labor of love...

2 hours + 180 inches of counterspace + a stay at home mom with little creative outlet =

buttermilk carrot cake cupcakes with toasted coconut and candied pecans

It's so cute, I'm not sure if I should eat it or swaddle it up and take it out for a stroll in the pram.

spring break adventure #1

Ben was nice enough to let me take the first couple days of his spring break to get away with the lovely ladies of our small group. When your first thought after putting your bag down is whether you should take a nap, eat a bowl of chocolate covered pretzels, or go sit in the hot tub, you know it's going to be time well spent. It was the perfect 48 hours of chatting, shopping, eating, walking, and relaxing. A great start to a wonderful week.

Enjoying the beautiful view from our deck

Early morning stroll

Movie soulmates

And I found an outfit for easter Sunday!

Good times were had by all and made it all the sweeter to be back in the arms of my littles and my honey.

B Love

1. For buying me this honey pot.

2. For his insistence on saying, "Downtown Abbey," and putting it into conversation at least twice a day.

3. For surprising me with these:

4. For knowing all the words to the Tangled soundtrack

5. And finally...for watching one episode of Mad Men and then dressing like Don Draper all week.

Being married to Ben entails a wide variety of adjectives...but boring is not one of them.

Today

Because it's Wednesday

Because it's snowing

Because I cried over spilt milk...literally

Because there's still seventeen days until Easter

Because for all the grey there's still a lot of life-blooming

I will sing of my Redeemer,

And His wondrous love to me;

On the cruel cross He suffered,

From the curse to set me free

Sing, oh, sing of my Redeemer,

With His blood He purchased me,

On the cross He sealed my pardon,

Paid the debt, and made me free.

I will tell the wondrous story,

How my lost estate to save,

In His boundless love and mercy,

He the ransom freely gave.

I will praise my dear Redeemer,

His triumphant pow'r I'll tell,

How the victory He giveth

Over sin, and death and Hell.

I will sing of my Redeemer,

And His heav'nly love to me;

He from death to life hate brought me,

Son of God with Him to be.

Tia Time

We had another whirlwind visit from Tia last week and Ava is still bursting into tears that she's left. We always manage to make some time for fun and this visit was no exception. We didn't let snow, rain, or the nasty traveling virus get in our way.

The first day Ava got to have some special time with Tia and Grandpa and walked away with new purple fairy doll!

And after watching my first episode of Diners, Drive-In's, and Dives, which happened to be in Portland, Christy and I decided to head downtown and check out Blueplate. But first there was a snowman waiting to be built.

The restaurant was fantastic but my favorite was the house special hibiscus lemonade. Crazy weird and uniquely wonderful.

Of course we had to go roller skating at Oaks Park. Little Miss showed off her impressive skills and Ian even gave it a go for a whole 10 minutes.

Then he stalked Chipper.

And no trip to Portland would be complete without a stop at Voodoo Doughnut. It was aligned in the stars as there was no line to get in. Unheard of people!

Ava was nearly in tears trying to choose which one she wanted but I told her she couldn't go wrong with the fruit loop doughnut. She instantly embraced my logic and fell into the voodoo trance as she licked her plate clean.

We miss you Tia! Thank you for your spontaneous fun loving presence in our home, and thanks for all the photos as I was too lazy to take any of my own!

Kindergarten Round-Up

Um...I mean... look...Ava's sitting up by herself! Such a big girl.

Before the dark angel of sickness descended upon our home

infecting all who live within these four walls with a life sucking cough and the niagra falls of all runny noses, we went outside, and it was lovely.

Yes, I realize this is creepy but they're just so dang cute.

I'll admit that I've spent the last few months in a bit of a daze and sometimes there's a little uneasiness about when you might resurface. I've always told myself that I'm not that girl, the one who's joy is seasonal. But when the sun comes out and the babies run free I feel my spirit loosen a little bit, it peeks out under all the layers and yearns for more.

I'll be honest that there's a daily mantra,

Spring is coming

dinner on a budget

We decided to do a pantry challenge during February and while there were a lot of pancake and baked potato dinners, I was also able to get a little creative. If you've never heard of a pantry challenge it's pretty much just using up everything you have in your kitchen. We did buy essentials which included some fruits and veggies/milk/eggs and orange juice.

My first favorite was adapted from a Jacque Pepin recipe and it was my first time cooking with asparagus. I always thought I hated asparagus but I am so glad I gave it another try. It is not just the weird veggie that makes your pee smell funny anymore!

This one is so, so easy. You want to start with one of those long links of smoked sausage. One was enough for the four of us but you can always double it. Then stop by the market and pick up some very fresh asparagus. I think thicker is better in case you overcook it. You want it to have a little crunch in the end. Finally, you'll need some country bread getting stale on the counter. Cut everything into bite sized pieces and throw it all into a cast iron skillet with a little olive oil. Stir it every few minutes so that the sausage gets some color and the bread turns golden.

Give it some love, breathe it in and imagine you're cooking for your very cool friends on a rooftop in Barcelona. Then wipe the toddler drool off your sleeve, tell your kids that No, Kitty does not like it when you use a rubber band and a piece of yarn as a leash, and snap back into reality. I served it with cinnamon apples but it would be great with tapas style oven potatoes or a big salad. This meal was so good and ended up costing less than $5.

The next dinner was a little more complicated but you still only need a few simple items from your kitchen. We've been getting bone-in, skin on chicken thighs from Costco and can usually get three meals out of the one package. Don't forget to wash, pat dry and season with salt & pepper before you start. Pioneer Woman got me hooked on slow cooking chicken thighs and I adapted this recipe from one of hers. You can't go wrong with these simple steps:

1. Brown the chicken in an olive oil/butter combo (four at a time in a dutch oven) & remove with a slotted spoon

2. Remove as much fat as you and your muffin top are comfortable with and cook a diced onion until soft

3. Add some rice wine vinegar (or whatever you have), scrape up the brown bits, and reduce a little

4. Eyeball some ginger(fresh or powder), five spice seasoning, soy sauce, apricot jam (or whatever you have, except maybe strawberry jam...ooh if they make pineapple jam that would be really good) and the chicken with all the drippings

5. Add enough orange juice to just about cover the chicken

6. Bring it all to a boil, put the lid on and stick it in a 275-300 degree oven for a few hours (mine took a little under two but you can probably keep it in there up to four.) You really want the chicken to be falling off the bone.

You can serve it at this point over rice but I like to remove the chicken (keep warm with foil) and add some cornstarch mixed with water into the sauce to thicken it up. Then just put the chicken over the rice, add the sauce and sprinkle with something green for color.

I love it with green onions but basil or cilantro would be fun too. Again, it was a crowd pleaser and minus the pantry items, only costs about $4 for the whole meal. Here's the link to Ms. PW's other yummy recipe. It seems endlessly adaptable. Happy cooking!

Thursday

Almost there...

One more...

Perfect...

And now my half-hearted clown impersonations

If you have to spend eleven hours a day with someone and you decide that you're only going to eat if that other someone has to hand feed you while singing The Wheels on the Bus, it's helpful if you are this cute.