HERSHEY COFFEE CANDY BARS & AN EYEBALL CAKE!!

today me and the kiddos did some running around. i wanted to make an eyeball cake that i saw in an issue of nick jr. so we hit the dollar store to get some candy. even though the candy for the cake was kinda a hit and miss, i did spot some other candy that i haven't seen before



hershey's apparently has come out with a line of candy bars that have a coffee flavor to them. i haven't tried them yet, so i will keep ya posted.

after the dollar store, we hit the party supply store so we could pick up mikey's halloween costume. thank goodness they had a "jack sparrow" (pirates of the carribean) costume. i can't wait to see him dressed up.

after that we dealt with the hell of walmart where we picked up a few things along with the candy for the cake.

once we got home, we got busy making the cake.









it was pretty darn delicious. next time though, i will use chocolate frosting and be more detailed on the eyes. the kiddos didn't care though they thought it was great!!

ANOTHER REASON TO LUV FALL!!!

every fall i look forward to little debbie coming out with their fall snacks. especially this one. ahhhh...a pumpkin filling. they are simply delicious.

i wish they were out year round.


NOTE: i have written them asking if they would keep them out year round and they disappointed me by saying that they are strictly seasonal!

RATS!!

MIKEY'S BDAY "PARTY" AT SCHOOL!!

well, today was mikey's lil bday party at school. i brought the previously mentioned cupcakes and hawaiin punch. when i got there, the kids were in centers and i started to set eveything up. its funny, i really didn't know what i was supposed to be doing, but i poured drinks. while i was pouring drinks, mikey and his teacher sat at the same table that i was pouring drinks at and started working on writing his name (she was doing this with another student when i walked in). i pretended that i didn't notice what they were doing b/c mikey was starting to get distracted. so i started looking around at things in the room. they had these huge pads of paper where the teacher had asked the children a series of questions (what is your favorite color, what do you want to be when you grow up, & my family likes to...) and she wrote down their answers. of course i scanned for mikey's name and read his answers"


his favorite color is black.


his family likes to play on the computer (this made me laugh at loud when i read it). when his teacher had asked if this was true, i said absolutely :)


when he grows up, he wants to go in the army (its in his blood...lol).

so after everyone finished the last of their cupcakes and juice, i headed off to the thrift store that is right down the street. i may not have a mcdonalds that isn't more than 15 or more minutes away, but by gosh i get to have a very decent thrift store right down the street. this is usually where i can find some good books. this is what i found:


great book!!!! i already finished it (okay, so i'm posting this on sunday and i started the book on friday and finished last night). john saul is simply the best!!!


a book on omelets


more books for bella's collection.





after i picked the kiddos up from school, i noticed that i had gotten an email from crayola and they posted a great link showing that they had oodles and oodles of coloring pages. so i printed so halloween ones out and we all go to coloring.













all in all it was a pretty great day :)

SKULL CUPCAKES!!

tomorrow is mikey's bday celebration at school. so i made cupcakes to bring in with fruit punch for the festivities. these were the gummy skulls that i bought for mikey's bday party (that has not happened yet...lol). i happened to have enough for the party and for 24 cupcakes.

i spoke to mikey's teacher today and she told me that it birthdays are very important in her classroom and wanted to make sure that all the children who had bdays in the past month were celebrated as soon as possible. she also told me that the children draw a picture for the bday student of a present that they would give them if they could and put it in a bday box. i think that is one of the sweetest things i have heard a class do.

i am so glad that ms. upton feels her students bdays are important, b/c we do too!!!

THE PAST WEEK IN REVIEW!!!

since mike is watching the packers game and eating the BIGGEST bowl of popcorn (and it was yummy!!) i have ever seen, i decided now was a good time to try and sum up the past week in one post so i can feel caught up!

why does that happen? why does a week fly by like that and then i feel like there is so much to post and i don't get it all???

things are starting to get a lil more back to "normal" around here which is a very good thing. i know i need to post more pictures that i have taken of biloxi, but it is such a tedious task. plus, i think that i hate looking at the pictures.

so since we know what mike is up to, lets start with the kiddos....



mikey had his first day back to school today (thank goodness) and hopefully things will start to feel normal for him again. i hate that he missed out on a month of school. especially since he just started. it was nice to see that his teacher has him down for snack day since we missed it due to the hurricane.

he has already started his christmas list, which is a lil more expensive than years past. he really wants a play station two, but i think that me and mike decided that a gameboy and access to the home computer was enough for now. i don't think a five year old needs that much technology in his life. is this just me??

he's decided this year that he wants to be a skeleton/pirate for halloween and i hope that i can find a place that has a costume to his liking. i am going to try and take him to the party supply place (if its open yet) this saturday and see if we can find him something there.

i luv that he luvs halloween as much as i do. he likes walking down the spooky aisles at the stores and seeing the scarest of things. we also start watching all the haunted shows they have on the travel channel. we luv us some halloween.








my lil bella-boo had to be picked up today from school due to a stomach bug (dear God, please make sure that no one else, and i do mean no one, in this house gets this bug!!!). she acted like her usual self after her nap though. so i hope that is a good sign.

