Christmas!

The kids slept in (Alex was up at 7:45 and we woke Rachel at 8!), opened presents with Grammy & Pepere. Alex loved his Night Vision Goggles and Lego set from Grandpa & Auntie Lyn. Rachel (check out the cute braids courtesy of Emily!) was really excited to get Pixos and a Cupcake Maker from Grammy & Pepere. Then we headed to Darren & Veronica's to celebrate with the family and enjoyed an awesome meal prepared by Matt. It was a great time. Can't wait for New Year's up the Mountains!

Christmas Eve!

Here's some snapshots of Christmas Eve.

Bunch of Christma Posts

I've been really busy, and I'm sure all of you have been too! Here's what's been going on around Christmas.

One of our Becotte family Christmas traditions is watching White Christmas. Well, this year 3 out of 4 of us fell asleep while watching. Probably didn't help that we watched from bed. After the movie was over Allen took a picture. As you can see Alex is using my butt as a pillow, Rachel is using my legs and Bigs, the cat, is using Rachel as a pillow.

Christmas Overload!

As most of you know I've been running the YMCA Christmas Toy Drive for about 6 years now. I really enjoy it but also dread it. It is a TON of work and seems to become more work every year. This year we have about 350 kids on the list for presents. Thanks to all the very generous donors we are fulfilling the list 100%. I am still sorting, wrapping and delivering today. Hopefully to be done by the time I go home today so tomorrow I can actually do my work. I complain but wouldn't trade it in for anything.

Thank you to everyone who donated, wrapped, delivered, solicited gifts etc. We couldn't do it without you!

Weekly Meal Plan

We did a good job sticking to the meal plan last week. I think we changed Friday but that was about it.

Sunday-Shake & Bake Pork Chops, noodles & broccoli

Monday-Crock Pot Chicken Chop Suey

Tuesday-BLT's

Wednesday-Baked Chicken, potatoes & veggies

Thursday-Grilled Chicken, rice & veggies

Friday-Hamburger Helper (Alex's Christmas Concert!!!!)

See how this week goes!

Zings!

If you read the blog you know I like to give props to area businesses that I love. Well I have two that I totally have to diss. Major zings here. Avoid at all costs.

Methuen Family Diner-Sorry Dad this may hurt you but after a trip there this weekend and the way we as well as other diners (we never actually ate walked out before we were even seated) we will not go back. The waitresses as well as the hostess were just plain mean to everyone who they came in contact with. One in particular snapped at my father in law. There was no need for the way they were acting, especially with how busy that restaurant was because of the power outage. They should have been excited for all the business.

McDonald's-With the power outage we went out Saturday mainly to stay warm. McDonald's on Route 28 was open, packed to the gills. We went in to grab a late breakfast, waited in the line that snaked through the whole restaurant. Got about 10 people from the counter and the menu automatically flipped form breakfast to lunch-it was 10:30. Now you would think because of the circumstances and the amount of families standing there trying to get their kids a hot breakfast they would say it's okay we'll still serve breakfast. Nope lunch only. It was 10:30 in the morning I don't want lunch at 10:30.

So those are my zings! Dine at your own risk, you have been warned!

Props!

I like local businesses. I believe in doing my business, when possible, with local companies, family owned restaurants etc. rather than putting money into the pocket of big companies. Sometimes you can't avoid it. I mean come on why wouldn't you shop at places like Wal-Mart and Target. It has to be hard running a family owned business especially in this economy. So I like to give props to the places I love to help bring more business to them. Then we can all keep enjoying them.

Mann's-You have to swing by and try their country lunch (M-F 10-2). They usually have a selection of about 6 items, all around $6. Freshly made and delicious. I had a stuffed acorn squash there about a month ago that I am still thinking about.

Mi Mexican Lindo-Hands down best Mexican place around. Food is awesome, and the drinks! A pitcher of house Margarita (Sauza brand) $19.00. Can't beat that. We were there last weekend and I ordered a new kind of margarita, just a glass in case you were wondering. I didn't care for it, so they gave me a different one at no charge.

Tripoli's-Best pizza in the world. I think the place has been open since the 50's and they probably haven't changed a thing. Why mess with perfection?

I highly recommend any of the above places. Swing by and give them a try.

Weekly Meal Plan

So I am following Jenn's lead and posting my weekly meal plan. I've been doing a meal plan for week for a couple of months now. It helps with grocery shopping. I have a better grasp of what's on hand at the house and I don't buy stuff I don't need.

