![Thanksgiving #2]()
by Catherine | Nov 30, 2014 | Family
We got to celebrate Thanksgiving #2 with Philip’s side of the family on Thanksgiving Day. I love how celebrating the same holiday with each side can simultaneously be so different but equally fun!
While my side of the family is HUGE, Philip’s fam is small but mighty. Philip’s mom, dad, brother, and sister joined us for some feasting and fun. They generously worked with our schedule, coming in the late morning and staying until the kids’ afternoon nap time. We packed a lot of fun into our day!
- A quick selfie before the doorbell rang
- Does the table look familiar? After washing everything and freshening up our centerpieces, we were ready for round 2!
- We had a little more elbow room the second time around
- Harry loved sneaking over to the kiddie table before the feast
- Sneaky smirk
- Harry loved terrorizing Muffy during her visit
- And he stole a lot of cuddles from Uncle Connor
After the feast, it was time to play! Mimi brought an adorable game of Thanksgiving Bingo that she printed off. The kids LOVED it! It didn’t hurt that she and Maddy had gone to the trouble of bringing prizes for each winner, too.
- Paying close attention and marking off their pictures
- Why not use two crayons? Walt’s like the lady at the church hall bingo night with bingo markers blazing in both hands!
And then the magic began.
- “BINGO!!!!!”
After a few rounds of Bingo, we played one of our favorite family games, Guesstures.
- Papa loved it
- And we loved watching Papa!
- Maddy was an expert player and a great sport about the tough words she drew
- Harry tried his hand at the game, too
- Trying to get us to guess the last word before it disappeared
- Mimi did a great job, but I was a lousy team mate and couldn’t guess “pucker”!
We somehow forgot to take a family picture, but we DID manage to get a sibling shot in between rounds of Guesstures!
It was a fun day of feasting and fun with family. After everyone left, we took a GLORIOUS Thanksgiving afternoon nap! (I write about naps a lot, don’t I? Well, I suppose it’s because I’m so grateful that my children love sleep as much as I do!) It was the perfect ending to our Thanksgiving #2.
![30]()
by Catherine | Nov 28, 2014 | Family
I turned 30 on Wednesday, and it was the most perfectly quiet day!
Since it was the day before Thanksgiving, there was no preschool. The day started with Philip letting me sleep in while he took Harry to our favorite donut spot, Conroy’s Bakery Shoppe. Philip woke me up with a sweet kiss on the forehead. “Honey, Harry and I got some donuts! Want to come downstairs and have breakfast together?” Who doesn’t love starting their day with a cuppa coffee and a Conroy’s apple fritter??? Nom, nom, nom.
- My loves after breakfast
After that, Philip went to work, and the kids and I enjoyed a quiet day around the house. We played, we did a little housework, and I got to enjoy listening to the newly released podcasts of the Jennifer Fulwiler Show while I folded laundry. I might have over-indulged and listened to all of the available episodes at once. Can’t wait to hear more! No preschool drop-off or pick-up meant we could have a lazy morning together. After lunch, the kids gifted me with a glooooooooooorious nap! I snapped this pic of Harry after I laid him down in his crib. My cup runneth over!
- Nighty night, Harry
Walt slept in his bed, and Miss Jane snuggled up with me and Monty in my room. We laid down at 2:15, and we woke up right as Philip was calling us on his way home from work at 5. What a nap!
- Tandoori Chicken With Yogurt Sauce
After dinner, Philip surprised me with a cookie cake for dessert. “Jane and Walt helped me decide what to put on it.”
- My personalized cookie cake
All of my favorite things! A princess tiara, a magic wand, a race car. I couldn’t have designed it better myself, kiddos! I had some help blowing out the candles.
- Harry thought his fingers would get the job done
- I love Walt’s face in this one
Everyone enjoyed their cookie cake!
