pink nostalgia

chilly burgers

 This was the last page I made for my local scrapbooking store.  R.I.P. my design team career!

J and I were texting, whew, almost a year ago.  He was at his house and I was at Mom and George's for the weekend.  We were rappin' (as J would say) before dinner.

The iPhone photo quality is pretty bad, but I love this photo because it was the first one that the boys "posed" for me.  He told them "Hey, let's stand in front of the grill and act like it's really cold outside!"

And on top of that, I love it when J sends me real-time-this-is-what-we're-doing photos.

Another real-time-this-is-what-we're-doing photo:

The peanut butter anchoring the tarp gets me every time.

I'm off to watch King of the Nerds.  Y's friend is on it, so we're suffering through the Japanophile to watch Chris.  : )

 

blog your heart

Yay!  It's time for Blog Your Heart!  Here are the rules in Stephanie's words, and please feel free to join in:

"Blog whatever is authentic. Whatever is truly on your mind and in your heart.  No judging allowed, no snarky comments, no making fun, no passive aggressive digs.  If you are going to read the blogs linked below, don't be mean. Nothing here is whining, though I can't help it if you perceive it that way. It's me honestly sharing my feelings. If you feel that it's whining, then you don't have to read. :)"

Here we go.

I would LOVE to take a week off of work to scrapbook.  I have so many pages and mini albums floating around in my head!  But truth be told, I'd probably waste most of that time watching Prison Break and Sister Wives.  In any case, it feels good to be back in scrapbooking mode.

Last week, I was feeling really homesick for my family and friends.  I didn't realize it until I started talking to J about my mom, and then it all just came pouring out.  So I had dinner with Mom last week (at J's insistence - "I'm going to email her and tell her you're coming!"), and I'm seeing my bestie on Friday.  : )

Sometimes I get sad wishing I knew the boys (Ethen and Alex) when they were younger.  I feel like I missed out on so much.  Toddling and t-ball and that adorable newborn stage when you just want to stare at the beautiful baby.  And I don't feel like I've earned much yet.  I shouldn't be proud of who they are now when I didn't help raise them.  I can't love on them like J does or take thousands of pictures or discipline them quite as sternly as I'd like.  I want to.  I just don't feel like it's my place.  Yet.

I was never sure if I wanted kids.  And with J's kids, it's just so natural.  Even the difficulties are good...like...well, I was going to say like when you're at the end of a really hard workout and you're so proud of yourself for making it through, but sometimes I quit in the middle...okay, it's like the day after a hard workout where your muscles are sore enough that you know you really accomplished something but not so sore that you want to collapse on the couch and eat Jack in the Box.

Okay, so I just said there are difficulties - I mean, of course there are.  Even so, it's surprisingly easy, becoming a family and shimmying into a mother-type roll.  Take meals, for instance.  We all come up with the menus together, but then I find recipes, make the grocery list, add vegetables, buy groceries, start cooking on time so we can eat on time (adjusting for the baked beans that take 2 hours), prepare all the food, and set the table.  And they all take it for granted as if it all happened by magic.  But that's the beauty of it.  It doesn't worry them because that's how they see me, in that role.  They trust me to do it, and I do it.  As a result, they don't know what all it entails.  And I really like having that responsibility and their confidence.

I think I could talk about the boys well into next week, so that's probably good for now.  Thanks for reading.  What's on your heart?

You can read my past hearts here.

lucky

I took a reallllllllly long time making this page, only because it was so fun, I wanted to drag it out.

I was saving that heart background paper for something really sweet and romantical.

The text is a text (ha) that J sent me a few months ago.  Aww man, it makes my heart leap. 

I tried leaving out any of the three sentences so I'd have enough alpha stickers, but I couldn't do it.  Each sentence was too good!

