Taco Soup

Anyone have left over turkey or chicken they need to use up?  This is my new favorite recipe because it so fast and tastes so good.  Thanks Lindsay for giving it to me!! 

Taco Soup
1 can chicken or 1lb of cooked ground beef, cooked chicken, or turkey
1 can corn (don't drain)
1 can beans - black or pinto or any other kind you would like
1 can diced tomatoes (don't drain)
1 package of Fiesta Ranch dried dress mix

Mix it all up.  Heat it up on the stove, in a crock pot, the microwave would probably work too.   We top it with sour cream and shredded cheese.

Need something to go with it?  It goes great with Butter Dips or tortilla chips.

Children's Museum of Phoenix

Usually for our children's birthdays we only get them one gift, nothing too big.  But for their special day we try to have BIG fun!!  I got lucky and FINALLY got a Culture Pass  (if you live in Mesa and don't know what it is, it's awesome)...as I was saying, I FINALLY got a Culture Pass for the Children's Museum of Phoenix!  Oh yea!!  So for her special day we packed up and spent half the day there!  It was so great not having to say to anyone, "Don't touch that!", "Stop climbing!", "Talk quieter!", etc!

Plus, it's always great when the kids are like, "Whoa, that's awesome, lets play with that!" and the parents are like, "Whoa, that's awesome, where are my kids so we can go play with that!"

The huge climbing thing was awesome!!

Before we even got there the kids were excited to see the, "bathtub with wings that can't fly," as they put it.

And they were looking forward to the noodle forest.

The blowing tubes with fabric--totally awesome!

A Restaurant.

A Grocery Store.

Any time I see rows of paint I get a little excited...Robert doesn't...neither does James...but Katie and Michael sure do!

They got to help paint a castle purple.

Katie got most of the paint on the castle...

  

Michael drew a reindeer.

The Trike Car Wash was fun

The Children's Museum of Phoenix was a big hit with everyone.  I can't wait to take the kids again someday.

 I hope your day was special Katie!  WE LOVE YOU!!

2 Years Old

Happy Birthday Katie!  2 Years old, where has the time gone?  She is turning into such a sassy but very cute little girl.  She is very opinionated and independent but very sweet and likes to share with others.  We love her so much!  We all had a fun night celebrating her birthday.

The cake:

The gift:
An obviously very girly talking/singing purse with a braclet, a mirror, pretend lipstick, pretend money and  keys

Can you believe she is two already?

Christmas Joys and Lots of Toys!

Lets begin with the always fun Christmas Eve new pajamas:

And now for Christmas Day:

It was so great to watch my kids open presents today.  In years past I have been the first one up and very excited for them to wake up too...this year, however, with having to wake up with Lilly I was second to last to wake up and get out of bed.  (Lilly was the last one up and out of bed today.) 
The kids were very excited about all the presents under the tree!  They also were excited to find the trampoline in the back yard put up and in working order again. (It needed a new jump mat- we pooled the Christmas money from their Great-Grandparents and added a bit to it to buy them a new one.  So thank you to our Great Grandmas and Great Grandpas for the money, it will bring lots of joy to all of us for years to come!)  Check out all the fun Christmas pictures:

 Michael's new tools

Michael testing out a clamp

A cool kit to build an air hockey table with his new tools.

James got a soccer ball and goal net.

Katelyn is VERY excited about her princess outfit!!

James was very excited about his Buzz Lightyear, so was Michael!

Then Michael realized it was for James, not him.

Katelyn loves her new baby doll that has hair and 2 pairs of shoes!

Lilly in her new dress, it's a bit big but she still looks pretty!

 

 The highlight of my day was catching the first picture of Lilly smiling!  (She just started smiling this week!) Isn't she getting so big and so cute! 

A big thanks, hugs and lots of love goes to their Grandmas and Grandpas for giving great gifts and making their day so wonderful!!  We love you all!!

Merry Christmas!

Kindergarten Christmas Concert

Michael had his first Christmas concert!

 He's on the back row, wearing a red shirt sucking his fingers (of course).  For the record as far as we could see, he did keep up his end of the deal and sing all the songs so we could go out for ice cream after.

All the kids did so great.  Hopefully you can hear the kids singing on the movies.  We were pretty far in the back and our camera isn't the best for movies like this.  (Plus Robert had Katie helping take the movies, please don't get too sea sick.)

Snowmen

10 Little Angels in the Band ("...Oh wasn't that a band Christmas Morning, Christmas Morning soon." is how the song ends.


I want a Snake for Christmas



I want a snake for Christmas all slippery and slimy and red, I'll take that snake for Christmas and make a nice home in my sister's bed. I want some mice for Christmas all frisky and quick as can be. Won't it be nice to uncage those mice when mommy has ladies to tea. I want some glue. There's lots I can do. With a little bit of glue and a shoe. I'm not asking much for Christmas. Just a snake and some mice and some glue. Just a snake and some mice and some glue sure would make my dreams come true.

What to do on a Saturday night?

Some people go out on dates, some stay in and watch a movie, we stay home with our 4 kids and make goofy elf movies!  Check ours out!

Click Here

Hope you are almost ready for Christmas, it's less than a week away! 

(Thanks Nicole for reminding us how funny these are and inspiring us to make our own!)

I learned something new today!

Did you know that garlic can turn a blueish green color when cooked?  I didn't, until today when I looked in my pot and saw this:
 

(Those are mustard seeds if you were wondering)

"Garlic is known to contain sulfur compounds which can react with minute traces of copper to form copper sulfate, a blue or blue-green compound. The amount of copper needed for this reaction is very small and is frequently found in normal water supplies.  ...The garlic is still safe to eat."
-http://whatscookingamerica.net/Q-A/bluegarlic.htm
  

Kind of interesting right?