Tagging

 I'm not sure who started it, but it seems like there has been a lot of "tagging" going on lately (when you are tagged you are supposed to share random facts about yourself) I've seen it on intagram, facebook, and now blogger too! My awesome blogging buddy Clara, (from over at Walking In The Light) tagged me in the Liebster award!

I think I'm supposed to write 11 random facts about me, and then answer her 11 questions. So here we go! I will try not to replicate my random facts for those of you who also follow me on instagram

1. I wish we lived closer to my husband's family. Better yet, I wish they would all move here :) 
2. My middle name rhymes with my first name. I hate it. Well, let me rephrase that. It's not the actual name I hate, just the fact that it rhymes. I can't say my full name without laughing.
3. I love rearranging my furniture.
4. My grandpa passed away (mom's side) before I was born so I have never met him.
5. I lost my last tooth in high school right before picture day. I had a wicked awesome gap smile.
6. I always put spending time with my husband before anything else. Always have- always will.
7. When I shave my legs, I usually skip over my knees because I hate shaving them. hah. After all there's what two hairs anyway.
8. I have a list of books I want to read. I keep adding more. Then I never read them. Netflix is just more appealing to cuddle up with I guess.
9. I just discovered Nutella. I'm in love.
10. I love watching these cheesy Mormon message inspirational videos... THIS ONE is my newest fav.
11. We are beginning the house hunting process. I'm excited to buy our first house (we are renting right now) but it also stresses me out. Moving is a big deal!

Now to answer Clara's 11 questions:
1. What do you like on your pizza? I love Johns Favorite from Papa Johns. It is Pepperoni, Sausage, and a 6 cheese blend.
2. Do you have a favorite band? No, I don't have a favorite. It changes depending on the day and mood I'm in.
3. What is your favorite (current) TV show? I'm currently watching Prison Break and Raising Hope!
4. What do you do for a living? I'm a mommy first and foremost-I don't want to miss a second of Kyler's cuteness!
5. Whats the one piece of clothing you can't live without? My favorite shoes :)
6. What type of car do you drive? A Camry for now- we are hoping to get a Highlander soon. We'll see when that actually happens.
7. Do you have any children? Kyler- he is two.
8. What's something embarrassing that happened to you lately? While driving in the car, my son started throwing a temper tantrum. I couldn't put him in time out because I was driving, so instead I tried to distract him by singing Pop Corn Popping On the Apricot Tree with all of the dancing and hand motions. After the song was over, I realized that both cars on either side of me were going the exact same speed. Four construction worker guys, and a husband/wife were all staring, pointing, and laughing at me. Embarrrasssing. How long were they watching me?
9. Do you prefer overhead lighting or lamps? I love lamps. They make the house seem so cozy.
10. Favorite dessert? Cold Stone ice-cream which I haven't had in forever. (hint hint to my husband when he reads this)
11. What color are your fingernails painted right now? There's some leftover smudges of red fingernail polish on my nails right now. Does that count? I love painting my nails, but they are so soft and flimsy that nail polish never lasts for more than a day. I do the dishes once and half of the nail polish just disappears off my nails. 

That's all I have time for today! If you are reading this-and you have a blog-consider yourself tagged!

The Red Balloon

I know I've said it before, but I am going to say it again-because I can. Kyler is obsessed with balloons. As annoying as it can be when he shoves his hand full of balloons he drags around the house in your face... I think it is cute that he loves them so much :)  He kisses them goodbye every time we leave the house, and I have also seen him tuck his balloons in bed and cover them with a blanket (note we don't let him sleep in the same room as his balloons for safety reasons).  Anyway, I found this movie on Netflix called The Red Balloon, and now Kyler asks to watch it everyday. I am really surprised that he likes it so much, because it was filmed in 1956 and there is almost no dialogue in the entire thirty-four minute movie.  I think it's a pretty cute movie though, and I find it very pleasant to have on in the background, as the background music is very soothing, unlike many of today's cartoons.  Here is my view on a daily basis:

A boy with balloons watching a boy with balloons

Life in Charlotte is pretty good! We recently had a few days where there was a "threat of snow" and everybody freaked out and emptied the grocery stores and cancelled schools, and then it didn't even snow. Southerners are so funny! Jared and I especially had a good laugh at them... having lived in Blizzard City, Idaho.

