Random Wednesday... The Ever Growing Baby Bump

Happy Wednesday!

I thought I would share some of my Belly Photos with you.. I've tried to do a photo every month (I just love seeing the difference from month to month).  However, I've missed a few months, and I've actually misplaced one month's picture.  I've got Pregnancy Brain!

So Check me out.... here is 2 Months Pregnant:

The Big t-shirt hides the obvious.... and I look like I'm in shock.

 Here I am at 4 Months... after climbing Chimney Rock.  A mountain in NC.  I was hot, tired and ready for some A/C.  

Beautiful background!

And here I am at 6 Months.  WOW.. it's getting out there!  With a little over 3 1/2 months to go, and Summer just beginning, it's not going to be fun.

 Happy 'Baby' Hump Day!

Let's Make It Tuesday... Sticky Buns

Running a little behind.... (that's been a trend lately)

However, I just had to share with everyone, that I finally got around to making the Sticky Buns that I had posted a week or so ago on What I Found Friday.  

Here's a refresher:

I found this at The Jones Way blog.  It looked so completely yummy, I had to make it!!!  

For mine, I used Flaky canned biscuits instead of the Grands biscuits, and mine turned out fine.  Here is a picture, fresh out of the oven:

YES... it was a gooey, messy blob of YUM!  It was VERY easy to make and came out great!  A definite thumbs up from my two biggest critics, Gracie (who at first didn't even want any on her plate) and Scott (who went with eggs and liver mush first, then went back for the Sticky Bun).  

We will totally be having this again, it's like Dessert for Breakfast!

I also tried another recipe that turned out pretty good, a Ravioli Bake.  It was Quick & Easy to throw together!  Here is a link to the recipe:  Betty Crocker's Speedy Ravioli Bake

Now doesn't this look Wonderful!  PS...this is Betty Crocker's picture, not mine.

This was my second time making this dish and it was a big hit both times.  I used Ragu Garlic Sauce and Walmart brand Meat Ravioli.  Here is a fresh out of the oven picture of my Ravioli Bake: 

Sorry... TERRIBLE photo.

This was the only picture of MY dish.... I was too busy eating afterwards!  

Trust me, it looked as good on my plate as the Betty Crocker picture above.  YUM!  

Well, that's it for Let's Make it Monday Tuesday.  

I still have two Squash Casserole recipes to Make and Compare.  So maybe by next Monday I'll let you know how they turned out.

Happy Tuesday y'all!

What I Found Friday... Names ; )

Happy Friday!

Our Beach Countdown has begun.. 

Only 8 more days and I will have my SWOLLEN, UNTANNED, Nugget-like toes in the warm (and hopefully) wet sand of Holden Beach!

But before the relaxation can happen, we have to Pack, Pack and did I say Pack?  That is on my Weekend to-do list.  We are going to try to pull off the 1st annual Beach Olympics.  In honor of the Summer Olympics coming up.  I still have to figure out what events will be happening....

So on to What I Found Friday.

I have no pictures to post today; but instead, a favor.  My husband and I are caught between two names for this new member of our family that will be here in a few short months.  

And DON'T tell him, but I'm looking for some help with the name.  We are stuck between two names:

AVA LYNN NICHOLS

and

ADDISON LEIGH NICHOLS

We also liked Ella Cheyenne Nichols, but I just didn't think Ella Nichols flowed well.  Not to mention, my Husband keeps throwing in Matilda to with every name (not sure if he is kidding or not). 

How we managed to like two names with the exact same initials is beyond me, but we keep going back to these two.. so let me know what you think!

Talk to you soon!

Random Wednesday... Wow, Where have I Been?

Happy Wednesday everyone, and happy 1st Day of Summer!  

I don't know about where you are, but here in North Carolina we will have temperature of 90 degrees today (add in the humidity and it feels much hotter).

WELCOME SUMMER!

So, I'm sure everyone has missed me..... I haven't posted since last Random Wednesday.  Sorry, I totally just FLAKED!  Ahhhhh.. It felt good!  

But really, my Father-in-law was in the hospital with a tick bite, my daughter started summer camp, something died in our house (in the wall, in the chimney, under the house) that we could not find and there were just a few days that I went home from work, and took a nap!  

And YES, I would like some cheese with my WHINE!!!  Ha!

