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Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Family time...

It's Tuesday, already?! This week is flying by for me. I hope ya'll had a great weekend! Ours was full of lots of family time. Oh how I adore and love being with my family! Trevor and I had a nice little date night on Friday and we slept till 9:00 on Saturday. Can I get a woop woop for this mom!? That was soooo needed! Best.sleep.ever. And I really needed it because the rest of our weekend was jam packed.

We threw my sweet Mama a surprise 80th birthday party. Well, we tried to throw her one. She really surprised us instead. Her and my great aunt Mary had a little miscommunication...Mary was going to pick up Mama at 4:30 for a "family reunion" but Mama thought she had to be at the church at 4:30. We were getting the food out on the table and I turned around and there Mama stood with a cake she had baked in her hand. Bahaha...it was not funny at the time, but it really is now. That is so her...can't get anything past that nosy woman! So we said surprise and then grilled her as the why she was there. Nonetheless, she was surprised and had an amazing time. We were so thankful for everyone that came. I know it made her feel so loved and appreciated. I know I sure appreciate her...she's amazing!

Mama's beautiful lil cake :)
With her two granddaughters...Liz is the adopted one =)
Wild, running lil monkeys!
The kiddos...nothing better than watching them have so much fun together!
My brothers...I'm a blessed girl to have two amazing siblings!
Our family! 
Mama with her daughters & granddaughters!
Curly goes no where without his choo choo these days!
Looking at her picture board...many sweet memories!
My two nieces live in Georgia and they were home for the weekend. The oldest is almost 5 and the youngest will be 2 next month. They are hilarious and Tanner loves them so very much {and Trevor and I do too}. Tanner got to play with them Saturday night at the party and then they stopped by Sunday before heading home. He learned how to share {kinda} and take turns...thanks to the oldest one for teaching him that. They put on a dance show for me on their stage outside. It was perfect. Hilarious to say the least. My heart was overflowing with love being around those precious kiddos.

Ready for church! We were ready to go after missing the last few Sunday's due to that awful stomach bug!
My sweet big girl!
Love her :)
Tanner getting a ride from his cousin!
Dance party in action...Love!
In other news, well there's not really any. I was so stinkin lazy yesterday. I'm not even lying. I didn't do a thing except eat and lay around. I probably gained 5 pounds. So sad. Oh I did go to Target, which I've missed so very much since we've moved and it's no longer 10 minutes down the road. But seriously, I do have some yummy looking recipes I'm going to try this week. I'll share if they turn out good. And if they're nasty, well you'll never know about it.

I'm off to try and gain some motivation to do something productive on this nasty, rainy day. Hope ya'll have a great rest of your day! Until next time...

Magan

Friday, February 22, 2013

Gettin' it together!


Hey all! So my friends think I'm a little crazy with my organization problem and how peculiar I am about my routines. I've been a routine kinda person for a longggggg time and it got even worse once Tanner came along. BUT it makes me happy and each day starts out better when you have it together. So, I thought I'd pass along a few of my crazy organization/routine obsessions. If it helps me, it may help one of ya'll! Enjoy and don't judge lol.

1.  Lay things out the night before. I'm not a morning person so this is a must. I pack Tanner's diaper bag, have his water ready in the fridge and lay his clothes and diaper/wipes out. If he has school the next day, I lay everything out that I need to pack for his lunch. 

May be a little crazy, but it helps. Everything I need is there, so in the morning it's a breeze to pack his lunch and we make it to school on time. Hoorah!
2.  Make up your bed before it's time to go to sleep. This drives Trevor crazy and he thinks it's pointless. Me...well, I love it! I may do it first thing or if I don't have time then I do it when I get home. Try it. It'll make you feel a little more put together. 

3.  Pick a day to do your child(rens) grooming =) I cut Tanner's nails every Wednesday and make sure his ears are nice and clean that day too {I do it other days, but that's the day that we really focus on it}. It gives me a set day so I don't forget and he doesn't go to school the next day scratching kiddos. 

4.  Decide what's for breakfast the night before. This doesn't really apply to me because I eat the same thing almost every day, but when I lay down at night that's one of the things I think about for Tanner. That way when I get up in the morning I'm not scrambling around the kitchen. I know exactly what he's having and it's ready in 5 minutes or so.

