Why do pastel M&Ms taste better than regular M&Ms?

And could someone edit this picture to flip them all the same direction? I suppose that's the price I pay for jacking someone else's M&Ms, but I already ate mine.

A Little Visitor

Summer+ime

and +he living is easi. Unless u're +rieing +o +ipe on mi poor lap+op. +ee, whi, +ab, lef+ shif+, page down, and backspace; all missing or nonfunc+ional.

o+her +han +ha+, +he girls have been going +o +hea+re camps, we've been hi++ing up +he librari, and jus+ chillin' ou+ awai from +he ho+ sun. And ge++ing readi for our grea+ +rek nor+hwes+ward in a li++le less +han a mon+h. 18 dais of driving, hanging ou+ wi+h famili, more driving, hanging ou+ wi+h friends and famili, Pioneer Dai in SLC or Logan, more famili in Logan, +hen home again, home again, jiggi+i jig via Carlsbad Caverns (from hubbi's bucke+ lis+, if he had one).

+he smalle+ one is asking me how do I spell "boi +oi" which he apparen+li learned from +oi S+ori?

+iping +his is wai more annoi-ing +han fun.

How I made another mom's day

I realized last night that I would have some free time after I dropped off several kids at rehearsal, so I made plans to head to WM to pick up the last of the supplies for Halloween. Em ended up not going to rehearsal because her throat was hurting a little, which should have canceled the trip, but since we were running low on Motrin and we were out of lemonade, I decided I'd better head on anyway. The remaining 3 kids were excited, as always, about going to the store, though J was particularly hyper and tired, which should have canceled the trip, but I figured he'd chill out once we got out of the confinement of the car. I pulled into a perfect parking spot - in the middle, right next to a cart return - and started getting the kids out of the car. The older 2 were waiting next to the car (hands touching the door per the rules) while I started unfastening SPY from his seat. I was working on the second buckle when Em grabbed J's hat and put it on. He started to chase her into the parking lot and I grabbed both of them by the shoulders. J melted into the kind of tantrum that FINALLY canceled the trip. I announced that there was nothing I needed tonight badly enough to deal with this crap (I didn't use the word crap, probably) and we were going home. All 3 kids started begging and making promises they didn't intend to keep. Well, they probably intended to keep them, but it was obvious to the trained eye that there was no way in blue Hades that they could have actually lasted more than 2 minutes (about the point when we walk past the crane games in the front of the store) before they lost it again and worse. Tantrums in the parking lot are great fun, but nothing is better than a full-blown overtired tantrum during rush hour in the middle of the entrance to one of 2 grocery stores in a town where everybody knows your name. So, I chucked them in the car, fastened their seatbelts myself, got in the driver's seat and locked the doors. I sat there ignoring the wailing and pleading for a good 5 minutes until they settled down and I was sure they weren't going to jettison themselves from the van. By the time we pulled out of the parking lot, they were relatively calm again.
Except that there was something that I needed - the lemonade for Em's sore throat. So, as I drove through town debating the problem, McD's came into view. Woohoo, I was saved!! I could drive through and get lemonade without leaving the van!!
Now, obviously by this point I was delusional and not in my right mind. Just driving by a McD's without stopping would have generated more gnashing of teeth, but to actually get into the drivethrough line and wait to order something that was NOT a Happy Meal... Yep, it set J off into one of the most energetic, voluminous, imaginative tantrums he's ever thrown. Thrown is an appropriate description too. He wailed, he flung his body around in his booster seat, tears flowed. Out of habit, I rolled down the window as I came around the curve to the order speaker, but there was another minivan already there. I quickly rolled up the window, but we still heard her ordering her Happy Meals (2 boys and a girl). I could tell that she heard the commotion, because she paused and looked back for a second mid-order. She finished and pulled forward and I was forced to roll down the window to place my order for a single large lemonade. J hit the peak of his fit as I pulled forward when he realized I really wasn't ordering any Happy Meals. I met her glance in her side mirror and just smiled and she smiled knowingly back. Now, I've been the other mom before, so I know what she was thinking. Her kids probably got extra hugs last night thanks to J. J did too.

SPY is in his own kind of trouble today. SE decided to take his guitar to school with him today. It's been sitting in the living room on its stand for months. As he picked it up, it made a strange rattling noise. Not a little rattling noise. He emptied it out onto the floor.
The pile contained:
a pick
about 5 Q-tips
2 rocks - one small, one I'm not sure how SPY got it in past the strings
1 seashell
about 25 Cheerios
8 crayons (a whole pack)
a comb - the kind with the long tail
a sock
3 pencils
a 5x7 piece of notebook paper
2 animal crackers
and a proof of insurance card.
ETA after I finished picking junk up off the floor:
An Article of Faith pass along card
a scrap of orange construction paper
a used band-aid
and the tie end of a popped balloon.
I'm kind of surprised that it rattled at all when he shook it.

