ThinkPink

Because Your Sister Said So........

2008-09-04T08:54:00.000-07:00

that's why you should blog! OK, OK I hear you. Point taken little sis!

I have so much to share and such little time. For now, you'll have to forgive me for the short of it. My birthday weekend was OK. Spencer had a service call on Saturday that lasted 8 hours. That was not so much fun, but I finished the novel I'd been babysitting because it was so good I didn't want it to end. "Saving Faith" by David Baldacci, just in case you're curious. We managed to venture out though and took the kids to see Kung Fu Panda at the cheepie theater. Yes, we're cheepie parents! Monday was lazy, very lazy. Tuesday was good, I had a lot of laughs, great and appreciated birthday wishes and an amazing dinner at a place called Dickey's Wild Hare. I had the Cobb Club, -a sandwich version of the Cobb salad- and sweet potato fries. VERY TASTY!

I started my Spanish class at IPFW yesterday! Lots of fun! And scary too! I felt so much better when I realized that everyone else was just as nervous as me! Our professor is very nice and my class mates seem very nice as well. I was amazed at how much I actually remembered from High School. There is however LOTS left to learn. Wish me well and say prayers!!

Well, that's the sort of it for now. I'll tell more tales -true ones- later!

A Few Things That Happened This Week...

2008-06-28T08:29:00.000-07:00

..were fun, and others, completely strange! Tyson's 5Th birthday was Monday. He had a great time, and as you might expect has tried milking the rest of the week for all it's worth! Last Friday we started the birthday festivities by swimming at a friend's house. On Saturday we took him to Chuck E Cheese, (his choice of course), and then on Sunday we had a little get together with family and friends. We like to give our kids an entire weekend to be special, but as I mentioned earlier they really try their very best to extend it as long as possible. Check out birthday pics on Flickr.

Now, moving on to some of the "completely strange" things; Wednesday was perhaps, if not the strangest day I've experienced, it's definitely near the top of the list! First of all, Brock had an early morning baseball practice. Generally if it's just a practice I don't stay. So, I dropped him off at practice, got home, gave Tyson a snack, and all of a sudden this pounding rain started. It rained so hard and so fast I couldn't believe it. I rushed Tyson to the van and headed back to the baseball complex (which thank God is just down the road). I could barely see to drive my windshield wipers were on the highest setting and the roads were flooding fast. Then it got windy, which really freaked me out. So there I was trying to find my kid in the middle of a monsoon. I finally found him under a pavilion with his team, soaked and muddy but unharmed!

After the rain incident I had to pick my Great Aunt up and take her to an appointment she'd scheduled with her attorney. We dropped the kids off at my mom's and decided to walk to the attorney's office since it's only a couple of blocks from mom's. This is a great idea in theory, not so much in real life! Have you ever seen those TV ads depicting the elderly trying to cross the road but just aren't quite moving fast enough? Well, that's exactly how I felt. My Aunt bless her heart, is in her mid eighties, we had to cross two busy intersections, do I really need to say more? Talk about high blood pressure! We finally get there and the attorney's office door was locked. I tried calling and I could actually hear the phone inside ringing but no one answered. We waited and waited but nothing. I was really dreading the highly intense trip back. Thank God I was able to find a different route back on side streets that were less traveled. Whew!

Since my kids were already with my mom, I decided to ask her to keep them a bit longer. She happily agreed. I love my children but any chance I get to grocery shop without them makes life easier. So I headed to Wal-Mart, list in hand and ready to gather supplies for my family. I walked in the doors and noticed that people were staring strangely at these two tween aged girls just ahead. I could only see their backs -the girls- so I was kind of confused, but only for a while. Eventually I caught up with them and quickly understood why people were looking at them strangely. It was because they were strange. Each of them had bright red lipstick smeared around their lips, hair in uneven pig tails and saying very weird things. No, they weren't mentally challenged. I noticed this middle aged man walk by them and then noticed out of the corner of my eye that he hadn't kept moving. I didn't think much of it at first until I heard one of the girl's say "oh my gosh, are you recording us?" I looked over and he had his Blackberry and was indeed recording them. Then he started telling them to dance and say odd things. Then they all walked over to the bra section and he told them to act like princesses. I was so freaked out! It was creepy. I had just worked up enough guts to walk over and tell him to stop when an employee beat me to it. You know it's icky to think about why he wanted to tape them. When he first started I thought maybe it was just to show people "these two crazy kids he saw at Wal-Mart" but when he told them to do things it became bizarre. Those girls obviously wanted attention but in a moment it could have turned into the kind of attention no woman wants. All he had to do was follow them out. The guy looked clean cut and "normal". Not every monster looks creepy.

Thanks for letting me share.

Miss Piggy, Is That You?

2008-06-20T17:26:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to let my hair grow out for what seems like forever. I always seem to flip flop when it comes to my hair. When it's short I hate it, when it's long I hate it. Lately, I've seen all these really pretty long layered styles, and I decided I'd like to have that too. On Wednesday I arrived at my salon appointment with desired cut and color in mind. I thumbed intensely through the style books to show Cherie (my stylist) just exactly what I wanted. I said "lots more blonde and cut just like this". (I usually get subtle blonde highlights.) It just didn't quite come out the way I had pictured it would. Don't get me wrong, she does GREAT work and I've been going to her for years, but I have to be honest, on my way home I wanted to cry. It's not the style so much or the color for that matter, it's the color, cut and my face!! I swear when I looked in the mirror I saw Miss Piggy staring back at me! Seriously, I think the cut is cute and the color too but it brings more attention to my face and I'm so used to hiding. I'm so self conscious that it's really taken some getting used to. Well there you have it, my review of my new cut and color. I attached some photos I took this morning. You can see for yourself.

I Guess It Takes Getting Tagged....

2008-06-01T19:17:00.000-07:00

to get me to blog these days! I was tagged by Lisanne. So here goes

1. Link to your tagger and post these rules. 2. Share five facts about yourself. 3. Tag five people at the end of your post and list their names, linking to them. 4. Let them know they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment at their blogs.

1. I love nail polish and can't stand it when my nails are not painted.
2. I'd really love to have a fast, flashy sports car someday.
3. One of my favorite shows is Deadliest Catch on Discovery Channel. I'm a huge fan!!!
4. I cry when I hear soldiers talk about their experiences at war. Seriously, I love the mini series Band of Brother's but I fight back tears every time I watch it. Lately, I've had trouble watching reporters interview Iraq war vets.
5. I really enjoy making people laugh. I believe that laughter truly is good medicine.

I'm tagging Lois, Abby, Mandy, Sara and Jen

Remember Me?

2008-04-18T16:40:00.000-07:00

Hi! I say that in the hopes that there is someone desperate enough to hold on the hope (or gives a hoot) that I may someday blog again! If you give a hoot, thank you, I'm back!

Wow, where to begin? So much has happened in the weeks since my last post. Here's the rundown: Spencer visited Las Vegas for work, during Spring Break no less. The kids and I journeyed to South Bend with friends to visit the Health Works Museum. We had a lot of fun and I recommend stopping into Health Works if you ever get the chance. My sister moved to Florida. I miss her but I'm really proud of her for having the guts to make such a big move. I recently completed decorating another wedding cake, only my second! I also became an Avon rep, we'll see how it goes! We attended my niece Avie's birthday party. We also experienced just this morning an earthquake! I'm still finding it so hard to believe but it's true! I was so upset because I couldn't figure out why my bed was shaking. I even accused my poor husband of being the culprit! I had to call him at work and apologize after I learned the news. Well I know there's so much more to share but it's going to take some time. Check out my Flickr account for accompanying photos. It's good to be back!

Photo Blogger

2008-02-28T16:21:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post. Here are a few photos I wanted to share with you.

Our New Sofa

Our New Van
New Van Dash
Ty In The Van
Me In The Drivers Seat
Our Neighbors Built A Giant Snowman

Check out the rest on Flickr!

What We've Been Up To.....

2008-02-12T16:30:00.001-08:00

is, a lot. Wow! Brock's basketball league continues. He has practice every Thursday evening and games each Saturday morning. We're very proud of him, he is an awesome player and even better team mate. He always tries to pass the ball to the smaller players before taking shots himself. He has learned so much about the game and gained great skills since he started two seasons ago.

Speaking of Brock, we celebrated his b day with a bowling party. It was really a lot of fun. I enjoyed seeing him so happy. What I didn't enjoy so much, is, what happened in the parking lot of the alley before we went in. Little Tyson was so excited he didn't pay any attention to where he placed his hands on the car and slammed his thumb in the door. I felt so badly for him. In a way I'm kind of glad that it happened. At least now he knows why I gripe at him so much about being mindful of his fingers around doors. I'm not just a nag now, I actually have a proven point.
His thumb is feeling much better now. It just needed a couple of days.

Doesn't it seem like at a certain point (around third grade) things start to get really crazy? Kids start to change, things become cool or really un cool, the homework gets more complex and you realize your babies aren't really babies anymore. Brock recently had to choose a chapter book to read, then select his favorite scene from that book and construct a diorama. It was for the most part a Dad and Brock operation. I stayed out of the way! I did help paint some legos to represent gold bricks but that's about it. He did a great job and had lots of fun. He also learned a great lesson about friends. There is a little girl in his class that is a bit high strung and most of the other kids are a little mean to her. She was a bit hurt that he didn't give her an invitation to his birthday. He came home from school and told me about how he felt badly but didn't want to become un cool either for hanging out with her. I explained to him that in life we have choices to make and sometimes people just want to be liked for who they are. We talked about how we all want to be given a chance even if we look different or sound different. I pointed out at that no one had really given her heart a chance. I told him that sometimes you have to take chances, to step out there and go against the grain, even if it means other people don't understand at first. I left the decision up to him. He decided to invite her. Some of the kids laughed at him, some of them said they wouldn't go to the party if she was there, others were jealous that she got and invite instead of them. That afternoon when I checked my email, the girl had sent him three birthday e cards. (My email address was provided for RSVP) She was so thrilled that he had invited her. She came to the party and had lots of fun. The best part is that my son, the wise little man he is, said the truest sweetest thing on the way home. He said "you know Mom and Dad, it was a little hard to invite her but I'm glad I did. At first A. (male friend from school) didn't understand why I invited her but he saw me being nice to her and having fun and I think it stared to change him too. I think he started to get it and that means a lot."

