The Zoo: January 2010

Two Weeks

In just two short weeks, we leave for Alabama. I can't wait! Instead of looking at this.....

I'll be looking at this....

OH, I can't wait!!!!!

About six months ahead of our orthodontia schedule (I bet you didn't know we even HAD an orthodontia schedule), Molly got her top braces put on yesterday. This is good news or it will be good new after the mouth aching goes away. Hopefully this means that her whole braces experience will end six months early, too.

So, here you have the before and after pictures...

This is how she feels right now...

And this is her beautiful smile...

Blog-o-versary

I missed my blog-o-versary! Do you believe it??? On January 2 I had officially been blogging for two years. Any of you out there who have been reading from the beginning? Surely someone has read every single one of my blog posts....Okay, maybe just me...and my mom...

I also missed the date that I passed 40,000 visitors to my blog. As you can see, I'm falling down on this blog job left and right. 40,000 visitors. That's cool! Or maybe Mom & I have just visiting my blog 20,000 times each. That's probably a more likely scenario :-)

When I started my blog we had six kids, three (or maybe four) birds, a tank full of fish (and snails), a couple hamsters (I think) and a dog.

Since that time, we've added two kids, subtracted the birds, flushed the fish, had substitutions on the hamsters (a couple times over), got a rabbit, lost a rabbit, got two more rabbits and hung on to the dog (she's a keeper). Now you know why my blog is called The Zoo, which in case you haven't figured this out already, makes me the zookeeper.

Anyway, Happy Belated Blog-o-versary to me!

Another First

After 16 years of parenting, I have finally pulled a tooth for one of my kids. How I made it this far into the parenting experience without pulling any teeth, I don't know. There certainly have been many teeth lost over the past 16 years (well, actually only over the last 11 years). Maybe I will count up the number of teeth lost in our house in the last 11 years....it must be pushing 50, or maybe even over 50 already. Somehow Chris had always been the tooth remover in our family, either that or the kids themselves yank them out. I remember trying to get one of Evan's teeth out many years ago, but I was an utter failure at it, so apparently I never tried again.

Anyway, all this to say that Emily lost a tooth today :-)

Birthmoms

I'm spending too much time tonight looking at pictures on the computer :-) It's a favorite pastime of mine. As I was meandering through the past several years of photos, I came across theses pictures of our kids with their birthmoms and it reminded me of how thankful I am to have these ladies in our lives.

I am continually amazed at how I often I come across people, both in the adoption community and outside of it, who are adamantly opposed to openness in adoption. Regularly, I hear how "bad" or "risky" it is.

I tire of it. I tire of people telling me that openness is an "experiment" and the "repercussions" are yet to be seen.

Not that I think that openness is always a good idea. Certainly there are instances when, for the well-being of the child, an adoption should not be open, but (and it's a big but), there are many times (yes, many times) when openness is a wonderful blessing AND in the best interest of the adopted child. We have wonderful, productive, beneficial relationships with the birthmoms of our four domestically adopted children. I believe that in open adoptions this is more the norm than the exception.

Our kids love their birthmoms. LOVE them with wholehearted affection! This doesn't mean that they love me any less. It doesn't mean that they are "confused" about who their parents are. It doesn't cause them confusion at all. Actually, it eliminates a lot of confusion. When they have a question about their biological heritage, they can ask the source. When they want to know the "whys" of their adoption, they can ask the person who made the decision. When they want to know why they hold their pen funny, they can look at the hands that hold it the same funny way. I'm not seeing how any of this is negative, in any way shape or form.

Oh my, here I was just going to post some cute pictures of my kids and their birthmoms and suddenly I'm on this open adoption soapbox. Sorry about that :-) I am laid back about a lot of things in life, but this is NOT one of them. I hope I haven't offended anyone. I totally believe that everyone has to make decisions for their family, based on their situation. I do respect that, I really do. I really just want people to see that openness is not some sort of freaky social experiment which is ruining our children.

I'm done. Good night.

Thought You Might Want To See

Here's a sight that most people outside of our household never get to see; Zoe with her hair down.

The older kids measured Zoe's hair today and it is eight inches long. You'd never guess it though because it curls up so tight. It looks nice and long in this picture because we had just taken it out of braids. Once she got a bath it boinged back to its normal appearance. I just LOVE her hair!

What A Great Daddy!

Not only does Chris play restaurant with the kids, he plays it while wearing a Hannah Montana wig! Way to go, Chris!

Apparently Chris gets a little bored when he isn't going to work every day. I know one "person" in the house who will be glad when Dad is back at a regular job...

