Trick or Treat

Tonight we did our annual (can I say that now that we've done it two years in a row?) trick or treat party with some of our coaching friends. Some couldn't make it this year because of sickness and things, but there was a fun crowd and the kids had a blast.

Sawyer is one of Lincoln's absolute favorite buddies. They're stinkin hilarious together.

Lincoln went - as he's requested for the past few months now - Joshua (battle of Jericho, Joshua). Today he put his armor on, ran up to me and yells: "My name is Joshua! I am MAADD!! And I'm gonna knock your wall down!!!!!!" He's a ham.
Noah got the hand-me-down hideous Frankenstein costume. And Noah had more fun trick or treating than anyone, I think.

Then there was best dressed couple (Okay, the only couple that dressed up), but loved their idea!!! Tammy & Eric Taylor from Friday Night Lights!

And of course I had to pose with Mrs. Taylor herself. :)

Fun night. Precious friends. I am tired!
We have a super busy week ahead...hanging out with Jason's team tomorrow after practice, then going to first JBU b-ball game with the team, ultrasound later this week, home football game, Razorback madness with tailgating and family coming in for the weekend, Father/Daughter bowl night with cell group girls...I'm tired thinking about it, but it will all be fun! :)
And one more pic because I love this one.

I Tried the Broccolii Thing...

You know, from Pinterest...this one?
Supposedly the best way to cook broccoli???

And it really was awesome. Now it says anyone/everyone will like it, but my husband is avidly disgusted by broccoli and this still didn't work. I made it for myself for lunch after church. Yes, for lunch. And it was fantastic and filling.

I basically followed the recipe, but made some modifications. Here's what I did in case you want to try:

Broke apart 2 bunches of fresh broccoli and mixed in 4 sliced cloves of garlic (on foil in a square cake pan). Sprayed with cooking spray (instead of using recommended amount of olive oil - too much hurts my stomach).
I did mixed in about 1/2 TBS of olive oil.
Put a very generous amount of salt and pepper :)
Roast in the oven at 425 degrees for 20 minutes. This was the perfect time.
Take out of oven and mix in some pine nuts (I will probably not do this next time).
Recipe says squeeze lemon over it, but all I had was a lime and it worked just as well - a necessary step - loved the zest!
Then it says put Parmesan cheese over it. OF course Walmart was out of Parmesan cheese (really??) so I found this stuff instead for a dollar and some change. I used the middle flavor.

I sprinkled about 1/5 of the package over the top and it was AWESOME! Saving the rest of the package for next time.

This is something I will definitely take as a side when I take next meal to someone. So there you have it. Give it a try - you won't be disappointed. I think I'm going to try to do this with asparagus next time and see if it's good.

Happy 3 Years :)

My sweet baby Lincoln turned three today! And we are spending this day with just our little family - fantastic. This morning I cooked cake-batter pancakes with sprinkles (which the kids loved, but the taste was so-so), then he opened his few presents from us.

Here are some little things about Lincoln at this stage of his life:

* He has now gone almost a week with NO paci whatsoever and has done fantastic. So glad to be done with that phase!
* He's also been perfect on using the potty. I can't even remember the last time he had an accident. He can also do it all by himself...undress, potty, and put clothes back on. You always know when he went b/c his shorts are usually on backwards :)
*He still loves "class" during my Bible study. I think he's going to have a blast when pre-school starts.
*He has a wild imagination that it captivating. I love watching all the stories he makes up with his toys and all the crazy adventures he does with them.
*He still loves all things Veggie Tales which warms my heart. I hope he never grows out of this.
*He loves to pray...at anytime in the day. When we go to church, he (unprompted) prays for Noah that he won't cry...and if we hang out with you, you can bet he will pray for you that night when he goes to bed.
* He has a bursting heart of compassion and care for others. If he sees someone upset, he will go check on them (even if it's a dog).
*The boy LOVES him some sports. More than you can imagine. He is always curious "who is playing each other" and "who is winning" and has a basic understanding of how most major sports work.
* The Tigers and the Razorbacks are his favorite teams.
*His favorite Bible stories are Joshua, David & Goliath, and when Jesus calms the storm - he also loves to act these out.
* I here almost everyday, "Mommy, how's that baby doing?"
* He has recently starting eating double of what he used to. It seems like he is always hungry!!
* He loves to take showers now.

