Simply Hil

{all time favorite} This summer playlist is in the form of some of my favorite music videos, so click the links over to take a look (and a listen). Watching You  :: Rodney Atkins This Too Shall Pass :: Ok Go Here it Goes Again :: Ok Go Country Man :: Luke Bryan Giving Up the Gun :: Vampire Weekend We Will Become Silhouettes :: The Postal Service In the Sun :: She & Him Weapon of Choice :: Fatboy Slim Grace Kelly :: Mika King of Anything :: Sara Bareilles Like You Do :: Angel Taylor You Belong With Me  :: Taylor Swift I'm Yours :: Jason Mraz Fireflies :: Owl City Mr. Pitiful :: Matt Costa Black or White  :: Michael Jackson That's How You Know :: Enchanted All-American Girl :: Carrie Underwood Journey Medley  :: Glee What are some of your favorite music videos?  Happy Friday!

:: I bought some new nail polish the other day.  I wanted it to be a melony pink.  It was more tangerine orangey pink.  Guess I should have gotten one called "Melony Pink" rather than "Tangerine Joy". :: Baby Boy is kicking my bladder because he has the hiccups.  Oops, I mean, Buddy is kicking my bladder.  Little Guy insists we call Baby Boy, Buddy.  Where that came, we'll never know. :: The hubs and I seriously can't stop laughing at this awesome video .  Please go watch it.  Ten times. :: I don't miss Facebook one bit. :: Ever since I heard her story , I have counted my blessings 100 times over and snuggled my Little Guy a little closer.  My prayers go out to her parents and family. :: We had a thunderstorm storm last night.  Little Guy kept yelling "STOP RAIN!", but I told him that he couldn't make it stop and he just needed to enjoy it.  I said, "I love the smell of rain, it's my favorite."  He then said, ...

I'm not sure how many of you have noticed the cute little How-To Series button hosted by Marta Writes over on my sidebar, but for those who haven't clicked over, do it now.  The adorable Marta is at it again with a really great series for this summer.  I love that she is "celebrating the stuff we know".  You will find anything from " How-to Cut a Cake " to " How-to Survive Swimsuit Season ".  All excellent advice and helpful tips. Marta was kind enough to include little ol' me in this series.  You can find my post on " How-to Cope With the Loss of a Baby " over there today.  I wish I could have done a fun topic like "How-to Frost a Cupcake" or "How-to Pick the Best Sno-cone Shack", but I felt strongly about the topic I chose.  I know there are so many out there who have been through a similar experience to both mine and Marta's .  Hopefully by sharing the things I have learned (and continue to learn) will al...

Little Guy and I admiring the beautiful scenery from the cabin's deck. We are back from our little mini-vacation to my aunt's cabin in Island Park (aka heaven on earth).  The mountain air was cool and refreshing, just what we all needed.  We had lots of fun with my cousins out on the lake, eating food and playing games.  Little Guy was even able to drive the jet ski at one point, which was the highlight of his trip! We ended up coming home a day early due to the hubs being sick and Little Guy relapsing with a stuffy nose and cough.  I have spent most of the day nursing my boys back to good health and can't wait for us all to be back to normal . By the way, baby boy is getting stronger and stronger by the day.  Last night he entertained me with his kicks and jabs that I was not only able to feel on the inside but see on the outside.   He is taking after his brother already in the department of kicking non-stop in the womb. Hooray for active boys.

Head on over to the blessed little nest blog today for a giveaway from yours truly!  If you don't read Heather's blog, you may as well subscribe now.  Hers is marked as a must-read in my reader.  She is genuine and adorable and what's more... you will die when she posts pictures of her gorgeous, colorful home  or her amazing handmade projects . I was so touched when Heather contacted me via email two months ago to let me know that I was not alone in my greif.  Her precious Samuel passed away three years ago in September.  Her words were encouraging and optimistic, just what I happened to need that day!  I hate that we share a similar sad story, but love that we have become such wonderful friends via the internet.  Technology these days, I tell ya. Go on, head over and check her blog out and enter the giveaway  while you're at it. Just an update:  Little Guy is doing so much better.  Thanks to all of your well wishes and ...

