Saturday Sentament: Zero

Black holes result from God dividing the universe by zero.  ~Author Unknown

Friday Favorites: April 29 - "Y" Edition

April is almost over!  It seems strange that Easter was last weekend, and next weekend is Mother's Day.  I'll start off with my "Y" favorites.

• Yes! - My all time favorite "Y" word; as in "Yes Mom, I did an awesome job on my chores without being asked."  Can it be a favorite even if it's not real?
• Yellow Submarine - While I like the song as much as the next guy, it probably doesn't qualify as a favorite since I don't own a copy.  Marian Allen has the cutest Lego video of it.

These little beauties showed up in my RSS feed today.  There both food related - go figure.

• Your Homebased Mom has another tempting recipe with her Malted Milk Ball Cookies.
• If you'd prefer a healthy recipe, New Nostalgia says her kids fight over these Roasted Sweet Potato Coins.

Yearning to read "Y" bloggers participating in the A to Z Challenge?

• Yes, Another Food Blog

eXtremely Blessed

These last few letters of the A to Z Challenge are going to be tough, I'm curious to see what the other participants pull together.  Hopefully I'm not the only cheater using words like extreme.


I want to use today's post to counter how overwhelmed I've been feeling, and focus on my blessings.

• I'm extremely blessed to have a wonderful family.
• I'm extremely blessed to have the gospel in my life.
• I'm extremely blessed to be healthy.
• I'm extremely blessed to have my temporal needs met.
• I'm extremely blessed for my education and life experiences.
• I'm blessed my garden is growing.

These are my basics (except for the garden - that's a new one for me), and the list goes on and on.  Sometimes life is hard, but the hard stuff seems less overwhelming when I focus on the good stuff.  Share what's blessing your life today.

Winner!

After much waiting, it's time to announce the winner!  It's me - everyone was too wimpy to try their hand at our Quote Contest.


Now for the answers to our from last Wednesday's contest.
1.    Aladdin - Excuse me.  Did you bring here? Did you rub my lamp? Did you wake me up? And all the sudden your walking out on me?  I don't think so, you're getting your wishes. So SIT DOWN!
2.    Beauty and the Beast - Crazy old Maurice!
3.    Emperor’s New Groove - Why do we even have that lever?
4.    Princess Bride - Aaaaaaaaaaaassssssss yooooou wiiiishhhhhhhh!
5.    Second Hand Lions - Corn, corn, corn, nothing but corn.
6.    Holes - Excuse Me!Well that's too darn bad.
7.    Finding Nemo - He touched the butt.
8.    Incredibles - That was totally wicked!
9.    Tangled - You broke my smolder.
10.    Despicable Me - It's so pink and fluffy I'm gonna DIE!
11.    Night at the Museum - Who's evolved?
12.    Kung Fu Panda - There is no price for awesomeness... or attractiveness.
13.    Robots - Why do you have two noses?
14.    Cars - Float like a Cadillac, sting like a Beemer
15.    Mulan - Let's go get some honey buns!
16.    Lion King - Pinned ya! Pinned ya again.
17.    What a Girl Wants - My evil stepsister, you've seen Cinderella, right? Let me clue you in, I win.
18.    101 Dalmatians - I'm tired, and I'm hungry. And my tail's froze. And my nose is froze. And my ears are froze. And my toes are froze. 
19.    Jungle Book - What do you want to do? I don't know... What do you want to do? Now don't start that again!
20.    Ultimate Gift (Christmas movie) - You better be back by Christmas!
21.    Quest for Camelot - You know, there's nothing more pathetic than a flame retarded dragon. 
22.    Game Plan - You bedazzled my football!?!
23.    Veggie Tales - Where is My hair brush?


Now that wasn't so hard, was it?


Want to see what some "W" bloggers are writing for the A to Z Challenge?

• The Watered Soul
• Wagging Tales
• Waiting on the Muse
• The Woman Condition
• Welcome to Me
• Write, Wrong or Indifferent
• Writing In Wonderland
• WiFi Librarian

Vroom!

