Ten on Tuesday - Emma's Birthday Edition

1/2. We had Emma's 3rd birthday party on Sunday, her actual birthday. It was a Scooby Doo theme, since Emma loves Scooby Doo, although it was almost a Diego party. (We did Dora last year.) Sunday's party was with my family only. We're having a second party with Michael's family in a couple weeks. Why two parties, you ask? Because Marty and Michael's mom are in Uganda right now and will soon be coming home with Malachi! Yay! I'm so excited for Marty and Abby and can't wait to meet my nephew! Emma's excited about having a second party and a new cousin. I had planned to make Scooby Doo cupcakes for her party, so now I'll be making them for party #2 and I also saved the decorations and extra plates/napkins.

1. Opening presents. For her first two birthdays, and Mackenzie's first, I sat with her helping her open her presents. It was kind of weird just sitting back and watching her open them this year. But I liked it. I liked seeing her excitement over each gift. It was great.


2. So, she actually blew out the candles before we'd even sang to her, so I had re-light them. Then it took her three tries to get them out.


3. One of the few real smiles I got out of her, the rest of the time she was way too busy to stop and pose for me. Not that I blame her. It was her birthday party after all!

Did you notice the strange color scheme on the cake? They had two Scooby Doo cakes, one was a green and blue/purple scheme with the Mystery Machine and peace signs. The other was pink and purple with the convertable. We ordered the pink and purple cake. Yet somehow the combined the two. Emma didn't care. She loved it. But it certainly isn't the prettiest cake. I have no idea how the person who was decorating it messed it up, did they really think it was supposed to look like this? Maybe I should submit it to Cake Wrecks

4. With her Hi-Ho Cherrio game. Last night, Mackenzie had a cherry in her mouth. Only so long before she eats one, I'm sure.


5. Emma's wearing her new Fancy Nancy dress. Very fancy.


6. In case you can't tell, she's dancing. Specifically, her "ballerina" dance. Which is pretty funny.


7. A self-portrait before bedtime. She surprisingly went to bed without a fight. She was exhausted, but I thought she might resist it a bit. Ya know, "But mom, it's my birthday!"


8. We got Emma the Pop-Beads which we all seemed to enjoy. Maybe more than Emma did, as you can see she's not even in this picture.


9. Mackenzie was fascinated by the present opening. Which is funny, because at her party, she wasn't into it at all. She wanted Cherrios from Aunt Patti more than the presents. But this time...she actually ripped some of the paper off of the Hi-Ho Cherrio game before we got it away from her.


10. Emma had a great birthday. She was soooo excited for her party. Loved her cake, her presents, having her family there, everything. She's been playing dress-up with her new clothes and shoes; coloring in her new Color Wonder books; playing her new game; washing, dressing and feeding Bitty Baby.

I put a new album up on the left with some more birthday pictures.

Menu Plan Monday on Tuesday

Yesterday was busy. Very busy. And so I didn't get my menu plan done. In fact, as I start this now at 1:03 pm, I still have no idea what I'm making this week...

Monday - Michael had left over pizza (from Emma's party Sunday) and the girls and I had shells and cheese. (Again, very busy day)

Tuesday - I'm taking the easy way out again and making a Stouffer's Garlic Chicken I like to get them on sale and keep a few in the freezer for nights like tonight which I don't feel like cooking, or when I'm short on time. I just cook some extra pasta and it's just enough to feed us all. Although, I haven't made one in quite a while and now that Mackenzie eats as much as me some nights (okay maybe not that much, but a lot), it might not be enough. We'll find out tonight.

Wednesday - pepper steak and rice

Thursday - pierogis, veggie

Friday - @ Mary's for dinner

Saturday - Brunswick Stew

Sunday -

Baked Potato Soup, rolls

Last week's recap:

Things got a little switched around last week. (I'm realizing every week something gets switched around, lol.) On Tuesday I made a new recipe for chicken and dumplings, replacing Saturday's homemade chicken and noodles. It was a copycat recipe for Cracker Barrel dumplings. Didn't taste exactly like theirs, but still very good. Definitely making them again. We had the Swanson's chicken from Tuesday on Thursday and on Saturday went out to eat for Valentine's day. The Brunswick stew is moved to this week. Sunday night Emma wanted spaghetti for dinner and since it was her birthday, I obliged.

