Monday, December 28, 2009

Grandma's apron












The other day I was making something in the kitchen and as usual Nicole was right beside me helping me out. I don't remember what we were making but it must have been especially messy. I pulled out my K-state apron that my mother had given me a long time ago. Nicole was asking me what it was. So, I explained what an apron was. Nicole decided that she needed an apron as well. Now if any of you reading this know my mother you know how she likes a good shopping challenge. I think it's the thrill of the hunt and the reward of finding the item that no one else could track down. So when my 3 year old told me that she also needed a K-state apron I told her that I would get grandma right on that! Ha She very seriously said "Oh, thank you mommy, thank you for getting grandma right on that!" Well, to my surprise my mother did not go out to every store in the metro area (like usual) to find an apron. She went to her closet and pulled out some material and then went over to her mother's house to borrow a sewing machine.

There is an old poem about Grandma's apron and how it was used for so many different puposes. It was a potholder, it carried eggs in from the chicken coop and vegetables from the garden, when company came it would hide a shy child, it was wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears… The Poem goes on with the many uses of grandma's apron and summarizes at the end that what he recieved from Grandma's apron was love.

I'm pretty sure that each time I pull out these aprons for my children that I will remember my sweet mother and the love she put into them. I hope that when my children remember their childhood they will remember the little aprons,the fun that we had in the kitchen and feel the love surrond them.

Once there was a snowman...snowman...




We had our first snowfall and Nicole and Ryan could not wait to get outside to build a snowman. Katie was a great big sister and took them sledding down the little hill in our back yard. She also helped them build a snow fort while Jim and I finished shoveling the drive. Then we all built our first snowman of the season. The only thing that could tear the kids away from all of the fun in the snow was some hot chocolate and marshmellows! It was a perfect Saturday.

A visit from Santa!


We had some surprise visitors the other night!

Gingerbread Houses 2009




The tradition of making gingerbread houses at Christmas time is always a favorite of mine. Actually I think it is everyones favorite. Who doesn't like an unlimited supply of icing and candy! This year I decided to make enough gingerbread for two houses. I had spyed a picture of a gingerbread stable in a magazine and said "I can do that!" My sweet husband was very nice and let me decorate it all on my own while he helped the kids decorate their house. I had a great time! It was not long after we had finished the gingerbread houses that I found all of the reindeer, snowmen, elves, santa... the whole gang piled into the stable. Someone had stuck them all inside. I guess it got cold out. Ryan also took a particular liking to the Christmas trees next to my stable. Each day he would take one little bite out of a tree and then carefully place it back into position. I should have taken a picture of the half eaten tree. It was so cute!

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Time flys....

The older I get the faster the world seems to spin. It has been forever since I have posted anything on my blog. This past summer and the beginning of the school year flew by! I can hardly believe Halloween is here and the Christmas shopping season is upon us! Ugh! My favorite holiday has always been Thanksgiving. Nothing is required other than giving thanks, filling your belly and taking a nap!

Fall is a great time of year here in PA. I have posted a slide show of a couple of our outings. Hope you can see some of the beautiful trees in the background. We went camping right after school started. It was a great time. We picked a local campground. We drove out Fri. evening and had a little campfire with hot dogs and smarshmellows. Then Nicole, Ryan and I drove home and slept in our nice cozy beds while Jim and Katie enjoyed a brisk evening under the stars. Nicole, Ryan and I joined them the next morning for pancakes and playing in the park. That's my kind of camping!

We also took a trip out to a historical farm this fall for their Fall Festival. It was a perfect day and we all had a great time.

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Here Piggy Piggy!



Katie had been begging us for a pet. So, like all good parents we finally caved in! We did lots of research and decided that guinea pigs would be a good pet for our family. They are small, quiet, and they live in a cage and so does their mess. We decided to get a pair of guinea pigs so that when our child lost interest the guinea pigs would not be lonely. Katie and I had a great time building the cage and researching about guinea pigs. We found a local shelter that had a pair of bonded guinea pigs and adopted squeaky and scratchy into our home. Now we did a lot of research on the animal and no where did it say that these animals are pooping machines! It is amazing that for such a small animal they can produce so much waste! It doesn't really matter what kind of bedding you use it still stinks. We also did not factor in our daughter and her friends carrying the pooping machines around the house. Needless to say, by the end of summer we decided that our family was not really prepared to have guinea pigs.

