The Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique is where I spent most of my days this week.....and I must say that the Fairy Godmother has got some serious style.......Cinderella's isn't half bad, either. You can check out my family blog in a few days for more on that......

For now, let's just take a walk down memory lane....to Monday night....you know what I'm talking about. OH YOU KNOW that it's the first thing I watched when my kids went to bed late last night, the first thing I thought about when my plane touched down yesterday......

Vienna. Go. Home. WHAT? Jake kept her for another round? Is he for real? I didn't think this week's episode was bleeding awkward drama like previous weeks, but I do think that we saw a whole new side of some of the girls. Ashleigh......so awkward. I can see why Jake sent her packing. No chemistry, lots of awkward "hand on Jake's legs"........

Gia. Not as bad as I thought. Pleasantly and surprisingly down to earth. I think Jake really likes her....... and the piano montage playing during their date was priceless.....can I download it on itunes, ABC?

Alli........I'm really nervous for her. She is constantly focused on Vienna and brings it up WAY too much in her conversations with Jake. I think he's getting tired of it. I think she's going to leave us pretty soon.....

Tenley....after spending a few days with the Disney Princesses in Disneyland, I can totally see her there. And I like her more and more and more! She is magical! And she and Jake just seem to click! JAKE!!!!! It's your future wife!!!!

I don't really see the romance in rolling down a huge sandhill, while swallowing and spitting up huge amounts of sand, but maybe I am just old fashioned. The girls made is sound like the "funnest" date EVER! Am I missing something?

who doesn't like pom poms?

So.....we are going a little overboard on the craftiness at our house....and it's just gushing Valentine's Day over here. I asked my kids, "Don't I have more Valentine's decorations packed away somewhere?"....thinking maybe I had lost some things in the move.....they just replied, "No mom, you just put out a LOT of candy..." Hmmmmm..... so, of course I had to start buying some Valentine decor!

So check out our cute retro "love-bird" table runner with pom poms.

NOTE: No sewing. Yeah! We used fabric glue! And added some pink ribbons to our birds.....voila....love birds!

Oh, we are genius over here, let me tell you.....

Pom poms make everything cuter, don't you think???

I don't just like vanilla, people......

I don't just like vanilla, I like all the colors in the Rainbow......genius. That was the absolute GENIUS quote of the night for me! Should someone tell her that "vanilla" is a flavor..not a color? I say "good riddance" to Miss Elizabeth...she was, according to Jake, "a tease"....and turns out, Jake actually has a pair! It was just amazing to see Jake tell her exactly what she was. GO JAKE! I didn't think you had it in you!!! But don't worry, Jake...she can get a date any night of the week...I think she'll be JUST fine....if she can control that potty mouth of hers, that is.
And wow, I honestly don't think it could have gotten ANY more awkward for me than when Michelle was BEGGING Jake to make out with her. I wanted to crawl under my bed and never come out again. It was so nasty awkward, that I was THRILLED when he told her to go home right that INSTANT! I mean, every time he sees the girl, she's crying! And telling him, "I am here to get married...I am here to find a husband.....I am here to have babies....DO YOU HEAR ME JAKE?!!! DO YOU?!?!??? ROAR...." Goodbye, Michelle....goodbye. I hope the 'constant crying' thing works out for you in the future. You are very pretty.

This episode was actually FULL of awkward moments for me...one of them being the comedy club routines. And seeing Corrie concentrate her ENTIRE comedy spot on making fun of Vienna was so inappropriate, I was really surprised to see Jake keep her. It was really immature and really dumb. Vienna may bug the girls to death, but they need to keep their mouths SHUT and just let Jake pick who is right for HIM. After last night, I don't mind Vienna as much (my pick is Ali....just to be clear).... I hope to see Corrie go home next week after that little stunt.

And guess who else isn't bugging me so bad? Gia. I know, WOW. Who knew I could see past those plumped up lips, right? But since I've never, ever seen her really interact with Jake, we'll see. It's funny he keeps girls around I've never even seen him have a conversation with. Gia. Jessie. Hmmmmmmm........... and who was Valisha anyway? What in the world?

Can't wait for next week's non-stop action packed drama.....burning roses! Should be FUN!

Now if we can just keep Ali to stop talking about Vienna and focus on Jake...... come on, girlfriend!

Our crafty day....

There is a great blog with lots of project ideas called Little Birdie Secrets....click here

We really needed a project this weekend (being stuck inside while your soul is being sucked out by the inversion?...you know what I'm talking about...) So little girl and I made a trip to the "craft" store last night, and BOY WAS IT FUN! We stayed there for two hours, dreaming of all the things we could create together! The possibilites are endless...

Now, I am NOT a seamstress (even though I have a brand new, still-in-the-box, sewing machine given to me by my sweet mom)...pause.......so I needed to find something we could do that didn't involve threading a machine.

Four hours later, we created THIS little lover....

Fun, right? My first homemade wreath....I told little S that someday she could have this when she has her own family. She's excited about that. And we have more projects on our list that involve love-bird fabric and cute little pom poms...stay tuned!

My prayers go out to all of the people in Haiti who were devastated by the earthquake yesterday. I have a love for these people, as I taught many Haitians on my mission. They are beautiful, humble people and I am so saddened by the news of the deaths, injuries, and suffering that they are enduring. There is an non-profit organization based in Utah... click here.... they are posting up to date information about the earthquake on their website. This could happen here, tomorrow.....it could happen to any of us. Scary thought. And in Haiti, they are already suffering from so much disease and they do not have the "safety net" that we have here. They are one of the poorest countries in the world. It's important that help goes to them now, or this could be the demise of their country.

See this article here for information on the disease and devastation that could ensue in the weeks to come... it's keeping me awake at night!

There are so many ways we can help...

Today, Twitter's trending topics have been basically covered by what's happening in Haiti and how people can help. Specifically, native son Wyclef Jean has been mobilizing the online masses to help.

The singer sent a tweet urging people to send a text to a charity called Yele Texting 501501 donates $5 toward relief efforts. Earlier today, the Yele Web site was down, presumably from all the additional traffic coming from Twitter.

In addition to Yele, here are some charities accepting donations:

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints
http://www.lds.org/ (to make a donation)
Partners in Health (a non profit organization)
http://pih.org/home.html
American Red Cross
redcross.org; 800-RED-CROSS
CARE
care.org; 800-521-CARE
Catholic Relief Services
crs.org; 800-736-3467
Operation USA
opusa.org; 800-678-7255
Salvation Army
salvationarmyusa.org; 800-SAL-ARMY
U.S. Fund for UNICEF
unicefusa.org; 800-FOR-KIDS
World Vision
worldvision.org; 866-280-6587

We have to help!

Check YES or NO

To all of my Bachelor-watching fanatical friends.....

I have to wonder......

When the producers interview the girls to be on the show "The Bachelor," do they specifically have each girl fill out a questionnaire? And on this questionnaire is there a question that specifically asks, "Are you psychotic?" Please check Yes, No, Maybe, or Definitely. And if their answer is definitely, then they are a definite shoo-in for the show. And BONUS if their level of psychotic-ness is HIGH to OFF THE CHARTS. The level of absolute, downright foolishness absolutely astounded me last night (ok, maybe it didn't.......I just feel like I need to add to the drama....)

The DRAMA that IS "On the Wings of Love..." And don't try and tell me for two seconds that the theme song didn't replay in your head for HOURS after you watched that episode. No, I'm not referring to the "sinister" music that replayed again and again every time Rozlyn appeared....I'm referring to the actual "On the Wings of Love...only the two of us, together flying HHhhhIIIIiiiGGGggggghhhhhhhh...."I even woke up singing it this morning.

OK....onto my take of the show. Because you really care, right?

