Friday, November 21, 2008

Mmmm....Pie


IMG_4548, originally uploaded by minnesotagrays.

This year we are hosting the Gray Family Thanksgiving. We are very excited about this, because it will be the first time that we are able to celebrate Thanksgiving with family since we moved to Minnesota.
After we plaaned the menu, Dana began trying out some of her recipes to make sure that they are perfect for the big day! The first one to be tested was pie. Kristoffer said he wanted a custard/cream pie. He used the words custard and cream interchangeably. So, when Dana's Grandma was visiting they made their first pie. Dana was impressed that her Grandma had her recipes memorized!! They made made her pie crust and cream pie. It was delicious, but not the pie Kristoffer had in mind when he wanted a custard/cream pie.
So the next week we had a custard pie. This one, not so delicious! It was basically a sweet egg bake...gross! After dinner that night we got out the Sulphur Springs Church's cookbook (an excellent book!) and looked for recipes. We found a recipe for Old-Fashion Cream Pie, and this sparked Kristoffer to do a little research. Turns out, this type of pie is called Hoosier Pie! Of course, all good things come from Indiana! The next day, Dana made a Hoosier Pie, and it was a winner! This is the one we will be serving for the big day.
Well, this is a long way of saying we have been eating A LOT of pie lately! We are willing to make that sacrifice to make sure things turn out great for Thanksgiving...haha!
Sorry about the terrible picture, we aren't food photographers.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Saturday Mornings

Everyone loves the weekend! At the Gray household we love Saturdays during the winter months, because we get to basically be lazy all day. As a stay at home mom, I particularly love the weekends, because Kristoffer is home with us. Here are my top three reasons for loving lazy Saturdays...


We get to play all morning in our pajamas! (Opps...forgot to fix the red-eye)





I get to watch the two loves of my life play!




Daddy helps with the feedings!

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Karter Can Sit Up...Most of the Time





Karter has started sitting up! This video was taken last Friday - when he was still very wobbly. While this video doesn't show it very well, he can now almost completely sit up all by himself without falling over. He still gets excited sometimes and falls backwards, but it has been fun watching him learn how to balance his body.

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Goodnight Moon


Get your pajamas on and get ready for bed....it's time for your bedtime story! We try to read to Karter as much as possible, and he seems to really like it. We aren't sure if he gets excited for the story or to eat the book once the story is over. Either way, enjoy Kristoffer's bedtime story! Goodnight...

Lunch with Daddy


IMG_4533, originally uploaded by minnesotagrays.

Yesterday, Dana and Karter ventured to the big city to have lunch with Kristoffer. Karter was a big hit with all of Daddy's co-workers and he even helped push a little product to the stores. It was fun to get out of the house and have a good lunch!

Happy Lazy Saturday!

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Picture of the day...Part 2


IMG_4528, originally uploaded by minnesotagrays.

His smile is just too cute in this one!

Picture of the day...


IMG_4530, originally uploaded by minnesotagrays.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Rollin' Rollin' Rollin'....


IMG_4478, originally uploaded by minnesotagrays.

....Karterman in rollin'! That's right, last week with a little encouragement from his grandma's , Karter started rolling over consistently. He will roll from his back to his stomach, and then he realizes that he can't go anywhere once he's on his stomach. After he whines from being on his stomach, we put him on his back and he rolls over again! His favorite time to roll over is after his bath, when he is laying on the counter getting his massage. This is just one sign that our little guy is getting too big for baths on the counter.
Today, while playing on his activity mat, Karter rolled over without any prompting. Dana was in the kitchen and looked over because Karter was grunting and he had rolled himself over onto his stomach!

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Mommy's Helper


IMG_4517, originally uploaded by minnesotagrays.

Sometimes during the day, Karter just wants to be where mommy is. And sometimes, mommy needs to be doing multiple things at once and can't stay where Karter is. It is days like today when the Maya Wrap comes in handy! Karter loves to sit in the kangaroo pouch and help mom get things done. So....he may take more socks out of the drawer than mom can put in, he is still the cutest helper a mom could have!

Monday, November 10, 2008

Surprise!


IMG_4485, originally uploaded by minnesotagrays.

Last week we had some suprise visitors! Well, Kristoffer knew they were coming, but he kept it a secret from Dana and Karter. Dana's Mom and Grandma came and spent a few days with us. It was great to see them playing with Karter and teaching him new things....another post about that later! Thank you for visiting and we can't wait to see you again in December!!

Sunday, November 9, 2008

Halloween with the Grays

As you know, Halloween was last Friday...and we celebrated like any family with a very small child and dog would. We stayed home to hand out candy!

Living in a neighborhood with lots of kids, we had TONS of trick-or-treaters. So, we set up shop in front of our front door with our folding chairs. Dana and Kristoffer sat and read a magazine to eachother (we found that to be pretty fun), Karter played in his excersaucer, and Rascal stood guard at the door.

Each time a kid or group of kids came by, Rascal would let us know by barking. Then Kristoffer and Dana would hand out candy!

CLICK HERE to see pictures from that night - as well as Rascal's costume for next year (90% off at Target - you can't go wrong!)...

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Kristoffer's Birthday Present

Well...Kristoffer finally decided what he wanted to buy with his birthday money (thanks to everyone who contributed!). He wanted an espresso/cappucino maker. So...on Saturday, we bought one! Kristoffer made one caramel latte (for Dana) and one cafe mocha (for himself).
It's a pretty nifty machine - complete with milk steamer and frother - and when you visit the great north here in Minnesota, we will be happy to serve you a fresh, hot, specialty coffee drink of your own!
It will be perfect for those chilly Minnesota nights which will be here soon!!