"My Sister's Keeper"

Tonight I saw a prescreening (I win a lot of tickets through the 101.9 Lite Fm Email Listeners Club emails, sign up for it!) of "My Sister's Keeper." This is a story about a little girl that was genetically engineered to save her sister's life (the sister has leukemia). She files for medical emancipation from her parents so that she does not have to undergo any more medical procedures, surgeries, etc. The key question of the movie is WHY does she file for this emancipation? While the subject matter is rather serious, there are many funny moments intertwined into the movie. This movie hooked me in the first 30 seconds and I loved it. It is a definite chick flick, take a girlfriend! Bonnie came with me and I was glad, Jason would have been muttering sarcastic comments under his breath as I cried!

The Feeding Hokey Pokey!

We have started feeding Blake cereal from a spoon this week. It's hilarious! I put the food in, he spits it back out and laughs, repeat about 10 times! I can't believe how quickly time is flying and that we are already to another milestone like this!

Summer vacation officially began last Friday at 12:15, but it hasn't really felt like it yet. On Monday and Tuesday I went to school to clean out book rooms. It wouldn't have been so bad except the AC was turned off due to construction. I get a strange joy out of throwing things away and organizing, so in a sick way I suppose I enjoyed it. Tomorrow it's off to the Hilton BWI for the annual MIBR (Maryland Institute of Beginning Reading) conference. Last year the speaker was terrible and I was out of there by lunch. I'm hoping they have someone good this time!

Even if I do have to work a little, I enjoy the slower pace in the summer. I love being at home with the boys!

Dutch Wonderland=Dutch Wonderful

This weekend I finally convinced Jason that we should spring for Dutch Wonderland season passes. I love taking the kids there. It's clean in every aspect! Which is hard to find these days! In 3 visits it will pay for itself. We've already been twice as in my excitement to have season passes I convinced Jason take us up on Saturday AND Sunday. Caleb has turned into quite the daredevil. Last year he was scared of everything, this year he ran from ride to ride. Since we can't quite afford to take a big vacation this summer I look forward to our fun trips to Dutch Wonderland as a family.

Blake on the monorail with Daddy... his shirt says, "Who you callin' crabby?"

Caleb holding "Duke the Dragon" on the monorailWe swung by Chocolate World in Hershey to take the free chocolate factory tour. Parking is also free if you're in and out within two hours, which is very easy to do!

Memorial Day Weekend

This weekend we celebrated Blake's baptism. Ironically Caleb was also baptized on Memorial Day Weekend, so the service was very similar to Caleb's with a patriotic message (some people were having deja vu!). It was very nice and meaningful for us as parents. What a responsibility we have!After the service we had a reception at my parents house. Not too many people came because of the holiday weekend. It was very nice though. No drama, which is my idea of a perfect family gathering. Blake's cake was gorgeous!

Today we are spending a day at home. We are catching up on chores, getting ready for a short week of work, and organizing. I spent 2 hours this morning just switching Blake's clothing from 0-3 months to 3-6 months. He has so many clothes for this summer! I am beginning to understand more and more every day as to why God blessed us with another boy!

On a silly side note, I am DYING to watch Jon & Kate Plus 8 tonight. Those of you who know me well know this show has been one of my guilty pleasures for years. With all of the controversy lately I can't wait to hear their side of the story. Part of me wants to believe that it's all a lie, but part of me knows that it has to be somewhat of a scam! Last summer Jason drove me to Pennsylvania to hear them speak at a church event. They spoke about the biblical principals they follow as parents and in their marriage. I hung on every word. Then I paid twenty dollars to get their autograph. That should have been the moment I knew it was a scam! Here is a picture from the autograph line.

Baptism Preparations!

Tomorrow is Blake's baptism at St. Matthew's. I have a million things to do and yet I am sitting here blogging. I am trying to be fair and do everything for Blake's baptism that I did for Caleb's.

Last night I made favors. This was my second frustrating experience with a Wilton brand favor kit. The paper that they provide is not flat and jammed 3 different printers that I tried! Not all of the favors have tags due to technical difficulties, but it's the thought that counts!

I also made chocolates from molds. Since you can microwave the wafers to melt them they are insanely easy! Give it a try!

My favorite mold is the bible with cross. The picture doesn't do it justice! I also did praying hands, doves, and crosses with flowers.

Fingerpainting Adventure

I have been unsure of whether or not to allow Caleb fingerpaint yet. I hate messes! Today we tried it for the first time and it actually went quite well. We bought the Crayola washable fingerpaints. Surprisingly Caleb stuck to painting the paper and didn't get a drop of it on the table, floor, or his clothing.

Yesterday we took Caleb and Blake to Storyville at the Rosedale Library. It was Blake's first visit of many. Storyville is a lot like Port Discovery in Baltimore City. It has tons of things for kids under the age of 5 to do from grocery shopping to "Toddler Bay." There is even an area called the"Baby Garden" for babies that cannot walk yet. Blake enjoyed looking at himself in the mirror, listening to the rainmaker toys, and even interacting with some other babies. The best part is that this gem is FREE! Visit their website at http://www.bcplstoryville.org/storyville_home.html, even if it's a little out of the way for you it is definitely worth the trip.

Golden Graham S'mores

Jason has fallen in love with the new Golden Graham S'mores bars, but at $1.25 a piece from the snack machine at his work they are a little pricey. I went on cooks.com and found an awesome recipe, they turned out very tasty and I highly recommend them!

Golden Graham S'mores

3/4 cup light corn syrup

3 tablespoons butter

1 package milk chocolate morsels

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 package Golden graham cereal (9 cups)

3 cups miniature marshmallows

Grease 13x9 inch pan. Heat syrup, butter, and morsels to boiling stirring constantly. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla. Pour over cereal in bowl, toss until coated. Fold in marshmallows 1 cup at a time. Press into pan with buttered back of spoon. Let stand 1 hour. Cut into 2 inch squares. Store at room temperature.