Check out our new Flickr posts.

2008-02-12T16:30:00.000-08:00

Randomly Related Thoughts

2008-02-06T10:47:00.001-08:00

Isn't this supposed to be February? What's with the fifty degree weather, rain and thunderstorms? Not to mention the poor folks who've had to deal with tornadoes! It seems like the seasons mix and the weather is crazier than ever before.

A great big thanks to Lisanne and her creativity. She always makes my blog look so pretty. If only it would rub off! Hopefully someday!

I'm so ready to get rid of our current furniture! I'm hoping we'll be able to find some great tax time sale. It's not that our furniture is terrible but it's not fabulous either. We've had it since we purchased the house over five years ago and I'm ready for a change. We bought the sofas used so it would be so great to buy a brand new set. I've been searching the web the last few weeks to try and get an idea of what we'd like. It's hard to tell for sure but at least I know which shops I'd like to visit in person.

Check out my new postings on Flickr. I've added a few photos of a some of the cakes I've done recently. I'm looking forward to making one for Valentines Day. Do you have any Valentines Day plans?

She's Back!

2008-01-25T16:09:00.000-08:00

My laptop actually came home on Monday but this has been a pretty busy week. I've wanted to blog so badly all week but just couldn't find the time. Now that it's Friday night and I can slow down a little, I figure I should give you the news.

The FedEx man giggled at me because I was so excited to see him. I danced a little jig and clapped my hands after I opened the front door. I should have asked him if he'd ever gotten that sort of reaction before.

Guess what! I reinstalled my own hard drive! It took a while for me to figure out just exactly *where* it went but I did it! I was a little frightened as you might expect because I don't work on computers, obviously. After I replaced it, I hesitantly switched on the power button and held my breath. There was a part of me that expected it to blow up or screech at me. I'm happy to report all is well and I am thrilled to have it back!

Welcome Home Miss Laptop!

Sniff, Sniff, I Miss My Laptop!

2008-01-16T16:55:00.000-08:00

Arrrggghhhhh! %&$*^$$!!!!#!@ I really want my laptop back. It's driving me crazy! I can only check my email in the evenings when the hubby gets home. My mailbox is always full to the max and I can't pay bills or conduct any kind of business during the day! There were so many times this week I actually wanted to blog and couldn't. I have to say I am a bit frightened at how attached I am to it and how much I miss it. Repair Dept. PLEASE send my laptop back!!!!!!!!

Happy Holiday Update and A Little Bummed!

2008-01-02T16:19:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful holiday season! There were sooooo many parties to attend, presents to open and people to spend time with! It was absolutely amazing. Spencer had almost an entire week of vacation time to "use or lose". It was so wonderful for the kids and I to spend so much time with him. He treated us to a holiday light festival, a pizza party and even took us to see The Bee Movie! Cute movie by the way!

It was so nice to be able to see most all of our family. We received some really special gifts this year. Honestly, the best was just being able to share so many laughs with each other and our families. I just felt so incredibly blessed this Christmas, in every way. I have to say sadly, this was the first Christmas I haven't felt completely stressed out. We were also introduced to some really fun new board games. Would You Rather and Wise or Otherwise, are extremely entertaining and I highly recommend them. Wise or Otherwise is a little pricey but worth it. My BIL and SIL found it at a specialty store but you can order it online. We plan to purchase one.

Now for the bummer section of this post. On New Years Eve, I let Brock use my laptop and afterward realized that somehow my power cord prong (the part you insert) was broken, completely busted off and stuck inside the computer. Needless to say he is banned from using Mom's laptop ever again. We're not sure if it's going to be covered under warranty and I can't use my computer at all right now. So sad!

Collective Gasp.......Yes I'm back!

2007-12-11T17:42:00.000-08:00

Hey there! Miss me? As I explained to Jen this morning I didn't intend to absent so long; I've just been in a "blog funk". I've just felt so uninspired, busy and boring lately. I have a lot to make up for I realize and I will. Tonight though, I just wanted to share a video I'm very very fond of "Merry Tossmas", I LOVE IT! Hope you enjoy! http://www.citizenlink.org/Stoplight/A000005834.cfm

The Best Flowers Are The Ones You Can Eat!

2007-10-30T17:08:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post about the birthday bouquet I made for my SIL Jen. I really liked this one.

If you read Hick Heaven, you've already heard they were tasty. I enjoy making cookie flowers for my loved ones and I hope they enjoy receiving them.

What Do Two Field Trips, Four Cakes And The Blue Man Group Have In Common?

2007-10-26T13:35:00.000-07:00

.....they make for a busy week! Yes, I had two field trips, made 4 cakes, and attended the Blue Man Group show this week. Yikes!!! I am so TIRED!

Monday-reasonably uneventful (the calm before the storm maybe)
Tuesday-spent all day at the church office working
Wednesday-two hour field trip (trapped with strange beings called third graders), shop for cake supplies, bake 4 sheet cakes and prep for decorating
Thursday- decorate four cakes, eat nothing, work feverishly , muster energy to clean cake mess, fix myself up and attend Blue Man Group with husband, crab at husband due to exhaustion and hunger :( :) I'm glad he is *SO* wonderful
Friday- drive preschool teacher in embarrassingly untidy car, apologize to teacher for untidy car, go pumpkin hunting with preschoolers, deliver four cakes, clean house? NO, come home collapse on sofa!

Well there you have it. Check out Flickr for the photos!

Christmas Cookie Survey

2007-10-18T15:16:00.000-07:00

Can you believe that some stores are stocking their Christmas isles already! Wow, we're not even past Halloween yet let alone Thanksgiving! I think next year they might start setting up after Independence Day!

So, as my post title says, I'm taking a little survey. What is your favorite Christmas cookie? Post your favorites in my comments.

Camera Happy?

2007-10-14T10:36:00.000-07:00

It's good to be home. If you didn't know, we spent some time with my Grandparents in TN last week. We had a (well documented) wonderful visit! I took around three hundred pictures!! I won't post every one, that would just bore you beyond belief. We packed a lot of adventuring into a few short days that's for sure.

I've posted the photos to Flickr.

Could Property Neglect Have Led To The Death Of Local Garden Resident?

2007-09-29T06:30:00.000-07:00

Discretion Advised!

Photo and folloing story may be traumatizing to the very young and elderly.

Early this morning local garden rescue crews responded to an emergency call at Front Garden. Shortly after responding crews found a resident identified as Robbie Rabbit, belly up. There appeared to be no signs of foul play but an investigation is still ongoing.

Another resident of Front Garden agreed to be interviewed but wished only to be identified as "Turtle", fearing retribution from management of the Garden. "It's deplorable really, I mean these people expect us to live in this weed invested mess. Come on, seriously, there are dead plants, our mulch layer is diminishing by the day! I don't blame the guy, he just lost the will to survive." "Turtle", also told us that the management of Front Garden had been warned several times about the condition of the property. He says he is seriously considering fleeing with his family under the cover of darkness.

Officials will release the results of the investigation later this week. The lead investigator told us that he believes this will be an open and shut case. For now he has no choice but to follow department protocols. He hopes this will be a lesson for all garden owners who choose to neglect their responsibilities in maintaining their property.

Disclaimer: We apologize for running such a graphic photograph. We felt it our journalistic duty to inform the public of the dangers mentioned in this story.

The Tasty Trio!

2007-09-26T17:12:00.000-07:00

OK, I'm officially in love with these creamers. Is it bad that I occasionally consider skipping the coffee all together in favor of drinking the creamer straight? Don't cringe, I haven't yet. I can't actually find the White Choc Raspberry any where at the moment. It's a seasonal so I'll have to wait a few more months. Thankfully I got the last of my grocery's stock a few months back. You already know about the Blueberry Cobbler from a few posts ago but, do notice the Pumpkin Pie Spice. Yummm! I have to say I enjoyed it much better than the Edy's Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream, I highly recommend it! It's absolutely perfect for a chilly fall evening.

More Cookies and Various Shades of Red

2007-09-20T13:09:00.000-07:00

Hope you aren't tired of cookie bouquets. My niece Cori delivered a healthy baby girl yesterday. Yep, you guessed it, she has become my newest cookie bouquet victim!

Various shades of red you ask? I had forgotten about how the four year old mind works, that is until this week! When Brock was in preschool he would tell various stories, some true and some very highly fabricated! Sometimes he would even tell true stories that, well, quite frankly were not the business of anyone outside our home. You know, tales of bodily functions we don't care to discuss with strangers and acquaintances, snippets from private conversations between mom and dad about other people....etc. (If you have kids around this age you know what I mean.) Now that Brock is older and has had the reoccurring lecture entitled Don't Tell Everyone About Our Business, he seems to have gotten the picture. Well, it seems another student is in need of said repeated lecturing and social etiquette lessons.

Tyson so far this week had managed to make all of the blood in my upper body rush straight to my face. On Wednesday my mom had to pick him up from school because I was having lunch with Brock. As my mom was about to escort Ty to the car, the teacher stopped her. This isn't unusual; sometimes she likes to talk about what the kids have done or said each day. Mrs. W tells my mom that Tyson told her he neaked (sneaked) into bed with his brother in the middle of the night. No, big deal he has been doing that lately. (We wake up in the morning and find him sleeping with Brock.) So while the teacher is telling my mom about this, Tyson chimes in to elaborate. He says to the teacher and my mom in the door way of his classroom half way into the very public hallway, "yeah and after I neaked in with Brock my Daddy went pee pee and then after that my mommy went potty out of her butt." Which never happened, I mean yes I have done it before- but not that time. I realize everyone poops but is it necessary to bring it to every one's attention? (Not that blogging about it doesn't.)

So today Ty and I went to our church for a luncheon in honor of our Youth Pastors who are leaving to start their own church. Everything was going great until Tyson suddenly says loudly, "Mom, I have to go poopie! Oh, wait... I just farted. Mom, Mom, I farted, I farted Mom." We were sitting the next table over from the Senior Pastor. I was so embarrassed. I just wanted to get up and run. Out of the mouth of babes? I would like to tape the mouth of the babe!

