to me.  I read her blog every once in a while and am always amazed at how much glory she gives God for all that he has done in her life.  She has remained so faithful and has complete trust in His plan for her life.

Today, I read on Facebook that she started seizing at some point during the day and that the doctors have found a brain tumor.  She is scheduled to have brain surgery on Wednesday.  I don't know any other details, but all I know is that she needs prayer.  Prayer for the doctors, prayer for her emotions, her physical strength (her body has obviously been through a lot in the past couple of years), prayer for her husband who appears to be an extremely patient and strong man, prayer for her family as they support her through this new trial and prayer that God's plan will be revealed. 

Friends, I can't even begin to imagine having to go through any of these trials, and then have to go through them one after another after another.  Please take a minute to say a prayer for this woman and to count your blessings.  We don't have to look very far to realize just how blessed we are.

Sick Day(s)

Thanks to the seasonal head cold that has been making its way around my office, I have been sick for the past four days.  I stayed home on Monday thinking I could rest up and be fine to go to work on Tuesday since we had our big Annual Meeting that day and I really couldn't miss one of our biggest events of the year.  Plus, I had several responsibilities that evening that I couldn't just leave for someone else to handle.  So yeah, I really couldn't miss that day. 

After close to a 14 hour day, I was spent and couldn't get out of bed on Wednesday.  So, Koby and I hung out again and I rested up hoping to feel better.  I got up and went to work this morning and felt pretty good until about 2:00.  I tried to muster up enough energy to make it through the day, but I just couldn't, so I came home around 3:30. 

I hate feeling crummy for this long because so much gets ignored!  For instance:

• I haven't made the bed since Sunday.
• I haven't made a grocery list, let alone thought about going to the store.
• The house is a disaster because I just don't want to pick it up.
• The dog is getting cabin fever (i.e. sitting next to me whining while he waits for me to throw his headless duck or armless monkey).
• Poor Brandon has had to fend for himself when it comes to meals (its a good thing he likes leftovers and we made chili over the weekend).

Thankfully, things are pretty quiet at work since the annual meeting is over so I haven't missed too much there.  Tomorrow, we have a morning staff retreat and then our staff Thanksgiving lunch, so hopefully it will be another easy day.

In other news, since I've been home I've had a lot of time to browse the internet and I just might be doing 90% of my Christmas shopping online this year!  There are so many sites that are offering free shipping or online exclusives we just might save a little bit of money.  So, while everything else is slipping out of control, at least I have my Christmas shopping under control...

I guess I should go try to focus my energy on productive things like preparing for Thanksgiving next week.  I can at least make a grocery list while I lay in bed...

Weekend Wrap-Up

We had a pretty hectic weekend here in the Brungardt household, but it was a good kind of hectic so I'm not going to complain.

Friday night, we had planned to cook dinner at home and watch a movie (we just started a Netflix subscription and LOVE it!), but our plans quickly changed when we heard the news that our friends, Luke and Emily, were going in to have their baby!  While we didn't go to the hospital, we did pitch in to babysit for Matt and Ali (Luke's brother and sister-in-law and our good friends) so they could be up there when the new baby entered the world.  We had a good time with their little one until it came time for a diaper change, and then she decided she was pretty much done with us! 

Saturday morning Brandon had to go to the job site, so I stayed home to do typical Saturday morning chores.  Brandon came home for a quick lunch and then he had to head back so I went back with him to see what his job was looking like on the inside.  Boy, it is going to be an impressive theater!!  We'll probably only be able to afford one IMAX movie a year, but it will be neat.  I know he will be happy to have that project finished, but it will be one project he will be proud of.  I got home from running errands in time to catch the second half of the KSU game.  Too bad the game didn't have a better ending...  After the game, I headed up to the hospital to meet the new baby.  He is just a little cutie and Luke and Emily seemed very at-ease and happy!

