Yuuuuum

I LOVE quick, easy recipes! Here are two recipes that I have found in the last few weeks that are super easy, taste great, and look like you've spent a lot more time on then than you actually have:

Lion House Ranch Parmesan Chicken:

1/2 cup cornflake crumbs

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1-1/2 ounces dry ranch dressing mix

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips

3/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

26 ounces marinara or spaghetti sauce

In shallow bowl, combine cornflake crumbs, 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese and ranch mix. Coat both sides of chicken with the mix.

Place in a 9x13-inch pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Spray tops of chicken with non-stick cooking spray to keep moist.

Bake at 350' for 25-30 minutes. Just prior to serving, sprinkle with remaining Parmesan.

Heat marinara or spaghetti sauce and serve over cooked pasta and chicken.

Cheesy Mexican Chicken:

6 small boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1-1/2 lb), cut into thin strips

1 can condensed cream of chicken soup

1-1/2 cups shredded cheese (divided)

1/2 cup milk

1 pkg taco seasoning

2 cups corn chips

4-1/2 cups cooked rice

Preheat oven to 375'

Mix soup, 1 cup of the cheese, milk and seasoning mix until well blended, spoon over chicken.

Top with chips.

Bake covered for 30 minutes. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top, bake, uncovered, an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Serve over rice.

What the... ?

Caden woke up in the middle of the night just shrieking. He was inconsolable for quite awhile, Ben and I were both helpless. Finally, he sat on my lap and let me cuddle with him. He calmed down after that. Then this was our conversation:

J: Caden baby, are you okay?

C: Uh-huh

J: What was wrong? Were you scared?

(Long pause)

C: I LOVE hippos!!!

J: Um...I love hippos too, Caden...

Then first thing this morning he had a lot of his mind-

"I not like James. He has a frowny face, not a nice face"

"I not eat basketballs. I like elephants"

.... So hippos, yes. James, no. Basketballs, no, but elephants yes.

Got it.

Top ten signs that it's time to wean your son from his soother(s)-

10. He is two and a half

9. He has named his soothers

8. He refers to his soothers by name, while talking to them

7. He tells his soothers that he loves them ("I love you, Sally!")

6. He can suck on two soothers at a time

5. He still wakes you up at night when his soothers fall out of his crib

4. His most common phrase is "WHERE'S MY SOONERS??"

3. He can flip them around with his tongue without them falling out of his mouth (quite hard- I've tried...)

2. He switches soothers for "taste"

1. He tries to teach ME how to suck on a soother ("Eat it, Mommy. That side right there. Like this!")

In my defense, he only has them at nap time and bed time.

But still......

Happy Valentine's Day!

Hope you all had a wonderful day! We just had one hour of church today, so there was lots of time to relax and spend time together. It really nice. We spent the morning making and decorating almost 80 cupcakes for Caden to deliver to his friends and family. Hopefully there weren't too many eggshells in them, Caden was a big helper!!

There are a few more pictures up from the photoshoot last week. Check them out here. I can't wait to get these pictures printed and displayed in my house! And I am so happy to finally have found a photographer that I am super happy with!

Happy Valentine's Day! We love you all.

Long Weekend... WOOHOO!!

I am so excited that it's finally the long weekend! It has been a hard week being sick and having two sick little kids! Thankfully we are all feeling better now!

I want to say a special thanks to Dad. He called me yesterday to see how I was doing. Caden's friend had just left from a playdate, literally every toy we own was on the floor, the house was a wreck. Caden didn't nap, I had a horrible headache and had been up all night, Maya was fussy. Dad showed up a little later with beautiful flowers for me. It completely turned my day around. Thank you, Daddy. I am so grateful for all of the love and support that you and Mom constantly show me.

Ben woke up with the kids this morning and let me sleep in until 9am, it felt so good!! He is such a stud. I absolutely love it when he is home. He had Caden in fights of laughter this morning singing and dancing with the kitchen chairs. They are so funny together.

We are heading out soon for a Valentine's family outing... to the mall play area and possibly to get a bite to eat. We are also taking Maya in to get a passport picture.

As you can tell, I don't have much to blog about! :) Hope you all enjoy your long weekend!

Check it out!

Look what we did this morning!!

Home Sweet Home

I am home sick today. Not fun.

Ben and Caden are at church right now and I can't help but feel like I'm missing out. Caden is wearing his new church outfit (complete with a new belt, he was excited about that part because he always sees Ben wearing a belt!).

I hate missing church. I haven't been sick in a year and a half. I think my body is just collapsing from lack of sleep. My head is pounding.

On a more positive note, a few nights ago, I made home-made french fries. Caden was so excited about it and kept calling them "home sweet home french fries". That kid never ceases to find ways to make me smile. I love being a mom. I love being home with my kids. They are my treasures. I guess 4 am nights are a small price to pay to have them in our home.

We've Been Busy...

Sorry for the lack of updates. I always have such good ideas of what I should blog about, but then one of my kids decides that they need some attention, and the blog never happens. Caden and Maya are both sleeping right now (although Maya is in my arms, so I am slow at typing...), I've already exercised, showered, cleaned, done some laundry... now I can blog!

Ben and I just celebrated our 4 year anniversary! We had a fun night eating out at The Old Spagetti Factory and watching The Bachelor (we are a little too into that show, it's probably not something to be proud of.... although I definitely recommend getting into it...). Thanks for babysitting, Mom and Dad! I feel so blessed to be married to such an amazing husband. Ben is the best support and so selfless. He truly is only happy when I am happy.

Thanks for four wonderful years, Ben! I love you!

Caden is toilet trained! Yipee! I am so proud of how quickly he caught on. He loves wearing his big boy underwear. I love seeing him get excited when he realizes that he has accomplished something.

Caden has been taking Gymboree classes and just LOVING them! There are so many slides, mats, ramps, balls... it is heaven for Caden. His favorite part is playing with the parachute and running around with the other boys and girls in his class. He talks about Gymboree all week long and chants "Hip hip hooray! Hip hip hooray! It's a Gymboree day!!"

He is such a great helper. I can't cook anything anymore without his help. The other day when he cracked an egg open, some of the yolk got on his hand and he screamed "SICK! SICK!!"

He is constantly making me laugh. I am so grateful that he is such a fun, loving little boy. He is so cuddly and always stops what he is doing to hug me, Maya or Ben and tell us that he loves us.

Maya is growing up so quickly. It is so much fun to see her personality really start to develop. She continues to be the most smiley person I have ever met. She is rarely awake without smiling. She really has brought so much love into our home. She has four teeth popping through right now, so she hasn't been as happy the last few weeks (although she still tries her hardest to smile while crying, it is adorable). Hopefully the teething will ease up soon so that her sleep and mood can get back on track. I had fun doing a little photo shoot with her this morning. Here are a few of my favorites, enjoy!

Look at those big, blue eyes! I just love her!