yank out that tooth

Hayden's top left front tooth has been loose for what seems like forever.  Gary and Hayden devised a plan to get that booger out.  They used dental floss and tied it around the tooth.  They tied the other end of the floss to a remote control monster truck.  Then Hayden hit the go button.

Sadly nothing happened.  The tooth hasn't come out, but I'm sure they will try again and again.

Boys will be boys.

snow day turned snow days

This is our third snow day this week and we got tons of snow for Georgia!

The snow flakes were so stinkin' big!  I can't remember ever seeing flakes that large in Ohio.

Gary was home from work due to the terrible roads, so you know it must be bad.

He had fun playing with the kids and even caught a few flakes.

My fleece hat and jacket were covered in snowflakes.  I couldn't believe how fast the snow was coming down!!

We had a fun day playing in the snow and it was really pretty, but I'll be happy when it melts and spring has sprung!

orange rolls all waffled up

If you follow me on Instagram you know that I am waffling all the things.  

I have been doing tons of experimenting since Valentine's day with my new waffle maker.  I have done muffin mixes and tater tots and grilled cheese sandwiches and even apples and pears with cinnamon.

Yesterday we had a snow day and so I made orange rolls for breakfast for the kids.  They are ok, but I will do the orange rolls differently next time.  I won't smash them all on the hot iron at the same time.  You live and you learn right?!?   I think it would be fun to make them in different shapes too!

The Pillsbury orange rolls still tasted super yummy even though they looked a little odd! 

snow day!!

It snowed in the middle of the night and we have a nice coating of snow!

The snow made Lily super hyper and spastic.  She was running around the yard and the deck like a mad woman.

  

Daisy Mae was not loving the snow.  She's a princess and hates to have wet paws.

I love this picture of her looking down the stairs!

Lily sat on the stairs and watched the action down below.  She's a great babysitter because I was cold!  I didn't want any part of being out in the snow.  I got my fill of that in Ohio.

The kids decided to sled down our sidewalk in the backyard.  

I have to admit it looked fun until the snow and ice melted.  Then the sliding wasn't going so well and they had to move onto another fun activity.

Like building a snow ghost with a pinecone 'bow'.  Ha!  Silly girl!

Hayden found a fun pine cone treasure.  It was pretty cool!

After lunch they headed back out for some sledding in the front yard.  They made tons of snowballs with plans of tossing them at people as they walked down the street, but no one ever walked by.

We had a fun first day of snow here in our new house in our new state!

Single Sentence Sunday

I love Sunday's because Gary and the kids cook brunch for us while I relax and have coffee!

Winter Break with my parents

My parents came to GA for their first visit.  The kids had the week off school so it was a perfect time!

We took them to our favorite breakfast restaurant, as well as other good restaurants we have explored in our new town.

The guys cooked chili and it was so delicious!  Hayden wore his brand new apron that Netsie made him.  He's turning out to be a great cook!

Us girls did girl stuff like hair conditioning and eyebrow waxing while the guys went to the Glock factory.

Hayden looks so official with his badge.

Lily and Daisy had a fun week too with my parents around.

We explored a local gun range and it was very nice and women shoot free on Thursday.

My dad helped me learn about my gun.  He is a great teacher and knows tons about guns.  It's a great hobby to have!

The kids sat with us while we shot and they were so curious.  It was so cold in the range, and they did great even with the cold temps.  I'm so thankful we have the right to be educated about guns and gun safety.  This range even offers a gun safety class for kids.

After shooting we ate a yummy Mexican lunch at our favorite Mexican restaurant.  I had chicken tacos and they were amazing and very fresh.  I love their beans and I hope to make a batch as good as theirs soon.  I can't wait!

We had a fun week even though the weather was yucky and cold most of the time.  We're still anxiously waiting for spring weather!  Thanks for the fun visit Netsie and DeDe!

Valentine's Day 2015

The munchkins started off Valentine's day with a cream filled chocolate glazed donut, strawberries and strawberry milk.  They were very happy!

I got a waffle maker as a gift from my Valentine!  I'm so excited about it!

I made a batch of the fluffiest waffles I've ever eaten.  The kids are in love.  I used a package of strawberry muffin mix and just added a 1/2 cup of milk and then poured it onto the hot waffle iron.  It's so fun and easy.  I pinned tons of recipes on Pinterest.  I saw a pin about putting layers of tater tots on the waffle iron to produce hash browns.  Um hello!  Yes ma'am!  I'm so happy with my new gift!  I'll try to post all my creations!

I did baked apples for dessert tonight.  Yes, on the waffle maker and then I sprinkled them with a Truvia packet and cinnamon.  I tried to be creative with what I have at home, but hope to try brownies and even cinnamon rolls on my new toy.  My head cold came back after being gone for several days, so I didn't want to go to the grocery store feeling all sneezy.  I'm so mad about feeling yucky on V-day.  It's no fun, but I'm downing the meds.  I swear I need some of those Oils everyone has been talking about!!  ;)

Hope you had a Happy Heart Day!

winter break...woohooo!

These two are super excited to have a winter break this next week.  

We've never had this break, so it's super fun.  They both exchanged cards and candy with their friends at school today for Valentine's day, so that is a fun way to start the break.  All sugared up!! 

Let the break begin!

hacked

These are the things I find on my phone.  Layla loves to 'hack' my phone and change my wallpaper.  

She grabbed my phone when I wasn't looking, took four selfies and then even had time to create a collage with a green background.  I can't believe I was away from my phone that long...hahahaha!

She's a real stinker, but really cute too!

the food images on my camera roll

I have a problem. If you really know me you know about my problem. 

I love taking pictures of my food.  