It's now 4:42 pm and I finally decided what we'll be eating this week. At least I got it up before dinner tonight!

She's three today.

My big girl.

 

Birthday details to follow, probably on Tuesday. :)

Zumba

I know I've mentioned Zumba quite a bit. Probably a bit of overkill, I know. But I do love it. My friend Melanie asked me about it and I realized everyone might not know exactly what Zumba is. And since I think everyone should be enjoying Zumba as much as I do...straight from the Zumba website:

Zumba® fuses hypnotic Latin rhythms and easy to follow moves to create a dynamic fitness program that will blow you away. Our goal is simple: We want you to want to work out, to love working out, to get hooked. Zumba® Fanatics achieve long term benefits while experiencing an absolute blast in one exhilarating hour of caloric-burning, body-energizing, awe-inspiring movements meant to engage and captivate for life!

My instructor mixes original Zumba music with top 40 songs. There's a routine for each song and they're pretty easy to learn. You can make it as hard or as easy as you want. It burns a lot of calories, too. The first time I went I felt silly doing some of the moves. I think I laughed my way through the whole workout. But the more I went the more comfortable I felt, the more I put into and the more fun I had.

I now hear songs on the radio and start doing the workout routines in my head. :)

I'm curious what other's classes are like. I actually take classes from two different instructors. The one who teaches the mix of Zumba and top 40 music is really high-energy. She's really into Zumba, and you can feel that. It's a great workout, high-impact and everyone has a lot of fun. The other instruct just does Zumba music and it's more low-key, low-impact. Still a good workout, but not quite as fun as the other.

To be honest, I can't say I've noticed amazing results from Zumba. (I also do kickboxing and work out with weights.) But I'm pretty sure that's because of my Dr. Pepper habit and sweet tooth rather the workout. And no, Diet Dr. Pepper is not the same. :)

So, do you Zumba? Do you like it? If you haven't taken a Zumba class yet, are you going to try it out?

Ten on Tuesday

1. I know this is blurry, but I still think it's a cute picture of the girls watching Dora.


2. I need a mean look. A stern, "knock it off young lady" look. Because I don't have one. And sometimes when I try to give that kind of look to Emma I feel like I'm just making silly faces at her. I keep thinking she's going to start laughing at me.

3. I need to go the grocery store. Yet, I'm pretty sure I'm not going today. Which means I have to change what I'd planned to make this week. Which doesn't bother me, but doesn't look very good for the menu plan this week. (PS, never went.) (And I ended up making chicken and dumplings.)

4. This makes me laugh. She was running from Michael who was chasing her on all fours around the room.


5. I don't think I ever gave a potty update, but Emma is completely potty trained. Has been for a couple weeks. Stays dry all night long and will hold it for an hour or so after she gets up before going to the bathroom. Very proud of her. She picked out some Dora underwear. I took my camera so I could get a picture of her choosing her big girl undies. Then I forgot I had it with me until we left. Of course I did.

6. We're planning on going to the zoo with some friends on Monday since there's no school. Of course, that's if it's somewhat nice out. Never been in the winter before. But my sister got us a zoo pass last year and we've only used it once. A broken leg tends to put off frequent zoo trips.

7. Poor Michael. He gets no rest when he gets home at night. This is typical.


8. Mackenzie really likes spaghetti. (this was from last month)


9. I missed Zumba tonight. Have I mentioned my love of Zumba?

10. I had a #10. Then when I added the video of Mackenzie I lost #9 & #10. While I remembered what #9 was, I can't recall 10. Nor can I come up with anything else.

