Come back any time Uncle David! We loved having you!Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Finally, Some Pictures! (Part II)
Some pictures with Uncle David when he visited for my cousin's wedding.
Come back any time Uncle David! We loved having you!
Come back any time Uncle David! We loved having you!
Finally Some Pictures! (Part I)
Here are some pictures from our trip to Chicago from my sister's camera...
Meeting Alana for the first time. Keara, of course, couldn't wait to hold her!
Avery and Alana (Avery in the red dress)...just 5 days apart!
I love this guy. He is Steve, Kerri's husband. He's awesome! And everything is a party when he's around. Yet we can have great, deep discussions too. He is incredible!
Keara and Carter playing dominoes. These guys are one month apart.
Playing in the backyard.
Braden and Steve enjoyed a "guys night" watching the Bears' game, complete with hot wings, bottled root beer, chips and dip, and a plasma.
Our day at the Kohl's Children's Museum. Keara "shopping" at Dominick's.
Taryn getting upclose and personal with the drums.
Taryn enjoying the water room.
A make-shift snack before heading home.
These are pics from our trip downtown. But this pic shows poor Taryn. She got pink eye while we were on our trip. I don't know if you can tell in her eyes, but until we got some medicine, she looked pretty bad.
We took the train to Merchandise Mart where we met Steve for lunch. He has an eager audience.
These kids had the best time together. They were just one party after another.
Kerri and I got a kick out of these signs. Above is the correct sign that is posted on all trains.
Someone took way too much time to create stickers they placed over the correct pictures on this sign. It was so funny to us. Thanks for the laugh!
Kerri sure looked like she had twins carrying around these two pink marshmallow babies.
Kerri and I worked on a couple repurposing projects: these little hats and a sweater dress.
All moms know how to multi-task...
Avery and Alana's photo shoot. It was late, they were tired, but they're still cute. (avery is on the left)
(avery is on the left)
(avery is on the top)
Finally, a picture of Taryn and Addison. These guys are just over a month apart.
Ham it up, guys!
Meeting Alana for the first time. Keara, of course, couldn't wait to hold her!
Avery and Alana (Avery in the red dress)...just 5 days apart!
I love this guy. He is Steve, Kerri's husband. He's awesome! And everything is a party when he's around. Yet we can have great, deep discussions too. He is incredible! 
Keara and Carter playing dominoes. These guys are one month apart.
Playing in the backyard.
Braden and Steve enjoyed a "guys night" watching the Bears' game, complete with hot wings, bottled root beer, chips and dip, and a plasma.
Our day at the Kohl's Children's Museum. Keara "shopping" at Dominick's.
Taryn getting upclose and personal with the drums.
Taryn enjoying the water room.
A make-shift snack before heading home.
These are pics from our trip downtown. But this pic shows poor Taryn. She got pink eye while we were on our trip. I don't know if you can tell in her eyes, but until we got some medicine, she looked pretty bad.
We took the train to Merchandise Mart where we met Steve for lunch. He has an eager audience.
These kids had the best time together. They were just one party after another.
Kerri and I got a kick out of these signs. Above is the correct sign that is posted on all trains. 
Someone took way too much time to create stickers they placed over the correct pictures on this sign. It was so funny to us. Thanks for the laugh!
Kerri sure looked like she had twins carrying around these two pink marshmallow babies.
Kerri and I worked on a couple repurposing projects: these little hats and a sweater dress. 
All moms know how to multi-task...
Avery and Alana's photo shoot. It was late, they were tired, but they're still cute. (avery is on the left)
(avery is on the left)
(avery is on the top)
Finally, a picture of Taryn and Addison. These guys are just over a month apart.
Ham it up, guys!Just looking at these pictures makes me want to go back SO badly! We miss you guys!!
Can it Get Any Worse?
I realized Braden's week this week could be categorized as one of the worst (barring death, injury, and other serious trials, of course) that someone could have.
Tuesday-Interview #1
Wednesday-Root Canal
Thursday-Interview #2 and 4 hours of class
Friday-Saturday-A paper to write for class
Sunday-Teaching Elder's Quorum
I guess there's only one way to go from here...up.
Tuesday-Interview #1
Wednesday-Root Canal
Thursday-Interview #2 and 4 hours of class
Friday-Saturday-A paper to write for class
Sunday-Teaching Elder's Quorum
I guess there's only one way to go from here...up.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Another Good Recipe
We had this for dinner last night and I thought it was yummy. Braden is NOT a soup person so I don't get to make soups very often. His least favorite soup is chicken noodle, which happen to enjoy a lot. AND, he doesn't like soups in the summer, so if I want to make them, its got to be in the winter. I'm running out of winter here in AZ, so I've started making a different soup/stew/chili once a week. He hasn't noticed yet...
