the house that graham built

Some traditions are better than others. Making graham cracker houses at Christmas time has to be one of the best. Merrit begged me to wait until she and Matt arrived on the 23rd. Lane and Josh picked them up from the airport and joined us too.

 

Matt could not be limited to one creation alone. In addition to helping Merrit on recreating their puppies, he made a basketball hoop for Grandpa to try out, and an X-wing fighter to do battle with Colin's death star.

The best part about doing graham cracker houses at the end of the season is not having to wait to destroy them. The kids happily demolished them all the next day.

the lights at temple square

Since my mother cannot stand to just relax on vacation, she mobilized us into action to head up to Salt Lake. We gathered up warm winter gear, some snacks and the stroller and went to go to see the lights at Temple Square. We arrived right about 3:00 in the afternoon.

The first item on the agenda was to go to the children's exhibit at the Church History Museum to pass the time until it got dark.  Our plans were thwarted however as we found the doors locked due to "forecast inclement weather". It was a bit perplexing since there was a not a flake in the sky. Instead we went over to the North Visitors' Center. Anne, of course, wanted nothing to do with the stroller and kept running off. The boys were off gallivanting about also rather oblivious to the reverent nature of the surroundings. After we went upstairs to view the Christus statue, we tried to keep Anne occupied by finding all the animals in the paintings of Christ's life. After being told a movie would be playing at 5:30, we went downstairs only to find an empty theater, no movie and two missing sister missionaries.

Trying to keep five children in one general area was proving impossible. In fact, we lost Anne for a few frantic minutes until we found her holding the hand of a stranger. The scene was eerily familiar as I had been lost as a toddler on Temple Square too. I was found holding the hand of a stranger also but she was trying to lead me out of Temple Square altogether. I shudder to think of how my life could have played out had my parents been a few moments slower. Fortunately, the stranger with Anne seemed only to be searching for me.

We finally did watch Joy to the World which was definitely not riveting enough to keep the kids' attention. At this point, I was feeling rather defeated since nothing seemed to be turning out as planned. We persevered anyhow and went out to see the lights.

 

 

I think the kids found the lights a little underwhelming and we didn't stay out for very long. We coerced Slade to take a picture or two though before we left. The whole adventure was probably worth it just for this one snapshot. In twenty years we probably won't remember all the details of the chaos, the whiny children, or the thwarted plans. We'll just look at the picture and remember how adorable they all were and that Sawyer would never wear a coat!

snowball fight

Mom and Dad arrived here late Monday night. We all awoke to several inches of snow on the ground. It does make everything look rather lovely. As long as I can stay inside a warm house, that is. Luckily, Grandma is much more fun than me and she was willing to leave the house for a snowball fight. How awesome is she!?

12 on 12 | december (another late edition)

I did it again! I completely forgot about the 12th even though Emma reminded me just the night before. Consequently, I had to do another 12 on 12 plus 1. The last one was in June. How is that for symmetry with the 6th and 12th month?

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1. The theme of today was messes, messes, messes. I spent all day sorting through them.

2. After Sawyer finishes his math, he always asks to play Starfall. Anne loves to watch. Note how Anne is still in pajamas at 11:30. Yeah, I was awesome today.

3. Slade and Nathan both refused to do schoolwork today. They wrestled on the bed instead. They were not happy when they reaped the consequences of their actions later.

4. Dave walking in the house for lunch.

5. I had a photo session today with a senior boy. I love it when they listen to me.

6. I worked all afternoon downstairs cleaning out the playroom, moving a TV, dejunking the guest room, and changing sheets in the boys' room. At about 5:30, I finally came upstairs only to find the kitchen in a state of disaster. Food and dishes everywhere. Cabinet hanging askew. I was not happy.

7. It took so long cleaning up the kitchen that I didn't even get dinner started until 6:17. We usually eat at 6:30. Mean mom that I am, I denied Emma the privilege of staying at her friend's house longer and made her come home to help me. We were only 15 minutes late and sat down to eat just as Dave walked in the door. He has had long hours lately. In fact, he is walking out the door to go back to work as I write this at 9:30.

8. Anne was making us all laugh so hard at dinner. Quite a personality.

9. Slade was complaining about how tired he was so he left the table and went to lie down. Tired from doing nothing all day, I guess.

10. Emma gave our Family Home Evening lesson.

11. Family self-portrait.

12. Ice cream for a treat. Dave and I are glad that there are only 10 days left of the challenge. Then we can enjoy FHE treats again. Dave still has a perfect score. Me? Not so much.

disaster area

I'm lucky that I have a front area of my house that can be shut off from the back with a sliding door. I use to pride myself on keeping my house clean and in order. Lately, I just cannot keep up. With the sliding door though, I can at least keep part of my house in decent shape. This allows for us to have choir practice and violin lessons happening in the living room with my pretty Christmas tree with participants none the wiser about the complete mess that is my kitchen and family room.

Dave (and our friend Dave) starting building a laundry platform for me on Saturday. I want one like this or this. To get ready for the platform, Dave pulled everything out of our laundry closet and put it on the kitchen table. I started painting in the closet while they were building. As most projects go, this took a lot longer than we thought. I left in the afternoon about 4 to go see my sister in A Christmas Carol and consequently didn't finish painting. They didn't finish building either. Something about the 11 kids they had between them to take care of. Then of course it was Sunday and nothing more got done. Today, I managed to get the bottom half of the closet completely painted. Tonight Dave pushed the washer and dryer back into their previous place so I could tackle the mountains of laundry piling up. Two days from starting and I still don't have a laundry platform or a completely painted laundry closet. And all but a couple of the piles are still sitting on my table. I haven't even mentioned yet the tortillas chips all over the floor or the chocolate pudding Anne spread all over the couch. There are still Christmas boxes waiting to go back downstairs and then all the usual messes that appear just from daily life.

Ah me. What a disaster. If you come to visit me, just know you won't be going anywhere but my front room!

quick and easy cooking

Tonight, I made beef stew in 20 minutes. I chopped up onion, carrots, celery and potatoes. I put two cans of stewed tomatoes in the blender for just a few seconds. I sauteed the veggies in olive oil for a few minutes and then poured in the tomatoes. I put all this in my pressure cooker and once it came to high pressure, I set the timer for ten minutes. When it was done I added in a can of roast beef that I had canned last year. Then I added 3 Tbsp. of sugar plus salt and pepper to taste. So quick. So good.

I don't use it as often as I should but I really love my pressure cooker. Roast in 45 minutes. Mashed potatoes in 10.

I do use canned meat often enough. It is so nice to just get a jar from the storage room and dump into dinner instead of waiting for it to cook. I've canned chicken, roast and ground beef and I use a jar or two each week. It works so well for things like casseroles, enchiladas and soup.

Just thought I'd share.

out of sorts

It is December 1st! How did that happen? Usually I put my Christmas decorations up the day after Thanksgiving. This year we were in Colorado. Since coming home, I still haven't put a single thing up. I just haven't wanted to do it. Strange.

I managed to lug all the boxes up from the storage room today at least. Perhaps tonight, I'll get one tree up. Its a start.

tuesday thoughts

I had several errands to run in Orem today. Unfortunately, I was one of the poor souls stuck on southbound 1-15 this afternoon. Two lanes of the freeway were closed to fix a pothole apparently. This had traffic backed up and basically at a stand still for miles. What should have been a fifteen minute trip took an hour. Fortunately, I had thought to bring my ipod Touch so Nathan and Sawyer were completely happy in the back seat.

I went to Barnes and Noble to pick out a book for tomorrow's Book Club exchange. Unfortunately, they did not have Jimmy Zangwow's Out of this World Moon Pie Adventure. Fortunately, they did have What's New Cupcake.

I picked up a five gallon bucket of coconut oil. Unfortunately, now I have to figure out what do with all that coconut oil. Fortunately, it lasts for a long time and I'm in a health food kick right now.

I picked up another group buy order of grass-fed beef. Unfortunately, I have thirty-three pounds to store in my freezer. Fortunately, it all fit!

I picked up Dave's clarinet from Bert Murdock. Unfortunately, it cost over $200 to repair. Fortunately, he is so totally excited about having it back. Since he almost never spends money on himself, it was totally worth it.

Unfortunately, these errands took a lot longer to complete than I wanted. Fortunately, I still made it home early enough to get Slade off to Scouts and dinner in the oven on time.

water works

After some 35+ man hours to get it installed, we are now the proud owners of a new water softener, tank-less water heater, and reverse osmosis water filter. I still have lots of holes in the basement ceiling too. More man hours are required to fix those.

We are hoping that this will solve the problem of the lukewarm first morning shower and help Dave's eczema in winter. I'm looking forward to the filtered water and endless hot water, not to mention no more water spots on my stainless steel sink. It certainly didn't come cheap so I hope it is all worth it!

giving thanks with pictures

We did have a really wonderful Thanksgiving holiday.

We were able to make it to and from Colorado without any issues on the Wyoming freeways. We left on Tuesday afternoon before "the blizzard of 2010" was supposed to hit in Utah. Keri and Michael who came the next day were not so lucky with road conditions. We were thankful that they made it and that we didn't have drive in such precarious weather.

On Wednesday, Emma, Mom and Amy made pies and got the turkey ready. Emma was in heaven with so much food prep to do. She is a total Food Network junkie and loves to help in the kitchen. Mom said it was fun having her oldest granddaughter be old enough to want to help.



I went to Target to get stuff to make the tables pretty. It may not matter to anyone else but me but it certainly makes me happy. I purchased 28 green chargers and pretty paper plates to go on them. Then I made little Mayflower boats out of brown felt (Pottery Barn inspired).



We finished cooking on Thursday while the men plus Emma went and played soccer at the church. Then it was time for feasting! And feast we did. It was all totally delicious. I could have stopped with the appetizers and been completely happy. We had a traditional dinner complete with turkey and ham, potatoes, vegetables, Jell-O salad and rolls. We put three long tables into the family room and managed to fit all 26 people into one room. Barely. It was cozy but it worked. Dana and Merrit even joined in the fun via life-sized photographs hanging on the wall.




 
 

On Friday, I got to work helping Mom with the pre-move-and-downsize clean out. I cleared the kitchen and sent lots of stuff to Goodwill and lots of other stuff into boxes to take home with me, Keri, Colin and Jeremy. I was thrilled to come home with lots of Mom's entertaining dishes like platters and cake stands. Time to throw a party! Later that evening, we worked on her music. I got lots and lots of Broadway books to add to my collection. Time for a Sunday sing-along!

We left at 6:00 a.m. on Saturday to head home. We wanted to be back in time to get ready for Sunday and to watch the BYU v. Utah game. We listened to the first quarter on the radio and watched the rest on TV at home. What a disappointing way to end a great weekend. Oh well. We spent the rest of Saturday trying to recover from our vacation and get the house in order. I usually bust out the Christmas decorations the day after Thanksgiving, but I am not ready for that at all this year. Hopefully, I can get my house in order and decorate this week.

See more pictures and read Mom's take on the weekend here:
http://www.slademomma.net/2010/11/no-230-poof-there-goes/

death by chocolate

After three weeks of perfect scores in my challenge, I was done in today by Tootsie Rolls and frosted donuts. The challenge has been difficult to follow this week even with two full free days and my perfect score is no more. I shan't give up though! I've been really pleased with the good things the challenge has helped me to do. The key to perfection is proper planning which I did not do this week. However there are four more weeks to go and I won't let them go to waste!

give thanks for thanksgiving

1. I'm thankful for too many cooks in the kitchen.
2. I'm thankful for pretty tables.
3. I'm thankful for a room filled to the bursting with my loved ones.
4. I'm thankful for good food.
5. I'm thankful for free days!
6. I'm thankful for my most amazing husband.
7. I'm thankful for five awesome children.
8. I'm thankful for my new ipod Touch.
9. I'm thankful for games and movies.
10. I'm thankful for Thanksgiving.

give thanks 24

1. I'm thankful for the conversation I overheard this morning between Slade and my dad. It was so cute.
2. I'm thankful that my kids get to have a lazy day at Grandma's.
3. I'm thankful that technology usually works.
4. I'm thankful for getting to go to Target all by myself.

give thanks 23

1. I'm thankful for nice and helpful neighbors.
2. I'm thankful for being able to go to Colorado for Thanksgiving.
3. I'm thankful for clear roads through Wyoming.
4. I'm thankful for a safe arrival.

give thanks 22

1. I'm thankful that Dave can come home for lunch. Today he came home while I took Emma and Sawyer to the dentist. Emma had three teeth pulled. The dentist told me it was really good that she got them done because the teeth were nearly fused to the bone. Sawyer went back to the dentist to have cavities filled on the other side of his mouth. He absolutely freaked out and wouldn't let them do them work. Instead, the dentist said to have him take an antibiotic for the infection that seems to be developing where the first cavities were filled (Sawyer is still complaining about his cheek hurting several days later).
2. I'm thankful that I didn't have to go anywhere else today. I needed to be home while our new water softener and tank-less water heater were being installed. Ten hours later, the installers left without installing anything.
3. I'm thankful that we are so exceptional. The dentist told me that both Emma's teeth and Sawyer's infection are very rare. And our water system was exceptionally difficult to install. I mean if we were just normal where would all the fun be?!
4. I'm thankful that I got a closet cleaned out and three boxes of cookbooks from my mom sorted. Organizing and decluttering always makes me happy.

give thanks 21

1. I'm thankful for being the Primary Chorister. I have had this calling for 8 out of the last 12 years I think. Either I am good at it or I'm not learning what I'm supposed to be. Either way, it is fun to be in there.
2. I'm thankful for being able to go up to Salt Lake for Josh's priesthood ordination. We missed the actual ordination by just a few minutes and only got to stay at Keri's for about an hour. Still we were glad for the food and company.
3. I'm thankful for the scriptures. If nothing else, this 8-week challenge has helped me to get back in the habit of reading my scriptures daily.

give thanks 20

1. I'm thankful for children who were motivated to get up this morning and help clean the church without complaint.
2. I'm thankful for our dentist who provided said motivation (movie tickets) for free.
3. I'm thankful for getting to watch Harry Potter 7 this morning. Perhaps I am a bad mother because I took three of my kids. I was conflicted after hearing some of the reports. I left the movie wondering what all the hoopla was about. Nathan kept saying, "When is the scary part?"
4. I'm thankful that Dave got to go the BYU game and that it didn't rain on him. I'm glad he survived the cold.     

give thanks 19

1. I'm thankful for quiet mornings with no demands. Everyone slept in this morning (except Dave who diligently went to work). We don't do school work on Friday, so I let the kids indulge in a bit of screen time while I read Harry Potter.
2. I'm thankful for the opportunity to read books again. I remember so very little in the way of details it is almost like reading it the first time.
3. I'm thankful that Emma got to go to a Girls' Night Out with her homeschool friends tonight to make jewelery.
4. I'm thankful that we have a babysitter that we all adore. The kids ask us to go out on dates so Sarah can babysit.
5. I'm thankful that I got to go on yet another date with Dave tonight. We went again to the theater but this time we saw a wonderful, funny, entertaining, delightful show. In contrast to Tuesday's show, we didn't think about walking out even once.

give thanks 18

1. I'm thankful that today is over! I did not feel very good today so I hope I can get some sleep and wake up happy tomorrow.

give thanks 17

1. I'm thankful that my two boys made it through their dentist appointments without too much drama.
2. I'm thankful for quiet days.
3. I'm thankful to get a photo session completed.
4. I'm thankful that my blog isn't always this boring!

give thanks 16

1. I'm thankful that the dentist told me I had no cavities.
2. I'm thankful that we have the money to pay for the other 10 fillings and 2 extractions that my children need.
3. I'm thankful I got to go on a date with my husband tonight.
4. I'm thankful for good food and good company when the play we saw was less than stellar.
5. I'm thankful we came home to find everything safe and sound.

give thanks 15

1. I'm so very thankful for the amazing, wonderful, talented, and beautiful daughter that I was blessed with 11 years ago.
2. I'm thankful that Emma had a good birthday complete with breakfast in bed, presents to open, and a surprise party planned by her friends.
3. I'm thankful that Emma has such good friends. Her friend, Eliza, approached me at church on Sunday and asked me if they could kidnap her today. I thought it would just be a couple of friends taking Emma over to Eliza's house for cake or something. I was very surprised when 6 or 7 showed up wearing bandannas. They took her and had a full fledged party with cupcakes, games and presents even.
4. I'm thankful Emma makes such a great impression on others when she is outside our home. I receive compliments often about how wonderful she is. The latest was on Sunday when her Activity Days leader told me with tears in her eyes how much she will miss Emma. She said, "She is always so kind and helpful. She is a self-starter. She helps so much to smooth over the rough spots with other girls."
5. I'm thankful for all the ways Emma blesses our family.

Happy Birthday, Emma!

give thanks 14

1. I'm thankful for beautiful Thanksgiving songs to sing in Primary.
Life is O'erflowing with Beautiful Things
2. I'm thankful for a home that can accommodate our ward choir practices. Its getting a little tight but we still fit.
3. I'm thankful for cozy sweatshirts to wear on chilly days like today.
4. I'm thankful for a brother and sister and their families who come to my house for good food and conversation. I love my family.

give thanks 13

1. I'm thankful for thirty four years of a great life.
2. I'm thankful for a yummy lunch with my sister-in-law
3. I'm thankful for time to get some shopping done for Emma's birthday and Christmas.
4. I'm thankful for Target.
5. I'm thankful for free days and yummy treats to eat.
6. I'm thankful for a quiet night at home watching Mansfield Park.
7. I'm thankful for so many birthday wishes by phone, note, Facebook and email. I felt very loved.

12 on 12 | november

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1. Emma went to see The Five Browns perform at Kingsbury Hall this morning. She said it was amazing.
2. Sawyer pushing Anne around in the empty laundry basket.
3. Nathan and Sawyer playing with friends who have every other Friday off.
4. Slade found a new game on the computer that he thought was so cool.
5. I watched Food Inc. while the kids were playing. Disturbing.
6. The cushions off the couch for the bajillionth time.
7. Friday is Pizza Night. I overcooked one of the crusts a bit. Still tasted good though.
8. I escaped to the library by myself. I forgot to bring the books that were due though. Oops.
9. Listening to Outlander finally upon my sisters and Mom's recommendation.
10. I came home to find this note from Emma. She was running in a 5K the next day and wanted my opinion on what to wear. Her spelling really scares me. Why is it that she spells everything perfectly in her Spelling assignments but cannot spell at all when she is writing on her own?
11. Dave playing Wii sports for his challenge exercise.
12. My challenge tracking sheet. Perfect score so far.

give thanks 12

1. I'm thankful for Netflix. Particularly the "Watch Instantly" feature.
2. I'm thankful for the library.
3. I'm thankful for trips to the grocery store taken all by myself.
4. I'm thankful for my iPod and finally listening to Outlander. It made for a very enjoyable shopping experience.

give thanks 11

In honor of 11/11, I'm sharing 11 blogs that I love to read. I'm very thankful for blogs. Believe me, there are many, many more in my Google Reader. In no particular order, I present you a few of my favorites.

1. One Pretty Thing
2. Sweet Something Designs
3. Life
4. Pastel Photography
5. Becky Higgins
6. Our Best Bites
7. One Charming Party
8. Remodelaholic
9. Tatertots and Jello
10. Make It and Love It
11. Tip Junkie

give thanks 10

1. I'm thankful for my most wonderful husband who sent me encouraging text messages after I told him I felt like a failure.
2. I'm thankful that tomorrow is a day fresh without any mistakes in it. Thanks for teaching me that, Anne Shirley.
3. I'm thankful that my children came with their own personalities which are anything but boring. No, really I am.
4. I'm thankful that I have a furnace because, baby, it's cold outside.
5. I'm thankful for Leftover Night and NCIS episodes on-line.
6. I'm thankful for sisters who call me for decorating advice. Hang in there, sister. Change is a good thing.

give thanks 9

1. I'm thankful that I figured out a way to get Slade to finish his work before noon. At least for one day. We'll see how tomorrow goes.
2. I'm thankful that I'm finding this challenge motivating enough to not indulge in all the sweets around the house. It perplexes me that it is that motivating. I mean, how many times have I tried to cut out sweets before?!
3. I'm thankful that the pictures I've been taking of family and friends make them happy. I feel like I am in a bit of a rut with photography. Need to shoot more but can't make it a business right now. Need a new camera but can't justify the expense since it isn't a business. Need to improve my technique but don't feel its the right time to spend a lot of time on photography. Sigh. Oh well. I guess I will just keep shooting and crossing my fingers that people like the pictures imperfect as they are.
4. I'm thankful for fun ideas and beautiful things on the internet. We will be going to Thanksgiving in CO this year and with my parents' current circumstances might not be having a traditional dinner. I probably won't get to use these great ideas this year but I'll just stash them away in my Inspiration folder for later.

give thanks 8

1. I'm thankful for rainy weather on a day when I didn't have to go anywhere.
2. I'm thankful for how Annie replies in the affirmative to questions by saying 'kay not yes.
Me: Do you want a drink?
Anne: 'Kay
Me: Do you want to get out of your seat?
Anne: 'Kay
It's so cute. She definitely knows how to say no too.
3. I'm thankful for a walk with my husband tonight. The wind was bitingly cold but we got our 30 minutes in.
4. I'm thankful for Dave mopping the floor for me when I didn't even ask him to do it. Love him!

give thanks 7

1. I'm thankful that Anne went back to sleep this morning after waking up at 6:30.
2. I'm thankful that I got to eat some treats today--Lemon Cream Cheese Cupcakes and Pumpkin Roll. Now I feel totally sick though so I think I am ready to go back to no sweets.
3. I'm thankful that we were able to host all of Dave's siblings at our house tonight.
4. I'm thankful that Dave's parents are serving a mission. We missed them tonight but are grateful they have the  opportunity to serve.
5. I'm thankful that my dad will be coming home this week. Finally. It's been just over two months since he was first hospitalized.

give thanks 6

1. I'm thankful that it was a good day for Cougar football.
2. I'm thankful for a walk and a chat in the dark with my friend.
3. I'm thankful for how many photos I managed to get edited today. Lots more to go.
4. I'm thankful for my friend, Internet, and all the great ideas she gives me.

give thanks 5

1. I'm thankful that Dave came home from Boise tonight! The six weeks of transfer that he has been gone have been the easiest of all the ones he has done. That said, I sure am much happier when he is here.
2. I'm thankful that the kids have such good friends in the neighborhood.
3. I'm thankful that the store is close enough to walk to.
4. I'm thankful that I was able to finish reading a friend's novel today. I really enjoyed it but now need to think back over it with a critical eye. Not an easy thing to critique a friend's work.

halloween

We began our Halloween celebrations with a homeschooling party at the park. We brought candycorn cupcakes to share. They had orange and yellow layers and then white frosting. Should have taken a picture. This party was organized somewhat at the last minute but it turned out amazingly well. I am so grateful for the group that we belong to.

Colin and Amy surprised us by coming dressed up to our family get together Friday night. Jeremy and Kim were in town with their boys so we had a Slade family party. Lots of delicious soup, rolls, cookies and cupcakes. Since most of us were starting our challenge on Monday we made sure to fill up on the good stuff.

Nathan carved this pumpkin all by himself and it turned out great.

 Finally, it was time for trick or treating.

 

 

 

 I stayed home to answer the door so I watched Food Matters on Netflix with the laptop. It was kind of ironic to be watching a show about healthy eating while I passed out candy. Emma went off with friends and Dave took the rest of the kids. When they left, the rain was coming in a downpour. Anne and Nathan only lasted about one street and came home to watch a movie. Sawyer and Slade kept going and stayed out quite a while since the rain finally stopped.