Spiritual Sundays

“[A person may have] a strong desire to be led by the Spirit of the Lord but…unwisely extends that desire to the point of wanting to be led in all things. A desire to be led by the Lord is a strength, but it needs to be accompanied by an understanding that our Heavenly Father leaves many decisions for our personal choices. Personal decision making is one of the sources of the growth we are meant to experience in mortality. Persons who try to shift all decision making to the Lord and plead for revelation in every choice will soon find circumstances in which they pray for guidance and don’t receive it. For example, this is likely to occur in those numerous circumstances in which the choices are trivial or either choice is acceptable. We should study things out in our minds, using the reasoning powers our Creator has placed within us. Then we should pray for guidance and act upon it if we receive it. If we do not receive guidance, we should act upon our best judgment. Persons who persist in seeking revelatory guidance on subjects on which the Lord has not chosen to direct us may concoct an answer out of their own fantasy or bias, or they may even receive an answer through the medium of false revelation.”
- Dallin H. Oaks, Ensign Oct 1994; pg 13-14

List 30: Places I'd like to Go

This could be a long list... but I'll try and keep it brief :)

1. France
2. Egypt
3. Hawaii
4. Africa
5. Arizona
6. California
7. Ireland

Spiritual Sundays

“Our promised blessings are beyond measure,” President Thomas S. Monson declares. “Though the storm clouds may gather, though the rains may pour down upon us, our knowledge of the gospel and our love of our Heavenly Father and of our Savior will comfort and sustain us and bring joy to our hearts as we walk uprightly and keep the commandments. There will be nothing in this world that can defeat us. My beloved brothers and sisters, fear not. Be of good cheer. The future is as bright as your faith.”

foto Friday: Week 28

List 29: Super Powers I wish I had

1. The ability to be happy and function on very little sleep.

2. Flying. Seriously, how cool would THAT be!

3. Photographic memory.

4. The ability to take away people's problems.

10 on Tuesday

1. Wow it is hot.

2. Still haven't found any where to rent in Raymond OR sold our house. hmmm sounds perfect hey? :) We might end up renting out our house here in Lethbridge - not that I know who too. Or where we'd go in RAymond. But those are just minor details people! Minor.

3. We took the kids over Logan's pass yesterday. You should have HEARD how excited they were about being in the United States. It was funny. Even made the border crossing guard smile. And if you've ever been over the border you KNOW how unusual it is to make the American guards smile at you!

4. I am slowly getting caught up on my editing. Only 3 shoots left to do :) Yipee!

5. My belly is getting big.

6. One of my favorite shoots I've done is posted right now on my photo blog. Our good friends Abby and Shaun and their 10 year wedding anniversary. Go check out the rest!!


7. Last week's Foto Friday....

8. I've been wanting to bake but it's just too hot to bake anything. But I WANT cookies. I just can't bring myself to buy cookies. There just so..... plastic tasting! The minute we have a cooler day... COOKIES will be made at this house!

9. What a sweet little smile this boy has.


10. Did I mention it was hot?

In the Kitchen: Red's Ultimate M&M Cookies

I made these tasty cookies a couple weeks ago for the First of July. And then again shortly after since Alden complained that he didn't get any. Totally tasty!!


1 cup margarine
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1 package M&M chocolate mini bits

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, cream butters and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. In a large bowl, combine flour, soda and salt; blend into creamed mixture. Stir in M&M bits. Drop by heaping teaspoons about 2 inches apart onto a ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 10-13 minutes or until edges are lightly browned and centers are still soft. Do not over bake (I baked mine 8 minutes!) Cool one minute on the cookie sheet, cool completely on wire racks.
Enjoy!

Spiritual Sundays

“I am bold to declare before Heaven that I am just as ready to die in defending the rights of a Presbyterian, a Baptist, or a good man of any other denomination. . . . It is a love of liberty which inspires my soul.”
- Joseph Smith, History of the Church, 5:498.

