Christmas Funnies & Riddles

Charissa shared these with me after she got them from her school newspaper. I got a chuckle out of them. I hope you will too. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Christmas Carols for the Psychiatrically Challenged

Schizophrenia - Do You Hear What I Hear?

Multiple Personality - We Three Kings of Disoriented Are

Dementia - I Think I'll Be Home for Christmas

Narcissistic - Hark the Herald Angels Sings (About Me)

Paranoia - Santa Claus is Coming to Town to Get Me

Mania - Deck the Halls and Walls and House and Lawn and Streets and Office and Town

Personality Disorder - You Better Watch Out, I'm Goin' to Cry, I'm Goin' to Pout, Then MAYBE I'll Tell You Why



What do you get if you deep-fry Santa Claus?
Crisp Cringle

Why did Santa Claus trade Rudolph?
He wanted change for a buck

What do you call people who are afraid of Santa Claus?
Claus-trophobic


Ha-ha-ha and Ho-ho-ho ... Have a safe holiday season!

Funny Kid Videos

Sorry about the darkness, but Eric was so funny thinking he was pulling Charissa in our rolling desk chair. MUSH!

Oren and Kalynne goofing off ... think being cooped up indoors is getting to them.

Ice Ice , Baby!

There is ice everywhere, coating everything. It makes for some fast sledding and cool wipeouts. The landing isn't as soft as snow though. It was funny to watch the slipping and sliding from a warm house thanks to good insulation and a warm fireplace. Eric loved the show and stood at the window watching the kids who had an extra day added to their Christmas break.

The ice storm sent tree limbs snapping and breaking because of the accumulation. Nothing like being woken up from sleep from the trees snapping outside your window. We lost power about 5 a.m. and didn't get it restored until 1 p.m. We were prepared (food, generator and fuel) and fared well. We didn't have to bring out the generator, but will have to bring out the chainsaw.

The clothesline was a casualty of a fallen tree branch (the branch behind the one trunk that looks like it is suspended is resting on the line). I had been after hubby to cut the branch for the last two years. He can check that off his to do list now.

They're dropping like flies ...

Merry Christmas to me, Merry Christmas to me ... NOT!

First it was Charissa as her dad sped her home from seminary. She had her head hanging out the window. Hubby's car made it, but my stairs were not so lucky. BLECH! Then it was Joanna last Sunday who missed church and was nursed by her daddy.

Then it was Cara, but she was faking it although I still let her stay home. I made sure life was boring as possible for her. You need plenty of rest when sick, right? Yeah, she won't being repeating that anytime soon.

Now it is the biggest baby of all ... hubby. I know he is sick when he doesn't fight when told to stay home from work. That means he will hog the computer, and I actually gotta look like I work all day. I think I might leave him and Charissa home (she has a free pass on finals due to good grades and attendance so is out of school until January) with Eric so I can finish some shopping. Eric takes a 3 hour nap from 9:30 to about 1 p.m. or so. Yeah, I'm spoiled.

I guess it is better that hubby be sick now since on Sunday I have to teach two lessons (10-12 year old) and my 12-13 year old young women. Clint also got us into a family musical number that we are performing. I don't whether to wish that they all get sick now and not ruin my holiday (but wouldn't mind not singing) or just hope for the best that hubby is the last hit. Our room is under quarantine as I hang on to hope.

Sigh ... I better start acting ... er ... cleaning.

Edited to Add: ARRRGGGHHHH! Not 15 minutes later another bites the dust ... Oren had to make sure my two sets of stairs were a matching set. He just nailed the downstairs ones.

Geography Bee Winner

Today was our middle school's Geography Bee. Every student in the 6th-8th grades takes a geography test. The top 30 scorers then compete in the school's geography bee. For the third year, Oren made it to the school's geography bee. His first year he scored 11th, inched out of the finals in a tie-breaker.

This year hubby was unable to make it due to lack of any vacation time so I continued to text him the results as the bee wore on ...

Top 12 - still going

In finals! won tie-breaker

Top 3 so far!

HE WON!!!

Some of the questions I would really have questioned if Oren had not gotten them correct. One of the questions in the semi-finals was asking in which state the city of Galveston was located. We went there two Spring Breaks ago to camp and show the kids the ocean. I did realize we need to take the kids to Myrtle Beach in South Carolina as Oren was the only one to miss that question in the semis.

