Back Seat Driver

Took a little drive to see my mom.  A great opportunity for Nick to practice his driving skills.  I get in the car with all three kids.  I then have to say, "Who forgot to use deoderant this morning?"  Alex says, Sure, blame the stinky one."  Nick says that he took a shower and that he couldn't put deoderant on because of Alex.  Not sure about that answer.  Not sure I want any more details, either.

We start out driving and as we are approaching a red light, from behind me (because he was not allowed to sit behind the driver) I hear, "Stop.  Stop.  STOP!!!!!" 

To which, Nick replies, "I AM STOPPING!"

We start driving and, again, from the back you hear, "The speed limit is 35 and you are going 25."  Approaching another red light and it's, "Stop.  Stop.  STOP!!!"  We start up again and you hear,  "The speed limit is 35 and you are going 30."   It continues on the expressway.  "You are going 5 miles over the speed limit!" 

At this point, I have to stop the madness.  I asked the backseat driver to chill a little.  He told me that he is just trying to be helpful.  A little side note:  The back seat driver can not drive yet.  He has a few more years to go.  It seems that he feels the need to voice his concerns on his brother's driving skills.

The back seat driver was then quiet for the rest of the trip.  Nick complained that I wasn't gripping the door handle.  I said I can tell the back seat driver to start making comments.  He said that was ok.  I think he was enjoying the quiet.  So was I.

BEWARE!

 It's the Back Seat Driver!

Do not get in the car with him! 

Memory Bag

Bella had some homework for school.  She had to bring in 3-5 objects that were tied to some memory and be able to talk about them infront of the class.  A pretty big deal for a kindergartener. 

Her picks:

A picture of her with her nutcracker she got with her grandmother when they went to see the Nutcracker
Just so you know, I tried to get her to look up when taking these pictures, but, she resisted.  I told her to pretend I was her entire class.  She said I was only one person.  She was into practicing her presentation and looking at her objects.  I just went with it.

with the puppy she got from RT on Valentine's day

she just loves dogs!

Can you tell she loves dogs?  This is a smaller version of Newton

Her memory, she says she has many with Newton.  She loves him so much

The tree cookie that she got when we went to the Arboretum

She learned how to count the rings and tell the age of a tree

(and that you can't eat the "tree cookie")

The Elvis pen from her trip to Graceland

Elvis is her favorite singer

I was proud of her doing her own homework (she picked out the items).  We did have a discussion about a rock that she was insisting be in the presentation.  She said she has no memory about the rock and that she doesn't remember where she got it but that it is important to her because of the memories.  Yea, I didn't understand that one.  The rock went and was replaced by the miniature Newton.

By the way, these memories are going to be used for their writer's workshop.  These are the items/memories tthat they will be writing about in the next couple of months.    

Sweetheart Dance

Bella and RT went to their first Sweetheart Dance.  So exciting.  Wish I could have been a fly on the wall to watch them.  I knew a little about what they were going to do (not full details).   Couldn't wait to hear every detail when they got home.

Here they are before the dance.

They are both so excited!

                                       Here is Bella showing off her new threads

So Cute!

A few activities that they did tonight?  hula hoops,

Dancing

a craft to hold their picture and, they had a few sweet treats to eat.  Bella and RT then went to Dairy Queen afterwards for another special treat!

When they got home, RT was telling me about the date.  Bella had a look that said, "I'm tired.  I just want to go to bed." 

I got her to pose with her craft, a picture holder that is holding a picture of her and RT.  So sweet!

When I tucked her in bed, I asker her if she had a cupcake (I was told someone was making cupcakes for the dance).  Bella said, No, but, Dad ate TWO!  She continued with, "Then, dad had this REAL BIG heart shaped cookie and he ate the whole thing!  And then he went back and got another one!" 

Nothing like telling on your own Dad and his sweet tooth. 

After mentioning this to RT, he said to ask Bella about the chocolate kisses she hid in her purse.  (she claims she does not know how they got there). 

