Never leave a mom in charge of a treasure hunt

N's birthday party was this weekend, and the theme was Pirates (inspired by the themed packs at Costco, way cheaper and easier than buying everything individually at the party supply store). So after some help from the Pafo, , I had 4 games for the kids to play: dig for gold, cannon fight, , shark tag (the shark is it - with a special shark hat), and a treasure hunt, . One would think this would go quite smoothly and it did, for the most part.

10 minutes before the party was to begin I start hiding the treasure hunt clues should be easy right? I had written out clues and put the answers in parenthesis on the bottom so asAba was reading them he could direct the kids where to go. I cut the clues apart, grabbed some string and went about hiding them, then we hit a big old string of snafoos.

N and neighbor boy came home and wanted to watch me hide the clues, well that is no good, and after me telling them 3 times to go inside and Aba finally coming and escorting them in I could begin hiding.

5 minutes to party time. So I read the clue " All ships have one of these!" (Deck), and promptly tie a string around the clue and tie it to the deck, onto the next clue " A tree of needles" (pine tree), run over to the pine tree and tie it on ( do you see the problem here? I didn't) and continue with the next 2 when finally a light bulb goes off in my head, I am hiding the clues where they are supposed to be found, not where the kids are led to. The deck clue does not go one the deck, but rather the step before the deck.

2 minutes to party time and now I am running around trying to untie clues well knotted against the Colorado winds so they would not blow away! Great, I have to start over, and now I have no idea what order the clues were supposed to be in, well except for the first and last.

Kids are now arriving, I am running around confused, and Aba is laughing. Leave it to me to completely mess up something as simple as a treasure hunt! So I start again, get one clue done and J and his mom arrives, Thankfully between the 2 of us we get it done, with out too many more mess ups. and it only took 10 more minutes! If J's mom hadn't arrived I am pretty sure I would have been there for at least another 30 minutes.

I guess it is true what they say motherhood makes you loose brain cells, next time I'll fill the water balloons and Aba can hide the clues!

Boys being boys...

* I did not take the one of N, the credit for that goes to Uncla A or Aba, not sure which though.

Give a 6 year old his own camera and he will

take a picture of the TV...
take a picture of the dog...
take many pictures while jumping on the trampoline....
fall off said trampoline and take a picture on the way down...
take a picture of Mommy blogging....
take a picture of the bags of groceries on the counter...
take a picture of his baby sister....
have mommy stop what she is doing to download pictures...
take a picture of his baby sister...
take a picture of the china cabinet...
refuse to take a picture of his little sister who is asking him to incessantly...
take a picture of his feet...
brag about his new camera and how nice it is...
attempt to take pictures of himself himself a la auntie Lala and Aba....
take a picture of Mommy on the phone to Aba while blogging...
insist Mommy download his pictures again ...
plan future pictures...
and dream of becoming a famous photographer and taking pictures in the dessert...

Bye the way Thank you Grandma with the fishies he is loving it!!

Baby B's first meal

Aba's video skills are little shaky, but you can see her first reaction to "baby food"

library drama

So Fridays at N's school are library day. The day the class gets to pick out 1 book to take home for the week providing they return last weeks book. Well, guess who could not find his book today, yep that is right N! Despite the fact that I put it on the stairs yesterday for him, the fact that he came home and dropped his backpack right next to the book, he could not find it this morning. And yes I was a good mommy and helped look. I looked and looked and looked for 20 minutes, and then I stopped. N is 6 years old now, and is almost done with the school year, he knows library days are Friday, he also knows that his teacher likes the books returned on Thursday, which is besides the point. The point is I found the book yesterday and set it aside for him, since he choose to move it somewhere else instead of putting it in his back pack it is now his turn to find it ( of course if I come across it I will place it on the stairs yet again for the cycle to continue, once again) So tears and screaming cries ensued, all because of a book and not wanting to do it himself. Watch it will show up again before lunchtime...

