Quilter-mom

Quilting Retreat

2010-01-20T20:41:00.004-05:00

It's been so long since I have posted but part of that is because since having my last child things have gotten so busy and little things, like keeping up with a blog, fall to the side. Life flies by so quickly and I don't take the time to sit down and write about it. It's a shame. However, I am still a mom and I am still a quilter.

That being said, I just returned from an amazing weekend at the beach with my quilting friends. Each year this group that I have been quilting with since I moved here takes a few days off and heads down to the beach. We rent a beach house and quilt like crazy! We have been doing this for four years now and this is my second time. We always stay up too late, eat too much and laugh a lot. It's kind of like college! I managed to finish three quilt tops while I was there.

The first quilt I finished the very first night I was there (Thursday night). The squares were already cut for me and I cut the sashings (the white pieces), cornerstones (the little black squares) and borders (around the outside) before I went to the beach so all I had to do was sew them together. It was a really easy pattern so it zipped right up.
This quilt is a pattern called "yellow brick road". It makes a really cute baby quilt. I have used this pattern many times and it turns out different every time. This quilt will go to Chris's resident at work whose wife is having a baby girl in April. I made this quilt on Friday.
This quilt was the "mother" of all quilts at the beach. No other quilt there was this labor intensive. To be fair, I started making the "flying geese" blocks two years ago. I got the pattern from a quilting magazine and the pattern is called "rhubarb crisp". I fell in love with the pattern and immediately pulled out some fabrics from my stash. It has 480 "flying geese" blocks so it has taken me two years to want to get back to it. I was determined to finish it, however. I stayed up until 3:30 a.m. Monday finishing it. I wanted to go home with the top done. I must say, I love it and it is not leaving our home once it's finished.

For all you non-quilters, this little block is a flying geese block. Can you picture it? They flying geese, I mean. It measures 1 1/2"x3".
In other news, Chris was called to be in the bishopric the night before I left for the beach. The timing was impeccable.

Summertime Fun

2009-07-04T10:26:00.005-04:00

I keep thinking things are going to slow down and I will get back into the habit of blogging again but I never seem to have enough in me at the end of the day to write down my thoughts. Life with three young kids is very busy. We have been trying to keep busy this summer too.

Kennedy had her dance recital about a month ago. She did really well. She was in a group that performed a ballet routine and a tap dance. Kennedy was front and center in both dances.

Kennedy and Tristan had two weeks of swim lessons. Kennedy took right to the water but Tristan never did much. I think he doesn't like the idea of not being able to touch the ground. That is kind of scary when you think about it. Jack and I would sit in the baby pool while the other two were in lessons. He didn't like it much at first but now he loves going.

There was a vacation bible school at the church where Kennedy went to preschool. Kennedy and Tristan were able to attend that. I had never heard of vacation bible school until last summer when a church by our house had one and I took Kennedy. She had so much fun she talked about it for months after. I think she and Tristan really enjoyed it this year too. Every once in a while Tristan with break out into, "Jesus in my heart, Jesus in my heart".

Jack turned one on June 10th. He is just growing up. He's a busy little guy. I can't keep up with him. He will empty a drawer and while I'm cleaning that up he's making a mess out of the toilet paper or something.

We are still trying to get Tristan fully potty trained. He has had such resistance to #2 for some reason. We are at our wits end. If anyone reading this has any suggestions I would LOVE to hear them. I feel like we have tried everything. He doesn't respond to incentives at all. At this point I am wondering if he will just have to wear diapers for the rest of his life!

Happy 4th to all. Be safe and have fun.

Busy Spring, Busy Summer

2009-05-18T11:08:00.003-04:00

Kennedy has her last week of preschool this week. I have a pretty busy summer planned for her. On top of company and traveling she has two weeks of swim lessons, three summer camps, tap lessons and horse riding lessons. She has had a wonderful preschool year but she is excited to start kindergarten. She is doing well with her writing and she is starting to read well too. Last week they had dress up days at preschool. One of the days she was supposed to dress up like a character in a favorite book. She thought of Daisy Head Maizy. You can see her in the orange dress in the above picture. There is also a picture of her playing baseball. She is also enjoying dance and her recital is in two weeks.

Tristan is excited to have his sister home more. However, I wonder how many days it will take for him to realize that he had it pretty good while she was at school. (He gets a whole three hours to himself with no siblings (Jack napping) every day). He is a busy three-year-old. He enjoys playing outside and with his trucks still. He is starting to write his letters. He'll take swim lessons with Kennedy and also a tumbling class this summer.

Jack's new nickname is tsunami Jack. He destroys everything in his path. His favorite things are emptying any cupboard (see picture above) or drawer, lifting the toilet lid and seat, climbing the stairs, and unrolling the toilet paper. Chris and Christi work too hard, are exhausted at the end of the day, don't get enough sleep and can't wait for a vacation.

Tristan's Birthday

2009-04-14T10:33:00.003-04:00

Last Friday my little Tristan turned three. He is such a sweet boy. He asked me if we could go on a picnic for his birthday. I made us a nice lunch and we picked up Chris from work and drove over to Duke Gardens. It was quite busy but we found a secluded spot and spread out our blanket. The kids enjoyed biscuits and jam, fruit and chips. I let Tristan pick out some cupcakes at the store. We had a few presents for him to open, one being a soccer ball that he and Kennedy were able to kick around after lunch. Later that day we colored Easter eggs.
Tristan was a little confused and wasn't sure why he was getting so much attention and why he is three now when he just started to understand that he was two.
Jack turned 10 months on the same day and I think we are in trouble. Check out this picture and imagine what kind of mischief he will be into when he turns two!

Hair cut

2009-02-15T15:43:00.003-05:00

Kennedy has had long hair for quite some time now. She has been throwing out comments lately like, "I want hair like yours, mommy", "when will I have short hair?", etc. So we took her this weekend to have her hair cut. It looks pretty good on her. I wish it would have been long enough to donate because she has really good hair (besides the cowlick b

ut she kept that!). She seems to like it. I think it will be good for summer. What do you think?

In other news, Jack is now 8 months old. He is crawling all over the house. He loves that he can do this and his favorite place is the vents in the floor. He moves himself over them and pulls them out of the floor--I think we're in for it if he is doing these kind of things already!
Jack has two teeth now and he loves to use them. He loves eating. His favorite things to eat are crackers, especially graham, cooked carrots, and anything mom will give him that's homemade, like pancakes, muffins, waffles, etc.

I guess I better report on Tristan too. He is such a sweet little boy. We started potty training him when Mom and Dad were here in December. He has done pretty well so far. He still has some learning to do but that will come with time. He is registered to start preschool next fall at the same preschool as Kennedy attends. I can hardly believe it. His 3rd birthday is in April and he has grown up so much in the last year. A few weeks ago we had to speak in church. I was the first speaker and Chris sat in the congregation with the kids. My topic was "teaching your family reverence for the sacrament." As I was giving my talk Tristan came up onto the stand. Daddy couldn't get up fast enough so I just kept on with my talk. It was mere coincidence that my very next comment was, "Children learn by example". I probably had 20 people tell me how funny they thought that was and wondered if I had planned it. Tristan is always keeping me on my toes.
Chris and I are managing to keep busy. We are painting our bedroom this week and having a playset installed in the backyard for the kids. We are excited for these changes.

Balsamic Roasted New Potatoes

2009-01-27T10:43:00.000-05:00

Ingredients
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 TBS minced garlic
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary*
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme*
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 pounds small new potatoes, quartered
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, optional
Vegetable cooking spray

Preparation
1. Heat oil in a large skillet over med-high heat. Add potatoes and next 4 ingredients. Toss. Remove skillet from heat; place in oven.
2. Roast potatoes, uncovered, at 425* for 30 minutes or until potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally. Add vinegar, toss well. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast, uncovered 6 more minutes. Serve immediately.
*1/4 tsp. dried herbs may be substituted for fresh herbs. If you have to choose between the two herbs, use rosemary.

Seven Months Old

2009-01-15T20:58:00.003-05:00

Jack turned 7 months old on Saturday. We got some pictures taken at Target but this one is just one I took at home. It seems to me like around 6 or 7 months my babies all change drastically. They turn into different babies--not infants anymore.

On Saturday morning I noticed Jack's first tooth finally poked through. He's been working on that for over a month now. Finally. . .

Jack can now sit up. Each day he is able to sit up more and more. We had pancakes for dinner last night and I gave him a few nibbles (well, more than a few--he ate at least one whole pancake) and he loved it. He gets cuter and cuter every day.

I know it's just a matter of weeks before he is crawling. Poor kid doesn't get as much floor time as the other two had. He spends more time in a car seat than Kennedy and Tristan did but we're working on it.

Kennedy sure loves her little brother. She likes to take a blanket and make a little "tent" over Jack and they play and giggle under the blanket. He knows when she walks into the room. We sure love him too.

3 Kids, 3 Messes, 3 Minutes

2009-01-07T20:34:00.004-05:00

For some reason I find being a mother of three young children completely draining. Does anyone else feel this way, or is it just me?

This morning was just a typical day, nothing unusual. Breakfast was served and all was calm and then all of a sudden. . . . . .

Mess #1

Kennedy decided to feed Jack some puffs--I was ok with this because it allowed me to eat my cereal in peace. Kennedy turned to put away the puffs and the container spilled on the floor and Jack started crying.

Mess #2

Tristan leaned over the table to look at the puffs on the floor and spilled a full cup of milk all over the table which then spilled onto the floor saturating the puffs.

Mess #3

I picked up the crying Jack and leaned over to pick up the puffs container and inadvertently pressed his "spit-up button" and he barfed all over the floor.

Yep, just a typical morning!

Good bye

2009-01-06T20:30:00.003-05:00

We said good bye to Grandma and Grandpa today. It was nice to have them here for a few weeks. We enjoyed having family around for the Christmas and New Year Holidays. I think they are probably pretty tired considering what we have put them through.

We started potty training Tristan and he has been doing ok. The first two days were pretty intense and then we were all so frustrated that we decided to put the diapers back on and forget about it for awhile. Then we discovered that he didn't want to go in the diaper anymore. He is really good at holding everything in but getting out is another story. He did a little better today but I have spent a lot of time in the bathroom with him. I pray this will get better each day!

Cornucopia Salad

2009-01-06T20:29:00.000-05:00

¼ cup slivered almonds
1 Tbs. sugar

1 head green or red leaf lettuce, torn into pieces
1 head Romaine lettuce, torn into pieces
1 cup chopped celery
1 11-oz can mandarin oranges, drained
2 avacados, cut into chunks
2 apples, diced
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup crumbled blue cheese

Dressing:
½ cup sugar
1 tsp grated onion
½ tsp salt
1 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tsp dry mustard
¾ tsp poppy seeds

Combine dressing ingredients and refrigerate until ready to use. Caramelize slivered almonds by mixing with sugar in a small skillet and stirring constantly over low heat until lightly browned. Spread on foil to cool, then break into pieces. Toss salad ingredients, almonds and dressing just prior to serving.

Hung by the Chimney with Care

2008-12-21T20:31:00.005-05:00

The week before Kennedy was born my mom and I made this cute Christmas stocking for her.

Last year (just after we found out we were expecting Jack but before we had told anyone) my mom and I made this stocking for Tristan. I tried to convince her to make another one, "just in case." But she just kind of chuckled.

This year I thought I better make a stocking for Jack and I thought that since the other two kids have a snowman on their stocking I should do one for Jack with a snowman. However, I didn't have a pattern or an idea to work from. Then I saw an ad from Pottery Barn with a stocking decorated with a snowman. I decided to copy the pattern. I thought it turned out pretty nice. What do you think?

This was the one I saw at Pottery Barn.

Getting older. . .

2008-12-15T20:26:00.001-05:00

Yesterday was my birthday. We had a busy weekend. As any December-born knows, birthdays are more likely forgotten that remembered during the holiday rush. I'm used to it and it doesn't really bother me anymore. I did get to speak to some family members and that was wonderful. However, I did get to celebrate a little this weekend. Friday night Chris took me to a really nice restaurant which is something we rarely do. Neither one of us can justify spending a week's-worth of groceries on one meal--very often. The menu was pretty exotic. Chris ordered the wild boar but I stayed close to home and ordered a steak. It was really good too. Saturday we hosted a dinner party at our home. We have a group that we get together with every month or two. We all bring part of the meal and have a nice time chatting. There is always one story that brings a good laugh. My friend who brought the dessert knew it was my birthday and her husband's birthday was Friday so she wrote, "Happy Birthday" on the cake and the rest of them sang to us. Sunday was just Sunday. What more can I say? Jack tends to be a little fussy at church because he won't sleep. I rarely get to sit through any of the lessons. One highlight though was that Kennedy sang for the Christmas program. She and one other little girl sang, "Picture a Christmas". She was asked just a week ago to sing this song and she had never heard it before so we had to practice really hard all week. She did really well though. Today I had a pretty strange day. About half way through the day I started feeling really dizzy and nauseous. It was so bad that I had to call a friend to come help me with my kids. I spend the rest of the day lying in bed. I think I'm a little better now so maybe I will go have some cake. . .

Thanksgiving Weekend

2008-11-30T08:43:00.002-05:00

We had a nice meal with friends on Thursday. I sure miss family around the holidays but I am so thankful to have good friends here. After the meal all the gals hit the movies--Twilight.

On Friday Chris and a friend went fishing. I spent a whole day taking care of the kids and doing the usual thing--yes, I'm bitter. Not really, Chris deserves a day like that every once in a while. I was just hoping to do some fun, festive activities with the kids. I find it overwhelming taking three kids out by myself right now, with one being a baby and the other a two-year-old.

Chris came home with a hurt back and a head cold so we didn't get our Christmas tree this weekend like we had planned. We did, however, put out our Christmas decorations. Bring on the holidays. . .

Annie

2008-11-21T14:20:00.003-05:00

I was just a little girl when the movie "Annie" hit the big screen. I loved it and remember singing with verve, "The sun'll come out tomorrow! Bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow there'll be sun." There was a whole generation that looked at red hair with admiration and fascination for some time. It's been a long time since I thought about little Annie.
A few weeks ago Chris and I were discussing possible birthday ideas for Kennedy's 5th birthday. We decided that instead of buying her another toy that we wanted to "buy" her an experience. We started searching and saw that the musical "Annie" was playing in Raleigh on Kennedy's birthday. I pulled up some clips of various Annie musicals on youtube. Kennedy seemed to really enjoy it so we bought the tickets and wrapped them in pretty paper when they came in the mail.
Tuesday was the big day (birthday and the musical). When she unwrapped the gift we told her that our gift to her was that she and mom were going to get dressed, stay up late and go see Annie.
Kennedy was a fun date to this musical. She went in singing "The sun'll come out tomorrow. . .". She was excited from the very first note. There were a few times that she got a little bored but all in all I was impressed with how well she did. The musical was good too. The woman who played Ms. Hannigan was so good, hilarious.
At the end of the musical Kennedy asked me if she could give Annie two thumbs up. During the curtain call she kept asking me if it was time. Soon Annie came out and I held Kennedy up so she could see (everyone else was standing by then) and she held both her thumbs up high so Annie could see. She's such a cute girl (Kennedy, I mean).

He Likes It. . . .HE Doesn't

2008-11-10T10:37:00.003-05:00

Jack turned five months old today. Last week he had his first cold and was miserable. We gave him rice cereal for the first time yesterday and guess what? He likes it!

Whenever Tristan doesn't like something or he is scared he puts his hands overr his ears. He spent a little time on the potty this weekend and guess what? He DOESN'T like it!

Windows

2008-08-28T22:45:00.002-04:00

We've had some fun making changes to our home. We've painted Kennedy and Tristan's rooms. Tristan finally got his "big boy bed", bunk beds. We also took down the privacy blinds that we put up when we moved in a year and a half ago and put up real window treatments in their rooms. It's coming along.

We've just about got our dining room finished. We got this rug a few weeks ago and our window treatments were hung yesterday. Just in time for me to host a luncheon with some friends today.

