Easter Egg Hunt

Today at AJ's school there was a egg hunt. Mrs. Brand dressed up like the Easter bunny and the kids all had a great time collecting eggs into their baskets. They had a Easter party with cupcakes and cookies and then got to take home some treats!

Crab Cakes!

1 8 oz container of fresh crab meat

3 tablespoon mayo

1 tablespoon stone ground mustard

1 egg beaten

2 tablespoon diced green onion

2 tablespoon diced red pepper

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1/4 teaspoon old bay seasoning

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1/3 cup whole wheat Ritz crackers crushed up like bread crumbs

1/4 cup whole wheat Ritz crackers crushed up like bread crumbs

1/4 tsp red pepper sauce

2 tablespoons butter

Combine mayonnaise, mustard, parsley, old bay, egg, lemon juice, red pepper sauce and Worcestershire sauce.

Put crab meat in a bowl. Go through it and remove any shell or cartilage. With a spatula or wooden spoon, fold in mayonnaise mixture and the crackers. Shape into 8 crab cakes and press gently into reserved crumbs. Cover and chill for 1 to 2 hours.

Heat butter in pan and fry crab cakes for about 5 minutes on each side, carefully turning only once. Serve with Remoulade (mix 2 TBS mayo, 2 TBS stone ground mustard & 1/4 tsp red pepper sauce).

These were SO good! I was a little intimidated at first since I am not a big seafood eater besides crab, lobster or clams and don't cook much with seafood at home. I was wrong, there was no reason to be - these were really easy and really good! We had ours with spinach salad with a home made lemon dressing that was super good and super easy as well - mix some lemon juice with some olive oil and a small minced clove of garlic - heavenly!

Happy 4 Months (16 weeks)!

Happy 4 months to my happy, smiley baby boy! He is doing great - we started him on cereal which he loves and he is finally giving us 10 plus hours a night - it's SOOO wonderful to sleep for a long stretch! In another few weeks we are going to try some veges and then some fruit - can't wait to see his reaction to some real tasting food! Sometimes we feed him in the walker and by the time we put him in it and come back to feed him, he already pushes himself backwards across the whole room! He is doing great with tummy time - he is super strong keeping himself up with his arms and has started pushing up on his knees too! He can sit for a few short seconds up alone with the boppy pillows support and he has started laughing out loud - the first time it happened I was in the kitchen and he was in the living room with AJ, but by the time I realized it was two laughs I was hearing and ran in, it was over! Luckily I got one later on that day when I was shaking his belly! Daddy still has yet to hear one but he isn't giving up without a fight! He loves long walks in the stroller, luckily the weather has been great and we are able to be out a lot! Can't wait to see what the next month brings - he is really growing like crazy right before our eyes!

St. Patrick's Day

Today was great - the weather was just the best! I started my corned beef and cabbage in the crock pot nice and early so we could enjoy the day! Dylan and I walked AJ to school and walked to pick her up. On our way home we stopped at the park so AJ could play - she had so much fun on the slide! Once we were home we hung out on the porch and read books and played with bubbles. AJ was worn out when Daddy got home so she had an early bath and went to bed! Alex and I had a AMAZING dinner and then followed up with a few Irish Car Bombs! What a great way to end a great day!

Fun with Play-Doh

Aunt Margie gave us her old Christmas cookie cutters and AJ has been dying to use them - well since I didn't have cookie mix I decided it would be fun to use them with some play-doh till we could get some! AJ had a ball making all the cute cut outs - the Santa and the Snowman were her favorites! She made each one and then lined them up on the table - she even had me make a "AJ" that she could line up with everyone else! She said the drummer boy was her cousin Chris and she made sure her "AJ" and "Chris" were next to each other in the line - very cute!

Dylan's First Time at TBZ!

It was so nice and and we had nothing else planned for today so off to the zoo we went! Dylan stayed awake most of the time and was looking all around so happy to be out and in the stroller. AJ was so excited to go and couldn't wait to ride on the carousel (Dylan got to go on his first ride too in the Bjorn because I am too afraid to let AJ ride alone). She LOVED feeding the farm animals, seeing all the peacocks (or as she calls them birdcocks), finding the big bears and comparing the wolves to Marley. Since there was really no one there, she was very excited to just be able to run all over and not be confined to the stroller (however when we went up the big hills she was happy to jump in and hitch a ride)! By the time we got back to the car Dylan had fallen fast asleep and he is still sleeping as I type! What a great day I had with my two kids!

Easy Garlic Roasted Pork Loin

1.5 lb boneless pork loin

2 cloves of garlic

2 tbs olive oil

oregano

parsley

salt

pepper

throw away roasting pan

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place pork fat side up on a throw away roasting pan. Grate two large cloves of garlic into 3 tbs olive oil. Add a few shakes of dried oregano, parsley and some salt and pepper and mix. Rub the garlic mix all over the pork and place in the oven. Cook for about an hour to an hour and 15 minutes, take out of oven, tent with some foil and let rest about 10 minutes before slicing. ENJOY! Super juicy, super tasty and super easy!

Life's Lessons

I was reading a online article today and came across one with a bunch of quotes that I really liked in it. We all could really stand to learn a few lessons from some of them (especially me). Sometimes it's hard to push through all the bs in life but if you can or at least try to I am sure you will be a better person because of it! Recently I am trying my best to learn, understand and accept all life has to offer - even the stuff that upsets me because I am learning I can't control everything!

People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

There is a little truth behind every just kidding, a little curiosity behind every just wondering, a little knowledge behind every I don't know, and a little emotion behind every I don't care.

As people grow up, they realize it becomes less important to have more friends, and more important to have real ones.

Life's not about the people who act true to your face, it's about the people who remain true behind your back.

Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.

Singing

Today we were very excited to have Mimi, Grandma & Pop Pop come with us to watch AJ's preschool class sing at church. It was so adorable and AJ did such a great job - she knew all the words and did all the motions. After we enjoyed some nice treats in the hall with everyone! AJ is getting to be such a big girl and Daddy & I couldn't be any prouder of her! We weren't allowed to take pictured during the performance but we were lucky to get some of the kids back on stage for a picture after! We were allowed to take video and Alex & I are looking forward to watching it back!

Making Brownies With Grandma & Pop Pop

We all know AJ loves to cook or bake - she asks me to make either cupcakes or brownies on an almost daily basis! Well, since I am no longer pregnant and have been dieting and doing 2 1/2 miles a day on the treadmill the last thing I wan to do is sabotage it all with brownies and cupcakes! Thank goodness Grandma & Pop Pop are home! Since we knew it would be raining all day we had AJ make them with them and she had such a great time - even got to like the spoon - of course her favorite part! She even got to wear her little cooking apron grandma got her for Christmas!