Catching up with the Kelnhofers-65

This week on Catching up with the Kelnhofers, I’m telling you all about our Halloween adventures, sharing my favorite meal delivery for the kids and showing you the Amazon item you need to buy before Thanksgiving rolls around.

this image

Halloween was last weekend. 

I had been asking Ben what he wanted to be for Halloween for weeks. Every time the answer was the same: a ghost. 

We had planned on being a family of ghosts. I found a (slightly dirty) white tablecloth and cut it accordingly. 

Spooky ghosts here we come.

The day before Halloween when we were talking about the coming day, and the most glorious toddler meltdown happened. Full of tears and everything. 

Ben wanted us to be birds (he also wanted everyone else to be birds and didn’t understand why he couldn’t tell EVERYONE what to be lol).

I thought I’d wait until the morning to see if he changed his mind. 

Nope. 

So, we improvised and all drew “feathers” on those tablecloths with Ben’s washable markers (yes, a lot got on the floor and the babies had marker that transferred on to their faces from drooling lol, but hey, it’s washable – only markers I’ll allow in our house). 

What could have been a bad day actually turned into such a fun and sweet day full of special memories. 

Nick’s family were in the woods and handed the kids some halloween treats. It was really special, and no one cared that our costumes were absolutely hideous. 

New on the blog:

• Classic cranberry sauce – a must-have for Thanksgiving dinner
• Catching up with the Kelnhofers – our family update from the past week
• Yumble Kids meal delivery review – my favorite meal delivery service for my kids; so helpful on those busy days!
• Sourdough stuffing recipe – the one and only stuffing recipe you need in your life.
• Love List – sharing some favorite things from around the web
• Pumpkin pecan pie – a fun twist on two classic recipes!

Theme of the week:

Thanksgiving is coming up and these are some of the sides we’ll  be enjoying!

• Broccoli divine – a classic that will make anyone love broccoli
• Sourdough stuffing –  OMG, I never used to like stuffing, but this stuffing is SO GOOD
• Roasted squash and sweet potatoes – a great fall recipe that pairs perfectly with almost anything
• Slow cooker sweet potato casserole – cooking in a slow cooker saves oven space; perfect for thanksgiving day!
• Slow cooker cheesy potatoes – a crowd favorite, only 5 ingredients, and saves oven space!
• Stuffed mushrooms with stuffing – a family recipe that I always make at the holidays

5 recipes to make this week:

• 5 Ingredient Vegetable Frittata – the best breakfast and an easy way to use up any vegetables you have in the refrigerator.
• Freezer Butternut Squash Soup – My latest favorite fall recipe and a great make-ahead option for Thanksgiving.
• 5 Ingredient Crock Pot Pork Roast and Potatoes – a set it and forget it dinner.
• Fresh Herb Butter and Cheese Flatbread – a great light lunch or dinner or even a little snack
• 5 Ingredient Pesto Chicken Salad Bagel Sandwiches – one of my and Nick’s favorite lunches.

What I’m making:

• I used the back of the bag ghirardelli brownies recipe and made ghost brownies! I even made a little video if you saw it over on Insta. I think I’m going to do this for each holiday – maybe trees or ornament frosting for Christmas?

• It’s been a little hectic around here this past week, so it was so nice to have a Home Chef delivery (use code 40SweetPhi for $40 off your first two orders if you want to give them a try)
• Also got a Yumble box for the kids! 

Reader Comments

This reader’s comment on my recipe for white peppercorn gravy makes me smile!

• “I tried this today and it was amazing. I reduced the amount of salt and pepper and just added to taste once the base was made. But it was hella good 10/10!”

Reader Recreations 

This is one of my favorite freezer recipes, so I love seeing one of my readers re-create my freezer chicken enchilada casserole.

And if you’re making any SweetPhi recipes this holiday season, a quick little reminder ??

Things I’m Loving 

Two food related things from around the web:

• THIS SHAKE – pumpkin peanut butter, want!
• How good does this soup sound?

Item from Amazon you didn’t know you needed

• Meat thermometer – I use this all the time, definitely a must before Thanksgiving. 

What I’m Reading

• Gah, what a good book, the story is so amazing – but reading it is making me what the title says lol- Anxious People by Fredrik Backman. 

What I’m watching

• The Queens Gambit and OMG THIS SHOW! Two of my employees were talking about this show too and we all said it was one of the best shows we’ve seen in a long while. How a mini-series about chess can be so riveting?! I’m hooked!

Personal Stories

• I wanted to take a photo with Freddie showing my super cute Converse shoes I found when I unpacked a box from our move (they’re on sale for $50!). Freddie clearly really wanted to take a picture, LOL – he really just wanted to run down the driveway.

• Great game idea for kids – “feed the pumpkin” – I bought some pom poms and cut a little pumpkin shape out of construction paper and the cut the eyes out (for Ben) and a big mouth out (for the twins) and then they ‘fed’ the pumpkin poms.

• Now the kids want to ‘feed’ everything – so they fed a tube some drinks, lol.

• The kids got some wooden stacking rainbows from their great grandma and have been playing with them nonstop. 

• I was supposed to go to Napa for an event with the National Peanut Board but then ‘rona. They turned it into a virtual event that was super neat! They continued to support the businesses that we would have visited, so we did a virtual wine tasting and cook along that was super fun (we made a recipe from Chef Kevin Gillespie’s cookbook Pure Pork Awesomeness: Total Cookable Recipes From Around The World, so good, now I need the cookbook!)

Did you Know?

Are you looking for holiday recipes?  We have plenty on SweetPhi.com!  At the bottom of the home page, we have two categories that will be helpful – one for Thanksgiving recipes and Christmas recipes!

Popular this week: 

• Most visited blog post: This post for Instant Pot pork tenderloin with cranberry sauce 
• Most liked Instagram post: This cute photo of Freddie and Ben
• Most pinned image: how to make a Mimosa Bar!
• Most viewed YouTube video: this easy chicken dinner with fresh ingredients
• Most purchased item: Northwoods Cabin Candle (made by a local Milwaukee company) – their candles are amazing

How are you? Are you thinking about Thanksgiving yet?  Or are you moving straight to Christmas?  I’d love to here, so just leave a comment below and let me know!