Battle scars

Tyler had quite the misfortune yesterday. Because of his poor Mother's oversight in the last 2 months and not keeping his immunizations up to date, he had to have six, yes, 6 shots yesterday! Here's how he acted when we got home, it's pretty obvious that the meds haven't affected him yet and his legs aren't very sore yet. . . .
And here we are today! A low grade fever and still in jammies at 11:00 am pretty much describes how our day has gone so far. Thankfully it's turning out to be a beautiful day outside, I think that some outdoor play time will be just the thing to help all of us get though the day!

Recipes

I had a couple requests for the Garlic Lime Chicken and the Mexican Lasagna. These are both new recipes, (I'm always trying out new ones) and we really liked them. Both of the recipes are a little heavy on the spices, but could easily be toned down a little bit to your taste. Enjoy, and Happy Cooking! :)

Garlic Lime Chicken with Olives

3 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 cup diced onion
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
2 T. lime juice
2 t. Worcestershire sauce
1 T. molasses
1 1/2 t. ground cumin
1 t. dried oregano
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1/2 cup pitted and sliced kalamata olives

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat lg. pan with cooking spray. In lg. bowl combine chicken, onion, garlic, lime juice, molasses, Worcestershire sauce, cumin, oregano, salt, and pepper. Toss to coat.

Transfer chicken to pan and pour over any remaining marinade. Arrange olives over and around chicken. Roast 40-45 minutes.

Mexican Lasagna

3 cups chopped, cooked chicken (or use leftover Garlic Lime chicken)
1 cup sour cream
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided ( I used Pepper Jack for a little more pizazz!)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 cup salsa
1 (4-oz.) can chopped green chiles
2 T. cilantro
1 t. chili powder
1/4 t. cayenne pepper, or to taste
8 (6 inch) corn tortillas, cut into 6 wedges

Coat 11x7 inch baking dish with cooking spray. In lg. bowl, combine all above ingredients. Mix well and set aside.

Arrange half of the tortilla pieces in the bottom of prepared pan, overlapping pieces slightly to cover the surface. Top with half of the chicken mixture and smooth over to even the top. Layer remaining tortillas over top, and spoon over remaining chicken mixture. Top with remaining 1/4 cup each of Monterey Jack and cheddar cheeses.

Cover with foil and bake 30 min. Uncover and bake 30 more minutes, until top is golden and bubbly. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Motto To Live By

Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of
arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather
to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, latte in the other, body
thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOO HOO, what a ride!"

Menu-Plan-Monday

I have friends that plan out their weekly menu in advance, they say that it makes for easy shopping and avoided last-minute-rushes to figure out what to make for dinner. I'll have to admit that I've done this before but it doesn't usually last very long for me, I love being organized, but have a hard time staying on the wagon once I've hopped on board! I'm hoping since I'm posting it on my blog that this will keep me inspired! Here goes:

Monday: Garlic Lime Chicken with olives, green beans with bacon

Tuesday: Mexican Lasagna (using leftover Garlic Lime Chicken), garlic bread

Wednesday: Pork Chops with Stuffing, Pea Salad

Thursday: Chicken Caesar Salad, leftovers

Friday: Tacos or Pizza, (depending on our mood!)

Saturday: We usually eat out on Sat.

Sunday: Ham, mashed potatoes, rolls, corn casserole,
Sunday P.M. snack: Strawberry Shortcake

A glimpse of Spring

I don't know about anybody else, but this Mommy has definitely had enough of this hideous cold weather. I'm finding it more and more challenging to keep 2 kiddos entertained in this house, we're certainly experiencing Spring Fever around here! I find as the years go by that I'm not nearly as fond of the cold weather as I used to be. I was talking to my Grandpa several months ago,(has it really been since Christmas that I have talked to him? Note to self: Must call to check on them more often!) and mentioned my distaste for the cold, he said that I was just getting smarter! He spends his winters in Florida, lucky him!
Today was such gorgeous weather, I still put coats or sweatshirts on the kids, probably more out of habit than necessity, and we went outside to play. Tyler loves just 'exploring', walking around, jabbering to Sophie. The sand box continues to Brianna's favorite thing to play with. We took a walk, spent some time swinging, dug for 'treasures', (specifically, a golden bone for Sophie, alas, was never found,) and made sandcastles. It was a very successful day! Now if you'll excuse me, I just remembered that I have 2 loads of laundry that need to be folded!

