Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Yippee... Conference this Weekend!

I absolutely love Conference Weekend- a chance to relax, hang out as a fam, and totally refocus on what's most important in life. The messages are always so uplifting and inspiring and I love the opportunity to revamp my life on the very "best" things and improve my spirituality. Here is a link to the Conference Packets... They have different ones from Nursery all the way to Adult!
http://www.sugardoodle.net/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=8010

Then I loved this girls idea- you can get this totes at Hobby Lobby or the Target $1 section and fill them with fun things. She said she has found that it is better to give the kids packets a few pages at a time so they all get used. I love that idea because so many pages get wasted when the kids are overwhelmed with a huge packet!
http://brandyscrafts.blogspot.com/2011/09/general-conference-kits.html

And traditions make everything funner! Ger's family always made Caramel Apples for Fall Conference growing up so we have done that the last few years... The kids are already excited to do it this weekend. :-)

Caramel Apple How To's:
1- Take wrappers off carmels from 1 bag of caramels. (Little carmel balls are no good for apples!)
2- Wash apples, dry well, and stick a popsicle stick in each one. (If apples are waxy, you can dip them in boiling water quickly with a slotted spoon to remove that wax. Wipe dry and allow to cool completely.)
3-Cook caramels in saucepan on medium heat with 2 TBS of water, stirring constantly until melted.
4- Line cookie sheet (or each plate for kiddos) with wax paper and butter it or spray PAM! (KEY STEP! They will stick to the wax paper unless you add a little butter or PAM)
5- Dip apples well in carmel, shake off excess carmel, scrap bottom, and set on wax paper.
6- Refrigerate until carmel hardens... about 15 minutes.
7- Melt chocolate or chocolate melts. (Microwave for 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between. Or a double broiler is an easy way to go and keeps chocolate at a nice temperature if you are dipping a lot)
8. Dip apples in the chocolate and shake off excess. (Note: for harder chocolate that sets a little better you can add 1 TBS shortening per cup of chocolate)
8- At this point you can dip in nuts, sprinkle mini M&M's, drizzle chocolate or whatever topping you want! The kids love making some for Halloween- pumpkins, ghosts, etc.
9- Place finished apples on wax paper and put in refrigerator to cool. Best enjoyed when cut with a knife into slices.

(Here's a fun pic from a few years ago! The kids have grown up so fast!)
Do you have any fun conference traditions?

Friday, September 23, 2011

Fav Fall Recipes?

Well it sure doesn't feel like fall with a high of 107 here today... I really miss the Utah Fall weather about now! But I am getting out some of my fall/halloween decor, "fall" cleaning in preparation for Mia's baptism, and eying some yummy fall recipes. Our favorite pumpkin one is Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins but I am excited to give these two below a try... I would love to try your fav Fall recipe! Pass it along!

Pumpkin Sandwich Cookies
http://www.landolakes.com/recipe/1787/pumpkin-sandwich-cookies

Pumpkin Spice Pancakes
http://annies-eats.com/2009/11/10/pumpkin-spice-pancakes/


Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

1 cup pumpkin
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 eggs
1 TBS pumpkin spice (or 1/2 tsp. nutmeg, 1 tsp. cinnamon, 1/2 tsp. allspice)
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
1 2/3 cup flour
1 cup chocolate chips

Mix together wet ingredients. Mix dry ingredients and fold into mixed wet ingredients. Put in greased muffin tins and bake at 350 for 18-22 minutes. Makes 12 regular muffins or 24 mini muffins.

Tip: Use ice cream or cookie scoops like these for perfect sized muffins every time! The bigger scoop works best for regular muffin pans and the little scoop works best for the mini muffin pans... and for cookies!
Also I usually double the batch- you can put the batter in the fridge to cook some fresh the next day or freeze cooked ones- they freeze great.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Hurray for Organization!

WAHOO! We've had this magnetic chalkboard for almost a year now but finally got the vinyl lettering on it. It's just what we need to stay organized over here! The kids love looking at the calendar to see what is going on for the week and everyone now stays straight on their dish days, things they need to do, their chores are listed below their name along with any great papers from school, our family goals for the week, etc. If you need someone for vinyl, check out www.sayitonthewall.com. Laura was so great to work with and gave me the best price quote. Any other tips or ideas on how your family stays organized?!?

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Obesession :-)

My kids LOVE Photo Booth... everytime Syd gets home from school it seems like the best way for her to unwind from school! Taking a few crazy silly photos. I didn't know how crazy goofy they were till I was looking through them today... oh my word. Silly, creative children! So if you need a good laugh, go ahead and scroll down. Some are almost a little scary... I had to reassure myself, yes my children really are normal. ha.
The weirder the funnier for them...
How did she figure out that fancy effect?
ROLLERCOASTER! WHEE!
No effects... just silly faces...
Hi Brescia! I think that's Sydney in the front?!? ha!
The Eiffel Tower! WOAH! Hi Allie. ;-)
Fancy- 3 of you?!?
Dreaming of being on a beautiful beach...
No comment! ha ha.
Normal! yay!
See? A little scary really...
Colby getting the hang of it...
Hmm... impressive right?
So crazy...

Good family fun. :-) Hope you got a laugh out of it! Happy Thursday.

Monday, September 12, 2011

Say Cheese!

Busted! A look of "uh-oh..."
Then a cheeser, "Come on mom! Cheese is good for you!" Ha. Can't believe my baby is tall enough to pull cheese down off the counter now! I was making dinner and stepped over to the table to help Sydney with her homework. Literally 30 seconds later Sydney and I were shocked to see this... (AND she had piled a good few handfuls on her tray too! Smart girl, right?!?)
Then we just burst out laughing- Allie is so stinkin cute and funny all at the same time. She constantly wins us over with the way her little lips say the cutest words in her teeny voice. Her eyes are always sparkling out of excitement or trouble. :-) Her little world is so good and she knows it... she is so happy and content and energetic. Her excitement for "ouside" and "shows" is contagious. The way she takes your hand is so very sweet. And when she laughs at you or laughs because your laughing... well she steals your heart right out of your chest. Really. She has all of us wrapped around her little finger at a young age of 17 months. ;-)
And one of her favorite things to eat is shredded cheese. Not string cheese. Not slices of cheese. Not chunks of cheese... "finely shredded in a million pieces that get everywhere and stuck on everything and in everything" cheese. :-) Good thing she is so cute, huh?
She'll keep asking for it and we will keep giving it to her though...
and I think after seeing these pics you would too. :-)

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Start Your Kiddos Morning Right!

My kiddos fav breakfast lately is a smoothie and muffins! Our basic smoothie recipe is 1 1/2 cups orange juice, 1 greek yogurt (Chobani), mixed frozen berries, and frozen pineapple or peaches... or grapes... or whatever frozen fruit we have! Super easy and fast and so healthy- vitamin c, antioxidants, calcium, protein, etc etc. (Right now so many fruits are super cheap- I have been buying whats in season at a great price and freezing! So much cheaper than buying frozen fruits and you can put them in baggies the size you like in your smoothies. Bagging in small bags also makes it easier for the kiddos to help make their own!)
We love bran muffins and have especially enjoyed a Whole Wheat Flax'n Apple Muffin recipe from my sister Jenny. Thanks Jenny! Here is the recipe for that and a basic bran one we LOVE...

Whole Wheat Flax'N Apple Muffins

1/4 c milled flax seed
1 1/2 c flour (I do 1/2 cup wheat bran, 1 cup white wheat flour)
1/2 c sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
1 1/2 c finely chopped apples
3 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1/2 c milk
1/2 c chopped nuts

Blend dry ingredients together in a bowl. In a separate bowl; combine egg, vegetable oil and milk. Add dry ingredients to egg mixture and stir until just blended. Fold in apples and nuts. Batter will be thick. Fill well-greased muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake at 400 degrees F. for 15-18 minutes or until top springs back when touched.

Yield: 12 muffins.

Modified from www.hodgsonmill.com


Refrigerator Bran Muffins
from Sister Hinckley
2 cups boiling water
6 cups Kellogg's All Bran Cereal
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup applesauce
1 1/2 Cups sugar
4 eggs
1 quart buttermilk
5 cups flour (I do 2 white, 2 1/2 wheat)*
5 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt

Pour boiling water over bran cereal in a large bowl. Add shortening. Stir to mix well. Stir in remaining ingredients. Drop spoonfuls into muffin tin and bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes.

The best part about this recipe is that it makes TONS! I use half the batter to bake about 24 muffins. The rest of the batter goes into an airtight container and into the fridge for muffins on demand. Good for 2 weeks in the fridge. *I know this doesn't add up to 5 cups but the wheat is heavier than white so to keep my muffins moist this has been the best wheat/white ratio!

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

LaBoR DaY WeEKenD!

We escaped the inferno (hottest August here on record... EVER! 112+ every day) and headed to Flagstaff to play with Chris and Abby... There was like 500 pics from only 3 days there so I will post more once I have time to even look through that many! In any case, it was a great time and we 'heart' Lake Mary!