Madeline's Dad

Here's a late Father's Day shoutout to my wonderful husband, since I was pretty much out of commission yesterday.

Scott has grown so much as a father in these last 16 months. I remember how sweet, but insecure he was with his baby girl when she first joined our family. He has now turned into quite the dad as he cares for Madeline by himself on the weekends. He has no fear of changing diapers or cleaning up the 4-foot diameter mess after she eats. He does his very best at meeting her needs. He is helping her grow into such a smart, healthy, and wonderful little girl (all of the sassiness comes from me, I'm sure).

I don't give him enough credit for his incredible patience with 2 inpatient females, his diligence with his school work as he prepares to provide for us, and his ever positive attitude.

Thank you for all that you do and all that you are, Scott. Madeline and I are truly lucky to have you in our lives.

Ode to the Vitamix

Oh, Vitamix, how I love you.



We have used you almost daily, and at least weekly, in the year and a half you have been with our family.



You make the silkiest soups and the creamiest smoothies.



Not to mention the wonderful homemade ice cream (that only takes 30 seconds).



You saved us a ton of money on baby food, even though it was still much easier to pop open a gerber container. I have to admit that I gave into convenience a little at the end, but we had a good go of it for several months.



We've been able to use you for crazy new recipes, like hummus and almond milk (which was pretty good, but our baby won't drink it).



You are so easy to clean, which is a really good thing otherwise you would site idle on our counter.



I love not having to stem strawberries or core pears.



We are looking forward to many more years of orange julius's, butternut squash soup, salsa verde, and other delectable creamy treats.

FHE

We have been making a concerted effort lately to have Family Home Evening. It usually consists of a cried-through prayer, a poor execution of a familiar song, and a 30 second lesson that I don't think is understood. As I've thought back to the FHEs of my childhood, I have to admit that I don't remember any of the lessons. What I do remeber is playing games and eating pudding or creme puffs filled with pudding. So, this past Monday I decided to plan an activity and a treat. We did bubbles outside and Madeline had her first popsicle. It was a big hit! I guess if that's the only part of FHE she'll remember, I better try and make it good. (Breyer's Pomegranite blend popsicles are totally worth the cost! We love them!)