this & that thursday

Ella: Mommy, I'm the chicken in this family and

I'm also the chicken in Chinese...right?

(her chinese zodiac is the rooster)

Me: Yep.

Ella: I love that idea.

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I have decided that a personal flaw ceases to

be a flaw as long as you own up to it.

So, for the record...

i am messy, prone to laziness, i am an emotional eater,

kind of a hypocondriac, love ABBA and have been

totally undependable since baby no. 3 arrived.

Endearing...right?

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Captured Evangeline's summer freckles.

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So many crafts.

So little time.

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Wishes her family actually took vacations in the Summer

like everybody else seems to.  Curse you, money!

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Are you taking a Summer vacation this year?

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5 "Bachelorette" Thoughts

Thought #1 - Ashley finally got her self-esteem back. Hallelujah. Telling Bentley off (F-bomb included) was a high point of the season. And telling Mickey to man up and leave on his own accord was awesome.

Thought #2 - J.P. is so clearly the one.  Although, "the other Josh Grobin" has a good chance too.  That dog-voice bit at the end of the credits was pretty cute.

Thought #3 - Who is this cowboy guy and why is he still here?

Thought #4 - Most awkward cocktail party ever. I loved it. The awkwardness was delicious!

Thought #5 - Ashley looked so great at this rose ceremony. The dress, hair, make-up and jewelry were spot on. That soft bun in her hair is gorgeous.

What are your thoughts?

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encyclopedia of me - X

Xanadu

Like every child in the late 70's I was obsessed with this movie. I can admit it, I still really love the first 20 minutes. The song "I'm Alive" by E.L.O. and the Muses coming to life one by one from the painted mural still thrills me. I thought Olivia Newton John as Keira was the most beautiful girl ever...oh, if only I could look like her when I grow up! I had the requisite crush on the male lead, Sonny, and his way too grossly tight jeans. We watched this movie again and again and, as an adult, I own a copy and I sit down every few years and re-watch my childhood classic.

If you have never seen this movie, please remember that you are not seeing this with the eyes of an adult. You are a six year old girl circa 1983. You live to roller skate. You have a crush on Vinny Barbarino.  You have a sticker album with plenty of scratch-n-sniff stickers.
Got it? Okay, now watch it.

Xavier Roberts

Like every child in the 80's (see the theme?) I had and adored a Cabbage Patch Doll. And yes, my Mom bought one that looked like me. With sandy brown hair that was in braids, blunt cut bangs and a dimple in the left cheek.

But funny enough, one of the most vivid memories of my Cabbage Patch Doll was the signature on the tooshie. I would stare at that signature all the time (mine was in green ink) and think it was the perfect grown-up signature. I would wonder about Xavier Roberts and who he was and how he signed all of the dolls' bums. I loved the strong, masculine X at the beginning and the soft, loopy ending.

I longed to be an adult and have such an impressive signature.

*to read more encyclopedia of me click here.

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on the craft blog today...

check it out here.

Sunday Sound Bites: Country Edition

No, I'm not really too into country music.

In fact, I find it generally grating, with a few exceptions.

But last night I watched the World Cattle & Livestock Auctioneer Competition. What? And you didn't???

My friend, Panda, had a brother in the Top 10 and I tuned in to cheer him on as he won Rookie of the Year.  And PS, they unapologetically said a blessing on the food before they ate dinner. Loved that.

Before the ceremony I was forced to listen to rather bland, twangy, country elevator music which made me nearly lose my will to live, but that got me thinking...about Dwight Yokum.

DON'T stop reading. Give Dwight a chance.

Yes, he dresses like a weird-o.

And yes, he looks rather...ahem....unattractive.

And another yes, most of his albums are standard country fare....except one. One amazing album that could make a grown man weep.

It's called dwightyoakamacoustic.net - a stupid name, but a great album. 

Oh and did I mention stupid album cover? Yep. There is none. But remember...great album.

All acoustic and throaty, deep vocals that resonate deep down to your solar-plexus. This is the one and only Country album that I must have and will always have in my music library. It's amazing.  You really should buy it and cry your eyes out while listening to "I Won't Hurt" and then smile and sing along to "Little Ways" and wish a guy wrote a song like that about you.  Oh and the amazingly cool "Things Change".

There must be some very old-man cowboy in me somewhere...because I love this album.

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happy mail

maybe money really does buy happiness.

no, it was the thoughtfulness of a good friend...

and her money.

after a long week of tragically bad migraines and

pain pills that left me coma-toast

I got this wonderful surprise package in the mail from a friend.

and I was happy.

I checked My Father's Daughter out from the library recently
and had raved about it to her over the phone.
(seriously people. it's amazing.)

thanks friend.

I love your guts.

