Pudding Paint Party

My super creative neighbor and friend, Cydni, had us over recently for a pudding paint party.

The "paint" (made by simply adding food coloring to vanilla pudding) was safe enough for Cydni's precious 1-yr-old to eat.

We enjoyed letting the kids spread out on the back deck with their masterpieces.

I think Palmer does a lot of footprint crafts at school because he was inclined to paint his feet and put his feet on the paper more often than using the brush to paint the paper.

The finished product (before we left it in the yard to dry and the dog ate it.  True story.):

"Whew, that was hard work, Mom.  I need to go cool off in Miss Cydni's pool"

Meanwhile, sweet Charlotte had a longer attention span and continued hard at work.

How can you resist this adorable-ness??

Thanks, Cydni and Charlotte, for having us over!

-Bethany

Wordless Wednesday

-Bethany

Thirty Years Apart

Rick's mom was good about keeping a lot of Rick's old clothes.  When I went thru old albums at her home recently, I just knew we had to recreate this 1984 photo gem with the same Lacoste striped polo.

2013:

 I would say Palmer looks a tad like Rick did back in the day.

Here's a shot of Rick's mom with the new little Ricky.

 And we had to get the original subjects back together again...

 ...even though Palmer was quite upset that Rick took the shirt off his back.

-Bethany

Wordless Wednesday

-Bethany

Vacation Snacks

When on vacation, eat like it.  That's my motto.

While at Beavers Bend, we enjoyed some sweet treats.

First, the kids helped make popcorn balls in ice cream cones.

I learned that we need to make sure and remove the popcorn seeds first, but nevertheless it was a fun afternoon activity.

Elle and Amanda:

Amanda and me:

 "Cheese!"

 "Mom, stop making me take pictures and let me eat my popcorn cone."

Every cabin in the woods needs s'mores.

But, do we need a campfire?  Nah.  We have a grill.  And Williams and Sonoma skewers.  Yeah, we sure know how to rough it.

Traditional s'mores or fresh off the grill...either way, they are messy.

After the sugar rush, we needed a "healthy" snack option.  I'm obsessed with this cookie dough dip I found on Pinterest recently.  I toyed with a healthy cookie dough recipe and a non-healthy cookie dough recipe. I was thrilled that the healthy one was a winner and never went down the cream cheese and powdered sugar road.

We left the cabin happy and full.

-Bethany

Cabin in the Woods

Earlier this year, Rick and I explored Beavers Bend, Oklahoma and vowed to come back during the summer when we could do all of the summer activities.

With Rick's family in tow, we rented a cabin in the woods for some good ole fashioned summer fun.

The wooded scenery is so peaceful and such a break from our daily urban life.  There is just something about sitting on a porch drinking coffee in the woods that brings serenity to your life.

And there's just something about little boys tromping thru the woods.

(Big boys like to tromp thru the woods, too...)

Palmer was beyond excited when he saw that his cousin Elle brought boots, too.  "Elle!! You have boots?!?  My boots are right here! (Palmer points to his feet)"

Beavers Bend is one of those places oozing in nostalgia and brimming with the creation of childhood memories for little ones.

We enjoyed fishing and boating.

 Amanda and Elle:

There is an adorable train and equestrian center that the kids just loved.

And who can resist climbing on an old tractor.  Yes, we are city folks.  Is it that obvious??

I love Palmer's expression here.  He takes his driving serious.

Of course, Palmer spotted the closest "golf course" in site.

We had such a special time with Rick's family and look forward to going again in the future.

 By the way, we loved our cabin. If you are interested in visiting Beavers Bend, check out the Cross Timbers cabin.  It was perfect for our stay.

And yes, I may have gotten a little snap-happy over the weekend with all of the gorgeous scenery.  Rick's mom was so funny to shoot me taking pictures.  Sometimes I'm bad about not getting in front of the camera, so here I am from behind!

 -Bethany