7-up Cake

This is another recipe from The Hubbs' Grannie.  :0)  She makes it in several different flavors, and when fruit like strawberries or blackberries start to come into season, she slices up this cake and tops it with fruit and whipped cream.  It is divine! 

Ingredients:
3 sticks of butter
3 cups of sugar
3 cups plus 3 heaping tablespoons of flour
5 eggs
3/4 cup of 7-up (or any lemon lime flavored soda)
1 tablespoon lemon extract--or orange, or almond...take your pick!
1 tablespoon vanilla

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 (or 315 if you are using a dark or nonstick pan)
Cream butter and sugar together
Add in eggs, one at a time, beating well in between each egg
Add in all remaining ingredients, alternating the flour and the 7-up
Pour batter into a greased and floured bunt pan
Bake 1 hour and 15 minutes

Mmmmm!  I love this cake!!  I hope you do too!  Enjoy!!

Temps in the 100's!?

Well, for my Little Man that is.  :0(  Poor kiddo!  We seem to be passing around a rather unfriendly cold here at my house, and it is just no fun at all!!  So I am sorry to say that 'X' is for Xylophone will be delayed a few days.  A momma's gotta do what a momma's gotta do...and right now this momma is rocking, cuddling, and reading to her sweet little one.  So please keep us in your prayers, and I'll work to get things back on track later this week!
 

Mock Lasagna Casserole

This recipe is super easy, and I generally have everything on hand to make it, which makes it a great standby recipe!  The Hubbs likes it so much I think he could literally eat it every week and never bat an eyelash.  He will even eat leftovers of this, which is a true miracle!! 

Ingredients:
1 pound ground meat--I use turkey, but don't tell The Hubbs
2 teaspoons onion powder--or you can dice up a small onion instead
1 to 2 tablespoons minced garlic--to taste
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons basil
1 (16 ounce) can of tomato sauce
3 ounces of cream cheese
8 ounces of sour cream
Parmesan cheese
Wide Egg noodles--cooked and drained

Directions:
Brown meat and drain off any excess fat
Add garlic and spices and cook for a minute or two
Add in the tomato sauce and simmer for about 15 minutes
In a separate bowl, combine cream cheese, sour cream, and a few tablespoons of Parmesan cheese
In a 2 quart casserole dish, layer 1/2 of the noodles, 1/2 of the cream mixture, and 1/2 of the meat mixture.
Top with some more Parmesan cheese
Repeat the layers a second time and top with more Parmesan cheese
Bake at 350 for 20 minutes

Just toss a quick salad and heat up some garlic bread, and you have a quick and easy dinner!  Enjoy!!

Journal Jar Tuesday #7

Welcome to the 7th Journal Jar Tuesday!!  If you are new to this, you can find out what it is all about by clicking on the Journal Jar Tuesday tab at the top of my blog.  Anyone and everyone is invited to join me on this journaling journey! 

The first question that Jay drew out of the Journal Jar for me today was a bit of a short one, so I had him draw a second one.  :0)  Here they are: 

What is the most adventurous thing you've ever done with your hair?  Do you like your hair now? 

Ha ha in all honesty, I am not all that adventurous with my hair!  I have put highlights in it a time or two, but never colored it or permed it.  It has been long for most of my life, but when I was pregnant with Jay, I was so sick that I didn't want to have to mess with my hair, so I cut it to shoulder length and donated the cut portion to Locks of Love.  I really love it being shoulder length!  It is long enough to do things with, but short enough to be easy to deal with and take care of.  And I can put it in a pony tail and pull out the longer layers around my face so that it looks like I put forth way more effort than I actually did to fix it.  :0)  I have been contemplating some long bangs, but haven't made up my mind for sure yet, so we will have to see.

What is your favorite thing to do at home?  What is your favorite thing to do away from home?

