'Twas a Very Merry Christmas

I can hardly believe that Christmas has come & gone and we are nearing the end of another year.  I know you must hear this a lot but time really does seem to fly by.  I try to use my super brain power to slow it down, but for some reason (call it reality) it just doesn't work.  Oh well, at least we are having the time of our lives and enjoying each precious memory we get to make.  Speaking of special memories…our Christmas was chalk full of them!  It brings me so much joy to watch my kids faces light up as they open gifts and give each other gifts.  Christmas is such a magical time of year for kids and we are so blessed to be able to go a little nuts with the festivities.

 I absolutely love having 2 whole weeks of winter break to spend with my kiddos.  No schedules to keep, places we have to be or things that must be done.  Spontaneity rules during this time.  Sleeping in happens on a regular basis and staying in your pi's all day is the new gettin ready for the day.  My most favorite part is having the time to sit and build Lego's with my boys or play dolls with my girl.  Those are times I truly cherish.  What are you doing this winter break?  We definitely have plans to hit up the library and have many more movies to watch before the countdown to school begins.  Here's to hoping you are all enjoying this time of year and having a wonderful winter break!

~Trisha

Snow Glad It's Almost Christmas!

Cheesy blog title, I know.  I simply cannot think about the perfect Christmas setting without thinking SNOW!!!  Unfortunately, I live in the Pacific Northwest where we don't typically see much of the glorious white stuff.  We do live quite close to several mountains where we can get our fix, but it's just not the same as waking up to it.  So, with a desire to see a magical white Christmas I have brought you the following images (just in case you won't be waking up to a White Christmas either).

Google Images

Google Images

Google Images

Google Images

Google Images

                                     

May these pictures bring you lots of cheer and warm, fuzzy feelings.  From my family to yours, 

Merry Christmas!

~Trisha

Better Late than Never?

So as you may know, it's nearly Christmas (yay!) and yet I am just now getting around to my Thanksgiving post!  Completely unacceptable, I know.  To say the holidays have carried me away is an understatement.  I though I was completely prepared for the holiday season yet I've been swept up in all it's activities!  Oh well, at least I'm enjoying every minute of it.  A while back I wrote a post about a pre-Thanksgiving meal trial run and how it turned out.  My family eats gluten-free & mostly grain-free so sometimes the holidays can be challenging.  I wanted to "de-stress" our Thanksgiving by trying out a couple new recipes before hand.  One thing I didn't account for was the wonderful selection of holiday food items I would find at Whole Foods.  I've been making meals from scratch for so long that I forget that some stores might have some shortcuts available for me!  Because I bring most of the food & desserts for Thanksgiving, I wanted to infuse some semi-homemade dishes into my menu.  So off to Whole Foods Market I went!  Let me tell you that I want to live in that store!  The moment I walk in I am mesmerized…so many gluten-free food items to choose from!  All the produce & foods items look delectable…simply irresistible!  Anyways…my most important goal was finding a gluten-free stuffing mix that looked yummy & was easy to add my touch to without having to do all the work.

This is what I'm talking about!  Here is a shot of the box with a picture of the finished product.  It was incredible!  I loved every bite and so did everyone else.  The texture was right on and the flavor was delicious.  I cannot wait to make this again for Christmas.  The rest of the main meal consisted of roast turkey (prepared by my dad) and paleo mashed potatoes (you can find the info on those here).  Here is how everything turned out…

Now, doesn't this look yummy!  The best part…you won't feel like you need to be rolled away from the table and put to bed.  There wasn't an inch of gluten anywhere to be seen!  That makes for happy tummies!

 I hope all your Thanksgivings were filled with lots of delicious dishes and wonderful family & friends to share it with.

~Trisha