Happy Belated Birthday, to DEISHA!

For a few months I lost my momentum, so forgive me for playing a little bit of catch up. Deisha's first birthday was a smashing success!!!

There were Cheetos...

...and presents, and siblings...

...and very cool toys and sippy cups...

...and of course a Pooh Bear chocolate cake!

This wasn't your average Joe chocolate cake, this was a Hostess Cupcake. It's like a torte, four layers of cake and three layers of fluffy, white, delicious filling. It's the perfect celebratory dessert. Next time you come, I'll make you one. You'll love it.

Lol and Deish

These two spend quite a bit of time in the house while the other kids run the neighborhood. Because I do not entertain, they are forced to find ways to entertain themselves. Leila's favorite thing to do, besides drinking Kool-Aid, is walking the dogs. She loves to put Scooder on the leash and drag him around the house or the neighborhood if she can sneak him out. On this particular day, Scooder was tired of being dragged, so she disconnected his leash and hooked this one up to Deisha.

Initially she was a good sport, but come on. Have you met Deisha? She's fiercely independent and fought tooth and nail to break free. Scooder looked on with envy. He just doesn't have the fight in him.

Everybody Was Kenpo Fighting

Due to an unexpected turn of events, Micah opted out of football, so we took the plunge into Karate.

For almost two weeks, these boys fought and worked out and grappled in their gym shorts only dreaming of the day when they would have their own Gi to fight in.

If you've met my sons you know that they don't like to exercise the full range of their wardrobe at any time. They would be content to own two pair of shorts and two shirts and rotate between the two outfits every few days. You can imagine my surprise when they asked if they could sleep in, play in, and run around in their new get-ups.

I sternly impressed into their minds that these clothes are sacred, like most other things involved in karate. They could only wear them for karate-related events. They wear them with pride and fight hard and fight well.

The first time I watched them during a class, I got goosebumps. This is something I cannot explain and do not fully understand about myself. I love fighting. I don't like no-holds-barred brawling, but in a controlled environment, there's just something about it that revs my engine. It's good that I can't be there every night to watch because after each class I try to reason a way to get myself into a class... Maybe I should join a book club.

More on Bread Baking

I just want to throw in a few more little tidbits that might help your first attempt a little bit.

The temperature of the water needs to be just slightly warmer than you would make a baby's bottle.

After you stir the sugar and salt into the water, sprinkle the yeast in a single layer on the surface of the water, set the timer for 10 minutes, and walk away. Don't stir it or shake it or blow on it. Just walk away. The yeast will double. This how you *proof* the yeast. AFTER THAT add the oil.

This method takes a lot of flour. If you have less than a full bag a of flour, don't attempt it. You will end up using that bag of whole wheat flour that is sitting in the back of you cupboard and it is much more simple to do your first attempt with white flour. I'm not saying you can't, but you'll be happier during the kneading process if you stick with white.

During the first rise, cover it with a kitchen towel and walk away. My first batch took a long, long time to rise. It is all contingent on the weather, the yeast, the temperature of the water, the mood of the dough... You will know it has risen enough when you press two fingers into the top of the dough and it doesn't even attempt to mend itself.

If you have a lot of activity in your kitchen, you may want to tuck it inside the oven, away from movement and curious fingers. If it is cold in your house, you can turn the oven on to the lowest setting while you are preparing the dough, and then shut it off to allow for a warm place to rise.

When it is big enough, punch it down, divide the dough and put it in the pan. You can refrigerate or freeze the dough at the point, or cover it and let it rise again.

I bake mine at 350 degrees. 15 minutes for rolls, about 20-25 minutes for bread, I think. If you bake it too long, it will dry out very quickly the next day. I just watch it and when it starts to brown, I start knocking on it to see if it's hollow.

Happy baking!!!

Ballerina Mania

This kid... she's a wonder. I never took ballet. I also ruled it out for my own children because, well frankly, I have four girls and it's expensive. But I have taught them to pray for the desires of their hearts knowing that God cares about the small stuff. Kennedy has asked to take ballet a few times, but I always poopooed the idea in light of the cost. She started to pray that the Lord would give her jobs in the neighborhood so that she would be able to pay for the classes. She even delivered flyers to everyone we know offering dog-walking and babysitting services. Then heaven sent her an answer by way of her fairy grandmother; her dream has come true.
Jasmine is taking classes too. They get so excited every week to get suited up in their tights and leotards. This month we started attending at a new studio that we all love. I wish we would've started there in the beginning. This is another answer to prayer, as I wasn't convinced that we were under the best guidance before. God hears.

