Turtle

Look what I caught! Imagine my surprise when I pulled this little sucker out of the water. Luckily, Junior was able to get him off the hook without hurting him, and he headed straight back into the water. I caught a couple of fish, too. I love this time of year...it's not too hot, so sitting on the lake shore is relaxing. I am hoping we get in a lot of fishing trips this year. We always have so much fun!

We're Happier Now

A couple of year ago, we lived in a house that had a full basement. It wasn't finished by any means, and when it rained, the basement would flood. I'm not talking about a little bit of dripping here and there. There would be about an inch or two of water covering the entire floor. Junior would have to go down there and hook up a pump that diverted the water out a window. We had big plans to have someone come in and do some Basement waterproofing so that we could make a playroom down there. Not for the kids, though. We were going to put the pool table down there, and maybe a big screen television and couches. We wanted somewhere where the adults could go and hang out.

Moving out of that house was a blessing in disguise. I've heard rumors that it is literally falling apart, and I am just glad we are not still living there. Sure, we don't have as much room now as we did then, but we are a lot happier, and that is what is important.

At least to me.

Dyeing The Eggs

I know Easter was like a week ago, it's just that I have been really slack in posting pictures. I still have a bunch from our trip to the mountains to post, too.

Anyway, I was hoping that this year, we could skip the whole egg dyeing thing. I mean, Ryan is 14, Kasi is about to be 13, and Brandi is 8. It's Brandi who decided that she is still young enough to do it. Thankfully my little nephew was dyeing some, so we went to my sisters and Brandi did it with him.

I am really hoping that next year, at 9, she will finally be old enough that we can skip it.

Fort

The other day, during Spring break, the girls were in their room. They were playing nicely, and quietly. Most parents know that when kids are quiet, they are usually up to no good. So I got up and went to check on them, and this is what I found:

They had made a fort, using all the blankets in their room, and they were just hanging out in there. I was pretty impressed that they worked together, and that it came out as good as it did.

If only they could play this nicely all the time...

Escorted Vacation Packages From Cosmos

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Cosmos. All opinions are 100% mine.

I think I mentioned a few posts ago that I want Junior and I to take a vacation together, without the kids. I was doing a little more research on affordable vacations, and found www.cosmos.com. Cosmos offers escorted vacations at affordable prices. In fact, right now they are offering nine different vacation packages for under $1,000. With my fear of flying, though, none of these packages are right for Junior and I. Not to worry, though, because they not only offer overseas vacations, they have local packages, too. In fact, I found a trip I would love to take. It is a trip including Historic Trails & The Blue Ridge Mountains, which begins and ends in Washington DC. That is just a few hours drive from where I am in South Carolina.

You can find other Special travel offers to places like Paris and Italy. No matter where you go, though, there is no need to worry about planning your days and making sure you find the time to see everything each city has to offer. Cosmos does all of that for you. They make sure that your vacation is worry free, and all you have to do is go along for the ride, and enjoy the sites. The packages I looked at ranged from one to two weeks, and they were all reasonably priced. You can Request a free travel brochure, and see for yourself all the things that Cosmos has to offer.

Edible Art

Can you guess what this is supposed to be?

Brandi made this when we stopped to picnic during our trip to the mountains. The pepperoni is the body, the cheese are the ears, the crackers are the head, the bits of crackers are the eyes, and the strawberry is the...

...trunk!

That's right. It's supposed to be an elephant!

I think it's pretty cute!

Yogurt

Brandi has always been my special child when it comes to food. She likes chocolate, but is the kid who still has Halloween candy in April. If we get her a happy meal, she used to put the leftovers in the pantry to eat later. (yes, in the pantry, and then I would find it and throw it away, and tell her that she needs to put leftovers in the fridge, not the pantry, but then next time she'd do the same thing...)

Anyway, she decided a few weeks ago that she no longer wants me to put sandwiches in her lunch. She wants yogurt.

Specifically, Yoplait strawberry cheesecake yogurt. She loves it! I guess I shouldn't be complaining, though. Last year, she took salad every day. Yogurt is a whole lot easier than making salads.

Is this weird for a second grader?

Date Night Opens This Weekend

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of 20th Century Fox. All opinions are 100% mine.

