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3.31.2011

more house projects!

we have been busy, busy, busy around the house lately.  first, B has been wanting to cover our entry in slate tile and it turned out great.  



Next, painting the exterior is something that we have talked about since we moved in.  we liked how it looked before, but we didn't love the color of the brick. so, we finally went for it!  and the front door seriously needed a fresh coat.

BEFORE


 daddy's little helper 


hard working boys
AFTER

tada!

Lastly, E helped Dada spread some crushed granite on the side of the house to help with drainage.

 or maybe he  just played in it. 

3.27.2011

hungry?

I am trying to branch out and try new recipes.  Mostly from friends - I find those usually turn out better than if I pick one randomly. :)  So here's one light and one indulgent recipe for you to try!  The hardest part for me is remembering to take a picture of it before its all eaten!  I had to borrow one of the banana bread... Enjoy!


LIGHT: Chinese Coleslaw (from my friend Ellen)


so easy and yummy!

1 bag of shredded cabbage
2 bags beef ramen noodles (uncooked & broken apart)
1 bunch green onions
1 small bag salted sunflower seeds
1 small bag sliced almonds
1/4 c. olive oil
1/4 c. water
1/2 c. apple cider vinegar
1/2 c. sugar
2 packets beef seasoning (from the ramen)

Mix all dry ingredients - reserving seasoning packets.  I also added about 1/2 bag of shredded carrots. Then mix last 5 ingredients listed and pour over first mixture.



 INDULGENT: Banana bread (or muffins) from the FoodNetwork.com

also good with a little honey :)

1 cup granulated sugar
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 large eggs
3 ripe bananas
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
 * I also added 1 tsp vanilla and 1/4 c chopped walnuts


Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter a 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan.

Cream the sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

In a small bowl, mash the bananas with a fork. Mix in the milk and cinnamon. In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Add the banana mixture to the creamed mixture and stir until combined. Add dry ingredients, mixing just until flour disappears.

Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

3.24.2011

bathtastic!

I borrowed that term from the DIY network... shhh... :) 

Here is one of our latest house projects.  We gave our hallway bath a serious makeover.  Took everything down to the studs and B even reran the plumbing!  Here are some before and after pics for you to enjoy. 

BEFORE:
of course there were originally doors on the cabinets and mirrors on the wall - I took the picture a few minutes late. We removed this whole wall of cabinets - they were oversized and taking up most of the bathroom. 

 The half-wall by the toilet is gone now, new floor, and tile.

and said bye bye to the old tub.


 AFTER:
everything is new and clean!  and much roomier with better lighting.  I bought a piece of furniture and talked B and my dad into making it into a vanity.  A little extra work, but worth it I think. :)

new spa tub!

the floor was the first thing we picked out. I love it. 

 
E and a few bubbles breaking in the new tub.  

3.11.2011

funny boy

Our little 2 year old definitely has his moments of being challenging/throwing fits, but he's also pretty darn cute and funny.


we are still working on spoon-feeding ourselves.  yogurt is a tricky one.

1. Everything we play with has a dada and usually a mama (and sometimes a nana).  It doesn't matter if they're cars or trains or animals.

2. He likes to tell people when they're doing something wrong - including mama, dada, cars driving by, etc.  This involves an emphatic "uh-uh" and sometimes some finger shaking.

3. He's been saying a lot of "What's that momma?" and pointing at things.  Well, sometimes he says it  "oh, what's this?" which can sound a lot like "oh sh%#".  Today a lady in the store asked me "what'd he say??"  haha.  oops. not what you think.

4. He likes to say "Hi Momma" or "Hi Dada" in a bit of a southern drawl, and give you a big hug with his arms around your neck.  (His hugs used to just be him leaning his head toward you, so this is a lot better)

5. He's very sympathetic.  If I or anyone else is wearing a band-aid or has a boo boo (or sometimes even just a hole in your jeans) he makes a sad face and says "ohhh, owie" and gives you a little pat.

6. We've been attempting to work on the whole potty training idea, so I'll ask him if he needs to go poo poo or if he already went poo poo, and he ALWAYS says no.  Well, last night we took him out of the bath tub and he ran off.  Then I saw him standing in the next room looking guilty.  I said "did you pee pee?" And for the first time, he said "uh-huh".  I thought he was kidding, but he wasn't.

so far all we do is sit for a minute  :)

7. He wants to be like Dada.  If we want something to look more attractive, we just say its like Dadas.  Let's put Dada's shoes on, Dada's jacket, Dada is eating his carrots.  And all fire trucks and ambulances in the city belong to Dada. And all Christmas trees are Dada's (since he put ours up).

8. If we get in the car to go somewhere and Dada tries to listen to talk radio he says "uh-uh Dada", subtly asking to listen to Veggietales.

9. I'll catch him doing funny things like sitting in his toy basket or organizing his toys in an interesting way.

for some reason all the puzzle pieces need to be in the ladder of the truck.

10.  He LOVES going places with Dada. Anytime there is even the slightest mention of going somewhere with Dada he waves to me and says "Bye Mama" and he's out the door without another look. 

3.07.2011

E turned 2!

and in classic fashion I'm posting pictures from several weeks ago.  :)  but they're still very cute. 

The night before his birthday he picked out his footy fire truck pajamas that Uncle L & Aunt C gave him.  It was really funny because he never picks his pajamas out - actually he usually tries to avoid putting them on.  But it made for some cute pictures the next morning. :) 

We had our favorite breakfast - waffles! (and birthday signs around the house for the birthday boy :)

And got to watch some Clifford with all of our trains. 


And we had a birthday party with our friends Caleb and Noah who were also turning 2!

and we got them to wear their conductor hats for a few seconds.

enjoying some pizza with Nana



This year he was much more into opening presents.  But it was hard to explain that he couldn't take time to play with each one right then.  


yay!

Thomas!

we all attempted to blow out the candles together. :)

sharing some cake with Pops


We had such a fun time and the weather was great!  We are so in love with our little man.  (another post coming soon about all the funny things he's doing)