Hopping Toward Easter

Well, they look pretty happy.

Who doesn't like to play with dye??!!

The eggs are (somewhat unimpressively) colored and ready for the Easter Bunny to hide.  I sure hope he'll bring some chocolate treats, too!!

For all of you observing Easter this weekend, we wish you a joyful celebration of the resurrection: a gift so much more precious than eggs or chocolate!

La La La

The kiddies made this brief video with their pappy the other day and adore watching it over and over.   If you can get past Miss C's horrendous 'do, you just might smile!

Visitors From The East

Okay, only about 30 minutes east, but we were thrilled all the same!   While I have met Baby Olive twice, the rest of my family had not had the pleasure.  We were so honored to be the recipients of FAC and FUE's first outing at another home (especially since Eric even took a 1/2 day off work to come)-- such fun afternoon of hanging out! 

Olive is NOT sure what to think of the Kentobean hooligans:

Probably not so sure about her crazy Auntie Em, either:

I imagine she LOVES her Uncle BG, though:  he walked around holding a napping baby for a full 2 hours!!  

We sure are excited to watch this little girl grow up!!!

We'll Take It

It snowed all day long yesterday but it was above freezing so the snow never really accumulated after the 3-4 inches we got overnight.  It was still plenty o' fun for the BG and the kids to romp around.   I was enlisted to come take a few pics and, as you can see, I dressed very appropriately:

I did wear boots!  (I also wore my pjs and robe all day/night long.  That either makes me really sad or really cool!)

It was the perfect snow for rolling and creating:

See?

And a bit of action:

Forgetting Monday

Well, it must be Spring Break because I completely forgot until about 10 minutes ago that it was Monday morning and I needed to come up with a blog post.

I guess I'm just lost in the Spring-y ness of our surroundings this morning:

Why, yes, this IS the most snow we've gotten all winter!!   BIZARRE.

Meeting of the Auto Club

Wednesday morning,  I got up early to do some work.  I was sitting at my computer "desk" (aka our main table) when the BG left around 6:10 to head to school.  I was also sitting there when he came back in at 6:11 with the news that he had a flat tire.

I was all set to go wake up the kids and throw them in my car so we could take him to school when he decided he had time to put on the spare.  Poor guy-- it was so dark and cold.  But he made it.

Amazingly enough, the guy at the local service station identified it was just a tiny puncture and was able to fix it for $25.   The BG then brought it home and taught the B-man the wonders of tire-replacing!

Hope no one gets a flat this weekend!!   Happy Friday!

Yep, More Grocery Pics

But unlike yesterday's (and I guess no one knows anything about the new frosting system??!), these are a bit more exotic!  We took the BG to H-Mart on Sunday to introduce him to all the wonder.  The produce at Asian markets is SERIOUSLY cheap:  last week, I got an 18 oz container of blueberries for $3.99 and this time, I got a pineapple for $1.99.   They also have all kinds of things you've probably never seen before.  Sounds like an experiment for the summer to me!!

ANYWAY.   Now that I have a doughnut pan, I'm interested in any mix I might come across.  Hmm-- this one looks interesting:

SERIOUSLY?   You taunt me with "Cook & Enjoy" and even a "Tip!" but provide no instructions in English???!

I had to snap this pic for Mr. Lyman Green, Businessman.  And just let me say, "It's all because of you...I'm feeling sad and blue...You went away and now my life is just a rainy day...":

And this I had to snap to pay homage to Brooks's original namesake.  No, not this one.  I'm talking about the chef at our favorite Indian carry-out joint back in the day who gave rise to the B-man's in-utero name.  I feel kinda bad that we've been spelling it Baboo all these years!

Someday, I'm gonna get some fish at the market.  I realize you can't see any of the (whole) fish stacked up on the ice but that's because I was trying to snap the sign that demonstrates the 8 options for the preparation of your fish purchase.  Pretty sure I'd go with #3!!!

We picked up some octopus on the way out:

Just kidding!  We actually got the BG's beloved Korean sticky rice donuts instead.  They are seriously tasty:

Here's a shot of the other sweet treats we've brought home:

Still haven't opened the orange gummy candy, but, as you can see, Hello Kitty provided a delightful little surprise in her marshmallows!

