Disneyland

Boys at the beach. (Dale and my 4 brothers--one's in front of another one, so you can only see three.)

All of us with 'The Mouse' himself.

Grandma and cousin Jonas. (Ariane's in the background.)
Isn't this the coolest Disney hat ever?! Eli bought it a few years ago when he went to Disneyland with the high school and everyone just loves it! And Elora looks so cute, as always!
There we are on the jungle cruise. (Well, you can only see Dalan, Dale, Ariane, Elias, Jonas and my dad, but we were all there.)

We've been lucky enough to have been to Disneyland three times with our kids. This most recent time was with my entire family (excepting my bro-in-law, Matt, who's in Iraq). We had lots of fun. We spent a day at Disneyland, a day at California Adventure, and a day at the beach. Dale, I, and our kids stayed the night at our good friends, the Bigelow's, while my parents drove home through the night. We had a good time visiting with them, as usual, and hope to see them again sometime before another two years go by. (Thanks, guys! You're great hosts and it was fun to see you.)

Yes, I'm still alive...

I keep thinking I'm going to update my blog and then get busy doing other stuff, so I don't. So, all of you who are just dying to hear from me again (ha, ha), just hang on a little longer. When I do finally get around to posting again, I'll have plenty. We've gone to Disneyland, a funeral, and a 10 year class reunion, so lots of junk to write and plenty of pics to add. Right now, my children are calling (literally).

I'm IT again

TAG I'M IT!
3 Joys
1. My kids; I love watching them do things. It's fun to see them grow and just be kids.
2. Learning; I really like to learn about lots of different things. I remember when I was in middle school saying that I'd like to take every class that a college offered and I still think that's a pretty good idea, excepting a few (like accounting; I've taken a few of those and that was enough--yuck).
3. Playing games with friends; I really like having people over. There's just something about a house full of people that I like.

3 Fears
1. "Bad guys" (murderers, robbers, etc) coming into my room at night. I've talked about this before, but for those of you who didn't read about it last time; I make Dale sleep on the side of the bed closest to the door and I have to be able to see the door to my room from where I sleep. (Not that either of those will actually make a difference if someone actually does come in to kill me, but oh well.)
2. Scary movies; I just can't handle them. I'm not scared of the dark or of being alone unless I've watched a scary movie recently. Then, I really freak myself out. I've grounded myself from them, so I haven't been scared for a long time.
3. Failing to teach my kids what they need to know to be successful. I really worry about that a lot and don't really know what to do about it, except the best I can and just keep going day after day.

3 Goals
1. Stop yelling at my kids. I want my house to be a yell-free zone; I think that even if you're mad at someone, you can talk to them in a rational way. (At least, I think that when I'm calm and rational; I seem to forget that when I get angry.) I'm getting better, but it seems like an impossible goal sometimes.
2. Get out of debt; we're still paying on school, plus we're still recovering from moving up here and not selling our house in Cedar for so long. Hopefully by January 2009 we'll be totally debt-free except our mortgage here in IF.
3. Clean my house little by little every day. That way I can keep it to a manageable mess.

3 Obsessions
1. British mystery TV shows; you name it, I've either seen it or will watch it. I've seen every season of Midsommer Murders, Prime Suspect, and Touching Evil. I'm working on Foyle's War, RoseMary and Thyme, and Campion. I've watched a ton of Poirot with David Suchet, Inspector Lynley, Miss Marple, Hetty Wainthrop, and Inspector Frost. I've seen a few Inspector Morse (boring), and Jeeves & Wooster. I've just about exhausted the library's collection, so when they're all gone, I don't know what I'll watch.
2. Collective Soul; as you all know, I think it's the most awsome band ever! Enough said.
3. I don't know....OH, buying things for a really good deal. I love thrift store shopping and yard saling because I can find good stuff for so cheap.

3 Random/Surprising Facts about myself
1. I hate loading the dishwasher; I think it's disgusting to touch dirty plates. I don't mind unloading, but luckily Dale usually does both of those jobs, so I don't have to worry about either.
2. I'm the only one in my family (the one I was born to, not the one I created) that hasn't been to all 50 states. I'm missing Alaska and Hawaii.
3. Once I start a book, I have to finish it and I usually read a book in two days or less. (I like to read British murder mysteries, too.)

