Epiphany.

Today I am grateful for an...Epiphany.

It happened while I was brushing my teeth.

What? You don't get epiphanies while brushing your teeth? I've had several. One involving Jacob Black and his imprinting ability. (yes. that was a Twilight reference. No. I am not ashamed.) If you ever do get one, be careful. you tend to choke. or drool.

so.

I had an epiphany.

I was thinking again this morning how grateful I was to have my green camera back in action. (my green camera is a Kodak Easyshare M532 ) It's my small take on the go camera. and it got me thinking about how much I miss using my black camera (which is a Kodak Easyshare Z1012 IS ) Its not the world's fanciest camera. but it takes very nice pictures. Thinking about how much I missed using it reminded me that I still have 400+ pictures from our most recent disney vacation that I still haven't uploaded to my computer. because out of the blue my computer stopped recognizing my black camera and won't let me connect it to upload my pictures. I'm blaming it on The Marsh's new video camera software. so for three months I've been horribly pissed at my computer for not recognizing my camera and not giving me access to my pictures...

....and here comes my epiphany. Why don't I just put my memory card in my green camera, that my computer does recognize, and get my pictures that way?

I know, Hermoine, I know.

I'm such an idiot. I even thought about taking my memory card out and bringing into a printing shop! Why wouldn't I think about putting it in my other camera!!??? seriously. double face palm.

but whether it took me three months or not to figure it out, I finally have. and I am SO GRATEFUL. because I have uploaded the pictures to my computer and now have access to my vacation pictures. and Brey's 4th birthday party pictures. these are my memories. and The Marsh's memories. and between you and me The Marsh's memory isn't that great. he could use some ginko biloba. I want to be able to look at these pictures whenever I want.... and remember..

When Little Miss struck up her pretty pose.

                                    

When Breyman got to hug his favorite character, Donald, at the Cape May Cafe

and when The Marsh added the 300th picture to our collection
of him kissing me on the cheek.

It's okay. You can make fun of me for not figuring it out sooner. I would make fun of me too. But...I've also complained about this problem to alot of tech saavy people too! and none of them came up with anything. Its one of those really obvious solutions, I guess. No one ever suggests it because OF COURSE you've already tried that.

gah. I can still hear Hermoine calling me an idiot. I KNOW!!

anyway. I'm grateful for my epiphany! yay pictures!

Thanks for reading!
Lana

Whirlwinds and Candy Bracelets.

Today I am grateful for the short visit my mother-in-law paid us this evening.

My children always go a little bit crazy when my mother-in-law is here.

and I don't even mind.

because she is usually the one dealing with the crazy.

The visit started out with my babes showing off their impressive gymnastic skills. Breyman was hoping on one foot and Georgie was doing flips while simultaneously telling me she needs applause to live. Well, what she actually said was "Mommy, clap for me!" for about 7 minutes straight. which sounds alot like "I need applause to live". my hands are still sore. or maybe even still clapping.

Then The Marsh gets the bright idea to tell Breyman to be a whirlwind. or as normal people I like to call it, a tornado. although Breyman calls it a whirlwind because that's what his disney junior computer games call it. so anyway, Breyman starts spinning around in circles. and spinning. and spinning. which then started Georgie spinning. and spinning. That somehow morphed in running around in circles. for another 10 minutes straight.

all the while I was thinking about how grateful I was for that moment. because my babes were gonna be TIRED. and today I am tired. and ready for bed. I actually slept last night. but I kept dreaming about not being able to sleep. so even though I was getting rest, I didn't feel rested. I felt like I had been awake all night. because I dreampt it. Make sense? Anyone? Bueller?

and right as I was about to do a mental happy dance and mini prayer to the God of exhausted toddlers the babes discovered something.

The killer of hope.

The candy bracelets that my mother-in-law had also brought with her on this short visit. I suppose I could have said no. but they were straight up 1991. so I had to let my babes experience the awesomeness. After my mother-in-law left, I had to try and convince Breyman and Georgie that cool kids get high off sleep and not sugar. and it seems to have been somewhat successful because I can't hear any noise coming from down the hall where The Marsh is reading a bed time story to them. so they must be all tuckered out and ready for bed. Either that or they popped a cap in Dad and are coming after me and my sugar next.

Lets hope it's the former. I don't think The Marsh would look very good with a cap in him.

Thanks for reading!
Lana

Bed Time Kisses.

Today I am grateful for bedtime kisses.

As I've mentioned before, The Marsh reads the babes their bed time stories.

But I help get their teeth brushed, put them into bed and give them goodnight kisses.

Georgie likes her "night night kiss" before her hug.

and she insists that her baby doll and her Duffy Teddy Bear all need night night kisses too.

