A Fantastic Thanksgiving

This year we had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We are blessed in too many ways to count and I'm thankful for so many things but on the top of my thankful list is my husband and children and parents. I just don't know what I would do without them.

Logan and Lily had a great time at Grandma and Grandpa Skowronek's house. They don't go over there too often so it is a treat when they do. Logan enjoyed playing in Grandpa's "man cave" otherwise known as the basement/pool hall. He has it decked out with a pool table, TV, mini-fridge and various Wild and Harley memorabilia. Logan loves to climb up onto the pool table and roll the balls into the pockets. He can't see too much over the top of it so we'll have to wait a while before we can teach him to play.

Lily had a great time climbing up and down Grandma and Grandpa's stairs. She liked to practice walking down them instead of crawling down them. She also loved banging on the piano. Well, they both did actually!

The kids got a lot of attention from everyone and they had a great time. Logan was so excited he didn't want to eat Thanksgiving dinner. Grandpa finally got him to eat a couple of bananas but he was too busy running around to care about eating! The funny thing is, I made a delicious GFCF pumpkin pie and GFCF sweet potato casserole with caramelized apples and he didn't want either one. Oh well, one of these years he will want to sit down and eat. Lily was in her usual spot on her daddy's lap eating off of his plate. She is a chowhound.

The kids were so tuckered out by the end of the feast that they crashed in the van on the way home. They both took a long two hour nap when we finally got back home around 4pm. We woke them up and then watched "Howl's Moving Castle" together as a family. All in all it was a fantastic Thanksgiving!

Isn't She Lovely?

One minute, Lily was in her room looking at her library books (Blue's Clues and Dora). Usually she likes to "read" them aloud and I can hear her commenting on something or other. I was watching some HGTV and folding some laundry, so I didn't notice that she had gotten a little quiet.


I then heard giggling. It was coming from the bathroom. I look up to see that the bathroom door is closed and the stinker is in there getting into something! So I open the door to find my darling daughter playing in my make up. Lipstick all over her face! It was so adorable, even though she was using my favorite lipstick and mucked it all up. So I ran and got the camera.




I asked Miss Lily to show me how she puts on Mommy's lipstick and she happily demonstrated for me. So here they are, my precious little devil getting into Mommy's make up. There's hope for this Tomboy yet! :P

My handy husband!

I'm so blessed to have a handy husband. This summer, I asked Mike to build me an organizer so that I could put all of our kids' toys in those canvas cube storage bins. I drew up the design, but he was the one to do the measurements and build the actual piece.

I think he did a fantastic job! He spent many nights cutting MDF and measuring each component to make sure that it would all fit together nicely. Then he painted it for me. It took about a month for him to complete the project but it was well worth the money we saved.

I'm very thankful that he is able to build these things for me and he always does such an amazing job! Look at the finished project! It gives us so much more space in our living room and I'm actually able to hide the toys when guests come over. It is also a great way to teach the children to pick up their toys because it is so easy for them to throw them into the bins. I admit, I could be a little more organized and label them but the kids don't seem to have a problem finding what they are looking for!

Gluten Free/Casein Free Chicken Nuggets

My recipe for GF/CF chicken nuggets is pretty darn good! Logan loves them and if I didn't tell you they were made with gluten free breading you would never know. Here's the recipe and directions.


Recipe:

2 chicken breasts, cubed and cooked
1 cup Arrowhead Mills Rice Cereal
1 Cup Envirokids Amazon Flakes
1/4 cup water

I recommend making a big batch of breading beforehand and storing it in a tupper ware container so that you can make these without having to make the breading each time. To make the breading add 1 cup of Arrowhead Mills Rice Cereal and 1 cup of Amazon Flakes to your blender and grind until it resembles a breading. Set aside in a bowl

Next, cut the chicken breasts into cubes and cook in a skillet until they are white (about 5 minutes). Drain excess fat and put the chicken into the blender along with a quarter cup of water. Put blender on grind and grind until the chicken is the consistency of canned tuna. If it is still too chunky add a little extra water, about 2 tbsp, and grind again.
Empty the mixture into a bowl and add a little of the breading, about 1/3 cup and mix with a spoon. Form chicken mixture into balls (much like making play dough balls) and then coat them with the GFCF breading. Flatten into nugget shapes and place on greased cookie sheet. Bake the batch (about 16 nuggets) at 350F for thirty minutes.

