sanity saving

We're on our second consecutive snow day today. It was a little overkill since the roads were clear yesterday and it barely snowed last night, but it was nice to sleep in. (You know you're a parent when 7 am is "sleeping in.") 

I'm working hard to keep my sanity. I don't know what it was, but yesterday was rough. Eventually I threw all three kids out in the backyard to burn off some energy. I also didn't have to hear fighting for a whole 20 minutes: Win!

And to illustrate my point, here is a recycled picture of the Solko siblings in snowpants.

Speaking of sanity helpers, I have recently become a huge fan of menu planning. I am not sure why I resisted it in the past when Jared had suggested it, but I'm loving it now. 

It's far from fancy. 
I found this template on Google images and it fits our needs perfectly. The kids and I usually eat leftovers or sandwiches for lunches, so we only need supper ideas. I post it on the side of the fridge (with some Frozen magnets near a random photo) and we're good to go. 

I think roughly half the arguments in our house used to be over what was for dinner.

Sad but true. 

I don't mind cooking, in fact I usually like it, but I hate HATE! thinking of dinner ideas every night. Every day 5 pm would roll around and Jared and I would go through the same tired conversation.

This one sheet of paper has made life after 5 PM much more enjoyable. We are bickering about supper duty less, and we are using up foods we already have on hand that need to be eaten.

And it's been surprisingly easy to think of meal ideas ahead of time. Turns out it is hard to brainstorm when your kids are pulling on your pant legs begging for food. 

In other wow-my-life-is-boring news, I'm pumped about the new cookbook I purchased. It isn't actually a cookbook at all, but an empty recipe binder that I am in love with.

We're big on food in this family, in case you haven't noticed.

We regularly find new recipes to try out and many times decide they are keepers. Most of these recipes come from favorite food websites, so they are computer print-outs. For years we had been 3-hole punching them and putting them in a regular 3-ring binder. The problem was that the sheets were too big for the binder and you couldn't see any of the tabs. And eventually none of them actually made it into the binder. Plus, while I was sorting through these printed-out recipes, I found 6 copies of the same chocolate chip cookie recipe. (They're super easy and delicious by the way. We love Mel's Kitchen!)

Now all that might sound like no big deal to other people, but I happen to love organization and orderliness. It was unacceptable. (Forget the fact that I accepted it for like 7 or 8 years.) I finally found this recipe binder on Amazon and it was was worth the money. The best part is that there are different page styles to store the recipes: full sheet or recipe cards. So you can mix-and-match to your specific needs. I think that is an awesome way to keep all your favorites in one place whether it is Aunt Ethel's handwritten cinnamon roll recipe or The Pioneer Woman's scalloped potatoes and ham. (We're having that for supper tonight if you couldn't tell!)

October 8th

Jared turned a whopping 31 years old yesterday.

We all know it's downhill after 21, but the kids and I (with some help from Fe) still tried to make the day a little bit more special.

When it comes to any celebration in this family, food is the main event. We all love food.

This year Jared broke what is clearly the most important tradition - having cake for your birthday - and requested peanut butter chocolate dessert. 

I had my doubts. 

But I made it. And it was easy. Like did it in a half an hour and never had to turn on the oven easy.

It's not the most presentable thing you've ever eaten - although those classy as hell candles really take it up a notch - but believe me when I say it is delicious. 

I bolded and italicized the word "delicious", it is that good. 

Like I said, I had reservations. But it was amazing.

And because I know there are some fellow chocolate/peanut butter combo lovers out there like me (hello, to my Reese's holiday devotees!), I am linking this ridiculously easy recipe.

Taste of Home - Peanut Butter Chocolate Dessert

You're welcome.

We had a meal, complete with fancy platters and bowls that we received for our wedding and hardly ever use. And we ate said meal with mandatory party hats on our heads because that is how crazy we roll around here.

Happy Birthday Jared! 

I hope we made you feel special for the day.