My Second Cookie Bouquet

2007-09-17T11:28:00.000-07:00

This one was made for my MIL's birthday. I had a lot of fun doing it. I included 4 chocolate chip, 4 white chocolate chip, 4 sugar cookies and brownie bites in this one. It's so nice that there are so many birthdays-this time of year. I hope to practice on a few more victims....uh I mean birthday boys and girls.

My First Cookie Bouquet

2007-09-06T18:58:00.000-07:00

Well, here it is, my first cookie bouquet. I made it for my friend Lindsay. (I guess I'm not too disappointed since it's my first time.) I decided not to be overly ambitious since I'd never done it before, so it's little. There are fresh baked chocolate chip cookies down in the bag.

I really like the idea of birthday cookies. I think it's great to have an alternative to cake. I personally would rather have cookies or pie for my birthday.

Cookie bouquets are something I really want to practice. I love that there are so many different cutters available. Can you believe that some online bakeries charge $30-$50 for cookie bouquets?

Birthday Brag

2007-09-05T12:20:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to me Happy Birthday to me! Want to see my present? I kept asking Spencer to research-price, all that jazz and he really just kept blowing me off. I'd mention it now and again, reminding him of how handy it would be. After all this gentle prompting and no product, I was starting to get a little frustrated. But, I figured maybe he had a lot going on at work. So, you can imagine my surprise early birthday morning! When he brought out the box, cut the tape open and revealed it's contents -I think I actually squealed. Seriously, I really like it, but what matters most is that I had the three most amazing people I know (and tremendously love) wake me by singing Happy Birthday(blueberry muffin in hand). No gift purchased with money could ever compare. So thank you my love and sweetest sons, your love is the best present I'll ever receive.

BTW:
The price listed on the link page is not what he paid for it. He actually found is on sale for under 600.00 OH YEAH!

Camp, a pickle festival and other ramblings

2007-08-16T18:19:00.000-07:00

Camp was wonderful! It was really hot and really dirty but a great experience. Check out our pics on Flickr.

This has been by far on of the busiest few weeks of the year. It feels like life has been a bit of a whirlwind since we came home from camp. We've registered both boys for school and purchased clothes and supplies. We still have some things left to buy for Tyson.

I can't believe that my kids are getting so big. I'm still trying to get used to saying that I have a third grader. It makes me a little sad that Tyson is starting school too. It seems like I just brought them both home from the hospital. Time really does fly.

Last weekend we were able to check out the St. Joe Pickle Festival. It was fun! They really had some strange fare though. We did try the fried pickles but opted to omit the pickle ice cream from our must try list. I love visiting the small towns and festivals around where we live. A couple of my personal favorites are coming up. Grabill Fair and Johnny Appleseed.

It's true, there is more than corn in Indiana- there's also Zucchini!

2007-07-21T07:50:00.000-07:00

I had to chuckle when I read the title of Lisanne's latest blog entry. It reminded me of these pics that we took while she was here. She complimented our neighbor on his garden which apparently prompted him to share some of it's "fruits." Or is it vegetables?

We really had a wonderful visit with the Jensens. It seems like life has been a whirlwind lately so that accounts for my delay in posting. I suppose I'll catch up someday. This really is one of the busiest summers we've had.

Family Picnic Fun!

2007-07-09T19:11:00.000-07:00

Me with my Cousin Danielle. We've always been like sisters.
Cousin Jerry was so gracious in bringing his Fair Trailer and cooking the food for us.
A shot of a couple of our fruit bowls

This past Saturday was an absolute wonderful time for me. I was able to be apart of facilitating a reunion with my family and it was great! Our last event was about 13 years ago. Our family had some sad circumstances and differences of opinion back then. I think now more than ever, we realize how important it is to be together. I love the warm memories that I have from the day and I hope I never forget the feeling. I thank God that he made it all come together so perfectly. You can check out some more of the pics on Flickr.

The Consequence Of Higher Gas Prices May Result In ....

2007-07-03T14:11:00.000-07:00

........This! Yikes! This picture was part of an email my Uncle sent me today. It was totally unrelated to gas prices but that's exactly where my mind went. I've often joked with Spencer about getting a horse for transportation, a cow for milk and growing our own food due to the rising cost of EVERYTHING!!! Hmmmm could it be the Ox Wagon? The Nissan Oxima? What do you think? Share your name ideas in the comments!

Myspace Fun

2007-06-28T07:46:00.000-07:00

I was pretty leery at first about starting a Myspace page but it's been kind of fun. I've been able to interact with my sisters more and there are some really fun posts on the bulletin boards. This one for example tickled my funny bone. Just type your name in where it says "enter a word." Here is another that made me giggle, if you go to Google, type in your name followed by the word needs, you get some pretty funny results. I'd like to see your results, feel free to post them in my comments!

You're no Decaf Blueberry Iced Coffee w/ cream and sugar......

2007-06-26T15:34:00.000-07:00

...but you're not far behind!

I found this creamer quite by accident at the store. I was searching for another item in the cooler section when it caught my eye. It's a limited edition and was reasonably priced so I thought what the heck! Honestly, it's not half bad. Nothing will ever come close enough to my ultimate drink of choice but this ranks pretty high.

Super Happy Birthday Extravaganza!

2007-06-25T14:52:00.000-07:00

If you read Jen's blog or you were in attendance, then you know most of the details about the Super Birthday Extravaganza. For every one's sake, I won't repeat them all! LOL! It was a super time. I have to say that I think this year was even better than the last. A big thanks to everyone who came out to celebrate with us.

Jen already blogged about the cakes I made, I know, but I'm going to do it too! :)

I had so much fun this time. I was totally relaxed. I actually baked all of the cakes the night before. What a difference it makes. It was so much easier to only have to decorate as apposed to doing it all in the same day. I'll have to employ this technique from now on.

Tony Stewart Time Delay

2007-06-06T15:04:00.000-07:00

I kept meaning to blog about this cake but never found the time. I made it for my FIL. His birthday was May 25Th but we celebrated with him the Sunday after. It's all diabetic, even the icing. I'd never worked with it before. It was a little thick and hard to spread. It's the first time I remember there being a cake on his birthday since I've known him.

Make Over Party Cake

2007-05-17T16:59:00.000-07:00

My cousin asked me to make a cake for her daughter's birthday. She is paying for a manicurist to come and do the girls' nails. She originally asked for a cake in the shape of lipstick but I asked if I could try molding some fondant. So this is the result. The "make up" is all fondant that I sculpted and painted. I guess it's not too bad considering I've never really sculpted anything and barely passed art class. The icing is of course butter cream and the circles are also fondant. I just couldn't think of anything else to go with the other "make up." I tried doing a nail file but it didn't turn out. It looks a little undone to me but it will have to do.

I worked on the "make up" on Tuesday and then baked and decorated the cake today. I chose the colors after walking through the recipient's room. She had a photo frame that was all electric green with little purple and orange funky circles. I don't think she knows yet that the cake is coming, hopefully it's a good surprise.

Tagged

2007-05-15T10:17:00.000-07:00

This one's for you Jen *wink*!

A: Attached or single? Married to Spencer since 2000.

B: Best friend? On earth, my best friend is Spencer.

C: Cake or pie? Pie, all kinds of yummy pie and cheesecake.

D: Drink of choice? Water, Decaf Blueberry Iced Coffee w/ Cream and Sugar from Dunkin' Donuts. YUMMMMMMMMMMMM!

E: Essential item? Nail polish

F: Favorite color? Enjoy them all but I would say Pink.

G: Gummi bears or worms? Bears

H: Hometown? *Flat*Wayne, IN.

I: Indulgence? Shopping of any kind not related to groceries! LOL!!!

J: January or February? Feb. it's closer to Spring and it's Brock's b day month.

K: Kids? Two beautiful red heds. Boys: Brock and Ty.

L: Life is incomplete without? Family and friends.

M: Marriage date? Oct. 14

N: Number of siblings? 5

O: Oranges or apples? Apples.

P: Phobias/fears: Heights and large open bodies of water.

Q: Favorite quote? More of a verse but "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength."

R: Reasons to smile? There are endless reasons to smile, and they surround us on a daily basis. Life is such a gift, and I smile because of each day that I’m given. (I kept Lisanne's. How can one say it better?)

S: Season? Dead tie for Spring and Fall.

T: Tag three? Hmmm....all of my SILS were already tagged, I tag Lois.

U: Unknown fact about me? According to the BMI scale I am considered obese.

V: Vegetarian or not? NOT!!!

W: Worst habit? Constantly being judgemental and critical of *me* and comparing myself to others.

X: X-rays or ultrasounds? Sort of an odd one! I would say ultrasound because you get to see your precious babies!

Y: Your favorite foods? Pizza, Bread sticks, Pasta, Mac and cheese and Shredded BBQ Meats

Z: Zodiac? I don't participate.

Back Home Again In Indiana

2007-05-06T14:33:00.002-07:00

We've been trying to adjust to being home. Everything felt so new and different for the first 48 hours. Isn't that so strange. It was nice to sleep in my own bed. Don't get me wrong, everywhere we slept was nice and comfortable but there's nothing like the niche you've carved in your own bed.

I had a great time! I have to say by far this was one of the most incredible vacations ever. I'm so thankful to Lisanne and Jeff for letting us come to stay. We had a great time visiting with them. I'm really really grateful for the wonderful trip to NYC. It was absolutely without a doubt every thing I hoped it would be. The sights, the sounds, the smells, it was wonderful. There was so much left undiscovered and I can't wait to go back. I think it would take a month or more to experience everything in a city that size! Incidentally, I've discovered the secret to weight loss. Move to NYC! I lost three pounds from walking the city. We never took the subway or a cab. I wish this city was more exciting. :(

2007-04-28T10:05:00.004-07:00

My Date And Time Stamps Are Wrong.

It Is Tuesday May 1st 2007.

Cleveland Rocks.....Especially For Unexpected Stops!

