Weather Related Crafts and Activities

**I wrote this last week but just now added pictures and posted it!  Oops!**

J and I have been talking about weather this week.  On Monday, we began recording the weather on a chart. 

Unfortunately for J, the weather has been the same every day. He colors in the cloudy box even if he sees just one cloud in the sky!
We made "rain" using a jar and ice. We filled a dry mason jar with ice and put the lid on. We left it alone for a couple of hours. When the ice melts it cause condensation on the outside of the jar. I didn't get any pictures but J had fun shaking the "rain" off of the jar. 
We made a cloud using cotton balls. J made a design with glue then added the cotton balls. He says this is a dragon.
He cut a kite out of constuction paper. He had me cut out the bows and we taped all the pieces to a string. We pretended to fly it for a while. I'm hoping the weather will be nice this weekend and we can fly a kite with Blake.

Sunday Sampler on Monday

Saturday morning, I tried a new recipe and it was wonderful!  Cocoa buttermilk biscuits with brown sugar cinnamon butter were just what we needed for breakfast.  Who doesn't love chocolate for breakfast...lunch...dinner...snacks!?!?  One of my favorite breakfasts as a child (and as an adult!) was chocolate toast.  Granny made it for us when we would visit at breakfast time, and I make it for my kids now.  Actually, we have chocolate for breakfast most Saturday mornings!  Chocolate gravy, chocolate milk, and chocolate chip pancakes find their way to our breakfast table (and sometimes dinner) quite often!  So I was all for a new chocolate breakfast recipe to add to the rotation!  Try it...you won't regret it!


How to Make Chocolate Toast

Spread butter on two pieces of white bread.  Be generous with the butter.  Use only real butter and white bread.  It's chocolate toast!  Why would you even try to make this good for you with margarine and wheat bread?  And, actually, margarine isn't good for you anyway but I won't go into that!
Combine 4 teaspoons sugar and 1 teaspoon cocoa in a shaker.  I have an old salt shaker.  We keep a cocoa and sugar mix all of the time.  You can make as much as you want just remember 4 parts sugar to 1 part cocoa.  (Actually, this is the ratio Mom likes.  If you like a richer cocoa taste, 3 to 1 is good too!)
Sprinkle cocoa mixture evenly over buttered bread.  Not too thick but you want all of the butter covered.  Toast in a toaster oven or under a broiler until the butter has saturated the cocoa mixture and it is beginning to bubble.  Remove from oven and serve with a tall glass of cold chocolate milk or orange juice.  No other drink pairs better with chocolate toast! 

Spring at Dusk

The weather has been so nice this week and we are finally adjusting to the time change.  We have been leaving the kitchen table a mess to enjoy the last hour of daylight each night after dinner.  J rides his bike while the rest of us walk and chase K or push her stroller.  Tonight we played in the front yard for a bit before baths.  K is just now big enough for the little coupe.  She still can't make it move but she had fun climbing in and out and honking the horn. 

It's so nice to relax together at the end of each day.  Blake and I can catch up on conversation and watch our children laugh and play.  J notices the moon growing brighter as the sunlight fades away.  The colors of the sky, the drop in temperature, and the whispering of the leaves in the trees make us grateful for the beauty in which God has surrounded us.  The changing of seasons are my favorite times of year. 


Does the eagle mount up at your command,
And make its nest on high?
Job 39:27 NKJV

Fun Day for Big and Small

"I'm going to spend the day with my very best friends!"  That's what J said about our plans for the day.  And he did get to spend the day with two of them.  I did too!  Brandie and I gathered our chicks and went to Amanda's for lunch, visiting, and playtime for the littles.  It was GREAT!  We haven't seen Brandie and little W since the fall and it was wonderful to catch up.  K got to play with W who is only a few months older than her.  Baby J rolled on the floor and relaxed while we chatted and made plans for future gatherings.  The bigger boys played outside and had the best time.  I love that we can let them roam, run, and pretend without worry.  They get along so well!  I hope that the little ones will be good friends too.  I love that I can call these girls my friends and have been able to for what seems like a very long time.  What a perfect way to spend the day!

Going hunting

K really wanted that toy but was nice enough not to take it away from Baby J

Building bridges

This is after a hard day of playing!  Can you tell they are tired?  Little W stopped crying as soon as I was done.

Amanda's two oldest and J.  They are 5, 4, and 2 years old. 

