A Mother is the Most Wonderful Person in the World~Wendy from Peter Pan

My mom is pretty much perfection wrapped into one person. I know a lot of you feel that way about your mom, but here's a few reasons why I love mine.

*She has ALWAYS looked on the bright side of everything. She NEVER complains and never has a bad thing to say about pretty much anything. She is so positive all the time.

*She loves my dad and lets you know it. She is always praising him to him and to everyone else. She has never said a single thing negative about him.

*She loves being a mother and grandmother and praises that up, down, left, and right. I don't think you could get her to complain about raising 8 kids or the work it was or the kids she had or anything like that.

*She is a great mother for married kids. She (and my dad) don't intrude on our lives, our business, our choices, anything. They give advice when advice is asked for, but otherwise, allow us to make our choices and mistakes and learn from them. They honor our marriages and never come between spouses or criticize.

*She (and my dad) LOVES everything about us (each of us kids) and our spouses and is quick to love each person who has married into our family without ever judging or making them feel like an outsider.

*She is the best grandma because she gives herself 100% to her grandkids when she visits them. From sun up to sun down, she spends time with them, doing anything they want. If my girls wanted to go to the park or on a walk or swing in the back yard or read a book or whatever, she would do it. She constantly looks for ways to entertain them and to keep them happy. She says, "I can sit/sleep/work/etc when I get home" instead of doing those things when she's here.

*She is AWESOME to have around when a baby is born. She'll offer to do night duty, or takes care of the older sibling(s) so the mom can rest or sleep or just have a break any time she wants. She also always "sees things that need to be done and does them without being asked." So she cleans, does laundry, cooks, or whatever you need. It's great!

Those are just a few things I love about my mom. Here's some pics from her visit. She brought these molds that we grew up with and made rice krispie treat bears with Keara as a Valentine's Day gift. She had made them for all my other nieces and nephews and had sent them to them for Valentine's but decided to bring it with her to do with Keara. Keara thought it was pretty cool and loved eating the chocolate chip eyes...which was fine because Taryn couldn't eat them anyway.

Cute, huh? We loved these growing up!

I also LOVE this video. My mom decided to teach Keara an outside game, so she drew a hopscotch board on the back patio. Then she demonstrated, which I thought was classic. I loved watching Keara try to do it too!! That sweet girl.

Anyway, it was great to have them here, if only for a couple days. We're sure looking forward to you coming back in August mom!!!

My Dad's the Greatest Dad

My dad really is the greatest dad. He is fantastic. One thing I love about him is that he knows everything and knows how to do everything. Whenever he visits anyone in our family, he seeks out projects to do to improve our homes and lives. So this time, I prepped him by writing a list of projects we'd like to work on while he was here.(I just HAD to take this picture, since it seems he has a picture like this from all our houses! If only I had them all to blog, how funny would that be?!)

My goodness, the man never stopped. Here's what he (and Braden when he was home) did:
*Installed under-cabinet lights in the kitchen to light up a dark corner
*Installed a semi-flush mount light fixture in the kitchen over the blank area that is always so dark
*Took down and installed a new ceiling fan in the living room because the motor of the other one was broken (thankfully, Home Depot simply gave us a new fan)
*Installed lights over our computer desk to light up the desk and the toy area so the girls will now play there
*Installed a different light fixture on our back patio so we can see our barbecue and yard at night
*Dropped our can lights lower and put in flood lights in our kitchen so we can finally see what we're doing
*Fixed our barstools that were endlessly coming loose
*Fixed our cupboard door that had a screw that had stripped the wood
*Fixed our bedside lamp that Braden wanted to use so he could read in bed

Mind you, he was at our house a total of 14 hours at one stretch and 28 hrs at another stretch, including nights, meals, and a Sunday where he did no work. He is amazing. So, as they say, let there be light. It has been SO fun to wait until dark so we can see how much the lighting in our house has changed. It's also been weird to want to turn OFF lights because there's enough rather than need to turn on all the lights in the house once the sun goes down. I'm loving this. THANKS DAD!

He also found plenty of time to love my girls, who definitely loved him back! Taryn took to him from the minute he got here and really preferred him above anyone while he was here.

I loved catching this picture. Keara was tickled pink. Actually, I guess you'd say her nails were painted pink...

I love my dad! Come back soon!!

