Happy Birthday Libby Lou!

Happy Birthday Libby Lou!!!! 

I can't believe you are 3 years old today! It feels like just a few weeks ago I was waiting for your dad to send me a text if you were a boy or a girl. 

First 5K

Today is the big day! I am running my first 5K!  

The past 8 weeks I have been running 3 days a week trying to build up my endurance. I have been excited and scared about this run. I have ran the course numerous times in the past few weeks. I can't wait to get to that finish line! 

Here is where I will be running. 

Cupcakes, Cupcakes & more Cupcakes....

My mom filled and decorated all 300 cupcakes for my cousins wedding back on September 1. Art and I arrived in PA around 9am on August 31. We had taken a red eye flight and barely got any sleep. 

Each of the cupcake liners had to be assembled and put around the cupcakes. My mom then filled each cupcake with either raspberry or marshmallow fluff. After that part was done she started icing the cupcakes. Once they were iced each cupcake was decorated with glitter and pearls. As each tray was completed we hauled them into the dinning room. 

The day of the wedding we woke up early and hauled all 300 cupcakes from my aunts house to the reception hall. My mom then set up all 300 cupcakes on the cake table.  Below are pictures of our cupcake adventures for the first 24 hours. 

It takes the whole family to help get all these cupcakes decorated!

Stephanie with the cupcakes!

Loading 300 cupcakes into the vehicles!

Fausha carrying cupcakes. 

Mom with the beautiful cupcake table!

I wanted my picture with the cupcakes, since I helped decorate them. 

Canning

Last week I HAD to can before our tomatoes went bad. We have been overrun with tomatoes.  I made 4 quarts, 6 pints and 8 half pints of salsa. This year I made the salsa a little different. Usually I cook the salsa prior to putting it in jars. This year I put everything in the food processor and then put it in jars. I sealed the jars by putting them in a water bath for about 30 minutes. Put the jars in a pot with water at least 1 inch over the jars lids, let boil for about 30 minutes, take out, let cool and check your jars to make sure they are sealed the next day. Your jars are sealed if the jar lids don't pop up and down. 

I also made tomato soup and spaghetti sauce. I will post the links to the recipes I used on a later post. 

Wordless Wednesday

DIY Baby Shower Gifts

This past Sunday Amber's friends had a baby shower for her. I decided to make a few items. Kaleb needed a mustache tshirt. Amber has always liked skulls, so I made him some boy skull burp clothes. 

Mustache tshirt

Burp Clothes

Bibs

Diaper Cake

Diaper Cake

Menu Monday

Boy oh boy do I need to clean out my freezer. It is sooooo full I can't fit one more thing in it. This past weekend we bought some meat on sale at Fresh & Easy. I love their sale items! I rarely buy meat at full price, since Fresh & Easy moved in down the street. I bought 4 hamburgers and 4 chicken thighs for $3.60. Hamburger for $1.50 a pound. We have a ton of meat in our fridge. Last week we ate a lot of vegetarian meals. 

Last week I had to use tomatoes.  One night we had tomato bisque. mmmm it was delish with some grilled cheese. I also made Skinny Taste bolognese sauce. It was seriously amazing! I used up a ton of tomatoes with both of the recipes. 

For dinner this week we will be hanging the following:

Hamburgers & Mac n Cheese

Chicken Thighs & Broccoli

Talapia & Swiss chard

Carne Asada & veggies

Spaghetti Bake - I am going to use the bolognese sauce, spaghetti noodles, throw some cheese over it and bake it in the oven. 

What is on your menu this week?

Happy Sunday!

Family Time!

Last week I had to travel to So Cal for a client health fair. It was actually 6.9 miles away from my uncles hours. I arranged to spent the night with them on Friday and Saturday. On Thursday my aunt told me we would be traveling to UCLA to visit my little cousin and his new wife. I was SUPER excited!

Brad and Jenna made tacos for us. This was the first dinner at their new apartment with the family and I got to be part of it! Then we headed out on the town to find some yummy dessert. Well guess where my uncle took us?  The Grill on the Alley on Rodeo Dr. It seriously was one of the cutest places with the yummiest dessert. I had a hot fudge brownie. It was to die for!  

enjoying dinner at Brad & Jenna's

the kids in the back seat!

my super yummy dessert

the uncle carefully putting hot fudge all over his ice cream

He told us he really loved the hot fudge container. I told him it was a simple gravy boat and I would be happy to get him one for Christmas. He told me it wouldn't be the same. 

A few of my aunt & uncle friends asked if I was in my 20's and would be attending college there. Needless to say I had a fabulous time in So Cal with the family!

Airport Transportation

One year I flew home from CA to MI to see my family for the holidays. Every time I fly home there is an issue with picking me up from the airport. Normally they are running late, trying to figure out who is going to take time off work, Lacey hanging out of the car with a HUGE sign screaming BECKY & the airport police telling her to get back into the car or she will get arrested, running over a raccoon and totaling a car, or picking me up in a large flat bed truck.

My dad came to pick me up one day in his big work truck. He had to strap my suitcases to the back of the truck. I pulled up behind this truck recently at a red light and made me think of all the various ways I have been picked up from the airport. 

I think the raccoon story is probably the best. The North Dakota airport actually kicked me up because they were closing. I had 10 minutes to either rent a car, get a cab, or wait outside for my family to pick me up. I took a cab to the nearest restaurant. My sister was coming to pick me up and she hit a HUGE raccoon. It caused major damage under her car. She had to call my parents around midnight, woke them up to come pick her up and then pick me up at the airport. 

Bart Happenings

Last week I was walking to my train and I could hear clip, clip, clip. UGH someone was clipping their finger nails in the Bart station. I wanted to SCREAM. I get up to my line and I see a woman ahead of me clipping her nails. The nails were just flying every where. I wasn't sure if I wanted to scream or throw up! GROSS! 

Then I got on my train and I see this chick standing in front of me. I am sorry....but do people REALLY not look in the mirror? I am not even sure if this outfit is appropriate to wear under a snow suit!  

Wordless Wednesday

Happy Birthday Fausha

Happy birthday to the Worlds best Fausha!!!!

I hope your day is as incredible as you are as a father!!!

Some fun pictures of my dad.
Resting on the porch.
Cleaning my aunts fan
Aaarrrrgggghhhh - picture with me on the farm a few years back.
Cowboy with his horse.

I met one of my dads college friends this weekend. When I was introduced to him he said oh Barry the real cowboy. Then he proceeded to tell me the exact same story my dad told me a few weeks before about college.

Love you dad!!!!