School Days, Texas and Twitter (yeah, you read that correctly...)

We all know I'm a slacker and don't ever get around to this thing. Ok, that said, I have a few updates.


1. Joseph is now in school... in KINDERGARTEN even!

      This has been a wonderful thing, except that he is being teased by the other kids for his love of hot pink, and his shoe laces, which are black with hot pink stars. Here's what it looks like all together:

I don't think it looks "Girly" at all! I think he looks just fine :) 
     Anyway, he's been getting teased relentlessly, and yet he still refuses to change them because he absolutely loves them. I'm not making him change them either. Yes, the teasing is something he could very easily avoid by switching them to the skull head ones we also bought, but I am REALLY proud of him for deciding he's NOT going to let peer pressure force him to do something that he doesn't want to do. I'm so glad that he has the confidence to just be who HE is despite being made fun of for wearing "girl" shoes. I know that while this is a very hard thing for him to go through, it is also the RIGHT thing. And not to completely toot my own horn, but I'm pretty proud of myself for, as one person put it, "raising a child who is comfortable enough with himself to go against the grain." 
    We're hoping that this will quickly pass, although two days ago, he ended up punching a girl in the face out of frustration. That he hit a girl actually upset him more than the teasing had. Anyway, we got that all worked out, and I don't think she'll be teasing him anymore, and I KNOW he won't be hitting any girls again either. That was very not so cool. 
     Aside from all the teasing, Joseph is actually really loving school. He's picking up reading really quick. We've been working with him a lot, and it's really starting to show! He's doing very well at mathematical concepts as well, and we've been working on social graces a bit more too. 
    All in all, it looks like it's going to be a good year for him.


2. We May Be Moving Back to Texas Sooner Rather Than Later!!!
       This is a very exciting thing for me, personally. We have been trying to move back for about 3 or 4 years now, and it just might be happening come Christmas break. The only drawback will be that it'll only be me, the kids and my mom at that point. Alex will move in with my dad and stay until a) he gets his degree, or b) my parents' house sells, whichever comes first. Even so, I AM SOOO EXCITED!!! I'm willing to do just about ANYTHING to get out of here! Ugh. 


3. I am a Twitterholic
       This last little bit of an update is really not important at all actually. I just really like twitter at the moment, and find myself thinking of little tweets all day long... Did I mention I am a twitterholic? Oh, I did. Ok... I mean seriously, I hashtag things in my head ALL FREAKiNG DAY! It's kinda fun actually. 
      Through twitter and all its addictiveness, I have met some truly wonderful people that I would have never even known existed. I guess it's a little pathetic that some of my favorite people on this earth are ones I've never officially met before, but eh, whatever, so be it. It's kinda crazy how you can just connect and drop into a conversation with such a mass amount of people. The best way I've heard it described is this: Twitter is for the people you WiSH you knew, Facebook is for the ones that you do know and wish you didn't at times, and Myspace is for the people that you forgot. So sad, so true, but in a funny kinda way. So, now for a shameless plug: If you have a twitter account, feel free to follow me too! @YoMama2005 <--- that's my handle. Drop a note, say hi, and let's be friends


I'm pretty sure that's about it. If I think of something else, I'll try and remember to come back and post it, but let's be honest here... that's probably not very likely :P 

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows part 2!

So Friday night my husband and I went on a double date with our freaking AWESOME neighbors, Brandon and Esther to see Harry Potter 7.2 :) Needless to say, WE LOVED IT!!! I totally died when I saw the glasses because they are freaking the CooLEST 3D glasses I've seen yet.

Aren't these totally awesome?! They're HARRY's Glasses!!! After we'd seen the movie we popped out the lenses so the kids can play with them... Ok, so I can. What can I say, I'm a dweeb.

So the movie was absolutely incredible. If you haven't seen the previous seven movies, I highly recommend you watch them and then go see this movie so you don't miss out on the epicness of this film.

I read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone for the first time during the summer of 2001, when I was 14 years old, almost 10 years ago to the day. I instantly fell in love. I remember it took me only a week to read through the first four books, and I couldn't wait to read more. I have been a loyal fan since, anxiously awaiting "The Next Big Thing" in the world JK Rowling created.

