The Feeling of Freedom

 This girl is SO READY.

She's been practicing in parking lots since she was in 6th grade. 

Hours?

Oh. 

She's got her hours. 

And she passed with flying colors.

Prom Dress Morning

 This morning we went to the Prom Dress Event hosted by Joy Closet, our very favorite thrift store EVER. They receive so many prom dress donations, they save them up and right before prom season begins, they host this day. Every girl can come and select one dress, a pair of shoes, necklace and earrings FOR FREE. 

Isn't that the coolest idea??

I found myself a chair and set them loose. 

They each for two or three to try on and waited in the long line. 

Just about every mom I know showed up that morning. It was so fun to see the girls find a dress that made them feel beautiful. We all settled in to ooooh and ahhhh and hold the ones they were considering. 

My only worry was that one of them wouldn't find something and would leave empty handed. But what do you know!! They all found something they loved! Laney and Anna found two! And they were all so different. It was fun to see what they picked and I really enjoyed seeing how confident they were in their own styles. 

This calls for a fashion show. 

It was a fun and happy morning. And Everly can't wait to grow a few inches and go in a year or two!

Michelle's Cookies

 Don't forget this recipe. It's a winner.

Mini Chocolate Chip Cookies

1/2 cup butter

1/4 +2 Tbsp white sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

**mix till smooth

Add:

1 egg

healthy glug of vanilla

**mix until fluffy

1 1/2 cup flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

**gently mix dry ingredients together on top of the wet to save dishes. Then mix in with wet until combined

Mix in a bag of mini chocolate chips. The ratio will be about 1:1 for dough and chocolate. 

Scoop on to silpat and bake at 350 for 10 mins. DO NOT BAKE LONGER. They won't look done. Just trust the process. They will be so soft. Just take them out of the oven. Do it. Take them out. Please. 

10 minutes. 

Not 11. 

10.

These are practically burnt. I gave them 11 minutes and I hate myself for it. 

Everly the Twelve Year Old

She's a busy girl. We had to hustle to fit a birthday party into her schedule. On the 13th, I picked her up from play practice after school and fed her dinner in the car while we went to pick up her friends for a movie!

 

Last chance to see Wicked in the Theater! We drove to Merriam for the good seats. 

She was even busy on her birthday (Tuesday), so we had a late dinner after she got done with OTO.  (salisbury steak, mashed potatoes, dinner rolls and green beans). 

She didn't have time to decorate it herself, but she was all for lighting her own candles!

We got the far flung kids on the phone and sang our off-beat harmonies. I was so focused on holding the phone up for them to see, I accidentally sang " dear Laney" instead of "dear Everly". DoH! 

The Flynns were there to help make her feel special. Courtney always know just what kind of makeup she will like. 

Some of her gifts didn't arrive on time, so she got the classic printed out pictures in a card. She's excited to have new bedding that matches her walls. 

But her favorite gift was this galaxy projector for her room. It really is super cool. 

Sweet dreams, Everly! 

They Suffer Together

Let's face it, getting your wisdom teeth out is miserable. 

But misery does love company. 

 

Real Snow

It snowed....for REAL. The crazy snow-preppers are feeling so vindicated for buying ALL the groceries. Do people truly not already have enough food to keep them and their offspring alive for 48 hours? You don't have a can of soup and some oatmeal packets? Luckily I worked a shift at Hy-Vee the day before weather arrived. It was busier that Thanksgiving and Christmas combined. 

We declined to go out and shovel until it was done. Maybe a mistake, considering it took us an hour and a half to dig out the driveway. But it was the most delightful snow day. Church was cancelled and we made good food and watched movies. Absolutely worth the end of day shoveling workout. 

Our darling friend Faith invited us over to take part in her families sledding tradition. I am not well-known for my adventurousness or my willingness to be chilly, but even I went down a few times! It was super fun!

Laney was the dark horse and went down first and frequent. Everly got brave after Mark offered a "major award" for the brave ones. AJ refused to go down, so Mark and I expressed our indifference and went inside for cocoa. We've been around this parenting block before. 

What do you know? I looked out the window and spied her flying down the hill. By the time we left, she was getting a running start and leaping onto the sled face first. 

The perfect hill!