T'was the Time Before Christmas

Dear friends,

I hope for those of you who celebrate Christmas and the sorts, that you all had a lovely time. Ours was pretty nice. I was just glad to spend time with Jon and Noah. That's what makes this time so special to me, simply for the fact that we're all together! At no other time of the year do we get such a great amount of family time for the three of us. In fact, just the other day Jon mentioned that he receives five weeks of vacation time this year, but had only taken about two. WHAT!? Believe me, now that I know this, I'll be asking him to take some more time in about six months, so we can have some family time again!

One of the things that we did leading up to Christmas was eat a lot of sushi and Japanese food for some reason.

We sorted through thousands of pieces of Lego (it took me an entire day)! We had a wonderful friend over (this is the difference between boys and girls when you ask them to smile for the camera. Erg)! Also, I got about five minutes of crochet in, but hope to find some more time soon!

Something unbelievable happened with this little sparrow a couple of days before Christmas.... I woke up in the morning and found him SLEEPING on the feeder! You need to know that birds never ever sleep on feeders, and I've rarely seen a Sparrow sit at one for more than a couple of minutes. He just sat there, puffed up, looking very asleep! I started to worry that something was really wrong. That he was sick or injured. I became very upset and called to Jon that we need to go outside to check on him. It took us a few minutes to get coats and hats and boots, and in the time, he was still "sleeping."

When we got outside I couldn't believe my eyes, and when I said something to him, it looked like he suddenly woke up! And he didn't become afraid and fly away as would any bird I've ever had at the feeder, he just started eating! He ate and ate and ate no matter how close I got. We were face to face and he still munched on seeds! This went on for about five minutes. I was very relieved to see him hop and then fly from feeder to feeder. We also have a couple suet feeders in this tree and he had to fly to get to them. I took some pictures, marveled at being so close to a bird and then went inside. We watched him for a few more minutes until unceremoniously he flew off as if nothing ever happened. But what did happen!? This was too strange. I know this sounds completely loopy, but I have to wonder if it was Priya stopping by to say "hello." That would be so cool, and hey, stranger things have happened!

We have had some nice weather and decided to take a walk around town. Do you see "scar coat!?" Jon was outside roasting coffee on his griddle over the grill, when he accidentally got too close and singed his coat! It burned a big hole in the coat and down started coming out. Jon asked me if I could sew it up and fix the coat and I said that I could, but it would look obvious. He picked out a red embroidery floss because it matched some red accents already and the coat and voila! Scar Coat was born. We know it's ridiculous, but who wants to stop wearing a perfectly good coat for a small reason. I  think it makes Jon look tough, like he was in a knife fight or something. Although the red MITTENS of mine that he's wearing for some reason.....not so tough. ;)

I found a birding book on the new materials shelf at the library, and sat by the fire for about five minutes reading. I still need to learn how to relax.

*Before you read further Noah would like me to make it very understood that I have misplaced his red race car apron at the moment and that is why he was forced to borrow one of mine. Otherwise he would not choose to wear a Little House on the Prairie-esq apron.*

I've mentioned before that I wanted to plan some new family traditions for Christmas Eve day and Christmas Eve it's self. We don't have any, and it's always such a quiet, peaceful day that it's a perfect time to make or do something! So I thought cookie baking was in order. We had so much fun making a batch of sugar cookies, baking them and decorating. AND, I have to say, they did turn out pretty delicious. I'm just so sad that we accidentally left all of them at my Mom's house. I would have liked to have eaten one or two or three or four more.....

I've also blogged about the Christmas Eve Box. It ended up being a big hit! I'm so glad that we started this as a tradition. Noah was surprised. He opened his box to find a new pair of pajamas, some Christmas cartoon DVD's, pop corn kernels, hot chocolate and candy.

And then Jon and Noah surprised ME with new pajamas (I was really surprised)! I know this might seem completely and utterly dorky, but I've wanted this flannel Lanz of Salzberg nightgown for a while. It has Cardinals on it! Lol. I'm such a dork, but I LOVE it!!!!

After making cookies all day, we kind of has cabin fever, so we decided to take a drive to see all of the Christmas lights and luminaries. We ended up in my Mom's neighborhood, so stopped there for a few to see their lights and the tree and Lucy the dog.

I'm sorry, just one more cookie montage. I just love them so much.

Noah chose to leave these two for Santa. Then he went right to sleep, only to wake up at MIDNIGHT and again at 1:00 am, before finally being up for good at 5:45! We opened presents at 6:00 am. It was early, but I didn't mind, because seeing Noah so happy was nice.

More about all of that later! I hope everyone had a nice holiday as well!

xoxoxooxox,

Lauren 

A Very Merry Christmas!

To all my How Bourgeois friends who celebrate Christmas, a very Merry Christmas to you! I hope your holiday is full of light, laughter and love.  We've decided to start our own December 24th tradition as we don't have any. We've been baking cookies! Now on to the best part....decorating!!! Merry Christmas friends!

Here, Make This Food. Biimbap and the World's BEST Casserole for Your Holiday!!!!

And the snow continued! I'm so glad that it's been snow-ish in some shape or form over the past week, but I'm REALLY worried that the higher temperatures and rain we are getting might ruin it all. My fingers are crossed that the snows stays, but we have had and continue to have temps in the upper 30's and lots of drizzle! Last weekend in the midst of the snow storm, my Mom was sure that we'd have a white Christmas, but I argued it wasn't a sure thing. I really hope she turns out to be right. 

This is a snowy view from my bedroom, window. It isn't the prettiest scene, but I have to say that for  suburban Detroit, I might have one of the more interesting bedroom window views. It's never a dull moment. We've seen parades go by, and regularly have bike pelotons fly past. Ambulances and fender benders and this man that we call "BMW Beard" nearly everyday. BMW Beard is this guy, maybe in his 20's. He has an M3 BMW, that's the souped up, tuned 3-series. He has a big bushy beard and always wears a baseball cap and sunglasses. He floors it when rounding the curve in front of our house, and often fishtail up to the light. Think  Rob Zombie in a BMW, driving like a tool. Here's the weird part though, some days, he drives past here TEN times a day! Over and over.Everybody knows of the mythical BMW Beard because he cruises through the center of town repeatedly without any shame.  And here is the even WEIRDER part, he ALWAYS has his windows down, sunroof open and is BLASTING music. But not just any music, POWER BALLADS. You know, those "emotional" rock anthems about love from the 80's and 90's that have a running time of too long and barf? And, I KID YOU NOT. (Ask Jon!) BMW Beard EVEN drove past us in the MIDDLE of the snow storm last weekend with his windows and sunroof open, bumping a song.

We've gone through every theory in the book as to why he circles town over and over. Pizza delivery? Taxi cab? Security force in a strategic disguise? Who knows. All I know is, it's characters like BMW Beard that make looking out my window so much fun!

Here's what I want to share with  you, a recipe for BIBIMBAP!  For those of you not familiar with this traditional Korean dish, bibimbap is essentially a bowl of warm white rice with sautéed veggies, an egg and some sliced beef on top. Usually a person adds hot chili pepper paste to spice things up, and the best times are when your bibimbap is served in a sizzling hot "stone bowl".  Because this dish arrives at such a high temperature, you can stir the raw egg that's placed on top into your rice and it actually cooks the egg! I think though, the most fantastic part over all is the way that the rice at the bottom of the bowl becomes all crispy. It forms a rice crust from the heat!

Here is a beautiful picture of homemade (non-stone bowl) bibimbap that I found to give you and idea of what it really can look like. (compared to my own!)  The site is called "Use Real Butter", and while I didn't use their recipe last night, it looks absolutely delicious. Take a look!

(From "Use Real Butter".)

So, yesterday I decided to make our own bibimbap. Jon and I love Korean food. We love all kinds of food, especially from other cultures! I thought it would be a fun experiment. I went into this knowing that there was no way I'd make anything near authentic, but that didn't matter to us so much. I'm glad that I gave it a shot because it was delicious! Even Noah agreed to have a small bowl of his version - rice, egg, mushrooms.

THIS is the recipe that I was using from Allrecipes. It's for a vegetarian version, but you could easily add grilled or sautéed beef or other meat on top.

Basically, you start by cutting zucchini and carrots into matchsticks. Then you sauté them in a bit of sesame oil. Next you add in bamboo shoots and mushrooms. Really, you could choose to make any veggie. I quite like spinach with a soy/sesame marinade on mine.
Meanwhile, you should be making white rice and fried eggs. Bibimpap served in stone bowls include a raw egg, but since our bowls at home aren't hot enough to cook the egg, I went ahead and made some fried eggs to put on top.

When the veggies were done, I turned down the heat. Then I took some chopped green onions, soy sauce and black pepper and added it to the rice. This part threw me a bit because all of the bibimbap that I've had has always been pure white rice. I'm surprised to say though, this flavored rice, this came out delicious!

