San Clemente Beach Camping.

Hey Heather, you want to go to the beach? Me: Have we met?? Um... YES.

Ok, well it's beach camping.  Still interested? Um... YES.

Loved it.  

Oh, do we look like death? Why yes, we do.  

Maybe due to the 7.5 hour car ride to beach, then time to pitch tents and set up camp. Maybe.

This was wine o'clock.

 We tried really hard to keep them from getting too wet at this specific moment, we had only been at the campsite for less than an hour.  Did they listen or attempt to stay dry? Nope.  Scout took a complete roll in the water.  No, not that small amount of wetness you see below.  A FULL ROLL in the water where I had to run in (precious camera in tow!) and fish him out from rolling in the surf.  

My large one looked like this a lot.  I think he didn't feel good... He and I had a little cold on this trip, and camping + cold = no bueno.

 Kyle took these photos of our camp on the first night.  She's turning into quite my little protege and enjoys photography quite a bit! And her shots weren't too bad...

Also, a quick note about my fancy-pants camping food.  It's a waste.  My kids mainly ate hot dogs, ramen and fresh fruit (none of this brought or provided by me).  Next time I will save myself the hassle and trouble of packing yummy food and stick to college food.

love this face.

 Love, love, love all of these kids! They love each other, too, which is super nice...

First day of school, Last day of school.

sneakers are worn out, replaced, worn out, replaced.

teeth lost, inches grown, cuteness maintained.

Ice Chalk.

I did this project with my two smallest this weekend as Mike & Clay were on a boys only adventure weekend.  It was fun, quick and messy.  

Here's the how to:

Items needed:

.cornstarch (LOTS)

.water

.washable paint

.ice cube trays

How to:

.equal parts cornstarch to water (I used 1/2 c. each)

.2 T. washable paint

.mix them together, then pour into ice cube trays.

.freeze for a few hours, then PLAY!

Weekend Jam is back y'all! Of Monsters and Men - Lakehouse

I am obsessed with this song.  It just screams summer to me.  

Enjoy!

Bleach t-shirts, 4th of July style!

This one's an oldie but a goody.  

I've put it on the blog before, but thought I would re-post as this one is sponsored by Arcadia News.  

Items needed:

Side note: I got all of these items from the dollar store, 

making this a VERY inexpensive project!

.t-shirts 

(blue and pink were great choices, but certain colors - black, namely - don't "bleach" so well)

.one-time use spray bottle

.bleach

.clear contact paper

Directions:

.cut contact paper (unpeeled!) into desired shapes

.stick shapes onto t-shirt

.spray the stickers and immediate area around them with bleach 

(full strength, cheap-o clorox - not clorox clean up or the like).

note: don't go tooooo crazy with that bleach, notice how the pink shirt was sprayed less and the blue one was sprayed more? 

.immediately after spraying, wash on an express cycle (warm) stickers and all! 

.remove what's left of stickers after washing, then dry and enjoy!

Peach Clafoutis.

For Mike's birthday this year, we didn't have his usual peach pie. Instead, I tried my hand at a new-to-me recipe idea - a peach clafoutis.  I would describe it as a crust-less peach pie, but also more of a custard... It was delicious. I made it with our own eggs and my neighbor's fresh peaches.  I like to think that this makes a big difference?  

Hmmm - probably not but one can hope! 

Ingredients:

5 eggs

1/2 c. flour

1 c. plain greek yogurt

1 c. heavy cream

1/2 c. sugar

1 t. vanilla

1/4 t. salt

freshly sliced unpeeled peaches (I think I used 5)

confectioners' sugar for dusting

How to:

Preheat oven to 375.

Wisk together eggs and flour until well combined.  Add yogurt, cream, sugar, vanilla and salt.

Pour mixture into 3 quart baking dish, then scatter sliced peaches in a single layer.

Bake until mixture is set and edges are browned, about 35 minutes.

We served ours chilled and liberally dusted with confectioners' sugar.

ENJOY!

Canyon Lake, Arizona.

We went with a group of friends to Canyon Lake a few weekends ago.  The drive there is so amazingly beautiful, and we had a ton of fun on the water...

Kyle made a new friend, Taylor.  I've been friends with her mama for years and this was our first time getting the kids together.  They were fast friends...

What is Nery doing??

Tradition: