Thursday Night… TV Night!
Posted by: Mom Chatter on: November 13, 2008
For some reason, I can’t seem to avoid watching TV on Thursday nights. For a little while I was using Thursday night as my night out (a bookstore, coffee/dinner out with friends, shopping, etc.), but I’ve reverted back to my old ways. Ever since the Friends/ER combo I got hooked on way back in the college years, I just can’t stop watching. I don’t watch ER anymore… I know it’s still on, but it got old a LONG time ago. Friends will always hold a special place in my heart… I got through college and the early post-college years watching it. I always watched with my own friends… and post-college when my friends had spread out around the country I still watched it with some of them via phone (I so miss those talks… relaxed, fun, and continued to help me feel connected to my best buds despite the miles between us… it was good to feel like we were still together). Thursday night TV has always been an “I’ve almost made it to the weekend” celebration. A time to chill and enjoy friends…
Now, as the lineup has moved on (well, except for ER), so have I. I still watch to chill and have a few smiles, but my shows have changed. I now watch Survivor and Grey’s Anatomy (I could be happy watching most of the offerings–Ugly Betty, Kitchen Nightmares, My Name is Earl, The Office–but I’ve settled on these two shows for now). They help keep me connected with my younger, more carefree years. Unfortunately, I don’t watch with my buddies anymore (well, Mr. Wonderful will watch with me on occasion… but that’s not the same as watching with girlfriends), but there’s not a Thursday night that goes by that I don’t think of the Thursday nights gone by. And that makes me smile…
So, to all my former Thursday night TV buddies… thanks for the smiles! I’m still watching with you…
The New “Ring A Round the Rosie”
Posted by: Mom Chatter on: November 12, 2008
After our nightly toy clean-up (I admit to cleaning toys up only once a day… keeps me happy… keeps me sane), The Kids always take a few laps around the house. I think they just enjoy having a clean room to romp in every night… all that space they forgot they had. The last few nights, The Girl has taken to running in circles in the living room singing “Ring around the ring… Ring around the ring… ring around the ring…” She could power a small city with this new nightly activity! I love how she’s starting to sing nursery songs… this one is especially cute ’cause she’s singing like me… just make it up as you go. Sing to the tune, but change the words! She doesn’t exactly do it on purpose, but I think it’s GREAT! AND, she’s definitely got the “Ring Around the…” part of the action down! Now we just have to work on the rest of the song/actions! I think she’ll LOVE the falling down part, too. 
The Weekend Review
Posted by: Mom Chatter on: November 11, 2008
Saturday I was away from the computer all day… I was away from the house all day… I was away from The Kids all day! It was a good day. I took an eight hour environmental class. It was a good break from the regular life and I learned some fun ways to help my kids and other kids connect more with nature and the outdoors. I hate to admit, but I think it’s the LONGEST I’ve ever been away from The Kids since they came along. Guess you could say I really need to get out more!!
Sunday I took The Boy out for a hike (more outdoor time… all around great weekend). I had tried to get The Kids out for a short hike on Friday, but The Girl was refusing to play along. I made a promise to The Boy that just he and I would get out for a nice hike… and on Sunday he collected in on that promise.
It was a beautiful day. We brought the camera along and just wandered the trails for a good hour to hour and a half. I thought I’d post The Boy’s pictures from the hike. He’s been using my camera more and more lately. I think Santa will be bringing him a camera of his own for Christmas. I think he’s got a good eye… some of his pictures come out a bit blurry, but I think it only adds to the creativity he is beginning to show!
This is a hole he found in the trail.
Some vine branches The Boy found cool and twisty. I think this is his best picture of the day!
A fox hole we visit pretty often while hiking at this particular park… The Kids are hoping to see a fox in it one day. I think that’s why they keep requesting to see it again and again!
These pictures totally remind me of the Skeksis in the movie “The Dark Crystal.” He took three pictures of the same thing… it almost appears as if the “thing” is moving in his pictures.
And… this is what those pictures really are! A fallen tree.
The park we visited on Sunday was FULL of mushrooms. He were a couple shelf mushrooms The Boy took a liking to.
It was the longest hike I’ve been on with The Boy and I realize now that we’ll have to do it more regularly… he loved it, I loved it… and it made us both smile! I’m happy to know that he’s old enough for longer hikes now… the outdoors have always been a happy place for me!
Homemade Pizza
Posted by: Mom Chatter on: November 7, 2008
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Tonight was pizza night at out house…
YUM!!
I’ve been making my own pizza for quite sometime… so much better than both frozen and delivery. So, I do look forward to every Friday night that is pizza night… which is almost EVERY Friday night. I have to admit that I was looking forward to this pizza night more so than other pizza nights. Why? Well, last week I had put the dough ingredients in the breadmaker just in a nick of time. The pizza might be a hair late, but it would be done in time for dinner. Just before Mr. Wonderful got home… the bread machine gave me the signal that the dough was ready and the pizza could now be assembled. I open up the breadmaker to grab the dough… AND it’s not done. It hadn’t even really started. The flour at the bottom was a gooey mess, but the stuff at top, including the yeast and spices, hadn’t even budged. WHAT?! I so was not in the mood for that type of disappointment… on a FRIDAY… during the witching hour. It turns out, I forgot to put the paddle in the machine. UGH! I’ve never done that before. This didn’t make me smile last week, but today… now that I’ve had the yummy pizza I was supposed to have last week… it seems hilarious! (Oh… it turned out alright last week… once Mr. Wonderful got home, I dragged everyone to a local pizza place… The Kids got their pizza, Mr. Wonderful got a hoagie that he LOVES, and I got my gyro that I’d been craving!)
