We've Been Working on Something Today...

More to come!

Another Uneventful But Happy Day

Not much going on here. Potty training is, well, still in the works. It's coming along slowly, but I guess that's how it is. I took a few pictures of Jansen and Natalie so that I would have something to put on the blog:

Watching the rain

Natalie stole this out of her favorite treasure chest: the garbage

The kids get so cranky and clingy in the late afternoon. It about drives me crazy. Taking them outside is usually a quick fix.

Picnik

Every once in awhile I like to play on this site called Picnik (picnik.com) where I can do cool things like this to my pictures:

Isn't that fun?

Lately

I took Jansen back to the dentist yesterday...she was very kind and a great dentist, but I drove 30 minutes to get there, waited 40 minutes in the waiting room, and she was finished looking at him in 3 minutes. The update: just wait and see some more. The tooth may or may not make it. She kind of thinks it won't. Jansen did great though. Here's a pre-visit interview video I took of him. And a picture at the dentist:

Today I am really hitting the potty training hard. Jansen will be going to a preschool one day a week soon and I really feel like it's time to be done with the diapers. I'm planning on not really leaving the house until we make some real progress. This is a picture of Jansen telling Nate how he went to the bathroom by himself.

Memories

My dad passed away when I was 13, and I distinctly remember one evening not long after he died when I was tagging along with my cousin to her college professor's home. The professor was a kind woman, and she knew that I had lost my father recently. She sweetly and sensitively told me to write down my memories of him. She told me how although they were clear in my mind at that time, I would forget many of them, even though I didn't want to. That advice sunk deep into my heart and I knew I wanted and needed to do it. 13 years later, I still haven't. I have started many, many times, so I do have some things written down, but I have a long way to go. Today would have been his 50th birthday, so I've been thinking about him a lot and feeling the need more than ever to record all the special memories I have of him. I also had the idea of asking anyone that reads this post that knew my dad to leave a comment...a memory you have of him that I can include with mine. Because if you were lucky enough to have known him, then I know you might have a memory like one of these:

-Riding on his back as he swam around my grandma's pool

-Sticking our heads out of the sunroof of his Saab as he drove down big hills

-Piling lots of pillows and blankets to sit on in the back of my grandpa's truck and going to the zoo
-Going with him to Lehi High School where he played basketball on Saturdays and playing with all the sports equipment and having a whole gym to ourselves

-Friday night Slurpees and watching X-Files

-Walking to the ditch with our dog Conway

-Watching Jazz and 49ers games on TV

As you can tell, this is an old picture. But it makes me happy, and I haven't had time to dig through and scan more recent ones. I don't know what I would do without memories...they are absolutely priceless.

A Fair to Remember

I've been telling Nate that we should go to the State fair, but it's not easy to find a time that works, and he's usually got a lot of studying to do. So I went with some friends! We all got in for free and the kids were really well behaved.

Anyone that knows me well will know this was my very favorite part of the day. I didn't get a very good picture, but that little wagon is full of tiny dogs. Hilarious and kooky. I love it.

Pickin' Berries

Wanna know what I did on Thursday?

Mom took me here:

And we picked blackberries!

Mom kept telling Jansen not to eat too many.

'Cause he might get a tummy ache. As for me...
I was just happy to be in a beautiful place with fun people.

Natalie's Wonderland

Natalie loves Jansen's room. It's like her own little often-forbidden wonderland. She loves to sneak in there (and I love to watch her sneak in there) and just play with his toys for a little while.

And then she's off to meddle in someone else's room!

Bring On the Tags

I was too slow about getting around to the "Memory Tag," and since that was sooooo last week in the blogging world, here's another tag:

4 Things I like/love about Nate:

1. Nate still loves Disney movies. We were babysitting some kids and they were watching Peter Pan and Nate was just as enthralled with it as the kids. In this picture he is laughing at something Hook said.

2. Even though he is very busy, he takes great care of our lawn and flower beds.

3. He mopped the floor last night. Pure joy.

4. He has such a happy, bright countenance. I just love how he is always smiling.

4 Jobs That I've Had:

1. Kids Foot Locker

2. Emergency Essentials (in various departments)

3. 2nd Grade Teacher

4. I think those are the only jobs I've had!

4 TV Shows I Watch:

I actually LOVE TV but pretty much never watch it. Some shows I turn on during the day sometimes for some company:

1. Jon and Kate Plus 8

2. What Not to Wear

3. The Today Show

4. Anything else on TLC

4 Places I Have Been: (these are very exotic)

1. Florida

2. Ohio

3. Washington

4. New York

4 People Who Email Me Regularly:

1. Real Simple recipes...they never sound good to me though and weird ingredients

2. Facebook stuff

3. Millions and millions of friends (hah)

4. Ward emails

4 of My Favorite Foods

1. Ice Cream

2. Texas Roadhouse Rolls with Cinnamon Butter Stuff

3. Smoothies

4. Spinach Tomato Tortellini

4 Places I'd Like to Visit

1. I'm not picky, just take me on vacation!

4 things I'm Looking Forward to in the Next Year

1. Christmas (I'm in no hurry, but I do love it)

2. Seeing Jansen go to preschool and be in Sunbeams

3. Having someone fly out here to visit us

4. Just doing fun things with the kids and great friends

I tag: anyone who would like to make my afternoons more interesting and will do this so I can read it.

The Winners and Something You Should Try

Winners from the Pay it Forward contest:

Noelle and Laney!

I'll be contacting you soon...

I wanted to share this recipe because it has become a favorite meal and it's very easy. It's called Cincinnati Chili. Never heard of it? When Nate and I were dating, his family introduced me to it and I have to admit I was skeptical. It seemed kind of strange. But it grows on you, and I LOVE IT now. Just try it. It's also known as Skyline Chili, which is a restaurant chain based in Cincinnati. This particular recipe is from Nate's grandma's cookbook called The Best of Beverly.

Combine: 2 lb hamburger (don't brown it first)

2 chopped onions

1 qt water

Simmer together for 30 minutes. After this I like to put this mixture in the blender so there's no meat chunks.

Add: 2 cans (8 oz each) tomato sauce

1/2 tsp allspice

1/4 tsp garlic powder

4 T chili powder

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp red pepper

1/4 tsp cloves

1/2 oz. unsweetened chocolate ( I use cocoa powder)

2 T vinegar

1 bay leaf

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tsp cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp salt

4 drops Tabasco (I prefer to leave out)

Simmer uncovered 2-3 hours until thickened. To serve, put cooked, thin spaghetti on each plate, cover with chili, and sprinkle with LOTS and LOTS of cheddar cheese. Don't be deterred by the seemingly long list of ingredients. Once you have them on hand, this recipe is so easy. And it will make a lot...you can freeze some for later!