Memorial Day 2009

SO, I've had better weekends. I was sick the whole week before this weekend and I unfortunately still didn't feel good this weekend. Thankfully, Gabe seems to be better and we did manage to have a good time and get out in the beautiful weather despite it.
Bryan got off early Friday, BBQ with Friends Saturday, BBQ with family Sunday, Bryan finished his mockup for Vibe of Portland, playing in the pool and we finished off the weekend with another BBQ with friends.

Here are a few favorite pics:

Hanging out at the Duffy's
Gabe after playing/splashing in their pool "What mom?"

Getting dry with the princess towel

Chillin with Miss Mia

We put the pool up

Gabe wanted to wear his Cars swim shorts

He would fill up the bag with water and shake the bag getting all wet.

This is what I saw when I went in to get him after his nap. lol

Busy Bee

Bryan has A LOT on his plate and one thing that he likes to do at work is write all of his daily tasks down on a noticeboard. I found this AWESOME one at IKEA and got it for him so that he can keep track of everything he needs to get done and it allows me to see everything too. LOVE IT!

Oops! I did it again...

Yep I did! It's really not unusual for me to do this, but I just can't seem to let his hair grow out. This little guy has some wacky hair. I actually think he has curly hair like me. Poor thing. lol

I thought it would be fun to compare:

This is Gabe at 8 months the first time I shaved his head. SO CUTE

This is Gabe today

Love LOST

I love Lost, I really do. But I don't know how long I can handle having tiny snippets of information when there is still SO much to be revealed. I can't help but constantly remember that it is a show and they want it to run forever, which it won't do once they really answer our questions. I have about a hundred questions in my mind. So I get it, the writers have no motivation to give us real understanding, just tiny revelations mixed with a lot more questions, or the show wouldn't continue to entertain us for as long. I respect that, as it does entertain me... but I'm always kind of mad at the end too.

SO, like it should be, love is the verb, LOST is the noun, instead of the other way around. I can't wait to see what the next season will bring. I'll be counting down.

I'm SO sad that 2010 is the final season, but I guess we'll finally get our answers.

Mother's Day

Because of her I grew.

I ate.
Because of her I took my first steps and
learned how to take care of myself.
Because of her I know who Jesus is and
know how to be compassionate.
Because of her I learned lessons in honesty and virtue.
Because of her I know how to work hard and to not give up.
But most of all, I feel that I am a good mother because she is!
I love you Mom- so much!
Thank you for all you do and all that you are!
Happy Mothers Day!

And to my sweet little "Gabey Monster," thank you for making me a mom.
I love being a mom to you!
You are everything to me!
I love you!

Happy Mother's Day to all my favorite Mamas!!!!

Today

It looked like this this morning...


So, we did a lot of this...

Yummy Cinnamon Bread (thanks Kate)

Sweet potato muffins, Cake cookies and Banana muffins

Lounging

Reading

Course the sun came out when Gabe went down for his nap, but that's ok it was a fun day. I am pooped though. I baked a lot which made a lot of dirty dishes for me to clean up. lol
We had some food issues today. sigh. Gabe's new favorite phrase is "I no want to" or "I no want this/that".

Fun times!

Grilled Chicken Penne al Fresco

YUM YUM YUM YUMYUM!!!!

I went to a Pampered Chef party Friday night and they made this amazing pasta dish. It was soooo good. I'm making it tonight for Bryan and Gabe and I can't wait.

Grilled Chicken Penne al Fresco

Ingredients:
4 garlic cloves, peeled
2 cups grape or cherry tomatoes
3 cups uncooked mezze penne pasta
3 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup dry white wine such as Chardonnay

1/2 tsp each salt and coarsely ground black pepper
1 1/4 cups lightly packed fresh basil leaves, divided
1 oz Parmesan cheese, grated (about 1/4 cup packed)
2 cups diced grilled chicken breasts
Additional grated fresh Parmesan cheese and coarsely ground black pepper (optional)

Directions:
1. Spray Deep Covered Baker with olive oil using Kitchen Spritzer. Slice garlic into baker using Garlic Slicer. Add tomatoes. Cover; microwave on HIGH 4-5 minutes or until tomatoes begin to burst, stirring after 2 minutes. Crush tomatoes using Mix ‘N Chop. Add pasta, broth, wine, salt and black pepper.
2. Return baker to microwave; cover and microwave on HIGH 16-18 minutes or until pasta is tender, stirring after 10 minutes. Meanwhile, coarsely chop basil with Chef's Knife. Reserve 2 tbsp for garnish. Grate cheese using Rotary Grater.
3. Carefully remove baker from microwave and remove lid, lifting away from you. Add remaining basil, cheese and chicken to baker; mix well. Garnish with reserved 2 tbsp basil, additional Parmesan cheese and black pepper, if desired.
Yield: 8 servings

Nutrients per serving: Light (about 1 cup): Calories 240, Total Fat 2.5 g, Saturated Fat .5 g, Cholesterol 25 mg, Carbohydrate 35 g, Protein 17 g, Sodium 450 mg, Fiber 2 g

Cook’s Tips: An additional 3/4 cup chicken broth can be substituted for the wine, if desired.

