Busy Making Busy Bags

Tonight I was putting together several busy bags for the road trip with Little Man.   One of the bags needs a cute plastic bottle to stuff pompoms into.  

Pet Peeve incoming…..Trying to get sticky stickers off of bottles and jars (and whatever else) is probably one of my TOP TEN pet peeves….because I try to do it all the time… with little or NO SUCCESS at all.   Without getting off track I seem to have LOTS of pet peeves! (pumping my own gas (which I have done for 30 some years), wearing a bra(which I have also done for only 30 years ), losing my car keys in my purse…enough said!)

…. But this is a SERIOUS one! I can’t tell you how much time and how many different methods, substances, etc. I have tried in my search for the holy grail of sticker goo removers.

Off to the internet to do my research again.  Ding Ding Ding….it works…slick as a whistle.

PEANUT BUTTER!….I repeat   PEANUT BUTTER…Lather it on…wait 15 minutes…..

 

Wipe it off….used some Dawn Dish Soap and dried with a towel…Voilà

I kid you not…I couldn’t tell which side the sticker was on….I’m in love!

…Bring on the empty bottles!

Vegetable Plate Flower

 

This will definitely be on the table for Easter Dinner!

Little Explorer

If the weather is even slightly cooperating, we venture to the backyard…

We found lots of treasures….a soccer ball hidden since last summer..

A spider web…..

 

along with several lichens on trees, bird feathers, and grass that is “smushed “ from the winter weather. 

But before long we are back inside because this happens….eyes that are itchy!

Do you like to explorer when the weather is cooperative?

Yes ~ Again God Has Called a Loved One Home

Today my beautiful, sweet, loving, generous, kind…Aunt Nell joined her family in Heaven. Over the past few months grief has taught me many lessons. It is the simple things, the little things, which are often the ones that make our life the happiest. I love and cherish every minute that my life was touched by my Aunt Nellie. So often we focus on all the negative that comes from our grief, which has happened way to often for me lately, but for me it is important that I look at the lessons I have learned and realize that my pain, my incredibly hard journey has taught me to be a better person, be a happier person, do more as a person, and love my life more completely and fully.

I am truly gifted with a loving family. Once again I am gifted with the ability to understand the brevity of life. I am thankful for every second of happiness that life has granted me. I love you Aunt Nellie.   Rob, you and your family are in my heart and prayers.

Pasta e Fagioli at Home

 

Sunday afternoon we dined out at Olive Garden.   Gotta love their soup, salad, and breadsticks unlimited.   Their menu also has some very nice entrée that were very tempting, but we went with the Soup.    DH went with Pasta e Fagioli and I of course went with Creamy Chicken Gnocchi.  

Fast forward two days and DD tells me she would really like soup for dinner, she wasn’t feeling all that well again today.   So I did my best to make a nice big pot of Pasta e Fagioli. 

                                                                                     

Ingredients

1 pound ground sausage

1 small onion dice

4 medium carrots sliced thin

3 stalks celery, chopped

2 cloves garlic, mince

2 14.5 ounce cans diced tomatoes

1 15 ounce can red kidney beans (with liquid)

1 15 ounce can great northern beans (with liquid)

1 15 ounce can pinto beans (with liquid)

1 15 ounce can tomato sauce

1 bottle V-8 Juice

1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon basil

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon thyme

12 oz package of ditali pasta

Instructions:

1. Brown the ground sausage in a large saucepan or pot over medium heat. 

2. Add onion, carrots, celery, and garlic and sauté for 10 minutes.

3 Add remaining ingredients, except pasta, and simmer for 1 hour.   Use enough V-8 Juice to get the consistency you like for soup.

4. About 50 minutes into the simmering, cook the pasta until al dente about 10 minutes.  Drain.

5 Add the pasta to the large pot of soup.  Simmer for 5 to 10 minutes more and serve.

Ditalini is a type of pasta that is shaped like small tubes. The literal translation from the Italian language to English is "small fingers". It has been described as "thimble-sized" and as "very short macaroni"

It was a hit with the picky eater… 4 year old… he ate a very large bowl full…that means it was worth the time it took to put this all together.

Celebrating 5 Of Kendry’s Favorite Things

Because we have a summer birthday…it’s time to celebrate with friends at pre-school. 

