Bad tempered sweets?

I don't know where hubby got this but when he came home today he gave this to son #2. Well...he immediately brought it to me and said "Daddy says this is for you" Har har har!

Oh...so you think this is funny, eh? Well...I said to son #2 "Why do you think mommy has a bad temper, huh?" He had no comment. EXACTLY!!

I loOOooove a bargooon!!

My morning started out ugly but ended oh so sweet! If I haven't mentioned before I will tell everyone now that I LOVE A BARGOOOON!! Now this morning I did not have any intentions of buying anything for myself. I swear I didn't...really. I had some errands to run in the mall and then I planned to come home and clean. However, my friend mentioned that she wanted to check out some boots that she saw on sale so off we went to the shoe store.

Well...I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the sign that said 50% off sale items. I had to look twice when I saw these funky sneakers for only $5! $5!! You can't go wrong for $5. Even if I only wear them once or twice I already got my money's worth, right? I was so excited! So my friend got her boots and I got my shoes and off we went back to the car...or so I thought.

Let's just stop and look in Aeropostale. Ok...my magic number in that store is $10. I won't buy anything more than $10 from that store. Well...imagine my surprise when I saw flip flops on the counter for $0.99! In my size! I bought two pairs. Did I need them? No...but $0.99! I'll need some sooner or later...

So I'm skipping out of the mall with three pairs of summer shoes for only $7.50! That's tax included!

Goodnight

So hubby has been gone three days now and I've been able to get all three kids in bed by 10:00pm every night. Some may say it's a little late but they are night owls and usually won't go down any earlier. My daughter used to stay up until 11:30pm every night and I would have to drag her out of bed at 8am every morning for school.

I might have figured out the secret. Bring my laptop up to bed and surf and watch tv while they fall asleep. They like to have someone upstairs to keep them company so I guess I've found a compromise.

The funny thing is that when my husband is home we can't seem to even make it upstairs until 9:30 or later and then they still need to take a bath and brush their teeth. You would think that with two extra hands we would be able to do things twice as fast but that just isn't the case.

Really the only reason why we are upstairs so "early" is that it makes me nervous to work downstairs by myself when my husband isn't home. I won't even go back downstairs again until morning...and I let the kids sleep in my bed. Safety in numbers, I guess. I'm hoping though that we are starting a good habit and getting to bed earlier. It's good for them and even better for me.

Bitten by the cold and flu bug

Darn, sickness is in the house AGAIN and hubby has disappeared for four days! A bad cough has been making its rounds among our family. I, myself, feel a bit achy but I'm hoping that Cold F/X and expired prenatal vitamins will keep whatever it is at bay. Hubby has gone north for business this week, lucky him, so I will be home alone to nurse these sick pups back to health.

I CANNOT GET SICK. I have to keep saying that to myself because who will take care of me if I'm knocked down with something? The kids still have to be fed...homework has to get done...laundry need to be washed...doesn't it just figures that the kids get sick when hubby goes away?

Cunning & Crafty - Cutest buttons ever!!

I was visiting my favourite website Etsy for all things homemade and I found the cutest button/magnets ever!

Cunning & Crafty has paired these cute handcrafted buttons together with funny titles like "hearts and farts" and "veg out". I really love her "No peanuts please" button since son #2 has peanut allergies. This is a great button for when he goes to a party or friends house as a reminder that he's allergic to peanuts. This is one that I will definitely be ordering.


Now you really have to see them to understand what I'm talking about and since they are handcrafted they are one of a kind buttons. I've added a banner on my sidebar since I'm loving her stuff so much!

Screamin' Saturday

It was one hell of a Saturday today. I stayed up last night making my niece's birthday cake. Check out Fork in Food to see the results. Well...I have to admit...I was done before midnight but ended up stuffing my face and chatting with a friend on the phone until 1:00am. Of course stuffing my face resulted in a sugar rush which resulted in insomnia. Then my son crawled into bed with hubby, me, and my daughter (OK...so she's 5 and she still sleeps with us...kill me now) complaining that his knee was hurting. I think it's growing pains. Anyhow, going on five hours of sleep we had to get up early and get to the birthday party.