Sunday-Pork Chops, Rice & Broccoli

Monday-Steak/Veggie Stir Fry & Rice

Tuesday-Grilled Chicken, Noodles & Veggie (Allen will be thrilled to BBQ outside!)

Wednesday-Zatarans Jambalaya w/kielbasa & Green Beans

Thursday-Pasta w/meat sauce & bread

Friday-Soup & Sandwiches

Saturday-Punt Night. Very Busy weekend so what ever we grab before we head out.

Merry Christmas

We got a real tree this year, yeah! The house smells awesome and we had a blast decorating it.

Shy Kitty

Bigs, aka Mr. Bigglesworth, is proving to be a bit camera shy. We need him to hang out with Johnny Cash and see how it's done.

Fashionistas

This is what happens when you elt your 6 & 4 year olds dress themselves.

Alex is sporting sweatpants with a zip up sweater. Rachel, cargo pants, a dress and cowboy boots. Oh and yes she did her own hair.

Yeah a New TV!

So we've been talking for quite some time about buying a flat screen HD TV. We finally decided to get one after shopping around alot. So here's our new toy, a 47' Vizio HD Flat screen TV. It's freakin' HUGE! Originally we were getting a 42' but the 47' was only a bit more so we splurged. I can not wait to watch Survivor in HD on the big TV this week!

And you can look at the comparison of how small our children are next to the large TV.

Look How Big Billy Idol Is on Our New TV!!!

Best Carrots...Thanks Gail!

I have moved past my green bean obsession, though as I type it I am reminded of the green beans with the red peppers...yum!. I am now hooked on carrots. This recipe in particular, which I got from Gail. Enjoy!

1/2 med. onion diced

2 cans beef consomme

1 small pack baby carrots

generous tbsp nutmeg (this is really to taste, I use about 1 & 1/2 tablespoons)

parsley

Saute the diced onion in a pan. When it's soft add everything else. Bring it to a boil then turn it down and let it simmer until about half the consomme cooks off and the liquid is thicker. That's it peeps, easy and yummy!

Pajama Kids

Sorry it's just cute so I had to share!

Meet Mr. Bigglesworth!

We adopted another cat. Yes I realize we already have two, when you have two what's three really. A little more food. Plus I've always wanted an orange tiger cat. They're my favorites, and always males, which means they are friendlier and move lovable. Girl cats are well girls, temperamental and moody. He came with the name Clovis, but we were all in agreement that we didn't like it. After much discussion and throwing out names like Norman and Murray we decided on Mr. Bigglesworth. We call him Bigs for short. He's hanging in Alex's room for a few days to make sure he's healthy and let him get acclimated. The ladies are not pleased, though they have stopped hissing at the door and only do it when they actually see him. Better pictures coming later!

My New Toy

Dad and Lyn surprised us with a Keurig Coffee Maker! Yeah I love this thing. In case you are not familiar with them you can make one cup at a time. You just load the little K-cup in the top and there you go. It makes tea, coffee, cocoa. It's great for people like Allen and myself who like completely different coffees. This week I brought a cup every day to work rather than stop at Dunkin's! Check it out.

The Report Card

Alex got his report card for the 1st semester on Thursday. All A's for his subjects and mostly N's (well 50/50 N's and S's-Needs improvement and Satisfactory) for behavior. I had my first parent teacher conference. He's a motor mouth. He talks out of turn, answers questions for everyone, whistles, sings, makes sound effects and is now sitting directly in front of the teacher. Well, at least he stopped pulling pencils out of his shirt!

Alex's Spelling Test

Every week Alex has at least 2 tests on Friday, spelling and religion. Then there are added ones that switch up week to week, social studies, science, grammar, math etc. Now remember this is first grade. This was his spelling test this week

Child
Chill
Neck
Character
Christmas
School
Cheese

There were 3 more but I don't remember them. Allen had a spelling bee for his 7th graders and they couldn't spell character and almost died when they heard it was one of a 1st graders words. Public School is Scary!

Homemade Chicken Pie...yum!

I found this recipe on http://www.allrecipes.com/, which I highly recommend by the way-tons of recipes. Decided to give it a try and wow is it good. I followed some of the review recommendations to modify it slightly and it was awesome. Two big thumbs up from Allen.

1 lb. boneless chicken breast.

1 small bag mixed veggies (corn, peas, carrots, green beans)

1.2 cup cubed potatoes

1/3 cup butter

1/2 cup chopped onion

2/3 cup flour

salt & pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon celery seed

1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning

2 & 1/4 cups chicken broth

4/6 cup (or 2 2/3 cups since that's exactly what I did) milk

2 unbaked pie crusts (I used the prepackage Pillsbury and they were great)

In sauce pan combine the diced chicken, veggies except onion. Add water and simmer for 15 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool. In saucepan melt butter and cook onion until clear. Add flour and seasoning cook for about 5 minutes to make sure the raw taste is gone. Add the liquids, mix well and cook on med-low until thick.

