All posts by Nichole

Eating

An easy, nearly hands-free holiday feast

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We had my side of the family over last weekend for our Christmas get-together. One of our common bonds is food. These folks love to eat. While the meal is a big part of the celebration, I also like to have time to play games or hang out on the couch in my jammies. I had all of that in mind when I planned the menu.

What we ended up with wasn’t all that fancy, but it was definitely tasty and satisfying. Here’s what we had:

  • Pot roast
  • Mashed potatoes au gratin
  • Green beans with red peppers and shallots
  • Salad
  • Bread sticks

    The pot roast cooks all day long in the CrockPot, the potatoes can be made mostly ahead of time and the green beans come together in less than 10 minutes. And it all tastes great. I’ll be filing this whole meal away for future family gatherings!

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    • Reading

    Brown's lost "Moon" story doesn't measure up

    There is a certain romance to the story behind “The Moon Shines Down” by Margaret Wise Brown. The unfinished manuscript was found in a cedar trunk years after the author’s death. The pages were in the trunk for so long that “the onionskin paper had yellowed and the paperclips that held the pages together had rusted,” says the book’s publisher.

    Margaret Wise Brown based “The Moon Shines Down” on a prayer frequently found on cross-stitch samplers: “I see the moon, and the moon sees me. God bless the moon, and God bless me.” It’s a pleasant little refrain, and it’s repeated frequently throughout the book as a very cute little koala travels around the world, sharing children’s bedtime routines with your little reader.

    Continue reading “Brown’s lost ‘Moon’ story doesn’t measure up.”

    Family matters

    Welcome to our holly jolly home

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    It's the '08 BooMama Christmas tour!This time last year, I was having a hard time getting into the Christmas spirit. That isn’t the case this year, for a number of reasons. It’s been good and cold for the last few weeks here, and we’ve already had one family Christmas gathering. And it’s hard being a Grinch when you’re living with a holiday-crazed preschooler.

    So I’m pleased to tell you that my little elf and I had a lovely time getting the house ready for the holidays. And because today is the start of the 2008 BooMama Christmas Tour or Homes, I’m going to share some of our decor with you.

    I hope you enjoyed the tour. Now I’m off to have a peek into other folks’ homes. I hope to see you there!