Ugh...

Just throwing money down the drain!  Is it too early to potty train an 8 month old? 

A jumble

A bunch of randomness(is that a word?).  We have had my sister and her family in town, lots of baths, naps, and outdoor fun.  Jade had her first bath in the kitchen sink and from the look on her face, I think she quite liked it.  She's a happy girl, despite the constant bruises on her head.  We are considering changing her name to bruiser!  With her crawling and climbing on everything, she is constantly bonking her little noggin on something! 

Remee has been a bit fussier than normal.  I'm hoping it's just a growth spurt or something.  Cause if I have to hear her whining anymore I might just wear ear plugs as part of my daily attire.  We finally got rid of the ant infestation in our house.  I'm not kidding, these little buggers are evil.  Then I watch the movie 'A Bug's Life' and feel bad for saying that.  Seriously though, I hate ants and I hope they all rot!!!  On a lighter note, I feel really blessed.  I love my hubby...I know mushy, but I really, really do.  He is a great man, and a very hard worker.  I am one lucky lady, I'll tell ya!

Provo Farmer's Market

 I always enjoy a farmer's market. And while Provo's is small, I must say, I enjoyed wandering around the vendors and sampling all they had to offer.  Fresh bread, homemade soaps, local produce...I'm a sucker.  So, off I went with $20 bucks to spend and the little ones in tow.  A wooden spoon, soap, cherries, and eggs later...I still have a few bucks to spare.  It was a good day! 

A little Ina in the Garden

When I'm in desperate need of some cooking inspiration I watch the movie 'Julie and Julia'.  So, last night I popped in that wonderful movie of mine and felt inspired.  It's like that movie makes me fall in love with cooking all over again.  I love the smells and the sizzle.  The crunch of chopping fresh produce, but most of all, I love the fact that I can take only a few simple ingredients and I can make some of the yummiest things!  So, today I took the girls to story time at the library and felt a little pull to check out the cookbooks.  I would say a good selection.  I discovered this gem!  'Barefoot in Paris' by Ina Garten(one of my favorite cooks)!  I sat in my garden and flipped the pages, meanwhile watching Remee play in the sandbox.  Sure enough, it's packed full of yummy, simple recipes. 

 Oh, what it would be like to live in Paris!  Going to the farmer's market every day for your groceries.  Nothing but bright colored food and happy farmers.  Gorgeous flowers for days.  Doesn't that sound dreamy? 

Anyway, I'll be heading to the farmer's market on Saturday and then, it's on to making some yummy, new, recipes! 

Days Like These

Momma said there'll be days like these, right?  When one thinks about being a stay at home mom we think it's all fun and games and snuggles.  My days aren't like that sometimes.  Today I feel exhausted, overwhelmed, and just spent.  The sound of a cry is deafening.  It makes me feel a little weaker!  I pray nap times comes faster and anything that keeps the toddler entertained is fine by me. 

I try my hardest to think about tomorrow.  That it will be better.  That I will feel more energized and alert.  But, for today, I'll sit, eat, and just let the kids play as they may.  I'm hoping for a good night's rest, and a headache free tomorrow!

Master Bedroom and Bathroom Re-Haul

Believe it or not it has actually taken 4 years to get these before and after pictures put together.  As many of you know we bought a major fixer upper.  I'm talking we had to pretty much gut the whole house for it to even be livable.  The woman who lived in this house before us didn't take care of her house at all.  She was a hoarder, smoker, crazy lady, and had three pets who peed and pooped anywhere they wanted to in the house.  So, to say the least, we really had our work cut out for us.  Luckily, we got a great deal on the house and saw what potential it had, meaning it had good bones!  Almost the whole house was covered in some form of wall paper and or paneling.  The windows were awful, the smell was awful, the carpet was awful.  So, it took us hours of ripping things out, priming every wall and floor in the house and finally, it's done.  Well, it was done a long time ago, I'm just slow at getting these pictures up on here!  Anyway, these are before and after pictures of the master bedroom first.  Then, the master bathroom.  We love the end result, and we hope you like looking at the finished product.  There will be more posts soon with the rest of the house!

BEFORE

BEFORE

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER



BEFORE

BEFORE

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

It's the American Way

Despite the fact that Jade was sick, we had a wonderful Independence Day filled with festivities and family....oh and food.  We watched the Provo parade, which fascinated Remee.  She waved at all of the 'princesses' and covered her ears when the bands played. We took her to get her face painted, made a bracelet, and got her fingernails painted.  She walked around for quite a while with her fingers in the air waiting for them to dry.  She looked like a little diva.  Jade fell asleep in her stroller(miracle) and we got home to get cookin' for our BBQ later that day. Mike's family joined us for a dinner BBQ and the kids all played in the sprinklers and pool.  I, unfortunately, was trying to shush a screaming baby for about an hour.  All in all it was a lot of fun, and I feel blessed to be an American!

A Day At The Aviary

Yesterday we took a trip to the Tracy Aviary.  It was hot, but we had fun.  The grounds were beautiful and so were the birds.  There were so many different kinds, and I have to admit they were all a little creepy.  They just stared at you with their big eyes and watched you walk by. Remee and Jade had fun.  Well Remee told us she had fun, I'm just guessing with Jade cause, you know, she can't talk yet.  We were all roasting though.  100 degrees outside is really not the best time to go walk around and look at birds.