5.  Straighten up every night. Our living room is mainly our playroom. We don't go upstairs that often and the majority of Tanner's toys are downstairs. Therefore, our living and bedroom looks like a tornado every night. Tanner helps most nights and then I finish it up with the big toys. This makes watching TV after he goes to bed much more relaxing. I don't have to stare at stuff all on the floor. And it's clean in the morning too...even better!

6.  Get the dishes out of the sink before you go to bed. Since I've gotten married, I've always loved this one. Trevor hates it so he deliberately leaves his cups in the sink before he goes to bed. Lazy man...all he has to do is put it in the dishwasher. Get it together hunny =) This helps keep the dishes from piling up, especially after breakfast each morning. 

7.  Get yourself prepared for the next day. When I used to work every day I would lay my makeup out on the counter, lay my outfit out for the next day (go ahead and iron it the night before too), put my cup by my purse and stick my cereal bar in my purse. Sounds like a lot of work and kinda crazy huh?! It takes all of 5-10 minutes and wayyyyy less work the next morning. I still do this if I know I have to get ready the next day. 

8. Have a routine for your child(ren). We do the same thing every night with Tanner. Eat dinner, play, bath time, drink milk/have a snack, wind down and watch cartoons or play, brush our teeth, change diaper, clean up and head to bed. This helps us so much. Tanner always knows what comes next and bed time is never an issue. Knock on wood. =)

9.  Make out your grocery list and pick a day to go. My day to go to the grocery store is Sunday's while Tanner naps after church. It works well for us and I like sticking to this routine. I plan out my meals for the week and know exactly what I need. That way I'm not running to the store a million times during the week. It also helps us save money because if I go to the store during the week, I not only buy what I need but I also gander and buy useless stuff. Yes, I'm a woman and sometimes I just want to spend money on nonsense. 

10.  Be prepared for your upcoming week. Keep an agenda or use the calendar in your phone (that's what I do) or make a little dry erase board for your kitchen. Whatever works for you. Just write it down and keep up with it. It helps to know everything you have going on for the week, that way you can be prepared for meals, etc. 

I made this dry erase board for my bff to hang in her kitchen. I gave her the gift of organization for Christmas lol! She said she loves it and it really helps keep her on track and motivated for the week!
Short and sweet, but these things really help me out a lot. Some sound crazy and over the top, but try it!! You may find one that works and helps you out. Being organized and having a routine really do make a world of difference and make for a happy home. 

Hope ya'll have a great Friday and an even better weekend! We have a busy, but fun weekend ahead. I'm looking forward to spending some time with my sweet nieces who will be in town this weekend! But for now, I'm off to organize. Ha totally kidding. I'm going to do absolutely nothing while my sweet boy is asleep. Until next time...

Sleepy head! Love this sweet face!

Magan

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Little bit of this and that...

Happy Tuesday! I feel like I haven't blogged in forever. Actually I haven't felt like myself in forever. I came down with a yucky bug on Friday that put me out of commission for a few days. Ugh...moms aren't supposed to be sick. Thankfully it hit over the weekend and my amazing hubs took care of me and Tanner. Bless my husband's heart. He's a trooper. So needless to say, our weekend wasn't spectacular. 

Our Valentine's was great though! We had a nice fondue dinner at home cooked by my hubby. Tanner enjoyed using the fondue fork and eating half of my cupcake that my amazing bffeih Liz surprised us with. And he is obsessed with his new train he got for Valentine's...pictured below. We've already changed the batteries after day #2.

Only pic I could get with my littlest Valentine :) He's a squirmy lil monster.
Thank you Liz for our amazing cupcakes! You da best!
Tanner's sweet homemade Valentine's gift for our families. 
We did go to my sweet Mama's on Sunday to celebrate her 80th birthday. I wasn't feeling up to par, but was starving nonetheless. So I indulged in everything in sight, hoping that when I got home I wouldn't regret it. Thankfully, I didn't. Mama enjoyed her party and I enjoyed spending the afternoon with my family. Tanner thought it was absolutely hilarious when we sang happy birthday to her. He practically doubled over laughing so hard. His face turned bright red and tears were coming out. It was the best thing I've ever seen lol. 

Happy 80th Mama! Notice my sweet child in the background...mesmerized by the singing lol. 
This was the moment when he was laughing so hard. Wish I would have caught it on video. Priceless.
I made this recipe last week and it was so easy and scrumptious. I paired it with a salad and fries. Not super healthy, but it was quick and yummy. Of course I found it on Pinterest and I"m sure you've seen it floating around on there. All you need is crescent rolls, pepperoni and mozzarella cheese or string cheese. I had some left over sliced mozzarella, so that's what I used. 