So here is our treat bag of 5 of Kendry’s favorite things this year:  
He loves --- apples juice, baseball, trains, rocks, and Legos (of course)!    Inside the little box marked Friends stick together are 5 hematite magnetic rocks.  The apple juice box says, “Kendry is juiced about Legos.”   The train whistle is a reminder of how often we go to the train park and watch for Frontrunner.   Kendry autographed (with lots of assistance) a soft baseball for each of his friends with his favorite number #4…even though he is going to be 5…he still wants to be 4.

 

Grandma Nancy…helped us make these great Lego soap bars….aren’t they just the cutest!

Here is the treat bag all ready to go……can’t wait to share it with our friends.

 

Do You Curtsey in Your Apron?

Just can’t seem to get myself together long enough to blog …Only 1 post this year so far…shame….So I’ll put on my apron and give a little curtsey because…

I suppose we could easily say that blogging is a little bit like an apron;

Not everyone still uses one; But it is really nice to wear when you need to be covered.

My BFF Nancy at http://nanmckenchanted.blogspot.com/ is always ready for a challenge so An Apron is what I asked her to make!!! Thank you so much Grandma Nancy!

Isn’t it just amazing….it is a huge bath towel with all the trim and you wear it to bath new little Prince William….Isn’t he just precious!

Reading in 2015

I have missed BC for so long…I’m so ready to just read again!   I’ve put together a list of ideas to help me with the book choices and I’ve added my book choice for each category.   There are 12 categories, 12 books,.. keeping it simple to read 1 book a month during the new year…that makes it so doable right??

A book that has been sitting on your shelf for many years without being read…Pigs in Heaven by Barbara Kingsolver

A book published this year 2015…to be announced at a later date!

A book in a genre that you don’t particularly think you enjoy…mine Science Fiction…The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

A book that takes you back to younger years…The Wildest Heart by Rosemary Rogers…I was such a Romance Novel reader!

A book someone from your family has recommended…Next Door Savior by Max Lucado

A book that was originally written in a foreign language…The True Deceiver by Tova Jansson

A book you think everyone has read but you…I won’t be reading 50 Shades of Grey…it will be The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom

A book you choose just because you like the image on the cover…This is so me!  Love Walked In by Marisa de los Santos

A book by one of your favorite authors…The Mistletoe Promise by Richard Paul Evans

A book recommended by someone you think has great taste…The Lighthouse Keeper by James Michael Pratt

A book that is on the College Bound Reading list…Sula by Toni Morrison

A book that has been #1 on the best seller list for more than a month…Grey Mountain by John Gresham

A Visitor I Don’t Often Invite

 
Here he/she comes……. A visitor who appears regularly whether invited or not. A visitor I truly want to come late and leave early. If this visitor stays until tax day you know what kind of mood I will be in………UGGGH  Yes, old man winter has arrived.
Winter is my least favorite season. Duh…how do you play baseball with snow covering the field? 

I am hopelessly in love with summer, and have fallen out of love with old man winter some time ago. I find him cold and somewhat harsh. Being grumpy all winter because it isn’t summer is silly, right?  I need to find the good qualities of winter and celebrate those, be grateful for each season as it comes. The seasons will change every year whether I like it or not.
I have decided I will not complain about winter this year…don’t get me wrong….I want to…but there are so many things that I need to be grateful for that I will do my very best to find something to be each day to bring happiness into our lives. 
So here is the list I have started about ways to be grateful for this cold, harsh season!
My Winter Gratitude List #1
I am grateful for:
1.  Snow looks beautiful covering the bushes and trees….the streets not so much!
2.  Winter clothing covers body parts with style…. sweaters are the sartorial embodiment of coziness, warmth, and safety.
3.  Warm and cozy fire in the family room is so inviting.
4.  Blankets….let me just say…My home will never be without warm blankets!  I love that a warm blanket is right now swaddling my new grandson, and my daughter cuddling with her boy!

5.  With winter a new year comes….Welcoming 2015 will be a blessing to all of us!
6.  Grace - Those moments when one more step feels impossible, when the world seems its absolute evil-worst, grace comes in the form of surprise blessings, answers to my prayers, bringing a sudden wash of gratitude, strength, or peace. Grace makes it all doable. It keeps us breathing when life gets airless. Soft when all feels hard. Gentle in harshness.
7,  Quiet…winter brings silence…a place where we can unfold and listen to our deepest intuitions and hear the wise whispers of our Father in Heaven.   Shh Be Still.
8. Hibernation…better known as Sleep, sweet sleep.  During the summer I never get enough of it.   Now I will get plenty to make me strong and effective during the day.  It feels so good to really really sleep!
9. Water….a very good reason to be grateful for winter.  Yes water, let me count the many ways:  you flow, cleanse, pitter, patter, drip, drop, cascade, gush, flush, rinse, flood, refresh, envelop, and allow life! 
10. Family – Without them life would be meaningless…to each of them I am their biggest fan…and will be there for them and pray I never let them down.
Gratitude, that very specific feeling of thankfulness in your heart, allows you to see and absorb all you have, forgetting for a moment all you may lack. It connects your brain with your heart, and gives you the ground to be more giving, effective, loving human.
 

Perhaps it won’t be as hard as I think………..

Stage 2 -

After the hard work of completely taking it apart….

we/DH has been well enough to get the tile laid in both bathrooms.

Darkest Evening Of The Year

Dec. 21 marks the shortest, darkest day of 2014. It's the Winter solstice, which signifies a turning point in the year. From here on out, the nights will grow shorter and the days longer. I think it is a reason to celebrate….

So tonight we will have a cozy winter party…

light candles,

have a warm fire glowing in the fireplace,

twinkling fairy lights hung around the stairwell.

Our meal this evening will include dishes to celebrate the season -

Italian Winter Soup,

Crisp Green Salad,

and Cluster Rolls

Pumpkin Cream Pie

We read a couple of stories  next to the cozy fire…..We planned to introduce Kendry to a board game or two, maybe even a jigsaw puzzle to remind us of our grandpa’s favorite pass time but….this happened:

  Of course we enjoyed some peaceful Christmas music playing in the background.

We will end our night with a nice cup of Wassail….Grandma always made this during the holidays and it makes the house smell delightful.

We hope you can feel the love and light today and enjoy knowing that after today, the days will get longer….that means baseball is just around the corner.   In fact there are only 59 days until the first pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training…

Happy Winter Solstice!

From Our House to Yours

Fa La La La La La La La La

Budget Friendly Christmas for DH

Since DH doesn’t read my blog very often….I have no fear in sharing my Christmas gift to him….I think it is more for me so I remember what each

month is bringing!   

Here is the front cover ready for Christmas morning!

I used the 12 Days of Christmas song to generate the ideas….customized to things that I know we both enjoy doing.  Each month will have a gift card ready….I didn’t buy them ahead of time, because I hate that some place put a date on how soon they must be used.

Dates 1 – 3 Smoothies, Dinner & Dessert, French Fries…

Dates  4 – 6 Anniversary Night, 5 Nights of Gold Rush (maybe a visit to Jareds), KFC….and hmmmm!!!

 

Dates 7 – 9 Swimming, Milk Shakes, Baseball Game

Dates 10 – 12 Halloween Trick or Treating, Concert & Hot Chocolate, A Christmas Surprise!

Back Cover….this year has had many good, bad, and wonderful days…We truly made ours a wonderful marriage this year!   We found the time we needed to work through our pain.  We faced hard truths. We let go of years of bitterness. We learned how to anchor our respect for one another.  And we found a wellspring of hope in the midst of our healing.

Asleep under the Tree

The little on nestled all snug with his pillow and blanket while visions of sugarplums danced in his head.......

Do you think sugarplums are dancing in this little head?     

More like trains, helicopters, and airplanes dance in his little head!

Sweet dreams my sweet little hug a mugga!

Story of the Three Wise Men…and a snack!

During the time when Jesus was born there was a very mean king who ruled the land, his name was King Herod.  Remember his name, because we will talk about him later.

Soon after Jesus was born,  wise men were traveling on their camels; one night they noticed a very strange star in the sky.  They knew that this star meant that the King of the Jews, the One who would save the world had been born.

When the mean King... (what was his name again?) Herod heard this he got very worried.

He called a meeting with all the other important people in the area and asked them where this special baby had been born.  The people replied, "In Bethlehem, because they heard that one day a special person would come from there and take care of all the people."