...when I wouldn't trade anything in the world for being a mom. Today: :: Little Guy fell asleep in my arms, mouth wide open because his nose was plugged. :: My heart melted.  Literally. :: I laid him down in my bed, rather than his so that I could take a nap with him. :: I didn't sleep, instead I laid there watching him sleep and listening to him breathe. :: We listened to the rain patter on the roof and the thunder clap outside the window. :: He wanted to look out the window to spy the lightning. :: We went to the McDonald's drive thru because he hadn't eaten all day and that was the only thing that sounded good to him. :: I got a happy meal along with him so that he could have two toys. :: He is such a trouper when he is sick.  He deserves two toys. :: We shared a fruit smoothie to help soothe his throat. :: We snuggled on the couch and watched Curious George the movie together.  It was a first for us both. :: The music was our favorite part. :: We are still ba...

I'm dragging today.  I guess that's Monday for ya. We had a busy weekend.  Saturday we drove three hours down to my grandma's 80th birthday bash celebration, only to turn around a few hours later and drive three hours back (not to mention we were all running on about 4 hours of sleep thanks to nightmares the night before).  It was totally exhausting, but totally worth it.  We were able to see my family (minus a brother-in-law who was working) and most of my extended family.  It was a fun, eventful day complete with a pirate ship water park... Little Guy was in absolute heaven . Sunday we just took it slow.  Church, naps, a bike ride and ice cream cones on the front steps.  Summer evenings here are the absolute best. I started my day out reading this post by my dear friend.  After reading just the title, I had tears in my eyes.  Marta did such a beautiful job describing her experience.  When I finished I went into the bathroom and ...

Today was a chocolate chip cookie day.  My Little Guy took his first nap of the week (please tell me it is a phase and that he isn't officially growing out of his naps..) and I was beyond excited to sneak in a little snooze as well.  We had had a fun morning at the zoo with our friends Marta and Benji and were ready for some good relaxation time after spotting all the animals. Right as my head hit the pillow, I heard a weed-eater start up.  Then a lawn mower.  Then a second weed-eater.  Then a second lawn mower.  Seriously?!  The one day this week that I was able to get a little nap in, they decide to mow the lawn.  I laid there trying to doze off, but wasn't ever able to.  So, I did what any girl in my situation would do. I decided to make chocolate chip cookies instead. Little Guy was elated to wake up to chocolate chip cookie dough and warm cookies in the oven.  This recipe is a family favorite.  We have been making it fo...

Today's playlist was made for our little road trip we are taking this weekend.  It will be a short trip (down and back in the same day) so we needed some good music to accompany us. Nothing Better :: The Postal Service Mushaboom (The Postal Service Remix) :: Feist Let My Love Open The Door :: The Who New Slang :: The Shins Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? :: She & Him Be OK :: Ingrid Michaelson Pitiful :: Matt Costa When the Night Turns Cold :: Tobias Froberg Loud Pipes :: Ratatat Electric Feel :: MGMT Against All Odds :: The Postal Service Someday :: The Strokes Giving Up The Gun :: Vampire Weekend Young Folks :: Peter Bjorn & John  Daylight :: Matt & Kim Vanilla Twilight :: Owl City Better :: Regina Spektor Human :: The Killers It's Five :: Architecture in Helsinki First Day of My Life :: Bright Eyes *Side note: Gig posters (above) were first introduced to me by my brother who has one or two hanging in his home. I love searching...

Yesterday, after a somewhat stressful day at church (the hubs and I had to speak), we decided to take a Sunday drive to show Little Guy the windmills up the hill.  We can see them from our house, but they are pretty small from where we are.  As we got closer to them, we were all in awe with how huge these things were!  Little Guy loved the little drive, and loved the windmills even more. It was the perfect way to relax on a Sunday afternoon.  There is something so calming about blue skies, white fluffy clouds and fields of green.  I sure love where we live! This week we are continuing on in our potty training adventures.  The hubs is done with school for the summer (he passed his class with flying colors!), so we are all happy to be together again in the evenings. Summer, here we come (finally).

