Our New Ride

We got our rental car yesterday.

I was expecting a white Taurus or something similarly bland, but they gave us this .

The Mazda 6

It is sure fun to drive.

Attention Walgreens Shoppers . . .

We were down to our last bottles of shampoo here at the zoo, so I headed out to Walgreen's with my crinkled, but dry coupons in hand.

Last week was another great deal week at Walgreen's

Here's what I got:

6 bottles of body wash

6 bottles of shampoo

7 bottles of conditioner

3 bars of soap

1 bottle of mineral foundation

2 boxes of trashbags

4 lightbulbs

4 bags of chocolate

Total before coupons: $110.27

Total after coupons $34.34

I paid with my Walgreen's gift card from previous rebates so my out of pocket was $0.

I got back $6 in register Rewards and will be getting back $39.10 in rebates.

This week looks like it will be free cereal week.

Check over at moneysavingmom.com to see all the great deals.

Grandma's Chocolate Cake

I always used to make cake from a cake mix. One day when I was feeling quite domestic, I remembered making a cake from scratch with my mom using my Grandma's recipe. This was quite a while ago, but I remembered it being so moist and delicious. So, I made this chocolate cake last month for my chocolate lover friend Farmgirl's birthday. It got rave reviews, so when it was time for me to make dessert again, I thought I would keep a good thing going. Only one problem, my recipe had vanished. Gone. Disappeared.

So I looked in my Betty Crocker cookbook that I always turn to for regular recipes that most of us just open a box to make these days. There was a recipe for chocolate cake, but I knew it wasn't the same. So I went straight to the source. I called my Grandma. She told me she used to make it once a week back when she was making seven lunches every morning. I can't even imagine packing seven lunches every morning. She said she stopped making it because it always boiled over. I have never had that problem, but I always have made it in two round cake pans instead of a 9X13 dish.

So, the recipe has been saved and the finished product was delicious!

Grandma Aldridge's Quick Chocolate Cake

In a saucepan melt

3 squares of unsweetened chocolate

1/2 cup butter

Add 1 cup boiling water

Prepare

1 cup sour milk

(milk with a touch of vinegar to make 1 cup, let it sit at least 5 minutes)

In a mixing bowl stir together

2 cups sugar

2 cups flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 pinch of salt

To flour mixture add the melted chocolate mixture and milk.

Beat in

2 eggs

1 tsp. Vanilla (or more to taste)

Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Enjoy!

Thanks for the recipe Grandma!

What a Wreck

That is usually what I say when I walk into the room the kids are currently playing in. But this time I am referring to our car. The kids and I were out on a quick errand. We were driving beside a semi-truck on a rural highway not far from home. We were starting to slow down as we came up to a quaint little town. The truck turned right and out from that street came a green Grand Prix turning left, trying to get out of the truck's way. The only problem was that we were still going straight. It felt like we were in slow motion and I tried to get out of her way, but it could not be done. We slid to a stop on the other side of the highway and caught our breath. All of us were wearing our seat belts and were just a little shaken up. The other driver was fine too. I can't say as much for the two vehicles.

We were getting close to needing new tires anyway.

But the bumper was just fine. I guess we'll need a new one of those now too.

And maybe a few other parts.

I got out and hugged each of my precious children and we said a thankful prayer to God for protecting us. We have so many things to be thankful for. No one was injured. There were no vehicles in the oncoming lanes. No one was sitting in the passanger seat.

Now at this point I was thinking, "What now? I have three kids and two dogs with me, but my cell phone is sitting on my night stand." The police had been called and a nice man who had stopped to make sure everyone was okay let me use his phone call the Zookeeper.

While we waited for the tow truck I gathered the few thing that we had in the car. I found the contents of my coupon box that had been on the front seat opened and scattered onto the floor. That must have happened a split second before my cup of lemonade splashed all over it.

The tow truck came and took our car away and then we got to ride in the police cruiser up to town, so we didn't have to wait on the side of the road. The kids rode in the back seat with the two dogs. I looked back through the bullet proof glass and told them "I never want to see you in the back of a police car again!" They thought that was funny.

Farmgirl arrived just moments later and brought us safely home. (Thank you!)

Picking we will go . . .

The only thing better than raspberries are fresh-picked home-grown raspberries.

Our neighbors have a wonderful raspberry patch.

They invited us to come pick while they are out of town.

