A Visit From Big Papa

Last week, Andy's grandfather, whom the girls call "Big Papa," came to visit from Minnesota.  It had been three years since we had last seen him.  Emma was 15 months old and I had just found out that I was pregnant with Sophia. Needless to say, we were very excited about the visit!

The girls made posters to welcome Big Papa to Tennessee and were thrilled to meet him at the airport.

It was such a blessing to see the girls with their great-grandfather! The girls still ask about him every day and wonder if Big Papa is on every airplane they see. They miss him so much already!

Growing Up

I thought it was time to change out the girls' photos on the sidebar of the blog and I was amazed at how different they look!

These pictures were taken just a little over a year apart. Emma's face has lost so much of it's baby look and Sophia looks like a completely different kid!

Where did my little babies go???

Mmm, Mmm Monday-Buffalo Chicken Burgers

I really thought I had already posted this recipe because it's one of our favorites! If you like the Chicken Zucchini Burgers, it might become a favorite of yours too.

I actually like this recipe a little more that the zucchini burgers. These have a ton of flavor and the sauce gives them a little something extra.

Buffalo Chicken Burgers
adapted from Weight Watchers

1/4 cup bbq sauce
1 1/2 tsp. hot sauce, or to taste
1 pound uncooked extra lean ground chicken breast
1/2 cup scallion, sliced
1/4 cup celery, diced
1/4 cup plain breadcrumbs
2 tsp. minced gralic
1/2 tsp. salt

Here's your ingredient list. Pretty simple, but the result is tasty! Combine the barbeque sauce and hot sauce together in a small bowl. I added about a teaspoon of hot sauce and it wasn't too spicy for our family.

Combine your other ingredients into a small bowl. The kids like the veggies on the softer side so I saute them a little before adding them to the mixture, but you can leave them uncooked if you like some crunch. Add one tablespoon of the sauce to the chicken mixture.

Combine well and form into four patties.  The mixture will be sticky, so I usually cut out four pieces of wax paper and form the patties on the paper. Then I can flip them directly onto the grill and peel the paper off.  Brush the tops of the patties with half of the sauce.  Place them sauce side down onto the grill and baste the tops with the rest of the sauce.

 Grill on medium-high for about 10 minutes, or until cooked through. Turn once if you're using a regular grill.

If you want the true Buffalo chicken taste, you can add some blue cheese crumbles. 

Reviews from The Peanut Gallery

Me: 5 out of 5 stars. I really love these. We always have one extra patty and I enjoy it the next day cut up with a salad. 

Andy: 5 out of 5 stars. These have great flavor. He likes them better when the veggies are sauteed.  

Emma: 

She doesn't like any type of meat, especially when she can see "green stuff." She says she loves these but it took a lot of coaxing to get her to eat it.

Sophia:

 She loved them! No complaints out of her and she asked for seconds.

Playing Catchup

Yeah, so it's July 12th and I'm finally posting photos from the Fourth of July. Yikes! We had a rainy Fourth, but it was still lots of fun. We were able to shoot fireworks, which Emma loved and Sophia did not.  They sure looked cute in their holiday outfits, despite the crummy weather.

 I've been trying to have a little school time each day with the girls. Emma has been practicing her writing and Sophia has been working on colors and numbers. They love learning and are so proud when they accomplish a new task. They've been great little students!

Sophia has been doing a great job with counting. Here's a little video of what she can do.

Our Weekend

We had such a fun weekend! It was action packed from start to finish. Weekends like this are always fun, but SO tiring! I feel like we need another weekend to recover from our weekend.

On Saturday, Emma's sweet friend, Mia, had a birthday party. There were tons of water games for the kids and it was the perfect day for it. Emma had so much fun and I loved watching her play with her school friends.

When we got home, we got Emma cleaned up and ready for a date with her daddy. He was taking her to see Monsters University.  They were both really excited about their special time.

Andy's parents invited us over for pizza, so we headed out to their house for dinner.  They have a garden for the girls there and they love to visit and see how much it has grown. They were thrilled to see how big the corn and pumpkins have gotten!

On Sunday, we met my sister and Aunt Kimi at Circle G ranch. We had so much fun the last time we went and this time was no different. The animals get SO close and personal!

The girls also loved the petting zoo and pony rides. Funny story: When we asked Emma if she'd like to ride a pony, she asked us if it went up and down and if she could ride a green one. Ha! Our poor little city girls!

Beach Photos

We haven't taken a family photo in a long time, so I was really looking forward to taking some pictures at the beach. On the day we decided to try, the weather was beautiful but very windy.  We had lots and lots of outtakes with hair in our faces! Thankfully, we got several great photos to cherish.

Myrtle Beach-Day 3

On our third and final full day, we spent the morning at the water park and the beach.  After we had been at the beach for a while, Emma said she was getting hungry and so we packed up and got ready to leave. As we were walking back from the water I noticed a little girl on the beach that looked familiar. It turns out that it was one of Emma's friends from her dance class who was vacationing with her family.

Emma was so excited to run into her friend that she forgot that she had said she was hungry.  The girls played for a while longer and had a great time together.

That night, we decided to go to Broadway at the Beach, which is a shopping center of sorts that also has restaurants, rides, and other attractions. The girls loved shopping and walking around, seeing all of the people and lights. We had diner at a pirate themed restaurant, which thrilled the girls!

Andy wanted to take the girls to MagiQuest, which I had never heard of.  I was a little skeptical about the girl's being able to participate, but it turned out to be lots of fun. The girls loved using their magic wands to go on quests solve puzzles.

When we got back we took the girls onto the beach to see the moon over the water and to try to catch the fireworks. We didn't see the fireworks but we did get to see someone send off a paper lantern, which made the girls think of Rapunzel.

It was a great way to end a wonderful trip with our family!