An Anniversary Treat

April 28th was my 6th Anniversary with my SuperHero! And, on a funny note, I also happened to find out that April 28th is National Super Hero Day! I knew there was a reason that day was perfect =)

We've been following the Anniversary Gift guideline's since the beginning (you know, 1st is paper, 2nd is cotton, etc. Here's a website with a list), and this year was no exception. We ended up combining our 1st and 2nd anniversaries (long story), so he got the piece of paper with his order confirmation to his brand new set of ABU's (military fatigues, for the non-military out there). We found out a month before our 3rd anniversary that he would be deploying, so I bought him a Leather bound (gift was Leather) journal to take with him. He was gone for our 4th, so I sent him a box of fruit leather and other yummy treats (it was the Fruit anniversary!). I can't remember what we did for last year's anniversary! HA!

However, this year was MY favorite...Sugar!!!! I knew EXACTLY what I was going to do. My SuperHero's favorite dessert is Cannoli's, so you can bet that's what I was going to do. Now, I have 2 kids in the house (and myself of course), so I had to make it a family friendly dessert--I don't care for ricotta filling. Also, I had no idea how to make the shells, nor did I have any tools to do any of the instructions that I was finding on the internet. Thankfully, the grocery store that I go to sells Cannoli shells! I picked them up, whipped up my favorite cream cheese icing recipe, and piped it into the shells. For a fun and festive touch (and because he loves them!), I added some sprinkles to the ends! PERFECTION! Wait...no, I still had a problem. How on EARTH was I going to display them?! They didn't look right just sitting on a plate, and there was no way I was going to leave them in the box the shell's came in! This was one of the times (and there have been many!) that I was cursing not having all of the wonderful glass jars and containers I want! So, I went on the hunt for a covered cake plate. I *wanted* something white, and vintage looking...but I *ended up* with a glass regular looking one. Oh well, I was still happy to have it....and the Cannoli's looked great on it! Needless to say, they were a hit =)

And for my gift, I got an Ice Cream Maker!! Something I've been wanting for a while. Nothing beats homemade ice cream! YUM! Can't wait to bust that bad boy out!

Recent musings

I've been remiss in my postings...usually because I feel as if I have nothing to say! However, not posting for a LONG while has allowed some things to pile up in my brain. So, here's what I've been up to, and my thoughts on a few things.


At the beginning of this month, Ri had his spirit week at school. As a kid, that is the BEST week of school EVER! What kid didn't like dressing up all crazy like for a week, along with everyone else?! For one whole week you were just like everyone else...there were no "cliques", no "cool kids", no "nerds". Everyone was the same! It was awesome! However, I've decided that, as a parent, this is the most EXHAUSTING week. One can't imagine the amount of thought that has to go into the outfits for each day--and there are 5 of them to do!! Monday: Spirit Day. Complete with relay races, and the entire team divided into 2 specific teams matching the school colors. My son was on the white team (don't even get me started on the genius of putting my kid in white for an entire day!). Thankfully, LMP mom decided that she was going to make the 1st grade their "team" shirts (just another way for her to show off---she was even hoping to win "best outfit" for her iron on transfer t-shirts! HA!), so I didn't have to make him a shirt to wear. [Oh, and a funny side story---as I'm sitting on the sidelines, watching the relay races, Ri runs up to me on his way to the next race. He proceeds to try and burrow into my lap and starts to cry! I'm trying to figure out what is going on, and as I reach down to scoop him up, my hand touches something slimy on the bottom, back side of his shirt. He slipped and fell on a blueberry, and had it all down the back of his shirt. Poor little guy was embarrassed, and had a couple kids laugh at him]. Ok, Tuesday: Western Day. Now, I'd like everyone to pause and think....how many of you actually have cowboy/cowgirl clothing in your children's wardrobe??? I didn't think so! Sure, a flannel shirt here, maybe a spare handkerchief there...but anything beyond that? No. So, I went ahead and made up a couple of felt vests for the kiddies. Ri's had a Sheriff's badge, and H's had fringe. Seemed to do the trick for the day! (And, it wasn't overly difficult--felt is very forgiving for a novice seamstress!). Wednesday: Wear a Cross/Dress Up Day. Psh, that one was easy! However, Ri did manage to come home with grass and dirt stains all over the knees of his khaki dress pants. *Sigh*. Thursday: Mis-Match Day. One would think that this would be an easy thing to do. For H, it was no problem! A pink skirt over a pair of jeans, a green and white striped t-shirt,  mismatched socks, and her sparkly red dress shoes. For Ri, it was pretty difficult! That boy has nothing but blue, black, green, grey, and white in his wardrobe! So we rolled up one pant leg, wore mis-matched soccer socks, and put his shirt on backwards. It did the trick (Note to self for next year: buy a purple or yellow or even orange shirt, just for this occasion!). And Friday was the easiest day of them all: Pajama Day! If I hadn't decided to put the kiddie's in clean jammies, we could have slept in for an extra half hour...cleanness won out! (Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention that I made some treats for the kids to match a couple of the themes--I chose Western Day (I made Cowboy cookies), and Pajama Day (I made my donuts, mentioned previously). I will post about the cookies later).


