Misadventure Day #1

Today we baked chocolate chip cookies. I found this really good sounding recipe on the Crisco website. We substituted the chocolate chips for white chocolate chips and didn't use the pecans. I also didn't have butter flavored Crisco so we just used Wal-mart brand shorting. They came out amazing. It was hard to stop eating them. I'm honestly surprised we have any left.

 Dante measuring out the shorting

 The yummy batter. I almost forgot to take a picture.

Ready to bake.

Kaleb stealing cookie #5.

We also each drew a comic about Stik Man.

 Dante's Comic

 Kaleb's Comic

My Comic

Our Very Own Exchange Table

I've been wanting to do this for a long time so I am really excited to announce that we are starting our own version of an Exchange Table. The concept is this: You bring things you no longer want or things your kids have out grown and then you "shop" for things you do want or that do fit.

I've toyed with this idea for a long time. It's something that I think is great and that there is a need for but have been worried about several things, one of which being that people who own thrift shops will come clean me out and then go sell the stuff for profit. After many months of brainstorming here is what i came up with.

I'm making some RMS Dollars on my computer. When you bring in donations you will be rewarded with RMS bills. You can then use the RMS bills to purchase items from the table. I'm also going to have other ways to earn RMS dollars in the future. We already have a decent selection of items stored up. Below is a list of items that we except as donations. (Please make sure all donations are clean, free of stains and rips, zippers and buttons are there and working.)

• Boys clothing ~ newborn through size 16
• Girls clothing ~ newborn through size 16
• Shoes all sizes including men's and women's
• Men's and Women's clothing any size
• Toys in good working condition including roller blades, bikes, etc
• Large items such as cribs, strollers, high chairs and walkers.
• Bedding for cribs, twin, full, queen or king

If you have anything else you want to donate that isn't on the list just let me know. I'm sure in most cases we will take it.

I hope that this will take off and that we will receive plenty of donations and that lots of people will want to come shop at our little Exchange Table. To start I think we will only be open by appointment. Starting at the beginning of the year we may have a location and be open once or twice a week for a few hours. It will depend greatly on the amount of interest this project receives.

Upholding the Governale Tradition

Exercising isn't always fun. It's hard to find time in our busy schedule to work out. In our family growing up we had a fun work out the we loved. When we watched movies we would pick a word. (such as a character's name or something of the sort. For instance if we were watching Star Wars the word might use Jedi.) Then every time that word is said in the movie we pause and do a set number of an exercise. You can always use two different words and two different exercises.

Recently I have started doing this with my kids and they love it. On Friday we watched an Episode of Angry Beavers and used the word WOOD. We decided to do 5 situps every time we heard it. We ended up doing 15 situps. Right after we watched an Episode of Spider Man and used the word WEB. We ended up doing another 15 situps.

The next day we ended up doing even more situps then that. Today my abs hurt so we are switching it up a bit and are going to do 10 jumping jacks every time.

Here are some good exercise choices to choose from:

1. Situps
2. Pushups
3. Jumping Jacks
4. Bicycle
5. Mountain Climbers
6. Burpees
7. Squats

I suggest if you are new to exercise or if you are doing this with young children that you choose a small amount such as 2 every time or 5 every time. We do 5.

You can always choose to do 5 pushups for one word and 5 situps for another word. Have fun and be consistent. You will notice after a few weeks that the exercises are coming easier. Make this your family tradition too. You won't regret it.

What do Puzzles, Rolled Paper and Drier Lint have in Common?

Today we are talking a little about being prepared. So, what do puzzle pieces, rolled paper and drier lint have in common? If you haven't guessed yet, the answer is they are all flammable. Anyone that has tried to start a camp fire knows that it isn't always a breeze. I personally learned this lesson a few months ago.

