may your days be {merry} and bright

march~week 11-12/366 {catching up-instagram edition}

hello.  remember me?  hmama here.  things have been a tad busy here these past two weeks.  if it weren't for instagram, i'd have no bloggy post to speak of.  let's catch up - shall we?



we made a roadtrip to the beach to help the sea turtles.
did i mention it was raining?  that should double our community service time, right? ;)

doll play... on the go.

learning.  the fleur de lis.  when you come from who dat nation, this is a must, you know.  and please don't get me started on the crazy media frenzy surrounding the saints.  i might just go on a tirade.  ugh.

was trying to decide if sonlight curriculum takes american girl debit cards? hmmm... ;)

juicing.  going strong & loving it!
we introduced the girls to it.  it was mostly fruit. i thought they'd need a soft introduction, even though i don't recommend fruit juicing. 

i might recommend starting with something more bitter, like hubs and i did. that way, everything else is uphill. ha!



i'm continuing to pass along my slight ocd germ cleanliness routine to my children - when it comes to public restrooms, that is.  as a mom, i've made 9,862,800,742 trips with my girls.  *shivers*  give or take a few.

and also, important sibling conversations happen in the toilet paper aisle at tarjet.

we have a younger pic of gracie sporting a ball of a baby bump.  should go hunt for that.  her comedic side helps balance out her spicy side. ;)

juicing.  have i mentioned it?  you should hurry over to watch hungry for a change.  (free online till march 31st) great info!



road-trip!  we were off to meet granny and deliver the kiddos.
why, you ask?  so mama could catch up on soaps and eat bon-bons?  excuse me while i laugh uncontrollably.... 

okay.  i'm back.
this trip was about girlie room makeovers.
a nice way of saying that mama needed to go through things without said girlies pleading to keep every piece of fuzz mama threatened to throw in the trash.

let's just say that it was turning into an episode of hoarders.  i wish i were joking.



some of it was not so bad.  finding treasures.  a mask. a priceless journal page. old photos.  a dirty sock bagged with cross-stitching. wait, huh?  born in a barn, i tell you.

meanwhile, the girls were livin' it up at granny's house.  eating some junk-food and getting completely spoiled.  next time, i get to stay at granny's house, while the kiddos re-do something in the house.  sounds good, yes? ;)   oh, and i'll be sure to facetime them every 5 minutes, hoping to catch a glimpse of their hard work. *ehem*



at least they shared pictures of their ice cream.  
sweet, yes? ;)
daddy and i worked our fingers to the bone.  around the clock.  we totally underestimated the time this project would take.

i tormented them with sneak peeks of things that would be going into their rooms. i'd convinced gracie her room might be orange.  i had to have some fun. you know, other than playing in paint.  i'm still trying to rid myself of these calloused man-hands.  trying to uncover what's left of these feminine hands.

our printstagram photo arrived!  woot!   next time, i shall order pix in book form.  recommend any companies?



jazzy was my shopping partner and paint companion.  watching me work made her tired.

the girls have shared a furniture set of mine from when i was a little girl.  i gave it a face-lift.  also painted a toy-chest my step-dad made when gracie was born.  finally putting it to good use. 

hmama totally rocked the paint smeared pants on a few errands.  she was too tired and sore to care what others thought of this.  at least i didn't pair it with red suspenders.  just sayin'.  

and just when we were trying to really down-play santa... guess who the girls met?  *sigh*

up till 3:30 a.m. the night before {without one single date-night to speak of}, we hit the road early to make the 10+ hour round trip to pick up the girls. couldn't remember the last time i'd been this sleepy, tired, sore... plain old exhausted.

back to our regularly scheduled routine.  ready or not.  we are trying to recover.  i think i heard my hands and feet cry.  yes, that sore.  i'll stop whining now.

pix of the room re-dos are coming soon. we all pretty much love them. ;)

let's catch up, shall we?

granny came to texas...  {howdy, granny!}

to see her granddaughter's acting debut.

fortunately, nator also had a piano recital for granny to enjoy.  live and in person.

see her at the piano?

*sigh*

maybe next time we agree to playing a duet, we should ask which side of the piano she will be playing, yes? ;)

playing a jazzy tune, they were the most entertaining {spoken like a true mama}...

including jazz hands at the end.

cute.

upon leaving recital, the church was hosting a small pumpkin patch.  we can check this off the list now, too.

right? ;)

cute lil' punkin' heads.

we woke early to join some of our best friends and 15,000 others {give or take a few} in a walk for the cure for juvenile diabetes.

 

cutie-patooties.  the girls were so excited to raise money for their friend.

i'm just realizing the greenery behind gracie's head makes her look like she has crazy, static-filled hair. ha!

we auditioned for the christmas production at theater.

then finished our final two productions.

{thankyoujesus}

think it's safe to say that they love it.

all of this, and more {you know school-errands-life}, might help explain some of the bloggy absence.  and my seemingly inability to remember to snap a picture of jazzy in her halloween tutu.  i know, right?!  what kind of furry-family-member-mama am i?!  i really should take more pictures of that poor doggy. ;)

Granny Lovin'

Granny

I love you

From Heaven above

Since I was new

We fit like a glove

You are calm like a cat

You are sweet as sugar

You are not a doormat

And 'not' a booger

You're very thoughtful, loyal, and kind

When I'm with you, I have a great time

You are there when I need to unwind

Your love, will last longer than a lifetime  

~Nator, age 10

Granny's Poem

My Granny is kind and thoughtful
When she sleeps she snores a lotful

She is as beautiful as a rose
And she can't smell with her nose

 

I like to spend time with her

She's cuddly as my teddy's fur
 

She doesn't cost a dime

She kisses goodnight at bedtime
 

~Gracie, age 8

**********************************************

As someone who did not know the love of a grandmother as a child, I feel so blessed to have one of the best for our girls.  I simply enjoy watching my girls snuggle with their Granny.  :)

We love you, Granny!

Happy Grandparents Day!

{one day late, but that's how we roll}

What's your favorite grandparent memory? 

We did it... Together

We met friends.

We snapped pictures.

We laughed... because we're just silly sometimes.

We decorated eggs.

We made them pretty princesses.  :)

We soaked up some Granny lovin'.
We enjoyed Gracie's Easter bracelets.

We ate.

We bought flowers... and watered them.

We assembled a new canopy for our porch...
and enjoyed the journey of our imaginations,
with a box.

We enjoyed the Easter bunny's goodies, including the colorful dresses.
We hunted eggs...

and enjoyed the hidden treasure inside.
Money, not candy. ;)

All while remembering the greatest treasure of all.
Jesus... and His Great Love.

We did it all... and then some.
Together.

Granny, You forgot somethin'!

I'm so relieved glad Granny earned this BEFORE she drove home
after Thanksgiving.

Another year of Thanks{giving}

I have so many things to be thankful for.

But mostly,

I'm thankful for this group right here...

My hubs, little girls and Granny.

{Although, Gracie has recently changed Granny's name to "Grandma".}

4 {entire} straight days together.

No agenda.

Except talking, eating, sippin' tea, watching Christmas movies, laughing...

and shopping {on Black Friday, that is}.

Our girls were thankful Granny stayed with them

during this shopping scavenger hunt.

We were too...

Since we were able to save $50 on a Christmas gift for Nator!

Oh, and we also enjoyed hearing the girls laugh hysterically while beating their Uncle B and Aunt D on Mario Kart.  The Wii makes it cool to connect with family while in another state.

Here's a couple yummy goodies we consumed
that actually came from my kitchen.
Hold  your applause.
I didn't cook a turkey.
We went out for that meal. ;)

Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

Thanks Ruthanne

{This is a Weight Watchers recipe,

but don't hold that against them. Ha!}

6 small sweet potatoes (about 2 1/2 pounds)
1 (15-ounce) can pear halves in juice, undrained
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sweetened dried cranberries or raisins
1/3 cup chopped pecans, toasted

Preheat oven to 375.

