Happy 3rd Birthday, Simeon!

Frosting!

Birthday Breakfast!

 

 Making personal pizzas for lunch.

 Simeon knew the perfect "scooter" pose.

 Zebedee chilled on Great Grandma's lap most of the time.

Iron Chef, HE (Canned Peaches)

 I decided to go simple this time:  Fruit Smoothie!

Nearly every morning, our family enjoys fruit smoothies.  I use a combination of fresh and frozen fruits and blend them in myVita-mix blender (which we got at Costco a couple years ago and use daily), which retains all the fiber and nutrients that a juicer doesn't.  Because "drinking vegetables" grosses me out, I add Green Superfood Powder which blends in well (translation: hides well).  And, to sweeten the smoothies without a lot of calories, I add Liquid Stevia. 

Zebedee -- Sippy Cups, Teeth, and More

 

The Big Move

Simeon has now moved into Emmett's room.

We celebrated the success of their first night and morning together with a special breakfast.  (Translation:  they didn't kill each other and they didn't wake us up.)

Can't believe I have the blessing of being the mom to these precious boys.

Sidewalk Paint

Combine equal parts cornstarch and water.  Add some food coloring, if you desire.  Then, go to town painting the sidewalk or driveway. 

Welcome husband and father home from a long day of work with a giant greeting that says "We Love You!"

Hammering Fun

Golf tees and styrofoam.

Family Day in Issaquah

First Stop!  Coffee and Donuts.

Cougar Mountain Zoo

 

This cat was looking at Simeon as though he was lunch.

This black alpaca was Emmett's favorite animal.

Next Stop:  XXX Rootbeer Drive-In

We ignored the sign and ate here anyway.

Then, we hit Boehm's, of course.

 

Not pictured here, is Fischer's Meat Market.  We had a Plum District certificate to spend. 

Jason picked out quite a selection for the family.

 

The boys napped on the way home.

More places to visit in Issaquah:
Salmon Fish Hatchery
Gilman Village

Emmett's First Harvest

Zebedee Pulling Himself Up!

Purple Belts

Although they earned these many weeks ago, it took me until now to get a picture.

Emmett's "Barney the Big Mouth" Dinosaur!

If You Are Dreaming of Death By Butter...

Try this recipe for "Baby Cinnamon Buns".  I saw it yesterday on FB and KNEW it would be our breakfast today since Jason would be able to join us.  What says "we're glad you're home and let's celebrate with a special breakfast" like cinnamon rolls!?!

 

Jason and I feel the proportions of the ingredients need tweaking a bit, but overall, the taste was so buttery-terrific!  When we get it worked out EXACTLY to our liking, I will post the revised version. 

 

 

 

 

Iron Chef, HE -- Evaporated Milk

So my latest challenge was Evaporated Milk.  I had no idea WHAT to do with the stuff.  I usually buy it when a recipe calls for it, and that is often a dessert.  But, we didn't need any more desserts floating around, so I did some investigating.  Here's what I found out:  evaporated milk can be substituted in any recipe that calls for whole milk or half-n-half.  AND, you can find all sorts of recipes for the stuff on this website:  http://www.verybestbaking.com/Carnation.aspx

The recipe I chose was "Potato Bacon Casserole".

 It turned out to be pretty tasty. 

 But, I think we all agreed that it tasted better with ketchup.