what it takes to get a decent picture of 6 people...

 after church last sunday we got out the tripod to take a few family pictures while everyone still looked kinda put together. handy andy put it on the timer and all 63 shots turned out perfectly- just like this one.

hahaha...here's a taste of what the other 62 pictures actually looked like:

turn your heads around! look at the camera!

hurry and sit down!

why do we have pumpkins in the picture with us?...too distracting..

 then the real drama began...

 simultaneously water started dripping towards sophie and ben and then handy andy stabbed will in the face with the pumpkin stem.

freaking out over here...

can we be done now?!

and this is why a picture of all 6 of us is incredibly rare. :)

have some pumpkin chocolate cake

crisp, chilly fall is here. i've resumed my cold weather uniform of fleece pants, smart wools, and 2-3 layers on top. i've also sought every excuse possible to turn on the oven and get yummy smells and warmth into the house.

which is why i made an entire pumpkin chocolate sheet cake for just our family. fortunately some friends came over at the last minute and shared it with us. :) 

and i'm here to share the recipe with you.

 pumpkin chocolate sheet cake
4 eggs
1 cup light olive oil or vegetable
1 2/3 cup sugar
1 can of pumpkin (about 2 cups)
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. nutmeg
chocolate chips

in a large bowl, beat eggs, oil and sugar until well blended. add pumpkin and mix thoroughly. in separate bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and nutmeg. gradually add dry ingredients to pumpkin mixture. mix until smooth. add chocolate chips and mix. pour into greased and floured 11x17inch jelly roll pan. bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. spread chocolate fudge frosting over cake.

chocolate fudge frosting
1/2 cup butter
4 T. unsweetened cocoa
6 T. buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 lb. powdered sugar
pinch of salt

heat butter, cocoa and buttermilk to boiling in saucepan. remove from heat and mix in vanilla and sugar and pinch of salt. frosting is runny but hardens as it cools.

****

in other news, this quirky song has been in my head for several days now. if you haven't watched the video before, it gets really fun at 2:50. makes me wish i was a ballerina. 

dump truck hoodie

one of ben's best little buddies turned 2 a couple days after his own birthday and we had great fun going to his truck/car birthday party.

a few months ago i made this race car hoodie for another little friend, but once i found the Little Blue Truck book i knew we had to go the dirt road route instead of the race track. (and besides, i was completely out of navy and black felt for the road :))

 these are easy to make- find a picture online, trace and cut it out in some wool/poly blend felt and then sew onto a hoodie from target. 

*for the dump truck i did put a bit of liquid stitch stuff down in the middle of little pieces like the window and the rear bumper. then after it was dry i top stitched it onto the jacket.

this book is super cute with a sweet message at the end. i would have bought a copy for our family too, but i had ben with me and he beelined to a giant board book of Good Night Moon instead. :)

this "2" patch covers the stupid graphic that was already on the jacket.

added a little scrap of felt to make a personalized tag.

all done and ready for the party.

baby ben's balloon birthday bash

we had a simple birthday party for ben last week.

the theme was, of course, balloons. it was nice and simple and he was delighted.

simple sack lunch with my most favorite napkins from Target.

happy times with his little cousin

exciiiiited for cake

piñata time...will though it was HILARIOUS to hit the pinata with a zucchini

            
sweet times with family (we SO missed not having all the aunties and uncles and cousins who moved this summer. although we did get to facetime with auntie bethany, which was a bit of a consolation)
         
               

we love you so much benny. happy birthday sweet boy!
here's to another year full of kisses from mama

baby ben is 2

so baby ben turned 2 this weekend. i really can't bear to think he's a big boy yet, so he'll keep his title until further notice. at least in my book.

a few things about our benny boy:

- he is still a little guy of very few words. his repertoire includes:  MOM/ mommy, dada, wow, owie, bayoon(balloon), hi, bye-bye, yeehaw, pease (please), no, do (dog), and peepee and poopoo {ya know, only the important stuff}
along with a myriad of sounds: lots of "uh!", beeps, various animal noises, and tons of giggles

- the above does not in any way hinder him from communicating exactly what he wants around here.
he's deservedly been dubbed bossy ben- using lots of grunts, pulls, and pushes to get people moving. plus all he really has to do is look at anyone with one of his cute, dimpled little facial expressions and he's good to go.

- his favorite book is "goodnight moon". we have to keep it on a special shelf in his room, read it before   nap and bedtime every day and then afterwards say good night and pat about 10 different objects in his room. this tradition must not be broken. the repercussions are intense.

- balloons are his dearest objects of affection, second only to his beloved blankie.