I tag Ariane (you're the only one that ever does them!)

Misc. pics

Here's a picture of the snow we got a few days ago. It's melted now, and I hear that it's supposed to get up to 63 Sunday or Monday and I'm so happy at the prospect of warmer weather!

This is Dalan's burned finger. Can you believe a firescreen could burn someone that bad?! I couldn't!

Here's the girls in their Easter dresses. No, I didn't make them; I slacked off this year and bought them (but they were on sale for a really good price-only $13 each!). I was going to make their dresses, but just didn't. Maybe I'll make them some cute summer things. (Yeah, just keep dreaming, Sonnet!)

Adventures and Mishaps at Ariane's

After a long, very long, car ride, we arrived at Ariane and Matt's house. We left at 8:30 am Monday morning and arrived at 1:15 in the wee hours of Tuesday morning. We even gained an hour on the way because of the time change, so that makes it a 17.5 hour trip! I don't know if I've ever been nearer insanity then I was at that point and that's saying a lot!
We spent all week at my sister's house and left Sunday morning. The ride home was a lot shorter and the kids were much better behaved, thank goodness! We left about 6:45am and got home about 11:15pm, so it was only 15.5 hours on the way home. We only stopped for gas and food (I let the kids eat in the car while I fed Elias). Even though the ride back was much more bearable, I still don't know if I'll do that trip alone again.
While visiting Ariane, we went to IKEA (our favorite store ever), visited almost all the thrift stores within a 20 mile radius (we love thrift stores, too!), and had an adventure in Seattle. We got to Seattle later than we were planning because we went there after IKEA. By the time we found a parking place and unloaded all 5 kids and walked to Pike Place Fish Market, it was closed! We heard that the library is cool, so we loaded the kids up again and drove around for a while, trying to find it. Jonas (my 17-month-old nephew) threw up when we were almost there, and then threw up again once we got there. We cleaned up the puke in the parking garage at the library, but by the time everything was cleaned up and clothes were changed, the library had just closed. My kids were about to wet their pants, but they wouldn't even unlock the bathroom to let them use it, even though we made it into the building before they locked the library. To top it off, we had to pay for parking! Oh, yeah! After all the puking, getting lost, and arriving too late, we forgot to drive by the Space Needle, so my kids didn't even get to see it. We didn't even realize we forgot it until we were almost to Ariane's house.
After the trip to Seattle, we decided we needed a nice relaxing day at home, so I convinced Ariane that we should paint Jonas' room. (What was I thinking? I don't know--grumpy kids+ puking child + nursing baby + painting = a ton o fun, right?!) Anyway, Ariane and I painted Jonas' room with three colors. We did a solid all around the bottom half of the room and stripes with two different colors on the top. It looks pretty cute. She's going to hang a wall paper border inbetween the two. It wasn't that hard because Jonas slept most of the day (when he wasn't recycling his lunch) and my older kids played outside in the rain and watched movies. Elias played in the crib in the middle of the room while we painted. I had hoped to paint her kitchen, too, but we didn't get that far! Me and my big ideas!
Overall, I was glad that I made the trip, chaotic and long as it was. I was really happy to get to see Matt before he got deployed (love ya, Matt!) and it was fun to visit my sister. I look forward to seeing her again at Disneyland and my kids are excited to see their cousin again.

Cool architecture in Spokane

I love looking at old buildings and I took some photos of my faves on our trip. Some were a little difficult because I was the only one in the car that knew how to use the camera and I was driving, but it worked.

Note: These two pictures (above and below) are of a building that were in one of my dreams a few years ago. It was SO weird to be driving along and see this building a couple of blocks away. I instantly recognized it and had to drive over and take a picture. I remembered the dream so well because I thought the building was so cool and I remembered feeling so sad when I woke up because of the dream. In my dream, it was on a steeper hill and a bigger city, but otherwise, it's the same building. I was looking around this big city (in my dream) for a little girl with black hair. I found her in this building, which was a Catholic School in my dream. It's really the County Courthouse. Any interpretations or explanations anyone? I had never been to Spokane before and I had the dream when Kydee was very little, probably younger than 2. Freaky, huh?!


This picture (above) was taken while driving and very difficult to get.

This was taken while driving, too, but I was stopped at a red light, so it wasn't too hard.

