tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-42034427984592079002024-03-12T19:21:31.269-07:00The Glass of Fashion......Amy's reflections of life, liberty, and the pursuit of things trivial.Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-79348535327639386962013-02-14T16:20:00.000-08:002013-03-20T16:28:06.257-07:00Kneaders Sugar Cookie Love<div style="text-align: left;">
So, been some time since I last posted. Thought I'd share one of the sugar cookie recipes that I have on hand.</div>
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If
you have ever been to Kneaders Bakery you will probably have had one of
these sugar cookies. If you've only had their healthier fare, then
it's totally your loss. YUM!</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FYg0_CmddSk/UUo7x0zrqyI/AAAAAAAAAcQ/YvEM2OkuA2I/s1600/cimg3960.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FYg0_CmddSk/UUo7x0zrqyI/AAAAAAAAAcQ/YvEM2OkuA2I/s320/cimg3960.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
I will freely admit that mine don't look as pretty as theirs do, but they are still dee-lish!<br />
So here is the recipe:<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Kneaders Sugar Cookies</span></b></u></span><br />
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2 cups butter<br />
2 1/4 cups sugar<br />
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4 large eggs<br />
1 cup milk<br />
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7 3/4 cups flour<br />
1 tsp baking soda<br />
1 tsp baking powder<br />
1/2 tsp lemon flavor<br />
1/2 tsp salt<br />
1/4 tsp nutmeg<br />
1 Tbsp honey<br />
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1. Cream together butter and sugar until fluffy.<br />
2. Add eggs, then milk. Scrape the side of the bowl often.<br />
3. Stir in remaining ingredients. Dough will be soft and sticky.<br />
4. Place dough on well floured pastry cloth or workspace.<br />
5.
Knead in just enough flour to make the dough workable. Dough will be
very soft. It is best to knead with a rolling motion so you have a
smooth surface and you will not get cracks on the tops of your cookies.<br />
6. Gently roll out to 3/8 inch thick.<br />
7. Cut into desired shapes and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.<br />
8.
Bake at 325 degrees for 10-12 minutes or just until the edges barely
start to change colors. (You can bake at 375 degrees for 7
minutes....see what works best for you. I do the lower temp).<br />
Makes approximately 4 dozen cookies.<br />
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Then....the best part.....ICING<br />
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4 1/2 cups powdered sugar<br />
4 Tbsp corn syrup<br />
3 Tbsp milk<br />
1/4 tsp lemon flavor<br />
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1. Mix together all ingredients until smooth.<br />
2. Dip the surface of the cookie in icing, lift out and smooth with side of palm of hand.<br />
3. Let set.<br />
4. Decorate with additional frosting, candy, sprinkles etc.<br />
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Notes:
If you don't like lemon, feel free to leave out the lemon from the
icing. I sometimes do. Also, if you want candies to stick well, don't
let it set too much....they won't stick.<br />
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These are great for parties because they stack well in containers.<br />
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And since this recipe makes about 4 dozen, you might just want to use containers to give them away. Enjoy!<br />
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Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-84166580348553680592012-10-31T23:30:00.000-07:002012-12-06T11:02:22.858-08:00HalloweenSo here is our Halloween...<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kS42yCR_dr8/UMDhkVysDgI/AAAAAAAAAaU/61xaAPjM3lE/s1600/CIMG6790.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kS42yCR_dr8/UMDhkVysDgI/AAAAAAAAAaU/61xaAPjM3lE/s320/CIMG6790.JPG" width="240" /></a>It started with me sending a surprise Halloween lunch with my son.<br />
(Thank goodness school was serving something he hated).<br />
We had a ghost PB sandwich, a mummy juice box (made with white electrical tape and googly eyes....(Make sure remove the straw and punch a hole through the tape or they won't be drinking your awesome creation!)<br />
carrots, little pumpkin orange, and "pumpkin poop" (aka cheese balls) and peeps for dessert.<br />
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While my son was at school, I got to work on the house.<br />
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"X" marks the spot to the Halloween booty!</div>
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Here's what it looked like at night...<br />
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The windows were filled with orange flickering LED candles and the front window was filled with a scene of a treasure chest, gold coins and jewels, candles, books, and other pirate things. We also borrowed some torches which we stuck in our yard and I made glass jar lanterns that we hung along the path.<br />
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And yes, we don't give out candy. Having a sign out front really seemed to keep teenagers away this year.</div>
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But here are our final pumpkins....</div>
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Above is my son's rendition of a cannon ball splintering wood. Pretty good considering he carved it all by himself.....with the need of a band-aid only once.</div>
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I had to re-carve my pirate ship...the other one didn't survive longer than a week...unlike the pirate skull one seen above. (Almost 2 weeks alive, baby!)</div>
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We put a color changing light in the pirate ship pumpkin. It would go dark and flash a different color each time (red, blue, green, etc). Made it look like the ship was appearing out of nowhere or that cannon fire was lighting it up. Got lots of compliments on it.<br />
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And here is the Jack Sparrow pumpkin. He turned out pretty well also and people thought a machine had made it. Nope! My blistered fingers did! At least I'm done for another year!</div>
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Hope your Halloween was fun, too! </div>
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Excuse me now while I go and pillage a Snickers from my kid's treat sack. Arrrgh!</div>
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<br />Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-957416719034093832012-10-29T09:07:00.002-07:002012-10-29T09:08:21.059-07:00Arrrgh! There do be Halloween Pirates in this Post!"This is Halloween....This is Halloween!" My daughter can't stop singing those words. Cute, but also hoping she stops after Halloween.<br />
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And this year for Halloween we are going <span style="font-size: large;">...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">PIRATE!</span></span></div>
(I know, we missed the bandwagon on the cool factor (though I did it when the eye-patch was <span style="font-size: small;">in, also</span>. But pirates are new for the kids).<br />
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I'll have to post pictures of our trick-or-treat house when I figure out what I'm doing...and if it turns out, of course. But since I had to carve pumpkins early for a pumpkin carving demonstration, I think I'll just share some Halloween fun early. These are the first two pumpkins. (I'm still deciding on what to do for the others).<br />
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(The flames looks a little funky, but it's because it's on a round surface). </div>
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And below....some cute pirate children. (Don't let their looks fool you....they <i>will</i> pilfer all your candy).</div>
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<br />Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-65768841421893181882012-10-15T17:37:00.000-07:002012-10-29T08:27:46.474-07:00Part Deux - Angry "Bird"day PartySo this year, it wasn't hard to come up with a theme.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Angry Birds.</span><br />