 Wrap potatoes in foil; bake at 375 for about 50 minutes or until done. Let cool slightly. Cut a slit in the top of each potato; carefully scoop out pulp, leaving a 1/4-inch thick shell.

Drain pears, reserving 1/4 cup juice. Place pear halves and reserved juice in a food processor; process until smooth. Add potato pulp, sugar, and salt; process until blended. Stir in cranberries and 4 tablespoons of pecans.

Stuff shells with pulp mixture; sprinkle with remaining pecans.
Place potatoes on a baking sheet; bake at 375 for 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

{I had to cook my potatoes a lil' longer. 

I normally wrap them in parchment paper too and I used walnuts instead...

They were de-lish!}

 

Banana Nut Bread

 {This one's for you, Granny}

1 3/4 c. flour {Bob's Red Mill}
3/4 c. pure cane sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. mashed bananas {roughly 2 large}
4 oz. apple sauce
1 whole egg
2 egg whites
1/3 c. {rice} milk
1/2 c. walnuts or pecans

Mix ingredients.
Grease 9x5 pan with coconut oil.
Bake 1 hr. 15 min @ 325 degrees.
{Most "applesauce"-instead-of-"oil" baked items taste best
fresh out of the oven.}

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Speaking of cooking...
While preparing to have dinner with friends, Nator was helping me peel sweet potatoes.
{I know. I have a thing for sweet potatoes.} 
I thanked her for helping me.
My sweet lil' 9 year old said,
"I can't ever imagine a time that I wouldn't help you."

Tissue please?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Oh... Granny,
Did you notice that I didn't post any embarrassing pictures or videos yet?  

You're welcome. Hehe!

Gonna have {big} fun on the bayou

What do you do when you're at Granny's house for the week and mom doesn't pack your schoolwork?

Artwork.  And LOTS of it.

{In mom's defense, she was kinda having 'a day'.}

 

The sugarcane crops are being harvested right now.

The girls enjoyed hearing about the process... and seeing it unfold.

Growing up, this time of year used to always make me sick when they

burned the fields.

I'm sure cane in the air would have nothing to do with my lil' girl coming home a bit under the weather. {sigh}

On a positive note, it was a bit educational.

Schoolwork.  Check.

 

How do you like Granny's backyard?

Joke.

We drive by this area every time we go to Granny's...

and this is the first time we've taken advantage of it with the girls.

A last minute decision.

Fortunately, we caught {with eyes and camera only} some wildlife while we were there.

DK says it's an alligator, but who can really tell the difference?

I wasn't getting close enough to find out... that's for sure!

 

We grew up next to the bayou, so the marsh scene is not new to us.

It's nice to share some of that with our girls.

 {Although, this does NOT make one immune to being skittish around marsh critters!  Or any critters for that matter.  Just sayin'.}

 

{DK is totally trying to give me a puffy-cheek
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs kiss.}

So, there you have it.
A blast from our past... and sometimes present.
Scenes from 'down the bayou'.

Granny {Goodness}

'Nator' needed to work on a picture project for scouts for her travel badge, so she chose these snapshots as part of her project.  These are the things that stand out to her when visiting Granny... down the bayou.

A house filled with memories.

Hugs.

Kisses.

Dolls.

Christmas collectibles displayed year round.

Tea sets.

Bells.

A smiley-face created by DK {with the tip of his pool stick}

when he was a boy.

{Granny didn't know till I told her!  Sorry, hun!

Oh, and your name was also etched in the dresser.
She knew about that one.}

Pictures of memories held dear.

Decorations ready for fall and talk of Christmas plans.

Plenty of room for future reminiscence....

and lots more hugs 'n kisses.

{Huggin' so hard it hurts... but 'Nator' reminds us that it's

"a good kind of hurt."}  ;)

We love you, Granny!

{bayou pix coming soon...}

It {really} is a choice

It all started when I was trying to put on makeup.

Putting the mascara back together, I somehow missed the container and the applicator slide down my entire hand.  Who knew so much tar-like substance could be on that tiny little brush?

I should have known then.

My stomach was in knots.  Pain... and lots of it.

DK was out of town.

