Pinkalicious.

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That was the theme for my Ladybug’s 5th birthday party over the weekend.  

I just can’t help myself.  I love any excuse to throw a party.  And I like to party big.  And I love themes.  And my girlies’ birthdays are no exception.

If you are not already familiar with the story, Pinkalicous is a book about a girl who eats too many pink cupcakes and acquires a serious case of Pinkititis, meaning she turns pink.  The cure is to eat green food.  Anything.  As long as it is green. 

All my girlies are wild about Pinklalicous.  They have Pinkalicious dolls and we’ve read all the books about 187,000 times (roughly).

The party was perfectly pinkariffic and everyone seemed to have a good time.  


Mental note for next year:  Plan this party much earlier in November (her real birthday is November 9).  Much too close to Thanksgiving, but our schedule simply didn’t permit it any sooner…


A few highlights:
Setting up. 

Green food goodie bags.


Ladybug guarding her pink cupcakes.

Lola.  An unexpected guest, thanks to my sister and her family.
 Birthday girl working on her Pinkalicious crown.
Getting ready for “Pin the Cherry on the Cupcake.”   
(Which seems to be a staple at our parties.  In recent years we have also played “Pin the Nose on Larry the Cucumber” and “Pin the Heart on the Tinman.”  My girls really love this game…)
My sweet hubby is such a good sport about all the pink…
Party time.  Putting my game face on.

 And now that the party is over…
Grabbing a coffee, working on my grocery list and making a mental shift to turkey and pumpkin pie.  
Happy Monday, Friends.

Purging.

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National Clean-Your-What Day???

I saw it on CNN.   This past Tuesday (2 days ago) was National Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day.  Have you ever heard of such a thing?  I suppose it’s a great effort.  Way to go, People-who-think-of-these-rather-obscure-things.

What I find especially disturbing is that we are encouraged to perform this task… once a year.  Maybe some people need this sort of yearly reminder, but I am pretty vigilant about thoroughly cleaning out the fridge very week or two, right before I make my big grocery trip.  (Can’t stand the thought of putting fresh food that just cost me an arm and a leg into a grimy fridge).

I am not saying my fridge is always pristine (believe me, a week or two is all some things need to cause trouble in there).  And there is occasionally the thing that falls down behind the other thing that I completely forget about until it has gone all  “science experiment” on me.

I guess I’ll embrace this occasion to think about food safety.

Hubby and I are entirely obsessive about food safety…  especially leftovers.  (When in doubt, throw it out!)  I also really can’t stand being wasteful, so there has to be a healthy balance.  When it comes to leftovers, I never make more than what we will eat in the next two days.  Any prepared food older than two days gets tossed.  (Most experts say 3-4 days, but I use the two-day rule to play it safe.)  Generally, I am pretty good about making sure our leftovers get eaten so we don’t waste anything.  If I make a big batch of something, I freeze a portion of it right away to save for another time.  (Really, most everything can be frozen.)

I have a couple of trusty friends that help me out:  “Masking Tape” and “Sharpie.”  Everything in my fridge gets a dated label.  Everything.  Ketchup.  Mayo.  Leftovers.  Nothing is exempt from the treatment.  I used to think I could remember when I prepared everything, but when life gets busy (which is pretty much always), time rolls by like a steam locomotive and before I know it, I have no earthly idea if I hard-boiled those eggs yesterday or last week.

With Thanksgiving fast approaching, I can’t help but think of all that food coming my way.  More than probably any of us can handle.

Freeze what you can.  Be safe.  And happy eating to all.

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This post is a part of Simple Lives Thursday.

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Socks.

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Heaping.  Mountainous.  Overflowing.  

These are just a few words to describe my ever-growing pile of things to be mended, sewed, or patched.  I actually don’t mind grabbing a pile of such work and planting myself in front of the tv for a couple of hours to catch up.  It’s just that I’ve really let it go this time.

And then there are the socks.  

I am pretty good about using a small, mesh laundry bag (like the ones intended for lingerie) to corral the family socks (especially the little ones!), but no matter how hard I try… there are stragglers.

The ones that don’t match.  The ones that are missing.  The ones that are entirely too worn out, but have a perfectly good mate.  What’s a girl to do?

(Read more on laundry shenanigans here:  Laundry Quandry.)
If the sock is not too worn, it makes perfect sense to stitch it up.  It takes about 10 seconds and it’s good as new.  I am careful to make the seam on the outside of the sock or my girls will complain of discomfort. 
In the old days, women would mend holes in the toes of socks indefinitely.  Consequently, the sock would become shorter and shorter and continually be handed down to the next child in line!  I do this, too.  They also did something similar with sheets.  When bed sheets became worn in the middle, they would cut them down the center and sew the outsides of the sheets together to make a new “middle.”  Ingenious.  
Eventually a good sock gets so worn out that it is impossible to mend and seems of no use at all.  Nonsense.  This is when our socks get a second life in the rag drawer.  I love using old socks to clean with.  Turn the sock inside out to use the warm, fuzzy side for maximum scrubbing power.  You can even wear the sock like a glove.  (Great for those really disgusting jobs that you will inevitably encounter when you have kids!)


