36 Weeks...

HURRAY! I have made it to 36 weeks... and many of you have asked for an Allie update and here it is. ;-) The sad part is I've already misplaced the last ultrasound pics (pregnancy brain) and so this is without her cute little face... but the ultrasound showed her at just over 6 pounds and perfectly healthy. She passed all the criteria. So if I went into labor again they would just let me have her- hallelujah!

So two hospital visits to stop labor

20+ progesterone shots and home nurse visits

3 Terbutalane shots

2 Terbutalane prescriptions

2 steroid shots

Weeks of home monitoring and nurses calling twice a day...

lots of Dr visits...

lots of extra ultrasounds...

weeks of "modified bedrest"...

Dilated to 4.5 cm and 90% effaced for almost 2 weeks now...

A world record amount of contractions... constantly...

But feeling blessed to have a perfectly healthy and strong little girl on the way. Thanks SOOO much to all of you for your prayers and concern and love. We are so appreciative to each of you. The sacrifices are all worth it after seeing her full cheeks and head of hair on the ultrasound. We'll keep you updated on the latest!

Easter Eggs Dyed? Check!

We tried out the tie-dyed eggs from a few posts down... WOW!!! So much fun. The kids loved all the steps and being creative with the colors and I loved how easy it was and how mess-free it really turned out to be.

We used the Neon Food Coloring and also just the Regular Food Coloring by McCormick. From pouring the vinegar and swishing the eggs around, they did it all! I just watched and took pics. It's so good for them to do things ALL by themselves- they were even more proud of the finished product.

Colby carefully placing all 6 eggs into his colander...

Syd pouring on the vinegar...

Mia adding more color!

Splash with water at the end and... Ta-da!

They each carefully put theirs to dry in the egg carton.

They all chose different colors and they turned out so bright and fun. They loved how each egg was different and decided to name each of their eggs. It was hilarious. I don't know if they will remember all the names tomorrow but they claim they will! As for clean up? Just spraying out the colanders and the sink. I think this may be our new egg dying tradition!

T-Ball!

Well we are venturing into something new here with Colby... this is his first season of T-ball! They have been practicing twice a week so he was SO excited to finally have his first game. And oh my word, he looked so dang cute in his gear- from his hat to his pants to his cleats! Gerron is his Assistant Coach...

They play three innings and there are no outs- every boy gets one turn to hit. Colby had 3 great hits! YAY! All the practicing at practice and in our backyard paid off.

He loved running the bases and it was extra fun for him to have Ger out there coaching him.

Running home!

Getting bored in the outfield- ha!

The game was plenty entertaining and we got some good laughs. He actually has a pretty good team who can hit well and catch and throw the ball well and that really helped the game to go faster. He has a great coach and we are gearing up for two games a week now! That seems crazy for 5 year olds to have that many games a week, but they seem to like it so hopefully stick it out. Soccer for Mia starts up again this week- Ger is coaching so life is going to be plenty busy around here on weeknights!

Easter Rice Krispy Treats

We went out for breakfast at Wildflower and they had these adorable bunny rice krispy treats. Only $3 each. WOAH! Colby REALLY wanted one but I told him we could make them much yummier and cuter (and cheaper). So we came home and did just that!

1- Measure 12 cups Rice Krispies in a big bowl

2- Melt 6 TBS butter in a pan (teaching Colby safety at the stove!)

3- Measure 8 cups mini marshmellows

4- Melt marshmellows in melted butter. Then pour mixture over Rice Krispies and mix!

5- Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray.

6- Spray your hands with cooking spray and push marshmellow/Rice Krispy mixture evenly on pan.

*NOTE: I doubled this recipe for a cookie sheet. Half this recipe if using a 9x13 pan.

Then let cool. (We went on a bike ride!) Then use cookie cutters to cut out fun shapes. You may need to spray the cutters first with PAM.

Then bust out the candy melts!

I have these on hand because they are so fun to use for lots of projects in the kitchen. We have every color from orange to green to Spring pastels! You can even buy them at Walmart.

I just melt them in plastic baggies in the microwave- a handful of melts goes a long way. Put the baggie in for 20-30 second intervals, pulling out each time to mush chocolates together. Clip a very small corner of the baggie after competely melted. The kids were great helping with this since it took a little while to do about 10 colors!

Then let the kids create! My kids LOVE being creative and they spent at least an hour making their own fun Rice Krispy Easter Treats! I couldn't believe their focus and concentration- even Colby took his very seriously... but had so much fun with all the colors of chocolate and m&m's and sprinkles!