A is for Achievement

I started back to school this summer with a lot of hesitation and not a lot of confidence. However, I had a lot of support from my sweet hubby. I am so grateful that Jim has been and continues to be so supportive of my schooling. I could not do it without him. This summer I took both Anatomy and Physiology. My guidance counselor thought I was crazy. It may have seemed a little crazy to start back to school with two difficult classes that were condensed into less than half the time given in a normal semester. That being said, I really enjoyed both classes and realized that my dad has alway told me still holds true. "If I set my mind to it I can accomplish anything!" Not only did I go back to school this summer but I also decided that I was going to run my first race. I am not a runner. At least that is what I have told myself all of my life. Let me just tell you picking up running in Pennsylvania is not easy. There are no flat areas to run in PA! But again I was determined that I was going to run a 5K at the end of summer one way or the other. My mother happened to be visiting the weekend of a local 5K race. She watched the kids and Jim and I ran the 5K through a local state park. It was a great race. I even finished before the lady with the broken leg! Ha No Joke! After the race I started having crazy ideas like maybe I could run a 10K! Who knows what next summer will bring!

First Day of School 2009



This year we have 2 of our 3 kids in school. Katie started 3rd grade and Nicole started Pre-school. Katie's is really happy with her teacher and is loving 3rd grade. Her classroom moved to the second level of the school building. It was evidently a bigger move than I had anticipated because Katie was a little anxious and worried the first day. Once we got past the first 5 minutes she started talking to her friends and I think all of her worries were forgotten.

Nicole was very excited about going to school like her big sister Katie. She has a rolling backpack just like her sister. She loves riding the "Mommy bus" as we affectionately call the van on Tues. and Thurs. of each week. Nicole had no issues with separation her first day of school. Ryan, however had some separation issues. He did not want to leave Nicole's classroom. They always have a lot of cool toys out when we drop Nicole off. It is very hard to understand why he can not stay and play. It is getting a little easier for him. I really enjoy the special time that Ryan and I get to spend together.

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Memorial Day

I am a little behind on my posting. I started back to school this summer and studying takes up most of my free time. The good news: I am halfway through my first class! Yeh!

We took a family trip down to Williamsburg, VA over Memorial Day. It was a long trip getting there but we had a good time once we arrived. You can see all the pictures in the slide show at the right of the screen. We went to Jamestown the first day. I highly reccomend it for anyone with kids. It was a lot of fun. There were many hands on activities for the kids. They had a great time checking out the fort, ships, and indian village. We also spent lots of time at the pool. The weather was beautiful. We also had an opportunity to visit Yorktown and the little beach at Yorktown. After driving for what seemed forever to get to Williamsburg Jim and I were not excited about driving any distance for the beach so we took the kids to the small beach in Yorktown. They got to play in the sand and water and they had a blast! It was a great trip and I think the kids might have even learned a few things about American History. I hope!

Happy Birthday Ryan!


Ryan turned 2 at the end of April. I can hardly believe that my baby is 2! Ryan is so much fun. He is all boy and with two big sisters there are not a lot of "boy" toys to be passed down. I found a lot of old beat up tonka trucks on ebay and he loved it! We made Ryan a little teddybear cake for his birthday. I wanted to try and make a truck but I decided the bear would be easier given the time constraints. I think it turned out pretty cute and everyone enjoyed the chocolate frosting! Happy Birthday Ryan!


Thursday, May 28, 2009

A Conversation with my 3 year old...

Today we went to Walmart and bought some birthday wrapping paper for Ryan's birthday gifts. We are a little behind due to our trip to Williamsburg. More on the trip later. Nicole really wanted to play with the wrapping paper for some reason. I said "No, that is for Ryan's birthday."

