HOLY HAIL

When a simple thunderstorm
turned into major storm
warnings
and then,
tornado warnings...

we knew we were in for a good
show!

Afterwards I searched for evidence
and came across these.

But quickly learned they weren't
the largest!

This one is the size of a racquetball...ball!

Could you imagine THIS hitting
your windshield?

I Make 3 Look Good

Turning 3 is like a HUGE relief in our house.
We celebrate leaving behind the ugly toddler years
and look forward to the molding of a fun kid.

Early Morning Wake Up Call


Ben was no exception.
He was super excited to turn 3 too!
It's like the light finally "clicked"
in his head.
He FULLY understood the idea of
BIRTHDAY!!

And getting 3 dollars from Grandma Ria
made him feel...RICH!

A breakfast favorite of
oatmeal and ho-cho.

And he could not be swayed
on his decision to celebrate
his birthday with
Chuck E. Cheese.

And load up on Pizza and Games.

Keira didn't quite understand
that the seat was readily
available for her butt.
Instead, she opted for the floor.

Dad was the perfect companion
to help Ben conquer all the games.

The girls couldn't pass up
a chance at Deal or No Deal!

Mom whipped up chocolate cupcakes
topped with the requested
BLUE BALLOONS!

Blow 'em out!

And eat 'em up!

Time for gifts!

And a special hug from his icon.

Feeling Good Inside and Out

Today was good. And I can't help but point a few fingers at some healthy choices. Lately it's been hard to convince my slowly deteriorating pregnant body that getting up at 445am for bootcamp is a... good idea. Lucky for me on random Saturdays my awesome instructor lets us have a "make-up" day at 7am. This was a great way to kick my day off right.

And tonight was the cherry on top. Between Larry and I, we whipped up a little meal that satisfied both hunger and that darn food pyramid. About a week ago, I read a very tasty recipe here, about a chicken gyro. It peaked my interested with it's easy recipe and rave reviews. And after finding Greek yogurt on sale plus a coupon to make them FREE I could pass up a chance at this meal.

But instead of taking the time to make a marinade for the chicken, Larry had the great idea to let our chicken tenderloins soak in Italian dressing and throw it on the grill. YUMMY!! It was easy, fast and the kids were still interested in eating it. We stuck to the original recipe for the Tzatziki sauce, but I got the kids helping by having them scrap out the seeds and shred the cucumber. Which in turn made them all CRAZY for the sauce. PERFECT!!!

Tzatziki sauce:
16 oz. plain Greek yogurt

1/2 hothouse cucumber or 1 regular cucumber, peeled and seeded
2-3 cloves garlic, pressed through a garlic press (or finely minced)
1 tsp. white wine vinegar (I used red wine vinegar)
Salt and pepper
Squeeze of fresh lemon juice
Extra virgin olive oil
(we halved this recipe)

Shred the cucumber or chop in food processor. Wrap in a towel a squeeze to remove as much water as possible. Mix together the yogurt, shredded cucumber, garlic, white wine vinegar, salt and pepper to taste, and lemon juice. Drizzle lightly with olive oil.
Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavors to meld.

And then to keep with health-ifying our meal we substituted pita breads for these little gems. And added lettuce, tomato, cucumber and red onion to complete our little concoction. Plus with a side of orange slices, who wouldn't feel healthy after eating this meal?

(I sure hopes it off-sets the frozen chicken nuggets and Kraft mac'n cheese I made last night!)

All Hail The Queen

To begin a new semester at school,
Sydney's Teacher sent home a letter
to inform the parents about a new project.

Each week the teacher would select a student
that was a hard-worker, good listener and a
great student to be "King or Queen of the Jungle".

To no one's surprise, Sydney got the award FIRST!

Which meant on her 1st day of walking home ALONE
(she was ecstatic about this!)
she brought a poster board that had to be filled out
and brought back to school the very next day.

I was extremely PROUD of my obedient child
that was given such a great honor,
but rather unenthusiastic about the quick
dead-line of the necessary poster.
With 2 after school piano lessons and FHE
that night, there wasn't much time.

But after a few hard hours of work,
this is what we came up with!
We were rather happy with our creation.

To my surprise that night I received the
greatest gift a parent can get.

Not 10 seconds after sending Sydney upstairs
to bed, she found me in the laundry room
doing yet ANOTHER load
and gave me a big hug and said "I love you Mom!"

Which didn't make writing this letter
(another requirement by the teacher)
for Sydney to be read in front of the class
hard at all.

To Sydney,

Our Sydney Lauren is the kind of daughter that any parent would love to have. She is the best of the best. She is quick to do what I ask, loves to help, is a great big sister and very loving. Definitely …ONE OF A KIND!!

I never have to ask her to watch a younger sibling. She’s always there helping them along. Taking them down slides and teaching them. Even if it’s nothing fun like cleaning the bathroom she’ll still do it with a smile and wipe it clean just like mommy taught her.

With her blue eyes and her quiet smile, Sydney is a joy to have in our family. She may be shy but believe me that girl likes to talk, sing and dance. And if you ever want her to be your best friend just offer her chicken nuggets!!!

We love you “Skittles”!!

Love, Mom and Dad

Is this Minnesota?

It is freezing!
And when I say freezing I mean it.
These past few days in TX have been blasting with
icy winds and temperatures meant for
a Canadian winter.

Can you say 13 degrees with a wind chill of ZERO?

Although we missed the 2 inches of snowfall in
Dallas on Christmas Eve, we've been able
to enjoy a few flakes since then.

3 brave souls

I shouted "time for a silly picture",
and this is what I got!

Here's hoping we get above 28 degrees this week!!

Party Hardy

KEIRA, are you ready to party?

"SAY WHAT?"


EMMA, are you ready to party?

"Gonna Party Like it's 2009!"

Thanks to some groovy friends,
we were able to enjoy the ending of 2009
in true party fashion.

Gotta have annoying blow horns.

Keira didn't HOLD BACK either.
Not once...

...but twice.
(no children or animals were harmed, maimed or drunk
at this party...thanks to IBC rootbeer & cream soda)

We had a great time eating,
playing games
and eating some more!!

Then we noticed the kids had emptied out
the game closet,
which was are cue it was time to go home!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

What's Christmas Without Family?

What's a house full of 20 people unless you call it...
THE HOLIDAYS!!

My sister graciously hosted all of us at her home
while she received free slave labor of sprinkler installation!
(I call that a win/win situation)

We started off the evening with the traditional
Christmas Eve Program
that my family has been following since we were kids
at Grandma Jane & Grawny's house.

#1. The dreaded...I mean loved,
Testimony Time
(age 10 under = thankful time)

Don't we look happy?

Why is it kids always separate by gender?
When does that change?

Jacob is visually giving the clue for Grandma
to "wrap it up" on her "thankfulness"!

Emma is either really excited to spew
what she's thankful about
OR
thinking about her gifts from
Santa in the morning!

Keira Jane shows off her dance moves
and her rooster hair-do.

#2. A song
(which, consequently, is quite painful...
we are NOT a family of singers...
Laura we NEED YOU!)

#3. Grant and Jesse,
retell the story of Samuel the Lamanite

#4. Another ballad

#5. Grandpa reads the birth of Christ.

#6. A jingle from the girls,
while Eliza plays.

#7. Grandma reads the,
world renowned story of
DONKEY DANIEL
(*snicker, snicker*)

#8. Another Christmas Song
(everyone HAS to have a song book,
even if you are 14 months old)

After dessert and new pj's put on,
it's FINALLY time for bed.
And not a moment too soon!!