Wordless Wednesday: Spring Calves

Our other cattle ended up in the freezer (and freezers of friends and family), so we replaced them a few weeks ago. These guys are probably at least 2 to 3 months old now.

For more Wordless Wednesday, check out 5 Minutes for Mom, Go Graham Go! and Healthy Moms.

Be sure to stop by and enter my giveaway for an $80 gift code to CSN Stores!

Enjoying the Spring Beauty

The Lilacs

The Columbine

And we don't think of dandelions as annoying weeds. Not only are they fun...

...but they're kinda pretty too! :-)

And any child will tell you that they make the most beautiful bouquets! I've received several already this year! ;-)

I hope the weather has been as pleasant for everyone as it has for us this last week or so. It's been feeling like summer and we've been really enjoying it! :-)

Make Something Monday: Double Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

On the same health kick that I mentioned last week, I also tried these cookies from the eatbetteramerica.com site. What I like about these is that that you get a nice chocolatey taste and they're more filling having all that oatmeal in them!

Double-Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup margarine or butter, softened
• 3/4 cup Yoplait® 99% Fat Free creamy vanilla yogurt (from 2-lb container)
• 1 egg or 1/4 cup fat-free egg product
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/3 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
• 2/3 cup Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup Gold Medal® whole wheat flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats
• 1/3 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips or white chocolate chips

1. Heat oven to 350ºF. In large bowl, mix sugar, butter, yogurt, egg and vanilla. Stir in remaining ingredients. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet.
2. Bake 11 to 13 minutes or until almost no indentation remains when touched. Immediately remove from cookie sheet.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): Bake 12 to 14 minutes.

Happy Birthday Baby Girl!

I meant to get this post up yesterday (Morgan's birthday), but we were busy! We started the morning off with a couple new movies (there was a good deal at Amazon a couple weeks ago-LOL!):

Then, after playing outside and lunch, we made cupcakes and Morgan got to blow out a candle :-)

Following her nap, she got another gift-Shrinky Dinks!

So we colored them...

...shrunk them...

...and made a necklace of a cat chasing a bird! :-)

Rich gave Morgan another gift when he got home from working in the fields. Plus we played outside some more, since it was a beautiful day, and Morgan and Blake got to stay up past their bedtime. She had an awesome fun-filled birthday!

Morgan also had her birthday party this last Saturday where the rest of the family and her best friend came over for some food, cake and gift opening.

The kids eating...and Blake trying to get his food off the garage floor! LOL!

This is a doll that my parents brought back from Germany for Morgan.

Morgan opening the John Deere necklace from her Daddy.

Morgan's cake that uploaded sideways. (Just tilt your head to the right-LOL!) She wanted a pink birthday and later on she mentioned ponies, so this is what a came up with. It has a coconut cream cheese frosting-YUM!

Blowing out the candles.

I think she was a little spoiled for her birthday this year, but that's what birthdays are about right? :-)

Wordless Wednesday: Anticipation

For more Wordless Wednesday, check out 5 Minutes for Mom, Go Graham Go! and Healthy Moms.

Be sure to stop by and enter my giveaway for an $80 gift code to CSN Stores!

CSN Stores GIVEAWAY! *Closed*

Remember last week when I said to keep a look out for an exciting giveaway? Well....it's giveaway time! Yay! :-)

CSN Stores offered for me to either do a review or a giveaway and I seriously thought of doing a review. The first thing I thought of was getting a new wheelbarrow for Rich being that his is rusted out and the tire is so old and cracked that it needs to be pumped up before each use...

...but it turns out that Rich likes his old wheelbarrow and didn't want to replace it quite yet (and 'Fix-a-flat' currently seems to be working well on the tire.)

So, I moved on to something that Morgan might like...

With all the jewelry she seems to be collecting I thought this would be a super cute new jewelry box for her, but we really don't have a good place to put it yet, so I moved on again.

