Mmm…Frosting!

One of my favorite memories as a child is cooking with my mom.  I loved it when she baked especially because she would always let me lick the beaters. I am sure that is where my LOVE of cake batter stemmed from!

 

 

 

A couple of weeks ago I was making cupcakes for a Fourth Of July get together we were going to and Colton had been so good my mom thought that she would let him lick the beater for the frosting. 

Of course he loved it!


He got it everywhere.  All over him and the highchair and when he was done he dropped it and got it all over the floor. 


He just looked so cute eating it that I couldn’t resist taking pictures.

Lauren-isms

"I am a slow pooper"

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"If we don’t have my blankie a police man will get us."

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"I have to keep my legs together or they will run away"

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"This orange juice tastes lovely to me"

It is funny to watch your children grow and evolve.  I look at Lauren most days and don't see my little girl anymore.  She is growing up way too fast.  I know that before too long she is going to be 16 and these "Lauren-isms" are going to take on a whole new meaning!!

Grilled Lime Chicken Tacos

I love tacos.  You can make pretty much anything in a taco.  :)  Chicken, beef or shrimp make good bases and the seasonings, marinades and toppings are unlimited!

Grilled Lime Chicken Tacos

Grilled Lime Chicken Tacos

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil

1 tablespoon lime juice

2 teaspoons chili powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 can (15 oz) black beans, drained, rinsed
1/3 cup chunky-style salsa
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
8 soft corn tortillas (6 inch), warmed
1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (1 oz)
2 tablespoons sour cream


DIRECTIONS

1. Heat gas or charcoal grill. In shallow dish, mix oil, lime juice, chili powder and salt. Add chicken breasts, turning to coat.

2. Place chicken on grill. Cover grill; cook over medium heat about 12 minutes, turning once, until juice of chicken is clear when center of thickest part is cut (170°F). Remove from heat; slice crosswise into strips.

3. Meanwhile, in 2-quart saucepan, heat beans, salsa and cilantro over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until hot. Divide chicken evenly onto half of each tortilla; top with beans, cheese and sour cream. Fold tortilla in half over filling.





If you want to switch it up a bit try these Pulled Pork Tacos another favorite of mine!

Fun In the Sun

Last weekend we took the kids to the pool for the first time this summer.  It has been so incredibly hot here!  UGH!  When I retire I want to summer somewhere that it is not blistering hot.  :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Colton enjoyed his very first time at the pool despite the heat.  He loved splashing around in the water and floating around with us.  He ended up getting some sort of rash on his face though.  You can kind of see it in this picture but there is a shadow over the right side of his face where it is.  I am not sure if it was just a heat rash or a reaction to the sun screen since we hadn’t used that kind before.  Poor little guys face swelled up a bit and the rash was all down the side of his face. 

Lauren had fun as always.  She is such a little fish although she was way more cautious this year than she was last year.  We didn’t want to let go much when we were in the big part of the pool. 

However she had no problems going down the water slide!  She loves that thing and will do it over and over. 

I even went down the slide.  See my hands and feet? 

I hope to have many more pool days before the summer is over. 

Happiness Is

Sometimes life gets busy...so busy that you don't have much time to stop and enjoy the little things.  This past week has been one of those weeks.  I have been running around like a chicken with my head cut off!  My work has moved and I was pretty much in charge of making sure that we got the old place packed up and moved and then getting the new place unpacked and organized.  I would like to say that it went smoothly! Which brings me to my first happiness

Happiness is a job well done.

Happiness is friends who know just what to say at exactly the right moment.

Happiness is snuggling with my little ones in the morning and feeling their sweet breath on my neck.

Happiness is feeling loved during the times when I least deserve it.

Happiness is knowing that deep down in my heart my dad is the greatest! He did something for me this week that was so amazing and I can't even begin to thank him enough!

*** I always loved the idea of this kind of post when Ashley used to do it on her old blog.  So I wanted to make sure that I gave her a shout out.  :)

PSAs

As a public service to all of you I am going to let you all in on a few secrets. :)

Don't use expired sun screen.

When making verde sauce do not test said sauce with the same spoon you used to de-seed and devein the jalepeno you put in the sauce.

