Back To School...WOot WoOt!

Here is JoJo on his first day of 1st Grade:

 I seriously am in love with this picture (and with the little guys in it!) Seriously, when did they get to be the same size?!

 This guy had an adventurous first day of Kindergarten!  Well- it was all good until I arrived at the school to pick him up, that is.   I get there and the teacher tells me that there was a mistake and that they put Thurston on the bus.  Its not a huge deal- just annoying until you think about what it means.  We did not go over any of this info with Thurston- and since he is in a different elementary school than our neighborhood, he gets off at another elementary school and switches buses.  The teacher calls the bus hub and they say that they are holding him at the other Elementary school and to hurry over there. (Have you ever tried to 'hurry'  in a school zone in pick-up-your-child time of the day?!)  So I get to the other school and rush into the office to find it empty.  They say that he is still on the bus.  So I run out to see the buses pulling out and I flag down 2 of them with no luck.  So I go back into the office to see what to do and which bus he is on.  After about 10 minutes they figure out which bus he is on and say they will drop him off at the stop by our house. (Thank heavens for bus communication- eh?).  So I TRY to hurry home in the school zones and traffic and the stupid train tracks- waiting for the train to pass.  I see the bus ahead, so I'm like "oh phew!"  

    The crap hits in full force when I see all the kids get off and do not see Thurston.  I flagged down 2 other Moms to verify it was the same bus and it was.  One veteran Mom said that this happened to her kids before and to call the bus hub.  So I go home to find the #.  10 minutes later they get a hold of the bus driver and he says that he has an empty bus- they are all empty now and returning to the High School to pick up those kids. uuuhh.. *PANIC*  He said that he got off at another bus stop a few blocks over and he should be walking to our house.  Yeah, my 4 yr old doesn't know that area very well.  Its obvious to say that I am worried, angry and crying as I talk to Preston.  I drive around and around and around the neighborhood for the next hour on and off the phone with Preston and the bus hub and the police to try and find my baby!  

   FINALLY- they get ahold of Preston (after he repeatedly called them) to say that they found him.  He fell asleep curled up in the back of the bus so no one saw him.  Luckily he had another route with the High Schoolers so they found him.  I'm pretty sure I NEVER want to have that feeling again.  I just kept picturing him crying and lost- and much worse.  I'm glad he was asleep- because he wasn't worried or scared, so when I gave him a giant hug and wouldn't let him go he was all "what's up Mom!?"  and didn't understand why he couldn't ride the bus anymore!  Love this little bug!!!! 

 ... so that is why Preston came home with flowers at the end of that day.

     This picture pretty much sums up what its like to have boys.... :D

It's all About the Food....

This post is dedicated to the special sweets in my life.  Not my family- the other kind.  I've been a busy girl doing what I love.  I heart making yummy things, esp pretty yummy things that I can eat and share with friends.

Here is a chocolate cupcake with the strawberry Meringue butter cream frosting, garnished with fresh mint and strawberry.

 ...and yes- super yummy.  I proudly grew that mint!

   Next up?  My version of a peanut butter cup!  The bowls are made out of chocolate and the center is a peanut butter mousse that melts in your mouth.

   I had fun making the little garnishes using melting chocolate and a piping bag.

 Meet the Snookie Pop.  A friend of mine loves Jersey Shore and had her bday party theme based off of that.  This was a crazy feat.  I learned that you CANNOT add food coloring to melted chocolate- the moisture makes the chocolate seize up and the color does not blend.  Blah. Boo.  I really wanted orange frosting!  Butterscotch chips worked out quite well though.

 This is the product of my failed attempt.  The red was supposed to be the mouth and the orange were to be boobs that matched the skin.  Fail.  Instead, I somehow created a snookie creature.  It's kinda cute in a fascinating and terrifying way.  Still tasted good though,,,

 For Thurston's birthday sleepover I made him red Castle Crashers cake pops.  This time I used red melting chocolate from the cake decorating aisle.  It worked out much better!!   See the pretty flowers?  Preston got them for me.  They were after a day Thurston went missing for a few hours... made me feel better- I will have to make an additional post about that one!!