Now that Oren won at the school level, he will take an intense test after Christmas Break to try for qualification for the state bee. The top 100 scores on that test participate in the state's geography bee.

Oren won a trophy with certificate from the school and a really cool atlas from National Geographic. He might have to hide the atlas from his dad. Oren displayed good sportsmanship after which a slightly inflated ego surfaced. That is okay though because it isn't too bad, and he is almost as excited as I am about all of it.

The 30 Participants

The 10 Semi-Finalists

The 2 Finalists

Oren Wins!

The 3 Winners

Congratulations, Oren!

A Brrr...thday Party

Jonathan's birthday party was Saturday even though his birthday was the first of December. Jonathan wanted an Antarctic Party. After much research (gotta love google), I came up with some cool game ideas. The games were catered to 10 year-olds.

These are the invites that I made. For privacy and security issues when dealing with the internet, I blacked out certain information. I used a font called Frosty and found the cute penguin clip art on-line.

Decorations consisted of snowflakes hanging from the light/fan and on the counter. I had a snowflake tablecloth and bought blue plates with cup and napkins which also had snowflakes on them. The snowflake decorations as well as the cups, plates and napkins were bought cheaply at our dollar store for a dollar a package. I spent $7 for decorations. I already owned the tablecloth.

We served pizza and soda for dinner at the beginning of the party which allowed any late comers to not miss out on the fun and games. After dinner, we had games. All the games kept with the theme of the Antarctic/Arctic. Following the games was refreshments and gift opening. We did away with the traditional cake. Instead we had powdered doughnut holes (snowballs) and ice cream. Goodie bags were snowflake covered bags filled with candy.

Game #1: Ice Cube Relay - Mark a start and a finish line. Each player is given an ice cube. At go, each person pushed their ice cube with their nose across the floor to the finish line. If an ice cube melts before the finish line is crossed, a replacement one is given.

It was funny to watch as one boy scooped the ice cube up in his mouth and pretended to push it. he then spit it out at the finish line. Boys were getting tangled up in each others' legs, and the spectators were laughing pretty hard.

To change this up for a party later this week, I am having a set of mittens per team (2). The first player puts on the mittens, grabs an ice cube (kind you buy in a bag) and runs it to the other side to dump it into a pail. The player then runs back and hands off the mittens to the next team member. It continues a bucket is filled. I bought cute metal buckets at our local Wal-Mart.

Game #2: Seal Game - For this game you need paper cut-outs of fish. Each player gets on his knees. As the fish is dropped the player tries to grab it with his "flippers" (aka hands) slapping together. He can bend his body but cannot move off the spot or his knees.

We didn't do this game due to time constraints which disappointed the birthday boy. We might have to give it a try at a later date.

Game #3: Polar Bear Tag - One person is selected to be the polar bear. That person is on his hands and knees in the middle of the room. The rest of the players are penguins. Their job is to waddle from one side of the room to the other without being caught by the polar bear. The last remaining penguin becomes the new polar bear.

This game was a favorite and fun for all ages. I played the polar bear once even. We had some high jumping penguins trying to escape the swipes of the polar bear.

Game #4: Penguin Relay - The only supplies needed are players and plastic eggs. I used paper mache' eggs found at my local hobby store. Depending on the number of eggs, divide the players into teams. The eggs are placed at the feet of the players who are now parent penguin taking care of their eggs. At go, penguins waddle their eggs to the next player on their team. The game continue until the first team has all gone.

Some boys were not careful parents and ended up playing soccer and kicking their eggs across the line. It was fun though, and funny to watch those eggs go every which direction. There are also foam eggs available, but the mache' eggs held up really well.

Game #5: Iceberg Races - Players partner off. One is the pusher while the other is the pushee. The pushee sits on an iceberg (carpet square). At go, the pusher then pushes the team mate on the iceberg around the room. Depending on the size of the room, a number of laps can be set to win the race.

We had boys sliding off their icebergs, being dragged by their team mate and general fun chaos. I used felt squares which worked on my wood floors. The squares were not big enough though so I would change that to the size of a carpet square or at least 2 feet by 2 feet. Quilt batting would also work depending on the flooring.

Game #6: Feed the Penguin - Supplies needed are goldfish crackers or the like. Players pair off with one being the penguin and the other the feeder. Each team is given the same amount of fish crackers. At go, the feeders try to toss as many fish crackers as possible in the "penguin's" mouth. The penguin's knees are together with flippers (hands) at their sides.

