cake pops

Joey had a birthday.

So we made a cake.

And then they scooped it out of the pan into a bowl.

Then they crumbled it into crumbs.

Then Joey dumped in almost a whole can of frosting,

and mixed it up until it was nice and squishy.

Then we shaped it into balls,

but then flattened the balls on the top and bottom.

I then sliced some marshmallows into four slices and the kids cut little circles out of them using an icing tip.

Using some melted candy melts, the kids attached the marshmallow rounds to the tops of the cake balls.

Then we dipped the tips of lollipop sticks into the bit of melted candy and inserted them halfway into the pop.

While we waited for the pops to harden in the freezer, we melted a bag of candy melts in a double boiler,

then we dipped the cake pops into the melted candy and twirled and shaked to try to get the candy coating on evenly.

(Note: up until this step, this project is extremely kid-friendly. The dipping and twirling and shaking is not. I had never worked with candy melts and this was hard for me to do. The kids can dip the pops into the melted candy, but it is best for an adult to do the finishing.)

Can you tell what they are yet?

After the candy was nice and dry, it was time to give them faces.

They're Lego heads!

Joey was happy with the results.



All that was left to do was to light the candles,



blow,



and enjoy!

(These turned out nicely because I used the directions I found here. I used icing instead of decorator pens for the faces -- the pens would have been much easier.)

when red 40 equals greatness

What does it take to be the world's greatest mom?

The answer is surprising: deprive the children of cereal. Only buy it occasionally, but even then, have a pretty strict ban on any cereal that turns the milk pink.



Then, one Tuesday, tell your son he can pick any cereal he wants when you go grocery shopping. Watch the delight on his face as he chooses sugar coated rings of artificial colors.



Enjoy the pleasure of watching him merrily eat two bowls for an afternoon snack. And then be handed the title of "best mom in the world" from the world's sweetest boy.



Sometimes it really is great to break the "rules."

home boy

We are halfway through Joey's first grade year. Academically, Joey is wonderfully average. He would rather play all day than sit down and do school work, but when we do sit down, we are blazing no spectacular homeschool trails; just learning the basics for now, and that is perfectly fine with me.



Everyday I am more and more convinced that academics are just a part of homeschool, and the greater part is that he is home. We are together. He spends his playtime with Katie, investing in a lifelong friendship. Everyday I see little victories in the fighting-quarreling struggles the two have faced. Joey is learning the joys of teamwork, as well as understanding the challenge it is to love by seeking not his own. Lizzie is his joy and delight, and because he is home, he takes her out of the crib some mornings and entertains her all on his own.




His being home means I am his teacher. He read his first "real" book with me. I get to put the "Awesome!" sticker on his math tests and see his enormous smile. It isn't all sunshine and lollipops, and believe me when I say I have considerable shortcomings, and have sometimes been a complete failure. But when I ask for forgiveness, he is always ready to love and forgive. We spend lots of time together, and so far, he isn't tired of me. :)



We are both figuring this out together. I am blessed to have such a sweet boy to learn right along side with. I am blessed and grateful that homeschool is possible in our family.

I love having him home with me.

bedheads

I love the hair that comes perched upon the bleary-eyed heads that wake up each morning.
There are so many different looks to enjoy:

The mussy-mop.


(do you like the foot peeking out?)

The spiney-pokey.


(that may be a look of slight displeasure at mother shooting his picture first thing in the morning while his mouth is full of breakfast)

And the teased-to-please.


But to be perfectly honest, this is how Katie looks most of the time, not just in the morning.
She is not a well-kept girl. It is not her way. Her mane cannot be tamed!

Lizzie usually gets this mussy mop pulled up into a pebbles-style sometime in the day, but this is basically how her face looks most of the time.


Always smiling and showing of those goofy front teeth of hers.

Morning to night, what a delight.

sister sorting

Yesterday the kids were getting on each other's nerves a bit, so I came up with a task to keep their hands and minds busy. I put a different colored flash cards on various squares of our patterned carpet in the play room. Then I gave Katie the wooden block bin, and Joey the car bin, and told them to sort their bins by putting the block or car on the corresponding block of carpet.

They busily worked until the task was complete. Joey excitedly came into the kitchen to tell me to come see the finished product. When I walked in the room, I noticed that Lizzie was not sitting where I had placed her by the pink Boppy pillow, so I asked Joey why he had moved her.



With his face all smiles he replied, "See mama, I put her on the pink square!"

shiver me timbers

Yo, ho ho and blow the man down, but no need to fear this pirate in my kitchen.

The paper patch scotch-taped to his eye and his ruler sword are giving off a pretty non-threatening vibe.

white

Joey the careful

Katie the cold and crabby

Frosty the celebrating snowman

About Bear

Joey and Bear, March 2008

a conversation between Joey and me last week

"Did I ever tell you who gave Bear to Mommy...how you got him?"

