It's a FuN last day of preschool treat!

"OWL MISS YOU" TREATS!

I wanted to make something fun for Maximus to give to his classmates for the last day of preschool & I saw these adorable owl smores on Pinterest so I had to make them!

I followed the directions from Living Locurto (website below), she gave step by step directions and tips, they were so easy to make!  The boys had fun making their own and everyone thought they were so good!  

I attached a card that said "have a great summer! owl miss you -Maximus because these were for his last day of school preschool (sniff, sniff)!  Time goes by so fast enjoy every minute with your little ones!

Happy Last Day of Preschool Maximus!

Directions to make these cute owl treats are on the website below:
http://www.livinglocurto.com/2011/09/owl-smores-round-up/ 

If you make these let me know & if you have any other fun treat ideas please share!!  I'm always looking for something fun to try!

-paula

Jordan's Heavenly Cookie Dough Cheesecake

Hello everyone!

Today I am sharing a recipe that I did not get from my mother... (one of like 3) hehe
It is my chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake recipe!
I am attending a family barbecue today and I made this cheesecake so I decided to share it with you guys.

Origin of the cheesecake: 
I made this for a graduation party two years ago, I needed something easy so I made the cheesecake but I wanted it to be chocolate somehow so I added the cookie dough and it was a HIT I started getting requests! Im serious! It was so crazy to me because it is soooooo simple to make! So me with my love for glory, I kept making it for every event, I make it when I go home for my family, I made it when I met my boyfriends parents, I make it for every type of potluck event and I never get to take any leftovers home because everyone eats it up... and I eat up the compliments ;)
Please let me know if you try it and what you think!!
xoxo JC21

Ingredients:

• 2 packages (8 oz.) of Philadelphia Cream Cheese - try to soften it for 20 minutes or put in microwave for 15 seconds
• 1/2 cup of sugar 
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup of cookie dough for mix - 1/4 cookie dough for top
• 1 Honey Maid Graham Pie Crust (Sometimes I use Oreo, chocolate, and one time I got ambitious and made my own cookie dough crust- it was hard but delicious)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla into a large bowl
• Add 2 eggs and mix until blended
• Add 3/4 cup of cookie dough into the mix one teaspoon at a time and mix gently throughout (You can really add as much as you want I usually add a little more)
• Pour the mix into the crust
• Place the 1/4 cup of cookie dough in teaspoons on top, again you can add as much as you want this cookie dough hardens
• Bake 40 minutes
• Let cool for an hour
• Place in fridge for at least 6 hours (overnight is ideal) and Serve :)

EGGPLANT & ANGEL HAIR PASTA ROLLS

This is the only way my husband will eat eggplant!  You must try this recipe even if you're not an eggplant fan, it is so delicious!

The original recipe (which I do not have) came from Jasper's Restaurant in Kansas City.  It is called pasta a la Norma but like I said, I do not have the original recipe so here is my version of this amazing dish!

Ingredients:

2 large eggplants
extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper
angel hair pasta
2 jars of San Marzano Marinara
sliced provolone cheese

Directions:

Set the oven to 425 degrees.

Cut the eggplants into thin slices.

Place the sliced eggplant on a baking sheet and cover each side with salt, pepper and olive oil. Use your hands to make sure the eggplants are completely covered.

Bake for 10 min. turning the eggplant over half way.

While the eggplants bake, boil the water for the pasta and cook as directed on the package, el dente.

Drain the pasta and rinse with cold water, add one 1/2 bottles of sauce to the cooled pasta and mix together.  

Let the eggplant cool before rolling.

Pour 1/4 of the second jar of sauce into the bottom of a baking dish. 

Take one slice of eggplant and add a spoon full of pasta to one end and roll.  Place the roll into the baking dish and continue until all the slices are rolled. 

Cover the rolls with the remaining sauce, cover and bake at 425 degrees for 15-20 min. then add the provolone cheese and bake uncovered for another 5 minutes until the cheese is bubbling.

Serve with garlic bread & ENJOY!!  

NOTE:  I am not a foodographer so the last photo is not my food but it gives you the idea of what a prettier version would look like!  

-paula

HAHA!! LOOK CLOSELY!

Go to  http://www.wittenberg.edu/ and look closely at the first photo that pops up!!

Yep, that's my family!  The little boy standing up in the red sweatshirt is Madden!  Max is somewhere not seen but he is holding the camera taking pictures of all the graduates!  From left to right (toots, jackie (kyle's mom), kyle, ruth(you can see her hair), me, matt & linda).  It was cold & miserable but there we are supporting our girl!

Had to share, thought it was funny!

