Family Fun

Summer is in full swing and here at the Gibson house we have been super busy with important things like pool time, yard work, golf outings, and BBQs.  This weekend was all about the BBQs.  The fam came over for a Sunday night dinner of burgers, corn, pasta salad, and pie.

Jack & his cob.

Yep, he loves corn on the cob.  For real.

We tried to get the boys to do a little photo shoot for us.  Jack loves the camera.  Gabe, who is usually all sunshine and bubbles, was not having it.  The following series of photos makes me laugh as Jack realizes that Gabe doesn't quite get the whole "cheese for the camera" thing yet.

"Come on Gabe, put on your camera face!"

"This kid is such an ametuer."

"Uh... Gabe, you're supposed to smile, not scream."

"But hey, look at me!  I'm still smiling!"

High on my list of summer to-do's is to practice my pie making skills.  I know, I'm such a work-a-holic!

Mmmm... pie.

This pie was a combination of Alton Brown's blueberry pie filling and the Pioneer Woman's Perfect Pie Crust.  You know we take pie pretty seriously around here, and I really wanted to work on my lattice crust.  It's not perfect, but I'd say pretty decent for my first attempt. 

Lattice Work.

It really is my goal to practice pies this summer, so if you invite me over, I'll probably bring you a pie.

Yea pie!

After burgers and pie, we headed out for a trip to the park.  Jack insisted we all go.  Even Mya. 

To the park we go!

Buds.

First up: the see-saw.

The crew stood by as Jack tried out all the playground equipment.

Isn't she so pretty?!?!

Just Chillin'.

Merry-Go-Round.

Jack is almost 4 now, and he's getting braver all the time.  He's definitely pushing his own boundaries and seeing what he's capable of.  Heights are still a little scary.

It would be fun to go higher, but also pretty scary...

Grandpa to the rescue!!!

Look how brave he is!

Jack insisted that Gabe needed to try out the see-saw.  Am I spelling see-saw correctly???

What have I gotten myself into!??

Awwwww!!!

Then Jack wanted to go down the slide and have Gabe at the bottom to catch him.  I think Gabe has realized that his entire life, at least the first few years, is going to be spent as Jack's side kick.  He'd better get used to it.

What are you guys doing to me??

Waiting pensively...

The suspense is killing him!

Ahhh.... woosh!

Gabe might need a helmet.

And finally we'd had enough fun for one night and we headed home.

Jack wore Mya out!  She's not cut out for the heat!!!

Gabe made it safely home, in one piece!

In the midst of all our busy-ness, it's so nice to stop and enjoy a fun night with the fam!  Even if it does take 5 adults, one baby, and two dogs to match the energy levels of one 3 year-old.

Roll Call

I've told you about the importance of rolls in our family.  Before I'd even met Drew's Aunt Nancy, I'd heard about her rolls.  Eventually I tasted them.  And that's when I realized what all the hub-bub was about.  The rolls are good.

This weekend the torch was passed!  Nancy held Roll Camp on Saturday.  She spilled the beans on all the secret techniques and ingredients.  I was stunned when the secret ingredient was revealed.  Stunned.

"Betty Crocker doesn't know everything."

The rolls originated with Drew's great-grandma.  She taught Nancy when she was in her early 20's.  And she's been making them ever since! 

She's got it down to an art.

We mixed, kneaded, shaped, and laughed the day away.

Kneading the Dough.

Roll Campers.

Shaping the Clover-Leaf.

I have a bit of experience with yeast bread, but I had no idea how much time and effort go into these rolls!  Shaping the dough requires specific technique and takes some time!  Then you have to proof them.  It's a good idea to find something productive to do while the rolls are proofing.

Cheryl to the rescue.

After preparing a batch of the ever famous originals, Nancy showed us how to make cinnamon rolls.  They are amazing.  Amazing.

Rolls + Butter + Cinnamon = OMG

The Roll Team.

Nancy's laundry room transforms into a proofing room.  Just waiting for those babies to double in size!

How beautiful!

Right out of the oven!

Just add butter!

We were a little nervous about how the rolls would turn out... our shaping technique was a little shaky.  But they were really good!! 

I'm so happy.

Jack approved. :)

This will go down in history as one of my favorite days of all time.  Who knew bread baking could be so much fun?  I am so appreciative to be included in such a special family tradition and I feel so blessed to have amazing women in my life that I love to spend time with. 

Now we've got a lot of practicing to do if we're going to be roll-ready by next holiday season!  Who wants to come over for a dinner party?

Pass The Turkey

And by turkey, I mean baby.  But you knew that, right?  You know I didn't eat any turkey. 

Our holiday was full of all the important things.  Family, pie, and lots of baby-time.  Baby Gabe got passed around more times than the basket of rolls! 

Tired turkey!

He just loves his mommy.

She's got the cutest boys. ♥

Passed to Grandpa.

One-handed baby hold.

Drew's pretty comfy to cuddle up to.

Shut the front door.  You know he's cute.

Back to Grandpa!

When will this turkey wake up?

Hand-off to Grandma.  And he's awake!!!

Ohhh, and he's c-ranky.

"No more photos!"

He's crying because he loves me so much.

There's my sleepy boy.

Okay, so Gabe was the star of Thanksgiving.  But let's not get crazy and forget about dessert.  I made my now-famous pumpkin cheesecake, but the real stars were the sauces.

Cheesecake, Pinterest Caramel, and Maple Whisky Cream Sauce.

After lots of trial and error, we found that your best bet is just to top everything with both sauces.  Lots.

Two kinds of pie, cheesecake, and two sauces.  That's what Thanksgiving means to me.

I should also mention that Gabe got lots of competition from two new, fantastic, family members.  Meet Henry and Andrew.

Henry; who I love.

And Andrew; who I just want to squeeze.  Look at that face!

Lots of sweet faces (and lots of sweets) at Thanksgiving.  My sweet boys ended the night cuddled up in blankets with Grandma. 

Awwwwwwww!!!

We have so much to be thankful for this year.  Even if things aren't the way we imagined they would be, they still turned out pretty wonderful. 

Happy Turkey Day!