San Fran according to my iPhone...

We had so much fun. It felt so good to have some "me" time. I'm ready to be back, miss my kiddies! I've got about a gajillion more pictures to post :)

Quilt

I have had this material since before Claire was born. The pattern i had chosen was much too difficult for my beginner quilt skills. Thus it sat. (sorry I just watched a British film..I'm feeling very proper). This seems to be the year of finishing what I started ages ago. So I picked an easier pattern. The quilt block I chose to do was a zig zag block from Appliqué today. Super straight forward. I finished cutting almost everything, now on to more sewing. I hope to finish the top by the end of July.

More freezer meals

Well my kitchen is a mess but I'm done! Didn't have quite enough for the enchiladas, so I just did one batch. I got 4 pans of funeral potatoes which will be great for when I need to take a meal to someone.

4 disposable pans
4 bags of hash browns
About 1-2 lbs cheese
4 large cans of cream of chicken soup (26oz)
5 lbs sour cream (got from Sam's)
11/2 cups chopped green onion
Salt and pepper to taste

If frozen bake at 400 degrees for 11/2 hrs
Thawed at 350 for 45 minutes
These make large pans so we could even half it.
After I finished I had to make the salsa recipe I got from enrichment last night. Anything with jalapeños are my weakness. And chips and salsa are one of my most favorite snacks. I have wild cilantro taking over my garden so I think I will be making this again! Yum.
Already put the pans in the freezer, so enjoy the picture of my messy kitchen. I am such a messy cook..
I'm glad to get that done. I've still got a few things to finish up before we leave for San Francisco on Wednesday!
Okay I must go clean.

Freezer meals

I had some time so I thought I would crank out the breakfast burritos for my freezer meals I'm doing. Went pretty well. They are super easy.

4 dozen eggs
2 lbs sausage
1 lb cheese
40 tortillas

Makes 40. Thaw and heat at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

Next up is enchiladas and funeral potatoes. I got about 10 meals and spent about an hour and a half.

Idaho Falls Wedding Photographer

In case you were wondering, I so love photography, especially when there's a wedding involved. Just photographed the most beautiful wedding on Saturday. These photos are straight from camera, but I really wanted to post some images of the event. Wonderful weather, awesome couple, beautiful reception; doesn't get much better than this!

Jake's first fish

Jake caught his first fish at the father and son camp-out. He calls it his cheetah fish because of the spots. Chris had him reel it in. It's pretty big! Good job buddy!!

iPhone

I'm not really a gadget person but I love this dang iPhone. I went on a run and got a reminder to give Sam his medicine. So I called Chris and told him. Then I saw a beautiful sunset that was so breathtaking I wished I had my camera, so I pulled out my phone. Then it got dark so i turned on my flash light app. Awesome. It's doing all this while tracking me by gps how far and how fast I'm running and entertaining me with music. I'm now blogging from my phone. Now if I could find an app to keep away the dogs that bark at me while I run. Bout peed my pants. Love technology--always and forever.

Sam's 72 hr kit

Just finished Sam's 72 hr kit and thought I'd share my list of items I put in there.

Baby soap
Wipes
Diapers
Washcloth
Sunblock
Hand sanitizer
Baby Motrin
Socks
Hat
Onsies
Sleepers
Bottle
Bottled water
Formula (I found some to-go single serve packets)
Baby food (these are the new baby food pouches so you don't need a spoon, so handy!)
Toys
Blankets
Plastic bags (for messy clothes/diapers)
Card with baby's info on it


This will need to be updated in 6 months. I put in larger diapers and outfits that will work now, up to 6 months from now.

List Update

Here's what I have done so far:

1. Organize the daily docket into an actual book that I can carry with me
2. Finish decorating the boys room
3. Read at least 1 book a month
4. Make some cool HDR prints
5. Make homemade pasta
6. Give myself/get a pedicure once a month
7. Finish my wedding book
8. Get a deep freezer
9. Save for our family trip to Disneyland in December
10. Make curtains for the dining room
11. Do indexing once per month
12. Make Jacob a big boy blanket
13. Lose 5-8 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight
14. Get new family pictures taken in the fall
15. Get/make a new apron
16. Read the Bible all the way through
17. Set up blocks on the computer to limit internet use
18. Set up a reward/chore chart for the kids
19. Try 6 new vegan recipes
20. Do a newborn photo shoot with the baby
21. Take hand prints of the kids
22. Hang a decoration on the wall above our bed
23. Set up a hanging system for my backdrops
24. Make a composting bin!
25. Grow my own flowers from seed
26. De-clutter the basement
27. Make five crafts I've pinned from pinterest
28. Do 3 service projects
29. Get out my camera and take a picture and video of my kids at least weekly
30. Back up all my files
31. Make a blurb book for 2011
32. Make a list of family activities for 2012 and do them all
33. Find some cute decorations to put by my front door
34. Deep clean once a month
35. Help the kids set and accomplish goals for the New Year
36. Increase food storage
37. Plant grape vines in the garden
38. Make a Christmas calendar of all the things that need to be done before Christmas that I can use every year
39. Use the cash envelope system
40. Try 3 recipes from my Babycakes cookbook
41. Do a Jillian Michael's 30 day shred after the baby
42. Teach Jake all the letter sounds
43. Freeze leftover foods/veggies and turn them into soup
44. Go to Yellowstone Park
45. Make my husband feel special
46. Get a swing set for the backyard we got a trampoline instead
47. Fix the paint in Claire's room
48. Stretch the carpet in the living room
49. Make freezer meals
50. Get a new plate/cup set
51. Think of something awesome to celebrate our 10 year anniversary
52. Do something I've never done before

Yellow Fever

This past week was our trip to Yellowstone. We've decided it's our family's "thing". I guess I'm nostalgic, but I love the idea of a family roadtrip to Yellowstone, one of the most iconic American treks. For

my humanities minor I studied American art, and one section was on Moran and his beautiful paintings of Yellowstone. Love it. I guess it also reminds me of our long road trips from Fargo to Utah driving through Gallatin National Forest. I love the colors, and the animals. One of these days we will see a bear I hope.





We were watching the weather closely because there was a chance of rain. We decided to go anyways and packed lots of blankets and coats. It was a beautiful drive and was nice enough to get camp set up and make dinner. Then just as soon as we were about done making our smores, it started to rain. So we snuggled into our tent, while I read Little House on the Prairie. Chris wrapped the children up like little burritos and we listend to the rain all night long.









We made it just in time to see Old Faithful do it's thing. But mostly I just wanted to stare at these boys. And somehow I made it without taking a single picture of Claire?!? Jake sure is big stuff with his new cowboy boots. We got a few chuckles from onlookers watching him try to walk in those. {They're two sizes too big anyways.}







It was a good trip, with a tasty (and messy) ride home :)

4 months.

What a sweetie. He is finally sleeping til a decent time in the morning. He is nursing half and bottle feeding half. He loves the kids and fits right in. He's kind of a serious baby but we can usually coax a smile out of him. He loves to chew on his hands and still takes a binky. He still has a little swirl of hair. He's about 15 lbs. he's growing fast!

June

June, well it's already well into the month and I'm now getting to my June goals. I feel like I need to hunker down and regroup after last month. I could also use a nice long nap. Plus, my house now looks like a birthday exploded in it. But that aside here's what I'm doing for the month:

Read 2 books: Persuasion by Jane Austen and I'm hoping to find I didn't mean to be a witch, or Love and logic. Anyone have a copy of either of those I could borrow??

Pedicure

Temple

Indexing

Read Bible

Service Project: continue working on the quilt

Family activity: Yellowstone!! This is an annual thing, we are supposed to go this weekend for free National Parks Day, but it's supposed to be rainy :(

Food Storage: frozen food for my freezer, and oatmeal

Pictures and Video: I need to post some videos and get my pictures organized on my laptop

Deep Clean: I need to overhaul the desks and declutter, same goes for the junk drawer, really all my kitchen cabinets need to be organized.

and for my extra projects:

Make some HDR prints: This is an area I really want to move towards in my photography

Go to the Rexburg Splash park

Refinish the desk: this is what I'm going for



Make a camera strap: I bought the fabric for it ages ago!

Make Sam's 72 hour kit

Make a weekly schedule for the kids for summer

Hang family wall stuff

Hang picture in bedroom

Make freezer meals!


I swear this list doesn't look that long in my planner. And now looking at things on the calendar June is going to fly by. But I'm not doing anything until I lounge for a day, and then get my entire house in order. And Jake starts t-ball tomorrow!

Our little superboy

Super hero day came and went. Jake had 10 of his best buddies over for his birthday party. I know it's so cliche, but I can't believe how fast he's grown. I'm going to blink and he will be in Kindergarten. Doesn't he look so much older already?









