Friday Fun

I thought I was going to have all this time when Nate went to school and Lila & I were at home on Fridays. And then I remembered I have a 9 month old who takes 2 naps per day and still eats bottles. It's funny how you adjust to your reality. I sometimes feel like we are stuck to the house because of her schedule but when Nate was with us, I didn't feel like that at all. Funny how that happens.

Lila has quite the personality and when she's awake, she's full of squeals and smiles. She really doesn't get upset too much unless she's tired. Even when Nate yanks the 27th toy out of her hands in 5 minutes. The upside of her needing to be at home is that I've finally found time to do all the cleaning I want to do. I know you all are thrilled:)

I found that her first tooth popped thru on Friday - the day she turned 9 months old and the day she went for her 9 month well visit. Oddly enough, I found Nate's first tooth on the day he went for his 9 month well visit. I was secretly hoping I would and lo and behold, I did.

We decided to make a Friday night tradition and go out to eat after everyone is finished with work and school for the week. Nate wanted pasta, so we chose Rigazzi's this Friday night. It had been a while since we'd been there and it was so yummy! Nate saw this Arch and wanted his picture taken. I wish it was better of his face, but the sun was brutal right then.

Nate still loves kindergarten and his teacher. I think he's ready to learn something...besides the rules and when you get to go to the bathroom. When he hopped in the car on Friday, he excitedly said, "Mom!! We got to learn some math today!!" I'm so glad sweet boy, since we did promise you would actually learn something in kindergarten.

Recipe Monday

One of my favorite dishes is Chicken Parmesan. I don't often make it during the week because it is a multi-step dish and I just don't have the time. I made our version this weekend and thought I would share. If you have one that you think I'd like to try, let me know!

Chicken Parmesan (Colleen Haass)

4 boneless chicken breasts, pounded to 1/2 inch thickness
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
Seasoned Bread Crumbs
8 slices mozzarella
1 jar spaghetti sauce
Parmesan cheese

Whisk together the egg and milk. Dip the chicken breasts in milk and egg mixture and then in bread crumbs. In a skillet with a little olive oil over medium heat, brown on both sides until golden. Set chicken in baking dish.

Slice 8 pieces of mozzarella and put town on each chicken breast. Pour 1 jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce over all. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and a little more mozzarella and bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until bubbly. Serve with spaghetti.

Note: I use Panko bread crumbs and mix with dry italian seasoning. Also, I use shredded mozzarella so you don't have to use as much.

Enjoy!

9 Months!

Lila Lula Bell, you are 9 months old! It seems like it took way longer for Nate to get to 9 months. You are just truckin' along and get more personality every single day.

A few notables for this month...

- You have not gained much weight in the past 3 months. You have pretty much worn the same clothes all summer. We will see what the doctor says!

- You light up when you see any of us that you haven't seen in a while - Mom, Dad, Nate, and of course Kitty P. But you have a little (ok, a lot) separation anxiety for everyone else.

- You like to scream. Boy do you like to scream. It starts the moment you wake up in the morning and doesn't really stop until you go to bed. You aren't necessarily mad all the time, you just like to squeal. Very vocal you are.

- You are eating table food and some baby food. You would really rather just eat what we are eating, but Mom gets a little worried you won't get all the food groups sometimes, so you get some mush from time to time.

- You try to drink from a sippy cup but you aren't very good at it yet. Maybe soon.

- You are a master crawler and love to stand up. You have pushed a stool and the Brio cart to walk, but you aren't super interested in that yet. You do not cruise very much around the furniture, just stand and bend your knees.

- You start dancing if you hear music.

- You have been a sickly one this month, with a stomach virus and hand, footh, mouth disease. Awesome.

- You sleep really well, unless you are sick. Which seems to be every other week. But you still get up early. You are always ready to go to bed!

- You cuddle with a blanket at night but have pretty much quit using your pacifier on your own.

I can't believe that we will be planning your first birthday party very soon! How exciting! We love you so much and are so thankful to have had you with us for 9 months.

Round the House

Lila started walking while pushing a stool this weekend, so we decided to get out this Brio cart that Emily gave Nate when he was a baby. She loved it! She did push it and walk (I'll have to upload the video soon) but mostly she just liked when Nate pushed her around.

Here we go Lila - let's go for a ride!...while the parents bite their nails and shut all doors that lead to stairs. Love the baton she's toting...

Where we goin' Nate?

Lila's new favorite thing to do is pull the books out from her shelf. Seriously, she'll be in her room all by herself having the biggest time for many many minutes. Normally my OCD would take over, but for some reason it doesn't in this situation.