I thought maybe we could use a storage ottoman for when company drops in and I needed to hide toys quickly...

but knowing how big of a mess we usually have, there wasn't going to be an ottoman large enough....plus I'd never be able to clean it all up fast enough! LOL!

As much as I searched and thought about all the possibilities that CSN Stores has to offer, I honestly couldn't come up with anything as exciting as offering a giveaway to my readers!

So, without further ado, here it is:

GIVEAWAY:

CSN Stores has generously offered an $80 gift code to giveaway to one of my readers! All you have to do is stop by CSN Stores and check out their vast selection of products, then come back here and leave a comment with something that you'd like to buy if you were to win! Be sure to leave an e-mail address in your comment so I can reach you if you're the winner! :-)

Extra Entries:

* In a comment, tell me which of the 200+ CSN Stores you could do the most shopping in. (1 entry)

*'Like' CSN Stores on facebook and tell me in a comment. If you do, you'll also be entered to win a $50 to $500 shopping spree in their online stores!! (1 entry)

This giveaway will end on June 1st at 10:00 pm EST. I will choose the winner via random.org and contact them via e-mail sometime shortly after the giveaway ends. The winner will have 48 hours to respond otherwise I will have to pick a new winner. Open to U.S. and Canadian residents only.

*Disclosure: I was offered to either do a review or host a giveaway in return for doing a teaser post and the review or giveaway post. All opinions expressed in the post are my own.

Make Something Monday: Healthified Chocolate Lovers' Brownies

On occasion I get into a little health kick and try to make some healthier foods. Although I'd really like some low calorie desserts, I haven't been able to find any with 'normal' ingredients-LOL! Anyway, I came across this recipe on eatbetteramerica.com and I gave it a try. It's not nearly as good as regular brownies, but it'll satisfy a chocolate craving! :-)

Healthified Chocolate Lovers' Brownies

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 container (6 oz) Yoplait® Original 99% Fat Free French vanilla yogurt
• 2 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 egg whites or 1/4 cup fat-free egg product
• 3/4 cup Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Powdered sugar, if desired

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 8- or 9-inch square pan with cooking spray.
2. In medium bowl, mix granulated sugar, yogurt, oil, vanilla and egg whites. Stir in all remaining ingredients except powdered sugar. Spread in pan.
3. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely, about 1 hour. Cut into 4 rows by 4 rows. Sprinkle with powdered sugar just before serving.

High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): Bake 30 to 35 minutes.

Upcoming Giveaway from CSN Stores!

I do quite a bit of shopping online, being that I don't get out to shop much, and I don't know that I've ever come across an online store that carries as much as the 200+ CSN stores carry.

You can seriously get anything from sectional sofas... ....to directional lights. From clocks.... ....to locks. Or even a camera ........to a Grohe Amera Shower System! (Looks fancy doesn't it?!)

The selection of products is astounding! Did you notice how the products I mentioned rhymed? The selection is so vast that all I had to do was type in the last few letters of one product in their search field to find all sorts of other products that rhymed....that's how much CSN Stores has to offer! I find it exciting to be able to search one site and find just about anything that I could want for my home, yard, kids, etc. And I'm even more excited that I'm going to be able to share more with you in just a little while, so keep an eye out! It's going to be good! :-)

While you're waiting for the giveaway, stop by CSN Stores and check out their huge selection of furniture, home decor, housewares, pet supplies and a whole lot more!

*Discloser: I was offered to host a giveaway or a review in exchange for this post and a follow up post. All views expressed in this post are my own.

Wordless Wednesday: Sick and Sleepy

Blake came down with a fever last Wednesday and really wasn't feeling well. Luckily he felt better by the afternoon after sleeping the day away. :-)

For more Wordless Wednesday, check out 5 Minutes for Mom, Go Graham Go! and Healthy Moms.

