In light of Saturday’s Top Five Laughs post, thought I’d share this photo of Freckles at the beginning of her climb and Selene as she looks on because I think they look adorable!
Today the kittens were out in the snow for the first time and they batted at it! Sadly, I didn’t get a photo of it.
The kittens climbing all over the garage and my husband says they think it’s their own jungle gym and I tend to agree.
This week’s Wordless Wednesday is almost….wordless!
Last Monday we had Miss Moo AI’d (artificially inseminated) again. We are hoping it sticks this time. Our vet told us if we see any signs of heat to call him to come back not rather than wait the 60 days, so we’ll do that. “B” is usually pretty good at telling when Miss Moo is in heat, thankfully.
For example, last weekend we had those huge storms with about 70 tornadoes being reported across Illinois. On Sunday, Robert had taken the four older ones to the Chicago Field Museum for the day. That left me with four children 10 an under. Robert had left our son in charge of chickens but we also had to get Blaze in because he does not like to be out in the elements. Remember he’s old. However, when I called Robert to get him to ask about “B” about Miss Moo, “B” told me she’d be fine. And she was. She just stood there chewing her cud in the wind and rain, not bothered at all. However, she did run around a bit kicking up her heals. Something she does when she’s in heat. There were other signs “B” said Miss Moo was exhibiting before they all left for the day too.
So we are anxiously waiting again to see if Miss Moo will be with calf. That means a 2014 late summer or early fall calf. As long as she calves before winter, I’ll be happy.
As a side note, our horse and cow have bonded. It’s been so sweet to watch Blaze follow Miss Moo in the pasture or hear the children tell me one or the other won’t go out or come in without the other one.
It is that time of year again. Thanksgiving, then Black Friday deals and the shopping frenzy. You can either battle the crowds to get the best deal or you can shop from the comfort of home! Moody Sisters wants us to announce their Black Friday Deals! You can read Kim’s review here. Or visit their website www.moodysistersskincare.com
Moody Sisters’ Mission: To bring skincare back to the basics by handmaking each product using only natural and earth-derived ingredients.
If you are looking for eco-friendly, all natural (REAL all natural) skincare products then you have to check out Moody Sisters! You can follow Moody Sisters’ Facebook page to see when the Black Friday coupon code goes live or subscribe to their newsletter to get the coupon codes early.
Also keep your eye open for a new Moody Sisters’ review and giveaway in the upcoming weeks. Brande will be reviewing some cool products.
So are any of you going shopping on Black Friday? Me? I’ll be nice and toasty warm in the comfort of my home!
A couple of weeks ago I was adventurous and decided to make our calzones recipe, except I couldn’t find it. So I did a quick search to see what ingredients I’d need and then made them my way.
I made our calzones out of homemade bread dough. In the past I have used the frozen bread dough at the store for quick preparation, but now we have a Bosch and mixing up bread dough is a piece of cake!
Warm water, yeast, sugar, oil and salt.
Then add unbleached white flour.
We know the bread dough is ready when it no longer sticks to the side of the Bosch bowl, as shown in the photo below.
After I make the bread dough, I spread the balls of dough out. You can also roll them to make nicer cirle-ish shapes.
Then I added toppings of sauce, mozzarella cheese and ricotta cheese. I should have added some broccoli but I didn’t.
I usually top them with more sauce but my daughter took some of these photos for me. We divided up tasks so we could feed our hungry crew!
Calzones Recipe
Now for the actual recipe which is a little “rough” because so much cooking that I do doesn’t follow a recipe. Sorry!
| Step 1 | |
| Divide up the bread dough into equal parts. Then roll or pat the balls out into a small circle-ish shape to create your calzones. Put on greased cookie sheets and put to the side to mix up other ingredients. | |
| Mix 1 egg with a 16 oz container of ricotta cheese. Set aside. | |
| Step 2 | |
| Make sauce by adding oregano, basil and sweetener to tomato sauce. Start with a couple teaspoons of each and taste test to see if you like it. Keep adding oregano, basil and sweetener until it satisfies your palate. Set aside with rolled out bread dough. | |
| Fold over dough from corner to corner and press to close. Optional: Paint tops of calzones with melted butter and put slits in the top of your calzones for decorative puposes. | |
| Step 3 | |
| Go back to rolled out dough and spread tomato sauce out on the dough. Add pepperoni followed by the ricotta cheese mixture and top with a sprinkle of mozaralla cheese. | |
| Step 4 | |
| Put in the oven for approximately 30 minutes or until bread dough is cooked through. They should be a golden brown and the inside should be heated. Top the calzones with a couple of spoonfuls of sauce. Serve with a side dish or salad. Voila! Your masterpiece is served! | |
Do you play with recipes or create your own? Do they turn out?
I was a little lax this week with writing down funny things as they happened, but then Thursday and Friday I hit the “jackpot” so to speak and several funny things happened! So are you ready to laugh with the Goulds again? Once again we have joined The Mommyhood Chronicles for Week #5 – for us! – in the Saturday Top Five Laughs of the week.
