Breakfast in a glass!

Just went looking for a recipe to make a smoothie. I knew what ingredients I wanted to use, I just wasn't sure how much of what. So I tried this one and it is sooo sooo good! I'm calling it a morning monkey smoothie :)
1/2 cup coffee (I used instant, make it as directed cool preferably then pour in your 1/2 cup)
1 banana (I like mine just yellow almost still green)
1/2 cup ff fat milk
2 Tbs. of crunchy Peanut Butter
6 ice cubes (ish)
1 scoop of chocolate protein powder

Blend all ingredients together until smooth.

This mix should leave you feeling full and energized!

The daily reminders

So since an avid reader brought it to my attention AGAIN that I have not blogged in a while I thought I would get my act together. I have certainly missed it and thought of it often. Here it goes...

I started a new job as the Director of Personal Training at a gym a few months ago. It is the first job that I've ever had that I look forward to going to work each day. Not only do I keep all of the trainers in line, hire, fire and train them all etc. but I also maintain an amazing relationship with all of the members who want to feel like they are not just at another gym but that their small monthly payment makes them someone special. Now that my resume' is out of the way I can get to the meat of this post. The thing that makes me love this job the most is when I meet each new member and transform them into clients of our training department. I spend at least one hour with each new member, mainly so that I can tell them how terribly fat they are and how they need us and will never make progress on their own (in not so many words). Then I am amazed how people will tell their whole life story to someone they only met 5 seconds ago, people love to talk about themselves! I have laughed and cried with strangers. I am always inspired though to wake up and start my day out amazingly and be happy about each thing that is good when these people tell me of their hardships. Let me tell you of some of my clients. I have Susan, who is a breast cancer survivor who is going on a cruise in January and wants to look good again for her husband because after years of being in bed fighting cancer she feels fat and ugly. She is so thankful to be alive and walking around at the same time though. She talks every day about being alive and how great she feels. She has told me of how the doctors removed both breasts in a surgery and then how another surgery gave her new ones then they wanted to do the next surgery to give her nipples again and she said she was finished with surgery so she opted to not get them (I'm pretty sure she had many more that that too not to mention all of the treatments too). She lost her hair and it has regrown most beautifully, it is soft and blonde and has just the perfect flips in it to look like she belongs on the beach. She has lost 15 pounds in 7 weeks and says suddenly her husband can't keep his hands off of her again. She works so hard and smiles so much I look forward to every Monday, Wednesday and Friday with her, what she doesn't know is that it isn't the 15 pounds that changed her husbands feelings but it is her confidence coming back. She makes my day start off great. She thinks she is getting a lot from me but really I am the one who is getting more. Then there is Sharon, who lost her son 7 years ago. He was in his 20's and every time she speaks of him she gets tears in her eyes and gets a lump in her throat. I've cried with her many times. She always asks about Rylan and Rhett, she says she has a special place in her heart for boys. She still has 2 very handsome sons alive (all 3 were handsome). She is still struggling with the loss but feels like getting out of the house and coming to our appointments is what is making her better. She said she hasn't been out of the house really in many years, she does get excited though when we talk about how beautiful her skin is... she says its from her years staying out of the sun. Her husband is supposed to retire from Shell in March so she is hoping to get the feeling back to want to travel and do things so they can enjoy his retirement. I try to tell her that her other sons and her husband need to see her happy and living life again. I can never imagine her pain. I think she is brave for trying to live again. She is my Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. Then there is Mrs.Dot, she lost her husband many years ago and hasn't ever figured out how to spend her time alone so she eats when she is bored or lonely. She said her husband used to spoil her and she never had to do anything for herself and now he isn't there so she doesn't feel like she knows how to act. She is 69 and wants to get back into shape and is determined. You can tell she is sad still but I love to make her laugh. Sometimes I wait until she is half done with an exercise and say "Ok that makes 2" lol she usually almost drops the weights because she freaks out and I say just kidding that's 6! Then she almost drops them again laughing. She wants to get rid of her gut I tell her that the laughing will help with it and that's why I do it. Then on exercises where it is timed I wait until she is about 10 seconds into a 30 second exercise and say something like "oh you already started I guess I'll start counting" then I don't even wait for a response that is more than a laugh before I say just kidding you are doing great. There is also a future daughter in law/future mother in law (the wedding is on New Years eve this year) who are training together to get ready for the big day. It is so awesome to see how they get along like friends and I tell them of my relationship with my mom-in-law (I'm lucky, I got 2!) and how not many girls are as lucky as we are. There is also a lady who is so big she cried to me because her kids had a come to Jesus meeting with her and told her she had to do something about herself before she dies like her husband/their father did. You can tell that she wishes that moving your arm from your plate to your mouth would make the weight fall off . The weight of a fork just isn't enough to make a change though. It is going to be a great struggle for her because she doesn't want it for herself and I don't think she really cares either. It makes me sad because I understand how her kids feel. There are so many people in my life who I know that their body has not been taken care of and their life will possibly be cut short because of it. Some of my trainers have clients who I wish I could sit and talk to for hours because they are so inspiring. I have many other clients with great fun stories who are all positive when they are with me but the ones above are the main ones who touch my heart. The point of all of these stories is that people have unknowingly helped me appreciate every single thing in my life. I hope this helps you to do the same. Each time your significant other does something that burns your ass a little remember how lucky you are to have them around. I realized this when Rhett was deployed and I would think back to when I would slam cabinet doors because that obviously would let him know I was mad he hadn't taken the trash out yet. When he was gone I was wishing the trash was full because that would mean he was there to put stuff in it. I was lucky though because he got to come home. The next time your kids make a huge mess or bother you for a sandwich right after you sit down or when they run up a $500.00 cell phone bill, be happy they are here to do those things. The next time someone cuts you off in traffic or when you are having a bad day and things just aren't going your way remember you woke up this morning and didn't have to battle cancer or have another surgery or figure out how to live alone again so put a damn smile on your face and be nice to each other. If you can't seem to find that happy place come see me I can make that happen for you.

This post goes out to all of the people who have been through a tragedy and smile and move on, thank you. Thank you for helping me see how healthy I am and lucky I am that my husband and son are healthy and we are all together and happy! Thank you for making me smile. Thank you for inspiring me to see every glass totally full. Thank you for thinking of me and thank you for sharing your stories with me.

Best Roast Recipe I've ever used!

Last night I used a mixture of recipes that I found that I liked to create my own. I wish I would have taken pictures of the crock pot because it was soooo good and even looked pretty :) Here is the recipe of everything I put in the crock pot.

bean soup recipe

Here is the bean soup recipe I used.

Here are the beans I used in a ziploc bag.

This is the crock-pot after a few hours, this is before I added some tomatoes that I diced and canned not long ago.

This was my taste test :)

I realized that I forgot to post the link the other day. It was amazing and is all gone now that we had left overs for lunch the next day. I like I said in my last post I didn't use 16 beans for this recipe I used only 7 and it was amazing. I would say I soaked around 1 pound maybe a little more of dried beans overnight before starting this recipe. Rylan did not try this recipe as the sausage I used was very spicy and too hot for him but it was perfect for Rhett and I.