For those new to following this blog I'm sure this story will get you caught up. If not, got back to the first few posts and take a quick skim. So, a few months ago my husband had to leave to run errands and I planned on being a good wife (and a good trooper) so I told him that while he was gone I would get the camp fire started so we could cook supper as soon as he got back. As soon as he left I gathered some branches, twigs and a log or two. I assembled them in the fire pit like I had seen him do and lit a piece of paper on fire, tucking in at the bottom of my pile. I watched in dismay as the paper turned to gray ash and the fire was out. I tried again and again running back and forth from my car to the camper to the fire pit burning cereal boxes, old bills (that felt good) and anything else I could find. I had what I thought was going to be a great fire several times but it kept going out. After several hours and dozens of attempts I called my husband. Trying to hold back tears I explained that I was done. That was it. Building fires was stupid and I wasn't ever doing it again and that if he wanted supper he better come home and start the stupid fire himself. (Patience is a virtue I haven't mastered yet and yes, I was being a bit defensive. After all, who can't start a fire. Apparently me!)

Needless to say, he came home, knocked a few dead branches off a tree, lit a piece of paper and viola, a raging fire. He took the time to explain to me that the wood I had gathered was too green and that dead stuff burns better. Who knew? After all, forest fires don't just burn the dead stuff and leave all the green. I guess that's what I get for being a yuppie. I have had more luck starting fires since then. So, if you have the need to start a camp fire. (For instance, there is a power outage and you want to cook your meal outside.) Little fire starters are a great thing to have on hand.

There are hundreds of ways to make fire starters. They are a great thing to keep in your 72 hour kits or in a little bag in the food storage area. I don't happen to have a picture of this one but I know you can dip pine cones in paraffin wax. The ones below are ones that my dad has been experimenting with. He was nice enough to not only let me take pictures of them for this post but he also game me an assorted bag of them to take home.

Here is what he did. He shopped yard sales and thrift shops for: used candles, rolled paper (like the kind you use for crafts), puzzles that were perhaps missing a few pieces and mini cupcake wrappers. Using a mug warmer, the electric kind that you set your soup or coffee on to keep it warm, he melted a dish of old candle pieces. The rest of the directions for each are under each picture.

 For this one he put a few puzzle pieces in a mini cupcake paper and poured some melted wax over them.This one is the prettiest. I hate to have to burn it.

 This one might not be pretty looking but it's a good way to recycle egg cartons and get rid of that unsightly drier lint we all have. Put a small ball of drier lint in each of the holes where the eggs would rest. Pour melted wax over each filling them nearly to the top. When dry, cut the cups apart.

These ones are strips of rolled paper. Some he tied knots in first, others he didn't. You can gently place the strips in the container of melted wax for 30 second to a minute then scoop out with a fork and let dry on a plate or piece of wax paper.

You can store any of these fire starters in a zip-lock bag until needed. (Just remember, even with these nifty fire starters it help to have dry dead wood. Green stuff does burn, it just takes forever to get it lit.....)

Our New Online Gift Shop

We are pleased to announce the opening of our online gift shop. We opened this online store to help us raise money. To see how the donations will be used visit the About Us section of our blog. With Halloween and Christmas right around the corner you should check out those categories for decorations and gifts. We will be continually updating RMS Gift Shop and adding new products for your enjoyment. We have chosen a selection of beautiful gifts that will turn heads and add to the aura of your home. The best part is that 25% of all sales will be donated to Raise Me Strong. Check our blog often to see how the donations from the gift shop are adding up.

http://www.rmsgiftshop.com/

Let's Play Video Charades

Here is our first ever episode of video charades. Try to guess these for charades and post your guesses on our Facebook page. Who will get the all right first? www.facebook.com/raisemestrong

Digital Scrapbooking Freebe

We have a special treat this week brought to you by Kalantza's Digital Images. These are cute little buttons that will jazz up your digital scrap booking pages. They come in a set of 54. In addition to the alphabet you'll also get the numbers 0-9 + 18 other designs. All images come on a transparent background.This set sells on their site for $5.75 but they are letting Raise Me Strong give it away absolutely FREE.

Easy Fudge Brownies

Easy Fudge Brownies

4 bars (1 oz. each) Hershey's Unsweetened Chocolate for baking
3/4 cup butter (1 ½ sticks)
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1 cup chopped nuts (optional) 
½ bag mini marshmallows



1. Heat oven to 350 °F. Grease 9x13 baking pan.
2. Break chocolate bars into pieces.
3. Put Chocolate and butter in a large microwave-safe bowl. Heat on high 1-2 minutes or until chocolate is melted. Stir mixture till smooth.
4. Add sugar, stir until smooth.
5. Add eggs and vanilla. Mix well.