I love being at home, and I think it is pretty safe to say that The Hubbs and I are real home bodies!  Our home is our haven, and we love to just relax and enjoy each other's company.  I think my favorite thing to do at home is to play games with Jay and The Hubbs.  Whether it's a game of catch in the yard, or Candy Land on our coffee table, I am happy either way!  There's just something about those moments when we are all together, relaxed, and happy that make my heart smile!!

I am not really sure what my favorite thing to do away from home is.  We don't have one thing that we always do or anything like that.  We love to go see movies or check out a festival or fair.  I have never been one to enjoy big to do's or fancy schmancy restaurants, so as long as it's casual, I am generally pretty happy.  I love to spend time with friends and family.  Every Sunday after church, we go to The Hubbs' Grannie's house for lunch, and it is something I look forward to all week long.  My mother in law, and my brother in law are usually there, and it is really wonderful to have time together as a family!  The Hubbs' aunt and uncle are planning to move back into the area, so it won't be long before they are there on Sunday too.  It is such a great opportunity for Jay to play with everyone, and for all of us to hang out and relax.  I firmly believe that these Sunday lunches have brought us closer as a family, and I am very thankful for them!!

What about you?  What do you enjoy doing at home and away from home?  Remember, it's never too late to start your own journal and to join me on this journaling adventure! 
    

'W' is For Worm

This week we will cover:
The letter 'W'
'W' is for Worm
The number 23
Ovals
The color Purple
On and Off

Monday: The Letter 'W'
-color a Letter 'W' coloring page
-while you are coloring, watch this, this, this, this, and this
-have your kiddo trace the Letter 'W' on their coloring page with their finger
-glue your coloring page to a piece of Purple construction paper and hang it on the wall
-make a set of Letter 'W' memory cards (one with a Letter 'W' on it, and the other with a picture of a Worm on it)
-go through the Letter 'W' section of Starfall
-make some Letter 'W' Wind art (Draw or print a large letter 'W' onto a piece of thick paper.  Get several different colors of washable paint and put small blobs of paint in several different places on the paper.  Use straws to create "wind" and blow the paint around the paper to make fun designs.)
-letter 'W' scavenger hunt (look around your house, yard, or neighborhood for things that begin with the letter 'W'.  Things like water, watch, waste basket, window, windmill, wind up toy, etc. 

Tuesday: 'W' is for Worm
-color a Worm coloring page
-while you are coloring, watch this, this, and this
-glue your coloring page to a piece of Purple construction paper and hang it on the wall
-what are worms anyhow?  Talk about worms using these fun facts
-make a Worm Habitat picture (Boil a few spaghetti noodles, these will be your worms.  Follow the directions on your pasta package to cook the pasta.  While the noodles are cooking, have your kiddo use crayons, paint, or whatever they choose to draw their version of a worm habitat onto a piece of construction paper.  When the habitat is finished and your pasta is cooked and cooled off enough to handle, arrange a spaghetti noodle or two on the picture and lay flat to dry.  The spaghetti noodles will stick to the picture as they dry, and will make perfect worms for your habitat picture! While you are at it, you can always cook extra spaghetti noodles for lunch too.) 
-play the Wiggle Worm game (like Simon Says, only your kiddo pretends to be a worm on the floor.  SO you do things like wiggle your feet, roll over, wiggle your arms, etc) 

Wednesday:  Fun Day
-today Jay and I are going to eat dirt...and worms.  Ha ha and No, I am not crazy!  Check out this fun recipe that we're going to make:  Dirt
-worm dig (If the weather is nice, grab a little shovel and pail and go dig for worms!  If you are feeling especially adventurous, use those worms to go fishing!  If the weather is not so nice, you can always stop by a bait shop and buy a carton of worms, but digging is way more fun.)
-museum (check your area to see if one of your local museums has any sort of an insect exhibit for kids.  Or perhaps you can go check out a botanical garden.)
-whatever you do, be sure to have fun!!  

