Friday Randoms...

As promised, I do have something other than my children to talk about! 

And all the people said...."Amen."

There's a little about my kids too because, well, I'm a stay-at-home-mom...they are 13 of my 16 waking hours and sometimes some of my sleeping hours too. It's kinda my wheelhouse right now. But I had things to talk about before my children and surely I still have a thing or two to contribute to society. So, here goes!

I made Pioneer Woman's chicken pot pie the other night and it was top notch. An absolute winner. I followed the recipe but used store bought pie crust (I used the Pillsbury dough) and added frozen peas. I put them in after the celery and the carrots had cooked and softened a little. Next time I will double the recipe and make one to freeze.

In other food news...pears are so good right now! I have made this salad for a few lunches this week. It's not anything shocking or revolutionary. Just romaine, bleu cheese, dried cranberries, pears, toasted pecans, and Girard's light champagne vinaigrette. You can add chicken, substitute pistachios (my favorite!!) for pecans, gorgonzola or feta for the bleu cheese...the list goes on and on. I also like balsamic dressing with this salad. Quick and yummy!

We had our annual Wurstfest feast. For those of you who are unaware of our annual gig, Dave's hometown has a huge German festival called Wurstfest. It's the "10 day salute to sausage". Yep. You read that right. His dad is apart of the crew that puts it on and we always go, eat our weight in fried food, Dave gets his fill of German beer, we hear really good polka music, see an abnormal amount of adults wearing chicken hats, and have Dave's "unofficial high school reunion". This year we went during the day because we took the babies. Call me old but that's the way to go! No lines for food, you can actually walk around because the crowds aren't so thick, and you can carry on a conversation without yelling. Good grief...I might as well go to Luby's at 4:30.

Parker with his Pops. Getting the low-down on the lederhosen.

Caroline and my Nana watching the carousel horses. Y'all, I die over watching these two together.

Then, P&C had their first ride. Caroline LOVED it! Parker was pretty unfazed. :)

I've gone ahead and put up my Christmas tree. Cast stones...call me crazy...I get it! No, I don't hate the pilgrims, I'm not trying to rush Thanksgiving, and I'm not ungrateful...quite the opposite. I LOVE Thanksgiving! And I don't host. So I enjoy going and spending time with my family and knowing that when I come home my Christmas stuff is up. It's more of a process with my time divided with the munchkins so it's been nice to do a little at a time. The babies love the lights! I am so excited to celebrate their first Christmas with them. 

My rosebush is blooming like crazy! I've brought several inside because they are so beautiful! My Papa's favorite flower was the red rose. These are a bit of a red/pink but they still remind me of him. 

We celebrated Nana's birthday on Monday. She had some helpers! P&C loved helping her open her gifts.

And finally...we're babysitting today. or, I guess I should say dog-sitting. :) The Gyllenhaals are here so it should be fun for all. Parker LOVES Miss Maggie! 

I'm sure none of you actually made it to the end of this marathon recap but if you did, I hope you have a wonderful weekend! It's pretty cold here so I see cider and indoor activities in our family's future. 

Happy weekend, friends!!