Home, again.

We got back from Hawaii this past weekend and I would just like to pause and say PRAISE THE GOOD LORD that my husband let me sleep until 1pm on Sunday because I don't know that I would have survived this week without that bit of grace.

Ever taken a red eye? Well, let me just say that the people folk strollin' through LAX at 4:30am are a very colorful and expressive crowd.

That is all.

My in-laws stayed with the boys all week while we were gone and they were and are such a gift to us. They stepped back in time 30 years and handled every challenge of caring for four children with such grace and love and we are so grateful to them for the way they loved our boys.

We've been taking it easy this week. Our boys are home on a break from school and we've been enjoying 60 degree days outside and playing games and just gettin' back to the normal stuff we do around here.

I've started sifting through our Hawaii photos and well - I did a whole lot of this:

I kind of a little bit love to take photos.

We did and saw so much. We even had dinner with the Obamas. Kind of. Don't really agree with their politics - but they sure know how to pick a restaurant.

I can't wait to share our trip with you and how much fun we had celebrating our first 10 years of marriage in such a beautiful place.

Hawaii is everything you hear it is - breathtakingly beautiful, fun, sunny, warm, sand-between-your-toes delightful.

We showed our photos to the boys.

Max asked when he and his brothers can go to Hawaii.

"When you're older and get married", my husband replied.

Max responded, "Ew. Gross."

Mmm hmm.

We'll see about that, sir.

Four

You love:

Mickey Mouse.
Your belly button.
Cooking.
Fruit snacks.
The mall.
The Jesus Storybook Bible.
Frosted Flakes.
Snuggling "weally, weally cwose."
Pairing socks.
Mary Poppins.
Your "boy radio to hold on".
Cubbies.
Trampoline jumpin'.
Monkey Preschool Lunchbox.
Whatever Jack and Max are doing.
Your kitchen.
Target.
Your new grill.
Flashlights.

And, most of all.

"Tookies." {Cookies}

You are:

Ours.

And, we can't imagine life without our Winkin.

Happy 4th birthday - to a most special please stay little for Momma big boy.

Two Big Dreams

When I was a little girl, I had two BIG dreams.

1. That I would get married one day.

2. That someday I would get to go to Hawaii.

This past December, my husband and I celebrated our 10th anniversary.

And, tomorrow morning, he's taking me to Hawaii.

Our four little buddies will be spending the week here at home with their grandparents - who are loving us in such an immense and sacrificial way by coming down here to all the CRAZY and caring for our littles while we're gone.

They will be so loved. The kids. And, the grandparents.

I am happy. I am sad. I am exhausted and excited and I suppose when you leave part of your heart to go nurture and fill up the other, well - it's just a big ol' bucket of bittersweet.

So, while I head off to celebrate my anniversary and soak up every lazy, sunny minute with the one I simply can't get enough of - this little space of mine will be quiet.

Quiet. I'm looking forward to some of that.

And, sleep. I am really looking forward to that, too.

Ten years ago, my Jason married me.
Tomorrow, he's taking me to Hawaii.

I guess you could say he's my dreams come true.

My Favorite Christmas Present

Pepper Jack Potatoes

I love mashed potatoes.

Always have.
Always will.

I really love mashed potatoes and gravy. Mom's Roast Beef paired alongside a heaping pile of Creamy Mashed Potatoes with gravy smothering the whole thing - well, I'd rather have that for dinner than just about anything else.

But, most of the time, when I'm making potatoes as a side dish, there isn't gravy and the potaotes need to stand on their own. Like when I'm making:

Grilled chicken.
Shish Kabobs.
Steak.
Smoked sausage.
Ham.

This past Sunday, I had a block of Pepper Jack cheese in the fridge and whipped up some Pepper Jack Potatoes to go with the chicken my husband was grilling. Or should I say the chicken that my husband AND precious little three year-old were grilling. {sigh}

I LOVE Pepper Jack cheese. I really like spicy foods and Pepper Jack cheese has that zip and zing that makes it so good on crackers and on top of chili.

