More fun cooking a delicious meal, this time with an assistant chef (so I could get more photography in!).  For today, just gobs of photos from start to finish… HT to Pioneer Woman for the recipe.

For years, as a quick and easy meal for the kids, we’ve often turned to those boxes of instant quick and easy “Mac & Cheese.”

Somewhere along the way, we discovered that Kraft’s “Mac & Cheese” had a bit of disclaimer: they didn’t really use cheese but a “cheese product.”

So we decided to try store-brands: Wal-Mart, Costco’s Kirkland Signature, etc. with real cheese.  And they were better.

But not by far.

And somewhere (farther) along the same way, we thought: “Macaroni is just pasta.  Cheese is just… cheese.”  How hard could it be to make this dish from scratch?

Tonight, I tried my hand at it, following the famous Pioneer Woman’s recipe for baked macaroni and cheese.

How did it turn out?  Well first, the quantitative evidence:

1. I had a great time cooking it; for the first time preparing a roux and tempering an egg (click through to the above recipe if you don’t know what I’m talking about).
2. I liked eating it.  But then, I cooked it, I’m prejudiced.  But I would actually choose to eat this – not just when I was desperate for something quick & easy.
3. Our youngest daughter asked for three servings.  Unless it’s loaded with sugar, she never asks for three servings!  Gonna do this one again! (Never mind that she kinda had a sparse lunch.)

Qualitatively speaking, it wasn’t bad either (in other words, “presentation is everything”) — we added our own flair with panko bread crumbs on top:

Digging into the third serving!  Did I mention that it was her third serving???

I have five more weeks left in my pregnancy and with a huge bowling ball in front of me every moment, I can’t wait to unload and meet the little fella.  Even though this is my sixth baby, I still have things I want to make.  Today I finally finished a sewing project that I’ve been thinking about but didn’t have the chance nor the energy to make it happen.  It definitely felt great to get the carseat canopy completed.

The purpose of the carseat canopy or cover is to shield the baby from wind, sun, germs, or strangers.  Essentially it’s just a blanket over the carseat with detachable loops.  I decided to make it a bit fancier by installing a zipper down the middle so I can easily unzip to check on the baby while still have the baby protected from outside environment from the sides.  Makes sense?  Totally!  In my own mind.

We love Costco in so many ways and one such way is obtaining big boxes.  Why do my kids love these big boxes?  There are so many wonderful uses for them such as using them as sleds for coming down the stairs, carriages for their stuffed animals, carriers for all sorts of junks treasures, etc.  I’m starting to wonder why we even bother buying toys for them.  I love their simple pleasures.

We love Christmas!  Three years ago we started celebrating Advent, which begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas.  Advent means “coming” and it is a way to celebrate the coming of Christ.  I love this tradition because it really helps savor the Christmas season.

Tonight we started our annual Advent reading and the book we selected is Bartholomew’s Passage:  A Family Story for Advent by Arnold Ytreeide.  This book is the sequel to our last year’s reading, Jotham’s Journey by the same author.  In addition to this book, we’ll be reading Russ Ramsey’s book, Behold the Lamb of God:  An Advent Narrative.  We are still anxiously waiting for this book’s arrival.

At the start of the reading, we lit our first purple candle.  There are 5 candles total: 4 purple and 1 white.  We light the first purple one on the fourth Sunday before Christmas, and the second one the following Sunday, and so forth.  On Christmas day, you’ll have all four purple candles lit in addition to the one white one.  The kids love lighting and snuffing out the candle(s) and each child takes turn lighting every evening.

To make our tradition a bit more fun, we decided to give each child a new set of PJ’s (Thanks to Target’s Black Friday sale!)  They were really excited in receiving new jammies and with giggles and smiles they got changed into them.  After that, they settled down and got started with our Advent reading.  We look forward to each night just being with one another, reading a chapter from the books, and savor the joy of the season.

About twice a month, we experience a “negative tide” on the west coast, wherein the tide recedes well beyond its normal point and exposes a portion of the floor that typically lies underwater.

Even more rarely, that rare tide occurs durying the daytime on weekends when folks can go observe it.  Today, from 3-5 pm, we had the occasion to visit Moss Beach to check out marine life as a family and with friends.  It was really cool to see the rocks and sea life that one normally only gets to see at an aquarium.  Hermit crabs, anemones, and sea stars and other creatures were easily discovered by the thousands of people who were drawn by the same event to the area.  The weather was shockingly warm, and the sun shone brightly (great for people, tougher for photographers!).

Here are a few of the photos I snapped.  I didn’t get any particularly rare species (to my knowledge), but did capture a few very pretty shots of anemones up close.  I may even print & frame a couple of ‘em!

I love to celebrate my children’s birthdays.

Not because of gifts.

Or parties.

But because it gives me a chance to really rejoice in the unique and wonderful blessing that each child is.

Today was our youngest child’s turn, and the final birthday this year in our family (unless, of course, our next arrival, who is due on Jan 3, 2012, chooses to arrive a few days early).

Bethany “Bobo” Hope, born three years ago in a hospital shower stall, is a cute girl of relatively small dimensions.  She’s just now outgrowing 24mo outfits.  But her cheerful smile is big enough to light up a room.  This evening we celebrated her 3rd birthday.  Lois made her a felt princess crown to commemorate the occasion.  Below are some photos from the fun.