The Greatest Men on Earth

Most of you are not going to care about this LONG post, so if you don't want to read it, that's fine. In fact, you don't have to read any of my posts. But I love it that you do :)

We had a WONDERFUL opportunity to have my parents here for a couple days so they could attend a reunion with my dad's brothers and their wives. A little background, if you're interested. And I was taught to never ruin a good story for a little truth, so hopefully this is accurate and, if not, oh well. My Grandpa Hicken married a fabulous woman named Mazie. They had a little girl, Norma, who died when she was 10 months old from eresypilis or something like that. Then they had a little boy, Neil. Then another little girl, Elaine. Then a little boy, Jay. Then another little boy who died. Then my dad, Joseph. Then another little boy, Dale. And finally, another little boy, Robert.

When my dad was 4 years old, and baby Robert was about 10 days old or so, my grandma died of complications with pnuemonia. That was before the days of penicillian being given to humans. Thus, my grandpa was left with 5 sons and a daughter. All his extended family wanted to split the family up because there was no woman to care for the children. My grandpa was a dairy farmer in Heber, Utah and it would be next to impossible to raise 6 children by yourself and run a farm. He refused to let his children be split up, so he kept them all (except the baby who spent the first couple years of his life with an aunt and uncle) and raised them on his own as best he could. My aunt Elaine was the greatest woman on earth and kept that family together, raising her brothers and taking care of her dad even though she was just a young woman.

After a few years, he married another fabulous woman named Vay. They had one more son, Claude, making 6 sons and 1 daughter. They were married for 30 years or so, until my grandma Vay died in the early 80s. I never really knew her. He remarried again, when he was in his 70s or 80s, to another woman named Fay. They were married until she died in 1994. My Aunt Elaine passed away in July of 2000 from cancer at the age of 66. My grandpa lived until he was 94 1/2 and died in April 2002, the end of my freshman year at BYU. He was the greatest man I knew.

Since then, I have had the wonderful opportunity to get to know my uncles better, especially as an adult rather than a child. I always loved them and respected them, but I was afraid of a lot of them. They seemed rough or mean when I was a child. But the more I got to know my grandpa, my dad, and my uncles, I learned that there are no greater men that walk this earth. My grandpa had to teach his sons (and daughter) how to work. There wasn't time for play. But there was time for work, honesty, God, family, and wisdom. These boys are the hardest working, most honest, most God-fearing, most family centered, and wisest men I have ever met. Among them, my grandpa used to say, there have been 5 bishops, such and such stake presidents, 2 seventies, sealers, and this that and the other, and a daughter who held every calling in the world.

Being near these men, I feel like I'm in the presence of royalty. People to be admired. I wish I had more time with them. We've been able to get to know a few much better on different occasions, but even though we don't know each other very well, when we are together as a family, there is a feeling of perfect unity. I have never come across a family that is more closely knit together and that truly understands what family is all about. I think it has 100% to do with the great challenges these men faced at such a young age and the life that resulted.

When we moved here, I got to know my uncle Bob (baby Robert) who was always the scariest to me growing up (sorry! it's true!). We worked daily with him putting our store together and I soon realized that he is my dad's twin brother. They are so alike in so many ways that when I am with him, I feel like my dad is close by. I LOVE these men! If only you could have the opportunity to know them.

They also are the best to be with when there is laughter. I have never known people to have a better laugh then these men. They laugh so hard they all cry. I love it.

So, when my dad was here, all the adult cousins in the area (meaning Bob's kids and us) were invited to a dinner with our aunts and uncles. Here's a picture I got of all the men visiting. From left to right: Dale, Neil, Bob, Jay, Braden, my Dad (Joe), Jay Garlick (Elaine's husband), and Claude. Excepting Claude and Jay Garlick, of course, they all look so much alike, talk alike, act alike, nod their heads alike. Well, that is, except Dale too. He is the nut of the bunch! (For those who care, Larry Morris works with Dale and knows him well)

Anyway, it was FABULOUS to be there that night. I never wanted to leave. Truly, each time I've been with them in the last few years, I feel like I've stepped into the Celestial Kingdom and I don't ever want to go away. They are unbelievable.

Updates for my brothers and sisters: Claire Bangerter had a baby about 6 (?) months ago, Adam Bangerter had a baby about 3-4 (?) months ago. Spencer Garlick's wife is due in July as is Alena Hicken. Lauren Bangerter is on a mission in Germany, as is Andrew Bangerter. Quinn Larsen is on a mission in Columbia and Annie Garlick is on a mission in Pennsylvania. Launa went thru the temple a month or two ago. And it seems everyone else is doing just about what they were doing when we were at the reunion 2 years ago.