Half an hour of listening to the kids whining and fighting all the way downtown, lack of sleep and no caffeine really put me on edge. By the time we got to the rock climbing gym I was snapping at everyone. I managed to pull myself together by the time everyone else arrived and was able to be sociable while screaming at my kids to stop fooling around and listen to their instructor.

Then it was off to McD's for lunch. I should have ordered my coffee then but I didn't...I was starting to get tired and sleepy. Lunch seemed long...and of course, since the kids are picky eaters, their orders got mixed up and the other kids ended up eating my kids' burgers. Now, they had to wait while they re-made their burgers. McD's on a Saturday is crazy!! And at lunch time it's even crazier! In the end, I'm just happy the cake was a hit.

The ride home was quieter but there's still the teasing and whining. By the time we got home I could barely keep my eyes open...walked in the door and straight to bed. I slept three hours and then it was time for dinner with the in-laws.

I won't bore everyone with the rest but there was alot more stress and screaming before everyone got to bed. Let's just say it was hair cutting night after dinner...hope I will get to bed at a decent hour...the three hour nap probably won't help.

Peanut Allergy Cure?

I was watching the evening news and there was a segment about a peanut allergy cure. Could this be true! A medical breakthrough? That would be amazing. My second son has alot of food allergies and peanuts are one of them. It's pretty stressful worrying about everything that enters his mouth. Of course when he is at home I can control what he eats but it's at school or when we dine out at restaurants that always has me a bit on edge. I never know if something has contaminated his food. I always carry an epipen just in case but it's still a scary thought. Thank goodness I've never had to use it but there have been several close calls over the years.

I feel sorry for him because he always misses out on all the yummy desserts and chocolate. He doesn't even get to experience the childhood favourite peanut butter and jelly sandwich. He always cries "Not fair!" And it isn't!

I don't know why this generation's children are so allergic to peanuts. 1 out of 4 of my friends/family's kids are allergic to peanuts or nuts. Many of them suffer from eczema, asthma and other allergies. They all go hand in hand. It makes me wonder what we are doing in our environment that is causing all these allergies. I really hope that we can figure this thing out sooner rather than later.

Backseat Drivers

I don't know why my kids think they are more qualified to drive my van than me. They are only 9, 8, and 5 but they think they know everything! As soon as I start the car they are giving me instructions.

Can you turn on the music? I don't like that song. Can you change it? That's before I even start moving. As I back it out of the garage it's "Wait I don't have my seatbelt on yet!" Well...don't worry I'm not on the road yet. Then it's...why aren't you going yet? "I have to wait for all the cars to go by." Get to the intersection it's "Go now...there's no more cars!" Yeah...not on this side but what about the other cars coming the other way. Why are you going so slow? Well I have to go with the flow? Do you want me to crash into the car two feet in front? The people are going faster than us. Then get out and WALK!

Seriously...those five minutes driving to school are literally the most stressful of the entire day. I might have to invest in a pair of earplugs. If they aren't giving me directions they are fighting and killing each other in the back. I can't wait for spring when we can start walking again.

I love Hello Kitty!!

I know I've mentioned before that I am a sucker for anything free. Well...I am a bigger sucker for anything free and cute! McDonalds this week has Sanrio watches which include Hello Kitty. Did I mention that I love Hello Kitty? So...now I'm a HUGE sucker for anything free, cute and Hello Kitty.

My cousin called me today to chat and she mentioned that she was collecting the Hello Kitty watches at McDonalds. What?!!! How come I didn't know! Well I immediately collected the children, shoved them out the door, and told them they HAD to have Happy Meals AND mommy gets to keep the toy otherwise they can have chicken at home. Hahaha! You think I'm joking? I even brought along an old Happy Meal toy to trade.

Well...I took them to the mall because I knew that there are two McDonalds restaurants there...doubling my chances that I would get 4 different watches. So the first one had two different ones so we quickly ate and then I hustled them into the mall to check out the other McD's. I was jumping for joy when they had two different watches. Then I called my cousin and asked her which ones she was missing and ended up buying them for her too. I know we are crazy but there is just something about Hello Kitty that is so irresistible!