Later in the evening, we were in the basement watching a movie and we heard quite a commotion in the ceiling.  Yep, we have mice!!!  We have been dealing with these little rodents pretty much every fall since we've lived in our house and this year, they have been quite stealthy!  We had already caught two of the invaders, but we had yet to capture the last one (at least we think there is only one more).  Once we heard the commotion, Brandon jumped up and went to the storage room, which has an unfinished ceiling, to find out if he could see anything and sure enough, the yucky mouse had gotten partially stuck to the sticky trap and had dragged it across the ceiling to the middle of the room.  Fortunately for Brandon (at this point) the mouse had gotten away so he wasn't going to have to touch a live mouse.  But, he went ahead and set more traps just in case.  Well, to make a long story short, we didn't get the mouse the rest of the night, but after quite the ordeal yesterday afternoon, Brandon got him and he is GONE!!  We haven't heard anything since then, but I'm still not convinced we are in the clear.

On Sunday I had to work check-in at church and Brandon had to go pick up my aunt, uncle and cousins at the airport, then we met Brandon's mom, sister and brother-in-law for lunch.  Later in the day, I went over to my friend Ali's house to help her fill out Angel Tree angel information cards (this is when the last mouse battle took place). 

After I got home from Ali's, I made an apple cake to take to a dinner party at my friend Kourtney's house.  Kourtney and her husband, Branden, just moved to town this summer for med school (yes, they are BOTH in med school...CRAZY!!) but we haven't had much of a chance to hang out with them since our schedules are so different.  So, they had us and our other friends, Jon and Emily, over for a fun dinner party.  I can definitely say it was a super fun night spent with two really great friends and our husbands!  We did a lot of laughing and a lot of sharing and it was just a perfect night.  I meant to take our camera, but I was in a little bit of a rush to get around and I wasn't feeling all that great, so it really just slipped my mind.

Today, I am still feeling a little under the weather (sore throat) so I decided to stay home from work in anticipation of a big day tomorrow.  We have our big annual meeting tomorrow so I wanted to give myself the best chance possible to not get full on sick!  Wish me luck!

Hillbilly Salon

You know, we try to be relatively classy people.  We keep up our yard and house (unlike our lovely neighbors), we try not to over-do our Christmas lights (again, unlike our neighbors), and we don't have broken down cars in the street (yes, our neighbors do that, too).  But tonight, we just might have crossed the line.

Brandon has been trying to get me to cut his hair for a long time, but I've been hesitant because the only hair I've ever cut with a razor was the hair around our horses' hooves.  I finally convinced him to go to the girl who cuts my hair and he has actually been pretty happy with the way she cut his hair, so I thought I was in the clear....until Brandon found a set of clippers on sale at Target.  Suddenly, I became the new stylist at the hillbilly salon in our garage!!

Thankfully, my friend Christy occasionally cuts her husband's hair so she came over tonight to give me a few pointers.

Pretty nice digs we have at our salon, huh?  After she made the initial "cuts", she handed over the clippers to me.

{I posted this last night without looking at the photos in detail, but this photo desperately needs a disclaimer...it was taken after a long day of work.  My hair looks awful and greasy and my face doesn't look much better.  My apologies for hurting your eyes!!}

I couldn't tell if Brandon was nervous or not, but he sure did complain more about my skills than he did about Christy's skills.  What's up with that?

After we finished with the #4 on the top (I've got to learn the proper terminology), we went down to a #2 to do the bottom and then it was time for blending.  I gave the clippers back to Christy so she could show me how to do it because this is where I was afraid I would really mess up!

The lighting in my salon isn't so good, but I think we did a pretty good job despite that fact.  I only made a little mistake on the blending part but Christy was able to fix it and we were able to make him look pretty darn good!  Christy only threatened to scalp him once (and he was totally oblivious)!

Next time, I will probably have to cut his hair all by myself so take a good look because this may be the best hair cut he gets in a while!

Weekend Wrap-Up

Our weekend was blissfully relaxing and much needed after a crazy summer and fall!  We didn't have any projects hanging over our heads and no real plans (for me) to do much else so we spent a lot of time just hanging around home. 

On Friday, we went out to eat at a new-to-us pizza place and then went to the movie.  We saw Due Date, which Brandon was pretty excited about because he loves Zach Galifianakis (from The Hangover), but I would not recommend the movie unless you wait for it to come out on dvd.  It started out slow and then it just was not very funny and extremely unrealistic.  Our only saving grace is that we had free movie passes and did not spend actual money on the movie.

