Friday, October 31, 2008

Happy Halloween.....

Well here it is... The obligatory Halloween post. Gabriel dressed up as a cow (thanks Grand Auntie Linda) and had a great time trick-or-treating. We made it to a few houses in our neighborhood, Larry's Pharmacy (where I work), and a number of church members houses in town. He only got scared once when a couple of high school kids in masks jumped out of a pile of leaves.

Here we are just leaving the house heading across the street to Gabe's first trick-or-treating experience!

Here he is heading to his 2nd house and this time he kept his hat on.... for a little while!

He had to eat his first piece of candy right away!

His favorite place to sit at the pharmacy....

Gabe and Carleen were sharing Tootsie Rolls!

Dada Shoes

So we have a post of Gabe wearing my shoes and in case any of you were worried....
Here he is wearing Aaron's boots.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Arkansas Visitors...

We had some very special visitors from Arkansas this past weekend. Our good friends Matt & Katie came with their daughter Claire. They even brought their dogs Molly & Sadie.

Claire was a doll and so good! She loved pushing Gabe's shopping cart around.... except when Gabe was trying to take it away from her.

We HAD to give them their baths together. Too important to miss that kind of photo-op!



Claire giving a huge grin for the camera.

It only took 1/2 an M&M to make that mess on Claire's face.... then she wanted more!

Good dogs...

Aaron & Matt had a few successful hunts.

The dogs all did a great job. Here they are with Monday's kill. Dogs left to right are Rowdy (german shorthair pointer), Molly (black laborador retriever), and Sadie (Brittany Spaniel).

Friday, October 24, 2008

This is why the dogs LOVE Gabe!

I do have to apologize for saying "Give one to Rowdy" about 50 times in this video. No wonder Gabe doesn't listen to me.... It's really annoying! Anyways we got a kick out of Gabe doing this. Then he gave the dogs more dog food and filled up their dog food dish with water. The dogs loved this soup and ate it right up!


Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Swing!

Gabe was on fire tonight! After the bathroom episode I was in the den checking e-mail when it got a little too quiet in the room. I looked over to see what Gabe was doing and he was hanging from the treadmill bar. He looked at me and said "swing".... Then he let me take a bunch of pictures of the action!




Bathroom Fun!

Tonight I had Gabe in the bathroom to brush his teeth. He likes to put the toothbrush away himself (in fact it's the only way I can get him to stop brushing without a temper tantrum) so I always pop him up on the counter top. As soon as the toothbrush was put away he knelt down and turned the water on and immediately dropped to his stomach, stuck his head under the water and took a drink. I couldn't believe it! I thought the only way he would know to do that is if someone showed him. I KNOW that I don't ever drink water that way so I called Aaron into the bathroom to show him. Aaron swears he didn't show this to Gabe...... so I'm not sure who to blame! To be honest I was pleased that Gabe was so adept at doing this....






Sunday, October 19, 2008

"Mama shoes"

Saturday when I was at work Aaron captured Gabe walking around in my sandals... On the wrong feet... Calling them "mama shoes".






Oh this is us - has nothing to do with Gabe's shoes....


Tuesday, October 14, 2008

This is how Gabe gets clean!

Gabriel loves to take a bath especially with BUBBLES!!

He really likes to put the bubbles on his mouth....

and then likes to scream. A lot.

He was happy even when the water was gone, just playing with the bubbles.

After a fight to get into pajamas he was again SO EXCITED to brush his teeth.

Mostly he likes to rinse the toothbrush and then suck the water off the bristles!

Then we sat in his rocking chair and read 4 books and he went to bed without a bottle. What a big boy!

Sunday, October 05, 2008

Apple Fest

Community Orchards in Ft. Dodge has Apple Fest every fall. They have a HUGE pumpkin patch and all sort of fun games and activities for kids.

We went last year and Gabe had his picture taken and it was on display this year for all to see. We went and had his picture taken by the same lady again this year and she said... "boy he sure has changed." I'm not sure what she meant by that but we'll see if this years turns out as cute as the last time.


I think Gabe thought this was the perfect pumpkin.