Nicole: "Ryan's birthday?"
Mom: "Yes, we are going to have a party for Ryan's birthday this weekend."
Nicole: "A party!?"
Mom: "Yes, you will have to help daddy make a cake for Ryan."
Nicole: "I love cake! We can make a princess cake!"
Mom: "Do you think Ryan likes princess cakes?"
Nicole: "Yes!"
Mom: "Well, Daddy was thinking of making a bear cake."
Nicole: "I LOVE bear cakes! They're round and yummy and sweet and look like a bear!"
Mom: "Nicole, I love you!"

Maybe I am biased but it was the cutest thing and it really made my day. She is so darn cute sometimes.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

April

April has been a busy month. It started with Conference and a visit from Grandma! Of course we have been hiding and hunting for easter eggs all month. The kids don't really care if there is something in the eggs. It's the thrill of the hunt that they love. Candy is just a bonus. Katie had a piano recital, a choral concert/artshow, and then a talent show. Every Wed. and Sat. are filled with swimming lessons. We have eaten way too many PB&J sandwiches on the run this month!

Boys vs. Girls


I have probably said it before but I get such a kick out of watching the differences between my two youngest children. Ryan and Nicole fit the stereo types of boys and girls to a "T". The picture above is just one example. Nicole always wants to wear pink (flowers are even better) dresses. Ryan just wants to throw or climb on something. Yesterday morning we were at the park and as I looked at my two children I started laughing. The two of them had shared the exact same activities that morning, they had also had the exact same food. Nicole looked clean and beautiful in her little dress. Ryan had mud streaked up his leg, chocolate all over his face, and the entire front half of his body was soaked. Both were extremely happy!

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Katie's Talent Show


Last night was the annual Blue Mountain Elementry Cressona Talent Show. Katie decided that she did not want to play the piano this year so we came up with this little skit/song that she preformed with her friend Emily. I think they were a little nervous on stage but I am proud of them for performing.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Cute things my kids say...

This morning my sweet little Nicole came downstairs and headed towards our bed to snuggle with Daddy (as she usually does). However, Jim had to go to work early today and was not there to snuggle with her.
Nicole says, "Where's my Dadddy? I need my Daddy!"
Mom: "Daddy had to go to work early."
Nicole "No, I need my Daddy, He's my friend."

Later in the morning we went to Wal-mart for a few essentials. As we were walking along I was telling the kids what we needed to find next to put in our cart. Trying my best to keep them focused on only those things that we needed to go in the cart. So, I said "Next we need find some cheese." Ryan grits his teeth, squints his eyes, kind of smiles and says "CHEESE!" Of course the camera is never available at such oportune times.

Friday, March 20, 2009

Chocolate Mint Cake

Ok, I am not the world's greatest cook unless of coarse you ask Katie. She is a little biased. There is no one that can open a can of Raviolies like her mom! LOL! However, this cake was soooo good that I had to share. I have been feeling a little stressed lately and when this happens large quantities of chocolate seem the only cure. This cake hit the spot. I'm sorry. I did not get a picture because the cake was gone too quickly. Here is the Recipe:

Ingredients:
1 chocolate cake mix
3 TBSP. Creme de menthe syrup
1 recipe hot fudge sauce
1 8oz container whipped topping
2 TBSP. Creme de menthe syrup
green food coloring

Directions:
1.Prepare cake mix as directed, except substitute 3 TBSP. Creme de Menthe syrup for 3 TBSP water.
2. Pour into 13x9 inch pan and bake according to package directions. Meanwhile prepare hot fudge sauce.
3. Remove from oven while hot, poke holes all over the cake with a fork. Slowly pour the hot fudge sauce over the cake letting it soak into the holes. You may have to pour half wait a little bit for it to soak in and then pour the rest. Let the cake cool completely! Refrigerate at least one hour before topping.
4. After refrigerating, mix whipped topping , 2 TBSP creme de menthe syrup and a few drops of green food coloring. Spread on cake. Keep refrigerated.

Hot Fudge Sauce
1 can sweetened condensed milk
6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 Tbsp. butter.

Melt all together. I like to use a double boiler because I don't like to risk burning the chocolate.

