Tomorrow she gets to miss even more school, as the kids have their annual eye exam... I know she will be getting new glasses, we'll see if Daniel needs them this time. I've got my fingers crossed he will not need them yet.
Until next time...
3.02.2015
#BraceFace
Well guys, today starts a new adventure for my oldest child. BRACES. We went last week for an orthodontic consultation recommended by our dentist (I knew this day was coming.) It was quickly determined that Carmen was cursed with terrible dental genes (sorry kiddo) and all of the adult teeth that are coming in now are coming in however they fancy. Sideways, crooked... you name it. She only has 4 baby teeth left (she lost 4 at once, bless her soul she looks like an adorable jack-o-lantern) and we are officially on the road to bigger and better jaws... I MEAN THINGS. BIGGER AND BETTER THINGS. Also, bigger dollar signs leaving my pocket as this is going to cost a small fortune and insurance only pays a small chunk. Today we went in for the molds... which blew my mind. No more biting into a tray of soft play dough. It's all digital now and so incredible. She did wonderful. They put in some separator bands to prepare her for the expander that will be going in on Monday. Funny how her biggest concern in all of this is "mom this means I won't have perfect attendance at school anymore!" Sweet girl. She will have the expander for a little while before she goes into full on braces. They think this whole process will be about 2.5-3 years. What is nice about this office (other than the super nice staff, they're all amazing) is they have a rewards program for the kids to earn points towards gift cards. This is just amazing. Points are earned for keeping appointments, good oral hygiene, good grades, etc... Carmen is now obsessed with getting points (I helped her out by following their office on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram... racked up 20 points her way...) I guess when I had her almost 10 years ago, I never thought about glasses and braces and the like. She is just growing up so fast.
Tomorrow she gets to miss even more school, as the kids have their annual eye exam... I know she will be getting new glasses, we'll see if Daniel needs them this time. I've got my fingers crossed he will not need them yet.
Until next time...
Tomorrow she gets to miss even more school, as the kids have their annual eye exam... I know she will be getting new glasses, we'll see if Daniel needs them this time. I've got my fingers crossed he will not need them yet.
Until next time...
2.17.2015
Purr, Baby, Purr
The past couple of weeks have practically flown by and then were buried. In SNOW. The 4 letter word that I wish would go away. I'M SORRY ELSA!!! THE COLD BOTHERS ME!! PLEASE JUST... LET IT GO ALREADY!! Seriously. I hate snow. A serious decision needs to made when the hell we are going to move south so we no longer live where the air hurts my face.
MOVING ON.
So remember that post about Daniel and his SAAAWWEEEEET fire truck Valentine's Box? Yeah, he hasn't got to use it yet thanks to the SNOW. I signed up to cut up a shit load of fruit for his party and make it all valentinesish (thanks to pinterest of course) and his party was supposed to be last Friday. He still hasn't had school. So if he does't have school tomorrow, the fruit is ALL MINE. All 30k hearts of melon and pineapple and strawberries are mine. Muahahahaha. So we have had some Valentine's fun around here, believe it or not, and I am about to share it all with you... NOW!
Valentine's Morning, I made the kids PURPLE HEART SHAPED PANCAKES. It's ok to be jealous. I put a little purple gel dye in them and they were the prettiest shade of lavender, until I put them on the griddle. Then they browned up like normal, but the edges and insides were still purple and the kids thought they were badass.
Ok so not all of them were hearts, but it added a fun effect and made the kids' morning. SO there.
THEN we had a surprise for the kids. Not really a present (because... folks... Valentine's Day is not a holiday that we give the kids gifts. It's stupid. Maybe some candy or something. But come on. It's not Christmas.) but a surprise. Eric showed me a photo that one of his coworkers showed him that had been shared 35683 times on facebook (we are not on facebook) of a gorgeous kitten who was in need of a fur-ever home from our local shelter about a week ago. She's about 4 months old and I fell in love. After we had to give up our dog a few months back, I have seriously missed having a furbaby in our house. I contacted the shelter to see if she was still up for adoption and found out she was... then came the hard part. Convincing the husband to let me get her... If you know Eric, you know he HATES cats... but how can you hate this one? ----
SHE HAS A FREAKING HEART ON HER SIDE! How could you NOT love her???? SO ANYWAAAY after about a week, my husband finally gave in and let me go forward in getting her... And now, for the surprise... the kids had no idea!! I had scheduled a meeting to go and meet her (her name was Keyla in the shelter but I hated it.) So we took the kids and said SURPRISE WE GET KITTY! They were beyond excited.
No big shock, I'm totally smitten with this kitten. (Poetry. Boom.) So we did all of the paperwork, and here came the hard part.... waiting. Our local shelter will not allow the pets to go home with their new families until they are spayed/neutered. They made an appointment for Monday (2/16) to get her spayed and then I could take her home from there. But, while we wait for the new furbaby to be ready.....
My husband semi-surprised me with a VERY romantic date for Valentine's Night. The photo above is taken about 90 min from where I live. Because our plans involved going to Columbus, OH on Saturday night. Mom kept the kids and we set out for romantic adventures. Snow dumps weren't in the forecast, guys. But ohhhh they happened. I am so glad Eric was driving, becausssseee I would have FREAKED OUT. I mean, I freaked a good bit as a passenger.. The wind was ferocious, the snow was soft so falling it was like a curtain and we couldn't see anything. It took us about 3.5 hours to make this 2 hour drive, but once we arrived, it was SO worth it. (I just wish I hadn't worn boots with heels... whyyy... oh yeah, because SNOW WASN'T SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN SATURDAY!) We started off our night with dinner at Carrabba's. We don't have one of these in our hometown so when we get the chance to go, WE GO. It's SO good. So so so good. We arrived and were told 20-30 min wait, but noticed there were seats at the bar open and they said RUN LIKE THE WIND BULLSEYE (not really, they said it was first come, first serve but it felt like we robbed the other people waiting of their seats). I love sitting at the bar here, even more so when the kids are with us, because we can watch them cook! We like to sit in front of the pizza oven.