Serve to your kiddo with fries or whatever side you wish! Just a note, this recipe also works great for making chicken tenders. Just make a worm like shape instead of a ball and flatten. This makes about 10 tp 12 good sized chicken tenders.

Logan's 4th Birthday/Halloween Festivities

Logan is now four. I absolutely cannot believe it. Just yesterday he was born, just yesterday he took his first steps, just yesterday he said "mama", just yesterday he rode his bike...with training wheels. Ugh! Where does the time go? I know, I know. It is the mother's lament but still it goes so so fast and nothing quite prepares you for it.

I admit, there are days that feel like forever but even those pass quickly. Anyway, on to what I should be talking about. Logan had a fabulous birthday. We are blessed to have such a loving and wonderful family. Both sets of Grandparents, Great Grandma Nelson, Uncle Jeff, Auntie Crissy and cousins Tyler, Jakob and Gavin (in utero) were present. It was fantastic to be surrounded by our loved ones.

We let the boys play, sang "Happy Birthday" ate some GFCF cake, and opened presents. Logan was happy about all his stuff but the Thomas the Train Carnival set from GG Nelson definitely was his favorite. Mike set it up for the boys to play and they had a great time. Later on he discovered the rest of his toys, play dough, Mr. Potato Head, Chalk Gun, Thomas bath toys, Mr. Doodlebug.... Thanks to everyone for your fantastic gifts!

Halloween Night was also very fun. Logan was his favorite character "Curious George" and Lily was a Mermaid. This was a strategic costume on my part to keep her in her stroller! She is a bit of a Daredevil and I did not want her running into the street at night.

She loved being a Mermaid and sat happily in her stroller. Logan did a great job ringing the doorbell and saying "Trick or Treat!". I got so many compliments on how adorable they were. I couldn't agree more. :)

Finally, later in the evening Mike and I went out while Grandma S watched the kiddos. Mike was Babar and I was a gypsy. We were originally planning on going to the Woodland Hills Winery but their event ended at 8pm so we were unable to make it. Then we decided to go to Anoka AKA Halloween Capital but the party we wanted to go was sold out at 9 pm! We ended up in Albertville at Majors and saw my cousin Melissa and her boyfriend Chase. It was a great time!

JUST A NOTE: IF YOU WANT TO SEE THE IMAGES BETTER JUST CLICK ON THEM.

Apple Jack Orchard 2009

Mike and I were lucky that the first nice weekend we had in October we took the kids to 101 Market Pumpkin Patch and Apple Jack Orchard. Apple Jack Orchard is located in Delano and it is the most perfect place to go apple picking. They have a huge orchard and we even took a tractor ride touring it!

Logan and Lily love Apple Jack's. It is situated right on the Crow River with breathtaking views in the fall. They have so much fun stuff for kids to do such as lead line pony rides, hay bale slide, apple picking, petting zoo and all types of fun things to climb on.

Lily loved going down the hay bale slide! She was such a trouper crawling up right after her big brother! Of course it was filled with other little people crawling up the bales and sliding down over and over. I think we spent a good twenty minutes at that attraction!

Next, we headed over to feed the goats and chickens. Logan got his fingers pecked a couple times trying to "feed" the hens leaves like the other kids were doing. He learned pretty quick not to do that. The goats were a bit more friendly, licking the kids and getting petted.

I was really surprised when Logan saw the lead line ponies and wanted to go on. I kept asking him if he was sure he wanted to ride and he answered "yes" every time I asked so we got in line. He was a little impatient while we were waiting, saying "It's my turn now, go, go!" After about five minutes of waiting it was our turn and he hopped on that horse with no fear! I was more nervous for him than I needed to be, he was a pro and had the hugest smile on his face the entire time! It's a good thing that Mike took Lily into the gift shop to buy apples or she would've had a fit wanting to ride the pony too. Maybe next year!

