Scenes from the Weekend & An Updated Recipe

Thank you so much for all of your positive and encouraging comments and emails regarding my last post about some of the behavior challenges we're facing with our children right now. It's so nice to be able to share not only the fun things on this blog, but also the difficult things, and know that there will be people who will encourage us along the way. So, thank you!

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This past weekend was mostly spent around the house, which is rare, and yet so good. 

Friday evening Brian was still in Texas for a work trip, so the boys and I went to our friend's new house for an evening of swimming & pizza. The kids had a ball and I loved seeing her gorgeous new home.

I woke up to Brian climbing into bed around 1 a.m. and it felt so good to reach over and grab his hand, knowing he was home. I don't sleep well when he's out of town, so it's a good thing he rarely travels.

Saturday morning, we split up and Brian took Payton to serve with our church's "Second Saturday" community service project; and Parker and I went downtown to participate in a charity 5K walk for our good friend who has Juvenile Diabetes.

All of us walking under a major roadway in downtown Tampa. It was so weird to be walking on these streets!

Parker and I walking along beautiful Bayshore Blvd.

We all had wonderful experiences and as they say, it really does feel good, when you do good for others. 

After some seriously-needed showers, the whole fam went out to a late lunch at one of our favorite water-side restaurants. This gorgeous bird - lovingly named "Fred" by the restaurant employees - sat next to our table and patiently watched until Parker inevitably dropped a sweet potato fry on the ground. To which Fred quickly gulped down his throat.

The rest of the weekend we took it pretty easy and just enjoyed lounging around the house watching the Masters and taking it easy. Sunday afternoon we got our giant inflatable pool out for the kids. Parker in particular gets so excited about this pool. And I have to admit, it is pretty fun to have!

Last but not least, I wanted to share an updated recipe with you.

I've posted this Italian Chicken Recipe before, but this time, I updated it and made it a Greek version. It was so delicious and SUPER easy.

Baked Greek Chicken

Ingredients:

• 3-4 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 can petite diced tomatoes
• Jar of pitted kalamata olives
• Container of crumbled feta cheese (I used the tomato/basil version)
• Greek salad dressing (I made my own using Ina Garten's recipe, found here)
• Oregano

Directions:

1. Spray casseroled dish with non-stick cooking spray and place raw chicken in dish. Pour Greek dressing over chicken.
2. Dump can of tomatoes over the chicken, then sprinkle with feta cheese, olives and oregano.
3. Bake at 375 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Let me tell you... despite the recipe being SO easy... it explodes with flavor! If you like Greek salads, you will love this dish. Sadly, I had to scrape off most of the toppings for my children, but they still said the flavor was delicious. :) I served it with rice, but I bet it would be great with Cous Cous too.

That's all for today. I hope you'll return later this week when I re-visit my new series, "Marriage & Family: Creating Harmony in the Home," when I'll be addressing age-appropriate chores.

Have a great week everyone... go out and be fabulous! ;)

Weekending & Menu for the Week

Hi-dee-ho everyone! Hope your week is starting off on a good foot.

I dragged myself to the gym this morning despite every muscle in my body that wanted to stay in bed and sleep another hour or two. But as always, I am so glad I went.

In fact, this morning, not only did I get a great physical workout, I also struck up a conversation with another gym member about her struggles with infertility and how she is debating now that she's in her 40's if she wants to try IVF again, or move forward with adoption.

I always know that when these conversations come up - and they come up a lot more than you'd think - it's God saying, "Stacy, use your story. Help this woman. Encourage her. Love her. Give her strength by sharing what you went through."

So I did.

And I could see tears in her eyes as she opened up and was filled with relief that someone else understood her struggles.

Believe me people, God does not waste a hurt.

Whatever struggles you've been through in your past - or are currently going through - don't hide them. Don't shove them deep down in your thought closet. Share them. Give your road map to someone else who needs some good directions.

I promise you this...you won't ever regret helping someone else through a struggle that you've been through yourself.

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Now on to much more unimportant topics...

Weekending.

We had such a fun weekend. We went out with a group of our neighbors on their boat and sailed over to St. Petersburg where we exited the boat and went on a "Peddle Pub Tour." So. Much. Fun.

Starting off the evening with a sunset sail is just about the most perfect thing I can think of.

 Of course everyone brought yummy food...

And our neighbors who own the boat, prepared little "Emergency Bags" for each of us to take on the Peddle Pub Tour. Complete with snacks, water, and of course...glow sticks.

This picture of our friend Mike photo-bombing us may be my favorite of the night:

We walked several blocks and then arrived at our destination!

 Basically a Peddle Pub is an enormous bike built for like 15 people. There's no motor, so you are seriously getting a workout during your "tour." I was very thankful that there were two people on the tour with us who have completed Ironman competitions. :)

The girls

Think the sun was in my eyes??

 The boys

In other cities, they have a keg of beer on the front and serve you while you're peddling around, but St. Pete hasn't given them an alcohol license yet, so it was a "dry" Peddle Pub. The "Pub" part of the tour was that we went around to 4 breweries in downtown St. Pete. We had a super fun night with all of our neighbors and definitely got a great workout too! My tush is still sore!
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As for this week's menu, I apologize for posting it a day late. We had some friends over for dinner last night, so my Sunday night blogging got the boot.

This week is going to be some "oldies but goodies" because it's a very busy week and Brian is traveling again, so there's no need for fanciness in the kitchen.

Monday:
Leftovers from Sunday (grilled steak, asparagus and red peppers with sauteed artichoke hearts).
I also made these potatoes with the steaks (minus the sour cream). Super easy and very yummy! Kinda fun to spice up the traditional baked potato every once in a while.

Tuesday:
Fettuccine Alfredo with sauteed chicken breasts that I will cut into strips.

Wednesday:
Mini Cuban Sammies

Thursday:
Crockpot Mushroom Meatballs


Well, the baby's up from his nap, Payton is now home from school and giving me a terrible time about re-doing some old homework, so I'll say goodbye for now. Have a great week friends!

Memorial Day Weekending

It's almost 10:30 p.m. on Tuesday evening.
The house is silent except little scratches here and there from Mocha.
Everyone else crashed out early, so I just spent the past hour or so editing and uploading all of the pictures I took over the weekend.
It's a long, and sometimes tedious, process to go through the hundreds of pictures I take over the course of a few days. But at the same time, I find myself pausing on random photos, smiling - sometimes even laughing - when I see something that maybe I didn't notice when I originally took the picture. Sometimes it's an expression on someone's face; sometimes it's a moment that I had forgotten I had captured; sometimes it's just a sweet embrace between two family members that just makes me so happy for phone cameras... for without them, I would have only a fraction of the pictures that I do.
And although I would give anything for a big ol professional Nikon, my iphone has captured some pretty amazing pics this weekend. Tell me whatcha think...

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As I shared in my last post, I hosted a baby shower at our house on Saturday, so Brian took the boys to his parents' for the day. It was a huge help to have the house empty all morning to prep for the shower, but even nicer to have a quiet house all afternoon so I could rest after being on my feet for 8 hours straight. :) 

The boys were SO excited to go spend the day with Grandma & Grandpa. Here's a picture Brian snapped on his phone as they were leaving for their "Guys Day Out."

 

There was no shortage of fun that day, that's for sure!

They went to Payton's favorite breakfast spot when they arrived and then hit Walmart for a little toy shopping.

How precious is this picture? Good job Brian capturing such a sweet hug.

Then Grandpa to the boys out for some miniature golf.

Apparently that didn't tire them out enough, so Brian then took them swimming!

After that, Parker got his blanket and pacifier and climbed up in Grandma's lap for some snuggles...

and then...

CRASHED.

