Memorial Day

Today I decided that during our time with family and friends that I'm going to take some time with my kids and do a little lesson on our military and what Memorial Day is really about. We get so caught up in the cookouts, fireworks, parades and food that we sometimes forget that today there are people who are grieving deeply. There is a parent, grandparent, sibling, spouse or even child who misses their loved one very much. It saddens me that there is only 1 day to recognize the sacrifice those have made for us. I know there are people who realize this more then on Memorial Day but its easy to forget as we go about our daily lives that there are many whose lives have been forever changed. I have the utmost respect for our military, both dead and alive, they all played a role in us having our freedom and I'm forever grateful. I am very honored to have many people in my family who served. I remember when my youngest brother went to Iraq the pain it caused my parents, I've never in my whole life seen my dad cry and there wasn't a time where we would mention my brothers name where he didn't just break down, it broke our hearts. I thank God in heaven that he kept my brother safe, he ended up doing 3 tours and every time he left we had many sleepless nights. So today we want to Thank all of you who have served and our prayers are with you all and your loved ones. Thank You.

Bully Ban!

Well this week most of you know that my 11 year old asked me to watch the "Stop bullying speak up" program on cartoon network and was really inspired to want to spread the word about bullying. So, he came up with the idea, after watching his dad make survival bracelets, that he would like to pick some colors and make the "Bully Ban" bracelet and send with a no bully contract to those interested! I was super proud that my child would want to help spread that word. Kids today can be so cruel and I pray all the time that mine have sympathy and empathy to others around us. I am so proud that he has that kind of heart. So, we created this bracelet in hopes that others would be interested in them, they will be mailed with a contract that will be signed with their parents to notarize that they will not, nor will they be involved in any mistreatment or bullying at all. If they witness it they will speak up. Our hope is that those who want one will sincerely take the contract to heart and wear the bracelet proudly! What a great and fashionable way to spread the word about NO bullying?!

love

I just love this quote, totally melted my heart.

Aggravated

I've been MIA from blogger world for to long! Its something I would like to do more but rarely do I have moments of clear thinking with all the screaming, playing, crying and fighting with the kids these days. I am really aggravated as I write this post. This past week has been particularly hard, we had a big family gathering over Mother's Day weekend and added a birthday into the mix, there were lots of adults and kids here and some kids that had been burning up with a fever that the parents so conveniently forget to tell us! Well fast forward a few days after and my 2 year old little girl is burning up and wheezing out of nowhere! I take her to Patient First right away, they swab her nose, comes back positive of the freaking flu!! I was so upset. See, just a few years ago when H1NI was sweeping across the Country, a friend of ours teenage son died from it. Naturally I hear flu and I'm in a panic! The Doctor said she had strain B, H1NI was in strain A, but the Flu is evil in any strain. So lots of tylenol, fluids, make her comfy and drive all over town for the prescription Tami Flu we were given. That was super hard to find because ALL our local pharmacies were SOLD OUT! The Flu has hit hard here! Doctor said that they have never seen the flu hit this late and this hard. Its a different strain they are not used to, that scares me even more! After a few days of Tami Flu and sleepless nights my girl is on the upswing, here comes the fever to the boys, then me and now hubby. Isn't it lovely when you have kids and there are parents who could care less about exposing your kid to THEIR kids germs? I know its not right but I get so freaking angry! I am always very careful to not take my kids around others when they are ill. Its just common courtesy, I mean that is parenting 101. I can't wait to sanitize this whole house down, I've been cleaning the bathroom, knobs, counters, remotes and anything else I can with lysol wipes and using bleach. Ugh. Its been a rough one. Since this flu is lingering and really spreading keep an extra eye on your kids, just to be extra cautious..Thanks for the rant, that felt good..

Mother's Day

Most of us have many plans for the weekend that will be spending time with our Mothers, our children and the rest of our family. I couldn't help but think of those who have loss their Mother's during this time. I can imagine that its a hard time for them, I'm sure many emotions go along with it. Sadness is the first I'm sure, maybe regret for things you wish could of been said or should have, and I'm sure jealousy. I've talked to a few that are close to me who have loss their mom and that is something that they struggle with, its hard for them to see others with their moms when they are grieving and wishing they had theirs still. I am blessed to still have my mother but with the natural order of things there will come a day when I don't, I pray that I enjoy and savor the time I have now since we never know what life will bring. This Mother's Day I am saying a prayer for those who are hurting and feeling all these emotions from the loss of their Moms, I hope that you find some peace during this time and comfort.

Grandma's Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Pot Pie:
This was the best recipe ever! My family loved them and I must say they turned out great! Weis grocery store has ALL their chicken 40% off right until May 12th so I went and loaded up. I ended up being able to make 3 different meals out of the chicken and this was one. Great for leftover's.
Ingredients:
Cut up chicken, about 3 cups
1 can cream of chicken soup, peas,
onions diced up, celery diced up
carrots cut up, potatoes cut up (small)
and salt and pepper to taste.
For the topping I used 2 cups of bisquick
1 cup milk and 2 eggs. Mix together and spoon on top then bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until brown. Very rarely do I make pot pies because they never really turned out in the past since I would use pie crust, so I found this to be very easy. I will definitely be using this with beef in the future.