{Somewhat} Wordless Sunday!

My "Wednesday" post is coming a little early this week. 

Happy Sunday!!

Mellany LOVES tuna casserole...just like her mama!

Dressed and ready for Church

A little Sunday drive with the neighbor.

Helping mama clean!

Coloring...one of her favorites!

It is amazing how much and how quickly they grow!

Fun at the Park with Keegan and Avery! Notice Keegan's arm around the girls ;-) 

~My Grandpa~

...went to the most glorious of places last night. Heaven. He will truly be missed, but I also know that he isn't in pain anymore and for that I am grateful....I know he hated it so much. 

He was one of the greatest men I knew...and by far one of the smartest. I am saddened that Mellany won't get to know him like we did, but she will definitely know him through the stories we tell. 

Here's to you Grandpa....hope the chocolate cookies are just like you like them! 

My grandpa made the doll cradle for Mellany's first birthday.

{Somewhat} Wordless Wednesday!

I've been trying my hand at quite a few new recipes lately...this one is a Strawberry Yogurt Cake...it was a hit!

Lunch at Adrienne's new house with Kim...Kim's daughter Morgan locked herself in the bathroom. ha! Kim played handy-man and had to take off the door-knob. :) 

The girls CRASHED on the way home..

The chocolate chip banana oatmeal muffins were a hit with Mellany but not mama and daddy. 

The Chicken and Biscuit bake was a hit with me...the other 2, were kind of on the fence. 

Mellany's new leap pad--Thanks Nana!

Lovely spring storm knocked our fence down, and our neighbors'. Seriously "eery" feeling when we walked out side to this!

 Snuggles with Mr. Henry at MOPS. (Isn't he a doll?!)

Traveling to KC with Violet, Truman, Baby and a sippy!

...and a brand new Mickey (thanks to daddy) ;-)

Mellany's signature....on our bedroom wall. (Another reason it is next to be painted.)

A little afternoon Baby Einstein with Mickey

HAPPY WEDNESDAY!

Becky Home-Ec-y!

Last night, I tried my hand at making my own laundry detergent and by George I did it! This was a craft project we did in my MOPS group a while back. We were given samples to try and it is wonderful! It can be also be a huge money saver. Now that my store-bought detergent is running low, I took the plunge, bought the ingredients at Wal-Mart yesterday and mixed it up last night. It literally took me maybe 30 minutes to put together while I was watching TV and talking with Johnny. I am kicking myself in the rear for not doing this a long time ago. Thus, I thought I would share! :)

Ingredients:
1 (76oz) box- 20 Mule Team Borax
1 (55oz) box- Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
2 (5.5oz) bars- Fels-Naptha Bar Soap
1 (4lb) box- Arm & Hammer Baking Soda
1 (3lb) box- Oxi Clean
2 (13.2 oz) bottles- Downy Unstoppables Scent Boosters (any scent, optional)

**All ingredients can be found at Wal-Mart, all in the same section, right next to each other! So easy!

Instructions:
Grate the bar soap with small grater. Combine all ingredients in a large bucket (I bought a tote at Wal-Mart), layering them for easier mixing. Mix well!

*You may substitute Fels-Naptha for Zote Soap and/or Downy Unstoppables for either Purex Crystal Fabric Softeners or Gain Scent Boosters.

**Use only 1-2 Tbs. per load of laundry. This makes enough detergent for about 550 loads (1 years worth). That's $0.05 a load/$30.18 a year!

**Since my cabinet isn't large enough for the tote to fit into, I just placed some of the detergent into the oxi clean container.


Cost Breakdown (from a friend):
Borax: $3.38
Washing Soda: $3.24
Baking Soda: $2.12
Fels-Naptha: $0.97x2 = $1.94
Oxi Clean: $7.52
Downy Unstoppables: $5.99 (on sale)x2= $11.98

Adding some color--Part 2!

We (I mean Johnny) have finished painting the basement. It has been done a while now but we have just finished hanging everything we want, back on the walls and put everything back in its normal position. We are so happy with how it turned out and can't wait to find some new items at the Barn Festival in May, to hang on the wall. We went to the festival last fall and absolutely loved it! 

Our next painting project will be our master bedroom/bathroom (when our new bedding comes in! yay!) and Mellany's big girl room. 

{The "TV wall" is a darker shade from the other walls.}

 

One of my favorite parts of the "re-do" is Mellany's artwork in her play area. I originally intended for it to hang in her room, but we thought this looked much better. :) 

Happy Easter!

We had a wonderful Easter Sunday here in Nebraska! The Easter Bunny visited Mellany and left lots of goodies for her to rummage through before we headed to breakfast with some of our good friends here in Kearney. After eating way too much we went to our friends' parent's home to hunt eggs and enjoyed the sunny weather. Mellany (and mama) took a nice long nap in the afternoon and after waking up we put her new sidewalk chalk and wagon to use! Definitely what holidays are all about...enjoying each other's company and remembering the real reason we celebrate! 

Discovering her "collas" :-) She even gasped upon "finding" the markers as well as her coloring books.

Ready to play a little music...

Reading her card from Nana!

Hiding eggs!

Keeping the kiddos occupied while the eggs are being hidden.

....ready, GO!...

She did pretty good at first...picking them up and putting them in her basket and then she just decided to roam around...our girl likes her freedom!

{Selena, this shot makes me think of you....all 3 of our shadows} :-) 

Flying kites!

...and wandering through the field..

I was able to catch her on video picking up one egg....shorty after was when she decided she was finished. :-) 

We hope everyone had a Happy Easter!!