Spring has sprung!!

Spring is here and we are loving our new house!!! We prayed for a couple years for a house with a yard and now we are SOOOO blessed with this amazing yard. Taryn loves her swing on the front porch that grandma and grandpa great sent her for Christmas. She is always happiest when she can watch her brother play and he loves to entertain her! The weather has been super warm and beautiful so we have been playing outside almost everyday.



Travis got to mow our grass for the first time and he had a great helper! Trey turned his John Deer Tractor into a riding mower.
Gordon and Katheryn (Travis's mom and dad) helped us dig up some bulb flowers from around their house that they have been growing for many years. Travis and Trey planted these to give the flower bed some color. Trey has discovered that there are TONS of worms in our flower beds. He now has pet worms :) He named one Willy the Worm and the others are Willy's friends.

I may be getting old but I love watching the beautiful birds and squirrels in the yard. There is a beautiful male and female cardinal that hang out around our yard and a pair of rabbits. Maybe we will have some baby creatures this summer!

We love our home and the memories we are already making here. I thank God everyday for blessing me with so much! I love our home but I love the people in it so much more.

Homemade Baby Food for Taryn

Last week at Taryn's 6 month check up her doctor told me to start feeding her solids 3 times a day. She had been eating cereal with applesauce a couple times a day for about 6 weeks but now we are increasing variety and amounts.

I made all of Trey's baby foods and he has turned out to be a GREAT eater. There are not many foods he has tried that he doesn't enjoy. I am convinced that the homemade baby food was the first step to raising a good eater. Not only that but it is GREAT for the budget!

This is pears. I simply cut up 3 fresh pears and cooked them slowly with a little apple juice until they were soft.

Puree the pears in a food processor or blender until smooth.



About 4 servings of pears for less that $1 and it is fresh!!!


This is a bag of frozen peas and carrots. I steam them with some water in my handy pampered chef microwave steamer with some water. 5-7 minutes in the microwave is all it takes!





Let the veggies cool and then puree with the water from the steamer. The water has some of the nutrients from the veggies.




Blend it until you are happy with the consistency.




6 servings of peas and carrots for $1!!!

I made about 3 days of food in about 30 minutes and most of that time was waiting on the pears to cook and cool!! I will make green beans and sweet potatoes next!! I only make about 3 days worth of food at a time because I want it to stay fresh. Some of the foods can be frozen and a good way to do that is in the old fashioned ice cube trays. That is the perfect way to keep the servings separated. I only freeze foods that were not previously frozen.

Homemade baby food makes your baby happy and healthy! Happy Cooking!!

Crafting for my nephews

My sister is having TWIN boys in a few weeks so I have been crafting a few little things for my nephews. Jacob and Jackson should arrive sometime in April. I have been working on these gifts for a few weeks but I just gave them to Dana at her shower last Thursday.

These little onesies with denim ties are my favorite. I can't wait to see Jackson and Jacob with these and some cute little blue jeans.I also made these soft blocks and bibs. I didn't think of it until later but next time I make the blocks I will put some stuff in them so that they rattle or squeak. The little bibs are reversible.

And then the caterpillar onesies. I put their names on these so that their Auntie will be able to keep their names straight.

I am so glad I could find some cute little projects for boys. I really have enjoyed sewing and crafting for Jacob and Jackson. It gives me time to think about them and pray for them. My sister has done AMAZING with her pregnancy and every report on the boys from the doctor has been perfect. At their ultrasound last week they were almost 2 pounds each. Thank the LORD!!! In a few weeks I will be sharing pictures of nephews! So exciting!

Back to School

We have taken a really long break from school work. We added Taryn to the family, moved, settled in our new house and then the Holidays came upon us really fast. We have not been on a normal schedule for few months. Anybody that knows me knows that has been hard for me but also for Trey. So this week we are establishing a routine again.

I am starting preschool Hooked On Phonics with Trey. We are starting with uppercase letters.