As I mentioned yesterday, I have a lot on my plate, veering in several directions beyond the normal busyness.  In honor of the A to Z Challenge, I decided "Vroom" was the perfect word of the day.

• Vroom over to Arizona Mama to read the details of our field trip to Superstition Farm.
• This week we are having a very cool campfire program for Pack Meeting.
• I'm still vrooming around trying to get the details for Girls Camp situated.

What has your vroom in motion this week?

Upcoming Events

I've been focusing on the myriad of upcoming events.  Between now and when school gets out, we have one free weekend.  And our summer is packed and planned.  There's parties, Cub Scouts, Girls Camp and a family vacation.  Overall, there is way too much camping type activities.

How sad is it that school's not even out yet, but I'm already looking forward to the start of the next school year just so I can relax!


Here's a "U" blogger participating in the A to Z Challenge:

• Urban Psychopomp

Don't forget today's the last day to enter the Movie Quote contest!

Family Home Evening: Easter

Family Home Evening on Easter Sunday is a little less structured; OK a lot less structured.  We have dinner with extended family and enjoy the blessings of being together.


We did start off the day with something spiritual over our traditional Easter Breakfast.  We read John 20 and discussed what Christ might say to us if he visited us.  As with Thomas, I guess he would be gentle and reproving.  I know I have many shortcomings; hence the pursuit in excellence.  My motivation to keep trying is the Lord's gentleness and unwavering love.  


I pray that you will have an Easter filled with love and gentleness.

Saturday Sentament: Testimony

"I wish to bear my own testimony in the strongest and most direct manner possible. I know that God lives. I bear witness to the reality and divinity of His Son Jesus Christ, who leads this Church, and who reveals the word of eternal nature of assurance the Father to our generation. I bear my testimony to the gift and power of the Holy Ghost, thethe priesthood, the calling of the Prophet Joseph Smith, the Book of Mormon, and thethat God has again spoken through a living prophet." ~ Robert D. Hales

There's some terrific "T" bloggers taking time for the A to Z Challenge.

• Tell Great Stories
• Tiptoe Kisses
• Thoughts from Tiffani

Friday Favorites: April 22 - "S" Edition

It's Friday again!  Not just any Friday, but Good Friday.  A day with no school to spend more time on our Easter Enlightenment. Since I'm still playing along with the A to Z Challenge, here are a few of my favorite "S" things.

• Superstition Farm - I was able to tour the farm with one of my kiddos this week.  We had a good time being around the cows and other animals - and together.  After all these years, I still love all that I learn from the field trips!
• Sweets - Yeah! Easter candy!
• Seminary Donuts - This is a spectacular story to understand the Atonement.
• Scrapbooking - I'm hoping to get some done today.  Pebbles Inc has some great inspiration.

There are some favorite "S" posts that I'll share with you:

• Chef Tess shares a sinful recipe for Snicker-doodle Blondies.
• For all you wanna be writers out there, Rach Writes has a great example of "Show not tell".

And I can't pass up these great non-S posts:

• Are you still planning your Easter menu?  Your Homebased Mom can help out with her recipe for Fresno Potatoes.
• Here's a fun art project from the CLASSroom.

Here's some "S" bloggers swinging along the A to Z challenge.

• Shelly F. Batt
• Steven Chapman
• A Storybook World
• So I'm Fifty!

Restless

I've been feeling a little restless lately.  That usually happens when I start feeling overwhelmed.  When I have trouble doing all that I'm supposed to, I have trouble focusing on any of it.  A game of solitaire becomes very tempting.  

When I see the the signs, I try (again) to eliminate the unnecessary and find a balance to between buckling down and getting the necessities finished and taking some time to relax (and eat cookies).  How about you?  How do you get through those restless days?

Read these "R" bloggers ready for the A to Z Challenge.

• Rach Writes
• Reach for the Sky
• Razzy's Corner
• Rogue's Home Cooked
• Random Writings
• RJR Daydreamer
• Recipes That Please With Ease

*Remember to test your movie knowledge with our Quote Contest!

