A Turkey and a Fortune!

I'm stopping by to post a little something this morning while I wait to wake Allison up for school. I might be back tonight with another post. I'm not sure. We'll see.

My first thought that I wanted to share is turkey. Since my sister was here over the weekend, I decided to make a traditional turkey dinner. Truth be told is that it was taking up too much room in my freezer and I wanted the space. I also wanted to "suck & seal" (click on the link to see what I'm talking about) the turkey in portions and freeze it for turkey soup and turkey pot pie. So this was the perfect time to cook my 19 pound bird. I had so much turkey that I sent a big pan of it with her to my parent's house (she was going there next.) Anyway, I had been doing a lot of reading on how if you cook the turkey upside or breast down in the roaster that the white meat will be juicier. Of course, I would have to test that theory. So, here is the before picture of my upside down turkey. Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of it when it was done. I guess I was just too excited to see if the method worked. I would have say that I agree that it is moister. In fact, if I do say so myself, the turkey was delish! YUM! However, there is a couple of things that I want to caution you about if you try this method. First, that little pop-up thing they put in the bird that is supposed to pop up when it is done will be upside down so you can't rely on it. Once I took the turkey out from the roaster, I found that mine didn't even pop up. I found this turkey cooking calculator online from Butterball. It will calculate how long you should cook your turkey. Second, be sure you cook your turkey to at least an internal temperature of 180 degrees. I suggest using a food thermometer. They are inexpensive and you can pick them up at any kitchen or restaurant supply store. You will want to test the turkey in the thickest part of the breast and the innermost part of the thigh and wing.

My second thought is that my 5 1/2 daughter, Allison is amazing. I know, I know, we all think our child is amazing and we all are right. Last night Curtis, Allison and I went out for Chinese food and at the end of our meal, we always do the fortune cookies. We usually make up fortunes but we found that we really can't do that anymore. I said mine said that "Allison is Mommy's little girl" since Curtis and I always battle on whose little girl she is. Allison immediately said "No, it doesn't! Let me see it! My name isn't anywhere on there!" LOL! Too funny! She then opened hers and tried to sound out the words. They are just learning to read but she is so good at sounding out everything...from the cans in the pantry to the street signs she sees while we are driving. She will even debate on how a word is pronounced if it doesn't follow what she has learned in school. They say that English is the hardest language to learn because there are so many exceptions to the rules. I am seeing this through Allison. Anyway, here is her fortune and she was able to sound out all the words except "wealth" and "are." I was amazed that she got the word "friends" but she blended it beautifully. That's my girl! The sad thing is that Curtis and I will not be able to spell things to each other for much longer. She is just too good and so eager to learn everything new. By the way, how about her fortune? I love it! It is what I believe and my friends are so important to me! Hey, maybe I see a blog entry of "my friends" in the future. I'll have to give that some thought!

Gotta go wake the amazing one!

Have Fun!

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.”
~Dr. Seuss

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An Afternoon at the Ballet!

My sister, Alesia, treated Allison and I to an afternoon at the Benedum Center for the Performing Arts to see the ballet, Peter Pan. It was AWESOME! Allison sat in her seat the whole time and loved every minute of it. I was a little worried that there was no speaking but I don't even think she noticed. Her favorite part was the crocodile. He was adorable! He did a little dance and then at the end, him and Captain Hook danced together. Allison giggled and giggled. It was definitely a good day. One thing did surprise me today though. While it was the first Act, Allison jumped up on her knees in the seat and spun around and said something to the people behind us. I immediately asked her what she said and she said "Those people behind me were kicking my seat and I told them not to." Oh my, such boldness and independence! I had to laugh a little to myself. I always correct her when we are out in a restaurant or wherever and she starts kicking her feet. I tell her it's bad manners and it's inconsiderate of the others around her. I guess that must of sunk in to her little brain and decided to share a lesson with those patrons behind us. LOL!

Here are a few more pictures. One of Allison and Alesia outside the Benedum. The next one is of Allison in from of this really cool balloon sculpture of Captain Hook (her favorite). They had all the characters. It was really quite cool.

After the ballet, we went over to Station Square and had dinner at Houlihan's. I LOVE that place! I always get the same thing but it is so scrumptious that I am afraid to get anything else. It's the Mandarin Grilled Chicken Salad. The description taken from their website is: Our classic grilled chicken salad with snow peas, red onions, red bell peppers, wonton strips, oven toasted white and black sesame seeds, peanuts, mandarin oranges in a tangy-sweet peanut dressing. It is YUMMY and I highly recommend it if you ever go there. I also got a bowl of their baked potato soup but in all honesty I wasn't as good as it used to be. It seems as if they have changed the recipe. I guess I can cross that off my list of "must haves" when I go there.

