The Gift of Love

This time of year always makes me think of the song "Because I Have Been Given Much". Not a very Christmasy song, but if you listen to the words I think it has everything to do with the Christmas season. The line that has always touched me is "I shall divide my gifts from thee with every brother that I see". This line I think embodies Christ. He always gave and helped everyone. It is wonderful that his charity is celebrated as well as his birth through donations of money, food, gifts, and giving of time to the less fortunate. Loving everyone is at the heart of what Christ taught and is something we should do our best to emulate all year long. 

It's Always Fun When Grandma Comes!

We went to the Museum at Thanksgiving Point. There were lots of things to Touch, 

Read, 

and exhibits to look at. 

This is how Calvin spent most of his time. 

This is how Felix spent most of his time. 

Running in and out of tunnels.

Making friends in the play area.

Running back to the tunnel. (His favorite tunnel was the star tunnel at the beginning of the museum.)

We saw the exhibits.

We ran through the exhibits...

We made our own water ways. And played in the sand and water.

We had a fun day at the museum!

We had a super fun time with grandma Tungate!!!

Star Wars Clone Wars

I am super sad. 

I recently started watching Star Wars Clone Wars on You Tube. 

I was a big fan of the micro series Cartoon Network did so I was slightly skeptical that it would be as good. 

I really enjoyed it. 

Seriously, where was this show when I was a kid. 

Anyways, Cartoon Network took the episodes off You Tube. 

I know it is illegal blah blah blah, but I really liked the show and now I have no way to watch it.  

And I found out today that it is an ongoing series only in season 4! (I know I am way behind the times)

So that is really exciting but,

I feel totally hanging on where I stopped watching. 

Right now I seriously want to know what happens to Fives. 

I imagine I will end up watching the series again as my children grow up. 

That seems like forever away.

FOREVER

I may have to breakdown and rent the DVD when series 4 comes out, or find a 10 year old with Cartoon Network who I can watch Clone Wars with on Fridays. 

Also, I was just thinking, I am glad it is not 1980 and I just finished seeing Empire Strikes back for the first time. 

"Luke I am your father." 

Then waiting years for Return of the Jedi! 

That would have killed me. 

I guess I will just go to bed and get a good night sleep then...

21 Jump Street

I was young when this T.V. show was on. Like 5. But I remember that it was time for bed when the show came on. I also remembered Johnny Depp. Yeah, I thought he was cute back then too. Anyways a few years ago my friend bought the 21 jump street DVD's. It was a lot of fun to watch them together. I found today that Hulu has them http://www.hulu.com/21-jump-street!

So if you need a little Johnny Depp fix, here you go. 

Family Photo update

It has been a while since I posted any photos.

So here are a few...

We went on a fall walk together. 

 We have poison dart frogs. It is really cool to watch the hop around the vivarium. But they do hide when Felix comes around. He is pretty loud and excited when he sees the frogs. 

Don't worry they are not poisonous. 

But they are dang cool.

 Felix moved into a toddler bed! 

Here he is jumping off of it. 

1, 2, 3!!!

 Calvin has discovered the joys of chewing. And especially likes mom's fingers.

 Calvin was Orco for Halloween.

 Felix was Heman.

 And I was Android 17.

 This was our pumpkin. He had a carrot nose. I designed it and justin carved it.

 Calvin laughed for the first time this night. Felix unbuttoned his pj's and blew raspberries on his stomach. Calvin really got a kick out of it.

 Felix has become quite adept at making "clean" messes. He gets into things like toothpaste, baby powder, lotion, and pictured here diaper ointment. He is also really good at climbing.

 This is what I found one day after I had finished feeding Calvin. The boys were hungry and got themselves soy milk from the fridge. 

 This is our little monster. I got this cute outfit from my friend Julie! And I found the monster socks at Target. 

I love the socks.

 We finally unpacked Justin's supplements and had a great big box for the kids to play in.

I usually come out to this mess when I leave the room for a few seconds. Felix really wants to play with Calvin. And he is very good at sharing his favorite things. Calvin was not particularly happy in photo because he was asleep. 

So those are a few things we have been up to in the last month. 

Macintosh Apples

This is my favorite time of the year. 

Apples are in season! 

But not just any apples, Macintosh apples. 

They are my favorite. 