Ooh, and here are some givaways and link contests cute hair things, a quilting book, another book, and a coach purse

Name this picture...

B at the Children's museum, but strangely reminiscent of a famous story or two ...

This is a first...

they are closing school now. as in now. In the middle of the day. and calling every single parent to come and get there kids ( another 6 to 12 inches is coming - whaat?!?! yes you heard me correctly another 6, I would say we have 4 so far and it is h-e-a-v-y slush. So heavy I can't even pick up a half a shovel full, and it is sticking to the sides of buildings and falling with big heavy thuds from the roof to the deck. Wish me luck, hopefully I will be back soon with all 4 in tow....

okay Uncle A, you win.

It is not practical to make a fancy schmancy built in bed for B, a princess in every right, especially since she needs to share a room, and I should be looking for ways to "maximize space' as you so kindly put it. I wan to, I really do, but I can still make a cook room with out it, fabric works wonders with a good sewing machine and is much easier to repair should something get damaged, which I know it will - it is just a matter of time.





Today I was going to straiten the strawberry plants from last year and ready for harvest (yum) since I had noticed several blossoms the other day, but apparently Mother Nature did not agree with my plans, since I am watching a storm unravel outside the kitchen window, and snow piled up 2 inches deep on the railing already. Soo, our focus has been switched.





Now which color do you think would be best for a little girls room?

Yes I know they are dark, but the walls will stay cleaner this way.


Yes I know they are purple, and B loves pink
, but she must share, remember? And I will not force pink upon Baby B.

Yes I know B wants a pink room, , but I will make it up to her by having a pink bed, all lovingly hand sewn by me ( you scoff, and say I will not finish this project? well you are wrong, for one little reason, and that is B asking me several times a day when her room will be done).

6 years have flown by!

I remember the day I had you, your brisk, and how I could not watch... your first sight of snow, in a 10x10 square of man made slush at the wild animal park...

your first fly fishing expedition at clear creek... To my favorite explorer of all things creepy and crawly...
and the big boy you have grown to be...
I can't believe it has been 6 years already!

Why didn't they wait 5 minutes???

this morning while I was in the shower, Aba decided to do Birthday gifts! He is lucky he took this video or I would have been super pissed, instead of kinda pissed.

this can not be happening!

my beautiful 4 year old B, is back in pull-ups. She has been potty trained for over a year! That is until she decided yesterday to poo in a cup, then have her little bro J pour that cup into the sink! yeah, that is right in the s-i-n-k and the day before I found one in the bathtub - luckily no one was bathing at the time!

So as punishment (not sure if punishment is the correct word) she has to wear a pull- up today, and tomorrow, and for who knows how long.

I am not to sure what is up with this daughter of mine. She is the only one that has ever left skid marks behind, who leaves a trail of TP still connected to the roll into the potty and then doesn't flush. And at least once a week would stink so bad from bad wiping that she would need a sponge bath.

I can not give up, I will not give up, but why is this such a hard concept for her? You go to the bathroom in the potty, you tear off a piece of paper and wipe till clean, then you fluch the potty. Aargh. I think we are going to go back to step one all over again. Anyone want to come and fill in for me?

Gymnastics bites the dust…

So N has been taking gymnastics since August, at a gym I picked after researching all of them in the area for price, equipment used pummel horse, rings, trampoline, etc., coach qualifications and the like. And finally choose ours because they do competitions, used all of the equipment, had qualified coaches, and the price was right
.

Well, now they are closing their doors, they sent home a letter last night, saying next week will be the last week. 1 weeks notice. Nice. So now I need to find a new gym, or do I? Maybe this is a sign it is time for a change? Our house rule is one class a week when school is in, excluding Hebrew school. So N got gymnastics for 2 reasons. 1. We could not find a mutton bustin’
’ class, and 2. He was a bit of a klutz
. Well I think the klutzy part has remedied itself (although that may not have anything to do with the gymnastics but who knows…)

So now a plethora of options has opened up. Go to a new gymnastics school or…
Baseball…
Horse back riding – too expensive!
football…
Soccer…
Dance – already vetoed by N
Martial arts (of any kind) already vetoed by Aba
Boxing…
Tennis…
Golf...
Hockey – again too expensive
Fencing…
Basketball…
Or one of the arts
Pottery…
Music…
Guitar…
Piano…
And the list goes on and on. So it has been decided we will have a sit down next week, with N, Aba and myself and go over the options.

