John's 1st Birthday Party

John's first birthday party was wonderful and relatively low key. It was so nice to live around family, so Justin's family came over to celebrate.

Here is the invitation:

We have soooo much stuff. I tried to deter receiving so many gifts, but only one family member took our suggestion.

Here are some pictures from his special day.

My mom came in town and we went to the zoo on his actual birthday. We also got a call on this day from our realtor telling us our house sold!

At the Zoo:

I am glad we got some pictures with him on his actual birthday because I did not get one with him at his birthday party.

We live in Arkansas now so a John Deere theme seemed appropriate. (Justin picked it out.)

The cake we had made.

 John's personal cake that I made him. They made fun of it the entire day! I obviously do not have a future in cake decorating!

He is not sure about his hat.

Our first baby... who is getting too big!

Of course he had to get his own John Deere from his aunt Beth.

 Justin and I bought him a basket ball goal.

 Paw-paw gave him is first tractor.

Cake time!!

I think I tried to take a bite of his cake... bad idea.

YAY!! His birthday was a success and alot of fun!

Better late than never... Happy 1st birthday to my precious baby boy! Mommy loves you!

Getting Caught Up

It has been over four months since I have posted on this blog. That is pathetic! I am going to try to get caught up for my own bad memory.

I am going to post weekly on this blog. For my me, my family and friends who do not live near us.

John promoted out of the baby area in church today. Tears (from me) immediately followed. (I know I have issues.)

Time has flown by and I don't want to forget about anything that happens during these crazy, but precious years of their young lives.

I am so blessed to be a mommy, I just wish I was better at keeping up with it all!

Photo of the Week: 1st Birthday Party Invitation Picture

One week from today John turns one year old.

The phrase "John is turning one" is surreal to me. It kills me how much he has grown up this past month.

I took some pictures for his birthday party invitation. I promise, I was trying to not be like this.

Here is the one I decided on. It is in color on his invitation, but I love it in black in white.

Oh my word, John is turning one.

Photos of the Week: Hair, Tradition, Bible Study & Missing Daddy

John woke up from his nap looking like this:

What makes this so funny is the fact that twenty years ago...I used to have bangs that looked almost identical. (Does anyone remember the poof?)

Kate loves hot chocolate with "mallow marshes" and whipped cream. I think she especially loves it because we do this:

Kate brought all her Bibles into her bed and proceeded to do her "Bible Study". What makes this so funny is Justin does the same thing when he studies and prepares lessons. He has all his books around him (He does it at the dining room table though, not in our bed).

Justin was out of town and I took this picture of the kids to send to him. If you want to read the entire story and experience my "issues" you can check it out here.

I hope you all had a great week!

Have a great Saturday!

Shhhh...Kate has Bieber Fever

Kate has been so sick this week, but last night she ran a new fever...

Justin was watching the Celebrity All-Star Basketball game. Kate was in the room with him. When they introduced Justin Bieber she was beside herself and kept chanting his name.

It was so funny. Even this morning she asked her daddy to see Justin Bieber on the TV. (Sports Center was playing highlights of the game).

Here is a little video of Kate from last night... see her eyes light up when she says his name... she kills me. (You have to turn up the volume to hear her... she is whispering).

Justin Bieber really does something to little girls... Oh and adults... Justin (my Justin) actually voted for him to be MVP last night.

Excuse me, I now have to go download Baby, Baby, Baby Ohhh.



Have a great Saturday!

Weekly Picture: Brother, You Are My Best Friend

I am going to try to post a picture each week of my kids.

They are growing so fast... please make it slow down!

These pictures are my way of coping and trying to capture what they are like right now.

Kate told John this morning that he was her best friend. Please note that her best friend changes daily and today was the first time John was her best friend.

She was so cute and wanted him to play with her all morning.

Here is a picture of them in her play house this morning:

Here is a picture of them together from last week (this picture completely captures their personality):
Kate is in la la land and John is like "mama, you all are crazy".

Words cannot express how much I love them!

I have also started a new blog this week. 

It is called The Overwhelmed Woman: www.theoverwhelmedwoman.com. If you want to subscribe to the Overwhelmed Woman by email click here. (Each post will be emailed to you. Remember to confirm your subscription.) 

I have a variety of things I want to write about on The Overwhelmed Woman.  

I am going to keep this blog as more of an update for my family & friends on my kids, etc. If you want to subscribe to this personal blog enter your email in the box on the right.

I am also going to start posting my recipes over there. My goal is to post at least one recipe a week. 

Today I posted a recipe for Tonga Toast from Disney World... it is a "life changing experience". (I had to throw that in there for Deb, Jay, Katie and Chris.)

I guess all of this my way of handling how fast everything is going by.

How do you handle your kids growing up so quickly?

Leave a comment below, I'd love to hear.

Much love!

John - 11 months old

Oh my word.. John was eleven months old yesterday.

Justin reminded me that in one month he will be a year old and thus the monthly picture with Mickey will end. We joked about having him take a picture with Mickey each year (even his teen age years). I don't think John will go for that, but it would be funny if 18 years from now.. I was showing you his picture with Mickey (one can only dream).