We were happily picking when we realized that we were getting bitten by mosquitoes. We went home and lathered on the bug spray. After we we safe from the bugs, we went back and finished picking. At least one of us was whistling while we worked. Little Lady was filling up her bucket mostly from Grandma's bucket.

Grandma had to work fast to stay ahead of Little Lady!

We have been enjoying fresh raspberries with our granola for breakfast and I have been able to freeze quite a few for later in the season. Thanks neighbors for sharing your bounty with us.

It' not so much picking the berries as it is a kind of treasure hunt for the kids.

-Mike Skinner-

Start Your Engines

We had planned to spend the last day of Grandpa and Grandma's visit doing something fun together. It was raining, so we were going to go to the indoor miniature golf course, but it was flooded. The boys just love our local arcade/fun house. We actually have only been there twice, both times when Grandma and Grandpa were here. The boys had a turn at the bumper cars and then played some games. Then they talked Grandpa into going on the bumper cars with them. It didn't take too much convincing.

Digging Badger ready to go.

Crazy Fox ready for action.

Grandpa was trying to beat Crazy Fox in the Top Skater game.

We all had a great time playing together and enjoying each other's fellowship.

And we found out that some of us are better at Deal or No Deal than others. ;)

It is a happy talent to know how to play.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson-

Curly-Q

Grandma and Grandpa were here for a visit last week and we had so much fun with them. This was just one of our many adventures.

We got Little Lady's hair wet and rag-rolled it.

Little Lady sat surprisingly still while Grandma told us stories about how her sister and her used to take turns rolling each other's hair.

She had so much fun with all her "bows" in her hair.

She slept soundly on her curlers. When we took them out the boys said "You look like a poodle!" This was fine with Little Lady, because she loves dogs and Cleo the poodle on Clifford.

We combed her ringlets out a little bit and pulled the front back into pony tails.

Here she is all ready for church.

Little Lady was very proud to look like her cousin Taylor. The curls turned into waves and then back into her beautiful straight hair after we washed it. It was fun to have a curly-Q for a day or two. Thanks for showing us how to do it Grandma!

Please be quiet. We need to hear a pin drop.

Bowling has always seemed like summer to me. My mom used to bowl in a league, so when summer hit, my brother and I would always get to tag along and play a few games. We signed the kids up for this great bowling program called Kids Bowl free. They had such a great time and the competition was fierce!

Digging Badger waiting for his turn. He bowled 2 strikes.

Crazy Fox was trying to figure out the technical side of the game (no time for posing).

Little Lady did great with a little help. She was a great encourager to her boys.

In the end Digging Badger won the first game and Crazy Fox won the second.

Four . . . and 1/2

We are always looking for an excuse to celebrate around here. So, last week we celebrated Little Lady's 1/2 birthday with half of a cake and a few friends.

Little Lady loves parties and cake and of course being the center of attention. She told me today that it sure is hard to be 4 1/2.

Sing a song of Birthdays

Full of fun and cheer

And may you keep on having them

For many a happy year.

- Anonymous

Solar S'mores

The plan was to make Solar S'mores for dessert on the first day of summer but, that just didn't happen. So, we made them for dessert today instead. We had saved a pizza box just for this project and the kids were excited to make it. We got out the aluminum foil, black construction paper, and clear plastic and got busy. The chocolate had done some previous solar cooking in the car yesterday, so it isn't too pretty, but it melted again just fine. We got everything all set and then went out to find just the right spot to place our oven, trying to get maximum solar power.

It sure is bright out here!

About 10 minutes later the chocolate was melted. After we finished planting a few restarts in the garden we went back to check the progress. The kids decided it was time. The marshmallows were still a little firm, but they were warm. The graham crackers were nice and toasty too. The chocolate was a great consistency for say, dipping strawberries.

We ended up with a chocolate dipped sidewalk and three chocolate dipped kids, but a little mess is always worth a great memory with our kids!

Little Lady was all smiles holding her solar s'more.

Crazy Fox isn't afraid of sugar.

Digging Badger with his dripping S'more

Happy Summer

Nothing says summer better than a lemonade stand.