Next was our mischief filled St. Patrick's Day week! We have a Leprechaun who visits the kids, and plays tricks on them. He turned the toilet water green, and left hand and foot prints in the sink, he stole my ironing board (really, I was NOT complaining!), he switched the kids' toys, and he stole their shoes! That T.L Clover is a sneaky one! Even managed to break out of the shoe trap Ri made for him. However, I have to send him a HUGE thank you! He got Riley to clean his room! All he had to do was write him a letter threatening him! Haha! Those Leprechauns =)


OH--and I'll save this for another post all of its own because it deserves it--I read the entire Hunger Games trilogy! Can you talk about LOVE?!?! I'm still reeling from them. It's been so long since I've been in book love, but this is it! Book love and then some! AH! More to come, I promise!


Now, to round out my very own March Madness...I finished up a couple I-Spy bags for the Little's! I figured they would be perfect for the road trips that we have coming up. Ri loves to do puzzles like that, and could look at "seek and find's" for hours! So, hopefully this will keep him entertained for a short amount of time! H, well I'm not so sure how she'll take to it. If I had to take a guess, she'll probably scream and get angry because she won't be able to get the buttons and toys out of there! Eh, it's worth a try! I found the tutorial here. And here's the link to my Pinboard for all of the fun things I plan to make for the Little's roadtrip games!


March is almost over, which will be bringing me into a crazy first week of April! Ri's got his Easter Party and a school play on Wednesday (which there hasn't been a peep from LMP about any party plans!), he's got the day off on Thursday (how am I supposed to get any Easter Bunny shopping done?!), then Friday is Ri's birthday (he'll be 7!), and to celebrate we'll be heading to Washington D.C. until Saturday. He's not the only one super excited about the trip! I was thrilled to be seeing some Cherry Blossoms, but due to our early spring, they've already passed their blooming stage (insert sad face here). Then there's Easter on Sunday (with our annual trip on the Easter Bunny Express), and Passover Dinner on Monday at my mother-in-law's house. Busy, busy, busy! All I can say is: bring it on (along with a bottle of wine!)!!

Socially Awkward?

A funny thing happened to me at the craft store today...well, funny to me, anyway.


A fellow mom from Ri's school was raving to me about this WONDERFUL yarn I just HAD to pick up. It's called Starbella, and it's so popular that it sells out pretty much the second it's put on the shelf. The scarves that are being made from this wonder yarn are being sold at craft fairs, and on ebay (I know, I checked) for anywhere from $20 to $40!
After hearing her rave review, I figured I had to check this stuff out for myself. She had shown me the scarf she was making (which was beautiful...I wouldn't pay $40 for one, but it was beautiful all the same), and it did look pretty fun. Figured my Little H and I could have some fun "Mommy and Me" scarves for Valentine's Day.
So, after dropping Ri off at school, and before running Little H off to her Gymnastic's class, I decided to stop by our local AC Moore (which is supposedly the only place locally that sells it) and see if, by chance, they had any.
Walking into the store I kind of giggled to myself, thinking: "Wouldn't it be funny if....I had to fight off all these ladies with my knitting needles (totally Ninja style) just to get the yarn". I got back to the Yarn Crafts section, and (much to my relief) found it pretty dead back there! Must not have been a stock up day! I must have walked up and down the 3 yarn aisles 4 times each before I found what was left of the Starbella yarn. 3 measly little balls of this pretty colored yarn....with no wrappers! Really??? People are so into this yarn that they don't want to buy all the colors, but they DO want to steal the wrappers so they have the free pattern (that you can DOWNLOAD from the website!! I know, I looked!)??? Sheesh...come on people! (Crafters...you don't want to mess with them!)
So, I picked up one of the balls of yarn, and proceeded to seek out a store "associate" to let them know that I needed the number so I could actually buy this! I found 3 people huddled in the back by the framing center, doing much of nothing, and waited patiently for one of them to notice me (i.e. for one of them to notice my screaming daughter!). Once my presence was acknowledged, I barely got the words, "Is it possible to get the number for this up to the register so I can buy it" out of my mouth, when the male rolls his eyes and says, "Another one for the Starbella yarn?".
Now, I don't know if I was just caught off-guard by being questioned about my yarn choices, or if it's because I've spent almost 7 years immersed in being a mommy/wife/homebody, but I suddenly started stammering over my words, and trying to reassure them that, really, I'm not a crazy yarn lady who's jumping on the band wagon. That curiosity had finally gotten the best of me. As these associates continued to go on about the "crazy" yarn people, telling their tales of Black Friday proportions (and almost Oscar worthy performances), one lady quietly called the front with the numbers I would need...and I tried to sneak off quietly (with a yelling 2 year old, of course).
If I thought that I had escaped the lion's den, boy was I wrong. The cashier sure had a lot to say on the Starbella subject. "I can't believe the hype over this stuff", "I saw that people were selling the scarves for over $40", "It's not like it's magic", "What do you think you're going to do with it", "Oh, another one who wants to make a scarf?" (While I, again, stammered to explain that I wanted to make a cute little scarf for the little girl who was, by this point, just staring at this woman. Probably thinking, "You're the crazy one!")
I'm just glad that I escaped that AC Moore with my life....maybe not with my dignity intact, and perhaps with a Social complex...and very possibly questioning any kind of social "skills" I thought I might have....but at least I was alive! AND, I had a ball of that coveted Starbella yarn!


