All Things Purple and Pink

Sunday Dinner

2011-11-04T11:38:00.001-10:00

Normally Sunday dinner, is us eating out because I have either forgotten to take meat out to defrost, or we are out and about, or I just honestly don’t feel like cooking. This week I have decided that enough is enough. I am taking back Sunday dinner, and I am excited to do it. I think what helps make it exciting for me is that I am going to turn it into a blog thingy. I am going to have a page dedicated to Sunday Dinners. It will be called 365 Sunday Dinners! Another reason why I am so excited is because I don’t have to make this an every Sunday thing. The goal is just to have 365 different homecooked Sunday dinner. I say this because sometimes we go on vacations, or out for a date night, and my favorite dinner with friends. I don’t want to have to cancel different things, because I must cook dinner at home. This way I am open.

I hope that you guys will leave me comments, and that you will be able to comment. For some reason blogger has decided that viewers cannot comment on my 30 Day Photo Challenge page. Which frustrates me. But I really can’t figure out how to change it, so I just have to deal with it. And yes, I know I am terribly behind on the photo challenge, but hey life happens.

My kiddos on Halloween! Aren’t they so cute! I didn’t do a halloween post, but I did want to give you a picture at least!

It’s Slime….!!!!

2011-10-13T11:03:00.001-10:00

For as expensive as this stuff is to buy I sure thought that making slime would be harder than it is. The picture below is everything that you will need to make slime, slime that will keep your children entertained for hours! Mine are having so much fun with this slime. And surprisingly not being messy with it!

Borax: $3.50

Glue: $.57

Food Coloring: $2.80

Fun: Priceless! (haha)

Combine 1 cup of water and 1 tsp of Borax.

In a separate bowl combine 1/2 cup of glue desired food coloring and 1/2 cup of water.

Add Borad mixture to glue mixture.

Stir a couple of times, the kneed with your hands.

Pour out remaining water in bowl.

Slime will gel together as it dries.

I had to have her remove her clothes for fear that some would get on her clothes, and be stuck there.

Lumpia date With My Lobster!

2011-10-10T22:12:00.000-10:00

You know that FRIENDS episode where Pheobe launches into a hilarious tirade, about how lobsters mate for life. Thus informing Ross that Rachel is his lobster? Blanca, who wouldn’t let me take a picture of her, is my lobster. In a totally friend type way! Lobster 4 Life! LOL. I asked Blanca a while ago to teach me how to make banana lumpia. She of course obliged and even taught me how to make “regular” lumpia! Lumpia = super easy! Lumpia = super yummy! While we talked and cooked, the kiddos played. What a great day!

I do love bananas, don’t you? So yellow, so bright, and so full of flavor! Looking at this picture makes me want to make banana peanut butter cookies… excuse me while I wipe the drool from my mouth. Cookies and lumpia this post is overloaded with goodness…

We made simple banana lumpia, with none of the frills that you don’t really need, that gets added by restaurants.

That is right banana and brown sugar. I did have a thought for the next time. Cinnamon must be added. My mouth is continuing to water. Excuse me again…

Look at how clean and neat Blanca’s lumpia looks. I think that was the point where I told her, “I kinda wish you had old Filipino hands.” I thought it would have been beautiful to capture old, experienced, hands wrapping the lumpia. Lobster, you have beautiful hands!

I don’t really know what else to say here other than… before…

Dearest Lobster, we need to have another lumpia date… soon!

CJ Scaring the girls.

2011-10-04T14:36:00.000-10:00

A 30 Day Photo Challenge

2011-10-03T10:17:00.001-10:00

Please check out my photos on the 30 Photo Challenge page!

Check out…

2011-10-02T12:09:00.001-10:00

My Mother, who is one of the strongest women I know, is blogging! She is a FANTASTIC cook, and she is now sharing her recipes with you! (And me, and the whole world!) Check out her blog here.

Welcome to the blogging world Mom! Love you!

Waterpark Adventures

2011-09-28T11:14:00.001-10:00

Gosh, I look at this picture and I can see that I have lost a lot of weight. I wish you could see my eyes too, they are GREEN! I have been juicing for a while now and I see a ton of benefits. But more on that later…

This weekend was spent at the waterpark. On Saturday, we went with my cousins. It is always fun getting together with them. My girls love their cousin AJ! Sunday, Daddy didn’t have to work so we went again! YAY! The waterpark has changed a lot since we were last there… almost 3 years ago. The biggest change is that it is now a Wild Waves Park. Fortunately my favorite ride, was not torn down for a new one. It’s called Kapolei Cooler, and is pretty much a gentle “river” ride. I love just floating around, it’s so relaxing…

Lately several people have told me that I coddle this little girl, and that I spoil that pants off her. Personally I would like to tell those people to shove it. But maybe they are right. So I am trying to not give into her cries so much now. It’s been hard on her, hard on me… but I guess it has to be done.

This little girl on the other hand was getting so brave. She went on the big slides and had the time of her life. I love watching her grow, she is coming a very strong independent young lady. I really enjoy/LOVE being her Momma!

I haven’t been on too much. I’ve be super busy. We are in the process of selling our condo, and buying a house. So busy…

A Morning At The Beach

2011-09-13T14:02:00.000-10:00

I don’t know what it is about the west side of the Island. As soon as I get past Waikele Shopping Center I start to relax. That is ~~probably~~ why Chris and I are shopping for a house in Kapolei. This morning we woke up half and hour early, and I had the spur of the moment idea to go to the beach. So we quickly had breakfast, and packed up our towels and headed to Ko Olina. My favorite (family friendly) beach. We spent all morning there and had a nice relaxing time. I even got Kaedence to go in the water, and love it! I even have photographic proof!

On the drive home, I was thinking that it was so nice spending the morning at the beach, I think we are going to try getting up early, and doing this at least twice a week. Next time, I hope that I can make plans with a friend to go down and join us…. because it really is so much more fun with friends.

Yearly Portraits!

2011-09-06T14:13:00.000-10:00

Karisma aged 4.

Kaedence aged 2.

So normally I pay big bucks and get their yearly portraits taken professionally. But CJ pointed out to me last year that my pictures always turn out way better then the studio’s. So this year I decided to be brave and do them myself. I am pretty happy with the result! I still have a ton more to do, but I think these are the ones that will be up on the wall. At first I was a little bothered by that piece of hair in Kaedence’s face, but that hair is always there, so it’s a pretty good representation of her!

These pictures were taken at the new Disney Aulani Resort.

What do you think of my pictures?

Juicing

2011-09-04T00:30:00.001-10:00

I recently watched a documentary called Fat Sick & Nearly Dead. My Dad got me watching it. Basically it is about this guys journey through juicing to become healthier. Well my Dad and I got talking and decided to do a 10 day fast on the juicing. That 10 day fast has now turned into a 2 month fast. My Dad, for the past couple of weeks has been juicing for times a day, and has seen incredible differences. Which got him thinking, that once he gets me used to the juice, and ready to fast, that we should do it for 2 months.

Perks:

Grocery Bill will be incredibly smaller
Whiter eyes
Whiter teeth
Fantastic looking skin
Cleanses the body
Weight loss

Reasons to take this serious and not lightly:

It is hard
I will miss cooking
I will miss eating my cooking
Extreme fatigue in the first couple of days
It is hard on the mind

First Night:

This is the juicer.

This is the apple: Pink Lady

This is the juice. It was really yummy juice. Really basic. I need to go grocery shopping. But I thought that it would be nice to give the juicer a test run.

The juice like I said was really good. But about half way through my brain, body, and taste buds started having different reactions. My taste buds liked it, my body screamed for something different, and my brain

was fighting my hands to pick up the glass and finish the juice.

After I finished I felt weird. It could be because it was at 10:00 PM and I was tired. But after drinking it all I wanted to do was

curl up in bed and sleep it off.

Then I got a little burst of energy and cleaned the kitchen and living room. When I say clean, I mean clean. Like nobody’s business!

Day one will officially be tomorrow. My plan is to get used to the juice for now. I will be having a glass in the morning and a glass either

in the afternoon, or in the evening. I want to play around with it for a little bit at first and see which works better for me.

At the end of the week if I’m used to the juice, and can’t wait to drink it, then I will start the fast.

If not then I will give it another week.

I thought that it would be fun to blog about it, so through videos, pictures and blogging you will see about my experience.

Here goes!

Sometimes…

2011-09-03T23:55:00.001-10:00

Sometimes I don’t know if I should get mad, or if I should just laugh.

This time I chose to laugh.

Girls, next time you decide to play with Mommy’s makeup, can you please play with the $7 eye shadow instead of the $42 eye shadow?!

Welcome Back September!

2011-09-01T20:54:00.000-10:00

Welcome back September! Welcome back cool winds, and (fingers crossed) lots of rain! I really really really hope that this will be a rainy winter! Please Lord please…

This shot is another one that I am thinking up putting on canvas for my living room. I am trying to decide between this one and one a beautiful tree…

decisions, decisions, decisions.

It’s 9:00 PM and I can smell some rain coming down right now. I love it.

Have you met the newest member of our family?

Isn’t he just the cutest!!!! I love him so much! My favorite thing to do with him is let him out, and watch him run around. His little ears flopping around… it’s so cute! He is a wonderful addition to our family. He is 11 weeks old. Oh yeah and his name?… Dr. Who!

Picnic at the Gardens

2011-08-31T23:11:00.001-10:00

Today, we needed a change of pace. Lately I have been really stressed, which always tends to make me grumpy. I just wanted to spend the day focused on my children, focused on their enjoyment. A couple of times I wanted to just say forget it, and sit on the couch and drown my stress in the TV. Every time I sat down, one of my sweet babies would come up and hug me or ask me for a cuddle. So I swallowed my laziness and took them to the gardens for a picnic. I am so glad that I did it too! Taking time out from my wants, and selfishness was exactly what these girls and I needed. The LOVED being able to run around, and explore. And I just let them.

