A visit with Santa

 

We went and saw Santa this afternoon.  The kids have been so excited about Christmas this year, it is definitely our most exciting Christmas yet! Between looking for Frank, our Elf on a Shelf, each morning, to shopping for presents for each other, getting excited for Jesus' birthday, and all the other fun filled holiday activities; it has most certainly been amazing to see all this through their eyes.  I'm not really sure what it is this year, but things seem full of love and happiness and a pure zest for life.  I LOVE this time of year and I LOVE these 3 kids!

 

The boys were full of questions and advice for Santa.  He patiently listened to both of them ramble on about lots of exciting things! Hadley didn't cry this year which is a big step, she did however become totally silent and tight lipped with a bot of fear when it was our turn.  Luckily, she has two older brothers that filled Santa's ears with all the presents they thought she wanted.  This was an experience!

 

 

Merry Christmas!

Pepper Jelly

 

This was my first time making pepper jelly! This was actually my first time canning without using a pressure canner-eeks!  I was a bit nervous! This pepper jelly recipe is so delicious and I wanted to give it to friends and family along with cinnamon rolls this Christmas! I also wanted to dump a bunch of it over a block of cream cheese and eat it with crackers!

 

It was a bit hectic in the beginning, all 4 of the kids were here, running (or scooting if you are Chandler) around and I was trying hard to stir constantly and watch the rolling boil, etc. Mission accomplished!

 

Mess accomplished too!

 

Jars hot and sanitized and kept hot in a 225 degree oven while I poured the jelly into them and secured the lids.

 

a 10 minute boil process in the canner.......

 

cooling and SEALING on the towel!  Hooray!  Success!

 

All the while the boys were getting on their ski gear because Bogus is going to open in about 10 days! Never a quiet or dull moment around this neck of the woods!

 

 

 

The World's Best Pepper Jelly Ala Tami!

 

2 red peppers, seeded, finely chopped (about 1-1/2 cups)

2 green peppers, seeded, finely chopped (about 1-1/2 cups)

10 large jalapeño peppers, seeded, finely chopped (about 1 cup)

1 cup cider vinegar

1 pkg. SURE-JELL Fruit Pectin

1/2 tsp. butter or margarine

5 cups sugar, measured into separate bowl (See tip below.)

Make It

BRING boiling-water canner, half-full with water, to simmer. Wash jars and screw bands in hot soapy water; rinse with warm water. Pour boiling water over flat lids in saucepan off the heat. Let stand in hot water until ready to use. Drain well before filling.
PLACE peppers in 6- or 8-qt. sauce pot. Add vinegar. Stir in pectin. Add butter to reduce foaming. Bring mixture to full rolling boil (a boil that doesn't stop bubbling when stirred) on high heat, stirring constantly. Stir in sugar. Return to full rolling boil and boil exactly 1 min., stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim off any foam with metal spoon.
LADLE immediately into prepared jars, filling to within 1/8 inch of tops. Wipe jar rims and threads. Cover with 2-piece lids. Screw bands tightly. Place jars on elevated rack in canner. Lower rack into canner. (Water must cover jars by 1 to 2 inches. Add boiling water, if necessary.) Cover; bring water to gentle boil. Process 10 min. Remove jars and place upright on towel to cool completely. After jars cool, check seals by pressing centers of lids with finger. (If lid springs back, lid is not sealed and refrigeration is necessary.)

Thanksgiving!

 

Thanksgiving was great fun this year!  I lover that the kids get an entire week off school.  It makes for a very restful time. We kicked off Thanksgiving with a feast in Tanner's Kindergarten class and continued the Feast Theme the entire week through!

 

 

 

 

 

Tanners adorable Kindergarten class! All dressed up as Pilgrims and Indians, or Native Americans...we still really haven't gotten to the bottom of this PC thing yet.  Oh well!  Tanner said he was an Indian, so he was an Indian.

 

Tanner with Mrs. Buxton, his super fantastic teacher.

 

Tanner with Cole and Casey; neighborhood buddies!

 

After that we boarded a plan and headed south to spend the week with my dad and Sue!

 

The flight was great!

 

Why I don't have pictures of everyone together feasting on Prime Rib and Lobster and twice baked potato's and green beans and creamed corn, and a bunch of other yummy stuff is beyond me!  But that is what we ate and it was fantastic! The next morning we headed over to the beach for some sand. It was foggy and a little bit chilly but wonderful at the same time! There is nothing like breathing in that salt air, I love it.

 

Hadley playing in the sand.

 

The brothers

 

Carter as a sand angel.

 

Tanner as a sand angel.

 

The kids playing at the beach.  I love this picture of them. I just love them so much!

 

The boys by the sweet lifeguard truck.

 

On Saturday we spent the day at Knotts Berry Farm.  It was also our 12 year anniversary! Stacy and Gabriel and their 3 kids joined us too and we had a great time!

 

Car rides!

 

Hadley the ride enthusiast!

 

Rides that make me feel sick!

 

Carter and Jake on Snoopy's crazy school bus!

 

Carter on the Log Peeler!

 

Tanner!

 

Hadley!

 

With a reindeer sculpture!

 

Our sweet cousins Noah and Gabriel!

 

The brothers!

 

A Southern California Thanksgiving and Anniversary!  Such fun! Wish I had taken more and better pictures!  There's always next year!

Good Morning

 

I enter this day with a peaceful heart.

Stationery card

Sweet Merry Dots Christmas Card

Seasons greetings with personalized Christmas cards from Shutterfly.

View the entire collection of cards.

Being Thankful

Tanner made Carter a thank you card. It is the most precious thing I have seen in a long time. So sweet, so thoughtful, so incredibly raw and straight from the heart.

He was so excited to give this card to Carter too.  The love he feels towards his brother is so strong and it makes Tyler and I so happy to see these two brothers be such great friends. 

 He drew a picture of Carter and the card reads "You always understand when I need a helping hand. So this card is from me to you because I want to say Thank you."

 Carter with his sweet little card.

 It got me thinking that I don't thank people enough or let them know how special they are or even just tell them that I think they are doing a good job. So Sunday night I sat down and I wrote a few notes to people I love, just because! It's always fun to get good news in the mail!

Pumpkin Carving

Gotta love this time if the year. We've been getting these kids together to carve pumpkins for their whole lives! It's tradition. So much fun was had, love these people so much!