what happened.

what happened to this week? ooops. guess we've just been too busy playing around here. sorry to neglect. hopefully we'll be back more next week! ps. courtesy of our trip to costco, halloween came early around here and my fighter pilot and cinderella have been in costume for three days straight...with the exception of leaving the house here and there. we shall see if we make it to oct. 31st. 

hello monday.

{photo courtesy of ruby}

i mean tuesday? 

got a little caught up in the weekend and missed out on the monday post. had some friends over...did a bunch of yard work...laundry...and really not enough at all of that; really just some good family time and suddenly its back to the week. time, please do slow down so i can take it all in. too fast indeed. now for some fun links. hope you had a wonderful weekend!

love this awesome girlie backpack tutorial

ha! look at my future kids bedroom! the way our house is setup we will indeed have a lot of littles in one room...the more crazy the merrier. it can be done.

how cool does this book look? never seen anything like it. 

this mustard top is making me want to fabric shop and create a fun christmas dress. so sweet.

my beautiful sis started a darling blog. you should check it out!

easy weekend dinner.

 so i made these pulled chicken sandwiches with slaw for dinner and thought it might be a nice easy little weekend dinner for anyone interested. i found the chicken recipe here and made my own slaw. i find her website very helpful for meal planning and general dinner inspiration. 
so here's to a nice relaxing and beautiful weekend! any fun plans? as for myself i'm just hoping to fit in some sewing/crafts while the cardinals are playing on sunday! we shall see. maybe a monday night girls get together is in order?  

fleur + dot.

{photos via fleur + dot}

{found via raneytown}

seriously? i came across this cuteness website and was incredibly inspired by the clothes, girls, photos, and fab head scarves and capes. time to get sewing. ha! we'll see. 

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buddies for life.

growing up in a big family has left me with a lifetime of pretty awesome memories; all the silly games we played as kids, songs made up, and talk shows we taped or filmed....i could not imagine it any other way. 

now we are a family of three littles and i simply adore watching them all interact together, with ruby as the leader (the queen bee...aka princess) and her bros in tow. i like to imagine, and indeed i hope they will always stay so close and never lose that beautiful bond. 

life with three can be a challenge but i really think it only gets better and better and there is no greater gift than a brother or sister to love. we/they are blessed indeed. 

uncle al.

{circa 2007}

{summer 2012}

happy birthday uncle al...a couple days ago that is. my kids love you to pieces and you light up their world. thanks for being so amazing. we love and miss you so when your away!

morning hikes.

it is those beautiful fall mornings that allow you to finally get outside and soak up some sunshine. we had a nice mini-hike yesterday with the kids. it really made me miss hiking and pretty envious of the guys biking super fast down the paths. biking...ahh another thing i really miss. anyhow, get out and hunt for rocks and sticks; you'll be left with plenty of fun at home as well! 

hello monday.

its that funny time of year here in phoenix where you are just on the brink of weather change; you can almost taste it...a cool morning or a lovely evening and some slight breezes and just like that your mood elevates and says 'hey' is that fall i feel? is that only a 99 degree day ahead of me? break out the jeans, fill the grocery with pumpkins, and fight the urge to fill your flower beds with all new lovelies. fall, we welcome you with open arms. now if you dont mind we would love some even lower temperatures si vous plait? 

here are some fun monday links friends. 

doesnt this maple scented cornbread look so yummy?

are you already brainstorming halloween costumes? we change our mind about every week and i think we discuss it most of the year with ruby around. pinterest has some pretty funny ones you should check out.

this set of jumping pictures is oh so happy. found her here. 

we've been talking about making a chore chart for the kids to give them some incentive in helping out, besides just telling them to do it and hearing them say no. i found this one as a bit of inspiration. any pointers?

cheers. 

braids.

never quite knowing what to do with this wild woman's hair, i tend to resort to braids, as they stay put and keep things under control. for someone who likes to look 'fancy' all the time she sure does not like getting her hair brushed and is very quick to doubt my process...such as when she can not visually see the braids; so much critique i tell you. one particular little girl. 
anyhow, i found this darling little tutorial over on a cup of jo and it was splendidly simple. goodbye unruly hair, hello heidi.

donuts.

in need of an easy quick dessert that feels fancy? 

