Play Dough Night

While on Pintrest last night I came across a blog site that is called the Artful Parent and found a lot of cute ideas, especially activities using play dough. So tonight was Play Dough Night at the Turnbough's!!

I printed off the ABC sheets

Sophia even got into trying to make letters!

We made snakes with the play dough and then placed them in the shapes of the letters.

John did this one! The whole family played and we had cookies afterwards.

A great family night!

Snow Day

At 7:30 am today, John woke up confused why I was still in bed and not up and dressed - like most mornings. He ran to the window and SCREAMED "SNOW!!!"

He instantly wanted to go outside - like this is the moment he had waited for his entire life. I held him off until 8:30 and we were out the door.

He is my snow bunny and Sophia is not. I would say she is more the type - "sit by the fire with a cup of hot chocolate, reading to her baby dolls". She really wanted nothing to do with the snow. She walked around, swung for a little bit and then she was finished. Luckily, we have a lot of the toys in the basement because John played outside for 1 1/2 hours! So I walked back and forth to keep an eye on the kiddos.

He pretended to be on the movie "Elf" and throw snowballs at everyone - except Sophia. In John's words - "I don't think she likes it."

This is a deceiving picture because she is smiling. This is the only picture she smiled in out in the snow.

Then it was onto a day of art, games and movies.

Making a drum and a picture...

After John woke up from his nap, he decided I need to trace him and then we would decorate him. I love the face that he drew!

Sometimes it catches me off guard at how much John has grown up. I think of the snow days last year. He didn't want to play in the snow very long and this year he loved it. He entertained himself for almost an hour and half. He came up with some neat ideas throughout the day to do - things I wouldn't have thought of. He is so verbal and explains himself so well. It excites me to see what kind of man he will be as he grows up. It also kind of makes me sad to see him grow into a kid and not a toddler anymore.

Valentines DayB

I am not usually one to do much for small holidays, such as Valentines Day. I have never made a big deal out of it. I do love that it is an excuse to get a sitter and go on a romantic date with the my sweet husband. However, this year, seems to be different. I don't know if it is me trying to make up for the guilt of being a working mom and wife or if I am just becoming a "holiday person" - but it got a hold of me and I went with it. Below are the special things we have done over the past few weeks.

Valentines Tree -

picked it up out of the dollar bin at JoAnn's. I had the kids decorate it. Next year, I want to do the same thing and put Bible verses about love on the little hearts that hang.

Valentine Cards -

My kids have never done Valentine cards for other kids, but I decided this year we would. Instead of buying valentines, I thought we would make them. We broke crayons - which John LOVED! - melted them into hearts and put them on our own cards. After a few faulty tries, we finally got it and they turned out cute.

Cupcakes- with pink icing and sprinkles for dinner tomorrow night.

Valentine gifts -

straight out of the Target dollar bins! Can't wait to see their faces, especially the popcorn bins for our theater time at home!

I even got a card for my sweetheart. I am not a card person, so this is a big deal too! Let's see - St. Patricks Day...hmmm...I wonder if I will get zing to do something for the March holiday.

Jack Be Nimble

Sesame Street

Today the kids and I got to go to see Elmo and the rest of the Sesame Street clan with Nana LeAnn, Nana Barb and Kampbell. It was so much fun adn the kids were SO good the entire time. As I sat and listened to the characters perform, I couldn't take my eyes off of my sweeties as they watched in awe. These are the moments I just want to keep in my mind forever. I almost wanted time to stand still while I took it all in. John was full of facial expressions and singing along. Sophia sat stoned faced but then couldn't stop talking about it the rest of the day. I tell you, these kids couldn't be more different!

Family Movie Night

Tonight we all laid on the floor, with pillows and blankets, and watched Beauty and Beast! If you would have told me when I was younger that I would someday be watching Beauty and the Beast with my kids...I probably wouldn't have believed you. I hadn't watched the movie in years and I remembered all the songs! To top the movie off, we had cookies to go along with it.

Afterwards, the kids did what any normal kid would do after a movie...

they put on their capes and flew around!

Tonight Sophia was counting to 5 like she normally does and then she counted backwards!! She is getting very big!

Stuffed Shells Recipe

Sometimes I just want to make something that is different than what we normally eat. It is easy to have those meals that you always go to because they don't take much time, you know the kids will eat them, and more than likely you already have the ingredients in your cabinet. So I have had this recipe on my recipe stand for over a week....and I finally made it tonight for tomorrow's meal. First...I am so excited that dinner is already cooked for tomorrow and all we have to do it pop it in the oven. Second...I can't wait to try it because it was smelling so good as I prepared it. It is little time consuming because you have to fill each shell...but I think it will be worth it. I do have to say there is something calming about filling shells. You should try it.

Below is the recipe in case you want to try it.

Stuffed Shells

Makes: 8 servings

Prep: 50 minsBake: 350°F 30 mins

ingredients

• 12
  ounces dried jumbo pasta shells (about 35 shells)
• 3
  tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2
  pounds lean ground beef
• 2
  cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
• Salt
• Freshly ground pepper
• 2
  28 ounce can San Marzano® tomatoes or whole tomatoes
• 1
  15 ounce carton whole-milk ricotta cheese
• 1 1/3
  cups grated or finely shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

directions

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil a 15x10x1-inch baking sheet and a 3-quart oval or rectangular baking dish.

2.Bring a large pot of water, with 1 tablespoon salt added, to boiling. Add pasta shells and cook just until slightly tender, about 4 to 5 minutes. Drain pasta and spread in a single layer on baking sheet to prevent them from sticking together.

3.In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium heat. Add beef and 1 clove of garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Cook and stir for 6 to 8 minutes, until no pink remains in beef. Transfer to a bowl; set aside.

4.For tomato sauce, in a second skillet over low heat combine remaining olive oil, remaining garlic, and undrained tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Bring sauce to a simmer over low heat; cook for 15 to 20 minutes until thickened somewhat, breaking up tomatoes with the back of spoon.

5.Stir 1 1/2 cups of tomato sauce into cooled ground beef, then add ricotta and 2/3 cup of the Parmigiano; stir until combined.

6.Spoon 1 1/2 cups tomato sauce into prepared baking dish. Fill each pasta shell with about 1 tablespoon meat and cheese mixture. Arrange shells in prepared baking dish. Spoon remaining tomato sauce over shells, then sprinkle remaining 2/3 cup cheese.

7.Bake about 30 minutes, until filling is heated through and top is golden brown.