Lasagna

Happy National Lasagna Day!
I love love love making lasagna... we even have it as our Christmas Eve dinner every year:)

Jackpot!

I had to share this... after reaching my first goal with Thirty-One, I received this entire kit for free!! There are so many good uses for these items... can't wait to start enjoying everything:) The Large Utility Tote (big one in the back right with "Out & About" writing) will be great for holding toys in our van. The Picnic Thermal Tote (top back right with "Munchies" writing) will be our snack holder in the van, and the About Town Blanket (front left) will be great for the Fall outdoor activities we have planned!

Veggies!!!

My friend shared a bunch of her garden goodies. Now all I have to do is come up with some nifty recipes to use them before they go bad! William's all about the heat and extra spices, so anything along those lines will get shared at his work. I hoped to make a really nice salad... SUPER thankful all three kids like salads... all the extra bits 'n pieces maybe not so much, but it's better than no salad! :)

Baby Green Peppers

It's about time! Sheeeesh! We planted these Green Peppers the same day as our tomato plants, and just today realized we have baby Green Peppers growing:)
I never thought I'd get so excited over a vegetable hahaha! There are a total of about 6 so far. Yum... can't wait to make some pitas with these guys!

Indoor Swimming

Anyone up for a little indoor swimming? :)
With the crazy heat, afternoon thunderstorms, and Kaylie not being able to go in the heat (still recovering from the viral infection, so she needs to stay out of the sun/heat), I sucked up my urge to freak out, and pulled out the swimming pool. Kaylie ans Makenzie just about had a heart attack when I began blowing it up and filling it with water--- INSIDE! I'm pretty sure I scored some serious brownie points with them! Unfortunately, Dannen was sleeping, and missed out on the fun, though I'm sure another indoor swimming event in coming very soon. A few inches of water, 7 towels, goggles, toys, cartoons, and the comfort of air conditioning... who could ask for anything more?

CT Scan

Kaylie went in for her CT Scan yesterday. Let me just say how amazing she is... seriously, she was so brave, happy, and a joy for the staff, too! The actual test only took one minute. She was very still, with the exception of wiggling her fingers and scrunching her toes lol I am very thankful to have the ability to stay in the room, only foot steps away, and photograph her "big" event. After about 30 seconds of complete silence, the tech Mark, began to remind Kaylie to hold very still, and scared the crap out of her! She jumped so high and laughed instantly:) The East Tennessee Children's Hospital is absolutely amazing... from the parking to the lobby to cart girls giving cute little tattoos, to the very friendly staff. We're blessed to have the chance to live here with such great coverage and care:) Our hopes are to hear back with the results this week! (I promise to keep you posted!)

Growing Green

I've never been one to have a garden, let alone one with food! When William decided our front yard had just the right amount of space to take on the adventure, we got working:)
After a little rearranging and lots of watering, our flower garden has EXPLODED! I didn't even know we planted Sunflowers lol Our kids enjoy seeing all the pretty colors every time we come and go.
Our veggies are doing really well. The very first tomato we had wasn't a keeper, but it sure was cool to see that we actually grew something. This little guy fell off today while I was looking at the stem... oops:( We thought it would be interesting to take a look inside...
I can't wait for more tomatoes to grow and even the green peppers... those little guys are taking FOREVER! We saw three areas that looked promising, so fingers crossed!

Doctor Visits for Kaylie...

Well, once again, our little Kaylie has something bugging her:( The most recent is fighting a viral infection... I took her to the doctor for a well-visit to find out her urine has protein and blood counts were really low. The doctor suggested she might be fighting something, and to come back in a few days to re-check, making sure to push lots of fluids. Friday morning, she woke up with an itchy, red rash on her face, elbow creases and behind her knees. I thought it might have been from being a bit hot, so we gave Benedryl and kept her cool. Unfortunately, she woke up this morning, FULL of a rash quickly spreading. The doctor confirmed a viral infection and prescribed super strong anti-itching cream as well as more Benedryl. It's one of those, "You have to wait and let the infection works it's way out" kind of deals:( As long as she doesn't spike a fever or show signs of weakness, we wait for another few days to revisit the doctor for a clean bill of health.On another note, Kaylie will be going in Monday for a CT Scan... WHAT?!?!? is what came flying out of my mouth this past Thursday:( Kaylie has been having bad migraine headaches, most times up to once a week, where she is absolutely miserable, weak, pale, crying, vomiting, and sleeping. Since she is so "tiny" or I should say "textbook petite", weighing in at only 49 pounds and 48 inches tall, they want to make sure she's okay and take all precautionary measures to make sure nothing is causing her this pain that needs further attention other than pain meds. We'll be visiting a Neurologist in September, as well, for follow-up action. It's a bit nerve racking, thinking that my little girl is going through this pain and needing extra medical attention, but we're very thankful that she's doing great through all of this:) The energy level is STILL way high and she's STILL enjoying testing our limits lol So, a few little extra prayers are greatly appreciated as we look ahead and tackle the next few weeks. I swear she's going to be a doctor some day... she LOVES learning about everything medical and has no issues with needles, blood, or "EEEWWWW" stuff as she says:P