Back to the kitchen for coffee round 2.  Perhaps I will get to my sewing today.  Perhaps not.  Either way, there will be coffee.  
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This post is a part of the Frugal Tuesday Tip.


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The Best I Ever…

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Hey, Coffee Lovers!  

This cozy little blog is featured today over at Tales of a Trophy Wife.  So grab a steamy cup of joe, go check it out here, and leave some comment love. 

Happy Monday!

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Oops.

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It was Monday.  

Peanut would be away most of the day for a school activity.  We were to leave at 8:45 am.  I was sipping my coffee at 7:00 am when it suddenly occurred to me:  I was supposed to send a snack with her.  

Normally, that wouldn’t be a problem, but my life has been in a bit of top spin and grocery day was still a day away.  

I.  Had.  Nothing.

Raisins?  (Yeah, right, Mom.)
Pickle spear?  (No thanks.)
Leftover spaghetti?  (This received that sort of a menacing glare that my 7-year-old is notorious for.)

Ay yi yi.

Then, I remembered this recipe for homemade graham crackers I had been dying to try.  At first, I was skeptical, but judging from the way my kids gobbled them up, I would say they were a success.  They were super simple and done just in time for my daughter to walk out the door.  Tossed in an apple as a side and she had a snack for mama to be proud of.  

Honey Graham Crackers

1/3 c. honey
1/2 c. butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. water or milk
3 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
pinch of salt
(1 tsp. cinnamon)

1.  Cream together honey and butter.  Add vanilla and milk.  Add dry ingredients.

2.  Knead gently into a ball.  Roll thin on greased baking sheets.  Prick with a fork.  (If using cinnamon, sprinkle on top before baking.) 

3.  Bake at 350 degrees for 8 – 10 minutes.  The cooking length will depend on how thin the crackers are. 


NOTES:  In hindsight, I would have rolled them thinner.  My baking sheets have sides, so that was difficult.  I think they would do better on the sheets that are flat with no lip around the edge.  I made some plain and some with a sprinkling of cinnamon (and a smidge of organic sugar) on top.  My girls preferred the cinnamon crackers, but they ate all of them anyway.  Either way, these were a simple, healthful snack.  I’ll be making these again!

Check out my Recipes page for a downloadable copy of this and many more recipes.

As always… a perfect compliment to an afternoon coffee.

 
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This post is a part of Real Food Wednesday,Simple Lives Thursday, and Fresh Bites Friday.

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Once in a lifetime…

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Or at least once in a century.  11/11/11.  You will never see this happen again.  Unless you are under the age of 12 or so, then I suppose it’s a slim possibility.

So what to do on a such a significant day?  Get married?  Already done that.  Buy a lottery ticket?  No thanks.  Perhaps we will just carry on.

It is Veteran’s Day.  And for that I am unwaveringly grateful.  So very proud to be an American.  And that is how I choose to mark this memorable day.
Thank you to all the Veterans in my life (and even the ones that are not).  You are my superheroes.  


 

Happy Birthday, Ladybug!

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She is 5 today. 

Am I the only mom that feels infinitely emotional about every one of her kids’ birthdays?  They seem so eager to grow up.  And I long to keep them small.  I expect this will only get more difficult with time…

She is my ladybug.  That is what we have called her since birth.  She is so snuggly, sweet and sensitive.  Her tenderhearted spirit is unmatched.  And she is silly.  Oh, how this child makes me laugh.  Her giggle is entirely infectious and everyone who knows her, loves to hear her laugh.


Ladybug is sophisticated in her tastes.  When planning her special day today, I asked her about all the things she would like me to make.  I was thinking along the lines of chocolate cake and pizza… but no.  

For her cake, she requested our family’s favorite pumpkin cake recipe, Harvest Bars.  (Not gonna complain about that!)  For dinner she has asked for “Daddy’s Chinese.”  My dear hubby rarely cooks, but not because he can’t.  He is just too darn busy all the time.  When he does, “Daddy’s Chinese” is one of his specialties.  I don’t know what else to call it.  It’s a combination of rice, chicken, steamed veggies, and our favorite classic stir fry sauce.  And its yummy.  (And I don’t have to cook dinner!!!)

She also asked that I take her to my favorite local coffee shop for spumoni gelato!  I’m telling you, this kid has great taste!  (I really must post about this newish coffee shop in our quaint little town.  It’s fabulously cozy and they serve gelato, gourmet chocolates and to-die-for cupcakes!)

We are planning a “Pinkalicous” birthday party (Ladybug’s favorite book character) in a couple weeks.  More to come on party planning later.


Going off the grid today to spend some time with my little lady…

 

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Music to my ears.

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“Mama, put on your listen ears.”

At first, I wasn’t sure what she was trying to say.  Then, my loveable 2-year-old brought me the earbuds from my iPod.  She wanted to listen to music.  (Consequently, as a family, we now affectionately refer to all listening devices as “listen ears.”)

As a musician, it thrills my soul for my young girls to have an appreciation for good music.  And in our family our tastes are very broad.  You name it, we probably listen to it at some point.

