Happy 4th of July!

Another Year Has Passed...

Birthday breakfast- blueberry pancakes with chocolate whipped topping for B

7 years ago today Daddy and I went in for our routine weekly check-up and ultra sound, and left with instructions to return to the hospital at 3 pm- it was baby day!!

LJ enjoying the pancake breakfast

Nothing could have prepared us for the miracle of you two.

Mary Connor enjoyed the pancakes too...each bite was followed with "mmmmm"

We came home- after stopping to pick up my monogrammed robe, if that tells you anything about my state of mind...

AC's birthday pancakes with plain whipped topping..

For 2 hours- between dusting, mopping, mowing the lawn, and calling everyone we knew- we would stop and high-five because FINALLY our dream was coming true!

And nothing has been the same since that fateful day....

and now y'all are 7!

and we still look at each other and high-five because we can't believe the miracle of you two.

Yankee-Pleaser Casserole

Kelly's  topic this week is favorite breakfast recipes.  We love Yankee Pleaser-Casserole- a dish containing all of the foods people expect to have in the South!

Yankee Pleaser Breakfast Casserole
serves 6-8

1 pound bulk sausage with sage
1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 8oz package corn muffin mix
1 cup hot coooked grits
1 stick butter, melted
4 eggs
1 3/4 cups milk, heated
1/2 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese


Brown the sausage in a skillet, stirring until crumbly, drain.  Sprinkle into a greased 2 quart baking dish and top with 1 cup cheese.
Combine the corn muffin mix, grits, butter, eggs, and milk in a bowl and mix well.  Pour into the prepared dish and top with 1/2 cup cheese.  Bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes.
 
You can prepare the dish in advance and refrigerate or freeze until you need it.  For a frozen casserole, allow it to thaw before baking and increase the cooking time to 55 minutes for a refrigerated casserole.

Growing older....

On the eve of y'all turning 7, I'm feeling nostalgic...so forgive me for the following sappy post....

I can't believe how much you both have grown over the years- physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

It is a pleasure to be your mother and I can't wait to see the plans our Lord has for you both...

Daddy and I started a birthday tradition on your first birthday of filling your bedroom ceiling with balloons (the first four years this meant we crouched in the doorway  to let the balloons go when we heard stirring  because a certain someone was convinced one of you would choke on a falling balloon)

What started as a tradition for you all, has also become a tradition for us, as parents.  We both look forward to praying over you each and discussing funny and meaningful  points throughout the year as we blow up the balloons (in between Daddy inhaling helium and talking like Donald Duck!) 

We are in awe of you both and love watching you grow! Y'all have taught us so much......

we hope to return the favor!



"The Cousins"

That's how these 4 refer to themselves...

Our beloved cousins have been visiting for the past few days, along with (our equally beloved) Coach , who is kind enough to play chauffeur so these visits are frequent.

The baby girls have been "mommaed"- probably not a word, but very fitting to the situation- half to death by these 2 sweet girls

Though the visit was brief, we enjoyed our time to the fullest....

we went swimming...

blew out the candles for the first time since Coach won't be able to be here for the big day...

horsed around...

 

worked diligently at the local bounce house to win a few prizes....

 

and finished up the evening at kid's zumba.  I love this for the kids and the boys even really got into it today.

B and L won the "freeze" game and got to lead the class in cool down.

These "cousins" are a precious bunch and have the tightest bond.  I love it!

Determination

From birth, Lyla James little personality has been determined and a little stubborn.  She refused to nurse, will only take a bottle from certain people, prefers to be on my hip, etc. 

She has shown very little interest in crawling or trying to stand up.  I have always thought it was a personality thing, not a physical limitation, but I have worried that maybe there might be something wrong.

Until today.

She was sitting on the floor playing and spied my cell phone across the room on the floor.

Very gracefully, she lunged forward on her tummy and crawled/ scooted across the room....

I think the teenage years will be interesting with this little sweet!

Camping

 Anna Cate and Brian have been begging to go camping.  For Father's Day, one of their gifts was a tent! 

 We convinced them that this summer we would practice in our back yard and see how they like it. I was sure they would come in at some point during the night, but they didn't and actually slept later that usual- meaning 7a.m.!

 Roasting marshmallows before bed proved to not be the smartest move- it took them forever to go to sleep!  However, I came inside and slept great!