May the Force Be With You

Yesterday we celebrated Landon's 5th birthday (which is actually tomorrow) with a little Star Wars bash! I love birthdays and birthday parties. I also love that Landon enjoys Star Wars like his Mom.

We had all the character plates and cups - such a thrill to a little boy. I also made some "Yoda Soda." (Thank you, Pineterest!)

I ordered some adorable, edible Star Wars cupcake toppers on Etsy, however they didn't arrive in time so I had to improvise at the last minute. Landon's Star Wars action figures worked pretty well.

He got plenty of help from his little sister (whether he wanted it or not!)

Landon loves his Grammy and Grandpa, and Poppa and Ju-Ju!

Landon had so much fun celebrating. 

Can't believe my little Jedi is turning five... May the Force be with you!

Never Grow Up

"Oh, darling, don't you ever grow up, don't you ever grow up, just stay this little."

"Oh, darling, don't you ever grow up, don't you ever grow up, it could stay this simple."

"No one's ever burned you...

...and nothing's ever left you scarred."

"So even though you want to,...

"Just try to never grow up..."

- Taylor Swift, "Never Grow Up"

(Almost) Too Cute to Eat

Over Christmas my sister and I made these absolutely adorable little penguin appetizers. I found these little guys on a blog that I follow and just fell in love with them. I thought I would share them because they would still make a cute snack for winter days. If you have kids who are not picky eaters then they will love these. 

I have recently adopted some new foods to the list of things I like. Black olives is one of those! I am always re-trying things that I did not like before because I know that my tastes change, and suddenly olives have started tasting really yummy to me - another reason this idea caught my eye! Here's what you need: One jar large pitted olives, one jar jumbo pitted olives, cream cheese, (I used the chives flavor just to add a little something extra) carrot chips, and toothpicks. Meghan helped me out with this because although its really simple it was a little bit time consuming!

To make the penguins, cut one jumbo olive in half lengthwise and stuff with cream cheese. Slide on toothpick and top with one whole large olive. For the feet, simply cut a V shape out of each carrot shape and put at bottom of the toothpick. Then, use the V as the penguins beak! (Stick on with cream cheese.)

We set these on our Christmas table for a pre-dinner snack. None of them were exactly the same. They weren't perfect. I just thought they were so fun, and they were yummy.

 

With the supplies we had, we could have made even more, but we stopped once the plate was full.

Thanks to my sister for helping me to create this fun winter snack!

Christmas at The Greenbrier

I am finally getting around to editing some of my pictures from Christmas, so I'm sure you will indulge me if for a few days I go back to Christmas and just share some pictures. These particular photos are from one evening spent at The Greenbrier Resort which is in the county where my extended family lives. I always love to meander around this beautiful, historic hotel and at Christmas time is is particularly gorgeous.

Our first stop is the toy store Fizzy's Land of Oz! (My Aunt Becky happens to manage some of the shops at the Greenbrier. She is a buyer for Fizzy's so she gets to research toys and decides what guests will see here!) My kids absolutely love to go in here. It is my favorite toy store too!

Our second stop is at the Chocolate shop. I loved the white chocolate Christmas tree, but I opted for a dipped strawberry - my favorite!

Christmas trees were everywhere you turned.

 

I love the decor in the hotel. Everything has such a grand feeling to it and the detail is amazing.

This was the gingerbread version of the hotel! My kids loved this and the working trains that circled it.

Love the ballrooms! Beautiful.

Not everyone can afford the opportunity to stay at The Greenbrier, but if you're ever passing through Greenbrier County in the beautiful state of West Virginia stop and visit! Guests are welcome to shop, dine, and explore its beauty and history.

Snack of the Day - Frozen Dipped Fruit

As I mentioned in my resolutions post, I want to add more fruits and veggies into my diet. I have been looking online for a few fun ways to do this. I found a couple of ways to dress up frozen fruit and make them a real treat. The first is frozen chocolate covered banana bites! I chopped up a banana and dipped it in a melted chocolate mixture.

I used a cup of chocolate chips, a tablespoon of shortening (this helps your chocolate to set,) and a heaping tablespoon of peanut butter. Yum! Melt in the microwave for one minute, stir, and repeat at 20 second increments as needed until smooth. (Usually 1 minute 20 seconds is enough for just a cup.)  With this mixture you will have enough for about 2 bananas. I dipped the banana and then sprinkled with coconut. (The coconut and peanut butter could also be omitted if you're counting calories!) Place on wax paper and freeze for a few hours.

