Happy 4th, Freedom of Speech and a *Giveaway*

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!

Aiden has really learned the concept of 'freedom of speech' recently. He has started saying thank you, please, dada (finally!) and lots of other words that don't make sense to you and me but have lots of meaning to him when he is using them. Of course when you pull out the camera to hear him talk he usually clams up. At least in this video (click on the link) he did his babbling but wouldn't show off the words he has learned. Maybe next time.

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What says Happy Independence day more then strawberry pie? Well, maybe apple pie, but my taste buds were screaming for strawberry. So, I found an easy recipe online and went about making this pie from scratch (well, almost 100%, everything expect the pie shell). I found the best looking strawberries, slaved over cleaning and cutting them up and then set about cooking the pie shells and prepping the filling The pies looked beautiful once they were done and now they just needed to chill in the refrigerator for 3 hours to give it time to gel up.

We were all anxious to pull out the pies and slice them up, only to find that they were still a soupy mess. They didn't gel in 3 hours so we gave it another hour. Still soupy. So, instead of slices of pie, we had strawberry soup, grabbing a spoon and diving in. Though it was yummy it was still a disappointment because I was so proud of the fact that I had made it from scratch instead of driving down to Marie Calander's and buying a strawberry pie like I normally would. Oh well, I might try it again in the future if I can figure out what I did wrong.

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What else says American? Strawberries mixed with Starbucks!! My favorite drink by far at Starbucks is their Strawberry Lemonade blend with a squirt of Raspberry. I am not a coffee fan (except for the smell, love it!!) so you won't ever find me ordering a double expresso, hold the foam, triple latte, blah blah blah.

In the spirit of my 200th post, it is the 4th of July, I was born during the 200th year celebration of our nation (1976 for those that might not know), and the reality that I am on a severely limited budget, I would like to give away one $15 Starbucks card to the lucky radom winner.

Here is how to play: Leave me a seperate comment on each of the following to earn one entry per comment. I will have my hubby draw one random number out of a hat (since I don't have a tech savvy hubby like Heather's Chad, we are going to do it old school style) sometime after 8 pm on Sunday. The winner will be notified on Monday and giftcard in the mail as soon as I can get the address.

1. Let me know if you are a follower. If you are not a follower, become one!! :)
2. What is your favorite kind of pie?
3. Any suggestions on what I did wrong with my pie can get you yet another entry!!
4. What is your favorite Starbucks drink?
5. How will you be spending your 4th this year? Do you have a tradition or just fly by the seat of your pants each year?

Hope everyone has a wonderful 4th of July. Remember to stay safe. I look forward to reading each and every one of your comments.