2007-04-28T10:05:00.003-07:00

Wow! What a day! I thought I might update everyone on our progress. We checked the radar before leaving this morning to hitt the road. We were aware that there could be a few storms throughout some of our areas of travel. Yikes! A few storms? Everything was great until we reached Erie, PA. It started with rain and lightening, then turned to complete down pour. It took several miles before we could actually see where we were going on the road. VERY frightening!!! The rain eased up a bit but we looked up to see some really dark clouds hanging very low. Spencer and I noticed them about the same time. I had just started to say "maybe we can drive out of this" when all of a sudden we saw ahead a flashing white light just off the right hand lane. At first, I thought that traffic was stopping because of a Tornado. Then I realized that a car was on it's side. My next thought was that it had blown over. When we pulled up behind we realized it had over corrected and flipped. Spencer jumped out to go help and I turned on the hazard lights. It was really freaky with the black clouds rolling by and the man trapped in his Explorer. He was fine and we made it through the storms until Cleveland. So here we are! There are watches and warnings all over. We thought it would be best to stop over for the night. Keep us in your prayers!

Blogging From The Road

2007-04-28T10:05:00.002-07:00

This post is brought to you by our Verizon Wireless Access Card. At the moment, we're driving through construction on I-90 to Buffalo. It's nice to have a little distraction from the the traffic. If you don't know already, I have a tendency to be a nervous traveler. I am very very grateful that this route is no where near as mountainous and less curvy. I did start a fickr account because of all the photos we took. You can check it out. Well gotta go, the battery is very low.
We'll keep adding photos. (I'm trying to figure out how to add the video clips we've taken.)
See you further down the road! :)

Photo Blogging: Jersey to Stuyvesant to Albany

2007-04-28T10:05:00.001-07:00

Here are some more photos. I may have to start a flicker account to share them all with you.

The Boys Pretending To Be Statues In Albany.
The Trip From Stuyvesant To Albany.
The Rip Van Winkle Bridge Across The Hudson.
The Road To Jeff and Lisanne's.

F.Y.I.

2007-04-28T10:05:00.000-07:00

I just had to know the name of the giant mountains we drove through in PA. My BIL was able to tell us that they were most likely the Allegheny Mountains. Here are some links to info about them. I'm sure I over reacted to them and I do feel like an idiot. Even so, I still think they were ginormous. You decide.

Topographic Maphttp://fermi.jhuapl.edu/states/maps1/pa.gif

Britanica Article http://concise.britannica.com/ebc/article-9005778/Allegheny

No Wake Up Call Thank You, Just Set Off The Fire Alarm.....That Will Do

2007-04-26T05:42:00.000-07:00

The "view" from our window.
This is near the "closer" Wal-Mart in the mountains.

That's what I said this morning. If you plan on sleeping, don't stay in a hotel! Yesterday as we were leaving to search for a Wal-Mart, we noticed that the strobe lights for the fire alarm flashed and the fire doors latched shut. It freaked us out a little bit at the time. Spencer works with this kind of equipment and was pretty sure there was just a system malfunction. No fire. It didn't seem to faze anyone else either. When we started to open the fire door there was a maid with her cart on the other side. She said hello and walked past us. We figured it was really nothing but we did have to take the stairs. (Elevators are set to return to lobby and lock in fire threat.)

So any hoo we find said Wal-Mart, after getting directions from the Front Desk (oh sure this one is closer.......to Albany!!!!!) LOL!! We had to drive 25 min. and into what we figured were the Catskills. The towns and roads here are crazy, that's another post. OK so getting back on track. We come back, we sleep, I wake to pee and then the fire alarm goes off.

So much for going back to sleep! The part the really stinks is, my kids were in a deep sleep that would have allowed me to get at least another hour. Rats! We looked out our window (overlooks lobby) and once again the staff was unfazed. Hmmmm...what to do. You don't want to go running and screaming like a crazy person and you don't want to stay too long without knowing for sure that's it's a false alarm. I wanted to go just in case but Spencer was sure that once again, there was, a system malfunction. As it turns out he was right. A bad detector was responsible for the strobes yesterday and the false alarm this morning.

Oh My Golly.....Those Sure Are Big!

2007-04-25T07:51:00.000-07:00

No, dirty minds, it's not what you think!! Get them out of the gutter! My title actually refers to the mountains of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. If you don't know I have a bit of an issue with heights!!! I wasn't prepared for hundreds of miles of mountainous, cavernous, frightening landscape. The last time I made this trip was four years ago. It was very late and very dark so I had *NO* idea what we had driven through. My husband (most likely for his own sanity) didn't warn me of what was to come after Ohio. In my defense, the pictures don't even due justice to how tall these mountains really are. At one point I had to breath very slowly because I could see ahead of me one giant towering mountain on each side of what felt like a very tiny road with signs warning of falling rock! What!! Seriously as frightened as I was, it was also so amazing to see such beautiful places. Some of the photos didn't come out so great and there were times I was too afraid to take a picture! LOL! If you want to check them out I'm going to post them on our photo page The Life In Pictures. (There is a link on my sidebar.)

Stay tuned for more!!

Could It Be?

2007-04-11T10:20:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful and blessed Easter, we hope you did as well. Sunday was also my niece Avie's second birthday! Such a big girl now!! (You can check out pics from her party at The Life In Pictures.) After Avie had finished opening all her presents my sister (her mom) and I spent some sister time on the sofa. We were all comfy with legs stretched out on the ottoman chatting, when suddenly I began to chuckle. (Consult photo, OK side note, if you don't know Winter has decided to stick around here and it's very cold. ) I realized that something seemed, well, a little off. You see, I am a bit of a sock rebel and tend to wear open toed shoes much much later in the year than "normal" people. I am constantly reprimanded by, well quite frankly, mothers, who I'm sure mean well. "Girl!" They say "Aren't you're feet freezing!!! You need to get some stockings on!!"

Even my sister has given me heck, a time or two. So you can imagine my glee when I glanced down and noticed that I , yes I, was the one wearing socks!! LOL!

OK, because my sister reads my blog and would *TOTALLY* sell me out, I have to admit that I only put the socks on because my feet *were* freezing after having worn open toed shoes to Easter service.

The Greatest Gift

2007-04-06T04:51:00.000-07:00

I'd like to thank God on this, Good Friday, for the greatest gift. All that I am, is in you Lord.

I've included the Lyrics to one of the most beautiful songs ever written. I wish that I could have figured out how to add a sound file so that you could actually hear it. It's just one of those songs, for me at least, that just encompasses everything you'd say if you could. If you're interested in hearing the song email me.

Above All
By
Michael W. Smith

Above all powers, Above all kings
Above all nature And all created things
Above all wisdom, And all the ways of man, You were here Before the world began

Above all kingdoms, Above all thrones, Above all wonders The world has ever known
Above all wealth And treasures of the earth, There's no way to measure What You're worth

Crucified, Laid behind the stone
You lived to die, Rejected and alone
Like a rose, Trampled on the ground
You took the fall
And thought of me, Above all

The Sweetest Song

2007-03-29T07:22:00.000-07:00

If you're a mom (or dad) you know that there is nothing that compares to the love you receive from your child. Whatever form it takes, a hug, a smile, or a sweetly composed song, nothing brings a bigger smile to my face. I wanted to share the lyrics of a little tune I caught my Ty singing this morning.

"I love my mommy, my mommy is my best friend, my mommy's my best friend"

So sweet. Sorry about the sappy post but I just had to share. I mean come on someday the song could change to " I love my mommy but she's the biggest nag, yes she's the biggest nag!" I wanted to savor this special moment.

Remember Me?

2007-03-07T12:09:00.000-08:00

Yes, Yes it's true, I'm actually posting!!! Jen, try to contain yourself there ok! I wanted to share an email that I received this morning. I've actually heard some of them before but there a couple of new cute ones! If you've never heard them, enjoy!

KIDS IN CHURCH
3-year-old Reese:
"Our Father, Who does art in heaven,
Harold is His name.
Amen."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A little boy was overheard praying:
"Lord, if you can't make me a better boy, don't worry about it.
I'm having a real good time like I am."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After the christening of his baby brother in church,
Jason sobbed all the way home in the back seat of the car.
His father asked him three times what was wrong.
Finally, the boy replied,
"That preacher said he wanted us brought up in a Christian home,
and I wanted to stay with you guys."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
One particular four-year-old prayed,
"And forgive us our trash baskets
as we forgive those who put trash in our baskets."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A Sunday school teacher asked her children as they
were on the way to church service,
"And why is it necessary to be quiet in church?"
One bright little girl replied,
"Because people are sleeping."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A mother was preparing pancakes for her sons, Kevin 5, and Ryan 3.
The boys began to argue over who would get the first pancake.
Their mother saw the opportunity for a moral lesson.
"If Jesus were sitting here, He would say,
'Let my brother have the first pancake, I can wait.'
Kevin turned to his younger brother and said,
"Ryan, you be Jesus!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A father was at the beach with his children
when the four-year-old son ran up to him,
grabbed his hand, and led him to the shore
where a seagull lay dead in the sand.
"Daddy, what happened to him?" the son asked.
"He died and went to Heaven," the Dad replied.
The boy thought a moment and then said,
"Did God throw him back down?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A wife invited some people to dinner.
At the table, she turned to their six-year-old daughter and said,
"Would you like to say the blessing?"
"I wouldn't know what to say," the girl replied.
"Just say what you hear Mommy say," the wife answered.
The daughter bowed her head and said,
"Lord, why on earth did I invite all these people to dinner?"

How Rude!!!!

2007-02-02T06:09:00.000-08:00

Warning: Disgruntled Nashville Star Fan Ahead!

So if you don't know, every Thursday a little show called Nashville Star comes on at 10:00 p.m.
I am great fan of this little show. So you can imagine my dismay when half way through, USA Network suddenly disappeared from my television screen; only to be replaced by a DirecTV disclaimer. Hmmmmffffff....sure....sure, you're working hard to resolve the technical issues!! I missed the last half of the show! I have no idea who was kicked off last night. I even tried to find out on the website, nothing! Darn you technical difficulties!

