Meet The Choissers

A Colt For The Colts: Shhh Don't Tell DaDa

2009-09-30T13:48:00.000-07:00

Our little Manning, I mean manling, has done his fair share of kicking, passing, and tackling in the 8 months that he has been amongst us but Mama still had to ask...

Are
You
Ready
For
Some
Football?

I think the answer is, "Yes, Go Colts!"

I Scream, You Scream, Savannah Serves Ice Cream: Cookie Dough Edition

2009-09-30T13:08:00.000-07:00

Here at Meet The Choissers dot blogspot dot com we would like to extend our hand in gratitude towards Miss Savannah May for inviting us into her home for a special sweet treat...ICECREAM!

Edy's puts the cream in scream.

I think she needs a bigger spoon!

oops, was too busy eating ice cream and trying to remember how to speak German to take any photos of us consuming das guten Eis.

Savannah asked if she could take a picture, for a three old I'm impressed!

This is just a reminder the my heart melts faster than ice cream.

Squish and Squirm doing what they do best, Blondie squishes and Squirmy runs!

The View From An Eddie Bauer Travel System

2009-09-28T07:09:00.000-07:00

The follow pictures were captured from Andrew's perspective while he rode 2miles in his Eddie Bauer Travel System around Benton Lake. Despite less than ideal weather conditions we made the most of the cloudy and unpredictable precipitation in Southern Illinois.

.

Clean Shiny and A Little Grimey

2009-09-27T18:19:00.000-07:00

Playing in the tub is fun
its what I like to do.
I dunk my toys one by one
and splash my Mommy too.
Then Mommy leans in the tub
"Its time to wash your hair."
Mommy has to scrub and scrub
but I don't really care.
Getting clean is fun for me
but I fight it every time.
After all I am a boy
I kinda like my grime.

8 Months Old Today

2009-09-14T17:44:00.000-07:00

Baby Finger Food

2009-09-14T13:40:00.001-07:00

Julie Livingstone: The Pool

2009-09-14T11:38:00.000-07:00

Julia Livingstone: Audubon Park

2009-08-19T10:27:00.001-07:00

Bacon, Eggs, and Ham

2009-08-18T06:55:00.000-07:00

Bacon

Eggs

Ham

Considering I don't have a sewing machine this craft project went rather well, last night I produced a bacon and egg breakfast.

The medium simple; all it took was some felt, yarn, and a large needle.

My ultimate goal is to make several different "felt food dinners", the alphabet, and some numbers.

1 Year Wedding Anniversary

2009-08-11T08:43:00.001-07:00

August 9, 2009 marks the celebration of our first wedding anniversary, we returned to the location were married on the Gun Creek Peninsula at Rend Lake where we stayed and reflected on our first year as husband and wife.

Hair Chop

2009-07-17T10:40:00.000-07:00

New motherhood finally took its toll and I got the hair cut!

First Swim

2009-06-08T12:24:00.000-07:00

Andrew went for his first swim out on the lake and loved it!!

First Music Lesson

2009-06-02T12:16:00.000-07:00

It is never too early to get started on music lessons but when you weigh less than twenty pounds the selection of musical instruments becomes limited. Considering that Andrew has already mastered percussion via rattle Mommy decided to direct him towards a more harmonious option, piccolo.

Waiting in anticipation to get started, we listen to a Mozart sonata.
First, Andrew learns how to tune the instrument by adjusting the head joint.

...but we need to work on posture.

Sitting in playing position Andrew demonstrates for the camera how to hold the piccolo with both hands. I would like to note that he was able to place his left index finger correctly without any assistance.

The horizontal hold was a little heavy so Mommy helped out.

His embouchure technique is remarkable!

The Choissers Explore New Harmony,Indiana

2009-05-07T14:05:00.000-07:00

We went to New Harmony Indiana last weekend to support Bryan's Stepmother Alice, in an Art/Craft Fair. She makes garden art such as fountains, bird feeders, and charms out of copper. The photo below is a macro shot of one of her stunning lily pad wreaths.

Grandma Alice, Grandpa Randy, and Baby Andrew pose in front of their Copper Penny Garden Art Booth.

Three Generations of Choisser Men smile pretty for the camera

According to my brochure:

"A community that began almost two hundred years ahead of its time,New Harmony was first a spiritual sanctuary that later became a haven for international scientists, scholars, and educators who sought equality in communal living."

We enjoyed the day exploring the historic sites and got creative with some photography.

Here are some photos of our quickly growing family

Leave it to my Husband and Mother to turn a beautiful serene ivy garden into a playground. This is what I get to deal with since I married someone just like my Mom!

Thankfully, this adorable "Father son shot" and "Grammy with baby" make up for their silly behavior.

Alright, my turn to have some fun in the ivy garden.
Now you see me
Now you don't (Heh, gonna have to photo shop my hands out of this

Three generations

....and now and important message brought to you by the Harmonites, "A culture that does not teach prayer soon runs mad with desire".

Ohh another pretty fountain to pose at, I even managed to keep my Husband and Mother from jumping in!

Attachment parenting at its finest
Just call us the Bush family(ducks and hides from democrat husband)
My Mom ran away
Over the Wabash and into Illinois
Finally, I leave you with this loving image of husband and wife hugging along the Wabash River under a tree tunnel. Awww...

Thunder Over Louisville

2009-04-22T13:47:00.000-07:00

Thunder Over Louisville is a day long celebration geared to kick off the Kentucky Derby some of the highlights include continuous flybys of our U.S. military aircrafts, yummy carnival food, and the Nations largest firework display! We made our journey to the Bluegrass state, along with 600,000 others, this past weekend to get in on the events and celebrate my husband's birthday.

The Drive to Louisville Kentucky is beautiful, The highway weaves along the rolling hills of Eastern Indiana's Hoosier National Forrest and because I was driving it flew past in a blur of green, I hope to go visit someday but this particular trip had a different mission, "to get four adults, 1 infant, 1 toddler, and supplies parked along the Ohio River without having any major meltdowns and much to our surprise we pulled it off!

Behold Louisville
(The weather was nice despite the overcast conditions)

Bella enjoying herself

Andrew's not so secret talent

Look, there is an Apache helicopter stirring Ohio River water mist into my face, ewww!

I have about 100 pictures of random planes but I'm going to spare posting them since I couldn't begin to tell you what kind they are and leave you with this image. This is a representation flyby of the advancements in U.S Military aeronautical engineering.

Andrew and Mom decide to blow all of her Weight Watcher points on splitting a funnel cake with friends, yay funnel cake!
Daddy rocks tired baby to sleep
Family shot before firework begin
Fireworks, don't worry--Andrew loved the fireworks he was just scared of the camera!
And finally, a video of the firework show brought to you in high definition by David Harpe

Rainbow Fun

2009-04-17T20:17:00.000-07:00

My latest project may not taste like Skittles but you can still, "taste the rainbow". Today's adventure is brought to you thanks to my husband's love for silly cakes. Speaking of silly cakes, there is some good stuff over at www.cakewrecks.com and now without further ado I present the technical process of baking rainbow cupcakes.

Normally, I would make my own cake batter but the 3month old requires me to budget time wisely so I had my dear old friend Betty whip some white cake batter up for me.

For taste test purposes I stuck my clean finger in the bowl, took a lick, and proceeded to pour what looked like evenly divide batter into 5 glasses.

...and now the real fun begins thanks once again to my friend Betty and her handy-dandy gel food color tubes.

I swirled the dye on purely for aesthetic purposes, ooh pretty!

As you can see in the picture below I created a ROYGBIV color spectrum with my gel color tubes minus the IV because I'm a busy housewife and don't have time to work with 7 colors, we are a 5 color household.

Toto, I don't think we are in Kansas anymore. Here are the beautiful mixing results!

Now that the primary rainbow spectrum batter is mixed it is time to move on to the layering process.
#1 Wrappers

#2 Layer the colors (I layered in reverse rainbow order BGYOR), just keep laying until you have used up all the batter

#3 Bake according to cake recipe directions

#4 While the cupcakes cool, take an adorable picture of nearest baby

#5 Slap on the icing(hopefully your better at it than me)

#6 Dissect

#7 Eat!