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They play it, they buy them in all forms. In fact, <strike>sometimes I think</strike> I know my children are part Angry Bird. Once, when throwing their stuffed birds around the bedroom, there was a pig casualty...a glass-pig-full-of-money casualty.<br />
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So an Angry "Bird"day party in their honor wasn't too hard to settle on.<br />
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Here are the pictures!<br />
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We did the table in bright colors. I had planned many more elaborate things, but I had been sick the week before (Boo!). One thing I had wanted to do was a really cool sling shot My son (without me knowing) put the sling shot from his Angry Bird game on the table.<br />
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This year I did make some short cuts in buying things, but for the
most part I made everything. We made cupcakes (with sprinkles in the
batter so you have smatterings of color inside) topped with rich butter
cream frosting and colored sugar.<br />
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The nests are Peanut Butter Special K treats made using the cupcake pan to shape them. I didn't use the chocolate topping and instead placed "golden eggs" inside (aka peanut m&m's).<br />
Here is the link for the recipe.<br />
<a href="http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=54378" target="_blank"> http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=5437</a><br />
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The cupcakes are homemade (with sprinkles in the batter to make colorful smatterings within) and topped with a rich butter cream frosting and colored sugar.<br />
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I made the pig structure out of boxes (Capri Sun ones are a good size) wrapped in paper grocery sacks or brown craft paper. I made it look like wood by taking a marker to it. Super easy.<br />
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Angry Bird fruit snacks were actually a hit with all the kids.</div>
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The TNT box is a clear square container made to look crate-like using coconut wafer cookies. </div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CQkx_2dEau8/UHyZ6VHtwcI/AAAAAAAAAXo/J0TbA82eJ7k/s1600/CIMG6571.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CQkx_2dEau8/UHyZ6VHtwcI/AAAAAAAAAXo/J0TbA82eJ7k/s320/CIMG6571.JPG" width="240" /></a> The pigs I made (above) are lime jello popcorn balls. I did add a little neon green food coloring to the sugar mix when I made it to punch up the color. These are also super easy. Here is a link to my favorite popcorn ball recipe: <a href="http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1813,159172-228203,00.html" target="_blank">http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1813,159172-228203,00.html</a><br />
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We also did candy bags full of more sugary yumminess. (My relatives probably hate me for giving so much sugar to their kids right before the long drive home from our house).<br />
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For the food portion of the party we made Angry Bird pizza. You can make it homemade and put little feathers on top and all that, but it was easiest to buy a take-and-bake pizza. I just ordered pepperoni ones and then moved the pepperoni from the tummy area and up onto the body. The I cut rounds of mozzarella cheese for the eyes (hint: fresh kind is already round in shape), and a square of cheddar cheese (cut in half) for the beak. Add some sliced olive pupils and eyebrows. Voila!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-C4fxwyFkSbI/UHyZejEd_cI/AAAAAAAAAXA/VGRFPsJyQno/s1600/CIMG6513.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-C4fxwyFkSbI/UHyZejEd_cI/AAAAAAAAAXA/VGRFPsJyQno/s200/CIMG6513.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">before baking </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TTHnuStBV4o/UHyZlVSIkII/AAAAAAAAAXM/zF2_PIhVNys/s1600/CIMG6515.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TTHnuStBV4o/UHyZlVSIkII/AAAAAAAAAXM/zF2_PIhVNys/s320/CIMG6515.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">after baking (still looks good and everyone loved it)</td></tr>
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This is a terrible picture, but we also decorated around the house with Angry Birds.<br />
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(Does it make the guests sitting in the chairs below targets?)Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-34090215000988057402012-10-11T15:49:00.000-07:002012-10-29T08:27:33.373-07:00"B" is for Birthday Parties (part 1)So, I said I would post pictures of the un-birthday parties I have done for Ev and Princess Squiggles. Because Squiggles is young, I figured we could get away with joint birthday parties for now. (I don't know how it will be possible when she's older. Unless my son agrees to Lego men wearing princess tiaras...)<br />
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Anyway. Last year we did the "Very Merry Un-Birthday" theme.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mCI-IwieIqc/UHdVGt8xzZI/AAAAAAAAAVA/eNrZfg8eQCM/s1600/CIMG5346a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mCI-IwieIqc/UHdVGt8xzZI/AAAAAAAAAVA/eNrZfg8eQCM/s320/CIMG5346a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Mad Hatter's hat with the date of the party</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Iz7FdwRh8oA/UHdVPYz1j5I/AAAAAAAAAVI/fp4p7cLS8fE/s1600/CIMG5347a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Iz7FdwRh8oA/UHdVPYz1j5I/AAAAAAAAAVI/fp4p7cLS8fE/s400/CIMG5347a.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The opposite side had the party details.</td></tr>
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The great thing about this party is that my son went along with the idea. He thought it was cool that we were doing an un-birthday, and after showing him Disney's "Alice in Wonderland" movie, he was on board. We went with a green (for him) and pink (for her) color palette.<br />
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We also did away with the traditional birthday cake.<br />
(Do you find it disgusting that we have people blow at flaming cakes? Or is that just me?)<br />
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Anyway, here are some pictures of the dessert table we did instead.<br />
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It was a first attempt at an Amy Atlas-inspired table spread in the pinks and greens we chose to go with.<br />
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I really considered making an Alice in Wonderland inspired cake with multiple tiers. You know, the bright and colorful ones where it looks like the tiers are tipping.? Very whimsical. However, I didn't feel really up to the challenge.<br />
Instead.....<br />
<br />
......yup, Hostess cupcakes. They did fit the bill though. They looked like the ones I remember seeing in one of the many Alice movies. Plus, being cheap and easy? Totally.<br />
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For the rest of the dessert table, we did other little baked confections that one might see at a tea party. We had various cookies, donuts, and candy.<br />
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(We also had sandwiches, but you won't see them here on the dessert table).<br />
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For drinks, I had found little glass teacups at the D.I. (aka goodwill). I bought twelve of them, no two being the same in design. I plan on re-using them for other parties and bought little tasting spoons so I can put puddings or other small tasting items in them. (At least, that's what I told my husband (and myself)).<br />
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<br />Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-44852213291693978312012-10-05T15:50:00.000-07:002012-10-08T18:02:22.446-07:00"A" is for Apples...The letter "A" comes first, so I thought it might make a good title for this entry. An entry that begins (for all intents and purposes), a new blog. (It has, after all, been 3 years?)<br />
