Happy Birthday Phoebe!

Today is Phoebe's birthday.

While I'd love to write something sentimental and sweet and timeless, but I'm wordless.

I'm still trying to figure out where this baby went.



She's been replaced by a little girl whose personality is as sparkly as the clothes she loves to wear. A little girl whose heart is as big as the song in it and who can be so sweet it makes your teeth hurt.

But don't worry. Yesterday when I asked her just to stay three forever so she'd always be my little girl, she said, "Mommy, eben dough I'm four, I'm stiw going to be widdle."

How I wish I could convince myself that were true...

What I've Been Doing Today

In getting ready for Phoebe's birthday party tomorrow, I looked around and noticed how happy my house looked with all the pink and orange. Maybe it was the natural light coming through the windows when the sun (finally) decided to show its face today or maybe it was the enchanted face of my little helper as she watched her party come to life. Either way, it made me want to snap a bunch of pictures. And the most amazing thing about these happy pictures? I didn't edit them one bit! If only I could make sure I always had the right light for all the moments that need capturing.















Do you like how ModPodge coordinates perfectly with our party colors? :)

Hope you are having a Happy Friday!

Please Don't Call CPS

This is Phoebe's new after dinner chore.



While cleaning off the table she did make a "Mommy makes me work just like Cinderella" comment under her breath. Oh, the joys.


And apparently I am only taking pictures of Phoebe this week and posting short blog posts. I'm spending all my time getting ready for the big, princess birthday party this weekend. If I'm not baking, I'm cleaning. If I'm not cleaning, I'm crafting. If I'm not crafting, then I'm running errands. It's very glamorous. I promise to be back next week with random rambling posts. I just know you'll all be waiting with bated breath.

Baked Chicken Penne Recipe

I have just discovered the greatest new food blog! Well, it's not exactly new, but it's new to me and I am so excited about it. And it probably isn't the "greatest" food blog either, because I have several food blogs I like to frequent, but OUR BEST BITES holds the "greatest new food blog" title at the moment.

I haven't actually tried very many of their recipes (it being "new" and all and we've been busy), but I did manage to make BAKED CHICKEN PENNE on Sunday night. It was delicious and it makes enough to freeze for later. Yay!



My picture isn't great (as usual), but it's here because I took it and pictures make a post more fun to read unless it's a "deep" post, which this is not. I made a few adjustments to the recipe (mostly just used less mushrooms and sundried tomatoes because not everyone loves them around here). Be sure to check out the link for the exact recipe, as I'm posting the adjustments.

Baked Chicken Penne:
6 tablespoons butter
kosher salt and black pepper
1 pound penne
olive oil
3 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, pounded thin
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour
4 garlic cloves, finely minced
6 cups whole milk
8 ounces white or cremini mushrooms, trimmed and thinly sliced
1/2 sun-dried tomatoes
1 1/2 cups shredded provolone and mozzarella cheese blend
1 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Preheat oven to 400. Grease two shallow 2-quart baking dishes. If you're going to freeze one, use a disposable foil pan. Cook pasta 3 minutes short of al dente; drain pasta and set aside. While pasta is boiling, heat oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Season chicken with salt and pepper; cook until done. Slice thinly. While chicken pan is still hot, toss the mushrooms in and saute until golden brown and add a little salt. Use a little extra olive oil if needed.
In a 5-quart Dutch oven or heavy pot (I just use the pot I cooked my pasta in), melt butter over medium. Add flour and garlic; cook, whisking, 1 minute. While whisking constantly, gradually add milk; bring to a simmer. Keep whisking frequently as sauce thickens. Add mushrooms and tomatoes; cook 1 minute. Take the pan off the heat and and gradually stir in provolone and 1/2 cup Parmesan. Add chicken and pasta to pot; season with salt and pepper to taste (it ended up being more than I thought). Divide pasta mixture between baking dishes. If freezing, place remaining Parmesan cheese in a zip-top baggie. If cooking, sprinkle on top. Bake, uncovered, until top is golden and bubbling, about 25 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Yummy, yummy, yummy. And we ended up having it on two different nights, too. In the coming weeks, I hope to try NATCHITOCHES MEAT PIES, BAKED TAQUITOS, BREAKFAST TAQUITOS, and I'm making BREAKFAST PIZZAS sometime this week. I told you there were several!

