We thought that printing 50 of these babies would be plenty... It was definitely our first time Christmas Carding. We got through our immediate families, aunts and uncles, and that was pretty much it. So, to all of you that we love, we hope you had a joyous season celebrating our Savior and hope that you will continue to feel his precious love for you each day.

Gettin Jiggy W/it

Do some dancin' this weekend! Elijah will be...

Sad

 My conversation with Eli before bed tonight went something like this...

"Mommy... Sad"
"Nope, mommy's not sad"
"Mommy... Sad"
"Are you sad buddy?"
"Shane, sad. Nenul, sad. Wessie, sad. Zoey, sad. Pop-pop, sad. Nana, sad. Goosey, sad. Allll, sad."
"Oh, do you miss Shane, and Kendal, and Westie, and Zoey, and..."
... exaggerated head nod from Eli...
"Here, coming, Shane"
...exaggerated head nod from Eli...
So... even though Elijah may have clung to me the entire trip to Utah, it turns out he pretty much can't stop thinking about everyone there. So, thanks for having us. The weddings were beautiful, my kids loved every minute. And as for me... I want another honeymoon for me! (Maybe to Hawaii, Santa?")

I'm sad I didn't get any pics of Sambo...

Chocolate Cake... You Know You Want It

This is my Grandmother... most of you have tasted her amazing award winning chocolate cake. I know I have dreamed it would magically appear on my doorstep. Guess what? It did! And you can have some too! I am happy to announce that Magleby's is hoping to be able to ship this cake all over the nation. Want to help them get started? It would mean the world to us.

On kickstarter.com you can pleadge just a little bit and get a whole lot of chocolate cake for your money, and help us spread the love! Will you do it?? And tell all your friends too... We only have until December 2nd.

Love You!!!

Danielle

A Sunshiny Day

 I cannot get enough of the amazing fall that we are having. Just when I feel like it can't possibly stay warm another day, it does! The colors are bright, and the sunshine just makes me happy. I am seriously trying to talk Jacob into buying us one of those alarm clocks that wakes you up with light that slowly get's brighter... like the sun. Wouldn't that be awesome?? On one of those dark dreary winter mornings? Speaking of dreary winter days... I am putting together a box of tricks that will make us happy inside our house when I don't want to brave the icy roads. Do you have any suggestions? What keeps you sane in the winter?

Here are some highlights from our long weekend...

 

Luci was really excited about her grey hand-me-down sweat pants because, "they are just like daddy's!" so she had him dress up too.

 Um, check out those guns... okay maybe you should just let me do that ;)

The reason for our long weekend.

 

We had a pretty fun date night too. Who knew Hockey was so much fun to watch??

Halloween and a Recipe

 Halloween was pretty fun this year. As we speak they are playing with their candy. We don't eat it, we just do pretty much anything else you can think of with it. Art projects, towers, form letters, count, give to friends, bake into brownies... I am learning that Elijah is not as good at not eating it as Luci though. He is choc-o-holic for sure. It's so hard to say no to him though, and he is so good at opening the stuff and shoveling it before I even notice. Pretty darn cute.

And for the recipe...

Coconut Molasses Granola

This stuff is delicious over yogurt, drowned in whole fresh milk, on top of a pumpkin milkshake, and especially on vanilla ice cream. It's also great to give as a gift! I've been baking it for 3 years now since my friend Nicol shared it with me. It is a huge batch and usually lasts us the whole fall season. We like to bake it extra long so it is nice and crunchy. Thanks Nicol!

10 c. old-fashioned oats

1 c. wheat germ

*8 oz. shredded coconut

3 c. chopped almonds, pecans,

        walnuts, or a combination

1 ½ c. packed brown sugar

1 ½ c. water

1 ½ c. cooking oil

½ c. honey

½ c. molasses (regular or blackstrap)

1 ½ tsp. salt

2 tsp. cinnamon

¼ tsp. almond extract

3 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 300.  In a very large bowl or two large bowls, combine oats, wheat germ, coconut, nuts, and any optional ingredients – except raisins or dried fruit, you can toss these in before eating.  In a large saucepan, combine brown sugar, water, oil, honey, molasses, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla.  Heat until sugar is dissolved, but don't boil.  Pour syrup over dry ingredients and mix until well coated.

Spread into five 9x13” baking pans or 2 cookie sheets with sides.  Bake 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Bake 15-30 minutes longer for crunchier granola.  Store in airtight containers, I use oatmeal boxes.  Good for up to six months.  Makes about 20 cups.

*(I use unsweetened, but any regular store brand is yummy too.)

** Other optional ingredients = sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, flax, quinoa, wheat bran,

 raisins, dates, other dried fruits

My Girls

 

So I got spoiled a couple of weekends ago. Oh it was a much needed and enjoyed trip. Jacob and the kiddo's stayed home to have the best daddy weekend ever while I got some girl time. Sometimes in the craziness of life do you ever forget who you are?? Well I was starting to wonder who was under all the layers of bread dough, princess costumes, truck noises, zoo trips,  pony tails, laundry detergent, and peanut butter and jelly. All wonderful things by the way. But before I had the privilege of being a part of this married with kids life I had a most life changing and defining experience. I went on a semester abroad with BYU to Italy for 6 months with these girls and many others. Just being with them again in one of the world's greatest cities was such a good reminder of the bigger picture that I saw then. The goals I was working towards... (okay anyone who knows me knows that they were mainly to find a certain someone and get some little stickies, ha ha. ) It was so relaxing and FUN! We saw some sights, ate lots of good food, bought a new purse(!) had some girl talk (well, girl + Branden talk :) Thank you!! I can't wait to see you again!

