Out of the mouth of babes

Ava- "Mom how do you say Ava in French?"
Mom- "You know how"
Ava- "No Ava not April"
Mom- "I don't know"
Kennedy- "Ava I know I know Ava"
Kennedy- "I know I know Ava"
Ava- "What"
Kennedy- "Ava in French"

Everyone- "Laughing Laughing Laughing"

April and I had the great idea to make and decorate Christmas cookies with the girls and Jakob. These cookies are the first one the kids decorated and let me tell you this was no easy feat! The story is to long to share but if you can understand; ear infection, urgent care, girls in bad moods, a boy without "boy toys" to play with, and two tired moms, I think you will understand our day! When it was all said and done we had a fun time and ended the night with the kids watching Journey to the Center of the Earth and the adults playing spoons.lol It's nice to have family to visit with.

Our Thanksgiving

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Holiday Prep

So far this is the smoothest prep yet. Got a huge pot of beans going for tonight and make it x-tra large in case my family make it over for dinner. Got the first loaf of bread in the machine going. Made two pies. I found this new pudding that is Pumpkin Pie. Mix it with milk as per instruction and I mixed in about a cup of coolwhip. Put it in a graham cracker pie shell. Pipe on cool whip in designs and cover. I tasted the pumpkin pie one and I it had the greatest flavor. Next on the list is the cinnamon rolls to be ready for the morning and then if I might make another roll of bread. It's going to be a great time!

Thanksgiving greetings!

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Making Bread

Lasagna is the plan for dinner and I wanted to make bread today so I found this recipe on About.com The girls enjoyed watching the bread machine in action. I plan to slice the bread and add garlic butter for dinner. Hope it turns out yummy!

Ingredients:
1 cup warm water
1 beaten egg
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp dried rosemary, or use 2 tablespoons fresh, crumbled
1 tsp each dried oregano and basil (or 1 tbsp each fresh)
3 c flour
2 tsp bread machine yeast
Preparation:
Place in machine according to machine instructions (or if you make bread by hand, you already know what to do). A few minutes into kneading, check that the dough is the consistency that you want, add any flour or extra water that you need (I usually find I need a little bit of flour). Bake on large loaf, light crust. This herb combination smells heavenly, and goes great with chicken or pasta or on picnics. You can use any combination of herbs you like, and adjust it to complement the meal you are serving if you like.
http://southernfood.about.com/od/breadmachine/r/blbb259.htm

UPDATED PICTURE

This is the second loaf I made. Sadly the first one didn't make it and ended up in the trash bin. It had been a long time since I used the bread maker and I inverted my ingredients. I will brag on this loaf because it was delicious. It went well with the leftover lasagna. I plan to make it again soon.

Thanksgiving Blessings

It's never to early to listen to holiday music and it's never to early to give thanks.

I am thankful for Shane. It might sound sappy and cliche but he completes me. He challenges me when I need to be challenged and supports me when I am in need. I am thankful to be married to my best friend.

I am thankful for my girls. They enhance my life and give it meaning. They are the reason I am get up in the morning (sometimes even in the early early morning), and they are the ones I pray for at night. I am thankful for the love they give to Shane and I and to each other.

I am thankful for my parents. A child can never understand the unconditonal love a parent has until they have a child of their own. I know the sacrifices my parents have made for my sibling and I and I am grateful to them and for their love.

I am thankful for my siblings. We fight as only brothers and sisters can but there is no doubt the love we have for one another. I am blessed to have them as siblings.

I am thankful for my nieces and nephews. They are all unique and terrific. I am thrilled to be their favorite Aunt.

I am thankful for my extended family on all sides. They have shaped me in ways that I cannot explain. I am truly thankful to have their love and am thrilled that my children will carry on our family.

I am thankful for my friends. Most of them are awesome and the ones who aren't I stopped speaking too!

I am thankful for technology. Who knew the internet would bring me closer to family and friends? My Family, Facebook, Blogger have been the "best friend" a SAHM could as for.
(A side note I am thankful to Steve Jobs for inventing the IPod. Without it and
the nifty way to have the West Wing at my disposal I would have made it through
late night feedings.)

I am thankful to my country. Freedom of speech! Freedom of Religion Obama! Need I say more.

Finally but most important
I am thankful to God for all above things would not be possible. I am thankful for his pressence in my life and for his blessings. I am thankful that I am able to pray and speak with him. I thank him for my life and all that it entails.

