Bunny Racers

I made these adorable Bunny Racers for Gus' preschool class. I got the idea from Stacy, who had seen them in "Family Fun" magazine. This is my second year making them. They go together quickly, and everyone raves over them. I think they make a great Easter craft.

Easter Bunny Racers

# 24 Little Debbie Swiss Rolls
# 1(16ounce)container vanilla frosting or chocolate frosting
# 24 marshmallow peeps(Rabbit peeps)
# 1(4 1/2ounce)package peach ring gummy candies(cut in half)
# 24 Lifesavers candies (gummy)
# 48 M&Ms plain chocolate candies
# 96 spree candies

Unwrap Swiss cake rolls and put on flat surface to work on. Place contents of frosting container in quart-sized ziploc bag; press all air out, seal and snip corner off end. Cut a shallow V shape in bottom of Peeps so they sit flat on cake rolls. Add small amount of frosting to bottom of Peeps and stick on almost to the back of cake rolls. Take halved peach gummy slices and add small dabs of frosting to cut end and stick down behind Peep as the "back of the seat". Next, add small dab of frosting to Lifesavers and stick down in front of Peep on a slight angle for steering wheel. Take 2 matching M&M's and adhere to front of cake roll as the headlights. Take 4 matching Spree candies (or equivalent) and use frosting to adhere them two to each long side of cake roll as the tires. Repeat with all cake rolls.

Gus decided to paint his face like a clown.

Here are his results...

I guess he didn't think he did a good enough job, because about an hour later, he walked in looking like this...

You can't leave that child alone for a minute!


Also, Remington is under the weather. We are thinking she might have strep throat. Three children in her class have been diagnosed with it in the last week. We have a doctor's appt. at 4:50 today. She is moving slow, but it has not kept her from her passion, her Nintendo DS.

What have we created? O'well, at least she is not bored!


Have a Great Friday!

Another habit, kicked!

Okay, maybe not kicked, but we survived ONE night!

Gus just turned 3, and still sucks a pacifier. He is obsessed with it. He sucks it 24/7. It is in his mouth when he plays, talks, and sometimes between bites of food. It goes everywhere we go. And when he finally puts it down and misplaces it, he calls it by name. "Sassy"! I can't count the number of times I have frantically searched for it before bedtime. It drives me crazy!

But, I also love it! I NEED him to be quiet, once in a while. I NEED him to go to sleep! And, I secretly love to watch him turn it as he is falling asleep. If it goes, will my baby years be over?

Lately Gus has been biting a hole into his pacifiers. Luckily, he will not suck them once they have a hole. We immediately throw them away. We have been telling him when they are all gone, we would not buy anymore.

Fast forward to last night.....He was down to his last pacifier. It was time for bed . After searching the house more times than I care to count, it was no where to be found. I told him that was it. No more "Sassy!" (What did I just say?)

Gus couldn't believe it either, and he didn't go down without a fight! He cried, he screamed, he tossed and he turned. He called out to it. He would crawl to the edge of his bed and look for it. He kept telling me he saw it on the floor. I think he was hallucinating! Finally, after 2 hours, he fell asleep!

As soon as I was sure he was asleep, I went on my final pacifier hunt. I found it in our bedroom, behind Jon's nightstand. Yes! I quickly placed it in my keep safe box along with all the other items that have "magically" disappeared from our house.

Okay, I will admit, as satisfied as I was, I was also sad for taking it away from him. I feel like parents spend the first year getting children "attached" to things, then the second (and third) year taking the items they are attached to away.

Gus made it through last night, and thankfully, so did I. I am so proud of Gus. I miss the "baby" in him, but love the fun "little boy" he is becoming.

I LOVE YOU, GUS!

St. Patrick's Day Activities

We had a GREAT St. Patrick's Day!

I started out the evening with a surprise for the kids. Play dough! We had never made it from scratch before. I couldn't believe how easy it was to make. The kids had a blast picking out their dough color and even more fun making it into shapes.

Gus' dough was green. Those of you that know him will not be surprised. Those of you that are getting to know him will quickly learn he always chooses green. Notice his shirts in all future post!

After playing with the cookie cutters, Remington started cutting her dough into pieces. When I asked her what she was doing, she told me they were learning about sharing equal parts in math. She cut all of the dough and then equally divided it.

She had a great time playing

with it.

For dinner, I fixed the kids, green eggs and ham. Remington wanted green ham too. She said they had it at school. I tried to make the ham green, but failed. I guess my cooking skills still have room for improvement! Sorry Rem.!


They both seemed to enjoy dinner! Maybe next time we will have Blue eggs!

I know I was suppose to fix Monte Cristo Sandwiches tonight, but the final surprise was for me! Jon had to go to the Mountains today. He called me just as I was gathering the ingredients for the Monte Cristo sandwiches and said he stopped by the Ham House and picked up a Valle Bleu sandwich for us. Yeah! I LOVE that place.

It is located in Boone. If you are ever in Boone, you have to go there.

So the Monte Cristo ingredients were put back into the fridge. We will have it another night. I promise to let you all know how it turns out.

Here is a picture of the yummy Valle Bleu sandwich. Thanks Jon!

Loving the food!

I can't believe it, but I have developed a love for cooking. I have always enjoyed eating, but I did not grow up in the kitchen, (more like in the restaurants.)

I guess after spending the past 18 years eating with the Linker's, I have finally learned to enjoy the preparation part of cooking. It is no secret that the Linker's love to cook. They are some of the best cooks I know. They can make anything taste good. The only problem is, they don't always make the most healthy meals. Their favorite ingredient is butter! I told Mr. Thad, (FIL) I was going to sue him for being the cause of my weight gain!

I used to be really nervous preparing a recipe. I thought it had to be perfect. I would follow the recipe exactly, and would make sure there were no smudge marks on the dish. Crazy, I know! Well, I have since relaxed. I have learned to eye the measurements, and add or take away ingredients we like.

Lately, I have been in the mood to try new recipes. I found 7 new ones that I wanted to try. Last night, we had Taco Skillet Supper. It was easy to prepare, and tasted great. The kids even liked it, but it was a little to spicy for Remington's taste. Here is a picture of the yummy dish. (Please ignore my messy stove top. I should have used a larger skillet.)


The meal is really good with nacho chips. I will definitely make it again. Tonight's dinner is Monte Cristo Stuffed French Toast with Strawberry Syrup. I'll let you know how it turns out!

Gone Fishin'

Jon called yesterday with a GREAT idea. He wanted to take the kids fishing. With the time change and warm weather, I couldn't think of a better way to spend the evening. We called in a pizza, grabbed the fishing poles and headed to the Quarry.

Gus was very excited when I caught a fish on his fishing pole. He was happy to hold the pole, but did not want to go near the fish.

Guess who got hooked, and with my own pole! Jon got his line stuck in a tree, but did not want me to show the evidence!
Gus quickly tired of fishing, but had a great time shoveling dirt.

After lots of nibbles, Remington finally caught a fish. She even touched it!

We had a great time eating, fishing, (in that order) and hanging out together. It was the perfect early spring evening. I can't wait to do it again.

Tennis Anyone?

Remington has been asking for tennis lessons. Finally, I found a class for her age group. I thought this would be a great time of year to start, since the weather is not too warm. (Remington doesn't like anything that makes her hot!) After buying a PINK racquet and PINK balls, (Is there any other color?) She was ready. She had a great 1st lesson, even in the 80 degree weather!

I am so proud of Remington for trying all types of sports. Keep up the good work Rem!