Summer evening sun.

There was a beautiful haze over the ground last evening and the sun was perfect, so I thought I'd go out with my camera and experiment trying to catch some sun flare. Click pictures to view larger.

I started to edit out the power lines here, but it was really blotchy there in the grass, so I had to go back to the original. Here's what it COULD be...

slightly different angle. I love the water pump in this one.

Which photo is your favorite?

Recipe: Curried Chicken Divan

I don't really know if this is a standard recipe or not. This is the one my mom always used when I was growing up and the one I choose still today because I just love it and the kids do too!

Curried Chicken Divan

1 1/4 cup rice, cooked
1 pkg (10oz) frozen broccoli florets, cooked
1 1/2 c. cooked chicken
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup milk
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese + some for the top
1/2 tsp curry powder

Put cooked rice in the bottom of baking dish. Then lay broccoli and chicken. Mix everything else together and cover over broccoli, chicken, and rice. Top with cheese. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Yumm...

Activity: Summer Sunshine

Activity idea found HERE.

Supplies:
glue stick
orange and yellow construction paper
scissors
little hands
black marker

after I traced hands (folding over the paper so I only had to trace/cut half as many handprints) I sent Eli off to do something else while I cut everything out and got it ready. I traced a circle using a cool whip container and then made small dots where I wanted Eli to glue the yellow handprints

working on the orange hand prints

done so far

now add a cute face, and it's done!

Thankful Thursday

I am thankful for this moment right. now. I'm with the kids (of course) and we're drinking these delicious peach smoothies while listening to Chris Tomlin. It's sunny and beautiful outside, and after this we're (yes, all of us) going in the pool (yes, a baby pool). I am thankful for this day, this time with my lovely children and the gifts God has given me.

No menu today!

because the kids and I are off to the zoo, this time with grandma and grandpa! Excited for a fun day!

One great dad

This man works hard all day and then comes home to yet a full evening with the family. He fixes everything around the house, squashes bugs, and does all the yard work. And even amidst all that he still finds time to be a great dad. He is super involved in their lives, always has been, and anyone can see how much he just loves and adores these two beautiful babies. He is a strong man and I am so grateful to have him by my side. HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

Thankful Thursday

I am thankful for my children. Life would be so quiet and boring without them. And they sure are cute and lovable.

I am thankful for air conditioning. We don't have central air and only had one window unit, downstairs, but yesterday Hubby put in two units for upstairs, and it is sooo much nicer! As much as I LOVE just having windows open, it's starting to get a bit too hot for that these days. (low 90s!) I am thankful my husband is the handy man he is.

I am thankful for music. I don't play it much because it's often too much noise to have music playing and toys going off at the same time. But this morning I've been playing my music, and it's so nice.

I am thankful for quiet time. The kids played peacefully on blanket time for FOREVER this morning, and it was sooo nice!

I am thankful for my husband's job. Honestly, so much of life comes from that. Food, house, clothes, fun things, etc.

I am thankful for fresh fruit. I just love it!

I am thankful for our weather radio. Since we live in the country now and away from tornado sirens, I really wanted to make sure we had something to alert us at the house, especially for nights when I'm home alone with the kids. We've had a lot of severe weather in the area lately, and it makes me feel safe to know we have a way to hear news. Even if it means listening to alerts go off all through the night, or all afternoon like yesterday, for an area 2 or more hours away. I'd rather hear all that than not hear anything. Safety is important. I'm also thankful that those alerts are just for weather, and not of my child's heart machine or something much more serious like that. (keep praying for Baby Stellan) And more importantly I am thankful for our Great God that watches over us in all the storms of our life.

What are you thankful for this week??

Craft: Customized Journals.

A friend of mine made me a prayer journal like this back in college, and when I just recently finished filling that journal, I decided to try my hand at making my own. Here is the finished product.

And now here's how to make it....

Supplies:
composition notebook
scrap of fabric
piece of ribbon
hot glue gun

The fabric is cut to size. I realized the black of the notebook was still going to show through the fabric, so I just taped on some paper to the covers. Cut slits in the fabric where the binding of the notebook is. Then open up the notebook and wrap the fabric (like a present) to the cover, gluing the edges of the fabric with a hot glue gun. I didn't have a hot glue gun but when I asked my mom to borrow hers, she ended up just buying me one for only $3 or 4. It held pretty well, as long as you get it stuck down quickly while the glue is nice and hot.

This is what it looks like on the inside once the fabric is all glued. Not the prettiest, but that doesn't bother me even a little bit.
Outside view of the journal so far.

Now for ribbon to pretty it up even more! Cut your ribbon the length you want it to wrap around your journal and tie.

Then glue it. Remember not to put glue on the part that ties. But if you did get a little bit on that part, just let the glue dry and then pull it off carefully. Not that I would know from experience or anything, certainly not! But there she is! Aint she purty!Great gift idea, don't you think?

You could definitely do a lot more with this if you wanted. Heck, you could even SEW stuff onto the fabric before you glue it on, but that's just really not my thing. I prefer to keep it simple.

Breakthrough with potty training!!

FINALLY I had a breakthrough with Eli on the potty today!! Go read about it here at our family blog!

Disciplining your children

Forget my posts here. Follow blog posts HERE, as they're covering the same topic!