Monday, January 31, 2011

Ahoy, you Scurvy Dogs!

Garrett has had a long-standing love for pirates. But yesterday morning before church, he took it a little too far!
Garrett and Charlotte were fighting over something (again!) and I heard this being shouted from the other room,
"Let go, you Scurvy Dog!"
I couldn't get on to him because I was laughing too hard! Some things in this house are unacceptable, but I guess we'll let "Scurvy Dog" slide!

Friday, January 28, 2011

Oh, the possibilities!

Just a box?

Or a tent for camping?
Or a slumber party?
Or a puppet theatre?
Or a dance studio?
Or a tea party cottage?

The possibilities are endless!
Just wait until my other chair arrives tommorow!

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Notice anything strange?

Is it the fact that Charlotte is on top of the train/pirate/dinosaur table?

The fact that she's wearing mittens in the house? Or coloring with them on?

The fact that she's wearing a princess dress?

Or the fact that this is just a regular day for Charlotte?

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Mickey Mouse sends his sincere thanks for your large contribution to his retirement account

We are finally home from what was a very tiring getaway! Randy had IBS in Orlando (which in my world is known as "Irritable Bowel Syndrome", but in his community just stands for the International Builder's Show!) Either way, I snicker every time I say it! I practically begged him to find me a t-shirt that said, "I had IBS in 2011" but apparently there were none to be found. Who knew?

The kiddos and I spend some time with Granny and Papa, then met Daddy at Disney! We spent a day at Magic Kingdom and the next day at Animal Kingdom. I'm not sure who was more tired: us or the kids!
Day One: Magic Kingdom!



We rode all our favorite rides!





We saw all our favorite characters!



And we ended the night with a fireworks show!


And 1 sleepy girl! I thought for sure she would fall right off that stroller!



Day Two: Animal Kingdom!


I'm pretty sure Charlotte has her hand up his nose!



Quickly after we arrived, we realized there was a "DinoLand" inside the park. That was right up Garrett's alley! We ended up leaving with a few huge dinosaurs that are quite scary--his favorite are the meanest ones !

We rode a triceratops ride while Daddy and Papa rode something similar to a tilt-a-whirl / roller coaster. Needless to say, I'll stick with the triceratops!


We saw some tigers in "Asia."


And some monkeys too!


Charlotte wore herself out pretty quickly this day while we were waiting for the safari ride in "Africa"!


There was also an AMAZING Finding Nemo show. I got in trouble taking these pictures, so you'd better enjoy the contraband! I didn't use a flash (they said "No flash photography"), but the guy called me down anyway!
We had an awesome time: cool weather, no waiting in lines--January is the time to go to Disney!

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Its Gumbo Ya!

I've had a hankerin' lately for some gumbo, but I'd never made it before. So, you know me, I researched some of the great gumbo makers: Emeril and my aunt! (actually, those are the only 2 I know!)


There are the basic ingredients, but we do tings a lil dif'rent, Sha! (like no okra or file' powder)


Be prepared, though, it will take you all day to make this. But, it is definitely worth the wait!

Here are the ingredients:
1 Tbsp plus 1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 lb skinless smoked sausage (I like Eckridge), sliced into 1/2 in pieces and crosswise
1 whole chicken (around 4-5 lbs), cut into pieces
1 Tbsp creole seasoning (I like Tony Chachere's), plus extra to season chicken
Seasoned salt, to taste
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 large onions, chopped
2 large bell peppers, chopped
9 cups chicken broth (although, I didn't have enough so I used some beef broth and some chicken bullion cubes with appropriate amount of water)
White rice




Make sure you use an IRON SKILLET. Remember back here when I told you all to buy one? Pull it out! Don't even think of using that new non-stick skillet you got for Christmas. We want STICKING, people...that's what makes a yummy roux!

In iron skillet, heat 1 Tbsp oil over med-high heat. Add smoked sausage and cook until browned (6 or 8 minutes)


Remove sausage and place in a container to use later.
Season chicken cutlets with additional creole seasoning and add to remaining fat in skillet. Brown on all sides (about 10 minutes).


Remove chicken from pan and reserve for later use.

To make the roux: Combine remaining 1/2 cup oil and 1 cup flour in iron skillet with reserved fat over med heat.


Cook, stirring slowly and constantly while scraping brown bits off bottom of skillet about 20 to 25 minutes, until its the color of dark chocolate. If you are not sweating at this point, you are doing something wrong!


Add onions and peppers to pan, stirring until wilted; about 4-5 minutes.

Add reserved sausage and creole seasoning to skillet and cook for a few minutes. Now, because I don't have a huge skillet, I poured it all into a LARGE stock pot. Add a little of the chicken stock to skillet and scrape the rest of the bits off the pan.

Stir the rest of the chicken stock in stock pot and bring to a boil. I also added some seasoned salt at this point. Reduce heat to med-low and cook about 1 hour uncovered, stirring occasionally.

Add reserved chicken to stock pot and simmer for about 1 and 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. Skim any fat that rises to the surface. I took 1 napkin at a time and laid in on top of the liquid. It absorbs the fatty layer. I did have to use 5 or 6 napkins until it is all absorbed.



Remove the pot from the heat. Remove chicken pieces from pot and allow to cool slightly. Remove skin and cut chicken into small pieces, discarding any bones. Return the meat to the gumbo and heat through.


In the meantime, cook your rice. I used Minute rice this go-round, because I was tired of cooking and it only takes 5 minutes!

Spoon 3-4 spoons of rice in bottom of your bowl and pour a few ladles full of gumbo on top. Stir and enjoy! I added a few more shakes of creole seasoning and seasoned salt to my bowl. They only thing that might have made it better is some yummy corn bread to sop up my broth!

Dar ya go, Sha. Try it dis way n ya will dance!

Ca c'est bon!

Monday, January 3, 2011

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

We celebrate Christmas around here over the span of several weeks!

First Granny and Papa came to visit before Christmas and the kids opened presents.

On Christmas Eve, we went to Nana and Poppy's to open more presents!

Christmas morning, we had Christmas at our house with, you got it...more presents!

New Year's eve, we went to Indiana to Mama's house for even more presents!

New Year's day, we visited with Nanaw and Papaw!

Now we are home for a few short days before leaving for Florida again. We will be visiting with Granny and Papa before going to the BIG D, as it is commonly referred to around this house! DISNEY WORLD!!

Its hard to choose which photos to show you all, and I'm sick up to my ears with Christmas music, so please enjoy some cuties with a little Bob Marley in the background! It just makes you feel good, you know?!