Cinnamon Rolls and Sammy

We love hanging out with Sammy and Miss Heidi. They are the perfect combination of fabulous food and fun! Last week's play date began at Upper Crust Bakery over the BEST, flakiest, buttery, cinnamon-y, yummiest, rolls. K, I like them and you will notice they are not pictured because they were completely devoured prior to these pics. Here is Ella and Sammy goofing off together while Miss Heidi and I attempt to catch up on current events since our last food/fun fest the week prior. Love, love, LOVE these pics!
Please note: If you are thinking either, A:why didn't you focus on Sammy in the background or B:cool effect focusing on Ella in the foreground I have to advise that I allow my camera complete creative control b/c I really don't pretend to know the first thing about photo-magic

awwwww, I know! I would say I captured a sweet moment between these two except that Sammy is ALWAYS this amazingly sweet with little Juliet.

noticing a trend?

Sammy trying so hard to ride his bike. He did awesome!
Ack!!! No pics of glowing Miss Heidi and her burgeoning belly. Next time!
Wha!? Yeah. Zach and Ella had a photo shoot where D was their subject. Ella held the flashlight just so as Zach played with exposure times to capture the image in the otherwise dark room. The effect is a D that looks a little dead, but don't fret because he is still very much apart of our family ; )

Picture Post!!

Forgive the volume, but I had some catching up to do from the past couple of weeks.
Ramsey Park on a frosty morning, thus requiring Ella to keep her hands in her pockets:


Brunch hosted by Miss Heather in honour of Brook-E's visit (not pictured is the martha stewart-esque spread of goodies she had arranged for us):


Our last playdate with Brook-E and Abby during their nearly week-long visit! This time we hit up the bounce house place called "Locomotion!". Abby working the register:


I love this pic for two reasons: first, Ella is loading her basket with french bread as quickly as she can and I know that when she is an adult and does her own grocery shopping she will do this very thing. Second, Peyton reminds me of her purdy mommy by multitasking. She is A)ROCKING a pink princess dress, B)caring for a sick puppy from the "vet" and C)getting a little grocery shopping done.

Why is Juliet smiling so big?

I think it has something to do with this lovely, skinny jean wearing girl:

Raspberry and white chocolate cheesecake + oreo cookie crust. This is how we roll when celebrating a special birthday for our friend Heidi (not pictured).

I had to include this picture because this is how Juliet has looked much of the past couple of weeks: total concentration on trying to crawl forward, but inevitably propelling herself backwards and a little snotty.

Ella riding her super duper pink, with pink frosting big girl bike!

Juliet's grin of approval while watching her big sister successfully maneuver her bike:

My beautiful Ella:


SPARKLERS!!! (they were included in Christmas gifts from Griff and MawChing!)

Friday fun days with Aunt Charley! (this will be a reoccurring series : )




Aunt Charley took Ella to pick out and paint a gift for Zach's upcoming birthday. I can't reveal the finished product, but Ella did an amazing job. She got to pick the colors and even some stamps to use to decorate the "item". Many of the stamps were things Zach would like: football helmet and a rocket ship, but the funniest choice had to be the high heel shoe stamp. She had complete creative control.



Ella preparing to devour her "bling pop". I poured some apple flavored pedialite into the gem-shaped popsicle maker and wha-la! This made getting better quickly a little easier. (another gift from Griff and MawChing)

Spring-time fun in the winter

Juliet has really taken to the swings at the park. Thanks to Mimi and Papa we now have one in the backyard, as well. In between pushing Juliet, Ella and I like to play "supergirl" where she rides the swing on her belly to save me from a series of unfortunate events that land me in the hospital. Thankfully, the slide enables her to carry me safely to the doctor.

Juliet tries bananas!


Juliet doesn't really like bananas so we are just gonna put solid foods on hold. This is GREAT news on the diaper-ing front ; )

Brook-E is in town with her little Abby. They are a couple of our FAVORITE PEOPLE IN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD! They live in Cali so we don't get to enjoy their company as much as we'd like to. We have been soaking up every moment of their visit this week. Thursday we rode the Zilker Zephyr (Juliet's first train ride!) and then devoured some cheese steaks at Texadelphia. I'm sad I didn't bring my camera, but I'm sure it would have been ruined in a sea of mustard sauce anyway so it was for the best. Here are some pics or our antics on UT campus with the girls yesterday. Stephanie, Peyton and Aunt Charley were in the mix, too. We are having a ball!

Steph with Peyton, Abby and Juliet. Abby needs to hold Juliet every so often.

Juliet in my lap teething on a carrot. No teeth, yet.

LOVE this one!

Abby "falling down". She would fall and lay posed on the ground for nearly a minute. It was so cute!

The girls diving into a snack bag for dried cranberries in our 30-minute pre-picnic snack session. These girls like to EAT! (like their mommas)

Peyton and Ella perched on the limb of an ancient oak on UT grounds under which we were picnic-ing.

Brook-E (that is not how you spell her name, BTW, but that is how I pronounce it so I spell it that way) and the girls in front of the massively wonderful fountain right by Zach's work and next to our picnic spot. Yes, Zach joined us for lunch!

The girls were able to do some serious exploring around the campus.

