At our house we cheer with this guy:
Kind of a weird lookin’ thing, I know.
He’s WU Shock. As in Wichita State University Shockers. As in shocks of wheat. Are you following?
We are pretty big fans of Shocker basketball around here. In the good times and bad. And right now it’s a GREAT time! The Shockers play Alabama tonight in the NIT Championship game. Exciting stuff.
I’ve been slowly but surely getting the kitchen and dining room the way I want. I tried not to go out and buy a bunch of new stuff. I got a few things for my birthday and I found a few things hidden away in other rooms, but I finally feel like I’m getting somewhere with this.
I made the chalkboard (with a little help from Jeremy). I bought the frame at Michael’s for 50% off plus I had a 25% coupon for any frame. So I got a $40 frame for $15. Then I had Jeremy cut a piece of plywood and I painted it with chalkboard paint. Then he figured out a way to secure the wood to the frame. What a great guy!!
The bird plate and small bowl with birds were both birthday gifts. I drug the crock out from the bottom shelf of my cookbook shelf and the tall urn was in the living room with lighted branches from Christmas.
I traded out my old heavy dark green canisters for these penny jars. Now I’ll always know if we are out of flour or sugar! The basket is one I had in my basement and after looking at a Pottery Barn catalog where I saw a similar one for sale, I brought mine out of hiding, added some moss and eggs, which I bought for half-price at the new JoAnn Fabric store (it’s a pretty awesome place!)
I just happened to see these cute salt and pepper shakers when I was out looking for a wedding gift. I couldn’t resist.
And you’ve seen this before. I changed a couple of things around since the first picture, adding a glass pitcher and tall pedestal plate.
This was another birthday gift. My mom had a mini chocolate tart in it for my birthday treat. Yum!
So there you have it. Two rooms new to me.
On the menu:
Walking Tacos, Cake Balls and Sugar Cookies. More about that later…
Today we celebrated the birthdays of Nate and Delaney. His was last Friday. Hers is this Friday. So we did a combined party for the two of them. Don’t tell Miss Delaney, though, because she was convinced it was HER birthday party!
So, back to the menu. We had Walking Tacos. And when I tell you what they are, you’re going to be so mad you didn’t think of doing that yourself! Or maybe you did think of that yourself, and I’m copying you. Either way, they were a hit!
Start with a bag of chips. We used Doritos and Fritos. Open the bag and break up the chips, just a bit. Then fill the bag with all the fixins’ for tacos…meat, cheese, lettuce, onions, salsa and (if you must) tomatoes. Then you eat them out of the bag. No need for plates. You can eat them standing up. Or sitting on the couch. Such an easy way to feed a crowd!
And for dessert (the real reason people come to a kid’s birthday party), I made cake balls and sugar cookies.
Have you ever had cake balls? They are apparently all the rage. And pretty simple to make. Start with a boxed cake mix, any flavor. I made white. Bake it as directed in a 13 X 9. Let cool completely. I covered mine with a tea towel and left it until the next morning.
Then crumble the cake in a large bowl. I used 2 forks to get it nice and finely crumbled. Then add just less than a can of store bought frosting. Again, I used white. Mix together until the frosting and cake become one.
Use a small cookie scoop (or your hands…unless you have issues with getting your hands gooey) and scoop, or roll and place onto waxed paper lined cookie sheets. Pop in the freezer for about an hour.
Most people dip the cake balls in candy melts or almond bark. I chose to drizzle instead. And that’s how you make cake balls. Now back to the party.
The birthday boy…sitting with his home health nurse, Melissa.
Dear Melissa,
Please don’t hate me for posting your picture. You look great and you’re a huge part of Nate’s life and our lives! Thanks for coming and bringing your awesome family!!!
And the birthday girl.
When she opened her card and saw the money, she said, “Money! I’m going to save it.” and then she set it on the floor beside her.
Save it? Whose kid is she?
For the past several days, in anticipation of her birthday, Delaney has been saying, “For my birthday, I want clothes, shoes and Barbies.” Now THAT’S my girl!
Nate really just loved having family come visit at his house. But he also liked his birthday balloon.
After one of many outfit changes, Delaney was ready to try out her new roller skates. I think her expression says it all!
Today is Nate’s birthday. So far we’ve spent the day giving Nate a much needed haircut and going to the doctor for a hospital discharge follow-up. Not an exciting day, but not to worry…we’re having a family party on Sunday.
Here are some birthday pictures…
Getting ready for a haircut! We’ve been taking him to a barbershop around the corner. It was so convenient. But she closed up shop and Nate’s ‘do has paid the price! Now we are resorting to a DIY haircut at home.
Dad did an alright job!!
Happy birthday, to our favorite boy!
Just as we got one kiddo home, we sent two more away for the week.
Bri and Allison headed to Chicago for a mission trip with the church youth group. So it’s been pretty quiet around here. I’ve been super lazy, which has been wonderful. And it is just giving me a taste of what’s to come in about 9 more weeks!!
