Life of Larisa or LOL

With a lame foot and a baby who is the opposite, I need recipes that are quick and easy, but still have a WOW factor. Enter Pinterest. On Wednesday I tried the recipe that I am calling the triple threat.  I followed the three step recipe for an end result that wowed me and the hubby's coworkers. Step one: place chocolate chip cookie dough in the bottom of the cupcake pan. Step 2: place Reese's Peanut Butter cup on top of cookie dough.  Step 3: place brownie mix on top of cookie dough and peanut butter cup.  Bake at 350 for 18 minutes.  Run marathon everyday for a week to work off the fat.

New mantra? New pit stop... New teeth... New favorite... New flavor... New friends... New (to me) show...Curb Your Enthusiasm. Larry David is a genius who has made another t.v. show about nothing and everything all at once. Isom has been taking both boys for daily afternoon walks. I get an entire hour all to myself. And sometimes I choose to sit down and watch hilarity unfold in half hour episodes on my iPad via HBOGO (two of my new addictions).

...not the season. The embarrassing and traumatic event of last week Thursday. I am not known to be the most graceful of my friends and family but I can usually do a good job walking a straight line. And I did take dance for a lot of years growing up. So, I'm going to blame the series of unfortunate events on the parking gods. They were not on my side at 1:50 p.m. last Thursday. As many of us stay at home moms do, I have a schedule. It may seem chaotic to those not in the know, but for Baby Z and me, it works. Until it doesn't. As part of our new routine, Thursday we hosted a new hui group at our house. Great gals and babies. We chit chatted, ate (of course), and enjoyed the company of other moms and babies. It was a hum out loud kind of day. Until it wasn't. We hopped in the car to pick up big brother and that was the last I'll be hopping for awhile. It was just starting to rain and the asphalt was wet. And my usual parking spot in front of the school...

...or as I like to think of them, Cinnabon, book, and CD Tuesdays. A little something for Zach in the morning and a little something for me after. Zach, being the "advanced" baby that he is, has moved up to level two of Gymboree Play and Learn classes. (We've got the Harvard application all filled out.) We enjoy spending one morning a week with other babies in a space that is virtually worry free...at least for 45 minutes anyway. He can crawl, pull up, wander away without me worrying for his safety every second. The padded mats and toys geared for developing babies is a welcomed break from our hard wood floors, glass front entertainment center, shelves of books...in other words, we have not baby proofed. After our Tuesday morning class and free play it is now our tradition to follow it up with a pit stop at the mall...how can I not when it is literally feet away?! First we pop into Book Off to see what's new. This week I scored with an old favorite Pearl Jam...

Two weeks have passed and I'm finally getting around to posting the last several pictures from the March Photo Challenge. It's been challenging to keep up with Zach (Gabe too for that matter), let alone blog. But here's something! I contemplated participating in yet another April Photo Challenge, but maybe I can do that when I actually have the ability to sit down at the computer for more than five minutes. Day 26: Key ...Key to my heart enjoying his keys. Day 27: My Name ...it's not "lights", but it's something... Day 28: Trash ...this big box to our newest kitchen appliance went to the trash... Day 29: Feet ...one of my all time favorite shows... Day 30: Toy ...Zach's newest and favorite-est... Day 31: Where I Relax ...wherever this cutie is...

The time is really flying by. It's hard to believe we have two boys now. And I'm not even in the loony bin yet. Zach is a happy guy despite the bumps and bruises that come with starting to stand, crawl, sit up, and pull up. He is an active guy. Our time at home is spent discovering things. What the couch looks and feels like. (It's my favorite place to relax). What is the screen door made of? Wow, this grass in the backyard is cool. What's that momma is eating? (A dessert) What's that square electronic box that music comes out of and momma won't let me touch? (iPhone) What's that momma's drinking? (Starbucks)...so you see I'm busy sharing the finer things in life with him. Most recently, Zach has hit a couple of big milestones. His first two teeth popped through. Boy are they cute! Boy was he mad. Zach has also discovered that he can pull himself up to standing. We've got some work to do around the house to make things Zach frie...

