Stacking

This is Chloe's new obsession...

STACKING!!!

She is saying "CHHHEEEEEEESSSSEEE"

Bees and Tigers and Scones.. Ohh MY!!

The bees were out in full force this weekend.....



We watched ALOT of this guy... He is quite amazing and fun to watch and I really think Damian has a man crush for sure... :0)

And I made 3

yes 3

attempts at baking scones...

One recipe I added too much salt and even Chloe had something to say.. "phleghh!!" I think was the word she used.

Second recipe I added too much cream and they were PANCAKES, not scones??

THIRD TIME WAS A CHARM and Blueberry Lemon Scones are now in my BELLY...

Cupcakes, Tunnels and Sunshine

Today the girls made cupcakes in the sunshine and baked them for 45 HOURS (Makena time) using the tunnels as their ovens and sprinkled them with grass... They were DELICIOUS!!PS- This is my first photo I've taken " in the raw" which means manually..(right?? ali???)
I think I can tell a difference!!! and I like it!!

Lunchtime

Damian takes his lunch everyday in this little canvas bag. It's actually from when I lived in Germany and I bought it at the market there and I think it is so darn cute when Damian comes home with his empty rainbow frog kissing turtle canvas bag.... So what is in his canvas bag??

I have been obsessed with Ciabatta sandwiches lately. Damian's fav is when I make Caprese but I have been mixing it up a bit lately. This one is sundried tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella cheese, mixed greens and this white balsamic salad dressing that I can almost just drink...This went into Damian's lunch today.. He usually eats at his desk. Nothing fancy...

xoxoxoxoxoxo So here is the rest of what I packed today for Damian. It is a Mixed green salad with tomatoes and candied pecans, pirates booty, banana, Hansens soda and that ciabbata sandwich...

mmmmm

Here is what Chloe and I ate.. Left over veggie pizza that we made last night. Trader Joe's has whole wheat pizza dough all ready to go for you and it's $1.29!! What a steal. We have pizza every Thursday. I roll it out and the kids spread the spaghetti sauce, sprinkle whatever toppings, last night it was green bell peppers, onions and mushrooms then cheese. Bake it for 10 minutes at 450 degrees! DELISH!!!! This is Makena's lunch.. It varies day to day but today this is what I packed. She takes it in her Tinkerbell lunchbox.. It is a slice of leftover veggie pizza, pirate's booty, sliced strawberries, yogurt and of course her Sigg water bottle filled with juice/water. I always pack 2 cloth napkins and an ice pack so it's nice and cold!

At school they have them pick one person to eat with, put one napkin on their lap and use one as a placemat. But I wonder how it really goes because everyday Makena tells me what quite a few other kid's had in their lunch, hers isn't is touched and I'm always tracking down those cloth napkins.... What did you have for lunch today????

"You belong, among the wildflowers..."

These pictures...ohh these pictures....

My friend Ali and I had a playdate planned and randomly she says to me the day before "Hey, How about we throw in a photo shoot?" Of course I jumped at the chance because Ali is AMAZING behind the camera (and just in general, too). So we met in Temecula, fed the ducks, went to Pinkberry, then I followed her in our car through some knarly, curvy dirt roads, hiked through some ITCHY flowers and weeds to these beautiful yellow wildflowers and there we "threw in this photo shoot" and what did we get? Only the most beautiful pictures of my girls....ever!

Thanks Ali! You have brought tears to my eyes again. I know it sounds so dramatic but when your little girls are growing up so fast and you are trying to savor every second.. photos like this are PRECIOUS to say the least.

Email her at alidegraff@yahoo.com you want some of this yumminess!

the one that got away...

It was love at first sight. I didn't have to think twice because I just knew we were meant to be together... perfection, everything I could ever want and more..

In a dress.. :0)

I am actually talking about a fabulous vintage dress I found on Ebay.

70's, mint condition, Ikat (hello.. I think one of the coolest prints ever?) pockets (pockets on a dress are a deal breaker for sure), beautiful vibrant colors on a beige linen background, strapless, ankle grazing elegance, turquoise trim... I can go on and on but the fact is, I am sorry to say....

I was outbid and the final selling price was sooooo CRAZY!!!

