Penny's Pictures

I just realized how much like my mom I sound..Penny's..
by that I mean JC Penny
We wanted to get some pictures of the girls taken for my mom for Mother's Day
as if we don't have enough pictures
So we packed them up and headed
(with my coupon for a free sitting and free 8x10, also very Sandy-like)
to the mall.

The pictures actually turned out ok..
I would not go over the top in recommending JC Penny for pictures,
but for what we paid..we got some cute pictures..
Aside from the photographer clucking crazily at the girls
 in some attempt to get them to smile
which was like some crazy farm toy gone wrong..
the girls actually cooperated and smiled a little..

Lilly-pants

Elise-e-loo

Get out of my picture....

and my little poser..

Flip Flops and Fur

In one day I found Lilly both with cat fur in her mouth NASTY!

she can grab at the cats when they are strolling by..and they are not smart enough yet to stay out of arms length of the babies

and later in the day she was chewing on a flip flop..

probably more gross than the fur considering I walk on the floors of Walmart in those

and being the good mom that I am..I ran to get the camera before taking them away

she looks like she is about to take a giant bite out of it

Hoping

Here is to hoping that my coffee maker dies before Mother's Day, so that I have an excuse to buy this beauty..Which I really have no real need for since my coffee maker works great.

but its just so chic looking..with its little blue lights

(which would match my toaster which has a little blue light)

But then I would have to buy these ridiculously over priced little

coffee pods

which I really secretly love the little organized packets

and then I would need to organize them on the counter

so..all in all it would be a pretty big investment..

I should just stick to my homemade coffee with the

*occasional* Starbucks run..

Baseball

A few weeks ago Russ and I were lucky enough to have

another date night. We went to see the Tigers play the Brewers

Good stuff..I am not a huge lover of baseball..

but I am a lover of greasy pizza at Miller Park..

and time alone with Russ sans children

Karl and Bethany, two great friends of ours offered to come

and watched the girls. There is nothing like great friends, who love God,

and serve Him and others willingly.

We are blessed to have many friends like that here..

Lilly and Elise each rooted for their own teams..

And I am noticing by these pictures..that I would

like LOVE a new camera!

Purple

How can you just not love it..in all of its purpleness

(Thanks Aunt Katie for the CUTE outfits :)

Baby Food

I wanted to try and make the girls baby food, not only to save money but also so that they could have fresh organic fruits and vegetables. So, far its not too bad. My first attempt was bananas

I just use a small Kitchen Aid Food Processor and it works great

add a little water and blend, pour into ice cube trays

I found these great ones with lids to prevent freezer burn

put it in a plastic freezer bag and label, throw into my organized freezer bins

yes..I know..this is where I go a little over the top..

I used self adhesive dry erase sheets to make a baby food log

so I would always know what I had on hand

with a little tray to keep the dry erase re-usable labels and markers on hand..

OCD! and I love it!

Since then I have made sweet potatoes, zucchini, pears, peaches, plums,

avocado, peas, beans, and cantaloupe.

Any other suggestions of baby food ideas??

Gary's Gallop

No, I could not make up the name of the 5K that my friend Alison and I ran walked. Gary's Gallop. As my friend Jen said, "Only in Wisconsin..are they serving brats and beer too?" ha ha..no brats or beer but coffee, fruit and warm soup. It was sunny and looked like it should be warm but it was COLD..We bundled the girls up and enjoyed some good company and fresh air

the girls both fell asleep after a few minutes in the stroller

Purse

I have been wanting to make a purse for a while, but I realized that I don't have time in my life right now for a giant project like making an entire purse..so I stumbled across this awesome purse revamp and decided to give it a copy try..I LOVE how it turned out and I was able to do the purse one night after the girls were in bed and the flowers during a nap time.

So, this is my fun summer afordable bag..

I already have an idea for another purse this winter...

Easter

I really wanted to make the girls Easter dresses

I think it was my desperate need for something new and creative

so I found a pattern online for pillowcase dresses

and of course

cute pink fabric....

found a great deal with two white sweaters..

then decided they needed bows as well

(which actually match their lampshade..haha)

and since I still had extra fabric I went a little nutty

with bibs

burp clothes..and blankets, and pacifier clips

Lilly and Elise got their friends from church a little Easter candy

to prepare for the group photo

Sami, Elise, Lilly, Ellie, and Liam

and of course a family picture

since I actually bought a new dress!

This song sums up my Easter thoughts better than I could ever articulate

There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain:
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave he rose again!
And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me,
For I am His and He is mine -
Bought with the precious blood of Christ.



No guilt in life, no fear in death,
This is the power of Christ in me;
From life's first cry to final breath.
Jesus commands my destiny.
No power of hell, no scheme of man,
Can ever pluck me from His hand;
Till He returns or calls me home,
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand.

Faces

I try and tell Lilly that she may get wrinkles from this..

or that her face may freeze that way..

Lamp Revamp

I have been LOVING this pink rose lamp shade from Pottery Barn Kids

Slight problem

I don't have $100.00 (literally..the lamp shade is $99.00)

extra dollars for a lamp shade

so I decided that I could make a funky one using

a yard of white 100% polyester fabric, a votive candle, 500 plastic pearls

(Michaels with coupon $2.99)

so I started with my plain white lampshade

and ended up with this funkiness

Two sides done..two more to go..

Back to the G-Rap

We had such a great time in Michigan last weekend..

We loaded up the girls

and the van

no, we are not moving

Russ loves when I do this

We had pizza Friday with the Langerak's and

have no pictures to document this

because the girls we are a little crazy :)

and we were too busy having fun!

On Sat Grandma and "Grandma Carol" babysat

while Russ and I spent sometime with friends.

Then we packed up the girls and headed off to Lansing

for Tyler's first birthday party.

Theme: March Madness!

I scored with these little basketballs on clearance

at Walmart for 20 cents

and just had Russ drill holes in them

this is little T with Lilly trying to escape with her paci

could he be any cuter!!!

giving Lils a little rock in the rocking chair

Aunt Katie and the girls

everyone in their jams and ready to go to bed

On Sunday we spent the morning at "Grandma" Heerema's

then off to the VanderBoon's for Sunday dinner

hanging with Great Grandma and Great Grandpa

then off to relax at the hotel for a few hours and swim

there are no words for this cuteness :)

needless to say the pool was a big hit

It was a great weekend and we LOVE and MISS our family