As if the day could get any better, Philip and the kids outdid themselves with their presents this year. Remember what I told you I wanted? I GOT IT!!! Philip got me a gift certificate to a cleaning company so that I can get the bathrooms and kitchen cleaned on a regular basis. YAY!!! That way, I can enjoy my gig at home without the nagging need to scrub the toilets. Philip also got me a gift certificate to a local spa. I jokingly said I want to return the spa certificate to get more services from the cleaning company, but…doesn’t that sound brilliant?! I’m seriously considering it. I’ll take a sparkling clean bathroom over a pedicure any day. Call me crazy, but I like what I like!
After bedtime prayers and stories, we put the kids to bed, and Philip and I had a little at-home date night. We opened some bubbly pink moscato and watched The Family Man with Nicolas Cage and Téa Leoni. I like the Rotten Tomatoes plot summary:
Wall Street playboy, Jack Campbell is at the top of his professional game with little time for anything else. Jack’s lavish, fast-paced lifestyle drastically changes one snowy Christmas night when he unwittingly stumbles into the middle of a grocery store holdup and in a bold display of self-preservation disarms the gunman. The next morning he wakes up in a suburban New Jersey bedroom lying next to Kate, his college sweetheart who he left in order to pursue his career, and to the horrifying discovery that his former life no longer exists. As he stumbles through this alternate suburban universe, Jack begins to feel strangely comfortable in this new role of loving husband and father to two children. Jack finds himself at a crossroad, where he must choose between his high-powered career and the woman he loves.
Sure, the critics might say The Family Man is nothing more than a sentimental modern-day It’s A Wonderful Life, but that’s precisely why I love it. We bought the movie a few years ago, and we watch it every year before Christmas. I chose to watch that movie on the night of my 30th birthday because it’s exactly how I feel about life these days. Just like the main characters, Philip and I chose to get our family out of the fast lane of trying to keep up with the Joneses. These days, we’re enjoying our very quiet, very normal, and very ordinary lives in suburban Nebraska. Quiet, normal, and ordinary = exactly where I want to be.
When I read Happier at Home by Gretchen Rubin, I loved her many Secrets of Adulthood. One of them in particular continues to ring true: What’s fun for other people may not be fun for you–and vice versa. Philip and I are happiest when we embrace the things we really enjoy doing together and actually do them instead of what the world tells us we’d enjoy. At 30, one of my favorite parts of marriage is finding these interests and figuring out ways to enjoy them together. Some people might look at how I celebrated my 30th birthday and think, “Laaaaaaaaaaaaaaame!” I say, “It’s my birthday, and I’ll be lame if I want to!”
30 is already shaping up to be a fabulous year in my lame book. Six months after moving to Lincoln, I think we’ve arrived at our new normal.
- I’m learning how to take my gig at home less seriously and slow myself down long enough each day to enjoy motherhood. Let me tell ya, life’s better for everyone these days! With fewer commitments, more play dates, more date nights, and more “holy leisure,’ it’s easier to find the graces to thrive through the week.
- I FINALLY took a sewing lesson, and I’m starting my first sewing project this week.
- I’m putting together my 2015 Spiritual Board of Directors (more on that later) to bring a little focus to the new year.
- As a BIG TREAT, I’m going to the 2015 Edel Gathering with my dear friend, Amanda.
- I’m reading some fantastic books for fun and for Well-Read Mom.
- GodTeens has been one of the best gifts we’ve given our whole family. We’re looking forward to the rest of our 4-year journey with the teens.
- Philip and I are both committed to further strengthening our faith and our marriage. Ya gotta love feeling equally yoked to your honey!
Cheers to 30!
![Thanksgiving #1]()
by Catherine | Nov 25, 2014 | Family
Philip and I got to host my side for Thanksgiving on Saturday. What a fun, fun day! Philip has always really enjoyed cooking, baking, and entertaining, so it’s a treat to get to have our family here for celebrations. We had a great time selecting the menu together, assigning dishes to family members, and working together to prepare for the big day. We didn’t even fight once! Yay!
Philip insisted on making 2 birds this year. The original plan was to smoke 1 and brine/bake the other. After the first one smoked so beautifully, Philip decided to smoke the second as well.