Riverfront Park in Spokane

On the way to see my sister in Spanaway (near Tacoma), we stopped in Spokane. Tamra told me about this cool park. Here's some pictures of just a few of the neat things there. After going to the park and driving around Spokane, my kids decided that we needed to move there.

Notice the giant red wagon in the background. That's the reason why we went to this park, but it was closed because the city was painting it before summer. The handle is a giant slide. My kids were really bummed, but figure we'll go back when it's open. We'll see about that! I don't think I can handle taking all of them that far by myself again (Dale didn't come on the trip with us; he had to work.)

These are pictures of the garbage eating goat. It has a vacuum inside it and kids love to put garbage in its mouth because then it 'eats' it.


Elora insisted in wearing shorts. Silly girl! On our way back home, we stopped in Spokane again and the kids wanted to go back, but it was so snowy that I couldn't see very far ahead of me and I definitely wasn't going to take them to the park in that weather.

Easter

Here's just a few pics of our Easter hunt that we had in our basement because, yes, you guessed it! The ground was covered in snow and it was really cold outside. We invited some friends over and the kids had a great time.

Good news, bad news

Bad news:
I'm still in my robe and pj's and it's almost noon.
My CD player in the van broke, so not only can I not listen to CD's anymore, 6 of my CD's are stuck in there--3 of which are Collective Soul!
It's still snowy here! (It has snowed three days this week.)
Elias has an ear infection in both ears.
Dalan burned his finger (3rd degree) when the fireplace screen fell on his hand and it's looking infected.
Eli (my brother) had an accident with the 4-wheeler a couple days ago and broke his neck.
Matt (my brother-in-law) is being deployed to Iraq in a few weeks.


Good news:
I can get dressed any time I want, I'm just lazy.
I guess eventually I might get the CD player fixed; until then, I have the internet, but I can't get most of the Collective Soul songs I want. Oh well, I'll survive. At least the engine didn't break.
Someday it will be warmer; at least, that's what I keep telling myself.
We got some antibiotics and Elias is feeling much better.
We have bandaids and Neosporin--if only Dalan would leave it alone.
Eli had surgery last night and everything is going to be alright, he just has 3 months of recovery ahead; but he will still be able to go on a mission.
Matt is well-trained and we have faith that the Lord will take care of him, no matter what happens.

I'm practicing having a 'Pollyanna' attitude in finding the bright side of every situation. I guess we really can find good in everyting life hands us!

Another TAG

10 YEARS AGO:
I was a Senior at Fruita Monument High School, in Fruita, Colorado. I worked at Zuka (Jamba) Juice and was looking forward to graduating. I never thought that in ten years I'd be married, have 4 kids, and live in Idaho!

FIVE PLACES I HAVE VISITED:
1. All 48 contiguous states
2. New York City
3. Mexico City
4. Cancun
5. Washington DC

FIVE THINGS ON MY TO DO LIST: I didn't know if this was daily to do, or lifetime, so I put both!
Daily
1. Shower (yes, I have to put this on my list, or it doesn't get done)
2. Clean the bathrooms
3. Update my blog with trip to Spokane, Seattle, and Spanaway
4. Vacuum out the van
5. Play with my kids individually (I've decided they need more one-on-one time with mom)

Lifetime
1. Go on mission with spouse
2. Visit Asia and Europe
3. Own a business
4. um....oh! Build another house (my 'dream house')
5. Take Tamra (my lifelong best friend, who's never seen the ocean) to the ocean

THREE BAD HABITS:
1. I will eat the whole bag of M&M's by myself (I'm talking about the big $2.50 bags, not the little 50 cent ones) (I bought a bag of peanut butter M&M's from the Easter clearance sales and finished it off today)
2. I am very critical of other people in my mind (that made it sound like I have other people in my mind that I'm critical of) (Jeez, I'm even critical of myself!)
3. I love to lay in bed in the morning as long as possible (I stay in bed until the kids start fighting, or break something, or they make a giant cereal mess)

FIVE THINGS YOU MAY NOT KNOW ABOUT ME...
1. I love to dance, but only do it at home, by myself, 'cause Dale doesn't dance.
2.I'm addicted to Guitar Hero and I've only played it a couple of times. (But I really want to buy a Playstation or XBox, just so I can own it. I also imagine playing it when songs come on the radio that have a lot of guitar. Yes, I know I'm weird!)
3. I like punk music.
4. I would love to live by the ocean someday
5. I think feet are absolutely disgusting!

