Favorites

In my family whenever we end a trip or we are saying goodbye to people visiting on a trip we do "trip favorites."  Everyone shares:

1) Favorite thing they ate
2) Favorite thing they did
3) Favorite thing they got

Sometimes it's a challenge to pick favorites because so many things are great and other times you really have to think hard about what was good.

Here are our favorite from our Kansas Christmas

Dan
- Ate: pull-apart rolls (big surprise - lucky he got them twice)
- Got: games (he got Settlers and Battle of the Sexes and a puzzle)
- Did: played games (we played Monopoly Deal, Settlers, Battle - top list, and some weird game his uncle got that I don't remember the name of)

Steph
- Ate: homemade summer sausage that Aunt Judy made (I got the recipe!!!)
- Got: my kitchen aid cover from Terri Mom and all my hedgehog stuff
- Did: went to Hobby Lobby

Basically we loved everything we ate, got, and did on this trip - minus bringing back Kansas colds but nothing a little snuggling can't fix. 

And with that, Christmas was a wrap and 2014.  Happy New Years Eve - tomorrow we'll share our 2014 highlights!

Pics of a flat Kansas sunset on Christmas day 2014 

Not too shabby for an iPhone in a moving car.

A very hedgehog Christmas

So to finish-up documenting our Kansas Christmas it's time to report about the presents. This is a mega post - be warned.

On Christmas Eve Eve Dan and I went over to visit with his Grandma a couple of days early.  I really enjoy going to her house because it reminds me so much of going to Iowa as a kid and staying with my Dad's family.  The Midwest is just so different from other parts of the country.  The food is warmer.  The outside is colder.  The stars are brighter.  And family is just so darn nice.

Anyways, there are more cats at Grandma's even more than there were in September.  They are outdoor cats and I don't remember a-one of their names except for Rat Boy and all the kitties are named after Scandal characters.  I got to hold one and he was so snuggly.  But also, these cats are savages - apparently they attack small wild animals and dismember them on the porch leaving behind the contents of the intestines and other gross organs.  Sorry, was that an over-share?  But look how cute they are!

Also look how talented Dan's cousin Kourtney is!  She made this gingerbread house all from scratch and it looks just like Grandma Wilson's house.  She even made little snow footprints on the porch.  So impressed. 

On Christmas Eve Dan's brother Sam and his girlfriend Lauren came over to Dan's parents house and we had a cute little Johnson family early Christmas.  Dan's mom made his favorite pull-apart rolls and we opened presents one by one - each person taking a turn (this was totally new for me - my family just attacks the tree and devours all the gifts in .25 seconds).

Everyone got great stuff.  I got a handmade kitchen aid cover from Terri Mom, jewelry box, and some sculpy clay to make my own hedgehog nativity set.  What a great idea!!! Dan got some new pants and Settlers of Catan board game which we promptly played with Sam and Lauren. 

That afternoon Terri Mom made Dan's second favorite thing - vegetable soup (see recipe here) and Sam made Jambalaya.  After Sam and Lauren left Dan and I went to Walmart to stock up on Almond Bark to bring back to NYC and then he toured me around Fort Scott.  That night we went to the Christmas Eve service.   

Downtown Fort Scott

The next morning, Christmas, we headed back to Grandma Wilson's and pigged out on biscuits and gravy, more pull-apart rolls, herring, fruit salad, and lots more.  Dan's cousins and second cousins arrived and we got to see true Christmas joy with all the little kids opening gifts. 

The adults in Dan's family do Secret Santa with each adult buying for one other adult.   Aunt Judy and I got each other (not sure if that was rigged :o)).  She got me the cutest nesting hedgehog measuring cups, a wonderful infinity scarf, a hedgehog toothbrush holder, and super fun notepads/sticky notes.  How does she know me so well??? 

Then, Aunt Kandi gave us these too cute hedgehogs made from old paperback books.  How neat is that??  They will find a welcome home in our living room once the Christmas decor is packed away.   It was a very hedgehog Christmas. 

That afternoon we just hung out (the power went out for several hours but we all stayed warm and well fed).  I got to copy a bunch of Wilson family recipes and Dan got to play with legos.  It was a great Kansas Christmas.

Top Four

People!  I discovered Hobby Lobby online today!!  And all the world rejoiced!

In more serious and important news...Today is December 30th - our 4 month anniversary.  We aren't very good at remembering to do something special during these first 12 months (the only year when months count) except we have maintained the tradition of re-reading our vows on this day and that's pretty cool.

Today, though, I wanted to take the opportunity to share my top four favorite things about Dan.  Because he is pretty special and sometimes I just need to come out and say it. 

Dan -

1) You are patient and kind.  Always.  I admire those traits so much because I often struggle with them myself and I marvel at the ease with which you display those character traits especially around people who least deserve it (including me sometimes).  You are an amazing role model and I look forward to seeing the kind of amazing dad you will be in the future when/if we have littles. 

2) You are the best snuggle buddy.  For someone who didn't know how to snuggle before 6 months into our relationship I'd say you had natural skills that were just dormant.  For whatever others perceive snuggling to be...for us it's purely innocent.  Just being close.  No words just comfort and to me it feels like the safest place in all the world.