Bean Soup

Yesterday I decided that I needed to put all of these left over wedding favors to use... last year when we got married I made edible wedding favors, bean soup (basically 7 different dried beans in a jar) and cornbread and cookies and salsa too. I didn't get any cookies in a jar back, go figure and the salsa was all gone too (good choice people, I can't even keep the stuff in the house since my hubby will eat every single bit of it faster than I can make it) so I have all of these jars of beans and cornbread to make before they go bad, I don't even know if beans and cornbread go bad since they are all non perishable items. Anyway I searched for a bean soup recipe for the crock- since  a friend tried the bean soup with the recipe that was on the wedding favor jar and said it was not very flavorful. I also wanted some veggies in it. I found one that looks and smells amazing today since I already have it simmering in the crock pot. It calls for red pepper and regular pepper but I didn't use either since I got "hot" sausage that was pretty spicy last time. I also found some other recipes to use the beans for that I will be updating you on so if you want to make some inexpensive dinners then you can try these out too. I needed the jars when my dad gave me pounds and pounds of tomatoes that I didn't want to go bad so I dumped all the beans into a giant zip-loc bag and now I will be just scooping out what beans I need until they are gone. Now that it has almost been a year I can't even remember what all kind of beans are in here... I see red beans, black beans, lentils, chick peas, Lima beans, what I think are black eye peas, and some other tiny sort of bean lol.

Summer Reading

This summer at the beginning of the summer one of the first places we went was to the public library. We joined their summer reading program for free. At the end of reading 12 hours worth of books (you mark them in 15 min. increments) you could turn in your completed paper and receive a book sack that they say is for spending the night and a free cookie coupon. After turning in a copy to the library

Chicken Meatballs

I am trying a new recipe tonight because a few weeks ago I was able to buy ground chicken for super cheap so I picked up nearly 10 pounds. I have cooked a few pounds already as chicken burgers. So tonight I would like to try chicken meatballs for Spaghetti. I will probably be adding my usual squash and zucchini to hide in there as well. I hope they will come out delicious I will let you know but in the mean time I want to share the recipe with you.

Chicken meatballs for spaghetti

snack time

I'm going to buy oreo's! JUST SAYING!! way to go to the company that will come out and stand up for what they believe without worrying about the idiots who are too fat to stop eating their product anyway!

Sneaky spaghetti

Tonight I made what I like to call sneaky spaghetti. I've read several cookbooks on hiding fruits and veggies in different dishes but I'm usually too lazy for all of the extremely large amounts of prepping that goes into those directions. Those recipes call for cooking and puréeing veggies to add to your dish. Tonight I simply used our cheese grater to make squash and zucchini invisible. I took 4 small squash and zucchini and cut the ends off then grated them into a bowl. I used cheater pasta sauce too (instead of diced tomatoes, tomato sauce and tomato purée with my own mix of seasonings) then I added some mild Italian sausage (the stuff I buy does not come precooked so I cook it in a separate skillet then cut it up and add it in when it is almost done but still a tiny pink inside) I also add a cup or more, depends on how I'm feeling hahaha of strawberry or orange homemade wine. I let all of that simmer almost at a boil for an hour or more if time allows so that all the flavors can blend and the veggies can soften up and the meat can finish cooking. Then I cook my pasta and stir it in with the sauce, I sometimes keep it separate but tonight I was anxious to get the kitchen cleaned up so that was one less pot I had to clean later if I mixed it all in one pot plus this way I'm sure all the sauce and noodles will get used. I don't like when all the sauce is gone and I still have a bowl of noodles or the other way around because I always feel like I need to make something to go on those noodles so they aren't wasted. If you have kids (or a significant other) who doesn't want to eat or try veggies I suggest making this and not telling them then see if they like it! Rhett and Rylan both say this is their favorite spaghetti! I don't have a problem with Rhett eating them but if my 4 year of sees the veggies he will completely eat around most of them, there are some that he likes though.

Ellen...

Did you know it only took Ellen around 20 shows to get on the cover of Oprahs magazine? I decided since I've been campaigning far longer than she has I want something better... I want to host with one of my best friends. OR!! I want to go somewhere cool like when she sent Sophia Grace and Rosie to the music awards to be her corresponder. I would be AMAZING at that!! So if you can hear me Ellen... I'm still writing to you!

Map of neverland

I took lots of ideas I found online and created a custom map of Neverland for the party on Friday. In the top left I put the Indian camp. Next to that in the water is skull rock, I couldn't find a skull clip art picture I liked so I used one with bones and just cut those off. Then on the right top is peter pans hide out. Under the Indian camp near the middle is the lost boys lazy woods. I forgot to mark the crocodile creek but it goes right down the middle. To the right bottom is pixie hallow. Mermaid lagoon is the water area right below where Tinkerbell hangs out. Then of course there is the pirate cove. I took an "x marks the spot" clip art and attached that then drew little dashes like I imagine you would find on a treasure map if you had to decide which way you needed to go.
While creating a gift basket I didn't discard the natural color ribbon that tied the baskets together that I used instead of bags or wrapping paper. That very ribbon that most people would throw in the trash is what I used to tie these little maps into cute rolls. I will find a basket of some sort to put them all in and it will make a cute decoration until the kids are ready to use them.

Dear Ellen,

Dear Ellen,
I've been trying to contact you for over a year now, there have been multiple letters with requests for my friends and I to get tickets so we can come to your show, I even sent you and Portia a formal invite to our wedding so you could enjoy some free food and booze on us. Not to mention the multiple shout outs on this blog and your Facebook page.... Geeze I guess we are just not important to you but I guess it is like that Garth Brooks song about thanking God for unanswered prayers....

Financially stable children

I just finished reading a great article about ways to teach your children how to be comfortable with money so they will use it wisely when they are young adults. My mom helped me open a savings account when I was a child but all I remember about it is asking to get money out to do the things I wanted to do such as go to the movies with friends (she always said no haha). Rylan has grasped the concept at 4 that he needs to do 3 things with his money. He has 3 jars, one for saving, you can't see in this one it's a typical bank, one for spending, we used a mason jar so he can see if he possibly has enough to buy something he wants, and one for donating, this one is a pot that you might plant flowers in. If I give him money for let's say having exceptionally good manners or getting a special note home from school about good behavior (he gets money for those things because I told him that right now that is his "job" to be good etc.) or if he does a chore for example feeding the cat without being asked,

YMCA T-ball

Spring was our first time to try YMCA for a sport for Rylan. We didn't find the price to be too much. It was around 70.00 I think for the sport and that would include a jersey. There was an additional 40.00 fee since we were not members and that would be a one time fee for the whole year so if we decided to play another sport in the fall we would not have to pay that fee. The first day we arrived it was complete chaos which I thought was to be expected. We were given great reviews about the YMCA sport programs from a friend (they play in a different city though). The second week (it was once a week on Wednesdays) was yet another day where half of the time for the children was wasted because they decided there were enough players to create 2 additional teams so there would now be 4 teams not two and they assured us that this would be great so the teams could have chances to play against each other.

italian chicken sausage bake

On tonight's menu is baked penne with Italian sausage. I purchased a package of fresh chicken sausage on sale a while back for about 2.00 so today I took it out of the freezer and started to look for a recipe to use it in. I came up with this one that seemed like I would have everything here already and it sounds like it tastes good too. Instead of using white wine I am using some good ole' Italian homemade strawberry wine, I think the technical term for this stuff is moonshine but for all purposes of good reading material we will just call it "white wine". I took a little taste test of the "white wine" just to ensure it is still good from my last spaghetti (I always remember my pop doing that lol and now I know why). I am using sausage that is in the casing and I just cut it into round pieces but after looking at it cooking I'm thinking that next time I will just cut the casing off and cook it as if it is just ground meat for easier biting. Smells amazing so far.... I hope you try this one I already know its gonna be good and it has been super easy too!