Saturday morning Brandon got an early phone call and had to go unlock the job site gates, so I was pretty much awake from then on.  We spent practically all morning hanging out watching TV, browsing the internet, making Christmas lists, etc.  Finally, I got up and cleaned house a little bit while Brandon ran a couple of errands and then he got ready to head to the KSU football game.  I bowed out because it was a late game and I didn't really want to drive home at midnight.  My absence then gave Brandon an excuse to hang out with some of his high school buddies who live in Manhattan and he ended up staying the night at their house so he didn't have to drive home by himself late at night.

While Brandon was gone, I ran a few errands myself, made a grocery list, and had dinner at my friend Christy's house.  She was cooking for her sisters and another friend so I crashed the party, too.  We had a good time chatting and eating a yummy meal.  When I got home, I decided to try out a new recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Granola Bars while I watched the Cats whoop up on Texas.  Oh my goodness!  They are yummy!!  I definitely didn't bake mine long enough, so they are a bit gooey, but they are delicious.  They taste a lot like the Pumpkin Chocolate Chip muffins that I make.  Koby and I spent the rest of the night watching the football game and then we went to bed.

Brandon was home by 10:00 on Sunday so we had the rest of the day to hang out.  We had to go to Kohl's to get him new work shoes and another pair of work pants and then we went to the grocery store.  After we got home, we both took naps (I don't always sleep so well when he's gone) and spent the rest of the day watching football.  I tried making taquitos for dinner and they were just okay.  I probably stuffed them too full because they were oozing out of the tortillas.  We'll see if I ever make them again...

And now it is Monday and we have another work week ahead of us.  It is supposed to be close to 80 degrees here today so I'm not quite sure when fall is going to be here to stay, but I suppose we'll enjoy it while we can!

Alternative Thanksgiving

It's November 2!!!  How can this be??  To me, once November hits, the year just flies by, however, this whole year has flown by so I'm not sure what to think about the next two months. 

As November arrives, it also means it is time to start the holiday preparations.  This year, we are celebrating Thanksgiving with Brandon's family but we are celebrating the day after.  While I won't be hosting the official Turkey Day meal, I will be hosting part of the family on Thursday and I want to prepare a fun alternative Thanksgiving meal, but I need help thinking of what to do.  Below are the specs for the day:

• Small gathering = 5 people
• Want to do as much prep ahead of time
• Could be a themed meal
• Not opposed to using my china, however, the thought of hand-washing all of my dishes for just 5 of us is not so appealing
• Football will be on TV
• Thinking of doing a brunch around 10 so we don't have to plan three meals that day

I've thought about doing an Italian meal since I could do a lot of prep ahead of time (enter Grandma's lasagna recipe).  I've also thought about doing heavy appetizers and having a sampling of treats, but that seems like more work.  Because I love to cook for a crowd and entertain and I still want the day to be special, I wouldn't mind making something different and unique, either.  Oh decisions, decisions! 

Has anyone else ever prepared an alternative holiday meal? Any new (to me) recipes out there that I need to try?  Any tips for a stress free day?

Once A Wildcat, Always A Wildcat

Last week, I mentioned I received a box in the mail at work and I couldn't have been more excited about the contents of the box.  Over the past few weeks, Brandon's mom has been working on a Wildcat t-shirt quilt for Brandon and me!!  I've always wanted a t-shirt quilt, but knew I didn't have the patience to do one myself, so I am so grateful that Pam was willing to make one for us.

We spent a lot of time gathering t-shirts, but we finally got everything she needed and it didn't take her much time at all to put it all together! 

She pieced the t-shirts together and then backed it with a cozy sweatshirt fleece material.  And let me tell you, it is definitely cozy!!  We have already gotten a lot of use out it :)

Of all of the t-shirts we looked at and eventually chose, this t-shirt is probably my favorite of all...

...because it is true!  Brandon never, ever thought he would become a Wildcat, but he did and there is no going back!!

Thank you Pam, for such an awesome gift!!  We love it!!