Coming to an end...

We have a tradition in our home that we don't take the Christmas decoration down until the 6th of January. This comes from Mr. Rooster's side of the family and since I love Christmas so much I don't have a problem with it at all! The longer the better!


We still have a week left to enjoy all of our festive decorations and it makes me sad to think about taking them all down. This Christmas has been a special one for me. This is B-Man's first Christmas, something I never got to do with Carebear because she was born a week before Christmas so her first Christmas we were so exhausted we didn't do much to celebrate it.


So this year was our first time celebrating a "first Christmas" with any of our kids! It was magical and wonderful. We did a lot of holiday traditions that I hold so dear!

Paper chains

Decorating the Christmas tree

Making a Gingerbread house (or in our case a Gingerbread Train)

Making hand crafts (this is B-Man's hand)

This is Carebear's hand!

It was also our first Christmas celebrating in our own house on Christmas morning. We got the wonderful job of playing Santa! The excitement of putting all the gifts under the tree, setting up the milk and cookies (eating the milk and cookies) and filling the stockings! It was magical and such an honour!

Cookies and milk that Santa ate!

We all got up and ran past the tree to eat breakfast! A tradition from my childhood. We ate breakfast and read the Nativity story (a first for us) then finally we all got to see the tree together as a family! It was so special! We opened the gifts from Santa and our stockings! The kids had set up a Christmas treasure hunt for Mr. Rooster which was a lot of fun watching him search for gifts and clues :)

Seeing the tree for the first time as a family!
It was a wonderful Christmas with lots of joyful festivities! Seeing family, opening gifts, eating lots of delicious foods! 

So that is why I'm sad to take down the decorations, it will signal the end of a wonderful "first" Christmas!


I'm excited about next Christmas though. Carebear will be 3 and so will have a better understanding and more excitement over all the festivities. B-Man will be 19 months and will be running around (my poor Christmas tree LOL).


There are so many wonderful things to look forward to next year's Christmas, but I will always treasure and remember our first "real" Christmas together as a family!

So many cookies...

I have never made so many cookies in one sitting! I found this amazing cookie recipe on allrecipes.com for soft oatmeal cookies. I bought a ton of instant oatmeal a while back and needed a good use for it. Well this seemed like a good use!

I made the first batch and added raisins! They turned out amazing and for the small amount of 'on hand' ingredients they required they made over 4 dozen 2" diameter delicious cookies!!

I was thrilled but felt there just wasn't enough cookies...hmmm

So I made a second batch but I had run out of raisins! I searched my cupboards but couldn't think of something that would taste good till I realized I had a ton of apple and cinnamon instant oatmeal!! So I made over 4 dozen apple cinnamon oatmeal cookies and they are freakin' amazing!!!

Such a simple recipe and such good cookies!!

I think Santa will approve this year! ;)

Soft Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 cups quick cooking oats

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, cream together butter, white sugar, and brown sugar. Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon; stir into the creamed mixture. Mix in oats. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour.
2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets. Roll the dough into walnut sized balls, and place 2 inches apart on cookie sheets. Flatten each cookie with a large fork dipped in sugar.
3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Nutritional Information 

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 218 | Total Fat: 8.8g | Cholesterol: 38mg

And finally....

This time of year is crazy for most people but in our household it's just a bit extra crazy! Carebear's birthday is one week before Christmas and so it's been a buzz around here with things to do, add NO SLEEP since little B-Man is on a sleep strike, let's just say Mother Hen is about to pass out! Oh and now both chickies are sick with a cold! Yay!
Even now my eyes are glazing as I try to type!
It's been nearly a week since I intended to write this blog post and yet even now the hours are passing and another day may pass before it's actually up and on my blog!


But this blog post has more meaning to me than just a funny story about my little chicks, this one makes me have to think and lately that is something I don't have a lot of time for! :)


Someone that I admire a lot  (fourunder4plustwo) nominated me for the "Tell me about yourself" blog award and I must say that I feel very honoured to be thought of :) so big thanks to her :)

So here it goes! Please keep in mind on a good day I can barely form good sentences so in my sleep deprived, glazed eyed state, here goes nothing! LOL


7 Things You May Want to Know About Me, Mother Hen.....


1) I used to jump from one thing to the next without giving it much thought or realizing the consequences. I now research and make a plan before I start something new, which is a HUGE difference for me. I'm still not perfect but a lot more settled than I ever was before. This is all due to Mr. Rooster, who has helped me calm down a lot. He is my rock and helps to keep me centred. Every once in a while I get him to loosen up and do something spontaneous, but for the most part, he keeps me focused!


2) For the past 4 years I have been on a long and exciting spiritual journey! I was raised in an Agnostic/Atheist house, we were never discouraged but never encouraged to believe anything. My father was an Atheist and believed that when you died, poof that was it, you were just gone. On the night that he passed away I just knew that all the things he believed about death were wrong and thus started my journey to find out what I truly believed. It's been a long, bumpy and very lonely journey but one that has brought me more peace than I ever dreamed and more love then I ever knew possible!


3) I LOVE BEING A MOMMY!!!! Ok, this might not be a shocking secret to some of you, but the level in which I love being a Mommy always seems to shock me! Each day brings new challenges and I feel proud of myself each time I am able to overcome them! I have discovered such strength in myself that I never knew was there, and so much love that I can't stand it sometimes! My children are the most important people in the whole world and I am truly blessed to get to spend each day with them, watching them learn, discover and grow!! I'm not sure what the future holds but I hope to have another little one one day, or as many as God will give me!


4) I use LOL way too much! I use it in e-mails, blog posts, and this year, I even used it in a Christmas card! I don't know why I use it as much as I do, but I use it all the time! LOL see there ya go!


5) I have recently started a Pet Portrait business. I drew some portraits a few years ago as Christmas gifts and as much as I really loved doing them I never had the courage or the confidence to do anything else. This year I have had to face a lot of demons in my life and one was to get enough courage to start this business. So I did! This has been one of my proudest moments. I've had a few clients so far and I'm really enjoying it. As much as this will probably never be a "full time" career, I am proud to call myself an artist, that has been a  life long dream of mine! :)


6) I have an amazing and fantastic husband! If you've ever met Mr. Rooster, you know that he is kind, funny, smart, patient and caring, but what you might not know is that I know this too! :) and tell him every day! He has sacrificed a lot for me and I don't think he'll ever know how truly grateful I am. He always surprises me with how sweet and sensitive he is. He is an amazing father. He's so loving and caring with the kids! He works hard all day and still comes home ready to play and help with the kids! He loves to get on the ground and play with the toys, I mean, kids :) He loves to read stories, play games, help feed them, bathe them and changes his fair share of dirty diapers! He is an amazing father and our kids are so lucky to have a Dad like him!


7) I sometimes surprise myself with how much I've changed in the past few years since I've met Mr. Rooster, and although some may disagree, I think it's all been for the better. I have come to see some people for who they really are and have had to make changes to my relationships with them. I wear my heart on my sleeve and am such a guilt ridden person that I tend to get hurt all the time. :( I care way too much about people and what they think that I would rather put myself out than to disappoint or hurt them in any way.
I've had to "grow a back bone" as some would call it and start to stick up for myself. This has been scary but at the same time refreshing. I hope to I continue to see more of these good changes in myself.


So there are 7 things you may or may not know about me :)
Part of this award is to nominate 15 other people but shamefully with being as busy as I am, I don't have the time to read as many blogs as I wish I could!
When I have the time to start I will find some to add to this and award them all! :)