My children are weird. The will only eat pb&j sandwiches, they have to be but in a triangle, and the crust has to be on. If there is no crust they won’t eat it. If it isn’t cut into a triangle, they won’t eat it. I told you they were weird. What kind of snacks do your children like with their sandwiches. Mine like “Veggie Straws” they get mad at me if there are no “veggie straws.” Every Saturday I have to go to Costco for a big bag of “veggie straws.”

It took me a while to convince her that the ducks weren't going to come up behind her and bite her butt, while I took this picture! goodness she makes me laugh! I love having a car again, it really opens up a lot of opportunities for us. I know Karisma had a blast at the park, she didn’t want to go home. Only the promise of the Lion King and a ice pop would get her into the car. I think she may grow up to be a lawyer. She can talk a person around in circles, until she convinces you that her way is the right way…

Who Is 4?

2011-08-26T22:28:00.001-10:00

Karisma is! This summer has been an absolute blur, and I never got on and did Karisma’s Birthday post. So this is just a small little something to show you how big she has gotten.

Karisma on her 4th birthday!

I love you Karisma Le!

Karisma being 4 has brought on my least favorite question. Why? Every single thing I say or tell her… why?

Grr… to make it even worse, I find myself saying “Because I said So!”

That is even worse than hearing why, after everything.

Oh well… I would rather her be smart and ask questions, than not.

Kaedence and the Beach

2011-08-16T22:40:00.001-10:00

Can you tell by this picture that Kaedence doesn’t like the beach? She absolutely hates it… unfortunately for her we love the beach!

She used to scream and cry just like this if she touched the sand.

Is it horrible that it makes me laugh?

Probably…

We have been going to the beach a lot lately. I am hoping and praying that she warms up to the who beach experience,

because lets face it, we live on an island.

Thoughts… ideas…?

P.S. I do hold her close and comfort her, but the second I even try chance positions she freaks out.

Shame-shame

2011-08-14T21:41:00.001-10:00

I am hanging my head in shame… I am so sorry my dear readers that it has been so long since I have gotten on and blogged. Shame-shame. Will you believe me when I say it has been a crazy busy summer? Because it has! We didn’t get nearly as much done on my summer list as I would have liked, but hey, summer isn’t over yet!

Looking back, I can’t believe that it is almost fall. BTW: trying to teach someone who has never experienced four different seasons, about the seasons is hard. Karisma asks me what fall is like, I tell her about cold wind, a cool sun, and crunchy leaves but she just looks at me like I’m crazy. So when it gets to be fall in Oregon, pack some up in an envelope and send it to me please!

Karisma, Haircuts and Swimming

2011-06-20T18:34:00.000-10:00

On Friday the girls wanted to go swimming and I wanted to get Karisma’s hair cut. So I made a deal with her. “If your good during your haircut, I will take you swimming.”

Yeah, we did not start out so well. I was even prepared with candy. When I pulled out the candy I think she knew I was serious about her sitting still. I NEVER give them candy (trying to be healthy and all) it worked… eventually…

I realize as I am writing this that she really is growing up, she no longer cries and clings to me at the doctors, she sits to get her hair cut. *Sigh* My sweet little baby… 8 LBS 2.5 OZ, 21 1/2 INCHES. She is so tall that she has to wear 5T pants even though they are way to big for her little waist. She is so smart and constantly amazes me!

Finished! It doesn’t look too different, a couple inches shorter! But she sure is pretty! Afterwards she told me that it was fun and she wanted to do it again… Not for another year dear! Well I promised swimming, so swimming we went!

There she is my brave big three year old, who will be four in a few days (wow that’s a mouthful.) It took us a long time to get her comfortable enough in the water to do this. It’s all a part of growing up I guess…

Things to Do Summer 2011

2011-06-16T14:27:00.000-10:00

My friend Alexis (Check out her Blog, she’s amazing!) always makes these amazing lists of things for her family to do. I have often admired this, and decided that this summer I am going to join her.

This is the Silva Summer 2011 list…

I had fun making this, and I know that we are going to have even more fun doing these things! You can be sure that there will be blog posts about all of these thing!!!! So stay tuned!

Peanut Butter Pound Cake (Cupcake Style)

2011-06-14T20:42:00.000-10:00

Well I did start wanting to make pound cake, but my little sickie love cupcakes and since I would do just about anything to make her even a little bit happy… I made cupcakes instead of a “tunnel” cake. Is that the right term? I hope so, I always thought of them as bunt cakes, but I am thinking that I may have been wrong. (Side note: When ever I hear “bunt cake” I thing of a scene in My Big Fat Greek Wedding when the Greek Mom says “There’s a hole in this cake!”) Anyways… I got the recipe from here, but I did a couple of things different then she did. Not that her cake didn’t look totally amazing, I just made my tweaks to fit my children and my kitchen.

Cake Ingredients:

3 cups of all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup of creamy peanut butter (not natural)

1/2 cup rm. temp. butter

3 cups white sugar

6 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups of chopped up Reese's PB Cups

1. Preheat oven to 325.

2. In a medium bowl combine dry ingredients. (flour, baking powder, and salt.) In a separate bowl (large) cream together peanut butter and butter. Add sugar and beat for an additional five minutes. Add eggs and vanilla, and beat until well combined, add dry ingredients a little at a time. Mix in chopped PB Cups. Spoon the batter into cupcake cups.

3. Bake for about 15 minutes, make sure to check the centers with a toothpick. Time may vary.

4. Cover with glaze! (and choco chips!)

Glaze Ingredients:

1/2 cup of shortening

4 cups of powdered sugar

1/4 tsp of salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup peanut butter

1 small banana

1 tbsp cinnamon

1. Mix together all ingredients one at a time. Really mix them together until they are nice and creamy!

Yum, yum, yum! The finished product

I woke her up early from a nap to do this. She was so excited!

And this little bug ate more of the chocolate chips then she decorated with. Oh well your only young once right?

Pineapple Upside Down Cupcakes…

2011-06-09T12:57:00.001-10:00

First of all this is not my picture. I foolishly did not take a picture before these little babies were gobbled up… I got the picture from here.

Last month while I had family visiting from Oregon, my Mom made a delicious pineapple upside down cake! She put a little rum in it which gave it a wonderful kick.

I decided to try and make them into cupcakes because it sounded fun. So I tried it, and liked it, and will probably only do it this way from now on.

You will need:

1 can of crushed pineapple

Brown Sugar

1 box of yellow cake mix.

Cherries

Start off my giving your cupcake pan a good squirt of some pam.

Spoon in the crushed pineapple into the cups and add a cherry. Cover the crushed pineapple and cherry with some brown sugar.

Then fill the cups with the batter from your yellow cake mix.

It’s that simple.

Follow the baking directions on the box, and just like that you will have a delicious treat!

simple is the name of the game.

Sometime I am going to have to try and make it from scratch, to this was not the day my friend.

Between schooling the girls, cleaning my house, cooking dinner, and some time to read, and play with the girls… I need a simple dessert.

Just a bunch of pictures.

2011-06-07T08:15:00.000-10:00

Recently my Mom was telling me about some photos that she had printed on canvas by Costco. I liked the idea so much that I am going to copy her and do the same with some of mine. The following pictures are just some of the ones that I am thinking about.

Night-time Randomness

2011-05-16T22:09:00.001-10:00

I seriously cannot get enough of these right now. I am sitting in bed sipping one, and rocking out to Irish Pub Rock. It is a fantastic night. The perfect end to a wonderful wonderful day! I had a tremendously fantastic day today! Did you? I find myself in such a great mood, and I find myself loving my children more and more everyday.

I am thinking about starting my own business… but I am really nervous. Maybe going back to school will help.

Something that has been on my mind a LOT lately…

Something I would like to do with my girls tomorrow! Nana and Papa bought them their first bikes for their birthdays! Thanks Mom and Dad, they love them tons… will the fun ever end? I hope not!

I just got back from grocery shopping, I am looking forward to making dinner tomorrow. Oh and one other thing. My writers block has finally seamed to pass. I have begun writing again, thank you Lord! Well I guess that’s it for now, Angry Birds is calling my name…

Mother’s Day

2011-05-12T07:08:00.000-10:00

I hope everyone had as nice of a Mother’s Day as I did. My husband surprised me with some beautiful roses, and my daughters, gave me a great balloon! It was a nice surprise. The best part was, I didn’t have to do anything. Cleaning, cooking, and child care… CJ did it all. I just enjoyed my babies! It was absolutely fantastic! Are you looking at this picture wondering where Karisma is? She was being a little turd and didn’t want her picture taken. I guess it’s a three year old thing. When I look at this picture I see more than a gorgeous backdrop and a cute little girl with her Mommy and Daddy. I see a Mom who is working so hard to loose weight and is succeeding!

These pictures were taken at the Pali Lookout. I love the Pali Lookout, on a windy day the wind up there is super strong. CJ told me once that, on an extremely windy day the wind is supposed to suspend someone up in the air if they were to jump off. Sometimes, he can be so full of crap! But the Pali Lookout is a place that is so full of history, it has always been fascinating to me. In my opinion it is a must see.

This picture was taken on Mother’s Day as well but at a lookout over Kaneohe Bay. This isn’t the greatest picture, but Karisma was in front of the camera, and loving it. So we just went with it!

Here she is my beautiful three year old. I can’t believe she is going to be four in a few months!

A Morning at the Zoo with Nana

2011-05-04T08:30:00.001-10:00

Yesterday morning my Mom and I took the girls to the zoo! They were so excited, and just spent the morning running, running and more running. It was great!

First up were the flamingos, which both girls loved. We actually had a hard time tearing them away… These birds are truly amazing. The stand so still just like statues, and when they walk they look so majestic and graceful. Flamingos are my favorite bird.