#8- Bonus! As I was writing this my husband sent me a photo of the beautiful rainbow he captured through his window at work!

Happy Birthday Bryan

2009-04-17T06:57:00.000-07:00

I'm having anxiety over the suspense of not telling Bryan what his Birthday gift is so without further ado I'm going ahead and unveiling the "big surprise". Lets just hope he actually reads my blog!

Those of you that know Bryan may be aware of his annual trip to attend Thunder Over Louisville. Due to having a baby the chances of upholding his tradition have been slim to none, and I feel bad that we are not getting to go like we did in the past.

Thankfully, his creative wife came up with a back up plan...

A weekend getaway at a hotel that has its own waterpark! Tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and 76 degrees, if its too cold to swim we still have the HUGE indoor pool to look forward too! Did I mention that the hotel is 0.76 miles away from...THIS?? Oh, and that these fine people are going with us?

Simply Organic Strawberry Pie

2009-04-14T10:37:00.000-07:00

I'm a purest when it comes to the beauty of the berry and preservation of its natural deliciousness so I beg you to throw out those jello coma inducing recipes and try this.

The name of the game is Simply Organic Strawberry Pie and we start with the crust. I prefer to make my own because quite frankly its a fun thing to do plus I can control the ingredients and earn bragging rights. If time is of the essence you can kiss your bragging rights goodbye and buy a pre-made shell --shhhhhh, I won't tell if you don't.

Here is a little video tutorial on how to make a pie crust thanks to LiveGreen on youtube.

Blah, mine didn't turn out so fancy but that's my own fault for being cheap and getting a lame pan.

Now we need to fill her tank with some mother nature goodness, 2 cups of sliced strawberries should do the trick.

When you done slicing add a squirt of lemon juice and stick em back in the fridge, hum a show tune, and grab your sauce pan. In a small sauce pan stir to a boil 1 cup water, 1 cup sugar, and 3 tbs cornstarch. When the mixture stars to boil remove from heat and allow to cool. In the mean time kindly throw your strawberries into the pie shell.

When your berries are in place carefully pour the liquid sugar mixture over the berries. Better yet, for a prettier presentation add the liquid sugar mix to your berries before putting it in the pie shell. Clearly I wasn't going for pretty.

Simply yummy.

2 cups strawberries
1 cup sugar
1 cup h20
3 tablespoons cornstarch
9 in pie crust

Mix water sugar and cornstarch in small saucepan.
Bring to boil stirring often. When mixture thickens and turns transparent, remove from heat add strawberries and pour into baked pie shell.
Chill

Got Ears?

2009-04-13T15:24:00.001-07:00

I don't think my husband even noticed what I did to his Easter Bunny!

It was supposed to look like this:

Not this:

MMmmm...bad wife, bad!

I hope everyone had a Happy and Blessed Easter, Love The Choisser's

"Closet" Breastfeeding

2009-04-13T13:56:00.000-07:00

Dear Pastor of Church,

On Easter Sunday, I was visiting your church with my baby. During the service, I stepped into the nursery to feed my infant son. I asked one of the nursery workers if I could use one of the two rocking chairs, as both chairs were occupied by the workers at the moment and I did not want to set in the unoccupied chair that was lacking arm rests. They quickly offered a rocker, which I appreciated. As I sat down and began to unlatch my discreet nursing camisole to feed my son, one of the workers said, "Oh, you're breastfeeding, here we have a private room for nursing mothers..." and proceeded to drag the armless chair behind a door into a room that is obviously being used as a closet, where I and my baby both hit our heads on various items.

I have several issues with both the room and the pressure that was placed on me to move from the comfortable rocker. The first issue is the safety of the room that has stuff stacked everywhere, it is not a safe place for a mother to feed her baby let alone anyone that has access to the nursery. A child could easily open the door, hide back there, and get crushed. The second is that any church treating breastfeeding mothers with such low regard as to stick them (literally) in a closet, is not a place where a nursing mother is likely to return. The third issue is I went to the nursery and should have been able to nurse my baby there as I started to do. I solved the issue myself and nursed on the steps leading into the sanctuary instead.

I was really looking forward to visiting as this was my childhood church. . Considering that our Lord and Savior was nursed by Mary as a child, I had expected a higher level of respect for the art of mothering than what I found in your place of worship. I am hoping that by letting you know my experience, breastfeeding mothers can become cherished members of your congregation.

Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation.
1 Peter 2:2

Enclosed are the photos of the conditions in which I was asked to feed my baby

Homemade Stuff Rules!

2009-03-30T15:37:00.000-07:00

We love homemade items here in the Choisser household, especially ones made just for Mr Squeaks! Here are a few pictures of him modeling some his favorite hand crafted items.

Here Andrew is modeling an afghan that my Mom knitted during my pregnancy. She chose colors to match his nursery.

I had plans to do a series of paintings for the "clover fields" theme of Andrew's nursery but I only finished one canvas that spans the length of the changing table.

Painting for Nursery

In this photo Andrew is sportin' a sweater that my vary talented online "penpal" Beauty4Ashes crocheted him.

I will be back with a picture of Andrew's blanket that Aunt Denise made him its on my other computer ;)

...and last but not least, this little bundle was homemade with love.

TriState Moms

2009-03-26T13:42:00.000-07:00

I got upset with a certain local online mommy group that was more concerned with profits rather than the content so I started a new community, Tristate Mom's. So far its been a huge success

As of now we are hosting monthly MNO's (Mom's Night Out) . In March we enjoyed dinner fellowship at Los Bravos, our upcoming April meeting will be held at Olive Garden and we are brainstorming a few other ideas for get-together activities! We are also looking forward to constructing a cookbook in the near future.

Currently one of the members is holding a Spring weight loss incentive program which includes prizes--just in time for bathing suit season!

We are always welcoming new members so if you live in Indiana, Illinois, or Kentucky and are a mommy or mommy-to-be (I also like to encourage newlyweds/to be) please join us at http://tristatemoms.probards.com both mainstream and crunchy mommies are welcome!

Hello Blog

2009-03-26T12:33:00.000-07:00

Hello Blog,

I have neglected you. Andrew has kept me busy and now that Winter has subsided I have been finding myself outside more often than not.

As of yesterday, my little boy has been in the world for ten whole weeks!! I love being a mother and absolutely can not imagine life without children--I'm ready for round two ;)

My adventures in Mommyhood have led to so many fun and sometimes frustrating discoveries.

My Mei-Tai wrap (<--see photo) arrived last week and I'm head over heels in love with the thing and so is Baby A. No longer do we fumble with the big bulky stroller and a heavy baby seat when running in and out of stores.

I have also discovered the joy of cloth diapering, it was a little intimidating at first but now that I'm used to it 'sposies are out of the question. Have you ever blown up a marshmallow in the microwave?-- Disposable diapers in laundry have the same explosive properties, except they spew forth hundreds of gross gel beads EVERYWHERE (just don't ask me how they ended up in my washing machine-LOL)!

Now is my chance to get a shower, G2G.

Until next time,
Jennifer

Precious Lamb of God

2009-02-18T00:52:00.000-08:00

Andrew's First Valentine's Day

2009-02-15T21:33:00.001-08:00

Prelude to Valentines Day: Cooking For Someone Special-Chocolate

2009-02-13T20:07:00.001-08:00

In honor of Valentine's Day tomorrow, I thought it would be nice to spread the love and share some yummy recipes with my dear readers-you know who you are. This "Hallmark Holiday" would not be complete without decadent chocolate delights so I dare you to skip the prepackaged marketable goodies (unless you have a new baby, of course!) and make your own tasty concoction for the sweetie in you life. Warning: If your 'sweetie' is a dog I would skip on the chocolate and make these. Here are a few ideas of mine to get you started...

Mint Chocolate Brownies (photo above)

I chose this one because I believe halitosis should be avoided at all costs on this special day, you just might end up kissing someone and thanking me later.