What are your favorite cooking blogs? I currently check out ANNIE'S EATS, PIONEER WOMAN ('cause who doesn't?), FINDING JOY IN MY KITCHEN, and EAT AT HOME. There are a few more, but I'm tired of posting links. Because, apparently, I need even more new recipes to try! :)

Phoebe Lou Who

While taking a bath the other night, Ms. Erin styled Phoebe's hair "WHO-Style". Then she told Phoebe that she looked "pretty goofy". Phoebe said, "Did you mean pretty awesome!?!"

Why, yes. That's exactly what she meant. :)

Finally...My Menu Board

Despite the face that Phoebe's birthday party is next weekend and all I see is orange and pink (the color theme for her Princess Party), I did manage to knock out a project that has been on the docket for months...like since last September. I borrowed a friend's CRICUT to whip up some "birthday things", so after I spent the afternoon cutting out all things pink and orange, I tried my hand at vinyl lettering. It took awhile to figure it out, and my spacing could use some work, but now we have a dry-erase menu board for the kitchen. Yay!



I can't remember exactly where I got this idea...and I searched all over the blogosphere, too. I found THIS tutorial, but it wasn't the inspiration for the weekly menu board because I know I saw that somewhere, but I just can't find it! I wish I could because it was better than the one I whipped up. Using a vintage tablecloth in the frame was all my idea, though. Mostly because I while did have leftover fabric from my curtains, I wasn't thrilled with using it because I was afraid it would make my kitchen too "matchy-matchy". The tablecloth is one that was sitting in a wire basket in my living room so it seemed perfect...especially since I didn't cut it. I just folded and folded and folded it till it fit.

Brad is especially thrilled with this new project. While his reaction to my projects is usually underwhelming (remember the BACON SHIRT?), he was pleased with this one. And he should be since he was the real inspiration behind this little project. He's always and forever asking what we're having for dinner. Now he'll know..and it will be easier to read since I'll be using dry erase markers that I'm picking up at Wal-Mart tomorrow (the one I had was lost after a certain little girl decided she needed it to write notes on the bathroom mirror). I'm pretty sure it will be darker than the plain ole Crayola marker I used in a pinch this afternoon.

Now I just need to figure out what to make for Sunday night dinner...

Have you ever seen such a sassy ponytail?!

And here's the sweet, smooshy baby sassy, silly big girl who sports it.



I think I blinked. Sigh.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GRANDADDY!

Today is my dad's birthday. To honor his birthday (because we aren't there to help him celebrate), I asked the kids to tell me a few things about thier Grandaddy. And you know, kids do say the darndest things! :)

Eli:

What is something Grandaddy always tell you? "That he loves me."
How old is he? "Somewhere in the 40's."
What is his favorite thing to do? "Play golf."
What does Grandaddy do when you're not around? "He goes to work."
What is his favorite food? "Pancakes"
What is he really good at? "Golf"
What is something he's really bad at? "He's pretty good at everything except playing darts."
What was he like when he was a kid? "He liked to play games."
What does Grandaddy do to make you laugh? "He tickles me."
What do you play together? "Golf"
What does Grandaddy like about Nena? "She's cute."
What do you want to tell Grandaddy on his birthday?
"I love you!"

Phoebe:

What does Grandaddy always tell you? "That my hair is crazy!"
How old is he? "18"
What is his favorite thing to do? "He likes to visit."
What does Grandaddy do when you're not around? "He misses me."
What is his favorite food? "Noodles"
What is Grandaddy really good at? "Working on the computer."
What is he really bad at? "He's pretty bad at getting me dressed."
What was he like when he was a kid? "He liked to play swords."
What does Grandaddy do to make you laugh? "He makes funny faces."
What do you and Grandaddy play together? "We play in the kitchen."
What does Grandaddy like about Nena? "She's so nice and she makes him food."
What do you want to tell Grandaddy on his birthday?
"Grandaddy, I wub you and sank you for being so heawfy!"

