weekend update :: birthday edition

This weekend was BUSY, yet AMAZING at the same time!

As you can probably tell from the post title, my birthday was this past weekend.

All of the celebrations kicked off on Friday.

The hubs took the day off, that way we could celebrate and go out to lunch together while Kid A was in school.

I absolutely LOVED spending the day with wonderful husband. 

We got to have a quiet lunch at Chili's, during which Baby LL napped. 

And later that night, after Kid A went to bed we just relaxed on the couch, had a few drinks and watched 'Bridesmaids'.

Then, on Saturday, my aunt and uncle (who live out of state), and my mom and grandma came into town a we had a great lunch (completely with a delicious margarita) on the lake at a local  restaurant called The Oasis.

On top of that my mom  and grandma took Kid A for the night, so that the hubs and I could relax a bit more.

Later on that night, the hubs endured my love for Paul Walker by renting (and watching) 'Fast Five'.

Sunday was my actual birthday and it started off tremendously.

I woke up to an iced coffee (my current obsession) and donut holes from Dunkin Donuts.

As the morning progressed, Baby LL took a super nap, and the hubs and I got to sit out on the balcony and enjoy 2 hours of great conversation on a nice, cool, rainy morning.

Later that day I had a birthday lunch with my in laws (pizza and pineapple upside down cake!), which was wonderful! 

Our time with them is always full of fun and laughter.

And, Sunday night, I went out to  Pappasitos for a girls' night with my sister, mom and grandma.

Mexican food and margaritas = YUM!!

I was definitely spoiled this year with gifts too.

Two bottles of wine, a Barnes & Noble gift card, and an Anthropologie gift card were among my spoils!!

All in all, this was most definitely the best birthday I've had in recent years.

Thanks to everyone (especially my SPECTACULAR husband!!) for making this birthday SO special!!

{all photos via}

weekend update :: lazy days

This has been one lazy, but great  weekend in the L family.

We seriously did NOTHING, and went NOWHERE all weekend.

Well, with the exception of the hubs making a quick trip to the grocery store on Saturday evening.

The farthest the kiddos and I ventured out this weekend, was taking 3 nice, long walks (one each day), which earned A 1 1/2 miles toward her marathon in 6 months log.

The last one, on Sunday evening, the hubs joined us, which was great.

I love my little family SO VERY MUCH, and they are my absolute favorite people to spend time with.

Other than that, I finished one book and started two new ones.

I watched a few episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel on Netflix.

The hubs and I watched pretty much the entire last season of Hell's Kitchen on HuluPlus 

(not happy with the outcome, by the way).

Made and ate some good food.

And  generally just chilled and enjoyed my hubs and our babies.

Great weekend in my book!

How was your weekend?

Do anything fun or eventful?

a father and his children

I just walked into my bedroom to see how the hubs was doing with Baby L
(he was in there giving him a bottle).
Instead of finding my two guys wide awake, I found them sound asleep.
On the same pillow, facing each other.
It was really, so very sweet.



One of my favorite things in the whole world is to watch my husband with our children.
For someone who was "not a kid person", he sure loves those kids with his whole being.
You can just see the love emanating from him when he's interacting with them.
And it makes me all teary eyed.
I love knowing that I made the right choice for who I would spend the rest of my life with,
and in turn, have children with.

it goes so fast

My baby girl started Kindergarten yesterday.
Wasn't it just the other day that I was itching to get out of my hospital bed to go to the NICU to hold my 7 weeks premature girl? Didn't she just amaze me by rolling over; sitting up; crawling; walking? It seems like I was just beaming with joy when A said her first word, which was Gordy, the name of our dog at the time. Was it seriously 4 1/2 years ago that I finally let go enough to move her to her own bedroom? And now, that brown eyed beauty is officially in elementary school? How can this be? I know that in the blink of an eye things are going to change again. She'll want to have a slumber party with her friends. School dances and boys are going to be in the forefront of her mind at one point. I know I will cry the day that she gets her driver's license and takes off down the road for the first time. One day she is going to have a job and be independent of both myself and her dad. She will move out and be on her own in the world (although, she did tell me that I can visit her whenever I want). There will come a day when I try to hold it together while her daddy is walking her down the aisle towards the man of her dreams.
And one day she'll understand just how much I love, cherish and adore her, when she holds her own babies in her arms.

worcestershire sauce

One of my favorite condiments of all time is Worcestershire Sauce. When I use it on a food, my consumption of it can be a little on the excessive side. I douse my food in it, time and time again.

I do, however, pronounce the word worcestershire "wrong". The correct pronunciation is 'woos-tar-sher', but I say it like it's spelled (I've only met one other person that pronounces it like I do). And let me tell you, my way of saying it is more fun. It is probably one of my favorite words to say, and often the "sauce" part of the phrase worcestershire sauce, comes out sounding like shauce, which I find myself giggling at.

Oh, and my favorite thing to drown in a pool of this condiment from above??



A yummy steak, preferably cooked by the hubs. On a sidenote, I ate SO MUCH steak when I was pregnant with Baby L. I am normally not a huge meat eater, but boy did I crave it when pregnant.

What is your condiment of choice for a steak?

the face rubbers....

....this is what I have nicknamed my 3 loves.

It all started with the hubs. We can be sitting next to each other, lying next to each other or standing next to each other and he will rub his face on my arm or shoulder.

I then realized awhile back that A did the same thing. Only to me.

And now, at barely 2 months old, Baby L does the same thing if I'm holding him with his head on my chest.

It is so funny to me, but both the hubs and A swear up and down that it feels good and brings them comfort in a way. Also, I've noticed that the face rubbing increases when they are tired. I guess I can understand. I'm an eye rubber. At any given moment (but normally when I'm tired) I can start rubbing my eyes. And I've been doing this ever since I can remember. It is one of the reasons that I dislike wearing eye makeup. Why wear it if it's either: a. going to be rubbed off OR b. going to get smeared and smudged?

Anyways, file that away under "quirks of the L family".

What are your "tired" quirks?

how to make onion rings

Who doesn't love onion rings??? Even my 5 year old and the hubs, who are PICKY eaters, gobble these up. And, I have to give the hubs credit. He was the one who suggested giving these a whirl, and even made the first batch himself. Now we're hooked.

When I cook, I don't keep track of quantities. I pretty much eyeball everything or add ingredients to taste. But onion rings are SO cheap and easy peasy to make (not to mention DELICIOUS) that I just had to share.

Ingredients:
a white onion
one egg
milk
salt
pepper
all purpose flour
vegetable oil

step 1: slice your onion into rings.


step 2: salt & pepper your onion slices.


step 3: mix an egg and a few splashes of milk together in a bowl.


step 4 : pour some flour in a bowl.


step 5: heat some vegetable oil in a frying pan over medium to medium-high heat.


step 6: dip onions in egg mixture and dredge in flour.


step 7: fry in oil for a few minutes, flipping once, until golden brown.


step 8: drain onion rings on a paper towel lined plate and sprinkle with salt to taste.


step 9: ENJOY!!!