One more picture before I leave. This is of Allison on the train at Station Square. Isn't she adorable. I stood there watching her and thinking back to the first time she rode the train at our mall. The man had to stop it after one time around because she started to cry. She has gotten so big and not afraid of anything. Have Fun!

“So come with me, where dreams are born, and time is never planned. Just think of happy things, and your heart will fly on wings, forever, in Never Never Land!” ~Peter Pan

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Not a Snow Day but a Sick Day!

My baby woke up this morning with the cough she's been fighting all week. Except today it sounded worse so I thought I would make an appointment. Usually I take her in and it's just a cold and her lungs are clear but not today. She has a bacterial infection. Her lungs are clear but she has a lot of drainage in her throat. She has a cold and she has fluid in her left ear although you wouldn't know it. Her spirits are good. Our pediatrician was surprised she wasn't complaining about her ear. He said there was a lot of puss in there. He prescribed amoxicillin for 10 days and she is not too happy about it. She says it tastes yucky and is not taking it. Ya, right! She's not used to taking medicines. She isn't sick all that often. Even our pediatrician commented that it's been a long time since he has prescribed medicine for her. Actually the last time was when she was under a year old so it's been over 4 1/2 years. We have been VERY lucky and VERY blessed to have a healthy child.

LOL!! She just came over to me while I was typing this and said that she got a paper cut on her foot from her magazine that she left on the floor. She put her foot up on me and I said "Oh my" and she looked down, saw the blood and then looked up at my face and said "I can't bare to look!" LOL! A little dramatic, don't you think? Too funny!

Well, she's all fixed up and resting on the couch so I better go throw a load of laundry in and cut my coupons from this past Sunday that I haven't cut yet. There's never enough time to do all the things that I want. After this week, I am ready to go back to work. Allison and I are just too much alike and get on each other's nerves after being together all week. However, in all honesty I wouldn't leave her to go to work while she needed me. There isn't any other place that I would want to be...even if she drives me crazy at times and knows how to push my buttons.

Have Fun!

"There is possibly no guilt in this world to compare with leaving a sick child with a babysitter. The sitter could be Mother Theresa and you would still feel rotten. There is something about having your child throw up without you that is difficult to live with."

Erma Bombeck

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A School Closing, A Recipe & A WOW!

Allison's school had a 2 hour delay on Thursday. Since the school was closed the previous 2 days, I felt more comfortable in taking her than sending her on a bus with no seat belts. The roads were not all that great so I am glad that I did. Well when we walked into the classroom, her teacher, Mrs. Robinson, informed us that school had been cancelled...sort of. See we live in the Butler School District but since Allison's school is in the South Butler School District, we follow the closing or delays for that school district since they run our busses. At the time that I left our home, both schools had a 2 hour delay. Well, after South Butler took the high school students, they decided that the roads were too dangerous to bus the elementary...so they closed the elementary....at 10:08! Who would have thought to check the television or radio at that time. I was outside cleaning my car off so we could leave at 10:20. Nice! Huh? Mrs. Robinson said that the teachers were staying and the school was open but with less than half the class there, all they would do is play. I had planned on coming back and picking Allison up after school so Allison and I decided to leave and surprise Daddy by taking him out to lunch. I do have to admit, that I stood in the classroom and for a split second thought about leaving her there to play and have some much needed Mommy time but I just couldn't do it. We ended up having a good day together and so I am glad my gut instict kicked in and I took her with me.

Our church has a fish fry every Friday during Lent. It actually starts this Friday and ends the Friday before Good Friday. I have signed up to bake a cake every week for the seven weeks of the Fish Fry. I thought I would share them here every week and post the recipe. This week's is Blueberry Squares. This one will probably be a repeat since you can use any kind of fruit in it and it's easy to make. The original recipe is from my Aunt Carole and is for cherry but I had blueberry on hand so that is what I made.

"Blueberry Squares"

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup butter or margarine

4 eggs

2 cups flour

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 can of blueberry pie filling (or any kind)

~Cream sugar and butter until light and fluffy.

~Add eggs, one at a time.

~Add flour and vanilla and beat well.

~Pour batter in a well greased 9 x 13 pan.

~Mark 20 squares.

~Pour on tablespoon of pie filling in each square.

~Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes.

~Dust with powdered sugar. (Cinnamon & Sugar on Apple.)

And now for the WOW! Grey's Anatomy! WOW! All I can say is that I can't wait for next Thursday night! WOW!

Have Fun!

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Valentine's Day continuted...

I'm back! As promised, here is the basket of treats we made for Allison's class.

They are pink heart shaped Rice Krispie treats. It was so easy and a fun activity for us to do together. I saw it in my Family Fun magazine and here is a link of it on their website. They have such cute ideas in their magazine and website, you should really check them out if you have kids. You can go to Magazines.com and pick it up for $9.95 a year and if you are a member of Upromise you will get $5.00 off and 25% of the $4.95 will go into your Upromise account. However, to get this discount and rebate, you have to link Magazines.com through the Upromise site and the discount code is UPMAG07. I don't know if it would work without linking through Upromise but you could try it. I find myself always tearing something out of the magazine or printing something from their website and putting it in my Holiday Binder.

In other news from yesterday, we had to dig our cars out because the plow truck plowed us in. Here is a picture of Allison and our neighbor and babysitter, Audrey, getting ready for the challenge. I am so glad it stopped snowing because there is no place left to put the snow!

Have Fun!

"Let every man shovel out his own snow and the whole city will be passable."
Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Happy St. Valentine's Day!

I know it's been forever since I've last posted. Curtis told me about a week ago that I needed to update my blog. I guess my blog does get read by someone other than me. Anyway, for those of you that really know me, probably already know that not posting on my blog isn't because I've had a lack of things to say. I usually always have something to say! :) It's just been a very crazy month and I really haven't had time or the energy to sit at the computer and recap the day. I just kept on going and figured I would post "tomorrow." Well I guess my tomorrow is today.

So, Happy St. Valentine's Day to all of you out in blogland! How is it where you are? Pittsburgh and it's surrounding 14 counties including us up here in Butler are under severe weather warnings. We have been since Monday evening and it is yucky outside! School was cancelled yesterday and of course today. Yesterday I took Allison to work with me, worked a half day and then it took us forever to get home. The roads were AWFUL! Fortunately I am off on Wednesdays so Allison and I are having a Mommy & Me day. I am glad that I had the good sense to stop at Giant Eagle on our way home yesterday and did some speed shopping. I didn't have my grocery list with me so I forgot some things and I also didn't have my coupons with me so I spent about $40 more but we are safe in our warm home today and that is all that matters. As of right now, there have been 741 closing or delays reported to our local news channel. This includes schools, colleges, meals on wheels, meetings, humane societies, gyms, community centers, Salvation Army, libraries, shopping malls, museums, government offices, churches, performing arts centers and more. The list just goes on and on! The "T" is not running in Pittsburgh along with some buses. The Northbound lanes of I-79 are closed which is what I travel so I am glad that I am at home today! It wouldn't have been so bad if it didn't snow ALL day yesterday and then turned to sleet in the evening. When Curtis was walking out this morning to scrape the ice off of his car, his feet was crunching through the snow that was on top of the ice that was on top of the snow. Here is a pic of this morning at 7ish. Notice the mound of snow to the left of his car. That snow is just from yesterday morning until about 3:00 in the afternoon.

So, any big plans for St. Valentine's Day? Allison and I are going to make treats for her class party that I am guessing they will have tomorrow if they go to school. I'll post a pic later when we have them completed.
Since we are stuck in the house today, I thought I would make it fun for Allison so for starters I made her this Valentine's Day breakfast. I used my Wilton heart shaped cookie cutter. The pink heart plate and heart acrylic glass are from Target. I picked them up on sale a couple of weeks ago. Everything was a big hit. She ate the whole thing. Hmm, maybe I should make all of her food heart shaped!

Here are the cards Allison received for Valentine's Day. Do you see a pattern here? You wouldn't be able to tell she likes kitties by the front of these cards, would you? Speaking of kitties, we may be getting a kitten at the end of the school year. I am not sure I am ready for another one but I can't see denying Allison of a childhood pet. She has been asking for one for a while now and we told her that if she continues to bring good progress reports home, then she can have one. I guess I am kind of excited to get another one but to be honest, no cat is ever going to replace my Pooki. He was the best cat ever. Even my Mom grew to love him and let him sit on the couch by her while she petted him and she is not a cat person or a pet in the house kind of person. He definitely was a special little buddy.

