My Ipod had a Final Destination moment yesterday....

My Ipod Shuffle (featured here), seems to be telling me that the movie Final Destination isn't that far from reality. If you haven't seen the movie, let me explain it's basic premise (I have never seen the whole thing, but caught about 45 minutes of it on cable once). Basically, before some trip, a kid has a vision of him and his friends getting in a plane crash, so he tells them not to board the plane. Surprise surprise the plane does crash and he saved all their lives (I think some didn't heed his word and died). The "universe" found a way to course correct itself and have what was to be, be. For the rest of the movie, one by one, everyone that was saved from the plane crash dies in freaky ways. I have a nagging feeling there is another movie or something that focuses on "course correction" and is the same kind of idea but for the life of me I can't think what it might be. If anyone out there knows, please let me know!
So anyway, my ipod had been missing for a whole day and I was just kind of halfheartedly searching here and there for it, knowing it would turn up somewhere (it always does). What I didn't think of, was that Scout had spilled a drink on the cookie blanket the day before, and I had scooped it up and thrown it in the washer, but not washed it. I was waiting one day for my official "laundry day", so it just sat in the machine. You may think that I saved it from the wash, but it found it's way in there again and that is my final destination story. Nope. I threw some towels on top of the blanket and started it up. While transferring the contents into the dryer, I heard a *clink* and I just knew. I looked and sure enough there was "neil", earphones and all. I put the buds in my ears and turned it on and silence. I thought, well- Rob's first shuffle survived an entire winter under an iceburg and is still (far as I know) going strong at Sue's house. So, I plugged ol' neil up to the computer and he popped up on my itunes! All the stuff still showed up on it too. I was dubious about the earphones, but after I let the ipod charge up for about 15 minutes, I plugged them in and besides being a little crackily, they worked! I rejoiced and shared the ordeal with Rob and we marveled at the endurance of Ipod shuffles and I happily enjoyed Neil as I prepared our Memorial Day hamburgers. The crackling even went away after a short amount of time.
After dinner, Scout and Lola needed a park romp- so I got out the wagon put the kids in it and got Lola leashed up and we went to the park. I ran around with Lowes (she was particularly naughty) and I had to chase her quite a bit and I SWEAR I noticed at one point that I still had Neil clipped to my shirt (this is very common- I will unhook the earphones, but the ipod stays clipped to the bottom of my shirt until I remember to remove it and put it somewhere safe. When I got back from the park, fed Elles, and had Scout in bed, I noticed Neil was gone. I looked around the couch and decided that it must be at the park, so I went back and back tracked and couldn't find it anywhere. I went back inside and Rob took Lola, and searched for me for a while (I was kind of having a bad day and he took pity on me). He looked and then I went out again and searched again. No Neil in sight. So, I had quite a roller coaster ride yesterday concerning my shuffle. I couldn't believe my luck that I didn't dry it (Rob's got dried once and that is an ipod kiss of death), also I couldn't believe it could survive an entire wash cycle! I was so happy and thankful it worked I thought about it all day! and then- bam! Cruelly lost at the park. I suppose it's fate was sealed when I woke up that morning and since it was miraculously saved from it's fate- the universe had to do something.

As a neat little twist (I don't believe I shared this on my blog before) my good old original ipod I wrote an obituary for last fall, crawled back from the grave and was my companion today. Yes, he came back to life months later when Rob decided to spontaneously plug it back in, just to see. I had Neil by then, so it's sat in my "ipod accessory basket" abandoned for months. It was kind of fun to use "old trusty" again (it's new, well deserved name) but Neil has definitely spoiled me. I love Neil, I miss Neil, I want Neil back. (No Rob, I'm not hinting- I'm just saying).

I am not fully writing Neil off, as miracles do happen when it comes to my family's ipods. So stay tuned. Good grief, I need to make a label for my ipod soap operas!

Apricot Chicken

I made this recipe I found tonight and we loved it, it was pretty easy, so I thought I would share. I didn't get a picture of it, we ate it too fast, but I was able to scrape a few leftovers to give you some idea...

• 1/2 cup apricot preserves
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sherry (I'm sure you could use chk broth)
  
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips

Original recipe included:

• 1 medium green pepper, chopped
• 1/2 cup salted cashews

But I didn't add them because I didn't have them and also I am not a big fan of bell peppers. (I did have a bag of cashews a few days ago, but they were absently left on the counter and Lola can get anything she wants from off our counter, so bye bye cashews).


I did however make my own additions:

• 1/2 cup onion, cubed into stir fry size pieces
  
• big handful of broccoli florets
• Oh, and I bagged the oil since I cooked the chicken in oil.
  

We were very pleased with both additions, so I highly recommend them

What I am going to add next time:

• cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes to taste
• maybe a little more garlic
• I am sure fresh ginger would be better (isn't it always) sadly, I didn't have any.
  

Ok, here is the procedure:

1. cut chicken into strips. Warm up the wok and add olive oil. Cook chicken in oil on high until it starts browning, then add onion and broccoli and turn wok down to medium.

2. While that is cooking, mix the rest of the ingredients into a bowl and whisk. When chicken and veggies are cooked, add sauce, turn wok down to low and let simmer a few minutes (about 5, maybe a little less).

3. Serve over rice.

I added a little more soy sauce to mine and it was yummy, Rob thought it was perfect as is. In fact, he called it "the most Chinese thing you've ever made". I try so hard to find recipes that taste like a real Chinese restaurant, and even if it is good, it falls short. Well, Rob thought this time I did it. I added my own twist to the original (as I find myself doing a lot), but this time I really felt it was called for as the original recipe cooked everything in the microwave! Cooking meat in the microwave absolutely horrifies me, but if anyone would like to try it, I would be really interested to hear how it turns out. Here are the original instructions:

1. In a large bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. Add chicken and toss to coat. Transfer to a shallow microwave-safe dish. Cover and microwave on high for 3 minutes, stirring once.
2. Add green pepper and cashews. Cover and microwave on high for 2-4 minutes or until chicken juices run clear, stirring once. Let stand for 3 minutes. Serve with rice.

I would also like to know how it tastes with cashews. I would also like to sub the broccoli with snow peas sometime, or I suppose you could do both since I really liked the broccoli in this dish. But, I will definitely be making this again- so I can keep experimenting and tweaking until I have it exactly as I'd like it. I'll let you know what's good- and anyone that tries it, I would love a little feedback as well.

What Scout Does

She lays like the dog.............



She steals the camera and takes random pictures of:




Her toys...

Her foot.........

Self portraits......

Sneaks into baby sister's room during her nap, wakes her up, and takes pics.......(baby sister never minds)

her popcorn....

her tv shows....

random bad pics of her mother......

She also comes up with the greatest names for her toys

Some examples.......

This is "banana", "skin color" and this little dog has the misfortune of being named, "poop"

Shapes

This is "Paw Prints Glitter Stars" and "Uni"
(used to be called "Unicorns", but it was permanently shortened. Paw Prints Glitter Stars name is said in full every time though)


Last but not least- meet "Housie The Slippery Pig" (said in full every time too). This would be mine and Rob's favorite name out of all her animals and we have taken to calling House, MD "Housie the Slippery Pig".
We really have NO idea of the origin of the name.


She also dresses her animals in her clothes and purses and they go "to shows".


She also gets some grand ideas:

This was an idea she got to coerce a bird to come inside and be her pet.
Prompted after visiting our neighbors who have a pet bird.She also acts out her plan on how this bird is going to fall for it and eat the bread and find itself suddenly in our house (in case it wasn't clear to me).


She also enriches Elinor's playtime when mommy's back is turned:

I left Elle on the bed playing on her playmat and walked out of the room and I came back in a few minutes later and found this

This is what you find when you remove one of the "walls" of the "wolf cave".


Again, Elle didn't mind.




She provides a service to the neighborhood kids:

She decorated rocks with sidewalk chalk like Easter eggs and put them in this basket and made this sign. It says,
"Kids, have one and keep it forever"




She dresses up in Elinor's clothes:

This is a baby snowsuit and it's by a brand called "Chuck Roast" and it's printed on that little black tag. She puts this on and is suddenly a pony named Chuck Roast.

She also crashes pictures I am trying to take of her little sister-

I'll be taking a pic of Elle and suddenly:

or
or

She also is pretty good at crashing pictures she is in already:
and

and

And she pretends, oh how she pretends..............

Here she is as a mama kangaroo


a kitty

a pirate

and a super sleuth...

She also has a preferred method of going down the stairs:


(If she is wearing the one piece zip dunglees you won't see her go down the stairs any other way)


This is a post idea I got from my friend Liza, she does a post for her kids around their birthdays every year as a kind of journal entry chronicling the kids and what they are doing that year, little things you don't want to forget about this particular time in their lives. Since Scout's birthday is coming, I thought I would follow suit and do the same thing (Losties might recognize the title -I couldn't resist- it was the final episode of Lost this week -now there is something to chronicle.