<br />
I had originally thought about doing ""A" is for Angry Birds" and would have posted pictures of the most recent un-birthday party I did for my two kids, but apples are what I'm currently contending with. <br />
(No fear. I'll share the Angry Bird party love in another post). <br />
<br />
But as I said, APPLES. Our tree was supposed to take a break this year, but apparently some industrious bees helped pollinate it. And thank goodness! <br />
This year's crop turned out wonderful and we didn't lose as many this year. (We do the organic apple thing). <br />
<br />
So, when our tree produces, we eat apples till we don't want to look at another one, and then dry the rest. So I thought I'd share my favorite drying tips.<br />
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Here's what you'll need:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Dehydrator (however many trays you want. I only have 4).</li>
<li>Apple peeler (I know there are fancy-shmancy ones....I just use a veggie peeler).</li>
<li>Apple slicer (or knife, or food processor)</li>
<li>Corer</li>
<li>Pineapple juice</li>
<li>Cinnamon-sugar</li>
<li>Wax Paper</li>
<li>Plastic bags</li>
</ul>
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First, wash your apples in soapy water. <br />
Dry.<br />
Peel your apples and core them. (Apple core....Baltimore...who's your friend...)<br />
Cut one side of the circle of the apples (so they look like apple donuts).<br />
I do my apples 1/4" to 1/2" thick depending on how long I have to let them dry. I am NOT getting up at 3am to check apples.<br />
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Dip apple slices into a bowl of pineapple juice. (You can use lemon juice, but pineapple is yummy). Have another bowl with a colander in it to let the apples drain off the juice. (You can use the drained juice for more apples).<br />
Lay your apples on your dehydrator tray, making sure they don't overlap.<br />
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Sprinkle one side of the apple with cinnamon and sugar.<br />
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Dry for 3-4 hours. (My dehydrator recommends 135 degrees).<br />
Turn the apples over and dry another 3-4 hours. (Really, it depends on how many trays you use. So check them. They will continue to dry more after you are done. You just don't want them to be wet. You also don't want them to go too long. They have a tendency to stick to the tray if you do. You can continue drying them out on the wax paper).<br />
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When the apples are done, put them in plastic bags and hide them. (No, seriously...they are addicting).<br />
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They also make for good gifts.<br />
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As after-school snacks...<br />
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...or glasses, apparently.<br />
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Anyway, have fun!Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-15348377339325914012009-07-08T14:12:00.000-07:002009-07-08T16:32:06.799-07:00Summer Ketchup<span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;">Ev thought that when I said</span>, <span style="font-family:arial;">"Mommy's playing catch-up on her blog," that I said, "Mommy's playing ketchup on her blog</span></span><span style="font-family:courier new;">".<br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />Catchy title, I thought. Perhaps enough to get people to look at boring family photos. Plus, if I started with "summer: part 1" like everyone else, I may soon</span></span><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;"> find myself with "summer: part 263</span></span><span style="font-family:courier new;">"<br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />So here's a brief photo hi</span></span><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;">story of the start of our summer - in May.<br />(You did catch that I was behind, right?)<br /><br /></span></span><a style="font-family: arial;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUSuFJvt5I/AAAAAAAAARU/JwUspb6y-Y0/s1600-h/cimg2679.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUSuFJvt5I/AAAAAAAAARU/JwUspb6y-Y0/s320/cimg2679.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356207914693408658" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />Well, courtesy of the grandparen</span></span></span><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:arial;">ts, we took a vacation to southern California.</span></span></span><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />We went to the largest hu</span></span><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;">man-trap </span></span><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;">ever set by a mouse. It was great and Ev loved it there.<br />What am I saying? I loved it there! (Yeah, kind of a freak for that place......but I get it from my mom).<br /><br /><br />We had lots of fun and Ev was able to go on almost everything. He says that he loved the Matterhorn the best, but I think Splash Mountain was a close second considering how many times we went on it.<br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;">Here we are the first time we went on it (with my brother-in-law and his daughter in front). (If yo</span></span><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;">u can see it very well).</span><br /></span><a style="font-family: arial;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUV3Ry6m_I/AAAAAAAAARc/07Z3zQmDA24/s1600-h/cimg2599.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUV3Ry6m_I/AAAAAAAAARc/07Z3zQmDA24/s320/cimg2599.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356211371241020402" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;">And here is how soaking wet we were after riding it more than a few times right before closing. Ev was cold and became a miniature dark sith lord in my hooded black jacket.</span></span><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;"> "Your [Disneyland] training is now complete."</span></span><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUXKwz38BI/AAAAAAAAARk/cGs5OOcptVw/s1600-h/cimg2658.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUXKwz38BI/AAAAAAAAARk/cGs5OOcptVw/s320/cimg2658.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356212805495681042" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;">We also visited <span style="font-weight: bold;">California Adventure</span>.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Everett rode some bugs,</span><br /></span><a style="font-family: arial;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUY4WeJh7I/AAAAAAAAARs/te8dprwbQNQ/s1600-h/cimg2646.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUY4WeJh7I/AAAAAAAAARs/te8dprwbQNQ/s200/cimg2646.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356214688210847666" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center; font-family: arial;">watched some bugs,<br /></div><a style="font-family: arial;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUZTUEowRI/AAAAAAAAAR0/0MHDWp-TRjM/s1600-h/cimg2653.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUZTUEowRI/AAAAAAAAAR0/0MHDWp-TRjM/s200/cimg2653.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356215151423439122" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: right; font-family: arial;">and found Wall-E.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><a style="font-family: arial;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUZ8vhY_xI/AAAAAAAAAR8/NagGycY-FKg/s1600-h/cimg2654.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 237px; height: 177px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUZ8vhY_xI/AAAAAAAAAR8/NagGycY-FKg/s200/cimg2654.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356215863166435090" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />And here is <span style="font-weight: bold;">Universal Studios</span>.</span><br /><span style="font-family:courier new;"> </span><a style="font-family: arial;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUbSoQ-F0I/AAAAAAAAASE/uuS12qvkgfU/s1600-h/cimg2607.