I think we will see a Celebrity or some sort of Royalty wearing this beauty because no Average Joe pays $272 for a VINTAGE DRESS!!!!!!!!!!!!
And just for the record.. I was out of the bidding war WAAAAAAY before it got to that crazy price of INSANITY!

Some things just aren't meant to be....





but I love her...

We heart Tom's...

Tom's Shoes! Buy a pair and they donate a pair to
a child in need. So cute and a good deed done!

http://www.tomsshoes.com/

*Blankee sold seperate :0)

Birdhouses, Tea Parties and Good Times to be had

Sooo... we finished Project Girl's Room!! Yippee! This wall of birdhouses is my favorite! It's in the playroom and I just love it.

This is my ode' to Orla Kiely painting I did in her signature stem print that I LOOOOOOOVE.... The red bird I cut out of felt and glued a vintage button for the eye and glued her (I'm sure it's a her..) to the canvas. I love turquoise and red together, don't you?

Makena was a big help, how old does she looks here?

wow! my garage is a bit cluttered huh?




Here is the finished project...well, we have a couple small things to hang on the wall but this is basically it.. We kept it SIMPLE, SIMPLE and I love it!!! The leaf you see in the mirror is a reflection of a leaf that hangs over Chloe's crib....





This is the NEW PLAYROOM!!! Yay!!! Birdhouses,Tea Parties and GOOD TIMES to be had!

THE END...

Groceries and shoes....?

..So I'm trying this new thing, to shop for two weeks worth of groceries at a time instead of just one. I thought it'd be fun to take a picture of my shopping trip today at the usual spots Costco then Trader Joe's. I got "everything but the kitchen sink" haha! I don't think I left out anything... I think if I stick to a menu and have less trips to the store we will save money and time. It's a win, win situation! What should I win??? hmmm



how about.... a new pair of shoes? Do you see the logic??

you do right.....

Best Friends

It was her choice not to go on the Carousel.. Grandma tried different color horses, different size horses and even tried to go ON the same horse with her. She wouldn't have it. She chose to wait with me and watch as Sissy, Grandma, Aunt Lisa and little Aria go round and round. She was happy as can be playing with the gumball machines but she couldn't have one of those either... One thing she does get though is a best friend aka SISSY 24-7 to play with, learn from, look up to, snuggle with, give lots of xoxo's, not share with, and to be adventurous with..... or not!
That my little Chloe, is priceless!

Speaking of best friends....I asked Makena the other day after I picked her up from school what her favorite thing to do is. After words exited mouth, I for sure thought I had opened up a HUGE can of worms...why exactly did I ASK??

Anyway, she replied "Give you hugs and kisses Mommy because your my Best friend!" AWWWW... ya... me!!! I'm her BEST friend!! I can't tell you how special that made me feel. These girls are amazing!

cue my heart melting...NOW!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

*Please look closely at Makena's shoes that she refuse to take her feet out of!

Project Girls Room

We finally convinced Makena to let us paint her room! Yipee!

I have a few tricks up my sleeve, I think maybe it's time for the girls to share a room and we can turn Chloe's room into a play room......

Sooo.. this is a sneak peek of "the Girl's Room" room before....

Stay tuned for after...

Score!

So we hung up the tutu for greener pastures...

It's basically a group of 3ish-5ish year olds running in circles with 20 soccer balls and ear to ear grins!

....afterwards Makena says with a huge sigh.....




"Mommy, soccer makes me really tired..."

a four year old.. tired??

Those darn cookies!

We have eaten 5...

Yes 5...

entire boxes..

of Girl Scout Cookies...

WE HAVE EATEN 5 BOXES OF THOSE DARN COOKIES IN A WEEK!

There, I said it!

Why you are reading my blog....

Sooooo... i jumped on the blogwagon today and that is why you are reading my first ever blog!
I was at Trader Joe's today and heard for the second time "Clean up on hot food aisle" as Chloe spilled her sample Strawberry Kiwi juice for the SECOND time! I thought to myself, "That would be my blogs name if I had one, afterall, it is the story of my life." That's how I came up with the name and I hope you enjoy reading about my silly and simple life! :0)