Jammin' Friday.... On Thursday

This weeks song was a no brainer to me.

1. It's Halloween.

2. All time best Halloween Song

3. Michael Jackson, need i say more.

Enjoy one of my Favs

THRILLER!

As a little girl, my dad taught me to love MJ just as much as he did.

When I was young I was terrified of this music video,

I would close my eyes,

until it got to the part where they would all dance.

I couldn't tear my eyes away from the dancing.

Michael Jackson {in my eyes and I'm sure many others}

 is the greatest entertainer who ever lived.

My biggest dream growing up was

that one day I would attend a Michael Jackson Concert.

I guess that dream

will never come true, so this has to be the next best thing.

Who is your all time favorite artist?

Reminiscing...

 I have 7 of the most beautiful best friends a girl could ever ask for.

Not only are they beautiful from the outside,

if you had the chance to meet them

you'd agree they are more amazing on the inside.

We were all Cheerleaders together. Here is just a few of us in our WAY younger days. Back in Junior High. Man, time goes by too fast.

Then a few years later, Senior year of High School.

It's not that I don't get to see these girls still. For the most part we have been lucky and only 1 has moved away, and it's still in the same state, just a few hours drive.

But we make it a point to see each other on a semi regular basis.

And we still make sure to do crazy things while we are together.

Like try to set a timer on a camera, and can't quite get the hang of it so one of us turns into a "ghost."

Or jump off random steps, making sure to pull funny faces in the process.

I just want those "sisters" of mine to know how much I am truly grateful to have them in my life.

I don't know, to this day where I would be without them.

Or what kind of choices during those "wonderful" teenage years I would have made without them there guiding me along the right path.

Sure, we had our rough patches.

Especially during Cheerleading practices

 while we were forced to choreograph a halftime routine in just two days.

Or after Camp when we were so dead tired from staying up super late partying,

and working our butts off during the day,

and then having an excruciating practice the evening we got home.

When we all left in tears because we were just so dang tired.

Then after the practice, walking out to my car only to find melted gummy bears all over the front seat.

Who knew that gummy bears melted in the sun?

Well THEY DO! And they are a pain in the butt to clean up!

That only increased the tears on my part!

But I miss those days.

I miss seeing their beautiful faces at 6 am for early morning practice... every single day.

(As beautiful as a face can be at 6am, mine not so much!)

Looking back, it was all worth it.

And I am so glad to call those girls my friends!

Weekend fun

We had a fun weekend, spent with Grandpa Bob and Grandma Nancie.

Saturday, Grandma and I spent the majority of the day painting the bonus room,

While Grandpa spent some much needed time with the kids.

They haven’t seen each other for almost 2 weeks,

And both parties were having major withdrawals.

Papa and Gweny were pretty much inseparable.

They even took a nap together.

Papa had to leave while she was sleeping so I carefully picked her up and took her to her bed.

When she woke up from her nap,

I could hear her crying hysterically from the other room so I ran to get her.

She was crying for Papa and Ammy…

“Mama where is Papa? I need Papa! Ammy Ammy!”

It was the sweetest and saddest thing!

Later that night we met them in Syracuse for the Pumpkin Walk.

I think that it had been going on for a few days before,

Because many of the pumpkins were

Green and wilty.

The kids had so much fun.

There are some very creative people out in the world

When it comes to pumpkin decorating.

Gweny insisted on walking holding Papa’s hand,

And Nixon insisted on riding in the stroller with Grammy pushing him.

Sunday, we went there for dinner

My mom made homemade chicken noodle soup.

She also caramel apples,

The kind dipped in White chocolate

And cinnamon-sugar.

They were delectable.

After a few good apples,

Mom and I made some delicious homemade caramels

They are so easy!

I’ll post the recipe soon.

What are some of your Halloween Traditions?

Spiritual thought Sunday

John 13:34

"A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another;

as I have loved you, that ye also love one another."

I love this scripture.

I think if more people lived the way John said, then this world would be a better place.

We wouldn't have to worry so much about ourselves,

or our children. 

Because there would be love all around us.  

This week, 

I am going to be more loving to those that I come across.

And hopefully my positive attitude

can make a difference,

big or small.

I especially want to show my family 

how much I love them,

and hope they know how much I appreciate

all they do for me, and teach me

every day.

How will you try to be more loving? 

Paradise



I have a nook,

I LOVE my nook!

I love having literally a million and a half

books at my fingertips.

I love that I can buy one and not have to go

anywhere to get it.

{My husband's favorite too}

But there is just something about a book.

An old fashioned paperback

{or hardback, I'm not picky}

book.

Mix that with a nice bubbly dirty coke

{have you heard of dirty cokes? if not your missing out!}

and a hot bubble bath on a chilly night.

My kind of paradise.

That is on my agenda for the evening!

What is your favorite thing to do when the weather turns colder?

**********************

P.S. I've read the Hunger Games, and seen the movie.
I just felt like I needed a little bit more Peeta in my life, so one to the second reading!