The best eating apple ever!!! 

Seriously I love them. Try them if you have not.

 I think they have a great amount of tart and sweet. The flesh of the apple is not to hard not to soft and the skin is not bitter. I also love the green and red skin of the apple. 

Oh and they smell wonderful! I picked up a bunch for eating this week. I am very excited to eat them!  

I will be sad when they are out of season again...

Oh, and the best birthday present I have ever received from Justin. 

A bag of Macintosh apples. 

I have an awesome husband.

Squash Soup

For those that have been waiting for me to post the squash soup recipe... .
Here it is!!!
It takes about 15 min. for prep work and about an hour for the cooking time. It serves about 4 people.

2 cups cubed squash (the smaller the squash cubes the faster it will cook)
1 onion medium sized sliced thinly and in teeny tiny pieces or minced
1 portabello mushroom (medium size) minced
1 cube of butter (1/2 cup)
1/4 teaspoon powdered garlic
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 cup chicken stock  ( or use bullion cube)
3 cups milk
salt and pepper to taste

Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in your soup pot. When the butter is melted add 1/3 of the minced onion. Cook onion until almost golden brown. Add mushroom and 3 more tablespoons of butter and another 1/3 of the minced onion. Cook onions and mushrooms until the mushrooms and newly added onion begin to brown. Add the rest of the onion, butter, squash, salt, pepper, and 1/2 cup of milk. Cover the soup pot stirring occasionally until squash begins to soften. About 5 to 8 min. mix up the squash and liquid until you get a lumpy mashed potato look to your squash. If you want a smoother soup use a hand mixer to get a fine silky texture. Add chicken stock and Worcestershire sauce stir until combined and cook 15 min. Stir in the remaining milk until combined and cook 15 more min.
Serve with your favorite bread and enjoy a fun seasonal soup! What I like about this soup is that is was really easy and all ingredients most of us always have in our kitchens.

And I am going to add a page to the blog with some of our favorite family recipes.  

So if you wanted to make something I have posted about you can easily find it and make it yourself. 

Happy cooking!

Bed Time

Felix has been sleeping really well in his toddler bed. Until recently. He is starting to get out of bed now after we put him into bed at night. Felix will get out of bed with all his blankets and sit in the doorway of his room until he falls asleep. One night after I did a workout and showered I came out to find Felix had covered Calvin with a blanket and had made a halo of cars around his head. Felix was next to Calvin sitting quietly with his blankets and dog.

Trusting

Um sometimes it is a little overwhelming to be a mom. Seriously these kids have no choice but to absolutely trust Justin and I right now. That is probably the scaryest thing about being a parent.

Facebook Reader and Google+

Well for those of you that don't know. I got rid of my Facebook account. Why, it was a waste of time. I felt obligated to post something and really I just don't need to be spending time doing stuff like that. Sorry to anyone who will miss me, but if you are reading this then really you wont miss me to much ;) Reader, I am sad it is gone. It could be a waste of time, if I wanted it to be. But just like Justin said the other day it was really the best of the internet. Which was awesome! I will miss reading about cool new discoveries and neat places and good food. But I don't have the time to do what Reader did for me. I do have a google+ account. I like it kind of. It is like an exclusive facebook. Really right now I mostly have been playing Angry Birds with Felix on it. Not the greatest. I did get a Pinrest account. Which I like because I can make folders of things I like want to make etc.. So it has some of the same features as reader kind of. I am sorry if I don't friend everyone who friends me on pinrest but really you will be fine:) I am sure you have plenty of other friends.I am using mostly as a craft and food creativity cabinet. I am really sad that reader is gone, because I would have loved to pin some of the awesome things I saw... Also, poo on you google for changing reader.

What to do with extra Halloween candy?

So we had a great Halloween. Felix got to trick-or-treat! Which he loved. We got to go to a fun Halloween party in grandpa and grandmas neighborhood! And we carved pumpkins and celebrated uncle Collins birthday! We knew we lived in an area with lots of little kids so Justin and I made sure to buy two big bags f candy. Halloween night Justin even suggested that we go and get another big bag. Well we now have a whole bag and a half of candy. Felix has volunteered his services (rather loudly) to help eat the candy. and Justin will eat the stuff he likes. That still leaves me with a ton of candy!!?!!I am thinking of breaking apart the candy bars and making some cookies, but that still leaves me with a ton of treats! ( i will probably o this and freeze the dough) I wish I still worked at the high school. I am sure I could dig up a few kids to eat some of the candy. Also all the candy in the house is reeking havoc on eating healthy. I love candy and sweets!