5. I do ask my older children if it’s ok to share their funnies in my Saturday Top Five Laughs. They have even been known to say, “You know that’s going in mom’s blog post!” Hey, I’m making this my number 5 this week!
4. My daughter “B” came into my room on Thursday morning saying she had a bad dream. She called it a nightmare. She started by saying she dreamed she slept in until 9am. I interrupted her to say that most people would not consider that a nightmare, let alone a bad dream. 
But I knew where she was going because she’s our dairymaid and does the milking so sleeping in until 9am is definitely a bad thing, considering it’s 3 hours past milking time! Then “B” went on to say that wasn’t the worst thing, that I told her she couldn’t have chocolate forever!
3. Our kittens are getting big. Need another photo shoot. Anyhoo….They were up to their cute antics again. Freckles actually climbed the wall of our brick house! They tried during our SHEBA photo shoot but did not succeed. On Thursday, Freckles succeeded. I think her motivation was her mama, who was perched on the kitchen window sill, which is on that wall. The cats like to sit on the ledge and perch or watch whoever is working in the kitchen. Hoping for handouts!
2. We were having sandwiches for lunch the other day and my daughter, “Amelia” or “O”, informed my husband that she liked IF’s (grocery store in the town we use to live in) deli meat better than the stuff he bought at the “Pig” (Piggly Wiggly in our town). Then she said, “It smells like gas (but she used another term).” Sigh. Manners seems to have flown the coop with that child.
1. This one is just plain goofy. I’ve had a pain in my left arm pit most of the week. One day I blurted out, “Does anyone care that my arm pit hurts?” I was answered with a bunch of giggles. Then I said, “So no one cares if my arm pit hurts? Hmpfh.” They all proceeded to state they cared. Like I believed them. Hmpfh.
Guess that’s all I could come up with for laughs this week!
In October we reviewed the Vtech InnoTab 3S tablet for kids, which they continue to use and have fun with every day. So we were thrilled when we were offered Vtech InnoTab 3S Premium Kid Connect App. The InnoTab 3S comes with a one year subscription of Basic Kid Connect, which allows kids and parents to send just text messages and stickers.
The unique thing about the Premium Kid Connect App is it helps kids stay connected to parents at home or on the go. As with the Vtech InnoTab 3S internet connection, the Kid Connect app provides a secure and easy-to-use tablet-to-mobile communication. Parents and children can exchange voice and text messages, as well as photos, drawings and stickers! In addition, children can stay connected to their friends and siblings who also have InnoTab 3S tablets and do so from anywhere in the world (with Wi-Fi).
Premium Kid Connect subscription does cost money. For the first two weeks after registration of the InnoTab 3S, a Deluxe Apps package with Premium Kid Connect is available for $14.99. The package also includes Movie Maker (a $7.99 value), a fun stop-motion animation app that lets kids become movie directors – our kids love to make videos! Once the two week promotional period is over, Premium Kid Connect can be purchased separately for $14.99. Kid Connect is only available on the InnoTab 3S, so if you have other versions of the InnoTab you are unfortunately out of luck until you upgrade to the InnoTab 3S.
My youngest daughter is having a field day with the Kid Connect App! I have been trying to get this post written today and she keeps interrupting me to tell me she sent me a new message. I have been focused on my laptop screen not my iPhone!
I completely missed the instructions to set up the Kid Connect App subscription so I spent more time than I should have figuring out how to work the app. Once I did though it’s a breeze to use!
Once you have added the Premium Kid Connect app subscription to your account it will show up under downloads in the Vtech Lodge. From there you will have to transfer it to your child’s Vtech InnoTab 3S tablet and for that you have to have the tablet connected to your computer. Then it’s easy for your child to click on the Premium Kids Connect icon to start sending texts and voice messages, stickers and photos or drawings.
I had trouble finding out how to send from the app on my iPhone until I discovered you have to click the icon of your child in your contacts. I am not usually technologically challenged but I just could not find my way out of the contacts or my profile for some reason. By the way it’s fun choosing a profile icon as you can see from mine in the above image.
The contacts are listed in the above photo. The blacked out part is the child’s name, the names shown are just made up screen names.
The stickers are fun for kids to send. I sent this kiss to my daughter – it actually makes a cute smooching sound when you click it to send!
This is a heart I made and sent to Blondie.
Once it’s sent it looks very much like our text messages we send from our phones.
Blondie had fun drawing, texting, sending stickers, lots and lots of stickers and voice messages. She’s been playing my voice message over and over again. 
Guess she loves hearing my voice!
The Kid Connect App has been a great addition to our children’s Vtech InnoTab 3S tablet. Now when we go out or I am away my children do not have to ask my husband or their older siblings to message me. They can do it themselves. As long as someone logs them onto our Wi-Fi, since the Innotab 3S does not save our home Wi-Fi’s password.
