Watermelon Rice Krispie Treats

I've been making these cuties for a few years now. I've made them for different occasions and just to put in the boys lunch boxes for a treat. I think rice krispie treats are so much more cuter when you 'dress' them up (maybe I'm just a weirdo lol). It's really easy and pretty quick to make them look like watermelon slices.

Watermelon Rice Krispie Treats

•  6 tbls butter (divided in 2)
•  6 cups mini marshmallows (divided in 2)
•  8 cups rice krispies (divided in 2)
•  red & green food coloring
•  Chocolate chips (seeds)

* If you like you could use flavored kool-Aid in the mixtures to add flavor. I did try it once but prefer the regular rice krispie flavor : )*

1. Melt 3 tbls of butter in a medium/large saucepan over medium heat. Add 3 cups of marshmallows and stir until melted. Remove from heat & add in green food coloring until you get your desired color. Stir in Rice Krispies until completely coated. 

2. Scoop the green rice krispies into a *greased* 9 inch round cake pan. Press it around the outer edges of the cake pan to form a ring. (You may need to butter your hands if it's to sticky)

3. Repeat step 1 but with red food coloring. 

4. Scoop the red krispie mixture into the center of the cake pan. Press it so that it's level with the green ring.

5. Let it cool completely and then add the chocolate chips for seeds.

Enjoy your oh so cute rice krispies : ) 

Terrified!

Little man had his first moment of sheer terror : ( I was folding laundry and he was staring at a container of toys. I thought he wanted something so I went and started asking him what he wanted.

First I thought it was a ball nope so then I pickup this guitar that plays music. He gets a look of fear in his eyes and starts scooting back. It was turned on and started playing from me holding it. He totally freaks out and starts crying.

 I told him it was ok and I asked him if he didn't like it.  He shakes his head no so I put it in the closet. I tell him it's ok mommy put it away. He keeps looking at the closest trying to peek and see if it's still in there.

 Poor thing was so scared! He's seen and played with it before just fine so I'm not sure why but he sure doesn't like it now. So for now it will be kept up so it doesn't cause anymore terror.

Has this ever happened to your little one(s)?

Zucchini Cake

The boys have been wanting me to make something chocolaty and I had a couple zucchinis that were gonna go bad. So I figured I would use them up and make a sweet chocolate treat for the boys : ) I will warn you that it will seem really dry before you add the zucchini in and then after it will look lets just say less than desirable. But I promise it will come out ok : ) It will be moist and yummy and you won't be able to tell there's anything in it.

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

•  1/2 cup oil or apple sauce if you prefer
•  1 1/4 cup of sugar
•  2 tsp vanilla
•  2 cups flour
•  1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
•  1 1/2 tsp baking soda
•  1 tsp salt
•  2 cups shredded zucchini

Frosting

•  6 tbls unsweetened cocoa powder
•  1/4 cup butter
•  1/4 cup milk
•  2 cups confectioners sugar
•  1/2 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Spray a 9×13 baking pan with nonstick spray.

2. Combined the oil, sugar and vanilla blend well. 

3. In a separate bowl combine the flour, 1/2 cup of cocoa, baking soda and salt.

4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones. Stir just to combined. 

5. Fold the zucchini in and mix well. The batter will be really dry before you add in the zucchini. 

6. Spread the batter in your pan. Bake for 25 - 30 minutes (30 minutes was perfect for me).

7. Make sure to cool the cake completely before frosting. Let it sit for at least 1 hour before enjoy ( I personally think it tastes better if you let it sit longer or overnight ). Enjoy: )

Homemade Finger Paint For Babys &;Toddlers :)

If your looking for a fun sensory activity for your baby or toddler finger painting is a great one : ) It's really easy to make finger paint. You only need 4 ingredients and you probably already have them at home. If you want easy clean up you can let them paint in the tub that way when there done you just rinse them and the tub off ; )

Homemade Finger Paint

•  2 cups flour
•  4 cups cold water
•  Food coloring
•  A little salt

Mix together the flour and water in a pot. Cook over low heat make sure to constantly stir it or it will get lumpy. Continue heating the mixture till it becomes thick. Mix in a little salt and let cool. Pour into containers or cups and add in your desired colors. If you don't use all of the paint you can store it in a covered container in the fridge for future use.