THEN, we headed to the part that I was so enamored with... We went to a wine and chocolate pairing at The Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens. Ok first of all, alone, this is a gorgeous place to visit any time of the year. If you love flowers, birds and plant life and learning about all of the above... GO HERE. They have special stuff all year long, but tonight was adults only and I was STOKED. We got to sample gourmet chocolates along with some alcohol that was paired with them. We got some pictures taken, we listened to music and we laughed with a parrot who gave us some good laughs. Each tasting was named after a famous (some fictional) couple. It was amazing. Here's the menu options:
Guys, these are GHOST CHILI CARAMELS. Seriously. I tried it, because I needed to know. They were warm, but didn't melt my face off. So that's a plus.
By the time we were ready to go home, the interstate was pretty much clear thankfully and we got home safely. Not before we stopped and bought kitty supplies. :)
The next day was full of laundry. So much laundry I could have filled an olympic size pool with it. Well, maybe that's exaggerating some but ya know. After being at work 10 days straight, not a lot of laundry was done. So, a lot of laundry was done. Lots of cleaning. Prep for a new furbaby to come home with us. :)
Also, I bought this on clearance because, well, Mickey and Minnie. I mean come one. Wouldn't you?
OK SO TIME FOR THE BIG DAY! Gotta pick up ze kitty from the shelter after she gets the snip-snip after work between 5-6pm. But first, work!
I was scheduled to be at work at 7:45am (our store opened early for some mega sale that wasn't advertised enough so we were DEAD for 2 hours!) By the time I went to lunch, there was another crap-ton of snow on the ground that had fallen since I got to work. Things everywhere were closing early, and I get a phone call. The shelter calls. They're closing up shop early, and I gotta come get her asap. I can leave her overnight but then get charged an overnight boarding fee. (First of all, a fee? For them to hold her overnight because THEY are closing early? Whatevs.) So I called my boss and told her what was up. She ok'd me to just not come back from lunch (they ended up closing early too) and Eric and I went and picked her up. We then swung 'round to get the kids and Eric brought us all home before he went back to work. Not exactly how I planned kittys's arrival day to happen, but it happened.
We shall call her ANASTASIA (and no, not the movie, the movie Anastasia is a DON BLUTH movie, and while it's a good one, it's not Disney and if you're reading this, you should know she's gonna have a Disney name so Anastasia, in this case, is my favorite of the two stepsisters from Cinderella, which just had it's 65th anniversary and NO they are not evil, they're just misunderstood.)
I was prepared for a rough night last night, but she was silent. She slept under my bed mostly. She came out at some point to eat, because her food dish was about 1/2 empty and she used the litter box, so that's a huge win knowing that she knows where all of her things are, even if she wont use them while we're all out and about. She has spent most of today hiding under the couch or under my bed. She meowed along with Daniel this morning while he sang her a made up song. It was precious.
She is making herself right at home.
Until next time...
*meow*
MOVING ON.
So remember that post about Daniel and his SAAAWWEEEEET fire truck Valentine's Box? Yeah, he hasn't got to use it yet thanks to the SNOW. I signed up to cut up a shit load of fruit for his party and make it all valentinesish (thanks to pinterest of course) and his party was supposed to be last Friday. He still hasn't had school. So if he does't have school tomorrow, the fruit is ALL MINE. All 30k hearts of melon and pineapple and strawberries are mine. Muahahahaha. So we have had some Valentine's fun around here, believe it or not, and I am about to share it all with you... NOW!
Valentine's Morning, I made the kids PURPLE HEART SHAPED PANCAKES. It's ok to be jealous. I put a little purple gel dye in them and they were the prettiest shade of lavender, until I put them on the griddle. Then they browned up like normal, but the edges and insides were still purple and the kids thought they were badass.
Ok so not all of them were hearts, but it added a fun effect and made the kids' morning. SO there.
THEN we had a surprise for the kids. Not really a present (because... folks... Valentine's Day is not a holiday that we give the kids gifts. It's stupid. Maybe some candy or something. But come on. It's not Christmas.) but a surprise. Eric showed me a photo that one of his coworkers showed him that had been shared 35683 times on facebook (we are not on facebook) of a gorgeous kitten who was in need of a fur-ever home from our local shelter about a week ago. She's about 4 months old and I fell in love. After we had to give up our dog a few months back, I have seriously missed having a furbaby in our house. I contacted the shelter to see if she was still up for adoption and found out she was... then came the hard part. Convincing the husband to let me get her... If you know Eric, you know he HATES cats... but how can you hate this one? ----
SHE HAS A FREAKING HEART ON HER SIDE! How could you NOT love her???? SO ANYWAAAY after about a week, my husband finally gave in and let me go forward in getting her... And now, for the surprise... the kids had no idea!! I had scheduled a meeting to go and meet her (her name was Keyla in the shelter but I hated it.) So we took the kids and said SURPRISE WE GET KITTY! They were beyond excited.
No big shock, I'm totally smitten with this kitten. (Poetry. Boom.) So we did all of the paperwork, and here came the hard part.... waiting. Our local shelter will not allow the pets to go home with their new families until they are spayed/neutered. They made an appointment for Monday (2/16) to get her spayed and then I could take her home from there. But, while we wait for the new furbaby to be ready.....
My husband semi-surprised me with a VERY romantic date for Valentine's Night. The photo above is taken about 90 min from where I live. Because our plans involved going to Columbus, OH on Saturday night. Mom kept the kids and we set out for romantic adventures. Snow dumps weren't in the forecast, guys. But ohhhh they happened. I am so glad Eric was driving, becausssseee I would have FREAKED OUT. I mean, I freaked a good bit as a passenger.. The wind was ferocious, the snow was soft so falling it was like a curtain and we couldn't see anything. It took us about 3.5 hours to make this 2 hour drive, but once we arrived, it was SO worth it. (I just wish I hadn't worn boots with heels... whyyy... oh yeah, because SNOW WASN'T SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN SATURDAY!) We started off our night with dinner at Carrabba's. We don't have one of these in our hometown so when we get the chance to go, WE GO. It's SO good. So so so good. We arrived and were told 20-30 min wait, but noticed there were seats at the bar open and they said RUN LIKE THE WIND BULLSEYE (not really, they said it was first come, first serve but it felt like we robbed the other people waiting of their seats). I love sitting at the bar here, even more so when the kids are with us, because we can watch them cook! We like to sit in front of the pizza oven.
