Post #18:Brain Cupcakes

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
I only worked half day (for the cutest 4th grade class ever!) so I came home just in time to make cupcakes for my kids and deliver some back to my son's three fifth grade teachers.  Here is the link for brain cupcakes.  I of course jazzed them up with a skull cupcake wrapper. 
http://pinterest.com/pin/201254677068398944/

Hopefully later I will post every one's Halloween costumes.  Mason's is straight off of Pinterest!

Project #16: Swim Like Michael Phelps

Football is over.  We had our last games on Saturday.  So I started swim lessons.  Of course I was late because I had to shave my legs.  I almost forgot my swim shorts (no one should have to see my thighs that early in the morning).  I did  forget my bra.  A CWU hoodie covers a lot (or a little in some cases).  Luckily my swim instructor was also running behind schedule.  She asked us (me, Juan, Mike and- oh I forgot her name) what our goals were.  Mike wants to do a triathlon, Juan wants to perfect one stroke and whats-her-name wants to tread water. She needs more body fat not swim lessons.  My goal is to jump in a pool without plugging my nose.  I HATE getting my face wet. I got homework this week.  I am to blow bubbles with my face in the water.  We'll see how that goes.  I liked the suggestions on this site found of course on Pinterest.  I just happen to pay for my "swim buddy!"
http://www.swimsmooth.com/beginnertips.php

Project #15: Canned Apple Pie Filling

My friend Katie is amazing. She sews, is on the PTA board, quilts, manages a play group of a million two year of boys and she cans.  We have canned together- salsa was my favorite (we were covered with tomato seeds).  This year I didn't do a lot of canning.  I still had peaches but Katie and I  one year did apple pie filling, which is THE easiest thing to use for dessert in a pinch- dump in dish, top with a steudle crumb, bake.  Trying to fill my day I decided to head over the mountains to find a good deal on apples. I headed toThorp.  They never let me down; honeycrisps for $14 a box. On a side note Thorp is really close to my college town, Ellensburg. Of course I stopped at Jerroll's book store, my old dorm and Campus-U-Tote Em for onion rings and a PB milk shake. BUT- back to apples! This year I needed to find a Pinterest recipe to can my apples (which after gass and shopping cost $150 for the box).   I'm not sure the recipe worked well.  The syrup was like set jello, one jar cracked in the canner, and two jars didn't seal.  One actually spewed syrupy goo like lava all over the table.  They are in the fridge waiting to be used. Needless to say I am currently scouring Pinterest for apple recipes for project #16.  There is a carmel apple cheesecake recipe that is high on the list!
http://www.mommyskitchen.net/2010/04/got-apples-make-apple-pie-filling-in.html

http://pinterest.com/pin/167970261072400992/

Project #12: The best Cookie Bar Ever

Summer of 2011 we went to Disneyland.  My sister, nephew and Mom went too. We went all out and stayed in the park and bought the food plan; best decision ever! If the kids were hungry- they swiped their cards, needed candy- they swiped their cards, needed drinks- they swiped their cards.  At the hotel, where we would go eat lunch and swim during the hottest part of the day, we would make sure to load up on snsacks.  My sister got a Magic Cookie Bar.  She had never had one.  So in honor of Heidi and in memory of Disney we made Magic Cookie Bars!
http://pinterest.com/pin/50524827039082931/
We ate them before I could take a picture.  They looked like they always do.  See Pinterest post above for a better picture than I could take anyway.

Project #14: One Puckered Tongue and Yummy Spiced Pumpkin Seeds

For Family Home Evening we carved pumpkins.  Then the dogs ate the pumpkins.  I should have predicted this seeing as they (okay really just Fillmore) ate all the decorative gourds I purchased in my attempts to be festive.  Those poor Jack-o-lanterns never stood a chance.  I wish I had before pictures.  Dallin painstakingly  carved the word V-O-T-E in his.  

Jōb scraped a ghost into his without going all the way through the meat of the pumpkin.  Mason cried when he couldn't do the same technique.  I carved a girly pumpkin; eyelashes and puckered lips included.  The entire time I quizzed everyone on the parts of the pumpkin: stem, pulp, ribs, meat, and SEEDS!
Jōb and I almost broke up over pumpkin seeds.  The October after we met we were carving pumpkins at his sisters house and got in a huge pumpkin guts fight (pulp is the correct term- I taught the kindergarten pumpkin lesson).  Jōb says he found seeds in places there should no be seeds, but I digress. 
I eat pumpkin seeds all year.  My sister-in-law, Diana (same sister mentioned above), used to roast them for me.  She lives kind of far. I had to roast my own. Here is a great link if you want to try the same:
http://pinterest.com/pin/67413325642305243/
Warning:  eating too many on one sitting will pucker your tongue!

Project #13: Glitter Everywhere and More Halloween Ornaments

Katie found this post on Pinterest for me.
http://pinterest.com/pin/223068987762726028/
I really wanted to add them to the nearly naked Halloween tree.  They are made out of cheap white Christmas ornaments from the dollar store.  So off we went on our teacher furlough day to Monroe to go to the dollar store. 
Guess what? There were no white ornaments at the dollar store, even though retail Christmas is in full swing! What I did find didn't leave much room to be crafty.  They had pre-painted eyeballs; twelve in a pack.  They look like small-ish ping pong balls.  I guess you could float them in punch or something.  So I had  to craft them up.  I added glitter to the pupil and hot glued a wire hanger made again out of floral wire.  I hid the glob of hot glue with leftover purple ribbon.  Jōb said the ribbon looked like a bat perched on the eyeball.  I had hoped they would look like an eyebrow.  Oh well. My tree is less naked!

Project #11: Wicked

I posted on Facebook how I cried through the first half of Wicked this week at the Paramount with my mom.  I had seen it before; in Portland.  I cried then too. 
I ran into my friend Amy.  She was running.  I was in my car.  When I rolled down the window before I could say hello, she said, "I cry at Wicked too. It's because we're Elphaba."
http://pinterest.com/pin/62628251038215374/
Enough said but then Amy told me car was making a funky sound. Great.  Just Great.