Happy Halloween our 2 Fish!

More pictures to come...

Halloween Take I

Our town has playgroup every Friday, and last week, one of the moms hosted a Halloween party for all the kids. I wanted the girls to be able to play on the swing set, so rather than using their real costumes for Halloween, they chose to be LSU cheerleaders. They had a ball, and all the moms enjoyed watching the chaos while sipping Sangria. YUM!

They had a "make your own cupcake" table. That's Lise' all the way to the right.

The swing set was the real entertainer.


Lise' is right in front of Spiderman on the slide


Abri holding everyone up



Remember to click on pictures to view them larger.

Petting Zoo

I won't go into all the details, partially because I've been suckered again by some New Jersey "must see" attraction, but I will give you the gist.

It was a beautiful day, my friend and I wanted to take the kids somewhere fun. This place was recommended by others, and we had already told the girls we would go. When we got there, we were expecting a rinky dink little petting zoo. What we got was a rinky dink petting zoo at New Jersey prices. I'm telling you, if we knew what we know now, we would have taken them on a shopping spree at Target.

Enjoy the pictures.

Guess what I'm petting?

Yes, my mom paid for me to pet a dog!

Talk about one petrified duck.

All in all, the kids enjoyed themselves. I would have prefered to go to the zoo, but we certainly know for next year. For the rest of the pictures, click here.

Best Apple Crisp Ever

That's the title of the recipe anyway. We went apple picking two weeks ago, and so I had to find something to do with all those apples.

BEST APPLE CRISP EVER

4 apples - peeled, cored and sliced
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

2. In a 9 inch square baking pan, mix sliced apples with brown sugar. In a large bowl, mix together flour, white sugar, cinnamon and salt. In a small bowl, beat together egg and melted butter. Stir into flour mixture. Spread evenly over apples.

3. Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until topping is golden and crisp.

Here's the LINK to the recipe online if you'd like it in print version.

This apple picking adventure was just that. We've been many times to pick fresh fruit. In Louisiana-strawberries, Texas-blueberries, Utah-apples, apricots, pears, etc in the most beautiful setting, and now apples in NJ.

The way I found out about this apple orchard was from other moms in our town. So, when we pulled in and saw the Disneyland of apple picking, we were a little scared.

The parking lot was filled with at least 200 cars, and many were from New York. I guess I take it for granted that it's not a new thing for me. Whatever, it was crazy. Lucky for us, the place was so large that you weren't on top of one another. They had an amazing assortment of apples too, but we stuck with just two varieties. Lise' had so much fun picking that we had to tell her enough is enough. Tonight I may make some apple sauce.

Here's a few pics, but for all of them, be sure to visit our picture website.

A new site for you to visit.

As you can see, I had a lot of pictures to post from the last vacation. So, from now on, I'll still post a handful on the blog, but then I'll put the majority on our picture site. That way you can see larger images. I'll also put a link on the right hand side of this blog so you can access it whenever you like.

Click HERE to view.

We long for North Carolina

Just so you know, the game is on....& you know the situation. I found it's much easier to swallow if I'm busying myself in other ways. So, thank the Tigers for the organization of our vacation photos.

It's been right at a month since we had to cancel our plans to head to Orange Beach, AL. I had been looking forward to it all year, but we just weren't willing to make the gamble with Ike moving into the Gulf. Plan B was put into action, and we decided to make a long overdue trip to the Outerbanks of North Carolina to visit B's Aunt Anne & Uncle Juney. We could not have made a better choice.

For starters, we could make the drive in one day. Enough said there. Secondly, they live on one of the prettiest pieces of land in the country. We pulled up, and instantly all stress was left behind. It's a combination of the beauty, the water, the company and their warmth that made it better than any accommodations a 5 star resort in the world could offer. Lucky for us, they are family.

All in all, we didn't do a whole lot, but that's what you're supposed to do at the beach, right?

We did take the girls to the newly renovated aquarium. It was just the right size for the girls, and because school had started, we practically had the place to ourselves. Abri was the funniest little thing. She would stand in front of the tanks for ever and just stare while Lise' was busy running taking pictures with her new camera. Abri was most taken with the turtles. She did not want anyone getting near "her" turtle tank. When any child got close, she would let a high pitched scream out her mouth to let them know to back off.