We've finally hit that stage where we can get a few things done when we are all at home. The kids play, we work, and then we all converge, usually in Lila's room, for good family time. The weekends mean so much more now that they are just 2 days. We've been spoiled with an extra day and now have to find all the ways to make the most of our time together!

Dad's Field Trip

While I cleaned out my nasty car this past weekend, Scott took the kids on a hike. The destination was not as thrilling as they hoped, but they all said it was fun (even though I'm sure it was hot, but we're not complaining!) Scott said Nate was fascinated by the graffiti. Funny how that works.

I love this picture of Lila's eyes! So serious.

Although my kids probably can't express it fully right now, I know they are very thankful to have such a fun Dad. He thinks up all kinds of new and exciting adventures every weekend. I hope they both look back on their childhood and think we were really fun! Oh okay, at least think Scott was really fun! :)

Recipe Monday

Speedy dishes...those are the ones I go for lately. How 'bout you?

Rich & Creamy Tortellini (http://www.tasteofhome.com/)

Cook a 9 oz. package of refrigerated cheese tortellini according to package directions. In a sauce pan, saute 2 minced garlic cloves in 4 tsp butter for 1 minute. Stir in 4 1/2 tsp flour; slowly add 1 cup milk and bring to boil. Add a 15 oz jar of marinara sauce, 4 oz cubed cream cheese, 2 sliced green onions, salt and pepper. Cook and stir until cheese melts. Serve over tortellini. Onions optional of course.

Enjoy!

Saturday Shopping

I'm sure most of you can relate to this title...it's what we spend our weekends doing. Gathering items so that you and your family can exist for the next week. Around our house, it is no different. Sometimes it is nice to be able to go shopping by myself, a luxury Scott is most willing to provide me. But sometimes that gets lonely. And I feel like I miss out on my kids during that time. So this Saturday, I suggested that Nate go with me and while Lila napped, Scott could get caught up on some things around the house. I may or may not have bribed him. But after his first week at Kindergarten, I really wanted to spend some more time with just him.

When we arrived at Lowe's (I wanted to look at the rugs), Nate was hot mad. This is BOORRRINGGGG Mom, he says 14 times before we reach the front door. Then we argue about what cart we are going to use. Then we argue about where he is going to sit in/on the cart. Finally we are off and I gotta tell ya....I was so proud of him because he turned his frown upside down and had a blast in Lowe's. First, we rode the lawnmowers...

Then we played with the dryers...everything is really just a Star Wars space ship or control panel, you know.

After a trip to Target, we stopped at Pier 1. I think this is the first time that I have taken Nate to Pier 1. Lots of breakable stuff in there and no carts. He did fabulous, as he had done the rest of the day, after the mini meltdown at Lowe's. On the way out, he found these hats. He modeled all the hats, all the gloves, and all the spider props they had to go with them.

We accomplished everything I wanted to accomplish, including finding a rug and pillows to spruce up our living room. I so enjoyed spending time with him. I almost don't remember the days when he went everywhere with me. It was nice to have him in the cart chatting it up about this and that. It's just what I needed for this Saturday after the big does of perspective I've gotten this week.

For those of you that still have babies - hold them tight, rock them to sleep, and treasure each and every moment. Be so proud that they are growing up, but don't take their "youngness" for granted. It truly goes too fast. Think I have told myself that a time or two this week? :)

Swampeast Acres is 100!

To say that our lives have been full these past weeks is an understatement. Full of activity and happiness mind you...with a little stress thrown in there for good measure. Last weekend we had the opportunity to celebrate 100 years at Swampeast Acres. The state of Missouri recognizes farms that have been in the same family for 100 years and Swampeast Acres was finally awarded the prestigous honor of being a Century Farm.

My Mom, Dad & Hamil join the many people that have worked so hard to keep the farm going since 1911. Not just my family, but many families that lived on or near the farm back in the day. As my Dad says, the fact that a family can get along for this amount of time is an accomplishment in itself!

My dear sister and her family came to MO to celebrate with us. I love her so much and wish we got to see each other more. It is fun to compare notes about kids, and she actually thinks I know something about child rearing. I actually don't and learn something new every day!

There was a wiffle ball game, of course. Here is my Dad calling Elena safe at home.

Nate played wiffle ball and loved it! I was amazed that he played...last year at this time, there was no way he would get out into the mix of a game.

Lila Lulu Bell - no wiffle ball for her yet. She was just attached to my hip and looked cute all day.

The DeLaney sisters - Kathy, Debbie & Lee receiving the resolution from Steve Hodges, our House Representative. He and his family were kind enough to attend the event.

Sweet Bluet - she has gotten so big! And her face just gets more precious by the day.

The Corse Family - as you can imagine, it was great fun to get everyone out there for a picture.

