The Great Sleepover!

Last week I told you all that our nephew & niece, Caleb & Madison, would be having their first sleepover at our house.  I was super excited.  I think they were happy about it too.

I'll admit that I was a little worried they would be bored.  I have been the impromptu baby sitter on several occasions & after the homework was done I was at a total loss for activities.  It has become glaringly obvious that we need more games & G rated movies.

Beth dropped the kids off & we decided what would be good for dinner.  I decided to try to be as much of a 'yes' auntie as possible.  I'm not sure why, but my inclination is to say 'no' a lot.  As we discussed dinner my 'yes' mentality was tested right away.  The kids (& their uncle, too) confessed that although they loved stuffed crust pizza from The Hut, they all preferred breadsticks from Little Caesar's.  What to do, what to do?  Well there was only one thing to do - call The Hut & order pizza.  Load up in the car with Maddie leaving the guys to watch sports stuff & play video games.  Go get breadsticks from Caesar & then pick up the pizza from The Hut.  Easier than cooking?  I'm not sure, but it was good!

After dinner we left Mike home (nursing his confounded sinuses) & went to DQ for a little dessert.  Very close to the DQ is a fabulous city park.  Beth & I joke about how our parents took us to DQ when we were kids & then we would drive through the park.  Not once did we get out & play & burn any DQ calories.  After Cal & Mad & I had our treats in hand we headed to the park to play.  And play we did.  I was running around the playground in my flip flops playing tag.  It was so fun.  And I didn't feel too stupid playing as an adult because there were a bunch of teenagers there doing the same thing.  Interestingly enough, we all ran around together & no one got in anyone's way & several groups of crazies were playing tag at the same time with no problems.  That has to be a playground miracle. 

 After we tired ourselves out running around playing tag, Cal & Mad had to show me a new corner of the park they had explored with Beth earlier in the week.  We had to cross this little concrete bridge over a creek.  My flip flopped feet got all wet but it was worth it. 

So far, so good.  We were all having a great time.  Then I made a couple of Rookie Mistakes.

Have any of you heard of the movie "Hachi"?  It's about a man & his dog.  I knew it was sad.  I warned the kids.  But Grandma had said it was a good movie & they wanted to watch it - Rookie Mistake #1.  So we got the couch bed all pulled out, made it up, put on our jammies, brushed our teeth, & camped out for the movie.  About halfway into the movie Mad elbows me & tells me that she has hives all over her arms & they are making her crazy.  Mad can be a bit dramatic so I make a phone call to Beth.  Evidently Mad gets hives intermittently in the spring; it's allergy related.  All she needs is some Benedryl gel.  Rookie Mistake #2 - we have practically no OTC meds of any kind.  Therefore, no Benedryl gel on hand.  I decide to go to a nearby grocery store & pick some up.  Mike is already asleep because he had to work the next day.  Mad insists she needs to go with me so I will know the right stuff to get.  Cal doesn't want to leave the movie although we all have some anxiety because we know the sad part is coming.
Rookie Mistake #3 - Mad & I go to the grocery store & leave Cal watching the movie.  We get back no more than 20 minutes later & Cal is visibly upset.  The movie has taken that sad turn & he is just overwrought.  I turn the movie off, give many hugs & cuddles good night & we all turn in.

I am happy to report that the next day I did not commit any Rookie Mistakes.  And Cal is not scarred for life.

 We spent a leisurely morning packing their stuff up (Cal is a creative packer, sticking most of his stuff inside his pillowcase - smart kid!) & getting some breakfast.  Then we headed back to their house to pick Beth & Coco up to do a little local hiking.

 It was such good times.  It was a lovely day - sunny, warm, a little breezy, & birdsong filled.  We had a great hike through the woods telling stories, finding little flowers, & even spotting a few butterflies. 

And we found this fabulous snake tree.  Isn't it curious?  It has definitely learned to adapt to get the sunlight it needs!

We all ate lunch together & ended the sleep over on a high note.  I'm thinking that in spite of the Rookie Mistakes future sleep overs will definitely be in the plans.  I gotta start scheming on how we can work out a similar deal for our out-of-town nephews & nieces.  It could be tricky because once the grandparents have them, they don't want to let go!

The Correct Way To Make Dirt Pudding

Before you begin any cooking adventure, you must set the mood.  This requires music.  I have been on a Celtic Thunder kick lately.  I am not ashamed.

Select the appropriate attire.  I may or may not have had my pajamas on underneath this fabulous apron.  Thursday, if you're reading - I love my apron!

This Dirt Pudding recipe is rich & wonderful.  It requires crushed Oreo cookies.  I didn't have any anger to vent so I used my food processor.  It pulverized those things!  If you like a grittier texture, load the cookies into a ziplock & whammo with a rolling pin.

