Two-Two's

Last Friday, Jas' brother's little man, W, turned 2!! So we decided that it would be the perfect opportunity to take our little family on a road trip to visit family. Prior to leaving, Had decided that her 'little piggies' needed some polish...

I love that she was blowing on them to get them to dry faster.

Oh forgot to mention...it's about a 6 hour drive. Well, to be fair, it's probably about 5 1/2 hours...but add two little girls to this adventure and you can tack on at least another hour. And as much as I was dreading the drive...our girls did exceptionally well. And Jas and I did our best to keep them smiling at almost any cost. Cue the pit stop to McDonald's. Not something we do regularly...but it's what A requested. Actually, her first request when asked what she would like to have for dinner was, 'Hmmmm, How about a 5-dollar foot long?' (Did I mention that I am canceling cable for the summer at the end of the week?) Obviously, this kid has seen too many commercials. Anyhow, next request was Mickey-D's. And they thought it was great to eat dinner while we were driving

(another thing that we do not do regularly).

I love taking pictures of my hubb, who usually does his best to escape the camera and hangs out in the background...but with his hands on the wheel...there was NO ESCAPE!!



I took a lot more than this, but decided in all fairness that I would choose my favorite. Isn't he handsome?

Had doing her best to look cherubic...but those who know this little stinker know it's just a matter of time before she's performing again.

Here is a picture of the gorgeous green hills that we drove through. Oh how I love the Pacific Northwest...in just a few short hours, you can go from the ocean to the dessert and passing through beautiful mountains. God does good work.

We arrived Friday night around 10pm and after stretching a bit and bouncing off the walls for bit...the girls crashed.

Saturday Morning, A, Big W and I decided that it was perfect weather for some garage saling. Not knowing the area well made it a little challenging, but we managed. I taught them the importance of looking for signs at intersections and on telephone poles.

We had a great time...and I am already looking forward to the next 'outing' that we can go on. ...the next generation of 'junkers' up and coming.

By Saturday afternoon, Had was ready to soak up some Vitamin D...Look at that little figure. Proud daddy says that she's built like an 'S.'

Had...forever the little 'poser,' was showing me where she fell when she slipped on the slip-n-slide.

How cute! Proud Grandpa Oob with his littlest grandkiddo, W.

W's momma, Auntie B, made this adorable ice cream castle for her little man. It was so fun. And if you look really close at the base of the castle, you'll see what appear to be seemingly innocent blue and white M&M's...OH NO!! Those little gems are my new weakness...bite-size York peppermint pieces. I guess I'll keep my gym membership.

Here are Had and W clowning around and seeing who can wear the most of their dessert. That's Jas' brother, Uncle B and their dad, Oobie Doobie, doing their best to steer clear of these two

Now don't these pictures have the potential for being great ads for a cupcake campaign.


Here is Had doing her best to get to the candy stashed inside...unfortunately, she has some work to do on her swing.

Saturday night, post slip-n-slide, BBQ, cupcakes and pinata, but pre-snuggle the two-'two's' needed a bath...and it is my firm belief that the sign of a good day is evident in the ring of dirt left in the tub after the water drains...the dirtier the tub, the harder they played...and by the looks of this...THEY PLAYED HARD...(and they did).

How cute are these two? This was Sunday morning as we were loading up and getting ready to head to the park to let the girls burn some energy before throwing them back into the car and hitting the road for another 6 hours.

We had a great visit with family and met some new friends.

...already looking forward to our next visit and hoping it's soon.

WWHHHEEEEE!!!!

If you live in Washington...you very well know that our spring has felt more like winter and you are EAGERLY waiting for summer to get here...(as of my count it's only 14 more days away).

Last Thursday, we were gifted a few hours of blue skies and white fluffy clouds. Perfect afternoon for the girls and I to head to a local park and enjoy some play time (right after a quick stop at Starbucks). Lucky for us, we were met by our dear friend Margee, her son, Preston and her new incredible camera. If you know Margee, you know that she is a very talented woman in ALL ASPECTS! Photography is no exception.

