Sledding

Sledding at Mueller State Park... it was a beautiful day! It was 65 in town and 55 in the mountains. The sun was shining, the snow was glistening, and the sledding was awesome! We had the sledding hill to ourselves.

And then a snowball fight broke out... Daniel & Andrew against Dad!

It was a fun time and we were sad to see it end... we will be back again soon!

Pumpkin Carvings

My very talented husband created a fabulous display of pumpkins for Halloween. It was the boys favorite part of the whole weekend! They worked hard to clean out their pumpkins so that Dad could carve them up. Andrew picked a spider, Daniel picked a puppy, Mom picked Frankenstein, and Dad picked the last one... We got lots of compliments from all the trick-or-treaters! Dave only has a few cuts on his hands to show for his work.

Pumpkin Patch

We took a trip to Diana's Pumpkin Patch in Canon City to pick out our Halloween Pumpkins this year. They also had a corn maze which the boys really enjoyed. We wandered for about 15 minutes before finding our way out.

Breakfast Buddies

Some mornings I struggle to get the kids to eat breakfast... so we started making fun faces and designs with their food. They love to come up with new designs and make different faces and because they make it themselves, they are inclined to eat their masterpieces!

Mouth - Banana cut in half lengthwise, Nose - Grape cut in half, Eyes - Shelton's Turkey Sausage Patties with Vital Zymes (digestive enzymes), Eyebrows - Apple slices

Mouth - Banana cut in half lengthwise, Nose - grape cut in half, Eyes - Shelton's Turkey Sausage Patties with Vital Zymes (digestive enzymes), Eyebrows - grapes

Cantaloupe, frozen red grapes, Applegate Genoa Salami, Hormel All Natural ham - design by Daniel

Bluebirds

Andrew had to do a special science project on a forest animal and he chose the bluebird. He loves all animals and nature and was very passionate about this project. He collected tree branches, sand, rocks, grass, etc. for his diorama and it turned out great. He was so proud. He even dressed up for the special day. This project allowed him to showcase the positive sides of ADHD... creativity, love for nature & animals, sharing with others and his outgoing personality.

Tater-Tot Casserole

This is an old family favorite that I converted to meet our dietary restrictions... YUMMY! I ended up doubling the recipe because my kids used to eat it all several years ago and they eat more now!

Tater-Tot Casserole
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 lb ground beef or buffalo
1/4 tsp salt
dash pepper
1/2 tsp crushed oregano
1-2 Tblsp minced onion
1 can cream of mushroom soup (I made my own - see below)
1 small pkg tater-tots

Combine the tomato sauce, ground beef, salt, pepper, and oregano and put into a 9x9 baking dish. Cover with minced onion and top with 1 can cream of mushroom soup. Cover top with tater-tots. Bake uncovered at 375 for 45 minutes.

Cream of Mushroom Soup
3 Tblsp butter (Earth Balance soy-free)
1 small onion diced
12-14 baby portabello mushrooms
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp onion salt
1/2 tsp savory
1 tsp basil
salt & pepper
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 cup cashews (soaked for 30 minutes)
1 Tblsp potato starch

Heat butter, onion and sliced mushrooms in pan and saute for 10 minutes. Add 2 cups of broth, spices and simmer for another 10 minutes or so. While this is cooking, take the cup of cashews and the remaining 1/2 cup broth and puree in blender or food processor until smooth. Add the broth mixture into the blender and pulse a few times. Return to pan and heat to simmer again. Add potato starch and stir to thicken slightly. Adjust spices, salt & pepper as needed.

You won't need all the soup on the casserole - one can of soup is around 15 ounces I think - which would be almost 2 cups???

Note: If making real cream of mushroom soup for eating, I wouldn't add the extra potato starch and would probably add another cup or two of broth to make it more of a liquid soup. I wanted mine thicker to mimic the cream of mushroom soup right out of the can.

After it came out of the oven, I realized that the buffalo shrunk and the soup went around the edges and drowned the tater-tots. I also think I used too much soup, but it was a hit and everyone had seconds! Glad I doubled the recipe!

Totally ADD

Wonderful new documentary on ADD!

http://totallyadd.com/

There is a link on the first page where you can view the documentary online until September 25, 2009 so go watch it right away!