It's date night. You and your husband decide to go out to eat, but you forgot to make a reservation. On a whim, you decide to take someone elses reservation, and pretend to be people you are not.

Little did you know, the people you are pretending to be are not exactly good people. In fact, there are other bad people who want to hurt them. These people interrupt your dinner, and you spend the rest of your date night trying to save yourselves, and prove that you are not who they think you are.

This sounds like a pretty good action movie, right? Well, when the two main characters are Steve Carell and Tina Fey, you can bet there will be a lot more comedy than action. Watch the trailer for Date Night Movie, and you'll see what I mean.


I wrote about this movie when I first heard about it weeks ago, and I am so excited that it is opening this weekend. I am not sure I will be able to swing seeing it opening night, which is Friday, April 9th, but I am going to try my hardest to get my sister to go with me one night next week. I wish Junior would take me, but he thinks it's a waste of money for him to go, because no matter what kind of movie we go see, he always falls asleep. My sister said she wants to see this movie, too, so it's just a matter of finding a night that works for both of us.

How about you? Will you be seeing this movie opening weekend?

Cough

I can not believe that I still have this cough. Granted, it is not as bad as it was, but it is still here. The past few nights, I have been waking up out of a dead sleep, mid cough, unable to breathe. It is not a good feeling. Junior is trying to convince me to see a doctor, but that means a trip to the emergency room, which we can not afford. I have some antibiotics here that I am going to start taking, and hopefully they will help.

My Newest Elephant

Check out this elephant that Junior bought for me last week when we went to the mountains. It is glass with all kinds of colored flowers inside. It hangs on a black cord, making it a pretty cool necklace. For now, it is hanging from the trunk of an elephant shelf that I have. This is where I hand all of my elephant necklaces.

A Second Honeymoon?

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of St Augustine, Ponte Vedra & The Beaches, Florida. All opinions are 100% mine.

My wedding anniversary is coming up in June. It will be my fifteenth.

That's a lot of years!

I have been thinking a lot lately about how Junior and I have never been away alone since the kids were born. I think our upcoming anniversary will be the perfect time to change that. I have always wanted to stay at a bed & breakfast, and I found a really romantic one in St. Augustine called Carriage Way. It will only be a half a day drive at most, and we can enjoy a weekend alone, with nothing to do except enjoy each others company.

The bed & breakfast itself is located in the heart of the historic district, and is within walking distance of museums, fine dining establishments, and carriage rides. What is more romantic than a horse drawn carriage ride along the water?

The rooms at the bed & breakfast all have private bathrooms, some of which have old fashioned claw foot bathtubs. I have always wanted to soak in one of those, surrounded by lots of wonderful smelling bubbles. I am relaxing just thinking about it.

I hope I can talk Junior into going. I think we deserve a vacation to ourselves. I mean, it has been almost fifteen years.

My Little Cook

We were walking in the grocery store the other day, and Brandi said she wanted banana pudding. I told her I would get the ingredients, but she would have to make it, since I don't eat pudding.

As soon as we got home, she started slicing the bananas.

Then she layered them with the vanilla wafers while I cooked the pudding. (she's not quite old enough for that step yet)

Here's the finished product! She had to put extra cookies and bananas on top.

It was gone in about fifteen minutes...three little mouths and one big one enjoyed every last bit!

Cross Cake

My mom made this cake for Easter.

Decorating cakes is a recent hobby of hers, and she is getting really good at it.

My sister, brother, and families, along with my gang, all hung out at mom's house last Saturday to celebrate Easter. It was a beautiful day, full of great food and fun.

I am looking forward to the next time we all get together.

Cookies And Magazines

This is my favorite elephant magnet that hangs on my fridge. When Ryan was in second grade, he drew this picture in art class. As a fundraiser, you could order your child's artwork on all kinds of things, from mouse pads to magnets. I have ten different magnets, made by Ryan, Kasi, and Brandi at different ages.