Sigh.   It looks really good on my pink wall.  : )

recent snippets

[photo snippet: knuckle sandwich]

G: I won't get done playing golf until 5:00 or 6:00.  But we'll be in San Antonio!  You and Mom can entertain yourselves, right?
me: Mom and I can entertain ourselves if we were in a bare room with white walls.

- Is he a vampire?  Because that would be perfect!

- Excuse me while I straw.

- Where is New York?

- Do you want a hot butt?

Ethen (as he was eating fourths of my homemade lasagna): We should have this more often.

- My nose misses your little nose nook.

[when calling the county clerk's office]
lady: Blahblahablah, this is Blahalha.
me (thinking I didn't catch any of that): Hi, I need to file a deed of trust, and I was calling to see what all I need to have with me.
lady: You need to what?
me: File a deed of trust.
lady: Okay, who is this?
me: Uhhh, my name is Angela Ezzell...
lady: What company are you with?
me: I'm not with any company, it's for my residence...
lady: ...Uh, this is Family Dollar.
me: Oh! I dialed the wrong number.

- [overheard at work] I did find my pants, thanks for asking.

- I mean, it has bacon in it, so I might like it.

- [in a conversation about sticky notes] They just didn't fit into my life!

- I can't go anywhere without some kind of scrap supply happening!

Mom: We used to go out and shoot rabbits all the time.
G: That just seems mean.
Mom: Well, they ate Grandma's lettuce.  We were helping her out.
G: Angela used to eat all the food in the fridge...you didn't shoot her...

- Hey, I'm not ragging on you.  It's hard to catch someone who's as fast as lightening.

- I mean, she might look like a chump, but there's a brain up there!

me: What's our [Baylor's] QB's name?
G: QB.
Me: [Sigh!] What's his last name?
G: B.

- I mean, the right way to eat M&Ms is to just eat them, right?

 

E-mail to Tax Department from Coworker #1:

"I brought in an unopened 2 liter bottle of Pepsi.  Whoever wants it can have it.  It’s in the refrigerator – on the right side, second shelf (from the top down)."

Reply email to Tax Department from Coworker #2:

"And I brought in a whole bunch of lunches and put them on the various shelves in the refrigerator.  Some are in brown bags and some in lunch boxes, etc.  Feel free to take whatever looks appetizing."

 

Alex's prayer: Thank you for my wonderful family.  Thank you for this great food.  And I hope you have a good day, God.

the 31 list: #8 read and watch gone with the wind

No spoilers, I promise.  ; )

This one feels epic.  Like, every woman should read GWTW once in her life. 

the book

Loved the book.  LOVED.  All 1,186 pages of it (oh, except for a few sections about war logistics). 

Just be prepared to read slow.  That said, it moves forward well because there are multiple distinguishable sections.

I didn't like Scarlett until I was about halfway through!  But I like the way the author uses Scarlett's whining and complaining and selfishness to describe the injustices and sacrifices and heartache.

Oooooh, and I got hopping mad at the Yankees!

I only cried once, at the end, when Melly, well...you know.

Does Rhett remind anyone else of Christian Grey??

the movie

me: Do you need anything?
J: No.
me: Okay, I'm going to watch Gone with the Wind.  See ya in four hours.

I didn't like it.  I even scrapped a mini album AND painted my nails while I watched it and still felt like it was a waste of time.

There were huge chunks of plot and whole characters that were omitted.  I had a hard time keeping up even though I had just finished the book.

I did like some of the panoramic shots taken at sunrise or sunset so that the landscaping was a silhouette.

If you saw the movie and didn't like it, please please read the book!

The first Harry Potter is on my nightstand queue...

you monkey you!

This is a good one.  ; )

Jason's grandpappy (affectionately called "Pappy" and sometimes shortened to "Pap") plays bass guitar.  But his electric bass is pretty heavy and has been causing him shoulder pain, which Pappy just plays through because music is part of his soul and he can't not.

So Jason had the idea of getting Pappy a much lighter acoustic bass.

