What's Cookin?

Ok!  So in my attempts to eat better, get healthier, feel more organized in the food department, I decided to Meal Plan & Grocery List again.  Brilliant.   I know.

I have some picky & special needs eaters at my house, so this requires a lot of organization on my part.

And yeah, it's Tuesday...so I'm a day late (and a dollar short), but here's my SupperTime Menu this week!

Monday: BBQ Take Out 

Tuesday: Chicken Pasta with Spinach + Cherry Tomatoes with Roasted Green Veggies

{{Cut up chicken tenderloins with Kitchen Scissors.  Cook in coconut oil in skillet.  Cook Pasta in separate pan.  Add Pasta to chicken.  Pour in 1/2 cup to cup of Tuscan House Italian Dressing.  Add in quartered cherry tom's & spinach, cooking till warm.}}

Wednesday: Chicken Casserole + zucchini

Thursday: Hamburger Flatbreads + Sweet Potato Fries

Friday: Chili Soup + Grilled Cheese

Saturday/Sunday: Burrito Bowls or Out to Eat

Meals are SO stressful to me.  But having it all planned out, and the fridge stocked puts me in such a more creative mind set when it comes to dinners.

What's on the menu for y'all this week???

Happy Cooking! {and saving money eating at home!}

Christmas 2014

Oh Christmastime!

I love thee.  But you never quite work out like I plan.

This year was no different.

Maybe one day I'll stop letting that bother me.

Nonetheless.

The littles both had something or another going on, starting the week before Christmas.

Snot, Cough, Croupe, Teeth, Fevers.  It was fun.

But we rallied and we made the most of the Christmas Holiday.

Some events were skipped.

Some rescheduled.

And some just done completely different.  

But Christmas Morning was my favorite.  Maybe my favorite of all time.

Most of the time we are rushing around having 4 places to go to and we never get to fully enjoy.

This year, we stayed home.  It was glorious.

I was able to fix breakfast for my crew.  We played with our toys.  We stayed in PJ's all day.

We were together.  No rushing.  No fussing.  Just enjoyable all day long.

My in-laws came up for a visit & my mom + step dad came to have brunch & my dad came too.

It was so nice to have my home filled with my family throughout the day.

Lance said it best 'it's going to be hard to get me to go anywhere on Christmas Day next year!'

It was wonderful.  Truly!

#tradition

Despite the "plan" I had in my mind, it really was perfect. 

One day, maybe I'll learn to roll with the punches a little better!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!

Doing all the Christmas Things:: Gingerbread Houses

It's no secret I'm a sucker for tradition.

So if we do something one year, and enjoyed it, you better believe we're going to do it again.

We bought a kit a few weeks ago on one of our Target trips and finally got around to putting them together.

I did the construction, and Easton did the decorating.

I love seeing his little creativity and imagination go to work.

He's so serious and concentrated. 

I so cherish this time I have with he and Emerson at home.

There are long hard days, but there are so many moments even within those hard days that are just beautiful.  Priceless days for sure.

He wanted to share the houses with Emerson and put 2 in her room, but with no place to put them we decided it best to be in his room.

Our village has 5 little buildings.

I went in his room later that night to put clothes away and noticed we were down to 4.

After further investigation, I learned that he was holding on to his dresser, while balancing on his green bouncy ball looking out the window and he pulled #5 off.  Kirby took care of the clean up.

Oh, the memories.  Never a dull moment at the Farrar House!

What are some of your favorite Christmas traditions?  

I love trying to do all the Christmas things we can during this Season.

It comes and goes so quickly.

Cinnamon Christmas Ornaments

Being home this Christmas Season, with 2 babies, I knew I wanted to try to make the most of the season.  I've pinned a lot of Christmas Crafts and we've been reading scripture at night before Easton goes to bed.  I really want to focus on Jesus this year and the importance of Jesus in Christmas.

Last year, Easton & I made Cinnamon Ornaments and this year as we unpacked our ornaments to put on the tree, the cinnamon smell filled up the bonus room.  I thought it would be fun to do again this year.

Easton was a perfect age for them.  I mixed the dough and rolled it out and he used the cookie cutters himself and put them on the cookie sheet.  We also had my sister-in-law & niece over to make some with us! This recipe makes a full cookie sheet of mini ornaments.

