Happy 15th Birthday Isaac!!!!

I cannot believe my sweet little guy is 15 years old today! He is such a blessing to me. He is kind and compassionate. He'll do anaything for you. He hates to see anybody's feelings being hurt.

He was a very active, curious little boy. I remember the day I was tucking him in and saw that he had a toy with him. This toy had been in the gutter outside his bedroom window (the roof is steep!). Doug had been watching the boys that afternoon, so Iasked him if Dad got the toy for him. NOPE! He went on the roof and got it himself. He was FOUR!

He's always been quick with hugs and kisses and very cuddly and affectionate. He is still quick to give me hugs, but towers over me now, so isn't sitting on my lap any more. I loved those days of rocking and cuddling. And I am loving watching him growing into a wonderful young man that loves the Lord.

My favorite picture of Isaac! It's seen better days :) (about 3 months)

Isaac and Jordan (4 months and 2 years) Our vacation last summer. He LOVES fishing! He LIVES to fish!
Another vacation picture
You're never too old to snuggle Daddy......
Quite the handsome man!

A few shots from the lake today!

Isn't it absolutely gorgeous? See the red leaves? I cannot believe the leaves are starting to change already.

Many people have already taken out their docks, so the view into the lake is so beautiful! Mostly just water and shoreline, instead of docks and boats! It is SO beautiful and peaceful there!!

Dad had the pontoon taken out. But the sailboat is still there for now, the kayak and the kids' boat. Isaac was in his boat..........

Wonderful Wednesday...........

So what are you up to today?

Yesterday I decided that today our schooling would be fishing/mowing at the lake :::snort:::

It is just too beautiful to pass up! Sunny skies and temps near 80*. We did have to leave early though so Jordan could be to work on time.

I think we may go back up tomorrow afternoon. Jordan gets off work at 3. The other two can do lots and lots of school until then, we'll get Jordan and buzz up to the lake!

We've got to take advantage of this wonderful weather while we can! Before you know it, the snow will be flying!!!!

A great big thank you to my GRAMMA :), My sister, and my mother-in-law for making our awesome weekend last weekend possible!!

These wonderful people stayed with and/or kept the boys so Doug and I could go to the lake.

Gramma taxi'd Jordan to and from work, took care of the animals and make sure my house was nice and clean when I got home :)

THANK YOU SO MUCH!

It was Shock and Awe at my house last night..........

.........so I'm sitting in the living room with 15 ladies at my PC party. Well, some of them had gone home already. We were eating. (That salad was SO good!!)

Anyway.......I hear this big, booming voice in the dining room saying, "Honey, I'm home!!!" It was DOUG!!!!

I just sad that, dumbfounded, and totally shocked that he was home! I said something like....what are you doing here? At first I thought...did he lose his job?? What happened?

And then I realized he was just starting near here tomorrow and made it home. I was never so surprised in my entire life!!! It was SO wonderful to have him here in the middle of the week.

His mom knew he was coming. He told her, "Man, I get to come home and Kel is going to have a houseful of women." Everybody but the consultant left by 9:30 though.

He walked outside to surprise the boys. They were sitting in the back with their friends having a fire.

Allen was thrilled that he was home!

Isaac said....hey daddy-o! Nice to see ya.

Jordan said....Dad, it's not Friday yet! What are you doing here! Talk about feeling loved

So, I just had to share my exciting news He's gone again already though.......but how sweet to have him home during the week!

I made a quadruple bath of this bread today. My house smelled divine!!! It is SO good!!! I got the recipe from allrecipes.com, but changed it so much that I'll just post my tweaked version. It would be SO good with all WW flour and I'm sure a more natural sweetener would work too. I just can't get used to sucanat and wasn't sure how honey would work. De'Etta, you can let me know if you tweak it further :)

Apple Walnut Bread

1 c. white flour
1 c. soft wheat (It would be great ALL soft wheat IMO)
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. cinnamon, or more
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 c. chopped walnut (I think 3/4 c. would be yummy and so would pecans)
1/4 c. butter, softened
1/4 c. applesauce, unsweetened
1/2 c. white sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla (oops, out of this, but it was good anyway)
1 1/2 c. apples, cored and chopped (I left the peels on)

Preheat oven to 350*. Spray loaf pan with oil.

Mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, spices and nuts.

Beat butter, sugars and 1 egg until smooth. Beat in additional egg. Stir in applesauce and vanilla.

Dump in dry ingredients and mix until moistened. Stir in apple.

Scoop (it will be very thick) batter into loaf pan. Bake for 55-60 min. until tests done.

YIELD: 1 loaf
There are 36 WW points in this WITHOUT the nuts. I can't remember how to count nuts so I can't think of it off the top of my head :::snort:::

Pampered Chef Anyone???

I'm having a Pampered Chef party tonight. My consultant is making a yummy looking jerk chicken salad with grilled pineapple. I'm also serving:

~Bread with flavored dipping oil
~Apple walnut bread
~Veggies and dip and pretzels
~Cider
~Coffee
~Lemon water

I wish ya'll could come!!

If you'd like to order any Pampered Chef, you can do so here:
www.pamperedchef.biz/ohio
When you click the order products button in the lower left hand corner, it will take you to a page asking for my first/last name (I'll email that to you) and then you can order on my party with direct shipping. If you have no interest.....just ignore me :::snort:::

Marvelous Monday (a Tuesday morning review)

We're having a great start to week 3! I think we *may* be getting into a groove. We'll see how the week progresses lol.

Doug was still home when we got up yesterday. He left about 11. It was nice having him home for 4 whole days! This week is draging though since he left............

What did we do??

~Got up and started laundry
~Kids got up and did chores
~Made breakfast (egg and cheese burritos)
~Cleaned up kitchen
~Doug and Jordan fixed a guitar and ran us late starting school lol
~Started school
~Got myself together
~Ran to the grocery store while the kids schooled
~Got Doug off to work
~Made dinner (really easy leftover chili and made cornbread)
~Quiet time
~More school and correcting schoolwork
~Took Jordan to work
~Made 4 loaves apple walnut bread
~Made dip
~Cut up veggies (PC party tonight)
~Made phone calls......a LOT of them
~Cleaned kitchen
~Finished up laundry (6 loads, all washed, dried and folded and mine put away \o/)
~Picked Jordan up from work
~Dusted/swept my bedroom
~Dusted living room and dining room
~Relaxed in a bubble bath
~Played Scrabble online

I was exhausted when I went to bed. But I am pleased that the food prep and house cleaning are done for the party tonight :)

We had an absolutely fabulous time at the lake this weekend!

Friday the weather was gorgeous with temps near 80* and sunshine!! We left the house about 10:30, went to the apple orchard (I do love that part of fall ), stopped for lunch, picked up some movies from the video store and stopped at the grocery store on the way to the cottage.

We got all settled and went out on the boat. We were the only boat out there! Oh how lovely So we took a ride, turned off the motor and just cuddled and enjoyed the peace, quiet and solitude! Then Doug fished for a bit and I knit.

When we came in, we ordered some dinner and watched a movie and then Doug watched the baseball game.

Saturday was FREEZING! High of 53* I think. We forgot to close the windows :::oopsie::: We slept in, and then Doug built a fire in the fireplace and we snuggled under quilts and stayed in our jammies watching movies. We took a walk. We enjoyed the benefits of being without children. We watched movies. We just relaxed. Doug watched baseball agian lol. I could have done without so many sporting events. But he rarely gets to watch baseball and football in the truck. So I knit or played Scrabulous or something.

We slept in again on Sunday. Well, I did. Doug gets up much earlier than I do. We had donuts for breakfast. We just did nothing. Cleaned up and come home about 3:30.

My niece had a bday party so we went to that and got our kids. Came home and did all the Sunday night things...get Doug's food ready, mop kitchen floor, scrub bathroom. The boys played video games and then we all went to bed. Weekends are just too dang SHORT!!!

