Pizza Night and "Motherhood the Musical"

Last night was Friday night and we didn't have anywhere to go or do.

We are really quite boring people.

So, we decided to make homemade pizza.

Some of us were really excited about making pizza!



Really, really excited!!

Some......not quite as excited.

Mmmmh.....not quite sure about this expression???

Everybody dance now......

Jessica!  Smile!!  It is the only way your Dad will stop taking all these photos!!!

FINALLY!  A smile!!!

Josh and Courtney were not there to enjoy the excitement of it all.

Instead, they were enjoying.......

Jim and I went to see it last Friday night.  It was possibly the best show we have seen all year.  As a mother, I could definitely relate to just about everything in the show.  However, I think Jim laughed just as hard as I did.

Excellent cast.

With songs like "Costco Queen", "Minivan", "The Kids Are Finally Asleep", and last, but not least, "I Leak",  how can you go wrong??

A good way to spend a Friday night!!!

Sally-Ann



Chocolate - Need I say more?

Do you have a favorite candy??

Mine is a unbroken "Butterfinger".

I know that it still tastes the same when it is broken, but for some reason, when it is unbroken it just tastes better!

Many people in this house enjoy a.....

In fact, Jim received a huge package of "Reese's Peanut Butter Cups" for Father's Day this past Sunday.

Jim had them stashed up on his dresser, but not hidden well enough from the eagle eyes of

SAM!

I found chocolate smeared all over the bed.

The bed that I had just put clean sheets on!

When I had determined that Jim wasn't the chocolate smearing culprit, I concluded that Sam had laid back leisurely on our bed and munched his way through several peanut butter cups.

On Wednesday night we gave Samuel another peanut butter cup.

After watching him eat it I was reminded of a TV ad that Reese's had done several years ago.  They asked the question, "How do you eat your Reese's?"  Then they go on to show people eating them from the middle out, etc.

I wanted to insert a photo of a peanut butter cup with a hole in the middle - but, alas, I couldn't find one.  I thought about sacrificing one of my husbands last remaining peanut butter cups, but.....

 

In case you need to know how to eat a "Reese's Peanut Butter Cup", here are some blow by blow directions!

1. Take the wrapper off the PB cup. Depending on the size of the cup, you will either be opening a package or unwrapping foil
2. Once the initial package is open, remove the protective paper shell around the chocolate.
3. Now you have the PB cup ready to eat in your hand!
4. Pop the WHOLE thing into your mouth.
5. With your tongue, turn the cup so that the smooth top is facing the front of your mouth.
6. Put the cup between your teeth on the line between the smooth top of the cup and the perforated edges.
7. Bite down so as to separate the smooth top from the bottom of the chocolate where the peanut butter is located.
8. Allow the bottom half (with peanut butter) to fall back towards your tongue.
9. Push the smooth top over to the corner of your cheek and let it melt.
10. Once it's mostly melted, push all pieces back to the center of your mouth and bite down.
11. Either let it melt into nothing if you want to savor the flavor, or else bite and chew and swallow!

This is how Samuel eats his "Reese's Peanut Butter Cups".

First, steal take borrow a "Reese's Peanut Butter Cup" from Dad's dresser.
Second, climb into Mum and Dad's bed.
Third, demand ask Mum to pull the covers up and to snuggle next to me.

 Fourth, when silky is completely covering my face, commence eating the peanut butter cup.

Fifth, it is very difficult to eat a peanut butter cup when my entire face is covered.
Sooooo, lift silky and continue to eat.......even though I am so very tired and half asleep.
Sixth, when finished, wipe sticky chocolaty hands on whatever is closest.
What.......or in this case, who........do you think happened to be closest???

However you happen to eat your favorite candy, enjoy!

Don't wreck a sublime chocolate experience by feeling guilty.  ~Lora Brody

There are four basic food groups:  milk chocolate, dark chocolate, white chocolate, and chocolate truffles.  ~Author Unknown

Sally-Ann

Together We Grow!

Over a course of several weeks, Samuel participated in an art project at his school.  The Children's Board of Hillsborough County came in each Friday and helped the children create some beautiful art work.  Here is a video of the process.

Enjoy!

Be sure and look for my boy!!

It is Monday.......that means FAMILY HOME EVENING!

I have been lost in the craziness of every day life.

I have had to let some things slip for a time.

That drives me absolutely CRAZY,

I am now trying to get caught up.

I have really missed doing my blog.

It is nice to have people read what I have to say and get a peek at my family life. 

But, I mainly write my blog for me.

I find it therapeutic.

You will never know how many posts have been written, agonized over and then ultimately, deleted.  Sometimes there are things that just don't need to be shared.......

But, with summer here, I am determined to get back on the

So, today is Monday.

Monday means Family Home Evening.

