Here is a video of Wookie and E running around- Wookie is the perfect "rough and tumble" puppy! After that clip is the CUTEST video EVER! (Bias opinion, I know) Lils was jumping rope in front of Rose and Rosie was laughing hysterically! She was cracking up!

Ever since I can remember, I've always wanted a Christmas puppy. To go downstairs on Christmas morning to see a bright red box and open it to find a beautiful little puppy with a big red bow! Well, we weren't able to get the puppy on Christmas Eve (the puppy was 6 hrs away and over two snowy mountain passes) but they were delivering their puppies to our area yesterday. We thought about having my bro-in-law hold him for 5 days, but he works full time and it would be traumatic for the puppy... So, we had a Christmas scavenger hunt yesterday! We went all around the house following clues that show the true meaning of Christmas symbols. Then the door bell rang and there was a bright red box at the doorstep!

We went snowboarding with Jeff and Clarks' Dad yesterday! They skiied, I snowboarded. It was the best ever! We went to Sugar Bowl because the tickets were 1/2 off and the snow was great! We just had a blast all day! Clark and Jeff were skiing down trying to find jumps and powder, Keith (Dad) was cruising along having a good 'ol time and I was just trying to make it down without whiping out big-time! Though the second run down, I was feeling pretty good again. I was knocking everybody out on the way off of the lift every time, though! :) Clark would be holding my arm, but I can't turn my board with one foot off the board and so I rammed straight into the snow bank EVERY TIME! Keith and I would ski down to certain points and stop and watch C and Jeff do some fun jump. Both C and Jeff flipped upside-down one or two times, skiis flying in the air. And we all (except Keith, I think) white-washed in the powder, FREEZING! But the sun was out, the sky was clear and beautiful blue, and we just laughed and had a good time! I had my kids at 3 different houses, so I'll be owing babysitting for the rest of my life! And I was told that Rose was screaming half the day... nice.

This is what our friends and neighbors are getting this weekend from us for Christmas (recipe folowing)! It's my Aunt Brenda's peanut butter fudge! It was always a favorite of ours as kids and now as adults, it tastes like Christmas. mmmm. We'd go up to New Hampshire, where my Aunt Brenda lives, at least once a year to see my Mom's Mom, siblings, and our cousins up there. We'd usually go near Christmastime, so there would be 3 or 4 feet of snow! A few of my Mom's 8 siblings lived on the same two streets in Stratford Hollow. Every other house seems like it belongs to an aunt, uncle, or cousin. This is the place where my Mom was born and raised. She LITERALLY walked in the snow uphill both ways with bread bags on her feet to keep the wet snow out of her shoes when she was a kid!


Imagine a small country lane lined with 100 year old farm houses, mountains on either side, tall beautiful green trees everywhere you look. Imagine cows, pigs, chickens, and goats in their barns lined with hay and smelling like warm manure :). Imagine stepping out of your car and the snow being as tall as you are! Coming from suburban Virginia, New Hampshire was like a snow-covered, freezing, and breathtaking farm wonderland! I learned so much about real life up there among my family there in New Hampshire. And there were always peanut butter fudge, blueberry pancakes, whole milk, and whoopie pie cakes in abundance.


I remember walking from my Aunt's house to my Uncle's with my hair wet (what was I thinking in 20 to 30 below temperatures!). I had frozen ringlets of hair by the time I got to the other house. I loved going up there and being with family. Sitting around the wood stove and making the best toast you ever had on it! Oh, and the whoopie pies my Grammy makes, that'll be another post!

We'd go sledding up the road (they live at the foot of some big moutains). My uncles had snowmobiles and they'd attach ropes to the back and pull us up the hill on our sleds! Then we'd sled back down. I still think of those amazing winters often, especially when I smell propane gas! :) Riding behind a snowmobile is really fun, but very stinky! Thank goodness none of us passed out from the fumes!

You might think this all sounds a bit redneck! Well it was, and it was the best! One winter when I was 12 or 13 my uncle got me and my sister's out of bed at 5:30 AM. He told us "city girls" to put on our coats and come on outside, he wanted to show us something. He got a chicken out and placed it on one of his anvils, then took a little knife in the other hand (you can see where this is going right?)! He basically pinched the head off of the chicken with his large hands and that little knife! We all SCREAMED! I had never seen ANYTHING like that! But that's the way it is, gotta have something for dinner, right? The chicken then ran around the yard without a head. Wow, I will never forget that. That night my sisters and I didn't touch our chicken dumplings out of principle... at least until we got really hungry.

Now, who's hungry for some of my Aunt's Peanut Butter Fudge??!

4 cups white sugar
1 cup milk
1 stick butter

mix together:
1 container marshmallow fluff
36 oz. of peanut butter
3/4 cup flour

Boil first 3 ingredients to full rolling boil for 5 minutes (cannot be stirred down). In a large bowl stir first three into the last three ingredients. Stir quickly since the fudge sets quickly. Pour into large greased pan. makes an 11 x 15 pan. To smooth top if fudge set too quickly, place waxed paper over top and press. Cut when cool. Enjoy!

Rose is 6 1/2 months old now! Weighing in a whopping 20 lbs at 6 months! She is a biggie, but Ebay was 23 lbs at 6 months! She is roly-poly, happy, fat, and sweet. We love you, Rosie-poo!

Yes, I underestimated the sweet little "Turkey Trot" 5K. I've been "training" for it, but with potty training Ebay, having a 5-6 month old, etc., my training wasn't entirely consistent. Plus, I thought, 3.2 miles? No biggie! I ran, at most, 2 1/2 miles to train for this and thought with the adrenaline of race day, that I could get the rest out and it wouldn't be so hard! Oh man was I wrong! I got my rear kicked! We were in Chico (near Clark's parent's) for the 5K. We were about a third back in a crowd of 2600 people. The weather was a little crisp, perfect for running. I was there with Clark, Clark's brother (who is training for a half marathon) and my bro-in-law (who had ankle surgery a year ago and hasn't really run much since). We were excited, feeling good... and as soon as the count-down started, I got nervous! Then we were off! I was feeling pretty good in the beginning, and overheard a father tell his son, "that's one mile down!" I was thinking, "Wow! this is great, this will be easy!" Then it got tougher and harder, but I kept up my pace. I heard someone else yell something about half-way. "All right! This will be great! This ain't NOTHIN'!" I saw a big group of people ahead yelling words of encouragement and some flags up ahead... could it be? The finish line already! "Wow, I am in INCREDIBLE shape!" I thought to myself :). (not really.. I was getting pretty tired and was glad to be done). As I got closer and closer I heard the people yelling, "You're half-way there!! Great job! Keep going!" WHAT?! HALF-WAY????? Oh man, I was so tired because I was putting it all out there by then. That's what I get for listening to a Dad tell his kid an evil, evil lie!!

Well, I made it, only stopping a few times to catch my breath for literally a second. But I was really going s-l-o-w. Sweet Clark stayed with me the whole time b/c we wanted to do this together. He was so encouraging and patient with me, though towards the end I was saying, "just leave me! Go on, leave me here to die" Ha ha. Good times. I will never underestimate a 5K again! But I did it!

Welcome to our new blog address... www.chundermonkeys.blogspot.com. Hope you found us OK! I know it all looks the same! :) It just doesn't have our last name as the title anymore. Thanks!