weekend wrap up.

This past weekend was quite a whirl wind. We went to the Willamette Country Music Festival with family and friends, where we drank too much, slept very little and listened to good music for three whole days.

I think Lakai was right in his element. That boy has far more country in him than I thought. He loved being able to pee outside, stay up late, eat crap food and head bob to blaring tunes, not to mention he didn't have to bathe for far longer than I prefer.

So that there beer in my hand is by far one of the best brews I've had. If you like lighter beers you must try Grapefruit Schofferhofer. Du-freaking-licious!

Does it get more hillbilly than this over sized chairs? I think not. #honeyishrunkthekids

This show stopper made us many friends. Booze and Mega Jenga went hand in hand this weekend. Our camp happened to be right at the entrance on the festival, and as people walked by they would stop to get a kick out of our drunken strategy (well actually Ryan and my old man's drunken strategy).

Lakai mooched this kick-ass cowboy hat out of my dad and wore the damn thing all weekend. It was totally appropriate for the occasion and he had lots of folks saying, "right on" as he walked by. 

The only way he could see the concerts was if Ry held him up. Man oh man did Lakai loooove himself some Carrie Underwood. As we were walking back to camp the conversation went as follows:

Lakai: Mom, does that girl have a house?

Me: I'm sure she does.

Lakai: Can we go over there some day to hang out?

Me: Why?

Lakai: Because she has a really pretty face. 

Me: Uh, Oh.

She made a surprise appearance the next night with Brad Paisley and that kid lit up like a damn Christmas tree. 

It was great weekend and I know Lakai had a blast running a muck. Clearly by the end we were all running on fumes. I'm most certain it was worth it though and we will be heading back next year.

 

family outing.

 Two weekends ago, our family had the privilege of going up to our friend Ty's cabin. I was a little hesitant at first because it was very last minute and I'm a planner, but the boys had an amazing time and it was fun watching these two "peas in a pod" gallivant.

I had to throw in this last picture because those buns are just too cute!

hot showers.

Just yesterday was my sweet friend Aly's baby shower. She had little Laylah at only 26 weeks and what a miracle baby Laylah has become, truly defying to odds.

My momma held the shower at my parent's home and I helped decorate. We thought it was all pretty cute, and their back yard turned out to be the perfect back drop for the shower. It was 95 degrees out and I will tell you now, this momma was a sweatin'! It was not cute, but Aly sure was. Her bubbly personality soared (like any new mom of course)! We were so happy with the turn out and that people could help Aly and her family celebrate this sweet bundle of joy!

 As soon as I found out my sweet friend Heather was coming I messaged her, calling dibs on holding baby Weston first! I had to get my baby filling since my baby hormones are clearly raging!

 And what would a blog post be without a few sweet pictures of baby Laylay? 

Just to put into perspective how tiny Laylah still is... Those slippers are from the American Girl store :)

easter bugs.

This past weekend Lakai had his sweet friend, Kinley, over to decorate easter eggs. Target had some adorable kits that I just couldn't resist.

Lakai loved being able to color the eggs and I think he was amazed at the vibrant pigments. Kinley loved drinking the coloring :) A good ol' mixture of water, vinegar and dye was quite the concoction. After taking a sip, Kinley would look at us, say "eww," and then take another gulp.

Lakai's kit had all different types of bug wings and googlie eyes to decorate his eggs. Kinley's was full of bunny ears and fuzzy tails. Both the kids were a plethora of color by the end, but we had a blast and can't wait for our next play date!

my sweets.

We are finally healthy in our home. It has been almost two weeks. Thank goodness.

This past Saturday, the boyfriend and I got the opportunity to attend the NECA Sweetheart Ball. It is an event NECA (Nation Electrical Contractors Association) hosts every year, where women  get to put on fancy dresses and men have to shower and clean the dirt from their nails. 

Attending meant the boyfriend and I got an entire night to cut loose and be with each other. I always love hanging on the arm of the boyfriend when he looks all spiffy. He's smokin' in his dress clothes. Makes me weak in the knees. Last year the boyfriend was a gimp, with a severely sprained ankle. That meant no dancing, no standing to chat and no drinking (couldn't mix with the meds). So this year we were in full force and ready to have an amazing night. 

And it was... the food was amazing, the people were fantastic and the night was an overall success.

We danced the night away and by the end, the boyfriend was in no condition to do anything other than go to bed. Hopefully we will get the opportunity to go again next year and make even more memories! 

cookie bake.

The weather, here in Vancouver, has been anything but delightful recently. It's been pretty dang dearly, with lots of rain and only a few breaks of sunny goodness. On Saturday, Lakai and I were not about to let the weather get us down! So, we decided to bake some delicious Lemon Crackle Cookies.

I found the recipe on Pinterest (it's a serious addiction and I thought maybe I should make some of the things I pin). Lakai was more than excited! He is my little cookie dough eater. He was such a big helper pouring each ingredient into the mix bowl, and using his strong muscles to draw circles in the dough. Before I could start placing balls of dough on the cookie sheet, Lakai has handfuls of lemon yumminess dripping from both sides of his mouth. He is such a cutie!

The recipe is so, so easy:

Lemon Crackle Cookies

• 1 (18.25 oz) package lemon cake mix
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 c vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons of lemon zest
• 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
• 1/3 cup confectioner's sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Pour cake mix into a large bowl. Stir in eggs, oil, lemon juice, lemon extract, and lemon zest until blended.
3. Drop teaspoonfuls (mine were probably a tad bigger) of dough int o a bowl of confectioner's sugar. Roll them around until they're lightly covered (It may help to put the dough in the fridge for a little while first). Once sugared, put them on an un-greased cookie sheet.
4. Bake for 6 - 9 minutes in the preheated oven.