Conversation with SPY

SPY: Eeh boo?
Me: No boo.
SPY: Eeh boo? Eeh boo?
Me: No boo.
SPY: Hay you, mommy. Hay you.

Interpreted:
SPY: Please may I nurse?
Me: You know we're trying to quit.
SPY: Please? PLEASE??
Me: No, really this time.
SPY: I hate you, mommy. Hate you.

Nice, eh? Someone's older sister has taken to that phrase when she's not getting her way. Yay for mimicking toddlers!!

Weirdo Wednesday: The Contents

Yes, I stole this from one or more other people, but after reading theirs and in light of the fact that a new purse is en route to me and it had to be done anyway, I present the contents of my purse, freshly dumped:

and sorted:

and listed:

1. 3 yearbook forms that need to be filled out this week

2. 4 toys - a taxicab (from NYC!!), a tractor, a motorcycle, and the giraffe from Madagascar 2

3. 3 loose "extra" keys, one of which fits a car we have not owned for nearly a year

4. my actual keys with pink and brown keychain

5. cellphone

6. 2 prescription bottles containing hubby's emergency meds (one is laying on its side by the junk mail)

7. baby nail clippers

8. 4 Benadryl allergy/sinus/headache

9. splinter removal kit

10. needles, in case the splinter removal kit doesn't work

11. hairbrush

12. this semester's report cards for the girls

13. my VT list

14. 2 paint samples

15. 4 $1 off gas or groceries for Brookshire's coupons and one GM cereals coupon (huh, not even expired yet)

16. health insurance information for the kids

17. about 10 pieces of trash, mostly wrappers, but including a tiny piece of a french fry

18. 6 paper stars labeled "I am Thankful to be Me because I can:"

19. a semi-crunched liquid medicine cup

20. a hospital wristband (from SPY's echo)

21. 3 appointment cards, 2 of which have already happened

22. 14 receipts, none important

23. 1 piece of junk mail

24. 2 pens

25. an empty bottle of lotion

26. mascara

27. a mint

28. a single die

29. 2 checkbooks for our account, 1 empty checkbook cover (with old checkbook inside), 1 checkbook for an account that is not mine, and a book of deposit slips

30. 2009 Dallas temple schedule

31. my wallet

32. the headphones to my MP3 player

33. an empty snack-size baggie (I think it used to hold my blush, but I don't know where the blush went?????????!?)

34. 2 gift cards, each empty or with less than $2 left (should have been above, but I missed them and I'm not renumbering)

Phew.

Problem solved.

Forget image of Movie Edward and Movie Bella. Picture Patrick Dempsey as Edward and me as Bella.

Patrick Dempsey as a vampire? Hello!!
Like I said, problem solved.

ETA: What I meant to say was picture SE as Edward and me as Bella. That is totally what I meant to say.

ETA again: Someone took it as his personal quest to convince me that PD was not THE choice and so here is his nomination. I have to say that I agree that he probably is a much better pick for the actual story, but a) it's too late, I already finished the book; and b) it only works for me if I go back to casting Alexis Bledel as Bella (yeah, sure, she's probably a better choice too). Anyway, SE's pick:

(Matt Dallas, aka Kyle XY)

Weirdo Wednesday, Holiday Style

When I was in junior high, I was obsessed with the blender and would have eggnog (or orange julius) every morning for breakfast. I think this was before smoothies existed.

That's all I have time for today. Working, finish cleaning the hall (the downstairs is almost company-ready, as long as no one opens the closets or the office), goodie-making, Christmas tree putting up, laundry putting-awaying, dessert-making.

Love, peace, and joy to everyone!

A bit ew

So, sometimes I do surveys online for fun and a little tiny bit of profit. Every once in a while, I get surveys that ask if I want to test a product. Last week, I had one that asked if my 8-year-old would like to test a new cereal. We said sure. It arrived on Tuesday and Bailey tried and really, really liked it. I'm contractually forbidden from telling you the name/details, but it wasn't really a new cereal, but a new and improved version of a cereal already loved at our house. Wonderful! It really was improved in texture and some other things. We all tried it. Today, I was completing the related survey and it kept asking me if I would like to buy this type of cereal if it contained more fiber, if I would pay more for it. Hmm, I guess that explains it. And by IT, I mean the not-so-nice side effect of cereals with lots of fiber. The kind of thing that other fiber-rich cereals warn you about right on the labeling - but of course, survey cereal has no labels (seriously, a pure-white cereal box, it's pretty cool unless you need some kind of warning). So, if you see a kid-friendly cereal touting it's extra fiber on the shelves at your supermarket, it WORKS. Which could be a good thing if you need to trick a child into eating more fiber. Or not if you don't.

