Wednesday

This Morning's Baking a Pound Cake Playlist

1. Grandpa, Tell Me Bout The Good Ole Days- The Judds
2. I'll Fly Away- Gillian Welch and Alison Krauss
3. Back in Baby's Arms- Patsy Cline
4. Lady Down in Love- Alabama
5. My Father's Father- The Civil Wars
6. He Stopped Loving Her Today- George Jones
7. Desperate Ain't Lonely- Whiskeytown
8. Roses in the Snow- Emmylou Harris
9. Little Maggie- Ricky Skaggs
10. Come Pick Me Up- Ryan Adams
11. Jolene- Dolly Parton
12. I Told You So- Randy Travis
13. Silver Wings- Merle Haggard
14. Why Have You Left The One You Left Me For- Crystal Gayle
15. Moonshiner- Uncle Tupelo
16. Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain- Willie Nelson
17. Molly and Tenbrooks- Sam Bush
18. Foggy Mountain Breakdown- Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs
19. It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels- Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton, and Tammy Wynette

Tuesday

30 Days of Thankfulness For November

1. My husband that loves me and indulges my passions and encourages me to get out and do things
2. My sweet and precious children who love me unconditionally and are always available for a good snuggle or eskimo kiss
3. Jesus and his saving grace and the giver of new mercies every morning
4. My brother is the best brother in the history of brothers. Just perfect. And my sisters are equally wonderful..."I could never love anyone as I love my sisters..."
5. A sweet dog who cuddles with me every night while I watch TV and cries for me when I'm not around
6. A beautiful home that is open and airy and easy to clean and great for parties or kids playing
7. My best friend Missy who teaches me every day what it means to be an amazing friend
8. A love of healthy eating
9. I'm finally getting the hang of my hair and am starting to love it
10. The summer. Just looking forward to it makes the winter at least 2% bearable.
11. Grandparents that are still living
12. My parents who remind me all the time through words and actions how much they love me
13. Psalm 62. It has stayed in my heart for year after year and is my comfort and my peace when I need it.
14. The Arkansas Razorbacks. No matter how often they break my heart, I will forever say "Woo Pig Sooie!"
15. My brother and his family that live less than 4 hours away and whose house is such a second home to my family. I love that they are at least a little bit close geographically.
16. My husband and his job allow me to stay at home with my kids.
17. My in-laws love my kids and are extremely supportive
18. Technology and how it allows me to stay in touch with people and keep my too-big world a little bit smaller
19. The Mooneys are bringing Lena home!
20. I truly have the best neighbors on the planet who are the dearest friends and know that it's okay to poke around my kitchen and swipe our Nutella while we are out of town
21. My cozy bed and Dwell bedding that beckon me a little too often
22. Having two healthy children
23. Rosalita's margaritas and spinach-mushroom quesadillas
24. Television
25. Relatively calm children who can rode trip well, entertain themselves when needed, sleep until 7:30, and appreciate drawing and creating
26. That God spared us from a horrible car accident
27. Living in a town that has an abundance of grocery stores like Scnucks, Whole Foods, and Trader Joes aplenty and being able to buy whatever we need
28. Beautiful art in my home
29. A car to drive and indoor parking
30. W's school- it has been such a blessing this year

Monday

Four Questions, For Amber

1. Four States I've Been To- Massachusetts, New York, Georgia, and Colorado
2. Four Smells I Love- Lavendar, Honeysuckle, Paperwhite, and Hay
3. Four Shows I Like To Watch- other than the ones I listed last week, Mad Men, 30 Rock, Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team, and Gossip Girl
4. Four People I Think Will Respond- Missy, Greta, Jenny, and Sarah. Does anyone else even read this blog?
*comment with your answers to #s 1, 2, and 3!

Sunday

What's Coming Up In December

1. Out for a friend's birthday
2. Andy's office Christmas party
3. Advent Workshop at Missy's church
4. Craft Sale at my friend Katy's house
5. Cookies & Carols at the Art Museum
6. Our Christmas Party
7. Cookie Exchange with the Art Fair staff
8. Jury Duty, not so fun
9. W's class Christmas party
10. A weekend in Arkansas to celebrate Christmas with my family
11. Missy and I are taking the girls to see Beauty and the Beast at the Fox
12. Christmas story reenactment in west county
13. Trip to Silver Dollar City to see the Christmas lights
14. Christmas here
15. Trip to visit my grandparent's at their nursing home
16. Advent Calendar activities

Saturday

My Favorite Christmas Movies

1. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation is my all-time favorite
2. Love Actually
3. Frosty the Snowman
4. The Holiday
5. Santa Claus is Coming To Town
6. Mickey's Christmas Carol
7. Elf
8. Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer
9. A Chipmunk Christmas
10. The Family Stone

