A year a go rain wouldn't have been a noteworthy event to record in a blog or take pictures of but...that was Seattle and this is Phoenix and so the boys LOVED seeing the rain.

Dancing with the Elves!

Check us out as Elves! Preston has some serious dance moves.

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9633182085

There is a NEW Santa in town!!

Yesterday we put all of the Christmas Decorations up and the kids discovered a Santa hat from Grandma Golding a few years back. Well, Ethan loved it. He put it on his head yesterday at 9:00AM and hasn't taken it off since...not even for bed, the trip to Target or the movie theater. I don't know what we will do about church tomorrow. Seriously, I can't even remember what his hair looks like.

Delicious

I tried a new roll recipe for Thanksgiving and they were delicious. Preston said they were the best rolls he had ever had in his life. I really liked them too and they weren't too hard so....I thought I would share the recipe.

Cloverleaf Rolls

1 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cup plus 2 teaspoons butter
3 tablespoons nonfat dry milk
3/4 cup plus 1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 (1/4-ounce) package active dry yeast
2 eggs, lightly beaten
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

In a small saucepan over medium heat combine the milk, 1/4 cup of the butter, dry milk, 3/4 cup of the sugar and the salt and cook, stirring frequently, until the butter is melted and the sugar has dissolved, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool to lukewarm before proceeding.

In a large mixing bowl dissolve the yeast and remaining 1/2 teaspoon of sugar in 1/4 cup of warm water (110 degrees F). Add the eggs and stir to combine. Set aside until foamy, about 10 minutes. Add the milk mixture to the yeast mixture and stir to combine. Using a wooden spoon, add the flour 1 cup at a time. The dough will be quite stiff and somewhat sticky. If the dough gets too stiff to stir with a spoon, use your hands to mix.

Lightly grease the inside of a large bowl with 1 teaspoon of the remaining butter. Transfer the dough to the bowl and turn to coat. Lightly grease a piece of waxed paper or plastic wrap with the remaining teaspoon of butter and use it to cover the bowl. Set aside in a warm place until doubled in size, at least 2 hours.

Melt remaining 1/4 cup of butter and transfer to a small bowl to cool. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 2 to 3 minutes.

Using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough to a thickness of 1/2-inch. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough into 36 equal pieces. Tuck the cut edges of each piece under so as to form a smooth round ball of dough. Place 3 balls of dough side by side into each well of a muffin tin. Using a pastry brush, lightly brush the top of each roll with some of the melted butter. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm, draft-free area until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Bake the dinner rolls in the center of the oven until golden brown and puffed, about 18 to 20 minutes

I just want to preface this entry with a WARNING!!! This entry is probably too long and may bore you. It may be slightly more "mushy" than usual but it was Thanksgiving so.....

It’s been a long day. I am sitting here with the kids asleep, the house is quiet and I can hear the crickets chirping (is that right? Do crickets chirp?) Thanksgiving is almost over and it makes me sad. I love this holiday and it always seems to pass too quickly.

I love taking a day to REMEMBER what I am thankful for. I always tell my Young Women that one of my favorite words used throughout the Book of Mormon is REMEMBER. I know that I am so quick to forget my blessings and so quick to memorize my trials. REMEMBERING is what this day is about for me.

I Remember that I have been blessed with my faith. The best gift I have. I Remember that I found a companion who is my example and best friend. I Remember my family (or families I should say) those I was born with, those I adopted later, and those I married into. This was a sad year being so far from all of our family and it just makes me love them more. I Remember, and as I Remember I smile, that a few feet away two little boys lay sleeping.

Those little guys are it for me. They inspire me to be better and more for them each day. I always ask Ethan, “Why do you think Heavenly Father sent me the two best little boys he had? I must have done something very good to have gotten you.” And it’s true. I Remember this new house that I don’t deserve and the earthly things I take for granted. I Remember this beautiful Earth that I didn’t appreciate nearly enough until I had Ethan. He loves nature and is amazed daily by something as simple as a bright red bush, a cloud that looks sad, or a rock in the shape of a motorcycle. I Remember my friends and feel sad that I don’t see some of them enough and grateful that I get to see some of them more (they might say too much.) I Remember my country and my healthy body. I Remember Handel’s “The Messiah” (I am in that choir and every time I sing it I am more grateful for it. It is singing my testimony of Christ.) I Remember the peace and happiness that this gospel brings me and feel so in debt to my Heavenly Father.

I love this Holiday. I need to sit down and do this more often. I can’t wait for it to come again next year!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA !!!!

Grandma this is your online blogger Birthday Card. We love you and wish we were there!!!

I'm Thankful for...

I thought it would be nice to get the boys on video telling us what they are thankful for. I want to say that this video was one of 5 attempts and the best of the five. The thing I love most about this is that it represents what these two are like all the time. They are so silly and I couldn't get them to stop laughing long enough to do one video... so enjoy!

Camping - Backyard Style

Last night Preston thought it would be fun for the boys to have a camping trip...in the backyard. They set up the tent and had a little fire and sang campfire songs and Ethan even told us some ghost stories. I am loving this weather, it's so nice to finally be able to do all these outdoor things. I didn't last too long, at 1:30 am I got too cold and uncomfortable. Tyler came in about 3:00am and climbed in bed with me and Preston and Ethan followed at about 5:30. So....as you can see it was a great success. No really, it was fun while it lasted and the boys were so excited to get to sleep in sleeping bags. Ethan told me that he had the worlds funnest Dad. I agree.

You would think with how they are bundled up it's 30 degrees out...Nope 70. We're wimps!

The Boys in their sleeping bags (actually those were Lindsey's and mine from back in the 80's)

CHECK OUT ETHAN"S GHOST STORY

Primary Program Blues!

So today was our wards Primary program. This is Ethan's first year in primary and so I was very excited for this day. All the long hard tiring days of mothering are validated when you see your little boy stand up on the stand singing at the top of his lungs in a tune very different from the one being played by the piano and as you hear his sweet little memorized part about Faith. But unfortunately I didn't get that experience today. Ethan WOULD NOT go up on the stand and rolled up into a little ball on the pew when we tried to take his hand and walk him up there. He cried loud and I mean LOUD, " Momma I can't I can't. I will never do it not even when I am older. I don't want the blue cupcakes with blue frosting and blue sprinkles...I don't care if you get me a prize...no, no, no Momma I don't want to have a special treat. I can't..." It went on and on until I am sure half the ward heard, and I finally just let him sit it out.
Ethan is my first and so I always feel like he is my science experiment. I never know if I am doing it right, what is normal, and it usually takes me a few tries at something IE: potty training him, before I fell like I am getting it right. So I am not sure if this is normal. I mean, all the other Sunbeams ran up and you couldn't keep their little hands off the microphone. Is this normal or I am raising a future hermit. Advice would be great!

Can this really be NOVEMBER!!!

So let me tell you if you haven't done a November in Arizona you haven't lived. All day today I kept repeating the same line to Preston, "I can NOT believe that it's November." Most of my memories of November involve Rexburg where we spent so many Novembers and involve heaters on, coats and gloves, hot chocolate and snow. Tonight we had a much different experience. We invited over the Orton's for tinfoil dinners, s'mores and my favorite campfire treat- Banana Boats!! Yum!
We wore shorts and short sleeves until we dug out the jackets when the temp dropped to 70( I am not joking... we seriously needed jackets at 70.) I guess this is the reward for all of those 118 degree days of July.

Preston Enjoying His Tinfoil Dinner

Preston digging the fire pit

The kids eating at the new Diego table.(Thanks to Grandma Nori!!)
Making S'Mores

Television...Who needs it?

We are on Day 9. Hooray!! I decided that my children were becoming too dependent on the TV.
Here are a few examples of what led me to this conclusion:
1. Tyler says,"tankful fow my shows" (thankful for my shows) in his prayers at night
2. When given the choice to play outside or watch TV they chose TV most of time. I was shocked....my kids love playing outside well, they used to.
3. When threatened with taking the TV away Ethan screamed, "No! I need it. I need it!"

The list could go on and on. I found them sneaking the TV when I wasn't around. I would unscrew the cable from the wall and unplug the TV from the outlet and little two year old Tyler figured out how to put it all back in. So after much thought Preston and I decided to do a surprise attack. ( days ago while the boys were sleeping we took away the TV. We put it in our bedroom for the occasional news broadcast and Thursday night OFFICE viewing( I can't give up the office!!) Then I prepared myself for the worst, expecting temper tantrums, tears and days of torture as they begged and pleaded for their beloved TV. But...I waited and waited and it didn't happen. They are doing just great. They have watched the occasional show like when Kelly had Kidney stones and Preston was alone here with 4 kids all day( thank heavens we didn't throw it away!)
The best part was when a few days ago I came into the toy room and I saw Tyler laying on the ground covered with a blanket and Ethan was reading him stories. It was so sweet. I wish I had done this weeks ago!

In Honor of Lindsey

So this is completely in honor of Lindsey. She and I went to a Kirby Heyborne concert back in September. For those of you who don't know her Kirby is one of the loves of her life. So... I've wanted to post this for her since then but my speakers have been broken so I couldn't get it to work. Well, Preston the computer genius, repaired the speakers and so with out further adieu Lindsey this one's for you!

Halloween

I loved Halloween this year! In years past, it has been fun but the kids haven't really understood what was going on - but this year they both got it, which made it so much more exciting. Ethan decided this year to be Harry Potter
and Tyler was a Skeleton. Tyler was a great skeleton... it was so funny because the whole day he roared like a Lion(apparently that's what skeleton's do... they roar) and he would walk around saying, "Momma I scaweee"( that means scary)!
Those of you who know me well know how I feel about Harry Potter...so the fact the Ethan decided to be Harry Potter on his own (really I didn't even hint it to him) well, it almost brought tears to my eyes.
So...we started the day off with a Halloween Party for all of Ethan and Tyler's friends. Nothing like candy, punch, cookies, and more candy at 10 in the morning.

Frankenstein Pudding Cups

Pumpkin Cupcakes


We made the chairs into GHOSTS!!!

Charlie the Clown

Tess the Cutest Lady Bug!

Hudson as Thomas the Train

Ethan the World's Best Harry Potter (much better than Dan Radcliff)

Tyler as a "Scary" Skeleton

We followed that up later in the day with the ward Trunk-R-Treat, and then took the situation from a lot of candy to candy overload when we knocked doors in the neighborhood. I think the best part of the whole evening was Preston's reaction when I was hit on by a twelve year old while trick-or- treating with the boys. We were both shocked that some miniature vampire had the nerve to hit on a mom with her kids in front of her husband. He took creepy to a whole new level.

Here Tyler has already begun eating his candy...my teeth hurt just thinking about what they ate!