First, the food:
- Veggies and spices to add flavor while bird is smoking in the grill
- Bird #1
- Da Bird & 2 chocolate bourbon pecan pies
- The pans of water, veggies, and turkey “stuff” to make the gravy
- While he was pumping turkey #2 full of buttery goodness, Dr. Phil joked, “Even turkeys need shots!”
- Gobble, gobble!
- Good gravy! Ya outdid yourself, Philip!
- My favorite picture! We learned a new cooking technique called spatchcocking a turkey. Basically, you apply pressure like you’re giving the bird CPR, and you crack the bird’s sternum so that it cooks flat. Between giving the bird shots and rescue compressions, I’m sure glad Philip had all of his medical training!
Second, the table:
- You might be Catholic if Thanksgiving with your immediate family (Mom, Dad, siblings, spouses, kiddos) requires a dining room table with two leaves, two banquet tables, a kiddie table in the entrance, and a big kid table in the kitchen. I! LOVE! IT!
- It was so much fun to have all of the adults and wee little babies in the same room!
- Up close of the table setting. I used recycled wine corks for the place cards. I cut the bottoms off of them so that they’d lay flat and slit a cut at an angle for the name card. I wrote everyone’s names in cursive with a gold metallic marker on espresso-colored card stock.
- There’s a whole lot going on in the middle of the table. Atop the gold and silver metallic table runner are mason jars with cranberries, greenery from our shrubs, and float candles. I mixed in a few hurricanes, votive candles, more greenery, and faux fall vegetation (pumpkins, gourds, pears, berries, red Maple leaves). I alternated gold and silver chargers beneath the white dinner plates, and I used cloth napkins in fall colors.
Third, the fun:
- Pictionary after dinner. My sister-in-law Katie is able to give my dad a hard time like no one else, and she totally dominated this round of Pictionary. Ha! Go, Girl Team!
- Poor Dan had to draw “stick out like a sore thumb.” We weren’t using a timer, and he persevered for what felt like 5 minutes. My family is just a *TAD* competitive, so you can imagine the heat he felt in his five layers of clothing. Love you, brother!
- The girls!
- Jane and Lucy got their hair done. Do you like Lucy’s bandaid? I think she had a little scratch and Jane helped her apply the largest one possible. It certainly got the job done!
- After the party, Philip and I found this on our bed. Fortunately, everyone’s coats that were on the bed were spared. I hear a product called Goof Off (not to be confused with Goo Gone) is supposed to help get this stuff off of my bedding. Oh, well! It’s just stuff, right? Not even some purple nail polish on our ivory bedding could ruin our fun Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving #1 was a blast, and we’re just as excited to have Thanksgiving #2 with the Boucher crew on Thursday! Safe travels to everyone who will be journeying to celebrate and feast with their families! Have a blessed Thanksgiving!
by Catherine | Nov 20, 2014 | Faith, Family
I know it’s not even Thanksgiving yet, but I’m a planner, and I’m writing this column for myself. I’m going to print it off, stick it to my refrigerator, and remind myself of these words when Advent is upon us. As our family grows, the Advent and Christmas seasons get a little more chaotic with each year. I thought I’d come up with some survival tips for those trying to keep the time holy…
by Catherine | Nov 7, 2014 | Family
This week, it’s all about Mr. Harry! Just shy of 15 months, Harry is a full-fledged MONKEY! The little guy has serious climbing skills. He’s our most coordinated kiddo yet, and he’s having fun trying to keep up with Jane & Walt.
-1-
His current favorite spot is on top of this kiddie table in Jane’s room. (The table used to be Philip’s when he was a little boy. Cool, huh?! Thanks for saving it all of these years, Janet!)
-2-
Philip had the ladder out to change some lightbulbs the other day. When Philip left the room to get more bulbs, Harry took it upon himself to try the ladder out. Fortunately, I was there to peel the little daredevil away before he fell off!
-3-
Our parish had their Holiday Fair last Sunday. We got a fantastic basket from the silent auction full of children’s books, superhero capes, and a dinosaur tail. Harry wears his dinosaur tail EVERYWHERE! Here’s dinosaur Harry, cookin’ up something in the kitchen.
