Cherry Blossoms

Cherry blossoms are one of my favorite things.  In fact, my phone cover is cherry blossoms.  I love them!

Last spring I found a cute kids craft idea involving a cherry tree with cherry blossoms, and I knew I had to do it with Little Man.

I can't remember what blog I got it from, or I'd give them credit.  Sorry!

You just find the perfect branch (or a few that you can put together) and glue it on a piece of construction paper to resemble a tree.  Then you have your little one crumple up some tissue paper.  We used three different shades of pink.  Although, in the picture, it only appears to be two.  Two of the shades were pretty close.  Then have your little one glue on the "blossoms".  LOVE IT!

List o' fun-- Bounce, Bounce, Bounce Around

This is going to be a 3 for one post.  There are lots of places around town that have the inflatable bounce houses.  Who doesn't love to bounce around a little bit?

Here are three places we've been to and my thoughts on each.

PUMP IT UP

We've been to pump it up the most.  It's located at  8200 Business Way, Plain City, OH.  They have open play on Wednesdays and Fridays from 10 to 11:30.  It's $7 for the first child.  (There is a discount for the second child, but I never have one, so I can't quite remember what it is.  I think it's $4).  You must wear socks.  They usually have 3 to 4 inflatables set up and they rotate out which ones they are, so it's not always the same.  I like that.  Usually there is an attendant on duty.  However, the last time we went, there wasn't and some of the moms were not watching their kids.  That can happen anywhere though.

ALL the places have this GIANT slide!

This one was new this time... not really sure what the point was, but the kids had fun!

An obstacle course

SPORTS OHIO

Another place with inflatables is Sports Ohio.  Sports Ohio is located at 6134 Cosgray Rd, Dublin Oh. Sports Ohio is huge and has a variety of different things to do depending on the year.  They have mini golf, soccer, classes to sign up for, and of course, and open gym.  Their open gym doesn't happen as often as some places. It's best to check their website for details.  It costs $7 as well.  We've only been to one open gym.  We played on the inflatables and some basketballs.  It wasn't my favorite, and we probably won't go back since there are so many other options.  It smelled like cat pee to me.  There were lots of big kids (on a school day???) that weren't following the rules and sort of ruining it for Little Man.  I didn't get any pictures.  We have, however, done their mini golf before and that's not too bad.

KINGDOM OF BOUNCE

Kingdom of bounce is relatively new to the area.  It's located at 2152 Citygate Drive, Columbus, OH.  It's over by Easton and the airport.   It is open every day as opposed to the others.  It's open play times are also longer--from 10 to 2 and from 4 to 8.  It is $7 for the first kid an $3 for the second.  You must wear socks.  It had 6 inflatables, 2 being giant slides, so 5 different options to choose from.  They had an attendant on duty and were striving to keep the place clean.  It was less crowded, which made it more enjoyable.  

We went for the first time last week and I had Michael join us.  Little Man kept him BUSY! :)

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Today's post is just going to be a good news/bad news post.... for no other reason than because I want to! :)

BAD NEWS: Michael is getting "bumped" from his job.  Basically the old guys who use to install the home phone lines and work on the old telephone poles got surplussed (because no one has home phones anymore) and had the option of bumping the U-Verse techs.  Michael was 28 from the bottom of the seniority list, and unfortunately 30 guys got laid off.

GOOD NEWS: We can make it on what I make.


BAD NEWS: That means paying off our debt by the end of the year is probably not going to happen. :(

GOOD NEWS: Both of my bosses (who are the TOP people of two huge corporations) have offered to shop his resume around.  You can't ask for more than that.


BAD NEWS: This also means that our plans for a house and to start a family are on hold.

GOOD NEWS:God is faithful


BAD NEWS: My insurance was through Michael's job.  He can go to the VA, but now we'll have to find something for me until he gets another job.

I'd rather the scale be tipping more on the side of good news, but that's life sometimes.  We aren't sure where God will lead us next, but we sure could use some prayers for wisdom and favor.  Thanks!

Pioneer Woman's Apple Dumplings

I think I've mentioned The Pioneer Woman's blog back when I gave you my Christmas list.  Remember I wanted her new cookbook?  And I got it!  Well, I'm going to share some more of her with you.

I've been reading The Pioneer Woman's blog for over two years now.  When I started reading it, it was best known for having amazing recipes.  It has grown into so much more now.  I'll admit, I don't read it as faithfully as I use to, but it is a great blog to check out.  The Pioneer Woman's name is Ree and she use to be a city girl who loved her Starbucks and sushi.  She met and married a cowboy and now lives on a ranch in Oklahoma.  She has tons of yummy recipes on her blog, although not at all healthy.  I've tried quite a few and I've made one from the cookbook already.  One that I've made a few times already is her Apple Dumplings.  They are pure sugar and fat, but they are so easy to make and are outrageously yummy.

