hoping for clear skies

There's a shuttle launch scheduled for today. They need good weather to make it happen since the President will be coming to this one. And since our favourite beach will be over crowded with sky watchers I'm thinking maybe a visit to see the Mouse is in order. Goodness knows I need a nice sunny weekend with my little stinkerella. This pic was taken last month while she was watching the dance show at Cinderalla's castle. I love seeing the look of 'magic' in her eyes everytime she sees the princesses. It makes it all worth it.

I hope you have a super fun weekend!

P.S. This upcoming month Skrap n' Chat is hosting a month long crop with weekly challenges, games, prizes and all sorts of fun. I'm really looking forward to getting some much needed scrapping done. My poor supplies have been neglected something awful.

>^..^<

so bright, so glorious, so...wet

You know that old saying, be careful what you wish for because I might get it? Well I wished it would snow while we were in Edmonton and boy did they ever get it. All 15cm of it. Yeah, I received a few hate-mails for it but I didn't care. It's been 8 years since I last saw snow and this was Maribel's first.

Because this was Maribel's first real encounter with snow I was curious to see how she would react to it since I have some friends who's kids aren't fans of the white flakes themselves. My sister likes to call it the "Devil's Dandruff." But alas I'm not surprised to find that Miss M is rather fond of ye ole white stuff.

Yup. My little stinky winky L-O-V-E-S the snow. She begged to play in it every millisecond and eat it. After catching her nibbling on a few questionable snowballs I introduced her to the fun part of snow; icicles.

But now that I'm back I have to admit, I'm a little relieved that I don't have to shovel sidewalks anymore. I love the snow but it came back to me the not so fun side of it, wet pant legs and socks that always seem to find that puddle of melted snow in the foyer.
At least I got my fix until next year. I'm just not sure if Maribel can hold out that long since she's already asking to chew on some ice cubes because they taste like icicles.

>^..^<

home sweet home

Returning from my visit home was a little rough this time. I came back with a little more then I bargained for; a sinus and ear infection that I would have rather have left behind. With the two flights taking off and landing my ears felt like they were ready to implode and brought my hearing to practically nil which came in a little handy when little whiny face was exercising her newly acquired skill to try to get what she wanted. Oh the joys of growing up. But even with all of that the trip was wonderful and the food…oh the food….

This place was the first food joint we ate at and the last. Of course there were several meetings in between…*drool* My mother in law is seriously considering opening up one of these in Orlando. Yup, she's hooked. Don't' worry, I also indulged in some amazing Poutine, Cadbury's finest chocolate, Bison burgers, and of course some yummy Haggis. Yes, I like haggis. But oh the sweetness that is in the delicious form of chocolate Timbits…now those are something worth having over, and over, and over......*drool* okay onto the real reason for flying home...

Aidan’s baptism: The whole reason I came home.
This particular baptism was very emotional for me. I was so blessed to be there when he made his entrance to this world and now to be able to witness his covenant with our Heavenly Father filled my heart so full of joy that it spilled over…in the form of tears. Of course to add to everything I was asked to give a talk, and yes I cried through out the whole thing. I can’t help it, I’m a boob when it comes to spiritual things. I just love this kid so much and to see my dad there along side him was so SO awesome.

Up next: Be careful what you wish for because people may not appreciate it as much as you do...

>^..^<

they say it's spring, it's you

Before we left I decorated the piano mantle so that our home would be ready for Easter when we came back. Delicious chocolate easter eggs sitting on some edible easter grass, a jar filled with fluffy pom poms, and already decorated eggs will be ready to welcome us when we return.

I had this idea to bring spring into my house with some puffy clouds made from stuffing and yarn. Maribel had fun pulling and clumping. The little clouds are hers. *heart*

We also made some pinwheels but our attempts to make them spin with the breeze failed pretty miserably so we just glued them down and stuffed them into a jug. At least we had fun together and that's what matters the most.

There's a big difference between Florida's spring and Edmonton's spring. One has sunshine and summer temps while the other has snow and cold breezes that can cut right through the i-thought-this-would-be-warm-enough jacket. But hey, it's still spring none the less.
>^..^<

sweet succulence

words are not necessary to describe the deliciousness that sits in this cup.

>^..^<

what's in my bag

This is my favorite bag right now. I love how perfectly spring it is and how I can smuggle chocolate from my super skilled candy sniffer aka my daughter. As you can see I'm all put of chocolate so instead it holds some touch up make up, lip gloss, keys, nail put polish my trusty phone, EOS egg shaped lip balm, Instax camera with some recent snapshots, wallet, my new favorite lip balm by Burts Bees, bobby pins, passport covered in Dear Lizzy fabric paper, my luggage tag a bestie gave me, pack this list notepad and glitter pencil.
Not shown i sthe stack of receipts and empty gum wrappers because that wouldn't make a pretty picture. *wink*

I so love these list notepads. I'm a list maker and they really take the guesswork out of "Did I remember everything?" as I usually forget something important like my cell phone charger or something...but not this time.

