Hot Lava

I love all the imaginary games that kids play..... especially ones involving hot lava. My kids always play that, I always played that, and at the splash pad/park today I watched a little boy playing that. Love it!

Why?

Why does it seem that every possible thing we own needs to break all at the same time? We need to fix the kitchen light (no idea what is wrong with it), caulk the bathtub, get a new printer, change the belt on the vacuum cleaner, fix our drip system, fix our other washer because the one we are using just went out, and the light just went out on the refrigerator (hoping it's just the light and not our fridge.) Today as I was digging weeds in the garden I was wondering what the purpose of the weeds are. Why did God give us weeds? I can't imagine the shock that Adam and Eve went through to suddenly go out into the world of thorns and weeds after living in such a beautiful perfect place. Just imagine all that they learned. I'm guessing the weeds are to help us learn to work. All of our trials are to help us grow. Maybe if we would have saved our money better I wouldn't be as stressed out about all of the things in my house breaking or going out. Ironically, I went out to weed because I needed a break from all the other things going on in our life. I like being outside and I like getting dirty. Something that is really rather annoying was giving me a purpose, something to work towards. I wasn't mentally prepared to start working on the things inside the house but I was still accomplishing something and it was rewarding to know that I did something of purpose. Things are really difficult for our family right now. We are working on blending together and letting go of "hurts" and past mistakes. Life can be hard. I recently told the story of Jesus fasting for 40 days and how Satan thought he could tempt Jesus because he was in a "weakened" state to my Primary class. Satan couldn't tempt Jesus and he couldn't bring Him down. Well, he can't bring us down either. Each trial we face is bringing us one step closer to becoming better stronger people. I'm not sure that we can ever fully become perfect here on Earth but we are slowing getting one step closer. I am thankful for all the weeds in my life that give me purpose and help me strive for something more beautiful and perfect.
It also helps to know that we have help every step of the way. “Wherefore, be of good cheer, and do not fear, for I the Lord am with you, and will stand by you.” D&C 68:6 Our trials are a way for us to come unto Him. To ask for help. To trust and have Faith in Him. To overcome the world as He did.
Back to my original question: Why? Answer: So that men might have Joy.
Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy.

Mixes = easy

My kids somehow got it in their heads that they wanted scones.... for breakfast. Um... hello... what makes them think I have time to prepare that early in the morning? Okay, sure. Would you also like berries and whipped cream? Sausage, eggs and bacon while I'm at it? Seriously, I have no idea where the scone idea came from. I rarely even make them.
After a week of begging I finally made scones. If you know Kassidee, you know she is like a dog with a bone. She never ever gives up. (And I mean NEVER!) Although she was insistent that be for breakfast, she did allow me to make them for lunch with our soup (which BTW was freakin' fantastic with sharp and smoked gouda cheese. Yum!)
Interestingly enough, I had a mix for scones in our pantry under all the pancake mixes. Maybe I could have made scones for breakfast and just maybe I will be stocking up on more mixes. Hmmm... mixes = easy and lets face it, I am all about easy. "I'm easy like Sunday morning" (which BTW is never easy but that song just popped in my head.)
I even filled some with lemon filling and made little empanadas and then dusted powdered sugar on them. Yummy! Of course I didn't share any of those because I'm also selfish that way and I do what I want.
Yes, my recipe for success came in a box.

Easter and look who's 8!

Easter? Really? I know, I really have been slacking. I have a sort of love hate relationship with my blog. Again, it really just comes down to not really wanting to take all the pictures off from my camera and then putting them on the blog. I have been really busy but not that busy. Anyway, enjoy. I will post my recipe for the marshmallow fondant that I used for Kassidee's cake later. It was seriously soooooo easy! I also will post recipes from Mary's wedding. Later (of course.)

Catch up

I'm too lazy to actually blog about what is happening in all this so I'll just let the pictures do the talking. I've been playing around with the camera so sorry there are a lot of the same pictures. Since I blogged last we have been very busy. Mikelle had her birthday. I forgot the camera so I didn't get any good pics. She went ice skating with 2 of her good friends. We have had a few outings with friends and family. Gone on a few hikes. Gone camping. I also had my birthday. Kass recently had her birthday (I'll put pics on soon.) Matt has a new bike. I haven't taken a pic yet of him and his bike but I will now that I'm over my initial frustrations with the bike. Anyway, we have been very busy. Not all of it has been fun but we have definitely grown a lot in the last few months. So there you have it, that's us in a nutshell.

