this week.

spring break was loooooong.
i feel bad for saying 'i'm glad it's the last day.'

but, i am glad.

if we had plans to explore new places or jump through the ocean's waves then i'd be sad it was coming to an end.
instead, it was spent at home.
each of us trying our hardest not to get on one another's nerves.

it just isn't our season to go on great vacations.
i'm ok with that.

what did we do?


we ate lots of popsicles and played outside.


we got a fun surprise in the mail from my pen pal.
{yes, that's an egg filled with goodies! it was delivered to my mailbox just like that!! fun!!}


i was invited to test a new website geared towards us photographers who want to sell our art.
i can't give too many details just yet.
but, you NEED to head over to the picha global site and request an invite. now.
go!
you're welcome.


i have been working, literally, day and night to bring new items to the shop.
this. this is an ipad sleeve.
cutest one you ever did see, right?
and with your initial...best ever!


selfies are fun!

best news all week???

my natalie is here.
ok, she's not mine.
but, she is my niece.
and i love her to pieces.
{give her a big fat kiss for me, kris!}

well, that's the end of spring break.
exciting, no?

how was your spring break??

in her daddy's arms.

this princess will always have her daddy wrapped around her finger.
and he'll always keep her safe.

homemade ice cream.

it's spring break this week.
i wish i can tell you we've had a week filled with crafts and activities.
instead, we've done one craft.
or activity?

we made homemade ice cream.
in a bag.

for real.

i got the recipe and instructions from kaboose.com.
it was SO simple.
the kids did it!

ready to be a hero to your kiddos???




you'll need:

a gallon sized ziploc bag,

a sandwich size ziploc bag,

enough ice to fill the gallon size bag,

6 Tbls. rock salt,

1/2 cup half and half

1 Tbls. sugar

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract


this is what you do:

fill the large bag half full of ice, and add the rock salt. seal the bag.

put milk, vanilla, and sugar into the small bag, and seal it.

place the small bag inside the large one, and seal it again carefully.

shake until the mixture is ice cream, which takes about 5 minutes.

wipe off the top of the small bag, then open it carefully. enjoy!
*************************************************************************

all of my kiddos AND their friends loved it!




they've requested to make it again and again.

go try it.
it works!

monday eats.

i'll be the first to admit i'm no pioneer woman.
but, my husband sure thinks i'm a good cook.
and his opinion matters most.

it helps that my mother-in-law also likes my cooking. {i'm totally putting words in her mouth.}
the last two or three times she's been up here or i've been down in florida she's asked me to make potstickers.
she loves them.
the kids love them.
and so do i.

while at the amish grocery the other day we picked up one of the ingrediants.
the hardest ingredient to find.
jalepeno pepper jelly.


let's get started.
these are going to become one of your favorites.
i promise.


Baked Asian Potstickers
adapted from The Pampered Chef

1 (10 ounce) can white chicken meat , drained and flaked or about a cup and a half of cooked chicken
1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts
½ cup green onions with top , thinly sliced
¼ cup carrot , grated
1 teaspoon fresh gingerroot , peeled and finely chopped (or 1/4 tsp dry ginger)
1 tablespoon reduced sodium soy sauce
1 egg white , lightly beaten
¼ cup mayonnaise
1 garlic clove , pressed
24 square wonton wrappers

dipping sauce
½ cup jalapeno jelly
¼ cup rice vinegar
2 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425°F.

2. In a large bowl, combine chicken, water chestnuts, green onions, carrot, ginger, soy sauce, egg white, mayo and garlic. Mix well.


3. To assemble potstickers, place 12 wonton wrappers onto a smooth, clean and dry surface. Lightly brush the edges of each wonton with water. Place about 1 tablespoon of filling onto the center of each wonton. Fold corners of the wonton to the middle to secure the filling inside (envelope style works well, but you can be creative).


you can even recruit a couple of helpers...





4. Place wontons on a cookie sheet and lightly spray with Pam or olive oil. Repeat with remaining wontons.


5. Bake 12-15 min until golden brown.

6. For dipping sauce, place jelly in a small bowl. Microwave on high 30-40 sec or until warm. Add vinegar and soy sauce. Whisk until well blended.

7. Serve potstickers with dipping sauce and enjoy!


will you let me know if you try them??
**********************************************

linking up with skip to my lou.

happy sunday.

loveless cafe.

can you believe it?
two stops in one day?

the other day i told you about the parthenon.
that same day, after picking up my mother-in-law, we stopped by the loveless cafe.



she's been wanting to go there for the near three years we've lived here.
she even came close once when she and my father-in-law went looking for it on the way back to florida a while back.
oh, how my father-in-law and husband are alike...he looked longer than he would have liked and, unfortunately, for her the interstate came first.
she never made it.

until now.



the loveless cafe has GOOD biscuits.
they even had a *biscuit lady*.


this fun little photo op was outside.

ganny and the kiddos.


me and the kiddos.



the little store, ham's and jam's, had these fun little signs.
too bad i already have enough junk left them there.

take a little trip.

we've been stationed at fort campbell for nearly three years.

only 45 minutes from nashville, tn...where there's SO much to see and do.

but, because of life in general we've not been able to get out and explore.
until now.

this past tuesday i made the drive in to nashville to pick up my mother-in-law from the airport.
thanks to southwest airlines running a bit behind schedule i was able to make a short detour to the parthenon.



it was so much more beautiful than i expected.



there were huge grassy areas for frisbee throwing and kite flying.
a picnic lunch and blanket will be packed in the truck before our next visit.



the flower gardens were amazing.



i hope...HOPE this will not be our last visit.
i mean, i only drove through and snapped these few pictures.

we didn't get to go inside and see athena, the greek goddess, and all of the other statues that fill the parthenon.
we MUST go back!



