Ella's 1st Trip to the ER

Since this little blog of mine is my way of documenting our lives, I have to post about our little girl's first trip to the ER.  I don't ever want to forget these things and with the way my memory is, there is a chance that could happen! I think it's good to remember the bad just as much as the good, it can help realize this whole Mommy thing isn't the easiest thing to do.

It all started Sunday night, we put Ella to bed at her normal time then around 11 the hubs and I went upstairs to go to sleep and as soon as we laid down we heard Ella making these strange noises.  Coughing but more of barking and some wheezing sounds.  I knew right away it was Croup but didn't know just how bad it was.  I sat there for a few minutes then realized that wasn't right so I went into her room.  She was so sad and upset and having a little trouble breathing and every sound she made sounded like a seal.  It was extremely scary and I knew she had to get to the hospital.

Thankfully my mother in law came over to stay with Brayden and the hubs and I took little miss to the hospital.  I was so happy that they took us right back when we got there, I think they knew she needed attention right away.  We were instantly brought to our room and she was started on oxygen.  After about 30 minutes of straight oxygen she got some oral steroids.  After that it was back to the oxygen and once the dr could tell that wasn't really doing it, she ordered her a nebulizer.  After that was done (about 5 minutes) we switched back to the oxygen and the dr said we needed to stay for another 2 hours for monitoring.

We were so tired but our little girl needed us.  She was such a trooper through this whole ordeal, letting strangers poke and prod her all while she was in pain and so so tired.

Around 3:15am we were discharged to go home.  Throughout this whole experience I never once was mad or annoyed that I was up through the night while knowing I had to get up for work at 6am.  I just knew our little girl needed us and we were so happy to get her the help she needed.

First Annual Circus Trip!

We took Brayden to the circus for the first time this weekend.  He was so excited and looking so forward to it for weeks.  (Of course I bought the tickets several months ago) It was nice to have a Mommy/Daddy/Brayden date, it's been a long time since we've done that.

I was able to pick our seats when ordering on Ticketmaster and that was an awesome perk.  I chose the upper balcony, first row, first 3 seats and they were perfect.

Watching so intensely

And when it was time to leave, this is what happened.  I think the circus was a success :)  Looking forward to going next year and bringing Little Miss!

Happy Halloween from the Flinstone Family!!

Happy Halloween Everyone!!

This year for Halloween we had 2 1st birthday costume parties so I knew a while back I had to come up with a cute idea for us.  I immediately thought Brayden and Ella should be Pebbles & Bamm Bamm, because let's face it, they look like them to a T, and then I thought the hubs and I should be Fred & Wilma.  Now I know that Bamm Bamm doesn't belong to Fred & Wilma but my kids don't know the difference! :)

I made all of the costumes (without sewing!) and plan on doing a DIY post on that one of these days, but for now I just wanted to show off our costumes, I think we all turned out looking pretty good if I do say so myself! :)

Then of course, I had to show off how it really goes down trying to take pics of these 2 :)  

Cheesy Quinoa Bake with Broccoli

I love love love quinoa.  This is a household favorite recipe, except for the hubs, he likes it, but it's not one of his faves.  He likes his meals more hearty.

I like that this meal is healthy, easy and kid friendly.  Both of my kids really love this and when that happens it's close to a miracle!

I adapted this recipe from here but changed quite a few things and worked with what I had and didn't use chicken.

Ingredients Needed:

• 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
• 1 cup broccoli (fresh or frozen works) 
• 3 tbsp of butter
• 3 tbsp of flour
• 1 cup of milk
• 6 oz of cheese
• Salt & pepper to taste
• Garlic powder
• Dash of crushed red pepper flakes

Preheat oven to 400*

Cook your qunioa while making the cheese sauce.  To make the cheese sauce, melt the butter in a skillet, add the flour, garlic powder, and crushed red pepper and whisk together for 2 minutes.  Slowly add milk and let simmer for about 5 minutes or until it starts to thicken.  Meanwhile I like to cook my broccoli in water either in the microwave or in a small skillet on the stove.  Once the sauce has thickened add the cheese, mix good.  Toss in the broccoli and your cooked quinoa and transfer to a baking dish.

Bake for 20 minutes uncovered.  

This dish is so yummy and I didn't lie, even my kids love it!

Brayden's First Filed Trip!

I am just getting around to it now to post about Brayden's first preschool field trip.  It was a few weeks and I made sure to take off work to go.  We went to our local nature center and went on a nature walk :) I was excited to meet all of these little friends Brayden always talks about.  It took him a little while to warm up to everyone, (mainly I think because I was there) but he soon was running off with his classmates, leaving the hubs and I (and Ella) by ourselves :)

I still cannot believe I have a kid old enough to be going on school field trips.  Where did my handsome little baby boy go?! He is now a young little man who is growing up too fast for this Mama.

It makes me so happy seeing him have so much fun! First field trip was a success! :)

Halloween PJ's!

I'm linking up with Darci and Meredith  for the Halloween PJ Link Up Party, I tried to get cute shots of my kiddos and boy was it hard! A 13 month who doesn't still still and a 3 year old who is too cool for pics. Thankfully Daddy helped out and ran around the living room like a crazy person in order for them to smile.  I wish I got some more but this was the best of them all, maybe I'll try again this weekend!

My 2 adorable cutie pies!! Love them so much!

Ella in her Hello Kitty Halloween pj's and Brayden has some cute ones that say Blame it on the Sugar, Brayden has seriously lived in his Halloween pj's this whole month, mainly because they're one of the only pairs we have that are long sleeve and long pants that fit him - time to get this kid some new pj's!

Don't Break the Ice!!

I just love that my little boy is at an age where we can play actual board games or other fun games.  

Anyone else remember Don't Break the Ice?? I do and it's pretty cool to watch my own child play a game I once played.  Brayden really loves this game and is so funny when we play.

Every time we play, he grabs the instructions and says "How do we play, Let me see the structions!"

I just love this little boy SO much!