News Flash

She's finally done it. Emily took the plunge today and got her ears pierced. After much thought and a little fretting, she bravely went to Claire's and let them poke holes in her ears. She was very brave and her ears look adorable (?).

For those of you who were expecting an update on my friends' adoption, I haven't heard anything today, which I think is good news. If they did indeed get their kids today, I am sure that they have no time to send emails :-)

Please Pray

If you think about it, could you please pray for my friends, Jennifer & John. They are adopting two beautiful children from Haiti. Prior to last week they were supposed to have an 18 month wait before their children would come home. Well, today they found out that their children will be arriving tomorrow (Fri.) at 6 pm! Can you even imagine....

So, please pray for safe travels for the kids and Jennifer & John (the kids will probably land in FL) and for all of the many adjustments that are coming their way in less than 24 hours. Oh my, I'm overwhelmed just thinking about it, but we have a very big God who loves to place children in homes.

Breakfast!

I was talking to a couple friends the other day about breakfast and I promised to post some of my breakfast recipes/ideas out here. So if you are all out of breakfast ideas and you like to include a lot of cheese or chocolate in your mornings, go ahead and read on...

Raspberry White Chocolate Scones (when their underlined like this you can just click on them and it will take you to the recipe)

Caramel Apple Rolls

Craisin/White Chocolate Chip Scones

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread (take your banana bread recipe - forget the nuts - and add chocolate chips - they're WAY better)

Spinach Cheese Squares (From my friend, Sylvia)

12 eggs

2-10 oz. pkgs frozen spinach thawed and drained well

2 pounds small curd cottage cheese

3/4 cup butter, melted

1 pound Colby cheese, cubed in ¼ or 3/8” cubes ( I use less and often substitute grated cheddar when I am in a hurry)

3/4 cup flour

1/4 cup instant chopped onion

1/2 tsp. seasoned salt (Lawry’s)

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (fresh is best)

Optional : ham cubes or bacon crumbles

Grease 9 x 13 glass pan with butter. Beat eggs. Add spinach (squeezed well) cottage cheese, and melted butter. Add Colby cheese, flour, onion, salt, and pour into pan. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes or until golden brown. Cut into serving pieces.

Serves 12

Blueberry muffins (I can't believe I haven't posted this one yet)

1/2 cup butter

1 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

2 eggs

2 cups flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 cup milk

2 1/2 cups blueberry(fresh or frozen)

2 tsp. sugar for the tops

On low speed, cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs, one at a time, and mix until blended. Sift dry ingredients (yes, I really do sift them) and add alternately with milk. Mach 1/2 cup berries and stir in by hand. Add the rest of the blueberries whole, and stir in by hand. Grease muffin tins well with butter and grease the top of the pan as well (I spray the pan)Pile mix high in each muffin cup. Sprinkle sugar over tops. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes. Cool in pan at least 30 minutes (or until the kids wake up demanding breakfast) Makes 12

Chocolate Chip Muffins

Follow Blueberry muffin recipe, only omit the blueberries and add chocolate chips :-) Omit the sugar on top too, unless you want really squirrelly kids all day.

Lemon-Poppyseed Muffins

Follow Blueberry muffin recipe, only omit the blueberries and add a couple Tbs. of poppyseeds, some lemon zest and some lemon extract (or lemon juice).

Are you seeing a trend here with the muffins??

Bright Day Banana Muffins

MUFFINS

1 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cup white flour

1/2 cup sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 cup (1 medium) mashed ripe banana

1/2 cup milk

1/3 cup oil

1 egg, slightly beaten

TOPPING

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

2 Tbls. butter, melted

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Grease bottoms only of 12 muffin cups. In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients for muffins; stir in remaining muffin ingredients just until dry particles are moistened. Fill prepared muffing cups 2/3 full.

Bake at 400 for 18 to 22 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately remove from pan. In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon. Brush tops of hot muffins with melted butter (I just use the dip-the-tops-in-the-butter method); dip in sugar cinnamon mixture. Serve warm. Makes 12

Okay, only two more recipes for today. If the outcry is great I will send some more recipes your way at a later time.

Breakfast Bake (now there's an original name for you)

1 can (8-oz) refrigerated crescent dinner rolls

1 pkg (8-oz) chopped ham

6 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/2 tsp. pepper

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Unroll dough in 13x9 inch baking dish; press to cover bottom of dish, firmly pressing holes and seams together to seal.

Sprinkle ham over crust. Beat eggs, milk and pepper with a whisk until blended; pour over ham. Top with cheeses.

Bake 25 minutes or until center is set.

Breakfast Braid (this one tastes like an egg mcmuffin)

1 can refrigerated pizza crust dough

cooking spray

2 large eggs

ham

cheese

whatever else you want to put in here - if I was making it for myself only, I would saute some onions and peppers, but that isn't going to fly with 80% of the peeps in this house...

