Happy New Year, 2016 here we come!

Happy 2016! This last year has been amazing, hard, growing, and so happy. We are ready for a new year to grow and learn in. Our theme for our goals this year us clean. We want our home to be in better order and cleaner, we want clean teeth with regular dentist visits, we want clean and healthy bodies, we want "clean" language (basically speaking kindly and being positive!) and thoughts, we want to strive to have a clean car, and basically just help cleanliness be a big part of our habits we form this year.

Our New Years feast was awesome. James loves lamb so that is our new tradition for the eve of a new year. The dish this year was incredible. He stuffed it with olives and herbs and so many yummy things. I made mashed potatoes and corn to go with it. And of course we had our bubbly sparking cider to do cheers to! Jane loves to do cheers! The lamb really did turn out incredible and James said it was the best lamb dish he'd had besides the one we enjoyed in our first anniversary in Jackson. And that was a very upscale restaurant (the blue lion). He did an awesome job cooking that leg of lamb!

Our last outing together was going to a toy store. And dropping off two huge bags of clothes I went through New Year's Eve day to donate to a thrift store. Part of that whole being clean goal ;) is getting rid of excess and clutter. It felt good to just say adios to those items. Jane thoroughly enjoyed the toy store and we got a toy wooden airplane and jacks in the $1-5 section.

Another new tradition we are going to go each New Years is glowsticks!! We turned all the lights off in the house and played with glowsticks, both kids loved it!  And of course the traditional bang pots and pans! Except this year it happened at 7:45, not 12. New Years is a bit different with babies. Now I don't know why I'd stay up that late ever again by choice, oh old age ;).

After Jane went down we enjoyed some cheesecake with orange chocolates. It was decadent and sinful and my last bit of indulgence. My goal is for the month of January to not have any chocolate. And then to try and go a little further and have no sugar. This will be a very difficult goal for me because that is my hurrah victory item: something sweet. And I have a huge sweet tooth. But I really want to be healthier and loose some weight and control that desire. So wish me luck, cause dang this is going to be hard!

Happy new year and happy goals to becoming better people! I am excited to see what this year brings our family.

The best breakfast.

Oh delectable breakfast bites!!!! My parents gave all of us kids a brand spankin new ebelskeiver pan for Christmas and we broke ours in on the first day of 2016! It was so yummy and fun to have a special breakfast to welcome a new happy year.

We had homemade strawberry syrup, cinnamon sugar and powdered sugar, whipped cream and maple syrup to adorn them. But honestly I could eat them plain they are that tasty. When I think of my mom making these for us as kids I realize how much time it took. They aren't the quickest thing to cook and there are 8 in our family. So that means s lot of ebelskeiver eat'n. I love having special holidays to have the excuse to make extra delicious breakfasts!!!

Be AWESOME

Homemade goods make the abode smell delightful! Unless you leave your rubber sided oven pad on the burner, whoops. But truly, making food is one of my favorite hobbies and something I sincerely love doing. It seems like when you've got 2 under 2 you just don't get to it very often. Lately I have felt like a horrid mama and wife in this realm because we haven't seemed to have really great meals put on the table from this mama who's been dealing with some sort of sickness, ouchie, sleep deprivation, caring for other sickies, and just trying to juggle two very small children for about 5 months straight. I know I am not alone in this great feet. Many friends and family are in that similar position where life is pretty overwhelming and tiring. It's so special having small children but it is a time in your life you tend to feel like your life, and you, will never be normal again. Ya hear me on that one mamas? Well, we will be "normal" again and sleep, that heavenly thing that happens when you hit the pillow for more than just 3 hours straight, will come again.

I'm not yet in that delicious stage, but I am savoring the now when I feel triumphant after making a simple dish. Today after a night of maybe a total of 3 1/2 hours spread out through the night I made homemade macaroni and banana bread. Smelling them cook away was like a gold medal to my nose. Small successes make motherhood doable. This was my little trophy today. When and if you are in these times of your life just take a minute to applaud yourself for your little triumphs throughout your days. It may not be something cooked, but it may be a mountain of laundry tackled, just getting up out of bed, putting on clothes, doing those horrid dishes, or being patient with your kids. Pat yourself on your back, you're doing AWESOME! And no that is not my awesome, stylish and beautiful bathroom above (I wish!!), but I am going to make myself a poster like that! "Don't forget to be AWESOME" cause hey you are!!!!

