Bringing in 2014

According to statistics from the National Insurance Crime Bureau, more vehicles are stolen on New Year’s Day than on any other holiday throughout the year.
The tradition of using a baby to signify the New Year was started around 600 B.C by the ancient Greeks, who at the start of a year would carry a baby around in a basket. The purpose of it was to honor Dionysus, the God of Fertility and symbolize his annual rebirth.
In Greece children leave their shoes by the fireside on New Year’s Day (also the Festival of Saint Basil in Greece) with the hope that Saint Basil, who was famous for his kindness, will come and fill their shoes with gifts.
In Venezuela, Argentina, Bolivia, and Mexico, those with hopes of traveling in the New Year carry a suitcase around the house at midnight. Some even carry it around the block to ensure traveling at greater distances.  (Alrighty then – guess I better get my suitcase ready and head around the block)
In Spain people eat 12 grapes as the clock strikes midnight (one each time the clock chimes) on New Year’s Eve. This peculiar ritual originated in the twentieth century when freak weather conditions resulted in an unseasonable bumper harvest of grapes. Not able to decide what to do about so many grapes at Christmas time, the King of Spain and the grape growers came up with the idea of the New Year ritual.  (We could modify this tradition with wine…after all, it’s made from grapes)
The people in China believe that there are evil spirits that roam the earth. So on New Year they burn crackers to scare the evil spirits. The doors and windows of every home in china can be seen sealed with paper. This is to keep the evil demons out.

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2013 Books

Under the Table: Saucy Tales from Culinary School by Katherine Darling

A deliciously entertaining memoir about one woman’s adventures in the student kitchens of the legendary French Culinary Institute—flavored with celebrity chefs, eccentric characters, and mouthwatering recipes. To anyone who has ever dreamed of life in a French kitchen, Katherine Darling serves up a savory dose of reality in this funny, fascinating, and altogether delightful account of her time spent slaving over a hot stove, wrestling with veal calves, and cleaning fish heads at The French Culinary Institute. As she goes from clueless amateur to certified chef, Katherine and her quirky fellow students frequently find themselves the objects of scorn as their teachers wage psychological warfare over steaming pots of bisque. It’s a cutthroat world, and no one ever made a soufflé without breaking a few eggs—or cracking a few heads together. Filled with delicious food lore and trivia, and including dozens of classic and original French recipes, Under the Table takes readers deep into the trenches of one of the world’s most prestigious cooking schools—and shows what really goes on behind the doors of every great restaurant kitchen.

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10 Things to Smile About December

It’s my favorite time of the year but sadly I’ve had a lot of highs and lows hit me this month.  Nothing real extreme by any measures, just enough that at times I didn’t feel like I was able to enjoy this time of the year.  But today’s main focus is 10 Things to Smile About hosted by Emmymom so that’s just what we’re going to do.  Smile!  In no particular order:

3. Decorating our Christmas tree.  I absolutely love our Christmas Tree and so decorating it as a family is one of the best times of the year!

8. The Review Extravaganza which just so happens to be going on through the end of this week.  Make sure you check it out!!


Emmy Mom

1. This. What more can I say about this really?  I guess that I wish some of the other scenes would have been free but dang it was fun!
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsWM1FJO1SQ]

10. I had a helper helping me wrap Christmas presents.

2. The fact that I finally announced that we’re expecting. I also announced to some friends via our Christmas card this year which sadly I mailed out a bit late because I was waiting for Peanuts photo to arrive!

6. Getting my boots shined.  What’s better than that?!?!

9. We were able to attend the Futurity this year! I Love Ft. Worth and I Love attending the NCHA Futurity!

4. Baking cinnamon rolls!  Just love it!

7. Peanut even got presents at Christmas 🙂

5. Even though I was in a funk, Christmas soooo made me smile.  Especially when they pointed out I had Grandma’s lipstick on my cheek.

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Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

This year I decided to make Pioneer Woman’s Cinnamon Rolls instead of our traditional cookies for our friends and families.  Hello yum is all I can say.  I made 2 different rounds of Cinnamon Rolls.

Sadly this is the only photo I took of our tree with presents under it.  Oy!  I was in the process of wrapping presents this day and one of my friends emailed a photo of her tree so this is the photo I sent her back of our tree. (more…)

Ft. Worth Trip in a Nutshell

Oh Ft. Worth how I miss thee!  So Wednesday December 11th, my family loaded up and headed to Ft. Worth.  I think that Bella knew that something was up because all morning long she kept staring at me and giving me the evil eye.  She stayed home while we were gone and my Mother in law came over to check up on her.

There was snow on the ground and hubby had been outside.  When he came in he didn’t want to walk on the heels of his jeans and get his socks wet so I walked in and saw this.  Cracked me up.

When we were getting ready to leave I asked him if he had drawn the curtains.  Now we were waiting on the UPS man to show up so when he asked for a piece of paper and pen, I thought he was going to write the UPS man a note and instead, he “drew the curtains”…. yuck yuck yuck.