But, I discovered that it is also delicious paired with potatoes that are boiled until tender and mashed with butter, a splash of milk, and Pepper Jack cheese. Then topped off with more cheese. Because, well - can you really have too much cheese?

That's it.

Easy.
No fuss.
Weekday.
Sunday dinner.
Whenever.

A perfectly simple, flavorful, zippy side dish that you can serve with just about anything.

Enjoy!

Pepper Jack Potatoes

2-3 pounds boiling potatoes, such as Russets or Yukon Golds
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup milk
8 ounces Pepper Jack cheese, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper


Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a small baking dish (ex. 8" x 8"). Set aside.

Cut potatoes into 1 1/2-inch cubes. Add potatoes to a 4 quart pot and add water to cover - about an inch above potatoes. Bring to a boil. Add a dash of salt to water. Lower the heat and simmer uncovered for 15-20 minutes, or until the potatoes fall apart easily when pierced with a fork.

As soon as the potatoes are tender, drain them in a colander.

Place 2 tablespoons of butter in the bottom of a mixing bowl. Add potatoes. Beat with a mixer for 2 minutes. Add milk and 4 ounces of Pepper Jack cheese, salt, and pepper and slowly beat until creamy and cheese has melted.

Pour mixture into greased baking dish. Top with remaining Pepper Jack cheese. Bake, uncovered, for 15 minutes, or until cheese on top has melted.

*This recipe can easily be doubled and made in a 9" x 13" dish to serve a large group or to take to a potluck. It can be made in advance and kept in the refrigerator and reheated when ready to serve.

When Magic Happens

On Sunday, we got home from church and my husband started on dinner.

It was a grillin' Sunday - which means he's got the main dish, and I do the rest. I started peeling potatoes at my kitchen sink and looked out the window.

There he was.

The one I've been married to for 10 years. The one who wears gray Converse - which I find so sexy and irresistible. The one who has let his beard grow back so if you thought you were gettin' a photo of him with his baby face - well, not a chance.

I finished peeling the taters, went upstairs to change, and came back downstairs to finish up dinner.

Then I looked outside.

Sometimes, I can verbalize what a moment feels like. As a writer, I love the challenge of putting into words my thoughts in a moment - using my limited vocabulary to express what only words can.

But, sometimes - a photo says more than words can ever say. As a photographer, those moments are magic. They don't happen often - which is why they are so special when they do.

Well.

Somewhere in Raleigh, North Carolina, on a grillin' Sunday, early in the month of January, on the back deck of our home, a new Christmas present created one of those moments.

Magic happened.

Brunch Favorite: Hot Fruit and Sausage

I was chatting on the phone with my best friend this weekend - telling her that I was preparing to go to a baby shower brunch.

"I'm taking that fruit and sausage dish", I told her.

She gasped. "You need to put that on your blog. That stuff is awesome."

I quickly grabbed my camera as I was walking out the door and took a photo of this dish that she, and so many of my friends and family absolutely love.

Because it does belong on here - as it's a family favorite that I make and serve all the time.

It's an unexpected combination - warm fruit and sausage all in one dish. But, this recipe takes ordinary browned sausage and combines it with chunked pineapple and sliced banana - coated with a brown sugar and cinnamon sauce that really is the perfect combination and is a great addition to any brunch table.

If you come visit us here in Raleigh, you'll probably see it the next morning on the breakfast table served alongside one of these main courses:

Stuffed French Toast
Savory Croissant Breakfast Pudding
{Light and Fluffy} Buttermilk Pancakes
Mixed Fruit Scones
Overnight Sticky Buns

I like making this dish when we have company because it's ready in about 10 minutes and I don't have to fuss around the kitchen to get it prepared. I like taking it to brunches because I know that there will be nothing else like it - and whether there are muffins, pastries, breakfast casseroles, potatoes or all of the above on the brunch table, I know this dish will complement all of it.

An easy, hearty, brunch favorite.

I hope y'all enjoy this one as much as we do.

