Velata, So Easy, A 9 Year Old Can Do It!

You know you have a Velata addict in the house, when she's always on the hunt for things to dip in chocolate.
Last week I brought home a half flat of local strawberries (LOVE local berries!) to make jam. I was stirring a pot of strawberry rhubarb jam when Lily came in and saw the extra berries. She grabbed the Velata chocolate, microwaved it for one minute, then plugged in the warmer. She was dipping strawberries in chocolate fondue and had half a pound devoured before I could stop her! It's seriously that easy, and sooo yummy!
Need to try it yourself? Check out my website, easy-fondue.com.

Grandpa's Pedal Tractors

When my Dad first became a Grandpa, almost 12 years ago, he had many dreams about the future. He wanted to do a "Grand Kids Camp" where they all came to visit for a week. He started collecting pedal tractors, one for each grand kid. Most of the time they were old and rusty, and he would clean them up and paint them. He dreamed of pedal tractor races between all the grand kids.
What he didn't think of was the age difference between them all. As of this week, he has 10 grand kids. And there will be more (not from me!). So he decided that the kids all need the pedal tractors now, while they are young and will enjoy them. He came up from Oregon this weekend, and brought all 10 tractors. The kids had no idea.
Last night we gathered at my sisters, and told the kids Grandpa had a surprise. He opened the garage door and the kids had to find the tractor with their name. The jumped on them, and didn't get off (even for dinner!). Our favorite quote from the night came from Grant. "Grandpa, I don't like the tractor, I LOVE it!".
Even the "big" boys had to jump on and give the tractors a try! Missing from the kids picture is two day old baby Alana, who isn't even home from the hospital yet!
Lily's tractor is the one that I rode around the barn as a kid. Dad gave it a pink makeover.

What wonderful memories were made last night! Thanks Dad for sharing your love of tractors!

Memorial Day Weekend

May was just a little crazy around here. I was pretty much in survival mode. I was working every day, and trying to keep up with every day stuff, with Dan gone the whole time. He was due back by Memorial Day weekend, but that didn't happen. We were supposed to go camping at the river (it's tradition!), but by that week, I didn't have the time or energy to get the trailer cleaned up and packed. I had decided to just go up for the day, and not camp.
Poppa Wayne heard my plan and pretty much told me to get my butt in gear and get the trailer packed. The other challenge was that Dan's truck was in Seattle, so we didn't have anything to pull the trailer. My brother in law, David came to our rescue, and with Poppa's help, we got the trailer to the river.
We were so lucky to have a beautiful weekend (until Monday morning), and of course we had a great weekend. The kids flew kites and played hide and seek in the dark. My 3 year old nephew, Firefighter Jack-Jack, tried to drive the motor home. Lily complained that the river was too cold, and too rocky (isn't that the definition of a river?).

A big thanks to my family for helping out, and making memories!!

In Loving Memory

In loving memory of the hardest working man I ever knew. Love you Grandpa!

Thank you Sister!

Thank you sister for my new profile picture! Check out more of Amy's fabulous work by clicking on the link on the sidebar.

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!

The 80's Dance was a big hit. I have to say, I have the most fun group of friends. They all went over the top with costumes straight from the 80's! We were cracking up all night. The photo area turned out great, and of course with three photographers on hand, the pictures are hilarious! I only wish it was warmer, and we would have moved away from the fireplace to dance more! This last picture is my favorite! My besties ROCK!!

Happy Earth Day!

Happy Earth Day!

80's Dance

My sister turned 30 this week, and we are planning an 80's dance this weekend to celebrate! My friends and I have been shopping for the perfect  attire. I found a great purple prom dress at  Value Village and was excited to wear it.....until my sister found my old Tolo dress. After 19 years, that sparkly red dress still fits!! So of course I have to wear it!!
We have been watching old episodes of Saved By the Bell to get hair ideas. And I made an 80's music playlist last night. That music is totally rad!!