I tag Audrey, Bonnie, and Katie.

Recipe #2

I've been a slacker on the recipe thing, but here's the next one, finally. This is a favorite of my entire family. My mom made something similar when I was little, but we never really had a name for it. My kids always call it chicken pillows, chicken rolls, or chicken biscuits. I guess it could be called chicken in a biscuit, like the cracker. Anyway, here it is.

Chicken Pillows
2 chicken breasts (or turkey) (cooked and shredded or chopped)
1 8oz container of neufchatel (or cream cheese--neufchatel has less fat)
3 Tbsp milk
1/4 c. green onions or chopped yellow or white onions, or less, depending on taste
1/2 c. grated cheese (we use cheddar)
1/4 tsp garlic powder

2 packages of refrigerated biscuit dough (or homemade biscuit dough works, too)

Optional:
1/4 c. butter/margarine, melted
3/4 c. cracker crumbs

Mix cream cheese (neufchatel) and milk with a beater until soft; add onions, chicken, garlic and grated cheese.

Flatten biscuits; place 2 Tbsp of chicken mixture on a biscuit, cover with another biscuit and seal edges; continue with remainder of filling and biscuits. You should end up with 10 chicken pillows. (If you have leftover filling, it makes great chicken salad sandwiches!)
Dip the chicken pillows in melted butter/margarine and roll in crumbs. Place on cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown all over. Serve with chicken or turkey gravy poured over the top of chicken pillows. (For less fat, don't do the crumb/butter coating)
You can also use turkey--it's a great way to use leftovers from Thanksgiving for something different.

Dale and I in our hippie days....

Ok, so Dale and I were never Hippies, nor do we ever plan on being such, but I was looking through some old pictures and found this one and thought it was funny. We look so young and hairy and I thought you all would enjoy seeing it, too. (The baby in the picture is Kydee; I think this was taken around August 2001).

Relief Society

I went to a Relief Society (women's church group) enrichment meeting the other night and came home with this:

Yes, you saw that right--I got a bruise the size of my hand at an enrichment meeting. It's on the outside of my upper right thigh. I almost didn't put a picture because I had to show a lot of skin, but I wanted everyone to see the actual damage. Aren't the colors pretty?

We were playing a scavenger hunt-type game where we had to find certain items from our purses and run them up to the front of the room before everyone else. I ran into a table, but I made it up there first (barely) and our team won! It hurt really bad for a couple of days, but now it just looks really pretty. Who knew Relief Society could be so dangerous?!

I love Collective Soul!

I just thought that I should let all of you out in cyberspace to know that I am a TOTAL Collective Soul freak! Whenever I'm having a bad day, or feeling sad, or cleaning house, or feeling really great, or what ever, I listen to Collective Soul and I feel better. They've been my favorite band since I had a favorite band (over 11 years) and I love 'em even more now than I did back in 1995! I even listened to the cd Youth while I was in labor with Elias!
I've gone to two of their concerts, one on my 19th birthday (that was only like the best birthday, ever!) and Dale and I went two days after our anniversary last summer (July 17, 2007). It was Dale's first concert and he finally understands why someone would pay more to go to a concert only to hear songs once than just buying the CD and listening to it as many times as you want.
So, if you're looking for some rockin' good music, check 'em out! (I'm listening to them right now!) They're albums are in order of release, as follows: Hints, Allegations, and Things Left Unsaid; Collective Soul; Disciplined Breakdown; Dosage; 7even Year Itch (Greatest Hits); Blender (this is the only album I wouldn't recommend buying--I don't know what happened with this one, but it wasn't that great; in fact, it almost made me stop liking them, yikes!), Youth; and Afterwords. They also have a newer acoustic CD that I don't have, and I don't remember what it's called. I have all of the aforementioned CD's, except Afterwords. I used to have Afterwords, but I gave it to my best friend and fellow Collective Soul-mate, Tamra. It's only for sale at Target and she lives over a hundred miles from the nearest Target (poor thing!), so I gave mine to her, thinking that I'd just get another one at the Target here. The only problem was that was 3 months ago and Target never has it in stock when I go! Luckily, you can listen to all the songs from Afterwords on http://www.collectivesoul.com/, so I haven't had to go too long without my Collective Soul fix (besides the other 6-7 CD's that I have), but I would like to listen to it in the car, too! I just looked online, and it says that there's some in-stock at Target, so I'm going to call today and make sure before I go over there. Wish me luck!

Update: I went to Target and (gasp) there was only one copy of the CD left, so I quickly grabbed it and didn't let it out of my sight the rest of the time I was in the store. I looked online to see if you can get Afterwords on half.com or ebay, and you can, but it's really expensive, so I'm tempted to buy any/all copies I find at Target (if it's possible to buy any) and sell them online for a profit. Would that be wrong? On one hand, it'd be profitting off my favorite group, and on the other hand, I'd be sharing them with others who might not get the CD any other way....such a dilemma!

Wonder Woman Strikes Again!

I've been pretty bored lately, what with the taking care of a 1st grader, wild boy (aka Dalan), princess (Elora), and little goobling, and doing laundry, cleaning, and making meals; so I thought, "Hey, why not do another home improvement project?!" (Note the slight hint of sarcasm.)

I've always hated our half bath (I say that like I've had to endure it for so long--poor me), so I figured I could redo it so easily and then I wouldn't hate it anymore. Here's the 'before' and 'work in progress' pictures. There was a mirror hanging where that patch of tan paint is...I took it down before I thought of taking pictures. It was really ugly; it looked like the ones you see in old apartment buildings, with the shelf with the sliding doors on the bottom.

Redoing the bathroom was a much bigger pain than I thought it would be. I had to replace part of the subfloor where the old vanity was and I basically had to beat the old vanity with a hammer until it was in pieces before I could get it out and still leave the pipes intact. Also, the pipes I had aren't the right size, so the sink still isn't hooked up. I'm hoping my dad can help me when he comes to visit next week.

So, after about $125 and two days later, here's the 'after.' (Don't you just love how I took a picture of myself in the mirror!) As you can see, I still need to get some trim and fill in the gaps where the old vanity used to be and I need to replace the light fixture, but other than that, everything is done. It's hard to tell from this picture, but the walls used to be white and now they're light green. I replaced the vanity and mirror, replaced the wax ring on the toilet (Dale helped with that part), laid vinyl tiles for the flooring, and painted. I think it looks pretty good and it's not so crowded anymore. Well, my children are beating on each other again--they must be training for a career in cage fighting--so I better sign off. If you ever need a home improvement helper, call me and I'll be right over. (I just love doing this kind of thing!)

Snowshoe trek update and pics

Well, the guys all made it back safely, but a little sore. Here's some highlights from their trip.

Here's a giant slide that they played on by the girls camp.

Ahhh! A nice warm fire!

They had to climb on the roof to get cell phone reception to send us a text message so we'd know they were okay. Notice Ben on the roof in the upper left-hand of the picture.

The old men (Dale and Kelly) were about to die by the time they made it back to the truck.

The youngster looks like he's ready to go again.

I am so proud of my husband for trying this out. He actually wants to go back with just me; I told him I'd be happy to go in the summer!

Recipes

I was reading on a friend's blog, (thanks, Darcy) and she suggested that we (the people whose blogs she reads) post a favorite recipe every week so that we can all get new ideas for meals. I thought it was a great idea and have taken it upon myself to spread the word. So, all of you reading this, please post good meal ideas on your blogs, every week, if possible. Then we can all have new, tasty ideas from other busy moms to try out.
For my first, I'm going to post a family favorite. It's the most requested meal from my children--besides cold cereal :-). Oh, by the way; it sounds kinda , well actually, totally weird, but just make them and taste them and you'll be hooked, I promise! (I got this recipe from my sister when she was living in Tennessee--I think it gets it's name from the cornbread and pork and beans)

Tennessee Tacos Tortillas (for lack of a better word):
Make corn bread batter from your favorite recipe, or mix, and add extra milk until it's the consistency of pancake batter.

My corn bread recipe is:
1 c. flour 1 c. milk
1 c. corn meal 1/4 c. oil
1 Tbsp baking powder 2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp sugar
(I'm guessing I add about 1/4 c. milk, maybe less, to make right consistency, but I'm not sure).

