Our Rising Rock Star!!!

Ben is our rising Rock Star!! He made up this song all by himself.

Lyrics:

I try to not be funny

But I've got a little bunny.

He has two big ears that hear really well.

He's never late for the morning bell.

And the Winner Is . . .

I know you've been waiting with baited breath. So, without further ado, the winner of the drawing part of the tRcg Recipe Contest is:

Tiffany of the Would-Be Writer's Guild . Wahoo!! Congratulations Tiffany!!

Incidentally, if you're sad about missing out on the $10 gift card to Target, Tiffany is holding an $11 cash give-away right now on her site.

Now, for those of you who are of a suspicious nature, I promise there was no nepotism involved. The drawing was completely fair and unbiased.

By the way, WOW!! What great recipes!! Thanks for all of you who entered! I've got a lot of cooking to do. We have tried two recipes so far, and they were both delicious! This is going to be a lot harder than I thought. James is really excited about all of this good food that is going to feed him, and Ben is taking his role as one of the judges quite seriously. (FYI, a little authority can be a dangerous thing for a six-year-old!) Brianna, well, if we could get her to sit still long enough to actually eat a complete meal, we would consider that a success!

Recipe Contest

I have been in a dinner idea slump of gargantuan proportions. Since about, oh, February. Yes, I know it's October. That's a l-o-n-g time for my poor family to suffer for my lack of dinner genius. Even the Food Network hasn't revived my creativity.

Out of love for my dear family, and because we are sick of repeatedly eating pancakes and/or oatmeal for every meal, I am pleased to announce the first tRcg Dinner Recipe Contest!!

Here are the rules:

1. Write your favorite quick go-to meal in the comments.

2. Somewhere included in the meal there must be a vegetable or salad.

3. Recipes which include the following ingredients will promptly be disqualified: liver, brussel sprouts, pig's feet, tongue, and anchovies.

4. It has to be a recipe that YOU actually like and make.

5. All entries must be submitted by Sunday, October 12, 11pm MST.


Winners will be chosen in the following two ways:

1. All contestants will have their names put into a hat, and one winner will be chosen at random. (I promise there will be no peeking.)

2. After my family has had a chance to try the recipes, my family will vote on its favorite recipe, and that contestant will also win a prize. (This phase of the contest will take a bit longer, of course. But I promise that there will be a second winner, and they WILL receive a prize.)

The winner chosen at random will receive a $10 gift card to Target!

The winner for the best recipe (as determined by the taste buds of my family) will receive a $25 gift card to Target!

Tips: I love quick, one-dish meals. (Your recipe doesn't HAVE to be a one-dish meal. I do make non-one-dish meals too!) James REALLY loves FLAVOR.

Life is Fun

The other night, when Ben was supposed to be in bed, he came down to get us, and said that we should go check out the bathroom. He had cleaned the bathroom, and had left a note. The note read:

IhoptatyouluvewutididtoothePlas.

Translation: I hope that you love what I did to the place.

What a great kid. I suppose if you want to not get in trouble for being out of bed, this is a good approach!

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Why would anyone make these gross plastic cockroaches?? . . . I guess because there are little boys in the world (some of them disguised in adult bodies!)

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Brianna is certainly the life of the party. Whenever we are going to any kind of get together, I tell her we are going to a party. She gets so excited and says over and over, "Party time! Party time! Party time!"

When my mom and neices were coming, I tried to explain to Brianna that we would have a party when she woke up, because they would arrive after she was in bed. She kept asking, "Party comin'? Party comin'?"

Even though she's only two, she has a great sense of humor, and what makes it even funnier to me, is that she knows she's being funny.

A Very Fun Girly Weekend!

Well, I'm sure you knew that it wasn't fair to make a new blanket for Ben, and not make one for Brianna as well. So, here's her blanket:

Of course, I had help with hers. Last weekend I had the privilege of hosting the annual Granddaughter's Sleep-Over that my mom does each year with her, well, Granddaughters. What a cool Grandma, huh? As part of the sleep-over, they were so kind as to tie the quilt for Brianna. Aren't they cute?? We went for a scenic drive in our jammies, first thing in the morning!

Then we went to three different garage sales, IN OUR JAMMIES, with bed-head and all. Garage saleing in jammies was a high-light for the girls. (And, thankfully, I didn't run into anyone I knew!) As I passed one family at one of the garage sales I said, "If you think we look bad now, you should have seen us before we got ready for the day!"

We also did hair, and nails, and watched several movies, and visited, and ate yummy food! It was a blast! And after having been away for nine years, it was really fun to have this time to reconnect with them.