Since no one knew for sure if Pappy would like the new guitar and since Pappy always wants to please everyone else, Jason's sister Lori had the idea of giving it to Pap to play, not telling him it's a gift for him, to see how he takes to it.  If he likes it, give it to him.  If he doesn't like it, don't tell him it was meant to be a gift.  Just keep it or return it to the store.  That way, Pap doesn't feel pressure to like it to make J happy.

Are you still with me?

Last weekend, Pappy and Diddy came over to see the house and eat some army cake.  It wasn't long until J put the bass in Pappy's hands and they started jamming, complete with lead and backup vocals from the ladies.

And he liked it.  "This is nice, Jason.  It has a really good neck on it."

So as they were leaving, Jason played the bass as we walked them to their car.

"I guess we're getting serenaded on the way out!  What nice treatment!"

And after Pappy got in the driver seat, J put the bass in the back seat.

"What are you doing, Jason?"

"That's yours, Pap."

"Jason!  You monkey, you!"

And then Jason gave Pappy a quick goodbye before the waterworks got out of control.

Sigh, he makes me proud.  : )

tuna salad x3

I had a craving for tuna salad this week.  I use my mom's recipe plus a Gala apple.  And anytime there's mayo, there needs to be Miracle Whip.  Yummers.

And hey!  It's good three ways!  Put it on a sandwich, scoop it with Fritos, and scoop it with apple slices!

Yummers.

Did I already say yummers?

Yummers.

how to: army tank birthday cake

Preface I: Alex is turning eight years old this week.

Preface II:

me: So Al, I would like to make you a cake for your birthday.
Alex: Well, I think my mom is already bringing a cake to my party.
me: Right, but I wanted to make a cake just for our house.  Would that be okay?
Alex: Well...
Jason: You can never have too much cake, right??
Alex: Okay!
me: So what kind do you want?  You can pick aaaaaaanything!
Alex: Chocolate!  With white frosting!
me: Are you sure?  Out of everything, that's what you want?
Alex: Yes.
me (thinking piece of cake, I got this): Okay!
Alex: Oh, and by the way, can you make it look like an army tank?
me: Uhhhhhhhhh...

Ha, I guess this is what it's like to have boys.  : )

A quick Google search left me feeling intimidated, what with all of the marbled fondant and camo spray paint.  But then I found a few "regular" cakes and went from there.  And it was actually really easy!

Here's how I broke it down:

- two boxes of chocolate cake mix, one and a half in a 9x13 cake pan (buttered and floured), and the other half in a regular loaf pan (buttered and floured)

- increase the baking time by 10 minutes (for a total of 40 minutes at 325).

- cut the loaf cake in half for the tank hatch and stacked it on the 9x13.

- cut a rectangle at an angle out of the front of the 9x13 and rounded the front edges.

- army green = green food coloring + brown food coloring gel (by Wilton), in about equal parts into two cans of vanilla icing

- Oreos for the wheels

- Hershey regular size milk chocolate bars, broken into squares, for the tracks

- a hole cut out of the top for the hatch, just wide enough to fit an army guy

- an Oreo for the hatch door with a big glop of icing behind it to secure it

- black sparkle cake gel for the writing

- Alex's initials and age on the sides as the serial number

- a pretzel stick covered in chocolate for the tank gun

- leftover cake plus 4 graham crackers crumbled and crushed around the cake for sand and dirt

- total decorating time: 1.5 hours 

 

Lori (Aunt Lu) and Alex.

It was a huge hit.  Best army tank cake I've ever had.  ; )

mac 'n cheese funny

A few nights ago, I made a box of mac and cheese.  The boys and I ate about half of it.  I put the other half in the fridge.

Last night, I wanted to use up the rest of it.  J suggested that I make extra since the leftovers wouldn't be enough for everyone.  I microwaved two of the single-serving cups.  Then I added the cups to the leftovers in a pot on the stove.  I put in a spoon of butter, a splash of milk, and a slice of American cheese.  I heated it through and stirred it really well so that the boys hopefully wouldn't notice that it had been doctored up, i.e. different than what they're used to, i.e. gross.