Breyman prefers his hug first. and it has to be a good strong hug. both arms. a bear hug.

and then he gets his bed time kiss.

and then we repeat.

Because Breyman usually asks for anywhere between 4 and 6 good night hugs and kisses.

and then I have to give buzz lightyear a kiss too. and a hug. (yea, I know. I get around)

Then I tell the babes to be good and listen to the story Daddy is going to read to them.

and Georgie wants another night night kiss. and Breyman wants another big bear hug. with two arms. and a kiss too.

And I'm so grateful fot these little moments, because I know someday all I'll get is a "goodnight" shouted from down the hall somewhere. and I'm just not ready for that yet.

I mean, how is buzz lightyear suppose to defend the galaxy without a night night kiss?

Thanks for reading!
Lana

The Calm after the Storm.

Today I am grateful for the little piece of family normalness going on around me right now.

or as normal as my family gets anyway.

The last three days have been filled with lots of fun, but right now in this moment, I'm grateful for the (semi) quiet evening occuring in my house.

It all started on thursday.

I had great ambition to go for a run on thursday evening while The Marsh worked a little bit on his car. and then my mom is all "you coming over? I have wine. and crackers. and pub cheese." and I was like...uhh running isn't important tonight. So The Marsh and I went over to my mother's house and I spent about 3 hours in her hot tub drinking wine with her and my little sister. Then I came home a went right to bed because I had to get up 5 hours later to go to work.

Friday I worked all day then my older sister picked me up from work and the party continued. We had fajitas and more wine. we caught up on what's going on in each other's lives and talked a little bit more about her future wedding.

Saturday we were up and enjoying more time together with my babes while The Marsh was out working hard for the money. Then my two little sisters came over as well and we spent some time together. and watched a couple episodes of How I Met Your Mother. which I just became obssesed with. about 7 years late.

Suit Up.

My older sister, Stephanie, and I had already decided earlier in the week that we wanted to go out for girls night on saturday, so last night her and I went to the local bar down the road for some good pub food and a few drinks. It was nice to be able to get some dinner and partake in some people watching. although I'm sure the other people got more enjoyment out of people watching the two crazy chicks who kept quoting Eddie Izzard all night. Do you have a flag?

Around 9:30 or so my awesome husband picked Steph and I up from the bar on his way home from spending some quality time with the babes at his parents. (message from the blog author: Always have a designated driver. it's even better if you marry one.) Then we came home and had an impromptu dance party and my best friend Ashley came over. The Marsh being super dad, put my kids (and himself) to bed with a bedtime story while Stephanie, Ashley and I drank some more. Well, Ashley didn't because she had to work this morning. But I did. and I sent my mom bon jovi lyrics via text message. i wanted her to join the dance party too.  My sis and I then topped off the evening by curling up on my couch to watch Breaking Dawn Part I. So this puts me to bed at about 2:00 am this morning.

After getting up this morning, my sister and i just relaxed and talked some more about life while my children ran around playing the game who can piss the other one off the most. The Marsh was once again out working hard for the money. around 3:00 this afternoon my sister left to go pick up her daughter and head home and about an hour later The Marsh was home. I followed him around like a dumb puppy while he changed out of his work uniform and washed his hands because I just wanted a hug from him. Even though I had seen him everyday over the last 3 days I felt like I hadn't really seen him at all. We sat togther on the couch and talked while our children climbed all over us trying to get equal amounts of attention too.

Now Georgie is off tending to her imaginary farm animals she keeps gated in her bedroom and Breyman is watching The Transformers Movie on VHS circa 1985 (cause thats how we roll). The Marsh is sitting at the table reading me an article from his automotive magazine about trucks and I'm sitting here listening because I've missed him enough that I would listen to just about anything he wanted to talk to me about right now.

Its peaceful after the craziness that was the weekend. Not that I didn't enjoy this weekend. I absolutely did. I love thunderstorms too. but I also love that moment when the storm ends and the rain stops. and everything is quiet again.

for a minute anyway.

Thanks for reading!
Lana

Impromptu Dance Party.

Today I am grateful for impromptu dance party.

It's saturday night.

My big sister, stephanie, is here.

We went out tonight. just the two of us. It was fun. We had a little night out at the local bar and laughed at all the people we went to high school with.

and then we came home and put on Pandora. which I am also extemely grateful for.

There is nothing like a spontanious dance party in my living room. with my sister. and my husband. my kids. and now ashley is here. which is awesome too.

ashley and steph, making my world hilarious since before I can remember

How exactly does an impromptu dance party happen?

1. put the Kesha Today's hits station station on pandora.

2. feel the music.

3. begin to dance.

4. in the most ridiculous of ways.

