Grant and I will be carrying on the Christmas tree camp out tradition tonight, and leaving for Nebraska at 4 am! How are you celebrating the Savior's birth? We'll be at my parents' house for the next few days, and then I will see you in 2012!!

today's cookie: outrageous chocolate chip. peanut butter + oatmeal + regular chocolate chip cookie= outrageous. (grant's Christmas pick)

grant.
doesn't have classes any more. (except the ones he teaches)
doesn't have to buy any more text books.
gets to come home to his wife and baby instead of driving far away from us.

how could i have forgotten to tell you guys?! it's the big news of our life. grant is finished! woohoo. i am super proud of him, and so happy to have him home! so happy. those two years flew by, didn't they?

so when grant came home from his final class last wednesday night, i was waiting for him inside the kitchen door, with open arms, and.... peanut butter cookies.
because that is the kind of guy my guy is. he doesn't want cake. he just wants peanut butter cookies.
i made him another batch this week as part of his Christmas gift.



what kind of food does your guy like to celebrate with?

today's cookie: Suicides. be careful not to choke as you take the first bite! the snowy pile of powdered sugar has been inhaled (and coughed on) by many a Harms. but it is so worth it.

steve is my father in law. steve has introduced me to many awesome things. like shooting a handgun, his baked beans, christmas music playing out on the front porch, and grabbing the salt shaker with a napkin when you're at a restaurant. (those little bottles can be gross!) these crisp buttery cookies are steve's favorite, and when i married into the family, they became mine as well. oatmeal crispies would be their official name, i guess, but the Harmses usually just call them suicides. they are the tops. i'm telling you.



mmmm. i love the smooshing part... making them nice and flat on the pan before they bake. so fun! they taste great straight out of the freezer, by the way. in case you are like me and get desperate for a taste of butter. basically, if you need a snowy Christmas cookie in your life, here. take these.
you're welcome.

this year, since i am eating a little untraditionally (gaps diet), i have an untraditional baking plan! i will still make a few of the Christmas classics, but it has actually been really fun figuring out how to swing new Christmas treats grain free. it's easier than you think. i even took requests from grant and now i feel like i have too many good ideas! here's my plan so far: lime cheesecake (for grant), dark chocolate and date brownies (for me), classic peanut butter cookies (for both of us), lemon blueberry muffins (for Christmas morning), and peanut butter coconut balls (for old times sake). mmm. i can't wait!

tradition: caroling!! did you know people still do this? yes. we do! after the taco feast, all the Harmsies get bundled up and bunched into cars. we head out to the front doors of friends and family, bringing them a loaf of Judy's famous homemade bread, shivering and singing our hearts out. i love it.

my favorite moment of the whole holiday is in between tacos and caroling, when we gather in the living room to rehearse our songs. you can't even imagine the wonderful sound until you are in the middle of it. 30 brothers and sisters and sons and daughters singing a cappella in one living room. it's amaaaazing! i can't wait to see Hadley's eyes light up when we start singing this year.

when we get home from caroling, we read the Christmas story and open gifts and have a birthday cake for Jesus! do any of you guys go caroling?

let's stuff our stockings with soap, people. and on that note, can we just talk about how nice it is to be showered? i know about the shower. it is a blessed place. after giving birth, i experienced the phenomenon of showering as a mom. the newness of the newborn in the house had steamrolled me. it was incredible. so amazing! but showering was a needed link to normalcy. the simple soap routine felt like an old friend. my two hands were relieved to know exactly what to do in that realm. the shower became a small luxury spot in my world. so why not get a little fancy with my soap?

i don't know much about soap on a rope, but i do know that i tend to stock up on soap at Christmas. it's a little tradition for me. it just feels like the time of year to do that kind of thing. and i don't mean dial soap. i'm talking about lovely, i'm a baby mom now, i'm splurging soap.

growing up, mom would change out the soap at the sinks in our house during Christmastime. it was such a treat to wash our hands with cranberry ice or fraser fir or some pepperminty variety. this year, i'm getting my Christmas soap from the newest shop on the scene. my sister in law put her handcrafted soap on the market! i am super excited. she just opened. for a couple years now, our family has been spoiled with Heidi's yummy smelling soaps. they are my fave. i even use her unscented bar as my face wash. pop over to
to see her super affordable soaps. i'm getting a few of the rosemary mint and a couple cedarwood. there's even hard lotion bars, too! perfect stocking stuffers. order yours today!

starting tomorrow.
i've got something special cooked up. 