"There comes a time in every rightly constructed boy's life that he has a raging desire to go somewhere and dig for hidden treasure."  ~Mark Twain

Little Dippers

J has always loved dipping his food--in ketchup, ranch dressing (or white dip, as he calls it), chocolate sauce, or waffle syrup.  He has recently taken to mixing his dips.  Ranch dressing and ketchup anyone!?!? 
Apparantly K has noticed and doesn't want to be left out.  Tonight we had pizza and she kept pointing at the table.  I had offered bites, drink, bites off of my plate, and my drink but she didn't want any of it.  She wanted the ranch!  I gave her some and she knew just what to do.  She has had it before but never on her own.  She even dipped her strawberries in the ranch!  J used to dip his grapes in ketchup.  I don't know which is worse! 
She eventually dipped her whole hand in the ranch and licked them.  One day we might teach the girl some table manners.  Until then, happy dipping!!

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 6:23 NKJV

Sunday Sampler

I didn't do much cooking last week because we weren't home but Friday I made a ton of sweets!  Homemade lemon cooler cookies (Mom and Jules LOVED these), graham cracker s'mores cookies (Seth and Luke said this was the best s'mores recipe I've tried), and payday cookie bars (Luke's favorite).  They were all delicious!  You can also find the recipe I used for frozen hot chocolate HERE. 

I thought I would share my recipe for orange julius.  My mom says she used to get these at the mall when I was a baby.  There aren't any Orange Julius/DQ's around here but I love finding them when we travel!  Mom made these for us when we were younger and they were such a treat.  Enjoy!

Orange Julius

From Jill's kitchen

1/3 cup frozen orange juice concentrate

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

5 cubes of ice (about 2/3 cup crushed ice)

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Pour in a glass and drink!  Yum!

You could use more/less orange juice and/or ice.  Depends on how intense the flavor and how icy you like it.  This recipe is just right for me!

Hunger Games

So, how many of you went to see The Hunger Games movie this weekend?  I got to go with some friends and it was SO MUCH FUN!!!!  I know I'm regressing.  I'm thirty years old, reading books written for 13 year olds and going to see movies about said books.  Not only that but if I had a 2013 calender, the date would be marked for the next movie!  I won't even mention the t-shirt I bought and the braid I wore in my hair today! 
After reading THIS, I was inspired to create some refreshments for our little movie road trip.  It takes about an hour to get to the nearest theater so what would be better than some hunger games themed snacks?!? 

Before the movie, we had chocolate oatmeal cookies in white paper sacks and frozen hot chocolate with fresh whipping cream.  In the book, Peeta's father brings Katniss cookies in a white paper bag.  On the train to Panem, Katniss and Peeta are introduced to hot chocolate.  I used the printables HERE for the tags on the sacks and the straw flags.  I added "Mellark's Bakery" to the tags.  

   

During the movie--yes, we snuck snacks into the theater--we had trail mix.  In the book, Katniss eats dried fruit from another tribute's backpack and she finds nuts and berries to eat as well.  Our trail mix had glazed almonds and blueberry infused cranberries.  YUM!

After the movie, we had "Nightlock Cobbler."  I baked blackberry cobbler in jars and used the same printables as tags.  If you haven't read the book or seen the movie, you should.  Or you'll never know how important Nightlock is!  We also had orange juliuses but I forgot to take a picture.  Remember on the train ride to Panem, Katniss has orange juice for the first time.

I think themed snacks for movie night is going to become a tradition!  And matching t-shirts too!


May the odds be ever in your favor.

Stocking the Pond

This morning, Dad and Luke bought several hundred tiny catfish and brim to stock one of our ponds.  J was so excited, it was all he could talk about last night! 
They picked him up so he could help let them go.  After all of the fish were in the pond, he got to feed them.  He has plans to feed them every day so they will grow. 

He has had the best time the last couple of days with Papaw, Seth, and Luke.  He has been completely exhausted from running and playing and working outside.  But loving every minute of it!



"The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of what is elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope."   ~John Buchan

We're Back!

After three nights away from home, we are all very happy to be back.  The kids have checked out all their toys and let them all know they are home!  J was glad to see his rooms haven't changed and both little ones are sleeping soundly in their own beds. 
Of course, they had a wonderful time with Mimi and Poppy.  Although it rained during most of our trip, J found ways to stay busy.  K wasn't too far away either.

J playing the Wii

K taking the picture frames off of the shelves

Making an I Spy bottle with Mimi

Trying on Mimi's wedding dress...It didn't fit cousin R so I put in on him.  He was telling me to take it off in between fits of laughter!

K got locked out of the bedroom and she was mad!

Now we get to spend the rest of the weekend with Luke before he heads back to school.  J is pretty excited about that!



The voice of my beloved! Behold, he comes leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills.   ~Song of Solomon 2:8 NKJV

Out of Town

We are away visiting Mimi and Poppy this week so I don't know how much I will be posting.  Have a great week!  If it's your spring break, have a wonderful week off. 

I love these sweet curls...

...and this precious milk drinking boy!