Celebrating the end of the semester with a whatchamacallit

I smelled Chuck Norris because I'm cool like that.

You play too:

Pick the month you were born:
January-------I kicked
February------I loved
March--------I karate chopped
April----------I licked
May----------I jumped on
June----------I smelled
July-----------I did the Macarena with
August--------I had lunch with
September----I danced with
October-------I sang to
November-----I yelled at
December-----I ran over

Pick the day (number) you were born on:
1-------a birdbath
2----- --a monster
3-------a phone
4-------a fork
5-------a snowman
6-------a gangster
7-------my mobile phone
8-------my dog
9-------my best friends' boyfriend
10-------my neighbor
11-------my science teacher
12-------a banana
13-------a fireman
14-------a stuffed animal
15-------a goat
16-------a pickle
17-------your mom
18-------a spoon
19------ - a smurf
20-------a baseball bat
21-------a ninja
22-------Chuck Norris
23-------a noodle
24-------a squirrel
25-------a football player
26-------my sister
27-------my brother
28-------an iPod
29-------a surfer
30-------a homeless guy
31-------a llama

Pick the color of shirt you are wearing:
White----because I'm cool like that.
Black-----because that's how I roll.
Pink-----because I'm NOT crazy.
Red------because the voices told me to.
Blue-----because I'm sexy and I do what I want.
Green----because I think I need some serious help.
Purple----because I'm AWESOME!
Gray-----because Big Bird said to and he's my leader.
Yellow---because someone offered me 1,000,000 dollars.
Orange---because my family thinks I'm stupid anyway.
Brown----because I can.
Other-----because I'm a Ninja!
None------because I can't control myself!

I bet whoever made this one up was born on the 22nd too. If I owned a gray shirt a) I'd spell it grey, and b) i'd change in to it. I'm lying - I do have a grey shirt, but it's in the laundry, so I'm not changing in to it. Everything is in the laundry, mostly the laundry on my floor.

Note: An even better way to celebrate the end of the semester would be with a real Whatchamacallit, but I don't have one of those either. Really this time, I mean it.

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMicrowave Fudge

2 1/2 C Sugar
3/4 C butter
5 oz. evaporated milk
12 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
10 1/2 oz. mini marshmallows
1 tsp. vanilla
optional chopped nuts (NOT)

Put the butter and sugar in a large glass bowl. Cook 60 seconds. Add evap. Stir. Cook 5 minutes. Stir. 3 minutes. Stir. 2 minutes. Add chocolate chips. Stir until melted. Add marshmallows 1/2 at a time, stirring until melted. Add vanilla and nuts (NOT). Stir. Pour into a wax paper lined 9x13 pan and spread evenly. Cool, then serve. Be sure to lick the bowl. DO NOT scrape the sides when you are stirring or it will turn out really grainy. The bowl gets really hot. Don't drop it (like someone did last weekend with my perfect-for-this-recipe-and-pretty-much-all-other-recipes-had-it-for-15-years bowl - not that I'm upset about it). Enjoy and consider sharing or you may also have to wax poetic.

Thanks to Esther

I'm searching for things to put pumpkin butter on. I'm not sure I need to make pie this year, which is good since I suck at pie crust.

I made homemade rolls, just to put some pumpkin butter on. They were pretty good last night, certainly better than last time, fresh, but today they are getting crumby and not doing justice to the pumpkin butter. I think I might have toast with breakfast tomorrow (which I never do unless there are fried eggs involved).

You know what I really want to try it on - warm on vanilla ice cream. I bet I really wouldn't need pie then.

Chocolate Buttercream Recipe

And now for something completely different:

I had a quite good chocolate buttercream recipe from here, but I tweaked it a bit today and really like the results, so I want to document them before I forget them.

2 sticks margarine (or butter I suppose)
5 cups powdered sugar
3/4 cup cocoa powder
about 6 tablespoons of milk, maybe a little more (I was just pouring from the carton and guessing)
2 teaspoons (or capfuls) vanilla

I softened the margarine and added 3 cups of powdered sugar and then beat it a bunch. Added the cocoa powder and then the milk to see what consistency it was before finishing the rest of the powdered sugar. The original recipe was too stiff and too chocolatey and too sweet and this one is just right for my tastes and came out the closest to the kind I buy I've ever gotten. Fluffy. I beat it on a fairly high speed for quite a while.

Okay, that's all. Back to the regularly scheduled fluff. Oh hey, fluff - now the frosting fits perfectly with the rest of my blog. Yay!