PS- it is also under 700 calories which means I'll only be taking in around 2,000 tonight... not too bad... I mean compaired to the usual lol

Just excuses...

So I have punished myself "until my room is picked up"! I told the hubby today that I was no longer allowed to hang out with him until my things were taken care of. I have little piles all over the house where I come in and drop things and say to myself that I will return to tidy them up but never make it that far. I get up at 5 (well let's admit that it is more like 5:30 by the time my 15th alarm has gone off) and read a little news in bed, I picked up this habit from the hubby and it is a nice easy way to ease into getting out of bed. I get myself ready and eat breakfast then wake Rylan around 7 for his breakfast and I make lunch then get him dressed (after finishing my final touches) and we are off to school by 8 (ish) I return home to pick up breakfast and start on my list for the day. It's usually 9:30 by this time. I'm hungry again by 10 so I'm looking for my next snack. Rhett on most days invites me to lunch (I love our lunch dates) so not long after my snack I put away my list and I'm back out the door again. By the time lunch is over it is nearly time to go pick up Rylan since carpool line is anywhere from 2:10-2:20 to start lining up. So I try to get in one short errand instead of going home. Since they do spend a good deal of time in the classroom, as soon as Rylan gets into the car he asks to go to the park next-door to his school. He gets plenty of outside time and even more play time inside I'm sure I just don't want to admit that I've spoiled him to going somewhere after school each day. I let him play from 2:20 until about 4 and we get home around 4:15-4:30 depending on if I need to stop for items to complete the dinner menu or not. We get home and I get him set up, sandy shoes and socks off and picked up, back pack unloaded and lunch box washed out. Now it's time to start dinner and it's around 5:00 dinner is done around 6 and we eat then it is nearly bath time for Rylan so I wash his hands from dinner and let him play while I clean up dinner and the kitchen and eating areas. Then it is on to bath time (he usually wants a "long" bath) and so I leave the door open and he is singing so loud I know he is good to play for a while (plus he is four and not an infant who will drown if left alone) I try to do a load of laundry in this time and sometimes I will clean the bathroom he is in, wiping everything down in there is perfect at bath time especially if he is splashing water everywhere because I don't need a bucket of mop water. Now bath time is over we dry off and it is time for jammies and a story. I breath for a minute while dad brushes teeth and I try not to fall asleep while laying in his squishy bed. We say prayers then I am begged every night to scratch a tiny back. I would do it every night if I didn't fall asleep every time. He keeps up now with if I did it last night or not because I made a deal with him once that I would do it every other night. Notice I didn't really get any house work done in this typical day? Add in there trips to see friends and family on the weekends and you suddenly haw half packed bags and Easter candy that still needs to be put away a month later. Oh yeah and let's top that off with grocery shopping, room mom/end of the year party planning, and birthday/holiday gift buying planning and you are sure to find that there is always something that needs to be done here. I love every minute of it! Sooo I'm sure you can very well see why I have decided I am no longer allowed to hang out with my hunny until my "room is picked up" (isn't that what moms say?)

Cats

For any of my friends out there who have cats I have learned a trick that will help keep the litter box odor to a minimum. Use scoopable litter and when you are finished with your Sunday (or any day really) newspaper take it and rip it up into little squares about 2x2 or so and put some below the litter and some mixed in and some on top. You will be surprised at how it keeps the ammonia smell down. When you scoop take all the newspaper out with the waste and refill mixing it in and around with your scooper.

You are welcome :)

Fairy Dust

(all of the parents in Rylans class will surely love me after this one) The kids in the class will have a treasure hunt as part of their pixie and pirate party so I decided the first find on the treasure hunt will be to find "pixie dust" so at the dollar tree I found just the size container I was looking for. Three small bottles of glitter for 1.00...perfect! I had tule at home and pink ribbon from another project so all I had to do was make a little paper with instructions and glue it on. The paper said something like.... Summer pixie dust: sprinkle this in your yard on the last day of school and the summer fairies will see the enchanted glow and will know you want them to bring you a magical summer. Covington is going to be one very glittery city!!

Spring break is over

Well spring break is over but all of the spring gatherings are not :) I want to share what a wonderful husband I have and I feel so lucky to have someone who is my best friend to be with all the time. We had a disagreement (of the friendly kind) about who was the worse spouse hahaha. As we strolled through the French quarter in New Orleans enjoying our little mini-vacation I thanked him for our amazing week together and for making my birthday so special. That's when it started, he said well I want you to know I appreciate the fact that you put up with all of my crap, because I know I have a lot of it. We both giggled but then I said well I know I have lots of little things I ask you to do that I could probably just pass up like how to hang his towel after he takes a shower, or how to pull the sheets up when making the bed instead if just pulling the comforter up and putting pillows on top, just little crap that doesn't really matter but I ask anyway lol so this went back and forth a few times until I finally said you are right I love you more than you love me and I am a better spouse ;) to which Rhett just said UH NO

So we had birthday sushi and lazier tag then he took me to bed bath and beyond and told me to pick out stuff I wanted (if I would have known he was just letting me pick whatever I probably would have picked more lol but I guess that's why he didn't tell me) then I had a shopping spree with my mom and spent the night at my best friends house. The next day I had a cake with candles and a birthday song and then there was a trip to New Orleans for a date weekend. I told him that makes up for him not even getting a card for valentines day lol on our trip to NO we stopped at the casino first where Rhett gave me spending money, I put in 20.00 and won 165.00!! We cashed out and left. We bar hopped a little bit and had an amazing dinner (charbroiled oysters, fried crab fingers, and fried eggplant because I wanted a bunch of appetizers) then we shopped a little more and went back to the casino because I still had 40.00 of my winnings left :) oh and at one place we were arguing over who would pay because I had "free money" and he was saying its my birthday so I couldn't pay. I yelled and told the bartender it was his birthday so he had to let me pay, he did and at that point people were looking to see who's birthday it was so I just shook my head no and mouthed "no it's not" they all laughed bc Rhett was mad I got to pay :) I WIN
Sunday we spent the morning at a friends who made an amazing brunch we all ate until we couldn't eat anymore (not to mention the mimosas) then we got onto the street cars and bar hopped New Orleans it was an amazingly beautiful weekend and could not have been any more perfect! Thank you to my hunny!

That is why I haven't even picked up my phone to post a blog in a week or more :)

Birthday!!!

Tomorrow is my birthday and I will be 28! I'm so excited to be spending the day with my baby and my hunk after he gets off of work. First we will go and enjoy my free Ihop breakfast (sign up on their site to be in their club and you actually get two free breakfast offers!) Then I will take Rylan to the free kids clinic at Home Depot where we will build a bird feeder. Next we will head over to the dollar tree to grab some Easter egg dye kits somehow I forgot to get one of those this year. Michaels is also having a free kids clinic in the afternoon so we will head over there to decorate an Easter egg. I will then drive through sonic to get my free beverage (another club deal they send you emails you get free crap throughout the year like a free beverage or tots you get the idea) I will also head over to Ulta since it is next door and get my eyebrows waxed for free since all you need is an ID on your birthday to have that service done free (I haven't been plucking for a few days now to save up for this event lol) and finally we will head over to baskin robin for a free ice cream after dinner. I printed all of my little coupons and certificates tonight (I also took care of all the house work today because I plan on being quite lazy tomorrow in the area of cleaning) I might even end my evening by taking my baby for some laser tag because we both had soooo much fun last time. He told me today that he is always going to be my best friend (which I am totally cool with) I'm excited for tomorrow it's going to be a fun day of not really doing anything while doing a whole lot all at the same time!

Organizer at heart

Today the new sheets came in that we gave both wanted (and needed) for so long. They came packaged in a thick zipper bag. I saved the bag to put sheets in that we don't use that often. There was even a nice little card that I could write on (I used their idea of what to put on the card) to remind me what I put inside. The card is inside a little plastic sleeve pocket inside so it won't fall out or stain my nice sheets :) try it! I've saved comforter bags to do the same with and it works great as a closet organizer tool and space saver, there are no more blankets falling from the top of the closet :) oh and it keeps your nice clean linens dust and moth free.

First anniversary

Yesterday we got our first "first anniversary" gift! I asked Rhett if he ordered something from Bed Bath and Beyond and he said no then I said well it's addressed to me? I was so confused and surprised it was a set of wine glasses which we so desperately need, we need all glass items actually because I am a glass murder. I have broken so many glass items around here it is ridiculous I have no excuse, some people are clumsy and walk into things or fall down a lot, I break things.. Maybe I should consider switching to plastic (joking of course) Since we got new glasses not too long ago because I broke 3 of our last set I'll probably put this one in the cabinet down below for my next back up set :) I just took out a set of glasses that Rhetts grandmother gave us as a wedding gift last year since I only had 4 of a set of 8 glasses left, they were regular sweet tea cups I break those too. It isn't limited to only cups though I break plates and bowls too I don't know what my problem is really hahahaha it could become an expensive problem though if I don't slow down hahahaha. Thank you Aunt Donna and Uncle Ronnie! They gave us our very first wedding gift also (I have a picture of it all wrapped up because I was so excited!) I'm going to go write a thank you note right now!

Nest cupcakes

Today I made little bird nest cupcakes for Rylan and his class. It took about 5-10 minutes because I wasn't concentrating on being precise I just wanted it to be cute so no one would have to ask "what is it?" lol and I accomplished that. I brought the first one to show Rhett and he said "oh thanks baby but I only want a bite" hahaha I said I was only bringing to show you so you don't get a bite. He said oh good (I guess he wasn't in a mood for sweets)

Laundry fairy

The laundry fairy just left. That is what I tell Rhett. I say, "you and Rylan have a laundry fairy, you put all of your dirty clothes in a basket and they magically appear back into your closet and drawers clean and neatly folded and put away!" I need to get one of those!! I hope she brings her friend the dishes fairy and the floor fairy would be nice to have come over too, shoot I'll provide wine and it could be a little fairy party.... I'll let you know how that turns out ;)

People

My cat thinks she is a "people" I got out of the shower to this! She goes under the covers and lays so it is partially on her!

Cheese

Yesterday my birthday gift from Rhett came in. He let me pick what I wanted and I ordered it for myself online. I wanted a new hair flat iron the best around is the "Chi" well it came yesterday and I came home from taking Rylan to the park and Rhett said "Hey you are gonna be happy because your cheese just got here!" I made him repeat it like 3-4 times because I needed to make sure it wasn't a mistake that he said that! Oh the love i have for that man. If I got 2 or more I told him then I would have chis but not cheese! Hahahaha if he didn't entertain me with such moments we would have never made it!!!

Babies

I don't remember exactly what made Rylan ask but two days ago he wanted to know if or when we could get another baby. I told him I wanted one too but we had to talk to Daddy still because he just isn't ready. Rylan then in a very sinister laugh/whisper said "well mommy we could just sneak and get one" then he giggled so much!! Sneaking and getting a baby would be pretty easy I'm sure since Rhett would never notice hahahahaha. I love being a mommy of a 4 year old!!! These are the moments I hope I never forget.

Indian day!

Today is the festival of friends and I can't wait to see my baby and his friends complete their first individual presentations! I hope it is as funny and entertaining as t-ball!!

More clothing confusion

As I stood in front of a rack of "new arrivals" at UAL which was flooded with tops bottoms and dresses I had yet another moment of confusion. I saw a very nice Ralph Lauren lace item that I picked up and held up to my chest thinking "is this a tube top?" then I lowered it to my waist and thought "no it's probably a skirt" so then I checked the tag because certainly it would tell me, right? Wrong! "M" that's all it said. Either way if I have to ask myself that it is definitely not going into the dressing room with me. So further into the store I found what I thought were linen shorts on the kids rack that would have been nice for Rylan when I saw that they were only 2.00 I checked the tag inside to verify the size and saw the word "boxers" written largely I didn't even see what size they were since I decided if I didn't know the difference between shorts and boxers we didn't need them at our house! Now that I'm sitting still in carpool line I think back to other shopping trips where I was unsure if I was holding up nightgowns or dresses... I always look around to see if anyone else notices the confusion on my face because I always figure that surely everyone else knows the difference between all of these things I've talked about. There are usually moments where I start to head toward the nearest sales associate with an item in my hand to ask "excuse me but is this a top or a bottom?" but then as soon as we make eye contact I turn my little happy butt back around and put the item away. I never want to be the girl who they laugh at for the rest of the day I know I made fun of people for asking stupid questions all the time hahaha so I just decide it doesn't matter anyway. Possibly all of my life I have had clothes issues though now that I think about it. I remember my parents would always get so irritated with me because I would pull my pants up as high as they would go causing them to be highwaters, they would try to explain to me that pants are supposed to be at your waist. I didn't care I hated for there to be fabric hanging between my legs so I wanted them pulled up where I thought they should go. I see so many pictures of myself with about 5 inches of ankle showing (I guess I was wearing capris before they were cool and that's why I feel like they fit weird, I always feel like I couldn't decide if I wanted to wear shorts or pants or it feels like they are really long shorts or really short pants either way I can't wear them now) and in most of my pictures from my child hood everything was bedazzled (I have no problems with that these days in face I pretty much want to bedazzle everything I own) and I wore what seems to be extra large t-shirts too. I'm sure my parents purchased clothes that fit me I just preferred the hiked up jeans and huge tops look I guess.....

