mt. rubidoux

Yesterday I started feeling a tad sick and  then this morning I woke with no voice.  Luckily that wasn't a predictor of our day because we had a super fun one.  We met some friends at Mt. Rubidoux and hiked to the top.  The kids did awesome and I couldn't believe how much of it they walked as opposed to stroller'd :)  I think it helped to have their friends there.

We then came home for a quick shower and headed to the same friends' home for a BBQ.  The kids played and played and we enjoyed hanging out.  Fun, fun day. :)

On a sidenote, when I stopped by our local fruit stand for some fruit to bring to the BBQ, I scored with a big bag of "near the end of their life" mixed veggies. I was able to salvage most all of them and came out with two huge pans of yummy roasted veggies for $1!!  I also scored the bag of apples you see for $1 (which are waiting to become dried apples). :)

change of plans

Wanting to do something fun for the Memorial weekend, we had initially planned to spend the night last night with Chris' friend, Peyt, out in OC.  However with the transfer of the eye infection from Kendall to Cameron, we realized that wasn't smart as his infection was much worse. :(

So yesterday Chris and Cam spent the entire afternoon at Urgent Care after we noticed tiny blisters on his actual eyeball.  Yikes!  He was a good boy for being there a loooong time!!

Fortunately I can report that the antibiotics have already started working and the blisters are gone as of this morning. :)

However since he is still contagious, we needed to figure out today's plans since church wasn't one of them.  Baffling us by turning down going to see "Epic" with Chris (my kids just aren't huge theater enthusiasts), he and Cam will run errands while Kendall and I head to church.  However we will have a "celebrate Cam's eye getting better" dinner tonight with my parents at Gourmet Pizza.  I don't remember the last time we ate there so I'm VERY much looking forward to it. :)

randoms

*Yesterday we dropped the kids off at my parents' and drove out to a retirement party in honor of Chris' aunt.  It was such a nice party and it was fun to be able to celebrate sooo many years of teaching with her.  And I'll admit it was nice to not have to worry about the kids!

*Kendall's eye infection has pretty much cleared up.  However now Cam has it + a fever :(

*Dinner tonight:  White Chicken Enchiladas

*Chris and I watched the series finale of The Office the other night.  I have to admit that I teared up a few times. It was a tad emotional to watch the characters we have watched all the years wrap up their lives.

*A couple weeks ago I had an Errandgirl job.  I mentioned a long time ago that I had started a small business of running errands for people. I have had very few jobs, but this one was great and I wish more similar ones would come my way.  I basically took a guy (friend of my parents') to the airport.  The best part was I was back before the kids even woke up (I had to pick him up at 4:30am)!!  Quick and easy money :)

not quite as I had anticipated

We have some friends who surprised their son with a trip to Disneyland a few weeks back.  They were so excited and the day ended up being somewhat of a bust due to two fussy kids.  I texted her, "Isn't that always how it happens?  We build up this awesome experience with our kids in our minds only to be disappointed because it doesn't go how we had imagined??"  :)

Along those lines, remember that adorable doll house I found for super cheap on Craig's List for Kendall's birthday?  Guess how many times she has played with it since she got it two weeks ago?  Two.  Yep, two. I've noticed that her choice for pretend play is more with scenarios, rather than having a doll in each hand.

For instance...she LOVES it when I get down the bag of random party items (leftover napkins, cups, streamer, etc.).  She'll spread them across the room and talk to imaginary people about her party she is having.

She likes to find bags or bowls and fill them with random things, all the while talking to some imaginary person about her "store" or some other scenario.  Here she is with my old purse, some notecards, and lottery tickets (she loves to snag a few every time we go to the store...go figure!).

Let's just say I'm REALLY glad that dollhouse was only $30.  But I'm sure this is just a phase and hopefully she'll put it to some good use in the future. :)

snapshots of the past couple days

Yesterday I wanted to take the kids to Chuck E' Cheese since our last attempt didn't end well due to the car chase ending right in front of the building.  However Kendall has an eye infection so I didn't feel quite right having her little hands all over the games.  We settled for a beautiful hike up in Oak Glen. The weather couldn't have been more perfect. 

This afternoon we headed out to the desert.  First stop was Costco for lunch and a few groceries.  Best sample? Chocolate Mousse Cake. I think it's a tad tacky to go back for a second sample...however...ummm...I guess I made an exception for this cake.  Yum!

  

It was a hot one so the kids needed lots of water/shade breaks during their bike ride...

...however it wasn't too hot for some wrestling :)

currently...

Current music:  The other day my mom, Chris and I were talking about which concert we would go to if had the chance.  My choice?  Zac Brown Band.

Current guilty pleasure:  Cool Whip.  This stuff has been making nightly appearances in my Skinny Cow concoctions.  I just CANNOT let myself think about the ingredient list.  I know it's terrible and I heard a rumor once that the stuff actually is black during the first stage of production. Blek!

Current nail color:  I NEVER paint my fingernails because I bite them too much.  My toes are purple. :)

Current Drink:  As always, homemade hot cocoa.  Chris recently asked me if I thought I was addicted (due to my 3 cups a day).  I said I wasn't since I can easily not have it when we are out of town or I'm gone all day. An "addict" can't go a day without something, right???

Current Favorite Show: Sunny Anderson's Homemade in America

Current item on wish list:  For a few years I've wanted to find a cute jumpsuit.  I have yet to find one that is flattering.  Not sure what it is about them but I just think they are so cute.