Karisma has good camera days and bad camera days. This was a bad camera day. She did not want her picture taken. So I would just take pictures of Kaedence, and then Karisma would get upset, and want her picture taken too. I hate how I have tons of pictures of her where she won’t smile or look at the camera. Kaedence on the other hand, loves being in front of my camera.

I know that my girls love going to the zoo, but going with Nana made it even more special!

Happy Birthday Kaede Bug!!!

2011-05-02T20:25:00.000-10:00

This is my BIG two year old. I can hardly believe that she is two now. I still think of her as that little baby who wouldn’t let anyone hold her but me. (Of course she still does that!) Isn’t it great being Mama!

Here she is trying to hold up two fingers, to proudly tell the world that she is TWO!

And she did it! Yay! I love her so much!

Here is my precious three year old, who can hardly wait to turn four… she literally has me counting down the days on the calendar for her…

The birthday cake, thank you Costco!

She got so embaressed when everyone sang Happy Birthday, she looked like she was going to cry, and she turned to me for a hug. No matter how old she gets she will always be my little baby!

Oh, yes I did.

She was so mad at me. All in all the party went great, we had fun! Thanks to my cuz Megan for taking all the pictures. It was nice to finally be in some pictures. I owe you

Dinner Menu 4/23-29/2011

2011-04-22T16:51:00.001-10:00

Saturday: Shrimp and Grits

Sunday: Stir Fry

Monday: Beef Stroganoff

Tuesday: Chicken Curry

Wednesday: Chicken Alfredo over Fettuccine

Thursday: Double Corn Chowder

Friday: Loco Moco

Today has been such a beautiful lazy day! Right now my girlies are watching Aladdin and cleaning their room, and I am blogging and catching up on season one of Glee. One day I was busy sewing and an episode of season two came on and I was too busy to change the channel. And now I am hooked…

My friend Lisa and I took our daughters to the zoo yesterday, and I am editing the photos. I want you to have lots of pretty pictures to look at!

I leave you with this teaser picture… I will be spending the weekend on the beach. Jealous?

Guava Jelly Glazed Chicken

2011-04-21T21:07:00.000-10:00

This recipe is so simple and, so full of flavor! I absolutely loved it and I’m super glad that I tried it. The recipe I had called for ham, but I’m not a big ham person. That and I had some chicken thighs in the freezer begging to be eaten. I personally have never eaten a guava before, which is completely shocking considering where we live. My goal for this weekend is to actually try a real guava. My girlies liked it, Karisma was asking for the fruity chicken leftovers for lunch. She’s funny, and she makes me smile. I love her so much! This recipe is great, because you could bake it in the oven, cook it over the stove, bbq it, or crock pot it. I chose to put it in the crock pot for the simple reason that it is so easy.

Guava Jelly Glaze:

1 18oz Jar Guava Jelly (Or 2 10 oz)
1 3/4 Cups of Brown Sugar
1 cup of melted butter.

Mix ingredients together.

That is it! Isn’t it simple. I did think of one little add in for the next time I make this, cinnamon. The glaze actually made so much that I poured it back in the jar to store in the fridge for next time. I also think next time I make this I am going to put it on pork chops…

Easter Readiness!!!

2011-04-18T14:04:00.001-10:00

Today seemed like a good day to pretty-fy our eggs… I was brave this year and let the girls join in. Yeah, nuts I know. But it actually wasn’t so bad, just our hands are pretty-fyed too! The had so much fun doing this, and it was fun for me to watch them. We have been so busy lately that it was really nice to sit down and enjoy each other.

I have decided to do something a little different this year for Easter. Normally I fill their little baskets with delightful treats, this year the baskets will be filled with nutritional treats! Ok, I’m not completely heartless there will be some yummy sweet treats in their baskets. But I am thinking more along the lines of some pop tarts, a lolly pop or two… oh and why not I guess some cookies. The idea came to me while in the store, this past Saturday. It has been so long since I myself have indulged in some sort of candy, as I was walking around the candy isles it all just looked so gross to me. Not only that but Karisma tends to get hyper if you give her candy, so we have been avoiding it.

And yeah, it’s probably a little early to be coloring eggs, but hey we can always do it again later. Anyways these are our finished eggs!

The beef stew in my crockpot smells delish! I’m off to go open the lid and get a deeper whiff!

The Little Gymnist

2011-04-13T19:05:00.000-10:00

The girls and I have been sick for the past couple of days.
I hate being sick. And I hate for them to be sick.

Especially since it means that Karisma has to miss out on gymnastics tomorrow.

It makes her sad. Which makes me sad.

This is the preschool class, which she has (in my opinion) mastered.

She will be moving up to the 5 year old class soon… which brings a tear to my eye. My little baby is growing up.

Can you believe that in a few months she will be 4?! (Speaking of birthdays Kaedence’s is in two weeks!)

Now she is just showing off! How I love this little girl!

Gymnastics has been good for my energetic, social butterfly, little girl.

I love watching her grow, and enjoy the gymnastics. And I love what it has done for us.

Anyways I am ending a rather boring, and sick filled day sitting on my couch watching friends and blogging.

A Night Without the Children!

2011-04-05T20:51:00.000-10:00

It’s exactly what it sounds like. Dinner, Drinking, and Dancing! And with other adults no less! My cousin is back in town for a couple of weeks for R&R, since he has been working hard for our country! (Thanks Cuz!) Anyways, CJ and I met Mike and Megan in Waikiki for a night of fun! And it really was!

This was the view from their hotel room! Honestly I LOVE living in Hawaii! I love the people, I love the aloha, I love the beach, and I love the weather. I LOVE Hawaii! There is only one other place that I would rather be and that is Ireland. (but that’s another story.)

We started the night off with a Mai Tai. One of my favorite drink. My first mai tai was with my Mom on a catamaran in the middle of the ocean.

Megan and one of the many Waikiki performers.

Megan and Mike, enjoying a VERY good drink that I cannot remember… but is was good. Trust me.

A little Kareoke, by my hubs. He has a terrible voice. but I still love him!

Todays breakfast…

2011-03-30T12:38:00.001-10:00

is brought to you buy Chocolate Lucky Charms!

YUMMY! We love chocolate and we LOVE Lucky Charms! What could be better? Oh wait… peanut butter and chocolate Lucky Charms!!!

School In Our Pajamas

2011-03-25T10:05:00.000-10:00

First off let me apologize for not posting for a while. I have lots of reasons, but whenever I type them out they just sound like sorry excuses. So all I can do is apologize.

Every morning for about 45 min, the girls sit down and do some school work together. The night before I go through their books and make a “lesson plan.” Karisma zooms through these lessons, with ease. I will admit it has me a little worried. Right now she is doing Kindergarten work, and it is too easy for her. I don’t want to start first grade work with her yet, since she is three. So I am currently looking for harder materials. (if you have any suggestions please drop me a comment!) I have been home schooling Karisma since she was two, and I am very happy to see that all my efforts have paid off. Next week she and I will start practicing reading, which I am really looking forward to!

Karisma has also started taking shorter naps, and so I have decided to take advantage of this and spend some one-on-one school time. She really likes this, and it is nice to have some time just her and me. I love my girls but sometimes I feel bad for them. Karisma used to have 100% of my attention, but now she has to share it with Kaedence. So I do look forward to having some Mommy and me time with each girl.

Kaedence also does some work, and right now we are working on recognizing the alphabet, and the sounds the letters make. She is also doing well. I love seeing their interest in learning.

You know what is a freeing feeling? Being done with diapers. I now find myself with about $60 extra a month, and I am really loving it. This week as a reward to Kaedence for being done with diapers, I will be taking them to Chuck E. Cheese. Personally I hate Chuck E. but my girls love it, and they are the apples of my eye. I would do anything for them, including suffering through Chuck E. Cheese!

On a side note, I love the smell of rain. People always look at me weird when I say “It smells like it’s going to rain soon.” But hey I’m from Oregon. Oregonians know what rain smells like! And as I mentioned before, I do love the smell of rain. Actually it is my favorite smell! It makes me want to put on some warm fuzzy socks, and curl up on the couch with a blanket and a good book. We have had so much rain lately, I love it! People keep complaining, but they forget how much we have needed it. I think we need to stop complaining and embrace the rain!

Also, I have now lived through two tsunamis. Which was numero uno on my list of fears. Thank you Lord!

My Smart Little Munchkins!

2011-03-09T11:45:00.000-10:00

I am pretty darn proud of this little girl right now. Last week she figured out that ‘H’ and ‘I’ spell ‘HI’. Thus making me a proud proud proud Mamma. Sorry for the redundancy but, hey I’m a Mom. It’s allowed After that I taught her how to spell ‘HOP’. From there it has just taken off. She is writing all sorts of letter by herself without tracing them, and she is wanting to put more and more of them together to spell words.

I guess all my hard work has paid off. Which I am really glad for because I was feeling a little discouraged as far as her school work was concerned. All of this was coming off of a difficult week with her. So please pardon me for a moment while I pat myself on the back. *Pat pat pat*

And this child has taken me over the top to busting at the seams. In only one week she is completely potty trained!!! She woke up one morning and told me that she was a big girl, and didn’t need diapers. So I put on the toiled and voilà. Mommy is done with diapers! Sweet baby Kaedence who isn’t even two is done with diapers FOREVER!!!

A Slow Quiet Day

2011-02-11T13:29:00.000-10:00

Today is a quiet rainy day. I am sore and tired from a hard week of working out. I am spending nap time by playing around on the computer and watching Friends. The candles are lit, I am under a blanket, and my babies are asleep. I love rainy days like this. Plus we really need the rain. Bye bye VOG.

I took this picture on my anniversary. It just kinda spoke to me. On a rainy day like today, this picture just seamed right.

Our 4th Anniversary

2011-02-06T21:39:00.000-10:00

Friday marked our 4th wedding Anniversary. On Friday we went out to CJ’s favorite restaurant, Pagoda. Saturday we went on a really fun dinner cruise.

I love sunset. Especially a sunset over the water!

Diamond Head.

