pizza night...

picking fresh basil from our basil plant...

the pizza toppings...

making the pizza dough...

ready to bake...

ready to eat...

we will be doing this again... it was fun and delish...

5/18/2010

playing favorites...

this movie has been on my "to do" list forever! and i finally started watching it... and LOVE the clothes... both of the main characters wardrobe is sensational... not to mention the movie itself...

picture from : http://meerkatie.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/500-days-of-summer-poster.jpg

how could this not count as a favorite... eating cherries on a perfect afternoon while watching jones play soccer... [yes that is my bag of fresh cherries in the corner]...

5/21/2010

and how could i resist taking a picture of jones "hugging" thomas... one of his favorites...

5/20/2010

last... although i could not find a picture of one of my newest favorites... i had to write about it... greek style feta salad dressing from trader joes... it is so yummy!!! if you like feta at all... you will love this... it is great with some greens and one avocado...

[this is how jones said 'cheese' the other night]

[he is one of my most favorites]

5/18/2010

...

happy weekend...

adventures with grandma & grandpa c

we started out the day by going to the s.d.n.h.m.

san diego natural history museum

jones has been in love with dinosaurs!!!!

i didnt know he was this in love with them when i bought him a book from the library... i love that they sell their old books for 25 cents a piece!!!

i bought him a book about a little boy that takes a trip to the dinosaur museum... and the little boy in the book names all the different dinosaurs... we had only read it a couple times and i didnt know that jones paid that close attention...

but...

i took him to the dentist last thursday and he did great... so at the end of the visit he got to choose a prize... he chose a dinosaur and proceeded to tell all the girls in the office that it was an apatosaurus... i didnt even know what kind of dinosaur that was... and they were all asking me if he really knew the names of dinosaurs... haha...

when we went home... i looked it up... he calls every dinosaur an apatosaurus... obviously they are not all apatosaurus...

we are now working on understanding the differences

.....

the above picture:

he very much understood that this was a t-rex...

the animatronics scared him... A LOT!!!! .... as if you couldnt tell by just looking...

he loved when we found the HUGE apatosaurus... too bad we werent allowed to take pictures in the actual dinosaur exhibit...

although not a dinosaur... he was very excited to also see a mammoth...

the souvenir shop...

.....

then... we went to the mormon battalion historical site...

it was very worth while... so much better than i had ever expected!!!

if you have a half an hour and you are in san diego... this is a must see...

after walking the 2000 miles that the mormon battalion walked... there is panning for gold...

jones was a little timid at first...

but then got way into it... he loved panning...

then he learned to pump water like in the old days with an old fashion well...

5/14/2010

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after a traditional walk to the donut shop and some work around the house we had a birthday party...

rylee's #8

5/15/2010

.....

and after a fun weekend... we had to say goodbye...

but before we did we had to eat the fun treat we made sunday...

jello melons...

thanks for visiting!!!!

xoxo

5/17/2010

healthy?

for family night this week... we learned about how to be healthy and take care of our bodies... i thought it would be fun to show jones the importance of exercise and choosing good foods... so we ran to a local organic grocery store so we could pick some 'good for you' foods...

although i tried to help jones choose an apple or another type of fruit... the moment he saw the all natural cheese puffs he knew that was what he wanted... all i can say is that at least they were the healthiest cheetos type snack one could eat... they are organic and

made with real blue cheese and cheddar cheese... at least this was a chance for me to get him to eat cheese... i dont know how a child of mine nor brents could not like cheese... but it happened..

the part that was the worst... to run to cream of the crop, the grocery store, i had to run past the donut shop we go to... so naturally jones wanted to stop for donuts... good thing they are closed at that time of the evening... but bad for me... because the first few minutes of us trying to find healthy, good for us foods was accompanied by crying about donuts...

.......

i love that in the below picture you can see the strong hold he has on those puffs! no way was he letting me talk him out of those...

5/10/2010

al mio amore...

i am a sucker for any movie...

expect the scary kinds.... hate those... yes...hate is a strong word and i fully meant to use it... they leave me feeling uncomfortable and scared... i guess that is the point... but who really likes that feeling???

...nothing gets me quicker than a triumphant girl that does something amazing and there just happens to be a love story evolving at the same time...

anyhow... i am easily pleased... but must share how i fell in love with letters to juliet... maybe it was a typical love story and predictable at times.... but loved seeing italy and loved a sweet, sappy ending love story! what kind of girl doesnt?

ok... now i just want to pretend like i am going to tour italy all summer long... eating gelato... and spending all that with the love of my life of course... that is the part that would make it all worth while... too bad he wouldnt be able to make it... especially since he is only a few hours from italy...

picture thanks to collider.com

we should have been doing this...

a beach cleanup that our stake was doing...

but we didnt quite make it out the door in time and missed the whole thing... so we did this instead...

this is how jones helped me wash the car... the sprinklers were way more fun!

