Weekend Recap. . .

It's been rainy and yucky around here.  First it was hot and rainy and now it's cold and rainy.  Does not make for very fun outside play but. . . we did sneak some in Saturday morning.  We took the boys to Lafayette Park and they had a fun time.  Chase Parker is just a wild dude.  He requires a constant eye for sure.  The boy climbs anything in sight and has no sense of danger.  That is why you don't see very many photos of him (below).  I could not be taking pictures of Chase too often if his Daddy was off playing with Zach.  I had to make sure Chase was not jumping off two story buildings!  Zachary on the other hand, is completely opposite.  Just amazes me how they both can be from the same parents.

After park fun we headed out to lunch and ran a couple of errands.  It was a full afternoon.  I really wanted to go to the Dog Show at the Fairgrounds on Saturday but we never made it.  The Great White Pyrenees were having their showing at 1:05PM.  I would have loved to have seen them!  Maybe next year. . .

Today we were substitute teachers for Mitch and Kendra (Chase's Sunday School) at church.  As if two children aren't enough we had three girls and two boys today for an hour.  We survived and, most importantly, the kids did too.

I'm planning on getting some birthday preparations done this afternoon.  Then a yummy dinner planned with brownies for dessert!  I better get to it.

You can ALWAYS count on this blog for cute pictures of cute boys can't you. . . here are a few more!

A Date With My Big Man. . .

Zach had been looking forward to this past Friday all week.  His preschool scheduled a field trip to the firestation for his class.  My son has toured probably close to all the firestations in our city (with Papa and Grammy of course!) but he never loses interest or excitement when he gets the chance to go again.

The rain prediction was great. . . I think 60% was forecasted.  Mrs. Duclos (Zach's WONDERFUL teacher) had already been preparing the class for the chance of rain in hopes that they wouldn't be too disappointed.  On Thursday night Zach was saying his prayers and he specifically prayed TWICE that God keep the rain away so that he and his class could go on the field trip.  It was funny because at the end of his prayer when he prayed for God to keep the rain away the 2nd time he said this, "Dear Jesus, please help the rain to stay away tomorrow, and oh, please let it snow."  I about DIED laughing and so did his daddy.  Somehow we held it in.  He has prayed for snow this entire mild winter season.  Bless his heart.  (We had planned to take him to see snow this year but it's just not happenin' this season I guess!)

Anyway. . . Friday morning came and so did a very very few sprinkles and grey clouds.  BUT, God is good. . . it did not rain!!  We were able to go on the field trip and everyone had a fun fun time.  Zach loved seeing the big firetrucks and walking through them.  The firefighters were so welcoming and nice. They let each child spray the big water hose, see a fireman slide down the pole and also explained in depth, fire safety and what to do if your house is on fire.  The kids thoroughly enjoyed themselves and I think, secretly, so did those firemen.

Of course there were picture opportunities and I took full advantage.  I am happy to say that I was not the only parent lugging a big camera around this trip.  You have heard me talk about my friend Erin who is getting really interested in photography now.  Well, now she looks good good good with a Canon!

It was an enjoyable morning with my sweet man.  Of course he talked non-stop at dinner that night and told his Daddy every little detail (twice at least!).  I am so thankful for a wonderful school like TUMP.  They make each and every day exciting for my little dude.  I'm glad I got to share it with him.

Here are a few of the pictures from our adventure.  I will include a link at the bottom if you care to view all of them.

Hope you all are having a great weekend!

Click HERE for all the pictures from our adventure!

Yay! A Happy Dance Kind of Day!

If you happen to be a self-taught photographer then you will understand why I have been doing the happy dance today.  Today I picked up my first ever, gorgeous, stunning, beautiful, large 16x20 custom framed canvas.  Well, I say it's mine. . . it's really Grandma's, but close enough!

Several of my clients have told me that they have gotten canvas wraps of my portraits but I have never seen them.  Today, was nice.  It was so beautiful, at least to me.  It was something tangible to tell me that my hard work and patience for learning my craft might just be beginning to pay off.

Grandma Birdwell has a 16x20 gorgeous portrait of each of her grand boys on a wall in her home.  Several months ago she called me and warned me that it was time for Chase to have a portrait!  Of course I got the heebee jeebees because it is extremely difficult to photograph your own child.  But, nevertheless, long story short. . . I finally did.  I finally produced a photo that I was pretty confident would look great with the other masterpieces on her wall.  So, we had a canvas print made and off to the frame shop we went.  It didn't take long at all to find the perfect frame.  We both agreed that the one we chose would look great with the photograph.  We had taken Zach's picture down off her wall to bring with us just to make sure we didn't pick out clashing frames since they were to be hung so close together.  Here is where my favorite part of the story unfolds.  Keep in mind that the other boys were taken to a very prestigious photographer here in town.  I won't name names but let's just say IVORY (oh, excuse me, I meant to say EVERYONE) has heard of them.  ;)  When we showed the frame guy Zachary's picture and then my canvas print he was going on and on about how nice the canvas (Chase's) was.  Of course my chest was getting bigger and bigger with pride.  So, I just simply asked which one he liked better for quality, composition, etc.  He decidedly picked mine!  Wow.  What a compliment!!!  And then, even before he knew I was the photographer he was pointing out differences between the two photos and what he liked better about mine.  Of course I was just about to die!  Anyway. . . it was a nice, gratifying moment for me.  I just hope those moments come more in the future.

