a look...

here is a look @ today. its not pretty. i'm still in what i wore to bed last night. i have two sick kids. preston with the worst cold he's had to date, and an ear infection. and claire, i'm not sure what she's got but she is super sad and grumpy which is not normal for her. strangely enough she was totally perfect when i had preston @ the dr. yesterday, then practically as soon as we got home she turned into a sick little kiddo too.  most of the day has been spent with two kids in my arms (not a comfortable fit) and both of them are sad & fussy....you can probably tell from claire's extremely onery face in both these pictures. i hate sick kids. i know its an inevitable thing, but nonetheless, its not fun. get better soon my sweet children

a day for me....

 i love mothers day. not just because its a day to be pampered & recognized....but because its a day that i really realize just how lucky i am to be a mom. to have been blessed with two little angels who bless my life everyday. Knowing that i have two kids depending on me to help them grow into the people they need to be is daunting, but so awesome as well. I think i've said it before, but there is no greater challenge, nor greater joy than being a mom. I can't imagine another thing i would want to be doing with my life right now than getting sweet hugs & kisses from these two cute things. so very blessed.

pinner & doer

 This post is all things pinterest. some good & others better. I LOVE pinterest. i kinda thought that after a little while that i would get tired of it, like most other online things. but no, that has not occured yet..and i don't see it happening anytime in the near future.
 Most of my pinterest projects have something to do with food.....treats, dinners, appetizer, snacks. I just wanted to share the likes and dislikes of my pinterest projects....

 

Chocolate Buttercream frosting: easy & delicious. I will totally make this again to frost a cake or yummy cupcakes

Parmesan Baked Potato Halves: These were a fabulous substitute for boring baked potatoes, we topped ours with sour cream & called it good. I love the crispy-ness that they got from baking in the butter & parmesan cheese (sounds healthy, right?) but really, they were really good.

30 minute rolls: I had a hard time believing that i could make rolls from start to finish in 30 minutes, but i can. I however let mine raise for a little longer so all in all it took a little over 30 minutes. but still incredibly fast for a yeast roll. these were good, not great. a little dense & heavy for me, i am all for a really fluffy roll, and these were not that. but i will probably make them again just because they are quick and easy & i love a little bread with my dinner.

 

Poppyseed Chicken Casserole:  This casserole was certainly nothing special, but it was still good. I don't think i got any comments from Chase on this one, but he did clean up the dish. I didn't have ritz crackers to sprinkle on top so i used bran flakes instead. It came together quickly, which is always a plus in my book. This was good, but not great.

Honey BBQ Meatloaf:  yummy. it was definetely a new twist on normal meatloaf with the bbq flavor, but we really liked it, or we were just really hungry. either way, i'll keep this recipe on hand a most likely make it again when meatloaf makes its way back onto the menu.

Broccoli Quinoa Casserole: LOVED it. I am a HUGE quinoa fan & i loved switching up the rice for quinoa in this recipe. I added chicken to mine for some extra protien (and because the hubs likes his meat) and it was fabulous. a definate do-again.

Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Squares: whoa, thats a mouthful to say isn't it? it also tastes pretty good too. We love oatmeal at our house, but sometimes i crave a little switch up to the regular oatmeal, brown sugar & milk combo. enter this recipe...unfortunetely it almost tasted more like a dessert that breakfast (is that unfortunate or not?) but it kinda made me feel like i should stop at just one. I accidentally under-cooked mine, but they were still good & chase & preston gobbled them up.

Peanut Butter/Chocolate Cookies: Now seriously speaking, i could stop right here with this cookie & never make another thing in my life besides this little bit of heaven. I am obsessed with this cookie. Everytime i make them (which is too often) i text Lis and tell her she has to make them RIGHT NOW, but she hasn't, and she is missing out. they are that good....oh boy, i hope i am not talking them up too much. but really, they are perfectly soft and not too peanut-buttery. I have never drizzled mine the way she drizzled hers so perfectly, instead i add a cup or two of chocolate chips & call it good. obviously you can tell this recipe is a keeper.

Delicious Dinner Rolls: Okay, i lied, i can't live on just PB cookies alone, but I CAN live on these rolls & PB cookies together. perfect combination right, carbs and more carbs...(i really am a fairly healthy eater, i promise). These rolls have been made several times in our house. They are easy-peasy & oh so good. I am by no means a great cook, but these have turned out perfectly everytime i've made them. i love making a batch or half batch when i have/get to take dinner to someone. half for them & half for me us. i highly reccomend them....my grandma even thought my mom made these when i made them for claire's blessing....now that was a compliment.

Basil Chicken in Coconut Curry Sauce: Yes, please!! simply put, Chase keeps asking for this & even suggested i make it & invite his parents over for dinner...yikes.

 

Chicken Pot Pie: The other night i knew i wanted to make chicken pot pie for dinner, but wanted a switch up on the recipe i usually use. This used cream cheese and chicken broth for the sauce & while it was good it lacked a little something, which i am still not sure what that was. so i might make this again but try making some alterations to it.

Maxi Skirt: oh my beloved maxi skirt. I had been eying for quite some time, and when we booked tickets to mexico i knew i needed it by them. the tuturiol says she whipped it up in one naptime....i was quite skeptical about that since 1- i am not a good sewer & 2- Preston typically takes the worlds shortest nap for a 1 1/2 year old. But i was proven wrong. start to finish in one naptime. I have worn it probably too many times in the last 2 1/2 weeks since i've made it. That means it time to hit the fabric store for more cute knit to lounge in or wear out on a date. Isn't that awesome that one piece of clothing can be that functional.

