Monthly Random Acts of Kindness - December

Well, I made it through the year with my monthly Random Acts of Kindness.

I found out that I do quite a bit of Random Kindness Acts every day.  It was hard to keep track of them and write about them every month.

Here is my update for December.  My monthly Random Acts of Kindness.

As I said in my January post, it's pretty easy to reach a goal of one random act of kindness a month.  Especially if you look at all of the little things that you do.  This is a summary of some of the kind things that I have done this month.

Gave the customer in front of me 5 or 6 coupons for her order
let people ahead of me in line
Greeting people on the paths during my walks
Helping customers pick out gifts for their grandchildren
help carry packages to customer's car
Help customers save money on their purchase (at work)


How did your list for Random Acts of Kindness look this year?

Looking for ideas for Random Acts of Kindness?  Check out this post here.

The Best Hiding Place

We all hide things.  (don't we?)

Everyone has that special spot in their home where they hide things.  Maybe it's gifts for the kids for Christmas or a birthday.  Maybe it's chocolates from your husband and kids.  Not that I would ever do that.....  

We have a couple of spots where we hide gifts for our kids.  I can't give out the exact location in case one of them decides to read this blog.  I think two of them already know one of our hiding spots.  (it's locked, so they can't go inside).  I have several other places around the house where I hide things.  The problem is when I forget where I put the gifts.  That's when I can be seen tearing the house apart.

RT made an interesting point the other day.  He said that we should start using the dishwasher as a hiding spot.  You see, we think the kids are afraid of the dishwasher.  They never put their dirty dishes in it.  Instead, they leave their dishes on top of the counter.  They don't bother opening the dishwasher to check and see if it is full or if there are dirty or clean dishes inside.  Which makes the dishwasher the perfect hiding place.  The kids would never think to look in there!

Do you have a good hiding place for your secret gifts / chocolate stash?*

*don't worry, I won't tell anyone about the secret chocolate hiding place.

**By the way, I know where RT's secret chocolate stash is hidden.

Santa Visit

Every year we visit Santa Claus at one of his remote locations.  It's a family tradition.  One that, believe it or not, everyone attends.

I think it's really cool how both Nick and Alex go along and get their picture taken with Santa Claus.  I don't know too may teenagers that would be seen taking a picture with Santa.

When I told the boys that we would be visiting Santa they both said OK.  You would expect an eye roll or, "Do I have to go?"  I didn't get any of that.  I told them that it's for their sister.  That's all they needed to hear.

I'm really proud how they approach the Santa visit (asking in front of Bella "When are we going to visit Santa?) and making a list and saying that they are going to ask Santa for certain items.

I'm afraid this might be our last year with Santa.  I'm trying to enjoy every last minute.

Merry Christmas!

The Bad Receiver

This is an appropriate time of year for me to write this post.  Lots of gift giving going on this month.  Lots of gifts being delivered from the North Pole on Christmas, too.

This holiday, RT has told me that the kids put a lot of thought into their gifts for me.  He went on to say that I need to be a "better receiver."

I'm not sure where to start, so I guess I'll just start at the beginning.

Hi.  I'm Fontaine and I'm a bad receiver when it comes to getting gifts.  I don't know when this started. I'm very happy when I get a gift.  I show appreciation.  I teach my children to appreciate all the gifts that they receive.  Also that the person took time to pick out a special gift just for them.  And, that they should respond by being kind, grateful and thankful.  I think my downfall is feeling that the person shouldn't have gone to all that trouble.

RT will tell you that I return everything he buys me.  He jokes that he is going to buy me something really expensive, return it and give me the return receipt just to save me the trouble.

Maybe I think too much as a receiver.

Maybe I just need to live in the moment that the giver is creating and accept the gift.

Maybe I should just stop being a bad gift receiver.

Ugly Christmas Sweater Felt Banner

Found the idea here to make Ugly Christmas Sweaters out of felt.

Bella and I decided that we were going to make some ugly Christmas Sweaters and create a banner and hang them every year.  We figure we can decorate a couple felt sweaters each year and add to our collection.

Materials Needed:
Paper
pencil
scissors
felt
glue
hot glue gun
buttons, sequins, stickers, fabric paint, glitter glue, rick rack, pom poms, bells, string, etc.
imagination

It was easy to do.

Draw a template for your sweater.  It's really easy if you fold your piece of paper in half and draw one side of the sweater.  Cut it out and you are ready to go!

Trace the sweater template onto your felt, cut it out and Decorate!

These can be hung on twine with small clothes pins and used as a Christmas banner.

Looking forward to making more next year to add to our collection!

My Phone

If you read this post, then you have a little background on my phone.

Currently, my phone has a cracked face and the case is being held together by two rubber bands.

The other night it was an open class for Bella's dance class.  That's where the parents get to watch the class and we get a special performance of their Christmas dance.  There are only five or six kids in the class.  During this class, the teacher announced the costume that they will wear for their recital in May.  The students did not remember the costume she chose, so the teacher told them to visit the website when they get home.

So, I decide to whip out my trusty phone and look up the website.

You know where this is heading.

The teacher comes over and starts flipping through the website on my phone and pulls up the costume (it's cute).  The teacher then takes my phone and shows the class the costume and then walks around showing the parents.

All the while, holding my phone, for all to see.

I relayed the story to RT and mentioned that I was a little embarrassed.  He said, "So, now you'll get a new phone?"  I said, "Probably not."

Pippen

Our next door neighbor had some work done on they outside of their house.  The workers put up some scaffolding so they can get to and work on the chimney.  Of course this is on the side of our house that has a door where we let Pippen out in the morning.

The first day I let Pippen out, he freaked out and escaped out the front gate and was in the middle of the street.  I brought him in and let him out the back door.  Unfortunately, he has to go down the deck stairs which are on the side of the scaffolding.

I could not have the blinds on the door open while Pippen was in the laundry room.  In fact, one morning I had to sit and pet him while he ate his food.  Yea.  The things you do for your dog.

The same neighbors had their roof done (no scaffolding) right after the chimney work.

Poor Pippen.  Unable to do his business in his own yard because he saw the men walking on the neighbor's roof.

I ended up walking Pippen before work for several days.  I think he enjoyed it and would like it to continue.  Unfortunately, there isn't enough time (plus he does go a little crazy on the leash when other dogs are near).

RT said that in the future all of our neighbors will have to get approval from us (and Pippen) if they decided to get work done on their house.

Sweatpants

I'm not much of a sweat pants person.  I do own a couple of pairs, but they are for workout purposes only.

One of the pairs was big when I bought them.  I think I was ashamed that I was buying them and just picked up any size.  Over time they seem to have gotten bigger.  In fact, they don't stay up.  I would like to say that I lost a bunch of weight, but, the pants have also increased in length, which means I have gotten shorter over the years.

I have dealt with this problem pair of sweatpants for quite some time.  It's easier when I can put the excess length into my sock (when I go walking) and remember to pull my pants up every so often.  I have even started to tuck my sweat shirt in so they stay up (sort of).