* 4 eggs
* 2 cups sugar
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 1 cup butter
* 4 ounces baking chocolate
* 1 cup flour

Topping

* 8 tablespoons butter
* 2 cups confectioners' sugar
* 1 1/2 teaspoons peppermint extract
* green food coloring
* 3-4 tablespoons cream
* 1 (6 ounce) package chocolate chips

1. Beat eggs until fluffy.
2. Add sugar and vanilla; beat well.
3. Melt the butter and chocolate and add to the mixture (mixing well).
4. Add flour and stir until smooth.
5. Pour into pan.
6. Bake at 375*F for 25 min (if using 9x12 pan) or for 20 min (if using 15x10 pan).
7. Topping: Mix 4 tablespoons butter, confectioners' sugar, mint, and cream.
8. Add green food coloring.
9. Frost brownies and refrigerate.
10. Chill 1 hour.
11. Top with remaining butter and melted chocolate chips.
12. Refrigerate and cut into squares.

Lover's Fondue

* 6 tablespoons whipping cream
* 3 tablespoons honey
* 7 ounces toblerone bittersweet chocolate, chopped (2 3.52-ounce bars) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
* 1 tablespoon kirsch (clear cherry brandy)
* 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
* fresh fruit (such as whole strawberries, 1-inch-thick slices peeled banana, peeled pear wedges and orange segment)

1. Bring cream and honey to simmer in heavy medium saucepan.
2. Add chocolate; whisk until melted.
3. Remove from heat.
4. Whisk in kirsch and extract.
5. Pour fondue into bowl; place on platter.
6. Surround with fruit.
7. Serve with skewers.
***Or skip the fruit and skewers its Lover's fondue and almond is good for the complexion***

Chocolate Covered Cherries

* 2 cups powdered sugar (you may want to use more to thicken it up, some people have used another cup full)
* 1/4 cup margarine
* 1/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 1 pinch salt
* maraschino cherry, drained
* milk dipping chocolate (I use giridelli's)

1. Combine the first 5 ingredients until well blended and smooth and place in fridge until firm.
2. Meanwhile spread out the drained cherries on a cookie sheet and freeze for at least 1 hours.
3. Scoop out about 1-2 teaspoon of filling and form into a ball around a cherry.
4. Place on a wax paper lined cookie sheet and freeze for 1 hr after you have formed them all.
5. Melt dipping chocolate and using your hands dip each cherry placing it on a wax paper lined cookie sheet and chill in fridge until chocolate is solid.
6. Remove cherries carefully as not to break them open and loose the center.
7. Place in an airtight plastic container and keep in a cool dry place for up to 1 month.

Baby=Love

2009-02-11T23:41:00.000-08:00

Breastfeeding Rocks

2009-02-11T23:28:00.000-08:00

Yay, today we reached the 4 week breastfeeding milestone!!!

A Birth Story

2009-02-11T19:56:00.000-08:00

January 13, 2009, I woke up with some intense Braxton-Hicks contractions, around nine I went in for my routine prenatal doctor's appointment only to discover that my blood pressure was 160/90, protein was spilling over into my urine, and was 2cm dilated. My doctor asked me to go into triage at the Women's Hospital to be screened for pre-eclampsia. Deep down I knew we would not be leaving without a baby so I went home first to gather my bags and husband.

We got admitted into triage rather quickly (whoever invented pre-registration was a genius, kudos to you!) where I was strapped to all kinds of fun monitors; Baby heart rate contraption-check! Contraction reader-check! Evil painful blood pressure cuff-check! And because the hospital finds it necessary to hire blood hungry vampires I got one of those too! Just for kicks and giggles, I managed to muster up a whopping 180/120 BP and a killer migraine. My nurse said the forbidden C-section word so then I had no choice but to pull out the birthplan (a tool that makes every O.B. nurse cringe) and informed everyone that no matter what I was having this drug free, minimally invasive , beautiful birth despite my condition as long as the baby wasn't in danger.

There really was no choice but to have my membranes ruptured due to rising blood pressure, things needed to be moved along. Around 5pm the dam gates were released and I braced myself for the long hours ahead. Warm showers, long walks, birthing ball, back massages, a double cheeseburger smuggled from Burger King, a lot of love, and an abundance of prayer became my sources of sustenance for the next 14 hours of drug free back labor.

I had mentally been preparing quite some time for having this baby naturally as possible, but my body physically failed me. After putting my best efforts forward to avoid drugs the news that my cervix wasn't dilating served as a punch to the gut. For the record, the 14 hours of natural back labor that was endured was not in vain as it now serves as a treasured belief that I can do anything!

The next 12 hours passed in a blur as I experienced everything from pitocin to 2 rounds of epidural, a husband that almost passed out, and still no precious baby in site. At this point we had passed the 24 hour mark of broken water and according to hospital policy Cesarean section becomes imminent, but my godsend of a doctor believes in birth, and most importantly believed in me. My mother led us in prayer and within an hour I went from 6cm to 9 1/2cm. I never became a complete ten due to a mal-positioned cockeyed baby but with the assistance of a vacuum I pushed baby out like our lives depended on it.

My labor process took 34 1/2 hours. Conditions were less than ideal resulting in the very necessary interventions, I did not achieve a drug free childbirth but I tried my very best and at the end of two very long days of preeclamptic back labor it is a miracle that surgery was avoided, I consider my birth experience successful and am looking forward to trying again.

Goal #53 Complete: I got a Samsung Glyde

2009-02-06T14:51:00.000-08:00

For my Birthday my husband bought me a Samsyng Glyde, I had been in need of a new phone for quite some time and being practical I had indicated that I would like the env2 but my gadget-man of a husband decided I needed something far more superior and thats how I ended up with this fancy schmancy shiny device . I really like it because it makes texting so much easier and it even takes really good quality photos like this one...

and this one...

Goal # 33 Complete!!! Engagement/Wedding Ring Fits Again

2009-02-06T14:24:00.000-08:00

After 3 months of not being able to wear my wedding set, I can now easily slide it on and off my finger, I'm so happy!!!

Returning to Blog World: Andrew's First Weeks

2009-02-06T11:32:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

Its been awhile since I have posted an update- As expected we have been pretty busy since the birth of Andrew; Our days and nights have been filled with bonding, nursing, diaper changes, sleeping, and lots of love.

Andrew is now 3 weeks old a little over 8lbs and cuter than ever. Each day he grows more alert and interactive. If you kiss his neck he make the cutest happy baby noises and he loves locking eyes with Mama and Daddy. The experts say they are not yet capable of smiling, "its just gas" but we all know better, he really is the happiest baby around!

Every moment with him is so precious, in my mind its absolutely unfathomable that three weeks have already passed since his birth. I want time to stand still so I can breathe in all the baby goodness.

Some of our major milestones this past month include Andrew's first trip to Daddy's hometown, bath, doctor's visit, trip to the mall, and dinner outing. He has established that as long as his cornucopias milk supply is near he is content for all the adventures yet to come.

Baby Announcement

2009-01-21T17:35:00.001-08:00

*Drum Roll Please* After 39 weeks 1 day gestation, 32 hours of labor, and a bit of hard pushing, I would like to take this time to introduce the newest member of our family...

Mr. Andrew Russell Choisser
Born January 14, 2009 @ 7:35pm
7 lbs 10 oz, 20 1/2 inches long

"Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward." -Psalm 127:3

He is a perfect combination of his Mommy and Daddy- He has black clurly hair, a dimpled chin, a lip curl, sideburns that would make Elvis proud, and his ears are shaped like Mommy's and Ridgy like Daddy's.

He also has pretty almond shaped eyes just like his Great-Grandpa Sparky and feet just like his name-sake Great-Pappa Russell.

We are so proud and thankful to welcome this new little man into our world.

101 Goals for 2009

2009-01-03T15:32:00.000-08:00

On the right column of my blog you should be able to see a list titled "101 Goals for 2009". This is a list of reasonable things I can see myself acheiving in the next year and upon completion of each goal I will put the date it was completed and more than likely write a blog about it.