Menu Plan Monday

Monday - leftover pizza

Tuesday - Swanson Pan Sauteed Chicken with Vegetables and Herbs AKA, the recipe I keep burning my hand while cooking

Wednesday - @ my sisters

Thursday - Brunswick Stew

Friday - meatloaf, mashed potatoes, corn

Saturday - chicken and homemade noodles

Sunday - Emma's birthday and party, we'll probably be eating leftovers from the party


Last week's review:

We didn't have the Brunswick Stew on Tuesday because my mom was over and she made creamed chicken and rice. One of those dishes that no matter how hard I try never turns out as good as her's. Therefore, where she's here, I always ask her to make it for us, and thankfully she always complies.

Emma was sick last week and not eating a lot. Because of that I had to modify the plan a bit. Instead of burgers Friday night, we sort of did our own thing. Michael wasn't home for dinner since he had a game, Emma had some noodles with butter and parm cheese and Mackenzie and I had Ranch Rice. I moved the burgers to Saturday and scratched the pizza. One of the reasons I was doing homemade pizza was so she could help me make it. I thought it best to wait until she was better. And last night Michael was out for a basketball meeting and ended up bringing home pizza.

Random

So Darcy tagged me a while ago, I had to post seven things about me. And I sort of never did it. I kept starting it, but never finished. Then I got tagged on Facebook. Again, I started it but couldn't finish it. But I kept getting tagged. So after a week and a half, I finally finished. Then, I realized I could just copy those 25 things here and use them for Darcy's tag. Yes, obviously more than seven. But no way am I spending 20 minutes trying to decide which seven to use. (see #16)

1. I over-explain. You'll see. (or just look above.)

2. Dr. Pepper is my beverage of choice but not diet. Never diet. No matter what they say, it's not the same.

3. I lose things. A lot. I've lost two sets of keys including the remote keyless entry. A set for each of our cars. I start to panic if I can't find them right away when it's time to leave.

4. I forget things. Also a lot. Short term, long term, they both suck. Examples: I was going to the garage fridge to get milk and Michael asked for orange juice. I was back to the table in 7 seconds with milk, but no juice. Also, once in college I went tanning in the evening only to be told I couldn't use my package because it'd been used earlier in the day. I argued with the girl that it wasn't me, someone must've used it without me knowing. Then I remembered I'd gone that morning before class. Yeah, that was embarrassing.

5. I'm a bit messy. Not dirty though, just messy. A bit of a pack rat. Could be why I lose things so much.

6. I love my Zumba classes. So much fun. Great cardio workout. I highly recommend it.

7. I have a lot of fillings. And one crown. Enough that every time I go to the dentist I expect to have a cavity. But I brush twice a day. And floss, too.

8. I love to read. Once I get into a book, I tend to ignore what's going on around me.

9. I blog. Which is a good thing. Means I won't forget as much about my girls' childhoods as I otherwise would. See #4.

10. I don't eat salad.

11. I don't eat sandwiches either, really. Except cheesesteaks. Or a plain roast beef and cheese sandwich. Or a steak sandwich with au jus. Sensing a theme?

12. I let my LSW (social work license) lapse after I had Mackenzie. Which means should I go back to social work at any point I have to retake the exam and get licensed again. Have I mentioned I don't do well with tests? See #4 again.

13. I've been a bridesmaid in 7 weddings.

14. I keep trying to grow my hair out but get frustrated because the growing-out stage is ugly so I cut it. Then a few months later I try again. I'm probably annoying my stylist.

15. Since I first started working on this I cut my hair. And I love it.

16. I'm very indecisive. It once took me thirty minutes in Target to decide if I wanted the 3 shelf or 4 shelf bookcase. Even worse, I like a shirt in two colors and can't decide which to get. Or, just this weekend at old navy, couldn't decide between two pairs of black yoga pants. Did I want the fold-over waist or not? Seriously, I spent 20 minutes thinking about it.