Thursday: The Number 23
-color a Number 23 coloring page
-while you are coloring, watch this,
-have your kiddo trace the Number 23 on their coloring page with their finger
-glue your coloring page to a piece of Purple construction paper and hang it on the wall
-worm rescue (cut out 23 worm shapes from different colors of construction paper.  Put a paperclip on each worm and put the worms into a box, bowl, or plastic tub.  Tie a magnet to a piece of string and tie the other end of the string to a pencil or stick to make a fishing pole.  Fish the worms out of the container with the fishing pole and count them as you go!)

Friday:  Ovals
-color an Oval coloring page
-while you are coloring, watch this
-glue your coloring page to a piece of Purple construction paper and hang it on the wall
-talk about ovals.  How are they different from circles? 
-make an oval wreath (cut the middle out of a paper plate.  Cut different colored ovals out of construction paper.  Glue the ovals to the paper plate.  Decorate with stickers, glitter, or whatever you desire.  Hang your wreath!  If you use pastel colored construction paper for your ovals, it will work as an Easter decoration in a few weeks too!)

Thank you for learning the letter 'W' with us!!  If you have missed a previous week, you can find it by clicking on the ABC Lessons tab at the top of my blog, and be sure to join us next week for 'X' is for Xylophone! 

Sweetened Condensed Milk

Have you ever gone to bake something, only to open your pantry and not be able to find one of those little cans of sweetened condensed milk!?  Well I have!  I found this recipe when I was in just such a bind, and have been using it ever since.  I have found that in recipes that I am not going to cook, I still prefer to real thing, but in anything that is being baked or cooked...this works great every time! 

Ingredients:
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1 cup and 2 tablespoons of powdered milk

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer until think--generally about 20 minutes

***Oh and just an FYI, this does NOT freeze well.  Ha ha so don't think you can make it ahead of time and just keep some in the freezer!*** 

***This recipe equals one can of sweetened condensed milk***

This recipe can really come in handy, and I really like that I can use organic ingredients.  It is pretty hard to find the canned stuff in an organic version where I live!  Enjoy!

Journal Jar Tuesday #6

Welcome to the 6th Journal Jar Tuesday!!  Are you new to Journal Jar Tuesdays?  Click on the Journal Jar Tuesdays tab at the top of my blog for more information!  I welcome anyone and everyone to join me on this journaling adventure!  Here is this week's prompt:

Name the personality trait you most admire and tell why.  Do you know many people with this trait?

I am not really sure what the appropriate term for this trait is, but I call it grace or graciousness.  So what do I mean by grace?  I mean the kind of unassuming person that makes everyone feel welcome and comfortable.  The kind of person that always seem to speak eloquently and thoughtfully, not the person that just blurts things out (aka ME).  Someone that can adapt to any given situation and handle it gracefully.  The kind of person that treats everyone, regardless of their social standing, with the same compassion and respect.  Some people may think that being a "graceful" person in these terms, makes you weak.  But I don't see it that way.  The people I have known that are truly gracious, are also strong and hold firm to their convictions.  And if you stop and think about it for a while, it really does take a strong person to stand behind their own beliefs while actively working to not judge other people because of theirs.

I have known quite a few people, mainly women, with this admirable trait.  My Grandma was one of them.  She truly loved people--all people.  Where others might look at a person and only see flaws, my Grandma looked past those flaws to find that person's strengths.  And then she worked to help that person see their own strengths.  She even had a way of "pairing" people up so that one could be strong where the other was weak.  But yet, she always stood firm, and never let anyone walk all over her.  My Grandma handled tough situations with a grace and style unmatched by anyone else I have ever met.  I really miss being able to go to her for advice!!  She could talk you through a situation and help you arrive at the best conclusion without ever actually telling you what to do--half the time you would never even realize what she was doing!  She was amazing!!

My Granddad is another person that I consider a truly graceful person, albeit a little different from the grace that my Grandma possessed.  My Granddad is an honest to goodness "small town southern man."  And his grace comes through more as a way of life than as an attitude towards people.  My Granddad grew up on a farm in Kansas.  His dad built the house my Granddad grew up in with his own two hands.  His folks worked hard for everything they ever had.  My Granddad has farmed, worked in mines, driven trucks, worked in nuclear power plants, and worked for the highway department.  He has worked hard every single day of his life for the things that he has, but he gives God the credit for all them.  He is as unassuming and humble as they come, but it doesn't make him weak.  He is one of the strongest men I will probably ever meet.  He is honestly more amazing than I could ever even begin to tell you about, but I can say, that if you ever want a humbling or life changing experience, have a serious conversation or two with my Granddad!  You might have to feed cows or work on a tractor while you talk, but you'll be thankful that you did!  And when you're done chances are my Grandmother will have one heck of a delicious meal whipped up for you!  While you eat, listen to some of her story, because she is equally as amazing as my Granddad!

While this sort of grace is not something that I seem to possess, I am blessed to be surrounded by numerous people that do.  Grandparents, Aunts, people at church, friends, and cousins just to name a few.  And I pray that I can raise Jay to be a truly "graceful" person!  I always find myself pushing him towards people like this, in the hope that their grace might rub off on him just a little bit!  :0)  So what about you...what trait do you admire the most?     
     

'V' is For Volcano

I have to say that I am thrilled that we are doing the letter 'V' and hearts the week before Valentine's Day!  I couldn't have planned that any better if I had tried!  :0)  But hold on to your socks, because we're also going to make a volcano this week!  Are you excited yet!?  I know I am!! 

This week we will cover:
The letter 'V'
'V' is for Volcano
The number 22
Hearts
The color Black
Dark and Light

Monday: The Letter 'V'
-color a Letter 'V' coloring page
-while you are coloring, watch this, this, this, this,  this, and this
-have your kiddo trace the Letter 'V' on their coloring page with their finger
-glue your coloring page to a piece of Black construction paper and hang it on the wall
-make a set of Letter 'V' memory cards (one with a Letter 'V' on it, and the other with a picture of a Volcano on it)
-go through the Letter 'V' section of Starfall
-do this letter 'V' worksheet
-make a Letter 'V' Vest (print out this template, and use some butcher paper or a paper grocery bag to make a paper vest.  Draw a large letter 'V' on the back of the vest and decorate it.  Cut out pictures from magazines and newspapers of things that begin with the letter 'V' and glue them to the vest.  Look for things like vegetables, vehicles, volcanoes, violins, vultures, vinegar, vines, Vick's vapor rub, the word save, vans, valentines, Velcro, velvet, vacuum cleaner, vase, video games, etc.  If at all possible, try to find 22 things to put on your vest.)
-draw some 'V' hearts (use the letter 'V' with the number 3 on top of it to make hearts.) 
Tuesday: 'V' is for Volcano
-color a Volcano coloring page
-while you are coloring, watch this and this
-glue your coloring page to a piece of Black construction paper and hang it on the wall
-use these fun facts to talk about Volcanoes
-make a clay Volcano!  (You can follow these directions, or just form a clay Volcano with a hollow area in the top of it.  Use baking soda and vinegar with some red food coloring in it for your lava.  Be sure that you do this in the bathtub, kitchen sink, a large dish, or outside, where it will be easy to clean up!)
-draw a volcano picture using letter V's (draw several letter 'V's on a piece of construction paper.  Turn the paper around so that the 'V's are upside down.  Color and decorate them so that they look like volcanoes!)
-use play dough to make your own Volcano--and make a letter 'V' out of play dough while you are at it!