New Years Eve: What's In Your Kitchen

2008-12-31T11:35:00.000-08:00

My beloved doctor is out of town for the next 24 hours and I'm not exactly in the market for having to use an on-call doctor during a holiday, my mind can't get past the imagery of a tipsy OB/Gyn helping me deliver, my husbands hopes for a tax deduction baby are going on the back burner while I put myself on house arrest until the doctor gets back. We are going to take it easy and spend Rockin' New Years Eve at home with the fur babies and any friends that choose to stop by. Tonights holiday menu is full of some yummy junk food so we can get our fill before all the dieting begins.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

Jelly Meatballs

Meatballs

* 2 lbs lean ground beef
* 2 large eggs
* 1/2 cup fine dry breadcrumb (I use Ritz crackers)
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
* 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Sauce

2 cups tomato sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
32oz Grape Jelly
3-4 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 dash nutmeg

*Note* For extra lazy meatballs use frozen meat balls, Heinz Chili sauce, and grape jelly however, I promise its not as good.

1. Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
2. First, make the meatballs: combine all meatball ingredients in a bowl and mix well; shape into 1-inch balls.
3. Brown them in a nonstick frying pan until browned all over; drain on paper towel then place in a large ungreased casserole dish.
8. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes.
4. To make sauce, combine all ingredients in crockpot on low heat and stir until smooth
7. Add meatballs to sauce
9. If you want a lot, this recipe doubles well.

Enjoy some visual imagery!

37 Weeks

2008-12-28T22:32:00.001-08:00

Its official, the baby will be here and not a moment too soon. These days Mommy finds herself loving naps, preparing meals in advance for the freezer, cleaning franticly, scolding kitties for getting furry paws near baby merchandise, and wishing for a new back. My once rhinestone adorned belly button is a mere memory that has been replaced with purple trails of motherhood, former "cheerleader legs" are cultivating cottage cheese, and swelling is what happens when I look at a can of Campbell's soup. The sleepless nights that my snoring produces are starting to catch up to my more than accommodating husband's nerves and despite my aches, pains, and complaining, I am thankful for each and everyone that brings us a step closer to meeting the blessing that God knitted in my womb.

This week marks number 37 in "operation countdown to Baby Choisser". According to the folks over at babycenter.com this baby could come out today and be a-ok. Here is what they have to say:

"Congratulations — your baby is full term! This means that if your baby arrives now, his lungs should be fully mature and ready to adjust to life outside the womb, even though your due date is still three weeks away."

The words "full term" and "three weeks" are music to the pressure ridden ears on my swollen sinus shrunken head. Celebrate with me, my husband is about to get his beloved wife back and the best part of this journey is about to begin, we are going to be parents!!

Christmas Baking

2008-12-23T18:58:00.000-08:00

I have been diligently mixing, cutting, baking, melting, and decorating Christmas cookies. This is what I'm filling my tins with this year:

Sugar Cut-Outs
Gingerbread
Pumpkin Cookies
Chocolate Chip
Thin Mints (yep, like the girl scout cookies)
Peppermint Bark
Cinnamon Gems
No-Bakes
Oatmeal Raisin
~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Bryan decorated sugar cookies for the first time in his life, behold his little cane creations:

Did you notice the cookies have sparkle to them? He found neat-o glitter gel in the store and even came up with the cool idea of striping the canes with Twizzlers, I love my creative cookie decorating husband!

I did these:

I think I need to go add some melted chocolate to finish off the tree stumps...

Twinkling little stars!

I really want to bite their heads! Chomp...Chomp...oops....Not the Gum drop bottoms!

~*~*~*~*~
ETA: Here is a link to the sugar cookie recipe I used this year. The trick to getting the icing to look so pretty is the hard glaze.

Frosted Grapes

2008-12-20T21:20:00.000-08:00

Tonight my Mom and I made some frosted grapes for a bible study. These delicious "candies" are relatively healthy and also double as a beautiful garnish.

40 large grapes
3 egg whites, beaten but not stiff just bubbly-Since this involves raw egg I would recommend using organic eggs or pasteurized egg product
organic granulated sugar

Brush the grapes with the egg white.
Roll in sugar.
Dry throughly on a rack.

Honest Scrap Award

2008-12-19T11:53:00.000-08:00

Tishia honored me with the 'Honest Scrap Award' for telling it like it is. Thank you so much, you can find out more about her at Tishia's Thoughts

Now, according to her blog, here are the guidelines when winning this award:

1. List 10 honest things about yourself (make it interesting, even if you have to dig deep!)

2. Pass the award on to your favorite blogger

So let’s start with the 10 honest things about me:

1. President Bill Clinton kissed me in the Wolf's BBQ parking lot

2. I like watching monotone narrated documentaries on just about any subject with my husband

3. I own very expensive lipsticks and always revert back to good ol' Lip Smackers Dr. Pepper lip gloss

4. I could eat Mexican for every meal and never get sick of it.

5. I truly believe that I married the best looking man ever and thats why I have such a high resting heart rate.

6. I have not washed my hair with shampoo in 17 months and it looks better than ever, thanks to the curly girl method!

7. I'm really good at art but always wind up throwing my projects away because I don't have the confidence to show others.

8. I am passionate about photography and don't even own a camera

9. I'm VERY PROUD of my cloth diaper collection

10. I love cooking and am working on putting together a cookbook that includes our grandmother's most coveted recipes.

Now, I must go choose another blog that I find worthy!

Baby Pool

2008-12-18T11:47:00.000-08:00

We have created a baby pool where you can officially guess our baby's birth stats (b-day, height, weight, sex, ect)We look forward to your participation!

As of December 16, 2008 we have learned that Jennifer is 90% effaced and 1 cm dialated.

Baby Choisser is due January 20,2009

Check it out here

Stronger Healther Babies

2008-12-16T22:24:00.000-08:00

Love this commercial!

...thats about what it feels like when he kicks!

14 Natural Health Remedies For Children

2008-12-13T17:01:00.000-08:00

I liked this article so much that I decided to copy it to my blog for future reference. All credit goes to http://features.parents.com/natural-remedies-for-children.html and Meryl Davids Landau

~*~*~*~*~*~*

Looking for safe, doctor-approved cures for sore throats, coughs, stomachaches, and more? Check this out!

Of course, you should always call your pediatrician if your child's problem seems serious. But the next time your child has a minor ache or injury, you can find these smart solutions all throughout your house.

Honey and Lemon Juice for a Sore Throat

Lemon dries up congestion and honey provides a soothing coating, says Lane Johnson, MD, associate professor of clinical family and community medicine at the University of Arizona College of Medicine. In fact, a recent study found that a spoonful of honey eased kids' coughs even better than cough medicine. Mix together a tablespoon of each, microwave for 20 seconds until warm (not hot), and have your child swallow the mixture a teaspoon at a time. Caution: Honey is not safe for babies under 1 year.

Chamomile Tea for Colic

Peter Rabbit's mother fed him soothing chamomile tea in Beatrix Potter's classic tale, and you can give it to your infant to relax her intestinal muscles and calm her down, says Dr. McClafferty, a pediatrician in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Steep tea for four to five minutes, let it cool to room temperature, and then put one to two ounces in a bottle. Don't give your baby more than four ounces a day so that she'll be sure to have plenty of room in her tummy for breast milk or formula.

Baking Soda for Bug Bites

"My nana used to make a baking-soda paste for me when I was a child, and when I tried it on my own kids, they said that it stopped the itching better than store-bought products," says Estelle Whitney, MD, an ob-gyn in private practice in Wilmington, Delaware. The alkaline baking soda helps counteract the acidic swelling, she explains. Mix a teaspoon of baking soda with just enough water to make a thick paste, smear it on the bites, and let it dry.

Cayenne Pepper for Nosebleed

This spice helps blood clot, and it has been used medicinally in cultures around the world, says pediatrician Lillian Beard, MD, author of Salt in Your Sock and Other Tried-and-True Home Remedies. Keep your child's head upright and pinch his nostrils together for several minutes. Then sprinkle a pinch of ground cayenne pepper on a moistened cotton swab and dab inside the nose on the area of the bleeding. "It seems like it might sting but, surprisingly, it doesn't," says Dr. Beard.

Junk Drawer: Duct Tape for Warts

The gray fabric tape seems to irritate warts -- which can be surprisingly stubborn -- and inhibit their growth. Place a small piece on the skin over your child's wart, but not so tightly that it hurts, says Dr. Johnson. Change the tape whenever it starts to get icky; in about a month, the wart should be gone.