17. Because of this, I tend to return things a lot.

18. My go-to number is 12. "Emma, I've told you 12 times to pick up your puzzle!"

19. I make cookies just to eat the cookie dough. I don't like the actual cookie so much.

20. I really enjoy singing out loud. Especially 80's and hair metal/rock (i.e. Bon Jovi, Def Leppard, Warrant, Skid Row) songs. Especially while scrapbooking. And I know there's some of you I've tagged who've experienced this wonderful habit (quirk? annoyance?) of mine in person. :)

21. I have horrible handwriting. So bad sometimes I can't read what I write. This was a problem in high school and college. Especially in college when I'd fall asleep in class. Wasn't bad enough that my handwriting was terrible to begin with, then I had the whole falling-asleep-so-the-words-are-only-half-written-and-the-the-pen-trails-off-thing making it even worse, if that's possible.

22. I talk. A lot. Again, those who've scrapbooked (and well, really, ever been around me) know this, since I tend to talk more than scrapbook.

23. I've passed the talk-too-much thing onto Emma. She never shuts up. Just like her Mom.

24. I'm a bit bossy. Didn't know this until my freshman year of college and during a housing search someone called me bossy and when I called my sister to complain about how unfair that was she said, "but you are." Oh.

25. And quite assertive. Although I didn't use to be that way. I've learned through the years how to stick up for myself though.


And with that, I give you this: an article in Time by a guy who would hate that I just posted those 25 things. :)


I leave you with Mackenzie running on the track at the fitness center this past Saturday. She'd just seen Michael and Emma and was heading full speed ahead toward them.

Here we go, Steelers, Here we go

On Sunday:



She was singing it loudly over and over again all day until I got out the camera. So in case you need a translator (and you likely do) she's singing "Here we go, Steelers, here we go. We're heading on down to the Super Bowl. Here we go." Sometimes though, she was heading to the "super store" or "super Emma."

Ten on Tuesday

1. Any guesses as to what Mackenzie is sitting it?

The bottom of Emma's potty seat.


2. She soon fell over trying to get out. That's when Emma said, "I'll help you get your bootie out, Mackenzie!"


3. Took Emma to get her annual hair cut today. Seriously. She's had one other haircut and it was a year ago. We're letting it grow and I trim her bangs so she doesn't need one more than once a
year. I think Mackenzie looks so funny sitting in the waiting area.


4. And the haircut. (I cropped out Leah since I wasn't sure she'd want her picture online.) Emma was so excited to get her haircut and to see Leah. She did really well - sat still and listened. Yet she looks a little angry in this picture. She trimmed up her bangs and took about 1/2 inch off. Not enough that Michael could tell, but enough that I could.


5. Emma was building with Grandma McIntyre today. Well, she built, she had Grandma watch and Mackenzie knocked them down.


6. So I posted last week about Emma being up with me super late. Mackenzie ended up in the basement with us, too. She had her binky in with a crayon in each hand. She came up to me and gave me a crayon. I told her thanks, then asked her for her the other crayon. She looked at me for a few seconds, then quickly handed me her binky and ran away. Little stinker.

7. I'm eating Strawberry Daiquiri Jelly Bellys (or is it Bellies?), oh, how I love them.

8. I'm trying to give up, scratch that, drink a few less Dr. Peppers. So far I'm failing miserably. Well, I didn't drink one on Saturday, that's a start, right?

9. I think everyone should Zumba. It's so fun.

10. I did pull-ups during my kickboxing class last week. I'm sorry, we - meaning the instructor and I - did pull-ups. He had to basically lift me up so I could do them. Awesome. Thankfully everyone else had to be lifted up too.

