No boys allowed.

Ellie and I are getting on a plane on Tuesday and going to Utah for a week. We are leaving the boys back in the bluegrass. Why? Long story that I don't want to write. Let's just say that it involves the nuthouse. Any-who. We will miss the little man and the big daddy greatly but we are excited to party with all the girls--no boys allowed. We are also excited to meet baby Lexi-MaeLou and Tate-r-tot, too!

Sewing OCD

Paul wants his kitchen back. I have taken it over with all my sewing stuff. I am obsessed. OBSESSED. Give me a week and I will be sick of sewing!

In the meantime, meet Ellie's new reversible smock.Won't this be cute over a white shirt with jeans?
Here is the FREE pattern and tutorial.
A couple of things that I did differently from the pattern was lower the neck line and arm holes and I did not add a seam allowance like it calls to do so that it would be a smaller size.
LOVE IT!

Thanks for the veggies!

We have a garden, it just takes longer for our plants to produce. But while we wait.... Paul's most amazing co-worker sends home the BEST produce.

Thanks Helen!

Dinner tonight: Asian stir-fry on whole wheat tortillas (instead of rice or noodles).

I love garden fresh veggies!

For you, my dear Toady.

A flower.

On a magnolia tree.

A magnolia flower.

Smells like the Barbies that we used to spend hours dressing, and setting up their perfect lives, cars, boyfriends, clothes.

Except this flower was on Shaker Village property, so I guess this Barbie had a secret boyfriend.

They had to SteeleAway into the night.

Smells like Barbie plastic.

Hope you had an A+ day.

Mom

In honor of your special day, Mom, I got this tattoo on my arm. Love you!

My Old Kentucky Home

A.I. was in Louisville yesterday. I found out today. So close, yet so far away. I would have loved to have gone just to see all the crazy people. And Colonel Sanders, of course.

Pasta Roni and Lemon Chicken

A while back I asked Kristen if she wanted me to make dinner. Her reply was simple: I could, but she knew that we would be having Past Roni and lemon chicken. Apparently, this is all that I ever make for dinner. So, today I got home early and made dinner while Ellie was napping and Kristen went grocery shopping (presumably because we had "nothing" to eat in the house). So I present my Pasta Roni and lemon chicken:


So anyway, I think I did use Rice Roni for the rice. Oh, yeah. I also used ribboned carrots, a bruscetta sauce, thin sliced beets and beet greens. I thought it was a step up.

Wannabe refashionista...

I have been perusing this blog lately. It's made me miss the HUGE D.I.'s and Savers in Utah. It's made me walk up the hill to my small Goodwill and scour the aisles. I found this skirt (jr. size 10 and short) . I brought it home for Ellie to slobber on. I made this. It was fun to make and it went a lot smoother that I expected. Only a few unpicks, holes and pokes. Taking the official pledge might be kind of hard for me, maybe in January when I make all my New Year's resolutions.

Full Belly

This was for dinner.

{pesto turkey burgers w/ grilled sweet potato fries} And this was dessert.

Full, happy belly!

I'm h2o intolerant!

We have another water baby! We took the kids swimming this weekend and found out that Ellie LOVES the water just like her brother. This makes Paul happy because he is where this LOVE comes from.
Me? I am h2o intolerant. Not a fan of the water, but I am trying to be better about getting in because I am now out numbered. (This is where you look at the picture below and laugh at my hair. I had no idea it was sticking up like that...the whole time! When we got to the car to leave, I saw my reflection in the window and asked Paul how long it had been like that. In all honesty, he said, "Oh, I think it looks really cute!" I blind him with my love and hotness, I guess!)
Here's our fashion king. He insisted on wearing his shirt and life jacket in the kids shallow pool. Better safe than sorry.
Who can resist looking at another picture of this bathing beauty?

Sweet? or Sassy!

Today, we had Dallin's little friends over to make peanut butter play dough pizza. It's a super easy recipe:

1 cup smooth peanut butter

1/2 cup honey

2 cups dry milk

Combine the honey and pb first, then mix or knead in the dry milk. Back to the point of this whole post. This girl is so sweet, but boy, she can be sassy (funny sassy). Paul was talking to her, trying to confuse her, like he does with most kids.

Paul: "Hey Brittaney, boys rule and girls drool!"

