Farewell Friends and Fun Projects

Last night I had the privilege to be a part of a going away

party for our dear friend Candee Marchant. Her and her
precious family are moving this weekend, and I will say
with a very sad heart that they will be missed tremendously!

We had a fun little fondue party full of girl talk, food, more
girl talk, and yup - a little more food! I'm a foodie girl, can
you tell? That is something that Hubs and I adore about the
Marchant fam - that they are "foodie" people too :) For those
of you wondering what in the world that means - well - let's
just say we revolve ALOT around eating out and enjoying good
food! Simple as that.

On another note, I've been playing around with some new fun
projects that may or may not end up in my Etsy shop... This
particular project has been very heartfelt in that I have been
pondering the thought of God being my "portion" quite a bit
lately. And what better representation of that than an old
vintage spoon? Curious to know what you think.....

Cheers!

Lovin' my girl!

Just for fun.......

I've recently said, quite a bit lately, that being the mother of a little girl
has definitely made me more "girly..."

I am LOVING being a bit more girly (if you couldn't already tell by the
painted toes picture!)

The Lord has blessed me indeed with 3 beautiful, wonderful kiddos!
To Him I am most grateful!

Birthday Bash!

May 12th was Big Boy's 5th birthday! And all that he wanted
was a "police car cake" and a police car toy...

Little did he know that he has the coolest parents IN THE WORLD
and not only could we provide his little desires, but we were able
to schedule a meeting with an actual POLICE OFFICER & his real
life POLICE CAR!!!!

Let's just say Big Boy was a wee bit excited :)

We had a fab time of having the family over for sweet pork salad
and yummy chocolate cake and ice cream. And it was a beautiful
day - which is never a given in Idaho, so that was a bonus!

Here are some pics of the big event, and even my sweet pork
recipe in case you need a yummy new crock pot fave!!

So Excited!!
The new "ninja" toy! A wee bit scary :)
The Kinneys!
Grandma "Coco" as Big Boy has recently titled her, and cousin Makena!
Big Boy and his turn trying to bring down the pinata
Cousin Sid and the pinata
Peanut and his turn at the pinata
AND.... Watch out! Candy is loose - here's the cleanup crew!
Getting to talk on the radio - so cool! They loved it!
Getting ready to check out the car
Big Boy locked up.... Deja Vu perhaps??
Peanut locked up and looking really worried :)
Hubs and Officer Hoiosin chatting it up
Sweet Pork.......Yum!
All you need:
-Boneless Pork Shoulder
-1 can Dr. Pepper ( I used Diet Cherry DP)
-1 Jar Salsa Verde
-1 Cup Sweet Chili Sauce
-1/2 - 3/4 Cup Brown Sugar (do the 3/4 cup if you like it sweeter)
-1 TBLE Garlic Powder
-1 TEAS Salt

Throw this all in the crock and cook on low 8-10 hrs or on high 5-7 hrs! Easy Cheesy!!
Cook up some rice - cut up some limes - have a bowl of cheese - Sour Cream - Avocados -
Lots of cut up lettuce- and some black beans - chips......... Go Crazy!! This is SOOO yummy!

Mother's Day Weekend

Oh how blessed I am! I would never have thought that at
this point in my life, I'd have 3 kiddos all before the age of
30! And I know that all moms think this, but I truly feel
like my kiddos are so awesome! I have found myself quite
a bit recently just staring - watching their little personalities
bud and bloom. Now I'm starting to sound cheesy....

Anyways, my family did a spectacular job of making me feel
loved, appreciated, and I am humbled at how wonderful it
is to be a mom.

Our pastor on Sunday talked about amazing women in the
Bible, and he brought up one of my favorites: Hannah. It's
always a good gut check for me when I'm feeling overwhelmed
as a mom, to re-read Hannah's story and be reminded of what
a Godly heart she had.

One of the things that truly amazes me about Hannah, is that
she believed in the power of prayer. Her womb was closed -
without any chance of being able to bear children, she prayed
fervently to the Lord to allow her to bear a child; so much so
that the priest thought she was drunk!

And not only would that be hard enough to endure, she had
an even worse thorn in her side that came in the form of her
husband's other wife - who was very fertile - and new that
Hannah could not have children. She would poke and prod
at Hannah's wishes to have children by flaunting her own
abilities. YET HANNAH DID NOT CONDEMN HER. She had
every right to, too. In my opinion.

And the Lord remembered Hannah's prayer, and opened her
womb, and gave her a son. Hannah gave birth to Samuel,
and gave him away to the Lord when he was still really little.
And he became one of the most favorable prophets in the land
and one of the most well known today.

I can't even imagine giving any of my kiddos away! Yet they are
entrusted to us for such a short time. But they are ultimately the
Lord's anyways!

I have had the thought lately that I am responsible for my kids
future. I am responsible to help shape/mold them (by the grace of God)
into little warriors - men & women of God that will one day lead their
generation by their Christ-like lives. Because we are in the midst of
a spiritual battle that rages everyday...

My prayer this Mother's Day is that like Hannah, I will believe
and use the power of prayer to build up my children... And that I will
never lose sight of the fact that God has blessed me immensely with
three little miracles.

Here's a few pics of some of my favorite peeps...

My Neglected Friend

I'm so sorry I've neglected...

You.

That's right you!

Those who I know read these silly, yet amusing posts,
and those who I don't know that have found their way
here...

Let me start by saying, it's been awhile. And my camera
had WAY too many pictures on it - gathering dust, waiting
to be downloaded and shared with...

well,

YOU.

My neglected friend.

I sincerely apologize, and hope that you will sit back,
relax, and let your mind go blank as you look through
the photos our lives for the past month or so. These
moments are what has pre-occupied us so much that
we forgot to tell you about things like what we did for
Easter, and how much bigger our baby girl has gotten
since she was born...

Big Boy at the zoo....This is what a monkey looks like!
Another "monkey" shot!
Easter!

Cousins!
Love!
Daddy and his baby girl :)
Big girl sophia holding our little sweet pea
Playing a little back yard ball