Red kool-aid plus a bottle of milk before bedtime for your toddler is not a good idea if he likes to be bounced while you rock him.

If you are swimsuit shopping don't take your three year old into the dressing room with you.

Pass on lessons learned to your friends!

At The Car Wash

Lauren’s imagination never ceases to amaze me.  One day she asked Brian if she could wash her jeep.  She certainly did not get her car washing abilities from her mother.  It is a big joke in our family that I never wash my car.  I do just only when it rains. I usually try to con my brother in to doing it!

 

She did a great job.  I was certainly impressed with her thoroughness.
Lauren loves color, what can I say!  I try to let her pick her clothes out everyday because I think that it helps with her decision making as well as her independence and individuality.  I don’t care that her clothes are bright and mismatched.  I think that it is very adorable.  She also likes for her hair to be kinda crazy sometimes and I am ok with that too!!
When she was done washing her jeep she decided that her feet were a bit dirty.  I couldn’t help but laugh as I watched her try to stick her feet in that bucket!!

Weekend Festivities

We had a very busy and wonderful holiday weekend!  It was nice to be with family and friends celebrating our nation.

 

 

 

Sunday our town had their fireworks display so we went to the church where the kids are in daycare at.  You can see the fireworks, it is way less crowded and much easier to get in and out of.  Plus they had some activities beforehand.

Lauren got her face painted. 

 

She sat there so intently the entire time the lady was doing it.  It was so sweet to watch. 
She was proud of her rainbow and wouldn’t let me wash it off until the next day.

There was also a bouncy house.  Lauren had so much fun jumping around!  She was worn out.

 

She also got to look at a bunch of motorcycles.  She is very inquisitive and asked the owner of this bike {who happened to be a woman} about a million questions.  The lady was very nice and even let Lauren sit on the bike.  Do you see her dress?  It is a Fancy Nancy dress, or “Fancy Antsy” as Lauren says.  I found it on clearance and brought it home for her.  She is IN LOVE with it! 

Monday we went over to Aaron and Mollie’s for dinner and a few fireworks.  Not too many.  I don’t really like the idea of blowing up my money.  But we got Lauren a few poppers and some smoke balls. 
She did her best to help Brian light them. 
Colton mostly walked around and picked up rocks! 
He thought he was big stuff when he found this one!
Look at those curls!!!
Apparently a bird made a nest in the back of their satellite and there are baby birds in it.  I thought it was really cool and I was able to get pretty close to them and snap their picture. 
I don’t think they minded.  {you can click on these and make them larger if you would like a closer look}
And the main event of the evening was a few fireworks.  Brian was pretty excited about these  He must have been channeling his inner pyro.  :) LOL.  He decided that he was going to splurge and buy a few night works.  I figured that I might as well take lots of pictures of them.  Here are a few shots. 
This one is my favorite shot of the evening.  Brian said that it looks like space and Lauren called the fireworks “sparkles in the sky”

I hope that you all had a wonderful and safe Independence Day!

Fourth Food

I must confess that I have a bit of obsession with Pinterest.  It makes it way too easy for me to find new inspiration for recipes and things that I want to cook or bake ASAP!

I mean where else would I have stumbled accross homemade candy bars that are so festive for the Fourth Of July.

Source: cherryteacakes.com via Sonya on Pinterest

And I also pinned this because well Amanda from Iambaker is absolutely amazing! If you haven't seen her blog before you should totally check it out. Anyways she made this amazing flag cake. It is 25 layers. Yes you read that right 25!

Source: iammommy.typepad.com via Sonya on Pinterest

Who as a kid doesn't have a summertime memory including Bomb Pops. Confessions of a Cookbook Queen takes them and cupcakes to a whole new level with these.

Source: confessionsofacookbookqueen.com via Sonya on Pinterest

In the mood for Chocolate Covered Strawberries? Try these

Source: cupcakeskissesncrumbs.blogspot.com via Sonya on Pinterest

or these

Source: allrecipes.com via Sonya on Pinterest

I am finding so many things that are incredibly creative and having a hard time deciding what to make for tomorrow. If you would like to see what else I have pinned check out my 4th of July Inspired Food Board.