Quotes Contest

The kids and I love to quote books, comedians and You Tube videos; but we quote movies the most.  In A to Z fashion, here are some of our favorite movie quotes.  There's only one movie per letter, but none for X - Z. A few of them are a little obscure, but what do you expect from us?  I want to thank my kiddos for their help with the contest.  We might have to do another round in the future because we left out so many great quotes.


Email your answers to raejeaneasyaspie at gmail com, by Monday, April 25.  If you have the most correct answers, I'll mail you one of our favorite DVD's.  If there is a tie, we'll have a drawing to break the tie.  It's not a big fancy prize, mostly just for fun.  The winner (and the answers) will be announced on Wednesday, April 27.

1. Excuse me.  Did you bring here? Did you rub my lamp? Did you wake me up? And all the sudden your walking out on me?  I don't think so, you're getting your wishes. So SIT DOWN!
2. Crazy old Maurice!
3. Why do we even have that lever?
4. Aaaaaaaaaaaassssssss yooooou wiiiishhhhhhhh!
5. Corn, corn, corn, nothing but corn.
6. Excuse Me!Well that's too darn bad.
7. He touched the butt.
8. That was totally wicked!
9. You broke my smolder.
10. It's so pink and fluffy I'm gonna DIE!
11. Who's evolved?
12. There is no price for awesomeness... or attractiveness.
13. Why do you have two noses?
14. Float like a Cadillac, sting like a Beemer
15. Let's go get some honey buns!
16. Pinned ya! Pinned ya again.
17. My evil stepsister, you've seen Cinderella, right? Let me clue you in, I win
18. I'm tired, and I'm hungry. And my tail's froze. And my nose is froze. And my ears are froze. And my toes are froze. 
19. What do you want to do? I don't know... What do you want to do? Now don't start that again!
20. You better be back by Christmas!
21. You know, there's nothing more pathetic than a flame retarded dragon. 
22. You bedazzled my football!?!
23. Where is My hair brush?

 After you email me your entries, share your favorite movie quote, and then check out this "Q" blogger participating in the A to Z Challenge. (For some strange reason there aren't too many.)

• Queen of Procrastination

Paper Folding

 Look what I found in the garden today!  We made these cute little caterpillars, a butterfly and a flower as our activity for Family Home Evening.  I love simple projects that turn out so cute.  We had a fun family activity and shared our creativity.  (And I got to take more pictures of my lettuce and carrots still growing strong!)

The first couple of markers I pulled out to decorate my butterfly wings were pretty much dead, so I tested the rest of the markers in the bucket.  How's that for multitasking? One of my kiddos helped me clean up the part of the craft area where the construction paper lives too.  Projects and purging in the same day!  Perfect!

Here's a few "P" bloggers participating in the A to Z Challenge.

• The Pink Zebra
• People Watch
• Paper Swamp
• Party Smarty Pants

Overwhelmed

Here's to a new week!  Last week was a little overwhelming; I had something going on six nights - five meetings, a party and a date.  Obviously they weren't all bad things, there was just a lot of them.  


I'm sure most women can relate as we all seem to have big plates that are perpetually full.  I'm not complaining since I'm the one who chooses to take on many of those responsibilities.  I keep trying to find a peaceful balance between what I want to do, what I need to do and the time I have to do it in.  Over time, I seem to make progress.  Weeks like last week remind me of the importance of that balance!


How do you cope when you are on overload?

Check out these "O" A to Z Bloggers.

• One Significant Moment at a Time
• Older Mommy, Still Yummy
• Our Life - Plain and Simple

Family Home Evening: Palm Sunday

Today's lesson will be about Palm Sunday.  I can't believe this is our third year of centering our Easter celebrations on the Savior's life, especially his last week on the earth.  When my sister-in-law gave us the "25 Days of Christmas" book, it was so easy making that part of our Christmas celebration.  While I've found a book and a few article about doing the same for our Easter celebration, none of them has been the perfect fit.  So I'm still tinkering and improving our celebration.


Like last year, we will read Luke 19:29-44.  We will review "Palms for the Lord" and the symbolism of palm branches.  And we will start our annual "Love One Another" poster.  Not surprisingly, "Love One Another" will be one of our songs too.


New for this year is our story.  We will read "The Ultimate Outcast" from Max Lucado's book Just Like Jesus.


