Slumber Party

Lucky.

 Fortunate.

Grateful.

Blessed.

People say these words all of the time. They get tossed around and become automatic responses.
I am *insert "all of the above" to have these women in my life.

Greta, me, and Julia
Sept. 08

I started to type out the story of how these beautiful ladies became a part of my life... major deja vu. The point: I love these girls. I love how we can go weeks or months without contact and pick back up exactly where we left off.

The Slumber Party:
I'm not sure who had the idea, but I'm completely taking credit for it.
I missed my friends. So, I said to myself: Self, why not have a slumber party?
Of course, my friends thought it was a brilliant  idea and were only too happy to make the drive (2 hrs for Greta, 3 hrs for Julia) to come hang out with me. Yes, I am that cool.

OK... We had a lot more fun than this picture portrays. Just so you know...

Let me just say that my house was CRAZY.

5 kids. 3 adults. 1 moose.

CRAZY.

young love

Greta Bo Bo & Lincoln

Spinning!

LPB :)

This "girl time" was exactly what the Dr ordered for this mom. Yes, it was hectic. But, absolutely lovely. Resolutions were made to not wait so long to do this again (just like every time we get together).

I'm so lucky.

I'm so fortunate.

I'm so grateful.

I am so blessed to have these friends in my life.

Thanks for reading. Feel free to share the love.

Until next time...

Weekend Review

It's Monday. Time to recap the Caudill's weekend.

Friday:

Andy's been working a different shift, so our weekends now start on Friday, just like everybody else. It makes for a mega long week. We've all gotten spoiled by the 4 day weekends every week, but hopefully this won't last for too much longer.

Something much better is in the works.

Praying.

The Caudill House menu consisted of spaghetti. That sounds boring.
Until recently, spaghetti was my only success in the kitchen. My "go-to" meal, which works out well for me, considering I could eat pasta (or pizza) everyday of my life and never tire of it. Seriously.

Andy made it home. Dinner was served.

It was time for Avery to get ready for her first date and theatrical debut. The Harrison's (our best friends, neighbors, and adoptive grandparents to my girls) got tickets to see A Winnie the Pooh Christmas Tail at the Paramount Arts Center.

Anxiously awaiting her "dates" for the evening.

A Winnie the Pooh Christmas Tail

I think a good time was had by all. :)

Saturday:

Santa Claus AND the Grinch came to town... to a local elementary school, actually. We saw the post on facebook and decided to go join in the fun.

Cookies.

 Santa.

Crafts (didn't make it to the craft table, though).

Grinch.

Pictures.

Good. Times.

Elliot Grae + the Grinch = BFFs

 

Mr. Claus met us by the door. Avery was "very thankful" her Daddy was close.

Jolly Pirate Christmas cookies. *drool

Well, it's not Christmas card worthy, but "no tears = success" in my book.

Saturday also brought some Pinterest inspired baking (and I use the term baking very loosely).

Preheat oven to 275. Pretzels & Kisses. Pretzels & Rolos. 3 minutes. Add M&Ms or pretzel topper immediately upon removal. Fridge till ready to serve. Boom.

Sunday:

The last day of our fun-filled and laid-back weekend. We usually don't do much on Sundays. Andy gets his weekly laundry done. Yes, ladies... the man does his own laundry too. Amazing, I know. It's a lot of cozy couch time and pj's are worn by all.

This Sunday was no different... except a HUGE breakfast was provided by our dear friends, the Harrison's (see above).

Wahwah's (Howard) side of the family have their Christmas gift exchange/dinner early in the month, and our friends always host the weekend's closing breakfast.

 For the past two years, the Caudill's have joined the food line.

Good food. Good fellowship.

Wonderful friends.

:)

Mother of the Year: Reason #724

December already?! Where has 2011 gone? This year has been filled  overflowing with reason why I will be accepting my Mother of the Year award (I'm expecting it to arrive any day now). Yesterday, was just another example... let me share it with you. And, please hold your applause until the end.

Yes, that is a stove top burn.

If you're a regular reader of my blog (if you're not, please come back and join us again), you're aware of my recent "culinary adventures". I'd like to say I was whipping up some sort of magical, seasonal goodness... creating fantastic memories with my girl right by my side, watching my every move. I'd love to be able to say that.

Sadly, I was heating up a can of soup.

Not nearly as exciting, but the result was the same, which was a trip to Ashland Children's Clinic.

Please do not judge the hair. We were in a hurry. Momma was a hot mess over this. Do not let this light hearted blog post fool anyone. Hot. Mess.

I'm happy to report: Avery Drew is doing just fine.

 Little bit of ointment.

 Little bit of Telfa (non-stick dressing).

 $20 co-pay.

 Then, we were good to go.

 After our visit at the clinic, we went to my mom's. Moe asked Avery about her "hurt hand". Avery, who had seemed to forgotten all about this excruciating pain once the Winnie the Pooh sticker was applied, got all pouty-faced and went straight into "poooor Avery" mode. She even held out the wrong hand.

It must be PTSD.

sweet sister

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Speaking of "culinary adventures", on tonight's menu:

 The Best Pot Roast Ever! (according to Pinterest, anyways)

Andy requested a roast for dinner. Little does he know I'm going to be making THIS.

I'm not even gonna mention the subtle changes, just going to let his taste buds do the talking.

*Muhahaha! (evil laugh)

Here's the deal:

-throw potatoes, onions, and carrots into crock pot

-toss in roast (on top of veggies)

-sprinkle an envelope of (dry) ranch dressing mix

-sprinkle an envelope of italian dressing mix (again, dry)

-sprinkle an envelope of brown gravy mix (you guessed it... dry)

-pour 1-2 Cups water

-cook on low for 6-10 hrs (veggies/meat are cooked to your liking)

-Boom! Best Roast Ever! (we shall see)

Here at the Caudill House, we keep it classy with pre-dinner entertainment. Here's a little mental image of what you might catch while waiting on your fine dining experience.

Avery Drew on the harmonica, accompanied by her Daddy on the keys. *Swoon...

Drum roll please...

Andy, the ONLY person I'm concerned with liking this dish, takes a bite. Wait for it... wait for it... "Excellent".

And, there you go.

"I'd like to thank the Academy... my manager, and ALL my fans, who have supported me all along. Also, this meal would not have been possible, if it weren't for Pinterest..."