Menu Plan Monday

orgjunkie.com


Monday - leftover pizza

Tuesday - Brunswick Stew

Wednesday - spaghetti with meat sauce (my niece will be here and she likes it, which is why we're having spaghetti two weeks in a row), garlic bread

Thursday - Famous Pork Chops, cheesy potatoes, green beans (from last week)

Friday - cheeseburgers, leftover cheesy potatoes (making double batch),

Saturday - homemade pizza

Sunday - roast, ranch rice, asparagus


Recap of last weeks meals:
I actually stuck to the plan quite well last week. Didn't make the pork chops meal, although for the life of me I can't remember why. Tuesday we ended up having fish sticks and waffle fries, Wednesday was a snow day for Michael and I decided to just have the spaghetti sauce I'd frozen from Sunday - it was easy and perfect for such a cold snowy day. My girls definitely didn't mind having it again so soon. Saturday we had pierogies and corn, another huge hit with the girls, they ate it all and wanted more.

It's 10:54 PM...

And this is what Emma's doing:




Coloring with her new 64 box of crayons. Why? Because I let her nap today - for 3 hours - and now she's wide awake. It's okay though, I got a nap in, too. :)

PS, we picked up the crayons tonight at Target, when we went to get her new big girl underwear. Dora, of course. The crayons were a potty bribe. Depending on how tonight goes, we're done with pull-ups. Although I will say, it is just a tiny bit annoying to be in line at Sam's Club only to have to get out of line, get Mackenzie out of the cart, all go in the bathroom, hold Mackenzie while holding the stall door shut for Emma while she goes potty. Don't get me wrong, I am soooo happy she's potty trained and that I'm not changing her diapers anymore. And I'm very pleased she told me she had to go instead of having an accident in the store and very proud of how well she's doing. But, let's all be honest, when the potty break comes at an inconvenient time, who hasn't sort of kind of wished for a pull-up. :)

Somewhere, under all this snow...

is our deck.

Ten on Tuesday.

So, apparently, my Ten on Tuesday posts need pictures because last week there were none and it seems people only comment when there are pictures. I now present to you a very picture heavy Ten on Tuesday post. :)

1. We signed Emma up for preschool Sunday. The preschool had an open house and Emma loved it. Not that we were surprised by that. Nor were we surprised that she didn't want to leave. This was her trying to get as far away from me as possible when I told her it was time to go.


2. We were at my mom's last week when I took this picture of Mackenzie. Check out her bruises. Is it bad that we have no idea how she got them? She got the one on her cheek Tuesday night while I was home and the one between her eyes Wednesday night when Michael was home. Neither of us saw what caused them. Oops.


3. Again at my moms. Please note the amount of macaroni and cheese on the seat. Also note that this picture comes after the bath picture. That's because she ate (used loosely) the mac and cheese after the bath. Next time, bath after lunch because I ended up putting her right back in the tub.


4. Yep, still at my mom's. See the whole vanilla wafer in her mouth? My children have recently discovered vanilla wafers and love them. Don't even bother to bite them, just eat 'em whole.

5. Emma can write her name now. Which means she's doing so all the time. On the magna doodle, in the bath, in her coloring books. This picture is the first I took, she was very proud of herself. But there's a glare.


Three pictures later I got this, but she'd lost a bit of the excitement. But no glare!


6. Anyone read JA Jance books? She was at our library for a book signing earlier this month. She's pretty funny. And tall. And there's my bad hair.


7. Emma got a Color Wonder book for Christmas from Michael's parents and it's her new favorite thing. We had to get another one because she filled up the first pretty quickly. Here she is teaching Mackenzie to color. Poor Mackenzie, she really just wanted to do it on her own but Emma had a death grip on her hand.

The color wonder book got taken away last night because Emma was coloring on the table. Good thing they only color in the books.

8. Mackenzie is now sleeping with a lamp on and, so far, has not had a bad night. No more crazy crying. Apparently, she's afraid of the dark.

9. Mackenzie would walk around with a tooth brush all day long if she could. It's real ugly when I take it away. Major fit gets thrown.

10. At Pizza Hut on a snow day earlier this month. Mackenzie thought she'd just climb up on the table. That's what they're for, to climb on, right?

Menu Plan Monday and chicken muffins

orgjunkie.com

Not much of a menu this week.

