Giggle Boxes

Daddies just seem to have an inherent talent for being hilarious!

Budding Scientists

I am continually amazed at how much fun Jake & Mal can have with the most random objects. Anything out of the ordinary is the best toy they've ever seen. For example, we received these Mad Science flasks as kids' meal toys from Chik-Fil-A a couple of weeks ago, & for some reason, they loved them. They just carried them around forever, blowing & talking into them & banging them on things. And even though it has absolutely no relevance to their future profession choices, it still makes this science nerd mommy proud!

Little Longhorns

Since football season is once again upon us, we of course had to get the kids some new game gear to wear when they watch the Longhorns play with Daddy. I think burnt orange is a great color on them, don't you?

Jake has been practicing his Hook 'Em sign with Daddy. He doesn't quite get it right, but it's so cute when he tries!
I need to have J fix the coloring on this one, but check out those baby blues!
They both look suspiciously mischievous here!
Sweet kids!
Happy Thursday everyone!

Yummy to My Tummy: Apple Pork Tenderloins

I made this recipe Tuesday night, & it was a big hit with both the kids & the adults at our table. If you're not a fan of cooked apples, the pork is still amazing on its own. I couldn't find a small bottle of apple brandy & didn't want to pay for the big one, so I used apple juice in its place. Enjoy!

Apple Pork Tenderloins
4-6 servings

Pork Cutlets:
2 lbs pork tenderloins
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3 T butter or margarine, divided
2 T olive oil
3 medium shallots, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, pressed
1 C chicken broth
2 T apple brandy (or apple juice)
1 C heavy cream

Remove any excess fat from tenderloins, then cut each one crosswise into 4-5 medallions about 2 inches thick. Place cut side up between two sheets of plastic wrap & pound until cutlet is 1/4 inch thick. Season with salt & pepper.

Melt 1 T butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 T oil. When oil is hot, saute cutlets in batches until browned on each side, 2-4 minutes. Do not crowd the pan. Add more butter & oil as needed for additional batches. Transfer to a plate & cover with foil to keep warm.

Add shallots & garlic to skillet & stir 1 minute. Add broth & apple brandy to pan. Stir & scrape up any browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Cook until mixture is reduced by half, about 6-8 minutes. Add cream & simmer until sauce thickens, about 10 minutes. Taste & adjust seasonings, if necessary. Spoon sauce over cutlets & top with spiced apples.

Spiced Apples:
3 medium tart apples, cored & cut into rings
3 T butter or margarine
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp sugar
2 C apple juice or cider
2 T apple brandy (optional)

Heat butter in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Fry one layer of apple rings until golden on both sides. Remove from pan & keep warm while frying remaining rings (adding more butter as needed). Set apples aside. Mix sugar & cinnamon; sprinkle over apples.

Pour apple juice & brandy into the skillet & simmer until thick & syrupy. Return apples to the skillet & glaze with the apple syrup.

Recipe courtesy of Confessions of a Kitchen Diva

A Modern Stone-Age Family

I can't believe that Halloween has already come & gone! Saturday night, we hosted our annual small group costume party, which is always such fun. It was a small crowd this year, but we had a great time & also got to enjoy watching an exciting Texas football game during our evening!

Each year, I love coming up with our costume ideas, & we never want to spend much on our apparel, so it's always a fun, creative challenge! This year, we chose to go as The Flintstones! The wonderful Kathy Johnston (aka Grammy) sewed our costumes & helped me shop for supplies. I just had to add the finishing touches. Thanks Kathy!

A cute little Pebbles inspecting her bucket before trick-or-treating
An equally cute Bam Bam with his club
We only went to a few houses, but they loved trick-or-treating just because they got to run around outside. We went early, so there weren't any bigger kids to run them over.
What's better than one candy bucket? Two!
Our party food: little mummies....
spider breadsticks...
and longhorn cookies! (among other things) Hattie made these cute cookies, & they were very yummy!
Pebbles & Bam Bam - trying to get them to pose for me was next to impossible!
They weren't too keen on smiling for a family shot either. Even Pebbles & Bam Bam need a stern talking to every once in a while!
That's better! Bam Bam, Fred, Wilma & Pebbles
Mark was a baker, & Hattie has a bun in the oven!
Garrett & Amy were the couple from the Snuggie infomercials.


Hattie let the kids play with her oven after she was done wearing it, & it was a big hit! It took them about two minutes to tear it up. :)
I hope that everyone had a very happy Halloween!