I saw the first Harry Potter movie in November of that year. I was thrilled! I was walking on air, and was totally content with the completeness of the submersion I had just experienced into the Wizarding World.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Part 2 is the epic conclusion of the movies inspired by the books. I was so EXCiTED! I was literally bouncing in my seats as we waited for the previews.

Then the previews were over and I heard the first familiar notes of Harry's theme song. I couldn't stop smiling! And all the while I kept thinking, No! No no no! This is the last one! Now what is there? And then it hit me. This isn't the END! This is just the end of MY chapter with Harry and his pals. I still have my children who are coming to that age where this genre is cool, and I can't WAIT to watch as they fall in love with this series as I have.

Potterheads are more than just fans of Harry. We're the family he doesn't even know he has. We've read as he's developed mentally and watched him grow up. Harry will always be a part of us, just waiting on the bookshelf to be rediscovered.

So, anyway, enough with the mushy stuff. Here's one more pic of us at the end of the night :) Super happy and ready for the next step in Potterness :D

HARRY POTTER!!!

Ok really, the post title says it all. TONIGHT THE LAST HARRY POTTER MOVIE COMES OUT!!!! AND I AM SOOOO GEEEEEEKING OUT! I literally can NOT sit still! I feel like I have ADD or something... Ritalin for the mom over here...

So, we're not actually seeing it tonight because we wanted to go on a double date with our friends, and one of them is a leader for the Young Women at church and happens to be (inconveniently) at girl's camp until tomorrow morning. BUT, we are going tomorrow evening. Which means that today has been spent mostly making Harry Potter related food items... such as the following:

Pumpkin Pasties

Cockroach Clusters

Owl Cookies

and of course, Butterbeer to fully bring on a sugar induced coma.


Whatever. I'm still saying it's good. And I'm still psyched. Probably more so now actually. Food always makes things for exciting right?

So, to my fellow Harry Potter fans, or Potterheads if you will, I wish you the happiest of weekends. Try not to cry too much as the credits start rolling and you think about how you've spent the last ten years waiting for this moment, and now that is gone, it's well, done. Oh dear... where are the tissues...?

Toasted Marshmallow S'more Bars = Absolute Deliciousness!

These are HEAVENLY. No really. It's really JUST like a S'more, only better. The crust is so buttery and delicious and everything is oh so melty and sticky and good! It's not a clean dessert, nor is it very healthy, but that's ok, just don't think about the zillion calories you're about to consume and try to simply enjoy it :) Oh, and did I mention that it's FREAKISHLY EASY to make? No? Oh, well, it is :)

Toasted Marshmallow S'more Bars

1 pkg sugar cookie mix (chocolate chip works too)

1 cup butter, melted

2-3 cups chocolate chips (doesn't really matter what kind. I like to use semi-sweet or dark)

3-4 cups marshmallows (again, doesn't really matter if they're big or small or swirled or whatever. I like the reg. small ones best tho.)

1 cup flaked coconut, optional

1 cup chopped nuts, optional

1. Preheat the oven to 350*F. Line a 13x9in pan with foil, leaving a little hanging over the ends. Combine cookie mix with melted butter. Press into foil lined pan. Bake for a bout 15-20 minutes, or until set and lightly browned. 
2. Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle with chocolate chips. Let sit for 3-5 minutes, until soft, and then spread across entire crust, reaching all edges and corners. Sprinkle with marshmallows, and nuts and coconut if desired.
3. Broil 6 inches from heat for 30 seconds to 2 minutes, or until marshmallows are toasty and brown. BE CAREFUL and keep an eye on these because the marshmallow do toast QUICKLY. Remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes. 
4. Using the overhanging foil, remove from pan. Cut into 4 rows by 6 rows. Serve warm with lots of napkins :)

            *To reheat, nuke 'em for about 15 seconds or until warm again.

I hope you all enjoy these as much as we do :) So easy and SoOooOoooo GOOD! Happy Sunday! :)

I'm a Slacker

So, I realize that I suck. I'm sorry. It's been almost a YEAR since I last did a post. I'll try and be better, but then again, like I already stated "I SUCK." 

So, in the last year, not too much has actually changed. My children are older, but still annoying at times, so that's the same. I'm older and still not down to pre-baby weight, so that's the same too. :) I suppose it could be worse.

My next few posts will probably be about the awesome things we've been making in the kitchen, simply because they're awesome, and I want to share :) So now you have been forewarned. Keep a look out for the yumminess heading your way!