Portabello Butt?

2007-01-31T05:38:00.000-08:00

I had to post this! Last night I was chopping my ingredients for Veggie Lasagna and realized that I had forgotten to get the Portabello out. When I bought it I really didn't pay too much attention, but when I took it out of the package last night, I had to chuckle. Veggie Lasagna, let's see..... four cups Zucchini, two cups shredded Cheese, one Portabello Butt? LOL!

I Would Cry!!!!

2007-01-27T09:38:00.000-08:00

My uncle sent me an email this week, in which this photo was attached. The actual email was called "When it's ok to use a bad word." When I saw this pic I just about lost it! I can't even imagine having to deal with something like that. I mean, remember how much I freaked out when the spaghetti and cheese sauces ended up on my garage floor? YIKES!! What would you do?

Is Everything Made Of High Fructose Corn Syrup And Fat??

2007-01-23T12:58:00.000-08:00

Now I know that almost everyone in America resolves to exercise and lose weight each New Year. I on the other hand resolved to work harder (I've been exercising/pretending to eat healthy since September 06). Even so, I've managed to lose a miniscule amount of weight. Recently I watched a new program on the Discovery Channel, which was enlightening and depressing all at once! You on a diet, is a fantastic program. As I mentioned I found a lot of the information enlightening, on the other hand after watching the Dr. empty the fridge and pantry of all the "bad food items" I'm at a loss. I guess I just realized how "bad" our eating habits really are. (According to the smarty pants with a medical degree!) Too much red meat, not enough raw veggies, too many calories, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP!!!! Arrggg.... have you read any ingrediant labels lately? Isn't everything that tastes good made of High Fructose Corn Syrup and fat!! It seems as though everything is high in calories, too many carbs, bad, bad, bad! For example: bread, ketchup, frozen chicken products, canned fruit, need I go on? I realize that givng up any bad habit comes with a few days (dare I say weeks) of withdraw. PEOPLE.....I am hungry! I still resolve to work harder (but do I have to eat cardboard in the process?)

Game Mania!

2007-01-02T11:52:00.000-08:00

How was your Christmas? Our's was tremendously blessed! It was so wonderful to spend time with our families. We received soooooooo many games this year! This is a wonderful thing, considering, we love games! We now own two CD-Rom games (Scrabble & Bookworm), and two DVD games (Newlywed Game & Deal or No Deal). In addition to that we also received three board games (Trivial Pursuit Pop Culture 2, Sequence and Ft. Wayne On Board). Fort Wayne On Board is really interesting because it is basically Monopoly but all the properties have been replaced with real places from our town. What a neat idea. We spent our New Year's playing lots of games. Too bad those games don't come with people to play them with! :(

You Tube....You're Funny!!!

2006-12-20T11:54:00.000-08:00

Yooo hoooo.... ahem....here I am! I haven't given up on blogging (Jen) don't worry! I've just been a little busy. If you know Spencer and I well, you know that we really enjoy the comedy of Will Farrell. Last night we were surfing through You Tube videos for fun and came across this one. Now, I love my President, but let's face it...sometimes he can be a goof ball. This often causes him to be the center of jokes and (hillarious) impressions such as this. Hope you enjoy!

Giving Thanks.....Getting Spanked!

2006-11-27T17:04:00.000-08:00

We Actually Played Several Separate Games Of Long Distance Lingo. This Was The Last Round!
Here Is A Shot Of A Few Members Of Our Turkey Day Lingo Team.
Our Yummy Feast.

We had a wonderful holiday! We were blessed to share in Thankfulness with our family. As you might know some of them were missing. My in-laws traveled to NY this year to celebrate with The Jensen family. So since we missed them all we figured challenging them to a game of Lingo online would be fun. It was! We had tons of fun! We got spanked a lot though. It seems their Thanksgiving party was filled with slightly higher IQs. We did gain some ground when the ringer went off to breast feed! I can see a tradition in the works!

Girls Have Cooties....Except When They Offer To Share Their Umbrellas

2006-11-16T07:23:00.000-08:00

It was really cold, windy and wet this morning but I saw the sweetest thing that warmed my heart. I should explain first that for some reason umbrellas never survive long in our household. I haven't quite figured that one out yet! Anyhoo, I made Brock wait a few extra minutes before walking to the bus stop. I didn't want him standing out in the elements any longer than necessary. (You should also know he is the only boy at his stop.) He made his way to the corner where two sisters were covered in a rain jacket they were sharing. The other little girl who catches the bus there also, had an umbrella. I watched him, as I do every morning. Since there was more than enough room under the rain coat, I thought for sure the mother of the sisters would offer. She didn't! All of a sudden the other little girl turned to him and asked if he would like to share her umbrella. I saw him nod, yes, then walk under while she carefully held it there over both of their heads. It made me smile.

On a totally unrelated note I've added this link just for fun. My uncle sent this to me in an email. You may have heard this already but I thought it was cute!
Chinese Food Song: http://jflores.com/jokes/chowmein.htm

I'M Back...With Babies And Cake!

2006-11-11T06:39:00.000-08:00

Hey there I'm back! No, Sara I haven't given up on a life in blogging! LOL! I'm afraid you're not going to get rid of my that easily! I've just been working outside the home a lot. There are holiday fundraisers to prepare and well that's part of my job. I haven't neglected you, at least as far as reading goes. I've kept up to date with reading all of your blogs. I just haven't had time to post on my own.

So as the title says I am indeed back and with babies and cake! As some of you already know about 18 or so months ago my SIL Lisanne and her husband welcomed Lucas and my SIS Lois and her husband welcomed baby Avril to the world. Oops, they did it again! Only this time with opposite genders! Lisanne gave birth to baby Meredith on 10-31 in NY and Lois gave birth to baby Ezekiel in IN. I think it is so neat that my nieces and nephews were born so close together (well time wise anyway) in sets. Most of you probably already know all of Meredith's stats so I'll just give Zeke's. He was actually born Nov. 8th a little after lunch time. He weighed 10 lbs and 2 oz. Yes, I can see all those shocked faces out there! I did say 10 lbs. And if that isn't shocking enough my SIS had NO drugs whatsoever!!! What a gal! The baby is in great health and very perfect. He is very cuddly, I know because I held him! His big sister loves him and becomes very upset when anyone besides Mommy holds him.

In cake news I've made my first wedding cake. It's for a couple getting married this coming week. They are getting married at the J.P. and are not having an actual "reception". I guess that makes me a little sad, so I figured I could at least contribute a cake. It's a surprise cake, they don't know about it. I took decorating liberties since the cake is a secret. It's simple and small, I didn't want them eating cake for a year!

Well that about says it all for now. I'll try to blog more.

The sound of drumming, silenced!

2006-10-16T11:14:00.000-07:00

It's nice to know someone missed me! We had a nice anniversary. We weren't able to go on a trip this year. We found fun things to do and spent a lot of quality time together. On Friday night we ate pizza by candle and firelight, watched a movie and then fell asleep next to the cozy warm fire. On Saturday afternoon we drove to Shipshewana, IN. The drive was pretty. We decided to visit a park there (actually in Topeka)called The David Rogers Memorial Park. It was fun! It might not seem like anything special but we're history geeks. We were able to actually go inside of all the buildings on the property. We explored the park for about half an hour then decided to head back to town. We decided it would be fun to take an Amish horse and buggy ride. I don't have any pics of that because the tour guide says you're not supposed to ask Amish people to pose for photos. It was a great time! The driver extended our tour even though we only paid for the short one. He was very nice and answered all our (there was girl who took the tour with us) questions. He even took us to his mother and father's house. They actually weren't home but he used the spare key and gave us the grand tour. It did feel a bit strange being in someone's home while they were away. All in all it was pretty fun. My mom was really jealous. She really likes the novelty of Amish culture and reads every novel Beverly Lewis writes. I know it's not very nice but part of me couldn't wait to get home and say "guess what I got to do!"

Check out the photos at The Life In Pictures.

A Baby Shower Cake

2006-10-08T14:23:00.000-07:00

My sister asked me to make the cake for her baby shower. (Today) I didn't want to post the pics before the shower in case she read my blog. I wanted it to be a surprise. So here it is making it's pictorial debut.....Baby Shower Cake. I was very displeased with my icing on this one. It was just IMPOSSIBLE to smooth. I think it may have been too thick.

Funnies For Friday

2006-10-05T18:54:00.000-07:00

A Belated Birthday Celebration

2006-10-05T18:44:00.000-07:00

My parents took us out to dinner this evening in celebration of my birthday. Yes, yes I know my birthday was a month and 3 days ago but they had a busy tour schedule. I had a great time. Some time ago I had asked my step-mom ( or my fake mom as she refers to herself) for copies of two pictures I found in her office. She was so sweet to insert them in my birthday card tonight. We laughed and ate really yummy food (Golden Corral). I love buffets!

P.S.
I'll post the pics on our photo blog.

The Blonde Goes Ice Fishing

2006-10-04T15:07:00.000-07:00

~I'd heard this one before but someone sent it to me again recently, so I decided to share!~

A blonde wanted to go ice fishing. She'd seen many books on the subject and finally getting all the necessary tools together, she headed for the ice. After positioning her comfy footstool, she started to make a circular cut in the ice. Suddenly, from the sky, a voice boomed, "THERE ARE NO FISH UNDER THE ICE."
Startled, the blonde moved further down the ice, poured a thermos of cappuccino, and began to cut yet another hole. Again from the heaven the voice bellowed, "THERE ARE NO FISH UNDER THE ICE."
The blonde, now worried, moved away, clear down to the opposite end of the ice. She set up her stool once more and tried again to cut her hole. The voice came once more, "THERE ARE NO FISH UNDER THE ICE." She stopped, looked skyward, and said, "IS THAT YOU LORD?" The voice replied, "NO, THIS IS THE MANAGER OF THE HOCKEY RINK."

Big thanks....And some mindless entertainment

2006-09-19T13:30:00.000-07:00

A great big thank you to all you sweet people for all your sweet comments about my cake. I guess I won't give up just yet. I checked out some great recipe and inspirational cake books from the library yesterday. So we'll see!

