Peach Gold & White Baby Shower!

 

This past weekend my best friend hosted a baby shower with my family & friends to celebrate Emersons pending arrival!

She is so talented and creative!

She knows I'm not a TOO MUCH pink fan, so she went with peach, white and gold.
I am LOVING peach right now. 

Emerson's nursery is peach!

Whispering Peach from Benjamin Moore.

It's so sweet and soft and soothing.

 

Thank you Brooke for all you did!

Everything was perfect & delicious!

 

Maple donuts are my FAVE!  She knows. 

Dipped pretzels are also a FAVE!

How cute are these with gold glittler?!?!

 

 

Hope you all had a fun weekend!

We went to Gatlinburg after the shower!

Had a BIG TIME!!

 

 

Growing up, gaining independence

He's growing up right before my very eyes.  Sometimes he still wants to be my baby and have me hold him, or help him but so many times, he wants to 'do it myself' or 'I can do that!'

Last night after bath, I'd rubbed him down with our special magic lotion (for his eczema) and it was time to put jamma's on.  We went in his room and I grabbed a pair of cotton pants and helped him get them on.  One leg at a time, holding on to my shoulders while he stepped in.  It came time for the shirt and he wanted to pick that out on his own.  Forget jamma shirts, he wants a t shirt.  He went to his closet and picked out his MY MOM ROCKS shirt (that's my boy!).  I took it from him assuming he'd want my help, but he told me he could do it himself. 

He held that little shirt upside down and backwards and asked if it was the right way.  I showed him which side was the front.  He flipped it around.  Held the front under his chin and started working the back of it over his head.  Once his head popped through that smile peeked out and those eyes cut up at me.  Slowly, one arm at a time, with a few questions of 'where is the arm?' he finally got it.  Left, then right.  He very proudly straightened it all out and smiled. 

Part of me was beaming, yet part of me wanted to burst out in tears.  My little boy, three and a half years old is growing up right before my very eyes. 

We headed to the bathroom to brush his teeth.  I sat him up on the counter and again, 'I can do it myself.'  Sure enough, he pulled out the toothpaste, squirted it on his toothbrush and ran it under the water.  He began brushing, just as I've done so many nights.  Saying 'eeeeee' to get those front ones good and clean and 'open wide' to get the big chompers in the back.  Spitting when he filled up with 'all those bubbles!!!' and rinsing when he was done. 

As I sat there watching him I couldn't help but think that in a few short months I'd be grateful for the fact that he can do these things on his own as I'll be tending to his new baby sister, but for now, it makes me a bit weepy.  The little boy who once depended on me for everything, can now do so much on his own. 

As bedtime approached, we were saying our 'good-nights' to daddy upstairs and the little baby boy was back.  With Charlie in hand and Ra-Ra in his mouth, that request to 'pick me up' came out.  I gladly picked him up, rested him up over the top of my ever growing belly and headed to his room.  His arms around my neck and head rested on my shoulder, I was thankful for that little moment of 'baby' that was still there.   

This growing up stuff ain't easy.  Rewarding yet challenging.  Inevitable yet painful.  BUT!  I'm so thankful that I can watch him grow.  And thankful that he's mine. 

Recipe:: Zucchini Carrot Muffins

I am am always on the hunt for quick little snacks I can put in Easton's lunch.

Sometimes those come at a cost.  TOO MUCH SUGAR.

Yes, it's easy to throw a bunch of prepackaged items in his lunchbox, but I really want him to have good food choices and be healthy!

 

There are way too many sugary options out these days.

I'm guilty of buying and eating them, but I do prefer to do less sugar where we can.

And I also don't deprive him either.  All things in moderation I believe.

 

Last week I happened upon a Zucchini Bread Recipe on Better Homes & Gardens and I pinned it!

 

Last night I decided to make some while I was getting supper ready.

 

The recipe calls for just Zucchini but I added carrots as well.

Those are 2 veggies that Easton will NOT eat, so why not sneak them in when I can.

 

Disguise anything with a little bit of sugar and cinnamon and the boy will eat it.

 

{Even Kirby was looking for a crumb}

Recipe from BHG
**MY CHANGES
Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (I'm going to try this with oatmeal flour next...we'll see how that goes)
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup finely shredded, unpeeled zucchini **I used a whole zucchini and 2 whole carrots
• 1/4 cup cooking oil
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, toasted **no nuts- Easton's school is nut free

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease the bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of an 8x4x2-inch loaf pan; set aside. In a medium bowl combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, baking powder, and nutmeg. Make a well in center of flour mixture; set aside.