Ah, food adventures!   So fun!!!!

Frosted Curiosity

Our favorite Auntie Polly is no longer a resident of Beantown.  Indeed, she just crossed the country to begin a new adventure in Oregon!!   While we are super bummed she's now several time zones away, we applaud that she'll be working from home and we can return to our constant phone conversations of yesteryear.  ;-)

In any case, Polly and I love to talk food/recipes/cooking and we had discussed this newfangled tub frosting concept sometime back.  When I saw the display in the grocery store yesterday, I immediately thought of her and snapped the pic to send to her.   Then I decided I wanted to see if any of you have tried this thing where you start with a "base" and then add a packet of flavor??

Believe me, I know how horrible tub frosting is for us.  It's something I only very rarely buy.  But that doesn't mean it's not delicious!   So tell me-- how does this new system rate?!

Scrimmagey Fun

The three-pronged party wasn't the only entertainment on Saturday!   The BG had a track scrimmage in the morning with/at his former school and he was dreading it due to the forecast of cold, driving rain.   When the kids and I left B's weekly swim lesson around 11 AM, however, I realized (big shocker, given this year's run of disappointingly-unfulfilled weather reports) it wasn't raining.  Since out-of-the-house adventures are always exciting, I decided to cruise on over to the school to let the kids check in on the fun.

They love being in on the action!

And running...everywhere!

Who wants to slow down for a pic?   Not Miss C.

Just as the B-man has his favorite cheerleader friend during the first part of the year, he has a very special track star friend, too.   He even got to help her move the hurdles!

All that playtime definitely warranted a tasty BBQ lunch at our favorite local chain that has authentic Texas eats, plays country music, and just generally has a down-home atmosphere...complete with saddles!

Have I mentioned lately how much I LOVE being closer to all of the BG's sporting activities?!  So many more opportunities for family fun!

A Three-fer

I returned to the old 'hood Saturday to attend a three-pronged party:  1) a Pinterest party where each guest was to bring an appetizer, dessert, or beverage made from a recipe found on Pinterest; 2) a paint-your-own glassware party, and 3) a sell-some-gold party.  Alas, I have no unwanted gold lying around the house so I only partook in the first two components!

As a lover of variety, I decided to make two Pinterest recipes and am happy to report that they were both big successes!   The sweet treats, Deep Dark Chocolate Cookies, are flourless and butter/oil-less cookies that were so amazingly delicious even in dough form that-- don't tell Sheils--I might have licked the beater even with some egg whites in the mix.   When I bought the bittersweet chocolate chips (Ghiradelli brand at the grocery store), they were on sale so I bought two bags.  I'm pretty excited about that since I can't wait to make them again!   I neglected to take an "after" pic since they looked just as pictured on the blog, but here's the shot I couldn't resist snapping of ALL the chocolatey goodness!

Next up was an appetizer treat that was a massive hit with the partygoers.   So.....if you ever come to a party at my house, I'll probably be serving this Feta Dip (along with spirited pudding cups, of course)!!  

Yeah, no one liked it at all:

A quick shot of some of the other treats.  No recipes have been exchanged yet but here we had some sort of pumpkin cake, a white pizza dip, and a S'mores dip with graham crackers:

 

The creamy dip was also actually called "Feta Dip."  The cookies in the forefront are Rolo cookies and the pie in the back looked suspiciously store-bought.   That fact was confirmed....but then I learned it was bought at Wegmans, so OBVIOUSLY I helped myself to a piece!   :-)

As for the painting, I now have a decorated set of 4 stemless wine glasses.  They are still in the 48-hour drying process and then will be baked in the oven to cure.  Or something.   I'm still awaiting those instructions!

In other news, I chose a little bit more variety in my $3.99 Trader Joe's bouquet this weekend!

Shocker!

I mean, REALLY.  Did you think I'd pass up this new "book bundle" at the library?

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Actually-- wait.  On a SAD note: it was announced yesterday that Google Reader will be no more as of July 1st.   Anyone out there (cough, Chad Sellers, cough) have a suggestion about a good alternative?   I've been loving Google Reader for so many years!!!

