2012 March

Harper’s Bow Tie & TuTu {Birthday Party}

March 19, 2012 25 Comments

Our sweet Harper turned two (… 3 months ago)!

This year we celebrated with a Bow Tie & TuTu Party.

I made little bow ties for all of the little boys to wear!

And scrappy tutus for the little girls!

(A full tutorial is coming soon)

These were the party favors too!

Yep.

I sent the littles home in a bow tie or tutu!

I am in LOVE with this chevron pennant banner inspired by this one.

(A full tutorial is coming very soon for those of you without a Silhouette)

Thanks to my Silhouette,

the cupcake toppers were created in no time!

These fun party lanterns were purchased from Hobby Lobby.

I ran twine through the center of each one so they could hang!

Aren’t they fun?!

I was thrilled that the little girls were eager to dance in the bubbles

with their tutus!

And the little boys melted my heart in their bow ties!

Stay tuned for more party details and tutorials!

Filed Under: Birthday Party, Family, The Girl

Friday Phone Dump {Instagram}

March 16, 2012 1 Comment

This week has been super crazy…

like crazier than normal crazy!

Anywho,

Here is our week through Instagram photos!

This week I have been getting ready for Harper’s 2nd birthday party this weekend!

(yes, I am three months late…)

The bump is growing and growing and growing…

We went to watch the hubs race motocross

and

he came in FIRST place in both races!

Ross and I went out for Sushi with a bunch of friends!

The time change kicked our hineys…

Spring is in full swing and I actually was able to sun the bump

by my Aunt’s pool while the littles napped inside!

That’s our week through the photos on my phone!

If you want to play with me on Instagram you can find me here:

johnnyinadress

Happy Friday!

Filed Under: Family, Instagram, Life, Pregnancy, The Boy, The Girl

Ooey Gooey Choc Chip Oatmeal Cookies {Recipe}

March 14, 2012 1 Comment

Recently I have been CRAVING chocolate chip cookies.
I decided to scour the internet for some “healthier” options
and after searching…
…and searching…

and searching, I finally threw in the towel and created my own recipe
using what little baking “know how” I have!

These were a HUGE hit in our house and I know will be a hit in yours too!

These Oooey Gooey Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
are soft on the inside with the perfect hardness on the outside!

Ingredients:

1 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp corn starch

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1/4 cut unsweetened apple sauce

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups oats (quick or old fashioned)

3/4 cup of chocolate chips (any kind you want!)

Now that you have the ingredients,

let’s whip up some cookies!

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk together flour, corn starch, baking soda and salt in a bowl then set aside.

Using a mixer, mix the butter, sugar, brown sugar until well blended and creamy,
then add the egg, vanilla and applesauce.

Stir in the flour mixture in the bowl that you set aside by HAND then add the oats.

Get those hands dirty and blend the ingredients together SUPER well!

Add the chocolate chips!

Now it’s time to bake your cookies!

Drop the dough onto your baking sheet
(mine were about 1 tablespoon each),

then bake about 8-10 minutes until the edges of the cookies are LIGHT brown.

(You do NOT want to overcook the cookies!)

Keep these super yummy cookies on the counter in an air tight container!

(I bet they won’t be there for long!)

Happy Baking!

Filed Under: Cooking, Recipe, Uncategorized

Sweet Silhouettes!

March 12, 2012 7 Comments

In our den hangs Cliff and Harper’s silhouettes!
And I am completely in LOVE!

Holly from Life As A Thrifter lives about 30 minutes away from me!
(Yes, she is just as fabulous in real life!)
I walked into her beautiful home and completely fell in love with this:

I just HAD to make a few for our house!

Since I am now obsessed with cutting wood…
and painting signs…
this project was perfect!

I love how they POP in our den!

Love!

Filed Under: Crafting, Decorating, Inspiration, My House, Spray Paint, Thrifty

Friday Phone Dump {Instagram}

March 9, 2012 1 Comment

The hubs and I just got the iPhone 4s!
(HOW did we ever survive without Siri?!)

Anyway…
THAT means I am now on Instagram!
(aaaand I am totally obsessed)

Without further adieu,
here is my first ever “Friday Phone Dump…”
(aka our week in Instagram pictures)

If you want to come play on Instagram with me,
you can find me here:
johnnyinadress

Happy Friday!

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Last week I shared Cliff’s birth Story and today I am going to share Harper’s.
Harper’s birth was beautiful.
Easy.
So unbelievably sweet and perfect.
Cliff was there with me for most of the labor.
He was immediately brought into the room as soon as Harper was born.
Having him there made this day even more magical and special.

This is Harper’s birth story:

The Lord continues to bless our family and we are so thankful!

Filed Under: Uncategorized

{Motocross}

March 6, 2012 4 Comments

Our summers are spent on the water, soaking up the sun and

just being together on our boat.

Our winters are spent at the motocross track.

Yep.
The Hubs rides Motocross!

Ross loads up his bike, I load up the littles and we’re off!
The excitement on his face is priceless.