After I arrived home HOURS later (it was a loooooong day), I busted that bad boy out. Yep, I can see why people are quite possibly fighting ninja style with their knitting needles to get a ball of it. It's cute...it's fun...it's something different. But....it's still not worth paying $40 for a finished scarf! I suggest you just teach yourself how to knit...it's cheaper! (And, as I only learned how to knit in November...this is an EASY yarn to learn on!)

Heading in to All things Cutesy (and something new!)

Phew....what a month! January always seems to be the never-ending month. Nothing exciting ever happens in January...there aren't any awesome Holiday's. No significant time spent out of school for Ri. It's cold, it's dark, it's usually just a pretty miserable month. And, other than a couple little happenings in our world, this January was no different than any other one!
Some of the memorable mentions from January:

• I got my NEW camera!!! My wonderful Super-Hero got me my T3i as a delayed Christmas gift, and I'm in camera-love! It's a beauty, with so many fun functions...and accessories! I let my Super-Hero spoil me by getting the grip I've been drooling over! I've had so much fun playing with it! Yep, it's definitely camera-love!

• My Super-Hero and I got to spend a wonderful evening out with some friends at The Melting Pot. We took full advantage of the Restaurant Week special again this year, and had some great food! I won't tell you how much chocolate fondue I may, or may not have, devoured!! Soo yummy!

•  We had Ri's very first Pinewood Derby race with the Scouts. He was thrilled, and excited, and pretty much everything a 6 year old boy could be when it comes to cars, races, and building! However, it quickly became a lesson in losing gracefully. My poor Ri! =( It was heart-breaking for us to see him come in last place in all 6 races that he did, so I can only imagine how hard it was for him. He held it together, though...through all the races, through getting his "atta-boy" patch, and all the way until he could come out and get a hug from Mommy and Daddy. That's when my little boy lost it. I will admit that I almost lost it, too. We quickly told him how very proud of him we were, and that even though he didn't win, the fact that he had fun is all that matters (yeah, right!....we couldn't really say that we wanted to pound all the other cars into the dirt, and challenge the fact that our son should have won because he doesn't have an older brother who's done this before!). We then promptly rewarded him with a sugar rich, calorie laden sprinkle donut--and you can bet that I would have given him a million of them if it would have made him smile again! (I'm sure I'm being judged by all the health nut conscious parents out there)

So, now that the never-ending month is FINALLY over, I'm very much so looking forward to February! All things pink, red, hearts, candy, and cutesy-ness (yes, that is now a word)! I've never been much a Valentine's Day person (psh---that's a "holiday" for mushy, gushy, love people, who have bags of money laying around to spend on expensive diamonds, and perishable flowers, and very small portions of food for too many dollar signs!), until Ri was about 3 years old. Something inside me warmed up (much like one would think of the Grinch's heart at Christmas time), and said that I need to make this day special for my family. So, each February the 14th (or, the weekend before depending on school schedules!), my table is set with heart plates, candy, cupcakes, and special bags full of goodies for my Super-Hero and my littles! I think there was even a heart shaped out of candy on our living room floor last year.

Oh, and on a non-cutesy note...we're heading straight into the uncharted waters of Potty Training for Girls! Wow...if I thought my son was difficult to potty train, then I was WAY off base! And people say that Girls, AND your 2nd are MUCH easier to potty train! HA! They apparently didn't have MY daughter! This should be an interesting ride, that's for sure! I'm sure there will be many scatter-brained adventures to share on that front! 

Time to leave the blogging world and return to the world of a messy kitchen, and what looked like a 2 year old toosh streaking through my living room!