Comfort Food

I love soup.
Soup is a comfort food for me. Creamed Pea and Potato Soup, in particular.
It brings back so many memories of my childhood. I remember my grandma Florence making it for me. It brings me back to my grandma and grandpa Wilcox's garden. I loved going there and picking peas and strawberries. This was one soup I could make all by myself. I would pick peas and patiently shell them so I could make my own bowl of soup. I remember getting sick at my dad's house and throwing up all over the bathroom. He insisted cleaning it up. I could hear him throwing up from the other room. When someone offers to clean up after you even though it makes them sick too, you know they love you. Anyway, I just love this soup and we had it last night for dinner. It is comfort food for me. I never quite make it the same every time but I thought that I'd share my basic recipe with you. If you are like Matt, don't forget to spice it up afterward with lots of cayenne pepper. Some days my heartburn and I am just jealous of his eating habits.

Creamy Pea and Potato Soup


Boil your potatoes in enough water and a bouillon cube (I like the boxed chicken broth) to cover them until they are tender but not mushy. If I add in onions I cook them at this time too. If I have celery I like to dice up the leafy tops (they have the best flavor in soups) and add that in there too. After your potatoes are soft, add in your frozen (or fresh if your lucky) peas. I like lots of peas! Then I add in some milk, or cream, or condensed milk, depending on what I have. Not too much, just some. Then I thicken it with a little cornstarch (or flour) and water. You can add what ever spices you want. I always add in a little garlic and lots of parsley because I like parsley. I also will add in celery salt sometimes if I didn't cook any celery in it.

I like how versatile and forgiving it is. It is always good however you choose to make it.
Mostly, I love that it brings me back to my childhood.

The Plan

Kassidee and Mikelle love their dry erase boards. Kass was busy writing something on hers last night. I didn't really pay too much attention to it until this morning. It said tomorrow's plan and then listed what she wanted to get accomplished. Having a plan is very important to Kassidee. She is not a spur of the moment kinda girl and she doesn't like being rushed or forced to do anything. It makes it extremely difficult when we have a time limit or somewhere we need to be and especially if it isn't something she figures was in her plan. In fact it can be quite dramatic and involve a lot of kicking and screaming. (You can be rest assured though that I am trying to learn to behave myself. ha ha ha) I am not much of a planner. I am a more of a fly by the seat of my pants kinda gal. If I was a better planner then I wouldn't have taken my desk that I'm refinishing outside to work on. Instead I would have looked at the weather and seen that there is a chance of rain. Maybe if I would have looked at the weather I could have planned better. There are of course some things that we just can't plan for. Most of them are hard life lessons and some of them are happy tender moments. All of them are good in their own way. Some times in the hard life lesson ones we lose focus and forget that it really is part of the plan, maybe not what we planned or intended but it is what our Heavenly Father intended. He is a loving and kind Heavenly Father and he didn't just send us here without a plan. I know that there are times when I'm just not sure if I can handle what is going on. I wonder if I am good enough. Am I a good enough parent? Am I teaching them all that I need to? Am I smothering or mothering?Am I a good wife to my husband? Am I helping him be successful in everything that I need to? Am I emotionally, mentally available to my family? Do I pay enough attention to them? Do I get too caught up in my own selfish desires? Then I remember. I am a daughter of my Heavenly Father and there is great divinity in my role as a mother and a wife. Yes, my daughter is crazy emotional at the moment but she is MY daughter. I have been trusted with her in my care. It is part of the plan. She chose me and I chose her. If my Heavenly Father believes in me, why don't I believe in myself? Some weeks we may be barely scraping by, but then I remember how blessed we really are. Even when we are kind of tight some how we are always able to make it. We are always taken care of and have always had sufficient for our needs. Sometimes we just need to remember that there is already a plan in place and we just need to trust in it, believe in it, work for it. Today was one of those days when I was just worried about how things were going to turn out, but then was reminded by a simple plan that a 7 year old little girl wrote on a dry erase board. There is a bigger plan in place, but for the moment we just need to take each day one at a time and have faith that it will out work out okay.

