Sunny Expressions

It's Recipe Time!

2011-12-27T13:13:00.000-08:00

I know I haven't written in a long time, but now that January is almost here, hopefully I can get caught up :)

Here are some of my favorite recipes, if you are in the cooking mood.

Savory Breakfast Casserole
By Sunny Moore

1lb sausage, cooked
sliced bread
1pkg taco seasoning
6 eggs
2 c milk
salt to taste
½ tsp dry mustard
1 c shredded cheddar cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. In blender mix eggs, taco seasoning, milk, salt and mustard.
3. Lay bread in sprayed 9x13 casserole dish. Layer sausage, cheese, then egg mixture.
4. Bake 350 for 40 min.

This can be prepared ahead of time and stored in the fridge. Bake the next morning.

Monkey Bread
We have this instead of Cinnimon rolls for Christmas morning. They are delicious and EASY. Although Cinnamon rolls are nice once in a while. However, one year we made cinnamon rolls and as Santa was handing out the gifts, the cinnamon rolls began to burn in the oven causing the smoke alarm to go off in the middle of the night! Surprisingly no one woke up.

We have also done different versions of this due to needs at the time. This year, we couldn't get our hands on butterscotch pudding, so we used vanilla. We've also substituted instant and it turned out fine. This can be made with or without nuts and I think raisins would be divine! Use your imagination!

MONKEY BREAD - BEST EVER

24 Frozen Rhodes Rolls (dinner rolls)

1 cup brown sugar

1 box butterscotch cook & serve dry pudding mix not instant

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1 stick butter, (not margarine)

pecans or walnuts, chopped, optional

Right before going to bed, or 10 pm, sprinkle pecans or walnuts into a greased Bunt pan, (I use Pam cooking spray), then put 24 frozen Rhodes Rolls into pan. Mix brown sugar and dry pudding mix together and sprinkle over frozen rolls. Mix sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle on top of that.

Melt butter and slowly pour over rolls in Bunt pan, trying to cover all of the sugar. Leave on counter overnight and when you get up, the rolls should have risen nicely and you will put Bunt pan on a cookie sheet in a preheated 350̊F oven and bake for 30 minutes.

Remove from oven and pour rolls upside down onto a large platter. Serve warm.

These are extremely easy to make and very delicious. And your house will smell wonderful... These are a family favorite.

I Conquered the Candy Bar Game

2011-10-11T21:57:00.000-07:00

Today in mutual my Beehives were in charge of the group activity. They chose to play the Candy Bar Game.

I was the designated candy purchaser. I had a lot of fun today in Winco's candy bin aisle. I scooped up mini Twix bars, and bubble gum, and chocolate eyeballs, and a great assortment of other delectible treats weighing in at SEVEN POUNDS! I bought two enormous toffee Symphony bars just to make the game more interesting (it worked ;)

At the church, I dumped the entire contents into the middle of the gym floor, and the game began. The kids were going crazy! They passed the candy back and forth and filled and dumped their bags and fought over those Symphony bars like they were the last morsels of chocolate on the planet.

I watched.

I played.

I did not partake.

I feel a little cranky.

I'm sure tomorrow I will feel elated that I conquered the game by conquering my desire to eat all of that candy!

The end.

Baked With LOVE

2011-06-30T22:33:00.000-07:00

Baked With LOVE

2011-06-30T22:05:00.000-07:00

The other day I was talking with the Buska's about cooking and baking. They love to bake. They love to eat. I love to bake. I love to eat--which is why I've been on a health kick (ie diet) for the past year.

Ken told me that he doesn't like Sarah's food when she cooks in anger. "When she doesn't put love into it," he says while looking sideways, smiling at her, "it tastes really bad."

Then he motions Sarah asking if they can have pizza for dinner and Ken tells her "No."

"FINE!" Ken mimics Sarah as he starts flinging his hands as though he is throwing random items into a bowl. "I'll cook dinner then!" He continues filling the bowl with imaginary fowl tasting items.

We all had a good chuckle about that.

I took a big risk and asked Ken how he liked my cooking.

"Oh, you're an excellent cook!" Gratefully, he tells me.

I'm not bad, but I have had my moments of "cooking without love."

Well, today was just one of those days.

At the end of my kid's soccer game, the coach's husband came up and asked a fellow soccer mom if I were her MOTHER!!!

I wanted to scream "I AM IF I GAVE BIRTH AT AGE SEVEN!!!"

The sad part is that I had just gone home at halftime and coiffed and sprayed and smoothed my hair. Wow. Must be time for a make over.

When I got home, I stood in front of my husband, who was watching a movie. I was waiting until he looked at my face and noticed the sad look on it. I was expecting him to open his arms and ask sweetly what was the matter. Instead, he looked at me, got a very guilty look on his face, and turned around and ran to the bedroom to change into some yard work clothes. I have no idea why he did this, but I had to chase him down and TELL HIM with WORDS that I was sad because someone said I looked like my friend's mother.

He felt bad for me, but not as bad as I felt for me.

"My ego can't take things like this." I moaned to him while scrutinizing my slumping shoulders and creased forehead in the bathroom mirror. He shook his head and hurried outside to take down the tent in the backyard that the kids have been killing the grass--uh, I mean, camping in all week long.

Later, James and the girls were watching Beastly. I couldn't bear to watch with them--the irony of it all!

So . . . I decided to bake.

In anger.

And in depression.

I thought of things I could do to that rude man and his manly parts with my serrated blade as I washed and dried it and put it away.

Then, I baked.

I baked Cherry Almond Bars and Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (because they are my favorites), and a grand finale Cherry Pie with a homemade tender, flaky crust.

I thought about what Ken said earlier about baking with love and how extraordinary these items would be . . . if only I would bake them with love.

And as I cracked and measured and mixed and baked, I thought about things. I thought about who would enjoy some of these moist, chewy cookies. Who would be cheered by the cherry almond bars? Who needs a pick-me-up by a piece of pretty pie?

I thought of my good friend, Lisa and all the hardships she has endured lately; her son-in-law losing the battle with cancer and leaving her daughter and young grand baby all alone. Then last week, her sister died in childbirth. I thought of my other friend (who is old enough to be my mother), who loves to bake and wears herself out once a month teaching and feeding the women in church gourmet foods. I thought of my friends who traveled from VA to visit their daughters, leaving their business which isn't doing very well right now.

And I realized something.

I was no longer thinking of the man at the game and his hurtful words.

I wasn't baking with anger and depression any longer.

I was baking with love!

(By the way, that guy at the game, he could probably use something that was baked with love)

What have YOU baked with love lately?

Perfect Pie Crust

By Me (and Betty Crocker)

Two-Crust Pie

8-or 9- Inch

2/3 c plus 2 Tbsp shortening

2 c flour

1 tsp salt

4 to 5 Tbsp cold water (or 1/4 c)

Cut shortening into flour and salt until particles are size of small peas with a pastry blender. Sprinkle in water 1 Tbsp at a time, tossing with fingers until all flour is moistened and pastry almost cleans side of bowl (1-2 tsp of water can be added if necessary).

Gather Pastry into a ball: shape into flattened round on lightly floured board (for 2 crust pie, divide pastry in half). Roll it thin. Fold into fourths and unfold and ease into pie plate. Press firmly against bottom and sides. Trim, fill, bake. For the Cheery Cherry Pie, I filled it with one can of pie filling and did a lattice work crust on top. Bake 425 for 15 min then turn it down and bake at 325 for 30-35 min.

Don’t forget to add a whole lot of LOVE!

*A note about pie crusts. I have heard that you’ve either got it, or ya don’t. Well, all you can do is try, right? If you’ve ever watched Martha Stuart, her pie dough is perfectly round. Well to achieve this, I add the max amount of water and knead it between my hands 4 or 5 times. Then it makes a perfect round ball, but the crust still turns out flaky. If you knead it too much, it will be tough. I use lots of flour on my counter and as I’m rolling, I roll the dough, then roll into the flour, then the dough again and so forth. That way the rolling pin won’t stick to the pie crust.

Good Luck and feel free to message me if you have any questions.

I Just Died of Embarrassment

2011-05-28T23:58:00.000-07:00

It all happened at the end of a beautiful day. The day my older brother got married. Earlier Today.

When I was young, my brother had a best friend. He was *the* hottest guy in the high school, and whenever he came over to my house, I would hide in my bedroom because I would get tongue tied just looking at his blond hair and beautiful blue eyes and I would get dreadfully, red facedly--embarrassed.

That was over 25 years ago.

Apparently not much has changed.

I saw him first at the rehearsal dinner. Yup, still pretty cute. But I averted my eyes. After all, I am married to one HOT guy myself. I have no reason to look at him . . . and heaven forbid our eyes meet. Blushing isn't very attractive when you're a 40ish, married young woman.

I explained to my sisters how he was the cutest guy in the school and every girl drooled over him and that I would die if he knew that now.

The next day (today), there he was, not looking 5 minutes older than he did in high school, in a TUXEDO! I went about my business, decorating the cake and managing my son, the ring bearer. I avoided having to make conversation with him at all costs.

It was a beautiful ceremony and reception. I admit that I got teary eyed seeing my big old brother up there swooning at this little girl he was marrying. It was a thing of beauty seeing him so tender.

It was afterward during the clean-up when the event occurred.

Everyone was helping clean up the reception center. We were untying sheer black sashes that were tied to silky white chair covers. We would slip the chair covers up and off of the metal folding chairs. Swoosh, swoosh.

I looked up and saw my sister that is a decade and a half younger than me. She is beautiful even without makeup. Everyone says we look like twins.

I gave her a shining smile and a wink.

She smiled back and gave me a little shimmy.

I sent her a BIG shimmy right back (and we are not twins in the shimmy department), but as my shoulder went back for that first shim, my head slightly turned and I noticed in slow mo, that Mr. Hot was swooshing a silky white chair cover off a chair at my same table. He turned his head at that exact moment towards my "shimmy!"

His eyes (yes, still blue) got really big as he looked from me to my sister and asked, "What's this?"

I immediately apologized that he had to see that and felt every drop of blood in my body rush to my face. "It's just a sister thing." I lamely explained to him.

"It's no problem, no problem at all." He replied with a big grin on his face.

Later that night, he confronted my little sis and asked when he was going to get to see her shimmy.

She gave him the tiniest shimmy and ducked her head and ran away--Red Faced and Embarrassed!

Soy Sauce Suicide and Broccoli Chicken Casserole

2011-03-23T07:45:00.000-07:00

So, as a family (well, the half of the family that we could convince to join us) watched Ramona and Beezus last night.

I saw strange similarities between the sisters in the movie and my own girls. It was precious how they were constantly at each other's throats.

That Ramona is a real character. It was interesting the way her parents looked at each other and shook their heads and smiled when they saw that Ramona had squeezed an entire tube of toothpaste into the sink.

That Ramona is one lucky girl to have those parents.

The scene would have been a tad different here in our household! I know that because I actually have a Ramona in my family!!! We won't mention any names, but her name starts with an E, and from the moment she entered my womb, she has been a "Ramona," (I still have the misshapen ribcage to prove it).

After the movie, we all sat down to dinner. Even the truant family members were there.

On the menu: Rice. It was actually my beautiful Broccoli Casserole with rice, but my children like to have an enormous pile of plain rice. And then they like to dredge it with soy sauce until it resembles one of Idaho's giant Buttes that juts up out of the ground, hard and rocky with no vegetation.

And on this night of nights, Ramona--with an E--left the glass bottle of soy sauce too close to the edge of the table and while gesturing grandly with her arm, bumped it and sent it hurtling into space. It hit the hardwood floor with a black EXPLOSION.

I originally thought it was her cup of ice water . . . we've dealt with that kind of explosion before. In fact, we deal with that kind of explosion at our table nightly.

This was a much more sinister explosion. One in which all surrounding areas were splattered and sprayed with the dark, salty liquid and shattered glass.

There was a moment of disbelief that came before good sense took over.

I stared at what looked like a black hole on my floor while trying to decide the best method of cleaning up this kind of mess.

My white bathroom towels would be reduced to rags.

I looked toward the paper towel rod. I saw a brown tube with paper towel fragments randomly sticking to it. My mind searched for a solution as I tried to hold back the growing panic.

The stash of old, dark-green towels!. We grabbed a few and started sopping up sauce and glass fragments. It became a family affair as Emily shook the towels into the trash, James rinsed the towels in the bathtub, I vacuumed up all of the leftover glass, and the little boys hopped from chair to chair safely out of the way vying for the best view of the action. The others just watched in disbelief, chewing slowly with wide eyes.

A little too late, I realized that I hadn't snapped a photo. I guess we could reenact the scene. It couldn't be possible though because now I only buy PLASTIC containers of soy sauce.

So, tonight I will share two recipes with you. One is my beautiful Broccoli Casserole, and the other is an amazing dish I recently discovered using Soy Sauce.

Broccoli Chicken Casserole

Broccoli fresh, steamed or frozen, thawed

1tsp Lemon juice

2 C chopped, cooked chicken

2 Cans Cream of Chicken soup, undiluted

3/4 C Mayo

1 C grated cheddar cheese

2 C Bread crumbs or stuffing

Preheat oven to 350. Layer broccoli, then chicken in a greased, 9x13 casserole dish. In a separate bowl, mix lemon, soup and mayo. Layer mixture over chicken and broccoli. Sprinkle cheese then bread crumbs.

Serve with hot RICE (soy sauce optional)

We had this recipe tonight and it was really amazing. We did not have rice, however. It was served with homemade smashed potatoes.

Panko-Parmesan Chicken

1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup Kikkoman Panko Bread Crumbs

1/4 cup shredded fresh Parmesan cheese

1 egg

3 tablespoons Kikkoman Soy Sauce

4 chicken breast halves (each about 10 oz.)

Instructions

1. Melt butter in 13 x 9-inch pan in 400°F. oven, about 3 minutes. Remove pan from oven.
2. Meanwhile, combine Panko and cheese in large plastic food storage bag. Beat egg with soy sauce in shallow dish until well blended.
3. Dip chicken pieces, one at a time, into egg mixture; then add to bag of bread crumbs mixture. Close top and shake bag to coat both sides. Place chicken, skin side down, in prepared baking pan, leaving space between pieces.

4. Bake chicken 20 minutes. Turn pieces over and bake 20 to 25 minutes longer, or until chicken is no longer pink near bone and is golden brown.

Honey Milk Balls and the First Day of Spring

2011-03-21T15:57:00.000-07:00

It was a crazy weekend to say the least! With celebrating three birthdays, Alex's play; Much Ado About Nothing, and having two sets of visitors, me and my house are exhausted! I have spent the day letting the house rest from being cleaned, and instead, crafting away.

It has been lovely :)

I shamefully ate so much cake and frosting over the past week, that I went into sugar shock! Today, I wanted to take it easy. Have you ever noticed, though, that when your body gets used to the sugar, you crave it so much more?

I was really craving something sweet today, so I grabbed a piece of Orbit Sweetmint gum. It helped a lot. But then once my jaw got sore (I went to the dentist this morning) I got rid of the gum and BAM the sweet cravings came back.

My brain started doing a subconscious inventory of my kitchen. There is still a huge batch of frosting pre-made and ready to go for Emily's upcoming birthday and some graham crackers in the cupboard! Once I realized what my brain was trying to do, I stopped it immediately and tried to think of a healthier alternative.

Honey Milk Balls!

They are sweet, nutritious, and YUMMY! Did I mention that they are QUICK! No baking necessary. In fact, if you like to eat the cookie dough more than the cookies, like I do, then this one is for you!

See what YOU think!

Honey Milk Balls

1/2 C Honey (or the evil corn syrup)

1/2 C peanut butter

1 C dry powdered milk

1 C uncooked rolled oats (whole grain!) or 1/2 C graham cracker crumbs.

I like to warm the honey and peanut butter so it mixes more easily. Combine all ingredients and knead (with your hands) until blended. Shape into small balls. Roll in coconut or chopped nuts, if desired.

Perfect for after school!

I couldn't be more overjoyed that SPRING has finally arrived! And with it, the melting of snow. I wish that I had taken a photo of my backyard everyday this past week. On Monday, 1/4 of the ground could be seen. Exactly one week later, I have a yard full of brownish--gold, matted looking grass and no snow! My doggie also did some damage all winter long that will have to be cleaned up soon by the kids (evil laughter).

The Weekend's Activities:

Our friend, David and his daughter, Megan came to watch Alex's play. James made an entire list of honey-do's that he and David could do together. It was so nice of us to put him to work while he was here!

Here they are fixing another kitchen drawer.

James and David took a drive around town and found some pretty hilarious small town signs. Yes, our Subway has 8 foot long sandwiches.

And don't forget a halibut float for dessert.

My mom and I crashing after a vigorous game of "This is a serious and solemn occasion" taught to us by Megan. Let's just say that our cheeks hurt from laughing!

My dad decided to check on my Rainbow vacuum and took it apart to clean it and found that it was cracked and spent the next several hours(to my mom's dismay) fixing it. I was a little frightened when I saw it in several pieces!!!

The boys ripped the couch apart. Exactly what I want them to do when I have a house full of company.

Now that it's spring, maybe they can find something to do OUTSIDE!

Megan and Emily used the leftovers from Hannah's Masquerade and made themselves masks. Beautiful!

Someone asked me if this is Alex's girlfriend IRL. Well, no, he is JUST that convincing as an actor!

I cannot believe how well they did on the play. Each person had their lines expertly memorized! Not one person needed a prompt either time I saw it. They did just a fantastic job!

The cards I made. It's like taking a little vacation for my mind :)

Today, I am grateful for Monday! It was an amazingly exhausting yet wonderful weekend.

Welcome to Dinner With the Moore Family

2011-03-19T20:28:00.000-07:00

What's the best thing to do when you have three birthdays and a play in one week? You invite out of town guests for a visit, of course.

March is always a stressful Month for me--it might as well be Christmastime. I love to go all out for my kids (even though they beg me not to year after year). Why should I deprive them of something that I love, Right? So I selfishly spend hours and hours planning and stressing over each and every detail to make them suffer--um, I mean--happy.

By the end of March I look and act like a crazed lunatic. My mind starts shorting out, and I basically turn into a zombie.

When Easter is in March, I become a basket case.

This year "The Play" was in March. The same week as the three birthdays.

Alex was starring in Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing as Benedick, and opening night was on his birthday.

I invited my parents and our friends, the Atkissons for the same weekend to see the play and celebrate the birthdays. I panicked later as I wondered where I would put everyone and how I would get everything done for the birthdays.

I decided to save myself some sanity and have everyone go out for dinner on the night of the play.

I had recently scoped out the only place in our small town that could house a gathering so large; Me N Stans. Yes, I know, the grammar is incorrect, but the atmosphere was a homey, country 1963. I mean, nothing had changed since 1963. The chairs wobbled and the table had lost it's shine years before, but we were all together and that's all that mattered.

I was sitting next to Emily--a very dangerous spot to be. When we eat at home, the children use plates with their names on it, and I always do the old switcheroo so that Emily is sitting next to her daddy (he wears darker colors than I).

The moment the waitress came out to take our orders, Emily tipped her water over. I immediately jumped up and started sopping up the mess with the little cocktail napkin. It was insufficient.

Ice cubes scattered and water splattered across the table and onto the floor. I had a moment of clarity just then, thinking back to when Alex wrecked the car and then the next week I wrecked it, and since people were watching, I decided to make a joke out of it rather than screaming. I said, "You are only supposed to spill your drink AT HOME, not at a restaurant!" And with a grand flourish of my hand, I knocked over Emily's red soda!

My mom, dodging ice cubes and flowing red liquid was laughing so hard that she was tearing up.

I laughed too and I was a tiny bit glad that I hadn't gone Loco Mom-o on Emily when she spilled her water.

After all of the mess was cleaned up and our dinner was served, our out-of-town guest could not be outdone, and she knocked over her drink as well.

All I could say was "Welcome to dinner with the Moore Family!"

Please Help Japan

2011-03-13T22:15:00.000-07:00

I am stunned by what has happened to Japan. It is heartbreaking looking at the devastating footage on the news. It will be a long time before the people of Japan are back to normal, but we can help in our small ways.

(from NOAA, via Wired, used w/o permission)

"Image: A forecast for the tsunami caused by a magnitude-8.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of Japan on March 11, 2011. Heat-map colors show maximum tsunami height within the first 24 hours. (NOAA/PMEL/Center for Tsunami Research)"

Please pray. Prayer will help dramatically!

. . . and a little bit of cash from each of us. . .

The following was copied from MSNBC:

"Using your cell phone, you can text-message donations of $10 to the Red Cross. Text the letters REDCROSS to 90999 to make the $10 donation, or visit the organization's website."

It isn't much, but it is better than sitting in our cozy homes and doing nothing.

Thank you for your help!

To Protest, or Not to Protest

2011-03-13T17:57:00.000-07:00

We are not a very politically minded family. I mean, we uphold the constitution and love to celebrate the Fourth of July and all, but we enjoy watching political matters from the comforts of the living room couch.

In our home, we stand for truth and righteousness. We believe in being good citizens and obeying the law. But when it comes to feeling so strongly about an issue, that we would stand outside and hold signs and protest, we defer to those who are more opinionated.

Until now.

It started several weeks ago when Hannah came through the door after school ranting and raving about a proposed ID bill--The Luna Bill AKA Students Come First Legislation.

In her freshman level of understanding, Hannah believed that students would be forced to own laptops, which they would then destroy, and teachers would become obsolete due to required online courses.

She was outraged by the bill.

Students across the state decided to hold a walk-out at 1 PM on Friday afternoon. Through Facebook and texts, they notified each other about the event.

I found out about it the night before as Hannah was debating whether to skip the last two periods of school and stand up for what she believed to be very bad for students, or support her teachers by attending their classes.

She decided to remain in school and protest by wearing strips of duct tape with penned messages across her clothing. Her teachers appreciated her level of support and applauded her decision to remain in school.

I was surprised, then, at 1PM when I got a call from my middle- schooler asking if I would pick her up and drop her off in town so she could protest.

After questioning her for several minutes about her reasons behind protesting and making sure she wasn't just ditching, I decided to check her out.

As I drove to the school, I passed a hoard of teenagers surrounding a white Local News 8 van holding posters of varying colors while screaming and waving their hands as they tried to persuade me to honk in support. As I crawled by in my green van, I looked over the crowd to see if I recognized anyone. I waved timidly at their flailing arms, then felt silly when I realized I was supposed to honk. Too late, I honked and drove on.

At Emily's school, I felt somewhat guilty as I checked her out of class. It must be human nature to want to be a part of the herd, because I really wanted to know who else was crazy enough to check their kids out of school to stand for what they believe in. Not many kids were on the check out list.

I hoped I was doing the right thing.

There seemed to be NO protesters at the designated spot (the local grocery store), so I made Emily go shopping with me instead. Every few minutes she went outside to see if the protesters had arrived.

We finally saw the protesters on a different street as we were leaving the parking lot. I slowly drove by to see what the crowd looked like. At the front of the line, standing tall above the other students, and blond, holding a giant fluorescent sign . . .

was my son!

So much for living quiet, un-opinionated lives!

Students Protest Passing Of Education Reform - Local News Story - KIFI Idaho Falls

One Benjamin Franklin

2011-03-07T13:16:00.000-08:00

. . . That's how much it took to convince the 14 year-old to get straight As again.

When I make these promises with my children, I guess I never really think through the situation to the end, because it was painful paying up.

The offer has been around for many many years. It began when we could see our oldest son's potential report card success, but he couldn't. For some reason, Benjamin did not tempt him enough.

Back then, Hannah always pulled straight As on her report cards. We (and she) knew she could do it, but in order to save the bank, we told her it was for achieving all As in "High School". I know, it was pretty low of us.

She showed us by bombing out in 7th grade. Well, I guess if you consider a couple of Bs (and a D) bombing out.

The offer kind of got brushed aside for a couple of years while we just tried to muddle through as best we could. We made sure to remind them on report card day that if they would have only gotten all As they would have gotten $100. Then out of the blue this year, and way ahead of time, the kids asked if the offer still stood.

"Of course, it does!" We'll do whatever it takes to help them achieve academic success! It's our job as parents.

Hannah must have skipped home from school knowing that for once she had me!

She beamed at me as I opened the sealed report card.

I think my bright, yellow purse actually squeaked as I unlatched and opened it.

"I want you to know how hard I worked to earn this Benjamin Franklin." I told her as I dangled the bill between two fingers.

"I want you to know how hard I had to work for him." She tells me back and snatches the bill from my fingers.

I am so proud of my daughter. She is extremely smart.

I am also proud of my manipulative and coercive parenting skills. It feels really nice when it pays off.

Almost as nice as One Benjamin Franklin feels in my purse.

TEAM WORK

2011-03-02T22:06:00.000-08:00

As I was making dinner tonight, I could hear the little boys in the living room playing on the Game Cube. I couldn't tell what they were playing because for once they had the volume very low. I could however hear them cheering each other on.

At one point, Hunter enthusiastically yelled, "Come on, Connor! There's no I in TEAM WORK! We can do it!"

I had to giggle and wonder where a nine-year-old learned that one.

I'll be anxiously waiting to hear it come out of Connor's seven-year-old mouth soon.

They are like little sponges at these ages.

Makes me wonder what "phrases" they have soaked up here at home and spewed back out to their teachers at school.

Hmmmmmm

Oh, No! Not Again!!!

2011-02-28T22:43:00.000-08:00

There is something about being in Salt Lake City during the last week of February that makes my mind LoOpY. I'm not sure if it's spending an entire Saturday at CBYC scrapbooking that muddles my brain, or if it's the eagerness and excitement of all of the SHOPPING that the "big city" offers.

Whatever the reason, due to my LoOpYness,
I locked my keys in my van again this year.

Last year, I was so excited to be at the Expo, that I slid open the van door, threw the keys on the seat, grabbed my scrappy supplies and slammed the door shut. My stomach lurched as I looked through the tinted window at my keys dangling on the edge of the seat!

What do you do when your spare set of keys are 300 miles away?

I did what any good scrapbooker would do; I took a picture of the keys in my van and turned and ran back into the Expo Center to start scrapping! I just knew some great inspiration would reveal itself later on.

Like Magic, the answer came as I watched officers come and go to the event in the next venue. There was a Safe Kid's Convention going on and every precinct in the vicinity had sent their finest to talk to the kiddos.

I know, because I met every single one of them as I went from group to group hoping against all hope that one might have a Slim Jim and rescue me from my stupidity.

My last hope came in the form of a moustached man in a blue uniform looking something like the hero in a 70s cartoon. Actually, they all looked like that.

The lock was popped, and I was saved and able to go home for a year and drive back down for another fabulous time at CBYC scrapbooking the day away.

After a successful crop, the shopping began.

I was introduced to a store called Hobby Lobby. I had never met Hobby Lobby before.

As I drove into the parking lot, I could almost smell the aroma of raffia and glue sticks, paper and unfinished wood projects. My eyes glazed over and I glided to the front doors where I inhaled deeply.

I was not disappointed!

I shopped.
I paid.
I left.I pushed my heaping cart with one hand as I groped in my pocket, then my purse, then my pockets again searching for my keys.

My sweet daughter peered into the drivers side and shook her head and said "Uh, Oh!"

I knew . . .

. . . I had done it again!

Did you know that if you go to the dealership and smile sweetly, and ask really nicely (and show proof that the van actually is yours), they will use your VIN # to cut you a new key?

Did I mention that the guy was born in Idaho Falls.

2011-02-20T07:41:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was one of those days. I was taking a serious look at myself (perhaps too seriously), and finding myself lacking. I was questioning my motherhood ability and feeling very down. It's amazing how teenage words can do that to a mother.

I knew that if I only waited until tomorrow things would be better. They almost always are. A new dawn brings new light on the day.

The sun rose on me this morning as I was kissing my little boys for school.

Hunter gave me a kiss and said in a big voice, "You raised us well, Mom."

Now, I wouldn't really consider a 9-year-old to be exactly raised, but the words made my heart pulse all the way up to the back of my eyes and the pressure made them sting.

Not to be outdone, Connor gave me a big hug and said "I love you waaaay more than you love me!"

That really got my emotion going, so to quell it I told him, with a crooked grin, that he was a liar and that I loved him the mostest.

I realized then what a gift from God these two little boys are to me and that God knows me well enough to prompt those darlings to say the exact things I needed to hear most.

Although it was snowing when I woke up this morning, the sun was shining through bringing the dawn of this new day.

It made me feel that maybe . . . just maybe, I'm not such a lacking mother after all.

We'll see how they feel when they are teenagers.

Photo Valentines 2011

2011-02-15T07:57:00.000-08:00

Goods and Bads

2011-02-09T17:50:00.000-08:00

That's how we create stimulating conversation at the dinner table in our house.

With everyone running in a million different directions throughout the day, it is important for everyone to put on the brakes at 6 PM for dinner.

After the fighting has ceased over who has to put the cups on the table, and all of the last minute items like the salt and the pitcher of water are placed on the table, my family sits down, bows their heads over their plates, and starts shoveling food into their mouths as fast as they can (after a blessing, of course).

They aren't much for words if left to their own devices (or maybe this just means that I am a marvelous cook).

I must intervene if I am to know any information about the enormous portion of time that my children (and husband) spend away from me each day.

So we do "Goods and Bads".

It's quite simple, really. We start at one end of the table and each person gets to share one good thing and one bad thing that happened to them that day.

Sometimes the flood gates open up and one person (uh hem, husband) will drone on and on until we are all bored to tears.

But usually after a moment of quiet thoughtfulness, something good and something bad will be blurted out and then the shoveling will resume.

I am never disappointed by the wide range of topics that these two little questions will produce.

Tonight's topics included:
Incisors (pronounced in-scissors). This was the good and bad since Hunter painfully bit down and loosened his tooth;
Connor imagines making his teacher faint by cleaning up around his desk. The teacher faints and falls on him while he's doing the splits--OUCH (Okay, that one was weird!);
Emily was very, very amazed that she got second chair in band playing the flute (we encourage our children to go for second place);
And when all else fails, they resort to saying that their good is this "very delicious dinner."

Try it with your family tonight!

"COLD" Day

2011-02-02T15:51:00.000-08:00

Since temperatures were well-below MINUS 20 degrees, school was cancelled.

When we lived in VA, school got cancelled at the hint of snow. It was fun. The kids would spend the day outside sledding down the hill in our backyard. The snow was wet and heavy and perfect for making families of snowmen, snow-women, and snow-children. School would resume when the roads were clear and most of the snow had melted from the yard.

In Idaho, school doesn't usually get cancelled for snow. Snow Plow Men wait eagerly each night with their plows and sand ready to tackle the most severe storms. They consider it a personal challenge to keep the roads clear enough for those big yellow buses to safely transport Idaho's children to school.

Snow Plow Men do not however, hold any chance against plunging temperatures. No amount of sleepless plowing nor sand pouring can remedy the wind chill.

So, what do Idaho children do on a "Cold" Day? Parents with sense keep their kids inside watching movies or reading in front of the fireplace while piled high with blankets.

MY children decided to get out the sleds and snowboards and play in the front yard.

I'm sure the people driving by just shook their heads at the senseless parents allowing their children to play outside during such extreme temperatures.

I grabbed the camera to document the moment. After all, how many places in the world can you actually snowboard on your front lawn?

Idaho Skin

2011-02-01T17:03:00.000-08:00

"PUT ON YOUR COAT!" I yell as my teenager is about to leave. "You're hoodie isn't warm enough for today!"

"I will be FINE!" My teen yells back with a scowl on his face. "MOTHERS!" I'm sure he's thinking.

I know his car still won't be warm by the time he reaches the school. It is cold today. Wind chill makes it less than 20 below outside. I had woken up early and turned on the radio. I wondered why school wasn't cancelled.

He calls me during the day and asks me to bring him some lunch money. Normally, I wouldn't dream of hampering my child's ability to be responsible, but this morning, he was looking a little thin.

I sit in the parking lot of the school and wait for him to come out. I know the period has ended because students begin streaming out the doors and cross the parking lot in front of me.

I start to count. One . . . Two . . . . Three. . . I have now seen exactly THREE teenagers with appropriate clothing for the weather. Three warm coats among the swirl and swarm of bodies.

In my heated van, I snuggle deeper into my knee length, fur lined hood down coat. I start thinking of percentages. 10% with warm coats, 60% in hoodies, 30% in SHORT SLEEVE SHIRTS!

Idaho sure raises some tough skinned kids!

Ginormous Pastrami Burger

2011-01-24T20:07:00.000-08:00

Alex and his friend, The Phantom, came home one night completely famished! They decided to make one pound pastrami hamburgers.

They smoked up the kitchen and made me sick when I saw the gross amounts of meat that were on their hamburgers! But when I saw the looks on their faces, I had to smile.

Pure teenage heaven!

Jean's Wild Rice and Chicken Supreme

2011-01-16T18:50:00.000-08:00

When you find a recipe that the whole family will eat, it's worth its weight in gold . . . and you make it a lot.

This recipe is from my really good friend, Jean. She has an amazing recipe blog; Fitzgerald Family Recipes . It's chock full of unhealthy, southern cooking, but oh, it's joyful tasting comfort food!

1 6-oz package Uncle Ben’s Original Long Grain Wild Rice
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup flour
1 tsp salt
dash black pepper
1 cup half and half
1 cup chicken broth
2 cups cubed chicken (or turkey)
1/4 cup chopped slivered almonds

Preheat oven to 425.

Prepare rice according to package directions.

Saute onion in butter until soft, and add flour, salt, and pepper.

Gradually whisk in half and half and chicken broth.

Simmer on medium heat until thickened, whisking constantly.

Add chicken, almonds, and rice.

Put in a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish and bake at 425 degrees for 30 min.

Add a salad and whole wheat rolls or buttered wheat bread and you have a delicious meal, perfect for a cold, wintry day!

One Sneaky Mama

2011-01-12T18:38:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I am a genius.

I hid the chocolate chips in an Instant Potatoes can. I knew no one but me would ever find them!

I was forced to this extreme level of deceit because the previous entire 72 ounce--Sam's Club--sized bag of morsels disappeared in about as many hours.

Not cool when Mom needs a chocolate fix . . . er . . .uh . . . I mean when a recipe calls for them, and they are GONE!

I knew I'd been bamboozled when I peeked at the bag that was discreetly hidden in the tott can and found that 1/4 of the bag was GONE!

The culprit? None other than DAD! He told Hannah to search for them until she found them so that he could have some on his ice cream sundae!

They were hidden for a total of 15 minutes.

I also hid the raisins in the chocolate chip container. How long do you think it will take them to consume these?

JELL-O from HELL-O!

2011-01-05T23:35:00.000-08:00

So, I got a phone call the other day . . .

It was about a funeral . . . and Jello salad.

Would I be willing to take a jello salad to the funeral luncheon on Thursday?

I briefly thought about my days leading up to Thursday and shuddered. Work, work, work, and prepare for out of town company (more work). Full schedule. But I always love to help, and I don't know how to say no. I hinted, though, "I have to work on Thursday and won't be able to attend the funeral."

The reply wasn't what I expected, "That's okay, you could have, so-and-so, or so-and-so, or so-and-so bring it for you." Simple as pie--or--Jello. They must really be desperate for food. Or, maybe they have heard about my Jello salads (scoff)!

I got really excited when I started thumbing through my Jello cook book (yes, they actually have one). I even texted my mom for suggestions.

She said, "lime Jello with pears."

"Simple!" I texted back.

Why, oh why, don't we ever listen to Mom?

Strawberry Romanoff is what I chose. Beautiful? Yes. Simple? Not on your life!

I think I know how it got its name!

I read the directions then sent the Jimmy (the poor Jimmy) out for some exercise through the snow and cold on a walk to the grocery store (even though he is a urticariac).

I texted him the ingredients. Then I texted back and told him to double it. I said 2 c cool whip. He brought home four XL "C"ontainers of cool whip. Time to make room in the freezer!

When he got home, I choked when I saw the receipt! $18 for ingredients for Jello salad! Too bad I don't even know the dearly departed's family.

I started boiling and mixing and stirring. Then I got a brilliant idea! I would make strawberry Romanoff for MY FAMILY TOO! So I boiled and mixed and stirred again.

THEN

*OOPS* I realized that I doubled the first batch but only singled the reserved part, so I poured from the second batch to make up for the first batch, then the second batch was off!

I was in a pickle (pickle flavored Jello).

Hannah was feeling very hyper and was animatedly talking to me about boys, and school, and life, and I was trying very hard to follow her conversation. That's what got me into trouble in the first place. So, I enlisted her help to solve my delimma.

Math problems started flying around the kitchen as we halved and doubled and added and subtracted fractions. I could not figure out how to make the two recipes right. It was a JELL-O of a mess!

Finally it came together in my head and I exclaimed that I had figured out the problem. I needed to pour a certain amount from the mixed reserved portion back into the second single batch (don't worry, I'm still confused myself).

Hannah's head whipped around and she stared at me with a look of exasperation.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you this whole time!" she said.

Why are kids always so much smarter than their parents?

Well, I stayed up way past my bedtime to whisk and whip at precisely the right time for the Jello to be slightly set, but not too firm for the cool whip to be gently folded in.

Then I gently spooned the reserved liquid Jell-o over the fluffy Jello--and . . .

It was a disaster! The runny warmer jello seeped and oozed down into the fluffy layer creating a perfectly perfect delictable treat for a pack of VAMPIRES!

Unfortunately, it appeared to be a more appropriate dessert for the undead than the dead.

Strawberry Romanoff Dessert

2 pkg (4 serving size) Strawberry Jello
2 C boiling water
3 Tbsp orange liqueur or orange juice
1/2 C cold water
2 C thawed Cool Whip
10 oz frozen unsweetened strawberries, thawed (do not drain)

Dissolve jello in boiling water. measure 1 1/4 c jello; add undrained strawberries. Into remaining jello add liqueur or oj and cold water. Chill until slightly set about 1 1/4 hours.

Fold topping into chilled jello. Pour into a 6 cup glass serving bowl. Carefully spoon reserved jello mixture over layer in bowl. Chill until firm about 4 hours or overnight.

Makes 8 servings

Good Luck!

Christmas Newsletter 2010

2010-12-25T18:38:00.000-08:00

Sunny Happenings
Blog Entries for 2010

. . . James continues to amaze me. He has once again repaired our old green van. He is getting quite handy as a mechanic. “Is this a good thing?” I wonder. He ensures me time and time again that due to his skills, we may never need a new vehicle again! He is also very handy at fixing anything and everything from holes “accidentally” kicked in the wall by rivaling siblings to cupboard doors “accidentally” being ripped off by rushing children and dryers that are well past their prime. At this rate, we will never “have need” of a new thing again! James is the backbone of our family and keeps us all in stitches with his humor and fun anecdotes. He continues to love working at Policy Technologies, and they continue to love having him work for them.
. . . Life is busy. I never imagined how busy it would be having children of such varied ages. It is also a lot of fun and never dull or boring in our home. One minute I will be cuddling and reading to the younger boys, and the next I’ll be dealing with hormones and doling out dating or driving advice to the older kids. I am also a working mom. I only work part time with my home cleaning business, but it sure feels like full-time to me! I have done a lot of traveling over the past year, and it always gives me a much needed break from the crazy monotony (is that an oxymoron?) of home life. James is always there for me, encouraging me to take those much needed breaks (maybe a little too encouraging), and holding down the fort while I’m gone. James and I attended girl’s camp with the girls this summer. We left Alex and the boys home alone. I found out later (from an anonymous source) that the boys wore the same clothes the entire time we were gone, slept on the couch and stayed up as late as they wanted. I am so grateful for Alex and that all three of them were alive and happy when we got back!
. . . Life could not be any better for Alex (17). He is having an amazing senior year. Each day he straps his guitar onto his back and leaves at 715 for zero hour seminary in his little Celica convertible. He doesn’t have much time for homework in his dual--enrollment college classes because he has to rush to his job at the local grocery store right after school. He does, however, take lots of time in the wee hours to work on various projects. His most recent project was a set of "mouse trap" auto--spring angel wings, covered with feathers. These spectacular wings won him First place at Drama Districts, and 4th place at Drama State. After graduation, the sky is the limit for him! Alex is interested in joining the Army Reserves, but when I asked what area of work he would like to do, he looked at me with a half smile, then started listing off several careers that he's interested in; fire fighter, actor, costume designer, blacksmith, Coroner, and Rock Star. I must say, his interests are varied!
. . . The Elusive Hannah (14) (as Alex calls her) spends every waking moment reading (when she’s not on Facebook, of course). She completed her goal this year of reading 100 books, which is most likely how she earned the title “elusive”. Hannah is loving being a teenager and a freshman this year. She was saddened that school would be closed for two weeks during the holidays. She really loves it. Or, maybe she just loves hanging with her friends and watching boys on whom she has crushes, but to which she would never admit. She has once again decided to play the violin in Orchestra, although her only scheduled concert was canceled.
. . .Emily (12) spent an entire month this past summer in California helping care for our two-year-old quadruplet cousins and their new baby sister. She has boundless energy when it comes to children. She loves to care for them and has become a star babysitter in our neighborhood. We only wish that energy would transfer to doing chores and cleaning her room! We are so lucky to be able to listen to Emily practice her flute, however, we prefer it to be more than six inches away from our ears. She has come a long way since last year. It has been fun watching her grow into a spunky and fun young woman.
. . . Hunter (9) is such a fun and sweet boy. He is getting so tall! I keep asking him to stop growing, but he just won’t listen. He’ll say, “I’m trying not to, Mom,” with a sheepish grin. I hope that isn’t psychological abuse on my part. He may end up with a tall-person complex when he’s an adult or something. I guess that’s what therapy is for. Hunter has gotten the citizenship award in his class for the past two trimesters, and his report card came home with straight As. When Hunter isn’t reading Charlie Bone, he is trading Pokemon cards or playing on the Wii. He would much rather play on the Wii than do anything else, and lets me know it if I interrupt him for something as mundane as setting the table for dinner!
. . . Connor (7) is our little creative genius. Each time I throw something like a cardboard tube or crumpled foil into the trash, I am certain I will see it again brought back to life in a new form later on. I am never disappointed. He is a thinker and is fascinated with numbers, clocks, and time. I often hear the boys tossing math problems back and forth to each other. Connor can usually solve the multiplication problems that Hunter is learning. I personally find it amazing and wonder how his brain can compute things so easily at this age. He also loves to paint and wants to be an artist when he grows up.
We feel very blessed this year in so many ways. We have jobs that we love. We are healthy, and aside from the usual trials of life, we are happy. We have striven this year to reach out to those who have been less fortunate than us. It seems that times are getting more and more difficult for everyone and we feel a burden to help in any way we can. We hope this year, that you too can reach out to your fellow man in any way possible to lighten a load, bring a smile, or just give an encouraging word. These are the truest gifts of Christmas.

With Love,

the Moore Family;
James, Sunny, Alex, Hannah, Emily, Hunter, and Connor

Disastrous Christmas Caroling . . . then fun!

2010-12-21T01:02:00.000-08:00

I had been anticipating this moment for several weeks now; my beautiful family wearing coats and hats with matching scarves, and smiling rosy-faced as we sang in perfect harmony amid the gently falling snow on the doorsteps of my client's homes while presenting them with magnificent handmade tokens of the season.

(high pitched screeching sound of ripping brakes)

It was not to be so . . .
I had spent long moments fantasizing about how wonderful it would be. I carefully hand crafted the treats into jars with handmade tags accented with coordinating ribbon.

I knew we were out of time to rehearse and even pin down the numbers to sing. We had the potential. Serious potential. What we lacked was organization and coordination. I was willing to try anyway.

The weather wasn't cooperating. After freeze-raining all day yesterday and frightfully low temperatures all day today, the roads. walkways and porches were sheets of ice.

I hoped that James would drive home from work and happily and merrily pick us all up and we could travel together to bring joy to the hearts of the people up north.

I was told on the phone that due to the weather, we had a very small window of opportunity before the roads were too treacherous to travail and if I still wanted to do it, I would have to immediately drive up myself and pick him up at work.

I felt my first pang of doom.

I roused the children. The little boys were perfectly willing as long as McDonald's was part of the bargain. I could handle that. So, after convincing them to switch out the pink snow boots for black, they hopped into the van.

I roused the teenagers (roused might be too optimistic). They dragged their feet. They were doing way more important things like Facebook and chatting with girls on the phone.

"Pang" It was the second sound of doom. I put on a BIG SMILE and bit off the words I really wanted to say to them. They didn't have the same courtesy.

I started getting that feeling in my stomach. You know, the one that tells you that your dreams are dashing to the ground. And yet I pressed on.

I started driving and asked them what songs they would like to sing. "WE HAVE NO IDEA WHAT SONGS TO SING!" They yelled.

I pressed on the brakes to stop at the stop sign and heard the antilocks engage. It seemed we were in slow motion as we gently slid beyond the stop sign. My mind whirred as I came to the realization that we would not be driving up the steep hill into my client's neighborhood.

I conceded.

I would not give my teenagers the satisfaction of knowing that the weather was the ultimate deciding factor. I would let them stew.

Once back home and safe and sound, we decided to make graham cracker houses. None of us were in the mood.

As we worked, we began to laugh and joke.

After a little while, Emily said, "I love this family!"

In unison, Hannah and I both said, "I love this family too--jinx, personal jinx, knock on wood!" To which we all burst out laughing.

Tetanus Scare and bonus Christmas Money

2010-12-19T23:21:00.000-08:00

I had to take Alex to Redi Care today because we thought he had Tetanus. He stepped on a nail during Drama class at school two weeks ago while building thrones for the sets for his two upcoming plays; Much Ado About Nothing and Once Upon a Mattress. His jaw has been in mortal pain ever since. Of course, I only found out last night–after our regular doctor’s office was closed. But hey, we met our deductible, so now I look for any excuse to go to the doctor since it’s practically free, and that way I can feel better about those 12 lovely insurance payments I made throughout the year.

“Just in case” the doctor prescribed an anti inflammatory and an antibiotic. A tetanus shot was administered, and then we drove to the pharmacy at the grocery store where Alex recently got a job as a bagger. He grabbed a cart and started pushing it along, flexing his abs as he pushed. He told me that soon he’s going to have rock hard abs from pushing all of those carts through the snow and back into the store. I laughed. It won’t be much longer until he’s out on his own. Graduation is just around the corner. Life will be boring without Alex constantly doing thousands of projects and experiments. Although the messes annoy me, I will miss seeing him in creativity mode.

I don’t think I’ll miss seeing his room piled with junk knee high! I have to close his door every day so I don’t have to look at it. Most days it’s a battle I choose not to fight. Tomorrow I will be cleaning it and charging him $20 an hour. How do you think that will go? I could really use some last minute Christmas money :)

Christmassy Weather and Ginger Snap Cookies

2010-11-22T17:28:00.000-08:00

Last night as we turned out the lights to settle in for a long winter's nap , the light glowed into the window. Inside the house in our beds, we were warm and cozy. But outside, a huge, severe winter storm was raging and the moon reflected the bright white snow into our window.

We slept soundly through the blowing, billowing snow as it swirled and drifted, covering the shoveled walks and driveways.

We awoke when the phone--first James', then mine, then the home, rang with a message from the school to make our children's heart's fill with glee--School was cancelled!

We snoozed on only to be woken again 3 more times each per phone with the same message. I have to give it to the school--they are thorough.

The little boys have been begging and begging for us to put up our Christmas decorations early this year. I'm not sure what it is, but they are prematurely excited this year. In a way--so am I.

Christmas is that "special" time of year that makes my heart race and butterflies flutter in my stomach. The feeling is also known as ANXIETY! I am doing everything I can to calm myself but I can see tiny ways that my attitude has crept into my older children's. They don't seem to be as excited about winter and Christmas as in past years. This year, I am smiling brightly and keeping my disdain for the cold and snow more to myself; for mothers have a great influence on their children's feelings of well-being.

Somehow this year, the swirling snow has glittered and sparkled and surrounded my heart and is tickling a tiny feeling of Christmas magic there.

Jenny Oaks Baker is gently playing her violin to the tune of Ave Maria on the CD player, and homemade ginger snap cookies are baking in the oven. Tonight, in my home, Christmas is in our hearts.

Even if you don't have snow, and you want your home to smell like Christmas, bake a batch of these cookies to share with family, friends, and neighbors.

Bishop Baumgarten's Ginger Snap (Sogs) Cookies
Bishop B. always called them ginger sogs because they are so soft and yummy.

3/4 C shortening
1 C brown sugar
1/4 C molasses
1 egg

Beat together til' fluffy

Sift:
2 1/4 C Flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves

Stir together. Form balls. Roll in sugar. Bake 375 degrees for 10 min.

*High altitude: Add 1/4 c flour and bake an additional 4 min.

Harry Potter and the Hole in the Wall

2010-11-19T20:49:00.000-08:00

Harry Potter is a big deal in our house. We all love it, from the oldest members listening to the books on their Ipods, to the youngest members playing the Lego version on the Wii.

So, it was no surprise that we planned on seeing Part 1 of The Deathly Hallows on the day of the premier.

I knew the children of appropriate age would be giddy and on their BEST BEHAVIOR all day long in anticipation of Dad and Mom allowing them to tag along on their date.

I get a call at work from the youngest child tattling that the babysitter (oldest sister) is torturing the other brother.

I calmly put out the fire.

I call on my way home and tell them to be ready and waiting outside for a quick pick up for our rare and amazing adventure at the movies.

I get a call 2 minutes later. Everyone is crying and there is a hole in the wall.

I ignore the hole in the wall comment and ask if they still want to go, they assure me they do and promise to be better.

The movie was amazing and satisfied every one's high expectations.

We get home and I walk down the hallway to find a TEN INCH HOLE IN THE WALL. When asked why, the guilty party said that her sister drove her to it.

Hindsight.

My Winning Angel

2010-11-14T21:31:00.000-08:00

After he stayed up the entire night working on his presentation, I have to say how proud I am of Alex (and myself). After all, behind every great and amazing kid is one exhausted mother, right?

After coming home late from a girl's night, I took one look at the panic on Alex's face and decided that he needed his Mom to pull through for him.

I wondered through the long night if I was truly helping him, or if I was truly hurting him by helping him. There is a fine balance in there somewhere that every mother must weigh.

I realized at some point between burning the pointer finger on my right hand and my thumb on my left, that he is so much like me. I like to say that we "work better under pressure." That seems easier to swallow than "always waiting til the last minute."

The next day upon entering the school, I was greeted by an angel with the biggest grin on his face.

Alex won FIRST PLACE on ALL THREE categories that he entered at Drama Districts.
Yay, we get to do it all again for STATE.

Way to go, kid. You are one amazing Angel! (You too Mom)!

Maybe You Should Fly a Jet! Maybe You Should be a Vet!

2010-11-11T11:57:00.000-08:00

Last night, I stood next to my tall son who was wearing a wife beater tank, white pants, and white dress shoes, as he worked on his "mouse trap" auto--spring angel wings prop to complete his Drama Districts costume. Drama Districts will be on Saturday. The wings were started on Wednesday after "the mom" ran around two different towns compiling supplies for him.

Tiny shards of wire and bits of foam core board cluttered the counter table and floor. He held the wings out and as he popped the trap, the wings snapped open. I marveled at the clever apparatus made out of wooden dowels, foam core board, a mouse trap (of course), various nuts and bolts, and lots of hot glue.

"You are so talented," I said. "You should be an engineer!" I wondered how a brain could even come up with such a contraption!

He looked at me with a half smile, then started listing off several careers that he's interested in; Fire fighter, actor, costume designer, blacksmith, Coroner, and Rock Star. His interests are varied.

The sing song way his voice named the careers made the words to Theo Le Sieg's (AKA Dr. Seuss') book, Do You Want to Fly a Jet, immediately come to mind.

I began quoting the book to him and we laughed. It was a frequent read from his childhood, and memories flashed through my mind of a brown--eyed boy with a damp blond bowl cut, smelling of baby shampoo, cuddling with me on the couch. . . .

This career talk is new and strange and a little frightening--at least for me. I am learning how difficult it must be for mother birds to push their babies out of their nests and let them fly. I want to grab my boy and put my arms around him and protect him and keep him safe and cozy. But if I do that, he'll never learn how to SOAR!

Tonight, when the windows reflect the dark night, Alex will once again be in my kitchen furiously working and creating and hot gluing and carefully and meticulously gluing feathers to his mouse trap wing contraptions.

And when he dons them, I will think . . . exercise those wings, flap hard and prepare because very soon you will be leaving my nest,

and what I wish most for you is to SOAR.

All Photos by Laura Walker Photographies

Sunday Morning

2010-10-17T07:19:00.000-07:00

"The ants go marching two by two, Hurrah, Hurrah!
The ants go marching two by two, Hurrah, Hurrah!
The ants go marching two by two, the little one stops to tie his shoe . . .
and they all go marching down . . .in the ground . . .to get out of the rain!"

The sound of marching feet and young high soprano choir boys singing at the tops of their lungs is what roused me from sleep this morning.

I had snoozed 30 minutes past my alarm and had been dreaming of a combination of Rachael Ray and Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution. The food was being prepared by lunch ladies with British accents on airport conveyor belts, and as I oversaw the food going round and round on the conveyor, I was being praised for my food innovation and how I was single handedly saving lives with my healthy options.

Okay, weird. . . it must be that another round of my diet, Game On, is getting ready to begin, and I've been recruiting. Either that or I've been watching too much Rachael Ray :)

It was a great way to be woken up. I smiled as I made my way to the shower.

Aloneness (AKA back to school)

2010-09-08T07:51:00.000-07:00

I sit here all alone feeling guiltily giddy. Everyone is gone . . . well, everyone except for the puppy and kitty.

"The Jimmy" has been going in to work early lately, since we all are getting up so much earlier for school. Even he is gone.

Connor is in the first grade!

Ahhhh, the peace and quiet. Ahhhhh the clean house. Ahhhh the smell of baked goodies wafting through the cavernous house.

Oh the possibilities! I wonder what large and fearsome task I should accomplish for the day. It would be uninterrupted--the most effecient way to work.

(Mom: "I'm going to be all alone today!" Connor: "Awwww!" )

Or I could just sit and read one of the library's finest, pausing only to take the puppy out, or to refill my water bottle and pop some Hershey's Kisses?

Hunter's in third grade!

Carpe Diem I must sieze the day!

And I don't need to feel guilty for enjoying myself on days like today, when all is quiet and I'm home from work.

I get to refill my cup so to speak, so I can fill every one elses. They will all come home to a fresh, clean house, something warm and wholesome and amazing smelling in the oven, and a mom who actually has a smile on her face!

Back to school really is the most wonderful time of the year!

Pikachu Party Photos

2010-09-08T05:57:00.000-07:00

The Perfect Pokemon Pikachu Party

2010-09-01T12:50:00.000-07:00

Hunter turned 9 and wanted a Pokemon party.

Dejavue! It seems that every party Alex ever had, I'm redoing for Hunter.

I'm always last minute with these things, yet it came together with the help of the entire family and had great results--except for the weather.

As I was scrambling around, trying to decorate the cake and get some last minute game ideas off the web (5 min before the party started) I heard the weather service warning come on the radio! I was not happy but hopeful that it would kind of pass around our area. Not to be so. It hit with a vengeance right after all of the kids arrived. We had to rearrange a few things and have the party inside.

So here is what we did:

1. Okay, so this one took a lot of prep time: We made a Pikachu piniata using a balloon for the body, a paper plate slit to the center and slightly overlapped to create his cute pointy nose and face, attached with some crumpled newspaper under it to get the perfect angle and shape. Hands and feet were created with toilet paper tubes slit down the side and bent. Streamers cut into fringe covered the body. Printer paper rolled into a cone shaped the ears and card stock made up the features.

2. Welcome Craft: Create a Pokemon. After coloring a Pokemon picture, the kids each got a paper bag and craft supplies to create their own Pokemon for a future game. They put some crumpled up newspaper inside and twisted the bottom. Then they took feathers, sequince, crayons, googly eyes, etc. and made a Pokemon. Then they tied a string to the bottom. I told them not to be too technical because they may get ripped in the game.

3. Games: I think the pokemon game is way too complicated, so we played some simple games with a Pokemon theme. "Gotta Catch 'em All" was adapted from a game that I found on familyfun.com The kids sat in a circle with their Pokemon in the middle. One person is the "catcher". I yelled "gotta catch em all" and the catcher would try to catch one of the pokemon with a bowl or lid at the same time the children try to jerk their Pokemon out of the way. They loved this game. It can also be played with candy on a string and you use dice. If the catcher rolls doubles the lid comes down.

James played "Ash says" with the kids while I prepared the Pikachu ears party hats. (this should have been done before hand, but since it's me we're talking about, it happened during the middle of the party)

The next game was a relay. Pokemon Trainer Practice: The kids had to put on a baseball cap and back pack, run through a tunnel and tent, up the stairs (since it was indoors :( , shoot Team Rocket with a nerf gun, throw a Pokeball (practice golf balls painted half red with black line around middle) into a bowl and run back and tag the next player.

If we would have been outside, we would have done one final game of catching the pokemon. The older siblings would have dressed up like a specific Pokemon or worn a picture of a Pokemon on their backs and the kids would have had to try to capture them with their pokeballs. Then they would have recorded the captured Pokemon in their Pokedex made from printer paper folded into a booklet and stapled with a picture of a pokeball on the front. It would have been awesome.

4. Food: I am learning as I get older to simplify things if possible (yeah, right). Well, I simplified with the food, anyway. I like to have parties in the afternoon--too late for lunch, too early for dinner. It also helps if I have the morning to prepare since I always wait until the last minute. So cake and ice cream it is. I made the cake in my round Pyrex bowl and added a round cake pan to make the circle a little bigger. I used way too much red food coloring and it made the frosting really yucky, but the kids didn't seem to mind.

5. Presents: I always take a picture of Hunter with each gift and gift giver. It's nice to have a record for those thank you notes ;)

7. Piniata: Still raining, so we just dumped the contents of the piniata onto the carpet and let the kids go for it. We taped an image of a pokeball to a clear goodie bag and gave each child a bag. They loaded them with loot from the piniata. I'm glad we didn't have to smash up Pikachu after all. He was way too cute for that!

The party went over about 15 min, and then they all went home. AAAhhhhh. The perfect Pokemon Pikachu party!

Happy Birthday, Hunter!

The Winds of Change

2010-07-22T23:02:00.000-07:00

July 22, 2010

The winds blow a lot in Idaho. If I stand and face the wind and look up at the sky, it can take my breath away. The wind can pick up my large inflatable pool and hurl it into the air and up and over the roof of my house. Dead leaves and debris are swept up in a whoosh and spin in the air. My hair whips my face and tangles in knots. I feel dizzy watching the clouds waft by.

“The Jimmy” as James sometimes likes to refer to himself, decided to go on a bike ride to the lake the other night. He hasn’t ridden much this year. He felt glorious pumping his legs as the bike cruised to full speed. He had the wind at his back and nothing could stop him. He felt like he could ride on forever. He hit the lake and slowed into a U--turn to go back toward home. He immediately felt the strain on his legs as a stiff wind hit him in the face and made his hair lay flat back. He hadn’t realized how hard the wind was blowing as he was riding along with it. Now, as he faced the wind, his face turned red and the ride was becoming a great effort. He down shifted to the lowest gear and pushed ahead. He did not let the wind stop him, but it did whip him. He was beat when he got home. He walked in the door panting and red faced, beads of sweat trickling down his face. I was a little worried about the toll he had just taken on his out-of-shape body, but he recovered nicely and wasn’t even sore the next day.

I marveled at the strength of the winds he faced.

I feel the winds of change coming in my life. . . they seem to be picking up speed.

I caught myself playing the “this-is-the-last-summer-we-get-to-be-with-you” card on my up and coming senior, Alex, today as he argued reasons why he didn’t want to go on the family vacation. We are already down one child–Emily–who is helping my cousin for a month this summer.

It’s amazing the difference being down one child makes in a family. When Alex was at scout camp last week, we were down two children. Someone called and asked why the house sounded so quiet. “We are down to only three children,” I said.

They are coming. And I can’t stop them. If I stand against the winds of change they will gust against me. If I lean into them, they will bite into me, eventually forcing me to submit my will. But if I turn and open my sails to the winds, will I be carried gently along, or will I be hurled forward out of control reaching out to grasp something to hold on to?

I don’t know if I’m ready to start downsizing yet. I don’t know if I’m ready to turn 40 next month. I don’t know if I’m ready to have all of my children in school full time. I don’t know if I’m ready to watch “the Jimmy” color his graying hair.

ALL of these things are leaving me breathless–just like the wind.

Hunter

2010-07-18T19:42:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we took Hunter, Connor and Hannah to see The Sorcerer's Apprentice. During the opening scene, I leaned over to Hannah and said, "Oh great, a zombie movie, the boys will freak out!" The movie ended and I looked over at Hunter who was standing in the row with his hands spread out in front of him creating the perfect ball of lightening. He chucked the lightening at the screen and then produced another and another. Then he looked over at me with wide eyes and a huge grin and told me that he loved the movie!

In the lobby he told me that he wants to have a Sorcerer's Apprentice party for his 11th birthday. He's really planning ahead, since he's only turning 9 next month!

As I was dozing off last night at around 1:30 am (gotta love summer bed time), Hunter staggered in saying he was dreaming of zombies. I was so groggy that I pulled him into my bed with me. After a while I came to my senses and sent him back to bed. He was back 5 min later.

I pulled him over me and into the center of the bed where he slept soundly the rest of the night. He woke up giggling to himself which startled me awake and I thought he was having zombie night mares again. I patted and shushed him back to sleep.

We were late for 9:00 am church again.

Kamas Valley Fiesta Days 2010 Schedule

2010-07-15T18:28:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure why it is so difficult to find this online, but here it is for your convenience: The Kamas Valley Fiesta Days 2010 Schedule :)

http://www.kamascity.net/ for the city website and click on the Fiesta Days link in the left hand column,

or

get the actual schedule of events: the PDF copy

For Future Years, please visit http://www.kamascity.net/ and click on the Fiesta Days link.

Have fun! You know we will be!

3rd of July Madness at Bear Lake

2010-07-08T21:49:00.001-07:00

Even though we were headed to the airport the next day, we decided to head down to Bear Lake and celebrate our adorable little niece Phebe's 4th birthday.

Here are the highlights of our trip:

Scaring our new friends by playing SHARKS!Sand Castle Wars! (where everyone wins)

Romantic Get-a-ways (leaving the kids on the shore)

Teenagers who don't like getting their pictures taken!

Grannie!

Eating Oreos

Trying not to freeze to death!

The Birthday Girl!

Birds in Sync!

Relaxing!

That night we stayed in a condo which we almost got kicked out of for bringing our puppy! We also ate Bear Lake Raspberry shakes that were to die for! It was a great whirlwind of a time!

Girl's Camp June 2010

2010-07-08T21:44:00.002-07:00

I had a whole bunch of plans for the summer . . . but they changed once I was asked to be the assistant camp director for Girl’s Camp. Half of May and all of June became consumed with planning for camp. We took 6 Tues night activities and did crafts and practiced the skit for camp with the girls.

(The leaders. We had so much fun together!)

I loved working with the young women. Camp was a huge success!

More than half of my family went to camp. James came along to help set up tents, build fires, cook, and be a priesthood leader. Alex stayed home with Hunter and Connor and played Mr. Mom. He took the boys to their soccer practices and swimming lessons, made them beds on the living room couches, and never made them shower or change their clothes. Thank goodness they were able to wash off in the pool ;)

Highlights from camp were: Watching the skits (ours was really awesome), the theme: Be Loyal to the Royalty Within, spending time with the girls, testimony meeting, the beautiful hike, and the 100' slide.

(James had all of the girls in stitches)

It was amazing being out in God’s beautiful world. It was amazing being with the young women of our ward. I was blown away by their sheer goodness! It was amazing being with my incredible daughters (and Hubby) and watching them take on responsibilities.

Next year? Bring it on!

. . . updating . . .

2010-07-07T11:50:00.000-07:00

It is time. Time to update my blog. I have about 17 drafts that I need to write up and add pictures to and post. Life has been so crazy. And I have been living it. And not documenting it. It is coming :)

Quadruplet Craziness!

2010-07-01T11:32:00.000-07:00

I have done some pretty difficult things in my life like running an actual marathon when I was 19, having multiple root canals and giving birth 5 times. . .

But nothing compares to the energy and stamina required to entertain 5 children under the age of 2!

Emily and I had the great honor of "experiencing" the intricate, behind-the-scenes workings of caring for multiples--quadruplets to be exact, in addition to a new born baby!

It was literally a 24 hour job with a few cat naps thrown in for good measure.

As a guest, I was grateful for the 10 pm to 6 am nights of dead sleep. Mom and Dad were not so lucky. They were both up several times during the night soothing, shushing, cuddling, and feeding the 5 "babies." How they have survived these past two years? Let me tell you . .. They are AMAZING parents, that's how!

We took the quads in the RV to the San Diego Wild Animal Zoo. The main attraction at the zoo were the quads! People couldn't get enough of them. I never noticed the heards of wild deer or the lion lazing on top of a safari jeep. I didn't hear the toucans or notice the monkeys. My eyes were focused on 4 sets of little feet and the paths they took those little wild bodies!

We thought the train would be a calm relaxing experience. They would all be contained of course. Not so! It was all the 4 of us big people could do to keep their sippy cups and gold fish crackers from being hurled out of the train car. It took great strength to keep them in their seats. It was musical chairs on steroids!

Amber left me alone with the quads while she ran a very short errand. I thought, no problem. I can handle 4 toddlers for 30 min on my own!

I started them out with Popsicles. It was the only photo of them all together I could get. Then I quickly herded them to the bedroom and closed us in. We were having a great time giggling and playing with the toys until I noticed little Michael had something in his hands. It was two handfulls of tampons!!! I confiscated them and found the source and as I was taking care of that, I heard a scream. I turned around and found Anthony taking a big bite out of poor little Jaileigh who had gotten stuck with him in the tunnel tube! As I was soothing and distracting them, Amber came home. Phew! We survived!

My favorite part was rocking and singing them to sleep! What beautiful and sweet little people they are.

Emily was able to stay and help Amber for an entire month. It was a good experience for her and it will look great on her babysitting resume ;)

We will miss the quaddies and little Annie so much (Mike and Amber too)! We hope to "experience" them again soon!

Swimming Lessons--Finally!

2010-06-29T21:46:00.000-07:00

Swimming lessons in an outdoor pool in Idaho in June could be a little risky! Hypothermia, frost bite, chills. It has been known to snow in July.

The pool temp was turned up to 90 degrees to ease the bite of the breeze and the boys jumped in for their first swimming lessons.

Friends Katelyn, Damien, Hunter and Connor Hamming it up.

Hunter and Connor are natural fish in the water, and now they know some good techniques to go along with their doggy paddle and splish splashing.

We were late getting Hunter started in swimming lessons at 8 1/2, but he did great and easily advanced to the next level.

Connor at 6 1/2 did well too. I don't know if it's such a good idea having him in the same class with his brother and best friend, because each time the teacher would turn his head, Connor the shark would attack and try to dunk everyone! What a goof ball.

Now it's time to practice practice practice! Rigby Lake, here we come!

Chelsea's Shower

2010-06-05T21:44:00.000-07:00

I am so happy for my friend, Chelsea and her beautiful little baby BOY, Gunner!

Chelsea did not know what she was going to have, and her favorite color is GREEN, so we threw her a spring green baby shower (secretly, I thought she would have a girl).
Just look at Grannie looking at Chelsea, priceless!
It wasn't the easiest thing for Chelsea to get this little fella. She went through a rough patch, so that made the shower even more exciting. People were so generous and the gifts were piled up on the lawn!

It was the easiest shower I have ever helped with! I was in charge of hosting and helping to decorate. Of course the wind was up to no good and kept blowing the decorations away!

The food was prepared by my friends. Easy for me!

We had a great turn out and a great time, and now Chelsea has a GREAT baby!

Congrats Chelsea, you deserve it!

Hannah's BIG Haircut

2010-05-22T21:43:00.000-07:00

When your teenager comes to you a little before midnight begging you to cut her hair (after much agonizing debate with herself), you jump on the opportunity. . . especially if said teenager doesn't normally ask you for your help.

You may even consider it a bonding opportunity.

Just be cautious that in the middle of cutting her hair, she may change her mind and have a melt down, and when you get half way through you realize you are in way over your head and that the easy loooking style on youtube isn't quite as easy as it seems.

And if that happens, just have everyone take a deep breath and calm down and realize that there are no beauticians open at that hour in Rural Idaho and you will just have to make do.

Then once you REGROUP, you can finish the job to the best of your ability, and then everyone will be all smiles and you can go to bed!

Hannah really looks adorable with her new cut! She has donated her hair twice in the past to locks of love and is holding on to this lock for a little while until she decides what to do with it.

Hunter's 2nd Grade Play

2010-05-21T21:42:00.000-07:00

Hunter was a very cute bumble bee at his 2nd grade play. He buzzed around the room acting more like a rabid bee than anything else :) Since Connor only went to kindergarted Tues, Thurs, and every other Friday, he was available to go to the play with me. I'll miss my little buddy next year when he will be gone all day every day.
Silly Brothers!

The Wonderful Mrs. Stewart and the Amazing Hunter Bee

Ah, my darling boy, how I love you so!

Hunter had a great year. He had a wonderful teacher who encouraged and helped him to soar!

Mother's Day 2010

2010-05-09T21:41:00.000-07:00

It is a privilege and honor to be a mother to these 5 vibrant and amazing children!

Connor

Alex

Emily

Hannah

Hunter

Our New Baby Girl

2010-05-05T21:42:00.000-07:00

Our family just didn't feel complete. We were missing something. We never knew what it was

until we adopted . . .

our new 3 year old Pomeranian--Pug; Baby Girl!

She came into our home and melted our hearts.

I watch the kids kiss her and let her lick their feet. They giggle and tell her that they love her. She crawls to the bottom of their covers and cuddles up with them for the night.

Like a puzzle piece, Baby Girl fit in perfectly with our family.

We never knew that being dog owners would bring us so much joy. James and I seriously did not think we would like it. Even James has a soft spot for her. He got caught today sharing a bit of his snow cone with her.

And well, everyone knows who Baby Girl loves best!

Men and Mother's Day Frames

2010-04-30T11:51:00.000-07:00

The best gifts are gifts of love, and the guys that James works with know all about that!

I was invited to be a guest teacher for a brown bag forum for Mother's Day at James' office. I thought long and hard about the project the men would be creating and presenting to their wives on that delicate holiday. The project would need to be simple yet sophisticated and most importantly, fool proof and of course, cheap.

The plan was almost perfect . . . until I asked the men to pick an accent color for the flowers. I was hoping they would pick a color their wives would love such as a color found in the accents in their homes, or even their favorite color.
James warned me to limit them to a few good choices. But I had faith in the men. After the men came up with 25 different color choices including; peach, tan, sea green, mauve, 4 shades of blue, etc, I knew I should have listened to James. I mean, who wants TAN flowers? They were told to choose a color found in their homes. I guess they were looking at the walls or something! Silly Men!

Some of the men were very ambitious and made more than one frame. I was very impressed with how well they did. So were their wives! Way to impress, men!

A Good Deed Unpunished?

2010-04-17T00:35:00.000-07:00

Today I am shocked and amazed!

A good deed went unpunished (see previous posts).

I rescued a play cast member's costume and sacrificed making dinner for my family.

I took tickets to the show to a friend.

She asked me if I had eaten. I hadn't.

She asked me if my family had eaten. I said no, and like a baby, a lump formed in my throat. I swallowed it because I didn't want her to think I was pathetic. We do have peanut butter in our cupboards for just such an occasion (and many others), after all.

But I was off to a girl's camp meeting and knew I wouldn't even have time for peanut butter.

Her house smelled like heaven and my stomach grumbled. She wants to own a restaurant someday.

She said she made way too much and would I please take some of it home.
I beamed.

I let myself cry on the way home. Then it hit me. . . A good deed went unpunished. And I thanked the Guy Upstairs.

Tomorrow I will have a new attitude :)

My Son, the Star

2010-04-16T23:21:00.000-07:00

I never imagined how wonderful it would be to have a high schooler.

(Beauty and the Beast RHS--The set and costumes were A-mazing!)

I never imagined that seeing my son in a school play would thrill me so.

(Alex was a giant spoon, the book seller, a wolf, and a towns person)

I never imagined that watching a bunch of teenagers act out a play could give me goose bumps, make my eyes sting and cause a lump to form in my throat.

(and he was a goof ball who perfected the dry ice effect)

Alex was a bright, shining star on stage tonight, and my heart is swelled to twice its normal size.

Not even Broadway could have done Beauty and The Beast better (Proud Mom's are allowed to be a little biased).

I sat on the front row and for a moment remembered what it was like to have been on stage myself when I was his age, singing and acting my lungs out.

Tonight, for a moment, I relived high school.

And it was awesome.

(I was also told by Chip's character that I looked way too young to be Alex's mom!)

Icing!

How Can I Despair?

2010-04-13T09:48:00.001-07:00

I woke up to snow this morning . . . but how can I despair when I see such a miraculous shade of green peeping up through the white?

Nothing can stop spring from making her triumphant entry. Not even a little snow.

So, Yesterday at Dinner . . .

2010-04-10T09:03:00.000-07:00

Hannah said "Mom's remedies for everything: If you're hungry--drink water; if you have a sore throat--gargle with salt water; if you don't feel well, take a shower."

I laughed a little, but then had a strange feeling that that's what they are going to say about me after I''m dead . . . dear old mom used to always say . . .

My Text to James Today . . .

2010-04-09T14:14:00.000-07:00

My text to James today:

still have headache. took more drugs. sipping tea and nibbling crackers.

reading blogs in bed.

made 3 tier cardboard cake with Connor.

Connor left with Damien.

back to bed.

debating getting up to tidy.

deciding to stay in bed.

know where camera is?

March 25, Pinewood Derby

2010-04-09T14:12:00.001-07:00

There is nothing cuter in this world than a little 8 year old cub scout and his pinewood derby car!

Hunter helped his daddy build this green car with the sparkly golden eagle embossed on the hood for speed!

Thankfully the race was not about speed because the "Green Machine" was a tad on the slow side.

Hunter's two biggest fans: James and Connor

Hunter getting "the Green Machine" award.

Alex's Antics PI Day March 14

2010-04-09T14:11:00.000-07:00

It's 11 PM and Alex announces that tomorrow is PI day so he needs to bake a PIE.
Somewhat exasperated I tell him that it has to bake for an hour. Of course he doesn't mind. What's sleep when you get to eat pie the next day? I give him the directions and he heads to the kitchen to look for my tattered recipe for Betty Crocker's famous pie crust.

After about 20 minutes I want to smack myself in the head. I have a light bulb moment; I could be spending precious time with my son teaching him one of the few things I actually do well. I wonder why I am sometimes slow to get these important instant messages from above?

I jump up and head to the kitchen to find Alex handling a giant flour and shortening LUMP.
The lump immediately goes into the trash can and we start over making the thinnest, most tender crust possible. We fill the soft crust with home made pie filling from our very own trees, bottled in the past fall.

(I'm not a fan of my son being shirtless with his underwear showing, buy hey, it's nearly midnight!)

Then Alex goes to work carving pi into the pie.

The class pigged out on about 20 pies to celebrate "PI Day" 3-14 (March 14).

Onto other antics. . .

Alex Loves to eat gummies. Gummy worms, gummy bears, gummy pizza, you name it! He'd probably eat gummy ice cream if there were such a thing. So why not make your own?

You can find tutorials on anything on the internet. I know this because Alex lives for tutorials!

Improvised double broiler

Check out Alex posing in the background. What a goof ball!

They kept burning each other. I was laughing!

Gummy sheet layers?

The finished product. Very strange. Somewhat like jello jigglers, and somewhat like gummies.

Sadly, Alex didn't like them very much and so the rest of us had to eat them all!

End of story.

March 17, St. Patty's Day with Luke Liam and Phebe

2010-04-09T14:09:00.002-07:00

Do a Good deed Every Day--It's my motto, after all.

My other Motto is: No Good Deed Goes Unpunished (maybe I should stop saying that).

So My mom is supposed to take care of my brother's kids while his wife goes on a little vacation to visit her sister. But Mom decides to move up her knee-replacement surgery.

Dilemma.

It's Super Me to the rescue! I volunteer to watch the kiddos and promise to drop them off in Logan, UT on my way to take care of my mom after her surgery. I suppose I didn't quite know what I was in for.

I drive 90 miles and pick up the kids and head home. It's getting late. Time to put the toys away. Little Sweet Phebe Chucks a toy at me and screams! I'm in shock and don't quite know how to respond. Uh, what did I do when my kids were 3? It wasn't that long ago, was it? Ah, yes, time-out. Chaos reigns, but we finally get everyone happily to sleep.

The next day is Alex's birthday, and as we sing the happy birthday song, Little Luke throws up. I check on Phebe and she has thrown up on the couch!

With buckets and kids strategically placed, we survive the day.

The next day goes much more smoothly! It St. Pat's Day, so we dress in green and eat green deviled eggs. The filling looks like yummy, creamy green frosting. The kids can't stomach it. They eat the egg whites all around the filling. I laugh when I see a tiny white bit of egg and a lump of green goo on top.

I paint Phebe's tiny fingernails and toenails bright green. She giggles.

We head to the park which is a field of ice and MUD. The kids have buckets and have a marvelous time digging in the mud and slopping it into their buckets. I chase them around the ancient and very not-to-code playground set for a tiny bit of exercise.

It's ice cream time, then time to drive 90 min to take them home. I give them all kisses and hugs and hope they only remember the good times at our house ;)

A couple of days later I get a text on my cell from Liam. "I love you, Aunt Sunny!" My heart melts and I text right back, "I love you too, Liam!"

It makes it all worth it! Come again soon, little ones!

3 Amazing March Birthdays

2010-04-09T14:09:00.001-07:00

{Earliest digital Photo of Alex, age 8}

Happy Birthday, Alex!

March 16, 17 years old

You are my brainy, child who loves doing huge projects usually involving electricity and wire. You are not afraid to help rid the house of rodents by zapping them to death with a home made taser. You exude confidence and are funny. You are a good friend. You always stick up for Mom! You have a terrific bass voice and love to act. You drive me crazy by responding in one word answers. You have been a joy to watch grow up! I love you!

Alex: I don't want anyone to know when my birthday is.

Mom: I know why!

Alex: Why?

Mom: Because you get more attention that way.

Alex: You guessed it!

Mom (thinking): I'm going to throw him a royal surprise party! Mwahahahahah

Mom: Steals Alex's phone and texts his entire contact list--not knowing that many of the people had only met him once--a long time ago, or had moved away to college! Alex sees Mom's number on friend's cell phones. Mom has to make up excuses.

Mom conspires with girlfriend for distraction.

Alex practically lights tablecloth on fire while lighting match on fly zipper.

Mom: Note to self: Alex doesn't like cookie cakes anymore. Ask before you bake it and hide it in the freezer and then have to make a regular cake on his actual birthday.

Family Tradition: Breakfast and presents in bed.

{endure terrible photos with bedhead and poor lighting each year}

Mom: Alex, What do you want for birthday breakfast?

Alex: STEAK AND GUMMIES!!!!!

Most memorable birthday moment: Little Luke hurling during the birthday song.

{Earliest Digital Photo of Hannah, 5 years old}

Happy Birthday Little Miss Hannah!

March 18, 14 years old

Hannah, you are a loyal friend. You have an amazing relationship with your dad! You love to quote Brian Regan. You are a perfectionist down to stacking the cups in ROYGBIV order. You are sensitive and very smart! You are way too hard on yourself. You insist on doing things your way. And, you are Wonderful and I love that you are my daughter!

Hannah had a fun party the weekend before her birthday with Mikaela and Courtney watching Avatar and eating fries and shakes and ice cream pie at Red Robin.

A Chocolate ice cream cake to DIE for!

{earliest digital photo of Emily at 3 years Old}

Happy Birthday Little Miss Emily!

March 24, 12 years old

Emily, you are 12 and FINALLY in Young Women! What will this year of changes hold for you? Get ready to ride on the roller coaster of emotions! Your best buds are boys--that saves a lot on the emotional warfare department! Trading in the training bra for the real thing! Late night talks with Mom. You love fiercely and get bitterly angry. You charm everyone and you have the heart of a lion! I love you so much! Have a terrific year!

Emily's clever book cake. The cake I made and froze for Emily I accidentally decorated and served Alex on his birthday, so I had to quickly make another one for Em. I cut a sheet cake in half and stacked it, but when I put it on the cake plate, it sagged in the middle!!! What to do? Turn it into a BOOK! ;)

Breakfast, Presents, and siblings in bed! (Alex had already left for zero hour seminary)

Emily and her boy pals Connor, Tim, Chance and Hunter.

Emily had a fun movie party with Tim and Sarena. We saw How to Train Your Dragon in 3D then went to the Mongolian Grill for dinner.

Valentine's Day 2010

2010-04-08T08:49:00.000-07:00

Now that March is finally over, I can update my blog! When March comes in like a Lion (like it does EVERY year), I hold my breath and dive in. It is always packed with one adventure after another.

Every year we hold a very special Valentine dinner. Some day when I have my dream home, I will be able to invite EVERYONE that I want to, but since my house is on the smallish size, we had to keep our numbers to 10, and that was a stretch!

We had to forgo the dining room "area" and opted instead for the living room. We threw two tables together, and I decorated it like it was a grand dining hall!

James had grand, romantic dreams himself of the men giving the women a special well-thought gift. It didn't turn out exactly as he had invisioned. Not sure exactly what happened there, but there was a $10 limit that made everyone's eyebrows raise. Some because it was too much and some because it was too little. So, James was the only one to present his gift. In front of everyone, he pulled out a giant pink fluffy heart pillow from behind his back and handed it to me. ROMANTIC! I love it!

The men put the menu together and serve the women. And they do the dishes. It was heaven!

Cody brought the appetizers; shrimp coctail and bacon wrapped pickles.

James made a Waldorf salad. K, I was impressed here. How do 5 men know what a waldorf salad even is?

Eric made a fabulous lasagna.

Ken made homemade cressent rolls and his amazing raspberry chocolate cake.

Tim brought an eclaire cake.

After dinner and dishes were through, we played my favorite game: Catch Phrase until our butts were sore from sitting in the hard chairs.

It was a great and fun night. Way to go Men!!!

March 23, 2010 10-year Colonoscopy

2010-03-31T00:58:00.001-07:00

Today I took my dad for his 10-year colonoscopy. I had to get up early. It has been a long time since my eyes have seen 5:30. I was so nervous about over-sleeping and making Dad miss that special appointment, that I dreamed I dropped him off at 7-11 and then went thrift store shopping and was an hour late picking him up for the hospital. He was waiting and waiting for me in the early morning darkness on the street outside of 7-11. I love going thrift store shopping-- but not at 5:30 in the morning-- and not when I am supposed to be taking Dad to the hospital for his colonoscopy. It was a nightmare that made 5:30 AM not seem so bad.

We left Mom convalescing in her bed with her walker near by and walked out the door into the early snowy morn. I took along a book and expected to finish it while I waited in the quiet, tidy lobby of the hospital. But Dad loves to talk. He talked to the cleaning lady who was the only person visible at 6:45 AM. He talked to the doctors and nurses who quickly and quietly padded by. He talked a lot to the lady at the registration desk when she finally made an appearance at 7:15. And he talked to the nurse as she guided us back to the prep room.

I stood outside the tiny curtained room as dad changed into his gown. His words paused briefly as he changed. I entered the room and felt my face flush at the sight of cheeks peeking out of the back of a gown.

Once on the gurney, Dad talked some more.

The doctor moseyed in after a call from the nurse and then Dad was peacefully sleeping as he rolled out to the procedure room.

I quickly pulled out a prepackaged muffin that was stashed in my purse and gobbled it down. I didn't want to offend Dad earlier by eating it in front of him after his 24 hour liquid diet and fast. I texted Mom and let her know what was going on. I pulled out my book and read ½ page—then after 18 minutes, Dad was back! Sleeping peacefully. But talking. I don't know how that was possible, but his eyes were closed and he was talking to me!

Then the bubbles started. Long strands of air bubbles came rumbling out of my dad. I squeezed my eyes shut to stop from laughing. My dad was never one to laugh about such things. It was just a natural part of life.

I remembered rumblings from a life time ago. My brothers and sisters and I would roll on the floor with laughter when we were kids and Mom would surprise us with a bazooka blast. She would die laughing too.

I remembered my own procedure last year when they put a scope down my throat into my stomach. I woke up belching and shocked at my inability to control myself. I told Dad that story as he was drifting off to sleep 19 minutes ago. He mused. Now he made a reference to his own air bubbles. I was surprised and impressed that he acknowledged them. We laughed.

Upon checkout Dad was warned not to use heavy equipment or drive a vehicle. I told him that would include his electric saw. He was disappointed.

I thought he would take it easy when we got home. I was wrong. He was back to his usual self—almost. He didn't use his power tools (that I saw).

It's an unusual and humbling experience taking care of your aging parents. I didn't expect to see it come so quickly. Two years and 3,000 miles ago, I wouldn't have been blessed enough to have been here to help. I'm grateful once again for the miracle that brought us here—even though it didn't seem much like a miracle then.

Love Is STILL In The Air

2010-03-20T22:34:00.000-07:00

I witnessed the most incredible thing tonight.

I'm here in Utah taking care of my mom who underwent knee replacement surgery 10 days ago.

She is amazing. It's really difficult for her to be the patient. She has been waiting on her 9 children for a thousand years (it seems).

I'm lying on the bed next to her watching TV and she apologizes a hundred times for getting in my way as she turns this way and that way trying to get more comfortable. I unwind the tangled sheets from her legs and laugh and tell her it's easier for me to move around her.

She asks me in a dry cracked voice if I want some tea. I say that I do, and she tells me that she'll get it for me. I laugh imagining her balancing a tea cup on her walker, and tell her that I will get it. While I'm getting myself some tea, I get this brilliant idea to text her and ask her if she would like me to bring her some too. She texts me back and says, "that would be delightful, how about strawberry."

. . . the lessons of charity I have learned from my mother . . .

So earlier in the day, she hobbled--old person style-- to the living room with her walker; rolling the wheels and sliding the tennis balls along.

Dad was in and out of the room nursing is own ailment: shingles-- the news of which bringing Mom to tears just days before.

I was passing time sewing scripture bags at the dining room table.

Suze Orman was on TV deciding some one's financial fate: should a man spend $40,000 on a 10-year anniversary ring for his wife, or not?

Of course we were commenting. Dad asked if Mom would like a $40K ring. Mom scoffed and said Dad wouldn't get her a $100 ring.

{Mom's ring lost it's diamond many, many years ago. It has never been replaced}

Between snips of thread, I yell out, "Dad--you need to get your wife a new ring!"

Dad moseys out of the room as Mom and I continue to chatter about this $40K ring. Dad comes around into the kitchen to ask me about the rings with three diamonds. Oh! I tell him how much

I love those Past Present and Future rings.

Dad gets a far away look in his eye as he repeats, "Past, Present, Future."

The sewing machine is really humming now.

I look up and Dad is kneeling beside Mom.

He asks her if she would like a new ring and pulls out a box.

I jump up and run over there in awe and disbelief.

Dad pulls out this BE U Tiful 3 diamond, platinum, Past, Present, and Future ring!

He had been mighty illusive this morning when I asked him why he needed to go to Salt Lake. Being self absorbed, like I am, I assumed it was to buy my kids something for their birthdays.

It was amazingly, brilliantly baffling. I have never seem him so romantic before!

The timing couldn't have been more coincidental, yet it was as though time and space had aligned for this very moment!

It was a beautiful moment. One that I will treasure being a part of always.

Congratulations Mom and Dad on your Love enduring the Past, Present, and Future!

Important Accomplishments

2010-03-08T22:37:00.000-08:00

As I sit thinking about my day, I find myself disappointed. I wonder where the day went and why I seem to have accomplished nothing.

The house is a wreck.

The dryer is dead again, so no Monday laundry got done.

I only got some of the bills paid

I forgot to drop off the Karate payment. Again.

Oh, and those phone calls I was really going to make today did not happen.

A lot of sweets made it into my mouth.

I didn't do a lick of exercise.

Wow.

I seem like a real failure today.

So what really could have taken up so much time?

My mind sifts back through the events of the day. . .

I took my teenage daughter to the doctor's office today. She was feeling especially vulnerable to motherly affection. I took advantage. I picked up some Chinese food and a couple of chick flicks along with her prescriptions.

At home, we bypassed the sink full of dishes and stepped over a pile of toys on the way to watch our movie.

We made ourselves sundaes and pigged out as we cried through the rest of our movie.

Later I remembered {ahead of time} that Connor was assigned the treat for Family Home Evening so I made a special trip to the grocery just for the {frivolous} ingredients.

We giggled as we made dirt pudding with gummy worms.

Hunter came home and begged me to play Life with him. Dang that game is long!

Mr. Moore came home humming his latest download. He wanted to share it with me, and we found ourselves dancing in the bedroom. {Who are these people} The kids soon joined us and we spun them around until they were dizzy.

Dinner was PB and Js.

FHE was fun time spent together, then we watched Castle with toys and messes strewn everywhere.

When I look back, I realize that I did work hard today. I worked on my most important job--my job as a mother.

Nothing is more important that that!

A Moore Typical Morning

2010-03-05T08:15:00.002-08:00

Emily has been having migraines. Yesterday she was vomiting into a bucket as she rested in my bed. Then she ate in my bed when the migraine passed. I went to bed that night so tired that all I did was turn over my pillow and flop down anyway.

She is getting ready to become a woman. I became a woman two weeks before I turned 12. She will be 12 in three. It is emotional warfare in our house right now.

This morning, I complement Hunter on his very first phone message written for me in 8 year-old handwriting. Emily shoves her cereal away and starts crying and says she's not going to eat any more. She yells that I never tell her that she did a good job writing a message for me.

Emotional Warfare.

Hannah is hacking and feverish beside me on the couch. I forgo the rule of no eating cereal in the living room. She'll miss school today. She is hallucinating and is having trouble distinguishing between dreams and reality.

Alex went out to see the premier of Alice in Wonderland at midnight and got only 4 hours of sleep on a school night. It takes a bulldozer to get him off the couch and into the shower.

The boys get carried away and distracted from getting ready for school, and I find them playing Legos in their underwear for the third time, 10 minutes before the tardy bell.

James is searching high and low for his ipod which I just saw in his hand five minutes before. At least he has his keys. He attached a huge new garage door opener to them. He won't have a chance of misplacing those any time soon.

I wait for the chaos to end before I drag myself away from the morning news shows.

When the kids get home from school, they will do doubt find me in the exact same place as I take a breather from cleaning and sanitizing the entire house, laundry, running errands, and cleaning someone else's house. They may wonder if I did anything at all today.

Somehow they don't seem to notice the fresh, clean house as they crash through the door trailing backpacks, papers, boots, gloves, and shoes behind them. They will empty the entire contents of the kitchen cupboards and refrigerator onto the counters.

It's a typical day in the Moore house and I love every single minute of it.

Photo Valentines with Roses and Pencils

2010-02-10T16:06:00.000-08:00

We finally got the Valentines together! The hardest part--getting the boys to write ALL of the names themselves!

K-don't let your eyes fool you! These are photos of the boys holding out their fists. Then we developed the pictures and cut slits above and below their fists. We then slid pencils or rose pens through the slits.

The original idea was to use suckers in their hands. The slits can be smaller and the cards lie flatter with suckers, but I wanted to be a little more original {not to mention sugar-free}, so we used pencils. The holes had to be bigger, and they bend a bit, but overall I love them!

The teachers are special, so we attached a rose to a pen with floral tape and it looks like the boys are handing their teachers a rose. So much fun!!!

I LOVE my little Valentines

2010-02-06T19:39:00.000-08:00

I found the funnest idea for Valentines on the web that required a photo shoot for the Valentine givers. I'll post pics of the Valentines once they are finished.

These two little buddies usually get along really well. They are great brothers and they have so much fun together (unlike today when I wanted to send them to the zoo!) My wish for them is to have this great relationship through out their entire lives!

In LOVE with Cherry Almond Bars

2010-02-06T19:25:00.000-08:00

If you make this recipe for the ones you love this Valentine's Day, you will have a house full of happy loved ones :)

(I'm going to have to make some of these again and post pics)

Cheery Cherry Almond Bars

1 C butter,
4 eggs
1 teasp almond extract
1 can cherry pie filling
2 C sugar
3 C flour,
1 teasp. vanilla

Cream butter, sugar and eggs. Add almond and vanilla. Add flour. Spread 3/4 of the batter on an ungreased jelly roll pan. Drop pie filling in blobs all over the batter. Drop the rest of the batter in blobs all over the pie filling. Do not mix. Bake at 350 for 40-45 min. Cool completely. Drizzle with glaze.

Glaze:
1/2 tsp almond ex
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 C powd. sugar
2 Tablesp warm water

ENJOY <3

LOVE for Haiti and the World

2010-02-06T10:10:00.000-08:00

Have you taken the time and effort yet to send Haiti some love? I promise it won't take much . . . time, effort, or money . . . but if we all get on board, we can make a difference.

I was reading through my google reader and found a post from Kelly of My happy little life. It's her 32nd birthday, and she wants to make a difference. Check out what she is giving the world for her birthday. Inspirational!!!

In deciding how to help, she considered Haiti, and this is what she had to say:

"The best way to help the Haitian effort is with money.

From an msnbc article: 'when people give $1, it translates into $7 in the field," he said. 'if they spend $5 for bottled water, that’s nice and it makes them feel good, but probably it costs us more than $5 to send it. if they give us $5, we can get $35 worth of water.'

So if you are inclined to give financially, rather than making/ shopping for something for the newborn kits, i would encourage you to donate the money toward the haitian efforts by texting "haiti" to 90999, which will charge $10 to your phone bill and be given to the relief funds, or online through the lds humanitarian emergency response fund here. you can see what they are using the donations for here. "

So, I took her advice and texted my $10 to Haiti, and now I feel a tiny part of the enormous relief effort. I am also sending her a baby blanket to help with her birthday service project.

Each of us can improve a tiny part of our world each day. Whether it's a $10 donation to help Haiti, or a smile for someone you pass by in the grocery store, we can make a difference. I am committed to helping someone in need every day! As a reminder, I am going to put this note in my sidebar Have I done any Good in the World Today? I encourage you to help make the world a better place by tiny daily efforts in your own neck of the woods ! :)

February in LOVE

2010-02-04T13:24:00.000-08:00

I love February!!!! I am so happy to see cold, blue January go, and of course, it's one month closer to SPRING!!! Not to mention that it's full of everything pink and LOVE-RLY!

There are winter storm warnings all over the country, but not even that can deflate this tingle I feel inside. All is right with the world, and Love abounds!

Happy February! <3 <3 <3

Connor

2010-01-24T13:38:00.000-08:00

Connor was very restless in church today. He couldn't seem to sit still.

He reached over and started playing with my necklace; a long chain with sparkly beads and baubles on it.

He thought about that chain for a while.

Then he said, "A chain is INVINCIBLE!"

I whispered, "No it's not" Leaving it at that for the moment, not wanting to disturb the people in front of us with details about the inadequacies of chains.

After pausing for consideration, Connor said with his cute little lisp, "Unless you use a CHAIN SAW!"

My shoulders shook as I giggled inside. Then I grabbed Connor's Santa shaped notepad and his new glittery red pen and wrote down his little words so I could document them.

Connor Can't Sleep

2010-01-20T01:12:00.000-08:00

Connor is typically my sleepy head. He loves to sleep-in in the mornings. Consequently, he tends to stay up late at night with difficulty falling asleep {hmmm. wonder where he gets that--don't even look at what time I'm posting this}.

We usually see Connor several times out of bed after he's been tucked in. He's hot, or thirsty, or itchy, or just can't sleep.

Daddy wasn't feeling well tonight and really needed his own sleep and so scolded Connor the third time he tried to come into our room.

Mama smoothed things over and sent him off to bed. A few minutes later I thought I could hear a little mouse outside of my door. I waited and then crept quietly to my door. When I looked down, I saw this little note tucked under the crack beneath the door. Now, how can you get angry at a little kindergartner who can write like that? I love the emphasis of the periods after each word.

What this little guy needs is some TLC from his Mama. We changed his PJs to cool cotton and turned his soft classical music on again and tucked Mr. Teddy Bear in on one side and tattered portion of a blanket on the other and like a magic wand leaving sparkles in its wake, sleep overcomes him. zzzzzzzzzzzz

Big brother is not as convincing, but still just as cute! I love these little guys. I can't believe how quickly they are growing up before my eyes.

I will treasure this note forever.

Sadie's Wedding

2010-01-20T00:41:00.001-08:00

My sister, Sadie made the most beautiful Princess Bride! Here she is with our little beautiful niece, Phebe, and her puppy Pearl.

The wedding and reception were held at the Castle in Layton, UT.

Here are Sadie and her Bride's Maids; Our Cousin, Christan, sister Sallie, and Sis Shirlee, with little Phebe.

Connor was the little ring bearer. He did such a great job. He knew how important it was to be very careful with the diamonds!

Luke and Liam got to follow Connor. They stole the show! They were so funny!

Sadie asked me to make her cake. I was a little {a LOT} overwhelmed since it's been several years since I made a wedding cake. It really took it all out of me making this cake. I begged James to never let me make another one during the excruciating process . . . then I see the end result and sigh and say ...well maybe I could do it again. I know why wedding cakes are so expensive--you almost kill yourself each time you make one!

The cake looked huge until I put the flowers on it.

I am very grateful for flowers and for the flaws they hide ;) I don't mind showing y'all though because I always like to keep things real (don't even think about clicking to enlarge that photo).

James was the man behind the camera. He caught some very funny moments on film (can you still say film if it's digital?)

Alex looked very dashing in his tux, but was too shy to ask his "hot" cousins to dance. I told him that that is the best because there is no worry of commitment. He didn't care. He watched a movie on James' ipod in stead (wimp).

Connor, on the other hand, is the Ladies man! He found his little princess at the castle and they were tearing up the dance floor! They also threw rose petals in the fountain. Hope that wasn't a bad thing. He was so adorable!

It was a beautiful wedding. It gave me the opportunity to reflect upon my own wedding and how very spectacular and amazing it was. There was absolutely not one artificial thing in my castle, and although we couldn't have spent more than $1500, it was more precious than gold.

The covenants and promises that James and I made with God are binding on earth and in Heaven forever. I am so grateful for the choice I made 18 years ago to be married to my sweetheart in the Salt Lake Temple for time and all Eternity.

New Year's Eve

2010-01-20T00:28:00.000-08:00

We love spending time with my parent's over the holidays, but it gets too crazy around Christmas, so we have begun a tradition of spending New Year's Eve with them.

Ever since I was a little girl, my mom has made cheese fondue for NYE. The tradition continued with her and whoever happened to be home at the time, even after we moved away and could no longer celebrate with them. So it is a special treat that we are able to enjoy this tradition once again!

One of the greatest inventions know to wo-man was found a couple of years ago: the Chocolate Fountain!!! It really is any woman's dream come true!

It turns out that it is every CHILD'S dream come true too! This is my little nephew, Luke who also happened to be celebrating with us {with his Dad, brother and sister, too}

There is nothing better than cheese and chocolate fondue on New Year's Eve with people you love. It just doesn't get much better than that!

And there is one that I really LOVE--My new little red head nephew, Bodie! He is such a yummy baby and you'll never guess who got his very first laugh out of him--ME!

Sadie's New Year's Bridal Shower

2010-01-19T23:23:00.001-08:00

As you know, I love any excuse to throw a party! So when my mom got roped into doing my sister, Sadie's Bridal Shower, I immediately took over {trust me, she and my other sisters were overjoyed, and so was I}!
Sadie is the sister who is most like me in that we both love glammy-girly-crafty-hand-made sorts of things. I knew she would love what I had planned for her!!!
I immediately tied this New Year's Shower Party Hat on her as soon as she walked in the door. I made it by cutting a 12 by 12 sheet of paper into a half circle (minus a thin pie slice). I backed it with a piece of poster board cut in the same shape for stability. Then I hot glued a feather boa to the top and bottom. I cut out a word plate with my Cricut and wrote "Bride" in purple glitter letters. Added some stickers for bling factor, and WHAMO! You couldn't miss the Bride!

Hannah was trying so hard to be a part of it all, but she had just made a goal to read 100 books this year and she felt compelled to work on it at that very moment.

Sadie's colors were red and purple. She picked the perfect time of year with Valentine's Day stuff hitting the shelves!

I used my Cricut again and cut out this fun garland. I'm sure Sadie has it up in her little house somewhere. She LOVED it!

These little gift bags were created with my Cricut as well {The poor Cricut was going hoppin' crazy! I'm so happy that I got it for Christmas}. I punched a scalloped circle and put it under a circle with A and S for Andre and Sadie. The of course, lined it with red boa. This was fun, but I'm still finding feathers floating all over my craft room! We put chocolate truffles in the bags.

Ah, yes, the Martha Stewart Tissue Paper Pom Poms. I really love these things. Although the photos don't do them justice, they are beautiful, inexpensive, and easy to make. A great addition to any party! {Beware, if you don't take them down and dispose of them, you may find them hanging in the same place years later ;)

We had the yummiest food at the Shower! We had just begun the food when the guests started to arrive!!! Not very good timing on our part. It's a good thing we had fun games to distract the hungry guests and lots of helping hands in the kitchen!

We made chicken salad sandwiches on crescent rolls, a veggie tray and dip, a tray of chocolates, punch, and artichoke dip with bruchetta. For dessert, we had my cherry almond bars. So yummy!

The games were a real blast. I found some fun ideas on the WWW. We started with My Wedding Ring which is a spin off of the clothes pin game. I found Christmas ornaments that look like diamond jewels on clearance at Target. They had holes through them, so I strung some yarn through the holes and made them into necklaces. No one could say the bride or groom's names or they lost their necklace. It was hilarious!

That game was played throughout the entire shower. While guests were arriving, we played How Old Is the Bride. We displayed several photos of Sadie at different ages, and they had to guess how old she was in the photo. Not the most exciting, but it helped break the ice and could be done in stages as guests arrived.

I love How Well Does the Bride Know the Groom with Gum. It is so funny but since the groom is from Chili there was a crazy language barrier when I was asking him the questions. That alone made me laugh!

What was she Wearing was a big hit! I really hate those lame memory games, but this is a fun spin on those.

We passed around a little scrapbook for people to write advice for Sadie and Andre then Sadie read all of the advice out loud.

Then she opened gifts and the party was over.

I think everyone had a great time especially Sadie!

Christmas 2009

2010-01-19T22:48:00.001-08:00

Another quirky Moore Family tradition: The children are not allowed to see what Santa brought until I get a photo of them in a stack peeking around the door {do you think they will ever be too old for this}. Happy little boys!

I have to be honest with you, I was not excited for Christmas this year. I tend to have a problem with general Grinchiness around the holidays. I'm not sure why. It may be that I try to do too much. After all, isn't that what the holidays are for? Over indulging, Over spending, Over doing?

This year was no different--other than medically regulated hormones. It began with me dreading the trip home from Thanksgiving thinking of having to pull out all of that STUFF! Ugh! I decided to wait an extra week from our usual Monday after Thanksgiving FHE ritual of setting up the tree. I announced my new plan to my family, and what do you know? They were all of the sudden determined to hold up our old family traditions and they did not like my idea.

So, I sat and watched as they put up the tree and decorated it. When asked my opinion of how the lights looked, or if I cared that half of the lights were out on the bottom of the tree, or if I cared that one strand of white lights were replaced by neon lights, or where certain ornaments should be placed, I lamely said, "I don't care (and thought, "bah humbug")." I would later come to regret my lack of help in the tree decorating department, although I think this was the first year the tree didn't tip over. It goes to show that I like to put the heavy baubles to the outer viewing side of the tree, and the kid's precious paper ornaments to the inner "non-viewing" side of the tree, thus greatly unbalancing it.

Then something started happening to me . . . just like something started happening to the Grinch standing a top a snowy hill . . .

"And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow,

stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons.

It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags.

And he puzzled and puzzled 'til his puzzler was sore.

Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before.

What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store.

What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more."

I stopped stressing out about Christmas, and just started enjoying it {until I started enjoying it a little too much and I had to reign myself in}.

Overall it was a wonderful season full of love, giving, and service. Some of Christ's most treasured gifts!

Christmas Eve 2009

2010-01-19T21:14:00.001-08:00

We have a family tradition of having a very special party on Christmas Eve. It's the time when we focus on the true meaning of Christmas and the gifts of the Savior. We get together with close friends and act out the Nativity, eat yummy food, feed Santa cookies and his reindeer oats and veggie wreaths (okay, maybe that part isn't the "real" meaning of Christmas, but it must be done) and end the party early to get ready for our long winter's nap. It's a great time. I was beginning to feel overwhelmed by this point, so I wanted to keep the party small. We weren't sure if the Buskas would be able to come over because Sarah had just had a c-section a few days before, but they surprised us and felt up to coming.

I made hand puppets a few years ago, and the kids used them to do a very hilarious production of the Nativity. "One of the most irreverent we've ever had," said James.

But, we got er done and headed out the door for a flash look at the famous Christmas lights of Rigby. Okay, they are not famous, and they were sparse this year maybe due to the economy.

We stopped and shot photos of an awesome tree that was really breathtaking in it's frozen state under the snow-mottled light of a street lamp.

The kids made a huge batch of reindeer food by combining oats and magical glitter and threw it all over the front porch so the reindeer would have a snack while they waited for Santa to unload all of those presents.

And lastly, before the little ones were snuggled up in their beds, we put out the reindeer wreath.

Here is where I got the idea for the wreath. Her pics are much better than mine. She probably didn't take them last minute on Christmas Eve!

Place cut carrots in a bowl. Put a cup in the center and fill the bowl with water.

Put outside (ideally) a few days before Christmas Eve to freeze hard. Or just pop it into the freezer.

Take out the cup and pop out the wreath. Tie with a festive ribbon and place on a tree in the yard.

Amazingly all that remained were a couple of chewed chunks of carrots. Those reindeer were hungry this year!

Okay, now that we are sure that our children know the true meaning of Christmas--Santa, bring it!

Betsy's Visit Dec 19, 2009

2010-01-19T19:25:00.000-08:00

My friend, Betsy decided to fly on over from warm, sunny Arizona for a pre-Christmas visit on December 19th. After the initial freeze shock, Betsy adapted nicely.

WE LOVE BETSY!

We had the greatest time with Betsy! She took me to Idaho Falls and we got pedicures, massages, and groceries! Best Day of my life (well, almost ;)!

One day we made all kinds of Christmas candy to share with friends and family. Now, when I say Christmas candy, I don't mean the kind that you boil until the soft-ball stage, carefully checking the temperature with a candy thermometer along the way.

I mean the kind that you rip open a giant bag of Rolos and unwrap them and set them on pretzels on a wax paper lined cookie sheet and heat in the oven until melted and squash with a red or green m and m. (I tried to force Betsy and the kids to only use the red and green ones, but they thought I was insane for some reason)

We also made my deluxe Peppermint Bark by melting white chocolate chips in 30 sec. intervals in the microwave ( about 90 sec) and smoothing it onto a wax paper lined cookie sheet and sprinkling with crushed candy cane. Then we broke it into shards and immediately consumed a large portion. :)

Betsy asked me to make albums for her from her trips to Africa and Thailand. I spent many hours on the albums and was so happy to present them to her as a keepsake of her journeys. I may post more on how I made these on my cards blog when time permits.

It's not a coincidence that Betsy and I share a common last name! We were kindred spirits since before the dawning of time! Betsy is a fun, amazing, generous, spunky, gorgeous woman and I am so glad that she has been my friend for many many years! XOXO Betsy! We want you to come for Christmas eve next year!

The Hand That Was Dealt

2010-01-14T22:29:00.000-08:00

Oh, what to do with the hand that was dealt to me . . .

I never thought to pause and ponder the many attributes and abilities of my hands, namely my right hand. I never took time to appreciate the gift that they are. I just took them for granted every minute of every day . . .

until today.

Somehow a few days ago I injured my right hand. I'm not sure if the repetitive motion of scrubbing other people's hard water deposits or the chipping of Idaho's finest frozen porch ice did it; Perhaps it was the hours spent meticulously piping icing onto my sister's wedding cake that caused the problem. Whatever the reason, my right wrist has decided to take a break. I am in pain.

I reach out and grab the tassels dangling from crooked blinds and gasp. I wrench the seat belt with my left hand and grab with my right to click it into place and stabbing pierces my wrist. Making my son's top bunk bed was nearly impossible without the helping hands of my daughter. The easiest of jars had to be passed on to my oldest son's excessively capable hands.

I feel helpless

Yet I think how grateful I am for the past 39 years of unwavering service rendered me by my hands.

And I'm hopeful that they will return to me with proper rest and recovery.

And I think of the other parts of my body that function constantly without notice or gratitude from me.

And I can't help but be grateful for this machine that was a gift to me.

And I wonder how many of God's gifts we take for granted every day.

I must change.

I will decide today to see with new eyes, hear with new ears, sense with new senses and appreciate all that has been given to me. And I will remember to thank God for these gifts often.

Love the hand that was dealt to you.

(you may have noticed that typing on the computer has not been impeded by my injured wrist. Something that has not escaped my gratitude :)

Elfing Myself

2009-12-15T23:11:00.000-08:00

What have I been up to the last couple of weeks? I've been one of Santa's busy elves, of course!!!

Besides the usual gift buying and wrapping, I have been crafting like CRAZY! I thought it would be nice to give handmade gifts again this year {scoff}.

For some strange reason, I have no concept of time. I think that I can do EVERYTHING. Well, I almost can, but I am only one woman after all!

I didn't realize how close Christmas was until Emily came home from school today and informed me that their last day of school before the holidays is THIS FRIDAY!!! I was totally thinking they'd be in another week. Well, now I'm on CRUNCH MODE! And what do I do? What else? I whine/blog about it!

This is upcoming and won't need to be completed until New Years. It's for my sister's wedding. I will be altering it--somehow (haven't gotten that far in the thought process yet).

I made a few of these wood blocks for friends and neighbors. They still need paint on the edges.

A couple more things for friends and neighbors. Thankfully these were started BEFORE Thanksgiving.

I made two of these signs for display at our primary program. They will be turned into gifts for my Primary people. Which means I may need to make one more! A store bought bag of MandMs is looking really good right now instead!

I got my holiday cards done way before Christmas! Free photographer (My Auntie), 50 Free prints from Shutterfly, but I had to pay extra for shipping because I'm so slow! Still haven't gotten all of them stamped yet, but it's coming, I promise!!!

Something in the works for some very special people. This is not my photo BTW, but a hint of what's to come.

Also not my photo, but a cute idea for a teacher gift! I have to come up with those BEFORE Friday!!!

A MAJOR project!!! My friend's scrap travel journal to Africa and Thailand. I'm halfway finished and it has to be done by TOMORROW!!! (Also not my photo, but it is a nice Giraffe in front of Kilimanjaro)

I can TRIPLE check this one off! I made 12 gingerbread houses and 5 batches of Royal icing for our annual gingerbread party! My house got trashed and still hasn't recovered, but it was SO MUCH FUN!

Each guest received this.

I was really a nut case to suggest that our presidency make these cuties for our primary children. They really looked so simple but took about a thousand hours and they still aren't all the way finished. I bagged them off onto the president. Some things have to give!

They sure are cute, though.

Our ward boundaries just changed and we got a bunch of new kids, so I have no idea how many more of these need to be made before Sunday. But hey, that's three whole days away.

Marcia's sister Susan called and said that Marcia wanted a bunch of cards for Christmas. It really brought tears to my eyes how they were both scheming to give me a little work this year!

I couldn't stop tearing up making this. I really miss Marcia!

More blocks. Connor drew Courtney's name for the gift exchange in kindergarten. The gift had to be less than $3. I knew just what to do--spend 500 hours on it instead! LOL JK it was only about 2 (and I was watching Castle).

There are many more projects on my "to do before Christmas" list. I wonder how much I'll get accomplished!

Signing off the blogging black hole of time consumption . . . .

THANKSGIVING 2009

2009-12-05T23:20:00.001-08:00

Sometimes you make me CRAZY!

Sometimes you make me MAD!
But then I stand back and look at you . . .

And I realize how much you mean to me.

We didn't choose each other.

We are each other's gifts . . .

And there are NO RETURNS on family!

I am THANKFUL you were sent to me, and I was sent to you.

I am so THANKFUL for my beautiful FAMILY!

PIES PIES PIES

2009-11-24T22:54:00.000-08:00

It's Thanksgiving time and that means time to make some PIES!!!

We will be dining with my Aunt Jules this year, and when she called me up and asked me if I'd bring A pie, I was almost hurt. I told her that of course I'd bring a pie, but not only one, but a pie of each kind!

I love baking pies!

Ever since that first time in college when the pie came out piping hot, and the crust was so tender and flaky, I had to take it to work, and everyone that I shared it with was amazed. I knew I was onto something good!

My rolls always turn out undercooked and squashed looking; my bread always turns out lumpy, but my pie crust . . . heaven!!!

I will be making an apple, two pumpkins, a pecan, and a cherry. I'll leave the creamy cool pies to Grandma this year, and my big brother is picking up a Costco cheese cake.

Do you think that will be enough for 30 people? Jules thought it might be too much until I reminded her that you HAVE to have leftover pie for second dinner, midnight smackerell, and breakfast the next morning! YUMMMM!

I'll try to sneak a couple of pics of the pies on display, but you know how embarrassing it is to photo your own food when you're not in the comforts of you own home? Well, it is. A little.

Ahhhh, New Moon

2009-11-22T00:13:00.001-08:00

The long awaited moment has come and gone and I am left with continued feelings of tingles and light headedness brought on by muscular werewolves, sparkling vampires and true love!

My friends Emily E. and Jodi M. threw an amazing and very *glam* New Moon party! The house was totally decked out (with a little of my help, of course-)

And here she is in all her sparkling glory--our hostess, Alice (AKA Emily E.).
The Decorations were very glamorous! The photos don't quite do justice. These are a couple of cuties that attended the party. All in all, there were well over 50 moms and daughters. It was standing room only!
Here are three *GLAM*pires. Jodi, Kimberly, and Me.

Alex arrived about an hour into the party dressed like Edward! All of the ladies cheered wildly! He was the only guy there (in addition to a little baby).

This photo is a bit odd. It's the Alex Edward giving the real Edward a few pointers on the ladies.

Hannah and her true love, Jacob. She sat at his feet the whole night.

Hannah and Mikaela with Jacob (of course)!

Cute little glampire, Emily with wolf boy, Jacob. Emily and I screamed and giggled through the entire movie! I loved being a teen again--I am shameless, I know!

Here I am with my hunk, Edward and my movie tickets. I got asked later by Buska if I was going to scrap them. Well, OF COURSE! What else??? After the party, we headed to the movie. Theater #8 opened just as we arrived, saving us from the cold night air, and we sat comfortably in our seats for two hours. The hype was just as much fun as the movie!

Here I am with my little Edward. He had 8 girls ask to take a photo with him at the movie. He really knows how to snag the chicks! He wore white face paint and eye liner, but refused the glitter. I don't know why. Vampires are supposed to sparkle!

The drinks. The labels and photos were downloaded from hostess with the mostess She does amazing work! Such a gift to the obsessed Twilight fan!

The food. I can't believe that I didn't get a photo of my hot pink vampire lips cucumber sandwiches! I made the bread from scratch, dyed it red, cut it out with lips cookie cutters, added cucumbers and seasoned cream cheese or cheese and ham cut out like lips, and added slivered almonds for the fangs. They were awesome, yummy, and GONE in 5 minutes! They were so much work, but the night was so crazy that I didn't take the time to take a pic :(

The gift table. Here is another missed photo op. I did a lot of work on these gifts and ran out of time to snap a pic.

We played the gift exchange game, and I wanted to take a gift that would definitely be fought over! I always love a good fight :)

I purchased wolf and heart crystal charms from ebay and pre-made (hand-made) bracelets. One was ice blue for Edward, one was red for Bella, and I made a Native American one for Jacob. The charms came in the mail the day of the party (I was soooo happy) and I wanted to attach them to the bracelets, but I ran out of time and had to attach them to the bags. I sewed a blue velvet bag for the Edward bracelet which was in a silver heart box with a treble clef on it that I amazingly found at a thrift store. I sewed a faux suede bag with fringe for the Jacob bracelet which was placed in a brown box and tied with a leather lace. James picked up a red sparkly bag from the dollar store (THANK YOU JAMES YOU SAVED ME) and I happened to find a red velvet box for the Bella bracelet at aforementioned thrift store. I added tags with each character's photo on and poof they were gone--into someone else's loving hands!

They were awesome gifts if I do say so myself, and I can because Alex got a box of band-aides, which is appropriate for Bella and her klutziness, but anyway...

They were fought over, a lot! It was really fun! Wish I could show ya. But I can't.

Emily and I enjoying New Moon together!

What a great tool to bond mothers and daughters! I had so much fun sharing all of this excitement with my daughters (and son). Thank you Stephenie Meyer and our amazing hostesses for a terrific and very special and exciting night!

Make a Smilebox photobook

Connor's Birthday Party

2009-11-10T14:18:00.001-08:00

When I saw this party in the Better Homes and Gardens Special Tricks & Treats Issue, while standing in line at the grocery store, I threw the magazine on the conveyor belt and immediately bought it! It is the cutest dang party I've ever seen.

I easily convinced Connor that he would be having an "Owl" party ;) and then we set to work.

Connor and Emily both helped a lot with the invitations. They ended up being time consuming, but REALLY cute!

Can you read the text on this page? It sounds just like me, {handmade and heartfelt} so I had to do it!

My version of the table setting. A bit simplified, but hey, time was of the essence.We made pine cone owls which made me very grateful for the extra helping hands that stopped by.
We played Grab the Ghost
which the kids really enjoyed (and may be the reason that my pot lid is now broken).

I was inspired by these owl cookies in the same magazine, and decided to make them into pb&js.

My version is on the plate below. PB&J Owl Sandwiches! With pickle beak and olive and cheese eyes. Not the greatest combination, and I wish now that I would have used baby carrots for the beaks. One child saw the plate and got so scared he ran out the back door and refused to eat!

The kids had a GREAT time playing with their food, coming up with all kinds of silly faces for their sandwiches.

Six Candles! Make a wish sweetie!

Present time! Connor has lots of generous friends!

The aftermath.

Idiocy or Inspiration?

2009-11-04T12:43:00.000-08:00

Was it idiocy or inspiration for me to make a split-second decision Sunday night to leave my comfort zone and embark on a six day journey across three states while turning a blind eye to bald tires and a dangling muffler?

I guess it was a little of both.

Typical of me, I threw on my super hero cape (somewhat askew), and stepped off the precipace with stomach clenched into the unknown darkness with Emily in tow for moral support, to aid my sister.

How could I pass up an opportunity to help my sister, who had just gone through 36 hours of labor at home to then have an emergency c-section at the hospital exactly one week before. I just knew she needed me! Plus, I knew she'd need help washing all of those cloth diapers and cuddling with my newest little nephew!

I had to be rescued by my brother, who forked over the cash for new tires and a new muffler and a couple of meals in between.

I made it around Lake Tahoe and up the mountain to the tiny town where my sister and new baby nephew live and Matthew.

It was all worth it holding that tiny, sweet baby who amazingly smells exactly like my own brand new offspring.

Connor is SIX!

2009-10-20T22:51:00.000-07:00

Ten tiny toes. One tiny cry.

Mama sings a lullaby.

Sweet Baby Connor with tons of black hair.

Could it really have been six years ago that you joined our family?

You have a spunk that makes us all smile!

Your eyes light up our home.

Where oh, where has the time gone?

I keep begging you to stop growing, or at least slow down! You never seem to listen.

You are a SUPER great kid!

With tons of "Fire Power!"

May you soar to great heights throughout your life!

What a special addition you were to our family six years ago today! We LOVE you!

Sure Sign of Fall. . . Hay Mazes and Caramel Apples!

2009-10-20T22:18:00.000-07:00

When shadows grow long,

and there is a nip in the air--

but the sun still pours its golden warmth across the land,

I am happy. I am at peace.

I breath in the sweet, earthy warmth of the hay and feel blessed . . .

to be on this journey with the ones I love most. Sometimes we are lost and afraid.

Sometimes we are anxious and unsure.

But then we are reunited outside life's maze and we do a victory dance.

Sometimes we take a break along the way.

But if we hold out til the end, the reward is sweet.

We find that Family is EVERYTHING.

Cleaning

2009-10-07T22:44:00.000-07:00

I cleaned my room today. . . I mean, really cleaned. The way you clean for company. I dusted, vacuumed, baseboards, doors, under things, I even clipped out the stuck silly putty that my kids put in the carpet when it was new that always made me look to see what that weird, cold thing was that I stepped on.

Under my side of the bed I found a Haagen Dazs Ice Cream Bar wrapper (mmmm) and a mini cupcake wrapper (mmmm) --and I can only blame myself. Two of my favorite things.

Under my dresser, I found my 3 pound weights-- I can only blame myself.

Now the sunshine is streaming in and I can see clearly outside to the apple tree who has so recently lost her apples, but not yet her leaves, which will be a sad time for me until she buds again next spring.

Ahhh, Clean . . .

Connor's Shop

2009-10-04T21:51:00.003-07:00

One day Connor wanted to sew a star. So Mommy got him some felt and printed a star pattern from the Internet and helped him cut it out.

Mommy gave Connor a "real" needle, not a plastic one like he used in preschool, that was threaded with thread.

Connor pulled the needle in and out very carefully so that he didn't poke his chubby little fingers.

When he got almost all the way around the star, he stuffed it with stuffing, then he finished sewing it the rest of the way.

When he was finished, he said, "I should sell these!"

Connor then opened up a shop in his bedroom. He cut a window out of a big piece of cardboard and tucked the top of the cardboard underneath the mattress of the top bunk bed.

He made signs on the computer and hung them on every door in his house.

Mommy helped Connor make lots of little pillows for his shop and he sold them all to family and friends and made a lot of money.

Now he wants to buy a Nintendo DSi. But he'll have to sell a few more things first.

Super James to the Van's Rescue

2009-10-04T21:50:00.004-07:00

This post is dedicated to my amazing husband, whom I sometimes refer to as my "boyfriend" because saying that just adds an element of emotion understood mainly by those who similarly relate to life on a "Twilight" level.

Anyhow. . . did I mention that "my boyfriend" is *A-MA-ZING!*? He is. Mainly because he can do things that just totally baffle me like programming ones and zeros in ways that make the world go round; or looking at something he knows little about and figuring out how to fix it--like the window, mirror, brakes, (etc.) on my van!I have a saying that goes "no good deed goes unpunished." It seems to fit me perfectly! I should probably just stop saying that because it could just be karma coming back to bite me in the butt, but in situations like this, It seems warranted!

I was pulling weeds at the community garden which is about a block and an half from my house. I chose to drive that day because I was lazy and didn't want to have to haul veggies back to my house. I parked my van on the side of the road fairly close to the stop sign, but not closer than 30 feet, which, if I remember correctly from my recent driver's license test that I actually passed the first time after many hours of studying, is the closest that you can legally park to a stop sign in ID.

I heard a CRUNCH as a car drove by--kind of like they ran over a soda can. I stood up to watch the car drive off after stopping at the stop sign. I didn't see anything strange because my view to the street was blocked by my van, so I bent down and began to pull weeds again.

The guy across the street started yelling to me and asking me if they threw something at my van. That's when I clued in that the CRUNCHING sound wasn't from a can, it was from the back window of my van!!!

The guy across the street, now all pumped up with adrenaline, hopped into his truck with giant tires and peeled out after the car. Unfortunately the car got away before he could catch them.

I turned to look at the street, and saw dark, black speckles all over the road. It didn't look much like glass until I got a little closer. "Ahhh, yes, I recognize that. Safety glass." My memory flashed back to the day Emily bumped the glass out of the patio table which exploded into millions of tiny pieces as it hit the concrete.

There was glass all over the road.

There was glass all over the inside of my van.

I was in shock.

I tried to hold it together. We had just gotten the van out of the shop the day before!

Why would someone drive up next to my old beat up van with me bent over, sweaty and covered with mud, working a few feet away and throw a rock at the window. Or worse yet, shoot the window with a gun or slingshot? What is this crazy world coming to?

Unfortunately, it was around 5:00 PM. And what happens at 5:00 PM in a small town, is that every person in the neighborhood drives home from work, or the grocery store, or after school sports or programs, or decides to take a leisurely drive around the block! It was very embarrassing standing there, in the road, with a broom in one hand, and trash can in the other, listening to the recently arrived (lights flashing) police officer explain that the tire of the car driving by most likely flipped a rock up at just the right speed and angle to smash a huge window. "Happens all the time. We get a couple of these a year." he said.

Comforting.

The neighbor had me pull up on his grass ( I drove right on up and over his curb) and he brought out his shop vac and vacuumed out every piece of glass out of my van. Almost. He said that I would probably be finding glass 10 years down the road. I hope I won't be finding glass 10 years down the road in that van!

I held it together until the next morning when I was telling the story to my mom. I broke down and cried. Embarrassing. I told her that I didn't know why I was crying about a stupid window! She told me that it happens when you have an empathetic ear. I'm grateful for my mom. She is that warm and amazingly compassionate listener that can make a grown woman cry.

Someone tipped us off to the local junk yard and we found a used window for $44.95! It was such a bargain, that we decided to go ahead and purchase the left mirror for $41.99 and replace it too. The other smashed mirror will just have to wait for the next round.

Labor--FREE!

What I learned that day. . . Accidents happen; Material things can be replaced; The guy on the corner with the truck with the really big tires is a friend; Mom will always be there; and James is an amazing fixer of all things!

As far as my slogan, "no good deed goes unpunished", well I won't stop doing the good deeds because I know that blessings often go unseen and unheard, but I know they are there, along with the little and sometimes humorous punishments.

My contribution: cleaning the very sticky and plentiful amount of goo splattered on the "new" window.

Just look at that amazing guy!

He's not too bad on the eyes either!

And with the new mirror.

Spirit Week

2009-10-04T21:50:00.003-07:00

Spirit week has hit us again this year and Hannah got to be a part of it too! This is a sad, sad story :( Poor Alex has been anticipating this day since last year when he started working on his Trojan costume. It was cool last year, but he wanted it to be amazing this year. He spent hours and hours in the freezing cold garage working and molding his breast plate. He used cardboard, floral foam for the muscle detail, and liquid epoxy to harden it all. Unfortunately while it was setting up to dry, it was knocked over and hit the ground and shattered. Alex was desperate for anything to fix it, and used paraffin wax and plaster of Paris. The next day when he put it on, it crumbled and fell apart leaving a white crumbly powdered mess all over the house :/

At the last minute, Alex grabbed his little brother's armor and headed out the door. When he came home, he had a $20 gift card to Bajio in his hands. He won the contest!!! I am so happy that he won. It eased the pain of all of that time being wasted. And fortunately for me, he doesn't like Mexican food! So guess who got to use the coupons! Did I mention that I LOVE Bajio? Of course, I gave him the cash in exchange. I'm not that heartless after all.

Hannah on crazy hair day. We braided and looped and sprayed one side silver and finger-burn curled the other side.

Movie character day. Hannah was Hermoine and Mikaela was the witch woman on Pirates of the Caribbean.

On Rock star day, We curled Hannah's hair and she let me put make-up on her. My batteries in the camera died, so I couldn't get a photo. But trust me, she was gorgeous!

Hannah never lets me do her hair or put make-up on her, so I LOVE spirit week!