Anyway, his favorite soup is chicken and wild rice soup. So I found a recipe for it and tried it. Yes, you can just sub the noodles for rice in chicken noodle soup, but I wanted to try something different. This recipe has different herbs and spices than I would normally put in a soup which gives it a more earthy taste. It kind of reminds me of Thanksgiving in a way.
We just had it for leftovers again and it was still good! So I thought I'd blog about it. I did change the recipe a bit to go in a Crockpot instead of a stockpot and I cooked it for 5 hours instead of 30 minutes. But you could change it back and do it on the stove if you want. I also added wild rice since the original recipe only called for brown rice. Braden enjoyed that touch. But if you don't like/have wild rice, stick with just brown! And brown is better than white because it has a chewier texture and holds up better in the soup. Enjoy!
CHICKEN AND BROWN & WILD RICE SOUP
1 1/2 lbs chicken, cubed
Salt & pepper
2 tsp olive oil
1 cup diced onion
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced carrots
2 tsp sage
1 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp thyme
1/8 tsp nutmeg
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
1/4 cup wild rice, uncooked
2 cups cooked brown rice
Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large skillet. Sear chicken until golden, approx 7-10 minutes. Meanwhile, mix onions, celery, carrots, sage, garlic salt, thyme, and nutmeg. Stir well. Add veggie mix to chicken. Saute 5 minutes. Pour skillet contents into Crock Pot. Add broth, water, and wild rice. Cover pot and cook on low for 5-7 hours or on high for 3-5 hours. 15 minutes before serving, add cooked brown rice. Stir well.
I'm sure that you could add the brown rice, uncooked, at the beginning. But I haven't tried that yet so I'm not going to write the recipe that way. Let me know if you've ever done that...
Anyway, his favorite soup is chicken and wild rice soup. So I found a recipe for it and tried it. Yes, you can just sub the noodles for rice in chicken noodle soup, but I wanted to try something different. This recipe has different herbs and spices than I would normally put in a soup which gives it a more earthy taste. It kind of reminds me of Thanksgiving in a way.
We just had it for leftovers again and it was still good! So I thought I'd blog about it. I did change the recipe a bit to go in a Crockpot instead of a stockpot and I cooked it for 5 hours instead of 30 minutes. But you could change it back and do it on the stove if you want. I also added wild rice since the original recipe only called for brown rice. Braden enjoyed that touch. But if you don't like/have wild rice, stick with just brown! And brown is better than white because it has a chewier texture and holds up better in the soup. Enjoy!
CHICKEN AND BROWN & WILD RICE SOUP
1 1/2 lbs chicken, cubed
Salt & pepper
2 tsp olive oil
1 cup diced onion
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced carrots
2 tsp sage
1 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp thyme
1/8 tsp nutmeg
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
1/4 cup wild rice, uncooked
2 cups cooked brown rice
Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large skillet. Sear chicken until golden, approx 7-10 minutes. Meanwhile, mix onions, celery, carrots, sage, garlic salt, thyme, and nutmeg. Stir well. Add veggie mix to chicken. Saute 5 minutes. Pour skillet contents into Crock Pot. Add broth, water, and wild rice. Cover pot and cook on low for 5-7 hours or on high for 3-5 hours. 15 minutes before serving, add cooked brown rice. Stir well.
I'm sure that you could add the brown rice, uncooked, at the beginning. But I haven't tried that yet so I'm not going to write the recipe that way. Let me know if you've ever done that...
Monday, January 25, 2010
Delicious! Try it tonight!
Oohh...we had something delicious for dinner last night. You should try it.
HONEY APPLE-GLAZED PORK LOIN
3 lbs pork loin
Rub:
1 1/2 Tbs flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground mustard
1/2 tsp dried sage leaves
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
Glaze:
1/3 cup honey
1 cup applesauce (I used unsweetened)
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Preheat oven to 325*F. Mix Rub ingredients together and rub all over pork loin. Line a roasting pan or casserole with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray. Place roast in pan and cook for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, stir together glaze ingredients. Remove roast from oven and coat with glaze. Return to oven and continue cooking for 60-70 minutes or until meat thermometer registers 160*F.
It is SO yummy, so juicy, so tender, so good. It does cook for a long time but otherwise, making it is a cinch. That is, as long as you have apple sauce. I had to boil apples and blend them since we ran out of applesauce and it was Sunday so I couldn't run to the store. We just had it as leftovers for lunch and it was still incredible. I hope you enjoy it!
HONEY APPLE-GLAZED PORK LOIN
3 lbs pork loin
Rub:
1 1/2 Tbs flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground mustard
1/2 tsp dried sage leaves
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
Glaze:
1/3 cup honey
1 cup applesauce (I used unsweetened)
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Preheat oven to 325*F. Mix Rub ingredients together and rub all over pork loin. Line a roasting pan or casserole with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray. Place roast in pan and cook for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, stir together glaze ingredients. Remove roast from oven and coat with glaze. Return to oven and continue cooking for 60-70 minutes or until meat thermometer registers 160*F.