I wonder which ones will make him popular in high school?
Get him a scholarship to collage?
Or help him in his professional adult life?

Uncle A taking the middle munchkids for a walk

Today is my birthday...

Really it is. See here us a picture of me when I was fresh and new on this day 2.... umm lets just say 20-something years ago. and it has brought me to reflect on birthdays in general. Why is it when we are young we celebrate birthdays with gusto anxiously awaiting each and every one, planning them in months in advance; then when we get to our teenage years we only celebrate the milestones: 13 (officially a teenager), 16 (you can legally drive, woohoo!), 18(now an adult, can legally smoke cigarettes - although most smokers start way before then, but I digress and can join the military), and the final one 21 (legally able to drink now - why can we die for our country years before and cannot have a drink is beyond me, but okay).

And then birthdays seem to lose there importance for the next 30 or 40 years, especially if you have kids . Until you hit your golden years, retirement age and there are the "over the hill" parties sometime in your 50's and 60's. Then the parties slowly start to step back up, to once every five years (75, 80, 85, etc.) until you reach the mighty 100, then you get a big party every year and recognition for your achievement (see getting older is something to celebrate again).

But why don't we celebrate all those years in between? Like what about birthday 35, when you are able to run for president, that should be celebratory too, don't you think? Is it because we are too busy? too broke? to far from our parents? who knows.

Let this year be the year for birthdays of all ages to be celebrated. And lets start with mine! In this past year of my life I have had another child, started blogging, been camping again, and began my cookbook that will someday make me famous. And I for one think that is something to celebrate!

The mighty hunter has returned!

Today was the first day of Turkey season, the long awaited turkey season (yep, Aba has been talking about it since the last day of rabbit season). And as everyone knows this is a big rivalry between Uncle A and Aba (twins, they compete at everything!) and Aba's third turkey season since we moved to Stepford. 2 years under the belt and not a single turkey yet from the both of them, that is during turkey season. The rest of the year apparently they are everywhere.

Last night Aba remembered (how could he forgot since he talks about it daily!) that he hadn't got his turkey license (horror of horrors!) Thank goodness Walmart is open 24 hours and sells all that one needs, licenses, shells, calls, etc. So the tragedy was averted. And Aba was up at 4:30 and gone (Vroom... you can start shooting at sunrise) and we awaited his return.

He has now returned, put his gear in his den (Ahem, that is supposed to be our office!) - with no turkey and thus told his tale of woe:

"...so the parking lot was filled with trucks, Andi had to park down the hill. I walked in, and after searching and searching found 1 set of tracks, followed by 4 sets of bootprints. I climbed to a higher elevation, so high there was still snow on the ground (it snowed yesterday for all you non-Stepfordians), so no turkeys. It was like a friggin cartoon man!!! I mean I can out hike everyone, but what good does that do when the turkeys can't?!? Oh well, I will go on church day (translation:Sunday). It won't be so crowded then. (pause). Can I have some breakfast? Hmm... I think I will go fishing now!

LOL oh the life of a man. Meanwhile I got thrown up on by J. Apparently a big hearty breakfast followed by a screaming tugging war over a toy can make that happen. But all is well now. A hot shower, clean clothes, and said toy and all is right in the world.

I wonder if he will catch any fish?

afternoon snow...

my camera was not able to capture the beutiful snow falling as I took these pictures, and that really bumms me out, but I think they came out okay anyways, what do you think?

