Giggles

Priest Lake 2010

We just got back from our annual trip to Priest Lake with my family. It was so much fun- I LOVE that place and I LOVE getting to take my little family there. Here are A LOT of pictures from our week- the weather was beautiful! We got to see Uncle Andrew and Jessica for the first time in over 6 months- it went by so quickly! We spent hours on the beach, boating, fishing, eating, and playing cards. It was the perfect week!

Colton loved the boat, for about 2 minutes, then he fell asleep. Everytime!

This cool plane landed as we were out for a boat ride.

Laney was in heaving on the beach and in the water- it was the first thing she wanted to do each morning and the last thing she wanted to do at night!

Delaney on her first tube ride- brave girl!

Givin Grammie nucks!

a few family pictures.

Fishing with daddy!

Ryan, Logan and Andrew riding the tube- you'd think they would mature with time but I guess not!

I was worried that the water would be too cold for Colton but he loved it- he started kicking his chubby legs and smiling the minute his toes hit the water. He loved splashing and playing in the sand- but I had a terrible time trying to keep him from eating the sand!

This was another of Delaney's favorite activities- having Grampa haul her around in the ski bob. Dad must've made 100 trips back and forth on the shore line taking her for a ride.

Playing on the beach.

So much fun!! Can't wait for next year!

The Hermiston Fair and Rodeo

Last week was the Hermiston fair and Rodeo- Laney was in heaven! We went to the rodeo a couple of nights and wandered around the fair a day. She LOVED looking at all the animals and playing with her cousins. Colton was a different story- it was too hot for him and that combined with teething made for a cranky baby! Here are some pictures from the fair...


Laney and Gracee playing outside at the rodeo- Gracee was trying to catch Delaney.


Playing ring around the rosie



We were trying to get the girls to take a picture together in their outfits from Nina and Papa- but no dice!

Laney riding a pony- I was suprised that she liked it so much- not scared at all!

We were in the bunny barn and Ryan told this little girl that he was a dentist so she would show us her rabbits teeth- I think that Laney liked the bunnies the best- we had to go back a couple of times!

Poor little hot blooded baby- he really needs his own air conditioning system with all that chub!

This was Delaney at every cage "look at this guy". "Hey guys, Look at this little guy"

Banana Bread Recipe

Ok- it's no secret that my cooking isn't great... but this is one recipe that everyone seems to love. It is NOT good for you, but it is good. I got it from my mom but I think it is originally from Christy Hilmes- not sure though.

Here it is:

6 mashed bananas
3 tsp backing soda
* mix together and set aside

4 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup water
3 1/2 cups flour
1 1/4 tsp salt

Add sugar mixture to the banana mixture
Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

(okay- here's the real trick.... I spray the pan with pam then sugar it (like you'd flour a pan) and add some cinnamon. I also top it with cinnamon and sugar (c'mon after 4 cups of sugar- what's a little more) the cinnamon and sugar make a REALLLY GOOD crust. Try it- it's my favorite recipe EVER!

Delaney's 3rd Birthday party

Laney's 3 !!! I can't believe it- she's such a big girl, when did that happen?! Last Saturday we had her birthday party- and I've never seen her so excited for anything. We talked about her birthday party everyday for at least a month- every night before she went to sleep she'd ask me, " Mom, how many days till my birthday party?"

All of her excitement rubbed off on the rest of us and I think this has been my favorite holiday with her so far. She wanted to help with everything- sending out the invitations, picking out her decorations (Mickey Mouse) her cake, her "party dress". It was so much fun- I'm a little sad its over! So here are some pictures of her big day...



Helping mom bake cupcakes for the party- you can see that neither kid was doing a whole lot of helping!

The night before her birthday I stayed up late and decorated the house so that it would be there for her when she woke up- and I have to tell you I think that was my favorite moment of the day- seeing her wake up and going around the house with her at 5:30 am to "look at all of her stuff".

We rented a bounce house (they said it was the small one- turns out- not really that small) The kids LOVED it- and were pretty much in motion all day. Although toward the end of the day it got unplugged and started to deflate a little which terrified Delaney- so she did go in it much after that.

Opening present- she made out like a bandit! Lots of princesses and girly toys. We've averaged 15 tea parties a day since the party!

Her Mickey Mouse cake!

What would a party be without your best friend (moo moo) and a party horn?

Her babysitter, Olivia, stopped by with a little "angus" puppy that barks and rolls over- it has not left Delaney's side since- she even puts it to be with her!

A view of all the fun from above

And, of course, Todd and Ryan couldn't let the kids have all the fun so they ended up in the bounce house!

It was SO much fun this year- thanks to everyone to took the time to come help our little girl celebrate. Happy Birthday Laney!

Kids Hooded Towel

Before Delaney was born someone (Mrs. Peterson) gave me some hooded bath towels. They were big and fluffy and are still my favorites. So I sat down to make some for Colton but couldn't find instructions I liked so here's what I did. They make SUPER simple shower presents and aren't expensive at all. They took about 10 minutes to make from beginning to end and will last forever. There are some good tutorials online for fancy ones but I just wanted plain jane towels- no ribbon or pleats- so here you go!

For two towels you'll need two bath towels and one hand towel. I would pick nicer ones- nothing from the dollar store so they'll hold up over time.



First, cut the hand towel in half- like this (only try to make yours straight)



Then find the center of the bath towel and mark it with a pin, do the same for the half of the hand towel. Align the centers and sew RST.



It should look like this:

then fold the top part (the hand towel) in half to make the hood. Sew along the top ( I sewed a straight line then a zig zag on top of that to prevent fraying along the unfinished side)

Then put it on your cute baby! See- simple!