Vtech is offering one of you a chance to win a InnoTab 3S tablet for your child! It will make a Christmas or birthday gift! Enter below!
My husband is a history buff and he has passed on his love of history to our children. We love visiting museums. Last weekend we went to the Chicago Field Museum to visit the 1893 World’s Fair Exhibit, which will be here in Chicago until early next fall. We took advantage of one their free admissions day knowing we’d have to purchase a Discovery Pass for the Fair exhibit.
Those of you who live in the Chicago area you may be interested in knowing upcoming free admissions days at The Field Museum:
December 2
December 5
December 9
December 10
December 11
For all the storms Illinois experienced last weekend, it did not deter people from venturing out in the cold and rain to visit The Field Museum.
The Field Museum was born out of the 1893 World’s Fair and belongs to the people and the history of Chicago. The World’s Fair exhibit are all original collections that were all displayed at the Fair and is the single largest collection of items displayed at the Fair. The truth is, The Field Museum is the legacy of the Fair; scientists conduct ground-breaking research on the ever-growing collections.
The Field Museum Tours App is available to help visitors with their tour. We had downloaded the app before we got to the museum so all we had to do was connect to “FieldMuseumWiFi” upon arriving. You can download the Field Museum Tours App too. The Wonders of the 1893 World’s Fair takes visitors back to that time in history, to the World’s Columbian Exposition – one of the greatest events in the history of Chicago. The exhibit shows visitors what visitors back then saw at the Fair 120 years ago.
The app is informative as you can see from the following screen shots.
We saw more than 200 artifacts and specimens from the the Fair’s ground.
We find it interesting to learn about different aspects and cultures in history. It’s amazing what you can learn! Below is a photo of a small stuffed female lion, but there was also a stuffed male lion as well. One of our sons loves lions so he was interested in this display. He was also interested in the tigers and seeing inside the mummy. There were over 20 mummies! All the children thought the pyramid was really cool to go inside!
The children thought the computer from the World Fair looked like the computer from the show S.H.I.E.L.D Agents. They thought that was really cool too.
Another cool thing they liked was the DNA lab.
Below you can see in the display cases a trench drum/log drum and behind them on hanging from the ceiling was an octopus! (Pictured in a photo below in the photo with our children)
There was an Inuit display from a group of Inuits who came to the Fair from Labrador (Canada).
There was an Inca Active Instruments display that had a simulator allowing us to play the instruments. We found that pretty interesting.
Our daughter B was quite interested in the oils and herbs displayed in their original bottles. All from different countries around the world. Her words, “It was amazing! To see Frankincense and Myrrh from all around the world.” None of any of these items have been displayed since the 1893 World’s Fair.
Here is a stuffed Indian elephant with a giant octopus hanging over our children.
This last photo is a from a slideshow or video footage.
The 1893 World’s Fair Exhibit was an incredible learning experience and we hope we can go back again before September 7, 2014.
I was selected for this opportunity by Clever Girls Collective, however all content and opinions expressed here are my own.
It is that time of year again to think about holiday photos for Thanksgiving or Christmas or Hanukkah and how to get what you really want this holiday season, right?
We usually have a photo session of snapping lots and lots and lots of photos of our children or our family just to get just the “right” photo. We have fun, we’ve had tears in the past, we’ve had frustration, but in the end the time and effort is usually worth it.
I love taking photos of our children and sending them to family and friends, even though I haven’t done it in three years….since our last child was born. I usually dread taking a family photo of all ten of us. Why? Because of my weight gain. I probably won’t get what I really want this year but it’s something I am working towards for next Christmas.
Sometimes things we say are different than the things we’re actually thinking. For example: You may say you want to look great in your holiday dress but what you really want is to impress your in-laws that you haven’t seen since last Christmas. Let us know what you really want on Walmart.com, and print a $1 coupon for any Slim-Fast® product and visit the slimfession board here: see.walmart.com/slimfast?cid=sbo.562.6280.1903
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Yogurt is a yummy, healthy snack. Creating yogurt recipes is pretty easy when you keep it simple and I like simple. One of my favorite snacks is yogurt and blueberries. To spice it up I like to top it with almonds and pecans. I love eating just plain frozen blueberries too.
I was playing around with taking photos of food and took one of my yogurt and blueberries. I thought it turned out decent enough to make into a blog post.
For my yogurt and blueberries snack, all I did is poured vanilla or French vanilla yogurt into a bowl, added frozen or fresh blueberries, topped it with sliced almonds and/or pecans. We do this a lot with any of our favorite fruit. You could do this with plain yogurt too.
We also like to make smoothies….at least until our blender broke. 
Sniff. Sniff. Still have to figure out which part I need to buy since the last time I purchased the wrong part.
Something we have not made since getting Miss Moo is homemade yogurt. Amazing, eh? Whenever I buy yogurt to have the starter it always gets eaten before we get to it.
Do you eat yogurt? Do you do anything “fancy” with it? Have any yogurt recipes to recommend or do you make homemade yogurt?
Print recipe
