Merry Christmas and Happy Snow Days!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone!

The snowfall we had the day after Christmas topped off the season very nicely. Steve and I rounded up two cardboard boxes with wax coatings on the outside and went on a sledding adventure! We had so much fun and were frozen by the time we finished. I even tried my hand at snow cream later that day which turned out delicious.

This was the first spot Steve and I chose for our sledding ventures.

This critter loves frolicking in the snow.

This is the most snow I've seen (about 6 inches) since my freshman year at UNCG; that snow was a memorable one that relieved us of classes for a day. Too bad it can't stick around!

Brrrrr...

Soo whatever winter weather forecasters said that it would be a warm winter.... sorry but I'm gonna have to disagree.

The high today in Greensboro isn't even at freezing! And the highs for the week won't rise above 44 degrees. The low tonight? 17 degrees. I looked out the window last night around midnight and it was snowing again. It's just crazy. I've never seen a snowfall as early as occurred this year and there's some more forecasted to fall later in the week.

So, snuggle up to someone and stay warm :)

First Snow of the Winter!

Mr. Jack Frost brought us our first snowfall of the winter this weekend! My dad made a visit so me, Sadie, Steven, Dad, and some friends went shopping at the mall (Confession: I bought a pair of jeggings....Google it), and it was quite an adventure considering we weren't counting on dealing with all the snow! Steven texted me around lunchtime stating it was snowing and sure enough when I checked outside, it was coming down; it didn't stop for several hours so we ended up with about 2 inches according to the Weather Channel. I snapped some shots of the beautiful landscape outside our apartment as I was walking out the door to church this morning. There's just something about the magic and beauty of snow this time of year, love it.

Doing a quick backtrack to Thanksgiving, it was wonderful getting to hang out with family to cook and eat; mom said I did most of the cooking this year, but I'm pretty sure I was only able to do that because she was in the kitchen with me! :) Christmas will be upon us before we know it! On a sad note, I spent my last day with my 3rd graders on Friday, they were sad to see me leave and I was sad to go; I truly loved interning at that school, in that area, and in that grade; 3rd grade might be my new favorite :) We shall see what next semester holds.

Jazzed up Mac 'n Cheese

I was not totally convinced about this macaroni and cheese recipe I found in Prevention magazine, but I decided to give it a try since I had a whole Butternut Squash to cook; it was surprisingly delicious! Plus, I think it's a great recipe to sneak some veggies in for kids who may not like them.

Recipe: (Serves 4)

- 8 oz whole wheat rotini (I used penne & there are 4 oz in 1 cup)

- 1/2 cup reduced-fat milk

- 6 oz butternut squash (you can use frozen, I bought a whole one at the store, cut it up, boiled it and then mashed it)

- 1 cup shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 1/4 tsp dry mustard

- pepper to taste

- 1 tbsp parmesan cheese

- 1 tbsp bread crumbs

* Simmer milk and squash until combined. Remove from heat and mix with cheese, salt, pepper, and mustard. Place cooked pasta into a "8 by 8" baking dish, stir in cheese mixture and top with parmesan cheese and bread crumbs. Bake @ 375 degrees for 20 min.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Amazing. Epic. Awesome.

Yep, that's pretty much all I have to say about that.

Pumpkins and Birthdays

I absolutely love this time of year from October to about the second week in January. Fall is my favorite season and Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years are by far my favorite holidays; it's been awesome this year having an apartment to decorate, plus a momma who has all these extra decorations :)

October and these first couple of weeks of November have been a whirlwind but we did take out some time to carve pumpkins right before Halloween and celebrate Heather's 21st birthday last week. Fun was had by all, and I can't wait for Thanksgiving!

We had a Princess party theme going on, hence the crown :)

The beautiful funfetti cake.

The happy carvers.

I forgot to give him teeth but I still think he looks pretty handsome :)

Sadie working hard carving our names.

Lady Antebellum - "Hello World" Music Video

Heard this song tonight on the CMAs and then my roomie Heather showed me the music video; it's a great song with a great message!

3rd Grade Quote of the Day

Male student who is sitting next to me at lunch: "Ms. Frey, you might not want to sit on this side anymore."

Me: "And why is that?"

Male student with goofy grin on face: "Cause I let one loose. I blew a gasket".

Me: It was all I could do not to choke on the food I was eating and burst into laughter. (What 3rd grader throws the word 'gasket' around anyways!)

Boys, they'll get ya every time.

D.C. Continued!

Such an awesome trip, definitely going back :)