*Kendall is still having a rough time pretty much in any nursery situation.  Even yesterday at Bible Study when she had her favorite teacher she was described as, "being on the verge" the entire time, not even letting her teacher walk across the room without her.  Last night was parents' night at Awana.  In this pic the kids were sitting directly in front of the parents, yet you can see she had to be on her teacher's lap facing toward me rather than the front of the room.  It's also interesting that she has taken on her brother's feelings toward other kids crying.  It's no where near Cam's dislike, but somehow he has rubbed off on her to where she'll many times start crying simply if another child starts to cry in her class.  :(  Hmmm....

*I could do another month of hot weather.  I'm ready for fall because of the Holidays, but not the weather.

*Did you know that if camels don't get enough water, their humps sag to the side??

*While I know whole wheat pasta is healthier than white, I still can never give Chris a decent size portion that will actually fill him up.  So the other night I poured his spaghetti sauce over cut up steamed potato chunks.  At first he was like, "What the heck is this??" However afterward he admitted to really liking it, as well as how big of a portion I as able to give him. :)

*That's about it...down to make breakfast...which takes a while considering everyone has something different!

Breakfast almost EVERY morning:

Kendall:  Rice Krispies (I make a big deal over hearing them "pop")
Cam:  Waffles (black bean this time) and banana
Chris: Either protein smoothie, oatmeal, cereal, or egg whites with cheese
Kelly:  Yogurt/cottage cheese combo with raw oats, flax seed, and Rice Krispies for crunch :)

handy grandpa

This past weekend Chris' parents came to stay for a night.  The kids were very excited not only to have them visit, but for the new doghouse Chris' dad was bringing down.  Wayne made this house as well as the cute bookshelf you see below for Kendall.  He is so talented and we are lucky to have been the recipients of other projects he has done over the years.  Thanks, grandpa!!

daily schedule

We've gotten into our school groove as far as our daily schedule and what it typically entails...

5:15  Mommy wakes up if doing my Jillian DVD
(6:00 Mommy wakes up if not working out)

6:15ish  Kids wake up

6:30 Breakfast

6:45 -7:45 Play, get ready, possibly a bath if didn't take one the night before

7:45 Leave for school

8:30 - 10:00 Get home, go for bike ride around neighborhood, play inside, play outside with Zoe, etc.

10:00 Much looked forward to 23 minute break for mom while Kendall watches Mickey Mouse (if you have DVR, you know that recorded shows last about 23 minutes) :)

10:23 Coloring, more play time while I get lunch prepped (I like to have it mostly done so we can eat right when we get home from school)

11:30 Leave to pick up Cam

12:15 Return and have lunch

12:30 - 1:15ish Play time and a little dinner prep for me

1:15 Kendall down for nap and homework time for Cam

1:45 Cam "room time"

2:32 Cam comes down at the VERY specific time we decide on (it's a friendly negotiation each day) and not a minute before or after :)

2:32 - 3:15ish Lego play or read books together until Kendall wakes up

3:30 - 4:00 Mess around upstairs with them, maybe some laundry

4:00 - 4:45 "Special Upstairs Time" for both kids in which they can do whatever they want...but they have to stay upstairs

5:00 - 5:46 :) Watch two shows while I get dinner ready

6:00 Dinner

6:30 Play with Zoe outside until bedtime

7:00 Bed time for Kendall

7:15 Cam gets ready for bed and can read in his room until 7:45

7:45 Lights out for the kids!!

Yesterday I wanted to do something fun since it was a Friday.  I found a buy one get one free coupon online for Auntie Annie's so we headed to Inland Center for a pretzel lunch and play time.  The kids were excited to meet my mom there and it was nice for me to have someone to talk to while they played. :)  Kendall was equally excited about the mall AND getting to skip her nap. :)

Here is Cam quite enthralled with the mall directory:

 These crushed to crumbs...

with this mixed in...

and a few of these...

covered in this...

equals super yummy cookie balls.

