what's for dinner tonight {homemade focaccia bread}.

making bread is quickly becoming one of my favorite things.

for a while, i've been wanting to try making focaccia bread.  i absolutely love it.  yesterday i was browsing online when i came across this recipe.  i had most of the ingredients in my cupboard, and i was looking for a good bread to accompany the salads i was making for dinner.  i made a few substitutions, and it was super delish.  my girls would not stop eating it.  it was no problem at all for my family to polish off this entire batch very quickly.

this made for one yummy dinner.  cobb salad + focaccia?  two of my fav things in the whole world.  i was a happy girl.

here's the recipe, adapted from here.  it directs you to use a bread maker for the first five minutes, but i think a kitchenaid mixer with a dough hook would work great, too... or as always, you can use your good ole hands :)

homemade focaccia bread

* 1/2 c. warm water

* 1/2 c. milk

* 3 T. butter, softened

* 3 T. sugar

* 1 1/2 t. salt

* 1 1/2 c. whole wheat white flour

* 1 1/2 c. white flour (or bread flour)

* 2 1/4 t. (or one packet) active dry yeast

topping:

*  2 T. olive oil

* sprinkle: garlic powder, dried rosemary, grated parmesan cheese, course sea salt

- place bread ingredients in bread maker, and mix/knead for 5 minutes until a good dough consistency (may need to add a bit more water or flour).  

- once dough has formed, place on floured surface and cover with plastic wrap.  allow to sit for 15 minutes.

- after dough has rested, knead by hand for one minute.  roll out to 1/2-1/4 inch in thickness and placed on a greased cookie sheet.  

- cover and let rise for 30 minutes.

- using your fingers, press dimples in dough about an inch apart from one another.  

- brush dough with olive oil and sprinkle with toppings.  bake at 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

- allow bread to cool slightly before cutting into squares.  serve warm.

this is the perfect bread for summer to serve with salads or whatever is off your grill.  so, so, so delish.  seriously.  you're welcome.

this post was linked to these *lovely* blogs:

rain on a tin roof

home tour {emmy's nursery}.

i've posted on emmy's nursery before, but i have a new camera and changed a few things in her room, so i decided to post another little "tour".  and i wanted to include it on this "home tour" portion of my blog.  so... here;s another little look-sy.

i was a week before my due date--bulging belly and all--when i finished decorating emmy's nursery.  i had a vision in my mind of what i wanted for a while... but it took me months to get the gumption to complete it all. i can still remember standing on her rocking chair in the corner with my huge belly, hanging those blasted tissue poms from the ceiling.  i was really hoping the whole ordeal would put me into labor.  but alas, it did not.

i had so much fun with my sweet pea's room.  i went super girly (as you can see).  lots of pink with pops of turquoise.  ivory lace curtains, white furniture and plush cream bedding.  vintage and elegant.

reading corner

tissue pom cluster

frame wall

wall hangings i made with songs and scripture that are special to us

dresser and vintage sleeping baby print

one of my fav photos of emmy taken by a good (and very talented) friend of mine when she was a few months old

crystal lamp: one of my best target finds

absolutely love this print i bought from my favorite antique store

emmy's letters

crib

i bought this sweet little rose bathmat from anthro to use by her crib

my old baby blanket

love, love, love this handmade pillow accenting her crib.  so special.

a close up of the crib bedding: carter's soft dot bumper in ecru

pink and cream floral circo crib sheet from target

family heirloom table with pretty accents

another one of my favorite photos of my girl in pearls and  tulle

changing table

wall vases i first made for bella's nursery

and the princess herself, happy in her little abode

one of my favorite things about decorating my home is seeing a vision i have come to reality.  i also love (if you haven't noticed) incorporating touches of things that are special to us.  emmy's room is full of family heirlooms and things i loved when i was a little girl.  one of the songs my dad sang just hours before he went to be with the lord was "his eye is on the sparrow".  i have an excerpt of that song on the wall hanging i made especially for emmy's room.  "i sing because i'm happy, i sing because i'm free, his eye is on the sparrow and i know he watches me."  special words for my sweet little girl.

thanks for stopping by :)

this post is linked to these *lovely* blogs:

tatertots & jello

i should be mopping the floor
diy showoff
dimples and pigtales
the shabby nest
one artsy mama

dear emmy.

dear emmy,

i could kiss you and squeeze you every second of every day and it would still seem like it wasn't enough.  you are my loveable, squeezable, happy little girl and i just love you so much!