Pizza pooper

Ok so I am kind of lame. I did make a lot of pizza in October, but seriously it takes lots of time to make dough. And kids are crazy when you need them to not be. Anyways, sorry if I disappointed anyone. But really you should try the pizza that I made! It was yummy! Also pizza in general is good. I tried some fun sauces: herb butter, squash, and alfredo. I really wanted to try to make an Indian pizza. But I just didn't take the time and I felt burnt out. But this month I will make it and post how it tasted. ( I am going to cheat and get the best masala in Utah from Bombay House to make it with. But I will be making my own paneer and nan!) On the other hand I made a really great squash soup tonight. Felix even ate some with a roll!!! Seriously it was that good :) I need to workout the directions so it makes sense. (I am not sure if I can even follow what I wrote down) But it was super yummy. So look forward to something you can do with all that squash you grew this summer :) Happy cooking!

Shake Shake shake, Shake your booty!!

Ok, so you know I don't have the best taste when it comes to music. Don't get me wrong I like some good stuff, but for some reason I am attracted to some terrible music. Anyways, the other morning I was singing "shake shake shake, shake shake shake, shake your booty, shake your booty!" Then the coolest thing happened, a little voice behind be said "shake your boobdie, shake your booobdie" So awesome!!!

climbing toddler

I found Felix on top of the changing tabe this morning:) He was very proud of himself. Justin and I then decided it was only a matter of time before he started climbing out of his bed so we got out the toddler bed and put away the crib. Felix spent the next 10 min. counting to three and jumping off his bed. Hopefully he goes to sleep well, but I don't think that is going to happen :)

Blog Stats

Do you look at your bolg stats? I had no idea until last year that they existed. Justin showed them to me. It is pretty cool. I love seeing the different countries that people are in when they look at my blog. Like today I looked at my week stats and I had a hit from Kazakhstan this week! Super cool! I do miss all the India hits I used to get. (Justin was in India). Anyways, Thank you people who look at my blog from other countries. You make my day when I look at my stats!

Pesto Pizza is the Besto!

Justin had an awesome idea last month. Do a different pizza every night for one month. And for my birthday Justin bought me a pizza stone!! sooooo I am going to do it. I am very excited. I have a list of ideas and I can not wait to try them all!!! Yesterday I just made a regular supreme pizza with red sauce nothing really exciting. But today I made a keeper: The Besto Pesto Pizza -Heat pizza stone in a 500 degree oven for 20 to 30 min -I made my favoritepizza dough -I did not make the pesto myself. I used Cucina & Amore Pesto ( I got mine at Harmons) -Then I sprinkled a little bit of mozzarella cheese and feta ( I really like the stuff made with goats milk, sheep's milk is good too) on top. -Next I added some chopped spinach slices of tomato and chanterelle mushrooms. -I sprinkled more mozzarella cheese on top of that and a little parmesan cheese. -Change your temperature to 350 degrees and then onto the fabulous pizza stone (seriously it has totally changed how my crusts taste. I highly recommend one if you make homemade pizza) (or just heat your oven to 350 and use a pan what ever works it will still tast good) cook for about 15 min, or until the crust is brown and the cheese has a nice golden melty crust on it. -I like to add some garlic butter to the crust after I take out the pizza. I made this butter a little bit more salty than usual which was perfect. -I let it cool for a about 10 min. before cutting and eating. I seriously loved this pizza and Justin really liked it to! It is a keeper

Hold the Baby!

Soy Milk

So the other day Felix pulled Justin's soy milk out of the refrigerator opened it and started drinking it. Firstly I was mad that he was getting into the fridge and secondly I was mad that he was going to spit the milk out all over the floor and throw the carton when he found he didn't like it. But I was wrong. Not only did he drink the rest of the carton, he now asks for it on a regular basis. Who knew he would like soy milk?

Skeletor

The other day while we were at Target I was looking at the Halloween decorations and getting excited. every time I passed a skull Felix would laugh "He he he he". It finally hit me after he did it like the 5th time that he was laughing like Skeletor.