Tyler's 15 month update

Tyler had a regular well-baby check-up yesterday. I can't believe that he is 15 mo. already, before I know it he'll be off to preschool, no, I don't even want to think about it!He now weighs 25 lbs. and is 33 inches long, I think he's going to be tall just like his sister. He is always such an angel for the Dr., always does exactly what he is told, wonder what their secret is, do they know something that they should be sharing with me? :) He is starting to stand there with the cutest little grin on his face and just watch us when we want him to come to us, a little more than annoying, to say the least. Annoying because he's just so cute, and annoying because we know that it is time for him to start listening to, and obeying us, that requires action most of the time! He is such a little monkey most of the time. Tyler has completely given up on his little vocabulary that he had acquired and is now speaking in "his language." My kids just aren't early talkers at all, I think Brianna was 2 before she started putting many words together, she certainly makes up for it now, she's quite the chatterbox! I find myself missing all her chatter lately, since she has been sick she just hasn't been herself at all. We're hoping she pulls out of it pretty soon.
These last 2 pics were taken right after a very chilly 4-wheeler ride, as you can see from the very cute, chubby, red cheeks!

Happenings . .

Ahhh, remodeling. We just can't seem to get enough of it. We've been going over to the house every evening to squeeze in a couple hours of work before the kids bedtime arrives. Everyone knows the 'bewitching' hour right before or around bedtime, it can be very tricky to get anything done when your 2 kids are nearing that time! The kids have been pretty great though, Brianna walks around trying to amuse herself with whatever, sometimes this includes 'borrowing' Dad's tools, that always makes for an interesting conversation! Tyler is stuck in his Play-Pen most of the time, playing with some toys. Last night he got tired of it so I took him upstairs with me to rip off more wallpaper. He was so cute, he watched me for a while then started trying to rip some off himself! I just hope he isn't at anyone's house in the near future that has wallpaper, he's seen me ripping it off for so long now that he might just decide to do some remodeling for them too! :)
I'll post more pictures of the house when I can let you see the before and after pictures, we're hoping that will be sometime in the near future!

Nervously trying . .

to avoid this horrible flu thats been going around lately. Brianna came down sick on Friday and all day I was just waiting for her to start throwing up. Not that I wanted her to, but I've heard thats one of the 'bonuses' with this sickness. To my utter amazement, it seems to have only been a severe cold, she seems to be on the mend, and we're so thankful! As for the rest of us, we're tossing back those multivitamins like crazy, hoping we can continue to evade this 'bug'.

Our Valentines Day

These gorgeous roses, the Willow tree figurine, and the Crocs, are what Tim and the kids gave me for Valentines. I think flowers are at the top of my wish list for any occasion, I love them so much. Tim knew I'd been wanting a pair of Crocs so he got these for me and Brianna picked this color, probably not the color that I'd have chosen, but I thought that was so sweet of her. I have a growing collection of the Willow tree figurines, I just love their simplicity and form.

Brianna had a nice little Valentine's Party at school, each of the kids made these 'mailboxes' with their name on the little heart flag, for their Valentines to go into. I think she was pretty blown away by the fact that everybody was going to give her a Valentine. She came home a pretty happy little girl with all her 'loot'!












Tyler was pretty happy with the M&M's that he received in the mail from Grandpa and Grammy Dykes, they're his favorite candy! (Not that he eats much candy, but every now and then a boy has to have some chocolate, right? :)

A Must-try family favorite

I was talking to my cousin, Calista, the other day when I came across these Peanut Butter Oat Bites. I thought they looked so good and happened to have all the ingredients on hand. Multi-tasker that I am,(isn't that a requirement for Moms? :) I made them while on the phone and my family loved them. They didn't last long at all, they were a definite hit! So, my friends, I am highly recommending them, just don't blame me for all the diets gone awry afterwards!

The only thing that Tim and I agreed on that would make these better, would be to dip the finished Bites in chocolate, like they don't have enough calories as they are! Enjoy!

Is this behaviour normal?

