Rett's 1/2 birthday

January 20th is Rett's half birthday. At his preschool (as you can imagine) birthdays are a BIG deal. I just couldn't bear the thought of Rett missing out on all the special attention one gets on their birthday just because he has a summer birthday and school is not in session. So, I asked his teachers if we could celebrate his 1/2 birthday today and they thought it was a great idea! So, in typical preschool-mom fasion I signed up to being a special birthday snack for all of the kids. We went early this morning and picked up Krispy Kreme mini-donuts and hats for all the classmates to wear. I paired that with green grapes and Rett was a happy, happy boy when we went to school today. He was so proud to take his snack into his classroom he insisted on carrying the big box of donuts himself.
So proud of my 3 (and a half) year old!

Texas Discovery Gardens

Yesterday for our "Tuesday field trip" we headed down to Fair Park to the Texas Discovery Gardens. There we met up with Lacy (and her boys) and Wendy (and her boys). What a neat place! Troy and I have been to a few weddings there before...but I never went into the butterfly house or even explored the gardens for that matter. I would love to take the kids back in the spring and do a picnic and relax. It has ponds and fountains and tons of space to let kids run-around. The butterfly house is indoors and heated to around 80 degrees and 60-70% humidity. It was just like traveling to the tropics without ever leaving Dallas. There were butterflies everywhere and each one had such beautiful markings and came from a different part of the world. We looked at the chrysalis' that were about to hatch and left just before they released all the newly hatched butterflies into the exhibit.Oh, did I mention we were the only ones there? That made it extra nice too. Crowds gets me so frazzled!

Working on Resolution #2

This weekend Troy and I worked on gutting the rest of our shower in our master bath. When we bought the house in April we knew that it had a leaky shower pan and could not be used. So, we have never even taken a shower in our bathroom. But, not for long. Troy and I figured we could save ourselves some $$$ and do the demo ourselves and then pay a professional to come in and put in a new shower pan and re-tile, etc. Okay, seriously, this was HARD work. I don't know who put in that tile...but they should win an award because it was not going anywhere. We used sledgehammers, crow bars, and a chisel powered by an air compressor and that was barely enough to get it done. We also unearthed a giant ants nest when we removed the tile around the threshold of the shower. I think they were harmless little ants (not carpenter ants)...but there were alot of them. Troy sprayed them with poison while I waited in the kitchen...I think they are gone now.
We plan to raise the ceiling and put in a new light fixture, we also plan to raise the shower head and get new shower fixtures in addition to all the other regular shower work that needs to be done. :)
These pictures show when the work was almost done...don't know why I didn't pick up my camera until 3/4 of the way complete.



ANTS!!!

Ellie's 18 months

My sweet little baby girl is one and a half! Time is going by so swiftly it's hard to register. I absolutely adore Ellie. She has really come into her own personality over the last 6 months. She is curious beyond belief and gets into EVERYTHING! If the house gets quiet for more than a minute I know somethings up. She a major lover of books. I'll bet she spends more time being read to than she does eating. Her favorite book right now is one titled "animal sounds" where each page prompts me to act out the sound that particular animal makes. We have gotten to the point now where she opens to a random page, points to the animal and waits for me to make the sound and then laughs and laughs and laughs.
Ellie loves drawing and playing with chalk outside. It doesn't matter how cold it is, it is never too cold for drawing with chalk. She understands many, many words. We have to spell BATH or she immediately wants to go take one regardless of the time of day. She also really likes simple chores (for now!). I can ask her to go put something in the trash or put the dirty clothes in her laundry hamper and she eagerly does it! She loves to sing E-I-E-I-Oh! and dance and jump (she can actually get both feet up off the floor at the same time).
She's talking more and more, she says:
Mama
Dada
Papa
Bye Bye
Bath
Trash (Drsh)
Juice
Banana (Nana)
That (Dat)
No
Ouch!
Uh oh
I Dunno
Here ya go

Her 18 month stats:
Height: 31.5 inches (45%)
Weight: 23lbs. 10oz (50%)
Head Cir: 48 cm (80%)

Cockroach Hall of Fame Museum

Today Wendy and I took our kids to Chick-Fil-A and the Cockroach Hall of Fame Museum. Enough Said.

Snow Day...Sorta

Yesterday it snowed about 1 inch at our house. Rett was so excited to go outside and play in it. He kept asking if we could have a snowball fight and make a snowman. I knew there was not nearly enough snow to do either...but rather than break his little heart...I said sure. After Ellie went down for her nap I bundled him up in an actual ski-suit that a friend had given me. Slide his feet into actual snow boots(glad I bought those at that garage sale in August!)...and then went to put on his gloves, wait, where were his gloves? Needless to say, we couldn't find them. He has one pair that he's almost outgrown...but we couldn't find them ANYWHERE. We ended up using socks to cover his hands...but he wasn't happy. Once outside Rett tried to make the best of it...but he got frustrated quickly when his technique for making snowballs wasn't working. We went on a short walk and jumped in some puddles. Then, while investigating a big puddle, Rett found two earthworms. He insisted we save them from the snow and take them inside to warm up. I obliged. We headed for the house and got squirmly and buddy (that's what he named them) situated in a pie pan of water. Rett had a great time playing with them and forgot about the snow completely. Whew!



A close-up of either squirmly or buddy...I can't tell them apart.

*Update to To good to be true*

Get this! Yesterday evening I checked my email one last time before hitting the hay. In my inbox was an email from the HR & Office manager of Batter Blaster! She read my product review on my blog and felt Batter Blaster was misrepresented and wants me to give the product another shot. I guess this really goes to show you never really know whos reading what you put out there into cyberspace.