 If a cookie should happen to flip out of the package & into the sink, you must eat it.  That's what I had to do, ten second rule & all.  You know, the rule that states if food gets dropped it must be eaten within ten seconds so that it doesn't get yucky?  That's not really how the ten second rule works?  Whaddayouknow...

 Put your cream cheese & butter in a bowl to soften.  Stick it in the microwave if you are impatient like me.

 Measure out some milk & vanilla pudding mix. 

Grab your whipped topping (it's a disturbing food isn't it?  I mean what is really whipped to make that topping...).  It should be thawed.  It's hard for even a Kitchenaid to mix up frozen whipped topping.  No, I haven't tried that; why do you ask?

 Get some powdered sugar because this isn't sweet enough already *grin*

 Mix it all up (except the Oreos, obviously).  It's a big bowl of wonderful deliciousness.

I layered this lovely concoction in my trifle bowl.  It was a wedding gift & this was the first time I got to parade it out of the china cabinet.  Looks pretty, doncha think?

After you have it all dished up, put the dirt in your freezer.  I don't think ours got frozen all the way through but it stayed wonderfully cold even after traveling to our friend's house about 30 minutes away.  Delish.

Here's the breakdown on how much you need of what:

1 package Oreo cookies, crushed
1 1/2 small boxes of vanilla pudding mix
2 cups milk
8 oz. whipped topping
8 oz. cream cheese
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 stick butter

This is actually half of the recipe.  The whole recipe is enough to get an army on a sugar high.  If you are super observant you will realize that there is an entire stick of butter in the photo above.  That's what happens when your name is PharmGirl & you try to half the recipe in your head on a Saturday morning when your brain is not yet quite in gear.  Don't be like me.

Enjoy!

His & Her Power Tools

Saturday morning dawned cloudy & rumbly with a nice thunderstorm in the works.  Mike wasn't feeling well (doggone asthma & allergies!) so while he rested I decided to get busy on my To Do list, very carefully skipping over the "Run 5 Miles" section.  Ahem.

I went straight to the kitchen & got some coffee going.  I needed to finish some applesauce that I had started the night before in the crock pot & I also needed to whip up some Dirt Pudding to take to dinner at a friend's home that evening.  I got to work.
As I wrapped up my projects I realized that I had used just about every electronic kitchen gadget that I own.  I joked with my sister in a text that I was using all of my 'power tools'.  It made me giggle to think how my power tools compare to Mike's.  So here is a photo essay of His & Her's Power Tools!

 

The Essential Tool
Won't
Can't Live Without It

The Crock Pot
AKA
Life Saver

The Blender
Apple Sauce Smoother
&
Milk Shake Maker

The Food Processor
Crumbler of Oreos,

Shredder of Many Vegetables

The KitchenAid
The Mightiest Whipper
in the Land

Mitre Saw
I think...

Drill Press
AKA
Mike's Christmas Present 2010





Belt Sander
Maker of Much Dust



Impact

AKA
The Other Part of
Mike's Christmas Present 2010





Scroll Saw
AKA
Mike's Christmas Present 2009





I'm not sure if you noticed the trend, but I seem to have no other inspiration for Christmas gifts other than tools. So far Mike hasn't complained!



Changing Views

I took this picture a mere 8 days ago.

Spring Snow = Spring Confetti!

 This is the same tree today.

I love those snow white blossoms!

I love looking out the office window & watching this tree.

It's usually alive with a zillion little sparrows every morning.

I am amazed at the change that 8 warm days can bring - in spite of the chilly nights!

What are you watching & waiting for to bloom?

Anticipation

One of the things that I love so much about Spring is that there are so many things to look forward to...Spring Break, warm days to play outside, planting flowers, planning gardens, getting the grill ready to fire up, planting flowers, digging out your flip flops & taking care of the first pedicure of the year...good stuff!

This week our nephew & niece, Caleb & Maddie are on Spring Break.  They have been having a blast.  That's how it should be, right?

Maddie loaded Coco into the wagon & took her for a ride!

 I have Friday off of work & they are going to come spend the night with us tonight.  I'm totally excited.  We haven't ever had them overnight before.  I really want Mike & I to be the cool, fun uncle & aunt they they will want to spend time with.  Is that totally immature?  Probably so. 

Any ideas of super fun & cool things we can do together?

I've already planned to let them sleep on the pull out couch bed. 

I totally thought that was fun when I was a kid. 

Am I weird?

I also figured we could jam to a little Celtic Thunder. 

We all love the song "All God's Creatures Have A Place In the Choir."

No need to answer the above question.  After a momen't consideration I know I'm weird.

In Other News...

Getting ready to burst out & shine!

Maggie Magnolia is in fine shape lately.  She is literally covered with buds like this one. 

I cannot wait for her to let it fly & bloom all over!

Climbing the Mountain!

No, I'm not announcing a crazy fitness quest.  The Indy Mini is hard enough for me, thank you very much.

