S'more Fun

When we went camping last summer, we never made s'mores. I thought Jackson needed to try this delicious treat. With no fire, we opted for the oven. Jackson helped me lay out the graham crackers and marshmallows.

The first ones we left in a little too long!

We perfected the next few and enjoyed them poolside!

 I think it is safe to say he thought they were yummy!

It might be time for a firepit in the backyard:)



Weekend Round Up

On Saturday, we made our way to Uptown to take John out to lunch for his birthday. He picked Pappadeaux, definitely not my first choice but now this wasn't about me. Lunch was good, but I can't believe people actually eat lunch there because of how expensive it is. Our total was around $90 for 4 people and 1 ordered off the kid's menu!

After lunch, we had to make a quick shopping trip. I love how much nicer most of the buildings are in this part of town.

I decided to try my hand at a few crafty things this weekend. Here is a little sneak peek of one. I will let you know how they all went in a different post, but I am actually pleased with them.

Homemade pizza is a staple in our house on the weekend. Last night, we did BBQ chicken on half. Some how we did not have any BBQ sauce in the house, so we made our own. It turned out delish! We will be making this one again and possibly with our homemade sauce too!

I have been wanting to see The Smurfs, and thought Jackson might enjoy it as well. 

Pizza + Movie = Family Movie Picnic Night

Of course, we all have our blue on to match The Smurfs!

I really liked the movie and for some reason Jackson kept asking to see Gargamel. I see more picnic movie nights in the future. So fun!

We went to Church this morning. Then Jackson spent the time before nap playing with Thomas and all the other engines. He said they were helping him climb up on the couch and jumping off. Brian gave him some cushions to soften the fall and encourage this behavior!

I spent nap time addressing our Christmas cards. I believe I will have most of them in the mailbox tomorrow. Christmas cards are one of my favorite things about the holiday season, especially the ones that include pictures or letters.

It was a rainy, cold Sunday. Perfect for some Taco Soup! I dumped a bunch of cans together before Church and the house was smelling wonderful when we returned.

It tasted even better with a little cheese and Frito's on top! This was my first time to make Taco Soup, so easy and yummy. 

We had planned to take Jackson to the Parade of Lights. Since it was rainy we opted to stay in and play instead.

What a fun, relaxing, productive, and fun weekend we had! Can we do it again tomorrow?

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

I love to bake, and in the summer I actually have some down time with nothing that has to be done for the next day. So, I get a chance to do some baking I wouldn't normally do.

One day I spent some time making cinnamon rolls. I used the bread machine to make the dough. I really only use my bread machine to make dough. I think I need to make some "homemade" bread this week.

The dough came out perfect! Then, I rolled the dough out and dumped butter, sugar, and cinnamon on top! What could be better? A log roll was up next with 8 equal cuts. Into the pan they went and baked for 25 minutes.

(Sidenote: This is my first collage I created in Photoshop. I am slowly learning with the help of templates!)

Meanwhile, I mixed the icing up and drizzled it over the cinnamon rolls once they came out. I immediately served up Brian and myself a roll, which we enjoyed poolside! That may just make everything taste better.

I thought the dough recipe was excellent, but I will probably try a different icing recipe next time.

Hmm, what shall I bake tomorrow?

Wrapping Up the Week

The weather was picture perfect today! We decided to try a new place to eat that we have heard quite a bit about lately. The Love Shack turned out to be just as tasty as we were told. It is basically a junk yard with food that you pay for:) They have a few tables inside the "shack" but most of the tables are out back. They have a huge sand pile for the kids but Jackson was way more interested in the tractors!

I told you there is junk and it is everywhere, but I would definitely go back to eat there again.

There menu is crazy! Brian's burger is called The Bad Decision. It had a grilled cheese sandwich on the top and bottom of the burger with bacon.

They also have a burger with doughnuts and one with Cheetos. My chicken sandwich with teriyaki and pineapple was amazing!

Normally I don't like eating outside but I really enjoyed it tonight.

After dinner we left Jackson with Papa and Grandma and headed out for date night. We went up to the hospital to see our friends Cole and Erin who just welcomed a beautiful girl Adeyln to the world. She was beyond precious and Erin looks awesome. They will be the best parents.

Then Brian and I went shopping around. I made my first trip to Charming Charlies and found some great deals! What a great ending to a long week!

Wordless Wednesday: My mom is a great cook!

Honestly, there are no words to describe how much my son eats!

Mommy's Little Helper Weekend Edition

We had a great weekend! The only downside is that they always go WAY too fast! Friday night I made pumpkin pancakes and they were as good as I was hoping they would be. I was craving them since I read the recipe in a magazine a couple of weeks ago. That night we played in a fort with Jackson. Then Brian camped out with him downstairs and let me sleep upstairs in our bed without a monitor turned on. It was heaven!

They woke me up at 8 o'clock and we frantically got ready to walk for the MS 2010 walk at Katy Mills with our Sunday school class to support our friend. I skipped blow drying my hair, did my make up in the car, and we pulled in right on time! Jackson had a blast riding in the stroller and we strolled 1 lap around the mall together. Afterwards we did a little shopping and snagged Jackson some good deals. He fell asleep on the way home and slept for 4 hours, that may be a new record.

It stopped raining and warmed up a bit so we walked over to the park to play. Jackson had to take his ghost flashlight with him. He didn't put it down the whole time we were playing. We never know what toy he will want to bring with him when we go somewhere. I love this picture of him running around!

With mommy and daddy:)
Just playing at his favorite place in the world-

Lately Jackson wants to help us do what ever we are doing. He says, "I help" or "me mix too." Most of the time it is a good thing! I was in the mood to make cookies and we had butterfingers left over from trick-or-treating so Jackson and I baked away. After they were done and cooling on the countertop he pushed over a chair, climbed up, and grabbed himself a cookie!

"Mmm cookie!" Cookie is the first thing he asked for this morning when we came downstairs:)

Today we spent the morning at church, always a refreshing time. Then Brian and I organized our closets and now have a lot of clothes to donate. The rest of the afternoon was spent lounging around, finishing school work, running errands, and since it is Sunday making homemade pizza for dinner!

And now we have a new chef in the house...

Jackson was enthralled by the bread machine kneading the dough. He kept asking "what happening?" He helped spread the sauce, sprinkle the cheese, and taste test it to make sure it was just right!

I am hoping for a relaxed week that flies by!