Black Friday In July!

Once (or is it twice now?) a year, children's resale shop Once Upon A Child holds their $10 Bag sale. The rules? Fit whatever red line tag items you can in this bag for just $10!

Now, if you've got a little one with tiny clothes, oh my gosh you could REALLY score! I wasn't sure how much would fit in the bag since my boy is older and wears a size 6 boys. But I wanted to see if it was worth the effort, so I headed out to get in line about 15 minutes before store opening.

Word of advice: if you plan to attend this sale, get there early! The line was literally wrapped around the sidewalk & they had to stop letting people in the store because of fire codes, and then it was one person out-one person in from there on. I was shocked! But I suppose I'm not the only one who loves a bargain.

The other word of advice: make sure you look for red line items only! There were a number of folks just grabbing anything and everything & at checkout were disappointed their items weren't included in the sale!

So what exactly did I squeeze into my tiny pink bag for $10? Let's see!

The count came to 9 tshirts, 1 collared polo shirt, 1 long sleeve shirt, 1 pair of athletic shorts, & 1 pair of swim trunks. For $10!

The cashier was surprised I squeezed so much into my bag, and the secret was rolling the clothes tightly. I tried folding them, but rolling them into little "logs" allowed LOTS more to be stuffed into the bag!

Now, giving full disclosure, the selection was limited. The entire store was not all red-lined items. I went from my son's size & two sizes up to find the clothes I liked and were red-lined. Some of the red-line items had a small stain or a hole, so I passed those up.

If you are willing to dig a little, you can score a great deal at the Once Upon A Child's Stuff-A-Bag sale!

Things On My Kitchen Counter..

Feeling really random today...which is what my kitchen counter looks like. What's there?

*A bag of chocolate donuts, half eaten (mmmmm!)

*My camera that needs to be uploaded to my computer, but the cord isn't unpacked from vacation yet

*Jessie's glasses

*Geometry In A Box game that I pulled out for Reese but haven't done anything with yet

*A rock

*The 3rd book in the Twilight Series, half read...waiting for time to read more

*McDonald's Diet Coke

*The manuals for all appliances in our home. The fireplace pilot was out & wouldn't light, so Hubbs fixed the problem for us after I found the manual. Thanks Lovey!!!

*4 bars of Ivory soap, for making laundry detergent tomorrow

*A broken Star Wars ship of some sort. Need to put the cockpit cover back on for Reese

*A wine glass filled with hyacinths...thanks Jessie!!

*A toy shotgun (we live in Texas, so that's not too random, right?)

*Three bags of Halloween-themed foam pieces, destined for Freecycle

*Jug of bleach

*Cherry pie I baked this morning

*Electric skillet from pancakes this morning

*Lid to the trashcan...got distracted while planning to empty the trash. Must empty trash. Must put lid back where it goes!

*Bin of stickers

*Giant Hershey's kiss, a Valentine treat from Jessie

*Red, glittery heart cutouts from Valentine's Day (see, I'm so bad about putting things away!)

*A bag of magazines that are free at the FM Library

*A big hat box that had a bunch of fun Valentine gifts in it from my friend T. Again--bad about putting things away! I did empty the box, but it still needs to be put away!

*Han Solo

*A Sharpie. Can't live without my Sharpie! I even have one in my car :)

*Folder full of insurance claim stuff. Some to file, some to follow up on. Some have been paid. You mean it doesn't belong on the kitchen counter?


*sigh*. What a mess. Must get busy cleaning things up & putting things away. I'm the worst about just setting something down & leaving it there for a week! I hope you're less cluttered than I am!

Recycle Me!

In February, our Early Childhood PTA group is having a recycled art contest! After getting my Big Ass Book of Crafts book for Christmas from my wonderful hubby I knew I had found the perfect project to enter into the contest....

It starts with this.....

Any guess what I'm making & what it will be? I've almost completed this project and will take photos & post a step-by-step tutorial for anyone else interested.

It requires magazines, some free time, & hot glue. What, oh what, will it be?

That's One Scary B*tch!

