CA Girl

Well I am told honesty is the best policy. I tell my kids this all the time. Is it true? Is coming clean really all that it's cracked up to be? I guess I will find out now that I have been awarded the Honest Scrap award by Rachel Sue. I told her I would simply cut and paste her list as a lot of hers sounded too much like me. However, I will play fair. So here goes. 1. I spend way too much time on my computer 2. I watch too much TV while I am on the computer 3. I'm a lousy housekeeper 4. I hate doing homework--didn't I do my time when I was a kid?? 5. I have two baskets of clean laundry, folded and everything at the bottom of the stairs for the past 3 days! 6. I graze from about 9PM until I go to bed around 11:30. 7. I make pancakes for dinner 8. I let the kids be LOUD 9. I DVR Bewitched even though I have seen every single episode multiple times. 10. I made my 11 year old do the dishes tonight. And that's the truth. Now it's your turn!

In the bible after Jesus was baptized, the Father speaks and says, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased." He didn't say proud of. He said, "in whom I am well pleased." This has stayed with me pretty much since I have had children of my own. It's so easy to say, "I'm so proud of you!" And it's a good thing to be proud of their accomplishments right? But then, I remember those words that the Father spoke, "in whom I am well pleased." He was pleased. Isn't that just awesome??? That being said, I have to say I am well pleased with Kristin. She made honor roll last year in her first semester of school. She had been struggling to keep her head above water for a long time. Then we moved here and it all changed for the better. She works very hard and gives it her all. At the end of the last semester, I saw that she had done it again, but there was no ceremony. I thought that was rather odd. I mean why not d

Handsome by definition is: having an attractive, well-proportioned, and imposing appearance suggestive of health and strength; good-looking: a handsome man; a handsome woman. Handsome is really a matter of opinion. And in my opinion, I have two handsome men in my life. One of them is not really a man, but a boy. What a cute little blond-haired, blue-eyed boy he is. He is the carbon copy of his daddy. Although, Daddy has brown hair and brown eyes there is no mistaking who that kid belongs to. Now I don't cut hair, I go to the people who do the cutting for me. Ryan has been telling me for a few days now that his hair falling down and that he wanted me to take him to get his hair cut. What he really wanted was to play with their toys. They have table with a track and cars along with an assortment of big push cars and trucks. Yeah, I'm onto you kid. In his defense though, his hair was actually getting into his eyes. So today we ran a few errands and got his hair cut.

When I was a little girl, I followed my mom all over the place. She never had a moment of privacy. As a mom, I now fully understand what that means. She couldn't even go to the bathroom without me sticking my hands under the door, and asking her if she could see my fingers. I can remember doing this. I don't remember how old I was...and I am not sure I want to be told. What I do remember is my mom playing right along. This morning as I retreated to the only place a mom can be alone, a small hand found its way under the door, and voice asked, "Mom, can you see my fingers?" I was slack-jawed. Then I laughed at how it has come full circle. There on the other side of the door was Ryan playing the very same game that I played. He would pull his hand away. "Do you see them now?" Then he would show just two fingers. "How many fingers can you see?" My kids give me about as much privacy as I gave my mom. It's a right of passage I guess. Co

In the spring of 2007, Kristin had to participate in the school science fair. She was in the third grade at the time. Her project was behavior in cats. She used a domesticated cat and a stray that hung around my mom's a lot. The cat in the picture that is being tortured by niece is my brother's maine coone. As you can see, he is a big cat. He is also very docile. He loves people. He always wants to be petted. She also studied the neighborhood stray. She was an older cat, and kind of went from house to house for food. She was called "Gypsy." She was more skiddish around strangers. She liked attention too, but wasn't too trusting with people she didn't know. She was also smaller than "Sumo." Kristin worked really hard on her project and she got an A on it. Kristin has a genuine love for animals, and this project was very important to her. She was excited through out the whole process. She wants to be a vet one day...or a zoo keeper....o

This recipe, I believe comes from my aunt. Mom will have to confirm for me. Either way...they are super yummy good and full of chocolately goodness! 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons of butter/margarine 1 1/2 cups of cocoa powder Melt together in saucepan then remove from heat. Stir in, in this order: 3 cups sugar 6 eggs 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla 2 1/4 cups flour 3/4 teaspoons salt 1 1/2 cups cups of walnuts chopped (I don't add the nuts they can be optional) 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (also an option--this one I choose to do!) Pour into a greased 9 x 13 pan and bake at 375* for 25-30 minutes or until brownies are firm and pull away from the pan. I have found that when I use the chocolate chips I need to cook them at least 30 minutes. That could just be my oven. Test them with a toothpick at 25 minutes and if it is clean then you are done. Top with powdered sugar or your favorite chocolate frosting.