Grocery store frosting

Want the recipe for the pink fluff on my cupcakes? This has been by far the best frosting recipe I have ever found, it taste just like that divine frosting that comes on the all of the cakes you buy at the grocery store, plus, this frosting decorates and spreads really well.

1 cup of shortening

1/2 cup of butter

1 1/2 TBS vanilla extract

2 LBS of confectioners' sugar

1/8 tsp salt

4 TBS water

In a heavy duty mixer combine butter, shortening, vanilla and water. Add the sugar and salt, beat until well mixed. Add a tablespoon or more of water if needed. Turn mixer to highest speed and let beat for 15 minutes. The longer you beat this frosting the fluffier it will be! :)

Never underestimate the power of a cupcake

Today has turned out to be one of those days...you know the ones I'm talking about, where you wake up with all these goals you are going to meet and important tasks you need to accomplish, but then one after the other things fall through, and at the end of the day your left with wasted time and effort and nothing to show for it.

Isabella kept waking up every 30 minutes last night because she was dropping her pacifier...finally at about 6 am I rigged up a short piece of ribbon, so as not to get wrapped around her neck, and a safety pin and pinned it to her shirt, but by that time, she was wide awake and ready to roll. Sigh. An officer made me feel stupid, I got my stroller stuck in a door at an office building, and I hit my own trash can backing out of my driveway, the icing on the cupcake though was when my husband e-mailed me...and told he was just feeling so tired, and was going to go take a nap. I dream of naps! The only naps I get are Isabella's and those include laundry, a shower and going to the bathroom while I have the chance. The anger...the anger I tell ya! I don't think he'll be telling me about his naps in the future. I'll probably feel bad tomorrow...but today, I just feel like one mad momma.

So I plopped Isabella in her high chair with some Cheerios and a sippie cup, and I proceeded to bake my blues away. We started out both as happy as clams. I have my bible study on Tuesday nights with a bunch of other young Military moms from my neighborhood, I look forward to these bible studies, we talk, we compare embarrassing child moments and we take prayer request and read in our bibles. At Tonight's bible study we're having Taco Night, and I'm responsible for dessert, YES! I have an excuse to make cupcakes...I forgot to take into account however, that Isabella is deathly afraid of the mixer. No sooner had I started whipping my frosting than she dissolved into a fit of hysterics. Oh dear.

100 Things

This looked fun, I saw it on A Glance At My World's blog, So I thought I would be a copy-cat :)