Slacker

Yeah, I know I have been a slacker lately on blogging. I just haven't felt like it. It's not that I haven't had time or that there isn't anything exciting to blog about. I just have been feeling kinda lazy in that area. Mostly I just hate taking the pictures off from the camera. I know, lazy! You can be rest assured that we have been very busy lately and I will post some pics of our fun soon. I haven't been that great at taking pictures either but I will post what I have. I usually keep a camera in the diaper bag but it seems that when I want to take pictures the most, I seem to forget the camera. Example: ice skating for Mikelle's birthday party. Oops! I have also been busy on a few projects too and I didn't even take before pics or even any pics at all before I gave them away. Quick update: We are doing great! Having fun! Enjoyed lots of great company and friends. Enjoying good weather at the moment. Learning new things. Growing up (sometimes it's hard, emotionally crazy and sometimes painful.) Mikelle turned 10! Dacia (that's me, but you know that right?) turned 30! Lately Kass has found her niche in the family as the golden child and likes it. Logan is starting to talk and sometimes surprises us with phrases. Example: he heard the roadrunner on tv and said," Beep beep. Dat's funny. Beep beep. Dat's funny." He loves his sea animals that he plays with in the bathtub and if you ask him to show you certain ones he can find them. He knows the Orca, shark, dolphin, sea star / star fish, octopus, lobster, seal, walrus, beluga whale, narwhale, hammerhead shark, and the sea horses if asked. He even knows some of the colors. Of course you have to ask him to show you, he won't say the word. He also will only do it when he feels like it. Mikelle is really growing up. She recently told me that kids her age do not play, they hang out. She has been somewhat emotional lately and I can just tell you that I am not ready for a teenager yet. Holy Moley! Matt is doing well for his age. ha ha ha Actually I was going to say that he is doing well in his calling and also at work. I know that he is worn out and tired and worried that he's not doing enough, but I think he is amazing. Me? I'm doing well too or should I say I'm doing well for MY age? Thank you for wondering. I'm flattered. Well, that pretty much sums it all up. We are putting in our garden so I'll take a few pics when we get a little more completed. I'm refinishing a desk right. Wish I could have shown you before pic. I had a really hard time getting the sharpie off of it! Eek! Sharpies are banned from our home from now on. Well, maybe not but I need a better hiding spot. Stay tuned for more posts coming soon...... hopefully...... and hopefully with pictures.

Let's not forget Kass! This little girl is so special to me. She has such a silly quirky sense of humor and she is my little snuggle bug! I love that she still loves hanging out with us more than her friends. She's such a sweetie! Love you too, Kass!

And my heart melts a little more

This crazy almost 10 year old little girl still kisses me goodbye!

I had to throw in the 1st picture because it always makes me giggle.
The 2nd is because it is so sweet!
Man, I love my kiddos!

My heart melted

As I was getting ready for the day, my sweet little man came up to me, wrapped his arms around my legs and said," uv ewwwww!" Logan's version of love you.

What's all this white stuff?

We went to Pine Valley on Monday to spend some time with everyone there. We had a lot of fun! We went next door to Brother Johnson's house and had fun sledding in his driveway. Then we went up to the reservoir and went sledding next to it. The back of the reservoir is closed right now because it is dangerous. People still were sledding there anyway. I was kind of nervous just where we went. I'm still not convinced I would go back there unless it was newer powdery snow. It was really steep. The kids still had fun... even the big ones and nobody got hurt so I can't complain too much.

Oh, and let me add... I love driving TO the snow. I enjoy it soooo much more when it's not my house.

Christmas

Christmas was great! We went to Grandma Rue's house for Christmas Eve and had a birthday dinner for McKay. Then we enjoyed singing Christmas carols and listening to the story of the birth of Christ. It was really nice. Christmas morning was busy. We opened presents and then my parents and Rudd and Steph and Mia came over. We had ham rolls and scrambled eggs for breakfast. Yum! At first Logan just wanted the rabbit and dog treats, but we convinced him there were better things. He got a pop up ball toy that he loves. He keeps putting other things in though and they get stuck. Mikelle got a coat that she really wanted and loves. Kass got some dolls that she also really liked. It was great having a nice quiet Christmas. Mikelle went with her dad Christmas afternoon and the next day and we missed her a lot but otherwise it was really nice.

Look who's a big boy

Logan recently had his 18 month check... at 19 months. Yeah, I'm a little behind... I mean I wish I had a little behind... whatever. So here are the stats:
He is:
33.27 inches or 69%centile for his height.
22.71 lbs. or 9 percentile for his weight

Basically he is tall and thin.

The visit to the Dr was quite interesting. They had fish in the reception area and he was sooooo mad that we took him away from them. He threw a tantrum the whole time we were in the back. Then he cried again when we had to leave. He loves the beeeeesh (fish.)