Blessing

2008-08-10T20:38:00.006-04:00

Today Jack is two months old. It was also his blessing day. He did well. When I got to church he was fussy so I worried he would cry during the blessing but he was a champ and didn't make a sound. He looked so cute in his little white outfit. He is two months old now and changing daily. His face gets more and more animated every day.

We still have some construction going on in our neighborhood. Tristan--the little BOY that he is--just loves driving past the digger every day. Chris took him and Kennedy down to see it the other day and let them take a turn "driving".
We have been enjoying having Nana and Poppa Kelsey here the past few days. We took a picnic to Duke Gardens yesterday and we couldn't have asked for better weather. The kids enjoyed running around while the adults sat in the shade to relax. This is the last fun thing for summer for us. Kennedy starts preschool in September. She is excited to be going every day.

A few words, pictures and a recipe

2008-08-01T13:42:00.002-04:00

I know, I haven't posted in a while. What can I say? I'm busy. I love my job though. Last week Kennedy had a camp at her new preschool. I got a taste of what it will be like driving her to preschool every day. I burned through at least half a tank of gas. Not only that but in five days' time Jack got used to falling asleep in his car seat and sleeping there. Now I'm not sure if he remembers how to sleep. The last two days, especially, have been trying. I literally held him all day yesterday, except for two 45 minute breaks. I can't say I enjoy this stage of infancy. I know I should enjoy these times of holding him, but the truth is, I don't. I want to just be able to lay him down awake in his bed and walk out of the room. Four months is when the "experts" say you can train them to do that--seems so far away.

Yesterday I was really glad that I planned ahead a little bit and had a meal in the freezer I could pop in the oven. I did make some muffins to go with it though. They turned out really good. This is the recipe I used:

Carrot Zucchini Muffins

INGREDIENTS:
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light or dark brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups finely shredded unpeeled zucchini
1/2 cup finely shredded carrot
PREPARATION:
Grease and flour 12 muffin cups. Heat oven to 375°.
In a mixing bowl, beat the oil with eggs, sugars, and vanilla extract.
Combine the flour, soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon; add to the wet ingredients; stirring until blended. Fold in the shredded zucchini and carrots.
Fill muffin cups about 3/4 full; sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or granulated sugar, if desired. Bake for 20 minutes.
Makes 12.

I had to take a picture of Jack's feet. With all of my kids I have been amused by their feet when they are nursing. Maybe it's because it's the only think I can see but they are just so relaxed. I never took pictures of the other two but I had to capture Jack's feet before it's too late. Soon he will be moving around too much.

Five Weeks and Smiling

2008-07-17T09:21:00.004-04:00

Sunday was a depressing day for me. After five weeks, my mom left. Help! To make matters worse Chris left for a business trip in Rhode Island. Talk about being drop-kicked into reality. I was determined to take my kids to church even though I would be doing it alone. Happy to say I made it with only a few outbursts in sacrament meeting. It was a little stressful at times but we survived.

When I got home I called Chris on his cell phone. We talked for a while then he instructed me to go out to the mailbox where I would find a surprise. I took the phone with me and we kept talking. The mailbox was empty. I was then instructed to look east. Oh yeah, a treasure hunt! Just then our little tan Corolla came up over the hill and Chris was driving! Turns out his flight was cancelled and the next flight would not get him to the meeting in time for it to be worth it so he decided to stay home.

This week has been extremely busy with the three kids. However, I have been ok. I have just been pretending that having three kids is no big deal. Fake it 'til you make it, right?

Jack turned 5 weeks on Tuesday and he greeted me that morning with his first smile (this is not a picture of his smile). He smiled at me about half a dozen times. So cute. It's nice to get some feedback.

Juggling Act

2008-06-19T21:12:00.005-04:00

Jack is a week old. It makes me laugh to think of myself as a new mom with one child. One seems so easy now. When I had Kennedy I stressed over everything. I called the nurse advice line at least once a week for several months. I remember calling one time about her sucking her thumb and she had a sore on her thumb from the sucking. Who calls about things like that? A crazy, stressed-out first time mom, that's who.

Two was ok to manage and it got pretty easy as Tristan got older. It was nice for them to start playing together. It would have been easier these past few months had I not been pregnant. How funny I must have looked at 8 months pregnant running down the street after my toddler who could outrun me by a mile.

So far having three is like a juggling act. One is always up in the air. . .at all times at least one of my kids needs something right now. I wonder how I will manage when my mom leaves. . .

So far though, Jack has been a heavy sleeper. I have to force him awake sometimes just to eat. He was gaining weight really well at first but the past few days he has slept almost the whole day. And, in spite of a rough first night home from the hospital, he has done really well at night. I feed him before I go to bed and he wakes up half-way through the night and then again in the morning when it's time to get up. I take him for a weight check tomorrow to find out how he's growing.

Jack

2008-06-11T11:34:00.002-04:00

It's kind of a strange experience having a c-section. We checked in at 8:30 and several things had to happen before Jack was actually delivered. Labs were drawn, consent forms signed, monitors placed, etc. We waited around for several hours then all of a sudden I was wheeled down the hall, prepped and draped and they started cutting away. Even though I was numb I could feel them cutting at my innards. It was so strange to feel that but not feel the pain. All at once here came Jack up over the curtain so we could be (almost) the first ones to know his gender.
I think we were a highlight of the morning for the staff. They were all so excited when I told them we didn't know the baby's gender. Bets were placed left and right.
Jack is a beautiful baby. He surprised us with his blonde hair. He looks more like the Lowe side of the family right now. We'll have to see if he keeps the blonde hair. I think he will. He's been sleeping almost constantly since he was born 24 hours ago. I'm sure that will change soon.
Welcome to the world, little Jack.

The Day Before I Have A Baby

2008-06-09T21:31:00.003-04:00

I can't remember what I did the day before I had Tristan but the day before I had Kennedy we watched "Finding Nemo". I remember because we had a similar experience bringing Kennedy into the world as Marlin did bringing Nemo into the world. Kennedy even had a lucky fin.

Today, the day before I have baby #3, I ran last-minute errands all morning and took my kids to the mall to have their pictures taken. My mom flew in last night and the kids have been hanging all over her today. Tristan has fallen in love with Grandma Mary and has nicknamed her "Grammy". I am glad she is here too. I was able to leave my kids with my mom this afternoon and pick up my minivan from the body shop--glad to have that fixed!

Whew! It is still really hard for me to believe that I will be giving birth tomorrow. Life is busy and I think things aren't going to slow down. I am a little nervous about having three kids but I have always felt that way about the unknown. I'm sure in time we will adjust and it will all become comfortable. One thing is for sure. . .the day before I have this baby I feel ready to have this baby out!

Harvest

2008-06-01T21:24:00.005-04:00

We've been eating peas for several weeks now. I say we but I really mean the kids. Tristan just helps himself to any pea on the vine, ripe or not. He loves them so much he puts the whole pod in his mouth. I was getting upset with him at first but then I figured that he would be eating the peas when they were ripe anyway so I might as well let him enjoy it. I will give the ripe ones to Kennedy.

Today after church the kids and I went to check on the garden to see if it needs watering tomorrow. I pulled some carrots out of the ground, picked some beans and a small crown of broccoli. This is what I came up with. . .

Enough for one person. Since the kids have eaten most of the peas I helped myself. They were delicious!

Dance Recital

2008-05-31T20:11:00.006-04:00

Practicing before dress rehearsal. . .That Sam I AM

Today was Kennedy's dance recital. Her class performed two dances, both numbers were to songs from the Dr. Seuss musical. She has been going to dance once a week since September. She had a really cute teacher and met lots of fun friends in her class. She really enjoyed it and wants to do it again next year.

Dancing on stage. . .

We had a dress rehearsal two days ago. As she performed her first dance I noticed Kennedy was looking at her friend to remember the steps. After I changed her costume I had her sit with me for a few minutes so I could show her what some of the other dancers look like. I pointed out how the "good" dancers were smiling and looking out toward the audience. I didn't want to put any pressure on her by telling her she needed to do that, but she picked up on it and for the next dance she did much better. She really did a good job.
Oh the thinks you can think! The class receiving trophies at the end of the recital.
At home showing mom her trophy and flower (from mom).

"It was an accident!"

2008-05-29T16:38:00.000-04:00

That is a direct quote from one of our kids' favorite books, "David Gets in Trouble."
Tuesday nights Chris takes Kennedy to her soccer practice. I usually stay home with Tristan. This week, however, we decided to go as a family. Tristan had a late nap and needed to get some running in before bedtime. That being the case we all loaded up in the van as opposed to the Corolla. We headed down the main road. Suddenly a vehicle in front of us slowed down. Chris quickly pressed on the brakes and we stopped just in time. The vehicle behind us, however, didn't . . . .
The good news is that none of us were hurt. The bad news is that the van was.
We pulled over and used a phone from the business across the street to call the police. We waited for an hour before a state trooper came to inspect the accident. Luckily I had a few pieces of candy in the van and a few camp songs in my head to entertain the kids. They were pretty good waiting that long strapped in their car seats alongside a busy road. We were so glad to be done with the exchange that we went to McDonald's for an ice cream sundae.
I've had so many "what ifs" floating in my mind: what if we had left earlier, what if I had not decided to go, etc. But the fact is, we are all ok and I need to get the van fixed quickly. Like I need one more thing to do in the next week and a half!

Last Hurrah!

2008-05-24T20:43:00.003-04:00

This weekend is our official "last hurrah" before the baby comes. Next weekend Chris will be in Tennessee taking his final board exams and the weekend after that is when Mom comes to town.
So what did we do? We took the kids camping. This was Tristan's first time camping and with his latest sleep issues (waking up at 5:30 AM) I wasn't sure how fun it would be.
We picked up Chris from work early Friday afternoon and headed to Falls Lake where we hoped there would be a camping spot left for us on this holiday weekend. Fortunately, there was. As soon as we opened the van doors the kids were ready to start exploring. Tristan, especially, was excited, jumping up and down and shouting "hurray!" I was glad to hear such shouts of jubilee because all week long I had been trying to prep him for the trip by telling him we were going camping and we were going to sleep in a tent. The reply was always, "NO camp!, NO tent!"
One problem we encountered was buying some wood for our campfire. Our grocery store had bundles all winter long but now, when I needed it most, it was gone. I tried a woodcutting business down the road but they didn't have any split wood and the person who owned the business wasn't there. His mother was nice enough to give me some rotten wood for free but we couldn't get it to burn. When we got to our campsite there was a list of local vendors who sell firewood so I went to the closest one and not only had the name of the company changed but they no longer had firewood either. Bad luck. Chris ended up going to Food Lion for charcoal briquettes. Finally at about 8:30 we were ready to eat. Tinfoil dinners. Yum!
We kept the kids up way to late--until almost 10 p.m. but we all went to bed together and all fell asleep pretty quickly--even Tristan. As campgrounds go, though, I was awakened shortly after midnight by another camp's crying child, talking children, barking dog, you name it. It was a pretty happening place for midnight. I meant to take some earplugs because I knew things like that would keep me awake. Between campground noises, the noises in our tent (Tristan woke up a few times and I had to comfort him), getting up to go to the bathroom and the rain I got a grand total of three hours. Tristan woke up with the birds at 5:30 AGAIN. The rest of my family, however, slept pretty much all night. We were pretty tired today though.
After breakfast we had a little rest in the tent while it sprinkled outside (what's camping without a little rain?). Then we went to the beach and let the kids play on the playground. We decided we had better pack up so we could get home in time for naps. It was a short camping trip and I'm sure I/we put in more hours preparing and cleaning up than we actually camped but it was so much fun and I'm glad we did it.
(This is the position he usually assumes at home while playing with cars. Notice he is using a pine cone, driving it back and forth.)

A Day in the Life. . .

2008-05-16T21:53:00.004-04:00

A few weeks ago my sweet neighbor asked me if she could send her 11-year-old daughter over once a week to be a "mother's helper" for a few hours. Um, yes. I wasn't going to turn that one down. Her excuse was that her daughter needs to learn responsibilities and that she might learn better if she is helping someone else out rather than doing her assigned chores at home. I think she could see my edemic ankles and knew with my ever-growing stomach that I probably can't bend over very well right now. Either way, I love the help.

Katherine has been over twice now and she is a super helper. She washes windows, cleans out my cupboards, mops my floors, whatever I ask her to do. I should have thought of this before!

Here she is doing my least-favorite chore. Ok, so they are all my least favorite. I live the life of a maid. Clean, clean, clean.

Today I had a day that no "mother's helper" could help with. I hate to complain about being a mom because I looked forward to it and hoped for it for so long. However, some days are just really difficult.

My day started at 5:21 a.m. with Tristan pounding on his door and crying for "mama". Oh, that's me. I thought I better go in and get him back to sleep so he didn't wake up the rest of the sleepers. Fat chance. He was ready for the day. That's ok, I thought. I will just get up and get my chores done and take a nap while he takes a nap.

As chance would have it, Kennedy was ill today. I encouraged her to rest on her bed while I put Tristan down for a nap. She actually fell asleep. That rarely happens anymore. Just as I finished my lunch and headed upstairs to take my nap while all was quiet, I heard a lurching sound coming from Kennedy's room, followed by some cries. I went in and there was her lunch all over the floor. That's ok, I thought, I will give her a bath, clean up the mess and turn on the t.v. for her. Then I will take a little nap.

As chance would have it, Tristan took a one-hour nap and was up and ready to go again by the time I got Kennedy settled in front of the t.v. So I bagged the nap and powered through a bunch more chores. I made four meals to put in the freezer for future use (after the baby comes) and also made a meal to feed the missionaries tonight. I also cleaned up the mess, read some books to my kids and sat down for 5 minutes.

Tomorrow I will prop my feet up and coast the rest of the weekend. . . .

Toddler-Induced Insomnia

2008-05-11T21:02:00.003-04:00

So little did I know what I had in store for me this week. The second night after Tristan learned his new trick of climbing out of the crib, I was visited at 3 a.m. by the little guy. From that point on I received a visit about every 20 minutes until I finally gave up at 6 a.m. and just let him stay in our room. I was so tired and upset and the tears just flowed down my cheeks. "I can't be up all night with a newborn AND a toddler". The day continued and I had to go to a dentist appointment which meant that we would be away from the house and his bed, in case he wanted to sleep. I had to leave my kids with a friend and luckily he did ok. I was surprised.
Chris and I discussed the problem and decided that the mattress needed to be on the floor and that Tristan would no longer sleep in the crib. We would leave his door open a crack if he stayed in bed but close it if he got out and came out of his room. Luckily he hasn't learned how to open the door yet or I would be toast because so far the system seems to be working. Tristan doesn't always like going down for a nap but he is getting used to his new sleeping arrangements. He does still try to rebel a little though.
The other day he had a few 5-minute cat naps in the car but was tired enough for a nap. He cried for a few minutes after I closed his door but settled down, played for about a half hour and then fell asleep. What does one play in a room with a crib and a dresser? Just take a look at the picture below.
I guess he prefers sleeping on the floor because he moved his mattress himself. You can't really tell but that is a whole container of wipes on the floor that have been pulled out one by one.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

2008-05-04T20:12:00.003-04:00

Last night something happened. Our life, as we have known it, changed. Tristan took a leap and the crib has been rendered useless! He climbed out for the first time ever. I was hoping he would not figure this out and we would be able to keep him in longer. But, our little boy is growing and I cannot stop him.
Why is this such a problem, you might ask. . .let me explain what happened when Kennedy figured out how to climb out of the crib. At first it was kind of cute but then she started coming into our room very early in the morning. Instead of getting up with her or taking her back to bed, like I should have, I tucked her safely into our covers and sometimes she would fall back to sleep. I didn't really mind this until she started coming into our room in the middle of the night, sometimes we would have multiple visits before morning. Then we moved her to her big girl bed and I couldn't keep her in that either. It was a constant battle trying to get her to sleep there. She would come out of her room, I would take her back, come out, take back, over and over until one of us would give in. Her sleeping patterns completely changed and sometimes I would resort to resting beside her until she finally fell asleep. Then Tristan came. . . .that just complicated the situation even more, but luckily the battle didn't last much longer.
Now I have Tristan who is all of a sudden terrified of the dark room that is his at night. He cries for "Mama" and climbs out at will. His usual bedtime is 7:30 and last night it was 9:30 until he finally let himself fall asleep. He greeted us at our bedside at 6 a.m. carrying his blankie. Too tired to take him back to bed and start a battle, I let him in ours. I am hoping that we can work out some sort of "routine" or figure out what works for him before this baby comes in five weeks. I don't want to be getting up with two babies again! One is enough for me, thanks.