Wednesday:  Fun Day!
-there aren't really any places around us where we can go look at anything even resembling a volcano, so we are going to bake some Lava Cakes today! 
-we will also go on a nature walk to see if we can spot any vultures. 
-and we will make sure that our Valentine's are finished and ready to mail. 
Whatever you do with your kiddo today, just make it fun! 
-watch this, this, and this
-talk about dark and light.  (When is it dark outside?  When is it light outside?  If it is dark in a room, how can you make it light?  etc) 

Thursday: The Number 22
-color a Number 22 coloring page
-while you are coloring, watch this
-have your kiddo trace the Number 22 on their coloring page with their finger
-glue your coloring page to a piece of Black construction paper and hang it on the wall
-if you managed to find 22 things for your vest, count them with your kiddo
-count out 22 of several different things, like blocks, cars, or Lego's.
-play the Can You Do 22 game (see if you can do something 22 times, like clap, jump, touch your ear etc.)
Friday:  The Color Black
-do you and/or your kiddo have black shirts, pants, socks etc?  Wear them if you do! 
-do this black worksheet
-sing Ba Ba Black Sheep
-make a hand print black sheep or this hand print black bat

I hope you had fun learning the letter 'V' with us this week!  If you have missed a previous week, you can find it under the ABC Lessons tab at the top of my blog.  And then grab your gummy worms and get ready for 'W' is for worm next week!!

Easy Hot Chocolate Mix

With a winter ice storm upon us, we have been drinking a lot of hot chocolate, but after the first day of being snow bound, we ran out of out store bought mix!  Uh oh!!  So while Jay and The Hubbs played in the snow ice, I searched the Internet to find a hot chocolate mix recipe we could try.  Most of the recipes I found all had the same ingredients:  dry milk, cocoa powder, and sugar.  Easy Peasy!  So I threw together this recipe, and we have been drinking it all week!

Ingredients:
1 cup powdered milk
1/4 cup cocoa powder (plus a few extra spoon fulls for the chocoholic in me)
1/2 cup powdered sugar (again, I added a few extra spoon fulls to my mix)
1/4 teaspoon salt
vanilla (optional)

Directions:
put the powdered milk, cocoa powder, sugar, and salt into a glass jar or other resealable container.  Put the lid on the container and shake well to mix.  Store in a dry place.

To Make Hot Chocolate:
Add about 1/4 cup of the mix and a dash of vanilla to one cup of boiling water.  Stir to combine.  Top with marshmallows or whipped cream as desired.  :0)  Enjoy! 

I was pretty shocked by how easy this was to make, and it is definitely less expensive than the store bought mix!  I loved being able to use my own ingredients, and to know exactly what was in the mix.  And as far as taste, I actually prefer this to the store bought!!  You can make the flavors stronger or weaker to suit your tastes...which my my family means more cocoa powder.  Plus, I think that the ingredients I used were probably a of higher quality than the ones used in the store bought mixes.  I will make my own hot chocolate mix from now on for sure!!  It's quick, easy, and yummy!  :0)  

We're Turning Into Popcicles!

We had a nasty ice storm blow in Monday, and have literally been freezing our heinies off all week.  Our daily highs have been in the teens with wind chills around zero...sometimes below zero!  Yikes!!  It hasn't been this cold here in like 15 years!  And as for as I'm concerned, I can go another 50 without ever having it be this cold again...


Ha ha Yesterday Jay took about two steps out the backdoor before deciding it was way too cold, and coming back in.  Today he lasted about 10 minutes.  We're just not built for this kind of cold!  But we have been holed up in our house drinking hot cocoa and playing all sorts of games.  :0)   


Now the state has implemented "rolling blackouts" where different areas around the state lose power for "15" minutes (really more like several hours) so that they can try to keep the power on the rest of the time.  I'm telling you, we just don't know what to do with this kind of cold!!


Here are a few pictures of the snow:

The Hubbs took Miss Fancy Bunny out to see the snow, and surprisingly, she loved it! She didn't want to come back inside!

Jay loved throwing Dutchess' soccer ball and watching her run through the snow to get it:

 

This is ICE on our front door.  The storm door was actually frozen shut when I tried to go get the mail earlier today.  Yikes!

The front of our house after some of the ice melted:

Thankfully, in the midst of all this cold, our first tomato seedling popped through the soil (inside our house of course!)  Yay!!  It's one of the sweet 100 plants: 

 

If it ever warms up again, I have GOT to get going on my garden!  My garden area in out new house is the size of the entire back yard in our old house, so it should be quite an adventure!  :0)  But for now, I am going to sip my cocoa and turn on a good movie! 