I seriously can't believe how quickly it has flown by. He is getting so big. He is crawling everywhere and so curious. He studies how things work. I would love to know what is going on in his little mind.

I love him so much!

Here is his eleven month picture.

Kid Friendly Recipe - Italian Grilled Cheese

I was talking to my hair stylist the other day and she was telling me how hard of time she was having making "real" food for her one year old. 

We can all fall into a rut with the recipes we make for our kids and family. (My rut is usually Mac & Cheese or Chicken Nuggets).

This one has been a favorite in my house lately, so I wanted to share it with you. It is so easy and I always have the ingredients on hand. 

Dream Home?

When you think of your "dream home", what picture comes to mind?

My mind goes to the above picture. This is a picture of Hulk Hogan's home. I've been in that home several times. It is only a few minutes away from the home (much smaller home) I grew up in. I babysat for them (about 15 years ago) and I used to work for his ex-wife, Linda.

I can honestly say it is the most beautiful home I've ever seen with my own eyes.

These pictures do not do it justice.

We were at my sister-in-laws house for a Super Bowl party last night. They just built a house and it is incredibly beautiful. A guy in our life group told Justin that their house was the nicest home he had ever stepped foot in.

I assure you that I will never own a home as nice as the one above or one as nice as my sister-in-law's.

Confession: I daydream of owning a home like that.

When I catch myself in a daydream, I have to remind myself... it is not the style or beauty of the house that really matters.

The atmosphere and relationships within the home are what is important. Those will make lasting impressions and will be remembered forever. Generally, it is not a home itself that causes one to be sentimental; it is the memories that took place within the home.

It causes me to ask myself, what kind of "dream home" do I want?

My "dream home" consists of a place where my husband and kids feel loved, comfortable and secure. A place where God is glorified and honored in everything we say and do.

I love this quote:


"Let the wife make the husband glad to come home, and let him make her sorry to see him leave." -Martin Luther


What does your "dream home" look like?


What are you doing to make a "dream home"?


Leave a comment below, I'd love to hear.

Kate's Rap Version the B-I-B-L-E & Her Starring Role in a Church Video

Kate wanted to give me a show the other day. This is what I got. 

I have no idea why she seems mad or where she came up with this version of the B-I-B-L-E. It makes me laugh every time. 

I guess she shares my love for rap music.

I assure you, she does know the real version of the B-I-B-L-E. She sang it in a video they made for our church. (She stole the show.) You can click here to watch. (They show her in the beginning, but she sings near the end). Yes, I am a proud mama!

Happy Saturday!

Recipe: Gorilla Bread (Like Monkey Bread Only BETTER.. it contains Cream Cheese)

WARNING: This recipe may be life changing in a way that will cause you to be invited to every social event because they hope you will bring this recipe. (Of course, I'm kidding... but it is really good!)

While searching for a Monkey Bread recipe last week.. I came across this recipe: Gorilla Bread. I made it for my life group last week and they went CRAZY for it. It is going to make an appearance again at our Super Bowl party (YES! it is that good!)

I made a couple minor changes, which might be sacrilegious because it is a Paul Deen recipe and WHO AM I to change a Paula Deen recipe? (I just added vanilla to the recipe and removed the nuts).

Anyway.. Here it is in all its deliciousness.

Gorilla Bread

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla 
• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
• 2 (12-ounce) cans refrigerated biscuits (10 count)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray a bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray. 

Mix the granulated sugar and cinnamon. 

In a saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar over low heat, stirring well. Stir in vanilla; set aside. 

Cut the cream cheese into 20 equal cubes. 

Press the biscuits out with your fingers. 

Coat each side with cinnamon sugar. 

Place a cube of cream cheese in the center of each biscuit, wrapping and sealing the dough around the cream cheese. 

Place half of the prepared biscuits in the pan. 

Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, pour half of the melted butter mixture over the biscuits.

Layer the remaining biscuits on top.

Sprinkle with the remaining cinnamon sugar, pour the remaining butter mixture over the biscuits. 

Bake for 30 minutes. 

Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes. Place a plate on top and invert. (I can never invert it to come out right, so I just scoop out each piece and nicely arrange on a plate.)

This is also a great comfort food recipe. We had a crazy day today, so it will be enjoyed!

Here is an easier version you can copy and print.


GORILLA BREAD

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
• 2 (12-ounce) cans refrigerated biscuits (10 count)

Directions

1.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

2.  Spray a bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray. 
3.  Mix the granulated sugar and cinnamon. 
4.  In a saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar over low heat, stirring well; Stir in vanilla and set aside. 
5.  Cut the cream cheese into 20 equal cubes. 
6.  Press the biscuits out with your fingers.
7. Coat each side with cinnamon sugar. 
8. Place a cube of cream cheese in the center of each biscuit, wrapping and sealing the dough around the cream cheese. 
9. Place half of the prepared biscuits in the pan.
10. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, pour half of the melted butter mixture over the biscuits.
11. Layer the remaining biscuits on top, sprinkle with the remaining cinnamon sugar, pour the remaining butter mixture over the biscuits.
12. Bake for 30 minutes. 
13.Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes. 
14. Place a plate on top and invert.
15. Serve Warm

ENJOY!