Okay, proceed with your fun (almost)weekend!

Tutus "In The Fog"

I am thankful that my offspring can entertain themselves so easily.  First up is Tutu-Headed Girl "in the fog" (aka under the white mesh laundry hamper):

 Uh-oh!!

If you can't beat 'em, join 'em!

And a bonus (very squeaky-- where's the WD-40?) video that has nothing to do with tutus or "fog" but everything to do with a new tricycle found on deep discount at Amazon that has pedals too far away from Miss C's legs even though she's a giant:


PS:  The happiest of birthday wishes go out to Auntie Lindsay today!!!

Mid-Week Randoms

--I have gone to bed "in the 9s" (as in before 10:00) the last two nights and it has been delicious.

--Part of the reason I've gone to bed early is that I've suddenly found myself with some free evening time this week, which is quite a change after the last two.  I am so fortunate to have been given the opportunity to do some consulting work for someone I worked with almost 10 years ago.  (See!  Keeping in touch really is important!)  It's been super busy and, combined with my regular weekly hours I do for my former full-time employer, I've put in 15-20 hours each of the last two weeks. So far, this week has been without many need-to-do-it-now projects, hence the sleeping.

--I really like working on projects.  Just not of the crafty or cleaning variety, mind you!!

--I did not need to be reminded how tasty the Wegmans coconut macaroon cookies are.  I usually encourage the BG's Weggies treat to be something like shortbread cookies that would never tempt me, but I kinda fell into the macaroon box face-first yesterday.  SO soft and chewy.

--On the flip side, I just did my weekly weigh-in this morning and I lost 2 lbs this past week.  Kinda think the scale hasn't figured out about those macaroons yet.  Or the random fun-size KitKat bar I discovered while trying to de-clutter the living room the other day.

--I was with a group of women at a playdate yesterday and one was discussing how she thinks females just have a "different set of eyes" than men when it comes to seeing messes around the house.  Um, the BG and I definitely traded eyes on that one.  I will step over a toy/pile/mess at least 12 times before being bothered to do anything about it.  Usually, by that time, the BG has already picked it up.  Ah, balance!

--Needless to say, I was pretty proud of myself for cleaning up the living room the other day (as noted two bullet points above).  I choose to ignore that most of you probably pick up messes each day at a minimum.   Come on-- I'm too busy eating coconut macaroons!

--I actually only ate two.  I do have some restraint.

--But not when it comes to online bargain kids clothes shopping!   Gymboree had a fabulous deal Monday:  everything was 30% off and then there was a web-only 20% code.  I may or may not have spent an hour crafting my amazing shopping cart o' deals.  Too bad I don't get paid for that work!

--Thankfully, I do get paid for my other work.  You know, so my children can have 10x as many cute clothes as I do.  The Easter Bunny even did his shopping on Amazon because online shopping just makes me him happy!

--And, bringing this list full circle, I've also had extra free time since so many TV shows have been repeats after February sweeps.  My treadmill-viewing continues to be the entire series (two seasons) of Sports Night and I've been zooming through the Nurse Jackie Season 4 episodes with my one-DVD-at-a-time Netflix plan.    It's good to have DVDs as backup!  

--AND.....now it's 7:02 so I am gonna hit "Publish"!  Have a great day!  And feel free to leave some randoms of your own in the comments!   ;-)

Giggles and Sighs

We still have the B-man spend two hours in his room each afternoon (on non-school days) for quiet time.  The only time he's actually fallen asleep in months was when he was a bit under the weather, but he knows he has to stay in there and manages to find all kinds of ways to amuse himself.

And his mother, too, it turns out!   I walked down the hall to get something and cracked up when I saw the entrance into his room:

Kinda makes up for another recent discovery.  Kid has, shall we say, an enthusiastic tissue habit when he has a runny nose:

Grocery Scenes

I really, really like grocery shopping.  I love going down each and every aisle, noting what's new and different.   After an Oct/Nov/Dec of eating nonstop, I also have needed to be better about planning meals at home...and then eating them in moderation.  This pursuit to get rid of the Fall Fat has led to much less eating out and, thus, more of a reason to explore one of my happiest shopping pursuits!