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not so fast

migraine returned.

visited urgent care and family doctor.

4 big shots later.

still hurting.

ugh.

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Dear Dr. Jones,

I'm not even sure what medical cocktail you brewed

up for me to be shot into my booty yesterday.

But whatever it was, you're my new hero.

My 2-day migraine is gone and drug buzz in full swing.

Signed,

Drowsy, but pain free in PA.

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quote of the day

We are friends with a Hansen family at our church.

The other night, while I was on the Internet...

Matt: Hey Em, can you look up the Hansen's number for me?

Me: Sure.

Matt (quietly, under his breath): 1-800-Mmmm-Bop

Me: .....awkward silence.......

nerd. status. revealed.

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hands & knees

All week long Bianca has been up on her

 hands and knees, rocking back and forth.
(visible lips are optional)

She will surely be crawling within days.

Time to baby proof the house!

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RECIPE: Chicken Divan Casserole

You asked for it!

Here's our recipe for Chicken Divan Casserole.

The word "casserole" is in the name since traditional Chicken Divan is made separate from the rice and served along side it.  When I became an Ahern I tasted Chicken Divan for the first time and it has become a favorite of mine and out kids love it too!

I got the recipe from my Mother-in-Law and started making it all the time. Over the years our recipe evolved and I am honestly not sure how close it is to the original any more, but this is how our family likes it.  I added this to the Pioneer Woman's recipe site (Tasty Kitchen) and it has an almost perfect score (it used to have 4 cups of prepared rice and that was too much for some people).

CHICKEN DIVAN CASSEROLE

3 cups Prepared Rice

6 cups Cooked, Shredded Chicken

1-½ cup Grated Cheddar Cheese

½ cups Shredded Fresh Parmesan Cheese

5 cups Fresh Broccoli

½ cups Chopped Onion

3 cloves Minced Garlic

8 ounces, weight Sliced Mushrooms

1 can (10.75 Oz. Can) Cream of Chicken Soup

¼ cups Mayonnaise

½ cups Sour Cream

½ cups Milk

Salt And Pepper, to taste

1. Preheat oven to 350*F.

2. Cook rice until al dente. Set aside.

3. If preparing from raw, cook the chicken breasts until done and shred or dice when cooled. Set aside.

4. Shred cheeses and combine together.

5. Steam the fresh chopped broccoli. (I do this by placing broccoli pieces in a glass bowl, adding 1/4 c. water, covering with plastic wrap (poking 2-3 vent holes in plastic) and microwaving for 6 minutes.  Set aside.

6. Saute onion, garlic and mushrooms in butter until soft.

7. In a medium sized bowl combine soup, mayo, sour cream and milk. Add 1/2 tsp. salt, pepper, and ½ cup cheese mixture. And sautéed vegetables (it's okay if they're still warm). Stir to combine.

8. Spray 9x13" pan with cooking spray. Add all the cooked rice as the bottom layer. Add a layer of cooked broccoli and then a layer of cooked chicken.

9. Cover with sauce. Pat down evenly and smooth with a spatula.

10. Bake at 350ºF for about 30 minutes. Add remaining cheese and sprinkle on parmesan. Cook for 15 minutes more to brown the top. 

4

father's day report

we started the day with breakfast in bed for daddy.

english muffin sandwiches made with egg, sharp cheddar,

turkey sausage and thick cut tomato slices with orange juice to drink.

matt got some great new t-shirts, guitar picks,

a soda refresher and Funyuns for father's day.

because nothing says we love you like "onion flavored rings".

the girls made cards and we had a spectacular dinner.

daddy's meal choice was:

chicken divan for dinner

danish puff pastry for dessert.

we love our daddy and rejoice that we

can celebrate him on this special day!

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this. is. amazing.

happy sunday.

love,

3

lame wifey

Saturday night - 10:41 pm

Emilie: Dude. Is tomorrow Father's Day?!
Matt: Yes.
Emilie: Oh my heck!
Matt: So, I guess I won't be expecting any amazing surprises...

Lamest. Wife. Ever.
Thank you, Giant grocery, for being open 24 hours.

4

Dutch Vunderlawnd

was vunderful.

This was our 3rd Summer attending on the Lancaster General Health employee day. That means we get free lunch and I have to actually wear make-up even though it's always one million degrees...because we don't want to run into one of Matt's bosses and have Matt introduce his frumpy, frazzled wife...do we? (this primping for bosses is my idea by the way)

So we started at the Gem finder...this tells you which rides your kids are big enough for.

Then it was off to our perennial first stop. The Merry-Go-Round (or as Evangeline always calls it the "Miracle-Round").  I had planned on sitting in one of the stablized benches with Little B, but then thought she might like a ride.  And she loved it!  She looks SO big in this photo that my heart is a little sad.