A List

2008-04-22T13:59:00.003-04:00

It turns out Chris finished up his residency just in the nick of time. We were always really careful with our money during our student years but somehow managed to get the things that were absolutely necessary. I always had a mental list of things I was going to do or buy when Chris finished his schooling. However, that list has kind of faded to the back of my mind as the replacement of necessities have taken its place. There are so many things we have had to replace the last few months and there is no way we could have done all that on our previous income. Here is a list of a few things that we have had to replace in the past few months:

computer--our "old" computer was purchased during medical school. We bought one that fit our budget which turned out to be already outdated and not a good computer in the first place.
filling--I was so bad with my teeth when I was younger, even in high school when I should have known better. I used to buy 100-count boxes of Blow Pops and eat at least one a day. Needless to say, my teeth are pretty silver! I had my last dentist appointment in November and the dentist told me I would need to have a particular filling replaced soon. I never made the appointment, that is, until it started giving me trouble.
bed--we bought a bed shortly after we moved to NC. The house we purchased was new and we received incentives along with it, one of them being a gift certificate at a local furniture store. Again, we purchased a bed that was in our budget. Lately with my pregnant body and Chris's bad back, we are not getting much sleep. Off to the store this weekend to buy a new bed--this time a better quality that will hopefully last more than 4 1/2 years.
van--this is not necessarily a replacement but a required upgrade. With #3 on the way there was no way we could fit three car seats in our Corolla.
vacuum--we received a vacuum for our wedding (12 years ago this Sunday), a Eureka that we used from the time we had our first apartment until we moved into this house. It recently died but I thought 12 years was pretty good for a vacuum cleaner. I started doing some research and found that most vacuums in that category don't last nearly that long. It was difficult to find a vacuum that didn't cost $500 that sounded like it would be a good quality machine. I only have carpet in the upstairs and didn't need the fanciest model. I finally settled on another Eureka. Hopefully it will last another 12 years or so.

I feel incredibly blessed that all these things lasted as long as they did and that we have had the means to replace them all. We have so many other blessings to be thankful for too. This is by no means a brag list but an acknowledgement that we are blessed and I know He is watching out for us. It's good to make a list sometimes. . . .

Southern Hospitality

2008-04-18T21:41:00.002-04:00

I have often been asked of the "southern hospitality" here in North Carolina. "Don't you just LOVE southern hospitality?" I've heard people say. Well, let me just tell you, I haven't really noticed that people here are any nicer than anywhere else I have lived. Here is an example of the "hospitality" that I often encounter.
The other day I was grocery shopping with my two children, not my favorite activity. I had a cart full of groceries and proceeded to the checkout. There was only one line open as the store was almost empty of customers (I could hear crickets in the background). The light above the counter read, "EXPRESS LANE 15-item limit". I knew I had more than 15 items but since it was the only open line and there were no other customers, I pulled my cart forward and started unloading. This is the conversation that followed between me and the checker:

Checker: "Good morning, Ma'am. Uh, how many items do you have in your cart? Oh, you have more than 15-items. You can't come through this line."
(crickets)
Me: "Well, this is the only open line, where am I SUPPOSED to go?????"
Checker (to another employee): "Hey, David, are you open?"
David: "I will be in a minute, I am just opening my register."
Checker: "You can go to the other line. Sorry for the inconvenience."

So, I put my items back in my cart and wheeled it over to another counter and waited for the register to to be put in working order. After a few of my items were rung in the checker from the Express Lane came over and started bagging my groceries!
So much for hospitality. . . .

How Did That Dinosaur Get Under My Lip. . . .And Other Random Thoughts

2008-04-17T20:52:00.003-04:00

Here are some thoughts I wanted to write down this week but have been "consumed" by life and haven't made my self sit down to write a full blog about each.

I found out this week that the preschool I took Kennedy out of is closing the end of May and will not open next fall. I know some parents are upset because all the other preschools are full now but all the same, I think it's for the best. I think there is one original teacher who will finish out the school year. Some of the teachers have turned over twice. There is obviously something going on with that place. I know that this is not solely a consequence of our situation but I am sure it was one more thing to add to the list. From what I have learned, the pastor has not been happy with the director this year, neither have I.
My garden is doing really well. Strawberries have blossoms, peas are over a foot tall, ferns finally poked up and the raspberry bushes are really starting to get some good leaves.
I took Tristan to his 2-year check up last week and there is only a 5 pound difference between him and Kennedy. Last year she could still wear size 3T and he is now in size 3T. He was 97th percentile for weight and about 95 for height. It is funny to watch him tackle Kennedy and wrestle her down. She won't be bigger than him much longer if he keeps it up.
Saturday we had a nice little gathering to celebrate Tristan's birthday. He was a little intimidated by being the center of attention (something Kennedy never shies away from).
Kennedy is turning out to be quite the orator. A few weeks ago we got a book on CD from the library, "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs", my favorite when I was a kid. We had only had it for about a week when Kennedy started reciting it back to me word for word. I was amazed and she has told the whole story several times. It's not a short book either. Her mind amazes me.
You are probably wondering where my title came from. Chris has been having trouble with his back again and took some pain medicine one night before going to bed. He dozed off while saying his prayers and I had to wake him up and help him into bed before he fainted. In the process he looked up and asked, "How did that dinosaur get under my lip?" I don't know sweetie, maybe the tooth fairy put it there.

I'm Two

2008-04-10T21:57:00.004-04:00

Happy birthday Tristan! Tristan's birthday started out with a typical two-year-old's tantrum. He was upset because I wouldn't give him a piece of candy for breakfast. Then he didn't like the shirt I put on him. He was running around the house, throwing himself at me and the floor and screaming. I couldn't do anything to calm him.

Things didn't get any better when I took him to get a haircut. He was throwing such a tantrum that the lady didn't even get to finish the haircut. And I had to still pay for a haircut.

The situation got even worse when the next stop was the dentist. He was fine until he had to sit in the chair. This was his first visit and he already hates having his teeth brushed. It took me and the hygienist to hold him down so the dentist could look at his teeth. Poor thing. I wonder what he will think when I take him to the doctor tomorrow for his shots.

I felt so bad that I took him and Kennedy to Chick Fil-a for lunch and let them play on the playground. That made everything better according to Tristan. He was happy until we left and saw a little girl with a balloon. He decided he wanted one too and threw another tantrum until I managed to find one for him.

What's that "terrible twos?" I never experienced this with Kennedy but I have also heard that for boys it's two and for girls it's three. So far, that's what it seems in my family.

I will say that after Tristan's nap he was very pleasant for the rest of the day. He really is a sweet boy and I'm glad he is my son.

Happy birthday, sweet boy!

Conference Weekend

2008-04-09T22:10:00.004-04:00

Saturday Tristan slept much later than usual. So late that I checked on him twice before we finally woke him up. We all came downstairs and he was clearly not himself. He was very lethargic and just wanted to be held. He asked for a "gulk" so I gave him a sippy cup of milk. Chris made French toast for breakfast and shortly after starting our meal Tristan started gagging and the milk and toast were all over the table. Poor thing has never had a vomiting illness and was very confused by the whole incident.

We cleaned up the mess, gave Tristan a bath and set him in front of the t.v. watching "Cars". He was content for the moment. After conference started he fell asleep in my lap. I took him up to bed and hoped for the best.

By the afternoon Tristan had perked up and wanted to eat. I begrudgingly gave him some yogurt and a bit of water. He kept that down and by the time dinner came he was back to his old self again.

Sunday we continued our tradition of visiting Duke Gardens between sessions. It was the first time we have worn coats on our Conference outing.

The grounds were very wet. I didn't think we would be going to the gardens because of Tristan's recent illness and the wet weather we had been having. I thought I could safely dress Kennedy in white pants. She saw the hill that she typically likes to barrel roll down and made a dash for it. Chris and I were trying to keep Tristan from going into a little stream near by when we turned around and saw Kennedy rolling down the muddy hill. She stood up and then slid down on her bum. Her white pants were and are no longer white. It was one of those "oh well" moments.

The kids really enjoy the gardens and we ended up going with the neighbors kids the next day too.

Garden Update

2008-04-02T15:40:00.004-04:00

My garden is coming along. I thought that since there is actually some green now I would take a few pictures.

Square-Foot Garden. Peas are growing really fast. The carrots, green onions and cilantro are just an experiment. They didn't do well last year. I was hoping it was because I planted too late and it was too hot. The lettuces are from seedlings so I cheated a little bit there but they seem to be doing well.

My strawberries are growing fast too. I was surprised at how quickly they came up from their bare roots.

My landscaping plants are taking a little longer. Although the "Forget Me Nots" have a few flowers, the snowdrops are taking their time and I haven't seen any growth on the ferns. I'm hoping its just to early for them.

Here is what I'm most excited for: Rhubarb. Especially since my mom will be here in June and can make me one of her special straberry rhubarb pies!

Our New Boat

2008-03-31T22:11:00.001-04:00

A week ago Saturday I went out, by myself, to test drive minivans. I stopped at the Toyota dealership first and tried a 2007 Toyota Sienna. It was nice but didn't have all the options I wanted. I visited the Honda dealership next and drove a 2005 and 2006 Honda Odyssey. Very nice, right price but didn't feel right. After driving the two types of vans I decided I would rather have a Honda. I know a lot of people with Honda Odysseys and they all love their vans. I took home some information to my dear husband and we thought about it for a few days. I have been wanting a minivan for a long time but when it came down to it none of the three vans I tried on Saturday felt right. I started looking online for used Odysseys and found one I really liked. I got really excited and called the dealership first thing Monday morning. I scheduled an appointment to see the van on Tuesday when Chris could come with me. However, when I checked back with them that afternoon the van had been sold. DARN! Back to square one. After rolling it around in his head for a bit, Chris decided that a new 2008 van would be an option. He did some homework and found some tips online for buying a new car. He calculated approximately how much the dealership paid for the vehicle, added about $500 and said he would not take a higher price. We scheduled a babysitter and headed out to the Honda dealership. Chris drove the '06 and liked it. Imagine our surprise when we went in to discuss prices and the sales manager offered a new van to us at $25 below the price we previously agreed would be a "good price". Before we could commit to anything, he came back and offered an even lower price. The only haggling that took place was with the price on our trade-in, a 1993 Honda Civic hatchback. All in all we got a great deal, stayed within our budget and got a brand new van for only a bit more than the "06 would have been. We are happy.

Easter Weekend

2008-03-25T22:13:00.006-04:00

I know it's a little late for writing about Easter Weekend but I guess it's better late than never.

Saturday morning I got up and going so I could test-drive some mini vans. I went to the Toyota dealership first and tried a 2007 Sienna. It was nice but lacking some features I really wanted, like automatic sliding doors.

The Honda dealership was next. I kind of thought I would lean more toward an Odyssey anyway. I drove a 2005 and a 2006. I liked the '06 but wasn't really excited about it. More to come on the minivan adventure.

In the afternoon we went outside to work and play in the yard. Tristan found the dirt pile, again. This is what happens when a toddler is left to his own in a pile of dirt.

We invited the Brinkerhoff's over for dinner and an egg hunt on Saturday night. They were some of the first friends we made when we moved here and our kids are the same ages so we have done a lot with them. Unfortunately, since our move last April and the ward split we haven't seen much of them. Now they are moving to Reno, NV. Kennedy and Steven have been good friends over the past 4 1/2 years and even though it's been several months since they have played together, it was like no time had passed.

The kids enjoyed playing together and we fired up the grill and had the first burgers of the season. It was all good.

Sunday morning the kids found their baskets full of fun stuff (thanks, Grandma Mary for the cute clothes). Tristan was sick so I stayed home from church with him so he could get a good nap. It was much needed after staying up way to late the night before.

The rest of the day was quiet and peaceful. I am so thankful for the Savior and His love for us. I think Easter is the most underrated holiday. We could never show thanks enough for what happened on that first Easter.

Conserving Water

2008-03-21T21:51:00.003-04:00

You wouldn't think that a state like North Carolina would have a drought. However, in the past five years that we have lived here there has been a drought almost every summer. Some years we hear more about it on the news that others. One year we had a nice rainstorm and the anchor on the news made a comment to the weather man, "One more storm like that and we'll be out of the drought." I never heard things like that when we had droughts in Utah.
Last summer North Carolina had the worst drought in recorded history. The whole state is in a panic. They have never had a problem this bad and are not prepared for no rain. The lakes that supply Raleigh and surrounding areas literally dried up. Reports of 34 more days of water circulated the news. So many laws have been set up since last summer in regard to conserving water. Businesses were ordered to decrease water usage by 50%. That's pretty drastic.
Today I went to Duke for a doctor's appointment and experienced one of the ways businesses like this cut down on water usage. I walked into a stall in the ladies' room and noticed the toilet handle was green. There was a sign above the toilet that basically said this:

Push up for #1

Push down for #2

Easter Egg Dying

2008-03-20T21:14:00.004-04:00

Today I had a dentist appointment to fix an old filling. I left my kids with a friend. It worked out for all of us because the kids got to play with some friends and I got to go to my dentist appointment without worry.

This afternoon we colored Easter eggs. This was Tristan's first time. When we picked out our sets at Target he saw one with Disney's "Cars" and, of course, had to have it. He loved it so much he wouldn't let go of it the rest of the morning. I had to let him take it into Sam's Club with us and they tried to charge me for it again, even though they don't carry those.

Kennedy was more interested in the whole process than Tristan. She helped me plunge the eggs into the dye and helped me pick out the colors and wraps for each egg. It was fun and I think we only cracked three eggs (out of 18).

Monkey See, Monkey Do

2008-03-19T21:43:00.004-04:00

Kennedy has been out of preschool for a week now. I must say, she is handling it well. She understands she is not going back to "The Creek". I have tried to keep her busy enough that she won't regret staying at home with me. She does follow me around the house a lot more than she used to and repeats a lot of what I say, especially if it's in regard to disciplining Tristan.

On Monday we went to the library and got some books on St. Patrick's Day and Easter, which is our "theme" this week. Today we went to Wal-Mart to get some seedlings to plant in our garden. We also did some Easter crafts. Tristan thought the crafts were fun. He got right up to the table and colored and decorated his page with stickers. He wanted to do what Kennedy was doing.

Speaking of which, he already recognizes the alphabet. I don't know if this is typical for some 23-month olds, if he has just picked up the interest from his older sister or if he is just brilliant. He loves when we read to him and for a while he would bring us abc books. One day Chris had on a sweatshirt with words on it. Tristan pointed to the O and said "O". Chris started quizzing him and he said a few of the other letters too. Three weeks later he recognizes all 26 letters. We just laugh.

Generator

2008-03-19T21:36:00.005-04:00

Hey, I like this family blog. I'm glad it's working! I loved the videos, posts and pictures.
Last week Chris took a day off. Yes, this is an occasion to blog because he hasn't taken a day off in a long time. Anyway, for a year we have been talking about getting a generator. We are on well water so when our electricity goes out we don't have water either. How do I know this? Our power has gone off several times over the past year for one reason or another and we have experienced the no water.
It took a lot of research, saving and feet dragging to get the job done but last week we finally got it hooked up. The reason Chris took the day off was so he could be here when the electricians showed up to hook it up. It went without a hitch.
After the electricians left we set Tristan up with a movie in the house (Kennedy was at her last day of preschool) and we went outside and hooked up the generator to test it and make sure we knew how to hook it up. It took us a few minutes to figure things out and we missed a step so we had to start over but we got it to work and I actually think I could do it myself. We feel much better knowing that if we were in an ice storm or hurricane that we could still have some power.
Here is cute Tristan on his couch where I found him after we figured out the generator. Isn't he cute? He fell asleep watching "Cars" his favorite movie.