Enjoy!

Hot Fruit and Sausage
recipe adapted from Taste of Home.

2 packages (12 ounce) uncooked or frozen sausage links (turkey, beef, or pork)
1 20-ounce can pineapple chunks
4 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 medium bananas, sliced

In a large skillet, cook sausage according to package directions; drain. Drain half of the juice from the pineapple and add it to the pan along with the sausage, brown sugar and cinnamon; stir to heat through. Stir in banana just before serving.

"...You go and do something like this. And, TOTALLY redeem yourself!"

This is my baby when he wakes up in the morning.

(Excuse the blurry iPhone photo.)

My baby bares an uncanny resemblance to someone.

Any guesses?

Need I say more?

It was the Jeff Daniels as Harry in Dumb and Dumber impersonation that finally did my husband in.

Sarah, you have GOT to cut his hair! And, I mean today.

I pouted and closed my eyes. Today? Today? This poor baby has this crazy, curly hair that I have been trying to figure out/understand/tame for months. One minute, it's ringlet curls all over his head. The next minute he's Lloyd's sidekick driving a Sheepdog around town. But, I just didn't want to lose his curls. I love his baby curls.

So, yesterday, I took him to get his first haircut.

I walked into the haircut place/barber/salon - whatever they're called anymore - and embraced my inner insanity:

This is my baby. I have never cut his hair because, well, look at it. See all these curls? But, in the morning, he looks like Harry from Dumb and Dumber, I have a photo, Do you want to see it, and when it's not humid outside at all or when he's slept on it or when it's not newly washed it kind of goes straight a lot and well, my husband says that I have to cut it or he's taking matters into his own hands and well, he'll buzz the whole thing off and I just can't handle it if those curls are gone forever because this is my baby we're talking about and I'm just not ready to have him be a teenager because I cut his hair and I know I sound crazy and really high maintenance and I'm not usually like this, I'm usually so laid back, you should ask my friends, I mean, I have four boys and I'd never survive if I was high maintenance or Type A but...

The girl cut me off.

I know just what to do, she said, as she put her arm around me.

Then she gave me a lollipop.

And, a Valium.

Thirty minutes later, I walked out of there - holding my new baby boy, and I squeezed him as tight as I could, looked him in the eye and told him:

You. look. MAHVELOUS!

And, he does.

Do you wanna see?

Here is my new baby:

He still has his curls! The girl said maybe they'd be gone when it was a lot shorter, and maybe they'd stay and guess what? THEY STAYED!

It waves around his ears and I could eat him for having waves around his ears.

Waves that turn into curls all over the back. Curls that are now 2 inches shorter but THEY'RE STILL THERE! Praise Jesus who gives us such good gifts like baby curls that STAYED.

Hello there, lovely.

He looks older to me now. No hair in his face or in his eyes.

A little boy haircut.

But, he's still my tiny in his blanket sleeper playing with his cars and being all precious and sweet.

I love you, happy one.

And, your new haircut, too.

World's Best Hot Chocolate {'Cause Baby, It's Cold Outside!}

When I wanted a mug of hot chocolate, I used to rip open the ol' Swiss Miss packets. Because for my whole life, that's what hot chocolate was.

And, I have loved - I mean LOVED - hot chocolate for my whole life.

My brothers and sisters and I would come in from the snow, peel off our snowsuits, throw them on the floor by the back door, and Mom would have the little blue box of hot chocolate out on the counter along with our mismatched mug collection and the tea kettle would be buzzing until finally - it screached and hollered and made a big ol' fuss.

Then - WE GOT OUR HOT CHOCOLATE ON.

If we were lucky, there were dehydrated, pea-sized little marshmallows in the bottom of the packets. "You bought the marshmallow kind? YESSSSS!"

Right? You, too?

And, when we were finished, we'd play Pac-Man and Space Invaders and Pitfall on our Atari while we smacked our chocolate-y lips to have been given such goodness.

