Some of my favorite READS....

So now that I have no kids left at home in the day and I decided that I would NOT clean every second, and I have further decided to treat myself to the local library as much as I want to.  Right now I have 5 books checked out and I just cant get to them fast enough.  I am a book nerd, always have been.  Still have my collection of Beverly Cleary and Little House on the Prairie books in my cedar chest from when I was little.

For the last 13 years of my married life I have spent nights staying awake readying every child/parent self help book I could get my hands on.  And I loved it.  But if you can believe it, I feel like I am actually getting the hang of it now - being a parent anyway.  I am sure that when all the teenage years come I will be right back to my self help books.  But for now I get to read my pure loves - documentaries.  Weird to some I am sure, but I love to read anything that is uplifting and real - even though I will dive into a fantasy every once in awhile (MATCHED!), but that is always my second choice.

So for this week I just finished two that were so interesting!  A CASE FOR SOLOMON was about an abduction in the 1800's of a little 4 year old boy.  Usually that would be way to sad for me, but the story was about his return and the controversy of who he was - since they didnt have fingerprints or anything close to what we have today.  I learned so much about the old days system of law and it made me appreciate so deeply our governing system today.  Crazy twist at the end - good read.

Secondly I finished LEFT TO TELL.  My friend Tami Price told me about this story years ago and I have always been interested in reading it.  When it finally came in off of the waiting list at the library I was stoked and jumped right in.  This one was a serious heartbreaker, but with powerful lessons on Christlike love and forgiveness.  If any person ever needed to feel like they could handle the trials they have been given, this would be the book to teach that.  Immaculee is one of my newest hero's and an inspiration of mastering one's self.  In a nut shell - she is a collage student during the horrific Rwandan Holocaust where almost 1,000,000 Tutsi villagers were slaughtered in 90 days.  She survived by hiding quietly in a small bathroom with seven woman/children.  She would spend 15 hours a day just sitting and praying while the world around them was in despair.  Surviving the ordeal only to be found alone with all but one of her family members murdered by friends.  Her journey to internal peace is remarkable. 

Well, I am starting my own personal book club - and this was my first meeting.  Quite a success I say to myself as I head upstairs to read some more...CHECK!

My favorite view...

Pinterest Recipes

I try to have a fun homemade treat for the boys ready and on the table after school as often as I can.  Thats the times I get them talking about their day and is one of my favorite moments.  Many days I am off at the school volunteering and not home, but Mike just had surgery and so I was home all day with him so Karly and I hung out in the kitchen!

I decided to start trying some of the Pinterest recipes that I have pinned - and both were so yummy!  First one was homemade peanut butter cups - filled with crunchy peanut butter and crushed graham crackers and rolled in chocolate.  You were supposed to top it with toffee but I was out so used sprinkles.  My boys loved them when they got home from school!

Secondly I tried a Pumpkin Coffee Cake that I found last week.  I had picked tons of pumpkins from our church garden and froze the insides for when I needed pumpkin (super easy - cut in half and save seeds for baking, then steam the halves turned over in 2 inches of water in the over for 40 minutes.  Cut out and puree - then freeze!),  This was my first bundt cake that has turned out and I was super excited!  Kids loved it too and I brought a slice to our construction worker friend up the road (who has to stand there for 8 hours a day holding the "SLOW" sign - and she is always so happy!) and she was delighted for an afternoon treat.

All in all I spent $0 on our afternoon snack and almost no preservatives.  YAHOO!

Heaven Is Here

I just finished reading Heaven is Here by Stephanie Nielson.  I have followed her blog along her journey but the book was full of depth that I had missed.  I loved her perspective, her real deep down perspective.  Thank you Stephanie for not giving up...Everything is under control.

Dress Up Time in our house

This little gal changes clothes all day long and I never know what she is going to come up with! But I do love her around, even if it means a nightly revamp of cleaning her closet...