Its a good time. I promise.

Anyway. thats what I'm grateful for today.. and more people should par take. so they could be grateful too.

Thanks for reading!

Lana

First World Problems.

Today I am grateful for first world problems.

What are first world problems? exactly what it says. Problems experienced by people who live in the first world. Like having to take clothes to the laundry mat when your washing machine dies. or having to wash all your dishes by hand because you don't own a dishwasher.

check out Tumblr's First World Problems for some over the top (and quite hilarious examples)

also called Everyone at the party is drunk and no one can drive problems

Maybe I'm not suppose to talk about it.

But, MAN, I am so glad that my problems look fucking stupid compared to other people's problems.

Seriously.

I go to my kitchen, open up my refrigerator and say to The Marsh "There's nothing to drink in the house!"...except for that whole constant running water from the faucet thing, of course.

It sounds silly doesn't it? There's NOTHING to drink? really??

and yet I bet almost everyone I know has said the same thing at some point or another.

The drought that occured in Africa in 2011 and that is still going on now makes me sick to think about. I read an article in the newspaper about families traveling for days to find shelters with food and water. Halfway through their journey they run out of water. children get sick. get weak. parents make the decision to leave their children in the middle of the desert to die in order to keep traveling. because they have other children they can save. Reports are saying that between 50,000 and 100,000 people, more than half of them under the age of five, died in 2011 in the horn or Africa drought. In all 13 million people have been affected.

...and yet I don't have anything in my house to drink?

even if the pipes stopped working and there was literally nothing in my house to drink, all I have to do is get in my car and drive to the nearest grocery store. problem solved.

It's the same with saying there is no food in the house. actually there is always food in my house. just not always the food I want to eat at that particular moment.

I get frustrated when I run out of cascade.

...when there is no wine in my house.

....when my favorite brand of coffee creamer is out of stock.

...that the house I OWN still has white walls.

...that gasoline costs so much to fill up my car that takes me to my JOB.

I can't just suddenly stop hating these things. I'm sure that not having the right coffee creamer will always piss me off. But I can take a moment to be grateful that my problems are so miniscule. I try to remind myself everyday that even if life seems awful for a moment, everything is relative. My life is actually pretty great. My children have plenty of food and water. They have warm clothes and shelter. not just any shelter, a house. they have access to modern medicine if they get sick. I hope to teach my children to be grateful and appreciative, because not every child will have the opportunity that they have.

 But I'll still be grateful that my children will grow up with first world problems. and not third world problems. so. grateful.

Thanks for reading!

Lana

11:48 pm.

Today I am grateful for..

My momma's hot tub.

My momma.

My little sister, Emily.

and pub cheese.

but only so few of us know why.

and today I am going to keep it that way.

because I can.

......but know that I am grateful. especially for the pub cheese,


Thanks for reading!
Lana

But First....Coffee.

Today I am grateful for my Keurig Coffemaker.

Everyday I am grateful for my Keurig.

I bow down to you oh god of coffee

This is the greatest coffee maker in the world.

Ok, I'm sure there are some better ones out there. and I've never used a french press, which I'm sure would blow my mind.  But for me, right now, this is the greatest coffee maker in the world.

Obtaining this Keurig, however, wasn't very easy. When The Marsh and I first moved in together we didn't have a coffee maker, but I was a college student and worked in the mall right across from a starbucks. I always managed to get a cup of coffee so I wasn't worried about it. Then, following the advice of today's medical professionals I obstained from caffiene during my two pregnancies so coffee was out of the picture all together. After my daughter was born I began to ask The Marsh about getting a coffee maker.

And I wanted a Keurig. bad.  Sure we could have gotten a cheaper, regular coffeemate coffee maker but it just seemed like such a waste in the long run. As much as I like coffee, i don't drink a full pot everyday. So I would just be constantly dumping coffee out. But brewing coffee by the cup? Awesome. Awesome for me, and awesome for The Marsh who cringes at waste.

so he began to research coffee makers. and research. and research. How much research can one man do on coffee makers? a friggen lot apparently. First it was 'what options do we want when making our coffee?' did we want something that could make a latte? iced tea? iced coffee? Then it became a debate on brands? Did we go with the Keurig or it's single serve brewing rival The Tassimo. The benefit of the tassimo at the time was it was the only coffee maker that had a deal with starbucks. The Marsh knows I like starbucks and thought the starbucks t-disks was a huge plus. (Lucky for us Starbucks figured out where the party was at and now makes k-cups! Word!) and then it was just little stuff he couldn't decide on. Do we get it directly from keurig? or maybe bed, bath, and beyond with a 20% off coupon? This went on for months. The Marsh wasn't in a hurry. he believed coffee was for the weak.