This is an interesting time because it feels like the major "baby transitions" are gone now. Our next ones will be when he starts pre-school, the new baby, and when Noah moves into his room next summer. :)

Buddies :)

Big Foot

This big boy has a big 3-year-old birthday coming up next week. And it's as if his growth spurts are corresponding accordingly. Yesterday he took a 4.5 hour nap (I actually woke him up), and a 3.5 hours one today.
And his shoes just don't really fit.
So I got his his new Nike's his Gran-Gran bought him that were too big a few months ago.
And they fit...perfectly...today.
And they are a size 10.5 which I've been told, is quite monstrous for a 2 (okay, almost 3) year old.
Big boy.

In other news, I'm feeling a lot better in the days! I take a nausea pill most days which probably helps, but I'm loving the relief!

Another interesting thing about this pregnancy so far that was different than times before, is that I am already showing. No joke. 9 weeks and I have an obvious baby bump. It took me until close to 5 months to show in the past so I wasn't expecting to already be getting the maternity clothes out! I don't need them just yet, but I'm telling you - it will be soon.

I googled this (why I am showing months earlier) and it made perfect sense. After a few go-arounds, your uterus (sorry if you don't like that word) grows at triple the speed because it knows what's about to happen. And there's not as much tight abs to fight through. :)

I learned something new.

Everybody have a good weekend with this awesome weather!!!!!

My Favorite Chili Recipe (and it's crock-pot!)

3-Bean Chili (adapted from a crock-pot cookbook I own)

Combine the following in crock-pot (big one) and cook on low for 3-4 hours:

2 lbs browned ground beef (I use extra lean)
1 chopped green bell pepper
1 chopped yellow onion
2 can chili beans
2 cans black beans
2 can kidney beans
2 cans chili ready diced tomatoes
1 pkg chili seasoning mix
1 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp cinnamon
Lots of salt and pepper (I tend to go crazy here).

This is by far my favorite chili recipe. It's super chunky and not too tomato-y (we're not tomato saucy fans here).
If you love the tomato sauciness, you can add a can of tomato paste. The recipe actually calls for it. I never cook with it.
Give it a try and let me know what you think!

The Great Outdoors

Remember this movie?? It was a family classic amongst our house when I was growing up. But don't be fooled...I am by no means "the camper".
Yes I've been several times, but not in the past 13 years (I believe).
And I did used to enjoy it...in the younger years.
But this weekend, I'm breaking that trend and we're going camping. We figured if we keep having kids at the current rate, camping trips are all we'll be able to afford one day. We're meeting my parents and Amy and Nathan out there. And yes, we're taking the toddlers!
Now - my husband is no different from I in the camping realm.

We are borrowing a tent from some dear friends...and I realized last night, we don't even own sleeping bags. So we're borrowing those from my father (who is an avid camper).
We're cooking out the 2nd night and I literally thought that meant "beans over a kettle" which I was already preparing for. But then my mom told me they are cooking a pork tenerloin, grilled chicken, corn on the grill, some sort of potato dish, and well - obviously not "beans over a kettle".

I can handle that.

Oh - and at the last moment, my faithful mom also got a small cabin on the campsite so that Noah could have a place to put a pack and play in...and she could sleep in there with him. This may also be PERFECT for a pregnant lady. :)
(I really am gonna try to "camp" though!).

And I really am excited - this should be fun! Lincoln is crazy excited because Papa's taking him fishing! :)
Happy Camping.