Our activity was paper folding caterpillars.

Saturday Sentament: Nurture

Nurture your mind with great thoughts; to believe in the heroic makes heroes ~ Benjamin Disraeli

 Note these "N" bloggers participating in the A to Z Challenge.

• Notes Along the Way
• No Clever Craft
• Nesting
  

Friday Favorites: April 15 - "M" Edition

I hope everyone's taxes are complete and you can enjoy this beautiful Friday.  I'll start off today's Friday Favorites with a few of my favorite M's to celebrate the A to Z Challenge.

• Matilda Book Club - I have some fun stuff planned for tomorrow's Book Club Meeting!
• Mahjongg Titans - I'm addicted to this game, especially the ones shaped like animals.
• Multiple Intelligences - I even checked out a book from the library to learn more!  Today, Chocolate on My Cranium shared some characteristics of Naturalistic learners.

Of coarse there are some cool things on the net that don't start with the letter "M".

• Like the cool paper craft projects by Kim Kesti on the CLASSroom.
• For a great color combo for your crafty projects, check out Sherbet Blossom's April Color Cue.
• Cookies are always good.  Today let's try Cake on the Brain's Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies.
• Room Mom 101 has some great teacher appreciation ideas.  Is it that close to May already?

Meet these "M" bloggers participating in the A to Z Challenge!

• Marian Allen
• Myne Whitman Writes
• Margo Kelly
• My Writing Blog

Learn

I love to learn. My challenge is there is so many things I want to learn and so little time to actually spend learning. Sometimes that whole life thing gets in the way!  Those of you who have been reading my blog for a while know that I struggle with being a wanna be everything. It seems like I add five things to "the list" for every one thing I cross off.


Earlier this week I was adding a few books to my wish list of books to read.  When I read through it, I realized I actually read one of the books on my list!  I don't think I have done that since I started the list a few years ago. 


Books are my favorite way to learn, as you may notice by our family book club. As a matter of fact, I shared our Week in the Woods Book Club over at Arizona Mama.


Here's some fun "L" bloggers participating in the A to Z Challenge.

• L'Aussie's Travel Blog
• Little Red Henry
• Laura Pauling
• Lucy Adams
• Life of Riles

Kid History

My kiddos recently discovered Kid History on You Tube.  We've been quoting it around our house to the point the males in our home consider it annoying.

Episode 1

Episode 2

Episode 3

Episode 4

This is the first time I included videos in my post!  (Yeah me!) 

Just for the record - I'm not related to these Roberts as far as I know.

If you are enjoying the A to Z Challenge as much as I am, check out these "K" blogs.

• Katie O'Sullivan
• Karen's World
• KjM on the Web

Jokes

I didn't have any great ideas jump out at me for "J" for the A to Z Challenge.  In It's A Crafty Life's Ten on Tuesday style, I'll share Ten of my favorite Cub Scout jokes from Baloo's Bugle. I know they are corny, but please don't throw anything at your computer!

1. What vegetable should you NOT take on a boat? A Leek.
2. Why don't eggs tell jokes?  They'd crack each other up.
3. How do you make a banana shake? Jump out and yell "Boo!"
4. How do you fix a broken tomato? Tomato paste.
5. Why was the vegetable band so popular? It had a good beet.
6. What did the lettuce say to the celery?  Quit stalking me.
7. What did Father Tomato say to his son while on a family walk? Ketchup.
8. What is the favorite fruit of twins? Pears.
9. What key do you use to open a banana? A monkey.
10. What are strawberries when they are sad? A blueberry.

Do you have any good clean jokes to share?


Here's a few "J" bloggers from the challenge to check out:

• Jumping aground
• Jeffrey Beesler's World of the Scribe
• Justified Lunacy
• Jim's Girl Family History Blog
• Jeanmarie Anaya

Invitations

I am in the middle of my birthday season; four parties in seven weeks, plus Easter and Mother's Day!  Last week I made invitations for one of my teenage movie parties.  I also started playing with my Silhouette in the process to cut out these super cute projectors.  The movie title I printed on the computer, cut out, rounded the corners and backed on black card-stock.  I added the yellow dots by hand and used scraps to make the projector light.