This was the favorite game of the night. I will be paying for it as I am still finding fish crackers to sweep. It was worth it, and a definite keeper for games.

Game #7: Blizzard - White balloons are blown up. Players are divided into two teams, one on each side of the room. At go, the teams try to blow the balloons to the other team's side.

We also were unable to do this game. I am using it for my daughter's kindergarten party though later this week.

Game #8: Snowball Fight - Crumbled paper becomes the snowballs (balled up socks can work too). It is an all out war. Forts can be constructed from blocks, tri-folded cardboard or whatever the imagination can imagine.

The furniture in our living room was enough to provide make-shift forts for the boys. I had "snowballs" everywhere! I had hoped it could be taken outside with the real stuff, but we had warmer temperatures which melted everything. This game was a hit and is being used for a witner games activity with our church youth.

A fun party that had the boys excited and talking about it! Yeah!

O Christmas Tree

You would think they (aka family) would now the routine by now. It happens the same way everytime. Maybe they are just slow learners. Or maybe they just block the traumatic experience from their minds. They could just be gluttons for punishment or hopeful that this time might be different. Remind me not to send them to Vegas.

This past Saturday we went to get a Christmas tree. We left Eric at home because of the cold weather. Charissa was more than willing to watch him for us. Oren wanted to stay home too. They probably lost hope.

We don't just get a tree. We go to a tree farm and hike around for 30 minutes to find the perfect tree, but are so frozen at the end of 30 minutes that we settle for any tree so we can end the fun family adventure. Looking for Mr. Right has got to be easier than looking for the right tree.

First, we ride to tractor and trailer out to the far reaches of the farm. We are headed to the soft needle trees. What happens next is Mom spots "The Tree". We all hop off in high hopes that in deed it is the one. Upon closer inspection, the needles are the wrong color, the tree is too skinny, the tree is too fat, the tree isn't full enough, etc. The first tree is NEVER the right one. You would think we would have learned that.

So off we trek to find the one tree destined to grace our living room. This year Cara has a checklist. Hubby insists on soft needles. I insist on the right shade of green. Joanna says it can't be too fat. Hubby asks her if she loves him anyway which earns him a mighty eye-rolling. Jonathan and Kalynne insist the tree be found soon. So on we go walking halfway back up to the entrance eliminating tree after tree while the cold eliminates all feeling in our ears, fingers and toes.

Finally when are about to grab the nearest bush and pass it off as a tree, we find THE TREE. It is the perfect shape, color, not-too-fat and has soft needles to boot. We freeze some more while the children try to cut it down. It is hard to do that with frozen fingers.

Hubby finishes the job, and he and Kalynne haul it to the side of the road so we can ride the tractor back. Kalynne is a big fan of creating family memories. She wants to hurry and end the family activity so it can be a memory.

There the tree is shaken, tied and paid for by hubby while the rest of us enjoy some hot cider and try to get feeling back in our toes (and tongues after scalding it in a hurry to warm ourselves up). Once the tree is tied to the car, we head home proud of our find and hoping it doesn't fall off. One tree-hunting adventure a year is enough.

More Vacation Pictures

Just some random pictures from Thanksgiving Day ...

Eric (like the shirt?)

Eric and his cousin Austin (Austin is 6 weeks older)

Eric using Charissa as a climbing tool

The Feast

There were 35 people there and that still wasn't everyone.

Eric with Grandpa and Grandma

Me and my girls goofing off

Sand Dunes

The Sand Dunes are huge dunes of sand. (Duh!) By huge, I mean huge and really tall, really big. I am about a third of the way up when I took this picture. If you want to work off that Thanksgiving meal, climb one of these suckers afterwards. I don't know how my kids kept going up and down so many times. One time up about killed me. The kids loved to roll down. How they didn't lose their lunch is another mystery.

Kalynne, the forever drama queen

Grandma, Charissa and Eric

Cara

Joanna was being buried too but didn't like the sand in her underwear. After a couple of seconds she was hopping around trying to shake it all out. Judging by the bathtub after they washed up, I don't think she got it all. The other half was still in the kids' jeans.

Below is a clip from the Dunes before we headed home. Hubby is going to rescue Joanna who got a mouthful of sand. Both ends were loaded, I guess. The goof in the red is Jonathan.

Must be all the wind ...