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUbSoQ-F0I/AAAAAAAAASE/uuS12qvkgfU/s320/cimg2607.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356217338687264578" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />Here is Ev's "red carpet" pose.</span><br /><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:courier new;"><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:courier new;"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span><a style="font-family: arial;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUcwJB3zmI/AAAAAAAAASM/FPtNH9nx9Mo/s1600-h/cimg2613.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 178px; height: 237px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SlUcwJB3zmI/AAAAAAAAASM/FPtNH9nx9Mo/s200/cimg2613.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356218945210142306" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;">And here are the boys "monkey-ing" around.<br /><br />The favorite place there was Curious George's ballroom where there is a continuous ball fight taking place. I only have videos of that place, but they are choosing to be uncooperative.</span></span><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:courier new;"><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Another one of our stops was to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Seaworld</span>, but I guess big fish aren't exciting enough to warrant pictures...at least that's what my camera seems to think cause I </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:arial;" >know</span><span style="font-family:arial;"> I took some there.<br />Oh well, I'm sure y'all are pictured out anyhow.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Maybe I'll be good and go another three months before posting more of them.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />Maybe.</span></span><br /><br /></div>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-70575108144921657982009-05-16T11:54:00.000-07:002009-05-16T12:11:40.459-07:00Baby Oil<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/Sg8PVaGArfI/AAAAAAAAAQ8/f15d0URgZ2g/s1600-h/images.jpeg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 92px; height: 161px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/Sg8PVaGArfI/AAAAAAAAAQ8/f15d0URgZ2g/s200/images.jpeg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5336500943913528818" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;">Today my husband tried a well-known joke on our 4 year-old.<br /><br />Daniel: If vegetable oil comes from vegetables, and corn oil comes from corn, where does baby oil come from?<br /><br />Ev: Mommy and Daddy oil?<br /></span>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-13879300792814501662009-04-20T01:24:00.000-07:002009-04-20T02:16:12.323-07:00To Some Politicians: A Kind Request...<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:courier new;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /><br />"Be open-minded, but not so open-minded that your brains fall out".</span></span><br /><span style="font-family:courier new;">-<span style="font-size:85%;">Stephen A. Kallis, JR.</span></span><br /><span style="font-family:courier new;"></span></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style=";font-family:courier new;font-size:85%;" >(I hope Mr. Kallis doesn't mind me using his quote, but I couldn't have said it better)</span><br /></div>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-68467347330911441222009-02-14T12:00:00.000-08:002009-02-13T23:17:59.250-08:00An Ode to Conversation Hearts<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SZZpq_bvICI/AAAAAAAAAQw/Ikb6CSdMjK0/s1600-h/chearts"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 238px; height: 175px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SZZpq_bvICI/AAAAAAAAAQw/Ikb6CSdMjK0/s320/chearts" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5302541798578528290" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;">I remember the conversation hearts when we were young, with messages of "Be Mine", "Cutie", and "Kiss Me".<br /><br />Those were the good ones....<br /><br /><br />Then came the "Fax Me" and "Email Me" ones.<br />(Because that's SO romantic...almost up there with "Be My Icon").<br /><br />I haven't had conversation hearts for a few years, but I wonder...<br />....do they have "Text Me" yet?<br /><br />Anyhoo, in celebration of Valentine's Day (or Singles Awareness Day, if you prefer) I thought I'd pay tribute to the little candies (especially the yummy banana-flavored ones) that have been a part of the February love fest since the 1860's.<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >Conversation Hearts</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >In February, bring them home,</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >pink, yellow, lavender</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >and lime pastels</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >BE MINE .... I'M YOURS</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >to be read by the tongue</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >that licks the chalk</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >and tastes what it spells.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >I'll give you a boxful,</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >tasting of daphne, lupin,</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >mint, and columbine;</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >a mouthful of secrets,</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >lovelier than whispers,</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >dear ones, friends</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;" >I'M YOURS.... BE MINE</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:times new roman;font-size:78%;" >-Nina Payne</span><br /></div>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-27425416230666437602009-02-08T14:23:00.000-08:002009-02-08T14:51:55.264-08:00No, I didn't miss your class...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SY9hs83w3pI/AAAAAAAAAQo/3GlGp8tRnSM/s1600-h/ninja"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 110px; height: 110px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SY9hs83w3pI/AAAAAAAAAQo/3GlGp8tRnSM/s400/ninja" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300562711320518290" border="0" /></a><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Today at church, the bishop in class asked, "Are there any visitors or new people here t</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >oday</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >?</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" > There's one brother in the back I th</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >ink I've seen before, but I don't know who he is". </span><br /><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Then g</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >esturing at my husband, "Would you stand and introduce</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" > yourself?"</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >My husband stands and says, "Hi. I'm Daniel... We've actually been around a while, bu</span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >t you haven't see us cause.... we're ninjas....."</span>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-43449377097273287242008-12-21T22:06:00.000-08:002008-12-21T22:44:03.128-08:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SU8ulULVQlI/AAAAAAAAAP4/XqjXNs9z5oM/s1600-h/birds.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 235px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SU8ulULVQlI/AAAAAAAAAP4/XqjXNs9z5oM/s320/birds.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282492106535158354" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;">So...The other night my husband and I were driving in the car and listening to Christmas music on the radio. A commercial came on for a grocery store and the announcer said, "Be sure to stock up on our gourmet cheeses for the holiday season".<br /><br />"What?!" My husband exclaimed. "Gourmet Jesus?"</span><br /> <br /> <br /><span style="font-family:arial;">So, yes - - here's wishing you all a healthy helping of (gourmet) Jesus this holiday season.