Sweet and simple!

Here's some "I" A to Z bloggers to check out.

• It's Kristal kLEEr
• I Refuse to Go Quietly
• Indie Book Blog
• I Made it through the Rain

Family Home Evening: The Welfare Program

As we heard in General Conference, the Welfare Program is now 75 years old.  In it's honor, we had a lesson on Church Welfare.  We talked about how the official program started in 1936, welfare has always been a part of the church.  The official program led to Deseret Industries, church farms and canneries, and most recently Helping Hands.  One source was the talk "Principles and Programs" by Glenn L. Pace.  The adults shared their experiences with the various parts of the Welfare Program.


We played Apples to Apples Jr. for our activity again.  What can I say?  It's a family favorite.


Our treat was Oven Smores. They were super easy!  There are several versions on the internet, but we simplified them.  We lined a cookie sheet with foil, placed the appropriate number of graham cracker squares on top.  Then placed two Hershey squares of chocolate and a large marshmallow on top of the graham crackers.  Broil for few minutes until the marshmallow is golden.  Take out of the oven and place the graham cracker lid on top of your gooey goodness.

Saturday Sentament: Health

Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying of nothing.  ~Redd Foxx

Laughter is definitely the best medicine!

I'm excited to share I was given an award by fellow A to Z blogger A Storybook World.  Thanks for the accolade! 

Here's a few other A to Z bloggers on this beautiful "H" day.

• House of Happy
• Holly Ruggiero
• Hearth Cricket
• Homeschool Links and Resources

 

Friday Favorites: April 8 - the G Edition

It's time for Friday Favorites A to Z Challenge style.  Since today's letter is "G", I'll start off with a few of my favorite G's.

• Garden - you are probably tired of hearing about our garden experiment, but I'm so excited.  There are actually things growing. In addition to lettuces, carrots, potatoes we now have green beans poking up through the soil.
• Gospel - Last week's General Conference was truly enjoyable.
• Good Book - I'm reading Matilda with my kids for family book club.

I  found some cool posts today, even though they don't have anything to do with "G" words:

• Joy the Baker shares a recipe for Strawberry Pineapple Crumble.
• Booking Mama dug up some interesting trivia on the history of wedding cakes.
• Chocolate on my Cranium continues her series of multiple intelligences with a piece on spacial learners.
• Soup weather is almost gone, so enjoy Dinner Time Ideas' Chicken Corn Chowder quick!

Here's a few A to Z Blogger for today:

• Gems and Rhinestones
• Girl About Town
• Go Go Geo
• Grandma is a Writer

I'd love to hear about your favorite "G" words (keep it family friendly please), or today's favorite posts!

Family Movie Night Solutions

Am I the only one who has dealt with the drama of which movie to watch for Family Movie Night?  I posted a few suggestions over at Arizona Mama.  I'm a firm believer in not killing the party before it even starts with a bunch of whining and arguing.


I'm having a lot of fun with the A to Z Challenge.  I thought I'd share a few of the over 1200 blogs participating - just some that start with the letter "F"

• Fresh
• Flash Fiction
• From These Hallows
• Fur Will Fly
• Frankly Creative

Easter Week

A couple of years ago, I started thinking about how short changed Easter is compared to Christmas.  At Christmas we celebrate for a whole month. Before this realization, we celebrated the Easter Bunny on Saturday and focused on the spiritual on Sunday.  Even then, Sunday was mostly a family dinner with a little discussion about our Savior and an Easter lesson for Family Home Evening.  

We're still building our Easter week tradition - it's actually eight days, from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday.  We use the book A Christ Centered Easter for some of our stories, scripture references and activities.  I continue to collect stories and we experiment with activities that bring the spirit and focus our hearts on Christ.


Today, I will pull out the Easter decorations.  The children and I will decorate with bunnies and eggs, and our hearts will remember the most beautiful of the gifts of spring.

Dirt to Compost

Our gardening experiment is going strong.  We have 16 lettuce sprouts, 12 carrot sprouts and 2 potato plants sprouting!  


