4th of July

Our 4th of July was pretty laid back.  Jay worked till 3 and the kids and I stayed home for the day.  Then we rushed off to the Stayton parade which Carter loved.  On our way home from the parade we stopped and spent just a few dollars on fireworks and then ate dinner at Five Guys.  We all love Five Guys :)  Everytime we drive by Five Guys, Carter says "eat Five Guys burgers and fries."  So cute. 

After dinner we just spent some time at home.  I cleaned a bit and Jay and Carter went to the store.  They came home with a fun surprise for me.  Jay bought a patio swing so once they got home we all hung out in the front yard while Jay put together the swing.  He found it really on sale at Fred Meyer.  It was a fun surprise.  Now we just need to get out backyard presentable so that we will actually want to hang out back there.  We actually had some friends over for dinner the other night and set it up at the top of the driveway because we are too embarressed to be in our backyard. 

After the swing was built and we spent some time swinging as a family we put Madelynn to bed and did a few little fireworks on our street.  Carter really enjoyed it.  He was actually a little nervous and snuggled in my lap, which I LOVED!  

Next year we will go see some big fireworks but I just wasn't up to it this year with two little kids.  

Honestly some of my favorite days are the days we are just home as a family.  I love my family and feel very blessed!

The picture below was so funny.  He was sitting on the curb just waiting so patiently for the fireworks.  As soon as I lifted up the camera he turned all the way around so that I couldn't take his picture.  

It was a great day celebrating the 4th. 

Jenni's Wedding

My friend and college roommate for three years got married a couple weekends ago and Jay, Madelynn, and I drove to Yakima for the wedding.  I loved watching my friend marry Pete and am so excited for her and her new adventure!  Marriage is great and I am so thankful she gets to experience it with the man of her dreams.  I just snapped a few pictures. 

It was a beautiful wedding and well worth the four hour (each way) drive.  We did it all in one day but left Carter with my mom overnight.  I didn't want him to have to deal with being in the car for so long, sitting still and quiet for a wedding, and then being out so late.  We got home around 1am. 

Picture Post

Carter sure loves his little sister.  These two are super sweet together.

As soon as I laid this on the floor Carter wanted to be under it.  He was so good next to Madelynn and played with her and showed her all of the toys hanging on it.  He is a good big brother.

She is finally ready for the bumbo.  She usually likes it for a few minutes and then gets fussy.

What she really wanted was Carter's farm toys.  She kept leaning down there trying to reach the tractors and barn. 

My blue eyed girl!

We had a little (okay, stinkin' huge) milestone this week.  Madelynn slept from 9:00 in the evening to 6 the next morning.  9 hours!!!  Last night she ate every two hours (literally).  Our milestone was short lived but a milestone none the less!  And last night was thankfully a rare night so I hope it doesn't keep happening.   

Story time before bed with both kids.  So sweet.  Carter always says "hold her."

2012 Week #21

Ranch, Bacon, Chicken Macaroni and Cheese

This was the strangest recipe I have seen on Pinterest.  The first strange thing is that there is no ranch in it at all.  The gal who made it and put it on her blog was talking about how if you love ranch then this is the recipe for you!  There was no ranch anywhere in the recipe!  I was a bit confused.  Someone also wrote in the title on Pinterest that it was an amazing crockpot mac and cheese.  No where in the directions did it say to put it in the crockpot.  Someone even posted a comment on her blog saying that it looked good but she didn't want to try it because she didn't like that you had to cook it some first and then do the rest in the crock pot.  But it never told me to do anything with the crock pot.  Seriously confused.  Jay even told me not to bother trying it but I really wanted to and we actually really liked it.  It was a bit complicated because there are quite a few different pieces to it...like cooking the bacon, cooking the noodles, cooking the chicken and then combining everything.  But it was delicious and I think I would make it again!

8 ounces uncooked elbow macaroni

1 slice applewood-smoked bacon

8 ounces skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups fat-free milk

1/3 cup condensed 45% reduced-sodium 98% fat-free cream of mushroom soup, undiluted

3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded six-cheese Italian blend (such as Sargento)

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh dill

1/2 teaspoon salt

Cooking spray

1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded colby-Jack cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain.
Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, reserving drippings in pan. Finely chop bacon; set aside. Increase heat to medium-high. Add chicken to drippings in pan; sauté 6 minutes or until done.
Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat; sprinkle flour evenly into pan. Cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly with a whisk. Combine milk and soup, stirring with a whisk; gradually add milk mixture to saucepan, stirring with a whisk. Bring to a boil; cook 2 minutes or until thick. Remove from heat; let stand 4 minutes or until sauce cools to 155°. Add Italian cheese blend, onion powder, garlic powder, dill, and salt, stirring until cheese melts. Stir in pasta and chicken.
Preheat broiler.
Spoon mixture into an 8-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle evenly with reserved bacon and colby-Jack cheese. Broil 3 minutes or until cheese melts.

2012 Week #20

Classic Macaroni Salad

I made this for my sidedish at our Wednesday nights in the park with our church.  During the summer our church gets together every Wednesday night at Wes Bennet park.  We just have to bring a sidedish and then hotdogs and drinks are provided.  I tried a new salad and liked it a lot. 

2 Cups uncooked elbow macaroni

1 cup fat-free mayonnaise

2 tablespoons sweet pickle relish

2 teaspoons sugar

3/4 teaspoon ground mustard

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1/2 cup chopped celery

1/3 cup chopped carrot

1/4 cup chopped onion

1 hard-boiled egg, sliced (I did 2 because I wanted a little more egg in it)

dash paprika (as you can see I did a little more than a dash)

Cook macaroni; drain and rinse with cold water.  Cool completely.  For dressing, in a small bowl, combine the mayo, pickle relish, sugar, mustard, salt, and pepper.  In a large bowl, combine the macaroni, celery, carrot, and onion.  Add dressing and toss gently to coat.  Refrigerate until serving.  Garnish with egg and paprika. 

I mixed the egg in with the salad rather than just garnish with it.  I liked the egg in it. 

I am cheating a little by counting this as one of my new meals but I'm doing it anyway.  I tried something new to eat so it counts in my eyes :)