THEN, we headed to the part that I was so enamored with... We went to a wine and chocolate pairing at The Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens. Ok first of all, alone, this is a gorgeous place to visit any time of the year. If you love flowers, birds and plant life and learning about all of the above... GO HERE. They have special stuff all year long, but tonight was adults only and I was STOKED. We got to sample gourmet chocolates along with some alcohol that was paired with them. We got some pictures taken, we listened to music and we laughed with a parrot who gave us some good laughs. Each tasting was named after a famous (some fictional) couple. It was amazing. Here's the menu options:
Guys, these are GHOST CHILI CARAMELS. Seriously. I tried it, because I needed to know. They were warm, but didn't melt my face off. So that's a plus.
By the time we were ready to go home, the interstate was pretty much clear thankfully and we got home safely. Not before we stopped and bought kitty supplies. :)
The next day was full of laundry. So much laundry I could have filled an olympic size pool with it. Well, maybe that's exaggerating some but ya know. After being at work 10 days straight, not a lot of laundry was done. So, a lot of laundry was done. Lots of cleaning. Prep for a new furbaby to come home with us. :)
Also, I bought this on clearance because, well, Mickey and Minnie. I mean come one. Wouldn't you?
OK SO TIME FOR THE BIG DAY! Gotta pick up ze kitty from the shelter after she gets the snip-snip after work between 5-6pm. But first, work!
I was scheduled to be at work at 7:45am (our store opened early for some mega sale that wasn't advertised enough so we were DEAD for 2 hours!) By the time I went to lunch, there was another crap-ton of snow on the ground that had fallen since I got to work. Things everywhere were closing early, and I get a phone call. The shelter calls. They're closing up shop early, and I gotta come get her asap. I can leave her overnight but then get charged an overnight boarding fee. (First of all, a fee? For them to hold her overnight because THEY are closing early? Whatevs.) So I called my boss and told her what was up. She ok'd me to just not come back from lunch (they ended up closing early too) and Eric and I went and picked her up. We then swung 'round to get the kids and Eric brought us all home before he went back to work. Not exactly how I planned kittys's arrival day to happen, but it happened.
We shall call her ANASTASIA (and no, not the movie, the movie Anastasia is a DON BLUTH movie, and while it's a good one, it's not Disney and if you're reading this, you should know she's gonna have a Disney name so Anastasia, in this case, is my favorite of the two stepsisters from Cinderella, which just had it's 65th anniversary and NO they are not evil, they're just misunderstood.)
I was prepared for a rough night last night, but she was silent. She slept under my bed mostly. She came out at some point to eat, because her food dish was about 1/2 empty and she used the litter box, so that's a huge win knowing that she knows where all of her things are, even if she wont use them while we're all out and about. She has spent most of today hiding under the couch or under my bed. She meowed along with Daniel this morning while he sang her a made up song. It was precious.
She is making herself right at home.
Until next time...
2.03.2015
I forever ban FELT.
Valentine's Day is quickly approaching, and while I'm an old married bat who doesn't plan or expect anything romantic, the same cannot be said about Daniel's preschool class! Daniel is going to experience his very first Valentine's Day party on 2/13 complete with home made boxes and store bought character Valentine cards. For this, Daniel turned to me. A note came home that the kids are to make their mailboxes at home and bring them in... Well my son hated this idea until I turned to (you guessed it...) PINTEREST!! I typed in "Valentine Boxes for boys" and crossed my fingers. The results were cute robots, little monsters and then I saw it... A FIRETRUCK. Oh man. Ohhhh man. For a little boy obsessed with firetrucks? Perfect. So that day, I came home and showed it to him and he was sold. A firetruck Valentine box it was.
My materials included:
FELT (red, yellow, white and orange (and we'll come back to this later)
tacky glue
boxes
scissors
a permanent marker
patience. a lot of patience
about 4 hours unless you're a crafting wizard
I got started at about 10am today. I happened to buy a box of Great Value Penguins (these are walmart's answer to goldfish). This was perfect for the truck body. I cut a "large hole" (as directed by the teacher) in the top and traced around the box on the felt. This is where I learned, my friends, how DIFFICULT felt is to cut, and I was only cutting straight lines.... I wrapped the felt around the box tightly, applying the tacky glue as I went.
While the white layer was drying, I made sure the flaps on the end of the box that would be the front of the truck were glued shut too. I found the box that I would use for the cab of the truck.This needed to be the same width as the Penguins box I already was working with... Do you know how hard it was to find the right shape??? After looking for almost 30 minutes, I found one... DRUGS!! I used a box of cold and flu meds. Yes. Perfect. I went ahead and started making the stencils for what would be the flames. After I made the stencils, I realized I was going to hate myself for this since they would then be cut out of FELT. *sigh* I decided to wait a little while before I started cutting these bad boys out. My tendonitis riddled wrist was already crying.
I decided to move on to the cab for a little bit. (At this point, I'm over an hour into this project.) I asked Daniel if he wanted to help, he said if he helped, it would be messy. He was probably right but I could at least blame the uneven cuts on a 4 year old, right? Annnyyywaaayyy I took the red felt and traced the little box just around the top, front and bottom. I proceeded to cut this part out and glue it on like the white part of the big box. Slowly, tightly and adding glue as I went. Then I cut a white rectangle for the windshield and 2 yellow circles for the headlights. Let's talk about the headlights for a second... Or actually lets not. There was no getting them even. I hate cutting circles anyway, let's add annoying felt to the process.
Not looking so bad, right?? And once this was attached to the bigger box- holy crap- it's starting to look like a fire truck!!