Here's a few old pictures of me that are the inspiration for this weekend......don't laugh too hard!

If the Devil can't make you bad, he will make you busy!

Seriously, things are too crazy to keep up. I set high goals for this year, in both personal and business. I knew that with high goals, life would get crazy.....and I had no idea how crazy it would get.

My Grandparent's have had health issues all year, and I lost my Step-Grandfather earlier this year. Nate's broken nose needed surgery, so there was pre-op, then surgery within a week of him breaking his nose. Then back for more appointments the next week. The day of Nate's surgery, I got an infected wisdom tooth, and found out that I need all four pulled. I have been subbing more than before, and the kids are busy with activities.

With all those things, excuses would be easy. I could say I don't have time to workout, or that I need to put my business on the back burner. But I won't. I don't like excuses, and I will do my best to keep working towards those goals, no matter the obstacle.

Broken Nose

It's official, we have the first broken bone in the family. Not a shocker that it's Nate. He was playing Dodge ball at church, and was hit in the nose with a garbage can.....Que the kick the can jokes. We spend most of Friday in and out of doctor's offices, getting a CT scan, just to find out it's broken, and there's nothing they can do until the swelling goes down. We see a specialist tomorrow and will find out what they want to do. Here's the progression of the last few days. He's been a trooper, not complaining at all. Funny thing is, the unit he is doing in PE is dodge ball, so of course I had to send a note excusing him from PE!

600!

Wow, blog post number 600! I was going through old files and found this list I made when I was speaking at my church's Mom's group. I know you all can relate!!

You Are A Mom of School Kids When…..

• You feel like your name is Mom’s Taxi
• You can fill a notebook with different schedules and lists- snack schedules, teacher’s notes, sports schedules, school calendar ect…
• The only adult conversation you’ve had today was with the school crossing guard
• Your child’s teacher is starting to believe the stories they hear about you
• Your kids have more of a social life than you do
• You are starting to understand Pokemon
• You need your child to program your cell phone
• You have to fight your kids for computer time
• PTA has you on speed dial
• You get excited about Costco coupons
• You carry folding lawn chairs in your car
• The only friends you see on a regular basis are your kid’s friend’s Moms
• You can make cupcakes in your sleep…and actually might have done it already

Running

I ran my first 5k today! I have been power walking/jogging for the last 6 weeks, but this was a stretch for me. I finished in 38 minutes, and hope to beat that time in May when I run the Hagen to Hagen fun run. I am thankful for my sister and step father who cheered me on the whole time. I did have a little bruise to my ego when I got passed by a little 5 year old who was practically dragging his father along the trail, yelling, "Come on Dad, let's RUN!".

Last Chance!

I'm so excited about the changes coming to Scentsy this spring. But before we launch the new spring line, we transition this month. That means we have a list of scents that will not make it into the Spring/Summer catalog. Here's the list:

Autumn Stroll
Autumn Sunset
Black Ruby
Central Park Pralines
Christmas Cottage
 Cinnamon Bear
Cinnamon Vanilla
Clove and Cinnamon
Cocoa Clementine
Comfort and Joy
Cozy Fireside
Embers
Eskimo Kiss (my favorite winter scent!)
Festival of Trees
Flutter
Honey Pear Cider (my favorite fall scent!)
Pima Cotton
Pumpkin Marshmallow
Pumpkin Roll
Sentimental Cider
Shades of Green
Silver Bells
Snowberry
Spice Bazaar
Whiteout

Scentsy is also discontinuing the 1 pound BRICKS!! Most products are 10% off this month, so now is the best time to grab a brick of your favorite scent that is going away!