He is a whirlwind of activity.
He runs from room to room to room. He has started to climb up on things. He likes doing work around the house. If you do not find something for him to do, he WILL find something to do. (Making sure the toilets still work, throwing things down the stairs, dumping the boxes of cereal on the floor... etc.) He adores his sissies! He follows them wherever they go. He cries when they go to school or leave him in the house. He loves being the center of attention and likes showing off when he wants to. He does not perform. He can say quite a few words but is usually really quiet. He LOVES Nemo and says, "Mine. Mine. Mine," just like the seagulls do. My favorite thing he says is' "big boy big boy peaasssse," when he wants something up high. Things up high are for big boys. He dances to any music but especially likes the funk! He's daddy little buddy but he is totally a mama's boy too! He loves anything football! He was calling the balls on the tree "football." I love how he holds his little hands. It looks like he's posing.
Logan is such a sweetheart. He gives the best loves and loves his family so much.
We love you Logi bear. You getting to be such a big boy!

New Year's Resolutions

We got an interesting newsletter in our utilities this month. It had an excerpt from an article written by Rabbi Sir Jonathon Sacks. I thought that I would share them because I thought they were different from the conventional "get my fat butt off the couch and lose 50lbs in 2 months" type goals that we sometimes like to set but then never really do. These were lifestyle goals that I think that we can always work on not only help us physically but also spiritually.

Give Thanks: Once a day take quiet time to feel gratitude for what you have, not impatience for what you don't have. It's just that we we tend to take these for granted and focus on unmet wants, unfulfilled desires.

Praise: Catch someone doing something right and say so. Most people, most, of the time, are unappreciated. You will make their day, and that will help make yours.

Spend Time with your Family: Make sure that there is at least one time a week when you sit down to have a meal together with no distractions - no television, no phone, no e-mail, just being together and celebrating one another's company.

Discover meaning: Take time out, once in awhile, to ask, "Why am I here? What do I hope to achieve? How can I best use my gifts? What would I wish to be said about me when I am no longer here?" Finding meaning is essential to a fulfilled life - and how can you find it if you never look?

Live your Values: Most of us believe in high ideals, but we act on them only sporadically. The best thing to do is to establish habits that get us to enact those ideals daily.

Forgive: This is the emotional equivalent of losing excess weight. Life is too short to bear a grudge or seek revenge. The bad has happened. It won't make it better by your dwelling on it. Let it go. Move on.

Keep Learning: Florence, on her 105th birthday, was asked "What's the secret?" "Never be afraid to learn something new," she said. Then I realized that if you are willing to learn, you can be 105 and still young. If you are not, you can be 25 and already old.

Learn to Listen: Often, in conversation, we spend half our time thinking of what we want to say next instead of paying attention to what the other person is saying. Listening is one of life's greatest gifts that we can give someone else.

Create Moments of Silence: Liberate yourself, if only for five minutes daily, from the tyranny of technology, the mobile phone, the laptop and all other electronic intruders, and just inhale the air of existence, the joy of being.


I thought these were great New Year Resolutions. I would also like to add one that a Rabbi might not mention.

As you do all these things do them in reverence. I have been teaching my nursery kids that being reverent is thinking of our Savior, Jesus Christ. As you think of the things you are grateful for think of who gave them to you. As you learn to listen, take time to listen as you pray. Some of my most touching prayers have been the ones where I hardly spoke but I listened. Do you really know your Heavenly Father? Do you know Jesus? I know that they know you and that they REALLY listen.
Happy New Year's Everyone! Hope 2010 is great!

It's raining cats and dogs

Today has been one of those days. It's not really "raining" but there are cats and dogs everywhere. Yesterday a cat came in our house. Mikelle named him Jax. She kept sneaking him in our house. He was hidden in her room, the closet, the bathroom... you name it, he was there. "Hey Mikelle, what you doing in there for so long? Did you fall in? Why don't you give someone else a chance!" ha ha ha I kept telling her to leave him alone. By evening he was still here. It was sprinkling yesterday and it was dark. He was meowing on our doorstep. Mikelle was crying. He was crying too (according to her.) I broke down and let him sleep in the garage and the rabbits came in the house.
Jump forward to today. He will not go home. I thought this might happen. The girls gave Daisy and Jax a bath this morning. He left for quite sometime and I was hoping he decided he didn't like baths but I was wrong. He came back... wearing a doll sweater the girls put on him. He comes to the door and meows like he owns the place. Maybe he does. He sure let Daisy know who was the boss. He ran after her and scared her off when she was eating. Yeah, we have a wussy dog. Later they were sniffing each other and were friends.
The girls and their friends decided to start a dog washing business. Jax stayed away for awhile. However, have you ever tried cleaning while there are wet dogs around? They washed and dried the dogs outside and then had a brilliant idea to take them in the house to blow dry them. So much for my floor I just mopped by hand and my sparkling clean bathrooms! Eek!
While all this was going on Logan was helping them in the bathroom. He has to be where the action is, of course. Apparently nobody thought it was weird that he was covered in Victoria's Secret lotion and toothpaste. He smelled good, really good and so did everything he touched. I'm not really sure how many times he has been bathed in the last few days but let's just say it's a lot. I think I'm going to start calling him the Streak. The Streak is usually naked, holding himself (gotta protect the goods when running), and into EVERYTHING. Mostly, he is fascinated with the toilets, toothpaste and other things that the girls leave out. If he sees something out of his reach you will hear the words, "Big boy! Big boy! Peeeeeassse!" Things out of his reach are for big boys.
Later today as things had finally died down and the kids were all bathed or bathing I thought we were done. Nope. The Streak pooped on the floor. I put him back in the bath with his sister. Got him out again and he ran off and peed on the floor.
What a Day!
It's like they say, "When it rains, it pours!"
Not too sure what the rest of the day has in store for me. I do have to say that I am thankful to have a healthy bunch of kids who keep me busy. I am never ever bored.

