Search Results for: blog plain and fancy

Summer Reading Series: Fancy Nancy and the Mermaid Ballet

What do Three Billy Goats Gruff and Fancy Nancy and the Mermaid Ballet have in common? Believe it or not; an important lesson in parenting. Allow me to explain. A few months ago, my daughter’s second grade class decided to put on a play. Yup. Three Billy Goats Gruff. Tryouts were held and my seven-year-old did her best to score the part she had her heart set on: Baby Goat. Fortunately, I had enough time to emotionally prepare her in case she didn’t get the coveted role. “That’s okay, Mommy,” she reasoned “if I don’t get to be the Baby … Continue reading →

The Lost Art of Handwriting

My daughter is brilliant, charming, athletic, scrumptiously cute… but not perfect. Despite all of her wonderful qualities (which surely she inherited from her mother… ahem!), she has some issues. It’s not her choice in music that I am referring to; rather, it’s her penmanship. My second grader’s handwriting leaves a lot to be desired. I’d flat out say it stinks, but she’s seven, so time is on her side. What’s more, I don’t want to deal with her wrath if there ever comes a day that she actually reads this post. Anyway, back to her pathetic penmanship. I could blame … Continue reading →

Grandparents as Single Parents

Anyone will tell you that raising children alone is hard. Raising children is hard no matter how many parents live in the home. These kids did not come with an instruction manual so we are all just winging it and hoping for the best. Every day is a new challenge and sometimes I don’t feel up to it but you just have to keep moving forward. I don’t know about you, but at my age I can’t imagine starting over with little ones, especially by myself, but it happens every day. More and more grandparents are raising their grandchildren due … Continue reading →

Babies, Flat Head Syndrome, and Insurance

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Will your insurance company cover what could be considered a cosmetic treatment for your baby? It might if you can get a doctor to give that issue a specific diagnosis. It seems as though the Back to Sleep campaign has produced some unexpected, and unwanted, results. Does your baby have a flat spot at the back of his or her head? If so, you are not the only parent who has noticed this strange phenomena. Some people are referring to this condition as “flat head syndrome”. Oddly enough, your baby’s flat head may have happened as a result of something … Continue reading →

Fancy Festive Layouts

There are a variety of ways you can spice up your holiday layouts, including using Christmas-themed stickers, stamps, and die-cuts. However, if you really want to add a fancy touch to your designs without breaking the bank, consider using holiday-themed fonts. My favorite, and perhaps the simplest Christmas-themed fonts, are basic serif or sans serif decorated with holiday-inspired details, such as letters peeking out from underneath Santa hats, snow or letters printed on Christmas tree ornaments. I also love the letters that look like they are made from candy canes or carved from Christmas trees. I’m not that huge a … Continue reading →

Plain and Fancy

My daughter loves horses. She loves other animals too, but riding horses seems to really be an interest right now. I shudder at this a little, since I realize that horseback riding lessons can be very, very expensive. I think that I may be about to become a cheerleader for soccer practice, or anything but horses. Maybe not hockey, though. That requires getting up early in the morning. However, since I do enjoy supporting my daughter’s interests in spite of all of my protests and machinations to the contrary, I’ve been scheming about how to get her riding horses. The … Continue reading →

Lite and Healthy Summer Recipes

If you are struggling to fit into last season’s swimsuit, then you might be interested in the following recipe line-up. These dishes prove that reducing calories and fat doesn’t mean sacrificing taste and texture: SPICY FISH TACOS Ingredients: 1/2 cup plain low-fat yogurt 1/4 cup Lite mayonnaise 1/2 cup sour cream 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 1 teaspoon lime zest 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro Few dashes of hot sauce 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 pounds fresh white fish fillets (ahi, grouper, halibut, or tilapia) 2 sliced red, yellow peppers 10 small flour tortillas 4 cups … Continue reading →

Gossip and Loyalty in Marriage

Two things recently started me thinking about gossip and loyalty in marriage. One was in the book ‘Take Joy’ by Jane Yolen where she talked of certain ’emotional core truths.’ She went on to mention some core truths about herself. One of these was ‘being loyal’ to those she loved. The other sign recently that tickled my fancy was this. ‘I never repeat gossip, so listen carefully the first time.’ But what has gossip got to do with marriage? Sadly, I thought it related closely to not being loyal to our spouse. Listening to guys talk at times, I hear … Continue reading →

Fancy Looking Salads that are a Cinch to Make

We eat a lot of salad in our home, which is why I could kick myself each time I order a super-sized “fancy” salad on those rare occasions when we eat out. I end up spending $10 on what is essentially mixed greens with some type of meat placed on top and a few other ingredients (e.g. strawberries, pecans, cheese, croutons, etc.). It pains me to pay what is equivalent these days to almost three gallons of gas, yet I can’t seem to break out of my rut, and actually order something I don’t or can’t make at home. On … Continue reading →

Experimenting with Ice Cream Sandwiches

Valorie’s blog on Homemade Ice Cream Sandwiches made me remember a fun ice cream place from my college days. It was called Serendipity. To get there you had to go down a tiny staircase. The store was actually below sidewalk level. And since serendipity means an accidental discovery of something pleasant, valuable, or useful, I thought the name of this tiny little ice cream store fit perfectly. They sold all kinds of ice cream, but my favorite was their design– it –yourself ice cream sandwiches. First you picked from chocolate, sugar, oatmeal, or chocolate chip cookies. These were large fresh-baked … Continue reading →