Cinnamon Struesal Dessert Pizza: Alright, i took a little break from food, but i'm back. Only to share with you the yummiest little treat ever. I made this last night for dinner, well not for dinner, but to accompany dinner & it was a hit. I used homeade pizza dough instead of store bought which made it quite delightful. I will probably end up making this once a week to go with weekly pizza night. Infact, i might make it again right now to take to a party. so easy and sooooo good. (insert) i did make this for a party last night & it was a hit. i love it because i always have these ingredients on hand.

 Popped Quinoa: hmmm, kind of an in-betweener right here. It was good, but if you know how small quinoa is, then picture this maybe double the pre-popped size. so really, it was difficult to eat. you literally had to lick your fingers and dip it in the popped quinoa to get some. i personally didn't enjoy that feature, but Preston LOVED it! but the blog that i found it on suggested popping it and then having it on hand to throw onto your oatmeal or something for added crunch. I didn't try that, but i like the sound of it, so i will probably try it out again later.

thats it, for now at least. again i love, love, love, pinterest and am quite pleased with how tried and true most things are found on pinterest. Most likely i will have a "take two" on this post. 

what favorite things have you tried out from pinterest. 

why hello there little birdies....

 yes, that is my front door....

 

yes, that is a perfectly constructed birds-nest inside my wreath....

 and yes, those are 2 adorable baby bird eggs, in the most beautiful shade of blue.

did i mention that that was on my front door. be cautious when knocking on my door, i'm afraid a certain over-protective baby-bird-mama might be on the watch. i've never come face-to-face with a bird, nor do i intend to. but right now, i'm a little unsure of how to handle this situation----destroy the nest, remove it from my wreath, or let the cute birdies hatch & watch preston adore them??

how did i not see this nest making occuring in the last week that i've been walking in and out of my front door?

3 Months

  Another month slipped right through my hands. i thought month #2 went quickly, but that was no comparison to how fast month #3 went. sheesh! as you can tell, little miss has only continued to get cuter and cuter and chubbier. oh how i love those cheeks & thighs of hers. If only i could make rolls look even half that cute.
  Not much has changed since last months updates of claire-bear. she still sleeps great, we started putting her bed a few hours earlier so sometime she wakes up around 4:30 or 5 to eat, but sometimes not, its pretty fabulous.
   It doesn't take much to get the little gal to smile (just like her brother). Speaking of her brother, we think they are starting to look just like one another. adorableness! also, Claire is looking at Preston in that picture above, i think she's going to adore him, and he already adores her. its kinda perfect.
  We just returned home from Mexico, where claire proved to be a champ. unfortunately, she will not remember a single thing about the wonderful time we all had, so i guess we'll just have to return.
  Life is treating us pretty darn well right now. I love this little girl so much & and am constantly amazed at how my heart just grew when i had her, she filled in a gap that i didn't know needed filled. here's to another fabulous month.

**also, happy birthday to my daddy today. He's pretty much THE greatest dad ever. i love you daddy
 

Cousins & Fun @ Grandmas.....

Since we've had Claire, we have seemed to spend lots of time with Preston & Claire's cousins on the Jones side. It is so fun to see Pres interact with them & also to see how incredibly sweet & loving they all are towards Claire. some of these are from when Claire was only 2 or 3 weeks old so she is tiny, but really we are so lucky & blessed to have such an awesome & supporting family. And Claire can't wait to meet cousin Addy next week in Mexico.

These next pictures are nothing short of hilarious. Preston LOVES being at Grandma & Papa's house, and especially loves their dog mya. These outfits (or the lack thereof) were entirely preston's doings. He brings us the floaties and says "swim", and runs around with no pants, a crooked beanie, & grandma's headband on. He is silly, and full of it, and so much fun.

Easter 2012

We had the greatest Easter weekend @ my parents. The weekend was chuck-full of fun family time. Preston was so much fun this year & although he still was unsure about what was going on and why there was candy hidden in the grass he soaked it all up and loved it. I personally loved watching him and having a good excuse to give him all the candy his little heart desired. Claire of course had no idea what was happening, but she just worked her baby-charm all weekend and was loved on by my family.

We started out the weekend celebrating with the BIG Webb family. Our family is changing and growing so much and it is so fun get together with them every now and then. The kids had an easter egg hunt, Preston loved it, but he was super slow and took his precious time getting around to all the candy, which is SO unlike him...but nice for a change.

After we got home from party #1, we hung out at my parents house...loved on the kiddos, and had a hot-dog roast out by the fire. such a wonderful way to spend a beautiful evening.

Easter morning Preston woke up to a fun easter basket, We got ready for church and can i just say how much i love easter Sunday. It makes me realize just how grateful i am for my Savior & for the sacrifices he made in my behalf. Even though the holiday seems to get mixed up in the hustle & bustle of easter candy & bunny rabbits, I am truly blessed to have the knowledge & blessings of the savior in my life.
We ended off the day by going to my Grandparents & spending the afternoon with that side of the family. I will argue with anyone that i have the best family out there. I love being able to spend time with my family and seeing them interact with Preston & Claire.

And YEAH for perfect spring weather!!!