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.

Since last blogged there are a few things that have happened...

1. Miss Sophia is back in diapers. It just wasn't the right time for her. We tried it for 2 1/2 days and really got nowhere. She was perfectly happy to go back to diapers, so maybe we will try it over Spring Break or wait until the summer. Here she is looking "oh so cool" in her big girl pants.

2. The kids are really starting to play with each other. It is so neat to see them interact, have conversations, correct each other, and help each other.

3. John was sick this week. On Tuesday morning, we were all dressed ready to go out the door and BAM...he puked on the living room floor. So it was a stay home day for Mommy and John. Poor little guy. He was sick all morning but after a long nap he was just fine. Luckily it was a quick bug and he is back to normal.

4. The Preschool search is still going on. We have visited one and it just wasn't a good fit. We are going to be visiting a couple more, so I will keep you posted on where we decide.

Potty Training Day #1

I had a picture of Sophia in her big girl panties today but the camera is in her room where she is sleeping. So pictures will come on another day. I declared MLK weekend, Potty Training Bootcamp weekend this year. So the boys had a boys day and Sophia and I stayed home. I wouldn't say today was a success but it was a start. Here are a few of the highlights....

1. We had one total success pee session and poop session.

2. She LOVES her panties. (And I love that I get to say that word now because with John I couldn't.)

3. By the end of the day she would say "Done" when she was completely finished on the potty.

4. When she would be standing with pee going down her leg, she hated it! So she would look at me with the most unpleasant look on her face. I would rush to pick her up and run her to the bathroom.

Day 2 will start bright and early I am sure.

I realized I haven't really blogged a John story lately so here are a couple...

1. Yesterday morning, he was in his underwear dancing around singing "We were hot, hot, hot. Now we're not, not, not" while the weather was on. He would end his song with a big "YEAH!" and land on the ground.

2. Another event happened yesterday also...I had to run back home because I had forgotten something. I walked through the front door and John is standing there still in his underwear and snowboots.

We also visited our first preschool yesterday. So the search had began officially. We will visit a couple more and hopefully be able to make a decision after those visits.

Sophia's 1st Hair Cut

I always thought I would let Sophia's hair grow long. However, I couldn't take the mullet look anymore, so before Christmas, we had Aunt Abbey cut Sophia's hair. It actually went great. Sophia did a great job sitting and even tried cutting her own hair.

The before look...

Trying to cut her own hair...

Cheese!!! Look at my new hair cut!

Here's the back!

Thank you Aunt Abbey!!

Sophia and Her Big Girl Bed

Sophia is now in a big girl bed. I can't believe that my little princess is out of her crib. We have had this toddler bed in the basement for some time. Anytime we were down there, she was laying on it with her babies or putting her babies to bed. She would even go down there by herself to play dolls on the bed. She also wants to be potty trained SO badly, so I thought "What the heck...let's get her in a big girl bed before the potty training begins so she can get up at night for the bathroom."

My memories of putting a child in a toddler bed are few because I have only done it with one child. John's transition had been a piece of cake so I thought nothing of it as we decided to do it at the very end of my Christmas vacation. Here is the difference - John was 2 and 1/2 and Sophia is 22 months. John's toddler bed was still his crib with just the mattress lower and the front taken off. Sophia's is a totally different bed and different mattress. John's bed was put in the same exact spot as the crib and Sophia's was turned around the opposite way. These are things I did not think about before hand.

It started great. As you look at the pictures below, you will see how it was right when the bed was put in the room.

Sophia couldn't wait to get in bed. She actually was playing dress up and hopped into bed with her two tutus on as well as covering herself up with the mattress pad because there was no sheets or blankets on yet.

John wanted so badly to take a nap with Sophia but we thought the first day wouldn't be a good idea. So here they are pretending to take a nap.

Well lets just say...it was not all roses making this transition. We had many sleepless nights, a few stern voices, and a lot of rocking, singing and rubbing feet to get this sweet princess to stay in her bed. One morning I heard her crying at 6 am and found her on the floor with her top half of her body under the bed! Poor girl! Another night, she had moved off the bed to the side that is closest to the wall and had gotten her legs stuck under the bed. Evidently, she moves a lot at night in her sleep.

I will say...knock on wood...that she is doing so much better. She loves the bed and loves playing on it. She is learning to love to sleep on it too.

We will start potty training this weekend..so get ready!!

Update on John:

We have started Pre-School hunting. We will visit our first one on Friday. Part of me is so excited but the other part of me hurts to think my sweet boy is getting older. He is excited about Pre-School; however he told someone at church today that since he is going to be going to school...there will be no more toys. I guess he will be surprised!

T-Rex Cafe

I am super behind on blogging but A LOT has been going on here in the Turnbough household. I think I need a break from my Christmas break. It was a lot of fun...but whew..I am tired. More to come on the holiday vacation. Today was the last day of vacation so we enjoyed a fun lunch with the Sharky family at the T-Rex Cafe. We had never been and it is so cool! Everyone enjoyed it and had a blast.