First Batch of Beer

Today Brian made his first batch of beer.  It is actually quite a process.  A lot of boiling and a lot of waiting.  Once he was done boiling everything he then has to put in a container for 3-4 weeks and then after that it goes into bottles and waiting another 2-4 weeks.  Hope it turns out good.

Christmas

Christmas this year was a bit different.  The weather was suppose to be bad Christmas day, so instead of leaving Christmas morning, we drove up Christmas Eve.


We had our Christmas a few days before we left.  I actually have pictures this time of me, Brian and Maggie opening our presents and us opening presents in Ohio.

Brian got me a Staub Oval Cocotte and Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking.  I liked the movie Julie and Julia so much so that is why he got me those.  You can do so much with a dutch oven.

I got him his own beer making kit.  He had a suspicion, but he was surprised none the less.  He says he can't wait to make is first batch of beer.

Since we left on Christmas Eve, we were able to spend Christmas Eve dinner with my family for the first time in about 3 years.  It was nice to wake up on Christmas morning and already be at our destination instead of driving 9 hours.  Christmas morning was spent at my sisters house to watch Lukie open his presents from Santa and breakfast, then it was back to my parents house in the afternoon to open our presents from them and dinner.

Christmas Cookies

Every year I try to make Christmas cookies.  To be specific Chocolate Chip cookies and every year they turn out horribly.  They either end up burnt or way under done.  One year I even misread the instructions and doubled the butter.


This year I was determined to make the cookies and not have them fail.  If they did, I vowed I was never going to make a Chocolate Chip cookie again.  I set out to make sure that I had freshest ingredients and I promised myself to be patient.  I decided to let the butter and eggs get to room temperature, instead of straight from the fridge and I used a small ice cream scoop.  I double checked in directions and did everything that I was suppose to do.

After I don't know after how many years, I was able to make the perfect Chocolate Chip cookie.

And they turned out great!  I had finally conquered the Chocolate Chip cookie.  I don't know if it was the butter and eggs at room temperature or the ice cream scoop, but all I know is now at Christmas time I will be able to make one of my favorite cookies!

Christmas Party

Last night was my Christmas Party.  It was a last minute decision to go and it was a good thing that we did.  I ended up winning one of the top door prizes that evening.  I won an iPod Touch.  I must say that it is pretty awesome.  I couldn't believe that I had won.  Everybody was asking me if I wanted to sell it.  Of course the answer was No.


I was able to get a couple of game apps and put a movie on it last night before our trip to Lexington today.  It was nice to have a distraction for the ride there and back.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Halloween decorations have been replaced with Thanksgiving decorations.  I must admit, this is one of my favorite times of year.  I am able to put out things that I've collected and items that have been made for me.

I decided to make a pumpkin pie for dessert this year, but I didn't want to use canned pumpkin.  I made the pumpkin pie from a pie pumpkin.  One pie pumpkin will give you enough pumpkin puree to make one pumpkin pie.  It sounds harder than it really is and I have to admit, it was easy and simple, that from now on, that is how I will make pumpkin pie.  The pie was made from homemade pumpkin puree and a gingersnap crust.  Delicious!

Halloween

We decided that this year our hearts weren't really into dressing up for Halloween, but I did still want to decorate the house and pass out candy.  Well, I think this year may be the last time we do candy.  We hardly had any kids show up.  I think that we maybe had 20 kids come by the house.  We'll see how I feel next year about passing out candy.

Oktoberfest

This year instead of going to Beer Fest we decided to go to Oktober Fest.  They always fall on the same weekend and since both Brian and I like to try different beers, Beer Fest always wins out.  This year since Beer Fest tickets were kind of expensive, $80 for two tickets, we opted for a less expensive option.  Oktoberfest Fest was fun.  We got see people in lederhosen, eat bratwurst and drink some German beer.  All in all we had a good time.  Next year we'll most likely end up back at Beer Fest.