Fondue take 2!

I am so blessed to be a part of our MOPS group!
This year, I hosted our second annual MOPS leadership fondue. What a FUN night! Yummy food, no kids, and lots of laughs with wonderful friends!

Thank you, MOPS friends!!

Marching Band

Adorable... No, I'm not referring to my girls, but rather my husband! (I hope he doesn't read this!) You may have seen my family today; they could be seen marching to the park, or heard playing their drums. After watching an episode of "Caillou," Daniel made these hats with the girls, and then they marched to the park while playing their instruments. SERIOUSLY! Our neighbors several houses down later verified for me that they were actually marching and playing as they passed their house. How cute is that? My girls are blessed with the best daddy!

Rice Krispy Pops

Remember my cake pop attempt for Allison's last birthday?!?!? Nope -- not quite ready to try those, again. But, I did decide to try rice krispy pops! I'm pretty sure I'm not the first to try these, but I haven't seen them anywhere else. And, I must say they turned out adorable... (And yummy!) I don't think they need instructions other than a picture tutorial. So, here you go:

Healthy and Fun

I LOVE cuties! For those of you in Rancho Cucamonga, they're on sale at Market World, (19th and Carnelian) this week for just $2.99! That's half the price of Costco! And, they're delicious... a perfect snack for the kids!

Stop the Clock!

It's official -- it is time to put away all my 0 - 3 month baby girl clothes. In the words of Quincy from Little Einsteins, "I CAN NOT BE-LIEVE IT!" She is already 15 pounds and in size 3 diapers!! The good news? I only had to get up ONCE to nurse last night. (Of course, my two older ones decided they needed water at 2:00am, but that's another blog entry...)

The nice thing is, I feel like I have really been able to cherish this time with Sierra. Knowing how fast it goes and that everything is a phase really helps; not to mention, seeing how big the other 2 are!

Oh, Sierra! You are too sweet. I am not going to wish this time away. I will enjoy you each day at the stage you are in. This time with you is precious, and I am so thankful for it! Today you laughed for the first time. Even Allison got to hear it! That sound made my day. I love you, baby girl!

Valentines Vases

Look at these cuties! They're just a month apart, and when they were little they looked like sisters! Today we had a play date with our sweet B, and made Valentine vases. (Someone hint to my husband that I'd like them filled on V-day! :) ) We loved playing with you, B! Come back again, soon.

Happy 6th Anniversary!

It's our 6th anniversary today! I am blessed to have been given an incredible man who loves God, loves his family, and is still a romantic after all these years! I woke-up this morning to a German baked pancake.... YUM! (See the recipe below!) We'll spend the day together as a family... watch our wedding dvd with the kids for the first time, and then head to Claremont for dinner while the girls stay back with their favorite babysitter. And, did I mention it's a gorgeous sunny day with snow-covered mountains? I am SO blessed!

German Baked Pancake

2 sweet apples, peeled cored and sliced
3 TBS fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

5-6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar, plus sugar for dusting 6 tablespoons unsalted butter 3 eggs 1/2 cup milk 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS Preheat an oven to 425 degrees F. In a bowl, toss together the apple slices, 1 1/2 tablespoons of the lemon juice, the cinnamon, nutmeg and 5-6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar, adjusting the amount of sugar to the tartness of the apples. Place a heavy, ovenproof 10-12-inch frying pan, preferably cast iron, over medium heat. Add 4 tablespoons of the butter, allow to melt and then add the apple mixture. Sauté until the apples are tender but not misshapen, 4-5 minutes. Remove from the heat. In a separate pan over low heat, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Remove from the heat and set aside. In a bowl, combine the eggs and milk and whisk until well blended. Sift together the flour and salt. Slowly pour the sifted ingredients into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Add the melted butter and whisk until a smooth batter forms. Arrange the apple slices around the bottom of the frying pan. Pour the batter evenly over the top. Immediately place in the oven and bake until quite golden and puffed up, about 20 minutes. Turn out the pancake onto a warmed platter, apple side up. Drizzle with the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice and dust with the extra confectioners’ sugar. Serve immediately.

Special message for Grandma:

Peanut butter playdoh!

Ooohh.... PERFECT activity for rainy day number 1,000,000! (Ok, rainy day number 6 -- just feels like a million!) Peanut butter playdoh! Easy, fun, and yummy! Here's the recipe:

• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 cup honey
• 2 cups powdered sugar!

I wasn't sure it would work, at first. It was looking a little dry. But, hang in there! It is AWESOME! Great texture, and apparently very yummy. My girls couldn't stop "nibbling."




WARNING: DO NOT play before dinner if you want your kids to eat their dinners!

Pop Art!

Oooh, did I find a fun idea! POPCORN PAINT! Just perfect for a rainy day! (The 4th rainy day in a row... tough for us Californians!)

First, we made the popcorn.

Next, we opened new toothbrushes to use. Since this is an edible project, I didn't trust using any of our old paintbrushes, though we have a ton of them!

The paints are a simple concoction: evaporated milk and food coloring!

They could hardly wait to start.




The paints worked GREAT! What a fun idea! We will most definitely be doing this one again.

Fun Free Photo Project

The lovely and talented Jeanne Winters from Inspiring Ideas gave Sierra the beautiful print (shown above). The wonderful and amazing Rebecca Irene from Rebecca Irene Photography gave us the beautiful picture (shown above.) And, my sweet and thoughtful mom gave us the frame (shown above). Put them together, and what do you have? A fun, free piece of art to hang in the nursery. I LOVE IT! Thank you, JW, RI, and Mom! Here it is in its element:

Rain, rain, rain...

It's been 2 straight days of rain. As a wimpy Californian, that's a lot! So, today we had to get outside; just for a bit! I was thinking the girls would play on the Yehground. Instead, they headed down the cul-de-sac to find the mud! Oh well, I thought. It's bath night! So, I sat and read my magazine while the girls got muddy. The joys of being 3 and 4!

Popcorn and a Movie

It's the little things that make me smile... See these adorable popcorn holders? I'm sure you've seen them at the dollar section at Target over the last year. I know I've been eyeing them, but couldn't bring myself to pay $1 each. (I know, I know... I am CHEAP!) Well, I found them after Christmas for a quarter each! So, I bought 8. I should have gotten more for gifts... they are now back up to $1! Anyway, we have enjoyed them with our chocolate milk, Valentine straws, and movies from Grandma. I am sure with all the rain this week we will be using them much more!

Heart Crayons!

Today's craft served 3 purposes:

1. To organize our coloring utensil drawer
2. To recycle
   
3. To make fun heart crayons for Valentine's Day

(I didn't realize the "recycle" part until Allison mentioned, "This is like recycling!")

First, we gathered all the Valentine color crayons and peeled the paper off. I was surprised how much fun the girls had with it... (Especially considering, it was a bit difficult!)

Next, Allison smashed the crayons with a hammer.

We put the crayon bits in a heart mold, and baked at 250 for about 10 minutes... we just watched them until they were fully melted.


Didn't they turn out CUTE?

It's hard to tell from the picture, but we divided the drawer into crayons/pens/pencils. We then printed Valentine's pictures from Family Fun again to test our crayons out. We also spent the afternoon testing all the old markers and throwing the duds out. Aaaahhh... I LOVE organization! (And, cute crafts!)