He was pretty unhappy about his 'wings'. .

 so yesterday Kingsley had his first hair cut. 

My Mom and I were cracking up over the 6 strands of hair I was able to collect for his baby book. ;) 

With Ezra's 1st cut (at the same age) we could have filled 20 baggies. I love you Kingsley.. and what a BIG BOY you look like after your hair cut!!

Bundled boys getting bounced on the trampoline.

A post about green stuff.

I wish

money grew on trees. 

I've been pretty frugal this past week. I've stayed in pj's all week- think about the money I've saved on laundry! Plus i haven't worn make up in at least 5 days- more savings on future make up purchases! And to top 'er off.. we haven't left the house- savings there on gas, my friend! Ok..ok..The truth is I wasn't planning to be frugal, I was actually sick the past week or so. Feeling much better tonight  super guilty that there wasn't anything in the house to eat, I ventured out to the dreaded store. Err.. The grocery store. I've been couponing. It is lots of work. Up until tonight it hadn't really paid off. But tonight I'm very excited because I saved 40% on my bill and went about $13 under budget. (This is huge for me since I had consistently been going about $20 OVER the weekly budget.) I went to Walgreens but did most of my shopping at Publix. It's amazing the deals you can find when matching a sale with a store and manufacturer's coupon! If I can find the time I can really see this turning into a great way to save my family a good chunk of money. Oh.. and becoming a crazy addiction.

And in the spirit of April Fools Day.. Hehehe.. I played a nasty little trick on my family last night.

 In their pulled bbq chicken sandwiches... I hid pureed peas and lima beans! Shhh... Tony still doesn't know!! Ezra loved veggies until just recently, but at least he's at an age where we can reason with him. Kingsley is just not a huge fan. Does anyone else find themselves being sneaky with their kids in order for them to eat healthy?!

Have a wonderful day and I hope you find yourself brainstorming awesome pranks to pull on your loved ones tomorrow! I'll have to come up with some new material.. I think I've pulled the pregnancy or broken limb one to many times. ;)

Yum

I was typing this soup recipe up for someone and thought I'd share this with you. 

It is so yummy and easy!!! You must try it! 

Sweet Potato Soup

(not my image, but isn't your mouth watering!?)

 2 tsp. oil

1 small onion – chopped

1 large sweet potato (12 oz.) – peeled and cut into ½ in. pieces

2 cans (14 ½ oz. ea.) chicken broth

½ tsp. cumin

1 can corn drained

1 cup salsa

8 oz. can tomato sauce

1 can black beans – rinsed and drained

Garnish: Sour cream & cilantro & tortilla chips

1.     Heat oil & sauté onion

2. Add sweet potato, chicken broth & cumin; cover & reduce heat. Simmer 15 minutes or until sweet potato is tender. Blend until smooth.

3. Stir in corn, salsa, tomato sauce, & beans. Simmer, covered 5 minutes. Add garnish.

At the request of my dear 'ol Dad..

 I am updating my blog. He was tired of seeing the 'disturbing' picture of Ezra. So Dad.. here ya go! Wonderin' what I've been up to? Well it has been nothing but SUNNY and WARM here in Tennessee and we're loving every second of it.


Friday-
Dinner date at Bucca Di Beppo's and a trip to the mall with my hubby. (I was able to use a $10 off coupon at dinner!)


Saturday-
-Garage sale at my mom's- it was a success. So nice to get unused things OUT of my house.. and make a little money!
-We set up our Trampoline we bought for the boys months ago for $30 at a garage sale! Jumped our little hearts out and enjoyed the nice weather!
-We had Asian take out for dinner and I was able to use a $5 off coupon!


Sunday-
- Church was amazing. Quick trip for me (child free!) to run an errand.. and I ended up with a cute top for $2 for myself! 
-After naps we took a trip to the park and played in the creek. Being a mom to boys is messy. That's all I need to say about that. 
-I am ashamed to say we brought McDonald's home for dinner. 
-We jumped on the trampoline until the stars were shinning. So much fun.. It's like being a child all over again.. and I love to see it all through Ezra's eyes.  


It was a very good weekend.. We never ever eat out so it was a big treat for me to not cook for 3 whole nights, although I was feeling very guilty come Sunday night about the kids eating habits during the past few days! This week we've just got a lot of plans to be outside! It's been amazingly nice and you just never know when that might change- appreciating it while it lasts.. it will be 103 degrees before I know it! Happy Spring time to you all!! 

Over the coarse of about a year Ezra has been complaining of knee pain on and off. At first his pediatrician and I thought it could be an attention seeker.. or growing pains. Sometimes it bothers him during the day, and other times he wakes up during the night screaming bloody murder. Very scary. Anyway today we had his white blood cell count checked for the 2nd time. I trust God.. and really don't worry that something serious would be wrong with him. BUT- it is very hard to wait to hear that all is OK, luckily it only takes about 5 minutes.  Anyway, just to be sure there was nothing to worry about we were sent down the street to have x rays done.

 Although he wasn't thrilled to lay on the hard table.. he did SO good, and held very still.. thank goodness. These results were perfect also. Thank you Jesus!  He's just experience growing pains- poor little guy! For all the trouble he was put through we were sure to spoil him with lollipops, chips, and special super hero popsicles.

Eggplant Parmesan

Are you familiar with Cake Boss? Well apparently Cake Boss is also a Kitchen Boss. I did not know! My Aunt has tried a few of his Italian recipes and says they are SO authentic and delicious. They are only 1 or 2 ingredients off from the recipes my Grandma and Great Grandma used to cook! So I took her strong suggestion to try these.. and started last night with the Eggplant Parmesan. Delicious.. and even better the next day! I'll be trying some of his others out soon, and will report back!

Ezra was my helper and did a wonderful job coating the eggplant slices in the flour, egg, and breadcrumb. He is seriously a great help in the kitchen! 

Ok- so the recipe is HERE!

I didn't understand the first step of the preparation.. but it just basically wants you to pull all of the moisture out. So I set my eggplant slices on napkins, but paper towels would be ideal. And changed them a few times as they filled with moisture.. over the coarse of an hour. Other than that there are no tricks.. it just is time consuming because it makes a TON! I didn't follow his recipe for breadcrumbs. I just did a 1/2 and 1/2 combo of my own homemade crumbs (bread blended until they were crumbs, added Italian seasoning and baked until golden) and store bought Italian breadcrumbs. 

Yum-o!