Girls Just Want To Have Fun!

The last few days have been filled with all sorts of fun! We have been spending a lot of time outside playing and a lot of time inside cooking! I LOVE having two little girls!

                                                      Playing Princesses....

                                                       Making Cornbread Turkey Dog Muffins

                                                     Enjoying the fresh air......

                                                      Cruisin around the deck....

                                                My girls have been two busy little bees!!!!!!

Too Much Chocolate Cake

I stumbled across this recipe one day while looking for a something new to try, something out of the ordinary as far as baking. I seem to make the same dessert recipes all the time, which happen to be scrumptious, but I just wanted to try something different. I wanted something somewhat easy to make, something that did not require a million ingredients and something that oozed chocolate. I succeeded. I found the Too Much Chocolate Cake recipe... I don't have a picture, but here is the reipe:

Ingredients

• 1 (18.25 ounce) package devil's food cake mix
• 1 (5.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, mix together the cake and pudding mixes, sour cream, oil, beaten eggs and water. Stir in the chocolate chips and pour batter into a well greased 12 cup bundt pan.
3. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until top is springy to the touch and a wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool cake thoroughly in pan at least an hour and a half before inverting onto a plate If desired, dust the cake with powdered sugar.

Zoomania

The weather was absolutely beautiful today, so we took advantage of our surroundings and ventured out to the Riverbank Zoo in Colombia, SC. We had such a fantastic time. The animals were basking in the spring-like temps and showing off for the inquisitive onlookers. Isabella was very intrigued by all of the animals, whereas Jenna was more interested in the hundreds of "little people ( kids)" running all around us. It was beautiful day with my beautiful girls.

Keep it Simple

There are so many complicated, expensive, high tech toys now-a-days, but as far as I'm concerned....simple is best. It is amazing how much happiness a little fresh air and chalk can bring to a child! Here's the proof:

What I Whipped Up Wednesday

                                                         Chocolate Covered Pretzels
My dear sister in law shared this idea on her blog @ molly-n@blogspot.com.  I saw it and knew I wanted to try a version of her idea for Valentines Day. It was so simple!
Ingredients: chocolate chips, pretzels, sprinkles
Directions: melt the chocolate, dip one side of the pretzel in chocolate then coat in sprinkles. Lay on waxed paper until chocolate becomes hard! voila!

I think they came out pretty cute! It's an easy way to make holiday appropriate treats for friends and family!

Love Bugs

My little love bugs had a fantastic love filled day! Thank you to all of those who helped make this day so special!!!

Date Night

We had a great anniversary night! We were originally planning on eating at Firebirds( one of our favorites). We tried "calling ahead" for an entire hour but the line was busy , so upon arrival we were notified that the wait time was 2 1/2 hours! We left. We assume it was overly busy being that it was Vday weekend, but really... 2 1/2 hours! No thanks! So, we went to 131 Main. The wait was a conservative 90 minutes. ha. We decided that was doable. One hour later and two glasses of wine deep I asked the bar tender to see the menu, only to find out it was a "set menu" due to vday!!!! UGH! There was nothing remotely appetizing on the "set menu," so we left. At least at that point my dear friend vino had taken the edge off so I really did not care where we ate at that point. We ended up at Big View Diner. lol. It was actually pretty good. Some things don't always go the way you envision them , but true to form, my hubby and I laughed it all off and had a great night!

He did it again....

As I posted yesterday, today is our anniversary! We made a pact that we would not do gifts this year......but, my wonderful husband did not follow the rules. Once again he managed to surprise me. I woke up this morning to a beautiful arrangement of yellow and white sunflowers with matching yellow and white balloons! It didn't stop there.... he also delivered Starbucks to my fingertips followed by a Starbucks gift card( yes, I am a huge fan of Starbucks) and a nice little sum of spending money!!!yay!! I opened my card and read it to Isabella in which she responded with " wow mommy, daddy really loves you." awwwwwww. Melted our hearts. Needless to say, I have the best husband in the world!

5 Wonderful Years!

This time 5 years ago, my dear hubby and I were sitting at our rehearsal dinner at a fabulous little restaurant in Miami. Tomorrow marks the day of 5 blissful years of marriage. I remember our wedding like it was yesterday, it could not have been a more perfect day. We were surrounded by our friends and family at the most beautiful villa in south Florida. I remember walking down the candlelit stairway thanking God for the life of love I was preparing to embark upon. 5 years, several grey hairs, and two kids later......we are still as in love, if not more in love as the day we said "I do."

Double the Trouble

 I love my girls more than anything in the whole world and I am certain that they are going to be keeping their mommy and daddy on their toes for many years to come. They are so much alike yet so different in so many ways. Isabella is a true first born. She feeds off perfection and likes things just so.....as long as they meet her standards. She is full of life, energetic, kind, pleasing, comical and confident. She is my little ray of sunshine. Jenna is our gentle soul. She loves to cuddle ,completely enjoys being smothered by kisses, which is good for me!She takes her time assessing her surroundings yet likes the opportunity to explore her little independence. She is always smiling, extremely easy going, a complete sweetheart and enjoys constant companionship. She is my little angel. There is one thing they undoubtedly have in common, they both make the happiest, proudest mommy in the universe.

