Pumpkin Roll and Happy Thanksgiving

We wish all of our family and friends a happy Thanksgiving. This is the middle of the best part of the year for our family, between the NFL, Collage Football and the holidays it's a great time to look back and be grateful for all of the many blessings our Heavenly Father has provides us and all the loving support and blessings our family and friends have done for us through the year.

A great recipe that is perfect for the season is the pumpkin roll, it really is delicious and there isn't that much work involved just some time to refrigerate. I hope you enjoy it! I made it at shower and all the guests loved it and wanted the recipe so I figured I should share this with every one else that loves pumpkin this time of year!

Happy Thanksgiving! Drive safe and eats lots of turkey gobble gobble till you wobble!

Pumpkin Roll with Cream Cheese filling

Powdered Sugar
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 teas. baking soda
1/2 tsp apple pie spice

1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup pumpkin (such as Libby's 100% pure pumpkin)
1 cup chopped Pecans (optional)

Filling:

1 8oz. package of cream cheese, softened
1 cup sifted powdered sugar
6 Tablespoons butter, softened
2 tsp. vanilla
powdered sugar
1 container cool whip

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a Stoneware bar pan with Parchment paper, up sides and pinched and pushed in corners.

In a mixing bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt. Beat eggs and sugar with mixer in large bowl until thick. Beat in pumpkin. Stir in flour mixture. Spread evenly into Stoneware bar pan. Sprinkle with nuts if desired.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until top of cake springs back when touched. Immediately loosen from paper, sprinkle with powdered sugar with a Flour/Sugar shaker, and turn cake onto another parchment paper and sprinkle other side with powdered sugar. Roll cake up with the parchment paper inside of it and let cool completely in refrigerator.

Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter and vanilla with a mixer until smooth. Fold in entire small container of cool whip. Carefully unroll cake; remove parchment paper. Spread cream cheese mixture over cake. Reroll cake. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving. Serves 10-15 generous servings.

My thoughts about my pregnancy and time of year

Wow only about 11 more weeks give or take until Chloe is born! Wow. Gary, My self and family members have been saying her name since we told them what we were going to name her, and it's like she is already part of the family! I can't wait to see her and to know what she will be like, is she going to be fussy or easy going? Is she going to have blond hair like Gary and myself when we were little with green eyes? Who is she going to look like most, Gary or myself, I am betting she will look more like Gary sine that seems to be the trend in the family, but who knows. Chloe has been kicking me at night and waking me up, She pushes on my belly if my jeans are not in the right spot, according to her right spot J she seems to only want me to eat Apple Cider lately in fact I had about 36-40 oz. of apple cider in a day… at least I am getting my servings of fruit it right?

As the weather is getting colder I am wearing Gary's coats, and they fit me! I look like a black marshmallow since they are big and baggy but they are comfortable and that is all that matters. Gary and I have our birthing classes coming up, I am not sure if I want to think about labor yet, it frightens me and I am such a big baby when it comes to pain, but hopefully 4 - 2 hour classes will help me!

I am so happy that Christmas is almost here! Its such a great time of year! There are so many fun things, traditions, and memories that come about, I thought I would share some off my favorite parts to the holidays with my family and friends: Gary and I have had a Tradition since we moved to Iowa City is to have a Christmas kick off night, I hope to keep this night private to "our family" Gary me and our Children. It starts when we start thinking about Christmas and start quoting Elf ( the movie with Will Ferrell in it) with our favorite quotes like:

you like sugar don't you?

I don't know, is there sugar in syrup? Then YES

We elves try to stick to the four main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corns and syrup.

The night includes, pop corn and yummy treats, hot chocolate or in my case this year hot apple cider. I am sure that through the years we will build upon this tradition but now it's a fun thing we do. This is also the time that "we" slowly introduce our selves to Christmas music. I already have a whole mp3 cd full of our Christmas music in my car! Right now Gary will only listen to the Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack, but after thanksgiving then it's free range. I will listen to any and all Christmas music. I figure we have like 7-10 Christmas cds that we only get to listen 2 months out of the year, why not start listening to Christmas Music before Thanks Giving?

My other fun tradition that started last year and will have to do it again is a cookie/ treat swap before finals, so husbands can have treats while it's finals week, and you can send them to friends. I am hoping to have it on December 10^th this year at my place, more info to come.

Lots and Lots of fun coming our way, it's so crazy to think in my little mind that I have a cheek list this is what is going though my mind:

Thanksgiving (Cheek)

Christmas parties and fun things (cheek)

Baby shower (awesome Cheek)

Christmas (cheek)

New Years Eve in Iowa city (we will deal with it, I shouldn't travel after Christmas, Cheek)

BABY (oh my gosh it's coming this fast? When did this happen and what on earth are we going to do…. Maybe we can think about checking this off our list of things we are doing in the next 11 weeks)

So there are all of my crazy thoughts. For both of us this is such an exciting time of year and period in our lives, Gary is also deciding what he wants to do after graduation, job or residency? We will see in about a month to 4 months what will happen… for now I can just keep dreaming of that house some where we will be living in someday with a nursery room for Chloe, and my Kitchen Aid Pro Mixer I will someday get… ahhh good times!