We all have those childhood memories...that one teacher who sent chills down your spine.

For me, it was a wonderful woman who taught Computer Lit in middle school.

You see, if you were a 6th grader at CTMS, you were at the bottom of the food chain. As if it wasn't bad enough having bad hair...

bad clothes....

bad skin....

and trying to find your way around this ginormous new school, we had to deal with her. This teacher brought fear into the lives of 6th graders school-wide. You didn't dare cross her path, because she would spit fire and eat you alive.

OK, maybe not eat you alive.

But she sure as hell delighted in rubbing your face in the dirt. See, she taught 8th grade Computer Lit, and in our school, 8th graders were the shizz-nit.

It was rumored that She would drag you into her classroom full of 8th graders and yell at you in front of all of them. Yay for quality teachers!

Surely, this had to be a rumor. I had straight As. I was a cheerleader. I was perfect in every way. (maybe a *tad* bit of exaggeration here)...

The purpose of my life at 11 was to please everyone on Earth around me!

So imagine my surprise when I was walking to class & was jerked backwards by my arm. Apparently, I was going in the out door, and for that I deserved a Royal Thrashing.

She pulled me down the hall by the arm, into her classroom full of 8th graders, and poked fun at me. For going out a wrong door. I remember feeling SO small, so humiliated.

She had to have been a truly horrible, miserable woman to feel the need to treat children that way. Or maybe her underwear were shoved up her ass. You decide.

**As a side note...can you tell what generation I'm from? The Christmas door was decorated with Reagan, Gorbachev, & Santa. Yeahhhh...**

Don't Buy Caramels Anymore...Make Your Own!

A few weeks ago, Jeff & I were talking about Christmas traditions and he remembered homemade caramels as a special Christmas time treat. Given my limited talent in the kitchen, I wasn't sure if I could pull off Homemade Caramels or not.



The first batch didn't turn out well. I didn't have a candy thermometer, so getting the caramel to the proper temperature was a guess...and I didn't guess so well! While it tasted really good, it was way too soft and had to be dumped. I guess we could have used it for a caramel topping of some sort, but it was just easier to start all over in this case.



After getting a candy thermometer, and giving it a second try, we were really pleased with the results. I was most pleased, though, that Jeff loved them!



Check out our yummy recipe & enjoy!



Ingredients:

*1 cup unsalted butter

*1 lb. light brown sugar

*dash salt

*1 cup light corn syrup

*1 14oz can sweetened, condensed milk

*1 tsp. vanilla extract



What To Do:

*Melt butter in a heavy saucepan. Add brown sugar & salt. Stir until thoroughly combined.

*Stir in corn syrup & mix well.

*Gradually add milk, stirring constantly.



*Cook & stir over medium heat until candy reaches firm ball stage (245 on candy thermometer). This will take about 45 minutes. Make sure you stir constantly so the cooking candy doesn't burn.



*Remove from heat & stir in vanilla.

*Pour into a buttered or heavy duty foil-lined 9 inch square pan.

*Cool in the fridge & cut into squares.



We also made some Turtles with the caramel. Lay 4 pecans on parchment paper (turtle's legs) so that they touch in the center of the Turtle. Pour a tablespoon of caramel in the center, top with melted chocolate & let cool!

And it's great to get those little hands helping wrap all that caramel!

Post #400! It's A Skate Party!!

This is post #400 for the Williams Family Blog. Who the heck knew I had so much to say? In honor of number 400, we're having a skating party! I remember going to the skating rink as a kid with daycare & how much I hated those brown rental skates with the broken laces...

The video below is not for little ears :) Happy Skating!

MiceCube: A Review!

A few weeks ago, I found some mouse droppings in both garages & was less than thrilled to know that we had been visited by a rodent. However, I can deal with a mouse or two outside. We back up to a big field and are surrounded by fields and a golf course...plenty of places for little critters to live!

However, when I found droppings in Jeff's office and in the laundry room behind the dryer, that was enough! Mice are not welcome in the house!

I set out to WalMart to find something to trap our guests. I didn't like my options much.

