Crafty!

So I have been feeling crafty this year and have been researching good craft websites for cute ideas. Well....I have found THE best craft website yet! It's a combination of sewing ideas, paper crafts, kids stuff, party ideas, etc. Really...if you need an idea, this is the place to go! One thing I think I will do this season (though I am getting a late start) is this christmas postcard idea. You use old gift boxes and christmas cards to make your own christmas cards. Genius!! It doesn't cost you a penny...just time, AND you are being "green" by reusing old things. I love it!!

Here's the link to the Craft idea (which you can then navigate the website as you wish):

Chica And Jo Recycled Christmas Cards

Hope you enjoy this website as much as I do!!

Monday, December 14, 2009

Jacob's Christmas Concert

So this year Jacob's school did a Christmas concert. It was so cute! They put the Kindergarten class together with the First grade class for the first two songs.

I am a little bummed cause I didn't clear out my phone and there was only enough memory for 2 short clips of his concert. So I only got 30 seconds of the first song. so enjoy what I have.

FYI - Jacob is in the middle row third from the right. He's wearing a green sweater.

Friday, December 11, 2009

My recipes

Okay so I have soooooooooooo many recipes that I felt I should make a blog to put all of them on. I will not post a recipe that we have not tried yet, so I guarantee that - if you have the same tastes as me - all the recipes will be yummy!!!! Not guaranteed that the kids will eat all of them, but they eat most of them.

The blog is ballantynerecipes.blogspot.com

I only have a few on there right now. It's a work-in-progress so keep checking back.

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Our Newest Endeavor

So first I must warn you...if you have a weak stomach to bloody things please do not continue.

This last Friday, while talking on the phone, Andrew decides to be sneaky and cut his own piece of rice krispie treat. Well, what he thought was a butter knife (which I allow him to use supervised) was actually one of my new, VERY sharp steak knives. Well....... I hear crying. I just know that he cut himself being sneaky (he's always sneaking). But when I see him his finger is dripping with blood. I had no idea a single finger could put out so much blood. So I take him to the bathroom to try and assess the situation. Lo and behold.....he sliced the tip of his finger almost completely off.

So I wrap it with a bandaid as tight as I can with tape, Wrap his hand in a towel (just in case the bandaid doesn't keep the blood at bay), throw Jacob in the car, call a friend to see if she can watch Jacob, call Ryan to tell him what happened and to tell him he needs to pick Jacob up from the friends house, and take Andrew to Urgent Care.

We get to Urgent Care at Kaiser Permanente and they don't open for a half hour. I didn't want to go to the ER because I know we'd wait longer than at Urgent Care so we wait.....and we wait....apparently those with the flu take higher priority over blood and guts. That's the only conclusion i can come up with. We waited...oh...about an hour. Once we were in it was pretty quick moving.

The picture taken was after the wound was cleaned and we were waiting for the doctor to assess whether to use glue or stiches. Poor Andrew! All this was done without any pain killer or anything. Let me tell you...Andrew is a strong boy!!! The whole time we were trying to clean his wound he was fighting with ALL his strength and I almost couldn't hold him. I was trying with all MY strength and he almost won!! He is a strong boy!!!!!! I had to tell him to not fight when he's putting the glue on, otherwise we'd have to clean it again. He still fought, but not as hard.

So that is our story. Andrew is officially our reckless one. In the last year he has more injuries than Jacob has had in his entire life.

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Family Feasts Giveaway

So there is a blog I have told everyone about www.owlhaven.net and every month she does a giveaway. Well this month she is giving away her book Family Feasts for $75 a week. Seeing as how we are possibly going to double our family size in a matter of months this book would really be beneficial! So one way to be entered is to blog about the contest and then post a link to my blog on her blog. So here is my post!!

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Caramel Apples

So I made Caramel apples with Andrew a couple of weeks ago with some friends and have been asked for the recipe. This recipe is the greatest! What's not to like about brown sugar and butter....right?

The recipe was found from http://www.recipezaar.com/

Kittencal's Caramel Apples Recipe#73274

1 cup butter (no substitutes!!!)
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 (14oz) can sweetened condensed milk
2 tsp vanilla
8-10 wooden sticks
8-10 granny smith apples

1. Insert wooden sticks in apples
2. In a heavy saucepan, combine the butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and milk; bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
3. Cook and stir constantly until a candy thermometer reads 248 degrees (firm ball stage).
4. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
5. Dip each apple into the hot caramel and place on well buttered wax paper (and I mean well buttered).
6. If doubling the recipe make sure to make it in two separate pans.

