nephi or laman

During our nightly scripture study, we were reading about Lehi's vision of the tree of life in the Book of Mormon. After sharing his vision. Lehi then preaches many more things to his children. Dave said, "Hey kids, are you listening? I bet Lehi preached to his kids for hours. Maybe I need to start preaching to you for hours. Maybe you'd turn into Nephi."

Slade then replied with a groan, "I'd turn into Laman!"

inspired by board and batten

This summer, I fully intend to install faux board and batten in my living room. I've been scouring the internet for pictures and tutorials. I think it will add high impact for a relatively low budget. If I could also replace my children-destroyed couches, I'd be really happy. What do you think?

what a difference a day makes

Yesterday:
A yard full of enough snow to weigh down branches and cover the grass. We spent the day inside playing chess, reading books, and drinking hot chocolate.


Today:
Gorgeous weather with temperatures in the 70s. This afternoon we seemed to be hosting the entire neighborhood. There were about 8 playing soccer in the grass and another 10 sitting on the porch. There were more kids eating snacks on the driveway. And more playing in the backyard. Makes me happy to be the host.

the view from here

Just a few random photos from the last week or so....

Slade received his Bobcat tonight. I got my first pin.

typical Monday morning laundry overflow

I'm on an organization/cleaning kick.

I'm also on a home decorating kick. This is my new family room rug. Pretty, ain't it?

Love it when I catch them playing well together.

Emma performed in her vocal recital last Saturday. We were a few minutes late and missed her opening solo. I felt like the world's lamest parent.

Slade is still convinced he can't read but we keep requiring him to read everyday.

Hopefully he'll love it one day.

Anne seems to be bursting with personality lately. She just cracks us up all day long.

six

Nathan turned six yesterday. We went to his soccer game in the morning. He had fallen on his arm a few days earlier and had not been using it since. He fell twice at soccer and was in enough pain to warrant a trip to the doctor. Urgent care is not a happy place to be on a Saturday. We sat in the waiting room for two hours. Two hours! Then it was another hour in the exam room. The doctor took x-rays and did a thorough examination. Despite it being obviously swollen and Nathan's pain, he determined it was not broken just strained. Nathan wanted it wrapped up in an Ace bandage. Seemed to give him some comfort, at least mentally.

After attending Emma's vocal recital, we got pizza and went to the park.

Then we came home to watch a movie and open presents. I felt like it was a rather lame birthday for Nathan but he didn't seem to mind.

we are the champions

Emma's team won a really hard fought game in the finals. Final score: 4-3. I've been so impressed watching this team really come together this season. They didn't even make it out of the tournament round robin last season. Emma plays as right-wing forward. In the last few games she stepped it up to play with a lot more aggression and passion. Dave was so proud.


Her coach during halftime in the finals told all the girls to "Get your fierce on" and they sure did. Way to go Icebreakers!

reason no. 1367 why I homeschool

I've got a bajillion reasons for homeschooling. Not having to turn over control of my child to idiots like these in Texas is just one of them.

http://www.khou.com/news/Candy-Gets-Third-Grader-A-Weeks-Detention-93033319.html

12 on 12 | may

[click to enlarge]

1. I did my first glass etching project. There is nothing like remembering that you have no present for your child to take to a birthday party half an hour before. Luckily, I had the supplies sitting on my counter--jar, etching cream, stickers and paint brush. Its such an easy project, I finished with five minutes to spare.
2. Sawyer was the lucky one who got to go to a birthday party. It was a dress up party and I was worried he would request to wear a dress. Thankfully, we got him out of the house sporting a hat, boots and cape instead.
3. Why is it that my kids will happily entertain themselves in the morning with random items like a measuring tape but when it is afternoon they can't think of a single thing to do except watch TV?
4. We've begun our basic summer schedule. We had finished up most of our curriculum and I didn't want to start anything new so we are now on a modified schedule. This is the list that they have to complete before they can play with friends or have screen time. This week I am experimenting with letting them do it in any order and at any time they wish. It is making me crazy. Next week, I think I will suggest a time frame to follow.
5. Slade is getting his page of math done.
6. This is the pile of stuff I pulled out of the van while searching for our garage door opener. Nathan and Sawyer had been playing with it. We eventually found it in Anne's car seat. Our search made us very late for co-op. I hate being late!
7. We talked about the atomic bomb at co-op. The kids had to choose whether they would have dropped the bomb or not. Emma and Nathan were the only ones who were against dropping the bomb. This is Emma's memo to President Truman arguing her point:
These people are innocent and if you drop it on the city you will kill men, women and children and so you will not only kill the soldiers but you will kill them.
Not terribly well worded but a valid argument. I am not sure what I have argued if I were one of Truman's advisers. Such hard decisions.
8. Emma didn't feel like eating at dinner (Leftover Night). Instead she sat at the table and read Harry Potter. I'm always excited when I see my children reading so I didn't say anything.
9. Nathan spent the evening downstairs in his room. After being told not to play in the car by both Dave and me, he was found in the car coloring all over this jar with permanent marker. I was able to get the marker off the glass but not the lid.
10. I have been lost on the world of blogs all week. There are just so many wonderful things out there to discover in blogland. So many ideas it makes my head spin and I just can't seem to stop. It has made me recognize that I am apparently a dreamer not a doer. I spend lots of time reading about all these wonderful projects and ideas but can't seem to make myself get off the computer to complete them.
11. Our weather this month has not been very pleasant. At least the wind tonight was good for one thing--flying a kite.
12. As I was folding clothes out of the dryer, Anne decided to climb in. I remember using the dryer as a hiding place. The dryer and under the bathroom sink were always good places to hide.

the living planet

Yesterday, we took another field trip to The Living Planet aquarium. We enjoyed the new exhibits they've gotten since the last time we went. Some highlights:

--the Utah portion of the aquarium is rather boring but it does have this frog for a cute photo-op

--The sting rays are always a hit though Nathan was sad that he didn't actually get to touch one despite plunging his whole arm into the water. Anne cried every time we got near the sting ray pool because she wanted to play in the water. Finally, I let her splash her hand for a minute. Then I was sufficiently grossed out when she stuck her thumb in her mouth before I could wash it.

