facelift

It was time for a little face lift.

Hope you enjoy!

delicious and pretty

Tomato and Bread Salad

Ingredients:

6 Roma tomatoes

1/2 sweet onion

1 orange or yellow bell pepper

3/4 cup olive oil and vinegar salad dressing

1/2 loaf ciabatta bread

feta cheese

fresh basil

Directions:

Cut tomatoes into large chunks. I quartered them and then cut the quarters in half. Then chunk the bell pepper into similar sized pieces. Slice the onion into thin rings.

Mix these ingredients with the dressing. Put in the fridge and let marinate for a few hours.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cube the ciabatta loaf and toss on a sheet pan. Spray cubes with cooking spray and sprinkle with salt & pepper. Toss.

Bake cubes for 10-15 minutes. Slightly toasted but not too crunchy.

To serve, mix bread cubes with vegetables and sprinkle with fresh basil and feta cheese.

And now for the pretty--

Hydrangeas.

From my OWN hydrangea plants. Yippeee!!! My favorite flowers are finally in bloom. Lofton and Reese planted five of them last Mother's Day. They are now in full bloom and absolutely lovely.

There is something so satisfying about cutting flowers from your yard to display inside.

this is not a joke

Little Boo and I went to Target today. MOY {mama of the year- that's me} neglected to calculate the amount of diapers she would go through now that Little Boo is home all day. We go through lots in case you were wondering.

We were perusing the aisles, killing time, when I stumbled upon these:

Pardon my language, but is this S^&% for real? Huggies really thought DENIM diapers would be a good sell?

Someone in product development should be fired. Immediately.

Rest assure, Reese's bottom will NOT be wearing these.

v-a-c-a-t-i-o-n

Vacation. Just the word brings a smile to my face.

{But to clarify for all of you non-education people-- I'm not actually on "vacation." I work on a nine month contract, not twelve. Summer falls into the three months I'm technically "not employed." I have to remind Lofton of this fact often during June and July. Someone gets a little jealous that I'm home and he's at work. Then I sweetly remind him that he gets to eat lunch out, play golf on occasion, and most importantly, use the restroom when he wants. Nine months out of the year I don't. That usually shuts him up.}

For our first day at home, Reese woke me up at six. He was super-enthused about spending the day together. I started my "walking plan" and we were back home before seven.

We enjoyed breakfast on the couch with Mickey Mouse, took a shower, went to Target and the grocery, and made pimento cheese all before eleven. This little guy LOVES pimento cheese. I also made a super yummy dinner last night- recipe coming tomorrow.

Today our goal is to rest more, work less. We did walk this morning {even though we didn't really want to} and we also ran some errands, but our only other job for the day is to make and deliver dinner to the Hamrick's. And that's not really a job because I'll get to satisfy my baby smell fix.

Also on my list is to scan Reese's school pictures into the computer to share... he is one beautiful baby.

{The smudge in these pictures is from my camera lens-- not our walls. Although our walls are probably dirty.}

moo-moo hiss

While Lofton and I were off doing this:

Reese was at Nonna and Buck's enjoying himself immensely.

He got a lesson in hanging dish towels---

And he played with lots of new toys, including a bubble mower, new puzzles, a leap frog talking caterpillar, and of course, new books. He also revisited some old favorites.

Little Boo also spent some time tormenting the cats. Let's just say, he no longer meows when asked what noise a cat makes... he hisses.

Reese and Ella are not friends {Layla spent the weekend in hiding}. Not at all. Reese is accustomed to animals that allow him to pull their tails, snuggle up on the floor, and not-so-gently pat.

Ella wasn't really digging any of that.

And now for a little farm humor::

We had been telling Reese for days that he was going to stay with Nonna and Buck. He likes to look at their pictures in the house, and there is one specific picture in the kitchen that he talks to every morning. While I put on his shoes, he tells the people in the picture "Bye-Bye." Every morning last week I heard, "Bye Bye, Nuh Nuh!" "Bye Bye, Buh!" "Bye Bye, Da Da!"

And then something in his little brain changed. We aren't exactly sure what happened, but on the drive down, either Lofton or I said something about going to see Buck and Nonna. "My Buh?" says Reese, followed by "My Moo Moo?"

Hold up. Your who???

That's right, Reese has now re-named my mom -- Moo Moo. Clearly he knows what he's doing. We tried all weekend to get him to say Nonna, because obviously we know he can say it. Just as emphatically as we'd say Nonna, he'd say Moo Moo. He was yelling "Moooooo Mooooo!!!" at one point and stomping his feet.

And so, my poor mama is now a cow. Just kidding Mom! But it is really, really funny-- and {I'm hopeful} only temporary.

refreshed and an introduction

Back to reality.

Okay, not really, cause I'm on an extended vacation.

We are, however, home from the Grand. It was beautiful and Lofton and I really enjoyed our "us" time. You forget what it's like to do things {eat, shower, sleep} when YOU want.

After I visit the grocery and conquer our mound of laundry, I'll catch you up on what Little Boo did while we were away. He had a blast.

But first, drumroll please---

I'd like to introduce:

Charles Richard Hamrick, III

Born Friday, May 21, 2010

Seven pounds, seven ounces and 20 inches long

He is a beautiful blessing and an answer to so many prayers. We are over the moon excited for Ashley and Rich. I was at the hospital for his arrival and Ashley was quite the champ! Rich didn't do half bad either, and when he walked out to show us the first pictures I lost it. He is such a proud DADDY!

Lofton and I are taking dinner to them tomorrow night. I'm going to get my fix of "baby scent" and let Reese meet his new best friend.

sittin on G, waiting on O

The germs seem to have vacated the premises. Can I get an Hallelujah? After two weeks of strep throat, a snotty nosed toddler, and husband who didn’t quite know how to handle it all—I’m ready to scream “We’re healed!!!”

We conducted an informal “trial” run of summer yesterday. There was lots of playing outside, some errand running, a birthday party, and some cleaning.

Oh, and we took family pictures on Saturday afternoon.

A friend knows a photographer who graciously drove down and hosted a picture party. Lots of us teacher-folk signed up for times and made the trek into the country for some farm-fun pictures. We took gobs of just Reese and then some of the three of us, too. And, because we were early for our slot {shock}, we got to sneak a peek at our favorite twins getting their photos snapped.

The pictures won’t be ready for viewing until the first week in June. So you can just let your excitement build.

On the horizon:

· Last week of school, yippee! I didn’t know if I was going to make it—especially considering the last few weeks. BUT, the day has a arrived and I.AM.READY.

· Baby Charlie’s arrival {scheduled for Friday} Sweet Ashley is about to pop and so am I—with excitement. I can’t wait to love on Charlie all summer. She and Rich are going to be fabulous parents. Charlie and Reese are required to be best friends.

· Packing for our husband/wife night away!!! Dinner reservations have been made, tentative plans have been set, and we are excited to R-E-L-A-X. As Reese screamed through dinner last night, Lofton looked at me and said, “Won’t it be nice to eat in peace on Sunday?” Yes it will, hubs. And although I’ll miss the little tot, one night apart won’t kill us.