THIS is the face that we see many times during mealtime. The time when we're trying to teach our children that in fact, no, it's not good manners to sing and sometimes scream at the table. No, it's not acceptable to throw cheerios on the floor, and no, you may not bring 5 stuffed animals to the table to eat with you. They will have to remain in the playroom and eat play food. I think our little guy needs to start listening a little bit more closely to our 'Manners Talk'.

And just because I took way too many pictures of this particular mealtime pastime, I'll share a few more pics. Enjoy! :)

Family Photos

My Cowboy Angel

In order to explain the above title I'll need to give a little background. Monday night a severe snowstorm moved in and we woke up to school cancellations and severe fog and low visibility. Tim had left that morning at 6:00am to go to Grand Island,(2 hrs. away) for an all-day management class and we had decided that I would meet him there later that day to shop for our Kitchen appliances. Apparently the weather turned for the worse after he got to his destination because by the time I started out at 10:30 am, the roads were not good at all. All the while I kept driving because, the opptimist that I am, figured that the main roads would be better than the country roads that we live on. About 20 miles down the road, just out of a small town, I noticed a truck following me. I was going rather slow and figured that he would pass me just like the semi-truck that passed several miles back. Fast forward, 20 miles or so, and he is still behind me. We came to a lg. town and I pulled into the gas station to get gas, he pulls in right behind me! He came up to my window and says, "Ma'am, did you know that you've been driving on a flat tire for the last 20 miles or so?" That is absolutely the last thing I want to hear when Tim isn't with me and I have two small children! It happened to be the back left tire and even though it didn't make enough noise to alert me, I must have been so consentrated on driving that I failed to notice anything unusual. This was my Cowboy Angel, he was on his way to feed the cows and had noticed my flat tire and purposely followed me to change it for me! I'll have to admit, I almost started crying right there, I was so thankful that, 1.) The tire didn't cause me to lose control of the vehicle, 2.) That this wonderful person was there just at the right time to help me. He changed the tire for me and after offering to pay him, he refused. He stated," No, you don't owe me anything, I just wanted to help you."

So, that's the story of my Cowboy Angel, I will never forget his kindness and his generosity and I will be eternally grateful for God's hand upon my car that day.

Dr. visits and Sledding

Last week we still had some snow left so after naps we got all bundled up and went outside to go sledding a little bit. Of course since we don't have any hills around here this means that I pile the kids on the sled and I do all the pulling around on the yard. Brianna loves the sled and Tyler, well, he doesn't seem to mind it but I don't know if he particulary enjoys it either. He just goes with the flow! He did seem to be feeling rather comfortable judging from his reclining position on Brianna! We also had some Dr's examinations going on around here too. Tyler is such a patient little guy, as you can see. Brianna was checking teeth, temperature, and giving medicine, Tyler was then proclaimed, "All better!"

Checking his 'heart beep'

Scrapbooking-N-Such

As I have previously mentioned, we are in the middle of remodeling our house and hopefully moving in pretty soon. This transition period has proved to be more that a little challenging for us, we are SO ready to move and get organized in the new house but we've had several setbacks. This week the heat was finally installed so that we can begin working tomorrow in the house, thank goodness. There are new light fixtures to be installed and ceilings and walls to be painted, anyone that is free to do a little work tomorrow, just let me know! :)

I haven't scrapped-booked in such a long time, I keep telling myself that once we get moved I'll get started again. But everybody knows that moving can be a very long, drawn-out process. This week I decided to just get some photos out and get some pages done. I'll have to admit that I was inspired by ordering 200+ photos from Wal-Mart.com and relizing that I have so many old photos to scrapbook, I was feeling a little bit overwelmed!I'm trying not to procrastinate so much lately so I've set a new goal for myself. Every Monday I'm setting aside several hours to scrapbook. This past Monday I did 10 pages, I think that was a new record for me, I tend to be a rather slow scrapper, although I'm getting faster as I go. Monday is a good day for me as I don't usually cook supper that day, I always cook a large Sunday dinner so the leftovers are eaten on Monday! And yes, I kinda let the house go for a day, but I've learned that if we ignore the housework for a couple hours, it will all still be there, waiting for us when we're ready to tackle it again!
Below are a few pages that I put together: