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Well hi! It’s time for another edition of Friday Five – a time when I step away from the kitchen and talk about life stuff. April is here which means May flowers are just around the corner and I can’t wait. Planting flowers in the Spring makes me so happy and is something I look forward to every year (I’m becoming more and more like my mom with every passing year 😊).
Here are 5 things I wanted to share with you this week:
1. April Fool’s Day
The nine year old in my house LIVES for April Fool’s Day. He is a little prankster himself, but I think he loves getting pranked just as much (although I don’t know that he would ever admit it).
A few years ago on April Fool’s Day, I told him I was making him brownies and while I did actually make brownies (because I’m not THAT mean), I cut out the letter “E” on brown construction paper and served that on his plate. Get it? A brown “e”? He loved it.
This year, because I didn’t plan ahead, I had to think of something quick and easy so I decided to prank him with Oreo cookies. I carefully split apart Oreos, scraped off the frosting and filled them with sour cream.
He took the Oreo with sour cream oozing out the sides and dunked it in milk and then he ate it… the whole thing… and didn’t say a word.
It was an April Fool’s Day fail. I’ll need to think of something better next time. We both had a good laugh out of the whole thing though once I told him what I did!
Do you have any fun April Fool’s Day stories? Please share!
2. March Madness
March came and went and when I looked back through my photos, I realized it was a pretty quiet month. Miles’ basketball season wrapped up. This was his first time playing on a basketball team and he learned a lot and had fun. His coaches were so great which makes a huge difference.
We’ve had fun watching college basketball, especially Iowa State Men’s basketball. Miles loved staying up late with me to watch them play against University of Illinois for the Sweet Sixteen round last week. Unfortunately they lost, but they had an incredible season and were so fun to watch.
At this point, with my Cyclones eliminated, I’m rooting for NC State to win it all – I love a good underdog story and they came into the tournament ranked number 10, yet are still hanging in there.
3. Mom’s Night Out
A couple of weeks ago, I got a babysitter and headed out with two of my mom friends to see one of my favorite comedians — Kelsey Cook. She was SO funny and it was such a good show, but more about that in a minute.
If you are a mom, I highly recommend taking time to do something that makes you happy. Any time I get a few hours out with my friends, it recharges me and I feel like I’m able to be a better, more patient mom. Have you done something for you lately? If you haven’t, do it! :)
Before the show we had dinner and all ordered the same thing. It was a short rib / smashed sweet potato dish that was SO good. The base was a smashed sweet potato and it was topped with smoked short rib, jalapeños, cranberries, goat cheese and chimichurri sauce. It got my wheels spinning and I want to come up with a southwest version with chicken, black beans, corn, and avocado sauce. Doesn’t that be good?
Back to the comedy show – we sat in the front row and were about a foot away from the microphone. What impressed me the most about Kelsey Cook was her confidence. I speak in front of large groups of people on occasion and while I mostly enjoy it, it’s nerve-wracking and I have to practice over and over and over again. I cannot imagine the amount of time and effort these comedians put into their shows. She is seemingly effortlessly funny but I know it’s taken her so much time, effort, practice and energy to get where she’s at.
Anyhow… it was a great show and it’s always fun to get out with friends for a few hours.
4. What I’ve been listening too…
I’ve mentioned this before – I can’t remember the last time I’ve read a book from start to finish. But, I love to listen to books in the audio format. The title is a little vulgar but it’s good. The book is called The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson. Manson talks about how maybe we shouldn’t try to be positive all of the time. As someone who loves to find the silver linings in everything, it has me contemplating why I do it.
What have you been reading or listening to?
5. What I’ve been making lately…
March brought quite a few new recipes to the blog! Here are some of the most recent recipes. If you try them, let me know, I love to hear from you!
I’ve made the Air Fryer Chicken Taquitos twice this month. They are so good and so easy, and kid approved! I’m also loving the Grilled Asparagus Salad.
At the first sign of warm weather, I love getting outside and firing up my Traeger (Wood Pellet Grill and Smoker). I’ve kept it simple – chicken, burgers, and asparagus, but I’m excited to start getting a little more creative.
What have you been making lately?
6. Donate Life
I know it’s called “Friday Five” but I’ve got 6 things to talk about this week. :) I’m sitting at a coffee shop at the moment writing this post. When I got here, I connected to their wi-fi and smiled when I saw what the wi-fi password is this week – “Donate Life.”
April is national Donate Life month in the United States — a time to celebrate donors and recipients and the beautiful gift of organ, eye and tissue donation.
As you may already know, my son is alive and here today because of two incredibly selfless organ donors. I think of his donors every single day and always feel so thankful that he is able to live a pretty normal life.
“Without the organ donor, there is no story, no hope, no transplant. But when there is an organ donor, life springs from death, sorrow turns to hope and a terrible loss becomes a gift.”
If you haven’t already, I would like to encourage you to register to be an organ donor. You can register to become an organ donor here.
As always, thanks so much for being here! At the moment, the best way to leave a comment is on Facebook. Please feel to leave a comment there. :)
Have a great weekend! xo –
Ashley
