Ebates Deals!

Since everyone is on the brink of going crazy with Christmas shopping, I thought I'd tell everyone about Ebates.  It gives you a percent back on what you spend, so I use it whenever I order something online.  You go to your website through the Ebates homepage, then you order like normal, and Ebates records how much you spent at the other website and gives you a percentage back through a check in the mail.  It's free.  I've been using it for two years and love it!  When I ordered my contacts, I spent $300 and it gave me 11% back in a check ($33).  Other times it's only 4% back, but it's something.  All the percentages back double around the holidays, so it's a good time to sign up.  They also let you choose a gift card $5-$25 to certain places when you sign up. My brother Garrett signed up today and is kicking himself for not listening to me last time I told him about it, because he spends a good $5000 a year online for his little business.  Click on this link to sign up:

http://www.ebates.com/rf.do?referrerid=B4Mi2C7IfS7xcA4LS67mhw%3D%3D

  

I am not going to leave the house on Black Friday, but I might buy a few online things (I like to sleep in on my days off.).  Everyone have a great Thanksgiving!

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

These are really yummy!  The original recipe came from www.thefloweringdogwood.com, and I just made a few changes.  She created the recipe to imitate some from Starbucks.  I have never been in a Starbucks, so I can't tell you how close they are to the real thing, but they look the same. The original recipe didn't sweeten the cream cheese at all, but I didn't like that very much, so I added some powdered sugar to the second batch.  They are very yummy and fall-festive--delicious with a hot cup of cocoa.  I made the mistake of leaving them on the counter all day, and Jason ate five of them while I was at school.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon  (I didn’t have anything but nutmeg and cinnamon, so I just added lots of cinnamon.)

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon ground cloves

4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

1 pinch cardamom

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

2 cups pumpkin

1 1/4 cups vegetable oil   (Next time I am going to exchange apple sauce or yogurt for half of the oil.)

Chocolate chips (optional) (Not in original recipe, but Starbucks should seriously consider it.)

Chopped  pecans (optional)

8 ounces cream cheese

Powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Makes 24 muffins.

Cream Cheese Filling

1.     Blend cream cheese with about 1/2-1 c. of powdered sugar--just enough to give the cream cheese a hint of sweetness.

2.   Put the all of the cream cheese on a piece of wax paper or parchment paper and shape it into a long log.

3.   Put it in the freezer while you mix and fill the pans (up to one hour).

Muffins

1.     Mix dry ingredients together.

2.   In another bowl, mix eggs, oil, and pumpkin.

3.   Add the wet ingredients to the dry mixture.  Mix until just combined.

4.   Fill muffin tins 1/2 to 2/3 full.

5.   Unwrap and slice cream cheese log with a sharp knife so each cream cheese disk equals 1-2 teaspoons.  If they are too big around, cut thick slices and then cut them in half.  Put cream cheese disc in the middle of each muffin, pressing it down.  It doesn't go under the batter.

6.   Sprinkle each muffin with 1 tsp chopped nuts.

7.   Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the muffin part.

8.   Let cool in pans for 5 minutes, then remove to racks to cool completely.  

Snow.

It was 70 degrees on Saturday, and it has snowed four inches in the past eight hours.  It's still coming down, heavy and wet.

O Christmas Tree

We drove up in the mountains yesterday to search for the perfect Christmas tree.  It was a gorgeous day!  All I wore was a long sleeved shirt, and I didn't see a speck of snow.  That's my kind of Christmas tree hunt!  I took some pictures along the way, and I'm kinda proud of this one--especially since I snapped it fast while trying to chase Jason up another hill.

We found this tree stump that was five feet in diameter.  We counted all the ridges, and it is about 300 years old!  We can't be exact because several inches in the middle already rotted out. 

 I'm starting to see some beauty in Idaho.  This is good, considering how long I will live here.  I love the aspen (after painting them several times in my watercolor class), and I like the expanse of land between me and the mountains. 

Here is Jason sawing down our beautiful tree! (Don't worry, I apologized to it, and the money we paid for the permit will plant a new one.)  Last year, our tree took up the entire living room, so we tried to find a smaller one this time.  They all look tiny compared to some of the old folk trees up there, so it's hard to tell!

It's amazing how difficult it is to find the perfect Christmas tree.  You see all those trees in the background of the picture?  There is something "wrong" with all of them, according to Jason.  He's a perfectionist.  Trees can be dazzling in the forest and completely wrong for our home.  It took me an hour and a half of double checking several clearings (and some reverse psychology) to convince him this one was good enough.

Marcus brought Army MRE's for his lunch and let us watch him eat.  He showed us how the little heating bag works and let us sample his food.  I just tried the peanut M&M's.  They were good.

