Getting a Handle on this mess....

Ever since school started I have struggled with time management. Things like getting/keeping the house clean, laundry, work, and projects. So enter my favorite website Pinterest to help solve one of those problems! I saw an idea of separating your house up... room by room... day by day and clean that way. My 3 Monsters blog is where the idea stemmed from and she does a total of an hour of cleaning. 30 mins of stuff that needs to be done daily and 30mins in the room of the day. She even had a beautifully wonderful print out of her chores, because like she said it is easier when its pretty! So I made up my own daily chores sheet, put it in a sheet protector (to make it dry erasable) and put it inside one of my kitchen cabinets.

I have been using this system for almost 2 weeks and I am loving it! No more cleaning on Weekends... Weekends is FAMILY TIME!!!

Per Request.....Summer Sand Cake

Mike to this to work today and when he brought it home he said he wasn't sure what happened to it, but it obviously got inhaled! So I am assuming that means it was good. Along with having someone request me to blog about this desert. Another reason it must be tasty! And no... this doesn't have twinkies in it.

I originally pinned this recipe this summer with the thought of making it for the kids' birthday party, but I haven't had time to make it. So when Mike needed something and there were no requests and showed him my "food" pins for him to pick from so I could try something new.

This photo is from iammommahearmeroar.blogspot.com... I forgot to take a pic of mine.

There are three layers and you rotate them, layering the bucket until it's full. (or just do 3 layers like I did)

Layer 1: 1 package of smashed cookies (of your choice)- I used Vanilla Sandwich cookies

Layer 2: 2 small packages of vanilla pudding, 3.5 cups of milk, 12 oz. of cool whip

Layer 3: an 8 oz. package of cream cheese, 1/4 cup butter (room temperature), 1 cup powdered sugar

FYI: The third layer is a little thicker and harder to spread. So I ended up putting that on the bottom so I could just spread it on the bottom of my dish. Make sure to end with the cookies on the top layer, to make it look beach-y!  If you have a food processor you can use it to crush the cookies, or put them in a baggie and take out your frustrations!

I'm an Aunt....Twice!

A little over a month ago my brother-in-law welcomed into the world Lexus Addison Elsie and Wade Emmerson Travin. They were born just shy of 23 wks. Although they are small, only weighing a little over a pound each they are little fighters.

The first time I got to see them a few weeks ago, They had just started opening their eyes. Mike, Mark and I were able to witness Wade open his eyes while we were there, allowing me to capture this awesome shot of one happy daddy looking down on his baby boy.










Then they turned a month old, which was a time for celebration, until they both suffered an intestinal infection.  They both started to retain fluid and their stomachs were turning purple and were descended.

Both Wade and Lexi were put back on their steroids and IVs which they had been taken off of before the infection. It was a little set back we all thought.

 Lexus is now doing better.  She changed ventilators early this morning to one that is less restrictive.  She was able to breathe fully on her own for an hour and a half a couple of days ago.  The vent that she is on now, she is doing 50% of the breathing.  Her stomach looks a lot better and Holly (mommy) even got to hold her for the first time today!  It's a goal they thought they were weeks from reaching.

Unfortunately, Wade is a different story.  He is not doing so well.  He has retained nearly a pound of fluid. We believe that he has the same thing that Lexi did.  His stomach is now black and it is believed that a section of his intestine has died.  They are doing everything they can to get the fluid to drain, but it's doing no good.  He has been the same for several days.  The next 24-48 hours at least are critical.  They have talked to a surgeon and he will do a surgery tomorrow afternoon as long as he stays where he is. We will all be saying an extra prayer for baby Wade tonight.

Seeing these babies is both humbling and amazing. They make you realize how fragile life really can be. When you give birth to 10 pounders this isn't something you think about. It is also amazing the technology that hospitals have now days to keep these little ones growing. 10-20 years ago this story would be very different. 

Aunt Deb's Cookies

These are delicious cookies and everyone always hopes she brings them to family gatherings!


6 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
2 cups butter
1 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 cups brown sugar
3 eggs
2 tablespoons vanilla
3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips              (I use two bags of one type of chips and one bag
3 cups milk chocolate chips                          of the other, whatever I have on hand.)



Combine the butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla and cream well. Add the dry ingredients to
the creamed mixture. Mix well, and stir in chocolate chips.

Drop onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes

Proud Mama

Today was one of those moments I was so proud and astounded by my daughter it is hard to put into words. When we decided to have a garage sale a few weeks ago, Gabby decided she was going to have a bake sale/ lemonade stand.

This past week after I picked the kids up from church school Gabby started to tell me about how they were trying to raise money to buy mosquito nets, because some people get really sick from mosquitos. I was very impressed that she remembered this and that she showed interest in helping someone else out. I talked her into donating a portion of her profits to ELCA Malaria fund, and again much to my surprise she wanted to donate all of the money she made. So, According to her $20 will buy 20 nets. Now I am not sure if that is really how much they cost, but none the less she is very proud of the money she raised for nets and heath education!

Latest Tries...Pinterest

It has been a crazy last couple of weeks with school starting, working, and I have found a new obsession... Zumba. Anyway, I figured I would do an accumulation post of the things I have tried off of pinterest and the blog world lately.

First, I made these Cake Batter rice krispie bars. It seems you can put cake mix in just about anything these days. They were a huge hit!! You can find the recipe on that site or you can just add 1/4 -1/3 cup of yellow cake mix to your usual krispie bar recipe.

Next, Candy Bar Surprise Cookies just think your best chocolate chip cookie with your favorite candy bar inside.... very sinful! We tried KitKat and Reeses. This would be a great way to use up halloween candy.

"Drunken Gummies" were a combination of something we tried and heard about from a wonderful Adventureland Inn bartender and research online. The basics is you take gummy bears and soak them in alcohol for about 8 days. Just put enough alcohol in to cover the bears. They are a great treat. Although only one of mine turned out. The 2 vodka kinds ended up a big melted sticky mess. I am not sure it was the plastic containers or another issue, but we will definitely try again!

Last isn't food related surprisingly! I got this wonderful organization idea from Missy at http://starrfam.blogspot.com/ . I bought drawers from target for each kid, and this is swim central! All swim suits and swim diapers go in a drawer. and then on the shelf above is towels, toys and sunscreen. So when we want to go swimming I just have to go to one place to get it all!