Entertainment was different Polynesia dances. This particular dance was from New Zealand.

The Tahitian dances are always my favorite!

Some Hawaiian entertainment. This was a fun dance to watch. They were having so much fun performing.

Fried Chicken=Content Stomach

2011-02-03T21:02:00.000-10:00

My husbands ex makes the best Friend Chicken in the world. I am not even kidding. Better than KFC, better than any fried chicken that you have ever had in your life. She doesn’t give out her recipe. I don’t blame her. But lucky me she makes me a batch of the seasonings. I wish you could taste it through your computer. Alas you will just have to look at this picture and drool!

Happy drools (oops I mean dreams!)

Me and My Girls

2011-02-03T20:38:00.000-10:00

I love lazy days at home with my girlys. Most days we don’t even bother to dress up. We spend the day in our pajama’s or other super comfy clothes! On Tuesdays and Thursdays Karisma has gymnastics. Let me tell you as a mother of an extremely active three year old, I love gymnastics! Those 45 minuets when she is in class are heaven to me. Thats my quiet time to sit and read a good book, get a pedicure, or just sit around and enjoy something cold. (Pepsi is my weakness.)

What about Kaedence you ask? CJ is with her, in order for me to keep my sanity. Today was a gymnastics day, and I sure did need it. Karisma has decided that it is a fun game to push her matress off her bed. No matter how many times we tell her not too, or how much time she spends in the corner, she still pushes it off. She’s stubborn. So somewhere around lunch time I finally grew tired of this game, and closed the door to her room and locked it. She is no longer allowed to play in her room. Since I also have a rule of no toys in the living room, this makes a very boring day for her.

Is it just me who hates stepping on toys?

I am also continually trying to work on making sure that my yes means yes and that my no means no. I have kept the lines a little blurry lately. That never leads to anything good.

I love being a Mom. No matter how frustrating it may be or get, I will always thank God for blessing me with daughters. I love having daughters. I am also glad that I am done having children. I am really looking forward to sleep again. (Maybe someday soon. sigh.)

This little clone of mine!

2011-02-02T09:59:00.000-10:00

Sometimes I cannot believe how much this child is like me. My butterfly loving princess, who has such a wonderful imagination. In fact she gave me a wonderful idea for my next children’s story. But I have decided that she should have an role in helping me write it!

Today is a happy Wednesday for us. It includes a trip to the park in the wonderful 77 degree weather. A trip to the library, and lots of house work for me. And last but not least Karisma has some more school work today!

P.S. people keep telling me that she has CJ’s nose, but I think she has mine. What do you think?

My Little Bug

2011-01-31T12:37:00.001-10:00

My sweet little Kady Bug. I love her so much. For Christmas we bought her a little baby doll. This baby doll has now become a “member” of our family. Her name is cookie, and she goes everywhere with us. I can’t believe that in just 3 months Kady will be 2. Honestly where does the time go? She wasn’t supposed to grow up. she was going to be my baby forever….

By the way have you tried Windows Live Writer? I love it.

Dear Karisma

2011-01-25T14:00:00.000-10:00

Dear Karimsa,
On the day that you were born, I was stricken with you. You were this tiny little baby that was solely depended on me. I loved you. Now you are three years old, sometimes I call you my little energizer bunny. You are impossible to keep up with! You are so incredibly smart, and so wonderfully full of life. You make everyday and adventure. I love you.
You drive me absolutely nuts sometimes, but I love you for it! Your smile and your laughter are infectious, and you constantly amaze me. Everyone calls you my little clone, and sweetie you are! I love you Karisma Le Silva, and I am so glad that God chose me to be your Mom.
Love,
Mommy

Some things are too cute for words...

2011-01-24T16:57:00.000-10:00

and I am sure that you would agree with me, that this is one of them!

My step son Kieran is a vivacous five year old. I love him to death, but he can be extremely frustrating. When he was younger (about 18 months) it used to be that he cried all the time, and never stopped. We used to call him the bull dog because he would sit there with a frown on his face and glare at people. Then he would start to cry, and it wouldn't stop. Ever. Then it was the lying problems. He would do something naughty and when asked about it, it was never him who did it. Even if we had seen him do it.

Now he is five and he refuses to eat. Anything. He is "never" hungry, and won't eat. EVER. NEVER EVER EVER. We tried to going to bed hungry. Didn't work. Then we tried the loss of toys. Didn't work. Then we would just send him to bed when he refused to eat. Didn't work. We tried putting him in the corner, encouraging him, offering rewards, and the dreaded yelling. Nothing works. So now CJ's thing is, if he doesn't want to eat, then fine he doesn't eat. But he also doesn't get to watch tv, play with toys, or his sister. He doesn't get to do anything but sit on the couch.

Despite all these little things, he is loved. He is loved very much! Not to mention that he is an AMAZING big brother. He is very protective of his baby sisters, he loves them so much and it is obvious that he would do anything for them. And in return they love him sooo much. This little boy drives me nuts, and thankfully he gives his mother a harder time than he does me. (hehehe)

I am very blessed to be his step mom and cannot imagine my life or his sisters life without him. He is a wonderful puzzle piece to our small family. I am extremely proud of him and all the strides his is making in his life.
Happy Birthday Kieran Boy! I am proud of you and I love you! I love your energy and your thrill for adventure. You love life, and you are very smart, and the cutest, sweetest five year old that I know!

Two Week Dinner Menu:

2011-01-14T15:37:00.001-10:00

My scalloped potatoes are to DIE for! :)

SUN: Cresant Hamburger Bake/ Macaroni Salad

MON: Sausage Beer Beans/Rice

TUE: Chicken and Dressing/ Stuffing

WED: Beef Stroganoff/ Rice

THUR: Honey Glazed Chicken/ Broccoli

FRI: Paella with Chicken and Sausage/ Green Beans

SAT: Roast Chicken/ Scalloped Potatoes

SUN: Chicken Pot Pie/ Green Salad

MON: Beef Stew/ Rice/ Macaroni Salad

TUE: Chicken with Peas and White Wine Cream

WED: Chicken Parmesan with Eggplant

THUR: Tavern Burgers/ Parmesan Potato Wedges/ Carrots

FRI: Broccoli Stuffed Chicken Breast/ Rice

SAT: Fried Chicken/ Mashed Potatoes

I know it says two week plan, but really with all the leftovers this menu will last for the month. I buy the veggies European style. Meaning I buy them the day that I need them. This is a little veggie market down the road from us, that sells locally grown veggies, they are way cheaper then the supermarket, and extremely handy!

A New Year

2011-01-11T20:57:00.000-10:00

So normally I don't make New Years Resolutions, because I never manage to keep them. I think I stopped making them in High School. It was the same story every year, I would make the resolution and everything would go along great for three or four weeks, but then my steam would fizzle off and I would forget about the resolution.
Now is is 2011 and I have decided to try a New Years Resolution again. This time is going to be different though, instead of hating my self for every little slip and fall, I am going to love myself in the imperfect way that I am. Because lets face it, I'm not perfect. So my New Years Resolution 2011 style is this: I am going to be more healthy.
To be more healthy for me means, to 1: Exercise more 2: Have a more balanced diet 3: Healthy healthy healthy food!

Anyways wish me luck, or Pray for me. I am going to need it!

Where In The World Is Melissa?

2011-01-05T13:33:00.000-10:00

I haven't been on too much lately. Sorry for that. Live has been really quiet, which I guess makes for a quiet blog. Mostly I have been busy writing. (Besides taking care of my adorable daughters!) Right now I am working on a novel, and it is taking up a lot of my extra time.

Plus I have a new project that I am working on for this new year. I have decided to also add a cooking section to my blog. I am just trying to figure out how all of it will work. So it probably won't be up for a little while more. But I love cooking, and I would love for there to be a place with all my recipes. Hopefully I can get it working! (Fingers Crossed)

Aren't these great photos of my step sons? They really are just GREAT in front of the camera. Especially Kieran, who will be five in a few weeks. Yikes!

Merry Christmas!!!

2010-12-24T11:01:00.002-10:00

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

Honolulu City Lights

2010-12-15T13:02:00.016-10:00

Last night we took the girls to Honolulu City Lights. Of course something like that is always more fun with Family, we were joined by Megan and AJ. I just think that Karisma and AJ are so cute together, and they have so much fun!

In this picture they are waiting in line for the train, which is really a tractor pulling cars behind it and COMPLETELY covered in Christmas lights.

I don't know what it is about this picture but I love it. I always love going to Honolulu City lights. It is the exact same every year, but there is something fun about it. The smell of kettle corn, the sound of children running around, and of course all the lights.

I know it is really blurry, it is hard to take night pictures while holding a squirming toddler, but is is a great picture of her. I love Karisma's smile, it lights up my world! That butterfly shirt is a Christmas gift from her Nana and Papa, and it is her favorite shirt! She is such a little girly girl!

Does anyone else have trouble taking pictures of their three year old? Karisma is at a stage where she refuses to have her picture taken. Which is why you only see pictures of Kaedence, Chris and I. :(

A Pony Parade

2010-12-14T10:09:00.014-10:00

If you know my daughter, Karisma, then you know that she LOVES everything My Little Pony. So it really was no surprise when I saw this constructed in my living room.

These aren't even half of her ponies! When I asked her what she was doing she looked at me as said, "oh come on Mom it's a Pony Parade!" Pretty cute isn't she!

Then she asked if she could play with Sweet Treat. Sweet Treat is a G1(First generation) pony. She was made in 1983 but released in 1987. Sweet Treat is older than me! Yikes! So Sweet Treat is kept on a special shelf since she is considered a collectors item. But she does make it down every now and then for a little play time. By the way it was Karisma's idea to put her on the shelf, since she was "special."

This is what ponies looked like when I fell in love with My Little Pony!

Looking for a Good Read?