Monday - I was scrapbooking tonight with friends and my in-laws were here, so Michael and the girls ate with them.

Tuesday - Michael won't be home for dinner and I haven't quite decided what I'm doing.

Wednesday - same as above

Thursday - Chicken muffins and lima beans. We ended up going to Michael's parents for dinner last Saturday, so I didn't cook

Friday - famous pork chops, cheesy potatoes, a veggie

Saturday - not sure yet, I'm cleaning out my freezer tomorrow, so I'll see what I can come up with.

Sunday - pizza.


Last week's menu update:
So the chicken/broccoli/rice casserole that wasn't really a casserole last week wasn't very good. None of us liked it too much. Not even Mackenzie and she eats everything. And my french onion soup wasn't very good either. I think I'll stick to just eating that when I'm out.

But my mom's spaghetti and meatballs? YUM! The second try worked. It was soooo good.


Here's the chicken muffin recipe, courtesy of my SIL, Abby.

1 7.5 ounce can refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
1 cup (5oz) cubed cooked chicken
1 10.75 oz can cream soup (chicken, mushroom, etc)
2 1/2 ounce shredded Cheddar cheese
1 tsp parsley flakes
1/4 tsp pepper

Line ungreased muffin pan with biscuits. Combine other ingredients and divide into cups. Bake 12 - 15 minutes at 400 degrees.

How I make it: I break the biscuits into pieces and press them down into the muffin pan so there's an even amount in each. Doesn't matter if they don't look pretty, they get covered anyway. I usually shred my chicken, just because I like it better that way. I use cream of chicken soup. I don't measure the cheese, just dump it in until it looks good. :) Oh, and I usually grease the pan, because they do stick a bit coming out. They're quick and easy to make and we all really like them. Let me know if you make them and hopefully you'll like them too.

Ten on Tuesday

1. I'm getting my hair cut tomorrow. I really thought I'd be able to stick to growing it out, but I don't think I can take it anymore. I hate it. It's awful. Ugly. A pain to do. Please, chop it off now.

2. I added the Followers gadget over there on the left. Feel free to follow. I'd love to have more than 2. :)
3. Got some new workout clothes. I said I'd never wear pants while working out. One, not so attractive on me. Two, I get hot. But after kickboxing and feeling like people could see my butt up my shorts, I decided maybe pants weren't so bad after all. So, I got a cute pair of foldover yoga pants at Old Navy (bonus - they hold your gut in) and another pair at Kohls. Plus some new workout shirts and a new sports bra.

4. Reason #2 for the new workout clothes - I have this theory that if I wear these cute, albeit a bit form-fitting, workout clothes, I'll be more motivated to workout and eat less crap and drink less dr. pepper so that I'm not so scary in them. Like I said, they're form-fitting yoga pants and form fitting-fitting shirts versus my not-so-form-fitting Chagrin baseball shirts.

5. I think I'm becoming addicted to Zumba.

6. I can't believe I haven't posted a picture yet.

7. Potty training is going very well. Emma seems to be getting #2 down pat, she's gone 4 days in a row! Woo hoo! And she had her first accident in well over a week today. She said she had to got potty but just couldn't get there in time. Seriously, she said it and one second later she was peeing. But the good thing is, she stopped it and held the rest until she got to the potty.

8. We've totally been bribing her, by the way. Right now she's working towards a 64 box of crayons.

9. Last week I cleaned out all my kitchen cabinets. Well, I still have the top shelf of one to go and two desk drawers. I've got two boxes for the garage sale. And last week Volunteers of America picked up three bags of clothes. Feels so good to purge and clean and then donate and/or sell at the garage sale. Hoping to make more than 75 cents. Yes, two years ago I made a whole 75 cents. I sold 3 CDs. Seriously, if I don't make more this year with all the stuff We've collected over the past two years...

