Liam Allen Joiner

Here he is...

We love him. He is such a sweet baby and gives big smiles. He hardly ever cries, he slept through the night at 6 weeks. Amazing! We love being a family of 5.

Before 2 becomes 3

I'm treasuring these last few weeks with these two little ones. Yes, it's not easy being this pregnant and chasing around a 5 year old and a 2 year old, but they are so adorable and sweet. I know I'll look back on this time with fondness as our life gets even more hectic when baby #3 arrives. I'm trying not to wish the days away as being pregnant gets more and more uncomfortable. I can't believe it's just 4 more weeks!

In other news, Everett wanted me to post his latest Lego creation on the web. It's two boats in the water with a lighthouse.

Summer Heat

We just returned from a camping trip at a campground on the lake outside of Augusta, called Clarks Hill.

We were there with Allen's family and some family friends of theirs...25 of us in all! 3 campsites, 3 pop up campers, 3 tents, 5 kids bikes, 7 cars, a motorcycle, 2 boats and a huge screened in area for eating. Our tent even had it's own air conditioning unit! It's definitely a site to be seen. We had a great spot by the beach and the kids had a blast. Great food, including eggs, bacon, grits, and toast for breakfast and homemade wings, fries & salad for dinner. Delicious! Allen's family has been doing this since his parents were kids. They stay for a whole week each summer. We stayed for 3 days...maybe next summer we'll stay longer but then we'll have 1 more kid in the mix!

Camille LOVED "driving" the boat!

When we got home we were unloading the car and all of the sudden I noticed a couple of cars parked on our street and a woman collapsed on the sidewalk. It was obvious she had been exercising. I called to Allen and he ran across the street to help her. Luckily, a woman happened to stop who was an EMT and had medical equipment in her car. She was able to help the woman and even give her oxygen. The woman eventually became conscious, but only knew her name. A woman from her neighborhood stopped who recognized her and was able to get in contact with the woman's daughter. A policeman, fire truck and ambulance all showed up at the end of our driveway, which was very exciting to Everett and Camille. The ambulance took her away and Everett and I said a little prayer for her.

After that excitement, we finished unloading and unpacking...

This one's for Gillian

One of my friends happened to click on my blog today and I got reprimanded for not having posted in almost a year.

I guess I've been busy raising two kids and being preggo with #3. Plus, Facebook has become an easier venue for me to share thoughts and photos than the blog world. But I know my hundreds of blog friends have been so sad without me...so here's a little something:

We went on a vacation with just our little family for the first time ever two weeks ago. We went to Seagrove Beach, near Destin, FL. It was such a nice time. Allen's been traveling a lot for work so it was fabulous to have a few dedicated days to ourselves. Plus, our children wake up at the crack of dawn, which can be a problem when traveling with families whose children sleep in until 10am. What is that??? So, we were out at the beach by 8am most mornings and although our kids did miss having playmates at times, I think we all bonded and became closer. A great first family vacation.

Here are a few photos:

I'm really looking forward to this summer...going to the pool, a few other small vacations, having time to lay low with the kids. All before baby #3 arrives in October!!!

Time has flown, our garden has grown

It's hard to believe that we started our garden back in April and now it's June already. Our kids are growing up as fast as our garden is. Everett is attending his first Vacation Bible School at our church this week and Camille is beginning to form a few words and has now mastered going down the stairs. We've had a good summer so far, including an amazing trip to Brazil.

And for the photos...

A view of the whole garden

Everett v. The corn

Zuchinni (we've had 3 ripen already...yummy)

Green Beans

Grape Tomatoes

Everett and the freshly picked zuchinni

Camille and the sidewalk chalk

We've also got broccoli and carrots coming up in the garden as well!

How does your garden grow?

Allen and Everett dug up a small area in our yesterday to start a garden.  We're going to just start off with a few veggies.  We're hoping to do squash or zucchini, green beans, tomatoes and maybe one or two other things.  I'm excited about having some fresh veggies this summer!  