It is SO yummy, so juicy, so tender, so good. It does cook for a long time but otherwise, making it is a cinch. That is, as long as you have apple sauce. I had to boil apples and blend them since we ran out of applesauce and it was Sunday so I couldn't run to the store. We just had it as leftovers for lunch and it was still incredible. I hope you enjoy it!
Sunday, January 24, 2010
I Want to Ride My Bicycle, I Want to Ride My Bike
I've been thinking. And I've decided that I think I'd like to ride a bike pulling the girls in a bike trailer. Problem is, I don't have a bike or a bike trailer. And because I have 3 girls, I think I'd need a baby seat too. Hmm...
So I'm thinking about buying one off craigslist, but I don't know anything about bikes or if it is safe to buy those things off craigslist.
Have you ever bought a bike off craigslist? Or what about Play It Again Sports?
Are you or anyone you know selling a bike or trailer? I'm in the market...
So I'm thinking about buying one off craigslist, but I don't know anything about bikes or if it is safe to buy those things off craigslist.
Have you ever bought a bike off craigslist? Or what about Play It Again Sports?
Are you or anyone you know selling a bike or trailer? I'm in the market...
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Christmas with the Kranks
Finally! I'm updating my blog! We pulled a Christmas with the Kranks and descended upon my parents who were heading to Hawaii for Christmas. We got a few days with them and then a great trip with my sister and brother's families.
Unfortunately, 4 days after getting there, my camera's battery died, so I don't have any pictures after Christmas. Once I get them from my sister and sister-in-law, I'll blog about it.
Here is a synopsis of our trip. What is missing is a visit to a children's museum. Lots of playing, lots of swinging, lots of games, awesome sledding, little sleeping, and lots of fun. In Minnesota, we played on a bounce house, played wally ball in my brother's sport court (so fun!), and had a second Christmas with them.
We put our house on the market before we left and are hoping to be able to short sell soon. Then, we're praying to move to Minnesota as soon as possible. Hopefully it will be sooner than later.
It was glorious to be in zero degree temperatures and surrounded by snow. We loved every minute of it. We needed some serious sleep catching up when we got home, but we loved it just the same.
I Dreamt of a White Christmas...and Got it
We had the BEST time on our Christmas trip. We were still sad that we weren't able to spend more time with my brother's family, but in the end, we had a gReAt visit in Chicago with my parents for a couple days (over Christmas), then a whole week with my sister's family, and then 2 days with my brother's family in Minnesota. We were so sad to come home. It was truly the best trip we've had as a family in a LONG time.
Thankfully, it snowed before we got there and there was plenty of snow to play in. So, the morning after we arrived, we bundled up the girls and let them play in the snow.
This is not a sad face, but Taryn's new squinting look. She reminded me of Ralphie's brother on more than one occasion (I can't put my arms down!)...
My marshmallow puffs ready to play...
Sometimes, it's just nice to sit in the snow...
...or eat it. That is what Keara LOVED to do.
Walking in the snow with Grandma
If you can zoom in on this pic, I am bracing to be hit with a snowball that Braden threw at me right when my mom took this picture. You can see him in the background having just thrown it. It hit me just after the picture took.
I love my mom! I love that she got down in the snow and did a snow angel for the girls. Without snow pants, no less.
Taryn resorted to crawling thru the snow most of the time
This is our front yard(s). I always loved how beautiful the snow looked covering all that grass. Can you see little T crawling thru the snow?
I've always loved this house, and I love it even more flanked by black, bare, snow laden trees. I loved growing up here.
Thankfully, it snowed before we got there and there was plenty of snow to play in. So, the morning after we arrived, we bundled up the girls and let them play in the snow.
This is not a sad face, but Taryn's new squinting look. She reminded me of Ralphie's brother on more than one occasion (I can't put my arms down!)...
My marshmallow puffs ready to play...
Sometimes, it's just nice to sit in the snow...
...or eat it. That is what Keara LOVED to do.
Walking in the snow with Grandma
If you can zoom in on this pic, I am bracing to be hit with a snowball that Braden threw at me right when my mom took this picture. You can see him in the background having just thrown it. It hit me just after the picture took.
I love my mom! I love that she got down in the snow and did a snow angel for the girls. Without snow pants, no less.
Taryn resorted to crawling thru the snow most of the time
This is our front yard(s). I always loved how beautiful the snow looked covering all that grass. Can you see little T crawling thru the snow?
I've always loved this house, and I love it even more flanked by black, bare, snow laden trees. I loved growing up here.
My mom pulled the girls around the yard on a little sled. They loved it.