I wish you could have been there. I know you're not all as sappy as I am, and you're probably rolling your eyes at this post, but it was GREAT!

Cutest Blog on the Block

My background isn't working anymore. At least not on my computer. Do you see anything besides blue? Why isn't it working!?

Happy Birthday to You...and You...and You...and ME!

February was once a month that had no birthdays. But thanks to marriage and babies, it is now FULL! So a happy birthday to Kyle (2nd), Elysse (3rd), Caden (6th), Amanda (12th), Nicho (14th), and Chris (26th).

This year we got to celebrate Kyle and Caden's birthdays at Peter Piper Pizza. It's like a arcade that serves pizza. The kids had a great time and we were pleasantly surprised at the quality of the pizza. But I drank soda and it made me sick for the next 2 days. Oh well. Taryn and Keara especially loved the little carousel. It had seats for 4 and only one person had to pay in order for it to go. So either we'd pay the tokens or someone else would and they'd hop on for a free ride. I lost count at how many times they rode.

Keara used to love Skee-Ball, so she tried it, but she preferred the carousel.

My birthday is on Sunday and I'm looking forward to it. I've decided I'm going to enjoy it for a while this year. My parents sang me a birthday card when they were here last week which cracked me up, my in-laws sent me a birthday card and are coming to visit next weekend, I got a night "off" last night for Enrichment which was wonderful, we're going to the temple and then hopefully out to dinner with friends tomorrow night, and then to my sis-in-law's house for dinner on Sunday night for Baked Tortellini and Crown Jewel Dessert. I'm excited.

So, if you are in the area and/or going to the Mesa Temple tomorrow night and would like to join us for dinner, come along! We're planning on going to Red Robin with anyone and everyone who would like to go around 8pm. We'd love to have you!!

Will You Be My V-A-L-E-N-T-I-N-E?

Valentine's Day this year was a family day. There was little to do with romance and much to do with love. Even the produce we were buying seemed to be saying "Happy Valentine's Day."
I really wanted Keara to understand something about Valentine's day this year, so we had an FHE about love and filled out Valentine cards for all her young cousins. She didn't quite understand why we were doing it, but she enjoyed "writing" on the backs of all of them. Then, we made cupcakes for all her friends and local cousins. She refused to even look at her friends when we delivered the first ones, but by the end was even wishing them a happy valentine's day. I made oreo truffles for my in laws and aunts/uncles which turned out beautifully. I haven't eaten one in 14 weeks because chocolate and I aren't friends right now, but everyone seemed to love them.

After that part of Valentine's Day was done, we decided to spend the actual day at my aunt's cabin. The mountains had received a generous helping of snow earlier in the week and we really wanted to get up to the snow this year for the girls to enjoy. But I checked their weather reports and it showed only 1 inch of snow in Strawberry that week. Uh-oh. Our friends were able to join us just for the day and we met in Payson (about 1 1/2 hours from here). There was a little snow pushed into piles on the side of the road and we could tell there was snow in the high mountains, but we still hoped that at least we'd be able to FIND some snow, even if it meant driving a bit to get there.

Well, when we got to my aunt's cabin, we discovered, to our total excitement, that there was not only snow AT the cabin, but so much, we couldn't even get in the driveway! The snow was up to my knees and prestine and beautiful and perfect. Aahhh...it couldn't have been better. The weather was in the 30's and 40's and felt wonderful. We hardly needed coats.

The cabin, however, had been proofed for the winter, so the thermostat was turned down all the way, meaning the cabin was 40 degrees when we got there. We turned on the heat, but it took 7 hours to get the house up to 70 degrees and even then, it was cold. So we enjoyed hot chocolate, fires, and a warm dinner.

We made angel hair pasta with italian sausage and homemade spaghetti sauce (I'm still working on finding a GREAT homemade recipe), garlic bread, red jello (corny, I know), beans, Martinelli's and Welch's grape juice for dinner and then angel food cake with strawberries and whipped cream for dessert. We really enjoyed it.

I couldn't believe I forgot my camera, but thankfully Lexi brought hers so here's all I have.


