Last minute ball game

Yesterday afternoon, while hanging with my friendie, she got a call from her husband with free tickets to a Mariners baseball game for that evening. They were going to go and invited us to join them. We didn't have much time to plan or prepare but free tickets to a sporting event is not something we turn down.

I grabbed Jade's sportiest baseball cap and we met them to head over to the field.
This was our first Mariner's game since living in WA so we all were pretty excited. Even though it's mid-June it was still cool out, so most of us brought sweaters.
Here is a super cute pic of my friend and her daughter. They were dancing to the music and singing along. Cheering on their team and eating yummy treats.
Jade had a fabulous time. When she got bored we took walks around the stadium. Even found a play area, but you have to be at least 3. So one more year Jadey girl!
Oh, I also saw two different guys break their bats after hitting the ball. Yes, you heard me right, their bats just broke right in HALF! I couldn't believe that.
Coming up to the 8th inning our team hadn't really done much. Not one score on the board. We all started getting a little bored. My friend bought some cotton candy and gave Jade her first taste of that. Boy did Jade LOVE that!
But, like I said. The game started to wind down and we all thought the Mariners were going to be creamed by the AZ team.
And then, as Ken Grriffey Jr. gets warmed up to bat the whole stadium started going wild.
The opposite team took a LONG time talking with their guys planning their next move.
He got up to the plate, the first pitch was thrown and *BOOM* IT WAS A HOME RUN ON THE FIRST HIT!!! The crowd went WILD!!
It was awesome! The game went from boring to insanely exciting in a matter of seconds. The following batters upped it up a notch as well and got some base hits and soon another home run.

We had to leave by that time, but I was so excited, the energy was awesome. Seeing #24 bat was SO worth the entire game.

Jade did really well too, even though we didn't get home till really late. We are all a bit groggy this morning, but what a fun way to spend a Friday night!

My conversation with Jade this morning

Mommy: *sneaking quietly into Jade's room, only to find her awake* Jade honey, do you want some breakfast?
Jade: No, I reading
Mommy: You can bring your book downstairs, come on
Jade: No, I want my pillow too
Mommy: Your not hungry?
Jade: I'm reading now
Mommy: Okay, let me know when your hungry
Jade: Ah huh

Some pictures from my Family's visit

My Mom and four youngest siblings were visiting family in Sacramento last week. They decided to drive from CA to WA to come and visit JB, Jade and me for a few days. They arrived last Thursday evening. The first day they were visiting I knew they were tired from their long trip over, so we didn't do much. Later in the morning we headed over to Olympia's Farmers Market and walked around the market and then board walk. Here is Jadey girl with two of her Uncles, Travis and Isaac, and Aunt Lalia.
Jade wasn't to sure about her Uncle Tony, so the next morning he tried to win her over by playing jokes with her baby bib and cereal bowl. Hee, hee
Saturday JB took us all to play "glow-in-the dark" mini golf. The kids all had a great time.

Sunday, after church, we girlies headed out to do some shopping. As we were walking out the door I realized we were all in yellows, purples and reds. So we had to take a picture.
Monday I took the family to Seattle. I wanted the younger kids to see Pike Place Market and walk around downtown for awhile. Everyone loved it! We stopped at Red Robin for lunch, and took a few pictures.

Silly pics of my siblings

Jade making funny faces right back at them. lol
Tuesday we went to the park. Jade got to play on the play ground and the boys got to play basketball.

Wednesday was the day before everyone had to leave. So I decided to put everyone to work. Travis did the vacuuming.

Isaac beat out the rugs

Tony has some crazy dusting skills and dusted the whole house (well, I think Mom did upstairs)

Jade supervised and made lots of funny faces

Lalia cleaned the kitchen and washed all the floors. And mom and I tackled the bathrooms. I think we had the house cleaned in under an hour:)
After cleaning all moring, we went to a really pretty park that opens up to the water. Jade liked throwing rocks in the water.
Travis loved this park the most, I think. He is really into wildlife and snakes and such. He turned over every fallen log he could trying to find one.
Tony didn't seem that thrilled...but he didn't complain.
Then we went downtown again to do more shopping and get some coffee. Here we are at Bratdorf and Bronson with little mocha's and hot chocolates and pumpkin spice cake.
They had some car trouble this morning (Thursday) and mom just called realizing she left her purse here (so they'll be back in about 30min) but soon they will be on their way back to Sacremento, and then I think it's off to L.A. to visit more family and go to Disneyland. We had a wonderful trip, thanks for coming and visiting with us!!!

Family is here

Hey all, my family is here visiting. They have been visiting since last Thursday. If you want to see some pictures of our visit so far, check out my Mom's website!

Speedy Jade

Why walk, when you can run?
Jade is going down her baby slide here.
Jade is in no way a crazy kid, but she sure is enjoying being able to run and jump a lot easier (and faster) She loves jumping and loves running. Hmmm...maybe she'll like to play basketball one day;)

Cooking and hanging out...a bit of an update

Today I've spent a lot of my time cooking up some yummy food for my family and for a friend who just had twins!

Since it's been so warm lately, I decided to make this ice-cream sandwhich cake I had made last year. Go to KraftFoods to check out the "how to video" of this super simple, super yummy dessert!

Jade was not happy as she watched me crush up oreos, mix up pudding and layer ice-cream sandwhiches on top of one another without giving her a bite. I finally let her lick the whip cream spoon at the very end.

Now I'm making some easy chicken enchilada's and I have a pre-made bagged salad to join it.

It is very nice out. Not to warm, not to cold. I spent a little bit of time outside today just laying on the grass soaking up the sunshine.

After Jade woke up from her nap (and downed four baby bowls of cereal for lunch) we hopped on our bike and road over to a friends house to chat for a bit and borrow a book. It was SUCH a nice bike ride and didn't last near as long as it should have. I'm so glad Jade loves to bike as much as she does. Especially now that we are a two car family. It's really easy to just opt for the convenience of the car...but I do love biking and I'm glad I haven't stopped just because I have other options.

Tomorrow is my last day meeting with my personal trainer. I hired a personal trainer for 9 sessions. I met just once a week with her so this is week 9 for me. I haven't lost any weight, but I've become A LOT stronger and I can see there has been a difference in my body (toning up a bit maybe) even though the scale refuses to move.

I highly recommend Megan Dahlman if anyone is looking for a personal trainer.

"Mom's in the Park" started last Tuesday. Every Tuesday a bunch of Moms from our church/MOPS meet at various parks around the city from 10-1. Its' lots of fun and any one is welcome to join (even if they don't have kids). If you ever want to join me for some fun park time, give me a call or send me a message and I'll let you know what park we are meeting at!

Wednesday I'm looking forward to hopefully going shopping with a friend and just hanging out again.

Thursday evening my Mom and four of my younger siblings will be visiting us for a week. I can't wait! I want to show them so many places and introduce them to all my friends. I love my life here in Washington so anytime I get to share it with my friends or family I get super excited. Besides...I just like getting to see my family.

After my family leaves my In-Laws will be coming. We get to hang out with them for just two days and then JB and I are off to Hawaii! JB for work, me for pleasure. It will be fantastic!

Anyway...there is an update of sorts. Take care all!

Noggin

Is it just me or is the character "Moose A. Moose" on the show "Noggin" a horrible singer? Seriously, he drives me nuts! lol

Lemonade Cheesecake Recipe

You can find this recipe on KraftFoods.com. I switched the regular lemonade with pink lemonade (because that is what I had on hand), and for the crust, I crushed up my own graham crackers (about a packet worth), mixed in 1/4c sugar and 6 T of melted butter. Then I smashed the cracker mix into a bottom of a pie plate and baked it at 375 for about 9min.

