Thank God for Mimi

My mom (Mimi) has always been awesome. But with the birth of the Princess, she literally saved my life. Mimi planned two weeks of vacation for the time right after the sweet baby girl was born. The last few months, we've been jokingly asking The Princess to wait until her due date to be born, because that's the schedule that would work for everyone, particularly Mimi. The Princess was born about twelve hours after Mimi's last shift ended.

She cooks, she cleans, she usually only gives advice when asked (and doesn't say 'I told you so' when I should have asked), she entertains The Prince, she lets me sleep.

Thanks, Mom.

Comfort Foods - Fried, of Course!

On our recent trip to OK, I was inspired to make egg rolls. Now, these are a special family recipe, and I've never attempted the entire process by myself. Usually, my mom is very involved. But, I wanted to make something special for my family, and these certainly fit the bill.

This isn't so much a recipe as a food story. I'm glad to share it again.

Pork and veggie egg rolls, coming right up!

And the second course is...crab cheese wontons!

Not to be 0utdone, hubs made fried twinkies for dessert.

Mmmmm, contented-sigh-of-happiness. That was dinner on New Year's Eve. What a way to end the year!

The Best Things about Thanksgiving in OK

1. Food. It's always great in OK, but aside from the usual favorites (Braums, Taco Mayo, BBQ with all the fixin's, velveeta mac n cheese) we had TWO Thanksgiving feasts. That meant we had plenty of mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, homemade stuffing, various cranberry dishes, and turkey AND ham both days. And did I mention the pies? In OK, there's no such thing as "too much" food. Feeling a bit hungry? Have another helping of EVERYTHING. A little hungry before bedtime? Have another piece of pecan pie. Might as well have another pumpkin, too. Don't mind if I do!

2. Family. Ok, maybe this should be #1. A wonderful Memaw, oodles of excited and exciting aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents all just busting to play with The Prince. And they were excited to see his mom and dad, too. Definitely the most precious part of the trip.

3. Where the wind comes sweeping. The Prince had a blast crawling around Memaw's yard, and even playing in a pile of leaves in Aunty K's. Yes, Daddy let The Prince play in the leaves. Daddy even threw the leaves on The Prince. Mommy cringed, but enjoyed watching The Prince enjoy himself and discover his love for the outdoors. They are such boys.

Bonus? The OK family is coming out for a CO Christmas. We are so excited! This hasn't happened since I've been in the family, but they are all going to bravely trek out here and spend a few days in close quarters. That's what family's all about, right? Can't wait!

Life Changing Experiences

Since my experience at Yogurtland was life-changing (sorry for the inconsistent use of the hyphen. That inconsistency will probably be consistent throughout this post), I thought I'd spend some time coming up with other life-changing events.



1. My first taste of spaghetti. I don't remember it, but it must have happened at some point, because spaghetti is now my favorite food.



2. Band girl that I am, I decided to quit band senior year of HS (for fairly childish, but perfectly valid reasons). I was able to focus on singing and choir, and realize how much I love that, which eventually led to my degree in voice.



3. My decision to leave my freshman year of college early, because of family and money challenges. I was able to transfer to Colorado Christian University the following fall. It was absolutely where I needed to be at that point in my life, and it helped me more fully pursue my faith.



4. Saying "yes" to the date offer from the strangely intriguing boy with the yellow glasses in my freshman theater class. The day I married him seven years ago was pretty life changing, too...



5. The day The Prince was born...well, from the day we found out we were pregnant...but boy, I had no idea how much life would change! I can't believe what an amazing little gift he is. He's incredible!


6. Yogurtland.


That's all for now. I'd love to hear others' biggest (most memorable, favorite?) life-changing experiences.