This Family Home Evening is taken from the weekly e-mail I get from

LDS Living Magazine

I wasn't sure if I wanted to do this particular FHE, but decided to after all.  The reason why I didn't want to was some of the questions asked.

"Invite family members to share the most valuable thing they have ever lost and what it meant to them to lose it. Have you ever been able to replace it?"

A very easy question for me to answer in my mind, but never an easy question to answer out loud.

FHE: Commandment

Conference Talk:
For more information on this topic read “What Have You Done with My Name?,” by Mervyn B. Arnold, Ensign, Nov. 2010, 105.

Thought:
I realized that [a fence] was a protection, just as the commandments and my parents’ rules were a protection. The commandments and rules were for my own good. I realized that obedience to the commandments could save me from physical and spiritual death.

(Mervyn B. Arnold, “What Have You Done with My Name?,” Ensign, Nov. 2010, 105.)

Song:
“Keep the Commandments,” Children’s Songbook, p. 146.

Scripture:
Consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual. (Mosiah 2:41)

Lesson:
As you read Alma 37:13–14, have family members mark the things Alma told Helaman to remember. Suggest that family members circle the blessings for keeping the commandments and underline the consequences for not keeping the commandments. Ask your family why they think Alma seems so serious on this point.

Invite family members to share the most valuable thing they have ever lost and what it meant to them to lose it. Have you ever been able to replace it? Read together Alma 37:15–17 and ask:
• What would Helaman have lost for disobedience?
• Why would losing these sacred records change the world today?
• Why would it have been difficult to replace them?

(Dennis H. Leavitt and Richard O. Christensen, Scripture Study for Latter-day Saint Families: The Book of Mormon, [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2003], p. 208.)

Story:
Valentina is a senior citizen [in Ukraine] who had drunk strong coffee for several years as a prescription from her doctor for a health condition. When she was preparing for baptism into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Valentina read of the Word of Wisdom and what it said about coffee. She returned to her doctor and asked if there might be a prescription that would permit her to take something other than coffee for her condition. The doctor said that he knew of nothing available and that if that were true she should continue drinking the coffee. She scoured the woefully depleted pharmacies throughout the city and found that there were no other stimulants available that would meet her needs.

Valentina might have concluded that in the absence of other remedies she was justified in taking coffee purely for medicinal purposes, as her doctor prescribed. It troubled her, however, to fail to fulfill anything given of the Lord. “I don’t want to miss any of the spiritual blessings the Lord has promised in this revelation. I want to be an example to my family, who are all unbelievers. How can I do that if they see me drink coffee each day?”

After prayerful consideration, Valentina approached the missionaries who had taught her the gospel. “If you will give me a blessing through the priesthood, I believe Heavenly Father will take away my health problems. Whatever his will might be, however, I have decided that I will never drink tea or coffee again. I trust in the words of our Savior.”

Valentina received a wonderful blessing, promising her health and spiritual gifts through her faith. She was then baptized, and immediately her health problem disappeared. She has often publicly borne her testimony about this experience and of the spiritual and temporal blessings that the Lord granted her through obedience to his commandments.

(Howard L. Biddulph, Morning Breaks: Stories of Conversion and Faith in the Former Soviet Union, [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1996].)

Activity:
Players arrange their chairs in a circle. One player, called the lawgiver, stands in the center. As he gives the laws, the other players obey. If they are not alert they will disobey the law, and the lawgiver can take their chair. The disobedient player, then becomes “it.”

Use laws similar to the following list, or use some of your own. The laws should be given in rapid succession so that the players must keep alert.

Stand up.
Sit down.
Stand on the left foot.
Move two chairs to the right.
Move one chair to the left.
Move to the third chair on your left.
Lift both feet off the floor.
Turn around.
Raise both arms.

(Alma Heaton, The LDS Game Book, [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1968], p. 96.)

CHOCOLATE LUSH

• 1 cup flour          
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 3/4 cup walnuts or 3/4 cup pecans, finely chopped
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened to room temperature
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 (12 ounce) container Cool Whip
• 1 box instant chocolate pudding mix (any favorite flavor may be used) Some use 2 boxes

Directions:

1. Mix butter and flour together then add the ground nuts ( save a few for the topping). Pat into a 9x13 baking dish.
2. Bake 20 minutes at 350
3. Cool.
4. In a mixing bowl mix cream cheese and powdered sugar together, stir in 1/2 of the cool whip.
5. Spread this mixture over cooled crust.
6. Make the pudding as directed on the box and spread over the cream cheese. If you would like a firmer pudding, use a little less milk.
7. Top with the rest of the cool whip, sprinkle with the reserved nuts.
8. Refrigerate until serving time.
9. Sometimes I drizzle melted chocolate or chocolate ice cream topping over the top, makes it look even more rich. But, my all time favorite is to sprinkle with crushed Butter Fingers........

