A Little Geography Lesson.

I currently live in Ohio but I did not grow up here. It doesn't take long for people to figure out that I am not originally from here. As soon as I begin to speak, one of the first questions people ask is "Where are you from?" Even though I've been here for quite some time, I still have my accent.

When I tell others I am from Rhode Island, all too often the response I get is " That's in New York, right?"
What?!?! Are you serious????? Let's clear this up once and for all....

First, my accent is nothing like a New Yorkers accent. Maybe  those who are not familiar with the East Coast cannot distinguish the differences but there are differences.

And second and most importantly, Rhode Island is a state.....of the country you live in and I will presume born in! Not only is it a state, but it was one of the original thirteen colonies! Do they not teach this in school anymore? Has anybody ever heard of Roger Williams?

So here is a little information about my home state:

Rhode Island became a state on May 29, 1790 (so it's not anything new!)

The capital of R.I. is Providence.

It's nickname is The Ocean State....possibly because it borders the Atlantic Ocean and it's a state. We also call it Little Rhody....possibly because it is the smallest state in the union.

It's land borders are Connecticut and Massachusetts.

It's motto is "Hope".....which is obviously required since no one seems to know anything about us!

So, for all of those who didn't realize Rhode Island is in fact one of the 50 states in which you live in, I hope this helps!

The Cream Puff Project.

Nate came home from school the other day and informed me that we needed to make a French recipe for his French class at school.

No problem, I thought. I'm French, this should be a breeze. We'll throw together a meat pie. A traditional French dish usually served around the holidays. What could be better...meat made into a pie! Yummy and easy enough to make!!

Then he told me his teacher had given him a list of recipes that he could choose from. Hmmmm, no meat pies on the list. Ok. We'll make the chocolate mousse. Calls for 3 ingredients. We can do this!

Nope. Nate decided he wanted to make the cream puffs. All I could think of was the cream puffs we use to get at Wright's Dairy Farm when I was a kid. So perfect you didn't want to eat them and when you did it was heaven! How could any cream puff compare?!

 I looked over the recipe. It had the longest list of instructions of all the recipes. Not sure if this was something we should attempt. Especially since the plan is to feed it to other people. But he insisted.

 We decided to do a trial run to make sure we could handle this. I may be French and I may occasionally dabble in some baking, but one thing I am not is a French pastry chef!

We gathered the ingredients. I told Nate since this is his homework, he needed to do the baking. I would assist if he needed any help. So he started his project. I thought twice about leaving him on his own the minute I saw the destruction in my kitchen.......

But I just left him to what he was doing and reminded myself that everything is washable! For the most part, he did it all on his own. I only added a bit of assistance to the project. The final outcome wasn't as pretty as the cream puffs from my childhood.....

....... but they were pretty tasty! And Nate was happy with his accomplishment! The trial run was a success (or at least successful enough) that Nate will be making more cream puffs for his class!

Friday Funnies.....

I thought I'd keep it light and funny as we head into the weekend so I'm devoting Fridays to the fun stuff!

The Good Things in Life:



                                                                               Family

Good Friends

Good Food

Dessert

Good Music

Good Books

The Great Outdoors

Playtime

Nap Time

Enjoy your day!

Accepting my chub....

Okay, so things have been really stressful around here. Mark has moved to Florida, the housing market continues to be slow with no signs of improving, money is getting tight, my business has been slow to start, I'm dealing with chronic pain and fatigue (and no diagnosis as of yet).....and the list just continues.

I wish I could say I am the type of person who turns to working out to relieve my stress. I know it would benefit me. I know it would probably help make me feel better. But to find the motivation and energy to add working out to my list of things to do just isn't happening!

So, needless to say, I've put weight back on. Now this isn't anything new. I've always had a weight issue. I've joined Weight Watchers numerous times to lose weight, which I do, just to gain some or most of it back. I've always hated the way I look! Growing up, I had 2 sisters who were thin and in my eyes absolutely gorgeous while I always felt like the ugly step sister! I think it's time I just accept the fact that this is me!

I'm not saying I won't try to put the effort in to get healthier and include working out in my routine but I am not going to beat myself up for it any longer. I'm tired, in pain, and miss my husband! If I don't feel like exercising, I won't! I will get back on track with it when my life gets back on track but for now I am just going to accept my chub!

