Some days...

This is EXACTLY how I feel...

Especially when its been raining for 3 days and my kids can NOT go outside! THIS IS REAL, people!

The Beauty of God's Earth...

Through the eyes of Isabella! She has such a love for all things art, including photography! I allowed her to scavenge the backyard for pictures that she felt showed her God's beauty in creation. I told her to find things that showed her how amazing God is by finding items that made her smile! Some of these are AMAZING!! I think its well beyond her years at 3.5 yrs old, to be able to take some of these! We are going to put them in an album for her to keep track of! As I realizing through all my reading on home schooling, that catering to a child's interest is one of the best ways they absorb knowledge. We counted the pictures. We also looked at which pictures had green or blue or pink items. They we separated them into trees, flowers, home items etc helping her learn and see common factors within them! It was such a great moment for her! I learned alot too! 

I love the "old" feeling this picture portrays

amazed at how close she got...we counted these!

Still-life!

5 months and counting

I just can not get enough of this BOY!!! At 5 months now, Blaise is all over the place. He rolls all around the room. He has a few times gotten his little hynie up in the air! He talks, and belly laughs, and its such JOY listening to him interact with his siblings! I expect he will be crawling in the next month or so! He reaches for toys and things in front of him too! Its going so fast! 

Pistachio Trifle!

At least that's what I will call for lack of a better name!

So this recipe was last minute, and I was just fortunate to have everything on hand already! I admit to sometimes being prepared and maybe grabbing something at the store, just in case!

Pistachio Trifle

INGREDIENTS

You favorite Chocolate cake recipe ( you will only use the dry ingredients) or box mix

I used this one! 

1 can of pureed pumpkin

2 package of Instant pistachio pudding mix

4 cups COLD milk ( to mix into the pudding for the quick 5 min. version) 

*This has to be cow's milk. I have NOT had success mixing other types of milk in instant pudding mix*

1/4- 1/2 cup of oil (optional, I used coconut, and do in all my baking) 

DIRECTIONS

1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2.) Dump the 2 packages of instant pudding into a medium size bowl.  Add the 4 cups of COLD milk (2 cups per pack of pudding mix) to them and whisk (or use an electric mixer) until thickened, 

about 3 -4 minutes. Set aside!

3.) Assemble your dry cake mix ingredients together in a big bowl according to the directions. ( If using a box mix, just dump it! :) )

4.) Add the entire can of pureed pumpkin to the dry cake mix, and mix until well incorporated. This will be dryer than you are used to. It will be fine to bake just as is, but I usually add the coconut oil to thin it out a bit so I can scoop it. 

5.) Line 18 muffin cups and fill the liners 2/3 full of cake. I use cupcakes b/c I can better control how much I crumble in each layer. You can certainly bake this as a sheet cake!

6.) Bake at 350 for about 20 mins for cupcakes...they will rise beautifully! Allow the cupcakes to cool a bit before handling!

7.)   In your favorite dish, layer the cake and pudding until its all used. Finish off with a layer of whipped cream ( I always make my own, homemade). Save one cupcake to crumble on the top to decorate!

8.) EAT IT AND ENJOY!!!!

I love this idea b/c it can be altered and changed so easily depending on what you have one hand. I also love that I can squeak in some healthier stuff, like pumpkin, without my kids knowing it! Adding the can of pumpkin to dry mix or homemade ingredients came form a lady at the Curves my mom  used to go to. I LOVE IT! It does also work in white cake or yellow cake recipes, but be ready to answer why the color is "different"! I am lucky that my kids love pumpkin muffins as it is! This recipe also changes easily from season to season... Summer using white cake and berries and vanilla pudding. Fall using spice cake and raisins and nuts!

THANKS FOR READING!!!

I am a REALIST...

Realism: may be generally defined as the attempt to represent subject matter truthfully, without artificiality, and avoiding artistic conventions, implausible, exotic and supernatural elements.

I am been so overwhelmed lately with people complimenting me and "all the things I do with the kids", and how I "look so put together" all the time, I truly appreciate the compliments, they are sometimes just what I need in order to keep my head right...BUT...In order to not put out the wrong impression of who I am, I will give you 25 REAL things about me...

Disclaimer: By personality and temperament  I have and continue to struggle with doing things in order to seek recognition  There is an eternal battle with "purity of intention"!!

Here it is...25 REAL things about Claire

1.) I am a Martha: meaning that I am guilty of letting my kids cry in order to "just finish this one last thing"...ALOT!

2.) I do NOT shower every day...its more like every 2-3 days with a minimal hair washing over the side of the tub action!

3.) I LOVE T.V. ( I feed my food addiction through osmosis from The Food Network)

4.) I have a serious dislike for reading out loud to my kids...I do it...b/c I am an adult, and I must do things I dislike and set a good example :)

5.) I have a vanity problem.

6.) B/c of this vanity problem, I wear make-up only in public.