Enjoy!
Sally-Ann

Tuesday on Captiva Island

We have been on Captiva Island since Saturday.

I can't post any pictures until we get home because I don't have a way to download them at the moment.  I can download some from the internet however.  

Here we are on a Tuesday afternoon.

We just got back from a shopping trip to the Captiva General Store.

It is very, very expensive to buy just the normal, every day items here. 

 Not as expensive as at the "Captiva Provision Company"!!  We made a pit stop there as well.  I thought it would be fun to buy something a bit different than our usual fare to cook-up.  Definitely catered to the people who could afford the 2 million dollar homes!

Decided that good old hot dogs were just fine!!!

We did buy some great ice-cream for dessert.  We have become hooked on Queenie's Ice-cream.

YUM YUM

 is all that I can say.

My personal favorite is "Black Raspberry Chip".

We haven't done anything very exciting on our vacation.  

A lot of swimming.

Some walking on the beach.

Swimmng.

Eaten out at a few interesting restaurants.

Swimming.

Reading.

Swimming.

I watched several episodes of "The Waltons" one afternoon.

Swimming.

Watching the sunset.

And did I mention.......swimming????

Samuel has loved the swimming pool.

We jump in the pool at about 9:30am for a couple of hours.

We jump in the pool at about 2:00pm for a couple of hours.

That is, if we aren't at the beach.....swimming in the ocean!

We finish off the day by jumping in the pool after dinner for about an hour.

Yep, it is a tough life.

Jessica has spent 99%  of the vacation time on the computer or sleeping.

She has done a little bit of swimming...........

I was worried about the pool.  I was worried that we would be forever pulling Samuel away from it, stopping him from jumping in.  But, no.  He has been very good.  He sits by the pool and waits for us to come and get in.

Samuel has been talking, talking, and talking.  There has only been one meltdown.

It has been a good few days.

Yesterday, Samuel and I were floating around the pool.

Samuel, "Go home?"

Mum, "Not yet, a few more days, why?"

Samuel, "Blue."

Mum, "Do you miss Blue?"

Samuel, "Blue is looking."

Mum, "Blue is looking?"

Samuel, "Blue is looking for Sam."

I must admit, I do miss the big, yellow dog.

I don't miss his fur all over the place, but I do miss him.

I swept the floor this morning and there was only a tiny bit of dirt in the dustpan, not mounds and mounds of dog hair!

I love my family.  I love spending time with them.  Looking forward to Joshua and Courtney joining us on Thursday!

Sally-Ann

Today......

Well, today was actually yesterday, but I didn't have a computer to work with.  Soooo, I am blogging about yesterday.......today.

Yesterday we loaded up the car.  When I say loaded, I mean that not another thing could have possibly fitted into it, made a few pit stops and then drove down to Captiva Island.

Our first pit stop was to drop Blue off at the dog boarding kennel.  We have never done this before and we hope that he will have a good week there.

Our second pit stop was for food.  We are Purdys and we need food to sustain us on a long drive.

Our third pit stop was the cemetery to wish Emma a happy birthday.  Emma would have been seven.  Each year I think it is getting easier to put the bunch of pink roses on her headstone.  Each year I tell myself that it is getting easier.......it isn't.

Then, we drove to Captiva Island.

It was an uneventful drive.  There were quite a few very bad drivers on the road and quite a few accidents on the way, but, uneventful for us.

We arrived around 4pm and were very, very happy with

The Mermaid House

We jumped in the pool as soon as we arrived.  Samuel did not want to get out!  After a throw together dinner we walked to the beach.

We arrived just in time to see the sun set into the gulf.  It was beautiful.....the sun looked like it was just melting into the water.

It was a fitting end to a good day.

Standing on the beach, watching the sun sink into the ocean, watching our little boy chasing the tide as it ebbed in and out.
Thinking of Emma and wondering if she was thinking of us.

Monday....21st March.....Important Day in the Life of the Purdy Clan

Today is Monday, 21st March.

I am very tired.

I don't feel like blogging.

But...........

Sometimes I need, no, want, no,

FEEL COMPELLED

to mark a special day with a blog post.

I couldn't let this day go by without wishing my daughter, 

Jessica,

the

 

 A VERY

Can't believe that 19 years ago Jessica made her grand appearance to the world!
So, tonight for Family Home Evening, in celebration, we are going to

  This is Jessica's favorite place to eat.  She is a steak and potatoes kind of girl!  Jessica also likes their Caesar Salad.  If Jessica is particularly good today, we will tell the waiter that it is her birthday, order her a "Chocolate Thunder from Down Under" and have them sing her "Happy Birthday." 
Jessica would absolutely love the attention of that!  
Hee Hee, I know I am a evil Mum
What is life without a little excitement??
Especially on your birthday!!
 This year, Jessica requested that I make her a confetti birthday cake.  I was happy to oblige.  I made her one last year as well.  This year's cake went off without a hitch........last year's cake??  Let's just say we had problems.

Sam says, "Blue!!  Bad dog!!"

Mum says, "Blue??

Sam says, "Munch, munch, yum, yum!"

 Mum says, "Frosting hides everything!"

 Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday dear Jessica!
Happy birthday to YOU!

 

Time goes by to quickly!

 We love you Jessica!

Sally-Ann

Just in case inquiring minds would like to know.

Jessica received a rousing, borderline rowdy, rendition of "Happy Birthday" from the crew at Outback Steak House.

Yes, she was sufficiently embarrassed and red faced.

Our mission as parents was accomplished. 

Monday......Family Home Evening & Food

 DIVAN CHICKEN

Servings: 6-8 servings
Prep Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 45 min
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients 

• 2   (10-ounce) packages frozen broccoli, chopped (I used fresh broccoli and steamed it)

• 6 cup shredded chicken, cooked (I used a rotisserie chicken from Costco)

• 2   (10 3/4 -ounce) cans condensed cream of mushroom soup

• 1 cup mayonnaise

• 1 cup sour cream

• 1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

• 1 teaspoon curry powder

• salt and pepper, to taste

• 1/2 cup dry white wine (didn't use this, could substitute chicken broth if wanted)

• 1 sleeve of Club Crackers (or Ritz)

• 1 stick of butter melted
  

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Remove the outer wrappers from the boxes of broccoli. Open one end of each box. Microwave on full power for 2 minutes, until thawed.  Drain the broccoli and put into a 11X7 casserole dish that has been prepared with a non stick cooking spray.
• Top with shredded chicken.
• In a medium bowl, combine the soup, mayonnaise, sour cream, cheddar cheese, lemon juice, curry powder, salt and pepper to taste, and wine.  Whisk together to make a sauce.  Pour the sauce over the broccoli and chicken. 
• Pat down evenly and smooth with a spatula.  
• In a Ziplock bag, crush the crackers, add the melted butter, mix well and sprinkle over the top

Bake for about 30-45 minutes.

Serve with rice and salad

Tonight's Family Home Evening is taken from

Scriptures for Kids

and goes along with this month's Primary theme.

This is a great web site.

March Theme:

Heavenly Father speaks to us through His prophets

"What I the Lord have spoken, I

have spoken, ....whether by mine

own voice or by the voice of my

servants, it is the same."

(D&C 1:38)

Stand For The Right

Children’s Songbook, 159

There are many ways that Heavenly Father can talk to you. He can speak to you through the Holy Ghost. He can speak to you through the scriptures. One very important way that Heavenly Father talks to His children is through His living prophets. Tell your family that you are going to ask them a trick question. Ask, "How many prophets do we have on the earth today?" Explain that each member of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is sustained as a prophet, seer, and revelator. That means that we have 15 prophets on the earth! Explain, however, that the President of the Church is the only one who can receive revelation for the entire Church.

Display a picture of President Monson. Ask, “Why do we need a living prophet?” (So we can know what Heavenly Father and Jesus want us to do.) President Monson tells us what Heavenly Father wants us to know and do. When we listen to General Conference, it is as if God Himself is speaking to us. We can learn the way to obtain God’s promised blessings when we listen to our prophet. On a piece of paper, make a list of things our prophet and apostles have recently counselled us to do. As a family, choose one thing from your list and make a goal to do it together.

Don’t eat the prophet! - print off one set of cards from here: http://tinyurl.com/26u3qvr. Put a piece of cereal or small candy on each card. Choose one person to go out of the room. While they are away, the rest of the group chooses one of the prophets, for example, "Spencer W. Kimball." Once you’re ready, start singing, "Follow the Prophet" or "Latter-Day Prophets". The person you chose to go away then comes back when they hear you singing. They then remove the cereal or small candy off each prophet card, one-by-one. Once they take the cereal or small candy off the designated card (Spencer W. Kimball in this case), everyone stops singing and says, "Don't eat the prophet!" They get to keep the cereal/candy they collected during their turn. Then, you choose a new person to go out of the room and start all over again. They loved this game!

Fruit Pizza

1 roll (16.5 oz) Pillsbury refrigerated sugar cookies

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup fresh or canned peach slices, drained, cut into thinner slices

1 cup halved or quartered fresh strawberries

1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 12-inch pizza pan or spray with cooking spray. In pan, break

up cookie dough; press dough evenly in bottom of pan to form crust. Bake 16 to 20

minutes or until golden brown. Cool completely, about 30 minutes. In small bowl, beat

cream cheese, sugar and vanilla with electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy. Spread

the mixture over cooled crust. Arrange fruit over cream cheese. Refrigerate until chilled,

at least 1 hour. Cut into wedges or squares. Store in refrigerator.

Enjoy!!

Sally-Ann