The Wheels on the Bus

Today, Walker and Kathryn had practice for their play tomorrow night. I really hadn't given much thought to how they would respond to being on stage, but boy did we get a show!

Kathryn sat on stage the entire time with her finger in her mouth, while Walker Buzz went to town singing "Mr. Sun, Mr. Sun", "I'm a Little Teapot", and "Wheels on the Bus." (The pictures aren't that great b/c I had to take them at a distance. Looks like we are going to have to get there early to get some good seats as this was taken from about the fifth row back!). They are located bottom center of the photos. See Walker's "wheels" in the second picture;)


Kathryn and schoolmate Spice decided to tip toe through the azaleas afterwards. Can you believe they actually "posed" for a picture?

Then it was off to the park to play and to picnic! Kathryn's favorite past time--playing in the sand. Thankfully, Mommy remembered the sand toys for this trip!

And the picnic part!

I can't wait to see how well they "perform" tomorrow night. I know we are in for a treat!

Yummy Hummus

Don't kids just love to "dip" things. I know mine do--chicken nuggets in ketchup, for example, or Walker even likes to dip them in honey! Well, here is another favorite at our house--hummus! We normally make a Mediterranean style dip from this cook book, but this week, we opted for the real deal.

This recipe comes from another favorite cook book, Katie Lee Joel's The Comfort Table. I have loved this cookbook, especially her pimento cheese recipe. Walker and I love it, so I make it quite often. It's a nice alternative for a sandwich filler, especially since the kiddos are in a peanut free classroom. But, we'll save the pimento cheese for another post.

Alas, the hummus! Here are the ingredients...

2 cans of chick peas (drained, but reserve juice)
2 garlic cloves (I used about 2 t. of the pre-minced kind!)
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup of olive oil
1 t. cumin
1 t. salt

Process all but the olive oil and salt. Once blended, stream in olive oil. Add salt at the end to taste. Add chick pea juice 2 T. at the time until desired consistency is reached. Here is the final result...

We love to eat hummus with carrot sticks, apple slices, and just about any kind of chip. We had a coupon for these healthy options, so we tried the sea salt flavor. It was the perfect combination with the hummus! Here's a coupon to print, if you would like to try them too!

Happy snacking!

Open House

Yesterday, our realtor hosted an Open House at our home which meant we had to find a way to entertain ourselves for 3 hours. Right in the middle of the kiddos naptime, I might add!

So, although it was close to 90 degrees out, we headed to our old standby--the zoo! We haven't been in several months, so it was nice to see all of the familiar animal faces again! We even spotted some eggs amongst the flamingos, ducks and ostriches, which I guess is an added perk this time of year!

It didn't take us long before we stopped for snack time!

And play time!
Don't let the smile fool you! She was actually "acting" at this point. I think the lack of a nap was catching up with her!
And poor Walker was just plain tuckered out!


We were all feeling it by the time we got home last night. Needless to say, we ended the day with nothing but lounging around watching tv. I think the lack of a Sunday nap and the heat had us all exhausted. Let's just hope the Open House (or at least the yummy cookies and brownies we had on hand for any "lookers") will send us a buyer!

Wheel Day

Today was "Wheel Day" at the kiddo's school. So Mommy was on hand to watch all of the fun. Here come the little drivers...

And they are off!

Sissy on her pink bike!

Walker peddling away (or should I say scooting-he hasn't quite gotten the peddling part yet)!

He gave up on the bike and decided to pick berries...

And put them in his bike!

Kathryn "borrowed" one of her classmate's pink and purple bike and princess helmet. Can't imagine why she wanted to borrow those two things!!!

Popsicles!

The Grumpy Lizard

Walker was the proud recipient of a very large gummy gecko tucked nicely in his Easter basket amongst all the jellybeans and other Easter goodies. I normally buy the kids the exact same things just to keep down on the fussing, but I decided to buy one gender specific item for each.

Walker received the gecko, and Kathryn enjoyed a plastic purse filled with candy beads perfect for making an edible necklace (or just eating all the candy and forgetting about the necklace like Kathryn opted to do!).

Monday after Easter, Kathryn asked me if she could eat Walker's "grumpy" lizard. I guess she confused "gummy" with "grumpy"! She was pretty insistent about the grumpy lizard. So after dinner, we all took turns biting a leg and snipping at his tail. And then Kathryn, who rarely even cares for candy, polished off the remains of the grumpy lizard.

I really think the thrill for her was getting to eat her brother's candy! She can be quite tricky that way! Yummy....Lizard!

All Fired Up!

This weekend we were in Birmingham for cousin Daniel's 2nd birthday. Here comes the fire engine...
Daddy and Walker enjoying the fire truck!

Kathryn wasn't quite as excited:)

This picture's not great, but it's the only one I have of the birthday boy driving his fire truck!

Buttons, buttons and more buttons. Walker was in heaven!

Look at this silly picture that Matt snagged of me and Sissy! We were more interested in eating than posing for the camera!

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!

Last night, we made these Easter Story Cookies. Sugar and Spice Mommy shared this fun idea with us, and it was a great way to keep the focus of the weekend on Jesus!

Kathryn crushing the pecans...

Walker tasting the salt...

Sealing the oven, much like Jesus' tomb was sealed...

Someone did a little sampling before the cookies went in the oven...

I forget to include a picture of our cookies. I did take one, and we did taste them, but I have to admit our cookies were not hollow (I think we accidently got some yolk in our mixture...that's what happens when little hands are helping in the kitchen), but praise the Lord, on Easter morning, Christ' tomb was empty! And I do look forward to doing this again next year!

Sunday morning, Kathryn and Walker found a trail of carrots leading to their Easter baskets...

It took Walker about 3 minutes to have his mouth stuffed with candy (sorry to his Sunday School teachers:)

All dressed and ready for church.

Daddy and Walker...

Trying to get a picture at church...

We let the kiddos play outside a bit after church, so we could get a few pictures. Unfortunately, the weather turned yucky fast. No Easter egg hunts today!

Mommy and Walker...

Daddy and Kathryn (She wasn't really in the mood. Can you tell???)...

And, we couldn't forget Mommy and Daddy:)

"He is not here; he has risen!"

Luke 24:6

A Day at the Park

This morning we were blessed to spend some much needed quality time together as a family. Matt and I did something we haven't done together since the kiddos were born, a spinning class! Back in the 'Ham, we used to go early on Saturday mornings and then hit the McDonald's as soon as we left the gym:)

No McDonald's today, but we did stop for some Starbucks before we headed to the park. I gave Kathryn and Walker an early Easter gift--sand molds--so Kathryn occupied herself in the sand.

Walker also played in the sand...

And on the slide...

And on the swing...

Sitting on the park bench...

All while Kathryn continued to play in the sand:) Did we mention our son's favorite phrase is "I'm too busy!" He's very busy indeed:)

P.S. Walker is wearing my newest "sewing" creation. I decided to try my hands at an embroidered t-shirt. I thought it turned out quite nice!

The three embroidery threads were $1 at Hobby Lobby, his shorts (Kelly's Kids) were approximately $7 on E-Bay, and the plain white t-shirt was left over from last year. So, for $8, I think it makes a pretty cute little outfit:)

If you would like to give it a try too, look here for some inspiration!