Jammin' Friday

I've decided to post some sort of song each week on Fridays.

This week I chose Katy Perry's Roar.

There are two reasons I chose this song.

1. My kids absolutely love it.

Whenever it comes on the radio they both start singing and dancing.

2. I heard an interview on the radio that Katy Perry

did on her inspiration for the song.

She said that you need to stand up for who you are,

and not let anyone tell you who to be.

That you should stand up to the biggest bully in the room,

even if that bully is yourself.

I know that most of the time we are

our own worst enemies.

If we don't stand up for ourselves,

and think positive thoughts about ourselves

how can we expect anyone else to.

So turn up the speakers,

grab a wooden spoon as a mic,

and dance.

Tell me what you think!

Bistro Chicken

I made something super easy and yummy for dinner the other night.

I got the recipe from my sister in law.

Bistro Chicken

*2 tsp oil

*3 cups mushrooms

*1 med Onion

*1 can {15 oz} stewed tomatoes undrained

*1/4 cup zesty Italian Dressing

*3 Tbl tomato paste

*4 small boneless chicken breast halves {cut into bite size pieces}

*1 cup mozzarella cheese, I always just dump it on. We like cheese!

*Bacon {crumbled} 

*Pasta, any kind

1. Heat oil, saute mushrooms and onion until onion is cooked through.

2. Stir in stewed tomatoes, dressing, and tomato paste. Heat to simmer.

3. Add chicken, simmer {covered} 12 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

4. Add bacon and cheese, simmer {uncovered} 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

5. Serve over pasta. We like to use fun noodles!

****************************************

Try this easy recipe!

Chicken Noodle Soup

New addition

Ok, so not really a new addition.

But we are in the process of finishing our upstairs.

When we built the house, the plans had a bonus room above the garage.

We wanted to save a little money so we have the contractor

only do what was necessary in the room to pass inspection.

That left us with sheetrock only up to our waists,

no insulation, and particle board for floors.

We have lived in our house for almost 5 years

and we are just getting around to finishing.

Blake did pretty much everything on his own.

It's kinda fun to say that he {kinda}

built the room.

He did the wiring, sheetrock,

{we did pay someone to do the mudding and sanding, that job is for the birds!}

molding, and beadboard.

And right now we are painting!

Which means we all have paint in our hair, hands, arms,

and pretty much everywhere.

Here is a sneak peak!

Just some more paint and then carpet!

I'm so excited to have somewhere to put kids toys,

and if you ask Blake, it's his mancave.

I'll let him keep thinking that at least until he has finished his projects.

Na, na, na, na...

BATGWEN!



Be jealous...

be very jealous.

This is what I get on the daily.

She won't go anywhere

without that stinking

"mimi."

Love this little person,

and her spunky fun attitude!

Arachnids

It's almost Halloween Time. 

Nixon is terrified of Halloween.

I put a few decorations up in the house,

fake webs, a witch

you know the normal.

He took one look at the webs

and left the room crying.

And insisted they come down...

They are still up

{insert evil laugh}

I'm sure that he gets it from me. 

At least thats what Blake says

 In elementary I used to hide my face during the

parade where everyone showed off their costumes,

because I was afraid of the older kids.

I have gone to a Haunted House once,

and it's going to stay that way.

I kept my eyes closed the whole time.

Biggest waste of $30.

Spiders,

Don't even get me started.

I hate those little creepy buggers.

They always pop out,

The ones I find are ALWAYS HUGE!

Gweny...

Not so afraid.

My mom had bought some new Halloween decorations

and had them sitting on her table.

Gweny say these big black hairy spiders 

 with suction cups on them.

She begged Grandma to let her have one.

That girl, carried that spider

around with her everywhere.

She even insisted on taking it to bed with her.

Who wants to cuddle a fake spider?

That girl...

The next morning,

"Mommy where my 'pider?"

We found it,

she carried it around all morning.

She wanted to take it to the babysitters 

I made her leave it

in the car.

Then I covered it with a blanket.

I didn't want to look at it.



Chicken Noodle Soup

It is starting to get cold outside.

Cold weather means comfort food for me.

One of my very favorites is homemade Chicken Noodle Soup.

My Mom has been making it

ever since I can remember, and she taught me how easy it is!

I said to Blake as I was making it

"what do you think the chances are the kids will eat this?"

He told me "slim to none."

(My kids don't like anything unless it is Chicken nuggets or Pizza.)

But, they loved the soup and even ate the whole bowl.

Chicken Noodle Soup

*Chicken- Thawed

*Noodles (my fav are the homemade style egg noodles. Found in freezer section at Walmart)

*Carrots-Chopped

*Brocolli-Cut in bite size pieces

*whatever veggies on hand. I would normally put in celery and onion, but my family doesn't like either.