The other day I put them on and decided I had enough of the falling down and walking on the excess material at the bottom of my legs.  I told RT that I might have to invest in a new pair.

His response?

"Grab a pair of scissors and make them into shorts!"

I told him the kids already have one parent embarrassing them with cut off sweat shorts.  They don't need both parents in bad cut off sweat shorts.

*need more info on RT's sweat shorts?  Click here.

Ugly Christmas Sweater

I had to make another Ugly Christmas Sweater.  This one was for Alex.  He needed it for school.  I wasn't given much time to make it (I got a text in the morning, but, I had to work all day).

Making an Ugly Christmas Sweater is pretty easy.  Find a sweater and sew on some ornaments or garland.  Maybe some pom poms or bows.  You can cut out trees or snowmen from felt.

We picked out a sweater and some Christmas items to sew on and this is what happened.

Need more inspiration?  Check out last year's Ugly Christmas Sweater!

The Tooth Fairy

So, the third and final tooth fell out on Friday.  Bella went to sleep late Friday night.  And, you guessed it.  The Tooth Fairy was unable to visit that night.

RT and I went to a Christmas party on Saturday night.  I found out that the Tooth Fairy didn't show up on Saturday.

What's going on in the tooth world that makes the Tooth Fairy miss her visits on the first night of losing a tooth?  Is she that busy?  Does she miss visiting other kids?

I guess we will never know the truth.

I am happy to report that the Tooth Fairy did finally visit Sunday night.

Success!

Hiking Gloves

Not just any hiking gloves.  RT's hiking gloves.  And they went missing.  Or, according to RT, "Somebody stole them."

Because we all know that this fictitious "somebody" is out to get RT.  "Somebody" hangs around, figures out what RT is attached to then finds the perfect opportunity to steal it from him.

Hmm.... A truckload of diamonds or RT's hiking gloves?  Or what about RT's swim goggles?  Or maybe his phone?

It's obvious we don't have anything of value.

Wait.  Scratch that.  Lets start again.

It's obvious I don't have anything of value (Hey! What about my cracked phone held together by rubber bands?).  This "somebody" is only after RT's cool, valuable stuff.

 RT found his hiking gloves.  They were in the pocket of the vest he wore when we went hiking.  I'm surprised that "somebody" didn't take the vest instead?

Of course, the extra key to RT's car is missing. "Somebody" is really out to get him. 

You would think that  "somebody" would steal RT's cutoff sweat shorts.  I know they are of value to RT.  I also know that the rest of RT's family would feel a sense of relief and joy devastation knowing the shorts were gone and hope they never return.

*To find out more about "The Shorts," click here.

The Dog. Also known as, Pippen.

As you know, I work retail.  Last Friday (also known as Black Friday), I had to work.  I had to be at work early (we opened at 8am) and worked until 4pm.  Before I left (well, the night before) I told everyone that I would not be able to take care of Pippen before I went to work.

Normally I take care of the dog.  I let him out in the morning and feed him...and let him out again, because he refuses to do his business the first time because he's afraid he might miss me calling him in to eat.

When we rescued Pippen, Alex and Bella told me that I wouldn't have to do anything dog related.  Just let him out during the day while they were at school.

We can all see how that turned out.

I believe I am the primary caretaker of the dog.  I feed him, let him out, brush him, clean up after him, walk him, let him outside and bring him in and bathe him.  

When I came home form work, Pippen was acting a little odd (stranger than usual).  I asked if anyone fed the dog.  All I got was blank looks.  When pressed further the answer I was given, "We thought you fed him.  You never told us to feed him."

I'm just letting you know that if anything happens to me to let my family know that they have to feed the dog.

Thanks for your help.

My scary Christmas tree

This is what happens when you let your children put up your artificial Christmas tree.

Give them a creative inch and they take an artistic mile. 

Yes.  It's upside down.

Simple Meals - Girl Scout Junior Badge

Steps:

1.  Step up your skills with a pro
2.  Whip up a great breakfast
3.  Fix a healthy lunch or dinner
4.  Create a delicious dessert
5.  Make your own meal

We decided to enroll in a park district class for this badge.  The neighboring town's park district has a class that is designed to complete this badge.  It was a little costly (about $15 per girl).  We decided that our troop would pay half and asked the parents for the other half.  We don't normally do this, but with 15 girls in our troop we thought it was a little too many to have in one of our kitchens.  Besides, we do try to do our best saving our money on the other badges.  Spending a little money on this badge shouldn't hurt us in the long run.

The girls started out making the dessert. Baked apples with Crumb Topping.

Once the apples were prepared, the girls moved on to make their Sandwich Bag Omelets.  The girls were able to cook these and eat these before moving onto the main course, Turkey Tacos.

The girls all got a chance to mix, stir, prepare each menu item.  They even got a copy of the recipes so they can try making them at home.

In case you do not have a program with your park district, here are the recipes that our troop made for our Simple Meals Badge.


Baked Apples with Crumb Topping

2 apples (Fuji, McIntosh or Granny Smith)
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup strawberry jam or preserves
2 Tbsp all purpose flour
3 Tbsp butter, cold and diced
3 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 cup oats, uncooked
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
Pinch salt

Directions:
Preheat oven 350 degrees F.

Cut each apple in half and scoop out the core on both sides.  (Using an apple corer would be easier).  Rub exposed apple flesh with lemon juice.  Put 1Tbsp jam/preserves into each hole.

Topping:  In small bowl combine flour, butter, brown sugar, oats, cinnamon and salt.  Press this mixture on top of each apple and cover with jam.  Place in baking dish filled with 1/4" of water.  Bake until top is golden brown and apple is tender, about 35-40 minutes.



Sandwich Bag Omelets

2-3 re-sealable plastic freezer  bags (Ziploc brand is best for this project)*
Salt and pepper
egg(s)  (depends on how many you plan on making)

Optional add ins:
shredded cheese
cooked and crumbled bacon
cooked and crumbled sausage
diced ham
chopped bell peppers
chopped spinach
diced onion
diced tomato
sauteed sliced mushrooms
sliced black olives

Directions:

Crack your egg inside the zip lock bag and scramble using a fork (we used plastic forks).  Add desired add ins and seal bag.

Drop bag into pot of boiling water for 5-8 minutes.  Use tongs to remove bags and dry off.

Allow a few minutes for bags to cool before handling.  Open bags and eat (or put onto a plate).

These are great for breakfasts on the go.

*I asked about the BPA's in the plastic bags and apparently Ziploc brand is best to use and nothing bad will leak out onto your food.   We were also told not to use store brands or off brands.  Not guaranteed that they will stay closed or leak.

Turkey Tacos

2 Tbsp oil
1 medium onion, chopped (1 cup)
2 cloves of garlic, minced
jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped (optional)
1 1/2 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
Kosher salt and pepper
3/4 cup diced canned tomatoes
1 lb ground turkey
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
Oil, for frying
12  5" flour tortillas

Toppings:
lettuce, thinly sliced
3 ripe medium tomatoes, diced
avocado, diced
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese
sour cream

Directions:

Put oil, onions, garlic, jalapeño and spices in medium skillet.  Season with salt an cook until tender.

