In Love With Peanut Butter All Over Again

About a year and a half ago Isabel showed signs of a peanut allergy, twice. Then later it was confirmed in a blood test for allergies. Her reactions were always minor so I had hoped that in time she would out-grow the allergy. I was told by the doctor that it was a possibility, and I've been holding onto that hope ever since.

A few weeks ago I got my wish.

We were at the park with friends and I always pack a simple lunch of pbj's for Caleb and I as well as an alternative sandwich for Isabel. When I wasn't looking, Isabel had climbed up to the picnic table, got into the bog-o-lunch and ate half of my pbj! At first I was alarmed, but since I had a one-dose thingy of Benedryl in the truck I decided to wait it out and see if Isabel had a reaction. I watched her for about 20 minutes as she ran around and played, and nothing developed.

The next day I decided to try it again, this time in a controlled environment (at home with Benedryl at the ready). By Ryan's request, I made her a smaller sandwich than what she had had the day before. Again, nothing ever occurred.

Do you know what this means??? It means that I can now add the most basic of kid staples into her diet! A peanut butter sandwich!!

Who knew such a little thing could bring such joy at a pbj?

Thank you Lord for the unnecessary, but totally appreciated, blessing of the dissappearance of the allergy!!!

Incentives

The kids have really been getting into helping out around the house, which is great but they so totally have an ulterior motive for doing so.

Money.

I must admit that it is a nice incentive and I don't mind giving them a couple quarters to unload the dishes. Not one bit.

However, when one kid is playing around as the other is doing the unloading, then things can get,well, messy. This is what happened the other day and a bowl got broken. You see, it was being used as a shield (or so the story goes).

Mommy bought those dishes when she was engaged to Daddy (and got a great deal by the way). She bought two sets so she would have a complete set of service for eight. Well, that was like 12 years ago, and with the passage of time also comes breakage and loss of said service for eight. Mommy is now down to service for a handful of adults and a few kids (but hopes they don't mind sharing the one cup that matches the leftover service for 4.5 adults and 3.6 kids).

Now that there are only 4 bowls left, what is Mommy to do? Really, now. Mommy lives in a home of five people. What is she to do when she makes stew or soup and needs 5 bowls but only has 4? I'll tell you what Mommy does......she heads on over to Ross and gets two sets of dishes for a steal at a total of thirty bucks!

Ha! How's that for resourcefulness?

But kiddos, please stop horsin' around when doing your chores. I'll give you more money if you do!*

*This blog, and it's author, does not approve of bribery as a means to motivate good behavior.

Working On My Work-Out

I've been going to the gym on a sort-of semi regular basis (if a on-and-off schedule can be considered 'regular'). When I go, I tend to do a few reps on a weight machine (look at me using gym lingo like 'reps' in a sentence properly!) then I head to the stationary bikes with a book and cycle around for 20 minutes or so. But recently I've ventured over to the treadmill instead. Often I would have liked to have a friend join me in my work-out adventures (or misadventures). I think I would go more often if I had someone holding me accountable and expecting me to be there.

I may have gotten my wish yesterday. When I had the ladies from my bible study over I discovered that one of them goes to the same gym. Who knew! AND she offered to go to a class with me. She even went as far as to let me decide which one.

I wonder if there are any classes like this....

Post-Party Blues

Summer is coming and today I am really feeling it. And not so much in a good way either. Today I hosted a little gathering at my house for the ladies in my bible study group. Last week was the last session of the season as we break for the summer. And in attempts to stretch out meeting with the wonderful ladies in my group I came up with the idea to have one last social gathering before we called it quits for the summer. Now I really have to face the fact that it's over. It's really really over! No more weekly bible study lessons and discussing the things we learned or encouraging each other. No more. None.

Now I'm just a little bit sad.

However, I must admit that one new friend (from the bible study group) and I plan to meet each week. The idea is to do some informal bible study so that we can stay in a routine of being in The Word as well as praying for each other and encourage and challenge each other as needed.

So I suppose I can't be too sad, now can I?