Preheat oven to 425. Unroll dough onto a sprayed baking sheet. Pat into a 15x10 inch rectangle. Scramble and cook eggs in a frying pan. Place cheese and ham lengthwise down the center of the dough, top with eggs and more cheese (if desired).

Make 2 inch long diagonal cuts about 1 inch apart on both sides of the dough to within 1/2 inch of filling using a sharp knife or kitchen shears. Arrange strips over filling, alternating strips diagonally over filling. Press ends under to seal. Brush with egg white. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand 5 minutes. Cut crosswise into slices. Yield 6 servings.

Okay, that's all for now folks, please forgive any typos as I really don't want to proof read this post :-)

Now, in exchange for all these lovely breakfast ideas, I would LOVE IT if you would share with me some lunch ideas :D

Oh, one more side note, for those of you saying, I don't have time to make this stuff in the morning. Here are some helpful tips on making it work - maybe.

I do a lot of prep the night before. I get out all my utensils, bowls, pans, etc. and have them ready and waiting. I combine all my dry ingredients in a bowl and leave them sitting on the counter overnight (and nothing bad has ever happened to them), I put the butter and the sugar in the mixing bowl the night before, too. If I really want to make my mornings easy, I will measure out all of my ingredients ahead of time (don't worry, I'm not leaving the milk on the counter, it's in the fridge, silly). That's all. Some things take about 10 minutes to put together, others about 20 - nothing longer than that for me in the morning :-)

It's Tuesday

Raelea provides me with a never-ending supply of funny conversations...

Mom: Raelea, I'm going to set your clothes out for you to get dressed.

Raelea (with a mouth full of some sort of breakfast food): nnn-nnn

Mom: What, you're going to go naked today?

Raelea: Mmm-hmm

Mom: Sorry, you can' t go naked today.

Raelea: Why, what day is it?

Apparently, in Raelea's mind, it's okay to go naked on certain days, but not others....

He's Still Here

Yes, folks, my husband is still home. His "Christmas Break" is going in week four now. As you recall, dear hubby is self-employed and his last contract ended right before Christmas. There is something being lined up for him, which we thought would have fallen into place already, but we are still waiting...

Not that I mind having him home. He is great company and a tremendous help with the kids, school, etc. Actually, it has made my life quite easy...if perhaps a little more anxiety-ridden (as in, when will we be getting a paycheck again??)

My dear reliable, unflappable husband has assured me that all is well and I should just RELAX, so that's what I do (most of the time) and it is so much easier to relax when there is another adult helping out around the house :-)

Happy MLK Day!

I know I posted this last year on Martin Luther King Day, but some things should be read regularly and this is one of them, imo. Please read it in its entirety. It really is worth your time :-)

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.

But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. So we have come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

In a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check — a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quick sands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.

We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. They have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone.

As we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back. There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied, as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their selfhood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating "For Whites Only". We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.

Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair.

I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.

This is our hope. This is the faith that I go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with a new meaning, "My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring."

And if America is to be a great nation this must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania!

Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado!

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California!

But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia!

Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee!

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

And when this happens, when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!" - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Now, I want to share with you why I can't read this speech without crying.

Why when I read these words, "one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers," I get choked up. Here are OUR pictures from Alabama (2009).

So, you see, it's not just a speech to me, it's about MY family.

Enjoy your day, rejoice in how far we've come, but don't forget, we're not there yet.

If I Had The Time...

I would love to learn to play the hammered dulcimer. Ever since I heard it in many Rich Mullins songs, I have wanted to learn to play it, but like so many things during this season of my life, there really isn't time for me to do it.

So, for the time being, I will enjoy listening to others play the dulcimer and maybe in my future I can take it up, too - right before I learn how to Scottish dance...

Tell me, what would you learn how to do, if you had the time (and money)?

Bunnies And Bibles

Who knew the two went together so well?

Well, apparently Molly did, because this is how I found her (them) yesterday morning.

Need A Twin Bed?

My sister has a Pottery Barn twin captain's bed for sale (a real deal for $75). It is white with four drawers and a center "cubby" (that's what we call the door in the middle of the captain's bed). Let me know if your interested and I will get you in touch with my sister. Maybe she can send me a picture of the bed for you to see (hint, hint, Deb).

She's Gonna Be A Rock Star

Last year, I had dreams of Raelea becoming a concert violinist, but apparently now, it's more likely that she will be a rock star.

A rock star for Jesus that is. EIther that or she's going to be John Piper, because she constantly pretends to be him. Hmmm.

