What a Teacher Really Wants...

As I mentioned yesterday, this week is Teacher Appreciation Week.  In keeping with my traditions of crafty shizz, I came up with something that was a combination of something I saw on the Pinterest and something I saw at Michael's. 

The list of products needed include:
Mason Jars (I used the pretty blue ones)
Burlap ribbon
twine
and these cute little chalk board clippy things

I took the burlap ribbon and tied it in a knot around the jar to form a knot in the front.  Took the twine and tied it just under the lid and clipped the chalk board clippy thing to the twine.  Too easy right?  I then filled the mason jar with two things.  One, chocolate; Dove chocolate to be precise.  Dove chocolate is just... UHMAYZING.   The other thing I filled it with is the one thing Teachers really want, but can't say.  A gift card to Specks.  They don't want Starbucks.  They don't want Target.  They want Alcohol.  And in my opinion, if you're my son's 7th grade teacher, you deserve as much as you can get. 

So here's a quick shot of the "after". 
 I thought it was pretty cute.  Something different.  And they could totally use it to hold pens or pencils or something like that.  The thing I really liked about this was I didn't need hot glue or anything messy.  I just needed scissors.  That's it!  Anyways, as always, have a fantastic day.  I'll get on here later and post the absolutely delicious cherry dessert I'm making in between typing this.  L8er.

I Promise...

I totally promise to not wait six months for a new post.  Life gets away from us sometimes and I had to step away.  I will not bore with with details of how much it sucks to lose both of your parents within five months of each other.  I will, however, share with you that they gave me the greatest example of REAL love.  And I will share two beautiful pictures with you.  In the words of the wise Forrest Gump,  "That's all I have to say about that."

SO!  This week has been a busy one in this house hold.  Teacher Appreciation week!!!  I have tons of crafty shit and recipes to share.  So this will be an updated mo-fo tomorrow!  For now, I will share with you the breakfast treat that I took into my son's school for the teachers.  I'm pretty sure you can figure out what went into this from the picture.  No recipe needed.  Totally simple.  And absolutely a hit!  You could use it for a sleep over, breakfast, brunch... whateva!  Tomorrow, or Friday, which ever one the OG will let me have a moment to update, I will share the awesomely simple craft my son and I did for his junior high teachers.  Then, I'll actually post a recipe.  One for the dessert I'm taking in to lunch on Friday for Eric's teachers.  With that, I will bid you adieu for today.  Stay thirsty my friends. 

Your Funny of the Day

Yes, it's eight in the morning and I already have your funny for the day. 

So this morning Bruce was holding the chick while I was getting stuff together for the youngest boy, Eric.  So Bruce has OG turned outward facing everyone (she likes that so she can see everything; she's quite the nosy girl). This is around the time Eric walks up and looks OG right in the eyes.  Of course she's smiling at her brother.  She loves both of them and gets way excited when she sees them.  She then proceeds to start kicking and getting super excited. That is when Eric says the following:

Eric:  Olive is thinking to herself, "Who is the handsome beast staring into my eyes? He is a stunning individual."

Yes, he said handsome beast and stunning individual.  Bruce and I just cracked up.  I don't know where he gets this stuff.  I couldn't make it up. 

Do Yourself a Favor...

Get an Amazon Prime account.  Also, make sure you sign up for Amazon Mom.  Then, check out how easy it is to subscribe and save.  You can order bulk items and have then delivered as frequently as you want.  Free shipping.  I have saved so much money by doing this.  It's cheaper than Sam's or Costco, and less stress since I don't have to deal with the gaggle of people that inevitably annoy this sh*t outta me when I go to said stores. So, when you have signed up for both Prime (yearly fee) and Mom (free) accounts, you save an extra 20%.  It's pretty amazing.  I get my TP, paper towels, baby junk and etc from there.  At the very least, look into it.  Just a little FYI for everyone. Here's some more information on Subscribe and Save: http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=sr_1_1_acs_h_1?ie=UTF8&nodeId=200121950&qid=1383099108&sr=8-1-acs

Some Other Benefits of Prime (JUST SAYING)

Chocolatey Pumpkin Goodness...

This evening I got a hankerin'.  And I figured since it's autumn, it needed to have pumpkin.  So I came up with a little something something. I used a recipe I had for chocolate cupcakes and altered it from there.  Now, I usually do not share recipes.  It's actually a rule I have.  But my dear friend Regina has convinced me that I need to quit being greedy biotch and share my wonderfulness with the world.    So here you are! Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing

YUM-O!