Second Grade Wisdom

Man, I wish I had a scanner. For Christmas, Kassidee made a book of adages where she finished the sentence. They are AWESOME! I love it. I just wish I could also show you the pictures she drew with them. Soooooo...... here they are:

A Penny Saved is.. one cent.
Every cloud has... snow, rain, thunder, and lightning.
When the cat's away... you can put up a lost sign. (In picture: "Hey I've seen that cat.")
Don't make a mountain... because you might trip and fall on a rock. (Picture: "Ouch Help" "I'm coming to save you!")
The grass is always.... full of dog poop. (My favorite. he he he )
Don't count your chickens... before someone steals them. (Picture: "Don't steal us" "Chickens for dinner!")
You can't teach an old dog.. to like a cat. (Picture: "You stupid cat" "You dumb dog")
If you lie down with dogs,.... your mom will be mad at you. (Picture: "hey, don't sleep with the dogs")
Don't bite the hand that has... germs on it.
The squeaky wheel... means you came in last in the race. (Picture: a regular car w/squeaky wheel, monster truck biggest one you have ever seen, another monster truck, and another monster truck racing)
Where there's smoke there's... branches and leaves burning.
If you can't stand the heat... go play in the sprinkler.
A closed mouth... keeps you from taking drugs.
Laugh and the world laughs with you. Cry and.... someone will ask you,"What's the matter." (Picture: "Hey, what's the matter?" "I fell head first.")
People who live in glass houses... will get hurt if the glass breaks. (Picture: "Ouch" "are you ok")


And there you have it, wisdom from a second grader. I love my sweet little Kassidee and she really is wise. I didn't really know the meaning of her name when I named her but I think that it is fitting. Kassidee (Cassidy) means clever and Sage means wise. She is definitely both. I know I have really learned a lot from being her mom.

The Big 3-0

Happy Birthday Matt!
Hope you had a great birthday or at least the days surrounding it.
Matt stayed home from work on his birthday to have a nice relaxing catch up day after days and days of sick puking fun the week before. My parents took the older kids Friday night before his birthday so we went to dinner that night. It started out really nice but Logan did not make it through dinner. We went to Anasazi, and had maybe one of the best steaks ever. It was really expensive but very good. It came out on a hot rock and you cut it and cooked your steak as you ate it. Definitely the most tender steak I have ever had although I did not get to eat all of mine at the restaurant. We spent his actual birthday doing absolutely nothing but watching shows and relaxing. The next day we went to birthday lunch with his mom and dad. We did cake and sang to him that day too. We had left all the candles at my mom's house from her birthday. We were able to find one and Mikelle stuck her card in the cake and we lit that on fire too. It was kinda funny really, but got ashes all over the cake. Matt, I hope you had a great birthday! I love you so much. You are the best gift a girl could ever want and a great dad too. Happy birthday Baybeh! Big 3-0!

Halloween

Since when did Halloween become a week long affair? I remember the days when you dressed up and then went trick or treating. We had a very crazy hectic enjoyable week. Halloween is not my favorite holiday to say the least. We did have fun though. We had a spooky dinner with neighbors (everyone loved that), carving pumpkins, the Halloween parade at school (should have been indoors), a couple carnivals, trunk or treating, trick or treating at the High school, and trick or treating at our neighborhood with Jamin's family. Then add in dinner with the Relief Society gals and a sick baby! Wow! I'm so glad that week is over! Now we enter into Thanksgiving and all the December festivities, Valentine's Day... then before you know it it's Easter.