Yummm...

I'm not one to pass recipes around or try to push them off on people but this one is awesome and easy too. I found it in the Kraft Foods magazine and have made it several times.

Grilled Bruschetta Chicken

I usually make a little extra of the bruschetta topping because I like to smother the chicken breasts. I also made this one time with portabella caps instead of the mushrooms. I think I liked the portabella version better but I love mushrooms so I could be biased.

Happy Grilling!

My son the Sasquatch

It's getting closer to fall now and we decided that Colin probably needs a pair of tennis shoes or would need them sooner or later. So, during a recent trip to the BX I was scoping the clearance shoe aisle and found several pairs of toddler sized tennis shoes. I also found the little mat that you can stand kids on to measure their feet. It said that he needed a size 7 so we tried on size 7. They fit just about perfectly so we got the 8 instead to leave him some room to grow.

Now this might sound perfectly normal to those of you who aren't familiar with children's shoe sizes, so here's some comparative info for you. Gabrielle is 14 months older than Colin. She wears a size 8 too--and that's big for a two year old. Matt and I both wear some pretty good sized boats so I guess I'm not surprised, but I'm going to start saving for Colin's shoes now. I'm sure we'll be doing lots of special ordering someday and that's not cheap.

1st Day at Gina's

Today was the kids' first day at the new babysitter's house. They just went for the morning but they had a great time. G went potty 3 times and told Gina each time that she needed to go, and Colin played really well with all of the new toys. The only comment Gina had for us was, "You didn't tell me that your kids were such big eaters!" They weren't all that ready to leave so I guess that makes me feel good about taking them there. Tomorrow they'll go all day so I can get a head start on stuff at school and attend a going away luncheon for one of Matt's co-workers/good friends. Then Wednesday I'm back to work again until next summer--which begins for me on May 30, 2008. I'm not counting or anything...

Busy, busy, busy

With the last few days of my summer coming to an end in the next week I've been trying to do as many fun things with the kids as possible. This week we took lunch to Matt and had a picnic...indoor since it was kind of rainy, went to the zoo, and kept our daily walks going as often as possible. Going back to work this year is proving to be more difficult this year than it has in the last 2 years. I'm sure it's because the kids are growing up and we can do so much fun stuff. I know that I have to work to be able to provide the kids with the things that I want them to have, now and in the future, but it still makes me cry.

Matt was very busy today installing our new garage door. His buddy Ben came over to help out and they busted it out faster than I thought it would take. It looks very good and gives the house a very nice finished look. I didn't take any pictures yet but I'll try to do that tomorrow.

I've been busy at the sewing machine for the last couple of days. G and C each have to take a nap mat to the new babysitter's house for nap time. Gabrielle got a Disney Princesses nap mat from Grandma Jean for Christmas last year so she was set, but Colin didn't have one. I went shopping several places to find one for him but was unsuccessful, so I decided to make one. I wasn't 100% sure what I was doing so I sort of pieced some ideas together on paper and then went to Joanns to gather supplies. It turned out cute in the end and I'm pretty proud of my made from scratch, no directions, Abby original. Check out the Shutterfly site for pics. Maybe I can sell these online...

Beers 'n' Ears

Another very successful Beers 'n' Ears event was held at my parents' house this past weekend. Colin had his first corn on the cob and Gabrielle had a great time running around. She really broke out of her shell and all but ignored the fact that there were about 150 people hanging out at Grammie and Papa's. Check out some pictures on the Shutterfly site.

Big boy haircut

Colin got his first hair cut this afternoon. It had grown to the point that he was starting to look a little like the poor kid who can't afford a hair cut and it was getting hard to manage. So, we went to the salon where I get my hair done and my stylist Liz gave him his first hair cut. I had thought about doing it myself but I don't think I've ever even witnessed a boy's hair cut so I bailed on that idea. Here are some before and after pictures of my little man.

He's pretty cute but I'm not used to it quite yet. I'm sure it'll grow on me and I'll forget about the cute curls he used to have.