OK... well, I just had to. I saw these 2 shirts, and I couldn't help myself. They both fit the personalities of the wearers!
Sunday, November 30
Why its cool to live in Utah
Well, as most of you know, we really like Christmas. We've been listening to Christmas music for the past few weeks (there are 3... count them 3 radio stations playing Holiday music 24/7, and have been since a week or so after Halloween). We drive around looking at Christmas lights pretty often.
Last year, we were driving around and stumbled upon this truly amazing house in a gated community. The light display was absolutely stunning, and everything was set to music on an FM station broadcast from the home. The very best part was that they had a donation box, and all proceeds went to the Make a Wish foundation. They made over $10,000. I know I tried to tell some of you about it, but really, words can't do it justice.
Well, we were pretty darn bummed that when we drove by the other afternoon, no display was set up, and the gated community was locked.
I did a web search for Christmas lights in Utah, and lo and behold, there was the house! Apparently a little over 1/2 of the neighbors didn't want the traffic, so aren't able to continue the display... so they moved it to the owner's parents house.... and upped the amount of lights from 45,000 to 150,000. Wow. It'll start going tomorrow night, and you can bet we'll be there.
If you don't live around here (or don't want to drive 900+ miles to visit), I am putting in a link to the video page of the Holdman Christmas website. Carol of the Bells is our favorite. If you're interested you can read more about what they do and the surprisingly low cost of their electric bills.
www.holdman.com/christmas/video.asp
These videos are from last year's display, and I can't wait to see what they've got on tap for 2008!
What a great way to get into the Holiday Spirit... Enjoy!
Last year, we were driving around and stumbled upon this truly amazing house in a gated community. The light display was absolutely stunning, and everything was set to music on an FM station broadcast from the home. The very best part was that they had a donation box, and all proceeds went to the Make a Wish foundation. They made over $10,000. I know I tried to tell some of you about it, but really, words can't do it justice.
Well, we were pretty darn bummed that when we drove by the other afternoon, no display was set up, and the gated community was locked.
I did a web search for Christmas lights in Utah, and lo and behold, there was the house! Apparently a little over 1/2 of the neighbors didn't want the traffic, so aren't able to continue the display... so they moved it to the owner's parents house.... and upped the amount of lights from 45,000 to 150,000. Wow. It'll start going tomorrow night, and you can bet we'll be there.
If you don't live around here (or don't want to drive 900+ miles to visit), I am putting in a link to the video page of the Holdman Christmas website. Carol of the Bells is our favorite. If you're interested you can read more about what they do and the surprisingly low cost of their electric bills.
www.holdman.com/christmas/video.asp
These videos are from last year's display, and I can't wait to see what they've got on tap for 2008!
What a great way to get into the Holiday Spirit... Enjoy!
Wednesday, November 26
Happy Thanksgiving!!!
Once upon a year
There comes Thanksgiving day
A time to eat, a time to laugh,
a time for kids to play.
Its a time to give our thanks
for all that we hold dear
And for all the joys found in our lives
and friends both far and near.
A time to cook the bird,
the stuffing and the yams
the pumpkin pie, the yummy bread
Some even prepare hams
We sit down to the table
with class and with some grace
but pretty soon, all that goes...
'tis time to stuff one's face
By the time that its all done
our clothes are fit to burst
but we all wait and watch to see
who goes for seconds first
So wherever this note finds you
if you're close or far away
Know that we do love you...
Happy Turkey Day!
There comes Thanksgiving day
A time to eat, a time to laugh,
a time for kids to play.
Its a time to give our thanks
for all that we hold dear
And for all the joys found in our lives
and friends both far and near.
A time to cook the bird,
the stuffing and the yams
the pumpkin pie, the yummy bread
Some even prepare hams
We sit down to the table
with class and with some grace
but pretty soon, all that goes...
'tis time to stuff one's face
By the time that its all done
our clothes are fit to burst
but we all wait and watch to see
who goes for seconds first
So wherever this note finds you
if you're close or far away
Know that we do love you...