- balloons also bring out the very worst in him...i'm thinking idol maybe? ;)

- he loves to watch and mirror his brother and sisters like crazy

- his favorite foods are bananas and chocolate, in any form

- he loves to climb...tables, counters, dressers, cribs...which means he has also had his fair share of falls already.

- a few of his nicknames include: benny boy, benster, benny boo and chubby bubby (used almost exclusively as a nighttime salutation by madeline and sophie)

- he loves, loves, loves to color on himself with a marker. mostly just on his hands, but sometimes it reaches his mouth.

-he loves to be tickled, especially by daddy who can almost always get a real good belly laugh out of him

- he also loves to carry around water balloons filled w/ just a little water and he HAS to have a smiley face drawn on them. (handyandy would very much like this routine to phase out...something about the hazards of carrying around a balloon filled with water inside the house??...)

- he loves following his brother and sisters everywhere...especially into the lego room, into their forts, on their bikes, and in their rooms. and always while sporting an impish grin that gives away the fact that he is fully aware that he is driving them a tad CRAZY.

-he loves to swipe dollies, nail polish,lego guys, other people's snacks, silly bands and everyone else's' markers and hide them in his back pack.

- he doesn't sleep the best. we still have a crib tent over his crib to keep him in bed and are most definitely delaying the inevitable training that needs to occur once we take the tent off...

- he just started being interested in watching cartoons with the other kids. yay for a 20 min. of containment!

- he loves that his daddy flies airplanes. every time this is mentioned he giggles and points with an "eh!" to the sky.

- he still loves mommy...(maybe the best)
he'll still snuggle with me after he wakes up and will give me air kisses if i ask {especially if he's trying to get something} and he doesn't mind {too much} when i snatch him up multiple times a day to squish and cover him with kisses.

happy birthday {big} baby ben!

overwhelmed maybe...a little vent

sometimes everyday life can feel a bit overwhelming...every so often the reality of the responsibility of it all hits me, takes my breath away for a second and i get a little panicky.  

 i mean yikes! four kids! four individual souls that have needs, issues and personalities...and i'm responsible.

 holy moly! how did we get here??

plus there's a house to keep clean,

a marriage to invest in,

meals to cook

school to teach, 

laundry to tame,

friendships and family to nurture

not to mention my own heart to keep in check...ahhhh!

goodness gracious. i know its not really a lot, it just feels that way now and then...

and i know life really is sweet. in sooo many ways. and i know its up to me to see jesus in the midst of the crazy, and to believe that he is there to offer grace and JOY in the moment. i just have to do it.

so, thank you instagram for making it so easy to capture the sweet moments sprinkled throughout the overwhelming and chaotic that would be lost otherwise. 

and thank you jesus for giving me this life and these little munchkins to raise. i am grateful.

vent over. thank you for listening.

12 Months of Date Nights

first of all, andrew's beautiful little sister got married last week. the wedding was dreamy and lots of fun. today they drive to their new home in oklahoma...tears...

but anyway, before they left we were able give lots of hugs, say goodbye and send them off with some gifts.

when handyandy and i were married some friends gave us a big box with 12 little gifts.  it was so thoughtful and so much fun to have something to open on each month anniversary our first year.

so, we decided to do something similar and do a date night themed box. it took a good bit of brainstorming to think of 12 but here they all are in case you'd like to do something like it. 

** Bethany, if you happen to be reading...STOP ;)

{after i took pictures, i wrapped each gift up in tissue paper, wrote a little hint/description on the tags and then packed them in a big plastic storage bin} if you click on the picture it should enlarge it a bit.

1) something bubbly and holographic heart glasses like these 3) apple cider and pumpkin carving tools from Hobby Lobby

3) white ceramic mugs from Target, pen and instructions printed out 2) marshmallows and cocoa packets

4) Jenga  5) pack of 2 moleskine journals and Starbucks gift card  6) Skittles box and conversation starters- see below  7) pink football from Target and Root Beer

Conversation Starters 

* What is one significant memory or association that includes snow?

*What does your ideal birthday look like? (from beginning to end)

* What is your earliest memory from childhood?

* What are 2 things that happened this week and how did you feel about them?

* fill in blank: I like it best when you refer to me as_____________.

9) microwave popcorn and $1 bill 10) Coldstone gift card 11) trail mix and root beer 12) gift card to Noodles

the thought of having the time/freedom to go on all these dates kinda blows my mind. handy andy and i totally didn't take advantage of all the fun we could have had before our sweet kiddos entered the picture....ohhh well, that's what retirement is for...hahaha. just kidding. i think. ;) 

if you have any ideas for fun/cheap dates, leave them in the comment section. 

now go have yourselves some FUN!