-paula

Post Grad Life

Hi everyone!
These past two weeks have been CRAZY busy!!!
I graduated two weeks ago and am so so fortunate and blessed to have such an amazing family that came all the way to Ohio to watch me graduate I cannot get over how wonderful it was to have them here for a week!  The weather was not ideal, actually it was awful it was below 50 degrees and raining throughout my graduation and my grad party... but I was surrounded by my family and best friends so it was perfect to me!

In the past two weeks I have graduated from college, finished my track career, started two new jobs, moved into a new condo, and I am just starting to settle into my post grad life... and let me tell you I am LOVING it so far!! 

I have always been an old soul and being an adult has always been attractive to me so I wasn't very worried about the adjustment and everyone has called me naive.  I was a little worried and thought I was going to be a little nostalgic about leaving my track athlete life behind, which it might hit me later when track season comes around for my younger friends, but I finished at my last regional meet,  very confident and relieved.  I prd in my last 400 meter hurdle race so I ended on a very good note, but let me tell you, that race as much as I loved it is HARD and I felt so happy that I never had to put my body through that again lol.  I am keeping up with working out though because I do not want to get out of shape so I have been developing habits of going on some type of run and incorporating lactic acid work into my long runs so I can keep my muscle tone!  I will definitely post some of the workouts I have been doing for you guys soon because they are quick for people that don't have a lot of extra time to workout, but you work HARD!

I am really really loving working out on my own time and making a lot more money than serving wages ;)  I love packing a lunch and not having homework, and getting ready for a big girl job!

My post grad plans are a little complicated, but for the first time in so long I really feel like everything is together and I can have a solid routine!  
This summer I will be returning to my beloved job as the field event coordinator for the Champion City Kings.  This job is so fun and so dear to my heart because it was my first summer in Ohio, single, independent, on my own and I really found myself and fell in love with the community through this job so I am beyond excited to enter my third season with them!!
I also have a very very part time, very entry level marketing job with the Columbus Crew where I put on various events throughout Columbus and help with their gamely promotions.. It works so well with my schedule because there is a team of us and we sign up for the events we want to help plan and put on so its actually very ideal for my summer plans!
My "day job" is with a local contracting company in Springfield called C&N contractors. I am currently redesigning their website and will be creating various promotional videos for them throughout the summer.  I am very excited to be creative with this!
I have a hectic summer before I start working ONE FULL TIME job with Insight Global in September.  I have no idea how my brain will adjust to just having one job but I am excited to make some big girl money and have a career!


So that is a quick update on how I have been dealing with post grad life I will be sure to post some more for you all I have some exciting ideas and events coming up!!!
Thanks for reading!
xoxo JC21

MOMMY MOMENT!

I've had so many mommy moments but this one is by far the craziest!  

This happened to me while we were in Ohio at the Columbus Crew game.  I can laugh about it now so I am ready to share...

I took the two boys to the Columbus Crew game because Jordan was working at the game that night. Anyway, it was a great time, the Crew won and we had so much fun but.....we had some very Beasley moments and they all had to do with bathroom issues!

It all started when we got there and we all used the bathroom together.  Madden forgot to tuck and his pee went all over me!  I cleaned up as much as I could in the public bathroom and went on like nothing happened!

We got settled in the stands with our snacks and drinks and then Maximus decides he has to use the restroom again.  So we gather up all of our things and head to the bathroom.  Madden stopped and talked to some strangers as usual so Maximus took off running into the bathroom.  My hands were full with two sodas, popcorn, a pretzel, a horn, a foam finger & a beer!  I finally got Madden to head to the bathroom with me and I called out for Maximus...THERE WAS NO ANSWER!!  That 5 second panic happened to me and I literally ran through the women's bathroom yelling his name.  After no answer I peeked into the men's bathroom and yelled his name and he yelled back.  WHEW!  The panic moment was over BUT...Maximus would not come out!  He pooped and he needed wiped!!  I'm still holding all the items, Madden is blowing his horn and pointing the #1 finger at every man who walks into the restroom.  I'm practically blocking the door to the men's restroom yelling to Maximus to wipe himself and come out.  A few men asked if I needed help and tried getting Max to come out but Max wouldn't talk to them.  A man from security came over to help and talked to Max but still Max would not come out.  By this time Madden has been knocked down by a drunken fan, halftime happens and the bathroom is now full of men, two of which won't leave me alone!  Finally a lady who works for the Crew came over and asked if I needed help, YES!  I need to get my son out of the restroom, he needs wiped!  She got a paramedic to come over, he talked to Max and still Max would not come out of the restroom!  So, he escorted me into the men's restroom which by now was full of men.  When I got to the stall that Max was in I saw a whole roll of toilet paper covering the floor!  Maximus said "mom, I can't wipe myself"!  I wiped him and off he went!  We went on like nothing happened.

