Red Lobster Biscuits

Have any of you ever eaten at Red Lobster and almost made yourself full (before your meal came) on those amazing, yummy cheddar biscuits?
I have. And when I do I'm almost never sorry for it...they are so good.
I have a great recipe for you to try out that gets so close to Red Lobster's secret recipe, you'll start smelling the ocean.

Red Lobster Biscuits

Pre heat oven to 450.

2 cups Bisquick
3/4 cup sharp 1/2 fat cheese *(yes, I try to sneak in lower calorie crap all the time)*
1/2 cup water

Stir together and cut into rounds. Set on parchment paper.

Melt:
1/4 cup real butter
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp parsley flakes

Brush on top of all biscuits, getting all around the outsides too. Bake for 9 minutes.
Mmmm.

Brandon's School Project

Brandon had to memorize a story and make props to go along with the telling of it, and so, seeings how there was a Robert Munsch play at school on Wednesday, he decided to tell a Robert Munsch story.
He did a good job and I hope that he tells it like this at school today!

Sold!!

No more last minute showings and rushing around picking up toys, cookie crumbs and dirty socks! We got word yesterday afternoon that our buyers could remove all their conditions, making our house sold.
Let the packing begin!

Oh, and as a side note, Melissa at "Less is More"...if you are reading this pls message me to let me know if you're on Facebook! I can't find you and would love to chat/meet for coffee the next time I'm at Costco!

Scrapbook Corner

Yay..my first scrapped page since I took a hiatus a few months ago. It came together in about 15 minutes, too...must have had a lot of ideas stored up in that period of time! 

I've started packing a few unused and unnecessary items, and I'll be heading down to my grandma and grandpa's acreage soon to help them do the same...they are moving off the acreage and into town.

The furnace and chimney inspector was here today to give the ok to remove that condition from the offer we accepted on Monday night. Yes, we got two offers on Monday, and accepted one!

So, needless to say, a family of 5 generates a lot of possessions over time, and we've lived here for 4 years. But surprisingly I don't have alot of things for a garage sale, as I keep the knick knacks and such down to a minimum...I don't like clutter (thank the Lord for baskets). Still, I have found a lot of unused things to pack up early: extra linen, the decor above the cupboards in the kitchen, and pans and pots that we have around for when company comes and I have to cook extra food. I don't think we will be worrying about too much  company for about a year; in our little rental there isn't space for extras much less ourselves!

I also have a tub half filled with some things for my friend's garage sale she's having. All in all, the first half of my week has been quite productive! In fact, I may just sit here tonight and scrap some more!

QP: Raspberry Road Designs
word art: 2 ps in a Bucket

Furniture Shopping...not really fun with Kids.

With all the showings on the house this past week and gymnastics camp for Brandon we found ourselves in the city quite a bit with some extra time to kill. Besides stopping at Tim Horton's for coffee and timbits, we shopped around for furniture for the new house.
I have said before how we have always upgraded/fancied up the main living areas, and the kid's rooms tons of times without ever buying bedroom furniture for ourselves. Because really, all you do is sleep in the bedroom (among other pastimes :) ), and so who really cares what it looks like as long as it's functional. Well, I'm starting to care, and am getting tired of the thoughtful hand me down dressers we've had for too many years. And now it's time for momma to have a sanctuary of her own! And for Mike too. :)
So we looked all over the entire city, and we also still want to check out Battleford Furniture as well, as that's where we got some of our appliances and they have amazing deals there. But for the interim, we have found "the one".
Turns out that the bedroom furniture I fell in love with is the exact stuff our best friends have in their home! It was always in the back of my mind that I loved their bedroom suite, but I found it funny how I gravitated towards it months later, with tons of other furniture around me of the same sort. So if you don't mind too terribly you two, we may just end up not only being around the corner from you in the city but with the same bedroom as well! --And who says like minds don't find each other??
With that over and decided, and only months away from purchasing the suite as we are not moving our old stuff twice, we took a gander at new reclining furniture as well. I'd like to get rid of our 70's couch and loveseat in the basement, and put our current stuff down there. We looked all over the city in every store, and decided to go not only for quality but for durability.
Funnily enough the stuff we loved at La Z Boy was the exact picture I had saved months before when we first decided that we wanted new furniture. I didn't even know which store they came from...I just knew I wanted the new furniture to be streamlined and comfortable, not poufy and pillow-like as most leather furniture is. Blech.

Now that we know it's there and a regular stocked item, and that it takes 8-10 weeks to be delivered, we will wait until the new house gets closer to completion to order it.
As for the appliances, we know exactly what we want and need, and will order the same stuff that we have now...just in stainless steel.