*Poison: I didn't like the idea of a mouse eating the poison and having to walk around the house before it died. What would it touch with it's poison-laden feet & poop?

*Sticky trap: Completely inhumane. Even though I don't want the mouse in the house, I also don't want to give it a death where it must starve over a period of days.

*Traditional snap-trap: I couldn't bear to find a squished mousey. And Reese is very curious...I was worried he would just need to touch it. Even though he's a big 5 year old now, the bones in his fingers are still very tiny!

Then I stumbled upon the MiceCube. This is more along the lines of what I was looking for...a live mouse trap. Something to catch them & then I can take them to a field far away and let them go.

The MiceCube is about the size of a stick of butter, and is made of gray plastic. There is a little trap door at one end, and when the mouse enters, gravity closes the door and traps the mouse. To release the mouse, you simply turn the trap upside down, the door opens and the mouse can be set free.

We set the trap according the the instructions: Put peanut butter on a little part of a cracker and place at the back of the trap. Put a little peanut butter on the outside of the trap door to leave a scent trail. I placed the traps in the places I had seen mouse droppings.

Sure enough, it only took 2 nights to trap this:

He was the tiniest little thing and had a big cracker snack before I took him far away from our house and let him go in a field!

To clean, I filled the trap with hot water & dish soap and let it soak.

We're waiting to see if any more mice come to dine. The first night the traps were set, the mouse (mice?) had licked all the peanut butter off the trap doors but didn't enter the trap. The second night, we caught 1 mouse. Nobody has licked the peanut butter off the trap doors in 3 nights now, so perhaps he was the lone mouse in the house?

I would highly recommend using the MiceCube if you've got a rodent in the house & you'd like to consider an alternative to killing it. The MiceCube worked exactly as it was supposed to!

It probably seems odd that I'm writing this review, but I was so excited at the success of our MiceCube that I just had to share!

It's My Favorite Things!!!

My Favorite Things Swap box arrived last week, & boy what a fun treat! :) I was paired with Shar from That's What Shar Said and she spoiled me :)

Look at all this fun stuff!

Here's what's inside....Thanks Shar! :)

1. C.O. Bigelow Mentha Lip Tint. Seriously, if I wear anything colored on my lips, it's THIS! How did she know?

2. OPI pink polish. Beautiful shade!

3. The cutest felt handmade flower clip.

4. Redken Satinwear Blowdry Lotion. OK, I dry my long hair about 5 days a week. This should save my poor hair!

5. Pumi Bar. This was a perfect idea, because I loathe rough heels and my days of weekly pedicures are long gone!

6. LashBlast mascara. Can't wait to try this!!

7. Fekkai Glossing Cream. Yet another miracle wonder for my hair. And it smells so amazing!

8. Bath & Bodyworks AntiBac Hand Lotion. My all-time favorite lotion ever. How on Earth did she peg me so right? Seriously...it was eery!

As you can see, I got seriously spoiled. Thanks, Shar!!!!

Doin' The Happy Dance!!

Ohhhh....I'm so excited today! When I got home from WallyWorld, Jeff had brought in the mail and my Favorites Thing box arrived today! I was partnered up with Shar and she and I must share some of the same taste, 'cause I love everything she sent...

I've snapped pics & will do a big post about what was in the box. My favorite thing off the bat? LOVE the foot pummice thingy! I battle rough feet constantly. What am I most excited about? She sent two delicious smelling hair products that I can't wait to try!

Thanks to Shar for sending such fun gifts, and thanks to Dandelion Wishes for organizing such a fun little swap. I can't wait to post my pictures :)

Would You Rather: Day 2!!

The Tattooed Minivan Mom put up her second installment of "Would You Rather", so here are my answers below. Want to see my answers for #1-#16? Click here!

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17. Would you rather walk across hot coals or drive a nail through your foot?
I would rather drive a nail through my foot. With one swift WHACK of a hammer, it would be done, like piercing your ear. But hot coals? First, it would take a long time to walk across, and then you'd have to deal with the burned feet. Do, definitely the nail through the foot. And I'm up to date on my tetanus shots, so I won't have to get one!!

18. Would you rather have city street water splash on your bare feet or lick a shovel from a horse barn?
City street water on my feet please. Licking a shovel from the horse barn is GROSS and it's your MOUTH. The water on your FEET is just a no-brainer for me.

19. Family blog...go see Tattooed Minivan Mom if you want to see this question!


20. Would you rather have to go pee ALL the time, or have to go pee really bad but never be able to go?
Pee all the time. 'Cause my kidneys hurt when I have to pee bad and can't go. And you can always pee behind a bush if you couldn't find a toilet!

21. Would you rather drown in Coke or Pepsi?

Can it be diet? 'Cause then I'd choose Diet Pepsi. But both would burn your nose when you sucked in that last breath...but you're pretty much dead then anyway so a burned nose is probably the least of your worries.

22. Would you rather eat a bar of soap or drink a bottle of dish washing liquid?

Drink the soap. The bar of soap would get stuck in your teeth, right?

23. Would you rather be stranded on an island alone or with someone you hate?

Someone you hate. 'Cause you'd have someone to eat once you killed them. Wait...did I say that out loud?

24. Would you rather papercut your eyeball or step on a nail?
Step on a nail. Again, tetanus shot covered already. You could go days without walking if you had to, but not to see? I assume if you papercut your eyeball you'd have trouble seeing...

25. Go see Tattooed Mini Van Mom for this question :)

26. Would you rather lick a frog or drink rusty water?

Lick a frog. Can't be that bad. Rusty water would hang around your guts for long enough to do damage I would think...

27. As a blogger, would you rather be famous like Dooce and too busy to really connect with bloggers, or not so famous and have connections? (Good one CW!)

I guess not famous?

28. Would you rather live without water or electricity?

Electricity. I could get into making my own candles and lighting fires for heat. Cooking over the fire would lose it's novelty I'm sure, but to live without water would be a PAIN in the arse...

29. Would you rather shave your head with a cheese grater or be audited?
If you're honest (or creative, says Jeff) then an audit would be a cake walk. So I say audit.

30. Would you rather drink a gallon of dirty hot dog water OR a shot glass of foot sweat?
Definitely dirty hot dog water. Just really salty probably. Foot sweat...UH gross!

31. Would you rather loose your 4 front teeth after bouncing your head off a cement curb OR get a paper cut on your eye?
What's up with people wanting to papercut my eyeball? This time, I would choose the eyeball paper cut. I have a real problem with loose teeth, missing teeth, bumping my teeth, that sort of thing.

32. Would you rather have explosive diarrhea OR uncontrolled vomiting?
I think vomiting is more socially acceptable than pooping everywhere, so I'd go with that.

33. Would you rather have a Permanent Yeast Infection or Permanent Hemorrhoids?

Since I've never had either one I have no idea what they feel like. I can't answer...I really have no idea!

34. Would you rather be able to read your husband's mind? Or have him be able to read yours? (Good one!)

I'll be selfish and say I'd want to read his mind.

35. Would you rather suffer from incurable baldness, everywhere, or wolfman's disease, everywhere?

Baldness. You could choose some kick-*ss hats to wear, but it would be hard to hide the hairy man problem. And never have to shave again? That would be GREAT!
36. Would you rather share your house with a skunk or a porcupine?

Porcupine for sure! Skunk stink gets EVERYWHERE!
37. Would you rather eat opossum roadkill (that's been jacked up) or bambi.

Sorry, but I say Bambi. Roadkill can have all sorts of diseases & bugs. You didn't say I have to SHOOT Bambi myself...so I could eat Bambi if I didn't see her alive first.

Thanks, Dandelion!!

I'm so excited to be participating in the Mamarazzi's Favorite Things Swap!!!

To put it simply, you think of your favorite things....things that are simple but you love....and gift them to someone else! I've got my list going--it's growing and growing...

We are to mail them by Novemer 18th, and I'll update here when I get my fun surprises!!! What a FUN idea, Dandelion Wishes!!

