Broken "Binkies"

Today I found Maren's binkies and they were "broken"...imagine that :) FYI, "broken" means we cut the ends off with scissors...but to Maren, they were really broken.

Anyway, I showed them to Maren and said, "Oh no Maren, look, your binkies are broken." She studied them and tried them out and could see that they didn't work. So I asked her what we should do about that and she thought about that for a minute. When I suggested that we should throw them in the garbage since they were broken and she agreed. She jumped up and ran into the kitchen and threw them away in the garbage.

The really interesting thing was to see how Jane reacted to Maren's broken binkies...she almost starting crying. I couldn't believe it! She was so sad for Maren losing her binkies because they were broken. Brad cheered her up quite quickly, but later I heard her say to Maren, "sorry Maren that your binkies are broken..."

So then we went to the girls room and looked everywhere for any more binkies and they were ALL gone! For the next couple of hours Maren would go over to the trash can and open the lid and check on her binkies. Then she would go through what happened... "binkies"...."broken".... "garbage"....."all gone"....."bye-bye binkies" It was pretty adorable. Most importantly, she went to bed great tonight, no tears!

Here's what the binky fairy brought for Maren for being so brave:

She's a cuddly princess doll:

...and a soft princess pillow:

...and a warm princess blanket:

Now Jane and Maren both have princess dolls from the Binky Fairy...hooray for the Binky Fairy! For now, we are done with pacifiers and that feels great!

Valentine’s Day Swap

I don't know about all of you, but I'm getting very excited for Valentine's Day! My cousin-in-law Kim had a great idea - it's a Valentine Swap. Each person that enters the swap will create a little package of her favorite Valentine's Day things: candies, recipe for a romantic dinner, decorations, etc... You then send that package to someone else who has entered so they can enjoy and hopefully discover new fabulous wonders. Then you will receive a package to enjoy from someone else!

Just leave a comment if you want to join, then e-mail me (justjessie at gmail dot com) your address so I can send it to the person who "draws" your name. This will be really fun! Anyone can join! And you can spend as little or as much as you want {The Dollar Store can be amazing!}. I hope to have everyone let me know ASAP so that I can get your names and info to my cousin. Then the packages should be received sometime during the week of Valentine's Day.

So, let's hear from you, Ladies!

It's So Simple!

If you want to stay out of debt, just don't buy things you can't afford:



I think this video is HILARIOUS!!!

5 Minute Chocolate Cake

I got this off of my friend Michelle's blog... It looked perfect for those winter nights after the kids have gone to bed! So, we just tried it tonight and it was good, but not amazing...the texture was kind of spongy.

5 MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE

1 coffee mug
4 T. flour (plain not self-rising)
4 T. sugar
2 T. baking cocoa
1 egg
3 T. milk
3 T. oil
3 T. chocolate chips (optional)
Small splash of vanilla

Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the chocolate chips and vanilla, and mix again. Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 min. on high. The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed! Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired. Now, why is this the most dangerous cake recipe in the world? Because we are now only 5 min. away from chocolate cake at any time of the day or night! Note: It has been recommended to me that if you swirl in some hot fudge before you cook it in the microwave it makes all the difference.

Hooray for 2009!

Happy New Year! I don't know about you all, but I'm ready for a new year...I'm ready for New Year's resolutions, good intentions, a cleaner house, happier kids, a stronger spiritual force in my life, etc.

We had a fun New Year's Eve playing Hand and Foot, watching The Holiday, and of course eating good food. Here is one of my favorite dips to make, but it's pretty rich so I don't make it very frequently.

Sausage Dip!

1 pound of ground sausage (chopped)
1 onion (chopped)
1 green pepper (chopped)
1 red pepper (chopped)
1 pkg (8 oz.) cream cheese
1 1/2 cups of sour cream
1 can stewed or diced tomatoes

Fritos Scoops

Directions: Brown ground sausage with onions and peppers. Add cream cheese and sour cream and cook together until evenly mixed. Then add the tomatoes. Serve hot with Fritos Scoops. Also really yummy served cold the next day.