Friday favorites: Valentine ideas

Ok, so it is no secret I've been majorly slacking on Fridays. So, today, I thought I would do a bunch of my favorite Free Valentine ideas that I found.


Lollipop tags




Gift tags



Pillow box



Valentine circles



Cheesy, but a cute idea for teachers.

I hope these ideas inspire you or lead you to a new favorite.

Be blessed this weekend!

Tasty Tuesday: part 2 weekend recap

I have the yummiest recipe today! Josh and I enjoyed it all weekend long! (please excuse the sideways picture). This recipe is super easy..just open a bag of Oreos and make coffee. Voila..there you go...by far my two favorite things in the world!


I think I ate my weight in Oreos this weekend. It was perfect!!!



Day 2 at the cabin was not much different than day 1. We just hung out and stayed warm.


Hadley enjoying the view


Josh and HG


We watched the Bald Eagles. There are two them that live around the cabin, but we could only get a picture of one.


Lunch on the step..or a picnic we kept calling it.


Being silly;)


This handle was very entertaining. There is one on each side and so she would go back and forth playing with them.


Josh grilled out steaks that night, which were awesome!


Early Monday morning we headed back home


We had the best time! It was like our first family vacation. It makes us excited for all the trips in the future when HG gets a little bigger!

Movie Monday: weekend recap

I originally was suppose to be hosting a baby shower on Saturday while Josh was going hiking and to the cabin to check on it after the winter blast. My baby shower got rescheduled so Josh suggested HG and I tag along to Branson and make a weekend out if it. Yes, couldn't come out of my mouth fast enough. Being snowed in all week, and getting ready for a baby shower, Hadley and I were beginning to feel cabin feverish, I was so excited to get out!



We haven't taken Hadley to the cabin since she was about 3mo old, so we knew she would have fun exploring!! It is not baby proofed to say the least. It is a log cabin with two sets of log stairs and lots of decorations including rocks and candles. When we first got there she headed straight for the checkers.


Then we had some lunch


Lunch lasted a long time because she had to look around between bites;)


We tried to get a picture..unsuccessful..


Still trying...still failing miserably..maybe someday..


Really liked this window since she could see out by herself.


This step kept her entertained and away from the stairs..I'm thankful!






She was constantly looking up!


Of course Bob was on the play menu;). We don't leave home without him.


Looking out at the snow while carrying the remote..always fun!


Hadley's grandpa brought her a book from AK with a picture of a moose in it so she was so surprised and excited to see a moose in person. It was so cute to see her say hi to the moose we didn't have the heart to tell her it was an elk;)


Watching a movie before bed and she would occasionally stop and point to the moose.


All cozy with dad before bed.


Yes, those are still Christmas pj's, but they still fit and are warm. No judging!;)


Tomorrow, I'll post day 2 pictures;). I took so many I thought I would spare you 100 pictures in one post.

Sunny

We might have gotten a ton of snow, but we ventured out today(with Josh driving) and it sure was sunny.

Tasty Tuesday...Tacos

I saw this recipe for tacos and I have to admit, I'm totally digging eating out of a Fritos bag, no matter what's inside;) With a plastic fork, you have yourself a mess free, throw in the trash kind of dinner cleanup.

Here is the delicious Recipe.

Hope you enjoy!

update

Almost 17 months...yep, that's HG on the horizon. A little update is definitely in order :)


At (almost) 17 months..Hadley:
- Is almost running or hopping (she says 'hop hop' ) everywhere
- Has so much personality, she definitely knows her likes and dislikes and is not shy to tell you


- Can say; hello, bye bye, go, all of her body parts (eyes, mouth, teeth, arm..etc.)oatmeal, ball, dog, choo choo, moose (random, I know), shoes, bless you (when you sneeze), drink, snack, cheese, hat, socks, truck, yucky, ouch...ok, get the point, the girl likes to talk :) She copies any word we say..except (gram or glam..the two most important).
-The girl likes jewelry and purses. She is always wearing a bracelet or necklace. When we go shopping she is completely content if I give her a necklace off the rack to wear while we look around.


-Her favorite toys right now are; balls, spoons (she walks around stirring things), books, lotion, lip gloss (she pretends to rub it on), bob the tomato, and Josh's old cell phone. Here she is putting her gloss on;)


-She likes anything with music. If a cartoon is on, she will run from the other room to see if a song is on. Veggie Tales are still her favorite movies
-Only takes a morning nap and then goes to bed really early at 5:30. She wakes up around 6:30am.

-Her favorite foods are- oatmeal, blueberries, green beans, puffs, Greek yogurt, oatmeal pancakes. We are working on expanding that list. Baby steps:)

Her hair if finally long enough to put in pigtails. Surprisingly, she doesn't pull them out. I am excited to be able to pull it up to get through this shaggy stage, plus they look pretty darn cute.


Saying 'no'



This is one morning with her 'hat' that she found. She insisted on wearing it. Notice the necklace and bracelet;)

Big pink ball

Hadley and I go to Walmart every Monday to do our weekly shopping. We passed by these big balls today and decided we needed one...a pink one of course;)



She even wanted to hold it while she watched a movie

Tasty Tuesday: Cheddar Chicken Chowder

Ok, it is definitely soup weather and that is was I'm making/craving if you haven't noticed;). I had found this recipe a few years ago and it is still one of my favorites. Yes, it's from Cooking Light, but they did it again with this tasty soup! If you make it you will not be disappointed, unless you don't like cheese or chicken;).

Cheddar Chicken Chowder

Tip: Buy skinned, boned chicken breasts and preshredded cheese.

Yield: 7 servings (serving size: 1 1/2 cups)
Ingredients
2 bacon slices
Cooking spray
1 pound skinned, boned chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup diced red bell pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 1/2 cups fat-free chicken broth
1 3/4 cups diced peeled red potatoes
2 1/4 cups frozen whole-kernel corn
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups 2% low-fat milk
3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Preparation
Cook bacon in a Dutch oven coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan. Crumble; set aside. Add chicken, onion, bell pepper, and garlic to bacon fat in pan; sauté 5 minutes. Add broth and potatoes; bring to boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Add corn; stir well.

Place flour in a bowl. Gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk until blended; add to soup. Cook over medium heat 15 minutes or until thick, stirring frequently. Stir in cheese, salt, and pepper. Top with crumbled bacon.

Nutritional Information
Calories:
306 (22% from fat)
Fat:
7.5g (sat 4g,mono 2.2g,poly 0.6g)
Protein:
25g
Carbohydrate:
33.7g
Fiber:
2.9g
Cholesterol:
58mg
Iron:
1.6mg
Sodium:
376mg
Calcium:
193mg
Cooking Light, NOVEMBER 1996


Hope you enjoy!!!!

Hadley's new ride

Our sweet friends from church gave Hg this awesome wagon and we were so excited to try it out. Saturday was the first sorta warm day we could try it out! She loved every minute of it!



While we were walking, this little girl was in her driveway with a bunny hopping around. Random, but since HG really likes bunny's and says 'hop hop' anytime she sees a picture, I asked the little girl if we could stop and say hi. She said the bunny was afraid of people so we hung back, but as you will see we still made a very good cat friend;)



The cat followed us for quite a ways until we hit a yard with dogs;)




I never knew how awesome a wagon could be...I'm so excited to use it this summer and I see many trips to the pool in it!

First snow

Hadley woke up from her nap and said 'ahhh' as she saw the snow outside. She was so excited and intrigued. Josh was going to go out and bring her some snow to touch, but instead she just went with him.

These pictures tell it all, from my point of view on the porch;)















Getting a cozy hug to warm up;).