I tried my hand at Thai food!

Here is what I cooked!
and here is what we ate! WOO HOO for Boo Berry, Franken Berry and Count Chocula that only come out at Halloween now!

I found a recipe that looked good. You cook the chicken in coconut milk, add peanut sauce then stir in some veggies and noodles. In theory, it sounds great. In reality, it was too hot and weird tasting. Jonathan really liked it...but he was the only one. Normally, I make the kids eat whatever it is I cook but when I tasted it, I agreed....cereal it is.

Some toys withstand the test of time.

Our Cheerios book is one of them. Ella loved these books, Jude loved these books now Ella, Jude and Gabe love these books. Ella and Jude put them on and Gabe eats them off. It is the perfect combination (and just like Ella and Jude, Gabe gets confused sometimes and tries to eat of the pictures of Cheerios).

Cozy Coupe

You have GOT to be kidding me!
I mean look at these instructions!

But it was sooo worth it.

see....

$50 piece of plastic, NASA spacecraft instructions, putting the wheels on wrong - twice - despite reading afore mentioned instructions leading to much frustration...look on Gabey's face when Cozy Coupe has been assembled and he is ready to ride - PRICELESS!

Seriously, I have been wanting a Cozy Coupe since Ella was little. When we lived in Memphis our friend Caroline had one (with a broken axle but it was fun none the less). (Still one of my saddest days was when I saw her old car in the trash pile!) Anyway, back to I always wanted one - 3 children later here it is! Gabe loves it so much that we have had to bring it inside for him to ride - okay he just gets in and out of it over and over and over...Thanks Nana and Pepaw for the gift card to WalMart!

Tea Party

Last Friday Ella was invited to a birthday party with a "Alice in Wonderland" theme. She went as the Queen of Hearts. She will probably wear the same outfit for Valentine's Day too :)!

Rainy Days

Rainy days lead to playing inside. Unfortunatnely, they apparently also lead to bad decisions - either that or Jude can be talked into anything....Sorry Jude!

Jude's first soccer game!

Post game pic
Group shot with two missing

peanut gallery

here he is!

he actually looks like he is playing in this one

water break

what do I do?

BREAK!

Go Tiger sharks! What can I say about Jude playing soccer...well, he was hot, his legs were tired, he was thirsty...He was really not that "into" it but he loves his coach - and I know this by the way he hung off his leg half the game. The main thing: he had fun and we had fun watching. Again, Go Tiger sharks!

Gabe Matthew turns one!

and here are the pictures to prove it...he had a great day.

It's a G thing...

Our new chalkboard wall - minus the trim but that is coming...purchased, just not completed.

Yummy and messy at the same time.

Well, tomorrow is the big day...Gabey is turning 1. You know, all the usual things - I can't believe it, where has the time gone, it seems like yesterday. All of these are true. Ella and Jude think he's not our "baby" anymore after tomorrow. This makes Ella more sad than it does Jude. Jude is not a fan of many things baby such as drool or dirty diapers. Ella doesn't seem to mind so much. There are no words really for the interaction of the three of them. I would say neat, cute, fun...but it is so much more. It's amazing to watch Gabe develop in the eyes of his brother and sister. The things they worry about for him and the things they want to know when he will be able to do or say. It is what I loved watching with Ella and Jude but it is even better to experience it with them. Jude told me this week that God had big plans for Gabe...I know this is true.

I sort of got off track...all of that to say we are in major preparation for the G birthday party on Saturday. Here is my mess of G pb&j sandwiches that I froze today. More pictures to come, of course.

Sweet Release

To my surprise, all 5 caterpillars made it to beautiful butterflies...even bigger surprise, all 5 butterflies survived our care! We set them free on Saturday. Ella was brave enough to reach in and and let them go, Jude, our animal scaredy cat, would not go near.

In the car the other day Ella told me that Jude would never be like Diego (the animal rescuer) because he was scared of animals. She said that she wished she could be but knew that she couldn't because she was allergic to animals...so sad. Maybe there is hope for Gabe.