2010-12-09T16:51:00.006-10:00

If you are looking for a good book to read, then I suggest "The Pirate Queen" by Patricia Hickman. I found myself connecting with the main character, Saphora and wanting to continue reading to see where she would be taken next. It was not hard for me to relate to Saphora. Patricia Hickman does a wonderful job of painting a picture for her readers. Not only was the book visually descriptive, but you will find yourself on Saphora's emotional roller-coaster as she discovers a true unfailing love.

For this review I recieved "The Pirate Queen" by Patricia Hickman for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Teddy Bear Museum

2010-12-06T09:53:00.008-10:00

Sunday we met up with my cousin Megan and her son A.J. We went to the Teddy Bear Museum. Cheap good family fun! It was amazing and extremely different that I thought that it would be! I was amazed just going up the escalator to the museum. There was a world map with all types of different teddy bears from all over the world. (Pictured Below.)
We were greeted with a scene from home! This really was impressive. It is hard to say what I expected it to be, because I don't think I even really know. But it was NOT what I expected, it was way better.

They had a mini-me version of this guy who appeared in all of the "Wonders of America" displays. I wasn't able to take too many pictures, my camera was on the verge of dead batteries. Which really bummed me out because it was just cool. And there were lots of photo ops. Thankfully we went with Megan and she had good batteries in her camera. I can't wait to see all of her pictures!

Merry Christmas From the Silva's

Things Parents Say...

2010-12-01T14:16:00.005-10:00

When I was little, I didn't like eating burnt food. (really who does?) This happened to be at a time when I was not happy with the color of my hair (blond) my Dad would tell me that if I ate burnt food it would make my hair dark. Ridiculously enough, I believed him.

Lately Karisma had been into this picky stage. Really she will eat anything but her vegetables. I have had to get creative. When I make spaghetti she gets her own special sauce that (shh don't tell her) has veggies blended up in it. Sometimes I even go through the trouble of hiding the veggies in her chicken or rice.

Well the other day I could not find a way of disguising the veggies. Well she had eaten everything else, and everyone else was done. I found myself telling Karisma, "girls who go to the Olympics eat all their peas!" Which of course got me thinking about all types of things that we parents tell our children to get our desired results.

"Be good or Santa won't bring you any toys."

"If you clean your room maybe you will find some money!"

"Don't do pick your nose or it will fall off." (I heard a Mom tell this to her son in the store and it made me laugh!)

What types of things do you say to your kids?

My little Turkey!

Picture of the Day

2010-11-18T07:21:00.001-10:00

Kaedence makes the hat look good!

Chicken Pot Pie

2010-11-10T07:20:00.001-10:00

The blogging women challenge was to make The Pioneer Woman's perfect pie crust. I have made her crust before, and LOVE it! Once the pie crust is made it was up to us what delicious filling we would use. I decided on chicken pot pie. My family loves chicken pot pie, in fact there is a little "song" that my Dad taught my sister and I.

Chicken Pot Pie is so warm and comforting. I love the vegetable goodness (I love love love vegetables!) The picture does not do my pie any justice. But what can I do? I am still computer less.

Picture of the Day!

2010-11-09T16:00:00.001-10:00

Can you guess what I'm making for dinner? (Here's a hint!) Chicken ___ ___.

Picture of the Day

2010-11-08T11:46:00.001-10:00

Sweet Kaede Bug! Sweet Dreams!

Picture of the Day

2010-11-07T13:15:00.001-10:00

Karisma! I love her so much but I wish she wasn't camera shy.

Vegetable Minestrone

2010-11-04T11:26:00.001-10:00

You are going to have to bear with me for a while, my computer has died. So in order for me to blog I have to use my phone. I still am trying to figure out how to upload pictures, and view other blogs. Plus I hate blogging on my phone because it takes forever. So my dear friends I am sorry. Hopefully Santa will be visiting me in early December with a brand new laptop!

For the past couple of weeks my family has been sick. We keep getting hit with colds. I am pretty sure it is because Karisma is now in Gymnastics with a bunch of other children. Anyways, my Auntie Em chose this weeks blogging women recipe. If you haven't guessed yet what she chose, well... vegetable minestrone! The perfect soup for a sick family. And even more perfect since it fed us for the past three nights, and I have been way to sick to cook!

The recipe called for roasting some zucchini, mushrooms and yellow squash before hand. Well yellow squash costs a little over $4 a pound here, so I didn't use it. Instead I used a golden potato! My soups turned out VERY hearty since I used a TON of veggies! I am not a big broth person.

Well I have pictures but the are on my camera. My camera that I can't empty of all the pictures since I am without a computer. So sorry. But believe me when I say it was good soup!!!

Thanks Auntie Em for the great recipe!

Pumpkin Patch, Family Fun!!!

2010-10-25T13:01:00.003-10:00

This was the first year EVER that we went to the pumpkin patch. We had so much fun, and were very pleasantly surprised by how cheap everything was. To get in it was free, there was just a $3 parking fee. And our pumpkins were only $8! There were pony rides, a petting zoo, guessing the weight of pumpkins, a hay ride, photo booths, bounce houses, and a mini carnival.

Every pumpkin we passed Kaedence, had to say "bye pumpkin." (Which sounded more like pumtkin.) Karisma kept asking me, "this one Mommy?" I loved it. CJ didn't care too much for it, he kept complaining about all the dirt. It was a farm CJ, farms have dirt! :)

Our pumpkins, goldie and ghost! (My Karisma named them!)

Beautiful despite the drought.

Goofing off on the big pumpkins at the end. I wish they would have looked at the camera, but hey, not everything can be perfect right?

I am so proud of these girls, they are my pride and joy, and my greatest accomplishment. My babies... who are growing up WAY too fast.

I love living in Hawaii, but I really miss Oregon around this time of the year. I miss everything turning cold, the warm colors, and coats.

If You Came To My House Today....

2010-10-22T11:27:00.005-10:00

If you came to my house today you would see a lot of this...

and a little bit of this...

Kaedence is once again running around naked. Don't you just love her little thighs?! I do... I want to eat them! Karisma's smile will brighten up any room. I love it so much!

Sunset in Waikiki

2010-10-21T11:05:00.002-10:00

My Grandma is visiting right now, and staying in Waikiki! So on Sunday night we (my Dad and siblings) went to see her in Waikiki. We were very fortunate to catch this beautiful sunset!

Enjoy!

Don't you wish you were here?! :)

Day At The Beach With Family

2010-10-06T14:33:00.004-10:00

So this is a bit of an old post, but I really wanted to put it up because it was such a fun day! We try to get together with my cousin Megan every week for a beach date. Her husband, Mike, is deployed right now, but we are looking forward to his return (especially Chris, he needs a man to talk to on these days!) Megan and Mike have a son, Aaron who is two. He, Karisma, and Kaedence always have so much fun together!

Aaron or, AJ!

Karisma, done with eating, and ready for some fun in the sun!

Kaedence eating...

We normally get together, and have a nice picnic lunch. Megan laughs because CJ and I normally pack something like rice, and drumsticks, and wings, with some chips. I don't really consider that to beach picnic lunch type food, but Cj insists on it.

For some reason I don't have a picture of it, but we normally put the kiddos in their floats, and kind of create this island of kids, surrounded by their adults! I don't like it if there is yucky slimy seaweed on the ocean floor, so I make CJ pull Kaedence and I out. This particular day there were some man of war out, and I didn't really like that. CJ and Megan were particularly good at spotting them.

Megan, catching AJ from the wave!

CJ and I, loving the sun!

Make-Ahead Muffins (Breakfast Style!)

2010-09-27T20:33:00.000-10:00

For our next Blogging Women Recipe we did Make-Ahead Muffins. This recipe looked really good, especially to someone who was reading it at 11:30 at night! As I was reading it I decided to make mine breakfast style. My step-sons were staying over, and I like to make them nice big breakfasts when they come over. :)

I used bagels instead of english muffins so that they would be bigger and heartier, and I didn't use garlic powder or Worcestershire sauce. If you know me, then you know that bacon and I have a love affair... if there is a way to incorporate bacon into a meal, I will find it. So naturally when the recipe called for bacon, I used extra bacon... yum! I also used a dash of soy sauce, a pinch or two of pepper, and extra cheese!

Oh my goodness, they were so good. Even Kieran who is four and doesn't like to eat gobbled it up! My husband got home from work and ate his, and asked me when I would be making them again! Another hit from the Pioneer Woman, thanks Megan for choosing this recipe!

Meatloaf Yummness

2010-09-24T09:38:00.003-10:00

Bacon wrapped meatloaf. I have NEVER eaten meatloaf like this. Man it was GOOOOOOOOOD! Yes, good needs to be spelled just like that. Karisma, who has been tricky to cook for lately, loved it. She couldn't get enough. She ate two plates! Even Kaedence loved it. Chris was all over it, I thought we would be eating meatloaf for days, but that HUGE loaf only lasted 2 days. My husband certainly made a little piggy of himself. But I don't mind, that just means he liked it!

There were a couple of changes I made to the recipe. I added onion to the meat. And for the sauce, I didn't have mustard powder, so I used mustard, chili powder, and a smidge of paprika!

I seriously encourage, everyone to check out "The Pioneer Woman Cooks" or her blog! Because she will inspire and amaze you!

The Pioneer Woman Calls this "The Bread." Oh man is it good. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. I may just have to take a quick break to make some more...

Crispy Yogurt Chicken

2010-09-21T12:52:00.004-10:00

This is crispy yogurt chicken, I got the recipe from the Pioneer Woman. Have you seen her book or her web site? I love both. She has some amazing recipes! I was excited when Alexis approached a group of women (myself included) to do a recipe from the Pioneer Woman's book and her website, every Monday.

Well anyways, this week is crispy yogurt chicken. I loved this recipe right off because I had everything in my kitchen, and because I was looking for a fresh new way to make some chicken for Chris. It didn't turn out as crispy as I would have liked, but it was still good.