Now the game is in the second half and we are finally back in the stands, cheering, eating and finally enjoying ourselves again.  Jordan comes up to visit us and we are talking and laughing, the boys are having a great time and then....Madden comes up to me and starts peeing his pants in the stands!  WHAT, HE HAS NEVER DONE THIS BEFORE!! WHY??? WHY NOW???  He said, "I tried to tell you I had to go!"  What, no you didn't we were in the bathroom with Maxi for about 30 min., you never mentioned you had to go!  Luckily I brought a change of clothes BUT they were in the car.  There was only 10 min. left of the game so we headed toward the exit.  I was trying as hard as I could to cover the pee stain on Madden's shorts but it was in the front and back so finally I said forget it, we will never see these people again.  

I had to stop and buy Matthew a souvenir and of course it wasn't that easy.  The stand was closed so we had to go into the store which didn't have the shirt Matthew wanted so I went to pay for the hat and asked if they could go to the stand and get the shirt for me to buy.  While we waited, Maximus tells the cashier that his brother peed all over himself & Madden proceeds to YELL to the cashier while pointing the big foam finger at me "it's all her fault!"  I want to run to the car and never come back!

We finally pay for the hat because the shirt I made them go get was for youth sizes only so we couldn't even buy it for Matthew.  By now the game is over and everyone is leaving the stadium!  We start heading for the car & luckily its dark out so Madden's pee stain can't be seen.  We get to the car and I get Madden cleaned up and changed.  We wait for Jordan so we can head 45 minutes back to her house!  The boys fell asleep about 10 minutes into the car ride and all Jordan can do is laugh about it all!  I felt so stressed and exhausted but at the same time I had had so much fun!  

THIS IS A MOMENT THAT CAN ONLY HAPPEN TO A MOMMY BECAUSE I DON'T THINK A DAD IS TOUGH ENOUGH TO MAKE IT PAST THE SECOND BATHROOM INCIDENT!

THANKS MAX & MADDEN FOR THE UNFORGETTABLE MEMORY!  JORDAN AND I WILL TALK ABOUT THIS EVERY HOLIDAY UNTIL OUR DEATH!  

thanks for reading, happy Tuesday!

                                                                           -paula

Confession!

This is my first confession of many but here it goes.... I MAY BE SOMEWHAT OF A MINI HOARDER!!

This weekend we decided to finally clean out the closet in the boys room so they can actually use it!  Since we completed their "dinosaur room" about a year ago their closet has been crammed full of Jordan's old things.  Some of which I still cannot seem to part with.  It's silly, I know!  They are just things but I cannot let them go!  Jordan has no interest in them, it's all on me for keeping them around. 

Anyway, we cleaned out the closet and I donated two bags full of items but I still kept too much.  I kept diaries, trophy's, metals, her first father/daughter dress, yes, I still have this!  I know I have a problem, Matt tells me this often...  I think I did well though, the boys closet is now clean & full of their stuff!  

We only spent $100 and added a few shelves and shoe racks.  It turned out perfect for them & they loved putting away their shoes and filling the new shelves with bins full of dinosaurs!  I might even be able to open and close their dresser drawers now since I can actually hang up some of their clothes!  

I'm taking baby steps right now, it's going to be awhile before I can part with the things I moved from Jordan's closet to the boys closet and now into my closet which is another confession for another day!

I don't know why I don't part with more things, it really feels good to be organized!!

-paula  

About Jordan

Hello beautiful blog readers!

My name is Jordan Crow and I am 21 years old.  I am a Vegas girl that fell in love with the idea of a small town life.  I am at the time in my life when I want to spend all my tip money from waitressing on clothes I can't afford, I want to be a teacher one day and a sport reporter the next, I want to lead a healthy lifestyle but go through Mcdonalds drive through twice a week, and I want a glass of wine when I get home but can't help myself from drinking a tall glass of chocolate milk!!  My favorite accessory is my pair of dinosaur earrings and I happily drive 20 minutes away for my starbucks fix once a week!  I lead a pretty normal yet very busy, active lifestyle from being a collegiate track runner, a marketing major, a media intern, a waitress, a small town baseball teams microphone girl, a girlfriend, a roommate, a big sister, and the only daughter.  I am deciding what I want to do with the rest of my life, weighing the pros and cons of living with my boyfriend after I graduate, trying to qualify for a national track meet while trying to remember that I need to have fun with my friends during my senior year of college, and making sure I have enough money to buy the right amount of spaghettio's and meatballs each week from kroger, but I always make the time to be in constant communication with my other half, my perfect 41 year old mom!  We decided to do this blog together to stay connected even though we are 2000 miles apart.  We are EXTREMELY similar and have so many of the same interests and mannerisms, but are different in just as many aspects and have a lot of different perspectives and experiences to show through our 20 y e a r age difference!  I love my beautiful, crazy life and have learned to be the active, positive, crazy person that I am from my beautiful mother who is at the time in her life where she is planning her daughters college graduation, and her son's preschool graduation! Is that a normal time in someone's life? Maybe not, but this is our normal and it is perfect. E n j o y. :)

about paula....