Current Blessing:  Our health.  We rarely need to go to the doctor, which is so helpful considering our health insurance deductible! :)

Current annoyance:  Cam's dislike of cheese.  It sure makes meals for him more tricky!

Current food experiment: I blogged about these a while back and made another batch yesterday.  I ended up rolling them into balls since the dough came out a bit sticky.  I then rolled them in graham cracker crumbs to form "Chocolate Chip Healthy Balls".  The kids approved. :)

disneyland

Yesterday Chris had a meeting out in OC, so he dropped us and my parents off at Disneyland and then met us later.  It was perfect weather and we enjoyed what could be our last day until we are blacked out for the summer.

All six of us actually agreed that the highlight of the day was taking the Monorail to Downtown Disney and going to the Lego Store.  I LOVED seeing my little guy sooo excited to look at the boxes of the two sets he wants.  He's been watching Youtube vidoes of them being put together and he finally got to see them in person. :)

randoms

*I recently found a stash of Chuck E' Cheese coins and decided to take the kids today.  As we got closer, I realized that the three helicopters I had noticed in the sky were hovering right over the building.  Cops were everywhere so I obviously decided to forgo our trip (later I fond out there was a shooting/car chase).  Cam was quite understanding.  Kendall...not so much.  :(

*After we got home, Kendall made a beautiful display of snow out of the T-ball trophy boxes I had just brought home.  This was super fun to clean up. :)

*Chris and I rented Jack Reacher the other night.  It was awesome.  Awesome.  One of the best movies we've seen in a long time.

*My mom bought a Perfect Pancake pan for my birthday that I have fallen in love with.  I use it to make sandwich bread as they are the same size as "Sandwich Thins" (that you pay WAY more for at the store).  Plus I can make my dough as healthy as I want.  Love this!!

*Last night I went out to dinner with the girls from my moms' group table.  We had such a great time.  I always enjoy my tables, but some years you just REALLY click.  This is one of those years. :)

randoms

*The other day we were at Costco and came across something new...deep dish ready to bake pizza.  We didn't get one but man did it look good.  We are both thick crust fans. :)

*Friday Chris took the kids to Disneyland for some daddy time.  I was able to get a lot done at home, which was very nice.  It was hot, a little crowded, but they still had a lot of fun. :)

*Saturday afternoon we went to Hemet to pick up a bike for Kendall I found on Criag's List.  They had told me it was a 16" but it ended up being 20".  However they felt badly about us driving all the way there so they gave the 20" to us for free!  Now we just have to store it :)

*Later we used the last of our Red Robin gift card (sad!) and went to dinner.  Here is Kendall with her birthday ice cream.  She is so funny because she'll get excited about them singing to her, yet when they come to the table, she stares at me gets super shy. :)

*Sunday night my parents came over to celebrate with us.  Their gift was the dollhouse I found on Craig's List a while back.  Kendall is not the "Oh, my gosh!!! AHHH!!!" type girl when she opens presents, but you can tell by her expression that she loved it. :)

"donuts"

It's kind of funny (and awesome) how my kids can be tricked when it comes to food. :)  Normally on Saturdays they get to have a donut or bagel for breakfast.  This morning I was going to watch my friend's kids so I didn't have time for a donut run.  I decided it would be more healthy anyway to make my own.

All I did was make biscuit dough, then add some frosting for the "donut" appearance.  Biscuit  (especially the ones I make) and donut dough taste QUITE different, but I guess as long as there is frosting they don't seem to notice. :)

Homemade Donut Holes (makes about 14)

1/2 cup oats (blended till powder)
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 tbls. olive oil
1/4 cup pureed sweet potato
1/3 cup milk

Mix together until combined.  Form into donut holes onto greased cookie sheet.  Bake at 400 for 8-10 minutes or until not doughy in the middle.  Let cool then frost.  I used this recipe for the frosting (but halved it).

family pics

A good friend of Chris' took some family pictures for us a couple weeks back.  I thought they turned out really well and he did a great job.  Here are more if you are interested...

randoms

*Picking Cameron up from school and then heading to Costco today for...

-Whole Wheat English Muffins -- 1/2 of one with PB + a protein smoothie is a great breakfast for Chris
-Sharp cheese block
-Bananas
-Eggs
-Ground beef ("Chubs") -- I have yet to find ground beef THIS lean for THIS cheap

*Cam has been into various Lego sets off and on.  His enthusiasm for a set has now reached an all time high with the Lego Volkswagen Van.  Holy Cow.  He loves watching Youtube videos of people putting it together and we'll often hear, "I just can't stop thinking about it!", "I just can't wait to put it together!".

The problem?  It's for ages 16+ AND it's $116.  Save your allowance, Cam!! :)

*Cameron has decided he doesn't like cheese in any form except on pizza.  He also won't drink milk.  He loves yogurt, but I HATE the amount of sugar in it.  I finally broke down today and bought Dannon All Natural.  I figure if he is going to consume all that sugar, at least it won't be alongside all the hard to pronounce chemical ingredients in other yogurts. :(

*I found a pretty cheap bike for Kendall on Craig's List.  She is way overdue on one as she outgrew her's a while ago. :)  We are going to take a look at it Saturday. :)

*Remember the fish Cam won at a party that I was annoyed with having to take care of?  He died a while ago and it took FOUR DAYS for the kids to even notice he was missing! Apparently they weren't too attached!