weekend kickoff

Our friends Tommy and Marissa had a Memorial Day Weekend kickoff party on Friday night.  It was such a great time to just kickback and hang out with our friends. 

I made one of the very best and easiest cheesy-potato dishes I've ever had.  This is a recipe that my mom has made for years and it's always a hit!  It feeds a crowd too so it's great to take to parties!

Sinful Potatoes

Ingredients:

1 small brick Velveeta

1 bag (1 lb.) shredded hash browns

1 quart mayo

1 jar bacon bits

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Put hash browns in a large bowl and break apart.  Add mayo and stir to combine.  Melt Velveeta in a saucepan; add to hash browns and mayo.  Spread into a prepared 9x13-inch casserole dish.  Top with bacon bits.  Bake for 20 to 30 minutes. 

  

You can actually double this recipe if you have to feed a crowd!

The party was a blast!  Addi loved the jumping in the moon bounce with Tripp and Olivia!

 She also loved climbing the ladder and going down the BIG slide!!!

 WEEEEEEE!

 Then this goofball thought she'd show off her fork trick for her friends.  She looks just like her daddy!

 Addi was wound up at the party and we stayed until after 10:00!!!  She was quite the party girl!

Thank you to the Adler's for hosting such a fun party for Memorial Day Weekend!  We had a great time!

transition

This has been a tough week!  Addi has been transitioning from the Toddler room into the Teeder Totter room at school!!!  She's been spending half days in both rooms so she can get used to the new routines and activities.  The teachers have given her glowing reports and have reassured us that she is doing GREAT!!!  That being said, change is just hard! She has played so hard with the kids in her new classroom and has come home exhausted every night this week.  I know that developmentally, she is more than ready for the challenges of the Tedder Totter room, but I'm not ready for her to move.  We have loved her teachers in the Toddler room and have grown to love all the kiddos in there with Addi. 

Bye-bye Toddler room...

Bye-bye Toddler Teachers...we will miss you more than you know!! 

 Addi LOVED riding in the Buggy!  Now she gets to play in the Tot-Lot outside though, so I'm sure she'll adjust to the change! 

 Bye-bye Pack & Play...now Addi will take naps on a cot!

 Bye-bye baby table...now she'll sit at the table in a chair like a big girl!  Glad we've been practicing at home!

 Just a few little pieces of Addi that were in the Toddler room...that picture was taken on her first day in that room! I can't believe how bald she was!!

 Oh Miss Beth and Miss Kara...we're going to miss you so much!!!

Thank you for EVERYTHING you've done for us!!!

 Welcome to the Teeter Totters!!!

Hello Miss Betty and Miss Deidre!!  Addi loves them already and can even say their names! 

 So last night, I got all of her supplies ready.  She gets to bring her own sippy cups now.  You already know now much I love our Inchbug cup bands, so of course those were a must.  I used my Mommy Labels on the lid because the Sharpie just doesn't do the trick!

 Crib sheet for her big girl cot.  Scott asked why we had to send a cute sheet to school...such a silly question!!  Of course our girl must have the cutest sheet in the class...with her name embroidered on it!!

 Family picture to hang on the "family tree" in the classroom...such a cute idea!!

Another change in the Teeder Totter room is that she starts Spanish class!!!  I can't believe it either...I can hardly understand her English!  Scott and I are going to have to brush up on our Spanish!  Hola!!! 

 So today was the big day!  Her first full day in the new classroom. 

She was a little unsure about things at first...

  But quickly warmed up to the new room!

 "Mama there's a play kitchen in here!!"

 Eli and Kylee played dishes with her

Do you see her hiding the bowl behind her back? 

That's what she does now when she doesn't want to share...we're working on that!

 

"Oh my gosh!  They have a slide INSIDE!!"

 "WEEEEEEEEE!!!!"

I know she will do fine with the transition...it's always harder on the mamas!  Liz found me crying the my car in the school parking lot when she was dropping MO off.  She came armed with Starbucks and made my morning better. Watching your babies grow up is joyful and painful all at the same time.  I've haven't found a better word for it yet than bittersweet.  Every stage, every development, every single day is bittersweet.  I'm excited for her to grow and learn, but I long to keep her small forever.  I know it's just part of it, but I sure wish it would slow down!

country chick

While Scott and I were in Dallas last weekend for the Jimmy Buffett concert, Miss Addison and Bailey had a big weekend with their Mimi and Papa out in the country!  Yep that's right, this little city girl was a country chick for the weekend!  I'm sure if she's anything like her mother, she was completely lost but still had fun. 

One things for sure, living on land is hard work! Just because Addi's only 20 months old, doesn't mean she didn't have to pull her weight.  She was put right to work!  First, she helped Papa in the garden.

"Look Papa! I see something growing!"

"Did you plant any Chex Mix or Fruit Snacks this summer?  You know those are my favorite!"

Every country girl's gotta have a pair of overalls, right? 

You can't work in the garden in your city clothes...you might get them dirty!

"Gardening is tough...first you've got to dig up some dirt..."

"then you've got to rake the dirt..."

"then you've got dig a little more."

"Next you've got to pick your crops!  Look at these radishes Papa!"

"Hum...this is pretty neat stuff.  Wonder where he's growing the Cheerios?"

 "Now what?  Let's go find Bailey."

"Molly, where's Bailey?  Did she go swimming in the pond again?"

"With all of this land, I'd better help Papa mow some grass.  "

"Oh thank goodness for cookie breaks! 

I was getting hungry and I couldn't find any Chex Mix in the garden."

"Yep, there're good!"

"Nana and Pappy came by to see me."

"The next morning I got to eat my cereal bar on the front porch. 

This country stuff isn't so bad afterall..."

  

Our little country chick had a wonderful weekend in Lone Grove, America.  Thank you to Mimi and Papa for letting Addi come play while Mama and Dada were off in Dallas playing!