A Day Out with Thomas the Train

A little while ago I won a family pack of tickets to ride Thomas the Train at Greenfield Village from Wendy at Money Saving Mama in Michigan. (Thank you Wendy!!) I cannot begin to tell you how excited I was to win such a great prize!! Greenfield Village is such a beautiful place to visit and learn about history. Plus to be able to ride Thomas the Train would be so exciting for the kids!

I had pictured the day that we went to be warm and sunny. The kids would be excitedly walking with us and learning little bits of history while they waited for their train ride. I'd be able to see the sites that I enjoyed when I was young and went with my parents. It was going to be perfect!!

We had to wait a few weeks before we had the opportunity to go, but we were finally able to make it there this past Saturday after much anticipation. (I think Blake or Morgan must have asked about riding Thomas every day up until then.) The only thing about this past Saturday is it wasn't even close to warm (50 at the most) and the sun only came about between clouds that dropped cold rain. On top of that the wind gusts were around 45 miles per hour making it difficult to stay outside and enjoy our day.

Not only was the weather a little rough to get along with, but so was Blake! Rich and I had a date night the night before and Blake wouldn't fall asleep at his grandparents'. He probably didn't get to bed until after 10:30 and that made for a very grouchy little boy while we were trying to enjoy our day. The only times Blake was happy were when we were eating, riding the carousel and riding Thomas the Train....where he passed out! LOL!

Despite the weather and a grouchy little boy we still had a really nice time. We didn't see nearly as much as I would have liked, but we know that we'd love to go back and enjoy the village again on a warmer day and either without the kids or when they're old enough to enjoy it too :-)

Here are some pics of our visit:

This is from the place we ate at called "The Eagle Tavern" where they made it feel as much like the experience you would have had in the olden days. From the way the waitstaff dressed to the menus...very neat!

The carousel ride.

Some pictures of the village

And last, but not least, Thomas and us on our train ride :-)

Make Something Monday: Meatball Sub Casserole

I saw this on Alexis's blog, Running Away? I'll Help You Pack, who got it from Alesha at The Jacobsen Family! If both of them and their families loved this, then I knew I HAD to try it!!! (Plus is just sounded delicious...and it WAS!) :-)

Meatball Sub Casserole

*1/3 cup chopped green onion, to taste
*1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
*3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
*1 lb ground beef
*1 loaf Italian bread, cut into 1 inch slices
*8 ounces cream cheese, softened
*1/2 cup mayonnaise (not low-fat or lite)
*1 teaspoon italian seasoning
*1/4 teaspoon pepper
*2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
*1 (28 ounce) jar spaghetti sauce
*1 cup water
*2 garlic cloves, minced

1. Preheat oven to 400.
2. In a bowl, combine onions, bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese.
3. Add beef and mix well.
4. shape into 1-inch balls; place on a rack.
5. In a shall baking pan, bake for 15-20 minutes or until no longer pink. (Or cook in a skillet on medium heat.).
6. Reduce oven temperature to 350.
7. Meanwhile, arrange bread in a single layer in an ungreased 13x9x2" baking dish.
8. (All of the bread might not be used.).
9. Combine cream cheese, mayo, Italian seasoning and pepper; spread over the bread.
10. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup mozzarella.
11. Combine sauce, water and garlic; add meatballs.
12. Pour over cheese mixture; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella.
13. Bake, uncovered at 350 for 30 minutes or until heated through.

Happy Mother's Day!

Morgan and I got creative this past week to make the Grandmas some flowers that I had originally seen on the Frugal Family Fun blog (she has some AWESOME ideas!)

The first flowers we made were made from toilet paper rolls.

Morgan did most of the painting, then I helped with the rest.

Didn' t they turn out cute! :-)

Then we made tissue paper flowers and I added one of those to the little flower pot as well :-)

Of course Morgan needed one of her own ;-)

Then Blake needed one made with more boyish colored tissue ;-)

I hope everyone has a wonderfully relaxing Mother's Day! :-)