Presidents Cup

One of my all time favorite things to do is sit and watch my little Dallin play soccer. He eats, sleeps, and drinks soccer. There is not any time of the day where he isn't kicking his ball around and I am so glad he has found his thing.

This is his best buddy of all time and like my own kid. Inseparable and we love it.

GO BLUE KNIGHTS CLUB!

We love Shalee!

Shay is the greatest gal ever and I am soooo lucky she is my sister in law! I cant wait to have a new baby around soon - I will need to control myself and not steal "it" away. Her and my little brother Rex have decided to wait and keep its sex a surprise. So happy for them!

Fun Times in our House....

Yah - fun times in our house. First off, my boys are addicted to soccer and love to kick the ball at the house. WELL - I have said MANY TIMES to be careful or else.....ya, else happened. Oh well, its just an expensive HUGE window - they can earn the money to pay for it. Hopefully by the time they are in college I will have a new one...

My princess insisted on getting a Snow White costume for Halloween (yet today was her school party and she is a mermaid - what happened?) and the second she got it on, she ran to the fridge, grabbed an apple, and dropped dead on the floor. At first I didnt even get what was going on, then it all clicked. She was poisoned!!! Oh know!

Ya, she thought she was pretty funny....and she was.

Fun Times in our House....

Yah - the two pictures are not related. Yet they could have been. First off, my boys are addicted to soccer and love to kick the ball at the house. WELL - I have said MANY TIMES to be careful or else.....ya, else happened. Oh well, its just an expensive HUGE window - they can earn it the money to pay for. Hopefully by the time they are in college I will have a new one...

My princess insisted on getting a Snow White costume for Halloween (yet today was her school party and she is a mermaid - what happened?) and the second she got it on, she ran to the fridge, grabbed an apple, and dropped dead on the floor. At first I didnt even get what was going on, then it all clicked. She was poisoned!!! Oh know!

Ya, she thought she was pretty funny....and she was.

Santa Cruz!!!

We love the BEACH!!!! We took the kids to Santa Cruz and all they wanted to do was play at the beach. Even though the Boardwalk was filled with every kind of carnival ride possible. There is something about nature that is so captivating...especially seeing live dolphins!

We love Kate! This is my brother Nates girlfriend and one of our favorite people.

My baby is growing so big...

So are all of them for that matter!

The Boardwalk at Santa Cruz!

My mom, one of my best friends. Love this woman so much.

Who knew that it would be so much fun to have a girl!

dear friends...

Aleesa and I have been buddies since Ricks College. We got extra close at BYU where we both studied Social Work, worked at the Utah Boys Ranch together and had our first babies 2 days apart.

Many years later, and I adore this woman even more. She has become one of my cherished friends and deepest confidants. This last summer we got to go to Education Week at Ricks College (I just cant bring myself to call it BYU-I yet...) and had a wonderful time! Her mother and sister treat me like family and I just loved the trip.

Going on a vacation, sleeping in a hotel, eating whatever I want and not having to do dishes, and going to classes that uplift you and make you strong - one of the best girl trips ever!

karly's new hair do-

My dear little sweet heart decided that she "didnt want the pony tail in anymore..." Easy as that - she chopped off 13 inches of long gorgeous bland hair about 3 inches from the top! YIKEES!!!!! I was heart broken. I was so wanted to donate it all the locks of love, but that will wait for another time.

I called my dear friend Alicia in a panic and so she saved me! She cut the rest and taught me how to do "girl hair." What a shock it was to have it all gone but we still love her cute face!

From now on the scissors will be locked up, but thank you Alicia for your amazing skills!

yummy sandwich

My cute daughter decided to make me a sandwich. Nothing like white bread and cereal - for a sandwich!

Playing Piano for the Seniors

We just love our piano teacher. Chelle does so many things with the boys, including having them play for seniors to uplift their day. They were dancing along with the boys and one gentleman sang for us at the end in a beautiful barratone voice. What a treat for us!