Happy Birthday D-Man!

I cannot believe it has been 2 years now. Decker is growing like a weed. He is by far our most adventurous child. He climbs on everything and jumps off, he never wants to come inside the house, and he is always naked. At 2, he has endured more accidents than his three older brothers combined. He loves to talk and sing.

This year he is beginning to start having his own interest. He loves Blue's Clues because that is what is on during our morning insanity. Unfortunately this is an older show and finding toys or gifts with this character are almost impossible. Lucky for him, mom found a cake pan and greatest hits movie on Amazon.

All I have is a picture of the cake from my mom's phone!

Valentine's Week at Preschool

This week is always fun at preschool because we have parties, chocolate, and tell each other how much we love them. Here is a tiny taste of what is happening in my classroom:

We are gluing foil to Hershey kiss cut-outs in honor of our chocolate day!

 I made an impromptu chocolate play dough. 1 3/4 cups flour, 1 cup salt, 1/4 cup cocoa powder, 2 cups water, 2 tsp cream of tarter and 4 tbsp vegetable oil. Cook until it doesn't stick to the pan. Smells great! The picture doesn't do it justice. All I had was my iPhone. It looks more like a tootsie roll consistency.

My touch table is filled with white beans, large foam stress ball hearts, cups for scooping, and candy boxes to pour the beans into. It is very eye-catching.

We are reading:

Happy Valentine's Day Mouse by: Laura Numeroff

Roses are Pink Your Feet Really Stink by: Diane de Groat

The Biggest Valentine Ever by: Steven Kroll

My Songs are:

(sung to Mary had a little lamb)

Won't you be my valentine,

valentine, valentine?

Won't you be my valentine,

I love you!

Yes I'll be your valentine,

valentine, valentine.

Yes I'll be your valentine,

I love you!

There's a Little Wheel a Turning in my Heart by: The Lauri Berkner Band

Extreme Art

While I love for my boys to be creative and artistic, sometimes they can take it to the next level. Last night while brushing their teeth, our 4 year old "painted" the mirror. I guess I could make a big deal about it, but it is Monday morning so not worth the effort!

New Beginnings

Today was a phenomenal day for my family. We finally joined a church and I feel a huge weight lifted off my chest. There has been several years where B had such a hard time being in church with the crowds and music, that we avoided it altogether. I have had few years of going alone with just the boys, a few years of visiting churches, and a few years of going when A was a baby. Today I feel complete and full. It is the first time in a long time that I don't feel a burden on my shoulders.

One thing I am still finding hard to cope with is the struggle every Sunday morning to get out the door. Church is later than school is and should not be stressful. We have been going to the same church for 4 months and I find myself so frazzled before we get there. Of course, once we are there and here Pastor, I feel a million times better, and have no regrets. I am thinking that I need to lay out clothes the night before like I do for school days as well as iron them. I also need to check Pinterest for easy overnight breakfast recipes.

What is Up With My Blogging?

As I was reading a post by Lisa Murphy (aka The Ooey Gooey Lady), I thought about my own blog. I thought about how it is a bunch of crazy ramblings. I thought about how there is really no particular topic that I stick with. Coupon blogs are a dime a dozen, early childhood blogs are here and there, and the amount of mommy blogs is off the charts.

To separate any of the items on my blog and just focus on one, just would not be me. I am here and there in my real life. I am a mommy, a wife, a sister, a daughter, an aunt, a teacher, a foodie, an extreme crafter, couponer,  and organizer. To focus on one topic would only make me have 20 different blogs and burn me out. My life is a hectic mess of goals, projects, and must-do lists.

The realization is this, I love to take care of my family. I am always down to make a good meal. I thrive in an early childhood classroom. Crafting is an obsession and makes me jump from project to project. Finally, my boys are my life and they dictate the majority of my time. I love that I am able to log family events and important ideas when I can. Hopefully I will become better and possibly benefit other moms in my position.

Italian Wedding Cake=Bliss

I just polished off the last left of my Italian wedding cake. It is my absolute favorite and easily the best cake I have ever made. I will use this recipe over and over again!

Italian Wedding Cake

2 c. sugar
1 stick butter
1/2 c. shortening
5 egg yolks
1 tsp. soda in 1 c. buttermilk
2 c. flour
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. chopped pecans
1 c. angel coconut
5 egg whites, beaten

 

Cream sugar, shortening and butter. Add egg yolks; mix well. Add buttermilk; add flour and vanilla. Beat well. Fold in pecans, coconut and whites. Bake in 9x13-inch greased pan at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

 

Frosting

1 stick butter
8 oz. cream cheese
1 box powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. chopped nuts

 

Combine butter and cream cheese. Add sugar, vanilla and nuts.

 

Another Goal Accomplished!