It's back!

Tonight I took the kids to Baskin Robbins for their 31 cent scoop night.  Each person could get up to three scoops for only 31 cents each.  Pretty good deal and most of you know that I like B&R ice cream (it's a hold over from my high school days when I worked there and got lots of free ice cream).  That combined with the sign we drove by last weekend that said Daiquiri Ice is back sold me and I HAD to go.  I LOVE daiquiri ice and last time I was there  they didn't have it--I was REALLY BUMMED.  So, tonight I went and got some and it was just as good as I remember!  So, if you are reading this and it isn't past 10 pm run to your closest B&R and get some ice cream! 

Have a great day!

Breakfast Cookies

Yep, you read that right...cookies for breakfast.  Not these...that you find at the store. 

I found a recipe here that the kids really like.  Although I made a few substitutions for our family.  They are really good.  And I know exactly what is in them!  The only bummer thing is that I had to take my wheat grinder in to be fixed and won't have it for awhile...so now that I'm out of wheat flour I won't be making them again soon.  I'm missing my grinder already...I wish it didn't take them 4 weeks to fix it--until then it's back to store bought bread for us. 

Outside

It has been such nice weather all week that we've spent as much time outside as we can.  Liam is liking the small swing set we got for him, but I have a feeling Jason isn't going to like mowing around it.  Liam also loves to try to ride the scooters, bikes and skateboards of the older kids.  Here he is on the skateboard This is right after he almost fell off so he's a bit worried, but before this he was all smiles.  He is just sure he's a big kid and wants to do everything they do (including running across the street giving me a heart attack)  This summer is gonna be lots of fun with him. 

Great Grandparents

My kids are very lucky to know/have known most of their great grandparents.  Saturday my Dad stopped by with my grandparents for a quick visit on their way back to WA from AZ.  Dad is their current chauffeur between summer and winter homes although rumor has it that they will be residing in AZ full time soon. 

Liam loved them and he especially loved their cat.  Although the cat wasn't very thrilled about Liam. 

We attempted to get a picture of the kids and their great grandparents, but Liam wasn't cooperating and they ended up kinda fuzzy too for some reason.  This is the best one we got.  We are really hoping to get to WA to see them this summer.  Em wants to sew something with grandma and Jason wants to do some rock jewelry with grandpa if they can.  I think Liam will happily terrorize the cat. 

Park City

A few friends of mine and I have been trying to find a day that we could go to Park city to the outlets there ever since my b-day in Feb.  We finally found a day that would work for some of us and headed up on Saturday.  We had been there for a little while when we were in Carter's and the power went out.  We thought it'd be back on soon so we headed to a couple other stores (some wouldn't even let us in because of the outage) and then decided to go try to get some lunch since we were hungry.  After lunch we asked around to see if anyone knew what was going on and when the power would be back only to find out that there had been some kind of fire at a transformer and the power wouldn't be back on until sometime in the evening.  It was a huge bummer because instead of buying the stuff we liked at the first store we went to we decided to put it on hold so we went home empty handed. 

Spring Break

The kids only got three days off for Spring Break this year.  We didn't go anywhere big.  But the kids had lots of fun anyway.

In the morning I was downstairs and Jason came down to tell me Em was bathing Liam because he got oatmeal in his hair.  No big deal I said fine I'd be up in a minute.  A little bit later both of them are calling me from upstairs.  They had put their suits on and hopped in the tub with Liam to play.  Liam was having a blast laughing at Jason dumping water on his head and splashing so much my whole bathroom was covered in water! 

That afternoon we went to a playgroup for families with transracial adopted children that met in Lehi.  It was SNOWING on our drive up and by that night we had quite a bit of snow.  I guess I was too busy visiting with all the women there so I didn't get any pictures, but the big kids played guitar hero and the little ones made a huge mess with all the fun toys at Chandra's house.  It was lots of fun. 

Thursday we were supposed to go to the aquarium, but those plans ended up being canceled because of the snow so we decided to head to BYU for some bowling.  Everything I had seen said they opened at 10, but when we got there near 11 we found a sign that said they didn't open until noon because of reading days.  So, we headed to the bookstore to kill an hour.  By the time we got bowling everyone was hungry and the little ones were getting a bit tired, but they had lots of fun anyway.  We went with friends so everyone had a lot of fun. 