12 Days, Three: Believe

Happy holidays! I've been a bit behind on my twelve days goals. Getting 5 watts frozen off and 3 cavities filled, Merry Christmas right ;). Ouch. So it has slowed me down a bit on everything. But not to worry here comes the catch up. For neighbor gifts this year I decided to put together some peppermint cocoa kits. It was awesome throwing candy canes in the Blendtec and seeing them smash up. Jane was shocked at how loud it was, and we had fun mixing it together into the cocoa together. A warm glass of peppermint cocoa is one of the most welcoming gifts during the cold season. I hope it will be a special treat for some of our special dear friends.

I attached a little tag I made with the word believe and a few scriptures. I love the song "Believe" from Polar Express by Josh Groban. It is a beautiful piece and message. I love the image of a Christmas bell and the meaning that the book Polar Express gives the bell. We all would do well to remember the true meaning of Christmas and hear the magic like a child does. So go ring some jingle bells and sip some cocoa with a bit of peppermint in it and enJOY this season!!

Link to cocoa: http://www.dvo.com/newsletter/monthly/2015/december/pinterest.html

I'll add the tag for downloading soon to!

Gratitude #21

Gratitude #21. Good salad.

The last two days have been a whirlwind! I got James' birthday all accomplished before traveling, packed our little family of four, got our neighbors prepped to take care of our chickens, made dinner for our friends who had their baby, and prepared my entire home for some dear friends to live in while we're gone. Wheew, it was a lot of work. But all of it was special and exciting! I love celebrations and it was a JOY to celebrate my mister James! For his birthday pre-dinner (since his birthdays not till Sunday but we won't be home) I made a Wonton Salad and it was SO good. James LOVES Asian food and loves salad so it really was the perfect dish! It's my amazing mothers recipe and it truly is a rock awesome salad!!!! I am grateful for good salads!! They make my tummy so very happy!!

Wonton Salad

The Recipe (I'm remembering it off the top of my head cause we're not home!):

Ingredients:

1 head of Romaine lettuce

1 head of Iceburg lettuce

3 cups shredded chicken

1 can water chestnuts

3 diced green onions

Wontons to sprinkle on salad when it's served up (cut into him strips and either fry them up, or our favorite way is to bake them on a cookie sheet. Less time, cleaner and healthy! Just keep an eye on them cause hey cook fast!)

Dressing (mix all together, and toss on whole salad when ready to eat it)

1/4 cup oil

3 Tb sugar

3 tsp ricevinegar 

1 tsp salt

1 tsp Lowrys seasoning salt

YUM!!

Gratitude #20

Gratitude #20. Pies.

Aren't pies just such a classic, comforting, beautiful and delicious treat. I love the care that goes into homemade pies! Getting the crust just right is an art, rolling it out, making it look pretty, adding a yummy filling, it's such a neat and beautiful process. I just learned the best crust recipe and technique during my monthly cooking club his week and let me tell you a flakey good crust MAKES the pie! I love a good crust! Mmmm. Tis the season of pies and it makes me grateful! As we head to Utah for thanksgiving I anticipate lots of pies and good food, and the best of company!

Gratitude #4

Gratitude #4. Good Food.

I love to cook, I love to eat, I love mealtime, I love baking....I love food. I love that my Mister loves to cook. I love that we love to cook together. I love that we use the kitchen the most out of any room in the house. I love that Jane is interested in cooking. I love rolling pins. I love dishes. I love spices. I love a floured counter ready to roll out dough. I love growing my own food. I love good and simple recipes. I love aprons. I love my cooking club. I love my memories of cooking. I could go on...

I'm grateful that I have a gratitude and love for food. There is so much joy found in food. It often is a gathering reason. It gives you energy. It shows love (especially when it's chocolate or cookies). It sustains you. It is essential to life. I am thankful that my little family is blessed with food to eat. We watched a documentary recently on some college students who went to South America and lived in a village and tried to survive on a dollar. One dollar. $1! And they met a sweet little family where all the children had to eat were tortillas and salt. It made me cry thinking about how much energy and life Jane has in her and then these children have no energy at all because that's all that they have to eat. We are so blessed to have food in our cupboards and fridge. 

I am grateful for food!

Rhodes Rolls

Oh you cannot go wrong with cinnamon and bread and breakfast food! Tonight I go to host my second #tryazon parties and it was a blast. The company I showcased was Rhodes. I got coupons for #rhodesbread rolls and a link to recipes galore! I had no idea there were so many things you could make them into. I was drooling over all the recipes. Something I really love about the company #tryazon is that the parties are in person. There are so many things like this nowadays that are just online parties where nobody sees each other and it's just a big huge group chatting in text through the Internet. It is a marvelous world we live in and it has provided great opportunities for companies and individuals. However, I'm a bit old fashioned I guess. I really enjoy preparing my home to gather people together face to face. It is something out society is forgetting about. Being with people, having social interaction, talking in person  with each other, and just enjoying time together. This is a great reason why I really enjoy Tryazon. It is an opportunity to gather! 