Claire even got in on the action.






We had his favorite foods: candy, strawberries, and cheetos. Pretty much stuff I never let him have. Those kids were hungry and finished off everything! We played some games, and they ran around in their capes and masks.




He got some totally awesome gifts.




He was so interested in his new book, that he was being a bit unsocial, I found him reading, while all the kids were outside eating.




And a birthday wouldn't be complete without blowing out a few candles. We love that kid, we hope that this year brings him all the happiness he can think up and a greater ability to listen. Happy Birthday Jake!

My list for May

Do you like my little blog makeover I did? I wish I could spend $650 for a freckled nest design, but I will have to settle for my sad little try. It's been on my to-do list for I don't know how long?!

Here's what I've been working on in May for my list for the year. All I will say is it was a bit crazy.

Read 2 books I actually ended up reading a few different books. I did read Heaven is Here by Stephanie Nielson. I also reread a book on relationships, I can't remember the name of and a food book called Dairy Free, Gluten Free Kitchen.

Good, I recommend it!

Pedicure
Temple
Indexing - didn't get this done, I've been trying to download this on my new laptop but it's not working.
Service Project: I am going to at least START a quilt for our ward's Relief Society goal of 112 quilts for 2012 I did get started cutting, and sewed a few squares
Family Activity: We are planning on going up to a Reunion Memorial Day weekend and we might stop at the Hotsprings on our way. We didn't make it to the Hotsprings, but I did plan a circus for the kids, so I'm counting that!
Food Storage: Frozen foods to fill my new freezer and possibly spaghetti noodles in bulk I think I got about 20lbs of pasta
Pictures and video of the kids: My goal is to get pictures sent out to relatives--crazy I know. Yes, I did get them sent out!!
Deep Clean: Carpets and couches at least
Try a new Vegan recipe: I've got another avocado salad recipe pinned It was yummy, I blogged about it here
Read bible
Put something up on my wall in the master bedroom Didn't get it up, but gathered stuff for it and made the pillows for my bed

Plant grapevines

Hang Photography backdrops Yes, I figured something out. I will blog this!

Make a Compost bin: I've been wanting to do this for YEARS and frankly I've been afraid, do I really want live worms in my house?? Still on the fence. I think I've decided to do one out in my garden


Stretch Carpet: It's done!!!!! I cleaned and had it stretched yesterday. It feels so good to get it done!

Make Jake's blanket: This was super easy but I'm counting it, I got minky, sewed two pieced together and hand quilted it together

And the final item on the list...


THE FAMILY WALL

I've been thinking about doing this for a long time, it's not on "THE LIST" or anything but I feel like it will really unify us as a family and I'm super excited about it.

I'm dedicating one wall in my house to all things family. You can look at my pinterest board I've made for it (there's a pinterest button to the right) It's going to have a bunch of different elements to it, to inspire our family, keep us organized, and focused on what's important. I'm so excited and I'm going to do a more in detail post about it.

I got most of the stuff for it, now I just need to put it together and pick out a wall to put it on (really I need to convince the hubby that this is a good idea :)

May was crazy, I've been training for a half marathon, I went out of town twice, planned a family reunion, had a garage sale, and planted my garden. Looking forward to a more summery, laid back June!

Our start to summer..

The day started with this handsome little boy, squishing his face up against my pillow, sleeping in bed.





Then we picked up Claire from her last day of Kindergarten with her teacher Mr. Byrd. She is now officially a 1st grader! What?!?!?




Then we met up with all the cousins in Utah. It sure is a zoo/circus when we all get together. But I do love each one of those stinkers!

Sam wasn't too sure about it all.

I told them to laugh, and things really got crazy from there.








They had fun staying up late and eating popsicles.

Then we headed to the splash park the next morning. It was so hot! Jake was having a blast after his meltdown the day before at the fountains at City creek mall, where you HAVE to wear shoes.













Then us girls headed to the Granddaughters of Brigham Young luncheon at the Lion House. Despite a few hiccups, we had a great time and heard a very inspirational speaker talk about her challenges as a quadriplegic.



The lights are so pretty in the Lion House, pink glass.


And Sam just chilled under the table.






Just had to put one up of the roses at Granny's. The kids were bringing us flowers and they were so fragrant. Love them.. We had a great trip, and now I'm exhausted.