1. I don't like old men in little bitty sports cars.
2. I live on an Island
3. I miss Target
4. There are two geckos on my bedroom wall
5. But I never bother them, b/c they eat spiders
6. I have never had spiders in my house
7. I love the ocean, but I am terrified of jelly fish
8. They hurt very badly
9. I have a beautiful 11 month old daughter, Isabella
10. Se lights up my world
11. My husband is floating around in the ocean somewhere
12. I have moved 4 times in 2 years
13. I'm getting used to it
14. I love decorating my house
15. I love baking of any kind
16. My husband doesn't eat a lot of sweets...so I bake in vain
17. I was home schooled, all through high school
18. My husband saw me at WalMart and left a note on my car, and that is how we met.
19. I was stupid, and called a strange boy who left a note on my car and then met him at Starbucks the next day, I'm lucky he wasn't an ax murderer
20. It turned out pretty well though, I think I'm going to keep him :)
21. You never know when you're going to meet your soul mate
22. My sister met her husband at Starbucks too
23. We're a Starbucks family
24. I worked at Starbucks for two years
25. I love Hawaii now
26. I don't think I'm ever going to want to leave
27. Skirts are my favorite article of clothing
28. Isabella has a horrid temper
29. She embarrasses me in public
30. I think Time Out is a joke.
31. I was spanked, and my momma loved me, I never talked back to her.
32. I think it may be a southeren thing
33. But it works, you can't spank in public though, or you're considered abusive.
34. I quit college to get married, I'd like to go back
35. All I ever wanted was to be a mommy
36. I played dolls until I was 13
37. I love being a house wife
38. I love cooking for my husband, and I love doing laundry...I'm weird, I know.
39. Getting a pedicure is a treat
40. Because it's frivolous and expensive
41. I love saying the word frivolous
42. My favorite word in the whole world is Smorgasboard but I cannot figure out how to spell it.
43. most military wives are very mean
44. I just found a new church, and I love it so much
45. I'm running out of things to put on here.
46. I LOVE butter
47. I'm addicted to Diet Coke
48. I probably drink 3 a day
49. I have pink Flamingos in my garden, I get made fun of.
50. I love to blog
51. I love to go to thrift stores
52. Sometimes, when I see people throwing away interesting things...I go through their trash, I have found some neat antiques that way, some people just don't know what they're throwing away.
53. I call it dumpster diving
54. a lot of people in my neighborhood think I'm crazy
55. but then they see the inside of my house and then they think I'm cool
56. I try not to judge people
57. but being judgmental is my biggest fault
58. My friend from Japan may be coming to visit!!!!
59. She dumpster dives too
60. her house is awesome
61. I miss my friend :( it's hard to find kindred spirits
62. I'm a very happy person
63. Sometimes I get down, but I can't ever stay that way, I've tried, and it was awful.
64. I adore gardening
65. My mom is eccentric
66. It's hereditary.
67. I'm very much into crafting
68. I plan on opening a little Etsy shop someday soon
69. Isabella is not very cuddly
70. but she gives me the BEST kisses
71. Being a mom is the greatest gift in the world
72. sometimes, I want to give it back
73. Like when she arches her back in the grocery store, and screams.
74. My favorite artist of all times is Monet
75. I have a great family
76. both immediate, and in-law
77. I miss Tyler :(
78. I love shoes
79. I own over 40 pair
80. I will never have enough shoes. Ever
81. Pink is my all time favorite color in the whole wide world!!!!
82. I talk to my mom and my sister every day
83. Isabella's favorite food is french fries
84. Her favorite book is Ten Little Ladybugs
85. I have to hold her down to get her dressed, she likes to crawl away
86. I'm obsessed with anything vintage
87. My favorite antique I have is an old steamer trunk I found at a Yard sale, it's worth a lot of money, I paid 20 bucks for it.
88. I smile a lot
89. I had braces for four years and these little hinges in my jaws
90. I used to resemble a donkey
91. I think pregnant women are beautiful
92. I love being pregnant
93. I don't want another baby until Tyler is out of the Navy
94. I feel self absorbed writing so much about myself
95. this was hard
96. I love donuts...of any kind.
97. I love to read
98. Jane Austin is my favorite
99. I love baubles
100. My favorite era is the 40's

My favorite place to plant a kiss

a little project on the side

Tyler and I got this entertainment center a couple of years ago when we were living in Chicago, I'm surprised it has made it through so many moves, especially one as rough as this Hawaii one! I've been getting tired of the ugly wood veneer but my husband being the oh-so-typical man he is NEVER wants me to paint over anything slightly resembling wood...even veneer. Well, while the wood cat is away, the painting mice will play!

Before


You gotta love all the nice, classy tangles of cords in the back, took me the better part of an evening to fix those.


After.



A few coats of my old faithful, Antique White, and a couple of vintage knobs, and Ta-Da!

Lovey's Daily Fix

Here you go Lovey...during nap time. You're lucky you get a sleepy time one..she's a light sleeper.

Trying out the new seat

I got so tickled today, I recently bought Isabella a new car seat since she's outgrowing her old one, and the instructions might as well be written in French so it's still sitting in my entryway waiting for an evening when I can further study it, I was cleaning house and not paying much attention, but when I turned around, Isabella was trying out her new seat.

At first, she was not so sure






But then, after further investigation...





She decided that it would just have to do.