Vacation Reading

I tend to over plan my vacation reading, but I'd rather have too many choices instead of not enough! The way I figure it, we'll be in the room for a good 3 hours each afternoon while Reese naps. He tends to take BIG naps on vacation, so that's 21 hours of time to read. Plus the plane ride there & back...another 5 hours total. So I figure three books should cover it!


I'm bringing:





*The Deep End of the Ocean by Jacquelyn Mitchard. This was on our library's "Oprah's Book Club" list. Not that I care about Oprah's book club, but I was looking for a good emotional story and this seemed to fit the bill. The Amazon.com synopsis reads:





The horror of losing a child is somehow made worse when the case goes unsolved for nearly a decade, reports Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel columnist Jacquelyn Mitchard in this searing first novel. In it, 3-year-old Ben Cappadora is kidnapped from a hotel lobby where his mother is checking into her 15th high school reunion. His disappearance tears the family apart and invokes separate experiences of anguish, denial, and self-blame. Marital problems and delinquency in Ben's older brother (in charge of him the day of his kidnapping) ensue. Mitchard depicts the family's friction and torment--along with many gritty realities of family life--with the candor of a journalist and compassion of someone who has seemingly been there.





Perhaps reading a book about an unsolved missing child case (fictional), while on vacation with a child seems stressful. I hope it's a great book! Apparently, it was made into a movie, which I never saw, so the book won't be spoiled for me.

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*Her Last Death: A Memoir by Susanna Sonnenberg. I love the search feature on the online catalog of our local library. By searching for "Memoir", I have found so many great stories...one of my new favorite genres! Amazon.com's synopsis:

Susanna's mother gave her a copy of Penthouse when she was a ten-year-old, cocaine when she was 12, and seduced her boyfriend at 14. Sonnenberg recounts "the true calamity of being daughter to this mother." The glory of this memoir is that the author survived her traumatic childhood and somehow navigated her way to a deftly written book capturing her dismantled youth. The daughter of a glamorous, falling-down addict of a mother and a gifted, self-absorbed father, Sonnenberg never falls into the trap of attempting to analyze two people never meant to be parents. Instead, we are allowed to feel the strange and powerful familial currencies running between mother and daughter through the keenly observed writing of Sonnenberg. The writing is razor-sharp and raw, a significant feat considering the untethered early years of this immensely talented writer.

The beginning description reminds me of Drew Barrymore's story. I'm drawn to people's life stories....

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*Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt. Another book I found in the "memoir" search word in the online library catalog. I've wanted to read this for years, & when it popped up in the search results, I was excited to grab it! From Amazon.com:

"Worse than the ordinary miserable childhood is the miserable Irish childhood," writes Frank McCourt in Angela's Ashes. "Worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood." Welcome, then, to the pinnacle of the miserable Irish Catholic childhood. Born in Brooklyn in 1930 to recent Irish immigrants Malachy and Angela McCourt, Frank grew up in Limerick after his parents returned to Ireland because of poor prospects in America. It turns out that prospects weren't so great back in the old country either--not with Malachy for a father. A chronically unemployed and nearly unemployable alcoholic, he appears to be the model on which many of our more insulting cliches about drunken Irish manhood are based. Mix in abject poverty and frequent death and illness and you have all the makings of a truly difficult early life. Fortunately, in McCourt's able hands it also has all the makings for a compelling memoir.

This is another one that has been made into a movie, but I have not seen it! I've thumbed through all three books & they all look so good. Where to begin, where to begin.

The library also had the National Treasure DVD checked in, so we rented that for movie night on Thursday. National Treasure 2 will be shown on the cruise, and we've not seen the first OR second movie...so we'll catch up on the first movie to prepare for the on-board viewing of the second.

Can I just say I LOVE the library? There are two local libraries that we have cards for, and there are so many DVDs to check out. Which obviously costs nothing. For vacation, Reese picked out The Incredibles, Muppets Treasure Island, & Honey I Shrunk The Kids. Chicken Little was on his request list, but it's still checked out. It's so much cheaper (obviously!) than renting them from somewhere, & you get to keep them for TWO weeks! Love me some free library videos!