Pour out on griddle and cook like you would pancakes (6in diameter circles).

Taco Filling:
Brown 1/2 pound of ground beef (or turkey). Add 2 cans of pork and beans and 1 packet of taco seasoning mix. Heat thoroughly.

Serve like Navajo tacos: lay cornbread pancake-tortilla-thing flat on plate, spread filling on, top with shredded cheese, salsa, sour cream, whatever else you normally put on tacos. (Eat with fork; don't try to pick up and eat unless you want a big mess!)

Like I said, it sounds really weird, even bordering on gross, but it's really yummy! Also, my kids like to have the leftover cornbread things as pancakes the next day.

Men and the silly things they do...

At six o'clock this morning, I sent my husband off on a snowshoeing backpacking trip--yes, you read that right; my husband! I'm talking about a man who hates snow, has never been backpacking, or snowshoeing (much less did them at the same time), who never heard of a sterno can until last night when I showed him how to make pigs-in-a-blanket (another thing he'd never heard of), gets lost really easy (if I point out north and ask him which way is east, he can't tell me), and did I mention the hating snow part?! I am so nervous!
He and his two buddies decided this would be a great time of year to go backpacking; personally, I think they spent too much time together and got high off the testosterone fumes, but whatever. Anyway, only one of them has ever actually made a snow cave (oh, yeah; I didn't mention that part; they're sleeping in a snow cave), or has been snowshoeing, or backpacking. Do any of them think there's any problem with this? No way! "If he can do it, I can!"
Ben (the one who's done all these things) almost couldn't go because he couldn't find a babysitter for their two-month-old son (their normal babysitter was sick). Last night at about 8 'o clock, he calls and tells us that he might not be able to make it, but he'll just tell Dale and Kelly (his other buddy) how to get to where they're going. Kelly has watched someone build a snow cave and he's been in the same area (aka: on the same mountain range) that they're planning on hiking, so he figures that's pretty much the same as having done it and been there himself, so no problem! (At this point, I was getting extremely nervous. I mean, I wouldn't mind having my house paid for, but I'd rather have my husband instead of life insurance money.) I told Ben that I'd watch the baby while his wife worked. He thought I was being so benevolent, but the truth is, I was much more comfortable sending my husband out into the wild outdoors with Ben, and the only way he could go was if I watched his kid.
So, now I'm at home taking care of my 4 kids and another one who's two months younger than Elias. I've always wanted twins and today's probably the closest it's gonna get, so I guess I'll see how I would handle it. I don't know who has the greater chance of surviving, me or Dale...I'll let you know about the funeral arrangements as soon as possible! :-)

Update: Dale, et al found a church girls camp (minus the girls) and are staying in one of the cabins overnight instead of a snow cave. (I have no idea if they broke in, or what; Ben's wife just got a short text message and that's all we know) Also, I made it through the day just fine and figure I can handle having twins. I guess all I have to do now is put my order in and wait...

Snow, snow, and more snow

It has snowed almost every day since we got home from Christmas break! The snow is so deep, Elora can't even walk around in it. Our roof has so much ice that it keeps leaking when it gets warm enough to melt, so Dale and I have to climb up an icy ladder and chip away the ice with a hammer. I will take some pictures and post them ASAP. Oh, by the way...we haven't even gone sledding yet because it's been so cold, so we can' t even enjoy all this snow! Kydee's already had two days of cancelled school because of the cold and we're expecting more. Take this as a warning to stay away from Idaho! It's too cold!

Spare time

I decided to recruit for familysearch.org on my blog. It's a geneological website that provides information for people to find their ancestors. I've had a lot of spare time when I nurse Elias. I've been reading books, but I have a hard time picking books to read (any suggestions are greatly welcome!). I heard that it was pretty easy to volunteer to index (read microfilm and input the info into a spreadsheet so that people can search for specific names), so I looked up the website (familysearchindexing.org) and signed up. Now I do a batch of names every day, while Kydee does her homework and Elias takes a nap or nurses. I really like feeling like I'm doing something productive and it's so easy! I can do it whenever I want and I can work on it for as long as I want. Anyway, if you're a stay-at-home mom like me, or have extra time (it's amazing how much time is freed up once you stop watching TV--and I didn't watch much before) you should try it!