Oh My Heck is all that I can say! What a month of happenings and not the great kind. After complaining to my mother about one of our most recent issues she said, "We'll, you know it usually comes in three's."
Hmm, I laugh to myself and think, "Oh number three was an easy fix and that happened two weeks ago... I'm going on number fifteen.
What is the purpose of life?
To find the humor in all things.
I've laughed so hard lately my stomach hurts. Do you think you can lose inches laughing? I sure hope so!
Friday, April 4, 2008
Monday, March 31, 2008
Banana Bread
Last night I was craving banana bread without nuts.... because that's the best way to eat it. I have the BEST banana bread recipe from Martha Stewart and thought I would share this really yummy recipe. It really is that good!
Banana Bread
Makes 1 Loaf
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for pan
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup mashed very ripe bananas
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
opt. 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (for those of you that like to put nuts in your banana bread)
1. Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 9-by-5-by-3 inch loaf pan. Cream butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle until pale and fluffy. Mix in eggs.
2. Whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt in a separate medium bowl. Add to butter mixture; mix until just combined. Add bananas, sour cream, and vanilla; mix until combined. Stir in nuts (if you like nuts). Pour batter into pan.
3. Bake for about 1 hour and 5 minutes or until center comes out clean when you test with a toothpick or fork. Let cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; invert. Let cool completely.
This tastes really good fresh out of the oven with butter on it OR even better toasted in the morning for breakfast!
Banana Bread
Makes 1 Loaf
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for pan
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup mashed very ripe bananas
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
opt. 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (for those of you that like to put nuts in your banana bread)
1. Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 9-by-5-by-3 inch loaf pan. Cream butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle until pale and fluffy. Mix in eggs.
2. Whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt in a separate medium bowl. Add to butter mixture; mix until just combined. Add bananas, sour cream, and vanilla; mix until combined. Stir in nuts (if you like nuts). Pour batter into pan.
3. Bake for about 1 hour and 5 minutes or until center comes out clean when you test with a toothpick or fork. Let cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; invert. Let cool completely.
This tastes really good fresh out of the oven with butter on it OR even better toasted in the morning for breakfast!
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
My Top Three
If there was such a thing as an American Idol Junkie, I would be it. After watching AI for a few weeks now, I have finally narrowed it down to who I REALLY like. David Cook... I like his style and the way he makes every song unique and really his own.
Brooke White....ok, I have to admit when I first saw her I liked her because she was cute, quirky & LDS, but as the weeks have gone on, I realize how truly talented she is. And how cute was that the other night when she started crying after she performed? I just think she is so sweet and I like her more and more each week.
And yes, I'm on the David Archuleta bandwagon, but it's really hard not to be. This kid is so good....even last night when he kept forgetting the words, his voice never faltered. There is just something about his tone quality that I am completely drawn to. It's so simple and pure... I just love it!
So those are my picks! Who do you like?
Brooke White....ok, I have to admit when I first saw her I liked her because she was cute, quirky & LDS, but as the weeks have gone on, I realize how truly talented she is. And how cute was that the other night when she started crying after she performed? I just think she is so sweet and I like her more and more each week.
And yes, I'm on the David Archuleta bandwagon, but it's really hard not to be. This kid is so good....even last night when he kept forgetting the words, his voice never faltered. There is just something about his tone quality that I am completely drawn to. It's so simple and pure... I just love it!
So those are my picks! Who do you like?
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Happy Birthday Caleb!
Caleb turned four today. What an amazing blessing he has been in our lives. We celebrated by having breakfast at the airport and having a few family birthday parties over the weekend. We love you sweet Caleb Bub. Here's looking back at four fantastic years!
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Have You Heard This One?
A 3-year-old tells all from his mother's restroom stall
By Shannon Popkin
My little guy, Cade, is quite a talker. He loves to communicate and does it quite well. He talks to people constantly, whether we're in the library, the grocery store or at a drive-thru window.
People often comment on how clearly he speaks for a just-turned- 3-year-old. And you never have to ask him to turn up the volume. It's always fully cranked. There've been several embarrassing times that I've wished the meaning of his words would have been masked by a not-so-audible voice, but never have I wished this more than last week at Cosco.
Halfway, through our shopping trip, nature called, so I took Cade with me into the restroom. If you'd been one of the ladies in the restroom that evening, this is what you would have heard coming from the second to the last stall:
"Mommy, are you gonna go potty? Oh! Why are you putting toiwet paper on the potty, Mommy? Oh! You gonna sit down on da toiwet paper now? Mommy, what are you doing? Mommy, are you gonna go stinkies on the potty?"