3) You try so hard at everything that you do.  You are tremendously giving of your time and attention to anyone and everyone who seeks it - almost to a fault.  Daily you do whatever you can to help me out even when I am being Mega Devil.  You make the bed, you make me breakfast and lunch, you do the dishes, you help prepare dinner, you are learning to be tidy, you greet me when I come home with a cheerful "Hi sweetie!" and so so so much more.  You are infinitely more than I could ever ever deserve and I don't thank you nearly enough for all your effort in all that you do.

4)  You love me.  No one has ever loved me the way that you do and I don't think that anyone else ever will.  My heart knew that you were mine right away and it ached for years waiting for you to see me.  Those were hard times for me but in some ways that longing and waiting was crucial.  The kind of love that you give is so genuine and pure that I don't think I could have appreciated it quite the same as I do now, knowing how much it is worth.  Thank you for accepting me for who I am and for sharing your love with me.

 Happy 4 month anniversary Buddy.  I love you!  Mmmmaaahhh 

A Kansas Christmas

So Dan and I are both back at work today.  B O O H O O.  Looking back at our holiday last week I am so sad Christmas is over but I'm holding onto the merriment a bit longer and listening to Christmas music right now.  We are also keeping our Christmas decor up until the new year because why tear it all down the day after???

Anyways, last week we treasured our time in Kansas.  We arrived last Monday and made our first stop at Chick-fil-a to introduce Dan's parents to the goodness that is a novelty for us New York residents.  Yum...waffle fries.

Then we went to Legends which is an epic outlet mall that has my top three favorite stores in discount form.   I declare it a tradition to go to Legends every time we go to Kansas now, we have gone literally every single time we come to visit.  Terri Mom and I bonded over looking at baby clothes.  I was picking some things up for a friend who is about to pop and we swooned over tiny corduroy dresses from Osh Kosh.

After Legends we went to Hobby Lobby and I was literally in heaven.  Mandy and I used to go to Hobby Lobby every week when we were in high school.  I haven't been back since college and I totally forgot how awesome that place is.  There were sales on everything I wanted and we picked up a ton of stuff including a Christmas card holder for our decor next year.  We also got a great piece of wall art I'll reveal in an upcoming post.   

The rest of our first day we spent playing with Baby

And decorating the Christmas tree retro style with all of the old Precious Moments ornaments and one new ornament that is pretty precious too :o)

Up next: Presents!

Recipe: Mandy's flaky pie crust

Guys, Dan and I love us some pie crust...like pie filling is cool and all but the crust is the best part.  We aren't even crust snobs, we'll eat pretty much any crust - scratch, frozen, pre-made, boxed.  When Mandy and I were little we would eat the filling out of the pie slice and save the crust for last.  

Anyways, Mandy's crust is awesome and we were so lucky she agreed to make the pumpkin pie this year at Thanksgiving and agreed to let me share her recipe.  And to Mandy, I am so sorry it took me so long to post this.

Double Crust

The Stuff
- 3 cups flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp. salt
- 2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cut
- 1/3 cup shortening, cut
- 1/2 cup cold water

Get Bakin'
- Use a food processor or mixer (or pastry cutter) to mix flour, sugar, and salt with butter and shortening until small pea sized pieces remain
- Mix in cold water until dough forms
- Divide dough in half and wrap it in plastic wrap
- Chill for several hours or overnight (the longer the better)
- Roll out on a floured surface and place it in a pie plate
OR
- To make pie crust cookies, roll the dough out and use a cookie cutter
- Coat the top of the dough with melted butter and loads of cinnamon/sugar mix
- Bake until the cinnamon/sugar is bubbly and the cookies are light brown

Pumpkin Filling (back of Libby's pumpkin puree can)

In other news, while we were in Kansas (details about that soon), Aunt Judy shared a bunch of family recipes with me including Grandma Wilson's pie crust recipe which has vinegar as one of the ingredients!  Super intrigued about that one.  Once I work up the nerve to make pie crust of any sort I'll post that recipe here too. 

Recipe: Butterscotch Shortbread Cookies

One of my friends has an annual Christmas Cookie Exchange.  Each guest brings two dozen cookies and everyone leaves with far more cookies than they brought.

This year I made Butterscotch Shortbread Cookies which is a recipe I got from one of the youth group moms.  It's perfect for those with an egg or nut allergy and it's pretty simple to make.

The stuff
- 1 cup butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 2 1/4 cups flour
- 1 tsp. salt

Get Bakin' 
- Preheat oven to 300 F
- Cream together the butter and sugars until smooth
- Stir in flour and salt
- Use your hands to fully incorporate ingredients (it will be very crumbly)
- Roll the dough into a rectangle on a flour surface
- Cut into 1 1/2 inch squares or use a cookie cutter
- Place 1 inch apart on an ungrease cookie sheet and prick the tops with a fork
- Bake for 25 minutes or until set.  The dough will not spread and the color changes only slightly
- Remove from cookie sheet immediately and cool

Shortbread cookies are hard and super yummy dipped in coffee.  

Light Up the Street!

Last Sunday Dan and I met up with another couple from church and headed over to a neighboring area in Brooklyn called Dyker Heights.  This area is well known for their Christmas lights display and neither Dan or I had ever seen them so we were pretty excited to start a tradition.

It was crazy crowded with people but the festive feeling was so tangible and really fun to experience.  Most of the houses are decorated by professionals but there were others that were more simple and still tasteful.

Our friends Emily and Brian

My favorite

This house had every possible inflatable character strapped to the front