I find it funny how fast a 5lb bag of panko can disappear around here. Which is exactly why I don't think my chicken was that crispy. I didn't have enough panko. :(

My sister and her boyfriend came over yesterday, so Chris and I took advantage of her and went and ate our dinner on the beach!

Family Day

2010-09-19T08:01:00.005-10:00

Yesterday, Chris and I wanted to spend the day as a family. We wanted to focus on the girls, and let them play. We heard and advertisement over the radio for box car racing. It sounded fun, so off we went. It was surprisingly cheap, and A LOT of fun!!! Karisma and Kaedence were able to participate, and they had so much fun! We spent about three hours racing eachother!

Kaedence had an absolute blast. She would squeal with delight as we went down the hill. She loved to help turn the wheels, and she loved wearing the helmet (which surprised me.) The staff here was so friendly and helpful, they would put the car into position for us so that we could carry Kaedence, and they would hold it for us while we got ourselves in as well as the girls. I was really impressed with the customer service.

I thought that Karisma would have cried and said that she didn't want to go, but she was all over it. She could hardly wait to go! She had so much fun, she just kept wanting to go, go, and go! I can't wait until she is old enough to drive her own car! she is going to have so much fun! Way more than she did yesterday!

Kaedence and I didn't race as much as Karisma and Chris. We were hot, so we sat in the tent where it was much cooler. Plus there was misty water spraying which really kept us cool! This little girl is always happy to just sit and relax with Mommy. She is my little cuddle bug!

Chairs!

2010-09-18T09:34:00.002-10:00

I reupholstered my chairs! What do you think?!

A Trip to the Firehouse

2010-09-16T11:25:00.003-10:00

It is so cute how camera shy she is. Sometimes! She chose that outfit herself this morning. She took it out of her dresser and said, "Mom, this is what I want to wear!" I was surprised since I normally give her a couple of choices to choose from. But she was positive that she wanted to wear this.

Karisma really loves fire trucks! Last night Chris surprised me and took us out for dinner. On our way to dinner we passed by a fire truck, and Karisma went nuts with joy. So I decided that I should take her to our neighborhood's firehouse.

"Her fireman" (as she nicknamed him) showing her how to use the hose. He let her hold it, and she exclaimed, "It's heavy!"

Karisma was amazed at how big the trucks were, up in person.

Kaedence's Shoes

2010-09-14T16:20:00.003-10:00

These are Kaedence's Shoes. I bought these shoes for her from a garage sale for 3 bucks! I was so excited when I found these. I snatched them up immediately. And I am so glad I did. Who would have known that a little girl could love a pair of shoes so much... Oh wait! I did, because she is just like her Mommy!

She loves these shoes so much that she insists on wearing them EVERYWHERE. Including all over my house. I will put them on her, and then she will proceed to take off all her clothes (yes her diaper as well) and march around the house.

Here I was trying to take them off, for nap time. As you can see she didn't like it at all. I couldn't resist an opportunity to get a picture.

Crock Pot Monday: Slow Cooked Chicken with Dressing

2010-09-13T18:02:00.000-10:00

his is Slow Cooked Chicken with Dressing! This is actually a family favorite, which is surprising. Chris doesn't like stuffing and I don't like Swiss cheese. Both play a major part in this dish, and both of us LOVE it! Probably the best thing about this dish is that it is super easy, and it only has 6 ingredients.

4 Chicken Breast
4 slices Swiss cheese
3 cups Stuffing mix
14 oz Chicken broth
2 cans Cream of Celery (or Mushroom, or Chicken)
1 cup of Butter

First place chicken breast on the bottom of your crock pot, salt and pepper. Place one slice of Swiss cheese on each breast. Add chicken broth and cream of celery. Sprinkle stuffing mix on top, in an even mixture. Pour 1 cup of melted butter over stuffing. Cover and cook on LOW for 7-8 hours or on HIGH for 3-4 hours.

Kaedence is just like her Mama and loves green beans!

Karisma ate all her green beans so she was rewarded with some juice! What a good girl! We like to eat outside, we turn on the radio, and enjoy each other while we eat. It is my favorite part of the day!

I had to put up a couple of cheesy pictures!

Birthday Party Extravaganza

2010-09-05T16:12:00.006-10:00

Well yesterday we went to a first birthday party. I have mentioned a couple of times about how big first birthdays are here in Hawaii. So I thought I would give you a small glimpse. Happy Birthday Javier and thank you Rozzi and Joyce for inviting to this spectacular party!

Here Kaedence is getting caricature done! He did a wonderful job and turned my little girl into an adorable mermaid! There were also balloon animals, face painting, and candy "shop," and cotton candy! The candy shop was very cool each child walked away with a little baggy full of candy. (Every parents dream :))

Karisma knew immediately that she wanted to be a beautiful butterfly! And Aunty Vic became a leopard! No, I wasn't brave enough to get Kaedence's face painted...

For some reason Karisma refused to pose for me me with her balloon Little Mermaid. So I talked Daddy into it!

Pretty girls enjoying their food! There was so much good food, white rice, pancit (Filipino noodles,) Japanese terryoke chicken, steak, fish, mac salad, green salad, lumpia, jello, soy beans, and lots more!

Daddy was brave, Mommy not so much! :) :) :)

I thought this little father son DJ duo was pretty cute...

Some traditional Hawaiian dancing, actually it might have been Filipino, I am not too sure. Beautiful none the less

The center pieces that mama Joyce hand made! Aren't they fantastic... she put a lot of work into this party, and her efforts were VERY well received! And if you have excellent eye sight then you can see the picture of the birthday boy, Javier!

Happy September!

2010-09-01T15:34:00.002-10:00

I love autumn and I am so glad that it is almost here! Not that I get to enjoy the wonderful season here in Hawaii... there are several things that I miss. The return of the east wind, the changing color of leaves, the crunching of leaves, and most of all, the smell in the air. There are things about Hawaii's non existent fall that I love as well... such as going to the beach! The temperatures start to go down, and I get to look forward to being more comfortable outside. And (at the risk of sounding like a total tv junkie) my favorite shows return to television!

So earlier I had said that I was going to start up Check it Out Fridays again, but... Well CJ has been laid off from work for six weeks, and there is no telling when or if he will go back to work. So funds are low, and unless I really need something, I am just not shopping. Bills and food is what all of our money is going towards right now. I will however still be doing crock pot Mondays, since that fits right in with my regular schedule.

Again another post with no pictures. Sorry, I know it is horrible, and I hate to do it, but I have nothing ready for you. Just some simple words.

25

2010-08-30T10:51:00.002-10:00

Yesterday, I turned 25. blah. I cannot believe how old I am getting. To take my mind off my old age my husband threw a small little party for me. I had a really nice time, thank you hunny!
For dinner, my dad made The Godfather spaghetti, and boy was it yummy! I made coq au vin in my crock pot which turned out GREAT. Apple pie and ice cream for dessert, and it was delicious! All in all turning 25 wasn't so bad, thanks to family and friends.

Starting next Monday, I will be starting something new with my blog. Crock pot Mondays! I mentioned that I have been cooking with my crock pot a lot lately, and I completely love it, and I would like to pass the love on to you. Also this week I will go back to doing Check It Out Fridays.

Things are starting to get back to normal (or at least functional) around my house, and I would like the same for my blog.

I Am Back!

2010-08-24T14:45:00.003-10:00

Well I am back from vacation early... We (my girls and I) had an absolutely marvelous time, and were quiet bummed that we had to cut it short. We were able to spend 5 weeks in Oregon, but we really didn't do nearly as much as I had wanted to do. The best part was I got to see my family, and friends. On a sadder note, my Oma passed away while we were there, but I was very thankful that she got to see the girls, and that I was able to be there.

I have been home for about 6 weeks now, but I just haven't been able to get on, I have been dealing with some pretty tough stuff lately. I wanted to make sure that I was in a good frame of mind first. I also wanted to take so time to figure out what direction I would like to take my blog.

In a few short days I will be another year older, and I am looking forward to putting this past year behind me. I am, however NOT looking forward to being in my mid-twenties. As people keep kindly pointing out to me I am half way to being 50. Oh joy. :) So I feel like now that I am getting older, I should maybe shake up my blog a bit and do something new. I really want to do something with cooking, since it is such a love for me. But I really don't know. Lately I have been really big on using my crock pot. Maybe something in that area.

I guess I better get off here. Kaedence is hollering for me to hold her. She isn't feeling to well today. Poor baby.

On Vacation!

2010-07-06T15:03:00.003-10:00

Well the title pretty much says it all. I am on vacation until August 31. So please don't expect too much from me. I am having a difficult time making it to the computer. We are just having too much fun.
I do have an app on my phone where I can post on my blog, but I find that VERY time consuming! Anyways love to you all. I will be back on a normal basis in September!

Manic Monday? Nope, Panic Monday!

2010-06-08T14:16:00.003-10:00

I started weaning Kaedence off of breast milk a couple weeks ago. I was really looking forward to the ease, and convenience. I noticed right off that the milk was making her poop black (gross I know, sorry.) And she would have some spit up right after, which I thought was normal.

Well yesterday afternoon, as we were waiting for C.J. to come home (he was over an hour late) Kaedence starts vomiting. and I mean vomiting. It was flying from her! So of course I called up her doctor, who said to bring her in, and guess who still wasn't home. Yep, C.J. So I quickly check when the next bus is coming on my phone, and run out the door with the girls. We catch the bus and take our seats and, then Kaedence just lets it all out. I just opened my purse and let her go... I feel sorry for anyone who gets the money that was in my wallet.

Now, I was very stressed at this point, trying to call C.J., trying to get Karisma to sit still on the bus, and trying to comfort Kaedence. I was really starting to worry about my husband too because he was now two hours late, and I hadn't heard anything from him. I just kept having visions of him hurt and bloody in the hospital. And it doesn't help that I had absolutely no idea where I was going, and was at the mercy of the bus driver.