While I left all of this to dry, I placed the truck on it's end and put weight on it so all the glue would hold nice and tight. I made lunch in this time (grilled cheese roll ups... so good) and put Daniel down for a nap while I did the dishes. After the dishes, I knew it was time to face the fire. Haha (see what I did there?) I took off my rings and sat down at the table. I was glad Daniel was asleep. There was definitely a lot of swearing while I did the cutting. Thankfully, I did NOT cut myself in this process... But I wasn't any happier about it.
I intentionally left the back side of the truck to be the end of the box that opens with the tab so he can take his Valentine's out of the box. I just covered each flap with orange felt.
Daniel insisted on wheels, I did NOT want working wheels with his class being full of boys (Daniel's teacher can thank me later) so I glued on crafting bottlecaps. I finished gluing everything on and let it sit to dry for about an hour. (It's still drying but that hour gave it time to set before Daniel got his hands on it.) I think it came out pretty cute. Not perfect by ANY MEANS, but my little guy is SO EXCITED and that, my friends, it all that matters!!
Alright guys, that's it for today. Comment things you'd like to see my blog about, any questions you have for me or things you'd like to see me try!!!
My materials included:
FELT (red, yellow, white and orange (and we'll come back to this later)
tacky glue
boxes
scissors
a permanent marker
patience. a lot of patience
about 4 hours unless you're a crafting wizard
I got started at about 10am today. I happened to buy a box of Great Value Penguins (these are walmart's answer to goldfish). This was perfect for the truck body. I cut a "large hole" (as directed by the teacher) in the top and traced around the box on the felt. This is where I learned, my friends, how DIFFICULT felt is to cut, and I was only cutting straight lines.... I wrapped the felt around the box tightly, applying the tacky glue as I went.
While the white layer was drying, I made sure the flaps on the end of the box that would be the front of the truck were glued shut too. I found the box that I would use for the cab of the truck.This needed to be the same width as the Penguins box I already was working with... Do you know how hard it was to find the right shape??? After looking for almost 30 minutes, I found one... DRUGS!! I used a box of cold and flu meds. Yes. Perfect. I went ahead and started making the stencils for what would be the flames. After I made the stencils, I realized I was going to hate myself for this since they would then be cut out of FELT. *sigh* I decided to wait a little while before I started cutting these bad boys out. My tendonitis riddled wrist was already crying.
I decided to move on to the cab for a little bit. (At this point, I'm over an hour into this project.) I asked Daniel if he wanted to help, he said if he helped, it would be messy. He was probably right but I could at least blame the uneven cuts on a 4 year old, right? Annnyyywaaayyy I took the red felt and traced the little box just around the top, front and bottom. I proceeded to cut this part out and glue it on like the white part of the big box. Slowly, tightly and adding glue as I went. Then I cut a white rectangle for the windshield and 2 yellow circles for the headlights. Let's talk about the headlights for a second... Or actually lets not. There was no getting them even. I hate cutting circles anyway, let's add annoying felt to the process.
Not looking so bad, right?? And once this was attached to the bigger box- holy crap- it's starting to look like a fire truck!!
While I left all of this to dry, I placed the truck on it's end and put weight on it so all the glue would hold nice and tight. I made lunch in this time (grilled cheese roll ups... so good) and put Daniel down for a nap while I did the dishes. After the dishes, I knew it was time to face the fire. Haha (see what I did there?) I took off my rings and sat down at the table. I was glad Daniel was asleep. There was definitely a lot of swearing while I did the cutting. Thankfully, I did NOT cut myself in this process... But I wasn't any happier about it.
I intentionally left the back side of the truck to be the end of the box that opens with the tab so he can take his Valentine's out of the box. I just covered each flap with orange felt.
Daniel insisted on wheels, I did NOT want working wheels with his class being full of boys (Daniel's teacher can thank me later) so I glued on crafting bottlecaps. I finished gluing everything on and let it sit to dry for about an hour. (It's still drying but that hour gave it time to set before Daniel got his hands on it.) I think it came out pretty cute. Not perfect by ANY MEANS, but my little guy is SO EXCITED and that, my friends, it all that matters!!
Alright guys, that's it for today. Comment things you'd like to see my blog about, any questions you have for me or things you'd like to see me try!!!
2.01.2015
Superbowl Sunday AKA Pinterest Test Day!
Happy February! Today is Superbowl Sunday. What a better time than today to try all these things on pinterest I've seen while Eric watched boring football stuff? This blog post is dedicated to my attempts to recreate some great stuff I've seen on Pinterest. But first, here's Daniel cheering on the Patriots. Don't judge him, he was born into it.
Nails.
I spend many hours on pinterest looking at nails. Seriously. It's an addiction. So I decided to recreate a version of some cute Valentine's Day nails I've seen.
Ok so they aren't perfect and these pictures are of my left hand, because I am right handed guys. The hearts on my right hand are a bit of a hot mess. I really like these nails, they're February festive and also really girly and we all know I'm obsessed with pink (or if you did not know this, now you know.) Also, please take note of my ADORABLE phone case. Ariel is my girl. The end. So overall, I think this one was a Pinterest win.
Pinterest: 0 // Eva: 1
Next Up: Breakfast. Bacon Pancake Dippers.
On pinterest, I was instructed to bake the bacon strips. (Who does this any other way these days? The mess is so minimal when you line the cookie sheet with foil!) 375 degrees, 10 min each side. I let them cool then made pancake batter. We make our own here, but the recipe said to use whatever you like. I added a drizzle of maple syrup and cinnamon in the batter and then made thin strips of pancakes on the griddle (my favorite wedding present) and stuck the bacon on each strip. I put a little batter over the bacon strip to seal it inside. Then flipped. I cut them in half and served them with a little bowl of syrup. My kids were over the moon that they got to eat breakfast with their hands, and I was pretty stoked at how simple and delicious they were.
Pinterest: 0 // Eva: 2
Don't you just love the plate? Nothing like dining with Mickey all the time. ;)
Next! Buffalo Chicken Dip!
