we’ve moved…. again

OK… so I am still playing around…to get the look I really want… but for now, this is our new home…

The Bennett’s Great Adventure!

I hope to see you there… and will keep you posted on any other changes!

 

Project Life…

Scrapbooking has always been a passion of mine…

and about a year ago, digital became a new passion…

but whether I used paper or pixels…

I always seem to be falling further and further behind.

Enter, Project Life…  a new way of looking at things, of documenting the everyday,  both ordinary and extraordinary.

Today, I spent some time learning, playing and creating… digitally!

Not sure I am totally in love with this project yet, but I did scrap today… and I did enjoy myself … and I did preserve a memory…so, I guess that makes it a success!

Ashton’s Top 10…

favorite things…as least as far as we can tell…and in no particular order!

*riding on daddy’s back in the backpack!

He is willing to eat, sleep, and just watch the world go by from his perch!

*pear and wild blueberry baby food. He is a Bennett, and therefore, not a picky eater, but this one is by far his favorite of all we have tried!

*his toes…best thing about this toy….they are always with us!

*his trucks…Santa left these gems in Ashton’s stocking and they have been a hit ever since!

*his big car…this was a yard sale.com find that mom scored for $5.00! When we first brought it home and put him in it, his feet didn’t touch the bottom…now he spins himself all around and diliberately works the toys attached!

*worms – well, more specifically, just this one worm – one that used to belong to his biggest sister… Eli  and Emma could’ve cared less about it … but Kaitlin and now Ashton love it!

*his little blanket with tags. Kaitlin picked this out for him at the craft fair last fall – it has become a favorite and gets toted lots of places!

*moose… not to be confused with Eli’s moo moo… this purple antlered moose has provided hours of entertainment!

*No, I am not trying to be biased here, but Ashton also loves the afghan I crocheted for him – he was so anxious to get ahold of it, that I wasn’t even able to finish it before he was snuggling under it and trying to suck on the bobbles!

*and the most favorite thing in Ashton’s world…his “bear bear”! We have four of these in the house… and one that is always with us!  Lots of hugs and snuggles happen with this little guy! And, who can resist those chubby little fingers squeezing the bear?

Kreacher’s (and Kirby’s) French Onion Soup

For Christmas this year, I got Kaitlin

The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook.

Seemed like the perfect gift for the biggest Harry Potter fan in my world and for a budding cook. She was over the moon excited! She spent the next several days pouring over the pages and picking out recipes she wanted to try first! And I can tell tell you that the first recipe we tried (the hot chocolate) was the best hot chocolate we have ever had! (the whole family was in agreement on that one!)

So, we were all anxious to try the next one, and of course, with it being National Soup Month, we were excited to try Kreacher’s French Onion Soup! Again, very yummy and sure to become a frequent favorite in our house (with our adaptations of course!)

4 medium onions (thinly sliced)

2 TBSP of butter (I used some olive oil to make up the difference)

1 baguette (sliced)

grated parmesan cheese

black pepper

1/2 tsp sugar

1 TBSP flour

6 cups beef broth or stock (I think I used vegetable)

In a soup pot, melt the butter (you do need some butter, adds to the flavor) and olive oil. Add onions and saute until brown and yummy looking. Add the sugar and pepper and keep stirring. Blend in the flour and the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes.

While the soup in simmering, top bread slices with parmesan cheese and heat in the oven until cheese is melted and bread is crispy.

Ladle the soup into the bowls and top with one of the crusty bread pieces.

This recipe says it serves six… but there were no left overs with just the five of us eating!

look, it’s a bird

it’s a plane,

it’s a wii remote,

no, it’s a car!

A Pinewood Derby car to be exact!

The Pack 215 Pinewood Derby was this past weekend and this was Eli’s entry into the race. It raced well… came in third in his den but… he did win most creative car! And, what I think is the coolest….it was all his friends and pack mates that voted it “the most creative”! He came up with this design all by himself – the only assistance offered by his parents – taking him to the wood shop for cutting and the shoppette to buy the clay for the “buttons”!

Eli’s Fettuccine Alfredo!

The older two kiddos have been wanting to help out in the kitchen… and are wanting to branch out from the hot dog/chicken nugget/ frozen pizza menu that they can cook when we are gone. This desire resulted in a trip the base library and the search for some “kid friendly” cook books.

Well, we scored BIG with this one… “Cool Italian Cooking” – fun tasty recipes for kids!

Eli’s first choice was for Fettuccine Alfredo – and we are all hooked!

2 TBS Butter

2 cups whipping cream

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 tsp grd pepper

1/8 tsp nutmeg

8 ounces cooked noodles (really the recipe calls for fettuccine noodles, but we only had rigitoni on hand!)