One more picture and then I have to go. This picture was taken on Monday night when I came home from work. Please excuse Allison's wild woman hair. Curtis had gotten her all ready for bed and let her stay up until I got home so I could see her open the box my Mom and Dad had sent her for St. Valentine's Day. She has the wildest curliest hair until I tame it with a little mousse.
Have Fun!

"I don't understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine's Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon."

~Author Unknown

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IT'S SNOWING! IT'S SNOWING!

I just took this picture at 6:55 AM. It's the view from my front door. I can't wait for Allison to get up and see this! We've been waiting for some of this white stuff. Thank you, God!

Have Fun!

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A New Year with a New Look!

Since the New Year brings new beginnings, I thought it was time to change up my blog a little. Yellow is my choice for the change. It's bright and crisp. It's a happy color. It reminds me of sunshine and all the energy the sun gives us. Yes, I know my ducks are blurry on my banner but so is my life. It fits for now.

Have you made any goals for the new year? I have. My main goal is one that I've been toying with since last July but this year I am getting serious about it. It is to SIMPLIFY! Simplify what, you ask? EVERYTHING is my answer! Yup! This is my year to make my life easier and to do that I feel the need to declutter, organize and simplify. Yes, this means to clean out every corner, cupboard, closet, drawer, etc. in this house. I'm even going to tackle the Holiday closet in the basement!

I started this blog entry the other day and tried to finish it every day since. However, as soon as I started to finish it, something came up and I saved the draft and went about my business knowing I wanted to come back to it soon. In the meantime, I received my issue of Ali Edward's newsletter in my inbox. If you don't scrapbook, you probably don't know who Ali is so be sure to click on her name for her blog. She's one of my favorites! Anyway, in this issue of her newsletter, she talks about "one little word" and how it can be a powerful thing. She asks, "Can you identify a single word that sums up what you want for yourself in 2007?" My answer is YES! My word is SIMPLIFY! I've promised myself to think about it everyday and to embrace it. I have made it my mission to do at least one thing everyday to simplify my life. It can be anything as long as it has to do with getting rid of something, organizing or reorganizing something, decluttering or just plain doing things that need to be done. For instance, letting the laundry go for several days stresses me out. I know it's down there and I spend too much time thinking about and planning on when I am going to get it done. This year I am just going to do it when I think about it. If this means doing a load everyday, then so be it.

I already feel good about my choice of a word. Like something has been lifted off of my shoulders. I know I've only decluttered the refrigerator, organized a cupboard and cleaned out the bottom of my china cabinet but boy does it feel liberating!

Gotta run! I have a purse to clean out!

Have Fun!

"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”
Leonardo da Vinci

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Happy New Year!

Yet another year has come and gone and as 2007 is just a few hours away, I find myself reflecting on the past year and looking forward to the new one. 2007 brings a chance for new beginnings. A chance to change the things that we are not happy with and a chance to make a difference in our lives and the lives of others.

We had our typical New Year's Eve celebration. I made a bunch of appetizer and finger foods and we "have a picnic on the coffee table" as Allison puts it. This year Allison invited my sister, Alesia, so she came for the day and is spending the night. This picture of Allison and Curtis was taken tonight. I think it's my new favorite of the two of them.

I'm going to make this short but I wanted to take a minute to wish all of you a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year!

Have Fun!

"Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man."
~Benjamin Franklin

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A Week in Review in Pics!

Hey Everyone! I tried posting last week but Blogger wouldn't let me upload pictures. It wouldn't let me again today so I finally accepted the newer version and SHAZAM, it let me upload as many as I wanted! So.....here is our week in review!

Allison's school Christmas party was last Friday and I decided to make gifts for all of her classmates. I took little stockings and wrote all of their names on them in gold glitter paint. Then I filled them with a box of crayons and a small candy cane in a treat bag. I had trouble getting my Microsoft Word to work so I had to write out "Merry Christmas from Allison" on all 21 tags! What a pain! We are so spoiled by technology!