Here's Jason in action.

 

 

 

 

Emily in action. 

and a video of Liam in action. 

Once we finished bowling we headed over to the creamery on 9th for some lunch.  Our family loves to eat there and their food is good and freshly made plus it's affordable.  Once we were done there the kids and the moms were tired and ready for a rest so we headed home for some quiet time.

Friday we were able to have a relaxing morning and in the afternoon we played with our cousins that for some reason we don't see enough of even though we live in the same city.  They have a beautiful house and a nice playground in their backyard that Liam was dying to use. 

 

 

  He loved the slide even though it dumped him on his bottom because he went down it so fast. 

Friday was also Daddy's birthday so we had a nice dinner and presents and we made him birthday fruit salad because he didn't want cake or other sweets, but we just wanted him to have something special.  He liked it (or pretended to)

So, that was our exciting spring break.  We wish we could have done more and seen more friends that we don't get to often enough, but we'll have to work that out in the summer. 

Neglected

I have obviously been neglecting my blog lately.  The nice weather has us outside a lot, plus I've been trying to get through my library reading pile before they are all due back, I've also been trying to exercise daily.  Add in all the regular stuff and the time to blog is just gone.  I am going to try to catch up starting now.  Check back soon to hear about Spring Break, a bust of a shopping trip, great grandparents and more! 

Friends

I don't know about you, but I need my friends.  I have all sorts of friends.  The kind that I see and/or talk to almost every day.  Some that I only talk to occasionally and others that I only see infrequently, but whenever I see my friends it feels like no time has passed at all. 

The past couple months I've been able to meet up with several of my friends that I see only infrequently.  Every time I get together with one of them I wonder why it is that we wait so long between seeing each other! 

About a month ago I got to visit with Cissy.  We met in a class at BYU my last semester before graduation.  We were in a mandatory study group together and we really hit it off.  I hit it off with several of the others in the group too, but she's the only one I've kept in touch with and although she lives only 20 min up the freeway from me we just don't get together often enough. 

Today I got to have brunch with my good friend Sariah.  We've known each other since High School, but we got to be much better friends after we graduated and she moved here to UT.  As much as she wants to leave she just can't--and I am REALLY glad!  I'd miss having her here even though we don't see each other too often. 

The kids keep wanting to get together with Tawnie and her clan too, but we haven't been able to work our schedules out with kids in school and all that.  Hopefully in the summer we'll be able to make it work somehow. 

I am extremely blessed to have so many great friends close by too.  I honestly don't know what I'd do without every single one of them!  Each one of them helps me and lifts me in some way or another.  The best part of blogging, email, and all the other technologies out there is that they help me to keep in touch with ALL of my friends even when our schedules don't match up or they live too far away for us to get together.  Plus, I am able to meet new friends too.  I'm betting if you are reading this blog I count you as one of my friends and I want you to know that you are awesome and I value your friendship.  Thanks to ALL of my friends for everything you do/have done for me. 

Have a great day!

Easter Fun

Saturday we took Liam to a local grocery store to see the Easter Bunny.  I was so busy getting him to sit on the Bunny's lap that I didn't take a picture of my own.  Hopefully theirs will be good and I can scan it.  I tried to get him to sit on the bunny's lap again, but the best I could get was high fives and knuckles.  Then they gave him lots of candy and he was in sugar heaven. 

Saturday night we made some sugar cookies.  We attempted to put some of them on sticks to give to our cousins on Sunday.  The bigger ones didn't stay on their sticks very well...I guess we needed to secure them better.  The kids liked them anyway so that was good. 

WE opted not to dye eggs this year because the twins didn't really want to and Liam is too young to care and old enough he'd make a huge mess.  None of us missed it so that's good. 

I had the kids help me do the plastic egg hunt Sunday morning.  We split the eggs in half and Emily hid half for Jason and Liam to find and then Jason hid the rest for Em and Liam to find.  It was fun watching Liam find the eggs.  Then he threw one and it opened to spill all the candy out and all he wanted was to eat the candy so he was done looking for eggs.  The funny part was that Emily practically told Jason where the eggs were with her hints. While Jason didn't give Em much help at all. This is Liam signing "candy" to let us know that he wants more. 

It was a great Easter.  All week we read in the scriptures about what happened on that day the last week of the Savior's Life.  I am immensely grateful for His atonement and resurrection and that we can celebrate it each Easter.  It is wonderful to have the knowledge that we can repent and be resurrected and live with our Heavenly Father again someday. 

Babysitting

Last week I watched a couple of my neighbor's kids so she could go on a field trip with one of her older kids.  It was funny watching Liam at his own house with them here.  I could tell that he doesn't have much competition for what he wants because it didn't matter what he had as soon as he saw one of the other kids with something he wanted THAT.  I know it's totally normal, but it was very interesting to try to get him to understand taking turns and sharing.  As you can see he was more than willing to have THEM share with him.  ;)  He did give lots of hugs too.  I know this picture looks like he's pulling the baby over, but he's really giving a hug.  It was lots of fun!  ;)  When these two get older they are gonna be great friends. 

New colors

For my birthday a couple months ago I got some new bedding for our bed.  I ran across an AWESOME deal at TJ Maxx and just couldn't pass it up (I got everything including bed skirt and a couple shams not on yet for less than $90).  Big thanks to Ann for helping me alter the duvet to fit better.  I am really loving the slate blue and brown color scheme lately for some reason so it's perfect.  I took some pictures, but they really don't do it justice the blue is much prettier in person.  Now I'd like to finally put something on the windows.  What would you do?? I'm thinking something in the brown/tan colors for more contrast.  Would you do full curtains to the ground or something more like a valance?  They are two big windows...I'd love to hear your ideas!

Cake Pops

While my parents were here we started making Cake pops with Emily.  They ended up taking longer than I thought and things go busy so we didn't finish them until Sunday.  Emily had fun decorating and by the end Jason wanted in on the action too.  When I went to take pictures my camera battery was dying so it kept shutting off.  I should have taken the pics with no flash, but I only had enough power to take the picture before the camera would turn off.  :)  For directions and to see how they are really supposed to look check out www.bakerella.com she is a VERY creative person.  If you try them out please share some pics! 

Budding Actress

Emily is really getting excited about acting and being in plays.  She was in one last summer and she was just in one for her afterschool 4-H program.  She was Cinderella in a "Into the Woods" type short play.  She did a fabulous job and was one of the few kids I could hear consistently since they didn't have any microphones.  It was fun to watch her.  Here she is bowing with her Prince Charming from the play who also happened to be one of Jason's good friends and our neighbor.  This one is her with one of her good friends that was also in the play. 

We went to see the local community children's theater play last night too and now both Em and Jason want to be in a play...they come by it honestly with my Mom and Grandma and their Dad. 

Week in review part 2

Tuesday my parents and I went to BYU to check out the new Hinckley building (it's gorgeous if you haven't seen it you should go check it out!) and see what else was new on campus since last time they came.  I have to admit that I'm not the best tour guide anymore since I haven't been a student there for awhile now, but I could answer some of their questions at least.  Of course we had to get some ice cream at the creamery while we were at it too.  I LOVE the creamery! 

Wednesday my Dad realized he needed to start working on his project or he wouldn't be able to finish it.  He always wants a project whenever he comes to our house to visit.  I always tell him not to worry about it, but he insists.  More about his project later...So, while Dad planned Mom, Mike and I headed to Orem to check out Funfinity and go to the Distribution Center.  I have to say that Funfinity is a really FUN store with lots of cool fun toys.  My mom bought my kids flying monkeys and Liam got a singing puzzle.  They have puppets and all sorts of other fun games, lots of wooden and tin toys.  It was fun to poke around in there and the service was fantastic.  They were willing to help us without being too pushy.  It was great.  After we finished there and the Distribution center we headed to Costco to find my Mom a new camera since hers was old and didn't work too well anymore.  We found everything we were looking for and then some there. 

Thursday was spent working on the project with my Dad.  He had his plans all worked out, we cut some of the wood he needed and then he realized that it wouldn't work like he wanted it to so he went back to the drawing board and then we had to go cut more pieces for his new design (Thanks Natalie and Rory for use of your workshop!)  Mom went over to watch Em's dress rehearsal for her 4-H play and then she took the kids to pick out a late B-day present.  When we got home Dad had his prototype all made up and had tested it out and it worked so we could make the rest of them. 

Friday Dad and I spent the morning  cutting all the wood and then assembling my new rolling can racks for my storage room.  He didn't think we'd get more than a couple rows finished, but we worked together and got all of the ones we cut wood for put together and installed (about half the shelf worth) so now I am using the space on this shelf much more efficiently.  Plus now I know how to build them myself so hopefully eventually I will get the rest of the shelf outfitted with these awesome rolling FIFO racks.    Thanks Dad!  You're awesome!  Once we finished this they packed up and headed to my brother's house for the night and then headed home Saturday.  It was a great visit and we can't wait to see them again soon.  Having them here really makes me wish they lived closer to us so we could see them more often.   Before they left I took  a few more pictures and I was bummed that Em wasn't home to be in them too.  I love their goofiness Can you believe that's my BABY brother?

Week in review part 1

Sorry I've been MIA this past week.  I've had my parents and baby brother here staying with us so we've been pretty busy having fun and hanging out with them.  Now I wish I could have blogged it all as it happened because I'm sure I'll forget stuff.  I wish I would have taken more pictures.  I realized before they left that I didn't have any pictures of Em with my parents, but she was at play practice when they left so there wasn't much I could do. 

My family arrived Saturday evening and of course Grandma had brought some gifts for the kids.  She got Liam this Dog puppet that sings Why do birds suddenly appear when you move the mouth.  He loves it and still laughs when it starts singing.  She brought Emily and Jason each a stuffed animal and Jason a boomerang and Emily a book.  They had been driving all day so we relaxed and talked until we were all tired and then went to bed. 

Sunday my brother came down from Ogden with his family and my Aunt came down from West Valley and we all went to church together.  Liam went to his 2nd time of Nursery and he didn't cry at all and he loved it except for right after I happened to be walking by when someone opened the door and after that he tried to escape (he can open the door).  Thankfully he didn't get far.  (Thanks Felicia!) 

When we all got back to my house things were a little bit crazy as you would expect in my modest sized house with all those people.  I made Cafe Rio salads for dinner and everyone seemed to like them.  Aunt Lynn brought carrot cake from Costco which was surprisingly good.  I thought I didn't like carrot cake, but I liked THAT carrot cake.  I think I ate way more than my fair share of it.  Here are some cute pictures of the fun.  

This car was the hot toy of the day that everyone wanted to play with.  They did a good job sharing most of the time.  Shayla loves lipgloss and chapstick so whenever anyone got any out she wanted some too. This one is Liam checking out the keyboard we gave to my brother Jim.  Thankfully for us it wasn't plugged in or else it would have added to the already too loud atmosphere we were in.  ;) 

Monday we met up with my brother and aunt in Salt Lake at the Clark Planetarium.  The kids had fun checking out all the exhibits, but it was a bit crazy with all the school groups that were there.  Jason tried his hand at being a weather man.  Liam walked on Mars and then the Moon.  Emily and Bryannah tried out the Moon too.  Then they all had fun putting pennies down the "black hole" in the lobby.  It was funny to see them all get so excited.  Jason met us at the Gateway food court for lunch and then we decided to go bowling.  Bowling is one of my family's favorite things to do together.  We had one lane with bumpers and one without.  The kids and my mom and I bowled with bumpers--I think I was the only one that didn't get a strike--including Liam, but I still got the highest score on our lane and even beat Jim who is normally a better bowler than I am.  Dad wasn't feeling great so he was the cameraman for us, but it was kinda dark in there so some of the pictures are dark.  Watching Em bowl Grandma's a good bowler My brothers watching Aunt Lynn bowl I think.  The new and improved Jen Stevens (my sil)  After bowling we stopped at Lynn's for a minute for more carrot cake and then headed home.  It was a fun filled, but tiring day. 

Stay tuned for the rest of our fun filled week...