Happy Birthday Setheroo!

My baby is 5 today.

On the Eve of his Birthday,

he laid in my lap,

and asked me to tell him the story of the day he was born.

 It was so fun to cuddle with my baby

 as I told him the story of his

Grand Entrance!

We love you Seth and we are so glad you are a part of our family!

Happy Birthday!

Leaving Germany

It's been 18 years

since I flew home from Germany.

From my mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

I want to go back to visit.

And take my boys.

And ride the train and see the countryside.

And talk with the people, and eat some dampfknodel that I would buy from some stand on the side of the road.

And I want to take the boys to see the beautiful countryside that is Germany.

Someday, we will go.

It's on my Big List!

And we are making progress, crossing things off the list.

So, someday, I'll say,

"Hallo Deutschland!"

again.

Today, I'll just hold onto the memories.

Secret Santa Time

My family borrowed this tradition from my older sister and her family. We started it three years ago and it is definitely one of my favorite traditions of the holiday season! On Thanksgiving evening (or the next morning as was the case for us this year) we draw names from our family of 5. And we keep the name private, to be revealed on Christmas Eve. Then, we become "Secret Santas" to that person and do nice things for them all month long, without getting caught. We also buy a small gift for that person. We have a $10 limit, and this year, each of the boys earned their $10 doing chores. They try to discover what their secret santa would want. It is so cute to watch them. Tonight, I took McKay and Noah loaded up with their wallets to Wally World to do their shopping. McKay requested that he be allowed to go off on his own to shop, so we agreed to meet up in 25 minutes, after I gave him the paranoid mommy speech about not talking to strangers, not leaving the store unless it was on fire, and well, you know the drill, I don't need to go into all my other paranoid warnings! Anyhow, Noah spent 25 minutes agonizing over what he wanted to buy for his secret santa. And then he wanted to pay the cashier all on his own with mom standing way back. He was so proud of himself. McKay was pleased with his purchases as well, and then without me saying anything, he put his change into the Salvation Army bucket outside the store, and encouraged his brother to do the same. Then they came home and quickly hide their gifts, and later they will use up more than a roll of tape to wrap their special gifts. (I need to work with them on the art of proper wrapping, I guess!)

I love this Secret Santa tradition for many reasons but probably one of the best things about it is teaching my children the importance of giving. Giving of their time and service, and also learning to become good gift givers. This is a skill that everyone needs to learn, and it can be hard if mom is always the one to buy the gifts and put their names on the label. It teaches the boys to be unselfish and to show charity toward one of their family members and the results are already obvious...we have a more loving family, where the kids are trying to catch each other doing good, and this to me is what Christmas is all about, what Jesus wants us to do this holiday season.  If you want to adopt this tradition, feel free...I hope your family will enjoy it as much as ours does!

Oh yeah, and I finished up my Christmas Cards this evening...so check your mailbox soon!

My thankful heart

 A long time ago, when I was serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, in Germany, my companion and I began a "game" of naming things we were grateful for as we went door to door. It was an effort to focus on the positive and push the negative thoughts and the homesick feelings away. And it worked. I can still remember some of the things I named, aside from the obvious ones. I recall expressing gratitude for my hands that allow me to do so many versatile things. I can't imagine having to do without my hands! And helicopters because they allow one to soar above the earth and yet have a wonderful view from above. I've only been in one one time, when a special date took me for a ride on a helicopter above Niagara Falls. I'll never forget it though...it was amazing!

At this very special time of year, I reflect on all the many things I have in my life, both material and spiritual, and play this "game" of gratitude with myself and my Heavenly Father. I want him to know that I recognize all that I have, all that He has given me.

This blog would be endless if I were to begin to name them all, so I will just identify one that fills me with gratitude, and that is my family, both my husband and three sons and my extended family. They are all such a gift to me and enrich my life, and inspire me to be a better wife, mom, sister, daughter, and aunt.

Thanksgiving is one of my most favorite holidays, and not just because I get to eat Pecan Pie without guilt, but because it reminds me to pause and give thanks for this wonderful life I have.