Random

**My head hurts.

**Ironically enough, I had actually ordered a parenting book for myself previous to my venting post. It came today. It is called Raising Your Spirited Child: A Guide for Parents Whose Child Is More Intense, Sensitive, Perceptive, Persistent, Energetic. Even with a migraine, I've read the first five chapters. It seems to hit the nail on the head with my two spirited children. I really like it's positive approach so far. (Thanks for posting about it J.L.)

**I really love my family. I have the best hubby and most wonderful children in the world!

**The last few days, Brianna has been noticing the sounds our refrigerator makes when the ice maker drops the ice; and then again when the ice maker refills with water. She always asks, "What's that??" with a very cute inquisitive look on her face. I keep telling her, "Oh, that just's the fridge making noise." Today, soon after we repeated this scenario, Brianna passed some serious gas. With a surprised look on my face, I asked "What's that?" Without missing a beat, she replied, "It's the fridge."

**My fridge is disappointingly small.

**ATT may have more bars in more places, but not around here. We have terrible reception and dropped calls all the time.

**Watching my kids do gymnastics is so fun and rewarding. They are both really good for their ages and exposure.

**I hate ironing clothes.

**Ben keeps writing nice notes to James and I and leaving them around the house for us to find. I love it. It's so unexpected and sweet, it really lifts my spirits. I need to follow his example.

**When I think of how hard James works, and what his work actually entails, I am amazed at his dedication and positive attitude. He's a pretty amazing man!

**I fixed our garbage disposal this week.

**Our sink in our guest bathroom broke. It's a fancy looking one, on a pedestal, and the top decided to separate from the pedestal and to let the water run out through that seam. Hmmm, anyone know a good plumber here?

**My migraines have become almost extinct since I purchased some orthotic inserts. Too bad nobody told my head that I was done with migraines today . . . or last weekend. Hmmm, . . . I wonder why they're back??

**What random thoughts are rolling around your head??

Interview with Brianna

I wanted to interview Brianna as well, but thought it would be more enjoyable if you could hear her responses from her own mouth.

Unfortunately, she is just a wee bit obsessed with seeing herself in the camera.

Still cute, but I guess we'll never know what her solution for the current financial crisis would have been.

An Interview with Ben

(Stolen idea from my sis.)

What was your favorite part of your trip with Dad this weekend?
Um, probably, going to Seth and Jezze's house. We played a lot. And I got to see baby Zach.

What do you want to be or do when you grow up?
I want to make a store of my own. just like i always wanted to do. And I'm going to make all of the stuff so that I won't have to pay for it. And besides, I do make stuff. And it will be called Ben's Inventions.

What are some of the things you are best at?
Making stuff. Like books and movies and toys, and well, making Christmas tree ornaments.

What do you like best about gymnastics?
Jumping in the pit and doing the bars.

Do you like school this year?
Not the mean kid named J......

What is your favorite thing to do at school?
Eat lunch and snack.

What is your favorite thing to do at recess?
I like to play on the playground with Z.... before school. We run away from Z...'s little brother.

Are you sad that you missed your Primary program this weekend?
I have no idea.

What do you miss most about our old town?
My friend C....

Would you rather marry gymnastics or a girl?
Myself.

Women Are Warriors of the Heart

When someone we love is threatened or injured -- physically or emotionally -- we as women are a force to be reckoned with.

Recently, my family and I ate dinner at a local fast food joint. Afterward, the kids played in the play area, and James and I got caught up in a conversation with another parent who was sitting there.

After a while, Ben came and sat on my lap and was visibly upset. He wouldn't tell me what was wrong, but wanted to leave. So, we got Brianna and our things and headed to the car.

In the car, he broke down. He said there was a kid in the play area who hated him. He said that he said mean things to him, and kept grabbing his foot each time he tried to climb anywhere. He also said the kid hit him.

Oh, was I mad. Ben wanted me to go back in and talk to the kid. I wanted Ben to know that I would fight for him, so he and I went back in. We couldn't find the kid in the play area, but then we spotted him. by himself. getting a napkin. I made my move. "Excuse me, were you mean to my boy in the play area?"

He stammered, and claimed that Ben had done all of those things to him. Being a realist, I decided that it was possible that the truth lay somewhere in the middle. So, I made them both apologize to each other.

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I want to thank each of you for wanting to protect me and fight for me. Thank you for being willing to go into the Nursery and talk to the leader.

I try to not write things when I'm upset like my last post, because the written word is a powerful thing. I want you to know that I'm o.k. now. I really, sincerely believe that she had no intention of hurting my feelings, and that she sincerely believed that she was helping. I'm not quite ready to be her best friend, and, to be honest, I may avoid her for a while, but I am really o.k. now. Thanks, in large part, to your encouraging words.

When I actually get to know her, I'll have to post an update so that we can all see the good in her.

The Toad Pictures

I found them!!

I told ya he was BIG!