Wish I had pictures....but the kids just couldn't wait to eat them. And let me tell you...they were yummy. This will definately have to be a tradition every Fall for us!!!

Matthew

So Matthew is gone now. His mother got him back Monday morning. I am a little sad to see him go, especially now that I look at these pictures. However, in the long run, if his mother gets her act together this will be what's best for him. I just hope he doesn't feel abandoned by me. That's what I'm most concerned about. Oh well....nothing I can do about it.
These pictures where taken the morning he left. Such a happy baby!!!

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Andrew again

I rejected him having yet another snack! I always have sad pictures of him. I need some happy ones!

Andrew and Trucks

So Ryan bought a new pickup truck (so I could have the SUV) and this was like the best day of Andrew's little life!!! Like two days later Ryan had to go on a road trip to Idaho to work on an organ there and he was taking the new truck. These are pictures of the morning Ryan left and Andrew watching him get ready. They are kind of sad!! Andrew is wondering why daddy has to take the new truck without him! Kind of funny too.

30 Day challenge

So I saw the movie Julie & Julia in theaters with my hubby and got really inspired! I really like what she did with Julia Child's book and thought that maybe I would like to do something like that. I didn't want to the exact challenge, per say, but i really liked the idea. So the last couple of days I have been pondering on what I could do. I played with the idea that i could do the exact thing that Julie did - cook her way through Julia Child's cookbook. So i went to the bookstore with the intent on buying Julia's book - but then I looked through it. I decided I didn't really like cooking that much. Sure cooking can be fun, but not THAT fun!! So I started looking at other ideas - since I was at the bookstore already and this is what I came up with.

Ever since I had Jacob I have struggled with my weight. I have tried everything - and I mean everything...pills, dieting with friends, working out with friends, at least 3 different diet programs...and I just couldn't hack it. It's probably down to motivation and I just didn't have it (besides the fact that I have issues with finishing things!!!). So I found a book at the bookstore - The Biggest Loser 30-Day Jump Start. This book looks fool proof - and motivationless (is that a word?). The book has meals and snacks for 30 days, along with exercise to do for everyday.

My Challenge is simple...follow this book ALL THE WAY THROUGH!!! No quitting half way through...no "cheating" PERIOD. I figure I can do anything for 30 days...especially something that is fool proof!!

The purpose of posting this on my blog is so that everyone knows so that i will feel even that much more motivated to finish! If I did it privately...I could quit and the only person I would have to answer to is myself. This gives me my reputation as motivation. I don't want to look like a quitter to anyone...

So there it is!! Wish me luck!!

Monday, August 31, 2009

Dinner Tonight

So I made a new sauce for spaghetti tonight(which I am sure most of you have done this before) but it was really yummy and economical (especially if you grow you're own tomatoes!!). So here is the recipe:

Puttanesca Sauce

2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced or chopped
3 tsp anchovy paste
1/2 cup Kalamata olives
28 oz can crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp capers
2 tsp snipped fresh chives (optional I had some on hand from garden)
Italian seasoning
salt and pepper (remember capers and olives are salty so go light on the salt)

saute onion and garlic in oil until softened, add the anchovy paste and let cook for a couple minutes. Then add the rest of the ingredients except the olives. Add the olives at last minute. Let sauce cook until heated through or until ready to put on spaghetti.

Serve with garlic bread and salad!

YUMMY!!!!!!

Friday, August 28, 2009

New Discoveries

So in doing some research in preparation for....possibly.... increasing our family size to 8, I came across a book called "The Sane Woman's Guide to Raising a Large Family". It was written by a woman who has four natural children and then adopted six other children. So for those who are too tired to do the math that's 10 kids. What?!?! And she only spends about $600 a month on food. The book is amazing so far even if you don't plan on having a ton of kids. She gives some really creative and good advice on how to be more frugal. They live in a 3,000 sq foot home, don't have any debt except their house, and have savings for a rainy day. She stays home with the kids and her husband doesn't make millions, he has an average job. She's got it worked out to where they only spend just under $3000 per child a year! That's amazing!

