Birthdays and Updates

Yesterday was my birthday....

I am now past my Quarter of a CENTURY mark!

...boy do I feel old....

but the day was perfect, spent with the two people I love and care about the most!

These two....

I just love 'em!!

We went into "town" [AKA Honolulu].

We ate....

Went shopping.......

{Koi fish at the mall}

got lost in the city...

(not so fun)

Ate some more....

and had a Blast!

It was a fabulous day :D

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On another birthday note, my little boy turned 18 months on Monday!

Officially, a year and a half.

Nursery-going age.

And definitely not a baby anymore.

Noa's latest developments and new tricks:

His weight - still small - 22.5 lbs

＊He runs super fast!

＊He can say "buh-bye" instead of just waving [AND says "see ya!" - didn't ever teach him that...]

＊He can go get a diaper when you ask him to, and throws it away in the trash when you are done

＊He says "done!" when finished doing/eating something

＊He is getting pickier and more demanding, and he knows exactly what he wants

＊He can throw a ball and "shoot" a basketball

＊He can say surfboard - sounds more like "Po-bord" - and can "paddle" on Daddy's board

＊When he sees pictures of things he knows, he calls it out: example - fish, cars, surfboard, beach...

＊He "tickles" you

＊いたいのいたいの飛んでけ！ [when he gets hurt, he does this thing where he throws the ouchy away...so cute! It also lets him forget the pain :D]

＊He says "mine" but I'm not sure if he knows what it means...

 ＊He can fake cry -  usually when he doesn't get something he wants

It's so fun to see him grow and develop new skills!

He will always be a little baby to me tho!!

Love you baby!! xoxo Mommy

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＊PS a little shout out to ALL the February birthdays out there＊

especially to.....

My sister - Yoko, my dad, and my mom!!!!

Love you and miss you tons!

Weekend + choc cookie sandwich recipe!

On Saturday I had an engagement shoot with this cute couple...

I seriously had a blast! Stay tuned for more from this fun shoot!

And today, we had dinner with some friends. It was so much fun!

I was in charge of making dessert....and this is what I made:

Oreo cookie sandwiches (at least that's what I'm calling it...)

They were a hit!! :D

And its super easy!!

here's how you can make your own:

Oreo Cookie Sandwich

Cookies:

1 box of chocolate cake mix

2 eggs

1 stick of butter (room temp)

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup chocolate chips (optional)

• Cream butter, eggs and vanilla together in a bowl. Add oil and cake mix, and mix until smooth. Add chocolate chips if desired.
• Spoon about a 1-1.5 inch ball of cookie dough onto baking sheet 2 inches apart. (it helps if you have a small, 1.5 inch, ice cream scoop for this to make the dough even size and shape)
• Bake in preheated 350F oven for 8-10 minutes. Cool on baking sheet before removing.

Frosting:

1 (8 oz) box of cream cheese (softened)

1 stick of butter (softened)

1 tsp vanilla

1 lb powdered sugar

[I ran out of powdered sugar, so I only used about 1/2-3/4 lb, and it was still super sweet and yummy!]

• Cream butter and cream cheese together in a med size bowl. Add the vanilla, then slowly stir in powdered sugar.
• Spoon a small amount of the frosting mixture onto one cookie, 1-2 Tbsp, then squish it down with another cookie until frosting is flush with the edge of cookies.

And of course, ENJOY!

♥ Happy Valentine's Day ♥

This morning I woke up to this.....

My sneaky boys woke up extra early to make sure that this was a complete surprise!

...and it totally was :D

A handmade card....made with love and filled with sweet messages....

and the best gift of all...

sweet kisses from my little boy ♥

 In return, Chad came home to this yummy goodness....

OK, ready for this??....They are White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Magic Bars from Baking Bites!

YUM-O

Hubby's favorite treats include anything with white chocolate, condensed milk, and/or coconut....so this was THE PERFECT dessert! - really, it's so good!

Here is the recipe:

1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup quick-cooking oatmeal
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup roasted, salted macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped
1 cup shredded coconut, sweetened or unsweetened
1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk

 Preheat oven to 350F.

• Mix together graham cracker crumbs, oatmeal, and melted butter; Press into even layer in a lightly greased 8x8 baking pan.
• Layer evenly in the following order: first the white chocolate chips, then macadamia nuts, followed by coconut, and topped off with condensed milk (pour evenly over everything).
• Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until coconut is golden brown.
• Cool completely before cutting.
  
  *Makes 16-20 bars*

 

 

I hope that everyone had a fabulous Valentine's Day!!!

♥  ♥  ♥  ♥  ♥

Sweet Tooth doesn't have to = Sugar High

Since getting an oven (yipee!) I've been in the mood to BAKE!
Which is of course a good thing...right?

When I bake, it makes me happy and I feel like a good housewife, doing what housewives should be doing....BUT it also allows for a lot of temptation in the kitchen and a husband that ends up eating 50+% of the finished goods. 

MODERATION is key.

I have a huge list of yummy recipes I've been dying to try, but I am resisting the urge to try them all in one day, or even one week...and spread them out throughout the monthS to come, and maybe even share the goodies with others - in turn making me a good neighbor too :D

The next treat on my list is a secret {to be revealed later, like Valentine's Day...}

but here are the other recipes that I plan on making in the near future...
feel free to try them and share how they turn out for you!!

• Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie - um yes, please!
• Clone of a Cinnabon - I have been CRAVING these for-EVER
• Samoas Cupcakes
• Red Velvet Sandwich Cookies (super easy!)
• Or the more complicated Red Velvet Cake from scratch - still trying to decide which one I want to make more...
• Chocolate Crackles - a re-try...because I failed so miserably last time I tried to make these....
• Chocolate Truffles - minus the Grand marnier and coffee

....and the list goes on.....No really, it does!

Here's one that I checked off my list last week:

Lemon Bars

Lemon Bars
(family recipe)

Crust:
1 cup butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups flour

Filling:
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1 2/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup lemon juice

Preheat oven 350F

1. Cream butter and powdered sugar together. Add salt and flour, mix well.
2. Pat crust into 9x13 greased baking dish and Bake for 15-20 minutes.
3. Mix eggs and sugar until pale yellow. Slowly add dry ingredients. Add lemon juice.
4. Pour mixture over hot crust. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until top is golden brown.
   *Cool before serving. Sprinkle with powdered sugar* 

ENJOY! :D

Sweet

Noa decorated his first valentine's cookie

 it was so sweet.

 we decided to surprised Daddy with it when he came home from school...

and he loved it!

there were kisses and hugs flying all over

and the cookie....

was gone in a flash!

Happy Valentine's Day!

L.O.V.E.

February is one of my favorite months of the whole year. 

I LOVE it!

It's a month of birthdays (4 in my family - including mine)
Come to think of it, Noa's half-birthday too...

A month of sweet treats and lots of hugs & kisses.

It's a month of LOVE, of course!
and everything else that comes with it...chocolate....flowers..........

Here are a few Valentine's Day ideas that I am loving right now...
{P.S. These are all DIY-(do-it-yourself)-able, so go ahead, make some for yourself!! I know I will}
 

Naturally Sweet - a DIY Valentine from Twig & Thistle
(there are more stickers for oranges, pears, berries, passion fruit...SO FUN!)

for your honey's Valentine's Day breakfast, how about some

Samoa Scones - YUUUUMMY - my favorite Girl Scout cookie in scone form.
get the recipe at Baking Bites

 Valentine's wreaths:

The heart felt wreath from The Idea Room
 
and finally...

the paper rose heart from DIY dish

...Which leads me back to the photo at the beginning of this post....

I finished my paper rose project!!! YAY!
And it looks fabulous, if I do say so myself ;)

And SwEEt Husband took this glass vase

and spray painted it to make this faux-porcelain vase

Which goes SO much better in our apartment.
isn't he the sweetest? I LoVE him.....


And the final product.....

I also L.O.V.E.