if only to take pictures.

time capsule.

it was a time capsule, of sorts.
i was trying, ever so hard, to get my flickr account all worked out...
i'm SO not tech savvy.
i couldn't figure out why i couldn't sign in with my regular email address.
come to find out i had a flickr account from years ago.
who knew?


jett, circa 2007, at the jacksonville zoo.


jett, circa 2007, in our old living room.


jonah, circa 2007, in our old backyard.


jonah, circa 2007, simply looking cute.

hello, thursday.

first, good-bye, wednesday.
you brought with you a sickness that was stinky.
super stinky.
i was on the couch for half of the day.
in bed the other half...and through the night.

with the help of dayquil, nyquil, diet coke, and my amazing hubs i'm on the mend.

with that, hello thursday.



i foresee a much more productive day.

taco chicken chili is already in the crockpot.

the washer is swishing and the dryer is humming.
er, in our case sqeaking because we believe it's dying a slow death.

the sun is shining.

the kids are playing nice.

i'm about to start sewing...if mckinley goes down for her nap.

thursday, you've been good to me. {so far}
thank you.

*******************************************************
did you win the seventh generation prize pack??
click here to see.

if you didn't win this giveaway you can still enter the yoplait trix yogurt one.
go.
now.
it ends tomorrow.

happy monday.

gah! it's monday already.

who's big idea was it to "spring forward" and "fall back" with our time?
it gets me every time.
every. time.

i never know if i'm gaining an hour of sleep or losing an hour of sleep.
the way i see it i always lose.
when i fall back i feel like i can go to bed later.
when we spring forward i feel like i can sleep in.
or vice versa.
or how ever it goes.

it's just not good for me.

as a result, we were late getting up this morning.
but, because i'm an awesome mom by the grace of God we were still on time for school.

moral of the story?
monday after "spring forward" does not make for a spring in my step when 7 am rolls around.

now, let's talk about the weekend.
i was solo. with all four kiddos.
hubs ditched us for florida.
{he's job hunting so i'll forgive him.
will you be praying?
we're searching for God's will.}






this is my "i can't believe we're on our way to church and gonna be on time, without daddy" look.





hubs comes home today.
it'll be a happy monday, afterall.

yoplait trix yogurt {a giveaway}

do you enjoy eating yogurt?
i have to be honest...i do not.
UNLESS it's a kids yogurt.

kids yogurt is just more fun!
for real.



Everyone knows that “Trix are for kids,” and now Yoplait Trix yogurt is giving moms even more reasons to love it! Yoplait Trix yogurt has been reformulated to remove artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners, and high fructose corn syrup, but only you will know the difference! Whether it’s for an afterschool snack or the highlight of your kid’s lunch box, now you can feel even better about giving your kids the snack that has the same great taste with two bright natural colors in every cup that they can enjoy every day.

*With the same great taste that kids love and the wholesome goodness of real Yoplait® yogurt that moms appreciate, Yoplait Trix yogurt packs a good source of Calcium and Vitamin D

*Available in 4-cup packs, with two bright, natural color combinations that can be swirled or eaten at once in every cup, kids can choose from five flavors: Strawberry Punch, Strawberry Banana Bash, Raspberry Rainbow, Triple Cherry, and Cotton Candy

yoplait and myblogspark sent me a prize pack that included lots of school supplies and a coupon for a free 4-pack of yoplait trix yogurt.



what flavor did i get?
ummmm....
cotton candy, of course.
it's my favorite flavor of kids yogurt!


would like to win this awesome prize pack of yoplait goodies???

first, tell me when your kids enjoy their yoplait trix yogurt? with a well balanced breakfast? in school lunch? as an after school snack?
{my kids would eat them all day long if i let them}

for additional entries you can...

*follow this blog via google friend connect.

*follow yoplait on twitter.

*tweet about this giveaway. {enter to win a Yoplait Trix yogurt prize pack from @jonahbonah and #myblogspark. http://theperfecttrio.blogspot.com/2012/03/yoplait-trix-yogurt-giveaway.html ends 3/16. @yoplaityogurt}

giveaway ends 3/16.
winner announced 3/17.

good luck!

disclosure: the yoplait trix yogurt prize pack, information and coupon have been provided by yoplait through myblogspark

broken.

what does picture say to you?


does it look "okay"?

look again.
at a different view.


yep, i broke my thumb.


i went a whole 31 years, 7 months, and 25 days without ever a broken bone.
and then it happened.

it was all my fault.
no exciting story to tell.
i just fell.

add in excitement, exhaustion, hunger, crazy photographer angles and, with me, you get a broken thumb.
the doctor called it skier's thumb.
{i assure you there was NO skiing involved in the breaking of this thumb}

{at least i was cute and comfy in the ER waiting room in my new dr scholl's kicks from the folks at famous footwear!}


and it requires a cast for three weeks.





so, this is my new, stinky sidekick.


ever wonder if you really need those thumbs of yours??
if you enjoy your independence the answer is yes. you need them.

*folding a load of laundry takes me double the time.
*opening a new bag of cereal is near impossible. scissors are my friend.
*putting my hair in a pony tail? not easy.
*putting mckinley's hair in a pony tail? turns out ugly.
*showering? in a bag. the arm. not me.
*my right arm...and my left for that matter...have not been washed in more than a week.
*my right armpit is 'mostly' shaved. and halfway deoderized.
*thank goodness we recently delegated dish duty to our oldest son. no worries about eating off dirty dishes.
*sleeping with this thing is dangerous. if your my hubs. he says i whacked him the other night...whoops! sorry, babe.

moral of the story?
have fun but, get your rest, eat well, and remain on your feet at all times while taking photos of your most favorite people.