I actually made this last night and it spent all day in the slow cooker today on warm. Now this is something I've EATEN before. Potlucks are a magnet for this easy dish. Imagine my appalled surprise to find out this calls for CANNED CHICKEN. CANNED CHICKEN!? WTF guys!? Who uses canned chicken!!!??? No. I was not having any of that. I put 3 frozen chicken breasts in the slow cooker just until they pulled apart super easy and then shredded them with a fork. A lot more work than opening a can, I suppose but COME ON CANNED CHICKEN?! Anyway, stick that in a huge skillet. Add 1/2 cup buffalo sauce, a load of cream cheese (seriously like 16 oz), a cup of ranch and a cup of cheddar cheese (I used a mix of 3 different cheddars and may have used a considerable amount closer to 2 cups. We love cheese around here). and THAT. IS. IT. add chips and you're golden. I didn't take any pics while I was making this, but here's the final product. It kinda looks like cheesy vomit but I promise, my kids begged to lick the pan.
Pinterest: 0 // Eva: 3
Snack time? Mini Corndog Muffins.
Daniel was excited about these. Like, really excited. He helped me make the batter and cut the hot dogs to go into the mini muffin pan. I used jiffy corn bread mix for these. Cheap and simple. It's egg and milk and mix.
After we cut them, I sprayed the pan, and filled the muffin pan about 2/3 of the way as instructed and I realized the hot dog chunks were way bigger than the muffins SOOOO I trimmed them up. I placed them into the muffin batter and knew immediately they were going to bubble over the top. Daniel didn't care about any of that. He sat in front of the oven watching them bake. When they were done, we pulled them out and they LOOKED pretty good.... until I went to remove them from the pan. All the muffin tops popped off and most of the hot dog chunks fell out... I got ONE perfect muffin. ONE. I had planned on putting these in the kids' lunches this week, but I guess that won't be happening. Pinterest takes this round. Maybe next time, I'll use cupcake liners?
Pinterest: 1 // Eva: 3
I saved my favorite for last...
Cream Cheese Apple Pie Braid.
Guys. This was SO easy, even though it looked hard. This recipe makes 2 pies. So get a box of 2 prepared pie crust. Roll it out and layer the cream cheesy mixture in there (this is cream cheese, sugar and vanilla), the apple chunks on top (apple, cinnamon, flour, pinch of salt) and then slice the sides of the dough like strips. (I used a pizza cutter for this step), egg wash the dough and "braid" it over the filling. (This will make more sense in the pics.) Egg wash the top. You can sprinkle some sugar over the top before you bake it if you like. You have to make sure the ends are tucked in all nice, and then line your cookie sheet with parchment paper. I ran out after the first pie, so I used foil for the 2nd. I don't recommend it. A little filling leaks out and well, it was difficult to transfer from the cookie sheet to a plate. You bake these beasts at 350 for 25-30 minutes. (Mine baked for 28). I tried REALLY hard to wait until after dinner to test this but... I couldn't. Nope. I cut into it and fell in love at first bite.
Pinterest: 1 // Eva: 4
I had every intention of making little mini muffin size taco salads. I really did. But after all this, and dealing with the kids' bad attitudes today, and Daniel not napping.... I was spent. So instead, Here are a couple of pictures of my kids enjoying the apple dessert.
Why, yes, those are Disney cups. What else would we drink out of? Come on.
So final count, Pinterest: 1 // Eva: 4. Not too bad. I am ok with those odds.
Until next time, follow me on Instagram (WDWMAMA) and check out the bajillion pics I post of my life.
Comment below about things you'd like to see here, or if you have any questions for me. :)
Nails.
I spend many hours on pinterest looking at nails. Seriously. It's an addiction. So I decided to recreate a version of some cute Valentine's Day nails I've seen.
Ok so they aren't perfect and these pictures are of my left hand, because I am right handed guys. The hearts on my right hand are a bit of a hot mess. I really like these nails, they're February festive and also really girly and we all know I'm obsessed with pink (or if you did not know this, now you know.) Also, please take note of my ADORABLE phone case. Ariel is my girl. The end. So overall, I think this one was a Pinterest win.
Pinterest: 0 // Eva: 1
Next Up: Breakfast. Bacon Pancake Dippers.
On pinterest, I was instructed to bake the bacon strips. (Who does this any other way these days? The mess is so minimal when you line the cookie sheet with foil!) 375 degrees, 10 min each side. I let them cool then made pancake batter. We make our own here, but the recipe said to use whatever you like. I added a drizzle of maple syrup and cinnamon in the batter and then made thin strips of pancakes on the griddle (my favorite wedding present) and stuck the bacon on each strip. I put a little batter over the bacon strip to seal it inside. Then flipped. I cut them in half and served them with a little bowl of syrup. My kids were over the moon that they got to eat breakfast with their hands, and I was pretty stoked at how simple and delicious they were.
Pinterest: 0 // Eva: 2
Don't you just love the plate? Nothing like dining with Mickey all the time. ;)
Next! Buffalo Chicken Dip!
I actually made this last night and it spent all day in the slow cooker today on warm. Now this is something I've EATEN before. Potlucks are a magnet for this easy dish. Imagine my appalled surprise to find out this calls for CANNED CHICKEN. CANNED CHICKEN!? WTF guys!? Who uses canned chicken!!!??? No. I was not having any of that. I put 3 frozen chicken breasts in the slow cooker just until they pulled apart super easy and then shredded them with a fork. A lot more work than opening a can, I suppose but COME ON CANNED CHICKEN?! Anyway, stick that in a huge skillet. Add 1/2 cup buffalo sauce, a load of cream cheese (seriously like 16 oz), a cup of ranch and a cup of cheddar cheese (I used a mix of 3 different cheddars and may have used a considerable amount closer to 2 cups. We love cheese around here). and THAT. IS. IT. add chips and you're golden. I didn't take any pics while I was making this, but here's the final product. It kinda looks like cheesy vomit but I promise, my kids begged to lick the pan.
