Turkey Day Fun

We have a fun tradition on Thanksgiving with my extended family. The previous year we all write “predictions” for the coming year and then we read them the following Thanksgiving. Most of them are not serious at all. Here are a few that had us rolling with laughter this year…

Trisha will own a mushroom farm.
David and Perrie will be making their own survival TV show.
Owen will sign with the Padres.
Trisha will join fabric store shoppers-anonymous.
Kasey will grow huge sideburns Brigham Young style.
Morgan will come face to face with a cougar and win, then cook it.
Something funny will happen, and it will be funny.

Favorite Leftover Turkey Soup

Barley Mushroom Soup

1 c. dried porcini mushrooms (soak in 2 cups boiling water) (optional)
2 onions chopped
2 carrots chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 ½ lb white mushrooms ( 1/2 chopped & ½ sliced)
1 TBL oil
8 cups water or broth
2/3 cup uncooked pearled barley
Cooked turkey
1 tsp dried thyme
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt & pepper

Saute chopped veggies in oil about 10 min. Add broth, thyme and sliced mushrooms. Add porcini and soaking liquid. Bring to boil and add barley & turkey. Reduce heat and simmer till barley is tender about 40-60 min. Add parsley, salt & pepper. Serve. Do you have a favorite turkey recipe?

An Old Dog Can Learn New Tricks

Perrie started piano lessons this year and since I never learned, I thought I might tag on and learn too. Piano is one of the few instruments that can sound complete all by itself.
I am really getting excited about it. I wake up and want to play “Joy to the World”. Every spare minute I have, I want to practice. It is so fun to learn something new. I love being able to play all my favorite Christmas Carols (in the beginner book of course). Music can be very soothing to the soul, even more so when it is live or created by you! It feels like a little escape too. It has inspired me to keep learning. I could learn a new skill, language, talent, or anything.

Advent Ideas

I love the Christmas season. I love to decorate, bake, attend plays, sing carols, all that stuff. But I feel like it goes by fast and unless I do alot of planning, we miss something. I am putting together an advent list, something to do everyday until Christmas. Here are some of my ideas, not in any order...

Watch it’s a wonderful life
Watch the Grinch
Bake cookies and deliver
Put up tree and decorate
Go Christmas shopping
Wrap presents
Make salt dough ornaments
Take and drive and look at Christmas lights
Sing Christmas carols & play instruments
Attend a Christmas pageant
Make a food garland for wildlife
Read journal of holidays past
Put on a Christmas play
Talk of Christmas around the world
Invite a family over for games & goodies
Make an advent paper chain with scriptures inside to read each night
Have a special meal with food Jesus and Mary would have eaten in their life
Make a snowman craft
Donate gifts to less fortunate
decorate and mail cards to family far away
go sledding
visit botanical gardens for light show
cut paper snowflakes and decorate
visit santa
see the nutcracker ballet

What do you do for the season? Any other ideas?

Human or Octopus

Baby girl must think I am going to forget about her. She feels the need to remind me a lot, in very strong karate-kick ways. Usually, just as I am settling down for a rest.

Or maybe she is hearing the battle-cries of her brother and sister. She has started training for the rumble with kickboxing. She will need it.

But really I think I am giving birth to an octopus. It feels like a large octopus is stuck in a small space and is trying to get out, using all its tentacles.

I actually love this part of being pregnant. It really helps me bond with baby and force me to think of her. What is she doing? Was that a foot or a hand? Can she hear us?
Pregnancy is really a strange, amazing thing.

kids in costume

My fairy and triceratops had lots of fun for Halloween. I dread the day they will want to be something scary. I like sweet happy costumes!