Dan's "Surprise" Party

I almost pulled it off...except I made the mistake of including the kids in the surprise party plans. How else could I explain all the fun things we were putting in our cart at the party supply store. I had no choice really...

Just days before the party, which was to be held a few days after Dan's actual birthday, we were all sitting in Dan's new hammock. Without thinking it through all the way, I told Zander that this is the new hammock we got Daddy for his birthday. To which he replied... "I thought we were having a surprise party!"

Well the cat was most definitely out of the bag now and instantly Dan and I just turned to each other and started laughing...well actually we were laughing so hard we had tears coming out of our eyes...then we looked at Zander and could tell it was hurting Zander's feelings, so we had to comfort him and let him know we weren't laughing at him.

Okay, so that brings us to the party. Our friend Scott came over to go "golfing" with Dan, but they actually went to the gym and met up with 3 of Dan's other friends to play basketball for 3 hours. When they were done playing, they got their goody bags which included Gatorade, a protein bar and a gym towel my mom personalized with their name and a basketball.

Then they all headed back to our house where more friends and family were waiting to eat dinner. I cooked up some chicken in the slow cooker and made rice and everyone else brought sides and salads.

Surprise! Here is Dan walking in wearing his old high school basketball jersey. I snuck it in the gym bag I dropped off with Scott the night before. (On a side note, I finished the painting in the hallway finally!!! This is the new lighter color.)

I made this poster to look like a high school poster and hung it up right as you walk in the door.
Then around the corner was this faux Blazer jersey...doctored up by Scott and Debbie.

Here's Dan with his Letterman's jacket on.

And here I am wearing Anne's high school cheer leading skirt. She and Dan went to the same high school, so it was perfect!

Many of our friends came dressed up in athletic gear too. (Scott and Debbie)

Here are the Parkers in their UofO gear.

Angel wore his high school jersey too...he and Dan were treating us all to a "gun" show!

Hanging out...
Watching the NBA finals.

And let's not forget the cake. This time I decided to serve Dan's favorite donuts instead of making a cake...he loved the idea!

Dig in!

Happy Birthday 35th Dan!

A week filled with friends and family

On Tuesday Dan and I hosted a dinner for his former boss and co-workers from Portland Advertising and Design. This is a really great group of guys...and some serious story tellers in this bunch.

Dan, Stan (former boss), Mo and Ben.

I've been camping with Mo and Ben (and Dan of course!) and they are super funny. Stan loves to talk and we would always yak on the phone when I called for Dan. Sometimes I would talk with Stan longer than with Dan! Anyway, it has been years since we have all seen each other and it was so great to catch up. I was still recovering from my cold, so Dan even made the dinner...well, most of it anyway! For the past (I'm guessing 6-7 years) Dan has designed and updated Mo's website for his door and window company. You can check it out here...and be sure to call Mo if you ever need windows. Mo will be flying to Egypt (where he was from originally) to get married in a week or so. As it turns out Ben is a very talented painter and has some of his paintings here. I think they're great, you should check them out.

Last night we had our friends Shawn and Katie over with their 3 kids. It was great catching up with them and having their kids over to play too. Sadly, I left my camera in the car and don't have any pictures.

Today was my nephew Brandon's first birthday party so in keeping with the Roush family first birthday tradition, my sister borrowed my lamb cake mold and made Brandon a lamb cake! I bought it at an antique store, but it's the same cake mold my mom used for our first birthdays and I think even my grandma used one for my dad and siblings.

"...and he saw that it was good!"

Brandon got lots of goodies for his birthday, so I'm sure he will have plenty of fun playing with everything.

...but really...who needs toys, when you've got grandpa?

Brandon couldn't get enough!

...and it looks like grandpa was having fun too!!!

Not long after we got home from Brandon's party, we were out the door again to a surprise 50th birthday party for our friend and neighbor, David.

His wife had him pick up his brother at the airport and David had no idea that we were all waiting for him when he arrived home.

The kids, especially Zander, were drawn to the live music (mandolin and guitar). These musicians were top notch and really set the mood.


A big ol' piece of cake (angel food I think) for the birthday boy! It was a fun party and Dan and I got to mingle and meet lots of great people.

Okay, this is totally off topic, but I'm noticing that my photos look a little grainy on my monitor...Do they look that way to anyone else? Last weekend, my display stopped working on my digital camera, so I can't see the photos until I upload them and for some reason, they seem a little lower res than I am used to. Let me know what you think.

Fabulous Food Friday

Ever since I served these at my Favorite things brunch, I have had several requests for this recipe...so here goes.

Cheesy Artichoke Triangles
2 packages (8 oz each) refrigerated crescent rolls)
2 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
4 oz. fresh, grated Parmesan (about 1 cup)
2 eggs
2 teaspoons of lemon pepper
1 can (14 oz) or jar of artichoke hearts, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons fresh snipped parsley

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Unroll crescent rolls and lay triangles flat onto jelly roll pan and roll dough w/ a glass or just seal the edges all together with your hands to form one large pan of dough. Bake 10-12 minutes or until light brown

In a medium bowl, soften cream cheese, add 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, 1 teaspoon of the lemon pepper, eggs, garlic and artichoke hearts.

Spread mixture evenly over partially baked crust. Add remaining Parmesan cheese and lemon pepper over filling. Bake 25 more minutes until brown and set. Allow to cool 10 minutes. Cut into squares, then cut each diagonally to form triangles.

Makes 24 servings

Variations use phyllo sheets instead of crescent rolls. Also if you like tomatoes, you can add sun dried tomatoes before sprinkling on the Parmesan cheese.