  It's good to see them keeping an eye on each other's little sweet tooth.

Smiles for Seniors

This is "Turn off the TV week" at the elementary school.  That just means they have a bunch of activities planned throughout the week that you can participate in.  It also means, "TURN OFF THE TV!"  

Today's activity was called Smiles for Seniors.  The school collected donations of items that seniors (elderly) need, but, sometimes do not have the money to buy.  The kids made cards for the seniors and decorated bags for them.  They were then able to go up and fill the bag with 5 things (and their card).  What a great way to do something for someone else.  (reminded me of my Thankful post)

Bella, thankful that she is there helping

Alot of work goes into decorating cards and bags

some of the kids hard at work

bag is decorated, card is inside, time to go fill it

and place in one of the many boxes

So glad we participated in this project.

This is definitely going to bring a lot of smiles!

Yummy, salad!

I decided to make RT a salad for lunch, and, well, it looked good (at least I thought it did), so, I had to take a picture!

RT saw that I was taking a picture of his salad (obviously not the first strange thing he has seen me do).  I told him that I was going to post the picture of his salad.  The salad is whatever I grabbed out of the refrigerator.  Spinach, carrots, chick peas (garbanzo beans), sweet peppers, sunflower seeds, artichokes, provolone cheese.  While eating this salad, RT did say it was delicious. 

I usually have a salad, but, today I grilled some mushrooms and peppers and made myself a wrap.

And that's lunch!

Big Toe

Bella had a tough day today.  She was trying to move the weights from the weight bench, the ones that Alex left strewn all over the basement.  The same ones that I almost tripped on working out this morning.  She picked one up (we aren't sure what size) and accidentally dropped it on her big toe.  She walked up the stairs crying to tell me.  She wasn't crying that hard, but, it sure didn't look that good.

She laid on the couch as I iced it.  I think the pain was setting in.  I served her lunch.  The entire time she kept saying, "He should have cleaned that up!  It wouldn't have happened if he just cleaned it up!"  I told her that's why I always say to put things away when you are done using them. 

She was a trooper (the kid is tough) and went to school (insisted on taking the bus).  I wrapped the toe as best I could, to cushion it.  She came home limping a lot more, and, of course freaked when she saw that her toe was bleeding. 

She took it easy the rest of the evening.

Sorry, not my usual funny posting.  Worried about my little baby.  I know she will be alright.  I just don't like seeing her hurt.

Ghetto Van

That's what we call my van.  It got the name because we have had so many problems with the rear sliding back doors.  It has been in the shop 3 times for the same door.  What happens?  The door doesn't completely latch.  So, while driving, the door (back, passenger side) will start sliding open.  If you slam on the brake, the door slams shut.  It's fun driving down a busy street.  The door starts opening, people stare and start pointing, you wave, then slam on the brake and the door closes.  (a little side note:  the door has been fixed, again, but, the name sticks) Oh, one more thing.  When there is a door open, there is a beeping sound.  So, when we had that problem, you would hear the beeping sound the entire time you were driving.  If I called RT from the car, he could hear the beeping before I said hello.  I think that door should be painted a different color.  It was great because if someone was walking down the street, you could just slow down and they could jump in.  Very convenient.

Well, today, the ghetto van does not start.  RT took the boys to the car show and Bella and I were at home.  We were planning on going to the library and found out that we are now stranded at home.  Better at home then somewhere else, right?  At least we didn't have to walk home from the library (which is on the other side of town)  Bella decided to read to me to cheer me up because I looked like this:

I didn't really look like that.  Well, maybe I did?  Who knows?

Bella wouldn't let me record her reading.  I'm hoping she will one day.  I find it fascinating.

The rest of our day consisted of painting our nails

brushing Newton, taking Newton for a walk, playing at the park, lots and lots of laundry (I was cleaning this morning, and washed a few carpets, rags and towels and Newton's blankets), making cookies

bubble bath for Bella and Toy Story 2.  Action packed, stay at home day.  Time for bed. 

Hope we can get the ghetto van up and running soon.   