Kyler is his daddy's little helper

Jared has been "on call" this week for work. Which doesn't happen very often thank goodness! I would explain what that means, buuut it involves too many big words that don't mean anything to me, or you for that matter, so in my simplified explanation of what he does while being "on call" it means that if doctors have any questions/problems (concerning the medical records system) after hours they call him... and he helps/ fixes their problems. (aaand if my husband is reading this right now he is most likely laughing at my explanation of what he does :p oh well.)  He has only been paged a few times this week, none of which have been in the middle of the night. Yet. Knock on wood.

 And that's all for now!

Rainy Day Activities

Frank Schnabel/Corbis photo

  It has been cold and wet here lately. Definitely not my favorite type of weather. While we have been stuck inside this week, I came up with a list of rainy day activities (click it for fun). Here are a few activities that my son loved:

-Build a fort-It is such an easy activity, but not one you normally think to do. We used blankets and sheets and put Kyler's mini couch (that folds into a bed) inside with more blankets and pillows. We also used his ikea tunnel to make an entrance. Kyler and his little friend LOVED this activity.
-Play with balloons- This is always a Kyler favorite rain or shine
-Play at the mall's indoor play area- Free and fun!
-Pool toys in the bathtub- No joke, he played for a solid hour in there. I also threw a water balloon in the tub.
-Make a special treat- We made these no bake cake batter truffles. They were UH MAZE inggg
-Paint on a large poster board- Messy, but fun.
-Sport's Connection- We went here for Kyler's little friend Ashlynn's birthday party, but it is also perfect for rainy days. It is a kid's paradise. They had large inflatable moon bounces, bumper cars, bowling, laser tag, a mini merry-go-round, and arcade games. So. Much. Fun.

Sorry for the grainy iphone pics

This rainy week wasn't too bad-actually it was really fun- but I'm definitely grateful the sun is back today.

Someone Has To Say It

I read an article the other day about how awesome us mommies are at bragging about our kids. It cracked me up. Of course I may or may not be guilty of a few of the things she mentioned, (who isn't?) but I don't really consider myself an over the top bragger either. If anything, I try to boost my mom pals up whenever possible by complimenting their kids. Anyways, here is the list of the 8 most annoying things moms brag about according to CafeMom.com. (I would add the link but I'm blogging from my phone and it's not an option right now)

1. The Early Developer. Yes, we get it, your kid lost all her teeth by the end of kindergarten. Unfortunately it will take a whole lot more for her to get into college!
-"Walking by 4 months? Oh my!"

2. The Percentile Pusher. So, your kid is in the 99th percentile ... and your husband is 6'5". Could have seen that one coming ... now let's get on to something that really matters.
-"Whew! At least my child's weight percentile is lower than their height- which makes them the most beautiful creature on this planet!"

3. The Simpatico Siblings. It's nice that your kids get along, but something tells me that all those "perfect" moments you're constantly sharing get forgotten on long road trips. Sibling rivalry is normal, it's OK to admit it happens!
-"My oldest is always taking care of the youngest and is just so sweet! All. Of. The. Time!"

4. The Kids Who Potty Train Themselves. Honey, if she watched you go into the bathroom every day, she was learning from you ... that's part of training. So let's revisit: WHO didn't have to potty train their kid?
-"One day my child told me he needed to go potty and that was the end of diapers forever!"

5. The Multilingual Toddler. Yes, they can count to 10 in 5 languages thanks to Dora and her pals. No, that will not help you in the least when the whole fam takes a trip to Europe this summer.
-"Baby sign language totally counts and makes my child bilingual and therefore...smarter than yours."

6. The Perfectly Behaved Kids. I'm sorry that you've never once had to discipline your daughter. She sounds awfully boring.
-"We have never had to use a form of discipline in our home, because everything she does is absopooply perfect!"

7. High Performing Children. Sweetie, are these children or are they car engines?
-"I just added my 5th "Honor Roll Student" bumper sticker on my van."

8. The Kids Who "Need" Extra Everything (Classes, Toys, Whatever). Regarding the word need, let me borrow a phrase from the classic, The Princess Bride: "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."
-"My child needs one of EVERY kind of Barbie because she loves them and 17 dolls isn't enough."