Friday

Our Arkansas Trip

1. On Saturday, we hit up Dazzle Days- the jewel of Conway's holiday season. I picked up some cute silver Christmas trees and hid from a guy I had a crush on in college.
2. I went Christmas shopping with Mom, Jenny, Remi, and W while R stayed with his uncle and boy cousins.
3. We had supper at Pei Wei. W was killing the rice noodles with chopsticks.
4. On Sunday, I went over to the McEntire's and visited with Billy and his family.
5. My little sister drove up to visit and spend the night. She and I later watched "Beginnings," which was quite good.
6. On Monday, I had lunch at Zazas with my sweet and beautiful friend Kate. W tagged along.
7. The kids and I rode around with my parents so they could run errands.
8. My sister, brother-in-law, and I went and watched Breaking Dawn.
9. On Tuesday morning, I went to pick up my husband at the Little Rock Airport.
10. We went to Laura's Toy Store and back to Zazas for lunch then a house-wide nap.
11. On Wednesday, we had breakfast at Stoby's, then went Christmas shopping at Dicks. Mom and I went solo for More Christmas shopping at the Razorbacks store and Wilkinsons.
12. Mom and I took my sister's kids and my kids to see Happy Feet 2.
13. We ate dinner at home and watched Duke win the Maui Invitational and I wrapped a lot of presents for my mom.
14. We drove to Branson on Thursday for Thanksgiving at my brother's house.
15. We stayed the night to watch the Razorbacks game with them- a heartbreaking loss.

Thursday

What I Ate For Thanksgiving

1. Corn casserole
2. Sweet potatoes
3. Green beans with almonds
4. Stuffin
5. Cranberry sauce
6. Broccoli rice casserole
7. Mashed potatoes
8. A carrot cookie
9. Sweet tea
10. I'm about to eat some blackberry cobbler- I didn't have room earlier

Tuesday

Today's Hobby Lobby Purchases (Christmas Stuff Was 1/2 Off)

1. Gift tags
2. Maybe about 200 ft. of various colors of wired ribbon. I do love wire ribbon.
3. A small Christmas tree for the kids to decorate
4. Tiny ornaments for their tree- snowy wreaths, gingerbread men, and candy canes
5. 3 stamps for R's stocking- a robot, a dinosaur, and a Lightning McQueen

Monday

W's Stocking Stuffers

1. A butterfly notepad she loved
2. A Melissa & Doug stamp set
3. OPI "Rainbow Connection" nail polish
4. A big hair bow
5. New underwear
6. A bracelet- making kit

Sunday

My Text History Names

1. My husband
2. Margie Mc.
3. Melinda H.
4. Tracy
5. Aaron R.
6. Mom
7. Dad
8. Matt
9. Chang
10. Missy L.
11. Blaine W.
12. Stephen B.
13. Ben A.
14. Lauren E.
15. Josh L.
16. Jaimie A.

Saturday

Our Road Trip Snacks

1. Bananas
2. Applesauce squeezies
3. Barbara's Snackimals oatmeal cookies
4. Organic Valley 1% milk boxes for the kids
5. Lychee coconut water for me
6. Mini Larabars
7. A pear for me
8. Trail mix- Kashi Heart to Heart cereal, raisins, mixed nuts, and chocolate chips

Friday

What I'm Excited About Doing In Arkansas

1. Sleeping in
2. Cooking with my sisters
3. Going to watch Breaking Dawn with Jenny and Ryan
4. More Christmas shopping with my mom
5. Seeing Tracy- it feels like its been forever
6. My kids playing with their cousins
7. A Stoby's Tropical Storm
8. Going to visit the McEntires
9. Zazas Pizza...I think I'll have the Feta, Potato, and Rosemary
10. Shopping at Wilkinson's

Thursday

If I Could Only Watch 5 TV Shows

1. New Girl
2. Fringe
3. Parks & Recreation
4. Parenthood
5. Modern Family

Wednesday

Andy's Bucket List

Not my husband, but Andy from Parks and Recreation- my favorite comedy on TV
1. Catch the winning touchdown at the Super Bowl
2. Make the most amazing grilled cheese ever
3. Win the lottery
4. Ride a unicycle
5. Invent something
6. Remake the movie Kazaam, where Shaquille O'Neal plays a genie, and get it right
7. Go skydiving
8. Outrun a hippo
9. Ride first-class on a plane and when people are walking by, go like this...(he makes a condescending face and gives a little snicker)
10. Hold $1000 cash
11. Be an action star
12. Drive to the Grand Canyon


