Water Bombs!

Since the kids are having fun in the the bounce house, I'll throw in one more post for the day.

As Summer draws to an end and the school bells will once again ring next week in most of Texas, kids everywhere are holding on to the last bit of summer left.

I saw this on a blog...somewhere...I am notorious for not remembering where. But never the less they are fun, easy, and cheap.

All you need is:

Scissors

Fishing line or strong thread (i used handquilting thread)

sponges (the dollar store is the best place to look)

Start by cutting your sponge down the middle lenghtwise.

Then cut down the middle of each half to create 4 long pieces.

Lay out a piece of your string, I doubled the thread. Then stack 8 sponges like so:

Pull tightly as you knot the fishing line or thread

Cut

And throw!

Brooke and her cousin loved helping stack the sponges!

Kids' Bath!

el bano de kiddos

(we are in south tejas now)

Like the rest of the house it was stark white with a wallpaper border. Now I am not the biggest fan of wallpaper borders I prefer to use paint or material to help accent give character. But mostly I prefer just very simplistic design...fairy wallpaper border just doesn't fit my simplistic vision.

We still have work to do but here are the basics:

We played off the blue accent tiles in the shower when chose our paint color. I found this picture in my This Old House magazine and liked the shower chenille accent curtain but thought it might be a heavy. Bed Bath and Beyond had the one on the right, exactly what I wanted the different shades of blue and tan chenille against the white is bright and subtle!

Still to do:

The light fixture while might look nice in an art deco hollywood bath it doesn't quite fit in ours. I want to frame out the mirror, paint the vanity white, and add new hardware. The faucet works fine but for about $60 we can get 2 new ones that are not so delta-faux-crystal-ish, that kelly can operate...he doesn't have the handspan to grasp the "crystal" and pull.

Spa Water

When we were on our trip to the California Newport Coast, I had the opportunity to visit an upscale spa at our resort. Sure I have been few times to get massages or facials at day spa and when asked if I would like water I was always handed a bottle. It was here that I was introduced to "Spa Water" when the attendant mentioned it I almost chuckled...looked like water with ice to me, lady I'm from the south. But one sip was all it took to feel the refreshing coolness of spa water.

I couldn't let the refreshment end there. So when I got home I gathered the supplies:

1 small cucumber peeled, sliced thin

1 lemon washed, sliced thin

Water

1 qt Pitcher

Mix together in the pitcher and let the flavors blend together for an hour or more in the fridge. When (not if) you run out of water just fill it up again using the same lemon and cucumber slices. Of course after 3 days you probably want to start fresh.

Now turn on the zen water fall to drown out the battery operated toy noise from the playroom and pretend you are here...

Chocolate Cookies (aka Brownie Bites)

I have tried "healthy" desert recipes that mayhave been "healthy" but tasted like cardboard. Well this is one that will satisfy your chocolate craving and make you feel like you actually had desert. They taste like brownie bites! Plus since it uses dark chocolate and cocoa it is full of heart-healthy epicatechin!

Now of course I forgot one of the ingredients while at the store...it is the shopping curse I always forget at least one thing. I forgot Arrowroot Powder, which is used as a thicker similar to cornstarch. But I did a substitute instead of the 4.5 tsp arrowroot powder I used 3 Tb of cake flour. Also Sucanat is a type of unrefined evaporated sugar cane, much healthier for your body to process than refined white sugar. Use any unrefined evaporated sugar cane (it will be by the stevia and such down your local grocery store's baking aisle), I used Turbinado sugar. I use it in my coffee it has a rich molasses flavor, it is also good to sprinkle on top of muffins or cookies prior to baking to add alittle extra touch.

With that I'll post the actual recipe!

Chocolate Cookies:

makes 24 cookies

Ingredients:

6oz dark bittersweet chocolate, broken up

3 large egg whites

1 1/2 cups sucanat, divided

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa

4 1/2 tsp arrowroot powder

Insructions:

• Preheat oven to 375 and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper
• Place chocolate in a microwavable bowl and heat 50% power for 2 minutes stirring halfway. Set aside
• Using electric mixer beat egg whites until they form soft peaks; gradually beat in 1 cup of sucanat and continue beating until mixture appears creamy; add vanilla
• In separate bowl combine remaining 1/2 cup sucanat, cocoa powder, and arrowroot powder;then beatinto egg whites on low speed.
• Stir in warm chocolate and continue stirring gently until mixture thickens.
• Place rounded tbsps of batter onto prepared pans and bake 10 minutes. Cool on baking sheets for additional 10 minutes before transferring to racks to cool.

Nutrients per cookie:

Calroies:90, Total Fate:3g, Sat Fat:1.5g, Carbs:16g, Fiber1g, Sugars:14g, Protien:1g, Sodium:15mg, Cholesterol:0mg

Don't they just look yummy!

Introducing the not so poopie house

You might be thinking it is lacking something...But what could it be? hmmm...

Maybe some CURB APPEAL! With a roof that would make the Egyptians green envy.

You might also be asking yourselves "How exactly does a house get the name 'poopie house'?" Well if you see our realtor about to open the door, well she is about to step into...well...poop. The owner failed to train his dogs...so gross.

So here is the Living Room before. No not terrible, but the carpet was gross from well...poop. And the tv placement made it dark inspite of the ALL WHITE WALLS.

What we did:

Warmed up the walls with Pittsburgh Ponty Tail and added hard wood floors from Lumber Luiqidators.

Let's get another shot of those floors...

Here it is will all of our decorations!

Whew what a move!

After 3 months of ups and downs, this roller coaster has finally stopped. The family is united under one roof. I am cooking dinner without fear of the phone ringing for a showing, bye bye Tyson chicken nuggets and Kraft Mac & Cheese. I did learn the secret to getting a guaranteed showing. What is it you ask? It is very simple, pick your stinkiest meal and cook it. Pot of beans, boiled shrimp, maybe a big ol' pot of gumbo. I promise the phone will be ringing off the hook and you will soon find yourself throwing those windows open, fans full blast, and throwing in a couple of extra scentsy cubes.

The question I get whenever I phone a friend is,"Do you have any pictures?" Yes we have lots of pictures, but with a name like "the poopie house" given by our daughter I was reluctant to show before pictures until we had afters. Over the next few days I will post each room.

As for the area, it is okay. We haven't been able to really get out to places to really meet people...unless you can count the 3-4 trips per day to Home Depot with the 16 year old cashier that remembers you and invites you to church...other than THAT we have found that we have 2 sets of great neighbors on each side of us...whew!

Quinoa

Yum! A grain that is fun to eat. Almost as fun as tapioca.