The routine is always the same.
Ross puts his gear on…

…while the littles wait with excitement and I organize all of our stuff.

Before Ross goes out on the track,
He always has a few minutes with his biggest fan, Cliff.
These moments are so beautiful, tender and sweet.

Soon the littles are “oohing and aahing” when their daddy flies through the air.
Cliff always points in amazement and says
“Look Mama, Daddy can fly!”

As strange as it sounds,
these days are all about our family.
Being together.
Enjoying each other.
Laughing, talking and sharing secrets.
And although it would be so much easier for Ross to work on his bike in peace,
he always recruits help from the two best mechanics
in this world.

The Girl yells “WHOA!” every time a bike goes flying in the air over a jump.
She loves “minicycles!”

Being at the racetrack is a nice change of pace from her usual days of
“dance kwass” and dressing up like Fancy Nancy!
I want her to be well rounded, experience as much as she can.
I want her to be ok with trying new things and being outside of her comfort zone.

So far,
The Girl is a rock star at being in the moment and embracing change.

While Daddy is on the racetrack…

…The Boy races his own little dirt bikes.

And when Ross comes back to us,
he takes the boy to “race” around the pits.
This is Cliff’s favorite part!
(Don’t worry, Ross does not take him out on the track!)

Motocross.

We LOVE it!

How do you spend your Saturdays in the winter?!

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Fishin’ Game Tutorial!

March 5, 2012 16 Comments

I recently made Harper her very own Fishin’ Game!
…and she LOVES it!

I pinned this a while ago, thinking it was linked to a tutorial…
but it was linked to a store!

…bummer…

So in true JIAD style I decided to would make my own version!
I went through Harper’s sock drawer and found a few socks that were
too small or had no match…
Then I got some stuffing and got to work!

Stuff the sock with stuffing.

Work the stuffing with your thumb into the sock.
Once the stuffing is down in the foot part of the sock tie it off with a tiny rubber band.

(see the next picture if you are confused)

Hot glue a little magnet to the bottom of the sock…

…where the toes would go.

Make sure to press firmly and use a good amount of glue!

Next get some felt (I used scraps) and hot glue whatever shapes or designs you want

onto the fish! Remember hot glue LOVES felt!

Cut little circles out of felt and add some eyes…

Then cut a strip of felt long enough to go around the tail of the fish so that it covers up the rubberband and make a bow!

And now you have a super cute little fishy that will attach to any metal surface!

To make a fishing pole,
take a dow rod and cut it to your desired length.

Cut a strip of ribbon long enough to make your “line.”

(remember to add a few extra inches to the final length you want when cutting)

Hot glue one end of the ribbon around one end of the dow rod.

Next, grab a metal “hook” from the peg board in your husband’s tool room and hot glue the ribbon around the straight part of the “hook!”

Finish off with a bow because everything looks better with a bow!

And if you want to,
you can cut a little piece of felt and hot glue it on the ends of the dow rod to make sure there aren’t any sharp edges from cutting your rod!

Make a bunch more fish and have fun with it!

And now you have super cute and fun fishin’ game for your little one to play with!

This would make a wonderful gift for a birthday too!

Good luck catching those fish!

Filed Under: Crafting, Gift, Pinterest, Tutorial

Baby Update {16 weeks}

March 4, 2012 6 Comments

I am 16 weeks along!
(As of yesterday)

I went back to my Doctor last week for a post op check up and another ultrasound!

This week, Hollis decided to show her cute little fanny!

Wanna see for yourself?!

Did you see those three white lines?!

THAT, my friends, means a GIRL!

Most importantly, Hollis looks perfectly healthy!

This is a picture of her brain:

Here is her tiny left hand that she had behind her head!
(Can we say little diva?!)

Here is her right hand, her palm is facing you!

We were able to get a BUNCH of profile shots this time!
This one if my favorites:

Of course we got to see her in 4D!

She was moving all around and we were able to see her practice breathing!

One time, she even put her hand in her mouth!

It was sooo cute!

We are so thankful that Hollis looks healthy and is growing perfectly!

Everything looks great with me too, which is always wonderful to hear!

I will start 17P Shots this week to prevent preterm labor.

I will go in once a week to my Doctor’s office to get the shot from now until 37 weeks.
These shots worked so well when I was pregnant with Harper and are so worth a little prick on the hiney!

Everything checked out so well, that my next ultrasound is scheduled for March 29th!
I almost had a heart attack when I checked out and they said that…

this will be the LONGEST I have gone so far without seeing little Hollis!

But I am so thankful that everything looks THAT great!

God is so so SO great!

For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

Psalm 139: 13-14

Filed Under: baby, Family, Pregnancy

It’s A…

March 2, 2012 43 Comments

The third time is the charm!
I went in for ANOTHER ultrasound and for a check up with my Doctor…
This time to baby showed it’s little fanny (in a good way!)!

Is it a BOY?

Or could it be a GIRL?!