Tested & Approved

Thanks to Alicia, I am addicted to Skinnytaste.com. And, this my friends, is a good thing! EVERY SINGLE recipe we have tried has been so delicious! And, the best part is each were very healthy. I've noticed that my new recipes are continuing to grow, so I finally created a Pinterest board to keep up with all of them.

Tested & Approved Healthy Recipes

With our lives being 5 weeks shy of chaos, I *plan* to go ahead and make several recipes I can freeze. Almost all I've made so far we can get 2-3 meals out of. Some of our favorites that I believe we can freeze include:

Italian Chicken Sausage Stuffed Zucchini Boats
Baked Corn and Crab Cakes
Spinach Lasagna Rolls

And, super easy non-freezer meals we can easily make are (I'm talking less than 20 min. prep):

Artichoke Parmesan Stuffed Tilapia
Easy Baked Tilapia

One recipe my sister has tried and I want to make is this:

Chicken Rollatini w Spinach alla Parmigiana

I think it will be a freezer friendly one as well.

So, if you're having trouble finding recipes to make, don't torture yourself any longer. Go to Skinnytaste.com. Gina has everything from breakfast to snacks to desserts to dinners. And, they are all good for you - which is the most important thing in my book!

Just call me chef! And, as I've told Brian "Don't get used to this." Things will definitely change once I'm back in the office.

Oh, and another favorite new blog of mine is:

Peanut Butter Fingers

I haven't tried any of her food recipes because I don't like a lot of the things she eats, but I love her smoothie recipes. Take a look. Before I tried it, I never understood why people put stuff like spinach leaves, oats, peanut butter, etc in their smoothies. Now I do. Because you can't taste things like spinach and oats and they provide you with many servings of veggies, fruit, whole grains, etc in one liquid meal. I make one of these for breakfast and am so full that it's all I need until lunch!

She also has good circuit and plyometric training workouts if you're interested in that kind of thing.

Check her site out.

Winding Down

I guess you can say things are winding down over here now that we're back from our 2 week trip. We're pretty much back in our routines (Kellen slept through the night last night- woo hoo!) and I'm tightly holding on to my last 5 weeks of maternity leave. I CANNOT believe have fast the first 15 weeks have gone. With Ella, I only took 3 months off and I do not recall the time going by as fast. I'm pretty sure it's the 2 vs 1 effect. With Ella, I had nothing to do but spend time with her. With Kellen and with two kids, it's go-go-go. Even though Ella is at school all day every day, there's laundry, tidying up the house, cleaning bottles, scheduling and going to appointments, picking her up from school daily, and the list goes on. And, that is why I am so glad I took 5 months off this time around. There is no way I would have been ready to go back at 3 months. I'm not even close to ready to go back at 5 months. I feel so unorganized!! It's going to be utter chaos come Oct. 1.

On to more fun things...like cute pictures.

 Kellen at 14 weeks

 And, Ella at 3 with "peanut butter" (Nutella) all over her mouth

And, a little bit of my hometown finally hung up in our bedroom.

L to R: Sun Studios - some of music's greatest recorded here like Elvis Presley & Johnny Cash, the Orpheum - I've seen some great plays and concerts here, Arcade Restaurant, and Sam Phillips Avenue - street where Sun Studios is and named after the Father of Rock N Roll.

I love these images taken by Kim Miller of Ramblin Rose Photography (she was our wedding photographer).

Ella wants to make Brian a cake for his birthday which is tomorrow. I have never made a cake before. Wish us luck as we attempt this tonight!

3 Months/3 Years

Two weeks ago, Kellen turned 3 months old! He is such an easy going baby - which I need as we raise this 3 year old named Ella Grace. Although this week hasn't been a fun one, his normal routine is:

Up around 7:30-8. He eats plays for a few hours then falls asleep. We usually repeat this every 3-4 hours. Some days, he will stay awake all day! Then, he goes to bed when we do around 9:30-10 and sleeps through the night.

He drinks anywhere from 4 to 6 oz of formula each feeding, wears size 2 diapers, and is rocking his 3 month old clothes. He LOVES to talk and laugh. He enjoys watching people, especially his sister. He also likes looking at Otis who is usually by his side if he's on the floor. He also likes to hang out in his bumbo although gets frustrated after 30 minutes or so. I would too if I had to deal with that head bobble! He definitely prefers sitting over lying down so that he can see all the action. We're always on the go and 98% of the time, he's super easy - just sleeps or looks around sucking on his paci. He has mastered the army crawl position. As soon as he learns to tuck his knees under his belly, it's over for us!

At this time, he has been on 3 airplanes and has visited Lake Chelan, WA, Panama City Beach, FL, and Memphis, TN. He'll most likely visit Cali or Hawaii in the upcoming weeks after we decide where we're headed in September.

Ella Grace had a busy week. She went to her 3 year check-up on Tuesday (yes, I know we're only 4 months late). She also went to her first dental visit today. 