CHINESE FOOD!

I'm not sure if you remember that one from Seinfeld.  George's mother yelled that in one of the episodes when his father was talking to him, just to get George off the phone.  George would go to his parents house and eat their leftover Chinese food.  This time he goes to their house and finds out that his parent's were lying about it, just to get off the phone with him.

Made some yummy chinese food tonight.  RT made his plate and it looked really good, so I had to take a picture of it.

There's my homemade fried rice (yes, from scratch) (it's under the mound of orange chicken).  The orange chicken is Trader Joe's (can't take credit for that) and it's tasty.  And there is some asparagus.  Not sure how the asparagus goes with Chinese food, but, we had some and it had to be cooked, so I cooked it.

Looks good, doesn't it? 

It was delicious!

RT made his famous Egg Drop Soup

It's won many awards

he added mushrooms to it and it was outstanding!

mushrooms aren't normally in it, we just had some and he thought he would toss them in

I should say, he thoroughly planned this out

Here are the recipes:

Fried Rice

3 cups water

1 1/2 teasoons salt

1 1/2 cups long-grain rice

4 slices bacon, cooked and chopped

3 eggs

1/8 teaspoon pepper

3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided (I used olive oil)

2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger

8 ounces cooked pork, cut into thin strips

8 ounces cooked shrimp, shelled, deveined and coarsely chopped

8 green onions, finely chopped

1 to 2 tablespoons soy sauce

Cook rice, according to instructions.

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in wok (or large pan).  Beat eggs and pepper in small bowl.  Pour 1/3 of egg mixture into wok(pan).  Tilt wok slightly so egg covers bottom.  Cook over medium heat until eggs are set, 1-2 minutes.  Remove from wok.  Roll up omelet and cut into thin strips.  Continue process until all eggs are cooked.

Heat remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in wok over medium heat.  Add ginger and stir fry for 1 minute.  Add rice; cook and stir for 5 minutes.  Stir in eggs, bacon, pork, shrimp, onions and soy sauce.  Cook and stir until heated through.  Serves 6-8.

*I have substituted chicken for one or both of the pork/shrimp and it tastes good.  This time I used 2 cups of rice (this meal goes fast in our family, last time I didn't get to eat)

Egg Drop Soup

2 Tablespoons of cornstarch

6 cups chicken broth

2 Tablespoons of soy sauce

3 Tablespoons of vinegar (I believe he used rice vinegar this time)

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 scallion, minced

3 eggs, beaten

In large saucepan, mix cornstarch with small amount of chicken broth.  Add remaining broth and other ingredients, except eggs.  Bring to a boil and simmer until clear, stirring occaisionally.  Gradually stir in eggs, season to taste, and serve at once.  Makes about 1 1/2 quarts (can add corn, peas, carrots or mushrooms while cooking)

Let me know if you make them and how they turn out!

You had the power the whole time

I hate wearing gym shoes, unless I am working out or doing something athletic.  There.  I said it.  I feel so much better now.

Today RT, Bella and I went to the Morton Arboretum.  RT went and did his own thing while Bella and I went through the children's area.  If you are planning on doing a lot of walking, you wear the proper shoes for the occaision, right?  I used to own some hiking shoes that were normal.  Now, when I do anything that requires a lot of walking, I have to wear these REALLY WHITE gym shoes.  Did I mention that I hate wearing gym shoes?  When I wear gym shoes, especially when they are so white (they are really old, by the way, I don't think they have much traction on the bottom of them) I feel like they just jump out and scare people.

see what I mean?

showing a little skin there

the black socks probably don't help, either, but, I was wearing black shoes earlier in the day and really didn't feel like changing my socks (hey, I'm the one who has to do the laundry!)

But, hey, my feet will thank me later, when they don't ache, for wearing these shoes.  They may not recover from the reputation damage, especially with those black socks, but, at least they won't be in pain.

