Fair Fun

One of the things that I love about Germany is all the little fairs. There's always a town within driving distance having a fair during the spring/summer months. I just love them, even though they're virtually all the same vendors. I swear the same vendors frequent them, or near enough to make no difference. We went to one a couple weeks ago in Kaiserslautern. I think it was called their Mai Markt. There was less Markt and more rides, but that was okay with us. We get away cheap, since the only kid who loves the rides is D. Link won't go, which saves us euro. And of course, we have our customary crepe. I always opt for banana and nutella, but James went for some fresh strawberries and some cream that he really disliked. And that, my friends, is why I'll always stick to that which I know and love.

 

 

 

Lincoln loved the Scrat that Daddy won him

 

 

 

 

Drake won his own dragon from the claw game

 

 

Lincoln later carried that Scrat squirrel around everywhere!

Free printable Cat Mothers Day Card

So I love the internet. That should really be no surprise. But I love to look at sites that make me giggle. My favorite is TheMetaPicture. I go there daily to get a good laugh and hardly a day passes without some mention of cats or a cute photo of a cat. Sometimes I think that cats are taking over the internet. While personally I'm a dog person, I do love animals of any type. And I love Moms. Which leads nicely into my next free printable: a cat mother's day card! Okay so maybe it didn't segueway as nicely as it could have, but I haven't had my cup of coffee yet so you don't get to judge. :)

So without further ado, here's my ode to mothers: "I love you like a crazy cat lady loves cats." You can download the flat 5x7 print and frame it or just sign the back, or download the foldable card (already formatted for you to just print, fold and then sign the inside).

 

You can download the flat 5x7 print HERE

and

You can download the foldable card HERE

 

Hope you all have a wonderful mother's day and I'd love to hear if you use this free printable in the comments below!

Let them Sleep

It's a rainy day around here, and has been for two days now, so we're all rained out. Boo. My boys are outside so much now that they've got the cutest little farmer tans (despite all the sunblock that I slather on them). I'm one proud Momma when my little ones ask to go outside more than they ask for TV or video games.

But all that fresh air and sunshine brings about the best side effect of all: naps!

Caught Red-Handed

So I went into the kitchen for some more tea, and this is what I found:

 

Yup, that's my littlest (he must have plumber in his veins) with a contraband box of cheez-its hiding underneath the kitchen table. He must have known I wouldn't have approved it for his snack, so he went into hiding. I thought it was too cute so I snapped a few pics. The sound of the shutter snapping got his attention.

 

 

He then knew he had gotten away with it and even turned to face me. I smiled and laughed at my silly boy and then the oldest had to get in on the action:

 

 

Monkey see, monkey do, especially if that involves a tasty treat. Happy Friday!

 

Spring has Sprung!

After what was the coldest winter (and darkest) on record for Germany, it seems that spring is finally here! And it didn't come soon enough for me. But I'm more than happy to welcome it with open arms. And I won't even complain when it melds into summer much too soon (which I know will happen), even when I know there's no AC in Germany. I will not complain, but will rejoice in the day that the Lord has made! That's my goal, anyway.

So here's a few updates for you, which also explain my absence:
1. We went to Amsterdam. Which was amazing! I know it's the stoner capital of the world but we weren't there for that (neither I nor the hubby do drugs, for the record and in case you're keeping score at home. And now that I typed that I feel like I need to say my children do not either, but they're 3 and 5 so that should be a given). We found some amazing architecture, history, and museums. It was a great city. I hope to post some tips and some photos soon. And by soon I mean as soon as life calms down.

2. We came home for about a month, continued battling the DODDS (read: military) schools to get Lincoln the care / education he requires and deserves. We won some battles and lost some more, but atleast progress is progress.

3. We've continued the speech therapy for Link's dysarthria, and he's coming along splendidly. I just watched a video the other night shot on my iPad. It was Christmastime and Drake saw a shooting star and thought it was Santa Claus so he was yelling up at the sky for Santa to come down. Link got in the spirit and came into the frame at the end and yelled the equivalent of, "yaskjhljgl;kaj khjdlkajsl;kj a dkfajslkdfj!" It really was unintelligible. But now he carries on complete conversations with us and we understand about 75% of what he says. I'm amazed every day at how much progress he is making. And I'm thankful.

4. Continuing with that thought train, we also enrolled Drake in drop-off speech at the local elementary. He's habituated some words/pronunciations and we're having a hard time breaking him of it. He can say a perfect D, but things like doggy are still "goggy." It also appears he has some hearing issues, as he can't tell the difference between B and V for instance. I learned today that "bye" and "five" sound exactly the same to his ears. No wonder it's harder on him to pronounce things correctly. Hopefully we'll get some answers soon for him.