More 31 Goodies

It's hard not to pass up a great deal... especially one that in turn, makes ME $$$:) Check out the most recent shipment I received from Thirty-One... and it only cost me $39!!!
Since I hosted a party back in the last week of June that reached a total of $500+, I banked on getting the Cosmetic Bag, Compact Mirror, Manicure Kit, and Flat Iron Case all for only $10... I seriously wanted to fall over and cry! Both of our girls have been begging for their own lunch bags, so we had the Thermal Totes personalized with their names in their favorite colors. Next round is William and Dannen's lunch bags! I absolutely love these items and can't wait to add to our growing collection:) Visit my website www.mythirtyone.com/KristyLaVella to view all the products Thirty-One has to offer you! The new Fall catalog debuts THIS Monday, July 25th, where everyone can begin enjoying the August special of 15% off EVERYTHING in the catalog... YAY:)

Mary Kay Award

Though I haven't really done anything with Mary Kay, being a consultant for a few months, I was very excited to attend the Annual End of Year Mary Lay Awards Night. My friend and Senior Director, Karen, set up a great event at Olive Garden- MY FAVORITE RESTAURANT!!! Who could say no to that?!?!? Fourteen ladies in all, enjoyed a night full of fun, food, and previewing the new Fall items. I was presented with the 2nd place sash for our Unit for recruiting FOUR consultants in one month! (Thanks to my mom, Aunt Candy, cousin Rachel, and friend Angie for joining!) I was very excited to accept my new gorgeous earrings, too! They go great with my Mary Kay pin and Mary silver bracelet:) I'm hoping to place my initial order VERY soon, so I can start benefiting from commissions from my recruits.

William's Birthday

~Happy Birthday, William~
Our normal Tuesday schedule includes movie time!!! After dropping William off at work, I took our kids to the Dollar Tree to pick up a few goodies, then headed to his theatre for some fun. This week's movie was "Kung Fu Panda"- one of our favorites! Before the movie, William proudly adorned his special birthday hat:) After the movie, we celebrated with cake one of his employees made for him. Most of the staff members signed a card and even gave him a $50 VISA card to use! It's the little things that show how much his hard work as manager prove positive:) After we left, another employee brought homemade chili and snacks, too! Can anyone say "spoiled"??? We ended the night with a McD's run, oh joy, but hey William and the kids loved it! As I type this, he's enjoying a fun round of "Call of Duty- Black Ops" with online friends.
Here's to another fun-filled year ahead!

Updates

This summer is going by WAY too fast! With only a month and a day left until both girls are back in school, we're finding ways to make the most of our days. This 95+ degrees heat has made for a lot of indoor play. Unfortunately, our community pool has once again closed due to lack of security... teenagers keep adding detergent late at night, leading to a complete drainage and chemical overhaul.
William's theatre is BOOMING!!! They've been hitting great attendance numbers and making quite an impression on the community. This past week's opening of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows 2 brought in a record sell-out! All five screens were completely sold out for the midnight showings. Plus, with William's suggestion and oversight, his theatre was the only one in the company to offer a 3am showing that brought in another 120 patrons! Super proud of all his hard work!!!
After a quick trip to the doctor's, we got a more accurate measurement of how fast our kids are growing... Kaylie (who goes next week for her official 8 year well-check) weighs 49 pounds, Makenzie weighs 55 pounds, and Dannen registered 44 pounds, 39 3/4 inches tall. Seriously, the more kids we had, the bigger they got lol Dannen's iron levels have been monitored over the past year, and he finally seems in the clear from any concern. I found helpful information to sneak in more vegetables for Dannen. He loves carrots and corn, but the green beans, broccoli and peas are a super no-go for him:( Time to get creative!
I've been enjoying photographing our flower garden and plant garden. I love my camera sooooo much! There's a really beautiful area nearby that keeps calling my name to visit and photograph the gorgeous scenery.
As for my consultant adventures, Mary Kay hasn't really gone anywhere. I'm more so enjoying the products I received in my starter kit, oh and so are my girls!!!! My love for Thirty-One is growing every day!!! I got a bunch of great items yesterday and will share in my next post.
We have a lot of things beginning in August and hope to share very soon! Thanks so much for following along:)

