Tuesday, August 23, 2011

first day of school


My first grader!


Layla was so sleepy this morning!  
She didn't want to get up, but when she realized it was her 1st day of school she pepped up really quick.







At her desk ready to get busy :)



 I did a comparison this year vs. last year...


I am so excited and can't wait to pick her up from her first day later today!!

Monday, August 22, 2011

the funniest chefs I know

Gary's oldest friend came to visit for the weekend.  Jason and Gary have known one another for 31 years.  They have kept in touch and every time they see each other it is like they have been together every day.  They always pick up where they left off.  I love Jason!  He is one of the best guys I have ever met.  He is so nice and sweet and just a wonderful guy. 



They both love to cook, so they went to the grocery store and decided to cook up a fest.


I was thrilled to have the guys cook dinner.  I just ran around taking tons of pictures of their creations.  I had a blast and I learned a few things from the guys.


Jason made beer can chicken.  He stuffed it with cilantro, roasted red peppers, jalapenos and who knows what else.  I don't cook with whole chickens, so I was watching his every move.  I think I may be able to take on a whole chicken on now!  It was like cooking school for me :)


The guys bought shrimp and chopped it and stuffed it with cream cheese and a ton of other stuff and made stuffed jalapenos.  I was seriously in hog heaven.  I was a bit scared for my kitchen though.  The guys cooked all the food, so I didn't mind cleaning up a bit.



Y-U-M!



And the bacon...for the love of Pete, they added bacon to everything.  Bacon wrapped shrimp, bacon wrapped beer can chicken.  They even  put bacon in the roasted red pepper cheese bread.  


La chefs


The didn't want to waste good beer, so they used a Keystone Light for the beer can chicken.  haha!  I laughed so hard at these boys.  When they are together it is an ab workout for me.



Cheese bread.  This was the best part of my day. Holy Moley.   This bread will seriously make you wanna slap your momma...haha!



Since the guys were grilling the kids just HAD to be outside.  As soon as the dogs or kids see Gary grab the charcoal they all four run to the back door.  It is so funny.  He stores the charcoal in the garage and he has to walk through the house with it. When they see the charcoal bag they all run.  It is hysterical!! It was so hot yesterday, so we put the water sprinkler under the trampoline.  THEY HAD a BLAST!


We still have all the balls from their birthday party, so they had a big time bouncing and throwing balls.  When the balls escaped the trampoline Bogey would steal one, and run off and pop it.  He is a wild pup.  


At the end of the day we never even sat down for dinner.  We were all full from sampling the food.  I was so full I couldn't move.  I also couldn't taste anything for about an hour.  I bit into a bacon wrapped jalapeno and it was on FIRE!  I literally wanted to wipe my tongue with a towel.  Have you ever eaten anything so hot you were dying and sweating??  I couldn't get rid of the burn.  Even though it was hot, it was delicious.


*****


Today we are getting ready for Layla's first day of first grade.  My Facebook feed is full of 1st day of school pictures today, but Layla's school starts tomorrow.    I think she is ready, and I know I am ready for her to have a great year!

Happy Monday!

Friday, August 19, 2011

Meet the teacher

Tonight we got to meet Layla's 1st grade teacher.  

I honestly can't believe I just typed that.  1st grade.  But it is happening, so all I can do is get ready :)


Layla is ready!  She loves to learn and I am thrilled for her.  I saw so many amazing books in her classroom.  Next summer I just know Layla and I will be reading chapter books together all summer long...by the pool.  Tonight she asked if she could have a Kindle.  She is my reader for sure!


Looking for her classroom!


My sweet munchkins.  Hayden is next...we will meet his preschool teacher soon!

  

Layla and one of her best friends.  They are the sweetest girls!  

Layla is so excited to know so many people in her class this year.  There are 5 girls in her class that were in the same class last year.  That is super lucky.  I couldn't believe it.  AND a girl that is on Layla's soccer team that we didn't know before is sitting RIGHT next to her.  Layla is so blessed to be surrounded by friends.  I'm so happy to know their parents.  These are the kind of friends I want Layla to have from now on so I can feel good about who she is hanging out with.


My first grader.


Daddy's girl!


I am so thrilled for my big girl.  Before we left the school she made sure she knows how to get to her classroom so I don't have to walk her into the school on Tuesday.  
This makes me happy and sad all at the same time.

“There are two lasting bequests we can give our children: One is roots, the other is wings.”

Thursday, August 18, 2011

all about Hayden




Hayden is a spoiled Momma's boy.  I think I spoil him and do too much for him.  Bless his heart.