Saturday, October 04, 2008

Brown Sugar Cookies

We don't have cable TV... but I LOVE the cooking shows on PBS! One of my favorites is "Americas Test Kitchen" and I saw this recipe done on that show. It's got a tricky step of browning butter and you have to be sure not to overcook them... but they are fantastic!!!
the following recipe is taken from http://www.americastestkitchen.com/printrecipe.asp?recipeids=4054



Recipes

Brown Sugar Cookies
from the Episode: Cookie Jar Favorites

The most efficient way to bake these cookies is to portion and bake half of the dough. While the first batch is in the oven, the remaining dough can be prepared for baking. Avoid using a nonstick skillet to brown the butter. The dark color of the nonstick coating makes it difficult to gauge when the butter is sufficiently browned. Use fresh brown sugar, as older (read: harder and drier) brown sugar will make the cookies too dry.

Makes 2 Dozen Cookies
14 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 3/4 sticks)
1/4 cup granulated sugar (about 1 3/4 ounces)
2 cups packed dark brown sugar (14 ounces)
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons (about 10 1/2 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract


1. Heat 10 tablespoons butter in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat until melted, about 2 minutes. Continue to cook, swirling pan constantly until butter is dark golden brown and has nutty aroma, 1 to 3 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and transfer browned butter to large heatproof bowl. Stir remaining 4 tablespoons butter into hot butter to melt; set aside for 15 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 large (18 by 12-inch) baking sheets with parchment paper. In shallow baking dish or pie plate, mix granulated sugar and 1/4 cup packed brown sugar, rubbing between fingers, until well combined; set aside. Whisk flour, baking soda, and baking powder together in medium bowl; set aside.

3. Add remaining 1 3/4 cups brown sugar and salt to bowl with cooled butter; mix until no sugar lumps remain, about 30 seconds. Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula; add egg, yolk, and vanilla and mix until fully incorporated, about 30 seconds. Scrape down bowl. Add flour mixture and mix until just combined, about 1 minute. Give dough final stir with rubber spatula to ensure that no flour pockets remain and ingredients are evenly distributed.

4. Divide dough into 24 portions, each about 2 tablespoons, rolling between hands into balls about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Working in batches, toss balls in reserved sugar mixture to coat and set on prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart, 12 dough balls per sheet. (Smaller baking sheets can be used, but it will take 3 batches.)

5. Bake one sheet at a time until cookies are browned and still puffy and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft (cookies will look raw between cracks and seem underdone; see photo below), 12 to 14 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking. Do not overbake.

6. Cool cookies on baking sheet 5 minutes; using wide metal spatula, transfer cookies to wire rack and cool to room temperature.




Step-by-Step: Checking Doneness

Achieving the proper texture—crisp at the edges and chewy in the middle—is critical to this recipe. Because the cookies are so dark, it's hard to judge doneness by color. Instead, gently press halfway between the edge and center of the cookie. When it's done, it will form an indent with slight resistance. Check early and err on the side of underdone.
Step-by-Step: Building Big Brown Sugar Flavor

DARK BROWN SUGAR

LOTS OF VANILLA

BROWNED BUTTER

OK -- back to my pictures. The cookies turned out very pretty!

A key ingredient....

Looks tasty, doesn't it?

And the ultimate test... Gabriel loved them! And he loved the dough before it was cooked. He helped by adding the baking soda and the baking powder.... Then he just wanted to play with his Chevy Malibu and eat the finished product.

Our yard....

Gabriel and I spent some time in our yard this evening. The weather has been fantastic and we took advantage! We spent some time in the back yard checking out the corn and what is left of the soybeans. There are still some beans left to be combined due to some areas being replanted after all the spring rain/flooding.




This was right after he stuck a "flower" in his mouth. It was a dandelion. YUM!

Another great Iowa sunset. I love that tree but I'm afraid it's half dead. We only have 3 trees and I really don't want this one to die!

Gabe of the corn.



Rowdy being.... rowdy.

Take some time to stop and smell the flowers. Even if they are dead like mine! I should probably go buy some mums and put them in but I don't think I'll bother.

2 Cuties

Here Maci May enjoys some quiet time without her crazy brother Rowdy.


Last night we had pictures at church and we dressed Gabe up in this itchy outfit! He looked so cute... but it was an absolute miracle of God that we got ONE picture to turn out.... I'll scan one in and post it once we get them back!