5/8/2010

fry-day

last friday : our date night...

we grilled and watched a movie out back...

it was so fun just hanging out with jones... he loves being outside and so while i grilled our yummy shrimp... he played... then... every time i would go to red box the past few months he would look at the pictures of movies... and EVERY time he would get so excited about the pictures for the newest free willy movie... so that is what his choice was... free willy!

can you tell that he loved it! loves animals and learning about them...

he has this old encyclopedia book in his room that is one of his most recent favorites... it is all about animals, sealife... everything... he will bring it to me and tell me all the animals he knows already... then ask me about the ones he doesnt know...

...

it took him at least a half an hour to eat that one macroon... he was so intense watching the whales in the movie!

5/7/2010

.......

if you want some amazing shrimp follow this recipe:

all measurements approximate:

1/2 cup lemon juice

1/2 cup avocado oil or olive oil

2 tablespoons crushed red chili

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

...

marinate for about 2-3 hours then grill...

oh yeah... and the real reason behind "fry-day"...

i told jones a few days ago that grandma and grandpa c would come to visit us on friday... he replied:

"friday... ok, yeah yeah... fries... and a burger... and pop with a cup and straw.... and dip?... ok, sure mom!"

maybe we will have to get some fries with grandma and grandpa today because it is fry-day...

and some times i want to call him 'yeah yeah' from sandlot

happy fry-day!

happy m day...

his office (can)

5/9/2010

mothers day weekend..

we started our mothers day activities and celebrations a bit early...

thursday was our mothers day weekend celebration kick-off...

i took jones to the flower fields of carlsbad...

i thought it was very mothers dayish because there were millions of flowers...

i love that legoland is less than a mile from this place and so they made a small flower field of lego flowers... and a lego sign...

we paid extra and got to ride the tractor wagon! i knew that would be a huge highlight for jones...

top of the hill... sincerely... millions-of-flowers!

"stopping to smell the flowers"...

type of flower = Ranunculus

he wouldnt say cheese... this is as good as i was going to get...

loved the yellow!

cant resist a good corn picture... jones loves these things... there were three of them and i had to take his picture in each one...

my favorite part of the park... the sweet pea maze... not only does it smell amazing! it was so fun to see jones so excited to find the right way to go... he ran the whole maze!

i wish i had this maze in my backyard!

there was a playground there too... and i loved this pink house... and that huge mushroom... behind it there is a slide coming out of the house... it was such a cute park... so whimsical...

then... the exit lead you through the nursery that is in conjunction with the flower fields...

which is my new favorite store...

i wanted to buy so many wonderful gardening things!

...

but we settle for some honey straws... cinnamon, clove and mint...

and playing with the bobble-head gnome...

and buying only one new plant... our very own strawberry plant...

5/6/2010

.......

friday part of our festivities were a trip to the grocery store for some chocolate** and i found another new favorite...

dagoba chocolate: dark chocolate mint and rosemary essence

jones and i finished that off quite quickly...

and who doesnt love a chocolate covered gummy bears???

as for the third... i guess that is being saved for the actual mothers day day...

**whenever i say the word chocolate, i hear it how my cousin brevin says it... ask me sometime... i will tell you the story...

5/7/2010

.......

but maybe we didnt have to save a chocolate bar for mothers day... because my sweet love sent us/me this above... and that below... (but the smaller versions... even if i wanted to... there is no way i could eat that much chocolate covered fruit!)... we will eat what is left for breakfast... thats right... breakfast... its mothers day and i can have chocolate for breakfast!

i love fruit... i love chocolate... especially good chocolate... and good fruit...

if you have never had edible arrangements... you must arrange it for yourself to have them!

so beautiful... but tastes even better!

chocolate daisy pineapples and chocolate dipped apple and pear truffles...

but i would never ask for more than this picture below... this is all i ever could want and wish on a mothers day!

this sweet boy having such a good time...

smiling and laughing...

and being sincerely, truly happy!

5/8/2010

.......

happy mothers day!

i cant not express enough how amazing women are... a huge blessing in my life is knowing so many wonderful women... women who know who they are and live with such strength in their lives... they are huge examples to me and i am so proud to know these women... i strive to live like them and they all lift me daily to be a better me!

special thanks to the woman who is my mother...

you are beautiful in so many ways... literally and also speaking of who you are...

i never stop learning from you...

special thanks to the woman who is my mother in law...

i could never ask for a better m.i.l.

thank you for all that you are...

.....

thank you to friends and family who have made my mothers day amazing... and it is yet only saturday night/sunday early morning (12:47am)...

x0x0

e