When everything is prepared and ready, all that is left to do is assemble. Rice in a bowl, veggies and egg on top. Also, it's recommend that you serve with sweet, hit chili sauce to give things a kick. We used Sriracha sauce.

In addition to the Bibimbap, I served miso soup, a little kimchi, and a Japanese cucumber salad that was so easy and refreshing. Oh! And we drank hot tea, just like we do when we go out to our favorite Korean restaurant. Sometimes dinners that stray from the ordinary can be a lot of fun!

Here's Jon enjoying Sriracha art.

And now I present to you:
Everybody's Except for Noah's Favorite Casserole!

I feel as though I've mentioned this recipe to you before, but it's SO delicious and SO easy, that I just had to let you know AGAIN! This eggy, cheese blintz casserole is a sweet and festive treat. It's perfect for Christmas breakfast or any holiday gathering. It take less than five minutes to whip the ingredients up and get it into the oven - and then you're done!  HERE is the recipe from Allrecipes. They call it a Blintz soufflé.

Basically, you melt butter in the bottom of the pan, lay a bunch of frozen, pre-made blintzes down, and cover them in a mixture of eggs, sugar, and sour cream with a splash of orange juice. It's that easy!

I really need to apologize for my food photography. These pictures make everything look less than appetizing. I need to start using my camera instead of my cell phone, but also though, the lighting in the kitchen, especially in these dark winter months is just terrible. I PROMISE, the blintz soufflé was better looking in person, and I really really think you should try it!

Sever with sour cherries on top or on the side, or any other fruit that you might enjoy. A dollop of sour cream too!

I turn my back for ONE second to put away dishes and this is what I find. Anyone for some Furry Krispies!? Yum.

This is what Willow looks like. Sometimes.

Until next time!

xoxoxox,

Lauren

A DIY Night Before Christmas Box & Teacher Gifts!

Tis the season for Lauren to go crazy, fa-la-la-la-la , la-la-la-LA! Crazy with CRAFTING!!!!

(Oh God, that was kind of a nerdy opener).

Ok, I just wanted to share two quick projects that you might also find fun during holidays.

The first is this WONDERFUL idea for a "Night Before Christmas Box" that I came across on Pinterest last month.  HERE is a link to the original post.

I wanted to start a new Christmas Eve tradition. Something that Noah and Jon and I could do together and the box just fit the bill. Let me back up a few hours though. Here is the plan that I've come up with for Christmas Eve. First, in the afternoon I'm going to make and decorate sugar cookies with Noah. I've been collecting different sprinkles for the past month of so, and I think we're finally all set! After  baking and decorating, we're going to make a Christmas tree pizza! I found this idea from the blog: Delia Creates. Find the information HERE!

(Photo from Delia Creates.)

After the cookies are made and the pizza tree dinner is eaten, Noah will be able to open up his Christmas Eve box! Here's what I did - First I found a large box that held a pair of boots, and wrapped both the top and bottom in wrapping paper so that I could reuse use it each year. Then I added some embellishment to the top with craft paper, some glitter and a little tag and string. It was a lot of fun to make! The box might not be perfect, but neither am I, so if everything that you make turns out lopsided like it always does for me, just go with it. :)

Over the past few weeks I've gathered everything needed for the perfect Christmas Eve. A new pair of soft, warm feetie pajamas. (This is the last year that Noah will fit into Carter's pajamas with the zip and the feet. I HAVE To have one last hurrah! I just hope these penguin feeties don't turn out like that scene from The Christmas Story, where Ralphie received a pair of pink bunny pajamas)!

In addition to the new P.J.'s , I put inside a cute stuffed animal, and everything that you need for a movie night! You can even use things that you already own, like the Polar Express DVD that we haven't seen in a year, and one of our candy canes. I found the new Snoopy Christmas video for just $5 at Target, put some corn kernels for homemade popcorn in a bag, and added some "special occasion" hot chocolate packets to drink together. Since taking these photos, I've also included a small bag of Twizzlers for movie watching, because hey! It's a party!!!

Here's what the box looked like, full and ready to be closed up.

As time goes on, and Noah grows, I'll change the contents up. Maybe a small gift instead of a stuffed animal, and different DVDS as he gets older.

And how will we end the night? A surprise car ride in pajamas, with fleece blankets, to go around and look at all the lights and the BEAUTIFUL luminaries that line many of the streets around here. It's all so peaceful and still and gorgeous. I want Noah to know the magic of this night, just like I did when I was his age. 