So the purpose of telling you all this is because she has a blog. It has a lot of useful information on it - money saving tips, gardening tips, recipes, etc. Thought you might be interested. It is www.owlhaven.net. I have only just scratched the surface of this lady's ideas, but so far I am loving them!!

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Water and Activity Day at my house

So this last friday a couple of friends of mine and their kids came over for a water/activity day. It was lots of fun. While the kids played outside with the water stuff, the adults (and the 12-year-old) were inside making taffy - which was super yummy! Here's a couple of pictures. And the baby is Matthew.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Matthew

So here's some pictures of Matthew. These were taken today and he wasn't the happiest of babies today. He's not used to the new diet and was a little constipated (I hope it's better tomorrow).

Foster care

So our adventures in the foster-adopt program has definately been an educating and exhausting one. For a couple of weeks we were visiting a 9-year-old african american. She was nice and there was really no reason to not adopt her - except one. Ever since day one of meeting her I could not get rid of this "feeling" of restlessness and confusion. I eventually relented to the spirit and we had to pass on the 9 year old. And boy did i feel tons better after i did that. Now we are doing an emergency foster situation. We are fostering a 9-month old cutie. His name is Matthew and he is just a delight to have in our home. I now understand what everyone has talked about when they warn "don't get attached!" Too late! He hardly cries (unless you try to put him to sleep without a bottle). Pictures to come! I am a little disappointed in the child protective services though. He just had his first visit with his parents and it went fine. I did find out, however, that the mom has a chance to get him back if she passes 3 random drug tests this next week. The thing I am frustrated about is this.....What the heck is 3 drug tests going to tell you?!? I strongly believe that if there is a drug abuse history, a parent should have to go through a rigorous drug rehabilitation before allowing to have their children back...especially infants. Infants can be frustrating, tiring, and it takes more than a strong will for a drug addict to get through something like that without going back to the drugs. I don't think I would have such a big problem giving him up if i new that he was going to a good home....but I'm not so confident. So I am a little scared for the little guy, hoping and praying that his mom either shapes up (for real) or we get to keep him. UGH! What a crazy and sad world we live in! Keep little Matthew in your prayers!

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Some summer activities

So my camera broke and I haven't been able to take a lot of pictures this summer. We have been doing a lot of water activities because it's been soooo hot (over 100 degrees everyday). We have found (thanks to some friends) quite a few "water parks" (playground with sprinkler areas). So here's some pictures.

Friday, July 24, 2009

Is summer here yet?

I have lost my USB cord for my camera, so I have not been able to post pictures as of late. And they don't have it in the stores. I have to order it from the manufacturer. How stupid is that? So no pictures this time.

So we are experiencing the "is it summer yet?" jitters with Jacob. He is getting very ansy and bored in school. He's getting into a lot of trouble at school (more so than usual) and I am actually fed up with the public school system. So consider this my venting. So all of you know how much energy Jacob has. if you have forgotten, if we could put a plug on him and hook it up to a power plant, he could probably power a small country with all that energy. The only activity that wears him out is swimming. So we have been struggling with this at school.
He started Kindergarten knowing almost everything he needed to know by the end of the year. So he has been bored all year. I have tried talking to his teacher about it, but I just don't think she has the time to give Jacob that much individual attention. There's too many kids that need help making the testing standards. And now his last report card reported that he is at a first grade level. So needless to say, he is bored. (I'm getting off subject).
Another things that drives me insane is running is not allowed during recess. WHAT?!?!?! I'm sure it's so the kids don't get hurt, but come one. And if you get in trouble at school they take away recess. Kind of defeats the purpose...don't you think?
Well, I am not alone in my frustrations. A lot of moms with boys (specifically energetic boys) share in my frustrations with the public school system.

My solution:
I am signing Jacob up for swimming lessons all this summer. If he can swim a length of the pool once using front crawl and once backstroke, then I am signing him up for a local swim team.
Also, i found a charter school that I am going to give a try. They will be more willing to work at jacob's pace. Also, hopefully I can request a male teacher. He seems to do better with male teachers. (his primary teacher is male and he responds well to him).

