Happy Birthday!

It goes without saying, but time really flies by when you are having fun! Today is Marion's 33rd birthday! What really blows my mind away is that is coming July we will have been together for ten years, wow! Since we have class on Mondays, which that is an entirely different blog :o), we celebrated last night. We started a tradition a few years ago that on birthdays, for each other, we make something that we have never tried to create before. Knowing that my precious husband loves Chili Reno's (SP??) I decided on that. However I substituted some of the recipe. I used the:
1)poblano(sp?) peppers, which are not spicy in the least.
2)strips of NY Strip Steak, that had been marinated in cilantro, red onions, garlic, lime juice and rest, olive oil, and steak seasoning.
3) stuffed the steak, grilled onions and bell pepper into the poblano(sp?) peppers
4) drizzled yummy cheese sauce on top
5) sprinkled monetary and pepper jack cheese on top of all that.
6) placed it all into the oven to melt together.

When it came out it was a heavenly sight! Marion absolutely loved it! Kaitlyn seemed to love the steak, it was totally soft and tender :o), and beans. And Last but certainly not least was the dessert. Marion's all time favorite cake is Red Velvet cake. So I stayed safe on that end. This cake was not the best icing job, but it tasted good! P.S.~Sarah I totally love the cake plate! It keeps the cake so fresh. I can't believe that I live without one for so long. Thanks again!

Girls Night Out!

When you think of a "Girl's Night Out" one would generally not envision the little ones. However, this past Saturday we enjoyed a "Girl's Night Out" with Miss Kaitlyn McKenzie! Mimi, Aunt Sarah, Miss Kaitlyn and I went to this FABULOUS little restaurant off of Brookside, the Garlic Rose. This restaurant is a prefect date place. I love the dem-lite atmosphere, the yummy roasted garlic and bread that they serve you with you appetizer and salad, and the delicious Italian dinner. I was not certain how Kaitlyn would do that evening. Don't get me wrong, she is a total sweetheart, but the slower pace that the resturant displays is not always suitable for energetic little people :o) However, she was AMAZING! They had a cool piano player there that evening and Kaitlyn went CRAZY when he played. She dancing up a storm in her chair and singing along to the tunes. Needless to say we had a great time!

One-Year Pictures

We had Kaitlyn's First year pictures made a few days before her birthday so that we could have them back in time for her party. In a short version, we are happy with these pictures, but it took two different settings and photographers to finally capture something that was decent. So, if you all have any suggestions on some where to start taking her I would GREATLY appreciate it. We just don't want to struggle with getting good pictures and felling like we are being rushed through like a fast food restaurant.

Happy Birthday Kaitlyn!!!

It is so hard to think that an entire year has passed since our lives were so richly blessed with our Princess Kaitlyn. I can still remember the day that we found out that we were finally pregnant, as if it were yesterday. Kaitlyn's pregnancy was such an amazing experience and a joy to go through. We loved preparing for her arrival. On her first birthday I kept remembering her birthday a year ago. Marion and I arrived at the "Pink Palace" at 7:00a.m for our induction. On the way in to the hospital Marion looked over at me and said, " this will be the last day that it is just you and me." We both smiled and said how exciting!!! At 6:00p.m on January 8th, 2008, Miss Kaitlyn McKenzie was born weighing 7lbs, 5oz. She had the fattest cheeks you had ever seen, but they were AWESOME for kissing. This year has been the most amazing year of our lives! Kaitlyn is such a ham. She loves to showoff when she laughs and dances. She loves to snuggle and give kisses. She will talk you ear off, even though the words are not in English :o) She loves to try to catch the cats (even though they won't let her). Kaitlyn has such a zeal for life and love to discover new things. She is such a happy little girl and loves her family. Her favorite thing is her "lovie" which is her blanket. She carries it around the house and refuses to go to bed without it. We love her silly faces and her sweet disposition. Thank you God for blessing us with far more than we ever hoped for or imagined in a child. Kaitlyn you are such an incredible little girl and we are so honored to be you parents.

Christmas Morning!

This was one of the best Christmases EVER! We started a tradition last year for Christmas morning and continued it this year as well. We wake up and have breakfast. This year we had yummy scrambled eggs mixed with turkey sausage wrapped up in a warm tortilla and served with fruit. After breakfast we read the Christmas story from the Bible and take time to thank God for the ultimate gift, his son Jesus. Then we open our stockings and presents. Although, I have to admit Kaitlyn did not wait to start playing with her big gift from Santa. Santa brought her a Garden Play Center. And as soon as she saw it she went crazy. It was so fun to sit back and watch her open her gifts and play.

In the afternoon, we went to my Mom and Dad's house. We had a great time celebrating Christmas with my Mom, Dad, Uncle Blake and Aunt Sarah, and Uncle Jeremy.My Mom made a yummy dinner with a juicy smoked turkey. Tasty Tasty!!Needless to say by the end of the day we were all extremely tired. I hope all of you had a wonderful

Christmas too!

Christmas Begins!

Like many people, we have several Christmas' to celebrate. On Saturday, we celebrated Christmas with Marion's side of the family. We had a wonderful time. We got together at Marion's sister's, Amy, house this year. It was a special time, Nana made a wonderful dinner. Yum Yum!!!Marion's mom makes the BEST homemade pies ever, and I am not just saying that to gain extra brownie points! They are truly amazing. We went to the living room to open presents and Kaitlyn thought it was hilarious to sit and bounce on the boxes. Thank goodness that the one that she busted open was her present. She wanted to carry around the wrapping paper and bags more that the presents. She is so funny!

On Sunday, we went over to my Mom's house after church to bake Christmas cookies. Sarah made white chocolate cover pretzels and my Mom made sugar cookies. We all decorated them, which is funny because none of them turn out the way you think, but it is just fun to sit around the table and have fun.

Family Time and The Little Screamer!

I feel terrible. I have wanted to create a family blog for quiet some time now, but just have never gotten around to doing it. It seems as if we have been going ninety to nothing here lately. So here it goes all or nothing :o)


Although the weather is a bit frigid for me, Kaitlyn and I have really enjoyed having "Da Da Da" (Daddy in Kaitlyn's language:o) home the past few days. We have been soaking up the extra family time by the warm toasty fireplace. On Monday we hung out in our pajamas all day. This is a very unusual thing for us, but I have to say it was AWESOME! Marion made his special cinnamon rolls for us. This was a nice treat for us to share. He is so funny. He decided that since he could not go back to sleep, and he wanted us up too, he would make these for us knowing that we would hear the mixer and get up. I love that man! I especially love how he loves us.

We went to Rhema last weekend. Kaitlyn loved all the lights outside. And right now she is going through this funny stage of showing her extreme excitement. When she gets excited she smiles really big and makes this high pitch screaming sound. So needless to say she was letting us know the whole time how excited she was to be there. We love her little screams though. I think mostly because she is just so happy.