H54F ..Plus My Favorite Dog Treat Recipe

Hey ya'll..  Hard to believe Christmas is next week, huh?!  Didn't we just have Christmas?  Feels like it.  Every where you go people make conversation by asking "are you ready for Christmas?"  Umm, no.  I'm not..and all the people that say they are..are just over achievers..Show-offs!

I'm sorta mellow this season...mellow is my way of making myself feel better about being completely lazy when it comes to anything Christmas related..  I'm not in a huge rush to wrap any presents.  Sitting here looking at my tree I have seven gifts - six of which I have wrapped myself.  I have a ton locked up in my spare bedroom...I'll get to em eventually aka tomorrow..Not feeling so merry and bright...But tis the season..I will put on my Santa shirt, a smile, and I will make it a memorable Christmas for Trey.  

Trey and I have baked a few batches of cookies here and there that we have already given away, and I've made 5 batches of candy - which is amazing by the way.  My house is decorated - I hung the last of my Christmas decor last night, my elf is on vacation, my to-do list is getting longer, my radio has been playing Christmas music since November..Christmas is coming..ready or not. Fa la la la la la...

I made my first ever batch of candy this week..I have never used a thermometer while baking, so I was a little overwhelmed and freaking out.  I made Kyle help me in case I needed a few extra hands.  It turned out to be so good...like so seriously good that I had trouble sleeping that night because I was trying to come up with a name for my new candy shop.  I'm not making this stuff up, and yes...admittedly, I have issues.

Parker Peppermint thought it would be a good idea to take Brodie for a ride...Next thing I knew he was saddled up and on the ride of his life while they were rockin' around the Christmas tree.

Before Parker went on vacation he tp'd the tree...wise of him to disappear..

  

I took this picture on one of my runs last week..

I love running while the sun is setting..

Sonnie and I experimented with the leftover greenery from my wreaths, and came up with this for my mailbox.  Turned out pretty great!

My skin has been so extremely, painfully dry...mostly on my face and lips.  I am really picky about what I put on my face, but I was desperate and dug through my box of samples looking for a new type of moisturizer, since mine obviously was not working.  I found this sample of Carmex healing cream and within twelve hours I had relief and my dry skin was gone. 

Every Christmas I make my dogs special treats for their stocking..They have (what I consider) healthy ingredients for dogs, and they absolutely love them..

Peanut Butter and Pumpkin Treats

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

2 eggs

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

2 tablespoons peanut butter

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350

Whisk together all ingredients in a bowl.  Add water as needed.  I add a tablespoon of water at a time until I get the desired consistency...

Remove the dough from the bowl and using your hands roll into a ball.

I pull a handful at a time from the ball and roll it out.  You can roll the entire ball, but I find it easier to do a little at a time.

Using cookie cutters, of your choice, cut your treats and lay them on a cookie sheet.  

I bake them on my round stone.

Bake in preheated oven for about 40 minutes.

Let them cool and then get ready for the poor pitiful begging to begin...

Your dogs, or your dog friends will love them!!

xo,

Carrie

High Five for Friday

Hello there, Friday friends.  I've been busy, busy lately, so let's get straight to my highlights...

Last week I was in Louisiana.  I was there for a funeral service the day after Thanksgiving, so until that day we spent our time traveling and making the most of our trip with family.

We rented a house on the Liberty Bayou in Slidell.

This was our lovely view each morning at breakfast.  My first morning waking up at the Bayou house I went straight to this window to see if I could spot the supposed gator that resides in the back yard.

Once everyone was up we were all looking for the gator..

Pretty sure Marcie and I could be voted best dressed gator hunters.  We were just killing time waiting for everyone to get ready to spend the rest of the day in New Orleans.

No gator.  Only this adorable teenager.

I loved being able to show Trey around the French Quarter.  I don't think he was as excited as I was, but when he is older I hope he will look back and appreciate the memories we made.  Teenagers can be so very hard to please..

It was a beautiful day..

The following day was Thanksgiving...Myself, Kyle, Trey and these fun cousins all registered for a five miler turkey trot.  They could quite possibly be the coolest and funniest people I know, and I am so glad that they like to run, even if they do all run faster than me...

We had a blast doing this run together.  Nothing like pumping out a five miler bright and early in the morning with some of your favorite people..

I was pretty proud of my time, I would have been jumping up and down elated had I crossed the finish line under one hour, but better luck next time.  I'm still way faster than I was this time last year, and that's good enough for me.  A year ago I could barely run 4 miles, and I was ready to keep running when I was done with this race.  I was feeling pretty awesome..We celebrated our victories by making a trip to the Quarter and stuffed our faces with fresh beignets..coffee and hot chocolate (for me).

Once I got home from Louisiana this little guy of mine was stuck to me like glue.  We've done a whole lot of snuggling, and I love it!

The Budweiser Clydesdale's were in town for our Christmas parade.  They were on display for public viewing one day, so in between doctors appointments and movie dates we stopped by to check em out. They are so gorgeous..and their dog is the cutest!  

Speaking of movie dates..Have you seen Catching Fire yet?  Loooved it!

Our elf...Parker Peppermint, showed up one evening this week.  Trey chose Rice Krispies for his cereal of choice, and the next morning we discovered that Parker busted out of the box and made a huge mess.  Apparently he offed one of the Keebler elves.

Another night he gave Kyle a uni-brow and took it upon himself to improve his mustache.

Such a naughty little guy.

Yesterday I found him admiring sweet baby Jesus.

Bella was once a dog I fostered for the Humane Society.  When she came to me she was severely malnourished, had mange, three different kinds of worms and wasn't quite sure how to act around people. She was pitiful..she had never been loved before.  Just used to make babies, then thrown in a ditch when she was too old to make any more.

During the first four weeks I had Bella she had to be secluded from all of my other animals..she had to be on a different schedule and was given some extra, extra..(extra) TLC..after four weeks she was mange and worm free and got the thumbs up from the vet to be ready for adoption...She was adopted almost immediately from another Humane Society volunteer.

This is Bella now, and this is the picture that her sweet Mom sent me this week.

She often shares pictures and videos of Bella and they always make my day.

So proud of how far this little girl has come!

For the last several years my Mother in Law has made me a natural wreath to enjoy during the holidays.  This year, she stopped making them and decided to teach me her craft.

Earlier in the week she took me around town to show me the places where she gathers her greenery.  I was seriously freaking out.  I was like "you get it here..??  Really??  Are we allowed to be here??...are we going to get in trouble??" I found myself lecturing her telling her I wasn't sure this was the best idea. I was terrified of the thought that my one phone call would be to my Father asking him to please come bail me out of the slammer because Sonnie and I got arrested cutting the green for my wreaths. Her only advice was.."well, just act like you're supposed to be here" Oh, Lawd..I'm telling you what!!  I was running and hiding behind these trees so no one would see me.  I seriously looked like I wasn't supposed to be there..It was hysterical. 

So after a few hours we had three tins full of beautiful fresh greenery.

This afternoon was wreath making day..

dun, dun dun...

Slowly my very first wreath began coming together..

Sonnie was making one right beside me..Teaching me as I went along..

Here's my finished product!!

I couldn't wait to get it home, hang it on my front door and put a bow on it.  I am so proud of myself, and can't wait to make them for others next year!  

I'm taking over the wreath making business and couldn't be happier!!

I hung the amazing wreath Sonnie made on the old mirror on my mantle.

Now my home is officially Christmas ready.  

Everything in my area is iced over, so we're staying warm and snuggled this evening.  

I have the sweetest little snuggle buddy!!

Thanks for stopping by...Stay warm out there!!

xo

Carrie