At this point I started mentally counting how many women had been in the bathroom when I walked in. Several stalls were full . 4? 5? Maybe we could wait until they all left before I had to make my debut out of this stall and reveal my identity.
Cade continued, "Mommy, you ARE going stinkies aren't you? Oh, dats a good girl, Mommy! Are you gonna get some candy for going stinkies on the potty?
Let me see doze stinkies, Mommy! Oh .. Mommy! I'm trying to see in dere. Oh! I see dem. Dat is a very good girl, Mommy. You are gonna get some candy!"
I heard a few faint chuckles coming from the stalls on either side of me. Where is a screaming newborn when you need her? Good grief. This was really getting embarrassing. I was definitely waiting a long time before exiting.
Trying to divert him, I said, "Why don't you look in Mommy's purse and see if you can find some candy. We'll both have some!"
"No, I'm trying to see doze more stinkies. Oh! Mommy!" He started to gag at this point. "Uh oh, Mommy. I fink I'm gonna frow up. Mommy, doze stinkies are making me frow up!! Dat is so gross!!" As the gags became louder, so did the chuckles outside my stall. I quickly flushed the toilet in hopes of changing the subject. I began to reason with myself: OK. There are four other toilets. If I count four flushes, I can be reasonably assured that those who overheard this embarrassing monologue will be long gone.
"Mommy! Would you get off the potty, now? I want you to be done going stinkies! Get up! Get up!" He grunted as he tried to pull me off. Now I could hear full-blown laughter. I bent down to count the feet outside my door.
"Oh, are you wooking under dere, Mommy? You wooking under da door? What were you wooking at, Mommy? You wooking at the wady's feet?" More laughter.
I stood inside the locked door and tried to assess the situation.
"Mommy, it's time to wash our hands, now. We have to go out now, Mommy." He started pounding on the door. "Mommy, don't you want to wash your hands? I want to go out!!"
I saw that my "wait 'em out" plan was unraveling. As I sheepishly opened the door, and found an open sink, I thought, Where's the fine print on the 'motherhood contract' where I signed away every bit of my privacy?
But as my little boy gave me a big, cheeky grin while he rubbed bubbly soap between his chubby little hands, I thought, I'd sign it all away again, just to be known as Mommy to this little fellow.
(Shannon Popkin is a freelance writer and mother of three. She lives with her family in Grand Rapids, MI, where she no longer uses public restrooms )
By Shannon Popkin
My little guy, Cade, is quite a talker. He loves to communicate and does it quite well. He talks to people constantly, whether we're in the library, the grocery store or at a drive-thru window.
People often comment on how clearly he speaks for a just-turned- 3-year-old. And you never have to ask him to turn up the volume. It's always fully cranked. There've been several embarrassing times that I've wished the meaning of his words would have been masked by a not-so-audible voice, but never have I wished this more than last week at Cosco.
Halfway, through our shopping trip, nature called, so I took Cade with me into the restroom. If you'd been one of the ladies in the restroom that evening, this is what you would have heard coming from the second to the last stall:
"Mommy, are you gonna go potty? Oh! Why are you putting toiwet paper on the potty, Mommy? Oh! You gonna sit down on da toiwet paper now? Mommy, what are you doing? Mommy, are you gonna go stinkies on the potty?"
At this point I started mentally counting how many women had been in the bathroom when I walked in. Several stalls were full . 4? 5? Maybe we could wait until they all left before I had to make my debut out of this stall and reveal my identity.
Cade continued, "Mommy, you ARE going stinkies aren't you? Oh, dats a good girl, Mommy! Are you gonna get some candy for going stinkies on the potty?
Let me see doze stinkies, Mommy! Oh .. Mommy! I'm trying to see in dere. Oh! I see dem. Dat is a very good girl, Mommy. You are gonna get some candy!"
I heard a few faint chuckles coming from the stalls on either side of me. Where is a screaming newborn when you need her? Good grief. This was really getting embarrassing. I was definitely waiting a long time before exiting.
Trying to divert him, I said, "Why don't you look in Mommy's purse and see if you can find some candy. We'll both have some!"
"No, I'm trying to see doze more stinkies. Oh! Mommy!" He started to gag at this point. "Uh oh, Mommy. I fink I'm gonna frow up. Mommy, doze stinkies are making me frow up!! Dat is so gross!!" As the gags became louder, so did the chuckles outside my stall. I quickly flushed the toilet in hopes of changing the subject. I began to reason with myself: OK. There are four other toilets. If I count four flushes, I can be reasonably assured that those who overheard this embarrassing monologue will be long gone.
"Mommy! Would you get off the potty, now? I want you to be done going stinkies! Get up! Get up!" He grunted as he tried to pull me off. Now I could hear full-blown laughter. I bent down to count the feet outside my door.
