Thursday, May 31, 2012

a look...

here is a look @ today. its not pretty. i'm still in what i wore to bed last night. i have two sick kids. preston with the worst cold he's had to date, and an ear infection. and claire, i'm not sure what she's got but she is super sad and grumpy which is not normal for her. strangely enough she was totally perfect when i had preston @ the dr. yesterday, then practically as soon as we got home she turned into a sick little kiddo too.  most of the day has been spent with two kids in my arms (not a comfortable fit) and both of them are sad & fussy....you can probably tell from claire's extremely onery face in both these pictures. i hate sick kids. i know its an inevitable thing, but nonetheless, its not fun. get better soon my sweet children

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

a day for me....

 i love mothers day. not just because its a day to be pampered & recognized....but because its a day that i really realize just how lucky i am to be a mom. to have been blessed with two little angels who bless my life everyday. Knowing that i have two kids depending on me to help them grow into the people they need to be is daunting, but so awesome as well. I think i've said it before, but there is no greater challenge, nor greater joy than being a mom. I can't imagine another thing i would want to be doing with my life right now than getting sweet hugs & kisses from these two cute things. so very blessed.

Saturday, May 5, 2012

pinner & doer

 This post is all things pinterest. some good & others better. I LOVE pinterest. i kinda thought that after a little while that i would get tired of it, like most other online things. but no, that has not occured yet..and i don't see it happening anytime in the near future.
 Most of my pinterest projects have something to do with food.....treats, dinners, appetizer, snacks. I just wanted to share the likes and dislikes of my pinterest projects....


Chocolate Buttercream frosting: easy & delicious. I will totally make this again to frost a cake or yummy cupcakes

Parmesan Baked Potato Halves: These were a fabulous substitute for boring baked potatoes, we topped ours with sour cream & called it good. I love the crispy-ness that they got from baking in the butter & parmesan cheese (sounds healthy, right?) but really, they were really good.

30 minute rolls: I had a hard time believing that i could make rolls from start to finish in 30 minutes, but i can. I however let mine raise for a little longer so all in all it took a little over 30 minutes. but still incredibly fast for a yeast roll. these were good, not great. a little dense & heavy for me, i am all for a really fluffy roll, and these were not that. but i will probably make them again just because they are quick and easy & i love a little bread with my dinner.
Poppyseed Chicken Casserole:  This casserole was certainly nothing special, but it was still good. I don't think i got any comments from Chase on this one, but he did clean up the dish. I didn't have ritz crackers to sprinkle on top so i used bran flakes instead. It came together quickly, which is always a plus in my book. This was good, but not great.

Honey BBQ Meatloaf:  yummy. it was definetely a new twist on normal meatloaf with the bbq flavor, but we really liked it, or we were just really hungry. either way, i'll keep this recipe on hand a most likely make it again when meatloaf makes its way back onto the menu.
Broccoli Quinoa Casserole: LOVED it. I am a HUGE quinoa fan & i loved switching up the rice for quinoa in this recipe. I added chicken to mine for some extra protien (and because the hubs likes his meat) and it was fabulous. a definate do-again.
Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Squares: whoa, thats a mouthful to say isn't it? it also tastes pretty good too. We love oatmeal at our house, but sometimes i crave a little switch up to the regular oatmeal, brown sugar & milk combo. enter this recipe...unfortunetely it almost tasted more like a dessert that breakfast (is that unfortunate or not?) but it kinda made me feel like i should stop at just one. I accidentally under-cooked mine, but they were still good & chase & preston gobbled them up.
Peanut Butter/Chocolate Cookies: Now seriously speaking, i could stop right here with this cookie & never make another thing in my life besides this little bit of heaven. I am obsessed with this cookie. Everytime i make them (which is too often) i text Lis and tell her she has to make them RIGHT NOW, but she hasn't, and she is missing out. they are that good....oh boy, i hope i am not talking them up too much. but really, they are perfectly soft and not too peanut-buttery. I have never drizzled mine the way she drizzled hers so perfectly, instead i add a cup or two of chocolate chips & call it good. obviously you can tell this recipe is a keeper.

Delicious Dinner Rolls: Okay, i lied, i can't live on just PB cookies alone, but I CAN live on these rolls & PB cookies together. perfect combination right, carbs and more carbs...(i really am a fairly healthy eater, i promise). These rolls have been made several times in our house. They are easy-peasy & oh so good. I am by no means a great cook, but these have turned out perfectly everytime i've made them. i love making a batch or half batch when i have/get to take dinner to someone. half for them & half for me us. i highly reccomend them....my grandma even thought my mom made these when i made them for claire's blessing....now that was a compliment.

Basil Chicken in Coconut Curry Sauce: Yes, please!! simply put, Chase keeps asking for this & even suggested i make it & invite his parents over for dinner...yikes.

Chicken Pot Pie: The other night i knew i wanted to make chicken pot pie for dinner, but wanted a switch up on the recipe i usually use. This used cream cheese and chicken broth for the sauce & while it was good it lacked a little something, which i am still not sure what that was. so i might make this again but try making some alterations to it.

Maxi Skirt: oh my beloved maxi skirt. I had been eying for quite some time, and when we booked tickets to mexico i knew i needed it by them. the tuturiol says she whipped it up in one naptime....i was quite skeptical about that since 1- i am not a good sewer & 2- Preston typically takes the worlds shortest nap for a 1 1/2 year old. But i was proven wrong. start to finish in one naptime. I have worn it probably too many times in the last 2 1/2 weeks since i've made it. That means it time to hit the fabric store for more cute knit to lounge in or wear out on a date. Isn't that awesome that one piece of clothing can be that functional.

Cinnamon Struesal Dessert Pizza: Alright, i took a little break from food, but i'm back. Only to share with you the yummiest little treat ever. I made this last night for dinner, well not for dinner, but to accompany dinner & it was a hit. I used homeade pizza dough instead of store bought which made it quite delightful. I will probably end up making this once a week to go with weekly pizza night. Infact, i might make it again right now to take to a party. so easy and sooooo good. (insert) i did make this for a party last night & it was a hit. i love it because i always have these ingredients on hand.

 Popped Quinoa: hmmm, kind of an in-betweener right here. It was good, but if you know how small quinoa is, then picture this maybe double the pre-popped size. so really, it was difficult to eat. you literally had to lick your fingers and dip it in the popped quinoa to get some. i personally didn't enjoy that feature, but Preston LOVED it! but the blog that i found it on suggested popping it and then having it on hand to throw onto your oatmeal or something for added crunch. I didn't try that, but i like the sound of it, so i will probably try it out again later.


thats it, for now at least. again i love, love, love, pinterest and am quite pleased with how tried and true most things are found on pinterest. Most likely i will have a "take two" on this post. 

what favorite things have you tried out from pinterest. 

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Friday, May 4, 2012

why hello there little birdies....

 yes, that is my front door....

yes, that is a perfectly constructed birds-nest inside my wreath....

 and yes, those are 2 adorable baby bird eggs, in the most beautiful shade of blue.

did i mention that that was on my front door. be cautious when knocking on my door, i'm afraid a certain over-protective baby-bird-mama might be on the watch. i've never come face-to-face with a bird, nor do i intend to. but right now, i'm a little unsure of how to handle this situation----destroy the nest, remove it from my wreath, or let the cute birdies hatch & watch preston adore them??

how did i not see this nest making occuring in the last week that i've been walking in and out of my front door?