Preschool Drama

2008-03-17T16:23:00.001-04:00

Our life has been full of preschool drama the past few weeks. When we started out the year at Hope Creek we learned there would be a new director. We also learned that one of Kennedy's teachers was a woman from our ward. I felt good about sending Kennedy to this preschool and she LOVED the first half of the year. In December both of her teachers quit. This was not something new to the preschool. I think they have on of the original teachers from the beginning of the year.
Even though my friend quit she still substituted there on occasion. A few weeks ago we went on a ward temple trip and ended up carpooling with this woman. She gave me a bunch of information about Kennedy's new teacher that made me uncomfortable about keeping her at this particular preschool.
I wanted to find out for myself what was going on in the classroom so I met with the teacher and that made me feel better. I wondered if my friend was just disappointed that the new teacher didn't continue the same routine and activities as they had done. I was confused about what to do so I asked Kennedy what she thought. Immediately she said, "Mommy, take me out." I was a bit surprised because she has loved having time away from home doing her "own thing". I asked her why she wanted me to take her out and she replied, "Because sometimes Miss Carol yells at us."
That was the last thing I needed to hear. I meant to leave her in her class until the end of March since our tuition has been paid through the end of the month. However, when I met with the director to discuss the situation the reaction I got was not one of support but one of combative behavior. She basically invited me to not bring Kennedy back to preschool. I felt horrible. I didn't want to tell Kennedy that she was never going back to her preschool.
Last Wednesday was her last day. I didn't take her back after that. I am now doing things with her at home and she seems perfectly fine with that.
Next year we will try a different preschool.

Bread Baking Class

2008-03-11T22:13:00.002-04:00

I had another class at Williams-Sonoma tonight. This time it was bread baking. We learned how to make brioche which can also be made into cinnamon buns. I really learned a lot from the class and how all the ingredients work together to make bread. I guess the most enlightening thing I learned was how much temperature makes a difference throughout the process. The teacher checked the temperature of his ingredients and dough several times throughout the process. It was very interesting. Of course I had to buy a digital thermometer after the class so I could come home and put to use what I had learned. At least I got a 10 % discount.

Garden

2008-03-10T14:08:00.001-04:00

We were busy planting last week. A few weeks ago we placed an online order for some fruit plants and landscaping plants. They came last Thursday just as I was winding down a play date at our house. I spent the next three hours placing some plants in our front landscape area. I would have taken a picture but it would have looked like dirt. The roots come dormant and so there is nothing growing yet. Maybe in a few weeks. Friday we had some much needed rain. It rained all day.Last summer North Carolina experienced the worst drought in history. It seems it could rain all summer and we would not recover. Saturday was still overcast but we worked out in the yard again. This time we planted 7 raspberry bushes, 20 strawberry plants and 1 rhubarb. Again, I would have taken a picture but it doesn't look like much. We do have some peas coming up in our garden though so I know the growing power is there. I sure hope all this stuff works or it will be a lot of time and money misspent.

Night Out

2008-02-27T16:13:00.002-05:00

I had such a fabulous night out last night. A few weeks ago I had an e-mail from Williams-Sonoma, my favorite kitchen store in the mall. It was an advertisement for some upcoming cooking classes. I almost immediately signed up. All the classes are taught by local chefs and bakers. I signed up for two classes, Italian Comfort Foods and a bread class.
I'm so thankful I have such a supportive husband. He came home from work to watch the kids. I headed off to the mall for my 2-hour class. When I got to the store there weren't many seats left. The food was cooking on the stove already so I thought I was late. Not so. The chef had everything already prepared so he could teach us some basic skills. Here are some of the things I learned:
1. Don't us Pyrex for lasagna. It's better to use a big, heavy metal pan. Reason? Glass is not a good conductor of heat and lasagna needs to be cooked clear through, especially if you use an egg in your cheese mixture.
2. Don't rinse any pasta after you cook it. Pasta was invented to have with sauce. If you rinse the starch off the pasta the sauce won't stick to it like it's supposed to. For lasagna noodles, drain off the water and lay the noodles in a single layer on a lightly-sprayed baking sheet. He said to let them dry just a little so the sauce will stick to the noodles better.
3. Don't use a garlic press--something I'm guilty of. He said that when you press a garlic clove the press takes out all the good stuff and leaves just the pulp. he said it's much better to slice the clove lengthwise and then chop it. Go figure.
4. Don't chop your fresh herbs. He said that by chopping the herbs the cut edges of the herb are damaged and will start to turn black. He used a nice, sharp chef's knife and sliced right through them.
We got to "sample" (it was more like a full serving rather than a sample) three different recipes: Lasagna, Bolognese and Meatballs. All were delicious and restaurant quality.
I had so much fun I signed up for another class in April.

Life and Science Museum

2008-02-21T14:02:00.004-05:00

Since Monday was a holiday Kennedy didn't have preschool. My friend, Jennifer, called and asked me if we wanted to meet her and her two kids at the Life and Science Museum. Her daughter goes to preschool on opposite days as Kennedy so they don't get to play together very often.
I used to take my kids to the museum more often because Wednesday afternoons are free to Durham County residents. Now that Tristan takes one nap in the afternoon it is basically impossible to get there in time to make it worth it.
Last time we went to the museum Tristan was too little to get out and play. This time he really enjoyed it. Kennedy was interested in some older things too. They really liked the butterfly house. It really is a nice museum and they have made some great improvements since we moved here. I just might have to go back.

The Moral of the Story is. . .

2008-02-17T14:27:00.003-05:00

"I think I just ate a booger!"
Let me back up a few steps. It was Saturday morning. I usually make a special breakfast on the weekend but we were having someone over for lunch so I wanted us to be good and hungry when our guest arrived. Thus we had cold cereal for breakfast.
Tristan and I had Mini Wheats, Kennedy had Lucky Charms and Chris had Grapenuts Trailmix Crunch. We were all done eating by the time Chris started his breakfast. Tristan was crying and fussy for some reason so Chris offered him a bite of his cereal. Tristan happily agreed and climbed onto Chris's lap.
I started cleaning up and preparing for our lunch. In the meantime, something planted itself on Chris's shirt that could have been mistaken for either a morsel of Grapenuts Trailmix Crunch or, that's right, a booger! Assuming it was the former (not even thinking it could be the latter) Chris ate the unidentified object. As described by Chris, "it was a bit too salty and gooey to be a Grapenut morsel."
The moral of the story is: Don't by cereal that could be mistaken for a booger or vice versa!

Wrong Line

2008-02-15T13:54:00.003-05:00

I always pick the wrong line when I'm checking out at a store. It could be the shortest, fastest-moving line but as soon as I get in line something happens that slows me down. Today I went to Sam's Club. I dropped by just before picking up Kennedy from preschool so I had limited time. It was very busy for a weekday. There were probably 4-5 lines open and each line had about four people already. I picked one that seemed to be going fast. I didn't realize the lady in front of me had two packed-full carts. They were filled with breakfast-type foods: grits, eggs, sausage, etc. One cart was filled with 5-6 boxes, not cartons, of eggs. She must run some type of business. Anyway, my clock was ticking and it was minutes before I had to leave or be charged for picking up my daughter late. I thought about changing lines but by then the other lines were long enough that it wouldn't be worth it. I only had three items and was a little annoyed that the lady in front of me didn't let me go first, especially since she was cooing at my fussy toddler just before her turn. I don't know how this happens to me all the time. I'm just not a good line picker. What's the secret?
Luckily my transaction didn't take much time at all and I made it to the preschool just in time. Kennedy wasn't even the last one to be picked up.

Saturday Yard Work

2008-02-09T22:33:00.000-05:00

We had a beautiful day today. We spend the morning preparing a bed for some raspberry bushes. It's not quite time to plant yet--a few more weeks--but we ordered some plants and bushes through a catalog yesterday and thought that since it was such a nice day today we would work in the yard.
Kennedy and Tristan enjoyed playing outside. Kennedy has her own garden tools and enjoyed digging in the dirt with us. Tristan, on the otherhand, looks at the dirt and thinks, "buffet". When will he stop eating dirt?

Weekly News

2008-02-09T22:20:00.001-05:00

My internet connection hasn't been working well so I missed a few posts but here is a quick catch up.

Preschool here is pretty crazy. Some people start sending their kids to preschool at age 2. I think that's a little early and couldn't let my Kennedy go that soon. She has enjoyed going this year, however. This is her at the little school she goes to. It's not far from our house but she won't be going back next year.

There is a really good school downtown that so many people want to send their kids to that the school has to do an admission lottery. Kennedy didn't get in last year. We tried it again this year though and got in. The lottery is kind of stressful because there are some intense parents there. In years past people have had multiple family members come to draw more numbers for one child. I don't think that happens anymore.

I'm excited for Kennedy to go to this new school next year. She is a bright girl and I think she will be more challenged there.

The other night we were sleeping soundly when in the wee hours of morning a loud chirping alarm woke us up. I immediately knew it was the smoke detector. I sent Chris running down the stairs to check things out. Meanwhile both kids woke up and my heart was in my throat! Nothing like a potential emergency to keep you from going back to sleep at 4 a.m. Obviously nothing was wrong. We don't know why it went off though.

Digital Scrapbooking

2008-02-06T22:44:00.000-05:00

The last few years I have tried to make scrapbooks for my family. I have one for our family and one for each child. The past year or so it has become overwhelming and a task I did not want to take on. I knew there was something like digital scrapbooking but it wasn't until very recently that I looked into it. Now that I have a computer that can handle all the photos, downloading and web surfing I decided to give it a try. It helped that my computer came with the latest Photoshop Elements program.

With the help of my friend, Alison, I was lead to a website that guided me through my first tutorial. Tonight while my hubby was sitting on the couch watching the Duke/UNC basketball game I worked through this tutorial and made my first digital scrapbook page. I know it's not much but it's a start. I'm so excited. I hope I can keep up with the scrapbooking now that I have a novel way to do it.

A Tribute

2008-02-04T10:14:00.000-05:00

Last week three couples from my home town were on vacation in California. They were together in the same vehicle when a semi truck ran a stop sign and crashed into them. Three of the six were killed (story). One couple was my dad's niece and her husband and another woman, April, was a dear friend who influenced my life greatly. It is a tragedy for the whole town. All three will be missed. April was my drill team advisor in high school. I received word this week that someone was collecting tributes from all of April's former B-Steps (that's what our team was called.) Here is my contribution and also a picture of our team. Unfortunately April is not in the picture.

(That's me front row, third from the left)

Few people hold as dear a place in my heart as April Yardley. She is a legend in the history of Beaver High School’s drill team. It was my privilege to be part of that history. Her last year as the B-step advisor was my first year on the team and one that I look back on with the fondest memories.
It was never my intention to become a B-step. I had very little dance experience, less than most of my friends who tried out, but I was coerced into trying out regardless. In spite of the lack of experience I made the team. April always made me feel like I belonged there and that I could be as good as anyone else. Little did I know that the experience would be the highlight of my high school years. I made friends and had experiences that I otherwise would not have.
Like I said, April is a legend and she also had a reputation. I was a little nervous about how practices would go and the pressure I would feel. However, in no time at all I learned to love, respect and admire April. I often think of my time on the Drill Team and my thoughts always include April.
Not all my memories of April are from my one year working with her on the Drill Team. April believed in me and encouraged me to do other things. Because of her I tried out for Miss Drill Team Utah and Miss Beaver County. I then went on to participate in the Miss Utah State Fair and Miss Utah pageants.
To me April was more than just a drill team advisor, she was a mentor, an example and a friend. I am so glad I had a brief moment in time with her. She was a wonderful person.

Visiting Teaching

2008-01-31T09:36:00.000-05:00

I love how visiting teaching has changed with technology. I don't have to make any phone calls anymore! I contact my companion and our sisters by e-mail then report to the supervisor by the same means.

My current route is very easy. My companion and our three sisters are all well-established, active members. We are all similar in age and/or situation. My companion and I like to do things a little differently. Instead of going to each individual's home we take turns hosting a lunch or brunch in our own homes. It's been fun trying new recipes and using recipes I don't get to use very often.

I usually make an egg dish, some kind of coffee cake or breakfast bread and something with fruit. Yesterday I prepared a breakfast burrito bar. I loaded up my Tupperware veggie tray with three different kinds of meat--sausage, bacon and ham, cheese, sautéed mushrooms, sautéed onions and green peppers, salsa and sour cream. The scrambled eggs and tortillas were served on the side. I had a fruit platter and a blueberry coffee cake which was a new recipe but very good.

We always have a very good time and the kids get to play together so that means the adults get a moment to chat.

Quilt Retreat Pics

2008-01-29T10:44:00.001-05:00

Here's the proof. We really did work hard on our beach trip.

My kids

2008-01-29T09:29:00.000-05:00

Ahh Nuts!

2008-01-27T20:36:00.000-05:00

When Kennedy turned one I started giving her peanut butter because I though PB & Js were a staple for kids. Soon after, she developed what I thought was a peanut allergy. When I told the doctor about the rashes I found she told me to wait 6 or so months before trying peanut butter again and explained that some children grow out of these early-onset allergies. However, six months later she still seemed allergic. I have never taken her to get officially tested but have just assumed she was allergic and have avoided making some of my favorite goodies that included peanut butter.
Last week when I went to the beach for my quilting retreat I made a big batch of my favorite peanut butter chocolate chip cookies (recipe courtesy of my lovely sister, Alison). Incidentally, I left a few behind for Chris's lunches, stored in the freezer in snack-size Ziploc baggies. You can guess where this is going. . . .Mom out of town, unlabeled cookies, Dad's first time ever being left in charge for more than just a few hours. Kennedy had downed about half the cookie before she told Chris, "Daddy, I think there is peanut butter in these cookies!" Chris panicked but, being the doctor he is, kept a close eye on her. Nothing happened. We thought our troubles of the peanut allergy were over.
This weekend I made one of my favorite desserts that I haven't made in a very long time: Peanut Butter Pie. I thought this would be a good way to ease Kennedy into the life of peanut butter. After all, I didn't want her to be afraid of peanut butter just because we had been telling her for her entire life that she had to avoid peanuts and peanut butter. I was right, she ate her whole piece of pie then asked for more.
About an hour after dessert I started getting the kids ready for bed. Kennedy came to me complaining that she itched everywhere. . . .even in her bum. Poor thing was miserable. She had rashes all over. I quickly ran downstairs and grabbed the Benedril and asked for "the doctor" to come check her out. We agreed that this was probably due to the peanut butter and decided that there would be no more peanut butter for Kennedy.
You would think this would be enough to traumatize a four-year-old but she seems to take it all in stride. This morning she told us, "No more peanut butter for me until I'm an adult!"

Mini Ham Puffs

2008-01-24T16:49:00.000-05:00

A few months ago I had a Pampered Chef show and this is what we served. I have made them a few times since for various reasons. They are very good.

Mini Ham Puffs

1 pkg (2.5 oz) processed ham or smoked turkey, finely chopped
2 Tbs finely chopped onion
1/2 cup (2 oz) shredded Swiss or cheddar cheese
1 egg
1 Tbs snipped fresh parsley
1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
1 pkg refrigerated crescent rolls

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray mini muffin pat with vegetable oil. Finely chop ham and onion. Place in mixing bowl. Add cheese, egg, parsley, mustard and black pepper; mix well.
Unroll crescent dough and press into one large rectangle. Cut dough into 24 squares using a pizza cutter. Press one square of dough into each muffin cup.
Fill each muffin cup with a scant tablespoon of ham mixture. Bake 12-14 minutes or until puffs are light golden brown. Remove from pan; serve immediately.
Yield: 24 appetizers.

