The Pie

After cleaning out the refrigerator for over 3 1/2 hours yesterday, I decided to make a pie. I wanted to make this, http://food.southernliving.com/southern/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1578375 but seeing as how I am the only one is my house to eat banana pudding, I made a wiser choice with this one http://www.recipezaar.com/9358 . I am not a huge fan of lemons, but Tamer adores them, so.....I got an Excellent in Effort, but I accidentally put 4 TBS of sugar on top of the graham cracker crust instead of 1 TBS. Tamer is always such a really good sport with my cooking endeavors, he said "Sugar, GOOD!" :-) This was my first time making the egg white and sugar top and I think it turned out pretty. :-)

I wanted to go low-carb recently and did not succeed, I am not a huge fan of meant. So, then I wanted to try not eating meat with faces again. So, now I have combined them, I am going low-carb vegetarian. :-)

In other news, Zaid's birthday party was postponed until next weekend, he was not feeling well at all on Friday night. We are excited to celebrate next Saturday!

Cupcakes

The cupcakes that Tamer and I made today for Zaid's birthday at Kindergarten. Zaid's cupcake was the turquoise one with the heart ring in the very back!

Happy Birthday to Zaid!

Zaid is now six years old! I know every year I say this, but it is true. I can not believe another year has gone by. Six years ago, I became Zaid's Mommy.

It seems like every year, I get a little more emotional when another year goes by. I found myself sobbing today thinking about how unique and amazing the little bear is. When he was a baby, I called him little bear and baby toots.

I tried to make today so very special, we Zaid woke up, he did not want to get up, he kept saying, let me sleep a little longer, please, and he lay his head back down, even after we told him it was his birthday and how he would get to open his present. *hint, hint, Jennifer, something is wrong here, Zaid loves presents* Finally we lured him out of bed and he opened his present from us, a projector with disks for his room! He was so very excited!! He has been talking for weeks about this projector. Then he opened his present from his Great-Geddo, followed by breakfast that he picked out ~ Strawberry Toaster Strudel and a pear. He did not eat much at all. Getting out the door for school was quite an event, with me eventually paying Zaid to take some cold medicine (so he would not be so sniffly at school). We ate lunch with Zaid at school, he ate one strawberry and took one bite of sandwich and one drink of chocolate soy milk. Later on in the day we took balloons to school for Zaid and we made beautiful cupcakes with jewel rings on them and sprinkles. Zaid had told me the previous night that he wanted the heart ring, because there was only one, so I made sure to make him a turquoise cupcake with the red heart ring on it. When we got there, Zaid was lying down on the floor asleep on his towel. His teacher said he rarely goes to sleep during rest time, this was unusual. He was so sweet lying there asleep, I took a mental picture of him and it just broke my heart when his teacher woke him up. :-) He did not want to get up, finally they got him up and he sat down, we passed out plates, napkins and cupcakes. Zaid does not take one bite of cupcake!!! I read one of Zaid's favorite books Hedgie Blasts Off! by Jan Brett to Zaid and his classmates. Zaid's teacher took a couple of pictures for us and then they all sat down in front, it was time for a story. Zaid told his teacher, how he was not feeling up for a birthday dinner tonight, then he told her how when he was 4, his favorite restaurant was Red Lobster, but now he really likes Shogun, she told him that he has good taste, if those are his favorite restaurants.

After school, we went to pick up, of all things a new kitty litter box in Bowling Green. Zaid seemed a little confused when he got in the car about the birthday dinner, he said that he was not feeling like a birthday dinner because he wanted all of his friends to come over for his party, then he was sad that he forgot to invite his teacher and he wanted to invite her. We explained to him that his party was on Saturday and all of his friends would come then for his party. He showed us his new birthday pencil and birthday sticker that he got to go the office and get. :-)

He told us thank you for his balloons (they were Scooby-Doo) that he got at school, then he told me how some little boys were throwing rocks at the balloons and how he told on him, I told him that he did the right things.