Brittaney: "No!!! It's GIRLS rule and BOYS drool!!!"

Paul: "I'm pretty sure it's the other way..."

Brittaney, interrupting him mid-sentence: "You'll just have to get used to it!"

You go, girl!

No Bellybutton

Love Veggie Tales! We were just wondering when they could get some stories about Nephi, or Alma. Somebody send them a Book of Mormon.

Biter Biscuit

Ellie loves biter biscuits. They are oh, so messy! This is for Paul.

Too much "other" stuff on here and not enough pictures of my kids.

This is for my mom.

"Confusing" links that have been on here lately.

p.s. 3 year old boy for sale. {augh!!}

warning: do not make eye contact!

It made me think

This made me think about how much Dallin has grown in the last little while. We are seeing him improve in his speech here and there, some big steps, some little. I think that sometimes we focus so much on his speech, that we neglect to realize that he grows so much in so many other areas as well. In the very recent past, when we would get out any medium to create with, Dallin would make Paul or me do it all for him. Kind of annoying when, often, the whole point of the activity is to get him to hold still, and give us some time to get something else done. I realize now, that that is an important part of his whole learning process. We need to teach him in order for him to do it himself one day. The past few days have paid off as we have seen him drawing portraits of his dad and his sister. I am waiting for mine. He loves to draw people. I have tried to get him to draw animals, or trucks, like he so often requests, but he won't. I realize this is because when I draw for him, I draw people. That is what he has learned. Dallin drew this picture of "bobby" aka Ellie. He would say "bobby", point to his neck, then draw the neck. He did this for everthing he drew, even the tongue, which he made sure to make 3D because it is sticking out.
I am not sure who this is, but I caught a picture of it before he erased it.

I know that I need to take this lesson learned and apply it to everything that Paul and I do to teach our kids. We need to constantly show them what we want them to learn. "Do as I say, not as I do" doesn't really cut it!

Food, fun, flowers

A weekend away would have been ideal, but we stayed home and made the best of it. We try to make every meal count when we eat at home on a special occasion, complete with spicy, sweet, salty, and savory.

Summer Art Projects

Gotta love those hot, humid days! We've had some doozies here, so I have been trying to look up some fun projects for Dallin to do to keep him busy inside in the land of air conditioning. I found such a great site. It is a blog that blogs about other peoples craft projects that they have blogged about on their blog. It will take you all over the internet and could keep you busy for hours! It's not only for kids (ok, it might be, but there are some things that I would like to do too. I like to connect with my inner child.)

Here's the link.

Words to live by

Read it.

Needed it.

Loved it.

This worthy.

I are poopoop!

Words to celebrate over? You better believe it! Dallin announced, "I are poopoop!" This is a three letter sentence! "More peese an cackas" (cheese and crackers) makes four.

Other acomplishments include:
Mommy
Daddy
Bobby E (baby Ellie)

Recently:
Mamma
Dadat
Bobba

These are huge because changing from one vowel sound to another is really hard for him. Slow and steady wins the race, and win he will!

I are poopoop!

Words to celebrate over? You better believe it! Dallin announced, "I are poopoop!" This is a three letter sentence! "More peese an cackas" (cheese and crackers) makes four.

Other acomplishments include:

Mommy

Daddy

Bobby E (baby Ellie)

Recently:

Mamma

Dadat

Bobba

These are huge because changing from one vowel sound to another is really hard for him. Slow and steady wins the race, and win he will!

Happy Anniversary!

I love you! Our family looks a little different than we did seven years ago, but the way I feel about you hasn't changed a bit. Thanks for always believing in me and my dreams, and for always loving me. You are my dream come true. Here is to 7 more, and 7 more, and more and more.

Love, Paul

Seven

Happy Anniversary Shiney!

You like me, and I like you.

Tie one on me

You all know about by most amazingly talented friend, Sara. Yes, I like to suck-up to her...she sent me, or rather, Dallin this tie. She made it, with her own two hands. I LOVE IT!
DALLIN LOVES IT!
We all love it, but getting a good picture of it is another story!

Thanks Sara!

Oh, that's where it goes!

Dallin's had this fascination with rearranging the silverware drawer lately.

Funny? Really?

Can you see it now? I fixed the picture.

Since when was it funny to give your 10 year old kid and his friend cigarettes, pretend to light them, and watch as they run around "smoking". Did I miss the memo?

