Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Hot Chocolate in a Pot

Here it is!  Just what the world has been waiting for - a step by step tutorial for "Hot Chocolate in a Pot"-the oh-so-good Baird family treat always right for a crisp fall day or the cold winter season:

1.  Get out your pot (ha ha - just had to say that).


2.  Put in a generous 1/2 cup of cocoa.  


3.   Add 1/2 cup of sugar


4.  I then add a 1/2 cup of Splenda.  If you don't care to cut the calories, just add 1 cup of sugar instead of the 1/2 cup.


4.  Whisk dry ingredients together.


5.  Add 1/3 cup hot water, and whisk until it's a smooth paste.  You can turn the heat on at this point, but don't burn this mixture.


6.  Add 6 cups HOT water and stir.


7.  Now add 2 cups of Nestle NIDO powdered milk. Stir and heat.


8.   Enjoy the best cup of hot chocolate ever!
(Yesterday, we topped them with homemade marshmallows.  I forgot to take a picture of that!)




Friday, November 4, 2011

Flashback Friday

How about a new feature here on the Basically Baird Blog - Flashback Friday!   I'll take a little trip through the archives and feature a few favorite pictures every week.

Today, here are some featuring our children as budding musicians:



Laura ready to play in her first solo recital after learning all of Suzuki Book 1



Kara playing in a Primary talent show



Beth practicing piano as Ryan looks on


Ryan in his first violin concert



Natalie in her first piano recital




Now the next generation is ready to play!

Thursday, November 3, 2011

About a Month Away

Yay!   There's going to be a baby Baird very soon.

Ryan and Dara are pretty excited, and have been "nesting" at their new place in Charlottesville.   A few weeks ago, Skip and I went to visit.   We went with them for a beautiful drive to an orchard nearby to get some apples.


On our way back we stopped at a nursery/gift shop. That evening, Ryan and Dara took us to the outdoor mall in downtown Charlottesville.   We went out to eat there at The Nook, a restaurant with diner type food,  and then got gelato at another place.   I loved that you could get very tiny cones or cups there for only dollar I think.

We decided Dara should have a baby shower with her Woodbridge friends and family, so Kara and I hosted a baby shower here last Saturday.   Kara and I planned fun games and food.  We played the dirty diaper game where you melted different candy bars in diapers, and the guests had to guess what the candy bars were.   Very funny!   I think someone even tried tasting them!   We tried to guess how big Dara's baby is, and played a fun baby shower game on the i phone.   Dara got lot's of cute things for Lillian.  She is all set to be warm and stylish!


You can see Jenn Shreffler smiling in the background.   (She brought the balloons from Party City.)  Kara took a bunch more pictures, so maybe I'll try to get a hold of those for a later post.  

Needless to say, we are very excited to welcome little Lillian, and hope we'll be able to see her often!


Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Everything Creative

I'm a little bit addicted to the Mormon Channel program, Everything Creative.   I've gotten into the habit of listening to it in the morning (via i phone) while I'm getting ready in the morning, and driving to and from work.   In the earlier episodes, they interview one person, then each new person interviews the next one.   In the later episodes they're all hosted by Nancy Hansen, who I think is a singer/song writer.

I just love hearing other people's stories of how they start doing what they do, and how they are creatively inspired as they pursue their craft.

Some of my favorites have been:

Singer/songwriter Meaghan Smith

Composer, conductor, producer Rob Gardner  (future son-in-law???)

Children's book author/illustrators Mark and Caralyn Buehner

Cake decorater/baker Laurlee Morrison of Cakes de Fleur

The Five Browns

Artist Cassandra Barney  (her father is James Christensen)

There are LOTS more.  I haven't heard them all yet.  Each one inspires me to trust in my creative spirit, and keep trying to make more out of what I've been given.  

Listen to a few episodes, and tell me which ones you liked hearing.








Tuesday, November 1, 2011

NaBloPoMo

As I was blog hopping this afternoon, I found out that November is National Blog Posting Month, also known as NaBloPoMo.   You can learn more about it here.   I've been meaning to start blogging again, and maybe this will be what I need to get me started.  I haven't officially signed up, but the challenge is to blog everyday in the month of November.   I can TRY that.

Blogging is good for me, and not just like eating my vegetables is good for me ( I  love vegetables! ) Like President Uchtdorf says (counselor in LDS church presidency), each of us has an inherent desire to create something that did not exist before.  I strongly feel that creative desire.     Writing is one way I can satisfy that.  Recording life helps me keep grounded and focused on what's important and fun about living.  Through blogging/journaling, I can leave something to help me remember, and remembering is something that I find myself doing more and more, as I have so many wonderful memories piled up to sort through, learn from, and bask in.    

This is first and foremost a family blog, a way of sharing our news, and celebrating what it means to be a family.   So, in the spirit of that, here are some of my favorite family moments of the year so far:


Learning that Ryan and Dara were expecting a baby.
Revisiting Belgian delicacies with Beth in Occoquan

Jamming in Charlottesville with Beth, Ryan, and Kara

Seeing some beautiful sisters having fun together

Being together for Leslie's wedding in June


Skip and four of his siblings being able to be sealed to their parents
Enjoying family times at Grandma and Grandpas including visits from Karyn, Jamie and boys, and the Hullinger crew.

Spending time in Orem with Laura, Kart, Aiden, Emma and Owen                                                                                                   

Getting to see Beth and Natalie in Provo/Orem too.

Celebrating Beth's birthday, and eating some pretty amazing cake


Seeing our children's true colors

So there's a quick run down of just a few of the highlights.   There were so many more, and maybe I'll go into more detail on a few in the days to come.  So check in every day, and we'll see if I can keep this up.