Good Evening.  Very late post, but it’s been a busy, busy weekend, and we had our first snowfall!!  Couple of inches too, it was absolutely beautiful!!  We are in the end of semester crunch right now, working diligently to get everything done for school.  In the midst of that, also putting up holiday decorations when we can.  I thoroughly enjoyed shampooing the carpets, they turned out very nice too.  Still need to do the stairs yet, and the couch.  Getting these projects checked off my list here and there, so that I make Santa’s nice list this year 😀

Hope everyone is doing well.  Have a wonderful week!!

Linking-up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:

LOL CHUCKLES AND GIGGLES:

 RECIPE I TRIED AND ONE I WANT TO TRY:

So I did try the Chicken Tamale Pie.  I didn’t make mine in a skillet, so it was more like a casserole.  My little food critic liked it, Liv and Elijah weren’t all that impressed with it, and I wasn’t either.  It isn’t horrible, and it is easy to make, so we’ll see if I make that one again.

What I’d like to try…Hot Chocolate Float…yes please!!

 HAPPENINGS AROUND TOWN: 

We went to the Illuminated Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting Ceremony on Friday night.  Met my sister, her husband, my nephew and his fiancé, and my Aunt out there.  It was pretty cold. But it is unbelievable at the amount of people that come out for it.  The floats seem to be getting better.  There are a few traditional floats of local businesses, the school band but the majority of them are these illuminated structures (thus the name).

It ends with Mr. and Mrs. Claus pulled by real reindeer (who are adorable, the reindeer that is).  Mr. and Mrs. Claus then greet people after the parade at our City Hall.  This year there was a bit of a surprise.  Our entire City Hall was covered in lights, and when our Mayor hit the switch and it was amazing!!  Taking a picture doesn’t do it justice, and it’s hard to time it with the switching of colors, so I took video of it instead.  Me and the boys went out on Sunday while it was snowing to get some good pictures.

This is the tree in front of city hall.

My Uncle is the event planner for our town.  This corner of town was decorated by him.  Yep, that Santa is huge!!  He comes into down laying on a flat bed truck, lol.  They just built this little stage where they hold concerts in the summer.  I thought this would be a great place to take family Christmas pics, nudging my daughter to get out there with her brothers.

During the parade one of our local mascots was walking around, so Ben took a pic with him, he’s so cute.

These are the trees around a Veteran’s Memorial that is in front of the school.  They hold special services here for Memorial Day and Veterans Day with the local American Legion.

Our Mayor has done so much for this town, and he keeps going.  Growing up, we didn’t have half these things going on.  As teenagers my friends and I couldn’t wait to get out of this small town.  But I have to say, I’m really happy to be back.

FAVORITE VIDEO FROM THE WEB:

Love this.  Just goes to show, behind every great man, there’s an awesome woman.

FAVORITE PIC FROM THE CAMERA:

First snow fall brought out my adorable snowman, Frostbite.  My kids surprised me with him 6 years ago.  (Yes, I still need to get the patio furniture in the garage) 😦

More Lights

QUOTES:

Good Morning Evening!!  Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving.  Ben had been sick last week, so as he rested, he watched all these episodes of Chopped, the Thanksgiving editions.  One day he asks me, so mom, do you brine your turkey?  I’m like what? Then he proceeds to tell me how to do it.  So I was a little nervous this year preparing my feast, I was afraid I wouldn’t measure up and possibly get chopped.  But Ben was very happy with the meal, as were all my kids.  Elijah thanked me for being his mom, and making such a great meal.  Ben thanked my mom for having me, so that I could make them such a good meal  😀

So now it’s on to Christmas preparations.  I put up the outside lights on Sunday, the forecast said sunny and 50, yeah, no, it was fa-reezing!!  39 feeling like 29.  But we have had such warm weather that the bush I usually string lights on has leaves on it still.  It is usually bare twigs, and I string the lights all through it, and hang large ornaments on it.  So either I will wait to do that, or skip it all together.

It’s been two months since my mom’s injury, and she has moved back upstairs to her room.  So we are cleaning and rearranging again.  We have been discussing what needs to be done, and we want to get the carpets cleaned.  She was going to call in the professionals, but after talking with a friend about a carpet scrubber, she decided to buy one, because I LOVE to clean carpets, and don’t mind doing it.  So, I got to shop online, for a carpet scrubber, and it was on sale!!  I couldn’t be happier if I were twins!!

Have a great week ahead!!

Linking-up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:

LOL CHUCKLES AND GIGGLES:RECIPE I WANT TO TRY:

Chicken Tamale Pie

HAPPENINGS AROUND TOWN: 

We will be having all kinds of holiday events going on.  Everything will be kicked off with the holiday parade on Friday, which has Santa and live reindeer.  The park is already decorated with all the holiday lights, and the huge Santa Claus is on the main street.

FAVORITE VIDEO FROM THE WEB:

Love this.

FAVORITE PIC FROM THE CAMERA:

Our newest Christmas decoration.

