Thanksgiving

I am thankful for...

my husband

my son

my family

my church

my friends

and holidays, such as Thanksgiving, that bring people together and give us excuses to fix a nice dinner together and take an afternoon nap!

Five months and First Swing!

    I can't believe Jacob is five months. Where has the time gone? I am definitely trying to soak up every special moment with him. A few new things you may or may not already know:

• Jacob has absolutely begun to teeth. No doubt about that one. For some reason his most painful moments occur during the middle of the night. I've probably resembled a zombie these past few days. But, Jacob's smiles and laughs throughout the day make up for it =)
• When put in the sitting position, Jacob can hold himself up for a few seconds! Until he gets distracted (usually by his feet).
• Kita has been warming up to Jacob. She's always been friendly to him, just shy. For the longest time, she wouldn't come near him if someone was holding him. But things have changed over the past few days. When Jacob is playing in his exersaucer or jamp-a-roo, she'll walk up and give him a sniff or two. Today, when Jacob was on the floor, she went up to him and let him reach up and touch her face!

  
    A few days ago, Jacob went swinging for the first time! It was so funny how much he loved it. I put him in the swing and gave him a gentle push and...he started laughing! It was a perfect day outside for the park, too. After the swings, he watched the ducks for the first time...and went out on the dock over the pond for the first time as well. At this point, just about everything is a first!

White Chicken Chilli

    
    Last weekend, we went to a fall chili contest & bonfire put on by James' company. It was a perfect Friday night for a fire...the air was finally starting to feel and smell fall-ish. James and I enjoyed meeting more people from his new job and trying different kinds of chili. And of course Jacob had a great time because it was outside =) 
    Did I say this was a chili contest? Well, let me explain... I like contests, I usually enjoy competition (if I think I have a chance!), I like to win!


     
    


    
    So when I heard there was going to be a chili contest I wanted to come up with something that would catch the attention of the taste tester. I was assuming it would be a man, so I was going to go with something with a kick of flavor and spicy.






    I consulted my older sister, because I LOVE her cooking. No matter what she whips up, it smells good, has LOTS of flavor, and is usually visually appealing. It didn't take long to decide I was going to make a white chicken chili. Every chili cook off I've been to, there are many classic beef chili's. I'm sure the taste of them vary, but I always think they look the same.




    So we came up with a recipe! The ingredients were as follows: seasoned and baked a whole chicken & shredded it, diced tomatoes, great northern beans, chick peas, freshly chopped cilantro, sauteed garlic, onions, and green chilies, chopped jalapenos,black pepper, salt, cumin seasoning, chicken bullion, water, corn starch.




    
    We arrived at the bonfire and found a spot on the table for our chili. To my excitement and surprise, it was the only white chili!  It turned out really great; by far the best chili I have ever made. Lots of flavor with a slight kick. I wasn't as spicy as I had anticipated, but that meant if was enjoyable for everyone, not only the men =P Towards the end of the evening, people were asking about the contest... The man who hosted said the best bowl of chili he had was the bowl that was filled with a combination of all of them. Maybe he didn't want to hurt any ones feelings, and that's okay. People complimented each other on their chili & it was a great evening.