Today on Random Wednesday, I thought I would share some of the Gifts that we made for Father's Day.  We had a wonderful Day with all of the men that we love!  Sunday Morning, Gracie and I woke up and snuck out of the house at 7:30 am to make a Bojangles run for Scott.  Gracie couldn't wait to give him his Father's Day gifts, which was fishing stuff, that included a large net that she could fit in to, pork Frog (eww), bloody fish, and random lures all packaged in a Star Wars gift bag.  Needless to say, Scott loved it all!

At Lunch, we met my Mom and Dad for hamburgers and milkshakes (Yum!).  Here is the poster that we made for my Dad:

We also made bookmarks for each of the Paw Paws:

These turned out really cute!  Gracie was fake diving for a soccer ball.  Worked perfect for a bookmark!

Oh, don't worry, we did get the Paw Paws actual gift, but these were the most loved (of course)!

Thanks for checking in!

Talk to you all soon,

Random Wednesday... On the Band Wagon

Hello Hump Day!  

Last week was THE last week of school here... so I had my daughter make a list of some of the things that she wanted to do during the Summer.  Like this one that I found at Honest To Nod blog:

Now this is an awesome list!

(I've been seeing quite of few of these lists out in Blog Land and on Pinterest, so I thought that we would start our own)

Gracie was a little excited, to say the least, about putting her Summer goals into list form.  We wrote them on her chalk board in her room, so that she can keep up with them herself!

Here is a picture of her board:

Here's what is ON our Summer To-Do List:

Lowe's Make-It's (these are kids clinics at Lowe's Home Improvement stores, the kids build things themselves using hammers and nails)
Fishing
Bowling
Sweetfrog (a yogurt shop where you choose your toppings $$$)
Lake
Pool
Camping
Drive In Movie
Sleepover
Park
Beach
Badminton
Water fun, with squirters and balloons
(Roller) Skating
Movies
Ride Bikes
Ice Cream (make it ourselves)
Crafts

This is the first draft of the list... I'm sure as we mark off what we've done, she'll add more!!!  

Happy Summer Everyone!

Let's Make it Monday... Zucchini Bread

Our Zucchini is READY!
Also, squash and cucumbers!

Doesn't it look Yummy!

I just couldn't wait to get cooking.  I could smell the Zucchini Bread!

Zucchini bread is great, because you usually have all of the ingredients on hand.  

Here is the list of ingredients:

1 Cup Oil

2 Cups Self Rising Flour

3 Eggs

2 Cups Sugar

3 tsps. Cinnamon

2 tsps. Vanilla

2 Cups Grated Zucchini

That's it... so if you've got the Zucchini, you've got Zucchini Bread!

The directions are even pretty easy... just mix all of the ingredients together then bake at 350 for 1 hour (less time if making small portions, such as muffins).

I know..doesn't look very yummy here, but smells great!

And here is one of my finished muffins!  These are great and such a good way to get something green on your kids plates!  

Now Go!  And pick something from a garden!

Talk to you soon, 

What I Found Friday... & What I Want to Do This Weekend!

Happy Friday!

So today is OFFICIALLY the last day of school (which is the last day of 1st Grade for my sweet Gracie).  She was so excited this morning!  She wore her school shirt so that all of her friends could sign it today...  isn't it great to be young!  

So, now that Summer will officially begin this afternoon, I had to think of some fun Summer stuff to do this weekend.  Here are a couple that I'm hoping to accomplish this weekend.

I found this great '100 Things to do This Summer' List at Honest to Nod Blog.  When we remade Gracie's room, I included a big chalkboard on one of her walls, so I thought that that would be a GREAT place to put her Summer to do list.  (It won't be 100 things, I do work, and she will be going to summer camp)

Pretty full List, huh?

To get a jump on Father's Day, I was thinking of having Gracie make one of these cute hand print cards for her Daddy.  I found this idea on Pinterest.

And of course, no weekend would be complete without something completely fattening and scrumptious!  This 'Sticky Bun Breakfast Ring" (YES... I said breakfast) from The Jones Way Blog, looks heavenly!!!

And Easy!

I'll be sure to let you know how this one turns out!

Have a great weekend everyone!  

See you back here on Monday!

Random Wednesday.... Camping via Instagram

Happy Wednesday everyone!