What's The Best Freecycle Item You've Picked Up?

Last week, we picked up a breadmaker!!! Thanks to my friend Holly O...I didn't even know she was the person who offered it up. We've made 3 loaves of bread so far. First one turned out flat because I didn't set the loaf size high enough. Second loaf was a white bread that turned out good. Third loaf was a 100% whole wheat loaf that was dense but still yummy.

Our next loaf will be a wheat mix...maybe it will be a little lighter & more fluffy.

Waiting patiently for the first loaf to finish baking...

"Mommy, I want to take your picture!"
"And I want to take this picture of Zoe too"

Don't Hate Us 'Cause We're Beautiful...

Jessie & I lookin' beautiful....and she hates when I always take pictures of her!

Ch- Ch- Ch- Changes....

So I found this adorable website called The Cutest Blog On The Block when visiting my cousin's website (hi Robyn!). After poking around their website, I found some awesome updates for our blog!

If you're like me, it's disturbing when you go to a blog you like & see that it's changed. But I really, really like this design, so I won't be changing any more!

If I get motivated around Christmas I may add a different header with some cute Christmas things, but that's about the extent of my changes from here out!

Lone Survivor...Grab A Hankey

About a year ago, I was listening to Glenn Beck interview a Navy SEAL named Marcus Luttrell. His story was an incredible tale of heroism, bravery, & intelligence.

A synopsis from Wikipedia:
On June 28, 2005, Luttrell and SEAL Team 10 were assigned to a mission to kill or capture Ahmad Shah (nom de guerre Mohammad Ismail), a high-ranking Taliban leader responsible for killings in eastern Afghanistan and the Hindu-Kush mountains.

The SEAL team was made up of Luttrell, Michael P. Murphy, Danny Dietz and Matthew Axelson. Luttrell and Axelson were the team's snipers; Dietz was the communications officer and Murphy the team leader.

The four SEALs stumbled upon a small group of goat herders whom they considered to be Taliban sympathizers, but the SEALs were unable to verify any hostile intent, and were subsequently released after much debate by the four SEALs. The goat herders betrayed the team's location to local Taliban forces and the SEALs were soon engaged in an intense gun battle against a force of between 80 and 200 enemy fighters.

All of Luttrell's teammates were killed.

An MH-47 Chinook helicopter was dispatched with a force consisting of SEALs and 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment "Nightstalkers" to rescue the team, but the helicopter was shot down by an RPG. All 16 men on the Chinook were killed.

Luttrell was the only survivor of the SEAL team. Badly wounded, he managed to walk and crawl seven miles to evade capture. He was given shelter by an Afghan tribe and finally rescued by American forces six days after the gun battle.

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The first thing that really struck me was the date. June 28, 2005. It was Reese's 2nd birthday, and we were in Cancun as a family. We celebrated that exact same night, in a cushy hotel in paradise, eating cake & singing Happy Birthday. A world away, these 4 men were going through hell.

It's hard to summarize such a gripping tale as Luttrell's in such a short space. I found myself disgusted with the media & lawmakers, who spew their B.S. about the Rules of Engagement. By trying to follow the ROE, Luttrell and his men were put in direct harm, with three of the men dying. Had they been allowed to do their job, follow their SEAL training, the goatherders would not have been given the chance to share the team's location & three brave men would still be alive today.


Instead, in fear of a media storm about "the innocent goatherders killed by American soldiers" that would surely be played up by the US media, they let the men go. Which directly resulted in the death of 3 American soldiers. Disgusting.

The government spends vast amounts of money to train SEALs in combat. No trigger-happy, unfit, half-witted person would make it through Hell Week & training to become a SEAL. No. These men are the top of the top. Why we can't let them do their job is beyond me. You get a real grasp of a soldier's frustration with the media & lawmakers in Luttrell's book. Completely understandable.

I wanted to read this based on Glenn Beck's interview with Luttrell. I stayed up last night well past midnight, with my little book light, listening to Jeff snore & Reese breath heavy sleepy breaths. I could not stop reading until I reached the end.

