"I Love You Soooooo Much!"

This is Jemma's new phrase. I hear it a few days each day or so and it melts my heart. Especially since it's accompanied by a giant leg squeeze, kiss or bear hug. I mean, she is awesome. Like, throw all the tantrums you want kiddo, just as long as you ask to "swuggin" me every night and emphasize the "soooooo much" we're golden.

I had a wonderful Mother's Day with my two munchkins this year. Dominic's parents and my family joined us on Saturday for a zoo adventure and we all went to church and had a yummy mom's day luncheon afterwards. Dominic took on desserts and whipped up TWO Pinterest creations - Oreo Krispies and Cake Batter Fudge. Both were fabulous! I even got to sneak away after Max's bedtime (which he was not happy with and made that very clear to Dominic and my Mom when he woke while I was gone) to see my bestie who was in town for a short visit.

Oh, and gifts! I gave my mama and Dominic's mom a pair of super soft jammies. For my mom and my two sisters (who are practically like second mother's to Jemma and Max), I gifted a kitchen towel with one of my Grammy's handwritten recipe cards printed on it. Jemma bought me the Expedit desk to add to one of our bookshelves and someday soon it will house my crafts and sewing in a corner of the guest room. Max is ordering me a special "Max" present since I already have this necklace from my first Mother's Day with Jemma. Of course, behind every thoughtful child is a wonderful Daddy making it all happen ;) 

Here's a picture peek at our weekend ...

 Attempting a pre-church Mother's Day photo. No one was very interested.

Max's moccs c/o Freshly Picked

My Mama teaches kindergarten and therefore, is quite the artist! She and Jemma blessed me with this sidewalk love note :)

Jemmie and I both wore our zebra shirts to the zoo | Another attempt at a photo with my babies - bombed by Jemma's gift shop purple monkey who never leaves her side now | Talk about a gorgeous!!! day for a zoo trip

We forgot to tell my Mama to wear her zoo stripes :(

I'm definitely in love with our most recent Craigslist purchase, the BOB did us well at the zoo | Jem talks most about the elephants after each zoo trip, I mean, they are pretty awesome

Happenstance blogger meet up at the zoo with The Pierogie Mama and her family

My Mama made the most delightful picnic lunch ... a variety of pasta salads in mason jars, watermelon, a cheese/sausage/cracker platter and banana roll up bars

Did you know that a mama hippo can bite an alligator in half if it threatens her young? Yay, I think I could do so pretty ferocious things to protect my babies too. | Trying to get some smiles by the "Mom and Me" sign | "Wook! It's a fa-gogo!!!"

Lordy, Lordy - Max is one sweet little picnic man

Leak Free Is the Way To Be

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Parent’s Choice Overnight Baby Diapers.

This month I embarked upon my 31st month of diapering. It's been a wild ride filled with fluffy bums, messes, research, lots of laundry and a hefty dose of trial and error. Diapering children definitely has a learning curve - one I still seem to be figuring out most days!

Read the rest of this entry »

19/52 & 20/52

 a portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2013 

Jemma / / / We broke out the "outside chalk" this week. Jem. is. a. fan.

Max / / / Incessant giggles came from this boy during his first swing adventure.

 
Jemma / / / Kids start smiling for pictures when they turn three, right?

Max / / / Because they obviously smile a ton when they are 9 months :) And wiggle. Hence the plethora of blurry photos I have these days.

Style File | Barefoot, Not Pregnant

CHURCH ... dress, target | lace cardigan, pink blush

I first wore this dress when I was 32 weeks pregnant with Max. I love love love maternity clothes and other closet treasures pieces that can transition through life with me. It's good for my pocketbook and it's equally good for my self-esteem. This dress is one such piece and so is this gorgeous lace cardigan I recently paired it with. I bet you can't even guess which one is technically maternity clothing?

Do you have maternity clothes you've worn during pregnancy and long after? How about "normal" pieces that have seen you through your 9 months with child? Share and you may win $25 to go shopping at Pink Blush Maternity!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

P.S. Are you on the hunt for trendy maternity clothes? Stop by Pink Blush! This, this and this are my current favorites!

