9 weeks.

9 weeks down!

Just to put things in perspective... here's what Lima Bean was eyeing:

A Very Jones Thanksgiving.

I have to admit I took an embarrassingly small amount of photos over the Thanksgiving holiday. I guess with all the turkey in my tummy, I just got lazy. Nevertheless, I have just a few photos I thought I'd share.

Thanksgiving was certainly different for us this year. Different, but not in any way unpleasant. As mentioned before in an earlier post, Rachel was here for the week, and we had a great time. We didn't have much planned, but just being together was what it was all about.

For our Thanksgiving meal, we had two of our dear friends over for dinner, Mike and Jessica. Mike was the IM (interim manager) of Andrew's store while Andrew was in his FRL course at CFA Corp. After Mike was finished at AJ's store here in the Springs, CFA sent him to a store in Aurora, a suburb of Denver, so he's just a little over an hour away. We met Mike when we first moved to COS in September and have been buds ever since. His wife joined him in November (she was teaching in NC prior) so now we're a little more even on the playing field when we get together. :)  We are SO thankful for Mike and Jessica. They have been a source of true friendship with lots of laughter.

Ok back to Thanksgiving. Entertaining/cooking are two of my absolute favorite things to do in all the world, so I was so excited to be able to fix a Thanksgiving spread. Thanks to Grace Church, I didn't have to worry about a turkey or ham because we received a gift card to Honey Baked Ham when Lima Bean was born. I was just in charge of sides and desserts. Andrew was in charge of our appetizer - fried pickles!

Of course we had the traditional dressing and sweet potato casserole, along with mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, creamed spinach, and the fabulous Sister Schubert rolls. For dessert, we had key lime pie (AJ's personal fav), pumpkin cheesecake, and pumpkin pie (after cooking the cheesecake, I was concerned how it turned out, so I made a pumpkin pie just in case... hate for the one pumpkin dessert to be a flop!).

Oh and I can't forget a small Fowler tradition... our little turkeys. :)

Was there way too much food? Most definitely.

Are we still eating leftovers? Of course.

Was it worth it? Absolutely.

We just had a simple table setting... Andrew was in charge of the decorations so props to him for the centerpiece with the funky gourds and hurricane, along with the lovely silverware bundles. :)

Unfortunately, as mentioned above, I didn't get many pictures so I don't even have one of us with Mike and Jessica. And the one and only pic I got of Andrew with both his sister and Lima Bean has disappeared. Boo. But here's a pic of our lil family on Thanksgiving, along with Andrew and LB.

Andrew and I have so much to be thankful for this year, including a very happy Thanksgiving.

Privacy.

After suggestions by some family, I am going to make my blog a private blog in order to protect my family.

Within the next two weeks, in order to view Chikin Chatter, you will have to get my permission. If I understand Blogger's privacy settings correctly, I have to input your email address into my list of readers for you to have access. Any steps after that... well we'll figure that out together. :)

So what I'm thinking is, if you're interested in keeping up with the Jones', shoot me an email with the email address you'd like for me to add to my list of followers.

My email address is annefjones@gmail.com.

I hope you all will still be interested in following! I've found Chikin Chatter to be a fun way for me to share our lives with family and friends.

Abiding in the Word.

"Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

Matthew 5:10

Andrew's sister, Rachel, came to visit for Thanksgiving. We had a nice time. Lima Bean already misses her Auntie Rach.

Thankful.