12 days of sweet stuff about Christmastime. our traditions + things to make, do, enjoy. 


yours, summer

**disclaimer. this is an unsweetened treat. if you are not on a sugar/starch restricted diet, i have no idea if it will taste good to you or not. try it to find out!**

so, i made it through thanksgiving on the gaps diet. it was actually awesome! i had a full plate, seconds, leftovers, … and dessert. naturally sweet pumpkin bars made a perfect substitute for traditional pumpkin pie. in fact, i think i like them better than pie. i've always preferred cookies or bars. i bet i'm not alone on that. anyway, they smell as yummy as pumpkin pie in the oven.

these squares remind me a little of custard. if you choose to make them with the coconut flour they will be a little more dense like a traditional cake-bar. i like them both ways. they're great hot out of the oven (as they are in the photos here), but i really love them iced down good and cold. store them in the fridge for sure, and maybe even pop one in the freezer for a few minutes before eating. mmm. when they're chilled, you can smear coconut oil all over and pretend it's icing. i always do. but make sure you also sprinkle heavily with cinnamon and sea salt- this finishing touch really gives life to these treats.

i know we are all more familiar with pumpkin bars rather than butternut, but i recommend trying them with the butternut. it is sweeter than pumpkin, really rich and mellow and lovely.



pumpkin and butternut bars 
grain-free, gaps friendly, unsweetened
adapted from finding my niche

2 cups butternut or pumpkin puree, or a mix (keep in mind that butternut is sweeter)
¼ cup coconut flour (optional)
1-2 T. cinnamon (can add other pumpkin pie spices such as nutmeg and cloves)
1 T. pure vanilla
½ teaspoon salt
2 T. plain yogurt (butter or coconut oil also work well, room temp)
8 eggs, separated

crack egg whites into a medium size bowl and set aside. in a large bowl, combine all remaining ingredients (including egg yolks) and blend until smooth. whip egg whites until light and foamy, then fold into cake mixture. pour into a parchment-lined and greased 9x13 pan. bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes.

serve warm, cold, or toasted. with lots of butter! or my "icing." store in the fridge.

salted cinnamon "icing"
(too simple to be a real recipe, but)

coconut oil
cinnamon
sea salt

layer each piece of cake with coconut oil, dust with cinnamon, and finish with a sprinkle of sea salt.

a GAPS kitchen is not as scary as you might think. look how harmless mine looks! but it is busy, i will tell you that. as i'm getting ready to head up to bed there are lentils soaking by the sink, yogurt dripping in the fridge, and broth simmering on the stove. sometimes there's even stuff culturing on my counter. if that gives you the heebs, don't worry. it grows on you. fermenting is fun! and super good for you. a major part of gaps is filling your body with probiotics, and believe me, we want all of those probiotics! (especially if you've had antibiotics recently) so far i've made yogurt, pickles, beet kvass, and a monster batch of sauerkraut. and i have a kombucha starter on my christmas list! have you ever had a sip of kombucha? yummy stuff, guys.

i know, i am a nerd. a couple months ago i would've been one of you guys clicking away from this post.

but don't leave yet, there's still plenty of normal food to go around! and guys, once you start eating this way, it really (very quickly) becomes normal and super uncomplicated. i cut out grains and sugar months ago, even before i had found gaps, and things got really, really basic for food around here. that's the nice thing about being a bit limited in the kitchen, it simplifies dinner. i'm being honest. i think i enjoy making and eating my food more now than ever! here's our grocery list and typical menu.



you'll notice i don't have any nuts, fruit, or honey listed, which are all gaps-friendly. that's because nuts are crazy expensive, especially if you buy the kind that are recommended and easily digested (soaked). and i haven't been doing fruit or honey yet, so we haven't needed those. hopefully soon!



i'm pretty sure everything listed is gaps-legal (the parmesan "flatbread" is grain free), but maybe not for everyone. gaps is done in stages, and is a very individual thing. it all depends on what your body tolerates. hopefully this gives you an idea of a real life gaps diet. i am always finding new recipes and gaining more meal options, so this list isn't complete. i already forgot to mention crustless spinach quiche! and i promise to share some of those recipes soon! any requests?

sight: the blue window light at 5 o'clock- when lamps come on and our living room looks so cozy.
sound: the crunch of snow. jingle bells on our door. carols. it's a wonderful life and the bishop's wife.
smell: pumpkin bars baking (recipe coming soon!). the big christmas tree at church. hadley's breath.
taste: the pumpkin bars, of course. new chili. green onion and parmesan omelets.
feeling: nursing by christmas tree light. harry potter at graham and audra's house. grant coming home from his very last saturday class!
project: the ice rink. using up zucchini. making everything fit in our fridge.

hi guys! i'll try to answer all your questions and wonderings from the comments on my GAPS diet post the other day. ps. miss hadley says hi.

1. How is it working for you? Notice any differences? it's going great! it doesn't even truly feel like a "diet" because 1) i eat as much as i want and 2) i seriously love everything i eat. it all tastes so delicious! once you eliminate sugar, i think your tongue starts to appreciate everything else more. and yes, i have seen so many differences! i can tell that lots of stuff is happening inside me- for the good. but, no matter what i eat or don't eat, i am reminded everyday that any healing that happens is the Lord's work and all the glory goes to Him.