It swept me away. That is why I have been absent from my posting. Actually it is the whirlwind of activities that have happened in the last 3 weeks. The wind is strong and bitterly cold enough though right now to sweep you away.

For Thanksgiving we all travelled out to SE Utah to see family and spend Thanksgiving week. The kids thought missing two days of school was an early Christmas gift. For the week before I was busy cleaning, washing clothes, packing and taking care of obligations I have at church and with our school's PTO.

Then there was the travelling. We left Friday (21st) about 5 p.m. and drove into Iowa. We took off the next morning to be hit with a snow storm on I-80. The snow was creating icy and slick roads. Some of the kids thought Dad was just being cool by swerving all over the road. I was trying to not have a full-blown anxiety attack. We made it through the storm and had good weather, perfect travelling weather in fact, the rest of the way. We arrived in Utah early Sunday evening. That many hours with that many people smashed together in a van and hotel rooms gets old fast.

While the kids had grandma and grandpa all to themselves, we rode the four wheelers, went hiking to see ruins and had a picnic at the sand dunes. I was dumping sand out of jeans for days. On Wednesday, everyone started showing up. The excitement of the evening is when Joanna split the back of her head open. There is no hospital in hubby's small hometown, and the urgent care was closed early. Super Glue, butterfly bandages and a trained Brother-in-law go a long to fixing up a distraught little 5 year old.

Joanna didn't even know she split her head open. She was trying to get outside to be with her cousins when the door handle came off in her hand. She fell. She was more upset she broke grandpa's door. It was her uncle that noticed the blood running down the back of her head. I think it was the mention of staples that made her hysterical.

For Thanksgiving we packed 35 people in one large room. It was full of fun, food and laughs. We had a family white elephant gift exchange later followed by games. The major entertainment for the young kids was taking a foam mattress down the stairs at grandma's house. Joanna tried to get back into the game after we patched her up, but I was a meanie and made her wait until the following day.

Joanna was the only major injury. Hubby was sure there would be one with Cara on the four-wheeler. It amazes me that the child that tattles on every little slight can be so fearless when it comes to rides and roller coasters. Cara was driving with Clint riding on the same four-wheeler behind her. She took a corner a bit fast and had two wheels off the ground. She laughed, and her daddy informed her to slow down. I think he invoked a speed limit after that. ;)

Coming home we took the I-40 route home since I-80 through the mountains in Colorado was going to be in poor travelling condition. We didn't need a fishtailing van on mountain roads as the flat roads occurrence was scary enough. That lengthened our trip home a bit. We avoided snow until our last day which was spent the entire day (8 hours of driving) in it.

Once we got home, we stretched our limbs and enjoyed our rooms and own beds. The next few days were catch up with laundry, unpacking, doctor appointments and all of our normal obligations. Things are still slowly returning to normal or what is normal around here for us.

Pictures will be posted soon throughout next week.

Bullies

I don't like bullies. I dealt with them as a child and teenager. I hated my high school years because of some of the things that they did. What I hate more though is seeing my own children being bullied.

We had a family home evening (our weekly family night) with a lesson on bullying. I have a child who is bullied at school. That issue has been called to the attention of the principal and teachers and is being addressed. The problem I see is my own children being bullies to each other. I do not like the atmosphere that creates in my home.

We sang "Love One Another" for the opening song. The scripture for the lesson came from 1 John 2:10. I read the story of "Bullies and Brothers" for the lesson. Each time someone exhibited what was thought a bully behavior a picture of a bully was held up. If a good or hero behavior was shown, a picture of a superhero was held up. I had found the two pictures through a google search on the Internet. I had enough for each child in my family.

After the lesson we discussed what we thought constituted a bully. I was given the answers of physical harm, name-calling, teasing, put downs and the like. I told them being a bully was whenever you made someone feel inferior and belittled. A hero was someone who made your day better. That could be anything from a simple smile or compliment to standing up for someone.

Before the lesson I researched a couple of sites about bullying so I could discuss bullying with my family. The two sites I used are here and here. I have found having discussion with my family about what we learn and their feeling or opinions really helps. It is interactive and allows me some insight into my children.

No lesson is complete without homework though. The family homework for the week (or however long it takes) is to fill a mason jar with M&Ms. For every kind or "superhero" word or deed a M&M is put into the jar. Once the jar is full, we make a batch of cookies with the M&Ms and have a special family activity. Activities that the kids want are a pizza and movie night and a carnival night. The carnival night is when dinner is carnival food (hot dogs, pizza and nachos, lemonade, funnel cakes and cotton candy). It isn't healthy per se which is why it is a special treat. The breakfast bar becomes a concession stand where the kids order their food and pay with pretend money. The younger ones love it.

To help remind ourselves to not be bullies this week I posted the below picture on our refrigerator since that seems to be the family gathering spot. Below the picture I put the scripture from 1 John 2:10. The jar is on the counter, and hubby has orders to keep his hands out of it (he has a major sweet tooth).

I think I caught sight of myself

coming as I was going. Man, oh man! It has been hectic and then some. I have had to pick up the slack in some things which has added to my load and stress. November will probably be my busiest month this year.

For November, I have:

Kalynne's Birthday

Church Lessons

Church Meetings

Youth Fireside (at my home)

School Meetings

Orthodontist Appointments

Family Game Night at the Elementary (planning and running)

Dentist the & Doctor Appointments

Youth Wednesday Night Activities (planning and running)

Church Activities (just attending)

Hosting Company

Planning a Birthday Party for Jonathan

22-hour Road Trip

Normal Mommy Stuff (cooking, cleaning, chauffering, shopping, etc)

The bright side is I have to teach one less Sunday this month due to our trip. I am off the hook for one school meeting due to travelling as well. I guess the hardest part is that I have over a week cut off my month. I am trying to do all of this in weeks. At least we can relax with family the last week. I will think of it as a reward for making it until then. What I won't think of is the 22-hour road trip back home at the end of the month. Or Jonathan's birthday the day after we get home with party later in the week (at least it will be planned out ahead of time).

Whew! I feel like this frog sometimes with life being the stork ...

Election Day!

Today is election day. Please remember to vote. We live in a great country. True, America has her share of problems right now. Ya know what? I married a great guy and think we have a good marriage. Does that mean he is without his faults or problems? Heavens no! America is like that. She has her problems, but we are blessed as a people to have the freedoms that we do. They have been given to us at great cost. Remember that when you find yourself unable to take 5 minutes to vote, there are men and women who died for our freedoms. How many of them would want just five more minutes?

Student of the Month

Kaly... er, Kalynne (as she likes to be called now) was October Student of the Month at her school as well as receiving this certificate. It seems our little drama queen is doing quite well. She turns 12 this week and will enter the Young Women program for youth 12-18. I teach and lead the 12 & 13 year-olds so that ought to be fun.

Kalynne also keeps busy with church, school, band (percussion), piano, choral, and caring for our animals. She also is joining the middle school's newspaper that is just starting up. I would add cleaning her room to that list, but by the looks of it she doesn't do that. Overall, she is a keeper, faults and all.

Extreme Home Makeover

Extreme Home Makeover is building a home for a family 15 minutes from here. The kids and I like watching the show so had to go look at the building site. The road where the house is situated is closed off for 8-10 blocks. In order to see the home, you need to park and walk. There is a spectator shuttle site where you can ride the shuttle for a donation of canned goods that will be donated to area food banks. It has been nasty weather-wise this week. We have had rain half of it. Cold all of it. The wind is really bad today making it feel colder. It has been miserable for the makeover workers, I bet.

On demolition day the kids and I drove by and could see the large equipment cleaning up the lot. Cement footers were poured later that night. Just tonight I conned hubby into driving by the house. We parked and walked to take a look. It was neat to see all the people. There is a lot of behind the scenes stuff going on to that doesn't make it to television. We passed by an area food business that had a food station open to feed the volunteers/workers. There are the law enforcement workers that direct both vehicle and people flow.

When hubby and I looked at the house this evening, the landscaping was being installed. As we were leaving we saw the flooring being brought in for the new home (carpeting, tile & hardwod flooring) to some cheers of the workers. It is amazing to see it all come together so fast.

The community has been coming together too. There are collections and fundraisers to raise money to help pay off the selected family's mortgage (for old home). There is the can drive as well as a blood drive tomorrow. The family is to come home tomorrow. Watching when the episode airs later will be a must watch for us. We might see people we know!

Charissa

I gotta brag about my oldest. Charissa is 15 (16 in 4 months) and a pretty good kid. She is helpful. She does have the ocassional mouthy attitude, but overall she is a keeper.

Charissa is talented musically and plays the piano well. She plays at church when asked. She is a voracious reader and loves to write. She is a good student (much better than I ever was) which I knew. She surprised me with how good of a student last night.