Kennedy is also teaching herself to play the violin. I love to walk by their room and hear classical strings or piano music playing in the background. Who knew my kids would have a taste for the finer things... along with their affinity for Spongebob.

Phantom Napper

It's a fight almost every day to get Leila to take a nap. She's at that age where she knows she could get away with not taking a nap, but her little body really needs it. She seems big enough to pass on it sometimes, but usually she's crashed out on the couch by five o'clock and I remind myself that she's only three. Three-year-old kids still need naps; it's just the way it is. It's hard to believe she'll be four next week. Tre was only four when we moved here. The days go so fast somehow!

So the other day I sent her to bed at nap time. She was in there for about five minutes when I went back in to make sure she wasn't digging through my drawers, and this is how I found her. As a matter of fact, I looked under the beds and walked out of the room calling her before I realized that that tiny shape under the blanket was her little body! She's so funny...

Sorry, boys...

SHE'S ENGAGED!!!

I wish we had some better pictures of this ring, I haven't even caught a glimpse of it's sparkle and shine, just a tiny peek from a cell phone picture.

My sweet Sista has found the love of her life and they are getting married. For reals.

DEY ARRE IN LOOOOVVVVEEE!!!!

And we are so happy for you!!!

Nick's Birthday

Maybe you didn't notice that Nick looks like one of mine. He's basically part of our family. Every morning he's the first one to ring the doorbell, and the last one I kick out of the house at the end of the play day. On his birthday he invited Micah to Los Angeles with his family. They went to Universal Studios, an Angels game, and stayed in a hotel.

So for his birthday I thought we needed to do something special for him. If you have never been my neighbor, you may not know that I show love this way. Since I didn't have candy or toys stashed away for birthday surprises, I whipped this lovely little delight and yelled for the kids to come in.

One for the girls...

...and one for the boys. They gobbled them up. We used to get this at Cheddars when we lived in Springfield. It's called a Cookie Monster. My mother-in-law bought me these awesome little skillets so that we could make the real thing. It's a chocolate chip cookie baked in an iron skillet, topped with ice cream and chocolate sauce. It should also have whipped cream and a cherry on top, but I didn't have either of those.

*BLOG BONUS*I didn't have chocolate sauce either, but I have a recipe for it.

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1 cup sugar

1 cup water

Mix these ingredients, bring them to a boil, and simmer 10 minutes.

Now you have a recipe for it when you get in a pinch.

Deisha

This baby makes me laugh. On this particular day Tre was in the bathtub. She kept running back and forth from the bathroom to the living room. He would load her up with bubbles and we would load her up with laughs.

We had a little trouble timing the flash with her smiling.

She loves to torment Scooder. Here she is smacking him in the face with the bone he loves and can't resist.

We were having a really good time.

The kid is a proficient climber. I find her sitting on my dining room table a couple of times a week. Usually she is after a drink with a straw that someone put there hoping to keep it away from her. Unfortunately for us I don't have eyes on her all the time. I know. It's a small place. How could I lose sight of her? But I do.

The other day while I was working in the kitchen, she was toddling around the living room and found something to entertain herself with. She spent a good thirty minutes pilfering through these movies looking for Elmo.

Then after she had looked at enough of them, she climbed in and just sat. It's tough to get a good picture of her because she is constantly moving. She's a hoot.

The Simple Things

Most Sunday nights Dale is at work so I make a simple meal for the kids like homemade macaroni, bean burritos, waffles, something I wouldn't typically make if Dale was at home. The kids usually spend Sundays outside because all the school kids are around. Those two components together usually mean we have extra little faces at our dinner table.

Tonight Nick was only one around when I sent word to the troops that dinner was on the table. Since he's here more often than most of the neighborhood kids, he decided to help Micah clear the table. No, wait. I take that back. He helped Micah so they would be able to play faster. Yes. That makes more sense.

I could hear them chattering in the kitchen but didn't pay much attention when Nick said, "My mom makes the best spaghetti." Micah said, "Yeah. Your mom does make good spaghetti."

My heart sunk a little bit. I want to be that mom that makes the best everything. What can I say. I'm an overachiever.

Then he continued, "But my mom's spaghetti makes you feel warm inside. You know what I mean? It just makes you feel all warm inside."

Nick heartily agreed with, "Yeah, I know! I've had it before!" He's had most of the meals in my routine.

It's a simple thing, but those are the things that make it all worth it.