Halloween 2010

I'm so behind!!!  Aaaaaahhhhhh!!!!  Anyway, we had a fun Halloween, as always.  The ward Trunk or Treat is always a blast. 

This year, Courtney was.....

Her own (completely created by her) version of the Mad Hatter.  Here she is with her friend Madi.

Caitlin was.....

A Cupcake!!  Isn't this adorable??  And she MADE it!  Well, I made the bottom part.  You know, the part that looks like it was made by a 4 year old?  Ya, I made that part.  But she sewed the "frosting" and picked out the other elements of her costume.  Totally adorable.

And Connor, and his two buds, Ben & DJ were.....

The Three Amigos!!!  Ole`!  Connor has his costume off 15 minutes after we got there. 

On Halloween night, it is tradition in Hugh's family that we serve Potato Soup for dinner.  This is a tradition started years ago by our late Grandma Lope.  Yum!

Nice hat babe.

Then we settled in and awaited the Trick or Treaters.  And waited, and waited, and waited.  And then they came....all FOUR of them!  Wha???  I guess all of the kids moved out of the neighborhood!!

NYC 2011

Well, I wanted this....

 But, I guess I'm going to have to settle for this.  **Deep Sigh**

Because I am going with the other fabulous ladies from The TomKat Studio to the Martha Stewart Dreamers into Doers Conference in New York City!!!  Dreamers into Doers is an online community that celebrates the success of women who have turned their dreams into careers that they love!!!  Kim is the dreamer, and I'm just lucky enough to have joined her in her journey.  Seriously, I can't say it enough.....the BEST most FUN and FASCINATING job I have EVER HAD!!!  We'll have two days of workshops focusing on growing our business, marketing techniques, Etsy tips, and a bunch more.  And we get to attend a taping of the Martha Stewart Show.  Fun stuff!!! 

So, my Christmas list has change.  I now need sweaters and a winter coat.  Oh, and an Ipad.  Yes, I NEED an Ipad.  Can someone tell Hugh???

High Maintenance Pumpkin Cookies

On Sunday, the girls and I put on our aprons and set out to make these festive cookies.

I love anything pumpkin during the holidays, and I knew I would LOVE these!!  Let me just say that putting the batter together wasn't so bad, but they were a little high maintenance to bake.

First, you have to cut 3 inch square pieces of parchment paper.  The recipe says 24, but we ended up needing 48!!  (The recipe made far more than it said it would.  Good for us!!!)

Then, you have to fill a piping bag with the batter and pipe it onto the squares of parchment paper?  Wha???  I'm used to spoonfuls of dough onto the pan....not batter in a bag!  But, we did it anyway.

Lo and behold....they came out in perfect little circle cookies. 

We let them cool, made the delicious filling, and YUMMO!!  Awesome Pumpkin Cream Pies. 

I may make these again during this holiday season, but they definitely won't be ones I whip up on a Sunday afternoon because I have a sweet tooth.

And just to clarify, these are NOT my pictures.  (But I promise, my cookies looked just like them!)  I got them from Pioneer Woman's cooking blog, A Tasty Kitchen.  Wonderful, wonderful recipes over there.  And that's where you can find this recipe.  Gotta love Pioneer Woman!!! 

Pray for Emmett!!

My sweet friend Karla had a miracle baby just over a year ago.  His name is Emmett and he was born 11 weeks early at 2 pounds 6 ounces.  He's been a fighter since he was born.  And now he's having to fight again....

Over the weekend, Emmett was not feeling well.  Not himself.  Monday night Karla had a feeling that she needed to sleep in his room with him.  The next morning, she noticed that Emmett was having trouble breathing.  She took him immediately to Urgent Care, and was then instructed to go to Phoenix Children's Hospital right away.  It was discovered that Emmett had swallowed a quarter size battery and it was lodged in his throat.  It had already caused damage to his esophagus from the leakage from the battery, and he was rushed into emergency surgery.  They are keeping a close eye on him, and because of his discomfort level, they have him heavily sedated, and he will stay that way for the next week.  They will then do reconstructive surgery to correct the damage done to his esophagus.

