Happy 5th Birthday, Emily!

My sweet Emily... I can't believe you turned 5 today! I love your sweet smile and enthusiasm. Your energy and passion are limitless, sometimes getting you into trouble! This year you started Kindergarten and have to wear an adorable little uniform. This is your 3rd year of soccer and you scored a goal in your 1st game of the season! Your favorite color is still pink (of course), and your favorite singer at the moment is Taylor Swift. You get excited every time you hear her songs come on the radio and sing along in a VERY loud voice. Speaking of... you still haven't learned to control your volume yet, and your voice gets louder and louder as your excitement builds when telling a story. We've suffered many headaches, but wouldn't trade you for the world! You are also a wonderful big sister to Tyler. You are so loving and caring to him - he simply adores you! Keep making us smile with all of your funny dance moves and unexpected comments. Happy 5th Birthday, Emily! I love you with all of my heart.

Best Shot Monday: 1st T-Ball Game

This past weekend I finally didn't have to work and was able to enjoy some quality time with my family. We had been working nonstop supporting our "Go-Live" at work since the week after Easter. It was getting at little old (to say the least) and I was thrilled to go back to working more normal daytime hours today.

Despite the rain we've had all weekend, Emily still had her first T-Ball game on Saturday. She was so excited to go, but got a little nervous meeting her teammates since she didn't know any of them. They practiced a little before the game and it was so funny to watch the interaction between all of the kids. Everyone wanted to bat, but no one wanted to field the balls. I dreaded the thought of how long the game was going to last, but luckily there was an unspoken rule I didn't know about that each kid got one turn at bat before switching sides - Whew! I managed to capture a shot before the rain became to heavy.

Emily was beside herself on Saturday evening when she learned to tie her shoes by herself for the very first time. She pushed the loop through and her eyes just lit up with excitement when she realized that she finally did it! The first words out of her mouth were, "Mom, can you get the camera so I can tie my shoes for you?" She's so my kid! Every since I showed her I can shoot video clips with my new D90, she wants perform for me (even more than before). Then she'll sit there and play the clips of herself over and over again, laughing hysterically. I've included a clip on here after the T-ball pic, per Emily's request! :)





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Best Shot Monday: English Football

Here is a shot of my first experience watching a live English football match while visiting last month. What a day! It was a bit chilly outside, but the sun was shining ever so brightly at the beginning of the game. But following the rules of typical British weather, the weather changed just like that halfway through the game when the ominous clouds started to roll in across the sky. Just then, the sky opened and the heavy downpour of rain began, soaking us in a matter of minutes. Just when I thought there could be nothing worse than sitting there in the cold wet rain, it started sleeting. This lasted for almost a half hour or so and after the game we had to walk to the car (which was about 2 miles away by the way) feeling as though we had peed our pants. Lovely! It was definitely a game I will not forget anytime soon!



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Recipe Friday: Taffy Apple Pizza

I tried this recipe years ago at a Pampered Chef party and really liked it. I hadn't made it for such a long time, so I decided to make it over the weekend. Hope you enjoy!



Ingredients:

1 package (18oz) refrigerated sugar cookie dough
1 package (8oz) cream cheese, softened
1/2 C packed brown sugar
1/4 C creamy peanut butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 medium Granny Smith apples
1/4 C caramel ice cream topping
1/2 C peanuts, chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Shape cookie dough into a ball and place in center of Large Round Stone; flatten slightly. Using lightly floured rolling pin, roll out dough to a 14-inch circle, about 1/4 inch thick. Bake 16-18 minutes or until light golden brown. Remove from oven; cool 10 minutes. Carefully loosen cookie from baking stone using a serrated bread knife; cool completely on baking stone.
   
   
2. Peel, core and slice apples into roughly 1/8 inch slices. Arrange the slices evenly over the cream cheese mixture.
   
   
3. Microwave ice cream topping on high for 30-45 seconds or until warm; drizzle evenly over apples. Sprinkle chopped peanuts over the apples. Cut into wedges.

Wordless Wednesday: Endless Trees

Here is a shot of a tree-lined footpath near Buckingham Palace that I captured while visiting England. More photos to come...PROMISE!

See more pics over at Wordless Wednesday here and here

Best Shot(s) Monday: Dandelion

Yes, I'm still alive! We came back from England in the beginning of the month and we've been running around nonstop since - like always! I know I've been slacking posting to the blog. Cara over at I Miei Due Bambini even called me out last week on her blog and I got another reminder today that I haven't posted anything so I made sure to get at least these two pics uploaded tonight to share with you. I have plenty of pics stacking up. I just need to find the time to transfer them to the computer and write about them.

These pictures were taken when Emily and I went to the park the other week. It was such a mild day and we had a wonderful time. She met a little girl and they kept running off playing "detective," looking for the prettiest flowers and other little treasures at the park. She kept bringing dandelions back to me, so I decided to snap a couple shots of them. She saw the pictures and said, "Oh they're so beautiful and sunshiny!" Tyler didn't make it to the park with us that day since he decided that taking a nap was more important. Maybe next time! Tyler is going to be 16 months already next week. He now has a total of 10 teeth; the top and bottom front four and his upper first molars, which came in at 14 months. Well anyway, enjoy the shots below and hopefully I'll be posting sooner than the last time.





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Wordless Wednesday: Resting after a Long Day

Leaving for England tonight to meet Stu and the kids. Hopefully Tyler will be this rested and calm when I get there, but I doubt it! :)

See more pics over at Wordless Wednesday here and here