"that" age

I realized today that I have reached "that" age where everything on the racks in retail stores just don't work for me. I often find myself shopping in the maternity section thinking how nice and flattering everything is until the pregnant woman next to me gives me dirty looks as we hold the same shirt up to our necks. How do I not notice I'm shopping in the preggo section? I have no idea but I promise it has happened far more than I'd like to admit. I usually just walk away from my buggy at that point maternity clothes in it and all.... Just walk! Then there are days like today where I'm looking in the dress racks and as I hold every other dress up to the front of me I think "surely this is not a dress look how short it is" but then I go into the thought process of well it IS in the dress section so maybe it is... EVERY OTHER DRESS folks!! Then I browse the tops only to think "how do you even wear this?" does it go alone or are you supposed to wear something under it or over it maybe then I just put it back because I really have no clue. Don't even get me started in "skinny" pants... Why do they make my feet look so huge?! Will I wear boot cut for the rest of my life?? Seems that way. I think I may just be stuck somewhere in the middle of "juniors" and "ladies" I feel like a lot of that stuff either looks too grown up for me still or too junior high and I never want to be that lady who dresses like a 16 year old even though I'm 40 bc I don't want to admit I'm not young anymore. I want to be classy yet I still want my husband to think I'm sexy (I could wear a potato sack and he would say I looked great and probably mean it too but that is besides the point) and I want to feel good when I look in the mirror but geeze I need to start a clothing line apparently....

Colon cancer is crappy

Colon cancer is "Crappy" (get it? lol) that is what I think my shirt will say when I run the 5K this year again on April 28.. Who wants in??? It's gonna be fun!!

Becoming a Native American

This week at school Rylan will have a "Petit Monde~Festival of Friends". Each student will represent a different country and culture. Rylan decided that he wanted to be a Native American. I went to Hobby Lobby yesterday and got leather strips, feathers, and a bag of scrap leather. It was only $3.00(30% off of that) for a huge bag of leather strips which made more sense than buying individual pieces for a dollar per two. Once I got home I was so glad that I did because

Capri sun

Now Walmart has a "great value" Capri sun. Rylan hasn't tested them yet so I don't know if they will stand up next to the "real" thing or not but they are under 2.00 which is a great price.

Kimcake

Kimcake is what we have named the newest favorite around our house. Our friends are also big fans of this desert. It has been the first plate that is cleaned out regardless what is made... It is so simple yet seems so fancy. It consists of homemade whipped cream (I never knew how easy it was to make by the way) and nabisco chocolate wafers. Rhetts stepmom Kim introduced me to this amazing desert and I was hooked (much like the blueberry clafutti) I defiantly say try this one I will be making it a double for Easter! You should be able to find the wafers at "fresh market" that is our "whole foods" for our area... I haven't seen them at our regular grocery stores. You use 2 cups whipping cream (the liquid not the premade stuff) and a little sugar (I use around 2 tablespoons it's not in the recipe but per Kims say-so I add it) and a bit of vanilla extract I think it called for a teaspoon. Then you use a mixer until it has the correct thickness (which is when it can hold a peak) then you put a tablespoon of the whipped cream between each cookie making two rows until all of the cookies are gone and cover it with the remaining whipped cream. The cookies are very dry and brittle but when combined with the whipped cream it becomes the amazing cake texture that is to die for. Trust me when I say you won't be sorry (I AM a closet fat kid!!!) your kids and husband/wife or friends will be glad you tried it :)

Birfday

With the anniversary of the day of my birth just around the corner I am already receiving emails and cards in the mail for freebies! Love it!! My favorite all time restaurant the melting pot sent me a certificate for a box of chocolate covered strawberries...uh yes please!!! Anyway it should be a good few weeks to come (even though my roomies have traveled back to Kansas) May should be equally as amazing as it is our one year anniversary!

Cookies

At this very moment I am hungry for something sweet and I wondered if peanut butter cookies are the equivalent of carrot cake... you know diet sweets.... I will let you know...... hehehe

So much to do so little time

I am so happy to announce that my old roomies are here staying with me! We have been to the Audubon zoo and spent all day walking around (they had a special event actually for earth day or something like that) there were bands and all kinds of fun goodies for the kiddos. They built home depot kids clinic toys and loved that and learned all about taking care of our planet while having fun. I got to act like a 16 year old again too since I had my friends here to laugh with me about things that are crazy at the zoo (they say spring is mating season...the birds and the bees if you know what I mean) so there was more than enough to laugh about! They brought their 8 kids and 3 went to see their dad in Florida for the week so we picked up a cousin and a friend with her two kids to make up the difference :)

learning to cook a brisket

I've never cooked a brisket I don't think. I got one on sale (of course) at Winn Dixie a while back and stuck it in the freezer and defrosted it yesterday so I am going to attempt to cook it tonight. It came preseasoned so that part is already done for me yay! I read online that I should cook it slow so I have my oven set at 350 and I have a roasting pan ready with an onion that I will cut into big chunks with some celery too for the bottom to make a sauce and give flavor. The brisket weighs about 2 pounds so I think I will set a timer for 30 minutes and then check it and put in back in for longer if I need to. I also read that I should put some liquid at the bottom such as wine or beef stock so I am going to mix up some beef stock from the dried stock stuff (I don't know if there is an actual name for the dehydrated stuff other than stock lol) for the bottom of the pan. It doesn't say if you are supposed to cover it or not so I am going to go with my instincts and cover it....

Not red cabbage....

OK so I don't know why I looked up red cabbage recipes and even posted that recipe and cooked it lol It was AMAZING by the way but I used purple cabbage NOT red I guess I don't know my colors lol and when I cooked it to make it soft it made blue water (I read that happens because of the alkaline in the water we drink...I think that is what it said lol) and turned the leaves blue but I read online that the red and purple cabbage are very much alike and also that you can add an acidic like lemon juice it will change it back purple I don't know if that is true or not because the fact that it was blue did not bother me I thought it was more fun that way actually. I wish I would have taken a pic of it when Rhett took it out of the oven for me because it is not very often that the first thing he says is "It looks pretty" and he was so right it looked a lot like the pic in the recipe page I would say exactly but the pic they had showed blood red cabbage and ours was a lovely purple blue... I'll try to take a pic tomorrow when I am eating left overs I did get a pic of the first rib that came out of the crock pot because we laughed before we could taste it since I could hardly get it onto the plate since it was falling off of the bone and away from the fork it was sooo tender! I said I'm sure these will be terrible because it is never good when meat is this tender Rhett maybe you shouldn't taste it for me (I always ask him to be my tester in case it is poisoned or just tastes terrible if he falls to the ground I will know not to try it) and I said I should just eat it instead lol.

rib rub

I am actually going to make the cabbage rolls for lunch today and for dinner I just put some ribs in the crock pot. I have gotten great reviews from the men in my life from this recipe for a rib rub. In the past I have cooked them slowly in the oven wrapped in aluminum foil but today I am trying the slow cooker I hope it works the same. I will cook it slow for around 6-8 hours with only the rib rub then for another 30 minutes to an hour I will cook them slowly with a homemade BBQ sauce on them I will post that recipe too. I got that one from on of my favorite recipe sites, I love it so much because you can change the serving amount and it will calculate the recipe for you so you don't have to figure out what half of the recipe is if you only need that much.

