Vranicar Family: Party of 5

I told Cooper last night, after we had done our now fairly regular drive-by of potential daycares, that there's no room at the inn. He smiled up at me from his car seat almost as if he wanted to say, "Well just stay home with me mommy!" I wish. Maybe my expectations are too high but after doing our online research to find centers and home for daycare, making dozens of calls to first see if they had an infant opening and then, if they do, could we come visit them and start the next week we have found ourselves less then impressed by nearly all of our options. It seems the "good" ones are either too far away, full or just out of our price range. The ones that have openings are well...just not good enough. I'm happy for our friend who was taking care of Cooper. She is going back to her full time office job, but selfishly I wish she weren't. We knew we had a great thing going, which makes this even more of a challenge. Between growing up with my parents dayc...

Almost a year has come and past since we first met this little guy named Cooper. Recently we had a fun photo shoot with our friends at Scott Haraldson Photography . Here's one of the favorites...

For the past tens years or so I've flirted with the idea of organic and clean eating. A lot of us are familiar with the word organic thanks in part to the media and thanks in part to those who support the local farmers who provide such a wonderful and healthful option it is becoming more widely available. Cleaneatingmag.com explains clean eating as " Consuming food in its most natural state- or as close as possible to it. Its not a diet; it's a lifestyle approach to food and its preparation, leading to health, well-being and a lean look." It may seem too simple but it really is that simple to start getting your health in check! I really took the idea of clean eating seriously after my mom died. My mom was healthy and fit- the exact opposite of lazy, but even she admitted that she could eat more fruits and vegetables. Who doesn't LOVE chips, pastries, ice cream and fried foods?! During the months that my mom had cancer I did a lot of reading on how our bodies wor...

Recently my aunt, sister in-law and I were sharing recipes. I thought I'd share them here too- they are all delicious. If you try one of these or if you have a great recipe of your own let me know! Tootsie Roll Bars 1 c. Brown sugar 2 eggs 1 3/4 c. flour 1 tsp. vanilla 3/4 c. butter 1 tsp. baking soda 1 3/4 c. oatmeal 1/2 tsp. salt Mix together and spread half of the dough in an ungreased 9x13 pan. Melt 6 oz. chocolate chips and 1 can sweetened condensed milk together and spread on the dough. Then top with the remaining dough and bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until light brown. KIT KAT bars ( from my aunt Peggy) 2 c. graham cracker crumbs 1/2 c. sugar 1/2 c. milk 1 c. butter 1 c. brown sugar Boil the above ingredients for 5 minutes. l ine club crackers in a 9x13 pan. Pour over 1/2 of the filing, add another layer of club crackers, then the rest of the filling, and finally add a layer of club crackers. Topping: 1/2 c. chocolate chips 1/2 c. butterscotch chips 2/3 c. ...

Inspired by something I just saw on TV I'm making a bucket list...to be updated periodically. Do YOU have a bucket list? 1. Travel to Europe 2. Run a marathon 3. Vacation somewhere tropical 4. Write a book 5. Ride a zip cord through the jungle 6. Take our kid(s) to Disney 7. 8. 9. 10.

To the driver of the black VW that tailed me nearly my entire drive home yesterday...why did you find it necessary to try to push me down the road? I thought I was driving fast enough, a few miles an hour over the speed limit in fact. That was until we both turned into my neighborhood and you still tried to make me drive faster. While you don't know it- you were seconds away from eating my bumper. If the rational voice of my husband hadn't stepped in you just may have. I, unlike you apparently, felt the need to slow down while driving on a residential street where there were children playing and people walking. If I had needed to stop quickly there's no doubt you would have hit me, you are just lucky my son wasn't in the car with me. If he had been there's a good possibility I may have tried to stop you and....well I'm not sure what then because seeing as how you were in such a hurry you might now have even noticed I had stopped to get your attention. The best p...