Just stuff

Mommy and me having some fun - we were looking at text pictures on mommy's phone and being silly! Cracking up becuause mommy was chasing me with her camera =)

Making a winter felt quilt for "school" after reading "Snowy Day"

Another week wrapping up

Wow - these weeks seem to fly by so quickly!!!!

Praises and Hallelujah's - God always knows how to put the "cherry on top" when it comes to blessings. Earlier this week a dear friend of mine (Carolyn Daniels) blessed my socks off when she sent home an amazing bottle of stress reducing lotion (eucalyptus and spearmint) for my night stand and my purse - WOW! She works with Randy and I had noticed that he came home smelling rather delicious one day after a conference - he told me it was Carolyn's lotion. So, I asked her about it and voila - a big huge blessing landed in my lap! It may seem small to some, but this lotion is a big time hit in my book - love ya Carolyn!!!! Also, what's even a bigger praise and hallelujah is that God brought Carolyn and I together through her son, Douglas. Sadly, Douglas went home to be with Jesus in September of last year - I often reflect on his life, shed tears and smile at the same time. Although his loss is immense and burdensome I find great peace and comfort in seeing how he left his "footprint" "handprint" etc. here on this Earth - his heart was full of gentleness, humility, and compassion - I'm sure you also see this in his mom just as I do. Please continue to pray for this family - they are precious and as you can imgaine the loss is deep. I think of Douglas often - watching a leaf blow accross the grass, seeing the sun sparkle in the snowflakes, the simple things in life bring me comfort, peace and joy as I reflect on Douglas.

Recipe Pick of the Week - Super Duper Easy Chicken Florentine

1 lb. cooked and diced chicken breast (lightly seasoned)

1 can crescent rolls

2 tbsp. cream cheese

1/2 package of frozen spinach (thawed and well drained)

1 c. or so of shredded mozzarella cheese

Spray an 8x8 pan - put 4 crescent triangles on bottom of pan and push seams together. Place cooked chicken on top of crescent roll then spread spinach mixture on top (cream cheese softened in microwave and spinach mixed together)-next place cheese on top of spinach and place 4 remaining crescent rolls with seams pushed together on top of that - bake according to crescent roll directions (just lightly browned 15-18 min). Yum!

God's Powerful Word of the Week - Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others - Phillipians 2:4

Let no one seek his own, but each one the other's well-being - 1 Corinthians 10:24

God's word is sooooo awesome and powerful - chew on it, apply it and grow!!!!

This Week's Weather - Yikes - It is sooooo cold, but we also have sunshine so I'm smiling!

Pic of the Week - Daddy reading a bed time story to Joshua - so sweet!

What I'm reading - Still moving through the Power of a Praying Wife - it's good stuff for sure! I will be pulling out the power of a praying parent as soon as this one wraps up - I've also been reading toilet training blogs - not as much fun I must say =)

TV Time this Week - hmmm...we watched the movie "Stick It" - a gymanstics movie - very cute

Website of the Week - Google =) I've been doing lots of web searches on visiting Shedd Aquarium for a future getaway

Most Listened to Song this Week - a bit of Glee music (from the tv show - just downloaded some songs - "Don't Stop Believin'" -gotta love the "oldies"

Well, snuggle up everyone and stay warm - looking forward to the weekend, a new week and a new month!

Having fun with Daddy

If you look very closely you will see that daddy is holding "me" in the pop up hamper. Normally, all of my stuffed animal friends are kept in the hamper, but after emptying it out, daddy put me in it and took me on a journey through the house - what fun!

I L-O-V-E Playdough!!!

Spending time with playdough is one of my favorite sit-down activities. I'm really good at cutting the playdough into pieces and then counting them. I've also been very obedient and have resisted the urge that almost every child has to put the playdough in my mouth. Check out my pics!

Plymouth Ice Show 2010

On Saturday afternoon my Papa and Grandma picked me up to take me to the Plymouth Ice Show. It was pretty cold, but mom had me bundled up really good and even sent hot cocoa to keep me warm.

The ice sculptures were soooooo beautiful. My favorite was the seahorse (because I got to touch it). There were a lot of people at the ice show and it was set up in a fairly small area so we didn't stay too long. I love doing fun things with my Grandma and Papa - they are the best!

