Temple Square

Cookies With Santa

There's a crazy shop nearby called "Dear Lizzy". By crazy I mean DON'T look at the prices. It's all fancy and fru fru. They have a great little Christmas tradition though. They have cookies with Santa! It's nestled back in a little section of the shop where the kids can't do much damage. You have to sign up for it so there were only about 15 kids. You get cookies and milk and a bell to ring to get Santa to come. One by one the kids get called up by name to sit on Santa's lap- the sweetest Santa I've ever met. The kids loved it. Eden wants 2 bikes and Taj wants a race track for his cars. I think Santa can handle that this year.

The Reason For The Season

On Monday we went to a live Nativity. It was a huge surprise. We heard talk of it the day before at church, but we were a bit skeptical. We knew it was outside (it was snowy and about 20 degrees), we also heard there were camels and shuttles. What? We had to check it out.

We got the kids all bundled against their will and 45 minutes later (it really takes FOREVER) we were on our way. Fortunately it was only a few minutes away. We parked at a chapel in Alpine where sure enough there were shuttles. And not just any shuttles. We were herded into horse trailers where we sat on bales of hay. That alone made the kids day.

The shuttles took us to a nearby farm where we were greeted by what looked like a shepherd. He told us the story of Jesus' birth. We were then told to follow the lit path to Bethlehem. On our walk we saw Roman soldiers and a family traveling on donkey. We got to the "city" and were met by hard working towns folk. They were making unleavened bread, weaving baskets, carving wood, tending to real sheep and camels. It was really impressive. We talked about how different things were back when Jesus was born. As we continued we found ourselves in a small barn with Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus. Eden LOVED that baby. We explained to the kids that it wasn't really them, but just pretend. Eden didn't want to leave for a long time. There were "angels" singing, and I can't blame her. It was very special.

On the way home we talked all about what we saw and experienced and the real purpose of Christmas. They seemed to kind of understand. As we're driving home Eden says, "I'm baby Jesus. Mom, you're Mary, and Daddy Joseph. Who's Taj?" Micah joked that he was the donkey. It was funny at the moment, but now, three days later Eden and Taj are still playing "baby Jesus." I'm not sure how appropriate this game is, but it sure makes me smile. I'm really glad we went to the Nativity. It's something I'll remember in my bank of Christmas memories for a long time, and hopefully the kids will too.

What day is it?

The kids are in a total dress up phase. It's fun, especially when they come up with stories where Taj, the red Christmas Power Ranger, is saving the princess from something horrible which is usually my role. Then Eden calls me her Fairy God Mother and we all do something wonderful to save the castle from a sharp tooth (T-rex of course). I guess it gets a little complicated -hee hee. These kids crack me up!

Everyday is like Halloween.

Museum Monday

Last Sunday night I was exhausted. It had snowed and I was kind of almost dreading Monday, when Micah would be at work and I'd be in charge of entertaining/keeping the kids busy so they wouldn't get into trouble. I always try to approach the week with a game plan, or at least ideas to keep us from getting too stir crazy. My plan: Museum Monday!

My friend Ashleigh and I took the kids to the Museum of Paleontology and the Life Science Museum. Ligers do exist!Taj touched a King snake-yuck. I mean Yay! The animal collection was mind blowing. It'll be fun to see what the kids notice next time, because there was way too much to take in in just one visit.

Taj and Eden saw "Land Before Time," or "land before life," as Taj tries to convince me it's called. I forgot how much I love that movie. Taj wants to be a triceratops.

Dinosaur poop.

The boys had a great time. I had a ball watching them making discoveries. Let's do it again soon Ash!

the Highlights

The kids took turns barfing and pooping on Friday and Saturday. Good times. There were definitely some highlights though:
My best friend Sara came to town for a quick 36 hour trip to Utah. It was sooooooo great to see a friend I've known forever, especially since we suck at keeping in touch. Last week Eden's dance class took pictures. This is our tiny dancer :) I'm not exactly a fru fru girl, but I am in love with this picture and want to stare at it all day. My niece also takes dance classes at this studio ("hip hop") and so help me, but I almost peed my pants looking at these little toughies. I believe I heard their teacher say, "Do something gangsta". I love you Kali so here's some fair warning: I'll be showing these pictures to any boy you bring home :)Today was the first primary program Taj has been a part of, and I was a bit emotional. It was precious. He did a great job singing his heart out. I've never paid such attention to a Sacrement Meeting.

On the way home from Nana's house we were all snuggled in the front row of our car ( she lives in the same hood- no main roads. don't judge us:))It had snowed while we were eating dinner and our car was nice and warm. People put up Christmas lights all through the month of November before the real bad weather hits so we were looking at all the lights and Taj says, " these lights make me smile."

Awe. Did anyone see 30 Rock this week? "The Bill Cosby Show was a lie!" Tracy's kid got it right about families: there's a lot of junk, but the good moments are priceless. Or something to that effect. And that would sum up my weekend.

My Mouth Is Watering

Sweet Potato Souffle. I've been dreaming about it for weeks, and now it's finally close enough to Thanksgiving that I can share this precious recipe.