I was really worried Keara wouldn't like the snow or would hate the cold or would throw fits if she fell down. At first, she would hardly take a step, but after a little bit, she was tromping all over the place, sitting in it, throwing it, digging in it, and, yes, eating it. In fact, that was what she did most of the time.

I thought she looked so cute all bundled up and in this wonderland. I know it doesn't look like the snow is that deep, but this spot was tramped on and she also weighs nothing, so hardly even sunk into the snow. But believe me, it was deep.

Taryn was not feeling well. Her skin hurt, her nose hurt, and her body hurt. In fact, she got so dry, her nose would bleed from the dry and so much running. Poor girl. But she LOVED eating the snow, so she'd come out for a few minutes at a time and only want to eat it.

Lexi took a couple family pics of us. It was hard to get both girls to look at the camera since they were more interested in the snow.

While it didn't solve the looking at the camera problem, giving them each a snowball to eat at least kept them still.

It was a great Valentine's Day, the best yet. It was great to spend it with family and friends and to spend so much time with the girls. We went up on Saturday and came home on Monday, just in time for my parents to come on Tuesday. It was a great weekend.

Wow, Where Has February Gone?

I have hardly blogged anything in the last month. At least hardly anything important. So, here is my one day to make it all up. Well, not make it up as in create it out of thin air, but make up for it...right...

We have had BEAUTIFUL weather this month. I'll admit I'm still really not a huge fan of mid-80's in February and sweating while going on a walk when it is really still winter, but it has been great to go to the park, sleep with the windows open, have the door open all day, and let the girls play in the yard.

Taryn is our dirt girl. She LOVES to eat dirt, as everyone knows, as well as rocks, chalk, sand, grass, wood, and pretty much everything else that she can pick up off the the ground. Soon it will be bugs...gross. So, needless to say, when I take her outside, I am either resigned to take everything out of her mouth the entire time we're outside, or give in and let her do whatever and deal with it later. Usually, that's what I choose.

This picture (above) is for the Moores...don't you see Madi in that face?

Keara and Taryn have so much fun together. I'm so glad they are friends, though Keara still exerts a lot of power over her sister and refuses to let her play with anything that is Keara's. Taryn really enjoys being awake when Keara is not, but that doesn't happen often.

Here are just a couple pics of the last month that are random and really don't have stories to go along with them.
I LOVE this picture of Taryn. I took it yesterday and it just shows so much about T. First, she is really beautiful. Second, she LOVES necklaces and loves me to tell her she is so pretty. Third, she has 12 teeth and it cutting the next 4 right now. It's making her miserable. Poor girl. But she'll be grateful to have 16 teeth. Fourth, she has so much light inside of her and is so happy, usually. She is a crack up.

And here's me at 14 weeks. It doesn't look too different from my 7 week pic, but it is. Truly, it is. Baby is doing well and we're finding out what it is in 4 weeks. Check back at the end of March for more details.

Another Frosting Recipe

So the other day Braden was making...wait, I made for Braden...a cake for a coworker. We made a marble cake and were going to drizzle it with chocolate frosting. After the cake didn't come out of the pan, we made another and decided to frost the whole thing. But I didn't have a chocolate frosting recipe. So I pulled out some ingredients and some ideas in my mind and whipped together a frosting.

Apparently, everyone was RAVING about it at his work and even eating it straight from the tupperware he brought it in before they even ate the cake. Wow. Didn't expect that! Unfortunately, I don't have a recipe. I'm going to try to duplicate it and write down measurements, but until then, here's what I did:

1/3 cup butter, softened
Powdered Sugar
1 Tbs whipping cream (only if it gets too stiff)
2-3 Tbs cocoa
2-4 Tbs sour cream
1 tsp vanilla

I whipped the butter and added some powdered sugar. Then I added the cocoa and vanilla and a Tbs or two of sour cream. But it was too stiff so I added a little cream and then more powdered sugar and sour cream. But then it tasted too much like sour cream, so I added more powdered sugar until it was the right consistency. Perfect.

It probably wouldn't be great as a piping frosting, but a great spreading frosting. For those of us to hate frosting, it was really delicious! I hope someone else can enjoy it!

Tagged, I'm It, Again!