♥

her first friends

Bailey has been asking begging for months to have two friends from preschool over to play. I have been putting her off since November. 

Her birthday seemed like a good time to dive into the big-kid world of having friends over.

Obviously Bailey was ecstatic to have Hailey and Jesse over, but Avery was perhaps more excited than even the birthday girl. She spent the entire time trying to get their attention and was constantly copying everything the "big girls" did. Bailey was very sweet and didn't mind Avery tagging along, although I can see that changing in the near future.

Clearly, none of them enjoy dress-up.

All four girls got to top their very own mini pizzas.
I can't even tell you how many times I answered the question  
Can we just try a little?
Avery doesn't typically wait for permission, and this time was no exception. More cheese went into her mouth than on her pizza.

Everyone needed their own princess cup. 
And only pink or purple plates were acceptable.
Duh, Mom.

This birthday girl has always loved dessert.

Hearing all the giggles and seeing the look of pure happiness on Bailey's face as she ran room to room with her little friends in tow made the day (and the excessive volume) all worth it. 
And let's just say I am glad we fed them cupcakes at the end of the day rather than the beginning...

BLT dip

Summer basically equals BLTs in my book.

Or just bacon.

I kinda have a love affair with bacon. It should really be its own food group.

 

I made this dip for the first time for a last minute 4th of July get together at our house. It takes all of about 5 minutes to make, which makes me love it even more. Plus it is delicious!

 

 

BLT Dip:

 

2 cups (16 oz) sour cream

2 cups mayonnaise

3 green onions

4 - 6 tomatoes  (drained of the seeds and extra liquid - too runny if you don't)

2 lbs bacon (cooked and then crumbled)

      {I used real bacon bits that I heated on the stove to make them extra crunchy)

 

Mix it all together, saving some onions, bacon, and tomatoes for garnish if you wish.

 

We served it with crackers, but we have dipped all kinds of veggies in it too.

Anything works as a vessel to get the bacon-y goodness into your mouth!



 

 

Here is my proud mixer/helper for the day.

She can sure stir with the best of them!

 

We took the dip out to the cabin at the lake where my family is congregating for the week. We're all big snackers out there, so it won't last long.

the making of Elmo

Bailey really loves Elmo. Avery too.

So for her birthday this year we decided to try our hand at decorating a character cake for her.
It really was much easier than the finished product looks.

We got the cake tin mold for under 10 bucks off Amazon.
Directions come with it, giving you step by step instruction if needed.

We baked the cake a week ahead of time just to ensure that it came out of the mold alright, which it did, and then froze it.

We made our own frosting.

Store bought frosting is just not tolerated in this house. I am definitely a frosting snob.
{Except for the black. You usually can't get the frosting a dark enough shade on your own.}
And when I say "we," what I really mean is Jared. He made it at 4 AM that morning since he was unable to sleep anymore.

Black Elmo!

 

 

 

This was my first time decorating a large amount with the different tips.

Surprisingly it wasn't all that hard. Granted, my technique got a little sloppy here and there, but overall not bad for my first time.

And the finished product...

 

Bailey was very excited. {Pictures to come on her birthday post tomorrow.}

And I know we will do this again with different molds.
It was fun to be able to pick out a special cake and make it ourselves.

saturday

Today I spent the only free time I had sorting, organizing, labeling, and filing away 180+ pictures into the kids' photo albums. Leaving me with a hand sore from writer's cramp. I felt like I was back in college scrambling to write as much as possible on an all-essay final exam. {btw - those were always so dumb. multiple choice is easier for me and you, the teacher grading the test.}

I usually do this process every month, but this time I was about 3 months behind... oops. Living in a digital age where you can share pictures online and never have to leave your house to order them makes life so much easier. We have a photo-sharing group online with our family members, which is amazing. We never have to guess what photos people want and mail them - they can just do it all themselves online.