When we got to Red Lobster, Zaid noticed that there were only two lobsters in the tank and he watched them for a little while, which is his routine. :-) The hostess said that they were getting a new shipment in soon. We ordered lobster and we told Zaid that he could have it, neither one of us were extremely hungry. When they asked what he would be having, we told them the popcorn shrimp, and he immediately said "No, I am having lobster!" We had to explain, that he could have the lobster that we ordered. (He has tried to order lobster for the past eight months!!) I did have some clam chowder there, and it was really good! :-) I have my Caesar salad in the refrigerator for lunch tomorrow. We looked over Zaid's work from school and he did a worksheet, we sharpened the pencil he had gotten at school, something must have been wrong with the lead, we sharpened and sharpened, down to the end of the pencil and Zaid got a little bit of use out of it, but then it broke again and he could not use it, we trashed the pencil. He read an AR book called Meet My Monster! Zaid talked about how he wanted to watch a movie when he got home, he wanted to watch Open Season, Tamer told him that if he eats good, then he could watch it, Zaid ate about three bites of applesauce and drank four sips of Dr. Pepper. All through dinner, he did not eat anything, he just hid and cuddled with his Daddy Finally, he came over to my side of the table and I held him and read his AR book to him and he fell asleep. I carried him to the car. When we got home, he took three medicines, the Zithromax from the Urgent Care in Mississippi on Saturday, Tylenol and a cold medicine. He had a 101 degree temperature when I took his temperature. I had to pay him again to take his medicine! :-) And give him lots of water. He got his jammies on and we cuddled and watched his projector together, we watched the ocean show, it had a CD with it. He talked to his Nona for one minute, we told him good night and told him Happy Birthday, then he was fast asleep.

What is Love?

Last night, a speaker read some children's responses to "What is Love?. The answers were so sweet and adorable!
Tonight as I was saying my prayers with Zaid, I paused and asked him "What is Love?"
Heart. ~ God. ~ God's Love. ~ When you like someone very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very much. When you are twins, then your hearts are friends. Love is when your hearts are friends. His answer to my question leaves tears in my eyes. So simple, so true. So sweet, so pure.

Valentines, Cross Stitch, Coffee Talks

Once upon a time ago, when Zaid was a baby I cross stitched something for my friend. I was trying to save money on Christmas presents, I bought a ton of stuff to make presents. I ended up completing one cross stitch. I had never cross stitched before, but it looked decent from the front, although the back looked like a train wreck. My friend loved it. I gave it to her and her husband for their first Christmas as a married couple. It always made me smile when I would see it on her entertainment center. Tonight, I made iron on transfers for Zaid's teachers. I found the patterns at www.janbrett.com and I iron the transfer on a pink shirt. On one of the shirts, I left the iron on too long and the pink of the shirt bled through the transfer, I feel bad about that, but there is nothing I can do about it. I hope his teachers like it!

Zaid and I made Valentines for his classmates today. I am not sure that he wants to make them, actually I know he does not because he told me as much. "This is too much! I have to make cards for EVERYONE?" I was in a terrible mood by the time we had around 5 finished, so I told him he could stop for the day. I could not handle it anymore. Trying to be so positive, I was DONE! He did make one for his Mawmaw, I told him how she had sent him a box, I think he was mostly trying to get the box, because when he finished the card, he asked where the box was. :-) The Valentines are adorable, we meleted crayons in the shape of hearts, then I cut circles from cardstock. Zaid wrote on them, "You Color My World" and signed his name. I will post a picture tomorrow. It is such a fine line, of trying to get Zaid to do something without speaking sharply to him. I promise to do better tomorrow. After dinnner, we read a sweet book about Piglet's nightlights, then we talked about how many different light sources we have. Zaid read me his AR book, it was about Ed and his sled. It was super cute too. Zaid is doing excellent on AR tests! I am so proud of my little reader. The first time I heard him read one of his little books, I remember it about a mop, Pam gets on the mop.....Mom gets on the mop......I will look for that book, I cried. I was so proud of him! I called grandparents and friends and just generally played the band for Zaid.

I went to a coffee talk tonight at my church tonight, it is always nice to get out and listen to other people. One of the things, I most took with me, well there are two things: 1. You can not give your children something that you do not have ownership up, examples: forgiveness and graciousness. 2. We have to go to Jesus in order for him to fill us with his love. Our busyness keeps us from focusing on Jesus.

