All Aboard the Polar Express

The preschooler and Wild Thing put on their pajamas and boarded the Polar Express with snow flakes falling lightly around it.
The train was filled with other children, all in their pajamas and nightgowns. We sang Christmas carols and ate cookies with hot chocolate as we listened to the story.



We saw elves dancing and moving all around the North Pole. When the Polar Express could go no farther, we stopped and Santa came on board to give all the children the first gift of Christmas.

The conductor came though the cabin to punch the initials of each child in his/her ticket.

Soon we were on our way home and the preschooler almost lost his silver bell while visiting Solar and TW. It broke the preschoolers heart to think he had lost his bell, but TW delivered the bell and he has been shaking it ever since. Thank you TW!
Merry Christmas!

Black Friday Mania

Last year I awoke at 4:00am and ventured out to experience the hype first hand. It was my first time to shop the day after Thanksgiving. Normally, that is the one day to avoid stores for me, but last year I suffered from pregnancy induced insomnia so at 38 weeks I headed straight to Lowe's of all places. HA! They had buy one get one free storage totes and I wanted lots of them. It was controlled chaos and the lines were acceptable so I decided to venture over to the Wal Mart next door. It was about 5:45 right as they were uncovering the secret pallets. The crowd wasn't that bad so I was in and out within 45 minutes. The parking lot was full as I was leaving which should have been a sign to go home, but the blood flow was not circulating to my brain. I headed straight for Target. I don't do large crowds or long lines so this is where the entertainment went south.

It. was. Black Friday. I was home for the day around 9:00am and the family put up Christmas decorations. That's my idea of a successful black Friday. :)

This year I noticed the black Friday ads were not in Sunday's paper. Hmm. Maybe the stores are trying to control the madness this year??? Who else shops on this day? If I wake up then I might go to a few stores, but it won't be an all day shopping extravaganza by any means. We are having Thanksgiving with my family on Friday. I love, love, love Turkey, dressing, and everything else that goes with it. It's my favorite meal of the year. The preschooler says he wants pumpkin pie, but I don't think he will eat a bite. We shall see.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone. We are heading to the North Pole this weekend. I'll tell you all about it when we get back.

Merry Thanksgiving, Happy Christmas.

Halloween. Thanksgiving. Christmas.
That is the order of the holidays as I grew up knowing them. The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas seemed like an eternity. The Christmas parade was in December. We took bags that went home full of candy thrown to the crowds from fancy, decorated CHRISTMAS floats. At the end of the parade, there was a contest for the top three floats. That town still knows how to put on a parade and I need to get my kids down there so they can experience it.
The title of tonight's parade should be called "The Worst Christmas Parade Ever". It is held in November prior to Thanksgiving. The only thing Christmas about this parade is Santa at the end. It's downright freaky, really.
The Wild Thing shook his head NO and the preschooler grabbed my coat when these puppets strolled by.

Next came Ronald McDonald and his pals. Is it just me or is he a little creepy?

The parade ends at the square where the lights are turned on for the season. This year the lights are LED to promote going green and sustainability. If I were mayor we would save money by turning them on in December after everyone has celebrated a proper Thanksgiving. If it's all about saving money then why not wait until the Christmas season to debut the Christmas lights? I would also increase the candy:kid ratio. Right now it appears that 1 in every 12 kids gets a broken candy cane or tootsie roll handed to them. There is no throwing of candy allowed.
Again, if I would mayor then I would say don't come to the parade if you are afraid of flying candy and the excitement level would be much greater.
Kids wouldn't have to cover their ears because of revving Toyota engines. The said engines were not decorated and did not disperse candy to the spectators. They were just loud in general.

I'll leave you with one of the many interesting "floats".

Merry Christmas from the closed furniture store.

Thankful for

Dear Cookies,

It's nice to finally meet. I like you. What do you say we act real nice to each other? You stay off my hips and I promise to use real, unsalted butter instead of margarine. Please come back.
I'm off to grab a glass of milk.
Toolwoman

Protect your cell phone number.

Cell phone numbers will go public this month - All cell phone numbers are being released to telemarketing companies and you will start to receive sales calls. You will be charged for these calls. To prevent this, call the following number from your cell phone (you must call from the number you want blocked): 888-382-1222 or you can register your number online at www.donotcall.gov To complete the online process you will receive an email confirming the registration and will be required to click a link. This is a national DO NOT CALL list, and your number will be blocked for 5 years.