You can find me over at the wonderful Givers Log today.  I was beyond tickled when Amberlee contacted me for an interview.  If you don't follow her blog , you should do it now and never look back.  She has such wonderfully creative ideas each and every day.  I love her 13 Ounces or Less feature and drool over her Pretty Packaging Board.    In my excitement of filling out her survey, I somehow forgot to list one of my all-time favorite gifts.  If you are coming over from Giver's Log today, please check out this post to read all about it. Also, for those who may be looking for a great gift to give someone who has gone through a similar loss as we did with Michael, this post and this post may help give you some ideas.  We had some wonderful friends who were so thoughtful during that time. We are continuing on in our mission to potty train today... which means we are confined to the house.  Any creative ideas as to what we can do to ...

I hesitate posting these pictures for several reasons: :: I have an issue with taking self portraits.  The self-conscious side of me seems to get the best of me when taking them. :: I've never been good at the "serious face".  Just ask my wedding photographer.  She asked me to do a serious face, and then begged me to never do it again.  I'll smile for the next ones. :: I realize it will just open windows and doors for my brother and other family members to make fun of me. Most importantly, I hesitate posting these pictures because I know there are many of you out there who the last thing you want to find on someone's blog is belly pictures from their pregnancy.  After I lost Michael , that was one of the hardest things for me.  Seeing other pregnant women still pregnant.  It wasn't that I was upset with these women, it was more just that it was a harsh reminder of what I didn't have. So, please know that I post these with great sensitivity a...

Icees to match our shirts.  And as if it couldn't get any better than that, it did.  It was a drive-thru icee shack.  Amazing.  I know.  It's dangerous I discovered it so close to our home.  We pretended today was a nice summer day, and tried to ignore the gail force winds as we slurped them down. Today has been wonderful, except for the fact that my husband seems to be the only man who had to go to work today (everyone else has it off for the holiday ).  At least he has class off tonight, leaving him with only one more class on Wednesday and then he is done for the summer.  This leaves him with just one more semester before he graduates! The anticipation is killing me.

We celebrated on the 3rd and it was magical. I hope you all had a wonderful Independence Day celebration as well!

Here is a 4th of July mix for you all.  I hope you have a wonderful (and safe) weekend.  We are going to the parade in the morning (Little Guy is so excited he can hardly contain himself), to be followed with a BBQ and fireworks later on. We had a firework preview tonight, Little Guy ended up getting a burn on his arm... but that didn't stop him from skipping around the yard saying "Yay! Fireworks! I'm so excited!!".  Holidays really are so much fun through the eyes of a child. Happy 4th to you all! 1. America the Beautiful :: Ray Charles 2. Born in the USA :: Bruce Springsteen 3. Coming to America :: Neil Diamond * 4. Small Town USA :: Justin Moore 5. I've Been Everywhere :: Johnny Cash 6. It's America :: Rodney Atkins 7. We're an American Band :: Grand Funk Railroad 8. All-American Girl :: Carrie Underwood 9. American Girl :: Tom Petty 10. R.O.C.K in the USA :: John Mellancamp 11. Only in America :: Brooks and Dunn 12. California Girls :...

While in St. George, my mom made a yummy no-bake cheesecake from a recipe she had found online.  It was really good, but actually ended up tasting more like a Cool Whip pie.  My dad was in heaven.  There are few food items my dad loves more than Cool Whip. We decided the next time we made it, we needed to alter the recipe a bit to make it taste more like cheesecake.  Sorry Dad. When I got home, my husband had prepared a wonderful steak and asparagus meal on the grill for us.  I decided to surprise him with one of his favorite desserts... cheesecake.  After discussing it with my mom, we came up with the following recipe.  It turned out, and was really good.  This recipe will definitely be a keeper! Hil's Revised No-Bake Cheesecake 1 ready made shortbread cookie crust (Keebler makes a good one) 10 oz. cream cheese 1/2 cup sugar 1 tsp. Vanilla 1/2 tsp. Almond Extract (or to desired taste) 1 (8 oz.) Cool Whip Fruit Topping (optional) ...