We love you, Grandaddy! Thanks for being so wonderful. Happy Birthday!

I Need Some Help!

Because my husband loves me, he bought me a KINDLE for Valentine's/birthday and brought it home on Friday. I've been wanting one for awhile now and I may or may not have forwarded him an email where Amazon was giving you free shipping if you bought one. My mother-in-law gave me money for one at Christmas, but I spent it on SHOES. What can I say? I'm a complicated person.

Anyhoo's, I "unwrapped" my gift on Friday. My husband (bless his heart) still does not understand the power of a well-wrapped gift and just stuffed tissue paper in a used Eddie Bauer sack. Sigh. It's progress though. I have received gifts from him tied up in Wal-Mart sacks. Be still my heart.

The Kindle is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! I read for seven hours straight on Saturday, completing THIS book and starting THIS one. These books are fabulous, by they way. But now I've decided that I need a cover for my new best friend. I can't very well carry it around in my purse or in the car unprotected from it's environment! And we all know that I need to be reading in the elementary pick-up line...

Here's where I need your help. I can't decide which cover I want. I went to The Most Dangerous Place (you might know it as ETSY) and there were several to choose from. I narrowed it down to three choices.

Option #1: THIS AMY BUTLER COVER. I love the bright, happy colors of this one.

Option #2: THE VINTAGE BOOK COVER. This one is fun and vintage and whimsical! Love it!

Option #3: THE BROWN PEACOCK COVER. This one would be nice because it's dark and might not show as much dirt. Plus it's cute.


Since I can't decide which one I like the best, I need your help! Let me know which one you like best and why so I can make an informed decision. In the meantime, I'll be ignoring the children and the laundry and the dishes and the world while I read. This Kindle could be bad news.

Love Letters To My Family

Today is Valentine's Day. A holiday I love and loath all at the same time. I'm not one much for romance or flowers or sappy cards or romantic comedies. But I love a good holiday and any excuse to have a party and red and pink are some of my favorite colors.

But just because I don't get into all the lovey-dovey parts of Valentine's Day doesn't mean I don't feel deeply. Unfortunately, I'm not always good at expressing those deep feelings in words...well, spoken words, anyway. I'm way better at writing them. Since my children are too little to read well and cards get lost in all the hustle and bustle of daily-ness, I'm writing to them here. So they can come back later, after the the Hershey Kiss scavenger hunt and the heart-shaped pancake breakfast and the fajita and fondue dinner, and read the words I probably won't be able to say.


Dear Eli,
You are the baby boy I never knew I wanted so much. You have filled my life with cars and guns and noise. I love to watch you set up elaborate playtimes with cars and a Twister mat...maybe because I know those days are almost over. Already I blink and find a half grown boy before me when just yesterday I saw my baby. A half grown boy is who is so much like his mother that it makes my heart hurt. I know what you struggle with. I know how strong your emotions run. I know how stubborn you really are. Sometimes I'm knocked over by my love for you and sometimes I'm drowning in exasperation. You are the firecrackers and lightening in my life and I love you more than Star Wars.



Dear Phoebe,
You are my light and my sparkle. My life would be a much dimmer place without you in it. I love the way you feel the need to express yourself in all that you do. There's a part of you that needs a creative outlet or you won't survive. You sing. You dance. You draw. You feel. It amazes me to watch you go through every day. You bring to our family what I had always hoped a daughter would: wonder and whimsy and light. You're my best girl and I love you so much it hurts.



Dear Brad,
What is there to say, my dear? You are exactly right for me. I love that you won't let me take myself too seriously and you keep this family together when I am falling apart. You are driven and hard-working, but kind and funny and patient at the same time. It's so nice to have found the one I want to annoy the rest of my life! :) I love you.

Happy Valentine's Day, Friends!

The Day I Pretended I Lived In A Big City

Yesterday I pretended I lived in the big city. After two weeks of snow and ice and a cold (in two different cities), I was ready to get out and about. Unfortunately, I live in Amarillo and the "out and about" destinations aren't too plentiful. Lucky for me, though, we have a couple new places that I hadn't tried yet that made me help me pretend I live in a Big City.