Separate each crescent roll...
Layer with pepperoni and cheese. I put like 7-8 slices of pepperoni on each.  Then roll up tightly. 
Bake for 13-15 minutes and wahhhla! Yummy goodness.

And last but not least, since I'm talking about food {again}. I went to Burger King yesterday since I was finally getting my appetite back. Side note...I normally don't eat out for lunch {especially fast food}, but I thought I'd treat myself after my not so great weekend. And to my surprise they had my favorite item back....CHEESEY TOTS! I was soooo excited! They had these like 4 or 5 years ago and Trevor and I would get them. A lot. I called and told him. He was super excited. Since I couldn't stomach the whole medium order, I politely saved them for my dear sweet hubs :) Go try them!!! But only if you're not dieting because they are not healthy. Obviously.


I took my embroidery machine to be serviced yesterday, so I'm totally out of commission for a few weeks. Or at least that's how I feel. I feel lost without it. And lazy. Maybe I'll actually work on some of my crafty projects while I have some spare time =) Hope ya'll are having a great day! Hopefully I'll have some good stuff to share on the crafty side soon! Until next time...

Magan


Thursday, February 14, 2013

♥ Valentine's Day ♥

Happy Valentine's Day!! I have always loved Valentine's day, even when I was single. It's always been an excuse to indulge in sweets {I am addicted to sweets if you don't know me} all day long. It got even better when I met my Mr. Hot Hubby back in 2004. From there on, Valentine's has always been amazing. I started looking back through old pics trying to see how far back I could find them of Trevor and I on Valentine's Day. I didn't make it back too far, I guess I didn't have a digital camera back in 2005. Or if I did, I didn't save the pics to my computer and I couldn't find any printed out. Anywho, here's a few good laughs for ya'll =)

This was in 2009. I surprised Trevor with tickets to see the Tar Heels play {his fave basketball team}. We spent a whole weekend in Chapel Hill. I remember how excited he was when he opened those tickets at dinner. Aaahhh...if only I was still that sweet. Lol - maybe one day I'll surprise you again hunny =)
Obviously this isn't me or Trevor...it's my dear sweet Mama whose birthday is Feb. 13. This was in 2010. I did find a pic of me and Trevor, but it was so hideous I couldn't bring myself to post it. Mama turned 80 yesterday...she's the absolute love of my life and the best Mama ever! Happy Birthday shout out Mama...love you!
Big momma in tha house {with my adorable lil Mags}! This one is seriously for jokes ya'll. I was prego with Tanner and had him 6 weeks later. Trevor took me out to a wonderful dinner at Stellar. It was amazing, just like every date with him is. Awww...I know, so sappy. Love my hubs though!
This was last year. I believe we went to the Melting Pot {my fave}. Man what a difference a year makes =) 
I most certainly can't leave out the other little guy who has my heart and makes Valentine's even better than it already was before he came along.

It's a whole new ballgame when it comes to Valentine's Day and kids. We don't go crazy on gifts mainly because we spend all of our money on Tan man {thanks to diapers and a child who eats like he's 15}. Totally kidding. We are having a very romantic dinner tonight {with Tanner and I'm sure his cartoons blaring in the background}. We decided to make our own fondue at home this year. I'm excited to just be at home with my two boys that I love the most. And chocolate. And fondue. And Tanner's candy from school. Totally kidding again.

I LOVED making Tanner's snacks for his class. He goes to Mother's Day Out one day a week and this year it fell on Valentine's Day. YAYYY!!! They were super yummy. I look forward to making sweet treats for him and his buddies for many, many years to come. 

I made these delish red velvet puppy chow mix that I found here on Pinterest. They didn't turn out red like I thought, but your mouth turns red after you eat them. Oh well. They looked pretty.



Speaking of food, can I just tell ya'll about the amazing meals I've had today?! Casey and I eat breakfast at the Bakery and Bistro almost every Thursday {check them out here}. Seriously, it's the best food ever. I've never had a single thing from there that I didn't fall in love with. Then for lunch I had a toasted flatbread pimento cheese. OMG. This came from the food cart in TR that's outside of My Sister's Store on Main Street. They have homemade pimento cheese and chicken salad, plus sandwiches/wraps that change daily {Tuesday-Friday}. Sorry the pic has a bite taken out of it, but I couldn't resist. I've certainly been Ms. Piggy today, but it's Valentine's. Momma's gotta grub too, right?!

Cheese and herb scone and a homemade cinnamon bun. Casey and split the scone to save a few calories. =)
I am so full from eating this awesome little creation, that I'm not sure I can divulge in as much fondue as I had hoped tonight.
This little stud muffin says Happy Valentine's Day ya'll! He had some crazy hair and was half asleep. I tried to bribe him into saying cheese, but obviously that didn't work.
I hope you all enjoy your Valentine's Day. If you're single, oh well. I bet you've got some amazing friends that you could celebrate with and pig out on chocolate. And if you're married, engaged or dating someone be sure to show them lots of love on this speical day....and still pig out on chocolate. Remember that Valentine's Day should be everyday! Love is a sweet, sweet thing ♥ I'm off to prepare for my special valentine's arrival from work. Until next time...

Magan 

John 3:16 
For God so LOVED the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Sickness...please go away!

Hey ya'll! Hope you had a fabulous weekend! Our's started off great. We were lazy bums Friday with our normal Mexican food to-go and catching up on DVR after Tanner went to bed. Saturday was uneventful...until night time hit. We had put Tanner to bed and then we heard him crying an hour or so later. I went to check on him and he had gotten sick. And I mean really sick. This was the first time in 22 months that he has ever vomited. I was praying this day would never come because I didn't know how I could do it. BUT I did...Auntie Cates, you'd be proud =) She totally gets what I'm saying here. Anywho. We didn't go to church Sunday, obviously, but I was really looking forward to going. Maybe we'll make it this coming Sunday. Tanner got better and ate a little bit and played on Sunday...yay! We were getting back to normal. Actually lets back up...nope not really. Yesterday he was totally clingy (which I loved every second of), but he never got sick again. Until today. It wasn't vomit this time. But it was bad.
Friday night rocking with his daddy. My two boys...love them so!
Saturday night shopping before the mess occurred. Loves his Mr. Bear =)
Sunday snooze...my poor baby! Breaks a momma's heart to see them sick!
Monday morning snuggling with momma! 
I'll stop there. No need to gross ya'll out anymore than I already have. Especially if you don't have kids yet {I promise this is all normal...it happens to all moms}. Lets just say I've done about 8 loads of laundry in the past 3 days. I've washed my hands so much that they're raw. I've changed sheets on his bed too many times to count. Mr. Bear has been washed so much that I hope he makes it out alive this go round. I need a tropical vacation asap.

I had originally planned to write about some recipes and a few other things, but since my mind is so not here I'll show ya'll what I've finished in my dining room. Seriously though, you have to just keep going and do your best as a parent when stuff like this happens. I feel so horrible and sad for my sick Tan man, but I gotta keep truckin and do everything I can to get that sweet boy better.

I ended up putting a verse that I found on Pinterest {surprise lol} that I loved on the chevron canvas. It was a pain. I spent weeks trying to figure out how I was going to get it on there and then it dawned on me that I could print it on burlap to go along with the rest of the burlap pieces. That was a nightmare, but I accomplished it. I cut the burlap to the size of a piece of paper (8.5 x 11) and taped it on cardstock. That didn't work out with my printer, so then I adhered it to stabilizer that I use for embroidering. It worked! YAY!! It's hard to get it perfect on the canvas because the burlap moves easily. But I like it! I then hot glued a barn wood looking frame around it that I found at Hobby Lobby.

Close up of my lil saying that I adore...
My 'B' piece...
My other cute canvases with burlap bows and buttons in the middle of each bow...
Love!
I didn't want to over-do this room and wanted to keep it simple. I really like the outcome!

It's not finished yet...I still have place mats that are grey that I plan to embroider with a B. Who knows when that will be. Hopefully soon. I've learned that I can only focus on one area at a time. Otherwise I get overwhelmed and become a hot mess. This stuff takes time...a whole lotta time. Patience is the key for me when decorating. And I don't have much patience :/ I'm working it though =)

Hope ya'll have a great rest of your Tuesday. Please say a little prayer for my sweet boy that whatever is up with him will exit SOON!!! We've called the doctor and it could be a touch of a virus or molars coming in. Who knows?! I do know that I'm ready for normalcy again! Until next time...