Now I just hope I will be able to sleep tonight...I am still missing four of the eight watches....

Toils of a PTA Treasurer

It's that time of the month again. As treasurer of the PTA I have the privilege of counting each month's pizza money. Pizza Day is what the kids look forward to once a month...a hot lunch at school. It's also the day that parents look forward to since they don't have to think about what to make for tomorrow's lunch.

I, on the other hand, dread Pizza Day...why? Because it is my job to count almost $1,300 in toonies, loonies, quarters, dimes, nickels and even pennies. In addition, it has to be rolled with the account number printed on them. It's very time consuming and it even takes the bank teller almost 10 min. to count.

Why do I do it? Guilt! I feel bad if I don't. I don't want to be known as the lazy, uninvolved parent who doesn't care what happens in their kids' school. Although it wouldn't be hard to blend into the crowd of parents who really don't care to volunteer or take part in their kids' school.

Simply B, Simply Me

I won! I won! I can't believe that I actually won something for being keen this time. I don't even remember the last time I won anything! Can't wait to see what she sends me! I'll post it here as soon as I recieve it.

Here's my poem that I wrote for the give-away.

Simply b, Simply me.
I love to live for all to see.
It’s not the crafty part of me
That loves to blog and feels so free.
Giving great things may just be
The greatest, generous part of me.

Not a bad poem, right? Well...hopefully I will feel some love for my give-away.

Sharing the love GIVE-AWAY

I've been stalking several blogs lately and one of my favourites is Simply B, Simply me. http://simply-b.blogspot.com/ She has the best give-aways! She has a new one right now that is very intriguing and one of the rules is that I must also offer the same to my readers. Luckily, I am crafty and creative so it won't be hard to come up with some prizes.

Here are the rules....

1. You can't have won anything from me at any point.
2. Your willingness to pass on the love must glow in the dark. That part is so easy since computer screens do just that in the middle of the night when people are blog reading due to lack of shut eye. So, that means you have to be willing to do the exact same thing! Blog it baby!
3. You have got to leave a comment on this post. Actually, I'm going to make it more interesting, since we are already going to be breaking all sorts of rules here. I want you to write a little poem in my comments. Poems don't have to rhyme remember, but they do have to have flow and rhythm. So bedazzle me people! And if there is no poem your comment (ie entry) doesn't count. I'll have no breaking of my rules here peeps (have you noticed my do as I say, not as I do moment here?)
4. I will get this done within the year 2009 which means as long as you get it before you kiss someone at midnight on the 31st of December I have done it well. Of course the little procrastinator that lives in my head most likely will not allow for that, so it may be sooner.
5. This is going to be a blissful surprise. You have no idea what my little gift to you is going to be until you get it. I reserve the right to make something totally awesome of course, and if you don't like it I promise to take no offense and give you 100% permission to white elephant it at your next work Christmas party.
6. Now this rule rocks as far as I'm concerned. It should be number one really. I RESERVE THE RIGHT TO DO SOMETHING EXTREMELY STRANGE.

Now here are the boring rules you'll need to post on your own blog to qualify for my fabulousness being sent to you:Are you one of the Lucky 5? Lucky you!

The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me! My choice. For you. This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:

1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make! (Though I hope you will!)
2. What I create will be just for you.
3. It'll be done this year {might be a little while}
4. You get no clue what it's going to be. It may be a story. It may be poetry or maybe even some creation I haven't even invented yet. I may draw or paint something. I may bake you something and mail it to you. Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!
5. I reserve the right to do something extremely strange.

The catch? Oh, the catch is that you must repost this on your blog and offer to do the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog. The first 5 people to do so and leave a comment telling me they did this will win a FAB-U-LOUS homemade gift by me!

PS Please email mama@screaminmama.com with your address so I can send it off to you!

Blowing Bubbles 101

I never imagined how difficult it would be to teach someone how to blow a bubble gum bubble. I don't even remember how I learned myself but it seems easy enough.

Step 1. Chew a couple pieces of gum until there is no more flavour.
Step 2. Using your tongue and teeth stretch out the gum.
Step 3. Pull out your tongue away from the gum and blow.

