Moving!

Sorry for the relative silence this month. We've had a few things going on!

The long and short of it is that we're moving to Brevard, NC in less than two weeks! Jared interviewed at small company called PharmAgra Labs last week and last night accepted their job offer. We are excited about the move. It's a small mountain town that should be a beautiful and wonderful place to raise a family.

I must admit, I'm more sad than I thought I'd be to leave Boston. I was rather startled to realize that we have made good friends and that we certainly have found our niche at church. It will be hard to say goodbye to everyone!

So, forgive me if I'm a bit silent for a while. I hope I'll be able to update some, but truth be told, I have a LOT of work to do. I think I better go get started!

Birdseed Biscuits

I'm having a slightly different kind of Tasty Tuesday today... it's one for the birds!

My mother-in-law, Kay, got me a subscription to Family Fun magazine for Christmas and my first issue arrived last week. One of the activities they had suggested was making "Birdseed Biscuits"! The idea immediately appealed to me--it's cheap, easy, a short time in the kitchen, and some time outdoors. Here's the recipe...

Birdseed Biscuits
(makes 4-5 3" biscuits)

1 1/2 c. birdseed
2 T. flour
1/4 c. water

1. Spray or wipe a metal cookie cutter with oil and place in on a foil-covered cookie sheet.
2. Pack the mixture in the cutter, inserting half a straw near the top to create a hole for hanging.
3. Bake the biscuit (with the straw) in a 170F oven until the biscuit is hard, about one hour.
4. Let it cool. Remove the straw, thread a ribbon through the hole, and hang it outside in a sheltered place.

As I don't seem to have any metal cookie cutters, I used one of those silicone heart-shaped muffin pans. It worked like a charm and I'm guessing it was a lot easier to "pack" than a squirrely cookie cutter would have been. I also used hemp string to hang the hearts up with since it's biodegradable.

We headed outside later that afternoon--it was in the teens that day I believe-- and hung our biscuits in a bush by our parking lot. It seems to be a shelter to many birds, even now that the leaves are long gone. The first day or two it seemed like they didn't notice it, but about two days after that 3 of our 5 biscuits had totally been eaten! I think we'll be making some more of these soon.

I had to end with this photo of Max. He decided to put Jared's wrap around ear muffs over his hat--I thought it was pretty cute, if not totally pointless! About a minute after this picture was taken he was wailing he was so cold. Guess Mommy should have put some mittens on him... oops!

Christmas in Texas - Part 3

Here are a few last snaps from our trip down south. We sure did have a great time and are so thankful to Bobby and Amy for hosting us. They have a great home with lots of room to roam. Just what six kids need!

The rare TV moment. The boys sit back and relax in front of the boob tube.

Ruby-ru the comedian. Have I mentioned her fascination with knock-knock jokes? I just hope they start making sense soon! Here's my favorite one to shoot back to her: "Knock, knock. Who's there? Police! Police who? Police stop telling those terrible knock knock jokes!"


Max was pretty excited about the cool shades Santa left in his stocking.

Luke and Tyler checking out the trading cards Santa left in their stockings.

Ruby loved her new baby doll who laughs and cries depending on if you hug or "pinch" her! She likes having her own diaper bag too. What a little mommy.

Max really loved his GeoTrax train. I think he played with it for a week straight when we got home!

Bobo and Ruby having a little bit of cuddle time with her new baby.

Tyler working on a new pogo stick record on his new stick. He and Luke had a great time with their new helicopters, nerf guns, and other such boy things. It was fun to watch and a glimpse into our future with Max!

Max loves giving hugs--looks like Anna wasn't as excited about getting them!

Jared was psyched about his new running shirt. He's becoming quite the running nut! He has another race planned for Valentine's Day.

Mr. Max... too cool at tub time.

Tomorrow we'll head back to Boston (pictorially I mean!) for our Christmas at home.

Trampoline Time

The kids absolutely LOVED the trampoline! Ruby's time on the "big blue ball" has paid off.

Sweet Dinner Rolls

I'm a sucker for a great bread recipe and one that's born in the bread machine--too good to be true! Here's a wonderful one that I discovered a month or so ago. I've made dinner rolls (they're freezable!) and some delicious cinnamon rolls. The dough is a little bit sweet and just wonderful. Enjoy!

Sweet Dinner Rolls

1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
1/2 cup warm milk
1 egg
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1/4 cup butter, softened

1. Place water, milk, egg, 1/3 cup butter, sugar, salt, flour and yeast in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Select Dough/Knead and First Rise Cycle; press Start.
2. When cycle finishes, turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide dough in half. Roll each half into a 12 inch circle, spread 1/4 cup softened butter over entire round. Cut each circle into 8 wedges. Roll wedges starting at wide end; roll gently but tightly. Place point side down on ungreased cookie sheet. Cover with clean kitchen towel and put in a warm place, let rise 1 hour. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
3. Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until golden.

For the printable recipe please see allrecipes.com!