Last fall, after a discussion on the smell of compost, our neighbor encouraged us to try a small scale compost experiment.  We used what we had on hand; a recycled ice cream bucket, backyard dirt, kitchen scraps and a little water.  Occasionally we would think to add a grape stem or an apple core, but mostly  we forgot about it until our recent planting.  I opened the lid and found black, rich soil.  Not only did we successfully create compost, it was not smelly.


We excitedly tried composting again with another bucket.  Our original bucket was brittle and cracking after spending months in the sun, so we started with a fresh one.  We have been more diligent with adding our kitchen scraps and our bucket was full after about a week.


Here's our simple steps to turning dirt to compost:

• Start with a cleaned out bucket.
• Add about an inch of dirt on the bottom.
• Add kitchen scraps.  We used lettuce and a banana peel.
• Add another inch of dirt.
• Moisten dirt.
• Cover with the lid and shake it up a bit.

The one we started last week had quite a bit of kitchen scraps compared to dirt and it was a little smelly when the lid was open.  I'm adding more dirt and water after every addition, hopefully it will help the smell issue.  Also, kitchen scraps need to include only plant material, like potato peels and celery ends.   


What successes or challenges have you had with composting?

Counting March

I know it's normally March numbered, but I switched it up to Counting March for the A to Z Blog Challenge. Any of my numbers that I'm disappointed in, I'm blaming Spring Break.


1 - Number of pounds gained. I have two words for you, Spring Break!  Actually I think the culprit is not tracking my food.  I will be jumping back on that band wagon.
2 - Books read.  Eragon and These Is My Words.
4 - Piano practices, and they were wimpy ones at that! (It's Spring Break's fault)
5- Articles written for the Homemaking Cottage and Arizona Mama (Spring Break)
7 - Family history names verified
8 - Scrapbook layouts finished (I could have finished those last two, but ... you guessed it, Spring Break)
14 - Challenge projects finished (Spring Break)
23 - Blog posts, not too bad considering it was Spring Break
1183 - Page views!  Thanks to you not slacking over Spring Break, it's a new record.


I also use my monthly review to check how I'm doing on my New Year's resolutions.  I'm making slow progress with my goals.  I'm finding peace in my search for direction.

Family Home Evening: Articles of Faith

In our Family Home Evening lesson, we discussed the story behind the Articles of Faith.  I found an Ensign article from 1979 that has an even more detailed account.  I had only learned about the Wentworth Letter, but I appreciate the earlier history of the Articles of Faith.  We all shared our favorite; mine is the 10th.  To help us review and memorize the Articles of Faith, we played a matching game where we match the Article of Faith to the key word.  When someone makes a match, they read or recite the Article.


We played Apples to Apples Jr for our activity and enjoyed Peanut Butter Cookies for a treat.

Saturday Sentament: Blessings

First of all that I would crave as the richest of heaven's blessings would be wisdom from my Heavenly Father bestowed daily. ~ Emma Hale Smith

Enjoy General Conference!

Friday Favorites: April 1

No fooling, here's what's tickling my fancy this first day of April.

•  Our garden experiment continues - we now have tiny lettuce sprouts! 
• A to Z Blogging Challenge from Tossing It Out - A fun challenge for this month, so I'll start off with A to Z Blogging Challenge as my "A" entry.
• I found Bird's Party magazine.  It has a bunch of great party ideas for several themes, including Alice in Wonderland and a Fiesta.
• Angel Biscuits - I might have to try Your Homebased Mom's recipe with my Chocolate Gravy on Sunday for General Conference.
• Roberts Classic Chapter Books - My follow up post to our favorite picture books is now up on Arizona Mama.
• Tactile Learners - for those of you following Chocolate on my Cranium's multiple intelligences, she discusses tactile learners.
• Nutter Butter Cookie Balls from Somewhat Simple - it doesn't start with the letter "A", but they sound absolutely fabulous!
• Pom Pom Garland from Celebrations at Home - Now that I figured out my Silhouette has a pennant shape and I won this little beauty, I found a new kind of garland to drool over.

What are you loving this April Fools day?