6. Add flour (and nuts, if desired). Stir till well blended.
7. Spread in pan and bake 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick poked into the center comes out almost clean.
8. Sprinkle marshmallows on top and bake 3-7 minutes. Check often so you don't burn them.
9. Let cool completely, than enjoy!!

 

 

Arrr Me Mateys!

Ahoy! It's International Talk like a Pirate Day. What could possibly be more fun than pretending to be a pirate for a day? This isn't just for this kids you know, adults should jump in too. It's the one day a year my kids are allowed to use the word "poop deck" as many times as they want with out getting in trouble.

Not savvy on pirate lingo? You can get the basics from talklikeapirate.com. And what good is pirate talk if you don't have a good pirate name? You can make up your own name for the day or use a pirate name generator like this one.

I did happen to come upon a funny YouTube video by Captain Dan and his Scurvy Crew called "Rap like a Pirate". I debated long and hard whether or not to embed the video in this blog post or not. I finally decided not to. It's funny but I'm not sure it's something I would want my youngest children watching so I'm choosing to only link to it. I hope you enjoy. (And if you find it suitable for your lass and laddies, let then rap like a pirate too.)

You can find fun pirate games online too. Check these out or Google to find your own. Need a pirate costume? No prob. You can grab your self one here.

Avast ye blokes, hoist ye main sails and enjoy International Talk Like a Pirate Day.

A classic song with a new twist.

Driving home from the kid's school in the rain yesterday, I tried to lighten the gloomy feeling the weather had over us with a song. I made this up completely on a whim but the kids loved it and had me keep singing it. I thought I would share. It's to the tune of "It's Raining, It's Pouring."

♫♪♫ It's raining, it's pouring,

the old man is boaring,

I bonked him on the head

and threw him in bed

and played X-Box til morning. ♫♪♫

Exciting Things in Store

We have a bunch of exciting things in store in the near future. I don't want to let everything out of the bag all at once but I will announce two of the changes that will happen soon.

1. We are looking at opening up a gift shop in the Oxford Hills area. A percentage of all sales will be donated to Raise Me Strong to be used as stipulated in the About Us section of our blog.
2. We will be starting a "Good Grade" program for k-12. Students will get "RMS Money" (fake money with no cash value) for their good grades. The "RMS Money" can be used to purchase items in the gift shop.

 Stay tuned for more information about these and other up coming announcements.

This made me cry......

It makes me feel good that there are still really good people in the world that would put their own lives at risk to help a stranger. People like these are who we want our children to grow up to be. (Or at lease I do.) I love how all these strangers united together to help rescue this motorcyclist.

Sugar Cookies

Sugar Cookies

Betty Crocker Sugar Cookie Mix

1 egg

1 Tablespoon flour
1/3 cup butter
Cookie Cutters
Sprinkles

1. Mix cookies as directed on package for Cutout cookies.

2. Roll dough on floured surface until ¼ inch thick.

3. Cut out with cookie cutters and place on ungreased cookie sheet.

4. Decorate with sprinkles if desired.

5. Bake until edges are light brown.

6. Eat and enjoy once cool.

 

 

September's Giveaway Winners!!

Congratulations to our two September Giveaway Winners. Danny O. of Edgewood, Maryland and Sofrona Z. of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. They have each won a $50 gift card to Leapsandbounds.com. Stay tuned for October's giveaway.

You Are What You Do.......

I'm sure you all have heard the saying "You are what you eat." So what does that mean? If you eat well, you will be well; but if you eat poorly you will feel poorly. Well what if we take that same concept and apply it to our actions.

We've all experienced through media people of extraordinary talents. You'll probably recognize names like Tiger Woods and Yo-Yo Ma. They are amongst the top in their profession. So how did they get that way? Well, it defiantly wasn't by watching T.V. and eating gummy worms.

Here is a Bit of Humor:

 The tourist in Manhattan asks for directions: “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?”

 Helpful local: “Practice, practice, practice.”

So we need to Practice. Okay. So, if practice makes perfect, how many hours of practice do we need to be among the best? 100? 1,000? 10,000? 100,000?

In Malcolm Gladwell's book "Outliers: The Story of Success" he addresses the idea that expertise is all about practice. As Gladwell puts it, "Practice isn't the thing you do once you're good. It's the thing you do that makes you good." He suggests that it takes about 10,000 hours of doing something before you are an expert at it.

