Ice Box Cake, A Family Tradition

One of my favorite holiday treats is this yummy combination of chocolate wafers and homemade whipped cream. My husband’s mother ate this dessert as a child, and she has passed it on to two more generations. Last night I whipped up a double batch for our special dinner tonight. Jacob helped! I’ll include the recipe, just remember to brew some coffee ‘cuz this treat is perfect with a strong cup of joe.

ICE BOX CAKE

2 cups heavy whipping cream

2 Tsp. vanilla

4 Tblsp. sugar

1 box choc. wafer cookies (look them over carefully before you buy them to make sure they are not broken)

Whip cream, sugar, and vanilla on high until you have a whipped cream. Generously spread whipped cream on wafers. It helps to stack them in short groups vertically, until you have them all done. Turn stacks on their sides to form a row of wafers. Use the rest of the whipped cream to cover the wafers. Cover and place in refrigerator overnight to allow the wafers to soften. Cut diagonally.

Consider this your warning

if you are expecting a homemade gift from me this year . . . I am WAY behind schedule.  With all the excitement that comes from my kiddos, my father-in-law breaking his leg, and my back giving me all sorts of grief (it is much, much better by the way), my times set aside for creating have been gobbled up by other distractions and responsiblities.

SO, yesterday I decided no more stressing over getting these gifts finished.   No more neglecting my children,  ignoring the laundry, or suffering from lack of sleep.  I could get the  gifts completed and be miserable, or I can slow down, enjoy the season, make merry with friends and family, and give out nearly completed gifts with the promise to finish them over the New Year.

What about you? What are you doing to insure that you are enjoying the season?

PS. I hope to get my Christmas card postmark before Christmas, even though you may not receive them until after Christmas.

Et tu, Brute?

“Et tu, Brute?” (“You too, Brutus?”, “Even you, Brutus?” or “And you, Brutus?”) is a Latin phrase often used poetically to represent the last words of Julius Caesar. The quotation is widely used in Western culture as an epitome of betrayal.

Jesse: Mommy, Mommy, Jonah tear my paper! Jonah tear my paper!

Mommy: (sternly) Jonah, did you tear Jesse’s paper?

Jonah: Jacob AND me tore Jesse’s paper.

Jesse’s face wrinkles up in surprise and confusion, then asks in the softest, sweetest voice: You Japub? Why you tear my paper Japub? Why Japub, why?

********

Also involving Jesse this week:

When I went to pick him up from his classroom on Sunday, he just smiled at me from across the room and said, “Mommy, I wait for Daddy to come. “

“Uh, no. Your coming with me.”

“No, Mommy, I wait right here for now.”

Putting my books down, trying to keep the smile off my face, “Jesse, come now or you will be disciplined at home.”

“Alright Mommy, I’m tuming (coming).”

Memory Verse Challenge Week 5

Sorry friends, the time just got away from this last week!  With the excitement over the weather, lots of Christmas shopping, plus locking myself up in the craft room working frantically on all those homemade gifts, I just didn’t get this posted.

This week’s verse is to remind me not to let the hustle and bustle of gift-giving overwhelm me.  I love to give gifts, especially those gifts that I really have put my heart into, but it can shift my focus from what is important and where my true treasure is!

Matthew 6:19-21

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there you heart will be also.

P.S.  This will be our last verse for the year.  With all the traveling and holiday festivities, I’ll take a break until 2008.  Also, our family is heading to Houston for the week following Christmas.

it’s gonna snow

where’s the boots?

where’s the gloves?

does everyone have snow pants?

get the sled down from the barn loft.

get the cocoa mugs ready.

bring the firewood to the porch.

put move White Christmas out to watch.

enjoy all.

our gingerbread house

Jesse, 2 3/4.

Jacob, 7.

Jonah, 4.

Look carefully at Jesse’s forehead and you’ll see he’s had a rough week. The gash over his eye was a result of tumbling out of bed and running into his dresser. It is not as bad as it looks! In the middle of his forehead you might notice a yellow bruise. Over the weekend he ran into a support beam in the basement. Ouch.

The Ice Storm Cometh

We here in the midwest are battling a horrid ice storm.  The trees are covered with ice and several areas are starting to report power outages.   We’ve still got power, however, my parents and sister are without it.  Leslie (my sis) lives in St. Joe  and reported that she the power box was pulled off the side of her house.  OUCH!  I know this means they will probably be days without power, plus they will have to pay for the repair.   Her husband Jeff works for KCPL. He’s a security guard, but still has to work extra hours through this storm, AND take finals at Midwest Baptist Seminary.   My parents are a bit better off since they have a generator.  They are able to run the furnace and frig, but are without water as they are on a well and don’t have enough energy to run the pump at the same time.

Makes me feel a bit guilty all warm and cozy here.

How is the storm where you are?

Memory Verse Challenge Week 4

Here’s the verses I’m working on this week:

1 Peter 1:13-16  Therefore prepare you minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.  As obedient children do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, but be like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in your behavior; because it is written, “You shall be holy for I am holy.” 

Are you working on some verses? Or are you overwhelmed with holiday duties and joys? i often have a hard time reciting verses on the weekends.  During the week, I spend nap time reviewing verses, but on Saturdays, my schedule is never predictable and I tend to push my memory time aside.

I hate to be cold.

I hate to be cold. Four months out of the year I live with ice-cold hands, toes, and nose. Just ask my husband about my icicle fingers . . . I love to stick them under his shirt for a quick warm up!

I hate to be cold. During the cold months we set our thermostat to dip to 60 degrees over night. So the other night I had on a undershirt, flannel jammies, and fuzzy socks when I slid into my flannel sheets to go to bed. I was nice an toasty all night.

I hate to be cold. When the boys want to go outside in the winter, I frown. I don’t like how the wind whips through my pants. I don’t like how the air feels going into my nose. Since JD used to push snow, he as a Carhartt pair of bib overalls and coat. I borrowed those last year to take the boys out. They were way to big. Yesterday I bought my own pair from the local farm store. I’m stylish let me tell you. The Ladies selection was available in black, brown, tan, red. I bought red. I bought a matching red coat. Later in the day after I spent 40 minutes bundling the boys and me up, I realized that I looked a bit like Santa! We played outside for 2 hours and I NEVER was cold. I love my new snow gear. I’m sure that some ski bunny from Tahoe would never be seen in it . . . but in the unlikely event of a south plains blizzard,  I would be visible! Plus, if we ever get some farm animals (ie. horses, bucket calves, alpacas) I’ll already be prepared for winter chores.

8 Minutes in My Morning (ok, more like 40)

I thought I’d let you in on my morning exercise routine. I gotta tell first though, that I am thrilled to be exercising again! The boys have finally reached an age where they play well in the basement, without me having to get down in a huff from the treadmill to enforce whatever I needed to stop them from doing. Most of my work out time was spent like this, “Jesse, stop throwing things under the furnace!” “Jesse, don’t pull the cat’s tail.” “Jesse, sit in the chair”. Thankfully, things are bit smoother right now! Anyway, around 8 am, the boys and I head downstairs where I get start on the treadmill. I’ve been jogging for 18 minutes with 4-5 minutes of warm-up/cool down at least 4 times a week. (How’s that Jenn?) Then I head towards the weights. I use Jorge Cruise’s book, 8 Minutes in the Morning. Six days a week I complete 4 sets of twelve repetitions using two different muscle groups. Monday is chest/abs, Tuesday is shoulders/back, Wednesday is biceps/triceps, Thursday is calfves/thighs, Friday is butt/abs, and Saturday is inner/outer thighs. What I love best about this program is doing a little bit each day. I push myself harder knowing that I only have to endure about 10 minutes. Plus, you can start this with very little equipment, just some dumbbells and ankle weights. However, I’ve moved up to using our free weights because I need to add more weight! Anyway, I finish with some stretching and I’m done in about 40 minutes. Not to bad, eh?

Cruise also has an eating system in the back of the book. It is so easy to use. I’ve done all sorts of methods while trying to lose weight. For a while I loved the 40-30-30 book, but that salads took too much time to prepare. Cruise’s method is easy, flexible, and healthy. Here’s what I had to breakfast: 3/4 cup granola with nuts, 1 cup raspberries/blackberries, 1 cup milk, and 1 egg.  Lunch was: 1 cup lentil soup, 1 large plate seasoned steamed veggies, 1 yummy woodstock roll dipped in 1 tsp garlic olive oil, 1/2 cup choc. chip latte frozen yogurt.    The veggies come in single servings for about $1.30 a box.  They can be a bit expensive, but for ease and flavor I buy them! The woodstock roll comes from Great Harvest Bread Co., a local bakery.

I’ve lost those 10 lbs I’ve told you about in an older post! Now, I’m going for the next 10.  We’ll just see how it goes after that.  That’ll get me down to my college weight, my pre-kid weight.