She's not listening...

If you've started at the bottom & read up, you would have read "I Pin-cess" & learned about my quest to teach Sloan the concept of less is more. She's not listening. She's in the more is more camp as pictured here. I didn't think she could add another accessory until she put on the mask.... 

I'm now caught up! This picture was this morning so I'll be back after we meet Santa on Monday. Bets on who is going to embrace & who is going to cry?!?

Friday Night Movie Night

So last night was Friday Night Movie Night. Normally I wouldn't feel the need to document this, however it was pretty monumental in our house. Lincoln actually dressed up as Hulk! Lincoln has been our only 1 of the 3 that has consistently not wanted to dress up, while the other 2 are forever in some sort of costume. Because Lincoln willingly put on Hulk & then stayed in Hulk for the movie was pretty big (especially in Tiernan's eyes - which in this picture are suppose to be in conjunction with his Batman face). I think this donning of the costume is because Lincoln moved in with Tiernan this week. We haven't done the full move yet, but he's sleeping in "Ba Ba's" room at night now. There's no going back because he thinks he is all that & a Happy Meal. He struts right in & climbs into the bottom bunk like he just belongs there. He seems to be doing more & more of the things T does (& therefore the costume...). Sloan was the princess to be saved by our heroes! In the picture of the 3, she's telling us that she's 2 & not a loser :) And for the record, I so didn't mean to add this nasty picture of me but since I'm this far into the post I can't delete it or I'd delete the whole thing! Nuts. Oh well, now you know what I looked like yesterday - a little strung out.

And now I know....

...what to get the kids for Christmas! Seriously, they had tons of fun with a box insert. Santa's going back to Toys R Us for some returns :)

Joining in the Reindeer Fun

Tiernan made reindeer hats at his Christmas party this Thursday, the 18th. (Yes, I'm actually posting in the SAME week as the picture!) So when we got home from the party everyone had to join in the reindeer fun!

Tiernan's 1st Play

On Sunday, December 14th, we had Tiernan's 1st play at school. It was the story of Mary & Joseph so Tiernan was the 1st King (some of us are thinking how appropriate....). His friend, Ben, was Joseph who is in the blue. It was fun to watch the kids & their excitement. They knew what to do & when so it was well executed. I was amazed that T knew everyone's lines. When we talked about the play at home (leading up to the actual performance), he would recite all the lines before him & after him. I guess he was really paying attention during practice. And yes, we were the total 1st time parents - we video-taped the play! 

"I Pin-cess"

Sloan has taken to saying "I Pin-cess". Several times a week, I find her jewel-laden, ready for the day. When she's in this mood, she ends up wanting to wear pink.  It can be a pink sweatsuit for all she cares, but if she's in the "pin-cess" mood she's very specific about what she's wearing that day. We're working on the less is more... as I often find her with several necklaces, 3 big rings, & 1 of her tiara's. At least she's content being a "pin-cess" that does house chores! 

Happy Birthday Tiernan!

On December 6th, we celebrated Tiernan's 5th birthday with a party at our church. Thankfully, we were able to rent the gym so 13 of his friends (plus him made 14 kids - what was I thinking?!?) could come "Hulk Out" with us. With the theme as Hulk, Spiderman & Iron Man, Tiernan started off in his Hulk costume but it didn't last too long - he was back into the favorite, Batman, before long. The kids played "Web Spidey" aka "Pin the tail on the donkey". I had Chris draw a Spiderman on a poster board & I made webs with their names on them that we used for the game. We played "Hulk Stomp the Bad Guys" where we blew up balloons, drew bad guy faces on them, tied string to them and then tied them around the kids' ankles. They had to stomp the bad guys! That was pretty funny. Some kids totally got after it. Others were nervous about the balloons popping. The last game was the Iron Man pull. The kids were split into 2 teams, given a blanket & then they had to pull Sloan & Lincoln across the gym floor. We finished up with Hulk & Spiderman cupcakes, ice cream, juice & Sprite. The drink request cracked me up. I was totally going with juice pouches (a kids favorite & easy) but T had been to a party recently where Sprite was offered. He just thought that was the coolest. 

We celebrated T's actual birthday on the 8th with Birthday Tostadas... The kid loves Mexican, especially tostadas. So pictured here is Tiernan with Birthday Tostada & candle. Can't believe my baby's 5! Sniff Sniff.