I cried.

Tears of sadness for Luttrell & the loss he had experienced. Tears of joy for Luttrell's family as they learned his fate. Tears of anger at the US media & lawmakers for putting Luttrell's team in a no-win situation. Tears of compassion for the tribal people that took Luttrell in for five days, protecting him at all costs. Tears of pride for what Luttrell, his team, & their families endured.

I am proud to be an American, with soldiers like Luttrell volunteering to go in harm's way. For me, for you. Even for those politicians and media members who don't get it. Luttrell gets it. Our family gets it. And even though the media tries to convince you otherwise, most of America gets it.

God Bless America, and God bless Marcus Luttrell for sharing his story. It's one we all need to hear.

White House Photo by Eric Draper

I'm Dorktastic!

One day, I came across this hillarious blog post about horrible Olan Mills photographs. They truly are Dorktastic! The last picture of the bunch is even Ree, a gal who writes the blog Confessions Of A Pioneer Woman. Visit Ree, but only after you check out my Dorktastic pictures through the years!

The first picture is of my brother & I in the bluebonnets. From the hairstyle, I believe I'm in the 3rd grade. Ugh. See that cowlick? I STILL fight that darn thing in my bangs! And thanks, Blogger & Picasa, for refusing to post this picture in the proper direction.

If you'll notice in this picture below, I'm wearing the same snazzy shirt as in the bluebonnet photo. Mom seems to have tamed the cowlick. But I've always hated this picture. As a kid, and as an adult still, I fight chapped lips. Carmex has been my constant companion...those who know me will recall that I rarely, if ever, wear lipstick!

Anyway...my lips used to get so incredibly chapped that I would have a red, cracked ring around my face, outside of my lips, because I licked them so much. I remember being referred to as "looking like a clown" by a family member who thought they were being helpful in trying to get me to stop licking.

Never worked though. In this picture, I'm curling my lips in, trying to hide the chapped part. And nice mullet, thank you.

Here, the mullet has grown at a bit and I'm going for the messy/unkept looks. I'm with my cousin in this picture, approximately the summer before 4th grade. In front of my grandparent's house. Still fighting the cowlick.
This is 4th grade Heather. Love the cowlick. Hated basketball. Really hated those gray shorts. But apparently, I was #1, so I had that going for me.

This was the end of 4th grade. What do I remember about this picture? For one, I hated that red vest. It was itchy. And I thought the duck with a heart was stupid. And two, I hated the way my Mom did my hair that day. I'm sorry Mom, because....

When it came time to style my hair for GGMa's wedding in March of this year, I did my own hair like this:
OK, so onto 5th grade. I was ALL about having a haircut like Mary Lou Retton. This was 1985 and I was a gymnast, so it only made sense. My mom (who is not pictured below) took me to some oriental lady who didn't speak English & didn't know who in the world Mary Lou Retton was. It turned out OK I guess.

What I like about the picture below is the screaming 80s that drips off this page. Dad's afro was cool, along with his huge glasses. My pink fuzzy sweater vest was only topped by the whilte stirrup pants you can't see. My dad's girlfriend, Alicia, rocked the feathery/poofy hair. My little brother just looked cute. Dang him.

After Mary Lou Retton wasn't so cool anymore, I let my hair grow out. I wanted a PERM! Again, thanks Mom for indulging me...but it's OK to say no sometimes! :)

My hair is sooooo extremely fine, so I ended up with a 'fro, just like Dad! And nice chiclet teeth too.

Fast forward three years...this is 1990 and I'm a freshman in high school. Dad's wedding. I remember I was so very excited to pick this dress out. It had huge, puffy pink tulle sleeves. A fitted bodice (which I had to have let out because I got boobs between dress purchase & wedding). Pink satin pumps dyed to match.

My hairstyle, sad to say, is about the same now as it is here:

And here's my last picture...highschool sometime...probably about 1992. I'm at my grandparent's again with my cousin. The pinch rolled jeans are awesome, as is my nice haircut. The shirt was from Outback Red.. THE coolest place to buy clothes back then. And I'm doing my best to look like I belong in the zip of 90210, 'cause that was the shiz-nit it 1992!

