Kitchen Helpers

This afternoon Gabriel and I started fixing a casserole for dinner and a pot of soup for another night this week. It wasn't long before Grace was finished napping and ready to join us. Grace washed potatoes.
Gabriel mixed the beef mixture for the casserole.
Then, Gabriel used the slicer to slice the potatoes. It took some muscles.
Finally, Grace picked grapes off the stems so we can eat them for breakfast in the morning.

The kids love helping in the kitchen, and I love spending time with them. Hopefully, they are learning some skills they can use for the rest of their lives too.

Laying Low

Grace was running a low grade fever today, so we were trying to keep things low key at home. The kids played with Mr. Potato Head.
Then they played Ants in the Pants.
We made mini pizzas for dinner.
And Grace enjoyed some time coloring with markers.

I love spending time with my adorable kids.

Nails by Grace

Grace decided to do nails this afternoon. She started by painting my toenails.
Then she moved on to Gabriel's fingernails.

Finally, she gave Gabriel a little pedicure too.
Gabriel's toes were ticklish. They were both giggling so much as she tried to paint his ticklish toes.
Gabriel repaid the favor. Grace kept saying, "Oh, thank you, Gabriel."

Chic-Fil-A

We went to Chic-Fil-A for dinner last night so the kids could play in the play area. We haven't done that since I was off work for the summer.
Daddy and Gabriel made a quick trip to Lowe's while Grace and I stayed and played.
Gabriel is such a nut!
I'm not sure what she was doing in this picture, but I thought it was cute to see her in motion.

Reading

Tonight was a very exciting night at the Ellnor house. Gabriel read his first book . . . on his own! He has been wanting to learn to read SO BADLY. He has been learning sight words at school, and he loves to spell words as I sound them out for him. I promised him a few weeks ago that I would make him a book that he could read. I took a few moments at work today to do just that. I'm so proud of him for reading his first book. I'm pretty sure I was beaming tonight when he finished reading it for the first time. Of course, Grandma and Papaw came over to hear Gabriel read.
Mommy could not bring Gabriel without bringing Grace one too. Grace read a book about the letter Gg.

Portuguese Sausage-Kale Soup

Every now and then I come across a recipe that I truly feel like is a favorite. Dan made this soup Sunday . . . we've made it many times before. But having it for the first time this season reminded me of how much I really love it. So I thought I'd share . . . .

Portuguese Sausage-Kale Soup
6 oz. turkey kielbasa, sliced
1 large onion, chopped
1 large clove garlic, chopped
1 tsp olive oil
1 lb. fresh kale, washed, stemmed, and chopped
2 cans of reduced sodium chicken broth
4 cups water
2 carrots, sliced
1 tsp dried marjoram, crumbled
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1/2 cup uncooked brown rice

Saute kielbasa, onion, and garlic in oil over medium-low heat until tender (about 10 min.) Add to pot chicken broth, water carrot, marjoram, salt, pepper. Bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover and cook for 15 minutes. Add fresh kale and rice. Bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until rice is tender.

Hint: We buy the kale already washed and chopped in 1 lb. bags at the store. It is usually with the bagged salad mixes and bagged spinach. It saves a lot of prep time. Also, we add extra kielbasa because the kids want to have sausage with every bite.

Anyhow . . . give this recipe a try and thank me later (Haha!) My kids, surprisingly, love it too. It's healthy to boot, so what's not to love.

Nature Walking

Gabriel came home from preschool Friday with a Weekly Reader (kid's magazine). On the back it suggested taking a nature walk and looking for specific items. Gabriel was very excited about taking a nature walk to find the things on this list, so we set out this afternoon to do just that!
Our first find was this really cool leaf --- red and yellow!
Gabriel found a nice yellow leaf.
He also found a twig.
He and Grace found a nice big rock too.
We found several things as we crossed this bridge.
For example we found this acorn.
A nature walk just wouldn't be a nature walk if you couldn't check your e-mail on your Blackberry, right?
We walked over, under, and around many fallen trees.
Grace found a gum ball from a gum tree.
Any time Grace and I lagged behind, which was often, Daddy and Gabriel would find someplace to hide from us.
I wonder what these two were discussing? I'm sure Daddy was explaining something very important to Gabriel. They always have very deep discussions.
I thought these berries were pretty.
Daddy found a swing that was perfect for Grace.
I made the kids pose for one more picture together before we left the trail. We had so much fun on our nature walk. It's something we definitely need to do more often!

Derby Dinner Playhouse

We went to Derby Dinner this morning to see The True Story of the Three Little Pigs. This was the first time the kids have been to Derby Dinner, so they didn't know what to expect. They just knew that we had to dress "fancy." Miss Grace is such a little diva. She loaded her coat pockets up with necklaces and her sunglasses before we left our house.
Bravo the Star came to visit all of the tables. Grace was excited to see him, but she did not want to get close enough to pose for a picture with him. Luckily, Gabriel was a good sport.
Here are our friends who came to watch play with us: Preston, Grace, Gabriel, Jake, Sam, and Sam.

It was such a fun morning. I think I'll be going to another kids' show when Gabriel's class has a field trip to Derby Dinner next month.

Fall Fun!

We went to Lapping Park tonight for hayrides, s'mores, music, and fun.
The Parks Dept. hosted this event. They sold makings for s'mores and had a fire so you could roast your marshmallows. Mmm . . . Ya know I love a s'more!
Gabriel had a s'more too.
Daddy roasted a marshmallow, but he and Grace opted for hot dogs.
Daddy hates to wear the same color as someone else in the family. He doesn't like to "match" anyone else. So I had to get a picture of him and Grace in their MATCHING green jackets.
There was face painting for the kids. Grace wanted a heart.
Gabriel wanted a blue butterfly. He cried tonight after his bath when he realized that his butterfly had washed off. Poor kid!

What a fun evening! I love these Fall activities!

Trick or Treat Time

The kids were SO excited to go trick or treating Sunday night! It was a chilly evening, so they wore their jackets underneath their costumes. I think the jackets took away from the cuteness of their costumes, but oh well . . . .
This is how most of trick or treating looked for us. Gabriel was always a house ahead of us or waiting for Grace and me to catch up with him.
Wow! This house gave out treat bags!
A little more than half way through, Grace got tired and wanted to ride in the wagon. Gabriel was still good to go. Grace rode in the wagon and chowed down on candy while Gabriel continued to trick or treat. This chick ended up eating peanut M&M's, Nerds, suckers, and Smarties for dinner. Good thing Halloween is only once a year!