10. Have I mentioned Mackenzie's the worst sleeper ever? Ugh.

Menu Plan Monday

orgjunkie.com


I've decided that menu planning works best when you realize it's flexible. As in, I've never completed an entire week like I've planned! I did pretty good last week, stuck to the schedule Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday then Thursday I substituted swiss steak and noodles and we had leftovers Friday. Saturday we didn't have the pizza because we ended up having pizza for lunch Friday. So, I've resigned myself to the fact that at least one night each week will not follow the plan and I'm good with that. :)

Monday - broccoli and chicken casserole from last week
Tuesday - leftovers plus french onion soup. Yep, still haven't made it. Good thing the bread needs to be hard for the soup so it won't dissolve because I bought the french baguette last Thursday.
Wednesday -meatloaf, mashed potatoes, corn
Thursday - going to my mom's
Friday - TBD Michael has a game and if we go to that, we'll eat out so nothing planned just yet
Saturday - chicken muffins, lima beans
Sunday -mom's homemade spaghetti and meatballs.

If anyone would ever like a recipe that I don't link to, let me know. I can post them if you'd like.

She makes it her own.

Just a little Emma twist on an old classic...

Goodbye, Simple. We'll miss you.

If you haven't heard the news already, the May/June 2009 issue of Simple Scrapbooks will be the last. You can read about it
here and here.

I love Simple Scrapbooks magazine. I love their philosophy, their staff, the wonderful experiences I've had working with them over the last few years and being a 2008 Simple Gal. I'm happy to know that Simple will live on in some form within Creating Keepsakes, but sad that the magazine I know and love will no longer exist as it is now.

Ten on Tuesday

1. This past Saturday my niece Rachel spent the night with us. My sister and brother-in-law drove her over in the snow storm. Which really, by the time they came, had slowed down a bit and the roads were better.

Side note - I went to Zumba that morning but I didn't drive, Lisa did. (I actually called to see if they were even having class, it looked that bad out.) I was certain she wasn't going to make it up the hill to her house after dropping me off, the road was terrible. I thought for sure we'd have a repeat of this, mean tow truck driver story ,but we didn't. Although that incident did come up when we were talking to our neighbors. One of the Craziest. Thing. Ever.

Anyway, some pictures:



2. Mackenzie was moving around quite well in her snow suit. She loved it.


3. I know this is blurry, but I love the looks on Caroline and Emma's faces while Beth (Caroline's mom) pulled them on the sled. Pure joy.


4. I'm so not into American Idol anymore. Although I reserve the right to change my mind at a later date. Like when it's the Top 10. Maybe.

5. But I am in to 24. I really enjoy Jack Bauer. He rocks. I haven't yet watched yesterday's episode. If only Emma still napped. But we all know what happens when she does. It's not good.

6. Lost comes back soon! Very excited about that. I'm ready to be even more confused than I already am.

7. Thursday is Grissom's last episode on CSI. Very sad.

8. Do you watch Burn Notice on USA? Fabulous show. I really enjoy Michael Weston. Maybe even more than Jack Bauer because he's funny.

9. Apparently this is the TV edition of Ten on Tuesday.

10. I've been cleaning out and re-organizing my kitchen cabinets all week. I've got two boxes of items for the garage sale this summer. I've got a few more cabinets to go and then I'll be done. I threw out some things from 2005 today. They were a tad expired.

Menu Plan Monday

http://orgjunkie.com

Well, due to me being sick last week the plan got messed up a bit, things were either moved around or moved to this week.

Monday - Lasagna
Tuesday - leftovers
Wednesday - the crockpot chicken recipe from last week - I found the recipe today. :)
Thursday -famous pork chops, mashed potatoes, corn
Friday -homemade pizza
Saturday -french onion soup
Sunday - chicken, broccoli and rice casserole

So I now realize that I only made two of the seven meals from last week. On one hand, bad job on the cooking meals for my family last week...on the other, makes planning this week's meals quite easy!

two things about emma

I'm pretty sure I've already mentioned this on here, but it's worth repeating: only give Emma a nap if I'm prepared to stay up late with her. As in after midnight. As in, here she is coloring around 11:30 while I scrapbooked.

