Happy Birthday !!!!!

We love you Brooke. Wish we could be with you today. But since we can not, we thought we would send a little crazy love your way.

Does this one count?

So, I am thinking that this picture should count. Since I am technically wearing a bathing suit, and I do not recall anything about you having to see it...then this should count right??????





I am working on my bravery issues...I will post a real one later.

Hey, can I photoshop it first????

Taking the Plunge....

Just wanted to invite any other brave moms to join Bridget and I on our 4th of July double-dog-dare-you post. We have decided that instead of just posting pics of our kiddos having a great time swimming on the 4th , that we too will brave the camera lens. By Sunday night, we will have both posted a pic of us in our swim suits for all the world to see...how crazy is that????

Really, you should join us.

Think Pink...

Last week when I was touching up my roots (which I seem to being doing more frequently these days) Micah asked if I could put some "red" in her hair. I didn't have the time that evening, but I promised her that next time we were by the beauty supply store we could go in and pick her out a funky color.

Well, today was the day. After a grueling decision between, "cherry wine" and "plum purple" we headed home. Here are the pics of our adventure.


Sitting pretty: Ready for the fun part to start.



Modeling the coloring cap...she couldn't believe that I was taking her picture with this crazy thing on. I, on the other hand, thought it perfectly normal to snap away.



This one is my FAVORITE!!! I love that cheesy grin, and the Granma cap is perfect. I can totally see my Dad's mom running into the store with her rain cap on...it's even tied under her chin like Granma's was.


The waiting game...all the goop is on. We just did a few chunky pieces, figuring that we could always do more if we loved it.


Here is the after shot...as in after I got it washed out...after she had ice cream....after she watched Justice League...after she wouldn't sit still, which meant I was chasing her all over the house...and finally after I realized that, while you can clearly see the HOT PINK streaks in real life, unfortuneately the flash washes them out in the photos.


In the end, it was really fun, and I just might add a PINK streak to my long tresses by the weeks end.

Summer Fun

Just thought I would share a little summer fun with all of you. This is Micah showing off her swimming expertise. More pics to come later today.

Jolly Green Giant

I am a BIG woman. My husband affectionately calls me his "Brick house" which I am totally cool with, but sometimes, I guess I just forget how uncommon it is for a woman to be knocking on 6 feet. So I guess it should come as no surprise that my kids are BIG too. Our 4 year old is commonly mistaken for 7, and both are boys who will be in 5th & 6th grade next year are often mistook for jr. highers.

Last month, when both the boys needed new shoes, we headed straight for the men's department, like we have been for years. Jared, at 11 years old is now in a men's 10 1/2. Jake at 10 years old is now in a men's 9 1/2.

But even with that knowledge, I was shocked when I saw Jared in his new shorts....a 32 waist.




Jake just wanted to strike a pose. And since he is always the most creative poser, I thought I would share.



I guess it's not only my garden that is hyped up on MiracleGrow.

Medley Muffins

I have been working on a recipe for zucchini bread for what seems like forever. I had all but given up, until this past week when I finally found the pot of gold. After countless tries tweaking various recipes for bread, it finally hit me to try blending in some ideas from some cake recipes to get the desired outcome I was searching for:

Look: Dark
Consistency: Super Moist
Taste: Earthy but sweet
.....and last but not least it had to have a "WOW" factor. Something that set it off from other breads that I had tried.

Here is what I came up with. Bear in mind, I am not a recipe writer, so I hope it is understandable, if not just email me and I will try to be clearer. Here goes:

Oven to 350 degrees
I like the to use my Loaf pan, or the mini loaf pans you can get that are disposable, but muffins are great too if you want to share them. The following will make 2 loaves in a regular loaf pan; about 24-30 muffins, or 6-8 mini loaves.

In your KitchenAid Stand mixer or a large bowl

4 Eggs, beaten then blended with
1 1/2 cups of White Sugar and
1/2 cup of Brown Sugar. Then add
3/4 cup of Oil and
1 tbsp of Vanilla. Set Aside.

In small mixing bowl combine the following items

2 cups All Purpose Flour (you could also use whole wheat)
2 heaping Tbsp of Cinnamon
2 tsp of Baking Soda
1/2 tsp of Baking Powder
1 1/2 tsp of Salt

Slowly combine the dry ingredient with the wet until the mixture is thoroughly blended

Then add the following:
3 Bananas, mashed
1 cup Walnuts, chopped
2 cups of GRATED Zucchini and
1 cup of GRATED Carrots

Note: When grating the Zucchini, only grate the outer skin off and the outer flesh. If you lay the Zuc on its side and rotate it around (like when zesting a lemon or lime) it will keep you from getting to the seeds in the inner core. This is perfect for those Zucs that got to big for eating.

Now divide your batter and bake away.
2 regular loaf pans - about 40 minutes just until its not jiggly in the middle when you shake it
6-8 mini pans - place on a cookie sheet for easy handling and bake about 20-25 minutes
24 muffins -about 20 minutes as well, maybe a little shorter.


Don't wait for these to cool...as soon as you can handle them, dig right in. They are supper yummy with a little REAL butter on each slice.

If you want to spruce them up for a shower or work meeting add this yummy spread which is great once they have cooled down.

Pineapple Spread
1 block cream cheese, whipped
small can of crushed pineapple
2-3 tbsp of powdered sugar

Blend, chill, enjoy!!!

Hope you love it as much as we do!!!!

(By the way, I named them Medley Muffins because of the medley of zucchini, carrots, and bananas.)