Surprises

2008-01-24T13:13:00.000-05:00

When I was a child, I hated waiting for surprises (who am I kidding?? I'm still like this). Christmas and birthdays were always very difficult for me. I'm very impatient by nature and waiting for something that's bound to be good is a trial. Even in my married life I struggle. Our first few Christmases were a big letdown for Chris because I guessed what he was giving me. It wasn't until a few years later that he brought this annoying habit to my attention. Sorry!!!

When we found out we were unexpectedly expecting that was a big surprise. I have since surprised myself by committing to wait until the baby is born to find out the gender. I never thought that I would be able to do that. However, in this situation I think it's appropriate.

We had our ultrasound about two weeks ago and were successful at not finding out. There's no turning back now unless the tech wrote it down somewhere and one of the doctors accidentally blurts it out. The ultrasound showed that the baby is healthy. I do have to return in a few months for a follow up ultrasound because my placenta has not moved up which could mean placenta previa. I hope it all resolves. I feel confident that things will work out as they should.

Here are a few pictures of the little tyke:

My New Computer

2008-01-23T11:45:00.000-05:00

This is my new computer. Yes, it's red. I'm so excited. I hope I can be a better blogger now that I don't have to work on my dinosaur. It should be easier for me to upload pictures and that's more fun for a blog.

Wonderful Weekend

2008-01-22T22:01:00.000-05:00

I had such an awesome weekend! I took a four-day trip with some quilting friends to the beach. We rented a beach house to accommodate all nine of us. We went with one mission in mind. . . .quilt, quilt, quilt! And quilt we did, from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. I felt like a college student again! We did do a few other things too like eat, watch movies and listen to music, all while working on our quilts of course.
As I packed for the trip I wanted to make sure I had plenty of projects to work on. I planned on making a quilt for our baby and I had a few projects that had just been sitting in my closet. I didn't have anything pressing to finish besides the baby quilt. I packed material and fabric for five quilts plus a felt book that needed to be cut out for the kids. I knew I was grossly overestimating how much I would accomplish in four days.
Taking inventory at the end of the trip, however, there was only one project I didn't touch. I finished three quilt tops, started another and finished the felt book. Combined with my other friends we finished 15 quilt tops in the four days we were there. Not too bad! It's amazing what you can accomplish when you don't have to make dinner, bathe children, clean the house, shower, get dressed. . . .oh, just kidding I did the latter two.
I'll be posting some pictures soon. I forgot to take my camera but a few people had them.

Dirty Days

2007-10-04T17:13:00.000-04:00

Pumpkin Apple Streusel Muffins: That was my latest great find. Crispy sweetness on the outside, tender and moist on the inside. The flavor of fall.
The weather has been really nice lately. We have finally cooled off to the 80s! I took the kids outside to play. My neighbor is having some landscaping done around her yard. The workers dumped a big pile of dirt in the cul-de-sac. Tristan spotted it first. I tried to deter the kids but then one of the workers suggested they go get their buckets and shovels.
Both kids had a blast but they were covered from head to toe with dark brown dirt. It was fun to see them play in it. I didn't even mind so much when Tristan ate a few handfuls of dirt. He seemed happy. If it wasn't for our dinner meeting with Daddy it would have been even more fun. I had to take them in the house and give them a bath before taking them to the hospital so we could have dinner as a family.

What You've Missed

2007-09-26T14:32:00.000-04:00

I just wanted to post this picture of my friend Rachel. I wrote about the quilt I made for her several months ago. She is seen in the picture with me. She tied it with her mother and I finished the binding for her.

Life has been busy lately but I thought I better blog so I can get some of it recorded anyway. I don't know why it's been so hard for me to blog since we moved. I am blaming it on the fact that our computer is in a different place and not as accessible.

Kennedy started preschool at the beginning of the month. She is so cute and loves it. I am enjoying the one-on-one time with Tristan but it seems most days are filled with naps or busy errands. I have managed to take him tot he park a few times though.

Last week was our women's conference. I was in charge providing two quilts for the service project. My mom donated two pieced quilts and made it that much easier for me. We had an activity where several women from the ward showed up to help tie. I had two more quilting sessions at my house. They are done and they were the cutest ones (if I do say so myself, thanks, Mom) of the group.

We have finally saved up some money to buy some new furniture. Our first project is the dining room. We purchased a table and some chairs last weekend and look forward to their arrival. It will be nice to start decorating our new home that we've lived in for almost six months now!
The furniture doesn't look very exciting from a tiny picture but in real life it's really nice. Simple but elegant. I am going to have a deep red and gold fabric on the seats. Fun stuff.

Serendipity

2007-08-16T14:29:00.000-04:00

Today I had to run some errands near the mall so as a reward for my children's good behavior I took them to the mall play area then we had lunch at Chik-fil-a. Soon after we arrived at the play area Kennedy walked up to a little girl and started talking to her. It was too loud and she was too far away for me to hear what she said but the two played together happily for some time. Once they came close to me and Kennedy was excited to tell me she had met a new friend. I asked the little girl, who was wearing the same skort as Kennedy, what her name was and she said, "Kennedy". I thought she misunderstood. Soon her mother came my way and I asked her what her daughter's name was. She said the same thing, "Kennedy". Oh! That's my daughter's name too! It turned out they were the same age--give or take a few months. After a few minutes the girl's mother asked me if I'm LDS. She said that she, too, is LDS and they are not in the same ward but go to the same building. Just a funny coincidence.

The Cooking Club

2007-08-15T15:19:00.000-04:00

I went through a cookbook-collecting phase when we lived in Denver. It started with one of those mail-order things where you get so many cookbooks for $1 then have to buy so many at regular price. Then a lady at church cleaned out her cookbooks and gave me some very good books. It kind of snowballed from there. I have kept most of them.
About this same time I had an idea to start a cooking club. My friend, Liz, helped me get it going. We invited some of our friends and we met once a month or so. We always had a theme and a little lesson with several dishes to taste at the end. We took turns hosting, teaching and providing the food. Now that I think about it it kind of sounds a bit silly but we had so much fun! When you combine women, food and conversation you can't go wrong.
Some of the themes I remember are fondue, picnics, bread and eggs. I also remember having a little demo on napkin folding. I still have a lot of our handouts and refer to them from time to time. I really did learn a lot.

This recipe is one of my favorite desserts. I like Oreo desserts. This is not related to the cooking club but I thought I would include it because I was talking to my mom about it the other day.

Cookies and Cream Cheesecake
2 cups (24) crushed Oreo cookies
6 Tbs butter, melted
Combine crumbs and margarine, press onto bottom and 1 1/2 inches up sides of spring form pan
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
1/4 cup cold water
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup milk
1 cup whipping cream, whipped
1 1/4 cups (10) chopped Oreo cookies
Soften gelatin in water; stir over low heat until dissolved. Combine cream cheese and sugar, mixing at medium speed until well blended. Gradually add gelatin, and milk, mixing until blended. Chill until slightly thickened but not set; fold in whipped cream. Reserve 1 1/2 cups cream cheese mixture; pour remaining cream cheese mixture over crust. Top with chopped cookies and reserved cream cheese mixture. Chill until firm.

Still Here

2007-08-13T16:52:00.000-04:00

I'm still here. I haven't forgotten about my blog. However, with a fan base of about four people I have a hard time motivating myself to write sometimes. I know I should just do it for myself. After all, I did start the blog so it would be a fun way to journal. I would like to include some more interesting tidbits like recipes or pictures but I haven't really tried anything new lately and it's very difficult to download pictures onto my computer. I have had a few thoughts lately that I would like to include.
I hate August. It is the January of Summer--you know, when all the fun and excitement is over and there is not much to look forward to in the near future. The weather is at it's peak--we've had 100-degree weather for a week. On Saturday we only reached 93, which felt pleasant. When has 93 ever felt pleasant?
Anyway, the heat has killed my not-so-productive garden. I've decided that it's very difficult to garden here. My zucchini plant is the only thing that has been really productive. We did get one cucumber that was delicious before the heat killed everything. The beans could have been good if the infestation of the Japanese beetles had not occurred. I think next year I might stick to herbs. That was the only other thing that the deer didn't eat. If it's not one thing it's another, I guess.
Saturday we had a minute to go to the farmer's market. Almost every booth looked like they were set up to make salsa. We bought a few pounds of tomatoes, some jalapenos and some peppers. I came home and found a recipe online (which I won't be sharing. . . .keep reading) and bought the rest of the ingredients at the grocery store. It could have, should have been delicious. However, the total yield did not quite add up to what the recipe said. I was supposed to have four pints at the end and only had 3 1/2. I don't know if the recipe was wrong or if I messed up (I think a little of both) but the salsa is horrible. It tastes like vinegar with a little bit of vegetables added. What a waste. I hope there is a way to salvage it.

The Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie

2007-08-03T16:31:00.000-04:00

I claim to be on a quest for the best chocolate chip recipe. When I find it I will let you know. So far I have at least three "favorite" chocolate chip cookie recipes. One is just a plain ol' chocolate chip cookie which uses half butter, half shortening. I also like the recipe that uses the ground-up oatmeal that has falsely been accused of being a clone of the Mrs. Field's and Nieman Marcus recipes. When I'm in a really chocolate mood I opt for the Double Trouble recipe that my sister gave me. It's a chocolate cookie with chocolate chips and sometimes I add the Andes mint chips for a little surprise. I would add another recipe of my sister's, Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies, which are really yummy but since Kennedy has a peanut allergy I choose not to make those. They really are good though.
I tried a new one today called "Mississippi Mud Cookies" that really were good. They might be on my list depending how they taste tomorrow. It has all the right ingredients: chocolate dough, milk chocolate chips, pecans and toasted marshmallows. I was surprised at how much the recipe really takes on the flavor of the traditional Mississippi Mud cake. I found the recipe in my August issue of Southern Living, which has been my favorite magazine for some time.
Go ahead, try them and see what you think.

Travel Log

2007-08-02T13:36:00.000-04:00

I didn't mean for this to be a travel log but I have to write about my trip to Utah. We had such a great time and each year I go I remember why I make the trek out every summer.
First I have to say that my kids did great on the flights. It was such a long day travelling it would not have surprised me if they were miserable. We held it together until the car ride from the Las Vegas airport to St. George. Kennedy was just getting over a cold and I think that combined with the ear pressure from the airplane, the long day and sitting in the back seat of the car was just too much. As we turned into the Target parking lot in St. George she threw up. Poor thing. She was much better the next day and we were able to have a healthy trip the rest of the time.
Our first major event was preparing for my niece's baby shower. Tyffanee is expecting her first baby, a girl, and we decided at the last minute to throw a shower for her. Even though she isn't from Beaver we have a lot of relatives there and we had a good turn out with a few out-of-towners, including her mom, sister and mother-in-law. Since we decided to host the shower last minute (five days notice for guests) we gave the option of going in on a group gift. This turned out to be a great thing because we were able to get her a Pack-n-Play, a Baby Bjorn and a high chair. She also got lots of cute clothes, blankets and other fun things. I'm so excited to see my cute niece be a mom.
Our next great adventure was celebrating Pioneer Day. My sister came to town and Kennedy enjoyed playing with her cousin, Megyn. My niece, Alyssa, also stayed with us along with her friend Mary. We had a houseful but the more the merrier. Beaver starts Pioneer Day off with their own tradition. At approximately 6 a.m. dynamite can be heard in intervals all around town. Wake up! Time to get ready for the day. After listening to this for about 15 minutes I am ready to get up. My sister and brother-in-law head to the high school track to do the 5K. Alison and I walk because I am usually not in shape for it. It's a fun time to have with my sister, however.
After the 5K we rush home to shower and get ready for the parade. This year Beaver was hosting a little league tournament so a lot of the floats were trucks filled with cute little baseball players from all over the country. The rest of the parade was unremarkable. I was a little disappointed this year. After the parade we head down to the city park where there are kid's foot races (which we never do because I hated them when I was a kid), snow cones, hot dogs, moon bounce and slide, and old friends. Everyone who left Beaver comes home for Pioneer Day and we hope to see each other at the park. It's our yearly reunion. I saw more friends this year than usual, which is fun.
After the festivities at the park we made ready for a family cook-out. We were going to head up the canyon but it turned out to be a rainy day so we went to a local park instead. My mom and her two sisters still live where they have always lived--within two blocks of each other. They all gather their families together and we have a potluck. My cousin, Wade, brought his pony and cart to take the kids on rides. Kennedy loved that. Meanwhile, my dad and I went to check out some antique cars parked along the block--about 7 or 8 cars all belonging to the same man. He happened to pull up in his 1922 speedster and offered to take me for a ride. I love antique cars so I took him up on it. He couldn't convince me to drive it though. That was the highlight of my day.
I told Kennedy that if she took a nap she could stay up for the fireworks. She thought that was a great idea until they actually started. She wanted to go home right now. She then told me that the next time I tell her that she can stay up for fireworks she WON'T take a nap. She made it through and I enjoyed the show too.
I was able to visit with some of my dear friends whom I don't get to see very often. I was able to visit my old high school friends Melanie, Kerrie, Debbie and Alison. I met Lucy at Thanksgiving Point and we went through the Dinosaur Museum. We had a nice visit from Chris's brother and his wife. They spoiled the kids for a whole day. My mom and I took the kids to the "This is the Place Pioneer Park" which was fun. My sister and her kids volunteer there. It was a fun place to spend the day. We also met Nana and Poppa at Thanksgiving Point for a few hours and toured the beautiful gardens there. We had such a good time and it was nice for the kids to see the Kelsey Grandparents since they haven't seen them for a year. We are so blessed to have such wonderful friends and family. We feel so loved when we go back to Utah.
Some other highlights of the trip were shopping at many quilt stores, reading the final book of Harry Potter, going on walks with no humidity, and just relaxing a little bit. Now it is time to get back to reality.

Spa Night

2007-07-12T15:03:00.000-04:00

Last night was my first big Enrichment Meeting. I only have three people on my committee so there was a lot of planning on my part. We had a "Spa" night. Our spiritual message was on "loving who you are". We asked someone who is leaving the ward this summer to do that and she did a great job.

When we fist started planning we had too many things planned for the night so we decided to double up on the classes and have two being taught at the same time, different rooms. We had four classes, skin care, color analysis, women's health issues--stress management, and hair tips. We wanted to have an exercise class and manicures for the end but that didn't work out. In then end, one of our speakers cancelled last minute. We ended up all staying in the Relief Society room for all of the speakers.

I was surprised at the number of people we had. I didn't count but I bet we had between 30-40 which is good for our ward. Our activities have not been that well attended. All the speakers we had lined up did an excellent job. Everyone listening seemed really interested too.

We topped the night off with chocolate fondue and dippers. Yum!

Normal People

2007-07-03T15:00:00.001-04:00

I've really slacked in the blogging department since we moved to our new house. I can think of two reasons:
1. Our computer is in an upstairs location just outside the kids' rooms. So, when it's nap time I don't usually get on the computer anymore.
2. Life has been really busy!
Almost two weeks ago we took a trip to Washington D.C. I want to write more about that when I am able to download some pictures.
This past Friday Chris finished his residency. . . .just like that! After almost 12 years of knowing him he has finally reached the goal he had in mind when we met. It's been a long haul and we have had some ups and downs but it's finally here.
I was invited to attend the departments end-of-year luncheon. I made arrangements for Tristan to go to a friend's house and I took Kennedy with me. It was a nice buffet-style lunch with a lot of the people from the department there--mostly physicians, residents, techs and some support staff. Chris was awarded an outstanding research award which I missed because I was taking someone to the restroom. The residents presented him with a nice gift certificate to Orvis. Some of the doctors stood up to say some nice things about Chris. Then Chris got up to say a few words. He said he wanted to thank three people. He thanked me first and much to my surprise he got emotional. That made me get teary eyed too. Then he thanked one of the secretaries and his mentor Dr. Marks. He presented Dr. Marks with a quilt I made for him. Again, I will write more on the quilt when I'm able to download the picture. It was a nice day and I had such a giddy feeling in my heart all day long. So glad he's done.
He started his new job yesterday and had a fabulous day in the clinic. After almost 12 years of having smaller goals to reach and moving every 3-5 years we aren't sure what to do next. I guess just live like normal people!