So, if you are what you do, that what are you? Our family is starting a 10,000 hour project. It's going to take up approx. 12-15 years to complete it. It of course is going to take that long because the kids are in school so during the school year they can only fit in about 2 hours of practice after school plus maybe 4 hours on the weekend. You may be wondering what we chose to be experts at. 

• Caleb chose Archery
• Mike chose Archery
• Kaleb chose Drawing
• Dante chose Drawing
• I chose Dance (I've always envied dancers and wished that I was one)

I've given the kids the option to change their mind once with in the first few months. I didn't want them to feel trapped into what they chose. After all, a passion for what you are doing is important. It will be near impossible to stick to something for 10,000 hours if after the first hundred hours you begin to loathe it. For those with a bit more time on their hands, the 10,000 hours can be completed the following ways: Three hours a day (20 hours a week) for ten years. Or 40 hours a week for five years. We may complete ours in less than the 12-15 years I mentioned above because we can invest more time over vacations. I will be sure to keep you posted.

"The way to learn to do things is to do things. The way to learn a trade is to work at it. Success teaches how to succeed. Begin with the determination to succeed, and the work is half done already." - Mark Twain, writer and humorist.

What will you and your family decide to become experts at? See below for a partial list of things to choose from:

• Chess, Singing, Mechanical work
• Drums, Cello, Trumpet or other musical Instruments
• Soccer, Baseball, Track, Football or other Sports
• Photography, Painting, Drawing or other Arts
• Sewing, Knitting, Crocheting or other Crafts
• Dance, Cheering, Karate, Gymnastics
• Penmanship, Horseback rider, Medical Professional
• Programmer, Photoshop, In-design,  Flash or other programs

The list to choose from is virtually endless. So, if you will become what you do, what will you do to become what you want to be when you grow up? For me, I will dance.

"I know the price of success: dedication, hard work and an unremitting devotion to the things you want to see happen." - Frank Llyod Wright, architect.

Almost Forgot We Even Made This......

About 3 years ago Dante and I made a few videos and put them up on YouTube for my sister. I had completely forgotten about them until a little over a month ago. Here is my favorite one that we made.

In Memory of those who died in 9-11-2001

Today is the 10 year anniversary of the 9-11 terrorist attacks. My thoughts and prayers go out to all those who lost loved ones in this terrible tragedy. We will never forget the events of this day.

I read an blog post about someone's experience the day of 9-11 and it brought tears to my eyes even though they didn't personally lose anyone that day. Here is a link to their post if you want to read it.

I remember that day that I was at home with my ex-husband where we were living in a small trailer. His mom lived across the street and came and told us what was happening. The both of us and Kaleb (16 months old) went across the street and watch the news for hours. We saw the 2nd tower fall. I remember very clearly holding my little son in my arms and thinking this was the end of the world and that I would never get to see him grow to be a man. It was a very sad, scary day for everyone. I was fortunate enough that I didn't know anyone who lost their life in the terriest attack but my heart goes out to those who did.

Here is the link to the CNN memorial:

http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2001/memorial/lists/by-name/index.html

Lest We Never Forget.

Birthday Party with a Twist

Last night and today we celebrated my best friend's daughter Jayda's birthday party. For supper we ate burgers, hotdogs, chips and soda. Then we started a camp fire to roast marshmallows but none of the kids wanted to so instead we popped a container of Jiffy Pop popcorn in the campfire and opened a box of sugar cubes. The kids ate sugar cubes by the campfire until the popcorn was ready. Then I had the kids line up on the other side of the fire pit and I threw popcorn at them and had them try to catch it in their mouths. It was fun.

When we were done throwing popcorn at each other it was pretty dark out so we decided to play with glow sticks. I had all the kids put on white tee-shirts and pull them up to cover their faces. The adults cracked the glow sticks, poked holes in them and sprayed the contents all over the kids. It's a lot of fun. They ran all over the yard and jumped on the trampoline till almost 10pm when we sent them off to bed. (Their shirts were still glowing pretty good so we let them sleep in them.)

This morning we gave Jayda her presents. She loved them. She got a beautiful vanity mirror, 3 china dolls, a stuffed monkey and another doll.

