Pictures, because I don't have any more room on my walls

I was playing with my new remote control for my camera.

Note to self:  Make sure the remote is not in the picture and subjects aren't playing video games.

Oooh.  Don't you remember taking these kinds of pictures when you were first dating or married.  I wonder if he would make me take this down if he knew I put it on my blog:)  He was to engrossed in the video game to know that I was taking a picture with my nifty remote.

My kids do this all the time.  They stare at the neighbor kids while they are playing.  We need higher fences.  Neighbors will you please invite my kids over to play?  They only want to jump on your trampoline!

Sisterly love!

This one is a little out of focus and the lighting is off, but I still wanted to share it.

Love this one of Laney.  She is so photogenic.

My sweet Addy Mae.  I can't stop taking her picture.  I want her to stay this age forever.

"Your dog is muy, muy, muy bad.  Mucho naughty!"  That's what she was saying on the pretend phone.  I'm not making this stuff up.   This red head has a really awesome talent.  She can recite lines from a movie, even if she has only heard it once.  She pretends she can't hear me, but I've got your number Livi.  

Mini Blackberry Cobblers

Personal blackberry cobblers.  My husband and I love to have dessert.  Like every night.  It's like date night, but better.  We don't have to find a sitter, we can stay in our jammies, and we can take turns taking pictures of our dessert.  I don't make dessert every night.  Sometimes we have Oreo's, or Rudy's banana pudding.  But when I do make dessert, I've learned to make them in smaller portions.  Three reasons why: One, if I make a whole pie or cobbler, my husband will only eat it one time.  Maybe twice, but will never finish the pie. Reason two:  I will eat the leftover pie.  Like all of it.  Three:  I will wake up to the yahoo's feeding themselves pie.  This is so easy to make.  

Ingredients:

I big container of blackberries or two small ones (You could use Raspberries and I've also made mini peach cobblers this same way)

lemon juice 

Sugar  

Flour

One pre-made pie crust ( from the frozen section at the grocery store)

One egg for the egg wash

 

Add  some lemon juice from  a lemon or the little lemon bottle.  I have no idea how much I use exactly.  Just enough to cover all the berries and then have a little pool of lemon juice at the bottom of the bowl.

Then cover with sugar.  Again, the point is just to cover all the berries. 

It should look something like this.  Then cover with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge.  I would say, leave it in there for about an hour.  The point is to let the sugar and lemon make the berries soft and some berry juice to accumulate at the bottom of the bowl.

Then take it out of the fridge and add some flour.  This is gonna make the berry juice thicker.  I add enough to cover all the berries and then toss them around to coat with a spoon.  Just like the picture above.

I use these cute ramekins to make my mini cobblers.  Then I just cut out a circle of frozen pie crust, a little bit bigger than the ramekin. ( I took the frozen pic crust out to thaw like an hour before I started making the berry mixture.)

 

And then place it inside the ramekin, like so.  Pictures make recipes so much easier. Don't you think?

Then add the berry mixture.

Cut a piece of pie crust to just cover the top.  Squish the sides down, like pictured above.  I just don't want pie crust hanging over the edge.  And cut little slits on the top so steam can escape will baking.

 Right here I am putting a little bit of egg wash on the top.  Egg wash is just one egg, with a little bit of water added and then beaten.  Just moisten the whole top.

Sprinkle some sugar on top of that.

Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 30-40 minutes.  You will know it's done when the tops are golden brown and the juices are bubbling out.  Like so.

I have made these before using sugar cookie dough as the crust.  I don't put it inside the ramekin.  I just put it on the top.  The crust is then thicker and sweeter.  I  buy already made dough, like in a tube.  You know which ones I'm talking about?   Just cut off a piece and squish it to fit over the top.  Mmmm  

Wordless Wednesday

Who said time outs don't work?

You know your discipline is working when they use the same techniques on their misbehaving dolllies!

Savanna says by by to the baba

I'm not sure where or when we started calling the pacifiers baba's.  It happened sometime between Savanna and Addy.  But that is what they call them.  We have no set time when we decide to take the pacifiers away.  It has been different with each one of them.  I just felt like it was time for Savanna.  For a spilt second, I thought about taking Savanna and Addison's away at the same time, but I don't think Addison is ready.  I took Savanna to the toy store.  She got to pick out whatever toy she wanted and then "paid" for it with her pacifiers.  I had talked this over with Savanna several times this week and she was excited to go.  She was excited at the store and completely understood what we were doing.   I really expected a meltdown when it came time to hand over the baba's to the sales clerk.  She impressed me.  I was more nervous and sad than she was.  I love that kid so much.  Here's our trip to the toy store in pictures.  She did ask for her baba while I was tucking her in for bed.  She said she wanted to go get them from the store.  I told her she couldn't.  She paused, thought, and said, "I can have Addy's baba."  Stinker.  I ended up laying with her for a few minutes so she could go to sleep.  I know she's gonna be stealing Addy Mae's pacifiers.  Laney was notorious for stealing pacifiers and sucking them behind the couch.  It's so weird how any time we come to these milestones with the girls, they suddenly look so much older.

That's a lot of pacifiers.  And at times we somehow managed to loose them all and then find them again!

 She wanted the mini FJ cruiser.  I don't blame her, it was pretty darn cool.

She picked the girly blocks.  We don't have any lego like blocks and she loves them.

 Giving it one last suck while in line at the register.

Totally out of focus, but it all happened so fast.

  It's funny but I didn't notice how sad she looked until I started posting these pictures.  Poor thing.  Her baba's were her one true comfort.  Now we are on to bigger and better things. 

Sometimes it's just hard

Sometimes it's just hard being a Mom.  I've had one of those weeks.  You know, one of those weeks were you just need a break.  Where everything starts to get to you.  I mean seriously, how many times can I change a poopey diaper in a day or break up really silly fights that almost put me over the edge.  Why do they have to pour out all of the shoes from the shoe basket, all over the floor every time I pick them up.  This week I'm just tired of the same old, same old.  I'm tired of figuring out what's for dinner or snack or breakfast or lunch.  I'm tired of being the only one that can wipe just about every bottom in this house.  (Thankfully my husband and the cat, can do this for themselves.)   I'm tired of all the laundry.   I'm tired of cleaning the kitchen.  I'm tired of disciplining my children.  I'm tired of them getting in trouble for the same things over and over and over again.  I'm tired of getting five people ready in the morning if we have to go somewhere.  And after I've picked out every body's clothes, they have decided they absolutely will not wear that outfit.   I'm tired of being squished and pinched. (Accidentally of course.)  I'm tired of having four kids fighting over who's gonna sit in my lap.  Why isn't two in my lap and one on each side good enough?  I'm tired of being the booger collector.  I'm tired of them fighting over who gets the Cinderella cup.  I'm tired of never getting a moment of peace when I'm going to the bathroom or taking a shower.  I'm tired of it being windy outside.  I'm tired of trying to come up with fun and exciting things to do everyday, and then my five year old tells me she's bored.   I'm tired of being alone with my kids until 6:30-7:00 p.m until my husband gets home.  And then it's time to put them to bed and I have to wake up and do it all over again.  AHHHHHH!  (I could go on and on.)  

Have you ever had one of those weeks?  I think every mom, even if you have one, two or ten kids, has had one of those weeks.  Even if you are that mom who actually gets dressed in real clothes and puts on make-up everyday, you have had one of those days.   I don't like to be negative, because it's bothers me when people say, "Well maybe you should of thought about that BEFORE you had four kids so close in age."  I can handle this and I am a good mother, but sometimes it's just hard.  This job is really hard.

I think the worst part of all this, is the guilt.  The guilt I feel for admitting that sometimes I don't have it all together.  That sometimes, maybe God made a mistake for gifting me with my children.  That maybe my almost losing it with them, makes me the worst mother out there.  I then find comfort in knowing that just about every mom feels this way at some point.  I am not the only one!  

Here's what I try to do, to keep my sanity:

1. Take a very, very long and deep breath

2. Have some thing to look forward too, after they go to bed (Like going to Target by myself, or making a fun dessert for Josh and I, or watching a movie I want to watch.)

3. Find an outlet, some thing that makes me feel like me again  (My love for photography is really great therapy.)

4. Take some time for me (The more kids I have the more I realize that I need time to myself.  I wish I had taken more time for myself when I had only one or two kids.  Back when I thought I didn't need it. )  

5. I joined MOPS  (Your kids get to sing songs and do crafts with some one else, while you visit with other really cool and stressed out moms.  We eat and talk and it's a wonderful break almost every other week.  I have to say that the moms at my table are the coolest, kindest, craziest moms and I would have never of met them if I hadn't of joined MOPS.)

6.  I try to take a moment to put things in perspective  (Like being thankful that my kids are healthy.  Being thankful that I don't have 10 kids.)

7.  Remember that my kids are not always going to be small  (I know I'm gonna miss seeing them with their pacifiers and pigtails.  I'm gonna miss hearing "I love you" from Savanna 10 times a day.  I'm gonna miss having a say in what they wear.  Let's not flash forward to when they are teenagers, I just might lose it. )

8.  Take comfort in knowing that God knows my heart and has a very unique plan for my children and our family.

P.S.  I'm sorry to sound so crazy, but I really feel better now!       

Wordless Wednesday

Since I have used up my, "I'm pregnant again!" joke for April fools day.  I'll just post a fun picture.