Everett is super excited about picking out the seeds and had so much fun digging in the dirt.  If this small garden works out well, we're hoping to expand a little more each year.

We'll keep you posted and may be sharing some of our produce this summer...depending on how it goes.

My Top 10 Kitcheny Things

1.  Jane's Krazy Mixed-Up Seasonings "Original Mixed-Up Salt".  I love this rubbed on pork chops, chicken or steak.  It's delicious in veggies, potatoes, etc.  My mom always used this growing up and now I've really come to appreciate it.

2.  Pasta Pot.  I have a cheap one from Target we got as a wedding gift.  It's just a regular oblong pot with a lid that sort of screws on.  The lid has several holes in it so you can drain the pasta with the lid.  I love not having to use a colander.

3.  Rubbermaid Stain Shield Containers.  We have a small set and I refuse to collect or use any other type of containers.  I can't stand a bunch of mismatched lids and containers.    (Probably need to convert to BPA free eventually but for now these will do.)

4.  OXO mixing bowls.  They have non-slip bottoms and handles and a pourable side and are just easy.

5.  Coke Zero.  It's really grown on me and I like it better than Diet Coke now.

6.  Spaghetti Pie.

8 oz. spaghetti, cooked

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 lb. ground beef, cooked

2 cups spaghetti sauce

4 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese

Toss cooked spaghetti, Parmesan cheese, and egg.  Place in a 9" pie plate.  Press along bottom and sides to form crust.  Mix meat and sauce.  Spread over noodles and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, let stand 5 minutes before cutting.  8 servings. 

I make this every other week...definitely a staple.  Thanks to my sister for this one.

7.  OXO Locking Tongs with Nylon Heads.  Got these as a gift recently from my DH and I'm loving them.  They're perfect for non-stick pans.

8.  Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip Muffin Mix.  Delicious and often BOGO at Publix with a coupon!

9.  Baked-Crisp Parmesan Chicken.

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

¼ cup red-wine vinegar

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon crushed red-pepper flakes

½ teaspoon dried oregano

1 garlic clove, minced

6-8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 

1 cup fresh breadcrumbs

¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons dried parsley

¼ teaspoon ground pepper

1. Whisk together oil, vinegar, salt, red-pepper flakes, oregano, and garlic in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.  Add chicken to marinade in dish, turning each piece to coat.  Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours.

2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Stir together bread crumbs, cheese, parsley, and pepper in a medium bowl. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil.  

3. Dredge each chicken breast in breadcrumb mixture to coat; shake off excess. Transfer to prepared baking sheet.

4. Bake chicken until breadcrumbs are golden and chicken is cook

ed through, 45 to 50 minutes. Using a spatula, loosen chicken from sheet before serving.  

You can estimate the ingredients, depending on the amount of chicken you're cooking.  I make this one all the time too.

10.  Stretch-Tite Plastic Wrap.  The best, hands down.  My mother-in

-law has used this for years and when I tried it at her house I couldn't believe how great it was.  It's fairly inexpensive and lasts forever.  

There you go...my top 10.  If Oprah can do it, so can I.  You just don't get any freebies with me.  I might do some other top 10 lists soon!

my boy

Everett is in that stage where sometimes he seems all grown up and other times he still seems like my little baby.  He's a joy to have around and is such a sweetheart.   I snapped these photos of him yesterday afternoon.  I love this sweater on him and I wanted to have some photos of him in it as a memory.  All the poses were his idea...

She's 9 Months

The Simple Things

There were 3 toys in our collection that I liked a lot but they each drove me crazy because they either came apart or had little parts that would come off for no apparent reason.  I finally fixed the problems...superglue to the rescue!

The little blue handles on these pliers would come off all the time, why is that?  No more!

All four pieces of this ball game would come apart.  It would constantly be in four pieces on our floor...never again!

This Little People Pirate Ship is so cute but the green stand and the flag both were made to take off and on.  The only problem is the never stayed on.  Now they do.

I know these things are small but it makes me happy to know they won't come apart anymore!