Increase heat and add tomatoes and boil to thicken (about 2 minutes).  Stir in the turkey and chicken broth, adjust the heat so the mixture simmers and cook until turkey is cooked through and the mixture thickens but is not too dry (about 12 minutes).  Stir in cilantro and season with salt and pepper.   Serve with the toppings.

Advent Calendar. Count down to Christmas.

We have a cloth Advent Calendar that I put up at the beginning of the season.  I bought it years ago (I think when Nick was little).  It's very simple.  Each day is stitched onto a mitten.  The mitten is attached to a larger piece of cloth and there is a crescent moon on a string that you move each day.

Everything went smoothly until Alex was old enough to move the moon.  I would let Nick move it, then move it back and let Alex move it.  Or we would have the boys take turns moving the moon (even/odd days).

Things got crazy when Bella came along.  Nothing like all three kids fighting over who gets to move the moon on the Advent Calendar.

This year I thought we were past all the fighting over the Advent Calendar.  I figured since Bella is the youngest and believes in Santa, she would be the only one interested in moving the moon.

On Monday night, Alex told me that he gets to move the moon since he's the first one up in the morning (he catches the bus at 6:30 am).

No one noticed the first day.

Nick was upset the second day.  He said it was his birthday and he should be the one moving the moon that day.

Bella complained that she never gets to move the moon.  She decided to take action.

Things heated up on Day 3.

That's duct tape covering the mitten

So, yea, I guess you could say that our Advent Calendar / Christmas Countdown is off to a normal good start.

The Cupcake Tradition

I believe I have mentioned it before about our birthday tradition.  When I make a cake for the kids birthday, I make an extra cupcake and bring that to them in the morning.  I sing happy birthday to them and let them make a wish and blow out the candle.  It's a special time that I get with them first thing on their birthday.  The birthday child then gets to eat the cupcake for breakfast.

I mention this because today is Nick's birthday.  I made him a cake along with a cupcake.  I put a little post it note on the cupcake plate that read:  Do not touch!  This is Nick's birthday cupcake!

I'm pretty famous around here for my notes.  They are usually very loving notes that say sweet things like,

"Don't touch this!"
"This is not for you!"
"Stay away!"
"Hands off!"

And, of course, my most loving note that I put on things:

"NO!"

You see, last year, I made an extra cupcake and RT decided to eat it.  When I asked about it, he said he saw the cupcake there and ate it.  I told him that it was Nick's cupcake for his birthday.  He felt bad about eating it.  Nick was OK with what happened and the rest of the birthday went without problems.

RT saw the note this year and said, "Oh, yeah, didn't I eat his cupcake last year?"

Monthly Random Acts of Kindness - November

Here is my update for November.  My monthly Random Acts of Kindness.

As I said in my January post, it's pretty easy to reach a goal of one random act of kindness a month.  Especially if you look at all of the little things that you do.  This is a summary of some of the kind things that I have done this month.

Raked  my neighbors leaves
let people ahead of me in line
Greeting people on the paths during my walks
Helping a customer pick out gifts for her grandchildren
help carry packages to customer's car
Made cupcakes for neighbor for his birthday

How did your list for Random Acts of Kindness look this month?

Looking for ideas for Random Acts of Kindness?  Check out this post here.

Phone

This isn't about just any phone, it's about my cell phone.

I've had my cell phone for 3 or 4 years now.  Yea, it's old, but it still works!  If you must know, it's an IPhone 4.  (I'm a few models behind the times)  It's in a pink Otterbox (more on that in a moment).

For those of you who don't know, the "4" only has 8GB of storage so I can't have too many apps on my phone.  In fact, I can't even update to IOS 7.  Yea, I know they have moved past 7 and are on 8 or 9  (I think).  I'm still trying to figure out how to get 7 on my phone.  I don't think it's going to happen, but, I won't give up trying.  Some apps require at least 8.  I guess I'm missing out on some of the new stuff.

So, my phone case.....well, it was/is an Otterbox.  The one that has the rubber around it (I'm a professional phone dropper).  Well, mine HAD the rubber on it, but, it kind of wore off.  At one point I had a rubber band around it to keep it on (everyone who saw it was jealous), but, then I just gave up and threw it out.  The hard pink case is still hanging in there (a little cracked from all of the phone dropping that I do).  Let's just say that it doesn't look pretty.

In fact, my family keeps telling me that it's time to get a new phone.  I have been hearing this for over a year.  A lot more, lately.  Probably because I complain that it's really hard to turn my phone on and off (again, due to the phone dropping, I'm sure).  I have figured out that it's easy to turn my phone on by plugging it into the charger.  Turning it off is another story.  If I can't turn it off, I just mute it.  I eventually get it to shut completely off every other day (or every third day).

The other day at work, I had to use my phone.  I was working with the manager and we were trying to restock shelves.  I was in the back pulling the inventory off the shelves.  I had my phone on the shelf and I went to move and my phone went crashing onto the concrete floor.  Yep.  You guessed it.  Cracked the face of the phone.  I put the case back together and held it together with rubber bands.

I got together with my family the next day and was asked about my phone.  I pulled it out and said, it works!  Everyone got a good laugh about the rubber bands (I explained that they had to be there).  Then they all went to great lengths telling me about all of the features of the new phones and that I just need to get one.

My brother told me about an app that I have to get.  I explained that I would love to, but, if its a new app I probably don't have the software to support it.  

RT said I'm now just being stubborn and that I will keep the phone forever.  I'm not a quitter.  I think I have to just to prove a point.

I'm not sure what that point is, but, I'm going to prove it.

In the meantime, I'm sure my family has set up a fundraiser for me for a new phone (and for psychological help for being so attached to my old phone).

The other night, I woke up at 3 am out of a dead sleep and I said to RT (who I assumed was not sleeping), "Did you pull your car into the driveway?"  He replied, "That's what you think about in the middle of the night?" 

 I wasn't dreaming about it. I admit that it's a little odd, but in my defense, I left the car on the street so my Mom wouldn't have to walk that far (to our door) when she came over. 

i got up to look and the car was in the driveway. Nick saved the day. 

This morning RT asked me how I slept and I said, "I was up at 3."  He said, "Thinking about the car in the driveway?"

Butterfly Birthday Bash Late Over

I posted about the late over invitations here.

This party was a late over birthday for a 10 year old girl.

Once the girls started arriving, I had them start decorating a pillow case.  I had a peace sign, a butterfly and a dragonfly stamp along with fabric paint and foam paint brushes.  I decided the color for each stamp so I didn't have to keep washing and drying the stamps.  This made things go a little smoother.  :)  I let the girls use the paint (it's in a squirt bottle) and write their names on their pillow.  Some went a little crazy and squirted a little too heavily (it just made it a little more difficult for their parents at pickup.

Next we played a game called pass the present.  I used two different color wrapping papers and wrapped a little surprise for them.  When the music stopped, whoever had the present got to unwrap one layer of wrapping paper.  The present was a small sheet of tattoos.  My niece was helping so she was tatting while the rest of the girls played the game.

