A Free Excursion to Glen Falls

Today we all took a short trip east to see Glen Falls! It's a natural waterfall with a very quaint park built up around it in Williamsville, NY. There are tons of ducks and plenty of walking trails. Brad thought it was pretty neat, and Jacob liked pointing at everything. The water sound was very relaxing.

Here is a link with some history of that area at this site, and it has a feature that you can see all the registered waterfalls in NY on a map! There are lots to go see.

I played around with some fancy settings on my camera and the pics turned out great!

7 Years Old

Height: 47"

Weight: 48lb

At 7 years old you:

• are very social and love to play with anyone
• like riding your bike and playing on your computer
• are very creative and love to read and write stories
• finally lost your first two bottom teeth recently
• have gotten a little picky with your foods...you don't like hot dogs or cheese
• help with chores and things around the house
• like having your own room again since we've moved!
• wear size 12 shoe and size 6-7 clothes
• are very silly and like to make people laugh 

Birthday at the Beach

Sunday was my big guy's 7th birthday!! We had a little party for him before we moved, so this time it was just us at home. We got him more presents and balloons, and he requested pizza and carrot cake for the menu! Of course brother had to help him open presents.

He had been wanting to swim all summer, so I decided to take him on a special trip with me to check out a beach close by! It's called Woodlawn Beach and it's on the east coast of Lake Erie. On the map you can see Buffalo; we are a bit northeast of it.

We both had a fun time and got lots of sun! It was very busy this day, I'm sure because it was a Sunday and very hot. There are many beaches along the coast so we have many to check out!

I haven't taken his annual birthday picture yet, so I'll post his stats in another blog.

Super Easy Cherry Dump Cake

If you haven't heard of a dump cake yet, you are missing out!! What is a dump cake you ask? Well it is more like a pie or cobbler that you literally dump into a dish and bake. It is the easiest and tastiest dessert you can make, and it pairs beautifully with ice cream or whipped cream!

Here is my cherry dump cake fresh out of the oven:

1 box yellow cake mix

2 cans cherry (or apple, peach, or blueberry) pie filling

1 stick butter or margarine

*Optional* 1c quick oatmeal + 1/2c brown sugar for crumble topping

Preheat oven to 375. Spread cans of pie filling in a 9x13 dish. Sprinkle dry cake mix evenly over pie filling. Then slice butter into pats evenly over cake mix. If you want to have a crumble topping you can can add the oatmeal and sugar mix over the top. Bake for 45min, or until topping is golden brown.

I personally like the pie filling from Aldi because they do not have high fructose corn sugar or artificial colors in them.

It is so good! We really like the apple version, but really any of them are delicious. I discovered this a couple of years ago when my dad requested an apple cobbler for his birthday dessert. I wanted an easy recipe, and I stumbled upon the wonder that is dump cakes! You will never use a different cobbler recipe! Now go make one. 

Enjoying Olcott

About a week ago we had a free Sunday with beautiful weather, so I packed up a picnic and we hit the road to Olcott! It is a great little town on the shore of Lake Ontario about 45min away. Nick and I had been there before and we knew the kids would love it. There is a huge park that overlooks the lake so we found a nice sunny spot and has a nice lunch. I packed our sweaters because I knew it would be windy and chilly right by the water, and I'm glad I did!

After that, we headed over to the awesome carousel park that was right by the park. It's free to get in and all of the rides are only a quarter each! They are all vintage restored kiddie rides from the 40s and 50s. We spent $1.50 and Brad got to ride all of the rides. He loved it, and Jacob liked watching all of the activity.

Dirty 30

Today is the day I turn 30! I have looked forward to this age. I see it as a new chapter; one where I'm taken more seriously. One where my achievements can shine thru and I don't have to feel like I'm constantly proving myself to the naysayers. One where the rat race of life is calming down, and I can start enjoying a routine of family and work balance.

I was always one to wish I was older. I was never content with being an adolescent and I can remember wishing I could just start on MY life. Well I did just that at age 16 and I haven't looked back since! I have never once regretted "wishing away" my childhood. Parts of it were good, but for the most part I've tried to forget it. My life took a positive turn at 11 when I met Nick and young love bloomed. At 14 I knew he was my soulmate, and at 16 we vowed to become one.

I can confidently say that I'm very happy with where I am in life at this point. I have followed my dreams and ambitions to the fullest despite being surrounded by those who discourage me at every turn. It seems that those who fear change in their own life will be those who try to undermine the choices I make for mine.

I've learned a lot in these 30 years, and I know there's more to learn every day. But I can also say that I've taught and tried to help many with what I've learned and done. I have a strong urge to keep people from making certain mistakes that I know how to prevent, but I know some people refuse to learn and just have to make their own mistakes. I'm still learning when to observe and when to intervene, but I've gotten better!

What advice would I give to a younger person just starting the journey into adulthood?

• Find a job that you love and that can grow with you
• When you meet your soulmate, don't let them get away
• Failure is NOT an option. You don't fail until you quit trying
• Tell the special people in your life that you love them. We are never guaranteed tomorrow
• Keep connected to those that enrich your spirit. It's easier said than done
• Adult friends are much different than childhood friends, even if it's the same person. People change--some for better and some not. Don't hold on to a hope of the good ole days. Sometimes you have to let go.
• Start your retirement savings early! Check it annually and adjust if able. The more you can contribute, the better.
• Make your health a priority! Eat right and stay active--you have to help yourself before you help others
• TRAVEL. I mean to other countries. It gets harder as you get older with more obligations so do it while you are young. Collect memories, not things. Material things are not that important when you are drinking champagne on a gondola in Venice.

OK guys, that's all I have for now! I'm spending the day just relaxing at home and enjoying my family. 

First Family Trip As New Yorkers

We took a break from unpacking and decided to enjoy the sunny day by taking the boys to Niagara Falls! We only live about 20min away so after lunch I packed the bag with diapers and cold drinks and we hit the road.

Nick and I have been there twice before but the boys had never seen the falls. The price for parking was crazy high because of some random marathon they were setting up for.... And being cheap frugal I refused to pay $20 just for parking (it's normally only $5), so we drove around and found FREE 2hr parking a few blocks away!

At one of the points right in between the falls we got sprayed with the mist! It had an awesome view of the falls looking down and cooled us off. My dad got me an amazing new camera for an early birthday present before we moved, and this was my first time to try it out. It's very fancy, and waterproof!

The boys loved it, and all the walking wore them out. We couldn't cross the bridge to Canada because they don't have passports but there are lots of other neat things to see and do next time we go. Not bad for a free excursion!