Egg Hunt

Our church held their Easter EGGstravaganza this past Saturday, so off we went to the egg hunt!

Someone was way too shy to take a picture.

FAKE FAKE FAKE smile but still totally cute, right?!

Waiting to get on the other side of that gate so she could get her eggs

Ignore the frizz please :)

Since the egg hunt was in the morning and it was really humid, there was quite a bit of dew on the ground. Olivia did NOT like the grass getting stuck to the eggs.  They were deemed "dirty" and she would throw them back on the ground.  The candy apparently wasn't worth having dirty eggs.

They also had bounce houses.  Olivia usually isn't into them and is scared, but she did (finally) slide down a slide.

LOVED the pony ride.  She isn't a bit scared of those ponies!

There were ENORMOUS bunnies in the petting zoo, as well as the tiniest little pigs (which I failed to get a picture of.  They were adorable!). 

Texas Bluebonnets 2012

Every year, I make it a point to get Olivia's pictures in the bluebonnets. This past weekend, Olivia and I made a trip to my mom's for a girls-only weekend. I wanted to go ahead and get pictures in case all the bluebonnets were gone by the time we got around to getting them in Fort Worth. Little did I know that the Jasper bluebonnets are COVERED with bees. They were everywhere...but being the good determined mom that I am, we went ahead and decided to give it a try!

Olivia wasn't too sure about the bees.  We shouldn't have mentioned them.  She probably still would have been uneasy, but maybe not as bad!  She wouldn't take her eyes off those flowers and bees!

Olivia and Nana

The second we got back to Fort Worth, I went grocery shopping.  I rushed home, unloaded the groceries and threw Olivia in the car to go see if I could get some better pics in the Fort Worth bluebonnets.  FAIL.  She immediately asked about bees.  I told her there weren't any (I really only saw one).  Then she asked about ants.  She was convinced there were ants in the bluebonnets. There wasn't too much at that point that I could say to convince her otherwise!

Nana, this is for you!  I was doing whatever I could to try to get her to smile, so I asked her about playing Hi-Ho Cheerio.  She was telling me "I win!!!"

It was strange to me how different the North TX and East TX bluebonnets are.  The ones in North TX are really thick.  The ones in East TX were more sparce.  It was just interesting to me, and you can really see the difference in the pics too.

My baby is growing too fast!

New Job!

I have a little news to share!

(NO....I am not getting a brother or a sister!)

My mom got a new job, and we are SO excited!

She put in her notice last week!

She has worked for the same company for nearly 9 years.  She drives nearly 50 miles each way to get to work.  Add in traffic, and she is in the car over 2 hours every day.  That's over 2 hours a day she could be spending with me!  Or washing clothes! Or grocery shopping!  Or reading her Bible!  Or watching TV!  Or relaxing!  Or doing puzzles with me!  Or reading me books!  Or snuggling with me!  

So we are THRILLED that after 9 years, she will be working full time from home!  We've already started converting the playroom into her home office (THAT I'm not quite as happy about)!  She will also be working for her old boss, who she really liked!  She'll also be doing something new....the start of a new profession, which I know is something my mom will enjoy as well!  It is with a new company, but we know good things are ahead for our family!



Tumble Bus

A couple of weeks ago I got the chance to go watch Olivia on the Tumble Bus at her school.  It's an actual school bus that's been converted into a little traveling gymnastics bus.  She has been doing it since she turned two and was so excited about me being able to come watch her.  It's hard to see some of it, as other kids are in the way (how dare them..), but you'll get the idea.  It's really cute and fun!

The Robot Song

Every night Olivia and I sing songs at bedtime. Until a couple of weeks ago, we had a list that we went thru in order. She has since decided to throw in some new songs.

So...the other night she said "Sing the robot song".
Me: The robot song?
Olivia: Yes, the robot song.
Me: I don't know the robot song.
Olivia: (singing) "Ro, Ro Robot...what do you see? Mammimy mammimy mammimy..."

I was dying laughing. I tried to explain it was "Row, row, row your boat, gently down the stream...", but I kept laughing so hard I don't think I ever got it all out.  She was SO serious.  Love that girl!

A Little Contained Fun

We had Olivia's exersaucer in her playroom the past week (as a friend just returned it to me). Olivia has had so much fun putting her baby dolls (and herself) in there. She will yell at us "Come put me in here please!" and then play for quite a while! Silly girl!

Harper is ONE!

"Baby" Harper turned 1 on Saturday, so we headed East to attend her cupcake-themed 1st birthday party!

Birthday girl loving the swing!