Sweet Potato Souffle
3 Cups cooked mashed sweet potatoes (buy them fresh and bake them like regular baked potatoes, then mash the insides. Canned would be fine too, i think)
1 Cup white sugar
3 eggs beaten
1 stick softened butter or margarine
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder

Topping
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 stick melted butter
2 TBSP Milk
1 Cup chopped pecans

Directions
Mix first list of ingredients together and put in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Then mix topping ingredients together and smooth on sweet potato mixture. Then bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

The topping will not be smooth. Just drop spoonfuls on top and try to smooth it out.

Oh, man. I can't wait for this! I think that without this recipe I wouldn't be all that excited for Thanksgiving. That's a little pathetic and I know I could just make this any old time I want, but I refuse. I am determined to keep the anticipation and keep this recipe special. I hope you all try it and love it the way I do. Enjoy!

Hazzah!

As of 10:30 am I was able to flush toilets and wash dishes! Our water is back!

Gratitude

It's eight o'clock at night. Our water has been off since noon. There was some sort of leak in a city pipe and there have been workers digging up the road trying to find it and fix it. They are still out there working in the cold under floodlights. I'm feeling grateful for the meager supply of water we had stored in our food storage. I'm definitely among the few that don't take food storage seriously, but am kind of learning a lesson. I miss running water. I am grateful for running water when we have it. I'm grateful for the store down the street where I could easily acquire more water. We are blessed. And I am grateful.

Pictures and Words

Last Sunday Taj was coughing so instead of Church Micah took Taj to the Bountiful Temple.

Yesterday we woke up to find snow everywhere! The kids were thrilled and their excitement made me excited.

We played for a while. I forgot how stinking long it takes to get everybody dressed in snow clothes. I think I spent more time getting Eden ready than she spent actually playing in it. She's still not too sure what to do in it and with it. Taj was loving it and I'm loving that he's old enough to kind of do his own thing and explore the snow on his own.

This picture is way out of order, but I can't seem to get it to move. Taj is a builder of all things lately. I found him asleep during his quiet time- which NEVER happens, with the robot dog he built.Serious silliness is coming from this little girl. I think it's the age and the being stuck indoors. You can't quite tell, but Eden in the ottoman we have filled with books. The girl loves books right now. And headbands.

With the rest of the snowy day we went to "Pirate Island" in Orem. It was pretty cool. Taj loved every bit of it. The place is decorated really well. Skeletons everywhere. The food came from a huge pirate ship with cannons that shoot smoke rings. It was a fun escape from the cold.

Cloudy With a "Chance" of Impatient Mommy-ing

It started out as an overcast, but pleasant day. I went for a run ALONE!!! It was a nice 60*s out. The day got colder. And windier. The kids got whinier. And whinier. I got grumpier. And grumpier. It's really true. My mood is solar powered. I really hoped the run in the morning would save the day. Oh, and Micah's out of town until late Saturday night. The kids have taken turns coughing and boogering for over a week and my patience is down.

So here's to a good nights sleep. May it pull me out of my Mommy funk and get us back on the right track. It always helps a little.

Lego Maniac

I think we've created a monster!

Happy Day!

I'm sure you are all aware that Weezer just came out with a new album Nov. 3.

Keep the hits coming Weezer! Enjoy a taste of them on our blog playlist :)

More Fun With Cake

If I had to pin down what I love about Jack and Julie (besides how well their names sound together) I'd have to go with their brutal honesty. Julie is one of those few people that can say what we're all thinking and you love her for it. Jack is a big ex-football player type that is found crying into his mustache all through church meetings. He's a big softy. They are high school sweet hearts and are still clearly in love.

Julie has had diabetes her whole life and was only able to have one child, Erika. They adopted a son, Jordan, who recently completed training in the Marine Reserves. I can't imagine how hard it would be to watch your child sign up for any type of military training in these times. They are very supportive people. They asked us to make a cake for the party and while our only credentials are birthday cakes we accepted the challenge. We had a fun time practicing our cake making skills for them. We have a lot to learn, but I'm still pleased with the outcome.

Enough Halloween to Go Around

Our Halloween celebration took us all last week, not to mention the planning, sewing, and preparing. It was fun to see the evolution of the celebration until the actual night came.
Here we meet Vampire. This is the vampire Taj created. He wanted blue hair and a white face. We're all about home made costumes so Taj picked out the spider material for his cape and he became the Spider Vampire.

Eden wanted to be a princess for Halloween and picked this dress with wings out. It was fun getting ready for her dance class Halloween party. We just played dress up. I offered her different things, she asked for other things and we came up with this.

I was excited about seeing her this year since it's her first year of really experiencing Halloween and kind of figuring out what Halloween is.

The boys made a great Jack-o-lantern this year.

Taj wanted a break from the Vampire and went for last years dragon while we explored Gardner Village. They go all out with the decoration. The kids love looking for all the witches. The witches riding bikes, rowing boats, making witches brew, playing baseball. Everyone dresses up to go there.

I love this picture. Taj was warming up by the fireplace after trick-or-treating. He looks so pensive. Our thoughtful Vampire.

Micah spray painted us skeleton shirts. The kids wont allow us not to dress up.

Great candy this year- a lot of chocolate :)

Fun trick or treating with friends Nika and Anya. Cutest pirates I've seen. (Notice Eden's new costume and Taj doesn't want blue hair anymore).

This was our favorite witch- Witchy-Poo. She's in an outhouse with a news paper. We love Gardener Village. It was all very fun, but the church party, preschool party, dance class party, Gardener Village and trick-or-treating was more than enough Halloween to last me until next year.