Surprise!

My husband totally rocks!  He surprised (REALLY) me in my own home with lots of friends and lots of food - which he cooked himself... I really still can't quite grasp how!

My favorite part of the entire evening? That the kids all came running up to give me a hug when I came in!  I love that our group is so close knit that the kids treat us all as equally opportunity mamas!

Sweet Stone was kind enough to help me with the candles... I am getting old, I need help!

 A big thank-you to the man that made it all happen!  Love this guy!

My totally awesome new rocker from the in-laws... I hear tell that there is a photo of Taylor Swift sitting on a near identical bench?  For the record, mine's cooler... that's Super Why on my rocker!

And the best three presents of all!

Happy Birthday Stone

Happy birthday to my biggest of the littles!



Your happiness is contagious, your brilliance is astounding and I couldn't make it everyday without your helpfulness and love of others.



You are a true gift!



But four years old? How did that happen?

Frugal Friday

Sometimes being frugal makes like easier, it's simpler, back-to-basics stuff, but sometimes it makes life a bit harder, think convenience foods.  I'd like to think that my frugality lies somewhere in the middle, a balance of the harder and simpler.  But, it's all worth it!

Take, for instance, the boys' birthday party tomorrow.  We're doing one party for two kids, making it cost less, but we've also chosen to have it at an "all inclusive" place, making it simpler for me!  We've never done super extravagant parties (you can scroll through all our past celebrations here) but they have definitely been more involved.  I thought about doing a joint party for the boys last year as well, but with it being Holden's first birthday, I really wanted something that was just for him.  In hindsight, with all of the preparing for both celebrations, I pretty much almost did myself in.

I don't know how long we can actually pull this joint birthday thing off... for now, Cash is upset that he can't share too, but I know that everyone else might feel a little "jipped" when Cash gets his own party.  For now, I think the arrangement works.  We'll see what happens next year!

Birthday Morning Traditions

We're big on traditions here at the Chambers house, but traditions don't have to be fancy...they just have to be special.  It's well documented that we like donuts around here.  Daddy even has a donut lady, who makes amazing birthday donuts every year for the  kids.  It's a super-fun tradition that we love sharing!

Here's Holden's birthday donut on his super special plate... you have to be quick to get a photo before it's eaten!

Of course, everyone got donuts and we ate them in our PJs... honestly, is there any other way?

Going...

Going...

Gone!

Happy Birthday Baby

My baby is two today. This always-moving, inventive, caring, building kid-o is always up for fun and games. His newest?



















Soccer, of course! What? That's not how you play soccer?

Well, it's how Holden plays soccer, which makes it just perfect for me!

Happy birthday Holden B! We think you're the top banana!

Cash's Big Bash

When a little boy as cute as this turns two, you have to throw a major shin-dig!  I mean, really, how could you not?

So went went all out - we had a circus!  Daddy even dressed like a clown and learned how to make balloon animals.  What a super daddy we have!

By the end of the party, Daddy pretty much rocked at his balloon creations.  Here's our neighbor Ava modeling the most elaborate of the evening, "white bunny in front of a sunset" hat.

One of Cash's absolute favorite things to do is sing and dance.  He loves his Tiny Tots and Tunes teacher and wakes up every morning asking if that day is a "Miss Hallwee" (Holly) day.  We are so thankful to Mrs. Holly for heading over to our house and leading us all in wonderful music.  It truly made Cash's birthday special!

The gluten-free treats were a big hit.  I tried really hard to make these snow pops, but instead we wound up with plain cake balls and cupcakes.  Still super yummy and a lot of fun!

Shh... don't tell anyone, but my birthday is up next.  What do you think they're planning for me?

Happy Birthday Love Bug!

Happy Birthday to (quite possibly) the best snuggler in the world!  We love you sweet baby boy!

Three little boys, dressed in blue...

... I can't think of a better birthday present, can you?

Back to Nature

Do you ever start a day off wrong? Have a coke and peanuts for breakfast and then just continue on into the abyss of bad food? It's not a totally unique idea - there was a commercial recently based on this, but I can't remember the product. Kashi? Slim Fast? Regardless, I'm sure they are glad they spent millions on it and I can't think of what it was!

