Happy Birthday Jordan!!!!!!!!

Happy Birthday to my special, beautiful, amazing wife!

Love being married to you and raising our family together.

My Boy With Big Ideas

This boy's head is full of big ideas. And I mean big ones, all day, every day which he feels very passionate about. Even when he was very little, his ideas were big and expansive. A friend of mine who used to work Toddler Worship when Eli was a toddler told me that Eli was great...as long as he got to use his own ideas. It can be frustrating, to say the least.

Sometimes his big ideas hurt his precious little heart. Like a few weeks ago when I couldn't eat lunch with him at school (like I try do on Fridays). So he asked his dad. Brad (of the fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants-never-make-a-concrete-plan people) told him that he'd try, but that he had meetings most of the day. The implication was that more than likely it wasn't going to happen. Eli heard that there was a 1 in a million chance which meant "you're saying there a chance" as in Dumb and Dumber. So you know what Eli did? He didn't eat lunch because he was waiting for his dad! He called from the office at the end of lunch so sad (and probably hungry) that it broke my heart because he was so hurt. He has big ideas and big expectations that cannot be lived up to. I know from experience that it's just going to lead to more and more heartbreak and I can't stop it. I've tried telling him not to have such big ideas, but that's like telling a cheetah not to run. It's just not in their nature.

And then sometimes his big ideas really work out. Like on the morning of Phoebe's birthday. He had gotten up early for school and I needed to wake her up. He suggested we all go jump on her bed and sing "Happy Birthday". She loved it! Or when I was wondering how to wrap up the little Pinkalicous bike for Phoebe. He decided he should put on the new helmet and ride it into the house. Another great idea! Oh, and you should hear the plans he has for my birthday. 'Cause you know Brad hasn't planned anything. (By the way, it includes present shopping for me after I've gone to bed, the movie of my choice, and a trip to the CADILLAC RANCH.)

All I can hope is that his big ideas will temper a bit or the disappointment when they don't pan out won't always be so strong. Or he'll find a way to channel those big ideas into something he can actually accomplish...like BIRTHDAY PARTIES for his children.

Show and Tell: My Photogenic Sister's Scarf

My sister, Carrie's, birthday is the day before Phoebe's. She came down to help celebrate, thus putting her own birthday celebrations on hold a little. She flew home early Sunday (her actual birthday) so it wasn't a complete loss, but she did spend a few hours with us on her actual birthday. Thus warranting an awesome homemade scarf!

Actually, she would have received the scarf either way, but probably not on her birthday since it falls so close to Phoebe's and I was up to my eyeballs in PINK AND ORANGE. Just ask my dad. He still doesn't have his birthday gift...and his was two weeks ago! (Sorry, Dad.)

I used THIS tutorial for the scarf. It was pretty easy and probably wouldn't have taken very long except that I didn't have enough pins so it took an extra day. This project takes about 9,438,385 pins. No joke. Stock up on pins if you make this scarf. Also, the knit I bought was wrong-side out and I found it easier to turn it around before I cut it so the edges wouldn't curl as much. I know this because I didn't when I made Carrie's and it was a P-A-I-N when it was time to line the pieces up together, but I did on the one I made for my mom and it went much smoother.

And how do we know that my sis is so annoyingly photogenic? Because she has never taken a bad picture. Ever. The one above was taken after the party when we were all tired and my sister was trying to get a raging ear infection. See, you're jealous, too, right?

And now she has a way cool scarf. We're all green with envy.

A Princess In Training Party

At first, I didn't want to do a princess party. Not because I've read THIS book (although I do think it would be interesting to read) or because we don't "do" princesses. I had another party theme in mind (which I won't reveal here because I might want to use it in the future and I want you to be surprised!), but it was similar to other parties that she's had and I wanted her to really L-O-V-E this one. Four and five are big birthdays to me. Children aren't "little" anymore, but they aren't really "big" either and it's seems to be a magical time in childhood. So I uncharacteristically changed the party theme a month or so before the party...usually it's set about six months in advance. 'Cause I'm that crazy.

After I settled on our theme, I picked out the colors. She wanted to use bright pink because she fell in love with a dress at the Gap right after Christmas. It was the first piece of clothing that she liked all on her own and I knew it would go on sale before her birthday. I started with bright pink and then decided on orange because they are such happy colors together! :)


Don'tcha just love that I can use two paragraphs to tell you that we had a princess party in pink and orange?


Here's my pretty princess ready for the party. At the last minute I wrote "Mirror, Mirror on the wall, Who's the fairest of them all?" on the mirror in the guest bathroom downstairs. Just for fun.



My house was bedecked in pink and orange...even though Phoebe told my mom when we picked her up at the airport that I hadn't decorated "bery much". Sheesh.





The favors were placed in personalized metal buckets from the $1 section at Target (I just love that place!) and filled with princess crowns (also from the $1 spot), rings, tattoos, pencils, and the PRETTIEST COOKIES made by a lady at church. The boys' buckets had swords instead of crowns.




Phoebe helped me create the menu for the "Royal Feast". There were marshmallow pops (that are probably the easiest, fanciest party food I've ever made!), cupcakes (from a local bakery), chocolate covered strawberries (Phoebe's new favorite food after her teacher at preschool made them at Valentine's Day), melting moments cookies (the very best shortbread cookie you will ever eat), and cranberry lemonade served in sugared champagne glasses.





I own 24 champagne glasses. I bought them back when Eli was a baby and it seemed like there was a baby shower every other week for friends. They came in a box of 12 for $10 and I have used them soooo many times! If you can find a deal like that somewhere, I highly recommend snapping them up...they are quite versatile.



A quick photo of the Birthday Princess and The Queen of Birthday Parties (hee, hee).



I'm guessing about now, you're wondering why I labeled this post "A Princess In Training Party". Well, it dawned on me a few hours before the party that all our games and activities were akin to learning how to be a princess so I figured her party could be like Princess Training Camp where all the little girls (and a few boys) could learn all the skills one would need to be a proper princess.

Like the "Kiss the Frog" game. I didn't get a good pictures because the frog was hung on the back of a door that sits in a bit of an alcove. I couldn't squeeze myself and the camera and a child in the small space. You'll just have to imagine blindfolded little girls with red lipstick on trying to kiss the frog into a prince! There were crowns for the boys.



We even had a "real" princess attend our party. This is sweet Bailee, who's in our Huddle at church. She's a-MAZ-ing with kids and she's a ballet star and loves to dress up and totally made Phoebe's party!





Then we headed outside to practice our sword wielding skills because sometimes your prince is locked in a dungeon and a princess has to defend herself.







After that unfortunate event with Cinderella, it's very important for a princess to learn to run in high heels. We had a high-heel relay race to practice these vital skills.





A little note about these boys. Even though the party was all girl-y, they just jumped right in and played the games. And Eli only complained once that his favor bucket had "girl" stuff in it. Although Buzz Lightyear wasn't very good at the high-heel relay. (A fact that probably makes his daddy happy.)








While we were practicing being a princess, Bailee walked around with a bucket of nail polish (the quick dry kind), sparkly tattoos, sparkly gold mascara, sparkly lip gloss (are you detecting a theme?), and body glitter that she applied to each little princess. We were a very sparkly bunch...and I completely forgot to take a group picture!






When we came back inside, we made sugar cube castles because you know how important it is to have a well-constructed castle! This was the favorite party activity according to my children.

Apparently, you have to stick your tongue out to build a proper castle.



Our Royal Feast kicked off with the cupcake and candles for the birthday girl.





There were numerous toasts throughout the feast.


Don't you love my mom's expression in this picture? I think all the three-and-four-year-olds toasting with glass champagne flutes made her a little nervous. I can't imagine why.





This is the only picture I got of our sweet friend, Dacie. It's fuzzy and not that great. Ooops.



But I did get a great picture of our very own "Prince Charming" (that's what Lincoln's shirt read) and his mommy who is annoyingly photogenic. Apparently it runs in the family. My how I love this boy!! And his mommy's not too bad, either. :)



All the little girls were deemed princesses by the end of the party and a good time was had by all...even the boys. Phoebe is still talking about her party so I'll call it a success!

Feel free to send me ideas for next year's party...

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...