My new favorite picture

I don't know what it is about this picture, but I adore it. This was a few weeks ago, but I haven't done a lot with pictures lately. Last night I sat down to empty my memory card and when I saw this I was about as happy as a clam. Although how happy can a clam get? I was about as happy as a little boy going down the slide and running into his adored and adoring big sister. I put it up as my desktop wallpaper and this morning when Miriam woke up (she's an office sleeper now) she said "MAMA! IT'S MIMI AND EE-EYE!" I stepped in the room and she was excitedly pointing at the computer screen. I said "Yeah! Look at how happy you are!" She looked, smiled, and said "we both have shirts on!" I didn't realize it was that momumental of an event, but apparantly that's the first and foremost notable element of the photo. Maybe she'll be a fashionista after all. Either way, I LOVE this shot of them. And I've always said that Brent has nice legs.

A boy and his cat

My boy is absolutely wonderful! He's been scooting around and is AWFULLY close to crawling, although not close enough for his liking. He especially likes to be by Zeke (I don't know if JoAnn has been around him enough for him to know that she exists) and any time he's in the viscinity Eli totally hones in on him and lets me know that under no uncertain circumstances that he wants to be THERE. NOW. Today Elijah convinced me to place him right beside Zeke while Zeke was waiting to go outside. He shreiked with joy for about ten seconds before I opened the door and Zeke slipped out. Nevertheless, Eli was sporting a blue balloon on his wrist after a trip to Macey's and balloons are Ezekiel's weakness. It was so funny watching Zeke's complete attention and scratching on the door and he watched through the glass to the up and down movements of the balloon. And Elijah was going crazy that the cat was so close yet so so so far away. But because of the glass, it was the longest interaction that they have had with each other so far. It could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Definately worth trying!

In my quest to be even more thrifty and providential (as opposed to cheap) I have been frequenting websites that offer coupon-using and low-cost-living tips. UtahDealDiva.com and 5DollarDinners.com had a recipe last week that looked good enough to try and basic enough that I had everything for it. Tortilla Chip Chicken Casserole. I was amazed how tasty it was! I even looked forward to having it for lunch, which is big in my world. This is what I did...

In a 9x13 pan, layer:

1 can of diced tomatos (I used the kind with green chilis)

1 can of black beans (drained and rinsed)

A couple of breasts of chicken boiled and shredded

1/2 a bag of stale tortilla chips (crushed)

Mix in bowl and pour on top:
1 can cream of chicken
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream

Bake at 350 for a half hour, top with cheese for the last few minutes. Serve with a dollop of sour cream.

I also put green onions in cause I had some and thought later that olives would have been quite tasty. The picture is from the website (ours was devoured prior to a photo-op) and she used pinto beans and cilantro. Do what works for you, but I think you're in for a treat!

GOOOOOOOOOOOOLLLL!

Brent has developed a new passion for Mexican league soccer. He knows the teams (Atlas is his favorite), the players, and watches the games. It is his new favorite pasttime. On Cinco de Mayo, he took Miriam to the local Mexican "stuff" store and laid out all of the keychains of the various teams. After much careful deliberation, she chose Pachuca. She knows their symbol and can identify them by name. She can also identify the favorite teams of everybody who has told her. Despite the fervor that is in the home, however, Brent hasn't played soccer since his Sandy Rec days. Long long ago. That doesn't stop Miriam from seeing her dad as Superman. The other day as they were watching a game she said, "when I grow up, I want to play soccer just like you, daddy." Ah to be adored and idolized!

Top ten things you missed since I quit blogging

1. Miriam has become a star sleeper again. The night spent screaming with Elijah to no avail from her mother has scarred her, although I hope it's not too deeply. The night after my last success email, Miriam figured out how to climb out of the crib so she could run into the hallway. After I picked her up twice and placed her kindly but firmly back into the crib, I heard her getting out again as soon as I left the room. I stood in the doorway of my bedroom so she didn't see me until she was walking down the hall. My heart thrilled at the fast flight response she had when she did see me. I remember all the times I thought I was sneaky but then saw my own mama and ran like heck to get somewhere safe. Miriam indeed displayed a jolt of energy and ran straight to the office and closed the door. When I opened it, she was climbing into the twin bed we have there for guests saying "I'm going to sleep here tonight." The girl didn't leave the room once and indeed did sleep there all night. The next night when she went straight to the office at bedtime, I said "YOU BET, but no bottle in such a big bed." It only shows the depth of desire to sleep there that she didn't complain. She has gone to bed every night since with little complaining and no bottle. She's earned her yogos (for not getting out of bed after I tuck her in) most mornings, and her Pullups are dry most mornings. My little girl is growing up.
2. With a little girl sleeping in the office with such great success, we decided that the best planners realize when their plan isn't going to work and change the plan rather than keep hitting heads against walls. After simply going without computer access after bedtime (as seen by such little blogging activity), we moved one computer temporarily into our bedroom. Sigh.
3. Elijah is also back to being a great sleeper. Without Miriam's crying to wake him up, he's a master. He's now in the crib rather than the cradle, which fits him MUCH better. He usually is chomping at the bit to get down about 6:30, and usually sleeps til about 7, although if he wakes up before 6:30ish, I give him a bottle and he sleeps til 8ish. At least that's what I want to happen, and since it happened more than once I can call it "normal" in my head. I love that kid.
4. We went to Boise for a week for a monumental Family Picture. We drove there and we drove back and my two kids did AMAZINGLY WONDERFULLY for so long in the car. I sat in the back for a majority of the trip there and back and did a lot of entertaining, but between the songs and food and dvd player and books and toys and everything else, the boredom never set in too strongly. I can be pretty entertaining :).
5. My babyfood making has reached another great pinacle. My mom has an icemaker and therefor does not have ice trays. Due to the fact that I usually heat up about 8 ice cubes of veggies for the boy's meals, I thought that my mom's suggestion of muffin tins just might work. It were easier to pour into a bigger casing and it felt easier taking 1-2 of the veggie muffins out instead of 6-8 of the veggie cubes. And they were gorgeous too! I felt so proud of them that I showed them off to every adult female that came into the home. I haven't done it since I got back but mostly because I haven't gone shopping for anything other than milk and eggs and diapers. We'll see what the next few days bring.
6. Elijah picked up his binkie and put it in his mouth all by himself. This is big.
7. College football started. Ah the joy and excitement! Boise State beat Oregon last night for a dramatic statement of the non-BCS-ers. For the opening night of football action, BSU was the only non-BCS team to play a BCS team and they beat them soundly. Take that. If you somehow missed my diatribe on the Bowl Conference Series last year, you can read it here.
8. Okay, so my top ten list only has 7 real things, but it's late and I want to get to bed and I'm going to wrap it up without changing the title.
9. Or adding pictures.
10. Thank you and good night.