Now that things have settled a little bit here at home, I have things I need to catch up on. Like the photos: things that are no where close to urgent, but need to get done nonetheless.

My next goal is to write in the girls' journals.

After seeing how touched my friend Shelby was when she received a journal her mom kept for her from when she was a baby, I decided to keep a journal for each of our girls. I found these handmade journals on Etsy and absolutely love them.

I wrote about the day they were born, little milestones as they grew, and sweet moments we shared. Now, as they grow older, I also write down funny things Bailey says or how sweet Avery is with the new baby.

Now that we have a boy, I wasn't sure if a journal was too "girly." But most people I asked thought I should go ahead and keep one for him too. My hope someday is that all of our kids will appreciate being able to read about the things they were doing and how their dad and I felt as they grew up. And it's a good way for me to remember all the little things from our day-to-day lives together that become so easy to forget. So even if a journal is pretty girly, maybe some day when I am dead and gone Graham will appreciate it anyway.

Tonight Bailey offered her "help" in the kitchen. She likes to play with all her food toys, but cooking for real with Daddy is much more fun.

(And so is constantly trying to eat what is being cooked.)

 

 

This little terror was also roaming the kitchen,

looking for dropped food or anything she could climb on top of.

 

 

From the looks of it, we may need to invest in a high-quality hair net.

 

 

Meanwhile Brother took a nice long nap up against his boppy.

(That seems to do the trick lately!)

 

 

Of course he woke up just as i was sitting down to eat supper.
Of course.
Baby's have ESP for that, you know.

Somedays you just really need some sugar

It's been one of those days weeks.

This is Week #3 of Jared being gone (4 if you count the last week I spent at our house with the girls back in March).

**And before I vent, I realize 3 or 4 weeks is basically nothing. Many people have family members deployed - sometimes overseas, and I shouldn't complain. But it's my blog, so I just might anyway... **

The girls have had it up to here with Mommy Time. They were basically angels the first couple weeks. But now the jig is up.

Nap time has turned into a complete circus. Bailey screams and outright refuses to lay down. Poor Bun-Bun and Baby get thrown about the room at random. There are tears and thrashing of covers.

And then there is Avery - furiously sucking her thumb in a desperate attempt to tune it all out.

Just today I heard Bailey tiptoeing around the room 30 minutes after I had put them down. I go in to find Bailey's bed sheets torn from the bed and a pile of poop on the floor. Bailey is just standing there yelling "Diaper!" at me over and over. A diaper? - what a novel idea! Now if she would just leave hers on. Bailey was very unhappy with my mean-mommy-look. {And believe me, it isn't hard to conjure up "the look" when you are gathering up toddler poop off the floor.}

You might say, "It must be time to start potty-training." And you would probably be right. Bailey takes off her pants and diaper in the morning and tells me "potty!" But when we get in the bathroom, she refuses to sit for longer than 0.45 seconds. So she knows when she needs to go, she just won't.  This has been happening for a few months. I am ready to see some action! And I would love it if she would stop dropping her poopy diaper sunny-side down on the floor, too.

And overall, I have just felt really tired, hormonal, and moody. And 2 year-old temper tantrums have only improved my outlook, let me tell ya.

So I decided it was time for some sugar. [I deserved it.]

Hooray for cupcakes!

And yes, those are sprinkles. Everyone knows that sprinkles make everything taste better.

And I don't screw around. If I am consuming this many calories, I am going straight for the homemade butter cream frosting. No gross container of fake store-bought frosting for me. And it's super easy, too.

             * 2 1/2 sticks of unsalted butter, softened
             * 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
             * 1 tsp vanilla
             * 2 Tbsp milk
             * a pinch of salt
                     -- Beat together the butter for about one minute.
                         Then add in the rest and beat for another 4-8 minutes until light and fluffy.
                     *Definitely do a taste-test.
                      You might need to add in a little bit more powdered sugar to make it taste just right.

There. Now you can be a fatty like me and brighten your day with a little sugar, too.