My daughter, on the other hand, decides that sparkly flats (that are a little too big on her) are perfect for this outing.  She can't run in them, but, she can skip (and we did a lot of skipping).  She said that they are light and airy and her feet won't get hot.  (who wants to hear their feet complaining about how hot they are)  And, nevermind that it is hard to climb on ropes and rocks.  At least they sparkle and are light and her feet won't "sweat."  (her word, not mine)

We started off our journey with Joy, the Gnome

Joy was the name of one of the founding family members

There are 13 of these gnomes hidden throughout the children's area

There were a few of these jokes

Bella and I liked another one:

What was the riddle that the little Oak tree told to the Big Oak tree?

A-corny joke

Acorn?  Oak tree, a corny joke

Ok, well, we thought it was funny

rope climbing looks a lot better with sparkly shoes

Bella started acting up, so I put her in the Dog house

It started to get a little chilly, so, we headed back inside the visitor center.  That's where we started reading about chocolate and where it comes from and how it has been used throughout the years (as currency, drinks, food, etc.)  I decided that I plan on living in one of the red highlighted regions and just living on chocolate for the rest of my life.

obviously, once in the visitor center, we now HAVE to visit the restroom.  And, yes, of course, I had to take a picture.  (where is that crazy button again?)

sung to "Row, row, row your boat"

Yes, I actually sang this outloud in the bathroom

Problem is, the water was ICE COLD!

From there, we decided to climb the tree house (just a deck around a tree)

it's a nice view

tried to get lost in the hedge maze

went back in the visitor center to warm up

called RT and waited for him to pick us up out front

Looking forward to doing this again

(hopefully in different shoes)

It's Back

Back by popular demand is my: Interesting, Funny and Cool buttons.  SO many people were begging me to put it back on the site, so, I went ahead and put it back up.  I will make sure that I run all changes to my blog through you, the reader, prior to making them.  I will make sure we take a  vote.

So, start clicking those buttons and let me know if I'm funny, cool or interesting.  (crazy is not an option)

Thrifting Finds

Hung out at the thrift store today (Salvation Army).  Well, didn't hang out there ALL day, just for a little bit.  I find it easier to go places when I don't have others with me telling me about their level of boredom.  It's not every day that I can get away and goof off on my own.  There is usually some sort of tracking device that is hidden on me, and when I want to wander off, my cell phone rings and I am guided back to reality.  Today, that device somehow malfunctioned and I was off the radar for a couple hours.  (I probably shouldn't be broadcasting this because I'm sure it will somehow make it back to those in charge and I might not get another chance to do this again)

My finds for the day:

Not a great background for my picture.  I will try harder next time.  I'm lovin' the aluminum tray.  Will probably put it on the coffee table.  With what, I don't know.  I haven't thought that far ahead.  :)  If I ever do, I'll take a picture and show you. 

Thought the patriotic bowl was cool.  That seems to be a favorite with everyone here. 

I thought the green glass would be something that everyone would fight over.  I got strange looks when I showed everyone. 

In between those two items is my favorite.  I thought this pedestal bowl was pink in the store.  I knew it was dirty because my brother called me while I was in the store and I had to put all of this stuff down (Yea, I could have gotten a cart, but, that would have been the easy way, why would I want to do that?) and I realized that this bowl was sticky.  When I got home and washed it, as you can see, it is clear.  I still love it! 

The last item is a glass jar.  My friend, Patti keeps talking about all of the cool glass jars she finds.  I'm jealous!  I had one use for this jar but I don't think it's going to work.  RT thought it should be used as a candy jar.  We don't have candy around the house, so, I think I'll put almonds in it.  Probably a little healthier than candy.

Well, that was my fun for the day.  I'm already planning my next escape.

Heart

My favorite shape.

Valentine Explosion

A small sampling of the valentines cards that Bella has been busy making these last couple of weeks

Here is a picture of our front window.

Heart Cookies

Chocolate Heart cake

(someone ate a piece after Bella frosted it pink and before I got a picture)

Daisy Valentine placemat

and my little Valentine

also can be used as a Dr. Seuss hat

I just love hearts!