We then had pizza and cake.

Instead of cakes, we made cupcakes.  Well, Bella made them.  She used green frosting as the base, white chocolate covered pretzels as the wings and M&M's as the body.  She wanted Hello Kitty on her butterfly.

We moved on to play another game called Move to the Right.  I found this game idea here.  This turned out to be a blast!  You have a list that you read from, all of the girls are sitting on the floor in a circle.  When you read off a line:  Move over one spot if you like Christmas.  If someone doesn't move (they don't like Christmas?) then you sit on their lap.  It gets to a point where there are A LOT of girls sitting on one girls lap.  This time that person was my niece, ha ha!

I gave each girl a composition notebook and let them use duct tape to decorate their books.  We peeled the top layer of the book off so it wouldn't show through when the tape was applied.  The girls had so much fun doing this that they just wanted to write in their notebooks!  I let them take their time with their note books.

We moved onto freeze dance and the limbo.  Both fun activities for them to do and a way to burn off some of their extra energy.

They started to wind down a bit and we put in the movie (Bella's choice was, "Into the Woods."  Other ideas?  Princess Bride, Maleficent, Despicable Me, Ella Enchanted, Cinderella.  They had popcorn, pretzels and gold fish crackers (along with bottled water) while watching the movie.

The goody bag had lotion (Butterfly Flower from Bath and Body Works), hair ties, erasers (small pack that had butterfly, dragonfly, lady bug and bumble bee).

Girl Scout Junior Meeting - Thanksgiving Craft Pine Cone Turkey

Better late than never, right?

We started our meeting off writing Thank You letters to the Mayor.  Our last meeting was a tour of the Village Hall for our Inside Government Patch.

We did our Pledge, Promise, Law and Attendance and then we started our craft, Pine Cone Turkeys.

Supplies Needed:
Pine cones*
orange pipe cleaners, cut in half
orange foam, cut into small squares
red felt, small rectangle
2 pom poms
google eyes
feathers (we used five-six per pine cone)
glue
scissors
hot glue gun (to be used by Leader)

*pine cones are fun to collect when you go on a hike.  This gives the girls something to look for and you can use them in future crafts.

We tried to have the girls do some of this on  their own but we realized that some of the items would not stick to the pine cone with regular craft glue.  Therefore, the hot glue guns were brought out and warmed up.

We handed out the supplies and told the girls to cut out a beak from the orange foam.  I already cut the gobbler out for them.  It really isn't difficult for them to do, just cut it uneven (and rounded).

The girls then glued the google eyes onto the pom poms.  We used the hot glue gun to glue the pom poms onto the pine cone.  (The glue will work for the rest...but some of the girls wanted theirs hot glued to make sure it stayed all together)

We then glued the feathers into the back of the pine cone (trying to make sure that it fans out like a turkey).

We twisted the orange pipe cleaners  to make legs.  They can either be glued on or twisted onto the bottom of the pine cone (I think we just twisted them).

And you're done.  Believe it or not, this did take awhile.  There were only two of us leaders with two glue guns.  The girls were patient and had a blast making the turkeys.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I was in the kitchen baking pies (see yesterday's post).  When I FINALLY finished I decided to whip up a batch of Home made Lotion.  I got to the part where I whipped it up using my blender and I stopped, leaving it on the kitchen counter.  I had to go upstairs and get my empty glass jars.  When I came back into the kitchen, I see RT licking his fingers.  I said, I hope you didn't lick that, it's my lotion.  He made a face, ran to the sink and started rinsing his mouth out.  RT thought it was a frosting for the pies that I had made earlier.  I told him that he would live...it's just natural butters and oils.  < I think I would rather lick this lotion than a store bought lotion.

I did tell him that if he liked it, I could whip up a separate batch just for him.

Pie Crust Recipe

You can't make pie without a crust!

I posted a recipe the other day on Home made Pumpkin Pie and thought I should post a pie crust recipe.  This is my go to pie crust recipe taken from the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook.

Pastry for Single Crust Pie

1 1/4 cups flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup shortening*
3-4 Tbsp cold water

Mix flour and salt together in a bowl.  Cut in shortening till pieces are the size of small peas.
Sprinkle 1 TBSP of water over part of the mixture;  gently toss with a fork.  Push to side of bowl and repeat till all is moistened.  Form dough into a ball.
On a lightly floured surface, flatten dough with hands.  Roll dough from center to edges, forming a circle about 12" in diameter.  Wrap pastry around rolling pin.  Unroll onto a 9" pie plate.
Trim to 1/2" beyond edge of pie plate; fold under extra pastry.  Bake as directed in recipe.

*I use Coconut oil.

Homemade Pumpkin Pie from a regular Pumpkin

You're probably wondering, "Why?"

We had an extra pumpkin this year.  I bought three pumpkins and only two were carved.  The leftover pumpkin was large, and I thought, "Why not?"  I would hate to see it go to waste.  

I found a recipe on how to cook a regular carving pumpkin HERE and thought I would give it a try.  I love pumpkin pie, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin...OK, let's just say, I love pumpkin. 

I think the most time consuming part was removing the seeds and scraping the pumpkin.  Well, it wasn't that bad.  I cut the pumpkin open, which made it easier to remove the seeds.  Waiting for the pumpkin to cook also took awhile.  I would recommend having another chore to do while waiting for the pumpkin to cook.

Click on the link to get instructions on how to cook down your pumpkin.

I decided to clean out my pumpkin and chop it into pieces and pop it into some boiling water.  This method took awhile but it allowed me some time to let the cooked pieces cool a bit before removing the skin so I didn't burn my fingers off.   Once the outer skin was off I put it in a strainer (colander?) and pressed out some of the water.  From there I took the cooked pumpkin and put it in the food processor.   After awhile, I realized that this might be an all day project.  I mean, if you are going to go through all of the trouble to cook down a pumpkin, you have to make pumpkin pie.  Looking at all of the cooked pumpkin I realized I would have to make at least two pumpkin pies and still have enough pumpkin left over to make two more pies.

Here is the Pumpkin Pie recipe:

1 cup sugar

1.5 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp ground allspice

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp salt

3 large eggs

3 cups cooked pumpkin

1 12oz can evaporated milk

Mix together and pour into pie crust. (I make a home made pie crust)

Bake for 15 minutes at 450 degrees F.

Bake an additional 50-60 minutes at 350 degrees F.

*************************************

I do have to say that this was an all day project.  It really makes me appreciate canned pumpkin..and the fact that I don't live in the 1800's and have to stand around the stove all day making lunch/dinner. Although it was time consuming, I have to admit that it was delicious!  I made two pies and there was one and a quarter pies left after a few hours.  I think it was a hit!  Plus, I have two bags of extra pumpkin in the freezer so I can make two more pies!

Need a crust recipe for your pumpkin pie?  Check out this Pie Crust recipe and this Graham Cracker Crust recipe.

Have you ever cooked a pumpkin down and made pumpkin pie?

Tooth Fairy

Score another point for the Tooth Fairy!

