Ellie & Blake's New Cousin

Congratulations Justin & Michelle!

After a long 36 hour labor...

Viola Isabel was born on March 31st at 4:52pm

6lbs 1oz - 20 inches

She is so cute!

Happy Easter!

Saturday morning Easter egg hunt.

Blake didn't have more then three eggs before he wanted to just sit down and EAT!

Waiting for the hunt to begin.
Blake is teaching Uncle Shawn how to be a lion.

Making some fun and very messy crafts and snacks!

This is one of the things Yaya does best...

"messy fun"

Easter at Papa and Nana's House

One of the things I love most about the Millers are their traditions. They do not mess around. The moment we walked in the house the hunt was on! There were eggs EVERYWHERE!! However, the rule is no touching eggs until you find your basket. It was so cute to watch the kids get so excited as they passed tons of eggs while desperately trying to find their baskets. Once the baskets were found it was a free for all. None of this pink eggs are Ellie's and blue are Blake's eggs. If you find it it's yours!

After all the eggs were found it was time to find the special "golden egg."

There is only one with a treasure inside.

MONEY!

When Michael was a kid the three of them would fight like crazy to find the golden egg. With age the pot got bigger. Hide a $20 bill and your kids will hunt for eggs until....well forever!

The Loot! (sorry some pics are blurry - something is wrong with my camera but they were too cute to leave out)

We have some good stuff coming in....

Spinach Tomato Tortellini - This is so good - Thank you Beth!
- 1 16oz package Cheese Tortellini
(Boil until tender) (While cooking Tortellini combine the following in a large sauce pan, Wait for it to bubble)
- 1 14.5 oz can Diced Tomatoes w/ Garlic and Onion
- 1 cup chopped Fresh Spinach
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/4 tsp Pepper
- 1 and 1/2 tsp Dried Basil
- 1 tsp Minced Garlic
(While waiting for mix the bubble, whisk the following in a separate bowl and then add to sauce pan)
- 2 Tbsp All-Purpose Flour
- 3/4 cup Milk
- 3/4 cup Heavy Cream
(Once sauce is all mixed together then add the Parmesan Cheese)
Heat through, then reduce heat to low, and simmer until thick, about 2 minutes. Strain Tortellini then add to sauce

Taco Soup
(Fry and Drain the following)
- 1 lb. Ground Beef (can also substitute beef with turkey)
- 1/2 cup chopped Onion
(Once all fried and drained add 2 1/2 cups of Water then put mixture into a large pot and add the following and let simmer for 25-45 minutes)
- 1 pkg Taco Seasoning
- 2 cans (each 16oz) Chopped Tomatoes
- 2 cans (each 160z) Red Kidney Beans (undrained)
- 1 can (16oz) Tomato Sauce
- 1 can corn
Put in bowls to serve and you can put out the following for people to add
- Fritos (really good) or chips
- Avocado
- Sour Cream
- Grated Cheese
- Onions
- Olives

Marlene's Mexican lasagna still to come

Anyone else in a dinner rut?

OK I know I am not the only one who feels like there are only 5 things to make for dinner sometimes. So ladies and gentlemen help me out. I have tried and failed at all those dinner idea email chains too many times to count. If you are in the same spot and want some good family friendly dinner ideas just shoot me an email or comment with your family’s favorite meals. Because this is my crazy idea (that may not work) I will start.

-spaghetti or noodles with white sauce and meat (Ellie's favorite)
-chicken enchiladas
-grilled cheese and turkey or ham
-Marlene’s awesome mexican lasagna

Hey maybe we can all get a couple more ideas to add to our dinner rotation. Oh, and Elizabeth you have to send me that recipe for the Italian dish you made us for dinner the other night. That is if you don’t mind me sharing it with my little world.

Jam, Mustard & Kidney Beans!

Well it's time to go shopping again....
Can you tell by now that I go BIG shopping and then wait until we hardly have anything left until I go again! I am absolutely starving for some reason today and the cupboards are empty. I decided that maybe we could go get something quick and then go shopping tonight after the kids go down.

The kids are playing very contently when I suggest going out to get something to eat. Ellie walks over to the fridge and says, "Mom, we have plenty here. There is kidney beans, jam, mustard.....and.....chocolate milk." Then she opens the panty and says, "What else....oh there is oatmeal!"

That's it folks!
Winco here we come!

A Random Day of FUN!

You know those days when you wake up and you don't have a single thing planned and they turn out to be some of the most adventurous and fun days. Well Saturday we headed out the door early in the morning for an unplanned trip to the Pearl District. I found a great deal on craigslist for a double stroller so we were off to pick it up. It was a beautiful day so we loaded the kids up in our "new" stroller and walked around the Pearl for a while. Michael and I made the conclusion that we really like the look of the Pearl but could never imagine (let alone afford) living in a strip of condos with no parking while having two kids! It may not be realistic for a family of four but it sure is CUTE. Next we were off to Wendy's for some lunch. We don't go there that often so when we ordered frosties for the kids they thought they hit the jack pot. Yummy!

Due to Blake's inability to SLOW DOWN he experienced his first brain freeze!

Next we met my sister at a coffee shop/church (Urban Grind) near her studio for a cup of coffee and play time for the kids. They open their Sunday school classrooms during the week for kids to play while you enjoy a cup of joe. It was great!

To end our random Saturday fun we had to take a car (company car for his boss) to the airport that night so we made another event out of the trip. We parked at the top of the garage and watched airplanes then headed inside to the play structure.

Ellie got a second dose of chocolate for the day and...
Blake ate an entire bag of BBQ chips in about 2min.

I think we will not make plans more often!

Sweet Words

Early Monday morning Ellie was cuddling with Aunt Katy on the couch.
Ellie: “Remember how Jesus died on the cross for us?”
Katy: “Yes I do.”
Ellie: “You know he did that to take our sins away?!?”
Katy: “Yes, your right.”
Ellie: “Cause you know….if he didn’t take our sins out then….we wouldn’t have room for food!”

Ellie was setting all her stuffed animals up on the dining room floor. I asked her if she was making a party. She replied very simply, “Nope, they are just praising God.”

I love to hear her talk about God. She may not understand it all or have all the facts but it’s so simple to her. Keeping this in mind while I read my bible today the thing that stood out the most to me was John 15:17, “This is my command: Love each other.” Now that is simple! I wonder why it’s so hard to achieve sometimes.