yummy yummy yummy

I know that Easter is over, but these Russell Stover Pectin Jelly Beans are causing me a lot of grief. I would love to be back on my losing weight and exercise regime, but I can't let them go. They have always been my favorite and I have been snacking on them all week long. I eat the orange and yellow first and then finish the rest. They really are the best jelly beans!

newest addiction

I have never ordered an Arnold Palmer before, but my parents bought these Arnold Palmer Lite Half & Half (iced tea & lemonade) at Costco and I am hooked. They are sooooo good. I know they are lite (80 calories) but they still have 21g Carbohydrates and 19g Sugars. Plus, they have high fructose corn syrup. So to me, they are essentially soda, so drink wisely! Yummy!!!

totally into these

We are totally into these Melissa & Doug Arts and Crafts Kits. The Easter Bunny gave one to each of my big kids and we had fun decorating them. Even my three year old did a great job with mom's help. They have other options too. I think they make cute gifts and party favors! Check them out here.

so good!

Have I told you yet that I am determined to never make a cake or cookie from the box ever again? So far so good.... well kind of. I have a carrot cake recipe that I tried on Easter that needs a little tweaking but the Cream Cheese Frosting recipe I found was perfect! Even if you use a boxed carrot cake or a similar dessert, use this recipe!

Cream Cheese Frosting
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
3 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until creamy. Mix in the vanilla, then gradually stir in the confectioners' sugar. Store in the refrigerator after use.

I found the recipe here, I just added an extra cup of sugar!

newest addition

If you haven't seen the new version of the little girls pink sparkly TOMS, here they are! To be honest, I don't like them as much as the older version. But they are still pretty darn cute for little girls. Piper sure loves them!

new recipe

I made these Pizza Pouches last night, they were so easy, good and fun! I am kind of in love with them now. You can go here for the recipe!

a new obsession

I am sure that every one of you already has one or more of these OXO Good Grips POP Containers, but not me! I have wanted them since I saw them on New Year's Eve at my friend's house. I don't know why or what it is about them, but I love love love them. We have been on a spending hold so I haven't been able to buy any. I asked my mom for the 10 piece set for my birthday and she surprised me with them as a 'just because' gift. Rad right? I think she was mostly shocked that I wanted containers for my birthday; I guess most people that know me would probably be surprised. I filled mine with sugar, flour, brown sugar, oats, brown rice, white rice, spaghetti, walnuts, chocolate chips, and Tootsie Roll Pops. I love how they look on my counter, like little pieces of food art. I am picturing my house being overtaken by POP containers since I can think of so many cute things to put in them.

in my dreams

Dear Hubby,

I really want this Kate Spade Adeline Adeline Bicycle for my birthday. In fact, feel free to combine it with my Mother's Day gift. I really really love it and I hope that the $1,100 price tag doesn't deter you too much (it's okay to dream right?).

Love,

in the thick of it

Where was I at the end of the last week? I was in the thick of it. You mom's know what this is, it is having the longest week ever struggling with tantrums, no time, extra clinginess, stress from finances, my own feelings of tiredness and basically trying to do it all with a smile. It actually sounds worse than it was but it was a long and not-so-awesome week. I was beat down emotionally by Friday and I even had a good cry on the phone with my husband (we all know what that is like when it just lets loose out of nowhere). And today I am looking around at the piles of laundry, the toys everywhere, the messiness of the kitchen and I feel like I have already lost a battle that I haven't even started. But you know what, it's the weekend, it is beautiful outside, my husband is home and I need to enjoy the weekend and so should you! Us moms can only do so much and sometimes we need to walk away from the mess, demand our family help us with all of it and enjoy each other for the days we are all together! And, I am letting daddy make all of the decisions this weekend, this mom needs to clear her head a bit.

Oatmeal Raisin Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies

What do you do when your hubby loves oatmeal raisin cookies, but you prefer chocolate chip? You take the Quaker Oats Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Recipe and add a few extra things!

