One year

I cannot believe it's been a year since I started this blog. It's been a lot of fun to write entries into this online-journal-of-sorts. This was my first post. The kids look SO different, especially Brady.

I look foward to sharing more stories about our family, our adventures in kindergarten with Kennedy this fall, Brady's latest development as a toddler, and the little things that make life so much fun.

Happy One Year Anniversary LaPierre Blog!

Happy Birthday "E!"

Happy Birthday wishes are in order for our dear friend "E" - a nickname we have come to use for Eric. He turns 35 today and doesn't look a day older than 30. (Of course if you ask Eric, he'll tell you that he doesn't look a day older than 25!)

This is the first birthday E has had since Amber passed away last fall, so we wanted it to be very special. Susie and I knew it might be difficult for him, so she came up with a brilliant idea. Since he was leaving town for the first few days of this week, Susie thought we should "decorate" his house. The word "decorate" is up for translation. You be the judge.Okay, so we did a little decorating and a lot of trashing. It's not really trashed. It's just a little confetti in all the drawers, fridge, on the grill, and workbench. And it's just a small yarn maze with the yarn wrapped around all the door handles, cabinet doors, oven, microwave, dining room chairs, etc. Nothing major.... just a "little" decoration. Here are the culprits.

Then Wednesday night, the entire gang went to Superior - where you will find THE best margaritas in town. I love the atmosphere there with a loud band, chips and salsa, and great friends.

Eric and Rebecca Eric and his goddaughter, Sophie

So much fun hanging out with these girls! Pam, Kandi, Susie and me

Enjoying an adults night out with Chris

The Stinsons

The youngest Stinsons

I think Eric had a good time. He seemed to enjoy himself. At one moment, Susie and I (who were sitting across the table from each other) were listening to the song that the band was singing and the chorus was... "life goes on..."

How fitting. Yes, it does. HAPPY BIRTHDAY E!

A bad day

Some people put on a façade and pretend their lives are perfect, even when they are at their darkest hour. Some people want you to think they have it all when they’re suffering inside. I have never been one to hide my emotions like that. But on this blog, I almost always post the happy, wonderful aspects of my life. I do prefer to focus on the good because that’s the kind of person I am… or at least it’s the person I try to be.

But some days are bad days.

Some days, I have so much to do that I feel like I might explode. Some days, I seriously consider snapping at co-workers. Some days, I am so distracted that I make mistakes in my job. Some days, I just want to scream in frustration. Some days, I worry about making ends meet as we try to sell our house in Texas. Paying two mortgages with bills is extremely stressful. Some days, I fight with the people I love the most. Some days, I get snippy with my kids for no other reason than my crankiness. Some days, I eat way too much cake as a way to get over a bad day.

Today was one of those days.

All those things that happen on “some days” – happened today. I had so much to do and not enough time to do it. Mistakes at work, frustration with co-workers, stress over money woes, fight with my best friend, snippy with my kids, a crime scene in the kitchen with cake.

Yup – I’m not perfect. I’m never going to be. I’m not going to try to be perfect either.

But at the end of a day like today, I do my best to let it all go. Chris sits next to me on the couch, pats my leg and makes me laugh. I snuggle with the kids, listen to them giggle at each other in the bathtub, and I remember that life is short. Bad days will happen, but there will always be more good days than bad.

Decorator challenged

I am seriously challenged when it comes to decorating... my own house, that is. I can walk into someone else's house, arrange furniture, accessories on shelves, pictures on the walls, etc. But looking at my own house - I draw a blank. I have no idea what to do. Maybe it's because we have had our "stuff" for so many years that it's not new and exciting. Who knows.

What I do know is that I need help. This is where Amber would have come in and taken over. That girl had THE BEST taste. And it wasn't always expensive taste. She had a knack for being able to take an old run-down table and refurbishing it into something beautiful. She was going to help me recover the seats on my bar stools and the seats in Susie's dining room chairs.

Anyway, I have been looking through catalogs for inspiration. There is one particular wall that I don't know what to do with.

Obviously it needs window treatments and I think I have an idea of what kind of treatments I want, but they would need to be custom-made. My mom can sew and I'm hoping to get her help - but if you have any suggestions, please let me know!

These walls are .... okay. I have rearranged the "stuff" in my bookcases a few times. I'm still not sure if I've got it right. And of course the kids' toys make it difficult to have a well-designed room. Could someone please send Nate Berkus or Vern Yip to my house??

Rainbow cake

I usually order a birthday cake for Kennedy's birthday. We go all out and get something really fancy from a bakery. Not this year. I am going all out on her party, so I have decided to make her cake myself. Remember what I said recently about my cooking skills? Baking soda is different from baking powder = new concept to me. BUT, I made Brady's this year, remember?

So I am feeling semi-confident that I can pull this off. I decide to make a Rainbow Cake. Look how cute!

Unfortunately this is not a picture of the cake I made. But it came out pretty close!

Inspiration for the cake: Kennedy's party will be a girls ONLY pottery painting party. Yes, we have started the "I-don't-want-boys" already. I think it's a good thing! So for each girl, I ordered an apron (which I will decorate with gros grain ribbon), and two ceramic pieces: a princess trinket box and a small tray. I will pre-paint one of each to use as a sample.

So since we will be using bright colors, I decided to attempt this rainbow cake. It's low-fat, which is a bonus for the adults, and the kids won't know the difference! I had such a good time making this cake.

After the cake was done, Chris and I weren't able to stack the two layers together because we had a little incident. Notice pretty cake in pans.And now... cake earthquake. Getting it out of the pan was difficult because it was so moist, it just wanted to fall apart. We know what to do next time for her actual birthday cake. That is why we do a test run!

Oh and also, when I make it for the party - I will use regular Sprite and regular pudding mix. I completely forgot that Susie cannot have aspartame! I took a huge hunk of this cake to her last night to help her bad day go away.... only to realize that it is full of aspartame. Bad BFF.

More on the birthday party to come.....

Haircut?

I think it's time for Brady to get a haircut, but I know that once I cut these baby curls... they'll be gone forever. Maybe I'll just wait a little longer. When he starts to get a mullet, will someone tell me so I can bravely take him to a barber?

Sunday dinner

I really like to cook. I just don't have much time... nor do I have the quiet ambiance I need in order to concentrate. I have been known to mix the wrong ingredients together. I have also been known to use the wrong measurements. With two small children around, "cooking" usually amounts to baked/grilled chicken breast, a canned vegetable and rolls. That's pretty sad, but hey - it's better than the drive thru, right?

My mother-in-law is known for her Sunday Dinners. They are legendary. And she cooks Sunday Dinner every week without fail. I definitely miss them from our days of living in Maine, but my waistline is smaller without these rich meals!

She cooks everything from scratch.... like stuffed shells...

Lasagna...

Baked chicken with homemade mashed potatoes...

Oh... and Chris' all-time favorite, Boston Cream Pie.

Uh... yeah, I tried to make this dessert for Chris' birthday the first year we were married. That was the year I discovered that baking soda and baking powder are two different things. Let's just say ... disaster... and leave it at that. I haven't tried to make this dessert since.

So once in a blue moon, I decide to cook a Sunday Dinner. I cannot do it without Chris, though. He helps with every dish, making sure I'm measuring correctly, not using sugar when it calls for salt, etc. Yesterday, we made Sunday Dinner.

Feast your eyes on this:

Baked ham, mashed potatoes, gravy made from scratch, green beans, and rolls

I am super proud of us for trying to bring the LaPierre tradition into our home! The best part about cooking a large dinner? LEFTOVERS! No cooking all week and ham sandwiches for every meal!