Pranav Mistry: Sixth Sense

What have I been doing with my time? This kid is going to change the world. Truly inspiring.

Inside These Lines - Trent Dabbs

Just lovely.

Week in Review 4/22/10

Well check me out! I'm actually posting this one on time! I know the timing seems weird, but my weeks run from Friday to Thursday for a couple reasons. First off, January 1st was on a Friday this year ... and Friday is when our week ends with the kids, as in they flip houses every Friday. So let's see what happened over the last 7 days.

We received news that my father-in-law's health is failing pretty quickly, so the next few weeks may be a bit shaky. My brother-in-law has been in the hospital for his own health reasons. Needless to say there were lots of good-cheer-spreading visits to those we love. I got to actually have a lunch date with hubby dearest, which was way overdue. The cub scouts got to clean the church grounds Tuesday night ... allergy alert. I admired more of the gorgeous spring flowers in our neighborhood ... allergy crisis. I finally made a big dent in planning for girls' camp thanks to a quick shopping trip to Robert's.

The rest of the week was spent getting ready for the big birthday party tonight. (Heaven help us) The guest list was close to 50, but we really don't have any clue how many people to expect. I just hope it's everything she hoped for. You only turn 16 once. Wish me luck!

Save the Date: Beehive Bazaar

Here are all the details you'll need for the annual spring Beehive Bazaar. This is the first time it will be hosted at Thanksgiving Point and I'm so excited to be participating. I've taken a few seasons off and am ready to get back in there. It looks like there will be oodles of young local artists there. They each have a little blurb on the BB website. You can search them by name or category here. Be sure to mark these dates on your calendar if you're local and hopefully I'll see you there!

Bride and Prejudice

Wow, do I have a treat for you! I don't know how I ever missed this film ... or where it's been hiding out. If it weren't for my sweet friend I may have never had the pleasure of this new ... 'experience'. Haha! Just watch the trailer and have a look for yourself. Think ... Jane Austen meets Hairspray meets Slumdog Millionaire. Fabulous!Thank you Wanja!!!

Week in Review 4/15/10

Hmm, this was a pretty bland week as far as our typical household schedule goes. Nothing major going on. No one got grounded, suspended or arrested. No illnesses. No training! Whew! It was nice to taste a little normal for once.

I did however get the chance to go and donate blood at the blood-mobile. I really try and go every other month and jetBlue makes that easier by having the truck come to us. I enjoyed lots of spring flowers ... and paid for it in runny eyes and snotty tissues, dang these allergies. I found some great little dishes to use as 'ring keepers'. I have one in my bathroom, one in the kitchen and one in the laundry room. They are so cute. You like?

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars

Another fabulously easy recipe given to me by a co-worker. These are so quick to make and a huge hit with the family.

Ingredients:
2 pouches Betty Crocker Peanut Butter Cookie Mix
2 Tbs water
6 Tbs vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 C creamy peanut butter
1 C milk chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Follow package directions to make cookie dough. Press dough into a 13"x18" cookie/jellyroll pan. Bake as directed or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and set aside. Combine peanut butter and chocolate chips in small sauce pan and stir over medium heat until evenly combined and melted. Spread this over the baked cookie with a rubber spatula and put the whole pan in the fridge to set.

Ooh, yummies!

Week in Review 4/8/10

It seems our oldest has some friends that don't think highly of us. We got egged again. Uck. This time she had manage the clean-up on her own, so she could learn why we don't egg people ... or hang out with people who egg us. Easter weekend was much better after the clean-up was finished.

General conference is always a treat for me and this year we started a new tradition. We each packed up our own 72 hour kit in our own backpacks during the last conference. This time we started eating from them and will repack them with new food items as soon as they're empty. I want to make sure that these kits stay usable and that we're not putting things in them that the kids won't eat ... or that don't keep well. It was funny to see the kids get so excited about the whole event.

We went to a baby shower for a cousin on Saturday and got to bring a new appliqued baby blanket and set of cute burp cloths. I'm not sure why I have such a thing for making handmade gifts ... I just can't help myself. Sunday we did an indoor/outdoor egg hunt with our nephew. The rest of the week was fairly mellow, no major mishaps and no one was grounded for life. I even got to teach my scouts how to make a few quick desserts for their families. All in all it was great. Now, we're really headed into spring - allergies and all. Yikes.

Out of His Mind

Where is the guy that would write this for my oldest? Just about to turn 16, as beautiful as can be, who gives a new meaning to the word 'spirited'. She seems to pick some real losers who end up treating her like crap.

Hey, Mr. Good Guy, you're welcome here anytime.