She brought home her Honors English grade for the quarter yesterday. She showed me the grade. I couldn't believe it. I gave her the parental spill about trying harder and improving next quarter. It was all tongue-in-cheek though. She had a 99 for her grade. That is so awesome!

She also showed us her practice ACT she took in preparation for next year when she is a junior and takes the real thing. She had a score of 22 for the practice run. She will do well. She has a good head on her shoulders and a great mind in that head.

I am so proud of her!

Cara's Paper

This is the paper Cara read at the school board meeting (see previous post). Cara's teacher is just wonderful. She is always praising Cara which has really helped Cara blossom and have more confidence. In case you can't read the paper above, here it is typed out with original spelling still intact.

We learned Lots of thing about the desert. The Australan desert home to the bandicoot. The Gila monster is the only poionous lizard in the American desert. The dromdary is a one humped camel found in the sandy Arabian desert. It sure was fun reading about the desert.

She Has It Covered

Last night we went to a school board meeting. As part of a new tradition, a few elementary students are asked to share some of their work at the beginning of the board meeting. Cara along with two of her classmates were given the honor of being the first ones to kick this off. They also led everyone in the Pledge of Allegience.

As we started the pledge, I looked over at Joanna. She switched her hands a couple of times trying to remember which one went to her chest. I watched her shrug to herself before putting both hands on her chest. I guess she figured one had to be correct.

He had a dream ...

so now I have a bruised calf muscle. Hubby had a dream last night so he kicked me ... hard ... twice. He was apologetic when he realized it was me he kicked. He kept telling me it wasn't me he was trying to kick. I asked him what it was then. His response? An evil, porcelain doll. Yeah. It had been a coyote but turned into the doll so he was kicking it to kill it. He missed the first time so kicked again. Well, he didn't miss me the first time or the second either.

So what do I do? I faked being asleep when Eric woke up at 4 a.m. I guess hubby was still feeling guilty, because he got up without even trying to wake me. He took care of Eric even though I usually do during the week. I sure didn't feel guilty as my leg was throbbing and tender by then.

That was worse than the falling Christmas tree dream. Early in our marriage hubby dreamed a Christmas tree fell on him. He jumped sky high which scared me awake since I was in that semi-conscious state right before fully asleep. I frantically asked, "What?!" "A tree fell on me ... zzzzzz" UGH!

Another funny thing about dh is that he talks in his sleep if he is stressed at work. He did it all the time when he was in the military. He would bark out orders at me (or who he was dreaming I was), but I just laughed at him which translated to insubordination from his men in his dream. He blew someone up too once (in his dream that is).

Dh usually doesn't act out his dreams. I can count on one hand in almost 15 years that he has. Maybe I shouldn't have given him that chocolate caramel bar to eat before bed. That stuff is dangerous for more than your hips.

Things Gone Bad ...

A field trip gone bad ...

A driving lesson in parking gone bad ...

A home repair project gone bad ...

Happy Birthday, Eric!

Eric loves noodles. Eric loves peas. Eric loves chicken. So for his birthday dinner I made some chicken and noodles (with peas and carrots thrown in). It was tricky as Eric is allergic to dairy and eggs. I found egg-free noodles and used soy milk in place of regular. Seeing him scarf it all down was worth it. Funny thing about Eric is that he loves green veggies. He will eat those first so the peas were the first to go followed by noodles then chicken. It looks like he eats like his mama, one thing at a time.

Unlike his mama though, Eric is a huge fan of chocolate. Keeping allergies in mind (good thing the kid is so cute), he had a yummy egg-free, dairy-free chocolate cake. He didn't care. All Eric knew is that is was chocolate. He was fascinated by the candle although he seemed puzzled by it. Joanna helped him blow it out and seasoned the cake a bit more with flecks of spit (had to make sure that candle was out) ... ick!

Oren made Eric a heart shaped pillow (crocheted it) complete with Eric's name. Mom and Dad (Mom bought and Dad said "yeah, sure") got him a Bug Jar. He loved it and was quite mad when it was taken away so the chocolate could be washed off him. The older kids like it too.

Oh yeah, sorry about the video, just tilt your head to watch. I thought the clip was funny since we couldn't tell if Eric was trying to smell the cake or eat it off the plate.

Happy First Birthday, Little Man!