Tuesday

W Lined Up Her Cakes For The Next 8 Years

1. Her 4th Birthday party- a Princess cake
2. 5th- a Cowgirl cake
3. 6th- a Minnie Mouse cake
4. 7th- another Princess cake
5. 8th- a Buzz Lightyear cake
6. 9th -a cake with heart, stars, and dots candles
7. 10th -a cowboy cake
8. 11th- a Razorback cake

Monday

What I'm Loving

1. R's new little gray cardigan. What a hipster!
2. Red red lipstick
3. The Fossil store at the Galleria
4. Christmas shopping
5. Kiwi Magazine
6. Bailey's Range restaurant downtown
7. Highway to Heaven reruns
8. Cranberry walnut bread from Great Harvest
9. The new charm necklace collection at Anthropologie
10. The new Disney Store at the Galleria. I'm just like a little kid in there.
11. The book I'm reading

Sunday

About Plant-Based Proteins, Or A Vegetarian Defends Herself For Once

1. Plant-based proteins offer almost as much protein as animal-based ones.
2. Plant-based proteins are easier on the environment than animal-based ones.
3. Plant-based proteins are often less expensive than animal-based ones.
4. Most plant proteins are high in fiber and low in saturated fats.
5. Also in plant proteins are a variety of vitamins and minerals like iron, calcium, and vitamin E.
6. Many nutritionists are now saying nearly 2/3 of your dietary protein should be derived from plant-based sources.
7. I know that I need about 43 grams of protein a day, but I don't remember the formula for figuring that out.
8. Some great sources of plant proteins: lentils, chickpeas, almonds, tofu, quinoa, whole wheat pasta, sunflower seeds, soybeans, peanuts, kidney beans, walnuts, flax seed, oats, corn, spinach, non-dairy milk, potatoes, broccoli, peas, and artichokes.
9. Basically, any bean or nut is a source of protein.
10. Your body cannot store excess protein, and an excess causes undue stress on your kidneys and liver.
11. Too-high protein consumption is linked to obesity, kidney disease, osteoporosis, and cancer of the colons, pancreas, breast, and prostate.
12. Dairy foods are another good source of protein, such as milk, greek yogurt, and cheese, but they are often high in fat and calories.

Saturday

What I Want To Do On My Next Chicago Trip

1. An afternoon at the Art Institute
2. Go to the Zara store
3. As always, shopping in Wicker Park- especially my favorite stores, Una Mae's Freak Boutique and Free People, and either a milkshake at Veggie Bites or a cone at iCream.
4. Visit Soul Vegetarian East, which is vegan on Saturdays, and features an entire room of baked goods.
5. Make sure to stop in Renegade Handmade (who started the Renegade Craft Fairs) in Wicker Park on Division St.
6. Stay at my favorite hotel in the city, Hotel Felix...perfectly situated between Whole Foods and Karyn's Cooked, another Chicago favorite and close proximity to the gallery district.
7. Another river cruise boat tour. We loved our last one!
8. High tea at the Peninsula Hotel
9. Browsing at The Chicago French Market
10. Ogling art at Melanee Cooper, my favorite gallery
11. Buying the kiddos a fun thing at Pearl

Friday

Fun Trivia About The Olympics

I can't wait for the summer 2012 Olympics! I saw all of these facts on the London Olympics Website.
1. The word "gymnastics" comes from the Greek word for 'naked' because early gymnasts used to performed naked.
2. Hollywood actress Geena Davis competed in the US Trials for the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
3. America's Ray Ewry won 10 gold medals in standing long jump, high jump, and triple jump. As a child, Ray was confined to a wheelchair due to polio. He exercised his legs until he could walk, then strengthened them by jumping.
4. A Marathon commemorates the run of a Greek soldier from the town of Marathon to Athens in 490 BC, except for he ran 171 miles in two days then died after. I would probably experience the same fate if I ran a modern marathon.
5. The best shuttlecocks (badminton "ball") are said to be made from the left wing of a goose.
6. The world's largest shuttlecocks, 18 ft. tall, are part of a public art display in the yards of the Nelson-Atkins Museum in Kansas City, MO.
7. Our family favorite Mike Krzyzewski has been coaching the men's basketball team since 2005.
8. In Mountain Bike Cycling (I always like this event because of our old Kanakuk mountain biking cheers), Julien Absalon will be going for a hat-trick after winning the gold in 2004 and 2008.
9. St. Louis hijacked the Games in 1904 from Chicago, who had already won the rights to hosting. It was such a disaster and was overshadowed by the World's Fair, that the Olympic movement almost died that year.
8. Greg Louganis hit his head on the diving board in 1988 and fell unconscious during the pre-lim rounds. He rallied to win the gold medal in that event.
9. Equestrian is the only Olympic event where men and women compete on equal terms. It's also the only event where humans and animals compete together.
10. Football is a summer Olympic sport. I had no idea.
11. Handball is considered one of the oldest sports.
12. George S. Patton, the General of the US Army during World War II, competed in the Olympic's first Modern Pentathalon.
13. Rowing is the only sport where the competitors cross the line backwards.
14. The US team recently won the World Championships and Russia (or whatever you call it these days) won the silver, so the Olympics are going to be good!
15. The Olympic motto is "Faster, Higher, Stronger."