   How cute with their little swords! 

 I tried another meringue butter cream frosting recipe.  It called for some butter.....

Ahhh- how cute are these little fellas?  I made the bees out of yellow jelly beans that I striped with black frosting and the wings are almond slices.  I added some butter rum candy flavoring to the frosting and it was absolutely DIVINE!!!  Possibly my most favorite cupcake to date.

 For a salty bit that is actually good for you- here is what I snacked on today:

   I LOVE the Tostitos multi grain dippers+ black beans+ a titch of salsa and a small cubed cheese.  If I had any sour cream I would have used it. Oooohhh...or a bit of avocado!  Mmmm... for the record, I ate like 20 of these little buggers (they're small...)

Attempt at Water Skiing...

This past weekend we went up to Donnelly, ID and spent our time in a cabin amongst friends.  Being not pregnant this year, I attempted to water ski

....attempted.

The first take off, I underestimated the pull of the boat and did not have my skis on tight enough.  So for your imagination, picture the boat taking off, and me being yanked out of my skis.  It was fabulous.  The next attempt I secured those puppies as tight as they would go, and held on for dear life.

The next moment was more of a tragedy than triumph.  While I did hold on to the rope, and my feet were fit securely in the skis, my legs were not in the correct position.  My legs were no match to the force of the boat and water coming at me, forcing me to do the splits.  Thank heavens I've been doing Yoga, or it could have been worse.  Do you know where all that water goes?  I do....

 There were no pictures taken, so I thought I would draw up a little something to give you an idea of what it may have looked like.  Better luck next year, eh?

We Heart Water

Just some pics of the kids enjoying the nice weather and our "fabulous" pool. (hey, they love it!)

    Enjoying Meringues and ice tea on the patio (they love sweet and spicy) :)

 Sorry, these pics are dark.  Oh well.

   We returned to Eagle Island with Daddy, had a blast.  We tried the slide and found it to be fun.

   Way back there, is Preston. :)

Uh, I think he needs a haircut

                                                  Silly Dork

    Preston lovingly on clean up duty while I sit in the shade and watch him. ;)

This is why you drink first, then share with the kids. gak.

Its kind of a cute pic, but not quite.  Notice my hand on hers trying to avoid being smeared with gook.  But she's a sweetie who loves to give kisses.

 Jo really wanted to take a picture, so here you go.

It's been such a fun summer.  We have one more weekend planned (lets hope no one gets sick this time). 

Stuffs

Last weekend we planned a fun trip to Sun Valley to meet up with Preston's Brother and Parents.  I had visions of fun pictures of us hiking in the beauty that is Sun Valley, visiting the chocolate shops, spending fun memories with the family.  Unfortunately I guess spending the weekend on the toilet was more exciting.  I didn't take pictures though. :/
    
   So instead here is a random display of our fun times at home on other days.  Aleah loves Strawberry Shortcake, and here is a picture of her playing with her SS toys while watching SS. :)

 We met up with some friends and spent a day at Eagle Island.  That place rocks, and I am sad that it has taken me 5 years to get there.  We had a blast and we went again just this last Saturday (this time with Preston).  Those pics will have to come later.  Aleah loved the sandy beach and the kids had a blast swimming in the water.

 While it is not the Ocean, this is just fine for an afternoon getaway in the Boise area.

 .....aaannnd... that's not my kid.  But JoJo is on the far left. :)

 Aleah is so full of fun energy lately and I am just loving her personality.  She can destroy a house in no time, but she does it in a really cute way.

 She did not fall here, but it was really close.

         

 Stinker!

Talking

So I have a lot of things to post to catch up, but in the meantime, enjoy this little video I shot of Aleah this morning.  She was talking a lot but of course quieted down once I got out the camera.  Sorry about the Bakugan game noise in the background. :)