Turning Two

A certain niece of ours celebrated a big birthday today...

All of her mom's siblings came in town to celebrate...

She was uncertain about the cake at first so mom helped...

She wanted nothing to do with the party hat so her doggy cousin stepped up to the plate...

                         

Baby sister got lots of attention too...

                         

Yes, her eyes really are that blue...

Aunt Lele got her bubbles and Uncle Walker showed her how to use them...

Oh how she loved the bubbles...

Baby sister got a kiss...

And Bella is always a crowd favorite...

So fun reuniting!

Ah, Vacation

It took some convincing and a steal of a deal on a flight, but my budget-savvy husband finally agreed that a vacation was in order. That's right folks, come April we are headed to the Windy City! Any tips from those who have vacationed here before?

A Pioneer Woman Valentine's Day

I decided to cook for our Valentine's celebration this weekend, and thanks to the Pioneer Woman and her to-die-for recipes, I'd say it was quite a hit!

For appetizers we had cream-cheese stuffed jalapenos wrapped in bacon.

The main course included shrimp penne in a tomato cream sauce and garlic cheese bread.

For the most important part of any meal (dessert of course), I made baked fudge served with vanilla ice cream. Man-oh-man this stuff is ridiculously mouthwateringly good. I can't vouch for it's healthiness, but even Walker (who is quite the food critic when it comes to new recipes) was speechless when it came to describing this stuff. It is equally as delicious left over... just pop it in the microwave for 30 seconds and enjoy this tiny chocolatey piece of heaven!

If only I had the time, budget, and energy to cook like this every day...

(for the technically-challenged, just click on the above links to be taken straight to her recipes)

Happy Birthday Bella!!!

Below is a picture of little Bella when we first got her.  So tiny and cute.

Ah how we've enjoyed the times playing with the fun pup.

Ah how she's enjoyed the times playing with...chickens..??

We've enjoyed the many memories, including her doggy Under Armour that we had to create after a misadventure at Oak Mountain State park.

She really loves the snow...we told her that the snow came just for her birthday!

Happy 3rd Birthday Bella! 

- Walker -

A dusting of snow?

A "dusting" is what Birmingham was supposed to accumulate today, but instead we have 2-3 inches and it is still coming down! A certain puppy dog LOVES the snow...

Happy snow day!

Reuniting

This past weekend Krisha and I were privileged to host three of our best friends from Auburn in the great metropolis of B'ham. It's weird we are all "old friends" now... seems like just yesterday our lives were centered in a little one-mile radius around Auburn's beautiful campus. We did have a little taste of the past when we visited the new Big Blue Bagel in Crestline Park. There is no telling how many time we ate and studied there during our time in AU! A lot has changed since we met 7 years ago, including the addition of 3 husbands, 1 baby, and another on the way! They don't get much cuter, sweeter, smarter, and well-behaved than little Lucy, and it's safe to say she was definitely the entertainment for the weekend!

the dog park...

In an effort to enjoy the sudden change of weather here in B'ham, Jennifer and I took our pups out to the dog park to run off some energy...

Looks like fun doesn't it? Sometimes I wish I was still a kid who got to have playdates like this...