Then King Herod called the wise men to a secret meeting and found out from them exactly where they saw the star.  He then told them, "Go and find this child.  As soon as you find him, tell me, so that I can go and worship him."

After they had spoken to the King, the wise men left to find the baby.  They didn't know exactly where the baby was, but at night they followed the star in the east.  They followed the star until it hung right over the very place where Jesus was.

When they finally had arrived they were very excited and happy.  They found Jesus laying in Mary's arms, and they bowed down and worshipped him.

After that they opened the gifts they had brought Jesus.  They were gold, frankincense and myrrh.  These were very expensive gifts, gifts that you would give to a King, not to a baby.  Mary thanked them for bringing the gifts for Jesus, and the wise men went to find a place to sleep for the night.

As the wise men were sleeping, they each had the same dream.  They were not to go back and tell King Herod where they found Jesus.  King Herod didn't want to find Jesus to worship him, he wanted to kill him because he was jealous that this baby would someday be better than him.

So the wise men went home another way so that Herod would not know where they had come from.  They also decided that they would not tell King Herod anything about what they had seen.

When the wise men had left, an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream.  "Get up," the angel said, "take Jesus and Mary and run away to Egypt.  Stay there until I come to you again, because Herod is going to search for Jesus to kill him."

Joseph immediately got up and woke up Mary, and she gently picked up Jesus so he wouldn't wake from his sleep.  They left in the middle of the night for Egypt, so no one would see them.

They were safe in Egypt, and after King Herod died an angel appeared to Joseph and told him they could go to a place called Nazareth.  And that's where Jesus grew up.

F is for Fajitas

This week we are learning the letter F.   All of our dinners will have something that starts with the letter….Fish, Fettuccini, French Toast, Fried Rice, Farfalle Pasta, and Fruit Pizza….tonight we enjoy:

Fajitas

1  green peppers, sliced
1 red pepper, sliced
1 yellow onion, sliced
1 lb – 1 1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into strips
fajita seasoning (cumin, chili powder, garlic salt, lime/lemon)

Combine all raw ingredients into Ziploc bag and let marinate until ready to cook.  Then put into skillet with 2 TBSP oil. Stir fry until chicken is thoroughly cooked and veggies have softened. Serve in warm flour tortillas.  Yummy….see you tomorrow with our Fish recipe!

Families Can Be Together Forever

Incredibly Italian–Garlic Shrimp Appetizer

It has been way to long since I have made a visit to my blog…and I apologize to myself!   So much has happened over the last 3 months I have lots of catching up to do…which I promise myself I will get to. 

I made an incredible find while at my childhood home.  My father was a collector of many things….one thing I didn’t know he enjoyed collecting to cookbooks!    To my surprise I found a simple and yes Incredible Italian cookbook.   Just a little pamphlet with some really great recipes.   For several years we have been trying to find just the right Garlic Shrimp Appetizer and this book just happens to have one….so here it is with fanfare!

1/2 T chopped parsley

1/2 T red pepper flakes

1/3 C olive oil

2 T fresh lemon juice

2 to 4 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced

1 bay leaf

3/4 lb small to medium shrimp, shelled and deveined

In a large shallow skillet, over medium to high heat, cook the pepper, bay leaf and garlic in oil until garlic is golden.  Remove bay leaf.  Add shrimp and cook 3 – 4 minutes.  Transfer to serving dish, sprinkle with lemon juice and parsley.  Serve immediately.

Fortune Cookie Hidden Message

I am weird but I have saved fortunes for a very long time! And I usually like, most of them. In fact, I have several of them saved above my kitchen sink to remind me each day that some good this way comes.

* A kind word warms for three winters

* To have peace is to increase fortune and longevity.

* Relations are like investments, the more you put in, the greater the return.

* Never make the mistake of thinking that you know everything about anything.

…. Sometimes I try to find the deep meaning I’m sure is hidden in there. Surely….I’m dreaming!

 

And Then He Was 4

Summer is almost over! It happened so fast. This year hit me hard because another school year has started and this guy will be registering for Kindergarten so soon. He loves to tell us "One day I'm going to be bigger and go to a new school" and he sounds excited so I have to be excited too. Truly, I am...but it really does seem like just months ago that I brought him home from the hospital…..then he crawled for the first time….then he walked….he talked….he learned how to do so many things.   Yes...it goes by so fast.

First Day of 4’s