For the cupcakes 
• 1 1/2 cups cake flour
• 2/3 cup cocoa powder
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup plain Greek yogurt 
• 1 3/4 cup canned pumpkin (15 oz. can)
• 1 tsp white vinegar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup mini chocolate chips

          For the frosting

• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 cupcake cups with paper liners. Sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda & salt together; set aside. In a separate bowl, stir together the yogurt, pumpkin, vinegar, & vanilla extract, set aside. 

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter & sugar until light & fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Alternately beat in the flour & pumpkin mixtures in thirds. Fold in the mini chocolate chips. Spoon batter into cupcake cups, filling each about 3/4 full. Place cupcake pans in the center of the preheated 350 degree oven & bake approximately 25 minutes. 

While cupcakes are cooling, prepare cream cheese frosting. In a medium bowl, beat together cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, & nutmeg. If the frosting is too soft, chill in fridge for 15-20 minutes before frosting the cupcakes. When cupcakes are completely cool, spread with frosting. 

Top Baby Items... The Real Story

When I was pregnant with the chick, I spent a lot of time researching baby items that I just HAD to have.  Since the last time I had a child was 10 years ago, I figured there were some new fancy fangled things that would make my life "easier".  Well, I came across a couple of blogs and websites that professed this and claimed that. However, they were all stupid.  So, I decided that I will keep it real for people.  Give you the no sh*t story on baby junk.  Because that's what it all ends up being.  Junk.  Here is what is NOT sitting in a corner collecting dust...

Honest Diapers

1.  Diapers.  I'm sure you're thinking, DUH! But I have to say this is a hard item to decide between.  One child did better with Huggies and the other boy did better with Pampers.  I'm finding out that my little Olive's tooshie is a little sensitive to both.  Breaks out pretty easily.  So, in my searches I found out about the Honest Company.  I know a lot of people already know about this company that Jessica Alba founded, but I had no idea it existed.  I'm so glad I found it!  Every month, they send me 250 diapers with the cutest patterns and four packs of wipes.  Each shipment is $79.  Now, some of you may say, "Nina, I can spend less at Sam's or Costco."  To you I say, True.  However, those diapers suck!  LOL.  No really they do.  Not only are the Honest Diapers better for the environment, they aren't as harsh on my babies behiney.  And their wipes are SO thick and durable.  I had had a problem with both Pampers and Huggies feeling like they were damp on the outside, I do not have that problem with these.  Also, I don't have to get out and get them.  They come straight to my door.  LOVE IT!  Here's a link that will tell you more about these amazing diapers. https://www.honest.com/baby/honest-diapers This company also has an awesome Healing Balm good for diaper rash.



2.  The Boppy.  I know, I know.  That's been around a while Nina.  Well, remember, I didn't have this cool crap when I had my boys.  Even if you don't breast feed, get this wonderful pillow.  It's great to prop the babies up and for tummy time as well.  I LOVE my boppy.  At the very least it will be a great head rest when you're sitting up at night.  (DON'T JUDGE ME!)  So put this on the top of your list folks!

3.  Moby.  I love this wonderful wrap.  I'm sure these things have been around for a while too.  And I know there's a tribe in Africa that's all, "MAN! Could have made a fortune like forever ago".  the concept of wearing babies is Centuries old, but for me it was a new thing.  I wish I knew about this with the boys.  I could have saved so much time.  I wrap little chick up in that thing and get a ton of stuff done around the house.  Unless you want to use the excuse, "I can't get anything done because I have to hold the baby all day" so you don't have to do anything, BUY THIS.  I was fortunate to have a great friend (Chelsea cough cough) to send me one.  You can even use this bitch to breast feed on the go.  I mean, this thing is a TIME. SAVER. 

4.  Swing.  OG isn't as big of a fan of her swing as I would like.  But that still doesn't mean that I didn't find the most UHMAYZING swing ever!  The Graco Glider Petite Swing (pictured) is awesome.  It has all these different settings, music (that I admit is kind of creepy sounding) and the best part... wait for it... it not only runs on batteries, but it has a PLUG!  I had one with Justin that I had to crank.  Yeah.  Annoying.  Then Eric's ran off of D batteries.  Expensive.  This damn swing has a plug.  I don't think I need to say anything else. 