I had a million lot of things to do before leaving to pick him up and head down the bayou {aka Louisiana} to my mother-in-law's.

We had an emergency care appointment with the dentist because Gracie had a broken tooth!

One-third of her tooth was missing

and I still don't know how that happened.

A nice chunk of change later,

we had to run to Petco to pick up dog and cat food.

We get back in the car.

Start the engine.

Click.

Surely it will start the second time.

Click.

Car is not starting.

It was hot {remember DK is out of town} and

I had 2 kids and the dog in the car.

I call him anyway... he calls a friend.

The girls start to cry.

I tell them,

"Our circumstances are not going to change, but we can control how we respond to this.  So, let's choose to have a good attitude."

We take Jasmine for a walk back inside Petco.

{I assume when they say, "Pet's are always welcome", it okay to bring her in the restroom too.  When your girls have to go, they have to go.}

Gracie tries to talk me into a dwarf hamster.

Nator tries to talk me into buying her a bird...

so she can have a pet of her very own.

I'm very practical.

I tell Gracie, "You know, a hamster will die in 2-3 years."

I tell Nator, "A bird can live for many years and you will have to clean all of it's poop... AND it will move with you one day."  {She hadn't thought of that.}  We were there as an employee was cleaning the cage.  Unfortunately, we only witnessed the 'transfer' of birds after the 'less glamorous' part was done.

They still want them... or so they think.

Do they not realize that mom is taking care of 2 of 'their' pets already?

Thank God for friends!  New battery is good to go!

I make it home, having only 3 hours to finish my to-do list.

It's okay {I tell myself.  I also tell myself to ignore the tummy pains}.

I only have to finish laundry, bathe the dog, pack and load the car...

before Gracie's dance class starts!

I start my last load of laundry, take Jasmine outside and get her FULL of shampoo and it begins to pour! POUR!  It was sunny 2 seconds ago.  I go as quickly as I can, but I can't escape the rain.  I am officially drenched.  Within 30 seconds of coming inside, the rain stops. STOPS!  The sun is bright once again. What was that all about?

I manage to finish everything with a few minutes to spare.

We head to Gracie's dance class while eating our Subway sandwiches.

We will leave for Louisiana from dance.

Problem.

The satellite radio and GPS are not working properly

{since the battery incident}.

After class, we run home and I grab my GPS.

I don't remember where to exit to find DK and I need it.

I didn't take time to grab any CD's, so the ride to pick up DK is very quiet.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy quiet time,

but not on a long stretch of open road.

The girls have nestled in their comfy seats,

watching a movie with their headphones on.

The only sound I hear is coming from Jasmine sitting beside me... snoring.

We make it.

DK enters the car... from a lavish hotel.  *sigh*

Remember the concert?  Yep, that's where he stayed {for work}.

We are finally all together again.

DK pushes several buttons and has the touch screen radio/GPS system working again in no time.

Our surroundings are sometimes too high-tech for this tech-challenged mama!!

{Remember this? Question #6}

It's late, but we make it to Granny's.

{Jasmine must get that glow in her eyes from all that good food from Petco, yes?}

With a smile on her face, Granny says she has had 'a day' too.

Something must be in the air??

The way I am choosing to see it...

Gracie's tooth could have been much worse and even more expensive.

If the battery was going to die, Petco was the best place for that to happen.

Thankfully, I was not even tempted to walk away with 2 extra pets.

Friends are wonderful.

When you set your mind to it, you can accomplish a lot in 3 hours.... come rain or shine.

Getting drenched will give you something to laugh about... later.

Quiet time.  I probably needed it after my whirlwind of a day.

Having a tech-savvy hubby comes in quite handy.

Landing at Granny's house is always good comfort.

She gave me something warm to sleep with for my tummy.

Now for the weekend...

I'm actually going to scrapbook!

{I know it's easier to buy the digital books. I have those too.  This is a creative outlet...  and it's something I get to do with my mother-in-law.}

But first, I'm off to the store...

Maybe they'll still have those tiny pineapples again.

If so, I'll let you know what they are this time. ;)