I'm glad I have these few things ordered out in my mind, and it makes me feel a bit in control of a part of this new adventure we are undertaking...because all I can do now is hold on and ride it out!

Hunting for the furniture was not the issue this past week since we knew what we were looking for...it was taking the children with us. All of them.
Usually I like to leave one or two behind. You know, for sanity. As the saying goes..."You can dress them up, but you can't take them out!"
And, of course, it rained, was raining, and it was muddy. Oh lord, here we go, I thought.
Ok, with the kids, when we go out among other human beings, we do three things:
1. Turn off the ignition, turn around, and lecture about proper in-store behavior.
2. Threaten/bribe about said behavior and etiquette...usually involving taking away/graciously giving timbit time.
3. Plead/lecture one more time, adding a stern "I MEAN it" as we walk up to the doors with a smile so that store clerks can't read our lips.

It may sound like overkill, but while our kids aren't monsters (kids will be kids), I know that they need reminding of these rules each and every time we go out in public. I wish it weren't this way, but it is and so we deal with it!
In the first store they went a bit nuts; it must have been the smell of all that expensive clean leather. Thankfully, they pulled in a bit to heed our whispered, "take off your shoes!!!"  They did, and then we let them roam around, trying out all the furniture until their hearts were content.
And really, they weren't that bad, or whiny. They remembered to take off their shoes, and the two oldest didn't even fight...too much.
But by the end of the afternoon I was frazzled enough to remember that, next time, we will pick a time when Mike and I can shop for furniture completely alone.

Nifty at Fifty

We celebrated Mom's 50th birthday today with cake and coffee and a visit from friends and family as well. I  decorated her up in all the things she'll need to make it through her fifties: a power operated push up bra, a hot flash fan, a hot flash thermometer, several swanky happy birthday necklaces, an over the hill button, and a huge new ear...the better to hear me with, my dear. I baked her her favorite cake, a 6 layer Italian Cream Cake full of coconut, coconut custard between the layers, and a pecan cream cheese frosting all over. It was really low fat...NOT.

She was surprised to see things set up for her, and the kids got a kick out of dressing up gramma. Thanks mom for being such a good sport!! 

Among her other great gifts we told her we got her a new bathroom vanity and will be updating her bathroom for her as well...what can I say, we are suckers for more renovations!!

Then we all went over to mom's for an Easter supper of ham, potato hashbrown casserole, and all the yummy rest. And more dessert.

 Mike and I both walked the treadmill tonight due to those two desserts.  

But they were so worth it.

getting blinged out

the lovely power push up bra...

the hot flash thermometer

getting pinned with the old lady button

the better to hear you with my dear...

the grand finale

Fifty is Nifty

Hoppy Easter...I know, I know, that was LAME.

the hunt is on!

the first one spotted!

the big kids searched high while the little one searched low

Uhmmmmm, no...

on to the outside where the Bunny hides the dyed eggs

funny how they only search for the ones they dyed...

Charlie was right into it and cried when it was over...until I told her she could eat all she wanted on this one and only special day. That put a smile on her face...although she only had a few pieces. :)

I can see the two bright eggs these two walked right past, can you??

Charlie found one last egg until.............

.............."Dad I found anoder one, yay!"...............

........."Uh, no, just a rock!"

All done!

The Loot

Not only is Easter special because of the actual day, but the smile that it brings to the kids is almost better than Christmas. It is just that infectious. The Bunny left "real" bunnies for the girls that hop around and make sniffing noises, and buddy boy got a Hero Factory Lego guy to build, and a few Easter themed movies as well. It was a cold windy day, but that didn't keep them and their cousins inside for long, although they did come in to warm up a few times. They play so good together anyways so I don't think they felt the cold at all! It was a great day, and I hope you all had one too!

Awesome Show!

Last night the April Wine show was amazing. Great vocals (one of the few live shows I've heard where the band still sounds the same), great guitar riffs and the music was loud loud loud. Mom and I were in great seats; we were eye level with the band and that was awesome.
When they first started playing I was a bit pissed off that the lead singer didn't seem to be there. Another band member was singing, and I knew him to not be the singer of the song. Of course I couldn't say this to mom without screaming and so held my tongue. That's about when I realized the lead singer had so much facial hair that he wasn't recognizable to me! Once he started singing I really began to enjoy myself; hearing loss forgotten.
One thing I mentioned to mom on the way home was how, while I absolutely love the ballads, these guys shine when they rock. On top of it all, the concert was even more fun with the added surprise of laughing so much at the band's wit. They were so funny. In fact, to the delight of the Newfies in the audience, with the lead singer a Newfie himself,  the night started off with ear-splitting applause and the reaction at the mike was, "Lord tunderin' Jesus!"

I'm Going to April Wine...Ooooo, Tonight...Everything will be Alright...Oowatanite

Ok, so you gotta love April Wine to know what "Oowatanite" means, but if you are a true April Wine fan, as I myself most definitely am, then "Oowatanite" is what I'll be having tonight when I sit center stage to see April Wine. Love the group, love the music, and I'm really looking forward to hearing them live. I wanted to brush up on my knowledge of their tracks, and wow I am excited to say I'll probably know every song. Does that make me a geek? I don't know...thanks dad, anyways, for introducing me to this awesome band. I still remember him taking me for a rip down the street after the new stereo was installed in the Blue Bomb, and hearing those train alarms clanging at the beginning of "Oowatanite". I must have been 9. Wish you were here to see them, too.

Here are some fact for the music geeks out there:

April Wine formed in late 1969 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, but vocalist/guitarist Myles Goodwyn, guitarist David Henman, drummer Ritchie Henman and bassist Jimmy Henman soon moved to Montreal. "Fast Train," their first hit, appeared in 1971, the same year as the self-titled debut album. Jimmy Henman left soon after and was replaced by Jimmy Clench. The next year brought the band's first Canadian number one single, "You Could Have Been a Lady," from On Record. David and Ritchie Henman left before the next album, Electric Jewels, could be recorded; they were replaced by Jerry Mercer and Gary Moffet. After April Wine Live (1974) and Stand Back (1975), Steve Lang replaced Clench, who left to join Bachman-Turner Overdrive and later Loverboy. In 1976, The Whole World's Goin' Crazy became the first Canadian album to go platinum and their resulting tour was the first to gross one million dollars. Forever for Now appeared in 1976, followed by April Wine Live at the El Mocambo in 1977. Guitarist Brian Greenway was added that same year, making the band a sextet. After 1978's First Glance and 1979's Harder...Faster, "Just Between You and Me" became April Wine's biggest U.S. hit. The single (one of three Top 40 American singles by the band) propelled 1981's Nature of the Beast to platinum-record status. Power Play followed in 1982, and 1984's Animal Grace was their last album. Myles Goodwyn recorded his first self titled solo album in 1988. Four years later, all the original members joined for a Canadian tour, which convinced them to resume recording. "If You Believe in Me," the band's first single in eight years, was followed by 1993's Attitude.

And here are two videos for the geeks as well, or just for those of you who love the amazing vocals of this great Canadian band.

These two songs have got to be two of my favorites, although it is really hard to choose.

Enjoy!! :)

Can we Cram it all in??

We are one step closer to our goal...we have been watching the rental market in the city for a little while, as it is really tight.  We stumbled on a nice little rental house last night, and contacted the owner to have a look.  Surprisingly, it was owned by a friend of ours, and she currently lives in it herself, but is planning on moving into her boyfriend's house soon.  We had a look at it, mostly to see if we thought we could fit half our stuff in it...and decided it would be just perfect for the 10 months we will need it.  You see, our objective is to make our transition as stress free as possible.  We are working on selling our house for the end of June, and then renting in the city (Lloyd) while we have a house built (hang on...didn't I say stress free??).  We know just what we want, and even have most of the little details worked out, so we can't wait to start the building.

Back to the rental...It is a very cute 850 sq ft home with two bedrooms on the main level (one for us and one for the girls to share), and the basement is fully finished with a nice family room, soon to be toy room, and extra bedroom for Brandon, with a bathroom as well.  We will definitely have to store a lot of our stuff in the storage room, shed and storage locker I'm sure, as there is no garage with this house.  We really do like it though, and are very glad that one more stress is gone!  We have it rented for the 1st of June...so will have a few weeks to move in as well.

I told you it was cute!  The kids will love that it is also less than a block from a playground, convenience store AND the movie theatre!  We currently have 1600 sq ft on ONE level, basement and garage where we are now, so we will definitely have to downsize with this move!  First on the list is a kitchen table...ours will definitely NOT fit in this one!  We will just be watching kijiji and the restore for a smaller second hand one closer to the move in date.

Hopefully in a few weeks we can sit down with the builder we want to work out some details so I can be better prepared and a little less nervous about the whole process.  Mike isn't worried at all, so maybe I shouldn't be either!