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Week 12

Please ignore the lazy dressed bum in these photos… oy!

How far along? 12 weeks 6 days

Total weight gain/loss: By what the Drs scales say, I’ve gained 1 lb.  by my scales, I see 10.  It’s making me feel bad when people keep asking me how much I’ve gained, I answer and the looks on people’s face makes me want to hide in a deep hole 🙁

How big is baby? Baby is the size of a plum.  2.1 inches long and .49 ounces.  Now he or she has pretty much all parts, the baby’s main job is to keep on growing.

  • Most of the baby’s critical systems are fully formed!
  • Baby’s about to enter the growth and maturation state, in which the organs and tissues will grow and develop rapidly.
  • Baby’s now developing reflexes – if you poke baby’s body, baby will likely move.
  • Baby’s opening and closing fingers and curling toes too.
  • The brain is developing fast.

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Review Extravaganza – October thru December

Whew you gals are great.  I’ve really enjoyed seeing everyone’s 2013 in review.  Can you believe we’re already at the end of the year?!?!  Wow, this fun link up is going about as fast as the year has.  Get your posts ready and link up below!

ReviewExtravaganza 2013FFF

All you need to do is write your post, link up and you’re on your way to winning wonderful prizes.  Plus this is a GREAT way to recap your year for all your new readers!  Two birds with one stone!  For a complete set of prizes/sponsors please click here. This week we’re linking up our second review of the year.  You have all month to go through the list of likes in the rafflecopter.
prizecollage

If you have any problems or questions, please let me know!

October
I started off the Month of October with the Sunshine Award given to me by the wonderful Jill from Jill’s World.

I shared with you Fashion Blogger Don’ts and a Now.  I soooo forgot that I did one of those currently posts.  Cool right?

I shared with you that I drive down the road and think and one day’s thoughts happened to be about that last first kiss.

We played with Snookums a lot more!

I introduced the kitty officially.

We went through things I learned while in school….

Hubby and I spent a week bouncing around on a tractor trying to get hay made for the cows for winter.

and this just so happens to be the month we found out I was pregnant.  We weren’t sure at first, but hubby thought he knew right away, especially after the fit I threw at the tractor.

We decorated for Halloween.

The family headed to Kansas City to go see Wicked.

The next day hubby and I got to go to a KC Chiefs game.

My husband got me through a rough time.

I ended the month participating in Emmy Mom’s 10 Things to Smile About October.

November
Hubby’s Birthday starts off November for us.

 
I proved that it was okay to start thinking about Christmas in November because we went to help raise money for the Newton County Children’s Christmas.

Moo honored hubby for Veteran’s Day at her school.

Princess Rio was caught up on our roof... more than once….

Mom and dad got a new puppy.

Zebra Girl taught us about Bob.

Hubby tried to go hunting… tried being the keyword.  He’s lucky he didn’t get sprayed by skunks!

I attempted to draw the US in the correct places… I got close…  I just want you to know it’s all Kenzie’s Fault!

We ended the month with Thanksgiving.

December
In December I finally came clean to all of you my secret.  I didn’t even tell my facebook friends/family until Christmas Day….

I Participated in Emmymom’s 10 Things to Smile about November (the first part of December, it’s all good.)

We reviewed January through March.

I elfed my family….

For the first time I participated in Kenzie & Scriptor’s We Want to Know Wednesday.

We reviewed April through June.

I took Finals which caused me to hit a writer’s slump.

We took our annual trip to Ft. Worth!!!  I still need to recap this!

We reviewed July through September.

I had a really bad/tough week.  A good thing that came out of my bad week was I got to hear the babies heart beat again.  I video’ed it.  Yup, I’m that gal 🙂
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sc9ziFZ3COQ]

And then we had Christmas.  Sadly there is a little more to go for the month of December but hey, stick around for the fun ride!  I see a few things in my future 🙂

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No Good, Very Bad, Day

Okay so I’m trying not to be a negative Nancy but last week was just AWFUL!  The title really should say No Good, Very Bad, Week.  But let’s not focus on that.  This is a new week and guess what….  It’s Christmas Eve Eve… aka the eve before Christmas Eve.  Christmas is my most favorite time of the year!  I’m hoping that my Christmas spirit will come back in time although I started seeing the light at the end of the tunnel late last week… as in this weekend.

So on a different note, especially because we said that we weren’t going to be Negative Nancy’s today… I just wanted you to know something.  I like Kiwi.  You know, the fruit.  I just hate peeling them.  Would someone please come peel them for me?

And I’ll leave you with this…  Yesterday I was sitting in the middle of the living room floor wrapping presents and got myself a little helper.

I’m not sure that hubby and I could have gone a picked a better cat!  If you remember, I saw a post on facebook where they were trying to find her a good home and we responded.  Otherwise we wouldn’t have a cat but she’s the best!

Guess I should go finish wrapping my Christmas presents.  I’m kind of running out of time, huh?

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