Autumnal Nesting

Rosie and I have had a wonderful time ushering in Autumn. Over the last few weeks we've done numerous crafts and made a few treats. Take a look at our creations:

I can't take all of the credit. My sister turned me on to this great blog site that is totally devoted to crafts for toddlers. So, if you're brave, check out http://www.notimeforflashcards.com

We started out with this cute bat

Then we moved on to creating an acorn using rice and cereal

We made a collage pumpkin (mom helped quite a bit with the eyes, nose and mouth)

We made Caramel Apples

(This was before Rosie realized that we were going to dip them in caramel first)

Our favorite craft, by far, has been this ghost. We mixed shaving cream and glue together and got this icky sticky mess that was an absolute joy to explore. Rosie had a great time making her ghost, but an even better time smearing it on her bod. It dried really well, and the ghost turned out adorable.

And, we made cookies. I take it back. I made cookies. We decorated them. Wait, I take it back, again. I decorated cookies with the things I thought people might like to eat on a cookie...like mini M&Ms. Rosie ate the mini M&Ms and  decorated her cookie with a few other tasty items lying around. We saved that extra special one for daddy.

P.S I dress my daughter.. I swear. With the extra messy crafts, we saved a shirt from having to be Cloroxed.

Big Baby!

So my doctor thinks that our Little Peanut is less of a Peanut and maybe more of a Pumpkin..... Translation: She's quite large... apparently. I'm doing my best not to take offense. She made it quite clear that my weight is fine, but given the size of the Little Pumpkin... and remembering the weight of the Older Pumpkin (Rosie tipped in at 8.15), we've been put on a low carb, low sugar regime. Yes, folks! A diet!

So, I have gone from:

To:

I thought I would take a minute to share with you 1 of our favorite easy high protein loves:

Chris' Fiesta Meatloaf

(this is a favorite Welch recipe with a new Eckert twist)

1 Lb. extra lean ground turkey

1/4 c. diced onions

2/3 c. chili sauce (dump 1/3 c. in the mix and 1/3 c. on top)

1 egg

1/2 c. diced mushrooms

1/4 c diced tomatoes

1/4 c colored pepper (I like the orange ones for the color)

1/2 c. shredded parmesan cheese

2t chili powder

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. black pepper

Throw it all in a bowl and mix well. Use your hands- it's the best way to mix meatloaf.

Put the loaf in a greased loaf pan and pour the remaining 1/3 c. chili sauce on top.

Place in a preheated 375 degree oven for 30-45 minutes

Ole!

5 Blissful Years!

On Friday, October 16th, we celebrated 5 years of marriage.  Let me just take a moment to tell you that I have the most incredible, loving, caring, wise, hilarious, creative, generous and handsome husband in the world. He surprised me on Friday with the promise to build me a REAL raised bed garden in our backyard. I've been growing my tomatoes, lettuce,  peppers and herbs in pots for the last years, and I'm finally going to have a little piece of land to nurture my "crops." What a gift! 

Here is a picture of us on our wedding day. Look at us! We're babies! I know it was only 5 years ago, but it seems like a whole lot of time has passed. We were totally rookies (and I guess we still are in some ways). We were tanned and taut and headed blissfully (and naively) into our first years together. It has been an amazing 5 years. We have learned so much about each other and ourselves. I'm so very blessed and lucky to be married to Ron. There certainly is JOY in the Journey.  

October 16, 2004

October 16, 2009

After adding a mortgage, car payments, demanding jobs, and Rosie to the mix :)

We were anxiously awaiting the birth of Henry Hunt, so we decided to do a fun family outing rather than get a babysitter for the evening, just in case we had to head up to Pasadena at a moment's notice. We decided to take Rosie to Disneyland since our annual passes run out soon.  Here are some pictures from our night together, celebrating 5 years of marriage.

 

It's No "Small" Wonder!

He's here! Baby Henry Christopher Hunt has arrived! I apologize for the terrible pictures. I can't believe that I didn't take more. He arrived at 3:08 on Monday afternoon. Erin and Simon are doing well. He was a BIG boy, weighing in at 9 pounds 4 oz. I spent most of the last few days watching Lucy and trying to keep her little world as normal as possible. Because of the Swine Flu, she wasn't allowed at the hospital, so she met her baby brother today when they arrived home. Rosie and I made our exit before they returned home as to give the Hunts a few moments to themselves...... more pictures to come!

Come Out, Little One!

We've been on "baby watch" with Erin's baby due any day. She and I were texting this morning:

(I was tentatively working today if there were no signs of labor)

Erin: "No babies.... no nothin'... have your meetings."

Me: "Come ON, Baby!! Go eat something spicy"

Erin: "Seriously, I am going to drink a gallon of Challula."

Me: "A poem for baby: Said Auntie Hez to the baby: Come out and see the sun! It's dark in there in Mommy's tum, come out and have some fun!"

Erin: "A poem from mama: Git out baby! Don't mean maybe!"

I will keep you posted. In the meantime, Rosie had some fun playing in a box that came for one of my school families. She kept wanting me to join her inside the box..... I think if I were to get in, I may never have been able to get out.

"Picka Punkin" Parts 1 and 2

We headed to the "punkin" patch on Sunday- we snapped some pictures of Rosie before realizing that the pumpkin patch was closed. We left with no pumpkin.... but our own teary pumpkin in the backseat. We went back today today to relive the experience and help Rosie pick a pumpkin to bring home.








 

Road Trip!

We're home from our road trip! The washing machine has been humming all day and we are slowly settling back in. We had an amazing time, but it feels good to be home. We rented an RV 10 days ago with the intention of heading to South Dakota (with many stops along the way) to visit Mt. Rushmore. I guess I should back up a little, as the idea for this trip has some history. 4 years ago after camp, Ron and I decided to take a fall trip to Wyoming to see the Grand Tetons. Ron grew up traveling through this part of the country every summer and we thought it would be fun to camp for a week and take in the sights. Let me just make a disclaimer and add that I am a fair weather camper. I can sleep on a rock, filter my water, hang my food in a tree, and tinkle in the woods with the rest of them.... but I don't exactly love it. Let me tell you what I do love: I love hot coffee in the morning, I love being able to shower at least every 48 hours, I love my sleeping accommodations to include a pillow, and I love being able to use the restroom in the middle of the night without putting on a jacket and shoes first. Our trip to the Tetons?? It rained.... it snowed.... there was no hot coffee to be found....it snowed again..... no pillow, no hot showers, and I definitely had to put on shoes and a jacket to use the restroom in the middle of the night. To top it all off, I had a 100 pound yellow lab sleeping in my sleeping bag with me, and I don't mean Ron. Let's just say I whined. I may have even cried. Ron was insensitive. We ended up the Motel 6. That brings us to the RV. This is the type of roughing it that I can totally handle, especially with a 2 year old in tow. We packed our 25 foot Tioga Ranger with plenty of snacks and toys to last us for a month and headed for the mountains. We made it to Colorado and had so much fun exploring that we decided to scrap Mt. Rushmore and spend more time in the Rockies. Some of the highlights included watching Rosie take in the sights with all of her 2 year old awe and wonder, hearing Elk bugling in the Rocky Mountains, seeing the fall colors wherever we went, exploring Telluride, visiting The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, and enjoying being together surrounded by the beauty of Colorado. We even camped  with our friends, Brett and Kate Rogers who live near Denver, and spent a night with the Eckerts in Flagstaff on our way home. Check out our slideshow. We had a great time.