5. We also took a trip to London and Dublin, which were AMAZING. I definitely need to post some tips and recommendations for it. And also, I want to live there.

6. Drake's now enrolled in t-ball. He's doing really great with it and enjoying it, which is much more important to me. The kid hits the ball tossed at him better than off the tee though, so we're working on that at home. It's so much fun to be able to share my love of sports with my children. Link's too young to play yet, but he enjoys being our bat boy.

So I think that's it for now. Hopefully I'll have an update in a much more timely manner, but in the grand scheme of things, please know that my family comes first, my business second, and the blog is somewhere near the end but don't think I don't love you for reading this. :)

World's Easiest Stuffed Green Peppers

I'm always on the lookout for quick and easy meals, especially since I don't like to cook particularly and my children are inevitably picky eaters. One meal that I can get them to eat is Stuffed Green Peppers. I inherited this gem of a recipe from my mom but I'm not sure where she got the original.

What You'll Need:
2 large green peppers, sliced in half horizontally to form "cups" and seeded
1 lb. ground beef
1 cup rice (you can even use the microwave variety or the boil in bag variety if you want)
1 can Sloppy Joe sauce
1/4 log of Velveeta, dice (you can use more or less depending on how cheesy you like it)

What You'll Do:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (or 175 celcius).

2. In a medium or large saucepan, place cut and seeded green peppers. Cover the peppers with water, and bring to a boil. Boil for about 10 minutes (just until the peppers are no longer firm, but have a little give when you poke them with a fork). Remove cooked green peppers from the water and place in a 8 or 9 inch square glass baking dish.

3. Meanwhile, make your rice according to the directions, especially if you need to boil water for them and they take awhile.

4. Also, start cooking your meat in a skillet on the stove. Be sure to thoroughly cook the meat, and then drain the fat away. Then add in the can of Sloppy Joe, making sure to stir well.

5. Dice the velveeta into small squares. Stir into the Sloppy Joe/ground beef mixture (it doesn't have to melt now; it will in the oven).

6. Fill each green pepper half with cooked rice and the meat mixture (you can do half of each mixture or more of one or the other, depending on your preferences). You can even thinly slice more Velveeta and top each pepper with it. Bake for approximately 30-45 minutes. Enjoy!

Look Who's 5!

So look what happened around here lately (okay, not lately, in November past, but still...): My baby boy, my sweet little guy, is now five. I know I say it every year, and I probably will for every year that follows, but where does the time go?

 

 



Here's years past:

 

 

Wow, where did my baby go?



Cards that Care

So a good friend of mine, Erin, of A Bird and a Bean recently collaborated with a friend of hers for Cards that Care.  I LOVE this idea.  She explains it way better than I ever could, but it's a great way to give back in a small, meaningful way. 

Cards that Care

Apparently there are many heart and stroke patients out there in hospitals who have no family or friends. Can you imagine? You've just suffered a horrible ordeal, all alone. No letters, no cards, no visits. So here's where we step in. Every month create 5 handmade cards that can be delivered to a patient that has no one else to care for them. Show them that someone out there is thinking of them in some small way. It might be the only ray of sunshine that they have that day.

Like Erin says, it's also a great way to teach my children about giving back. They live spoiled, entitled lives (my fault, not theirs) and I want them to be selfless, gracious, and generous. Unfortunately, these are qualities that we have to teach. They aren't innate. With my children being 3 and 5, it's hard to find volunteer opportunities for them, and especially ones that are fun (who said volunteering had to be boring?). But this 5 Card Challenge fits right in. Every month we'll be making 5 handmade cards that can be delivered to patients. Join us in this challenge! You can find more information on where to drop off the cards and contact information over HERE.

Again with the Crickets

So the only action that my blog lately has seen is the random spammer with their, "Wow! Really great thoughtful post, here's my blog {insert hyperlink here}" spam. That's really very sad. I'm sorry for the absence and really hope to write more soon.

One of the many reasons I'm too distracted to write most days :)

At my husband's suggestion, I've created an excel spreadsheet of my day which details what I should be doing at any given time. It's kind of absurd to think that I need it, but so far it's been invaluable. That being said, you can find me mostly over at the wonderful Erin's blog, A Bird and a Bean.

You'll find some clever crafting tips, neat giveaways and of course, my free printables. There's some cute clover leaf St. Patrick's printables over there now. Go check it out.