Just in case… here’s the recipes for the pizzas I make…
Exquisite Pizza Sauce – I follow this recipe to a T. It is EXQUISITE and cheap!! I do omit the anchovy paste and double the recipe and divide it into four… seems to be the perfect amount for four pizzas. I use one and freeze the other three for the remainder of the month.
Amazing Whole Wheat Pizza Crust -For this recipe, I use 1 teaspoon of honey instead of 1 teaspoon of sugar, 1 1/4 cup water instead of 1 1/2 cup, 3 1/4 cup whole wheat flour instead of 2 cups whole wheat flour and 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, and I add about 1 tablespoon of basil and 1/2 tablespoon of oregano. I put all ingredients in the breadmaker, set the machine for dough, and 1 1/2 hours later I have enough dough for three pizzas (we like a thinner crust). I use one and freeze the other two for later.
Mmmm… GOOD!!!
Yellow Flowers
Posted by: Mom Chatter on: November 6, 2008
I’ve always been drawn to the color yellow. Yellow flowers make me especially happy. This week I’ve been pleasantly happy with a pot of flowers that Mr. Wonderful gave me for my birthday (back in March). I must admit, early this summer I thought they were goners… still green, but just growing up, up, and away… with no flowers. I didn’t re-pot them right away and I’m afraid by the time I got to it… they seemed a bit sickly. I’ve held on to the hope thought that they would survive. And now…
The flowers are blooming. Not the prettiest plant from afar, but from close-up they are quite beautiful!
There’s a very lite rain outside today that definitely add to the beauty of these flowers! (Raindrops on flower petals, grass, leaves, etc. are always a nice site.)
I’m not a gardener. I have the potential to be one, but so far just experimenting (maybe once we move to our OWN house I’ll become more of a gardener in my OWN yard). I’m not totally positive on identification of flowers either, but I’m pretty sure that these are Yellow Daisies. Lovely.
While on the topic of yellow flowers, I might as well share these Marigolds that a Sister-in-Law got me for Mother’s Day this year.
I’ve been pretty proud that I haven’t killed these things yet… good thing they are hardy flowers! And so pretty!
Lovin’ the yellow…
Fall Colors
Posted by: Mom Chatter on: November 4, 2008
Fall has always made me happy. I’d say it’s my favorite season. Spring has made a run on the top spot recently (the colors of spring here in the East are much more vibrant than anything I ever saw in the Midwest), but I think fall is holding it’s position. I LOVE the colors… so soothing, so pretty. Here are some pictures I’ve taken on recent outings…
Funny Websites…
Posted by: Mom Chatter on: November 3, 2008
I escaped life for a little while today… and just surfed the web. Here’s a few of the sites that tickled my funny bone…
A Halloween Story
Posted by: Mom Chatter on: November 1, 2008
The Boy pulled off the Wall-E costume for his night out trick-or-treating… except for one or two incidents. Here’s the costume again… just as a reminder of what we’re dealing with here…
So, a couple times The Boy got so excited and ran to a house to get “more candy.” Twice in his excitement he missed a stair or a small branch that was in his path. I’d hate to say this (makes me feel like an AWFUL parent), but he tripped. Now imagine him, in the above costume, face down with arms and legs flailing. “I can’t get up!” Arms and legs flailing more… until Mama or Mr. Wonderful saved the day by lifting him back up. He so looked like a bug/turtle flipped over on it’s back trying to flip back over right side up… or like that poor younger brother on “A Christmas Story.” Mr. Wonderful and I were dying laughing… and trying so hard not to let him see us.
(NOTE: He was not harmed either time he toppled down… in fact he even mentioned that “my costume makes it so falling doesn’t hurt.” How’s that for a super homemade, forcefield costume!!)
Bathtime Ritual
Posted by: Mom Chatter on: November 1, 2008
Mr. Wonderful does bathtime for The Kids in our house… in of itself… that really helps my sanity! One less thing for me to have to worry about getting done. Anyway, lately on bath nights The Girl has been lingering with Mama until the bath water has stopped filling the tub. During this time, she says “Bye” to me, blows me a kiss, says “I wuvou,” and runs to the stairs. It would be cute if it stopped there, but she runs back and repeats the whole thing… about six or seven times… sometimes throwing in a hug. I must say… she is in a SUPER whiny stage right now (I’m hoping it’s a stage)… but I can’t help but melt like putty for her every time she does this little ritual. I forget all the crying and just enjoy her sweetness!
Happy Halloween
Posted by: Mom Chatter on: October 31, 2008
Happy Halloween!
Here’s some of the Halloween crafts/gifts that we’ve done/gotten for Halloween. We got some beautiful “Mr. Potato Head” pumpkins (squashes) that we did at a playdate today, some salt dough figures (ghosts and pumpkin patch) that we did earlier this week, and even some crazy hair pumpkins that The Kids got from a friend! I say we got a pretty good lot of decorations for the year… and you can’t forget our big pumpkin.
I wasn’t able to wrestle The Girl into her Elmo costume this afternoon, so I have no pictures of her yet. I did get The Boy into his Wall-E costume though… he could live in that thing! He’s in so much love, which makes me so happy since I made his costume this year (my first homemade costume)! I feel slightly talented and he has given me TONS of appreciation… something that isn’t always given freely! I’m quite happy with the results…
…I’ll leave this post with a picture of The Boy with the Chick-fil-A cow… gotta love Chick-fil-A!!
AND… gotta love Halloween… hope everyone has a Happy and Safe Halloween!!