Dry rib rub recipe it calls for sage but I don't keep that in stock around here so I never use it

BBQ sauce I cut this recipe in half (16 servings) because I only need around 2 cups that is enough to have for my ribs and a little left over for Rhett to use for his dipping enjoyment.

Red cabbage

My dad gave me a head of red cabbage fresh from his garden so today I am going to try cabbage rolls made with red cabbage.... Here is a recipe I found that looks amazing. I'll try to remember to let you know how it tastes :) The recipe calls for ground beef but I am using a breakfast sausage that is maple pork sausage (it was amazing in the green cabbage rolls I made a few months back)

Red cabbage rolls

What not to do

Last week I purchased some silk shirts for the spring/summer. They are beautiful bright flowy fabric that are not only comfortable but give me the appearance of being dressed and put together. What more could you want right? So this morning with my new haircut fixed and makeup done I went to the ironing board and plugged in the iron and turned it on. I immediately started ironing since I was in a bitmof a hurry to get out of the house on time. I gave the iron a few minutes to heat up and when the wrinkles were not coming out I turned the temp up thinking that would speed up the process. Have you ever looked in a mirror when you put cotton candy on your tongue to see what happens? Well for those of you who have not, let me tell you, it seems to just melt and disappear. Today I found out that silk does the exact same thing when ironed at temperatures that are too high. I set the iron down on the shirt and it was like the fabric just disappeared.... I sucked all of the air that I could into my lungs to keep from swearing. Rhett rushed around the corner and said "baby are you ok? There is no air left in the house because you just sucked it all up, what's the matter?" I just stood there standing over the shirt with the iron in the air, I told him what happened... I could not believe I had just done that! This was a brand new shirt that has never been worn yet. The only half way good thing is that the holes are not that big since I caught my mistake so quickly and they are on the back of the shirt. I could possibly still wear this with a jacket in the winter since it would kill me to just throw it in the trash. I hung it back up and Rhett laughed at me and I then moved on to the second shirt making sure the iron was turned down low enough! I basically threw 20.00 down the drain with that move (thankfully I shop smart so it was not 50.00 like the original price tag said)....... So if you have a silk shirt I suggest making sure your iron is on low or use a dry cleaner......

Nearly 200.00 later

I am so upset today, I had an appointment to have my hair cut and colored. I got there early for my 11:15 appointment so I could look through books and choose all the right things to show. I want this look long in the front and short in the back only I want the back to look like this not like that. I want the color to be blonde like this not like bleach blonde not brown chunky and not grey looking just natural pretty blonde. We talked about it all and we brought the books to the station. They first take me back for a "treatment" to prime my hair and rinse some of the red out but it is not a stripper I was told. Ok. Then they cut some hair off as they didn't want to waste product since they knew how short I was going and they wanted to get the product in all the right important places so they don't have to put it in unnecessary places. Fine. Then they blow dry my hair, I told her before hand that it was curly and I'm not sure why no one believes me when I tell them things (it is kind of like when I go to the dentist and talk about using the strongest numbing meds because my body metabolizes them so quickly they have to use the special one well it is like I'm making it up bc they never use it until I'm crying bc I can feel everything they say you are so small we didn't think you needed it) she says while drying it as if she was surprised wow! You DO have curly hair (yeah remember we just went over that about 4 seconds ago where were you?) so they then have to flat iron my hair to apply the color evenly. They have to go to the back 4.... Count them 4! Times to mix more color.... Haven't you done this before?

Tball

Last night was the first night of T-ball for Rylan. It was so cute!! The tiny 4 year olds all running around being more interested in the grass and what the other kids were doing rather than the sport lol.

Its been a while

I feel like I have been away from my blog even on my phone because the weather has been so amazing we have been outside for as long as the sun has been out for the last 3-4 days! Yard work, car washing, and today I just ran the roads then went to the park for about two hours after school! I will elaborate later tonight on my "steals" from Michaels today!! I actually walked out of there with stuff for free! I was freaking out lol!! I can't wait to dish about it :)

End of the year party

I'm already thinking about the class end of the year party and rylans 5th birthday. I am going with a bee theme for end of the year since his class is the busy bee class. I have little mask glow stick things as party favors for his class and all of the paper products we will need so now I'm just looking for a game and a craft. For the birthday party I'm mostly gathering ideas for now. I also am putting together a gender reveal party that I'm pretty excited about! That is a lot of ideas right now too until I find out how many people will attend. I have most of the paper products though and ideas are ready to go just have to finish up and I'm looking for the perfect invited for that.

Gas?!?!

So I heard on the news this morning that gas will be going up again next week, there was a price increase this week and there will be another next week, if I were you I'd go fill up before it goes up again. Don't forget to buy your Winn Dixie shell gift card because I got .25 off a gallon today from using mine.

I win!!

I guess I entered a contest at some point for winded electronic wipes??? I won lol I don't remember that at all so it must have been a while ago, from right at home. I love free stuff in my mail box!

Great start

This morning we got off to an amazing start! Woke up a little later than usual since I got everything I needed prepared last night before bed. Took Rylan for breakfast at mcDonalds (thank you Lauren for the breakfast coupons!) we had buy one get one free pancakes and sausage. At drop off Rylan was the first kid in his class there so he was thrilled to be able to show me the new centers that have been set up in his class for march. They change every thing out each month to correspond with holidays or special activities. They are finishing up a unit on transportation so they have a giant Tupperware tub of blue water with boats in it (like bathtub toys) and he loves that!! Lots of new transportation puzzles and there is also an Australia center with maps, animals and a few other hands on things. Last continent was Asia and they had a kimono (I don't know how to spell it but one of those robe things that ladies wear) and chop sticks and animals and a map. They also have a dramatic play center that has been a post office for the last month. I love his class probably bc I'm mostly a five year old but I love that he can choose what he wants to do and that none of it is just colors or play dough, each one teaches a different skill or lesson and it changes all the time to keep them interested!

Leap day!!

That means frog cupcakes!! I hope I find a cute easy way to make faces on them before this afternoon :)

New diy decor

So I decided I liked my valentine wreath and I wanted to make something for St.patricks day too. I found this ball for 7.99 and I used a 40% off coupon so I got it for around 5.00 and the ribbon I paid .99 for since it was regularly 1.99 50% off. I used hot glue to glue the ribbon to itself since it was only glittery on one side and then I just tied it up. I think it's just enough to say I am celebrating without going overboard lol. The ribbon is also not permanent to the ball so I can change it if I want. New outdoor accessory for around 6.00. Total time to make this = under 10 minutes. Total effort= none :)

More ideas for traps

So here are the drawings I found in the book to get my trap ideas from. I thought I would share since Rylan has asked me to read him the book every night since we got it and Charles' mom keeps texting about how much she loves it :) in case you dont have cans you can use boxes and other crafty stuff! Good luck :)

Big Daddy

Last night Rylan had his first sleep over friend. His BFF came over for a play date and at about 4 or 5 they came into the kitchen and were both saying "can we please have a sleepover?" and Charles was saying "Please call my mom and ask!!" So I text Rhett and asked if he was cool with it. Before he could respond the other mom called to check on them. I told her what was going on and she was a little surprised because he hasn't ever spent the night out at any ones house except his grandparents. I told her I didn't think they would make it all night anyway, I figured as soon as it was dark outside he would be ready for me to call her. I told him he would have to stay over without his blanket and sleep buddy etc. and he was cool with it. She said she was cool with it as long as we were. Rhett was cool with it (after he voiced his concerns of

Traps are ready

Well after they colored pics and each asked me to draw rainbows and leprechauns on their paper and I glued them together with the hot glue gun and made ladders using straws and chop sticks I have successfully completed two traps lol. The kids are sooo excited

Cute idea

Can you put a quarter in there and tell rylan that when you catch one they have to pay a quarter to escape? That way he's not sad when there's not leprechaun!