Scout is the greatest little girl. Not only is she funny and fills our lives with laughter, she is a sweet heart and so good. She has a sweet (if not sometimes loud) disposition. She has never been a tantrum thrower (I kept waiting for them, but they never came). She lets me cuddle her. She gives me "big hugs" she caught on that I say I like big hugs, so she does her best. She plays so cute, but can make a mess of a room in record time (it truly boggles my mind sometimes). When she plays with her little toys she calls it, "shows" and goes through a play of sorts and that is one show. So when I tell her it's time to get out of the bath, or go to sleep, she retorts that she needs to finish "this show".
She loved school, particularly the end when they are all waiting for their parents to pick them up, she and her friends Amber, Gabby and Bella play horses and gallop around the grass and she is always mad at us if we are too early, wanting every minute she can to run around like crazy (she does THE BEST little ninny thing, where she cups her little hands like hooves and circles them around like a horse up on it's two back legs.) She is also a good student, she made it into the "1,000 club" (passed off counting to 1,000 for her teacher), she is starting to sound out how to write words and can read and sound out many words now.
She is starting to tell me that she is too old for some shows she liked 6 months ago. Is now finding some enjoyment watching some shows aimed at "tweens" (yikes!). She loves to play computer games and I let her thinking they are more interactive and teach her more then if she was watching tv (most of the games aimed at preschoolers are educational).
She has totally captured her daddy's heart. He has a very strong bond with her and they are cute as can be together. She is also an awesome soccer player, as you all have been finding out (right along with her mom and dad). She doesn't much like to go places that isn't the park or school. She is a little home body.
She had a big big change in her world this year with the birth of a little sister. While she has had her moments where she needed reassurance that Rob and I still love her, she has been nothing but totally loving to Elinor. Even when she is mad at me for paying too much attention to the baby, she shows love to the baby instead of taking it out on her. She loves Elles so much and is so excited for the day that they can play side by side together. She already does to the best of her abilities (or Elle's abilities I should say). The sound of her laughter mixed with Elle's is one of the greatest joys in my life. Scout's always been there for me when I needed a little one to hold and I will always feel a special warmth in my heart that she is my girl.
We love you Scout SO MUCH! Thanks for being such a wonderful little thing.

What the Bip??*

Is it just me or these the most hideous things on the planet?

I can't even imagine a world where someone thinks these are cute/marketable/worth-shelling-out-twice-as-much-money-as-regular-diapers. But hey- maybe it's just me. I got an ad for them in the mail today along with some valuable coupons. On the cover of the ad was a picture of the scariest looking baby I've ever seen. I turned it over to the picture (for the first time) and had to stifle a scream.
Anyway, all in all it was a very traumatic mailer.
Except for the coupons,
I'll use those --

(for regular Winne the pooh diapers thank you).


Ok, so here is that second picture I referred to in the ad -the one that almost made me scream (old man/baby hybrid)
Are the Huggies execs that are in charge of advertising on crack?



*I realize that "What the Bip" is usually reserved for my family's weekly movie quote game posts on The Kids Were All Wright, but I thought these diapers deserved a giant WTB?
(please don't sue me TKWAW)

Stop Signs

Scout has long been obsessed with stop signs.

Not these:

I'm talking about this variety:

I am not sure, but I think it started with a Blue's Clues episode.

You've already gotten a glimpse of this obsession, remember these from No Snails Allowed in My Mom's Garden?:
We have had these hanging up outside of our bedrooms for a while now (they are so cute, I can't take them down):They are "no" signs for Lola telling her she isn't allowed in our bedroom and there is one hanging on Scout's bedroom door (she isn't allowed in there either). The happy one is on our bedroom, since Lola is just fine not being in ours, but she is very sad (apparently) that she isn't allowed in Scout's super fun room.
I love the ears.
I bring up the "no" signs today because yesterday she made the cutest (and saddest) one of all. I was in the office, and Elinor had just drifted off to sleep for a little afternoon nap in her bouncy seat next to me and Scout was downstairs watching tv, and I was talking to Rob on the phone. Scout came bursting in saying something loud and I was violently trying to shush her as fast as possible and be on the phone with Rob at the same time. (You know, the frantic silent sssshhhhhhhhhhhhhh! With the arms flailing? That was me.) For what ever reason, she wasn't getting it, choosing to ignore me, felt whatever she had to say trumped Elle's nap, take your pick. But I had to keep shhing her and I couldn't really give it my full attention, cause Rob was still talking on the phone. So finally with an angry eeeeeehhhhhhhhrrrr she stomped out of the office. After a few minutes, I finished my conversation with Rob because- surprise! Elinor was awake and also I needed to go see about Scout.
I found her about to hang up this sign on the wall:This is a "no" Scouts sign. Isn't it sad? She said that I don't want Scout living in this house anymore, so she made this sign and was going to leave. Look at our faces! I am so mad and she is so sad.
So we had a little hug out and a good talk and it must have been good, cause she got up and made a new sign:
That's me hugging her, and she wrote "yes" (well, she sounded it out and came up with "ys").
So this is a "yes" Scout sign. Even though the no sign is so funny (in a sad way),
I much prefer the ys sign.

Annihilation

Last night at soccer Scout beat her personal best and got 6 goals! --Leading the Rainbow Dragons to victory. I was able to get one good shot of her scoring a goal, but I am really missing the loaner camera Matt has supplied me lately so I can get some zoom ins.
So this was the best I could do with my ipod:



I think we have pinpointed her success at the sport: 1. she is a fast runner and 2. she is focused (which is a rare trait in 4 year old sports-mans).

Now if we could just get her to focus on other tasks she does......