He is getting really good at dressing himself.  He is super fast at putting his shorts on and taking them off, but sometimes he gets really frustrated with shirts.    He has gotten tangled up several times lately.  He likes to see the picture on his underwear, so he puts them on backwards.  He puts on his own pull up at night time.

Hayden is potty trained.  He thinks he is such a big boy.  He has had his share of accidents though.  Potty training accidents are very frustrating... a  few days ago he pee pee'd in his car seat in my new JEEP!  Gary and I were so mad. Ugghh!  He does wear a pull-up to bed at night.

Hayden can kick a soccer ball, hit a golf ball with amazing form and can throw a mean football.  He loves to hit the baseball and catch it too...thank you Sandlot!  When he throws the football he does the double tap.  He is so funny!

Hayden is getting more brave in the swimming pool.   He doesn't want to be out done by his big sister.  

Hayden wears a size 3T-4T and a size 8 in shoes.

He weighs 33 pounds and is 39 inches tall.

Hayden is starting his second year of preschool in just a few weeks and he will be participating in a little gym class.  He is so excited about jumping around in the gym!

Hayden is a closet learner.  We read to him and ask him to say his ABC's, and he does, when he wants to. Usually he surprises us.  Right when we think we should worry about if he is learning our not he will bust out with some smarts...haha!

He goes to bed around 7:30pm and sleeps until around 7:00am.  He still naps in the afternoon, but the naps seem to be getting shorter.  Some days he will sleep 45 minutes, and other days he sleeps over an hour.  I don't feel terrible if we have plans and he skips his nap.  I just put him to bed earlier and he gets the rest he needs.  One morning last week he woke up at 6:30 am and Gary told him to go back to bed.  He crawled back into his bed and slept until 8:00am!

Hayden eats like a stinkin' bird.  We have to make him eat. When he eats he has great manners and uses his utensils very well. His favorite thing to eat right now: cereal.  He asks for cereal all the time.  He loves blueberries!  Typically he eats meat and fruit.  He loves steak.

His favorite movies right now are Cars, Toy Story 1-3, and Micky Mouse Christmas.  Yes, Christmas in August.  haha!

Hayden asks me to bounce him at night before bed.  Yes, I do realize he is 3 years old, but I still hold him in my arms and bounce him like a baby at night.  It seems to soothe him and I love the snuggles.  Sometimes I rub his back while he drifts off to sleep and he makes me rub under his shirt.  haha!  Picky little stinker.

He doesn't mind speaking his mind.  He will tell us exactly what he thinks when he thinks it.  His sister doesn't bust out with the sass quite as bad as he does.  He has no fear when voicing his opinion.

Hayden LOVES to be tickled.  If he hasn't been tickled for the day he will ask for a "tickle fest."

Hayden loves Bogey.  Those two little guys are best friends.  They run and play and wrestle all the time.  It is so sweet to see them play together.  Bogey truly loves Hayden.

He loves our new Jeep.  When we are driving down the street he notices other Jeeps.  He screams out the color of the Jeeps we see, and he points out if they have a 'hard top' or a 'soft top.'  That is totally the boy in him.


I love this picture of my two boys.


This concludes my scrapbook posts for the week :)  I'm so glad I can document these things about my munchkins.  I hope some day they look back through the blog to see how silly they were at this age!

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

ham & swiss poppy seed sliders

What is a slider you ask?

Slider:  small, greasy sandwich that slides down easily into your belly.

We have made mini sandwiches a million times.  They never get old.  And they are perfect because they are small and you get just the amount of deliciousness you want.  I typically never over indulge on sliders.

I found this slider recipe on Pinterest.  
Once I saw it I new Gary would love it.
He did. We both did.



Here is the recipe I pinned...



Look at that crispy bread.  Oh, these little sammies were so rich and delicious.


Here is what I used:

12 honey wheat Hawaiian dinner rolls
12 pieces ham
12 small slices Swiss cheese
mayonnaise for slathering the rolls

Poppy seed sauce
1 tablespoon poppyseeds
1  tablespoon
s yellow mustard
1/2 sticks butter, melted
1 tablespoon onion powder
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce


Cut the rolls in half.  Smear them with mayo and top with generous amounts of ham and Swiss cheese. Close them up and place them all squeezed into a Pyrex baking dish.  Mix the sauce and then pour the sauce over the sliders.  Bake in a 350 degree oven covered in foil for 35 minutes.

  
You will love them, and with football season coming up, they are the perfect football food.

*****


For my family and other people who don't understand Pinterest...

Pinterest is an online bulletin board. You can save ideas and recipes from all over the internet in one easy location. You can read about it here.

You can find all my pin boards here.  And just my recipe board is here.
I haven't made all the recipes I have pinned but I hope to :)