   

Stock Show Time!

It's that time of year again here in North Texas...and no, I'm not talking about the Super Bowl. I'm talking about the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo. I think every kid in this area grows up going to it every year, and Jay is certainly no exception. This year the weather was perfect on the weekend we went! It was sunny and warn, perfect for walking through all the barns and shows. 

Here Jay is very intently picking out which baby chicks we should get for your yard. Ha ha he was quite disappointed when he realized that these chicks were not for sale!

They always have multiple displays of all the latest and greatest tractors and big boy farm toys at the stock show, and Jay LOVED them! 

He climbed right up there and said "let's go!"

He loved petting all the animals too!  They had all sorts of beautiful palomino horses there this year:

Here is one of the chuck wagon teams getting ready to race.  We didn't go to the rodeo this year, we didn't think Jay could sit still that long, but we plan to go next year.  Ha ha and with Jay's recent bull riding obsession, God help us, we probably should have taken him. 

(Just to give you an idea, he has decided that when the cowboy riding the bull busts his nose, the bull wins.  And even after seeing that...Jay still thinks it looks fun... So fun that he pretends his bouncy horse is a bull all the time.  I think we had better make it a point to always have really good health insurance!!) 

And of course, the stock show wouldn't be the same without all the fun food!  The Hubbs and Jay practically ate their way through the stock show this year.  Every time I turned around, The Hubbs was coming back with a cinnamon roll or some dippin dots ice cream.  It worked out for me, because I get to try bites of all the yummy food they ate!  :0)  Here is Jay with his Dippin Dots:

We had so much fun!!  If you have never been to the stock show here, it is definitely something worth checking out!  You get to see people at their best.  For a lot of area kids it is the culmination of a years worth of hard work raising cows, chickens, pigs, sheep etc.  You can buy everything from tractors and barns to boots and jewelry.  I know that I'm kind of partial, but I sure love it!  :0) 
 

New Boots

Jay finally outgrew his first pair of boots back before Christmas...and it's probably a good thing he did because they were getting pretty ragged looking.  I never guessed a little boy could be so hard on his shoes!!

We always take Jay to the same store that The Hubbs and his brother got their boots from growing up.  It's a Justin boot store, of course!  We are kind of partial to Justin boots because they are made in Justin, Texas, just a few blocks from the little country church The Hubbs and I were married in.  :0)  Anywho, we took a trip over to the boot store this weekend so that Jay could pick out a new pair of boots.  They had tons of them to choose from:

Aren't they cute!?  I would have had to try on about 20 pairs of them before settling on a pair had they been for me!  But Jay looked through a few pairs and picked the ones he wanted right off the bat.  They were the only ones he even tried on!

He wears a toddler size 10, crazy huh!?  What ever happened to his tiny baby feet??

 

Ha ha and he really loves them!!  He wouldn't even take them off so we could pay for them...so The Hubbs had to lift him up onto the counter so we could show the cashier the tag.  Needless to say, Jay wore them out of the store.  Here he is clomping back and forth so we could make sure they were a good fit:

Here are Jay's new boots in all their glory:

 

He is already working hard to scuff them up and break them in...

I think they are pretty cute!  :0)  Is it just a Texan thing, or do your boys LOVE their boots as much as mine does!?

Journal Jar Tuesday #5

Hello, and welcome to the fifth Journal Jar Tuesday!  If you have missed what this is all about, or would like to read more journal jar entries, you can find them under the Journal Jar Tuesdays tab at the top of my blog.    Today's question is:

What are the things you admire most about your mother and father?