Now that the kids are older and Brandi has changed schools, they no longer do this particular fundraiser. They have different fundraising ideas. One of the most popular ones was the cookie dough one. I didn't have any extra money at the time, but I have heard that the cookies were delicious. They also do magazine fundraising in all the schools. For this one, the kids bring home a booklet that I have to fill with 10 addresses, so that the school can send a book of magazine subscriptions to each address, hoping they will get an order from at least a few of them. It is really hard coming up with 30 different address, so I usually put the same ones in all three booklets. I know this is cheating, but it's the best I can do. I just hope that their Grandmother, who gets three separate booklets, can find some money to devote to philanthropy. I am waiting to see what types of fundraising they do next year, and I hope it is something different.

It will be a nice change of pace from magazines and cookie dough.

Easter Eggs From My Childhood

I was at my mom's house last week, and she had just put out all her Easter decorations. It has been many, many years since she has, and it was great seeing everything again.


I especially loved seeing these eggs. (for some reason, my sister Tami's egg is missing) They are ceramic, and they have to be more than 25 years old. My mom used to have a ceramic studio in our basement, and was always making beautiful decorations.

As you can see, my egg says "Jenny". It has been a long, long time since someone has called me that. Now if you do, I will not answer.

:p

Changes????

I'm thinking about changing things up a bit around here.

I love my header, so that won't change, but I think it needs some more color.

I just can't decide what color.

Let this be a warning to you if you come by over the next few days and things are a little wonky.

Maybe I need to consult a professional???

Butt Paste

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Boudreaux's Butt Paste. All opinions are 100% mine.

It has been a very long time since I have had a child in diapers. My youngest is now eight, and she potty trained herself when she was just under two. I know, I was lucky with that. My oldest daughter was over four before she was completely potty trained.

I do, however, have a five month old niece in diapers. Recently, she had a pretty bad diaper rash brought on by some medication she was taking. I felt so bad for her, because you could tell it was painful when she needed her diaper changed. My sister used a particular brand of cream on her, and the rash was under control quickly.

The cream she used was Boudreaux’s Butt Paste. In fact, this is the only diaper rash cream she has ever used on not only my niece, but my nephew as well. I asked her why she likes this particular brand, and she said the main reason is that it is easy to use. Some diaper rash creams are difficult to wipe off, and for a baby who already has a tender bottom, this can cause more discomfort. The Butt Paste wipes off easily, and it has a pleasant scent.

My sister recommends this product to all her friends with babies. You can get a free sample by following the directions to the side right there and find out for yourself how easy this product is to use.

Happy Easter To You!

Just a quick post to wish you all a happy Easter!

I hope you are all spending time with the ones you love today. We had a great time yesterday at my mom's, and are spending today just the five of us.

Fishing, food, and family....there's nothing better!

Camera Critters ~ 46

We went to feed the ducks a few days ago, and Brandi finally got up the nerve to let the duck take the bread out of her hand.

Join the camera critters fun!

Top Droppers ~ March

The following blogs are my top droppers for last month...and considering I don't drop much myself using this blog, I am extremely grateful that people come by here every day!

The Modern Historian ~ A blog focusing on the work of an academic historian and his research into the modern world. A collection of articles and links of interest to anyone who has a taste for modern history.

My Gypsygoods ~ Life, creative moments, saving money, nature, eco-friendly tips. Supporting & promoting the handmade community.

Ruth's Creations ~ This is my blog where I write, among other things, about my online business selling crocheted items I make. Part of my sales are donated to Demelza House Children's Hospice, the favored charity of British actor Daniel Radcliffe.

Kreated BY Karen ~ Let me show you my sewing projects while I talk about my kids, dogs and life!

Alterity Art ~ Specializing in No Harm antique and vintage button jewelry to preserve button's value and hierloom/museum quality of the jewery. Each piece is one of a kind :]

My Opinion Counts ~ I have opinions about just about everything.

Crazy Mom ~ I'm a mom of 4 boys. I have been married to the love of my life for over 20 years. We enjoy sports, cooking, gardening, crafts, painting, music, watching movies and I love to shop.

Moonangelnay on Etsy ~ A contemporary handmade, fine art, photography, crafts, gifts, jewelry, fashion and Etsy focused blog, sharing weekly features, tutorials, original works and interviews of the new artists of Etsy.

All Hobbies You Need To Make Money ~ Get the finest Hobby in the world

Ayzor.com ~ Here we keep a collection of all the lists of top of the tops, especially top 10 lists about every major category.

Thanks to all who come by and take the time to drop!