A Bubble Wand for Anxiety

Breathing slowly and deeply will help your child relax when she's feeling stressed, says Lonnie Zeltzer, MD, director of the pediatric pain program at Mattel Children's Hospital UCLA and author of Conquering Your Child's Chronic Pain. Have your child blow long, slow streams of bubbles from the soapy wand.

A Bandanna for Headaches

Wrapping several ice cubes in a dish towel will help soothe your child's head pain (never place ice directly on his skin because it'll burn), but it'll be hard for him to hold it in place for long, says Dr. Beard. To keep the towel-wrapped ice from slipping, press it against his forehead or temples and secure it with a bandanna tied at the back of his neck.

A Sock for Tummy or Neck Pain

Instead of buying a heat wrap, make one by filling a sock with uncooked rice and tying it closed with a string, says Paula Gardiner, MD, a researcher in the department of family medicine at Boston University Medical Center. Microwave the sock for one minute or until warm, and place it wherever your child has pain. When it cools off, microwave it again.

Your Blow-Dryer for Swimmer's Ear

This painful inflammation of the outer ear traps liquid and possibly bacteria. If the area has become infected, your pediatrician will probably prescribe antibiotic drops. But for mild cases, you can try evaporating the trapped water by standing a foot away from your child and aiming the dryer -- on the warm (not hot) setting -- at her ear, says Dr. Beard.

Contact Lens Solution for Congestion

For a child over 6 months, fill a bulb syringe with preservative-free saline solution, raise her head, and gently squeeze solution into one nostril at a time, says Dr. McClafferty. (Do it in the bath or over the sink.) In fact, a recent study found that using a nasal wash with a seawater solution (not yet available in the U.S.) helped kids get over colds faster -- and made them less likely to get sick again.

Fresh Ginger Tea for Car Sickness

"Ginger stops the stomach contractions that tell your child's brain he feels nauseous," says Dr. McClafferty. For children ages 2 and older, add a teaspoon of shredded fresh ginger to four ounces of boiling water, and let it steep for four to five minutes. You can add a bit of honey to make it taste better. After it has cooled, have your child drink it a half hour before getting into the car.

Cucumber for Mild Swelling

If you go to a fancy spa, the facialist may use this salad staple to ease the puffiness around your eyes. That's because cool cucumber slices help soothe hot, swollen skin. You can place a slice anywhere your child has minor swelling, Dr. Beard suggests, and then simply replace it with another slice from the fridge after it becomes warm.

A Credit Card for a Bee Sting

If a bee or wasp stings your child, remove the stinger to prevent additional venom from entering the wound. In order to avoid squeezing the stinger, which can spread the venom, use the flat edge of a credit card to gently scrape across the area until the stinger comes out.

A Stick of Gum for Indigestion

If your child is age 4 or older, have her chew some gum when she complains of a full stomach after a big meal. "The extra saliva she'll produce will neutralize the problematic excess stomach acid," says gastroenterologist Anil Minocha, MD, author of Natural Stomach Care.

All content on this Web site, including medical opinion and any other health-related information, is for informational purposes only and should not be considered to be a specific diagnosis or treatment plan for any individual situation. Use of this site and the information contained herein does not create a doctor-patient relationship. Always seek the direct advice of your own doctor in connection with any questions or issues you may have regarding your own health or the health of others.

Cloth Diapering

2008-12-11T19:31:00.000-08:00

I'm going to attempt to cloth diaper my babe-not exactly trying to be Captain Planet but there are a lot of benefits to cloth diapering and yes, I am well aware of the disadvantages. Realizing that its possible to change my mind at any point if it becomes too challenging, we are all about having happy baby bottoms here in the Choisser household, and if my Grandmothers and their Grandmothers could do it I know I can.

I honestly think the most intriguing thing about cloth diapering is the tremendous amount of money it saves and how it virtually makes diaper rash a non-existent element. Plus, if you don't mind and extra load of laundry, cloth diapering is becoming pretty simple.

I'm not as practical or frugal as some Mamas who choose to use prefolds but these Fuzzi Bunz (and other pocket diapers) are pretty awesome and still save lots of money and make for such cute baby butts!

According to diaperpin.com a website that calculates diapering costs, if I purchase 12 Fuzzi bunz and the supplies I need to diaper a baby I will :

Savings calculated: break even in 12.45 weeks or 2.86 months.
You will save $262.78 in 6 months.
You will save $597.96 in 10 months.
You will save $765.55 in 1 year.
You will save $1268.33 in 1 1/2 years.

..and keep in mind that I can save these diapers and use them on future children (not that I'm thinking of future children at this time), but we are talking huge savings!!

Christmas List: As Requested by my Husband

2008-12-08T14:03:00.001-08:00

Hunny,

Do you really want to know what I want for Christmas? I could be sweet and cheesy and sing about how, "All I want for Christmas is you" or how, "I want to be the mother of your baby"and while both truly are my heart's desire I can think of a few self indulging items to brighten my spirits.

1. I want my belly button back!!!!! Please, Please, Please if there is a Santa, restore my belly button back to the perfect cute deep rhinestone crested crevasse it once was and if your feeling generous I will gladly settle for weighing 130lbs. A girl can dream can't she? Maybe I should shoot for that for next Christmas.

2. I would like earrings- don't care what they look like, where they come from, or if they are a multi pack from claires.

3. Vera Bradley Diaper Bag- I'm not too picky about the print but I really like: Kensington, Java Blue, and Peacock.

4. A romantic date- Baby will be here soon and we must value our alone time!

5. Dr. Pepper Lip Gloss

6. Bare Minerals Foundation in Light

Sixty Hours: Part I

2008-12-07T12:57:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday went down as just about the worst day in history, stress levels were running high between my Mother and I as we were just beginning to recover from hosting Thanksgiving for both sides of the family. Several tears were shed after a hurtful word exchange on both of our behalves and while we were having our stupid, "mother daughter moment" a much bigger event was taking place that will forever change our lives. The phone rang.

November 30, 2008

Around 7pm, Mom receives word from her brother that Granny (My Grandmother) has collapsed in her home and is being rushed to the hospital. We get to the emergency room in time to learn that Granny has suffered a massive stroke, a hemorrhage on her brain, and it will only be a matter of time before her body shuts down, Sixty precious hours to be exact.

Peggy C. (Renfro) Matthews, 74, of Evansville, was taken home to be with the Lord on Wednesday, December 3, 2008, at Deaconess Hospital. She was born April 5, 1934, in Erwin, Tenn.
Peggy graduated from Reitz High School, 1952, and Lockyear Business College.

Peggy was a homemaker for most of her life. She worked early in her life for Woolworth's and Plumbers Supply Co. She was a member of Vann Avenue Baptist Church. Peggy was always active in serving Jesus Christ. She taught Sunday school for many years at Washington Avenue Baptist Church. She received great joy in reading the Bible and sharing God's Word with others.

Peggy was a loving wife, mother, and grandmother. She loved her family and friends and was always there for them. She touched the hearts of many and will be missed by all. Peggy enjoyed traveling, cooking, reading, and spending time with her family and friends

She was preceded in death by her parents, Cecil and Audrey (White) Renfro.

Peggy is survived by her husband of 54 years, Russell Matthews; daughter, Judith Morrison and husband, Dennis; son, Warren Matthews and wife, Becky; grandchildren, David and Steven Matthews, Kenneth Morrison and Jennifer (Morrison) Choisser and husband, Bryan; sister, Betty George and husband, Estel, Newburgh; sister-in-law, Rosemary Matthews, Elberfeld; seven nephews and one niece.

It's impossible for me to process the last time I would see Granny, as I knew her, was on Thanksgiving. My last moment with her was a hug and the words, "Bye Granny, I love you". I can't believe that I will never eat one of her home cooked meals again, hear her laugh, watch her mark tiny notes in her bible, and observe her meticulously unwrapping her Christmas gifts in such a way that the paper could be reused.

But what happened in the sixty precious hours, from the time of that terrible stroke to the passing of her earthly body, will forever change the relationship I have with my own mother and how I value the gift of forgiveness.

