In the last few days...

we've been playing outside ALOT and enjoying friends and birthdays...


finally made curtains for this window...



and saw a cousin who was driving through Denver...

On the go...

This guy is on the move. He's been crawling now for about a week. Which means the gates are back up...

and a new door has been placed at the top of the stairs...
(since we had to paint it anyways, I decided to add chalkboard paint)
Which means E's now into EVERYTHING, and also means he's now getting into big brother's stuff. B does okay - some of the time. Unless it's a toy that he wants at that time, which is usually 95% of the time. :) So we're entering into new challenges in life. But we'll learn as we go.

Office Pretty

Be sure to check out my friend, Jill {and previous co worker at DFN} and her blog, Office Pretty. Jill is one of those talented people that, although younger than me, I look up to. She recently co-started a blog on fashion and it's a great place to get ideas and tips.

A {short} weather break

We've had really nice weather the last couple days. I think today reached 70 degrees. We met up with our friend Becca & Jael (and Becca's friend) at the park. A lot of people were out and about. It was just too beautiful to stay inside. Plus, we had to get out today because the weather is going to drop tomorrow. Snow is expected.

we had a nice picnic lunch too

some of us ate more than food

We had a nice Tuesday. It was a good day with the boys. Even though it started off early when a certain little baby didn't want to go back to sleep right away after his 5 a.m. feeding.
And, I'm thankful Breeson "slept in" until 7 this morning. Lately he's been waking up at 6:30 on the dot. It's hard to explain to a 2 yr old that just because it's light outside, it's not time to get up. I could get him an alarm clock, but he doesn't know time yet. ?? Any suggestions? I tell him he has to get back in bed and I'll tell him when it's 7 o'clock (even though I usually wait 'til after 7 to tell him it's 7). :) I'm open to ideas though...

Friday Family Day

One of the great things about Jamie doing full time ministry is that his schedule is a little more flexible. Sometimes we're able to take week days off to do family days since he puts in hours in the evenings and/or weekends. We're enjoying it.

Today we had family day. We didn't do much, but it was nice being together - even when we got on each others nerves. :) Our day started off by taking Eagan to his 9 month check up. Then we headed to the mall to let B play in the play area.
It didn't last long - there were a ton of kids there. He gets a bit overwhelmed.

This afternoon we took naps, played and laid around the house. Relaxing.
We then ran a couple errands after the boys got up from naps.

We were welcomed home with yummy smells coming from the crock pot. I love crock pot meals. I don't know why I don't do them more often??

In all, it was nice family day. Now, we get to anticipate the weekend..

Vegetable Manicotti

Both Jamie and I are both big carnivores. We go through cycles where we try harder at eating more vegetarian meals. But then we slack off again. I think it's just hard to think creatively in meal planning when there's not meat involved. (For all of you vegetarians out there, I'm sure you're thinking I'm crazy!?). Anyways, we tried this recipe last week and it turned out pretty good, if I do say so myself.

Vegetable Manicotti:

8 uncooked manicotti shells
1 tsp olive oil or veg oil
1 med carrot, shredded (1/2 c)
1/2 c shredded zucchini
1/2 c sliced mushrooms (1 1/2 oz)
4 med gr onions, sliced (1/4 c)
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/4 c grated reduced fat or fat free parmesan cheese topping
1/4 c fat free cholesterol free egg product or 2 egg whites
2 tble chopped fresh or 2 tsp dried basil leaves
1 container (15 oz) fat free ricotta cheese
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
1/2 c shredded low fat mozzarella cheese (2 oz)

Turn oven on to 350 deg. Spray baking dish w/ cooking spray. Cook and drain manicotti as directed on package.

While manicotti is cooking, heat oil in skillet. Cook carrot, zucchini, mushrooms, onions and garlic in oil, stirring frequently, until vegetables are crisp tender. Stir in remaining ingredients except tomato and mozzarella cheese.

Pour 1/3 c of the tomato sauce into backing dish. Fill manicotti shells w/ vegetable mixture; place in baking dish. Pour remaining tomato sauce over manicotti. Sprinkle with cheese. Cover and bake 40-45 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

The nice part is, there was enough to put an extra pan in the freezer, so now we have a meal ready to go.

*recipe taken from Betty Crocker's Low-fat, Low-Cholesterol Cooking Today