blogs and the zoo...

We have been pretty busy with school, but we have taken some field trips recently. ARVA sponsored a free day at the LR Zoo. We got in one hour early(before it was opened to the public) and had our run of the place. We didn't have to fight to get to the front. It was awesome!

They have added a few rides since the last time we were there. Kate and I rode a carousel, it was pretty fast and it went up and down instead of a steady round. I wasn't scared, but I thought this is almost a thrill ride..lol How about them ugly animal skulls????

Kate freaked out about this bird. It does look pretty menacing, and it was eye level with her!

Anyhow, even though it was a humid, overcast day, it was still lots of fun. Plus, we got to meet other ARVA families. We went out to eat at Pei Wei, (yum) and finished up with some shoppingat Sam's Club.

Big thanks to Lydia, who stayed up with me last night and helped me to put a background and music on my blog. You know you are behind the times, when your ten year old has to help you update your blog..lol

blogs,hurricanes and chocolate cake!

Okay all you bloggers out there, you all have these really cute scrapbook-looking, fashionable blogs( you know who you are) and of course the lady that does scrapbook, cant get the stupid things to work here on blogspot.
Can someome take an old lady by the hand and explain it to her???? I mean jeez, it can't be that difficult right?

Today I am feeling my age(39). When Ike went through it really reeked havoc in our yard. We have this huge Pin Oak tree in the front, its about 40 years old.I hate the thing!It has acorns, tiny tiny leaves, and thin branches. It litters the ground with the slightest breeze. The thing literally sheds! With all the wind even our neighbors perfect lawns looked trashed! Well, of course, they are all old people who have nothing better to do than to watch grass grow, so thier yards were back to pefection by sundown. I spent good part of yesterday raking piles of tree parts, and then another chunk of my day, dragging large limbs to the curb. I definately made some noise with the blower, just to let my neighbors know I was working on my yard. You know they think your yard is bad when the say things like:
"I hope your not doing that because of me" or my favorite "It's okay honey, we know you have kids" Grrrrr....Anyhow back to my point- Im a little sore today. Getting old sucks(pardon me)

dont I sound like a old lady today??? lol...

I almost forgot..my recipe for the month. I have had so many people asking me for good Gluten-free recipes lately. Here is one I shared recently with a friend.

One Bowl Happy Birthday Cake Makes

1 cup rice flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup baking cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup milk1 egg
1/2 cup hot water(this is important)
Mix first nine ingredients in a bowl until smooth. The batter will be thick.Then add the hot water( this breaks down the grain in the rice flour better, and results in a better texture for the cake.)Pour batter into a greased 9x9 pan, and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.If you want to frost the cake, Pillsbury Brand chocolate and vanilla ready made frosting, is gluten-free.

First day of school

Well, here it is, another First Day of school. Last year I was worried about Lydia going into Middle school( 4th grade) and now Im worrying about how much time home-schooling will take. Well, let me tell you, about 6 hours a day! Kate has no worries however, she has started a MDO program and is happy to be away from the chaos. My house is a complete mess. I'm sure Derek is wondering what happened to his neat little world. He hasn't said a thing, bless his heart! Here is a picture of Kate on the first day:

She looks so small doesn't she???? She already has a boy staking claim on her" she's my girlfriend!" he says
and has been invited to a a birthday party already. She's only been in school for 2 weeks...lol social butterfly...



And that brings me to Lydia. Sad to say with the confusion of the morning, I forgot to take her picture, but it wasn't pretty anyways! Lol...she asked to go back to public school about 5 times that morning. She cried and said "we don't do this much work in school in a week!" touche'....just my point. The reason I took her out in the first place.

I'm still wading my way through my Primary calling.Its never ending, I wonder how I can do everything Homeschooling, Primary Prez, and various family duties. Some days I feel pretty overwhelmed. It would be nicer to have some family closer to help out in those rough times. I just keep reminding myself that I will not always be in the stage of life. Thank goodness!
Until next time...