Make Your Own Mess/ I Mean Pizza Night

Amanda had a fun idea to have a "Make your Own Pizza Night" for our Sunday dinner. We bought lots of fun toppings and I made some pizza dough (I know, pretty impressive). It was fun to create our own masterpieces - Shane made a huge Calzone, everyone else was jealous - although, after he ate it, he was so full he could hardly move! When Brooke and Ben got there, Brooke said she wished she had known, she would have called ahead and put in her order - they had to wait for space in the oven for their pizzas to cook. We made them on cookie sheets and just a word of warning if you think this sounds fun - don't let people "over top" their pizzas, my cookie sheets are STILL soaking to get the gunk off them! (BBQ sauce, cheese, cornmeal, etc.)

We all had places to be soon after dinner, I left first and I got home first and it was so messy, I just had to take a picture!!

Summer Fun (?)

We decided to hike to Stewart Falls on Saturday. We told the babygirl we were going hiking, so that's all she talked about all day. We went in the evening, since we figured it would be cooler and we might luck out and enjoy a nice thunderstorm right in the mountains. (Instead of down here where we can only hear it and see it a little - no rain.) We took Amanda too, she loves to hike. It's only a 2 mile (each way) hike, so it was a good one to take for those of us who haven't been hiking in a LONG time. Right away, it became apparent that SOME of us were not in as good of shape as some others of us. Amanda has recently lost 50 pounds, I've gained a substantial amount of weight and Stacy has been slacking in going to the gym, so when Austin (32 pounds) was riding on Amanda's shoulders, that was about the right ratio to make it a fair hike/speed for all concerned. We enjoyed the thunder and some nice rain on the way back. (We also ran into my cousin, Nick DiPadova - which was totally random - but it was good to see him.) And yes, some of us are a little sore!!!

Grandma Makes the Best Brownies Ever!

It's a given that grandma's brownies are best! (Regular brownie mix, throw in some chocolate chips, frost with canned frosting when cool). Austin loves grandma's brownies, as you can see by these pics! Grandma loves Austin as you can tell by how much she squeezes her every time she sees that cute girl!!

Ready, Set, Quilt

I finished my quilt top! This one is going to go into my guest room (which, of course, means I have to make new curtains, pillow shams, etc.) This is the block of the month from last year (Quik Quilts), so yes, I have been working on it for over 1-1/2 years! I'm so excited to hand quilt it, even though it will definitely take longer than whipping it up on my machine. After Stacy and I set it up in the family room, we realized that it is the biggest one yet! I am hoping to keep it up for about 5 weeks, then I will baste it and "hoop" the rest of it, so I can stow it behind my chair when I'm not quilting. (This is NOT one of the quilts I'll be finishing this month!)

It's Here!

I've been kind of waiting for my pre-ordered "Breaking Dawn" book, the UPS man came earlier today and brought something else, so I thought I would have to wait until tomorrow. BUT... I went and got the mail and it was in the mailbox!!!! So...I'll be in my room, hiding/I mean reading for the next 8-10 hours!!!!! (754 pages!!!!)

Another Saturday, Another toy for the Grandbabies...

Austin came to hang out on Saturday afternoon and went to Costco and Walmart with Grandpa. He found a great sprinkler thing in the clearance bin. He came home and set it up and Austin thoroughly enjoyed it! We had it set up on Sunday too, in the backyard, but when we started taking off kids' clothes after dinner, the parents said, "no swimming on Sundays", I mentioned that getting a little sprinkled in the sprinkler wasn't really swimming, but I didn't push it, I am after all, only a grandparent. Later that evening, the kids stayed at our house and their parents, who shall remain nameless, went out to Alpine to visit a friend. You can imagine my surprise when they returned IN THEIR BATHINGSUITS, wet and having obviously enjoyed the pool at their friend's home ON SUNDAY. Well, I only made one remark and then I shut up, after all, I'm only a grandparent!

Let's Hear it for the Boy!

This is the "Jungle Baby" quilt I finished for the boy, his new room is going to be in a jungle motif, so here is my contribution. Of course, sweet baby that he is, he loves it. He actually loves all blankets, if you pick one up, to fold it or move it, he backs up to you, so you can snuggle him up in it, he is such a little cutie pie. Okay, I finished 3 quilts in July and it is my goal to complete 3 more for August. The way I figure it, the more I finish, the more fun fabric and kits I can buy!