Meanwhile at my house...

please someone bring me just one cup..

Finally black friday 2010 The Marsh agreed to just let me buy the keurig I wanted, the special edition, from sam's club. It still one of my favorite black friday purchases. It currently sits in my favorite corner of the kitchen, right next to a basket filled with k-cups, 2 bottles of jameson whiskey, one bottle of cointreau, a bottle of rasberry syrup, a bottle of white-chocolate syrup, and usually one bottle of tequila. my current bottle is right now MIA from my favorite corner, after accidently being left behind at my momma's.

Wouldn't that be your favorite corner in a kitchen too?

The positive thing about the keurig purchase is that now i can have coffee whenever i want. the negative? I kind of feel responsible for my husband's new found coffee addiction. His "coffee is for the weak" attitude has quickly morphed into a "my whole morning is fucked if I don't get a cup of caffeine into me as soon as humanly possible" attitude. I blame myself. I've even heard him say "The guy who invented the keurig should win the nobel peace prize." I agree. I don't even want to think about what life would be like if we had to wait for a full pot of coffee to brew in the morning.

it would be ugly.

So i'm grateful that there is no waiting. that I have my amazing keurig that gets me my coffee in about 60 seconds. it's the simple things in life, man. I'm telling ya.

Thanks for reading!

Lana

Cheaper than Therapy.

Today I am grateful for Running.

I love running.

I'm not particularly fast. I'm sure my form isn't perfect.

But I love running.

True story.

I used to run when I was in high school. In part because I did enjoy it and in part because if I didn't want to DIE when soccer started in the fall I had to do something all summer to keep in shape. So I ran. and then I went to college, met The Marsh and had babies and somewhere in there stopped running. and at the time I didn't realize how much I missed it. Now I realize how much I really needed it.

I started running again last march. Losing the baby weight from my daughter was a long frustrating road for me, but when I finally managed to lose a good chunk of it I decided I wanted to start running again. I'm so glad I did. For so many reasons.

I just feel better. I enjoy having a healthy activity that I do on a regular basis. After a four mile run I like feeling like i just got a great workout. I like pushing myself to run just a little longer. or just a little faster. Chasing my kids around my yard doesn't seem quite so hard anymore either.

Also..

Cheaper than therapy.

Running is a certain kind of therapy. because I spend most days as a stay-at-home mom to two very busy toddlers I enjoy the solitude of an evening run. no one is pulling on my shirt, yelling in my face, demanding a drink, or needs help reaching a toy. It's just me (or a running buddy in the form of my sister or brother). I put in my headphones and just run. Some running days are heavy thinking days. I think about the children, plans The Marsh and I have for the house, the future, schools, careers. I think about eveything, because nothing is interrupting my string of thoughts. you'd be suprised at how often I am incapable of completing a train of thought. Then again maybe if you have toddlers you understand. Some days I don't think about anything at all. I don't want to think about anything. I just want to run. and listen to bon jovi. So thats what I do. it's very theraputic.

Last summer I decided that I wanted to have some sort of goal. Something to help keep me focused. As I've said before, life is busy. I didn't want to find myself making excuses to not run. to not make time for myself. So one night I asked The Marsh is he thought I was crazy to think I could train for a half marathon in 11 weeks. He was fully supportive, letting me know he believed I could do anything I wanted to.

So I did. 11 weeks of scheduled running. 8 weeks of pushing myself harder and harder. 8 weeks of no junk food or soda. 8 weeks of no alcohol. Right before the race my bad knee (curtesy of an old basketball injury) started to bother me more and more. and then I over compensated and ended up with a hip that was so painful I could barely walk up and down the stairs. I thought about not running the race. The Marsh told me to just try and if I needed to quit then i could. I hated that idea. I didn't put all that time and training into this race to NOT finish. So I sucked it up. Allowed myself to be completely ok with whatever time I ended up with as long as I finished.

after 8 weeks of no alcohol the first thing my brother did was

hand me a bottle of wine.

And I did finish. With a better time than I thought I would too. bonus. It was one of the biggest achievments in my life and I'm so grateful that The Marsh was supportive of all the time I took to train. I'm also grateful that my whole family came out to see me run considering the weather was so awful.

yea. I ran 13.1 miles in the freaking pouring rain. that part wasn't so much fun.

I've spent the last few months taking it easy. trying to let my knee and hip heal. running once, sometimes twice a week. as the weather gets warmer I plan to get out there more again. I even hope to run another half marathon this year.

I hope that this new found love for running will stick with me. that over the next several years i'll get even more comfortable with it and improve in speed. My babes always say that when they get bigger they wanna run with mommy too. I hope so. It will be nice to have my babes as running partners someday.

So today I am grateful for running. to be able to run. its seems so simple to me and yet I know there are people out there who can't do it. So I'm going to keep running until I can't anymore either. Which with any luck, won't be anytime soon.

Oh, and running lets me eat cake for breakfast. so thats a nice plus too.

thanks for reading!

Lana

The Happiest Place On Earth.

Today I am grateful for Disneyworld.

yes, i said it.

I'm grateful for disneyworld.

Wine glasses larger than me? Happiest Place on Earth.

I suppose there are people out there that wouldn't be grateful for disneyworld. But, I guess, there are also people out there who wouldn't climb a float to push Princess Ariel off and jump Prince Eric if given the chance either. But you know who would? This girl. I love me some Prince Eric.

But in all seriousness I love going to Disneyworld. I've been four times now and have plans to go back several more. I love the rides. I love the princesses. (and prince eric.) I love mickey mouse. I love baloo the bear. I love the food. and I love the alcohol. because the happiest place on earth may seem like it's just for kids but I tell you what they all make some mean cocktails. Just ask the crazy lady hanging out by the margarita stand in Epcot. She'll tell you how good they are. She's also my mom. so tell her I said Hi.

She'll probably have my dad with her. tell him Hi too.

My in-laws are DVC or Disney Vacation Club members. This has been really amazing for The Marsh and I because we have been able to take a couple short trips down without having to pay for a hotel. When we were originally planning our honeymoon back in 2007 we wanted to head out west to colorado. Then we found out we were pregnant! Woot! and so we had a very very small ceremony and no honeymoon deciding to later have a big ceremony, reception, and honeymoon. and then we found out we were pregnant again. Woot! There was no way we were giving up the ceremony and reception this time around but decided to scale back our honeymoon plans to try and save a little money. Marshall's parents saved the day by allowing us to use some of their DVC points, so not only did we have some place to stay for free, it was also a beautiful five star resort.

I'm sexy and I know it.

The Marsh and me, September 2008



We only went down for an extended weekend. we had an almost 10 month old at home and I was 6 months pregnant, but we still had so much fun. My favorite memory is hiding behind The Marsh everytime we were standing next to a sign that said "do not ride if you are pregnant" while in line for splash mountain. I'm convinced it's why my daughter is fearless now. a 50 ft plunge while in the womb.

I was also grateful for disneyworld about a year after that. You see I was pregnant on my 20th birthday. I was also pregnant on my 21st birthday. So we decided that something big needed to be done on my 22nd to compensate for the lack of being able to celebrate the previous two. And Epcot? It hosts the most amazing thing every fall called "The Epcot International Food and Wine Festival". Doesn't that just sound awesome? Trust me. It is.

The Marsh and me again

Downtown Disney, September 2009

When we were down there in 2009 we decided the next time we came down we would definately be bringing our children. We also decided that we wanted everyone else to come too. Celebrate life together. at where? Say it with me now, The Happiest Place on Earth! So my parents, most of my siblings, my in-laws, my sister-in-law and my little family all went together this past december. My oldest sister and niece didn't end up getting to make it down this trip, which sucked :0( But I'm convinced that they'll be joining  us on another trip in the future. Its gonna happen. I just know these things.

It truly was an amazing experience. Watching your children taking in all the lights and people and characters. i'll never forget it. Brey meeting mickey mouse. Georgie having lunch with the princesses. The Marsh and I both felt extremely blessed that we were able to make that vacation happen for our children. We feel extremely blessed that we'll be able to do it again.

The Marsh, the babes, and me

Hollywood Studios, December 2011

Thats the wonderful thing about disney. there is always something new to discover. as my kids start getting older and bigger they'll be able to experience new things. ride new rides. watch new shows. We took them during the holidays this time so they've experienced Christmas at disney. but there is still springtime at disney. and halloween. As a family of redheads I can't imagine ever wanting to experience summer at disney, but hey stranger things have happened.(no they haven't, I will never go to Florida in august)

But mostly I'm grateful for Disneyworld because I believe that magical moments happen there. For us, our magical moment was this.

magical if you don't know how hard it was to actually get this freaking thing taken

The Whole Family, December 2011



The one thing I wanted more than anything when it came to this trip was a picture in front of the castle. cheesy, I know. But it's awesome to have a picture of my my husband's family and mine together like this. And as much as I would love to believe it could happen again, I know the chances of that happening aren't super great. My parents enjoyed their trip, but their idea of the Happiest Place on Earth is somewhere with a beach, a drink, and clothing is an option. They won't be heading back to disney in the near future. Right after we got back from this last trip is when we found out that my father-in law was sick. really sick. and while he's been doing really well with chemo and we have high hopes for him to take another trip with our kids, there isn't going to be another opportunity for everyone from both families to be together like this. It was literally a once in a lifetime chance. I'm so grateful we had it when we did. And who knows, maybe it will happen again. I don't really like suprises but for that i just might make an exception.