When I had asked her a week ago what she wanted for her birthday she said she wanted to play in a pool of Roman Noodles. So guess what we did next? That's right. I cooked 24 packages of Roman Noodles and dumped them in a blow up kiddy pool. What fun. They ate some, stomped in them and rolled in them. The festivities ended with a big food fight. By the time we were done everyone had Roman Noodles all through their hair, in their shirts, smeared across their faces and squished between their toes.

Kiddy pool: free, Romen Noodles: $5.00, making a kid's birthday wish come true: priceless

Ride for Autism ~ September 24th

I just wanted to put in a plug for the 5th Annual Ride for Autism in Kennebunkport, Maine on September 24th in the morning. For more information you can check out the Autism Society website by clicking here.

Oreo Dirt Cups

OREO DIRT CUPS

2 cups of cold milk
1 package (4-serving size) Jell-O chocolate flavor instant pudding
1 tub (8oz) Cool Whip topping, thawed
18 Oreo chocolate sandwich cookies, finely crushed, divided
8 plastic cups (6-7 oz)
8-16 gummy worms
8-16 gummy frogs or bugs (optional)

 
1. Prepare instant chocolate as directed on package. Let stand for five minutes.
2.Gently stir 1/2 cup of cool whip into the bowl of pudding. Sprinkle one tablespoon of Oreo crumbs into bottom of plastic cups. Top each with chocolate pudding. Sprinkle evenly with remaining Oreo crumbs. Refrigerate at least one hour.
3. Insert 1-2 gummy worms and 1-2 gummy frogs into each cup just before serving.

Makes 8 Sand & Dirt Cups. Enjoy!

We had almost as much fun making these as we did eating them.

 

Sad Weekend that ended with a RIP

It's been kinda a long weekend for us. Friday morning Juniper (our baby kitten) started acting funny. At first she started walking funny. Then the diarrhea set in. By noon she wasn't able to walk or eat or move. My mom thought it might be feline leukemia so I looked it up and that's what it sounded like to me. I force fed her KMR every hour and by Saturday morning she seemed to be bouncing back. She could walk and tried to eat by her self a few times.

I continued to feed her KMR every few hours straight through Monday night. At some point Monday afternoon she took a turn for the worse again and I wrapped her in a shirt and carried her around like a baby. Boy was she ever a fighter. She hung on until almost 6 AM Tuesday morning where she laid down and quietly passed in her sleep. The kids took it surprisingly well. I did do. We all expected it I guess. It was still sad and we will miss her very much. She was a great kitten.

Let's get prepared.

 "If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear." D&C 38:30

It's really important that you and your children have a plan when and if an emergency should arrive. Not having a plan puts your family and pets at risk. It's not easy in the heat of an emergency to keep your wits about you and make sure the kids and together and safe and the pets are out of harm's way. So what qualifies as an emergency?

• Fire
• Burgular
• Earthquake
• Hurricane
• Tornado
• Car Accident
• Sevear Thunder Shower
• Monsoon
• Gas Leak
• Carbon Monoxide Leak
• Bad Injury such as Broken Bone, Head Wound
• Poisioning

The list goes on, you get the idea. Here is a scenario hopefully no one ever has to live through. You wake up in the middle of the night to the smoke alarms. You and your spouse jump out of bed, panic struck, and grab kids and run out the door. It takes a minute to two to meet up because you didn't have a set meeting place. The fire department gets called and you've been outside for almost 5 minutes before you count heads and realize little Joey is missing. You thought your spouse grabbed him and your spouse thought you grabbed him...... Don't let this ever happen to you.

Here is the same scenario replayed with a plan. You and your spouse wake up in the middle of the night to the smoke alarms. You both jump out of bed. Your spouse grabs Alex and Jenny and heads out to the big tree in the corner of the yard. You grab little Joey and poke your head in Tim's room on the way out the door to make sure Damien grabbed him on the way out the door. You all meet at the big tree and promptly do a head check. You are all there and your spouse already called 911 with the cell grabbed off the night stand.

If you already have a emergency plan for various emergencies than I'm really proud of you. I would recommend reviewing the plans often. Even as often as once a month would keep the plan fresh.

Preparedness, Lets get some.