This is Eric and Jessi hauling back a tree.  My right arm is still numb from carrying ours out of the forest.  For those of you wondering if we're putting the trees up already, the answer is no.  I guess they went dormant when it got cold, so they are sort of hibernating until they get warm again.

This is me and Jason watching Marcus eat his MRE.  

This is Jessi and Shawn. They are really cute together.

I think Betsy and Justin took a nap while some of us were still looking for the right tree.  

And last, but not least, this is my adorable niece September and her dad, Justin.

It was a fun day and wonderful to be in the woods with Jason for awhile.  We will miss this tradition a lot while we're at dental school.  

P.S.  Jason and I just played Scrabble, and I scored 319!  Jason won, though, because he got 318 and I had to subtract 3 points for my leftover tiles.  :(  Still, I count it as my first unofficial victory against my Scrabble Champion husband.

Troubled Water

Jason and I were at Rigby Lake today. I was in a rotten mood all day at school, and I needed some time away from everything. We were the only two people in the entire park, and it felt like we were the only ones in the world. I hopped on a swing, pumped till I could get going without the luxury of being able to touch the ground, and closed my eyes. To be a kid again--nothing to worry about past today--nothing but dreams full of hope and expectation--nothing to think about but the last sunny day before winter. I spent a good half hour on the swing, then I fell asleep on the grass.

We went to a Collin Raye concert tonight. It was a lot of fun. The best song though wasn't his. It was Simon and Garfunkel's Bridge Over Troubled Water. The words felt so personal today for me and I imagine for several other people I've been thinking of tonight.

P. Simon, 1969

When you're weary, feeling small
When tears are in your eyes,
I will dry them all
I'm on your side
When times get rough
And friends just can't be found

Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down

When you're down and out
When you're on the street
When evening falls so hard
I will comfort you
I'll take your part
When darkness comes
And pain is all around

Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down

Sail on silver girl
Sail on by
Your time has come to shine
All your dreams are on their way
See how they shine
When you need a friend
I'm sailing right behind

Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind

For me the "I" in the song is the Savior. The line "All your dreams are on their way, See how they shine," gave me hope and courage today.

This Is Halloween

Last weekend was so much fun. At school, my kids could hardly contain their excitement. We played a "game" where none of us could say the words Halloween, costume, or party before lunch. One student came up to me during seatwork time and said, "Mrs. Scoresby, I can't stop thinking about the secret words! They just keep distracting me!" I empathized and just told him to do his best to put it out of his mind for a little longer. He walked to his desk with his fingers pressed to his temples and his eyes squeezed tight against the beckoning thoughts of candy and Halloween costumes. It was the cutest thing.

I love how even their faces got into character--and trust me, no one had to ask.

We had several activity stations that the kids rotated through for the party. They painted pumpkins, did a foam pumpkin craft, danced the "Hooky Spooky," mummified themselves in toilet paper, played Halloween games, and balanced eyeballs on spoons. We sang Halloween songs and read spooky stories. As if that weren't enough excitement, they gulped down entire cups of soda pop and big sugar cookies before walking in our school's costume parade. I can't remember having more fun at school!

Saturday night, Betsy hosted her Second Annual Halloween Party at the Scoresby's. It was even better than last year.

Giselle and Tyson (her boyfriend) came up for it. Giselle was so excited to see September, her adopted niece. I love this picture of them!

We decorated all day. We carved an entire bin of pumpkins in one afternoon--and the results were stunning.

Jason hefted this 150 lb. pumpkin all the way across the yard behind him, and we turned it into a mummy.

Betsy and Justin made this amazing scarecrow-vampire.

Justin, Daniel, and Shawn masterminded two pumpkin totem poles.

Jason and I brought 70 severed fingers and toes for party food. Delicious and disturbing.

Jason and I went as Bonnie and Clyde. I'm trying to think of what we could be next year that requires Jason to wear the same suit....Isn't he handsome?

Betsy and Justin dressed as Ben and Dorcus from Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (underwear scene), and little September is a fairy princess. (Betsy made the wings!)

My favorite costume of the night is definitely the Hillbillies--Shawn and Jessy.

For the first activity, we performed hilarious "Un-Talents." We girls won the trophy for a mesmerizing interpretive dance to "I Put a Spell on You."

After the show, we had another round of "Disco King." If you haven't had the honor of participating, I'm so sorry. I look forward to it every year. Jason was just one person away from being crowned King, but Shayann took the prize.

It was such a fun weekend! I wonder where we'll be next Halloween. Louisville? Omaha? Phoenix? L.A.? I hope not L.A.