It's the Simple Stuff

3 years ago today, a princess arrived...

And she changed the Snyder household forever.  I remember crying like a baby...I didn't cry with any other delivery, I think it was sheer shock that a baby wrapped in a pink blanket was being handed to me.  I had fully prepared myself for my fourth baby boy, convinced myself even!  Never dared to allow myself to imagine I was having a girl.  Yet there she was.  I am still in awe today that I have this precious little girl in my life!  She has brough us so much joy, laughter, frustration, mood swings (yes already!) drama and I love every minute of it!  I love each and every phase that she has gone through, I love the girlie clothes, the girlie toys, her imaginative play her love for singing and dancing.   I am so blessed to have this little princess in my life.  I thank God for her everyday and pray with all my heart that I will teach her to love God and others and that I will be a good example to her. 

Happy Birthday baby girl...

 

We had a wonderful day together just enjoying this beautiful and unseasonably warm weather that we've been blessed with.  We played in the sand and sprinkler and our ghetto fabulous make-shift pool (our cooler, because I'm a slacker and haven't bought a little pool yet) and we enjoyed some McD's at the birthday girl's request.  We made pizzas on the grill for dinner and then some cake and ice cream because no birthday is complete without it :) I loved every minute of today and celebrating my beautiful three year old....Love you baby girl

Future Treasure Cove Storyteller...

The Madness has begun....

MARCH MADNESS that is :)  YAY!!!!  One of my favorite times of the year!  I love filling out my brackets and keeping close track of all the games!

There is other madness happening on a daily basis in this house and lately its been my little princess and her fetish for writing instruments that has been at the center of that madness...yesterday I thought she was too quiet and I was right!  She was busy creating this little masterpiece on my wall!!! That was yesterday, today...she was sitting quietly coloring at the table next thing I know she has colored the entire length of her arm with marker!  I honestly do not know how many times I have to tell this child that pens, crayons, markers, etc. are only for PAPER!!!!  In fact if you ask her "What can you color on?"  She will sweetly reply "Paper".  I do NOT have a picture of her rainbow bright arm because I was too ticked to take a picture...one of the few times I haven't captured such an event on film!  Thankfully it was washable marker and came off quite easily (thank you Crayola).

In other news, baseball has officially started...practice three times this week, Tues, Thurs and Saturday.  This early preseason stuff I'm not crazy about but with it comes the promise of spring, warmer temps and lots of time watching my boys play baseball.  I love it!  Cooper is playing this year (he played T-ball last year, but that was a complete joke)...this year however, he is on a real team.  It will be fun to watch Owen and him play together and have David coach them.  I can't wait, it should be a great season.

Tuesday I got to see my girls...Kate, Kinsey and Karlee!  Kinsey has been in Disney taking part in their college internship program, she had a couple of days off and my Uncle flew her home.  It was quite the surprise.  She was here from Sat. until Tues.  I packed Grady and Em in the car on Tuesday morning after the big boys were at school and we headed up to have lunch and see her!  It was soooo good to see them. 

Unfortunately the picture I have of Katie is on my phone and not on my camera because I had to take it while we ate lunch...she works at Ruby Tuesdays and that's where we went for lunch.  So she wasn't home when we were taking realy pictures. We had a great day!

Owen has had PSSA testing all week so we have done our best to have a good bedtime and I've been making sure he gets a really good breakfast.  Not that I don't try to make sure that they normally have a good breakfast but that usually means making sure they aren't eating a bowlful of sugar cereal everyday.  This week I've kicked it up a notch, eggs, baked oatmeal, etc.  only one day did he get to the Cap'n Crunch before I got downstairs. Tomorrow we have a pizza party planned for the whole class as a big "You made it through" celebration!!  Should be a fun time.  Owen has loved taking these tests, he's thrilled because they get to chew gum while taking them and have special treats and stuff. 

Busy weekend ahead, parenting conference that I am SUPER excited for, maybe it will finally give me a clue as to what I'm suppose to be doing with these four charges of mine :)  We have that tomorrow evening and Saturday morning.

On a completely different note, check out these bags.  My friend Amy, had one made for a diaper bag (she's expecting her third baby girl in just a few weeks) and its soooo cute.  This girl is really talented and I really want to get a bag made by her!  There's just something about handmade things...heart and soul.  One of the reasons I love Etsy!!!