Bella had another tooth fall out and the Tooth Fairy remembered to visit!

Two teeth down and one to go!  She's got this!

Inside Government : Girl Scout Junior Badge

Steps:
1.  Decide what being an active citizen means to you
2.  Go inside government
3.  Look into laws
4.  Report on the issues
5.  Get involved in government


We broke this badge up into two meetings.  Our meetings are one hour long with no snack.

Our first meeting we talked about laws and what laws affected them on their way to the meeting.  Did they have to drive at a certain speed?  Were there traffic lights or stop signs that they had to obey?  We then talked a little about some of the wacky laws that are on the books.  There are a few listed in the Girl Scout Junior Manual.  I did a little research online and found a few more silly laws to share with the girls.

We then told the girls that we would be getting a tour of city hall by our mayor.  We asked the girls to come up with a question for the mayor.  We had them write the question on a note card and went through them so we did not have a duplicate question.  We collected the cards so we would have them for our tour.

During our tour we were going to have a mock government meeting.  The girls were divided into two groups and had to come up with valid points for their topic.  The topic was:  Homework vs. No Homework.  We had the girls write down their points on a card and collected them for their presentation in front of the mayor.


Meeting #2

We went on a tour of our town's city hall with the Mayor as our tour guide.  He gave the girls some information on what the day to day is like for our village, including the duties of a Mayor.  The tour of our village hall included safety features that were added (bullet proof glass, emergency button in the board room, etc.).  The Mayor had fascinating information on the population of our town, the large corporations that are based here and some of the odd laws that the town had on the books.  The girls were able to ask the Mayor the question that they prepared at the last meeting.  The Mayor had us run a mock government meeting.  Our topic was extending the school year to all year school.  He had half of the girls vote for all round school while the other half voted against.  The town clerk (one of our girls) counted the votes and said it was a tie.  The Village Attorney (one of our girls) called for the Mayor (one of our girls) to make a decision.   The Mayor told the acting Mayor how to make her decision by talking about both sides and then making the decision.  He also said that when making these decisions you have your friends (the people that you made happy with your decision) and the people that are unhappy with your decision.

I think it turned out to be a very informative tour.  Glad we did it.

The Tooth Fairy

I'm glad I gave the Tooth Fairy another chance.

Believe it or not, she visited on the first night (the night the tooth fell out).   I don't know how she did it but she pulled through.

A big high five to the Tooth Fairy!

Just a three more teeth to go.

The Tooth Fairy can do it.   I know she can!

Does anyone else have a collection of glass jars under their kitchen sink?

Beware of the Dog

I guess I should start out by saying, Pippen is not very fond of small dogs.  He just doesn't like them.  If he could, he would eat them (I think?).  He is also very territorial.  We have a fenced in yard and anyone that comes within 50 feet of the fence makes him go crazy.

We don't have sidewalks in our neighborhood.  We have trails that go behind the houses.  Some will go along the side of a house and cross the street.  They are all connected.  It's great with kids.  They can ride their bike in the back of the house and be safe.

Anyway....We have a trail behind and to the side of our house.  The trail is about 5 feet from our fence so you can safely walk your dog by our house and not be attacked by Pippen.

Every day this couple walks by our house.  The husband walks two dogs while the wife walks one (small dog).  < (key information)  And, everyday  this woman walks her little dog right up to the fence, knowing full well that Pippen will go insane.  Pippen runs back and forth barking and doing his snapping turtle routine, wanting to bite the dog.

This whole routine started the beginning of the summer.  The first time (and every time after) I went out and called Pippen off.  I explained that he is very territorial and that he does not like small dogs.

So, what happens?  They walk by every day and the woman has to bring her dog up to the fence.  The husband tries to tell her to stop and keep going, but she insists on leaving the dog by the fence.  All of this makes Pippen go crazy and me?  I have to come out and call Pippen off.

Every day.

So....the other day I went out to throw something in the garbage can.  I started talking to my neighbor.  Pippen came over and sat down.  All of a sudden, Pippen jumps up and runs to the back of the fence and goes crazy.  I look over and there is the husband with two dogs, trying to help the woman get a hold of the little dog that she is holding.  She refuses his help and continues to stand there keeping her dog right by the fence.  I end up running over and holding Pippen by the harness and calming him down.  I was "assuming" she would then take her dog and move on.  Instead she said, "He came out of no where!  I didn't know he was in the yard."  (another line she likes to use)  I smiled and said, he doesn't like small dogs and he is very territorial.  She just stood there.  I finally told Pippen to run upstairs on the deck (he listened).  I gave her a look and walked away.

My neighbor said, "She just stood there.  Why didn't she move?"  I said, "This happens every day.  She continues to taunt Pippen with her dog."

Not sure what else I can do, except, maybe suggest she has her head examined.

Any thoughts?

Daylight Savings Time

Alex overslept again this morning. I figured something was up when I didn't hear the door open/close at 6:30am.  I went to check on him and he thought it was 5:30am. When I told him the correct time he said that his clock must have adjusted for Daylight Savings Time.  Yes. He said his clock adjusts itself automatically.  It was the clock's fault. 

I told him he used that excuse once and can't use it again until next year. 

This might sting a little....

A few posts ago, I mentioned my accident tendencies.  Dog bites and burring my hand and arm with hot items from the oven.

When I tended to my burns (and bite) I cleaned the wounds with peroxide.  Boy was I surprised at the sting it caused......OUCH!   (yes, I screamed)

I looked up and there was Bella.  All she said was, "I told you it hurts!"

I have always cleaned the kid's wounds with peroxide.  They would ask, "Is it going to hurt?"  Me:  "No."  They would then complain that it hurts and I would shrug it off.  Me:  "It doesn't hurt that bad!"

Boy was I wrong!

I guess from now on I'm going to have to change what I say when tending to some one's burn/scrape/bite to, "This might sting a little."

Butterfly Birthday Bash - Invitation

I finally get to throw a Butterfly Birthday!

If you are a fan of Fancy Nancy, you will remember that Nancy went to:  Brie's Butterfly Birthday.  Every time we read this book I would tell Bella that she should have a butterfly birthday party.  Guess what?  The day has come for.....

Bella's Butterfly Birthday Bash!

It all starts with the invitations.

I free handed a butterfly and used that as the background (pink paper, of course).  Bella's party is a late over, so we asked the guests to wear comfy clothes (pajamas, slippers) and bring along a pillow and stuffed animal.  We also mentioned that we were having pizza and cake.  Don't forget to add the location and RSVP info!

(there is a hole at the top because Bella put this on my bulletin board)

Homemade Giardiniera

You read that correctly.

Homemade Giardiniera.

What to do with all of those jalapeño peppers that you grew in your garden?  Make Pickled Jalapeños and make giardiniera, of course.  It's a lot easier than you think!  You can search online for a video how to or just trust me on this one and start making a batch for yourself.

I have all of these jalapeño peppers from my garden so I had to try my hand at giardiniera!