Thursday

Recipes Galore

1. Vegetarian Enchilada Casserole I will make this on a Sunday, then eat leftovers the rest of the week. No one else in my family will try it. Maybe R?
2. Apple Cinnamon Toaster Strudels (I'm making these next week...I've mentioned my weakness for the real, unhealthy thing here before)
3. My friend Meghan swears by this Sweet Potato Oatmeal Breakfast Casserole
4. I'll make these Chocolate & Mascarpone Cupcakes the next time the situation calls for something special
5. I think I'll make this Vegetarian "Chicken & Dumplins" when I'm in Arkansas next week when there will be a family full of vegans and vegetarians to appreciate it.
6. My mom's making fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and corn bread for Andy on Sunday. This Cauliflower preparation will be my contribution.
7. These Apple Fritter Muffins might fill the hole in my heart when I dream of the heavenly apple fritter I ate in Pasadena at the awkward, yet delicious "Burgers and Donuts" restaurant located in an odd strip mall.
8. These Vodka Cocktails might be the signature drink at our Christmas party next month?
9. I make these Marinated Garbanzo Beans at least twice a month. The whole can's worth lasts about second.
10. Maybe these Mashed Potatoes and Gravy will be another Arkansas try. At least my nephew would be excited.
11. This is right up my ally- Carrot Slaw with Walnuts and Cranberries

Wednesday

My Current Favorite Snacks

1. Toast with butter, garlic, and a slice of cheddar toasted again in the toaster oven
2. Terra sweet potato chips dipped in Green Mountain Gringo salsa
3. Whole grain tortilla chips with nutritional yeast sauce
4. Toast with butter and hulled hemp seeds
5. Blackberries and apples
6. Baby carrots
7. Mini Larabars
8. Graham crackers and Nutella
9. Cauliflower florets
10. Banana slices with cinnamon sprinkles

Tuesday

My Christmas List, First Draft

1. Cropped chinos from Macy's
3. Dress from Anthropologie- it would be perfect with my gold belt and boots
4. A new iPhone case
5. I always want iTunes gift cards
6. New pillow covers for our gray sofa
7. Fossil bracelet. I die.
8. Any of the New York Review children's books
9. Some Louis L'Amour paperbacks
11. This wrap from Anthropologie that's in the sale room
12. A couple plaid button-ups
13. A new pair of slim, straight leg jeans
14. A new cleaning scrubber for vegetables
15. Doughmakers mini pizza pans (This is the brand of all my baking stuff- loaf pans, pizza pans, cookie sheets, etc. They are the best!)
16. A starter from my Aunt Mert's cactus

Monday

My Current Favorite Sandwich

1. Mashed avocado
2. Red onion
3. Pea shoots
4. Sautéed shiitake mushrooms and garlic
5. Wilted spinach
6. Great Harvest's sunflower flax bread

Sunday

Today's Agenda

1. Sleep in, read
2. Christmas shopping and lunch out with Andy
3. Baking cookies
4. Constructing kid's art center
5. Hanging out and drinking wine with friends tonight

Thursday

Today's To-Do List

1. Clean out and carve our pumpkin- a little late, I know...I forgot about it in my trunk last week
2. Grocery shopping at Whole Foods and Schnucks and Great Harvest Bread
3. Cook brown beans and lentils and nutritional yeast "cheese"
4. Order baby gifts- I never did that last week
5. Manicures and pedicures for the kids
6. Have Andy teach me how to clean out the fish tank
7. Finish watching Mammoth
8. Wash dog bed
9. Work on Christmas lists

Wednesday

My Goals For My Kid-Free Morning

1. Stay in pajamas until noon
2. Finish reading Hunger Games
3. Watch last night's Parenthood
4. Eat some halloween candy
5. Lay in bed while doing all of the above

Tuesday

Books I'm Using To Press My Tofu

1. Tina Fey's Bossypants, a cute and funny read
2. Intelligence in War by John Keegan- this must be my husbands
3. Shadow, a book about the five presidents who served after Watergate and having to deal with its legacy, which is surprisingly mine
4. Bob Spitz's biography of The Beatles
5. The Greatest Generation by Tom Brokaw, which is a great book
6. Black Hawk Down, by Mark Bowden. We know the author's son.
7. A devotional book, A Year With C.S. Lewis