Some of my creations...

Mia's creations...

Sydney's creations...

Some of Colby's creations! Wow!

If you aren't up for making a mess, send your kiddos to make some treats online! They pick out the shape of Rice Krispy treats and then get to decorate them with all sorts of colors and sprinkles and shapes! http://www.ricekrispies.com/games/shape-decorator.aspx

Tie-Dye Easter Eggs!

Wow- this looked like a mess free fun and colorful way of doing Easter Eggs! A few years ago we had a massive spill while dying Easter Eggs the traditional way- it took the varnish off a HUGE part of our Travertine and was a colorful disaster. I got this idea off Family Fun at http://familyfun.go.com/crafts/tie-dye-easter-eggs-670296/ The entire mess stays in the sink- no dirty hands- and a creative way for the kiddos to get colorful and unique with their Easter Eggs this year.

Item's Needed:

• A colander
• 10 hard boiled white eggs
• 1/2 cup white vinegar
• Vibrant Food Coloring (they used McCormick Neon Food Coloring)

Step 1: Place the eggs in the colander and splash with vinegar.

Step 2: Drip yellow food coloring on eggs...

Step 3: Gently agitate the colander for a few seconds to spread the food coloring and then let sit for 30 seconds.

Step 4: Repeat steps 2 and 3 with up to two additional colors. Any more than that will make a muddy ugly mess. ;-)

Step 5: Gently rinse eggs with water and then let them sent for a minute or two. Let dry on paper towels.

FUN! Easy. Can't wait to try these out. ;-)

Easter is Early this Year!

I love this time of year! Everything is so green from all the rain we've had and the kids LOVE seeing all the trees with "popcorn" on them. But I can hardly believe that Easter is two weeks away!

As soon as I put up our Easter decor a few weeks ago Colby was asking for his Easter basket... and then asking if the Easter bunny was coming tomorrow. ha! He can hardly wait.

You can buy the Marshmellow bunnies for your jars for $12 a bag at Williams Sonoma OR almost the exact same ones at the Dollar Store for thats right... just a dollar! Then I have malted eggs in one jar (my kids don't like them so don't eat them so it works out great- though I need to get some more since i have been eating out of the jar!) and then our Safeway here always has great Easter stuff so I got the big Eggs and bunnies there...

One of the kids FAVORITE Spring crafts is making birds nests with play dough and sticks. It is fun for them to gather the sticks themselves and as you can see, they picked a variety of sizes. They even made birds our of play dough to go in them one time...

And I am looking forward to making and baking some yummy spring goodies... Here's my LATEST favorite sugar cookie recipe. ;-) Courtesy of thegirlwhoateeverything.blogspot.com. She's a friend of a friend and has some FABULOUS recipes. You will have to check out her blog... Happy Spring!

Soft Sugar Cookies
by Alison Tolbert

1 cup sour cream
2 cups white sugar
1 cup butter
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla or almond extract
6 cups flour
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350.

Combine sour cream, sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla. Mix well.

Add dry ingredients until everything is mixed together. Let the dough chill in fridge for 20 minutes or until firm.

Roll it out and use cookie cutters or whatever you want.

Bake until LIGHT golden brown-no more than 10 minutes. When you take them out they will seem underdone but aren't. Let them cool on the pan and they will be perfect and moist. It you like them harder and more crunchy just bake them a little longer.

Last Minute St. Patty's Idea!

Still need an idea for St. Patty's day!?! I loved this one I found on http://jessekatedesigns.blogspot.com/2009/03/st-patricks-day-fun-day-6-treasure-hunt.html

A treasure hunt sends them around the house finding clues and gold dollars...

And then at the end, they find more coins and this challenge... Put the coins towards something for somebody that needs them. Flowers for someone elderly, cookie ingredients to make cookies for your neighbors, a surprise for a friend having a hard time, lotion for a few mom (or something to pamper herself!)... Lots of options. And a great chance for them to think outside of themselves and serve others... and you didn't have to waste money on silly green prizes that they are only entertained with for a few minutes. I love this idea!

Here are the rest of the clues- you can also click on the link of the website to get them as well and get more info! Happy St. Patty's Day!

