Cats On Tuesday: Merry Christmas!

To all my Cats On Tuesday friends I wish a Very Merry Christmas…

a cute kitty cuddled on your couch,

and one under your tree.  :)  Meowy Christmas!  For more kitty fun visit Gattina, where Rosie serves up mousie water and Arthur…well, he’s just Arthur.  :)

Fall Reading Challenge Results

Well it’s official, it’s winter and the Fall Into Reading challenge hosted by Katrina at Callapidder Days is over.  Done.   Finished.  I know you are dying to know…how did I do?

I read a lot.  8 new books to be precise.  Not as many as some, but enough for me.  :)  I had 10 on my list that I wanted to read but only got to 5 of those.  I couldn’t get my hands on the other 5!  But I had some good substitutions.  And as usual, I reread.  How could I not with the new Twilight movie coming out (so there’s 4 books right there) and then the latest Harry Potter movie out on DVD (read the last 2 books in that series.)

My favorite book from this challenge?  Definitely The Sugar Queen.  Least fave?  Still Life.  As always the challenge was great fun.  Thanks Katrina for hosting!  :)  I met some new reading buddies and got lots of ideas for books to read.  Oh, and I read lol.

Rolling In Dough

Yes it’s true, I am the Christmas Cookie Queen.  However, this year I haven’t been as interested in the whole cookie scene…something to do with my weight loss endeavors you think?  ;)  Yes, losing 15 pounds gives you a little incentive to skip the Christmas goodies.  I’ve made a few goodies for my boys here and there, but why tempt myself?  I mentioned this to my husband and he totally guilted me…”Everyone will miss your cookie baskets!”  So today I gave in and made cookie dough.  4 to be precise, and a batch of Oreo Cookie treats.  Over the next few days I’ll bake them all up and package them to give out to the siblings and in-laws on Christmas Eve.  I shared the recipes for most of the cookies on my recipe blog last year and will post the others as I finish.  Please send good “avoiding sweet treats” vibes my way, and lots of them.  :)

Product Review: Ultimate Party Meatballs

Thanks to Mom Central I was able to try out a quick and easy recipe for that beloved holiday treat, meatballs.  Well, not just any meatballs, but Ultimate Party Meatballs.   Putting these yummy treats together couldn’t be easier!

You can whip them up on the stovetop, but I am all about my crockpot lately.  :)

All you need is some frozen meatballs, a can of Ocean Spray cranberry sauce, a jar of Heinz chili sauce and a Santa spoon rest.  I also threw in some little weenies for kicks.

Santa not only holds your spoon, but the recipe card too.  Told ‘ya you needed him.  Can’t read the tiny print?  Not to worry, there is a super website set up with the recipe for the Ultimate Party Meatballs and other delicious ideas as well.

All it takes is 4 hours on high and you are set!  Using the crockpot frees up your stove and yourself for more important matters.  Plus you can just tote your crockpot over to the party and back…less cleanup and mess.  This is exactly what I am going to do for our annual Christmas Eve gathering.  I can throw everything in the crock in the morning and by noon when we leave it is ready.  Love it!

But who says you need a party (or utensils) to enjoy these 3 ingredient treats?

Not my guys.  :)  Go forth, acquire these simple ingredients and bring some deliciousness to your holiday gatherings.  Your crockpot will come home empty.

“I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Heinz and Ocean Spray and received the ingredients necessary to facilitate my review. In addition, Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.”

Weekly Weigh-In

154 still.  No change.  No problem, happy that we are at least holding our own.  This weight loss has been quite slow for me but it’s to be expected.  #1 I am over 40 now and the hormones and metabolism are confused.  #2 I am not following a drastic diet, just eating less of the same food I’ve always eaten.  #3 I exercise but I’m not running any marathons here.  When I complained to someone at Thanksgiving that the weight loss was too slow she said not to worry, that losing slowly meant it was more likely to stay lost.  I am finding that to be true.  ;)

This week I’m weighing in on exercise dvd’s.  Love them!  I have a nice collection, but of course it’s always nice to have some variety.  (Holy cow, I just used “nice” twice in the same sentence.  Sister Margaret, my 11th grade English teacher, is going to kill me.)   Enter Netflix.  I finally caved in and started a subscription this year, mainly for their AWESOME exercise collection.  Not only can I rent an actual dvd, but they have tons of streaming videos as well.  I just move stuff out of the way and workout right there in front of my desk.  I don’t have to worry if it turns out that I don’t like the workout…I didn’t buy it!  (Can’t say the same for Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred.  I did buy it and I hate it!)  So instead of investing $10 a month on one new exercise dvd I now spend that on an unlimited amount.  Cool.  Check out Kris’s weight loss journey at Eclipsed.  She has very inspiring posts (and hardly ever uses the word “nice.”)

Cats On Tuesday: Outtakes

We all try for that perfect shot of our precious kitties.  Sometimes we fail.  ;)

Winnie is into the whole “Twilight” thing.  This is his take on Edward.

We are too late.  Rigamortis has set in.  (How in the world can she sleep like that?)

 

  I wrenched my back out trying to get this shot. 

Winnie the contortionist.  Again, I wonder how they sleep like that?  Then again, I have a teenager who can sleep standing up lol.

For more kitty fun head over to Gattina’s.  Happy COT!

Christmas Around The World: Week 2

Last week we visited 3 more countries to learn how they celebrate Christmas.  First off was Germany, where we learned about the origins of the Christmas tree and Kris Kringle.

  We made this Christmas tree ornament with a pipe cleaner and beads.  Ds3 went a little overboard with the beads lol.

Next up was Mexico and discussions about poinsettias and piñatas.  We attempted this poinsettia craft that failed miserably.  Our paper towel soaked up way too much of the paint and essentially never dried.  Still kind of pretty, though.

Finally we learned about how Spain celebrates the holidays and call people to church with bells.  Here are our lovely bell ornaments.

Just simply bells strung on a red pipe cleaner and topped off with a pretty bow.  The boys and I are both enjoying this holiday themed trip around the world and their little Christmas tree is looking great with their homemade ornaments.  I do plan on visiting 3 more countries next week and then taking a homeschooling break until next year.  Ds3 is sick this weekend so we’ll have to see how things go.