lately she has been fun hanging out with her big bro between their two bedrooms making tents and a big mess!!







after waiting and waiting for her bangs to grow past her eyes and it never happening, i decided it was time for a trim. this was bella's first lil haircut and i was really nervous about going at it on my own. her new bang's look so cute though. she looks so much older than her lil 2 year old self.

this year for halloween, bella is going to be a "witch". i got her the cutest dress at target last week that is orange and black with spider webs on it (which will match the skirt i wore last year. the funny thing is though, when i first showed it to her, she took off running in the opposite direction, screaming and crying telling me "i ont wan to". i don't know what that's all about, but she is wearing that dress ;)


as for me, i have been busy doing much of nothing...lol. i think i am still trying to recoup from all the work. i miss crafting like you would not believe. i have managed to get a couple of xmas scarves completed (pictures will be posted in the future).

here is a list of things that i need to do in the next week or so (note: this is mostly for my benefit):

*take a halloween pic of the kiddos and make my halloween cards

*get said cards out in the mail

*get some bills out in the mail

*find mikey a halloween costume

*decide on a date for mikey's new bday party

*make invitations

*get em in the mail

*decorate the house for halloween

*get our shit together and get a "for sale" sign in front of the house

*cross my fingers that the people already showing interest in the house will buy it

*do some more christmas shopping (online is really all i got right now folks)

*make mikey's cupcakes for school on wednesday

*call my medical insurance company

*file a buncha bills and paperwork where they belong

*add my old "bill" planner stuff to my new planner

*remember to print this list out tomorrow so i can start crossing this stuff off.

i am sure that i am forgetting something.


so that is pretty much what we have been up to. nothing too exciting. i have been surfing around and have found some great new blogs. i have also received some pretty great stuff in the mail. giao i promise that i am going to take a picture of all the goodies that you sent me one day this week. i feel bad that i have not properly thanked you yet.

so i hope that you guys have all had a wonderful september and are in areas where the leaves are already beginning to change and the weather is starting to cool off. i am jealous of the bloggers that have put away their summer clothing to bring out the sweaters. i have another month or so before i can do that.

have a wonderful week :)

FINALLY, A DAY OFF AND THE CORPSE BRIDE!!!

well, today me and michael finally had another day off of work (thank God!!!). so we had my mom come over for a delicious brunch (sorry no pics, my camera's batteries are dead) and then took the kiddos to see the corpse bride. this was isabella's first movie and she did pretty good! she was so excited to go eat popcorn. right before we left, we woke isabella up from her nap and mike said "ya wanna go to the movies and eat some popcorn?". that lil girl shot up out of bed jumping up and down saying "popcorn, popcorn!! i want popcorn".

the movie is rated (in my opinion) "eh!". it was alright. i'm a big weirdo. i'm not really into that type of thing. i don't think i have even seen the nightmare before christmas all the way through. so i guess you shouldn't go by my rating...lol.

tomorrow we take the kiddos to daycare and me and michael are off to mobile and maybe even pensacola to get a break and do some shopping. i am so looking forward to it.

so thats it for now. i do plan on posting more pictures of biloxi tomorrow :)

THEY'RE KOOKY AND THEY'RE SPOOKY!!!

after alot of pushing and shoving, i finally got my girl greta into the wonderful world of blogging.

now she told me that she doesn't think that she is going to know how/what to write, but believe you me, this girl is awesome and friggin' hilarious, so i am sure that she is not going to have a problem whatsoever!!!! not to mention, her kids are adorable and she has some crafty bones in her body. see why she's my bestest friend?

so be sure to check her and welcome her into this wonderful world!

MANNA-BEARS!!!

my mom picked up these vitamin/gummy bear things while she was out and about the other day and couldn't believe her eyes when she stumbled upon these.

you are prolly thinking "big deal...manna bears". well the thing is, manna is our last name and beahr (pronounced like "bear") is my maiden name.

who'd a thought that there would be a vitamin named after us...lol.

MORE PHOTOS!!!

finally, a free minute at home to post a few more pics. i am hoping that thursday i will be able to drive further west on hwy 90 and get some more shots.

these shots were taken in bay st. louis.


a poor shot of a badly destructed gas station across the tracks (and of course me in the rear view mirror).


a view down the street.


half a house that is not supposed to be sitting where it is.


all thats left of a house...a roof.


a view of the bay st. louis bridge. notice there is not a road sitting on top of it. its just the pillars that the bridge (road) sits on. its almost like a buncha dominoes that are all lined up.


american pride


whats left of a mansion on the beach.


another "house".


a house that i am guessing is from the other side of the street that landed right by the tracks.


all thats left of a church/catholic school. i took this shot from the car. i really couldn't bear to walk up there. greta did though. but she told me that with the statue was also jesus' face. ya know, its really amazing how things were destroyed but various religious statues are still standing...untouched.

I'M BORED....SO HERE'S SOME CONFESSIONS!!!

while i was surfing around today at work, i saw this over at giao's and thought i would partake...b/c after all, i do love talking about myself...lol.