How this baby has changed our life...

ha! Ok, so not really but for someone who grew up in a family who did homemade ice cream ALL the time, this little machine is AMAZING! After Ger and I got married we carried on the tradition of homemade ice cream, but usually make gelato... And over the last 10 years of marriage have probably gone through at least 5-6 ice cream makers. They are a hassle and a pain most of the time- the ice, rock salt, noise, mess... After our last one gave out I set out to find one that was less hassle and more durable. And ta-da! This is it! Cuisinart's 2- Quart Ice Cream Maker. It's on Amazon right now for only $69.99 with free shipping.

It has a bowl that you stick in the freezer and when you are ready to make your treat, you just stick it in the base and pour in your mix. Easy. We made our usual Strawberry Buttermilk Gelato over the weekend with it and it turned out SOOO yummy. The recipe is at the bottom if you need it again. ;-) It served 3 kiddos and 5 adults and we ate up every last drop.

And it also makes slushee's or icee's out of any beverage. Today we made Root Beer Icee's and the kids were in HEAVEN. You just pour any drink in the frozen bowl and 30 minutes later it is a frozen slushee.

Perfect for spring and summer days here. You can even add a scoop of ice cream if you want to make it a Brown Cow or Root Beer Float...

We can't wait to try some other gelato and ice cream recipes- do you have a favorite to share?!? We would love to give it a try!

Strawberry Buttermilk Gelato
2 c sugar
2 c water
5 c quartered strawberries (about 4 pints)
2 c low fat buttermilk

Combine sugar and water in a large saucepan; bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Pour into a large bowl; cool completely. Chill in refrigerator. Place strawberries in a blender and process until smooth. Add strawberry puree and buttermilk to sugar syrup; stir to combine. Pour the strawberry mixture into the freezer can of an ice-cream freezer, and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Leftovers freeze great in a sealed container. NOTE: This fit perfectly into the Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker. Just don't overdo the strawberries!

Bacardi Smoothies...

The weather is gorgeous here- mid-seventies- so we are already looking forward to summer... swimming... homemade gelato... lots and lots of popsicles, otter pops, and ice cream cones... and smoothies! One of our favorites is Bacardi Smoothies so I thought I'd share with you our "secret" recipe.

Ger and I perfected these when we were first married. Pick up a Bacardi Mixer out of the frozen section of the grocery store- by the frozen juices. Don't worry- they are non-alcoholic. :-) Strawberry Daiquiri and Fuzzy Navel are our two favs... But the pina colada is fabulous too...

Then we mix up pretty much according to the directions but with our own twist:

1 can Fresca

1 handful ice

Then whatever frozen or fresh fruit we have on hand!

Just add fruit to taste/desired consistency. (How much ice you add will also depend on how much frozen fruit you add...) We love adding everything from berries and mangos to peaches and pineapples. The kids love helping make these and each adding their own choice of fruit. Gerron even loves to squeeze a lime in for a little kick.

So instead of chowing down on candy and soda pop during movie night at our house we LOVE doing Bacardi smoothies and popcorn! yum! Since my kids hate the greasy popcorn we use the 94% fat free Jolly Time Kettle Corn... so overall it is a healthy movie treat. YUM!

St. Patty's Day Treats!

Are you set and ready for your St. Patricks Day? Growing up we always were so excited to see what the Leprachauns had in store... fun scavenger hunts, treats, green pancakes! Lots o' fun. I love how creative Bakerella is... here are some yummy treat ideas off her blog...

These truffles are made of oreos and look so scrumptious...

And this year she made red velvet cake into green cupcakes! Yum!

Green truffles anyone?!?

If you have any fun traditions or treat ideas let me know! We are always looking for new fun ideas!

Swimming and Smores!

Saturday was a beautiful day here in AZ. After Mia's morning soccer game the kiddos came home "hot." It was in the mid 70's probably! They started out with this...

Then talked Ger into spraying each other with his power sprayer (on a low setting of course!)...

And then before I knew it, it was this! BRR!!

Then this...

This...

And this! They all jumped in waist or chest high in our 63 degree water. Silly kids! I thought it was ice cold but they didn't even need to jump in a towel after... all the jumping and running around kept them warm enough I guess!

And this swimsuit on Syd was so big last year... she is growing so fast! bah!

The snack that they all were begging for after jumping in the pool... was a nice warm smore! We just stick the bottom graham cracker in the microwave with mini marshmellows for about 20 seconds and then top it with the chocolate and top cracker when it comes out. YUM! They each had 2 at least.

The kiddos were highly entertained for HOURS. So we are looking forward to warmer summer days here! The kiddos just can't wait!