Friday Things
1. I feel like it’s been so long since we’ve chatted since I took last Friday off for the holiday! How was your Thanksgiving? We had a wonderful day and spent last weekend decorating for Christmas (and baking bread together!). Joseph is SO into helping and “projects” right now and he’s getting old enough to understand and follow directions, so he was my little tree decorating elf while Dominic napped. He picked out the next ornament and handed it to me, then I gave him the empty box or bubble wrap to put away. He LOVED it and has been so excited to tell anyone that comes over he helped decorate the tree 💗
And I swear Dominic has grown by leaps and bounds over the last few weeks. He doesn’t crawl at all, sometimes gets into a full-on run if he’s excited, and has been babbling SO much and saying some words, which makes communicating with him so much fun. Mama, dada, yes, no, done… and lately he and Joseph have been chasing each other around the house and Dominic SHRIEKS like a banshee he’s so happy. It’s loud and crazy here, but boy is it fun to see the two of them together!
2. While we had a joyous holiday weekend at our house, prep on Wednesday occurred under somewhat sad circumstances as a local police offer who was killed in the line of duty was laid to rest. The incident happened less than 10 minutes from where my husband grew up, where my in-laws and my aunt and uncle live; it’s an area where many people my husband and I have been friends with over the years are from. It hit very close to home and when the local networks were airing the funeral live, we just couldn’t NOT watch, even though it was so devastating. My thoughts and prayers are with his family; he was only 25 years old and since becoming a mom when someone young dies, all I can think of is their parents. I just cannot imagine, especially right now with the holidays.
3. On a much lighter note, I’ve surpassed the halfway point of this pregnancy and am almost 22 weeks along! I continue to feel really good for the most part; this baby is sitting wayyyyy lower than either of the boys did (I had tons of rib pain with Joseph he was so high), which has given me some bouts of sciatica pain, but nothing constant. That’s really my only “complaint”!
4. Something totally crazy happened on Thanksgiving night… my sister texted me and our cousins a screen shot of this meme that appeared on a Facebook page, 80s Kids Rule:
A friend of hers tagged her in the comments, saying, “isn’t that you and your sister??” Um yes, yes it is, lol.
If you’ve been reading here for a long enough time (a REALLY long time!) you might recognize the picture from a Thanksgiving post I did seven years ago. It’s a picture of me, my sister, and our two cousins eating Thanksgiving dinner at my grandma’s house. Apparently someone found that picture and made it a meme? HYSTERICAL… my only regret is that no one found it earlier in the day or the four of us could have recreated the picture while we were together. Next year!
5. Did you do any Black Friday or Cyber Monday shopping? I did exactly ZERO. Oh wait, that’s a lie, I bought myself socks, ha! I bought a few different pairs of these; have you ever tried them? I’ll report back
6. This is a fantastic comparison of butter versus shortening in pie crusts… and I want to eat all of those little pie crust pieces!
7. Apparently Instagram is spying on me because lately my entire Explore page has been 95% filled with Golden Retriever pictures. I just want to hug and love them all ❤️
8. In case you missed it earlier this week, don’t forget to entire the Wolf Gourmet Countertop Oven giveaway! It is such an amazing and beautiful countertop appliance!
9. I would love to hear any recommendations you have for movies that are out in theaters right now or coming out soon! My husband and I are feeling a movie date night, but I rarely see trailers because we watch so much from the DVR, on demand or Netflix!
10. TGIF! Lots of love from Duke on his comfy downstairs bed!
Bad Mom’s Christmas is hilarious!
I’m in Pittsburgh too. Well a suburb. The funeral was awful. Beings that I’m married to a cop i found it difficult to watch. Seems too often that this is the daily news. But to be so close to home was devastating!
Anyways. I have visited 3 times in 2 days to check out that donut recipe. I think my boys would just love it. It’s on our list. And now I’m interested in so new socks. Hah enjoy the weekend!
We go to the movies a lot this time of year and 3 grown up movies that were good are ‘3 billboards outside Ebbing Missouri ‘ , ‘last flag flying ‘, and ‘lady bird’.