It is true that there is not enough Ella pictured here. All of our paparazzi ways have taken a toll on her and she is a little camera shy (fingers crossed this is just a phase). She refused to play ring around the rosies after I pulled out the camera. She has been really funny like that and I can't help thinking she is just becoming a little more shy and reserved as she is getting older. She enjoys sitting with the moms and just listening to our conversations. It is cracking me up. I'm also beginning to see glimpses into the thoughtful, considerate person she is going to be.
ACK!!!!! As I was typing this Juliet just rolled over for the VERY FIRST TIME next to Zach and Ella. I've been pleading with her to roll over for a few days because she has been on the cusp of doing it. I wouldn't be surprised if you read a crawling post very soon because this girl has some moves. More on that later and definitely a post packed with Ella pics to come!

A New Year's Resolution

Howdy, ya'll! It has been a while, and by a while I mean a year and a half. I'm resolving to maintain this blog of the adventures my family (and a little about my own interests) so that I can glance back at the fun and love we share. This post is gonna be short and really sweet since it is basically an introduction to the newest member of our clan.

Sweet Juliet:



Here is where she tells me what to do, when to do it and whether or not I've done it correctly:


Cheeky:


She is chock-full of personality and her most favorite thing in the whole world (could she say it) is definitely her big sister, Ella. More about this dynamic duo in the coming week.

Potty Training? & a recipe

Potty Training? hahahahahahahaha...NO. Now that I've got your attention, you can listen to my complaint:

I introduced the "big girl" potty at 12 months. Ella sees it, likes it, doesn't want to poo or pee on it...o.k. I've attempted to just put her in panties for a day (several times) and I sit her on the potty while she pretends to push, gets up and then pees on the floor. frustrating. I tried "potty treats" (m&m's) because I heard that it totally works. Ella was very excited about the candy and talked about it for a long time while she sat on the potty and "pushed", but was happy to watch me eat them after she decided the treat wasn't worth her effort. wha?!

Here is where we currently stand, big girl potty has been put away because it became merely a speed bump in our little bathroom AND Ella loves to talk about "pee and poo-poo" in public..loudly. Yay! This is the fruit of my effort. She really did me in today when she came in the restroom while I was washing her cloth diapers (yes, that is where our washing machine resides...weird, I know.) and she started to whine because the smell was too much for her sensitive nostrils. Oh, SORRY! I couldn't believe that she thought the injustice had been done against her!! I could only laugh because it is just another day with a two year old.

On a lighter note, a recipe. This is a FAVE of ours, totally cost effective, scrumptious and GREAT...YES, GREAT as leftovers! We'll eat it with smiles for 3 days straight!

Italian Sausage Pasta Bake (this may be like your Baked Ziti recipe, if you have one, but I use my mom's pasta sauce recipe and slow cook it to add to the dish. I'm not against the jar stuff (and would definitely use it in a pinch), but it seriously tastes NOTHING like this and I'm still short-cutting with canned tomatoes so you should just try it)

Ingredients:
Tbls. olive oil
Large Onion (coarsely chopped)
1 package Italian sausages (mild or sweet is the family preference, but you can choose hot if you all like that)
2 15 ounce cans stewed tomatoes
2 8 ounce cans tomato sauce
1 T tomato paste
Vegetables: I usually use zucchini (sliced), squash (sliced), and/or spinach. I'll use 2 zucchini or squash and use a whole bunch of spinach, when I have it.
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp salt (more to taste, if preferred)
2 tsp season salt
1 tsp pepper
1 package of whole wheat pasta (we prefer rigatoni or penne or ziti)
10 - 16 ounces mozzarella (shredded) *big variance in amt...if you like cheesy..go for it. My family feels less is more when it comes to the cheese so we opt for less, please note that I am a cheesy fanatic so my vote was vetoed during the family vote regarding the amount of cheese to use*
1/2 C shredded parmesan (optional, I've made with and without)

Directions:
In a large pot, swirl the olive oil around. Remove the sausage from its casing and brown it over medium/high heat. Add the onion and zucchini and or squash and allow to soften some. Dump in the tomatoes...all of them! Fill the two 8 ounce cans of tomato sauce with water (after emptying them) and add that to the pot. Pour in the seasonings...all of them! Bring to a boil and then simmer on low heat, covered, for anywhere from 1-3 hours. It is totally up to you, but if you simmer it a long, long time, you may need to add a little water. The flavor condenses the longer you simmer...yadda, yadda. Wilt in your spinach at the very end, if you are using that.

In a separate pot cook your pasta according to package directions. Shred your cheeses. In a large casserole dish (biggest you've got) dump in your pasta, cover with sauce and then smother it in cheese. Spray some foil with olive oil (or any spray you've got) and then cover your dish and bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes until the cheese is ooey-gooey. This dish is REALLY GOOD the first night, GREAT the second night and AMAZING the third night! Serve it alone, with a light tossed salad and/or garlic bread. YUM!


tips: If your biggest casserole dish is not so big and overflowing, then be sure to add a pan to catch drippings in the bottom rack of your oven. Also, this is great for parties...make it ahead and pop it in the oven just before guests arrive. They will be left pondering how the dishes could all be done when you haven't even finished cooking the meal...heh, heh! This also freezes great so if you want to eat it twice this week and once next week (or week after next) split it up into two casserole dishes (medium and small) and pop the small one in the freezer.

Yay! I love food.