List 28: Scary Things

1. Regan or my kids getting seriously hurt

2. Failure

3. Mice

4. Really big bugs

5. Water skiing

In the Kitchen: Banana Blueberry Lemon Muffins

Found here
Ingredients:
2 1/4 cup flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 large ripe bananas, mashed
2 eggs
2/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup blueberries
2 tablespoons grated lemon rind
3 tablespoons sugar

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Lightly grease muffin tin.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and 1 tablespoon of the lemon rind.
3. Beat together bananas, eggs, brown sugar, butter, lemon juice and vanilla until blended.
4. Stir in dry ingredients until blended. Stir in blueberries just until combined. Spoon into prepared muffin cups, dividing batter equally.
5. For the topping, combine sugar and remaining lemon rind in small dish. Sprinkle evenly over the muffins.
6. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden.

10 on Tuesday

1. Regan now has Monday's off. Which is really nice (especially when he was on call all weekend) So for a family activity yesterday we took the kids to Kung Fu Panda 2. Eli is apparently not a movie kid. He's not really at home either but I hoped that a big screen and cool 3-D glasses would get him to stay. Well I was wrong. Sure glad I wasn't at the movies with my kids alone!!

2. I'll be going to Wicked tonight in Calgary. And that's totally wicked :)

3. Still no buyer for our house. Our real estate agent told us last month there were 700 houses on the market in Lethbridge and only 200 sold. Sooooo things aren't looking so positive in that area.

4. Speaking of not positive, I think we are in limbo in every possible way. I won't go into too many details, but seriously. And I'm trying hard to keep this in mind. And just be patient.

5. Read this book this past week. And thought it was great. Great love story, easy read.

6. Got some new shoots popping up all the time over at my photo blog you can check out here. So go over and leave me some comment love hey? One of my favorites from the last posted wedding of Ben and Mandy....

7. Have I mentioned lately that Eli's in a terrible strip of sleeping again?! It is soooo annoying. I am hoping we are out of it tonight. (but I won't hold my breath!) It's like he can't go that long without seeing me or something. He's soooo attached. And he'd better get over it before this baby comes!

8. And speaking of not selling our house.... Regan has started working out in Raymond already. And all the advantages of him being a small town doctor (like home call) we can't take part in since we don't actually LIVE in said small town. Hopefully this week I'll figure out a place for us to rent.

9. I've had an itching to make a quilt lately. Matching ones for Eli and Alden. But I have to find the right material. And I'd probably need to go to a store to look at material to do that hey :)

10. I was late AGAIN on Foto Friday this past week.... so here it is.... Sunflare.

Eli's "Mighty Machines" Party

Well since it's been a week (or more) since Eli's party, I thought I'd finally share what we did. He really didn't get the whole idea of a party and Lucy wanted to help out. So she was firing different theme ideas at him one day and said Mighty Machines. And once he heard that he couldn't get it out of his head. He didn't even know what Mighty Machines had to do with a party, but he loves Mighty Machines and wouldn't budge an inch onto anything else. When I asked him what he wanted for his presents, he'd just say "no presents, just a mighty machines party" confirming to me that he really had no idea what you even did at a party :) And because of that (and my general lack of energy lately) this was a throw together last minute party. I didn't make fancy signs (which I thought about doing) or fancy invitations (or even any invitations) or really go over the top in anyway. And really, it didn't matter. He's three. And he didn't care. :) And I tried hard to not feel guilty about the casualness of it all.

First up the kids decorated their own party bags with car stickers I found at the dollar store.


Then we went out in the backyard and went to "The Harbor". Where they were supposed to race their boats but really they just splashed them in the water and got really wet.


Then they had a little jumpy castle break (fine with me!)


Then they went to "The Racetrack". Where we raced dinky cars down the tracks.


Then they went to "The Construction Site". Where the digger in the dirt.


Then we went inside for cake. (this is one of my favorite shots of the day!)


Eli still doesn't get how to blow... so Ryan helped him out!


I did go all out for the cake. Which in reality is quite funny since now for three years he has yet to taste his own birthday cake. He never does. But he sure thought it looked cool :) ha!

