Learning time?

Summer at our house is pretty great. 

But, our kids might argue that point with you.  Each day they are required to do 4 pages in their workbook, reading for at least 20 minutes, piano practicing, cleaning their rooms, and maybe 1 more chore.

In all, this might take about 1 hour. 

Not long.

I hear some interesting arguments about why this is completely unfair.  Summer, they tell me, is all about playing video games, swimming, and playing with friends. 

Yet, I am steadfast and immovable. I am momzilla. And, my kids' brains will not turn to mush on my watch.

Plus, isn't it fun to see how smart kids are?  I love watching their brains work away.  

LOVE IT!

Father's Day

Alright, I know Father's Day was long ago.  You can hardly remember it now, it was SOOOO long ago.  I had to share what we did, since it was fun, cute, and tasty.

For activity days I had the girls make these hamburgers and fries, idea from bakerella.

It was a pretty fun activity. Okay, it was a blast.  Messy, loud, filled with kids screaming (I mean politely asking) for more.  I had a lot of fun getting it together and ready, and it was even more fun cleaning it all up.

You may or may not know that Bj and I love to do something special for each other on Mother's Day and Father's Day.   This year I made him stuffed french toast.   It was heaven.  Sinful.  If heaven can be sinful.  

We also made him a scavenger hunt.  It was pretty fun.  He had a puzzle he had to put together for his first clue, a word jumble for his second clue, and another word puzzle for his third clue.  After figuring out each puzzle, the clue sent him to the location of a gift.  The kids loved it, and so did Dad, and I was happy the day went so well.

Here's the recipe (courtesy allrecipes.com)

Ingredients

• 8 fresh peaches
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 4 pinches ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 4 Mexican bolillo rolls
• 1 cup mascarpone cheese
• 6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
• 1 lemon, zested
• 6 eggs
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons butter, or as needed
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil, or as needed

Directions

1. Peel peaches, remove pits, and slice into a heavy saucepan, catching all the juices. Stir in sugar, nutmeg, and cinnamon, and cook over medium heat until bubbly. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the sauce reaches a syrupy consistency, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
2. Meanwhile, cut off and discard the ends of the bolillo rolls. Slice the rolls into 1 1/4-inch-thick slices. Lay each slice of bread on a board, and with a sharp knife held parallel to the board, cut a pocket into each slice, leaving three sides intact. Set aside.
3. Stir together the mascarpone, confectioners' sugar, and lemon zest until smooth. Scoop this mixture into a small plastic bag. Cut off one corner of the bag, and pipe as much filling into the pocket in each slice of bread as will fit without overflowing.
4. Whisk together the eggs, milk, and vanilla in a shallow bowl. Melt butter with oil over medium heat in a large nonstick skillet. Dip each stuffed piece of bread into the batter, add to the skillet, and cook until browned on both sides. Serve hot with the warm peach sauce.

13 seconds

What happens when you leave your shutter open for 13 seconds?  Some pretty whispy water fountain action.  I could go into photoshop and make this look cooler...but my life is not allowing that at this time.  Maybe in a few days I can share some of my other pics...  here's hoping.

Glorious

That is how I feel now, glorious.  The party has come and gone. I cleaned the house (again) this morning, and I am feeling calm.  I love the feeling after a big event has come.  

It went well.   People came, ate, talked, and enjoyed each other.  Kids played, ate, smeared chocolate on their faces, and made their tummies hurt with too many sweets.  

A complete success by all accounts.

And for my beloved family and friends who wished they could be here, but couldn't.....

pictures for YOU!

Can you tell I love babies?  Yum..  Parker looks pretty darn cute.

Heart Melting

Another update....and one to melt your heart.  I mean, can anyone look at a picture of a cute baby smiling without feeling little tugs on your heart?  I don't think so.

My little Noah is the best baby ever.  I love him like crazy, and I am enjoying every part of this experience.  I love watching him grow, and I mourn his growth at the same time.  This is my baby, my last baby, and I am surprisingly sad about him growing up.

What is Noah up to these days?  He is now 9 months, weighing in at a whopping 19 lbs....funniest part, he is in the 25th percentile. That is crazy, are all the babies in the world giants now?  He smiles whenever he sees mom, dad, maddie, mitch, or liz.  He absolutely has a love affair with food.  He is a fan. Table food is his favorite.  Mine too I might add.  He is generally a very happy pleasant baby.

