Christmas Tree Hunt

My family headed out to Matthes Evergreen Farm for our annual Christmas tree search. A favorite holiday tradition of mine, no snow yet for a good ol' snowball fight, but we managed to find fun anyways.

Big Joe greeted us.

Dad points out a good one.

Hot cocoa break.

Angelus picks a perfect tree!

Concolor Fir is our usual selection. It smells great, like evergreen and citrus. The needles are soft, not sharp and murderous. Also they tend to not drop a lot of needles.

Angelus and his cousins: Ena, Emma Lynn, Scottie, Anicia & China.

Back home, Twilight pretentiously considers our selection. I don't think she approves.

Decorated unveiling tomorrow!

Angelus' Joins the Mob

Angelus' Mob Photos....er Thanksgiving Photos.



We've had a wonderful long weekend at home. We have a Thanksgiving weekend tradition of watching a whole series or trilogy during Thanksgiving weekend. In years past we've taken on Lord of the Rings and Happy Potter, this year is Firefly and Serenity. Perhaps it should have been The Godfather...

Any hoo, I'm off to the couch with Turkey and Mash leftovers, Captain Mal is calling me!

Mince-Meat & November in Runes Giveaway Winner!

Sooo all day yesterday I had that nagging feeling that I was suppose to be doing something....couldn't remember what...ah yes, Fae reminded me this morning..picking the November in Runes giveaway winner! So I do my little Random Number Generator this morning, and winner is Jen from Rambling of a Newbie Pagan.

And guess what, today is Jen's day to share her homemade gift idea! I kid you not! hahha! I swear to Gods! That cracks me up! Anyway, woohoo Jen! Woot! Woot! E-mail me your address so I can send you your rune set. (dawnATpagancenterDOTcom) I'll mail it out of the post office when I send my brothers Christmas gift to Iraq. You're my first international winner! Can I send myself in the box? Your town sounds lovely.




Everyone, follow me to Jen's blog to learn about making Mince-Meat!


About Jen....

I'm a single (ish) mum of a very very hyper active 4yr old boy. The "ish" is because although I love his dad we are hopeless at living together so have decided not too but to have a much better relationship where we can meet up have loads of fun and then go to our own homes instead of staying in one and arguing, works for us anyhow.

I live in a fishing town in the south east of England on the sunny coast just outside the lovely hills, countryside and farms that surround us. You can often find the Littleun and me wandering through the woods or on the beach looking for things to add to our nature collection.

We've recently "come out" as Pagans, something which has mightily upset more folk than I had thought it would but we are persevering with the education of them that this doesn't mean we are Satanists with daily human sacrifices as one local lady thought. I've not found the answers to everything within Paganism, but I have felt a lot happier since embracing the back to nature and respecting earth and folk ideals. Certainly we are a lot healthier since growing our own food and cooking most from scratch ourselves without horrible mass produced ready meals from the local supermarket!

Lastly, dear Fae was having technical difficulties with her homemade gift idea post yesterday. All is well now, check out her Harvest Loaf today!

Thanksgiving 2009

9am: Breakfast Frittata. Made it the night before, put it in the oven to cook while I prepped Tom (The Turkey).

12pm: Hors d'oeuvres


1pm: Football with PaPaw.


2pm: Dinners ready!

Thanksgiving Menu

Roasted Turkey Stuffed with Sage and Onion Stuffing.
Mashed Potatoes with Turkey Gravy
Candied Yams
Buttered Corn
Green Beans
Cheese Onion bread
Cavatappi & Cheese
Hot Rolls
Pumpkin pie with whipped cream



Candied Yams
3 cups cooked sweet potatoes
1 cup brown sugar
4TB butter
3 cups mini marshmallows

• Lay sweet potatoes in casserole dish
• Sprinkle with brown sugar
• Top with chunks of butter spread out
• cover with marshmallows
• Bake at 350 degree until marshmallows are brown



3pm: Angelus on seconds.


4pm: Ed after thirds.



6pm: Jessica on too much Pumpkin Pie



8pm: Cranium!


9pm: Greg is a turkey casualty.

Thanksgiving 2009!

'Twas the night before Thanksgiving

'Twas the night before Thanksgiving,
The scent of cinnamon and nutmeg filled the house,
Pumpkin pies where in the oven,
And hubby, already tuckered out.

The turkey was in the fridge,
Brining with care,
In hopes that stuffing soon would be there.

Angelus all nestled up next to his daddy,
Pondering the notions of nice or naughty.
Only 29 more days before Santa checks twice.

Thankful was Mommy at this beautiful sight,
Happy Thanksgiving to all, and to all a good-night!

Wyandotte Parade

Our first trip to the local Wyandotte Parade! It was a blast and hopefully will become an annual thing for us. I adore Wyandotte and we've got our eye on it for our next home.

Thanksgiving Favorites: Baked Cavatappi & Cheese

Baked Cavatappi & Cheese
= corkscrew in Italian
12oz Cavatappi noodles, cooked
1/2 stick butter
1/4 cup flour
3 cups milk
dash of each cayenne, salt, pepper and dry mustard
8oz of shredded sharp cheddar cheese.

• mix and cook the butter & flour in a saucepan, stirring continually
• slowly add milk
• add spices
• stir and cook until thickened
• remove from heat and add mix in cheese
• mix with noodles and place in casserole dish
• top with bread crumb and Parmesan cheese.
• bake for 30 minutes on 350 degrees.

Birthday Shout Out

I helped celebrate two monumental birthdays this last week...

My Niece, Emma Lynn, in 5 shorts years...

Petite Ya-Ya, Trinity Lynn 365 days later (as of today!)...

Frankenmuth

Photos from our day trip to Frankenmuth last Sunday - Michigan's Little Bavaria! Gracie joined us and we had a slumber party the night before, a little popcorn and watched Twilight....

Bronners, The worlds largest Christmas store in Frankenmuth.

Thanksgiving Favorites: Onion Cheese Bread

One of my many recipes collected from Raven.

Onion Cheese Bread
1/2c onions chopped & sautéd
4tb butter
1 egg
1 1/2c biscuit mix
1c grated sharp cheddar cheese
1c Milk
1tb dried parsley flakes.

• Mix ingredients in a bowl, except 1/2c of cheese and butter.
• Spread in pan, top with remaining cheese and butter
• Bake for 20 minutes

Week 4: Creatures of The Night

Week 4:
Theme: Creatures of the Night
Letter: D
Number: 4
Shape/color: Orange
Vocabulary Words: Nocturnal - Evening - Midnight
Spiritual/‘craft: Nighttime Prayers. He learned The Lords Prayer and the nighttime prayer below.
Science Project: Owl Festival, meet real live owls and prowled the woods for them.
Art Project: Owl Festival Owl Crafts

Curriculum can be found here.

Week in photos highlights...

Draw a pentacle over my bed,
Where I lay my weary head,
Bring to me a peaceful night,
So I may wake with much delight.

Bulb

I thought it would never happen, but I finally got my bulbs in the ground! ugh! What an ugly little thing, only a mommy could love..and I do!


My newest little babies are...


Parrot King Tulip



Chromacolor Daffodil



Dizzy Oriental Lily


Simplon Oriental Lily



Lombardia Oriental Lily


Stargazer Oriental Lily

Lilies are my most treasured flower. They are big and bold, but have these tiny, wicked details, little fingers and spots. Looking upclose inside the flower almost creeps me out. Naturally, it was love at first sight!

Photos from brecks


Lastly, all my Home 'Crafted Holiday's e-mail are out! If you signed up, you should have an e-mail from me with your blog date. Let me know otherwise.