Dance.....Dance.....Dance

Ryan and I have a favorite TV show, it's So You Think You Can Dance. This show was a huge reason why we caved and got cable late last year (we missed it last year because we don't get Fox without cable). So you may imagine our anticipation and excitement now that the show has begun its latest season! Thursday night was the big kick off and we were not disappointed. At all!

The episode that aired this past week had everything we were longing for. You know.....the good, the bad and the embarrassingly terrible. We love the great dancers as well as the ones that think they are. Ryan and I are not experts in dancing by any means, but for some reason we just enjoy watching the show. However, even though we can't dance, that doesn't mean that we don't try a few moves that we see on the show! (no injuries to report. yet.) They really should post the disclaimer 'do not try this at home'.

Here is a clip of my favorite dancer of the night. I was blown away by his ability and the craziness of his style. It is people like him that make this show worth tuning in to.



I loved loved loved this guys performance! I look forward to seeing how he does in other dance genres. He's totally got street dancing (or whatever it's called!) down, but it will be interesting to see if he is able to do other things. He's one I'll be keeping track of when the show moves past the auditions.

Yep, I Did It Again

I couldn't help myself. I just couldn't. I had to change my template, again. The main reason being because my navigation bar (at the top) was missing with the previous template and it just bugged me to not have its convenience when writing a new post or tweaking things in the sidebar. SoOoOoOoOo, I went looking for yet another template. And it had to be free ('cause I'm just cheap like that).

When searching, I went here and found lots and lots of templates that were just amazing. When I saw the first one, I knew that I'd find one I liked. And I did. This one! Isn't it pretty??! I love the texture of the background. I think that is what sold me on the templates. That, and this one had just the right touch of red to set it off, but you already knew that I'm a sucker for red!

So if you're in the market to freshen up your blog template, go check out Leelou Blogs! But don't forget to come back and tell me so I can see your new look!

That's My Boy!

Lately Caleb has been, well, a little punk. He is 5 and a half and does things that make me wonder where my sweet little baby boy went. I suppose it's no big deal, he's just being a boy. But that doesn't make me feel any better about the passage of time that is making my little boy into a bigger boy and one day a man (gasp!).

Caleb likes to watch superheros and no longer likes Bob the Builder. He'd rather play with his transformers than with Thomas the Train. And he'd much rather wipe off my kisses and throw them away than give me one of his own.

But then there are times that I see a glimpse of the sweetness that is still inside.

The other day I leaned over and gave him a little kiss, and with a sweet smile he looked at me and said I'm gonna keep that one.

He may be a punk, but he's my sweet little punk!

Busy Birthday Weekend

Mae had her 7th birthday on Sunday. Yes, my first baby is S-E-V-E-N!!!! Unbelievable! To kick off the celebrating, Mae had a friend stay the night on Friday night. Her friend Daisy came over late that afternoon, just in time to join us at the pool (actually, I was hoping that would help tire them out so they'd sleep good that night. nice try mama!). After swimming, we all walked down the street for pizza then it was back home for a movie night (that nights feature was Alvin and The Chipmunks - Mae's choice of course). I stayed up late making homemade cinnamon rolls for the morning. Both girls were out by 11:00. Not bad. However I began to hear them by 5:30 the next morning.

The cinnamon rolls were eaten and enjoyed Saturday morning. Then it was time to pretty up some girly hair! One can not get a pedicure without being presentable, right? I busted out the curling iron and went to work. Mae has sOoOoOoOoOoOo much hair for one that young! I think it took me a good half hour to do the job. Daisy, on the other hand, she has thin hair so it only took me, like, 10 minutes. After that it was off to the pedicure place! This was Mae's first time and I think she enjoyed it. Of course this now means that she will want to accompany me every time I get a pedicure. Good thing it is only something I do on occasion.

pretty girl with pretty (thick!) hair

sittin' in the easy chair!

Pretty toes, complete!

The rest of Saturday was spent recouping from the night (and morning) before. Although I did not get a nap. Mae was able to enjoy opening a gift or two that came in the mail that day, so it wasn't a total loss of an afternoon. *big grin*

Sunday was the day! Mae was very excited about being 7. But I kept telling her that she wouldn't be 7 until 1:44 that afternoon (the time of day she was born). She's a smart girl, that one. She didn't want to believe me that she would have to wait until that time, and I didn't think she really would, until she got super-excited once 1:44 had come and past! Whoops, I'll try not to do that next year.