The second bit of DIY is just a mini-project. Noah's class was pooling together to purchase teacher gifts. We joined in, but just wanted to also give a little token of our thanks. I spoke about THIS project last week, the one where you take a white tote and turn it into a gift bag that looks like a sheet of lined paper. I made one for each of our homeroom teachers. It's a lot of fun to make, try it!

Most everyone enjoys coffee and cookies, so we decided to roast our own coffee and put it little decorated ball jars. Can you just smell these warm beans!? YUM! I can across a a sweet, little multi-pack of some very special Joe's O's cookies from Trader Joe's. The package says: "An assortment of past Joe's O's cookies with several chocolates and drizzles and sprinkles." Doesn't that sound good!?

And then everything was neatly tucked into the bag. I included a card thanking our teachers for all of their help and caring so far this year. We're very appreciative and love them a lot!

And on a totally unrelated note. (As usual.) Here are some cute, puffy mourning doves.

And a squirrel!

AND...... the hawk is back! When I first saw him, I was hoping it was a snowy owl, but as I got closer I realized it's hawk. I'm also happy to see him too.

Until next time, stay warm and watch out for hawks!

xoxoxoxo,

Lauren :)

Snowy Adventures

I was just telling my friend behind the counter at my local coffee shop how much I missed the seasons when we lived in California. This came up because right before this statement, we were talking about all of the snow and how COLD it felt today (currently 19 degrees).  For whatever reason, when many are big warm weather lovers, I could spend the whole entire year in fall and winter. It actually makes me happy! Spring and summer not as much. 

We're coming up on the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year and the longest night of the year. For the past two Winter Solstices Noah and I have meant to celebrate, but something always came up. This time around, I hope to at least acknowledge it a little. Maybe a craft or a special dinner. Yesterday as we watched the snow floating down from the sky for 36th straight hour, I remarked how awe inspiring and amazing the earth is. I feel grateful for the change of seasons, they're one thing in life that you can count on!

We had quite a bit of snow over the weekend. Before this, we've on had a dusting. It started coming down late Friday night, and it didn't stop until Sunday evening.   I was a little concerned because we had to be in West Bloomfield, a city about 25 minutes away,  at 10:30 Saturday morning. Jon and I were going to a B'nai Mitzvah service, that's a bar and bat mitzvah service for my friends boy/girl twins. Isn't that sweet!? It was very moving to see those two up there, and hear their parents blessings to them, and see their extended family come together to support the kids. They each did such an amazing job.  I even er......cried at a few partrs. So moving! LOL. KEEP IT TOGETHER LAUREN! ;)

In the end we were there right on time. One of our cars has 4-wheel drive so it worked out. Saturday was going to be such an exciting day. After the service we has a little "oneg" with our friends. That's where everyone gathers in the vestibule for coffee and cookies and other refreshments. They were delicious! Then Jon and I made our way to my parent's house to pick up Noah and head home. 

Because the snow was so GORGEOUS, we decided to take a walk to lunch in town. This is so trivial and silly, but it was the first time that I've really tucked my jeans into my boots. ALL HAIL SKINNY JEANS!!!! You guys, I'm so hooked. It made a huge difference, especially when tucking them into my warm Bogs boots. I was really warm enough to stay out all day.

We ended up at Noah's favorite - Panera. It was definitely a soup kind of afternoon.

After lunch we walked around the corner to Commonwealth, the little coffee shop that I always speak of. They have the best coffee, and it's roasted in house! On this day I treated myself with a mocha. I love the "art,"  I've never had this laurel of leaves. It was pretty!

Noah is newly obsessed with coconut water, and Jon ha something called a "C. Latte" which uses sweetened and condensend milk. Then they played chess. This might be one of our new Saturday rituals.

After bellies full of warm soup and hot coffee, we walked home to shovel. I was surprised at how much snow came off our little driveway, enough to build Noah a snow fort that he dug through. We were also amused by the giant plow truck carrying a massive load of salt drive by over and over. And, my favorite from childhood, the little jeep-like truck with the big rotating brush on the front. It DRIVES on the sidewalk and sweeps all of the snow away.

Noah didn't want to go inside after we finished and oddly, I didn't want to either! (That must say something about skinny jeans tucked into boots).

Eventually we had to go in though, I needed time to throw all of our wet snow clothes into the dryer and to have they dry before we left later that evening for Holiday Nights! Holiday Nights is a WONDERFUL event held each year at Greenfield Village. I've spoken about Greenfield Village before. It was started by Henry Ford many years ago to highlight places of importance in American History. It's an outdoor LIVING history museum!!!! For example, Henry Ford bought, dismantled, moved to the village and re-assembled Thomas Edison's laboratory and Abraham Lincoln's first courthouse, among many other significant buildings. Each home and building is staffed by presenters dressed in period clothing. They are so knowledgable, telling stories and answering questions. They play a character and you feel as though you are transported back in time!