Pinterest: 0 // Eva: 3
Snack time? Mini Corndog Muffins.
Daniel was excited about these. Like, really excited. He helped me make the batter and cut the hot dogs to go into the mini muffin pan. I used jiffy corn bread mix for these. Cheap and simple. It's egg and milk and mix.
After we cut them, I sprayed the pan, and filled the muffin pan about 2/3 of the way as instructed and I realized the hot dog chunks were way bigger than the muffins SOOOO I trimmed them up. I placed them into the muffin batter and knew immediately they were going to bubble over the top. Daniel didn't care about any of that. He sat in front of the oven watching them bake. When they were done, we pulled them out and they LOOKED pretty good.... until I went to remove them from the pan. All the muffin tops popped off and most of the hot dog chunks fell out... I got ONE perfect muffin. ONE. I had planned on putting these in the kids' lunches this week, but I guess that won't be happening. Pinterest takes this round. Maybe next time, I'll use cupcake liners?
Pinterest: 1 // Eva: 3
I saved my favorite for last...
Cream Cheese Apple Pie Braid.
Guys. This was SO easy, even though it looked hard. This recipe makes 2 pies. So get a box of 2 prepared pie crust. Roll it out and layer the cream cheesy mixture in there (this is cream cheese, sugar and vanilla), the apple chunks on top (apple, cinnamon, flour, pinch of salt) and then slice the sides of the dough like strips. (I used a pizza cutter for this step), egg wash the dough and "braid" it over the filling. (This will make more sense in the pics.) Egg wash the top. You can sprinkle some sugar over the top before you bake it if you like. You have to make sure the ends are tucked in all nice, and then line your cookie sheet with parchment paper. I ran out after the first pie, so I used foil for the 2nd. I don't recommend it. A little filling leaks out and well, it was difficult to transfer from the cookie sheet to a plate. You bake these beasts at 350 for 25-30 minutes. (Mine baked for 28). I tried REALLY hard to wait until after dinner to test this but... I couldn't. Nope. I cut into it and fell in love at first bite.
Pinterest: 1 // Eva: 4
I had every intention of making little mini muffin size taco salads. I really did. But after all this, and dealing with the kids' bad attitudes today, and Daniel not napping.... I was spent. So instead, Here are a couple of pictures of my kids enjoying the apple dessert.
Why, yes, those are Disney cups. What else would we drink out of? Come on.
So final count, Pinterest: 1 // Eva: 4. Not too bad. I am ok with those odds.
Until next time, follow me on Instagram (WDWMAMA) and check out the bajillion pics I post of my life.
Comment below about things you'd like to see here, or if you have any questions for me. :)
1.30.2015
Snow Day
FIRST THINGS FIRST.... HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BIG BROTHER!!!!! He's 44 today!!
Snow Day! Well for the kids at least. I woke up this morning to a light dusting and a text message advising we were on a 2 hour delay. For Daniel, this means he gets a snow day because he goes to half day preschool. I managed to roll out of bed for a shower, and got the kids wrangled. We drove Eric to work (we only have 1 vehicle at the moment) and came home to sit around and wait for time to go to school. We were barely in our driveway when I got the NO SCHOOL text message. Now, normal kids would jump for joy that school is cancelled. Normal kids. Unlike mine. Daniel was sad because he wouldn't get to see his friends. Carmen? Well Carmen had other motives today. Today, my friends, was the AWARDS ASSEMBLY. I remember these from when I was a kid. I got sub-par grades and didn't do anything special so every now and then, I got the BOOK IT coupons for a free pizza from Pizza Hut but mainly, for me, I made fun of the geekier-than-me kids and was happy I got out of class for a few. Not Carmen. Carmen is my perfect attendance achieving, 4.0 getting, musically inclined kid that comes home with a minimum of 4-5 awards. She LOVES the attention and hearing her name called. Well today, add in 3rd place in US History at the social studies fair, completing everything your music teacher has to give you and completing all the math facts that exist and she was due to come home with 6 awards. JEESH. That makes me tired just typing it. All the up and down off those bleachers. Hang on, let me catch my breath. Ok. So needless to say, she's heartbroken... I am a little sad too, because I got an excuse to go into work 2 hours late to be at the assembly!!! Now, I actually have to go on time. Ah well. So since there's no pics from today, here's a picture from the last assembly...though she looks like she's sulking? Who knows.
SOOOO what are we doing on this lovely freaking terrible snow day, you ask? FIGHTING OF COURSE! Daniel is in a "Carmen must play with me every waking hour of the day but I don't want her to touch anything I own so I will hit her when she does and then get mad when she won't play with me" phase.... Let's just say... it's getting old. Fast.
Well the kids had their 6 month cleaning at the dentist last night. I am so thankful the kids have been so wonderful about the dentist since day one. I have been taking them both since they were 2 for routine cleanings and exams. Both of them get EXCITED about the dentist, or maybe it's what they leave with... (Daniel: "where's my goody bag!?") All I know is there is NO FIGHT when I say "you guys have a dentist appointment today!" Actually, I usually get some sort of excited squeals. Well, last night Carmen was told it is time to go see (insert ominous music here) THE ORTHODONTIST. My wallet immediately started crying. She is waaaay ahead of schedule on tooth loss, and is developing a crossbite. Her teeth are crowding. And still, over the sounds of the dentist talking, my wallet is wailing. Sobbing. Knowing my health insurance will only pay a portion of the bill... well I am calling this morning to schedule a consult with the orthodontist. I feel for Carmen. She got glasses 2 years ago, is like 10 feet tall and as skinny and lanky as a rail, she deals with the everyday struggle of being part Spanish (for those of you who aren't, this means HAIR EVERYWHERE), she is missing like 46 teeth and now braces? Welcome to the awkward phase of pre-pubescence, Carmen, I hope your stay is short lived and not too treacherous.