Of course, you can buy the crust pre-made though. I didn't have enough left over whip cream to do the pretty edging they have here, so I just drizzled the remaining whip cream over the top of the pie. It was SO yummy! So light tasting and SO easy!

1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

1/2 cup frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed

1 tub (8 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed, divided

1 HONEY MAID Graham Pie Crust (6 oz.)

1-1/2 cups sliced strawberries

2 Tbsp. sugar

BEAT cream cheese in medium bowl with mixer until creamy. Gradually add concentrate, beating well after each addition. Stir in 2 cups COOL WHIP. Spoon into crust.

REFRIGERATE 4 hours or until firm. Meanwhile, toss berries with sugar. Refrigerate until ready to use.

SERVE pie topped with berries and remaining COOL WHIP.

Tuesday Morning stuff

Jade didn't wake up until about 8:30 this morning. So I had plenty of time to get things done. Made a pink lemonade cheesecake for tonight's Pampered Chef party, mixed up a batch of cookies, got some work done on the computer and had a bit of quiet time.

When my little angel got up there was only one thing on her mind. Cantalope. She had been begging me for cantaloupe ever since we bought it at the grocery store around 4pm the day before. So, I cut up a bunch of pieces for her and sat her down with her bowl of rice crispies. Jade loves cantaloupe!
Can you see the orange staining around her mouth? lol
After her breakfast, she grabbed her apron to help over see the batches of cookies coming out of the oven.
Those stackable cooling racks are one of my favorite Pampered Chef buys, not to mention the medium sized ice-cream scoop to keep all my cookies the same size.
After baking was over, I went to put on a bit of makeup and brush my hair. Jade decided to do her hair as well. Doesn't she look lovely. When I took this picture she was saying "so pretty, headband!"
That's my girl. Now we are off to the park (after I make up some lunches) and then it's my pampred chef party at 6pm. Come and join us for yummy food, fellowship and shopping!

Now for some girl time

After Jade helped Daddy mow the lawn, I had to drag Jade inside for some quality girl time. We painted our fingers and toes!

Saturday morning chores

It's never to early to learn how to do chores. Especially if your child is crying and jumping up and down because she wants to "sweep grass TOO!" lol. Good thing Jade has a Daddy who likes to teach:)

Just a few pictures from Jenny's visit

Jenny came to visit us on Wednesday last week. Thursday morning we drove to Bremerton and took a Ferry boat across to Seattle. Jenny and I felt a little seasick on the boat but Jade LOVED it!
Out on the deck it was a bit windy. hee, hee. I seriously thought Jade would be blown away.
Here is my gorgeous friend with the Seattle skyline behind her
On Friday we ate lunch at the Farmers market and did a little shopping downtown. Jade did pretty good but started getting cranky near the end. Thankfully Jenny keeps food (almonds) in her purse, so that cheered Jade right up.
Here is a pick of the two of them downtown.
Sadly I didn't get to many pics during the trip, but this i s pretty good.

Jenny's coming tomorrow!!

My Jenny friend is coming to visit tomorrow! I can't wait, we haven't seen each other since her wedding in September, so this is a much needed reunion. She'll only be here a few days so I have lots of stuff I'm gonna try to pack into a short period of time. But I know we'll have a blast!

Biking

It's picture day today! Three posts in one day and two with pictures! I'm not bored, honestly! lol!

We had fun, road our bikes to visit a friend today! It was fun!

Jade and Mommy doing funny faces

Getting ready to leave for the gym this morning, Jade stopped me and demanded she wear a matching head band like "mommy. So while she was munchin' on some "crispies" I took some pics of us being silly together.

My Jade is the best Jade

And yes, I'm very bias. I don't really have anything to share, I was just thinking about how amazing my little girl is and decided to post about it.