2. In another medium bowl combine egg, sugar, shredded zucchini, and oil. Add zucchini mixture all at once to flour mixture. Stir just until moistened (batter should be lumpy). Fold in nuts. Spoon batter into prepared pan.

3. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan. Cool completely on a wire rack. Wrap and store overnight before slicing.

From the Test Kitchen

 

**I prepared our Zucchini Carrot Bread as muffins.  I

 used my mini muffin pan that yields 24 muffins. 

Spray the pay and use a small cookie scoop to scoop batter into pan. 

(And yes, they're right.  The batter WILL be lumpy.) 

They cooked at 350 for 20 minutes...until toothpick came out clean. 

Let cool about 5 minutes and gently lift muffins out of tin.

Cool before storing. 

 

Let me tell you, these are DELISH!

I froze half the batch and left the other half in a ziploc for this week.

The perfect little snack for his lunchbox {and mine}!

 

Now, lets just see if the 2 I put in his lunch box are gone this afternoon!

That's the REAL test!

 

Do you have any ways you sneak veggies into your kids meals? 

I'm always looking for new and different HEALTHY treats!

Little Sister kicked for Big Brother

 

a little sweet memory for the record books.

tonight while crocheting, easton felt emerson move for the first time.

his little eyes lit up and his face filled with a smile.

 

i can't wait till he sees her for the first time.

DIY:: Barn Wood Headboard

 

This post has been a LONG time coming.

I've wanted a wood headboard since I saw THIS ONE, months ago, before we even moved into our house.

I stalk Liz's blog regularly! 

She has so many fabulous DIY ideas!

I'll take her whole master bedroom if we're being honest!

She nailed it to a T. 

It's perfectly cozy and warm, with so many of the things I love.

Deer Antlers.  Boxwood.  Barn Wood.  Golds & Browns. 

Its perfect!

 

Anyways.  Back to the wood headboard.

 

We debated fencing wood like Liz used or pallet wood from all the pallets we had accumulated through construction.  But ultimately, settled on Barn Wood.

It doesn't get much more rustic than that!

 

 

We found a local company that sells salvaged, reclaimned barn wood a few months back. 

We first visted their location in Carthage, but now they have an old lumber mill in Portland.

That's where we bought the wood below.

The wood we selected was from a barn in Kentucky that they tore down.

 

Once we selected the wood, we brought it home to clean it.

Jason, that sold us the wood, suggested a Borax solution.

The Borax will kill any wood boring bugs as well as anything that's on the surface of the wood.

 

TIP:::premake a large bucket of borax first, THEN pour it in your squirt bottle or sprayer.

The borax takes some time to dissolve and it was clogging up a LOT.

SO, I made a large batch, about 1 cup or more of borax to about a gallon of HOT water and kept stirring until it was dissolved.

We ended up putting the solution in the paint sprayer and spraying it that way.  LOTS FASTER!

 

Spray the boards down, back and front, saturating them with the solution.

Let them dry a few days.

We laid ours out in the sunshine one full day to get them real good and dry.

 

 

After this, Lance ran each piece through the table saw and ripped them down to 3 different widths.

We made stacks of each width to keep inventory of what we had.

 

We taped off a section of the garage floor the size of our headboard and started laying out the pieces.

Each row contained at least 2 pieces, some even 3 depending on the cuts we made along the way.

Stagger the pieces as you go, so no seams meet.

We wanted all the original cuts on the outside, so we didn't have any 'raw' edges visable.

Once we had it just like we wanted it, I labeled each row a-z on the raw cut edge with a sharpie.

 

Row by row, we nailed each board to the wall.

Lance used an air compressor and a trim nailer to attach them to the wall.

We started in the middle of the wall since we had the windows as a guide.

We worked our way down first, then back to the ceiling. 

Instead of going all the way to the floor, we just made an edge piece so it would appear that way once the bed was in place.

For the top piece, he ripped it down double the width of the boards below and nailed it from the top to create a finished edge.

 

So, there you have it.

Our Barn Wood Headboard.

It makes such an impact in the room and was totally worth the wait and the work!

 

 

 

Now, if I could just find night stands for under the windows, paint Lance's dresser and find a chair for in front of the window, I could show you the rest of the room.  That may never get done though, so the headboard will have to work for now! 

 

Happy DIY-ing!

 

 

2013 Wilson County Fair

Last week the fair was in town.

The Wilson County Fair is THE FAIR to go to in Middle Tennessee.

You haven't lived until you've been to The Fair.

Well...we've lived.  We went twice this year.