Happy Turkey Day!
Saturday, November 15
Some play pictures for you
Well, I haven't posted any pictures of the kids lately, 'cause I've been lazy and just haven't taken any. Today the weather was really nice and they played outside for a bit, so I snapped some shots of them... Enjoy!
Friday, November 7
Martha Stewart has nothin' on me...
So, the other evening we were having some good friends over for dinner. I made a Pot Roast and all the trimmings: Potatoes, Carrots, Gravy, Fresh Rolls (from scratch even)... It was looking like we were going to have a really tasty down-home meal.
So then I started thinking about what I was going to do for a dessert. I started looking through recipe books (thank you Paula Deen... the queen of butter), and found what looked like a really tasty Banana Cream Pie recipe, so I thought "sure.. no problem". Well, I don't make pies that involve a real crust as a rule, but figured that I was up for the challenge.
I found a recipe for a pie crust and had at it. OK.. for those of you who don't bake, making pie crusts are a pain in the rear... especially if you've got to pre-bake it. The recipe I went with called for me to refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours after making it prior to rolling it out to ensure that it would hold it's shape. OK... Did that... No problems. To pre-bake a crust, you shape it into a pie-plate, then line it with parchment or wax paper, then fill it with pie weights (or for those of us who live in the real world, pinto beans, or the like) to make sure that the bottom doesn't rise up and get all goofy.
Well, I rolled out the crust, shaped it into the pie plate, added some black-eyed peas for pie weights, then popped it in the oven. The recipe called to take it out after 20 minutes, remove the "weights" then bake it another 10. OK.. again, no problem.
After the allotted 20 minutes, I took the pie out and basked in the glory of the crust. Honestly, it was pie-crust perfection. The edges were beautifully fluted, it was turning a fantastic buttery gold... I was smirking and patting myself on the back for my pastry prowess.
That would have been right around the time I realized that I'd skipped over the whole "line the dough w/ wax paper" step. What I ended up with was a fantastic black-eye pea embedded pie crust. I thought about picking them out, but the crust (where the peas were) was giving out a definite "black-eyed pea" smell... not the buttery goodness I was shooting for. Sigh.
We ended up with a Banana Parfait for dessert. At least the rolls were good.
So then I started thinking about what I was going to do for a dessert. I started looking through recipe books (thank you Paula Deen... the queen of butter), and found what looked like a really tasty Banana Cream Pie recipe, so I thought "sure.. no problem". Well, I don't make pies that involve a real crust as a rule, but figured that I was up for the challenge.
I found a recipe for a pie crust and had at it. OK.. for those of you who don't bake, making pie crusts are a pain in the rear... especially if you've got to pre-bake it. The recipe I went with called for me to refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours after making it prior to rolling it out to ensure that it would hold it's shape. OK... Did that... No problems. To pre-bake a crust, you shape it into a pie-plate, then line it with parchment or wax paper, then fill it with pie weights (or for those of us who live in the real world, pinto beans, or the like) to make sure that the bottom doesn't rise up and get all goofy.
Well, I rolled out the crust, shaped it into the pie plate, added some black-eyed peas for pie weights, then popped it in the oven. The recipe called to take it out after 20 minutes, remove the "weights" then bake it another 10. OK.. again, no problem.
After the allotted 20 minutes, I took the pie out and basked in the glory of the crust. Honestly, it was pie-crust perfection. The edges were beautifully fluted, it was turning a fantastic buttery gold... I was smirking and patting myself on the back for my pastry prowess.
That would have been right around the time I realized that I'd skipped over the whole "line the dough w/ wax paper" step. What I ended up with was a fantastic black-eye pea embedded pie crust. I thought about picking them out, but the crust (where the peas were) was giving out a definite "black-eyed pea" smell... not the buttery goodness I was shooting for. Sigh.
We ended up with a Banana Parfait for dessert. At least the rolls were good.