We signed up to be part of the Crayons Lemonade Brigade. They sent us the blank cardboard stand and about 100 cans of lemonade to sell, to raise money for a charity of our choice. We chose Love Inc., which bands churches together to provide food, clothes and other services for people in need. We had a great time decorating our stand together. Unfortunately, our sales were not very good. Actually, we sat in the very hot sun for about and hour and a half at a local golf course and only sold two, TWO, cans of lemonade. It was a bit disappointing, but it was our best option for today. I was really surprised that so many businesses turned down charitable work by children. I called at least 10 places and everyone had a reason why we could not sell on their premises. I don't remember needing a permit to sell lemonade when I was a kid. Do you? All in all, the kids and I had a fun day together, even though we still have a big stack of lemonade to sell.

Cousins

We enjoyed a much anticipated visit from the Arizona Cousins and Aunt K last week. Isn't it wonderful how cousins can just pick up were they left off, as if no time has passed?

Little Lady just loved having "sisters" for the week. They played dress up and played with the kittens endlessly. Every now and then we stopped them to go do something really fun, but I think they would have been just as happy to stay at the house and play.

The boys and the Arizona Cousins used to ride bikes together in Grandpa's over sized driveway back when we lived in AZ. Little Lady was too little, but she joined in the fun this time.

The girls with batty the cat.

There was a creative group of cousins in the front yard making sculptures and golf balls out of play dough (mud and mini marshmallows that had been shot from marshmallow bows all week)

Our mud rule is: get as dirty as you want, but you will get hosed off before you come in the house and the well water is cold.

So, they opted for the water rocket.

I was a little breezy all week and that can make an Arizona girl chilly!

Contemplating if it is really hot enough to run through the water . . .

(notice the difference in skin tone)

. . . In the end they did get wet but it was a "huge mistake".

We had a great time with you girls during your visit. Thanks for coming to see us!

We miss you all.

Cousin to cousin we'll always be,

Special friends from the same family tree.

Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road?

Because everybody needs a buddy. Our Rhode Island Red and our lone rooster.

This guy is going to be popular!

We bought seven chicks and a rooster. We are hoping to have fresh eggs by fall.

Birds

The kids and I spent today having fun together. We went a Lowe's workshop this morning where they each made a treasure box. We picked up a few more items or our garden while we were there. Then we were off to the nature center for bird day.

Little Lady had a mountain blue bird painted on her forehead, Crazy Fox went with a bald eagle (always his first choice when it comes to birds) and Digging Badger chose a mallard. They each made a nest complete with chocolate robin eggs and a bird feeder made from recycled water bottles. Then we went to the owl pellet station where they were able to dissect the pellet to discover what the owl had eaten. Crazy Fox really enjoyed this and glued all the tiny bones he found on a display board. They had a station teaching about different bird beaks for different types of food, a bird Olympics station where the kids could compare how fast they flapped their wings compared to a crow or a hummingbird. They all flapped 11 times in 10 seconds. Crows flap their wings 30 and hummingbirds 700 times per 10 seconds. Then they played a life size board game to teach about migration.

They were each banded for tracking during the game, but unfortunately after they were let free, they were all killed by a pellet from a BB gun, which brought the game to an abrupt end.

We walked around the paths, over bridges and along the creek. We had a wonderful day learning about some of God's creatures.

For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.

Solomon

Fun with Dad

The Zoo Keeper was long overdue for a haircut, and with the weather warming up, he decided a short buzz was in order. I much prefer his thick, black, hair to be a bit longer, but I will be the first to admit that his hair is unruly.

The boys have been wanting to shave the Zoo Keeper's head for over a year. (They were going to surprise me when I got home from a weekend getaway last year, but ran out of time.) So the clippers came out and Crazy Fox got right to work.

Because the Zoo Keeper's hair was so long, he decided to have a little bit of fun with it.

Then it was Digging Badger's turn. He finished off the rest.

Who needs a haircut now?

Crazy Fox has apparently inherited his dad's wild locks.

Kittens

Spring is finally here and there is a new litter of kittens at the Thompson Zoo. They are about three weeks old. Their eyes have all opened and they are starting to play together. Each one has distinctive markings giving them character.

This is pinstripe. . . because he has a thin white stripe.

Here is dip stick . . .

. . . not because he isn't so bright, but because his tail looks as though it has been dipped in oil.

This is Skunk, or Skunkers and sometimes Stinker due to the white stripe that goes down the middle of his nose and back.

And this is Batty, the favorite kitten an cuddle victim of Little Lady. He has been held and squeezed and wrapped in baby blankets and carried and poked and loved more than any of the other kittens. He is a cutey, and he will probably be the best cat we have ever had if he makes it through his initiation period with Little Lady.