  This is my beautiful family!  I feel blessed to have these wonderful people in my life everyday!  I'm a simple girl from Kansas who loves living in Las Vegas! I'm the youngest of nine, I'm a soccer mom, I love Starbucks, crafting, shopping, baking, cooking & making my own perfect!  I don't run, I walk!  I have an obsession with wearing black & I enjoy a glass of wine or two or three!  I have a BA in interior design that I plan on putting back to use someday, until then I am having fun being a mom & best friend to my amazing daughter, Jordan (21), my beasty son, Matthew (16), my handsome genius, Maximus (5), and my mini beast, Madden (3)! 

My daughter & I have so much to share!  We love living in the moment yet plan for the future!  We have been bff's since the day she was born & I'm so amazed by her everyday!  Our relationship is not a normal mother/daughter relationship!  In fact our life has never been normal & now we want to share our imperfectly perfect life with you!!

Jordan's life is just beginning & I'm on my second time around with the two little ones!  Jordan has so much input & such a different outlook on life that she helps me to be a better person everyday!!  I hope you enjoy what we share with you, we love our family  so be prepared to hear all about them!!  

"Breathe.  Let go. And remind yourself that this very moment is the only one you know you have for sure." ~Oprah Winfrey

Graduation time!!

This year I have a college graduate & a preschool graduate!  I am so proud of both of them in different ways!  I have tears of joy and sadness as I watch them both grow up, one into a career woman & the other into a full time student.  I am crying as I write this because I know that my time with both is limited everyday.  I love watching them grow and learn new things daily but I wasn't prepared to let go!  Jordan is an adult now, I probably will never really get this, as I will always think of her as my baby girl.  Maximus will start making more and more friendships and eventually want to spend the night out, oh my!!  I will cry just like I did the first time Jordan went on a sleepover!  Being a mom is by far the hardest thing I've ever done & it doesn't get easier...

Anyway, I am so proud of my graduates!  Big & little they both have accomplished so much! Maximus knows The Pledge of Allegiance, he can say the Lord's Prayer, he can write letters and numbers and his name!  This is just a few of what he has learned in the past year.  Jordan now has a BA with a double major, she broke two school records and left her mark at Wittenberg which I knew she would.  She has accepted a job that she is excited about!  She is moving in with her boyfriend & I couldn't be more happy about this!  I am so excited for her and so proud of her, I cannot wait to see what the future brings to her!  

In a few weeks Maximus will have his graduation ceremony and Jordan will be home, well Vegas home anyway.  I will cherish every single second of those days!

I am feeling so emotional right now....happy, sad, scared, relieved, excited.

Congratulations to my babies!  I am so proud to be your mom!

My advice to those reading....hug your kids, kiss them so much they want to run away, watch them play, take a gazillion pictures, be their friend, be proud of them, tell them you love them everyday!  

I am sad that Jordan has chosen to stay in Ohio but I am so proud that she is independent enough to make such a decision.  

JORDAN, YOU AMAZE ME AS ALWAYS & I WISH YOU NOTHING BUT HAPPINESS & SUCCESS!  LUV LUV <3 <3 -mom

MAXIMUS, YOUR FUTURE IS BRIGHT AND as you say... ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE WITH GOD! i love you more-mom

-paula

"I can do anything but not everything!"

My niece Tiffany put this quote on Facebook the other day & I keep thinking about how true this is and how I really need to remind myself of this everyday!  I always stress myself out and forget about what is really important because I want to make sure I get everything done. I do not like asking for help & therefore I end up trying to do it all!  

Thank you Tiffany for putting this on Facebook the day that I really needed to see it!  I have been mentally beating myself up because I didn't get everything done that I had planned for the Graduation party!  I now realize that if I would have asked for more help everything would have been done.  

Not only does this quote apply to party planning but in my daily life as well.  I do not ask for any help when it comes to house work.  I was feeling overwhelmed when we got home and I had so much laundry piled up, baths to give later than our usual bath time, dinner to make with no food in the house, and on and on...

"I CAN DO ANYTHING BUT NOT EVERYTHING!"

This is my quote for the rest of the year!  I will say this over and over again as I start asking for more help around the house and with everything I plan!  Life is too short to stress over a failed photo booth!  

-paula