She took a nap yesterday afternoon, which I really needed her to do because I was very sick Tuesday and still not feeling great Wednesday and I wanted to nap, which meant she needed to nap. I tried putting her in bed at 9. She played. She stayed in her room for a bit, then sat in bed with all four of us after Mackenzie woke up crying. She got silly. Very silly. She had a snack. I thought she'd finally gone to bed when she came downstairs to show me that she'd stuck her mini-Barbie's legs on her nose pinching it shut. Michael said he was asleep in bed when she came in sounding funny and saying her nose was stuck or something like that. He was certain she'd shoved something up her nose. Nope, it was just mini-Barbie. So, Michael went back to bed and Emma stayed down here with me. We went upstairs around midnight where we laid in bed and watched House Hunters. When I shut the TV off at 12:30am she stayed for a few minutes then said she was going to bed. She was up at 8:30 this morning. No nap for sure today, which made for a fussy almost-three-year-old who again, didn't want to go to bed tonight, this time because she was over-tired. And that, my friends, is why she can't take naps. Unless, of course, I really really need one. :)


She's also really into peanut butter. Specifically, licking all the peanut butter off her crackers, then leaving a stack of soggy crackers she usually won't eat.


Today, to avoid the mess I captured a few days ago, I just gave her a spoon full of peanut butter and she was happy.

Menu Plan Monday

orgjunkie.com

Monday - pepperoni roll

Tuesday - fajitas

Wednesday - Famous Pork chops, mashed potatoes, corn

Thursday - this crock pot chicken recipe that I can't quite find. But I'm confident it'll turn up before Thursday. It's really good, with carrots and onions. Sort of like chicken pot roast, if that makes sense. With either risotto or Kay's Roasted Potatoes from the Pioneer Woman's site (tried linking, won't work).

Friday - chicken, broccoli and rice casserole

Saturday - french onion Soup for me and my niece, grilled cheese and veggie for the girls. Michael has a game.

Sunday - 40 clove chicken. I still haven't made this, I'm determined to make it! With either risotto or the potatoes from Thursday.

Happy New Year

New Year's Eve day we were with Michael's family celebrating Christmas, I'll get those pictures posted soon. The girls fell asleep on the way home, so of course they were wound up when we got home around 9. We let them stay up until 11 or so. Lots of wrestling going on. Surprisingly, or maybe not so surprisingly considering Mackenzie's personality, Emma wasn't always the instigator.



We stayed up to watch the ball drop as well as see Robbie Madison do this:



Crazy.

Today we've been in our pajamas all day. Had pancakes for breakfast, ordered pizza for lunch and I made spaghetti for dinner. The Christmas decorations are down, the ornaments are off the tree and we'll take it out tomorrow.

I've got 3 goals for 2009.

1. Start to play the piano again. I took lessons for 8 years growing up, from 8 - 16. I rarely play anymore. But I'd like to. I sort of stink now, though. I can play a few songs, but my sight reading skills are not so good. I need to start practicing more and also get some new music. Last thing I bought was probably November Rain by GNR. (Yeah, that long ago.) I have a few things in mind I'd like to learn but I'm going to have to find some place to buy the sheet music. I used to go to the music store at the mall to get the sheet music, but I don't know if they carry it anymore. I'd love for the girls to take lessons one day. And while I don't intend to teach them, I'd like to be able to help them, which means I really need to brush up on my skills.

2. Read my Bible, study it, learn from it. Pray more - both by myself and with Michael and the girls. Teach my children about God and Jesus. Mackenzie obviously isn't really going to understand anything, but Emma's been learning in Sunday School and I want to expand on that at home. I'm thinking I'll keep the lesson she gets each Sunday and we'll go off that for the week.

3. I forget. I thought of a third one earlier today but I don't remember it now. Maybe #3 should be "work on my memory".