The weather was so mild, it was actually enjoyable.

 

My favorite area, besides the food, is the Fiddlers Grove area. 

There's all kinds of old timey things to do.

Grinding corn.  A mule grinding sorgum to make molases.  Bluegrass music.  Tractors.

 

Easton's with me on the Bluegrass music.

We sat down to listen to the Gallinipper's play and I do believe he could have sat there all night.

I know I could have.

 

He and Lance rode the Tilt-A-Whirl (aka the spinny t'ang)  too many times to count.

I love this picture!  It may be blury, but you can still see their smiles...and their laughing!

 

And...it's tradition.  I can't go to the fair without a swirly tater and a sweet tea.

 

 

The fair was so much fun for Easton this year!

He rode everything that he could.

The Tilt A Whirl was by far his favorite!

He has grown so much since last year!

It was fun to see him try new things and embrace all that the fair had to offer. 

 

 

 

 

Happy end of Summer!

 

Monday again...

The weekends always go way too fast.

Every Friday begins the discussion...

"what do you want to do this weekend?"

Actually, this starts about Wednesday if we're honest.

 

I always say "I don't care, we can do whatever" and then the weekend happens.

 

And these past few they've been spent at home.

And I couldn't be happier.

 

Friday night we rented a movie and had pizza. 

Easton LOVES Movie Night.

He crawled up on the love seat with me while I was crocheting, sitting at the foot of the couch.

I've been working on Emerson's blanket a row or two each night but Friday night I decided to just put it down and nestle him in with me.

Within about 5 minutes, his breathing slowed and his never still self, was suddenly still.

Little thing was out like a light.

That's what 2 days of no naps at school will get ya.

We stayed just like this till I snuck out from under him and carried him down to his bed.

I cherish moments like that.

 

Saturday morning we made Blueberry Muffins from scratch.

And we had an issue with the wire whisk.

My mixer bit the dust a few months ago so I've been using a wire whisk.

However, these muffins were SUPER THICK and we had a hard time whisking.

At one point, the handle came up and off a smidge, revealing rust.

I didn't think twice, I pushed the handle back down and continued whisking, noticing along the way that some of the rust had powdered down into the batter.  TINY bit.  Probably not even enough to worry about but after scooping all the muffins into the tin, covering them with the streusel topping, sliding them in the oven, it's all I could think about.

We're all going to die from rust!

These are the things I worry about folks.

 

We ate the muffins.  And we all lived to tell about it.

 

We sent Lance to his Fantasy Football Draft with 2 batches of no-bake cookies and we headed to the pool. 

 

We pretty much had the pool all to ourselves.

We got front row chairs by the frog pool.

That's pretty much like gold!

 

After the pool, we headed home for nap time.

I got a few more coats of paint on Emerson's bed and changing table while Easton napped.

 

Saturday night we had Turkey Bean Burritos for supper and a low key night at home.

I never thought I'd want to cook supper on the weekend, but it's just something about staying put.

I like to stay put these days.

I like to just be home.  No rushing. No getting ready.  No deciding where to go.

Just us.  Together.  At home.

 

Sunday was church, Bass Pro, Subway, Lowes then home for nap.

I finished the bed and changing table while Lance mowed the yard.

My mom came for a visit. 

Mothers are a treat y'all.
Whether they come baring gifts or not!

Cherish your mother!

She brought the boys their very own TERVIS cups and me a new mixer!

We're all on a TERVIS kick around here. 

I got one a few weeks back when the dr said I had low amniotic fluid and I needed more water...and it's been ON ever since! 

Seriously, I can put down 3-4, 24ounce cups of water a day and not think twice.

Get yourself a TERVIS!

 

Sunday night we had leftovers IN the Jon Boat.

Yes.  That's right.  Turkey Bean Burritos on our nice Fiesta plates in the Jon Boat.

We've reached a new level of red over here.

We finished the night off with s'mores by the fire.

Lance had been burning sticks all afternoon so we took advantage!

 

There were no fancy dinners.  No nights out on the town.  No dressing up (other than for church).

No get togethers with friends.  No trips to the Mall (Bass Pro doesn't count).

It was just simple, at home, togetherness.

 

I don't ever want to forget how slow we took these weekends.

How we just let them roll as they came.

I cherish this time with Lance and Easton.  SO MUCH.

I hope Easton grows up with strong family values and traditions and remembers how present his parents were.  And how much we love him.

 

Together.  What a wonderful place to be. 

 

Hope your weekend was FABULOUS! 

 

Linking up with Blair at Wild & Precious.