Shopping local.

The boutique show was so fun Saturday. I really enjoyed meeting new people and seeing some old friends. My booth was at the front entrance so people were able to check out the Patty-Cakes display as they signed in.
All the booths were great. It wasn't your grandmother's craft show by any means.
I had two favorites. Meagan is very good with embroidery and appliques. She used one of Riley's shirts in her booth so of course I'm partial to her. :) If you have little girls then check out her bows and dresses. ADORABLE!
I met Marcy at the show. She had an adorable booth set up with stamps, Christmas cards, and holiday signs.
You can look at some of her items here. I want to order some extra Christmas cards from her, but can't decide which design to go with. They are all really creative.
I also got some cute Christmas decorations and gifts over the weekend so I'm ready for the season. How about you?
This afternoon I cut the coupons out of the paper (a Sunday ritual) and noticed that Walgreens has Club crackers, Cheez-Its, and Pecan Sandies for $0.50! I'll be stocking up on my limit of four. We love all the above! Now I just have to get the meals planned for the week. Cooking has been limited around here, but we are getting back on track tomorrow. My latest hobby has been looking through old and new cook books at night so I have found some really great sounding recipes. Sometimes I wish someone was here to fix them for me. HA! The commander likes to grill, but he's not big on cooking. Although, he will fix these dinners from Macaroni Grill. They are quick, easy, and I think we have one in the pantry so that takes care of tomorrow night.

Now I can put off the grocery store one more day, stay around the house, and be all things lazy. Not bad for a Monday. :)

Chillin'

Tomorrow is the NWA Boutique show and I'm looking forward to setting up my Patty Cakes booth, shopping the local talent, and meeting new people. A whole day dedicated to doing something I enjoy followed by the final home game for the Razorbacks. It's going to be a great day.
I did a little Christmas shopping today. I'm ready to set up the tree and decorations, but first we have a birthday party to throw so I'll be spending the next few weeks getting ready for this milestone celebration. Where did the last year go and how did the months pass like minutes?
Tonight, I'm enjoying a quiet evening of me time and it. is. great.I've already soaked in the hot tub, painted nails, and in my pj's. I'm all set to watch the Tivo and eat a bowl of cereal for supper. Have you checked out Kelly's blog? Her experiences in El Salvador have definately been an eye opener for me. Be sure to stop by if you haven't yet. We are so fortunate.
Have a great, relaxing weekend. I'm looking foward to reading all about yours on Sunday.

Cookies Part II

I am the Toolwoman. When I called my sister to ask if she needed anything from Lowe's yesterday she pretty much laughed at me. I like to fix things and do all things crafty. She can keep an annual plant alive for more than one year and her potato vines are so hearty that they completely cover their containers. She grows herbs and uses them in the kitchen. I kill mine and buy them from the grocery store.
She is Martha. I am not.
After my last post, I'm pretty sure she might be showing off just a little with these pictures that appeared in my inbox. Go ahead and give them a try. I'll post the recipe. It looks simple enough, but it's not. She adds a cup of magic to these cookies to make them turn out so great. I've been battling this recipe for a while and the running score thus far-- cookies: 4 me: 0
Mom must have felt sorry for me this weekend because she let me in on a secret. UNSALTED BUTTER.
I'm trying them tomorrow. WE.SHALL.SEE!


The sister's sugar cookies:
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 stick butter
1/2 cup shortening
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups "packed" flour
1/2 tsp cream of tarter
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp soda

Mix packed flour, tarter, salt, and soda in a bowl. Cream butter and shortening together until light and fluffy. Add egg and sugar and mix well.
Add vanilla and dry ingredients then stir until lightly blended.
Roll our dough on a lightly floured board to 1/8 in thickness. Cut out and transfer to cookie sheet. Bake at 325 for approx 10 min.
Cool on cake rack.

Royal icing
2 egg whites
1/2 tsp lemon juice
3 c. sifted confect. sugar
food coloring

combine egg whites and lemon juice
gradually add sugar and stir until thick
(a knife drawn through the middle will leave a path)
Allow to firm, then put in airtight container.

Monday...