Thank you for listening. Maybe one day I will look back on this and wonder why I made such a big deal out of it, but I guess right now it's important.

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Family Reunion Update

So I'm sure everyone will get a new e-mail about the new dates, but I thought I would post pictures and the new dates up on the blog as well.

The reason we decided to change the dates is because everyone was saying they needed to be home by Monday. So we just changed it by a day. We are now going to be up at Big Bear Wednesday July 29 - Sunday August 1. People can still go to church on Sunday if they choose to. We have until noon Sunday to check out.

Also I have some pictures for you of the Resort. Just in case you aren't excited enough yet.

This one is of the quaint little town of Big Bear. It has some really cute shops and it might be fun to just walk around town to window shop.

This is where they have the alpine slide and other fun activities. Another idea for one day to do.

The rest of the pictures of just of the resort itself. It's really nice. I'm excited!! I also found out that there are island beaches on the lake that are specifically for beaching boats and having picnics. That might be fun to do. So much to do....such short time!!!

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

New Discovery

So today was exciting. Our dog Jaxie lost her tag down on the lower property and while Ryan was looking for it he found this kind of "cove" made out of an overgrown tree. Ryan could stand up straight inside. We cleared a path so the boys could use as a "fort". They loved it. I took lots of pictures. I just know that I would love something like this when I was a kid, so I was kind of reliving my childhood through these pictures. I tried going down there, but I decided half way that the hill was too steep and the entrance was little.

Friday, March 20, 2009

Think we need a pool?

So it was kind of warm this afternoon (85°F) so I turned the sprinklers on and put water in the water table and let the boys have at it. About 5 minutes later this is what I found:

So....you think we need a pool? You decide!!!

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Ryan in Local Newspaper

So I am basically bragging about Ryan being in the newspaper. I am really proud of him and how hard he works!

This is a scanned copy cause the online copy didn't have pictures.

If you would like to read the article you can find it on http://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/search/ci_11848823?IADID=Search-www.redlandsdailyfacts.com-www.redlandsdailyfacts.com

Enjoy!

Thursday, March 12, 2009

The mini-amusement park

Okay so we have been having some issues with Jacob getting "bad" reports from his teacher everyday, so we've set up a reward system for when he gets green cards (good reports) everyday for the whole week. Well a couple of weeks ago he actually achieved this (which its only happened two other times this whole year), so we took him to a kidsize amusement park about 20 minutes from our house and let him (and of course Andrew) go on 4 rides.

So his first ride was a kid size roller coaster and i think the picture speaks for itself!

If you can't see the picture very well, Jacob is worried and Andrew has a big smile on his face. Pretty classic. Jacob only made it once around. The operator was nice and gave Jacob a free ride on another ride (which happened to be a train).

The next ride was a big slide, which Jacob loved!!! Go figure!

Then he let Andrew pick a ride and this is what he picked:

"Much Better", says Jacob!!

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Jacob's new thing

So Jacob's new passion (besides the wii) is going to the skateboard park with his two wheeler. He is slowly learning tricks. The extent of his tricks are shown below.....going down the hills. :) The big kids are usually pretty nice about showing him how to do things. One "kid" (he was actually an older guy like Ryan's age) helped him out with his chain. It kept coming off and he asked me if it was okay if he took the bike to his van to fix the chain and oil it. So that was real nice.
The other picture is Andrew being his normal self just keeping busy. He wants so bad to do what Jacob does but I told him he doesn't have the right kind of bike yet. So now he keeps bugging me to get him the right bike for the skateboard park.

Our Dog Bogart

So this is hilarious and I'm not sure this video does what actually happens justice. The story behind it is Ryan put blue tape on Bogart's back feet. Bogart then walks really funny; almost like he's bucking his feet like a horse. Well enjoy the movie (another feature of my new camera!!)

Thursday, February 19, 2009

Jacob

So today has been the second nice day after weeks of raining! So we went outside. Jacob's cousin has been bragging about how he can ride a two wheeler and so does his friend at the bus stop. So naturally he wanted to learn too. It didn't take him very long, just a couple of tries. I didn't even have to hold the back of his bike. He figured it out. I just told him to push hard with your feet. So I decided to take some pictures with my new camera (I should be taking more pictures from now too).

So Andrew of course had to ride his bike too!