you are turning one in just a couple of weeks and i've been so weepy lately just thinking of it.  you are my baby, and i wish i could freeze time... you are so fun and cute in this stage right now.  daddy and i always talk about how hilarious you are.  you are just so funny!  you're always dancing, or using funny facial expressions or doing something crazy and giggling at yourself.  you are honestly the happiest little baby there ever was.  sometimes when i'm holding you, i just stare at your sweet little face, memorizing everything about you.  and i find myself tearing up because i just love you so much!

you have the cutest little giggle.  i want to always remember what it sounds like because i just love it.  at night before we put you to bed, we sit with you in the rocking chair and read to you.  the minute i get out a book, you let out that sweet little giggle.  so cute.  you also love it when i get you up in the morning and carry both you and bella in my arms, down the hall.  you laugh and laugh.  such a happy little girl, you are!

you are getting to the stage where your naughtiness is coming out!  you love playing in my curtains.  we have long curtain panels in our windows in the living room/dining room and your favorite thing to do is crawl over to them and get all tangled up in them.  and you KNOW you're not supposed to!  i tell you sternly "no" over and over and you'll still go back to those curtains and look back at me with the hugest, most devilish grin on your face!  you've also been doing this with bella... you already can tell just how to push her buttons!  you'll grab at her blankie when we're all laying in bed together on saturday mornings and she'll squawk and shriek because you bug her and you will just laugh and keep doing it over and over, just watching for her to react.  you remind me of your auntie when we were little girls and she was doing the same thing to me!

you crawl so fast.  seriously.  it's so funny.  and i can always hear you coming because you smack your little hands down on the floor so hard as you speed along.  you love getting up on one knee.  it's so cute.  we find you like this alot.  and sometimes you'll get up on both knees and just bounce up and down wildly.  you've pulled up a few times, but daddy and i have missed it!  we're working with you on doing it more, but you just don't seem interested.  you also have perfected the downward dog yoga move.  but i don't think you'll be walking any time soon!

i love going in your room after you've just woken up.  you're usually sitting there, bunny blanket in one hand, your thumb in your mouth, just staring at me.  it's so cute.  lately you've gotten to where you'll get up on your knees and hold onto the bars of your crib, peeking your face between them like you're in jail, just waiting for us to come rescue you :)

you love giving kisses. you'll lean in and smack your lips loudly; it's my favorite.  you also love waving; if i say "bye bye, emmy!" you'll start this "double wave" thing, opening and closing fingers on both hands back and forth.  it's awesome.  you say "dada", "mama" and "more" and love to jibber jabber on and on with this serious look on your face like we know exactly what you're saying.

your appetite is never ending.  and you get SO MAD if you see me giving bella food before you!  you scream and cry until food is infront of you!  you love fruit, i think bananas are your favorite.  you love cheese,   mac&cheese, bread and if i tear pieces of turkey onto your tray it's gone within seconds.  you are a very good eater and you've also started drinking milk.  yay!  no more formula.  you LOVE sippy cups and also get very upset if i give one to bella before i'm able to get yours ready.  funny girl.

i love it when we get you out of the bathtub.  your hair curls right up into ringlets and i let it air dry, although it never stays curly.  everyone always comments on how thick your hair is; it looks like you have a cute little pixie cut.  everyone also always comments on how happy and content you are.  we went on a little getaway to portland last weekend with meme, auntie, uncle brian and jude and lucy.  you were awesome.  you slept in the car, played and entertained yourself and went on a shopping trip to the mall and sat happily in your stroller with lucy for a couple of hours.  you are just such a good little girl.  even now as i write this, you have been in your crib for the last hour trying to go to sleep.  you're talking and laughing and making all these noises to yourself.

i love you so very much, my sweet ems.  you are such a precious gift to us and i can't even imagine a better little baby girl.  i wish i could freeze time, but i also know that i can't keep you a baby forever.  you have a whole, beautiful life ahead of you to live and i can't wait to see what woman you will turn in to.  god has great plans for your life, little girl.  can't wait to see what they are.

love you to the moon and back (and back again),
mama

dear bella.

dear bella,

sometimes i feel like my heart is going to burst from loving you so much.  you are honestly one of the sweetest little girls i've ever known.  honestly.  i'm not just saying that because you're my daughter.  your heart is just so precious.

tonight, i got home a little later than normal.  you jumped into my arms and squeezed around my neck and said "mama, i yuv you so much.  i'm so glad you came home."  best welcome home there ever was.  you also went over to emmy and wrapped your arm around her and pulled her in until you were cheek to cheek.  you said "i yuv you, emmy.  i'm so glad you're my sister."  i got a little teary.  you are just so sensitive and empathetic toward others and i hope that never changes.  daddy and i want to do everything we can to nurture that part of you because it is one of the greatest qualities i think a person can have.