O Christmas Tree

So after getting back from OH on Saturday, we all slept in on Sunday. See Sloan... That's how my girl rolls with her footie pjs & almost all her jewels. She spent most of the day like this, or at least until lunch. She then changed into her "pik pri-cess" dress & spent from nap on in it. Decorating a tree with 2 2-year-olds was challenging to say the least. But we laughed (after a while it was all we could do). The kids had fun so that's all that matters. Lincoln spent the 1st few days trying to blow the lights out. I so wish we got it on video, but we didn't. He'd just stand there and puff at the tree. Too cute.

Thanksgiving!

We have SO much to be thankful for these days. Yes, this is the season for remembering all of our blessings but even throughout the year I can't help but be grateful for all that we have. We have our family. Not just the Bass 5 but our parents, siblings, cousins, and our friends. Even though some, okay most, are not in town we think of them so often and pray for continued blessings on them throughout the year. We're just grateful for all of our family & friends. We have our health, our freedom, our home, food, clothes.... At any rate, I'm in a grateful state of mind. 

After STL, we headed to OH to celebrate Thanksgiving with Nana & Grandpa Bob, Aunt Jeannie & Uncle Barry, cousins Brian & Angela & some family friends. Chris & I took off Thursday morning on a Turkey Trot. This 4-mile-run (I use the word "run" here loosely) was to help shelter the homeless. It was a crazy run as it went up hills, down hills, through a cemetary, through a business district & ended at a Krispy Kreme Donut. We met up with a family friend afterwards for coffee - at the KK. It was fun for us to get out & do this. We've never run together like that before. We've done the mini & other stuff but I don't think we've stayed side-by-side before. Later that day, we celebrated with the usual turkey & trimmings. It was fun to enjoy family & friends & food! We also celebrated Sloan & Lincoln's birthday. Yes, this is one of the longest celebrations, but so fun to watch Sloan & Lincoln with their cake & candles. Lincoln obviously enjoyed his cake as seen here...We also pre-celebrated Tiernan's birthday on Friday. Nana & Grandpa Bob got him these Bat Wings which wear like a backpack. He pulls a cord & these wings flip out. I'll have to take a picture with T in full garb for you to truly understand these things. They are hilarious, but honestly got a little worrisome each time he whipped them out around Nana's Waterford... Everything survived, & we had several happy campers! 

More Birthday Celebration!

We were in STL, came home for 1 day & then headed out to celebrate Thanksgiving in Ohio. During our 1 day home, a package arrived for the kids from Mimi & Poppa. More birthday celebration for Sloan & Lincoln, & early celebration for Tiernan! You can see he's sporting his new utility belt that fires the foam gizmos straight from the belt. Let me tell you how fun it is to keep track of those babies... Sloan is showing off her "pik pri-cess" dress. Her 2nd picture details the tiara and jewels that accompany the dress. I totally love this picture, not because she's eating tomato soup & grilled cheese, but if you look closely enough you will see that her ring is just as big as her finger! It cracks me up. Lincoln loved his Play-Doh, which he openly shared with "Ba-Ba" & "Shishta". 

Da Bears

We went to St. Louis not only to celebrate the twins turning 2, but Chris & I went to the Bears/Rams game on the 23rd. It was so much fun - we had 8 adults! NO kids! Left them home with a sitter! Mike made chili n' chowder for us to tailgate with... we forgot the spoons, bowls, crackers... pretty much everything but the soups & the beer. Go figure. We had a saviour that stopped & got spoons & bowls. Good stuff! 

Craziness

Craziness isn't that the twins turned 2, it's that it's been almost a month since I've been on here! Yikes! But a lot has happened in this time. So... here we go... Pictures here are from Sloan & Lincoln's 2nd birthday on November 22nd. We celebrated in St. Louis with cousins. So they spent most of their actual birthday in the car. That's not as bad as it might seem when they got juice pouches, Lunchables, lolly pops - all treats for them! Momma made ice cream cone cupcakes to bring with to STL so that's what they are holding here. 

Lincoln has totally been into cars; more specifically Lightening McQueen. So his presents were Cars-related. He opened them Friday night before we left. When he went to bed that night, he brought his Lightenings up to his bed, put them in the pocket on his bed rail, climbed into bed, opened the pocket back up & said "Night Night Lightening" then laid his little precious head down to go to sleep! 