One day, we headed out to the beach. For most anyone reading this blog, when you go to the beach, you load up your car, pull up and drag everything out to the beach. Not when you're with Uncle Juney. He and Aunt Anne gave us the VIP treatment. First, we waited until it was low tide. Then, we walked out their door, loaded everything on the boat, and rode out to a shoal in the protected waters off the Atlantic, and pulled the boat right up to the secluded island that could not have been any more perfect for the girls. It was loaded with shells, and because it was low tide, the girls could walk out several hundred feet without the water getting deeper than 2 feet. On the other side of the island, it was deep enough for fishing and swimming. We found conchs, snails, crabs and sand dollars. You just have to see the pictures. I can't tell you how perfect that day was.

When not out exploring the nearby town of Beaufort, we hung out at the house. The girls loved to swim at the neighbors' house, play in the yard, swim in Taylor's Creek, throw acorns in the creek, visit the chickens next door, etc, etc, etc. They had the greatest time, and Lise' is still asking to go back to visit.

That reminds me. We had a Laugh until You Cry moment with Lise'. Alex, Anne & Juney's grandson, plays on his high school's football team. For their upcoming game, the entire team shaved their heads into Mohawks. One morning, Lise' & Abri were playing on the floor in the den when Alex walked in. All of a sudden, we heard the worst scream from Lise's mouth. It was a scream of terror. When I finally got to her ( I was in the bedroom), all she could do was point at Alex with a look of fear in her eyes and a scream still going strong. I felt bad for her, but it was also pretty darn funny. It took her a good day or two before she'd get anywhere near him. (Don't worry, I've included pictures).

Unfortunately, our vacation did come to and end. If only the plywood plant in Beaufort would pay B to come work for them. It would probably be much like living in Richfield, just replace the mountains with water.
No worries, we'll be back. I think I'll make my reservation now for next summer.

Get comfy now, I have a lot of pictures to share.

Turn that frown upside down

I figured we could all use a good laugh in light of everything going on these days. Enjoy

Be sure to email me to let me know which one you chose to follow thru with!

20 Ways To Maintain A Healthy Level Of Insanity

1. At Lunch Time , Sit In Your Parked Car With Sunglasses on and point a Hair Dryer At Passing Cars. See If They Slow Down.

2. Page Yourself Over The Intercom. Don't Disguise Your Voice.

3. Every Time Someone Asks You To Do Something, ask If They Want Fries with that.

4. Put Your Garbage Can On Your Desk And Label it ' In'.

5. Put Decaf In The Coffee Maker For 3 Weeks Once Everyone has Gotten Over Their Caffeine Addictions, Switch to Espresso.

6. In The Memo Field Of All Your Checks , Write 'For Smuggling Diamonds'.

7. Finish All Your sentences with 'In Accordance With The Prophecy'.

8. Don't use any punctuation

9. As Often As Possible, Skip Rather Than Walk.

10. Order a Diet Water when ever you go out to eat, with a serious face.

11. Specify That Your Drive-through Order Is 'To Go'.

12. Sing Along At The Opera.

13. Go To A Poetry Recital. And Ask Why The Poems Don't Rhyme?

14. Put Mosquito Netting Around Your Work Area and Play tropical Sounds All Day.

15. Five Days In Advance, Tell Your Friends You Can't Attend Their Party Because You're Not In the Mood.

16. Have Your Co-workers Address You By Your Wrestling Name, Rock Bottom.

17. When The Money Comes Out The ATM, Scream 'I Won! I Won!'

18. When Leaving The Zoo, Start Running Towards The Parking lot, Yelling 'Run For Your Lives! They're Loose!'

19. Tell Your Children Over Dinner, 'Due To The Economy, We Are Going To Have To Let One Of You Go.'

20. And The To Keep A Healthy Level Of Insanity...SMILE. It's called THERAPY .

And the winner is....

B, at least with 4th Place in the Atlantic Highlands 2008 Chili Cookoff this past weekend. The funny thing is that we really just entered the contest because it was cheaper to bring a pot of chili than it was to pay the admission price.

We didn't spend hours testing and creating a new recipe, we just used a tried and true favorite that was passed onto us by Diane Schafer (USG relations). So, thanks Diane! If you want the recipe, here it is...

