PINTESTED

You should know by now of my love affair with Pinterest.  All my friends who do not use Pinterest think I am a creative genius the others are totally unimpressed. "Ya" they'll say "I saw that already on Pinterest."

One of the cute little craft projects I saw one day was this little frame.

I decided to make one and hang it on the wall at the end of the hallway to our  bathroom.  I wasn't sure what Ian would think of it and if he would ever even bother to write on it but he has surprised me and seems to quite enjoy the little love notes I leave for him.  He even reciprocates and leaves me little messages that warm my heart.  Sometimes the notes can even get a little... um...playful for want of a better word and I have to think twice before I tell someone that they can just go into my room to grab something from my bathroom.  Don't worry I am not going to share those ones with you but here are a couple of innocuous ones.

This one was in reference to those hideous peacock pants I wore once( and never again).

 This is one from just recently when I redid our bathroom.

Yes, I know my husband's handwriting is neater than mine and no it didn't actually take three weeks for him to notice.  He had been away for that long but it still made for a funny comment that was technically true.

GAS WOES

I have my husband figured out and the truth of the matter is he knows me pretty well too.  If he's going out the door and I say "oh by the way..."  he finishes off my sentence with "the car needs gas."  He is undoubtedly correct.  He thinks it's because I have an aversion to pumping gas and in a way he would be right but mostly it's because I never look at the fuel gauge.  He finds this hard to believe but it's true.
"How much gas is in the car?" he'll sometimes ask me when I get home from town and I'll reply "I don't know."  He cannot fathom this much in the same way that I cannot comprehend the fact that he does not know which drawer the can opener belongs in.  It doesn't cause problems, we just deal with it.  He is a sweetheart and for the most part keeps the car filled up for me.  Contrary to his opinion I do fill the car up from time to time although admittedly I do not enjoy it especially in the winter.  Whatever happened to full service gas stations?
Today I drove into town knowing that the truck was just about on empty (thanks Nathan) so I had to stop and fill up.  So there I stood in the cold and damp while my very thirsty truck guzzled down $150 in fuel, reading all the warnings posted on the pump about cell phone use, sparks, open flame, etc. to help pass the time. Finally the pump stopped but as I withdrew the nozzle from the tank it stopped short and wouldn't come out.  I tried and I tried and it wouldn't budge.  I had Emily get out of the truck and she had a go.  After no success we went into the store and the lady behind the counter came out and attempted to remove it with no luck.  She ended up calling a technician who arrived a short while later and after a few minutes he was able to pull it free.  I was nervous the whole time he was yanking on it after all I had just finished reading the warnings about the extreme caution to be used around the pumps.  What if it caused a spark and we all ended up being on the evening news because of the ensuing explosion?

Ian is already giving me a hard time about it, joking about how he'll have to teach me how to fill the car with gas, yada, yada, yada.  I'm okay with that because the next time we need gas I am just going to smile at him innocently and tell him that maybe it's not a good idea for me to fill it up considering the trauma of my last experience.  I'm clearly not capable.

SUNDAY SMILE

Was it just yesterday that I was sitting on a beach in sunny Miami?  It seems like ages ago already.  Apparently there were a few celebrities staying at our posh hotel but the only interesting things I spotted were a couple of overweight old men donning speedos.  Seriously it was like watching the carnage of a road accident as you pass by, you know you shouldn't stare but you just can't seem to help yourself.  I had the good taste not to take any photos, okay that's a lie... I just didn't have my camera with me. We all know my sense of decorum.  To prove it watch this.  If you don't at least smile we should maybe reconsider our friendship.

BUSTED

Brittany was visiting last week with her two little ones and one morning Ava was up before dawn.  Not wanting her to wake anyone (too late really because she'd already woken me up) I brought her downstairs to the basement, turned on the TV, told her to play with some toys, and tried to go back to sleep on the sofa.  She informed me that she wanted breakfast.  I spotted some candy cane oreos left on the bar from the night before and in a weak moment handed one to her.  She was happy while I felt marginally guilty (it was six in the morning, the real guilt wouldn't kick in for another three hours) for feeding a two year old a cookie for breakfast and hoped her mother wouldn't find out.  