In light of the recent Hurricane that swept the Eastern Coast, I've decided to start having Preparedness Tuesdays. Our family didn't fair to poorly. Our camper was still standing when we got back from my mom's house and we didn't get hit hard at all there. Just some wind and rain.

Over the last week though I've heard of people who were with out power for 2-6 days. Others had a generator that stopped working and left then in the dark. Some people had large trees land of their houses and others just had kids that were board to death because they had no electronics. I even heard of someone who was prepared for a disaster with a years supply of food storage. (Wheat, rice, flour, pasta etc) Yet without power they had no way to cook any of the food they had stored.

Every Tuesday for at least the next month or so I'm going to do a post on something that has to do with being prepared for the unexpected.  I already have some ideas for posts and am excited for this Tuesdays post.

I will get the Irene aftermath pictures off my camera and online in the next few days.

New Month's Resolution

Sometimes New Year's Resolutions end up being a big flop. You either start out strong and burn out in a few weeks or you figure you have all year and never quite get started. If you are among the few that can set New Year's Resolutions and stick to them, Kudos to you. For the rest of us here is a simpler and hopefully more effective solution. 

New Month's Resolutions give you a month to accomplish your goal. At the end of the month you have a chance to make a new one or if you have failed miserably you can have a do over and try again at the same goal.  One or two resolutions should do it. You don't want to get overwhelmed and not do anything. I encourage you to have your children set New Month's Resolutions too. It doesn't matter their age, even a 2 year old can have a goal. It might be something simple like staying dry all day or not hitting the cat but goal setting is a good habit and the younger you teach your children to have goals and follow through the better.

Here are some examples of goals for children: (help children pick goals appropriate to their age)

1. Make bed daily
2. Complete homework in a timely fashion
3. Learn multiplication tables
4. Feed the dog
5. Keep bedroom clean
6. Read a chapter book
7. Use good manners daily
8. Better time running a mile
9. Learn 5 constellations
10. Lean to make cookies
11. Double number of pushups they can do
12. Memorize a poem
13. Learn the State and Capitals
14. Tell the truth every time
15. Learn to ride a bike
16. Keep hair brushed 
17. Get out of bed on time
18. Learn to tie 4 knots
19. Write in a journal daily
20. Do chores without whining
21. Help with the baby
22. Learn 1-10 in Spanish (or another language)
23. Learn to change a tire
24. Do 10 hours of community service
25. Make a new friend

The possibilities are endless. Teach your children good habits by setting a New Month's Resolution yourself, share that resolution with your children, then follow through. At the end of the month sit down and talk about how you all did and what could you have done differently. If you failed, don't make excuses. Take responsibility for your failures and try harder next month. It's a hard thing to do but if your children see you failing than making excuses as to why you failed you can't possibly get them to complete a goal. You will just get excuses.

My New Month's Resolution for Sept. is to lose 5 lbs. I will report at the end of Sept. Feel free to share yours and your children's New Month's Resolutions. It would be nice to do a post with what other people have chosen.

Our New Kitten

Saturday we got a baby kitten. We named her Juniper Rosetta Snow. We call her June for short. (Although she is so tiny I've been calling her June Bug.)

She is part of a litter of a cat I used to have. Her mother Lola used to be mine but I had to give her up a year ago. Now I have the opportunity to raise her daughter. She looks exactly like her mother did when she was a kitten. I love her. She is little ball of curiosity and is constantly getting into trouble. 

There will be more pictures later. These are just a few that I snapped with my phone.

Mom, Irene hit me!

As you East Coasters may have noticed, Irene has swept up the coast leaving power outages and destruction in her wake.

Last night around 7:45 PM I checked the weather on my phone and told my husband that the torrential rain warning was only in effect until 9:45 PM. Excellent! This is good news. It was warm and sunny out and there was pink on the horizon. (Pink sky at night is a sailor's delight) I guess Irene is going to miss us. We went to bed expecting the best. Around 12 AM I awoke to rain beating in the roof of our little 5th wheel. Darn! I woke Mike and we duck taped a trash bag to our ceiling over the skylight hoping it would keep it from leaking on us too much.

By 6 AM our trash bag was bowing, the sky light over the kids bed was leaking and we had put an empty trashcan under it to catch the water and the wind was picking up.