We are getting better around here. The preschooler got Tamiflu'd and the Wild Thing Amoxil'd. Speaking of the Wild Thing, he got a little handsy in a store today. I was looking at books when I overheard a lady say "what was that?" Then she looked over and started laughing. Apparently, his little frog hands found her bottom!!! He's into everything and grabs anything he can reach.

When he throws those arms in the air, someone is about to get tackled and it's usually the preschooler. Check out the digits on his left hand. He's wild, this kid!
I've been spending a lot of time on the Wilton website and even lurking on the baking aisle of Hobby Lobby trying to learn how to decorate cookies. I've never decorated cookies with icing so I wanted to give it a try. Let's just say I'm completely intimidated by the whole process now. Who knew there were so many things one needed to know about icing just to get pretty fall cookies. Am I making this harder than it really is? There's Buttercream vs. royal then getting the correct texture. At this rate, the only place I'll be getting these is from a bakery...

Apple Dumplins

My mom made these for our house full of sicklies.
I've been looking forward to them all day. YUM...



2 Granny Smith Apples or other tart apples of choice
1 cans refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
1 stick butter
3/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 oz mountain dew or sprite

Coat a 9x13 inch pan with nonstick cooking spray
Peel and core apples and cut into a total of 16 sections
In a medium saucepan,heat butter,sugar and cinnamon until sugar dissolves.
Separate dinner rolls into 16 slices. Roll up 1 apple slice in each roll. Place rolls in prepared pan and pour butter and sugar mixture over top. Pour Mountain Dew or Sprite over all.
Bake in a 350 degree oven until brown and syrup is cooked. About 40 minutes.

Steals and Deals

There are some great shopping deals this weekend to kick off the holiday season.
Print this Gap coupon to get 25% of your order including sale items. The offer is good for this weekend only.

Old Navy is offering $1 scarves in stores tomorrow.

JCrew-extra 20% off fall sale items.

Our weekend had lots of fun activities planned, but both kids are sick so we are home bound.

H is for Horse

I'm keeping these alphabet papers to make a book at the end of the preschool year. So far, none have come home quite this entertaining.
Who knows where the outspoken preschooler comes up with half of the things that come from his mouth. His teacher is probably a wealth of information. ha!

Every day should be like today.

Today was a beautiful day. The temperature was in the lower 70s, not a cloud in the sky, and the leaves are full of fall colors. I started off the day by dropping the preschooler off and witnessing the fun activities of the tumble bus first hand. Then C and I met the Commander for lunch. My plans were to go to Sams, pick up the preschooler early and head home for the day.
As I parked my car at Sams, I headed for the cart corral and snapped C with his car seat in the front. Then I felt a push from behind and knocked my knee on the cart. I looked back and realized I had just had a "run in" with the passenger side of a moving gold car. The driver did not stop so I watched it pull into a parking spot then turned around and headed for the store in shock. As I entered the store, my mind started going full speed so I decided to go back to get a license plate number or at least talk to the driver. What if the preschooler had been next to me or what if it happened two seconds before when I was holding the car seat? Of course, the car wasn't there so after a conversation with the managers they ultimately reviewed the tapes, but could not get a license plate or make/model of the car.
The truth of it is..I'm fine. The preschooler was not with me and I wasn't holding C. We're all safe, happy, healthy, and home. That's what matters so every day should be like today. (Well, except maybe the getting grazed by a car part..:) )

Halloween Aftermath.

Here I am admitting my faults. I pilfered through the Halloween candy and gave the non-toddler friendly candy to the older trick or treaters so now only the good stuff remains. It happens every year. We have a TON of trick or treaters and not enough candy to accommodate all of them so out go the jaw breakers and tootsie rolls (we had an abundance). Now we have a bowl of snickers, Hershey's, skittles, starburst, suckers, and milk duds. It's a candy lovers haven and the preschooler and I are a candy lovers! I'm going to have to get it out of sight because I have a candy problem..really.
The preschooler has done really well with his two piece limit. (yes, it's been two pieces here and two pieces there, but we will do better tomorrow). I promise. :)
C, on the other hand, could care less about all the Halloween hoopla. He slept through trick or treating and is content with a good sock or cloth.


I don't understand daylight savings time. Here we are on the brink of 2010 and we are still playing around with time. Can't we just pick a time and stick with it all year? I'm not one to switch all my clocks in a timely manner (pun intended). It's part rebellion and part enjoyment of realizing I really have another hour. I'm quirky like that. :)