The Perfect Pancake

Sometime ago while I was pregnant with Jensen, I decided that I could both feed my sweets craving and give Gianna a lesson in baking and measuring by making desserts by scratch with her. Truth be told, the only dessert I had ever really made by scratch before was my grandma's pumpkin bread (mmmm...pumpkin bread) and good ol' fashioned Rice Crispy Treats. I found that I really enjoyed it and have made some really yummy treats much to the chagrin of my waistline.
In our household, Daniel is the cook and a very good one I might add but he likes to really get in and take over if ever I try to cook. However, baking is where I have him beat...he's not into the whole measuring thing so I have found my corner of the kitchen in baking.
Awhile back I decided that I wanted to make some delicious homemade pancakes...easier said than done. Apparently, I am a pancake snob! None of the recipes I have tried have been to my liking. I feel like Goldilocks...this one is too flat, this one is too dense but I have yet to find my JUST right. So, I am putting it out to the public in an effort to spare myself from eating anymore mediocre pancakes on Saturday mornings. If am gonna down the calories I want it to at least be worth it. If you have or know of a recipe that meets the following criteria please pass it on. In the meantime, I will keep trying and will post if I find it first.

Criteria for the perfect pancake:
*Fluffy
*Not made with wheat...just doesnt have the right texture.
*Not too dense
*Thick not thin
*Not too sweet
*Minimal amount of ingredients

Thanks in advance!

Family Verse

Two years ago we dedicated Gianna at our church and next month we will be standing in front of our friends and family and dedicating Jensen. When we called to meet with our pastor we assumed that what we would discuss would be much of the same as what we did with Gianna. However, this time when we were getting ready to leave he challenged us as a family to find our "Family Verse."
I haven't really ever thought of a family verse before but Daniel and I thought what a cool thing for us to find together. And now, that Jensen has completed our family and he is being dedicated, its also the perfect time to find it.
A family verse is something of a family motto that either describes or embodies what your family stands for or perhaps what you strive for in everyday life. Almost like a coat of arms made up of scripture. I loved the idea but didn't really realize what a challenge it would be. How do you sum up what you want to teach your children or what you want your family to embody in one verse of scripture?
At first I started going through all my highlighted favorite verses in my bible and that just seemed to be kind of cheating. Also, none of them really stood out or spoke to me...maybe because I had read them so many times but either way I knew I had to go about it another way. Daniel and I had talked about characteristics that we felt we had as a family and I looked those up in the index and read related scripture. That didn't really work too well either. Than one day after doing my daily devotional I flipped to the next page and read the short book of Colossians.
I have read Colossians before but this time the whole book just spoke to me and then...I found our verse...it just lept right off the page at me! Daniel and I sat and read it together and it resonated with both of us. Simple and perfect for us. "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." Colossians 3:17.
Seems silly but I was really excited to find it and now am even more excited for our family to find ways to utilize it and apply it. Such a simple task and yet it spurred so much thought and discussion within ourselves and our family. I appreciated the challenge and know we will cherish our new family verse as another one of the many and awesome traditions we are starting as a family.
So now, I challenge you if you haven't already, to sit down and find your family verse. If you find one, I'd love to hear what you decided on.

Mom, CEO & President of Household Operations

Time flies! A year ago, I walked out of the corporate world and into the awesome world of being a stay at home mom. The next day I found out I was pregnant with Jensen, making my decision to stay home that much more easy. (Especially getting to be at home through morning sickness...blah!) I admit my initial transition was a little harder than I thought it would be but I think that would be the same in any career change...losing one identity and gaining another. What made the transition even easier was having a husband that was and still is 100% behind our decision for me to stay home. He is so supportive and understanding of just how demanding, challenging and yet, oh so rewarding my job is that its awesome.