My Instax camera rarely ever leaves my bag other then to snap a few shots. Between that and my phone it's great to be able to capture the moment at anytime without having to lug around my pentax.


So here I am with a mere couple of sleeps left before I take the grand adventure of flying with my for year old who is probably more excited to be flying north than I am and that's saying something

>^..^<

muppets who wear glasses rock

My new glasses came in and I have to say that I feel smarter now. Mm hmm. Sure do. E=Mc2'd or squared, whatever the heck that means. Well alright at least I look smart. *wink*

When I shared with my darling sister a photo of that glasses I was getting she then proceeded to ask, "I had no clue you wanted to look like Guy Smiley?" ouch. Well since this was a rare opportunity to correct the corrector I had to share with her that Guy Smiley doesn't wear glasses. See... mnah so there!!!

So she then sent me a link to the Muppet's who wear glasses. Sibling love at its finest.

After looking through the selection of spectical wearing muppets I actually found one that has the same pair as I do...

*Don't forget to turn off the music on the side bar ==> ==> ==>*

Being a Muppet is pretty stinking awesome if you ask me but now I want a red phone...

>^..^<

diy easter lace up cards

Easter is coming and I am so happy it's spring. Although living in Florida we don't really get spring per se but more like "Oh no it's below 65F this must be winter" to the "well...the calendar says it's 'spring' but really 85F is SUMMER but since all the stores look like the Easter Bunny threw up, I'll go with spring. So bring on the pastels and a legitimate excuse to purchase chocolate. woot woot  

So while I was nibbling on some delightful Cadbury chocolate egg and doing a little surfing I came across these cool Vintage Easter prints and thought they would make a fun inexpensive little project.  Lace up Easter cards. So quick and simple that it won't cut into the sweet chocolate nibbling time.

After saving a couple photos you just print them on the same page onto white cardstock and set it aside for a little time to dry. After the images are dry cut them out and punch out the holes and your done.

Ta da!
The best part is that the sound of the printer covers up the sound that the tinfoil makes whilst unwrapping a little choco-treat and when you walk out with a cool little project that looks like you slaved hours on they won't know any different. Go ahead and say it, it's ingenious. I know.....I know.

Have I ever mentioned that I'm a great enabler? It's true. I'll help justify anything all you need do is just say the word.

>^..^<

sweet tooth

We’ve had quite the week of crazy events what with M’s dental visit and wicked thunderstorms that blew down our fence but I did manage a couple of Bento goodness for our little boo. Yay me!

For Monday’s lunch I wanted to see if she’d eat hard boiled eggs again if she was involved with the shaping process this time. If you remember her last reaction to the shaped egg she was less then thrilled to bring it back. But here’s how they work.

While the eggs are boiling prepare a med-large bowl of iced water then when the eggs are ready start peeling them while they are still warm but be careful not to burn yourself. I ran them under the tap to help take the edge off but when the egg is peeled quickly and gently guide it into the mold and seal shut. Place the mold(s) into the iced water and let it sit for at least 5 minutes or longer if you can.

Once the time is up and you are ready to make the lunch, just rinse off the egg, pat dry with a paper towel and serve. She loved it!

For her lunch I cut the egg in half and took out the “yucky” yolk and threw a little salt in the tiny bear container for seasoning. I also included vitamin gummies,sliced turkey rolls, pb&j sandwich bears, peanut butter cookies, and high heels with a crown shaped fruit leather. She ate it all. Yesssss.

Friday’s lunch had a bit of a theme that sums up our week. Since it’s been raining like crazy I thought a fish theme would be fun. Oh and teeth.

This lunch included chicken noodle soup with some gold fish crackers, vitamin gummies, sugar free apple sauce with some sprinkles, SpongeBob crackers, sliced turkey rolls, some cheesy pretzel fish and cheese molars. I was supposed to use a circle for the fish heads (eww fish heads? ok that sounded kinda gross) but all I had was an egg shape so I used that instead. I will be investing in some circle cookie cutters for next time fo sho.

I wanted to celebrate her bravery during her tooth extraction so I carved out some teeth from stringed cheese. I couldn’t help it. Hee hee. Although I would totally be alright if we never have to go through a tooth extraction again. Totally 100% okay with that.

>^..^<