Discovering Bunny's Origin

As you know, about a month ago I found Bunny in my backyard. Being the softie that I am I couldn't just leave him out there to fend for himself, so I took him in. I had no idea where he came from but I knew he was a domesticated rabbit. He has become part of the family and seems content to live among us!

Yesterday I managed to find out Bunny's history!

I had a little get together at my house and my next door neighbor stopped in. I told her the story of how we "inherited" Bunny. She had the answers! She knew where Bunny had originated from! It seems my neighbors who live 2 doors down (not the one attending my party) were raising rabbits.....for consumption! Yep, they were making rabbit stew! For whatever reason when it was time for them to slaughter the rabbits, they decided to let one go free.  And I bet you can guess where he ended up!

So now that I know Bunny's story, I am happy he found his way to my yard. He gets lots of love and attention here, he won't have to fend for himself during the cold winter, and he definitely won't end up in a pot on the stove!

The Case of the Missing Underwear....

Today at school Eric had an accident in his pants so his teacher gave him a pair of underwear and pants to change into.

Later on in the evening, I told him it was time to get his pj's on. He ran in my room and changed his clothes. When he was done, I asked him if he had put his clothes in the hamper. He told me he could only put his shirt in the hamper because he had to return the pants and underwear to his teacher. I told him that we needed to wash the clothes first so to go ahead and put it in the hamper with his shirt.

He ran to the room to put the clothes in the hamper and a minute later he came running out and yelled "Mom, I can't put the underwear in the hamper! They're missing!"

I asked "What do you mean they're missing?"

He replied "They're gone."

Then it dawned on me...I asked "Are they still on your butt?"

He proceeded to look in his pajama pants and laughed "Yeah, they're on my butt!"

Open For Business.

Today I am going to shamelessly promote my new business. If you decide to read this post to the end, I will be eternally grateful. I can't be successful without your help!

Recently I decided to get involved with Mia Bella's Gourmet Candles. This is a venture I was hesitant to do because, to be honest, I am not the greatest sales person out there. But it was something I needed to do to help supplement our income.

Even though Mark is able to live on base rent free, our family has incurred extra expenses with him living in Florida and the rest of us in Ohio. Until we can all be together again, we need to be able to pay for travel expenses so Mark can come home periodically for a visit. We also need to pay for internet access for both him and I so we can Skype. This may not seem like a necessity, but it has really helped the boys to be able to talk to and see their dad via the computer.  Childcare expenses have also increased since Mark is not here to keep the kids while I run errands and go to appointments.

So anyway, with all these extra expenses plus some, I really needed to find a way to make some extra income. I thought of trying to get a job at one of the local hospitals, but since I'll be moving the chance of being hired is probably very slim. I also wanted something that would allow me some flexibility and that I could "take" with me when I move to Florida....whenever that may be.  That brought me to the conclusion that direct sales may be a good option for now.  I looked into a couple of different companies. I wanted to go with something a little different that offered a nice product at a reasonable cost. I found that with Mia Bella's! So, (drumroll please)...............

I would like to introduce you to Mia Bella's Gourmet Candles.

Mia Bella candles are cleaner burning scented candles.  These candles are practically soot free and smell great! You won't be disappointed in these candles!

16 oz. Jars



I am available to do home parties for you and your friends. If you prefer not to have a home party, a catalog party would also be great! You can earn free products and discounts for hosting either type of party!

If hosting a party is not your thing, you can still order candles from the catalog! With the holidays coming up, these candles make great gifts for all your family and friends!

Simmer pot with Mia Melts for those who prefer the scent without the flame!






If candles are not your thing, Mia Bella's also carries beauty and bath & body products!

Bar soap/ lotion

I'd really like to see this business take off. But like I said earlier, I can't be successful without you! If you'd like to place an order or host a party, contact me. You can also order directly from my site:

                                     www.sensationalscent.scent-team.com/index.php

I am also planning an open house, so be on the look-out for that info.! I hope you'll all be able to stop in for a Scent-sational time!

 Thanks for taking the time to read about my business! Pass on the info. if you know of someone who might be interested!