Okay, so I was really hoping this tag would end up to be more exciting than it is. Here are the rules:



1. go to the document/ my pictures site on your computer
2. go to your sixth file
3. go to your sixth picture
4. blog about it
5. tag 6 people




Well, my pictures aren't set up that way. So, if I were to really go to my 6th file, it would be my file that holds all my blogging pictures, which I've already blogged about and don't feel the need to again. So, then I thought, I'd go to my 6th REAL picture file. But that file has files in it. So I went to the 6th file in THAT. But there were only 3 pictures in it. Hmm...So then I thought I'd go to my 6th file, even if I had to go within multiple files to find the 6th one. Nope, that didn't work either. Finally, I cleaned up my pictures file a little bit, and started counting from the files that don't fall under 2006, 2007, 2008, or 2009 (since that's how I organize my pics). And here's what I came up with:

To be honest, I don't know where this is taken or when, though it has to be about a year and a half ago since my nephew Joseph has his hair that way. So, in this picture are my brother Shaun, my Dad (lying in the middle), and my oldest nephew Joseph. Incidentally, these are 3 generations of Joseph Hicken, since my brother Shaun's first name is Joseph, as is my dad's.

Obviously they are canoeing and my dad has either "passed out" or is thoroughly enjoying being boated around by the young'ns. These are 3 of the best men this world has ever known. I wish you could know them too.

Speaking of, I need to blog soon about the other 6 or 7 best men in the world...

So, now I tag...Jill, Krista, Robb/Amanda, the Memmotts, the Heatons, and Pheobe.

Success is Such Sweet Victory

We did it!!! I am SO excited to report that Taryn is weaned off a bottle!!! She has been using a bottle since we started her on formula in October/November. Great, except she refused to take her milk in anything but a bottle. She would drink from her sippy cup if it was water, but not milk. (when I say milk, she is STILL on her soy formula) I eventually had the idea that maybe if I got her a different type of sippy that was more like her bottle, she'd use it. It took giving it to her a half dozen times, but she finally finished 6 oz. Since then, she's drained that thing a few more times and takes it willingly. I'm SO glad!!! I could tell it was going to work when she was holding her sippy the same as she holds her bottle, from the bottom. Way to go Taryn!

Sundays are SUPPOSED to be Peaceful

But today was not. My goodness, it was not. Today was the first day our ward time switched to 2 pm. It was at noon for the last long time and we thought noon was a bad time. Our mornings have always gone like this: wake up, have breakfast, I work on my calling, take showers, get dressed, put Taryn down for her nap, go to choir while Keara and Daddy play, come home, grab some snacks for lunch, wake Taryn up from her nap, and leave by 11:35 to get to church in time to maybe snag a bench seat. Then, at church, Taryn is hungry, Keara is hungry, I'm hungry, and we're all ready for our afternoon naps by the second hour. Taryn squirms the entire block and only Keara and I get a peaceful second and third hour while Braden tries to keep Taryn from yelling or running away. After church, we'd have a snack, put Taryn down for her much begged for nap, put Keara in her room for quiet time while I crashed on the couch, avoiding making dinner. The rest of the night would be quiet, just playing, eating, and then going to bed.

After the fiasco church at noon was, we knew church at 2 would be far worse in some ways, but far better in others. Better because we'd have more time in the mornings. But last night we had a great time at our friends house playing games and talking until 10:45, during which all children fell asleep...except Keara. She just doesn't go to bed at other people's houses. Thankfully she's pleasant the whole time, and would be (if we let her) until 2 in the morning before she passed out from exhaustion. So she finally got to bed around 11pm, 3 hours past her bedtime. And she woke up at 8:15 am, which is when she normally gets up. But we could tell immediately that she was still tired. So the morning was bad. I take that back. Breakfast was great. Braden made a yummy breakfast for all of us and it was delicious. I worked on my plan for primary and was so pleased with it when I realized that I had just planned something we're not even doing. So scratch that whole thing. I went to choir, which was great, and Braden and Keara played and even cleaned the house. But the next couple hours, which dragged by waiting for 1:30 to come so we could leave, were not good. Keara spent quite a bit of time crying in her room while our moods turned sour. Taryn slept until lunch which we were able to eat as a family for the first time since moving to Queen Creek.

Finally, we left for church, with Keara not having made a single good choice in a few hours and Taryn deciding that she was NOT going to be good before we had even made it thru the doors. So Sacrament meeting was spent mostly in the hall with Taryn while who knows what Keara did in the chapel. All I know is that Braden had HAD it with her by the end. I was grateful to go to primary, though I was SO tired. At this point, it was 3:20 and that means nap time for me and the girls. And we all needed it today. But no. Keara went to class and was finally able to play. Taryn delighted her dad with not one, but TWO messy diapers within a half hour of each other. When church was over, we were all ready.