Around 9 AM we decided to pack it up and go to my mom's house to weather the storm. We packed up the dogs, kids and our new kitten. (Yes, we got a kitten yesterday. She is so cute. But that is another post.) On the way to my mom's we passed a power truck clearing a fallen tree and downed wire from across the road.

The rest of the day has been pretty good. We lost power twice but it wasn't for long either time. I was concerned a few times that we were going to lose some of the tall pines around the house, but so far so good.

I've been reading on Facebook all day of others in the area who have lost power and someone even lost the roof on their barn.

7:52 PM, by now Irene has been down graded to a Tropical Storm. There are still flood warning in effect and wind speeds of 50-65 miles per hour. It's been quiet and dry here for a few hours but I suspect we are in for more wind and rain before the night is over. I did take a few pictures today that I will add to the bottom of this post tomorrow. My prayers go out to all those who have been less fortunate than us.

Home Made Treasure Maps

Treasure Maps

White printer paper cut in ½

Pen or Marker

Tea or Coffee

Cake pan
Hot water

1. Pour about an inch of boiling water into a cake pan

2. Seep tea bags in water or dissolve coffee grounds in water until the water is dark brown or black.

3. While waiting for the water to cool off, rip the edges of the paper on all four sides.

4. Soak the paper in the cake pan for at least one hour.

5. Remove paper from the water and let dry.

6. Using pens or markers draw your very own treasure map.

Tip: I soaked our paper twice. The first time in herbal tea, which didn't make it dark enough brown. Than in Postum which did the trick. You may want to try black tea or coffee.

Lamentations of the Father By Ian Frazier

Love it! My dad read me a print out of this a few weeks ago and ever since I've really wanted to have it framed so I can hang it on the wall in our house when it's built. I looked it up on YouTube.com first but when my dad heard me listening to it he told me where he had found it online.

Ian Frazier does an amazing job reading this. (Why wouldn't he though? He's the one who wrote it.) He brings such life to the already very funny poem. I can  relate to a lot of the things it says too.






I will put the link to the text as well. It was featured in Atlantic Magazine in 1997.  The link will bring you right to the poem. The title of this piece is: Laws Concerning Food and Drink; Household Principles; Lamentations of the Father  By Ian Frazier. I hope you like this as much as I do. It's genius.

Creepy picture I wanted to share

I was helping my best friend a couple days ago at her land. We were weed whacking near the barn and ran out of gas. We decided to pick the weeds by hand until I saw this......

Creepy. I hate spiders. Does anyone know what kind of spider this is anyway? All I know is that I'm glad it didn't touch me.

September's Giveaway, Less then 3 weeks left to enter.

The deadline for September's giveaway is just around the corner. In a little less than 3 weeks we will be announcing the winners of two $50 gift cards to leapsandbounds.com. All you have to do to be eligible to win is "Like" us on Facebook, Follow this blog than shoot an e-mail to raisemestrong@yahoo.com to let us know that you have done those things. Remember to include your name in the e-mail. That's it! Winners will be announced on September 12, 2011.

Pinwheel Cookies

Pinwheel Cookies

½ cup shortening

⅓ cup plus 1 tbsp butter softened

2 egg yolks

½ teaspoon vanilla
1 Package of marble cake mix

1. Combine shortening, ⅓ cup butter, egg yolks and vanilla in large bowl. Mix until well blended.

2. Set cocoa packet aside. Gradually add cake mix to blended ingredients and mix well.

3. Divide dough in half. Add cocoa packet and remaining 1 tbsp butter to half the dough and kneed until well blended and chocolate colored.

4. Roll out yellow dough between two pieces of waxed paper into a 18 x 12 x ⅛ inch rectangle. Repeat for Chocolate dough.

5. Remove top pieces of waxed paper from chocolate and yellow dough. Lay yellow dough directly on top of chocolate. Remove top waxed paper and roll up jelly roll fashion, beginning at wide side.
6. Refrigerate dough 2 hours.
7. Preheat oven to 350˚F. Grease cookie sheets. Cut dough into thin slices and place 1 inch apart on cookie sheet.
8. Bake 9-11 minutes or until light brown. Let cool 5 minutes on cookie sheet than move to cookie rack.

Note: I didn't refrigerate my dough. As you can see from the pictures my dough was soft and didn't hold the circle shape very well. But they still tasted good.