Insane? no, thankyou, I'm just a mom.

So my morning started off something like this: 2:00 am Isabella woke up, wanted a bottle and would have nothing else ( we're weaning ) Now I'm all for the weaning here...but a single mom has to have her sleep, and at 2:00 am, I'm just not feeling the willpower. I caved, she bottled, we slept. 5:00 am she awakened bright eyed, bushy tailed, ready for her day. I was not. I finally got her to drift off again...30 minutes later we were both jolted awake to the sound of the phone ringing, oops! my friend forgot about the 6 hour time difference, not sure how coherent I was, but she realized her mistake pretty quickly, so my guess is, not very.
8:00 am, resolved to being awake, we both very grumpily ate our breakfast, staring at each other in disgust, I didn't get any slobbery, good morning kisses this morning.

She cried when I held her, she cried when I fed her, she cried when I changed her, she cried when I laid her down for a nap, she cried when I gave her oragel, she cried while I showered, she cried while I used the bathroom, clawing my legs, making things awkward (yes, she follows me to the bathroom, banging her head on the door repeatedly if I dare to close it) She cried, and she cried and she cried, snot running down her face like a mountain stream, face so read and sweaty her hair stuck to her head like a balding man's comb over. We cried, and we cried and we cried.

Finally, I heard it, the sound of heaven opening it's doors...angels were singing, I could hear harps and little birds chirping...she was sniffling! three times, sharp intake of breath, twice, another sharp intake of breath...sniffling once...and just like that, she was done. She looked at me with tears pooling in those big blue eyes, she grinned and then gave me a hug, clinging to me tightly from her high chair.

We napped then, she only slept for an hour, but hey, I'm not complaining, I at least got a shower. The rest of the day was fitful and fractious, she wasn't hungry, but then she was, she wanted to cuddle and then she wanted me to get away, she refused to nap which resulted in arching of the back, kicking of the legs, screaming, little hands swatting my attempts at comfort away, biting of my flesh and pulling of my hair. But miraculously I lived. I lived through this day. I made it. Praise the good Lord on high...it's over.

And now, after stuffing my face with whatever chocolate I had in the house, I am going to bed early.

An apartment complex

This evening Isabella and I went to the little swing set on our block, its something we do most every evening, she loves to swing and feel the wind in her hair and I enjoy just watching her clap her hands with glee every time I give her a good push.
On our walk home I kept hearing tweeting in my driveway, I'm talking lots and lots of tweeting. When I looked up I saw not one, not two, but three birds nests all in this little tree! and one had baby birds with their little beaks wide open, waiting for their momma bird to bring them home something good...I quickly got Isabella out of her stroller so that I could point out the birds nest and the little baby birds and tell her about baby birds and their mommies and how they are just like she and I in that the mommy bird takes care of her babies until the babies leave the nest. I'm not sure how much of it Isabella understood, but she kept looking up at the tree and pointing her little finger and smiling.

We went to church this morning, and well, Isabella was not in the church mood it seems. She started getting a little too chatty with the man behind us and was not too pleased when I made her face the front and sit in the pew, so I had to take her to the cry room where she promptly through a horrendous fit and ran off a mommy and her newborn, and a dad with his little boy. You know it's bad when you run off the dads.

I'm getting resolved to this being alone...I'm setting myself into a little routine and I'm checking off the days on my Calender, I had a nice long chat on the phone tonight with my dear friend from Japan and I've got a lunch date tomorrow with another dear friend I've known since the boot camp days, her husband is also gone for a few months and she is expecting their second baby in weeks! I have plenty to keep me busy. I just keep telling Isabella, only two more pay days, and daddy will be home!

We're home!

Today we went to the Beach. But that blasted Hawaii weather can be so misleading! what started as a beautiful sunny day quickly turned dark and rainy the closer I got to the beach, so we turned around and came home and it immediately became bright and sunny again...oh well.