<br /></span>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-63071799006198146762008-12-10T08:25:00.000-08:002008-12-18T00:50:04.147-08:00Seeing is Belize-ing!<span style="font-family:arial;">So many of you know that we recently took a cruise vacation to the C</span><span style="font-family:arial;">aribbean - Mexico, Belize, Honduras, and Bahamas - - all amidst the hub-a-bub of buying a house and preparing for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I suppose, then, it was what you would call a much needed vacation.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"> (Though, we did take all the kids with us).</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/ST_w-yHTXeI/AAAAAAAAAOo/KfACBSLnNHg/s1600-h/cimg2254.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 210px; height: 157px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/ST_w-yHTXeI/AAAAAAAAAOo/KfACBSLnNHg/s200/cimg2254.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278202249696468450" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />My son was mo</span><span style="font-family:arial;">st e</span><span style="font-family:arial;">xcited about riding on an airplane....</span><br /> <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/ST_zuGzRRKI/AAAAAAAAAOw/u860YXH6bRE/s1600-h/cimg2308.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 237px; height: 188px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/ST_zuGzRRKI/AAAAAAAAAOw/u860YXH6bRE/s200/cimg2308.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278205261726696610" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />...<span style="font-family:arial;">though he was pretty excite</span><span style="font-family:arial;">d about </span><span style="font-family:arial;">the big boat...<br /><br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:arial;">and his bunk bed he got to sle</span><span style="font-family:arial;">ep on...</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/ST_4HBuRJNI/AAAAAAAAAPI/NhPRdVPOZYs/s1600-h/cimg2270.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 148px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/ST_4HBuRJNI/AAAAAAAAAPI/NhPRdVPOZYs/s200/cimg2270.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278210087906780370" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />Our first stop was Cozumel, Mexico, but we hopped on a ferry and went ov</span><span style="font-family:arial;">er to Playa del Carmen, followed by a long bus ride to the ruins at Tulum. The ruins were cool there....</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/ST_3CDiHgWI/AAAAAAAAAPA/RRLXE5rGWCM/s1600-h/cimg2288.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/ST_3CDiHgWI/AAAAAAAAAPA/RRLXE5rGWCM/s200/cimg2288.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278208902981714274" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;">...and excitement abounded.....</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/ST_1XG6ZBoI/AAAAAAAAAO4/BRVUowiZ89o/s1600-h/cimg2280.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/ST_1XG6ZBoI/AAAAAAAAAO4/BRVUowiZ89o/s200/cimg2280.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278207065642829442" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;">Okay, it was a long day for the kids with a lot of transfers and travel. But if we could get through that, I think we could probably get through anything with them..<br /><br />Our second stop was in Belize, which, agreeing with our native tour guide, was un"belize"able.<br />After a tour of the city it was off into the interior for a spicy native lunch followed by a speed boat ride up a crocodile-infested river to Lamanai.<br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">We hiked through the rai</span><span style="font-family:arial;">nforest, climbed Mayan ruins, and saw a toucan and howler monkeys in the wild. Here we say, "Don't eat yellow snow", but there they should say, "Don't drink yello</span><span style="font-family:arial;">w rain". (Monkeys mark their territories). The jungle was awesome and the climb up the temple is not for those with vertigo o</span><span style="font-family:arial;">r a fear of </span><span style="font-family:arial;">heights.<br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/ST_-nb10FoI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/zF0X1ucTEog/s1600-h/cimg2345.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/ST_-nb10FoI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/zF0X1ucTEog/s200/cimg2345.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278217241743332994" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SUAKzgdaYuI/AAAAAAAAAPw/jgDl5Ex2XuM/s1600-h/cimg2357.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 225px; height: 168px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SUAKzgdaYuI/AAAAAAAAAPw/jgDl5Ex2XuM/s200/cimg2357.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278230643281126114" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />(Can you see the little people way below in the photo on the right? I wasn't e</span><span style="font-family:arial;">ve</span><span style="font-family:arial;">n at the to</span><span style="font-family:arial;">p </span><span style="font-family:arial;">when I took it.)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />Our third stop was in Hondorus where we went down zip-lines in the jungle. (Our kids went to feed and pet Iguanas with the Grandparents).<br /><br /><br /></span><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxnlg9Sm6JGC7akk4l60XMu5xh3-t7G1hmH7qdHLTZkvSF9-0VVpvSXxIMFmPBehUQD6zh3eOcowMf_5ALOfQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Afterwards, we met up with the rest of the family at a beach and observed some of the local animal life....jellyfish, hermit crabs, stray cat and dogs, and biting bugs that left tons of big red spots all over us.<br /><br />After another day at sea, our last stop was in the Bahamas. There we got some fresh pina coladas and hit the sunny white-sand beach.<br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SUAHeyQ2BII/AAAAAAAAAPg/jbX-a3tBGIE/s1600-h/cimg2430.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 199px; height: 149px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SUAHeyQ2BII/AAAAAAAAAPg/jbX-a3tBGIE/s200/cimg2430.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278226988748113026" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SUAJKP17-BI/AAAAAAAAAPo/XoJEYJf6MR0/s1600-h/cimg2448.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 170px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SUAJKP17-BI/AAAAAAAAAPo/XoJEYJf6MR0/s200/cimg2448.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5278228834934323218" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:arial;">It was a great way to cap off a vacation.</span><br /></div><br /><br /><br /></div></div>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-18615835604330247192008-11-06T10:31:00.000-08:002008-11-06T13:23:06.968-08:00Pumpkins, Pumpkins Everywhere . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . But Not a Pie to Eat!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SRM_gKa3BmI/AAAAAAAAANw/O4eJkgW5FeQ/s1600-h/cimg2178.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 238px; height: 180px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SRM_gKa3BmI/AAAAAAAAANw/O4eJkgW5FeQ/s200/cimg2178.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5265622211111618146" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;">Yes, I love Halloween.<br />(The smell of the burnt pumpkins and the candy concoction in your sack?<br />Ahh.....absolute heaven).<br />And this Halloween was especially fun because my so</span><span style="font-family:arial;">n finally "gets" the trick-or-treating thing.<br />Plus,it was great taking</span><span style="font-family:arial;"> him around in jeans and a t-shirt! (Has it ever been that warm before?)<br />I dressed him in a warm <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">doggie</span> costume, but I don't think he needed it.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SRNHEZY138I/AAAAAAAAAOg/ONI3Kby6Seo/s1600-h/cimg2176.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 202px; height: 267px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SRNHEZY138I/AAAAAAAAAOg/ONI3Kby6Seo/s320/cimg2176.