chris.reese.girls1.2.3.4

With our family feeling the "crunch" at the grocery store, I've been trying to make small adjustments in some of my grocery planning and cooking to save a little money. One of which is making more things from scratch rather than partially homemade/partially prepared. Tonight was pizza----from scratch. I usually have dinner pretty close to being done by the time Chris comes home from work and this was one night where everything was on the table waiting and the kitchen prep was even cleaned up. We're sitting down to enjoy dinner and after a few bites this is our conversation: Charise: "So, how is it?" Chris: (shrug) "Well, it's alright." Charise: "Just alright?!" Chris: "Well, what do you expect...it's a $2 frozen pizza !" Charise: "NO...IT'S NOT!! I made this from scratch!! You know, yeast, flour, salt...I had to roll it out...I made homemade sauce!! I've been working in the kitchen for the last hour and a ha...

I've been trying to fit in a pedicure for the last month and never could fit it in with my husband's relatively busy evenings. My toes have not been touched for anything other than clipping since last fall. They are in serious need, but I just couldn't stand it anymore...Paige and I took to the paint last night and did them ourselves! They look decent...right?! At least they are painted, it's been eight long months since they've got to be pretty.

It has become a tradition for our family to spend Memorial Day weekend in Yakima with Chris' family and ski at the "lake" (aka the Columbia River at Vantage). I think it's running close to 6-7 years and each year is fun and enjoyable. Uncle Karl and Aunt Jana really outdid themselves in the food, boating, and fun this year. I've been pondering all week how to say "Thank You" enough...we had such a wonderful time!! Paige was so excited to get on Uncle Karl's boat she was wearing her new PINK lifejacket around the house the week prior. She even took a nap in it!! Saturday was a remarkable day at the beach despite crummy forecasts...only such a family as the Hendricks' will be up at 6am and headed to the lake by 7am despite the prospects of poor weather; and we lucked out with a gorgeous day. It just so happened to be Chris' 30th Birthday...YEAH!! He hit a major milestone with the 3-0, and we sang to him at the lake with cupcakes and Henry Weinh...

IT'S A GIRL!! We are thrilled to add another little girl to our family! I guess there is something to be said for a mother's intuition. ..I've been thinking it's a girl all along. All looked well and good on the ultrasound and we hope all things continue on course to bring us a healthy little baby girl over the next 4 ½ months (not that I’m counting!). We took Paige to the ultrasound thinking she would realize it was the baby we were looking at…but her comment was, “Look, mom! A kitty!!” I guess that plan failed. I’m just happy there will be very little prep to get ready. Paige was born in October so all of her old clothes are even in the appropriate season! We will just redecorate our spare bedroom and move Paige in there and leave the nursery as is…truly ready to go!

Chris does not typically care what I post on "our" blog. In my mind I like to think he is as enthralled with the blogosphere as I am, but really I know that's not true. But when our Jeep Grand Cherokee hit 100,000 miles over the weekend and Chris asked for the camera, I was surprised when he said, "You HAVE to blog about this!!" Apparently, this was a big deal for him and I'm happy to oblige. Our wonderful Jeep, which we purchased in the spring of 2003, has really been a great vehicle for us. We bought it with 30k miles and we've certainly racked up the miles over the last five years. We've had to put some money into repairs over the last few years, but I have LOVED this car so much and have not wanted to trade it in quite yet. Chris really wanted me to upgrade around Christmas-time, but I was not ready to depart with my lovely Jeep. So, cheers to our Jeep...and another 100k!! This is where the blessed event took place...rural Selah, WA. So memorab...

My tulips finally blossomed this year. They came out while I was in Utah and I'm glad they've hung around for a while for me to enjoy their beauty...and my work for planting them last fall. This is Paige and I on Mother's Day. Shouldn't the sun be shining on such an important day...?!

Here are pics from our trip to Utah...which was fabulous. The main reason for our visit was my younger sister's BYU graduation (Congrats to Camille!!). She is now officially a teacher and we're so thrilled for her. We had to wake up at 5am to get to her graduation on time...but the kids were troopers and it was fun to see her walk across the stage. Camille, the graduate!! We then headed straight to Pine Valley and my parent's cabin. We love the new remodel, especially now that there is room for all! The kids can run free because it's such a tiny little city (dirt roads...a few stop signs). All of the grandkids had to bathe every night because of the dirt. Paige did have some kind of reaction, which I think may have been the sun, and her poor face and chest were covered in an itchy rash for a few days...but that was the worst of it, thank goodness. We wish the weather had been better, but it was still HOT the day we headed to St. George for shopping and Cafe Rio. It ...

I decided to stay up late and create my pregnancy blog. This new blog is private, but I'm happy to open the blog to my regular readers if you happen to be interested. Please leave me a comment with your email address if you want to be granted permission. I decided I don't want strange men reading about the ins and outs of my pregnancy...it's kind of a girl thing...that's all. So, please...let me know!

So the guilt has officially set in as I finished off the box of donuts today. Once I did the actual math, the calorie count was quite staggering (which I won't share here). I'm letting go...and starting over, although the sad part is I won't be able to work off the weight I just added for another 4 1/2 months. Stupid carbs... P.S. I'm probably starting a Pregnancy blog in the coming days so that I can keep these random confessions (and other prego happenings) a little more private. I'll keep you posted on that if you're interested...

Tonight marks my first official pregnancy overindulgence simply because I could not control myself. I took a normal trip to Target this evening and I was very disciplined in sticking to my list, but I could not leave the Hostess aisle without picking something. I am soooo a sucker for donuts and pastries. After coming home, putting Paige to bed and hiding in my room to catch up on my Tivo shows since I've been gone for 11 days (I'll post pics soon), I devoured a severe amount of chocolate donettes . And I had been doing so well... At one point during said binge session, Paige snuck into my room and saw the vulgar snack being eaten on my gorgeous new WHITE sheets and asked for one. I told her they were for the baby...I think I'm going to hell for lying to my child! The sad part is I stashed the remainder in my nightstand...pretending I don't know they are there. I doubt I will be able to sleep tonight.