Little Models...

Maybe Jack & Reagan have a future in modeling? Hmmmm, not sure about that. ha! But...they did help out my friend, Lauren. Remember the beautiful holiday photos of the kids that Lauren took? Her and her business partner have decided to expand their wedding photography business. They've had so many requests from friends to photograph their kids that they wanted to include some of the pictures on their website/blog.

About a week ago, we took the kids down to our beach and attempted to get some good shots of the kids having fun on a beautiful summer morning. Lauren got some GREAT shots...and as you can see from the pictures, the kids were pretty cooperative. Of course, after about 10 minutes...they started to get a little silly and we had to bribe them with a treat! ha!

Here is a link to Lauren's blog and you can see some of the pictures...

http://personkillian.squarespace.com/person-killian-photographers/2009/6/4/children-photography.html

Old Pictures...

I love to look at old pictures (and I do this frequently) - I have so much to be thankful for and looking at pictures from the past make me realize this each time! Some days, we wake up tired, stressed, sad, sensitive, frustrated, etc...but once I see all the amazing memories we have created - these negative feelings go away!!!

So I thought I would do another "Remember When..." post and put up some of my favorite pictures of the kids from the past few years...and of course I'm biased but I think they are too cute! :) I'll also tell a little story about each photo...a memory that I have of that picture & time of year.

Enjoy!

Spring 07 - Reagan loved to look at herself in our bathroom mirror (oh and I LOVED this paint color - so dramatic and I'll never forget the name "Cayenne")

Summer 05 - Jack was around 9 months old in this picture. We went on a bike ride through the Missouri Wine Country and it was a HOT summer day. But Jack loved it!! And we loved the wine! :)

Provincetown, MA June 2007 - We took an ALL FAMILY vacation (Lehmans + Waldners) to the Cape this summer and Jack flew his first kite with Grammy & Gramps. He had a blast but unfortunately the Dora kite took a hard dip in the ocean and went bye-bye. uh oh! This is Jack looking up in the sky watching the kite fly around!
Spring 07 -Reagan had just discovered how to crawl up the stairs...life as we knew it was over! She was quite the climber and loved to give us mini-heart attacks each day.

A Waldner Family Weekend...

This past weekend, Matt's parents & sister came to visit to help Reagan celebrate her birthday. Papa (Matt's dad) and Reagan share the same birthday so it was only fitting to come & celebrate together!!! We had a great time...trips to the neighborhood beach, yummy food/treats, lots of outside playtime, first slip-n-slide fun of the summer, cookout, etc. Here are some pictures from the weekend:

"How's the view from the top?"

The Fam

Papa, Nana, Aunt Jill, the kids & Matt

Who doesn't love lounging in the grass wearing PJ's?

Happy Birthday to Papa & Reagan! (love the birthday donuts)

Pretty Reaggie (photo compliments of Aunt Jill)

Silly Jack

Backyard wrestling

Pretty girl

Not ONE, Not TWO but THREE.....

Yippeeeeee! Our little Reagan turned 3 years old this weekend and she celebrated in true princess style! Seventeen of Reagan's friends joined in a celebration at the local duckpin bowling alley. It was a princess-themed party and we encouraged all the kids to dress up (boys too!)...as you can see from the pictures, the kids really took their costumes seriously!

Which princess dress does Reagan pick??? Cinderella, of course! (the morning of the party)

Big Surprise...Jack dressed up as Spiderman for the party!

Reagan's all ready for her party...in her special "3" tshirt!

And if you want to see how it all ended, just click on this snapfish album link below to view all 126 pictures from the party ( ha!!!!)...okay, okay you don't have to look at ALL the photos but you can just scan them to see how much fun Reagan & her friends had at her party!

http://www2.snapfish.com/share/p=293251243297010061/l=1553882009/g=44695723/otsc=SYE/otsi=SALB

Thinking of the Mothers out there!!!

To all my "Mommy" friends, here is a little poem that my own amazing MOM sent me in a forward via email. The forward asks me to "tag" 5 other Moms, but instead of doing that...I thought I would share the great poem with all of you on my blog! Consider this my TAG! :)

Before I was a Mom, I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby. I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous. I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom, I had never been puked on. Pooped on. Chewed on. Peed on. I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts. I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom, I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests. Or give shots. I never looked into teary eyes and cried. I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin. I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom, I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put her down. I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.! I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much. I never knew that I could love someone so much. I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom, I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.. I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby. I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child. I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom, I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay. I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom. I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much, before I was a Mom .

Topless "Strolling"

Thought you could all use a little laugh...we sure got a kick out of our kids pushing each other in a BABY stroller with no shirts on! What were they thinking??? Thank goodness we didn't break the stroller - that is one of Reagan's favorite toys!

Jumping on the recipe-sharing bandwagon!

Following in my sister's footsteps (along with some other blogger friends too!), I have decided to share with you guys a yummy breakfast treat that is HEALTHY and the kids will love!

Who doesn't love a frozen - blended treat and a muffin? I discovered a delicious recipe for Strawberry Muffins (and take advantage while they are in season and on sale at grocery stores!)...add Orange Julius and you've got a yummy treat for everyone! What makes this even more fun is that the kids help me make them...which always ends up an adventure but so exciting for them!

Enjoy!

"Melt-in-your-mouth Strawberry Muffins"

Ingredients

1 c all-purpose flour

1 c whole wheat flour

1/2 c sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

2 eggs

1 c plain yogurt (we used Stonyfield Farm Banilla lowfat yogurt)

1/4 c butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla

1 c chopped strawberries (can use fresh or frozen)

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a bowl, mix together flour, sugar and baking soda. In another bowl, mix eggs, yogurt, butter and vanilla. Toss chopped strawberries into the flour mix. Then pour yogurt mix into flour mix and stir. Spoon batter into greased muffin tins. Bake 20-25 minutes.

Mix up a pitcher of orange julius and you have a great and EASY breakfast!

Orange Julius

1/2 frozen orange juice container

2 c milk

1 tsp vanilla

crushed ice

BLEND...so yummy!

*the original recipe calls for sugar but the OJ has enough - the kids definitely do not need it! :)