This child of mine is a ham!

She is quite talented in giving me her happy face,


her upset face,


her surprised face,


and her "angwy" face.

But she's also a very inquisitive little ham.

Today while we were at Laurens friend Chase's house, his mommy had to put down his baby brother. So, I was on "toddler duty" with the remaining three. Chase told me he had to go potty, so we went to the bathroom, Lauren and Jacob following him. He pulls down his chonies, and sits on the pot. Apparently Lauren was watching a little too intently because as he's pulling up his undies, Lauren looks at me puzzled and asks,

"What's wrong with Chase's bits and pieces?"

I said, "nothing babe, what do you think is wrong?"

And she says, totally concerned,

"They were JIGGLING!"

I felt like telling her that I know, boys' "bits and pieces","twigs and berries" and "pork and beans" aren't the nicest thing to look at. So instead I did what any good mom would do and said "you think that's jiggling? Just wait till you have boobs!"

Hearty Chicken Bake

Unlike most men, the way to my Hubster's heart is not through his stomach. He's not a "food guy" and doesn't get excited by steak, BBQ, or beer. He's not like most guys in this respect. If I make something new, I usually get the "eh, it was good" response. I have never, ever seen him give a "wow, that was awesome" response... even at fancy schmancy, pricey restaurants. He's not a fan of variety either, leaving me with tacos, Tater Tot Casserole and Chicken Fettuccine as staples. As you can imagine, cooking at my home is thrilling!

::eyeroll::

Anyway, I'm not gonna lie and say he loves this recipe, because he doesn't love food, period, but he thinks it's good. I suppose that's a compliment... or at least that's what I tell myself. My kids like it though and I like it because it has lots of vegetables, so it can be a one dish meal if I'm lazy in a pinch. This photo didn't turn out the greatest, it is tastier than it looks!



Hearty Chicken Bake:

3 cups hot mashed potatoes (you can use instant; I use the garlic cheesy instant)
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese (or more because really, is there ever too much cheese?!?)
1/3 cup French’s fried onions
2-3 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
2 1/2 cups frozen vegetables (I usually use a bag of mixed veggies, or peas, carrots, and corn.)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/3 cup milk
1/2 tsp mustard
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp pepper

Topping:1/4 cup grated cheddar cheese (or more because, you know...)
1/4 cup French’s fried onions

Directions: Mix potatoes with the cheese and onions. Spread into a greased casserole dish, making a shell across the bottom and up the sides. Mix remaining ingredients and pour into shell. Bake at 375 for about 30 minutes or till hot. Top with cheese and onions and bake for about 3 more minutes, or till cheese melts and onions are golden brown. (Watch closely, the onions burn easily.)

Notes:-This recipe can be adapted to use more or less of the chicken and vegetables. If you have a bunch of carnivores living at your house, use more chicken and less veggies. If you have non-meat lovers, do the opposite.

And that's what's for dinner tonight. Tomorrow? Tacos, because really, there's nothing more I want to prepare. AGAIN.

Day trip with our FancyPants

The Hubster, Lauren and I went to the Natural History Museum today. We figured that since Lauren got to 'pend the day with Nana last weekend, that Jacob should be able to have his turn too. So with his cute little behind off to gallivant at Nana's, the Hubster, Lauren and I hit the road.

First things first, we looked at all of the exhibits they had. I was totally impressed at how real and life-like they were. It was really fascinating! Even Lauren agreed, which is a big deal when you consider that she has the attention span on a gnat with ADD.


Yes, I took a picture of the Moose because Lauren exclaimed, "look daddy! It's a Moose... like Moosey Man!" Hehe!

Of course, being carried around in mommy arms,


daddy's shoulders,


and pushed in the stroller became utterly exhausting. So at each exhibit, she'd prop her little legs up to give them some rest:



::eyeroll::

After our lil' Princess had some well rested piggies, she was off and investigating1

We looked at the lab where Palaeontologist's work on fossils,



we checked out the marshes and rainforest,


and then let her loose to check things out for herself.


At one point she turned to me and said "Look! I learning!"

But soon the learning got kinda mundane, so she blew off some steam... running back and forth to daddy, her giggles and laughter echoing in the halls :)


But I can't forget to mention 'white b'. Nope, he was included in all of our events, like smooches:


and shoulder rides, like the Hubster gave her.


He even accompanied us to the bathroom, but I didn't think she'd appreciate me posting potty pics of her with beloved 'white b' ;)

Our last stop was the dinosaur puppet show. And by puppet, I'm not talking about socks. It was a life size Dinosaur, and Lauren was fascinated.

We really had a nice day. We ended it with dinner at Mongolian BBQ, and had fun just talkin' with our little girl throughout the day. The ride home though... notso fun when you're with an exhausted child who's allergic to napping in the car.

Wait, who am I kiddin'? She's allergic to napping at all ;)

You know those old ladies...

in the grocery store and post office that you inevitably get stuck behind? The ones who thought it would be a good idea to drench themselves in old lady perfume, leaving those within a 50 foot vicinity gasping for air??

Well, that's what my house smells like today.... eau de stink.

Because well, after completely ravaging her room and the few non-breakable items left in the drawers, Lauren found the only remaining thing that could be used in some sort of destructive manner.



She found her lotion.


And proceeded to lather up her carpet.... and her walls, her bedspread, her kitchen, the kitchen dishes, her dresser, "white b's buns", her diapers, her dolls diapers, her everything.


So if you come over in the next few days, weeks, months years, expect the lingering aroma of Lavender fields... except it won't be the sweet Bath and Body kind. It'll be the old lady, cheap-perfume stinky kind.

Lovely.

New friends!

Last Friday night, our friends Shawn, Cyndi and their three kiddos came over for some pizza, playing and chatting. We had a blast with them and after hanging out 'til 2:30 in the morning(!!!) making hairbows for our little girls, Cyndi and I decided to end the misery for our guys and call it a night :)

But before they hit the road, we peeked in on the girls and found Lauren and her "fwiend Irelyn" snoozin' away....


Lauren talks about how there were "two girls in my bed!!!" and loves seeing the pictures of them. She really loves her friends... even if she isn't a big fan of sharing her toys :)


Thanks Shawn, Cyndi, Irelyn, Tyler and Gigi for hangin' with us... shall we do another bow-makin' marathon next weekend?!?

I thought I had it all figured out

I can remember being a tween (and even up until I was in my mid twenties), and telling all of my friends and family that I would never have children. Their sticky little hands, dirt-smeared faces and droopy, saggy diapers did absolutely nothing for me in terms of wanting to have 'em. Thankyouverymuch, I'll just have dogs... and maybe a few cats, but definitely no rugrats. Really, I imagined myself being a snooty, high profile Veterinarian, living the good life with high quality this and high class that...

My priorities were so outta whack it's not even funny.

Never in a million years did I think I'd be a mom, let alone want to be a mom for the first, second or even third time. And yet, I can't imagine doing anything else. The little coo's newborns make, the squeals of delight during a game of peek-a-boo, the sound of giggles and laughter in the next room... the list goes on and on. And lets not forget the "I love yous Mommy", followed by hugs, kisses and cuddles. Really, this is what it's all about.

Tonight I volunteered in my church's childrens nursery. Had you told me a few years ago that this is what I would be doing in my FREE time, I would have died laughing. That would have sounded like sheer torture to me. But tonight, I felt rejuvenated, alive and so very thankful to be part of those precious children's lives, even if only for a couple hours.

Those of you who knew the old Shell are thinkin, "did she really just say that?!?

Yep, and I meant every single word of it.

God has a way of working in you, that's for sure. I thought I had my whole life figured out; what I wanted to do, when I wanted to do it, and who I wanted to do it with. And for many years I lived out my plans, and tried my best to tell myself that I was happy and enjoying this life I had created for myself. But I wasn't. I knew something was missing and I think that feeling holds true for most childless women today. And that makes me so sad for them, that they are missing what we parents get to experience every single day.

Luckily God knew my heart and had specific plans for me, to use my talents and strengths to share His love, just as He does you. I am a Christian, a wife, a mommy, a daughter, a friend and a woman who loves children. My own children, my friends children, children in general. I have found my passion... definitely not what I had planned, but man, does my life feel rich and fulfilling.

I just can't wait to see where God leads me... the old Shelly never would have thought it'd include children, but the new Shelly? I'm praying His plans include kids... mine and other Christ-followers kiddos. BRING IT ON!! :)

A day with my boy...

We are so very blessed to have family who not only love our Brownies, but adore them. Between Nana, Grammy and Grumpy, Aunt Cathy, Grandma Applesauce and Great Grandma Lee (just to name a few), there is no shortage of being spoiled rotten loved.

Anyway, Lauren decided yesterday that she wanted to 'pend the day with Nana. So while they played (and Lauren inhaled her body's weight of 'pecial treats), Jacob and I hung out. This is something that doesn't happen often because 1) Lauren is almost always with us and 2) they nap at the same time, leaving us little "alone" time (except of course when the Hubster is home and plays with Lauren).

But yesterday we played and we played and we played some more. This is a busy little boy, and he was in constant motion, roaming from room to room and being a darn good toddler tornado. I did, however, get some pics of him on our "date". These next few were taken in a matter of minutes because the rest of the time, well, you'll see....


Cute, huh?!? I wish I could have gotten more smiley, silly-faced pictures but instead all my son wanted to do was play cars.


And trucks.


And trains.


And dumptrucks.


And firetrucks, wheel borrows, monster trucks, etc...


Really, if it had wheels and the "vrooom vrooom" sound effect could be incorporated in his plans, we were playing with it. It was more tires and steering wheels and boy noises than I could take. So I did what any good mom would do and convinced him to play with this:


The Hubster was proud... so very proud ;)