My Favorite Things Brunch

This afternoon I hosted a "Favorite Things" brunch. Due to the cooler weather today I set up inside...but I would have loved to have everything set up outside...maybe next time.

We started off with chilled Raspberry Soup...

...and fruit with dip.

Then we shared puff pancakes topped with strawberries and a garden frittata.

Next we had cheesy artichoke triangles and spinach salad with raspberry vinaigrette served in parmesan cups.

We shared funny stories and had a good old time.

For dessert we had raspberry cheesecake/coffee cake.

My sister-in-law Tami showed us all how to make fondant roses and we all got to try it out ourselves. It was tricky at first, but I think I got the hang of it...very fun!

Everyone brought their favorite things to share and we all went home with some great gifts. It was so much fun...now I'm stuffed!

Fabulous Food Friday

As a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, I have tasted my share of yummy party food. One of my hostesses from about 6 years ago served this delicious lemon bread and I had to ask for the recipe. I have made it for Mother's Day and it is also great to serve with tea. (Katie...knowing how much you enjoy tea parties...you will love this recipe!)


Lemon Bread
1/2 c. softened butter
1 c . sugar
3 T lemon extract (you use almost the whole bottle of extract)
2 eggs
1 1/2 c. flour
1 t baking powder
1 t salt
1/2 c. milk
1 1/2 T lemon peel
Grease and flour a loaf pan. Prepare glaze (1/2 c. lemon juice and 1/2 c. sugar) Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, cream together butter and lemon extract until fluffy. Add eggs, stir until blended. In a medium bowl, mix dry ingredients. Add 1/3 c. dry ingredients, 1/3 c. milk until blended. Add rest of ingredients including lemon peel. Pour into pan. Bake 1 hour. Pour glaze on after removed from oven. Cool 15 minutes.

Fabulous Food Friday

Party Pinwheels
I got this recipe from my friend Mishal ages ago and use it all the time for parties. This time I used Spinach Tortillas in honor of St. Patrick's day.


(2) 8 oz packages of cream cheese, softened
1 package ranch dressing mix (powder)
1/2 cup minced red pepper (I used green)
1/2 cup minced celery
1/4 cup green onions, sliced
3-4 large tortillas

Beat cream cheese and ranch until smooth. Add veggies. I have also made these with broccoli and ham and it is such a good flavor. Roll up tortillas and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill at least 2 hours. Slice into 1/2 inch pieces and serve.

Valentine's Goodies

Treats for the kids:


Natalie helped me make the heart sandwiches with raspberry cream cheese and raspberry jelly. They also had cottage cheese sundaes with a gummy heart on top. The last photo is a marshmallow "lollypop" Zander got from his teacher. It was so cute I had to share. You may not be able to tell, but she dipped them in white chololate then in Valentine sprinkles, added a stick and presto, easy!

Treats for Grown-Ups:

We couldn't get a sitter, so I made dinner. I also surprised Dan by cleaning all my scrapbooking stuff off the dining room table so we could enjoy eating in the dining room. After the kids were in bed, Dan and I had a nice salad with currants, Hungarian mushroom soup, and ham and cheese stuffed chicken...and some white Zinfandel to celebrate our dinner for 2.

Fabulous Food Friday

Christmas Mice

This is a fun treat I like to make to include with my Christmas goodies. To make the mice you will need:

• maraschino cherries, with the stems, drain and dry on a paper towel, then refrigerate

• Fondant:
1 T butter
1 T light corn syrup
2/3 c. sifted powdered sugar

• Chocolate chips or candy melts
• mini M&Ms or dragees for eyes
• large chocolate chips for the nose
• almond slivers for the ears

To make the fondant, mix all the ingredients together until it forms a ball, like play-dough. You may need to add more powedered sugar if it is too sticky to kneed with your fingers. I would put it in the refrigerator to chill for 15 minutes, so it's not too soft.

Wrap about 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of the fondant around each cherry and place on waxed or parchment paper. Warning, this is messy! Place back in the refrigerator for 15 more minutes. Melt chocolate in a bowl in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until smooth. Dip cherries until covered with chocolate and return to waxed/parchment paper. Decorate with almond slivers, chocolate chips and whatever you like for eyes. Refrigerate until set.

My favorite Christmas treats, Oslo Kringla and
Ginger Snaps...Here they are ready to be delivered!

Ernst Corral: Setting the scene

What cowboy party would be complete without a wanted poster?

Here is the saloon entrance.

Woody and Bullseye are the center of attention around here, so the centerpiece for this table was easy.

The Dining room was transformed once again into a cowboy room complete with old blue tin plates, lanterns, and burlap sack chair covers. I draped a faux barbed wire around the light fixture for another rustic touch. The kiddos all got cowboy boot cups to drink out of and later they would be washed out and taken home as a favor.

Lunch is served. I like to use containers that fit the theme, like putting my "happy trail" mix inside a cowboy hat with a bandana to protect the hat. I also used various pails and old tin camping dishes for serving containers. Zander wanted "pupcakes" so I found this cupcake stand that worked perfectly. I baked the cupcakes in those new star shaped muffin tins by Reynolds Wrap. Each of the cupcakes was topped with a small plastic horse. Some of the other snacks included chocolate candy that look just like rocks, peanuts, homemade cowboy crackers and rattlesnake eggs (spotted jelly beans).

When I was looking for food for the party, I came acrossed these. I called them Wagon wheels for the party, but I don't have any idea what they are really called. I think they are a hispanic food. They were in the bulk food section at WINCO near the pasta and rice and they were orange in color and about 1/4 this size. I fried them in oil for about a minute and then drained them and coated with a sugar/cinnamon mix. They were tasty whatever they are.