MMMOOOOOO!

Oh, how I love Chic-fil-A, especially when it's Cow Appreciation Day:) I dressed our kiddos up in homemade cow shirts and headed off to enjoy our free meals! We hung out with friends, then played at the park. Since it was so nice out, we opted to walk home. I bet it looked kinda funny, three little "cows" running around in the field, chasing fireflies... LOL

Birthday Celebrations

We decided to celebrate Kaylie's birthday over a few days. Not our normal plans each year, but why not change it up a bit? :)
My mom and sister stopped in for two days, on their way home from Ohio, to surprise all of our kids. We went to Kaylie's favorite restaurant, Olive Garden, to have a yummy dinner together. Can't forget the birthday cake!Can you tell they love their Zamma and Auntie? :)
What a delight when they offered to let ALL THREE KIDS spend the night in their hotel! (What did Mommy and Daddy do? Sleep... LOL)
Kaylie woke up ready to go swimming!
We spent the day swimming, enjoying McD's and Baskin Robins, watching Transformers 3, and ended with big hugs goodbye to Zamma and Auntie. Thanks for the fun! Can't wait to see you guys again.
Saturday was spent with the Whitehead family, playing in the water and slip 'n slide, trampoline fun, making projects, and enjoying our new fondue set! Kaylie loved the chocolate covered strawberries!
YUUUUMMMMMMMM!
Kaylie was very excited to receive a purring and moving kitten from the Whitehead family. She LOVES kittens!
Kaylie's best boy friend, Gabriel, even gave her a handmade special project:)
Happy 8th birthday, Kaylie!!!
So thankful for a great day with our friends:)

Kaylie Turned 8!

~*~Happy 8th Birthday to our sweetheart, Kaylie Marie~*~

We're so blessed to be your parents and have such a beautiful, intelligent little girl! You amaze us every day...

Sisterly Love

Just had to share... I love our kittens sooooo much:)
*Boots is on the left... Abbie is on the right*

*Happy 4th of July*

~*~Happy 4th of July~*~~*~Patriotic Boots~*~ (Abbie was a bit camera shy!)

4th of July Flashback

Came across these old photos and wanted to share... Time sure goes by fast...
Kaylie & Makenzie freaking out over the pre-firework show 2008
First fourth of July together 2009
Silly LaVella kiddos 2010
Though the Fourth of July is definitely one of those fun holidays to spend outdoors with friends and family, it ranks right up there with the ones that are most annoying:P I'm not a fan of fireworks going off near our home, causing our kids to wake up with the fear of being attacked!

31 Open House

I received my Jump Start Enrollment Kit the day of my Thirty-One Open House... perfect timing!!! For just $99 I got five awesome products and tons of business supplies=)
William helped make our delicious Strawberry frosted Strawberry cupcakes. They were very yummy and went nicely with the fresh Strawberries!
Check out all of these items I have in my collection now!!! My favorite is the Albany Purse... especially with my purple personalized initial:)
My Open House was a success, helping me reach my first goal of $500 in sales. With that completed in only 7 days of becoming a consultant, I earned another $300 worth in more products with the Jump Start Bonus Kit. Can't wait to get those items!
My next goal to complete is $1800 by August 7th. With so many great items and the Fall products on the way, I know I can reach it! Once completed, I'll earn another $300 worth in more product with the StartSwell Kit! LOVE LOVE LOVE getting free product just by sharing great items with family and friends:)

Growing Garden

With all of the rain we've been having, our plants and vegetables are really beginning to grow!
Our Tomato plants are sprouting a lot of flowers...
They sure grow fast!
The Green Pepper plants have tiny little buds at the top already!
These are a few of the pretty flowers from our flower garden...
I love love love the bright colors!