Recipe Naming Contest

2007-06-26T16:44:00.000-04:00

About 3 1/2 years ago we were visiting Chris's aunt in Bountiful when she served this yummy dish. There is no name for it and really no recipe. I even searched the Internet trying to pin down some specific measurements but came up with nothing. I don't even have a name for it. So, any suggestions?

Meat:
1 pork butt/shoulder roast
Coke (about 1 cup)
Ketchup (about 1 cup)
Brown Sugar (about 1/2 cup)
Combine and cook all day in slow cooker or crock pot--I put it in the night before and had it for a luncheon the next day.
Remove pork and shred. Mix in some of the reserved liquid and add more ketchup and brown sugar to taste. Heat in slow cooker/crock pot.

Serve on tortillas with rice, black beans, sour cream, Monterrey cheese, salsa, corn, etc.

As a side dish I served Minted Pineapple:
1 fresh pineapple, cut into bite-size chunks or slices
4 Tbs sugar
8 mint leaves

Combine sugar and mint in food processor or blender and mix until mint is chopped into tiny pieces. Sprinkle over fresh pineapple chunks.

I Need a Prince

2007-06-13T09:05:00.001-04:00

Kennedy's favorite movie lately is "Barbie: 12 Dancing Princesses" She loves to dance around when the princesses take the stage. Yesterday I turned it on for her while I tried to finish a quilt that has a deadline.
I heard Kennedy pattering around downstairs and then dead silence. I wondered what was going on. When I went down to check on her she was nowhere in sight. I finally found her in the garage. She was getting her ballet shoes that were in the car. She wanted to put them on to dance in the living room. Cute girl!
I went back to my sewing and then I heard her clamouring up the stairs. Tristan was asleep so I poked my head out the door to tell her "shhhh". She ran into her room and grabbed her bear who is supposed to stay in her room now because he's starting to fall apart. When I told her to put him back she said, "but I need a prince". She must have reached the part in the movie where the princesses are dancing with princes.

Mickey Mouse Park

2007-06-11T14:51:00.000-04:00

Last Sunday we packed up the kids and flew to Orlando where we met two of my siblings, Alison and Steve, and their families. Before we left I knew it would be a great vacation but also very difficult. Tristan is still taking two naps a day and is not used to "sleeping on the go". Nevertheless, we love to travel and we haven't traveled much since Tristan was born 14 months ago so we gave it a shot.

We visited Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom but the best part was being there with family. Little Kennedy adores her cousins. Since we got back we she can't stop talking about Tamsyn, Megyn and Mandy-forget Mickey Mouse!

Some of the highlights from our trip were:

Being with family (of course)
Kennedy's face when she got to hug Alice in Wonderland

The Philharmagic show at Magic Kingdom
Baby giraffes at Animal Kingdom
Swimming with the kids
Free hot breakfast at the hotel!
Finding Nemo the Musical
Watching Kennedy entertain everyone

The Flavor of Memorial Day

2007-05-28T14:11:00.000-04:00

Did you know Memorial Day has a flavor? It is pancakes with strawberries and whip cream--not the store-bought in a can or container kind but the freshly whipped kind that's made from heavy cream and sugar.
Our family had a Memorial Day tradition. Each year Uncle John and Aunt Ann hosted a breakfast. It started out as just family, then a few friends, then half the town! I think the last one we had served almost 100 people.
Uncle John's pancakes weren't the usual 3-4 inch pancake. They were the size of the whole plate and if you could eat more than one you were either some kind of hero or really sick! The pancake batter was made from a sour dough start that was over 100 years old. The dough is set out the night before. It grows and grows then in the morning some of the start is taken out, put in the refrigerator and saved for then next time. More ingredients are then added to the remaining dough to make it the batter consistency we all are familiar with.
Along with the pancakes topped with fresh strawberries and whipped cream each person was served a couple of eggs--sunny side up--and a slab of ham. There was a choice of milk or OJ to drink.
After our large breakfast we would all head up to the cemetery to put flowers on our loved-ones' graves. It was a happy day that our family shared.
I can't help but think of Uncle John and his pancakes on Memorial Day. I know that pancakes with such toppings could be had any time of the year but for some reason we saved it for that special day. I have since made that meal but it just doesn't have that same tickling of the taste buds. Oh, it's good, and we'll have it again, but I sure miss Uncle John and his pancakes.
Happy Memorial Day!

Cabin Creek: The Sign of an Eleven-Year Marriage

2007-05-28T13:57:00.000-04:00

Eleven years ago April Chris and I were married. There were many things I didn't know about Chris but I did know that he enjoyed camping, hiking and some hunting. When he was in high school he used to go on long camping trips with his friends. After he graduated he and his friends headed off for a three-week camping trip in the mountains. I can only imagine what goes on when three boys get together with no supervision, no rules and no showers! Chris did bring home a souvenir from his trip, however, an old sign which said "Cabin Creek". The story goes that he paid one of his siblings to sand it down and paint it for him.
Over the course of our eleven-year marriage Chris has toted that sign around claiming that "some day" he would hang it in our home. Our first few apartments were small, very temporary or not concussive for hanging things on the wall (BYU Married Housing--cinder block walls). When we moved the North Carolina he thought the time had come. He had a nice office which was eventually decorated with his diplomas and some nice fly fishing decor. It could have gone in there but the sign was kind of big and bulky and would have looked funny.
Now, I always went along with Chris and told him that "yes, someday", he could have the sign up. When it came right down to it I just couldn't allow him to hang that thing in our home.
Now that we are all settled into our new home we have found a perfect place for the Cabin Creek sign. I am actually quite surprised at how nice it looks and Chris was quite surprised that I agreed so quickly. We have an eight-foot-wide porch that looks out to a rustic wooded front yard. The sign now hangs from the porch and adds a personal touch to our home that says it's ours.
Welcome home to Cabin Creek!

Singin' in the Rain

2007-05-14T10:27:00.000-04:00

Saturday is always busy for us. Chris works all week and has one day for his yard chores. I wish I could say that I am organized enough to have all my shopping done so that I could stay home and be helpful. However, for some reason I have been programed to do my shopping on Saturday. I usually leave the kids with Chris so I can go myself but this time I took Kennedy with me and left only Tristan.
When we left the house the rain had subsided. I thought we would be ok without our umbrellas. I'm still getting used to a new grocery store so it took me a little longer than I expected. I was in a hurry though because our babysitter was going to be at our house at 5:00. I knew that time was approaching.
I rushed through the checkout and turned toward the door to leave. Sheets of rain were pouring down from the sky! We had no umbrellas, no jackets with hoods (not that they would have helped in this kind of rain storm!), nothing. I stood there with everyone else and waited. After awhile Kennedy looked up at me, tugged on the grocery cart and said, "Come on, Mommy. Let's GO!" I explained that it was raining and we would have to wait a little bit. A few minutes later she became impatient. She tugged on the cart again, "Come on Mommy! We're going to miss it!" I waited a minute more thinking of how I actually liked how my hair turned out that day and thinking I wanted to look nice for my date with Chris later that night. I looked at Kennedy again with her cute little eyes looking longingly out at the rain. I told her to jump on the cart and we made a run for it. We ran out into the river of rain, unprotected from the elements. When we got to the car I unlocked it and told her to get into her car seat while I put the groceries in the trunk. Expecting her to do so I hurriedly removed the bags from the cart. I looked up a moment later to find Kennedy splashing in puddles and twirling in the rain.
I couldn't help but think about how I look at life's storms. Do I hide from the rain or dance and sing and make the most of it? When it comes down to it, life's not all rainstorms anyway, we do have those sunny days to look forward to!

Quilting Comfort

2007-05-13T20:19:00.000-04:00

When my mom was younger she associated with a group of girls who called themselves "The Ten Old Maids". Throughout the years they have remained friends although they all married and went their ways. A few weeks ago one of the "Old Maids" passed away. One of the other old maids asked my mom to make a quilt in her honor. My mom cranked out a beautiful quilt in about two days. I didn't see it but she told me that in the quilting she had quilted an angel and the words, "Friends are Forever". Knowing my mom and the artistic talent she has I'm sure the quilt was beautiful. The old maids who were able to come to the funeral took part in the services and placed the quilt in the coffin before she was buried.
On Wednesday I had a phone call from a gal I go to church with. She called asking for my help with a quilt. Another gal in our ward recently lost a baby that was only about 18 weeks along. It was conceived by IVF and was the couple's first child. My friend wanted to present her with a quilt that she and those who came to visit could tie. That sounded like something I could do. The only problem was that she wanted it the following day. I looked around my sewing room and found some beautiful fabric and said "yes", thinking I could get some of my quilting friends to help me put it together.
I already had a busy morning ahead. I had agreed to babysit my friend's two kids all morning and they would arrive soon. I took my fabric and cutting supplies downstairs and called my first quilting friend. She offered to send out an e-mail to the rest. I thought that would save some time and agreed. I cut as many squares as I could while watching the kids play. By mid-afternoon there were no replies and I worried that my quilting friends would not be able to come on such short notice so I started piecing the quilt. By early evening it was evident that I would be putting this quilt together myself.
I worked on the quilt until about 10 p.m. and picked it back up the next morning. By 11 a.m. it was finished! I just had to run to JoAnn's to buy fabric for the back and also the batting and yarn.
I was amazed at how much I liked the quilt. When I first started laying out the blocks I wasn't sure if it was a good combination. I had just enough fabric for the border. In fact, I miscalculated and didn't have enough strips. I looked back through my stash and found another strip that was already cut to the size I needed! It was a miracle. This quilt was surely meant for this wonderful lady.
This is one of the reasons I love quilting so much. It is a service than not everyone can give and it shows love in a unique way. When I get the quilt back to bind I will take a picture and post it.

My Garden

2007-05-07T14:10:00.000-04:00

Growing up we always had a garden. I vaguely remember coming home after school and helping siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles plant the seeds into the tilled earth. Next memory is enjoying the scrumptious bounty in late summer. There was always plenty of squash, corn, carrots, cucumbers and many other vegetables. Why don't I remember anything in between? Probably because I didn't do any of the watering, weeding, harvesting, etc. You know, all the hard stuff.
I have lived all these years with a very romantic idea of becoming a gardener. I always said that when I have a house with a yard I want to grow a garden. I mentioned this to a friend and she told me of square-foot gardening. I thought it sounded interesting and looked it up on the Internet. It claims to be a full garden with as much produce but the space and work load are reduced 80%. I told my idea to Chris and the deal was that I could do it but that I had to do it--he was willing to help and but he didn't want to spend his precious Saturdays pulling weeds.
I did all the research and came to Chris with a list of materials I needed. We went to Home Depot on Saturday and bought all the supplies. He helped me (or I helped him rather) make a 4-foot square box to put my garden in. We took it to our "spot" and it was not level. It was my job to make it right. I started digging some trenches just the width of the board--I don't know! I have never done work like this before! When Chris saw what I was doing he chuckled and I handed him the shovel. He pulled out his level tool, turned up the dirt and made my garden square nice and level.
I filled the box with peat moss, compost and top soil. Then I sectioned off my garden into 16 1-foot sections with string. That wasn't too difficult but I still needed a little help from Chris. Kennedy helped me plant some seeds and then we watered.
My 4-foot square garden looks nice and tidy but we will see if it produces anything. I am beginning to wonder if I will be able to manage this. What was I thinking? I guess this is how it starts when you learn something new, right? Maybe it's a good thing I started with a 4-foot square! Stay tuned. . . .

I'm Back!

2007-04-30T16:11:00.000-04:00

Ahhh! I'm back. With all the craziness of moving behind me I can finally sit down and write about it. We did have a few hiccups the first few days but we are all settled now. We had a few plumbing problems including a dishwasher that wouldn't drain and a toilet that kept clogging. The dishwasher had a pinched pipe so all the water couldn't get out. After calling the plumber 4 times he finally figured out the problem--a plastic tampon applicator stuck in the bottom. . . it wasn't mine--just weaned Tristan this weekend!
Today the fireplace company came and started up our propane fireplace. It has to be on for six hours--did I mention it's the hottest day so far this year? It's an inferno.
I must say, I love my house. Here is a list of things I love most:

Screened-in porch
Oak floors
The view out my window--or any window
The peace and tranquility of being out in the country
Flagstone walkway
The kitchen
Garden bathtub and separate shower
Skylights
Being closer to Duke so Chris has a little bit shorter commute
Screened-in porch!

Signing Off

2007-04-12T20:48:00.000-04:00

When we first moved to Orchard Oriole Lane we thought it was such a cool street name. It didn't take long for us to change our minds. We started making calls to connect our utilities and other calls associated with moving to a new address. It seems that from the other end of the line it sounds like we live on Orchard Oreo Lane! That has been a thorn in our sides ever since.

Tomorrow we sign on our new home and will begin moving. We have made many good memories in this home and it is the only home our children know. Here are some things I will miss about this house and our neighborhood:

The lake view
The wildlife-- blue heron, geese, ducks, bunnies, blue jays, cardinals, blue birds, etc. We have even seen beavers, deer, a bald eagle and a swan.
Neighbors with the same-age kids
Walking distance to a grocery store, Wendy's and blockbuster
Living near a good portion of the ward members
My neighbor Sheila (and Skeeter even though she is in Seattle for another year)
Close proximity to the mall
The neighborhood park and other close parks

We have had many people come to visit us in this house including my parents, Chris's parents, Chris's brothers, Kimball and Cameron, my niece Alyssa, the Johnsons, Derek, and many others.

Although we are very excited to move into our new home, we will miss this place. This is my last blog at this home address. Signing off. . . . .

Tristan Michael Turns 1

2007-04-10T10:23:00.000-04:00

Today is my sweet baby boy's birthday! Tristan has been such a joy in our lives and I can't believe a whole year is up. It must be because he is the second child but it seems like his first year went by way faster than Kennedy's first year.
Tristan is starting to take his first steps. He has a few toys that have wheels and can be pushed. He loves to push those around the house. I often see him out of the corner of my eye zooming here, there, and everywhere. It's hard to tell, but I think he will be saying a few words soon. He definitely says "mamama" and "dadada". Sometimes if I say "ouch" he will try to repeat by saying "ahh".
I have given Tristan a little bit of milk in a sippy cup the past few days in preparation for weening. He loves it. I think he will catch on quickly. He has always been a fast nurser. From the time he was just a few hours old he could take in a whole feeding in under 10 minutes. I worried at first that he was not getting enough but it didn't take long to realize he was growing just fine. He loves to eat and gets very excited when I start making dinner. He likes the real thing. He doesn't like when I give him a piece of bread. That's just not good enough. I think this kid will be big.
Tristan has such a sweet demeanor. He hardly ever cries. I love to watch him play with Kennedy. She likes to tease him and make him laugh and Tristan has the cutest dimples. He likes to tease us too. When he nurses he likes to stick his finger in my nose or mouth. He loves his daddy and rushes toward him when he gets home from work. Tristan loves to play outside and since we have been going out more often with the warmer weather he has a harder time when we stay inside. I love to take him on walks because he just looks around and is so peaceful.
I'm so glad I have this sweet little thing in my life. I don't know what we would do without him.
Here are some things I have learned over the past year:

You can love more than one child
No matter how hard you try, sibling rivalry is just a part of life
No matter how hard you try, some kids just don't sleep through the night
There are more important things than sleep
Boys are just as fun as girls, just different
Resolve is really good for cleaning spit-up off the floor
Two kids are better than one (even though one was great for a while)
I love having my own fan club (of two)

Easter Sunday

2007-04-08T21:09:00.000-04:00

Happy Easter!
We had a nice day today. This morning we snuggled in bed with the kids for a few minutes before going downstairs. We let Tristan play on the floor while we read the Easter story to Kennedy. She loves reading about Jesus on the cross and about his resurrection.
My kids were spoiled by the Easter Bunny. When my mom was here a few weeks ago she bought the kids some things from the Gap and Pottery Barn Kids. By the time we supplemented it almost looked like Christmas. We got Kennedy a little CD player and some audio story books. That was a big hit. She has been listening to it all day. Kennedy said she looked like Sleeping Beauty (with brown hair of course) in her pink dress.
When I was a kid it seemed like Easter was always cold. The Easter Bunny always brought a cute shorts set and a nice spring dress but it was usually a little crisp still. Since moving to NC that has not been the case, until this year. Last Saturday was beautiful when I took Kennedy to an egg hunt. The first part of this week we had beautiful weather with the temperature in the 80s. On Thursday we had a swift change and it feels like winter again. However, I couldn't bring myself to dress my kids in anything but their Easter attire today.
We had our friend Nathan over for dinner. His wife and kids were out of town. We had grilled basil shrimp, orange rolls, lemon rice, salad and raspberry cake. If our friend wouldn't have come we would have leftovers.

