Come Play With Us

UGH

So I have not been keeeping up very well with my goal to post more regularly on my blog.  Not to be all excusey, but I have been SO busy!

The hubs and I decided it was time to get off our fat butts and do something about it.  We started P90X a week ago.  It has kind of thown our whole world off kilter as we adust to going from not working out at all to working out an hour a day.  We have been tired, sore, tired, sore, tired....ok I guess I get my point across, right.  Ugh, I am so sore.  

Tony Horton, I hate you.  Thank you for helping me get in shape.  And stop saying Bring It.  Please.

MTM-Favorite Foods

We skipped Muffin Tin Monday last week because I worked a little late and Daddy was in charge of dinner.  Evidently he was worried he would do it wrong, so he avoided the whole muffin tin issue.  I tried to explain to him when I got home that the beauty of MTM is that it is SO easy, you just use a muffin tin instead of a plate......yeah, he said that is YOUR deal.  Oh well.  

So this week we are back on track.  This weeks theme over at Muffin Tin Mom is Favorite Foods.  Last night as I was putting C to bed, I asked her what her favorite foods were.  Her answers were what ended up as our dinner tonight.

Here are her answers to "What are your favorite foods?"
1.  Basketti 

2. A hamburger

3. Butter noodles

4. Little cheese

5. Basketti

6. Fruit

She also said her other favorite foods were ice cream and a "lodi-pop", so we had this for dessert:

I did sherbet instead of ice cream, since I figured maybe E could handle it better than ice cream.  I was right, too.  No rash from the sherbet, yeah!  

You will find more fun favorites if you click the button below!

 

 

MTM-No Theme

Monday at our house means Muffin Tin Monday.  I am a little behind again this week.  We are all recovering from a wonderful and busy weekend, celebrating E's 1st Birthday.  

So since E's birthday party fell on Andy's birthday, we did a little birthday dinner to suit Daddy. Monday was also E's actual birthday.

We made Pioneer Woman's Marlboro Man's Favorite Sandwich.  These were SO good.  Ree's website is one of my favorites and every recipe of hers that I have tried have been awesome.  

1.  Blueberries

2. Steak/Onion from the sandwiches

3.  Buttered rolls

4.  Salad with french dressing

5.  Provolone cheese

6.  More salad

C was eating her dinner really well, until she totally biffed it off her chair and bonked her head on the way down, and landed with her entire muffin tin on top of her!  

Because of all the commotion, I didn't get the after picture of the muffin tin.

E had a little birthday treat after dinner--a powdered mini donut.  She couldn't have another cupcake because I only made one with non-milk frosting.  

Poor little thing looks SO tired!

 

 

A First Birthday

 

E, Your birthday was yesterday, you are now 1 year old!  It has been a wonderful year, and has gone so fast. 

My sweet babe, I love you so much. 

I love the way you squeal when you see Vernie

I love the way you hover around your sister's door before she wakes up in the mornings.

I love when you are tired, and I pick you up and you shove your arms down between us and cuddle up to me.

I love those 10 minutes each night when is it just Mommy and Baby girl rocking together in your room.

I love that you are a Daddy's girl through and through.

I love your independent spirit.

I love that you love music and love to dance.

I love that (even though it drives me crazy) you are constantly getting into everything because you are curious about EVERYTHING.

I love your tiny little toes and chubby little feet.

I love your long, thick eyelashes.

I am so proud to be your mommy. 

Woo-Hoo Target Toy Haul!

One of my favorite money saving blogs is Totally Target.  I have been following her for about a year now, and Kerry's blog was how I found out about Target's twice a year 75% off Toy Clearance. 

I have been stalking Target for the last couple weeks watching the toy clearance prices.  I almost didn't go yesterday, but at lunch, I checked Kerry's blog, and she had posted that her store had gone 75% today.  So I made a run on lunch to my nearest Target store and YIPEE!  75% OFF!

  
Here is what I got:

• Littlest Pet Shop Multi-pack     $5.07 -- Reg. $19.99
• Polly Pocket Water Play Set    $6.24 -- Reg. $24.99
• Liv Alexis Doll                                $4.50 -- Reg $18.99
• Liv Sophie Doll                               $3.27 -- Reg $14.99
• Polly Pocket Rockin Stage        $8.74 -- Reg $34.99
• Barbie Party Cruise                      $9.98 -- Reg $39.99
• Barbie Furniture Set                    $14.98 --Reg $59.99
• Tag Jr. Book Kai-Lan                   $2.74 -- Reg $9.99
• Mega Blocks Tub                           $7.48 -- Reg $29.99
• Thomas Early Engeineers          $9.98 -- Reg $39.99

Total paid:  $72.98  Reg -- $293.90  SAVED $220.92

The best part of it was, now I am done buying all Birthday gifts needed for the next 6 months, including both my girls!!

 

MTM-Cups and Liners

Since my internet connection at home has been kind of wonky at home lately, I haven't been able to get any posts up. 

We did do Muffin Tin Monday on Monday evening, and the theme was muffin cups or liners only.

I had found a set of pine tree shaped silicone muffin cups on 75% off Christmas clearance at Target, so I figured I could use those for C's dinner. 

1. ham/cream cheese rolls on our Teddy picks

2. applesauce with sprinkles

3. banana slices

4. pickles

5. 2 christmas marshmallows (or marshooms as C calls them). 

Andy and I were having salad for dinner, so in addition to what was in her muffin cups, C requested some salad on her plate too.  E ate pretty much the same dinner, except no cream cheese with her ham, no marshmallows, and no sprinkles on her applesauce. 