Sloan has been starting down the princess road. She's not specific but certainly enjoys dressing up. She has also been in an imitate Momma mode lately. She got "baby" who had clothes to change in & out of, as well as a stroller (which goes so much faster around the corners than I thought it could!). She also received a vacuum, much to my mother's chagrin. Even though technically it's Sloan's, both kids have enjoyed helping Momma vacuum the carpets.... if only it worked!

After Breakfast...

While I took the boys, Sloan & Lincoln stayed with my friend Sonja because Chris had a board meeting at the same time as the breakfast. It was so helpful! Just fun to do something for T. At any rate, we all arrived home about the same time. Sloan & Lincoln haven't had too much time to play with the hands as they've been too new for Tiernan to share yet. (Once the newness wears off, he's more apt to share the toys but until then....). So the kids were yelling "Huk Mash" for us all morning. 

Breakfast with the Hulk!

On Saturday the 15th, I was able to take Tiernan & 3 of his friends for breakfast at the Children's Museum. I won tickets for this meet & greet in an on-line contest last weekend. We headed out early to be downtown by 8:30am. The guys were so ready to go! We ate breakfast & then the Hulk came out so we got in line to meet him & take pictures. Jackson brought paper Hulk masks for everyone so the boys were quite the show with their t-shirts & masks. T was the only one in full Hulk costume. I brought our "Hulk Smash" hands because they're so fun & they make the outfit :) After meeting the Hulk, we were able to go to the Super Hero exhibit & play around for a while. The morning was great. The kids were so polite & not super crazy hyper. Don't get me wrong, they were so excited but they still did a great job listening. We left CM by 10am (which is when it opens) & the lines were amazingly long. The Hulk was going to be there from 10am-3pm, but no special meet & greet for the general public. I was so grateful that we were in & out before the crowds! 

Man I've been slacking!

Can't believe it's been since November 4th that I've been on here. Not too much has been going on - just life in the fast lane with the kids and Chris working. Here are a couple of recipes that were HUGE hits here.

Pasta with Bread Crumbs 

Salt for cooking pasta

8 ounces short pasta, such as penne

2 tablespoons butter

2 teaspoons olive oil

3 cloves minced garlic

1 cup coarse soft bread crumbs 

1/2 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning, oregano or basil

1/4 teaspoon salt or to taste

1/3 cup Parmesan cheese

1) Cook pasta according to package.

2) Melt butter in 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add 1 teaspoon of the olive & and the garlic. Cook about 1 minute. The add bread crumbs, seasonings & salt - stir to coat the crumbs with the butter mixture. Cook, stirring frequently, until the crumbs are crisp & golden brown - about 6-10 minutes. 

3) Drain pasta well & pour into serving bowl. Drizzle remaining oil over pasta. Add cheese & toss well. Just before serving, add bread crumbs & toss well. Serve immediately.

Notes:

1) I used 1-1lb box of penne, so I didn't measure the rest of my ingredients.

2) I used rosemary, basil, oregano for my seasonings.

3) I threw some bread ends into the food processor to make the bread crumbs. It was super fast & they were good! 

4) Could totally add tomatoes, chicken, whatever. The kids ate 2-3 servings at least. There were no left-overs! 

Granola

I know, I know - you can buy it at the store & it's pretty good. But this stuff has my kids & Chris snacking on it!

Cooking spray

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup pure maple syrup or honey

1 1/2 cups lightly packed light brown sugar

6 cups oats (quick cooking or old-fashioned)

2 cups chopped walnuts, almonds or pecans

1 cups wheat germ

1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

1 cup raisins

1 cup sweetened dried cranberries or cherries

1) Place oven racks in center positions & preheat oven to 350. Spray 2 11x17 jelly-roll pans with cooking spray.

2) Combine oil, maple syrup or honey & brown sugar in 1-quart bowl. Microwave, uncovered, on high power until the sugar starts to melt, about 3 minutes. Remove the bowl & whisk until any lumps dissolve.

3) Combine the oats, nuts, wheat germ & coconut in big bowl. Toss to mix well. Pour the syrup mixture over oat mixture & stir until well mixed. Spread evenly onto jelly pans.

4) Place a pan on each oven rack & bake for 10 minutes. Remove, stir & switch the pans so the 1 that was on the bottom is now on top. Bake for another 8-10 minutes, taking care not to let the granola get too brown.