2.  I'd love to hear more about the foods you're eating and how long you'll be doing it for. i will be doing an in-depth post (with a grocery list!) where i will tell you guys what i eat! as for how long i will stick to the gaps diet, i'm not sure. i think it will probably just end up being a gradual process of incorporating things back into my meals, rather than a finishing point. even once i am "off" the diet, it's not like i will start to eat unhealthy things.. not with the knowledge i have now, and my tastebuds the way they are. i'll continue eating a lot of what i do now, but i will splurge here and there, and probably have some starches/grains. but really, i do enjoy eating such nourishing stuff. (and no junk. you never feel guilty!)


3. What do you do when you go out to dinner or to another person's house? well, we aren't eating out a lot right now, which isn't that sad because Subway is the only option in our teeny town:) when we were in the city, we did eat at Chipotle and it sat okay with me. i still only ordered things that would be gaps-friendly, if not exactly "legal" :) you just have to do the best you can, when you can! basically, we eat at home almost always (this is normal, not a big adjustment) and if we ARE eating somewhere else i will eat beforehand or bring along some things to munch on. it hasn't been a big deal, so i am super thankful!! most of the time if we are eating elsewhere it's at my in-laws' house or my parents' house, where there are always options for me. i think people don't realize how many possibilities there are for easy gaps snacks and meals! (i'll be sharing some, don't worry)

4. I'm curious to know if you have any information about the creator's son's autism? How did she know he was cured? yes! amanda, since receiving your question i found a wonderful article, written by Dr. Natasha herself, telling her son's story of healing. you can read it right here.

this post is part 2 of my little GAPS series. you can also read part one: i'm doing GAPS. part 3 is coming soon with a list of what i like about gaps.  

it's morning. at this very moment hadley is nestled into her crib, still sleeping away. i am nestled into our attic bedroom. i am showered. yessss. my hair is static-y. i am wearing jeans (aka not pajamas), my lumberjack slippers, and thinking about turning on our little electric heater, which i pretend is a wood burning stove. and i am too scared to creep downstairs for fear of waking up the little girl, because we have got a really good thing going on here. but i am celebrating up here in my chilly room. because it is december! and there is snow! just a little early morning dusting, but it's very happy. snow in december is the best of all! i hope it snows for you, too.

as i sit here thinking decembery thoughts, i'm looking at old photos. they are getting me in the mood. here are a couple from december 2009. doesn't that sound old now? we had just moved into our new house then. i remember how pretty our tree was!


we destroyed it with lights. so glowy! it made our walls look almost pink. and do you remember my sack lunch advent calendar? i loved that thing! maybe i will have to bring it back. and… remember the blizzard?


oooh. i hope we have another blizzard-full season ahead. according to the farmers' almanac (everyone goes by the almanac around here, you know) we are in for a whopper. like, 100 inches of snow or so. yeah. we have winter here in minnesota. no big deal. :)

but back to december 2011. here's what is going on so far:
1. the tree is up. this year we did a mixture of white and colored lights. it actually looks amazing.
2. our tree is not drippy with garland or spangled with ornaments. but it does have lights! 1,300 lights. on a tree that is way too small for 1,300 lights. that's how we like it.
3. if you've been following me on twitter, you know that i have already been watching Christmas movies, a gigantic guilty pleasure in my life. i'm with you guys who melt for The Family Stone. it's on at my house. over and over.
4. i'm letting my hair get dark. darrrrk. hello, winter blonde. at least according to rachel zoe's stylist, natural is so major right now.
5. only 3 classes left until grant gets his masters degree!!!!!
6. hadley is currently into sitting up and smiling so big her cheeks might pop. (she woke up at this point in the writing of this post. we got her dressed and fed and made some eggs for mom. she's playing on the floor now. i should be working in the kitchen instead of blogging...)
7. for christmas music i am enjoying the vince guaraldi trio holiday station on pandora, my old nat king cole stash, and michael buble's new album- which i am listening to on spottify.
8. the christmas quilt is out.
9. grant is planning another ice rink this year!
10. i've started making chai lattes after hadley goes to bed. mmmm.
11. basketball season is in full swing. (grant is coaching again.)
12. i've only gotten a couple Christmas gifts, but that's okay. amazon prime is my bff.
13. pajamas are really big around here. all day. at your house too?
14. we have a ton of yogurt in our fridge. homemade!
15. i will definitely be doing some more posting about GAPS. thank you guys for your awesome, honest feedback and cheering me on! i ate it up. how fun that some of you have been thinking about trying GAPS for yourself! i love that so many of us are thinking about the same stuff. i will be sure to share what i eat and some of my favorite recipes.