is summer over?

even though my favorite season may be coming to an end, today's weather felt right.  here is a peek at my day today...

this time of year seems to encourage me to bake more.  add two overripe bananas and i just couldn't resist making banana bread.  i used this recipe and added a little bit of chocolate and walnuts.

 my poor boots have had a lonely summer hiding in a corner in my closet.  now all i need is a few puddles to go jump in...

while waiting for big brother to get home, the twins were being so loving towards each other.  i love catching moments like this!

here is the big kindergartener!  i am so proud of how well he is adjusting to the long days at school.

the only missing from today was a nice long run around the block...and that one appointment that i completely forgot about.  oops.  :o)

is summer over?

even though my favorite season may be coming to an end, today's weather felt right.  here is a peek at my day today...

this time of year seems to encourage me to bake more.  add two overripe bananas and i just couldn't resist making banana bread.  i used this recipe and added a little bit of chocolate and walnuts.

 my poor boots have had a lonely summer hiding in a corner in my closet.  now all i need is a few puddles to go jump in...

while waiting for big brother to get home, the twins were being so loving towards each other.  i love catching moments like this!

here is the big kindergartener!  i am so proud of how well he is adjusting to the long days at school.

the only missing from today was a nice long run around the block...and that one appointment that i completely forgot about.  oops.  :o)

need to clean the kitchen?

a group of us decided to try out another new recipe.  i tried it for the first time on saturday and have made it again since then.  each time i've made it, i've taken advantage of the time baking to clean around the kitchen...i think it's an awesome incentive!  this caramel corn is beyond amazing.  YUM!

check out alexis, savannah, caroleana, melissa and amy's blog to hear their reviews!

be careful taking it out of the oven to avoid burns.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter 2 cups brown sugar 1/2 cup corn syrup 1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 5 quarts popped popcorn

Directions:

1.	Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (95 degrees C). Place popped popcorn in oven to keep warm.
2.	In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in brown sugar, corn syrup and salt. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil without stirring 4 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in soda and vanilla. Pour in a thin stream over popcorn, stirring to coat.
3.	Place in two large shallow baking dishes and bake in preheated oven, stirring every 15 minutes, for 1 hour. Remove from oven and let cool completely before breaking into pieces.

need to clean the kitchen?

a group of us decided to try out another new recipe.  i tried it for the first time on saturday and have made it again since then.  each time i've made it, i've taken advantage of the time baking to clean around the kitchen...i think it's an awesome incentive!  this caramel corn is beyond amazing.  YUM!

check out alexis, savannah, caroleana, melissa and amy's blog to hear their reviews!

be careful taking it out of the oven to avoid burns.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter 2 cups brown sugar 1/2 cup corn syrup 1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 5 quarts popped popcorn

Directions:

1.	Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (95 degrees C). Place popped popcorn in oven to keep warm.
2.	In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in brown sugar, corn syrup and salt. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil without stirring 4 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in soda and vanilla. Pour in a thin stream over popcorn, stirring to coat.
3.	Place in two large shallow baking dishes and bake in preheated oven, stirring every 15 minutes, for 1 hour. Remove from oven and let cool completely before breaking into pieces.

fail.

so, my friend alexis had this AMAZING idea last week.  she found a quick cinnamon roll recipe that sounded easy and tasty, and thought that it would be cool if a group of blogging ladies (becky, amy, melissa, caroleana, and i) would join her in trying it out and blog about the results.  i loved the idea and decided to take it a step further and do a taste comparison with another recipe too.

well, here's what really ended up happening.  i was down visiting my parents and sister along with my brother and his family for the weekend, which made for a full house.  friday night before we took off to a high school football game, we demolished the kitchen in our attempts to make my family's favorite cinnamon roll recipe.  partway through the process, we realized that we had made more than necessary...we were running out of room in the refrigerator and out of pans to bake them in.  hmm...

i hung on to the hope that i would still make the other recipe the next morning despite the abundance.  sadly, that never happened.  even with nine people eating cinnamon rolls both on saturday morning, sunday morning and a couple of snacks here and there, i left my parent's house today with a full pan of baked cinnamon rolls.  there was even another pan left in my mom's refrigerator to bake still!

so, my attempt to try a new recipe failed this weekend.  don't worry though, it will happen soon.  i'll be visiting my parents again next weekend and the ingredients are waiting for me!  tomorrow i'll post a picture of the cinnamon rolls i DID make.  :o)

fail.

so, my friend alexis had this AMAZING idea last week.  she found a quick cinnamon roll recipe that sounded easy and tasty, and thought that it would be cool if a group of blogging ladies (becky, amy, melissa, caroleana, and i) would join her in trying it out and blog about the results.  i loved the idea and decided to take it a step further and do a taste comparison with another recipe too.

well, here's what really ended up happening.  i was down visiting my parents and sister along with my brother and his family for the weekend, which made for a full house.  friday night before we took off to a high school football game, we demolished the kitchen in our attempts to make my family's favorite cinnamon roll recipe.  partway through the process, we realized that we had made more than necessary...we were running out of room in the refrigerator and out of pans to bake them in.  hmm...

i hung on to the hope that i would still make the other recipe the next morning despite the abundance.  sadly, that never happened.  even with nine people eating cinnamon rolls both on saturday morning, sunday morning and a couple of snacks here and there, i left my parent's house today with a full pan of baked cinnamon rolls.  there was even another pan left in my mom's refrigerator to bake still!

so, my attempt to try a new recipe failed this weekend.  don't worry though, it will happen soon.  i'll be visiting my parents again next weekend and the ingredients are waiting for me!  tomorrow i'll post a picture of the cinnamon rolls i DID make.  :o)

azariah & yogurt

azariah wanted to drink his yogurt today and after a few minutes of messy communications, i understood.  i diluted it a little with milk and gave him a straw.  he LOVED it!  definitely made me smile...

azariah & yogurt

azariah wanted to drink his yogurt today and after a few minutes of messy communications, i understood.  i diluted it a little with milk and gave him a straw.  he LOVED it!  definitely made me smile...

yum. pizza extravaganza!

most nights i tend to be lazy and eat pasta...

last night, i was ready to take a few extra minutes to whip something up. oh, man was it worth the time. i made pizza! for the crust i used a box mix and then i LOADED on the toppings. bbq sauce, cheddar, muenster and mozzarella cheese, chicken, onions, garlic, green & red peppers and pineapple. just think...it tastes even better than it looks!

yum. pizza extravaganza!

most nights i tend to be lazy and eat pasta...

last night, i was ready to take a few extra minutes to whip something up. oh, man was it worth the time. i made pizza! for the crust i used a box mix and then i LOADED on the toppings. bbq sauce, cheddar, muenster and mozzarella cheese, chicken, onions, garlic, green & red peppers and pineapple. just think...it tastes even better than it looks!

twins!

i've always wanted to have twins. you may think that this is a random post...but it's been a theme for the past two days. yesterday at taco bell i had the priviledge of meeting twin girls who were only eight days old. so tiny and precious. both were around five pounds each! then today as i was making french toast, i cracked open an egg...

egg twins! it made me smile...then i finished making french toast and i ate the cute little yolks. they were delicious! the end.

twins!

i've always wanted to have twins. you may think that this is a random post...but it's been a theme for the past two days. yesterday at taco bell i had the priviledge of meeting twin girls who were only eight days old. so tiny and precious. both were around five pounds each! then today as i was making french toast, i cracked open an egg...

egg twins! it made me smile...then i finished making french toast and i ate the cute little yolks. they were delicious! the end.

arby's

we ate arby's today for lunch. this is what happens when you hand azariah a whole sandwich. this kid loves his food!

arby's

we ate arby's today for lunch. this is what happens when you hand azariah a whole sandwich. this kid loves his food!

somedays these kids...

DRIVE ME CRAZY!
luckily today is not one of those days. i just thought i'd show pictures of them "driving" the van.

i love how helpful they are. yesterday, we decided to make belgian waffles for lunch and the boys helped me make and stir the batter while mari took a nap. my little helpers make things a bit more messy, but it is SO WORTH IT! they would rather help and watch then play with their toys.

somedays these kids...

DRIVE ME CRAZY!
luckily today is not one of those days. i just thought i'd show pictures of them "driving" the van.

i love how helpful they are. yesterday, we decided to make belgian waffles for lunch and the boys helped me make and stir the batter while mari took a nap. my little helpers make things a bit more messy, but it is SO WORTH IT! they would rather help and watch then play with their toys.

albany, babies, and a double stoller

my trip down to albany was an awesome time to just get away for the weekend. the babies got to put their new double stroller to the test and loved walking down to an elementary school to play on the playground. i just have to say that i love the stroller too! freedom! ha ha ha! the highlight of the trip (other than family of course!) was the cinnamon rolls. if only i could somehow allow you to smell these. ahhh...nothing beats waking up to mom's homemade cinnamon rolls.
both mornings we enjoyed these hot and fresh out of the oven. heaven!

albany, babies, and a double stoller

my trip down to albany was an awesome time to just get away for the weekend. the babies got to put their new double stroller to the test and loved walking down to an elementary school to play on the playground. i just have to say that i love the stroller too! freedom! ha ha ha! the highlight of the trip (other than family of course!) was the cinnamon rolls. if only i could somehow allow you to smell these. ahhh...nothing beats waking up to mom's homemade cinnamon rolls.
both mornings we enjoyed these hot and fresh out of the oven. heaven!

blessed.

God has really been opening my eyes to how he has blessed me with my friends. yesterday i enjoyed an awesome lunch with quiche, cucumber sandwiches and expresso/chocolate chip muffins. although the food was amazing, it is now gone and only the recipes and memories of tastes remain. the friends however, i anticipate will be with me for a long time. i can't express how much that means to me. i have pushed myself to reach out to others more recently and been more open about all that is going on in my life. i have been blessed beyond belief. i have always shied away from sharing everything, because i do NOT want to be the dramatic or burdensome person that people roll their eyes about or avoid. God has been stretching me. it has been uncomfortable at times, but He has surrounded me with amazing people. why don't i enjoy the stretching process more when i know that EVERY time i have stepped out in faith, i get blessed?

HOW IS GOD STRETCHING YOU?

blessed.

God has really been opening my eyes to how he has blessed me with my friends. yesterday i enjoyed an awesome lunch with quiche, cucumber sandwiches and expresso/chocolate chip muffins. although the food was amazing, it is now gone and only the recipes and memories of tastes remain. the friends however, i anticipate will be with me for a long time. i can't express how much that means to me. i have pushed myself to reach out to others more recently and been more open about all that is going on in my life. i have been blessed beyond belief. i have always shied away from sharing everything, because i do NOT want to be the dramatic or burdensome person that people roll their eyes about or avoid. God has been stretching me. it has been uncomfortable at times, but He has surrounded me with amazing people. why don't i enjoy the stretching process more when i know that EVERY time i have stepped out in faith, i get blessed?

HOW IS GOD STRETCHING YOU?