Nobody likes a stinky dog

except for the stinky dog.

after the bath:


hmm... maybe someone should tell him he won't get the stinky back by rubbing himself on freshly shampooed carpets!

do it today for our children, tommorrow is their future

It is not easy being green…

I want to do what is best for the environment, for my children’s health, and the planets future. But it is Sooo not easy. Buy organic, support local farmers
, save energy, save water, compost, eat less meat, use sustainable woods for paper and furniture, don’t use plastic, don’t use disposable, reduce, reuse, recycle, grow your own food, buy hormone and antibiotic free, compost, be responsible, don’t litter, pick up litter, only you can prevent forest fires, save gas, go yellow, waste not, want not, etc. etc.etc.

I try I really do try, I tried to buy a vehicle that used alternative fuels, but they were either twice as much as regular cars, or the fuel was not available anywhere reasonably close to us. We do support local farmers and buy hormone and antibiotic free when it comes to milk
and beef beef
, buy organic 75% of the time (Costco’s organic line has really helped us out with this one, but what happened to the broccoli? it has been missing from the freezer section for at least 2 weeks!). We do the litter pickup (Aba is great at this on his fishing excursions, a trash bag every time – what is wrong with people don’t they want to keep Colorado beautiful
???)

A few things I could try harder on, and I plan too. Like composting
, Stepford does not like big smelly compost piles, or unsightly bins, even in our back yard. I need to find a nice enclosed pleasant looking, easy to use, non smelling compost container. And over the summer we do try and grow our own food, last years garden looked like jumunji with my over zealous over crowding trying to fit it all in, so this year the green house is being moved and the garden expended 2 or 3 times its size. Plus we planted fruit trees last fall – apples and plums – and all but one are putting out leaves and beginning to blossom.

But there is one thing I just can not bring myself to do. I will not use cloth diapers
. I know diapers fill the landfills, but with all the laundry I do already (I so want 2 washers and dryers and a clothes line - - but that is another thing about Stepford, no clotheslines they are considered “unattractive’ – ugh) it is not feasible.

I hope the worlds does fate does not come down to my diaper usage and lack of composting...

What are you doing?
today for a better tomorrow

And now back to our regularly scheduled program...

Passover is over, Aba is back at work, and our house guests have all returned home, and the children are back to their happy, playful, destructive selves.

Now don't get me wrong, I love the holidays, with the special activities at shul, the big gatherings at friends and families homes (especially when they are at my home!), and teaching the children why it is such a special day. But I also love when the holidays are over, especially the long ones like Passover. 8 days. 8 days of no breakfast cereal, no sandwiches, and no cookies; make it hard on the lunch packer (me), hard on the dinner chef (me), and hard on the grocery shopper (again me). I am so happy we are back to our daily favorites, like cheerios.

I also love when Aba is home with us. The kids get extra play time, we have 3 family meals a day, and go on impromptu outings, like hikes, fishing trips, and family walks to the grocery store. But, the laundry gets behind (even when he helps), the kitchen is a sight, and the floors are not vacuumed as often as they should be. But he has returned to work. The kitchen is sparkling, the floors have vacuum marks, and the laundry is waiting to be put into dressers and closets. Hey, I might even get to pre-iron his work clothes!

House guests...
I love them, I truly do, in fact I ask them to come, and to stay longer, and in a few days time we will be back to asking them when they will return since we miss them so much. House guests play with the kids and tell them stories, make meal times livelier, and afternoon walks something to look forward to. The kids love to see their family, and as J asked as Auntie LaLa was saying Bye and giving him one last kiss, "Bye?Why?Bye?Why?" (Try to explain to a 2 year old why their new favorite person is leaving, and you get an upset little boy crying and saying NO!!!) but it is nice to have the house back to ourselves, not wondering what to make due to dietary restrictions, if there will be enough hot water for every ones shower, and hoping the kids stay on there best manners through the whole visit (which never happens).