I didn't have any girl scout thin mints at the time but I think they would be fabulous crumbled up and spread on the cake after the hot fudge sauce and before topping.

Enjoy!

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Chicken Cacciatore




Last night I tried out the Crockpot Chicken Cacciatore recipe from Amber's blog (check out my blogs I follow link to get the recipe) It was a Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade recipe. The only change I made was to put the broth in a pan after the chicken was cooked and thicken it a little with cornstarch. It was a big hit with the kids! Thanks Amber! I feel like I have redeemed my cooking skills. Stay tunned for mint chocolate cake.





Monday, March 9, 2009

Is your bucket full?

We had a really great family home evening last night so I thought I would share. I had been preparing a lesson for the Young Women this week on supporting family members and ran across a great family home evening idea. I had 2 buckets. I filled one bucket full of water and left the other empty. I gave each kid an empty cup. I asked them to name one thing that made them upset or frustrated during the past week. Each time we named something we took a cup of water out of the full bucket and put it into the empty bucket. Soon we reached the bottom of the bucket. We compared this to our spiritual selves. How all of the things that make us angry or upset really drain us. Then we talked about how we could help each other fill our buckets and of course the kids got to dip their cups and fill up the empty bucket with each suggestion. We talked about how we have a responsibility to help everyone in our family keep our buckets full! It was a great lesson and now when I scream you are emptying my bucket they know what I mean! Ha! just kidding!

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Too Cute!

Sometimes my children are just too cute. I need hidden cameras around to catch their cuteness. They are too quick to catch on video. Yesterday evening , like most evenings, I asked Katie to go and practice the piano. I heard her take Nicole into the piano room with her and sit her in the chair. Katie played her first song and at the end I hear Nicole clapping enthusiastically and shouting "That was AWESOME Katie!" Then Katie very humbly says "If you thought that was good, wait till you hear this, it will knock your socks off!" Way to go Katie. I'm gald she is so confident. It makes me even happier that Nicole is her cheering squad.

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Don't try this at home!

Ok, now that I have shared with you the disasters that my children have created this past week I will share with you the disasters that I created in my kitchen this week. My father has always loved trying new things especially when it comes to food. He has passed on this fearlessness (with food) to his daughters. I'm sure that my husband wishes I had a little more fear about food at times. This week was one of those times.
I had went to our local produce market here and got a great deal on carrots. When I got home I started thinking "What am I going to do with all of these carrots?" So, I made a carrot cake (See earlier post about the frosting...) The cake turned out great but I still had a lot of carrots. I found a recipe on the internet using a lot of root vegetables. It had good reviews so I thought I would try it. So, I had potatoes, carrots, turnips, and onions. They were to be roasted in the oven for 2 hours. For those of you who don't know...I do not have a sense of smell. The vegis were almost done and Katie comes into the kitchen with her mouth and nose covered saying "what is that awful smell?" Well I thought it was something else so I cleaned it up. Soon Katie comes back looking for the lysol! Now I know it is bad. So, I am lighting candles all over the house. It's storming outside but I crack the windows anyway. Jim comes home and about passes out from the wave of naseau that hits him when he walks in the door. Needless to say he was not very hungry that evening and I had to feed the kids in the basement. The next day I made a soup that I have made before but I substituted beef bullion cubes for the beef broth. I learned that you can not use the bullion in a 1:1 ratio and you should probably wait to add any additional salt. However, large quantites of salt will make your meat extra tender! The day after the soup incident Jim was still complaining that he felt dehydrated!
So, I pass my mistakes on to you. Easy on the bullion and beware of the turnip!

Tag!



Thanks Jenn!

I've been tagged so now I must share with you my 4th photo in my 4th album on my hard drive.

This photo was taken earlier this year. Ryan was having a cute moment. Boys are so different! Ryan is so stereotypical "all boy" and Nicole is very stereotypical "all girl" It is fun to watch them but when they get together it is all trouble. In fact now as I sit here I am wondering what I am going to have to clean up when I finish writing this post. This past week I made a new mom mistake. I decided to sit down for 10 min and eat my lunch at the table instead of swallowing up some of their leftovers as I rushed off to the next thing. The consequence: they painted the bathroom blue with toothpaste. It did however have a nice minty fresh smell!

