Happy 6th Birthday Jake!

How on earth did this:

turn into this so fast?

Happy Birthday, buddy!

No Special Treatment

Apparently when Megan is in charge....even princesses have to wait in line for the bus.

Veterans' Day

Happy Veterans' Day. Please take a moment today to honor those men and women who put their lives on the line to ensure our freedom.

Award

OK...so enough about spiders.

On Friday, Jake's elementary school held an awards assembly for kindergarteners and first graders honoring those students who showed the most improvement over the first 9-week grading period. Jake was given the award for Most Improved Writing!

Here he is going up to accept his award:

He was also selected to carry a flag at the beginning of the assembly

We're so proud at how well he has been doing in school! I guess I better start studying...at the rate he's going, he'll know more than me by the time he's in 3rd grade!

Spider

This guy has taken up residence in the flower bed in front of our house. I'm not a big fan of spiders (and either is Eric...he's been known to jump up on a couch in response to about 150 tiny baby spiders jumping off their mother's back in our living room. I don't really fault him for this reaction, but I do mock him. I was forced to deal with these tiny baby spiders armed only with a can of strawberries and cream air freshener. OY!)


Anyway - this spider is actually kinda cool. He (or she?) spins some really cool webs and catches some interesting prey. Jake likes to check it out each day after school to see what has been caught in the web. Someone told me it was a "banana spider", but that just sounds weird. Any spider experts out there?

Wordless Wednesday

3/28/04

Election Day

As I have mentioned before, I hate politics. I rarely discuss politics with anyone. But I find Election Day really cool, for lack of a better word. There's an excitement in the air. Everyone is buzzing about it. Starbucks is handing out free coffee to those who voted (!!!!). Waiting in lines is not my idea of fun, but I'm looking forward to arriving at my polling place this morning and waiting in line to cast my vote. Every vote counts. Mathematically or statistically it may not seem like it does. I'm one of several hundred thousand (or more - I don't know how many people live and vote in my state) who vote here in NC. What's one little vote among so many? It's a lot! Remember - the election in 2000 hinged on 537 votes in Florida. 537! What if those 537 people decided not to vote because they thought their one vote didn't count for much? So vote! Because if you don't....you have no right to complain. I could go on, but the blogging genius over at Undomestic Diva said it so much better! Check her out.

*UPDATE* I went to vote and it was sort of anti-climactic....not a single person in line. In fact, I was one of just two voters at the place! Everyone else was either working there or doing some last minute campaigning by the front doors. Weird.

Delish!

My neighbor, Lori, has joined us for dinner a couple times in the past few weeks while her husband is deployed to Iraq. Each time she comes over, she brings a delicious dessert. This past weekend, she (with the help of my little Megan) made the most delicious Caramel Bars. They are my new favorite dessert...and that is saying a lot since I pretty much haven't ever met a dessert that I don't like (unless it is some sort of fruit dessert. Fruit is not dessert. Unless it is covered in chocolate. Dessert should always contain chocolate, caramel, or frosting...or all three).

So - the next time you are looking for something unbelievably decadent, make these!

Caramel Bars

1 cup flour
1 cup oats
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup better, melted
1 bag chocolate chips (semi-sweet or milk, whatever you prefer)
1 small bag chopped pecans (about 3/4 cup)
40 Kraft caramels, unwrapped (duh!)
1/3 cup milk

Mix flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda and salt. Add in melted butter and combine until crumbly. Press into the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 until golden brown, about 10-12 minutes. Meanwhile, melt caramels and milk in a double boiler or sauce pan over low heat.

Remove crust from oven, sprinkle chocolate chips and chopped nuts over hot crust. Drizzle caramel sauce on top. Return to oven and bake for 10 more minutes. Allow to cool before cutting and serve with a big glass of milk! YUM!