-4-
Second only to Jane, Harry is Monty’s biggest fan! While I was making our bed, Harry decided he’d keep Monty company. I love how he put his left arm around Monty for the pic. Monty’s still not so sure about all of the attention, but he’s a good sport about tolerating it! He’ll simply lick Harry until he stops when he’s had enough attention.
-5-
Jane and Walt are enjoying their evening swim lessons. (Hallelujah!) Two nights a week, Harry and I get to watch them below from the observation deck. Harry loves the one-on-one time with me, and he has a fun spot to play around. Here he is, lounging against the window, watching the big kids swim.
-6-
While Walt was at preschool yesterday, I took Jane and Harry to SAM’s & Walmart for our weekly grocery run. I decided Harry was finally ready to sit next to Jane in the BIG cart. Oh my goodness, he LOVED it! He giggled the whole time and shamelessly flirted with all of the ladies we passed by.
-7-
Now that he’s tall enough to see over the windowsill, this is Harry’s favorite spot. He loves to watch the action outside from this window. Early this morning, he ran to the window as soon as he was done with his breakfast to watch the neighbors’ cars leave for school and work.
Head over to Conversion Diary to read more 7QT posts! Hope you have a great weekend!
![Halloween Photo Recap]()
by Catherine | Nov 1, 2014 | Family
What a great, great first Halloween in Lincoln we had!
Before heading out for trick-or-treating, we took a few pictures in front of the fireplace:
- Sully, Mikey, and Lambie
- That little Mikey was moving so quickly that he was blurry in most of our pictures from the evening!
- Everyone happily got into character for the pictures. Walt loved roaring like a monster, Harry happily imitated Walt, and Jane sweetly curtsied whenever we popped out the camera.
After the pictures in front of the fireplace, we put out a bowl of candy on the front stoop and headed out…
- One of our favorite neighbor girls and babysitters, Carly, had made the kids adorable treat bags! She even made a bundle of dog biscuits for Monty! Love that girl. 🙂
- We were able to snag a quick pic with some of our favorite neighbor boys, too. It’s so much fun to be surrounded by so many great, young families!
- I had to snap a picture of the way the cuties looked on their way up to the door, so I ran ahead to get this shot. I love how Jane escorted little Harry up the steps! Walter (aka “Wal-turtle”) slowly made his way to the door in his own time!
- Waiting for more of our neighbor friends to come to the door. Trick-or-treating is a different experience when you and the kids know everyone coming to the door by name. It was so fun going house to house, hearing the kids say, “Okay, now, let’s go to __________’s house!”
At one point while we were trick-or-treating up the block, Walt started pointing at our house and complaining, “They’re taking our candy!” We thought he was just being greedy, so we reassured him, “No, honey, they’re supposed to take the candy!” Maybe we should have been paying closer attention, because this is what we found on our return home:
- NADA. No candy. No bowl. NO NOTHING! Kids, I wouldn’t have cared if you had taken all of the candy, but THE BOWL?! Granted, it was only a $2 plastic WalMart bowl, but STILL!
We weren’t going to let that dampen our spirits! We headed inside so that the kids could warm up and transition to sleepy time. We put on a movie and told the kids they could each pick out one treat from their bags.
- Walt thoroughly enjoyed his Milky Way
- Another group shot after the candy set in
- We were pushin’ it, but we thought we’d try to get another shot of Sully & Mikey. Mikey wasn’t feelin’ it.
- Kinda better?
- I’ll settle for the cute wrestling on the ground instead!
We had a few stragglers that came by while we were putting the kids to bed. I told them to be on the lookout for a green candy bowl, and they were sincerely outraged on our behalf that someone would steal our candy bowl. Their cute little indignation softened the blow from the neighborhood thugs! After I gave them their candy, one of the Elsas (who else?) peeked over my shoulder and said in her 7-year-old voice, “You have a beautiful house! Happy Halloween!” Elsa got extra candy.
Even though he was on call, Philip didn’t have to go in to the hospital. We turned out the lights, watched one of our favorite new shows (PBS The Paradise), and called it a night.
I hope you had an equally fabulous Halloween!