a while back i picked up one of those donut pans from 

target and i recently tried this recipe for buttermilk 

baked donuts. we dipped some in butter and then cinnamon 

sugar, and of course had to have some pink frosted ones with sprinkles. pretty soon i am thinking target may want to sponsor

me with the amount of shopping love i give them. 

anyhow, yummy and happy! toodles.

watercolor.

i really just love painting with watercolors. it makes you feel like you've made something fancy and beautiful with very minimal effort. ruby and i had some fun with these old hang tags ive had forever; sprucing them up to hang from a future present. apparently i need to invest in a monster pad of paper the way we go through it over here b/w drawings and paintings. studio mchale opening soon. keep your eyes peeled. haha, not really. 

peut etre.

{chacha papiers}

do you ever read look at blogs in another language just because they are pretty? 
i admit i get lost gawking over french blogs and wishing i lived in paris or the french country side. cant get enough of the beauty. so i decided i could justify my french blog lovin by maybe just maybe brushing up on my old rusty french i used to be so good at. that sounds like a pretty solid plan dont ya think?

hello monday.

so it has been a pretty lovely weekend...good family time, weather cooling a bit, visiting with friends over brunch, some good rain time on the front porch (my favorite place to be), and lots of baking...my personal addiction/therapy. i am definitely getting excited for the change in seasons and maybe a little day trip to do some apple picking; something ive been wanting to do with the kids. so here are some fun monday links for you to enjoy...hope you had a lovely weekend!

got stuck browsing at shoes and colorful pak paks over here

finally found a project for this scrap piece of leather i've had lying around forever...can not wait to try this one

found this fashionable tumblr i love

looking for a reason to throw a fun party so we can make these whimsical crepe paper hats

and my interest in crafting up some kids floral crowns only grew once i saw these sweet ones; here's another one ive had saved for some time...apparently crepe paper is all the rage.

dinner + a movie.

what happens sometimes when your husband

works late and you know he will not be eating 

dinner; your tired from a long day with cute kids

and 100 degree temperatures? 

smoothies and avocado sandwiches for dinner 

along with some singing in the rain

and definitely some dancing and dress ups. 

i did by the way discover nectarines 

are really tasty in smoothies.

stuff in my fridge smoothie.
1 smooshy old nectarine...cold from fridge
handful of frozen blueberries
3/4 c. coconut milk
1/2 c. milk
1 squeeze of honey
some ice
1 scoop of spirutein vanilla powder

have a lovely weekend!

pumpkin pie.

we were recently at whole foods and found these sweet

 little pumpkins. ruby was over the moon as she 

has been asking since her summer school class to buy 

one so we could cook the seeds. 

and of course i was pumped to have fresh pumpkin 

on hand. so win win. 

and by the way for some reason the smell of pumpkin 

cooking is the most wonderful smell of all coming 

out of your oven. such a tease b/c you want to just 

eat up the smell but there is nothing to eat. 

anyhow, i played around with a recipe and thought it 

was pretty delish so if your in the mood for a pre-thanks

giving pie, go nuts and make one this weekend!

yum yum pumpkin pie.

2 c. freshly cooked, cooled pumpkin

2 T. softened butter

1/2 t. salt

3 eggs

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. buttermilk

1/2 c. heavy cream

1 t. cinnamon

1/4 t. nutmeg

1 pie crust (just use your own favorite...ina garden has a lovely one)

preheat oven to 350. 

in stand mixer, mix well your pureed pumpkin with salt and softened butter. 

in separate bowl whisk together eggs and sugar well. add buttermilk and cream to eggs until combined. 

add creamy egg mixture to pumpkin along with cinnamon and nutmeg. 

pie mix should not be lumpy so if needed you may pour into your blender to fully combine, as a last measure. 

now pour pie mix into unbaked shell and cook for 50-60 minutes. 

once cooled top with whip cream and enjoy! cheers to the end of summer and beginning of a new season. 

a simple center piece.

i recently set my table with this sweet little succulent

(trimmed from my large guy outside). 

i love a simple happy little centerpiece to make 

the table welcoming for meals. 

i remember thinking in college those cool napkin

holders were the epitome of awesomeness for 

your table. do those even exist anymore? 

hope you had a lovely labor day!