Poor little Emmett, and his sweet parents, have been through so much this past year with Emmett's early birth.  And now, they are dealing with this.  It was a complete accident that Emmett swallowed this battery.  That is just what kids do!  They put things in their mouths!  It's no one's fault. 

Please, please, please pray for Emmett.  That he will be comforted while he is in the hospital.  That he will heal COMPLETELY.  And that his dear family - his mom, dad & big brother - will feel the strength of our Father in Heaven during this time. 

I Wish I Was Here.....

Central Park in the Fall.  Lovely.  My next trip to NYC is tentatively planned for October 2011 with MY MOM!!  She's never been there, so the thought of hanging with mi madre in my favorite city is very cool.  Crisp air, leaves turning color, so much to do.  I can't wait!!!

Never Gets Old

No matter how many times I've seen Titanic....and trust me, I've seen it dozens of times....it never gets old.  My Favorite. Movie. Ever.

Pet Peeves

I've been quick to be annoyed lately.  Little things annoy me.  Big things annoy me.  So, I thought it would be fun, and therapeutic, to list my Pet Peeves. 

• When I buy a picture frame, and they put the price tag RIGHT ON THE GLASS and when I try to take it off, it tears, and then I have to get my Goo Gone out to remove it.  Man, that pisses me off.
• When an engaged couple registers for wedding gifts, but includes everything under the sun in their registry!  It's not a Christmas List people!  You register because you need things to start your home!  You don't need lingerie or a tent or a new purse.  You need pots and pans and towels!!!
• To go along with the above pet peeve, I hate it when an OLDER couple gets married for a second time, and REGISTERS.  Come On!!  You are an ADULT NOW!  You shouldn't NEED anything else!  And then when they do register, they register for things for their KIDS!!!  Polly Pockets & Lego?  On a Bridal Registry!!!  Give me a break!!!  Again people...this isn't Christmas!!!
• When people try to get through the 15 or less isle with 23 cans of cat food, plus other stuff.  Did you read the sign??  15!!!!
• Parents who won't pull forward in the parent pick up line at the kids' school.  PULL FORWARD!  Your child is capable of walking a bit!!!
• When my computer freezes up on me.  Ug.  I hate that.
• When my kids try to talk to me when I'm on the phone.
• When my kids don't change the toilet paper roll.
• When my kids leave their crap all over my house.
• When my dogs go outside and bark cuz the neighbor dogs are barking, and I got and get my dogs, but my neighbors don't get their dogs.  They just let them keep barking, and I know they are home!!
• Protesters.  I know we live in the USA and have the right to protest.  But come one people.  Get a life.
• Telemarketers - I once had a salesman call to sell me children's books.  This was a week after I lost A & S.  I told him I wasn't interested. He kept talking and talking.  I said again - NOT INTERESTED. He kept talking and talking.  I finally said, "Look dude, I just buried my twins. I don't want any children's books!!!!"  He hung up without saying another word.
• When I go into Francesca's up by AJ's on 67th Ave, and the older, taller blond lady finds it necessary to show me each special, and things that I'll "love", when I'm really just there to kill 10 minutes.  Shut up already!
• Campaign ads - enough said
• Email forwards that turn out to be urban legends.  People...before you send them to me, check them out first.  Or better yet, don't send them to me at all!  I already know not to allow a complete stranger to approach me in a parking lot and try to sell me perfume and I know not to sniff the tester they have cuz if I do, I know I'll pass out and then they will kidnap me and take me to who knows where.  I already know to avoid that.
• When people won't let me change lanes.  It really can't be that hard to slow down or speed up and let me over.  Just be nice.

Ok. I think that's it for now.  Wow!  I feel better!  Maybe later in the week, I make a list of the little things that make me happy! 

What are your pet peeves? 

