Make A Meal

  It's a Make A Meal- Chili Extravaganza style!

Every once in a while we have what we like to call Chili Extravaganza.  Normally I'd let your imagination run wild right about here. But I won't.

You need to make some chili.  Recipe to follow...

Then you need corn bread muffins, corn chips, cheese, sour cream, and whatever else you want to extravaganza-ize with!

Chili

1 can pinto beans

1 can black beans

1 can kidney beans

1 can chili beans

1 small can tomato sauce

spices!

Put the pinto, kidney and black beans in a colander in the sink and rinse them!  Put 'em in a pot.  Add chili beans and tomato sauce.  Then add spices... salt, pepper, garlic powder, chili powder and anything else that sounds good.  Stir in all up and heat it through.  For added protein, because lots of beans may not be enough!, add some sour cream or plain Greek yogurt to the pot.

Put your chili in a bowl and add cheese, sour cream, corn chips and /or corn muffins.

Enjoy your chili extravaganza!

Backyard Activities

The weather has been beautiful!  The kids have been playing outside lots.  Isaac got out the empty soda cans and got some spelling practice in.  Yay!

Daniel took Sam to Lowe's where they invested in a new tarp.  Sam and Ruthie were hard at work making a treehouse of sorts.  They have many luxuries up there.

Chairs, art on the walls, a table.  The problem is the wood is rotting.  Hopefully the set doesn't fall apart while they're up there!

Make A Treat

Oh My Heck In A Hand Basket! 

It's Make A Treat!

And boy, have I got a treat for you. Our Stake's blog had a post with cakes made with alternative ingredients.  I call them "Secret Ingredients".  Bwaahaahaa.  I did a chocolate cake with 8 ounces of plain Greek yogurt.  I thought it tasted awesome.  My kids thought I'd added something sour as the Secret Ingredient.  Welll...

The second I tried was a white cake mix with a cream soda as the Secret Ingredient.

Cream Soda Cake

1 box white cake mix

1 can cream soda

Mix both ingredients together like you would a regular ingredient-ed cake mix.  Put it in a cake pan and bake as usual.

The kids loved the batter.  The cake tasted good.  Very cream soda-y.  But I think a can full of sugar going into an already sugared cake mix made for a sticky cake.  And a crumby cake.  It had the consistency of angel food cake.  Yum.  On the blog it was suggested you use diet soda.  I think I now understand why.  Sticky!  So the next cake I do I'll add diet soda.  But for now, the cream soda takes the cake!

Hair Faux Pas

This morning I was getting my hair done.  I sprayed the GEL into my hair.  You know, that little, clear bottle of hair GEL.  As I dried my hair, it was sticky and hard to brush through.  Good Gravy!  I was ready to go buy a new product.  Dumb GEL.

After running the straightener through my sticky icky hair, I reached for the hairspray.  You know, the taller, can't see through it bottle.  DUH!!  It was the same bottle I'd sprayed the GEL from.  Oh my sweet hair dumbbell moment.  I sprayed HAIRSPRAY in my wet hair instead of GEL! 

I think this hair-brained moment should take care of any further faux pas in my immediate future.

And my hair is like sticky cement today. 

Every Day Is A Spa Day... For My Toes!

Last Monday was the day.  The carpet guy came to our house!  He laid all the pad in the basement.

Red... Pretty!

I thought about leaving the pretty red forever.  But I was overruled.

Tuesday the carpet guy brought his grandson to help.  Here is half the basement with carpet ready to be permanent.  It smelled so good.

The grandson ripped out the living room carpet first thing Tuesday and put the new carpet in. 

Isn't it yummy?!

Tuesday night was our big move the furniture day.  Our bedroom ended up in the living room.  We even have our headboard.

Have you ever slept in your living room on your own bed with your headboard? 

It's weird. Trust me!

Much of the stuff from our room that didn't fit in the living room or bathroom, was put in the family room.  Ruthie's stuff was in the family room, too.  We lived in crowded confusion for a night and a day.

Wednesday the old and nasty and yucky and rotten and gross and and and carpet was ripped out.  15 years in the waiting.  The pad was gross and falling apart underneath it.

But Thursday morning and every day there after, we put our house back together.  The basement is a large playroom and we got out some game shelves and book shelves and a table for game playing.

Sam's blue room was a room taking shape.  He was so excited to finally have his own space to do whatever he wants.

Isaac's green room has been in set up mode for months.  He has posters on the walls and being able to put a real bed in was super exciting.

I have a living room.  Did you hear me??  I have a living room.  We still need a couch, a table, a floor lamp and to put the pictures on the walls, but that will come soon enough.  15 years has given me the patience of Job.  Well, not really, but close. 

We will be working on the boys' old room's walls and painting them for Ruthie to move in there.  Then I'll re-do her room and have an office/craft/sewing room!! Can I get a Hip Hip Hooray!

And can I just share how much I love love love my new carpet?  It's like a spa day for my toes.  Everyday!  It's like walking on butter.  Yummy butter.  Come on over and give your toes a spa day.  They'll love you forever.

What's The Matter?

 There was a little matter of a birthday.  Here's how it went:

My birthday, 43rd birthday if you must know, was a week away.  That day was filling with a load of stuff.  SEOP for Isaac, who will be in 9th grade next year, which is essentially high school.  Piano lessons, which eventually got cancelled due to a sick teacher.  Relief Society activity, which I was really looking forward to.  Amongst other things.

So I did what any busy and insane and totally normal 42 year old grown woman would do.  I changed my birthday.  Because I can.  So there.  So we celebrated my birthday officially on January 31.  Which I realize is a totally different month.  But who cares, really?  I certainly didn't. So there it was.

So I opened my gift, which was this totally awesome Samsung tablet, on which I am doing this very post.  I have a great case with a keyboard even.  It's so much fun.  I need to see about putting a picture on...

That evening, we all went to dinner at Chuckarama.  Because the choice is ours, you know.  We ate and ate and then came home and had some cake. So I was unofficially officially 43. And loving it!

Then on Wednesday, I got home mid morning and got on Facebook and saw all the birthday greetings and realized it was the real day.  Facebook wishes, texts, emails and door visits.  So I went to the store and got another cake.  hey!  More cake is good cake.

So there you have it.  I am 43 more than officially.  And it's gonna be a good one.