Here's the email:

Hi JulieAnn,

I just read your review of Batter Blaster on your blog and it prompted me to email you right away!

First of all, I’d like to thank you for purchasing Batter Blaster. We take great pride in making sure that Batter Blaster is fast, easy, and fun for the whole family. Unfortunately, the way that you described the pancakes is absolutely nothing like the way Batter Blaster should work. In fact, it sounds very much like the batter was simply no longer fresh. If this was the case, the batter would be more difficult to cook; for example it would probably burn quickly before the insides have a chance to cook, which sounds very much like what you described. Also, the batter would have a sour/vinegary smell. Does that sound anything like your experience? If by any chance you still have your can, could you please tell me the time stamp and expiration date on the bottom of that can as well as the location of the Walmart store that you purchased it from? It would be greatly appreciated!

Regardless, I am certain that the batter you tried was not representative of our regular product and I would really love to send you a couple VIP coupons, each redeemable for a free can, so you can try some fresh Batter Blaster pancakes. I fully understand that a bad first impression of any product can leave you wary but I definitely think Batter Blaster seems like it would be a great fit for you and your family and honestly, I just hate to see someone have a bad experience with a product I know is so wonderful! If this is something you would be interested in, please just respond to this email with your physical mailing address and I’ll put these VIP coupons in the mail for you right away. I truly hope you give us another chance and get a replacement can of Batter Blaster at your local retailer!

Batter Blaster is a small, family-run company, staffed by people who love good food. We do think consciously about our impact on the environment. We hope that the product choices we have made -- organic ingredients, 100% recyclable containers (caps, nozzle and can), and a refrigerated, fresh product -- show our commitment to good, wholesome food and sustainability.

Best,

Sandy Castoro

To good to be true?

While shopping in the dairy section of Walmart over the weekend a yellow aerosol can caught my eye. It was an Organic Batter Blaster. A completely prepared pancake and waffle mix that is ready to cook once you pull it out of the fridge. You don’t need to add water, you don’t need to mix – all you have to do is shake the can and squeeze. I had seen this product before at Whole Foods but could not bring myself to purchase the almost $5 can. However, at Walmart it was priced at $3.98. I picked a can from the back of the cooler and optimistically placed it in my cart. I was so excited thinking about how easy this product was going to make my mornings. Rett and Ellie LOVE pancakes (as do I)...but every recipe I have makes a heaping pile of pancakes that usually get thrown away after we each eat our share. The idea that I could just pull the Batter Blaster can out of the refrigerator, and make one or two FRESH pancakes was so appealing.

After the first use I was so dissappointed. The Batter Blaster was for me, a gimmick and will not be one I will ever use/buy again. After heating my skillet I shook the batter blaster can and proceeded to spray the batter. I was expecting it to ooze out of the can...but it came out as a high-powered spray like whip cream. It was difficult to shape too. When it came time to flip, it was nearly impossible. My pancakes came out extra brown(and kind of smooshed on one side). I smothered them with butter and syrup and even that was not enough. Rett took one bite and said: "These taste like lemons". Ellie took one bite and tried to feed the rest to the dog. I took one bite and threw the rest in the trash. I am sad to report that the Batter Blaster was too good to be true. :(

Ringing in the new year

Now that it's 2011 it's time to get down to business. Today all the Christmas decorations came down except the tree which I always leave up until Epiphany. My house feels empty and clean. Looking forward into the coming year I have two resolutions I would like to adopt.
Resolution #1-
Feed my kids more healthy, balanced meals.
I have fallen into a cycle where every night it seems I am either fixing macaroni, corny dogs, chicken nuggets, fish sticks or a kid cuisene for Rett and Ellie. It's embarassing really. I know that this junk is NOT full of nutritional value and NOT helping their little bodies grow stong and thrive. Not trying to make excuses, but I usually do it when Troy is out of town and I don't want to cook and the kids like and it will eat it...so I don't have to hear complaining or nag them to eat. So in 2011 I am going to set out to make each of their meals consist of a protein, carb, fruit and vegetable. I am going to TRY to use as much fresh produce as possible (even though it involves more work on my part) and give them more variety. While I do like buying organic items...I am not consistent. However, from now on I resolve to always buy organic eggs, peanut butter, ketchup, yogurt, cheese and milk. (these are the items Dr. Oz says matter the most when deciding to go organic).
Resolution #2-
Complete home improvement projects
I L.O.V.E. home improvement projects. I rarely do them anymore. Mostly because ALL of my time is spent being a mom. Each week I think "If I can just get ahead of the chores this week I could do.....". Well, it never seems to happen. To get my fix I have been watching hours and hours of HGTV and DIY at night before bed. It helps...but mostly it just fills my head with ideas of what I want to do here. One of the big projects that is looming over our heads is the shower in our master bath. It has a leaky shower pan and had been unuseable since we moved in on May 1st. Since then we have all been using the kids bath. Works for now...but it's getting old. It was one of those projects we were going to complete within the first 3 months of moving in. Hah! So in 2011 I resolve to complete more home improvement projects. Want to see my running list? Okay.
#1 Fix shower and replace vanity in master bath
#2 Retile kitchen
#3 Tile half bath
#4 Replace back door and add deadbolt
#5 Replace chandelier over kitchen table
#6 Install hardware to kitchen cabinets
#7 Fix/replace ALL closet doors that don't work
#8 install new, more inviting, front door

Here's to a healthy, productive 2011! What are your new year's resolutions?