OK GUYS this is my last topic today, and it's a life changer... TACO BELL STRAWBERRY STARBURST FREEZE. It is quite possibly the MOST delicious slushie-type drink I have ever consumed. It has changed my life forever. If you are reading this, I am done blogging. Get up, drive yourself to Taco Bell and get one. You can thank me later. Or thank my by sending money to the orthodontist to help cover metal mouth's costs that I am sure are to come.... Here. Look at it. drool. Go buy one. Seriously. Go.
Snow Day! Well for the kids at least. I woke up this morning to a light dusting and a text message advising we were on a 2 hour delay. For Daniel, this means he gets a snow day because he goes to half day preschool. I managed to roll out of bed for a shower, and got the kids wrangled. We drove Eric to work (we only have 1 vehicle at the moment) and came home to sit around and wait for time to go to school. We were barely in our driveway when I got the NO SCHOOL text message. Now, normal kids would jump for joy that school is cancelled. Normal kids. Unlike mine. Daniel was sad because he wouldn't get to see his friends. Carmen? Well Carmen had other motives today. Today, my friends, was the AWARDS ASSEMBLY. I remember these from when I was a kid. I got sub-par grades and didn't do anything special so every now and then, I got the BOOK IT coupons for a free pizza from Pizza Hut but mainly, for me, I made fun of the geekier-than-me kids and was happy I got out of class for a few. Not Carmen. Carmen is my perfect attendance achieving, 4.0 getting, musically inclined kid that comes home with a minimum of 4-5 awards. She LOVES the attention and hearing her name called. Well today, add in 3rd place in US History at the social studies fair, completing everything your music teacher has to give you and completing all the math facts that exist and she was due to come home with 6 awards. JEESH. That makes me tired just typing it. All the up and down off those bleachers. Hang on, let me catch my breath. Ok. So needless to say, she's heartbroken... I am a little sad too, because I got an excuse to go into work 2 hours late to be at the assembly!!! Now, I actually have to go on time. Ah well. So since there's no pics from today, here's a picture from the last assembly...though she looks like she's sulking? Who knows.
SOOOO what are we doing on this lovely freaking terrible snow day, you ask? FIGHTING OF COURSE! Daniel is in a "Carmen must play with me every waking hour of the day but I don't want her to touch anything I own so I will hit her when she does and then get mad when she won't play with me" phase.... Let's just say... it's getting old. Fast.
Well the kids had their 6 month cleaning at the dentist last night. I am so thankful the kids have been so wonderful about the dentist since day one. I have been taking them both since they were 2 for routine cleanings and exams. Both of them get EXCITED about the dentist, or maybe it's what they leave with... (Daniel: "where's my goody bag!?") All I know is there is NO FIGHT when I say "you guys have a dentist appointment today!" Actually, I usually get some sort of excited squeals. Well, last night Carmen was told it is time to go see (insert ominous music here) THE ORTHODONTIST. My wallet immediately started crying. She is waaaay ahead of schedule on tooth loss, and is developing a crossbite. Her teeth are crowding. And still, over the sounds of the dentist talking, my wallet is wailing. Sobbing. Knowing my health insurance will only pay a portion of the bill... well I am calling this morning to schedule a consult with the orthodontist. I feel for Carmen. She got glasses 2 years ago, is like 10 feet tall and as skinny and lanky as a rail, she deals with the everyday struggle of being part Spanish (for those of you who aren't, this means HAIR EVERYWHERE), she is missing like 46 teeth and now braces? Welcome to the awkward phase of pre-pubescence, Carmen, I hope your stay is short lived and not too treacherous.
OK GUYS this is my last topic today, and it's a life changer... TACO BELL STRAWBERRY STARBURST FREEZE. It is quite possibly the MOST delicious slushie-type drink I have ever consumed. It has changed my life forever. If you are reading this, I am done blogging. Get up, drive yourself to Taco Bell and get one. You can thank me later. Or thank my by sending money to the orthodontist to help cover metal mouth's costs that I am sure are to come.... Here. Look at it. drool. Go buy one. Seriously. Go.
1.24.2015
Playing Catch Up...
Alright so my life has been pretty level in the last few years but I feel like a LOT has happened.
Work: In November 2011, I started a job with a health insurance company working in the call center. I really didn't love it. Most days I left work so stressed out and upset that I swore I would never go back, but I always did. Jobs in call centers are stressful, especially when it's dealing with health insurance. However, there were days when it was extremely rewarding too. In April 2014, I got another job within the same company and was making a LOT more money. I loved this position. The people I worked with were so wonderful. After I lost my grandmother in August, everything changed. Certain situations presented themselves and I had to make a choice so I left my job. I do miss it sometimes, especially because I loved most of the people I worked with and miss them dearly. I was home for a few months with the kids, and it was lovely. I was spending a lot of mornings at the park with Daniel, Liam and Jess (Daniel's buddy and Carmen's BFF'S mom who also happens to be one of my best friends). Our savings account dwindled quickly and I got another job. I now am working at a furniture store where I have some of the most flexible and understanding management and I have a lot of fun there. Money isn't near as good BUT the stress is so much less. That's a huge plus.
Kids: I am truly blessed with two wonderful children. Carmen, like I had said in my last post is 9 now. She will be 10 in May. She is in 4th grade, and has straight As. She's almost 5 feet tall, and absolutely beautiful. We have discovered in the past few years that sports are NOT her thing. She did cheerleading and ballet and soccer... and thought we'd never find anything she was really good at, until she started playing the recorder at school last year. When she blew through the songs she had to learn without much effort, we realized she has an ear for music. Now she is playing the keyboard and memorizing sheet music after playing it once or twice. Totally blown away. Daniel is 4, he's super tall and a total whirlwind (but I am pretty sure most boys his age are). We finally figured out his eczema, on our own, without the help of medical professionals. I look back on pics and am so glad we found what worked for us. He still gets little flare ups here and there when he's hot but it is finally manageable. Just before he turned 1, we found out that he is allergic to eggs and peanuts. That was a VERY scary ambulance ride, y'all. Now we know how severe the allergy is and he knows too, that helps. He started preschool this year and I was really nervous about it due to those allergies but his teachers are absolutely wonderful. He loves them, we love them and I wish I could keep them forever.