My little guy had a blast playing with the paint :) At first he wasn't sure about it then he dug right in. The food coloring didn't stain his skin or highchair in case your wondering : )

And So It Begins

BEDA day 14


Today is the boys 3rd day of school. I thought I would at least get a couple weeks before the ever so lovely crazy mornings were gonna start. Yeah right! It started yesterday morning :(

My middle has been having a tough time staying asleep and trying to climb into my bed during the night/early morning hours. I'm able to catch him and send him back to bed at least half of the 100 attempts. I co-sleep with little man and he wakes up a lot threw out the night himself (nursing and or walking back and forth to sooth back to sleep).

So having crazy wild man sleeper in bed just doesn't work. He'll sometimes go back to his bed and fall asleep but other times he just climb in his brothers bed. No one gets a good night sleep and I'm left with a bunch of tired cranky butts.

That's exactly what happened the other day. We woke up and went to go eat breakfast. My middle boy wasn't very pleasant and started bickering with his brother. I told them to quit arguing and being grumpy. He then turns to me gives me a evil stare and yells IM NOT BEING GRUMPY! He continues with his ever so pleasant attitude so I put him in timeout.

He gets hysterical and is crying, yelling, hanging of my arm and wrapping himself around my leg. Great start to the morning right? After finally getting him calmed done we continue with breakfast and getting ready for school.

The boys are getting dressed and I hear them arguing again. Seriously guys can we please go 5 minutes without arguing. Then my oldest walks away mad and walks right into the babys jumper on the floor. He hurt his toe and by this point he's so frustrated he has a mini breakdown crying and yelling in anger.

By this time we only have a couple minutes before the bus is supposed to come. I'm trying to hurry them up so they don't miss it. Right as we step out the door my oldest yells the bus is already at the corner.

I think to my self shit. I go get my car keys and pile everyone into the van. I go drop off middle man first. Let me just say school traffic stinks. Now that they go to different schools it's worse trying to get from one to the other on time.

We get there just as the kids are lined up to go inside. He gets out and walks into the group. There's more last second drop offs in line behind me so I go assuming he's ok cause he's in by all the kids.

Total MOM FAIL! I find out after he gets home that his class was lined up farther down and by the time he walked over to them they didn't see him and shut the door. The doors lock after there shut. So he goes over by the other door and again the same thing happens. He said luckily an aid saw him and asked if he went to the school and who his teacher was.

She lets him in but he can't remember how to get to class.  Finally he figured it out and made it just as they were putting there stuff away. Poor guy when he told me I felt like crape of course. At least this morning went a little smoother and they made it to the bus on time today : )

First Day Of School!

BEDA day 12

Today was the boys first day of school. The boys didn't get the best nights sleep they were to excited and nervous about school. The morning was a little chaotic we need to back into the swing of the whole school routine.

As were walking to the bus stop I'm watching in complete disbelief at how big there getting. I can't believe I have a 4th and 2nd grader! I'm starting to feel old Lol. As the bus comes down the street I tell the boys to have a great day and I l♥ve them. I go to give them a kiss on their for heads my middle one let's me and dives in for a quick hug. My oldest stops me in my tracks and tells me um no not gonna happen. Little turd about broke my heart.

Me and little man hung out at home all day and it felt weird and was so quiet to not have them with us. I'm used to loud rambunctious boys running around : ). I was a little worried about and nervous for them expecially my oldest.  In 4th grade they go to a new school and they even get lockers.

He has sever learning disabilities and is in a class for kids who need extra help or have disabilities. He was nervous about going today and about homework and being able to open his locker. That's a whole other post.

I'm happy to say they came home happy and excited. They both had a awesome day. They couldn't stop telling me all about it : ) I hope the rest of the year goes great we'll see when homework starts flowing in.

I snapped some pictures they wouldn't stay still they were being silly but I still managed to get a few : )

What We've Been Up To The Past Few Day's

BEDA day 11

So I kinda flaked at not missing any days during BEDA but we've had some stuff going on the past few days. One of the boys cousins a little girl the same age as my middle boy has a disorder and was in the hospital not doing so good. She did get better thankfully!

With the boys going back to school tomorrow I had to finish getting there supplies. It's Insane how much stuff they need and that doesn't include all the times threw out the year you end up having to send in more supplies. After spending a small fortune and fight crowds for folders, glue sticks, pencils ect. To lug it all home and get everything sorted, labeled with there name and sharpen 500 pencils (cause yes they want them all pre-sharpened). 

At least I didn't have to write there name in permanent marker on each individual one this year. Then drop off supplies and meet the teachers. I'm sad they go back tomorrow I'll miss my little terrors and the house will be a lot quieter at least while there at school. So that's what we've been up to the past few days. 

Got Milk?....My Breastfeeding Journey's #2

BEDA day 6

Yesterday I told you about my breastfeeding journey with my oldest son. Today I'm gonna tell you about my journeys nursing my middle boy and my little guy. I'll start out with my middle boy.