[ ] I am bisexual or homosexual.
[ ] I've run away from home.
[ ] I listen to political music.
[ ] I collect comic books.
[X] I shut others out when I'm sad.
[X] I open up to others easily.
[ ] I am keeping a secret from the world.
[X] I watch the news.
[ ] I own over 5 rap CDs.
[X] I own an I-Pod.
[ ] I own something from Hot Topic.
[ ] I love Disney movies.
[X] I am a sucker for hair/eyes.
[ ] I don't kill bugs.
[X] I curse regularly (a lil too regularly)
[ ] I paid for that cell phone ringtone.
[ ] I have "x"s in my screen name.
[ ] I've slipped out a "lol" in a real conversation.
[ ] I love Spam.
[X] I bake well.
[ ] I would wear pajamas to school.
[ ] I own something from Abercrombie
[X] I have a job.
[X ] I love Martha Stewart.
[X] I am in love with someone.
[ ] I am guilty of tYpInG lIkE tHiS.
[X] I am self conscious.
[X] I like to laugh.
[X] I smoke a pack a day (am i drinking too?)
[X] I loved Go Ask Alice (and my mom found it and took it away from me)
[ ] I have cough drops when I'm not sick.
[ ] I can't swallow pills.
[X] I have many scars (can you say two csections???)
[X] I've been out of this country.
[X] I believe in ghosts.
[ ] I can't sleep if there is a spider in the room.
[X] I am really ticklish.
[ ] I see/have seen a therapist.
[X] I love chocolate.
[ ] I bite my nails. (just the skin around em...does that count?)
[ ] I am comfortable with being me.
[X] I play computer games/video games when i'm bored.
[ ] Gotten lost in your city.
[ ] Saw a shooting star.
[X] Gone out in public in your pajamas.
[X] I have kissed a stranger.
[X] Hugged a stranger.
[X] Been in a fight with the same sex. (HIGHSCHOOL!!!)
[ ] Been arrested.
[ ] Laughed and had milk/soda come out of your nose.
[ ] Pushed all the buttons on an elevator (too afraid it will make the elevator break)
[ ] Made out in an elevator.
[X] Swore at your parents.
[ ] Kicked a guy where it hurts.
[ ] Been skydiving.
[ ] Been bungee jumping.
[ ] Broken a bone.
[ ] Played spin the bottle.
[X] Gotten stitches.
[ ] Drank a whole gallon of milk in one hour.
[x] Bitten someone.
[ ] Been to Niagara Falls.
[X] Gotten the chicken pox.
[ ] Crashed into a friend's car.
[ ] Been to Japan.
[ ] Ridden in a taxi.
[ ] Shoplifted.
[ ] Been fired.
[X] Had feelings for someone who didn't have them back.
[X] Stole something from your job.
[ ] Gone on a blind date.
[x] Lied to a friend.
[x] Had a crush on a teacher/coach.
[ ] Celebrated Mardi Gras in New Orleans (no but i have in biloxi...right next door)
[ ] Been to Europe.
[X] Slept with a co-worker.
[X] Been married.
[ ] Gotten divorced.
[ ]Saw someone dying.
[X]Driven over 400 miles in one day.
[ ] Been to Canada.
[X] Been on a plane.
[X] Seen the Rocky Horror Picture Show.
[X] Thrown up in a bar.
[X] Eaten Sushi (just california rolls which are veggie...does that count?)
[ ] Been snowboarding.
[ ] Been skiing.
[X] Been ice skating.
[ ] Met someone in person from the internet.
[ ] Been to a motorcross show.
[ ] Gone/Going to college.
[ ] Done hard drugs
[X] Taken painkillers.
[ ] Cheated on someone else.
[X] Were so bored you took this survey.
[x] Have a tattoo

WHEW!!!

a vehicle we passed today while driving around bay st. louis.



well, i finally found a free moment to post a lil something about what has been going on here. today is my first day off in....hold on lemme count since i really don't know what the date or day is....12 days. me and mike have both been working 12 hour shifts 7 days a week. life right now is a lil hectic.

i have been able to drive around a lil bit and take a few pics. i'll upload more later. i'm not sure how much longer we are going to be working these hours, but it could be 12 hours shifts for quite a few months.

i never imagined that life would take a turn like this. to drive around the town you live in and feel like you are visiting a third world country filled with devistation. i must say though that there is a lot of hope around here. it may take a few years to get things rebuilt but everyone has the gung-ho attitude about taking what has happened to the beautiful mississippi gulf coast and making it better than before. it breaks my heart though that a lot of the history is gone.


the grand casino which used to sit on the other side of the median which had another 2 lane road, boardwalk, & the sand beach. that casino was on the other side of all of that.


another shot of the grand and an old hotel.


a view of damaged homes on a street.


the front of the main street post office.


the biloxi port commission which is just a few years old and now the two bottom floors are completely gone.


a shot of reynoir and hwy 90.


another shot of reynoir and hwy 90.


what is left of the bombay bicycle club which is across from the beau rivage casino/resorts







i know i don't have descriptions, but its time to get dinner fixed. i'll be back later.