The Diva is 8 Months

How time flies. I can't believe it, but my baby is already doing the inchworm lunge! She's getting so big and is starting to show her spunky personality. Here's a few pics of the celebratory occasion!

Can you believe that Kai took this first pic? It's practically the best one!

Bellagio Baby!

Well, I just got done cleaning the entire house because we had a crazy weekend and lets face it, I didn't do a thing yesterday with it being mother's day and all! I did get about a 30 foot rub from Kai on each foot, it was so cute and heartfelt! My house tends to look like a tornado went through it when we get busy. I was going to post before and after photos tonight, but then I thought that would just be embarassing. So, I'll blog about our weekend instead! We got a once in a life time opportunity on Thursday night last week to stay at the Bellagio Hotel, as Rich's Dad and his wife went to Mesa, AZ. They went to attend a funeral and it was so sudden that they couldn't cancel their room. Fortunately for us, we live here and didn't let a "too good to be true" room go to waste. We spent the night in a fancy pancy room that overlooked the strip and spent all day swimming in the 4 pools with fountains, and 2 hot tubs that were the size of small pools themselves. It was awesome! Kailer learned that he could swim on his own with floaties on! Yey! That makes swimming with him so much easier now! We saw the volcano show 3 times with Kailer. It is his favorite. We have definately nailed down the best viewing area for that, so we can properly entertain the next Vegas guests! We also got to eat one night with Erroll and Brenda at the Bellagio Buffet. I have been to my share of buffets and I can assure you this is the nicest one by far that we have ever been to! Although, no one can top the cotton candy that the Treasure Island buffet had, right Kai? This one had crazy enough, duck, quail, crab, swordfish, it's own sushi bar, and chocolate covered strawberries! Great right? Except, I was too slow on the strawberries, they ran out before I could get a plate full :( Here's some pics of our Vacation "my Bewwagio" as Kailer puts it...

Wedding Weekend

We got to enjoy lots of family fun this past weekend with Brenda and Erroll's wedding. We are so happy for them! We got to stay at Little America in SLC and we enjoyed great food and lots of swimming. They have an awesome warm pool and hot tub. We had I think 28 people together, about 8 rooms! We stayed up late and played cranium. It was great fun! Congrats guys and we love ya! Here's some pics

Recipe

Check out the slide show, I just updated it! Also, I had a couple of requests for the peanut butter easter eggs that I made for the kiddos. They're super yummy! Here it is...

CHOCOLATE COVERED EASTER EGGS
Bemidji, MN YW Project
For each batch of egg filler you will need:
4-5 cups of powdered sugar
1 1/2 sticks margarine
2 T vanilla
1 cup peanut butter (creamy Skippy)
The above mixture will make 8-10 eggs.
Cream the margarine, vanilla and peanut butter together and then add the powdered sugar. Cover this and put it in the refrigerator to keep cool. It is easier to handle when cooler. We used a Bosch mixer (not sure if that is how it is spelled) because the mixture gets pretty stiff. So, if you have someone with a high power mixer would be best so you don't burn yours out.
Buy milk chocolate candy chips in bags from Ben Franklin or any other craft store that sells chocolate in bags for candy making. One bag will do about 6 eggs.
We used plastic egg molds. Melt the chocolate either in a double boiler or in the microwave. Use a teaspoon to spoon a little chocolate into the bottom and sides of the egg mold so that it is covered but not too thick. Set the egg in the freezer to harden for a minute or two. Then remove from the freezer and using your hands take a ball of peanut butter dough and squish into the egg mold. Don't push too hard or you will break the chocolate around the bottom and sides. Then put a thin layer of chocolate over the top of the egg and let that stiffen up - perhaps putting in the freezer again for another minute or two. When it is set good, remove from the mold. Now it can be decorated with frosting of various colors. We used the decorator bags and had white, pink and green I believe and just decorated with flowers and leaves. You can write names on them if wanted. We put a little Easter grass in the bottom of a paper boat (what French fries are sometimes served in) and then placed the egg on top.

There ya have it. So we're off to Utah now to be with Rich's family, as his Dad is getting remarried. We're so excited for them! Here's hoping the 6 hour drive with two crazy kids goes well. Wish us luck... Oh, can't post without a pic!

Oh No You Didn't!!!!

Ok, so until about a month ago we hadn't really experienced any major terrible 2's tantrums. Some say age 3 is worse than 2, but we are definitely rolling with the constant highs and lows of our sometimes bipolar little man! Today there were a few things that went wrong. 1. Hungry 2. Tired (As he woke up 5 times last night, yes 5) 3. I only have 2 hands and 4. His paper fish came unglued as he was getting himself out of the car. So, he starts the meltdown in the garage because I can't carry him up the stairs while holding Meili and bags, not to mention the list above. I told him I would bring her upstairs and come back for him. That was not ok. By the time I get back downstairs, I thought he had hit the maximum meltdown phase. Little did I know that was yet to come. I asked him to wait in his room until he could come out happy and we could talk about what was wrong using our words. There was lots of yelling, screaming, jumping, things banging, and I had no idea what was going on. I waited for him to come out. He did after about 10 min. face tearstained and says "Mommy, I don't like the mess I made." Ok, that can't be good. This is what I found......

Before Meltdown

Peak Meltdown

Yes, that is a toddler mattress on the floor. For us this is extremely out of character. He is a very organized almost neurotic child who likes everything in order and in its place. I was shocked to say the least! At least he said he didn't like the mess he made! Chalk one up to the terrible 2's....

Well, at least she tolerates it

So, my sister sent a flower clip for Meili among other great things in the mail from her vacation in Hawaii. What does this mean?????? PHOTO SHOOT! Let's see your best shot Meili! Here's how it progressed.......

"Yey! Ok Mom, this IS fun!"

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me Mother!"

"Maybe if I hold it with two hands she won't take it away from me again...."

Powell and More

I know there tons of pics here, but I had to give a taste of what Powell was like. We all camped in our tent on a king air matress. If you know us well, you know we don't sleep with our kids, so this was a treat for us to all sleep together in our own tent. Alright, truth be known there were butts in faces, knees in backs, and whenever I moved Meili would wake up! Ok it wasn't that bad but after 3 nights we were ready for some space! Kailer had a great time fishing, he loves to catch them, but turns out he's more of a catch and release kind of boy. I actually caught a small mouth on his pole and after we realed it in he said "Now lets let him back in the water so he can go to his family." If you know my family, aside from my husband that is, they do not throw anything back unless it's a carp! So we convinced him that the fish already in the basket was his sister and they could now be togther. That's my sweet little man! There are some great shots here, enjoy!

Kai and his Aunt Deanna

Time out in the car turned into this...

Rich's fish got eaten by the birds!

We had a great trip, we then headed to my sister's in Provo, where apparently the Easter Bunny visited us once again. (He came to Powell as well!) We got to spend the week there and then traveled to price to visit more cousins. We had a great time, but are glad to be sleeping in our own beds again!