Any tube-shaped pasta requiring 9-11 minutes cook time, such as penne or rigatoni, can be substituted for the mezze penne pasta.

To grill chicken in the Grill Pan, season 2 chicken breasts, about 6 oz each, with salt and black pepper. Heat Grill Pan over medium-high heat 5 minutes. Spray pan with oil. Cook chicken 4-6 minutes or until grill marks appear. Turn chicken over; cook 4-6 minutes or until center of chicken is no longer pink and Pocket Thermometer registers 170°F.

The little things...

"Enjoy the little things,
for one day you may look back
and realize
they were the big things."
- Robert Brauit

This quote is so inspiring to me. I have it sitting next to my computer.

But sometimes I wonder just what, exactly, are the little things? For apparently, one day, I will miss them, and look back longingly......and maybe with regret......if I didn't enjoy them.........these little things that hold the bigger meaning of my life.

This is a warning.

This gives me anxiety.

I don't think I am enjoying the little things enough.

It's hard when there's just so many little things to do & say & listen to & enjoy!

What a weekend

I know I post too many pictures of Gabe but I can't help myself...he's my baby.

We had a fun weekend complete with spontaneous Blazer game parties with friends, Sister time for me which = some Gabey/daddy time, Roller skating, good talks, grocery shopping with a great shopping partner, and exhaustion.

Friday Bryan left work a little early to go over to where him and Dan workout. The Manager there is wanting a new logo done and they want to get t-shirts and some other stuff done too. He talked with him for a about an hour and came home. I fed Gabe dinner and then we left for Travis and Moo's for a spontaneous Blazer game party. It was out back and the game was playing in their garage. It was a lot of fun. It was cold though so Travis lit there outside heater which was awesome. We left around 9ish and got Gabe home and into bed. Then I headed over to Kate's to chat and Bryan worked on Filter 7 stuff.

Saturday we were going to have a baby shower for Janell, but most everyone that we were going to invite had already given her a gift so we just had some sister time and then a fun lunch where my mom, Nancy (mom's friend) and Janell's friend met up with us.

Pedicure's with my sisters

I got home around 3:30ish and got to spend some time with my little guy and then I left to meet at Teresa's to go roller skating. It had been about 6 or 7 years since I've gone. It was a total blast and good exercise to boot.

Roller Skating with my girls

Bryan spent most of the weekend doing freelance stuff and working on his business Filter 7. After I went grocery shopping with Kate on Sunday and got all the food put away, Gabe and I headed over to her house for dinner/ice cream, playtime and the another Blazer game of course.

This week I have seriously been dragging (obviously since it took this long to post about our weekend). Tired, no energy, just blah...I was thinking maybe I was coming down with something but I woke up this morning to the sun shinning and suddenly I felt GREAT!
I think we need to move where the sun shines all the time! ;o)

lol

Daddy (after a shower) - "Mommy, look at our little duck"
Mommy - "OH you're SO cute"
Gabe - "I CUTE"

Gabe's 2 yr Pictures

Easter 2009

Easter snuck up on us WAY too fast this year. And it made me kind of mad, because I like looking forward to one of my favorite holidays for longer. But I got over it. It was all led up to by the partying we did.
I don't even think we did ANYTHING in 2008. Jaden was very sick and in the hospital and I think Gabe was sick too. I don't remember going to church, getting dressed up and I don't have ANY pictures. That makes me sad!

We had such a fun day! We got to church around 10:20am. We talked to friends and they had a good spread of food. Service was at 11am. We took Gabe to the nursery...that didn't go over so well, but I'll save that for another day/time.
I enjoyed the service. Randy spoke and there were songs all throughout his message. It was really good!
After church we mingled more and then left. We had a relaxing day over at my mom and dads. We opened Easter Baskets, had a fabulous/easy dinner, a fun Easter egg hunt (we weren't sure how the boy's would do, but they caught on fast and had so much fun) and I already can't wait for next year. HA

Easter Family shot

The Kiddo (Handsome little Devil)

The Parents
The H's

Janell and Audrey (A even gave me a smile...cute)
The old peeps being silly lol

That can't be comfortable
Easter basket timeThe hunt (this was SO much fun)
He stuffed the candy in his mouth as fast as he could

I am so thankful for Easter and the opportunity it gives to reflect on Christ and the resurrection. I'm so thankful for such a gorgeous time of year to remember the amazing blessings we have in our knowledge and love for our Savior.