Wordless Wednesday

 

Love these boys so much I can hardly stand it!  They said tonight they missed daddy who was at Bible Study tonight.  

They truly do love each other! 

Weekend Wrap-Up

We got about 2-3 inches of snow on Saturday morning so we kept our pj's on and stayed warm inside.  The roads cleared up by noon.  We watched movies and I made cinnamon rolls.  The boys love looking at the snow but thankfully they don't ask to go out and play in it.  It was super windy and cold so it would not have been fun to play in.

 

Saturday night we met up with our old newly-married-couples small group for dinner and catching up.  We haven't all been together like this in a few years.  One couple changed churches and another couple moved to Connecticut for 3 years and are now back.  We were SO glad to get together and see everyone.  We had the best time and laughed our heads off.  They are all SO fun!  We miss them.  

Sunday was uneventful with church and lunch and naps at home.  I'm glad to see the last week of January however I'm sure the cold will stick around a lot longer, ugh!  I always feel like I can handle February because it's a short month.  It's single digit temps again this week so we will be staying warm inside and building lots of traffic jams and reading books. 

Family Night

Last night Matt's mom was honored by her high school into their Academic Hall of Fame.  It was a proud moment for Matt and our family!  Matt's mom had an outstanding career in the medical field before obtaining her law degree and passing the board. Sadly she passed away in 1995 from breast cancer.  

It was so neat to see so many people come up to Matt and his dad after the ceremony to say how Debbie was such a wonderful person who did so much for their community.  I hate that I never got to meet her but every story I hear about or every person that knew her loved her and had so much respect for her.  She was truly an incredible person. 

After the ceremony they did a shortened version in-between the basketball games.  Matt accepted the award on behalf of his mom.  

We watched the end of the basketball game and the boys liked it but Ryan was not a fan of the buzzer, the one after a time out.  He covered his ears and refused to put them down.  Guess we will not be going to a UC basketball game anytime soon.  It was a great night and I'm so glad we got to be apart of it.  

Chili Time

 

Well yup, we had ANOTHER snow day yesterday!  Ugh, so over the snow!  I know many working moms out there would love a "snow day" to stay home with their little dumplings but seriously it's so frustrating when it interrupts your plans for the day and you have to deal with whiny kids all day.  

I was thankful that I got a good run in the morning while the boys played in the basement.  I made pancakes for breakfast and we watched movies.  I always feel lazy on snow days.  It ended up being a good day but I was glad to be back at school today.  

We got about 3-5 inches mostly overnight and early morning.  It's super cold here, in the single digits.    Thankfully today they were back to school!  We had a fun lunch with friends at CFA after school and now we are warming up at home anticipating some warm Chili for dinner!  With it SO cold outside it's time for some hot Chili.  We like our chili with cornbread and/or corn chips.  Here is my favorite Chili recipe!

Chili

Directions:

11/2-2lbs ground beef

1 med onion

1 big can of diced tomatoes

1 big can tomato sauce

1 big can of kidney beans

1 package of McCormick Chili Seasoning

Instructions:

Brown beef in a skillet and add onion.  Drain off the grease.   

Drain kidney beans

Add diced tomatoes, tomato sause, kidney beans, chili seasoning and drained beef to crockpot.  

Cook on low in crockpot for 6 hours.  

Serve and Enjoy!

Catching Up

 

Our weekend was pretty uneventful around here!  Saturday morning we took the boys to UC Blue Ash for ARTrageous.  The feature show was juggler Matt Jerkins.  He was really, really good and Ryan loved the show.  He was funny and very entertaining for the kids.  Colton did ok but he doesn't sit still for long these days.  

After the show we headed to Sammy's for lunch.  They have awesome burgers and the boys loved their hot dogs.  

Sunday was a quiet day.  We went to church and came home for lunch.  They boys went down for their nap and I headed to the store for my weekly stock up.  It was a great weekend and we were glad to have daddy home for an extra day today.  

We went to the gym this morning, then toured a private school for Ryan next year.  I can hardly believe that he will be in Kindergarten in the fall.  We are still going back and forth a little about should he start in the fall or hold him back a year but I'm leaning towards sending him in the fall.  I need to really pray about it.  

We met up with our friends the Krafts for lunch at CFA and had a blast.  I'm bummed I didn't get a single picture but it was super packed and a nut house.  The boys had the best time and we enjoyed catching up with our friends. 