Christmas in Texas - Part 2

While we were in Texas, Amy arranged for us all to have our pictures taken out in the field behind their house. Ruby and Anna had matching dresses and all of us were in red/black. Pretty sharp looking bunch! Here are a few of the pictures that I snapped that morning.

Nana curled Ruby's hair and she looked like a little princess while she played--until she hitched her dress up to her waist to play better that is!

Anna, 2, in her Christmas finery!

Tyler was a champ, spending lots and lots of time with the little ones. I thought this was a pretty sweet shot of him trying to encourage Anna to get lined up for our photo shoot.


Ruby was trying not to smile while she watched the boys on the trampoline. She couldn't wait to get the dress off so that she could join them.

Max looked like a handsome devil in his little sweater vest.

Ruby and Daddy.

Kevin and Anna. She wasn't really interested in more pictures!

Kevin, Sarah, Caleb, and Anna posing for their family photo. We got a kick out of the ever present mule!

Bobo and Max playing in the RTV. Max loves to drive!

Sarah and Anna. It was a touch windy!

Caleb (after about 5 attempts at getting him to smile AND look at the camera!).

At some point we'll be able to view and purchase photos online. Hopefully there will be some good ones without hair flying everywhere, smiles, and open eyes! We'll see!

Christmas in Texas - Part 1

I have oodles of photos from our time in Texas. Lots of good times around the house as well as a few fun outings. Enjoy!

Max was obsessed with Bobby and Amy's cat, Bella. He was frequently heard calling out, "Buppy! Buppy! Whe' buppy?" (He calls all animals "puppies".) Here, Luke was helping him peek through the cat door.

"Peekaboo!" No Bella, but Daddy was in there!

Ruby and Max LOVED Amy's fold away trampoline. Bobo got his workout helping the kids jump!

A trip to the Dr. Pepper plant in Dublin, TX is always a fun outing. Our tour guide started out by saying, "We'll get this over as quick as we can." Just what you want to hear at the beginning of your paid tour! Even so, it was a decent tour and plenty long enough for Max!

Ruby enjoyed being passed around from Bobo, Daddy, and Uncle Bobby. She's still quite the cuddler.

Ruby and Nana enjoyed their Dublin Dr. Pepper in style. I'm pretty sure it was the highlight of the trip for both of them!

Check back soon for more photos from our trip! Have a wonderful weekend!

A Protracted Holiday

Things have been busy around here over the last month! A trip down to Texas to celebrate Christmas with all of the Nelsons, a late Christmas here at home, and then a week with my sister, Alyssa, and her husband, Claudio. It might take me a while to catch up on it all...


Interspersed through it all has been snow, ice, and more snow. Alyssa and Claudio saw more of that than they cared to! Here are a few pictures of Jared and the kids playing in the first big storm of the year right before Christmas. Jared even got a "snow day" out of the deal!

We weren't at all sad to be leaving all this snow behind for our vacation in Texas!

Ruby enjoyed the snow, but the bitter cold temperatures got to both of them after about 10 minutes. I think it's best to play outside after the snow has stopped! Jared, on the other hand, was pretty disappointed that his kiddos were such wimps. He was just starting to have fun!

All bundled up. Ruby's favorite snowy day activity: eating every bit of snow she can. Remember those days when snow tasted SO SWEET!

Max was coerced to crawl through this snow tunnel. It didn't thrill him all that much, but at least you can't see any tears in this picture!

Max is ready to go inside! We definitely need to get this kiddo snow pants ASAP.

I'm going to try to start getting photos up from our trip to Texas and our visit with Alyssa and Claudio starting tomorrow. Stay tuned and keep warm!

What did YOU do for New Years?

I did something a little bit crazy a few weeks ago. I brought home a flyer for the "Hangover Classic" for Jared. The 5K/10K race was to take place on New Years Day and was capped off by the optional ocean plunge. Yes, an ocean plunge. On January 1st. In Northern Massachusetts. Crazy. But, I know my husband and this is the kind of thing he lives for.

So, here's what we did yesterday...


Here's Jared all bundled up and Vaselined up for his face. Temperatures were 10F. But with the 35mph winds, the corrected temperature was -18F!! It was TERRIBLE. I'm pretty sure it's about the coldest I've ever felt and I was wearing two turtlenecks, a winter coat, scarf, and hat! Jared was wearing considerably less.


The start of the race was a bit chaotic. Since we had a pretty significant snowstorm on New Years Eve, it was very snowy and no clear route markers. It was interesting to see how the others dressed--some in winter coats, others in shorts, and even one guy in a gorilla suit!


Here's my hero sprinting to the finish! I'm not sure what the time was, but I think around 29 minutes along with the bulk of the crowd. It was slow going in the slushy snow!


Next we hurried down to the beach. Jared stripped down and raced down the icy sand into the surf, screaming like a wild man the whole way.

And here comes my hypothermic hubby! It wasn't pretty getting him warm and dry... but apparently it was worth it since he got a glass out of the deal!

I hope your New Years was as memorable as ours. I know this is one New Years I'LL never forget!