Peppermint Oreo Balls

I love baking and these are one of my favorite things to make! I got the basic recipe from a co-worker last year, but have made a couple adjustments to it. As Pioneer Woman says, "these will make your hip bones disappear"! Not the healthiest, but its Christmas and we deserve a few treats :)

Ingredients:

• 1 package of Oreos
• 1 package of cream cheese
• 1 bag of milk (or white) chocolate chips (these work better for dipping than Almond Bark)
• Crushed Peppermint (You can crush your own, I used some "Peppermint Snow" I got at Williams-Sonoma, it worked great)

Directions:

1. Crush oreos either in a blender or by hand in a ziploc bag & put in large bowl
2. Add cream cheese and mix with a spoon or by hand, it will eventually blend together
3. Hand roll into balls & place on cookie sheet with wax paper
4. Place in freezer for 30-60 min
5. Melt the chocolate chips; I find a double-boiler works best for this. Melt on low heat
6. Take the balls out of the freezer
7. Place a couple sheets of wax paper on your countertop
8. Keep the chocolate on the low heat while dipping (You can try different things, but I found a spoon and/or toothpicks make dipping easiest)
9. Place dipped balls on wax paper & sprinkle peppermint on each immediately before the chocolate dries
10. Let them set for a couple hours to dry & for the chocolate to form a shell.
    

Take to a party & enjoy the compliments :) Or just eat them all yourself. Delicious either way!

Thankful

What a perfect Thanksgiving weekend! Lovely weather, family, good health, good food, football(with an unfortunate, painful loss to OU), Christmas lights, friends, puppies, movies, fireplace, Christmas trees, & a birthday!

I am so, so beyond grateful for all of these things. I thank God multiple times each day so I try not to take anything for granted. I even notice myself being so happy for the smallest things--a close parking spot, flowers, fall leaves, snowy mornings when you can stay home, sunny days, sleeping in, my doggy, laughing so hard you cry, being safe, our church. But I think God for them all. We are so lucky to live in this city, state & country, to have our families and friends, to have jobs, a happy marriage, a great church family/pastor, healthy babies, my doggy asleep in my lap.

Thursday we had Thanksgiving at my mom's & my dad's, and it was my dad's birthday as well. Friday we did some shopping, hung some Christmas lights, got some Christmas movies for $4 at Target (yay!), picked out a perfect tree & got it decorated while watching The Grinch & A Christmas Story. Saturday we went to our good friends' house to watch Bedlam & have pizza, then we went to Philbrook Museum for the Garden Glow & Festival of Trees (and Gingerbread Houses). That night we decided to go see A Christmas Carol in 3D, so fun! Sunday was a great brunch in Sunday School and great service, then nap time! All in all a perfect weekend!

Here are some of our grateful moments :)

90

We celebrated my nanny Hazel's 90th birthday this weekend, her birthday is actually Monday, Nov. 23. All her nieces & nephews came, plus her little friends from church. It was a great day & so nice to get everyone together for a happy occasion.

She was born in 1919 in Porter, OK. She is my last grandparent I have left and the healthiest of them all at this age. She is the epitomy of a grandmother and my sister & I have been lucky enough to grow up close to her. She is small but fiesty with a sweet, sweet attitude. Her brothers named her Hazel, and she never liked her name. But, I think it fits her & I don't know any others! Her brothers were her best friends and she has outlived them all.

They were a very musical family, with Hazel singing, uncle Glenn & Guy on the fiddle, and uncle Don on the guitar. None of them could read music, they tought themselves & played/sang by ear from what they heard on the radio & at church. Guy & Glenn could play the fiddle better than anyone!!

She has read through the Bible multiple times & loves & lives for Jesus with all her heart. She is the perfect example of how a lady should act. She has had her share of heartache & disappointments...but was so strong through all of it. She ended up marrying the love of her life later after being single & divorced for a long time. She & Tommy were two peas in a pod and they were married 24 years. He passed away in 2007 & she so wanted him at her 90th party.

She believes in hard work, vitamins, not worrying, praying about everything--no matter how small, and always be a lady! She is a fantastic cook & gardener, and always loved the latest fashions. She would still wear high heels if she could, and her nail polish & lipstick always matched.

We love her to pieces and are so, so grateful the God has blessed us with her for so long. Not to mention her good health! We can't wait to celebrate #95 now! :)

Nanny at 17

Nanny (bottom left) with her brothers on

their parents 50 wedding anniversary

Nanny & Tommy

The cake--featuring her senior h.s. picture

Birthday buffett

Nanny & Jerry

Nanny with her daughter, neice, & nephews

Mom & Nanny

Nanny & I

All of us!

Pioneer Woman Cooks--I love it!!!

If you don't already own this, go get it now! And get some copies for your friends too! I already loved her blog, so I was very excited about this cookbook. Pictures from the book signing in Tulsa are in the post below, but I just had to do a special post for this :) She is lovely in person, and Malboro Man is lovely as well, if I say so myself, ha! I always love a cowboy though, so that is part of it I suppose. I love all things country & hope to live out away from it all again someday. This is why I adore her stories & recipes, I just live vicariously through her! Growing up on a ranch I can relate to a lot of her stories, although they have a lot more ranch than we did! Her recipes are great for people like me and she makes all things I love.

So go get this book for some great food, photos, & stories that will make you & your taste buds smile! :)

October!!

Ok, so I've been MIA for like a month basically. Well, we just had a crazy busy October, and I've been staying at my sister's for 3 weeks with limited computer access :) Eric has been gone for a month, so we are glad to have him home!

October consisted of me getting another year older (aka turning 25 for the 7th time, ha), Dave Matthews, OSU Homecoming, meeting my favorite blogger Pioneer Woman, U2, and Halloween. What a great month! Here are some pics from all the fun :)