Allison had 10 minutes to kill last Friday morning before we had to go catch the bus. I told her she could play in the living room but not to sit on the floor because she had black pants on with her Christmas shirt and it will collect lint from the carpet. She said "Okay, Mom." I never thought about it again until I walked back into the house after putting her on the bus. This picture is what I saw. She is just in love with our tree...just like me. I secretly put some of my favorite ornaments on the side where the couch is so I can sit and stare at them. I love getting up early and just sitting in the dark with nothing but the tree lights on. It is such a warm feeling. I love our "family" tree and all of the stories the ornaments tell. Apparantly, it is like Mother like Daughter in our home...the evidence is in the picture!

How cute is this snowgal? Allison brought it home from school last Wednesday and was so proud to present it to me! Of course, I was SO excited to receive it too! It is her FIRST handmade ornament! I couldn't wait to give it a place of honor on the front of the tree. It's the first ornament I see when I walk into the living room. I love it! She also brought home a tile that she painted with a snowman's face. It's "to put hot stuff on, Mom!" She said it with so excitement! I put it right next to Daddy's chair so he can put his coffee cup on it. She is so proud and I just love the things that she makes. Lately, she has had this thing for hearts. She draws them, colors them and gives them to us. Curtis put one in his wallet so every time he sees it, he thinks of her. I have them all over my refrigerator. Who would have ever thought that something so simple could fill me with such joy?

I needed four little gifts for some people at work and this is what I came up with. I bought the "JOY" tin buckets at Target in the Dollar Spot at the beginning of the Holiday season. I thought they were so cute and for a buck, I couldn't pass them up. I filled them with a couple of sheets of tissue paper in the bottom and 2 Irish coffee mugs with snowmen on them and six packets of assorted flavored hot chocolate by Land O' Lakes. They came out really cute and were a BIG hit! I had two of the buckets left over so I filled them with shredded red and green tissue (I put it through my paper shredder) and a couple of the Home Interiors candles in a jar and they came out just as cute too!

The picture below is a close up of my Nativity. When I sold Home Interiors the first time around I splurged and got it for myself, my sister, my Mother and my best friend, Susan. It's probably my second favorite Holiday decoration next to the tree. I remember as a child sitting and looking at my Mom's and thinking that I could just envision them being real. I am so happy to have a beautiful set for Allison to look at too.

The whole Nativity:

This picture was taken last Saturday, the 23rd. Poor Santa, he looks so tired! Allison had already seen Santa this year at the pancake and sausage breakfast at our church. However, I realized on Saturday that I didn't have my camera with me and didn't get a picture. Well, of course I HAD to have a picture of this event so we took her down to Zelienople where they have a free standing house erected each year for Santa to visit the kids. It is adorable. There is a tree, fireplace and toy boxes in it with a little front porch. It is decorated for Christmas and you can bring your own camera and they only take donations. Afterwards, we were hungry and Curtis surprised us and took us to the Log Cabin Inn for dinner. Even though I had TONS of Christmas prep to still do at home, I didn't stress about it. I just enjoyed this perfect night with my family.

This picture is of our tree. As I said above, I LOVE all of the ornaments and the stories that they tell. A few years ago, I started and "Ornament Scrapbook" for Allison. It is 5 x 7 and each page has a picture of the ornament on it with the story of when she received it, where it came from, who it came from, the reason behind it and any other important information about it. When she leaves home (sniff, sniff) to set up her own home, I will give her all of her ornaments along with the scrapbook.

Here is a pic of Allison in front of the tree. This was taken Christmas Eve after Christmas Mass. Do you see the skinned knee? She was so excited to go to church that when she was trying to get out of the car by herself, she got her foot caught in the seat belt and fell out onto the pavement on both knees. Poor thing!

I have been admiring figurines for years! I LOVE them but I didn't want to buy them myself. They are Willow Tree figurines by Demdaco. I mentioned them to Curtis last year and he gave me one of the ornaments for Christmas. He thinks they are creepy without faces. I think they are beautiful. He took Allison shopping and she picked these three out for me. I think she did great! When she saw the little angel holding the cat with short curly hair, she told her Dad "That one looks like me!" She's right! It does resemble her and it's my favorite. I also love that Curtis took her with him to pick them out for me. They are just that more special because of it.

And last but certainly not least! This little snowman is what Allison picked out at Santa's Workshop at school for me. She was so cute when she brought the presents home. They must have prepared the kids for us to ask what they were because she stood strong and wouldn't tell me. She did however ask me if I liked snowmen...too cute! It is my FAVORITE gift this year! He was in a little basket with three little candles and some red and green tissue paper. He is darling, don't you think?

Have Fun!

A good snapshot stops a moment from running away.
~Eudora Welty

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