Here is the seahorse sculpture - so cool!

Papa and I checking out the ice and the ice carvers.

The seal and squirrel

Staying warm with my Papa

The squirrel was another really good sculpture - love it!

Thanks for a great afternoon Grandma and Papa - love you!

A week in review

Well, another week is wrapping up. This week started out moving along a bit slow, but yesterday I woke up and realized it was already Thursday and could hardly believe - crazy how time flies when you're having fun raising a little one =)

I'm still trying to figure out how I want to do this week in review thingy - this time I am adding something to the top of my list and am planning on leaving it this way unless something else pops up - here we go....

Praises and Hallelujah's - Many of you know that Joshua is a rather timid little guy until he gets to know his surroundings and the people in it. Well, with that said it goes without saying that our bi-weekly adventures to MOPS (that is when he hasn't had a cold or something else going on) have been quite a struggle. Let's just say it was normal for him to spend the entire 2 hour session crying hysterically. So, just when I was feeling like I would have to give in and let him stay home from MOPS (to my great dismay) God prompted me to start praying for BRAVERY AND COURAGE in Jesus name!!!! Well, we prayed that over and over again for 2 weeks and gues what???...he went to MOPS on Tuesday and was awesome!!!!!! He actually had fun and I believe that he realizes in his little heart that Jesus blessed him with bravery and courage!

We are shouting out some big time praises and hallelujah's in our family - how about you??? What is something awesome God did in your life this week??? Praise Him for it!!!



Recipe Pick of the Week - 3 Bean Pot O' Chili (crock pot recipe)




1 lb. ground beef

1 med. onion chopped

29 oz. can tomoato puree

15 oz. can each of black beans, butter beans, kidney beans - all rinsed
3 T. chili powder, 1 tsp. cumin, 1 tsp. salt, 1/2 c. water

Shredded cheddar cheese

Sour Cream

Brown beef and onions together, drain. In a crock pot, combine beef/onion mixture with remaining ingredients, except for cheese and sour cream. Cook on low for 6 hours. Garnish with cheese and sour cream.


Cornbread added a nice touch to the meal as well!


On a side note - if you are an Aldi shopper - you can by everything you need for this recipe at Aldi, including the cornbread mix.

**This recipe freezes well for leftovers**



God's powerful word of the week - Proverbs 24: 3-4 "Through wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches."


This week's weather - Hmmm---no snow which for me is a good thing, some snow melted which is also nice - a mix of sun and clouds - cold, cold, cold - but it could be colder I guess - so all in all - I can't complain =)


Pic of the week - Joshua LOVES seeing his Grandma and Papa and they try to stop by at least one night during the work week to visit with him - we are very blessed to have this opportunity to visit each week!

















What I'm reading - Still enjoying reading and praying through "The Power of a Praying Wife" - it's good stuff! I'm also trying to make a dent in my pile of magazines.

TV Time this week - Looking forward to snuggling up in front of the TV tonight to watch this past weeks episode of Ugly Betty and maybe The Middle

Favorite website this week - If you are on Facebook or Twitter you've probably seen people begging and pleading for you to vote for the Chase Bank Million Dollar Giveaway - well, the charity we are rooting for is called Friendship Circle. As you know I am very involved in helping kids with special needs enjoy success in life and the Friendship Circle is a wonderful place that provides thousands of kids with unique abilities the opportunity to spread their wings and fly. Voting ends tonight - go to http://www.votefc.com/ - choose the Friendship Circle!!!!

Most listened to song this week - Let My Words Be Few by Phillips, Craig and Dean --amazing worship song - gotta love it!!!!


Enjoy the weekend!!!!

Birthdays Abounding

Last Sunday we had a great family birthday celebration honoring my Grandma and my cousin Melissa. We had a delicious Taco dinner and lots of laughs. I made my Grandma homemade chocolate almond ice cream (her favorite) to take to the celebration - there wasn't a drop of it leftover - yummy!

Here I am mixing the ingredients Taste test

Into the ice cream maker it goes

20 minutes later - Voila!!!! Delicious!

Here is Melissa with some of her girlfriends (L to R - Audrey, Emily, Melissa)

Getting a bit sleepy but awake enough to watch a pooh bear movie.