Here is the recipe:

Homemade Giardiniera

4 jalapeno peppers, sliced* 

1 red peppers, diced 

1 green peppers, diced 

1 large carrot, chopped 

1 medium onion, chopped 

1/2 cup cauliflower, cut into small florets 

1- 2 celery stalk, diced 

1/2 cup salt

Cold water

*you can take seeds out to make it milder

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped 

2 teaspoons dried oregano 

1 teaspoon black peppers 

1 cup white vinegar 

1 cup olive oil 

In a bowl combine jalapeños, peppers, carrot, onion, cauliflower and celery.   Add Salt and enough cold water to cover mixture.  Mix well.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The next day:

Rinse the vegetables thoroughly.

Add the garlic, oregano and black peppers into the bowl.

Stir in vinegar and olive oil and combine for the dressing.  Mix thoroughly.

I put it in a clean glass jar (recycle a glass jar or you can go crazy and purchase a ball canning jar).  The giardiniera can be canned (did that make sense?).  Our supply didn't last very long (Hey!  We're from Chicago!).  Serve on beef sandwiches, pizza, salad or on my famous pasta salad.

Enjoy!

Monthly Random Acts of Kindness - October

Here is my update for October.  My monthly Random Acts of Kindness.

As I said in my January post, it's pretty easy to reach a goal of one random  act of kindness a month.  Especially if you look at all of the little things that you do.  This is a summary of the kind things that I have done this month.

Gave away some produce from my garden
let people ahead of me in line*

Gave a quarter to someone for a cart
Greeting people on the paths during my walks
Read books to kids on Star Wars Read Day
Saying hi to people in the car next to me

*I let a guy ahead of me at the grocery store and he must have thanked me a half dozen times.

How did your list for Random Acts of Kindness look this month?

Looking for ideas for Random Acts of Kindness?  Check out this post here. 

Accident Prone

Lately I have had a long run of accidents.  We aren't talking car accidents.  Just small, little situations where getting hurt is involved.

Lets start off with getting bit by the dog.  Yes.  Pippen bit me.  It wasn't his fault.  I don't think he realizes he bit me.  I brought him to the bus stop with me.  We are trying to work on his social skills...he gets a little crazy when around other dogs.   It's not a good crazy, more like a psycho attack dog crazy.  Anyway, Pippen was being "OK" when two other dogs approached the bus stop.  I made him lay down.  All was well until the two dogs decided to bark viciously at him.  I went to hold his snout and, he moved, my finger went between his teeth as he continued to bark.   Ouch!  No, I didn't get upset with him.  Like I said, he had no clue.  I should know better (the little rascal!).  This happened a couple of weeks ago and my finger is still sore.

A couple of days later, as I was making cookies, I took the last cookie sheet out of the oven and placed it on the counter and somehow burned the inside of my arm.  I did a good job.  It got infected. It's getting better now but, my arm still hurts.

When I went to check on dinner in the oven last night I burned the top of my hand.  I should have pulled the pan out of the oven, but, somehow spaced out and just put my hand in there to check it.  Yea, I guess I'm not that smart.

Today at work I was checking in boxes and got a paper cut (cardboard box cut?) on my hand.

I think my plan is to stay away from hot pans and sharp objects for a little while.

Juniors: Juliette Gordon Lowe Birthday Party

As you fellow Girl Scout's know, Juliette Gordon Lowe (the founder of Girl Scouts) was born on October 31.  For our Junior Girl Scout Meeting, we decided to have a little birthday/Halloween celebration.  We let the girls wear their Halloween costumes.  This meeting happened to take place on a Friday, the day of their Halloween party at school, so, they were already dressed.  :)

When the girls came in, we had them start making their haunted gingerbread houses.  Our materials:  graham crackers, orange frosting, Halloween M & M's, candy pumpkins, candy corn, chocolate chips and ghost peeps.  We let the girls use their imagination and I think they snuck a few candies for themselves...

We had some games lined up:

Juliette Gordon Lowe Says (shortened to, Juliette Says)
Eyeball relay
Halloween buckets (bozo buckets, but tossing the ball into pumpkins)
Juliette Gordon Lowe Story
Freeze Dance (with Halloween songs, of course)

We ended the party with a sweet treat.

Ghost Town

The other day, RT was out working on the deck.  A chore that goes faster with two people.  I helped out a couple of times but then got sick.

While RT was working on the deck, I decided that it was time to officially end summer and take down the garden.  Taking down the garden is always a sad time for me.  With two gardens, it's a huge task, and with me not feeling well, it makes the task that much harder.

I worked away for quite awhile.  Finally I said, "Isn't it funny that when we have work to do around the house, the kids disappear?"

I went into the house and all was eerily quiet.  I looked around, not a kid in sight.  It was like a ghost town.  Dirty dishes left around the sink. (yea, they left a huge pile on the counter)  I was waiting for the ghost sounds (chains, screams, etc.)It's like the kids heard my footsteps and ran away.  Well, it's not like they are going to actually volunteer to do the dishes or empty the dishwasher.

I called down the two who were home and put them to work.  There wasn't much left to do in the garden, but they complained about it anyway.

Getting in the mood for Halloween

Fall is finally here!

I have a few crafts that I have done in the past here on the blog.  Here is a quick list of my Halloween crafts:

Halloween
Bat Pencil Cup
Extra Crafts - using construction paper, owls, witch, ghost, foam monsters
Mosaic Pumpkin - using paint chips
Mosaic Pumpkin - using construction paper
Owl - using construction paper
Pony Tail Craft - using ribbon
Pumpkin and Ghost - using Popsicle sticks
Pumpkin Magnet - using foam
Spider - using pipe cleaners
SPIDER
Spider (under $1 craft)
Witch's Hat

You can check out my full list of crafts here.

Thought I would put some links to a couple of yummy fall favorites:

Halloween Candy Cupcakes (not a recipe, but, what to do with extra leftover candy)
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hopefully these will help you get into that Fall Halloween spirit!

First Junior Girl Scout Meeting

It seems I get quite a few hits on Girl Scout Meeting Ideas, so, since our girls have bridged to Juniors, I thought I would continue to share what we have been doing at our meetings.  I hope these posts help you.

It's difficult planning a first meeting.  You know the girls will all be excited to see one another and will all have a lot to tell everyone.   We decided to make this a fun meeting for the girls.

Our meeting is one hour long without snack.

Our opener (when the girls start filing in) is to have the girls fill out a note card with three ideas of what they did over the summer.

We started the meeting off with our pledge, promise, law and attendance.

We went around and had each girl share just one of the fun things she did over the summer (we only have an hour, and if we let them, the girls will talk and talk).

Then we moved into the fun part of our meeting.  We had the girls make Duct Tape purses using empty Girl Scout cookie boxes.  Yes, we saved these from the previous years  We used these when the girls were younger with some of their financial badges.  We thought we would do a craft with them and the girls can use them as a purse or a place to store their Girl Scout treasures.

We purchased several rolls of duct tape.  We told the parents (prior to the meeting) that the girls can bring in their favorite duct tape for this project.

