Another packed weekend, from concerts to playdates & of course the zoo!

Cole had his last day of school on Thursday so they had a concert Thursday night were all the classes sang all the songs they have sung over the year in church.  It was a great performance and thankfully Caden slept threw the whole time!  Also had to show off the coats my MIL crochet for the boys.

Friday night we headed up to my parents for dinner.  We walked the boys to the park and played Frisbee and of course the toys!  We had to check out the new additions down at my parents waterfront, new sod went down.  Cole made $5 water it all for my dad .

Saturday I worked (yes that is me in my headset with my curlers … lol.  We head right to the zoo thankfully when it opened because it was are only nice days in weeks and it got packed soon!  The Zoo is doing a thing on Poo yup!  The boys loved it, they had video’s of animals taking a poo, oh yeah it was great … lol.  That is the boys putting their heads in the cut out of a man taking a poo.

We visited all the animals and even feed the budgie's, they are friendly birds and will come right up on your hand to eat the stick you of course have to buy for a $1 each.

Then we met up with one of my best friends for a picnic with the islanders group her husbands family is part of.  It was great!

Monday was my mom’s birthday so Sunday I took the boys to Lowe’s to pick out flowers for her.  They even potted them for her.

Sunday night we had dinner at our cousin’s night again, it was a lot of fun.  And Rick took the training wheels off Cole’s bike which we should have done last year but hey he’s my first born .

On a side note my debit card # was stolen over the weekend so when I went to the grocery store spent an hour picking out my groceries and then checked out, around $100 my card was declined.  I was mortified I check the account before we left and Rick’s paycheck was in there we were way good.  The # on the back of my card of course was disconnected and I couldn’t reach Rick.  I wanted to cry so I tried to walk fast out of the store but forgot I had some meat in my cart.  So then I had employees screaming at me to stop as I went outside like I was a criminal! UGH so an hour on the phone I found out what happened.  But they NEVER called to tell me what was going on, which really pissed me off.  Bank of America you really let me down, and embarrassed the hell out of me!

Not your typical Burger or Brownie

More fun times here .  I made some great meals and happy that everyone like them!

First off, Rick’s fav meal is Chicken parm so when I came across a meal for it in a new way and lighter version I’m on it.  First I had to make the rolls for it to go.  Bread Machine Ciabatta Roll Recipe is where I start!

Then here comes the best part of this recipe is the burger part but NOT your regular recipe.  From my favorite site of course SkinnyTaste.com is Chicken Parmigiana Burger (now I only had chicken breast on hand so I used that instead of chicken patties).

We had a playdate/dinner at the cousin’s house so I whipped up some Cheesecake Topped Brownies.  Now I had the brillant idea to bake them up at the cousins house since I was running late.  That meant that I lost a HUGE amount on the carpet of my floor.  It wasn’t pretty but it did taste good … LOL.  YES I didn’t scoop up the spillage and put it back in I just had to wash my car out when I got home.

Happy Tuesday everyone!

Some Hot & Yummy Bone Sticking Meals Plus Mini Graduation Hat Cupcakes

The boys love soup so this was a must to try, I loved it the boys liked it and Rick said it wasn’t his favorite .  But I thought it was a winner, I love barley so it was a perfect combo for me.  Here is the perfect WW Slow Cooker Potato & Bacon Chowder.

Next is a favorite of Rick’s but I thought what the heck let’s find a low fat version of it.  I added broccoli because I always love to sneak in a little veggie also .  This Chicken & Pasta Alfredo was a perfect ending for our night!

Cole’s last day of first grade was Friday . So I of course had to make something for the class.  I walked in with these Mini Cupcake Graduation Hats and of course the kids went crazy.  I love the little girls they come up to me Ms. P you always make the best things! Ahhh .

Happy Monday it’s been a crazy one, I hope to get over this cold soon .

Tuesday Dinner Guest Means Burger & Pie (But Skinny Style)

Cole had to do his school singing to close out the school year today (today is his last day at 1st grade). So Momma was busy busy last night, so I'm throwing up a meal I made for our Tuesday night Dinner Guest. Enjoy!

First I started with some Homemade Hamburger Rolls. I switched out with some whole wheat flour and let my bread maker do the dough process.

Next was to make the Turkey Burgers with Zucchini. Very yummy!!!

And what is a dinner with out a special treat! This Low Fat Strawberry No-Bake Cheesecake was very very yummy and perfect for summer!

Happy Friday everyone!

Must Read Books II (Well some I found, not all my style)

I downloaded a bunch of books, sadly a bunch of them didn’t grab me.  I have a rule of thumb I go by a book must grab me by 50 pages or I’m done.  I can’t read threw a whole book so the book may get better but I don’t have the patience to keep going so I’m sorry to say some of these books didn’t capture me.

I was so excited to find another knitting murder mystery series but sadly the first part of the book kind of dragged on didn’t get me right in.  I didn’t try any of the other books in the series, so it may have just been this one.

Death by Cashmere by Sally Goldenbaum

This brand-new mystery series spins a yarn about knitters and murder in a quaint seaside village.
Not long after Isabel "Izzy" Chambers opens up a knitting shop in the sleepy fishing town of Sea Harbor, Massachusetts, a diverse group of women begins congregating each week to form the Seaside Knitters.
Izzy raises some eyebrows when she rents the apartment above her shop to Angie Archer, whose reputation for loose behavior and a quick temper has made her unpopular with many locals. But could any of them have wanted her dead? Angie's body is discovered drowned in the harbor, her long red hair tangled like seaweed in a lobster trap.