Ingredients
1/2 cup (1 stick) plus 6 tablespoons butter, softened
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
3 cups Quaker® Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)
1 cup raisins

Chocolate Chips (I add about 3/4 cup)

Walnuts (I add about 1/2 cup)

Preparation
Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, beat butter and sugars on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats and raisins; mix well.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.

see it again

We rented this movie recently and I am still thinking about how much I liked it! I think I want to watch it again.

great weekend

(1st Haircut already shown on Facebook and via SMS to everyone we know)

My weekend:

1. Started a Friday night pizza ritual at a new pizza place

2. Saw Hop (my kids absolutely loved it, I couldn't wait for it to be over)

3. Caught up with a girlfriend

4. Made up a dance routine with my oldest (he invented a move called the 'tiger tooth')

5. Watched the new iCarly (we were all really excited for this.... no really)

6. Took the baby to get his first haircut (tear, tear)

7. Texted and Facebooked many pictures of said haircut

8. Went to church and dropped off ALL the kids in Sunday School (only one cries now)

9. Split the family up so the boys could have "real boy time" (which apparently means a bike ride and milkshakes)

10. I was able to see my parents, sisters, niece, nephew & brother-in-law all in one weekend

11. Play in piles of hail and make a snowman (very rare occurrence in Southern California)

12. Clean out my car, including vacuuming 3,267 cracker crumbs

Things I did not do:

1. Laundry (oops)

2. Meal plan and make grocery list (oopsie)

3. Do necessary errands (uh oh)

4. Clean my room (oh well)

I had way too much fun this weekend to care! That's what Mondays are for.

to keep organized

Hanging clipboards in the kitchen to help keep me on track! My cleaning to-do list, my son's homework and my shopping list. Behind my shopping list are all the recipes for the week too! I will definitely add some color to those clipboards when I get time!

pretty amazing

If you don't know the scoop, my sister is a photographer and her wedding photography company Lavender & Twine was featured on a national blog, The Sweetest Occasions. You can see all the gorgeous photos here. The pictures are AMAZING! Please check it out and leave a comment on their page. There is a contest involved, so please support her.

more stuff

Mark loves antique typewriters. Luckily we were able to have some from Mark's parents' house. I also filled this hurricane vase to match my design logo; a nest with three eggs. Once again I took apart an old wreath, stuffed it in the vase, and used three blue eggs from the batch I filled in the apothecary jar.

A painted letter, a jar of buttons, a little bird and a candle holder makes for a fun corner.

more home stuff

I bought these little shelfs at Ikea and put them in the kitchen displaying all the baby announcements and cards I have done for our family as well as little paintings I have picked up over the years.

Of course my picture cut off the actual shelf but I hung another one in the kitchen below my picture and it displays some classic Children's Books.

stuff at home

I would love to paint our house, get new furniture and indulge in a home makeover.... but that's not going to happen right now. I was really unhappy with the way we had to make our furniture fit when we moved so I made it a priority to decorate on a tiny budget. This week I am going to share some of my favorite little things I did. I already had these apothecary jars at home and since we have a bird/nest theme in our life with my business, I broke apart an old wreath to make the nest and bought some colorful eggs to fill the other. I have this up all the time but it's perfect for Easter too!

sweet cards

Every little girl needs her own personalized notecards to send thank you notes after her birthday. Mommy writes on the front and Piper decorates the back. Perfect for a 3 year old!

my baby girl

I let Piper pick out any one thing at BabyGap for her birthday and she chose these adorable pink flowered flats. She's a girl after my own heart!

fun

My daughter really wanted this Circo Shopping Cart ($22.99 from Target) for her 3rd birthday. We were a little reluctant because we kind of feel that she's actually a little old for it, but she didn't really ask for anything else and she loves those mini shopping carts at the grocery store. Now that we have it I love how simple and adorable the food is that came with it! It looks really cute in her little play kitchen, especially the can of wannabe potato chips. Fun!

just another day in my house

I asked my older son to keep the baby happy while I did something upstairs real quick. When I came back down I found out that he taught the baby how to pretend to be a dog and walk around with some (pretend) bologna in his mouth and shake his head. Not sure if I find this hilarious or concerning, but either way it made a cute picture and makes a great story.