While the girls were covering their boxes and making little designs, we discussed the badges that we were going to earn during our two years as Juniors.  The girls were excited about all of them (I think they would have been happy if we started them all right then and there!).  We then discussed the Bronze Award that we would be earning during these two years.  How it's a two year project and that it's the highest honor a Junior Girl Scout can achieve.  We gave examples (ideas) of what other girls have done and a few suggestions that they might want to do for their award.  We told them to think about what they would like to do (our girls pretty much knew what they wanted to do, but, we said to think a little more and we will discuss and decide at the next meeting).

Here is one of the duct tape boxes.  Bella used white duct tape so she could use a dry erase marker on it, so there is a little green tint to it.

And, there you have it.  A quick, easy meeting that's informative and fun!

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Just reading the title sounds delicious, doesn't it?

What to do with those bananas as they are starting to go bad.....

Make banana bread!  


"When life hands you ripe, mushy bananas, make banana bread."


I wanted to try something different than regular banana bread.  I searched around and found this recipe for Chocolate Chip Banana Bread here.   I wasn't sure how it would go over here, but, hey, why not try something new, right?

Here's the recipe:

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3 ripe bananas, mashed
1 Tbsp milk
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar*
2 eggs
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips


Directions:

Oven 325 degrees F.

Grease a 9x5 glass loaf pan**

Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl and set aside.

Stir bananas, milk and cinnamon in another bowl and set aside.

In a larger bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs to the butter mixture one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Stir in banana mixture.

Stir in Flour mixture until well blended.

Add Chocolate Chips until combined and pour into loaf pan.

Bake for 70 minutes (until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean)  Cool in pan for 10 minutes before removing to cool on a wire rack.  (cool completely before slicing)




* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *



Of course, there are some changes....

*I read through some of the comments and decided to change white sugar to brown sugar.  I even cut the amount in half.

**The recipe says that it works better in a glass loaf pan.  I used a glass loaf pan and had no problems with this recipe.

This Chocolate Chip Banana Bread disappeared within 12 hours, so, I would say that it was a hit.

If you try making it, let me know!

Enjoy!

Bus Stop

Bella asked when she can walk to the bus by herself. I said, why?  She asked, when I'm in ninth grade?

Me:  well, I plan on going off to college with you. 

Bella:  Oh. 

Me:  and walking you to class. And rooming with you. 

Bella and I then thought about what it would be like...me, in college with her.

Flash forward to that time:  

Me:  (reading a letter) We got invited to a party! 

Bella:  But the invitation says, "To Bella"

Me:  Yea!  We got invited! 

Bella:  I think it's time for you to go home. 

Me:  but who will walk you to class? Or cut up your food at meal time?  Or read you a bedtime story?  Or yell, "Don't forget to wipe!" As you are walking down the hall to the bathroom?

I think she's getting scared. 

Manic Monday

Six o'clock already
I was just in the middle of a dream
I was kissin' Valentino
By a crystal blue Italian stream

Alex missed the bus this morning.  When I knocked on his door he said he didn't miss the bus because it's 6:16am.  I said it's 7:16am.  (the bus arrives at 6:30am)

So, there I am, quickly driving him to school.  I made a stop at the grocery store on the way home.  I couldn't remember all of the things I needed so I'll have to make another stop at the store on the way home from work.  

There is dance class today and I promised Alex we would pop tags at the thrift store to find some items to wear for homecoming week (that's this week).

It's just another manic Monday

I wish it was Sunday

'Cause that's my funday

My I don't have to runday

It's just another manic Monday

So, that's my theme song for the day.  If you want to hear it and see the video, click here.

Hope your Monday is off to a better start.

Cough Attacks

Yes. I finally went to the doctor. And, just as I thought, it's a cold. Apparently it's going around and the cough can last up to three weeks.  RT said, "That isn't bad considering you're a week and a half into it."

I'm just happy that it isn't bronchitis. I do have some real bad cough attacks. I have been coughing so much lately that the kids can identify me by my cough. Alex was at the orthodontist and said he heard coughing and immediately knew it was me. 

My side hurts from coughing so much.  

I find it interesting that if I go into a full cough attack, my family ignores me. I think they are so used to hearing me cough that its like a background noise to them. I can cough myself to death and they wouldn't realize what happened to me for a week. 

Again, hoping this ends soon. 

Oh, that constant coughing you hear in the background?  That's me.  I can use a glass of water, by the way. Thanks. 

Zoned Out

Lack of sleep.

Taking this medication may make you drowsy.

Coughing fits in the middle of the night.

Lozenges and Vitamin C are now a part of my diet plan.

Coughing fits during the day.

Hoping this ends soon.

I think I have perfected the art of coughing.

While waiting at Dance class....

Me:  (coughing)

Janitor:  "Are you going to make it through the night or what?"

Me:  "I hope so.  I didn't make it last night."

Sleeping on the Couch (part 2)

I have another bad cough. Not sure if its allergies. Maybe it's bronchitis. Or maybe this is just how it is for the rest of my life. I'm the one with the horrible cough. You can pick me out in a crowd. Especially if you're blindfolded.  Just listen for that one person coughing up a lung.

I was sleeping on the couch the other night. I think the couch is just an extension of our bedroom. One of us is sleeping on it. Anyway. It was late. (Maybe 11pm?) (when you are up all night coughing and you don't get any sleep, 9pm is late) I'm laying on the couch trying not to cough and I hear Nick come home. I know he left to take his girlfriend home and was surprised he got home so quickly. He walks into the house talking. I thought, great. He didn't take his girlfriend home. Or maybe he brought a friend home. He's talking and talking. Making his way to the kitchen. And here I am laying on the couch in the family room in my pajamas.  Embarrassing.  He walked into the family room and stopped talking.  I couldn't say anything for fear of a coughing attack. So I just stayed there quietly.  He walked back into the kitchen talking. I wasn't listening to anything he was saying but at some point I figured he was just talking to himself. He eventually went to bed and I fell asleep. 

I relayed the story to the rest of the family the next day. RT thought it was hilarious. Bella said he talks to himself all the time in his room. Alex wanted to know what he was saying and why he was talking to himself (he thinks Nick might have been talking on his phone).  I was just glad he didn't turn the light on in the family room and sit down on the other couch with a friend (or girlfriend).

*Want to read more about Sleeping on the Couch?  Click here.

Monthly Random Acts of Kindness - September

Here is my update for September.  My monthly Random Acts of Kindness.

As I said in my January post, it's pretty easy to reach a goal of one random act of kindness a month.  Especially if you look at all of the little things that you do.  This is a summary of some of the kind things that I have done this month.

Paid the difference that a customer owed*
Gave away some produce from my garden
let people ahead of me in line
Greeting people on the paths during my walks
Helping a customer pick out gifts for her grandchildren

*It was small change.  I felt good about doing it.

How did your list for Random Acts of Kindness look this month?

Looking for ideas for Random Acts of Kindness?  Check out this post here.

Tooth Fairy Update

Just wanted to let you know that the Tooth Fairy came last night.  She found the tooth and left some money.

Maybe we'll keep her a little longer.