I did the "dirt" with chocolate cookie crumbs

And since we'd be eating it too, I had to add a lemon filling.


Then they ate cake and had snacks. It was a weird group of foods on the tray but I wanted to do things Eli actually likes to eat. And that is a weird group of foods :)


Eli opened his presents and they all played with them for a little bit before home time. For their treat bags (that they had decorated) they took home their race tracks and cars, shovels and the boats they raced. It was casual and short. Just perfect for this little man!

Spiritual Sundays

“We can add to each other’s storehouse of self-esteem by giving deserved, specific commendation more often, remembering, too, that those who are breathless from going the second mile need deserved praise just as the fallen need to be lifted up.” -Neal A. Maxwell, GC, Oct 1976

list 27: what I would do with a million dollars

1. Pay off all our student debt.

2. buy some new camera lenses

3. Go to Hawaii or France or Eygpt or Africa

4. take some girlfriends on a girls trip

5. Build my dream house and one for my parents next door

6. Donate some money to a charity

10 on Tuesday

1. Had kids book club today and it was fun :) Lucy picked Rumpelstillskin. (no idea if I spelled THAT right!) And we weaved paper and had pumpkin whoopie pies for a treat.

2. Regan started his real job today. As in as a doctor. :) We are finally here. CRAZY.

3. For a grade 2 assignment Alden was supposed to build a boat. There was a note that came home that told the parents to not take over. To let the kids come up with the design and build it. I tried to give Alden a little guidance but he already had his idea in his head and wasn't going to hear anything I had to say about how to do it. So Dad helped him build what he had in mind. It ended up being so big he could barely carry it himself. About 5 times bigger than anyone else's in the class. But looking around at all the other boats you could tell Alden came up with his completely on his own and with minimal help from his dad, made it too.
We met up with all the grade 2 classes at Nicholas Sheran lake and watched the boat launch. He was SO proud. And it floated pretty good too.


4. Me on a Sunday walk at 26 weeks with baby #4, a few weeks ago. Hard to believe I'll be at 29 weeks this Friday!!


5. Still haven't sold the house. Yep that sucks.

6. I wanna get a hair cut. It's kind of driving me crazy lately.

7. I love, love love love love the sprinkle of freckles across Alden's nose and cheeks. I love when we are snuggling and looking down and seeing them. They make me smile. Oh how I love this boy of mine!


8. Just finished reading "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope" by William Kamkwamba. Great book, easy read. Totally inspiring!!

9. yipee for summer weather finally being here!!

10. My friend Jen is moving away. And our kids are going to miss each other terribly. Nevermind how much WE will miss each other! BOO!

Spiritual Sunday

"My dear brothers and sisters, we would do well to slow down a little, proceed at the optimum speed for our circumstances, focus on the significant, lift up our eyes, and truly see the things that matter most. Let us be mindful of the foundational precepts our Heavenly Father has given to His children that will establish the basis of a rich and fruitful mortal life with promises of eternal happiness. They will teach us to do “all these things … in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that [we] should run faster than [we have] strength. [But] it is expedient that [we] should be diligent, [and] thereby … win the prize.” -Of Things That Matter Most, DIETER F. UCHTDORF, Second Counselor in the First Presidency

Foto Friday: Week 25

Happy Birthday Eli!!

Well today is Eli's Third Birthday. How can I sum up this child? Regan and I were just talking about this picture that is blown up in our living room.

And how his serious face was so HIM when he was little. And now this is SO him at three.

A very serious little baby/toddler to a outgoing talkative stinker little boy. Funny how he all of a sudden came out and made us all take notice of him! You can look back at his arrival here and year one here and year two here.

At three Eli....
• often asks "what's that noisy?" About anything he hears even small noises you might not normally notice (he has GREAT hearing!)
• loves to sing lately. Like he makes up songs to whatever he is thinking about. ie.... grandma Stasiuk, Mighty Machines, noodles, anything on his mind! And he only has one volume: LOUD.
• is a little tease. Stealing toys from his sister just to make her mad (it works) dances just out of reach from me when I am trying to get him to go, etc.
• still a terrible eater. Although he does eat a few more things. His favorites are hot dogs, cereal, watermelon, blueberries, ice cream, pickles, plain bread (he always calls it clean bread), apples, cucumbers,oatmeal and rice.
• has named his grand parents "the big one" (Davis), "my grandma" (Davis), "the little one" (Steed) and "the little one's grandma" (Steed)
• always asks where people's dad's are - meaning their husbands.

• loves to phone and ask grandma davis where her iPad is and ask grandpa Davis where his bobcat is
• is fully potty trained and has been for a while but still needs help on and off.
• loves baths especially when Lucy has one with him
• still sleeps in his crib but gets out of it constantly (only still in it cause we just haven't set up a bed for him!
• still gets up really really early. Usually 6am. One day he actually slept till 8am. But he'd be up late and up in the night
• loves Dora and Diego
• will finally sit still and listen to stories (a couple months ago he wouldn't sit through even one)

• is obsessed with our neighbors Teale and Tyson Smith and kids. He talks about Sawyer all day long and often asks me what Tyson and Teale are doing
• talks a LOT. And to everyone. Asking what their names are, what they are doing and the current favorite "well, what's he all about?"
• wears size 4T clothes
• has a bedtime snack every night and still asks for food sometimes in the night (annoying!)

• gets up normally at least once a night (sometimes more) and every once in a while sleeps the whole night through
• loves Nursery especially "GC" (Grandma Carol)
• loves to play with his cousin Jonas a lot. Loves every time he comes over and asks for him every day
• thinks all grandma's come with iPads. Even asking grandma's he doesn't know where their iPads are
• loves movies about machines and vehicles especially mighty machines
• tries to fall asleep pretty much every day around 2 or 3 and we have to fight to keep him awake
• uses the word actually correctly and quite often

• loves his dad a lot and still is quite obsessed with his dad's iPhone.
• wants to be on my lap constantly. He follows me around the house, always asking me what I am doing, wants me to read him books, just generally demands a lot of attention

• loves to climb into bed with me in the morning but can't hold still at all (and it totally drives me CRAZY)
• loves to play in the sandbox once you actually get him outside.
• can get onto the computer, open firefox or safari and find kids games and play them all on his own (almost creepy how good he is on it!)
• can open iTunes and find the kids music and start it too
• loves to point out letters but doesn't know which ones are which
• loooooves to play hide and seek but always goes into his closet to hide and giggles the whole time loudly

• wants me to carry him way to much and if I'm not carrying him, he's usually running somewhere
• loves to race
• recently has decided that coloring is OKAY and wants to do it... most of the time it's on paper
• says sorry really easily to me and has a terrible time saying it to anyone else
• has a bad habit of kicking Lucy whenever they are sitting remotely close to each other
• loves to play with Alden but usually just destroys his lego creations
• still drinks a lot of milk
• still quite snuggly

We love Eli a lot. He certainly keeps us on our toes around here!! Happy Birthday Eli!!

In the Kitchen: Jacques Torres' Secret Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Jacques Torres' Secret Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
Makes twenty-six 5-inch cookies or 8 1/2 dozen 1 1/4-inch cookies

Ingredients
1 pound unsalted butter
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
2 1/4 cups packed light-brown sugar
4 large eggs
3 cups plus 2 tablespoons pastry flour
3 cups bread flour
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 pounds bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking mats; set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugars.
- Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- Reduce speed to low and add both flours, baking powder, baking soda, vanilla, and chocolate; mix until well combined.
- Using a 4-ounce scoop for larger cookies or a 1-ounce scoop for smaller cookies, scoop cookie dough onto prepared baking sheets, about 2 inches apart.
- Bake until lightly browned, but still soft, about 20 minutes for larger cookies and about 15 minutes for smaller cookies.
- Cool slightly on baking sheets before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Spiritual Sundays

“Come unto Christ” is “the most important invitation you could ever offer [and] … the most important invitation anyone could accept.”
—President Henry B. Eyring