Well off to watch the last little bit of March Madness for today and then I gotta get some sleep :)

My Style...or lack there-of

Saw this on Carla's blog...thought it would be a fun little quiz to take, thought it may define my "style" for me...but as you can see from the results, as with everything, I'm a style mutt...total mix, not pure-bred in the least!!  The picture below, while pretty, I don't think it's me, well maybe a little...there were other pics that I think were more me.

Your personal style is a mix of 3 specific styles:

33% Traditional Country

33% Nantucket Style

34% Classic

OK, what next?

• Check out rooms that express your personal style
• 

Or did we get your personal style wrong?

• Tell us how we messed up
• Take the quiz again

Traditional Country

Even if your backyard isn't acres of farmland and you don't actually have a cow out in the barn, your house sure brings you back to a time when that was the case for many.

You love spaces that feel casual and lived in. Furniture is practical and comfortable, and yet at the same time its very stylish. The best part of country style is how much it highlights collection and found objects. Antiques here, garage sale finds there and Aunt Milly's hand-me-downs throughout. Unique items that used to serve very practical purposes are now on display, and their history seems to permeate the home. Each space in the home seems to invite friends and family to come in and stay a while. There is a true sense of home felt throughout.

Nantucket Style

Oh how you love the beach! Who doesn't, right? And so your dream home is either perched in your favorite beach town, or you've brought that favorite beach town into your house.

Your art and accessories speak directly to the activities that are found at the beach. Pieces of driftwood you found here, pictures or paintings of the amazing views there. Things that remind you of the coast - surf boards or fishing boats - are found throughout the house. The feeling of the seaside is both abstract and literal in the design of your space. The fabrics are natural, cottons and linens and are light in color and touch. Much of the furniture is wood or wood framed (the lighter the better, think driftwood!) and wicker, when done right, is a must.

And since your true inspiration is the sea, the colors and textures in your home are the same that you would find at your favorite beach: white, light beiges and grays of the sand and driftwood, a variety of blues for the ocean and sky, and greens and vibrant blues of the sea glass� but the key is white! Your space should feel light and airy and give off the mood one has when at the beach: laid back!

Your furniture is comfortable and the layout is cozy. The more it reminds you of actually sitting on the warm sand, the better! And what do you do at the beach? Hang out with family and friends - and your home is just an extension of this play place. And though the space is filled with large white furniture, it somehow manages to feel both durable and casual

Classic

What's old is new again! The beauty of Classic style is how well it takes all of the beautiful forms, colors and textures of the past and reinvents them in a way that feels both fresh and inspired.

The style itself is a mix of European influences and French, English and Italian antiques and replicas are often used together. Furniture is well proportioned and comfortable and the rooms give off an air of sophistication and grace. Oil paintings depicting still-life or nature scenes and emphasizing symmetry of pairs helps maintain the traditional nature of the room. Windows are often covered with opulent fabric shades and/or drapery.

Traditional rooms give off an air of history that seems to say "I was here long before you, and will remain long after you've gone." And yet, even with this level of sophistication, the rooms are soft and inviting.

Took it again, they show different pictures everytime, results completely different...well kind of, I'm still a mutt but at least its just a mix of two...this green room is the one picture that I was referring to being more "me"...I mean me in a perfect world where someone could actually put all that together for me and money wasn't an object!!!  :)

Your personal style is a mix of 2 specific styles:

60% Traditional Country

40% Nantucket Style

OK, what next?

• Check out rooms that express your personal style
• 

Or did we get your personal style wrong?

• Tell us how we messed up
• Take the quiz again

Owen

So much catching up to do!  Gonna start out with this cutie.....
 I am being reminded on a daily basis of the fact that this kid is growing up!  So many different ways those reminders come but lately it has been the realization of just how much he can do on his own.  He has been very into recipes as of late and even brought home two kid cookbooks from the library last week.  Being a kid after my own heart, one of them just happened to be a Disney cookbook :) So he chose a dessert he wanted to make, gathered all the ingredients and went to it!!
It was just enough to serve the kiddos (thankfully, because I am NOT a pudding person) and they all LOVED it! 
Two weeks ago on the kids "snow day" which in my opinion was such a loss of a snow day, not because they should have gone to school but because they really couldn't play in it since the snow part really came in the overnight/early morning hours and the rest of the day it was an icy mix that created a nice solid layer of ice on top of the snow.  They tried but gave up and came back in!  Wow I got way off of my point! Anyway, that day I decided to make Chili and Owen and Cooper helped with the rest of dinner.  Cooper made corn muffins....entirely by himself (aside from the oven part) and Owen made a pudding pie.

