a Life with the Erickson's

holiday traditions // sugar cookies

Sugar cookies for a Christmas party are like pumpkin pies for a Thanksgiving dinner. Well, this year I had the best helper ever. He truly enjoyed pushing those festive shaped cookie cutters into the dough and finalizing each cookie with a not-so-healthy dose of sprinkles - almost exclusively blue sprinkles. :) And I too enjoyed this special time spent together while Natalie was napping. As a young family, we don't have many holiday traditions yet but this is one that I will continue for as long as I can before Kurt and Natalie are grown and have families of their own. In addition to teaching my children how to follow recipes, measure, and stir, teaching my children what this season is all about is something I will look forward to each year.

* Thank you Mom for passing on your love for cooking :)

never grow up

Oh, how time flies. I'm going to bottle up every little grunt and squeak from a hungry growing girl and the smell that radiates from her silky soft skin, and the sounds of footsteps from a boy who is running around looking for his train. Truth be told, these days are numbered and I want to remember them forever.

our family of four

Going from one baby to two babies was much easier than going from none to one. None the less, finding the balance as a family of four has had it's challenges as well. I must say though that life is much sweeter as a family of four. Yes, our tiny family of three was pretty sweet before, but another little babe has added a different kind of sweetness to the mix. The kind of sweetness you feel when you see a little toddler doting over his newborn sister. It's the love I tell you. Just as naturally as we fell in love with Natalie so did Kurt. Upon the faintest cry from her little lips, Kurt shouts, "Baby" and runs to check on her. Of course, he has had an extra meltdown or two (or three), but I don't blame him. He has had to become more patient overnight. That's a lot to ask of a 21-month old! Thankfully, it's nothing a little one-on-one time can't fix. :) I have roughly a month left of maternity leave and I'm enjoying, appreciating, and savoring all the one-on-one time I get with my family - challenges and all.

pre-holiday

Our babes are sleeping, my favorite homemade pumpkin pies are baking in the oven, and the sweet potato casserole is prepped and ready for the oven for tomorrow morning. Their diaper bag is packed and all that is left is for my sweet husband to get home from work so we can begin our two-day Thanksgiving feast followed by a two-day siesta. :) I just love this time of year! The hustle and bustle of the holidays can't be beat - we look forward to it all year long. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

update // Natalie

Yesterday, I brought Natalie to the clinic for her one-week weight check (yes, I know I was a whole day late). She weighed 7 pounds 1 ounce! She is eating great and gaining weight like a champ. :)

happy birthday, Natalie Mae!

At 8:01 in the evening on October 23rd we got to meet our little girl! What a great surprise it was to bring her into this world when we thought we would need to wait a little longer. Evidently, our sweet Natalie didn't want to be late and we couldn't be happier! She weighed 6 pounds 7 ounces and measured 19 and 3/4" long. It goes without saying, we're in love over here and we can't quite understand how we got such a cutie.

tomorrow

Tomorrow is your due date littlest Erickson. We're SO ready for your arrival. Bags have been packed. Prayers have been spoken. Now, we just need you to join us. Boy or girl, we already love you. And if that means waiting an extra 10 days like we did for your older brother, we're more than happy to oblige.

thank you cookies

Luke's boss (Ryan) and his wife gave us a huge tub of clothes for Kurt. We finally got around to sorting through it and we found a ton of nice stuff for our little toddler. I got two loads of laundry washed, dried, and folded. They've yet to be put away... I just didn't have time for that! :) Anyway, we're so thankful for the hand-me-downs that I baked a batch of cookies for Luke's boss. The cookies aren't one bit healthy, but they are Ryan's favorite so I knew they wouldn't go to waste. The batch made just enough so that Luke, Kurt, and I could each have one. They are so yummy! Here's what you'll need to get started:

1 box of devil's food cake

2 eggs

1/2 c. oil

Mix the above three ingredients together. The dough will be thick. Arrange tablespoon size balls of dough on a cookie sheet. Then, bake them in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes. This recipe makes roughly 30 cookies.

While they're baking, make the filling using a mixer:

1 8-ounce package cream cheese (softened)

1/4 c. butter (softened)

1 t. vanilla extract

2 c. powdered sugar

Once the filling is made and the cookies have cooled, you can begin filling the cookies. Eat 'em or refrigerate (I of course recommend eating)!