Here are a few of my favorites that she took of my girls on Thursday.

The thing that I love most about these three pictures is that they are all the same picture...just cropped in a little more each frame.

As I look back at these pictures, I am reminded of carefree and joyful days of childhood; specifically, the HOURS AND HOURS of time that I spent on the swingset in my parents backyard....swinging as high as we could and doing our best to 'raise the legs' of the swingset off the ground.

Oh, how I long for those days again, and while I know I can't go back and relive those days again....I can do my best to help provide and nurture 'these days' for my girls so that they may look back as fondly as I do of mine.

Rain, Rain, Go Away...

As I sit here this morning...the only thing I can hear are the sounds of numerous raindrops hitting our living room window. I heard on the news today our weatherman refer to our weather as "June-uary;" a very fitting description of our weather these days. So I decided that I would share with you some pictures of flowers that are currently fighting through the weather and blooming in our garden. I had to use an umbrella to keep myself and the camera dry...but as you'll see, flowers are even pretty when it's sprinkling.



Here is a picture of a clematis that shares the same support as our raspberries. Her name is the Duchess of Edinburgh. Last summer, she didn't show her pretty face, so I'd thought we had lost her...but here she is.

This rose goes by the name of Graham Thomas...isn't he handsome. Oh and he smells delightful.

This little cutie is a columbine and her name is Nora Barlow. I love the way the purple gently transcends into pinks and whites...

Of course, you can't have a garden without having bleeding hearts somewhere. So here are mine...and since white flowers are my most favorite...I do love these...as does A.

I just love the picture of our little snail friend...It looks as though he is keeping guard of our peonies; he's kind of like a 'scare-snail' instead of a scarecrow.

Here is a close up of one of our peonies...I don't recall her name...but she is gorgeous


Here is another peony in full bloom right now. Her name is Mons. Jules Elie. I have no idea as to why it is that I am able to remember all of these names...

This lovely climbing rose drapes itself up and over the north side of our potting shed and smells incredible. And of course, since it is white...it's one of my favorites.

Here is a grand allium who stands guard at the entrance of the path to our potting shed.


I know that technically 'Forget-Me-Nots' are weeds, but I love them...and so do my girls. A knows that she does not need permission to pick these and frequently presents me with the most generous bouquets of them.

Here is another view of 'Graham.' This one hasn't bloomed out yet...and again, I think he is so handsome.

More alliums at attention as you come up the driveway. I really like how they look against the old picket fence.

This is the view of the side of our potting shed...I love how overgrown it has become...this has been allowed on purpose, not of pruning neglect. The chartreuce vine on the left are actually hops...and are very vigorous. But they are such a beautiful shade of green.



This little watering can is a treasure that we found while out garage saling. I love it!

And last but not least a cute little pansy looking so eagerly for any glimpse of sunshine...don't worry little friend, I am as eager as you...don't give up hope.

See You in A Year...

It's official...Birthday Season in the Skaug house has come to an end for 2010. We began with A's in April, followed by mine at the beginning of May and this past Memorial weekend we wrapped up with Had's on Friday and Jas' on Sunday.
Oh!! How I love birthdays...I love making that special person feel like that day is ALL THEIRS!

On Friday, I loaded up my girls, and our neighbor, Zoey, and headed to Starbucks to enjoy a few kiddos cocoas (AND a grande nonfat stirred caramel macchiato) in our jamma's.

The girls love this...but secretly, I think that I love it more.

Here we are ALL SUGARED up and in search of a few garage sales. Be sure and notice the rain drops ALL over the back window; this was an underlying theme of our weekend...

...RAIN RAIN RAIN!!

Here is a look into our vegatable garden from our dining room window on Saturday...again, if you look close you will notice all of rain smears on the window. Our peas sure do love this weather, as they are almost as tall as our hedge...however, our tomatoes and basil do not. I am afraid our tomatoes may rot and my basil...well, let's just say, our basil is in a better place now. I'll have to try again if the sun decides to stay and play awhile in the near future.

