Beans...Blah

Well we finally tried beans that I tried to make for Christmas... they were not great :( If I was just wanting a pot of black beans to pour over cornbread, then they would have been fine, but I was wanting Mexican black beans...& that they were not :( So I will try again another day & if I am successful then I will share the recipe with you.
However something that I have tried that was wonderful is this candy bar Hubby put in my stocking.

Yes this is just the candy bar wrapper, it was that good :) & yes those are boxes that previously held Christmas presents...please excuse my Christmas mess.
I was already a huge fan of dark chocolate & spicy together. Hubby has bought me dark chocolate bars before with chilis in it & those are always great! This time he found this, with chipotle, salt, & popping candy! Yes we are talking Pop Rocks! I can tell you this candy bar lives up to it's name!
So if you are looking for an interesting sweet treat, I recommend this candy bar, or any dark chocolate bar with something spicy inside :)

CHUAO gave me nothing for this blog, I just really loved this candy bar that Hubby so sweetly picked out for me :)

Christmas

I intended to tell you about the completely made up on my own recipe for black beans that I made for our Christmas dinner this year. My brother & Sister decided that instead of the traditional Christmas meal, we would have Mexican food. It was a very yummy decision! So I made a huge pot of black beans in my crockpot, which were finished cooking around...11 PM... :(
Apparently when you put 2 bags of dried beans in a crockpot it makes the cooking time an eternity! Once they finally finished cooking they were packed up to send home with family & I brought some home to eat with leftovers, but still haven't tried them. I hope they are at least good after waiting that long for them! So my tip to you is to only cook one bag of beans in a crockpot, please learn from my mistake. If you have any tips on cooking beans please leave them in the comments, I always appreciate cooking tips!
So how was your Christmas celebration? Any mishaps in the cooking department?
We had a wonderful Christmas celebration (lack of black beans aside). Isn't it amazing how many simultaneous birthday parties Jesus gets every year! & he is at everyone of them celebrating with us :)
Very soon I will tell you about what Hubby is getting me for Christmas! I am excited & scared, but want to make sure all decisions are made before I start posting :) So come back soon to find out!

Christmas Letter

This is my Christmas letter this year, & I wanted to share it with you :)

Christmas 2011

Merry Christmas! Where has 2011 gone?! I remember when I was little and years seemed to drag on forever… that is not the case anymore!

          I hope you have had a good year! We are doing well! We are still living in Midlothian with the Burns’. Conner is still as cute as ever & recently started saying “Love You”. The first person he said it to was Patrick. It was cute & really funny. He turned 2 in October & is really starting to talk & show his own individual personality. February 10^th we gained a new member to the household. Elias James Burns was born 1 lb 12 oz, 14 ½ weeks early! He is now 10 months old, healthy, & adorable! He has been crawling for a few weeks & just started sitting up on his own. He is a miracle baby!

          I went to my first couple of craft shows this year. The shows were not financially beneficial, but I did learn from others who have been doing it longer & I plan on attending more shows next year.

          I started canning this summer, I made pickles & pickled okra. Patrick wants me to learn how to pressure can so I can save veggies for us to eat through the year. (Tiffany canned green beans & potatoes in her pressure canner-yum!) While I was canning, I was thinking about Ma, my great grandma. I loved the jelly she used to make! I will definitely be making jelly in the near future.

          We have started the planning process to take a trip to Disney World! We will be going with Jamie, Craig, & Jim & Cathy (some of my adopted parents J). We are going May 20^th & are all really excited!

          I hope you are having a great Christmas! And have a wonderful, 2012!

                                                                                      Love,

                                                                                      Patrick & Krystle

Free Shipping Day

Today, Friday, December 16th, is National Free Shipping Day! Many online businesses (including ScrappinArt) are offering free shipping to arrive by Christmas! So if you haven't gotten all your Christmas shopping finished then today is the day to do it! Also if you have liked some of the items I have written about, then you can pick them up today & take advantage of the Free Shipping! Like The Hidden Tree, Date Night Mini Album, Rock & Roll Baby Girl Mini Album, and the Flower Hair Clip, & Flower Pins.
I can't believe Christmas is so close! But at the same time I am so excited! Celebrating with family, cooking great food, picking out & giving gifts to the people I love, I love all of it! And why? Because I have been freed by my Savior!
Have a great weekend before Christmas!

This is what's going on

1) The Holiday Bazaar I was part of Nov 30 & Dec 1 was not as great as expected :( I was not able to make back my booth fee, but I did meet a few people who have been doing this craft show thing way longer than me. These said people now have my info & are going to let me know about upcoming shows in the future! So I'm very glad I attended this Bazaar!
2) I have been blogging for a year! I can't believe it! I truly appreciate you following along with me as I am getting my feet wet in the blogosphere. It has been a fun adventure :) And here we start year 2...
3) Saturday was my Birthday! :) It was a great day! I went to a do it yourself mosaic store with my sister & mom, then I had a birthday party thrown for me by the same amazing sister & mom & my brother cooked! It was a hat party because recently I have fallen in love with wearing hats! So everyone was instructed to wear a hat & everyone bought me new hats! So of course I alternated which new hat to wear through the rest of the party :)
4) It begins tonight... The first Christmas party Hubby & I are invited to is tonight. Let the month long celebrating begin! Jesus, You deserve a month long birthday party & so much more! Thank You for saving my life!