Letterboxing

This weekend we dipped our toes into the waters of letterboxing for the first time. Never heard of it? A few weeks ago we had not either. Basically all throughout the country people have hidden boxes, it's essentially a treasure hunt. Each box contains a stamp, ink pad and journal. You carry your own unique stamp and journal. When you locate the letterbox you put your stamp, name and date in the letterbox journal and you put the letterbox stamp in your own journal.

Our first letterboxing experience was at Dutch Wonderland in Lancaster, PA. We only found 1 letterbox and we know there are 2 more out there. It was an exceptionally hot day and after locating 1 letterbox we were beat! We plan to locate the other 2 before this season is over. To read about the letterboxes at Dutch Wonderland visit: www.dutchwonderland.com/stay_play/letterboxing.php

For a more thorough explanation of letterboxing and locations for letterboxes all throughout the country (not just in amusement parks) visit: www.letterboxing.org

Caleb really got into this "treasure hunt" and it's a cheap way to have fun! We look forward to finding more soon!

The Karate Kid Movie

This week we went to the Karate Kid prescreening in White Marsh since I won passes from Fox 45 News. I was excited to win these tickets because it was actually a movie that I wanted to see (I've won passes in past that I didn't necessarily want).

The movie was pretty good! It had a lot of humor intertwined with the drama. Jaden Smith's acting and skills are insane! He is also so cute that I could just pinch his cheeks! My two complaints are that it was very predictable (like the Titanic you kind of knew how it would end) and way too long (2 hours long).

I give it 3 out of 4 stars, if you don't get to see it in the theaters definitely redbox it in a few months!

Party Hardy!

We have just survived 5 parties in 5 days!


It started on Friday when I threw my Mom and sister Sara a Memorial Day themed cookout for our monthly "ladies night." I am very fascinated by Sandra Lee (Food Network... google her) and the concept of "tablescapes." Mine aren't nearly as elaborate or fancy as hers because of my budget, but even a quick trip to the dollar store can spruce up any party! I had everything from red/white/blue lights to balloons!

On Sunday (we went to Pennsylvania on Saturday and visited Dutch Wonderland/Chocolate World) we went to John John's birthday party in Fallston. The Weidinger family really knows how to throw a party! From the dunking tank to musical chairs Caleb really had a ball!

On Monday we went to Jason's parents for a Memorial Day cookout. My family was invited too, so it really made for a nice day! I was happy that Caleb actually swam in the big pool, even if it was only for a few minutes!

Today, Tuesday I threw a baby shower at work for a coworker. My mother in law was really helpful and had a lot of decorations for me to borrow. The best moment was when Jenn's Mom and kindergarten teacher walked in from Frederick. I had gotten her Mom's phone number through the grapevine and invited her. The look on her face was priceless!

After the baby shower at work (and field day all day) I came home, quickly showered, and then Blake and I headed to Stacey's for our small group picnic. I am sad that I won't see these ladies every Tuesday for a couple months!

We are so blessed to be invited to so many parties/be able to have so many parties. However, I think I am partied out for now! I am looking forward to a quiet weekend. :)

Shrek the Final Chapter and Hashbrown Casserole

Yesterday Caleb and I saw the final installment (we'll see if that's really true in a year or so) of the Shrek movie series. We went with our buddies, the Cosden family. I honestly wasn't overly excited about seeing another Shrek movie, but Caleb has asked many times to go. To be honest my attitude quickly changed and I think I may have enjoyed more than Caleb! (If that's even possible!) The movie is loaded with appropriate adult humor! I found myself laughing more times than I count, which is rare for me! We saw the 3-D version, which made the experience even cooler. The premise of the movie is what would life would be like if Shrek never existed and never broke Fiona's curse (beautiful princess by day, ugly ogre by night). My favorite character in this movie is the overweight Puss in Boots... I think he reminded me too much of my own fat cat Simba. I give this movie four out of four stars! Don't wait until it comes to Redbox, go to theatre! :)



This was a delicious hit at the poor Friday breakfast at school this week. So easy to make too!

Hashbrown Casserole

1 package, 32 oz bag of hash browns
2 cans (10.75 oz) cream of potato soup
8 oz. of cubed ham (I threw in extra)
16 oz. sour cream
2 cups of cheddar cheese
1 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Mix the first 5 ingredients together, you need a big bowl.
Spread into a 13x9 pan.
Sprinkle parmesan on top.
Bake for 1 hour.

Fondant and Toilet Seats (Yes, You're Reading This Correctly!)

Those of you who know me well know that my favorite television show is "Ace of Cakes." You also know that while I am happily married, I have quite the crush on baker Duff Goldman. He drives me insane! (LOL)
On Sunday night I perused the Charm City Cakes blog as I do once or twice a month (www.charmcitycakes.com). I squealed when I found out that Duff has FINALLY put out a line of baking items from cake mix, to pans, to fondant. My only disappointment was that I read this around 10 p.m. and the only store you can buy it at (Michael's Craft Store) was already closed! I seriously wanted to drive over there in my pajamas! Alas, I waited until after work on Monday and had a field day! As you can see above there is so much to choose from and I want it all! Since my Mom's birthday was this week we decided to start with hot pink fondant, butter creme cake mix, a fondant smoother, and decorative icing.

