We Might Get Out Today

I am going stir crazy in the house today, and if the weather cooperates we might get out for a few errands today. My hubby is taking off work early, and I know he could use a little peace and quiet. Grumpy Dylan was up all night last night, so we are both so tired today. I will (hopefully) take the kiddos out for an hour or two and pick up their Christmas pictures, so my hubby can have a little break from the craziness.

Once I have the pictures I can finally get the Christmas cards mailed 🙂 I’m so bad about getting cards out in time. We might just have to swing by Walgreens too, I saw a few good sales items that I think I need. We’ll see though, it looks awfully cold outside today 😉

Happy Birthday!

Today is my super sweet Sister (in law) Jill’s birthday! So a great big Happy Birthday to my darling Jill and big hugs too!!!

Hot Chocolate

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Last week I received my December edition of Parents magazine and it was filled with fun Holiday recipes. Thade found one that he had to try, it was for White Hot Chocolate 🙂 We were in the kitchen baking Brownies, and I thought it was a great time to try out the new recipe. It is simple to follow, and pretty darn tasty too:

White Hot Chocolate:

1 3/4 cups Milk, divided

1/2 cup White Chocolate Chips

Whipped Topping, Blue Sugar Crystals, and Sprinkles

In a small saucepan, heat 1/4 cup Milk and White Chocolate Chips over medium heat, whisking until chocolate melts. Stir in the remaining milk and heat to warm. Pour into 2 or 3 glasses. Garnish with Whipped Topping and Blue Sugar Crystals and Sprinkles.

In the magazine photo the White Hot Chocolate looks very elegant in clear glass coffee cups, but glass isn’t too toddler friendly 😉 I also added a bit of vanilla to the White Hot Chocolate to give it a little something extra.

I thought that the White Hot Chocolate was delicious, but Thade wasn’t a fan. He prefers the traditional Milk Chocolate, oh well it was fun making and decorating a special Winter treat with the kids 🙂

Oatmeal Cookie Success!

oat-11.JPGoat-21.JPGEver since we moved away from our beloved Panera Bread Co., we have really missed the yummy treats that we used to get there. My hubby loved their Nutty Oatmeal Cookies, and I have been searching for a recipe that would be just as delicious. We got out the trusty cookbooks and I found a recipe for White Chip Apricot Oatmeal Cookies by Hershey’s. My hubby isn’t a big fan of Apricots, and Thade isn’t the biggest fan of White Chocolate Chips so I omitted them both from the recipe, and hoped for the best.

The cookies were delicious even without the extra yummy chocolate chips and fruit. We ate them until we couldn’t eat another cookie. I’ll be making these again, and they might just make it on to the Christmas Cookie Plates. James loved them, so that is all that matters to me 🙂

Midwest Ice Storm

We were very lucky this weekend, we only got a little bit of the huge ice storm. My Mother-in-Law who lives just south of us was without power yesterday, but it should be fixed this morning. Luckily my Sister-in-law still had power so they were o.k. My Mom who is about an hour SE of us is without power and it could be days before it is returned. They got the worst of the storm, with thick ice that snapped large trees and downed power lines.

Last night she was on the way to stay with her niece, and watched transformers spark and trees fall as she made her way across town. Thank goodness she made it o.k., but she was very scared. They lost a total of 6 grids in her city that left thousands of people without power. I haven’t heard from either of the Grandma’s this morning, so I hope that all is well with both of them.

The ice is so dangerous, so be very careful if you are out today in the Midwest. Make sure and pack an emergency kit for your car, just in case, and have your cell phone charged too. The boys and I are staying in today, and hoping to hear some good news soon.