For my recipe contribution I decided to make my moms famous breakfast cinnamon ring. This gooey treat was always made each Christmas morning for our annual Christmas Day brunch. Each year my mom would invite a family or two and an older single woman to brunch and there was always a sticky ring adorning the table. She made a beautiful spread of food and it taught me so much about gathering others together for good food and company. It is an important aspect of life to gather. I am very thankful that she taught me that important social skill and that I have followed (in a small way) in her footsteps.

To thank the wonderful women/families who came and supported me and participated in the evening they each got some Rhodes coupons and a new spatula. It was a lot of fun putting these little take homes together for my awesome guests. I always think it's important to thank those who you love and those who support you. Miss Jane often accompanies me to drop off thank you's I take to others. I hope I'll be able to instill that thanking nature in each of my children. Each family brought a dish to share as well in the feast. And I got to showcase the new microwave cinnamon rolls that Rhodes just put out. They are pretty quick and fabulous. It's an easy way to enjoy one roll and not eat ten at a time :), cause let's face it we all do that!

The Great Cinnamon Ring

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter (1 cube)

3/4 cup brown sugar

1tsp cinnamon

Nuts/Raisins

Butterscotch Cook'n Serve Pudding (1/2 of a 3 oz. packet)

14-16 frozen Rhodes Rolls (enough to zigzag the bottom of a bundt pan)

Instructions:

1. Heat and melt first three ingredients on the stove until all incorporated into a caramely texture.

2. Spray your bundt pan and line the bottom with your rolls. Just covering the base of the pan.

3. Sprinkle with desired nuts and raisins. And then sprinkle half of your butterscotch packet over them.

4. Drizzle your warm caramel mixture evenly over the rolls and then cover with a sprayed piece of suran wrap. 

5. Let rise till rolls are risen to the top of the pan, about 4-6 hours depending on the heat of your home.

6. Cook at 350 for roughly 30 minutes. If the tops getting too brown put a piece of tin foil on it the last 10 minutes of cooking.

7. Let set for about 10 minutes in pan and then flip over onto a serving platter.

8. Enjoy snarfing this one up, it's finger lickin' good!

We ended our evening with an outdoor movie! It was a blast. My cute Mister James set up a projector and we hung a white sheet on the back of the house and  it was so much fun to all cozy together in the crisp Autumn weather. We watched a short cartoon based off of a book called "Room on the Broom" and it was really adorable. We will definitely be doing backyard shows much more next year! So there you have the sum up of a wonderfully fun Tryazon party.

Conference Tent

Each Conference we have made a fort, set up our tent and now we get to enjoy it in our family TP. And we always make sure that the doors are facing a temple. This is in reference to an amazing man named King Benjamin in the Book of Mormon. He was a very righteous man and wanted all his people to hear the words he shared and so many gathered in tents to listen. And their doors were opened to the temple. I love this symbolism in our lives. Are our hearts, intentions, focus and desires facing the temple/eternal lasting goals? I want my children to understand and realize that every choice they make can bring them happiness or sorrow, and they have the power to steer they're life where hey want it to be. And by listening to prophets and apostles of God they are being blessed with the proper road map to that happiness they seek.

Growing up my faithful mother and diligent dad would take all 6 of us kids, dressed in Sunday clothing, to the church for all four sessions. That means 4 hours on a Saturday and then another 4 hours on a Sunday. Looking back I am amazed at my parents dedication and am so thankful for what I learned from that. Conference is special and important, and an opportunity to show reverence, respect and appreciation to our Heavenly Father.

Along with our tent tradition is making Mountains. This delightful breakfast truly is our house favorite and now that we have chickens we can make it lots! But it's especially wonderful for Conference. The temple is often called "the mountain of the Lord" and so it seems very fitting to eat mountains as our tent door is open  to the temple.

During these pregnant and early child bearing years it can be hard to get to the temple often. I yearn to be there more but know there is a time and season for everything in life. Our temple here in Idaho Falls is under a renovation and so we can't go in and serve there for a while. But even walking along its grounds brings strength and peace. We are so blessed to live near so many temples. 

Another favorite thing about Conference Sunday is the food. I always like to try and make sure there is a special meal on Sunday's already, but something extra special is always fun! We made the most delicious butternut squash alfredo recipe and a cinnamon chocolate cake. Oh that pasta was heavenly! Definitely a fall keeper! 

