Pink Barrett

Elayna with her pink barrett! Look at those beautiful eyes! Lilia fell asleep holding Elayna's hand.

I Love Grandma!

She does love her Grandma's! We are outside because it is in the 70's and Lil' loves to swing. She is collecting wild strawberries. I heard you can eat them but they taste yucky.

Lilia 26 Months

Lilia is 26 months old!  Yikes! She is so wonderful and we love her so much. She would not smile for me or hold still or anything.  Her birthmom gave this dress to us when we saw her last summer.  Lilia loves to wear the dress. 

Front View, Back View

A storm is coming! Happy Easter and be safe!

Happy Easter and Family Pictures

Here is our family pictures for Easter.  I made matching skirts for all the girls.  Grandma R and I painted the colors on to the fabric.  The skirts are not for Easter but for the spring/summer.  I decided to put all four pictures because Lilia has the funniest faces and Elayna is adorable.

Caterpillar

Elayna loves her caterpillar! We just got back from the NASCAR race. It was loud and the girls did not like it. More pics later.

NASCAR+Lilia+Elayna=Exhausted

We got tickets to see a NASCAR race.  Asher and Mike got the V.I.P tickets (Thanks Momma).  They got the great seats and awesome food.  We were ready for the day.  Momma and I would take care of the girls.  We had ear plugs, hats, sun screen and the works for the girls.  No strollers allowed.  I was carrying Elayna in a carrier and my back pack.  Momma ended up holding Lilia.  We went to check out our seats before the race started and only one car was doing laps but it was loud enough that Lilia clung to Grandma for her life.  We did not sit in our seats.  We got our voucher lunches of hot dogs and drinks and we had a great time.  We did find the play area for the kids and Lilia loved it once she warmed up to the idea. It took 20 minutes but she finially jumped and did not want to leave.  When the race started we spent it out side the gates.  I got the stroller from the car.  It was very windy.  Time went by pretty quickly.  Asher and Mike had a great time.  They took pictures on the track and had all kinds of fun.

Here Grandma got Lilia to look and not be scared.

Elayna slept and was so good.  She did not mind being in the carrier and had a great time. She is such a good baby.

Lunch was very good.  Getting the food to the table was a little hard.  We were running out of hands.  We patiently waited our turn at the condiment table and then were ambushed by teenagers that squeezed in to get the condiments instead of waiting. I only had my hands available because Jennifer was holding Lilia, she would not let go.

Lilia has decided that jumping was fun.  She did not want to leave.

Throwing the basketball with Grandma's help.  Wish we had found the play area sooner.

Lilia hiding outside the gates.  The wind was blowing really hard.  All of our eyes were dry and tired.

Getting Stronger

Elayna is getting stronger! She likes to see what is going on in the kitchen. She can sit for a few minutes in her chair. Lil' entertains her and makes her smile and laugh. We got some stickers in a magazine and Lil' had a great time decorating Elayna. Elayna thought it was fun as well. We took them off after pictures.

Pink

Another picture with lots of pink!

Crafts and websites

Cute idea for doll house:
http://www.nicegirlnotes.com/dollhouse

Quiet Time Lunch Boxes:
http://www.nicegirlnotes.com/how-to-make-quiet-time-activity-bins
(I have lunch boxes!)

Car Magnet to occupy Lil':
http://www.nicegirlnotes.com/safetymagnet
(I have supplies to make and need one for Lil')

Puppet Theater made from pvc pipe:
http://www.she-wears-flowers.com/2011/03/ohthe-drama-around-here.html
(This is just what I want to make, but need my Dad's help)

Extra scenes for Theater:
http://www.she-wears-flowers.com/2011/04/change-of-scenery.html

{Felt}
Cake & Frosting: http://www.she-wears-flowers.com/2011/01/felt-cake-tutorial.html
Cake Decorations: http://www.she-wears-flowers.com/2011/01/felt-cake-decorations.html
Round Up of Felt Food: http://www.onecraftyplace.com/2009/02/27/felt-food-tutorial-round-up/

There is so much felt toy ideas. I have to decide what I want because I can not do it all.