Hamburger Helper

Okay, I just looked up the history of Hamburger Helper, and now I know that they began with five flavors in 1971 and I was born in 1980, so I know from that: they had more than the rice oriental when I was a child!! I can remember a couple of things that we ate growing up and I know that rice oriental Hamburger Helper had to be about 50% of what we ate. Yuck! Just the thought today makes me want to be sick. My Mom was a busy Mom, so our pantry had the following: chef boryardee (an assortment), canned soup (an assortment), of course rice oriental, Captain Crunch, bologna, macaroni and cheese, frozen doughnuts, frozen pancakes, chips, cookies and lots of little debbies. Every now and then on a day she was off or something, she would put a roast in the oven. She always thinks we are making "fun" of her when we talk to her about the HH, but really, we just wanted a little bit of variety.......it was not that it was HH, it was that she never bought a different kind.

Could that be why, I always want to eat healthy and be healthy? (I am not saying I always accomplish that goal.) Probably so.....is my conclusion. I do have a strange obsession with macaroni and cheese though, I wonder if looking back even though right now Zaid loves mac-n-cheese, will he wonder why I had it in the house all of the time? Oh, well! I guess I have to give him something to talk about.....

Nostalgia

I am not sure if it is the cold weather that is bringing on the "remember whens" but I have a couple that I will never forget.

The Year ~ mid 90s
The Scene ~ my Big Mama's House for Sunday Lunch ~ her kitchen table to be exact

My Big Mama was famous for her chicken and dumplings, I dream about them to this day. I have never, ever in all of my 26 years tasted chicken and dumplings that were as good as hers. She added something, that no one can repeat, even though my oldest sister has the recipe, she can not recreate Big Mama's best dish.

So a couple of things you should know, I am not, nor have I ever been a picky eater, unless it tastes like soap or something terribly inedible, I do not complain. So here goes.....

I was probably 14 or 15, and I had just finished eating a plate of chicken and dumplings and other "southern" food, you can imagine my surprise when Big Mama announced after everyone had eaten mind you, that those squirrel dumplings were good, and then went into detail about how the neighbor had killed a squirrel and "dressed" it for her. She liked to shock people like that. She was kind of funny in her own unique way. She was hard of hearing unless you were whispering, then she heard every syllable.

New Babies

Our family has been blessed with many new babies this winter, well two to be exact. Lovely little Anna-Belle Grace made her grand entrance into our world in December. Today Corbin Jesse graced us with his presence at 8 pounds and 13 ounces. They sent me a picture over my phone, I can already tell what a little charmer he is, as he was peeking out from the blanket. I am excited to get to see him in a couple of weeks. To date, I now have 4 nephews and 4 nieces. They are all beautiful and unique. I shower all of them with as much attention as I can, and I hope that they all love their "Nini" as much as I love them.

Stopping by Woods.....

February has greeted us once again, with her cold snow and a lot of dark days. Yesterday here, it seemed bitter cold. When I walked outside, I could not stand it. I would quickly come back inside to get warm again. The dog is freezing too, normally she bolts out, as quick as lightening to leave this place (you know, we are so horrible to her, giving her food and treats and letting her sleep right beside us, petting her and playing with her all of the time :-)), but the other day, she could have run out and she jut looked out as if to say, "Nah! This game is not worth it today."
I had lunch with Zaid today and took his class some sanitizer. He is so very cute. I just wanted to bundle him up and bring him home with me. :-) They have five children out with illness today! We are praying for good health.

This is one of my favorite poems, I think I will share it with Zaid this afternoon.

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

Whose woods these are I think I know,
His house is in the village though.
He will not see me stopping here,
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
My little horse must think it queer,
To stop without a farmhouse near,
Between the woods and frozen lake,
The darkest evening of the year.
He gives his harness bells a shake,
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep,
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

---Robert Frost

Getting to know me! :-)

My friend Rachael sent this to me over the weekend. It was a long weekend over here, but fun.

1. What time did you get up this morning? 7:30 am ~ and that was me "sleeping in"
2. Diamonds or pearls? Necklace or ring? Pearls ~ Necklace
3. What is your favorite TV show? Grey's Anatomy ~ Men in Trees ~ Ugly Betty ~ My Name is Earl ~ Law and Order: SVU ~ Law and Order: CI ~ Brothers and Sisters
4. What do you think is the worst fashion trend out right now? Those cropped sweater tops.
5. What do you usually have for breakfast? Eggs
6. What is your favorite food? Macaroni and Cheese
7. What is your middle name? Lynn
8. What food do you dislike? white chocolate
9. What is your favorite CD? I honestly do not have one.

