Thursday Evenings at the Pool

A few weeks ago, the girls started swimming lessons at a local indoor pool.
We wanted them to have lessons before summer started and our backyard pool is too cold right now, so we signed them up for group lessons at the indoor (heated) pool.
Kate has been asking for swimming lessons since last Fall, so she was ecstatic that she finally got to take them.

Anxiously waiting for their lesson to begin:

Claire's lesson was first. Because she isn't 3 yet, they require a parent to go in the pool with her.

My mom comes to the lessons to hang out with Kate while Claire & I have her lesson.
I was so impressed with how Claire did at the first lesson. They taught her how to hang from the side of the pool & use the edge to move along the side of the pool. And, she learned how to climb out on her own! I couldn't believe how strong Claire was & that she was able to do that.

Claire's favorite part is the water slide they have. She climbs up it & slides down into the water (I am there to catch her, but she goes all the way under water first)

Kate's lesson was right after Claire's. Kate was ecstatic that they had purple goggles:
Kate was beaming the entire lesson, she was so proud of herself.

I was a little nervous for Kate's lesson because I didn't know how she would do, she is very timid around the water. Even though we have a pool in our backyard, she gets nervous in the pool.

But, her teacher was awesome. She made Kate go underwater. Her approach was gentle, but effecitive. I was so impressed. All last summer, Kate refused to get her hair wet in the pool or go underwater, so the fact that she did this in her first lesson was a huge relief for me!

Waiting her turn to swim back across:

Each student got a pink ribbon at the end of class:

So proud of herself!

Because the girls did so well at their first lesson (and it was dinner time), Kevin & I took them to In-n-Out since it is right around the corner from the pool....and we have done this after every lesson so far!

The girls got In-n-Out hats to play with while they waited for our food.

I heart In-n-Out....YUM!

If you haven't had In-n-Out before, you are missing out.

We only eat fast food a few times a year, so this is a real treat!

Although, I think going to In-n-Out after swimming will be the tradition for the rest of the month, since we are only doing swimming lessons for the month of May! And, that also means one less night I have to cook dinner on a school night!

P.S. Be sure to check out some of the amazing Cupcake Recipes posted in my Cupcake Carnival.
The linky will be open for another week, so be sure to add your cupcake recipes!

How does your Garden grow?

One of our {many} backyard projects has been to re-vamp our side yard and put in a garden.

When we bought our house last May, the backyard was in rough shape. Really rough shape.
Kevin has been working so hard the past year getting our backyard taken care of.
Last summer was spent ripping out all the dead & overgrown plants.
This Spring we are planting new things & getting our backyard ready for summer.
Here is what the side yard looked like last May:

It was overgrown with weeds, rocks & plum trees (that didn't produce plums)
The area gets a lot of afternoon sun, so we knew it would be perfect for a garden!
Here is another view:
Kevin ripped out all the plum trees last summer & then a few weeks ago he built me 3 garden boxes (that are each 8 feet by 4 feet)
We still have some work to do around the perimeter of the garden
(finishing up weeding, laying ground cover, putting in a stepping stone pathway & planting an apple tree & lime tree)
Last week I got the garden planted!
Because it is our inaugural year for a garden, I planted TONS of veggies in hopes that some of them will produce! I went a little crazy!
Here are the contents for Garden Box #1:

Here is Garden Box #2:

{I have 2 of each of these tomato plants}

Garden Box #3

This box contains 5 Early Girl Tomato plants. Best tomato EVER.
I will be making ridiculous amounts of Caprese Salad with these tomatoes!

I can't wait for our plants to grow & produce home grown veggies!
I have always wanted a vegetable garden of my own.
Here's hoping I have a green thumb & not a black thumb!
Do you have a veggie garden? Any tips for this rookie gardener?

P.S. Be sure to check out some of the amazing Cupcake Recipes posted in my Cupcake Carnival.
The linky will be open for another week, so be sure to add your cupcake recipes!

Cupcake Carnival: Cookies & Cream Oreo Cupcakes

Welcome to the Cupcake Carnival!

Here is a new cupcake recipe that I tried out this week.
It actually took me 3 different attempts/combination's to get it just right.
And, the third time was a charm, these cupcakes are GOOD!

Cookies & Cream Oreo Cupcakes

Here is what you need!
For the cupcakes:
A box of white cake mix & a package of Double Stuff Oreos.

Directions:
Make cupcake batter according to package directions. Set aside.
Twist apart 24 Double Stuff Oreos.
Place the wafer with filling on it, filling side up, in the bottom of each paper liner.
(Set aside the other half of the 24 plain wafers....you will use them later for the frosting/garnish!)
I had 3 little helpers organize my Oreo's:
Then, with the remaining FULL Oreos in the package, put them in a ziplock bag & use a rolling pin to crush them up.
(I don't crush them up too finely, I like chunks of Oreo)
Fold in the Oreo pieces into the batter.
(I leave some of the finely crushed Oreo crumbs in the bag to use later as a garnish)

Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full & bake according to cake mix directions.
Once cooked, let fully cool before you add the frosting!
Now, for the frosting:
1 package of Cream Cheese (at room temperature)
1 stick of Butter (at room temperature)
4 cups Powdered Sugar
1/4 cup Whipping Cream (Milk will work if you don't have cream)
1 TBSP vanilla extract
24 Oreo halves (that you set aside earlier)

Mix together the cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, cream & vanilla with a hand mixer for about 2 minutes.
Frost each cupcake & then sprinkle on some of the Oreo crumbs as garnish.
Once you are about to serve the cupcakes, add the additional Oreo half!
Add the Oreo garnish right before serving (it can get soggy if you add it to early)
Look how fun these cupcakes are! The Oreo at the bottom is my favorite part!
These cupcakes were GOOD!
My Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes are still my favorite, but Kevin likes these Oreo ones better. They taste like Cookies & Cream Ice Cream!

Edited on 5.17.11 to add the recipe card!
(click on card to save & print!)

Now it's your turn to link up your cupcake recipe!
Use the linky below & remember to link to the specific post, not just your blog home.
Add a Cupcake Carnival Button to your post (found on my side bar)
It would be helpful if you included the cupcake name in the linky!

Thanks for joining in and be sure to check out all the other recipes!