We're extremely jet lagged, my house is in shambles, there's laundry to be done and dishes to be washed, suitcases still sit on the floor, their contents spilling out all over the place but I just couldn't resist the opportunity to chase the sun today. I've opened up my windows, the warm Hawaii breeze is blowing through the curtains and I can smell the ocean in the air. Laundry can wait...

Just a bit of nonsense

Today has been one of those blissfully boring and uneventful days...what better way to spend one of my last here at home in Tennessee? Isabella's and my visit has been full of love, laughter, delicious food and good sleep. Just the tonic my weary soul needed after those long weeks of going at it alone, now I feel rejuvenated and ready to go at again for a couple of more months! But oh, how I dread that plane flight, we leave Tennessee Thursday afternoon, and get to Hawaii on Thursday morning, or is it afternoon?

Lately I find myself filled with mixed emotions, I'm happy to be going home to my little bungalow in Hawaii, but I'm sad to leave my family. When Isabella and I first got here, she was terrified of my mom and dad, and now? well now she bounces with delight whenever my dad walks into the room, and for Lovie she reaches out those little arms and will always flash her brightest smile :) Being home for this extended amount of time has also given me the opportunity to spend some quality time with Tyler's grandparents and aunt. Going for visits to MamaJo's house has given me great joy! it makes me very happy that Isabella has been able to get to know them. I myself have gotten to know MamaJo really well over the past two months, and even though I knew it before, I know now more than ever that she is a remarkable woman and someone that I greatly admire.

I watched a movie tonight that I absolutely adored, in fact, I think I'll buy it. It's called Feast of Love and it has Morgan Freeman in it, I just love that man! It says romantic comedy on the box, but I would label it as more of a drama. If you like romance with a little bit of tragedy, then this is a must see for you. But I gotta warn you, it's rated R and there are a few part where you may want to cover your eyes. I REALLY dread that plane flight...

Watching my mom and sister scurry around to garden up their porches and yards has given me a tickle in my thumb...I'm dying to go home and play in the dirt now...I have so many plans for my front porch, they include a bench, a large piece of something for a vine to climb, a big pot of pink petunias, and a Hibiscus tree...perhaps maybe a birdhouse... and I think I'll try to grow my own tomatoes in the back yard. Do Tomatoes do very well in Hawaii...does anyone know?

have I mentioned, that I dread that plan flight?

Bliss in a bite

I am proud to say that I have trained Isabella well. Nothing short of the best will satisfy her chocolate craving. I found out a little by accident on Valentines day that she has quite the taste for Godiva chocolate...I turned my head for a second and she nabbed a chocolate out of the box Tyler sent me. She was being quiet, too quiet, and when I saw something bulging in her mouth and brown slobber dripping to the floor I panicked and stuck my finger in there to pry it out ( major no-no I know but it's a mother's instinct to do the finger thing ) The wails of protest I received were deafening, to say the least. So I gave it back to her...hey, 7 month olds need their fix too, right?

Today the whole family met at the mall so that my sister and I could redeem our Gymbucks, afterwards we all enjoyed a truffle or two from the Godiva Chocolatier, including Isabella! I Just love going to the Godiva store... all of that decadent temptation piled up so beautifully before your eyes, just waiting to be chosen by you! I watched as the cashier plucked each one of my choices out of the case and dropped them into that little signature gold bag...for myself, a couple of dark chocolate truffles with a hint of raspberry, and for Isabella, I chose a white chocolate truffle filled with a Vanilla bean ganache.

I think the look on Isabella's face pretty much sums it up, money may not be able to buy you happiness, but it can sure buy you a few minutes of blissful satisfaction.

A request....

A quick note...I would just like to ask if everyone could keep my parents in their thoughts and prayers. While I can't elaborate on the subject I can tell you that they have been going through a tough time the past couple of weeks and it has broken my heart into a million pieces to watch them suffer with their sadness. Sometimes in life things happen that we will never understand, and while we're instructed to lay everything in God's hands...I find that a lot of times, that can be the hardest task of all.

