Just Can't Contain It

New Moon Edward T-Shirt - $20



Twilight Sweethearts - $2


New Moon Godiva Chocolate Bar- $10




The feeling of getting to stare into Robert Pattinson's vampy eyes for over an hour at midnight on Friday- PRICELESS!!

A Story of the House That Wouldn't Pack Itself

No matter what I do, no matter what I say, no matter how much I beg- this house won't pack itself.

Why does it need to be packed you ask?

WE BOUGHT A NEW HOUSE!!!! When we first moved to the Houston area (a year ago), we rented because we didn't really know each neighborhood or really even where the grocery store was. But, now that we're officially kind of Houstonians (Houstonians with Okie Charm), we decided it was time to stop wasting our money on rent and go ahead and buy down here.

So, as I sit here wasting time, we close on our new home in less than 7 days. I haven't packed a thing. Nothing, nada, zilch. In fact, I've become so desperate that I have tricked Jake into thinking that cleaning out drawers in the coffee table is a game. We call it the 'trash it or keep it' game. Please don't tell my child that his new favorite game is just a ploy to get this house ready to get packed up.

And, by the way, if you happen to be in the Houston area, I'll feed you if you pack for me. Sound good?

Hungry Much?

Two new recipes up on my recipe blog ... so if you're hungry, I do declare you've been fed.

Yummy chili, anyone?

or should we tackle more serious things like some Turkey Day dressing?

Excuse Me, Mr. President

How would you like to wake up to this cranky face?



Daylight savings time has us allll messed up. We stay up late so late now that it completely obliterates that "extra" hour of sleep. Jake and I have decided next year we're petitioning the government for an extra 2-3 hours of "extra" sleep. We feel like that might make us feel better.

Standing there like a bump on a pickle

or running out of gas ... However you want to say it, that's what Mr. Jake experienced on Halloween night. At one point in time, he sat down on a person's doorsteps and waited for them to answer the door. At another point, he popped a squat on the sidewalk and declared he had run out of gas for the evening. A few houses away from our home, he declared that he really didn't need anymore candy.

That meant he just needed a 10 minute break, a mini Snickers bar, and swig of juice before Trick or Treating Round 2.

All in all, Halloween was a real treat (hah!).

My Lords and Ladies

A few weekends ago, we woke up super duper early (at least for a Saturday) and went wassailing to the Texas Renaissance Fair.

As one can clearly see, the kiddos could hardly contain their excitement on the rainy and cold Fall morning.

This is my "Hey we shell out a lot of money for these festivals, so let me show you how to make a good photo!!!" look. She's catching on! :-)

I think it was all worth it to see a man stand on a skateboard atop a bowling ball with 3 flaming batons. We were on the front row and I must tell you that more than once I had to reach up and make sure my eye brows were still intact.

Oh, and then we paid about 400 American 'pounds' to let Jake ride a rickety Renaissance style merry go round operated by a few hippies of the Renaissance period who looked like they a little too much to drink out of the King's cup from the night before, if you know that I mean.

Then Jake rode a llama named "Peru" ... never mind that Europeans had no idea of the existence of the country of Peru during the Renaissance times. I won't be a historical snob.

And there was food. Yes, lots and lots of yummy food. Joe had a chicken stew in a bread bowl that was delish.

Tanja attempted to thaw out her nether regions with some hot chocolate.

And Jake tackled a grilled cajun chicken breast ... because apparently cajun spices and seasonings were rampantly popular in the Renaissance times.

No, there is not a picture of me with food because let's just face it- nobody puts baby in the cornerneeds a picture of another chubby girl with a turkey leg in her mouth.

Then we sulked in self-pity for a little while as we watched these belly dancers flaunt their rockin' midsections. And, no, I didn't announce to them that I was the only TRUE belly dancer in the house ... since ya know, I have a belly and they don't.

We ended the day with the queen of the Renaissance festival and all of her ladies as we watched grown men ride horses and try to knock each other off with big poles, otherwise knows as the renowned game of Renaissance Chicken.

The Parental Unit

I promise I have tons of pictures of the past week or so to upload, I've just been a little slow on getting things done this week. So, in the mean time, I borrowed this couples questionnaire I've seen bouncing around bloggy land.

Introducing the Parental Unit of Mr. Jake:



1. What are your middle names?
Mine is Pearl and Joe does not have a middle name. He's all exotic like that.

2. How long have you been together?
5+ years

3. How long did you know each other before you started dating?
about 4-5 months.

4. Who asked who out?
He asked me out like a billion times and I finally conceded. The rest is history.

5. Did you go to the same school?
Nope. He was a Broncho and I was a Riverhawk turned Bearkat!

6. What are your favorite foods?
His probably lasagna and mine is mashed potatoes with beef gravy.

7. Are you from the same home town?
Nope. His hometown is in Morocco. My home town is a toss-up between Visalia, California and Del City or Cleveland, Oklahoma. We moved too much. :-)

8. Who is the smartest?
We are both fairly smart but in different areas. Joe is really business savvy. He is great in math and science and really exercises the right side of his brain. I am the complete opposite. I am intellectually driven and book smart.