Five on Friday

1.  Another Day at Home   

We had another unplanned day at home today!  Matt mistakenly took my car keys with him this morning.  He put them in his coat pocket last night and forgot to take them out.  We were dressed and about to walk out the door this morning when I couldn't find my keys.  I don't misplace my keys often so I immediately texted Matt to see if he knew where they were.  He offered to come back home and take Ryan to school but it's was snowing big time and I told him it would be pointless and just stay at school.  

2.  SNOW again!  

We had a little bit of snow yesterday but it didn't accumulate on the roads.  This morning it started snowing about 8:45, right before we were to leave for preschool, and it was coming down fast and a lot.  I was a little worried about driving in it but figured I would be ok.  I guess God knew we just needed to stay safe and warm at home today.  

3.  Colton's two and a half year check up

Yesterday Colton had his two and a half year check-up.  He weighed 25lbs (5th percentile) and 30 inches tall (20th percentile).  He is still a little peanut but he has a big personality.  He cracks us up all the time and keeps us laughing.  He is reaching all his milestones and is a growing and healthy little boy.  His speech is getting better by the day and we understand him more each day.  I'm amazed and how well he is talking these days.  We are SO thankful for an adorable, growing and healthy boy.  Such a blessing and we are so grateful. 

4.  Girls Night Out

Last night I had a special evening with some sweet friends to celebrate my dear friend Claudette (on the left) who is moving to Portland, Oregon next weekend.  We are thrilled for a great opportunity for their family and excited for their new adventure.  We are going to miss them at MOPS, the gym and just hanging out.  I am so thankful for Claudette's friendship.  She is so sweet and genuine!  We had a wonderful evening with lots of laughs and just a few tears.  

5.  Weekend

I'm looking forward to the weekend however we are set to get more snow!  Ugh!  How many days til spring?  I'm looking forward to making pancakes for the boys, having pizza night and catching up on some sleep.  

Skillet Baked Ziti

 I don't have any new pics of the boys today.  The last few days we've been getting back into our routine of preschool, the gym and all that stuff.  Today we had a fun lunch at CFA after school with some good friends.  

For dinner tonight I'm making skilled baked ziti.  I don't remember if I've posted the recipe here before but I must share because it is super easy and SOooooo good.  It has become one of my favorite meals.  

Skillet Baked Ziti

by The Girl Who Ate Everything

Ingredients:
6 garlic cloves, minced
4 teaspoons olive oil
salt and pepper
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
3 cups water
12 oz ziti pasta (3 3/4cups)
4 oz (1/2 cup) whole-milk ricotta
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1 cup Mozzarella cheese, shredded

Directions:
1.  Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 475 degrees.
2.  Combine 1 tablespoon oil, garlic and 1/2 tsp salt in 12-inch ovensage nonstick skillet and sauté over medium-high heat until fragrant, about 1 minute.
3.  Add crushed tomatoes, water, ziti and 1/2 tsp salt.
4.  Cover and cook, stirring often and adjusting heat as needed to maintain vigorous simmer, until ziti is almost tender, 15-18 minutes.  Make sure you don't cook it too much. It will continue to cook in the oven.
5.  Meanwhile, combine ricotta, remaining 1 tsp oil, 1/8 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp pepper in a bowl. Set aside.
6.  Stir in cream, Parmesant, and basil into the skillet and season with salt and pepper to taste.
7.  As this point if your skillet is not oven safe, transfer the pasta mixture into a shallow 2-quart casserole dish before sprinkling with the ricotta and cheese and baking.
8.  Add dollops of the ricotta mixture with a spoon and sprinkle with mozzarella evenly over ziti.
9.  Transfer skillet to oven and bake until cheese has melted and browned, about 10 minutes.  Let cool slightly and sprinkle with remaining tablespoon of basil.  Serve and ENJOY!!!

Our Weekend

 

Saturday we decided to take the boys bowling for the very first time.  I've wanted to take Ryan for a while but I knew I needed to wait until Colton was a little older.  Ryan was excited and couldn't wait to get started. 

Matt took the lead in showing Ryan how to bowl (between his legs) while I helped Colton.  About halfway through Ryan saw a neighbor kid using the ramp and decided he wanted one so we had them bring one over.  That was super helpful and all he had to do was push it off the ramp.  