Lately I've been thinking about a whole host of things that I need to deal with, change, root out of my life, & start doing.  Add on the list of projects that never seem to get completed (hello sewer!) & the things that by nature never get finished like laundry, grocery shopping, dish washing...I'm sure you know what I mean.  All of that stuff has started to become a mountain in my mind.  And it makes my soul weary. 

Mike & I were talking about it last night.  He said he just felt overwhelmed.  I gave him a fist bump & a hearty Amen!  We talked about how we would be praying for one another & what we could do to help each other.  It was good.  And we found lots of reasons to be grateful & content.  The Lord has taken good care of us & He has faithfully kept us.  We aren't discontent with His provision & care, but we are not content with the things that need to change.

Usually when I feel like this I start making lists.  Crazy list making woman that I am I can make lists of character qualities I need to put off & put on.  Lists of chores/projects to do.  Lists of ways to have a little fun when it seems like all we do is work.  Lists of financial goals.  Lists of bad habits to ditch & good habits to cultivate.

But this time I'm just going to try to rest.  Let the Lord show me day by day, moment by moment what He wants from me.  I don't think He is as concerned about finishing the sewer as I am.  I don't think He is as frustrated as I am that my read-the-Bible-through-in-one-year schedule is out the door.  He just wants me to read my Bible.   Know what I mean?

This morning I had a little quiet time at work (ahhh...).  I was working in the hood drawing doses & frankly, the first one was a real booger.  Too much activity, too little activity, too much, too little, didn't even change the activity that time!  I seesawed that thing probably 8 times.  *sigh*  I thought, "Lord, I'm going to start this day frustrated & boogered up.  Are you going to help me?"  I'm a little demanding, huh?  But good God that He is, He did help me.  I took a deep breath.  I asked for help to quiet my mind & I kept working.  It's not like it was all easy, hit the dosage right on the head every draw after that but I was not so quickly disquieted.  I got to thinking & fretting about The Mountain.  I should have been praying & dropping my burdens.  But the Lord was listening & He knew what I needed.  Do any of you remember the Patch the Pirate song "Little by Little"?  Those words sprang to mind & I let them sing to me while I was drawing up the remaining doses.   Let's see if I can remember them well enough to type them out for you:

When mountains tower, rugged & high,
Rise to the challenge
Look to the sky!
Trust in the Lord & start out to climb,
Great things are done one step at a time!

Little by little,
Inch by inch,
By the yard it's hard,
By the inch, what a cinch!
Never stare up the stairs,
Just step up the steps!
Little by little,
Inch by inch.

Growing in Christ takes work every day
Reading your Bible, learning to pray.
Build godly habits, seek help divine
Great things are done one step at a time!

Something like that.  I think you probably get the idea *grin* 

I have also been thinking about these verses:
Philippians 1:6
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

and

John 15:5
I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

Bottom line, I am grateful for my salvation, my great God Who tirelessly & lovingly keeps working with me to make me better than He found me, & my husband who is such an encouragement along the way. 

So I'm going to climb this mountain, Lord willing!  And hopefully not litter the trail with pages of lists & To Do's & restless worryings...it's a journey that takes place one step at a time.

Can I get an hearty Amen?

The Rest of the Festivities

 As I mentioned in my last post, the whole family got together recently to celebrate my parent's 40th wedding anniversary.

I've come to realize this is a big deal in more than one way.
I've always known that it's a big deal when your parents stay together.  Divorce happens a lot & honestly, who but God knew that my parents would make it to 40 years?
Now that I'm married myself I understand this truth from a whole different perspective. 
I give my parents a hearty WAY TO GO!  GOOD JOB! 
And we gave them a big cake.  It seemed like a good idea.


That same night we celebrated my G-pa's 87th birthday.  This happens to be the only decent shot I got of him all night.  I had to load it into my Instagram app on my phone to snazz it up a bit.  I really like the way it turned out.
By the way, if you use Instagram, let me know so that I can follow you!  It's a lot of fun but I don't know many people out there.  Please be my friend *grin*

 At some point in the course of the evening G-pa realized that I was snapping pics of everyone.  From that moment on he decided to be ornery.  He was making faces that made him look like a stroke victim.  What a goof!

 Mike & I got him that sign for their cabin out in the country.  It says "Welcome to the Cabin."  I love those little plaques.  I have several around our house that say things like "Work hard.  Pray hard.  Trust God."  Very good little reminders.  I need one to keep in front of me at all times that says "Be Quiet."  Not just in the stop talking sense (although sometimes I DO need to quit talking!) but in the sense of keeping of a quiet mind, spirit, & body.  I am just a noisy, tense, even sometimes twitchy person.  Gotta learn to be quiet!

There's the stroke victim face again!

It's a blessing to have such a great weird family.  We enjoy being together & the fact that we can all cram around one table & stay there for hours laughing & talking together is something that I praise the Lord for. 

Yeah, we were watching the NCAA tournament during dinner.  Is anyone else heartbroken about Butler's loss last night?  *sob*