5) Cool in pans for about an hour. Sprinkle with raisins, etc., over each pan. Stir to mix well. Store in air-tight containers, preferably glass jars or tins, for up to 2 weeks.

Notes:

1) I used honey.

2) Instead of cranberries, etc., I used 1 cup raisins & 1 cup dates.  

3) I used both chopped walnuts & pecans to make the 2 cups.

4) Browns really fast in a dark pan - if you have silver ones - use those.

5) I skipped the wheat germ & coconut but did add 1/2 cup of ground flax seed.

Anyone know...

... about child labor laws in Indiana?

Are they trying to tell me something?

If this is how we start our morning - with helmets - what am I in for?

Sweet & Sour Chicken AND Mini Ravioli Soup

Grown-Up Sweet & Sour Chicken

Salt for cooking rice

1 1/3 cups long-grain rice

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 tablespoon oil

3 medium-size carrots (about 1 1/2 cups sliced)

1 large onion (about 1 cup sliced)

1 clove minced garlic

1 teaspoon minced ginger

1 large green bell pepper (about 1 1/2 cups sliced)

1 can (15 1/4 ounces) pineapple chunks in juice

2 tablespoons rice vinegar or white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar

2 tablespoons cold water

1) Bring 2 2/3 cups lightly salted water to a boil. Add rice, stir & reduce heat. Cover pan & simmer until rice is tender - about 20 minutes.

2) Meanwhile, peel carrots & slice at 45 degree angle into 1/2-inch thick slices. Add carrots to skillet with oil over medium heat. Cut onion into 1/2-inch wide crescent-shaped slices, adding to skillet as you slice. Stir to mix well. Cook about 2 minutes until carrots soften.

3) Cut chicken into bite-size pieces, adding to skillet as you cut. Add garlic & ginger & stir well. Cook about 5-6 minutes until chicken is no longer pink.

4) While chicken cooks, stem, seed & cut pepper into 1/2-inch strips, adding to skillet as you cut. Drain pineapple juice from can into a 1-cup or larger measure, reserving the chunks. Add enough water to the juice to make 1-cup liquid.

5) As soon as chicken is done, add juice mixture to skillet & bring to boil. Then add vinegar, soy sauce & brown sugar. Stir well.

6) Mix cornstarch with cold water in small container w/tight lid. Shake well until lumps dissolve. Add mixture to skillet a little at a time, stirring constantly. Stir in about 1/2 pineapple chunks. Save rest for another use. Cook, stirring constantly until sauce thickens - about 2 minutes. Remove from heat & serve at once with additional soy to pass.

Notes;

1) Instead of rice, we've served over chinese noodles. 

2) It's good with pork as well.

3) I increased garlic & ginger to 2 teaspoons.

Mini Ravioli Soup

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 large onion (about 1 cup chopped)

8 ounces fresh mushrooms

1 clove minced garlic

2 (14 ounce) cans fat-free chicken broth

1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes with garlic & onion 

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

2 cups mini ravioli

shredded or grated parmesan for serving

1) Heat oil in 4 1/2-quart soup pot over medium heat. While oil is heating, peel & chop onion, adding to pot as you go. Cook about 3 minutes.

2) Rinse, pat & slice mushrooms, add to pot. Cook until they begin to release liquid, about 2 minutes.

3) Add garlic, broth, tomatoes w/juice, worcestershire & basil. Raise heat to high , cover pot & bring to boil.

4) When at rolling boil, add ravioli. When returns to boil, cook about 3-4 minutes until ravioli is tender. Serve at once, with parm.

Notes:

1) I added more worcestershire - maybe 2 teaspoons. 

2) I also added extra garlic.

3) I used frozen tortellini & was fine, but increased chicken broth to 6 cups.

 

The morning after...

Well, costumes were still abound Saturday morning here. The kids were being silly with dressing up. Sloan loved being the Hulk (no picture with the Hulk Smash hands though). She quickly switched to Super Girl (once Tiernan realized she was playing with his stuff). Notice her doing her hair & talking on the phone - apparently Super Girls can do that sort of thing! Tiernan graciously loaned his Batman costume to a bud for Halloween so was unable to turn from Bruce to Bat. He purchased Batman gloves on Friday (with allowance money!) so he's been wearing the mask & gloves all over the place. He will be very excited to put it all together when the costume comes home. Good ol' Lincoln even got a little into the mix with glasses & beads. That's big time for him. He rarely joins in any of the reindeer games involving costumes around here.