Before I left on my trip, we had a game night at my sister's house.  I brought them to make as my contribution.  It was a team effort, so you may see many hands and fingers involved.  They were a success once again.

Ingredients

• 2 whole Granny Smith Apples
• 2 cans (8 Oz. Cans) Crescent Rolls
• 2 sticks Butter
• 1-½ cup Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla
• Cinnamon, To Taste
• 1 can (12 Oz.) Mountain Dew Soda

Peel and core apples.  Cut each apple into 8 slices each.

 Roll each apple slice in a crescent roll. Place in a 9 x 13 buttered pan. 

 Melt butter, then add sugar and barely stir. Add vanilla, stir, and pour entire mixture over apples. 

 Pour Mountain Dew around the edges of the pan. 

 Sprinkle with cinnamon and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. (I actually have cooked it for about five to ten minutes longer each time... you'll have to just check them at 40 and decide for yourself.)

 Serve with ice cream, and spoon some of the sweet sauces from the pan over the top.

Pure heaven!  I promise.

If you want to check out Pioneer Woman's professional post on the subject, here's the link.

UGG!

Here's a conversation that happened between Little Man and I a couple of weeks ago.  

I think you may get a kick out of it.

Setting: Little Man is putting on his boots getting ready to leave the house.

LM:  "What does U-G-G spell?"

Me: "UGG"

LM: "What is UGG?"

Me: "It's the type of shoe mommy buys you"

LM: "Does your shoe say UGG on it too?"

Me: "No, I can't afford UGGs"

LM: "What does 'afford' mean?"

Me: "It means they cost too much money for me.  But mommy goes to work all the time so she can afford shoes like that for you."

LM: "And you never work?"

Me: "No, I do.  My work is to come here to your house.  To watch you and take care of you and take you to all sorts of fun places.  That's my work".

LM: literally laughs out loud!!! "That is NOT work!"  HAHAHAHA!!!!  Love that kid.

Our Date-a-versary; Oh how I love thee... (8)

(An "in the moment" shot captured by our wedding photographer during our engagement picture session.  One of my favorites!)

... let me count the ways.

I love that my husband has given me flowers every week from our first date until now.  A week ago today is what I like to call our "date-a-versary".  We were on vacation so I couldn't celebrate with you all, so today is the day.  That's right.  We celebrate our date-a-versary.  Four years ago on April 8th we went on our first date.  Michael showed up with a bouquet of purple tulips and I have had flowers every day since.  I say I get flowers every week because that's an easy way to explain it.... really, I get new flowers whenever the current ones are dead (or right before they go).  So if a bouquet lasts three days, then I get new flowers after three days.  If a bouquet lasts two weeks, then I get a new bouquet after two weeks.  It's usually about a week though, and that just makes it easier to say.  However, I've never been without flowers.  Sometimes they are the simple bouquets of daisies... sometimes it's a mix of wildflowers... sometimes gerberas, one of my favorites... sometimes carnations... sometimes funky ones that I can't even name... sometimes it's roses.  It's always different, but it's always beautiful.  

If he stopped tomorrow, I'd be OK.  If he stopped next year, I'd be OK.  I mean five years straight of flowers would be pretty spectacular.  I don't ever expect flowers, nor do I demand them.  But I do appreciate them.  The thing I love the most is not the actual flowers, but what they stand for.  They are his way of telling me he honors me.  He tells me he loves me all of the time, but the flowers are his way of saying he adores me, that he's thinking of me... that I'm cherished.  I love that my husband has a special way of telling me that he cares.

So while we're on the topic of our first date, I thought I'd give you a little history.  I actually knew before our date that if the date went well, Michael was going to be the man I was going to marry.  Crazy, huh?  I use to HATE when people said "when you know, you know", but I became that person.

We met at a young adults thing at church, but didn't really talk the first time we met.  I missed the next one because of a concert, but when I finally returned two weeks later he came up to our table and talked to us.  I had no idea he was interested in me, but my friends seemed to catch on.  We chatted it up and found that we had some mutual friends/acquaintances.  I didn't think too much of it.  He happened to be good friends with my bosses son (who I also went to college with).  I mentioned to her that I had met him--just in case something was said to her.  Sure enough, she came into work on Thursday morning and said her son Tommy had called her.  He asked if she thought I had any interest.  Then he told her to talk Michael up to me!  (I found that part out later!)  I told her that I was definitely interested.  It was all a bit junior high, but that's alright. :)  Michael ended up finding me on myspace that night and requested to be my friend.  We talked back and forth online for a little bit that night and then he called me.  We talked for a few hours on the phone that Thursday night.