After church it was up to Mae if she wanted to go to the beach or to the community pool. She opted for the pool. Good choice considering it was a mighty hot day. So we enjoyed the coolness of the pool for a couple hours then came home to rest. After dinner she opened a couple more presents then blew out the candles on her cake.

blowing out the candles on birthday cake #7
-don't look at the cake too closely, Ace of Cakes I am not!-

Mae says it was her best birthday yet, but can't wait to turn 8!

I can. I can totally wait. I'm not sure if I'm completely rested up from the weekends sleepover let alone think of next years birthday events!

**maybe next year I'll be on my game and do a birth story post. Too late now, sorry!

Oh Yeah, That's Why!

Last week, while at Costco, I picked up a box of Honey Nut Cheerios. Now it had been quite a while since I had bought that kind of cereal. Why, I couldn't remember. It didn't take long for it to all come rushing back to me....

1. I don't like to eat Honey Nut Cheerios. I've reached my intake limit. For life. Seriously, I could live out the rest of my life never again partaking another bowl of the stuff. I'm done I tell ya. Done!

2. The cheerios get all over the floor and they either stick to my feet or get crunched when stepped on.

3. Because they are on the floor, ants like to make trails all over the house in efforts to take them back to their home. I'm not fond of finding little snaking black lines of ants anywhere, let alone in my house.Costco will you please give us some more options in the cereal department? I would like a little more variety. Thank you!

It's a Love-Hate Thing

For my birthday my mother sent me a recipe book that I had asked for. I can't believe I wanted it. I don't like cooking and try to avoid it whenever possible. But this cookbook planned out meals for a whole year, sort of. It has four meals a week for 12 months, one of which is most always a crock pot recipe. The clincher, for me, was the shopping list that it comes with. What can be easier than have meals planned out AND a shopping list to go with it??! So I said I wanted it and my mother obliged me (thank you Mom!).

I must admit that I love this recipe book and have often told family and friends about it. The recipes are easy and most of time quick to prepare. I've only come across a few that I've refused to make, because I knew that Ryan would not like it (he doesn't care for meatloaf so why bother making it and seek his approval?!). Then there have been a couple that I've made and then crossed off the list so as to never make again. But so far the book is loaded with great NEW recipes that my family really likes.

The other night I came across a recipe for a roast and then was surprised to find that the next day called for the use of the leftovers! The past two nights we enjoyed both of the new-to-us meals, and I thought I'd share them with you (for those who crave good, easy, and quick meals)

Roast

2 lbs roast
1 onion
3 bay leaves
salt and pepper
1 cup water

Place ingredients in a crock pot and bake on low for 6-8 hours (or for me, I put it all in at 2:00 then cooked on high for 4 hours). You can add potatoes and carrots half way though.

Barbecue Beef

2 cups ketchup (Mae used to call it chup-chup! hahaha)
2 cups water
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp dry mustard (prepared mustard can be used)
4 tsp chili powder
6 Tbsp brown sugar
2-3 cups cooked roast, cut in small pieces

Mix all ingredients together in a pot, cover loosely and cook until sauce thickens. You can also add sugar until sweetened to your taste. Then add your cut up roast beef.

Super-limited Knowledge

I had a conversation with my son who is lately obsessed with superheros. It started when he informed me who Spiderman is. He told me it's really Peter Parker. Then we began questioning each other on superhero identities. Here is our conversation;

Me: Do you know who Batman is?

Caleb: No.

Me: Bruce Wayne. Do you know who Superman is?

Caleb: No.

Me: Clark Kent. Do you know who Iron Man is?

Caleb: No.

Me: Tony Stark.

Caleb: (getting a little tired of my asking the questions) Do you know who Wonderwoman is?

Me: Yeah. Linda Carter!

It's Park Day!!!

Today is Thursday!

The kids are up, dressed and fed.
I've showered and made myself pretty (as much as is possible for me).
I've made lunches and I'm all packed and ready to go!
Go where? To the park of course!

Goodbye, I'm going out to play......

