"Late" Valentine's Day Party

For two years now, my parents have hosted a Valentine's Day party.  This year, it was postponed a week due to Mom coming down with the flu.  Even though it was a week late it was a LOT of fun!  We had a great lunch followed by some good family competition. 

We had a cookie decorating contest (which Andy and I won...just had to get that in there for all of my family members that read this). 

The entries in the 1st annual Cookie Decorating Contest!



We also played a dice game, where you try and roll doubles.  If you get doubles, you have to put on gloves, a scarf, and a hat and then try and unwrap a present (that has multiple layers of boxes and wrapping).  My sister was the winner of this game...she was serious about getting to the inside box!

Poor Dad didn't even get his gloves on before someone else rolled doubles

The WINNER!!!

The aftermath :) 

We finished up the day playing cards and eating desserts (red cake, cookies, cake rolls, raspberry pie...did I ever mention on here that my mother LOVES to bake)???

Wishing for Spring

What a beautiful day today was!  Even though the temperatures were in the low 40's, that sunshine warmed us right up.  We were able to spend a great day at Grandpa and Grandma's house...a quick trip to Green Oak Antiques, lunch in town, and plenty of playtime outside.  We sure hope spring is right around the corner, because we can't wait for it!!!

Uncle Eric and Aunt Tai...enjoying the sunshine!

Part of the grandkid crew

Little Miss Addie :)

Ben's telling Grandma all about it...

A Little Bit of Country = A Lot of Fun!!!

Wow...what a week!  Ben woke up Monday night of this week with a temperature...good times!  Andy was home with him Tuesday, I stayed home Wednesday, and we thought we were both headed back to work Thursday...nope, not the case.  Ben decided to invite his fever back Wednesday afternoon for some more fun.  Luckily, it didn't stay around too long...we were a fever-free household by bedtime Wednesday.  Here is my happy little guy playing around in his new hat (notice he is happy, smiling, and fever-free)!!!

Of course, Andy stayed home on Thursday so that Ben would be fever-free for 24 hours before heading back to the babysitter on Friday.  He decided to take Ben in just to check and see if his cold could have settled in his ears...yep, you guessed it, Ben's now on antibiotic for an ear infection!  If you've been wondering where the "fun" part of this post is at, here it is!

Thursday evening, we dropped Ben off at his Aunt Mandi's for the night, and we headed down to Indianapolis for the Lee Ann Womack, Reba and George Strait concert.  This was my Christmas present to Andy this past year.  Seeing Reba in concert has been on his bucket list for many, many years...so, when I heard she was coming to town, I jumped on it! 

Lucky for us, we were able to go to the concert with great friends!  We enjoyed an amazing dinner at Harry and Izzy's and then headed to Conseco for some AWESOME country music!  What a blast!!!  It was four hours of absolutely fabulous singing...if you ever have the chance to see any of these artists in concert, go for it! 

Lee Ann (left side of stage)

REBA!!!!  Andy's life is now complete :)

 My dream cowboy!

As we fell into bed this morning at 1:00 am, we took a few minutes to review our week...what started out crummy, ended perfectly!  When I picked Ben up this morning, his smiling face and his sweet voice saying "I wuv you mommy" made my sleep deprivation instantly disappear and my heart melt!  Yes, this week is definitely ending on a high note!  Now, time to relax and enjoy our three day weekend! 



Happy Valentines Day!

Happy Birthday!

Happy 18 month birthday to the cutest little guy that I know...BEN!!!  I can't believe it's been 18 months since we welcomed him into our family and our hearts.  It seems like it was just yesterday that we were sitting in the hospital thinking "WOW, this is a whole new ballgame now!"...time truly does fly when you're having fun, and fun is what we're having with our little Benners!  We love you!

Kitchen Connection

Tonight we enjoyed another frittata...and it was extremely yummy!  Again, it is very quick and easy to make, and I was able to modify it to make it a more healthy version...enjoy!

Ham, Zucchini and Tomato Frittata

1/4 c. zucchini, thinly sliced and halved

1 c. chopped deli ham

1 small container of cherry tomatoes
2 t. olive oil
salt and pepper
8 large eggs, lightly beaten (or 2 c. Egg Beaters)
1/2 c. shredded Cheddar cheese (I used fat free Cheddar)

In an oven safe skillet, saute the zucchini, ham and tomatoes in the olive oil for about 5 minutes.  Mix together eggs and cheese and pour over zucchini mixture.  Do not stir...allow to cook for about 3 minutes, until the sides of the egg mixture starts to set up.  Place skillet in 450 degree oven and cook for 10-15 minutes, until center is set.  Allow to cool 2-3 minutes before turning out onto cutting board.

Snowy Fun

As most of the United States knows, the Midwest was hammered this week with some very cold and snowy weather.  We spent three days out of school and work enjoying some family time.  Of course, being the country people that we are, we decided it would be a good time to get some projects done before the snow hit (yep, I said a good idea...but believe me, that was a very sarcastic good)!  On Sunday, we headed over to in-law's first to move the semi over to the farm. Ben and I weren't much help with the semi, but we did go along for the ride. 

Ben was wondering why he couldn't be in the semi with his daddy (I didn't think Andy needed extra hands trying to help him drive).

After the semi made it safely to the farm, we headed over to our friends to pick up a 4-wheeler that we bought off of them a couple of weeks ago.  Ben is obviously too little for it now, but we know that it will be fun for him in a few short years (plus, it will be a lot of fun for Mommy and Daddy right now).  Of course, we had to try it out when we got home.  It needs a few minor things, but it was good for a couple of quick rides before we put it away to work on it.

(Remember...it's the weekend, don't look too closely at my hair and lack of make-up) :)

After the 4-wheeler was away, it was time for us to go back home and start our winter storm hibernation!  We made it to work on Monday, but then we hunkered down for three snow days.  We were hammered with snow, sleet, and miserably cold wind!  We survived though...we watched movies, worked on the 4-wheeler, cooked (way too much), slept in, and played a LOT with our favorite little guy!  Today though, we're all headed back to the world of work; mine is just starting a couple hours later than usual (a nice perk of being a teacher...gotta love 2-hour delays)!!!

Hopefully all of you that were hammered by this storm were able to stay warm and enjoy some relaxing time at home!