When we switched Stone to the GF/CF diet, I wholeheartedly entered into it with him. I've been watching what I intake as well, and, as a general rule, there aren't things that he can't have in our house. But lately, I've jumped off the bandwagon and I've noticed a big difference in the way I think and feel.

More than the gluten and casein, my body doesn't do well with processed sugars. It's something I've known for a long time, but often fail to remember when I'm in a weak point (hence the peanuts and coke example above).

I'm the same way with finances. We're a Dave Ramsey family, no credit cards, no debt except for our mortgage, but every once in a while I go bananas. I'll buy something big then think, what the hay, let's just keep it going. This practice makes no logical sense, but sometimes it does make me feel better, in the short run at least.

I had a conversation with a friend recently about diet, family and finances. Isn't if funny how the "old" way of doing things - cooking dinner at home and eating it as a family, moms staying home, less convenience foods (read less processed foods) and less debt - is coming back? Everyone is getting back to nature and I think our society will greatly benefit from this new trend.

Speaking of getting back to nature, my kids (along with everyone at Stone's birthday party) recently got back to nature by wading in the stream at the nature preserve. Cash even got SO back to nature that he drank the water... not something I would generally suggest, but to each his own.

I hope your family is able to find a happy, healthy balance. And, if you get derailed, just know it happens to all of us... I'm proof positive!

Late Birthday Celebration

Stone's official birthday is Sept. 2, but we celebrated the big day yesterday in full glory at a local park. Why? Because I'm nosey.

You see, Stone's new school (which is amazing, we love it!) is publicly funded, so the strict policies associated with our local public schools apply, even to the pre-school curriculum. This means that the teacher isn't allowed to tell us the names of the kids in the class. So, I sent eight invites for the little people in his class as a sneaky way to meet the parents.

Only one child from his class was able to make it, but I did get several RSVP e-mails from other parents, so we'll be able to set up play dates in the future. It's really hard to get intel from a three-year-old, so I had to mastermind some covert ops.We started the party playing on the park equipment at a nature preserve close to the house. Holden loved hanging with his Nanny and all the kids had a blast, and got really hot and sweaty, but they didn't seem to mind!Then, it was off to hunt for the cake. Someone had stolen it and our little band of investigators had to look for clues to find it using their binoculars.The clues were three large candles that Heath fashioned out of mailing tubes. See the girls modeling them on their heads?I think they see another one... everybody run!

After our short hike, the kids found the cake in a small clearing - Stone QUICKLY blew out his candles (hence the lack of photos of the birthday kid) and everyone worked on their cake face.

Holden had a bit of help from his Aunt B and Tyler, while Cash munched with Pop.

We had fun "seeing" everyone! Happy birthday big boy!

Birthday celebration

We're doing E. Stone's party a little later this year so that he can have all of his friends from "big school" there to help him celebrate. But, we did throw a small shindig here at the house with just us. There was cake... that's the definition of shindig, right? Mommy is getting pretty good at these Gluten Free Cakes... the new mixes from Betty Crocker are super yummy and don't break the bank!
E. Stone was all about wearing his hat from school all day. We had lunch with Daddy at McDonalds and he sported it the entire time.
Blowing out the candles...
Sometimes you have to blow really, really hard!

Happy birthday big boy! Can't wait for your Sid the Science Kid party!

Happy Birthday E. Stone!

Mommy and Daddy have a hard time believing that you are such a big boy! You can light up an entire room with your smile and you are the most caring, compassionate child I have ever met. God blessed us with your arrival and we thank him daily for you! Happy birthday big boy!

Happy Birthday Holden!

Happy, happy birthday to our sweet BABY boy, alright, alright, sweet BIG ONE-YEAR-OLD! I have no idea where the last year went - but I do know that my little guy has grown into a very sweet little boy, a beautiful little boy who loves to climb, sing and follow his big brothers around. We love you sweet Holden!

On Saturday, we celebrated Holden's birthday a bit early by splashing it up at the splash pad. A blast was had by all! We had yummy cake!
Holden (ahem, the wind) blew out his candle.
We splashed in the water with all of our friends...
and had a lot of fun talking with our PawPaw.
We had a whole lot of fun opening presents...
and drank A LOT of juice boxes!
And, of course, we played in the sand... Holden's FAVORITE past time!