Put first pie sheet in deep pie pan (I didn't realize there are deep and regular, but I had both), add chicken & veggie mixture. Pour hot liquid mixture over, cover with top crust and seal edges. Cut away extra dough and put a couple of slits for steam to escape.

Bake for 45 minutes at 375. After it's done let sit for about 10 minutes and serve!

Props!

So often we complain about a store that did us wrong, or a restaurant that was terrible or whatever. Allen and I went two places today that were just awesome so I thought I would share.

The first is McKinnon's. I know most of you already go there but I can't say enough about this place. I bought 4 & 1/2 pounds of chicken tenders and 2 lbs. of ground beef for $11. I split into freezer bags and now have dinner for 7 meals. That's not even $2 worth of meat per meal. Incredible!

The other place is Maddie's which is in the same plaza as McKinnon's but over by the gas station in the little plaza in front. Awesome breakfasts and reasonable. I had carb overload today with french toast made form cinnamon rolls. I now have to do an extra mile on the treadmill tomorrow but honestly it was worth every bite. We've been there I think 4 times over the last few months and I've gotten something different every time. Every time it was delicious. Service is spot on, coffee mugs are handed out when you walk in so if you wait so can get coffee during that time and prices are decent. Give it a try!

Temper Tantrum

This is what happens when 4 year old girls throw a temper tantrum at bed time. They get so tired from fussing they fall asleep in the hall way on top of their stuffed Hippo!

Work Out Day Two....I did it!

Yup two days in a row! I trotted a mile on the treadmill then worked out using some of the nautilus machines. Not real familiar with those so stuck to what I know. I need to set an appointment with one of our trainers. They walk you through all the equipment and you tell them what you want to accomplish. They then tell you what would be best for you. My biggest challenge in the fitness center is my size. Most of the machines are not made for people under 5' so I'm a little limited. It won't deter me though. I am determined to get healthy!

Boot Camp...Day One!

So I signed up for a boot camp for YMCA staff. It's run by this woman Sharon, who trains tri-athletes. That right there should tell you I do not belong in this class. But I went and it kicked my very round butt. She made me do horrible things like run, crunches, lunges, mountain climbers, more running, more crunches, push ups, an obstacle course that was not made for someone 4'9".

I was winded, panting actually, bright red in the face but I didn't give up. I went slower than, well everyone in the class when it came to the running. I ran for a while then jogged, then brisk walking. But I did it. Now I hurt. My thighs are on fire and I'm crabby because I ache all over. I am sure tomorrow I will walk like I am 100. But my gym bag is already packed and tomorrow morning I am determined to do a mile on the treadmill. Maybe even a little weights for the arms.

Turning over a new healthy leaf. Next Wednesday at Boot Camp I am determined to do better!

Score at the Disney Store

Rachel loves to play dress up. Sometimes she just dresses up and stays that way for most of the day. And by dress up I mean Disney Princesses. The last 2 Christmases, Santa went to the Disney store right after Halloween and stocked up. This year he went again. Just about everything was 25-50% off. So if you have a little one who loves to dress up I wouldn't wait too long because the supply is dwindling, especially after I walked out of the store.

Talk about a bargain, I got the complete Belle set up, dress, shoes & tiara, complete Sleeping Beauty set up, an extra pair of random shoes (shoes are her favorite, she gets it from her Grammy!), an extra tiara, jewelry and A Minnie dress & shoes for $100.00. Now I know that seems like alot to some of you but considering the dresses average $40.00-$50.00 normally that's not bad. Besides the amount of play she gets out of it (and I didn't have to buy a Halloween costume this year, thank you!) makes it all worth it.

Soccer Celebration

So today was the kids last day of soccer. They (Alex sat on the sidelines and he was none too happy about it) played a game followed by a short medal ceremony where Coach Allen spoke about each kid. He's a great coach. Don't let him fool you, he likes to be all humble but the kids and the parents absolutely love him. Here's a picture of the kids team!

Trick Or Treat

Scary Start to Halloween

Alex woke us up Friday mornings around 4 am, clutching his chest and mouthing he couldn't breathe. What we thought was a very bad asthma attack turned out to be a very bad case of Croup. Neither of the kids had ever had it, and Alex's breathing/asthma issues only made it worse. We hurried him off to Holy Family Hospital, where I have to say, the staff was awesome. A few nebulizer treatments and a shot of some miracle medicine and he was ready to head home. The doctor recommended short walks outside in the cool air to help his recovery. Would trick or treating qualify as that? Absolutely! So a few hours on the couch with the cool mist humidifier running and he was ready to be a crypt keeper skeleton or something like that!

Great Blog!

Every one's looking to save a buck these days. Found this great Blog that helps with dinner planning and just had to share it with you. Besides that it's got some great recipes on it. I already found a couple I'll use next week. Enjoy!

http://www.5dollardinners.com/

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.....

So it's a little early I know but Christmas season is starting to kick in, at least for me. I had been thinking of it already (actually bought my first gift in July) but it's officially kicked off now that the Toys R Us book came. Remember when we were kids and the Sears Toy Book would come? I could spend a whole day sitting on the house circling things I wanted.

Alex and Rachel dug into the book this weekend and per Santa's rules, came up with the 3 items for their Christmas lists. After last year's Bumblebee Transformer search I am determined to start early. What, prey tell, are they asking for this year?

Alex amped it up a bit this year. I'm a little unsure of one of the items but it's #1 on the list so Santa may have to pony up the extra cash and get it. EyeClops Night Vision Goggles (not sure what he's planning on looking at but he is obsessed with these things), Scooby Doo and the Goblin King DVD, and Matchbox Pop Up Haunted House.

Rachel is asking Santa for Pixo's, A Barbie B-Smart Learning Laptop (After reading the online reviews I'm going to try hard to persuade her to change this to something else) and Bendaroos. What are bendaroos you ask? They are wax building sticks that are not sold in stores only online. Thanks to the power of television my daughter is obsessed with these things. Thankfully they are pretty cheap so whatever. Hopefully these items have a better play life than the stuff they got last year, because as of right now the only thing Alex still enjoys is his Crest Spinbrush!

Happy Birthday Allen!!!!!

Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday Allen, Happy birthday to you!!!!!

Pumpkins!

Every year we get a couple of pumpkins, which the kids decorate and we put outside. They sit there forever until Allen hits one with the snow blower and curses me for not throwing them away sooner. This year we decided to carve the pumpkins and toast the seeds for a snack. Here are some shots of the kids carving the pumpkins (No I did not let them have knives, they drew Allen carved!).

Brrrr......It's Getting Cold Out There

Soccer, yesterday morning, was pretty chilly. Thankfully there are only 2 more weeks and we are done. One month off and YBL starts. Yeah!

Mr. Muscles

Another One Bites the Dust

Mr. Alex is now gumming his food!

Crockpot Oatmeal

I work super early in the morning on Mondays (I am there by 6 am) so that I can leave at 1:45 pm and pick up Alex from school. Being that I get up before the birds I don't usually want to get up even earlier to make breakfast. I try and grab something to eat at my desk like a banana and yogurt. But lately I've been wanting more. A lot of other days during the week I have oatmeal. It's good for you and keeps you (well at least me) full until lunch. I found this recipe on the crock pot 365 blog and made it Sunday night to take for work for a couple of days. Now of course once it was done cooking I just had to try a small bowl while watching the Amazing Race. All I can say is WOW! I can't believe oatmeal cooked in a crock pot was this good. Actually I can't believe oatmeal could taste this good period. Do note that it was good the next day but not as good. So try this at home!

1 cup of oats
2 cups of milk (next time I will do 1/2 milk and 1/2 water)
2 tbls brown sugar
1 tbls vanilla extract (mine was super vanillay (is that a word) but I buy the pure vanilla and that's probably why so I might cut it down a little next time)
1 chopped up apple
pinch of salt

Put it all in the crock pot and stir. Cook on high for about 1 hour and 15 minutes stirring every once in a while. It was really good. Next time I am throwing in some raising and a pinch of cinnamon. Enjoy!

Another One Down...How Many to Go?

So Alex lost another tooth today, this time in computer class. At this rate all 4 front will be gone by Halloween. You should hear him say his S's! Don't mind the shiner forming under his right eye, he walked into a display at K-Mart after school.

Canobie in the Rain

Bob and Gail has given us passes to Canobie Lake Park for Christmas the past two years. Last summer we saved them until some time in September and had a great time. The park is half empty and the weather was decent. This year September flew by and before we knew it we only had 2 weekends left to use them before the park switched over to Spooky World. We decided this would be the weekend to use them, then along came all the rain. We ended up going today, in the rain, and had a blast. It sprinkled or misted most of the time but the crowds were minimal. We did more rides in 2 & 1/2 hours than we normally do all day. The kids had a blast! Here are a few shots.