This book was set in a tea shop, I felt to be a little bit of an older generation then for me.  I couldn’t identify and get into the characters.

Death by Darjeeling by Laura Childs

Theodosia Browning is the owner of Indigo Tea Shop in Charleston, South Carolina. Her business is growing in the historic tourist town and she is building a strong, knowledgeable staff: Drayton Conneley, tea sommelier, Haley Parker, Theo's clerk and baker, and Bethany Shepherd, Haley's roommate, who fills in on occasion. Theo also caters local events, most recently the Lamplighters Tour, tours of the historic homes of Charleston. During one of the stops, local developer Hughes Barron drops dead after a cup of Theo's special blended tea.

Since Vampires are the thing now to read I thought what the heck I’ll try this one!  The character was cute and cheecky but I just couldn’t get into it.  It just lacked something to draw me in.

Night of the Living Dandelion by Kate Collins

Flower shop owner Abby Knight does not believe rumors that Vlad Serban, friend and employee of Abby's fiancé Marco, is a vampire. But how to explain that Vlad is from Romania, has prominent canines, likes bizarre plants such as bloodwort and Dracula orchid, and dresses entirely in black?

When a local woman is found dead, her body drained of blood, the stakes become life and death. With Vlad the #1 suspect, Abby and Marco race to find the real killer, before Vlad's life really starts to suck.

This was another one I just couldn’t get into.  It had great characters I wanted to fall in love but I found my mind wandering the whole time I was reading it.  I bet it got better and I would love to find out what happened but I just couldn’t make it threw it.

The Backup Plan by Sherryl Woods

Every woman needs a backup plan...
And no one knows that better than foreign correspondent Dinah Davis, who's spent years wriggling out of international hot spots. Now she's come home to South Carolina's Low Country to hook up with the dependable man who long ago promised his devotion. But instead of finding the safety she's seeking, she winds up in the arms of his black sheep brother.

One of my favorite types of books of course is murder with food.  This book had some slow moments but the sister duo is a great team and it did keep you guessing until the end on who done it.

Pepperoni Pizza Can Be Murder by Chris Cavender

For once, it seems, no one is trying to pin a murder on Eleanor Swift, owner of the scrumptious pizzeria A Slice of Delight in the quiet little town of Timber Ridge, North Carolina. But someone has to answer for that body in her kitchen. . .and it looks like the final stop for Gregg Hatcher, her deliveryman, may be the state penitentiary

‘This book is one I truly enjoyed and kept wanting more and more of it.  The only thing that bugged me is that The story talked about 3 sisters and the gift left to them but only one sister was followed in this novel.  I bet there are more books to come but the way it was set up in the beginning of the book set it up as all three.  Great book, it has a Christian feel to it.

The Best Gift by Irene Hannon

After her beloved aunt Jo passed away, sassy redhead A. J. Williams inherited her aunt's bookstore...and the store's handsome manager, Blake Williams. Like oil and water, A.J. and Blake didn't mix. A.J.'s motto had always been Go with the Flow, and God Will Lead the Way, while Blake lived a practical, conservative life. But they had to find a middle ground when they were forced to work together to solve a problem that could affect both their lives. Could their budding friendship--and a bit of divine guidance--lead to the love of a lifetime? Because with Aunt Jo's legacy, anything was possible

So there you have it a few misses but two good ones that I enjoyed reading!  Have a great week!

Memorial Weekend 2011 Wrap Up

Thursday night Rick and I went out on a date night since we had a babysitter so we could meet with Cole’s principal for the end of year wrap up and evaluation if we will be welcomed back next year.  Well the secretary had the dates wrong it happen to be drama night at Cole’s school so we had to cancel the meeting but not time to cancel the babysitter.  So after drama night we went out to dinner, I’ve been eating so well for a few weeks so going out was a test I failed.  It all looked so well but I over did it and paid for it later that night.  Since then I have been sick as a dog .

On side note we meet the Principal on Friday nothing but good words about Cole.  He has come leaps and bounds since the start of school, still has his moments but YEAH we’re doing well baby!!

Cole’s school does a Drama night each year.  This year they did the garden.  Cole played a flower and a WEED .  The Weed’s rapped it was hilarious!  Cole even told the farmer that he didn’t want to become “Coleslaw”.  He had no idea why people laughed at his name … lol.

Darma night Cole needed Sunglasses to play a Weed so Caden had to get some Monkey glasses . My parents even came which was great they usually don’t come to things that are very religious.  But this night it was just a play so everyone was happy.

We had a few sun days so that means play time.  Which made us very dirty, my friend had to hose the boys down before they came in … lol.

We had our last swim class until class start back up in late June.  Our teacher was gone so we had a new teacher.

We had a Lowe's kids clinic making biplanes, let’s just say the reason you don’t see a finished product is momma was frustrated so yup we left I’ll have to finish those up later … lol

We visited my parents to see all the changes they have done at their waterfront.  They added in a slide off the dock, tore up the grass put in blocks and bunch of dirt and then a concrete pad and a new gazebo. They also extended out the dock so the jetskii’s can be there the whole time.  We even had a tasty dinner.

Happy Wednesday everyone!!