9. Who majored in what?
Joe majored in Business Administration with a concentration on Management Information Systems. I am an English major. See, doesn't that reinforce our smarts?!

10. Who is the most sensitive?
Absolutely me. I cry over everything. I'm just a big softie.

11. Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple?
Morocco to see Joe's family.

12. Who has the worst temper?
We both have tempers, but he is more quickly to rush to his. I am a little more even-keeled.

13. How many children do you want?
We differ on this. I think he would be happy with just Jake. But, I want a little girl. So, at least one more.

14. Who does the cooking?
Oh my goodness, totally me. Joe and I have been together for over 5 years and he has cooked to me less times than I can count on one hand. And, if he does cook, he requires me to do the vegetable chopping, etc. This boy would keep Taco Bell in business if I wasn't around.

15. Who is more social?
We are both fairly social people. Joe has never met a stranger. He is very personable and will talk to anyone. I on the other hand am fairly shy until I know you a little while.

16. Who is the neat freak?
Most definitely him. I have a more laid-back (aka lazy) organization style. He is a clean freak!

17. Who is the most stubborn?
I think we may just tie on this one. We both always think we are right.

18. Who wakes up earlier?
Definitely him. Since I have nothing to wake up for in the morning, I take it up on myself to relax until at least 9am. I feel I deserve that. Ha. :-)

19. Where was your first date?
We attended his work holiday party and then went to see a movie. I guess it had to be love at first sight because we were both dressed up to the nines.

20. Who has the bigger family?
Oddly enough, even though I come from a HUGE family, his family is larger. He has 3 siblings, I have two. I have 10 natural aunts and uncles, he has something like 20. I have around 20 cousins, he has something like 10000000!

21. Do you get flowers often?
Nope, but only because he knows I'm not a flower person. I'm much more calorie-driven. CANDY PLEASE!!

22. How do you spend the holidays?
In the past, the holidays are always hosted by us or my parents. This year we are traveling to Oklahoma for Thanksgiving and my parents are coming here for Christmas.

23. Who is more jealous?
Yucky ... I think he is a bit more jealous just because it's his culture. But, I definitely get a green eye every now and then.

24. How long did it take to get serious?
I'd say about a month after our initial date, we were fairly serious.

25. Who eats more?
He does and it's crazy because he can eat more than me and not gain weight. Ugh him.

26. What do you do for a living?
I am a stay at home mom, full-time student, and part-time entrepreneur. Ha! Joe is a network administrator for a mortgage company.

27. Who does the laundry?
We both do our equal share of laundry. He does his and I do mine and we share Jake's.

28. Who's better with the computer?
Ha. Definitely him. I know the basics, but Joe knows pretty much EVERYTHING about the computer inside and out. But, then again, with a job as a network administrator, he should know everything.

29. Who drives when you are together?
He does. I usually refuse to because he is the WORST BACKSEAT DRIVER EVER!!!

30. What is your song?
Our song is "Let's Stay Together" by Al Green. It's just enough mix of playful and funk to really represent us!

So, that's us in a nut shell! And, I promise back to normal posting soon!

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown Jake!

We took a trip to the local pumpkin patch this weekend to make amends with our yearly tradition and to introduce Tanja to all that is overpriced pumpkins and hayrides.

The driver of the tractor that hauled our hay trailers couldn't have been any older than 12 years old. As you can imagine, I felt perfectly safe as the clutch of that old tractor cried out and we jerked and jigged while putting along at a steady 5 miles per hour. We live on the edge, folks.

We then posed with what Jake has termed the 'ugly' pumpkins. God help us. He better get his 'opinion' in check before he starts preschool next year.


And then we tried to fight with a horrible shadow in order to take a photo in front of a faux barn facade that actually housed a large goat with unbelievably long horns (way to scare the kids, buddy!!) instead of the above depicted lambs. And, I must gripe for a moment ... but, places like pumpkin patches are prime places for taking pictures. And, bales of hay sitting in front of a cute facade usually means TAKE A PICTURE HERE. They shouldn't really place said facade and hay RIGHT beneath a tree that shadows up everyone's pictures .... because we all know I don't have time for such things as PHOTOSHOP!!

I think Fall is a good season for our little brunette family. We look nice in browns and oranges. And, yes, I'm getting random. But, I must share the photos!!!


Haha, my little Jake-o-lantern!! AHAHAHA, Ya'll know you laughed.

A Penny For Your Thoughts

As in, you give me a penny because I'm going to need all the pennies I can get to feed my family after reading this article.

So, although we're all expecting prices to start declining on everything (meat, milk, etc.) because we are supposed to be coming out of this time of scraping the bottom of the economy bucket, we are grossly wrong (you know, according to those people who speculate about these things).

It looks like in 2010, as we were all expecting to catch a breath from high gas prices and $4-5 gallon milk, we will instead be shelling out between 3 and 5 percent more for groceries. Is that shocking to you? It's shocking to me.

