Alexandra's 2nd birthday

Our friends Anani and Bayardo invited us to their daughter's birthday. It was hawaiian themed pool party. The kids did the hula dance, which was so cute, all of them dressed like dancers from Lilo and Stitch. Great food, pool, dance, entertainment, good company - these people sure know how to party;-)))

Alexandra, the birthday girl

Misha in the pool, kids doing the hula, Eric with candy lei

Learning to hula-dance

I got a golden ticket!

Angell & Phelps chocolate factory and cafe located on historic Beach street in Daytona Beach. This little factory offeres free tours with samples at the end of the tour. And this is where we went for a day trip (with a side visit to a beach;-). We came early, so we had enough time to have a lunch at their cafe. Food was good. During the tour we learned about factory's history and watched the owner make chocolate-dipped strawberries. One of their specialty is chocolate-covered potato chips. It is fun to watch the process of creating this double-junk food - chocolate and chips in one! And of course there were samples to try.
We bought a bag of dark chocolates for me and Eric and a few treats for kids. This chocolate is now my new love)))

Angell & Phelps chocolate factory store

Me and Valentina, Eric and Misha in the cafe

Factory's specialty - chocolate conch shell

Chocolate-mixing machine

Side trip to the beach...

... and flea market. Kids wanted pictures with every single weird statue.

Ever seen spider up close and personal?

This creature was found in our kitchen. When we moved to Florida, I didn't exactly sign up for this - snake jumping at me in the yard, alligators in the lakes, biting ants, giant roaches, and now this! However, now we are equipped with this wonderful racket-looking bug-zapper to protect ourselves with. It enabled Eric to take picture so close.

To give an idea of this spider's size - picture taken with a nickel

Crafting is contagious

Sarah's baby shower

My friend from church Nikki Bryant invited me to a baby-shower for Sarah Schiable (Stone). Nikki is such a great person. I feel amazing in her presence. She gives such a huge amount of energy to everyone around, and at-ease feel. I am not doing good job describing her, but she has an amazing outgoing personality, a big heart, and a lot of wisdom to learn from. And to add to her talents, she has a voice to remember. I had a great time at the baby-shower chatting with Jill, Katie, playing Singing Songs with Baby Words game, and eating yummy food.

Sarah

My "signature" baby shower gift to Sarah

Media/Crafts Nights at Sawgrass Bay

Just as a change of pace I took kids to school one night for some reading and crafting. Both of them listened to me read a book. Valentina made little craft: fish with color tissue paper scales. Misha wouldn't have it. Instead he played starfall on computer. He mastered this kindergarten learning tool before pre-school thanks to his older sister.

Yet another hot-air balloon in Florida sky?

No, I tell you, not hot-air. Helium! And it is taking riders up from Downtown Disney for only $16 (kids $10) depending on weather conditions, of course. It is on my to-do list of attractions. Anyone interested? More info

Family Pizza Night

To order a pizza you can call Domino's or some other place. But it is too easy, and to tell the truth, would you ever remember yet another family pizza night with delivered pizza? To make it memorable you need:

strong daddy's hands to knead the dough

mommy's secret spices and pantry staples

children's magic touch

artistic arrangement of the whole family

And... voila!

My two little munchkins

Two successful dishes in one night - that's a new one for me

I found this Banana-split pie recipe on the graham crackers box and decided to give it a try. And to make it even easier for me - I didn't have to shop for a single ingredient, since I had them all in a pantry and fridge. And - it turned out just fine!
My dear friend gave me a recipe of egg-plant rolls (I know, sounds suspicious). I tried to make them tonight. They were delicious! And it wasn't only me, who thought so - my picky eaters kids and Eric ate them and loved them!
Of course, kids wanted the dessert right there and right then, and two servings of it, or maybe three... Glad I don't bake often...

This is my protest post

yes, big empty spot.

My newest obsession

Farmtown on facebook is the most addicting game I've played so far. This is a warning to everyone: if you don't know what this game is, don't start it. I've spent all day, literally, on my lap-top playing this time-hog. There is something to do every minute there: if you're not planting, you're harvesting or chatting with people, or buying stuff, visiting neighbors, you name it. As a side note, I don't even have a facebook account to begin with, the farm I'm playing with is Eric's: it's an obsession. Anyway, I have to stop blogging now to go check on my crops;-)))))

Fourth of July (rewind)

I realized that I missed posting about 4th of July with all this cruise commotion. It was my second Independence Day as a US citizen. Me and the children went to church in the morning for our yearly ward patriotic pancake breakfast and flag raising ceremony.
After that we had some time to spare, so I took kids to Groveland. It was so early in the morning, there were no people there, and the vendors were just setting up. So, the kids had bounce-houses all for themselves. They also had some old-time cars there. It is always fun to see those and to imagine how people drove those back in old times. We didn't stay there long.
There are so many interesting and fun activities going on around on 4th of July. After picking Eric up from work, we went to Celebration. Here the real festivities began: horse-buggy riding, music, booths, free stuff, dancing 70's style, fireworks.
It was amazing to see and hear Gina Marie Incandela sing national anthem. She is a 7-year old girl who performed at Orlando Magic game. This little girl's voice is so strong it makes your skin have goose bumps and your eyes tear.

Flag raising ceremony at church

Valentina and Misha

Groveland

Celebration