That is the message that my friend corny sent me. I just told the boys that I just found that out. At this very moment they are trying to figure out how to make a trap that the leprechaun just can't escape from. One with a metal lid one says and the other one says YEAH!!

The mom of the other kid asked me if we do food color in the toilet? I said what?! She said yeah bc leprechauns pee green didn't you know? Lol!!! So green milk and toilet water is what will happen at our house :)

Blueberry clafouti

My stepmother in law made this once for fourth of July and since then I can honestly say it's my favorite desert...it ranks in my books under diet food right next to carrot cake... The veggies and fruit cancel out all the rest.

Serves 8-10
2 1/2 cups fresh blueberries (1 pint)
3 drops almond extract
1 c flour
1 c sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 c milk
1 stick butter
Vanilla ice cream

Preheat oven to 350

Sprinkle almond extract over berries and set aside

Sift dry ingredients into 2 1/2 quart souffle dish that you would like to bake the clafouti in. Add milk and mix well. Pour melted butter over the dough (I spoon in on with a ladle so it goes on to nicely) place blueberries on top. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until dough rises through the berries and the top is brown. Serve warm with ice cream!

You will not regret this desert :)
Thank you Kim for sharing this with me :)

Leprechaun

Order forms were sent home from school for parents who would like to order books. I decided on a few holiday books. The new favorite here is called The night before St. Patricks day. I didn't go all fancy and use quotation marks because I'm not sure if that is the exact name, it could be Twas the night before St. Patricks day. I don't know for sure. Anyway in the story the two kids build traps to catch a leprechaun and talk about how you find out where he keeps all the gold. I don't want to ruin the story for those of you who might want to get the book.... So I collected some essential leprechaun catching items that you will see in the pic. Tomorrow Rylan has a friend coming over for the day (he doesn't know that yet) so we will make two of everything. We will bait the little guy with pennies and shiny items... Stay tuned to find out how they look and if we catch any.....

Dinner tonight=win!!

So tonight I made the spinach and ricotta cheese filled pasta shells. It was amazing! I doubled the recipe because you can't really buy the ingredients in portions that this calls for. I also didn't see on the recipe where it said how much was a serving I just found a link to another blog that took all of the work out of it for me though... She already typed it up! Her blog says that 4 is a serving and the magazine says a serving is around 400+ calories so I'm pretty sure I had two servings tonight lol!!! It was amazing! By the way let me add to this story that I went to the grocery store today and paid for yet got home without ricotta cheese so I had to run out in the middle of cooking to buy more....ugh but that's alright I made the best of it I picked up a half of a gallon of ice cream while I was out ;) all of those calories I was saving by eating a recipe out of the fitness magazine.... Anyway here is the link and for those of you who are like me and don't know chorizo (sp?) is sausage... I looked near the cheese for a good 5-10 minutes (all I knew was that I needed 4 oz of it and it needed to be crumbled.... Sounds like meat to me... Right? WRONG! Thank goodness for google and iPhones)

http://getfitwithnikki.com/2012/02/19/spinach-and-ricotta-stuffed-shells/

This weeks menu

Inside my fitness magazine (free subscription of course) there were some recipes I decided I would try. We are going to have spinach and ricotta stuffed shells tonight. We will also have smoky black bean soup with sausage (it calls for chicken sausage but we are gonna try it with deer sausage) and penne with shrimp and feta (this one calls for olives but I don't like olives so maybe I'll separate it after it's done so Rhett can try it with the olives) I also have some cheater seasoning packs for honey mustard baked chicken and I'll likely make chicken burgers too since we discovered we love them. Wish me luck and I'll keep you up dated

Bridesmaids

Just finished a second movie on our list. Bridesmaids... So funny! Last night was contagion another good one. I am into end of the world movies sometimes lol now all week I'll think before I touch everything lol. We don't usually stay up late enough to watch movies together that are for grown ups because by the time we put Rylan to bed we are usually less than an hour behind him. It has been fun for sure. Earlier today I started to write about all the fun we have been having the last week and why I haven't written in a while but I really needed to make a grocery list... Plus where did all my energy go today I slept for an hour on the couch while I was snuggling with Rylan and he was watching toons..... I even put on the cartoons I like so I would stay awake and I think i lasted a whole ten minutes. Hopefully tomorrow I'll get some stuff done outside the house. After my little nap today I forced myself to get up and get the house clean so at least that is done. I wanted to be outside but I didn't ever seem to make it. I can't wait for summer to come or more like spring I should say bc once summer gets here I'll whine about how it's too hot... Anyway until tomorrow.... I hope I dream about my silly friends who I thought as i watched bridesmaids :)

Ellen

So I'm wondering if Tony can get me tickets to the show bc I think Ellen is ignoring me

Rain rain stay around :)

So tonight Rhett took Rylan and I out to eat a little seafood which was amazing btw (Rhett screwed up and ordered a burger at Dons :( he said it was bad, I think that is like ordering a taco at chick fil a you just dont do that) anyway on the way home I asked Rhett if he would take in my purse and I would take in Rylan, I said that with a grin. I took off Rylans shoes and socks and Rhett asked in whisper mode if I was about to play in the rain- well yeah! We both giggled because we knew Rylan was going to be excited. Well Rhett smiled and I giggled I'm not sure that grown men giggle. So when we got home I scooped up Rylan and we started to walk toward the house and he was laughing saying how his hair was going to get wet. He didn't really realize I had turned around and walked back out into the driveway and was just standing there. After we laughed about how crazy it was I put him down and asked if he was interested in jumping in a mud puddle I spotted. You already know he was! He jumped, ran through it, and we danced together in it as I taught him how to do "a little jig" as I called it but really it was more like we were just kicking water at each other from a very close distance. Rhett this whole time was standing safely near the house watching and smiling. His back is still not ready for mud puddle fun (tonight I told him he broke his back from stepping on so many cracks and Rylan immediately stepped on one then grabbed his back and said "awwwwww" as if he broke his then laughed lol) Just before we went inside he said "what if I just fall down in here" I threw my hands on my knees and started laughing before it happened because I thought it would have already happened by now so he said I'm just gonna do it watch me. There he went face first into the cold sandy muddy rain water!! Then he stood up and I asked about his backside so back in he went! It was great after he sat in the water he got up and stood for a sec and the cold got to him lol so we went in. All he could say was "man we are just so crazy mom, we are the kids and dad is the dad tonight right mom...." he said "I just can not believe we were playing in the rain and mud, but you will wash our clothes right mom?" lol that is all exactly right bud!!! When Rylan was an infant I could not wait for this age to come now that it is here I hope it lasts a long time! First times are the best (but this summer when we get our first warm rain I think it will be even better!)

