-
The Joy of a (Free) Book!
I am not an *avid* reader but I do enjoy having a non-fiction book on my night-stand. Right now I am reading “Boy-sterous Living: Celebrating Your Loud and Rowdy Life with Sons” by Jean Blackmer and I’m loving it. But there is no pressure. I can read a chapter whenever I feel like it. Occasionally, I will pick up a fiction book for my own pleasure. I know that it will take me a month to read and I hate the unknown (… like what happens in the next chapter). So it takes a certain mood for me to decide to read a fiction book (Or a high recommendation from…
-
The Military Community Celebrations!
The military community understands that celebrations are important to morale and finds frequent ways to do just that: CELEBRATE! This Sunday the troops overseas will see the Super Bowl live in many cases and those in combat zones will even get two beers! Many units in the US will celebrate together as well! What fun for everyone as units and friends socialize and get to watch the game and cheer on the Steelers (or that other team in the game)! 🙂 But what else do we celebrate? Think promotions! New babies! New arrivals to a unit and saying goodbye to friends and unit members who are getting ready to PCS.…
-
Perfect Baby Shower
There are so many reasons to share some smiles, and great conversations. Besides getting together for coffees, squadron luncheons, spouse club meetings, there are babies… and the promise of more babies! With the announcement of a new family member – be that squadron family, battalion family or fleet family, somewhere on the calendar is the excitement of a baby shower. A great baby shower at that! And if you are in charge of this gala, make it sparkle! No need for this to be the ordinary, ho hum typical gathering with streamers and a bakery cake. Oh no! Girls just wanna have fun! So, let this star be born! Hang…
-
The “Witching” Hour
There is an hour, or a couple of them actually, in my house that can be the hardest of the entire day. It usually falls right when it is time for me to be thinking about dinner: 4:30pm till about 6pm, and called the “witching hour” amongst many moms. My boys get a little (or a lot depending on the day) whiney, the fighting starts and I can be a little grumpy myself! (I am amazed at how food can affect my own mood. A few hours between meals can leave me feeling very “blah”.) So my goal is usually *simple* meals OR a meal that I can start at…
-
Cruise Preparations Stretch Vacation Excitement
We will be cruising… setting sail… on the briny… soaking sun this spring. Last July we were on board with siblings, and saw the Baltic. Walked the streets of Russia, shopped our way through Estonia. Drank enough coffee in Sweden to sink a ship. Ate fresh bread in Finland and purchased Christmas decorations in Germany and Denmark. It was wonderful… it was cold. Not so come March. Dale and I are heading south to the Caribbean. So, why wait until March… not us, at least not our minds. We have begun the excursion with Caribbean meals, drinks, and our first ever trips to a tanning booth! This cruise is expensive…
-
Our Strength in Our Families
We need all types of support to function as an individual, family and society. We found that the military community supported us but we were very independent and tough too. One way we helped each other was to point out that strength and realize how much we supported each other and how important it was. Here are the lyrics to an Amy Grant song, “Oh, How the Years Go By” that says it all for our family! We had many memories of long deployments, great times, ball games, absences, long distance contacts, frustrations, anger, laughter, sadness and many other emotions. We remember driving thousands and thousands of miles to be…
-
“MyHelpList” from the Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense
I received a great document from my FRG (Army acronym for Family Readiness Group) that I thought was very timely for our monthly ‘Support Theme’. There are some great resources listed here that I hope you can use! MyHELPListInformation and Assistance for Military Service and Family Members During Tough Economic Times MILITARY RESOURCES Our Best Online Portals, Call Centers and Locator Services! Military OneSource24/7 Call CenterYou name it. We can help!1-800-342-9647http://www.militaryonesource.com/ MilitaryHOMEFRONTDoD programs, policies, news and events.http://www.militaryhomefront.dod.mil/ MilitaryAvenueRelocation Information for the American Military Familyhttp://militaryavenue.com/ Joint Family Resource Center (JFRC)On-demand counseling, educational materials and programs provided to support command sponsored deployment, personal finance and transition programs at no cost to commands.Command…
-
Making the right decisions
It has been a rough week for me, as a mom. I think the most major ‘bump’ in my week involved my 6-year old, *E*. He told me he didn’t want to go to school, that he wasn’t feeling good. I honestly wasn’t sure if it was a bug or just the Monday morning blahs. He was slightly warm, with a temp around 99. Usually that kind of temp is enough to leave you just feeling… blah. So I sent him to school, with his protest and a note in his folder. “Dear Teacher, If *E* is still not feeling well during the day please call me.” The note appeased…
-
Kahlua Cake: A Light Dessert
The refrigerator does most of the work on this beauty. It truly is a beauty too, as it uses an angel food cake. Putting Kahlua cake together will take minutes. Blending the flavors and textures takes 2 hours as it sits in the refrigerator. Kahlua CakeKahlua Angel Food Cake 1 Angel Food cake1/4 c plus 2T Kahlua or coffee flavored liqueur (divided)1/2 c dry chocolate milk flavor (Nestles Quick)1/4 c half and half1 (16 oz) Cool Whip Slice the cake into two pieces as if it were a bagel! Poke holes in each half of the angel food cake. Combine 2 T Kahlua and half and half. Slowly pour half…
-
Poppy Seed Chicken
I love recipes with poppy seed as a key ingredient. I hate that they try to find permanent lodging in my teeth… but I love the peppery taste that they guarantee. Summertime salads are served with Poppy Seed dressing as a choice. But in the dead of winter, -15 degrees today in Michigan, I opt for a hot meal. This recipe is a crowd pleaser. It does not skimp on the chicken, and is not a dry casserole. Poppy Seed ChickenServes 10Preheat oven to 350 degrees 2 cans cream of chicken soup2 c sour cream1 chicken bouillon cube1/2 c water8 to 10 chicken breasts, skinned and cooked and cut into…
