12-25-09 Eliana with her pile of presents

Friends:

This past Christmas was wonderful! It was spent surrounded by family and friends. My nieces, Camrynn, Ashlynn, and Jasmynn spent 2 nights with us: December 22 and December 23. On December 23, we took Eliana and her cousins to Miracle on Fulton Street in New Orleans.

12-23-09 Miracle on Fulton Street

There, they got to play in the “snow” (tiny masses of bubbles), see Santa, and mail letters to Good Ole St. Nick from the Rudolph mailbox provided. So cute!

12-23-09 Mailing Santa a letter at Miracle on Fulton Street

On December 24, Christmas Eve, we prepared for Santa’s visit. First, we delivered gifts to our wonderful neighbors. This is what we saw in the sky!

12-24-09 Christmas Eve Double Rainbow

After spending some time at my mom’s exchanging gifts, drinking hot cocoa, and eating cookies, we headed home. Santa was coming and we had to prepare! Eliana left a card for Papa Noel, cookies, and milk.

12-24-09 Cookies and milk for Santa

Then Eliana went off to bed. In the morning… surprise! Santa had visited!

12-25-09 Eliana discovers her Santa gifts! Woo hoo!

Eliana read her letter from Santa. It was a nice, long letter. He said he was a big fan of Eliana Cooks!

12-25-09 Eliana reads her letter from Santa

He left cool presents for Eliana. Soleil received her fair share too!

12-25-09 Santa's Gifts to Eliana & Soleil

Soleil received a wireless all-in-one printer, copier, scanner & fax machine, a lighted makeup mirror, and Harajuku Lovers perfume “G” by Gwen Stefani. Eliana got a new recipe binder, an apron and chef hat set, a teddy bear, and what she asked for from Santa: an iPod touch. It even came loaded with the “Cooking Mama” game!

12-25-09 Eliana with her iPod Touch and other gifts from Santa, including a new apron & hat set!

Then, it was time for all of us to open our presents. There were piles everywhere! We all had great Christmas presents. Antonio got a new flat screen TV for the bedroom and all kinds of new clothes. My big gift was a Flip HD video camcorder. Soleil got all kinds of new clothes and shoes. Eliana received cookbooks including Julia Child’s The Art of French Cooking and Memories from a Cuban Kitchen.

12-25-09 Eliana gets Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child

Then Abuela (my husband’s mom, Jennie) came over to give us her gifts. Abuela gave Eliana a new 19 inch flat screen TV for her bedroom!

12-25-09 Eliana gets a new flat screen from Abuela!

Then it was off to my mom’s house. First, Eliana and Soleil had find out what Santa left for them at Nana’s house. Eliana received a Nintendo DSi and Soleil got a new 160gb iPod Classic. Both girls were ecstatic!

12-25-09 Soleil LOVES her new 160gb iPod Classic! from Santa at Nana's house

After that, it was time for posed family pictures. We do this every year in front of my mom’s Christmas tree. It’s become a family tradition. Here I am with my husband, Antonio.

12-25-09 Dianne and Antonio

Here is a picture of Soleil and Eliana.

12-25-09 Family Portrait: Eliana, Dianne, Soleil & Antonio

Finally, there is the grand family photo!

12-25-09 The Whole Family

After that, the kids were dying to open all their Christmas presents. It was mad chaos. We were opening presents while guests came to the door. My mom was hosting a Christmas party too.

12-25-09 The kids are ready to open presents

Mom prepared a feast! There was a turducken (duck inside a chicken inside a turkey layered with sausage stuffing), brisket, roast beef, macaroni and cheese, green bean artichoke casserole, cornbread stuff, gumbo, pineapple meatballs, lumpia, stuffed mushrooms, bacon greenbeans, and more! Then you should have seen the dessert table!!

12-25-09 The Feast

My best friend, Lisa, and her fiancee, Lonnie came over to visit. I don’t get to see Lisa often and I always look forward to the holidays when I can reconnect with her.

12-25-09 My best friend, Lisa, and her fiance, Lonnie

She just got engaged over the holidays and the ring is absolutely breathtaking. They had it made and my mom had to examine it!

12-25-09 My mom, Josie, looking at Lisa's new ROCK

We had a ton of fun. We ate, drank, sang Karaoke, and even played games like Catchphrase. In our family, Christmas is all about being together. It was a fabulous day full of love.

12-25-09 Nana's grandchildren

So from our family to yours, Happy Holidays! May 2010 bring you much happiness and together time!

12-25-09 Happy Holidays from Dianne

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

11-26-09 The Main Spread with Fried Turkey and Ham

Friends:

Thanksgiving was wonderful! We had a great turnout of about 50 people altogether for our Thanksgiving Feast. It has always been our tradition to host military singles and young military families to our family gathering and this year was no exception. Eliana and my nieces (Camrynn, Ashlynn & Jasmynn) began cooking on Tuesday. We started with all the desserts that could be refrigerated – Pineapple Pumpkin Pie, Sweet Potato Eggnog Pie, Pumpkin Butterscotch Bundt Cake, and Sopapilla Cheesecake Bites.