Magan





Friday, February 8, 2013

Encouragement...and a few other things


Gosh, I have totally been MIA this week. Sorry ya’ll...I’ve had a crazy busy, fun week! My bff Casey surprised me on my birthday with a trip to the Biltmore house. We’ve seriously been planning this trip for the past 6 years. We always say we’re gonna go for our birthday’s and then never do. So this year, she made it happen! I’ve never been and have always wanted to go. We lined up babysitters for our kiddos and hit the road for a fun day of food and lots of walking. It was the best.time.ever. We walked off all of our chocolate crème brulee {holla} and the weather was absolutely perfect. I love spending time with her and we always have fun no matter what we’re doing. Thank you, Casey for a marvelous day! Love you!

The gorgeous Biltmore house. I'd like to move here.
Casey having way too much fun and we just started our tour :)
Sooo pretty!
My best friend! Perfect day with perfect company!
Our lunch at was pretty good. This hot pimento cheese was kinda strange though. More like pimento cheese soup is what we decided on.
Sampler of ribs, bbq and chicken with the fixin's. Yumm! BTW...we split this. 
We totally forgot to capture the best part of our meal. Chocolate creme brulee with strawberry jam at the bottom. We remembered after we scarfed it down...hence this nice pic. 
I hit up the annual Switcheroo’s consignment sale yesterday and scored some awesome stuff for my Tanner man. I love those sales. If you have kids and haven’t been…GOOOO!!!! You’ll thank me later. It’s open to the public today through Sunday. Me and my mom go to both of their sales every year. It’s a new tradition for us and I just love it!

So I’ve been telling ya’ll I need to share a new recipe that I found on Pinterest. I’ve been slacking here lately, but I’m gonna share it today! It’s sweet and sour chicken and it’s simply ahhhhmazing! Please cook it asap. BUT do not attempt to cook this if you have a clingy toddler attached to your hip/leg. Thankfully this night Trevor was home and kept Tanner occupied because there’s just too many steps {easy steps that is} but there’s no way to concentrate when you have lil hands dangling all near you and hot grease splatterin.

Fryin up the chicken. If you're a very healthy eater, skip past all of these pics. I'm sorry. This meal was the bomb diggity.
Flip your chicken till it's just brown on both sides.
Add your sauce and stick in the oven.
I made these delish noodles to go along with ours.
Easy peasy to make and tastes so good!
Finished meal. I also made zucchini with soy and teriyaki.

You can find this recipe here.  Or below.


Chicken Breading:
3-5 chicken breast
salt and pepper
1 cup cornstarch
2 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup canola oil

Rinse chicken, trim off fat or extras and then cut into 1 inch cubes. season with salt and pepper. Dip chicken into cornstarch and coat all the way and then into eggs. Heat oil in large skillet. Cook chicken until browned. Place in baking dish. 3 chicken breasts can be in a 9x9 but 5 chicken breasts fits better in a 9x13.
Sauce:
3/4 cups sugar
4 Tablespoons ketchup

                                                            1/2 cup white distilled vinegar
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon garlic salt


Whisk until smooth. Then pour evenly over chicken. Turn chicken so the sauce gets on both sides and then put in the oven at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. turn chicken and then cook for 15 more minutes.
I know this is super long. My apologies. But lastly I want to share something so super sweet and kind that I received today. This is one of mine and Casey’s self portraits we took Wednesday at lunch.


I posted it on Instagram/Facebook. Mainly because Casey looks amazing {as always}…I seriously thought twice about posting it because I look like poo. But I received a comment from a sweet high school friend today on Facebook…she commented on this pic and said, “Magan, I remember you were always pretty in high school, but you’ve gotten only prettier over time J.” Seriously. Me. What?? There are so many days when I feel skank nasty. And there are so many days when I don’t feel like fixing my hair or putting on an ounce of makeup. I let myself go on certain days of the week and feel so gross {and feel so sorry that my hubby has to look at me like that}. BUT I receive one comment like that and it just makes my day. I’m telling you all of this for a reason. When you speak sweet words or comment on FB or send them through a text/email, you never know how much you’re going to brighten someone’s day. Or even better, make their crappy day 100x better. So I encourage you to just tell someone how amazing they look today or that they’re such a wonderful friend. You get the drift. Encouragement is an awesome thing. I plan to do my part today…try it out. I bet you’ll be glad you did.

I’m off to catch up from everything I missed this week while I was out having wayyyy too much fun! Enjoy your weekend! We have nothing planned and I’m looking forward to being lazy and hangin with my boys! Until next time…

Magan