Tiny Triumphs 8!

What a week! I am late again. I just could not find the energy yesterday to do this. So while I am trying to think of something witty to say here let's get on with the Triumphs! Plus, the way that I am feeling it could take a very long time!

1. The boys started kid yoga this week! They both seem to like it! We shall see how the rest of the weeks go. Maybe I will even sneak in and take some pictures!

2. I have been working out!

3. Jared has also been working out!

4. Kellen is doing well in school and with his horn. He amazes me everyday!

Have a good week!

Fun In the Pool

We spent the weekend in South Beloit with Nana, Papa, Lexi, and James. We all stayed in a hotel with a pool. It was a nice pool and everyone had a wonderful time. We were all tired when we got home but it was a good tired. We just were not impressed with the 8 inches of snow in our driveway.We had to spend some time outside the pool for a bit. The pool was closed because of an accident. So we played some air hockey. Kellen above is ready to go
Getting a little more serious now.
An action shot of Ethan
Lexi being goofy
Papa playing
Lexi playing
Ethan gave Lexi "swimming lessons" while we were there
Papa playing with the three boys. The game was to try to squirt water up the other person's nose. Sounds like fun doesn't it?
Ethan on Papa
Splash fight!!!
Papa using Ethan for a shield.
Kellen jumping
Up close Kellen. His eyes are looking kind of bad. But that is what happens when you hit the water with your face repeatedly.
Lexi relaxing after a long day at the pool
Ethan deep in thought
Kellen relaxing after a long day
James almost asleep
Ethan jumping in. This was his cat jump.
Monkey jump
Ethan swimming

No Baby Seals Were Harmed In The Making Of Your Chap Stick!

I thought that this was super funny so I had to share!


Ethan was reading a Chap Stick cap and it says "Twist Cap To Break Seal" Ethan then says "I don't want to break any baby seals!"

Where he came up with that I am not sure? But I laughed so hard!

Have a good day!

Oreo Cake

I broke out my cake decorating tools again today. They had been put away since Christmas. I have not had any real need lately. I had a great time doing this one. I also tried some new things. Let me know what you think.The bottom half of my cake. The white frosting is a dam to hold all the filling in the cake when I put the other half on top. The filling was something that I tried for the first time. It is chocolate ganache. Which is just chocolate and cream blended together. I then added some cut up peanut butter cups in it. Let me tell you it is good.
The top half on the bottom
Frosting is on now I have to smooth it down
Smooth
Stuck some Oreo minis on the cake after I did the borders. Gave them eyes as I am sure you can see.
The finished cake
I need to get this guy to stop eating the cake.

Kellen's Bird!

No! Not that kind of bird! The kind of bird that Kellen painted! He came home and showed me this beautiful bird! I love it. He did so well. His teacher told him to keep this as she loves it. She also told him to sign up for advanced art next year.

Tiny Triumphs 7!

I am short on creativity today. I feel like my brain has been drained. So I will just get right down to it.

1. Ethan moved up to the Guppy group for swimming!

2. Kellen moved out of the Guppies and into the Minnows! My boys are getting to be good swimmers!

3. I have lost another .4 pound. Well, at least I did not gain.

4. The new bed is in! We are still getting used to it. So by next week I want to be sleeping like a baby!

Have a good week! We are going down halfway to meet up with my Dad and Ann for Christmas! We do Christmas in February because that is the way we roll!

Yummy!

I know that I don't usually cook but when I do I have some good results. Like tonight, I made Balsamic Glazed Brussels Sprouts. Jared and I liked them but alas the boys did not like them. So we will be having them often for the adults. I also have NEVER made or tried a brussels sprout before. So I have to say that these are a good start.Look how good they look. There are onions, water chestnuts, and of course brussels sprouts in there.

If anyone wants the recipe let me know and I will e-mail it to you. It is a Weight Watchers Point Plus recipe.

Tiny Is Usually Cuter!

Last night I started to make mini donuts for the boys to bring to school for Valentine's Day! I made 100+ of them. You all know I am crazy, right? I used a pastry bag to fill the wells of the pan. See that yellow bowl? My grandma used to use it to make me cookies! I love that bowl!
A pan fresh out of the oven
The pan that I used! I bought two of these pans so I could make 24 at once. I used the recipe on the back of the wrapper. I also used the glaze recipe too!
This is what 100+ mini donuts look like cooling.
These babies are glazed and sprinkled! Don't they look cute? Mom, did you notice the plate?
Close up
Ready to go to school!

Internet Security.............................