They had a big bounce house with slides.  Olivia only played in it when the other kids were doing something else.  She would see that it was empty and run over and start jumping.  The second another child came in, she would find the exit.  She is just NOT willing to get hurt by those other kids! lol

Harper eating her cupcake

Olivia and Hudson on the see-saw.  She sooooo badly wants him to be her BFF, and while I think he does like her, he is definitely starting to be more interested in "boy" things.  He stayed outside most of the time rough housing with the older boys....and Olivia stayed inside trying to convince Harper that she needed to carry a purse!

Maggie & Turner were there also (along with several other children), but the kids were just all over the place and I didn't manage to get pictures of everyone.  It's getting harder and harder to do so!



We had a great time at the party!  Just wish you guys lived closer!!!



The Cowtown - My First 5K

I DID IT!  I turn 32 tomorrow and I ran my first official 5K (aka 3.1 miles) today!

I was so nervous about it yesterday.  Even though I've been "training" for it, I haven't REALLY trained for it.  I didn't do any kind of training program.  I pretty much have kept to my usual workouts (boot camp classes, weight training, etc.) and throw in a mile run afterwards.  The last couple of weekends, I made sure to get in at least 3 miles/day....just to know that I was capable.  One day last week I actually did 5 miles.  That was some sort of freak accident! LOL  I was also nervous because I knew we'd be running in temperatures in the 30's....and I train at lunchtime when it's in the 50's-60's.  So my lungs were a little scared!

So, anyway, I'm rambling......

I ran with my friend/co-worker Tari.  This is us before the race.

And here's a picture of me after the race....only semi-sweaty, as it was pretty cold!

When I signed up a couple of months ago, my initial goal was to just run/jog the entire thing.  I just knew I didn't want to walk...at all.  In the recent past, I changed that goal to not only run the entire race but to run it at or under 10:00/mile.

My time:  28 minutes 28 seconds (pace was 9:10/mile).  I exceeded my goal.  Yay!  I was even more exited to find out to find out I finished in the top 14% of all runners (there were over 5,000!) and I finished in the top 6% of all women runners (over 3,000 total)!   I was shocked! 

I think I have found a new hobby obsession.  I absolutely LOVED it.  I loved the entire thing.  The adrenalin.  Running the streets of Fort Worth with over 5,000 other people.  The sense of accomplishment.  Getting up early to do something healthy.  I just loved it all.

I found this shirt yesterday.  The front says "STRENGTH".  The back "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me".  I got several compliments on it and people asking where I got it.  I will probably be buying more! I bought it in person at a health expo, but you can purchase online at  http://www.316athleticwear.com/

I usually listen to Christian music when I run.  It helps me to keep going. I know I can do all things with Christ.  And today...I DID!

New Recipes

So, here's a couple of recipes I tried this weekend (one was a 2nd attempt). I'm not a food blogger....the pictures are evidence of that! I am always looking for healthy recipes. Even if you don't need to lose weight, your internal organs would still like to have some healthier foods! And as a mom of a toddler, I could always use recipies with less sugar and more goodness!


The first is an "ice cream" recipe.  Olivia and I both LOVE our frozen desserts, so I thought this one might be perfect!  It can have from ONE ingredient, up to three (which is how I made ours).   I found this recipe on Pinterest (shocking)!

Click here for the recipe!  (or see below)

4 bananas, just slightly overripe (brown spots good, completely black not so good)
2 tbsps creamy peanut butter (optional – thus 2 ingredient ice cream)
2 tsps cocoa powder (Dutch process), (optional – thus 2 or 3 ingredient ice cream depending on peanut butter)
DO NOT FREEZE THE WHOLE BANANA, you’ll have a heck of a time blending that beast.

Peel the bananas and slice them up into 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick disks. Place the banana slices in the freezer for about an hour or until they are frozen solid. Put the frozen slices in a food processor and pulse. First they will start to resemble gravel, but keep going. The bananas will soon turn into a frozen mush – at this point, start scraping the sides down (you will do this a lot). Or you could add a dash of milk since the liquid will help the blending. I’m lactose-intolerant, so after a few minutes of stopping to scrape the sides down, the banana begins to blend into a creamy texture. When the bananas look like whipped ice cream, you can add your mix-ins like peanut butter and/or cocoa powder, chocolate chips, toffee, raspberries, anything goes! Straight out of the food processor, the ice cream is like soft serve. You can also freeze it for a firmer texture. I find it’s pretty hard (and therefore, brittle) when I scoop it immediately after removing it from the freezer. Just give it a minute or two to soften up. Makes a pint.

The second recipe is Chocolate Chip Cookies.  No flour.  No sugar.  Only 45 calories per cookie.  Sold yet?  One of the trainers at the gym gave me this one....and we all three love them.  They are dark.  And slightly bitter.  So if you don't like dark chocolate, I don't really recommend them, but Jason, Olivia and I are sold!

RECIPE HERE

Going into the oven

Finished product......Olivia helped with some of the chocolate chips...can you tell?!

