Dogs get cold too!

Earlier this morning I was telling Austin how cold it was outside and showed him the snow on the ground. We put his socks on his feet and turned the fire on to make sure we stayed warm. He then proceeded to grab "my" blanket and cover our dog Ginger up. I guess he was concerned that she was cold although she will be inside with us for the rest of the day. I am sure he will continue to annoy her but she pretty much lets him do whatever he wants to her!

Maybe he will use daddies blanket next time?

Yeah, she doesn't look too excited here.

A trip to see Ho Ho

We went to Bass Pro tonight so Austin could see "Ho Ho". We weren't sure if he was actually going to sit in his lap but he was all about it, as you can see. He talked about wanting to go to Ho Ho's house the past two days so I guess that helped. Bass Pro gives a free 4x6 if you get your picture taken and then I did the editing at home. Pretty good deal if you ask me.

Austin with Santa

Playing with play dough=free time for mom

So yesterday when I thought I was going to pull my hair out, I asked Nick to take Austin for 30 minutes while I took a bath. He cried at the bathroom door saying, "Mama, Mama, Mama" over and over. I finally asked Nick to get the play dough out and told him it would entertain him for awhile. At the time I didn't care what he played with...just as long as I had a few minutes of freedom. :)

This is his favorite play dough shooter thingy. He is really thinking hard here and using those huge arm muscles.

He is using these stencils to make different shapes. Uncle Matt taught him to say "poop" as it shoots out. Thanks Matt!

He was asked to show his teeth here...not as cute as we had hoped.

Check us out!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Pay It Forward

and win a prize! This past week I participated in a Pay It Forward contest on my friend Jessica's blog ....and I won these really cute slippers from Old Navy! So now it's my turn to "pay it forward" with my premeditated act of kindness. Would you like to receive a fun gift and then give a gift in return? Here are the rules...
The focus of this is to do an act of kindness without expecting anything in return other than that the recipient will, in turn, pass the kindness along and "pay it forward". I will send a small, fun gift to the first 3 bloggers who comment on this post. In turn, those three will post this information and pick 3 people they want to send something to and the game will continue! The little something you send can be something you made or bought...anything you want! Just a gift that will make someone's day!
So if you want to play along, be one of the first 3 to leave a comment and then promise that you will then post about this on your blog, link back to me, and then send something to the first three people who sign up to play along through your blog. If you're just a lurker out there who never comments, now is your chance. Let the games begin!

Enchilada Casserole

This has been one of Nick and I's favorite easy meals to cook....well I cook it and we both eat it :) Austin loves to help with preparing this meal because he gets to tear the tortillas in small pieces and be my helper. Here is the recipe and some pictures from last week when we made it.

Enchilada Casserole:
1 lb. ground beef
1 med. onion, diced
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1 (10oz.) can enchilada sauce
1 small can of diced green chili peppers (optional)
1 c. milk
1/2 lb Velvetta cheese
1 pkg. soft flour tortillas

Brown ground beef with onion and drain. Mix soups, milk, enchilada sauce and green peppers (we eliminate the peppers) and add to the ground beef mixture. Spray 13X9 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray. Line pan with tortillas, torn in slices. Cover with sauce and top with cheese. Repeat. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. I remove the foil after baking for 15 minutes to allow the cheese to melt.

Austin throwing the Velvetta on the ground

Tearing and eating some tortillas

Tearing the tortillas and throwing them in the pan....working on his basketball skills too!

Milk

Velvetta...yummy.

Can goods

Casserole before baking....I know it doesn't really look tastey but it is.

Good Christmas Song

So most of you know that Nick and I love going to Christian concerts together. It is just about the only hobby that we can do together that we both enjoy except playing the Wii. Anyways we went to see the Third Day Christmas concert last year and I fell in love with this song and wanted to share it. The lead singer, Mac Powell has an awesome voice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0H8EFjvcyA