"O my God,
Thou fairest, greatest, first of all objects,
my heart admires, adores, loves thee,
for my little vessel is as full as it can be,
and I would pour out all that fullness before thee
in ceaseless flow.
When I think upon and converse with thee
ten thousand delightful thoughts spring up,
ten thousand sources of pleasure are unsealed,
ten thousand refreshing joys spread over my heart,
crowding into every moment of happiness.
I bless thee for the soul thou hast created,
for adorning it, sanctifying it,
though it is fixed in barren soil;
for the body thou hast given me,
for preserving its strength and vigour,
for providing senses to enjoy delights,
for the ease and freedom of my limbs,
for hands, eyes, ears that do thy bidding;
for thy royal bounty providing my daily support,
for a full table and overflowing cup,
for appetite, taste, sweetness,
for social joys of relatives and friends,
for ability to serve others,
for a heart that feels sorrows and necessities,
for a mind to care for my fellow-men,
for opportunities of spreading happiness around,
for loved ones in the joys of heaven,
for my own expectation of seeing thee clearly.
I love thee above powers of language to express,
for what thou art to thy creatures.
Increase my love, O my God, through time and eternity."

The Valley of Vision - "Praise and Thanksgiving"

What are you all thankful for, cronies?

I am thankful for you, my friends. And of course, words cannot describe how thankful I am for my family - my husband, my sweet girl, and all of my family back home in GA/NC (I miss you guys).

Although today is a great day for us to remember all that we are thankful for and all the ways the Lord has blessed us, may we be thankful every day.

Dos meses.

Wow... where has the time gone? I can't believe that our little Lima Bean is already two months old! Crazy.

I have thoroughly enjoyed being a mom, and I thank the Lord every day for LB. When I first found out I was pregnant, I cried.... I just didn't feel ready for this big step! Well now, I can't imagine life without our sweet girl and I feel absolutely confident this is what I was meant to do. I look forward to spending every day with Emmie - even the night time feedings are worth it. I just wish time would slow down a bit.

In the words of the wise Kermit the Frog, "Time's fun when you're having flies!"

Happy TWO months Lima.

In other news... Phase one of Thanksgiving has begun!

Double Dipped Apple Doughnuts.

As I was perusing one of my favorite blogs, I came across a recipe for double dipped apple doughnuts.

Photo by Joy the Baker

Umm.... yes, please! Andrew and I decided that we couldn't go to sleep without making them.

So we did. :)

Here's Joy's recipe:
Crispy Apple Doughnuts

makes about 24 rings

For the Panko:
2 cups panko bread crumbs
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For the Milky Batter:
1 cup flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk (I used 2% milk)
1 large egg
4 Fuji or Granny Smith apples
oil for frying
*Andrew and I added a splash of vanilla extract to the milky batter... just because.

In a medium bowl, whisk together panko crumbs, sugar, and cinnamon.  I like to use my fingers to crush the panko crumbs into a finer breadcrumb.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, and salt.  In a small bowl, whisk together milk and egg.  Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and whisk until no lumps remain.  Set aside to rest while you peel and slice the apples.

Peel the apples and slice into about 1/3-inch thick rings.  Use a small biscuit cutter to cut out the core (Andrew and I used a melon baller).  You can also peel the apples and use a apple corer to core the apple before slicing it into rings.

Soak apple slices in milky batter mixture.  Set the panko mixture next to the milky batter.  Heat a heavy bottom sauce pan with 2-inches of oil to 350 degrees F, measuring heat with a candy/fry thermometer.

When oil has reached 350 degrees F, use  pair of tongs to remove a few rings from the milky batter, and coat in panko crumbs.  Once throughly coated in crumbs, use tongs to carefully place rings in hot oil.

Fry about 4 rings at once.  Fry until golden brown, flip over and fry until golden.  Remove from oil, place on a paper towel and fry the rest of the apple rings.  Bring the oil back up to 350 degrees before adding additional apple slices.

Keep the fried apples warm in a 200 degree oven while the others fry.  Sprinkle generously with powdered sugar and serve.

Warning... you will not be able to eat just one. :)

And just for fun, here's Miss Lima Bean.

This week...

Be on the lookout for another recipe post this week. AJ and I had a lil fall spirit last week so we made a not-so-good-for-you something with apples. Oh and it was goooood. :)

Anne

Abiding in the Word.

"It is better to be of a lowly spirit with the poor than to divide the spoil with the proud."

Proverbs 16:19

Week 7.

Our little wiggle worm.