2.  While clearing the table for me yesterday the kids spilled soup all over the table and chair, dumped a  drink all over the floor and dirtied 7 or 8 dish towels ‘cleaning’ it up.  Remind me why I have them help.  (Of course, I suppose they could do things like that on purpose, huh?)

3.  One good thing about the cold weather, the snakes living under our back porch are hibernating and haven’t greeted me at the back step in two weeks.

 It took all of about 9 years, but I’ve finally grown wise to theme cakes…forget the special shapes.  Really, does my kid need a cake in the shape of a pony, and then we chop the head or leg off…kinda scary.

So now we opt for regular shaped cakes decorated with simple toys in the theme.  And not one to spend extra money, the kids understand that the toys on their cake are part of their present. 

This year Jarod got 5 new hot wheels cars and Makenna got 2 new ponies and a pegasus to add to her horse collection, and I finished their cakes in half the time.

You may remember our Candyland playing, stock watching chicken, Chirp, whose mom tried to ‘get rid of him’ shortly after he hatched.

He’s doing fine and after spending the first 10 weeks of his life in the house he is adjusting to life outside with, of all things, chickens.

He still likes to follow us around, and he stands at the back door to come in when he’s out of the coop, but he has made a chicken friend.

And in case of terrible rain like we had recently,  Alexandra guilts me into bringing him inside to hang out in the garage with the rabbits till the storm passes.

The other chickens are jealous.

Lessons from my son.  How not to  pack for a trip.

1.  Empty all clothes drawers onto the floor.

2.  Read a Book

3.  Act surprised when someone tells you to clean it up.

File under ‘Things to do in my spare time’.  Feed and care for a baby squirrel…make that a paralyzed baby squirrel.

Would it not have been for the fact that my cousin introduced this adorable little thing to my three kids, I would have let nature run it’s course.  However, that was not possible when my kids were about to burst into tears.

“He won’t survive even if we try to help him,” I said.

“But you didn’t think Nibbles would live either, and he’s two now,” was the response from the twins.  

Nibbles is a bunny who was the only one of his three siblings to survive a run in with our riding mower.  You can see his story here.

So I lost the battle and am now caring for the squirrel, who I adamantly refuse to name for fear he won’t make it.  Yet he seems to be flourshing, as evidenced by the way he tries to attack me every time I go to feed him.

Which has now led to the question, if he continues to thrive, what do you do with a paralyzed squirrel who  obviously can’t be put back in the wild?

Anyone know a good wildlife rehabilitator in Eastern Pennsylvania who would be willing to take on a squirrel for it’s lifetime?

Sometimes I get so stressed trying to find things to occupy the kids that I forget the basics.

Like watercolors.

Over an hour a peace and quiet.

They’re cheap, they clean up pretty easily as long as you have down a weeks worth of newspaper, and old clothes (or in Alex’s case, no clothes), and the resulting artwork is generally quite pleasing, if you keep them away from black and browns.

How do I forget these things.

I know, summer is coming to a close already, but pretty darn hot around here, so I thought I’d share a snack we reach for all the time to cool off.

Frozen bananas are a healthy alternative to all those freeze pops that invade the stores in the hot months.  And don’t worry if you’re not a big banana fan, they have a somewhat different, much creamier taste when frozen.

Just grab a bunch of bananas.  Peel them.  Cut them in half and put a wooden stick in the end.

For easy clean up.  We place a piece of plastic wrap on a large plate and then lay the bananas towards the center and cover with another piece of plastic.

The wooden sticks can be found at any craft store for about five dollars (make sure to use the 40% off coupon), and you’ll have 1000 to last for summers to come.

For a special treat, dip them in chocolate and roll them in coconut or crushed candies before eating.

For more frozen bananas check out Neverhomemaker and Choosing Raw.

Matthew 12:34

Just look at Chirp checking out stock prices.

and the Lord counted him as righteous because of his faith.

Genesis 15:6