Sunday, which was supposed to be the only non-rainy day of the weekend, is the day we decided to celebrate Had's birthday and have a few neighbors and family. Instead of the sunny and 70 that we were supposed to have, we ended up with drizzle and probably 55-60. Not cold, but a far cry from the sunny and 70 that I was counting on. Nonetheless, cupcakes were in order.

Jas and I have many favorite snacks that we enjoy, but the one splurge that we make occasionally are: 'Rolo'd Pretzels.' Recipe, you ask?' All right, I'll share...get your pen and paper ready....go ahead, I'll wait!

Here it goes...follow close! You take a handful of small pretzels and lay them out of a baking sheet. Here's the tricky part...carefully place a single Rolo onto each pretzel. It takes a steady hand, but with practice, you'll get it. Ok, now place them in the oven at 325 for a few minutes...depending on your individual desired level of messiness (3-5 minutes should do the trick).
A friend of mine shared with me today, that she enjoys a pecan on top of the Rolo post baking, but prior to consumption.

OK...back to the cupcakes...I told that above story to get you to my inspiration of these delicious little creations.

P.S. the links for all of the different recipes are included...You're Welcome!

Chocolate cupcakes, with a pretzel crust, a caramel shoved into the middle, baked and then a caramel cream cheese frosting. OH MY HEAVENS!!

Here, A is helping me to roll over and shmoosh up the pretzels. A job that she was great excelled and loved.

Here the batter is scooped in and nestled into their cozy new homes and eagerly await baking. ...and as cold as it was here, I was debating crawling in as well.

Had decided that she wanted to participate as well...so here are my two lovelies so generously helping to reduce my full sink-o-dishes. I wish that I could explain the 'ear muffs,' but I'm not a hundred percent sure as to the story behind them, so I'll just go with, it's her dad's sense of style making an appearance vicariously through A.

***Have I ever mentioned before how much this girl makes me laugh?***

TA-DA!! Here they are...in all their glory! Just awaiting someone to swoop them up and give them a nibble...Oh and I am talking about the cupcakes...not Jas and his dad.

About 5 minutes after this picture of Jas and Oobie Doobie (what A calls him) was taken, Eric (Oobie) discovered the joy of vintage chairs and had the one he was sitting in fold in half like a taco and he fell over backwards in the chair. While re-telling the story, I thought Jas was going to explode...he was laughing so hard. My advice...if you ever come over for a backyard visit....stick to the strong and sturdy wooden bench.

Actually, it's the one is this picture that the girls are 'performing' on.
Im thinking, the Dixie Chicks, in about 25 years; minus all of the controversary.


Alright...I give up, I suppose if I can't change the rain, we'll just have to look for the beauty in it. On Saturday, Jas and I were picking up pieces of sod and watching the girls go bananas over all of the the worms and trails to be discovered underneath. Had was hysterical...she would stand and point with her finger so close to her mouth and shout, "There's one!! Mom! Mom! A 'woom, a woom.' All the while, A was creating familys out of them...'The big one's the dad, that one's the mom and those are the sisters.' Oh my girls...they do love their worm friends.

And finally, my most favorite picture of the weekend. This is a picture of a dew drop on our broccoli that A pointed out to me. Isn't it incredible? I had a lot of fun playing around with our new camera and all of it's features. New camera, you ask? Yeah, that's what you end up with when you accidentally submerge your other one into a bucket of left over flowers and forget it for 2 hours...I wouldn't reccommend it...unless of course, you really want a new camera.

We had such a great weekend! Family, friends, cupcakes, etc.

My thoughts did wander frequently towards those serving our country in the military and their families. I would imagine there are a lot of missed birthday celebrations due to deployments, training and relocations....so from the core of my heart....

THANK YOU FOR SERVING OUR COUNTRY

SO DUTIFULLY AND WHOLE HEARTEDLY

so that my girls may enjoy worms in their garden and celebrations with family.

Here's to a short week!