I always have high hopes of posting the pictures somewhere.  I want to write blog posts about my meals, but I don't.  I was just scrolling through my photo feed a minute ago and I decided I must post what we ate last week.   

I really think with a little work I can clean up our menu a bit.  I see so many clean eating pictures on Instagram.   Sigh.  Some days I want to eat more healthy and other days I don't really care.  Not so much bread, stop eating beef.  Do you get me?  I do so well during the day, salad for lunch, fruit and nuts for snacks.  I usually make good choices and then my evening meal I tend to just eat whatever.  

Anyway, clean or dirty here is what our little family of four ate last week.  

Monday Gary worked half a day and he grilled steaks for dinner.

This is a beef fillet on the grill with steamed broccoli and scalloped cheesy potatoes.  I sliced the potatoes with my veggie slicer and added some milk and cheese to a casserole dish and baked them for about 30 minutes.  Wow...maybe not so much cheese on the potatoes next time, huh?!  But I LOVE CHEESE and you know, its for the kids.  

Tuesday I fought a headache all day long.  

This is a quick decision meal.  I didn't know what to make for dinner, so I grabbed 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts and seasoned them with spices. I added a can of low fat cream of mushroom soup mixed it with water and threw it in a baking dish.  I added sliced yellow squash to the mix and baked it for 25 minutes.  

When it was done I sliced the chicken into chunks and plated it on a bed of saffron rice.

Wednesday was a BLT wrap.  

I found some multi grain 'infinity' shaped wraps and loaded them with fresh warm strips of bacon, lettuce, and tomatoes.  You can bet the dogs were swarming the kitchen while the bacon was frying.  They can't resist the smell of bacon.  Who can?   I served the wraps with pizza dip and my favorite organic tortilla chips from Aldi.

Thursday I was feeling yuck from a head cold.  It was one of those things where I never sneezed or coughed, but the sinus pain and congestion was awful!  

I needed comfort.  I made black bean and green chilie chicken enchilada casserole.  First line a casserole dish with canned enchilada sauce.  Second, in a separate bowl mix a softened block of cream cheese and green chilies with shredded cheddar and diced chicken breast (2 cooked breasts).  Layer the shredded tortillas, the mixture of chicken and more enchilada sauce until all the ingredients are in the pan.  Top with shredded cheddar and bake until the top cheese is all melty and brown.  Maybe 375 for 25 minutes.  I am an eye-baller when it comes to casseroles, so just bake it until it's warm when all the ingredients have already been cooked.

Friday was pizza night.  

We have been dying for the bacon cheeseburger pizza from Papa John's.  I was so excited to over indulge and then when I tasted it I only ate one piece.  I had one piece of bacon cheeseburger pizza and half a piece of the kids pizza.  They ordered hamburger, pepperoni and black olives.   I just wasn't that hungry, still with the sinus mess I guess.

Saturday we decided to go out to dinner.  We went to our favorite Mexican food restaurant and I didn't take my phone out of my purse.  Shocker huh?!?  I ordered chicken fajitas and they were amazing!

Sunday isn't really part of last week because I feel like Sunday starts a new week, but I'm posting our burgers anyway.

Mine was the first picture.  It's just a plain ole yummy cheeseburger with lettuce tomato and onion on a seseame seed bun.  Gary's is an insane burger.  He always stacks his burger to the sky and the kids love watching him make it.  We also had oven baked fries and we tried a new kind of canned baked beans.  They are pulled pork flavored and they didn't disappoint.  They were very good!

Now, I am off to do a little meal planning for this week.   I'm thankful the nasty sinus headache and congestion is gone. Woohoo!

spring fever and barefeet

When we lived in Texas I would get spring fever towards the end of February.

I would be ready for March to bring in warm and spring like temps.  This year after having lived in Ohio for the past two years, I am ready for Georgia to show me an amazing spring right now, not at the end of the month.  I want warm sunlight streaming through my kitchen window as soon as possible.  I saw the forecast though and it's going to be cold again this weekend and next week. :( 

We got a glimpse of AMAZING weather this weekend.  

I moved to Georgia with high hopes of warmth, but so far it's been cold.  Nothing like the Ohio cold, but still cold.  I keep reminding myself if I were in Texas it is cold there also.  It's cold all over the US right now.  That doesn't change the fact that  I can't wait to sweat again.  I got in the swimming pool 2 times when we lived in Ohio, because to me it never got hot enough to swim.  

I hope Georgia doesn't disappoint.  I have some high expectations.  Hahahaha!

Saturday we walked to the park to play.

{street walker selfie}

The kids were so excited to be outside running and cart-wheeling.

Look at those bare feet!  

Hoooray!

Today we walked to the end of our street and down a nature path to the lake.  Yes, I said lake.  We are near lakes again.  In Ohio we were surrounded by rivers.  Now we have a lake really close to us.  I had no idea about this fun path until my neighbor told me about it.  It's amazing!

Right now the water level is very low, but soon they will open the gates and we will have water to splash and play in.  Lake access so close to home is a fun thing!

Hayden loved throwing rocks and sticks into the creek.  

We followed the creek all the way to the lake area.

All this area will be covered in water.  How cool!!

After our nature hike to the lake we decided to head to the park again.  We had hopes of kicking around the soccer ball, but the kids just wanted to run and stick their toes into the playground sand again like they did yesterday.  I can't blame them.  Soccer will be in full swing in a couple of weeks.  I'm happy they just want to relax.  

Dad and I enjoyed watching them play a fun game of tag!  We loved having the warm sun baking our skin.  I think this little bit of sunshine is enough to remind us of what is to come when spring has finally sprung here in our new state!