Starbucks Copycat | Sausage, Egg and Cheese Breakfast Sandwich

I've always been a breakfast girl. French toast, yes! Pancakes, even better! Toast with apricot jam, one of my favorite! But recently, I've come to realize that I feel much better throughout the day if I start it off with a protein rich breakfast. Hence, the birth of a Starbuck's copycat - the Sausage and Cheddar Classic Breakfast Sandwich which I have dubbed the breakfast sandwich of champions. 

Now, I'm sure you're thinking, what's so special about making a breakfast sandwich. Who needs a recipe for that? Well, let me tell you, the surprise lays in the egg preparation ...  

SAUSAGE, EGG AND CHEESE BREAKFAST SANDWICH 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 egg
• dash of milk
• dash of salt & pepper
• 1 slice of cheese, Colby Jack is my preference
• 1 sausage patty
• 1 English muffin, toasted and buttered

DIRECTIONS

• Toast your English muffin, butter and lay open on a plate.
• Prepare sausage patty according to directions. I purchase Jimmy Dean patties at Costco and you can prepare them on a skillet or microwave them. Place on top of one side of the English muffin.
• While your sausage patty is cooking, crack your egg into a coffee mug, add milk, salt and pepper and whisk. Microwave* for one minute. Add cheese on top of egg (while it's still in the mug) and microwave for another 15 seconds.
  
• Scoop your egg out with a large spoon and place on top of your hot sausage patty. Top with the other side of the English muffin and dig into your protein rich breakfast!

*Every microwave is different. Play around with yours to get the perfect timing.

This post was originally published on the Baby Gizmo Blog.

{GUEST POST} Confessions of An Elementary School Teacher

Leah is at it again. I pretty much stare at my inbox most of the day waiting for a fab email from her witty mind. It's besties like her that make the rough days less rough and the good days more awesome. Today was no disappointment.

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It should be noted that this post is based on zero facts and absolutely no research.  It is a confessional.  MY CONFESSIONAL (and I’m not even Catholic) … so, do not assume that all teachers do/say the same things that I am sharing. Know that each teacher has their own dirty laundry though (I’m just hanging mine in public).  Enjoy.

CONFESSIONS OF AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHER

• I keep a backup pair of comfy shoes in my desk (aka: metallic gold boat shoes) to slip on just in case my heels start hurting my feet.  (9 times out of 10 I take the heels off within the first hour of school).
• Sometimes, during a really great activity or assignment, I step back and think to myself, “Wow!  I am awesome!”
• I rely on my class to get us where we need to be on time.  I figure there is no chance                  that 32 5th graders are going to let me teach through PE, lunch or recess.
• When I make a mistake in front of the class, I act like I meant to do it.  I usually say something like, “Just checking to make sure you were paying attention.” Or “I was wondering when somebody was going to catch that!”
• Being that I spend the majority of my day with 11 year olds, I find myself adopting their hobbies and passions. I now regularly play Angry Birds and have a secret obsession for One Direction. 
• I often spend the first 15 (plus) minutes of my planning time sitting in front of my computer staring at the screen “checking my email” because it is the first time I have sat down all day and I am that tired.
• When the students ask, “Who is your favorite?” and I say, “You are ALL my favorite!” (I am lying, obviously.)
• Pranking other teachers is one of my favorite things to do.  (I’ve done this already this year and plan to do this to our principal).
• Most of my good lessons come when I’m flying by the seat of my pants and then I can’t repeat them later.
• Whenever the kids are not in the classroom I turn the lights off.  Somehow dark and quiet seem fabulous together.
• I feel like parents who give me coffee cards really understand me.
• I go to the office several times a day just to see if anything yummy has been put out in the staff room since my last visit.
•  I love reading out loud to my class.  I secretly think I’m a great reader/story- teller and make them listen to me daily.  (I think they like it, too).
• I cried almost every night my first year teaching.
• I still cry over my students sometimes.
• I have a secret hope of having one of my students end up on Oprah as an                                  adult because they grew up and turned out awesome.  In my mind I can                                      just hear them… “I don’t remember much about elementary school… but my 5th grade teacher was so smart and funny and she really believed in me and she is the main reason I am what I am today!”

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Isn't it kinda fun seeing inside the mind of a teacher? With the end of the school year in sight, maybe consider doing a little something fun to motivate the teachers in our life to stick it out these last few weeks. I hear some of them are very motivated by coffee cards, wink wink.