There were a few adaptations made (he cooks like me… LOL) but I have typed the recipe above as he made it with the ingredients he used, not as it is written in the book!

Heat the butter in the skillet over medium high heat. When the butter is melted, turn down the heat and add cream, cheese, pepper and nutmeg. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly. Serve over your cooked noodles with a loaf of crusty bread!

Kirby’s Top Ten

A while back, when we moved to England, I started a “Top 10 Tuesday” post, highlighting the top ten somethings about England… well, I like the “Top 10” idea, but not neccessarily about England… so, here is today’s Top 10…

Kirby’s Top 10 Book for 2011

10. Seekers – Great Bear Lake by Erin Hunter

9. Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbit

8. The Inheritance Cycle – Eldest by Christopher Paolini

7. Harry Potter – Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

6. Along for the ride by Sarah Dessen

5. Percy Jackson and the Olympians – Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan

4. Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour

3. Deliver us from Normal

2. Dragon riders of Pern – All the Weyrs of Pern by Anne McCaffrey

1. Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

I must admit, I was a bit surprised by her list and the fact that she could narrow it down to only one Harry Potter (not sure I could!)

New Year….

Happy 2012!

This is always the time of year when I look back at what the last year held

and look ahead to what the next year holds…

and, as always, make resolutions, set goals, dream…

So here goes on the resolutions and goals

*blog more often

*read at least 2 hours a week (family goal)

*update the header here (I had no idea how out of date it was until just a few minutes ago!)

There are lots more, and we will keep you updated here – more often according to resolution #1 – so keep checking back and see what we are up to!

Crock Pot Surprise…. Mexican Style

So life with four kids, three schools, cub scouts, youth group, bible study, PWOC, piano lessons, guitar lessons, fitness club, student leadership, challenge hostess, spouse’s group, holiday parties (adults and kids), command – just to name a few – is insanely busy!

I love to blog – some where along the way, I lost sight of why I was blogging – I started to record the memories, to keep the grandparents up to date, to keep up with our friends and to share stories and recipes. Then I let my OCD take over and if it wasn’t a Monday, I couldn’t post a recipe, if I didn’t have the right picture, I couldn’t post, if it was an old story, it didn’t seem right to post…Well, combine that with the insaneness listed above, and I lost my posting mojo! But, I am pushing all that aside, turning over a new leaf, getting back to the original reason I started blogging in the first place – if you like it, let me know, if you don’t – let me know too – I will admit – I get a kick out of knowing that folks are reading! LOL!

Any way – Monday Munchies are now going to be called “Food Fun” that way, I can post a recipe anytime I want … and lets face it, food is important to my family!

Well, if you go back to the insaneness listed above, you can imagine time to prepare food is limited… and we don’t like fast food in this house (unless it is Chic-fil-A, but I digress!) so, healthy, hearty, easy meals are important here! And the crock pot proves to be an indispensable tool in my kitchen! This has got to be the easiest crock pot meal I have ever prepared – and it gets two thumbs up from everyone (but Ashton!)! The kids’ have called it “Crock Pot Surprise” because it doesn’t have a name (or if it does I don’t know it) – it was originally listed on Pinterest, but I have adapted it from the one I read there…. (shocker I am sure)

Crock Pot Surprise (Mexican Style)

1 can of Rotel

1 can of black beans

1 can of corn

1 can of green chilies

1 block of low fat or no fat cream cheese

frozen chicken (the amount depends on the size of your family)

fresh cilantro

tortillas or chips

Put the chicken (still frozen is fine), rotels, black beans, corn, green chilies, and cream cheese in the crock pot. Cook on low for 6 hours or until chicken is cooked though. Remove lid, shred chicken and allow to cook for another 20 mins with lid off to evaporate liquid.  Stir in fresh cilantro and serve over chips or rolled up in tortillas. Way yummy and way easy! You can also top with freshly shredded cheese!

And, no, this picture has nothing to do with food – other than they both like to eat! Just wanted to give you all a picture to enjoy!

It’s the great Pumpkin, Ashton Bennett

OK, sorry, flashback to Charlie Brown holiday shows…

After our outing to Alconbury, the plan had been for Chris to go into work for a few hours, but it was such a beautiful fall day that we opted for the pumpkin patch instead!

I am not sure Ashton enjoyed himself (could have something to do with the fact that it was really bright out and the sun was blinding all of us and the fact that he was sound asleep in the car when we got there…) but, I am a happy momma with some fun pictures of my little man and several pumpkins at home to use to torture him with some more photo shoots!