Woo Hoo! I did it!

Have you been to my favorite new blog yet? It's Anna @ knock off wood. She sees a piece of furniture on a website; draws up the plans, and makes it very user friendly! I have been itching to make something off her site, but just haven't had the time. So tonight me and the kids headed off to Lowe's. Tada! 3 1/2 hr later, a bench is born. Mind you, it's still not quite finished. I boo booed the piece in the middle (still learning about angles) so tomorrow I'm back to the depot to get some more wood and paint. ((patting self on back)) Garry also helped drill and hold-he's such a good boy to humor his mom. My hunny did laugh at me when I told him I didn't want to use the circular saw, but preferred to use the jigsaw. Too big, too noisy! Honey--I need a compound miter:)

Here's what it will look like when finished (pre-paint)My bench!

Resurrection Buns

Last nite the kids were at Awana and they were so excited about this project, that I am buying some ingredients today to do it again. I thought it was a great idea and wanted to pass it along!

Each child takes a Grand (or other large ) canned biscuit. They flatten the biscuit out until it's about 5 inches across. They spread melted butter, sugar and cinnamon on it. We explain that the spices represent the spices used to anoint Jesus' body before His burial.
Then each child gets one large marshmallow. The marshmallow represents Jesus. It is white because it stands for His purity and His sinless life. They place the marshmallow in the center of the biscuit, then fold the sides around it forming a "tomb". (I help the younger children pinch the sides of their tombs closed and then we place them crease side down on a baking sheet so they will not open while cooking). Put more butter, cinnamon and sugar on the outside. We talk about the sweet taste of the spices and how Jesus gave us the sweetest gift we will ever receive. At this point you can go ahead and bake the buns. We wait and bake them (put tin foil underneath for easy cleanup!) in the morning while the kids are hunting the eggs. They need to bake following the directions on the biscuit package. Then they need a little cooling time because the marshmallow will be very hot. When the children bite into their buns they will be surprised to find the center empty. The marshmallow has melted. As each child discovers the empty tomb, we repeat : He is not here for He is risen.
- courtesy of Sharon D.

What's for dinner?

This is what happens to the cute, chubby babies that come to visit....Yummy:)

He's 13!

I am a bad mommy. Here it is, the 25th of March, and I never once mentioned Garry's 13th birthday. No blog, no facebook, anything. Not intentionally, of course. I meant too, really! So, I'm sorry son, I didn't forget you. And I would have brought you breakfast in bed, but you got up earlier than I did (does that mean I should have gotten breakfast in bed?)

Garry, we love you. You are such a great person and a tremendous help around here. I appreciate the way you just pitch in and help, and still wear a smile.

To celebrate Garry's special day(can you guess from the decorations what his b-day falls on?), here's the panini recipe that he requested for his big day. (Did I mention at his request he received a Panini maker? Oh, and that I forgot it was in the trunk and he found it and had a early birthday?)

Chicken Pesto:
8 1/2" thick slices Italian bread
1/2 lb chicken breast, divided into 4 servingse decoratio
4 tbsp pesto sauce
1 cup spinach
8 slices tomato
4 slices provolone cheese
olive oil
Preheat press. Spread olive oil on one side of each slice of bread. Place oil side down and place remaining ingredients in order. Cover with remaining bread, oil side up. Close press. Cook 3-5 min or until brown. Yummy!

Car fun

Today my hunny had taken the day off in order to go with the kids to the annual AWANA race day. Shelby and Bryce and painted and decorated their cars and were ready to race. We hopped into the car and although the engine turned over, the van wouldn't start. Mmm... Hunny turns to me and asks the obvious question (you know I'm forgetful!), "did you forget to put gas in?", to which I replied I had remembered-yellow dummy light very helpful! Where to go from there? He checks a few things, then calls his dad. They do a troubleshoot together over the phone and determine it's probably the fuel pump. Ok, so where's the pump? Googling, we find the spot. Of course it's in the middle of the van under the carpet (in gas tank). His brother shows up and they double check everything and come to the same conclusion. So, off they go to Auto Zone for a new pump ($100+) After some jury rigging (can't find anything online to show HOW to take the old pump out) and 2 hrs later, they replace with new pump. Steve (brother) inserts the key to start the engine. It still turns over, but does not start. He tries about 5-6 times and notices that the little green key light is blinking. We check the owners manual. It says that our key with the electronic chip is NOT recognized, and therefore not starting. ARGH! 45 min later Pop-a-lock dude confirms-key is going bad. Not that it was a bad day, but I could have found a much better way to spend the $250 we ended up spending in car. After all said and done, I checked the owner's manual troubleshooting guide, and it said to check to see if the correct key was being used. (Of course it was, I just used it that morning!). Maybe they should have mentioned that the key could possibly go bad. Or maybe we should have looked for the little green light.
Anyway, to combat the tears shed over missing race day, I had to promise a trip to Chuck-e-Cheese....a very expensive day indeed:)

Colorado Springs

(Note: this trip happened back in 2010, not sure why I didn't upload. Don't want to lose it, so I'm uploading now) As I said, we have been on the road, air and boat (ok, no boat) the last couple of weeks. The first of March brought us (adults) to Colorado Springs, and the kids were scattered from the south to the north with family. We spent several lovely days at Family Life's A Weekend to Remember, and then back to Tanny's for sightseeing. The weather during our weekend was in the 50's, but before we left, it began to snow. 

Updating

Well-my camera is full, so I guess it's time to update. It's seems we've not stopped in days, and the next couple of weeks is just as busy. Thank goodness we can school on the road! Did I show you my hunny's first woodworking project? I think he did pretty good. (me, not so good...see the unfinished painted wall in the back? I STILL do not have it finished!) He's in trouble now, I have lots more in the future for him to put together!

Postman

This morning the door rang, and Aidan raced to the window to see who it was. I opened the door to the mailman. He had several packages in hand and gave them to me. I took them and shut the door and handed Aidan one of the packages that had his name on it. He looked at it; dropped it and wailed in his little 2 year old voice: " I wanned pizza!"