(To be continued...)

Thanksgiving Dessert

2008-11-25T15:42:00.000-08:00

Paula Deen's Gooey Pumpkin Butter Cake

My Mom is having everyone bring a dish to Thanksgiving and I got assigned a dessert. I thought pumpkin seemed like a rather obvious ingredient to use but I'm tired of the same ol' pumpkin pie so I plan on making this yummy recipe!

1½ hours | 30 min prep

SERVES 10

Cake

1 (18 1/4 ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 egg
8 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin (or use pineapple or banana)
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
8 tablespoons butter, melted
1 (16 ounce) box powdered sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350.
To make the cake: Combine all of the ingredients and mix well.
Pat batter into a lightly greased 13x9-inch baking pan with hands into an even layer.
Prepare filling.
To make the filling: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth.
Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter, and beat together.
Next, add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well.
Spread pumpkin mixture over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes.
Make sure not to over bake as the center should be a little gooey.
Serve with fresh whipped cream or cinnamon-flavored ice cream.

I Am Thankful

2008-11-25T11:39:00.000-08:00

God has actively molded the hearts of my family this past year as we have both literally and figuratively flown through turbulent skies, each a unique journey, we have been placed outside of our comfort zones and forced to publicly bear the face of vulnerability through our heartaches, losses, grieving, and selfish behaviors. I am thankful for humility.

My Uncle, a master homebuilder, built many beautiful mansions across the state of Texas. He went home to be with the Lord this September. John 14:2 reminds us that. " In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you." Sam believed in and followed another master homebuilder, his name is Jesus. Together they now reside in the greatest mansion of all. I am thankful for carpenters.

I fell in love with my best friend, and promised him to to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward. I am thankful for my marriage

We are yet to meet but he has touched so many lives, comforted the sick, and united a family, he is is a miraculous blessing. I am thankful for our son.

Weekend Review

2008-11-17T12:02:00.000-08:00

Friday, Bryan decided to do something special and take me out on a date. He came home from work with a sweet card and a beautiful Fall floral arrangement. We had a yummy dinner at Red Lobster, did some Christmas browsing, and saw Quantum of Solace. I would like to add that while I do enjoy the new 'James Bond' I really miss the tall, dark, handsomeness Pierce Brosnan brought to the character-Thankfully, my husband makes up for all of that is lost ; ). It was a nice change in pace to just get out and savor some time together before baby boy arrives.

Saturday, Bryan got to sleep-in and unwind from the stressful work week and I ventured out in the pre-holiday shopping madness to run some errands. The official Black Friday ads are yet to be published but the general public has still managed to go mad.

The first stop I made was at Petsmart in search for the allusive top entry cat litter box, only to find that the store made me nauseous. It was so crowded with both humans and animals that there was no way I was going to stand in a 45 minute long line with a thirty-five dollar poop collector in toll. While escaping l was pleasantly pleased to find that Scooby and Shaggy were arriving to investigate the crowding matters and stock up on some serious snackage. The Mystery Machine even parked next to me as seen via my cell phone shot to the left. Next stop Walmart.

Shockingly, Walmart proved to be a pleasant experience as I was greeted with someone pulling out of their first row parking spot, cha-ching!! I managed to grab a few odds-ends without getting trampled and only had to wait in line for a few minutes. Little to my knowledge would the grocery store experience be less than ideal.

I can attest to the fact that pregnant women do not get any special treatment when it comes to the Holiday rush, we still get cut off from good parking spots, I even saw a man with his teenage son park in a "pregnant" lady spot at the grocery store. I'm choosing to assign positive intent to this man(I was feeling the need to go hormonal on his Lincoln Navigator) and that he had a pregnant wife sending him on an emergency errand. I gave up on finding a good spot in the rain and parked in the very back of the parking lot, can't complain because I could use the exercise.

After I got home from all the shopping Hubby decided on a spontaneous trip to Illinois to visit his Grandparents. We just found out this past week about a "cancerous" growth on his Grandpa's lung-please pray for him! We enjoyed spending Saturday Evening and most of Sunday with them and I even got to try Raisin pie for the first time (I'm sure it was a delicious pie for all those raisin lovers out there but I would recommend apple). On our way back home we stopped by Jaime and Brian's to visit their new baby girl, Anya.She's such a precious little bundle!

Today In Jennifer's Kitchen: Baked Popcorn Chicken, Roasted Green Beans & Vanilla Strawberries

2008-11-11T13:41:00.000-08:00

I'm working really hard to minimize our family intake of frozen meals, food-to-go, and eating out, in an effort to increase a more organic lifestyle. The eating-out part shouldn't be too difficult since we usually eat out no more than once a week but those "easy-fixes", like evil frozen pizzas, keep making their way to my (microwave)oven (Can I use being tired and pregnant as an excuse?).

For dinner tonight I'm making some homemade popcorn chicken, roasted green beans, and some yummy vanilla strawberries.

Garlic Chicken Bites (these make for a great salad topping)

40 min | 30 min prep

SERVES 4

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
1/2 cup olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Place chicken in shallow dish.
In small bowl, mix olive oil, garlic, and black pepper.
Pour over chicken.
Cover and marinate 30 minutes.
Drain.
Preheat oven to 475°F.
Mix bread crumbs and cayenne.
Coat chicken.
Arrange in a single layer on cookie sheet.
Bake 10 minutes or until brown.

Roasted Green Beans

25 min | 5 min prep

SERVES 4 -6

2 lbs green beans
1-2 tablespoon olive oil (or just enough to lightly coat beans)
1 teaspoon kosher salt (or to taste, may substitute with Mrs. Dash if desired)
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper (or to taste, omit if using Mrs. Dash)

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Wash, dry well, and trim green beans.
Put green beans on a jelly roll pan.
Drizzle with olive oil.
Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste (I like them salty so I use about 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt and about 8-10 grinds of the pepper mill). *Mrs. Dash may be substituted for salt and pepper as desired.
Use your hands to be sure all the beans are evenly coated and spread them out into 1 layer.
Roast for 20-25 minutes, turning after 15 minutes, until beans are fairly brown in spots and somewhat shriveled.
Serve hot or at room temperature.

Vanilla Strawberries

1 pint stawberries
1 pack instant vanilla pudding mix.

Wash and slice strawberries in halves, place in medium bowl
Add instant vanilla pudding mix to strawberries in bowl.
Set in fridge for 1 hour
Serve chilled.

Marketing's Finest Chocolate

2008-11-06T16:23:00.000-08:00

Wow- a creative mesh of marketing disturbia, this commercial brings a mix of joy and disgust to my chocolate lovin' heart.

Annapolis Here We Come

2008-11-06T13:14:00.000-08:00

Congressman Brad Ellsworth has appointed my Brother into the U.S. Naval Academy!!!! My Brother has worked very hard to get the nomination and is looking forward to serving his country as an aeronautical engineer.

Congratulation Ken!

(Go Navy. Beat Army)

R.I.P Wilson

2008-11-05T13:03:00.000-08:00

Over a year ago, on an old myspace blog, I wrote about an encounter I had with a turkey on the corner of Petersburg and Stringtown.

October4,2007
"Thud...whack...gobble...gobble...thud" went the turkey that fell out of the sky and onto the hood of my car! "Ahhhhhhh...its a bird, its a turkey bird, Ahhhhh" I screamed, as the discombobulated bird rolled off my hood. It regained footing and the thing began running circles in the middle of the busy intersection. Horrified by the rather shocking experience I sat stunned as the suicidal creature ran about in front of me. Out of nowhere, a man in wrangler jeans and cowboy boots appeared and began chasing after the bird with a lasso down the street. Yee-haw, I was not expecting front row seats to the Turkey rodeo at 7:30 in the morning. Praise the Lord the poor bird got away safely! I was late to class on a test day over this incident and had some explaining to do to my unhappy professor. Thankfully, she was from the North side of town and well aware of the turkey in the area known as "Wilson" that often backs up traffic.."

Today I received sad news that the beloved bird that resides along Petersburg and Stringtown is no longer with us. The local newspaper did a lovely write up on his behalf.

