There's a 7-year-old in the House

As if the Christmas season isn't busy enough!  lol  Little A made her grand entrance into the world 7 years ago.  I remember waiting and expecting her to be early.  She wasn't.  Looking back, I'm glad she wasn't born before Christmas.  She waited until after Christmas.

We have had a busy few weeks.  The kids and I were getting ready to head to Iowa to spend Christmas with my family while Seth had to stay here to work.  In the process of getting ready, we were in a car accident.  In our new car.  Which isn't registered yet.  With new insurance.  Suddenly, everything I thought I had to do no longer seemed necessary.  No one was hurt.  We thank the Lord for that.

After the car was fixed, we headed up to Iowa.  And we brought an illness that we didn't even know we were carrying.  J and A both had coughs, but J's developed into something more.  He ended up getting a fever and getting sick.  Then K got a fever.  My sister got a fever.  My cousin's son got a fever.  The day we came back to Wichita, A had a fever and I was feeling dizzy.  Later I learned that my mom, grandma, and bro-in-law all came down with it as well.  Ooops.  I did not mean to bring this flu to Iowa and pass it around!  I'm so sorry, Iowa family.

Once we returned, I knew I had a lot to do before I could rest and let this sickness take me down.  On the long drive home, I was fighting chills and sweats, but still no fever.  The day after, I had to finish getting stuff ready for our own family Christmas.  On Saturday, we had our Christmas.  We were mostly feeling ok.

Then, I had to get ready for Little A's birthday on Sunday.  I spent 2 1/2 hours running around Wichita, and not completely well.  I was completely spent when I made it back home.

Sunday was the big day!  Seth went to church while us sickies got some rest at home.  Little A requested chicken alfredo for lunch - the frozen kind.  No complaints here!  We enjoyed lunch and at some point, we all took a nap.

Little A was getting worse throughout the day.  Her fever returned and she was feeling awful.  I brought her presents to her and she opened them, showing little excitement as she was miserable.  She gave a hint of a smile for things she liked.

(Apologies for the poor picture quality.  I need a new camera.)

She also received a gift from our friends at church.  It was so sweet of them to think of her and they were sad they didn't get to see her at church on her birthday.  She loves the clothes.

Oreo pie and enchiladas were on the menu, but Little A ended up getting sick so we decided to hold off on the rest of her birthday.

Yesterday, she seemed to be feeling better.  We enjoyed the enchildas for supper and had pie and ice cream afterwards.  But, Little A still couldn't keep it all down.  :(  It was a bummer of a birthday for her, but we did our best to celebrate her turning 7.

We're feeling a little better today.  Little A and I slept on the couches last night.  I doubt we will be ringing in the New Year tonight with a bunch of finger foods.  Perhaps a family movie and our Christmas goodies we got in our stockings.  And maybe we will all feel better in time for school to start up again.

It's hard to believe our baby is 7 years old now.  That is the age I accepted Jesus' gift of salvation for myself.  I do not know where Little A stands with the Lord.  She can answer all the questions correctly and say the right things, but I don't know if she has made a personal choice to follow Him.  I pray that she has or will very soon.

Happy birthday, Little A!  I hope this year is a great one for you!  I love you!!!

Thanksgiving to Christmas

Time sure flies by when you're busy!

Thanksgiving was a little different this year.  We used to visit my family in Iowa, but Seth's employer stated that no one was allowed to have the Friday after Thanksgiving off.  So, we were forced to stay home for Thanksgiving the last few years.  This year, however, Seth was on-call the week of Thanksgiving which automatically gave him Friday off.  Hmmm, what could we do?

First, we thought we should go to Branson.  We bought a Branson trip at the Kansas State Fair.  We have been wanting to go since our friends moved there, but could never find the time or money.  Since it was somewhat paid for, and our son was off from school, we called to book our room.  But, we thought up this idea too late and the hotels were all booked.  Another time we will make that trip.

So, we decided to head up to Iowa.  Since Seth was on-call, however, we would not make it up for Thanksgiving dinner.  We had our Thanksgiving dinner Wednesday evening instead.  Seth found someone to cover for him Thursday evening and we left as soon as we could.  We arrived in time for games with my cousins and all the kids got along fairly well.  Grandpa and Seth actually took them all to the park.

I had a surprise.  A couple of years ago, Seth had made the comment that his mom used to make pumpkin pie from a real pumpkin.  My grandma kinda laughed and said that nobody does that.  Well, I decided to prove her wrong.  I had made a butternut squash pie so I thought it must be pretty similar to that.  So, I looked up recipes online and this year, I did it.

My mistake last year was not buying the pumpkin soon enough.  Stores don't sell pumpkins after Halloween but only for a couple of days.  Not even pie pumpkins which I thought was odd.  So this year, I made sure to buy the pie pumpkin around Halloween.

Because of having to buy the pumpkin early, I had to cook it before it went bad.  First, I cut it in half and scooped out the seeds.

Then, I baked it for about an hour.  I think a little longer.

I scooped the pulp into my Ninja blender.

And pureed.

Then I put it into ziplock bags and in the freezer until I was ready to make the pies.  I did it one-half at a time so there are 2 bags for 2 pies.

Then, it came time to make a pie.  I let the mush sit out to thaw.

Then I added the rest of the ingredients and mixed.  I forgot to take a picture of it with the ingredients not mixed in.

I poured it into a pie crust.  Store bought crust.  I thought I was being adventurous enough and didn't want to risk it with a bad attempt on the crust.

And walla!!  A pumpkin pie made from a real pumpkin.

I decided to bring it up to Iowa for my family, specifically my grandma to try.  Come to think of it, though, I think Grandma had left by the time we got out leftovers for supper.  She may not have even tried any!  But, she did see that I made it.  :)

Everyone who tried the pie said it was good.  I guess that makes it a success!!!  The other half I am saving for Christmas, but just for our family.  Next year I may have to buy 4 pumpkins and make 8 pies so I have plenty for Thanksgiving and Christmas.  One pie for each holiday just wasn't enough.

Now, Christmas is upon us!  My shopping is basically finished.  Presents need to be wrapped still.  For the past couple of years, we've bought a real tree.  We always decorate it on Seth's birthday as was his tradition growing up.

There could potentially be one more blog before Christmas, but it won't be holiday related.  So...

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!