A Day In the Life

a little project, goodwill silver platter painted with chalkboard paint and "what was intended for harm, he made good" genesis 50:20 | my after nap babies | the newest member of our family, socks c/o blabla | this man loves to eat | making cookies can be messy | loving on theo c/o blabla | avocado egg salad, thanks pinterest | summer has begun | peekaboo | so squishy | practicing the art of sharing | mama time | always washing something | jem inhaled my black bean soup freebie from panera | yes, i'm still unpacking

There was a time, a few short months ago, that making it through the day was nothing short of a miracle. I was near going crazy being pulled in too many directions. Trying to meet too many needs for too many people. On occasion I still have freak out days - um, hello, like Jem's epic meltdown yesterday that ended with a 2 1/2 hour nap - but for the most part we're in a real good swing of things.

Kind of boring to list out our daily happenings. But I did it once when Jemma was 16 months old and I've liked looking back at what our schedule used to be like. So, for now, at 2 years and 7 months and 9 months our days tend to look like this ...

7-8 am | Max usually wakes up first, if Jemma has snuck into our bed he wakes her up shortly after. Then there's a giggle eruption. Jammies come off, new diapers go on and we all head into the bathroom so I can get ready. Every mama needs to don a fresh pair of yoga pants in the morning, right?

8-9 am | Breakfast time! It doesn't come soon enough for Jemma who has recently learned the word "hungry" and chants it quite a bit. I'm thinking that a box of cereal is going to start residing in the corner of our bathroom. Jem and I love sharing pancakes or "cheese sandwich" a la Starbucks. Applesauce is also high on Jemma's list of breakfast requests ... and every other meal or snacktime too.

9-10 am | We attempt to accomplish some chores - dishes or laundry. Sometimes we play or color or read "stowies". Sometimes the littles hop into the bath to splash around. With our new to us jogger, sometimes we head out on a walk. There is a farm stand just a short walk away and we all love picking out fresh produce.

10-11 am | Max's morning nap and Jemma's quiet time. Yeah - half the time it ends in Jemma waking up Max earlier than he wants, we're practicing. My best solution has been to give her my phone for a  movie or game time and tuck her in a little pillow corner of our room. 

11-2 pm | If we're heading out for errands, this is the time. If not, we'll work around the house (chores and projects seem to be never ending!) and eat lunch.

2-4 pm | Afternoon naps for all! I'm guilty (or is that lucky) of stealing a nap most days. It's just so quiet and calm and Max will sleep twice as long if I'm next to him, so, I stay. He smells like the ocean and I love laying next to him letting him nurse to his heart's content. Honestly, I can't wait until the day that I can convince them to both snuggle with me for a snooze - I mean, they would now, but I doubt anyone would actually sleep. On a good day we'll all rest for an hour and a half or so and spend another half hour snuggling before we actually get up. 

4-5 pm | Dinner prep and sharing practice :) If dinner plans are quick we've been making it a regular event to head to the neighborhood park. Vitamin D, grass and the yellow slide for the win!

5-6 pm | Clutter control and waiting for Daddy to arrive home. This can be a rough hour as everyone gets antsy for food and some Daddy snuggles. 

6-8 pm | We eat and everyone gets ready for bed. Max is more than ready to be in bed by 7 and Jemma follows sometime around 8 or 8:30. It's been later than her normal 7:30 bedtime lately thanks to the late setting sun. We do teeth, story (her choice), Bible reading (always the story of Jesus' birth and on occasion the story of Joseph which are apparently her favorites) and prayers which she says herself now - too darling.

8-? pm/am | Jemma usually gets up once or twice asking for more hemp milk or searching for a particular stuffed animal. If she wasn't so sweet, peeking her head out of her door and calling for us, it would be annoying , but it's not and I know she won't need us at bedtime forever. Max needs to nurse or be rocked once or twice as well before fully settling in for the night. During my up and down with the munchkins, I wrap up chores that take two hands, blog, respond to emails and all that jazz. Sometimes Dominic and I will watch a show, but usually he'll relax with his and I'll watch Nashville or Grey's, Revolution or Call the Midwife once he goes to bed. Yes, I've gotten into a bad routine of staying up until the wee hours again. Alas, the quiet is just so peaceful, I can't seem to keep away.