After everyone was up and we were about to have breakfast, Ava removed the soother from her mouth and I heard Brittany ask what was around Ava's mouth.  I looked and there were the tell tale signs of black cookie crumbs in the corners.  Busted!  I got a telling off as is only right and apologized.

A couple of minutes later William piped up " You know those Reese's chocolate bars you have downstairs?

"Yes" I replied.

"Well I bought some at the store (he had been playing with an old wallet and pretending to buy various things with a hotel key card he was using as a credit card) and I gave one to Aunty Pretty (Brittany) and guess what... she ATE IT... BEFORE BREAKFAST!!!!!

Busted

PURPLE SMILE

It's no secret that I love my newest appliance, it's a wonder we haven't gotten fat from all the smoothies I have been mixing.  Most of the smoothies come from recipes I've found on line but I did  come up with my own concoction that would put Jamba Juice to shame.  It is our absolute favourite and even the kids can't get enough of it.  Lucky for you, I am willing to share the recipe.  I wanted to get a nice picture of the to die for smoothie but it never lasts long enough for me to get my camera out and snap a few shots.  Fortunately, Emily was able to get a few with her iphone of the kids enjoying theirs.

I call it the Purple Smile because even the adults look like this when we are done.    

1 ripe banana 

1 cup orange juice

1/2 ripe avocado

1/2 cup plain yoghurt

1/2 cup frozen blueberries

Blend until smooth and voila you too can sport this lovely smile.  This is enough for two servings but if you want to have it all to yourself, I won't tell and I certainly wouldn't blame you.   Seriously though, try it, it is soooooo good and good for you too but we won't tell the kids that. 

VANILLA NICE

Admit it, you read the blog title and started singing Vanilla ice, ice, baby in your head.  

I hope you're sitting down while reading this because I wouldn't want you falling over with shock when I announce that I have already started making Christmas gifts.  Crazy eh?  One of the things I am making this year is homemade vanilla essence.  It is simple to make but must steep for about two months before it can be used.  Look at me being all organized, my husband should be impressed.

One of the key ingredients when making vanilla essence is vodka.  Being a Mormon, the thought of going to the liquor store made me feel a little uneasy.  "What if someone I know spots me" I fretted to a friend.  "Even though it is for something totally innocent it just doesn't look good."
My friend's suggestion?  "Wear a disguise."  That comment made me laugh out loud.  That would make me look even more guilty, skulking around the liquor store wearing a disguise.

I headed into the liquor store and quickly found the vodka aisle, looked for the cheapest and largest bottle I could find, and made my way to the checkout.  The man at the cash register asked if I had found everything I was looking for.  I told him yes and explained almost guiltily about why I was buying such a large bottle.  I don't think he believed me.  I hurried from the store relieved I that I had not been spotted.  As I was climbing into my car I accidentally pushed the panic button on the key fob. Suddenly my forty ounce bottle of vodka and I were the whole focus of attention in the parking lot. So much for going unnoticed.

TOP 5

The top five reasons you know you have been watching way too much I.D. Channel

5. Spotting strange shoe prints on the deck evokes thoughts of a homicidal maniac roaming the back yard.

4. Seeing strange shoe prints in the snow prompts detective like deducing... small, pointy, probably a woman's.

3. While outside investigating the source of the shoe prints yelling at your daughter in law "Don't contaminate the scene!" as she traipses through the snow.

2. Taking pictures of shoe prints in the snow.

1. Placing a ruler next to the shoe prints  for a point of reference for the police.

As it turns out, the pointy, small shoe prints belonged to my husband who had come up onto the deck to change the bags in our recycling bins.