Here is our daily schedule.
1. Sing the alphabet song while pointing to the letters on his chart
2. Letter tracing worksheet http://www.kidslearningstation.com/preschool/teach-printing.asp
3. Shape or number worksheet (alternating weeks) http://www.cool-kids-craft-ideas.com/shapes-worksheets.html or http://www.kidslearningstation.com/preschool/teach-numbers.asp
4. Read at least 2 books
5. Reward (sticker or piece of candy)

We do one letter Monday-Thursday. On Friday we review what we learned for the week. The Hooked on Phonics curriculum provides review activities and games for review.

So excited to get back to school work with Trey. It is so rewarding to see him learn something new!

Merry Christmas!!!

Merry Christmas!!! We kicked off our Christmas Season at the Fantasy of Trees the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. We have gone to the Fantasy of Trees every year since Trey's First Christmas. The Fantasy of Trees is an annual fundraiser for Children's Hospital. I like to take this time to be thankful that I haven't had to take either of my children to Children's and to be thankful it is there if I ever do need to take one of them there.

Taryn sat up in the big girl stroller for the first time. She loved looking around and was a perfect angel.

Taryn had her face painted with a Christmas Tree and then took her nap.

Trey made a couple ornaments.

We all rode the merry go round.

I had to almost drag Trey out the door. He rode rides, rode scooters, played with Legos and trains, made ornaments and ate cookies. We had a great day and a great start to Christmas. Always one of my favorite days of the year!



Christmas Eve arrived almost in the blink of an eye. Cousin Bonnie sent Trey a bear that read "The Night Before Christmas." That is how our Christmas Eve evening began. I'm not sure who enjoyed the bear more, meme or Trey.

Then we opened our traditional Christmas Eve gift AKA JAMMIES!!!

Dad and Justin were having so much fun! Things were getting a little wild and crazy! LOL

Our Traditional family jammies picture

Santa brought Trey a dune buggy and lots of crafts in his stocking

Trey bought Taryn this flashlight with his own money at the Fantasy of Trees secret Santa shop

Poppy and Trey working on the new lego trash truck from mama and papa

First ride on his new dune buggy in his Captain Fireman suit

Mamaw's Babies

Trey asked Santa for Hotwheels race track. Mamaw and Papaw (I mean Santa) made one little boy very happy.

I wish I had bought stock in Hotwheels before Christmas. Trey got a LOT of hotwheels.

A couple days after Christmas, we took a ride up into the mountains to let Trey play in the snow. What a beautiful day and a wonderful day with my little family.

Another great Christmas full of blessings. We were able to spend time with family, I have 2 healthy children, an amazing husband, a new home and twin nephews on the way. Thank you Lord for your abundant blessings.

Christmas Breakfast

So for as long as I can remember, we have always had angel biscuit sausage roll for breakfast on Christmas morning. Grandma made it, then my mom and now I am the one to make it. It is perfect for Christmas morning because all you have to do is slice it and bake it. So here is the family recipe!!!!!

5 c flour
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 c warm water
1 package yeast
3/4 c shortening
2 c buttermilk
2 lbs sausage
3 c shredded cheddar cheese

1. Brown sausage until completely cooked and crumbled.

2. Drain and cool the sausage completely.


3. Dissolve yeast package into the warm water.
4. Sift together remaining dry ingredients.


5. Cut in shortening. I forgot to take a picture of this step but it should look like small peas.


6. Slowly pour in the buttermilk a little at a time while stirring the milk into the flour. Then pour in the yeast mixture. Stir until just combined and the dough is formed. The dough will be very sticky. Turn the dough out onto a WELL floured surface.


7. Knead the dough with flour until it is less sticky and easier to handle. Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces. Put one piece into the fridge while you work with the other half. Roll the dough out into a rectangle about 1/4 inch thick. Still use plenty flour on your surface for this step.

8. Sprinkle the dough with half of the cooked sausage and shredded cheese.

9. Start on one end of the dough and slowly begin to roll the dough.
10. When it is completely rolled up, wrap the roll in plastic wrap and then foil. Store it in the freezer until you are ready to serve it.




11. Repeat steps 7-10 with the remaining dough, sausage and cheese.

Christmas morning (or any morning) get the rolls out of the freezer, slice them into 1/2 inch thick pieces, spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray, lay the slices on the cookie sheet and bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for about 15 minutes. Enjoy!!!