I have always been a creative person trapped inside in the flourescent lighting of a business office dying to get out. Now, I have the awesome responsibility of keeping my 2 1/2 year old learning and having fun while doing it which gives me so many ways to be creative. Being hands on and watching Gianna grow and learn every day is a better bonus than I could ever get at any job that I have had. (Not to mention the all day hugs and kisses!)

Jensen is now 4 months old, the same age Gianna was when I went back to work. I can't help but count my lucky stars every day that I don't have to worry about leaving him like I did with Gianna. (Although thanks to my awesome sister Chelsea, I never had to worry much about Gianna.) Getting to spend my day playing with him on the floor and listening to him giggle at his big sister is absolute music to my ears! I also have more time to invest in things that I love like photography, which I have mentioned before has really grown into something much more than I could have imagined and I no doubt never would have had the time to nourish this passion as I have if I were still working.

Now looking back at this last year, its amazing how much has changed in such a short time. Our family has gained a sweet and handsome new member to complete our now family of four. I have learned the ropes of being a stay at home mom including the hours of the zoo, story times at the library, all the cool play groups in town :) and now, how to get two kids down for a nap at the same time. (Its harder than it sounds!) In all seriousness, the worlds of a working mom and stay at home mom are really not able to be compared...they are very different and both have challenges and great rewards. Now that I have had the chance to do both, I feel fortunate to make my career in the one I love best. I will say that there are challenges to being home both financially and mentally but I'll take those challenges any day over the alternative.

I really never thought I'd be a stay at home mom because I knew how much I loved to work although I never found a job I truly loved. Who knew I'd find my calling in exactly what I didn't think I wanted and love it so much?! I truly couldn't imagine my life any other way than doing exactly what I am doing. I am excited to spend my days watching my kids grow, laugh and learn and even more excited to see what I will learn from them.

Some Kids Have a Binkie...Mine Has a Car Seat.

Poor Jensen has really bad acid reflux. Luckily we have been able to keep it under control with medication and a few minor things such as keeping him elevated to prevent the acid from coming back up. When he was about 3 weeks old, the doctor recommended that we let him sleep in his car seat (in his bed) since its the perfect angle and it would prevent him from choking in his sleep. It worked great! He stopped making his weird little grunting noises in his sleep that were keeping us awake all night, it seemed to help his reflux and he started sleeping through the night by 3 months old. (Every parents dream!)Jensen just turned 4 months old and for those of you who know the not so little guy, he's a bit of a tank. In fact he's 17 pounds now (Gianna in comparison is 28 pounds) which got me thinking that he is going to outgrow this car seat pretty quick here. Also, he is trying really hard to sit up and that includes when he is in his car seat so this last week I thought its time to try the bed. He has taken naps in his bed (brief ones) with the mattress elevated but never slept the night in his bed. In fact, he loves his car seat so we hadn't seen the need to not let him sleep in it. The second his head hits the seat he's out! He's kind of snug in it which I think every baby would like to be when they are sleeping and of course I make it comfy by laying down a blanket and putting the seat belts out to the side.
It never dawned on me (although it should have) that we would have a hard time getting him away from sleeping in it. This last week has been rough. I have had a sinus infection and Jensen, who like I said usually sleeps through the night, has been up two and now last night, 3 times! At first I thought it was a plot against me (the sleep deprived mind of a sickness ridden mother can think of weird things in the middle of the night lol) and then I started thinking it was this weird weather we've been having. (Its hot, it's cold, it's hot, it's cold) that's making him uncomfortable and then last night on my third time up out of desperation I grabbed the car seat and threw Jensen in and low and behold the kid was asleep in 30 seconds flat. Oh no! He has a security....car seat?
How do you get rid of one of those!? Laying in bed I started thinking of what could happen as a result of us letting him sleep in his car seat. Maybe he will never outgrow it and as a result, instead of a bed we will have to buy him one of those weird oval chairs as seen here. LOL! (See weird sleep deprived thoughts)

Well, if we could get rid of Gianna's binkie, I thought, I am sure we will be able to get rid of Jensen's car seat. Unfortunately, we can't just throw it in the trash like we did the binkie....he rides in it (well, sleeps in the car in it) everyday! In the meantime, I guess we will just have to kiss our precious sleep good bye while he gets used to sleeping in a regular bed. Any suggestions from my fellow moms would be greatly appreciated. If you have seen the style of my home, you know that one of those oval egg chairs just wouldn't fit the decor.