I love that kid!

Feel the Burn

Three cheers for exercising! Seriously I am super excited to feel able to do a full hard work out again. My goals are to run one 5k this fall/winter and next year run a marathon. It feels a little overwhelming but I know I can do it. I just need to stay dedicated to my workout routine and get new running shoes.Sadly mine broke. I loved my barefoot running shoes so much! Anyways, I am feeling excited and motivated. I was also super excited to find out that Hulu has a huge selection of workout video's! All of this working out has made me sore and super hungry.

Spank on the Butt and Open doors

Occasionally Felix will get into mischief (I know everyone is surprised) and he needs to be spanked. I usually give him 2 warnings then the spank. Well, the other day in the bathtub he was dumping water out onto the floor. I asked him if he wanted to be spanked. He looked at me and bent over spanked his own butt and said "spanked"...
Now every time I tell him no and that he will be spanked if he does whatever he is doing again he bends over and spanks himself.

Felix has also learned how to open doors. Which is mildly terrifying. This also puts a damper on Time Out. I usually send him to his room to scream. Yesterday he was throwing his cars and I sent him to his room. He opened the door and was peaking out and giggling.

I love that kid a lot:)

Locks of Love Donation

My hair was driving me crazy so I had Eliza cut it. I donated it to Locks of Love

It has been a while

Well so in new news life is busy!
I will give you a quick look at what we have been up to.

-School started for Justin si he is busier than ever.
-Moved the big vivarium to the front room and it looks awesome!
-F is getting into everything. So the house is almost always a disaster
-C is growing a ton. and he is smiling and just being cute!
-I am working on scrapbooking, decorating and organizing.
-We have been going to the park
-F got sick and threw up for the first time. It was very sad.
-Did lots of laundry
-Justin has been training for a half marathon. Which he will be running on Saturday.
-tried a new ingredient. Juniper Berries. Super tasty with Elk and Beef.
-I used real cinnamon for the first time this week The Saigon stuff. It was awesome! Seriously it is good stuff, I think it really made my cinnamon rasion bread super yummy.
-made bread with 16 grain flour mix The bread is fabulous!


And here are some photo's too!

Cute baby Picture!

Best baby picture ever!
Thanks Nancy!

Favorite Brownies

This is my new favorite brownie recipe!!!!!!
Justin got it from one of his co-workers and he loved them! Which is great for me because I love brownies and I didn't have a recipe that Justin liked so I never really made them. Don't worry they are not healthy at all either so you know they taste good.

1 lb butter (salted)
4 cups sugar
Melt together

let that cool

add 4 teaspoons vanilla
8 eggs one at a time (if you don't want to wait for the butter and sugar to be cool you can temper the eggs in)

mix together in separate bowl
2 cups flour
1 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon salt
Add the flour mixture slowly into the butter mixture until well incorporated.
Now add 1 lb of mini chocolate chips (I couldn't bring myself to buy Hershey's chocolate so I just used regular sized chips)
Add nuts if you desire

This fills one 12X17 pan or two smaller pans. (I used a cake pan and got hugemongo brownies, I also had to cook the brownies for longer.) Bake at 350 for 30-40 min. (35 is usually perfect) Don't over bake!

Seriously these are super tasty. The brownies have totally killed my healthy eating. I have had them for breakfast, with lunch and after dinner the last few days. And apparently they are fabulous frozen, so we have a few in the freezer as well.

Lays Chips

Ok so Lays has really stepped up their game. Personally I had sworn off Lays Potato chips for a long time. I always found them to be greasy and staleish.
But, in the last year I tried their Chipotle Ranch and Balsamic Sweet Onion chips. Wow!! They are both addictive! I am willing to give the other new flavors a try.
Lays Stax are also tasty. They are just fake Pringles I know, but I like them because they have a salt and vinegar chip that is really tasty.
So oddly I recommend you try Lays again if you haven't.

Good Bye Risky

Our friend and rat Risky passed away on Saturday. We will miss him lots. He was an awesome companion.

Cute Boys

The Kiss by Gustav Klimt

I am obsessing a little bit tonight. A few years ago Ikea had this awesome print of The Kiss by Gustav Klimt printed on fabric. I loved it, but I didn't buy it. I went back to Ikea when I had money and I had been thinking about it for a month and really really really wanted it. Well It was out of stock in the store and online every time I checked.