So it was very relaxing to just be alone and together. It's strange that in a few years, our kids will be all grown and we can do that whenever. At least it's fun to think about :)

Woo Hoo \o/

Doug and I are going to the lake this weekend...........alone :) I'll be back on Monday.

New Template

Mom switched her template, so I thought I would too :::snort:::

I like it. It seems so soothing......

What do you think????

Banana Walnut Pancakes

2 large ripe bananas, peeled and slice
1 T sugar (or whatever sweetener you use)
1 c. soft white whole wheat flour (or all purpose if you don't do WW)
1/2 c. rolled oats
1T baking powder
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon and nutmet
1/4 tsp. sea salt (or salt)
1 c. fat-free milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 T vegetable oil
1/2 - 1c. chopped walnuts (the recipe calls to add nuts to the top. I like them stirred in. Did NOT calculate WW points with nuts lol)
Warm syrup

Slice bananas and sprinkle with sugar. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt; mix well. Combine milk, egg and oil; add to dry incredients. Stir in sugar/bananas and walnuts. Do not overmix.

Drop by 1/4 cupfulls onto hot griddle. Cook until bubbly, turn and finish cooking.

YIELD: 6 servings
1 serving = 4 WW points without syrup OR nuts! I

Personality Painting

I found this quick little test on my Mom's blog. I like Mom's much better LOL.......

Go HERE to make your own personality painting.

You have GOT to watch this Mom video on YouTube!!!

Absolutely Hillarious Mom Video

Take the 100 Acre Wood Personality Test

I found this cute little test at De'Etta's blog. Thanks for posting it De'Etta, it was cute and fun.

It definately describes me as of late :::snort:::

So it's Tuesday, eh?

I was able to go meet my internet friend yesterday. I had a lovely lunch with her, her husband and her 3 sons. I wish I had taken Isaac and Allen, but they were apprehensive about having to endure strangers :::snort:::

Today we're on day 4 of school. Still not going wonderfully! The boys are working hard, but it seems to be taking forever! I wish I knew how to make the correcting easier. I am exhausted by the time we get to correcting. What I normally do is sit with each child and go over all their work with them. That takes a LONG time with 3 boys doing different things, kwim? Especially when one of them needs a lot of help because he has neglected to read his assignment book and actually do what he was told to do :::groan:::

Jordan asked for homemade mac & cheese, so we had that for dinner/lunch.

Now they are heading up for quiet time. I'm hoping after quiet time I am able to get 2 out of 3 boys' work corrected.

I have a 3pm massage/torture session :::snort::: Then I'll come home and finish correcting, finish laundry, put my feet up with ice on my back and knit a while!

I am not so sure how I'm going to survive the school year with Doug's work schedule. I am exhausted! I am lonely! This is just plain HARD!!

A bright spot is Mom just called and asked me to go to lunch with her and my sister tomorrow :) I'll toss PB&J at the kids and I'm outta here!!!!!

Weekend Review

Friday~
Doug got home in time for dinner!! He ordered pizza, lectured children that had been giving me fits all day, sent 2 of said boys out to the garage for physical work to let off testosterone driven steam!

Friday evening Isaac went to a friend's for the night. Jordan was reading in his room to "get away from us", and Doug, Allen and I played cards. Jordan did come down and watch Monk with us.

We pretty much sat around the house all evening and tried to regroup from our exhausting day.

Saturday~
Bowling started Saturday. So Doug and the boys headed to the bowling alley. I sat in my jammies for a couple hours and played Scrabble at Scrabulous.com with some other SL'ers. I managed to get dressed and do the hair/make-up thing before they got home from bowling.

Jordan had to work.

The rest of us headed to the lake to visit with my Dad and Cay, Uncle and his girlfriend. I sat on the deck and knit with Cay. Had a late lunch there and headed home.

The church was having a youth concert that evening, so we dropped the boys there and headed out dancing. We had a great time dancing and stayed out too late! But it was so fun and I needed that so badly.