So, it is nice, to be back to our daily habits. Morning routines, breakfast and lunches, housework and all. Yes I will miss the extra hands to hold Baby B while cooking dinner, extra hands folding laundry, gossip on afternoon walks, and dueling blogs. But I am enjoying my morning tea, about to leave for ballet class for B and then off to Costco. We will return later, and while the whole house naps I would be getting the laundry put in its place. And when Aba arrives home form a hard days work (I think they said they were doing bubble blowing today), dinner will be hot and ready on the table to greet him. Who knows we might even get back to story time at night!

And this is why we hide the Afikoman inside...

We have a family near us that celebrates Easter (as many people do) who have now been standing outside with there 2 and 4 year old for the past 45 minutes in a fairly heavy snow, and it is not yet 8:30 in the morning. Why are they standing outside, you ask? Very simply they are looking for "Easter eggs" those pastel colored plastic eggs that have treats hidden inside of them.

If you will imagine the scene: It has been lightly snowing here off and on since Friday morning, and picked up considerably in the wee hours before dawn. I am assuming that these eggs were hidden last night after their little ones went to bed in order to be in place this morning for the festivities. Mom is outside in sleeping pants, slippers, and a heavy jacket, dad and the kids are bundled fully in snow pants, jackets, hats, mittens, and boots (most probably with PJ's still on underneath). Not a single plastic egg is visible due to the falling snow, and they are searching. And searching. And searching. The children's baskets (which I am assuming should be quite full, still have lots of neon colored straw visible from my vantage point at the kitchen sink where I stood carefully washing the shabbos china. As the family finally gives up and heads inside, I see the dad take a confused scan of the yard, wondering no doubt where the rest of the eggs are that are sure to turn up days from now one at a time as the snow melts.

And that is why we hide the Afikoman inside. No bundled up feats digging through snow banks for us!

101 things I wish someone had told me sooner:

1. Always check that the memory card is in the camera before taking pictures.
2. There is not a garbage disposal in the dishwasher.
3. They make washable crayons
4. Only use spray on oils) over the kitchen sink, or you will fall on your butt repeatedly.
5. A good driver is better than a good car
6. Kids will climb anything
7. You should lotion your leather sofas to keep them soft and supple for years to come.
8. A dog should never smell doggy..
9. Homemade French fries need to be fried twice to be crunchy
10. Oxy10 dries out your skin
11. Rabbits will eat the only thing your husband wanted planted in the garden
12. Bleach and water will clean most of your house: bathrooms, kitchens, doorknobs, light switch plates, etc.
13. not all 3 digit area codes belong to the US
14. Crock pots are wonderful
15. If you have ever worn braces, you must wear your retainer for the rest of your life, or your teeth will move back.
16. Never leave a 2 year old unattended with scissors (even kids scissors) unless you want things not meant to be cut up, cut up (like curtains, siblings hair and PJ’s).
17. Pictures on a cell phone, can not be put into a computer, without buying tons of extra stuff
18. you only need ½ the manufacturers recommended amount of laundry detergent
19. My Babies are like koalas, they must touch you at all times to be happy.
20. if you don’t eat enough you will lose muscle, not fat.
21. Juice should be watered down, way down (like 1 cup water to 2 tbsp juice) and can be watered down well past the age of 5!
22. never trust your attorney
23. a candle can keep you warm in a car, in a snowstorm.
24. The baby will try to eat the dog toys
25. a squeegee and squeegee off cleans windows much better than windex and a paper towel or newspaper.
26. Grass won’t grow under a pine tree.
27. Always buy chip resistant plates if you have little kids, or else your plates will get chipped within the first month of having them.
28. frozen is often times better than fresh
29. If you want an all red garden, see the plants actually flower before planting them, even if the nursery or catalogue says they are red
30. rechargable batteries are a must for anything that eats batteries, toys camera, etc.
31. Your home office/ study should always have a door, unless you don’t mind the kids rearranging everything important like your bills, and drawing with permanent markers.
32. fabric scissors are only for fabric, paper scissors are only for paper etc.
33. dishwashing soap and water cleans small scratches off of CD/DVD’s
34. a good soaking in oxiclean overnight will remove almost every stain in the world
35. always keep baby wipes, diapers and a change of clothes in the car.
36. Wet carrots go bad faster.
37. a washed piece of flannel works the same as a swifter cloth.
38. dogs like to eat dirty underwear
39. frozen string cheesemakes an excellent teether.
40. magic eraser will take the paint off if your walls (and varnish off of your floors).
41. always wear gloves when using wallpaper paste.
42. you can make homemade playdough
43. keep water and snacks in your car just in case for little ones
44. Ross, the rack, and outlet stores
45. dog toys and baby toys are the same
46. Diaper genies are a waste of money
47. Digital cameras are awesome, and so are memory cards.
48. Do not buy generic spray on oil with flour, it is not the same as the name brand.
49. you only need to eat 3 TBSP of peanut butter extra a day when pregnant, not a pint of hagen-daz
50. a puppy should be trained from day 1 to poop in one section of the yard.
51. proactive gets rid of pimples
52. Potatoes and onions should not be stored together.
53. White vinegar can be used in place of jet dry
54. ear wax removal is considered a surgery by insurance companies.
55. fry oil can be used more than once
56. 7up extends the life of cut flowers
57. You can cut baby nails shorter with scissorsthan clippers.
58. Google has spell check for internet posts
59. cast ironcan not go in the dishwasher, ever
60. Grass should not be cut shorter than 3 inches.
61. Jelly fish can still sting you when they are dead.
62. infant carseats allow the baby to sleep while you run errands instead of waking them up every time you get in or out of the car.
63. you will always have a pile of un-matched socks
64. every kitchen needs a pair of scissors.
65. Never use liquid dishwashing detergent
66. Dress shirts need to have the collars and armpits pre-treatedfrom day 1, or they will discolor.
67. All screws should be anchored.
68. With super glue
69. less is more.
70. Sometimes babies cry for no reason.
71. Bagged salad lasts longer if removed from the bag and put into a glass bowl.
72. dehydration can make you cranky
73. There is a flat rate long distance from the US to Canada.
74. when diapers leak on a regular basis they are not the right size
75. Kids can turn anything into a toy gun.
76. soapy water gets rid of aphids
77. When you teach a child to cut with a knife they will cut everything possible.
78. dogs like to eat dirty diapers
79. keep a swiffer clth in your car
80. As soon as you get rid of the rabbit (that ate the garden) another will move in.
81. a frozen wash cloth is great for owies.
82. never substitute laundry detergent for dishwashing detergent
83. the dog will chew on the baby toys
84. fabric softenershould be watered down
85. Never leave a sippy cup of milk (especially chocolate) in your car.
86. wipe warmersare a waste of money
87. always look behind you before casting your hook over your head
88. you only need ½ the manufacturers recommended amount of dishwashing soap
89. the dishwashing coil can and will melt plastic utensils
90. Kids will climb things and then get stuck at the highest and most awkward positions.
91. Deadheading flowers promotes more blooming.
92. babies sweat profusely when they sleep
93. if wearing all black, make sure the blacks match
94. wash all parts of zipoff pants together
95. Always use spray on oil for bundt pans.
96. dogs will eat anything including lettuce and cucumbers if coated in gravy
97. As soon as you throw away your unpaired socks, you will find the match.
98. dog toys and baby toys are the same
99. always get the best attorney
100. You can take videos with your digital camera
101. you can not go off-roading in a Mercedes

I know it is wrong...

but I nominated myself for a blogging award. I have also submitted a picture to topmamma. What is wrong with me??? I am usually ( okay never vain), I don't worry about my hair, I hate to shop for myself, and forget to put makeup on more than half of the time.

I am very happy with my family and my little piece of the worldwideweb, yet somehow I can not resist adding my blog (and therefore myself) to these things. They are all just a bunch of virtual popularity contests. I wonder if it is because I have so little time for real life friends, I hate to talk on the phone and email family and friends any new news (maybe it is because they can't judge me? Yet, I put myself out there and ask them to judge me anyhow we these stupid contests).

