measurements

Whenever I watch shows about cooking, they always stress the importance of being strict with your measurements when it comes to baking. I've never been that strict. When it comes to teaspoons or tablespoons of things (like baking soda), I always eyeball it and just dash it in without using a spoon. I've never had trouble with things not turning out.

I also never really follow the directions as far as the order of adding things (like mixing the wet first, then adding the dry). Again, never had a problem. Last night, my casual attitude came back to bite me with an Angel Food mix I bought to make for my dad's b-day lunch. I ignored the specific instructions as to how fast and long to mix it. I ended up with a super dense cake that I had to throw out. I guess I learned my lesson.

I ended up getting a store bought cake and made what turned out to be a pretty good dessert. I layered the cake, coconut pudding, and cool whip in a trifle dish. It was quite tasty. My little helper enjoyed sampling the cake as he tore it into pieces.






We had a great time at my parents'. The kids got their Easter Baskets from my parents and Cam has been a big fan of his new glasses.

random pics...in no particular order

Here is Karen, one of my closest friends, whom I've only actually hung out with a few times our whole friendship. But we, along with my sister, email several times a week and she has been such a huge support for me in everything with Cameron. I visited her last spring and this was one of the funny shots we got.


Some friends and I did a walk for Breast Cancer back when my mom was first diagnosed. It was a great day.


This was one of Chris and my all time favorite vacations. Our friends invited us to stay in their suite at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. This was something we'll NEVER get to do again, so it was awesome to feel like one of the "wealthy" for a weekend. :)


Just took this yesterday. Pure cuteness.


This was taken the last time my sister's kids were together with mine. We are minus two here. They are coming home for several months next January. I'm BEYOND excited. Not only is my sister one of my best friends and I get to actually see her, but I'm elated at the thought of the cousins spending so much time together.


This was back when I was pregnant with Cameron. The staff at the high school I worked at threw me a shower. That was SUCH a great job and I still miss it.


A while back Chris took Cam to Panera Bread for their weekly breakfast. Cam was unsure about the bagel, since he had never had one. After telling him it was a "bagel donut", he chowed down. Who wouldn't love those cinnamon crunch bagels???

*Cam has spring break this week. Today we met my mom at the park to feed the ducks. We then headed over to Chick Filet for some playtime. Next, we walked over to a fountain so Cam could throw his little bucket of pennies.

*Chick Filet, to me, is like Trader Joes and In & Out. It really isn't THAT great, but it's become a fad and very trendy to be an addict. I know many will disagree with me on this. :)

*Kendall took a 2 hour nap this morning (9-11)! The only problem is that whenever she takes a "normal" nap like this, she will not nap the rest of the day. What a puzzle that girl is!

*We are going over to my parents' on Wednesday to celebrate a very belated birthday for my dad. My is-anything-but-overweight-silly-dad has requested a lite dessert. This severely limits my baking creativity. He tried to tell me to just make something like fruit and yogurt. I said, "We are NOT having yogurt as your dessert!". I have to draw the line somewhere!!

*Why do you have to wash lettuce when it constantly gets sprayed at the super market?

*Dr. Laura moved radio stations. Her new station gets fuzzy EVERY single time I go under any type of tunnel or phone line. So annoying!

*I'm supposed to have started sleep training with Kendall and I keep coming up with excuses not to. I have very little motivation because I get plenty of rest since she nurses so quick during the night. I know I need to do it as she is FAR too old to be feeding during the night. I was way more strict with Cam!

*It was almost hot today and it is actually supposed to snow Wednesday night. Weird!

weekend with family

My in-laws came to stay with us this weekend. While they wanted to see all of us, they specifically drove 4 hours just so they could see Cam play in his t-ball game yesterday. After getting Cam all geared up and driving down to the field, we were told the game was cancelled due to wind. We were pretty frustrated not only that the league waited until the parents got there to inform us, but that now Debbie and Wayne couldn't see him play.

Luckily Cam took it well, and it made it better that he got to have his own personal game with his grandparents in the backyard when we came home.



Later we met up with my brother and sister-in-law and their girls for dinner at Spaghetti Factory. Chris and I ventured out and ordered their new Garlic Mizzithra (same but with garlic and bacon). Um...let's just say one should never stray from the original. :) Here is a cute pic of Lauren and Kendall. Kendall was quite taken with her and gave some pretty good smiles.



And here are the four cousins. We couldn't get all of them to smile/look at once, but it's still cute.



Today we took Debbie and Wayne to Gourmet Pizza Shoppe. After a stop at the park, they took off for home and we are now back relaxing while Kendall naps. Great weekend.

2 unhealthy but fabulous recipes

Yesterday I tried two new recipes that were awesome! The first was sent to me by Jessica, thanks! They are called, Crunchy Caramel Reeses Cookie Bars. They taste like a homemade Snickers bar...really. I made some for my Tmoms table, so hopefully they'll agree with my conclusion that they are definitely worth making.



Last night I tried a recipe from my Taste of Home Magazine. It's called Meatball Sub Casserole. It isn't the healthiest recipe, however mine wasn't too bad since I used ground turkey and low fat mayo and cream cheese. It is kind of a fun dish and has a really unique and yummy flavor.



p.s. Kendall just started pulling herself up. Isn't she just so proud of herself?

My Dearest Kendall,
Ahhh, what words should be said after a night like last night? After letting your new habit of waking twice a night go for too long, I finally decided to do something about it. I know you aren't supposed to compare siblings, but I would like to mention that Cameron started sleeping 12 hours a night at 8 months...and never looked back. YOU, on the other hand, have been quite different.

Last night was rough. After an HOUR AND 20 MINUTES of crying, I finally gave in. You won. Mommy guilt wouldn't let me wait any longer. But Kendall, as you gaze at your pretty little face in that mirror...



...ask yourself this question: "Why do I make my mommy's nights so miserable?".

Your loving but sleep deprived mom,
Kelly

my special sunday morning

This morning we were a tad late to church because I just had to get a couple shots of my little flower...



But my baby being the cutest girl EVER isn't why my Sunday morning was special. It was special because of what I observed as Cam ran into his class. There was a teen boy helping in the class. After noticing he was holding a ball, Cam went up to him and said, "Hi! How's it going? Want to play catch?". I've said before that for most parents, this wouldn't be a big deal. But for us, this is HUGE. I actually teared up and luckily ran into my mom on my way out so I could gush to her. This is so big for my little guy--to ENGAGE another boy. I'm on cloud nine and will continue to be for the rest of the day. I'm in love with my Cam.