Scentsy INC is launching new product lines, and an exciting new brand this spring. Now is the BEST time to join my team! Are you looking for extra money, on your own schedual? I am here to help you on this exciting journey! I love working with my team and helping them reach their goals. Next week I will be traveling to Portland with some of my team for Spring Sprint. We are going to have a blast, and I am super excited. This summer we will be traveling to Las Vegas for Convention. I can't wait! Who knew working was this much fun?!
Check out my website and click join to learn more!
hollysnow.scentsy.us

Prayers

Asking for prayers for my family. My Step-Grandfather passed away Monday night, and my Grandpa Dennison is still in the hospital recovering from surgery. It's been a rough week for Mom and Wayne, and I ask that you pray for strength for them through this difficult time. Thank you!

Snow Day with Auntie

We didn't get our warm up until last night, so I did have 7 kids yesterday. We had a great time, and I would do it again in a heartbeat! Justin did great, and the kids all wanted to snuggle with him. The big kids all played outside in the snow, and for dinner they made their own pizzas. I was thankful that the little boys ate all the sweets I had been baking all week! My favorite quote of the day came from Drew (shocker!!). "Auntie, what's that on the plate? Ohhhhh, it's pupcakes!".

Snowed In

The kids and I are snowed in. I haven't driven anywhere since Sunday. Monday was a holiday, and school has been canceled the last three days. Tuesday was the PERFECT snow day. The snow was fluffy and it wasn't too cold. The kids played with their friends in the snow. Then the wind came yesterday. A very cold Northeaster that dropped us down to 9 degrees (-9 with the wind chill). Of course one of my pellet stoves quit working, and Dan went off to work. I'm too cheap to have a repairman out, when I know Dan can fix it. So we are relying on space heaters.

We have been keeping busy, and surprisingly the kids don't have Cabin Fever. I have been trying new recipes from Pinterest, and they are good......not so good for my waistline. I am so thankful for my stockpile of groceries, and the ability to stay home with the kids. It's supposed to warm up to 32 today, but it's still only 18 degrees. I'm thinking we may not have school again tomorrow. I'm babysitting my nephews tomorrow, but if there's no school, that will add my niece and my own kids to the mix. 7 kids, ages 11 to 7 weeks. Praying for a warm up and school tomorrow!

Snow Day for the Snows

A Snow day for the Snows. Dan saw the neighbor kids making a huge snowman, and tried to compete. Lets just say he lost. To his defense, there were about a dozen kids working on the other snowman. What a fun day! And as Lily says, "There is no better day than a snow day with Daddy home!".

January's Specials

January is the BEST time to host a Scentsy party! Hostesses get double the half price rewards. You could have a home party or a basket party. This month is also Bring Back My Bar. Twenty discontinued scents are brought back on bar form only, for January only. Some of my favorites made the list: Berries and Bubbly, Cinnamon Cider, Spring Clean and Toasted Apple Butter.

Check out my website for the complete list, (click on the link on the sidebar) and contact me to book your party!!

Reasons I NEED a Clubhouse

I have had a dream for the last few years of having a clubhouse. Our family is growing, and growing, and there are few places to host all these family gatherings. We have very few places to host a Stauffer Sunday! When I hosted last February, I had 52 people in my house!! Amy's baby shower had 25 people, Thanksgiving at my house was 30 people, and Christmas with my Dad and Step Mom was 23 people. So we NEED space to host these events. So that's why I want a clubhouse. I have it all planned in my head. Nothing fancy, just practical and room for all these people! The kitchen would hold commercial grade appliances, big roasters, commercial coffee pots and everything needed for a large group. I keep adding things to this clubhouse in my mind......until I hosted Christmas last week with my Dad. Dad likes to buy the "boys" some sort of weapon, have them all rip them open and start battling in my house. After the pictures frames started falling off the wall, I realized one thing that the clubhouse will NOT have is breakables.

A Christmas to Remember

A new baby in the family, Dan being home for more than 5 days, surrounded by family and friends, and of course the annual Stauffer/Dykman battle.......gives us one Christmas to remember. I am so thankful for these memories, and the blessings we have been given!!