I found the mini cookie cutters at Target in the Christmas section for $3.99.

All you need is 3/4 cup of apple sauce + 2 containers of Cinnamon.  If you have any Essential Oils, add a few drops of clove or orange or Christmas Spirit in your mix!  Clove smells super yummy!!!

1. Mix it together and separate into 2 balls.
2. Lay some plastic wrap on the counter and put the ball of dough on it.  Cover with another layer of plastic wrap.
3.  Roll out the dough to 1/4-1/2 inch thick.
4.  Pull off top layer of plastic wrap and go to town cutting out ornaments.
((TIP:: The mini cutters were a lot easier than the full size.  Little hands can handle smaller ornaments a lot easier.))
5.  Lay them on a cookie sheet and use a tooth pick to make a hole big enough to string twine or ribbon through.
6.  Bake at 200 for 2 1/2 hours and let cool before stringing.

Then hang them on the tree and enjoy the yummy smell!

Emerson's First Birthday

I love a good party.

And this one was so much fun.  

So much fun to have some pink.  {{who am I?}}

We celebrated Emerson the day before her birthday.

I will always do parties on days around their birthday.

The party day gets so crazy and before you know it, it's over.  

I want to always have their BirthDAY, low key and with just them.  

Maybe this will change as they get older, but for now, that's how I like it.

So, we did a lunch time party.

Chicken Salad, Ham & Rolls, Fresh Salsa, Fruit, Pasta Salad, Dipped Pretzels & Cupcakes.

It was all so yummy, if I do say so myself.

I kept the decor simple.

Some babies breath, a tissue tassel garland, balloons & some Paper Lanterns over the food table.

 I'll let the pictures do the talking, but I think you'll see we had a wonderful time celebrating our Emerson!

Happy Birthday Emerson Sloan!

I know you'll never remember this par-tay, but I will.  Forever.

Love you sweet girl!

Emerson Sloan:: 12 Months

12 Months

How?

This has been the fastest year of my life.

I don't even know where to begin with this little darlin.

She's a spirited little thing.  Whiskey in a TeaCup would describe her.  

Or Bull in a China Shop.

But I wouldn't trade her personality for all the sweet tea at Chick Fil A.  

Let's see.

Eating.  Sister loves to eat.  Praise the Lord.

I can mix her Procal in just about anything and she'll down it.

I am thankful for this every time I feed her.

So many struggle with picky eaters, but so far, she loves most anything I give.

Nursing.  We made it to a year!

We are down to 3 times a day.  When she wakes up in the morning, around 2pm and at bedtime.

I don't know how long we'll go, but I'm in no hurry to stop.

Sleeping.  Geez.  This is a doozy.

Thankfully, her night time sleep is consistent.  She goes to bed about 8 and gets up about 7.  

Naps stink.  I've worked on them about 2 weeks now.

She cries for 20-30 min when I lay her down, then sleeps for 45 min max.

I'm just working on morning nap for now.  I don't have it in me to do this twice a day.

Typically we are in the car for the afternoon snooze.  

Sister is full of personality!  

She knows what she likes and she'll let you know.  Very strong opinion.

Head Strong.  But this will take her FAR one day.

I have no doubt she will do big things and make a big impact.

She's a lover.  She loves to snuggle and can melt you in a moment with her smile.

My prayer for her is that she will grow to love Jesus and love others.

I pray this every day for her and for Easton.

I pray that she will grow to be a strong independent woman and a light to those around her.

She surely is a light to us.

She's 'talking' more and more.

She'll say 'Bubba', dada, momma, ba (ball), bye, up.

She waves.  It might be one of my favorite things.  Ever.

Her little right hand just swirls around.  I love it.

She also will throw her arms up when you say "are you SO BIG?"

She loves to peek out the window when anyone comes or goes. 

She bends over and peers around.  Little nosey thing.  

She can find her toes.

She knows a few sign language signs.  All done being her favorite.

She loves her brother.  He can get her to do anything.  And he's pretty crazy about her too.  

Emerson Sloan, we LOVE you SO MUCH!!!!

We are so thankful for you and for the joy and ACTION you bring to this family!

I am thankful for a healthy first year!

We love you a Bushel & a Peck Emmy Boo!