I still buy Swiss Miss for my littles from time to time. Because I'm nostalgic that way and it's just easy and LORD KNOWS we run out of milk around here.

But, for me - for our guests, for gifts, for most of the time - I make this recipe for hot chocolate. My sister got this recipe from a friend many years ago, and she and I will serve each other no other hot chocolate.

What I love about it:

It's a dry mix (keeps forever), but there is no powdered milk.
That unexpected hint of cinnamon.
It makes a big ol' pot. Or a mug. Or anywhere in between.
REAL chocolate.
I have the ingredients in my pantry - always.

And, it's the best. If you're gonna claim something is "World's Best", it better be.

This hot chocolate is THEEE best.

You will never want to drink Swiss Miss, again, because you will be so spoiled rotten by your homemade kind. And, you will save beaucoup bucks because you won't be hittin' up Starbucks for hot chocolate every mornin'.

A couple of tips:

1. I always make a double batch of the mix and keep it in a tupperware container in my pantry.

2. I usually use whole milk because there is a bit of water in the recipe. And, whole milk makes it richer and creamier and so delicious. {You can use any kind of milk (skim, lowfat) - just try it at least once with whole.}

3. This hot chocolate mix makes a GREAT gift. Mix up a batch, put it in a mason jar or tupperware container and attach the instructions. Your friends will love it!

As we head into the coldest time of year, make up a batch, a pot, or a mug of homemade, really good, really comforting WORLD'S BEST Hot Chocolate.

Y'all will love this recipe!

Enjoy!
____________________________________________________________

World's Best Hot Chocolate

Mix:

8 oz. semi-sweet chocolate (I use mini-chocolate chips)
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Store mix in an airtight container.

For 4 servings:

2/3 cup cocoa mix
1/4 cup water
4 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

In a large pan on low heat, stir cocoa mix and water until melted. Add milk and beat with whisk until smooth. Heat on low until hot. Add vanilla. Serve.

*For a single serving, add 2 heaping tablespoons of mix in the bottom of a mug. Pour 1/8 cup boiling water (don't measure - just add enough to cover the chocolate) and stir until the chocolate melts. Add milk to the top of your mug and add a splash of vanilla. Microwave until heated.

65 Years. A Great Big Family.

Today, my husband's grandparents - who have become very much my grandparents and whom I love so dearly - celebrate their 65th anniversary.

SIXTY-FIVE YEARS. Of loving the same person. For better or worse. Every single day.

They will tell you that the secret to a life-long love is easy: Follow Jesus. Trust Him. Thank the Lord for every good gift.

Following through on that? Every day? Every month? Every year for sixty-five years? Not always easy.

I've watched them. For fifteen years, I've been watching the two of them. Taking mental notes as I tilted my head and wondered:

What is it about them?

And, here is what they say about life-long love - without using any words:

Hold hands.
Laugh together.
Cry when you mean it.
Whisper in each other's ear.
Put her coat on for her.
Repeat yourself. Don't say, "Nevermind."
Give grace.
Talk about good food.
Put your arm around her.
Call her, "My girl."
Retell the same stories.
Pray earnestly.
Give him knowing smiles.
Talk about when you first fell in love.
Relive your younger years.
Let everyone know you love her.
Let everyone know you love him.

Our family celebrated their anniversary with dinner and a slideshow of memories.

When a photo flashed of Gram sitting in the grass on a picnic in their early years, Pappy shouted, "There she is. That's my girl."

I pray and long for this kind of lifelong love. I want my husband and I to know this deep sense of trust and knowing and I want us to laugh together for our whole lives.

And, if the Lord will give them, I want lots and lots of grandchildren.

And, even more wiggly great-grandchildren.

I want to remember - as the years go by - the way Pappy always looked at Gram.

And, the way she always looked back at him.

65 years after their honeymoon.

Choo-Choos & Cheesesteaks

Each Christmas since Jack was a baby, we've visited an amazing train garden at The Shops at Kenilworth in Towson, MD - not far from my in-law's house.