Finished Quilt

2007-04-02T14:47:00.000-04:00

Ahhh, another finished project. I'm on a roll! Of course, I needed my mom's help to finish this one. It's a queen-size quilt and I won't even attempt to quilt one that big on my sewing machine. My mom has become an expert long-arm quilter. Thanks to her expertise this quilt is now finished and will be off to its rightful owner (Kimball and Julie Kelsey) soon.

Last summer Kimball and Julie hinted they would be getting married within the year. In July while I was visiting my family in Beaver, Kimball and Julie came down from Ogden to visit us. I told Julie I wanted to make her a quilt. I took her down to the quilt store in Beaver, where my mom works, and had her pick out some fabrics. She said she had a lot of Americana decor and wanted something along that line. She picked out some blues that I already had scraps of at home. She chose some red and background to go with it. We looked at some patterns and chose this one from Eleanor Burns' Quilts Through the Seasons book.

When I got home the red I had did not go well with the other fabrics I wanted to use in the quilt. I pulled out some red scraps and figured I had enough for this quilt. I started right away. The cutting instructions were very easy and the piecing went quickly. I had the blocks done in no time.

I did put the quilt away for a few months to work on other projects but finished it after the holidays. I couldn't have been more pleased with how it turned out. I hope Julie and Kimball enjoy it as much as I enjoyed making it.

Conference Weekend

2007-04-01T20:57:00.000-04:00

Another busy, but fun, weekend. I started off Saturday by having my hair cut and highlighted. My roots were only about 4 inches! I felt like a new woman. After I got home I took Kennedy up to the park for an Easter egg hunt. Some of her friends from church were there and they were able to play after the hunt. There weren't many kids there so Kennedy filled her basket.

After lunch Chris took Kennedy to the veterinary school in Raleigh for their open house where they had some activities for kids. I stayed home with Tristan, who slept most of the time, and quilted. I finished another baby quilt this weekend. I wanted to post a picture but it seems that some of our things have been packed away in boxes and the cord I needed to download will not be seen until we move into our new house in two weeks--you'll have to wait to see the quilt.

We went to see our new house this morning and were excited to see that we have several dogwood trees on our lot. The dogwood is the state flower. It comes out in spring and it's like lace for the forest. It is my favorite bloom here in the spring.

We also went to Duke Gardens. It was a beautiful, overcast, spring day. We have been having lots of pollen the last week or so and everything has been covered in a yellow powder but we had some rain the other day that helped wash some of it away.

We enjoyed listening to conference, well as much as we could. We have to listen in the office on the Internet. Gone are the days of relaxing in front of the t.v. At least we don't have to drive to the church to watch. I love listening to conference and always feel renewed and dedicated.

Well, back to the grind tomorrow. Now that I have this quilt finished I have to do something constructive, like packing.

Three Reasons to Blog

2007-03-29T21:10:00.000-04:00

This is one of the reasons that I wanted to start a blog. I wanted to record my quilting experiences. I have a quilt journal but it's all filled up. This way other people can see what I have been working on.
I love to quilt. It has been a journey for me but I am comfortable now doing larger projects. I started out making small wall quilts. On occasion I would attempt a baby quilt. The first baby quilt I made took me three years to complete. It was a scrappy quilt, no two blocks alike and I hand quilted it which took me a really long time. I would get tired of it and put it away for several months. I finally finished it and there was no way I would let it go to anyone else. I'll have to admit, I haven't even used it for myself. It's beautiful but it's in my hope chest.
This quilt was made out of Moda fabrics from the line "Faded Memories". My friends found them on sale at a local quilt store but the sale was a 1-yard minimum cut so four of us pitched in a bought the whole line and each had a fat quarter of each of the prints. It's a very pretty line of fabrics.
The pattern is called "Twin Sisters". The pattern looked fun to me so I thought I would give it a try. I really enjoyed making this quilt. I even machine quilted it myself. I haven't decided who will get it. I might just hold on to it for a while.

This is the second reason I wanted to start a blog. My kids are growing and changing so fast I wanted a way that I could keep their grandparents updated.

Today I was on a walk with the kids in a stroller. Kennedy, aka Sweet Pea, asked me to let go of the stroller and push them into the busy street. I tried to explain to her that that was dangerous. "Why?" is always the next question. I explained to her that a car might not see them and run them over. "Then what would you say, Mommy?" I explained that I would be sad and that I don't like to see my babies hurt. Here's the kicker--"Then you wouldn't have a "P" and a "Q" anymore?" Then she pointed to Tristan and smiled and said that he was a cute little "Q".

Here is the third reason I wanted to have a blog: Recipes! I love sharing recipes and finding new recipes. This one is my sister's recipe and it is really good. Today I substituted the chocolate chips for Andes Mint Baking Chips. The cookies were heavenly!

Double Trouble Cookies

1 cup butter

1 cup dark brown sugar

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp baking soda

2 cups flour

1/2 cup cocoa

1/4 tsp salt

2 cups chocolate chips or Andes Mint Baking Pieces

Cream together the butter, sugars, eggs and vanilla until fluffy. Add the dry ingredients and beat on a low speed. Add the chocolate chips. Drop by tablespoons onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until set.

Note: For high altitude, cut the baking soda to 1/2 tsp. and add 1 Tbs. flour.

This 'n That

2007-03-28T14:54:00.000-04:00

I have been so lazy about blogging lately. I often think of something to write about but when I get a moment to myself there are so many things I want to do.
One of the reasons I feel like I have not had much time is because Kennedy has given up naps. Or, rather, I have stopped offering them. It has been so difficult, with her taking a nap, to get her to go to sleep at night. This is much sooner than I thought she would be ready but her night sleep has improved so much and she doesn't make a fuss when I put her to bed at 7:30. Now if I could just figure out what I could offer for quiet time that would keep her quiet and entertained for an hour!
We had the missionaries over for dinner Sunday. They are always so complementary on my meals. They are good guinea pigs too. I usually try a new recipe when they come over because I don't feel too embarrassed if it doesn't turn out ok. Here is a recipe I tried:

Sweet Raspberry Muffins

2 cups biscuit/baking mix
2 Tbs sugar
1/4 cup cold butter or margarine
2/3 cup milk
1/4 cup raspberry jam
Glaze:
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tsp warm water
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

In a bowl, combine biscuit mix and sugar. Cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in milk just until moistened (batter will be thick). Spoon about 1 tablespoon of batter into 12 paper-lined muffin cups. Top with 1 teaspoon jam. Spoon the remaining batter (about 1 tablespoon each) over jam. Bake at 425 degrees for 12-14 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool in pans for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine glaze ingredients until smooth. Remove muffins to a wire rack. Drizzle with glaze.

Pie Time

2007-03-23T14:13:00.000-04:00

I come from a family of pie-makers. I consider my mom an expert pie maker. I especially love her apple pie and her strawberry rhubarb pie and her made-from-scratch banana cream pie, and. . . . . I could go on. My sister is also a great pie maker. She won a pie contest when she was just in high school. She still makes great pie. I, however, have not inherited the pie gene. I like to try on occasion but never really succeed. I guess I just don't practice enough.
Tonight is our ward's chili and pie cook off. Chris signed me up for both pie and chili. I went for a single-crust pie "Coconut-Caramel Pie" (recipe follows) which is a really good dessert. I usually cheat and bake a pre-made Pillsbury crust. I decided to try my mom's pie crust recipe this time. . . . . Nope, I'm still not a pie maker! I always follow the recipe but it turns out to be a gloppy mess. I baked it anyway and it will just have to do. This may ruin my reputation!
I hope the chili turns out better.

Coconut-Caramel Pie

2 Baked Pie Shells
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 1/3 cups flaked coconut
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 8-oz pkg cream cheese, softened
1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 16-oz carton Cool Whip
1 12-oz jar caramel ice cream topping

In a large skillet, melt butter; stir in coconut and pecans. Cook and stir over medium heat until coconut is golden, about 6-8 minutes. Cool.
In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth; gradually beat in sweetened condensed milk on low speed. Fold in Cool Whip. Spoon 1/4 mixture into each pie shell. Drizzle each with about 1/4 of the caramel topping (I never use quite that much) and sprinkle with 1/4 of the coconut mixture. Repeat layers.
Cover and freeze at least 5 hours. Serve or freeze, covered, for up to 2 weeks. Let stand at room temperature for 5 minutes before serving. Makes 20 servings (2 pies).

Weighing In

2007-03-20T10:04:00.000-04:00

This is really embarrassing and I am not sure how to write about this. I may write this and then not post it. We'll see.
I had an experience last night that was kind of depressing to me. Without giving out more details than anyone would want to know about me, lets just say it involved a dressing room in Victoria's Secret.
I read once that you can use the excuse, "I just had a baby" for about a year, then you are on your own. My year is almost up--just about three more weeks. I've never had a problem loosing weight when I needed to. I seem to fluctuate between the same 5 pounds, no matter what I eat, no matter if I exercise. Well, that's just not true for me anymore. My pregnancy with Tristan was wonderful but I allowed myself too many indulgences over the holidays and I could feel my backside growing and growing but just contributed it to my pregnancy. That backside is now haunting me.
After my trip to the mall last night I am much more motivated to eat better and be a little more active. I started my "8 Minutes in the Morning" regime again this morning. That has helped me in the past. Here's to looking better and feeling good about looking better!
Nothing makes celery look more appetizing than seeing your chub hang over a sexy pair of underwear!

Home At Last

2007-03-18T20:58:00.000-04:00

Yeah! I have my husband back! Chris has been gone for 10 days. He went to Utah for his brother's wedding, came back for less than 24- hours and had to go to work, then left for Florida for a meeting.

The kids and I went to the airport to pick Chris up last night. We stopped by the mall on the way home. We have to buy some appliances for our new house and need to start shopping. We looked at a few things then went to Chick-fil-a for dinner. When we picked Chris up Kennedy asked him if he got her a present. He was not in a good place for presents so instead he took Kennedy to Build-A-Bear, which is much better than a souvenir from Florida, if you ask me. We are all glad to have daddy back home, where he belongs.

Here are some pictures of my cute kids.

Kennedy with "Flat Stanley". We're helping a friend with her daughter's class project.

Everyone loves Grandma Mary!

Prayer for Judgement

2007-03-15T20:36:00.000-04:00

Ever since I got pulled over for speeding six weeks ago I have been worried about going to court. I was speeding 16 miles over the posted speed limit. Luckily the officer left off the "work zone" part of it--that would have made it a lot worse! If I would have been driving just one or two miles less I could have paid the ticket through the mail.

As it was, however, I had to go to court. My court date was yesterday. I had no idea what to expect. Six weeks ago I just imagined that Chris would take the morning off and I would go down to the Durham Courthouse and pay my fine. I soon learned that it would not be that easy. Chris informed me that he would be out of town and that meant I would have to find someone to watch my kids.

I didn't want to ask one of my friends because my "ticket" said I had to be there at 7:45 a.m. I called a girl who used to be in my ward and she is now in college. I had heard from many people that she is a good sitter. I felt confident in her abilities so I called her. Luckily she was on spring break when I needed her, otherwise she had a full day of classes.

As the date approached I realized that I didn't have to go to the Durham Courthouse but I had to go to the Raleigh Courthouse since I got pulled over in Wake County, not Durham County. Silly me. That added more stress to my situation.

I really worried about this whole thing and earlier this week I got online again to make sure I knew where I was going--I get a little anxiety when it comes to finding and going to new places. There were few details about what would happen when I got there. I found some links to other websites that gave me some insight into what kind of trouble I was in. Here are some phrases that fall under the category of speeding 16 miles over the speed limit:

Licence revoked
Insurance points
45% increase in insurance premium for 3 years

I considered, too late, hiring an attorney. I also read somewhere about "Prayer for judgement" although I had no idea what it meant. I talked to my neighbor the night before my court date and she told me to ask for a "prayer for judgement". Neither of us knew what it meant.

So the morning finally came and, needless to say, I had said many regular prayers up to this point and the blessings were already starting to come. Both my kids slept through the night (miracle!) and so did I. I was shocked when my alarm went off at 6:00 and I had not been awakened for anything in the night.

My babysitter arrived and I left for Raleigh. I was a little late but I had learned that I could actually go anytime between 7:45 and 3:30. I just wanted to get it over. I easily found parking and walked to the building. I went through the metal detector and asked the security guard where I was supposed to go. He pointed to a room and I proceeded.

I walked into the room and there was a long line of people, none seemed to know if they were in the right place. There were no signs anywhere that directed me to where I needed to go so I just stayed in line and eventually someone who had been there before mentioned that this was the right line.

As I stood in line to "check in", which I later found out, I looked around at all the people in that room and there were only a handful of people who were, what I would consider, normal. I would not group myself with this crowd of people in any other situation.

After I finally got checked in I was shuffled off to another line, the DA line. The only other line was the "magistrate" line and I heard things coming from that line like "underage, possession of alcohol, illegal possession of marijuana", etc. I think most of the people in my line were for traffic violations though. This line was much slower than the first line.

It was finally my turn to talk to the DA. He said he could reduce my charge to 9 miles over instead of 16. I looked at him and he kind of smiled and said, "Is there anything else you would like to ASK me???????" I considered just taking it and paying for the charge instead I chuckled and said "Can I ask for a 'prayer for judgement'?" He smiled and told me to go to the courtroom around the corner.

When I went into the courtroom it was almost full. I thought it would be at least another hour before the judge called my name and wondered if this would be worth my time. The only easily-accessible seat was on the very front row. I could easily hear the conversations between the judge and other "criminals". Most of them were speeders, like me, and asking for a "prayer for judgement". I soon realized what I was asking for. Since I had no other speeding tickets on my record I could ask for a "prayer for judgement" and it would be like a warning, except I would have to pay court costs, $110. To my surprise, I was only in there about 15 minutes.

The judge was very nice and in a very good mood. I don't know if he is always like that but it was refreshing to see someone enjoying this kind of job so much. I felt fortunate to stumble upon this phrase and it will be my duty to pass it on to anyone who needs it.

I went home to find everything in order. Sariah was an awesome babysitter. She dressed and fed both kids, cleaned up, did Kennedy's hair, put Tristan down for a nap and was playing with Kennedy. Kennedy didn't want her to go home and asked me if Sariah could come over again. Yes, but hopefully under different circumstances!

Glad that is over!

*#$%&! Weekend

2007-03-11T22:06:00.000-04:00

I have been writing the last several days but each time I "post" it disappears. I don't know what's wrong with my blog. It's probably my computer. Like everything else I own it's about to die. Next month will be our 11-year anniversary and we have been in school or residency training ever since and only living on one income except for the year Chris was an intern and we saved his earnings for a down payment on a house so it was like one income.
Anyway, it's been a crappy weekend-no pun intended. Tristan still has diarrhea and he still just doesn't feel well. He actually slept pretty well last night. He woke up around 4 or 5 depending on if you had changed your clock already. He was pretty upset so I nursed him. After I started I had a thought that his diaper probably needed to be changed and nursing him would calm him down and then he would get upset when I changed him. I nursed him anyway and as soon as he was finished he vomited all over both of us so it was upsetting anyway!
It was quite comical today because I had one child sleeping and one child awake almost the whole day. As soon as I put Kennedy down for a nap Tristan woke up from his morning nap. Kennedy woke up about two minutes after I put Tristan down for his afternoon nap.
We have had such beautiful weather the past few days but haven't been able to enjoy it much. This afternoon I opened the sliding glass door to the deck and let the kids play outside. Tristan was in shorts, it was that warm.
I had a little emotional breakdown yesterday. I decided that I would not go to church today and I had a lot of things I needed to take care of there. That meant a lot of phone calls and asking others to do my job. I hate that. It's quite draining taking care of a sick child. I miss Chris too. I'm never quite 100 percent when he isn't around. Anyway, I called my neighbor Sheila because we planned to watch a movie and have dinner together. She could tell I wasn't quite right and I just started to cry. She came right over and sat with the sleeping kids while I went to the grocery store. I don't know what I will do without her after we move.
Next weekend will be better. . . .I hope!

Busy Week

2007-03-09T15:51:00.000-05:00

It's been a busy week. Selling a home is no small project. Monday was the inspection and we received the repair request yesterday. Apparently our house was "backed into by a vehicle or something". It must have happened before we moved into the house but the person who inspected it for us did not pick this up. There is a 4' crack in the foundation of our garage that is visible from the inside and out. On the outside of the house the siding is bulging and the downspout and gutter are damaged. After reading the request I went out myself and viewed it. I have no idea how we could not have seen it before. This was the only major thing on the report so I guess we are fortunate.
Chris left Thursday morning for Utah. His brother Kimball is getting married. At 4:30 that morning I heard Tristan crying. I was letting him fuss hoping he would go back to sleep. I soon realized that he was trying to tell me something. I went into his room and smelled an odor that I associate with sickness. He cried and screamed but I had to change his diaper and his underclothes and his pajamas. Finally Chris came it to see what was wrong. We inspected his crib and found vomit too. Chris changed the sheet and put fresh blankets down while I nursed the poor little guy. Tristan went back to sleep quickly. Chris and I snuggled for about 10 minutes before his alarm went of and he had to get ready to go to the airport. After he left I was just starting to relax and fall back to sleep when Kennedy woke up.
I had my first Enrichment Committee meeting as the "leader". I will be working with a great group of women. Our meeting ended up being two hours. We talked a lot about each other and life in general and some about our upcoming meeting too! It was fun.

My Absence

2007-03-06T21:07:00.000-05:00

It's been over a week since I last posted. Here is why

A week ago Thursday my wonderful mother flew in from Utah to spend 10 days with us. When we first started looking for a home and thinking about putting our home on the market we asked her to come out to help while I got the house clean and ready for showing. I had no idea that we would find a house we liked so soon and, therefore, have to put our house up sooner.
Friday I had a showing so my mom and I packed up the kids and went to the mall where the kids played and we shopped and ate lunch. I love going to the mall with my mom.
Saturday we went up to the new house to show my mom around outside. We would have to wait until Monday when our realtor could let us in.
Sunday my mom and I stayed home with the kids because they were sick--green stuff oozing from their nose and eyes! Just after Chris left for church we had a phone call from our selling agent. We had an offer on the house! It wasn't great but by the time Monday night came we had an agreement. Our house is under contract!
The rest of the week was spent wiping noses, mine and the kids'. Not much sleeping going on and my mom got sick too. We were in sorry shape. Luckily we didn't have to show the house--that was painful.
Thursday I had to take Kennedy to the doctor. I thought she had a urinary tract infection. She woke up at 1 a.m. and went to the bathroom. I took her back to bed and she came back 15 minutes later insisting she had to go again. This went on for almost two hours. Finally I had her drugged up enough (ibuprofen and Tylenol) that she was able to fall back to sleep. Turns out it was not an infection but irritation from her virus--adenovirus.
Saturday we were all well enough to go for a walk at the UNC Gardens. It was a breezy but sunny day. We enjoyed the fresh air and drove up to the new house again.
Sunday came and I got called into the bishop's office. New calling--Enrichment Leader. Heaven help me! I can think of at least a dozen other people in my ward who would be more qualified.
This morning was sad when I had to say good-bye to my mom. She is a wonderful person. She spoiled us all while she was here with trips to Baby Gap, Pottery Barn and eating out. Back to the usual routine now.

Spring Fever

2007-02-22T20:22:00.000-05:00

This year the groundhog reportedly missed his shadow which means that spring is right around the corner. We have had a small taste of spring the last two days, warm and breezy. Yesterday we spend a lot of time playing outside. I put warm-weather clothes on the kids and we went to the park. I was so glad to put Tristan's clothes on because I have quite a few 12-months short sets that I thought he was going to grow out of before he even got to wear them. Luckily both sets I tried have fit just right. The kids looked cute and were excited to get out and breathe some fresh air.

In other news, we continue to show our house but no takers yet. It has been very difficult, with two kids, to keep the house looking nice at all times. Sure hope someone puts in an offer soon!

Tonight we look forward to the arrival of Grandma Mary. She is coming to help with the kids while I clean the house. We intended on having her here before we put our house on the market but we ended up listing it sooner than we originally thought.

Here are some more pictures I downloaded tonight. The infamous step stool. Tristan drinking from a flower vase--he is his father's son. Whenever we go to Beaver Chris finds my mom's vase that looks like a big drinking glass and uses that for his water.

My Kids

2007-02-20T09:54:00.000-05:00

I have not been in the mood to blog lately but today I wanted to write a few things about the cute things my kids are doing right now.

KENNEDY (aka Genevieve)
Kennedy has been through a mix of names lately. She keeps telling me her name is NOT Kennedy anymore it's Genevieve. Last week she was Rapunzel. She is really into princesses lately and I don't know where it's coming from. We took her to Blockbuster a few weeks ago to rent a movie and Chris wanted to get the latest Disney movie but Kennedy insisted on one of the Barbie Princess movies. That was our first indication that she liked princesses. She also informs us that she is not a girl but a princess. Of course, we have always thought that!
Sunday we arrived at church a little late. Chris was already there and had saved us a seat but when I walked in with the kids I couldn't see him so I sat in the back. After the sacrament Chris joined us. Kennedy always likes to test her limits. When the meeting was almost over Kennedy started inching her way to the front of the chapel. Next thing we knew she was almost to the front! She had such a mischievous look on her little face. Chris had to walk up and grab her. Luckily she behaves in primary. We always receive accolades about her behavior and participation in primary.
Last night as I was getting Tristan ready for bed Kennedy was in her room reading. After I put Tristan down I stood outside Kennedy's room to listen to her. She was reading out loud from her scripture reader. She knows a lot of the stories by heart and can tell them better than I can. When she saw that I was there she looked up at me and said, "She found it! She found the coin. She lost it, remember?" I looked down at her book and she was looking at the Parable of the Lost Coin. It amazes me how interested she is in Heavenly Father and Jesus. She asks us to "tell a story about Jesus" all the time. What a sweet girl.

Tristan
Tristan is turning into quite the porker. He consistently eats more than Kennedy. I guess that's to be expected since he is growing much faster than Kennedy. On Saturday we went to the church for a Primary Breakfast. They served French toast, muffins (the great big kind), fruit, sausage and drinks. Kennedy had one piece of toast, a few strawberries and about two bites of a muffin. Tristan ate at least two pieces of toast, a whole muffin, half a banana and the scraps from our plates. He gets so excited when he sees food.
Lately Tristan has been playing this little trick on me. He will crawl over to me so innocently. I will lean down to pick him up or kiss him and then he will grab onto my hair and give it a yank! He thinks it's so funny when I respond to that. He laughs and laughs.
When Tristan was born his hair stood straight up. Kennedy would often reach over and pull it. Now she is getting her just desserts. Tristan loves to touch her hair and he will sometimes pull it. I haven't reminded her that she used to do that to him for fear that she will start pulling his hair again.

What a blessing it is to have these two children in my life. I'm so lucky!

More Recipes

2007-02-19T10:18:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure how many people see my recipes and try them but I have most of them typed up anyway and I figure I might as well put them out there. I love finding a good recipe and I find that I have a few sources I can trust, some are cookbooks and magazines and some are people I know. Here are a few that we use a lot. The bar recipe is one that we have used in my family for a long time and there are a few variations on it but I really like this one.

Supreme Beef Casserole
From Recipe Hall of Fame Cookbook
1 pound ground beef
1 16-oz can tomatoes
1 8-oz can tomato sauce
1 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
2 garlic buds, crushed (or garlic salt)
1 5-oz pkg egg noodles
1 3-oz pkg cream cheese
1 8- oz container sour cream
6 green onions, chopped
1 cup grated cheese
Brown and crumble beef in frying pan. Break up tomatoes and add to beef with tomato sauce, salt, sugar and garlic. Simmer 20-25 minutes. Cook noodles and drain. Mix noodles with sour cream, cream cheese and chopped onions (it’s easier to have the cream cheese and sour cream already mixed up before adding the noodles). Grease a 3-quart casserole dish. Put a small amount of meat sauce, layer of noodles, and grated cheese. Repeat and top with meat sauce. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. May be frozen and reheated to serve. Serves 6-8.

Oatmeal Fudge Bars (aka Fudge Jumbles)
1 cup margarine
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats
1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 12-oz pkg semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup margarine
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13x2-inch baking pan. Set aside. In a large mixer bowl cream margarine and brown sugar; add eggs and vanilla. In a small bowl sift flour, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture. Mix in oats. In heavy saucepan mix sweetened condensed milk, chocolate chips and margarine and heat until just melted. Stir in vanilla and nuts, if desired.
Spread two-thirds of the dough into prepared baking pan. Spread with chocolate mixture. Drop remaining one-third of the dough on top by spoonfuls (I find it easier to kind of flatten the blobs with my palms so they cover more area). Bake for 25 minutes. Cool, then cut into bars.

My Valentine

2007-02-17T20:39:00.000-05:00

I have always disliked Valentine's Day. It's probably because I never had a boyfriend on that particular day and I was jealous of those who did. My best Valentine's Day was when I was engaged to Chris. We had a romantic evening listening to a piano quartet at BYU and then eating chocolate something-or-other. Over the years I have become less and less romantic. I still don't care for the day. This year we didn't exchange any gifts. How boring is that? I did bake some cookies and take them around to the neighbors. I did that for Kennedy's benefit. I want her to learn to be compassionate and loving. She had fun delivering her Valentines. These are the recipes I used. The sugar cookie recipe comes from my Mom. It's the best because the cookies are soft. Oh, and I do love my husband very much. I don't need a holiday for an excuse to tell him I love him.

OLD FASHIONED SUGAR COOKIES
Sift together:
3 ¼ cups sifted flour
1 tsp. soda
½ tsp. salt
½ cup butter or shortening
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
Beat for 2 minutes. Add ½ cup sour cream. Add flour mixture. Beat 1-½ minutes. Roll out on floured surface to ½ inch thickness. Cut with your favorite cookie cutter. Place on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for 8-9 minutes. Do not over-bake. Cool. Spread with your favorite frosting.
My favorite frosting is a tub of Betty Crocker cherry flavored frosting. Add just a tiny bit of powdered sugar to thicken. Yum yum!

ALMOND KISS COOKIES
½ cup butter, softened (no substitutes)
½ cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. almond extract
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
Additional sugar
40 milk chocolate kisses with almonds
Glaze
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
1 Tbs. milk
4 tsp. raspberry jam
¼ tsp. almond extract
In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars. Beat in egg and extract. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Cover and chill for 1 hour or until easy to handle.
Roll dough into 1" balls, then roll in additional sugar. Place 2" apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 325 for 10 - 12 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately press a chocolate kiss into the center of each cookie. Cool on wire racks. Combine glaze ingredients; drizzle over cookies.

Mexican Beef Pile-Ups

2007-02-13T21:10:00.000-05:00

I tried this new recipe today. Probably everyone already has it but I will post it anyway. It's kind of like a Mexican version of Hawaiian Haystacks. It made a lot of meat sauce so I put half in the freezer to use another time.

Mexican Beef Pile-Ups

3 pounds ground beef
3 cups water
1 16-oz can refried beans
1 package enchilada mix
1 14-oz can enchilada sauce
2 6-oz cans tomato paste

Cook ground beef and drain fat. Add rest of ingredients ans simmer for 2-3 hours on top of stove or in oven at 300 degrees. (I put it in a crock pot and cooked for about 5 hours.)

Pile up your meal in this order:
white rice
corn chips
meat mixture
Cheddar cheese, grated
green onions, chopped
olives, sliced
tomatoes, diced
avocados, chopped
lettuce, shredded
sour cream
salsa

Mental Photo

2007-02-13T21:01:00.000-05:00

Sometimes things happen that are so emotional for me that it makes me want to take a mental photo of my life at that very moment.
Last week one of my sister's neighbors had a terrible tragedy. There was an accident with a gas line and after it was fixed the wife went in the house with the gas worker and the house blew up with the two inside. I don't even know these people but I have cried for them. The wife left her husband of just a few years and an 18-month old daughter, both were standing outside the house when it exploded. The worker left a wife, children and grandchildren.
Today I found out that my niece, Tyffanee, is expecting a baby. I am so thrilled. Tyff is just five years younger than I am and we have been close most of our lives. I feel bad because since I got married we have not been so close but I would love to sit down with her right now and give her a big hug and tell her how much I love being a mom and give her all kinds of advice and tell her stories about my own kids.
Both of these things, one bad, one good, have made me appreciate my life a little more today. I am so happy to be alive, have a husband and two kids, and have security. I know that all this could be taken away in an instant so for right now I'm not going to take it for granted.

Six Unusual Things About Me

2007-02-11T16:09:00.000-05:00

I already did a list of 100 things about me but my friend Lucy tagged me so here is a list of six more unusual things about me.

I have transparent eyebrows.
I eat pizza and grilled cheese sandwiches with a fork.
When I am having a hard time sleeping I tell each one of my body parts that it's time to go to sleep. I start at my toes and work my way up, but I usually never get past my knees.
I have a skin tag on my left eyelid.
I can't do push-ups, even from the knee.
I don't think this is unusual but my husband does--When I put anything on toast or bread, i.e. peanut butter, jam, butter, it has to cover the whole piece of bread. Otherwise, what's the point of putting anything on your bread?

Tag--you're it Alison!

Why Do Men Leave the Toilet Seat Up???

2007-02-10T15:00:00.000-05:00

It's kind of like that feeling you get when you grab the milk in the fridge, expecting it to be heavy, but it's almost empty and you realize that too late as the jug hits the top of the refrigerator.
I don't know how many times this has happened to me but I know it's happened at least once because I can remember exactly how it felt. It was the middle of the night, dark and quiet. Quietly I felt my way into the bathroom, sleep in my eyes. Just a quick trip and I'll be back in bed. But no, I'm falling too far! There is nothing to stop me from falling. SPLASH! Ahhhh! Cold and wet and ooh! I'm IN the toilet!
If this has ever happened to you, you know what I'm talking about. So I pose the question: Why do men leave the toilet seat up? Since my early years I have been very particular about the toilet seat being down. In college I called my roommate's boyfriend back to the bathroom multiple times to put the seat down. When I married Chris we compromised by putting the seat and the lid down. That has worked great for us!
The other day my realtor sent a really nice, good-looking, clean-cut guy over to draw a floor plan of my house. As he headed upstairs he asked if he could use my bathroom. Sure, no problem.
Later that day I went into our hall bathroom where Tristan was playing with his Elmo table. He had been in multiple times that day to play with his toy. When I went in there, the toilet seat was up and I was really grossed out at the thought that my child could have gone over and played in the toilet water! Not to mention that kids have drowned in the toilet!
I was surprised that someone would come in my house, use the toilet, and not even put the seat down. I personally think it's good manners to put both the seat and the lid down. Am I alone on this issue?