The whole clan - as you can imagine it was great fun getting everyone out there for another picture.

The Haas Family

My little family - Nate probably wasn't going to take the picture unless it was on the Gator. We gave in. Actually there wasn't much of a fight. I was sweating so bad, I didn't want to take any more pictures either!

Happy 100 years Swampeast Acres! Thanks to everyone who celebrated with us - it was a wonderful day at Sarah & Hamil's house. Reminded me of the many celebrations we've had there over the years. Looking forward to many more!

Kindergarten!

I sent my baby boy off to real school today. I'm excited, happy, sad and nervous all at the same time. Nate showed no hint of nervousness or apprehension and went right in and sat with his class. He slept great last night and woke up this morning to play Legos, just like it was any other day. I should take a lesson from my 5-year old.

We started off the day with K pancakes to commemorate the start of Kindergarten. He also wanted a pancake in the shape of the Arch so I complied with that too.

The first picture he said had to be him with his Legos, of course.

My sweet sweet Kindergartner!

Lila was just ready to get to school so she could take a nap. She's on an earlier than normal waking streak lately.

He wanted me to get the words in the picture. He looks so small!

I can't believe he humored me with so many pictures. He knows the transition has been hard on me:)

This week he has asked just about every hour when Kindergarten starts. I think he was genuinely excited even after we went to see his room on Monday night and he started to figure out what it was all about. Even at 5, he knows that Mac computers and Smart Board in your room are nothing to sneeze about.

Last week, he wanted to drive by the school every day. One day when we were driving by, he said, "Mom, I love my school. Thank you and Dad for choosing it for me."

Wow. Wow. Wow. Tears. To which Nate said, "Are you crying AGAIN?"

Here's to hoping 3:15 PM comes quickly today so that I can hear all about his new adventures!

Happy Birthday Aunt Mil!

My dear Aunt Mil turns 94 today! Aunt Mil is my Grandpa's sister and she is the one of the most lovely people I know. She has been so incredibly selfless her entire life and has taking care of people down to a fine art. Aunt Mil and my late Uncle Bob did not have any children of their own so they doted on my Grandpa's chidren (Lee, Debbie, & Kathy) as well as Aunt Mil and Grandpa's other brother Paul's children (Paul & Katchie). After they were all grown up, Aunt Mil moved on to doting on the next generation - Kyle, Stan, Paul, Emily, Abatha, Porter, Evan, Brian, Hamil & David. And now she loves to see the next generation run around - Ketcher, Nate, Fallon, Elena, Lucy, Lila, Bluet...and wait in anticipation for the new baby Haas to arrive (on the right above). She has always been such a presence in my world, a surrogate grandparent and constant reminder of the sweeter things in life.

My mom and her sisters take care of Aunt Mil now. And we all appreciate the quality of life she has been able to have thanks to them. Lee, Debbie & Kathy - thank you for giving of yourselves so selflessly for our dear Aunt Mil.

Happy Birthday Aunt Mil! We love you very very much!

Recipe Monday

I don't know about y'all, but I love quiche. I was always kind of scared of making it until I found this one. I have to bake it a little longer than they say (and use a little less milk) but other than that, it's pretty easy.

Five Ingredient Quiche (http://www.pillsbury.com/)

1 Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust, softened as directed on box
2 cups shredded Swiss cheese (I use American or Provolone)
1 can quartered artichoke hearts, drained, chopped, patted dry with paper towels
4 slices bacon, cooked, crumbled, if desired
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Heat oven to 375. Unroll crust in ungreased 9-inch quiche or glass pie plate. Press crust firmly against side and bottom. Fold excess crust under and press together to form thick crush edge; flute. Prick bottom and side of crust with fork. Bake about 8 minutes or until very lightly browned.

Layer cheese, artichokes and bacon in crust. In medium bowl, beat eggs, milk, salt and pepper with wire whish or fork until well blended. Pour over artichokes.

Bake 30-35 minutes or until knife inserted into center comes out clean. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Cut into wedges.

Enjoy!

Lasts

This week has been a week of "lasts" for Nate. Last train ride to school. Last day of school. Last time to see his teachers. Last 4 day week. Last Nate & Mom Day (transformed into Nate, Lila & Mom Fridays now).

And in case you are wondering, I'm a mess. Nate? He couldn't be happier about going to kindergarten next week. I guess I should find happiness in that, and I do, but every time I look at him, I see the baby Nate, the 2-year old Nate, the 3 going on 4 Nate...you get the point.

We had a great last Friday together. He had to go to the dentist and for some kids that would not be the start of a good day, but as we were leaving this morning, he said, "Mom, I am sooooo excited to go to the dentist!" And he was such a big kid at the dentist. Went right back when they called his name, while Lila & I waited in the waiting room.