Black Bean & Kielbasa Chili
Serves 6
(Note: Better if made 1-2 days ahead)

2 T. olive oil
1.5 lb beef or turkey kielbasa, quartered lengthwise & chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
2 cups chopped onion
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
4 large cloves garlic, chopped
4 (15oz) cans black beans, drained
1 (14oz) can low sodium chicken broth
1 (14oz) can diced tomatoes in juice
3 T. chili powder (we used a little less)
2 T. sugar
2 T. red wine vinegar
3 small bay leaves
1 T. dried oregano (we used a little less)
2 tsp. cumin

Sour cream
Chopped green onion

Heat olive oil in heavy pot over medium-high heat. Saute kielbasa until beginning to brown, about 12 min. (B cooked it like he does sausage for jambalaya...browned until it's almost burnt on the outside). Transfer kielbasa to bowl with slotted spoon. If necessary, add enough oil to pot to measure about 2 T. (or discard all but 2T of drippings). Add onions, peppers, and garlic. Saute' until beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Add beans, broth, tomatoes with juice, chili powder, sugar, vinegar, bay leaves, oregano and cumin. Bring to boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to medium, cover & simmer 30 minutes. Return kielbasa to pot. Reduce heat to low. Simmer, uncovered, until chili is thick, stirring occasionally, about 30-40 min. Season with salt & pepper, to taste. Serve with toppings of sour cream and chopped green onion (shredded cheese is great too).


It's great for football games! The funny thing was that there were around 40 chilis entered. Most were just blah. I think the reason the #1 won was because he was serving his own chili..something we didn't realize was encouraged. Next year the heat is on. We noticed there wasn't one green or white chili, so I think that's the direction we'll go. Any good recipes you'd like to share out there, send them my way.

Won't let you go into the weekend with a rant

Ok, so after the post I just wrote, I feel I need to give you a little laughter for the weekend.

We're convinced Abri is part monkey. She climbs everything, and she has been for a while. For the most part, it's been the normal climbing objects- chairs, boxes, sofas,etc. In the last week though, it's gotten worse. She started climbing the ladder to the bunk bed, she's standing on the handles of the drawers in the kitchen to get to the counter top, and she hauls her stool everywhere. She's a monkey. At the park, she hangs from the monkey bars alone for several minutes. She hangs from the wood slats on the bottom of the top bunk. At the park, there is a bar over the slide, and she gets a giant leap onto it before swinging out over the slide. I've seen her leg over the side of the crib, so I know it's a matter of time before she masters her escape route. Last night, we had to take the rungs out of the ladder of the bunk bed.

Abrianna, I believe we named her correctly. Ms. Becky says B had all of that in him, at least I'll put the blame on his genes.

So, that's a little peek into the challenges of the Swindell household.

I promise I'm going to do my best to post our pics from North Carolina soon. Tomorrow is our town's chili fest, so we're trying out recipes for that.

Are we too old for Facebook

Recently a group of 30+ moms and I were talking about Facebook. 6 months ago, I had no intention of ever entering the site. I had my email, and blog, and that was just fine. Why did I need to do Facebook too? Over time, I was forced into signing up for the site to view some pictures posted by a friend of ours. I did it, looked at the pictures and forgot about it. Then, I received a request to be a friend...from my father-in-law. Surely, if he was doing it, so could I. I had to figure this thing out. Then, I received another invite from my high school class to be a part of their group. I joined them, and I haven't looked back.

To those of you not familiar with the concept, Facebook is a social networking tool. You go in and register giving as much info as you deem necessary. Then, people can look you up. They can't see anything other than your name and hometown (if you choose), and then in order to view the rest of your information and pictures, they have to request to be your friend. Once you're friends, you can send messages back and forth like email and they can post little notes about what they are doing (think email and instant messaging all wrapped up in one). The beauty of the whole thing is that you can find people you've lost touch with over the years. Some of them, I never wondered about, but it's fun to see all your classmates families and where they are living. In fact, B's found several of his classmates in NYC. We'll meet up with them the next time we go into the city. I have reconnected with friends I've lost touch with over the years. Just yesterday, I got a message from an old college roommate. It's addicting, and one of my friends has labeled it "Crackbook."

So, back to my discussion with the 30+ crowd. We decided as a whole that we're not too old. It's just a new medium for us to learn, and therefore, for some it's scary. It's no different than our parents having to turn on the computer. Sure, you can live without the internet, but I'm quite certain if you're reading this blog, you enjoy it.

I'm not saying everyone has to facebook. Just kindly request that you stop bashing those of us who do. Try it, you may like it :-)

With that, I rest my case.