We enjoyed many other rides including alpine slides and the scrambler which made me feel a bit sick (but only on the third ride).

After lunch we went on more rides and then headed to the Water Park. This is the first year we have planned ahead well enough to do both parks in one day and after walking around in the hot and balmy weather all day being in chilly frigid water was heavenly!

Poor Bianca had been such a trooper in her stroller as we walked all day in the heat.  We had toys, food and plenty of drinks for her, but she had missed her nap and was getting miserable.

We debated getting her into a swimming suit, but this kid adores the water, so I thought it was worth a try. I am so glad we did because she was so happy!

It was a full day (6 hours worth) and we returned home to dinner and early bedtimes. 

P.S. As we pulled up to our house this evening Ella said, "Are we going to do anything fun today?" Yes, I have given birth to the most ungrateful child in history.  But I know she had a great day!

4

busy week

This week has been ca-raze-ay and the weekend will be as well.

Sunday: Was totally late for church because I was baking a HUGE, and I mean huge (3 lb), Artisan Boule from Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day. Have a mentioned lately that this book is life changing? Oh yeah, in like every other post. I taught a lesson in church and felt like it was all botched and choppy. (sigh.)  I am hit with a wave of uncertainty and self doubt that maybe I am a terrible teacher.

Monday: Completely planned, designed and executed a Summer-long system of fun activities for the kids and the family to enjoy. You can see it here. First activity - each girl making a Summer Journal to write their adventures in. Evangeline complains of a stomach ache and skips dinner (also known in literary terms as foreshadowing).

Tuesday: Evangeline wakes up first thing in the morning and vomits. We try just giving her some applesauce and fluids. She vomits all over our King sized bed. Ella uses too much toilet paper and floods the downstairs toilet, allowing water to soak through into our basement...yuck. The rest of the day is spent feeding Evangeline clear fluids through a straw and battling Ella's boredom at being penned in the house. And, of course, I got to clean many bodily fluids.

Wednesday: We miss our scheduled movie playdate because of Eva's sickness, although as the day progresses it seems completely gone. As soon as Matt returns from work he goes to help a new neighbor move into our neighborhood. I take the girls to Sonic where Eva is able to eat a banana and sip an apple juice (yes, you can buy just a banana at Sonic...it's a dollar).

Thursday: We get up and head to Alpaca Days at the library. It was sprinkling so they cut the activity short but we did get to pet the baby Alpacas. Afterwards we headed to McDonald's playland to let the girls have some fun after the illness. We return home and I watch our new neighbors' kids for an hour or two so she can return their moving van...but I keep all of the kids outside because our hallway is filled with stuff that got moved quickly during the toilet episode.

Today: We have Playgroup from 10AM-Noon. Then a pediatrician appt for Bianca at 1:30pm to examine some odd 2 inch scrapes on her leg which she may need a tetanus booster for (yeah, that happened this week too). I think it must be from scooting around the floor and sliding her foot under one of our couches and snagging an upholstery tack?

Then at 4 I meet a stranger in an undisclosed parking lot to sell her our Bumbo with tray for cash...money. I will most likely then head straight to Joann's Fabrics to purchase tulle to make Emily Foley's little Zoe her first tutu. Yeah, I'm the cool Auntie.

Saturday: We head to Dutch Wonderland for the annual Lancaster General employee day. Last year I was enormously pregnant and on moderate bed rest, but slogged it out in the name of not wasting our $70 worth of tickets. But it was so hot I think I only lasted 3 hours. This year we will stay all day to make our investment worth it!

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on the craft blog

click here to check it out and print your own!

Ella wants bangs

I don't know if I can bear to do it.

Here is a Photoshop rendering of what she might look like with bangs.

What do you think?

**UPDATE:
  I showed Ella this picture.

Ella: Is that what bangs would look like?
Me: Yes. Do you want them?
Ella: If that's what I would look like...it's a no.
Me: Well, what did you think it was going to look like?
Ella: I thought it would be cute, but those bangs are totally old lady.

Case closed.
No bangs.

whew!

14

eight months (sigh.)

height:

27 inches

weight:

17 lbs 4 oz

likes:

getting into everything
pulling hair
big girl food
peek-a-boo

dislikes:

shoes touching her feet
church starting at 1:00pm

quirks:

loves being accosted by puffs of wind in the face
loves Brother Raleigh at church

the past month's milestones:

 pulling herself all over the floor
getting up on hands and knees and rocking
"stranger danger" kicks in
grooved to music for the first time to gettin' jiggy with it by will smith

a favorite memory:

watching her explore everything she can.

B is a real go-getter and is getting fiesty to boot!

Feel free to comment on the severe cuteness.

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