Holiday Nights is a historic Christmas market of sorts. There are warming fires everywhere, people in costume caroling, old fashioned holiday crafts and food stalls and so much music. It's really lovely

Here we are taking our picture before heading out. We know this was a bit crazy because it was still coming down outside and was FREEZING! Also, it was completely dark, and we were about to go spend hours outside. Were we crazy? Maybe! The first is a normal picture, then we did a crazy picture.

The roads were terrible, at least until we reach the freeway. Then it was slightly less terrible. We promised to turn back if it became too dangerous, but we made it, so that was good!

When we arrived, I told Noah to remember this night because it would be magic, and it was! Something about all of the snow, and the glow from the lanterns that lined the roads. Jon snapped this photo of the Eagle Tavern. This tavern was built in 1831. It was a stagecoach stop! It still operates as a restaurant, just not so many stage coaches.

Something that amazed me was how well all of the old cars actually drove in the snow! As on all days at Greenfield Village, there were Model T rides available. No cars are allowed in the village except for these Model T's that drive around and things like the old fashioned "omnibus."  It was pretty neat though, the Model T's have such large tires, they really seemed to get around in the snow OK!

The highlight of the night though, at least for me, is taking Noah to see the REAL Santa Claus. Well, that's what I hear. An amazing looking Santa perches on top of Robert Frost's house and waves and calls to all of the children below. There is a group of women in red velvet cloaks across the street from the house, and what you do is sneak up to them and whisper your child's name. They relay this up to Santa and he booms out: "Well HELLO Noah!!!!".   Isn't that great!? Noah is always speechless. It's so cute. I think I get a little too into it though. I have a grainy video and you can hear me laughing and yelling: "Hi Santa, we love you!!!"" in total seriousness. Sometimes I forget that I'm not nine. 

Also, because this Santa is REAL, of course he brought a couple of his REAL reindeer. Aren't they beautiful? They seem like such gentle creature. Noah became suspicious and thought that they weren't Santa's real reindeer because he asked "Who that guy holding them?" And without skipping a beat (THANKFULLY) I said: "Oh, him? He works for Greenfield Village! When Santa makes all of the effort to come here Greenfield Village does whatever it takes to make his stay comfortable. They have somebody care for the reindeer and then they take them to their stables to rest." I'm glad he bought it. Phew! :)

Noah, all a-glow after Santa said hello to him! :)

I'm not sure who these guys are, but I think that they're wassailers?

And look at the market area, isn't it pretty!? The house you see here is the Heinz House, boyhood home of H.J. Heinz of the Heinz Company! Across the street is the Wright brother's home AND the ACTUAL Wright Brother's bike shop and workshop where they built their first glider. SO COOL!!!!

Noah and Jon like their roast beef sandwiches which are carved old-fashioned style over an open fire. Too bad for me there weren't like......any vegetarians back then. It was ok, I got a soft pretzel out of it.

They even sold old fashioned looking Christmas trees and wreaths!

But in the end, in true boy fashion, the thing that Noah loved the most (BY FAR), was climbing up the "pile of snow".  He didn't want to leave, he asked to go back to the pile over and over. Kind of like the time we took him all over San Francisco for a week and upon return, told his teacher that his favorite thing was the "bagel with butter" that he had every morning.  Sheesh!

I want to tell you one more thing. With all the snow came some beautiful birds! The make Cardinals looked SO beautiful against the white snow and the red berries. We also had Blue Jays with their striking blues, Woodpeckers, Sparrows and Mourning Doves.

A curious Tufted Titmouse.

And a very brave Black Capped Chickadee who came up to our window feeder.

The Cardinals didn't seem to mind the weather.

But THEN.....then THE MOST EXCITING THING EVER!!!!!!! I saw a....... CAROLINA WREN!!

A Carolina Wren!!!!!!!!!!!

I call this sweet, adorable little bird the "Puppy Bird" because he's so round and brown and adorable. I've been waiting for him to come back again since last winter!!! I believe they are only in these parts during the wintertime in general. I love the puppy bird so much!

I see the Titmice, (is that correct?) often times in pairs. They're adorable.

And that is the snowy scoop!

Until next time, stay warm and get out there and have some fun!

xoxoxoxoxo,

Lauren