Sunday~
Got up this morning and saw that it had rained all night and was going to continue raining all day. Our church had a festival this morning, so they moved most of it indoors. So we had church and then stayed for a pasta/meatball dinner and the festival.

They had a dunking booth. My BIL was the first person slotted to be dunked. Allen was excited! He wanted to dunk Uncle Mikel. So he was first in line and on the FIRST throw, in when Mikel! I wish I had a picture of that! Doug decided to dunk him also. He paid for 3 balls and missed. Pastor Joe said, "I'll buy you 3 more Doug. You have to dunk him!" And he did! It was all in good fun :::snort::: Alex (Mikel's son 8) missed both times, but Mitchel (other son 6) got him the 2nd try. Alli (daughter soon to be 5) wouldn't even try to dunk her daddy :)

My back was starting to hurt, so after the dunking of Uncle Mikel, Doug brought me home. I iced my back and took a nap.

Doug ran to Sam's Club, picked up the boys and went to the grocery store. While I was sleeping, he also cut all his fruit and got all his food together for the week AND put the towels in the dryer, then folded and put them away. I got up at 6 LOL.

We hung out tonight. Doug, Allen and I played cards again. Jordan used the computer. Isaac played some video games.

Tomorrow I and A have ortho appts. in the morning and I am supposed to go to Grove City and meet an internet friend for the first time. Not sure if that will happen with Jordan needing to get to work. I will be SO glad when he gets his driver's license!

How was your weekend?

I like to have breakfast things on hand in the freezer. I browsed through the Sam's Club frozen breakfast aisle and was shocked at all the things they sell for a HUGE price! And so full of junky stuff. So I make my own. You can make them with whatever you like, mix and match!

Bacon, Egg and Cheese English Muffins

6 English muffins (I use Thomas whole grain)
6 eggs
6 slices bacon
6 slices cheddar or processed American cheese (De'Etta, don't look at that LOL)

Toast English muffins. Cook bacon. Cook eggs. I crack them on the griddle, kinda smash the yolk and add salt & pepper. After flipping eggs, place cheese to melt.

Assemble sandwiches with egg/cheese and bacon on top.

I put them in individual sandwich bags and then put them in a large freezer bag.

If you use 1 egg, 1 slice reg. American cheese and 1 slice bacon, this is 7 WW points!

To reheat, wrap in foil and bake at 350* for 15-20 min. (or longer in my toaster oven lol) or microwave. Some of mine like them baked so they are crispy and some like them microwaved, but they are soggier.

I made 24 of these. Instead of toasting the muffins 3 at a time in the toaster oven, I put them on a cookie sheet and baked them at 375* for about 7 minutes until they started to toast.

Here you go Mel :)

Italian Stuffed Peppers

2 lb. ground beef (I use the leanest I can find)
1 c. cooked rice (I use brown)
1-2 minced garlic cloves
1 T dried basil (I don't measure spices, I just dump them in)
5 large bell peppers
1 T dried parsley
1/2 c. milk (I use fat free)
Romano cheese (2-3 big handfuls) (can use Parmesan)
bread crumbs (I use whole wheat) as needed
salt & pepper

Cut pepper in half and take out ribs and seeds.

Combine meat, cooked rice, garlic, basil, parlsey, milk, Romano cheese, salt and pepper. Add bread crumbs until the consistency of meatballs or meatloaf. Divide into 10 portions.

Roll each portion of meat into a ball and smush 1 ball into 1 pepper half. At this point you can put them in ziplock freezer baggies and freeze.

Or to cook, place them in a baking stone (or whatever pan you bake in), pour spaghetti sauce (I use homemade usually) over top, cover and bake at 350* The meat is done in about 45 min. to 1 hour. I bake them on 300* for the afternoon. I like my peppers to be very soft.

1 pepper half = 4 WW points

Blogs I read....

I'd like to make a section in my sidebar and link to blogs I read. Do any of you have a problem with me linking to your blog?