you also are very sensitive to spiritual things, which makes me so proud.  the other day aunt holly came to watch you and she was having trouble with something and told you she couldn't figure it out.  you told her "it's okay, aunt holly.  jesus will help you.  he died on the cross and rose again!"  oh.my.word.  just adorable.  you love praying every night and you always remember to pray for people who are sick or in the hospital.  it's just so cute and i know it must be music to god's ears.  you have a bible story dvd that we watch many nights after bath, before bedtime.  you have some of the stories memorized.  the other night as we were watching the story of ruth, i heard you murmur "where you go, i will go.  your people will be my people, your god will be my god."  your favorite stories right now are sampson, hannah and esther.

you also never meet a stranger.  i love that about you, too!  i tell you all the time one of my favorite things about you is how friendly you are.  we were at target the other day and we ran  into a mama pushing her three children in a shopping cart.  immediately, you perked right up.  "oh, hi guys!  i'm bella!"  and then, later in the checkout line you spotted another cartload of kids in the aisle next to us and said the same thing.  the cashier asked me if you knew them.  i told her no, that you just make friends every where you go :)  you wave, say hi and introduce yourself to everyone.  you get so proud of yourself and tell me "i was sayin hi to all the people, mom!"

this weekend we went for a little getaway to portland with meme, auntie, uncle brian and jude and lucy.  you were SO excited to go stay in a hotel you kept asking and asking when we were leaving for our trip.  mama, auntie and meme took the baby girls to a shower we went to saturday afternoon and you and jude stayed with daddy and uncle brian.  you were SO excited to go "swimming".  daddy quickly learned that "swimming" for you means playing on the ladder of the pool and sitting on the side with your feet dangling in. on sunday, you and jude wanted to take another trip to the pool so we took you down for a "swim".  it was crowded with middle school girls.  you kept escaping to the hot tub and sitting amongst the girls, like you were one of them.  you'd try to talk to them and be in on their conversations.  i went to get you to bring you back over to the pool area and you said "mom, can you just go back over there, please?"  so funny.  you are 3 going on 13 sometimes.  and when we left, you waved and said goodbye the entire way to the door.  i just love your confidence around other people, even those older than you.

you are also so grateful.  you thank me for everything!  "thanks for taking me to target, mom."  or "thanks for making me this sandwich, mom."  it's so cute and i just love how thankful you are.  not only to me, but to daddy and everyone in your life that gives you their time and attention or brings you gifts.

we have also been in a very challenging stage at times as well... for a couple of weeks you were throwing the HUGEST fits at naptime and bedtime.  it was so draining on me and daddy.  we tried everything, and nothing worked until we started ignoring you, let you cry/fight it out.  it took a couple of nights but once you learned we weren't giving in, you are back to going to bed easily, the way you always have.  i'm so thankful!  you are so very strong willed... i know i will be thankful you have this characteristic later on in life but in your almost-three-year-old little body, it's challenging to deal with at times!  you like to think you are in charge.  the other day i got very frustrated with you and yelled at you.  later, i was laying down next to you and said "bella, i'm sorry for yelling."  you began stroking the side of my face and said "it's okay, mama.  you just need to listen to me!"  i quickly reminded you that you needed to listen to ME.  but i don't think it's sunk in yet, because you've said that to me a few more times.  jesse is a family friend of ours that watches you and emmy a couple times a week.  you love her and have a very special relationship with her!  the other day as she was leaving, you excitedly exclaimed "bye, jesse!  thanks for listening to me and obeying!"  oh, dear.

we're also having some battles lately over clothes.  you want to wear dresses all the time, everywhere.  i let you wear your princess dress up clothes alll the time.  to the grocery, out to eat, at bedtime... but we've had some battles over wearing play clothes so you can get in the dirt, or saving nicer dresses for days we're not going to the park... you are such a combo of girly-girl and tomboy, i love it.  but.  i wasn't expecting to fight over clothes for a few more years...

i am seeing more and more lately just how smart you are.  of course i'm going to think you're brilliant since i'm your mama, but you really are so smart, bella!  the past couple of weeks, you've learned all of your letters.  i can't believe it, but you can recognize all of them and it just makes me so proud.  we're working on their sounds, but i love quizzing you on them because i am just amazed at how much you know.  your favorite show right now is "super why".  it's really taught you so much... i tried so many times to do letter flashcards with you, and the letter magnets on our fridge, but your attention span wouldn't last but seconds.  however, you will sit and watch "super why" and it totally teaches you!  so i really don't mind letting you watch a couple of episodes each day.  we use the show as rewards and incentives for you and it works really well!  you also love watching pbs kids in the morning while you eat your breakfast.