Here are her stats:

Height: 38.5 inches or 3 ft 2.5 inches tall (58th percentile)
Weight: 32 lb 12 oz (65th percentile)

Basically, Dr. Spector reiterated what I've been telling her Dad, she's going to be a model! Brian doesn't like it when I say that.

- She plays soccer and is in swimming lessons. We're going to try dance and gymnastics this fall. 

- She loves:

• Dressing up in her Princess costumes
• Twirling around (holding our hands and walking around in circles)
• Dancing & music
• Looking at herself in the mirror
• Putting my make-up on (blush)
• Having her nails and "piggy toes" painted
• Jumping on all furniture
• Walking the "balance bean" also known as the sidewalk curb
• Going to "the park" or what we call the playground. She especially loves swinging, playing "money" with the tree bark on the ground, hide and seek, and imaginative play on the swing set (Princess castle, on a pirate ship)
• Her best friend is her Wesley. They've been in school together since they were 4 months old.
• Her brother. She loves giving him hugs and kisses.
• Her puppy. She always wants Otis to chase her.
• Disney movies, Veggie Tales, Caillou, Berenstain Bears, Angelina Ballerina, Curious George
• Her sparkly shoes - both the Toms and ones from Target "with the bows on them"
• Dresses and Bows (you know I'm excited about that as I love to dress her nice)
• Her Mommy and Daddy. She tells us all the time.
• All her family. She asks about each often. She has a ridiculously great memory.
• DISNEYLAND!!! Talks about it daily. She will be going to Disneyworld for her 4th birthday and I cannot wait!
• The beach. She's my girl so pretty much has to like it.
• Swimming
• Flower picking & getting flowers at the grocery store (her Dad started that)
• Tomatoes, apples, milk, mac & cheese
• "Ole Mc Donalds" - McDonald's
• "Peanut Butter" -  Nutella
• Push-up pops & "the cow store" ice cream (Ben & Jerrys shop)
• Her red house (our house)
• Playing her Princess piano
• Her cowgirl boots
• Taking baths & showers
• Playing waitress, asking for our order and writing it down on her notepad, then cooking it up in her kitchen
• Stuffed animals. Her collection is ridiculous.
• School. Thank goodness! She goes to a great one.
• Drawing. She's crafty like her Momma.

Dislikes:

• Bugs (slugs, worms, the smallest fly, ant, etc)
• Most foods. She's a very picky eater.
• Going to bed on time & in her own room. I guess it's her parents fault we're not harder on this one.

What else...

• She's left handed.
• Can write her name.
• Has quite the vocabulary and I catch her saying phrases we say like "You've got to be kidding me," "That's the rule," "You have to eat your dinner to get a Push-up," stuff like that.
• She's very stubborn and independent but also very sensitive.

Some things she has said recently include:

"I just be 3 olds big"

"Apple pie" for Pineapple

"Can I pop that bug with that box?" - when she saw a bug

"Why are you being mean? You're hurting my feelings" - when I was punishing her

"Yeah, I'm getting married and I'm going to dance with Daddy"

"Guys, stop playing with brother. Stop it. I'm taking a bath." - when we were on the bed hovered over Kellen as he cooed for the first time

"Uhhhhh! Otis! I'm so sick of him" - I heard her say this when he was in her playroom

"I love all of you guys"

"Stop playing with brother. I'm signing. It's very important to me." - she wasn't signing so not sure why she said that.

"Look Mommy. It's an octagon." - when pointing to a stop sign

"I'm a people. I'm Ella. I'm not an animal, I'm  a kid." - When going to "Ole McDonalds" and me asking if she was an animal.

"Dragon muffin" - what she calls a rag-a-muffin

When taking my picture she said "That's not a pretty smile. Let's take another. Say cheese Mommy. Oh, that's a good one. That's pretty."

"Do a bravo" - meaning do a bow

"You have a big huge booty. I have a little kid booty." - she said this to Emily.

"I don't like your attitude" - said that to me

"Dad we're sleeping. You have to be quiet." - when he was talking to Kellen while we were trying to sleep

I got all excited and told her she was going to see her Wesley soon. She responded "no, no, no calm down."

20 Questions:

1. What is your favorite color? pink and purple

2. What is your favorite toy? Jessie and Woody, and Buzz Lightyear, and the horsey

3. What is your favorite fruit? apples, tomatoes, and milk. And macaroni, hopsitles (popsicles), and push-ups. And, ice cream too. And, cantaloupe.

4. What is your favorite TV show? Caillou

5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Um, I already did. Fruit?! I like strawberries and blueberries. And, cantaloupe.