"No."

I know I have, but I tell the story again.

"Aunt Donna gave Bear to Mommy for Natalie, when Natalie was still in my belly, at a special party called a baby shower."

"Oh."

"But then Natalie went to heaven...and Mommy and Daddy were so sad. And we prayed and prayed for God to give us a new baby in my belly, because we missed Natalie so much. And we really hoped we could have a baby that could stay with us, and not go to Heaven so soon."

He looks at me with wide, concerned eyes.

"And then God answered our prayers, and gave Mommy a new baby in her belly."

"That baby was me?"

"Yes, God answered our prayers - you were the answer to our prayers! You were the baby Mommy prayed for. We were so happy!...And then, Mommy let you have Bear, because I didn't think Natalie would mind if I shared her things with you since she was in Heaven."

He pulls Bear in close.

"And now Bear is your very favorite, special friend!"

He hugs Bear tightly, and buries his face in the back of Bear's head.

"I am so glad Jesus gave you to me. I love you so much. I am so glad you are able to love Bear."

"Me too."

I say "smile"...

...they hear "suck in your bottom lip."

homeward bound

Last night at church Adam borrowed a friend's GPS so he could check it out. Joey asked me what daddy was putting on the windshield and I explained to him what it was and what it did. Joey looked at me a bit quizzically and asked,
"Oh? Did Daddy forget the way home?"

He cracks me up :)

a whole hand old

Joey turned five-years-old on Saturday. We celebrated as a family together on Thursday since that was Adam's day off. Well actually, I should say Adam celebrated with Joey on Thursday, because all I did all day Thursday was lie in bed and be sick. Adam treated Joey to donut holes for breakfast and then they got a new fish, Gill, to replace Joey's old goldfish that died. In the afternoon, a longtime friend came over with her children for a scheduled play date even though she knew I was sick and couldn't be any company. Joey's heart would have been broken if he didn't get to play with some of his favorite friends, and it really made his day to run around like a crazy person for a couple hours with them. After our guests left and Adam put Katie down for a nap, he and Joey went bowling. We have gone bowling only once before and Joey loved it, and has asked to do it again numerous times. He was thrilled to go. Adam said he kept trying different bowling balls, so that by the end of their two games, the bowling ball return (does that have a name?) was completely filled. Joey told me he won both games, but I never did verify that information with Adam.

When given the choice for that night's dinner and activities, Joey picked pizza for dinner, eaten in the living room, while watching one of his favorite movies with daddy. We then sang and had cake. Joey had asked for a cake with a chocolate sprinkles racetrack (just like I made for him last year) but instead Adam bought a cake from the grocery store since I couldn't bake that day. Joey didn't seem to mind at all.

We gave him one of his birthday gifts, a little Playmobil pirate dinghy. Joey already has a pirate ship he often plays with, and now he has two ships to battle it out on the high seas. I was happy that even though I was in bed most of the day, Joey had a great day with his Dad and friends.

On Saturday, the real birthday day, we got to celebrate all over again. In the morning my mom came over with the traditional birthday donut and gifts. One of her gifts was a large dinosaur floor puzzle that she worked on with Joey while she stayed with the kids for a bit, so I could run to Lowe's and get some soil and mulch and plants, which is much easier to do without the children. Joey enjoyed helping me with some of the planting I did after I put Katie down for a nap. Then Grandpop stopped by to see the birthday boy and to bring some ice cream treats. By now, I was getting pretty tired from all the yard work and mowing, so I indulged in a mid-afternoon treat myself.

I then realized that Joey's cousins would be over soon and I hadn't even started anything for dinner, so I put together an easy homemade mac 'n cheese, and got a package of hot dogs out of the freezer. Yes, I went all out for this birthday dinner. And then I realized that I was not going to have time to make cupcakes, but never fear, I could just use the two packs of Klondike bars Grandpop brought as the birthday "cake". If only I had a picture of the pyramid of the foil wrapped frozen treats with candles stuck in the cracks. That is semi-homemade taken to a whole new level. Really special.

Two cousins, Austin and Grayson arrived first, and then Adam brought cousin Brooke when he came home from work. They all played so well together, even when Adam and I had to work on getting the tree that my in-laws gave us that morning planted and filled in with soil. Later on in the evening, Adam shot off some bottle rockets for the kids which only fueled the intensity of the spaz level. Joey and Katie were completely worn out by the time everyone went home.

I could say Joey had a perfect day, but I do believe the shirt he was wearing that day says it better. A boy cannot have a day that turns a bright white shirt into this-

-without it being a really great day.

(No, Joey doesn't go to the Goddard school, it was a hand-me-down)

Joey is a gift from God that I have been blessed to enjoy these five years. I am so thankful he is a part of our family. His tender heart, easy smile, and enthusiastic love warm my heart every day. I love him, and the great thing is, I like him too. He is one cool kid.