Sugar Cookies Take 2

I made homemade sugar cookies a few posts below and I was a bit embarrassed as to how the shape of my "Christmas" cookies turned out...lets be honest they were ugly. I sought out advice and voila!!! A fantastic woman (that I have the pleasure of knowing who shall remain anonymous) was kind enough to share with me her recipe for the perfect sugar cookies. Not only were they fabulous tasting but they came out darn near perfect after my little family spent the evening decorating them.

I really should get back to packing since we leave tomorrow for California for Christmas and New Years (so excited!) so here I go!!! Happy travels to us and Merry Christmas to you all!

Because I Had To..

So I pretty much balled today. I had a list of things that I wanted to get accomplished before we leave on Friday for CA to spend Christmas and New Years with family. One of the items was to update the kids' photo albums meaning print off photos and organize them in their photo albums. I didn't have much to print off and organize, just the past few months. I really, really, really dread this chore. Why?
I ball my head off every single time because I can't help but look back and see how much they've grown especially my first born. My eyes flood with tears as I look back at my precious baby Brooke. To see how much she's grown into this sweet, loving, smart and witty little girl that is 4 going on 16 breaks my heart. How can she be four almost 5 already??? She was supposed to stay my baby forever right???? I feel old, and trust me I don't think 27 is old but I feel old because time seems to be passing by me at warp speed...and this is what I am reminded of every single time I complete that dreaded chore of updating the kids' photo albums. Time passes by at warp speed and I really would love it if it would slow down.
The photo above is one of my many favorites of Brooke...this was taken in June of 2006 at Bryan's graduation from CSUN. Brooke was 4 months old.

December Doings

I love these two so much.

Cookie Decorating

Last night we ( I should say I ) made homemade sugar cookies. Yum! I had picked up some cute sprinkles and cookie decorating stuff and we spent the evening decorating the sugar cookies. It's been so cold here in Utah that I've been trying to come up with some fun indoor activities. We definitely had fun!
I can't figure out why my sugar cookies don't ever stay true to their shape, if anyone can share some helpful hints I'd appreciate it!

Chicken Chili

Utah is cold....really, really, really cold and I don't think I've seen the sun since we came back after Thanksgiving.
I wanted to share one of my favorite recipes that we have been enjoying in this cold weather. It's super easy, tastes delicious and is great leftovers for the next day.
Enjoy!

Chicken Chili

Ingredients
2 cooked chicken breasts shredded
2 cans of chicken stock
3 cans of white beans
8oz block of pepper jack cheese grated
2 teaspoons of ground cumin seed
1 clove of garlic chopped
1 16oz can of salsa (I use medium sometimes hot)
tortilla chips crushed
dash of salt and pepper

In a large pot combine the chicken stock, beans (do not drain the beans pour the entire 2 cans in), salsa, grated pepper jack cheese, cumin seed, chopped garlic, shredded chicken, dash of salt and pepper.
Mix and place on stove top medium to high heat and cook for about 10 minutes. It should start to boil and bubble and the cheese should be entirely melted. Turn heat to low and add the crushed tortilla chips. I usually add about 2 cups worth or almost 1/2 of the bag of tortilla chips. Mix and let the tortilla chips absorb in the chili and serve.
It will appear to look more like a soup or "stewp" at dinner. Refrigerate the leftovers (which will be a whole pot full) and the next day heat it up on the stove and it will be thick just like the consistency of chili.
Enjoy!!!

The Brody Bear

This little man is growing up way too fast for mommy. It seems like everyday he is adding new words to his vocabulary. Some new fun things he can say include....
baby
pretty
beep beep (while he is playing cars)
please
no
tree
night night
pray
hello, who is it?
bye bye

Brody will be 16 months at the end of December and he is turning into this wild and daring little boy. He's a climber, a huge eater, a cuddle bear and a kisser. Brody LOVES giving kisses and has the most delicious lips perfect for kisses.
My little man has turned into a full fledged Linus. His "blankie" now goes everywhere he goes, it drags behind him as he explores and plays all around our house. I try to wrap it around him as to prevent him from tripping and falling but we've already experienced our first and second goose-egg on the fore-head.
We love our sweet little boy so much.

Lucky Number 8....

Bryan and I have been married now for 8 years, we've moved 7 times to 7 different rentals with the exception of one, we lived with my parents for a little over a year while Bryan finished up school in the second year of our marriage ( yes that was way embarrassing and yes we were made fun of a lot but it was one of the best decisions ever ).
Lucky number 8, our 8th move, is so special because its our first home...our first home purchase, we are property virgins no more...as soon as escrow closes which is set for January 31st.
Our new home was built in 2010, 4 bedrooms plus loft, 2 and 1/2 baths, 2190 sq. ft. I believe it truly is the perfect house for our family and it was waiting for us because it was the last new house on the street to sell. I love the surrounding green belts and trees, catch and release lake and the park 6 houses down from the house. I also love the fact that our neighborhood or housing community is front yard grass only..I'm not a fan of the dessert look at all which is common in some other surrounding neighborhoods and communities. We are so excited to settle down and plant our "roots" in Arizona. Arizona really is quite beautiful and green to my complete surprise. Our city and neighborhood instantly reminded me so much of our hometown of Santa Clarita California.
Brooke has already requested her room be pink...I'm hoping to talk Bryan into a new dining room table that will seat more than just us four...and the backyard is dirt for now and will be a fun project to work on...I cannot wait to pack up and make our new house our home.
So cheers to hopefully a headache free escrow!

Snow Play

Yesterday while Brody took his afternoon nap Brooke and I went outside to play in the snow. We had so much fun throwing snow at each other, building a snowman and I even got some much needed exercise pulling Brooke around in our garage sale find sled. Both of us were pooped after a few hours of play so we headed inside for snacks and I made myself a warm cup of tea.
I drove in the snow for the first time a few days ago..not sure if it really counts as driving in the snow because its was not "snowing" and the roads were plowed days before but I survived..the only major thing that happened was that I backed into a wall of snow as I pulled out of our garage. I also learned that just because the sidewalk has been shoveled and there "appears" to be no snow...don't wear ballet flats....you get the picture.