There are so many more things I am thankful for but eventually I would run out of post room and some are silly like packets of oatmeal that make school day breakfast easier, or for slippers which rock when you want to wear shoes but also want to have bare feet at time. See there are too many things to add that I better stop now.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. I hope you are well and happy and if you or your family is traveling I hope they stay safe.

Re-blogging a smile box

I wanted to re-post this smile box partly because the song is awesome and partly because I think we need to get to planning a real reunion not just one courtasey of facebook.lol So some of us are in the pictures mostly and some are missing, (like Christy and Belva.) I am really trying to get April up on facebook so look for her profile to come after Thanksgiving!!!

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Two loves

Making this little smile box made me cry. My baby is getting so big and I even though I don't want another baby and am looking forward to Nova being more independent my heart is still bittersweet. I love my baby ♥

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Parent/Teacher Conference

Ava's conference went well yesterday. She got 3's in all areas. Her reading is really great and her teacher told me she finds Ava a joy in class. Ava has cut down on talking in school and has been able to focus more. That was the best news to me since Ava is her mother's child and likes to talk, A LOT. Mrs. Phillips caught me off guard though when she sent us home with a borrowed book to read called The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick. She said this "Because Ava loves all things French!"lol What Ava must say in class I don't know. We started the book for family reading last night and it's a pretty cool book. It reminds me of Harry Potter. Mrs. Phillips hit it on the nail, Ava loves the book and took it to read once she and Kennedy were in bed. I have to say that being able to share the joy of reading with Ava has been awesome. I got her The Velveteen Rabbit at her cousins fall festival and she read it before I even had a chance to talk to her about it. Mrs. Phillips is so pleased about Ava's reading desire she sent Ava home book report forms to do extra credit. All in all it was a great conference.






http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0439813786/ref=sib_dp_pt#reader-link

Chicken Soup for whose soul?

Well it's been a smelly weekend. Kennedy got sick on Friday, was better yesterday but then got sick again last night and today. I decided she needed homemade chicken soup to heal and set to making it. As I was chopping the onions, carrots, chicken, celery, and potatoes I had a memory back to the good old days of GHS. I came back to school after recovering from the flu and was in history class taking to Scott Gunderson about being sick I guess, (not sure why). Anyway he asked me what my parents did for me when I was sick and I told him that they made me homemade chicken soup. (Our family never was the from a can type and never the chicken noodle type either) Then he asked me what was in and I told him about how my parents made it, (I swear I could salivate right now just thinking about their soup) He told me his mom NEVER cooked. I mean the most she did was microwave a dish or two if they were lucky. They ate out a lot is what he said. As I said I was thinking about this while cooking I started to think more about my parents and myself as a parent and I realized that making Kennedy soup to feel better was as much for me as it is for her. I am pretty helpless here not being able to instantly make her better. I can only be there to hold her hair, to clean up her floor (oh yeah let me tell you how great an idea it was letting Dusty borrow my steam cleaner) and washing several of her stuffed animal that got "attacked". Making her soup made me feel better even if it does little to help her. That being said she does seem better and I had have leftovers ready for lunch tomorrow, (always a good thing) I just want to say a thanks to my parents for always making their kids homemade soup when we were sick. It's nice to be able to carry on a tradition.

A great FREE present

My Aunt sent me an e-mail regarding this free 8x11 photo book. It was on the Oprah show and here is the link http://www2.snapfish.com/info18/

All you have to pay is shipping/handling which is 7-8 dollars. You have to do it by the 16th? I think so you might want to hurry. From what I could tell it's pretty neat. So hurry and give it a try!

A few really odd things about me.

I have this thing that drives me nuts and I think worries Shane sometimes. For whatever reason when I turn on a garbage disposal I HAVE to remind myself NOT to stick my hand down the disposal. I'm not kidding, I really think I will put my hand down there, when it's on if I don't tell myself not to. I have not idea why but it's an urge or something. The first time I told Shane he looked very concerned, like I might be mentally ill or something. Luckily I never have stuck my hand but I warn myself every time. I have a new thing going on now. Several months ago as you may have read in a past post Nova cut her eye. It healed quickly but was very painful for her. Lately I have been thinking that my eye is going to be torn and I imagine that is already is. It doesn't hurt, there isn't anything in it but I continue to picture how it would hurt and it's been bothering me, the idea of it getting cut.lol Not like I don't have other things to occupy my mind or time, now I have phantom worries to contend with.UGGH

An oldie but a goodie picture tag

Got to love girls who will dress up like dorks for their mom!