Interesting choices through the years....glad I look like me now! :) tee he he he

Kid-Pleasing Homemade Mac & Cheese

What to feed these guys when the pantry is essentially empty?

Last night I found this recipe online when our pantry fixins were somewhat slim. I knew there was a reason I held onto that box of plain elbow noodles!

Creamy Homemade Macaroni & Cheese

Ingredients:

1 box macaroni elbows (8oz)

1 stick butter

1 can evaporated milk

1 lb. Velveeta, plus enough for slicing

Boil macaroni in salted water for 7 minutes. Don't overcook your macaroni because the process finishes cooking it.

Drain off water, leaving about 1 cup of water in the pan.

Into the macaroni & water, mix in 1 stick butter, 1 can evaporated milk, & 1 lb Velveeta.

Heat on medium on stove until all is blended & melted.

In a lightly greased glass baking dish, pour macaroni mixture. Place slices of Velveeta on top.

Broil in oven until top is melted. Watch carefully as it can burn!

Set aside on the counter until it cools. Sauce with thicken considerably as it sets.

Easy Homemade Gift Idea

For my Mommy Friends in our CoOp group, I made these:

The inspiration came from some homemade body scrub that Jessie made for me as a birthday gift...which was the best! The project was very easy & something kids can easily get in on!

To begin, choose your jar. I went to Hobby Lobby & found these wide mouthed jars with hinged lids for $1.33 each (I visited when they were 1/2 price, so I got an even better deal!). While you're at the craft store, swing by the scrapbook section and pick a spiffy pattern paper to top your jar with & make your tag with. I used one 12x12 sheet for the lids and another 12x12 sheet for the labels. And don't forget your jar of Glossy Mod Podge & a small foam brush.

Cut circles from the scrapbook paper the size of your jar's lid. I used a cup as my template. Brush a layer of Mod Podge onto the jar's lid, place your paper circle on top, & smooth out any air bubbles. Then brush a layer of Mod Podge on top of the paper, making sure to get your Mod Podge over the paper's edges (this will waterproof the paper). Allow to dry over night.

For your sugar scrub, you'll need:

1 cup organic brown sugar

1/2 cup turbinado sugar (this is very, very coarse so you could use another 1/2 cup brown sugar if you'd like a finer grit scrub)

organic safflower oil

avocado oil

essential oil (I used vanilla)

Combine the brown sugar & turbinado sugar in a bowl and stir to blend. Add just enough of the two oils to the sugar so that it sticks together slightly but isn't overly oily. It's better to start with too little oil, mix your oil/sugar well, & add more oil if needed. At this point, take a little bit to the sink & scrub your hands well. Decide if it's the consistency you like. If not, add more sugar or oil. Last, add enough essential oil to make it smell as strong or subtle as you wish.

Fill your jars (after the lids have dried) with your sugar scrub. My jars held about 1 cup of scrub each. Smooth the top of the sugar scrub with the back of a spoon, & use a small heart shaped cookie cutter to imprint a heart on the top of the sugar.

All that's left is to make your tag! I used the same paper from the lids to make a label, and tied it onto the jar with coordinating ribbon. Wow your friends & family with your crafty gift :)!!

I Love My Family....Somewhat....

We went to Babe's in Roanoke for lunch today. Awesome.

Jeff had never been there, Grandma loved it when she came to town. Awesome.

Free jukebox with lots of song choices. Awesome.



I go to pick out some songs. Awesome.

Eating the all-you-can-stuff-down-your-gullet fried chicken. Awesome.

A sneaky Grandma who thinks she's really funny. Less Awesome.

Babe's waitresses coming behind you in a semi-circle, slapping a chicken hat on your head, requiring you to flap your wings while they sing Happy Birthday To You. Even Less Awesome.

Blowing out my candle on the honey-laden biscuit & knowing I'm living my wishes right now...way Awesome!!