Thought for the Day: Read, Chew, and then Digest for Awhile!

Recently, I received an email from a neighborhood friend of mine. The email itself was helpful for what I was wanting to know at the time but it was the slogan or tag line at the end of her email that spoke volumes to me. It really summed up my past year and what I had been experiencing. But it also put into perspective for me that I might not be alone and that I too need to reach out from time to time from under my little rock that I have been hiding under and lend a listening ear at times too. I might just learn something from other people's journeys! So read, chew, and digest for awhile!

"Attitude is everything. Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle. Live simply, Love generously, Care deeply, Speak kindly, and Pray Continually. Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass... It's about learning to dance in the rain."

So true! So true! Thanks Julie U.!

A little piece of home

Martin and I started dating our senior year of college and I always thought it was ironic that he came 800 miles from home to meet the girl of his dreams his future wife. The space between him and home (being Fairfield, CT) never really seem to bother him. I think he often kept his homesickness to himself.  He also always blamed it on all the snow that they got during the winter.  Nevertheless, it bothered me more often than it did him, especially when Jack Jack and P were born. I hate it even more now that the kids are growing up faster than ever and Grandma is unable to see such growth on a day to day basis or even a month to month basis. So when we get the chance to hightail it north we do!

And it is on these special visits I make it point to take note of recipes from home. One of Grandma's recipes in particular that is a huge hit around the Harper household is stuffed artichokes. Yeah artichokes, you know those green spiky things that look more like a weapon than a vegetable. Those vegetables that no one really knows exactly what to do with. Well Grandma has the answer and Jack Jack loves it! The recipe actually was Martin's Grandma Longbricco's recipe (I could be wrong but was a Hungarian recipe). It has different variations but our favorite is stuffing them with bread crumbs, cheese, and ground sausage. It is a meal in itself and Jack Jack alone can eat two! Jack Jack also has Daddy tell him of a story from his childhood of how Aunt Stacey (Martin's sister) squished his artichoke out of spite and meanness. He was then given another and she did the same thing to the second one. (I think Daddy just tells Jack Jack this story to teach him a lesson on being nice to his little sister!)

So if you are curious, here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
fresh artichokes (one for each person depending on their size)
ground sausage (you can use lean/turkey sausage to make it healthier)
Italian bread crumbs
mozzarella cheese
seasonings: garlic powder, salt and pepper
olive oil

Preparations:
*rinse and cut the stem and the tip off the artichoke
*fan out the artichokes leaves
*brown sausage in a pan and drain grease
*mix sausage, bread crumbs, cheese, and seasoning in a bowl
*stuff mixture in between fanned out leaves (trying to get it evenly around the artichoke)
*put an inch of water in a deep sauce pan
*put artichokes in the saucepan and drizzle olive oil over artichokes
*bring water to a bowl and then cover
*steam artichokes until you can pull off a leaf easily

And the key to eating them is turning the leaf side down and scrap with your bottom teeth.

But on days like these...

Okay so as you get older you don't need me as much and more often than not I have a really hard time with this.

You no longer seem to need me to tie your shoes, give you a bath, pick out your clothes, get you dressed, or help you brush your teeth.
You no longer seem to need me to make you something to drink or fix you a snack.
You no longer seem to need me to turn on the tv for you and find your favorite cartoon or get you set up on the computer for your favorite games.

But it is on days like this that you need me.
You need me to make you feel better again.
You need me to help you get into your pajamas and put a cold compress on your burning head.
You need me to get you a glass of Sprite and a popsicle to cool your throat.
You need me to cover you up with all your favorite blankets, to fetch Froggy, and to play your favorite movie.

And you need me to just lay beside you, to comfort you, to tell you that you will feel better soon and that I LOVE YOU WITH EVERY HEARTBEAT!

It's here!

"Spring has sprung!"
"Spring forward!"
"Put a little spring in your step!"
"I feel like spring cleaning!" (no not really but I have heard this one a lot among neighbors!)
"Spring is in the air!"
"I've got spring fever!" (I have heard this one a lot at work!)

Any way you want to say it, Spring is here! Okay so maybe I am a couple of weeks early but the Harper's can't help it. We have got Spring Fever bad! With the warm weather, comes a big heaping spoonful of lack motivation and concentration. All we want to do is be outside. Forget homework and schoolwork. All we want to do is play! We have camping, bike rides, gardening, yard work, adventures with friends, happy hour (okay this is mommy's), cookouts, and relaxing in the sun on the brain. This is going to be the longest 2 1/2 months of school/work ever! Oh somebody please spring us forward!

Signs of Spring!

Strolling with daddy through Harbison National Forest

Skipping rocks



Where did mine go?



Bloomed early and with a lot more  pink blooms

The pears trees in our backyard

Tuesdays with the Harpers

So this is how we have been spending our Tuesday afternoons lately...... P has been enjoying some dance time and moves with Miss Abigail, and Jackson is learning how to play the guitar like his daddy with Mr. Jeremy. So far, P has learned how to tap and shake her booty to the "Itsy Bitsy Spider" (and I must say she gets all her moves from her mommy) and Jack Jack has quickly picked up "Rain Rain Go Away" (next stop Kiss' "Rock-n-Roll All Night").

Dancin'

Jammin'

Truce

Okay last week Martin and I both had had it! Enough is enough! (Thanks to the discovery of a couple of pictures!) We have been on a downward spiral with our weight or is it an upward spiral because the scale isn't going down but up!  We have both been feeling too large in the barge and tired of not fitting into our clothes. So we are both back on the horse and doing Weight Watchers for the 500th time. Misery and diets love company. We also do a lot better if we are both dieting and miserable together! So it is a truce with each other and ourselves! (These are the before pics!)

This is what did it for him.......

And this is what did it for me........

Wow....God help us!!!

Yellow and Blue

We all know yellow and blue make green but in this case we are talking about my butt after sitting for four plus hours at Jackson's Boy Scout Yellow and Blue Banquet. Sure it was a memorable and honorable occasion but god was it long.  And needless to say we were not prepared. But he was proud and happy that he received his Tiger Badge and got to spend time with his fellow den scouts. Let's just say next year, mommy will be bringing a book bag of goodies for us to entertain ourselves with!