Italian Cookies

This is a great recipe given to me by one of our stained glass customers. You really should try it!!!

1/2 c. butter, softened
1 c. sugar
3 eggs
3 c. flour, sifted (I just use a wire mesh strainer)
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. almond flavor

1. Cream together butter, eggs, sugar and almond flavor.
2. In a separate bowl, combine flour and baking powder. Slowly add to butter mixture.
3. Mix well. Drop rounded teaspoonfuls onto baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
4. Bake at 350 for 9-10 minutes. Cookies should be just barely golden on the bottom; don't overcook.
5. Make icing with powdered sugar and milk; I like to add a little melted butter to help the icing dry and harden. I also like to ice the cookies when they are still a little warm so the icing melts into the cookies a little bit.

Enjoy! They're sooo good!

Holding hands...

This is how we found the boys watching saturday morning cartoons :)

how sweet!

Super-Boy & Super-Baby...

... saving their world one temper-tantrum at a time!!!

Another cute story about my big guy Isaiah...

Isaiah was in the bathroom with me the other morning while I was putting on my make-up. He opened Justin's drawer and got out his deodorant. He looked up at me and said, "Mommy, I gotta do my pits". I could help but indulge this little guy who wanted to be just like his Daddy. So, we took off his shirt and applied deodorant to his tiny, hairless underarms!!! :)

Here's Isaiah riding a battery-powered motorcycle that our neighbors let us borrow.

Sweet story...

I have to share what happened last night with you. It's too cute! Justin had to go with his dad on an appointment in Winston Salem last night, and didn't get home until 11:00pm. When he got home he went in to check on each of the boys before he came to bed. I was fast asleep in bed when he came in shaking me saying "Where's Isaiah! I can't find Isaiah!". I jumped out of bed and we ran into his room checking under the covers and behind the chair. Then we went into Gabe's room, who was fast asleep in his crib, and found Isaiah sound asleep on the floor right next to the crib. Justin gently picked him up and moved him back into his bed. This morning we told Isaiah that we found him in Gabriel's room last night and asked him if he wanted to start sharing his room with Gabriel and he smiled and said "YEAH!" So, this afternoon we will be disassembling and reassembling the crib in Isaiah's room! I'm so glad to already start seeing that "brotherly love". This may be a pretty interesting experiment so stay tuned... I'll keep you posted! :)

All by himself!

Gabriel pulled up all the way today! And as you can see he was very proud of himself!

So it was an interesting morning...

I took the kids to the grocery store this morning, and when we got home, Isaiah wanted to stay and play in the car while I unloaded the groceries. Gabriel was asleep, so I decided to leave him in the car... bad idea. Isaiah found a black ink pen and decided to do his latest artwork on his brothers face! Believe it or not, baby wipes did the trick! They work for everything!

Climbing Silver Lake Mountain

This was one of the few moments Isaiah actually let us hold his hand. Most of the time he said "my do it!"

grandma & gabe swinging

great smile!

I thought this picture was funny because Gabriel looks bigger than Isaiah!
Dad & Justin sailing

Some more pics from our trip

always happy

"Hey, I look like you!"

dinner at Le Bistro

one good-looking couple! i love you guys!

it's a hard-knock life

precious

Gabriel actually began crawling while we were at the lake house, so my parents got to see it for the first time! Each day since we've been back, he's gained a little more speed. Isaiah's not thrilled, to say the least. "Baby!" gets into everything now! ;)

more from Westport

grandpa having a little fun while grandma knits me a beautiful sweater

a picnic lunch lakeside

Another great trip to Westport

mommy and budga

Gabe along for the ride

Isaiah wasn't too sure about kayaking. A short trip around the shallow section was enough for him!

lots of fun to be had with a bucket and a shovel

more on the kayak

I thought this was a beautiful image of father and son

Aunt Hilary loved little Gabe, and he loved her too! We would catch him staring at her!

Who needs to spend hundreds on professional photos... these are my favorite shots!

a fireside chat with grandma

Gabriel adoring Spiderman on a wagon ride

Orzo with Parmesan and Basil

Tired of boring old rice with every meal? You've got to try this recipe that Justin made for me with aged filets on our anniversary!

2 tbsp. butter
1 cup uncooked orzo pasta
1 - 14.5 oz. can chicken broth
1/2 cup grated parmesan
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
salt and pepper to taste

1. Melt butter in heavy skillet over med.-high heat. Stir in uncooked orzo and saute until just barely golden.
2. Stir in chicken stock and bring ot a boil. Cover and reduce heat to very low. Let simmer slowly until all liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes.
3. Stir in parmesan cheese and basil. (Don't have fresh basil? No problem, just sprinkle some dried, enough to your liking. Parmesan from the can works fine, but if you have fresh grated, it does add great flavor!)
4. Chow down!

*disclaimer: we did not make up this recipe! We get most of our recipes from allrecipes.com :) Check them out, they're a great resource!

Two in the tub

Sleeping beauty

Gabriel cut his first tooth this weekend! It's his bottom right tooth that's coming in. I can feel it scratch against the spoon every time I feed him. And, of course, I'll post pictures when it's big enough to be seen!

Isaiah made up a new game...

Magic blanket rides for Gabe!

ALMOST PULLING UP!

A DAY AT THE PARK...

FUN IN A FORT

cheese!

peek-a-boo!

best buds

STRIKE A POSE, SUPERHEROES!

Here's Isaiah, I'm sorry, "Batman", with his favorite sidekick cousin Zach... I mean "Cowboy Spiderman"... you missed the cowboy boots he had on earlier :) It was an unforgetable combination!