Week in Review 4/1/10

The play and my training both wrapped up the same week. Whew! Not a lot actually happened the last week of March. I went to Jen Gochner's spring boutique with a couple girlfriends, which is always nice. I had my first few real work days on my new desk ... a little touch and go, but I survived. We had a special guest speaker at pack meeting and learned a lot about helicopter pilots in the armed forces. Everybody loved it, especially the dads who were there. It was cute to actually see there ears perk up as they came to life, not a normal occurrence for parents at scouts. Then there was more spring snow ... just in time for the beginning of spring break. Joy. 5 kidlets at home and crap weather. Yikes.

K, just 2 more weeks and I'm up to date with these bad boys. Tomorrow should be another full day. Stay tuned ...

Brite Revolution

Lots of posts today to make up for lost time. I owe you some fun new goodies in between the weekly updates, don't I? So here you go! A fresh new site to get free music and support a cause all at once. I love the mix of art and philanthropy at Brite Revolution. These artists believe music can change the world and I think they may be right. Go have a look for yourself ... check out the range of artists, pick out a cause that you can contribute to and download a mix of free songs. There's a new music update every Tuesday too. Enjoy!

Week in Review 3/25/10

Holy scheduling nightmare. Training, training and more training ... waiting for #3 to be released from the hospital. Volunteer hours that still needed to be put in for the play chaperoning the boys' backstage room during the play and the cast pool party the next night. The cast party was, of course, scheduled for the same night as Junior MORP (love their take on 80's fashion). Sheesh! How many places am I expected to be anyways? And I'm surprised I didn't get some kind of funky disease from the gum collection in the choir room. Have you ever seen anything so gross? Ugh! Despite the junior high germ fest, I was caught off-guard by my son's friends though. Just before the play started they all quietly stood in the corner to say a prayer together. I'll admit I was a little misty-eyed. Oh! We also cheered at the next track meet and got Izzy her first name tag. She looks so grown up with her new 'necklace'.

Week in Review 3/18/10

The third week of March was ... full, to say the least. It was my first week of Crew Support training. We had final dress rehearsals and sound checks for the play. #1 had her first track meet of the season. #3 was diagnosed with strep on Monday, missed 3 days of school and we found out it had developed into pneumonia by Thursday, the opening night of Hello Dolly that she and #2 were both in. Talk about a bummer. She made every single practice and wasn't able to perform once for the public because she was so sick. On the other hand, we flew the 'ex' in from Cali as a surprise for our 2 oldest. It had been a long time since they'd seen their daddy and it was somehow fitting for him to be here for this. Aside from all that, we tried to squeeze in some relaxation and actually had dinner in the park one night and as well as a quick trip to our favorite library. We also enjoyed celebrating our niece's birthday my sister-in-law's house where eating is an art. I wish I could accurate describe the BBQ ribs they make ... and the cake. Heaven!

I'm Alive! I Promise!

It's been exactly a month since my last post. How pathetic of me. Sincere apologies to those of you who are sweet enough to keep coming back for more. I promise I am trying to get back on track here. A lot has happened, both good and bad, in the last little while all of which have kept me more than busy.

My JetBlue interview was a breeze and I've made the move from Reservations to Crew Support. This gives me lots of gray area to work with and I can actually make decisions to help our customers instead of just stating policy. It's nice feeling a little empowered on the job now ... "I am Crew Support. Hear me roar!" Haha! Of course, this also means we're the Supervisor Desk, so all those nasty people who call in yelling and screaming about how they were only 10 minutes late and the plane left without them ... how dare we leave on time, they're calling their lawyers and will make sure everyone they know NEVER flies with us again ... yeah, all those calls are transferred to us too. Ucky. For the most part, I've been able to handle them alright. It feels a lot like parenting sometimes.

So! The job shift brought with it 2 more weeks of training and now 90 days working from the center. :( It hasn't been too bad so far, but I sure miss the comforts of working from home and having my desk and computer set up just the way I like them. At least I've settled into my new schedule now which gives me a little more free time to 'restock' the bloggity blog. I have 5 weeks in review to post, but I'll start with a fab new recipe from one of the gals I work with. All our kids love these cookies, but I hate buying them at the store. This recipe is absolutely as easy as it gets!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients:
1 box spice cake mix (I used Duncan Hines, on sale)
1 15 oz can packed pumpkin
1/2 package milk chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Lighly grease cookie sheet

Mix cake mix and pumpkin in a large bowl until moist and smooth. Stir in chocolate chips and drop in mounds onto cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes until firm. These cookies won't spread at all, so they'll look just like they do when you drop them. They are super quick and yummilicious. We got 4 dozen, but that would vary based on how big you make yours.