Quesadillas and a Cutie

I made these from PW's site. But used leftover steak for the chicken. We liked the addition of pineapple. I was prepared to serve my daughter a chicken nugget lunchable but she grabbed a triangle and started eating much to my surprise!

Where do you live?

(Us visiting my friend's lake house)

Violet can now say where she lives. This is her response- I live in Texas and it's very hot. Sure is Girlfriend! Looks like we will be going to her grandparent's house to swim all weekend.

Make your own Play-Doh

Fun project to do with the kiddies! V found her bag of cookie cutters today and wanted her play-doh. Oops, I threw it away. Because she got it all over the carpet the last time. From now on it's for outside only.

My sister Jordan came over for a visit. That's her helping my V. We used wheat flour and the recipe still worked but we had to add more water to get it smooth.

What you need- mixing bowl, flour, salt, water and food coloring.

1.Mix 1 cup of flour with half cup of salt. Then add half cup of water or more to get your desired consistency.

2.Add some color and knead until blended. Easy!

What will I name my baby?

Looking at names is a lot of work! I have a handful of girl names that I like and they would all sound well with Violet. But when it comes to Boy names my husband and I bump heads. Here's some boy names that I'm considering-

Boy Names I like- Miles, Owen and Jude to name a few.

Boy Names that Matt likes- Drake, Kane, Dominic

But in the end I will make the final choice! I found a helpful baby name site- Nymbler. It's the best I've found. You can type in the name of your older children as inspiration names for the next baby. Or any name you like can be the inspiration for their search engine. Lots of options there!

Just for fun.

Here are the Top 5 Girl Names from 2009-
1. Charlotte
2. Ava
3. Amelia
4. Ella
5. Grace

Top 5 Boys-
1. Jack
2. Benjamin
3. Finn
4. Henry
5. Oliver

(Stats taken from Nymbler Blog)

One room a week Challenge

My friend Mandy and I decided we needed motivation to clean some rooms in our house. We are going to start picking one room a week to really deep clean and take pictures along the way. I started with Violet's room.

See how messy? Go ahead and enlarge it. I know you want to!

After an hour of cleaning. Making progress.

The After. I have a project planned for the big blank spot above her bed.


Dollar Store frame I painted and added a ribbon hanger to. Leftover scrapbook paper is the mat.

Dress up center.

Reading corner.

She looks pretty pleased!

Now why are there still toys all over the rest of the house? Gotta pick my next room. On a side note I am so ready to redo Violet's room. Not sure when that will be. We still have over a year left on our lease so we may wait until we get a more permanent place to paint the walls and settle in.

Mmm, Sandwich

Cold chicken salad is one of my favorites. I've made Ina's version of it twice. Here's the link for all you chicken salad lover's out there! It's a little different with the addition of sour cream and grapes.

Fast Mommy Makeup

Last night I was going to post a blog called I Need An Intervention! My house was a mess and I looked in the mirror and saw a big & pregnant slob. So, today was different. I woke up and did my makeup. Ran some errands with my toddler and cooked dinner! I think the hubby was impressed and he asked if I was wearing false eyelashes. But I wasn't.

To get the quick look above-

Did you notice I put more contrast on the second pic? Now my freckles stand out.

1- apply a light layer of foundation. I used a buffing brush to make it more sheer. concealer around eyes if needed.
2. Pinkish Blush on apples of cheeks.
3. curl lashes, apply thin line of liquid liner and mascara. Don't bother with the lower lash line.
I've noticed that my eyes look bigger when I only put mascara on the top.
4. apply sheer pink lipstick.

So fast to do! Since eyeshadow was not used that is what makes is quicker. I'm going to start doing this more often. I feel better about my day if I make some effort in my appearance.

Let me know if you have any fast makeup tips!

Dad and Violet's Garden

My mom convinced my dad that my daughter needed a vegetable garden at their house. It makes sense. Growing up my Grandpa on my dad's side was a big gardener. We always enjoyed picking tomatoes and blackberries every summer.

The garden turned out cute. Violet looks forward to going to see her garden every weekend. So far they have planted cucumbers, tomatoes and herbs. It's still a work in progress. Makes me want to build one someday at our own home when were done renting.