 QUOTES:

Good Morning!!  Things have been a bit hectic here.  Working with the boys and their school work, the semester ends December 19^th, and then we have 3 weeks off!! I don’t know who’s looking forward to it more, me or the boys  😀  We also have a cold virus cycling through the house, not fun at all.  My daughter started out with Strep throat, and was put on antibiotics for it, but she ended up with an allergic reaction, where she broke out in hives.  She saw her primary care Doc and they gave her Benedryl for them, but by the end of the night, they weren’t getting better, and once they reached her face and lips, we decided to take her to the ER.  I find that nurses in the ER are so nice, and have a wealth of information.  This one told us that an allergic reaction to medicine will begin with hives on the back of the neck, which most people don’t see right away.  That is exactly how my daughters started.

Looking forward to the Holiday, even though we aren’t having anyone over, we will still enjoy a delicious feast, I’ll be cooking up a quiet storm, but it’s something my kids look forward to every year.  Wishing you and yours a very Happy Thanksgiving!!

Linking-up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:

  LOL CHUCKLES AND GIGGLES:

RECIPE I’VE TRIED:

Chicken Parm Lasagna.  Saw this one on FB and just had to try it.  I love Chicken Parmesan!!  It was delicious.  My daughter’s boyfriend was here and when I told him what I was making he was like, are you kidding me? Chicken Parmesan and Lasagna…together?  Once he tried it, he just closed his eyes and shook his head, then said his taste buds were doing the Whip and the Nae Nae 😀  So yeah, it’s pretty good.

HAPPENINGS AROUND TOWN:

It was 39 degrees the other day, but it felt like 29 because of the wind.  With the wind brings the waves, and the waves bring the surfers.  This picture is just a few of them, there were at least a dozen out there.  On one end of the lake, we have the beautiful Chicago skyline, this is the other side where we have the view of the BP Refinery.  The surfers always surf on this side, the waves didn’t seem that big to me, they were much larger on the other side.  But they seemed to be having fun, cheering each other on.  It didn’t seem like any fun to me, it was cold!!

FAVORITE VIDEO FROM THE WEB:

Beautiful.

FAVORITE PIC FROM THE CAMERA:

QUOTES:

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Good Afternoon!!  Well my Cubbies did it!!  We won the World Series!!  The final game was so stressful, but the best game I have ever watched.  As if being tied in the 9^th and going into extra innings wasn’t nerve racking enough, add a rain delay, and you’ve got yourself a real nail biter.  But the Cubs rallied together during that brief moment, and came out playing like the Champs that they are!!  Friday we watched the parade on TV as 5 million people crowded the streets of Chicago, to celebrate the win, and be a part of history.  Yeah, it was kinda a big deal!!  But our W flag has been taken down, and we can go back to our lives.  Kinda glad, those tense games were starting to get to me.

We are enjoying a beautiful fall day today, can’t believe it is November!!  Hope everyone has a wonderful week ahead.

Linking-up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:

LOL CHUCKLES AND GIGGLES:

RECIPE I’D LIKE TO TRY:

This.

HAPPENINGS AROUND TOWN:

Recently one of the local Restaurant/Bars started a Trivia Night every Monday night.  My friend has been inviting me every week to join her, but I have not been able to join.  Now that my Mom is getting better, and doing more on her own, I have decided to join in on the fun.  Don’t know what I will contribute to the team, but it should be a fun time!!  Wish me luck!!

FAVORITE VIDEO FROM THE WEB:

Cubs fans around the world!!

FAVORITE PIC FROM THE CAMERA:

Elijah took this pic of Ben, showcasing his photo editing skills he learned from his Digital Photography Class.

Ben to the 7th Power

QUOTES:

Good Afternoon!!  Happy Halloween.  We are gearing up here for 400+ trick-or-treaters, and that is not an exaggeration either.  With the beautiful weather, it will be a steady stream of kids.  My boys will sit on the stairs, and hand out the candy.  It’s fun to see all the costumes.  We also have Pumpkin Pie and a Frankenstein cake.

How ‘bout those Cubbies!!  I’m enjoying the World Series, it’s stressful, but it’s fun!!  Hoping they go all the way!!  Have a wonderful week!!  Oh…and don’t forget!!  We GAIN an hour this weekend!!  Yes!! Daylight Savings Time ends!!  What will I do with that extra hour?

Linking-up with Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:

LOL CHUCKLES, AND GIGGLES:

 RECIPE I’D LIKE TO TRY:

Can’t go wrong with Oreos and Rice Krispie Treats!!

FAVORITE VIDEO FROM THE WEB:

This was fun to see during the World Series.  Cub’s Javier Baez and Indian’s Francisco Lindor have been friends for a long time. Even though this is the most important game of their careers, they were able to share this fun moment as friends.  It just made me smile.

FAVORITE PIC FROM THE CAMERA:

Costumes Olivia and Ben put together for the Halloween Party at church last week.

QUOTES: