Warning: This Bordon Blog is Blusterously Bodacious

My dear, dear mother

2012-01-29T17:21:00.001-07:00

Christmas 2011 we planned to spend with my brother and his family. They were going to drive down here from Canada, where they were moving from, and spend a few days here before heading off to Texas, where they will be moving. My dear husband was inspired differently, however, and I am very grateful. He bought us all tickets to spend Christmas in Modesto. I was opposed to it, considering it emptied out our entire savings and most of our checking account. But we went and spent most days in the hospital in San Francisco. My mom found out last March (2011) that she has cirrhosis of the liver. She was at UCSF to be tested to see if she was eligible for a liver transplant. A few days before Christmas, she finally "passed" all the tests and was put on the transplant list. She was going to be shipped back to Modesto on Christmas Eve and was going to be able to come home for a bit on Christmas Day. She was so excited. "I just want to go home," she told me over the phone.

Christmas Eve came and she had to stay at UCSF. She had come down with a fever and they kept her there to find out why. Her platelets (those things in the blood that make it clot) had dropped to almost nothing. We all went to visit her on Christmas day in the ICU. She looked horrible. Most of her body was bruised, her lips were swollen, her gums were bleeding. Every time any of us would enter her room the first thing she would say was, "I love you, dear." I was frustrated, thinking she thought it was the end. It was NOT the end as far as I was concerned. They gave her medicine to raise her platelets, but none worked. They were puzzled by that, as the lack of response was rare.By Sunday the doctors plead with us to transfer her to a comfort care suite, where she wouldn't have to be poked and prodded every few hours and "nature could take its course" in a much more comfortable setting. I still believed nature was going to heal her, jumping her platelet level up so she could get a transplant and make the whole miserable affair go away.
I stayed the night each night with my sisters in the comfort care suite. It was horrible watching and waiting for her to die or not. Horrible, yet my sisters and I made some wonderful memories together. I knew that whatever would happen, it would be okay. But the waiting was torture.
January 5th she gasped out her last breath. Even then, I couldn't' believe it. Mom was supposed to live forever, be there for me forever. Now she was gone. I couldn't call her. She wouldn't be there when I visit home. I still feel like I'm in a cloud...surreal. Through it all I am so grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ that lets me know I will see her again! That she lives still, though I can't see her. I know that when I weep I only weep for myself. My heart groans with a pain only those who have lost a parent could understand. But I know she is happy and doing important things beyond the veil; and though I miss her terribly I will see her again some day.
Until then, know that I love you, my dear, dear mother. Now, as you desired, you are really home.

Home on the range, an Anniversary, and a Birthday...

2011-09-20T19:41:00.002-06:00

My wonderful, stupendous, fabuloso husband stayed with the boys in July so I could go home and see my family...BY MYSELF...for TWO WEEKS! WOOHOO! It was a blast. I slept in, hooked up with friends, GOT READY each morning, spent time with my family...I was in heaven! The best part of is all is...I feel like I got to get in touch with myself again. It helped to take a step back from child rearing every day to take a deep breath and relax. aaaaahhhh...

It was a blast hooking up with friends (had lunch at Chili's) I used to work with. I love them tons, and after 9 years everyone still looked the same!! Well, the children were new, but...

Paige and Athena. I lick them...er...I mean love them. We enjoyed a lovely dinner at El Rosal. hehe... :D

My bff since 3rd grade, Shauna, and her lil' sis, Christina with her 6 1/2 kids. Such a fun reunion!

Lindsey, Shauna, my sissy, Jennifer and myself...visiting Lindsey and eating our favorite frozen yogurt. !Viva Yogurt Mill!

Eating at the DELISH El Rosal with the family. :D This is only a few of my 23 nieces and nephews. Big families rock!

Met up with my good friend, Amy. I love her AND her energy! :D

All four of us sisters went to my oldest sister, Francine's Girl's Camp. :D It was super fun!!

Fran was busy, so Jenn, Amy and I hung most of the time. :D I got to be a life guard...and fear for everyone else's lives that were in my hands. egads...see how my back was turned to the innocent little ones? Yah...ha! It was fun times hanging with my superior, Monica. :D :D :D

They had a dance party one night...it was so fun!!!


We went kayaking a couple of times. I loved it! I will own a kayak one day. :D When my husband's a rich doctor. :)

The day I flew back home, my dad and I did a session at the Oakland temple together...then went to the visitor's center. It was so fun and spiritual; I love my daddy!!! And I had a blast visiting home!!!

Alan's aunt and uncle, Donna and Stu, and their son-in-law, James, were in NY for a visit and came down to see us.

We went to Hershey Chocolate World and decorated cupcakes and did the tour...and Miles fawned over Uncle Stu the whole time. :D Hilarious! It was soooo good to see them for we love them much. :D

I just had to add this picture of my crazy boys. :D They sure are great buddies and we love them soooooo very much. :D

Sept 4th was mine and Alan's 7th Anniversary. :D He surprised me by taking me to the D.C. temple--which is huge and gorgeous!--and we did sealings in memory of our own sealing 7 years ago. :D

Then he took me to a Japanese all-you-can-eat in Virginia. mmmm....

The sushi was SOOOO GOOD! It was a fun and sweet date!! I love you, stud muffin!!!

Christian turned 5 on the 8th. We threw him a raging Spider-man birthday party to celebrate. ;)

We played crazy games, such as "Pin the tail in the donkey"...

...and we played "keep those Spider-man villain balloons off your side of the line," which the kids loved. :D

Here's the group of crazy faces. :D It was fuuuuull house!

At the end, they decorated their own cupcakes, we sang to Christian, and everyone enjoyed cake and ice cream. :D YUM.

This is a cake our neighbor bought for Christian. :D It was really sweet (the gesture AND the cake). :D :D :D

The 4th, my Bday and Brandon Sanderson

2011-07-18T17:03:00.003-06:00

A lot has happened since I wrote a mere 2+ weeks ago. :) On July 4th we had a picnic at our apartment complex. A lot of people showed with lots of good food. :D It was fun. Alan bought a bunch of Pop-it's and shared them with the kids.

He also bought some sparklers and shared them with all the kids. The boys loved them. ;)

July 5th we hung out with Alan's childhood friend, Andrew, and his family. :) Here we are walking across a bridge in Harrisburg. :D We ended up on a little island and found a little fun park with batting cages and arcade games, and a place to swim at the other end of the island.

July 6th we drove up to Canada to visit my brother and his family. My sister-in-law, Sarah, is AWESOME and made me an Italian cream cake. It was sooooo good!! :D She also bought me a cute white Avon watch and a Schick razor which is a DREAM on my sensitive pits. ha! ;)

Drooling here just thinking about that yummy cake. mmmmm... :)~

Later that day we drove a couple hours away to a beautiful campground. It was really nice because my brother let us stay in his huge trailer. :D

The mosquitoes were the size of HORSES, but it was so beautiful and serene! We made YUMMY s'mores and tubed down the rive and fished (I didn't have a license, but I gutted one my nephew, Branden, caught with a friggin dull knife). I had a lot of fun!

One of the days our little family went swimming at this query. It was fun and beautiful! I swam to the other side of it, overcoming my fear of open unknown waters. ;) Go me! It was an awesome day.

We also had family pictures taken. Here's the best of the worst. :D HA!

lol, there were NONE where we were all looking and/or smiling. ;)

I sure love my babies. :D Precious boys.

Alan taught Christian to do the hand/chest slap from Psych. HA! It's the cutest thing to see.

Our feet are all ugly, except the boys' of course, but I like it anyway. ;)

I'm having a hard time deciding which picture I like of Alan and I most...What do YOU think?

For the finale....drum roll please..............on Saturday (July 16th) I went to a Polaris 25 Convention. Yes, I went to a geek convention. ;) One of those where people come dressed in strange costumes and many don't understand the importance of personal hygiene. I went, however, and had a blast. I am willing to do just about anything once, though I'd be willing to do it again. :D I want because one of my favorite authors was there, Brandon Sanderson. He taught on a few panels, and in the evening he played Magic, a card game, with his fans. So fun! I learned and watched and chatted with him. It was so fun! He's down to earth and all around coolio. ;)

He was posing with a close-lipped smile. I told him to show some teeth. :D HA! And boy did he. :D HA! Funny guy. Aaaaah, there we go. ;) That's all folks, I hope you enjoyed the show! ;) Tomorrow I'm off to California to see my family and have many more adventures. What a busy and blessed summer!

I like New York in June, How 'bout you?!

2011-07-01T07:26:00.009-06:00

Frank Sinatra knew what he was talking about when he sang "How About You" way back when. :) I've wanted to go to New York City the past year we've been here, since it's a mere 3 hour drive away, but it hasn't happened. Mainly because Alan doesn't have the desire I have. ;) My friend told me about her trip and I thought, "We have two somewhat independent kids, Alan is having his last summer break ever, and I'm not pregnant or nursing. It's the perfect time to go!" So I decided to plan a trip and tell him it's happening, and tell him it's my birthday present. And it worked! We grabbed a babysitter--an amazing 18 yr old girl we know from church--and headed out on Wednesday. It was our first vacation away from the boys overnight (and it went way too quickly)! ;) It was a blast, and though put a huge hole in our pocketbook, it was way worth the memories. Here's a picture diary of most everything we did. ;)

Straight off the subway. I'm so excited to be in NYC! ;)

First thing we did was ate lunch at Gray's Papaya--one of the many famous hotdog joints. We had papaya juice to go with it. Very papaya-y, and not very impressive, though 2 dogs and a drink for $5 was a good deal.

Then we went inside the Manhattan Temple area briefly...time constraints didn't let us do anything but check out the tiny distribution center, but it's beautiful! The elevator held all the gold-trimmed NYC grandeur.

The guy tried to charge us $2 for taking a pic of his bananas (there were tons of street vendors selling fruit), so Alan-the-sucker bought some fruit from him instead. ;) But it was such a good, healthy snack to give us energy for all of the walking, walking, walking...I had a nectarine and Alan had a banana. ;)

Here we are after picking up tickets for the Late Show with David Letterman. I had pre-ordered them, answered their dumb trivia question, and what do we get for planning head of time? Seats up in the balcony where we basically didn't exist. They asked people to come in off the street last minute and they got to sit down below. hmpf...It was disappointing, but it was still fun to see Letterman and Patrick Dempsey so close. :D

To kill time before we had to go back to the Late Show taping, we played at FAO Schwarz Toys (from the movie "Big"). I love Captain Jack Sparrow, even when he's made out of Legos. ;D

I think Ms Liberty has B.O. Yah, that's deep.

That's me on The Big Piano. "Outta my way, kids!" I was the only adult, but I wanted to do it so badly. Yes I played chop sticks. If only Tom Hanks were there...

Until we meet again, FAO Schwarz

After The Late Show, we hit the busy (in more way than one) streets of NYC. Times Square was packed (below), full of weirdos like the old, chubby Spiderman who harassed everyone near him with strange noises...ha!

For dinner we ate from one of the many Rafiqui's Halal's. Tip: never order from one that doesn't show prices unless you ask what they are first. They just might rip you off. Just sayin'...

We ate our food at a nearby park. The lamb gyro I got was gooooooooooood...and I didn't even die from it.

Fountains in front of 30 Rock...the area was beautiful!

We thought those fountains were nice, then we saw THIS...I love the show "30 Rock" so seeing this was fun.

Smooches, 30 Rock! I would've loved to see Tina Fe, but alas, I had no such luck.


We ended Wed night with the Broadway show "Wicked". Here we are inside the theater, where no one's supposed to take pictures. Oops. The show was awesome! I loved it lots and lots. ;) Now I'm pretty much addicted to Broadway shows...can't wait to see Phantom. (chills)

We started Thursday with 4-5 hours of sleep and a ride on the Staten Island Ferry. It's free and goes right by the Statue of Liberty. Few tourists are aware of this, so it wasn't crowded. BEAUTIFUL ride.

Can't you see how happy we are? ;) Lovely windblown hair is my fav.

Once off the Ferry (back in Long Island), there were some street performers. They discouraged drugs and though they were pretty obnoxious, it was a good show. We gave them $5 for all their cool flippy-flips (look closely and you'll see the black guy flipping over those people's backs). ;)


I said HI to my friend Sponge Bob and gave him $1. ;) It's just like San Francisco. People do anything for a buck. ;)

Here's that bull I always see in movies...I wanted to get a better pic at the front or back, but there were so many people I jumped on the poor thing's hoof for a quick pic. ;)

We walked the Brooklyn Bridge. It was fun, free, and beautiful! There was a guy selling cold water bottles for $1. Score!


Then we walked back over the Manhattan Bridge which was MUCH more ghetto, but it was nice to see different views. ;)

The Manhattan Bridge dumped us off at China Town where people sell funky looking fruits and tons of Hello Kitty trinkets. Gotta love the Chinese. ;)

We stopped at Tai Pan Bakery. The little chocolate torte that looks like a mouse was SO GOOD. It was $1.10 and worth every penny. The fruit torte was good for a fruit torte, but they aren't my thing. The bread had custard in the middle and was super tasty. Everything was really good!


Then we ate lunch at Wo Hop. The food was phenomenal up to the orangey flavored fortune cookie that told me the business I just started will boom. ha!

We ordered shrimp chow mein (with veggies, not noodles) which was amazing, and pineapple duck. I don't like duck much (it's half meat, half fat), but they did a good job with it.

Here we are on the New Jersey Transit train, on our way home. The trip was exhausting and we both had head colds, but it was a blast! I want to return with the kids some day! See you soon, NYC!

There are good and bad times...

2011-06-08T11:10:00.002-06:00

We've done some fun stuff these past few weeks!

The boys always love wet, rainy hugs. :)

Rain/puddle fun is the best!

The boys played with their friends while their parents packed to move. :(

Frozen pops are an important staple around here.

My friend Michelle (left) and I sending off our dear friend, Jennifer. :( Sad day. May 2011.

May 25, 2011. Christian's after school year picnic at the park. Alan playing with Miles. Such a good Daddy.

Christian got thirsty after playing hard with his preschool friends.

Miles. Ain't he cute? ;) On the swing. May 25, 2011.

May 30, Memorial Day, 2011. Gifford Pinchot Park with our friends the Stucki's.

We weren't supposed to be swimming there and we eventually got kicked out.

I love the Stucki's, and am glad we could have such a fun time together! We love friends, but don't get together enough. :)

Some friends lost, some friends remain. I figure sad times and great times are there to balance each other out. Isn't that what life's all about?

My Fitness Pal

2011-05-10T13:53:00.001-06:00

My Fitness Pal is a free app I found on my iPod...and I'm in love with it! You can also use it online at this link. You put in the active level of your lifestyle, your weight and your goal weight. Then you put in what you eat every day and any exercise you do. It tells you how many calories you can eat each day according to your goal weight, and according to how much exercise you've done each day. I've lost 4 pounds in almost 2 weeks doing it! I never go hungry and I'm under the calorie goal every day...I just cut out the unnecessary treats I used to eat because I was bored. I love that it makes me think about what I'm eating so I don't go overboard! And knowing I'll see all the numbers in front of me helps keep me in check. ;) It's the good old fashioned calories-in-to-calories-out math. So awesome!

Happy Mother's Day to me...

2011-05-09T19:09:00.002-06:00

So my Mother's Day started like this: with 3 1/2 hours of sleep, my husband kissed me on the cheek and said something to the effect of, "The house is a mess and the kids are being rambunctious, but there's a flower for you on the table." HA! All of it was true, including the beautiful orchid he'd bought me...which was very thoughtful. My mom had bought me the same one (from Costco) after I had Miles...and a couple weeks later, Christian broke the vase. I was so mad he'd broken my mommy's gift I cried. So it made my heart happy that he bought me a new one, especially since I'd already spent around $40 for my own Mother's Day gifts (including the blue GAP cardigan you see in the mirror, hehehe...). :) And Christian had painted me a picture and made me a card at preschool. SO precious.

The best part of the day, however was at church when the primary kids came in to sing to us in Relief Society. Christian saw me, shouted, "Hi, Mommy!" and smiled so big. Then he signed "I love you" and sang so loudly, making sure I was watching him the whole time. I teared up even. ;) He never sings in primary, to the extent I've been slightly worried. But he knew the words pretty well and sang them so loudly, for both songs. Then, after they were all done, Christian sang again, "Mother dear I love you so, your happy smiling face. It's such a joy to look at....". He'd forgotten the last line but it was my own little solo. ;) He's the sweetest boy and I love him oh so much. :) That was the best Mother's Day gift ever!

Ode to Locals...

2011-05-02T06:08:00.004-06:00

On my latest trip to Hawai'i (in Aug 2007), I searched for a pair of Local flip flops (called "slippers" there). I'd bought a pair during my second trip, but had lost them (I'm pretty sure my sister claimed them as hers). ;) So I was excited to find a pair LARGE enough for my GINORMOUS feet. I use them all the time; in the shower at the gym, around the house, and outside. They are this wonderful neutral color that go with everything and have held up so well!!! The bottoms are a durable rubbery material, they're light and comfortable to wear, and last forever! Apparently you can have them shipped to you for $15 (TOTAL) from Hawai'i at this website, well worth it. (though that website either doesn't have a lot of sizes, or their find your size drop button is broken. :D I love them!

UPDATE: Here's a MUCH better website! Have a look-see. ;)

Brothers...

2011-04-05T12:31:00.002-06:00

I just love how these boys are tegother. I mean...they fight like any other set of brothers, but they're so affectionate!

They're also very in tune with one another. :)

And they love to play with one another. Thought they may push and kick and bite one another, they also love one another fiercely. I love it! And I love them. :)

Of sinus infections and death

2011-03-25T06:48:00.003-06:00

I'm pretty sure I'm going to die. I've had a few sinus infections in my life, but you forget how miserable they are! They're nasty-flat-on-your-back-wish-you-would-die-ness. Seriously. I've been exhausted, achy, feverish, stuffed up I can barely breath, SORE and swollen lymph nodes, sore and swollen tonsils, dry, scratchy throat, headache, and oddly the muscles through the back of my neck are super tight and sore. And snot is everywhere, of course (you're welcome). I just lay on the couch, wanting to die. BLAH!
Alan said he thought he'd come home one day and I'd be laying on the couch, dead. :D HA! So sweet. But I look as wonderful as I feel. Like death.
I feel a bit better today, though not 100%, and now Miles is acting like he's coming down with it. Great. Now time to cuddle the little man. :)

Kid History videos

2011-03-21T10:08:00.002-06:00

I have fallen in love with these videos! :D HA! They're so funny and original. ;) Five dad's have gotten together, recreating stories their kids tell. :D Take a look!
Here is Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, and Episode 4.

2011-03-14T11:05:00.000-06:00

My friend, Hillary, has a cute blog called Help a Mutha out. She encourages Mommies, who tend to let themselves go style-wise, to dress themselves up and look pretty. :) Every Saturday she spotlights a Mommy, and last Saturday was meeeee! :D LOOK AT ME HERE
I didn't wear anything fancy, just something I'd wear any day. It was fun. Check it out!

Tooth Fairy

2011-03-12T20:14:00.007-07:00

Christian decided to celebrate his fourth month of being 4 by losing a tooth...well, two actually, but one is lost forever amongst the dust bunnies under my brother's couch. :) He lost them while he and Miles were up in Canada visiting my bro and his family. :D My sister-in-law forgot to send his tooth with him back in January, so she brought it here today. (They're visiting for Spring Break, yeah!)
Tonight is the big night. I sat down with Christian, had him put his tooth in the pocket of the "tooth fairy" pillow my mom gave him, and explained that the tooth fairy would come take his tooth in exchange for money.
"When you wake up in the morning," I explained, "you might have a dollar in this bigger pouch here on the pillow."
His eyes got really big. "Or maybe a NICKLE," he whispered, his face alive with excitement. I told him the tooth fairy only visits sleeping children. He laid down and closed his eyes, telling me he was excited to go to sleep (he wasn't 5 minutes before). It was so precious. :D I wish he would never lose that childlike innocence.
I was worried he'd ask more about the tooth fairy, like what one would look like...I mean, I don't know, but I kind of picture the tooth fairy looking like this:

3/13 Update: Here's Christian showing us his spoils. He was, as he said, "so happy". :D Such a cutie.

The tooth fairy must've known he loved dinosaurs & didn't have any of his own. :D

A WHOLE quarter!

Feeling that the tooth fairy had indeed taken his tooth. :D He was amazed. ;)~

Special "yoga" poses I made up...

2011-03-02T09:43:00.000-07:00

On-the-computer-duh pose.

I-stick-my-tongue-at-you-sucka pose.

Growl pose.

BlueSteel pose

Soooo-happy-when-I'm-writing pose.

Grrr-tiger...or I'm-going-to-kill-you pose. You interpret.

I'm-so-surprised-to-find-I'm-taking-pictures-of-myself pose.

Did-I-step-on-your-toe-again? pose.

That's-very-interesting pose.

No your turn. ;)

Kids say the darndest things...

2011-02-23T05:43:00.003-07:00

Christian (my 4 year old) is starting to say the funniest things. :D I thought I'd share a couple from yesterday and today...

Yesterday we were driving home from a fun time at Hershey Chocolate World and Miles (2 yrs old) saw a hawk soaring through the air. "You see a bird?" I acknowledged, just to let him know I was listening. "That's cool."
"Did you run it over with the car?" Christian asked, "Because that would be funny."
"No," I said slowly. "Do you know what would happen to the bird if I hit it with the car?"
"Yes," he said demonically. "It would die. And that would be funny."
Though I was growing slightly concerned, wondering where he got the idea of killing animals with the car, I also had to turn my head to hide my smile. He's the most sensitive kid; he'd probably cry for days if we killed an animal.
I thought I'd illustrate the seriousness of the situation by sharing a story. "One time Daddy and I were driving and a bunny rabbit ran under our car and we ran it over. We were very sad because he hurt it."
"I wouldn't be sad," he said. "I would say, 'That was funny. Ha-ha-ha!'"" throwing his head back and fake laughing. Like the crazy Mr. Hyde. I had to turn my head again before proceeding to explain that Heavenly Father created all creatures and it's a sad thing when one dies needlessly. We kill them for food, but death is never funny. He would not be swayed.

This morning he apparently changed from Mr. Hyde back to the nicer Dr Jekyll because he woke me by curling up to me in my bed and giving me a kiss on the cheek. "Mommy, you're such a beautiful girl," he said sweetly.
I said, "Thank you, Christian. That was very nice. You're pretty handsome yourself."
He thought for a moment then said, "I'm beautiful too. Want to know why? 'Cause I'm almost a beautiful girl just like you."
"You mean you'll be a beautiful girl when you grow up?"
"Yes," he said with a smile, tickling my neck with his little fingers.
I told him that he would be a handsome man, just like Daddy. He wouldn't believe me and changed the subject by starting an argument, insisting he loves me more than I love him.. :D It was so dang cute. I wish he could wake me up that way EVERY morning! :D

My Sweetest Valentine's

2011-02-15T15:46:00.010-07:00

This was the best Valentine's Day (weekend) I've had since getting married over six years ago. My husband usually BA-HUMBUG's all holidays, except his birthday and Christmas, of course. :) But this year he actually put forth an effort! :) Saturday night our friend, Curt, came and sat with the boys (at 7:30 after we put them to bed) and we went to Cold Stone. It's one of my favorite places. :) Then we walked around Target and bought a pan (which I've needed...well...for forever) and a few other kitchen items. :D I wanted to karaoke and order virgin daqueries, but his idea was fun too! And I have an awesome pan from the whole deal. ;)

Then on Monday night he and the boys cooked me dinner. That in itself never happens (nope, not even on Mother's Day) so it was really fun . :)

They cut hearts out of bread and made SUPER yummy french toast. Seriously, I don't know what Alan did, but dinner was sooooo tasty. :)

Saturday we went to Hershey Chocolate World as a family. Alan and I bought our Valentine's gifts there: I got him coconut candy and he got me flip-flops. :) Really we chose our own gifts and decided we'd pretend we got them for one another. So thoughtful of us. :) Our cards were thoughtful, though. :) I'm usually happy just to get one of those. ;)
Overall it was so fun. :) Probably because Alan actually wanted to participate instead of gripe about how lame and commercialized holidays are. :D Hooray for hubby!

Friends...

2011-02-14T09:31:00.002-07:00

Christian and Miles are very social and loves friends. Christian always wants a playmate. ALWAYS. :) Hence, he's a pretty popular kid. I am so grateful for the great kids he has as friends. He's got a lot of friends in our apartment complex and he's pretty popular at church and school. ;)

Here are Christian's friends from school. :) This was a fun field trip they took in the Fall, taking hay rides, walking a corn maze, and picking out their own pumpkin. :D Fun times!

Reese lives above us and is such a cutie. They are in the same primary class at church and love to play together. She is, as Christian says, "Very, very beautiful." HA! Such a stud. ;)

This is Christian with his "bestest friend" Aeden. They are such cute friends and I love to see them play together! :D

Christian and Miles are best friends right now, and for all the friends that come and go, I pray they will always remain the best of friends.

Top Gun does not equal top fun...

2011-02-11T11:13:00.006-07:00

Last night I saw Top Gun for the first time. Yep, it's true. I hadn't seen it in my whole 32 years of life until last night. I watched it with some girl friends for our weekly movie night. I have to say, I laughed. A lot.
I mean, were people really so awkward in the 80's? Did women really stand with on foot on the table and their butts in the air, trying to look sexy? And Tom Cruise HAD to have spent some time in front of a mirror before filming, trying to decide which stick-his-butt-out pose was the best. Because he used the same one quite a few times.

He's probably poking his butt out in this picture.
His acting was only half what it is now (I have to say, for all his flaws--and who doesn't have at least a little bit of the crazies?--I love most of his movies). And his lover? Bleck! Kelly McGillis wasn't UGLY, but c'mon. She was 50 years older than him and her teeth looked like they were rotting out of her face. I think she looks much better now as an elderly woman!

See?...but maybe it's just because her mouth is closed.

This was best part of the movie. Sad. Why don't I love it? Probably b/c I never fell in love with it in the 80's when it was "cool" and Tom Cruise was "hot". Don't get me wrong. Overall it was a good movie--and I got sad when his friend died just like the next person--but I don't see myself running to my local Walmart and adding it to my collection. For me, Top Gun does not equal top fun.

I think they call it freezing rain...

2011-02-09T15:42:00.004-07:00

I think they call it freezing rain...It looked like it had rained and froze as it was dripping down. I guess it happened at night 'cause when I went to my car the next morning I had to literally chip my car out of the ice! Everyone's cars looked like glazed donuts. And the ground was solid ice. I wouldn't want it to happen every day, but it was kind of fun! In the picture are neighbor's cars, I'd already de-iced mine. :)

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

2011-01-30T06:30:00.006-07:00

We've had record snowfall here in Hershey. Supposedly we've already gotten more snow than any other year total. We stay inside mostly, but we also like to enjoy some outside fun.

Miles, shaking the snow off his gloves. He has a love/hate relationship with the snow. He wants to be in it, but doesn't want to deal with it. :D

Miles hates walking in the snow. He kept falling and Christian kept helping him up. :) It was precious.

Christian with his very best friend, Aeden, riding bikes around the playground outside our apartment.

Christian on part of a snowman...someone had made 3 big snowballs and apparently couldn't lift them to put the snowman together. I think that was the smallest ball. :D HA!

SO grateful...

2011-01-24T13:53:00.003-07:00

I just had to share...I would be too ungrateful not to.

So I was pregnant, due June 16, 2011. I was sick as a dog until a couple days to Christmas. We were visiting my brother, Robert, and his family in Canada. I woke up one morning feeling so much better. I thought I was coming out of the first trimester nasties, though I wondered at how good I felt. I'd never felt that good while pregnant. I stay pretty sick, but I thought I was blessed. I was so happy.
We returned to Hershey and I had a Dr. appointment Tuesday, January 4th. The Dr. couldn't hear the heartbeat. I thought the baby was hiding or the Dr. was just incompetent. He's not an OBGYN, just an MD. So he scheduled an ultrasound for the following day, just to check it out. I was nervous, but assured myself that everything was okay. I was 16 weeks along, after all, and had a CD at home from the 12 week ultrasound (the picture above is from that ultrasound). The baby had been such a cute little peanut, its heartbeat so strong and stable.
The worst moment in a long time--maybe ever--was when I saw the screen...with my little peanut resting inside. No movement, no heartbeat. Sobs tore through me. I couldn't believe it. I knew it was a possibility, but there really was no way to prepare for such a thing.
The night of the ultrasound my friend, Stacey, brought us dinner. The following Sunday night (before the surgery) my friend Amy, from church, brought us dinner. It was a large dish that helped sustain us the whole next week. My friend, Chrissie, brought me brownies and stopped by to see how I was. My friend, Andrea, brought over lotion and a sweet note. I'm so grateful for that.
I had to wait until Monday to get a D&E (dilation and extraction). It was the second worst day. They were going to take my baby out of me. It made it all so real. They baby was really dead. When it was over Alan took me home and stayed with me. He stayed with me a lot that next week. He's still struggling to catch up in his classes, but I needed him so much. I'm so grateful for that.
My brother and sister-in-law, Robert and Sarah, took the boys for a week. That was an enormous blessing, too. I was a walking zombie. I couldn't even take care of myself. And the boys were quite disturbed by my sporatic bawling fits. So Rob and Sarah took them into their home and cared for them as if they were their own. I am so grateful for that.
That Saturday before the ultrasound, my friend Katie stopped by...with 10 bags of groceries and a beautiful bouquet of flowers. She brought the food in and put it away and hugged me and cried with me. It was amazing. No one's ever done something like that for me. I just stood there, stunned as filled up our fridge, freezer, and pantry. Seriously, it was such a blessing. She helped more than she probably knows. I'm so grateful for that.

Some time around then my friend, Jenn, brought over a card and lotion. It made me bawl. She also brought over some apples and oranges. She also made us dinner twice later in the week. Like Katie's gesture, it made me feel SO good that someone thought of me and cared. I'm so grateful for that.
My mother-in-law and father-in-law cried at the news. They cried with us. My mother called and cried with me. They truly "mourned with those who mourn". I'm so grateful for that.
It was so much more than food and service and phone calls, it was support. Support I needed so much, which helped me get through such an awful time. I'm SO very grateful for that.
I still grieve, though my heart has healed a lot. I know the Lord had his hand in what happened and I can accept that. I just miss the baby that was alive inside of me for some time...the dreams I had for him/her and the excitement I had to bring another spirit in the world. I feel it will happen. Just not now.
Until then I try to focus on the precious boys the Lord has let me keep. I'm so grateful for them.

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-11-26T09:11:00.002-07:00

Eating Thanksgiving dinner and talking to the boys...probably saying, "Eat yo' greens!" ;) Alan's cousin, Erin, and her hubby, James came with James' dad. We moved our table to the living room to have enough room. :)

My porn...my silly husband doing dishes after our large meal. grrrrrrr... ;) The food was pretty darn good if I do say so myself. And I DO say so myself. ;)

We played the Wii...Rock Band II was a blast. :D

The boys were so cute trying to play the drums together. :D

And at the end of the night Erin read to the boys and helped put them to bed. It's just what guests do in our house. :) We chatted for a couple hours before they left. It was a really fun day. :D We're grateful to have family so close to us! :D

"Why I Can't Make Mommy Friends" Video

2010-11-11T18:06:00.002-07:00

THIS VIDEO is funny as heck. Especially for Mommy's. :D

Me? Picky??? Nooooooooooo...

2010-11-10T10:56:00.005-07:00

I've always been told I'm a picky eater. I didn't like odd textures or flavors as a kid. I swear I lived off peanut butter and honey. But as an adult I'm much less picky...

Indian. mmmmm....yummy.

Italian is always delicious!

And I looooove Mexican. :)

Chinese is good, when I'm in the mood and it's got some hot kung fu kick...

And Korean, every so often.

I've never tried Puerto Rican, but it sure looks scrumptious!

But American is my favorite. I eat it every day. :D Sooooooo delicious!

See how much more diverse I've become? Now please, don't call me picky again. ;)~

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-29T17:39:00.002-06:00

So I guess around here they assign different areas a date and time to go trick-or-treating. I guess they don't want the whole state out collecting candy on the same night. ??? So our time was yesterday, Oct 28, from 6-8 p.m. We drove to a neighborhood we'd heard was good and man! It was a fun time.

Everyone was so nice and they loved to see the boys' costumes (Christian was a robot and Miles was a giraffe). :D That made it great. I love this area for that. It's got a small town feel and everyone is nice, courteous, and notices you. It's so refreshing!

We've been loving this fall weather. There are tons of leaves from the maple trees outside and the boys have been having fun in them (maybe me, too....a little). ;)
In Provo we got a couple weeks of fall before winter hit. I'm excited to have a real fall again. A whole three months, just like where I grew up in good ole' Modesto. :) Yipee for fall!

Gap Casting Call ~ VOTE PLEASE, EVERYONE!!

2010-10-22T16:10:00.002-06:00

So GAP is doing a casting call (for more info click here) and I entered the boys. I know it's a long shot, but the thought of $1,000 worth of GAP clothes was way too tempting. Clothes are expensive and Christian just keeps growing and growing!

They encourage you to tell friends and family to vote EVERY DAY. Yes, my friends. Every day. ;) That's the only way we have a chance. We really appreciate your support! Here are the entries:

If this one tickles your fancy, Fun in the Fall Leaves, click here.

If you love this one, Mr. GQ Christian, click here.

If this is the most precious, Mr. Tongue, click here.

If this is your favorite, Sweet Smiles from Miles on the Swing, vote here.

First Field Trip

2010-10-18T10:49:00.001-06:00

A couple weeks ago Christian had his first field trip for preschool. Here is his class (minus one kid who was late). :D They're sure a bunch of cuties. ;)

Here a farmer talked to the kids about different types of pumpkins. Fun times.

I was so happy Alan came with us. :D

Here we are after the hayride. :D It was a fun time. Christian loved it! I bought a long neck pumpkin at the end and made some yummy pumpkin bread. Click here for the recipe.

HOMOwhat? I can't believe it. I'm outraged. blah blah blah...

2010-10-12T09:59:00.001-06:00

A lawyer friend of mine made a blog post about a hot issue I had no idea was even warm. An Apostle of the Lord touched on the issue of homosexuality during a session of General Conference.
I guess some people are angry about it. hum...Go figure.
Here is what I took from his blog:

"For whatever reason, I don't normally comment on Mormon matters on this blog. I am, however, making an exception to quickly comment on the reaction to Elder Packer's talk "Cleansing the Inner Vessel" from the Sunday morning session of conference. His talk has generated protests from some individuals because they argue Elder Packer was unduly harsh on gays (i.e., he said homosexual relations are a sin), because he said homosexual unions are not ordained of God, and because it intimated gays can change through the power of Christ's atonement. News organizations have covered this story. Protests have been launched. General mayhem has ensued.

Heres my initial reaction to such reactions:

Of course Elder Packer, and Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ said homosexuality is a sin. Jesus, as Jehovah, said the same thing through his Old Testament prophets. He said the same thing through His New Testament prophets. He's said the same thing through his modern-day prophets. In fact, every prophetic utterance on this subject in Mormon scripture (which includes from the beginning of time to the present) states homosexuality is a sin. This isn't new stuff. It's old stuff. Old as the hills.

It's equally normal that Elder Packer would say people with same gender attraction would be able to change. Since Mormon scripture states innumerable times the atonement of Christ can change you, your heart, and your actions, then it is without doubt you can change. Elder Packer's assertion is absolutely consonant with 1 Nephi 3:7:

And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things the Lord has commanded, for I know the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them."

Puddles

2010-10-08T09:18:00.002-06:00

It had rained and rained and rained and rained here in Hershey and when it finally stopped we had some pretty fun puddles in front of our apartment.

I was showing Christian some videos of volcanoes erupting (thank you, youtube) and realized a few minutes into it that Miles was being very quiet...I looked around to discover he had dragged a stool over to the front door and unlocked the deadbolt...and was out front playing in the puddles with a neighbor girl. :D HA! Naughty baby!

So I decided to let them play for a bit...

Christian had a blast making big splashes. :D Just like a good kid should.

Miles loved it, too. :D Of course! I grew up in a valley and I remember having fun in the flood areas. My street was completely covered in water once. It's such fun!

They're so cute. They love each other so much. They fight a ton, but when there's love, there's LOVE. :)

Discarded

2010-10-07T08:58:00.003-06:00

I call this one "discarded". Miles has officially learned how to take off his clothes, including his diaper. I found this diaper one day, innocently lying on the floor. Miles!
I found the little 21 month old squirt running around half naked (only his shirt on), laughing and thinking the world was grand. :D HA! He has been taking his diaper off more and more and the other day he peed on the couch. Thank goodness for leather! HA!!!

Butterflies make butter

2010-10-01T19:26:00.003-06:00

The other day I was outside with my boys and we saw a beautiful monarch butterfly flutter by. Christian said, "Guess what, Mommy? Bees make honey and butterflies...make butter. Right?" :D HA! I couldn't help but laugh, it was too cute. :) He repeated it again today, and although I had told him that NO, butterflies do not make butter, he apparently will not be swayed.
So butterflies don't make butter but it got me thinking...What DO butterflies make?

Well, from what I found, butterflies pollinate flowers and caterpillars provide food for birds. Nice.
Oh butterflies. You may not make butter, but you are beautiful to look at and don't bite or come inside our homes. You give us our space while allowing us to look upon your splendor. Thank you. :)

Shopping with a stocking on your head

2010-10-01T09:14:00.005-06:00

This man went shopping with a stocking on his head and it's hilarious to see people's reactions! Only in Australia, he would've been shot straight up here! :D It's funny to see in this context, but those poor people!!
See the video here.

Empowered

2010-09-26T07:50:00.003-06:00

My friend once said he went to the movies by himself and it was really an empowering experience. I think that's the word he said, anyway. I thought, "Wow, what a good idea."
A couple days later I drove by the movie theater, by myself, with nothing else to do. I hesitated, wanting to try the experience. I thought it may better myself, if only a little. However, as I imagined people looking at me, sitting there all by myself while waiting for the movie to start I decided I didn't want to be such a depiction of loneliness. What a chicken!
So a couple weeks ago my hubby got a free pass to Hershey Park, a huge amusement park 5 minutes from our home. We were going to get two more tickets, one for him and one for our four year old (and our one year old is still free). Last minute my husband decides it's not "worth it" to buy two more tickets. WELL, I didn't want the ticket to go to waste!
This is the last weekend it's open for the season so yesterday I decided to go by myself. Yes folks, I went to an amusement park by myself. I stood in line by myself and paired myself up with others for the rides, declaring I was a single rider. (It helped me get ahead in line..hehehe...)
It was a much bigger deal than going to the movies, I think, and in the end I feel it helped me not care what others think of me (D&C 30:2), which to me is really important. I had fun, talked to a lot of new people, and was able to do exactly what I wanted to do. It was a life-changing experience, if only a little. ;)

"Anal People"

2010-09-25T05:54:00.005-06:00

My friend got me watching "Hoarders" and every time I watch an episode I'm consumed by two things. (1) They excessively flash a screen explaining the problems and (2) I want to shout, "CLEAN UP and ASK QUESTIONS LATER!! My fingers itch, wanting to pick up, and my vocal chords ache to want to shout at them. How could they STAND to live in that mess! CLEAN IT UP! And although it bugs me I think such a project would be fun. I love getting things done, especially when there's a noticeable result. :D
I have the opposite problem, I'm an anti-hoarder. I want to throw things away until we have minimal things to survive. It's easier to stay ORGANIZED when you have less things and I feel it would make me HAPPIER.
So the other night, after watching an episode of "Hoarders" I decided to make this little video. I was in my jammies and everything...and the boys were in bed, hence my hushed voice. :D It sounded like a good idea at the time. ;)
It's dorky, I know...and I'm dorky, it's true. But I hope I can make at least one person smile. :D

Props to Carell and Arnett

2010-09-24T18:05:00.004-06:00

I just wanted to say I LOVE Will Arnett and Steve Carell. I appreciate their humor and my dream would be to hang with them both for a day (and their wives, of course). :D
The end.

Gold's Gym

2010-09-23T09:31:00.006-06:00

So I joined Gold's Gym two days ago. They gave me a sweet deal: $20/month including everything (even childcare). SA-weet! :) My first day working out was yesterday. I did arms and I kept waking up last night from the pain! :D I did shoulders and back today, not looking forward to those side effects. I'm really happy though because it's been almost two years since I was last at a gym working out regularly.
I love to do 20-30 minutes of cardio, weights, then swim some laps to cool down then soak in the hot tub for a few minutes. A few minutes is all I can handle in a hot tub. It's so hot! :)~
I always go focusing on the positive mental and emotional aspects. It helps me to stay motivated and happy. The physical benefits are just a huge bonus. :) I won't miss you, extra baby weight! Get thee hence and come back here no more! ;)~

Recipe: Scone Glaze

2010-09-16T15:53:00.006-06:00

So back on April 25 I listed a recipe for chocolate chip scones...well PA-LEASE excuse me for not finding a glaze to go with it because it makes a HUGE difference! Super easy and you can whip it up while the scones are baking. Makes the scones that much yummier!

Scone Glaze

1/2 c sifted powder sugar
1 tbsp melted butter
1 tsp milk (plus some)
1 tsp vanilla

Stir powdered sugar, melted butter, milk, and vanilla in a small mixing bowl. Add more milk, 1/2 tsp at a time, until drizzling consistency. Spoon or baste over warm scones. Serve immediately.

Fire Station

2010-09-15T18:23:00.009-06:00

So today I took my boys to the fire station and invited my friend, Danielle, and her son who's Christian's age. I'd never taken the boys to a fire station before and they were SO happy! Especially Christian! :D His mouth was wide open most of the time and he said, "Wow! They're so big!" the whole time! :D And he wore his fireman dress up outfit, of course. It was too precious.

Just two hot mamas. :D

They went inside of EACH and EVERY fire truck! HA! :D Cute kiddos.

They were so cute in the fire fighter's uniforms! :D

My cute little pip squeak. :D

I guess some firefighters from the Hershey station went and helped out at ground zero. Here's a piece of the Twin Towers, my friends. A sweet memorial to a not so sweet piece of history...

OCD

2010-09-14T06:52:00.005-06:00

Sooooo, I'm pretty sure I'm OCD...at least to a small degree. I always thought I just had an "architectural eye," but being a homemaker and mother has proven it to be a bit more.
The picture above DOES bother me! Everything needs to look nice and be in its place! :D My friends tell me I'm a good homemaker because I like everything to be clean and picked up...which is important to me. I'm happy to have a nice home, but what about the chillin's?
They need to make messes and explore and get into things and I do let them...to an extent. Until I can't handle the mess and have to clean it up. I don't think I'm too hard on them, but I also know Christian loves going upstairs, where they're allowed to take toys out of the toy room and they have soooo many things to play with...Well I may just make a sign that says, "Love me, love my OCD."

I also suffer from this type OCD:

And this one:

heheheeeee...

Green thumb, folks!

2010-09-10T06:37:00.009-06:00

So back in June I planted a garden and I was nervous about being able to keep it alive. :D Well, it seems I do have a green thumb (I'm sure the super fertile Hershey soil helped...a little). :D My garden has flourished and the flowers have filled out and grown to mammoth size! Here's a picture of Miles helping water them. :D Such a cute baby.

I was out one morning and saw this big, beautiful butterfly fluttering around my flowers. I was so excited that my handiwork could attract such a gorgeous creature. :D There were also some bumble bees bumbling around and a dragon fly comes by every once in a while. Hooray for nature! :D

Recipe: Taglairini

2010-09-10T06:05:00.007-06:00

I have no idea where this recipe came from, but it's been in our family for a while. :) It's very tasty and a good variation from normal marinara sauce. I don't usually like olives, but in here they just go! :D It's a fun, yummy, easy pasta dish. :D
ENJOY!!

Taglairini

1 lb. Hamburger
2 Tbsp butter
1 small onion, chopped
1-8 oz can tomato sauce
1 can corn, drained
1 can tomato soup-1 soup can water
1 can pitted olives, drained
2 c uncooked noodles (I like elbow macaroni)
1 c diced or shredded cheese

Melt butter in soup pan over medium heat and fry onions until tender, about 5 minutes. Add hamburger and cook until done. Add remaining ingredients except the cheese and cook until noodles are done. Stir often while cooking. Add cheese and stir until melted.

Recipe: Mexican Chicken and Black Bean Soup

2010-09-07T17:32:00.002-06:00

Mexican Chicken and Black Bean Soup

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 Tbsp butter
1 garlic clove, minced
2 (14.5-oz) cans stewed or diced tomatoes, cut up
1 (15-oz) can corn, undrained
1 (15-oz) can black beans, drained
2 c chicken broth
2 c salsa
1/2 c chopped fresh cilantro
1 tbsp ground cumin

Shredded Monterey Jack or pepper Jack cheese
Tortilla chips
Sour cream

1. Melt the butter in a soup pot over medium heat. Cook and stir the chicken until slightly browned and no longer pink. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
2. Add the tomatoes, corn, beans, broth, salsa, cilantro, and cumin; bring to a boil. Decrease the heat, cover, and simmer for 20 min.
3. To serve, place a scoop of cheese in a soup bowl, then tortilla chips, and soup. Top with a dollop of sour cream.
Serve with a green salad or fresh fruit and additional chips and salsa.

Variation: Put cooked chicken pieces and remaining ingredients (butter to cumin) in the slow cooker and cook for 4-8 hours.

It's soooo easy and sooooo good and quite healthy! :D ENJOY!!!!

SIX years

2010-09-04T18:03:00.010-06:00

So today is Alan's and my six year anniversary. :D Yipee! :D He scored big points by 1) planning our date and 2) keeping it a surprise. No. 1 has rarely happened and no. 2 has NEVER happened. HA! :D So it was extra special. ;)
We forgot our camera and bought a disposable one on the way, so please excuse the poor photo quality. :D

We went on a topless bus (the bus, not those inside of it) and fed animals that came right up to us and ate out of our hands. :D It was so cool! I'd always wanted to do a safari ride!

This huge elk was probably my favorite. He was SO huge and SO sweet. Look, he's smiling at Alan. :)

Then we hit the zoo. It was small, but perfect! Huge zoos are almost too big and exhausting. This one is perfect for kids! Small, but has all the most important animals. :D Namely, MONKEYS! :D hehehe....we had a lot of fun with the monkeys. They've always been my favorite animal! :D

Here's a baby monkey holding my finger. Sooooooo cute. :D I loved it. ;)

Here I'm getting cozy with an alpaca. :D He was so cute and soft! :D
We had a blast, the weather was perfect (in the 70's) and I'm so glad our neighbors could watch our rugrats so we could go!! :D
I love you, honey!!!!! :D

Fun Times in the Bordon Household

2010-09-02T05:55:00.024-06:00

I made some edible playdough a couple weeks ago and the boys LOVED it! :D Here's the recipe I used:
EDIBLE PLAYDOUGH RECIPE
1 1/2 c Peanut Butter
3 Tbsp Honey
3/4 c powdered milk
Mix together. It's not super firm, but it'll firm up if you refrigerate it.

We rode our bikes to the duck pond, Christian was SO proud of himself. It was his first time riding his bike away from the front of our apt. and he was so precious! :D

I watched the kids from upstairs and captured a precious chocolate ice cream moment on the back patio. ;) Notice how dirty MY children are? I love those kids. :D

Naughty Miles got a hold of a Sharpie. HA! :D

My bro, Robert, and his family came to visit this past weekend. Saturday we went to the Elizabethtown Fair and had a blast! Here's Miles and I on the Ferris Wheel. It was our first time!

Here's Miles petting a bunny in the petting zoo area. It was so fun!

Saturday evening we went to a ward picnic. Alan is holding Christian after he (and a large group of kids) got attacked by a swarm of wasps! They were playing near their nest, I guess. One little one got stung 13 times!! Poor little guy!
But the food was great. I made a yummy BLT salad. :D

Here's Christian playing with his cousins outside. We had a lot of fun with them and Christian was heart broken when they left. He said he didn't like our house and wanted to go home with them! :D

Recipes: Pepper Jack Enchiladas with Green Chile-Sour Cream Sauce

2010-08-27T14:47:00.005-06:00

Long name for a recipe, but fabulous. From The Food Nanny recipe book, of course. :D I love my mother's enchiladas like these, but with this recipe you make your own cream of chicken soup. So good! :D

Pepper Jack Enchiladas with Green Chile-Sour Cream Sauce

8 corn or taco-size flour tortillas
1 lb chicken pieces, cooked and chopped
2 c (8 oz) shredded pepper Jack cheese, divided
1/4 c (1/2 stick) butter
1/4 c all-purpose flour
2 c chicken broth
1 c sour cream
2 (4 oz) cans diced green chiles, drained
1 (5-oz) bag fresh spinach

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees for flour tortillas or 350 for corn tortillas.
2. Lay out tortillas on a cookie sheet or aluminum foil or wax paper. Divide cheese and chicken evenly on each tortilla and roll up. Place the tortillas seam side down in a 9x13 inch baking dish.
3. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan; stir in the flour. Add the broth and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and bubbles. Stir in the sour cream and chiles. Cook until the mixture starts to bubble, but do not boil. Pour the mixture over the tortillas and bake for 20 min (flour tortillas) or 15 min (corn tortillas). Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the enchiladas and bake just until the cheese melts, about 5 more minutes.
4. Meanwhile, cut the spinach lengthwise with a pizza cutter or sharp knife. To serve, place one enchilada on each plate and top with extra sauce from the dish. Place a handful of spinach alongside and serve immediately.

Recipe: Spicy Cheese Surprise Burgers

2010-08-25T17:50:00.016-06:00

I've been wanting to get back on here to share more recipes, but with the move and traveling around and getting settled I haven't gotten into a good dinner routine...
Until now. This recipe sounds scary, I know, and it doesn't look super pretty but it's soooo good. I'm not much of a spicy food lover, and this is SPICY (depending on how spicy the picante sauce is you use). So if you shy away from spiciness, stay away from this. If you love it or can stand it sometimes, try this out and let me know how it goes! :D

Spicy Cheese Surprise Burgers
Serves 4
1 lb ground beef
4 slices cheddar cheese
1/2 c picante sauce
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce

Shape ground beef into 8 (3 1/2") patties. Place 1 slice cheese on top of four of the patties. Top each with remaining patties; press edges to seal. In large skillet over medium-high heat, cook patties 2 to 3 minutes on each side or until browned; drain excess fat. Mix picante sauce and tomato sauce in a small bowl and pour over patties. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 10 minutes or until heated.
I sprinkle cheese on top (because...well...I love cheese) as it heats and serve over rice.
YUM.

Recipe by Joyce Grohmann

Gettysburg and an ignorant Cali girl

2010-08-08T20:23:00.006-06:00

We went to Gettysburg yesterday with my husband's parents. It was awesome! I came to realize one thing....

I am an ignoramus. I took history like everyone else (as little as possible because, you know, zzzzzzzzzzzz) and not much stuck with me...except Harriet Tubman who conducted the underground railroad and Rosa Parks who sat at the front of the bus. :D You go girls! But how TERRIBLE that I didn't even really know what the civil war was about!
Tarrifs...the north (Union) were basically stealing from the south (Confederates)...in the end Pres. Lincoln made it seem like the war was about slavery.
All in all I'm very glad I had such an awesome and educational experience!

We got to see them do cool reenactments of military drills...they fired their old-fashioned guns and marched around. I asked one of them men about the war, asking stupid questions, and I felt like such a DUMB California blond. DUH! Alan told me to read a book, making sure I felt as dumb as possible. (He's really good at that sometimes.) ;) I do need to read up on my history, since I actually WANT to learn now! :)~

This is the Pennsylvania monument, by far the biggest one (I think they just might be biased.) I actually felt a little proud of that monument...after all, I am living in Pennsylvania now. :D

Canada, Canada, Canada...and a bit of New York

2010-07-20T09:11:00.009-06:00

So I've felt sad about moving so far from family...but alas! It's been nice having my big brother and his family only 8 hours away. :D We went back for another week of Canadian fun and will go back AGAIN at the end of this week! :D HA! We just can't get enough. It's been really fun to hang with them because we hadn't really been able to before and we just love them so. :) Here are some pictures from our latest adventure...

They loved feeding animals at a free petting zoo. :) Ontario, Canada.

The boys playing in the pool with their cousins in their huge backyard. :D King, ON

Niagra Falls, ON...we stopped there on our way to Palmyra, NY

The falls were sooo beautiful!

Christian and Darren playing on the logs at the Smith Family farm.

My love handles taking the boys for a walk in the Sacred Grove. :) Palmyra, NY July 2010.

In front of Joseph Smith's first family home (rebuilt) in Palmyra, NY.

Hill Cumorah Pageant. NY, July 2010. BEAUTIFUL production.

Miles LOVES uncle Robert. Soooo precious. :)

Canada!...Oh, and Happy Birthday to me. :D

2010-07-07T18:01:00.009-06:00

SO, I've wanted to check out Canada ever since 1997 when I met a hot guy who was FROM there. He showed me pictures of his green, lush homeland with horses and lots of open space to boot. :) Well, a couple weeks ago I finally got me wish! :D Saturday June 26 I drove to visit my big bro and his family--they're there for a few years for his work--and I went ALONE. :) Alan had been gone for the month before for Officer Training for the Air Force and couldn't leave the country until July 8. And my nephew was baptized Sunday July 27...so I went alone. It was a NICE break. :D I loved it! I've always loved my older brother and he's grown up to be a wonderful husband and father. :)
The following Thursday I dragged my bro and his family down to Washington D.C. :) We had a blast there--saw the Museum of Natural History, the Air and Space Museum, saw the Declaration of Independence and Constitution, Lincoln Memorial, WW II Memorial, Vietnam Memorial, National Monument and saw the fireworks show on the fourth--and we just got back today. They drove their trailer and we camped. Trailer camping is nice, very nice. ;)

Alan and I in front of the White House. Fun times!

Walking around D.C. ~ Christian and Darren holding hands. So precious.
Christian LOVED his cousin, Darren--they're the same age--and everyone gets along really well. SO! tomorrow we're driving up to Canada...again. HA! My brother has a kayak and wants to take it out this weekend. Fun times. ;)
On a side note it's my birthday today. I'm 32. Alan took me to Medieval Times on Monday to celebrate and my sis-in-law took me shopping as a gift. A VERY nice gift, indeed. :) I wanted to cry it was so sweet! :D I just love them. Aaaawwwwwwww....

Ode to Fireflies

2010-06-20T18:55:00.004-06:00

I love walking around the apartment complex at dusk because it's when the fireflies come out. There's something so magical about their little lights flashing over the grass; I love it! We had some in one of my areas on the mission, but I can't get enough of them. :D One floated lazily by me--four inches from my face--this evening as I pulled out a few weeds that had popped out in my garden and it was so cute. :D So unabashed or afraid...such cute little guys. ;)
I'm so grateful for the fireflies in our life. They're so small yet can brighten even the darkest clouds in our hearts! ;D
Thank you, fireflies. :)

Being Prepared

2010-06-11T18:20:00.004-06:00

So it never hurts to be prepared...right?

So here's Alan's Father's Day present...I know it's not for over a week, but I had to get it today. I couldn't wait. ;) He's wanted a Blu-ray player for sooooo long.

And what good wife wouldn't set it up for him...early...and watch her "New Moon" Blu-ray disc on it? Aren't I so wonderful?
heheheeeeee...Don't tell Alan, I want it to be a surprise. He can't see our blog on the Air Force computers (not like he looks anyway, I'm sure) but if you communicate with Alan keep it on the DL. :D
I know he'll love it. ;)

It's here...THE couch. :D

2010-06-08T18:28:00.007-06:00

My couch was delivered today. :D I love it! I'm so excited to sit and enjoy it! :D HA!
(Sitting is not a common thing for this mother of two very active boys. HA!)

Here it is! :D Loooovely. Mmmmmm...Smells like....leather! :D

Here it is with only one side reclined (the other side reclines as well).

Work it, baby work it. Let's get all the angles. ;D
I hope for many a night snuggling with my honey on it. :D

Black or green thumb?

2010-06-03T06:45:00.016-06:00

I planted my very first garden yesterday. Whoopie! :D I'm nervous about it's safety, however...the other three or so plants I've had (in pots...inside) have died! Despite all my best efforts to keep them alive. ;) SO, I hope I can keep this garden alive. There's petunias and a few marigolds and (other flowers I can't remember) and a watermelon plant and two strawberry plants. :D I hope they all work out. Christian's really excited.

I've also taken some pictures of our place here in Hershey, PA (mainly for Alan, since he's been gone and hasn't seen it).

Here's the office/toy room. I LOVE having the toys out of the living room!

Dining room...that's Miles' chair covered in plastic. He's MESS-Y. ;)

Kitchen...I still need to arrange a lot in here. One thing at a time...

One wall of our huge living room...love our Poang chairs (from Ikea) and our new bookcase.

Another corner of our living room...the one we love. ;)

The fourth Living Room wall...patiently awaiting the new couch. Five more days! :D
(Don't mind the shelves on the left...they're one of the many things I need to organize still.) :D

And here's the new yellow towel (and matching bath mat) I picked out and the toothbrush holder Christian picked out for the second bathroom. I sure love that kid.

Did I mention we got a new bookcase? ;) I'm pretty much in love with it.
SO! There's the gist of it! :D Hope you enjoyed the show! :D

Couch Snob

2010-05-31T17:24:00.007-06:00

I am such a couch snob...we have sat on, slept on, cuddled on old, nasty hand-me-down couches for the past five-and-a-half years of marriage and now I'm putting my foot down! ;) I feel I've earned my right to be a couch snob! :D
So today I bought our first new couch...and it's not just any couch. A leather reclining sofa. NICE. The last couch (THIS one) we borrowed from Alan 's aunt and uncle for a total of about five months...and in that five months Christian had barfed on it and Miles had pooped on it. Sooooo, to say the least, I'm quite excited for the leather.
It looks kind of like THIS:

I'll used burgundy and other colored pillows, though...not pink and lime green. ;) It will be delivered June 9th...I can't wait. :D I can't stand seeing a blank wall where the couch will go. Whoopie!

Our newest adventure...

2010-05-30T18:54:00.007-06:00

SO we've moved to Hershey, PA. So fun. ;) I was dreading the move, to tell you the truth. BUT (and a big butt it is) Pennsylvania is soooo pretty! I loooove green rolling hills and trees and this place is full of just that! I was also dreading the move back into apartments, but these aren't so bad! They're spacious (3 beds/2 full baths) and utilities and Internet are included in the price of rent...and there's a huge play area out front! AND, the biggest bonus, the ladies around here are really coolio. :) I can tell we're going to be good friends.
I happened upon the chocolate factory the other day and took the boys in for a tour. They LOVED it. :D Christian's been asking to go again. ;)
And so our newest adventure begins....

Recipe: Whipped Cream Frosting

2010-05-12T13:56:00.008-06:00

So there are a lot of different recipes for whipped cream, but I've used those to make my own. I can't stand frosting, it's normally tooooooo sweet! But I love this frosting because it's light and delicious!
I LOOOOVE to make this with double-layered cakes...with pudding in between the layers! To use pudding, add only half the milk that it calls for.
Try it out!

Whipped Cream Frosting

4 Tbsp flour
1 c milk
1 c shortening
1 c sugar (or less, you can use as little as 1/2 cup)
1 tsp vanilla

Cook milk and flour in small saucepan on low heat until it turns into a thick paste. Stick pan in refrigerator to cool. Beat shortening and sugar about 4 minutes or until it looks like whipped butter. Gradually add flour paste mixture. Continue beating 5 minutes. Add vanilla and beat 1 minute more. Will frost two 8 inch cakes or sheet cake.
Yum.

Tip: To get the smooth look with any frosting, get the knife wet. It works! :D

Recipe: Honey Popcorn

2010-05-02T15:34:00.008-06:00

My mom used make this yummy popcorn for us for family night (Monday night). We'd beg for it every time because it was our favorite treat!
I made it for girl's night last night and it's still delish. :D
It's good (much better than caramel corn, I think) and super easy!

Honey Popcorn
1 c sugar
1/2 c honey
1/2 c butter

Pop 1 1/2 c popcorn kernels and place in large bowl. (I don't have a popcorn popper so I use two bags of light microwave popcorn.) Make sure no unpopped kernels get inside of bowl.
Place ingredients in medium saucepan. Stir constantly over medium heat. It will eventually begin to boil...boil to hard ball stage on candy thermometer (260 degrees) or for about 5-6 minutes. Pour over popcorn. Stir until popcorn is well coated (AVOID getting on your skin! It sticks and is very, very hot!). Form into balls or any other shape you want (or leave in the bowl, but it's harder to grab some and you'll end up with a huge mound of rock hard yumminess at the bottom). It will become very hard when cooled. Serve warm (which is my favorite) or cool. ENJOY the yumminess!

Recipe: Spaghetti Carbonara alla Mario

2010-04-26T14:05:00.004-06:00

This is one of my favorites! We have a lot of spaghetti noodles (we like to buy a large package of wheat ones from Costco--they're seriously taste so much better than normal ones!) and I love spaghetti and all (especially her easy spaghetti recipe!), but I wanted to try something different. So the other day I did!
This one is from the Food Nanny and let me say this dish is delish! ;)

Spaghetti Carbonara alla Mario

8 oz uncooked spaghetti noodles
2 eggs
8 strips of bacon or 2 slices pancetta (Italian bacon), diced
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 c freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1. Cook the spaghetti according to package directions.
2. Meanwhile, eat the eggs in a small bowl. Set aside.
3. In a large saucepan, cook the bacon over medium-high heat until it is cooked through but not crisp. Remove it from the pan and drain it on paper towels. Leave bacon fat in pan and add the olive oil. Heat. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds, just until you smell the aroma. Careful not to burn garlic. Remove from heat. Return bacon to the pan.
4. When spaghetti is cooked, lift it out of the water with tongues and put it in the saucepan with the bacon. Measure 2 cups of pasta water and discard the rest. Place the saucepan over medium-high heat. Pour the hot pasta water over the spaghetti and use tongs to turn the spaghetti over several times. Add the beaten egg and continue stirring quickly to cook the egg.
5. When the water is almost evaporated, add the salt, black pepper and cheese. Stir until well-mixed. When the cheese is mostly melted, take the pan off the heat.
6. Divide the carbonara between four plates and serve immediately. Pass the crushed red pepper.
Serve with Italian bread and a green vegetable or salad of your choice....and, of course, ENJOY!

Recipe: Chocolate Chip Scones

2010-04-25T10:47:00.006-06:00

I always thought scones must be difficult to make because I'd only seen them sold in pretty glass displays at bread stores...well, they're not only easy, they're delicious when fresh! They're a fun way to change up breakfast or snack.
There are a lot of recipes out there, but this is my favorite way to make them. I made them this morning. Y-U-M. ;) This recipe makes four. ENJOY!

Chocolate Chip Scones
2 c unsifted self-rising all-purpose flour
-OR-2 c all purpose flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt mixed togehter
2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 c vegetable shortening
1/2 c milk
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 c semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Grease baking sheet.
2. In large bowl, combine flour and sugar. With pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
3. In small bowl, combine milk, egg, and vanilla. Add to dry ingredients along with chocolate chips and mix with fork until mixture clings together and forms a soft dough.
4. Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface and knead gently 5 or 6 times. With lightly floured rolling pin, roll dough into a 7-inch round. Cut into 4 wedges.
5. Place scones, 1 inch apart, on greased baking sheet. Pierce tops with tines of fork.
6. In small bowl, lightly beat 1 egg and 1 Tbsp milk. Brush over scones. Mix 2 Tbsp sugar and 1/4 tsp cinnamon in a small bowl and sprinkle evenly over scones.
7. Bake 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.

HOT TAMALES!

2010-04-22T14:21:00.009-06:00

Yesterday I met up with a couple of friends to make tamales. We began at 9 a.m. and when I left at 7:30 p.m. they weren't quite finished! :D It was a looooong grueling process, but fun...although my back hurts like nothing else from it. ;)

This is Lauri (in the apron). I'll just say she's AMAZING in the kitchen. Boss. I worked with her (standing where the chick in black is) extracting juice from New Mexican chilies.

Rebecca and Allison worked the masa...hours of kneading while I poured stuff in. Fun times.

The end process, putting them together. It's the easiest, but takes so loooooooooooooong. I had to leave mine to steam for 1 1/2 hours...I hope I can get them today! :D
We decided to name ourselves the "Hot Tamales" and make our own aprons and everything...and although I won't be here to make them tamales with them again, I'll still be part of the club. ;) And who knows, maybe I'll start my own Hot Tamale club in Pennsylvania! :D

Recipe: Southwest Pasta

2010-04-20T14:35:00.007-06:00

I got this recipe from my brotha from a different Motha, Thomas. He got it from a lady while living in Mississippi, so it REALLY comes from the south :D And it's sooooo good and easy.

SOUTHWEST PASTA DISH

2 cans cream of chicken soup (16 oz) (or 1 family size)
1 can Rotel tomatoes (or any brand of diced tomatoes with green chilies)
8 oz cream cheese
1 c chicken broth (optional--I've never used it)

Combine all ingredients in a medium sauce pan. Stir frequently on low heat. When cream cheese is mostly melted it is finished.
Serve with any noodles of your choice--I prefer fettuccine or egg noodles.
Best when served with baked boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Put the chicken in to bake before starting the pasta. When there's 10 minutes until the chicken is done, season each breast with garlic salt and spoon salsa over each.
DE-LISH. :D Enjoy!

Recipe: SALSA!

2010-04-16T21:14:00.004-06:00

I had to put an exclamation mark after SALSA! because it's soooooo dang good. Seriously. It's another gem I've plucked it out of the Food Nanny recipe book. I should probably slow down sharing her recipes before she sues me or something, but SUE ME I just had to share this one! I've been really impressed with her Mexican food secion...Probably because she gets a lot of recipes from a Mexican lady-friend of the family. :D She's also travelled around the world looking for the best foreign recipes...that's why her Italian food section is divine, also. :D

SALSA!
16 Roma tomatoes, or tomatoes of your choice
2 jalapeno chiles
2 serrano chiles
1 small white onion
8 whole garlic cloves
1 bunch fresh cilantro
1 1/2 tsp coarse salt (I used table salt)
1 Tbsp cider vinegar

1. Preheat oven to low broil (450). Place the whole tomatoes and chiles on a cookie sheet and place under broiler. Broil for 6 minutes on each side, or until tomatoes and peppers are blackened. Remove from oven and allow to cool on the pan. Reset the oven to bake at 450 degrees.
2. Slice the onion 1/2 inch thick and lay out hte slices on another sheet pan. Peel the garlic and add the whole cloves to the pan. Roast 15 to 20 minutes, turning often, until the onion and garlic are soft and browned. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
3. Meanwhile, snip cilantro leaves, discarding the stems, to fill one cup loosely with leaves. Chop the leaves and set aside.
4. Prepare the tomatoes over the sheet pan to reserve the juice. Lift off the tomato skin and cut out the small core, discard. Set pan with tomatoes aside.
5. Cut the serranos down the middle and scrape out the seeds with a pointed spoon. Discard the seeds and cut the serranos in half crosswise. Cut hte jalapenos into thirds, leaving the seeds intact. Put the chiles into the blender or food processor with a metal blade. Add the onions and garlic. Pulse just to mince the vegetables. Transfer them to a medium bowl.
6. Put the tomatoes and any juice in the food processor or blender and pulse until crushed (not pureed). Add the tomatoes to the chile-onion mixture and mix with a wooden spoon until well-blended. Add the cilantro, salt, and vinegar and mix well.
7. Store left-overs in fridge. To freeze, fill quart-size resealable freezer bags with the desired amount. Freeze up to 5 months. To thaw, let stand at room temperature 30 to 40 minutes.

This makes a lot so you can freeze it, since you've made the effort, or half it. :D Either way you won't regret the little bit of time it takes! :D

Recipe: Beef Stroganoff

2010-04-15T09:05:00.006-06:00

Here I'll share another Food Nanny recipe: Beef Stroganoff. I've had stroganoff a few times in my lifetime, and it's always been good enough to eat even thought it's always on the bland side.
WELL, I tried the Food Nanny's recipe last night (photo above) and WOW. It's SO tasty! I loved it, and although Alan wasn't as thrilled about it as I was, it was dang good. :D
It was under her Monday meals, which she calls "Comfort Food". She says she makes comfort food to help them get over the feeling of the weekend gone and help them start another week of school, work, etc.
Without further ado....

BEEF STROGANOFF
The Food Nanny Rescues Dinner

2 Tbsp butter
1/2 medium white onion (although I always use sweet onions), chopped
2 lbs beef sirloin
1 lb mushrooms, sliced
2 c beef broth
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/8 tsp cayenne
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
2 Tbsp cream or milk
2 c sour cream
1 12-oz package extra-wide noodles or other pasta

1. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook and stir until it is soft.
2. Trim the fat from the meat and cut meat into 1/4-inch strips. Add to the an and cook and stir until browned. Add the mushrooms, broth, salt, nutmeg, basil, cayenne, and pepper. Bring to a boil and immediately decrease the heat to low. Simmer until all but about 1/2 cup liquid remains, about 40 minutes.
(You can do steps 1 & 2 ahead of time, if you have to.)
3. Meanwhile, cook the noodles according to package directions, drain, and set aside.
4. Stir in the cream or milk and sour cream into the meat mixture. Cook 1 minute more. Serve immediately over the cooked noodles.

Serve with a green vegetable or a green salad. It's not necessary to serve bread with such a heavy dish, although a slice of crusty bread adds a crunchy texture to this "soft" meal...ENJOY!

Tuesday we had our second trip to the Children's Museum with Alan's cousin, Jenny. She's so fun to hang with...and the boys LOVE the place. I mean, how couldn't they? It was made entirely for them! Here's a little video of the artsy area. :D Cute boys...

ZOO & Fun Learning Time

2010-04-12T09:08:00.008-06:00

This past weekend Alan's parents came to visit us. We had a lot of fun! Friday night we had yuuuuuummy burritos at Gordito's w/his parents and aunt and uncle. Saturday we went to the zoo! It was fun times! :D

Family Fun Time at the Zoo. :)

An awesome bear that was giving us a show through the glass...there's something so cool about being so close to such a huge animal!...and it was HUGE!

The bear's friend. :) He was huge, also. :)

Popping our head out of a cave hole in a fun play area for the kids...big and small. :D

This orangutan walked right up to us and sat and ate its orange peal for a while. :D It was so fun!

Alan got Christian a Nerf gun recently and the other day Miles was walking around with a dart on his head. HA! Alan's acting like he'd shot him in the forehead. I love Miles' face b/c it looks like Alan actually HAD. HA! Funny boys.

I'm looking for things to do with Christian (3 yrs old) that will help him learn but that will also be fun for the both of us...and Miles (1 yr old), if he's awake. :)
Here's a good website I found:
http://www.toddler-activities-at-home.com/
It gave me the idea to make a collage of things Christian likes to do. We had fun doing that today. :) Anyone have any fun ideas?

AGING

2010-04-06T18:27:00.006-06:00

This is a picture of my eyes...well...kind of, but not really. The original picture I sent to my friend Lori had daaark circles and freckled spots and tooooons of wrinkles...then Lori worked her magic with Photoshop and wa-lah! Here's a magazine-worthy image of my eyes. HA!
I don't mind aging, I really don't, but there's something sad about knowing that however many years ago I didn't NEED to Photoshop my face. :)

Recipe: Apple Crisp

2010-04-05T09:19:00.005-06:00

So I hope you'll pardon my sudden desire to put a recipe a day. :) I realized I've found some really delicious recipes and I'd like to share! There are so many different recipes floating around--and probably some yummier than what I've found--but these are pretty darn good. Take this apple crisp recipe, for example...it's the best apple crisp I've tasted in my 32 years of life! Granted I haven't had a LOT of it, but trust me...it's good. :D
So try it if you'd like, otherwise drool over the picture. HA! :D Bon appetit! :D

Apple Crisp
4 medium apples in the variety of your choice (e.i. Granny Smith
with Fujii, Gala, or Jonagold)
3/4 c all-purpose flour
3/4 to 1 c sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon (optional)
1/3 c to 6 Tbsp chilled butter, cut into small pieces (the recipe
asks for 1/2 c, but I find it's way too much!)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and grease an 8x8-inch baking dish
2. Peal and core the apples and cut them into thin slices.
Spread the slices in the prepared baking dish.
3. Combine the flour, sugar, and cinnamon (if using) in a medium
bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or fork until the
mixture is crumbly. Spread evenly over the apples.
4. Bake uncovered until golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes.

To double this recipe, bake it in a 9x13-inch pan for 50 to 60
minutes. Enjoy! Serve warm with ice cream (and caramel sauce for extra deliciousness!). :D

Easter Time

2010-04-04T17:43:00.008-06:00

Easter was fun! I hid eggs all over the downstairs and the boys had fun finding them! We had a couple of hunts...and enjoyed watching Conference on byutv.edu. :) Fun times!
On another note, Miles is walking! It's bitter/sweet. You never think they'll be able to sit up and you blink and they do. You never think they'll crawl, but they do...You never think they'll be big enough to walk and they do. At least they'll never be big enough for SCHOOL, oh no. They'll be my little boys forever. ;)

Recipe: Delicious Chicken Tacos

2010-04-04T09:31:00.012-06:00

I've discovered the BESTEST and TASTIEST way to make tacos! Alan is one who will eat anything I make and be satisfied, sending a, "Thank you, hon," my way as he goes to rinse his dish...But when I made these for the first time he groaned and said something to the effect of, "It makes me want to cry to know we've never eaten this before." ;)

Last year (2009) my oldest sister, Francine, gave all us girls--her three sisters and our mom--a recipe book called "The Food Nanny Rescues Dinner". It inspired me to make a weekly menu and shop for needed ingredients at the beginning of the week. With a menu and needed ingredients on hand, making dinner is SOOOOO MUUUUCH more enjoyable!! :D
The author, Liz Edmunds, wants to bring back family dinner time; which is a very important time to spend as a family. Families that have dinner together generally have less "problems". A lot of recipes have a suggested conversation starter for your kids...I believe she has a show now...It's just plain a good idea, but mainly her recipes are awesome! There have only been three recipes I've tried that I didn't love...and I'm hard to please! Overall I've been really happy with the book. So here's the first recipe of hers I'll share...give it a try!

Chicken Tacos
From "The Food Nanny Rescues Dinner" cookbook

2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
3 Tbsp chopped onion
2 to 3 garlic cloves, minced
2 vine-ripened tomatoes, chopped
1/2 c chopped fresh cilantro
salt, ground black pepper, garlic salt
12 corn tortillas
OPTIONAL TOPPINGS:
shredded cheese
sour cream
fresh spinach, thinly sliced
salsa
lime wedges

Heat butter and oil in medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and onions and stir until onions are tender and chicken is tender and no longer pink. Add the garlic and cook one minute more.
Decrease the heat to low and stir in the tomato and cilantro. Add water (or chicken broth) if the mixture seems too dry. Season generously with salt, pepper, and garlic salt. Cook about 2 minutes. Cover and turn off heat.

I've found these are best served with fresh corn tortillas. Your Latino Market year you should have Instant Corn Masa Flour. Directions are on the bag. They're easy to make, but do take a little bit of time to flatten and cook each one. If serving with store-bought tortillas warm them in the microwave.
You can fry your tortillas one-by-one in 3/4 c vegetable oil over medium-high heat, shaping the tortilla as you go.

Pie in the sky

2010-04-03T16:12:00.005-06:00

I got this delicious pizza dough recipe from my friend, Melanie. :) I haven't found a pizza dough quite as tasty as this one! It does tend to be a bit dense, so if anyone knows of a recipe that has lighter dough (but still tastes as good), please share! The pizza in the pic has BB-Que sauce, cooked chicken chunks, bacon (cooked and broken into pieces) and pineapple. The pizza dough is raw here...it rises a lot when it's baked. I like putting the ingredients under the cheese so they don't dry out as it bakes.
It's fun to make pizzas with the kids because they love to add their own toppings; and honestly I do too! :D This recipe makes one large pizza, or you could split it up into a few individual sized pizzas.

PIZZA DOUGH
Preheat oven to 425; Spray pizza pan

3/4 c warm water
1 package (2 1/4 tsp) active dry yeast
1/2 tsp salt
Put warm water in bowl and sprinkle yeast on top. Sprinkle salt on top of yeast. Wait a few minutes for yeast to melt down a little.

3 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp olive (or other) oil
1 egg
Add ingredients to yeast mixture and stir for one minute.

2 c flour (+/-)
Add up to one more cup of flour. Knead dough 6-10 minutes. Use flour to spread on pizza pan. Add preferred sauce and toppings. Bake 425 for 10-15 minutes, or until crust is browned.

Recipe: YUMMY OREO TRUFFLES

2010-04-02T15:53:00.006-06:00

My dear friend, Emily, made these for a book group one day and I about died...of overdose because I couldn't stop eating them! :D They're soooo good. I mean, look down at the ingredients...they're fattening! That's how you know they're going to be delicious. They have the perfect texture and they taste divine.
SO, I thought I'd share the recipe. You're going to have to excuse the photo I took...I had a bit of a battle with white chocolate chips (I could NOT find white almond bark to save my life!) and lost. :D Make them for an event or share them with a neighbor. They're easy and delicious; you'll instantly be popular. :D Enjoy!

YUMMY Oreo Truffles
8 oz Philadelphia cream cheese
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 package of oreos
milk melting chocolates
white melting chocolates

Grind up Oreos until fine (a food processor is best, but a blender works ok too). Mix in cream cheese and vanilla (I use my hands to do this part).
Roll into balls and put in freezer 20-30 min. Coat in melted chocolate (use a toothpick to pick up the balls up and dip into the chocolate), drizzle melted white chocolate on the top (for decoration; make sure to cover up the toothpick holes).
Put them back in the freezer/fridge until they are ready to be served. (If they start to get too warm, the inner Oreo-ness starts to expand and it squeezes out of the hard chocolate coating. It looks odd, so it's best to keep them cold until right before they are eaten.)

Recipe: Easiest PB Cookies Ever

2010-04-01T12:44:00.005-06:00

If you like peanut butter, you'll like these. And the recipe is so easy!

Easy Peanut Butter Cookies
Preheat oven to 350
1 c. Peanut Butter (brand of your choice, or homemade)
1 c. sugar
1 egg
OPTIONAL INGREDIENTS:

-		1 teaspoon baking soda
-		1/2 teaspoon salt

Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips (PB chips are good, also)

Mix ingredients together and drop on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes. I like them slightly undercooked and non-flattened, but you can flatten them with a fork before baking if you'd like. I love them. And it's nice not to have to bring out all the extra ingredients!
If you know anyone who loves peanut butter (as I do) or who's on a glutten-free diet, do share!

So fruity

2010-03-31T15:48:00.005-06:00

I have been having so much fun with fruit lately! I found a market less than a mile away from our house that has fresh fruits and vegetables at incredibly low prices! They also have an excellent Mexican food section with fresh tortillas and any ingredient you could ever want. It's nice to find a place that has affordable groceries! :D I've been using my Blendtec every day, sometimes up to three times. The boys love the green smoothies I make--it's taken awhile to figure out what fruits do and don't mesh well together--and I'm so happy to give them a "treat" that's so healthy! Alan and I think they're delicious as well, so for the first time in the 5 1/2 years we've been married we're finally eating all the fruits and veggies we need.
My goal is to learn to make my own garden and grow as many of my own fruits and vegetables as possible. I want to follow the square foot gardening method (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1591862027/ref=ord_cart_shr?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER). It's organized and all around seems just perfect for me. We just need to stop moving around so much, first! :D
Speaking of moving...we're definitely moving to Pennsylvania. University of Washington finally decided to boot Alan off the wait list and reject him. ;) It's okay b/c he has always felt good about PA...It's just good to know for sure that there's not another option. :D

Alan's 28!

2010-03-22T19:47:00.013-06:00

March 11 Alan's cousin, Jenny, got us into the Seattle Children's Museum for free. :D Her pass allows her to take four extra people. Nice! We were gone six hours and only saw half of the whole place! :D Jenny is so fun! I love how outgoing she is...she really likes doing things with others. ;)

This is a fun water table area they loved! :D Such a great idea!

This was part of a big ball area where they feed balls through tubes, etc...it was kind of loud and Christian was a little scared. :D We quit this idea fast and got some lunch. :D

Here Jenny's building something with them the construction zone. It was such a fun place and I'm so grateful to Jenny for getting us in for freeeeeeeeeeeee... :D

Alan's birthday was last Friday and he turned 28. :D His aunt and uncle and parents came over for dinner (Costco pizza) and cake and ice cream. :) We love to have his family so near!
(This next photo is not for the faint of heart...beware, poopaphobes...)

While Alan was opening his presents, Miles had a major blowout...yah, it was pretty bad (that IS poop you see, it exploded all over!)...but FU-NNY! :D Poor "Mimi" and "Papa" got the brunt of it, and Auntie Donna helped get him cleaned up! :D It's Donna and Stu's couch...right after it happened, Stu said, "You can have the couch!" HA! :D It's amazing how you don't even flinch at your own kids' bodily fluids. ;)~

I forgot to take pictures of the Southern Coconut Cake I made him and though it was good, the Oreo Balls I made were by far the biggest hit...they were soooooo yummy. I got the recipe from my friend Emily. :D I love and miss her so! ;)

They were so good Christian was found sucking the remains of an Oreo Ball off of Miles' fingers...yah, it was dirty, but I was cracking up! :D

In this picture Miles is feeding Papa some chicken...the boys sure love their grandma and grandpa!!! Almost every day Christian says, "Guess what Mommy? Mimi and Papa and Missy (their dog) are coming over today." HA! It's going to be heart-breaking when we move to PA in May and we can't see them every month...I'm looking for a place to live and it looks like we'll have to live on campus, which STINKS! No dishwasher or yard and noisy kids living above us makes me annoyed already. But financially it's the best so I guess I'm going to have to suck it up. Boo! ;)

(Oddly) nice winter days...

2010-03-04T09:10:00.008-07:00

We've had some wonderfully beautiful winter days lately! And we've sure been taking advantage.

The boys like playing in the backyard! They fight over the soccer ball b/c Miles LOVES it!

And Christian loves to play baseball with us. He's actually pretty good at hitting the ball with the bat. :)

One day it was too wet for Miles to be crawling around...I love the picture of him with his face pressed against the glass door. :) It's pretty much the best picture EVER. :D

We always love to bike ride! I found that day (Feb 17) that I really need to get back into shape!

And Christian's been getting braver and braver on his own bike. He likes to ride it, though he's still a bit scared. :D We love him for trying.

We've also frequented the park a few times this winter. ;) The other day I was walking along with the boys (not driving to the only park I knew about b/c the battery was dead on BOTH cars!) and I happened upon a park just a couple blocks from our house. Score! :D It was a fun time.

Feb 20 our friends, the Padernoster's, had a yummy BBQ at their house...The sun was so bright I couldn't believe it....It was such a nice day!
They say it's been a mild winter for these parts...I'll take it! I'd like to think the Lord's blessed me, just me, with this awesome weather...but supposedly there's a large group of houses that are in a high risk flood zone...if it's too wet, a damn will break and flood them out....SO, it's a blessing for ME and THEM. :D

Another exciting thing that happened in February is my father-in-law and his twin sister's 59th Birthday. I made some cupcakes for them (we ate at a YUMMY Indian restaurant) and had a little too much fun decorating them. HA! It's not bad to have fun, right?! ;D

Levenworth

2010-02-07T19:26:00.005-07:00

Friday after Alan got back from work (he returned much later than normal, of course) we drove to Wenatchee to stay with Alan's parents.
Saturday we drove to Levenworth and spent a couple hours there. It's a cute little Germanesque village that draws tourists from all over (though I'd never heard of it until Alan took me when we were dating). :D It's so cute! The streets are lined with all kinds of stores that sell things from Germany (trinkets and food) and the buildings are decorated like German buildings...it reminds me of the super duper fun European trip I took in 2001. I stayed in Germany and visited France and Switzerland and Italy (my favorite of all favorites!). It was awesome.
Anyway, Levenworth is a fun town and I'm glad we got to take the boys there. Christian's highlight was playing in a patch of snow with a couple other boys (it's fun to see him want to play with others all the sudden) and Miles loved the attention he got from Grandma and Grandpa. ;) He sure is a cute little stinker.

I'm glad we're taking advantage of the time we have being close (2 1/2 to 3 hours away) to his parents, especially since it looks like we'll be moving to Pennsylvania for medical school...possibly at the end of may. Yipes! I sure love traveling around, but it's not quite so fun with two little ones....But we will go and Christian will probably start wetting himself again and Miles will wake up in the night because of the huge change and we will all just plain love it! :)

Park Time!

2010-01-12T12:39:00.004-07:00

Saturday was a pretty nice day, so we went to a park by our house. It was a nice park! Christian made some new friends and we enjoyed playing with the boys.

It was such a gay ole' time we shared a smooch! :D

See how smiley everyone is? :D

Miles was crawling down things instead of up them, like I tried to help him do. HA! Such cute babies...thank goodness for parks! (Kids need at least an hour of active play a day, I need to be better at giving it to them!!!) :D :D :D

Of HAIR & Money

2010-01-08T10:11:00.007-07:00

I got a new haircut yesterday. YEAH! I was long overdue. :)~ I went to a salon that charges $50/haircut, but they offered me a 50% discount b/c I was a first time customer...I didn't mention that I'd probably be a one time customer, too. :)~ I'd go there again if we had that kind of money! I like $30 haircuts...they're affordable and much, much better than $15 haircuts you get at Fantastic Sams or Klassy Kuts. I've found out many a painful time that, with haircuts, you almost always get what you pay for.
I've been trying to have an art project/craft of the day for Christian. Yesterday he painted with water colors and today he made a candy necklace. He loved it (especially eating the necklace)! He's such a crafty guy...and I've always wanted to do some preschool with him here at home. I have a pre-k workbook we do, which he loves, but we left all his crayons, markers, paints, etc. in Georgia. Dote! I'm taking them to the dollar store today to stock up on some more so we have some fun things to do at home...I figure if I engage him, he won't engage himself...in other words, he won't get into so much mischief! :D
I think I'm obsessed with putting my boys in boxes...ha! I think it's so cute when they fit! :D Miles just sat and ate his snack in the Costco-sized cereal box and I had to laugh and take a picture!! :D HA!

Happy New Year!!

2010-01-01T16:39:00.009-07:00

These are the presents we scored at Christmas. :D Sweeeeet! :D

The craziness while everyone unwrapped their gifts. :D Issaquah, WA.
Miles reached a milestone last month...he turned one on the 19th and I could hardly believe it. :S It hasn't been that the time sped by, oddly enough, I just thought he'd never actually be one!...don't ask me why. ;) On his birthday our friends, the McCally's from Texas, came to have some cake and ice cream with us and our kids played and we chatted. It was a fun time! We were glad they just happened to be visiting family nearby. ;) The day after we got together wtih Alan's uncle Stu and aunt Donna. Miles and Stu share a birthday (but he was busy on the their birthday) so Sunday they brought over dinner and we had cake and ice cream with them. :) They got Miles a fun toy but had to leave too soon! I really like spending time with them! :D
This holiday season has been fun and eventful. We spent Christmas with Alan's family here in Washington (I made rolls for the second time in my life for the ocassion...they turned out pretty darn good, if I do say so myself!). At Alan's aunt & uncle's Christmas Day we spread a lot more than holiday spirit, unfortunately. :) Alan's cousin brought home her husband's two nephews...CUTE boys, but one brought a stomach bug with him...Saturday we went to Wenatchee (WA) to spend the weekend with Alan's parents and bless Alan's brother's new baby, Dalin. :D Well, needless to say, only Alan's parents went to church Sunday b/c everyone else was sick. Well, I wasn't, but Alan and the boys were and I didn't want to leave Alan to take care of Christian and Miles alone...regardless, Christian had a blast playing with his cousins, Joanna & Jaqueline! :D
I thought I was going to be lucky enough to avoid both the stomach bug and the nasty cold Miles has had...BUT (a big butt) Monday on our drive home both hit me so forcefully I just wanted to curl up and die...When we got home around noon I slept the rest of the night until 8 am the next day. I needed it!! Sweet Alan took care of everything for me while I rested. :D

By Wednesday I was ready to start eating again, though I had a hard time with liquids and my pee ended up brown. (TMI, I know, TMI.) HA! Just so you know, if that happens it's a BAD thing...very BAD. ;)
I've been reading "Memoirs of a Geisha" and my goodness!! I just keep marveling at what the geisha had to go through! If you haven't read it or seen the movie, it's something you must do before you die (I'd recommend at least the book so you can understand the customs better)...if for no other reason than to learn a bit about Japanese geisha culture. It's always good to learn! :)

I LOVE this picture of my hot husband and our precious 3 yr old. :D Christian sure loves his daddy!

Gingerbread House

2009-12-16T08:47:00.007-07:00

I made my first gingerbread house on Monday night. I remember my older sister(s?) making one when I was younger using graham crackers and homemade frosting, but I was too young...SO, the other day we bought a kit from Costco. It had everything you could ever need and then some...a HUGE tube of white frosting and a small tube of green, cookies for the house and a gingerbread Christmas tree and two gingerbread men and tons and tons of candy to decorate with. FUN!
So our friends, Amy, Scott, and Oliver, came over and they brought their own Costco gingerbread kit and it was so fun! :D Their gingerbread house, I'm sorry to say, didn't make it...but I think Oliver will have a wonderful time devouring the wreckage! :D
So we bought some deer antlers to take a picture of the boys for the holidays...this pic of Christian with Alan is the only time I've been able to get Christian to wear them...is he already becoming aware of what is cool vs what is totally humiliating? hhmmmm... ;)~

I love the Temple! :D

2009-12-06T12:22:00.006-07:00

So Alan is currently at his interview at UW Medical School. AAHHHH!! I'm anxious to know how it's going!! :D Mainly, I'm anxious to know how it'll end up!, but we won't know that for a long while. :)
Yesterday a couple from our church watched our boys (they have a girl and a boy around the same age as our own) while Alan and I went to the Temple. It had been soooo long since we had gone it was like taking a breath of fresh air!! I'm so grateful for Temples...they're so peaceful and serene! And it was soooo nice to get out alone. Marcy, who watched our boys, wants to start a babysitting co-op, and I'm all for it! She's going to try and recruit a couple more couples...So we'd get to go out 3 Friday nights a month and have one Friday night of craziness watching everyone else's kids. It's a prayer answered!!!! Alan and I hardly ever go out together, but we really need to! :D Marcy seems super nice! I'm excited to get to know her (among others) better! :)
I just love my boys, even though they can drive me crazy sometimes. :S :) We have a large window in the front room and they love to sit and watch sometimes. I love to, also. We have a squirrel living in the trees outside our place and it walks around like it owns the place. HA! There are also so many birds around here!! They settle on the neighbors' lawns and eat, eat, eat. :) It's so nice and quiet here, I love it. I could never go back to an apartment!!...I wouldn't go quietly, anyway. ;)
I had to attach this picture of Christian wearing my shoes. HA! :D Standing in my heals right before peeing while standing up...There's just something so "Mrs Doubfire" about it. HA! :D He cracks me up! What can I say, I love the kid. ;)

Of Dating and Marriage

2009-11-30T11:30:00.012-07:00

So Saturday night Alan's aunt and uncle came over and we had dinner then they stayed and watched the boys while we went and saw "New Moon". It was sooo nice to be able to go out together without the boys!! I can probably count on one hand (may spill over to both) how many times we've been out alone since Christian was born over three years ago. But it's so important to connect and do things outside the home together!! Relationships need constant nuturing...
So now we're in Seattle area, WA (Renton to be exact). Alan got a job here so now we're saving up to furnish the cute town home we're renting. ;) At least we finally have a bed! And a king size one to boot. ;) I love it! There's room for the boys to play in between us while we snooze during those early morning hours. ;)
Now we're saving for leather couches and a dining room table and a few other odds and ends. Alan is working as a technician for a pest control company. They pay their technicians really well! They get a guaranteed base salary each month, but can work extra and make extra money...it's nice!! :D
I like the area, although it's dark 15 hours of the day! HA! It doesn't bother me, though...and the sun hardly comes out. The overcast skies are slightly annoying, but it doesn't bother me as much as I thought it would. :) Maybe it will in time...
I just got extended a calling to be in the primary presidency...one calling I've never done yet. :) I'm excited! Especially since the president is a super nice and bubbly girl!! :D She's starting a "Mom's hangout" once a week with the Mom's in the ward. I'm excited!! I was going to start something similar, so I'll help her get it going. :) There're some awesome women in the area I'm excited to get to know!! :)
Alan has an interview with UW medical school on Sunday. We're hoping he gets in so we can stay in this place. The area is so cute and our landlords are the bomb!! :) I'm LOVING being in a neighborhood!! Apartment community life sucks, plain and simple, and here we have an older couple next to us (it's a townhouse/duplex) who are quiet and leave on the weekends. Nice! :D Plus, there's a yard that Christian likes to play in!! :D And there's something liberating about being in charge of putting garbage cans outside on garbage day. :)~
It's been nice living so close to Alan's aunt and uncle. They're so sweet and have lent us a bunch of stuff until we can afford to buy our own...And his parents live only 2 1/2 hours from us so we'll be able to see them more often, which is nice. :) Alan has an amazing family. :D
We had Thanksgiving dinner at Alan's aunt and uncle's house the Wednesday before. Alan's parents met us there and we had a wonderful meal!! :D Good food and good company...couldn't ask for anything more.
Thanksgiving day we had dinner with Alan's friend growing up, Kiel, and his mother and sister and her family. I have met Kiel several times and think he's such a great guy! (Let all the single girls know in the Seattle area!!) :D It was a fun time and everything was made from scratch and tasted wonderful!! :D
The day after Thanksgiving we went to downtown Seattle and watched the Macy's Holiday Parade. It was good times!! We got a lot of candy and Christian got a balloon from a large, scary-looking clown! We got to pet dogs (real ones) and afterward we walked around the mall and ate lunch. It was a fun day! :D
It's been good times here in WA and we've been blessed with great family and good friends...and I look forward to making more friends. :D
We had a lot of fun visiting my family. :) I have really missed them a lot and it was good to see them! I had fun with Jennifer, my sister just older than me. She treated me to a pedicure (thanks Jenn)! :) I love being around her because not only is she fun, but she reminds me that I don't need to take life so seriously!
Alan was pretty popular with the girls. HA! :)~
I hope we can see them soon!!

YEAH!!! I love the holday season!!! :D

2009-11-02T12:54:00.011-07:00

So we said GOODBYE to Georgia at the end of September and, on our way to California to visit my family, we stopped in Dallas, TX and Mesa, AZ to visit Alan's sisters. First we saw Alan's younger sister, Stephanie, in Dallas TX. She has two beautiful boys and a sweet & loving man! :D We went to the Texas State Fair and had a blast! We took a picture in front of a nice looking train and I got a 10 min massage and we had alligator (yes, alligator) and fried butter (yes, fried butter) and saw tons of animals. It really was a fun time!! :D

It took us two days to reach Mesa, AZ with the two little ones, but spent almost a week with Alan's older sister, Kristina, and her family. They lived in Provo area with us until 2007 so we used to always hang out. We have missed them!!! We mostly hung out at home with them while the kids ran around in their backyard (a novelty for us), but one day we went to a park and walked around the lake. Then the kids played on the playground and had a blast. Christian and his cousin, Ethan, were stuck like glue to each other the whole time we were there...it was VERY precious. :D

Our mutual friends, the McCally's, stayed 2 nights while we were there and it was good to see them and their two beautiful children, too! :D One day they all decided to roll around in the dirt pile in Kristina's backyard. It was hilarious! HA! We had a very fun time...it was hard to leave!

The night before we left we went to see my mission president and his family...Only he and his wife and youngest daughter are at home now. It was so good to see them and get an update on all my fellow ex-missionaries! Miles LOVED playing with President Calton...He knows he's his third grandpa. :D

We're at my parents' house in Modest, CA right now. We went to a pumpkin patch that had a large area with pumpkins, a big pond with huge fish, a playground, and an area with animals like ostriches and horses and pigs. :) It was fun!! Alan left soon thereafter to go to Provo to finish some research he didn't get done during the school year. I'm so glad he graduated in April!! Now we're in limbo between graduation and trying to get into medical school in 2010...we're currently waiting to see if someone wants to interview him! In the meantime we're going to move up to Washington (this week) and Alan will get a job. Summer sales wasn't too great for us... :S

The week before Halloween our church put on a Trunk or Treat. Christian was a fireman and Miles a (VERY CUTE) teddy bear. My sister and her family were here visiting from Reno so we all went together. It was fun!! Christian got a lot of candy (respectively), but I accidentally sent it home with my sister. HA! Oh well, he got plenty more on Halloween. :D

We have had a lot of fun at my parents'. :D Christian is buds with his silly cousin Maren. She CRACKS me up! HA!! A character and a half, and she plays so well with my little man. He's going to miss her when we leave this week. :( I am REALLY, REALLY going to miss my family! :(

The other day Christian was playing out back and a springy thingy flicked him hard and made a deep hole in his cheek. I yelled, "Jennifer! Jennifer!"...I'm so glad she was there!! :) She went with me to the urgent care and helped take care of Miles while Christian got stitches. It would've been so much worse without her! :) I feel bad for my poor little man, but he has been soooo brave, even at the doctor's! He cried for a while after it happened, but then at the doctor's and since he hasn't cried at all! I'm so proud of him. :) I hate it, but I figure it has to happen to every parent, right? Well he is just so proud of his "itches". HA! :) He always makes me smile. :D

Christian's 3!!!!

2009-09-15T12:56:00.004-06:00

Christian just had a birthday a week ago, Sept 8. I can't believe he's three years old, already! We took him to a hibachi place for lunch and he FREAKED out when the chef made the flames flair up. HA! He cried and said, "I need to go potty!" over and over and tried to jump out of his chair. It was pretty funny. HA! The food was SOOOOO good, though, and afterward they gave Christian a balloon and a plate with 3 pieces of cake and 3 scoops of ice cream. So sweet!! (And yummy!) :)~ We've been to the restaurant before and the food is SO good and the prices are reasonable! :) That's one reason I'll be sad to leave in a month. ;)
Then Saturday we had some kids over from his nursery class at church. We filled Christian and Miles' room with 100 balloons and they had the funnest time playing in there! I had planned a couple activities but they had so much fun with the balloons I didn't even bother. HA! We had yummy Costco take-n-bake pizza and a YUMMY cake I made (if I do say so myself)...it was my first attempt at a double layered cake. I put pudding in the middle and made a whipped cream frosting...then I tried decorating it like a baseball. You could tell it was a baseball, but it was lopsided! :)~ Well, it was my first time ever decorating a cake with frosting! :D So it was a fun experience and a fun time. His nursery teachers came, too, and they are a riot! He got some cool toys and LOVED having friends over. I need to have more play dates! ;)
Today we went to the animal shelter (as we tend to do a few times a month) and found the dog of our dreams...well, besides the fact that it's a MALE dog. I don't like male dogs for one unsaid reason, but he's so small it might not be so bad. HA! He's a chihuahua mix and has cool dark brown coloring and has a precious personality! He's not yappy (well, from what we've seen) and he was so cute cuddling up to us. We like him a lot and when we left we went straight to Pet Spart to see how much doggy stuff is. It's not cheap! ;)
We're still on the potty training train with Christian. ;) Some days he'll do great and the next day he'll have 2 accidents. He pees during his naps a lot and sometimes at night. He's dry in the morning if I've been really good and keeping liquids away from him a couple hours before bedtime, but mostly I forget. He's like me...he only thirsty at night! But I've been trying to give him more liquids during the day. He's such a big boy (41 inches, 37 lbs) and loves to mimic. He also LOVES soccer practice and playing baseball outside. Indoors he plays with his many hotwheels and other toy vehicles. He's obsessed with anything that has wheels!
Miles is rolling and scooting all over the place! We still forget that we need to have things picked up now, though he's been at it for a couple weeks. I can tell he LOVES his new freedom! He also loves to make us laugh. His most recent trick is to stick his little tongue all the way out right before giving us a kiss. It always makes us laugh so he keeps doing it, although it's pretty nasty to be licked all the time. HA! Silly baby. He always makes us smile and we love having him around.
He and Christian LOVE to play with each other and I can tell Miles goes crazy wishing he could run around with big brother. Soon enough he will! :)

Sept 4-6 we took a trip to Savannah, GA. It was a 4 1/2 hour drive that took us 6 hours. ;) The boys are such good travelers! We saw some of downtown Savannah and browsed the shops along the river. Saturday we went on a dolphin tour and saw tons of dolphins!! It was so cool!! Then we hung out at the beach. Sunday we went to church in Savannah and headed home. :) Friday and Saturday nights we had yummy bbque (at Sticky Fingers, YUM!). It was a fun time to celebrate our fifth anniversary, although we decided next year we'd do something alone! :) HA! Savannah was fun, but not as great as it's hyped up to be...That's our opinion, at least! ;D But is a fun memory we'll always cherish. ;)

Rock Band

2009-08-19T16:29:00.006-06:00

So Alan always wants some new electronic toy and I am usually pretty resilient. We have to eat, after all! :) But sometimes, just sometimes (well, almost always, actually) he wears me down and gets his way...such is the case with Rock Band for the Wii (and the Wii itself!)...he's been looking at it--hinting he wants it and I was like, "Riiiiiight, when pigs fly."--and recently he found it for $99 at Best Buy. Well, after a 10% discount it was $89 so I guess pigs flew because I gave in. :)
It's all Christian asks to do and it became a little annoying, especially since he wants to switch instruments in the middle of each song. BUT, Alan and I played it together, alone, for the first time last night and it was sooooo fun! :) I like the drums and guitar...not such a fan of the singing part, but I do the best at it. :)
Another exciting thing is that I'm going to stay with my parents in Modesto for November and part of December. I'm excited! :) The lease for our apartment here in Cumming, GA is up October 15 and we'll head straight to Dallas, TX to see Stephanie, Alan's younger sister. She had a baby boy in November last year and we're excited to meet him!
After a couple days there we'll head over to Waurika, OK to see Alan's Grandpa & Grandpa Hendricks. They're the cutest! And it's fun to see them b/c my grandparents passed away many years ago.
Afterward we'll make our way to see Alan's older sister, Kristina, and her family. We're excited to meet their new dog and see all of them. We used to see each other a lot when we all lived in Provo and miss hanging out with them! :)
Christian continues potty training...I wonder if he'll ever catch on. He'll go if I constantly remind him and run to the toilet with him, but I wonder how long it's supposed to take before he feels the need and goes to use the toilet by himself. It's been a month, shouldn't he be doing it already? :) Well, I hear it can take up to 3 months so I'm not too worried, just impatient. Impatient is my middle name. :)
Today we signed Christian up for T-Ball and Soccer. SO cute!! I can't believe he's big enough, already!!!!! :( Kind of makes me sad, but the faster he grows the sooner he'll be able to get a job and move out, right? HA!!! :)~ Anyway, I can't wait to watch him running around without a clue what he's doing. HA! I'm going to take so many pictures! The boys continue to love each other and enjoy playing with one another! It's so cute!...and I hope it sticks! :)

Happy August!!

2009-08-01T10:16:00.011-06:00

Alas July is already over and August flashes its smile at us. Too bad fire also shoot out of its eyeballs and burns us all to smithereens!! :) hehehe...It actually hasn't been too hot here at all, I'm surprised! But I know it is everywhere else. ;) Sorry! I'm sure it'll get more miserable soon. :) (At least I hear it's pretty miserable here in August.)
We've been well here in Cumming, GA. Christian has been enhancing his photo-taking skills. He took the picture of Miles and I...such a cutie! :) He's been potty training himself so well and we're so proud of him! There are accidents, of course, but I TRY not to get angry...it's always when I KNOW he has to go and I keep asking him and he keeps saying he doesn't have to...then I'm finally like, "Come on, let's sit ont he potty" and he follows and stops to pee on the way. HELLO?! It's hard not to get mad in that situation...but I'm trying to be more patient. :)
Last week we went to Lowe's Build and Grow...I guess every month they have a clinic for children where they build something and take it home, along with an apron and goggles. July's "something" was a helicoptor! It is actually really cool! :) We had a fun time building it together, although Christian peed right on the floor in the middle of it all. GOOD THING I was prepared, but it was one of those times I had asked him five times in a ten minute span and he kept saying he didn't needto go....well apparently he did. ;) Well, I know this too shall pass! I just love that I don't have to change his diaper anymore! I didn't even realize how much of a pain it was until now! :)
Miles is such a little bundle of love and happiness and I constantly want to hug and squeeze and kiss him...unfortunately he only wants so much of that and the rest of the time he wants to play. What's up with that?! :)~ He sits up perfectly and is on the verge of crawling...I'm not in any hurry! I don't want to have to babyproof while we're here! :) He LOOOOVES big brother! It's cute how he just loves to watch him and laughs at everything he does....soooo precious! Christian also loves to play with him, so it's nice! Miles also loves to make everyone laugh. He knows what makes us laugh and he does it, smiles at us as we laugh at him, and turns around and does it again. Such a ham!!! We love him so much!
The other day I had a flashback of an art project I had done in elementary school...we had collected leaves and such from the outside and we glued them on a piece of paper...then, with teacher's help :), we ironed wax paper on top...I had also done another project where we did rubbins of leaves and such...so really, I'm not sure if we ironed the wax paper over the leaves or the rubbings, but I thought we'd do both...so I took Christian in a fieldtrip around the area and we collected pretty leaves and returned and glued them on paper. It was a fun time! I have been blessed with a creative streak and I don't use it with my 2 year old for some reason! SHAME on me! >:l One day I vow to sit down and write down activities that we can do together to help him learn and just plain have fun! Anyway, this activity was a fun one about nature. :) I couldn't find my iron to iron on the waxed paper, but I'll probalby keep them so I can try it out and see how it goes! (Note: if you try this at home and want to iron on waxed paper, put paper towels between the iron and wax paper so you don't ruin your iron!) ;)
BE CREATIVE! HAVE FUN! DON'T TAKE LIFE TOO SERIOUSLY!!!~~~~Tam n fam~~~~

Take me out to the ball game! . . .

2009-07-19T15:26:00.004-06:00

Yesterday we went to a Braves game. The Mets kicked their ba-tooties, but it was still a very fun time! We went with all the guys we work with and some of their friends. We had cotton candy and a hot dog and drink...it's funny because neither of our parents bought things at faires or ball parks or really anywhere. It's kind of liberating to do so within a modest budget. It's just something you have to do sometimes! Anyway, it was a blast. Afterward All American Rejects had a concert on the field and that was the perfect end to a great day. The lead singer was a bit odd, but the music was good enough to override that. :)~ Christian was soooo tired at the end of the day (no nap and going to bed late on top of going to bed late the night before), but he had a great time. Pics attached. One is of Miles spitting in Alan's face. It was pretty darn funny! :)~
We're staying busy around here. I'm still working and Alan is done with the MCAT so he's around a few more hours each day. :) It's so nice!
Christian has been going to the potty a lot these past few days. I decided to buy him suckers as treats because he LOVES them. It worked! I think he's really beginning to sense the "have to go" feeling. I'm so excited! I have a sticker chart up and everything. :)
Miles constantly dives forward to grab things. It's kind of funny unless he's in front of something hard. :) He constantly squeals and gabs on. :D He's also soooo grabby. His precious little hands are everywhere! :D
I just love my boys, all three of them. I am so grateful for family. Friends come and go, but family is forever. :)

Ode to July!

2009-07-12T13:34:00.008-06:00

I love the month of July! I love the fourth with fireworks and friends. Three days afterward comes a day I can either love or dread: my birthday! :)~ This year it was a great birthday. :) I love the ice cream and swimming-time fun and coming from the heat to a cool, air conditioned home. Endless watermelon and chicken and potatoe salad and sprinklers and slip-n-slides. There's so much to like about July!
I do dislike that the weather gets even hotter. BLAH!...I guess that's the only con! But it's a pretty big one, especially around here. I am grateful that it's cooler and less miserable than Texas was the 2 summers we were there, though! And I'm grateful for the nice pool our apartment complex has. :)~ And the gym, which I have started frequenting again this past week! I stopped for a month b/c Alan was leaving early each morning to study for the MCAT, which he took btw. :) He says it was hard and feels a little nervous about his score...I'm sure he did just fine. :) We won't find out for another month or so. :S Drive ME crazy!
I've attached some of our summer fun pictures. Christian has a chocolate ice cream mustache in one of them. :)~ Silly kid. He is like his mommy where he LOOOVES his ice cream. HA!
My birthday was on the 7th and Alan got me a yummy, yummy, yummy Oreo cream pie and a silly card and that night he took me to dinner. It was so sweet of him! I'm impressed he actually acknowledged it this year. hehehe...It made me happy. My present will be shopping for an hour or two by myself with a budget. :) I'm excited for that! I'll probably go Monday morning.
We now have five guys selling here for the summer. I'm doing the office work for the sales team and it can be pretty stressful at times, though I am doing it at home. The worst part is I'm being paid hardly anything to do it. I'm trying to fix it so we'll see if I can work something out. :) It's nice that Alan's done with his MCAT, though, so we have him around in the mornings! For now, at least. I'll enjoy his company while I can. Christian LOVES playing with his daddy! Last night Alan got him a hotwheels motorized track and some more Hot Wheels...Alan said it was for Christian, at least, but I'm not so sure. He sure has a LOT of fun playing with it. HA!
All is well here in Cumming, GA. Just hot, humid and busy!

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!!

2009-07-04T14:02:00.008-06:00

I've been busy with the boys...They have a playground a couple blocks from us that Christian likes to go to. The other day we went and he was getting stuck on the slide. I taught him to scoot forward. It was funny! I had to include a video of it. ;)~
We also built a tent in their room. Christian and Miles both LOVED it. We made the sheet move and Miles and Christian would laugh and laugh. HA! I realized I don't do enough fun things with them! So, I've made a goal to do things to make Christian laugh every day. It's not like it takes much! I just have to use a little imagination!
They both sure keep me on my toes, but I love every minute of it. Even the bad times. I just love them sooooooo much!!!

We had a very fun evening last night. Apparently in this area they have city fire works on July 3rd...It's almost as if the holiday is seen as so sacred they feel that nobody should work on the 4th, not even the fire works setter-offers. :) We went to the fairgrounds in downtown Cumming and had yummy kettle korn and homemade ice cream and lemonade...Christian crawled through a tunnel of one of the many blow-up toys they had there and we looked at the many fun things the vendors were selling. We also had I.D. cards made for the boys with their fingerprints and everything. (The thought of needing them made my heart hurt!) Afterward we hung out on our blanket and chatted with friends we had met up with and at 9:30 p.m. we watched the city fire works. It was an all right show, though I've seen better. :) Christian was so tired he kept asking to go home and go to bed. HA! I was laughing...but he liked the fireworks and kept calling them big flowers and fell fast asleep at 10:30 p.m. when we finally got home. :)
This morning we went to a breakfast put on by our church. It was fun! There was lots of good food and everyone is so nice and fun to talk to! They had a slip 'n slide and cotton candy and pop corn and other fun games, though we missed out on that...We had to leave early so Alan could work. Alan bought a bunch of fire works for us to set off tonight and right now we're going to the pool. Yeah! I gotta go get greased up. HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!!!

Storm to end all storms

2009-06-22T19:33:00.004-06:00

Today there was a CRAZY storm! The thunder cracked so loudly outside my window it actually startled me! :) The wind blew so strongly I thought the tree outside my window was going to touch the ground it bent over so much and the rain fell so hard...like someone was pouring buckets of water on the ground. It was, like I said, CRAZY. :) I got some video on my camcorder. It was seriously cool, I liked it...But the thunder woke Christian up from his nap, so I didn't like that. :D
But the heavy rainfall reminded me of Cochabamba, Bolivia. When we'd be up on the mountain we could look over and SEE the storm coming. The rain was so heavy it looked like a sheet attached to the cloud...coming straight toward us. It was cool! Cochabamba's sky was so pretty!
Anyway, it was pretty exciting. Visions of Cumming, GA being on the news...hit by Hurricane Lamoni or Lucy or whatever. I guess that much damage would be bad. There's a lot of leaves and stuff on the ground as it is...I feel really bad for the landscapers because for decoration here they make a big pile of dead pine needles around all the tree trunks (sounds odd, but it actually looks pretty cool)...There are a lot of decorative trees...Poor guys. :)
Anyway, thought I'd share.
I've attached a picture of Miles trying to catch the rays of light that danced on the wall beside his changing table. SO PRECIOUS. :)

I'm such a Georgia peach! :)

2009-06-19T12:35:00.012-06:00

Wow, I've let three months slip by, though they were crazy-busy.
Alan graduated from BYU-Provo (pictures attached) and last month we drove cross-country to Cumming (just north of Altlanta), Georgia. Alan is selling pest control (as a team leader) and I am working from home as the Sales Office Manager. As if I'm not busy enough. Oh, well...A little extra stress couldn't kill me, right? Oh, wait. Yes it could! HA!

This area of Georgia is so beautiful. Everywhere you go you're surrounded by trees. The only downside of that is the extra bugs and beautiful birdy trills outside our window at 5:45 a.m. :) Se la vi. It is warm and humid but definitely not unbearable. I took the boys swimming this morning at 10 a.m. and it was perfect! :) The people are incredibly nice. They wave and smile and say, "Hi!" or, "Good morning!" instead of straining to look away, pretending they're looking at something else like us westerners. :)~ Overall I like it a lot! I like calling myself a "Georgia Peach". It's just so funny to me for some reason (I'm odd, I guess). However, though I do love my summer abode, I really miss my friends I've left behind....And, as always, I miss my family. :S

For Mother's Day Alan got me a Kitchen Aide mixer. I've been having a lot of fun with it! My sister, Francine, got me a cookbook called, "The Food Nanny Rescues Dinner" and I've been having a lot of fun with that, too. :) I've been making homemade rolls and spaghetti from scratch and yummy desserts. Baking and cooking are so much fun! :)~

The boys are so much fun. Christian loves learning new things all the time I just can't keep up with him. Miles is sitting up fairly well and has fun practicing rolling over. He's six months today and I am so sad; he's growing up so fast! His slobbery, open-mouth kisses just melt my heart...And grosses me out a little bit, but I wouldn't change it for anything. :)~

He and Christian adore each other. They constantly share hugs and kisses and make each other laugh. It's so stinkin' cute! :)
Christian got his first bike in April, though we didn't have room to bring it with us this summer so it's stored at my aunt's house in Orem, UT. What a jip, eh? We'll pick it back up after the summer. He loved it!

I've attached some random pictures from Easter. It was Miles' first, so I had to put the bunny ears on him. HA! He looked so cute. And Christian was overjoyed to have a basket full of candy waiting for him on the coffee table. :)
Next year, when Christian understands better, we'll focus more on the real reason for Easter: The Resurrection. We may have watched a video this year...I don't remember because life has been hectic, but I am grateful for the resurrection! We all should be!

A week or so before we moved here I was able to drive with the boys out to Modesto for a few days. It was nice to see the family! I really wished we lived closer. Maybe one day. :)

I couldn't see any friends except my friend, Amy, who came to see me. It was good to see her and her three kids!

I hope we can make it again soon and stay long enough to reconnect with everyone! :)

Christian absolutely LOVED to be around his cousins. He didn't want to leave, not even to see Daddy. :) He is so social and I know he can't wait until Miles is big enough to really play with him. (I've attached a picture of him playing with his friends at the park in Provo. He could be outside all day, every day. :D)
Miles liked the trip, also. He sure got a lot of loving attention from his aunts and cousins and grandparents. :)

We love and miss everybody, being on the other side of the country as we are. Especially my Provo friends...I'm sad we won't be returning. But everyone is always in our thoughts and prayers!

Loves and cuddles...Peace out! :)