Yesterday when Grandma let me know that she had been contacted with the news that it was ready for pickup I, of course, volunteered to go for her after taking Zach to school today.  She warned me that they had told her that I would have to have proof of being related to her or have the receipt or something.  I was just thinking I would show my drivers license that has my Birdwell name as proof.  It was pretty funny because when Chase and I were being helped the lady said to me, "well, I guess I have all the proof I need. . . you have the real baby that's in the picture!"  Ha!  Hadn't thought of that.  Chase Parker is perfect proof.

Anyway. . . I'm boring you all to tears.  All these words just to document my first ever canvas that I am super proud of.  I'm so glad I was able to get it for Grandma and for Chase Parker.  I definitely should not give myself too much credit though. . . any picture with my sweet baby boy would be perfection.

Here is a picture of my happiness today. . . .I know, I know. . . it's kind of strange that I chose to take a picture of such beauty with my iPhone Instagram. . . but, I did.

And since we are talking about the extreme cuteness of my baby boy. . . aren't his new shoes adorable? We went shopping for shoes a couple days ago.  He finally grew out of his "new walker" first pair of shoes and has graduated to a firmer sole.  He was so funny when he tried them on in the store.  He was running back and forth, almost dancing.  Can you tell I love him so much????

Our Weekend Buzz. . .

Well, it's already Monday and I am reflecting back on a pretty nice weekend. . .

Saturday morning woke up to a disappointing rainy, nasty, ugly sort of day.  But, by the time our crew was ready to leave the house the day had brightened up and become nice and breezy.  We had a fun packed Saturday including enjoying FSU's Mag Lab Annual Open House.  The boys enjoyed seeing all the cool stuff they had going on there.  It was jam packed with people so it was kind of hard to see all of their exhibits but nevertheless, it was fun.  Since we were on that side of town we decided to swing by the Toyota and Honda dealerships to just take a quick peek at their minivans.  Yep, you heard me right. . . from the woman who loves uniqueness and being different from everyone. . . has decided she wants and "needs" a minivan.  Wow.  So freakin' roomy!  So nice for the kiddos!!  I never thought I would hear myself say it but I did actually want a minivan.  And still do.  But, I came to my senses.  I have a wonderful vehicle, extremely low miles for it's 7 year old age, never been in the shop, and still looks brand spankin' new.  And, the best part, it's paid for.  So, yes, I came to my senses.  While I do salivate and will salivate every time I ride in the luxurious Sienna that one of my best friends is privileged to own, I will not purchase one at the moment.  For now, I'm still a Rover girl.  (However, I just hope I can stay strong when I'm riding in her car for a beach trip soon.)

After car shopping we had lunch at Steak N Shake.  Due to my recent horribleness I refrained from the hot fudge sundae that my husband enjoyed after his meal as well as the milkshake that my firstborn enjoyed after his meal.  Chase Parker and I were good!  Well, as good as you can be when you eat a hamburger and french fries.  But I did drink water!

Saturday night was the night Zach's been waiting for!  It was MONSTER JAM! time at the Civic Center.  This is an annual thing he and his daddy enjoy.  Our good friend Zane and his little boy, Cooper, also went with them.  They went at 4:30 and enjoyed the pit party (I use the term "enjoy" loosely. . . apparently my son did not really like being that close up to a huge monster truck.  Strange I know. . . that is just Zachary.  Much happier from afar.).

I stayed home and did some preparation for an upcoming photography class I'm teaching this week and played with my sweet baby Chase.  He and I have had little colds this past week so it was good to stay in and have some fun together.  Of course he goes to bed at 6pm so that left me plenty of preparation time before the boys rolled in at 10:45PM.  Zachary was just a chatterin' about all the action.  He had the best time!

Sunday morning we headed off to church.  When we arrived at Chase Parker's class he got down and ran over to his favorite SS teachers and didn't give us another look.  Zach had a good time too. . . one of his friends in his class was actually at the Monster Jam the night before so they enjoyed talking all about it.

Sunday afternoon was lazy for me and the boys.  We had fun playing with Bella outside and we visited with Grammy and Papa a little while Daddy had fun at the airfield.  Grilled hamburgers for dinner and played the Wii together before hitting the sack.  Fun weekend for sure!

We were having races in the backyard and all of a sudden Zachary stopped and said, "Mom, give me a minute, I need to shake my sillies out."  I said ok.  I pulled my iPhone out, got my camera ready and asked him to show me what his sillies looked like. . . this is what I got.

Oh I Hope My Husband Does Not Read This Post!