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5265630530186371010" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;">My husband </span><span style="font-family:arial;">gave u</span><span style="font-family:arial;">p on any rea</span><span style="font-family:arial;">l costume and wore his "I'm a Shark" t-shirt, com</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">plete</span> with dr</span><span style="font-family:arial;">awn dorsal fin on the back.<br /><br />I wore Halloween socks.</span>...<br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />But we had chili and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">br</span></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">ead</span> "bones" for dinner (perfect for little dogs and courtesy of my mom) and then went to trick-or-treat with some cousins.<br /><br />We also carted our carved pumpkins around in the car with us so we could light them on Halloween night at our final destination</span><span style="font-family:arial;">. (Though we have lit them since on our own porch....and will until</span><span style="font-family:arial;"> they die).<br />(And who knows... maybe they'll just get replaced by some of our uncarved pumpkins that I'll eventually do Thanksgiving carvings on).<br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">Many of you have seem my pumpkins already, but I'll post them here as well, along with my husband's "Foreclosed" Haunted House pumpkin.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SRNCwe3ncNI/AAAAAAAAAN4/UJyeNsbT99s/s1600-h/cimg2199.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SRNCwe3ncNI/AAAAAAAAAN4/UJyeNsbT99s/s200/cimg2199.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5265625790013731026" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">(My husband's scary foreclosure pumpkin)</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SRNE4GzUb8I/AAAAAAAAAOQ/GGz1qkXBpCc/s1600-h/cimg2148.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SRNE4GzUb8I/AAAAAAAAAOQ/GGz1qkXBpCc/s200/cimg2148.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5265628120015466434" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;">(My Twilight movie pumpkin - I tend to do things that are currently popular at the time on my pumpkins. This one I did on a whim and started on the pattern after 7:00 and had the whole thing finished before midnight).</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SRNF2lTSVQI/AAAAAAAAAOY/CrxJfsbARUo/s1600-h/cimg2104.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 232px; height: 174px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SRNF2lTSVQI/AAAAAAAAAOY/CrxJfsbARUo/s200/cimg2104.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5265629193354499330" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />(My witch and cauldron pumpkin actually took longer than the Twilight pumpkin, carving-wise.)</span>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-82500212996474221882008-10-15T21:08:00.000-07:002008-10-20T10:11:40.830-07:00And the Pagans Played Shuffleboard at Midnight.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SPweBfaGb8I/AAAAAAAAANA/07b7fb_l8cE/s1600-h/amyblog015.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 381px; height: 222px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SPweBfaGb8I/AAAAAAAAANA/07b7fb_l8cE/s320/amyblog015.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5259111475821572034" border="0" /></a> <span style="font-family:arial;"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ok</span>, so there probably wasn't shuffleboard at the ancient Pagan festival celebrating the Summer Solstice. But they did gather to celebrate and party on the longest day of the year which usually took place at the end of June. Although the longest day has shifted its date over time, today it usually falls on June 21st.<span style="font-family:arial;"> Still celebrated by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">neo</span>-pagans and other groups, the longer days around the solstice are known as Midsummer. (Shakespeare? Midsummer Night's Dream? If anyone wondered when it took place, now you know! Hooray for cool useless facts!).</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">But I was fortunate enough to be on vacation in northern Europe during these days a few years back and was able to experience the longest day of the year, a day in which the night never got dark and the sun never <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">truly</span> "set". At midnight (see above picture), my husband and I were playing shuffleboard on deck of the ship taking us to Stockholm, Sweden without the aid of lights. When we went to bed, it was still light and the sun had just started its brief dip below the horizon before it rose again a couple of hours later. We were up early to see its full return as the ship navigated its way through the many little islands of Sweden. It was calm, peaceful, empty of the party-goers of the night before. It was also slightly unnerving to have things drenched in sun so early in the morning.<br /><br />So to the real point of this post.<br /><br />I did a poll asking when my blog title picture was taken - yup, here it comes (<span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">drum roll</span>) - and only two people guessed correctly (most likely my own family members). Believe it or not, my blog title picture was taken a little after 4:00am.<br />I remember at the time looking at the little houses and summer cabins on the islands and wondering if their residents were all still asleep. I think if it hadn't been so beautiful (and for the fact that I probably wouldn't be able to pull myself back out of bed again due to the late night before) I would have gone back to my pillow to join them in their midsummer night dreams. (Hopefully minus the heartache and donkey).<br /></span>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-40210369438132254062008-10-07T20:52:00.000-07:002008-10-08T09:53:03.856-07:00Yes, the Economy is Going Down the Toilet........<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOwz0JRJ2HI/AAAAAAAAAMY/W2LE-fRV0zM/s1600-h/cimg2077.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 338px; height: 249px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOwz0JRJ2HI/AAAAAAAAAMY/W2LE-fRV0zM/s400/cimg2077.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254631836168607858" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">"Dow Industrials Fall Below 10000</span><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">"</span><br /></div>That's the headline of today's "Money & Investment" section of the Wall Street Journal that my son is reading in the above caption.<br />(And no, I didn't give him that section, and no, I did not force this picture. He was "reading" his "instruction manual" before getting ready for bed and he insisted he take it to the toilet with him.)<br /><br />Perhaps an appropriate title for this picture would be:<br />"Future Market Investors Uneasy About Current Market Trends".<br />Either that, or: "Start- Your- Children's- Financial- Education- Now- So- They- Don't- Make- The- Same- Stupid- Mistakes- As- Us- Though- They- Probably- Still- Will".<br /><br />I think I'll stick to the first one.<br /><br />There is a bright side still to all this financial crisis, though. Just check out <a href="http://blogs.herald.com/dave_barrys_blog/2008/10/yes-the-world-e.html">Dave Barry's Blog</a> to find out what that is.Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-27694956890705500272008-10-06T11:37:00.000-07:002008-10-08T16:24:25.444-07:007 Random Facts About Me<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOpyngoP3HI/AAAAAAAAALg/PybXN8Ap5eA/s1600-h/amyblog005.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 182px; height: 259px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOpyngoP3HI/AAAAAAAAALg/PybXN8Ap5eA/s320/amyblog005.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254137938380315762" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><span>1</span>. As a child I did NOT have naturally curly hair. Any curl was t</span></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:arial;">he product of curlers forced upon me by my mother.<br /><br /></span></span><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOpe1s_keRI/AAAAAAAAAKw/r6QySZt9vbs/s1600-h/amyblog007.