But every once and a while I think about it and I get crazy angry at myself for not buying it and go hunting for it online. I did that today for about an hour.

no luck again...


Does anyone know where I can find one?

On the bright side I did get an awesome journal from Boarders with Three Ages of Women by Klimt on the cover. (I saw it and absolutely had to have it)

Everybody Poops

Last night I thought it would be fun for the boys to take a bath get clean etc.
I gave Calvin a sponge bath while Felix was splashing and enjoying playing in the bathtub (This time he wasn't dumping water out onto the floor thank goodness!). I put the towel on Calvin and turned around to check on Felix and I saw what he had done.

There was poo on the floor and in the bath tub. I could not believe it. And Felix standing and smiling at me almost as if to say "Look at what I did mom." I commanded Felix not to move and I quickly got Calvin changed and dressed. I then entered the hazardous waste area to asses the situation. I got Felix out and emptied the tub. Then I commanded the naughty boy to stay in the bathroom while I got some cleaning supplies. He was very good and stayed in the bathroom while I cleaned things up. When I turned around I found Felix peeing on the bathroom floor. Seriously!?!?!!!

SO, I refilled the tub put him in and then cleaned the bathroom floor as well. Felix thankfully finished his bath with no more problems and on his walk into the bedroom to be dressed he squatted. (I was walking behind him at the time thinking dear God please don't be doing be doing what I think you are) When I got around to the front side he was peeing on the floor. He looked up at me as said "pee" all I could say at that time was "yup."

After getting him dressed and the new mess cleaned up we talked about not peeing on the floor and pooping in the tub. I am not sure if it did any good but it made me feel better.

Baby Pictures!

What we have been up to Lately

Well I have not been super good at posting. So here is a list of what has been happening in our lives...

No baby yet, although I am getting more uncomfortable.
Got a used recliner
Got an awesome new glider to rock the baby in!!!!
Trip to Bed Bath and Beyond for some household essentials.
Got a truck load of stuff from California, including a couch, crib and changing table!
I have done lots of grocery shopping to make sure there is food in the house when I am away.
Laundry.
Started growing a mini pineapple.
Had Family over to help move boxes and couch in. And then ate a very tasty dinner.
Had Collin and Justin move furniture around in the front room for about an hour.
Ate at Bombay House
Cleaned and put away all of the boxes and new furniture.
Lost my keys and Justin's keys.
Found my keys and Justin's keys.
Played and visited with family and friends.
Had family over again for pizza.
Got new shoes for Felix.
Went to Boarders clearance sale and picked up some great books.
Went swimming.
Unpacked orchids and got them all set up in our room.
Got some awesome new succulents and a couple other plants!
Got permission to grow a vegetable garden next to the cars at our apartment! (we will be working with our neighbors on it)
Completed 2 more scrap book pages!
Felix is putting clothes on himself.
I finished reading Emma.
Felix learned to put his dirty clothes in the hamper.
Justin is continuing to do orchid research and has added aloes and bromeliads to his research.
Justin applied for a job at the local garden center.
Got a 16 grain mix for making bread.

So far we have been busy. I am loving it. I need to be distracted right now...

Birthing State of Mind

Ok so I had the option on Tuesday to have my membranes striped to help labor along. At that point I was super comfortable and thinking that I really wanted to see if I could get the labor process going naturally.


So, today is my due date. I am uncomfortable. I am super hoping that something will happen to get my body in a birthing state of mind. I have been doing a lot of walking. eating spicy food, and I am going to have Justin give me a nice foot massage. Any other suggestions?

I have never felt more ready than right now.

Re-Decorating

I am Excited to say that we will be getting a couch this weekend and a glider rocking chair thingy! But, after looking at the front room and knowing the size of the couch I need to move things around. I am also thinking of moving things around in the boys room as well (we got a toddler bed). So it looks like a couple big projects for me today! I will get pictures posted as soon as everything is all happy.
Horray for nesting!

Pregnancy Photo's

The other day my sister decided that she would do my hair and make up and take some pictures. Which sounded like a great idea to me. ( I am feeling very anxious and fidgety) Here are my favorite ones!