Saturday, November 1
Trick-or-treat!
Well, as some of you may have heard, yesterday was Halloween. The kids had a really terrific day (big surprise).
Serayah had school, and went as Princess Belle. I got their costumes assuming that the weather would be really cold, and they'd be able to be warm without too much bundling. Serayah's "Mantis" costume must weigh 4 pounds... that sucker came from Canada, and I think it you could wear it through a blizzard. Yesterday's high was 72º, and the low was a balmy 50º, so I knew that she'd by roasting if she wore it to school. I'm a bad mommy and didn't get any pictures, but we went to a carnival the evening before and Serayah wore her Belle dress, and Cam his Engineer outfit, and I'm getting a picture from that adventure that I'll post after I get it scanned in.
Anyway, school was a big hit, and I stayed for the entire class. Dad was at home w/ Cam, so it was a treat to see Serayah in class with all her friends. The kids all went on a Halloween "parade" where they marched around the block in all their costumed glory yelling "Happy Halloween!!!" to any person (or cat, or dog) that they could see. It was a lot of fun.
At 5:30, I took the kids and went Trick-or-treating around our neighborhood with some of Serayah's friends. Last year, Serayah avoided any house that looked too spooky, and this year was looking like more of the same, but Cam had this whole "Go up and get candy" thing down, so nothing (including the grim reaper himself) was stopping him. He'd truck up the steps and say "Need Teet! (treat)". I tried and tried to get him to say "trick-or-treat", and succeeded a couple of times, then we'd revert back to "I Need teet!". Also, getting him to let go of his precious bucket was quite the feat. I'd try and take it while we maneuvered down steps, and he'd be saying "Need My Bucket!!!" the whole time. Also, he felt the need to carefully inspect every piece of candy that he received in the walk between houses. It was funny.
We got back, gave the kids a potty break, then Daddy and Grandpa took over the treat-gettin' while I manned the treat-givin'. By the time the kids got back, they were both very tired, hot (Serayah's head was soaking wet under the hood), and SO happy! It was a great time.
Serayah had school, and went as Princess Belle. I got their costumes assuming that the weather would be really cold, and they'd be able to be warm without too much bundling. Serayah's "Mantis" costume must weigh 4 pounds... that sucker came from Canada, and I think it you could wear it through a blizzard. Yesterday's high was 72º, and the low was a balmy 50º, so I knew that she'd by roasting if she wore it to school. I'm a bad mommy and didn't get any pictures, but we went to a carnival the evening before and Serayah wore her Belle dress, and Cam his Engineer outfit, and I'm getting a picture from that adventure that I'll post after I get it scanned in.
Anyway, school was a big hit, and I stayed for the entire class. Dad was at home w/ Cam, so it was a treat to see Serayah in class with all her friends. The kids all went on a Halloween "parade" where they marched around the block in all their costumed glory yelling "Happy Halloween!!!" to any person (or cat, or dog) that they could see. It was a lot of fun.
At 5:30, I took the kids and went Trick-or-treating around our neighborhood with some of Serayah's friends. Last year, Serayah avoided any house that looked too spooky, and this year was looking like more of the same, but Cam had this whole "Go up and get candy" thing down, so nothing (including the grim reaper himself) was stopping him. He'd truck up the steps and say "Need Teet! (treat)". I tried and tried to get him to say "trick-or-treat", and succeeded a couple of times, then we'd revert back to "I Need teet!". Also, getting him to let go of his precious bucket was quite the feat. I'd try and take it while we maneuvered down steps, and he'd be saying "Need My Bucket!!!" the whole time. Also, he felt the need to carefully inspect every piece of candy that he received in the walk between houses. It was funny.
We got back, gave the kids a potty break, then Daddy and Grandpa took over the treat-gettin' while I manned the treat-givin'. By the time the kids got back, they were both very tired, hot (Serayah's head was soaking wet under the hood), and SO happy! It was a great time.
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