I had successfully made it to almost 19 months nursing my oldest and knew I wanted to also nurse baby #2. I hadn't even considered doing other wise. When the day came and gave birth to him I made it clear to the nurses I would be breastfeeding and didn't want anyone giving him formula. Our experience this time around was better no one was trying to shove us formula. Although they did send us home with some.

Nursing went good this time around. My breasts weren't as sensitive as the first time I nursed my oldest. I really think if you end up nursing multiple baby's it toughens your breast (I hope that makes sense).

My bf was more supportive this time around. I think he had gotten more used to breastfeeding so was more comfortable with it. As far as his family goes it was about the same not really supportive but not as harassing about it either. My family was kinda like what ever. I don't know if they just figured she's gonna do it anyway so what ever.

Like his older brother he to got the hang of it really quick. I was very fortunate to not have any difficulties. There were still rude people out in public. I don't understand why people feel the need to put you down. I would never go up to a mom who was bottle feeding and say ugh why would you feed your kid like that!

He nursed till he was 19 months old. With him he was also fed on demand and I let him decide when he wanted to wean. It got less and less till one day he decided he didn't want to nurse anymore.

On to little man I knew I wanted to breastfeed him as well. Again when he was born I let the nurses know and they were great. She even gave me diapers to take home instead of formula.

He caught on right away and everything went and is still going great. My only concern I had was if he would end up getting enough nutrition with me having crohns. Thankfully he has and in fact he's exclusively breastfeed longer then my other boys.

He's 13 months and still going strong with nursing.  In fact he's just recently started some what eating and being interested in regular foods. He still nurses on demand often. I plan on letting him self wean when he's ready.

I'm the most confident in breastfeeding then I have ever been. Third times a charm : ) I also wanted to add I'm not a pumper I tried once when my oldest was a mini but after sitting there trying to pump for a hour and barely getting anything I said forget this. I really had no reason to anyway so it wasn't a big deal :)

If you have any questions feel free to ask : )

Got Milk?....My Breastfeeding Journey's

BEDA day 5

For those of you who don't know August 1st - 7th is World Breastfeeding Week.  To be honest I never knew there was even such a thing. But I figured I would talk about my breastfeeding journeys. All of my boys were breastfeed and my little guy still is.

First off I want to start by saying I do support breastfeeding that doesn't mean I'm against those that don't. I know this can be a hot subject to talk about although I'm not quite sure why. A mom is a mom whether she chooses to breastfeed or formula feed. We should support each other and not judge or make each other feel like crape. Sorry for the little rant.

I'll start with my oldest. I was a young mom I had him when I was 18. There was a program for teen moms where once a month someone would come to your house and tells you about information about pregnancy and infants. That's where I was told a little bit about breastfeeding.

I made the decision that I wanted to try and nurse. The day came when my sweet boy was born. I told the nurses I was going to breastfeed. They tried to convince me that I should formula feed instead. But I stood my ground. When they came to take him to check him out I let them know I was breastfeeding and not to give him formula. They bring him back shortly after and next to him in his bassinet is a bottle. I was pissed to say the least.

My boyfriend wasn't really on board with the whole breastfeeding thing either nor was his family. Mine wasn't very supportive either. When my bf took the baby to visit with family in the waiting room while I got checked out he ended up giving him some of the formula as well.

My baby ended up having really bad gas and pretty much screamed in pain for 2 day's. When we got home  nursing went good for someone not knowing what the heck they were doing : ) It didn't take long before me and him were comfortable and pros at it.

I still had comments made to me about why was I breastfeeding I'm gonna make him clingy ect. Don't get me started on what they said about co-sleeping. I also had incidents out in public with rude people. I was at Walmart and need to nurse I wasn't confident yet in nursing in public so I went to go nurse in the changing room. I was told I couldn't and to go nurse in the bathroom on a toilet. Yeah I was told to feed my infant in a nasty bathroom on a toilet.

I ended up nursing on demand till he was almost 19 months old. I stopped cold turkey because I was pregnant with my second and told that I was hurting the baby and he wasn't getting enough nutrition with me still nursing my oldest and I should stop immediately. I didn't know any better so I listened and cut him off.

It was a terrible experience! He was so hysterical for a week. I felt like a piece of crape not to mention my breasts became engorged. Talk about painful! I wish I was more informed and had gotten a second opinion before I listened to them. Unfortunately I didn't.