Well I made it to the hospital, everyone intact. At this point Kaedence has vomit all over herself, me, and even some on Karisma's hair. We get in to the doctor, and finally C.J. calls me back. I tell him that we are at the doctors, and he says he is on his way. Of course he calls me five minuets later and says that he has no idea where the clinic is. And that is where I lost it. I just started crying, and couldn't stop.

He showed up just after the doctor came and started checking out Kaedence. Anyways, she looked her over and checked her doodoo. And confirmed what I suspected. Kaedence cannot handle, milk or dairy products. Luckily, I have been breastfeeding Kaedence at night, so I am able to try and nurse her during the day again. When Kaedence is two, we can try dairy again, but until then...

Check It Out- tokidoki Makeup

2010-06-04T13:10:00.006-10:00

In 2005 an Italian artist, created the tokidoki brand. tokidoki is the Japanese word for sometimes. The brand has grown to be a leading trend, my personal favorite are the purses, found at LeSportsac. This purse on the left is my favorite...

But this isn't about the purses or clothes. tokidoki has recently launched a makeup line sold through Sephora. And please check out more tokidoki here.

As soon as I tried this makeup, I was hooked! Here in Hawaii I have a problem of putting makeup on in the morning, and by the early afternoon the eyeshadow will be gone. But the tokidoki makeup lasts... all day! Plus it is really soft, and feels like I am rubbing silk against my face!

Anyways, Chris totally surprised me and came home early, and is going to take the girls and I out... I do want to say more, but I have to go...

Check It Out- Tide Stain Release

2010-05-28T07:30:00.001-10:00

I have been using this product- Tide Stain Release, for about a month now. And I LOVE it, I really do.

My whites look whiter, my colors look brighter, and new! I wish I had a picture of how horribly stained one of Karisma's shirts was... there were chocolate stains all over it. It was horrid, and these were old stains to boot. Well anyways this shirt was in the first load that I ever used Tide Stain Release. I noticed dramatic changes in the stains, after two more washes the stains were gone.

A common complaint with the Tide Stain Release is that it is expensive. At Target it is sold for about $11. Yes, that is spendy, I will admit, but it is on sale A LOT. I have seen it on sale at Target for anywhere from $5-7. So yes, I recommend this product. Also for those of you who like to shop on-line, click here for some GREAT deals on Tide Stain Release.

I buy the powder form and add it in the wash at the same time as my detergent. I use Tide laundry detergent to begin with, but I have to tell you I really love the smell of this Tide Stain Release!

Happy To Announce!!!

2010-05-27T08:58:00.005-10:00

I am happy to announce a new segment that I will be hosting here on my blog. Fridays will be now known as CHECK IT OUT! Every week I will test out some sort of product, ranging from Laundry Detergent to Makeup. On Friday I present you my readers with my review of this product, and weather or not I recommend it.

I am really excited to do this, and I hope that you will enjoy it as well. Something for you to get excited about... sometimes I will host a giveaway of the very item I reviewed! Like I said I am really excited and hope that all of you will join me on Fridays for CHECK IT OUT!
Here are a couple of some upcoming products:

Friday May 28:
Friday June 4:

Also please don't be afraid to suggest items that I should check out! I am open to suggestions!

33 DAYS!!!!!!

2010-05-27T07:37:00.003-10:00

Yes, that's right it is that time again... Eclipse! Only 33 days until Eclipse hits the big screen! I really, really, really can't wait!

You May Have Noticed...

2010-05-25T06:18:00.003-10:00

that I haven't been blogging as much. Well something that I am learning, is that one plus one does not equal two. No it equals five or more. When Kaedence was smaller, and didn't get around so much it wasn't too bad. But now she moves, runs, climbs. She is as active as Karisma. Sometimes I feel like I have five kids instead of two.

I am tired in the morning from waking up so early.

I am tired in the afternoon from chasing them around all morning.

I am DEAD tired at night from a whole day of play.

It's a good thing I love them sooo much! Anyways it isn't much of an excuse, but it is what is going on. Well that and that I am writing a children's book, so that has me pretty occupied as well.

Growing

2010-05-22T07:23:00.001-10:00

Oh, Karisma

2010-05-16T21:09:00.003-10:00

Goodness how I love this little girl. I can't believe that she is going to be three soon. When she was a newborn, she was so small and cute! Now look, she is so tall, beautiful, and smart!!! I am her proud Mama. My precious eldest!

The other day she came up to me and told me, "Mommy, you're my best friend." She just melts my heart. I am proud of the little girl she is becoming, and I cannot wait to see what God has in store for her.

Happy Birthday Kaedence

2010-05-11T14:35:00.002-10:00

Kaedence, Happy Birthday my sweet, precious youngest. I love you so much!

Kaedence's birthday was great. CJ and I decided that since she was born on May day, every year we would buy her flowers. We woke up on the day of her party and it was go, go, go. I did take sometime to relax with her. I really wanted her birthday to be special. Kaedence was unfortunately teething, two molars. Poor baby. So she was a little grumpy.

I catered from Panda Express, tons of good food, for great price! It was a big hit too, everyone really enjoyed the food, and a lot of people took food home (which is always a good sign.) Anyways thank you to everyone who was able to come. I do have more pictures, but someone named Karisma, hid to cord for my camera. So I am unable to upload any pictures. (Hence the old picture)

Mothers Day! (and other days!)

2010-05-11T14:12:00.005-10:00

Look what C.J. got me for Mothers Day! Aren't they beautiful! I just love flowers and he knows it. C.J. also took me out for a nice dinner, and a few hours of quiet. He did want to take me out to the movies as well, but I missed my babies. So we went home, and watched Princess movies as a family!

I took Karisma and Kaedence for a walk around the valley that we live in. This is how Kaedence chose to relax... isn't she the cutest!

I took this picture while we were out on our walk. I just thought it looked cool. It is a tree that grew around the fence. Look for more photo's like these. I have taken a lot of cool pictures like this lately. I am just not ready to reveal them to the world just yet.

In Honour of Earth Day

2010-04-22T08:17:00.004-10:00

These are my wonderful plants. Top is bell pepper, and middle is my tomato plant.

This one to the left is the rose plant that Chris bought me after Kaedence was born. This plant has been through a lot. It has "died" twice and come back to life. Last week I noticed that it was sick, and pruned it WAY back, and cut off all infected areas. This week it is really growing. I am so relieved.

I know these plants aren't much, but they make me happy, and they are the start of my garden for when we (hopefully) buy a house!

Safeway Adventures with Tatum

2010-04-12T10:40:00.010-10:00

Last Friday Tatum, Karisma, Kaedence and, I went to Safeway. Boring right? WRONG!!! First of all I always love hanging out with Tatum, I always get a good dose of girl talk with her, and she has a way of helping me see some things clearly (which I totally love about her!) The main purpose of our trip to Safeway was for Peanut Butter. We went to the new Safeway of Kapahulu Ave. Tatum had previously told me of their larger selection, and cool peanut butter making stations!

I completely forgot my camera, and had to use the camera on my phone, which is fine (just the pictures would be better off of my camera!) First of all I loved the little cars that were of the front of the shopping carts for the kids, Karisma and Kaedence liked being able to sit in car and "drive." Karisma actually stayed in there the whole time! Which let me tell you is very hard to get her to do. She is a very active two year old, and it is very hard to get her to just sit still. Even when she is watching TV, she is jumping around, running around. She never stops, Chris and I sometimes call her the Energizer Bunny.

This is the peanut butter that I chose, honey peanut butter. Completely and wonderfully satisfying. Kind of pricey, but totally worth it. The taste is amazing and Karisma loved watching it come out of the machine. She thought it was ice-cream at first, but we quickly set her straight! I bought about $4.00 worth of peanut butter, and it tastes just delightful on a pb&j sandwich. I also bought some Kalamata Olives for yummy olive bread (which is baking now,) and Strawberry Cheesecake Gelato! YUM!!!

Summer Plans

2010-04-09T10:04:00.006-10:00

I am so very blessed! This past year I have been begging my Hubby to go to Oregon. And being the wonderful husband that he is said that he would try his hardest to make it possible, but he just wasn't too sure since the price was more than likely to be outrageous! But together my Mom and I managed to find round trip tickets for less than $400. So of course Chris said "YES!"

That is right I am going home for the summer! I am so excited, and I can't wait to show my daughters where their Mommy grew up. Plus I am excited that my family will actually get to be a part of Karisma's 3rd birthday. I am a little sad that Chris won't be there for her birthday, but I know that my family will really appreciate being a part of her special day!

I decided that since I was going to Oregon, that I was going to try and lose 30lbs first. So I have been working out and dieting for almost two weeks, and I have lost 8lbs. Chris bought me the Wii Fit Plus, and it really helps me to see my progress, and it keeps me really motivated to keep going.

You want to know what I am most excited about for this trip? I am so excited that I will miss an awful HOT Hawaii summer with no A/C, and that I will be in Oregon, where people have heard of this wonderful invention called central air conditioning! (Oh and dishwashers!)

Stay Tuned...

2010-04-02T14:22:00.002-10:00

I just want to brag :) for a moment!!! My little love Kaedence has her first modeling job tomorrow! I am super excited and a little nervous! Pray for us!

Kaedence Harmony!

2010-03-30T13:26:00.003-10:00

There is a Veggie Tales song called Barbra Manatee. I am sure you have heard it, it goes something like this...

"Barbra Manatee (Manatee, Manatee)

Your the one for me (one for me, one for me)

Sent from up above (up above up above)

Your the one I love (one I love, one I love)"

One day, shortly after she was born, we were driving around running errands. Kaedence was in the backseat howling to be held, while Karisma was watching Veggie Tales. Silly Songs with Larry had just ended and he was singing Barbra Manatee. There was too much background noise with Kaedence crying so I turned it off. Then I quickly started singing...

"Kaedence Harmony (Harmony, Harmony)

Your the one for me (One for me, one for me)

Sent from up above (up above, up above)

Your the one I love (one I love, one I love)

To this day the song does not fail to comfort my little girl. Sometimes she has to fall asleap with me holding her and singing Kaedence Harmony to her.