I am very blessed to have pretty fantastic parents!!  My childhood was wonderful!  I grew up in a home filled with love, encouragement, and support.  If my parents couldn't help me do something, they found someone that could.  I am an only child, but they made sure that I spent lots of time with my cousins so that I could learn how to be part of a larger family.  Because of this, I am closer to my cousins that most people will ever be, and I am truly grateful!  My parents worked hard to keep me safe while still allowing me to be myself and to make my own decisions...even when they knew that I was making a wrong one.  And when I did make a wrong choice, they were there to help me learn from it, pick up the pieces, and to move on.  My parents also made sure that we spent time together as a family.  My childhood was full of traditions like game night, family vacations, movie nights.  We turned everything off and actually sat at the dinner table every night to eat dinner.  Our meals were full of laughter and good conversation.  We talked about our days, current events, and even politics.  I am so thankful for that time, and for the bond that we all share because of it!  

My mom, is an incredibly talented woman!  My mom is an excellent cook, and I was the lucky kid that came home from school to freshly baked cookies or home made bread.  She always worked to make things special.  Our house was decorated for every holiday, and I'm not talking about a few decorations here and there, I'm talking decorations in every room so that the whole house felt festive!  From the decorations to the music, and even scented candles, she had it covered.  Even the smallest holiday was a true celebration with her around!  As a child, my mom always looked for the bright side or the silver lining in every situation.  I know that my family went through some hard times, but as a child I usually was blissfully unaware of them.  When I was aware of them, my mom worked very hard to help me find the silver lining, and to help me muddle my way through them.  My mom is also wonderfully crafty!  She always had some sort of fun craft activity for us to try.  We sewed, we painted, we worked with clay, you name it, we have probably tried it, and even if we weren't very good at something, we always had fun trying it out!  My mom's favorite craft is cross stitching, and she is exceptionally talented at it!!  She makes everything from pictures to dish towels, and each piece is beautiful.  Ha ha I wish it was something I was better at!  She taught me how to cross stitch, and I can do it, but my mom is truly great at it!  My mom is also a very strong woman.  The way she responds to her own health problems and to any crisis is admirable!  She stands firm in any situation and works to get through it the best way possible.  I have watched her handle countless situations with a grace and strength that are beyond description.  My mom is a blessing in my life, but most importantly, she is a wonderful friend!  

My Daddy is also an incredible man!  (And even when I am 100 years old, I will still call him my Daddy.)  He is one of the most intelligent people I know.  I still call him whenever I need help with something, which is frequently.  He generally knows what to do, and when he doesn't it sure doesn't take him long to find out.  I love to talk to him about anything and everything, because he is not just smart, he is an excellent story teller!  When I was little, I loved to listen to him read me stories.  When I got sick, he would sit in my room and read for hours, and I loved it!  He makes history more interesting that any teacher I have ever had!  And he has this uncanny ability to truly see both sides of the picture.  He comes by it honestly, because my Grandma was the same way, and it is such an admirable quality!  My daddy is a very strong man, but he still has a softer more sentimental side.  He never forgets a birthday or anniversary, and works hard to find my my mom and I thoughtful gifts.  He's the kind of Daddy that digs through the attic to find a Wuzzle tent from my childhood and then sneaks over to our house on Christmas eve to put it up for me.  As a little girl, when I got sick, he was the one that got up with me and made sure I was OK.  I know that good or bad, no matter what I have done, my Daddy will always be there for me.  When I'm sad he gives me a hug and offers me ice cream.  When I have morning sickness and can't stand the taste of mint toothpaste, he manages to find some orange flavored toothpaste I can use.  My Daddy is wonderful and amazing, and I am so thankful to have him! 

My parents are both pretty darn amazing, and despite their quirks, I wouldn't change a single thing about them!  I am so thankful for them, for the childhood they gave me, and for the friendship and support they continue to give me!!           

Fun Alphabet Songs

I stumbled on this series of alphabet songs on YouTube, and Jay seriously LOVES them!  So I made a playlist from them just for him.  :0)  Check them out! 

And, if you have time, you should absolutely check out their website, Have Fun Teaching!  It is full of all sorts worksheets, tools, and some awesomely fun songs.