Yes, I took this picture. And yes, I saw it all happen before my eyes. And YES, I was shocked...until I went home and my 8 year old neighbor boy told me that his aunt let him drink some of her beer on the 4th. Pardon me for being so naive!

Nothing too exciting...

..or elaborate, but we had fun being together on the 4th.

Dallin, look! Fireworks! Dallin??

We felt it was absolutely essential that we take Dallin to see some fireworks. Or was it?

Tutu Tutorials

How'd I make it? I can't find the exact tutorial that I used, but there are PLENTY of them out there.

Here here here are three different sites, but similar ways.

I just made an extra long one the other day for my neighbor girl who needed to fluff up her flower girl dress--wish I took a picture!

Key Lime Pie and Cafe "Me-O"

Everytime we have the missionaries over for dinner, I make the same thing. "Cafe Me-o" and Key Lime Pie. We never get sick of it, I hope they don't. It's enough to make anyone's mouth water. If you are one of the few, unfortunate souls who do not have the recipes, here they are.

Key Lime Pie (easiest recipe you will EVER come by)

1/2 cup key lime juice (or lime, lemon, I've substituted both)
1 can sweetened condensed milk
3 oz. cream cheese
lime rind, optional

Mix the above ingredients with your electric beaters and pour into your favorite graham cracker crust. Freeze or regridgerate. (I always use fat free ingredients and no one is the wiser;)

These next recipes I found searching the internet, jonesin' for a sweet pork salad and knowing that it was 1700 miles out of reach. I have adjusted them to my own liking.

Sweet Pork

1 pork roast
salt & pepper, a shake here, a shake there
1 garlic clove, minced or a few shake, shakes of the garlic powder
enchilada sauce, small can (14 oz?)
brown sugar (1/4 to 1/2 cup-- too sweet, or not too sweet)
1 can coke (diet, caffeine free works, too)
1 small can green chilies
1 chipotle chili in adobo sauce, diced really small

Pour all the ingredients into your crock pot and cook until pork is pull-apart tender (high 4-5 hrs, low 7-8 hours). Shred pork into the sauce.

Green Chili Rice

4 t chicken bouillon
4 t garlic –minced or garlic powder
1 can green chiles
¾ t salt
1 T olive oil
1/4 onion, chopped fine (onion powder works well here, I only used 1/2 tsp.)
Add all ingredients with your rice and make your rice according to your rice package (make 3-4 servings).

Tomatillo Dressing

1 ranch dressing packet, make ranch according to the package directions
2 tomatillos or 1/4 cup salsa verde
½ bunch of cilantro
1 clove garlic or the shake, shake of the powder
Juice of 1 lime
1 jalapeño

Blend everything in food processor or blender and then refrigerate to thicken.

Priceless

one can of shaving cream: one dollar

thirty minutes of fun: priceless

People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed and redeemed; never throw out anyone." --Audrey Hepburn

Please hold still!

Little stinker wasn't doing me any favors when I was trying to get a good picture of the SUPER-DUPER cute ruffle skirt that I made her over the weekend. So, do me a favor and go HERE for the fabulous tutorial. I think she adds/decreases a half an inch in the dimensions per size (ie. size 1/2, size 3/4, size 5/6). In the meantime, maybe I will get a better picture, it does not do justice.

No shake, shake, shake!

"Nana and Popop" Duncan came to town and we partied hearty!

We went to Shaker Village.

It was quite impressive, as is with any self-sufficient community.

However, if your not interested in celibacy, it will leave you wondering...here you go.I realize that most of the pictures are of my people and not their people. It's because there are only four Shakers left and they live in New England. You can't really multiply and replenish the Earth when you practice what they preached.

Moral of the story...

SHAKE, SHAKE, SHAKE!

More Fabulousness

She's doing it again! You know who, my new crush.

Another giveaway!

Trading spaces

Shocked...

...at the picture? Or that I'm writing this post from my laptop? Poor Lappy was out of commission for a good...forever...it seemed like! Paul finally got all of our old info and pictures off of it so that he could replace the defunct hard-drive with a brand spankin' refurbished one. It's amazing how going from a laptop in the kitchen/family/any room to a computer in a sleeping baby's room can throw a girl for a loop! But I am back in business! Never realized how many resources available that I took advantage of on the Internet.