Loving Bella B!

When I first started taking pictures again after a long hiatus from my favorite hobby, I never thought I'd be were I am now. Just for fun I started taking pictures of my friends and family and clearly I had a lot to learn (and still do) but they were all so supportive of me and I have been fortunate to learn more and more as I go along.
Last week I had 4 photo sessions including a wedding and hours upon hours of editing from the previous weeks.
As I look through my portfolio, I am amazed at how far I have come and how my work has evolved in such a short time. I feel truly blessed to be able to do something I love and make a little extra money on the side too.
I feel like I am happy with the amount of work that I have now because my priority hands down are my kids but I so look forward to learning new techniques and meeting new people so that maybe, one day, I can grow my business into something bigger and better.

I love capturing a families memories for them or freezing their little ones innocence forever in time...how many other people can say they have the honor of being a part of something so special. For now I don't really mind that I'm not the best photographer...I know I have a lot to learn. I just love sharing my passion with people and love playing a small role in another families memories.

What I love more than anything in the world though is taking pictures of my kids. Its weird because my reasoning is different with them than it is with other people. Sure its awesome to capture their sweet little expressions so I can always remember the way they are now but with them its more. I truly hope that one day they can look back at the pictures of them that I took and see how I saw them through my eyes, how much love I have for them. They are truly the most amazing blessing and while I love taking other peoples photos, they will always be my favorite subjects hands down.

I definitely look forward to seeing where the future takes me with photography but for now I love where I am with it.

Dear thinner me from a year ago,

I applaud your intentions of wanting to get rid of your bigger size jeans so as to not find yourself "accidentally" fitting in them again. However, you forgot one thing...you were planning on getting pregnant. Which you did. Which leads me to now, starring at all these jeans in my closet that are 1 to 2 sizes too small.
I know that we are still the same person to some degree because I refuse to go buy more jeans in my current size that is 1 to 2 sizes bigger as I am afraid that I will like them and well, not care as much to fit in the smaller ones.
In the mean time I am stuck wearing the same few pairs of pants over and over again which is, in a way, encouraging but maybe leaving yourself a little more variety for that post pregnancy self would have been nice.
Geeze!
Sincerely,
Your future heavier self who can't wait for the rest of this baby weight to fall off!!!

Playtime!

Being a stay at home mom definitely has it's challenges. One of them is finding ways to keep playtime fresh and as educational as possible. I think I am a pretty creative person by nature but often times I find myself getting stale. It's even more of a challenge having a 2.5 month old that can often derail your plans. For that reason I am SO grateful to idea sites like Pinterest and mommy blogs for all the amazing and helpful ideas.
I recently started scheduling out the ideas on the calendar to help to keep me on track and give me something to get Gigi excited about for the next day. I am gonna try to blog periodically and if I remember, take pics to share so that I can hopefully inspire other moms the way I have been inspired.

Example: Book Nook Read and Feed

Today after nap we took a bunch of cozy blankets and pillows and closed off a corner of her room by her book shelf. Than we got a couple bowls and filled them with goodies, popcorn, tangerines, and jelly beans. (She picked the treats)
Then we took her new library books that we got yesterday, cozied up and read. Then she "read" a few books to Jensen and then we sat and made up our own silly stories.
It was great for both Gigi and Jensen because she loves to read and he loves to listen to me read. (I'm very animated...accents and all) which makes both of them laugh. Surprisingly he sits and listens through the whole thing!
It was definitely a great afternoon that was both educational and fun and got Gigi using her imagination all of which make for successful playtime!