Getting ready for cake and presents!

Daniel and Melissa being silly!

Here is the gang singing Happy Birthday - crazy silly - you might not be able to see it, but I'll bet you can hear it =)

A week in review

I'm stealing this idea from my friend Becky - each Monday she posts some great tid bits that kind of summarize what's been going on in their life - I'm thinking I might try to make this a part of the blog as well - we'll see =)

Recipe Pick of the Week: Six Can Chicken Tortilla Soup


1 (15 oz) can whole kernel corn, drained

2 (14.5 oz) cans chicken broth

1 (10 oz.) can chunk chicken or leftover rotisserie chicken

1 (15 oz.) can black beans

1 (10 oz.) can diced tomatoes with green chile peppers, drained



Open the cans, pour everything into a large saucepan, and simmer over medium heat until the chicken is heated through.



Serve with a sprinkle of shredded cheddar cheese, a spoonful of sour cream and some tortilla chips - SOOOO YUMMY!!!!

God's Powerful Word of the Week - I am so stealing this from my son - it's part of his memory verse this week and it is SO SIMPLE and SO TRUE - 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 - Rejoice always - pray without ceasing - in EVERYTHING give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

Wow - that's some good stuff to chew on and put into practice!!!



This Week's Weather - I thought it was wonderful - upper 30's to near 40 and super sunny at times - plus with the snow on the ground everything sparkled!


Favorite Picture this week -
I so love seeing God's joy in his life!!!
















What I'm reading - Power of a Praying Wife - just started it today - I try to read through this and pray through this once a year - I am so blessed to have an amazing husband that provides for our family unconditionally. I love praying for him and watching God's power work in his life!!!

TV time this week- Randy does a great job of recording shows for us to watch during our evening down time commercial free - this week we watched the season premiere of "Chuck" - super goofy - but fun!

Favorite Website this week - http://www.e_mealz.com/ - love the meal planning!!!!

Most listened to song this week - How Great is Our God - Northridge Church style =)

Hope your week was blessed!!!

More learning fun

Today was Day 2 of "school" - mom said she probably won't post something each time we do school (2 days a week), but since the camera was charged up and ready to go she decided to take some pics.

We started out with prayer, my memory verse and a song. Then we read "I Am Snow" and mom helped me make a paper snowflake - it's cool! Then we turned on some music and had a snowball fight with all of my white socks. It was a blast! I especially like rolling around in the "snowballs." Here I am running a "snowball" to the basket with it in my mouth - so silly

He shoots!

Then I was able to explore the snow inside the house. It was fun to build with it, smash it, taste it and watch it melt.

I even got to paint today!!! I made a winter snowflake scene with lots of round shapes.

We even made a healthy snowball snack with oats, peanut butter, honey, graham crackers, vanilla and a touch of powdered sugar - mmmm mmmm good!

Thank you Lord for giving us wonderful minds that love to learn, explore, and create!!!!

First Official Day of Toddler Home Schooling

Thanks to a friend of ours (thanks for the great Hubbards Cupboard tip Jenni - I love it) we are well on our way to enjoying some great toddler friendly learning activities. Yesterday afternoon mommy pulled out the learning tub and it was loaded with fun things to do. Our theme is "snow" so everything we did had something to do with snow...songs, books, snack, games, craft, play time etc. I'm even learning a bible verse along the way - 1 Thessalonians 5:17 - Pray continually! (sung to the tune of Skip to my Lou). I love school time with my mommy!!!!

Here I am with my book "All you need for a snowman" as I make a batch of brownies that will soon be snowmen brownies. Here is my "fluffy" snowman picture I made - my favorite part was pulling apart the cotton balls and adding the black pom poms.

When I woke up from nap time my brownies were ready - we made them in mini cupcake tins, sprinkled powdered sugar on them and added marshmallows for the buttons - mmmmm good!

We even went outside to play in the snow - it was a beautiful day out and mom, Mocha and I loved every second of winter fun!!

Here I am throwing a snow ball at my mommy - ha ha ha!

Pure joy!

Sledding with a snowball - woo hoo!

Gotta taste it!

We even made a mini snowman - Here I am adding the eyes.

We both agreed that it was a great day loaded with learning, laughs and lots of love!!!