Lions, Tigers and Dinosaurs..Oh My!

Lions, Tigers and Dinosaurs are out at the Fort Worth Zoo...Oh My! 

Because I always have to post a picture of the back of Ryder's Head.  The Sea Turtles.

Mr. Ryder...He LOVED the Sea Turtles

One tired little boy on the Train!  He sat all by himself with the big kids.  A gentle reminder that he is growing up way too fast.

This is James.  His Mom is Danielle from Salty Brownies.  He is Ryder's Pre-school Bestie!

 

R&R

Somehow we planned this on a day that every other school in the area was there.  Tip:  Go to the Zoo after lunch...all of the field-trip groups leave when lunch is finished.  We got there when it opened and left when everyone else did so it was kind of crazy.  I had two of my best friends there with me so we survived the day with 6 kids.  No one was lost or ever melted down...well except for Ryder when I wouldn't let him hang out in the photo booth...but that's understandable...a pretty unreasonable request of me :-)  . All in all it was a success!  Now Heather, Mary and Carley we need to get our play-date on....miss you girls!

Wordless Wednesday-Rustin 18 Months

Tasty Tuesday- Barbecue Meatballs

I got my Kitchen back!  Hooray!  What better way to celebrate than with an amazing dinner.  Barbecue Meatballs.  If you haven't tried them you must.  I love them, Matt loves them and most importantly Ryder loved them.  I'm telling you this...if Ryder will eat them, anyone will eat them.  He is the absolute pickiest eater ever.  Dinner is a struggle every night.  We're persistent though...we'll win.  Ha!  O.k.  onto the meatballs...Preheat your Oven to 350 Degrees.  Here is the ingredient list:
Meatballs:
1 Egg
1 Can Evaporated Milk (I use the Fat Free)
1 Cup of Oats
1/2 Cup of Chopped Onion
1 t. Salt
1 t. Chili Powder
1/4 t. Garlic Powder
1/4 t. pepper
1-1/2 lb. Ground Beef
Sauce (Yes...you make your own Barbecue sauce...but its simple..Promise!)
1 Cup of Ketchup
3/4 Cup Brown Sugar
1/4 Cup Chopped Onion
1/4 t. Garlic Powder

Instructions:
Combine the first Eight Ingredients.  Crumble Beef over the mixture and shape into 1-inch balls with your hands.  Bake at 350 Degrees for 20 minutes.  Pour Sauce over the top and bake an additional 10-12 minutes.

I took a real fancy picture for ya...my dirty little secret is parchment paper.  I use it everytime I bake something on a cookie sheet.  Parchment Paper = No Clean up!

I Heart Faces- Pets

This week's challenge over at I Heart Faces is pets!  This is our little Charlie aka Chuck-D out in the snow earlier this year.  He's a crazy little dog and sometimes I wonder what we were (or were not) thinking when we got a puppy with two small kids who keep my hands more than full....but we love him!

 

Head Over to I Heart Faces to see all of this week's fabulous entries!

Happy Easter

Happy Easter From the Smith's!

Easter Party

I ♥ Easter!  The week of festivities is in full swing. Ryder had his Class Party and Easter Egg Hunt at School today.

Because of all the Kitchen remodeling I couldn't bake anything fun for his class brunch...so we hit the doughnut shop!  What says Easter better than a Chocolate doughnut?  Ha!  Oh and because of the Kitchen remodel that has lingered out into the garage, I couldn't get in the attic to grab his basket...so we hit Wal-Mart and scored this awesome baseball basket for $5!

I was going to pull some pics from my post about last year's Easter Party and show how Ryder has grown...but guess what!?  No pics from last year...I read my post and it sounds like it was a TERRIBLE day!  I hardly remember it now, but geez...I felt a little sorry for myself!  So here is to a much better day a year later, lol!! 

 

I had to post this picture of his class because he is the only one not looking.  So him.

This stinker helped us hide the eggs for his Brother's class.  I asked him to pose and of course he did.  I told you he's a stinker!

That's all!

Progress

We're making progress in the kitchen...wait...I'm only kidding.  Yes...I think we'll be living the rest of our lives taped off from our kitchen and all of its belongings will continue to be piled high in another room. 

OK...not really, but two weeks after this little cabinet refinishing project began, I'm beginning to get tired of the mess.  The excuse that I can't cook in the kitchen isn't even fun anymore...I really want to use my oven!!!  One of these days (hopefully sooner than later) I'll be able to show you some After pictures!

This little stinker is playing with Blocks while he waits for his PT appointment which has done wonders for him!  He walks everywhere now!  Such a Blessing for this Mama who was beginning to have some aches and pains from lugging his 22 lb. self around everywhere. 

That's all...nothing else...sigh...