Braden spent most of his time outside building. First, he built a slide. He loves to do this. He filled my parents' recycling bins over and over with snow and built an awesome slide. It wasn't very fast and didn't work very well, but he loved doing it.
Then he built this crazy snowman. The snow wasn't great packing snow, so he improvised. Then got a little carried away... 
My parents say he's still standing...
Braden spent most of his time outside building. First, he built a slide. He loves to do this. He filled my parents' recycling bins over and over with snow and built an awesome slide. It wasn't very fast and didn't work very well, but he loved doing it.
Then he built this crazy snowman. The snow wasn't great packing snow, so he improvised. Then got a little carried away... 
My parents say he's still standing...
Christmas at Home
It was SO nice spending Christmas at home. My parents were planning on just going to Hawaii the day after Christmas and kind of skipping the whole Christmas experience at home. But fortunately, they still decided to decorate and were so excited to have our family make last minute plans to be with them. It was wonderful to have a quiet, calm Christmas with just my parents.
Christmas Eve, the girls opened their Christmas pajamas. I had found Christmas fabric for 50% off and made them each a pair of pajama pants. Then I got white undershirts and ironed on a Christmas decal. They looked cute! Especially that little baby girl...
I made t-shirts for me and Braden too, but there wasn't enough fabric for pajama pants for us.
Lining up on the stairs on Christmas morning, waiting to come in. 
Quick picture with Grandma and Avery too.
This is another memory I want to keep forever. We've really built up the magic of Christmas this year because Keara is at the age where it is now very real to her. So Santa, the reindeer, the elves, it is all true. We told her the night before that elves would be watching to make sure she was asleep and then they would tell Santa it was okay to come to our house. We put out cookies and milk for Santa, and the girls knew that Santa knew they wanted a baby doll and a ring. I love that that is all they asked for.
Opening stockings...
It's like Mary Poppins' bag...
Santa brought rings! Hooray!
Keara was very into seeing what everyone got and helping Avery with her things. I loved that the girls didn't feel the need to rip open presents, but truly were amazed at each present they were given. After each, they thought there would be no more for them. But sure enough, there was! 
It was a wonderful Christmas. The very best part that I wish I had a picture of, was when Keara and Taryn opened their baby dolls. We saved it for the very last and the girls were both so content with the few things they got that they were ready to move on, without complaining that maybe Santa didn't bring them the only other thing they asked for. We had to convince them to open one last present.
Keara thought maybe Santa had forgotten or that maybe he just brought the other things instead. But when she opened that box with her doll in it, her eyes flew open wide, she gasped, and looked, stunned, at the little baby doll in her box. She grabbed it in one fluid motion and just hugged it. The magic of Christmas was so real to her at that moment and it was one of the tenderest moments I've experienced. It made the whole day so perfect.
Christmas Eve, the girls opened their Christmas pajamas. I had found Christmas fabric for 50% off and made them each a pair of pajama pants. Then I got white undershirts and ironed on a Christmas decal. They looked cute! Especially that little baby girl...
I made t-shirts for me and Braden too, but there wasn't enough fabric for pajama pants for us.
Lining up on the stairs on Christmas morning, waiting to come in. 
Quick picture with Grandma and Avery too.This is another memory I want to keep forever. We've really built up the magic of Christmas this year because Keara is at the age where it is now very real to her. So Santa, the reindeer, the elves, it is all true. We told her the night before that elves would be watching to make sure she was asleep and then they would tell Santa it was okay to come to our house. We put out cookies and milk for Santa, and the girls knew that Santa knew they wanted a baby doll and a ring. I love that that is all they asked for. So on Christmas morning, when they walked into the living room to see the stockings filled and the presents under the tree, Keara exclaimed, "He really DID come!" It was a magic moment. I especially loved that there were NO presents under the tree when she went to bed, but there was a whole bunch when she walked in the next morning. It made it even more magical.
Opening stockings...
It's like Mary Poppins' bag...
Santa brought rings! Hooray!
Keara was very into seeing what everyone got and helping Avery with her things. I loved that the girls didn't feel the need to rip open presents, but truly were amazed at each present they were given. After each, they thought there would be no more for them. But sure enough, there was! 
Taryn loved sitting with Grandpa
It was a wonderful Christmas. The very best part that I wish I had a picture of, was when Keara and Taryn opened their baby dolls. We saved it for the very last and the girls were both so content with the few things they got that they were ready to move on, without complaining that maybe Santa didn't bring them the only other thing they asked for. We had to convince them to open one last present.
Keara thought maybe Santa had forgotten or that maybe he just brought the other things instead. But when she opened that box with her doll in it, her eyes flew open wide, she gasped, and looked, stunned, at the little baby doll in her box. She grabbed it in one fluid motion and just hugged it. The magic of Christmas was so real to her at that moment and it was one of the tenderest moments I've experienced. It made the whole day so perfect.
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