This is really long so I'm gonna do a part 2. Hopefully I didn't bore you to much : )

13 Months Old♥

BEDA day 4

Little man is 13 months old now. The time just keeps on fly by. It's crazy how much they change, grow and learn in such a short time. I'm not sure what his weight is we go to the doctor in a few weeks.

He's definitely getting more mischievous and getting into every and anything. He's a pro at crawling and is pretty dang quick. He's got pulling him self up down packed now to. He recently has been standing and trying to let go of what he's holding onto. He'll stand for a couple seconds then gets wobbly and lands on his bottom.

He definitely has a little attitude and is always making us laugh and smile. If he hears someone laughing he'll start fake laughing it's hilarious. He is obsessed with water.  If he hears or sees water running he wants to play in it. When I fill the bathtub he'll stop what he's doing smile and go crawling like a mad man to try and get to the tub.

He's very much a chatter box. He likes to jibber jabber he says mama, dada, bub, buba, yees, dis and dat when he wants something or wants to know what something is. He tries to let you know what he wants and if he points to something I'll ask him if this is what he wants. If it is he'll smile and shake his head yes if it's not then he'll jibber and point to try and tell you.

His hair is growing so fast. He's definitely into try foods know but still doesn't actually sit and eat very much. We're still breastfeeding on demand which is still often. His sleeping is still the same he wakes through the night.

If you ask him were his eyes are he'll point to them. He's starting to learn were his head, nose ect. are. If you ask him what does a monkey say he'll go ooh eeeh eeeh. He LOVES music and singing. He'll dance and clap his hands it's so cute : )

He's definitely keeping me on my toes. I love his little open mouth kisses he gives and when he lays his head on me : ) I'm definitely sucking up every minute of this stage before it's over♥

Here's to hoping tomorrow it's better

BEDA day 3

Sorry this is so late getting up. We've been out all day and just got home and I almost forgot to blog for the day. But better late then never right : ) For those who don't know I have Crohns Disease and it's been really bothering me the past few days.

I found out I had it and had to have surgery to remove 10-12 inches of my intestine and appendix a week before I found out I was pregnant. I wrote a post more on that if you want to check it out.

Anyway like I was saying it's been really bothering me this past week. I've been having really bad pains, pulsing/flutters in my stomach. Along with not being able to eat very well without pain, bloating (and when I say bloating I don't mean like when your on your period) it can make me look like I'm pregnant. I get nauseous oh and of course the ever so lovely bathroom issues : (

It's not fun as it is but it's really a joy when you have little rug rats to take care of to. There's been many times I've been stuck on a toilet while holding, nursing and putting a baby down to nap with kids running around bickering at each other or getting into things.

You don't realize the simple things you take for granted till there not so simple anymore. Like being able to eat or drink anything with out feeling pain or sickness. Here's to hoping it goes into remission soon : )

Ice Cream In a Bag : )

BEDA day 2

I wanted to share a fun activity to do with the kids. My boys love making ice cream in a bag. It's quick easy and fun. You probably already have everything you need on hand.

Ice Cream In a Bag (If not using flavored syrup)

• 1 cup of milk or half & half
•  2 tbls sugar
•  1/2 tsp vanilla
•  Ice 
•  Salt
•  Baggies (sandwich size & larger)

Ice Cream In a Bag (If using flavored syrup)

•  1 cup milk or half & half
•  1 tbs or non depending on how much syrup you use
•  1/4 tsp vanilla
•  Ice
•  Salt
•  Baggies (sandwich size & larger)

 Mix together milk, sugar, vanilla and syrup if making a flavor ice cream. Pour milk mixture into a sandwich bag and close getting as much air out as possible.  Take a gallon size bag and add ice. Pour salt over the ice and put the bag of milk inside the bag of ice. Put a little more ice and salt in the bag and close it getting as much air out as possible.  The bag gets really cold so make sure to have the kids wear gloves or wrap a towel around it. Squeeze and smush the bag for 5-10 minutes till it turns stiffer. I found that 5 minutes was perfect.

Enjoy your delicious easy ice cream!

Blog Everyday In August (BEDA)

I've been slacking a bit on blogging lately. Not that I don't want to. Just with summer break coming to an end for my boys I've been trying to spend as much time with them as possible.

If you have people you watch on YouTube you may know that some vloggers are doing VEDA vlog everyday in August. Since I'm not a vlogger I figured I would try and attempt to do it with blogging.

Hopefully I have things to blog about everyday without boring you all to death : ) If your doing BEDA or would like to give it a try. Please feel free to leave a link to your daily posts in the comments each day so myself and others who are interested can check it out : )

If you have any suggestions on what to blog about or posts you would like to see let me know as well. Thanks :)