7.) If you see me wearing makeup in public, its probably just new makeup put on top of old makeup.

8.) I wash my face with hand soap b/c I am too lazy to reach under the sink and get face wash.

9.) I have to have something to drink when I am in the car...anything but water!

10.) I have a love-hate relationship with H2O...again, I drink it b/c as an adult I must do things that are good for me even if I do not like them!

11.) Home-schooling and I are arch-enemies.

12.)  I sometimes make homemade frosting just to eat it...I do not bake ANYTHING to put it on!

13.) I am totally unoriginal...almost everything I do is b/c someone else gave me the idea or I saw it on Pinterest!

14.) I LOVE PINTERST!! I have designed a dream house ( and will definitely never own it...lol)

15.) I could eat my weight in dairy products everyday!

16.) Grocery shopping is my favorite thing to do!

17.) Laundry is my least favorite, and most times my kids live out of a laundry basket of clean clothes!

18.) I am allergic to exercise!

19.) My kids watch a lot more T.V than they should, and some are Disney movies at that!

20.) While my make-up may help me appear put together...I likely did not brush my teeth that day.

21.) Nighttime prayers at our house have a "short" version and a "long" version. I believe this also contributes to my kids heaving heavy sighs when I remind them on Sunday that we are going to "long" Mass. 

22.) The deciding factor on whether "short" or "long" prayers are said is usually my mood....HEY! I am not perfect!

23.) I listen to Veggie Tales on audio CD, even when the kids aren't in the car with me.

24.) I usually carry about $15 worth of library fines, give or take $5

25.) Despite all these things, I am a woman of God. I am striving to die to these parts of myself in order to please my heavenly Father, and fulfill my vocation to the best of my ability. This list is not just about helping people see the real me, its about helping those who know me, realize that none of us are without weakness or weak moments. I do believe. that we are all doing the best we can. I hope we can all strive for holiness together!

Liquid Gold!

7 gallon size bags of pumped milk!! AWESOME!

I have the MOST amazing friends ever! After spending 15+ hours in the ER, and still not knowing what is going on with my stomach, my supply was just pitiful. I am so blessed that my dear friend even came and took Blaise and nursed him for me. I admit this was hard for me, and glad that I wasn't there to watch ( is this a normal emotion to feel when someone else HAS to nurse your baby?), but I am eternally grateful for my friend's willingness to help, and her respect for my wishes to NOT give Blaise formula. I am not a fan of it, and I am thankful that he didn't have to have it. I was so distraught over my health issues, that I didn't even bother to pump. I went maybe 18 hours without directly nursing Blaise, and I was sure my supply was done. After an upper GI, and a CT Scan...the ER still couldn't find the reason why I was in so much ( felt just like my pain when I had my gallbladder taken out) pain. No ulcers, no obstructions, no stones...NOTHING! I was at the point where I couldn't eat without a pain pill, and if I did eat I was throwing it all back up, including blood. I was a bit hopeless at this point. Being that I was one 6 or 7 different meds at this point, and I couldn't really eat, I put out the call for breast milk. NEVER did I imagine the response. It was truly a hard thing to ask for me. I am not good at accepting defeat or admitting that I can not do it all, but I was there. Blaise was suffering and frustrated. So the call went out, and the picture above is the proof of how awesome my friends are. I got 7 gallon size bags of milk. Pumped milk...which is such a pain to do. I have a new-found respect for the working moms I know who pump to feed their sweet babies... I am bad at it, and for me, pumping is about the WORST thing ever. I was able to make this stash last longer by nursing Blaise first and then feeding him a bottle. I am thankful to my friends for their generosity. I might not have survived, nor my nursing relationship with Blaise...without this great BLESSING!

My sweet nephew!

Carter is my 7 year old nephew. He is the melancholic of the group! He enjoys sleep ( Can I please get a child who enjoys sleep?), will put himself in timeout, and seriously can not tell a lie or break the rules. He is just great. But, a bit shy! He has always been curios about Blaise. I suspect he has wanted to be more intimate with Blaise for a while...meaning getting close to him! I snapped this pictures with just the smallest amount of protest! Aren't they just sweet? 

Busted...

Gloria got caught with her hand in the candy dish...Silly girl!!

What mom?

Can you even get mad at this face!??!

Naturally, she thought this was funny!

Evidence!

Happy Easter to me...

Blaise on his FIRST EASTER! This is really my sweetest baby so far. DO not get me wrong, my other babies were cute, snugly and affectionate, but Blaise just has the sweetest disposition! I mean, he is GENUINELY happy! The bottom picture is my proof that Blaise is a finger-sucker. Up until now, I have avoided finger-suckers. I myself was a thumb-sucker ( until an extremely embarrassing age..think college!?!?!), and have feared this for my kids. I would rather break my kids of a pacified than a thumb! I hope this doesn't last long!

He is not just beautiful!

Lets hope this doesn't last too long!