Tooth Fairy

The Tooth Fairy forgot to visit two nights in a row. I set my alarm last night so I could have words with her.  I got up a couple of times during the night and finally bumped into her.  Apparently she has spent the last couple of nights trying to find the tooth.

This morning, after inspecting the site, I could see why she could not find the tooth under the pillow.  The tooth was on the bed side table, surrounded by tons and tons of things (bowls, books, wrappers, lip balm, napkin, cup, clock, etc).  It's pretty hard to see at night and then trying to figure out the exact location of the tooth.  The Tooth Fairy doesn't have time to waste looking for a tooth.  She has too many people to visit.

Hopefully she finds the tooth tonight (Day 4).   Keep your fingers crossed.

I still think we need to find another Tooth Fairy. 

The Disappearing Soap

I believe I have mentioned how bars of soap seem to disappear in our house.  Well, mainly in the kids shower.  Here's more proof in case you don't believe me.  And, while we're at it, HERE, HERE and HERE.  Wow, I write about soap a lot.

I keep supplying bars of soap for the kids bathroom only to find them completely gone in a day or two.  That's usually with just one person taking a shower.  That same person will take a shower if there isn't any soap (or shampoo/conditioner).  He(1) (yes, it's a "he") also takes the LONGEST showers.  I'm sure if you looked up LONGEST shower in The Guinness Book of World Records that you will find "him."

The other he(2) always points out the missing soap in the shower.  He(2) then asks how he(1) takes a shower without using soap.

Not sure I have an answer for that one.

We went away for a few days and I took the soap from the hotel.  I figured they were going to throw it out and we can always use soap in the kids bathroom.  I think I brought home 3 bars of soap.*

*they didn't last very long

Zucchini Cupcakes

My zucchini plant was just okay this year.  A lot better than last year.  I have been creative with recipes using zucchini (cake, bread,  grilled zucchini).

I found this Zucchini Cupcake recipe here.  Love her pictures.  I thought I would give it a try.  Everybody loves cupcakes, right?

Here is the recipe:

Zucchini Cupcakes

ingredients

1 cup vegetable oil
2 ¼ cups white sugar
3 eggs
3 cups flour
2 ½ tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ginger
½ tsp nutmeg
2 cups zucchini, shredded

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
1 cup butter, room temperature
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1 Tbs milk

Directions:
Oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare the muffin tin with cupcake liners or baking spray.

In a large bowl, combine the oil and sugar until well mixed.

Add the eggs and beat on medium-high until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine all of the dry ingredients in a separate bowl.

Add the dry ingredients to the mixer and combine to a thick batter.

Add the shredded zucchini to the batter and stir until the batter is uniform.

Spoon the batter into the muffin tins and fill them to about ¾ full.

Bake the cupcakes for 15 minutes or until just golden brown on top and a toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean.

Let the cupcakes cool before transferring them to a cooling rack.

While the cupcakes are cooling:

In a mixer, whip together the soft butter and cream cheese.

Add vanilla and whip until fluffy.

Add powdered sugar and cinnamon and the milk. 

Whip everything to a light, fluffy frosting.

When the cupcakes are cooled completely, frost them with the cinnamon cream cheese frosting.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

*Yes, I added less sugar.  I used a little over a cup

*I did not get to try the cinnamon frosting (next time).  We used a plain vanilla frosting and they were delicious!

*The kids were a little skeptical at first (I mean it's zucchini!), but once they tried these cupcakes they loved them. (psst!  You can't taste the zucchini!)

Enjoy!

Metal Umbrella

What is it about umbrellas?  They seem to break quite easily.  You would think that after all of these years (umbrellas were invented in the Victorian era (using wood) and updated to steel in 1852) they would have perfected them.  Make them a little stronger.  Durable.  Able to last more than one use.

Why did they decide to use metal when making umbrellas?  We are told that metal attracts lightning and here I am walking down to the bus stop in a thunderstorm holding a broken metal umbrella.

Whoever invented clear plastic wrap probably never used it.

I would write more but I'm a little tied up at the moment. 

Sick Post

I'm just calling to let you know that I'm sick and won't be in today. You know that cold that's been bouncing around the kids?  I finally caught it. So, I thought I would lay around a few days and rest until I feel better.

Oh, yea, you're right. I completely forgot.

I'm a Mom and I can't take time off.  There's laundry to be done and errands to be run. Someone should probably go to the grocery store.  The dog needs to eat and go outside.  And I'm sure there is a sink full of dirty dishes waiting for me. 

OK. Well, I guess I better get up and get going then. Thanks for the call. 

Like us on Facebook

Another trend is to like a company on social media (i.e. Face book, Twitter, Instagram, etc.).

Face book is pretty popular with most companies.  A company sets up a page, tells a little about their company and will give you updates of what's going on (i.e. new products, recalls, sales, etc.).  If you purchase from their store they will ask you to "like us on Face Book."  Sometimes it's printed on their receipt.

I thought this trend was for larger companies, but realized a lot of start ups and even bloggers (no, I don't have a Face Book page) have created pages on Face book.

While on vacation I came across a gas station in the middle of nowhere that had a sign to, "Like us on Face Book."  I'm not sure how many likes they have on their page.  I'm also not sure what updates they could give their customers.

"Gas is $2.50 a gallon."

"Come on in and get gas."

I guess I found it odd that this gas station had a Face Book page.

Have you liked any (weird/strange) companies on social media?

Teenage Boys Sense of Smell

I really think teenage boys sense of smell must not work.  Maybe their sense of smell doesn't develop until later in life?  I say this because they live in their room.  A room that has a floor of dirty clothes.  Not just any dirty clothes.  Clothes that have been worn to play basketball in the 90 degree F heat.

We were all ready to go for a drive on a hot day.  Alex came down and, lets say the scent came with him.  I said, nicely of course, something smells on you.  He sniffed his shirt and said "oh."  By the way, I didn't have to sniff his shirt to know that there was an "odor."

Thankfully, he went upstairs to change.  I don't think I could have that odor circulating in the car (with the windows rolled up and the air conditioning on) on a long car drive.

Trial Size

I think RT needs help.  Yea, not the first time I've thought this.....

RT has this habit of taking the trial size samples when we stay at hotels.  You know, shampoo, conditioner and lotion.

I don't see a problem with collecting them from hotels.  If you use part of a sample, the hotel probably throws the rest out.  I mean, who wants part of a sample of shampoo when taking a shower?

The problem is when we get home, RT has drawers and drawers full of these trial size samples.  When I suggest he use some of them, he replies, "I might need them."  < He's referring to when we go on a trip.   He plans on bringing the samples to use when we stay at hotels.  I know this isn't true because he doesn't bring any samples with him on vacation and, since most hotels supply them, we end up with more and more samples to bring home.

A few of the samples of lotion have disappeared.  Hey!  They are small enough to fit into my purse.  Um, not saying that I took them or anything....just trying to justify why they might have disappeared...yea, that's it....

I guess I shouldn't complain.  We have enough shampoo and conditioner to last us a lifetime.

Now to get him to move onto the soap bars.*

*more on soap bars later