July in Pictures

we have had a jam packed summer. always somewhere to go & something to do. i have tried so hard to be diligent in taking pictures. thank goodness for my iPhone!

here are a few pictures from our month:

we discovered Jovie loves corn on the cob. i think this picture is hilarious!

we rode a few rides at the mall

one of Jack's favorite things to do is ride the train at the mall. it was so fun to see him enjoy it so much!

he just couldn't get enough!

cute girlie.

we tried pig tails for the first time!

and they turned out so cute!

Jack brought a friend to dinner

and Jovie got even cuter!

thankful for the AMAZING ways God has provided for us this month.......

Jovie @ 18 Months!

sweet baby, you are 18 months old today. such a big girl. and so sweet. i'm so proud to be your mom! you are full of personality and you make life so much fun.

at 18 months you weigh 24.5 lbs. you are in the 90% for your head & the 50% for your weight & height. you wear a size 5 shoe and size 5 diaper. your clothes are all 18 months.

you are the best eater. so thankful for that. the only thing you don't like is strawberries & grapes. but you will literally eat anything else. funny how you & Jack are so opposite in this way. your favorite foods are: green beans, eggs, oranges, peanut butter, milk, pasta, rice, potatoes & green peas.

you have the most tender heart. which we love. you are so sensitive to the tone of our voices. you respond well to discipline but you definitely have a stubborn streak. and you have no problem with letting us know when you are unhappy about something. you are always giggling & grinning. you play very well by yourself but you would always rather play with brother.

speaking of brother, you have a great relationship with him. you play so well together. the Lord knew what he was doing when he gave you both to us so close together. we are so thankful for the sweet bond that you share. there are definite times of frustration between you & Jack. he loves to irritate you & you love to fuss at him. its pretty funny. but, you can definitely hold your own against him! and he is so sweet to you. brother is always checking on you when you cry & telling you he loves you.

you still take 1 nap per day, usually for around 2.5 hours. many, many times we have to go wake you up! you go to bed around 8:30 & sleep until 7:30 the next morning. you have always been an excellent sleeper. and you constantly fall asleep in the car!

your vocabulary is really improving. you love to repeat us & Jack all the time. you can pretty much tell me whatever you want.

Jovie, you are the most precious girl. you are so loving & snuggly. we praise the Lord for you every single day. you are a blessing. praying that we are always the parents that you need us to be. praying that you come to know the Lord at an early age & serve him faithfully all of your life.

Happy 18 months, darling. i love you so much.

Ft Myers Vacation: Miscellaneous PIctures

i have a bunch of leftover, random pictures from our 2 weeks in FL. thought i would just throw them all together in this post. its WAY easier than going back & creating more posts.

and here we go..........

Ft Myers Vacation: Beach Pictures

we were able to get some great pictures on the beach one night. it was hilarious because we did so many different things to try to get Jack & Jovie to look at the camera. it was pretty ridiculous. but i'm thankful for the pictures we got! i may even use one for our christmas card this year!

our pics from the beach:

me and my sweet MIL. love this woman.

me, Cris & Jenna. so thankful for such sweet sisters.

love my love.

Mamie & Deda with the kiddos

how cute are they?!

nekkid babies. we had to wash all that sand off!

riding back to the condo with the windows down, sporting our beach hair!

such a fun night! so thankful for the beach, family & great pictures!

Ft Myers Vacation: Orzo & Wild Rice Recipe

we did a lot of eating out at some really yummy places while we were in FL. but we also did a lot of cooking in the condo. we ate some delicious food & had fun cooking together. one night, Jenna and I were in charge of cooking. we grilled pork loin & veggies. we also had bread & we tried a new recipe.

Jenna & I both LOVE J. Alexander's restaurant. its probably our favorite. the Orzo & Wild Rice side dish is just out of this world. we're addicted & unashamed. ha! we decided to try & find the recipe online & create the best version of it that we could. i must say, we got it dead on. it was as good as the one in the restaurant. easily. everyone loved it. and i will definitely be making it again. very soon!

we doubled this recipe b/c we thought it wouldn't make enough. well, we ended up with TONS of leftovers! so, it may not need to be doubled at all!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup wild rice
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup orzo pasta
• 3 tablespoons chopped red onion
• 3 tablespoons craisins
• 2 tablespoons corn kernels, drained
• 3 tablespoons diced yellow bell pepper
• 3 tablespoons diced red bell pepper
• 3 tablespoons diced green bell pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons honey
• 3/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 
  
• 
  
• Directions:

• 
  

  1. Bring the wild rice and water to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the rice is tender but not mushy, 20 to 45 minutes depending on the variety of wild rice. Drain off any excess liquid, fluff the rice with a fork, and cook uncovered 5 minutes more. Once finished, spread into a shallow dish, and refrigerate until cold.
  2. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the orzo pasta, and cook until al dente, 7 to 8 minute. Drain, rinse with cold water, and chill.
  3. Place the chilled rice and orzo into a large mixing bowl. Stir in the red onion, currants, corn, yellow bell pepper, red bell pepper, and green bell pepper. Season with 2 tablespoons basil, salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. In a separate bowl, whisk together the vinegar, honey, mustard, garlic, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, and 1 1/2 teaspoons basil. Slowly whisk in the canola and olive oils until emulsified. Stir the dressing into the pasta, and refrigerate 2 hours before serving.

this recipe says that it serves 4. but it easily serves 6. at least.

isn't it beautiful?! almost too pretty to eat. almost.

try it. love it. and thank me for sharing. ha! just kidding. maybe.

Ft Myers Vacation: Random Pics

the rest of the trip i wasn't as diligent about taking pictures every single day. i took them when i could & when i remembered but i spent a lot time just relaxing & having fun with our family.

on day 7, we relaxed at the condo. went to eat lunch at a place called Buffalo Chips (so yummy) and went back to the condo to wait for Tripp, Cris, Nelson, Drew & Jenna. that night we went to eat at Big Al's & then we all went to bed early.

the next day, Jimmie & Frances flew in from Memphis., they got there around lunch time. we went to eat seafood that night at Swan Lake Grille. Jack & Jovie were SO happy to have Mamie & Granddad here.

one morning we decided to go to the Hyatt hotel. its about 1 minute from our condo. we are able to go there & swim anytime because they have a partnership with our condos. Ben's family kept telling us how beautiful & up-scale this hotel is & how we should go check it out. we decided to load up our kids & head over to spend the morning swimming in all of their pools.

we could NOT believe our eyes when we got over there. it was unbelievable. so beautiful. like a caribbean paradise. they had a few slides through waterfalls & even a kiddie slide for the little ones. Jack absolutely loved that part! Cris & Tripp spent their anniversary night there & so we got to go up & see their room too. it was amazing with just incredible views. it was such a fun morning & so nice to be able to relax & do something different with our kids. we loved it.

a few pictures from various days of our vacay:

eating lunch at Buffalo Chips.

me & sweet Jovie Claire.

Jack LOVED playing in the fountain in front of the condo

Jack spent our time in FL sleeping on an inflatable toddler mattress. he did great! he liked to lay Woody down in the bed with him when he took his naps & loved to make sure that Woody was covered up & snuggled. so sweet.

the Hyatt hotel. so Floridian and beautiful.

the view from the balcony of Cris & Tripp's room. GORGEOUS.

the wading pool. so neat & full of kids. Jack & Jovie loved it. you can barely see the 2 slides on the left & right. we only tried the toddler slide. so much fun for Jack.

this waterfall was freezing cold. but so pretty.

have i mentioned how beautiful this place was, also, very crowded!

Jovie had just woken up from her nap & i was taking advantage of her snuggles!