Day 329... Bundt Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Cake

We have a birthday this week.. Grandma is turning 71 on Wednesday. The two of us went out to celebrate with a movie, and dinner while John and the Greeneteam made Grandma a Birthday cake. 

When John was eight, a Missionary couple was staying with his family. The wife made John this birthday cake. I thought it would be fun if he made it with the kids for my mom. 

The kids love dessert and celebrating birthdays!! Maddie making her first Bundt Cake. I always think of the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Love the scene where her mother puts flowers in the middle because she doesn't know it is a dessert. So funny!!

Bake the Bundt cake and let it cool. Once it is cool take a half gallon of mint chocolate chip ice cream and put it in the middle. Then top with Chocolate syrup and freeze. 

It certainly looks yummy. I will make sure to do a follow up on how it tastes tomorrow/Wednesday. Hopefully it won't be a frozen mess!!  

Day 328... Super Stick and Summer Fun/Boredom Jars!!

Every year we make a Summer fun list.. I got this idea years ago when my kids were little. For a long time we wrote our ideas on index cards. We would draw pictures on the front and then put the idea on the back. Then each week we would pick four or five pieces of mail. The things we picked we did for fun. Last year we wrote up a block list on construction paper. We then checked them off as we did them. 

This year after doing 365 days of fun my kids are thinking that they don't want to do anything in the summer. The problem with that is they will want to vegetate, stay on computers, and watch t.v. While that sounds good for a day or two we can't do that all summer. I will go NUTS and their brains will most likely turn to mush. 

Tonight we brainstormed a few fun ideas of things that we don't want to miss doing in the summer. Tubing down the Chattahoochee, Van Pugh Beach, Water War, Camping in the back yard, Summer movies, and concerts. Really just the normal things we do every year.  We put those ideas in a parfait cup marked Summer Fun.!! We will pick 2 or 3 ideas each week, and do them. 

Next we made an I'm Bored Jar. This one is new for us and I think will be fun. We came up with about 100 ideas of simple, quick and easy things to do to help keep us off of the computers and away from the t.v./video games.  Some they will love and some I am sure they will hate. 

Maddie is my #1 kid at being bored.. She always wants something new to do. I have a feeling she will be pulling lots of sticks. 

The boys on the couch trying to brainstorm boredom busters!!

Jacks reaction when he heard me say that I was putting QT for slushies in the boredom jar. You would think he won the lottery. 

Jack came up with the idea of the SUPER STICK. Each child may pull this stick once and have an ultimate choice as to what to do because they are bored. Any combo can be used as long as the idea is in the jar. 

Our 2012 Family Summer Idea Jars

Our ideas for boredom. Bring on the Summer!!

Day 327... Chick Fil A DATE KNIGHT

Chick Fil A hosted their first mother son  DATE KNIGHT today. We had a 7:30 reservation. 

My two handsome dates for the night!!

I had to torture them a little with a photo shoot. Jack had no problem giving his mama a kiss. 

Carson needed a little push.. He did it even though it was embarrassing. Might be the only shot like this I ever get with my two boys!! Thanks Kenna for being our photographer!!

They thought the shields were pretty cool. 

Our branch also had balloons, special decorations on the tables, the windows covered to resemble a garden, gold on the table (Rolo's), and the workers were in costume. There was also a special sheet of questions to get your dinner conversation started. We thought it was awesome and appreciate the work that went into this fun event.  Great Job as always Chick Fil A!!

They harassed the Chick Fil A cow a little. 

At the end they gave them a kitchen tour and a goody bag with a sword. When I asked what the kitchen tour was like they said that "there were some really pretty girls working in the back. They told the boys to come back in 5 years for a job." LOL!!  Leave it to my boys to be scoping the ladies at Chick Fil A while on a date with their mama.. Boys will be boys I guess!!  

Special thanks to my girls for letting this day of fun be one for the boys. Makenna was Maddies official babysitter. They played games and had a special snack while we were on our date!! Hard to believe my Kenna is old enough to babysit.  Proud of you girls. 