"Oh, are you wooking under dere, Mommy? You wooking under da door? What were you wooking at, Mommy? You wooking at the wady's feet?" More laughter.
I stood inside the locked door and tried to assess the situation.
"Mommy, it's time to wash our hands, now. We have to go out now, Mommy." He started pounding on the door. "Mommy, don't you want to wash your hands? I want to go out!!"
I saw that my "wait 'em out" plan was unraveling. As I sheepishly opened the door, and found an open sink, I thought, Where's the fine print on the 'motherhood contract' where I signed away every bit of my privacy?
But as my little boy gave me a big, cheeky grin while he rubbed bubbly soap between his chubby little hands, I thought, I'd sign it all away again, just to be known as Mommy to this little fellow.
(Shannon Popkin is a freelance writer and mother of three. She lives with her family in Grand Rapids, MI, where she no longer uses public restrooms )
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Count Your Many Blessings
There are so many things in life that we both take for granted and depend on. Our 5 year old fridge/freezer broke down on us yesterday, only we didn't realize it until 3pm today when we went into the freezer and everything was mushy or half thawed. And of course this would happen to us over a weekend. I frantically looked through the yellow pages and found a company that was able to squeeze us in around 8:30 tonight. Most of the stuff in my freezer was purged. But I did put two roasts in the crock pot, and another half thawed roast and hamburger in my fridge. We are going to be eating roast and hamburger meals for the next few days...... It isn't until things go wrong that you start to really appreciate some of the conveniences of life.
What are some things that you depend on and don't really value until they are missing or broken?
Here's my list:
1. My car
2. My Fridge
3. My Children's Health
What are some things that you depend on and don't really value until they are missing or broken?
Here's my list:
1. My car
2. My Fridge
3. My Children's Health
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
P is for Park
We have had record sunny days for the month of February. Which if you're from the NW, you can appreciate just how great it is to have all this nice weather. We have been to the park several days in a row and all this fresh air and sunshine is lifting my spirits!
Oh, plus my house is spotless- I have spring cleaned from top to bottom so spending time outside and not in our house helps to keep my house cleaner that much longer.
(And no, my house is not normally totally spotless, we just happen to be trying to sell our house.)
Oh, plus my house is spotless- I have spring cleaned from top to bottom so spending time outside and not in our house helps to keep my house cleaner that much longer.
(And no, my house is not normally totally spotless, we just happen to be trying to sell our house.)
Sunday, February 24, 2008
V.I.P Day
Since some of the children at Caleb's school have birthdays during the summer months, Mrs. Spencer chooses to celebrate every child with a V.I.P day instead of a birthday party. It was Caleb's turn this last week. He was asked to bring 5 things that were important to him and arrive 5 minutes early to school so that Mrs. Spencer could tuck them away in her V.I.P. suitcase. He chose to bring:
A new remote control tractor.
A stuffed Curious George doll (because that's one of his favorite cartoons.)
A picture of Maddie & Kiley
A book entitled, Smelly Socks- which he thinks is hilarious.
And one of those doodle drawing things.
We brought muffin cupcakes to share and Caleb got to wear a crown and a balloon and parade around the room to the music, "I'm a V.I.P"- how fitting. :)
Then, his friends were given a few minutes to ask Caleb questions about himself. I thought this was the cutest part of the whole day. Their questions went something like this-
1st child asks- What is your favorite color?
Caleb says, Pink.
2nd child asks- What is your next favorite color?
Caleb says, Green.
3rd child asks- What is your next next favorite color?
Mrs. Spencer chimes in, Okay, we've already asked that question, let's try to ask a different question.
4th child asks- What is your favorite food?
Caleb says, pasegetti
5th child asks- What is your favorite shirt?
Caleb says, red glow in the dark superman shirt.
6th child asks- What is your favorite toy?
Caleb says, My garbage trucks.
7th child asks- What is your favorite color?- appearently, knowing someone's favorite color is important to a 3 year old. :)
Mrs. Spencer says, Okay, enough questions- let's play a game. :)
Thank you Mrs. Spencer for making Caleb feel so loved and special! We appreaciate you!
A new remote control tractor.
A stuffed Curious George doll (because that's one of his favorite cartoons.)
A picture of Maddie & Kiley
A book entitled, Smelly Socks- which he thinks is hilarious.
And one of those doodle drawing things.
We brought muffin cupcakes to share and Caleb got to wear a crown and a balloon and parade around the room to the music, "I'm a V.I.P"- how fitting. :)
Then, his friends were given a few minutes to ask Caleb questions about himself. I thought this was the cutest part of the whole day. Their questions went something like this-
1st child asks- What is your favorite color?