Truth be told Colton had fun but about 4 rounds in he was only interested in a snack.  

 Ryan absolutely loved it and didn't want the game to end.  He had the best time and thought it was so fun!  We will definitely go back!  It's the perfect activity for a rainy and cold day!

Bowling sure worked up an appetite so we headed to Chuey's for a yummy lunch.  It was perfect and the boys did great!

Sunday night we went out with my in-laws to dinner since Matthew (Matt's step brother) and his girlfriend Hannah were in town visiting from California. 

The boys did pretty good considering we were there for over two hours.  

Papau was pretty entertaining for the boys.  It was a good night of fellowship and family time. 

Friday Fun

This morning started out normal by getting ready to go to the gym and getting the boys up and ready for school.    We headed out the door on time but as I was pulling out of the garage the check tire pressure light came on and I remembered yesterday it was reading a little low and I had forgotten to mention it to Matt last night.  

I stopped and jumped out and sure enough the tire was completely flat! Oh fun!  Well since I'm not the changing tire type I unbuckled the boys and came inside to call Matt.  

I told Ryan we wouldn't be going to school today and he was so bummed.  He said he was going to miss his friends and sad to miss show and tell!  I felt so bad but what can you do.  So we made the best of it!

I busted out the gingerbread house kit that's been packed up in the closet for two years waiting for a snow day!  I thought today would be a great day to do it.  

The boys loved decorating it.  They thought it was so fun!

The hardest part was keeping Colton from eating all the candy!  Every time I looked up he was trying to sneak another piece.  Little stinker.  

And here's the finished product.  Beautiful!  I let them each decorate one side of the roof!  Ryan's was the right side and Colton's the left side.  It was fun times. 

After the gingerbread house we watched the movie Planes!  The boys got it for Christmas and enjoyed watching it again.  All in all it was a good day.  I'm glad it happened on today when I didn't have anything big planned. And of course Matt is scheduled to take my car in tomorrow morning for an oil change - just one day late!  

Happy Birthday Nana!

 

Happy, happy birthday Nana!  

We are so thankful for you and hope you had a wonderful day!  We love you so much and wish we could be together to celebrate!

Well these boys have been chillin on this cold day since school was canceled for both!  Boo!  We should be back to a normal routine tomorrow!

We still went to the gym this morning then came home to play and eat lunch!

This growing boy loves him some fruit.  He ate a whole PB&J sandwich, 1 1/2 mandarin oranges and almost a whole apple!  

This sweet boy enjoys his cars and playing on his new leap pad.  

Weekend Wrap-up

We had a great full weekend around here!  Friday night we headed to a friends house for a little after Christmas party.  We decided to leave the kids at home and enjoy a relaxing night out with our friends.   

Since we were gearing up for winter storm number 587, I headed off to the grocery early Saturday morning to successfully restock the fridge and pantry.  I know, super exciting for a Saturday!

Saturday night Matt's men's Bible study was having a couples date night out.  We had the best time enjoying dinner and playing a little white elephant Christmas game afterwards.  They are a fun group and I always enjoy getting together with them. 

Sunday we went to church in the morning and came home for lunch.  After naps we headed to dinner to meet up with Matt's former co-worker who just welcomed their first baby!  The boys did awesome, considering our guests were an hour late, and actually behaved pretty well.  I loved getting to meet baby Mason and getting my baby fix.  

Today most schools were canceled due to the severe frigid temps.  The temps outside have been around -1 with a chill factor of -24 all day.  It's SUPER cold here!  Again, SO OVER IT!!!  We need to move south or far west...Hawaii sounds a dream come true!  I'm praying the boys start back preschool tomorrow however it's not looking very promising.  

Happy New Year

We've had a quiet and low key New Year's!  We have gone to the gym a lot this week and played with our new Christmas toys!  

We got a ton of snow yesterday but we were still able to get out but it was bitter cold.  It's suppose to be really cold this week, like -14 degrees.  So over winter!!!  How many more weeks until spring???

The boys have LOVED playing with this new Bible app.  It reads the story then has interactive parts of the story.  It even has questions you answer as you go along.  Ryan loves it and reads the story over and over.  We've been reading it for family devotion at night.  

Tomorrow I have big plans to take down all the Christmas decorations.  I'm a little sad to put it all away but looking forward to a clean house.