Pictures

Part One: Random Madie Cuteness & Muffins

Madie loves to help me in the kitchen. On this particular morning she was using the slap chop to help me make...

...these super delicious muffins! I just took a boxed blueberry muffin mix and made according to the package directions except when it came time to stir in the blueberries I also added a pinch of cinnamon, some white chocolate chips (this is where the slap chop came in, since I was making mini muffins I wanted mini pieces of chocolate) and some coconut and then sprinkled coconut on top so that it would get nice and golden. I don't think I can eat a plain blueberry muffin again!

Random cute picture of Madie in her jammies

Part Two: Birthday Celebrations
I wanted a Black Forest Cake for my birthday treat and this is what I came up with. I took a boxed chocolate cake mix and added some extras (which will not be named in case my dad is reading this) for moistness. I put sweetened whipped cream and canned cherry pie filling in between the two layers of super moist chocolatey cake and on top - chocolate ganache topped with more pie filling and surrounded by whipped cream swirls (wait for ganache to set up before you try to pipe whipped cream swirls around the edge of the cake or they will slide off...don't ask me how I know this!).

When we celebrated my birthday, we also celebrated my aunt Wendi's and Katie's. Katie got this Curious George toy that zooms around the floor and lifts his hat up to play peek-a-boo. The kids had so much fun playing with it. They would push the button to make him go and then run away so that he couldn't get them. There was a lot of laughter and screaming coming out of that kitchen.

Zach gave me this rose when he got home from school on my birthday. The way the light was hitting it just looked so beautiful that I had to take a picture (or three). While if I were to buy roses for myself, white would not be my first choice, they have sentimental significance to Zach and me. He brought me a single white rose on our first date and 2 dozen when he proposed, so I always think it is sweet when he gives me white roses.

Part Three: Girls Time
We have spent a lot of time with Jenny & Katie recently. Madie loves those girls so much, it is so cute to watch them together.

Here the girls are decorating turkeys with food. This was something Jenny had to do for school and so Grandpa made copies for each of the little girls also. Good thing Elmer's glue is non-toxic!

Jenny & Katie spent the night last night. Jenny is such a good big sister (and cousin, although I think if you were to ask her, Madie would tell you that Jenny is her sister also).