I was very excited last month when I figured out how to lock the refrigerator. But the key to the new lock is that I have to remember to put it on! The day after the toothpaste incidence I forgot to lock the refrigerator and happened to leave them alone for 5 min. My two little monsters decided to paint the living room with frosting. The armoire got the worst of it. Evidently I need more practice at housecleaning! On the bright side Ryan has been very affectionate this week blowing very big dramatic kisses and even planting a few on my cheek. Very unusual for him and I loved it. They keep me busy but they are pretty cute in the process.

Rachel, Anna, Suzanne, Debbie- Tag, your turn!

Monday, January 26, 2009

What Daddy's do best!

We have a book that is called What Grandma's/Grandpa's do best. It was my inspiration for this blog. I asked my children "What do you love most about Daddy?" Here were some of the responses:

*"Well, he says yes to almost everything!" This was at the top of the list of GREAT things! Ha
*" He brings us sliced apples at night when we are going to bed."
*"He's soft and nice to lay on."
*"He's a Daddy! He's a good Daddy!"

I have added to the list of what makes my husband such a great husband and father.

*He gives tractor rides.
*He will jump into ice cold water so that Nicole can take swimming lessons and Mom can watch happily from the sidelines!)
*He coaches soccer and lets Katie play "striker" (even if she hasn't earned the position) just because he loves her.
*He buys donuts.
*He likes to snuggle and watch cartoons.
*He sings the sleepytime song like no one else can.
*He knows how to dance with a princess.
*He always puts everyone else before himself.
*He is a fantastic teacher.
*He has a testimony and shares it with our children.
*He knows how to listen.
*Best of all he gives lots and lots of love.

We love you Jim a.k.a. Daddy. Happy Birthday!

Grandma and Grandpa W.

It is funny how something so simple can jog your memory and send you in a compleatly different train of thought. I ran out of our usual tub butter this morning and so I broke out the stick butter. As luck would have it the toast came out a little darker than I usually like it. As I was buttering my darkened toast I was reminded of my grandfather. For some reason memories of my grandfather are closely related to breakfast. I remember my grandfather always getting up at the crack of dawn and making breakfast. He had a "seasoned" electric skillet that I'm sure would make most mothers today cringe. My grandfather made the best sausage and scrambled eggs with that skillet. He always topped off the meal with some blackened toast w/stick butter. This was one of the many things that my grandfather loved to argue with me about. He thought that toast should be black and I did not care for the taste of burnt toast. I loved my grandfather he was a hard-working man who loved his family dearly. Thinking of grandpa also reminds me of my grandmother. Grandma W. was a great cook and probably one of the happiest people who ever lived. I was about to say that I could not ever remember her without a smile on her face but there was that one time I was mean to my sister and I'm pretty sure she wasn't smiling then. I will always remember how my grandmother served her community, friends and family tirelessly. She was always giving of her time and talents. She always had something positive to say about everyone. Grandma always found the good. I am so fortunate to have had such wonderful examples in my life.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Nicole's Princess Party

January is Birthday Month!

January is birthday month at our house. Nicole's birthday was last week and Jim's is next week. We celebrated Nicole's birthday with a princess party. For Katie's 4th birthday I attempted to make a treasure chest cake and let's just say I ended up making an emergency run to the grocery store for a birthday cake. It did not turn out well. Since then I have always ordered a birthday cake for my kids. This year for some strange reason I decided to attempt making Nicole's birthday cake. I was surprised at how easy this cake came together. Nicole was watching me put the cake together. She was not very happy with me that I had put her new doll in the cake. Thank goodness grandma was there and convinced her that it was beautiful! Nicole had a great time helping me put the sprinkles on her cake and licking the icing out of the bowl! We put 3 star candles on the cake and blew out the candles numerous times. It was a big success. I'm not sure it will work as well for Jim's birthday??? I may have to come up with something new.