Caleb says, Pink.
2nd child asks- What is your next favorite color?
Caleb says, Green.
3rd child asks- What is your next next favorite color?
Mrs. Spencer chimes in, Okay, we've already asked that question, let's try to ask a different question.
4th child asks- What is your favorite food?
Caleb says, pasegetti
5th child asks- What is your favorite shirt?
Caleb says, red glow in the dark superman shirt.
6th child asks- What is your favorite toy?
Caleb says, My garbage trucks.
7th child asks- What is your favorite color?- appearently, knowing someone's favorite color is important to a 3 year old. :)
Mrs. Spencer says, Okay, enough questions- let's play a game. :)
Thank you Mrs. Spencer for making Caleb feel so loved and special! We appreaciate you!
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Signs of Spring
I'm sorry, It's been awhile since I've written. We have been knee deep in house projects trying to get our house ready to sell. Yesterday, we spent most of the day working on our yard and what a beautiful day to work outside. I LOVE the sunshine! It was great to get a boost of Vitamin D. I'm posting a few pics of flowers blooming to remind me that spring and more sunny days are on their way since... our extended forecast is calling for rain showers this upcoming week.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
8 Months
Have you ever woken up one morning and looked at your kids and thought that they grew up over night? I had that experience the other day. I went into Porter's room and I swear overnight he had grown a mop of hair. A cute mop of hair with a little curl.
I've been cleaning out our house these last few weeks and I've been getting rid of things we don't need or don't use anymore. I just sold a bunch of Porter's baby clothes on EBAY. It was bitter-sweet. I'm a little sentimental and I have vivid memories of Porter in some of those outfits.... Seems like just yesterday we brought him home ... it's now 8 months later.
I've been cleaning out our house these last few weeks and I've been getting rid of things we don't need or don't use anymore. I just sold a bunch of Porter's baby clothes on EBAY. It was bitter-sweet. I'm a little sentimental and I have vivid memories of Porter in some of those outfits.... Seems like just yesterday we brought him home ... it's now 8 months later.
EBAY LISTING
Kris and I finished another Valentine layout and a another set of cards. I just love the scalloped look on these items. I always enjoy getting my hands on pink paper and frilly embellishments... probably because I live in a house full of boys.
Here's a few of the layout:
Here's a few of the layout:
Friday, February 1, 2008
I'M IN A RUT!
I'm so tired of making the same dinners over and over. I need a little variety. Do you have a staple dinner that you make over and over and your family loves you for it? Let me know what it is... I'd love to make it one of my staple dishes. There's only three stipulations: has to be fast, easy, and taste good!
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Purge-illitis Syndrome
I'm sorry, I haven't written for awhile. I've been busy. Spring cleaning has come early to our home and I'm on a rampage!
I don't know about you, but I absolutely hate having piles that have no place. Since the interest rates are going down, we have been toying with the idea of selling our house and buying one that's a little bit bigger. So for the past week, I've been pitching, packing up stuff, cleaning, and de-cluttering our home... and I still feel like I haven't made a dent. But the room's that are done really look great- it sure feels good to have very little out.... and hopefully it's easier to keep it clean that way.
I don't know about you, but I absolutely hate having piles that have no place. Since the interest rates are going down, we have been toying with the idea of selling our house and buying one that's a little bit bigger. So for the past week, I've been pitching, packing up stuff, cleaning, and de-cluttering our home... and I still feel like I haven't made a dent. But the room's that are done really look great- it sure feels good to have very little out.... and hopefully it's easier to keep it clean that way.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
How Do I Love Thee... Let Me Count The Ways Layout
I can't believe that January is half way over. I'm not sure where the time has gone. I guess I need to do a better job of living in the moment and soaking it all up-
Easter layouts are on the rise on EBAY. And to think Kris and I thought we were on top of it by just listing a Valentine one! Here's a look at it. I love the color combo on this one...
Easter layouts are on the rise on EBAY. And to think Kris and I thought we were on top of it by just listing a Valentine one! Here's a look at it. I love the color combo on this one...
Friday, January 11, 2008
Porter Is Mobile
A few days ago I put Porter on his tummy with an entourage of toys. I left for a few minutes and then came back to find Porter right where I had left him but he wasn't laying on his tummy anymore, he was sitting up. I had missed his first "sit up" all by himself. So, I layed him back on his tummy and politely asked him to do it again for mommy. I waited and waited for ten minutes, but nothing...
Then, yesterday I went into get Porter after he woke up from his nap. And this is what I found.. him sitting up the little stinker. Caleb put a few toys in his crib and I took a snap shot of it. I'm still waiting to see him perform this in action. :)
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