These are SO yummy and when I'm craving a bite of something sweet they're convenient. In the month of December it seemed I was constantly dipping things that consisted of powdered sugar and butter, or Oreos and cream cheese. Its nice to know that the inside of this is something that's better for me. I put the bites in ziplock bags and put them in the freezer to snack on whenever that sweet craving hits me.

I also "dipped" some cut strawberries in vanilla Greek yogurt and froze them! I saw this idea on another blog but the dipping didn't really work for me since yogurt is thick. I placed the strawberries in a container, covered them with a spoonful of yogurt, and then froze the strawberries in the container. They are great and my kids love them too! I think you'll find these are a refreshing change from sugar cookies and peanut butter balls that will keep you from going into withdraw. Happy Snacking!

Resolutions

Christmas has passed. The year is new. This week has been spent taking down Christmas decorations, putting away the kids presents, cleaning my house, putting away my kids presents, re-organizing...oh and putting away the kids presents. You get the idea! We had a wonderful holiday and are so blessed. It always makes me just a little bit sad to put my Christmas decorations away. I miss the lights, ribbon, and the way everything feels warm. I have to admit though, its nice for my house to feel fresh and clean.

I keep just a few winter decorations out from my Christmas boxes. Although winter is not my favorite, I enjoy all of the season and I'm hoping for a good snow day sometime soon. While I wait for that, I'm working on a few of my resolutions for 2012. Most of these are simple, common resolutions. I have made some that are deeper and more personal, but I thought I would share a few of the practical things I want to do this year. First, in an effort to improve my overall health...drink more water!

I know that I don't drink as much water as I should! I really don't care much for bottled water because as soon as its slightly warm I can't bring myself to drink it anymore. So instead, I plan to fill this bottle up daily and add a splash of fresh fruit (I do much better if there is just a little bit of flavor) and try to drink throughout the day. Not anything extraordinary, but something I need to do.  I also want to add more fresh fruits and veggies into my diet.

I love fruit and vegetables! I have a pretty well balanced diet but it could use a bit more fresh produce. Plus, I know this will help my kids to eat healthier snacks too, which is another one of my resolutions.

Savannah is loving these snapea crisps (which are really yummy!) Landon, on the other hand, won't touch them... I'm not fanatical - I let my kids have sweets, they eat pepperidge farms goldfish like they're going out of style, and they like all of the things that most kids do such as french fries and pizza. But I try to get them to eat the good stuff too - fruit, veggies, yogurt, whole grains, etc. In combination with my resolutions to eat healthier I have resolved to continue regular workouts. This past year I have been able to maintain a fitness routine and I have enjoyed it so much!

I workout a few times a week at a local health and fitness center at one of the area hospitals. It is a great gym and really good environment. The biggest plus is that they offer a great childcare program and my kids love going. So, instead of a dreaded chore, my workouts have become a nice break in my day. I highly recommend it to other stay-at-home-moms! I realized how much I enjoy it when after missing a couple of weeks over the holidays I found myself really excited to get back at it! Something else I have resolved to get back to is...Savannah's room!

I wanted to get it done before Christmas, but alas the holidays took over and it got sidelined. I hope that I'll be able to finish a couple of projects this month so that it will feel more complete. I would also like to spend more time in my own room because I am resolved to get more sleep! I am a night owl and I really enjoy my quiet time at night after the kids are in bed. It is the one time of day when I can relax without feeling like I need to get someone juice, or pick up messes, or vacuum the floors. I'm sure I'll continue staying up late, but sometimes I over-do it. Getting on Pinterest when its almost midnight already? Yeah...that leads to a bedtime that is sure to make me cranky the next day! So getting a little bit more sleep is definitely on my list (and maybe I'll even sneak in an occasional afternoon nap - something I almost never do!)

I'd also like to spend some time in my room curled up in my favorite reading spot! 

In any spare time that I find I want to make time for this one of my final resolutions. To read more. I love to read and I just haven't made the time in recent months. However, I got a Christmas present that should help. 

I am loving my Kindle Fire and I just downloaded "The Hunger Games" which was recommended to me by several different people. Sometimes as a stay at home mom its easy to get caught up in to-do lists and while it is of course important to complete necessary tasks, its also important to take time out in order to feel refreshed (and sane!) For this reason I resolve to find time for more afternoon reading with some cup of hot chai tea and my favorite blanket. Here's to a few simple resolutions for 2012. In the words of Benjamin Franklin, "Be at at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find you a better man." Happy New Year to you and yours!