The Girls Room:

I realized today that I have never posted pictures of the amazing job Paula did in the girls bedroom. They love their farm scene and Addie wakes up each day smiling at the fish, butterflies and duckies. Thanks also to Stef for the crib bedding on loan, Addie just loves snuggling in those bumper pads!

Such a cheery sight for Addie!

Gotta love the pig!

What would they do without a tree to "sit" under?

Every good horse needs a barn, right?

This is the dresser (from way back when) I repainted. Ofcourse, Auntie Paula was commissioned for the stencils.

One of Addie's favorite spots, cuddling with the blankie from Aunite Colie.

Sprouty update.

So early last week I tried the sprouts. Just to let you know, Ashlynn and Gage ended up drinking every last drop, while Ryder let his sit on the counter ignored. When I opened their cups to wash them out later in the day, it seemed as if the sprouts had fermented.

The gross got grosser.

I was "dry heaving" over the sink just trying to rinse them and run the drain to get the smell out. Eventually, after scouring with some Bon Ami, the lingering odor dissipated.

I, Lizzie, do solemnly swear to never try that again.

Ever.

I love them, just not blended......

Anyone who knows me, knows my love of smoothies and sneaking various goodies into them. Ground flaxseed, wheat germ, spinach, broccoli, just to name a few. They are a great place to hold a treasure trove of nutrition (the kids even ask for the spinach now).

Today I thought I had a great idea.

I added a big handful of sprouted beans.

This was not a good idea. Even I couldn't handle the taste of it.

Seriously, it was gross.

Ryder, seeing the sprouted beans on the counter, asked: "Mom, did you put those in here? It's not tasting very good."

I dumped the whole lot back into the blender determined to fix it. It whirled away with the addition of a banana and some maple syrup to try and "cover" the sprouty flavor.

No such luck.

Sometimes smoothie making can be an expensive place for trial and error. So let me save all of you some time and money: Never, ever add sprouted beans, sprouts or anything remotely related to them to your smoothies. They are only good for sandwiches or just PLAIN!

Outisde!

We have experienced some unusually warm weather for the last couple of days and have enjoyed every ray of sunshine and warmth! Today we are back in the thirties, but yesterday's seventy is still very close to my heart :-).....

Ryder, according to his words, as a "sloth".

The only way to get a shot of Gage-in ACTION!

Her second time in the toddler swing outside!

Not much going but a bunch of sickies.

Haven't blogged much lately, we have literally had someone sick in the house since mid January. I am totally. o. ver. it. I've got to say last night was the breaking point for me. Adysen was up the entire night and Gage for almost the whole night. It's difficult when the little ones are sick, they are unable to fully communicate what hurts and it can get frustrating. All I could think about was how bad so many people have it and here I was crying about being awake with snotty, coughing, ear-tugging babies. And yet, if God isn't with me in the "small stuff" how will I ever make it through the "big stuff".


Fortunately Ashlynn put some humor back into my day. She was worried the bean sprouts she had been enjoying for the last several days were going to take up residence in her stomach and begin reproducing (The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, anyone?). She imagined a bean stock growing from her belly button, a prospect that wasn't appealing at all. Quickly, I explained that the acids in her digestive tract would take care of that and just pull the nutrients they needed from them and how healthy they were for her. Well yo know me, that launched an entire lesson about how your body metabolizes food, takes what it needs, stores some for later and eliminates the rest.

"Eliminates, huh?", she looked at me quizzically for a moment and then responded, "Oh, I get it. Kinda like on American Idol and Biggest Loser."

Thanks for a great belly laugh Ashlynn. Oh, and putting certain things into perspective. :-)