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 178px; height: 134px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOpe1s_keRI/AAAAAAAAAKw/r6QySZt9vbs/s200/amyblog007.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254116191984974098" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;"> (I hated sleeping in them.)</span><br /></div><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOpy3jHQuAI/AAAAAAAAALo/xqmcY-3d6yA/s1600-h/amyblog009.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 260px; height: 236px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOpy3jHQuAI/AAAAAAAAALo/xqmcY-3d6yA/s320/amyblog009.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254138213925173250" border="0" /></a></div><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br /></span><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:arial;">And if I did</span><span style="font-family:arial;">n't have </span><span style="font-family:arial;">curl-induc</span><span style="font-family:arial;">ed hair, it was because it was cut short.</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family:arial;">(Very unbecoming to the princess that I was.)</span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><span>2</span>. From the age of 4, I was </span><span style="font-family:arial;">in at least one <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Show_Choir">show choir</a> for a part of every year until I was in college. Then, I just joined <a href="http://www.ldsces.org/iws1/index.aspx?p=60037">Institute Choir</a>.<br /><br /></span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOpjCP8hG1I/AAAAAAAAALI/thZHXDpsu7E/s1600-h/amyblog013.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 207px; height: 168px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOpjCP8hG1I/AAAAAAAAALI/thZHXDpsu7E/s200/amyblog013.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254120805572352850" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;"><span>3.</span> From the age of 4, I also took swimming lessons every summer until my senior y</span><span style="font-family:arial;">ear of high school. I used to be able to dive, swim the butterfly, and save your life if you </span><span style="font-family:arial;">needed it. But the key phr</span><span style="font-family:arial;">ase is "used to"</span><span style="font-family:arial;">. Swimming suits and I don't really get along anym</span><span style="font-family:arial;">ore.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOpzUUHozeI/AAAAAAAAALw/cD0eMUl2Z8k/s1600-h/amyblog011.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 172px; height: 256px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOpzUUHozeI/AAAAAAAAALw/cD0eMUl2Z8k/s320/amyblog011.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254138708116426210" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;"><span>4</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">.</span> The old </span><span style="font-family:arial;">phrase of </span><span style="font-family:arial;"><a href="http://disneyland.disney.go.com/disneyland/en_US/parks/overview?name=DisneylandResortParksOverviewPage">Disneyland</a> being the </span><span style="font-family:arial;">"happiest</span><span style="font-family:arial;"> place on earth" is </span><span style="font-family:arial;">actually true. I was going to either li</span><span style="font-family:arial;">ve</span><span style="font-family:arial;"> in Cind</span><span style="font-family:arial;">erella's castle or the Haunted</span><span style="font-family:arial;"> Mansion.</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOpzkDqwDMI/AAAAAAAAAL4/A6f52hoIJEw/s1600-h/amyblog014.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 130px; height: 189px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOpzkDqwDMI/AAAAAAAAAL4/A6f52hoIJEw/s200/amyblog014.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254138978578205890" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span>5</span>. I like<a href="http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6848181195872884894&ei=j2fqSNTFMpD8qAPCrqH8CQ&q=jumping+spiders&vt=lf&hl=en"> </a><a href="http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6848181195872884894&ei=j2fqSNTFMpD8qAPCrqH8CQ&q=jumping+spiders&vt=lf&hl=en">jumping spiders</a><a href="http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6848181195872884894&ei=j2fqSNTFMpD8qAPCrqH8CQ&q=jumping+spiders&vt=lf&hl=en">.</a></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />My favorite variety is the <a href="http://www.biosurvey.ou.edu/okwild/misc/images/djspider.jpg">phidippus</a> (workmani or audax)</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><span>6.</span> I want to live in the <a href="http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://celebrating200years.noaa.gov/transformations/coastal_research/pacificNW_coast650.jpg&imgrefurl=http://celebrating200years.noaa.gov/transformations/coastal_research/pacificNW_coast.html&h=670&w=650&sz=217&hl=en&start=4&sig2=1Lkn1UNJPRRjVgH4t2xpUw&usg=__HEbFDtCOIpIDuQEE602J0tkLAbc=&tbnid=ttE6N8q4L5xowM:&tbnh=138&tbnw=134&ei=8G_qSPXZIpu0sAOtnqmiCQ&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dpacific%2Bnorthwest%26gbv%3D2%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DG">Pacific Northwest</a> (Washington or Oregon) at some point in my life. </span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOp2b-6zlCI/AAAAAAAAAMI/asSdR4butNk/s1600-h/04-53.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 158px; height: 220px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOp2b-6zlCI/AAAAAAAAAMI/asSdR4butNk/s200/04-53.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254142138399298594" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br /><span>7.</span> My original wedding date was set for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11,_2001_attacks">Sept. 11, </a></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11,_2001_attacks">200</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11,_2001_attacks">1</a>. Good thing I got cold feet the month before and pushed it back, right?</span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br /><br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family:arial;">Well, that looks like 7 facts, so that means it's.......The End........</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"></span></div><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />.....Oh, I guess I should mention that I did this little post because I was tagged by my friend, <a href="http://russellandbonniejack.blogspot.com/">Bonnie</a></span>.<span style="font-family:arial;"><br />I am also supposed to post these rules.<br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">Rules:</span><br /><p><span style="font-family:arial;"> 1. Link to the person that tagged you, and post the rules on your blog.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"> 2. Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"> 3. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post, and include links to their blog.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"> 4. Let each person know that they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.</span></p><span style="font-family:arial;">Since I am a rule breaker though, I think I'll break half of them.<br />(That's socially acceptable, right? To follow most rules, but not all of them?) If anyone wants to do this, though, please do. It was fun!</span><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><br /></span>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-29301900889125402442008-10-02T11:06:00.000-07:002008-10-02T14:22:56.634-07:00"Now Autumn's fire burns slowly along the woods." -William Allingham<a style="font-family: georgia;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOUzc_yljuI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/QZUE3sy1UtM/s1600-h/cimg2067c.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 385px; height: 211px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOUzc_yljuI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/QZUE3sy1UtM/s320/cimg2067c.