10. What kind of car do you drive? Ford Explorer

11. Favorite sandwich? Grilled Cheese

12. What characteristic do you despise? I am not sure, I would probably agree with my friend Rachael on this one; self-cenderedness and I would throw in there, extreme greed.
13. Favorite item(s) of clothing? pajamas
14. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? Italy

15. What color is your bathroom? one is pink ~ the other one is white wainscotting
16. Favorite brand of clothing? Banana Republic
17. Where would you retire to? on the beach ~ near the mountains ~ and in the country but close to the city
18. What was your most memorable birthday? I remember a lot of them. I really remember getting a bicycle when I turned six.
19. Favorite sport to watch? Zaid playing flag football.
20. Farthest place you are sending this? MS
21. Who do you least expect to send this back to you? I do not know.

22. Person you expect to send it back first? I do not know.
23. When is your birthday? October 6, 1980
24. Are you a morning person or a night person? morning
25. What is your shoe size? nine

26. What do you want to do when you grow up? I hope to never grow up. :-)
27. What is your favorite kind of chip? White Cheddar Organic Cheetos
28. How are you today? wonderful
29. what is your favorite candy? banana laffy taffy
30. What is your favorite flower? lavender

At last.....

It snowed on Thursday night. Not a blizzard or anything, but an inch or so. Enough to throw snowballs in, but not the right consistency to make a snowman. I think it has to be more damp to build a snowman. After an hour and a half of getting ready to go outside and play in the snow, we finally made it out there, throwing snowballs and taking pictures and laughing and running and playing in this beautiful snow. All of the kids were eating as much snow as they could possibly intake. Tamer was pelting me with what amounted to snow balls that was much more ice than snow. :-) It was a wonderful day to play in the snow, Zaid with his friends laughing and running. We saw little bird tracks in the snow around our tree that has the bird feeder! Then Mitchel and Serenity had to show me their "paw prints". Mitchel loved throwing snowballs and throwing the snow up in the air to make it snow. Zaid wanted desperately to make snow ice cream again. I picked Zaid up and spun him around over and over again, just to see the smiles and laughs on his face and then Serenity wanted to spin, so I twirled her too.

A magical way to spend a snow day......

Koi Pond

After my flu shot today (OUCH! My arm still hurts!), I was outside filling up the bird feeders and I noticed our koi Pond was frozen. I wonder if the fish are still alive, if they will be able to stay at the bottom? They did the first year we lived here. I am sending warm thoughts to our Koi fish.

School was out today, so my friend who is a teacher flew to Washington State to visit her husband again, so I have watched a lot of Curious George and Dragon Tales and cleaned up a lot of dishes. I did get to go to Wal-mart and pick up a few necessities like new toothbrushes. It is amazing, how many choices you get for a toothbrush. I just went with the one I had a coupon for and took off for the check-out.

Also, I signed up for this mystery shopper website, not really intending to do anything with it, but on Monday, this guy called and asked if I could check gasoline prices at a certain place for $10 and I said sure, so he calls again today and asks if I could check the prices again, so that is what got me out of the house.

I guess I better go and cook dinner now, before they start asking me "Is it time for dinner?" multiplied by three.

Ciao!

Simplicity

I applied to Western Kentucky University today! I made that little step towards a bigger step towards a well....we all know, a leap. I am excited. For the past 5 years I have not been in a school situtation and a little piece of me has missed it. For the first two years of going to school, I just went to college just because it was the "thing" to do. Now, it is because I am ready to go back to school with an end GOAL in mind. After many years of pondering, I have come to the conclusion that I will major in elementary education K-4. At first, my thought was an english degree because with english comes literature and that is where my great love lies. I am not so sure if I could get through to junior high/high school students though, and little kids love me and I have a great love for them, too. Being able to share a love of learning with a little one........I have done that for the past six years and yes at times it is the pits, but the majority of it is pure wonder.