Cyclops

So I have no picture which would make it even funnier. I was going outside to hang clothes on our clothes since the day is just gorgeous. I glanced at Cara and Joanna who were busy eating lunch at the table (they have today off from school). I did a double-take. Each one of them had huge goggly eye stuck to their foreheads.

I guess they got into the craft bin I keep for the days I hear "I'm bored!" or rainy days or too hot days or ... you get the idea. They stuck one of the eyes to their forehead because they asked, "What?" when I shook my head and sighed. The lightbulb went off though as they reached for the forehead at same time. I was rewarded with a couple of cheesy grins.

Cheap entertainment, I guess. Speaking of cheap entertainment, I had to go to the elementary school Thursday to set up lunch for the teachers. The PTO provides lunch for the teachers on conference days which was Thursday (we did breakfast for them this morning). I had to take Eric with me as school wasn't out quite yet. He wasn't a happy camper especially when I put him down in the school office. I managed to get him quiet and ran out to my car for the last load of stuff.

When I came in, the office staff asked where Eric went. I said he was still in here. They asked what I did to get him quiet. A pacifier, perhaps? No. I had to confess. I put a visitor sticker on each of Eric's thighs. He was busy trying to get them off and quite content (until I pulled them off for him).

Yeah, sticky things are great entertainment. That 80 cent roll of tape can amuse most children for quite a while. It has foiled many a fits too to have a piece of tape stuck to the nose.

Pictures of the Past Week

Eric has a new love, Oreos. Unlike his mama who eats Oreos just by mouth, Eric also ingests by osmosis.

Toothless in Illinois, Cara lost her first tooth on her own. She has lost her two bottom teeth, but they had to be pulled because of permanent teeth already in place. You'd think the tooth fairy would remember to visit. Hubby says we need to fire our tooth fairy. At least she is fair and pays interest.

We have two playing soccer this year, Cara and Joanna. Joanna is into it more than Cara who aims an occassional kick in the direction of the ball. Joanna is more gung-ho sometimes overly but it makes for amusing entertainment.

Is That a Challenge?

I read an on-line article and watched the video for a local article about raising awareness for the area food banks and raising funds. I have no problem with helping out so that isn't the issue. Things happen and change in the blink of an eye. I realize that there might be a time I need help.

What gets me is the article and attitudes expressed which is why I had to comment on the article. The article/video "$25 Challenge" comments how hard and near impossible it would be to live on $25 per person per week. I find it really realistic as I do that every single week for my family. I even blogged about living for under $100 a week for my family in my Cornbread & Cookies blog.

That isn't what I budget normally for food alone, but I wanted to find out if my family could make do on less if required. We can. It takes time and planning which is one problem I perceive with people not being able to make it for $25 a week per person. We are busy people. Forget the busy as a bee cliche. It needs be busy as a human. Society as a whole seems to have a I-want-it-now-I-can't-wait attitude.

What does that have to do with the article? People buy convienence. It may because we over-schedule ourselves. It may be we just don't know how to cook from scratch or plan a menu. Those all can create havoc with the food budget.

The reporter said she tried the challenge. The first two things I noticed that set her up for failure are (1) she went shopping without a plan (no menu, no list), and (2) she went shopping at one of the higher priced grocery chains in the area. There is an Aldi right across the street from that Kroger she used. I find some great loss leader prices at Kroger. Their brand chocolate milk is the best (when on sale). Their brand of milk also freezes well when I stock up on a good buy. So I do shop Kroger just not only Kroger.

Other things I have issues with (I got a lot of issues actually ;P) is the reporter's comment of having to buy store brand or generic. There is nothing wrong with that. There are some items I do buy name brands because of quality or whatnot. Some generics are gross and poor quality. I got that. Not all of them are though.

Another issue is the Food Bank Director saying how unrealistic $25 is. Yet when I watched the video I saw Chex Mix (love the stuff btw). It never struck me that was a staple and neccesity. No wonder the budget is shot. Junk food will eat the budget up fast. Do I have junk food? Yeah, sure I do. Sunday nights are for sundaes in my house so I have ice cream and toppings. I have pretzels in a jar on the counter for snacking along with animal crackers in another. Off-brand Honeycomb are in a third jar. My kids snack on those, and I don't have to answer the I'm-hungry-what-can-I-eat question seven times an hour. I do buy junk and snack foods. I just don't buy a lot for nutritious reasons as well as cost.