--We got to watch the sting rays, penguins and octopus get fed. The octopus was the most interesting. They put his food in a Mr. Potato Head because the octopus is a highly intelligent creature that likes to figure things out. They try to change things up for it to keep it interesting. This time the hatch was off, next time the hatch will be on, then they tape it up, etc.

--We learned that an octopus has no bones and can squeeze through an opening about the size of a quarter.

--The penguins were very playful and fun to watch.

--Emma and Slade were quite entertained by Anne at the shark tank. I guess she would get startled when one would swim by her at the glass.

this is still the place

We took a fieldtrip to This is the Place with our homeschool group on May 4. It was not a very spring-like day as far as weather goes but we bundled up and still had fun. After eating lunch we split up into groups. Emma went with the other group so we didn't see her again until the end.

In our group, we first went and did some chores. Sawyer proved to be a hard-worker--milking, beating the rug, and ironing. I guess I need to assign him some more chores at home.

Nathan proved that he is pretty handy with a plough. I guess it is time to finally put a garden in the back (ha!).

We also learned about making clothes from wool, petted a few goats and went to school in a one-room schoolhouse.

Finally we stopped off at the barber shop for a shave, some dental work and a little leeching. That barber sure was a jack of all trades.


I'm not sure that either my kids or myself truly understand what life would have been like as a pioneer, but I am thankful that we at least try and celebrate our heritage.

random bits of the ordinary

May has been full of stormy weather, soccer, field trips, family gatherings. I haven't been keeping up on this old blog very well. I am trying to catch up.

We enjoyed having my parents here for Slade's baptism. It is always great when they come. We enjoyed another family get together on Sunday.


Emma's soccer team is doing really well this season. Emma had one of her best games last Saturday. She was on fire and Dave was beside himself with excitement. Her team won 7-1 and will be playing in the finals tonight.


We raised some butterflies again this year. Our mail key got lost and the caterpillars actually sat in our mail box for a week. Thankfully they didn't die and they all hatched after a few weeks.



Our neighbors invited us to a dinner and program about Joseph Smith last Friday. The food was delicious and the program short and sweet (just how I like it). Emma even let me do her hair for the occasion. I don't get much practice on her hair since she really doesn't like me to do it. The end result was not exactly what I had envisioned but she like it. She even requested that I do it again on Sunday.


How's that for random happenings?

oh cupcake

Slade requested "lots and lots of cupcakes" for the party after his baptism. I love cupcakes and was happy to oblige. I made them all with my hand mixer since my Bosch was in the repair shop. I made even more for book club on Wednesday. I have eaten WAY too many cupcakes this week to say the least.

I thought I would share some of the recipes I used as they are some of my favorites.

This is probably my favorite of all cupcake recipes right now. When I gave some to one of my friends, she said it was like eating sunshine.

Lemon Cream Cheese Cupcakes
from Kraft

1 pkg. (2-layer size) white cake mix

1 pkg. (3.4 oz.) lemon instant pudding

1 cup water

4 egg whites

2 Tbsp. oil

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened

2 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 pkg. (16 oz.) powdered sugar

HEAToven to 350ºF.

BEAT first 5 ingredients in large bowl with mixer on low speed until moistened. (Batter will be thick.) Beat on medium speed 2 min. Spoon into 24 paper-lined muffin cups.

BAKE 21 to 24 min. or until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 min.; remove to wire racks. Cool completely.

BEAT cream cheese, butter and juice with mixer until well blended. Gradually add sugar, beating on low speed after each addition until well blended. Spread onto cupcakes.

I intended to jazz up the white cake mix recipe with these instructions from Saucy's Sprinkles:

Mix one cake mix package in mixer with three eggs, 1/2 cup melted butter and one cup water or milk. Blend on low speed for a minute and scrape down sides of the bowl. Beat on high for 2-3 minutes until smooth and lighter in color.

My mom was too on top of things though and made just regular cupcakes. They were still super yummy because I frosted them with this frosting recipe from Our Best Bites. I used almond extract and it was so good. I usually double this recipe so I can make big swirls on top.

Perfect Cupcake Frosting and Filling

3 T Flour
1/2 C milk (whole milk is best)
1/2 C real butter (not a cheap store brand)
1/2 C sugar (that's granulated sugar, not powdered sugar)
1 t vanilla extract, or other flavor

Whisk together the flour and the milk. Heat in a small sauce pan on medium heat. Whisk continuously until it starts to thicken. Let it cook, while stirring, until it looks like pudding (you should be able to see the bottom of the pan when you stir it). Remove from heat and let cool completely.

It an electric stand mixer, beat the butter and the sugar for a minute or two until well combined and fluffy. Then while beating, add in the thickened milk mixture and the vanilla.
Beat on high for 7-9 minutes.

The chocolate cupcakes I made from scratch didn't really work out. I would have been better off to have used a mix. However, I really did like this chocolate buttercream recipe. I ran out of vanilla and used orange extract instead.

Chocolate Buttercream
from All Recipes

1 cup butter softened
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup baking cocoa
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup milk
dash of salt

Cream butter. Gradually beat in powdered sugar, cocoa and vanilla. Add enough milk until frosting reaches spreading consistency.

Happy Baking!