So I'm sure that you've all heard of Instagram, right?  

It is a fabulous app for your smartphone that allows you to take photos with your phone and then instantly add filters to change the look of the photo, and then you can post to facebook or email.

Pretty Cool, huh?

So, we went camping this past weekend at the KOA East Asheville (NC) campground.  This was our first time at this particular campground.  It was nice.. lots to do, and we had a great spot right next to the noisy pool.  

I did take my Canon Rebel on the camping trip, but I decided to give it a vacation and try using Instagram instead.

Here are some of the pictures that I took of our weekend camping adventure:

 

This is the original picture.

Here is the Picture after adding a Instagram filter.  I love the old timey look and feel it gives.

These are a couple of regular phone pictures.. I didn't have time to add filters while I was taking the pics.

All three of the kids (my niece Jordyn, husband Scott and daughter Gracie) were fascinated by the lake.  There were thousands of Lilly Pads.

Jordyn and Gracie are always up for a pose.  

Now back to some Instagram comparison Pics: 

Here is a family of ducks that made their way into our Campsite every day to check on us.

After an Instagram filter.

 Here is my favorite picture of the weekend.  Scott went Trout fishing one day, and the girls wanted to go and find him... so off we go on our bikes.  And here he is fishing away.  

Original Camera Photo.

Here is the Instagram'd photo.  The picture now looks like it's 50 years old.  I love how it turned out.

Well that is it for our Camping with Instagram trip. 

Hope that you enjoyed the pictures and go get the Instagram App, it FREE!

Talk to you soon,

Let's Make It Monday... Bookshelf Re-Do

Bookshelf Fabric Makeover

So my Mom and I are trying to fix up an old house (I stress the OLD in old house).  We are no where near almost finished with one room... well, enough so that we can start renovating furniture in it..

My project this past weekend was to do something with the bookshelf that is actually made in to the wall.

Here's a picture of it:

Sorry it's pretty rough....  you can see were the wall on the next to last shelf is cracked and sticking out.  And the wall around the bookshelf is pretty rough.. we're still working on that, my job was JUST the bookshelf.

So I decided to use some pieces of cardboard and cover with fabric that I got with the 40% off Coupon at Hobby Lobby (love the 40% coupon).  It was pretty easy, and turned out pretty good.  

This is the Fabric from Hobby Lobby... Fabulous, Right!!

 The hardest part of this whole project was cutting the cardboard and it fitting the the bookshelf opening.

I used Elmer's Spray Adhesive to adhere the fabric to the cardboard.  This was easy and fast! 

Sprayed and folded in the corners... and

 Viola!  A covered piece of Cardboard.  (sorry, I probably should have rotated the picture)

And here is the finished product...

A fabric covered Bookshelf, and if I get tired of the fabric, I can pull out the pieces and recover.

The wall still needs a little work, but we'll get too it.

Thanks for checking out What I made Monday!

Talk to you soon,

What I Found Friday.. A little Peace & Quiet

Ahhhhhhh, The Great Outdoors are Calling!  

We are off today and on our way to the NC Mountains for a short Camping Trip.  

Yes, the weathermen are reporting on big storms in our area today & this afternoon... but we are braving the elements and heading for the hills!  

Aren't we CRAZY Rugged Outdoorsmen!  

Anyway, Saturday and Sunday are suppose to be beautiful, so off we go.  While I'm gone I thought that I would share some of the pics I took a couple of weeks ago during our 1st camping trip of the year.  Yes, we waited until May to go, but I am NOT a cold weather camper, I needed some warm weather!

This is Chimney Rock.  And yes.. we climbed all the way up to the flag.  Stairs the whole way.  

This is 'Us', half way to the top (after I took a short break to catch my breath).

At the top!  Doesn't Gracie look like she could just fall off the edge... not really, she is standing on a rock.  But I didn't think that the railing looked like it could hold much up.  Just say'in.

My 4 month baby belly at the top of Chimney Rock!  (I look like I'm in pain)

We did finally make it back down the mountain and back to the Creekside Campground in Bat Cave, NC.

This is where Gracie spent most of her time... in the Creek!

We had a great time.  The campground was very quiet and not a lot of people were there.  Which made for a great camping trip.  I'll let you know how this weekend goes later.

Have a Wonderful Weekend everyone.

Talk to you soon,