Internet security in our house is very different than most people have. Most people have Norton or McAffe, we have Lily! She will attack any virus that looks like a mouse. She is very protective of the computers in the Teche house. This is Lily at about seven weeks old. As you can see she is a force to be reckoned with.
This is Lily at just over a year and a half. She is still protecting the family's computers!

Look at how much she has grown!!!!

Tiny Triumphs 6!

Well, it has been a great week! It is so cold out here that your boogers freeze when you step outside and take the first breath. But it was a good week!

1. I have lost 4.4 pounds! Weight Watchers is a bit easier to follow now that I can eat all the fruit and vegetables I want!

2. Our bed would not fit up the stairs :( We had to send it back. But we have now made the doorway taller and the bed is coming in on Tuesday! So only five more nights on the mattress that we have now!

3. Kellen has been doing all the laundry in the house! I love it! I still sort it and put most of it away but he does the hard work!

4. Ethan folds and puts away the towels! He does a good job! He even does pillowcases!

Have a wonderful week!

Story Time 3!

This week, for some reason we have not been reading as much as I would like. I am going to fix that as soon as I can. I am going to get the timers back out and enforce them. So let's get on with what we are reading!

Ethan is still reading the Dragon of the Red Dawn by Mary Pope Osborne. He says that it is really good but he seems to be loosing interest. I am not sure what to do. I am thinking that I will read some to him to get him going with it again.
Kellen just started The Story of Robin Hood retold by Robert Leeson. He just finished the one about King Arthur. He said that it was a REALLY good book. He said that he can't wait to read about Robin Hood.
Jared is still reading Lucifer's Hammer by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle.
April just started a new one. Bones of Faerie by Janni Lee Simner. It was written for teens but I love it. So far I hate to put it down. It is about a girl who was born after the Faerie war. It was against the Faeries and the humans. I actually got it in hopes that Kellen would read it but he said no. So I started it!

I finished The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo! I have to say that I am glad that I kept plugging along at it. It was a wonderful book! I think I fell in love with Salander! I think that I want to be like her. She takes nothing from nobody. Next up for me is The Girl Who Played With Fire.

Way To Go Packers!!!!!

WOW! What a game! There were a few tense moments there but they did it!!! Way to go Pack!!! We went to a party at the Siebel house! We had a blast! Thanks for the great food and fun guys!!!

100th Day of School!

Today Ethan's class celebrated the 100th day of school! The kids all were asked to wear 100 of something. Ethan and I brainstormed and came up with what he wore today. The 100 eye shirt. Ethan showing off the front of his shirt
100 eyes are watching you. Now, try and picture me singing Hall & Oates Private Eyes all week with 100 eyes instead of Private Eyes. Now, tell me the truth, are you now singing it with 100 eyes? I can't get the song out of my head. Click on the link above if you need help getting the song in your head.
The back of the shirt.

I went on a field trip with Ethan's class today. I was amazed with what the kids came up with. One wore 100 pieces of candy pinned to his shirt, one girl had 100 polka dots all over her, 100 pieces of tape, and 100 band aids. I was just blown away!

Tiny Triumphs 5!

It is that time of the week again. I am also on time for once! It has been a cold week up here. We missed the snow that came through to the south of us. So that was good. The boys wished we were back in Fort so they could have a snow day too. We have not had a snow or cold day yet!

1. I went back to Weight Watchers and am now all geared up to start again!

2. Our new bed is being delivered tomorrow! I can't wait! A mattress on the ground is not a bed for an adult!

3. Kellen did a project on the Utah salt flats and the racing that is done there! It turned out really well!

4. Ethan's 100th day of school is today! We are walking to a tiny grocery store as a tiny field trip. They are learning about different places in their cities. We have been to a bank. The big grocery store trip was canceled because of the cold. :(

Have a great week!

Story Time 2!

Once upon a time.....the Teche family read some books! We are trying to get more into reading as a family. So last night after a trip to the library we sat and read for an hour. Each of us reading our own book. Now, Ethan has trouble but he seems to be doing well. He just takes his time and is loving the Magic Tree House books! The only thing is I can't pick out any books for either of the boys because if I say they are good the boys won't read them. So I am keeping my opinions to myself.April is still reading The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. It is hard for me to get into. I am now on page 100ish and am finally at the point where I hate to put it down.
Jared is still reading Lucifer's Hammer by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. He read this as a child but is finding this harder to read now.
Kellen is reading The Story of King Arthur as Retold by Robin Lister. He just started it yesterday so I don't know how he is liking it. He took it to school so I take that as a good sign.
Ethan is reading Magic Tree House, Dragon of the Red Dawn by Mary Pope Osborne. He said that he is liking it a lot. As I said above he is trying to read this on his own so it should be good to see how he likes it when he is done!

Happy Reading!