I know that for some people disneyworld just isnt their thing. I also know that some people don't like to vacation the same place twice. and I get that. but for me we'll keep going back and keep having fun. because it isn't just disneyworld I'm grateful for. But the family memories we make there.

Thanks for reading!

Lana

Peas and Carrots.

Today I am grateful for peas and carrots.


...or rather lemons and blueberries.

because they go together oh so perfectly.

Like peanut butter and jelly



I'm also grateful for:

One: The box of Lemon Supreme cake mix thats been sitting in the back of my pantry for months

and

Two: The ziplock baggy full of extra large blueberries my mother-in-law dropped off.

because yesterday I decided that the two looked lonely and needed to be combined. It was one of the greatest decisions I've ever made in my life.

I originally wanted to make a bundt cake, but after looking all over I discovered that I was in fact delusional and do not own a bundt pan. But i do have a springform pan with a weird bundt like insert so I went with that instead. The end result was not exactly pretty. But it was SO DELICIOUS.

24 hours later less than half remains..

I didn't get a picture of the whole thing. I was too busy eating five two pieces. and it's a very versatile cake. I had a piece last night with vanilla ice cream. it was heavenly. Because it has blueberries I am considering it to also be a breakfast cake, so I had a piece this morning with coffee. it was heavenly as well. The sweetness of the blueberries and glazed icing balanced out the tartness of the lemon just so. mmmm.

I think it may be time for my sixth third piece.

I asked The Marsh tonight "Is it wrong to be grateful for cake?" and he said "cake is never wrong."

actually I don't remember what he said. but thats what I heard.

So because I'm so grateful for this cake I'm hoping you'll all make some for yourself too. try it with coffee. now.

Semi-Homemade Lemon Blueberry Cake Recipe

1 box Lemon Supreme betty crocker cake mix

3 eggs

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 1/3 cup water

2 cups large blueberries

Glaze Icing

1 cup white powdered sugar

3 tbs milk (whole is better but I used 2%)

1 tsp lemon juice or lemon extract

1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Follow directions on cake box. once the batter is all mixed, fold in blueberries and place in greased pan. cook time as directed for your choice of pan on the cake box. I actually had to bake my cake for maybe 3-5 minutes longer than what was directed on the box for a bundt cake pan. remove and let cool in pan for 20 minutes.

To make glaze, place powdered sugar and milk in mixing bowl and turn mixer on to low speed. because my mixing bowl in so deep i had to frequently shut off my mixer and stir with a rubber spatula as well. continue mixing on low speed while adding lemon and vanilla. turn mixer up to medium speed and allow it to mix until it reaches a creamy consistency. 2-4 minutes worked for me.

Take cake out of pan and pour glaze over cake while still warm.

yes, those are chocolate chip muffins behind the cake. i was torn on breakfast.

trust me, you'll be so grateful you made this cake! I think I'll have my next slice with vanilla ice cream AND a cup of coffee.

Thanks for reading!

Lana

Love List.

Today I am grateful for inspiration.

The other day Pioneer Woman blogged a list of things she loved.

and i was inspired to do the same. so in no particular order here are the things I love. and I'm grateful for.

green olives.

red maple leaves.

the breakfast club.

coffee.

my daughter.

the smell of gasoline.

silence.

pride and prejudice.

lime shaving cream.

tuna noodle casserole.

my son.

wine.

strawberry ice cream.

disney world.

pink toe nail polish.

margaritas.

grass thats allowed to grow just a little too long.

sunscreen.

running.

extreme badminton.

The Marsh.

september.

pine-sol.

steve perry.

caramel.

captain james kirk.

my sisters.

my brother.

rain.

my red cr-v.

craziness.

unchained melody.

my momma.

brey's freckles.

stargazer lillies.

my dad.

the american president.

whipped cream.

my niece.

temperence.

polar bears.

glee.

harry potter.

my wedding ring.

the marsh's laugh.

potato salad.

pens with black ink.

dragonflies.

my godfathers.

perfectly folded towels.

kisses.

my girlfriends.

my godmother.

mr. spock.

halloween.

shepherds pie.

hazelnut.

marriage equality.

my house.

egyptian cotton.

hulu.

the smell of books.

the marsh's slim fit jeans.

georgie's curls.

sangria.

that moment right before the sun sets.

gone with the wind.

my grandmama.

black eye liner.

pizza.

splenda.

orange juice.

the smell of covergirl compact powder.

simon and garfunkle.

carol of the bells.

my grammy b.

gain.

target.

butter.

privacy.

diet coke.

date night.

villains.

historical romance novels.

flip flops.

yoga pants.

bedtime stories.

my in-laws.

wendy and warren.

robin hood prince of thieves.

burts bees chapstick.

baby blankets.

epcot's internation food and wine festival.

my nook.

dancing.

angel eyes by the jeff healey band.