I've never, ever worked with fondant or tasted it. I am dying to come up with the time and money to take a cake decorating class! Initially I was going to make the cake and place the fondant, but when Jason offered I took him up on it. He did an amazing job in my opinion!

To be completely honest, the cake was delicious! Definitely worth the $8 pricetag (although you better believe I used a 40% off coupon). The fondant while gorgeous, was not tasty. I really don't think it has anything to do with the Duff brand though. It's something about the play-doh like texture that makes it unappealing to me. I think fondant's primary purpose is to be decorative, even if it is edible!

My Mom was so impressed she made us wait to blow out her candles so that she could take a picture!

On a completely unrelated note (HA), Jason found the COOLEST toilet seat EVER at Home Depot today. It is an adult and toddler seat in one! You simply fold down the smaller seat and...

it turns into a toddler potty! Those of you who do not have kids think I am insane. Those of you who have kids think I am a genius. Either way, Caleb appreciates not having to hold on for dear life whenever he makes a deposit!

Mother's Day Weekend Part 2

I know I'm a bit behind... but life has been busy! I wanted to post the rest of our Mother's Day fun! I couldn't post our Mother's Day project for the Grandmoms until after I gave it to them... my Mom is on facebook and I feared she might actually figure out how to use it!
We made garden stepping stones for both Grandmoms. I bought cute handprint kits at the AC Moore in White Marsh. Caleb did a nice job with pushing his hand in just right. Blake just wanted to squish the clay in his hands though, so his turned out to be more of a fist print than a handprint!

I thought the finished product turned out nice!

On Mother's Day we decided to have both families over to our house for lasagna. This way neither of our Mom's had to worry too much about cooking, cleaning, etc. The funniest moment of the day was when the Grandmoms gave each other a gift... the same exact thing! They bought the same flower in the same color! Hilarious!

Jason went out of his way to recover from last year (long story) and it was a beautiful day! He gave me color coded index cards for chores that I want done around the house, too fun!

Mother's Day Weekend Part 1

Today we just got in the car and drove. These tend to be our best most memorable days!

We started out by going to breakfast at IHOP in Timonium. Jason's godmother got us a giftcard there for Christmas and we didn't want it to go to waste. While we were there there was a quick, but heavy rainstorm. I worried that our fun might be short lived! Fortunately, but the time we were done the rain had stopped.

We decided to head to Dutch Wonderland next in Lancaster. We didn't tell Caleb where we were going so he was very surprised when we pulled up in the parking lot. I think this is the way to go from now on Dutch Wonderland days. This way he is not in our bed at 6:00 a.m. ready to go! Due to the slight chance of rain I guess a lot of people were scared away. This worked to our benefit! Even though we didn't arrive until 10:30 (30 minutes after the park officially opened) we were able to park right in front of the castle. We walked right onto every ride and it felt like we had the park to ourselves. We ran into "Duke" the dragon on the way in, Dutch Wonderland's mascot. I love how this picture turned out! Usually I am the one holding the camera so I don't have nearly enough pictures with the boys.

In honor of Mother's Day they had a whoopee pie making station. Caleb enjoyed constructing and decorating it by himself! If you've never had a whoopee pie it is basically cake sandwich with icing in the middle.

He made a huge mess, but fortunately there was an outdoor hand washing station right by. Very good planning on their part!

The most memorable (and terrifying) moment of this visit was riding on the skylift. Even though there was no rain and there was plenty of sunshine, it was terribly windy! As Caleb and I took it across the park our lift blew back and forth. I thought for sure we were going to fall hundreds of feet to the ground. I shared my fear with the operator and he said that if got much windier they would close it for safety reasons, no kidding! Instead of taking the sky lift back to where Jason and Blake were, we walked! It was good exercise any way!

After 2 hours we had accomplished a lot and decided to head to the Bird In Hand farmer's market. We are having mother's day dinner with both of our families tomorrow, and rather than making a dessert I wanted to buy one to treat myself to less time in the kitchen this mother's day weekend. Unfortunately we didn't find anything there really, so we got in the car. As we were heading down the road I saw a tiny sign that said "Bird in Hand Bake Shop, turn right, then make your second right." I was behind the wheel so I made the quick turn. We drove through some serious Amish territory and I was about to turn around because I felt like we were driving too far when we found it. What a find! It was a cute little bakery/craft store nestled between a quaint Amish schoolhouse and farm. They had an awesome playground for children and a petting zoo. We found some great baked items to put out tomorrow! Their website is: www.bihbakeshop.com

From the bake shop we headed to Shrewsbury for fresh green beans from their Amish market and to allow Caleb to play in the giant playplace in their McDonald's. All in all it was a beautiful weekend! I tend to get very sappy on Mother's Day weekend and found myself thinking "I am so lucky!" many times today!