Cinnamon Rolls and Cookies for Santa

It was our family home evening and a little crazy, but still a TON of fun! I love traditions and time spent together as a family this time of year. Ryan's family has a tradition to have cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning and Ryan completed his first attempt at making his mother's cinnamon rolls. They don't look exactly the same, but they definately passed the taste test and he was so proud. The boys and I made cookies and then we all decorated them as a family. As you can see, Teague decided he wanted to do a little decorating by himself. We ended the evening by driving through the lights in Layton Park. It was so much fun and something I will definately be remembering for years to come.

Seconds of Bliss

The kids have been acting up. Ryan is gone right now on business and today has been horrible! I've threatened and never yelled more in a day then I did today. I feel like I'm constantly screaming at them to stop climbing on this and get off of that. I was sitting on the couch addressing Christmas cards and watching So You Think You Can Dance. I glanced over to see this. I didn't pose them at all, I didn't even realize they were sitting together. It made surviving the whole day worth it.

I'm BAAAAACK!

I FINALLY have a camera!! Yay! I was not about to miss Christmas with my kids without a camera. I'm so excited to be back and ready to start posting again. I feel alive again! I've missed you guys so much!

Handsome Boy!

It was a little rough getting these pictures. Teague did not want his picture taken at all! This was actually two sessions in the making, we had to reschedule because of bad moods. This is the best we could come up with and I love the one in the lower corner. I can't believe my baby is two! He's a sweetheart (most of the time) and makes me laugh almost all the time! I love my boys!

If Today Was Your Last Day

Music has always talked to me. My mood has literally been lightened just by listening to a song. I've also been changing my quote weekly because for me it's therapeutic. Well, this time the thing I picked to quote was a little longer than normal and also a song I was listening to on my way home from work today. I know we hear the songs on the radio, but how often do we take the time to read the words? Are there really that many songs that have words worth learning? I LOVE this song. It is something I want and hope to live my whole life by. Many of you will know it, but just take a minute to read the words....maybe it will make your day too!

My best friend gave me the best advice
He said each day's a gift and not a given right
Leave no stone unturned, leave your fears behind
And try to take the path less traveled by
That first step you take is the longest stride

If today was your last day and tomorrow was too late
Could you say goodbye to yesterday?
Would you live each moment like your last?
Leave old pictures in the past, donate every dime you had?
If today was your last day

Against the grain should be a way of life
What's worth the prize is always worth the fight
Every second counts 'cause there's no second try
So live like you'll never live it twice
Don't take the free ride in your own life

Would you call old friends you never see?
Reminisce old memories, would you forgive your enemies?
Would you find that one you're dreamin' of?
Swear up and down to God above
That you finally fall in love

Would you make your mark by mending a broken heart?
You know it's never too late to shoot for the stars
Regardless of who you are
So do whatever it takes
'Cause you can't rewind a moment in this life
Let nothin' stand in your way
Cause the hands of time are never on your side
If today was your last day and tomorrow was too late
Could you say goodbye to yesterday?

-Nickelback

Field Trip

Last Thursday my sister and I took the kids to Aidan's pre-school field trip to the Firehouse. The kids had tons of fun and learned a lot about fire safety. They also got a tour of the station and they got to see the fire truck with all the lights and sirens. They were demonstrating the water for us all to see how far it could shoot and a gust of wind came and blew the water back at us. Everyone went yelling and screaming and there were some little kids very traumatized that they had gotten wet. It was pretty funny! Aidan's favorite part was holding the fire hose...he thought he was pretty hot stuff (he's the one in the blue jacket). It was a ton of fun!

Aidan is FINALLY playing hockey!

First of all, I'd like to thank my Aunt Sarah for making these pictures even possible. Secondly I would like to say that I had sooo much fun watching Aidan. I could tell he built a lot of confidence and he improved a great deal on Saturday. He even skated by himself a little. I'm so glad he likes it and am really looking forward to th rest of the season! I LOVE the toothless grin.

Happy Birthday Misty!

I can't say Happy Birthday to one sister without saying Happy Birthday to another! To the sister who was my friend long before I was old enough to make any others. To someone who is very resilient and can take trials with dignity. To a soft-hearted sister who wears her heart on her sleeve. I love you. You've grown into a passionate mother and a fun loving person. Happy Birthday to my wonderful sister! Let's go shopping!

Happy Birthday Jen!

I would just like to say Happy Birthday to my first (but not only) sister-in-law. To the woman who is such an inspiration not only in raising children, but also showing me how to be a good wife and be supportive to my kids and my husband. Who teaches me by example to find joy in every day and to laugh of the things that aren't funny because life is too short. I hope you have such a good day; you deserve it. And make sure you find some time today for crafts. ;)

I'm not ready for these kind of Conversations.

Aidan: "Mommy, I want a baby."

Me: "You want a little brother or sister?"

Aidan: "NO! IIII want a baby!"

What to say, what to say? Hurry, think quick! Me: "When you're much older and you're married, you and your wife can have a baby together like Mommies and Daddies."

Aidan: "No. I want a baby."

OH DEAR! All I could do at that point was laugh.

Go Cougars!! Seriously, one of the BEST football games I've seen in a long time! You guys deserve it, be happy. I know I am, and I don't even like football.

No Camera, No life

I'm so disappointed right now. We took the camera with us to California to take pictures and got sand in it while we were at the beach. So I didn't get to take pictures at Sea World and haven't been able to take pictures since then. Like for the 4th of July, Chase's wedding, and many other things I was wishing I had my camera for. This means no posts for a while, unfortunately, until I can either figure out how to get it fixed or afford to buy a new one (yeah right).

Forget Me Nots

Sibling rivalry can sometimes be so funny. I had to buy Aidan some more undies because I can't keep on top of his laundry, it has to be done so often. Well, I cracked them out and I think Teague was jealous of the attention. He wanted to wear undies too. So here he is as a big boy. I had to put them on over his pants or they never would have stayed up! Hilarious!

Just keep swimming.

So it's been two weeks since I did my last post, well almost. I've been a little discouraged, even though I've told myself not to be. Last week I was so sick I wanted to bury myself in the backyard so I haven't exactly eaten as well as I would have liked to.

But Ry and I bought a new elliptical a couple of weeks ago and I love it. I have to admit, I had rose colored glasses on thinking it would be so easy to do while I watched tv...you know, sitting on the couch or doing the elliptical. Easy, right. Well that part is easy, it's the huffing and puffing and wanting to die while I'm counting down the minutes part that I didn't consider. But it IS paying off as I have lost 10 pounds in the last two weeks.

I don't want to get too excited, especially right now because it's fairly easy for me to lose and gain ten pounds. When I get to 20, then I'll know I'm on the right track. I do have to say, I'm pretty proud of Ry and I for yesterday though. We went grocery shopping and now there are plenty of things to keep me on track. I do feel like I look better, and all around I'm in a happier mood. I think that's because now I really do feel like I'm committed to this. So in the words of the great philosopher Dory the fish I will "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming, just keep swimming, swimming, swimming."

Boys will be Boys

I'm way behind, but a couple of weeks ago Aidan's cousins stopped in for a quick visit. It was nice because we live so far away from each other. Now the dog pile has all the boys including grandpa...there are two grown men, an 11 year old, a 9 year old, a 6 year old, and a 3 year old.

They were all nice and orderly while we were eating lunch, but they soon got Khaki involved in a rough house. I was laughing when my Aidan's uncle said, "Khaki, sick!" Before you know it, Khaki was licking the pinned blond little blue eyed cousin of Aidan's to death. They all seemed to have fun though and it was nice to break up the monotony of my life.

Keeping it in perspective

First of all, I want to say thank you to all of you....this is the whole reason I'm doing this extremely uncomfortable thing. I need the supoort and the help of all the people I care most about in the whole wide world.

Secondly, talk about having a balloon deflated. I had the flu last weekend so I was definately not in the mood to exercise. I had a break on Monday and then got a really bad chest cold yesterday! Now, one of the biggest things I'm working on doing is chaning what I say to myself. This is REALLY hard because your inner dialogue is kind of automatic and it's really hard to catch youself being mean until after the fact. But, I keep it no secret that I'm a HUGE Dr. Phil addict. He's like my personal psychiatrist minus the one on one relationship. I'm reading his weight loss book and I went back to find something he said that really stuck. I'm going to follow as he says and not let myself get down about such a bad start!

"Recognize that there will be events over which you have no control. For example, you are not to blame for missing your morning walk because there's a real gully-washer outside. If you say, 'I'm mad at myself because I didn't get to walk today," you are inappropriately internalizing. You're blaming yourself for the weather!" -Phil McGraw

Confessions of an overeater

This is probably one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. To admit my mistakes in front of all my closest friends and family. But you know, it's not like no one has noticed. Looking back on the five years of my marriage, I can honestly I say I have been blissfully happy...except for my poor self image. When I am totally honest with myself I cannot believe that I have gained 70 pounds in that time and have tipped the scales at an astounding 250 lbs.

I cannot even believe the adrenaline that is pumping through my system as I am writing this. I have always told myself "You need to lose weight, you need to lose weight." Probably the thing that hit me the hardest was the first talk of the Saturday session of General Conference. He asked us to get out of our addictions and he actually named food as one of them. That stopped me dead in my tracks. You know how you can hear that same thing a million times by a million different people and it takes that one moment and that one person for you to feel like they're specifically talking to you? That's what it felt like....he was looking directly into my eyes and telling me that I had an addiction to food and that I needed to overcome it.

I have been doing research on the subject for several months, reading books and watching anything I could get my hands on about success stories and failures. I have been on and off of Weight Watcher's for years, and I've realized that it's not about eating right and exercising for me. Sure, those things are essential for actually losing weight, but my problem is not about that. It's about what I tell myself in my head. It's about how I justify eating the whole pie or not working out that day. I'm an avid Biggest Loser fan and can't believe some of the things that I see those people accomplish. They are truly an inspiration. Even yesterday, Kirstie Alley was on Oprah and I couldn't help but think of how these women have struggled with it their whole lives as I have and as I have come to realize I always will.

It really is an addiction. For me it's also been one I've struggled with my whole life. Well, now I have a plan and I'm sure the motivation I need to overcome this. Not only do I have ways to cope, I also have inspiration from the people around me...yes, you my friends who also struggle. Some of you are such good examples. We can do it girls, we just have to stick with it. This is my chance. I've aired out all my dirty laundry and now I'm starting from this point forward to turn my life around. I've learned to say to myself...would I tell someone else the things I tell myself? Would I treat anyone the way I treat myself? I am worth it, we are worth it and we can do it!

I'm hoping to find motivation and upliftment by posting this on my blog (you have no idea how hard this is). I need some kind of accountability, and knowing that my friends and family sometimes check their blogs daily, it makes me feel like I am accountable to each and every one of you in a way. I can't say I'll post daily, or even weekly, but I can say I'm going to keep myself accountable and share my triumphs and strenghts and even the bad days because I'm countingon the fact that there will be some. But I will not give up or give in. I will not let this rule my life any more. It's time for me to live my life instead of living it in a closet binge eating.

Wessen Oil Cake

Yep! This week it's a dessert! This is the moistest cake I've EVER eaten. I don't like the taste of baking soda so I just leave it out and it still works great. I did think, however, that I should put this down in it's original recipe. This cake is good with just powdered sugar on top, but if you're really in the chocolate mood I've also put the yummiest frosting recipe on here too. Enjoy!

Cake Indredients:
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
4 Tbsp. cocoa
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup Oil
2 Cups Hot water

Method: Stir dry ingredients. Add the remaining. Mix well. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

Frosting: In a saucepan combine 4 Tbsp. Butter, 1 1/2 Tbsp. cocoa, and 3 tablespoons milk. Mix together until the butter is melted. Remove from heat and add powdered sugar until it reaches the consistency you want...about 3 cups. Frost on top of the cake.

Hamburger Patties and Brown Gravy

Sorry, I only promised I would try to post one a week...everyone knows how crazy life can get. This is a pretty easy recipe and pleases the husbands and the kids. Also, if your kids don't like onion, you can substitute the chopped onion for onion powder. It will still give you the flavor without the crunchy onion texture.

Ingredients:
1 lb. lean ground beef
6 good sized potatoes mashed or 3-4 cups instant
3 packets brown gravy mixed as directed
1 Egg
1 Tsp. Seasoning salt
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 cup finely chopped onion or 1 tsp. onion powder.

Method:
In a bowl combine meat, egg, and seasonings. Knead together. Form meat into 5 small hamburger patties. Fry on medium heat until browned all the way through (If you let the meat cook a little more well done, the meat that sticks to the pan will give the gravy extra flavoring.) After the patties are cooked thoroughly, remove from the pan and set on a plate. Pour mixed gravy into the pan. Run the wisk through the pan to get any of the leftover meat from the pan mixed into the gravy. Add cooked hamburger patties. Bring gravy to a boil and let thicken. Serve patties seperately or on top of the mashed potatoes. I usually serve this with rolls and a vegetable. Enjoy.

My Birthday

I had the most wonderful birthday. We went as a family with my sister to the Draper Temple Open House. I know the kids were too young to remember and it was a lot of work, but it was well worth it. Due to the weather that day we were unable to take any pictures of the family outside the temple. Later that afternoon we all went to Tepanyaki for dinner. I was worried about everyone having to pay so much to go to dinner, but then my grandfather said he was paying for everyone. I couldn't believe it. I was completely dumbfounded and shocked. Looking back on it now, I can't help but say how special my grandfather is to me. He was a very good father figure to me, someone I always looked up to. Thank you so much grandpa...it was really improtant to me to be able to have my whole family together for dinner. Some of the pictures aren't that great because they were taken far away, but it was a BLAST!

Rosebud

Wow, it's been a while and now I'm going to bombard my blog with all the updates. These are some pictures of our new little niece rosebud and the beautiful blanket I made her. I must say, it's the cutest one I have made thus far.

I have to say, holding rosebud makes me baby hungry however much I know I couldn't handle it right now. She is such a special and good little girl. You look into her eyes and can see she's an angel. I'm really sad right now that I can't hold her because I'm at home sick...but she's a sweetie! I had to upload the picture of her head, because I kid you not...I have never seen a baby with so much hair!

Picture Tag

I was asked by Amy to do this picture tag. You choose the sixth folder in your pictures and then you choose the sixth picture in that folder. Then you post and get to blog about it.

This is Ryan and the boys rough housing. Ryan, as you can see is being over dramatic about it and a little too rough with Aidan. Poor kid, I can only imagine what I was saying while taking this picture. "Ryan, you're squeezing Aidan a little TOO hard. He doesn't like it!"

Pizza Dough

This recipe is so easy and versatile. I use it for Pizza dough or to make scones. It's easy and will always rise.

1 pkg. yeast-Use the quick rise yeast in high altitudes
1 cup warm water
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. cooking oil
2 cups flour
1/2-1 cup flour

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Add sugar, salt, and cooking oil. Stir until dissolved. Add 2 cups flour and mix until smooth. Stir in the seperated flour. Knead and let rise. Put onto a pan and top as desired. BAke at 400 degrees for about 20-25 minutes. 1 recipe will make one pizza.

Kielbasa Boats

K, so this isn't really a recipe, I'm just giving you guys ideas for a pretty good and easy meal. You can also make this with hot dogs if you're worried the kids won't like the sausage.

1 kielbasa sausage, cut into fourths (it's packaged in a horseshoe shape)
1 cup mashed potatoes
Shredded Cheese

You cut the kielbasa sasauge into four sections, and then cut each section in half. Place both halves together on top of a baking dish with the flat side facing up. Scoop on mashed potatoes to make a little pile. Top with grated cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. I usually just serve these with a Rice-a-roni or some other side and a vegetable. Way yummy and oh so easy!

Ham and Potato Casserole

This is kind of a harder recipe that takes more time but I can guarantee you ANY kid will eat it...sounds so simple but full of flavor! It was and still is a huge comfort food for me when I was growing up.

Ingredients:
6 or 7 medium sized potatoes chopped and peeled
1 lb. cubed ham
1/2 cup onion
5 Tbsp. Butter
4 Tbsp. flour
2 cups milk
3 cups grated cheese
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

In a frying pan cook onion, ham, and 1 tbsp. butter until liquid evaporates and onions are translucent. Boil potatoes until tender enough to eat. In a medium sauce pan melt butter and add flour, mix. Using a wisk, graudally add milk to flour and butter until mixed. Bring to a boil to thicken. Add 1 cup of cheese and let it melt. In a casserole dish, combine boiled potatoes, ham, white sauce, salt, and pepper. Mix together. Top with remaining 2 cups of cheese and bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes.

Sooo grateful

Ok, so it's really not a big deal. It wasn't extremely risky or anything, but my poor heart had a very difficult day. I am still praying constantly and thanking my Father in Heaven for everything going well. Aidan has recovered completely and doesn't even remember what happened.

Today Aidan had to be put under so he could have some dental work done. I even talked to Nicole because she did it with Malachi, and it was comforting to know that she cried when Malachi went under. However, there is nothing natural about how anesthesia works. They let me hold him while he went under...and I had an image in my head that he would just slowly doze off. Well, his eyes got this glazed far away look and didn't close all the way, and then he started making scarey noises trying to swallow and having a hard time. I knew mentally everthing that was happening was normal and okay, but emotionally I fell to pieces. It is so hard to see your children in the smallest bit of pain or confusion.

Well, they were just going to cap his teeth, but the dentist found out that Aidan had fallen and hit his two front teeth at some point in his childhood and he ended up killing the nerves, so unfortunately, they pulled both his front teeth. That was fine, and the work went just great. They brought him out to what they called the recovery room and we tried to wake him up. They wouldn't let him go until he could open his eyes and answer questions.

Well, after about 45 minutes of trying to wake him up and talk to him, they were starting to get a little annoyed, and one of the assistants starting being somewhat mean to him to get him to wake up. He cried for about 20 minutes before they could get him to open his eyes. So here I am, carrying him out in the cold to the car by myself (which was locke, I know I don't know how I managed either), and I am just bawling because he wouldn't quit crying. I started singing hymns to him and he finally started to calm down. To top it off, I was not able to put him in his car seat because his head would fall forward and cut off his air passage. So I had to drive clear from West Valley with Aidan lying down in the backseat without him buckled in...scarey!

Needless to say we got home okay, and the minute I brought Aidan into the house he started to wake up and the first thing he said was "Mommy, I want to watch Batman." As you can tell by the picture posted, he has recovered completely but the adrenaline is sill coursing throug my veins and I'm still anxious about everything that happened today. I'm just grateful that everything went as it should have been and although I hope I never have to go through anything like that again at least next time I'll know what to expect.

Recipes

So, I've been told by all of my very generous friends that I'm a pretty good cook. I was looking at my sister-in-law's blog today and liked how she posts a menu every week of what she's making and thought that was kind of cool. I decided to put a little spin on that idea myself and post a family or favorite recipe for all my friends who are at a lossabout what to make this week. Hopefully you guys will enjoy these and most of them take no longer than 45 minutes with prep. I'll try my very hardest to post one recipe a week. I'm waiting to hear if you like them. Enjoy!!!

SAVORY PEPPER STEAK

Indgredients:

1 lb cubed steak or stew meat

1/3 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup cooking oil

1 tsp. minced garlic or garlic powder.

1/4 cup flour (optional)

1/2 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. pepper

1 8 oz. can diced or stewed tomatoes

2 bell peppers

2 packets of brown gravy

6 cups cooked rice

Method:

In a large sautee pan, heat oil, onion, and garlic. Coat meat in flour, salt, and pepper, and add to pan when the onions are cooked and translucent. Cook meat until brown on all sides. While you are waiting for the meat to brown, you can make the brown gravy as shown on the directions and cube the bell peppers. Once the meat is brown, add the can of tomatoes with the juice, green peppers, and brown gravy. Heat until it boils and brown gravy is thickened. Serve over cooked rice.

Hint: Not everyone likes green peppers, and it's a give in that the longer you simmer the mixture the softer the peppers will get. If you let the peppers get soft, then the flavor won't be quite as strong. If you like the crispy bell peppers, then cook just long enough for gravy to thicken.

Also, for all those who are Weight Watchers savvy, 3/4 cup of rice is 3 points whether it is brown or white, and 1 cup of sauce is three points.

I really hope you all enjoy this, it is a favorite!!

Need a little help...anyone??

I am having a problem with my blog...nothing with mine persay, but with everyone else's. When I go to view other people's blogs I am only able to see the newest post they have posted, not any prior ones. And it does not allow me to make a comment. When I click on post a comment it takes me to the comments page, but it is in a wierd format and it doesn't allow me to post a comment of my own. Any help on what is going on?

Thanks guys!!