Esquire

Yes folks, that's right. My hubby passed the Bar!
I knew you would do it babe.
I love this pic because you can't even tell that Luci is sitting next to him :)

Changing

The seasons are changing. The harvest is pretty much over. I am sure going to miss looking out my window to see this... The kids chowing down on all the goodies out there, and Luci running in with a handful of basil every night for dinner. I am also going to miss the sunshine, the endless hours of playing in the sandbox without a word, the barbeques, the last minute picnics, the pool, all that great stuff. 

We've been inside the last week or two feeling pretty dumpy. That happens with the seasons changing too. Poor little guy got croup. Man is that a scary sounding cough or what? I was ready to jump in the car at 5am and take him to the hospital before Jacob calmed me down. I was so grateful for steamy water that morning and the following sleepless night. Poor guy. Then Luci lost her voice and caught a fever too. Can I just say though that I am the luckiest mom on earth. These little sickies have been the sweetest cuddliest things ever. I was surprised at how well we did being cooped up for so long. Usually I am the one going crazy... But this time was different. I think it's because of all the simplifying I've been trying to do lately. I was okay with staying home, reading tons of books, watching shows, and eating popcorn for dinner. We even went to the mall and got frozen yogurt for dinner one night. That night the kiddo's were in bed by 5 and slept the whole night.

Hallelujah.

I also know that I have felt strengthened by Heavenly Father's hand in my life. Slowing down can sometimes make things seem harder. We have to clean up more messes around the house, I have to actually play and pretend and answer questions. Being busy makes for rushed conversations, hoping for other things to entertain the kids, and shushing kids a lot. But with a lot of prayer and pleading I have come to really enjoy spending down time with the kids. I have also made some real progress with keeping my home in order. Some of that stuff is hard to admit... because I do and I always did love being a mother and homemaker. I'm just a lot more comfortable now to really be a stay at home mom. I know that there is power in truly being intentional about these things. Focusing on my purpose at this time in my life and striving to be the best at it in the simplest ways has truly been changing me in ways I never imagined.

Some Luci-isms:

• Luci and Jacob were pulling at a wishbone, she got the bigger end...

          Jacob: "Make a wish! You got it"
          Luci: "I wish daddy's glasses were pretty"

•   Jacob and Luci were at the store. She told jacob about a cut on her thumb that kept on opening up and hurting. "It really hurts daddy. But, it will be better in the ressurection."

Elijah-isms:

• "Joocie" for Luci
• "Pah-yeh" for Potty. He is constantly holding his diaper and running in there yelling, "POO POO!"
• "Weh-ah-yew" all one word for where are you. Mostly talking about daddy. "Dada ohme?"

So Big! Mashing applesauce with Pa Paw.

Fingerlickin'

Cookie Dough Dip, and more!

School

 

Luci started Joy School a few weeks ago. She loves it! Although, we can't get much out of her as to why. She usually briefs us on the most exciting parts of the day, "I had a snack, and I played..." We know she loves it because she is always anticipating school days. She goes twice a week for two and a half hours. I didn't know it until the first day, but I do not like letting her go! It was a big eye opener to me of how fast they really do grow up. Elijah and I miss her so much while she's gone. Okay, maybe just I do. Elijah actually loves the one-on-one time. He has really let loose on his little banter, especially in the car. It's amazing how much he's started talking the last few weeks. My faves are: Sa-sha (salsa), Bwe-py (breakfast), och (ouch, also means knife), meh (amen), pop-pop (for my dad, and popcorn). It's so fun to have baby talk around, we didn't get much of that with Luci-- just full sentences, and lots and lots of questions :)

Speaking of school! Jacob and I came upon this the other day. They are free independent study classes from BYU. I want to take ALL of them!! Especially the gardening ones, the family life ones, and the math ones... yes I really need help in that area...

Remember the days when painting with pudding were "educational"...

 

("Mwah-ha-ha joy school is so amazing" )

 

One of the few strawberries from our garden this year 

 

Dried peaches, canned peaches, peach sa-sha, peach cheesecake... we love peaches!

 

 

 

(This one is for Pop Pop, this is how Elijah smiles... )

And this is his facial expression for pretty much everything... whoa

Go Cougs!

We're Celebrating in Blue this weekend... Why???

Cougar Football Starts Tomorrow People!

I'm usually not one to get super duper excited about football,
but I do like making pretty things... Especially when they are for my handsome husband

Blueberry Cupcakes from here
Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting from here

I am definitely making these again!

yummy yummy!

Little Bunny Foo Foo

For some reason this little girl loves to bop her little brother on the head. Jacob and I decided it must be some kind of fascination with the baldness. Not only does she love to bop it but she has also been caught dumping sand on it, soaking it with air freshener, rubbing chap-stick all over it, coloring it with crayons, covering it in stickers... etc. She has been so into pestering him lately! Poor little buddy. She does love the little stud though. And he loves her. She loves to sit with him and read him books. He loves to play with her hair. They love picking things out of the garden and eating them together. Curiously enough their most picked and eaten item... basil leaves. It would be tomatoes if those blasted squirrels would stop stealing them!