Rozlyn is not only borderline psychotic, she is a LIAR! According to the show. But she will tell you otherwise. Not sure what to believe there....all I know is, I about lost it when she nearly sucked Jake's face right off. She gave new meaning to "sucking face"....and I nearly passed out when she's all, "I got a rose, biotch!" BLLLLLEEEEEEEEEP!

Unfortunately, beautiful Elizabeth turned out to be a little too "cookoo for cocoa puffs" for my liking. I have no problem with her telling Jake she wouldn't kiss him until the end...whatever. BUT.....then she torutures the poor guy by getting him all turned on and then saying, "You want to kiss me, don't you, DON'T YOU!!!!!" My jaw nearly hit the floor. For me, this was the most awkward moment of the night.

Even MORE awkward than cry-baby Michelle. My word, the girl cries every time she has screen time! Is she ever NOT crying?!?!

And the fact that Jake kept Vienna.....well......I'm speechless. I had to rewind it to make sure he did, indeed, call her name. Really? REALLY?!?!

The cheesiest and BEST part of the night? Little Miss Ali......she reminds me of Little Miss Sunshine.

See the resemblance?

She is one of the only "real" girls on the show. She looks real, she acts real, and she isn't down Jake's throat every two seconds. She doesn't turn into the devil every time Jake leaves the room. So....therefore....my vote goes for Ali. It will be interesting to see who Jake "whittles" it down to...I can't wait!!!!!

Click Here for another take on the drama....

xoxoxox

Hey,

what's that sound? Oh, it's just me....chewing on little bits of heaven......

It's that time of year again...time for cinnamon hearts dusted in sugar! Time for little red and pink delights in my candy bowls.....I have a "thing" for Valentine candy. I like it more than Christmas, more than Halloween, even more than Easter (although the Cadbury eggs are soooo good!)

And I've discovered a new favorite, dark chocolate with bits of raspberry. For some reason, I am just now forming a bond with this..... Milk chocolate just doesn't do it for me anymore, if it's not dark, it's not good. The darker the better. Any suggestions on really good dark chocolate treats?

xoxoxoxoxoxoxox........more Valentine goodness to come.....

sharing....

Do any of you stalk "food blogs" like me? There are several that I check on every few days, and while I am tempted mostly by the desserts (why doesn't this surprise you?)....I fell inlove with this post on Bakerella (click here)You have to check out this post and see the most precious little cakes made out of ice! This would be so much fun to do in the winter time! If you are like me, you're always looking for fun and different projects to do while it's COLD outside! Besides playing the Wii....or the DS....or watching another movie.....or playing the Wii again.......for the fifth time today.

Do you want some CHEEZ with that?

Alright friends, if you are watching the Bachelor, On the Wings of Love....you will love this post.......this is from my sister's blog, and she's the expert on the Bachelor/Bachelorette and all of it's cheezy goodness.......click HERE.....and have a DYNAMITE flight!!!...ha ha!

I savored every last drop...

Like a decadent dessert, I couldn't get enough of:



I finished The Help last night, and I'm ready to read it again. It is a must read if you haven't already.....it brought back so many memories for me, growing up in the South. One thing Kathryn Stockett is genius at is really making you love her characters. My heart felt like it was going to break when I read about the relationship between one black maid and a certain child that she cares for from birth. Getting to know Abileen (one of the maids in the book) was a treat. I love how she secretly teaches little Mae Mobley (the toddler she cares for) that black and white is the same and that everyone is beautiful, no matter what color their skin is.

I especially loved some of the relationships that some of the white women formed with their colored help. Not all of them were positive, but some were bonding friendships and sisterhoods. I had a friend, growing up in Atlanta, who had a black maid in her home. Her name was Sue....I spent a lot of time on her lap with her telling me stories of her grandma and mama growing up in the South. Everytime one of the characters in the book says, "Oh laaaawwwwww...." it brings back so many memories for me! And I smile......The way that these women talk is music to my ears...

Now, I don't blog too much about books, but this one tugged at my heartstrings and really made it's impression on me. So, y'all get out there and read it!

testing, testing