Around the House

I spent the whole day today in my pjs, cleaning and working around the house. It was fabulous! My craft room is really coming along. I'm going to have to be careful to not make it TOO nice because I might want to spend ALL my time there! It's just so nice and cozy. Every room has it's own heating control so I can turn on the heat in the morning and after a little while it's warm and toasty and I can spend hours in there!

The music/entertainment room made big progress today too from Rob's efforts. He has his rocking chair in there, so he is also in danger of getting lost in his room. At least these two rooms are on the same floor, so we're sort of in proximity of each other! I put together four of the little shelves on the right, in 10 minutes each! We're working hard to get this room finished before my dad comes to visit.

And here's a few things I haven't blogged about, but are fun {for me}.

We had to get a new fridge. Actually... did I blog about that already? What drama! This is the one we finally ended up with. It's taller than the door! I can barely reach the top shelf. The kitchen island is from Ikea and it makes a huge difference in the kitchen. I still have a few things I can't fit, but it's getting there. The new dryer came at the same time as the fridge. I LOVE having the laundry in the bathroom! I actually don't mind doing it now!

And the grill. It's my first gas grill ever. It was really hard to make the transition, but I have to admit, it is great! I love how fast I can grill now and that I don't have to clean out the ash every time. I don't feel like I have to grill enough for the whole week now.

After cleaning and organizing my craft room I wanted to make something quick and fun, so I made these.

My plan is to sell them really inexpensively at the craft store. The idea is to use them like you would a gift bag, for small gifts. I'm stuck on calling them "gift cans" but there's got to be something better. "Gift Tins?" Suggestions welcome!

Banana Cookies

I was in a baking mood this week and found a recipe for banana drop cookies. They sounded interesting so I decided to give it a whirl. Oh man. So I took them to work and everyone kind of curled their lip and said "banana cookies?" I don't have any photos to show you because everyone ate them! Lizy asked me to post the recipe, so here it is:

From Better Homes and Gardens {New} Cookbook from 1981!

Banana Drop Cookies
Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Grease a cookie sheet. (I used parchment paper instead.) Stir together 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves. In a mixer bowl beat 1/2 cup butter or margarine for 30 seconds. Add 1 cup granulated sugar and beat till fluffy. Add 2 eggs and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla; beat well. Add dry ingredients and 1 cup mashed banana (2 medium) alternately to beaten mixture, beating after each addition. Stir in 1/2 cup chopped walnuts. Drop from a teaspoon 2 inches apart onto a well greased cookie sheet. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from cookie sheet immediately; cool on a wire rack. Frost cooled cookies with Banana Butter Frosting. Makes 60. (I don't think we got 60 out of it, but I probably made them too big.)

Banana Butter Frosting
Blend together 2 cups sifted powdered sugar, 1/4 cup mashed banana (1 small), 2 tablespoons softened butter, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. If necessary, add additional powdered sugar to make of spreading consistency.

I know you're probably thinking, uh, that sounds wierd. Let me tell you, that frosting... I wanted to just eat it with a spoon out of the bowl. The cookies taste a lot like banana nut bread. The frosting is what makes them special. So give it a try and let me know what you think. You won't hurt my feelings if you don't like them because it's not my recipe! Haha!

Art and Espresso

This is where I'll be through Saturday. If you're in Stuttgart (sorry family...) stop by and see the wonderful art and crafts for sale. Remember to "support living artists; the dead ones don't need it!" (I just love that quote!)

Halloween 2009

I "made" all the costumes this year. Jennifer generously gave me the satin and fringe to make the flapper dress. She also let me borrow the wig. I got several suggestions to go with black hair... what do you think? I found the hair piece, gloves, necklace, and the "cigarette" at jewelry stores in town. The cigarette holder is actually a hair pick and Corinnea made the cigarette out of paper at the last minute. It looked pretty darn cool!

I did these side by side pictures of the kids to help you understand their costumes. A lot of people didn't know who they were.

Haven was Coraline. Coraline is a movie (clay-mation, I think) that came out last year? It's about a girl who is unhappy in her real life and gets sucked into an alternate life where everything seems good but it has a sinister twist. I think it should be required watching for all children who have problems with gratitude and attitude. It's not for really little ones though. There are some scary bits. My favorite line is "she spied on our lives through the little dolls eyes..." We found the jacket, boots, and stockings at the Schwaben Galerie. So lucky because otherwise I was going to have to make the coat out of felt and I wasn't looking foward to it. The wig was a hot topic all week. Haven did NOT like it. It went through several phases and there was lots of threatening to not go trick or treating... but she finally agreed to wear it and it was fine. If I ever have to make a wig again I will do it better.

Ethan is Ben 10. This is a little cartoon the kids watch on Cartoon Network. Ben discovered a "watch" that bonded with his DNA and allows him to change into these ten different aliens for short bursts of time. The picture above is Ben with his 10 alter-alien-egos. The shirt is just a t-shirt sewn over a turtle neck. The watch thingy is from the PX. His costume was EASY. And he totally looks like Ben 10! But, poor thing, no one really knew who he was. And after he put on his coat during trick or treating there was no way to know who he was.

Oh, I did NOT walk around base as a flapper. I promptly changed after the costume party at the movie theater. I was smart and brough tennis shoes for the TWO HOURS we walked around collecting candy. This year was the longest we've ever stayed out. My head still hurts... It was pretty fun. Haven ran around with several friends and I had fun walking around with the other parents. So it was a nice evening.

WE HAVE INTERNET AGAIN!!!

I'm so busy catching up on everyone else's stuff that I don't have pics to post yet. But I'll get there! I'm just so happy to be connected again!

Moving Update

Just a quick update:

We finished moving on October 3rd and are now in the arduous task of unpacking and finding places for all our stuff. The new place is a bit smaller so it's an adventure. We ordered a refrigerator and dryer from Media Markt before we moved and they still have not arrived. I found out the other day that the clerk who helped us was "new" and pretty much did everything wrong. We should have a call from the moving company next week to set a delivery appointment. I can only hang so much laundry from the little rack and the shower door! And I'm pretty sure the family is tired of frozen dinners! Rob did get our new gas grill (I know... I caved... it's my first gas grill ever...) built on Thursday so I'm hoping to fire it up this weekend and see how it goes. Monday is a holiday and I am so grateful for the time to unpack and organize. As much work as it is, I have to admit I really love organizing and the required shopping when there isn't enough room for stuff! But I will be happy to have everything finished.

Ok, that's all for now. I promised pictures from Haven's birthday, but until we get internet at the house it's really hard to do decent posts. Hopefully next week I'll be back online. Of course I'll be in such withdrawal that I won't want to get off for a week! Haha!

AAFES Fashion Show

AAFES put on a family fair a few weekends ago and the Haven participated in the fashion show. She had two outfits, one sporty and one casual. She got to choose from several different pieces of clothing and she put her outfits together. Be sure and watch the video of her hamming it up on the catwalk!