it's getting warmer, so we've been able to go to the park a few times this past week!  very exciting.  we've also been going on runs together as a family.  daddy pushes you and ems in the stroller and i run beside.  you haven't liked that much, since you want to be running with me.  you've been very, very attached to me these days.  when you were crying alot at night, the next morning you'd say "mama, i was crying about you."  when i asked you why you'd say "because i just wanted to lay down with you."  it breaks my heart and makes me happy all at the same time that you love spending time with me.  i hope you always will :)

you've also been eating SO much better!  we've been so proud of you.  some new things you've tried and really liked: chicken tiki masala and wonton soup!  i've been very pleasantly surprised.  you love rice cakes, pizza, mexican food and continue to be my bread girl.  the other night, aunt holly and uncle scott watched you and ems so daddy and i could go on a date.  they ordered pizza and you ate THREE whole pieces!!  i couldn't believe it.  you talked for days about how yummy that pizza was ;)  your favorite place is still the bagel shop downtown, and i think we owe you a trip there as a reward for going to bed so much better!

i just love you so much, my sweet girl.  you are my pride and joy and just one of the biggest blessings in my life.  i love watching you grow and experience the world, and most of all i love making memories with you.  i love who you are and am so proud of you.

love you to the moon and back (and back again),
mama

what i'm loving.

a few things i'm loving these days...

-  cut and seal sandwich cutter from pampered chef.  makes those almost-daily pb sandwiches a little bit more fun.

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-  college basketball.  final four this weekend... every year i get sad when it is over.
-  catalina mist spray paint by krylon.  i'm obsessed with this color and can't seem to find it anywhere, which makes me want it even more.

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-  vintage tablecloths.
-  grilling burgers with the mr.  doing it for our dinner tonight and i am so excited.  it's the little things.
-  these ikea planters.

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-  country living magazine.  especially whilst drinking a cup of coffee.  when the house is quiet.
-  emmy's oh-so-cute birthday dress.

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-  my newest shows: revenge and nashville.  love live tammy taylor.

-  barn lights.  and edison light bulbs.

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-  almonds roasted with sea salt.
-  super why.  bella's latest show obsession.  do i mind?  no way.  beats barney (what doesn't, really?  oh, beside the wiggles) and she now knows all of her letters.
-  katie daisy prints.  she is my fav artist and i am slowly collecting her prints around our home.  my sis just got me this one i've been wanting for our entryway.  she's the best.

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-  winter melting into spring.  love the reminder of *hope*.
-  planning my garden and flowerbeds... someday.
-  daffodils.

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-  groopdealz.com.  if you don't subscribe, you should.

-  this swimsuit for my 3 yr old bathing beauty.

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-  hangin at the park.  the best.
-  trader joe's tomato&basil hummus.  especially with their whole wheat pretzels.  delish.
-  my colorblock dress.  nick calls it my "hippie" dress.  i love it, though.

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-  side braids.  my hair is waaaaay too long these days, so i've been having to find creative ways to wear it back.  haircut coming soon.  can't.hardly.wait.

-  trader joes masala simmer sauce.  quick, tasty dinner and a pleasant surprise?  my kids love chicken tikki masala.  even better.

our easter in photos.

our easter in photos.

bunny cake from meme; i grew up with these every year

my first attempt at grammy's rolls... finished at 1 am on easter eve

easter baskets:
pajamas, shampoo, toothbrushes, sippy cup and hair bows for ems, stickers and undies for bel

ready for easter baskets!

baby girl's first easter

bel checking out the goods

bubbles and sippy cups!

my loves

bubbles!

brunch at our home church

handsome jude

easter love

egg hunting

basket full!

daddy and his baby girl

meme with ems and lulu

us

church.  family.  food.  

hope.

blessed easter.

multitude monday.

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624.  bella twirling around the living room, arms raised in a loop above her head.
625.  being on the same team as nick.  love walking through this life together.  love parenting our girls with him.
626.  daffodils.
627.  buttery homemade rolls, fresh from the oven.
628.  the sound of emmy's giggle.  especially when she's laughing with her sister.
629.  easter egg hunts in the front yard.
630.  longer, warmer days.
631.  the song of birds.
632.  the hope of a risen savior.
633.  two girls excitedly digging through easter baskets, exclaiming approval in delight.