Geocaching

What is it?
Geocaching is a high-tech treasure hunting game played throughout the world by adventure seekers equipped with GPS devices. The basic idea is to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, outdoors and then share your experiences online. Geocaching is enjoyed by people from all age groups, with a strong sense of community and support for the environment. (Taken directly from http://www.geocaching.com/)

What about it?
This is how we spent our day yesterday afternoon. Sounds like a boring day, it wasn't. Actually it was something we'll soon do again I'm sure. We weren't too lucky in our finding. We only have one cache in which there was a log book and Shane and Ava logged in. It was just down the street from us. Shane has decided that in order to have an easier time we "need" a better GPS device, not just the one on his IPHONE. Great! Have you priced those things? Lets just say that knowing Shane and knowing which one he'll want it's going to be a while. That being said if you have a family who loves a good treasure hunt, or are looking for a family adventure you should give it a try. I think you'll have a fun time.

Nice Saturday

So today started off not too good. Nova woke way to early for me. I haven't had a Sat. in a while where we could sleep in and relax and I was really looking forward to at least getting to sleep until 8:30 but first Kennedy woke about 6:45 and got in our bed. Then just as I had fallen back asleep Nova began to fuss and next thing I know I am up and at it with her. I brought her to the living room, got some fresh milk and turned the tv. I decided to just lay on the couch and try to get her to fall back asleep and as we watched the History of New York (pretty interesting program) she was almost there when Kennedy came to the living room with the cries for Dora. I pretty much knew it was over with then and gave up. I got up, put on the coffee and started to clean. Eventually I went to see Shane and discovered he was in one pissy mood:( That's pretty much when the morning went to pot. After I threw my mind into sweeping and mopping and ignoring his mood I decided that I would make the most of the morning and keep up with the housework. Eventually Shane left to get his lab work done, (dealing with the HBP stuff) and he came home a happier man. After a delicious brunch I took my shower and put Nova down for her nap. Then I spent 2 hours taking one myself!!! (I miss naps) We spent the evening taking the kids the park and then to ITZ. If you have ever been there on a Sat. right at dinner time then you turned out to be as crazy as we were. First several parties had reserved the best rooms and then there were no forks to be had. Hello! Have you ever tried to eat pasta alfredo with your fingers? Finally I bugged a helper until we got several forks and we tried to enjoy our dinner. Once we headed to the games it was a little better. Shane won Nova some weird doll from Pirates of the Caribbean and she was happy to chew on it for a while. The girls played some games and we tried to get on the deal or no deal game but people were not giving up on winning. Last time we scored the big prize so we really wanted to to play again but it wasn't in the cards for us. We then thought we were down to only a few points and decided to go back to the tv area and drink coffee and let the girls have their ice cream. We went to the toons section and relaxed and watched a toon or two. By then I was pretty tired but we decided to finish our points when Shane realized I had a card with 43 points on it so we played for another 40 or so minutes. Kennedy and Ava did the train which Ava hated but Kennedy loved. We never got to do deal or no deal but Shane did win all the girls ugly stuffed animals. Then it was home were the little ones crashed out and I watched Juno. Now I am looking forward to bed but thought I'd post this little message. Now I am reading what I wrote and thinking that no one cares about all this but maybe next year I'll read this and wonder why I wrote it. I think when you are tired and you post stuff you always regret it later, I do.
So that was today and I just heard Nova cry. Crap! Hey I just had to share this real quick. I just went to spell check this and it gave me crap for spelling pissy wrong and Spell Check wanted to supplement a word for me instead of pissy. Want to make a guess?

Amazing

Heather called me last night shortly after it was announced Barack Obama was announced as our future President and I couldn't talk. She told me "You're never short for words" and yet I was in stunned amazement. It must have been all the emotion flooded my system and I shut down a little. It has slowly been hitting me today that it happened. YES WE CAN! This morning I was speaking with my girls and I told Ava that Nova will grow up with her first memory of a President being Barack Obama! What an amazing memory. Kennedy most likely won't remember Bush but she will remember Obama! Only Ava will have the memory of a president before Barack Obama. Just now on ABC someone was discussing the building of the White House by slaves and knowing that they were forced to build probably never believing an African American would be President! What a great day for African Americans and for America!!!

Happy Halloween 2008

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