Majors March Madness consists of "Eat the Street", a new tooth, Lucky Charms and green milk for breakfast, four leaf clovers, and the beginning stages of crawling and pulling up to stand. Here's the past few pictures from my Photo Madness Challenge as a glimpse into the life of the Majors in March... Day 16: Sunglasses ...he wears my sunglasses at night...and during the day when he is shielding his eyes from burning holes in leaves in the backyard with a magnifying glass! Day 17: Green ...on St. Patrick's Day Isom found me a lucky four leaf clover. Perfect. Day 18: A Corner of my Home ...music corner. Everyone needs one. Day 19: Funny ...the old Larisa. Please, LOL here. Day 20: Before/After ...these cartons amazingly turn into ICE CREAM! Day 21: Delicious ...I made whoopie pies in my new muffin top pan. Day 22: Kitchen Sink ...I carry everything but in my purse day to day. Day 23: Moon ...my latest purchase from Goodnight Moon holds the diapers that co...

Five more days of photo madness... Day 11: Someone I Talked To Today ...the lovely Isom Day 12: Fork ...Jumbo sized fork with jumbo sized marshmallows Day 13: A Sign ...my favorite kind Day 14: Clouds ...one nerdy computer cloud Day 15: Car ...well, a truck. A food truck. There needs to be a Starbucks car.

Two more days and two more photos. I thought halfway through the second month I might get bored, but it has been just as fun as ever. Throwing in a few retro photos keeps things interesting. Day 9: Red ...the lady in red is my mom. Day 10: LOUD ...love to hear (and see) the sounds of a nice bottle of wine (or champagne) opening.

Day 8: Window ...one, it's a drive thru. Two, it's a Starbucks. Three, you can pay with your iPhone. Four, they give you caffeine...who knew windows were so fabulous.

Being a parent is full of ups and downs. Lately we have been experiencing the ups. Cue the "Rocky" theme music. We feel very lucky. Although I have complained many a time about the sassy mouth (it's genetic), the rambunctious nature (also genetic), and general silliness that is Gabe, I must say that he is excelling in third grade. This year Gabe has had a wonderful teacher that has helped him thrive academically. Each quarter, Gabe's school takes time to recognize students who have excelled or shown improvement in both academics and citizenship. Our Gabe was chosen by his teacher and peers as the third quarter citizenship award recipient. How proud are we?!

When I was pregnant with Zach I wanted Key Lime Pie. All. The. Time. In the past few days I have also been wanting Key Lime Pie. This is not code for the revelation of some secret. I'm not pregnant, just wanting the tastes of spring. I was going to make some Key Lime pie today. I was going to give in to the craving. And then, I baked cupcakes without frosting instead. It has been a spell since I baked muffins. Lemon poppy seed was a great way to spring back into muffin action. Since spring break starts tomorrow, I thought it would be nice to spring into the spirit of things with one of my favorite springtime treats. The house smelled fresh and my taste buds are happy...but I still may make some Key Lime Pie anyway.

My grandfather (my dads dad) passed away over the weekend. He had a heart attack which in turn caused the family heart ache. He lived a very full and long life though and no matter what anyone believes of the hereafter, I know he is in a better place. So, here I type a small tribute to a not small man. A father, a grandfather, a great grandfather, a husband, a brother, a jokester...John Edward Andrews you will be missed. Granddad and his youngest daughter Trina He always had time for family...from the youngest to the oldest of his nieces, nephews, and grand kids. Graduation day for my Uncle Joel. Yep. That's me and Trina. An oldie but goodie. My cousin Rico...bearing a strong resemblance to my kids! Granddad and Loretta Granddad and my aunt. Thanks to my cousin Rico for posting these photos which are memories.