Okay my dear friends. This blog is mostly for my children whom have left the 'coop'. As they all know we are remodeling the bathroom downstairs and it has been a doozy of a job. We thought things would all fit in to a nice little plan we had drawn up and after several 'discovered' pipe configurations we had to scrap what we had started with design-wise. Which is okay, it just sets your mind back a little. But here, for the sake of all of you needing to see the update (and we hope to be done before Katie's nuptials), are the pictures. This is a view as you first walk in the door. New toilet room and shower. The shower is where the water heater used to be. We had to knock down that wall and make it a little bigger than we started with. We are not doing the tiling - that is hired out - AND the red/pink is NOT a part of the final look. I guess it is some kind of sealant. Where the washer and dryer will sit (same place just a little more crowded now). Looking from the washer/dryer spot to where the new DOUBLE SINK vanity will be sitting. Yes, the new toilet room door will hit it, but we are hoping it will remained closed mostly. Looking into the loo. We added 3 windows into the toilet room so it can let the natural light in to the rest of the room. (2 in the shower area and 1 facing the sink area).

These two depict the loo area.

Looking out from the shower to where the original door is. It might be a little tighter than before, but with the addition of a private area (the latrine), and with 2 sinks now, it just might be more accommodating to a family. It's sad, now that we are on the count-down of children, that we are finally doing this, but someday we will be selling it and we are thinking of that. We still have 5 great years of Shannon and Allan around!

Brian's Day

Grape Day

I don't know Day

ASU Graduation Day

Toe Day in Pine, Az. Day

Teaching Lukas to love the 'box' Day

Christmas 2010

Okay - I've worked all morning and my scanner is NOT working! Oh, they scanned into my documents alright, but it is now telling me that another window needs to open to allow it into by blog!! And it is not letting me move my pictures around, so you get the long column of photos.....Uuggggh!!!.....So, sorry Brian. These are some of the pictures that I have of you. The ones I scanned were of course your cute 'little' pictures and you were cute. Happy Birthday to you today - a big 30!!! Wow! And you were my 'square root' baby, being born 9/9/81 AND weighing 9lbs.7oz. Thanks for being a fun son! We miss having you around and your family around. Thanks Celynda, Lukas, Brook and baby Roxy for loving him!

Purple Person!

I really don't have too much to say this evening, but I will say something. My Allan has been made a 'Purple People' at Mesa High this year. This is a big deal. In years past, this was NOT a club, boys would just show up to a football game with an M, or E, S or A painted on their belly and then the tradition grew to where they would paint their whole bodies and 'whoop' and 'holler' out in the crowd to keep spirits up. (I think it all started when a few boys who tried out for the cheer squad and didn't make it). just kidding... But - it got way out of hand, people getting crazy and probably hurt, etc., so the Student Council took it over and now there are try-outs to join - and....well.....we are proud parents of the one and only AND first freshman EVER that made the 'Purple People' - um - company? (just a reminder - this is the first year that Mesa High has 'actual' freshman or should I say 'official' freshman) So Allan will have this claim to fame for the rest of his life. Anyway, as most of you who read my blog know, Allan has always had school spirit - even back in grade school. (He dressed up as his 'hero', who was his teacher, Mr. Mann) Here are a few of his junior high photo's - just to stir up a few memories for us all:Dr. Seuss Day. Crazy Hair Day.Super Hero Day. And Decade Day. I can't remember what this day was, but it was while he was still in Brimhall Junior High. Remember Occupation Day? And finally Bobcat Spirit Day.......
This past week at Mesa High was Spirit Week and each day had a different 'theme'. Allan of course dressed up for them all. Crazy sock day, Occupation day again ( he wore one of Doug's work shirts), and these:Jersey Day, Crazy Hair Day, and finally Super Hero day: He is really wearing a SHIRT here, we just added what was needed to fake people out. Can you guess who he is? Oops! I think I already blogged about this, (check out August 19th) but oh, well.

Our bathroom remodel is going very slowly. Bummer, but we are replumbing, building two new walls, retiling, and everything else that goes into it.

AND I am obsessed with Donny Osmonds album (it's not new, 2005) - What I Meant to Say! I could seriously listen to it all day - especially tracks 1,4, 7, 9 and 12. LOVE IT! (deep breath) (Vayla, are you with me on this one?)

I finally finished the next book that I picked up for $1. It was this: Now, I'm not sure I believe all angels have wings, however, the cover is a lovely picture. There are 12 short stories of people who have experienced an angel in their lives - usually during a time of their life being in danger. Really good. The kind of good that gives you goosebumps at the end of each story. I highly recommend it. And it's available from me if anyone in my area wants to read it. I am still in the 'slow' reading of President Monson's book. It seems like I'll never get through it, but I do enjoy the book during the times I'm reading it. Saturday I cleaned out my game cupboard - or cupboards/closets - I should say. We have a small stand up cupboard in our dining room area. This is where we store our 'more' played games. Next to the cupboard on the floor, is a pile that grows every few weeks, of games that I buy at my local thrift stores for $1 (okay, sometimes I splurge and spend $2 or $3 or even $4). These are games that I want to 'try' out on the fam, to see if we like them and to see if they will replace a game located in the coveted spot of the dining room game cupboard. Most of the time they don't and so they get taken to the first bedrooms closet shelves. And when I run out of room there, then the games get taken down to the family room cupboard. This is where the 'sort of liked games' are stored, but probably won't be played much - if at all. But I figure that if I only spend less than $4 on ANY game, we can play it once or twice and then return it to Goodwill. One of our favorite new games is this: I did not buy this one at the thrift store, I actually paid good money for this at Target and luckily it is worthy of a dining room cupboard spot. I think it was about $15. So after sorting through the games I offered them to my kids.....Jason and Stacey picking first, Kevin picking next and Katie with Brandon were last. Jason and Kevin (Kevin's pile next to his bed now) each took about 7 and Katie took 2. So, believe it or not, here is what was left over and they will NOT be returning to their cupboard, but they will be the lucky ones heading to Goodwill and then to a new home. Lucky because they will not be left in a dark lonely cupboard never to be seen or played with. They should feel honored that they were in our home!