Thanks for reading!
Lana

My Personal Squint.

Today I am grateful for my third baby.

The cutest little kitty there ever was

His name is Temperence, after my favorite squint. and if you don't know what any of that means I'm not sure we can still be friends. sorry.

We got Tempe, as we like to call him, in June of 2010. Isn't he adorable? After buying our house I knew I wanted to get a cat and the babes were at an old enough age that I hoped they wouldn't kill terrorize one too much. One of the ladies at work had a mama cat who recently had a litter of little maine coon kittens and I convinced The Marsh to let us get one.

His condition? The cat had to be female......

Yup. and the vet who did Temperence's first visit confirmed that this little cutie was a girl kitten. perfect. We gave her a cute female name and a pink blanket to sleep with and made her a part of the family.

except you probably noticed that the first half of this post I refer to Tempe as "him". you're not crazy.

That's because Temperence IS a male. He went through two more vet appointments with no one ever looking close enough or bothering to question what his actual sex was. And because he has such long hair and I wasn't looking to closely between his legs we all just kept up with the assumption that he was a girl. And then about 7 months after we brought him home I made an appointment to get "her" spade so "she" could go outside without getting pregnant. I got a call from the vets office 20 minutes later and was then informed that "she" was a he and he would be getting neutered instead.

yea.

Well my babes were already attached to his name, so we couldnt change it. and half of the time we call him she. but I love him anyway.

He is so good with my children. I know he doesn't know any different because they have been snuggling with him since he was just a kitten but I've never even seen him bat a paw at one of them. They smoosh him and carry him around and chase him all around the house. I wouldn't go so far as to say he loves it. but he doesn't let it bother him.

Ok so maybe he doesn't look too impressed...

but sharing cheerios helps.

The funniest part about Temperence is that The Marsh has a seriously love/hate relationship with this cat. Why is this funny? Because The Marsh is a cat person. and I'm not. I was always a dog person. The Marsh has never even had a dog. And while I've always had both cats and dogs, I always preferred the latter. But this kitty has become all mine. The Marsh is always grumbling about the cat and how he jumps on the table and the counter and sleeps in the fresh laundry basket. I'm the one trying to move him out of the laundry basket without waking him up. Temperence is very aware of The Marsh's feelings toward him as well. I swear to God Tempe pisses him off on purpose. He's laughing on the inside with every new cuss.

My personal favorite thing about the love/hate Tempe-The Marsh relationship is that Tempe won't come inside when The Marsh calls to him. Now, if The Marsh had his way he would just leave Tempe outside all night anyway. But then I would make him sleep on the couch. So he goes out and hollers and nothing happens. So I walk out and say "Tempe, come on, inside." Temperence, who has been hiding right underneath the stairs and deliberately ignoring The Marsh immediately jumps up and comes inside. It cracks me up.

exchange this chick out for The Marsh and this is them.

Temperence is my family's first pet so that makes him extra special. He always wants to snuggle with me and greets me when I come home. He's basically a dog in a cat's body. And Today I am grateful for him because he stopped to give me a kiss before running outside to play. Sometimes thats more than I get from my real children. Oh and that adorable little baby kitty?

I'm just fluffy..thats it...

He's not quite so little anymore. I'm going to go now, before I turn into a crazy cat lady.

Thanks for reading!

Lana

Just Breathe.

Today I am grateful for patience.

kind of.

Today was one of those days. Not a bad day really. just long.

Between laundry and dishes and picking up the house every other second was filled with my children trying to piss the other one off. They're 4 and 3. This is normal. They're each other's best friend and worst enemy all rolled up into two tiny little cute red headed packages.

It's adorable. Most days.

But today it was just exhausting. My daughter kept stealing all of my son's toys. Everytime he picked up a new toy there she was snatching it away yelling "I want to play with that!" and getting super pissed when he said no. Of course, he didn't just take it from her. He generally punched her or pushed her or did whatever it took to get the message across. "Leave me alone". Which made her yell. and made him yell. and then made Mama yell.

and around and around we went. all. day. long.

and I kept telling myself  "Just Breathe."

Things could be so much worse.

So I did my best to be patient. as patient as I ever get. and prevented them from killing or seriously wounding one another until my mom got here to take my beautiful children to her house for the night. YAY MOM!