Well, anyways, will you please vote for me? (Grinning at you sheepishly)

You can vote for me for best blog here

Thank you!!

Bampas visit

Bampa and Nana just went home from there annual visit (okay, not really annual, more like a new baby has been born and they haven't seen it yet visit, so what is that a bi-annual? visit or whatever once every 2 years happens to be.

We had lots of fun, the kids stayed up late, and skipped naps (so of coarse now we are trying to fix the crankiness), but I (well, actually Auntie LaLa who is still here) managed to get a video of Bampa and the bigger kids.



And on achievements for today: J has finally decided he likes milk! It only takes me microwaving it (like I have to for B), and adding Ovaltine. He has had 3 cups so far this morning. I wonder why N has always drank milk anyway he can get it like it is going out of style, while with B and J I am having to jump through hoops to get them to even think about it (I mean really who else has to Microwave the milk!!!)

Salsa fresca and guacamole

During Passover it is difficult to find yummy foods that don't contain chametz to make a whole meal out of, but not to worry, many ethnic foods are great alternatives, especially Mexican (well if you are Sephardi like we are anyways). And what says Mexican food more than salsa fresca and guacamole, and they are both super easy to prepare.

Salsa Fresca
1/2 onions skinned, cut into 4 large chunks
5 roma tomatoes, slices 3/4 inch thick
a large handful of cilantro
1/2 TSP salt (kosher of coarse!)
1 tsp lemon or lime juice

throw everything into the food processor with the chopping blade and let whir for 30 seconds or so, till chopped fine.

Guacamole
1 avocado
3 TBSP onion, chopped fine
1/2 TSP salt ( kosher!)
1 TSP lemon or lime juice
cilantro 1 TBSP chopped fine

slice the avocado in half, and pit and put all of the "meat" put into a bowl. Smash with a fork, add the salt and citrus juice, then add in cilantro and onions, stir to combine.

For a fancy presentation, put the guacamole back into the avocado shell.

When do we eat has just outplaced click for top movie of the year

So far. I don’t know if everyone would enjoy it as much as we did, maybe you have to be part of a large Jewish family in order to see all the humor, but it is defiantly worth a try! And since it is Passover now would be the ideal time to see it (that is if you can get your hands on a copy of it!) This movie is definitely adults or older children only, not for the younger crowd. When do we eat . is a must see! You will find your family in the movie (at least we did)

But the younger crowd would defiantly like Eragon ., that is if they like Harry Potter ., the violence (if you would call it that) is about the same, and the Dragon is Awesome! If you read the book, like I have you will notice lots of gaps and things edited out of the movie.

Happy Feet Happy Feet . was a hit with everyone young and old and had J up and dancing around.

And I still have not seen Merchant of Venice . and it is now starting to gather dust, maybe that will be tonites entertainment (with guests in town they get the final say, and I have been outvoted for many a night now).

So a bit last minute...

but tried a new cake recipe today that is perfect for passover, quick and easy to do, and actually tastes really good! It was in this months sunset magazine.

Almond Torte from Sunset magazine April 2007

Ingredients
3/4 cup whole blanched almonds (or blanch them yourself, super easy, just pop into boiling water for 3 minutes, then immediately drop into ice water and squish out of the skin)
pam cooking spray
1/2 cup sugar + 1 TBSP sugar
4 eggs separated
1 tsp. almond extract
1/4 tsp salt

1. preheat oven to 375 degrees, coat a springform pan with pam and then sugar.
2. in a blender or food processor whir almonds till finely ground ( be careful not to go to long or you will make almond butter!)
3. Mix egg yolks and sugar together till light in color, mix in almonds, salt, and almond extract.
4. whip egg whites till stiff peaks form.
5. Mix 1/3rd or egg whites into almond mixture, then fold in remaining egg whites
6.pour into spring form pan and bake for 30 minutes.

* I made mine into cupcakes - 18 per batch and used cup cake papers.