Long Weekend

We really didn't do much this weekend but somehow stayed busy enough to not even do laundry!  Ugh!  I hate it when I start the week and still need to do laundry (which is nearly every week!).

Saturday Jason went to his friend's ranch.  Olivia and I pretty much just hung out around the house and ran a couple of errands. 

On Sunday, Olivia and I went to church.  Jason got home around lunchtime.  We (they) napped.  I went for a run (ran about 3.5 miles....averaged 9:57 per mile....which is a personal best for outdoor running.  I ran about the same distance today and avereaged 10:24/mile (boo!).  I know this isn't a fitness blog, but I just thought I'd throw that out there so when I'm running 6 minute miles (ha) I can look back on how slow I used to be! LOL).

Jason and I were both off today for President's Day.  Again, didn't do anything!

Olivia decided to play dress up.  She was STYLIN'!  And boy did she think she looked cute!

Nightgown, summer hat that doesn't fit, a tutu and sequined shoes.

Such a mess!

She finally got dressed for the day after nap and we went outside and played for a while.  It was SO nice out today....mid 60's and sunny.  Doesn't get much better than that! 

Valentine's Day

I'm not a huge Valentine's Day person....AT ALL.  Yes, I'm one of those people that feel like it's kind of a made-up holiday.  I just don't see how my husband buying me flowers on a day when millions of other people also get the same flowers is super special! That being said, we typically just buy cards for each other.

Now, Olivia, on the other hand, was SUPER excited about Valentine's Day!  She was SO funny.  She couldn't wait to get home to go thru her Valentines bag from school. 

I'm not sure what's going on with my fortmatting on this post, but I refuse to start over!

We got Olivia a couple of little gifts for Valentine's Day.  She got the Tangled game for her MobiGo.  She also got a Tangled bathtub barbie whose hair changes from pink to blonde, and man....she is LOVING that gift!

I love how excited she was opening her presents!

Again, the formatting is crazy!

These were some pics I took this past weekend and just thought they were too cute to not share!

We were on our way to get her hair cut.  She just HAD to take two of her purses.  Well, we settled on two purses.  She wanted to take about five!



These are the Valentines we (I) made for her class. I just things we had on hand. The only thing I had to buy was the goldfish, so it turned out to be a pretty cheap and cute project!



Working Moms

So, I'm a few days late, but Kelly's Korner did a post on working moms the other day, so I thought I'd go ahead and join in!

A Day in My Life

4:45am     Wake Up

5:00am     Leave the house and drive an hour to gym/work

4:00pm     Leave work for the hour-plus drive home

5:30-6pm  Pick up Olivia and head home. 

6:00pm     Cook Olivia's Dinner

6:30ish      Give Olivia a bath  (Jason usually arrives home during bathtime)

7:30ish      Read books, potty and start bedtime routine

8:00ish      Sit down for the first time. Jason & I eat dinner, which I prepared at some point in the evening

9:30-10    Go to bed and get ready to do it all over again!

Really exciting, right?!?!?!

My house stays a wreck these days.

Laundry only gets about half done.

Dinners are crockpot meals more often than they're not.

The beds are never made.

And Saturdays typically consist of running errands and grocery shopping.

One day, I'm going to get it all together and be the perfect wife & mom, but until then, I guess I'll keep doing what I'm doing!  And just maybe one day we'll play, win the lottery and I can write a post about being a stay-at-home mom!  Awww...to dream!   (And to my stay at home mom friends, I know it's not a cake walk....but there is a lot of guilt that comes with working outside of the home and only getting to see my child for approximately 2 hours a day.  I just hope she knows how much I love her and how much I wish I could be with her.  Truth be told, she LOVES school and would probably hate being with me everyday anyway! LOL).

Princess Olivia

It sure feels like it's been forever since I've posted! I guess there hasn't been much going on! I can't even remember what we did last weekend. I know since Olivia's birthday, she has been sick. Again. She is currently well, but I'm feeling a bit under the weather, but that's ok...I can at least go to work when I'm sick!

We didn't do too much this weekend.  We woke up Saturday and ran a couple of errands and went grocery shopping.  Then after nap, we went to Olivia's friend Kayla's 3rd birthday party.  It was a princess party and we were instructed to wear our favorite dress-up clothes.

Olivia was so excited about the party.  It was at a community room.  They had a big princess castle bounce house, some arts & crafts and lots of food.  I didn't take my camera, but managed to get a couple  on my phone.  I'm just currently too lazy to get up and go get my phone to download the pics!  Olivia did get to take a turn on her first pinata.  She was so shy and didn't like everyone looking at her.  She barely swung at it, but was quick to grab the candy once it all fell!

Checking herself out before leaving for the party.