What I whipped up Wednesday

Isabella goes to preschool Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, so during those day I make it a point to check things off my to-do list. I have been working on a ton of projects lately, so in the spirit of all things crafty, I decided to start a new fad on my blog called " what I whipped up Wednesday."  Basically every Wednesday I will post a current project that is in the midst of completion or that of which has already been completed. I will post projects on other days of the week as well, but Wednesdays are now reserved just for crafts. Today I whipped up two projects! I made a really cute vintage inspired skirt for Isabella ( She calls it her mommy and me skirt) and a super easy and super inexpensive Vday garland for my mantle.

                                                      "mommy and me skirt"

 I wanted to add a close up of the print on this skirt, I LOVE the vintage vibe!

                                                          Super easy Vday garland

         It basically consists of twine, doilies and really cute mini clothespins I found at Michael's! Love it!

Like mother like daughter

I must admit, both of my girls are a lot like their mommy. :) Isabella enjoys snuggling up to a good movie and  hand delivered lunch, just like mommy. ( I realize my child is plopped in front of the tv, however I promised a viewing of  Beauty and the Beast. Not to mention mommy is feeling a little under the weather. No judgement please.) Jenna may only be 9 1/2 months old , but she is beginning to form a strong likeness for a very notable designer. Young she may be, but what can I say, little miss Jenna is attracted to the finer things in life, just like mommy. he he he. :)

                                                    mini-me 1 snuggled up watching her movie..

                   mini-me 2 trying to show daddy what mommy, I mean she ,wants for valentines day! ;)

$1 Bin Love Frames

I have been working on several different projects lately, some of which have included Vday projects. As usual the Target $1 bins have made me proud due to their influx of little holiday odds and ends. I wanted to make some inexpensive yet cute Vday decor, so I came up with this:

                                                            The display.....

                                                     close up of the LOVE frame

Backseat Bags

I have been trying to come up with something cute to organize all of the CRAP  that accumulates on the floor in the backseat of my car.... so I came up the idea to make two little personalized bags to keep the girls things in such as toys, books, blankets. I think they came out pretty cute!

                                                               Isabella's backseat bag

                                                                Jenna's backseat bag

Sisterly Love

My girls are growing at warp speed. I wish I could press the pause button and keep them mini forever. I love watching them make little discoveries and gain new experiences. Lately they have been playing TOGETHER!! I never thought this day would come..... for one, Isabella has a tad bit of sibling rivalry and is extremely territorial of her "treasures." However, she has learned that Jenna is here for the long haul and has accepted her role as her sister. I have thoroughly enjoyed watching them read together, dance together and chase each other around the house!! I longed for the day my girls would form that bond and enjoy their sisterly love!

                                                      Watching cartoons together!!

                                                              snuggling together

February 3rd, 2000

This day, 11 years ago, was the worst day of my entire life thus far. It was the day my dear grandmother passed away. She was the backbone of our entire family. She was the most courageous , caring, most generous woman I have ever met in my life(aside from my mother). She loved life and fought with every being in her body to survive her battle against cancer.  She will never be forgotten. I miss her more and more every day.
A poem for my grandmother:

                                   "If tears could bring a stairway and memories a lane,

I would walk right up to heaven and bring you home again.

No farewell words were spoken, no time to say goodbye,

you were gone before I knew it, and only God knows why.

My heart still aches in sadness and secret tears still flow,

what it means to lose you, no one will ever know."

-unknown-

Teeth Time

All mommies know that when their little ones teeth, it can be quite disruptive for both the baby and the mommy. Babies become fussy, their sleep patterns become interrupted and overall they just feel miserable.......but not my baby! She has been cutting two little baby teeth on the bottom for the last few weeks and you wouldn't even know it!  She has proved to me, yet again, what a sweet little angel she is.

                                            Can you see her little teethers!?! So cute!

Oreo Ice Cream Freeze

When I had Jenna a mommy from Isabella's class brought this dessert to us.... and let me just say... I am ADDICTED. Philip and I LOVE this dessert. It is super easy to make and delicious beyond words!!!!

Oreo Ice cream Freeze
1 gallon Mississippi mud pie ice cream ( Harris Teeter brand), softened
1 package oreo's ( I use the reduced fat kind)
3 eggs
3 squares semi-sweet chocolate squares
2 cups conf. sugar
1/2 stick butter

1) Crush entire package of oreo's. cover bottom of 13 x 9 inch pan with majority of crushed oreos.
2) In a saucepan over medium/low heat, melt butter, chocolate squares. whisk eggs in small bowl. When chocolate and butter is melt, stir in eggs. Once the eggs and chocolate mix is mixed together, stir in conf. sugar.
3) Layer chocolate mix over oreos. Layer softened ice cream over chocolate mix. Sprinkle remaining oreos on top of ice cream. Put in freezer until firm. Enjoy!!