Kids Crafts:
http://www.makeandtakes.com/9-kids-craft-websites-youve-got-to-know

Shirred Curtains:
http://imamomnotaprofessional.blogspot.com/2011/03/shirred-curtain.html

Dandelion Jelly: I think this sounds fun! Better collect them before Asher mows the yard! :)
http://www.jeanetics.net/2011/04/urban-foraging-spring-dandelion-greens.html


Easter Egg Garland:
http://www.modernparentsmessykids.com/2011/03/diy-paint-chip-easter-garland.html

Kefir Soda Pop: I have used the Kefir milk buds but not the water. Since milk is almost non-existant in our house I have read about water Kefir and thought we should try it.
http://www.cheeseslave.com/2009/06/05/how-to-make-homemade-soda-pop-with-kefir-grains/

Easter Bunny Bottles: I think I need to use this to brighten up Lil's Easter basket.
http://www.happyclippings.com/2011/04/diy-easter-bunny-bottle-2.html

Fixin Daddy's Hair

Lil' loves to brush and comb daddy's hair. She also loves piggy back rides. She uses the top of his jeans to stand up. She holds on to his neck. She loves rides from daddy.

Un-clogging a Drain

DIY Life has a great post about un-clogging a drain. I think I am going to try the first recipe. My sink in the bathroom needs to be cleaned!

http://www.diylife.com/2011/04/12/unclog-a-drain/

Mat Play Dough Fun

Lilia loves play dough and she has stayed on her mat. Yeah! She is getting tired and I am trying to keep her awake.

Heart Attack! :)

Lilia put sticker hearts all over Elayna! She loves her sister! Elayna did not mind. :)

Lilia and her baby doll

We read a few books and then got ready for nap. Lilia said her baby(doll) needed a nap too. She got her all situated and then fell asleep. She is so amazing.

Visit to see the Easter Bunny

We had an awesome time seeing the Easter bunny at Daddy's work. Elayna did not mind seeing the bunny.  Lilia did not like him.  Would not get near him and hung on to Daddy's legs instead. Here are the pictures!

 

Elayna's First Bubbles

We were sitting here eating dinner and Elayna decided to blow her first bubbles. Mommy insisted on a full documentary but I have limited it to just a picture! She sure is cute!

In-a-Hurry Cookies

Lilia and I made cookies from the Friend magazine. Lilia crushed the graham crackers with rolling pin. I added the other ingredients. She tasted the raisins. We did not have coconut flakes so we used powdered sugar. She even ate one! Yeah!
http://lds.org/friend/2011/02/in-a-hurry-cookies?lang=eng

Little Engine that Could

This is the first book we got for Elayna in March. Sorry bit late on the picture.

Brownies

This is a recipe I got from Valerie Heaton. She was our primary president when we were in college and just married. We were teachers for the ten year old class.

Brownies by Valerie Heaton
{Substitutions by Amy}

Mix:
1 1/2 Cups Flour {I did half wheat}
2 Cups of Sugar {I did half brown}
6 Tbls Cocco Powder
1 tsp Salt

Mix and add to flour mixture until wet:
4 Eggs
2 tsp Vanilla
2/3 Cup of Butter melted {I used Expeller-Pressed Coconut Oil (from Amish store)}

Grease and flour pan. Bake 325 ¤ F for 30 - 40 minutes. Cook until edges are crisp and coming off the pan.

They are so yummy! Lil' can eat them and they taste good. Next time I am going to use oil instead of butter and see how it goes. The Coconut oil looks like crisco and was hard to mix into flour mixture. I should have melted it first.

Elayna 3 months

She is 3 months old! She is such a big girl. She loves to eat, talk, suck on her hands, and watch Lil' play. She is a good sleeper and let's us get rest at night. Elayna has a beautiful smile and loves to share it with others.

Our Family (drawing)

We are safe. Tornados came through our area. We do not have power right now. To pass the time we drew on the white board our portraits. She knew where things went but I helped steady her hand.

Mommy and Elayna

We are watching basketball. Elayna loves sucking on her hands and pacifier!

A Little Angel

She is an angel. She is a happy baby. She loves watching Lilia sing and dance.

Closer Look, watching General Conference

We watched General Conference and Lilia wanted a closer look.  The meetings were great! If you want to watch or listen see the link above.

Ashley's Sweet Potato Linguine - Progressive Pioneer

I am going to try this but use olive oil instead of butter. We love sweet potatoes at our house!

http://www.progressivepioneer.com/progressive-pioneer/2011/03/ashleys-sweet-potato-linguine.html