GASP. See, shocked.

I already spend over 7 grand a year for groceries in my family of four. I can't image how folks with more than 1 or 2 kiddos get by! If I add 3% to my 7k a year, that's another $200 a year I have to shell out to keep us fed! Geez.

What do you all do to combat high grocery store prices?? Any special tricks up your sleeves?

I have started buying my meat at the end of the month to eat the next month since that seems to be when all the really good sale prices start popping up. I circulate between Kroger, Walmart, and HEB to make sure I'm really getting the best price.

This doesn't just help me out financially, but it saves me time on grocery shopping during the month, too. I only have to make a small shopping trip on Mondays to get sides for the week.

So, come on, ladies. SHARE THOSE SECRETS!!!

A New Member of the Family

Look who became a part of our family this past weekend:


"Gus" our new puppy. We adopted him from a very nice Houston family this past weekend. He is 11 months old and full (I mean busting out the seams) of spunk. He's already house trained (THANK HEAVENS). And, he is about as sweet as sweet can be.

Is Jake excited? Oh yes, he is beyond excited to have a puppy again. We were going to wait until Christmas to get him a puppy. But, "Gus" needed a home and we needed a pup. Cute story- when we were on the way home with Gus, Jake said (with a HUGE smile on this face), "Mom, Dad, I am just so so so happy that I have a puppy now. Thank you so so much."

I think any puppy accidents I have to clean up in the next few weeks are made okay by all of that cute appreciation.

Happy Faux-iday!

Yes, I just said Faux-iday. That's what today is, don'tcha know? A faux-iday. You know, a fake holiday.

Or, Happy Christopher Columbus Day. Yay, he found the West Indies.

AKA, the day when everyone in my household stays home and destroys my peace and quiet. And, make me cook a full lunch ... as opposed to just throwing the 3 year old a Lunchable. And, ruin my Monday TV viewing. And, and, and, and .... it could go on. Let's face it.

So, to the US government I do say, LEAVE COLUMBUS DAY TO THE WEST INDIES TO CELEBRATE.

Momma is officially on strike on this faux-iday.


This post was alternately titled "Happy Columbus Day" ... but then it hit me that it was really an anti-stay at home mom day. :-P

Are You Hungry?

I hope so, because I just put up a new recipe on my recipe blog. Baked chimichangas anyone?

And, I dedicate this post to my brothers who insist on calling them chimi-chain-gas.

Check it out: Recipe Rundown.

It Brings Me Great Pleasure To Announce ...

It's now cool enough to wear a light jacket!!! YAY!

Now, keep in mind it was a steamy 98 degrees yesterday. So, our 67 degree weather today may be short-lived.

But, I shall enjoy it while it lasts ... break out the winter boots, baby!

My Precious! O My Precious!

Yes, Gollum has taken over my way of speech. But, only because I have a new precious in this neck of the woods.

Have ya'll seen this stuff yet?
Now, this may have been around forever. But, HELLO!! It's new to me! And, oh my lawdy, it's like crock pot crack. And, me likey crock pot crack.

Hello, my name is Heather and I am a slow cooker pot roast seasoning packet addict.

Anyway, I have a love/hate type relationship with my crock pot. I'm trying to take a load off of myself around dinner time by doing at least one crock pot dinner per week. And, thanks to bloggy land, I've found a multitude of slow cookin' recipes.

But, let me tell you, friends. The slow cooker needs magic in order to produce yummy flavor. Let's just face it. Sometimes low and slow sucks the ever-loving life out of meat and veggies.

So, just call me Tinkerbell because I have found the magic fairy dust of crock pot flav-uh. That's right. It's not just flavor. It's FLAV-UH!! (Did that just make any one else wanna says FLAV-UH FLAV??)

The night before the day I plan to get my yummy on with said crock pot meal, I dump some veggies into the crock pot(this time I did red potatoes, onions, fresh green beans, and carrots), lay a chunk of cow on top, and pour the pot roast fairy dust on top (you know, after I follow the directions on the back of the magical red bag and mix it with water).



Then I tuck it in to the refrigerator so it can go to bed for the night. I take it out in the morning and let it cook on low for about 8 hours. And, then it's perfect.

Yummy, tasty, magical, OH MY GOSH WHERE IS MY PRECIOUS, OH MY PRECIOUS!! type of good.

Try this, enjoy this, and thank me later.

It's Out To Get Me

So, as we all know, I hate the weather here in South Texas. We have a whole lotta heat and a whole lotta humidity, but not nearly enough reprieve from either.

Well, my wishes are coming true. I'm getting some cooler weather. Oh yeah, and some rain to boot.

BUT SERIOUSLY, SOUTH TEXAS!!! Do you HAVE to bring it on the day that we planned to go to the Renaissance Fair?!!

It's out to get me ... I'm sure of it now. If you find me in the fetal position, rocking back and forth, and drooling somewhere on the Texas/Oklahoma state line, please call the authorities.