I'm really not sure exactly what it is. . . maybe it's that I am learning that I have a very addictive personality, or maybe it's that I'm losing all self control in my old age, or maybe it's because I know and dread subconsciously the fact that 40 is very very near to being reality.

Have I lost my mind?  I mean, first there was the gum incident, and now. . . donuts.

Publix made the mistake of having the little delish white powdered Sweet Sixteen donuts for buy one get one free last week.  I made the mistake of going to Publix and not resisting this great deal.

In two days out of 32 available donuts, I consumed 25.  Yep. . . 25.  Here are pictures confirming the nasty deed:

At the time of this photo there were these seven left.

Now, you would think that after counting up how many fat grams, calories, sugar, carbs etc. I had consumed that I would chunk these leftover nasty things in the garbage.  Do you think I did?  No, I actually gave Zachary one and ate the rest the very next day all in one sitting.  (see below. . . and yes, it did involve large quantities of milk (with ice) too.)

Let's add these disgusting numbers:

Serving Size on package is 3 donuts.

I consumed 25.

That is 8.33 servings that I consumed.

Fat grams:  12 x 8.33 = 99.96 fat grams

Sugars:  14 x 8.33 = 116.62 sugar grams

Calories:  230 x 8.33 = 1915 calories

Carbs:  29 x 8.33 = 241.57

IN TWO DAYS!!!!!!!!!

Here is the absolute insane part. . . I had figured all these numbers out when I still had 7 left!  AND I STILL ATE THEM.  So we can add even more to these horrible numbers.

Does anyone else do this?  It's terrible because I don't even feel gross or unhealthy after I eat 8 of them at one time.  So. . . this is on my list of things to never buy again.  I had my last binge with them (I used to do this all the time in my younger days by the way.).  Never again.  

Now, here is my current plan. . . 

For the little remaining time before turning the big 40 I am concentrating on eliminating sweet tea.  I have found whenever I do this simple thing I feel SO much better.  I find that if I go to the gym regularly and eliminate just sweet tea (and, of course, mounds of sugar like this latest catastrophe) I feel better and look better in a matter of days.  So, that's what I'm going to do. . . starting now.  I'm writing this publicly to have some accountability.  That is obviously what I need.  I'm sure many of you think I need more than that and you are probably most certainly right.  I'm sure my niece Kelsey is just going to absolutely disown me when she reads this.  She is the most self disciplined perfect eating machine ever.

If you ever see me in Walmart or Publix please check my cart for gum and donuts.  Hopefully they will not be there ever again.

And, hopefully 40 will give me the kick in the butt I need to stop doing these things and live healthier or, at least, just NORMAL.

sweeeeeeet!

I have to say it was very sweet to arrive home yesterday afternoon and find my driveway lined with red roses.  Definitely a clever way to earn brownie points.  I love my unique hubby!!

oh, did I mention the romantic sock monkey hanging from the attic access in the garage as I pulled in?

Oh, and as I was taking pictures outside of my beautiful roses, I kept hearing a loud truck noise.  Like some huge garbage truck was coming.  Didn't really pay attention or look around to see what was going on.  I had cupids coming out of my head and was smiling like a geek looking at my beautiful roses right!  But, as I was done with the pictures, and was getting ready to pick them up out of the ground to take inside, I hear men talking.  I look behind me and right at the end of my driveway is the Sheriff's Jail Crew walking down the road followed by a huge truck that was trimming tree limbs.  Yes, that felt very odd walking down the driveway retrieving my roses with men in jail attire staring me down.  No one ever said a word to me though.  

Zachary and Chase Parker enjoyed their Valentine's Day too.  Zach came home so excited from school and couldn't wait to look through his mountain of cards and candy from his friends at school.  He went through them all with Grammy, then Daddy and me.  He loved looking at each one of them.  His class enjoyed a big pizza party at school with all the sugary treat trimmings.  He is going to Computer Lab at school now so he made sure to tell me that even though it was a "fun" day that they still had to do their work in Computer Lab and do their journal writing.  

Last night, in honor of the day and color red, I made Pepperoni Pasta Bake for dinner with a garden salad and crescent rolls.  Of course Valentines Day candy was dessert!  I think hubby enjoyed it since I saw him go back for more three times!!  It is an EASY EASY WONDERFULLY DELICIOUS recipe.  You know I don't spend much time in the kitchen so it has to be.  I will share it with you:

1 pk. Pepperoni's

Angel Hair Pasta

Large Jar of Spaghetti Sauce (I'm a Prego girl!)

1 Large Package Shredded Mozarella Cheese

1 Large Pepper (green or red)

Cook pasta, stir in spaghetti sauce, dice peppers and throw in the pot.  Let that simmer together for about 30 minutes.  Line bottom of casserole dish with spaghetti, add a layer of pepperonis to cover the entire top, then cover with mozarella cheese.  Add one more layer spaghetti, one more layer pepperoni's, and cheese and then put in the oven for 30 minutes on 350 degrees. 

Serve it up and watch your family go back for seconds (or thirds!)  It's yummy delish!!

what my heart looks like today. . . .