In other news I can't decide if being introduced to You Tube is a good or sad thing! Sadly, I have to admit, occasionally when driven by boredom I search through it's video collections. I found this one and have come to the conclusion that no one could be this strange and this person was either paid or really wanted to appear on television. You decide.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPtB4MrJILs

It's soooo...Elementary...School!

2006-09-14T19:55:00.000-07:00

Updated With Vines

Gosh! Sometimes I think I should give up this cake thing or go to school for it. Have you ever been so put off and compelled by something at the same time??? It's like I can't quit it! I am ranting a bit but I swear it's honest. I feel like every cake just gets worse, like it could have been decorated by a grade school student. (No offense to students) So anyway my bil asked me to make a cake for my mil's b-day. I had NO idea what to do. Her kitchen is decorated in a grape motif and she grows grapes, so I guess that's where my mind went.

It's Your Day!

2006-09-12T11:28:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Lisanne, we love you!!!

WANTED: INFORMATION LEADING TO THE WHEREABOUTS OF THIS TOWEL'S RIGHTFUL OWNER

2006-09-11T06:45:00.000-07:00

Last week I received a package in the mail from NY. My SIL Lisanne is a thoughtful and creative person who sometimes sends me neat things. For this reason I wasn't necessarily surprised at seeing the package. I was however surprised by the contents of the package. Yes, it was the towel! At first I was a little confused, then out came a lovely card. It explained how the towel was mixed in with her laundry when she was here to visit recently. It was very sweet but the thing is......I'd never seen the towel before that day. I have no idea who this towel belongs to. I've asked different family members and so far no one has claimed it. So if you know me and where in my home around the first week of August, does this towel belong to you??????????

Help! Ideas Needed

2006-09-07T17:09:00.000-07:00

I am totally busted, flat broke on dinner ideas!!! I had the worst time today planning meals for this upcoming week. I shop every other Friday and plan our menu the Thursday before. I even consulted my Kraft Foods mags and a couple of recipe sites online. Some of the problem is a picky eater (hmmmm, bet it's not who you think!). If you have any suggestions be sure to leave me a comment.

P.S.
We've updated our photo blog, check it out!
Link on side bar :)

Cheesecake, Warm Wishes and A Funny Movie

2006-09-04T06:50:00.000-07:00

A great big thank you to everyone for all your warm birthday wishes! I had a great day! I did get my cheesecake, yum! (NY style from Casa Grille) All in all it really was a great day which began with breakfast in bed, ended in singing and made me feel loved!

P.S. If you haven't yet check out The Break-Up.
http://www.thebreakupmovie.net

Who's That Girl?

2006-08-30T08:08:00.000-07:00

I found this old photo of myself this morning. I sat staring lost in wonder....who's that girl? Where did she go? Hers is definitely NOT the reflection that stares back at me now. The longer I look the more reflective I become. I can't help but wonder if this is some profound admonition, my birthday so close at hand. So much has changed in just six short years. It's not just external but internal as well. I leave this deep reflection with a quote from the lyrics of a song my Auntie sings "I'm not where I'm headed but I'm not where I've been." Thank you God!

P.S.
All seriousness aside, I wouldn't mind being thin again! LOL!!

The Smithlings.....or The Sterlismiths?

2006-08-29T06:34:00.000-07:00

Hey guys and dolls I'm back! I've been snuffed, snotty and tired but here I am! I'd like to say Happy Birthday Mom! Ok now getting back to the post at hand, did you notice the title? This morning as I browsed the MSN home page I happened upon a very interesting article. I fear if I copy and paste the entire article I may end up in some sort of "trouble"! You know copyright laws and such! LOL! Here's the link, http://www.slate.com/id/2147875/?GT1=8483 I can summarize though, apparently there have been couples throughout the last few decades who've decided to merge their last names post nuptial. Now, they have chosen this in lieu of hyphen or no name change etc. Hmmmm.... very interesting. I've heard of hyphenation and even oddly enough the man taking the woman's name but merging?? So, intrigued by this new revelation I humorously encourage you all to decide on a "merge" of your own and then post the results in my comment section! There's no prize for the winner (sorry :( just a great laugh for all!

An Update

2006-08-22T08:08:00.000-07:00

UPDATE:Just wanted to let everyone know that Brock had the best first day of second grade ever! He says his teacher is really nice and likes his classroom. He was thrilled to find out that he has gym twice a week. There are a lot of kids in his class he knew from last year. I think this is year is going to be an exciting adventure!

The First Day Of Second Grade

2006-08-21T05:01:00.000-07:00

Awwww......have a great day honey! It's back to school for Brock. He isn't shedding tears over it! As a matter of fact, he's been excited for weeks. He patiently counted down the last two weeks day by day. He woke up in a fury of anticipation, so much so that he combed his hair pre shower! LOL! So now at last, off he goes fully supplied, belly full, and all smiles! It's strange, a part of me is still a little sad even though we did all of this last year. I suppose it's just part of being the mommy. I can't wait to hear all about the first day of second grade.

Fun Fact Friday

2006-08-18T07:47:00.000-07:00

Fun Facts About ME!
Did you Know?

I have fours sisters and one brother.

I despise picking up the tv remote and finding it's full of greasy finger prints. (ICK!!! Thanks Honey!)

My parents are Southern Gospel singers.

I lost both of my grandfathers in the same year within one month of each other.

I must have the toilet paper roll placed with the paper over NOT under. (Seriously I'll change it!)

I've had two c-sections.

I played the violin in the sixth grade.

I don't eat or consume chocolate in any form.

I love nail polish. ( I don't think my nails have seen the light of day for more than 10 minutes in *years*!)

I hate the sound and feeling of fingernails on fabrics of any kind.
(Like when someone scratches an itch through their clothes.)

In my late teens I refused to eat beef for two years.

To my father I am known as #3.

I am often called Mandy, Randy, and Brenda.
( I do have an older sis named Mandy.)

When I was 18 I bought and drove a 1979 Gold Chevy Cheyenne pick up truck.
(Geez that truck was fun!)

I am blessed and thankful to God!

Hodge Podge.......Of Thoughts

2006-08-17T08:06:00.000-07:00

My loving sil Jen razzed me about razzing my lil' sis for taking too long to blog, so here I am. I must warn you though as the title says, it WILL be a hodge podge of random thoughts.

I can't believe school starts on Monday. Brock is very excited and we've already checked out his class room. How do kids grow so fast? One day you're bringing them home from the hospital and it seems the next dropping them off at school. Where does all that time go? It just doesn't seem like seven years have gone by. I'm thinking of checking into pre schools for Ty. Sniff Sniff.....both my babies in school, could I handle this?

What is the deal? Why oh why won't my son use the potty for #2? I don't pretend to understand my little man but something has go to give! Help!!!

Ahhh....it's beginning to feel a lot like fall! Mmmmmm! I love fall, don't you? The leaves are already beginning to turn and fall here. The air even smells different! I think camping will be in order soon!

Last weekend we rented Gods and Generals. I've been wanting to watch this movie for a long long time. I enjoyed it immensely. I give it four stars. I have to admit I didn't know what to expect. The movie really is a focus of the lives of these generals (Lee & Jackson) who for years (I feel) have been painted as monsters. That's not to say that I agree with their points or motives but I do think my teaching may have been biased? It was nice to get to see them in a truer light. This movie of course (nor any other movie) will not replace my favorites: Glory and Cold Mountain. They have however become a welcome addition to the family! LOL!

www.apple.com/trailers/wb/gods_and_generals

www.apple.com/trailers/miramax/cold_mountain

www.imdb.com/title/tt0097441

Well, I could do this all day. I have about a hundred million random thoughts bouncing of the walls of my mind like hyper children at any given time. (Ok mostly at night when I'm trying to fall asleep!) Arrrgggg that annoys me! Ok seriously I could do this all day but I'll spare us all!

What Do Dinosaurs, History, Bob The Builder, And Too Much Chlorine Have In Common?

2006-08-10T07:16:00.000-07:00

Well the answer is our latest mini-vacation! We took the kids to The Children's museum in Indy this week. I remember going to the museum as a class trip in elementary school. I don't think it was nearly as cool as it is now! Of course things have changed in the world since then! Brock really enjoyed the Dino World exhibit. I have to admit I was equally impressed. The light and sound really completes the atmosphere. Ty was a little freaked out but survived! LOL! His favorite was the Bob The Builder exhibit. Mom and Dad enjoyed this room least of all! Try to picture a room filled with life sized models of all the characters, a building station, Bob's workshop (complete with kid sized drill, saw, drawing board), Wendy's paint shop, and Farmer Pickle's water pumping station. Now picture all of this in one room and add about 50 screaming children all running around and around and around!!!!! I've never seen my husband as frazzled in all the years I've known him! I particularly enjoyed the History exhibit because yes as you know I love History. (In particular the 1800's.) So over all we really really enjoyed the museum. After many hours of exploring all four floors we decided to head towards our hotel. We checked in, got settled and decided on pizza for dinner. The kids were very excited because we picked a hotel with an indoor pool. After dinner we all got ready to go swimming. We took the elevator to the lobby and Tyson was so so excited. We got into the pool and within five minutes my eyes were burning. I told Spencer that something was wrong this never happens to me ever. All of a sudden I had trouble breathing. I decided to get out and try the hot tub but it was worse. Not even two minutes later Spencer motioned for me to come over. When I reached him he told me his eyes were on fire and that he was concerned at what effect it could be having on the kids. It was horrible. Tyson screamed all the way back to our room. He was so angry at us for not letting him swim. It's hard to explain something like that to a three year old. So needless to say we won't be staying with that particular hotel again. We did have a great time and that was really the only disappointing event. Well unless you count the fact that it cost 25 bucks to rent a pedal boat for the canal. I find that to be outrageous!! No thanks we'll walk! We did find out though that there is an indoor water park (closed of course on the days we were there!) and that's good to know for next time. Check out our trip photos on our photo blog (link on my side bar) The Life In Pictures.

Fun Fact Friday

2006-08-04T08:43:00.000-07:00

Fun Facts About Indiana

The first rapid fire gun was patented by Richard Gatling of Indianapolis in 1862.