Simple right? Wrong. My oldest son, Andrew, cannot get the technique down and either blows that huge wad right across the room or makes the weirdest noises as he tries to force a bubble out. It kills him that his younger brother can do it no problems.

I'm not a patient person to begin with but my goodness if this does not drive me bonkers. I have demonstrated the technique over 20 times and his whining and frustrated moaning and groaning kills me. Perhaps it's one of those things like whistling...either you can or you can't. My husband is 45 and he doesn't know how to blow bubbles either.

The Great F*U*N*K Giveaway

I found this great giveaway last night. It's a beautiful handmade tote. All you need to do is follow her blog, blog about it and tell her what's in your purse and you can get a couple of entries to win. I'm keeping my fingers crossed since it's so pretty and I've never won anything before. I'm hoping "The Secret" will help me win this bag. Otherwise, hopefully one of my readers will be the lucky one. Just press on the button at the side of this blog and you can enter too! Good luck! Here's the link:

http://simply-b.blogspot.com/2009/02/great-funk-giveaway.html

I am unofficially the youngest member of the Scarborough Town Centre Mall Walkers. Last week I started mall walking with my 71 year old friend. I thought I might as well try to get active since summer is just around the corner and pool season is just a couple months away.

We are aiming to walk twice a week. Surprisingly I found it hard to keep up with my friend. She usually walks on her treadmill at home but finds it boring. Me...I just like to walk around the grocery store filling my cart with junk...that's my idea of excercise. Also I have a bad hip so it often gets sore if I do too much walking and I'm not making that up...

I was encouraged to see so many seniors out for a morning stroll. I said if they can do it then I can too. In fact some of them walk at such a brisk pace that it puts me to shame. It's quite motivating to see them so eager and I am encouraged when I'm running out of steam. Hey I'm a kid compared to some of these people and it's embarrassing to see them out walk me!

I'm almost 40 years old and I still need a bib when I eat. Why?!!! Why can't I eat and not drop...drip...food all over me when I eat! Maybe that's why my favourite colour is black. While some folks may argue with me that black isn't a colour...I can't wear anything else. You might see different shades of black on my shirt depending on what has fallen out of my mouth or off my spoon but it's not as obvious.

Perhaps I need to take a minute and really enjoy what I'm eating instead of shoving it quickly into my mouth while serving food, passing napkins, pouring milk, wiping spills, reprimanding children, and watching tv. Whew! What did I eat for dinner again?

I guess that's really my problem. I try to do too much at the same time.

I'm starting this new blog to accompany my other blog on www.screaminmama.com and if you are interested in reading more about my adventures or should I say misadventures please visit my site. I will be working on both from now on...

I love cake decorating and I'm always keen to try new ideas. My friend asked me to decorate a cake for her daughter's birthday and whether or not I could do some kind of doggie theme. I searched the internet for some ideas and then used my own tools to create the most adorable cupcakes ever! Everyone raved about them and I even did them again for my nephew's birthday. Now I am totally in love with cupcakes. I can't get enough of them and can't stop searching for new ideas. My neice's birthday is coming up next weekend so I'll have an opportunity to do something new. She loves my barbie cakes so maybe I'll try the mini version. I'll post pictures as soon as her party is over.

Ok I have to admit that I am totally addicted to Facebook. I NEED to check it hourly if I'm home. I feel withdrawl if I don't check it more than 10 times a day. It's sort of like a lifeline to the outside world. It helps me keep in touch with all my friends and family and reconnect with old friends.

I'm not sure I understand how some people can have over 300 friends on their Facebook though! Do you really have that many friends or are they just acquaintances or goodness gracious only someone that you've just met one time. That scares me because Facebook is such a personal look at your life. People are so open and love to share on Facebook and that's perhaps what makes Facebook so intriguing. It's a window into other people's lives.

Recently there was a note that was send where we could fill out of 25 random things about ourselves. It really made me think about me, my personality, and any oddity that I might have. Unfortunately I'm not a freak so my list was pretty boring. I still love reading those lists and get a kick out of everyone's strange habits or past indiscretions. I guess these kinds of lists are what makes Facebook so addictive. And of course FB also has games and other applications that keep us all from our work, play and sleep.