First stop in our Big City Day was the new frozen yogurt place that opened a few weeks ago. If you're thinking TCBY, you'd be wrong. This is kind of a modern, self-serve, add-your-own-toppings kind of place that's fun and different. Eli had an early release day yesterday at school, so it seemed like a good time to go.



This is a picture of the "toppings" bar. Not a very good one, but the place was packed and I felt kind of silly taking pictures.



Frazzleberry charges by the ounce so we didn't fill our containers up because I knew we wouldn't eat very much. Can you guess which one is who's?



It was fun and we can't wait to go back and try all kinds of other combos we came up with while eating our yogurt.

Then we headed to The Ruffled Cup. It's the brand-new cupcakery in Amarillo. I *love* this place.



Just look at this vintage-y bakers case with all the pretty cupcakes! I'm a sucker for good presentation and this one takes the (cup)cake!



We decided to purchase four different kinds of cupcakes and bring them home to eat after dinner. We chose (clockwise from top left) sassy strawberry, ruffled truffle (dark chocolate cupcake with dark chocolate ganache filling and a buttercream frosting), chocolate peanut butter, and red velvet.


Cause I'm a dork, I divided each one into fourths and we all had a sample of each one.



The judging was intense.





Here's what we decided. Brad liked the red velvet followed by the ruffled truffle. Phoebe like the "red belbet" and the strawberry, but not the ruffled truffle and the peanut butter chocolate. Eli liked the red velvet the best and said the peanut butter chocolate was "too peanut butter-y". I liked them all. The strawberry was lighter and fluffier than the others. Both the ruffled truffle and the peanut butter chocolate were sinfully rich (I couldn't have eaten a whole cupcake of either because they were so rich) and the red velvet was a really good red velvet.

Big Cities are so fun. :)

Ten on Ten

Yep, it's that time again. TEN ON TEN. I took 10 pictures on the 10th of February at 10 after each hour...well, most of the hours anyway. And then I deleted a few because I had more than ten, but the ones I kept are in chronological order.

And be sure to look at my pictures first before you start looking at everyone else's because most of those other people actually have some photography skills and aren't just taking a bunch of pictures to document the daily-ness of their lives.

How I Spent My Snow Day

We went to bed last night with the snow falling, the winds howling, and a snow day for our little school district! It was great to sneak in and turn off Eli's alarm and then shut off my own knowing that we really didn't have anywhere to be the next day at any time.

We woke up to 6 1/2 inches of snow!

After a french toast breakfast, I spent 45 minutes (no joke) bundling the kids up to play outside.

Have you ever seen such a cute snow bunny?!



This is Eli "learning" to snowboard...on a sled. He's trying to convince Brad to let him try snowboarding when we go skiing in March and he's using every opportunity to practice.



I would say it's going marginally well.



There aren't many pictures because I spent the day inside (where it's warm) and Brad cannot be burdened to carry around my big camera. He did take nice video of Eli, but I haven't figured out how to download it yet. If I were a good mom, like my friend Dixie, I would have played outside with my children for hours building igloos and snowmen and sledding and such. Then again, if I were my friend Dixie, I'd be 5' 3'' (the height I always wanted to be) and have way better hair.

Instead, I spent the day getting ready for Thursday. It dawned on me Tuesday that all of Phoebe's Valentine's festivities would happen on Thursday instead of Monday and I didn't have the weekend like I thought to get ready for it. Even if school hadn't been cancelled, I was planning on staying home all day and crossing off my Valentine's To-Do List.

First, I made THESE for Phoebe's teachers. Well, I attempted to make these. My first batch didn't work out so well.



This is why I don't bake.

The second batch went much better. I made the brownies "cake-like" by adding an extra egg and sprayed my muffin tins with BAKERS JOY until it looked like the 3 foot snowdrift out my back door. (I had used PAM on the first batch.) I only baked one pan at a time,too, so I could immediately run a plastic knife around the edge. They popped out quite nicely, thankyouverymuch.



If the crumbly mess from the first batch is any indication, these Oreo Brownie Bites are gonna be a-MAZ-ing!