Too funny to find a picture of yourself as a meme!
I have to agree… the red knobs on the Wolf Countertop Oven are the perfect touch! I stayed with my brother over Thanksgiving and he uses a toaster oven for sooo many things. It really made me realize how convenient they are and want one.
Michelle, I just loved that picture of the four of you at the kids’ table! Which little girl are you, and I’m assuming it’s one of the girls on the right side?
I remember sitting at the kids’ table also, including the very last time when I was the oldest one at the table, and clearly thought I should be at the adult table, LOL!
Hi Pam, I am on the far right in the picture, good guess :)
So sad and so sorry about the police officer. I remember when the 5 officers were killed in Dallas year before last. You could feel the whole city in mourning.
On a happier note – I agree with everyone recommending Wonder – it was just as good as the book!
Murder on the Orient Express. My husband and I both really enjoyed it.
So sorry about the young police officer.
I did enter your contest. Would love to win. The boys are so cute. My youngest will be 41 next month. They grow up so quickly. Enjoy their help. Next Christmas they will have a little sister to help with. Duke seems satisfied. Guess you have your hands full without getting him a friend. Enjoy your weekend.
Bombas socks company sounds wonderful! The fact they give a pair to the homeless for each pair sold is amazing. The only shopping I did for The sales was skincare from Babor. Amazing price reductions! I enjoy the comparison between butter and shortening pastry and have saved it for my next venture into pies.
I LOVE my Bombas! I have had them for about six months, and they are still going strong and look and feel brand-new! I hope you like them, too.
Your boys are adorable. Your awesome parenting really shows!
So happy to hear all the love for Bombas!! And thank you so much for the incredibly kind comment :)
You should see Wonder.
As far as movie recommendations , I want to see “The Shape of Water” with Octavia Spencer and “The Man Who Invented Christmas” about the writing of A Christmas Carol. Or you could watch a movie you missed that is still out at the theatre. The meme with your family is hilarious, as is the story about how you found out about it. I hate, hate, hate to hear about any police officer going down in the line of duty. Especially when they are young. It’s tragic on so many levels. Joseph and Dominic make me laugh and smile so much..they are great kids.
I highly recommend Lady Bird! A really nice coming of age story with fantastic acting.
Hi Michelle and happy Friday!!! It looks like your little guys were sure having fun helping you in the kitchen. The day before Thanksgiving, my daughter and I have traditionally gotten together to cook/bake all the pies, cakes, brine the turkey, etc for Thanksgiving. This year we had a bit more fun than normal because my 7 year old granddaughter Olivia, and 5 year old grandson Blake, helped us and they had so much fun. I think their favorite part was rolling out the dough for the apple crumb pie. And by the way, man did I want a slice of that when it came out of the oven!!! It was so tempting but somehow I resisted since I had to save it for Thanksgiving. To me, it’s the best when it first comes out of the oven!
As far as grown up movie recommendations go, I don’t get to see too many of them these days with the grandkids but we did take them to see Star, it’s about the birth of Jesus, they really loved it!! I definitely would recommend that movie, not sure if Joseph and Dominic have been tot he movies before, but my grandkids were glued to the screen :)! They’ve only been twice so far. The 80’s shots you posted remind me of my kids, they were growing up in the 80’s, and I remember the same outfits with the sweatshirts and the turtlenecks. It’s so much fun to look back at old pictures! Have a great weekend!
Hi Lucy, Your Thanksgiving prep day sounds like so much fun! Joseph and Dominic haven’t been to the movies yet, but Joseph is probably close to enjoying the experience so I will definitely keep that movie in mind! Thanks so much for the recommendation!
Yes! I highly recommend the movie, Murder on the Orient Express. My hubs and I loved it! Of course we are big fans of the original. Also I recommend that you check out Dick’s for socks. I bought their Cabin Socks and they are so comfortable. They have two layers and are so warm. Great for our SW Pa weather! So sorry about that police officer..that’s just across the river from where we live…. Also a question… did you ever find that recipe for Pa Sweet Candy onion ice cream? I enjoy your website. Keep up the good work!