Well Deserved

A few months ago, I came across a horrible blogging situation.  A woman named Stephanie Howell is a blogger and scrapbooker extraordinaire.  She has two beautiful girls, and is currently pregnant with TWO MORE beautiful girls.  And....her sweet hubby was away in the military.  (I think he was in Afghanistan???)  Anyway, she is an amazing writer and documents her life with her girls, life being a military wife, life of a woman pregnant with twins.  And she displays all of her beautiful scrapbooking layouts.  She has a loyal readership who adore her.  Anyway, it was brought to Stephanie's attention that there was another woman (obviously a complete whackadoodle) who was COPYING Stephanie's writings...word for word.  She was portraying herself as Stephanie, minus the pregnancy.  She was literally copying and pasting Stephanie's posts and using them as her own. (Apparently, she once forgot to change the name of one of Stephanie's daughters - Harper - and posted it that way.  Uh....big mistake.)  So disgusting.  Stephanie's readers jumped to her defense and long story short, that Faux Blog no longer exists.

My heart broke for Stephanie!  I mean, seriously, who would do such a thing??  It was just sad sad sad.  I though, this dear woman needs something POSITIVE.  She was well deserving of some love.  So, I contacted my cyberfriend Amy of Stem Parties.  Amy's other adventure is being a part of Operation Shower.  OS throws baby showers for women whose husbands are deployed or in other dangerous military situations.  They also DELIVER Baby Showers in a Box!! (side note:  Courtney is going to working on one of these for a Young Women's Value Project, so if you want to donate an item, leave me a comment and we'll contact you!!)  I told Amy of what was going on and asked if they had a box they could send to Stephanie.  Amy said ABSOLUTELY! 

Fast forward to Thursday of this week.  I got this email:

I honestly don't even know how to begin this letter. I've never had anyone in my life show me an act of kindness the way that Operation Shower did this week.


As my husband, Jimmy, and I began to open the box, we were overcome with emotion and gratitude. Thank you, thank you, thank you for thinking I deserved such a generous gift. Thank you does not cover how much it meant to me. To us.


Stephanie Howell
 
It made my heart sing!!!  I was so happy to have played such a tiny role in someone else's joy.  As you can see, Stephanie's husband is now home.  She blogged about that here and when I saw it, it made me cry. I cannot for the life of me imagine having my husband out of the country fighting a war.  The strength and courage of military wives is unmatched.  Not only do I view the military as heroes, but their spouses and children as well.  What a sacrifice for our country.  Sure makes me proud to be an American!!
 
I will be watching Stephanie's blog for the birth of Cate & Lucy in December!!!

I'm Out!

After 2 + wonderful years, I have been released from being the Laurel Advisor in my ward.  *Deep Sigh*  I knew it was coming.  They called three new women to take over the presidency of the Young Women's program.  And I had the feeling that they were looking for a fresh start.  I just didn't really know they would be starting from scratch!!  I feel like I've been fired.  So sad.....

But, what I've recognized from this is that Change Is Good.  These Young Women in my ward are
A-MAZING.  Seriously.  They are so caring and willing to go the extra mile on just about anything.  And man, do they make me LAUGH!!!  But, they have some GREAT new women that have been called to be their leaders/teachers and I'm glad to know they are in such good hands.

It's been so appropriate that I've been in there with these girls because even though I'm 40....I feel (and certainly act like) a silly teenager.  And my girls can attest to my behavior.  They know I can hang with them....and I know all of the teen lingo and such.  I'm a great texter, and I love me some Facebook.  I can be an uber dork when I'm with them....especially at Girls' Camp.  They LOVED it when I did the Single Ladies' dance.  Right girls???

So, to my sweet Young Women....it has been an HONOR to be with you.  To teach you.  To serve you.  To know you.  To love you.  I will always be here if you need me.  For anything.

And to my Laurels....I'm sorry that my last lesson that I taught you had to be the.... you know.....the sex lesson.  Hope that's not the reason I was released. I was kind of blunt.  But remember what I taught you!  Peanut butter is so much better when it's in chocolate!!!!  Love you!

Better late than never...

Well, we got Netflix for the Wii last week.  Uh......RAD!!!  I don't know what took us so long.

Anyway, we discovered Lost.  I know, I know....a little late to the party.  But oh my heck!  So LOVING the show!  Courtney is watching it with us (the other two aren't as into it) but Hugh and I have been staying up way past our bedtime to watch as many episodes as we can.  It's so mysterious!!!  We are only in the first season, so we have quite a bit of watching to do.  Hey, can't beat cheap entertainment!