DISNEY. OK guys, here is where my life has totally changed. Totally. We decided in 2011 that we needed to take the kids on their very first trip to Walt Disney World... and we had no idea how that trip would change our lives. I have always been a fan of Disney EVERYTHING but had never been able to visit. We planned this trip for 10 months in secret. SECRET. Friends knew but the kids had no idea. None. 10 months of research, planning, making reservations and payments. Planning secret surprises as we were going to be there for a week over Carmen's 7th birthday (May 2012). Long story short, everyone who came to Carmen's Birthday party that year knew we were leaving from the party to drive the long 15 hour trip to the happiest and most magical place on Earth... we surprised her with a scavenger hunt to discover a packed car ready to bounce. (here's the video where we surprised her...
)
Needless to say... she was shocked.
We arrived late. It was dark, but none of us had ever been and we were all too excited to sleep so we took off the Magic Kingdom. The first time we ever saw it was during the Main Street Electrical Parade and the castle was aglow. I sobbed my eyes out and was hooked. We knew immediately that this was going to be an annual thing. As soon as we got home, we started saving for our next trip. We planned another semi-secret trip for the following May and spent another week in Walt Disney World. I cry EVERY time I see the castle. I cry at every show and parade and the first time I met Ariel, I almost died. We then managed to make 2 trips happen in 2014, which is good considering we aren't sure if a 2015 trip is happening. In March 2014, we told the kids about the trip but didn't fill them in on the best part... SPRING BREAK WITH THE BEST FRIEND!! Carmen's best friend, Lilly, joined us for our Spring Break trip. It was amazing. Then we went for a 10 day long trip in September 2014. On this trip, we met SO MANY friends we have gotten to know through instagram and it was wonderful to meet them! We met the youtube famous couple Ashley and Joey of "Seeyareelsoon" and were really excited!! I'll post a few pics and videos below. Eric started making trip videos after our trip in March, so we have two videos up on youtube for your viewing enjoyment. Both from our 2014 trips. They really are wonderful. I may be a bit biased, but they are tear jerkers!!
May 2012. Carmen's 7th Birthday Celebration
Wonderland Tea Party with Alice and the Mad Hatter
MAY 2013
March 2014. Spring Break best friends trip!
Here is our trip video from our trip in March 2014. It's about 6 minutes long and totally worth it. This video features our BFF guest and totally captures what Disney is all about..
YES. That is THE Princess Anna of Arrendale. September 2014.
This is the video from September 2014. A little under 11 minutes. Get the tissues. You'll need 'em...
So as you can see, we have had a busy couple of years mostly hanging out at Walt Disney World and contemplating a relocation move. To Orlando. Or the surrounding area. I think that is enough for tonight... until next time...
Work: In November 2011, I started a job with a health insurance company working in the call center. I really didn't love it. Most days I left work so stressed out and upset that I swore I would never go back, but I always did. Jobs in call centers are stressful, especially when it's dealing with health insurance. However, there were days when it was extremely rewarding too. In April 2014, I got another job within the same company and was making a LOT more money. I loved this position. The people I worked with were so wonderful. After I lost my grandmother in August, everything changed. Certain situations presented themselves and I had to make a choice so I left my job. I do miss it sometimes, especially because I loved most of the people I worked with and miss them dearly. I was home for a few months with the kids, and it was lovely. I was spending a lot of mornings at the park with Daniel, Liam and Jess (Daniel's buddy and Carmen's BFF'S mom who also happens to be one of my best friends). Our savings account dwindled quickly and I got another job. I now am working at a furniture store where I have some of the most flexible and understanding management and I have a lot of fun there. Money isn't near as good BUT the stress is so much less. That's a huge plus.
DISNEY. OK guys, here is where my life has totally changed. Totally. We decided in 2011 that we needed to take the kids on their very first trip to Walt Disney World... and we had no idea how that trip would change our lives. I have always been a fan of Disney EVERYTHING but had never been able to visit. We planned this trip for 10 months in secret. SECRET. Friends knew but the kids had no idea. None. 10 months of research, planning, making reservations and payments. Planning secret surprises as we were going to be there for a week over Carmen's 7th birthday (May 2012). Long story short, everyone who came to Carmen's Birthday party that year knew we were leaving from the party to drive the long 15 hour trip to the happiest and most magical place on Earth... we surprised her with a scavenger hunt to discover a packed car ready to bounce. (here's the video where we surprised her...
Needless to say... she was shocked.
We arrived late. It was dark, but none of us had ever been and we were all too excited to sleep so we took off the Magic Kingdom. The first time we ever saw it was during the Main Street Electrical Parade and the castle was aglow. I sobbed my eyes out and was hooked. We knew immediately that this was going to be an annual thing. As soon as we got home, we started saving for our next trip. We planned another semi-secret trip for the following May and spent another week in Walt Disney World. I cry EVERY time I see the castle. I cry at every show and parade and the first time I met Ariel, I almost died. We then managed to make 2 trips happen in 2014, which is good considering we aren't sure if a 2015 trip is happening. In March 2014, we told the kids about the trip but didn't fill them in on the best part... SPRING BREAK WITH THE BEST FRIEND!! Carmen's best friend, Lilly, joined us for our Spring Break trip. It was amazing. Then we went for a 10 day long trip in September 2014. On this trip, we met SO MANY friends we have gotten to know through instagram and it was wonderful to meet them! We met the youtube famous couple Ashley and Joey of "Seeyareelsoon" and were really excited!! I'll post a few pics and videos below. Eric started making trip videos after our trip in March, so we have two videos up on youtube for your viewing enjoyment. Both from our 2014 trips. They really are wonderful. I may be a bit biased, but they are tear jerkers!!
Wonderland Tea Party with Alice and the Mad Hatter
So as you can see, we have had a busy couple of years mostly hanging out at Walt Disney World and contemplating a relocation move. To Orlando. Or the surrounding area. I think that is enough for tonight... until next time...
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