Smores and Brownies TOGETHER!

So we may or may not have gotten ahead of ourselves when it comes to Summer.  Why I would ever do that is beyond me!  I get over excited at the changing of the seasons, and this was one of those times. Last weekend I had planned to roast marshmallows and make smores.  Mother nature decided to literally rain on our plans.  But I had already promised to make smores with the kids!!!  What's a mommy to do??

I looked in our pantry and saw a couple boxes of brownie mix, and a bag of mini marshmallows (we usually use those in hot coco) I had the chocolate bars and I had the grahm crackers........

I baked a batch of brownies, topped them with mini mellows, broken up grahm crackers, and Hershey's bars.  I tossed that beautiful pile of goodness into the oven under broil for about 3 minuets.  Depending on yoru oven, you don't want to burn the marshmellow's.

These are soooo addicting! And ya know what's worse, they are almost BETTER the second day! If you can save some that long. 

When it comes down to it, Mommy saved the day again!  Even mother nature cannot bring me down!!!

Cancer

Did you know that the American Cancer Society projects that about 22,280 new cases of ovarian cancer will be diagnosed and 15,500 women will die of ovarian cancer in the United States?  Did you know that the mortality rates for ovarian cancer have not improved in 40 years?  Did you know that she is the #1 killer of gynelocical cancers?  Did you know I had ovarian cancer?

It's true, and I don't like to speak of her often.  I figure, she came and visited, eventually realizing that I'm not good company so she left.  I refer to her and female in my head, that's the only time I speak of her.  My inner voice holds all my secrets.  All those nasty little things that you keep tucked deep inside of yourself.  That's where I keep her memory.

Today was a day where I am reminded of her.  Once, every so often the pain surfaces and I'm reminded again how strong she really is.  The migranes come with such force that I'm tucked in bed for a day with no light or sound.  Side effects I'm told to the high dose of Chemotherapy I endured. I'm not saying I would change things.  When your faced with death you will sell your soul to stay alive.

I've been in remission since September of 2009.  That is the technical term.  I don't feel her with me, but the memory is always there. 

Summer Bucket List 2012

WELCOME SUMMER 2012!!  The kids have been out of school for about 2 weeks now, and they could not be happier about it.  The last day of school for us fell in the middle of June, we usually spend the remaining month staying up late and sleeping in, having movie nights, and really enjoying the nice break that they deserve.

Because I work outside the home it is hard for me to enjoy summer with them as much as I would like. I have done the juggle of summer in the past and I have realized that organization is the key!  This year we decided to do something differant.  I have seen several of these "summer activitey" lists going around mom blogs and pinterest and decided to make one for our family as well.  We gave our "BIG CALENDER" in the kitchen a make over as well. 

This was so simple and fun to make!  We just went to the dollar store and bought a cheap-o plastic buckett.  I used scrapbook paper left over from Noah's birthday party invites, and taped that onto the buckett.  I cut up construction paper, and on each square I wrote down one of our activity's, folded it and placed it into the buckett. 

Check out what's inside.........

Glow Stick Swimming

Sand castle competition

Picnick in the park
Visit a new park
Go on a hike to the falls
Children's museum ++
Zoo++
Make stepping stones for the back yard
Backyard campout
Fishing
Movie night sleep over
Library ++
Sprinkler Course
Road trip, destination....ANYWHERE!
Scavanger hunt hiking trip
Mini Golf
Drive in Movie
Fishing (with magnets) in the kiddie pool!
Water balloon fight!
Wack a balloon fight!
Glow in the dark egg hunt!
Button Kids Bake off!
Tie-Dye Day!

Weekend Trip to Grandparents House!

Several of these are marked with ++ that means there is more than one of those in the buckett.  We have yearly passes to the Portland Children's Museum, the Portland Zoo, and we are members of the Library. Swimming and River trips are a give-in, these actvities above are to do something extra and out of the normal. 

How am I going to do all these fun actvities while I'm working? Easy Peasy.....ORGANIZATION!

Yes, our giant white board in the kitchen has gotten a facelift, and is now our big calender!  Each week we will jot down our actvities that we pick, I'll make sure that we have everything that we need for a summer full of fun!  Some things like "weekend trip to grandparents" and "sand castle competition" have to be planned.  (We don't live near my parents, and we don't have a sand box)

What are your summer fun plans?  Anything missing from my list that you think I should try?!  Let me know, I'm dying to hear!

Walking on the Sun

This weekend we made our first trip to the river for summer 2012!!  The water was to cold for wake boarding, but we got in some fun Cruise times, and the kids were able to get in a little Tube Time.  Unfortunately I seemed to have overlooked checking for expiration dates, and our sunblock was expired.  Every single one of us ended up with some pretty good burns. 

Here's the girls cozy on the couch watching TV with their Aloe soaked legs, and a popcorn snack.  Even burnt to a crisp they are still happy as can be!

Check out my favorite home remedies for sunburn relief over on the Being Mommy page.  What are some of your family remedies for these dreaded summer rituals? 

Summer Style!

Summer is nearly here, and I could not be more ready!  I think my summer staples are going to be maxi dresses, wedges, statement necklaces, and straw hats.  How do I stay in this years hottest styles and NOT break the bank? 

I love to keep up with style and fashion.  I'm always watching my favorite designers and looking for the same look for less.  I love to browse Nieman Marcus and ShopBop  to see some of my fave looks, then go shopping for the same looks for less. 

Check out some of my scores for this summer, and what I think will be hot for summer 2012 on the Style Page.

My Specialty

When it comes to baking, I have to be honest, I am not that great at it.  I am really working in becoming better, and this year started baking the kids' birthday cakes, and I'm trying to bake more and bring it into the office so I don't eat it all!  Plus that way I get a lot of feedback. One thing that I have always been able to make, and make well is Red Velvet Cupcakes!  They are my absolute favorite cupcake, I never get tired of the flavor, or making them.  I like to customize them for what I'm doing or the theme of the party if I know it. 

For my company's birthday we held a bake off, and these were brought, I didn't win but they were a huge hit! 

Get the recipe on the Yumm page.    What are your favorite cupcakes or your go-go bake-off-yummy?