Wednesday, December 30, 2009

The Great McLaren-McCarty Deep Fry Party of 2009

I have so much to say, but I've just been too busy relaxing my socks off this week to even spend much time at the computer. I will take a few moments tonight (this morning?) to record and immortalize some of the finer moments of our newest family tradition, The Great McLaren-McCarty Deep Fry Party.

So Chad calls this evening and says "Hey, we're deep frying stuff for dinner! Come on over!" When we arrived, mom and dad and Chad had already started the preparations. We had a vast array of fries, mushrooms, zucchini, corn tortillas, onion rings, and the tastiest red snapper I've ever had, caught by Chad himself. It tasted like he'd just pulled it out of the Gulf!

The chef, preparing the fryer
Dropping shoestring onion rings into the creamy beer batter
Tasty red snapper
Best french fries I've EVER had
The best thing to have with fried food is ice-cold draft beer, straight from the tap of Chad's new kegerator, Karl.

Yes, I'm wearing a Tigger sweatshirt, and yes, I have no make-up on. That's how I roll.
Finally, because no deep fried meal is complete without dessert, we ended with Deep Fried Twinkies. I'm salivating all over again, just thinking about them. I was skeptical at first, but a deep fried Twinkie, with some raspberry sauce and a dusting of powdered sugar was one of the best desserts I've ever had!
Lest you think we've completely fattened ourselves, we've been working the Wii Fit for the last 4 hours. I think that all evens out.

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Teacher Gift Ideas

Elliot just adores her kindergarten teacher, and she wanted to give her a little Christmas present. So I've been trying to think of something cute, practical, and not terribly expensive. I had already decided to make bookmarks for all of my book club ladies to give at our December meeting (I have one for you, too Jess...next time I see you!). So I expanded on that idea and made a couple of ribbon bookmarks for Elliot's teacher as well.
I made these by sewing ribbons in Elliot's school colors, and then attached some charms that represent her school mascot (Pirate Pride!)
These were fun and easy to make! Let me know if you want detailed instructions, or some help putting one together!

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

McRib Is Back. Why?

My morning “nutrition” stop is usually at the QT, the cleanest and friendliest convenience store in town. But I was cold this morning and didn’t want to get out of the car, so I went through the McDonald’s drive-through for my AM Delta Charlie. While I was waiting for my soda, I noticed a poster advertising a sandwich called the “McRib.”
I have never eaten this particular sandwich, but it seems to be some class of pork meat that has been formed to look like a rack of ribs on a bun. Apparently, McDonald’s is trying to make you think your sandwich has bones in it, and that these would be desirable things to eat. Just toss back that juicy McRib sandwich, bones and all. With a pickle.

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Christmas Countdown Chain

The kids enjoy ripping links off of paper chains to count down the days to anticipated events, such as birthdays, vacations, or dentist appointments. (Elliot has an almost unnatural passion and excitement for going to the dentist. At her last check-up, Dr. Rick said if she could have un-hinged her mouth to open wider, she would have.)
So this evening we made a paper chain to count down the days to Christmas. I found a cute idea online somewhere (and I can't remember where, so unfortunatly I can't cite my source). Each link of the chain describes something about Christmas, and then lists an associated Bible passage to read. I really love bringing more opportunities to teach the kids about the meaning of Christmas. I haven't looked up each of these verses, but tonight's went really well. We were able to have a nice chat about why God sent Jesus to the world.
Christmas is...
1. A TIME OF SHARING - Read John 3:1-21
2. A TIME OF MEMORIES - Read Luke 1:68-79
3. A TIME FOR GREETINGS - Read Luke 1:39-55
4. A TIME FOR CHARITY - Read Matthew 25:31-40
5. A TIME FOR VISITING - Read Romans 15:1-7
6. A TIME OF HOPE - Read John 14:1-6
7. A TIME OF FAITH - Read Isaiah 55:6-11
8. A TIME OF PROMISE - Read Galatians 3:23-4:7
9. A TIME FOR CANDLES - Read John 11-14
10. A TIME FOR MUSIC - Read Psalm 150
11. A TIME FOR BEING IN TOUCH - Read John 15:1-11
12. A TIME OF RUSHING - Read Luke 10:38-42
13. A TIME FOR SINGING - Read Colossians 3:12-17
14. A TIME FOR FAMILY - Read Luke 1:5-80
15. A TIME FOR DECORATIONS - Read Psalm 118:19-29
16. A TIME FOR BAKING - Read John 6:32-40
17. A TIME FOR LOVE - Read 1 Thessalonians 3:11-13
18. A TIME OF SOLITUDE - Read 2 Corinthians 1:3-7
19. A TIME FOR REMEMBERING - Read Isaiah 25:6-9
20. A TIME OF PEACE - Read Matthew 11:25-30
21. A HOLIDAY - Read Hebrews 4:9-16
22. A TIME TO GIVE THANKS - Read 2 Corinthians 9:6-15
23. A TIME OF BLESSING - Read Ephesians 3:14-21
24. A TIME FOR GIFTS - Read Ephesians 2:4-10
25. GOD WITH US - Read Luke 2:1-20