So today I'm grateful that my biggest problem is having two screaming children. and I'm grateful that I have a small amount of patience that allows me to handle it without going fucking crazy. Lets hope it's enough to last over the next 20 years.

Thanks for reading!
Lana

Kris and Chris.

Today I am grateful for two very beautiful ladies.

Kristy and Christine.

Weekend visit 2006

I met these two girlies when I was 17 and moved to the big city to go to college.

I had spoken to Kristy before getting there. Kristy and I have a super funny story about meeting. You see Kristy actually grew up about 20 minutes down the road from me, but she went to a different school so I had never met her. My mom and Kristy's dad were both in the same place at the same time and my mom overheard him discussing where his daughter was going to college in the fall. It just so happened to be the same school that I was headed off to. So my mom gave her dad my number for Kristy to call me. You know, so that we could get to know at least one person before headed off a couple states away from home. Kristy was bribed with a shopping trip by her mom super excited to get to know me and called me up. We talked for hours. She found me about 15 minutes after I showed up on campus and we've been friends ever since. Very very good friends.

I can't actually place the first time I met Christine. We were all in the same science classes, I think Kristy may have even had another class with her as well. but the three of us all had biology and chemistry together. Christine commuted to our school because she lived close enough to do so and we all kind of fell in together. I loved Christine immediately. She is one of the funniest people I have ever met. not to mention one of the sweetest. She is so nice even random strangers trust her with their children. It's true. One day when we were waiting in line for a ride at the fair, a man walked up to Christine and asked if it was ok for his daughter to ride with her because she was young and a little scared. Her amazingness just radiates off of her. Her Harvard sweatshirt and cross necklace probably didn't hurt either. (and no we didn't go to Harvard.)

We were only all together for the one year. but it is still one of my favorite years. if only because I got these two out of it. We had soo much fun.

This is our "sexy" pose

"Everyone need to be on top of Alana while she's on the phone."

"It's a rule."

Obviously we made the most out of our time together. But the thing that amazes me is that almost 7 years later we're still wonderful friends. I heard growing up that the friends you make in high school are just that, but the friends you make in college are friends for life. and while I do have a couple friends from high school I still talk to, only one from then compares to the friendship I have with these two ladies. And that would be my best friend from high school, Ashley. Sometimes she joins in with the Kris and Chris craziness.

Here we are in May 2009 celebrating Kristy and Christine's college graduation

Even though we don't live in the same state I know these ladies will always be here for me. And I'll always be there for them. I would drop eveything I was doing and hop in my car for the 3 and a half hour drive it would take to get to either one of them if they needed me to. They've certainly been there for me along the way.

October 2006

I have so many special pictures of the three of us. unfortunately half of them are still on my other lap top so I can't post them here now. but i cherish all of them. and plan to print them all out to hang in a special place when I finally start hanging pictures up in my house. they are beautiful reminders to me of how they have been with my me through all of my big life moments.

The above picture is when they came to visit me at my 1st apartment that I shared with The Marsh.

I have a picture with them from the day before I found out I was pregnant with my son

The three of us at my baby shower.

My Wedding.

This one of my favorite pictures of all time.

Their college graduation.

I look foward to builiding our collection with pictures from the special moments they'll be having in the future. Kristy's nursing school graduation, their engagements, weddings, and baby showers. I have no doubt whatsoever in my mind that the three of us will always be there for each other. Not everyday, but when it counts.

Of course Miss Kristy doesn't have a choice now. She is my children's Godmother. So she's stuck with me for life :0) I knew that if something ever happened to me that she would be the person who could tell my children stories about me and who I was. She'll make sure my daughter knows how to pluck her eyebrows and everything she needs to know about boys. She'll make sure my son knows how exactly he changed my life. ..but because I don't plan on going anywhere anytime soon, whenever she gets the urge to come visit her Godchildren she'll have to sit through coffee and gossip with me.

Summer 2009

Miss Christine or rather DR. Christine (because this fabulous girl recently got her doctorate in physical therapy) always finds a way to let me know she is thinking of me as well. When she got her job at the hospital after graduating she called to let me know. And I am so proud of her. And today in the mail I got the sweetest Valentine's Day package from her. Little stuffed bumble bee pouches that she had stuffed with candies for me my children and stickers and the cutest little hampster beanie baby ball. It also had a beautiful willow tree figurine to add to my collection. It was so thoughtful of her to take time out of her busy schedule to send this up to myself and my family just so that we would know she is thinking of us. She's amazing.

I'm going to be stealing that pink hampster from my children

They are amazing. And I am so grateful everyday for their friendship. It means more to me than they'll ever know.

Thanks for reading!

Lana