Okay so I may have exaggerated what I've heard moms say in the past, but you get the idea- somebody has to say it. Mom's are good at bragging, and most every mom does! If you don't...you either aren't thinking clearly and can't remember or... you are an alien. That simple.

What are the most annoying things your mom friends brag about?

Oh and just because now I'm feeling like I don't post enough about Kyler's un-cute moments....here is a video of 12 seconds in the car with Kyler. Spitting. Screaming. Hitting. You name it.

Chick-Fil-A chicken nugget recipe

My parents decided to gift (doom) us with a Fry Daddy for Christmas! Today we tried it out and made homemade french fries and Chick-Fil-A chicken nuggets. They were absolutely delicious!!

 I may or may not have eaten 15 chicken nuggets by myself (count if you want or just trust me if you are lazy) but I didn't feel so bad because they are homemade and that makes them healthy. Pretend with me okay? Anyway, here are the glorious recipes we used:

Home Made Chick-Fil-A Chicken Nuggets

    (original recipe from zesty bites but we tweaked it a little)

Ingredients:
1 lg egg
1 cup milk
1 lb. skinless and boneless chicken breasts (we used 8 Tyson skinless/boneless chicken breast tenders)
1-1/4 cup flour
2 Tbsp powdered sugar
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp chili powder

1/4 tsp paprika
canola oil for frying

Preparation:
In a large bowl whisk milk and egg together
Place chicken on counter and cut into cubed bite size pieces; trim any fat that you may see
Put the chicken in the milk mixture and mix so that all is coated and place in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes (we soaked them for 3 hours)
In another large bowl combine the dry ingredients listed above and stir
In cast iron pot or sauce pan pour in oil so that its at least an inch deep on med/high heat
Remove the chicken from refrigerator and place about 8 pieces in milk mixture and then into the flour mixture
Make sure all the chicken is coated with the flour and then place into the hot oil
Cook each side for at least 2-3 minutes or until golden brown (You want to make sure that chicken is no longer pink so you can cut one piece to test it out)
Place the chicken on some paper towels to soak up any oil
Repeat the same steps with the rest of the chicken and serve

French Fries Recipe
(we made this up, they taste like Wendy's fries to me [only better of course])

Ingredients: 
2 lbs potatoes
water
canola oil for frying
season salt

Preparation: 
Cut the potatoes into strips.
Soak the strips in a large bowl of water for at least an hour or so (we soaked them for 3 hrs) This is an important step to get rid of of the starch before frying.
Set them in the Fry Daddy until they are golden brown
Sprinkle with season salt and serve

.....and you can't have Chick-Fil-A nuggets, without Chick-Fil-A sauce! I'm still working on a Chick-Fil-A sauce recipe, so pick up a few extra packets next time you go! I'm addicted to that stuff! Read about it here. 

Also, if it wouldn't be too much trouble...could you "join this site" ...I would REALLY appreciate it! Do you have a blog? Comment below with the link, I love finding new blogs to read! Thank you so much!

Above the toilet? Really?

We have zero counter space in our bathroom. We have a hutch above the toilet which is supposed to make up for that. It's a great space saver; don't get me wrong! Without it, we wouldn't have any room to store all of our bathroom junk: toothpastes (his and hers of course because he likes Crest and I prefer Colgate lol!) perfumes, colognes, shaving necessities, hair-ties, hair gel, nail polish,etc.

The problem is that the shelves are only 3 inches wide, and when you pick up something another thing is bound to fall out, and when something does fall...it falls with 99% accuracy directly into the toilet. 

The 1% is that glorious moment when something falls and the lid just happens to be closed :)

Why don't we just leave the toilet lid closed?

Good question! We do try, but with a toddler who recently learned how to flush the potty and loves watching the water go round and is constantly leaving the toilet seat up...everything in the cupboard is at risk of falling in. 

Just to name a few things that have fallen in the toilet in the past few weeks:

-Jewelery

-Toothpaste

-Jared's Comb (hehe sorry Dear if you are reading this)

-Hair-ties

-My Toothbrush-don't worry I rinsed it off in cool water before using it again. (This is called sarcasm)