I like to make my broth from scratch. It's really not too hard, but does take a little longer. Put your chicken in a big soup pot and cover in water. Season with Season Salt, Pepper, a little Garlic Powder. I also add onion powder because my family doesn't like the real thing, but I still like the taste. Bring to a boil and turn down the heat to a steady boil for 45 min-1 hour. You can add a boulion cube if you think it needs more flavor. Sometimes when boiling chicken you get a froth on top, spoon it off. Take out the chicken and shread or chop into bite size pieces. Add in the carrots, onion, celery and noodles boil for about 10-15 min, these take a little longer to cook through. Put chicken back in, add the brocolli and boil for about 5 minutes. 

I served with toasted buttered bread. My kids loved dipping the bread in the broth. 

What "Comfort Food" is your favorite?  

Date night

On Saturday last week,

I went on a date with my boy,

and we took my Mother in Law along for the ride.

Ok, ok, I admit it,

She took us!

We stopped at Crown Burger on the way,

then headed to the game.

The Jazz got spanked.

Like bare butt spanked hard.

It was terrible,

I think they lost by 30,

but were down more than that at one point.

Blake was working that night,

so we got to see him in his official "uniform."

(Not much better than a man in uniform)

Gweny got to go play with Grandpa that night.

She got to spend the evening

watching movies, 

eating cookies and chocolate chips, 

and drinking diet coke.  

Grandpa told me that she was an angel.

She is always behaves so much better for other people.

Thats a good thing right?

We had so much fun!

The first thing Nixon said when we got there was:

N: Mom, I want to play for the Jazz.

Me: that sounds like a great idea ($$)

Me: I will have to look at see how old you have to be to play Jr. Jazz.

N: No Mom, I don't want to play Jr. Jazz... I want to play with these guys.

I think he'd be a great ball player!

Another funny story.

Nixon had to go to the bathroom.

So I took him to the women's so I could help him wash his hands etc.

He is in the stall doing his business,

and I am standing outside it.

He is giving me a detailed play-by-play

of what is happening in the stall.

I mean DETAILED!

I said:

"Nixon, there are other people in here

and they don't want to hear what is happening in there."

He continued to tell me.

I once again told him to stop,

it was quite disturbing, and very detailed.

A lady comes out a few stalls down

and sees me standing there.

She says to me,

"I enjoyed hearing about it!"

Oh my, only the parent will understand

the way I felt.

I had to laugh, it was quite cute!

Life Lately

Life has been so crazy for the last month or so at our house.

I have a new job!

It is still through Zions,

 but in a different department with a different title. 

This has been a blessing to our family,

but has also been quite a transition. 

I now work full time, where before I was only part time.

The department I work for is so fun!

They care about each other, 

and still have fun. 

They are a close knit group 

and everyone is so willing to help me out

 when I have questions.

The best thing about the job, 

is that I am still located in the same branch

so I am still really to home. 

Also another "perk" to the job, 

is I have a desk... (SCORE!)

 and a chair, (double SCORE)

which means I get to wear high heels to work!!

(Holy crap that is awesome!)

I may or may not have gone on a shoe

shopping spree shortly after starting.

Shhh don't tell the Hub! 

Speaking of the Hubs,

Blake is still working two jobs.

One because he has to,

and the other because he loves it.

His second job is part time at the Energy Solutions Arena.

Here he is a Security Guard.

He works mostly in the underground parking

where the Jazz players, tour busses, and "high ups" park.

He has seen some really neat cars,

driven a few,

and met some neat people.

I think that he mostly likes working there so

he can brag about which player he

high fived that day.

(I don't think he has really high fived anyone)

Or who said hello to him.

He is going to be working

less days during the week now so hopefully

he will take me to a few games and

I can high five someone too!

The kids are going to daycare now,

which was something I avoided for as long as possible. 

But I found a great place to take them. 

I absolutely love the lady that runs it.

She is so good with children 

and has had this daycare open at her house for years. 

What makes it even better is

 the kids love to go to Miss Kaye's house!

She does a little preschool for the younger kids, 

while the older ones are at school. 

She teaches them letters, shapes, numbers,

colors, and much more.

Gweny is always so excited

to bring home her project that she worked on

at daycare.

She insists that it be displayed on the fridge,

and then makes sure that

anyone who comes into the house notices it

and comments on it.

Nixon is in Kindergarten!

(Holy Smokes!!)

Which he LOVES!!!

And I think it loves him too.

He is so smart and catches on to things way quick.

Especially how to avoid homework.

Yeah my 5 year old has figured the trick out already.

I think I was at least Jr. High

before I figured it out.

He just leaves it at school,

then he doesn't have to do it that night.

He even admitted it to me!

Little Stinker!

One of my clients brought up a good point

"next time he doesn't bring it home, make sure you make some

homework for him to do.

That way he won't get out of it so easy."

I've got my eye on that boy!

This new job has brought up cleaning/cooking challanges.

I'm not, nor have ever been

Miss Fancy-always-has-a-clean-house-and-dinner-cooked

but now it's even worse!

If you know of any tips/tricks/recipes

please share!!

Here is to new beginnings!