Brrrrrr, Cute!

With the temperature turning chilly, Carter is proving that cute is cute...even in bulky outerwear.

How cute am I?

Posing with MomGiving my tough lookTrying to show off my cute frog hat, but showing off my cute grin instead.

Thursday's Random Round-up

So I got this idea from a blog that my brother introduced me to. I thought it might be fun to try, so unfortunately y'all are my guinea pigs.


This says all that I can say about Yankee... though it seems there is even one for this area.


Let's hope that Tubby didn't follow Saban's lead with his own call to action.


Why is that some people just think it is ok to get naked anywhere?




And, as always, I'll leave you with a picture you of this little guy:

Dad's Little Helper

We are giving {or, more precisely, having someone else give} our basement a face-lift. We are changing the paint color, replacing the carpet and hope to make Carter a nice play area down there. This past week, we had someone come and paint the walls. Subsequently, Nick decided that the baseboards needed to be painted, so he was taping them off to paint. Carter wanted to help play too!

A tasty alternative...

...to the sweet potato casserole that graces so many tables this time of year are Sweet Potato Balls. My MIL and SILs tried {and shared} this recipe a few years ago, and it is truly delicious and delightful! We made them last year to complement our Thanksgiving dinner, and if we were cooking this year, I would definitely make them again. For those of you who might not like coconut how unfortunate for you, you could probably eliminate it and just roll in the cinnamon and sugar. However, I cannot endorse this method because I have never tried it.

Sweet Potato Balls

Ingredients
4 large sweet potatoes
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons orange juice
1 teaspoon orange zest
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
2 cups shredded coconut, sweetened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 large marshmallow per potato ball
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Bake the potatoes until tender, then peel and mash them. Stir in the brown sugar, orange juice, zest and nutmeg. In a separate bowl, toss the coconut with the sugar and cinnamon. Press mashed potatoes around each marshmallow, creating a 2 to 3-inch diameter ball. Roll the balls in the coconut mixture. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Watch carefully for the last few minutes of cooking; the expanding marshmallows can cause the potato balls to burst open.

(recipe and photo courtesy of Paul Deen, The Food Network)

How the West was Won!

Notice JPW and the football just right of 99's right butt cheek. ROLL TIDE!

And for those of you who outlaw blog post sans Carter (Uncle Steve):

We look forward to heading home in two weeks for a nice Thanksgiving visit. We plan on being in Decatur Monday night- Thursday and then Bham/ Tuscaloosa for the weekend. Hopefully, we will get to see many of you then.

Wordless Wednesday

When I was little...

...my mom used to "serve" us snacks {think Goldfish, Cheerios, oyster crackers} in Dixie kitchen-sized paper cups. Things have progressed quite a bit since then ... to the point that we now have available those nifty snack bowls for little ones that allow them to reach in to get the goods, but prevent the goods from spilling all over the floor when they inevitably turn the bowl {or cup} upside down.

I, however, have not yet actually remembered to buy these bowls when I have been in Tar.get. So, this weekend, when I got tired of doling Cheerios out of my hand, the light bulb when off. I fished in the pantry until I found my own Dixie kitchen-sized paper cups, filled one halfway with Cheerios and handed it off to Carter.

He peered inside.

He fished for the goods.

Cheerfully, he ate them as he marched around the house.

Then, of course, he dumped what was left of them out in the floor.

The Haircut

I know that some people have strong feelings opposing the early cutting of a little one's hair. At our house, we have strong feelings opposing the mullett, so it was time to take Carter to get his hair cut. Here is the experience in pictures:

Mom, I am not really sure about this whole haircut thing

Oh, no! What is she doing to me?

Stop, please stop!

He stopped crying immediately after the haircut, and was perfectly fine when I picked him up out of the chair car.

Apparently, balloons make everything better.

He went right back to playing with the balloon after his nap...and continued to play with it all afternoon & evening!

Although it was sad to watch him scream while she was cutting his hair, Carter now has a cute "little boy" haircut {and no longer a mullett}!

Crazy Sista's Juicy Pot Roast Sandwiches

This is the recipe that I referenced in a previous post. I received it courtesy of Andrea, who never fails to pass along tasty recipes. I believe she probably found it here. Don't let the list of ingredients intimidate you...it is VERY easy and really yummy.

I think if I were to do it again, though, I would double the recipe and do a 4 lb roast (but no need to double the white horseradish sauce--it makes plenty). The 2 lb ended up with about 6 servings at our house, but I would have liked to have more left over! Even Carter loved the roast!

Crazy Sista's Juicy Pot Roast Sandwiches
1 (2-lb) beef chuck roast
8 whole cloves garlic, peeled
Cracked black pepper
1 (14-oz) can beef broth
½ c. Allegro Original Marinade
4 (8-inch) loaves New Orleans-style French bread or 1 baguette, but into 4 pieces
4 T. butter, softened, divided
1 yellow onion, sliced
1 green bell pepper, sliced
4-8 slices Swiss or Provolone cheese
White Horseradish Sauce

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Place pot roast in a baking dish just big enough to hold the meat. Make 8 deep, little cuts throughout the roast and insert a whole clove of garlic into each one. Season roast generously with cracked black pepper. Pour beef broth and marinade over roast and cover tightly with a sheet of aluminum foil. Bake for 5 to 6 hours. When roast is done, it will be so tender, the meat should literally fall apart. Drain juices into a bowl or container to reserve for au jus dipping sauce. Melt 2 T. of butter in a cast iron skillet. Add onion and bell pepper and sauté until soft and slightly browned on the edges. Roves from skillet and set aside. Slice French bread horizontally, about ¾ of the way through, leaving one edge intact. Spread remaining butter on inside surface of French bread and toast. Layer each toasted French load with shredded pot roast, sautéed onion and bell pepper and cheese. {I put mine back in the oven and melted the cheese.} Drizzle generously with horseradish sauce. Serve with a side of au jus for dipping (and plenty of napkins)!

White Horseradish Sauce:
2 c. sour cream
½ c. prepared horseradish
1 t. salt
½ t. white pepper
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
2 T. freshly squeezed lemon juice
2-3 dashes LuLu’s Perfect Pepper Hot Sauce
1 t. freshly chopped rosemary, optional

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Mix thoroughly and refrigerate.

Enjoy!

Go Green--Recycle the Signs

I couldn't help myself...

I saw this here. I figure that although not in my yard there are lots of these lying around that could be converted for a good cause.

Roll Tide!!!