My sweet girls love their Bieber (gag) however, they often beg me to turn on Ella Fitzgerald, Beethoven, and Bing Crosby.  And oh, how we dance.

I spend a lot of time in the kitchen (like most mothers, I suspect) and it’s often quiet and tiresome.  Good listening is a must.  (Old time radio shows are my guilty pleasure.)  If I am not careful, I would spend good wages on too much music.  

Thank God for Amazon!  Each month, they come out with a new selection of free mp3 albums.  (Yes!)  Currently there are 11 pages worth of free albums.  There are some real gems hidden in those pages.  Over the course of the last year, I have acquired some really great stuff from here!


Some of my favorites currently available for free:

Chacra World Music Holiday Sampler
Native American Flute Lullabies
Allegro Classical Fall 2011 Sampler
Cedarmont Kids Sampler for Moms
The Wiggles Summer 2011 Sampler

Amazon.com also had a great selection of featured albums available for download for only $5.00!  (Norah Jones’ Come Away With Me is on this list for November!) 

One more great free resource can be found at ancientfaith.com  The Chronicles of Narnia books by C.S. Lewis audiobooks are available for FREE download!  Check it out here.

Now it’s back to my coffee.  The Christmas music is on… and the homemade cinnamon rolls are fresh out of the oven.  It’s gonna be a good day.

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This post is a part of Frugal Tip Tuesday.


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Falling Back.

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Time Change.  One of my favorite moments of the year because it’s a sign of things to come.  Things like early darkness, (I find this incredibly cozy), colder weather (an even better excuse to sip more coffee), and the holidays.  

It can also be a time to “fall back,” and re-evaluate and prepare for the upcoming excitement of all things homey, sparkling, and smelling of cinnamon spice.

I am a planner so I adore the list-making.  Christmas cards. Gifts.  Party Planning.  Menus. Holiday goodies.  Even a list for the grocery store to buy those ingredients you only buy once each year is special.

It’s easy to get caught up.  Distracted.  By the parties.  By the sales.  By the the things that don’t really matter. 

This year I have decided to have an Intentional Christmas.  This means I choose to intentionally set my own priorities.  It seems that there are so many demands thrust upon me during this time of year:

Host this event.  Send this many cards.  Spend this much money on that person and that much money on this person.  Bake treats for this and bring hot cocoa for that.  Go caroling.  Build a snowman.  Buy cute Christmas frocks for my girls.  And a partridge in a pear tree.

And then I wake up December 26.  And it’s over.  And I’m exhausted.  And although we had a great time, sometimes it feels like I just finished running a marathon.  It’s easy (and dangerous) to reduce Christmas to a series of lists.

My priorities are revealed in the places where my time and money are invested and this year I plan to make some adjustments.

I want to make sweet memories with my little ladies and my sensational husband (like letting little hands measure out all the ingredients to our traditional Buche de Noel even though it will take three times as long to make).  I want to be a blessing to someone less fortunate than us (because I remember what joy this kindness has brought to our family through others when we needed it most).  I want to teach my sweet girls the value of a thoughtful gift (and not merely a trinket haphazardly snatched from the Walmart holiday gift aisle).

I want to remember the birth of my King in the most intentional way that I can.  My darling 4-year-old said to me last week, “Just forget about the presents, it’s really about a baby.”  Perhaps I have demonstrated something right so far, but even so…

We are well on our way to the grand crescendo of Christmas and things are going to be delightfully different this year. 



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The rake.

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I adore my dear husband.  Really.  And I love that he is frugal like me.  Really.  And I love his stubborn streak.  Really.  Or most of the time.

However…


When it comes to the fiasco that has become of our one-and-only rake, I must simply shake my head.

Let me begin at the beginning.

We have trees.  Loads of trees.  A plethora, if you will.

Which means that come autumn, we have even more leaves.  Legions of leaves.  At first, it’s great fun with all the piling and jumping.  For the kids it’s a wonderland and the colors are spectacular.  

But now it’s November.  And they simply must go.  But our rake…  *sigh*


The handle on our dependable rake failed.  Broken, completely in two.  Naturally, I thought it was time for a new rake.  After all, old faithful has certainly served us well and it was time for him to retire.  Silly old me.  

“Nonsense,” said dear hubby, “I have just the thing!”  After disappearing into the basement for several minutes, he emerged with a long metal pipe (consequently calling to mind the lead pipe from our trusty Clue game).  The pipe was taller than me.  (To this day we have no idea where it came from.  My husband might argue it was gift from above, a fall miracle.)  Surprisingly the pipe was threaded on the end like a screw and was a perfect fit onto the end of the rake.  Imagine that.


So now we have this monster of a rake.  I swear it weighs at least 25 pounds and its much taller than me.  I can barely wield it at all.  On the bright side, it’s a pretty intense workout just to rake the leaves.  And judging from the size of our yard and the amount of leaves on the ground, one of us is going to be looking pretty awesome by the time it’s all done.  But I don’t think it’s going to be me…  


Have at it, Sweet Husband.  I think I’ll sip my coffee and watch you from the window seat.  

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