Hi Lee, Thanks for the recs! And I still haven’t found that recipe! If you come across one, please email it to me.
You might want to go see the movie Wonder. Very good movie. Sad, but based on a true story and a book that most 10 year old are reading.
Bombas socks are fantastic! I bought a bunch as gifts last year but none for myself so I was thrilled when a friend gifted me a few pairs. They are so comfortable! I bought some on Black Friday this year for the fam and it’s really neat to see the note after checking out that shows how many pairs of socks are being donated because of my order.
Are you following golden ratio 4 on IG or Twitter? 4 golden retriever sisters of various ages – their mom narrates their adventures. They seem to be good dogs with good lives. I think you’d enjoy their antics.
Hi Gina, So great to hear how many people love the socks! And I wasn’t aware of that IG account, totally going to follow right now!
This week my son and I saw Daddy’s Home 2.
If you like “Christmas Vacation” and “Deck the Halls” type of Christmas movies, Daddy’s Home 2 will be right up your ally.
On another note….regarding butter vs. shortening for pie crust. I’m SO glad you brought that link up. The article was very informative.
I’ve been using a particular shortening recipe for at least 15 years now. Over Thanksgiving I decided to try out a new “all butter” crust. I know, I know, Thanksgiving is NOT the time to try new things…..!!
I invested a lot of time with the pastry decorations, cut outs, stamps and crimping, etc. When the pie came out of the oven it was unrecognizable. The crust shrunk like crazy and all my work, all my details had disappeared. It literally looked like a first pie attempt back when I was like 9 years old. My “easy bake oven” baking came out prettier…. I almost threw it away but it was too late to make another pie.
I was positive I had missed a step or did something wrong……..I’m kinda known for an awesomely decorated homemade pie crust……but it was an epic fail as far as the details of my decorating went.
However, with that said, the taste was phenomenal. I noticed in the article they actually say, if your looking for detail, stick with shortening, if details are not of concern, go with the butter. A lesson learned. The hard way.
I have to say though, it was the best tasting crust, ugly pie I ever made. ;-)
So glad you posted the link to the article.
I’m so glad that link was helpful! One of my favorite pie crust recipes uses a combination of butter and shortening, so it’s sort of the best of both worlds.
Wonder is a great, feel good movie! I am looking forward to your review of the Bombas socks. I’ve had my eye on them for a long time. Also, love that your photo became a meme. Recereating it is the best idea EVER! Have a great day!
Over Thanksgiving, our family (my husband and 2 girls, 7 and 3 next week) saw “The Star” which is a totally cute cartoon depiction of the Nativity story. Maybe not great for a date night, but Joseph may like it. When it was over and the credits were rolling my youngest, Katrina said “Can we watch it again?” So I think we will buy it when it comes out. I’ve heard several people say “Wonder” is really good, but I haven’t seen it yet.
Also, I totally feel you on the police funeral. My dad is a retired cop from CSU, and I hurt for and pray for those officer’s families that lose them way too soon.
Bomba socks are great and I love that the company gives pairs to the homeless community on a regular basis. The company was n Shark Tank last year and got a deal pretty quickly. One of the presents I am giving my 13 year old goddaughter is a box of products from companies that give back to needy communities on a regular basis. I want to help her understand that giving to others less fortunate is such an important part of the Christmas spirit.I am including a couple of pairs of Bombas in the box this year.
I love your comments about Joseph decorating the tree. He sounds like such a mature, joyful little guy.
Enjoy this first weekend of December!
Hi Nancy, That is such a great idea for gift giving, I love it!
The Bombas socks are my new favorite!!!
Yay, so awesome to hear!
That meme is too funny.
I saw Coco over Thanksgiving weekend with my sister and nephew and we all loved it. My brother and brother in law saw Murder on the Orient Express and enjoyed it. I really want to see Wonder.
I made your Manhattan Clam Chowder recipe this week – yum!
Have a great weekend Michelle!
So happy to hear you enjoyed the Manhattan Clam Chowder! :)
I loved the movie, Wonder. I also just saw Justice League. I thought both were good movies.