Wilson the turkey dies in traffic

By Rich Davis (Contact)
Originally published 12:37 p.m., November 4, 2008
Updated 04:21 p.m., November 4, 2008

Wilson the turkey, who for nearly three years made it a habit to disrupt traffic in a North Side neighborhood, was struck and killed by a car after 7 a.m. Tuesday.

The irony, said one bystander, was that Wilson — who had many staunch supporters and a few detractors who wished he’d go away — died on Election Day.

He got the name Wilson from children on a school bus who thought his fussy manner reminded them of Mr. Wilson of “Dennis the Menace” fame.

And it’s because of those kids that Connell Jones and his neighbors on nearby Feltman Drive are planning a memorial service “to celebrate Wilson’s life and scatter his ashes on Feltman.” The memorial service will be at 2:30 p.m. Friday at Feltman and Petersburg Road.

Jones said Best Friend Pet Crematorium has offered to cremate Wilson free of charge.

Jones said Wilson showed up on Feltman, a dead-end road near a busy intersection where Stringtown, Campground and Petersburg roads meet in a Y, after a big storm.

“The next morning I woke up and told my wife, ‘That sounds like a turkey.’ She said, ‘We don’t have turkeys around here.’ ”

Before long, Wilson was roosting on Jones’ garage roof and neighbors had made him a “community pet” and were feeding him grapes, apples and birdseed, said Jones.

While some claimed Wilson waded into traffic hoping motorists would throw him some food, Jones said the tom just liked bright colors, including school buses and “my wife’s yellow VW.” He also liked his reflection in bumpers and chrome.

“I’m going to miss him, he brought customers to my store,” said Jim Snyder, manager of the Kangaroo Express at the three-way stop.

Snyder said people would arrive, park and come inside for a soft drink while waiting to see if Wilson showed up during the morning rush hour. Some took pictures and videos and shouted “Hi, Wilson.”

Snyder said a police officer notified him that someone had placed Wilson’s body next to the store’s Dumpster. Snyder said he put Wilson inside the Dumpster, but later some residents of Feltman Drive “came and got him.”

Jones said what happened Tuesday probably was inevitable. Wilson had been clipped by a car last year and had trouble walking for a while.

“It’s a sad day,” agreed Dennis Jon Bailey, who anchors radio station WIKY’s morning show with Diane Douglas. WIKY listeners would call Bailey and Douglas with Wilson sightings. WIKY plans a tribute Wednesday morning.

“He was always holding up traffic,” recalled Snyder. “A police officer tried to shoo him one day and Wilson chased him back into the store.”

He said it was amusing to watch people get out of vehicles and chase Wilson: “He’d circle their car. When two people chased him, he’d do figure eights around their vehicles.”

Mike Robinson, on motorcycle patrol for the Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Department, encountered Wilson on a regular basis.

He said the turkey wasn’t dumb and was “quite interested in his own reflection.”

If Robinson aimed his motorcycle’s mirror toward Wilson and drove slowly, the turkey would trot alongside. “I got him to follow me all the way to Engelbrecht Orchard,” Robinson said recently, before Wilson died, “but he didn’t stay there.”

Wilson apparently was too fond of his old neighborhood where his fans called him “an icon.”

Time Change Salad

2008-11-02T12:34:00.000-08:00

This morning we over slept a bit, missed church, and realized our failure to change the time on the alarm clock. We made the most of our lazy morning and enjoyed some delicious left over "brunch cake".

This afternoon I had the craving for something yummy and refreshing so I made a variation of Nanno's layered salad.

Super simple and yummy, I chopped up some lettuce, carrots, broccoli, onion, and Velveeta cheese. Tossed the ingredients together and added some raisins. For the dressing I fried 3 thick bacon strips and chopped them to bits and mixed them with some mayonnaise and olive oil.

Painting The Baby Room

2008-11-01T20:57:00.000-07:00

Living in an apartment comes with many advantages but one of the major downfalls is the restricted freedom I have on decorating the area we call home, especially the walls. If I had the liberty to paint the wall I would but my request has been denied and because I don't want my baby to miss out on a cheerful room (the truth is, Mommy doesn't want to miss out on decorating a baby room) I have had to channel my artistic side and make the most of a desperate situation.

To the right is a close up of my adorable baby room theme "clover fields" not to be confused with the movie cloverfield, haha. As you can see its neutral colors featuring a lamb, bunny, and quacky little chick, but oddly enough- no clovers. Anyways, since I can not paint the wall I have begun an extensive painting project involving six canvases. One wide canvas to go above the changing table, an extra large rectangle piece to go above the bed, and four smaller squares that will complement each other on the opposing empty wall.

I finished the first canvas a couple days ago and hope to start on my big rectangle project tomorrow. Below is a photo of the painting I did that will hang above the changing table. I apologize for the poor cell phone photo quality.

Close up of sheep

Tomorrow's painting project (large rectangle) is going to be my attempt at capturing the scene on the comforter from the bedding set.

Today In Jennifer's Kitchen: Brunch Cake

2008-11-01T19:38:00.001-07:00

Hubby needed something to satisfy his sweet tooth and attempted to convince his wife to make him something yummy due to lack of Halloween candy. After a rough day of errands, extreme Fall cleaning, and grocery shopping, I decided to indulge his request and experiment with a new recipe behold, the Brunch Cake!

Found this recipie here. It's a combination of a cake and cinnamon roll all in one and the best part is it only takes ten minutes to throw together, try adding in some chopped apples or blueberries, raisins or dried cranberries, this recipe is a blank canvas, so go ahead and add in fruit, nuts chocolate chips whatever you wish!

SERVES 10

2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/4 cup sugar (add in more for a sweeter taste)
1 1/4 cups milk or half-and-half
1-2 teaspoon vanilla (optional) or almond extract (optional)
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 pinch salt
1 large egg

Topping

1/2 cup brown sugar, more if desired
1-2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup melted butter
chopped walnuts (optional) or pecans (optional)

Icing mixture

2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup whipping cream (any amount to desired texture start with 1/4 cup, or use 18% table cream)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract or almond extract

Directions

Set oven to 350 degrees F.
Prepare a greased 13 x 9-inch baking dish, or two 8 or 9-inch round cake pans (although the batter will seem like it will fit into only one 8 or 9-inch pan, this flop rises very high and will run over the sides if baked in just one pan).
In a bowl mix the 2 cups flour, 1-1/4 cups white sugar, milk, vanilla or almond extract, baking powder, pinch of salt and egg (if using) until just combined careful not to overmix.
Pour into prepared baking pan/s.
Generously spread brown sugar and cinnamon on top.
If desired sprinkle chopped walnuts or pecans over top.
Drizzle melted butter over top.
Bake for about 20-25 minutes for 8 or 9-inch round cake pan, and about 30 minutes for a 13 x 9-inch pan.
In separate bowl whisk icing mixture adding whipping cream until desired texture is achieved, drizzle over cake

This cake has been 4 star husband approved

Two Yolks For The Price Of One

2008-10-30T22:00:00.000-07:00

Look what my husband found when making breakfast this morning!
~*~Twins~*~

Help Me With My Birth Plan

2008-10-29T14:46:00.000-07:00

Updated December 12, 2008

Bryan and I have been working on a birth plan after much ado with hospital protocol. Ideally, I would like to have my baby at a birthing center with a midwife but our city doesn't have one and the practice of homebirth midwifery is alegal in Indiana- a sticky complicated mess!

I continued to pursue finding a certified professional midwife but the nearest CPM is 2 hours away, we didn't think the traveling conditions would be an ideal situation for a labor/delivery in probable icy conditions for the CPM and back-up doctors are far and few. Who knew having a natural child birth could become such a black market ordeal!?

So here we are stuck in battle with the medical intervention world. I would like to note that I am very thankful for health care professionals and medical interventions when they are necessary but when it comes to birth I have a rather "crunchy" point of view after all, women have been safely bringing babies into the world for thousands of years! (Alright, I will come down off of my soap box) Before you write me off as being completely insane watch the "Business of Being Born"
...and now without further ado my birth plan. Please review and suggestions are welcome!!