How do I cut costs? One is where I live. I live in the midwest in an area that has a lower cost of living than say the east or west coasts. I grow my own produce and herbs. I buy locally for things like produce and fresh meat. While meat might costs a little less at the store, I find the quality makes it far suberb in taste. We drink "clear kool-aid" for dinner. That is our nickname for water. I tell the kids it has no added sugars, colors or preservatives. It was funny until a wiseguy added flavor to list of don't haves. LOL! Almost a funny as the time we did really serve clear Kool-aid. The kids' reactions were hilarious when they took the first swallow.

I also don't generally cook meat and potatoes meals. A grilled steak or pork chop tastes good, and boy you gotta have it sometimes. I find that taking that same steak and making Fajitas or Broccoli-Beef are also yummy meals. I use up leftovers as a different dish. Oren says it is a leftover for a reason. Haha ... Leftover green beans and mashed potatoes become Shepherd's Pie. Leftover roast is shredded to make BBQ Beef Sandwiches. I use leftover scrambled eggs and bits of veggies to make Fried Rice.

I plan. That means I make a menu though some weeks are better than others. I check out the local ads. I can do that on-line even. I find what is on sale and plan my menu around it. Right now I have a freezer full of meat so I haven't had to buy too much meat lately. Then I check my pantry to see what I have and what I need. The shopping list is made and off I go. Another budget saver is using area programs like AngelFood Ministries. For the units I bought (3 of them this month for $90), I will get 14 dinners out of them for my family. I plan how I can best use what is included. With the leftover money in the food budget I supplement with fruits/vegetables and other perishables I might need. I also use SHARE foods which supplies me with 3-5 meats and fresh fruits/vegetables for $16 a unit.

There are classes offered at local churches, home extension offices, libraries to teach these things. You can find inforomation in books, magazines and the internet which are all offered for free at libraries. There is a wealth of information out there that can help living on $25 a week a bit easier and very realistic.

A Day of (un)Rest

I knew I would be watching 4 extra children this morning. I was to get them to church. That was it. As the story of my life goes, that changed as fast as the weather here.

I got a phone call from my hubby at 5:30 a.m. saying that the extra children were on their way (an hour earlier than planned). You see I watched these kids yesterday too. Their mother is expecting twins and was put into the hospital with pre-term labor this week. Their dad is military and had drill this weekend. I volunteered to watch the children. I was the only one with a big enough vehicle to haul everyone in one trip so I figured I qualified.

The reason my hubby called me is because he left for Vegas yesterday afternoon. The children's dad called him to let him know. Unfortunately, Vegas is 2 hours different so Clint got the phone call at 3:30 his time. So the message was relayed, and the children arrived just after 6 a.m. The reason for the phone tag was the hospital had called our friend with the news that his wife's water broke. She is just 30 weeks gestation.

So I had to feed 11 children breakfast. We had French toast, bananas, apple juice. I got them all ready for church or at least the ones that needed help. We were not only on time but ten minutes early too. We took up a whole pew. Charissa was at one end while I was at the other. That was to block any wandering strays.

Back to getting ready ... I went to check on Eric. Complete nastiness awaited me. Eric had a major, major blow-out. It was smeared all over the bed and him. Did I mention how nasty gross it was? So in the tub Eric went. After he was ready and clean, I had to do a load of wash. Then I got ready while Eric ate some dry cereal in his chair. The carseats (5 of them) went into our 12 passenger van. That took some planning arranging seats. I had to take into account of who fights when together and all that fun stuff. I couldn't have any "His leg is on my side!" or "She's looking at me!"

I get through church which I had a lesson to teach too. I got as many kids in the van to go home as I did coming. I think they are the same ones too. I made some pizza for lunch even. Whoever said neccesity is the mother of creativity is right. That sauce I had in the freezer was not tomato sauce as I thought (lesson on labelling things better). It was enchilada sauce. Ya know what? With some Italian Seasoning it makes good pizza sauce. I had just enough cheese and toppings (crumbled leftover breakfast sausage, canadian bacon & pepperoni) for a meat and a cheese pizza. I was even told it was the best pizza.

So now I am about to take my well-deserved nap. To be sure that I get it, I told my oldest that if she made sure I had at least a good hour nap, I would lift her computer grounding. I think I am going to get a good nap.

Creepy Crawly

Eric is on the move. Despite his odd way of getting from Point A to Point B, he is fast. He is also my floors-need-mopping indicator. Or vacuuming as the case may be ....

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