And do you know that all three of the boys ate their whole helping of mac 'n cheese before they even touched their burgers?

They liked it.   They like me, they really like me!

I never thought I would get so much joy out of mac 'n cheese.  : )

how to: vanilla bark popcorn

You know that really delicious popcorn that's covered in sprinkles and the white creamy stuff that you always find around Christmas at an office party or cookie exchange?  Right!  It's delicious.  And I was really looking forward to it this year.

And I didn't get any.

So I set out to make some.  Here's what I did.

1. Pop a regular bag of butter popcorn.  Pour it onto wax paper and throw away the unpopped kernels.

2. In a large bowl, melt 4 squares of vanilla almond bark in the microwave for 90 seconds.  Stir; microwave for 15 seconds at a time, stirring after each interval, until it's all melted.

3. Pour half of the popcorn into the bowl.  Gently stir until the popcorn is coated.  Repeat with the second half.

4. Add lots of sprinkles.  Pour everything back onto the wax paper to cool.

This next part is one variation of an exchange that happens all the time:

me: I'm going to make a snack this afternoon.
J: What is it?
me (knowing he'll think he won't like it if he knows what's in it and therefore being purposefully elusive): Just...popcorn snack.
J (looking at me sideways): "Popcorn snack" huh?

[later at the grocery store]
J (scrunching his nose): Almond bark?!?  What's that for??
me: Uhhhh...popcorn snack.
J: Popcorn snack?!  What are you trying to feed me??

J (after the first bite): Ohhhhmygosh, this is good.
me:  : )

this moment

Hey y'all,

It was a slow lazy weekend.  J and I are both getting over colds (read: lots of Kleenex + naps), but we're on the up and up now.  

I finished this page last week.  It felt good to break out the sewing machine again!

I asked J what he thought of the brown background paper.  He said, "It's cool.  I bet you think it's amazing, right?"  Yes, yes I do.  : )

Here's to a happy and healthy week!

owning the night, gangnam style

OMG OMG.

So for Christmas, J's mom gave us some professional photos from the wedding we went to last spring.  It was a perfect gift because I had already tried (without success) to find them.

I MEAN.  We danced all night.  Sometimes trying to make each other laugh, but mostly just having a blast.  I was only vaguely aware of the wedding photographer shooting on the dancefloor.

Here's the first photo I saw.  I immediately started laughing and crying because I'm so glad to have these moments in my hands.

You can see J's sister Lori in the background (right above my nose!), presumably laughing because her brother is living it up.

Awwwwww.  This one might go on the mantle.

Let's see if I can't tighten that up...

There, that's better.

This was at the very end of the night.  Everyone had a tube of confetti to throw in the air.  It was so awesome, it made me giddy.  It's just so fun when everyone let's their guards down.

By the way, that's gum in my mouth and not my bizarrely bleached molars.

And finally...Gangnam Style.  It was at this moment on Christmas Eve that my side actually split open from laughing so hard.

Eat your hearts out, ladies!  He's MINE!

the 31 list: #10 try new vegetables

This resolution was kind of hard because there aren't a lot of vegetables that I haven't tried.  But I did manage to find a few.

Beets.

Excuse me while I vomit.  Again.

Butternut squash (recipe here).  Ehh, but it looks pretty.

Spaghetti squash two ways.  Good not great (even with the extra bourbon!), and too crunchy to even try to trick the boys into thinking it's actually spaghetti.  One version had Swiss chard, so I at least got a bonus vegetable out of the deal.

(By the way, these smell real bad if you leave them in the fridge for say...two weeks.)

The elusive "greens."  Turnip, collard, and mustard that Lori made, Southern-style (that means "bacon", y'all).

Sadly, no keepers.  : /  But at least I tried.

Happy Thursday!