I love to squish his growing chubby legs, and squeeze his cheeks. His slobbery kisses shower me all day long, and I adore every goo filled love I get.  He is starting to clap, throw balls, army crawl....and my very favorite?  He imitates my sneezing (yes, I suffer...enjoy, seasonal allergies).  He is cute.  SUPER CUTE.

And you know what the best part is?  

He is mine, all mine!

Busy, You?

Lazy Summer?

I keep thinking that life will slow down.  But it doesn't.  It gets busier, and crazier.  Yesterday I had a couple of goals to accomplish.  One of them was going to the Dr.  

Hmmm, forgot to do that.

Another was to grab a couple minutes to read.  That's what summer is about to me...a good book, and a little laziness.  I tried, I really did.  I kept saying, after I hurry and finish this.  After I clean up breakfast, get the laundry going, go get Liz's haircut, ....okay, after I go visiting teaching.  Now, after I feed the kids.  Okay, now after I do a favor for a friend.  Oh wait, more laundry.  

Ahhhhh, how many messes are there.  I will hurry and clean up this mess real quick, it's 4 but maybe I can grab 30 minutes.  Okay, I'll fold that load of laundry...ahhh, I should start dinner.  Okay, the dinner is ready, the table set, the mess is not too bad.  I'll sit down and read.

Ahhhh.....door opens, Bj's home, and that means it is dinner time.

Reading time did not come to me yesterday.  But I accomplished some, and sufficiently tired myself out. 

 Summer is kicking my can!

All this to say, my blog is .... lacking in material lately. So, instead of trying to catch up, I will throw you a picture of our days, and say whatever comes to my mind at the time.  I will have no guilt, no regrets, and the check will happily be checked off.

Book Release Party

You are all invited!!!!!

Tucson Morning Blend

The day came.  It is here. 

I was on the Tucson's Morning Blend this morning.  It was so much better than I thought it would be, and I didn't even choke (too much).

For all of you who don't live in Tucson, here's the link to the video.  I don't know how long they will have it on their website, so watch it while you can.

Quilt Raffle Update....are you the winner?

Anyone who donated to Great Strides, PLEASE READ.

The donations from my web page, went to the general fund at great strides.  I thought that no one had donated.  Then my mom said she donated, I kept checking the site, and it stated nothing.  I did track down her donation, but now I am concerned about all of YOU.

I don't have a record of who donated, and how much.  Last year when I did a similar thing, it worked swimmingly.  DRAT!

So, I hope the people who donated will send me an email, with their name and donation amount.  I sincerely want this quilt raffle to be fair, so please let me know!  I will be checking the amounts and names with Great Strides to insure correct accounting.

Thanks so much for bearing with me, and technical difficulties.

Set your DVR

I am going to be on the Morning Blend, KGUN 9.....Monday June 14.

Bj took his new job seriously (I named him my Marketing Director), and got me a spot on the morning show.  Gotta love a handsome bald Marketing Director/Biggest Fan.

By the way...yes, I am nervous.  

"well, excited and scared" (name that musical)......

To Love or Not to Love

What I LOVE:

This baby.  

Sweet.  Perfect.  Happy.

Hugs.

Slobbery Kisses.

What I don't LOVE:

To find a snake in my yard.

Then to find another one 2 minutes later.

To know that snakes are indeed able to enter my yard,

even with Snake Away.

I hate snakes because of this.

Liz doesn't hate snakes.

Weird!

Birthday Party #10

Birthday time at the Bisel house.  Maddie decided she wanted to celebrate her birthday early this year, and being the fabulous fun mom I am, I consented {plus, then I could get the planning and doing over with}.

This year, we had Maddie plan her birthday party. A pajama party, pillow fight, pizza, and movie is what she wanted.  Score!  Pretty easy stuff.  Lately, I have been enjoying the "not at home" birthday parties, they are easier, and end up less expensive in the end.  I digress.  We had a fabulous birthday party, the girls loved being wild, and staying up until 8 is so awesome!

As soon as the girls showed up at the house, they made these fun scrabble necklaces.  It was fun watching the girls pick out their designs...their designs matched their personalities!

PILLOW FIGHT!

PIZZA!

Watching the beloved Princess Bride.  We brought Madeline's mattress downstairs to jump on!

The treat bags.  Those are really pillowcases filled with yummy chocolates.   Look at milkandhoneydesigns very soon for a tutorial.