5.  Baby Rocker.  I had one of these that my friend Nikki gave me when I had Justin.  That kid stayed in that chair all the time.  He loved it!  I loved it!  What's nifty about this chair is that it goes from infant to toddler.  So little people have a chair to sit and rock in.  When Eric was born, I took it, not thinking that Justin would miss it, and re-purposed it for Eric.  Justin gave me this... Whiskey-Tango-Foxtrot-That's-My-Chair-Beotch look.  He eventually got over it, but it went through both boys and lasted until Eric was four.  Then I passed it on to someone else and their little boy still uses it to this day.  Well, I here I am with one again.  And this chick loves that chair.  The one I have is the Infant-to-Toddler Turtle Rocker from Fisher-Price (pictured).  There are other brands, but I liked the look of this one best.  

Hours of Fun with Olivia

6.  Mustache Pacifier.  The only thing I have to say about this item is... Hours. Of. Endless. Fun.  Sometimes, you need some laughs.  Especially when you have a lot of crying going on in your life.  So get you one of these and draw some eyebrows on your baby and take some pictures.  You'll get a much needed laugh. Thank you Tonya for getting this for me.  Olivia, however, does not thank you.

7.  Enya.  Yes.  You read right.  You need Enya in your life.  When nothing works, and the little screams and screams.  I turn on Pandora and play that girl some Enya and she is calm, quite and ends up falling asleep.  I'm sure you're thinking... Yeah. Right.  Well, you can ask any of the people who have been around when this chick is losing control and I turn it on.  It's amazing.  And I remember working in a daycare in Fayetteville and playing Enya during nap time.  These babies just love her.  I wonder if Enya knows the effect she has on babies. She soothes the savage every time.  

I have a ton of friends having babies and I wanted to share my experience so far with them.  I really do feel these seven things made my life so much easier.  I'm sure I'll come up with some more life/time saving things as the OG progresses in growth.  But for now, this is my input. 

Something a Little Different

Awesome in a Photo

Again, it's been a while.  I've been kind of busy.  Some stuff has, gone down, so to say.  First thing that happened was August 4th, I had me a little girl.  Yes. Olivia Grace (OG, Olive or Chick).  I still can't believe I have another kid.  It's so surreal everyday.  But she is such a sweetie and pretty cute too.  I'll have a ton of posts about her.  And I'm also pretty sure I have lost some friends via Facebook over all the pictures posted of her.  But guess what?  I don't give a shizz.  LOL.  Seriously though, most of the posts on here will probably be about how awesome my kids are.  They're awesome all the time.  So GET OVER IT! 

Daddy

The next life changing event that happened was September 18th.  My dad passed away.  To say this was a surprise is a little bit of an understatement.  Orlando was TECHNICALLY my grandfather, but he has always been my Daddy.  If not for him and my grandmother adopting me when I was six years old, there is not telling where I would have ended up, or what type of person I would have turned out to be.  He is my hero.  And I will do everything in my power to make sure this little chick knows how amazing he was. 

That's all I got to say about that (said in my best Forrest Gump voice).  I have ultimately decided that I'm changing the direction of this blog.  It originally started as an outlet while I had four boys up in the hizzy.  It served its purpose and brought some laughs. However, I feel like I have more to talk about than just how crazy my two boys make me.  Because if I'm at all honest, my boys are awesome (reference the above paragraph).  And I really have nothing to complain about.  So, if I feel like posting about the kids, I'll post about the kids.  If I feel like posting the recipe for the amazeballs chicken 'n dumplings I made for dinner, then recipe it is. I'm also quite crafty when I feel like it, I may feel froggy one day and post something about that.  You see where I'm going with this.  It's a blog about life.  Whether or not that interests you remains to be seen. 

For the tie being, the original blog title of "Too Much Testosterone" has been taken down.  Because I'm pretty sure this chick has inserted enough estrogen to make up for all the brutes walking around in boxers.  I have the title screen blank for now.  Eventually I'm sure I'll come up with something.  But for now, things will be what they will be.  I'm a stay at home mother again for the first time in 8 years, and I really don't feel like cleaning house all day.  My house isn't that dirty, or is it?  I don't know.  You'll have to find out........

*** Couple of shout outs***
Photo on the title is courtesy of Janay Garcia of Heaven Leigh Frames
https://www.facebook.com/heavenleighframes

Hat that OG is wearing is courtesy of Regina Graham of Hooks N Heels
https://www.facebook.com/Hooksandheels