4-year-old baseball

Since we got to see Noah play a couple weeks ago, we wanted to make sure we got to one of Maddox's games too! He was SO excited to show off his skills for us! ;) And let me just say that you don't have to know a kid playing on the team to enjoy watching a t-ball game... 4-year-olds trying to play baseball is hysterical! Sweet Maddox was the only one that would stay in his position when the ball was hit... all the other kids would run to the ball no matter where it was hit! And once the attention spans ran out, there was no telling what those little guys would do on the field. I forgot my camera but was able to catch some shots on my phone- thank goodness!

Poor guy couldn't see and ran right passed the base!

High-fiving Nonna

First in line at the end of the game ;)

And that's the coach showing the kids which hand is "right". Love.

Running the bases at the end of the game!

Such a good listener. ;)

Hugs for Uncle Matt!

Noah wanted to take a picture too- not too bad!

Love this picture of the two of them!

And the Instagram version- of course :)

A family broken, a family healed

When Stacey caught her husband in the middle of an affair, she knew there was only one option- divorce. But two days before the papers were signed, everything changed for the her and her family.

Such a powerful story of God's redemption- you might want to have your tissues ready. ;)


Mother's Day Family Baptism from North Point Online on Vimeo.

Blueberry Banana Bread & Pink Lemonade Cookies

Blueberry Banana Bread
Bananas are always in stock at our house. Matt eats them like them like they're on the verge of being scarce, so I usually buy at least 10 at a time. On the rare occasion that all are not eaten before they go bad, I love to make this banana bread. Sometimes with the blueberries, sometimes without.

This time, I had everything in my mixer when I realized we were out of sugar. I hate it when that happens! Thankfully, a quick Google search taught me that that you can actually substitute confectioner's sugar (powdered sugar) for regular sugar- who knew?!

So here's my confectioner's sugar blueberry banana bread:

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1 3/4 cup confectioner's sugar (or 1 cup sugar)
• 2 eggs beaten
• 3 mashed, ripe bananas (Tip: If you don't have time to make banana bread, but have bananas that are close to being tossed, peel them and freeze them until you have the time to make it- I've done this plenty of times and the bread turns out just fine- just thaw them first!)
• 3T milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup blueberries

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour loaf pan. Mix butter and sugar. Add eggs and bananas and mix. In separate bowl, mix flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt, then add to above. Add milk, vanilla and blueberries. Bake for 35 minutes if using 4-loaf pan, or 1 hour if using large loaf pan.

Pink Lemonade Cookies

A few weeks ago, I posted a recipe for Lemon Cookies. This recipe is the exact same, but made with the Pink Lemonade cake mix instead. The pink color makes them fun for baby showers or parties, or, how I used them, for a little Mother's Day treat! The step-by-step pictures for you visual learners are posted here. ;)

Ingredients:

1 box Pillsbury Pink Lemonade Premium Cookie Mix

2 eggs

1/2 cup oil

Powerdered Sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix cake mix, eggs, and oil. Scoop dough into 1/2 tablespoon-sized balls. Roll in powdered sugar. Bake on ungreased baking sheet for 10 minutes. Wait 1-2 minutes and transfer to wax paper in you like your cookies to be gooey, or to a wire rack in you like for them to be a little crispy. (I'm a soft and gooey girl, myself). Makes 3 dozen.

Sleepover with Jackson + a WINNER!

Last weekend, our one-year-old nephew came to spend the night with us! (for the best one-year-old cake-smashing pics, check out my post from his party- he was hilarious!) We had a blast entertaining and being entertained by him. He is just the sweetest little guy!

We played peek-a-boo

We emptied drawers

We read books

We watched the birds

We tried on Uncle Matt's glasses

(only for 1.5 seconds) ;)

We flipped on the bed

He LOVED this! I would say, "1, 2, 3" and Jackson would say, "Dah, Dah" (go)- precious!

We read more books

(that's what happens when your aunt's a teacher)

We felt the rain falling

(one of Jackson's favorite pastimes)

We ate dinner

(Video of Jackson laughing at how Uncle Matt is feeding him)

Then Uncle Matt and Jackson played on the kitchen floor while Aunt Hea made dinner

(This makes me happy)

We took a bath 

(well, Jackson did)

Love a baby hiney ;)

Poor guy got the letter stuck on his back! We might have watched him try to get it off instead of helping... mean Aunt Hea and Uncle Matt

Morning time!

 gah I love that face!

Morning snuggles

We ate breakfast

Loves his Uncle Matt :)

We played on the office chair

(a mini roller coaster, let's be honest)

We made a three-man band

Blogger doesn't seem to want to let me put any videos on here today, so here's the link to the video of this shot.

And then mommy and daddy came back to take their little guy home!

Loves his mama :)

Easiest baby ever. One of the major highlights was when he asked to go to bed:

7:50- 

Jackson: "ahh, ahh"

Me: Are you sleepy bud? Do you want to go to bed?

Jackson: patting his chest (sign language for "please")

Matt and I looked at each other and laughed, took him back to his room, sang songs and laid him down, and he was out before we walked back to our room.

Oh and then he slept til 8:00 the next morning.

Yeah, easiest baby ever. :)

And the winner of the Stella & Dot giveaway is:

Congratulations, TrishCF! You are the WINNER!

Email me your address, and I will ship your new necklace out to you on Monday!

If you could take a minute a help my friend win free Lasik Eye Surgery I would so appreciate it! She needs the most likes on her Facebook comment before Sunday!

And don't forget to tell me if you have an Etsy shop that you'd like to have featured on here! Our first one is set up for the end of this month!