With us all being tired and hungry, I was ready for dinner. I had started our roast in the crock pot in the morning and was ready for mashed potatoes, gravy, and delicious roast. But Braden's home teaching companion had scheduled a visit with a family at 6 pm, 35 minutes after we got home, which was NOT enough time to make mashed potatoes, feed, and be done before he left. So, the girls and I snacked on Kix and apples until 7, when we could finally eat. At this point, Taryn is exhausted and starving and Keara is so tired she is wild. For the first time in the day, our family was quiet as we all got to eat. And it was good. But it was over quickly enough and finally it was bedtime. Poor Taryn almost thanked me for putting her in her crib. Keara is fighting Braden right now, but I know as soon as she gets in her bed, she'll fall asleep. She is so tired. I can hardly sit up, I'm so tired and Braden is readyfor the day to be done.

Do you think next Sunday will be better? At least we will NOT be keeping Keara up until 11pm.

If It Ain't Broke...

Well, it was broke. It seemed we had a string of bad luck with things breaking lately. First, our hand mixer finally gave up the ghost. It had a broken piece inside that rattled whenever you used it, but it still worked. Then it just stopped. So for the last 3 months or so, we've had no hand mixer. Not a big deal unless you want to whip cream without pulling out the kitchenaid. Then, after 5 minutes of whipping by hand, you really want an ELECTRIC hand mixer. I guess I should clarify. Our electrice hand mixer broke. My hands aren't broken.

Shortly after this, my blow dryer exploded. No, it didn't. A blow dryer exploding is what happened to my dad a few years ago. This was just sparks flying up and down the cord on Taryn's birthday. It freaked me out and I shook for a couple hours from fright, and the blowdryer was no more. It had had a short for a while, but was still working. No more. So for the last 2 months, I haven't been able to do my hair because I have to blow dry it in order to straighten it. Sorry if you've been offended by my hair always being pulled back lately.

Then, a couple weeks later, our wonderful blender started destroying the drive coupling that spins the blades. This happened right when I was CRAVING smoothies and needed to drink one every day. Oh, that was just cruel timing. I have missed my blender so terribly much.

Finally, last week, I ordered a new drive coupling and it came! That night we had a smoothie. Then, a couple days later when I was hand whipping cream, I begged Braden to get a hand mixer. He went to Walmart with a gift card and bought one for $6. Yeah, it may not last long, but at least it will whip some cream for me.

I'm still without a blowdryer, but maybe if I can finnagle my hand mixer and blender together, the whirring will be strong enough to dry my hair. That or tangle it so bad I'll just shave it all off and never need a blow dryer again...

Oh What a Beautiful Morning!

Okay, so it's 4:30 in the afternoon. But I was just making dinner and suddenly had a wave of happiness flow over me. There I was making bread (sort of), with dinner made in the crockpot and smelling great, the sun shining thru open windows, the door open so the girls can go out and play, showtunes playing in the background, and it felt good. Really good.

Plus, it's bread rising season again! As I've posted before, it is one of the things I do love about living here. It's beautiful outside today! I'm so grateful for that.

Doctors...

Taryn's insurance expired. And we're trying to get her on again but the process can take up to 45 business days to complete. Needless to say, that could take until MARCH to finish. And the poor girl has at least one ear infection that seems to be bothering her so very much and her constant crying is bothering us so very much. She's woken up multiple times in the night the last 3 nights and I just don't know what to do for her. I can't take her to the doctor or fill a prescription because we can't afford it. Unless it's walmart generic. Any of you write prescriptions? Wanna fill one out for my baby?

So, she didn't get the go to the doctor, even though she needed to. Last week I went to Urgent Care because I have this long lumpy thing in my lower left abdomen. It was concerning to me, though not bothersome. They dismissed it as a swollen tendon. Okay, I thought, but dumb answer. Today, I went to my OBGYN for my annual exam and thought I'd ask him about this lumpy thing. He says its scar tissue. Better answer.

While I was there, among the not so pleasant and not so appropriate for a blog, he did, however, discover something else.

(Now, before you think what you're thinking, no, I was not surprised. Yes, I did go to him for that specifically, as well as for an annual exam. So, no this was not a shock.)

