We are snowed in today, I think the official snowfall was around 15 inches and as far as I'm concerned that is enough to last all winter. It's funny, the wind has been so strong that we have 4-5 feet tall drifts in our yard and also patches where you can see the grass. It has been a pretty good day, the girls are getting along fabulously, I've been productive and managed to avoid the major shoveling. Somehow I have managed to not have snow boots - which makes the shovel avoiding pretty easy. They are on my to-buy list, as much as I would enjoy, it wouldn't be fair for me to not shovel all winter.

Next Wednesday is Katie's church Christmas program and this year each family has been asked to bring a dozen snacks. I made a half-batch of chocolate chip cookies and a dozen of those went in the freezer, the other dozen left out for us to eat. Half-batches of cookies are my absolute favorite, they don't take any time at all and as long as the original recipe includes an even number of eggs you can split it in half.

I also started on round three of Christmas baking - fudge and almond bark pretzels are in the freezer, dough for molasses ginger cookie is in the resting in the fridge. After dinner, I'll roll it out, cut into stars and bake. That's a new recipe so hopefully it turns out okay. The last round will be krumkake - a Swedish cookie Erik's Grandma Joy used to make. They require a special baking iron and turn out to be crispy cookies that are shaped into cones while they are warm and filled with whipped cream or fruit just before eating. As yummy as they are, I can't make the krumkake until about the 23rd - they do not freeze well.

Baking is about the only thing we're doing to prepare for Christmas and I'm really quite content with that. We are avoiding the stress of the puppy eating the tree by not putting it up and I'm not sure that I'll even send out cards. We did put lights on the bushes in front of the house and the advent calendar is up - and the days divvied up by the girls. Shopping is almost complete, just a few things left to gather. I'm hoping to spend lots of time with family and friends this holiday season, that's all I asked for from Santa.

Mr. Rommel

So here is the tiny puppy we brought home at the end of August. This picture is from a few weeks ago, now he's 4 months old and 31 pounds. He has grown so tall that I no longer have to bend over to pat his head.

He's an awfully good puppy most of the time. He sleeps most of the way through the night and is mostly potty trained. Notice the emphasis on most.

Once in awhile he's terribly rotten, stays up most of the night and has accidents. We are trying our very best to remember that he's still a puppy and will be for quite awhile. That he won't chew on the girls' toys if they keep them picked up, that he won't rummage through the basement if we keep the baby gate up and that he won't try to take our food if we eat at the kitchen table. Basically, he's teaching us to be cleaner humans that don't eat in front of the tv.

He's trying his best to turn me into a dog person by quietly snuggling up to me and lying down on the kitchen rug while I'm busy making dinner and cleaning. I'm trying to be a dog person by sitting quietly when he's trying to snuggle up to me and not kicking him out of the kitchen.

Halloween 2009

Friday night was Beggar's Night in our neck of the woods. My brother Dan and his family came to our house to have dinner and go trick or treating. It was cold and windy so they were done in about half an hour. This year we had about a dozen trick or treaters, which was a new record for us - way up from the 1 we had three years ago. Here are a few pictures from the night.

From the left, Katie the 70s girl, Gretchen the bat, Paul the Army guy (complete with an authentic boonie hat courtesy of Uncle Erik), and Charlie the pumpkin, minus his hat.

The boys, digging into their popcorn from a neighbor.

Gretchen and Paul enjoying their loot.

After Dan, Sara and the boys went home and our girls went to bed, Rommel picked up every tiny popcorn and cupcake crumb that I missed.

**Update** The first time I made this was as a double batch with a whole parsnip. The second time I made a single batch and the parsnip was way too much parsnip. I think I'll leave it out next time.

This recipe was in the latest issue of Women's Day magazine and is really easy and really good. I made it without chicken as a side dish and it was quite filling. The original recipe called for fresh dill, I didn't use it but feel free to add it. Also, having never cooked with parsnip before I was a little leery but it ended up adding a nice texture and herby flavor. Hope you like it!

Chicken Noodle Soup

6 cups chicken broth
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken (whatever you like)
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped baby carrots
1 parsnip, peeled and chopped
1 tsp minced garlic
1 bay leaf
¼ tsp pepper
2 cups uncooked medium egg noodles

Put broth, chicken, celery, onion, carrots, parsnip, garlic, bay leaf and pepper in a large saucepan. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 25 minutes, or until chicken in cooked and vegetables are tender.
Discard bay leaf. Remove chicken to a plate and cool slightly. Add noodles to soup; cover and simmer 10 minutes or until tender.
Meanwhile, shred chicken with fingers or 2 forks and add back to the soup. Simmer to heat the chicken through again.

Gretchen attends a parochial preschool and apparently this week they have been discussing prayer. Last night I sent the girls upstairs to brush their teeth, wash their faces and get ready for bed. A short while later I followed upstairs to tuck them in and read books.

Rather than hopping into bed, Gretchen was standing in the middle of her room. I asked what she was doing and she said she wanted to show me her prayer spot. On the floor next to the wall was a travel size pillow. She kneeled down and started right in, 'In the name of the Father, ..." then she started to say something and but stopped and said that she was going to say her prayer. Gretchen prayed "Bless us oh Lord and these our gifts..." You know the Prayer Before Meals, at 8:15pm, about 2 hours after dinner.

Sprinkle Jar

Growing up in my parent’s house, there was a shaker jar filled with a mixture of cinnamon and sugar in the cupboard between the stove and the refrigerator. For breakfast, or a sweet treat, we would toast a piece of bread, apply a thin layer of margarine, watch it melt into the toast and shake on an even coating of cinnamon-sugar goodness.

The image of the cinnamon-sugar shaking down onto the toast popped into my head yesterday. I wish that I could fill a shaker jar with tiny sparkly particles of patience, calm, warmth, a few deep breaths, a little extra time and keep it in my kitchen cupboard. The label would read “sprinkle to taste, refill as needed”.

This fall has been a particularly busy one, maybe I just need to slow it down and enjoy. I should take the time to open the windows and enjoy the crisp air, cook a pot of chili, bake a batch of anything, sing along to some 90s alternative rock and make a pot of tea. That ought to fill my sprinkle jar to the brim.

Gretchen really wanted to play soccer this fall but wasn't all that hot on it went it came to actually playing with a bunch of kids she had never met. She needed a pep talk from Daddy before agreeing to play during the first game.

Once she is convinced to join in she really tries her best. The balls for the 'Just for Kicks' league are soft foam so even though she kicked this ball really hard it just kind of rolled along.

Happy to be done with the game and ready to dive into that snack!

Gretchen was really excited to go to preschool and see some of her friends from daycare. She has had a lot of fun so far, though says that they do the same thing everyday - darn schedule! Here she headed out the front door on the first day. She calls this her "God save the Queen" shirt.