He slept like this for over 2 hours! My poor Mom-in-law, her arm must have been killing her. They ended up having to wake him up because it was getting past dinner time and Brian needed to head back to Tampa. Nothing like napping in Grandma's arms. The best place in the house!

On Sunday after church we headed out to one of our favorite local beaches with some friends of ours.

We were waiting in line to get into the beach and Brian had his window rolled down with his foot sticking out the window. I looked back and Parker is doing the same exact thing. Mini-Brian!

Parker had a great time playing with his friend Nathaniel and of course, big brother.

Parker did not want to come out of the water, so he wasn't thrilled when I took this picture. :)

My Dad sent us a "Memorial Day Care Package" with his famous "Paca-Corn" in it. So we made sure to bring it with us to the beach! {Thanks Dad!}

It was a beautiful evening and we stayed long after the crowds of people packed up and headed out, only to leave us with an empty beach and a spectacular show in the sky!

Stunning night sky.

Monday morning, I was treated to a pancake breakfast made by the boys.

 They were delicious!

Then we rallied the troops and headed up to our local pool with some friends to wear out the kiddos. It worked like a charm because Parker took a marathon nap and we ended up having to wake him up to go to our Memorial Day block party. Poor kid was so tired.

But nothing turns a cranky kid into a smiling one like giving him a special cupcake!

After the block party, we went to our neighbor's house for some swimming and sparklers.

It was a great way to end a fun-filled weekend.

Of course, even though we did do all of the traditional Memorial Day things like attend parties, eat hot dogs, and hang with family and friends, we also want to once again be reminded of the real meaning behind this holiday.

There are so many people who spend this day grieving over a lost loved one who gave their life for our country. The sacrifices that have been made are truly awe-inspiring if you stop to think about it.

So, thank you to all of our Veterans and current military service men and women.

Without you, our lives would look very different today.

We salute you.

We thank you.

We honor you.

Just A Warning...

So, this is just a "head's up" that the blog will be very light this week.

Payton has a big biography project due on Wednesday where he not only has to dress up like Neil Armstrong, he has to recite a 2-3 minute speech about him and he cannot read it straight from a paper.

I already have anxiety thinking about making an astronaut costume and helping him somewhat memorize his speech. Ugh... is it summer yet?!?

I am also hosting a baby shower this Saturday, so this week I need to finalize a gazillion details and finish the shopping, clean the house, prep the food, plan the games, and... well... you get the point.

And let's not forget that I'll also be busy doing bunny stuff, and taking care of the kids, and managing the household, and oh, did I mention Brian will be out of town for a couple days too??

So, please forgive me this week if you rarely see anything on the blog. Promise I'll catch up soon!

In case I don't get back on here for the rest of the week, here's a very quick recap of the past few days...

Payton's school had an art show last week.

The school's art department set it up, and they did a great job!

There were students playing stringed instruments on stage, a huge buffet of nibbles in the back of the room and a zillion parents and kids running around proudly pointing out their black plastic-framed piece of art that was available to purchase for a mere $25!

It's a school fundraiser, so I had to buy it... right?

There was LOTS of bunny holding going on this weekend.

And LOTS of laundry.

 Mocha is slowly getting used to lots of people who like to hold her.

But she is also "marking" her new home.

I've washed more blankets & towels in the last week than I have in a month.

Fortunately, she seems to have stopped.

It's almost like she needed to "mark" her spot and now she's done.

Thank God.

She sleeps a lot too. I think the kids wear her out.

I know how she feels.

I also undertook a little home improvement project this weekend.

I decided to move forward with re-covering the kitchen chairs.

They were in DESPERATE need of new fabric.

And nothing pushes a much-procrastinated project to the forefront than hosting a party!

This baby shower has really got me moving on some updates to the house.

Disgusting old cushions:

Pretty new fabric:

One minor injury later
(P.S. a screwdriver to the forearm really hurts!)

But it was worth it in the end.
I love how they turned out.