She cracks us up all the time. Her personality shines through more and more and it's wonderful. Last night, after going out to dinner with friends, Jade decided it was time to play outside. She wouldn't take "no" for an answer. When Daddy ignored her request she went and got his shoes for him, TWICE, all the while saying she wanted to play outside. What father can say no to pitiful requests of playing outside, on top of having your shoes brought to you. So at 7:30pm while our neighborhood was quiet, Jade and Daddy were playing soccer and running around in the backyard. lol

Recently, I was laying on my bed when Jade came in the room and asked "Doing Mom?" I said "oh, I'm laying down"

She left for a little while and returned with her blanket. She put her blanket over me and then crawled up and kissed me on the cheek. Then, leaving the room she shut the door while saying "night, Mommy, sweet dreams, see you soon!"

If one of us sneezes, no matter where we are in the house, Jade will yell "Bless you!"

Lately Jade's favorite food has been Strawberries. She loves them to the point of being sick (I'm sure). After giving her quite a few strawberries I thought she'd be done and left to go work on something. Pretty soon I heard Jade's screams for "MORE STRAWBERRIES! PWEEAASSEE!" I ca,me running to her and was like "are you sure you want more strawberries?" again she screamed "STRAWBERRIES!!!" I gave her a few more and she giggled and wriggled and in a sweet, little, cute girls voice said "Thank you, Mommy"

At any rate, I just had to do a quick update on my little pumpkin' tater. She's the bestest little girl ever! :)

I'm in love with a tea

I'm not a huge Tea drinker, though there are times I'd really like to be. Recently, I was at a friends house and she offered me a cup of tea (just like in British movies!). I accepted on the spot (even though I wasn't really in the mood for tea) because, how charming is that to be offered tea?
I kind of avoided the cup for awhile, but finally decided to take a sip to be polite, after all, she made it special just for me.
My taste buds went WILD! All that she had put in the boiling water was the tea bag, no sweaters or milk or honey and it tasted amazing!! I couldn't stop drinking the delicious cup she had served me. So yesterday, while finding myself with nothing to do for an hour I went to the grocery store in search of this fabulous tea. It's Good Earth the sweet & spicy tea blend. They have it caffeine free as well. If you are or aren't a tea drinker, try this stuff. It's tasty!

Jade lookin' adorable

My daughter is addicted to her sunglasses, even if it isn't sunny she'll wear them. So long as we are going some where or are in the car. She'll say "Mommy, so bright" and cover her eyes and then say "sunglasses, please!" as though the world may fall apart if she isn't wearing them. It's pretty cute.

On Saturday we went for a walk to the park. As we were leaving the house I noticed one of my flowers had broken off the stem and fallen to the ground. So I gave it to Jade. On Friday night, while out shopping, Jade fell face down on the floor and bite through her lip. Can you see it's a bit swollen in these pictures?
She is all better now. That's my little sweetie pie.

On Mother's Day

I'm thankful for my daughter. She is so precious and sweet. I love being a mom!

I'm thankful for my husband, who shares all the responsibilities of parenting with me and then some.

I'm thankful for my Mom, who was and is the best example of a Mother I could ever have.

I'm thankful for, my grandparents, for raising my parents the way they did and loving me with all their hearts

And I'm thankful for my Lord, for blessing me with my wonderful life and my beautiful family.

How Jade keeps her figure

There is no question that I have a little girly girl for a daughter, she loves shoes, dresses, purses, hats, "princesses and princes" and wearing my jewelry. But she's also a book worm and a bit of a tomboy (playing with the soccer ball and cars are on the top of her list of favorite things to do). As if she wasn't well rounded enough she also likes working out...to keep that girlish figure of hers, of course.

She took a break from pumping iron to say "cheese" hee, hee
Oh, that's a tough one
Ya gotta love it!

Jade's new sun dress

I bought Jade this cute sundress today for $7. She was so excited to put it on and twirl around for me. Also, while hanging out in downton Oly with a friend, I got her the "hello kitty" water bottle. She is always borrowing my water bottle (she sees me using it at the gym) so I figured she deserved her own.