Three Months

...and growing!

I love this the next few months because you totally see their personality coming out.

Max loves to smile (especially after eating) and also started giggling quite a bit.

Here's to surviving 3 months with 3 kids.

Lord, thank you for the gifts these little ones are and, do I dare say it, the challenges they bring every day.

Happy Halloween

Every year my cousins get together with our kids for a Halloween party. It's funny how all the costumes get passed around. I think there are costumes here that have been worn at least five times.

Also, if you look to the upper right corner you'll see my grandparents who now have 15 great grands with another on the way!

It's also been fun to compare Max with Jack in certain clothes and outfits since their b-days are just 9 days apart. It may not look like it here, but Max is now almost 3 months and the same weight  Jack was at 6 months.

Pumpkin Scone

Josh and I love Starbuck's pumpkin scone however very rarely do we treat ourselves in addition to coffee. Google here I come. I was on the hunt for a copy cat recipe and I think I managed pretty well. I've made these scones a few time in the past couple weeks and what should last at least 4 days end up disappearing in about a day and a half! If you don't like scones because they tend to be too dry, don't shy away. These are the perfect consistency (in my opinion). Hope you like!

Starbuck's Pumpkin Scones

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups all-purpose flour
7 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
3 tablespoons half-and-half
1 large egg
6 tablespoons cold butter

Plain Glaze
1 cup plus 1 tablespoons powdered sugar
2 tablespoons whole milk

Spiced Icing (this is actually enough for about 3 batches)
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
2 tablespoons whole milk
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
pinch ground ginger
pinch ground cloves

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon cloves, and 1/4 teaspoon ginger in a large bowl.
3. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together pumpkin, half-and-half, and eggs.
4. Cut butter into cubes then add it to the dry ingredients. Use a pastry knife or a fork to combine butter with dry ingredients. Continue mixing until no chunks of butter are visible. You can also use a food processor: Pulse butter into dry ingredients until it is the texture of cornmeal or coarse sand.
5. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients, then form the dough into a ball. Pat out dough onto a lightly floured surface and form it into a 1 -inch thick rectangle that is about 9 inches long and 3 inches wide. Use a large knife or a pizza wheel to slice the dough twice through the width, making three equal portions. Cut those three slices diagonally so that you have 6 triangular slices of dough.
6. Bake for 14 to 16 minutes on a baking sheet that has been lightly oiled or lined with parchment paper. Scones should begin to turn light brown. (I baked mine for 13 minutes and thought it was perfect)
7. While scones cool, prepare plain glaze by combining ingredients in a medium bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed. Mx until smooth.
8 When scones are cool, use a brush to paint a coating of the glaze over the top of each scone.
9. As that white glaze firms up, prepare spiced icing by combining ingredients in another medium bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed. Drizzle this thicker icing over each scone and allow the icing to dry before serving (at least 1 hour). A squirt bottle works great for this, or you can drizzle with a whisk.Makes 6 scones.

The Green Machine

Well this year, Jack was finally eligible for some good old-fashioned sporting and we signed him up for the local Under-6 soccer league.  Of course, being a push over, I agreed to help out with the coaching.  Everything has been great this season, good kids, fun times, except for the fact that our team is brutal.  After a pair of 9-1 thrashings, my expectations for this season's success went out the window.  Regardless, I hope Jack has had as much fun as I have and look forward to many more years of doing the sports thing with him.

 Jack has fallen victim to the "follow the ball" mentality, but he certainly lacks in focus and aggressiveness.  

 My job is to manage the sideline...as you can see below, I have my own issues.

- Josh