The first diesel powered tractor was produced in 1930 in Columbus Indiana.

Nancy Hanks Lincoln, the mother of Abe Lincoln is buried in Lincoln City Indiana.

Theme parks were invented in Indiana. Santa Claus Land opened August 3rd 1946 in Santa Claus Indiana. Today Santa Claus Land is called Holiday World.

Indiana is the 38th largest state in the U.S.

Famous Hoosiers:

Larry Bird
James Dean
David Letterman
Jimmy Hoffa
Shelly Long
John Mellencamp
David Lee Roth
Jane Pauley
Jim Davis
Bill Blass

I'm Back...I Went Potty!

2006-07-31T06:27:00.000-07:00

Hi! It's nice to blog again. I just didn't have much time to blog last week. My post title does have a story behind it! When it happens that there are five Sundays in a month our church has what we call family day. It's where all the children's services are closed and the children sit in adult service w/ parents. It's a special time and our Pastor includes things in his sermon for the kids. For instance he may play clips of Veggie Tale movies that relate to his message etc. So yesterday was a family day. EVERYONE was in service! It was packed! We're talking three hundred plus people. About 15-20 minutes into the message Tyson started to become restless so Spencer thought is was a perfect time for a potty break. Brock and I stayed in service while Tyson and daddy went potty. (Now mind you everyone is pretty much quiet and giving most of their attention to pastor.) When Tyson and Spencer return and get to our row of seats , Tyson shouts out in a very loud voice "I'm back...I went potty!!" Oh my gosh it was soooo funny! The people behind us were just laughing . Oh the joy of parenting! He keeps it interesting that's for sure!

Check out our photo blog, we've updated!!

Number Two

2006-07-21T11:53:00.000-07:00

Here it is! Number two. I just finished it and couldn't wait to share. BTW, Fun Fact Friday will return next week. As you can see I had to work today!! Hope you like it! Sorry again about the crap quality of the pics. (Old Camera)

And I didn't do pinks just because I like them! The brides colors are various shades of pinks!!

Number One

2006-07-20T15:12:00.000-07:00

Hi all! I'm doing great! Hope you're all feeling well too! I'm workning on two cakes for a Bridal Shower. I finished number one today, hence the title of this post! I wanted to share it with you. I'll do work on number two tomorrow. :( Sorry about the quality of the pic I had to use the old camera. The batteries DO NOT last long on the new one!!! ARRRRRRGGGGGG!!!

It's Wednesday

2006-07-19T11:07:00.000-07:00

Hi all! I don't really have much to blog about today. I just figured I should attempt to post something since it's been a few days. Yesterday morning during the thunderstorms we lost power from about 5:00 am to around 10:00 am. The kids ended up in our bed because they were afraid. Let's just say that it was beyond toasty in our room. We all ended up together on the living room floor because none of us could sleep upstairs, it was sooo hot! Needless to say I didn't sleep well. It was difficult to sleep between my kids laughing and the fact that the floor was just down right hard and fluffless!!! LOL!! Not at all cozy! What can you do? Last night we ate dinner out at Ponderosa. Not impressed to say the least but kids eat free on Tuesdays. I guess somehow that makes it worth it.....right?

Lazy Days

2006-07-17T09:29:00.000-07:00

We had a great long weekend. As you know our camping trip was cancelled but we still had a great time at home and around town. We were very very lazy though. I think we probably shouldn't take a vacation from house work anymore! LOL!! I have such a mess to clean up today but it was worth it. We rented some great movies this weekend and we took the boys to Tokens and Tickets. Everyone had a wonderful time ,myself included. I have a major obsession with Skee-Ball!! I've always loved it. So I have to keep myself in check in arcades with Skee-Ball machines! LOL!! I guess we'll have to put camping on hold for a while but we'll do it again before the cold sets in yet this year.

Here are our list of movies and reviews:

Rumor Has It: ***
The Great Raid:***
New World:* (not what we expected)

Charlotte's Web 2: ****
Pooh's Heffalump:****
Tinyasauruses:****
Land Before Time 4: ****
(The kids really liked all their movies can you tell?? They rated them!)

Something Forgotten.....Something New

2006-07-15T07:51:00.000-07:00

I didn't post a Fun Fact Friday this week because we were "supposed" to be on vacation but it rained on our parade!! We attempted to carry out our plan to camp this weekend but were hindered by LOTS of rain. Spencer even checked the forecast just to be sure we'd be safe. We did get to enjoy Thursday evening and Friday morning but mid afternoon it started to look pretty nasty. All of a sudden it just poured down rain like crazy, no thunder no lightening just heavy rain. We also found out that our tent wasn't quite as water proof as we'd previously thought! The fire pit was so wet and had standing water on one side. So as disappointed as I was I finally conceded and helped pack up to come home. :( We rented movies and ordered take out instead. On a happy note we did find out that the children's movies at our Video Rental Store are free!!! What an excellent idea!!! This is a great deal particularly for us since our children have inherited our movie obsession!!

FYI: I started a photo blog called The Life....In Pictures. I have a link on my side bar if you want to check it out! I'll try to update it frequently. Also a lot of you have asked about the new look of my blog. I can't take ANY credit for it! My wonderful SIL Lisanne http://bathtubjunkie.net graciously agreed to help her blog skill challenged SIL (Me)by dressing up my template. Isn't she great!!!

Thanks Lisanne!!!

Do You Smell That???

2006-07-13T08:48:00.000-07:00

It smells alot like.....................

Victory

WooooooHooooooooo....... my sis is blogging now!!! There's link on my side bar, check her out!!! She's Singing Mama.

Operation Sister Blog

2006-07-12T12:41:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to convince my little sis to start a blog. She says that her life is boring and that no one would want to read about it. I would read it and I believe you would read it too. So today I am initiating phase one of Operation Sister Blog.

Phase One:
Vote

If Your Life Was A Movie

2006-07-11T09:00:00.000-07:00

Hey this is really creepy! You all should try it! I actually like most of the movies it listed (EXCEPT SHOWGIRLS) and some of them do fit my life!!! LOL!

P.S.
Who in the heck considers Showgirls a cult classic???????????????????????????????

The Movie Of Your Life Is A Cult Classic

Quirky, offbeat, and even a little campy - your life appeals to a select few.
But if someone's obsessed with you, look out! Your fans are downright freaky.

Your best movie matches: Office Space, Showgirls, The Big Lebowski

If Your Life Was a Movie, What Genre Would It Be?

2006-07-10T10:46:00.000-07:00

Balloon Race:

I DID IT!

LOL!

Saturday was Spencer's company picnic. It's been held at Fun Spot Amusement Park in Angola every year. www.funspotpark.com The kids had a blast. It was soooo hot! There was a nice breeze but you're mostly standing out in the sun, baking. LOL! Spencer had his annual Go-Kart "race" after which he declares himself the "winner". He's expecting the guaranteed win for next year.
Explanation:
There happens to be one double rider kart. Which does happen to be a bit faster than all the rest of the karts. Every year Brockton has been conveniently too small to drive a kart alone. So he rides with his dad in the doubler, ensuring a victory for dad. When he turns 11 he can ride by himself. Tyson will still be to small to ride alone so Spencer feels confident that he has a good five years or so of victorious go-karting! All in all it was a lot of fun. I actually rode on the Balloon Race. Yes I know that shouldn't be considered such a feat but if you know me and heights, it's a big deal!!!

2006-07-07T08:26:00.000-07:00

Did You Know?

The facts of life began as a spin off of Different Strokes and ran from 1979-1988 209 episodes.

During WWII the Oscars were made of wood due to metal shortages.

Casey Kasem was the voice of Shaggy on Scooby-Do.

The studio wanted Matthew McConaughey to play Jack Dawson in the 1997 hit movie Titanic. Director James Cameron insisted on Leonardo DiCaprio.

The average person sees more than 20,000 commercials in a year.

The first toilet ever seen on television was on Leave it to Beaver.

Gilligan's Island has been in syndication since it left mainstream airwaves and has never been off air even once.

Married With Children holds the record for longest running sit-com.

Happy Birthday Miss Lucy!

2006-07-05T07:54:00.000-07:00

Above: This is typical of how we interact today!

Below: A photo of all the sisters. Lois is under the arrow!

Ok I took yet another que from Jen. I'm being nicer though....so don't hurt me Miss Lucy!

Ten years old in

the glam photo

<=============

Freedom......Be thankful

2006-07-03T11:12:00.000-07:00

......It almost didn't happen!

In God We Still Trust

Washington's "Earnest Prayer"
The Exerpt of Prayer below was written by Washington at Newburgh, New York, at the close of the Revolutionary War on June 14, 1783.

Circular Letter Addressed to the Governors of all the States on the Disbanding of the Army, June 14, 1783

I now make it my earnest prayer that God would have you, and the State over which you preside, in his holy protection; that he would incline the hearts of the citizens to cultivate a spirit of subordination and obedience to government, to entertain a brotherly affection and love for one another, for their fellow-citizens of the United States at large, and particularly for brethren who have served in the field; and finally that he would most graciously be pleased to dispose us all to do justice, to love mercy, and to demean ourselves with that charity, humility, and pacific temper of mind, which were the characteristics of the Divine Author of our blessed religion, and without an humble imitation of whose example in these things, we can never hope to be a happy nation.

Fun Fact Friday

2006-06-30T19:08:00.000-07:00

Did You Know?

Forty percent of all McDonalds sales come from Happy Meals.

The pig is the only animal capable of getting a sun burn.

Barbie's full name is Barbara Millicent Roberts.

Bees and dogs can both smell fear.

Twenty three percent of all photocopier faults world wide are caused by people copying their buttocks.

The average child will have eaten 1,500 PB&J sandwiches by graduation.

And because I've experienced this myself this week: the average person swallows one liter of snot per day!

Strange Laws

In Chicago it is illegal to eat in any establishment that is on fire!

In Iowa no kiss must last longer than five minutes.

In Canada is it illegal to set fire to the leg of a wood legged man.

In Louisiana, biting someone with your natural teeth is considered 'simple assault' while biting someone with your false teeth is 'aggravated assault'.

