Cookie Baking Night 07/23/18

Tonight was Cookie Baking Night. In attendance this evening: Carissa, Allison, Rylar, and Enzo. It was Larry and Clara's (my parents) birthday choices tonight. They combined their choices and for supper they asked for french toast, bacon, and strawberries. For their cookie choice: oatmeal cookies (1/2 with walnuts--Larry's request).

For Bible time tonight, we started something new. We're going to work our way through the Bible one book at a time with an overview of each book. Tonight we started with Genesis. While I taught about the book, the kids colored a picture of the word Genesis. We'll take two Cookie Baking Nights per book (unless they're really short), and we'll learn one verse from each book. Tonight's verse is: Genesis 1:1: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." It's a very simple verse but foundational to Christianity and a very important truth to have in our heads while growing up in this current world culture. It will serve us all well to have this verse in our memory bank. 

It was a very busy Cookie Baking Night, but we still managed to squeeze in a trip to the local gas station for a treat. 

As usual, a fun time was had by all. 

Cookie Baking NIght 07/09/2018

Tonight was Cookie Baking Night. In attendance this evening: Carissa, Allison, Rylar, and Enzo.

It was Carissa's birthday choice (she turned 13 years old at the beginning of this month). For supper, she chose, macaroni & cheese, tator tots, and berries. For her "cookie" she chose: Dirt cups (a long time favorite of hers).

Cookie crumbs, pudding, and gummy worms. What's not to love?

As part of Carissa's birthday choice, we went for a walk to the local gas station for a treat. 

It was so fun to have Uncle Greg join us on the walk this evening. 

As usual, a fun time was had by all!

Cookie Baking Night 06/25/18

Tonight was Cookie Baking Night. In attendance this evening: Ethan, Carissa, and Enzo (Allison and Rylar were attending a birthday party elsewhere tonight--even the little ones are growing up).

We had an unusually long break between Cookie Baking Nights this time, and I was ready to get back into the swing of things. I missed our time together.

Tonight was Uncle Greg's birthday choice. For supper, he chose cheese dreams (toasted English muffins with tomato, bacon, and cheese), pears, and corn chips. For his cookie, he chose peanut butter cookies ("with the fork prints").

A little post cookie baking clean up (the sugar overflow)

As part of Uncle Greg's birthday choice, we made a trip to the local gas station for a treat. 

The gas station/convenience store has anticipated our little Monday night trips and conveniently placed a picnic table outside for us--very kind of them. 

This evening Enzo brought his "video" game with him (or as he says it "bideo game" - I'm a little partial to that pronunciation myself). You might recognize this state of the art technology from your youth. He passed it around for all to play and explained it to us in great detail. I don't want to brag here, but I did make it to the "dinosaur level" without any assistance from Enzo. 

Another Cookie Baking Night has come and gone and, as usual, a fun time was had by all. 

Cookie Baking Night 05/14/18

Tonight was Cookie Baking Night. In attendance this evening: Carissa, Allison, Rylar, and Enzo.

We decorated sugar cookies in the shape of spring flowers.

All the personalities came out in these cookies tonight. As usual, a fun time was had by all. 

Cookie Baking Night 04/30/18

Tonight was Cookie Baking Night. In attendance this evening: Allison, Rylar, Enzo, and Carissa (Carissa had play practice tonight but really wanted to be at Cookie Baking Night, so she came over a little later).

We made No-bake Monster Cookie Balls. Yummy.

Ingredients
2-1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup creamy or crunchy peanut butter
½ cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup mini chocolate chips
½ cup mini M&M candies

Carissa arrived after the "cookie baking" part was over. She joined us just as we were arriving home from a walk in the neighborhood. We all played in the yard for awhile enjoying the warm spring evening. 

As usual, a fun time was had by all. 

Caregiving-She's a Comedian (04/14/2018)

Since chronic urinary tract infections have been such a part of my mom's story for the past 3 years, I find myself in the habit of testing her memory to gauge the situation from time to time. I'm guessing this can be a little on the annoying side when she is feeling well. 

This is how our interaction went this evening at the dinner table. 

Me: "Do you know who I am?"

Mama: "Yeah".

Me: "Who am I"?

Mama: "Well, you're either Robert or John." (those are the names of my two brothers)

Me: "Okay. I see how it is."

Papa-Larry is hearing impaired and didn't catch all of the interaction, so he asked what my mom had said.

Me: "She said she's a Smart Aleck". 

Mama giggled. 

She passed the test. Her memory is sharp tonight and her sense of humor is intact. 

Cookie Baking Night 04/02/18

Tonight was Cookie Baking Night. In attendance this evening: Carissa, Allison, Rylar, and Enzo.

It was a snowy April night, but it looked like spring inside the kitchen. 

We made M&M cookies with spring-colored M&Ms

The secret to a good M&M cookie is very few M&Ms in the cookie dough and lots of M&Ms on the outside of the dough once you scoop them onto the pan. That way the M&Ms are visible on the outside of the cookie, and they don't cook into the dough. 

See, I told ya. 

Tonight we read lesson 11 from Leading Little Ones to God. The lesson was titled "God is Holy". The lesson was taken from Isaiah chapter 6. We learned about the seraphim, described as "shining heavenly creatures". They had six wings. With two wings, they covered their face, with two wings they covered their feet, and they used two wings to fly. One said, "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of  His glory." The other answered, "Holy, holy, holy." It was an amazing picture that caused our imagination to wonder about these creatures devoted solely to praising God. It was hard not to ponder God's holiness when thinking of such a scene. 

Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy mountain; 

for the LORD our God is holy! Psalm 99:9

Amen!

Another Cookie Baking Night has come and gone and, as usual, a fun time was had by all.