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5252661113650515682" border="0" /></a><span style=";font-family:times new roman;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-family:arial;">It's that season again! The season where the sweaters come out and the crispness of the cool air reminds you of juicy, sweet apples and big orange pumpkins. It's the season where the world turns vibrant and rich in its color, the deep azure sky a perfect complement to the orange of the mountains. Finally, you can light up that fireplace and drink cider and cocoa while cuddled up in your sweats or favorite comfy quilt.</span><br /></span><br /><span style=";font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" >I love fall!</span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" > </span><span style=";font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" >It's my favorite season. I love "sweater-weather" and the smells and colors. I am reminded of my childhood and the fun we had with raking leaves and making "leaf houses" and mazes. Anticipating Halloween, and coming home from school in the cold to find a warm house (sometimes a fire going) and frosted sugar cookies shaped like pumpkins and bats.</span><br /><div style="text-align: left;font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><br />Just recently my husband, son, and I went up into the mountains to see the fall foliage and to take pictures. These pictures posted here are some of the scenes we got to see. It was gorgeous and I honestly couldn't compare it to any other season. Perhaps the author Albert Camus said it best - "Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower."</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span></div><span style=";font-family:times new roman;font-size:100%;" ><a style="font-family: arial;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOUpDOH6YjI/AAAAAAAAAJg/rsufWG93irI/s1600-h/cimg2059c.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 201px; height: 280px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_eSH8Ebm7r-Q/SOUpDOH6YjI/AAAAAAAAAJg/rsufWG93irI/s320/cimg2059c.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5252649675705180722" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;">So welcome, October, my favorite month of all! Here is a little poem in celebration of your arrival....</span></span><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:times new roman;font-size:100%;" >October gave a party;</span><br /><span style=";font-family:times new roman;font-size:100%;" >The leaves by hundreds came -</span><br /><span style=";font-family:times new roman;font-size:100%;" >The Chestnuts, Oaks, and Maples,</span><br /><span style=";font-family:times new roman;font-size:100%;" >And leaves of every name.</span><br /><span style=";font-family:times new roman;font-size:100%;" >The Sunshine spread a carpet,</span><br /><span style=";font-family:times new roman;font-size:100%;" >And everything was grand,</span><br /><span style=";font-family:times new roman;font-size:100%;" >Miss Weather led the dancing,</span><br /><span style=";font-family:times new roman;font-size:100%;" >Professor Wind the band.</span><br /><span style=";font-family:times new roman;font-size:100%;" >~George Cooper,</span><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style=";font-family:georgia,bookman old style,palatino linotype,book antiqua,palatino,trebuchet ms,helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,avante garde,century gothic,comic sans ms,times,times new roman,serif;font-size:100%;" >"October's Party"</span><br /></div><span style=";font-family:georgia,bookman old style,palatino linotype,book antiqua,palatino,trebuchet ms,helvetica,garamond,sans-serif,arial,verdana,avante garde,century gothic,comic sans ms,times,times new roman,serif;font-size:130%;" > </span>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-57030090337236659292008-09-24T21:36:00.000-07:002008-09-24T22:15:33.078-07:00When you know you watch too much tv....I think our tv has been working overtime the last few weeks.<br />I don't mind my son watching some of the shows that are on (thank goodness he's not asking for Sponge Bob anymore) but I think I'm not monitoring his time as well as I probably should. Last week when he got a scrape on his elbow and we put a band-aid on it he didn't stop singing the "I am stuck on Band-aid brand" song for days until his elbow had scabbed over and there was no need for a bandage.<br />Then tonight he decided he would bless our supper by himself. We were having alphabet soup (like a certain talking dog character on tv eats) and he blessed the soup that it would give us letters and sentences. Sadly, he can also tell you all about master bathrooms, vaulted ceilings, and about updated kitchens as well. I don't know if that's from the tv shows that I personally like to watch or if it's just from seeing a lot of houses in our quest to buy one.<br />Either way, though, it's probably time to return the tv to its main responsibility........holding down the video cabinet.Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-4978305504395061912008-09-17T09:28:00.000-07:002008-09-17T09:55:15.639-07:00"Millions of peaches, peaches for me...."Thank you to The Presidents of the United States of America for writing such a wonderful song. Peaches <span style="font-style: italic;">ARE</span> wonderful and I look forward to getting some every year in August and September. Of course, the anticipation starts much earlier. I'm like a kid waiting for Christmas as soon as the Fourth of July passes.<br /><br />And where do I get my peaches?<br />Why, I get the very best......Mannings in Fruit Heights.<br />Their peaches are to die for - Or at least let your skin turn orange for because you've eaten so many of them. But, I must say that my sister has probably eaten more than I have. She's probably on her third half-bushel box by now.<br /><br />If you are out there and reading this, sister, my husband implores you to seek out professional help. Peach-Eaters Anonymous, perhaps.Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4203442798459207900.post-12383830577351472902008-09-08T14:32:00.000-07:002008-09-09T11:50:13.515-07:00Congratulations...it's a blog!Congrats to me on the birth of my new blog. I hope to feed it, burp it, and watch it grow. I'll admit, like with my son, I had a rather difficult time giving my blog a name. When it comes to names it seems that you have to be mindful of what other people around you are naming their children (and blogs), mind any negative connotations, and still find the name meaningful in some way to you. Easier said than done. Naming a blog is like submitting a child's name to the hospital only to have them tell you, no, that name was taken by your neighbor down the street. Yet, the name came down to two alternatives - both available, both meaningful, and, not <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">surprisingly</span> enough, both <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Shakespeare</span>.<br />My friend Carrie, on our first meeting, called me Ophelia and it became one of my nicknames. These words were ones spoken by her to Hamlet.<br /><blockquote> <p> <strong>Ophelia:</strong><br />O, what a noble mind is here <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">o'erthrown</span>!<br />The courtier's, soldier's, scholar's, eye, tongue, sword,<br />Th' expectation and rose of the fair state,<br />The glass of fashion and the mould of form,<br />Th' <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">observ'd</span> of all observers, quite, quite down!<br /></p> <cite><a href="http://www.enotes.com/hamlet-text/3331#noble">Hamlet, Act 3, scene 1, 150–154</a></cite> </blockquote> In Shakespeare's time "glass" usually meant "mirror", while "fashion" not only referred to fashion and what was popular at the time, but also to "demeanor" or "self-disposition." Hamlet was "the glass of fashion," or mirror of behavior, that others emulated and/or looked up to.<br />While I don't expect anyone to look up to me--and hopefully not emulate me since that is sometimes a pet-peeve of mine-- this blog is my "glass of fashion." It will serve as my mirror of disposition, a reflection of my state of mind and nature. A look into what is currently popular in my life. And should you choose to read my blog on occasion, perhaps you'll get to see things about me you didn't know.<br />Maybe, like Hamlet, we'll all get a little crazy, too!Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14791364613904284176noreply@blogger.com1