Celebrating Peanut Butter

2010-03-29T08:38:00.006-10:00

On Friday, my friend Alexis contacted a few of us. She had decided to celebrate peanut butter! There is an official National Peanut Butter Day, March 3. I L-O-V-E peanut butter. Breakfast, lunch and, dinner I could eat peanut butter. If you look in my cabinets you will often find a couple of open jars, and if you were to look in my hurricane supply you would find 4 jars!

Did you know that a peanut is not actually a nut, but is a legume, related to beans and lentils. Which is just one of the few fun facts that I have dug up just for you!

The Peanut plant originated in South America
Thomas Jefferson and Jimmy Carter were Peanut Farmers
Peanut Butter is the leading use of peanuts in the USA
It takes about 540 peanuts to make a jar of peanut butter
November is Peanut Butter Lovers Month

These cookies are my husbands favorite. The recipe can be found on the back of any white chocolate chips bag, but in be-lated celebration of National Peanut Butter Day I added a twist. I added can you guess? Peanut Butter. I also added a couple teaspoons of water so the cookies wouldn't be too dry. Chris loved them. I don't think that I have ever seen cookies disappear so quickly around here! And in case you are wondering, yes we did eat my favorite ice-cream with these cookies... Chocolate Peanut Butter!

Party in the USA

2010-03-09T11:43:00.001-10:00

Do you see what happens when these girls know that they are on camera! Here they are dancing to Karisma's favorite song "Party in the USA" by Miley Cyrus. Aren't my girls cute!

Pho

2010-02-28T17:44:00.003-10:00

This is a family favorite. Every time I am sick Chris takes me out for Pho. Pho (pronounced FA) is Vietnamese soup that takes all day to cook. It is absolutely amazing and would recommend it to anyone.

Sprouts, Mint, Basil, and Lemon. A few of my favorites in my Pho!

My Pho after I have added hot sauce and plum sauce!

What Karisma ate while we waited for our Pho to arrive!

Tomashiro's Market

2010-02-26T15:22:00.019-10:00

Yes, that is what you think it is. That is one HUGE fish. Ahi, to be specific. Yesterday we spent the day with my Mom and Aunt Shannon in China Town. Our First stop was Tomashiro's Fish Market. I wish that I had thought to take a picture of the outside of the market. It is a big PINK building. Pepto Bismol Pink. With a huge red crab over the door. Every time we drive past it it make me giggle. I don't know why, I guess it is just silly looking!

These are King Clams. They are huge, hence the name King. They look kind of gross, and they remind me of Elephant Tusks! I have to say I don't think I could ever eat them. They are too big to be appetising. I was really pleases with the prices and to way that all the fish looked. Just by looking at it I could tell that it was fresh

This little guy looked out of place!

9 Month Photospot

2010-02-02T20:38:00.003-10:00

For my baby who turned 9 months old yesterday!

Thank you for being the perfect model!

I love you to the moon and back

~Mommy

Breastfeeding Tales

2010-01-19T12:44:00.005-10:00

I have two stories to share!

When Kaedence was two months old, we went on a trip to the mall. This mall is actually my favorite mall, it is family friendly, and includes an area for kids 5 and under to play at. Kaedence had gotten hungry while we were in a toy store, watching Karisma going nuts over all the Backyardigans toys. So I took her out and went to sit in one of the many seating areas. Comfy couches and chairs are provided for the consumers comfort! I chose a nice big chair, that had room for me to put my feat up and feed Kaedence.

I didn't notice the elder gentleman on the other side. I was lost in la la land thinking about me and Kaedence. Now when I feed in public I use a cover and lots of blankets (at least I try.) At this time Kaedence didn't always push the blankets away so that she could see. The gentleman stands up and sighs, a long exaggerated sigh, grumbles "disgusting," and glares at me as he stomps past.

Before he had the chance to completely get away, I "politely" mentioned that judging by how old he looked he was probably breastfed by his Mom. Was formula even invented when he was a baby? Now of course I think of this poor guy, and realize that I really shouldn't have given him the time of day. I have shrugged it off and just laugh.

The other day, Sunday, we headed out to North Shore for the day, but had to cut it short due to car trouble. While Chris' uncle was looking at our van I we went to Pearl Ridge mall, which is another mall I love. This mall also provides comfy couches and chairs.

Once again Kaedence was hungry, and yes I am still nursing her. So I settle down in a chair, to feed her. But now Kaedence is aware of me covering her with blankets and does not appreciate it. She always fusses, and pushes them away. So I am feeding her in the middle of the mall, trying to cover my boob the best that I can. All of a sudden I am approached by another elder gentleman. This one proceeded to actually talk to me and confront me about my breastfeeding in public. He felt the need to inform me that indecent exposure in public is illegal. I in turn laughed and told him that as a mother it is my right to breastfeed my child in public, whenever she needs me to, or I want to. He then mentioned that he would go get mall security and ask them to escort me out! I then told him that in the state of Hawaii it is considered sexual harassment to bother a mother about breastfeeding in public. And that if he did get mall security, not only would I sue the mall, but I would also sue him.

I realize now that I probably over reacted, but my child needs to eat too, and as her mother I made the choice to breastfeed her, because I feel that it is what is best for her. And I will go to the ends of the earth to defend that right for ANY of my children!

Daddy's Music

2010-01-10T10:32:00.001-10:00

This song is called "Ehu Girl" by Kolohe Kai. It is a local song, that is pretty popular over here in Hawaii. Chris has taken this song and dedicated it to his Ehu girl, Kaedence. Ehu usually refers to a local girl with reddish-brown hair. Which is my little Kaedence!

This next song "Carley Rose" by Ka'au Crater Boys is one that Chris introduced to me while I was pregnant with Karisma. He instantly said that it would be his song to Karisma. We used to play it to her to get her to sleep, for the longest time it was the only thing that would help her sleep!

One of my favorite memories of me and my Dad is when he would play "My Brown Eyed Girl" by Van Morrison. He would always call me his brown eyed girl. I hope that someday these songs make Karisma and Kaedence smile, and think of their Daddy.

Dinner Menu 12/10-16/2010

2010-01-06T11:16:00.003-10:00

I thought that I would share next weeks dinner menu, hopefully it being published will keep me on track! I know Chris really likes it when I do a dinner menu, because it helps us save money. I am not going through the grocery store picking up random items.

I am really excited to make the Vietnamese Beef Stew. It is Chris's favorite dish. He bought me (at my request) a Vietnamese Cookbook, and I am really into it right now. I love looking at the different dishes, and I can't wait to give them a try! And yes I will post pictures, so that you can enjoy it with me.

Sunday 12/10: Italian Salsa Chicken, with Brown Rice, and Salad

Monday 12/11: Loco Moco over White Rice

Tuesday 12/12: Chicken and Fried Rice

Wednesday 12/13: Vietnamese Beef Stew

Thursday 12/14: Fried Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, and Salad

Friday 12/15: Bacon Potato Chowder and Salad

Saturday 12/16: Dinner at Church

Happy (Be-Lated) New Year

2010-01-03T09:54:00.006-10:00

Happy New Year!

Sorry that it comes so late. But I have been a busy bee.

To keep up with tradition, I have a few New Years Resolutions.

1. Spend more time reading my Bible.

2. Exercise MORE! (Ultimately shed my baby weight.)

3. Instead of eating out every Friday, I will make a new meal (from my new cookbooks!)

4. Better Meal planning. (I need to start making menu's again, so that when 4:00 pm rolls around I am not scratching my head wondering what to make.)

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas and New Year. I know we did. I enjoyed two 4 day weekends with my husband. We went camping on New Years Eve, and did fireworks on the beach. Karisma had a blast!

Date Night

2009-12-22T13:19:00.006-10:00

Last Saturday Chris and I went out on a date. (Thanks Vic for watching my girls! {Karisma, since Kaedence had to go with us!}) We went to go see Avatar. And let me tell you this is a movie worth your money. If you haven't seen it yet, you must. We saw it on the regular screen, because IMAX 3D was sold out. But we will be going back hopefully this weekend to see it on the IMAX screen. I have heard that seeing in in 3D is like you are in the movie itself. Amazing! I can't wait!

Anyways I just had to let you all know that I liked this movie, and that it will be worth the $40 to see it IMAX 3D!

Little Moments

2009-12-17T10:07:00.002-10:00

I wanted to share these photos of my baby. Kaedence is teething right now, and it is horrible. Karisma wasn't in too much pain when she was teething. But with Kaedence it is so bad that she cannot even sleep. Which is part of the reason why I haven't been blogging so much lately. At least my wonderful husband helps, I don't think that I could manage if it weren't for him.

C.J. this one is for you... Remember these images of our little love, while we are up with her for the 5th time at 2:00am. Drink up these times of holding her while she sleeps, because they won't last forever. And thank you, thank you, thank you, for all the help that you give me in the middle of the night. Sorry that Kaedence has kicked you out of our bed.

I love you. M.K.

Everything is BETTER with Peanut Butter

2009-12-14T10:42:00.003-10:00

I LOVE peanut butter. I believe that I have mentioned that fact once or twice before! Well I made peanut butter snowballs! I meant to post this on Friday with Alexis, but time just got away from me! Check out Alexis, for her PB Snowballs, her daughter Emma looked like she had so much fun!!!

I made A LOT of these, but they were sadly gone withing a couple of hours. And I only had 4. My sister Victoria, and my Dad, were over just after I made them, and Chris made a little pig of himself, and for me to avoid the temptation, I took some up to his Aunts house. Thanks Mom for the recipe! They were a big hit. I made some with coconut flakes on top, some with walnuts (pictured) and some plain. Everyone agreed that the walnuts were the best!

Well I guess that is all for now. Karisma wants me to dance the chicken dance with her, and hopefully I will make it to the store today, I want to make gingerbread men!