Day 326... Big Trees Forest Preserve

I have wanted to go to this Big Trees Forest Preserve for a couple of months. When I realized it was Arbor Day it seemed the perfect day to make it happen. Sadly Makenna hurt her foot and was not able to join us. 

Just inside the entry. Absolutely beautiful!!

Just the two of us!! 

So pretty!!

Ms. Maddie in the creek!! 

Such a peaceful and beautiful place!!

Loved the wood on this tree!!

This was a great outdoor adventure!!

When we got home we did some Arbor Day word Jumbles and Hidden searches. 

Jack trying desperately to win.. He is so competitive. 

If you have not been to this hidden gem in Sandy Springs we would highly recommend it. We can't wait to go back with the whole family. The next time we will plan to stay longer, take a picnic to tailgate, and make sure to have plenty of drinks.  Admission is free!! We will definitely go back!! 

Day 325... Carvel / Dumpster Diving.

So far on the 365 we have been to DQ, Menchies, and Rita's. Today we tried Carvel. It was their Re-Grand opening of the Carvel stores and they gave away free ice cream. YUM!! Love sites like Atlanta on the Cheap that fill you in on these Freebie giveaways.  If you are not on the loop to these great local sites you should sign up. 

Here I am with one of my favorite boys!!

Bear and his Daddy!!

Gotta love a giant sprinkle machine!!

Maddie is always up for ice cream!!

When we pulled into our neighborhood they were doing a neighborhood clean up. Anything you wanted to get rid of they would take. We decided to take advantage. I will admit this was mostly fun for dad and I. 

John off to the dumpster with our donations for tonight. 

Proud of all my boys who pitched in and helped. 

One man's trash is another mans treasure. John spotted this wheelbarrow in the dumpster and decided we really needed it. The truth is we do!! Carson was psyched with the wheelbarrow. He is my yard man and will now have a wheelbarrow to use!! Love steals, deals and freebies!!

Day 324... CLUE

Tonight we played our first ever family game of clue. I used to love this game as a kid!!

 My kids were excited to pick out their characters. They were kind enough to give me the old maid character of Ms. White,  Jackson was Professor Plum, Maddie Ms. Peacock, Kenna Ms. Scarlette and of course Carson was Mr. Green!

They liked pretending to be inspectors, and making the accusations!! 

Ms. Scarlette Making her move!!

Carson showing Maddie a clue!!

Jack was certain he had figured it out. Mr. Green, in the lounge, with the revolver!!

Sadly he was off by just a little bit.  

It was Mr. Green, in the the ballroom, with the revolver. 

Maybe next time buddy!! 

Day 323... Poetry

April is National Poetry month. I thought we would attempt to either write a poem or use words cut out from magazines to put a poem together.  I used to do this when I was a kid and thought it would be fun.

Maddie ended up writing a poem:

Father of our lives is here

Father of our lives is near

We'll just have to wait and see

What he has for you and me.

He will awake you in the night

He will awake you with a light.

There's a story here to see

Unfolding for you and me. 

She was very proud of it and thought it was Shakespeare quality. At one point, when I corrected her on a word she said.. "Well I suppose Shakespeare's mother criticized him too." She makes me laugh!!

Carson attempted to write a poem about animals and Steve Irwin. Then he gave up. I think he is more of a story teller than a poet. 

Makenna, my budding writer, wrote a poem about the IMAX movie "To The Arctic."

Polar Bears: by Makenna Greene

The cold is ever present, the wind spins around the barren icy land, for it has no boundaries.

You see the Arctic world untouched, only known by its children, the Polar Bears.

The grass and dirt of the tame and conquered world , fade here into ice and snow. 

Storms rage with no end in sight.

 Through the eyes of the polar bear the storm is just another to add to winters past. 

You see a cold barren land, they see paradise.  

Jack and I worked on this one together. We cut out lots of words and then tried to put it into a poem of sorts.