Between a week ago Friday and this past Saturday (9 days inclusive), I made 6 different grocery store trips.  Not normal, and not necessarily advised-- but lots of fun!    We hit up Trader Joe's, Harris Teeter x 2, H-Mart (Asian market), Costco, and Wegmans.  The first 4 were "mom and kid" adventures (love that they love shopping, too!) and the latter 2 helped fill out our fabulous family adventure Saturday morning.   There is a Costco opening near us and they had a sign-up drive at the BG's school; since we had already decided we were going to join, we took advantage of the deal.  Only problem is that the new store doesn't open until mid-April so we decided we'd venture out to our old stomping grounds to hit up the store there, followed by lunch at Jason's Deli which happens to be across the street from Weggies so, really, how could we not stop for treats?!

ANYWAY.

In wandering around Saturday morning, I had to giggle at two different products I saw.

Do fish really have LOINS?

 And, while I don't ever plan to give up the meat, if I ever did, I'd have to buy these products because I love the names!

H-Mart deserves a post on its own sometime in the future (when I remember to take a picture of the BG's beloved Korean rice donuts before he gobbles them down) but, in keeping with the food theme today, let me just say that I look forward to expanding my Asian cooking experience now that we have a market not even 15 minutes away.   I decided Friday that I wanted to make some sort of noodle dish for dinner and scoured the Cooking Light archives until I found something that would work.   I actually had soba (Japanese buckwheat) noodles in the pantry from some long-ago endeavor, so I decided to go with this recipe.  Even though I had the noodles, I needed the oyster sauce and the mirin, so off we went!  So fun....and turned out quite tasty along with the baby bok choy we picked up there, too!

On the completely opposite end of the spectrum, we ate at our first Roy Rogers yesterday!  I'm not sure that it's any better than the typical fast food joint except that they totally have a fixin's bar a la Fuddruckers.  If I'm gonna eat a fast food burger, I might as well get to dress it the way I want so thumbs up for that!

Of course, I might not have eaten a burger if I had known that my Baylor Honors College alumni gathering last night was going to be a full-on gourmet meal featuring chef-prepared cream of asparagus soup, steak with grilled vegetables and roasted potatoes, and (seriously?  my big weakness) dense, fudgy flourless chocolate cake. Probably not going to be successful in shedding the pounds this week....but I'd say that's probably worth the wonderful experience of reconnecting--if only for a couple of hours--with the Baylor (nerd) spirit!  

Latest Literary Adventure

There are few things I adore more than learning about new experiences from people.  It's kinda sad when the person has lived in the area a fraction of the time that I have but, then again, we DID move to a different part of "town" not even a year ago so I'm going claim that as my excuse for not knowing about a fun little children's library nearby!

Jen invited us to join her and some friends at a special storytime she set up at this local library branch that only has materials for kids (and is only open 3 days/week).   Such fun!

The kids ready to check it out:

Children, books, and children's books everywhere!

Fun to finally have a kid who likes to color:

This one still loves himself some transportation vehicles:

Groovy librarians playing the ukulele?   Awesome!

On the way home, I finally crossed something off my bucket list:  making a stop at the second (of only 2) local donut shops in the area.  The kids enjoyed some donut holes before we went home, where we all enjoyed 6 different varieties of full-size fare!

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Grateful Not Greedy

(That's what I'm trying to be, at least!  But you know what's better than one snow day?  TWO snow days!  Harrumph.)

I should be so thankful that we had a snow day yesterday and the BG got to be home all day.  Frankly, however, I was quite bummed that the storm--while dumping hours and hours of snow--didn't offer much in the way of accumulation and also wrapped up way earlier than expected.  Darn warm atmosphere...or something like that.

Way back before my hopes for a 2-day event were dashed, the kiddies went out to play with the BG.  'Course, at that point, we all thought they'd be going back out later to play in 10 inches of snow!

Sad to say this probably was still the largest storm in 2+ years.  Sigh.

Brrrr....ready for some "warm chocolate":