By the way we'd love to get a group of people together to go to Spooky World one night, anyone interested?

It's Never Ending

Seriously people, I will be raking up acorns until the New Year. They've been falling constantly and with the wind and rain it's been insane. Allen and I were in the kitchen Friday night, and they were hitting the roof about 20 at a time. This picture is basically a two square foot area. That's it. So there are probably another 4 bags to be raked. Anyone want to help?

Look How Cute He Is!

Just had to share!

I hate these little suckers!

Anyone who's ever been in our yard in the fall knows we have acorns. Some years are worse than others, this year is horrible. The tree in the center of our yard is loaded with them. I know, I know everyone says cut it down but it is great during the summer for shade. So we live with the acorns.

I started raking acorns on Saturday because they were out of control. Raked again on Sunday and got the bulk of the main part of the yard 100% acorn free. That took 5 BAGS! Yes I have 5 bags of acorns at the end of my drive way. No I am not exaggerating. Now I get out of work yesterday and come home and they are everywhere again. I rake another 1/2 bag. Go out again this morning, they are everywhere. I rake another 1/4 bag. The kicker is the top half of the tree is still loaded with them. This is insane! To boot the whole time we are out there we are dodging them because they drop out of the tree constantly. And not 1 at a time more like 6. I take my life into my hands every time I got out in the yard. Now whats worse than acorns? Squirrels! Honestly I think we have about 20 that live in our yard.

I could just kill 2 birds with one stone and cut the tree down, then the squirrels will start to leave because they don't have anything to eat. We will have to ponder that thought.

Soccer Season Begins

The Y's soccer season started last week and of course Alex and Rachel are playing. If you're interested in seeing them they play at 9 am on Saturday mornings at the Methuen Y. They've got a great little team and really enjoy soccer. This is them with one of their teammates Madelyn, who happens to be the daughter of a girl Allen grew up with.

Lessons in Rachelese

So Rachel has this tendency to switch letters around in words. It's really strange because she only does it occasionally and really sticks with it. She can say spaghetti with no problem but calls oatmeal oatameal. Even when we correct her she still says it that way. Now most of the mistakes are really cute but the other day she had us laughing on the floor. Here's a breakdown for the next time you talk to her.

Word Rachelese
Cucumber Cumumber
Marble Narble
Oatmeal Oatameal
Tinkerbelle Twinkerbelle
Massager mafagger

And the grandaddy of them all

Butterscotch Buttercrotch

Now you can all laugh!

Pulled Pork Recipe...Yum!

I was just thinking the other day I should post about my crock pot and how much I use it, and wa la Jenn does exactly that. Great minds think alike. So here's a great Pulled Pork Recipe I wanted to share.

Ingredients

Pork Loin (I usually buy one that's a couple of pounds so I have left overs)
1 contained of Kraft Hickory BBQ Sauce
1 onion sliced thin
2 tbls. vinegar (you can use flavored...last night I used balsamic and it was yummy)
salt & pepper

So just dump all the ingredients on top of the pork loin in your crock pot, set to low and cook for 8 hours. Sometimes mine cooks for more than that since who really works only 8 hours. Turn the crock pot off and take out the pork loin. At this point I use 2 forks and pull off the fatty layer. I let it cook with it on so it adds flavor but I certainly don't need to be eating it. Then shred the pork and dump back into the crock pot. Stir it around and let it sit for about 20 minutes or so while you make your side dishes. Then serve it on rolls. Yummy and super easy!

Alex Loses His First Tooth

Alex has had 4 loose teeth for about a month now. He refuses to wiggle them so they it has not progressed at all. Well this week he bumped into another kid at recess and one of the bottom ones popped. That little sucker was just begging to be pulled out. Of course Alex would have none of that. He still would hardly even wiggle it. It got to the point where it was leaning over in his mouth. This morning while eating cereal it popped out. He is now anxiously awaiting the tooth fairy. He may be a little bummed when all he gets is a gold dollar. But knowing Alex he'll probably be ecstatic.

Rachel in The AM

So Rachel is no peach in the morning. I should say she's no bowl of sunshine prior to 8 am, after that she's a doll and a love. The problem with that is weekdays the kids are woken at 6:30, so everyday Rachel is a grump. She usually sits at the kitchen table, wrapped in a blanket, and growls and whines at everything that is said. The kitchen is too bright for her, it's too cold, too early to eat, etc. etc. etc. Here's a shot of her this week.