So there you have it, world. Welcome the THIRD baby Moore to our family, expected to arrive sometime at the end of what is promising to be a very LONG, HOT summer. (due end of August)

I haven't told many people (in fact, my parents are reading about it here on my blog for the first time too, so don't be offended...) because I'm only 10 weeks. I would normally not even tell this early. But it's way too hard to hide and I'm tired of people thinking I'm just gaining weight. In fact, when I was only 6 weeks, my good friend came up to me and asked, "Seriously, Cheri, are you just eating a lot?!" Of course, I had to tell her, but really! I shouldn't have to tell at 6 weeks. I took this picture shortly thereafter to show that she had every reason to ask and that I just can't hide it anymore.
That was at about 7 weeks. And it hasn't improved. I saw on my friend's blog a picture of her at 20 weeks and, no joke, she was not even as big as I am in this picture. I guess that's the difference between first and third baby. Funny thing is, according to the Dr's office, I haven't gained a single pound, yet I look like I'm having twins! (No, we're NOT having twins) I guess the combination of no sugar and throwing up a few times a day does that, huh?

I haven't been feeling too good for the last 5 weeks. For about 3 or 4 of them, I was throwing up a few times a day. But now we're down to a few times a week, usually a couple times in only a couple days per week. Not like you want to know that. I'm exhausted, starving, dizzy, and get frequent headaches. But I'm sleeping well (thanks to my MIL's fantastic body pillow she lent me) and eating relatively well (though I was eating only carbs for about a week before that just wasn't doing it for me).

Yes, this was planned and yes I am excited. Actually, I'm really excited for this baby. The last 8 weeks have D-R-A-G-G-E-D by so slowly and I've just been dying to tell people, but it seemed like today would never come. But it has and we're finally coming to the end of the first trimester (in a few weeks) and starting the much more fun parts.

I love pregnancy for so many reasons, but mainly because it is a rare opportunity to participate in creation. And I only get to do it a handful of times in my life (maybe 2 handfuls) so I try to enjoy it. Well, not the first part, but the rest. I also LOVE labor and delivery. It is exciting and, as my mom would say, exhiliarating. I look forward to it for the whole 9 months. And I love my babies. I am so grateful for these 2 beautiful girls who are healthy and happy (besides Taryn right now) and I'm so grateful for this little baby's heart beating away and sounding like music to me.

So there you have it.

Each Life That Touches Ours for Good

We lost a dear friend last night. It was terribly unexpected and we don't know how or if he could ever be replaced.

I don't know what killed him, but we have lost our dear Betta fish, Blue. We loved him and he loved us. But he died. We are heartbroken. Keara was almost to tears over him..."but I WANT him!" He was such a great fish with SO much personality. Don't laugh, he really was.

Perhaps it was heartbreak, perhaps starvation (we WERE feeding him), perhaps anything else, but we are so sad to lose him.

Here's to you, Blue.

New Experiences, Good Experiences

Today we decided to try something new. There's a co-op of people who get together and purchase fresh produce from growers and suppliers for discount prices. It's called Bountiful Baskets and apparently has grown from 300 to 27,000 participants in 2 years. It's available all over the valley every other Saturday. Or so I'm told. Well, today we decided to participate. It cost $15 (plus $1.50 handling and $3 first time fee). You go to a location in your area and they give you baskets of produce that you transfer to your own laundry basket, cooler, trash can, whatever and take home.

Here's what I got today.
Yes, that is a coconut on top. There were 7 avocados, a bunch of minneolas (oranges?), pears with a name I haven't heard of, squash I don't know what to do with, apples, strawberries, tomatoes, lettuce, brocciflower (cross between broccoli and cauliflower...don't know its real name), a coconut, and 7 ears of corn. 30 lbs of fresh produce. WOW!

We're definitely doing this again. If you want to participate go to bountifulbaskets.org. If I was a web designer, I'd make them a website because theirs is terrible. But it gets the job done. Hey, it's not-for-profit so I guess they're not putting their time and money there.

The amazing thing is the stuff is picked on Thursday and delivered to us on Saturday. Talk about fresh.

Anyway, it was a great experience, besides having to get up before 7 am, which I never do. But THANK YOU SO MUCH to Jill for coming over and being with the girls so I didn't have to wake them up to go. You're amazing!

When Pebbles Was a Baby...