Too bad no one is allowed to sit on them until after the shower. :)

Brian was out of town all weekend, so I was left to entertain the kiddos by myself.
Thank GOD for our neighbors who provided endless hours of swimming in their pool!

And when Daddy returned on Sunday, Parker would not let him out of his sight!
He missed his Daddy. So did I!

And then we spent more time at the community pool.
These kids are going to turn into fish this summer!

Nothing like a headbutt to say "welcome home."

Okay, that's all for now!
I'm off to make an astronaut costume.
Wish me luck!

Weekending

This is how I kicked off my weekend:

Yep. Painted my nails "Peacock" green.

(My mother is mortified right now, I'm sure of it.)

But I tell ya, the bold color on my fingernails must have translated into a carefree spirit somehow because I had such an incredible laid-back weekend with a variety of friends I haven't seen or hung out with in a LONG time.

But first things first, I have to brag on Payton for a minute.

His class had their Mother's Day Poetry Cafe on Friday morning and it was so precious.

The kids all sang "You Are My Sunshine" (handmotions and everything!) in unison.

 Then we were escorted back to our child's seat and treated to some breakfast goodies along with our child reading us their poetry booklet.

They even made a Mother's Day poetry card and a flower made out of tissue paper. So sweet!!

 

 Of course he wrote a poem about his bunny...

...and how good he is at Minecraft.

(at least I know that he's "not a bad guy"). :)

Each of the students also read poems aloud to the class. Payton did a fantastic job. I was almost in tears, which isn't surprising. He's such an awesome kid!

That afternoon, we had a little "car wash" in the driveway.

Parker and I have read the book, "Scrubbly Bubbly Car Wash" about 20 times in the past few days and I said, "Why don't we make our own car wash?" and that little boy got SO excited!

Really, all it was, was a bucket and a sponge with some dish soap. But when you add a garden hose and a toy car... it's a car wash baby!

Of course it didn't take long for the big kids to want to join in the fun too.

And after all the toy cars and bikes were clean, they all decided to lay down and enjoy a popscicle.

That evening, we went to a neighbor's house for a BBQ. We haven't hung out in a long time, so it was so much fun catching up and watching all the kids swim together. I didn't snap any pictures while we were there, so you'll just have to trust me that we had a great time. :)

Saturday morning, Brian took the boys to Dunkin Donuts and then to his office so I could sleep in. {He's such a good hubby.}

Later that morning, I took Payton to Cracker Barrel to meet up with my friend Rachel and her daughter, Lilly. (Brian kept Parker so we could actually eat and talk in peace & quiet).

We had the best time. Payton and Lilly laughed so hard they both practically couldn't breathe. It's so fun for me to see them together. They've been friends since they were about 2 and it never matters how much time elapses between our visits... they just pick up right where they left off. Like no time has passed at all. Fortunately, Rachel and I are the same way. We had such a great time just drinking coffee and catching up all morning.

The rest of the weekend, I got to enjoy my sweet friend Amy who was in town for her Doctorate graduation! (Hello... SO smart!!!!)

She used to live here in Tampa, but moved to Wisconsin last year due to her husband's job. We were SO excited to spend some time with them while they were in FL.

She has 3 darling little girls and she rented a beach house for the week to celebrate her amazing accomplishment. We were invited out to the house to let the kiddos play together...

...and play, they did!!!

 

This was all the kids on Sunday swimming together. They had an absolute blast!

Parker was thrilled to get his hands in the sand.

And Mommy got to soak up the sun on the beach for a few minutes too.

Happy lady right here...

So, I sit here tonight, writing this post. Side-by-side on the couch with Brian, a glass of red wine sitting beside me and candles lit on the table in front of me. Both of us with laptops in our laps, happily clicking away... I think:

 "Man... what a great weekend...filled with great friends and awesome memories. This is the way weekends should be."

And with that, I say, "Goodnight!" so I can encourage both of us to turn off the computers and enjoy some snuggle time while we catch up on our DVR.