my buzz

There is something about the movie Toy Story that completely captivates my children. Garrett went through a Buzz and Woody stage when he was about 3 years old...and Ethan, true to form, has caught the bug a bit early! For 2 months now, Ethan has been walking around the house chanting "Bu, Woooy, Bu, Wooooy, Bu, Wooooy"! He brought a Woody doll with us one day when we were in the car, and every time I looked back at him in the mirror, he was holding Woody up to his face and kissing him! It's really pretty cute, but the kid has turned into a complete TV-head since I was so sick the past few weeks! I have some major TV-detoxing to do this week!

But back to my point, Ethan helps me do laundry (he absolutely LOVES it!), and his favorite thing to find in the basket are Garrett's Buzz jammies. So the other night, after watching Ethan run off with the Buzz shorts and put them on his head by himself, I stepped in and helped the poor kid out. He was in heaven that he was fully outfitted in the entire Buzz outfit! He just kept chanting "BU!" and pointing to his tummy.

back from the dead

Okay...maybe not exactly from the dead...but I'm back! I'll spare the details...but aside from a severe reaction to an antibiotic, an awful rash covering my entire body (one that makes doctors gasp and run from the room shouting behind them that they need the other docs to see this), fevers, and phantom pains that torture and wipe out any chance of sleep for days on end...I'm back and better than ever! :)

So here's to the human body...the miraculous thing that it is! Today I am in awe, and deeply grateful for all that is capable of, despite all the harsh things that we expose it to!

Bubbles

My sweet boy is so independent. Here he is learning how to blow bubbles the hard way. Never mind that Mom has said a million times 'don't put the wand in your mouth...icky!'

Good thing these bubbles are non-toxic...it took him more than a few tries to figure out the blowing thing while not getting any in his mouth! But really...I'm quite impressed that he's picked up this skill at all! I remember practicing with Garrett for weeks before any bubbles were produced...got to love the speed the second child picks things up!

Crockpot Heaven!

what I heart: dinners that cook themselves!

I am trying out a new recipe (thanks Erin!) and my house smells absolutely divine...and I am ready to eat NOW! That might be the only down-side to crockpot cooking...the enticing aromas for hours on end!

So here's to hoping that I somehow pulled off this recipe and that it tastes as incredible as it smells! :) Happy dinner-time everyone!!!

Ta da...

This is what I made tonight! I just have to show it off since I am so pleased with it...and Steve isn't here to let me brag!

Here's my cute new grocery bag...filled with tons of food - I had to experiment and see how much I could cram in there! :) But best of all...it's filled to the brim and there is no chance of it ripping and dumping out my groceries in the middle of the parking lot at the store! Wahoo...my life is better already!

I know I'm WAY behind on this...but I'm hoping to actually remember to bring my bags like this when I go out. I've been wanting to do this for a long time...and maybe now I can take my kitchen back from the never-ending supply of plastic grocery sacks that I have shoved under my sink!!! I even asked the baggers and checkers at the grocery store if they think people who bring their own bags are annoying...and they said NO!!! The love that they can fill up fabric bags and not chance anything ripping! So my one hang-up with bringing my own bags was alleviated! Hopefully they all feel that way! :) Now, I just need to make about 10 more!

***back to the getting rid of the extra plastic bags...for those of you in the area...the HAAM foodbank (and probably any local foodbank) can also use any extra grocery sacks that you may have laying around. I just delivered a BUNCH of them and they were sooooo grateful! Maybe this is common knowledge...but it was news to me, so I just thought I'd share!

All credit for this bag goes to this site. She has a great tutorial and if I can do it...anyone can! :)

LOL

Last night...in the middle of my dream...I woke myself up by laughing! Is that normal?!? I literally laughed out loud! And then, trying to control the laughter (which wouldn't go away), I woke Steve up since the bed was shaking so badly due to my unsuccessful attempts to stifle the giggles! Now, if I could only remember what I was dreaming about...

How cute are they???

Seriously, how cute are my parents?!?!? This is the card that Garrett got in the mail on his birthday...though I guess that's slightly self-explanatory!!! Anyway, thanks Grandma and Grandpa...you made his day! :)

Confession

I have a confession.

It is now January 6th and my Christmas tree is still twinkling proudly in my living room! I know...what am I thinking?!? It is stripped of all its decorations except the lights...but it is still there. So here's my excuse...though that's really all it is, an excuse...I am a sucker - plain and simple. Garrett pleaded with me one day to keep it up until his birthday...and since I am a total push-over, I obliged, stacking his presents (as requested) neatly beneath the tree. I even thought about decorating it again with streamers and balloons...but I settled for hanging a million and two balloons from the ceiling instead and wrapping my painfully bare, post holiday banister in streamers.

So, there you are...my house in in the middle of two holiday decorations! A twinkling Christmas tree and birthday balloons! And I do have to admit...my favorite thing in the world is a lighted Christmas tree twinkling in the dark, while my boys' favorite thing appears to be the millions of balloons floating around the house...so we'll see how quickly it gets all put away! :)