the sweetest thing

Logan and Camryn took their bath together last night and I got such a kick out of watching them play.

The scene: the tub

The cast of characters: Logan, Camryn, and two of Cami’s babies.

The plot: Soon after realizing that there was only one baby in the tub, Logan asked me to bring them another one.  They both needed a baby for whatever game was going to happen next.  Luckily, we have two tub babies so it’s not a problem.   As I handed Logan the second baby, I noticed that Camryn had her baby cradled gently in her arms with the washcloth covering her like a blanket.  She was gently rocking the baby, back and forth with a sweet and nurturing little smile on her face.  “She is such a girl” I thought to myself, delighted at the little bit of softness she brings to our family.  My thoughts were interrupted by a huge splash….

“KABOOM!!!!  WATCH MY BABY DO A FRONT FLIP!!  ALIEN BABY FACE!!!  AGHHHHH!!!!!”  shrieked Logan with gusto as his baby took a flying leap from the side of the tub.

I got such a kick out of this little scene!  Boys and girls are so different.  And anyone who doesn’t agree needs to come spend a few minutes at our house!  While Camryn is pretty rough and tumble and totally keeps up with the boys…case a point, she was found wrestling in the church lobby with four boys ages 5 and up this morning…she is still decidedly girly in the way she cares for her babies.  It’s instinctive to her.

I love the action and adventure the boys bring to our house and I love the sweetness and softness Camryn brings.

I will totally admit that I was waiting to see if Staci would blog about our girl’s weekend so I could steal some pictures. She is the only one who took any pictures with a real camera. Thank goodness for our iPhones!

So this was our 4th annual girl’s weekend, and it was as great as I expected it to be. There is just something about catching up with friends, completely uninterrupted by kids (and there are 16 between us and two more on the way: one in Suzanne’s belly and one on the way through Staci’s adoption!) Staci, Juli Beth, Suzanne, Shauna, Carrie, and I have all known each other since childhood, which means we know way too many embarrassing things about each other. It also means that we are super comfortable with each other and always pick up right where we left off.  Friends like that are such a blessing, and I am so thankful to have them in my life!

We all stayed at Juli Beth’s house this year (thanks to her hubby and kids for letting us have the house!). I can’t say that we did anything all that exciting…there was lots and lots of talking, laughing, and eating with a little bit of shopping and beautification thrown in there. (Juli Beth is a Mary Kay consultant and gave us all facials. Thanks, JB!) I can’t speak for everyone, but it was just the sort of weekend I needed to get through the home stretch of summer. I came home feeling refreshed, rested, and ready to have some fun with the kids these next 3 weeks.

Here we are kicking off the weekend at Cheesecake Factory.  Yum!  I love that restaurant.

And here we are at BJ’s.  We took pictures at just about every restaurant we went to because we are cool like that.

No shopping trip is complete without picking out a “special” outfit to try on.   This is what I tried on last year:

This year, Staci and I were thrilled when we found these in our sizes!   I know we look so pretty.  Right?  Right?!  And I know you are going to want to rush right out and buy this for yourself.  If only you could feel the orange fabric.  The itchiness and the crinkles and the glory of the ruffles can not be fully appreciated from this picture!

I love girl’s weekend with my whole heart.  But even more than the weekend, I love these girls.

{Insert cute picture of all of us here!}

I tried a new recipe yesterday, and it was yummy.

Then tonight, we at the leftovers and it was even yummier!  That, my friends, is a winner.  Sorry there are no pictures for this post.  I don’t usually blog about food…I do cook for my family, but making spaghetti and tacos isn’t exactly great blogging material.  My recipe rotation has been especially boring this summer, so it was definitely time for something new.

Enter Mediterranean Chicken Wraps.
(recipe found in Parenting magazine)

You need (and it sounds like sort of a lot of ingredients, but trust me, this recipe is so easy and so fast!)
The Sauce:
–1 cup plain Greek yogurt
–2 t lemon juice (I squeezed half of a fresh lemon. No measuring needed!)
–1 clove garlic
–2 T of dill. Or if you’re like me and couldn’t find dill on your spice rack, Greek seasoning.
–1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and chopped
–Salt and pepper to taste

The Chicken:
–1/2 rotisserie chicken, shredded
–diced tomatoes
–kalamata olives
–thinly sliced onion
–Greek seasoning
–2 T olive oil

Toss all the chicken ingredients in a bowl. Serve on warmed (pocketless) pita bread and top with cucumber yogurt sauce and feta cheese.

So that’s it! It was so yummy, but the kicker is it was even better tonight! We ate all the pita bread last night, so tonight I just made a chicken salad sandwich, Mediterranean style. I spread the sauce on some wheat bread, topped with the leftover chicken mixture and lots of feta cheese. It was so good! Connor even ate it up. (Not Logan and Camryn so much, but 3 out of 5 of us liked it, so that’s winner in my book!)

Enjoy!

Camryn got some great stuff for her birthday, and we sure have had fun playing with all the new goodies.  One of the favorites is the Makin’ Mud Pies outdoor kitchen.  All 3 kids have loved playing with it!  It’s a definite winner.  Last night, they all worked together to make some delicious mud pies.  Any toy that gets all my kids working together on a project is a winner in my book!  Connor was the official stirrer, Logan was the ingredient gatherer (grass and leaves) and Camryn added more dirt and water as Connor needed it.  I love when the work together and play nicely!

Sweet Camryn is always wanting to give her brother’s hugs and kisses.  Connor has been going to a day camp all week, and every morning Camryn insists on giving her big brother hugs and kisses good-bye.  It really is so sweet.  Last night while I was taking pictures, Cami just had to give Connor some kisses.   And if you are wondering about the hazy look to these pictures, it was really THAT humid outside.  It took several minutes for my lens to even de-fog and the pictures all had this hazy look to them.  Gotta love Houston!  Yesterday was one of the most hot and humid days I have ever felt.

Mud-speckled baby girl.  Looks like she really tried to eat the pie!

Thanks, Nonny and Pops, for the great toy!

And if anyone is looking for something new and fun for outside, I definitely recommend this toy!

I can’t help but smile…

When I see these pictures of my kiddos.

I was going to write about how Logan is such a ham in pictures, and cannot just smile a regular smile.

But upon close inspection, they can all make some good photo-worthy faces.

Although Logan still totally takes the cake as the craziest in photos.  (and life, for that matter.  He is non-stop!)

Man, I love these guys.  Even when they drive me cray.  Even when I can’t seem to get a “normal” picture of them.  What’s normal anyway?  To us, this series of pictures if totally normal.  And I love them to bits!