6. What is your favorite outfit? A Rapunzel outfit for Halloween

7. What is your favorite game? puzzles

8. What is your favorite snack? fruit snacks

9. What is your favorite animal? elephants and "canimals" or camels

10. What is your favorite song? A Belle song "Beauty and the Beast"

11. What is your favorite book? Cat in the Hat

12. Who is your best friend? Wesley

13. What is your favorite cereal? chipmunk cereal (she doesn't eat cereal)

14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? bubbles

15. What is your favorite drink? apple juice

16. What is your favorite holiday? snow and the presents

17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? a Dreamlite

18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? macaroni

19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? pretzels and cupcakes and a cake

20. What do you want to be when you grow up? a firefighter

Memphis/Dad Comes to Seattle

On Saturday, we drove back to Memphis. I haven't been in a car longer than 3 hours since we drove from Memphis to Seattle back in 2006 so I wasn't looking forward to it. The kids did great! We only stopped once and that was for the usual half way fill up point. 

 Once in Memphis, we visited Gran and she met Kellen for the first time. We had brunch at Pop and Gran's house Sunday morning and it was great seeing everyone. Not to mention, the food was to die for as always. Love me some Southern cooking!!! 

During the week, my best friends Julie and Ivelisse came in town with their kids. It was so funny because they all stayed at our house and it looked like a small daycare. The kids had fun at the Children's Museum and we were laughing because by the end of their 24 hour stay, us adults had very little adult talk. Kids take over man! We went to see Gran every day at the rehab center she is in. She comes home August 31st and is doing so much better. She will continue her speech and motor skills therapy. We saw Jamie and her cute son, Brooks and had lunch with my best friend Kelli. The kids saw their Grammy & Grampa on Thursday and we're really excited. Ella enjoyed playing in her kitchen with Grammy. We also spent time with Mema and she also met Kellen for the first time. On the last day, we had a great lunch at her house. 

I'm sad to say that 3 days after we left, she had a stroke - very similar to my Gran's. She's in the hospital and they took her off the ventilator today. It's a waiting game now as her brain swelling goes down and she becomes more alert to see what lies ahead. Times have been tough. Both of my grandmothers have had massive strokes in less than 3.5 months!!! 

Thursday night, my Dad flew back to Seattle with me and the kids. They did great as usual. I truly am lucky to have excellent mini fliers. Good news for as much as we travel!!! He went to Ella's soccer practice, we grilled out and sat outside a lot having drinks. The weather was perfect! He also joined us for our friend's little girl's birthday party. It was really fun! Now, we're working on getting re-adjusted, especially Kellen. The two weeks we were gone, he slept through the night every single night. I was excited to finally get full night's sleep and enjoy my last 2 months of maternity leave with more of a routine. But, he's had a tough week - full of whining and waking up in the middle of the night. Hopefully, it only lasts this week so we can enjoy our last 6 weeks:(

Make your own free slideshow

PCB, Florida

The last weekend in July, I headed across country with Ella Grace & Kellen to PCB, Florida. My parents have a condo on the water there and we met them as well as my sister, Emily, her husband, Josh, and their daughter, Ava Kate. We had a blast! We enjoyed the beach, made sandcastles, swam in the pool, visited Pier Park for frozen yogurt, ate lots of oysters and shrimp, watched the Olympics at night, watched sunsets, listened to Josh tell us about the sharks people had caught on the pier not far from the condo, drank Lime-A-Ritas, sat down at Margaritaville and ordered 2 $10 drinks, which we then dumped in the bushes in order to get Ella a balloon, braved a thunderstorm that ended up passing, and sat on the porch for the other that came just 5 minutes after we finally got down to the beach with the babies (that was quite a memory!!). These are just some of the memories...and, below are many of the other memories. Enjoy!

Make a slideshow

Maternity Leave Adventures

My friend and co-worker, Cassie, and I are both on maternity leave giving us an opportunity to explore parts of Seattle on Tuesdays and Thursdays. She has a little girl named Chloe and she and Kellen are 4 weeks apart.

So far, we have:

Picked raspberries at Remlinger Farms. We picked 2 flats worth and the total cost was $8!!!!

And, we've climbed Poo Poo Point (how fitting with babies). Think a very steep 2 mile climb (aka walking lunges the whole way up) and then 2 scary miles back down (I fell with Kellen in carrier, oops!).

 After the climb

And, the rude paragliders! The best part of the hike is the view you see below. However, we get up there and the paragliders acted like they owned the land or something. They were so rude to us! One man came over and said "Are babies supposed to be in the sun?" No, we just sit inside all day and want to kill ourselves from SADD! Give me a break. So we left and didn't get to sit and have a snack, take better pictures, and soak in the view.

Those are our adventures so far. Other times we sit by the pool, walk to the coffee shop, etc. It's a nice break from being stuck by yourself with a baby all day every day:)

2 Month Check-up

Height: 21.25 in (39th percentile)
Weight: 8 lbs 14.5 oz (26th percentile)
Noggin: 37.3 cm (30th percentile)

And, several other videos I haven't posted.

Nicknames: Boo Boo, Boo Bear, Brother, Bruiser, K

Milestones: Loves watching TV, smiling, coo'ing at you when you talk to him, coo'ing as soon as he wakes up even if that means waking up everyone else.

Maternity leave is going by soooo fast! And, Kellen is getting to be such a big boy. I think we're going to have a future linebacker!