*This morning Kendall and I walked/rode her bike up to Starbucks.  We had a fun time together, which was good because it lessened my frustration with her due to her sudden refusal to poop anywhere other than her underwear.  Ugh.  So annoying.  I'm trying to come up with a consequence but have yet to think of a good one.  Time outs won't work for this and telling her she won't get a treat after dinner is too far removed from the incident.  Hmmm...

*Right now I'm working on a panel discussion I'm helping with for our next moms' group.  It's all about tips and tricks in the kitchen.  I think it will be really cool to learn from the other girls on the panel but I will say that I'm getting a little nervous about my time behind the microphone.  :)

*Tonight I'm planning on attending Awana WITH Kendall in the hopes of making her feel at ease, then hopefully letting her finish the rest of the night.  Crossing fingers! :)

desert costco

Today we went out to the desert for our Costco/mall routine.  It's been a while and it was fun to be back at it again. :)

Our Costco purchases:
*Canned chicken
*2 bunches bananas
*Cheez-its
*Ground turkey
*Turkey patties
*Feta cheese

Samples were in abundance.  The kids and I agreed that the gooey cinnamon rolls were the best.  Chris preferred the teryiaki meatballs. As we walked by the ice cream I couldn't help but pick up the most delicious sounding flavor.  Sidenote:  ice cream is the only dessert nuts can be tolerated in. :)

I wasn't intending on purchasing it, but I was curious as to the nutritional content.  I think this stuff rivals Ben & Jerry's and I also think I'll stick with my Skinny Cows. Yikes!! :)

 After Costco we spent a good chunk of time at Barnes and Noble and then went to play in the mall play area for a short time.  Heading home included a stop at Wendy's for a Frosty.

this week...

...we had our first night of Awana.  Cam did great.  Kendall was hyper excited upon drop off, but actually had to be picked up early after a phone call that she had been crying for 15 minutes.  She kept saying, "The kids were so loud."  I think it was the loud combined with having no one familiar in her class like she does at church.

...we went on a hike with some friends in Oak Glen.  We thought it would be much cooler up there.  It wasn't, but we still had a fun time.

...we took Cam's coins he collected in his new digital piggy bank to Staters to turn them into cash.  We then went to Walmart where he picked out a Lego set with the money.  There was even some left over for a trinket for Kendall.

...we went to Disneyland with my parents.  I thought Haunted House was especially spooky and second guessed myself in taking the kids on it.  However Kendall was talking ALL about it afterwards wanting to go on it again.  Not sure if I'll oblige. :)

...we watched the first episode of Revolution.  Pretty good :)

...we heard a funny from Cameron, "I think Halloween and Christmas are my favorite holidays."  "Why?" "Because they have like, yummy candy and stuff and Thanksgiving is just about turkey and meat."

...we (Chris and Cameron) went to movie night at our church and had a great time.

...we (Kendall and I) stayed back and she tried spaghetti squash for the first time (with a little butter and garlic salt).  She loved it!!  Woohoo!!

                                              

make ahead meals

A while back I was given the idea of a little money making venture.  So after a super cool flyer designed by Chris, I started my business, "Errand Girl".   Basically I offer errand services to seniors in my area.  This could include grocery shopping, appointment reminders, meal prep, etc.

That was a while ago, but I'm very happy to finally have one client. Every other week I'll go over to their home and sit with the husband (who is ill) while the wife is able to get out of the house for a few hours.  While I'm looking more for jobs such as grocery shopping (so I can bring Kendall), as opposed to this one where I need to have my mom watch Kendall, it is still a good starting off job.  Yesterday was our first time and it went really well.

She also is interested in hiring me to bring a home cooked meal each time I come, and possibly a few for her to put in the freezer.  So I've been scouring my cooking blogs and websites and found this AWESOME post.  It couldn't be more perfect for what I'm looking for!  The best part is that she has a section at the end of the post in which she talks about how to tweek the recipe in order to not cook it right then.   I was so excited to find it!!   Here are a couple I've flagged that I'm going to offer as options.