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Birth Plan for: ____________
Scheduled to deliver at________ Hospital: MD

I realize that a birth plan is a list of preferences and that things don't always go as planned. My primary request is to be fully informed and part of the decision-making process. Should I become incapacitated or unable to fully participate in the decision-making process, please consult my husband regarding any matters related to this birth plan, labor and delivery.

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First Stage Labor
* A heparin lock without IV, I will self hydrate
* Intermittent fetal monitoring
* No continuous or internal fetal monitoring unless medically necessary
* Fluids and soft foods by mouth throughout the first stage of labor
* Internal vaginal exams kept to a minimum
* Freely walk around, use the shower, birthing ball from home and change position at will
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Labor Augmentation
* As long as the baby and I are fine, I would like to be free of time limits and labor augmentation
* Prefer to allow the amniotic membrane to rupture naturally
* Changing position, walking or nipple stimulation before the amniotic membrane is ruptured or pitocin is given
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Pain Medication
* We are striving for a drug free childbirth, please do not offer pain medication. I'll ask for it if I need it.
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Cesarean
* If a Cesarean is necessary, to be fully informed and to participate in the decision-making process
* My husband present at all times if my baby requires a Cesarean delivery
* Leave one arm free to touch baby when born
* Double-layer suturing of the uterus (not single layer suturing)
* If not in distress, my baby should be given to my husband and myself immediately after birth
* Breastfeed as soon as possible after a cesarean delivery
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Second Stage Labor & Delivery
* I would like to choose my birthing position, including squatting with a bar or on hands and knees
* If I am unmedicated, to wait to push until I feel the urge, even if there is a delay after full dilation
* Baby placed on my stomach/chest immediately after delivery
* Hold my baby while I deliver the placenta and any tissue repairs are made
* Deliver the placenta naturally without a pitocin injection or cord traction
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Episiotomy
* In the absence of fetal distress, I prefer to tear rather than have an episiotomy but am open to Doctors discretion
* Guidance and perineal massage when pushing so the perineum can stretch naturally
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Postpartum
* Baby evaluated and bathed in my presence
* Delay antibiotic eye drops and Vitamin K shot for 1-2 hours after birth so that bonding time is not interrupted
* We decline the Hepatitis B vaccine for our newborn
* Full-time rooming in with baby and no separation unless medically required
* My husband to accompany our baby at all times if it must be taken to receive medical treatment
* If bili lights for jaundice are required, please bring them to my recovery room instead of baby going to the nursery
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Breastfeeding
* I will be breastfeeding exclusively and would like to begin nursing very shortly after birth
* Do not give my baby anything by mouth (pacifier, glucose water, formula) without my expressed verbal consent

350 Thank You's Coming to a Mailbox Near You

2008-10-29T14:26:00.000-07:00

I have been working on Thank You cards for the wedding and while its rather embarrassing that this project has taken so long to finish I apologize and promise to get them to a mailbox near you in the relative future. I am very thankful for all the gifts and warm wishes but I'm a snail when it comes to mail!!!

Order Wedding Photos

2008-10-29T13:43:00.000-07:00

I am making a Kodak album for those that want to order wedding pictures, please let me know if you would like me to email you a link!

Baby Choisser @ 11 weeks

2008-10-28T20:26:00.000-07:00

My Precious Baby Boy!! <3

Olive Garden Alfredo Fettuccine

2008-10-28T17:42:00.000-07:00

Olive Garden Fettuccine Alfredo

Everyone keeps asking me for this recipe so I thought I would post it here. Enjoy!

*Warning* This is not a healthy meal

25 min

SERVES 6

1/2 cup butter
8 oz cream cheese
1 pint heavy cream
1 teaspoon garlic powder
salt
black pepper
2/3 cup grated parmesan cheese (preferably fresh)
1 lb fettuccine, prepared as directed

In a medium saucepan, melt butter.
When butter is melted, add cream cheese.
When the cream cheese is softened, add heavy cream.
Season with garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
Simmer for 15-20 minutes over low heat, stirring constantly.
Remove from heat and stir in parmesan.
Serve over hot fettuccine noodles.

Serving Size 1 (190g)

Recipe makes 6 servings

Sideline Sausage Soup via Jaime Davies

2008-10-28T14:23:00.000-07:00

Big hit with the pregnant ladies! My friend made this soup over the weekend and I liked it so much that I cooked it for my family last night. Its soo easy and yummy!!

Easy Bean and Kielbasa Soup

1 can black beans

1 can red kidney beans

1 can Great Northern beans

16 oz smoked sausage (Kielbasa sausage)

1 onion (diced)

1 tomato (diced)

4 cups chicken broth

1/2 teaspoon of dried oregano

dash of ground cumin

dash of salt

2 cloves of garlic minced

Drain beans, slice Kielbasa, tomato, and onion add to soup pot along with chicken broth and spices. Bring to boil. Simmer 15 minutes. Enjoy

ETA: The rest of the ingredients, Thank you Jamie Davies!! <3 <3 <3

Curly Girl Method

2008-10-28T13:56:00.000-07:00

I followed Lorraine Massey's "Curly Girl Method" for about 10 months and with great success I achieved beautiful frizz free curls. Regretfully, I didn't continue to maintain following the method due to getting bored with it but now I'm going back to Curly Girl. Thought I would post the rules for everyone else that wants to play along. If you don't have naturally curly hair I would not recommend trying this, this method is not for everyone!!

10 months of Curly Girl Success

You can read about the "Curly Girl Method" here. In summary it teaches an organic approach to carrying for naturally curly hair. Some of the main objectives are to give up shampoo, hair brushes, and mainstream hair care products. Its not easy, but in the long run its sooo worth it!!

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Edited to add: I have had several people ask me what kind of hair care products to use and I would recommend anything from the Jessi Curl line (I'm going to by in bulk for a Christmas gift to myself). If you don't feel comfortable going completely shampooless they make a great shampoo that doesn't seem to negate the curly girl potential.

If you are more of a mainstream shopper I would recommend Aussie Deeep conditioner (3 minute miracle) and Garnier Fructis hands free spray gel.

Setting a Date, Planning a Wedding

2008-10-28T12:47:00.000-07:00

We set a wedding date for August 9, 2008 and the frantic wedding planning began! I'm rather proud of my amazing wedding budget skills but nonetheless it would have not been possible without out our access to Cousin Debbie's amazing visions and wedding materials!

The photos below are what I used for my inspiration. The cake is from www.theknot.com - very helpful site for anyone planning a wedding! The Bridesmaid Dress is from David's Bridal and the floral arrangements are by Better Homes and Gardens.

Some other helpful resources that I discovered while planning my wedding include:

iDo Wedding Couples Edition
http://www.elmsoftware.com/

Efavormart
http://stores.ebay.com/eFavormart

Getting in Shape/Healthy
www.dailyplate.com

As you can see I had some fun planning my wedding but I also would like to address that too many times brides-to-be (myself included) get so wrapped up in the "big day" event planning that they lose sight of whats really important- The Marriage! The wedding festivities are for one day, they come- go, and fade away to photo albums, but your marriage lasts for a lifetime so don't neglect the more important details of nurturing the relationship that will bud into the beginnings of your new life together.

I would recommend that every couple read 101 Questions to ask before getting Engaged by H. Norman Wright (If your already engaged its not too late to read) and to seek pre-marital counseling with a professional.

Happy Wedding Planning
~Jennifer

Engagement

2008-10-28T12:10:00.000-07:00

Christmas 2007, on both knees, Bryan asked for my hand in marriage and a very happy and excited Jennifer said, Yes! Here are the engagement pictures we had taken shortly following the proposal.

Meet The Choisser's

2008-10-28T11:44:00.000-07:00

I decided to hop on the blogging bandwagon and open a small section of my life for all to see. In the past I have attempted to blog but have lost interest or not had time so with new found sincere effort I bring to you my daily ramblings.

There are a lot of things that I need to address because my life has changed so much in the past year highlights include; engagement, marriage, moving, being a newlywed, pregnancy, and college. I will attempt to address many of these exciting transitions along with daily activities in the next several blogs and hopefully bring you up to speed with my exciting new life.

Enjoy!

Jennifer