11-24-09 Chef Eliana and her cousin, Camrynn, making the Sweet Potato Eggnog Pie

The desserts turned out delicious. Here is a picture of the Pumpkin Butterscotch Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Drizzle. Yum! So moist!

11-25-09 Pumpkin Butterscotch Bundt Cake

The girls worked tirelessly, cooking and keeping the kitchen clean. They were like Santa’s Elves!

11-24-09 Little kitchen helpers taking a pizza break

When guests came in, they wrote their blessings on a leaf for the “Giving Thanks Tree.” Before we ate, we said grace and read the blessings out loud. It was a wonderful beginning to a perfect party.

11-26-09 Giving Thanks Tree

Then they ate and drank to their heart’s content. We had five tables set up with food and one for drinks. The menu included thirty items! The cooking was done by me and the girls, my mom, my 19 year old daughter, Soleil, my mother-in-law, and some of our party guests also brought dishes. The main course included 2 Fried Turkeys, 2 Smoked Turkeys, a Honey Ham, and Mojo Roasted Pork. Appetizers included Lumpia (Filipino egg rolls), Asiago Parmesan Mushroom Purses, Mini Crab Cakes & Remoulade, Ornamental Turkey with Ham, and Cheese & Fruit Skewers. The sides were Cornbread, Bacon Cheddar Cornbread, Cornbread Stuffing, Cranberry Dressing, Roasted Garlic Gouda Smashed Potatoes, Green Bean & Artichoke Casserole, Homemade Macaroni & Cheese, Rice & Broccoli, Roasted Cauliflower, Carrots & Mushrooms, Sweet Potato Casserole, Smothered Greens, Black Beans, Shepherd’s Pie, Stuffed Mushrooms and Steamed Rice. We had 2 soups: Crawfish & Corn Bisque and Chicken & Sausage Gumbo. To complete the feast, we ended with these fabulous desserts: Sopapilla Cheesecake Bites, Pumpkin Bundt Cake w Cream Cheese Drizzle, Sweet Potato Eggnog Pie, Pineapple Pumpkin Pie, Leche Flan & Casava Flan. It was a spread to remember!

11-26-09 Yummy Side Dishes

Look at our beautiful drink fountain!

11-26-09 Sparkling Pomegranate Punch Fountain

We had a full house and it was wonderful seeing so many happy faces.

11-26-09 Thanksgiving Party People

The girls put on a show for us, we danced, and played games. Most of all, we had a blast!

11-26-09 Sisters dance

Happy Thanksgiving and thank you to all of our family and friends for making it a special day!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne

10-31-09 Cat Woman and Wonder Woman aren't really enemies

Friends:

The moon was full and we are in New Orleans! That, right there, is a recipe for a special Halloween brew! As a family, we decided to depict Heroes and Villains. My husband Antonio was Batman, my nine year old daughter Eliana was Wonder Woman, I was Cat Woman, my nineteen year old daughter Soleil was Harley Quinn (Joker’s girlfriend and partner in crime), and Soleil’s boyfriend Tomas was The Joker.

10-31-09 Heroes and Villains

Soleil and Tomas headed for Voodoo Fest, a huge music festival in New Orleans City Park. Antonio, Eliana and I went to our church’s Trick-O-Trunk, an annual Halloween celebration where parishioners park their cars in the church parking lot and decorate their trunks. There is music, games, a haunted house, and food. It’s like a big festival and the kids only have to walk from trunk to trunk to go trick-or-treating. So much fun!

10-31-09 The Kids pose like grinning Jack-O-Lanterns

They participated in a Mummy Wrap contest with toilet paper. Eliana, Camrymm, Ashlynn & Sienna won 2nd place for their bow-tastic work! LOL

10-31-09 Eliana, Camrynn the Mummy, Ashlynn & Little Sienna

I had a bit of a brawl with Bat Man. Everyone wanted a picture with him. How dare he still my spotlight when I am on the prowl!

10-31-09 Batman fights Cat Woman

My brother, Gary, was a Star Wars Sith. His daughter, Camrynn, was Princess Leia.

10-31-09 Who will rescue Princess Leia from the evil Sith?

My mom, Josie, is adorable. She intermittently wore a mask but here she is in all her cuteness.

10-31-09 Cutie Nana on Halloween

Here is Eliana next to the coolest Jack-O-Lantern we saw all night!

10-31-09 Eliana next to a Fleur de Lis-O-Lantern at Trick-O-Trunk

We had a blast at Trick-O-Trunk and I loved being with my family again. That was MY biggest treat!!!

10-31-09 Dianne as Cat Woman - Meow!

Until next time…

Warmly, Dianne