My heart is full.

The White Stuff Surprise

I'm in shock...that's why I'm blogging on a Sunday morning at 6:40 a.m.! Here's my story...last night The Chief and I went on a date. We went down to the District (just 7 minutes away) to see the movie, Unstoppable (with Denzel Washington and Chris Pine...sooo good...plan to see it if you haven't!) at 5:30. We were thinking of getting dinner afterward. However, when we came out of the movie at 7:30, we discovered that 2 inches of snow had fallen, had already covered the cars and was sticking on the roads. I was already feeling some anxiety about the boys at home (McKay was tending his brothers) as they had texted us a few times at the start of the movie. So, we just stopped at Subway and got The Chief a sandwich and headed home. It took us over 10 minutes to get home (we were following someone going REALLY slow!)

It looked like it slowed down during the evening, and the weather report said maybe a little more snow expected through the night and then more on Sunday night into Monday and even more on Tuesday!  However, this is where that weather guy got it completely wrong...

The snow is up to Penny's chest! She didn't love it!

There is just something wrong about my fall foilage being covered in so much snow.

I'm guessing we got 12-15 inches of the White Stuff overnight. My boys are completely OVERJOYED. The Chief not so much as I woke him up extra early on a Sunday to go shovel so we can get to church on time! Me, well, I'm trying to remain positive about it. I haven't really had a positive relationship with the White Stuff in the past, and I'm trying to think better about the stuff. It's easier on a Sunday when I don't have to drive 12 miles to work...we'll see how I think about the stuff tomorrow!

The Chief makes good!

When we bought our home over 5 years ago, I asked for two things: that we replace the carpet, and get granite countertops. We did replace the carpet about 3 years ago. It was absolutely hideous, and I'm so thankful we got rid of it.

 But the countertops, they are not hideous, just a tan formica, that are lackluster. Thankfully, we've reached the point where we can afford to finally replace the countertops. We went to a slab yard, and this is one we really like:

This image doesn't really look like the sample we have, but it is really pretty. You'll just have to take my word for it. Today was all about getting bids. The 4th guy just left a little while ago. I'm anxious to see all the numbers and go forward. If we're lucky we'll be enjoying them before Christmas. Thanks Chief for indulging me!

Homemade Graham Crackers

I tried making homemade graham crackers last night for the first time. My purpose was to use them for a graham cracker crust. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy they were to make and how tasty! They didn't necessarily look like the graham crackers you buy in the store, but I didn't take the time to make them look prim and proper either as I knew I would be crushing them in the next step! So, here is the recipe, which I learned about from Pie Love You
Graham Crackers:
1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
¾ cup all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons water
4 Tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
6 tablespoons sugar
1 egg, well beaten
¼ cup honey
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Combine the whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, and salt, and set aside.
Dissolve the baking soda in the water, and set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter, sugar, and egg until they are light and fluffy. Add the honey and baking soda mixture, and mix until well incorporated. Add the flour mixture gradually, scrape down the sides of the bowl occasionally, and mix just until uniform.
Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Divide the dough into 2 lumps. On a generously floured (use all-purpose) surface, roll out the dough one lump at a time to 1/8 inch thick. Cut the dough into approximately 4x4-inch sections, so that they will be easy to flip with a spatula during baking. Place the sections on a baking sheet 1 inch apart and roll out the rest of the crackers in the same way. Poke each cracker several times with a fork.
Bake the crackers for 6 to 8 minutes, then flip them over (the underside should be lightly browned). Bake for another 4 to 6 minutes, until the other side is lightly browned. Turn the oven off and open the oven door. Loosen the crackers with a spatula, and let dry out in the oven (with it off) for 1-2 more hours. If you want it for a pie crust, you then crush it, add melted butter and sugar and put in a pie pan! So so yum!

Seth

My blue eyed boy

His personality shine through here.



Seth turns 5 in just a month...he's growing up too too fast!



Love you Setheroo!

A traveling we go!

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Stay Tuned

I hope I have something fun to share...if I can figure it out!