I always checked my email first thing when I got to work, so when I checked it that Friday morning and already had an email from Michael, I was super happy and excited.  We exchanged email all day long.  He asked if he could see me before church on Sunday.  I already had plans that night with my friend.  Being the loyal person that I am, I kept them and made plans with him for Saturday.  We did talk on the phone that night as well though.

So by the time Saturday had rolled around, I had spent a good number of hours on the phone with him.  I had looked through his myspace page as far back as I could.  I also knew who his friends were (personally) and what they stood for.  I was pretty sure he was a stand up guy.  I knew that if the date went well and he was into me as well, that it would probably be the last first date of my life.  No pressure or anything! :)  Well, the date lived up to my expectations.  It was 9 hours long and we made plans to see each other again the next day.

Two weeks later I took him home to meet my family for Easter.  If you know me, you know how crazy that really was.  It was on that trip that we basically said to each other, "this is it, right?".  After TWO WEEKS we were talking marriage.  When I look back I am still blown away at myself.  That is soooooooooo not me.  But I'm so glad it happened to me and that I chose to jump on the crazy train! :)  We were engaged two and a half months after our first date.  Who knows... it might have even been sooner, but I asked Michael to wait until the school year was over.  We were married a year later.

I'm so thankful that date four years ago happened!  It has led to the best days of my life...

Vegas, Part 4

After the Botanical Gardens at the Bellagio, we walked down the hallway to the worlds largest chocolate.  

It's 27 feet long and circulates 2 ton of chocolate.

At this point, we were TIRED of walking.  We needed to go back to our hotel to get ready to go to The Lion King.  We gave ourselves plenty of time to ride the bus back (which at this point, we had already grown to hate), rest a bit, get dressed up and head out.  Unfortunately, that is NOT how it went down.  The bus was taking forever to come, so we took a different bus that was suppose to stop close to our hotel.  We didn't get off where we were suppose to (because it wasn't clear to us on the sign or by the driver), so we ended up riding way longer than we needed to and did the loop back.  It through off our whole schedule.  Here is us showing how we are OVER the Deuce.

We had to hurry and get ready and get back on the bus.  Of course, it took for-ev-er for the bus to come.  We made it a few stops and had to get off and take a taxi.  You have to pick up your tickets an hour before every show and we would not have made it if we had stayed on the bus.  So annoying.

The Lion King was showing at the Mandalay Bay.  We had just enough time to grab something to eat.  We chose a cafe in the hotel.  We ended up getting breakfast for dinner and it was so good.  I got coconut pancakes that came with some sort of mango butter stuff that was so yummy!

Us... before the show.

We tried taking my picture in front of a lot of the signs, but we were having some lighting issues. 

This is the best we could do.

We both really enjoyed The Lion King as well.  Two shows... two home runs!

They definitely helped make the trip.

Me... waiting for the Deuce again.  I'm only smiling because I just got done watching the awesome show.

On Wednesday we decided to explore our own hotel.  We hadn't really done so yet.

First, we had lunch at Roxy's.  Michael's best friend Phil had recommended he get a Stratosphere shake there, so that's just what he did.

Then we went up to the top.  That was one of the perks of staying there--you could go up for free.

The strip.

Michael took tons of pictures.  Here's a cool one of the mountains.

You could go on a few rides at the top of the Stratosphere as well.  Crazy if you ask me.

Here's one going on while we were in the observation deck.

Next we headed back to the Bellagio. 

We missed the fountains the day before because we were tired and needed to get back to our hotel in order to get ready for the evenings show.  I am so glad we went back, because the fountains are awesome.

From there we went to the Mirage.

We relaxed on an outdoor patio for a while.  We were wanting to check out the white tigers, but I didn't realize it was $15 a person.  We decided it wasn't that important to us.  We had dinner, got some dessert to go, and headed back to our place.

We chilled for a little bit and then went to check out the view from the top at night.

There was a bar up there that had some cool looking lights you had to walk through as your circled the top.

That's it!  We had many more pictures, but those are the highlights.

We also went into the Paris casino and saw the Eiffel tower, and checked out Circus Circus.  Somehow I didn't get pictures of those.  Neither was all that impressive, so maybe that's why.