My kids love this train garden. And, while we're there, Jason and I hork down cheesesteak subs at Italian Gardens - an Italian restaurant right next door. This place has the BEST cheesesteaks we've had anywhere. We have yet to find a single place in Raleigh where we can get a decent cheesesteak sub (we never found one in Michigan either), so we savor every bite of our Italian Gardens subs when we visit each Christmas.

Trains for the buddies.
Cheesesteak-horking for us.

I believe they call that a "win-win".

This year, all FOUR boys got to enjoy the trains. Whitman was a wee newborn last year, and watching his little sixteen-month old face light up was pure delight.

We simply LOVED watching each of them.

This train set-up is incredible. There is so much to look at and it is so well done.

Baltimore Ravens stadium? Home of the 2011 AFC North Champions! Yes, please.

Helicopters flying above amidst dangling Christmas lights.

Each one of them takes everything in - in their own way and time.

The baby was so utterly precious. Looking at his Grandpa - then back to the trains. Then back at Grandpa. Pointing. OOHing. Giggling.

Mesmerized.

We love sharing these moments with our children.

Finding things we know they'll love, loading them and all the anticipation in the world into the car, and watching the magic unfold.

I love these little boys.

So very much.

And, the baby who owns these little feet dangling from Grandpa's arms, too.

A little bit of Christmas night.

We left Christmas morning all over our family room, and loaded up the car to head to Grandma's house. We wondered if they'd be sad - leaving their new toys and heading out of town.

Nope. The lure of Grandma and Grandpa and cousins and aunts and uncles is so strong that they hopped right in the car and said, "LET'S GO!"

(That was an answer to prayer. Truly. We have never driven on Christmas day. So thankful.)

Mom's house. There are so many of us. It's the best.

Grandpa always reads the Christmas story before we open presents. It's a really special time with all of the littles huddled around the Christmas tree.

And, then it's full on chaos. A lot of laughter. A lot of squeals. A lot of, "Mom - Looook what I got!! NO WAY!"

There was some dancing. And, wide eyes that can't wait to get started.

I love their expressions. They're all so different - each one trying to take it all in.

And, Pappy. Sitting in the corner with utter delight on his face. He sits like this every Christmas and his expression is always the same. I wonder what he's thinking as he watches these little ones - eighty years younger than he is. I do know this - he loves them. So much.

The two newborns from last Christmas are now these precious little babies that are so wonder-filled that we just sit and OOH and AHH at them.

Whit - the Christmas tree was his favorite gift this year. At our house and at Grandma's.

Well, that and his little Maisy board books. He is so sweet pretending to read them. And, looking up at us and begging, "Again?"

Rachel - my husband's sister - is expecting a baby girl in March. She has won the hearts of all of my children and their cousins. She will be a fantastic mother. I can't wait to see her with her baby.

After we ate dinner, the kiddos snuggled in front of a movie and the adults got our WHITE ELEPHANT on.

The rules:

$10.
No food.
No gift cards.

It. was. HILARIOUS!

See that black and gold box? The evil-looking, horrible, loathsome one? That was the gift I brought. I wondered if anyone would touch it. (We are RAVENS fans in our family. Steelers = YUCK!) Inside? A Raven's purple casserole baker and purple and black striped socks. {I squeezed every bit I could out of my $10.}

See what Lincoln's holding? The Windshield Wonder. As Seen On TV gifts were Jason's brother and his wife's gifts of choice. Lincoln is still carrying that thing around. He wuvs to cwean.

Jason's sister, Aimee, opened the gift Jason brought - a yard stick-sized beer glass. This was the most popular gift of the night. The men all wanted it and stole and re-stole it from one another all night long.

Well, that and the COLD HARD CASH that my brother-in-law Justin brought - he froze a ten dollar bill in a bowl of water. Brilliant.

We laughed through the whole thing.

Christmas with our family - laughing, stealing gifts, babies playing, littles dancing, aunts peek-a-booing, Pappys gazing.

Full hearts from spending this Christmas day with the ones we love most.