After the pony ride and some down time hanging out by the beautiful river we decided to take the kids on a tour of the orchard. We hopped in the back of the wagon pulled by a tractor and got to see all the varieties of apples grown. They also have a corn maze, apple toss and animal train but we didn't get to those things this year. All in all it was a fabulous day and we got the best Honey Crisp apples!

GFCF Thanksgiving

I'm so excited to be helping my mother with Thanksgiving dinner this year! Maybe I will actually get to host a Thanksgiving meal in my own home in the next few years. I know it will be hard for the old guard to pass the torch, but I think it is about time. ;)

Anyway, Martha Stewart has some great GF/CF recipes (or recipes that are easily converted to GF/CF anyway!) Logan does really well on the gluten casein free diet. We are lucky to live in a time where there are many people facing Celiac disease and so the major grocery chains all have wonderful substitutes!

Without further ado, here is what I plan to bring for Thanksgiving. (My mom is doing the turkey, but will use Smart Balance butter which is casein (dairy) free and will use a home-made gluten free stuffing in the bird (which I'm bringing and will post the recipe for.) We will offer a regular stuffing, but it won't be cooked inside the bird.


Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Caramalized Apples

* 4 large sweet potatoes, pierced with the tines of a fork
* 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter (Smart Balance)
* 2 tablespoons heavy Vanilla Rice Milk
* 1/2 cup applesauce, unsweetened
* 2 teaspoons grated fresh peeled ginger
* 1 teaspoon coarse salt
* Freshly ground pepper
* 2 apples (1 pound), peeled, cored, and cut into 1-inch pieces
* 3 tablespoons sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Arrange potatoes on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Bake until tender, 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes. Remove from oven; let stand until cool enough to handle.
2. Cut each potato lengthwise. Scoop flesh into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment; discard skins. Add 2 tablespoons butter and the cream; mix on medium speed until smooth. Mix in applesauce and ginger; season with salt and pepper.
3. Transfer potato mixture to an ovenproof dish. Bake until heated through, about 10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, toss apples with sugar in a bowl. Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add apple mixture; cook, stirring occasionally, until apples are golden and caramelized, about 10 minutes.
5. Remove potato mixture from oven; top with caramelized apples.


Cornbread and Sausage Stuffing (cornmeal is gluten free!)

* 1 pound Hormel fresh pork sausage, casings removed, crumbled (plus giblets, diced; optional)
* 1 large onion, (about 2 cups), finely chopped
* 3 celery, finely chopped (1 1/2 cups)
* Coarse salt and ground pepper
* 2 pounds prepared cornbread, cut into 3/4-inch cubes (12 cups)
* 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage
* 1/2 cup applesauce (in place of 2 eggs)
* 1 to 2 cups Pacific chicken broth

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large nonstick skillet, cook sausage (and giblets, if using) over medium-high heat, stirring often, until browned and cooked through, 5 to 8 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer to a large bowl.
2. To pan, add onion, celery, and 1/4 cup water. Reduce heat to medium; cook, scraping up browned bits with a wooden spoon, until vegetables soften, about 10 minutes. Season generously with salt and pepper. Add to sausage.
3. Add cornbread, sage, and applesauce to sausage and vegetables. Bring broth to a simmer in a small saucepan; pour 1/2 cup over stuffing, and toss gently (cornbread will break down into smaller pieces). If needed, add up to 1/2 cup more broth, until stuffing feels moist, but not wet. Stuff into turkey, using about 4 cups. Spoon remaining stuffing into a baking pan; it should reach the top. Refrigerate stuffing in pan and remaining broth separately, covered, until ready to bake.

Yummy! I cannot wait. :) My mom will also be making mashed potatoes (gfcf of course), corn, GF/CF gravy using smart balance and turkey drippings, gfcf pumpkin pie (bob's red mill has a great gluten free pie crust, and Libby's pureed pumpkin is also gfcf) and salad!