My thanks to you all!

love,
Mary~Catherine


FreeVinatgeImages.com

Ok, so I'm a little late...

I'm almost embarrassed at how behind at my posting I am...I'm just now getting to post about Isabella's first Easter!

She wasn't really that interested in her basket...until I gave her the Godiva Chocolate bunny that her Lovie got for her! I didn't even have to show her what to do, she immediately went for the ears! it only took a few seconds for her to be a chocolate covered Bella, she was all smiles and making slurping noises, I tend to respond that way to Godiva myself.
I want you to know that I did take pictures of this, I promise! but they're on my mom's computer, so on a day when I have time to go through the ordeal of getting them onto mine, I'll post those pictures, but for now you'll just have to admire the bounty of her basket :)

Our Easter Sunday went a little like this, we woke up and rushed around to get ourselves ready for church, not an easy task when there's 7 people in a house with 2 bathrooms. The whole family went to church, where Isabella worked her way down the pew all through services trying out every lap that was willing, she finally landed on mine for the third time, and I finally gave up and took her to the cry room... I think they call it a cry room because by the time the mother gets there with the child, she's ready to cry. After church we all met and had lunch together, then went back to Lovie and Granddaddy's house, opened up our baskets and had an indoor easter egg hunt since it was unseasonably cold outside that day. All in all, it was a great first Easter for Isabella, the only thing that would have made it better of course, is if Tyler could have been here to celebrate with us.

These are a few of her favorite things

In the first picture is a bunch of Isabella's favorite foods...with her first birthday just around the corner, weaning her off the bottle has been a worry of mine...but as it turns out, she's done really well! her very favorite is Earth's Best Apple Blueberry chased with Organic cheerios and a side of slobber.

As far as toys go, her latest toy of choice is a wooden puzzle that her Great Aunt Kristina gave her on our last visit to MamaJo's house...she has played with this puzzle so much that the paint is starting to wear off in places :) Her other favorite is the musical toy that her daddy bought for her before he left on deployment...she loves this toy b/c it lights up and plays music, she likes to stand at the coffee table and do the "baby dance" you know the one, where they stand there and bounce on their chubby legs? I love it! Along with these are a few objects around the house that aren't even toys at all but they seem to fascinate her and she's always got one of them in her hand or her mouth.

A very busy Bella

You can blame an acute case of bloggers block for the sad neglect of my blog here lately. At the end of my days I have just been to tuckered to type, much less think!

As Isabella gets more mobile...my frazzle rate gets higher. Sometimes I could almost swear her arms are made of elastic...I can put things at the other end of the room, high up on a table, but the little monkey will find a way to climb something, whether it be a book shelf or a basket, and use those elastic wonder arms to reach and trap her prey.

The other morning she awakened way earlier than usual. She has this thing she does in the morning, She stands at the side of the crib and vocalizes her readiness to get out until finally I have no choice but to obey. I tried to put off the inevitable for as long as possible, but finally I rolled over and made the eye contact. Her face was covered in white stuff, and she was grinning from ear to ear. I peeled myself out of bed and proceeded clean her up along with the inside of her crib, all the while I was wondering about the unusually thick consistency and the difficulty I was having at wiping off this gleaming white spit-up. In my defense, it was a little
before 7:00 am and anybody who knows me, knows I am NOT a morning person. After changing her clothes and her diaper and administering the morning bottle, I laid her back down and picked up her blanket to snuggle her back into bed...when I unfolded her wadded up blanket, out rolled an empty tube of diaper rash cream. I stared in disbelief at the distance she had to cover to reach what I had set on the nightstand the evening before...I can only assume that she lifted herself up with her armpits as to achieve ultimate reaching capability.

Well, that explains the consistency and the difficulty I had wiping it off. Later that day after a nap, she greeted me with a poop of gastronomical proportions. I guess we know what she did with what she wasn't smearing on her face and crib.