 

She pretty much ate everything, except the pickles.  She ate the salad really well.  I think I might start giving her salad on a more regular basis.  I just never really think of it as an option for her, but everytime Andy or I are eating it, she asks for some.

Don't forget to click the button below to see other fun ideas!

We are busy preparing for E's 1st Birthday party coming up this Sunday!  I can't believe my little babe is already a year old.  My how the time flies!!

Kitchen Cabinet

Since de-cluttering my house is a one of my goals, I thought if I post before and after photos of my progress, it might help me keep up some momentum.  Nothing like posting what a mess your house is for all the world to see to keep a gal motivated!

Before:

After:

I threw away an entire garbage bag of stuff out of this cabinet.  What in the world did we even have all that stuff for anway?  

The next project will be food cupboard #1.

 

2010 in Pictures

January:  Our sweet baby E joined our family on January 17, 2010.  She was born 9 days overdue, the day after her Daddy's birthday.  She was a big girl, 9lb 5oz, 21.5 inches.  She was a very calm, observant, and physically strong little thing.

February:  C took on the role as big sis very easily and loves her little sis feircely.  C loves giving E kisses and love, and E can't take her eyes off of her big sissy.

March:  E is very strong and has been sitting propped up for a month already.  She is already showing us her personality, which is independant and curious.  Our family has all been home together since E was born because Daddy had the opportunity to take a voluntary lay off from work.  It has been so nice to bond as a family of 4.

 

April:  I lost my dear, sweet Gram in April.  She was the strongest, kindest, sweetest woman I have ever known. 

May:  Grandma and Grandpa G love to come down and visit us, and we love to have them.  The girls really enjoy their time with them. 

June:  Before we had E, I had so many fears of how being a parent of 2 would be and how would I have enough love, energy and patience to go around.  To me, there is nothing better than watching my two girls together and seeing how much the love each other.

July:  C turns 2 this month, and E is 6 months old! 

August:  We took an ill-fated (literally) vacation to my family's lake cabin.  The only person that didn't get a 4 day stomach flu was me. 

September:  We spent some time in my hometown, visiting and playing with friends.  We did several family outings in September, and had lovely fall weather.

October:  Halloween was the highlight of October. We went trick or treating around our neighborhood and had a blast!  Also, E started walking in October, at 9 months.  

November:  The girls spend a lot of time with their Daddy and we all love him so much.  I couldn't have asked for a better partner for me and father for my girls. 

December:  December was filled with Holiday festivities.  We enjoyed all of it, the girls really got into the beauty of the season, opening gifts, spending time with friends and family, and that was so fun to see.

 I realize that all but one of these pictures are of my girls, but hey, that is what my year consisted of!! 

 

 

Happy New Year

I stopped making New Year's resolutions in college, because I never followed through on any of them.  I decided this year, I am going to make some "goals" for my 2011 year, for myself and my family.

1.  Money: The hubs and I are working on debt reduction plan.  We don't have a ton of debt, but we would like to have none (besides our mortgage).  We have already started working on it, by eliminating our one vehicle payment and paying off all of our credit cards.  It already feels great!  We are loosely following Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University in our quest to be debt free.

2.  Home Improvement: We have two big home improvement projects that need to get done in 2011.  We desperately need new windows in our home, and need new insulation in our attic as well. 

3.  Get Fit:  Both Andy and I would like to lose some weight, become more fit and improve our diets.  We would like to be better role models for the girls when it comes to living a healthy lifestyle.  We are starting P90X tonight!

4.  De-Clutter:  I feel like I am constantly battling clutter in my home.  I am going to work on one area a week (closet/cabinet/room/etc) and de-clutter/organize.  This weekend I organized our entry closet.  Andy built a shoe rack and it looks so neat and organized after I got rid of about half the contents.  I even have  a spot for my purse IN the closet now!

5.  Blog:  I am making it a personal goal to post more regularly on this blog.  I am aiming for 3 posts per week.  It has been a nice outlet for me, and I am hoping to continue with it throughout the year.  Things I would like to post about:  General family happenings, cooking exploits, and organizing before/afters.

Happy New Year filled with blessings, health and family to everyone in 2011!

MTM-Taco Night

The official theme for Muffin Tin Monday was Food Picks, Skewers and Kebabs.  We decided not to follow the theme this week.  This was the first weeknight in a LONG time that we have had Daddy home for dinner, so we decided to make one of his favorite meals instead.  The hubs got switched to day shift, so life is changing a bit for us (for the time being--this is likely very temporary).  

First of all, I had the luxury of Andy being home, so I was able to have C participate in the preparation of the meal.  She loves to help me cook.  I had her tear up the lettuce, put the shredded cheese in a bowl, and put the tortillas on a plate.  She did an excellent job.  E got some Daddy time all to herself in the meantime. 

So she had her tortillas and then:

1.  Sour Cream

2.  Ketchup (this comes from the Hubs family.  They all put ketchup on their tacos....??)

3.  Tomatoes

4.  Taco meat

5.  Shredded cheese

6.  Torn lettuce

I told C that she could put together her own taco, so she got to work.  Daddy helped her fold it up and she went to town.  This is the first time she has really actually enjoyed a taco.  I was really proud of her, for being such a big girl and making her own taco.  She was VERY proud of herself too.  

Miss E in the top picture (all eyes for Daddy) is enjoying some cheese, green beans, tortilla, tomato and taco meat.  She never ceases to amaze me with how UN-picky she is!  I hope she stays this way...

Click the button below to see lots of fun Muffin Tin Meals featuring kebabs, skewers and fun picks.