tripp loves his step stool

peanut butter pie

this is some tasty dessert. i mean, real tasty. as in go and get the ingredients and make yourself some now.

Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Pie

Crust
1 (7.4 oz) package of chocolate chip muffin mix
4 tbsp butter, softened
1/3 cup salted peanuts, chopped

Filling
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 (3 oz) package of cream cheese
1/3 cup sugar
3 tbsp milk
2 cups frozen whipped topping, thawed

Topping
2 tbsp (or really however many you want) hot fudge topping, warmed

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350. Generously coat a 9 inch pie plate with cooking spray. Combine muffin mix, butter and peanuts in a large bowl. Blend with fork till crumbly. Press evenly into bottom and up sides of pie plate. Bake 13 to 15 mins or until set and light golden brown. If crust is slightly puffy, press down with back of wooden spoon. Cool.
2. Beat peanut butter, cream cheese and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium-high speed until smooth. Beat milk. Gently fold in whipped topping. Spoon into cookie crust. Drizzle warm hot fudge over pie. Chill 3 to 4 hours or until serving. Store covered in fridge.

my new desk

with my new found love for couponing, i was quickly noticing how the coupons were taking over our upstairs. there were always some on the dining room table, the kitchen counter, the sofa, even my dresser. so it was time to do something about that. i needed a desk and work area that was just for me. so on saturday, we headed out to target to get me a bulletin board, desk organizer, and a few other things. i just need to add some more pics to my bulletin board and i will be good to go!

tripp's very own step stool

a few cans of craft paint = $5
some wood = $10
a ragedy andy step stool made by your 85 year old great grandfather = priceless

climbing already!?!

i mean, you just started crawling a few weeks ago. does it already have to come to this?

patches

Tripp has a lot of nicknames, one of which is "Patches." We fondly call him this every afternoon when he is wearing his patch. But it looks like we will not be able to call him that for much longer! Today we had a great visit to the eye doctor to get the update on Tripp's eye. They could not even see it turning in anymore (which we confirmed-we haven't seen it turn in in a while). So he will wear his patch for one more month and then have two months of it off, then a check up after that to make sure it does not start turning in again. We are so thankful that the patching has really worked. Tripp even got to have a Spiderman sticker after his great appointment.

crawling!

Tripp's been crawling for over a week now- i can't believe i haven't posted about it till now! he's all over the place, into everything and having lots of fun. nelson and i are still adjusting to this new phase of life :)

life

right now, life feels really busy. well more than really busy, honestly probably more like overwhelming and sometimes i really don't think i can make it through one more crazy day. last night, after a long week of work and other busy life things, my heart actually ached to be able to spend time again at home with Tripp and Nelson. To be together without having to run around and do things. To just sit and enjoy each other. it's not like there is any one big thing going on that is stressing me out, i think that right now, there are lots of just little things going on that add up to sometimes be too much to even think about. but then there are a whole heck of a lot of wonderful things going on at the same time. and one of those wonderful things is that my mom decided to "donate" her cleaning lady to us this week. it's things like this that remind me that my love language is gifts. i almost cried when my mom said "Emily, why don't we see if Sheila can clean your house this week instead of mine?" it pretty much made the whole week better. and since we all know that i am such a good cleaner, we know that she barely had to do anything when she got here :). i guess there is not really any point to this post except to say that i think i have really been learning some lessons in relying completely on God's strength and not mine. so until next time, let's all just take a lesson from Tripp and enjoy a little extra peace in our lives:

9 Months Old

Today is Tripp's 9 month birthday. It is crazy to think he is already this old. I remember when my nephew turned 9 months and I thought that was unbelievable, now it's Tripp's turn and I really can't believe it. Anyway- he had a great visit at the pediatrician this morning. We are still waiting for him to crawl (forwards at least) and still waiting for any signs of teeth, but other than that, he is saying lots of "dadadadad" and other noises, as well as trying out lots of new foods. Here are his stats:
Weight:22 lbs 2 oz (76%)
Length: 29 1/2 in (87%)
Head Circ: 18 1/8 in (74%)

a weekend in Indy

this past weekend we went to visit our friends Corey and Janet and their boys who recently moved to Indianapolis to plant a church. it was great to see them, catch up, and just be together again! i think the highlight for me was getting to go to bare escentuals with janet and get some new makeup. i have been waiting since my birthday to go there and spend my gift card! another highlight- having to change Tripp's diaper and whole outfit in the trunk of our car (so we wouldn't risk get poop all over the car) when it was about 15 degrees outside after the mean security guard at the library wouldn't let us in to use the bathrooms!! I didn't take a ton of pictures, but at least got a few!


ty and janet


boys chilling


cute fam


after church


precious sleeping boy