::Thanksgiving 2012::

Thanksgiving was a little crazy this year.  Carson came down with the croup the second we walked into my parents house, which is always so scary.  No pedi, out of town, and a holiday...we were batting 1,000.  I managed to sweet talk the on-call doctor over the phone and for that she called in a steroid, which helped Carson tremendously.  I felt like I had won the lotto when she agreed to call in that prescription...it's the little things.  After a couple of days, bro was feeling  much better, so Thanksgiving morning, we managed a family shot...


I even got one with Mama C. and her babies...




Bro refused the photos after a while...


So, I photographed memms instead.  I love her.




She discovered some "fairy moss" along the way :)


Later on, they headed in for Thanksgiving lollipops.


And, we finished the day with a great dinner, time with family, and blessings all around.

::recipe:: Pumpkin Squares with Maple Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

i told y'all i would be back. well, here i am. we made these on wednesday, and i'll be real surprised if they are still here by tomorrow...

let me crank out this recipe for y'all, so you can whip up a batch in your kitchen. this is what you'll need to gather up: salt, pumpkin, almond flour, sugar, eggs, cinnamon, baking soda, and pumpkin pie spice. you can scroll down to the bottom for the complete recipe. i'm not sure how the vanilla snuck into the photo, but you won't need that for the cake portion...just for the frosting :)

this is the almond flour that we use. i buy it here. it's so much cheaper that way. i have no idea why it's not available to purchase now, so sorry!

so, here we go. dump all of the ingredients into your mixing bowl and beat well.

pour the batter into a greased 13X9 pan...

let your best little helper spread it around, and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

it will come out just like this...

now, let's whip up the frosting. you'll need cream cheese, maple syrup, vanilla, and cinnamon. dump all four ingredients into your bowl...

and beat until creamy.

after the cake has cooled, spread the frosting on top. then, i cover it and stick it in the fridge.

if you need proof that they are good...

he was stuffing it in, just as fast as he could. they are SO moist! and SO yummy! you could ask miss emma too.

after having these first at a friend's house, this is what i came up with....

Pumpkin Squares (paleo & gluten free)

2 cups almond flour

1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1 cup pumpkin

4 eggs

Preheat oven to 350. Dump all of the ingredients into your mixing bowl and beat well. Pour the batter into a greased 13X9 pan. Spread it around, and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Allow to cool.

Maple Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

1 block of cream cheese

1/4 cup maple syrup

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Dump all four ingredients into your bowl and beat until creamy. Once the pumpkin squares have cooled, spread the frosting on top. Refrigerate any leftovers :)

I recapped our mid-October family getaway here and here. Here's to trying to catch up!

give thanks

in the year 2010 i am thankful for our many wonderful blessings....

let's start with this little guy, who was born earlier this year. he has brought so much joy to our family and we love him to pieces. it was his very first thanksgiving, and he certainly enjoyed his feast.

miss emma is next. she's a special little girl and we love her so much.

and, i'm always thankful for my very best friend.

i am so grateful for my sisters. here's one...


and here's the other. it's good to know that you always have someone that you can call.

and of course my parents. they mean so much to all of us.

emma enjoyed her time with her cousins...

and i enjoyed my time shooting the fall leaves. they were just beautiful...

We headed to the farm...

and the sunset was just beautiful.

We spent some time with the animals.

And Rob snapped a great photo of sister with his phone. Don't you just love it when that happens?

She's a farm girl. I promise you.

And our little buddy was along for the ride.

Emma's first pick was to ride the ponies.

Oh my goodness does she love a horse or a pony.

She enjoyed her ride to say the least.

And Buddy did too.

The sky was just amazing. Or "amazin" is how sister would say it.

We did some major sliding.

And she did some major crawling.

Rob was off the week of Thanksgiving, so we wanted to kick it off with a family outing, just before we headed out of town.

I love family outings.

These two did some dirt mound climbing.

While I did some photo shooting of this little guy...

Daylight was running out, so we headed over to the riding toy section...

I am pretty sure that Carson wants one of these tractors. Actually it's really me that likes them so much, and you're supposed to buy what you like, right?

Emma liked them too, and the four of us enjoyed our time together on the farm.