Recipe turnouts....

Here's what I woke up to this morning.....Sometime during the hours of 3-4am they found their way to my bed. Can you see the small sliver of bed I had to sleep on? No wonder I couldn't pull the covers over my whole body. Yeah, and they are both a little on the 'cloggy-nose ' sick side so I'm taking Vitamin C and echinacia like crazy. I'm gonna have to wash my sheets and pillowcases.......great.

Our party was great last night - lots of food, less of people, but what we did have was the perfect amount for playing a few of our favorite games. One of them being: Sort it Out. Play it with us next time your over.

Now on to the conclusion of yesterdays blog.

Here is the picture of what I was trying to make:

Here is mine: I will have to roll mine out thinner next time and maybe use strawberry jam instead of raspberry - but all in all, they turned out good and they got compliments of 'goodness'. As you can see I took liberty to 'criss-cross' mine because I had extra chocolate. I thought I had the instructions completely right in my mind, but one of the steps I goofed on - baking them first instead of spreading the cream cheese filling and stacking them together and then baking - but I hurried and put the cream cheese on the warm baked ones then stacked them and they turned out super fine.

Now, what was I going to do with the left over dough?...

as you can see, I had no problem finding a solution... Treyson really liked it. I hope his mom didn't see him eat more than just one piece!

Here are a few of my favorite things when baking -My Bosch-

Stackable magnetic measuring spoons -And my sugar holder - a small explanation of my sugar container: My mom worked at Sambo's Restaurant when I was getting married and for one of my shower gifts (I think) she gave me tons of kitchen items and this was the one to hold my sugar. It was a pickle holder or mayonnaise container from Sambo's. I know there were other large ones but this sugar one has been with me since my bridal shower! I think Mom wins for the most used and useful gift of all!!! The writing of the word Sugar has rubbed off over the years, but my kids have known nothing but this as our sugar jar.

My next recipe was Dill Dip. It too was very good and I loved the cottage cheese in it (I wasn't sure I would). I would, however, add only half of the dill. It was a bit too dilly for me. It looked just like it was supposed to. Phew!

So, four recipes, four thumbs up. Meaning, I would make them all again. One of the things I love about this book is little information on most of the pages. Here is the 'roasting your own red peppers" page I told you about earlier....and here is a little tidbit about 'spooning' flour into your measuring cups and not smashing it down in the cup to get your measurements right. I hear Doug jackhammering our downstairs bathroom floor again. I think that is my clue to 'Honey - come and help me', without the words actually being spoken. More recipes to come.

Oh, dress shopping was a success! I didn't take a picture but Katie has one on her phone. Text her if you want to see it.

Our Best Bites and now mine too!

I have been 'devouring' (pun intended) my new book purchase of 'Our Best Bites'. I found it at Costco and I think I paid around $15. The two recipes I have tried, Almond Poppy Seed Bread and Roasted Red Pepper Dip, I have loved. And the 'homemaker' in me, actually roasted my own red peppers because the instructions were on the page right before the actual dip recipe. I would love to start at page 1 and complete each recipe through the whole book. Yes, I did see Julie & Julia. The recipe on page one, actually page 4 with all of the introduction stuff...., is Dill Dip. Tonight we have an old peoples game night at a home in our ward, so I might make it and take it there. That way if it's not good I'll conveniently leave it there and if it's in a throw away bowl they won't even know who brought it! Brilliant! But then I also thought......if I just start from the front of the book - appetizers - I might get bored and would end up not doing the rest of the recipes so I have decided to add a desert to the 'party list' for tonight. I was thinking about starting from the LAST recipe of the dessert section which is Cinnamon Bun Caramel Corn - sounds yummy but not so great for older folks who might have teeth dysfunctions......yeah, you know what I mean. So the next recipe was Stovetop Kettle Corn....hmmm...nope and the one before that is Easy Pretzel Turtles. Wow, all nut/kernel infested recipes. I will have to start with the first dessert recipe which is boring....Sugar Cookies. Looking here at the recipe though it does have almond extract, which I have learned from my moms 'DELISH' cookies, is the winner ingredient for sugar cookies. BUT because sugar cookies is slightly boring I looked at the next recipe and it is Jam-Filled Cookies. It still uses the sugar cookie dough recipe, but has jam, cream cheese (a component in recipes I can rarely pass up) and then a melted chocolate chip drizzle. That's the one I'll make. I guess I better go then to get these recipes done. I'll try to remember to take pictures and post tomorrow but Katie and I are wedding dress shopping today so my mind might be elsewhere!!!! Oh, I also scanned the roasted red pepper page to download here but it is not letting me add them - a copier malfunction I guess.