To Buy or Not to Buy, That is the Question

A couple weekends ago I sold some things in a garage sale, then last week I sold a few more on Craigslist. Now I have a nice little growing sum of money. I have an idea of what I would like to spend my little wad of moolah on. It's this!


Doesn't' that look like fun? I know my kids would love it, not to mention myself! Just think, I could use it as a part of my exercise regimen. Ok, so I don't currently have a 'regimen', but I could if I had a trampoline!

I mentioned my brilliant idea (the trampoline, not the regimen) to Ryan the other night and I was surprised to not get his approval. He has valid concerns that I completely agree with. Like what insane, unwise things that our crazy son would try while on the trampoline. Not to mention the accidents that could occur during even the non-insane moments.

*sigh* What's a girl to do? What are your thoughts? Do you think it's safe? Would we be courting certain disaster if we bought one?

We have not decided against it, yet. We're still in the 'thinking about it' phase. But if we don't get one, I wonder what else I may get instead. Any ideas??

For now I will continue to sell my crap stuff on Craigslist and add to my little stash-0-cash!

April Movie Review

We didn't see many movies this past month. In fact, as you can see, we only saw 3! That's just crazy compared to the 9 we watched the month before. Oh well.

This is what we did watch:

1. Howards End - This movie wasn't exactly what I thought it was going to be. I thought I remembered hearing someone say something not good about it back when it was released. Maybe they said it was boring? Well, whatever it was that I heard turned out to be wrong (in my opinion). I enjoyed the movie. I like a little mystery with good character development. Anthony Hopkins is an actor I enjoy, and he did not disappoint.

2. Dan in Real Life - I must admit that I was apprehensive about seeing this. Steve Carell is one of those actors that makes me nervous. By that I mean that he is funny and can be enjoyable to watch but I never know if he is going to be offensive or not. But Ryan had seen this movie on one of his long flights and since he enjoyed it then I wanted to see it too! And I really like it. Although, Ryan skipped over one scene (some family conversation in the laundry room). I was curious as to what I missed, but I never asked Ryan what it was. What's the point in skipping a scene that was offensive in some way if I ask about it later? So I left it alone. Anyway, the movie was good and I would recommend it!

3. End of the Spear - This was about the missionaries that went to the Amazon to tell the Waodani indians about Christ and were then murdered by them. Actually, it was more about the son (Steve Saint) of one of the missionaries as well as the leader of the tribe who killed the boys father. It was an amazing movie! I love the story of forgiveness and seeing it play out and how this humanly tragic event was used by God to draw this people group to him. I was also struck by God's love. John 3:16 says 'For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.' God so loved these murderous, evil people that he made a very distinct point to make sure they heard about Him and to have the opportunity to be forgiven and enter into a relationship with him, to spend eternity with him. I am awe struck. God is so amazing and unpredictable in his ways. I'm out of words of expression. What more can I say? God is great! See this movie!

Substitution

I was signed up to bring the treats for our home group (bible study) last night. Since I only had one child yesterday (for a bit anyway), I made my way to the store and got what I needed to make a yummy fruit dip as well as some grapes and delish strawberries to go with it. I already had a box of brownie mix at home, so that's all I needed at the store. However, when I went to mix up the brownies I discovered that I did not have any vegetable oil.

Hmmm, whatever shall I do?? Typically when in silly cooking situations like this I call my mother. But she's out of town! I did the next best thing. I called my sister in law. My brother is always raving about what an awesome cook Carrie is, so it only makes sense to call her. So, call her I did.

Carrie suggested substituting the vegetable oil for olive oil. Hmm. Really? It won't taste weird? What does the oil do for the brownies anyway?

I didn't have many other options (none to be exact) so I used the olive oil, albeit a little less than what was called for (I was still apprehensive). The brownies turned out just fine and I couldn't detect anything strange about them, and people ate them. I ate them too, and seeing how I ate 'more than I should' I suppose that the olive oil passed the test.

So, here's my question: what does oil do in these recipes? Are there other things that could be used for substitution? Butter maybe? I know that applesauce could be used (Carrie told me that too, but I was fresh out) but again, what does that do in for the recipe?

I'm a cooking idiot, can you tell?