Okay, I need to add one more Raelea story.

She is the only five year old I know that wants to "read" John Piper books during naptime. Keep in mind SHE DOESN'T READ and they don't have any pictures in them. This doesn't stop her from looking at them for a half hour or more. She's currently "reading" This Momentary Marriage. You'll have to ask her how she likes it.

I Sprung A Leek

Sorry, I couldn't resist. Every time I buy these things I have to do this....

It's at this point that you can feel really sorry for my husband and children who have to LIVE with me...

Heavenly Breakfast

Hard to believe, folks, it really is, but I have found my new favorite scone recipe. Not that my old scone recipe is any less wonderful, but this new one, well, it's over-the-top wonderful. Now, I must share it with you all, so you too can wake up in the morning and have heavenly scones.

Raspberry White Chocolate Scones

2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbs. baking powder
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup milk
1/3 cup non-fat vanilla yogurt
1 egg
1 Tbs. vanilla
2 cups frozen raspberries
1 cup white chocolate chips or chunks

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a cookie sheet. Combine dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Work butter into dry ingredients, using a pastry blender or fork, until it is the size of small peas. Combine milk, yogurt, egg and vanilla in a small mixing bowl. Add dry ingredients, mixing just until the dry ingredients are moist. Stir in remaining ingredients. Spoon about 1/3 cup of batter for each scone onto cookie sheet. Bake for 30 minutes (I did mine for 20 minutes on convection bake - 30 minutes seems a little long - maybe go for 25 minutes in a reg. oven) or until golden brown.

Oh, this is so good. I have left-overs so I get to have them again tomorrow morning....teehee...it's great being me.

How To Waste 47 Minutes

Okay, so I was checking my e-mail tonight and somehow I ended up on YouTube. Ever have that happen?

You know, you're checking your e-mail and you get a notice from Facebook about someone's comment, so you go out to their Facebook page and they say something totally foreign (Thanks, Evan) and then you have to Google whatever it was they said. Pretty soon you are on some very funny person's blog about cute guys (and girls) in Lord of the Rings.

Well, then you're laughing so much that all your children pile into the room to read the funny blog with you. Now that they are all there in the room, one of them tells you about this really funny YouTube video (Thanks, Nina - oh, and thanks to Maggie for showing it to Nina in the first place).

SO, you watch the really funny video and decide that this kid in the video is so funny you have to watch some of his other stuff and then you watch some more and, well, maybe just one more....or two....and, lo and behold, 47 minutes are gone...

So, to save you time, I'll just send you to the very funny video...

so now, I have to go say good-night to my girls who are up 1 1/2 hours past their bedtime!

After Almost Twenty Years

Hard to believe, but there are still things I'm learning about Chris after almost twenty years of marriage. Just tonight I learned something new...

Evan, Chris and I are having a conversation in the kitchen (where all good conversations come about) and I am telling them about how I accidentally call people "Dear". You know, like, you're talking to the UPS guy at the door and you say, "Thank you, dear." Oh, come on, I can't be the only one that does that...I have many funny stories about calling people "Dear", most of them embarassing...anyhow...I do it to my brother all the time...a few years ago I said it to an ex-boyfriend...

Well, my dear hubby chimes in that he doesn't do that, but he does call people "Barb". As in, he's having a conversation at work and the person he's talking to is not coming around easily to his point of view, he will slip and say something like this, "Now come on, Barb,..." Hmm, why is it that he slips with MY name when people are being stubborn??? I really haven't the foggiest idea why that might happen....

Because we've been married so long, I find this very amusing! If we had only been married a year or two, I probably wouldn't think this is funny...

Oh, I love my husband, I really do!

New Book???

You all haven't let me down yet, so now I come to you to guide me to the next book I should read....

Let's see, the last one I completed was Jewel, so now I am due to read a classic. Any recommendations??

Help For Leaking Bonbons - UPDATED

I have heard from so many of you that your Fudgy Bonbons are leaking, I decided to make a video to demonstrate the proper way to make leak-free Bonbons.

I know it's too late to save your Christmas cookies, but if you're like me and have stockpiled cherry cordial and mint truffle kisses, you can be making these tasty cookies all year long.

Btw, I'm thinking of starting a cooking program. What do you think? It could be on the comedy channel :-)

Poetry

A few weeks back I posted an epic poem by Evan, so today I thought I would share with you one of my own compositions.

I hope you enjoy it...

Now you can see where he gets his literary talent.

A Boy & His Books

Ever wonder where Evan is the happiest? Well, when not playing his bagpipes, his favorite place is anywhere surrounded by books. Here he is on his bed surrounded by books AND his bagpipes, thus the very happy smile.