But they're just so fun!

2006-06-28T06:19:00.000-07:00

I know I should find these fun things on my own instead of borrowing, but they're just so darn much fun! My sil Jen actually found them and if you read her blog you know she really enjoys them too! So sorry Jen but you actually started it! LOL! Come on ya'll find out what your inner hillbilly' s name is!

Your Hillbilly Name Is...

Tammy Lee Farmer

Hillbilly Name Generator

Can I just have ten more minutes?

2006-06-26T09:15:00.000-07:00

Oh my! Well if you read Sara's and or Jen's blogs you know by now that we've all had extremely long weekends! I am still soooo tired! The party was a huge success. Everyone seemed to have a great time! The kids really enjoyed themselves! I think it was by far the best party we've ever had. I can't take all the credit, God blessed us with deals, great weather and a loving family to help. I am so grateful to Jen and Paul for letting us combine parties with them. It is just so much easier when we can all gather together in one spot to celebrate rather than going from location to location! I think our water games went very very well and I also have some ideas for next year. We're thinking this will become an annual thing! Until Zack and Josh decide that they're too old and cool for parties! It was a blast! We had little water cannons, water balloons, three kiddie pool stations, pick a duckie and magnetic fishing (for the 3's and under crowd!). I am very blessed, I'm so glad that our friends and family were there to have fun with us. My grandparents were able to attend also which was just fantastic. Over all the party was just great. We did find out that we need tons more bug spray next time! LOL! My kids look like they have mumps! By the way as I'm sure you've figured out I made the cake!

Fun Fact Friday

2006-06-22T14:47:00.000-07:00

Did you Know?

The average house cat has thirty two muscles in each ear.

Forty percent of Americans iron their clothes while wearing their underwear or being completely naked.

The average person releases one cup to half a gallon of gas each day.

The pumpkin is a fruit not a vegetable.

On average 40,000 Americans are injured by toilets each year.

Chef Boyardee is actually a real person. His real name is Hector Boiardi; he was born in northern Italy in 1898.

Three percent of pet owners give Valentine's gifts to their pets on Valentine's Day.

And in honor of my own little statistic who turns 3 today:
One out of every five births in the United States are delivered by Cesarean section.

Strange and Stupid Laws:

In Arizona, it's against the law to hunt camels.

In Kansas, it is against the law to shoot a rabbit from a motor boat.

When fishing in the state of Washington, keep in mind that it's against the law to hurl rocks at fish in order to catch them.

In Florida, it is illegal to jog with your eyes closed. (HMMM.... really? Darn!)

In Oklahoma, you may be fined for making faces at dogs.

When fishing, it is illegal to use canned corn for bait in Oregon.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Fun Fact Friday On Tuesday!

2006-06-20T10:24:00.000-07:00

Did you know?

A jiffy is an actual unit of time. It is 1/100th of a second.

Lady Liberty's nose measures four and a half feet.

In Finland Donald Duck comic books are banned because Donald does not wear pants.

One in every two thousand newborns has a visible tooth at birth.

Cincinnati Ohio is the most humid city in the United States.

The 250,000 pores on the soles of your feet release a quarter cup of liquid each day! Yuck!

Middlesboro KY is one of only a handful of cities in the U.S. built within a meteor crater.

And for my SIL Jen and her hubby Paul,
A scatologist is one who studies poop.

Strange and Stupid Laws:

In Alaska you can not look at a moose from an airplane.

In Michigan married couples must live together or be imprisoned.

In Texas it is against the law to put graffiti on someone else's cow.

In Kentucky it is illegal to transport an ice cream cone in your pocket. (Perhaps this is considered a concealed weapon? HMMMMM makes you wonder)

And one for us Hoosiers to remember it is illegal and forbidden for Monkeys to smoke cigarettes in South Bend Indiana.

The American Redback Mom

2006-06-20T09:50:00.000-07:00

Hey guys! It's me again! I'm so happy to be blogging! Not much new here, just a sunburn. :( I took the kids swimming yesterday. I am sunburned in the one place I couldn't reach by myself. The MIDDLE OF MY BACK! Ouch! I was going to ask my sister to get that spot but I got busy with the kids and totally forgot. My loving and wonderful husband applied layers and layers of aloe for me last night. That's what I get for being stupid I guess!

I'm going to post Fun Fact Friday. Yes I do realize that it is currently Tuesday. I wasn't able to post this weekend so you get Fun Fact Friday on Tuesday! Hope you like it!

Remember Me?

2006-06-12T15:19:00.000-07:00

Hi I'm back at least for the moment. Right now I'm posting from Spencer's work laptop. Ever since our virus and ad protection expired our computer has operated in EXTREME error. I'll try to post as often as I can. I hope to have everything fixed ASAP! It's totally annoying! I only have access to the laptop in the evenings so bear with me.

Playing With The Pros

2006-06-07T08:23:00.000-07:00

I have officially winged my way through another card game! Last night we had my grandparents over for dinner. They live in Bradenton FL. and always visit during hurricane season. So it seems that living in Florida has turned my grandmother into a card shark! She carries a big box full of cards, shufflers, holders score pad etc., which she and grandpa Bill jokingly refer to as "her gamblin' box". When we invited them over for dinner they offered to teach us a game called Canasta. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canasta Now it seems that Canasta is a favorite pastime of both sets of my grandparents (they live 45mins from afore mentioned set) and the other elderly folks in sunny Florida. This a game which I am told is taken very seriously. We were told that talking at the card table in Florida is strictly forbidden! My grandparents aren't that serious about it so we all talked, even across the table to our partners. (Somewhere in sunny FL old folks are cringing!) We had a great time.

Fun Fact Friday

2006-06-02T07:23:00.000-07:00

Did you know?

The tomato was originally thought to be poisonous.

A snail can sleep for up to three years.

A cockroach can live nine days without its head!

An Indian man holds the world record for the longest ear hair.
The hair measures 5.2 in from the center of his ear!

Vivian Wheeler of Illinois holds the record for longest female beard. The longest strand measured 11 inches in 2000!

The words listen and silent contain the exact same letters.

A woman in California sued a grocery store after dropping a case of beer on her feet. She was not injured but said it hurt! She won. Yikes!!

The tongue is the strongest muscle in the body.

A rat can live longer without water than a camel.

Here are some towns you might not want to visit:

Hell, Michigan
Accident, Maryland
Idiot Ville, Oregon
Ding Dong, Texas

In Kentucky, it is illegal for a merchant to force a person into his place of business for the purpose of making a sale.

In San Francisco, there is an ordinance, which bans the picking up and throwing of used confetti.

In Florida, it is against the law to put livestock on a school bus.

In Tennessee, a law exists which prohibits the sale of bologna (sandwich meat) on Sunday.

In Utah, birds have the right of way on any public highway.

In Kentucky, it's the law that a person must take a bath once a year.

In West Virginia, only babies can ride in a baby carriage.

In Tennessee, it is against the law to drive a car while sleeping.

Ok it's all worked out....pwwwwww!

2006-05-31T11:57:00.000-07:00

Gosh it's taken me a whole day to post one tiny little entry. Yesterday I created a quiz to post but I couldn't get my link to work. Every time I tried to enter and post I got a rejection notice. It just didn't like my codes! But it's ok now, you can breathe easy. I know you all missed me so very much (let me dream). Ok it's rant time. I don't know who in their "right" mind could be praying for this crazy weather but whoever you are KNOCK IT OFF ALREADY! AND TAKE MY QUIZ!
Ok all better now :)

Borrowed Quiz Idea

2006-05-30T07:15:00.000-07:00

I am capable of original thought, really! (ok insert hysterical laughing here)
I'll prove it sometime...but not now. I borrowed this quiz idea from one I took on MSN.
Have fun!

Take my Quiz on QuizYourFriends.com!

I have the right to remain silent.....But it could cost me!

2006-05-23T11:56:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted anything in a while I know. The truth is I just didn't think anyone would care to hear the boring details of my life the past few days. But I've been threatened by my sil to post! LOL! I haven't made any cakes, I haven't concocted any quizzes but I have been asked a very strange question. A few days ago I was standing in the kitchen when Brock approached. I wasn't surprised that he had a question. He is full of questions. I think or hope at least that this is just normal seven year old curiosity, after all he is still learning and discovering. Yet I have to wonder sometimes where he comes up with these questions. So here is the question: "Mom have you ever tasted Yak skins?"

WHAT!!!???? Have I ever tasted Yak skins? No and as of yet I don't know anyone who has tasted Yak skins. Of all things Yak skins? Can you even eat a Yak? Does a Yak taste like chicken?

Ahhhh sigh....... That's my boy!

DutchBoy Pure White

2006-05-12T10:36:00.000-07:00

Well here they are! I am trying to recover from fumes and exhaustion. The funny part it that I'm only done with the wall cabinets! (ok almost done, yes there is that one drawer, I couldn't get the handle off needed husband power!) I still have to start the undersink cabinets. That will just have to wait until Monday. Our weekend is going to be very full! There is absolutely no room for cabinet painting! Happy Mother's Day to all my fellow Mom's in Blog Land. Get spoiled all weekend you deserve it!!

Misc Ramblings

2006-05-10T06:00:00.000-07:00

I don't have any cake pics to post this week. I haven't made many lately. I was going to do another pizza cake for my cousin's daughter. She decided that she just didn't have the time to do an all out sleep over party so she cancelled the cake. :( Well that's ok though! It gives me time to devote to repainting our kitchen cabinets. We decided last year when we redid our kitchen to purchase less expensive unfinished cabinets. I decided to go with a pickling stain. I really liked the sample displayed at the Hardware store. My cabinets look NOTHING like the sample piece. I applied coat after coat of stain and....... not even close. I was really disappointed and now I'm just tired of looking at them. I have these great handles that match my "garden" theme but you can't even really see them because the cabinets are so dull. So I'm going to try paint this time. I want them to have a little more detail and really make my leaf pulls pop! Well keep praying that all will go well! I attached pics of the cabinets now, stay tuned for after shots! Sorry about the crooked photography! LOL!

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