**Thank you Carrie for your advice!!!

Stinkin' Pink Eye!

Today is the day that I've looked forward to all week. Remember last week?, the new friends, the park, the happy kids?? Poor Isabel has unknowingly thwarted our happy park plans. She came down with pink eye yesterday. You know what I'm thinking......PHOOEY! That's right. I said phooey, and I mean phooey! Phooey.

Phooey on pink eye. Phooey on no park. And phooey on no fun times with new friends. Just plain ol' stinkin' phooey.

That's all I have to say 'bout that.

**but one of my new friends has offered to take Caleb to the park with them! At least one member of this family can enjoy the park and friends. For that I am thankful. Today isn't such a loss after all!

So Much For the Opposable Thumb

Mae has lost another tooth, but this time she lost it in a very unconventional way.....

This tooth of Mae's has been wiggling it's way out for about six months now, and by the latter part of last week it was getting to the 'ewe, would you just pull that thing' phase as it was hanging quite precariously in its half-twisted way. Up to this point, Mae has pulled her own teeth (thank you very much. seriously, thank you Mae!) but this time she asked her dad if he would tie a string to it and close the door. I must mention that this method was tried on her first tooth but it never worked, so both Ryan and I didn't think it would actually happen, but she asked again anyway and Ryan obliged her.

Ryan pulled out the dental floss (about two yards of it, that should be sufficient, yes?) and tried to tie it around the loose tooth. After several attempts, Ryan finally was able to get the floss secured to the tooth. And he did a good job too! In fact, he did such a good job that when Mae decided she didn't want to go that route, the floss would not come off!

I came into the room at this point, with the video camera, only to find Mae freaking out and crying because the floss was tied tight and there was no removing it with the tooth intact. I gently looked at it and decided I would cut the floss as close to the knot as possible. However, I had no sooner turned my back on my crying child to get the scissors, then I heard laughing.

Laughing? But she was in the pit of despair, like two seconds ago!

When I had turned my back, Mae was on her way down the pit and was leaning/falling backwards in her despair, when the loose end of the floss got caught on her foot. When there was no more slack left in the floss the tooth came out! And presto change-o Mae went from misery to a gleefully happy girl!

So much for the tie-the-string-close-the-door trick! Maybe next time.

What Goes Around Comes Around

When I was growing up I often heard my dad jokingly say to me 'You can't date until you're married'. I'd either give him a little laugh, or if I was in my teen years, my typical reply would have been a roll of my eyes (sorry Dad!). Now that I have kids of my own, it's my turn to pass along the age-old phrase.

The other night Mae was telling us about a boy in her class who had invited her to his birthday party.

Mae: Matthew has been acting weird lately like sitting by me and stuff, like he likes me.

Me: (not wanting her to get freaked out -or myself- and not wanting to make a big deal of it, I said) Well, you can't date until you're married.

Mae: (with a deep sigh) I know, I know.

Oh good! Disaster averted......but did I detect an eye roll there?!

Housecleaning Hurts!

Seriously. I have a blister on my hand to prove it! How can this happen? I only vacuumed the entire house (taking me approximately 45 minutes). That shouldn't result in a blister, should it??!

But on the bright side, I found my missing pair of earrings!

Score: Housecleaning-1, Me-1

I Love Thursdays!!!

All week I've been looking forward to today. No, it's not because Lost returns tonight (although that does carry it's fair share of anticipation)! Today is when my kids and I get to gather at a park with new friends!

A week or so ago, a small group of moms from Caleb’s preschool class decided to get together every Thursday at a park. We get there shortly before lunch and stay until almost nap time or when we need to be home for our school age children to return. I love it! We are all in a similar stage of life with kids the same ages and genders. It’s great to finally have some friends that I can connect with. Who knew that these lovely ladies were in my ‘garden’ all this time? God is so good to bless me with these new friendships!

Actually, I should also be thanking God for my son. Caleb is the outgoing, happy guy in his class and everyone seems to be his friend. I wish I was as outgoing as he is! Maybe I would have made friends sooner? But the Lord is sovereign and is providing me with friendships in His own time…..and thankfully that time has come!!!

So with that I say Hallelujah, it’s Thursday!!!!