From the dentist, we went to pick up flowers for his teachers to give to them at their end of the year party today. Then we went to Jilly's Cupcake Bar for a celebration lunch, where I took these...

Ignore the sweet potatoes on Lila's face. I think she's still cute.

Then we came home and while Lila took a nap, Nate & I watched 101 Dalmatians (he had never seen it before) and ate popcorn. After making peanut butter playdoh and playing Clone Wars, we headed off to meet Scott for the school party. To finish off the night, we ate Mexican at Nate's request.

It was a perfect last Friday. Although I'm drained. I didn't think Nate going to kindergarten would be hard for me. But it is. But I guess that's okay. It's kinda funny when you think about it - you want your kids to grow up, but when they do, you are sad. Here's to making the next 13 years count before he goes to college.

Nate, we are so very proud of you and know you are going to be a rock star at kindergarten! We love you so much sweet boy!

First Pony!

First ponytail! So so cute...they put it in at school and I guess I'll be going to get some hair ties this weekend. Her hair is clearly long enough and the bows will stay in so much better!

Recipe Late Monday

When Scott & I got married, he told me he wasn't eating meatloaf. I've always kind of liked meatloaf, but I didn't make it (or anything else for that matter) for many years. When my sweet mother-in-law gave me Paula Deen's cookbooks for Christmas a few years ago, I found a meatloaf recipe and made it. Scott told me again that he didn't like meatloaf. I made it anyway. And guess what? He liked it.

So if you have meatloaf naysaers in your house, make this meatloaf. It's even better the second day on a sandwich.

Go HERE to find the recipe.

My Almost Kindergartener

I'll spare you the "How can it be's" and instead just say that I am so very proud of my almost kindergartener. He is such a sweet, handsome, inquisitive, action packed big boy. In the last month, I swear he's gotten taller and leaner and his face has changed. There is not one ounce of little kid left on him. Sad, but true.

On Saturday night, I took him to get some new tennis shoes, then we ate at Five Guys, and finally went to see the Smurf's movie. We had a wonderful time...although I don't think he really understood that I had not seen the movie before. I told him we used to watch the cartoons on Saturday morning, which totally blew his mind.

Turks & Caicos - The Real Post

10 years of marriage...10 years of friendship...that's what we celebrated last week with our great friends, the Pooleys. Turks & Caicos was the location for our grand party and the island did not disappoint. It is always fun to go some place you have never been before, especially when everything works out to be gorgeous.

We rented a house (you know one of my favorite sites is VRBO) and it was situated on a small cliff overlooking the ocean. Pure loveliness. The view from the veranda.

The view looking back at the house - the plants were so lush and beautiful.

Audra & I chilling in the water at the beach. It was so nice to have days on end to solve all the world's problems with her!

Scott & I before cocktails one evening...

Our bestest friends Ryan & Audra!

I like this picture of us, so I'm choosing to ignore the guy in the background taking shots of who knows what. If I remember correctly, these people took 1,231 pictures of their plates of food and 2,356 pictures of the sea gulls. Sorry, it was memorable.

Before dinner one night at a great Spanish place on the water. The shrimp was scrumptious.

Ryan & Audra, looking lovely.

The boys. Oh the boys. How funny they are. Before snorkeling one day. Which meant Audra and I could sit by the pool uninterrupted.

At the tip top of the relaxation meter.

Hanging out at the Coral Gardens beach...having a tex-mex snack as my husband called it.

I would definitely recommend Turks & Caicos as a vacation destination. It really is the perfect mix of seclusion and commercial. There are no McDonald's, Wal-Marts, Targets, or chain restaurants. But there are quaint places to eat, drink and be merry. But you have to drive on the wrong side of the road. It was only a problem for our boys sometimes. Just kidding. They both did very well.

Ryan & Audra, we had a fabulous time and can't wait for our next vacation together! And when you are having a bad day, just remember GIVE WAY!

Turks & Caicos Pre-Post

My blog has been neglected. But see, I had a very good reason. I was soaking in the sun.

Here...

More to come when I catch up on life!

Recipe Monday

I'm always looking for crockpot recipes - that seems to be the easiest way for me to cook these days, and I'm sure some of you feel the same way.

Anita's Crockpot Lemon Chicken (www.allrecipes.com)

6 large chicken breasts
1/2 tsp Lawry's garlic salt
1/2 tsp Pepper
1 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup Worcestershire Sauce
1 stick butter (I use margarine & less)

Mix lemon juice and Worcestershire Sauce. Put chicken in crockpot and pour liquid over. Put butter on top. Sprinkle garlic salt and pepper. Cover and cook on high 6 hours or low 10 hours.

Enjoy!