Phoebe and whipped up her Valentine's, too. FAMILY FUN has the best Valentine card ideas!



I found the toothbrushes at the local DOLLAR TREE 5 for $1 and then used leftover Valentine scrapbook paper for the heart tag and wrote "you make me smile!" on each one. Phoebe wrote her own name and "helped" me curl the ribbon. You'll have to excuse her hair. Four-wheeling and sledding and napping makes a mess of a nice french-braid.

Then I made a batch of red velvet cupcakes with white chocolate cream cheese icing for a fundraiser at Eli's school Thursday night. Before you go thinking I'm some kind of supermommybaker, the recipe came from THIS cookbook, and I wasn't even planning on making them because I was going to send the first batch of Oreo Brownie Bites, but I ruined them forcing me to find a substitute. I only had the ingredients because red velvet cake is one of Brad's favorites and I was going to make the cupcakes for him for Valentine's Day. Sorry, honey.



Phoebe convinced me to dye the icing pink even though my mad photography skills make it look more peach. Trust me, it's pink.

I also vacuumed both upstairs and down, but I didn't take a picture. Although I should have because I detest vacuuming and it's been a few weeks since I've done it. I'll give you one guess what's going to be on Eli's new re-vamped chore list.

How did you spend your last snow day?

You'll Think I'm Shallow...

But I love WHAT NOT TO WEAR.

I have loved it since it's very first season, before Clinton Kelly was a co-host and they had that guy with the long hair and really ugly sweaters who gave good advice but no one could listen because he dressed so badly himself. It was one of my very first TiVo'd shows after I used all the extra money I made at a week-long teacher training (at $15 an hour, too!) to buy it for Brad because he would drool over it every time we went to Best Buy. I watched it back when they used to have men on it. I watched it when Nick Arrojo cut everyone's hair, but gave them an easy style and then when Ted Gibson did amazing things with color, but never pushed hard enough to make some gals change. I was even watching it in the delivery room mere moments before I had Phoebe...I could even tell you which episode!

At first, I was a little embarrassed to admit that it was one of my favorite shows. I mean, it was all about clothes and hair and make-up and wasn't I supposed to be smarter and deeper and above all that frivolity? My how times have changed, my friends. First, I came to realize that lots of people loved that show...sometimes even Brad would watch it with me! Second, I also realized that I am neither smart nor deep so frivolity suits me quite well. And third, and maybe most importantly, I realized that everyone dresses the way they do for a reason and I find it fascinating to discover those reasons and see how a change for the better can affect them so deeply.

And when I say everyone dresses they way they do for a reason, I mean e.v.e.r.y.o.n.e. Even the punk high school students with eyebrow rings who say they dress the way they do because they don't care what people think. Even the stay-at-home-moms who wear yoga pants and sweatshirts every day. Even the older women still wearing fringed vest and bell bottoms.

There was the young, pretty woman who dressed in crazy thrift store finds and fairy wings (no joke!) who, when asked whether she wanted to be viewed as "weird" or "beautiful", could not give an answer. There was the wickedly smart scientist who didn't dress in "pretty" clothes because "smart" girls wouldn't have time to shop for or think about clothes. There was the new mom who wore only surgical scrubs because to dress well would mean that she wasn't focusing 100% on her child. And I could go on and on and on. Really. The show is in it's 10th season. It makes me think about the reasons I'm putting on what I'm wearing every morning. Some days it feels like I'm giving in to whatever emotion rises to the surface. Other days like I'm donning armor for the day ahead. My own reasons are as complex and plentiful as the reasons showcased on the shows 10 seasons.

With age and a little maturity (I hope), I've come to a point where I can look past most people's dress. Sure, the dark demon of judgement rears its ugly head on occasion and I find myself thinking unjustly and unkindly about someone I do not know because of the way they look or dress. But all the mornings of putting on my own armor to cover the disappointment and the hurt and the insecurities of my life while watching all those I love do the exact same thing has opened my eyes. When you get right down to it, we're all hurt and wounded and the thing that truly matters is how you treat other people. I tell Phoebe that to look pretty she has to act pretty...but I also make sure she's wearing her matching bows. Because I also know that a well-fitting pair of jeans will change your life.