 

Make a Smilebox slideshow

UNBELIEVABLE!

I still cannot believe that while watching the Today Show this morning I saw school closings and delays.  Last night while driving home there were a few flurries, but nothing much and by morning it was gone.  At least in Etown it was gone!  Just short of 20 minutes away however, was a completely different story....A FOOT OF SNOW!!!  My kids were not very happy about their misfortune!  Not only did it snow less than 20 minutes away, it was BEAUTIFUL snow, the perfect snow to play in.  I know I felt kind of gypped I can't imagine how a 7 and 9 year old felt!!

ooops

This morning I gave Grady his clothes to get dressed and ummmm.....oooops.....
I gave him Emma's jeans!!  I turned around to see if he needed me to button his pants and just totally cracked up!!  I can't believe he even got them on!

On another Grady note, I just have to say how much I adore this kid!!!  He has been ridiculously sweet lately, saying the most precious, heartwarming things to me!  Things like.......

1.  The other night I came home after being out, got my jammies on and he crawled into bed to snuggle with me for a little while and he felt my jammies (which were really soft) and said "Mommy, I love your sweet jammies, and your sweet heart...you know the one that's inside of you."  AWWWWWW!!!!  My gosh, totally melted me.  I've never heard him say anything like this before!

2.  He has said numerous times over the past few days...."Mommy, you are a piece of my heart!" 

These are just the most precious things and man, do they get me and just melt me!

Dinner is Smokin'

Joe and Kel gave David a smoker for Christmas.  Today they are giving it a try...perfect weather for that right??  Is FREEZING!  But hey I'm not complaining because hopefully the end result will mean that I am eating delicious ribs and chicken for dinner!!!  In the meantime I'm getting ready to watch Duke v Maryland...GO DUKE!!  After the game Kel and I are going to go see Bride Wars!  Fun Saturday!

Too good to be true????

 

Check this link out!    Could Etown actually be getting a little "citified" in the not too distant future???  And would I just be in all my glory that it will practically be in my backyard???  Be still my beating heart!!!  This Jersey girl can only hope!!!

Marshmallows...

Last week I made homemade marshmallows and I'm actually very surprised at a few things...

1. How fairly easy they are to make
2. How well they turned out
3. How many people were impressed that I made them (I guess my reputation of not being a domestic diva has proceeded me) or that it was even possible to make homemade marshmallows!

I have promised some that I would provide a picture and the recipe.  Obviously this recipe is not my own and while I didn't find it on her site it is listed as a Martha Stewart recipe!  So here are the specifics....

Ingredients:

 

• 2 1/2 tablespoons unflavored gelatin
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
• Confectioners' sugar (for dusting)

Combine gelatin and 1/2 cup cold water in the bowl of an electric mixer with whisk attachment. Let it stand 30 minutes.

Combine granulated sugar, corn syrup, salt and 1/2 cup of water in a small heavy saucepan; place over low heat and stir until sugar has dissolved. Wash down sides of pan with a wet pastry brush to dissolve sugar crystals.

Clip on a candy thermometer; raise heat to high. Cook syrup without stirring until it reaches 244 degrees (firm-ball stage). Immediately remove pan from heat.

With mixer on low speed, slowly and carefully pour syrup into the softened gelatin. Increase speed to high; beat until mixture is very thick and white and has almost tripled in volume, about 15 minutes. Add vanilla; beat to incorporate.

Generously dust an 8 x 12-inch glass baking pan with confectioners' sugar. Pour marshmallow mixture into pan. Dust with confectioners' sugar; let stand overnight, uncovered, to dry out.

You may be wondering what started my quest to make homemade marshmallows and the answer is really very simple...first I love hot chocolate and since as of late, PA has turned into the frozen tundra and I am in the perpetual state of being cold it has become my drink of choice.  Second I was invited to a friend's house for a girls' night out and she mentioned that she was going to have hot chocolate I thought this would be a fun treat to take along!  So there ya have it!

Now for the pictures....