So, take a look at that picture of Taryn on our header (the picture behind "Laughing Thru Motherhood" at the top of the page). Doesn't she look like that little girl from the Mouth of Babes right after she sings the song about when Pebbles was a baby and the interviewer says, "What does that have to do with the devil?" She gets that look and says, "I don't know." Am I alone in this one!?

Treat of the Day

This morning, Keara asked to have pretzels. I don't know where she pulled that from since we never have pretzels and we can't buy pretzels because all the ones at Walmart are manufactured with peanut butter. But it spurred the idea of making homemade soft pretzels which I love. So, I found a recipe and we whipped them up.

They are GOOD! If you like store bought soft pretzels then these are perfect for you. They're not that difficult to make, just basically like bread with an extra step and much less cooking time. We topped them with olive oil and sea salt, butter and sea salt, and olive oil and cinnamon sugar. They are all way yummy.

Mine aren't as pretty as the picture from allrecipes, but they're still good. (the above pic is mine, not allrecipes)

Soft Pretzels

4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 teaspoon white sugar
1 1/4 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
1/2 cup white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 Tablespoon oil (I used olive oil)

4 to 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup baking soda
4 cups hot water
1/4 cup coarse salt, for topping (or anything else you want to top it with...asiago, parmesan and garlic, cinnamon sugar, plain butter)

In my kitchen aid, I dissolved the yeast and 1 teaspoon sugar in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. Add 1/2 cup sugar, salt, and oil. Mix well and slowly add flour until the dough forms and is not sticky. If it gets too dry, add a little water. Knead until smooth, about 7-8 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour. (I got the advice to put it in my oven with no heat on but just the oven light. It worked well).

Preheat oven to 415 degrees F. If you put the dough in the oven, make sure you remove it BEFORE preheating the oven.

In a large bowl, dissolve baking soda in hot water. When risen, turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a rope and twist into a pretzel shape. Once all of the dough is all shaped, dip each pretzel into the baking soda solution and place on a greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with kosher salt.

Bake in preheated oven for 8 minutes, until browned.

Remove from oven, brush oil or butter over tops and top with whatever toppings you choose. Remove from cookie sheet and enjoy!

I took the advice to bake them at 400 degrees intead of 450 (which the original recipe called for) but they were doughy. Another recommendation was to do them at 415 degrees, so I put them back in for another 3-4 minutes at 415 degrees and they came out perfect. Probably would have worked to do them at the temp from the beginning.

The girls LOVED them. I also read that they freeze well and you can just pop them in the oven for a few minutes from the freezer to enjoy anytime. I think I'll try that. That is, if they last that long.

On the Move

Wow, it has been another month and so very much has happened. Yet I haven't blogged. Not for a lack of things going on, but too much going on to have the time to blog. Last night as Braden and I drove home from Prescott for the weekend, I was telling him some things that Taryn is doing and he wanted to make sure I was writing it down. So here it is. I know I don't blog a lot about Keara's milestones, but I will do that next.

Taryn is 13 months old. At 13 months she:

-Has 12 teeth, 4 centrals/laterals on top and bottom and 4 molars. Thank goodness she has them because she...

-Loves red meat. She ate almost an entire t-bone steak the other day.

-Started walking! She started on New Year's day but not exclusively until this last weekend when she decided it was time.

-Says "mama", "dada", "nana" (banana), "nie-nie" (night-night), "bye-bye", and babbles a TON! Last night, she and Keara were watching a baby Einstein movie about animals and I would tell her the names of all the animals. She mimicked each one and was surprisingly close! Like "el-fa" for elephant and "mony" for monkey. I was very surprised.

-Signs done and eat, but really hasn't shown much progress in signing yet. She does understand what we're saying and responds with a version of yeah when we ask her about things she wants.

-Still sleeps 12 hours at night and 4 hours in the day.

-Still is allergic to milk, eggs, and peanuts and has eczema, but we're dealing with it.

-Has a vibrant personality and is always excited about everything. She has the best expressions of excitement.

-Loves people and strangers and will willingly go to anyone and everyone.

-Loves being outside.

-Has no fear. She loves going to the park and diving head first down the slide by herself.

-Travels great and is so easy going, as long as she gets food.

-Loves, LOVES her sister.

-Entertains herself well and loves to explore...anything.

We love Taryn. She is so much fun and I miss her anytime she's not around. She lights up our world. I hope you all get to know her well some day!

A Good Quote...for lack of more time

"The richest man is not the one who has the most, but the one who needs the least."

How would that understanding change how we live?