So call me shallow. I like pretty clothes and a good haircut and a great five-minute face. I especially love the transformations...the before and after. And at the same time, I know that it's still just a mask. Those women are still carrying around all the emotional baggage they were before...only now it's a matching Louis Vuitton set. Sometimes it's easier to deal with your baggage when function follows form.

Snow Day!

After watching the entire northeast get pelted by blizzard after blizzard, we Amarillo-ans were feeling a little left out. Even when the DFW area was iced in last week (and we were STUCK for a few extra days after Phoebe's surgery), our area didn't receive anything much but bitter cold temperatures.

Yesterday we finally got our snow! About four inches of really wet, goopy snow fell late Saturday night into Sunday around lunch. Eli and Phoebe were beyond excited to get out and sled and build snowmen and ride the four-wheeler we're storing for Brad's brother for a few weeks until he can come pick it up. (Perfect timing, right?)



I'm pretty sure Phoebe's doctor would consider this "taking it easy", right?





There are no pictures of the sledding and four-wheeling because Brad didn't want to haul the camera around and I stayed inside in the warm house, nursing the worst head/chest cold I've had in years. Today is the first day since last Thursday I actually got up and got dressed and I haven't thought once that I might die. Not that I'm dramatic or anything...it's a wicked thing I'm fighting here!

At this point, I'm good with winter. One day of wet boots and hats and gloves and coats and snow bibs in a pile on the laundry room floor is enough for me. Spring can come any day now. Any day.

Resting Is Hard Work

After Monday's surgery, (I wrote about that HERE) we've been spending most of our time the last few days resting. Resting is hard work, too. There are movies to watch and cuddles to have and soup to make and the Internet to browse.

The surgery went very well, too. After the anesthesiologist gave her the Versed, which made my baby girl very happy, the cardiologist mentioned that the whole was bigger than he originally thought and there was a possibility they wouldn't be able to do the surgery. However, after the initial scope, they did finish the procedure with warnings that they'd be doing echocardiograms a few times in the coming months to make sure that everything stayed where it was supposed to and no further damage was occurring. The hardest part was keeping Phoebe still and on her back for the four hours after the surgery. The first three hours were good, but then the anesthesia wore off and she started getting antsy. Hospital stays are no fun, but she seemed in good spirits and recuperated nicely. We spent Monday night at the hospital, listening to the sleet and snow start falling early Tuesday morning. The nurses and doctors tried to get us out of the hospital pretty quick, but with the yucky weather, it took longer than they expected, and we ended up leaving Children's around 11:30. By this time, it was very clear that Brad was not going to make his flight to Austin for the conference he was supposed to be attending and Phoebe and I were probably not flying home on Wednesday. My mom and Carrie both had school called because of ice so we just spent the rest of Tuesday and all day Wednesday resting.

Phoebe slept and slept and slept some more on Tuesday. And she didn't eat much. I was pretty worried so I called Cousin Amy (who sewed up PHOEBE'S LIP this last summer) who assured me that it was all normal and that her body just needed to recuperate. Wednesday morning didn't start all too well, either, after she threw up the pancakes I had made her eat because she hadn't eaten anything since the morning before. After a nap and the restorative powers of Campbell's Princess Chicken Noodle Soup, I started to see a glimmer of my peppy girl. I was a little glad the ice had pushed our flight back a day because I didn't want to travel with such a sicky girl.

She woke up this morning a new child! She sang while she made biscuits with Nena. She yelled, "I FEEL BETTER!" while sitting at the breakfast table. She brushed her teeth. She's had the longest tea party known to man while I packed up all our stuff for our flight home. It's good to see her back to normal. Whatever that may be.

The last few days have been kind of nice...except that we all miss Eli. A bunch. If he had been here, I'm not sure when we would have gone home. Well, except for that whole Brad-has-a-job-thing and normal life has to resume sometime. Bummer.

Thank you for all your prayers and words of encouragement. I know they have been heard. Now you just need to pray for this mama since children who have this surgery usually have a big uptake of energy when they are all healed up and Phoebe wasn't what you'd call "low-energy" to begin with. Heaven help us.