Chuck E. Cheese

Last night to show Rylan how much I love him I took him to his most favorite place, Chuck E. Cheese! Rhett had school after work so he would not be home until much later in the evening so I figured why not. It is so expensive to go there. I'm sure we could have done it for cheaper but.... To eat a personal peperoni pizza and a salad bar with a bottle of water and child's drink was over 20.00.... I guess I am just in my best bird noise.....cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep. I had a coupon for 150 tokens for 25.00, we could have gotten less but I wanted to go all out for this special occasion lol. I was thinking really that we would only use maybe half of the tokens and take the rest home for our next visit. That place is like a casino, there are no windows (well they have some in the front but I don't count those) and no clocks anywhere, my phone was dead and I forgot my watch so I had no idea how long we were in there. I really am a little kid inside I wanted to play every two player game in there so I had an excuse to play all of the kids games, not that I really feel like I need one I mean before Rylan, Rhett and I had a date there because I was talking trash about how I could beat him at ski ball. Long story short, we spent all of the tokens and Rylan got a .50 slinky lol. I did convince him to save his biggest amount of tickets (400) for our next visit so he can cash in on something really big and cool. As we were leaving I was thinking that since each item has a "ticket price" and basically each ticket is worth a penny, so if he wanted something that is 1000 tickets we could basically just buy it for 10.00 so I was telling myself we could have gotten the token deal that was 15.00 for like 85 tokens played with those then I could have purchased an item that was 1000 tickets lol. It really is just fun to play with him though. I like to go and feel like the time doesn't matter and we can do whatever he wants to do, play whatever games he wants to play and be kids together.

Car problems.....agian

So I've been pretty busy in the last few days with Rylans' class party and all that fun stuff. Yesterday I went to the auto place that is by my house since the check engine light came on about a week ago. The guy plugged in the machine and he told me that the code said "cooling issue" so I explained to him that only a few weeks ago we found a line that was disconnected and so we hooked it back up. I wanted to know if he would look under the hood and just tell me if it looked right. We opened the hood and we found something that was waaaay not supposed to be there.... A rats nest.... with babies in it!!!! (They were dead of course from the heat of my car) I wanted to cry and throw up all at the same time and I was certainly screaming in my head. The guy had a stick he was poking the nest with so that he could knock it out of my car and I made him stop for a second because I told him that if a momma rat comes out of there and is pissed off I was going to lose my mind!!! I told him he might see a crazy person if a rat jumped out at us. Anyway there was no momma rat and that was not the first time that I have been told that there are nests in there. The last time I had problems the guy at the Volkswagen dealership told me that something had made a home in there. I got rat poison yesterday and will be putting it out today! I also decided to change my parking spot for a while....... UGH this car hates me and I hate it too, it probably sent out an invitation to those rats........

Lunch

I was just so excited to have a friend call me who I haven't seen in a while. She was in Covington and wanted to have lunch. I love those kind of dates. Remember to call friends and family when you are near them :) It was nice to catch up but I feel like we could've talked for another day or two lol.

Chocolate covered strawberries and pretzels

Today I am making chocolate covered pretzels and strawberries for the moms and kids and teachers who attend the valentines party at school tomorrow! The strawberries are around 2.00 a pint I got two. I decided to get the sticks bc I have cute long bags that came from the dollar tree that will be perfect for them. First you have to wash and dry the strawberries very well. I split mine up into two groups bc I am making some with reg. Chocolate and some with white (since that is what I like) you pour the little chips into a bowl and melt them it only takes about 1.5 minutes then get to dipping! I lined a cookie sheet with parchment paper so when they cool they will come off easily. I hope they are delicious!!!

Valentine wreath

I don't think I posted this last week but I sure meant to... I saw a wreath on pintrest that I liked so I went to hobby lobby and got the stuff to make it. The wreath was 4.99 and I used a coupon for 40% off and the heart was under a dollar. I have a hot glue gun already but if you dont you can buy them for around 7.00 (without a coupon) at hobby lobby.

I'm a slacker

So for the last 3 days I've had amazing ideas (thx pintrest) for my 14 days of valentines.... I decided to keep the idea from the site I saw but make mine a little different, tomorrow I hope to catch up (I owe 4 bc I've only done 6 lol) I'll let you in on them in the morning I hope :) goodnight

Mardi Gras!

We just left an old folks home with Rylans' school. The kids all dressed up and they had wagons with beads and music and cute stuff to give out to the old people... it was pretty cute! They ended the "parade" with king cake :)

Pillow talk

So each night Rylan asks me to rub his back. I used to scratch or rub it each night after story and prayer time but now he wants to lay in bed and talk and giggle more than get his back rubbed until he goes to sleep. Either way I am good with it hehehe :) we giggle about whatever is happening in that moment, sounds we hear or sometimes we make up crazy stories and laugh about how silly they are, sometimes we giggle about what we want each other to dream about. Tonight we giggled for a while about the whipped cream we put on our strawberries (we have shared a pint of strawberries every night for at least a week now) then I decided I would try some of my late night silly questions on him that I usually save for Rhett. Rhett now just thinks I'm crazy lol he used to think they were funny and cute now they are weird lol..... Anyway I have found someone who likes them... Rylan!!!! So the first question was, if you could be any animal what would you be? Without a pause or even a second to think about it (as if he has been waiting forever for me to ask this exact question) he said, I would be a cheetah-lion (he said it like it was all one word, like there is such an animal) I said oh ok then he only a breath later changed his mind, he said no I want to be an alligator-snapping-turtle with spikes on my back. Then we talked about what his body would look like, big alligator head and body but with a hard turtle shell with spikes of course. Then he wanted to know what I would be, I already knew I want to be a Jesus lizard I told him (I don't know what they are really called but the ones that walk on the water really fast) I tried to explain it to him but I bet he thought I was making it up like his cheetah-lion. Then I said but I would have pink skin and he said oh yeah mine would be purple. Then I said well if you could have any job in the world what would you be? He said he would be a bat hunter!!! Lol OH REALLY NOW?! I imagined him in one of those safari hats and outfits being all sneaky outside of a cave in his little 4 year old body holding a bat slaying device of some sorts. Next Rylan said "what kind of job would you have in the world mom" I said oh well I guess I want to take care of baby animals... He started giggling uncontrollably and I didn't know why but I was laughing too then he said "you are gonna be a babysitter mom" lol!!! I said yeah I guess I want to do that I told him how I want to give bottles to baby monkeys and cute stuff like that and he said "yeah and you are gonna change poop diapers too!!" lol we were both laughing so loud but I said yeah I guess that is part of it. I think he can smell the 5 year old inside of me ;) I'll go to bed a little happier inside tonight. I love being a mom.