Oh how I love eating, being with and having edification with my family. It is so important to gather oft and be reminded of life's most important truths and to refocus our lives to do the things that matter! Our lives are busy and it is easy to get lost in the hustle bustle of everyday things. But we can rise above that and really live our lives with the full potential they're meant to have. As another conference has come to a close I am reminded of beautiful truths on the power and importance of motherhood, the divine worth within each human being, the crucial need to stand for truth, the blessing of repentance and forgiveness, and the joy that comes from wearing your life out for the Lord. He has very faithful servants striving to teach, lead and guide us back to Him. How thankful I am for a living prophet, apostles and the men and women of His church! Hurray for General Conference.

October 1st, Hurray!

Warm scones, gray cloudy sky, leaves changing colors out the window, bats getting hung up, pumpkin scent going through the house...yes it's a happy October 1st! These blueberry scones are simply the best, my mom gave them to me for my birthday and they are magnificent! So light and fluffy and so delicious. We also broke open the raw honey I was given as well. What a spectacular breakfast to start the day.

Jane and I had fun putting bats all over the front room and even a tattoo of one on her arm. She was quite intrigued by it. I love decorating for holidays and the season of awesome holidays is just beginning! Fall and winter are such special seasons. I get so giddy when they come around again I feel like a little kid when Halloween and Christmas arrive! It's so much fun to decorate, eat festive foods and be with family.

I made my first successful GREEN green smoothie! Usually when I make them they turn out brown and look like swamp sludge. This one was a perfect witch skin green! And it was so yummy to! Must of been Halloween luck ;)! Happy October! 

Fall Harvest

Have you ever had your tastebuds be so happy it was like you were in heaven? That was me tonight with these amazing fall foods made by some talented women. At the start of the year I began a little cooking club with a few women that are very dear to me and each month we choose a different theme and trade off hosting. We've circled through all of us and each time has been so special and fun. I have found it to be the highlight of each of my months to gather with these women. I even made it to the one that was just a few weeks after Sir William was born because I just could I just couldn't miss being with my favorite ladies. Sharing recipes and good food we have fun chatting and being together way too much. Especially now having two kiddos it is so important and special to get out of the house and be an "adult" every once in a while and talk about adult things and not just about Puffin Rock or one word conversations over and over.

When you become a mother sometimes it can feel very monotonous and routine. The days morf into each other and each is very special but also very long. One of my dear friends of cooking club mentioned how hard it really is being a mother. We all talked about how rewarding and wonderful it is but how much women don't talk about. Postpardem craziness, how much your body goes through, the zombie like state you'll be in for a while, the pains of teething, the joy of tantrums, breastfeeding, etc. there is a lot to being a mom! It literally is the most rewarding, important and difficult job on the planet. You don't receive promotions or have people say thank you or good job after a "project", you don't have a "lunch break" ever!, you always have something wet on you; spit up, spills, tears, boogers, slobber...there's a lot that comes in the mommy package. But it truly is a position I take very seriously and think very highly of. One important thing I have found that helps me stay sane when it gets really hard is events like the Cooking Club. A woman needs time to just be with other women. It is revitalizing and cheering to gather with others who have traveled or are traveling your journey to! To get together and recharge those mommy/woman batteries together really makes a big difference.

The added joy of getting together to just be with these women is the food we get to eat. We love to feed our faces with each others delightful recipes. I have never eaten such delectable foods than at our little cooking club or learned such great tips for the kitchen. This months theme was fall harvest. So of course we had lots of pumpkin! Tis the season of squashes and oh how yummy it is. Pumpkin spice, cinnamon and everything nice comes out in fall foods. I made a plum corn cake that my little family loves. It's a tried and true recipe from TwoPeas&theirPod, and I love it. It's almost just a fancier and yummier version of cornbread. I also brought my plum fruit leather for them to try that I've been working on. I love having a fruit tree in my yard!!!!

Oh how much joy there can be at a table surrounded by people you love filled with amazing foods for you to try. I cherish my little Cooking Club and the thoughts we get to share together as we gather. I treasure these times and look forward to many more. Life is meant to be enjoyed, and good food and company makes it all the better of a journey. Julia Child once said, "People who love to eat are the best people," and I couldn't agree more :).

First Day of Fall

I wanted tonight's dinner to be special and so started prepping food early. The first day of Fall is very special and important to me because it is the start of my favorite season! I love the colors, smells, foods and traditions of this time of year and I await it every summer. As the cooler weather comes, I get a warm feeling in my heart for this cozy time of year. In between baths, playing, feeding chickens, feeding kids, doing laundry, going on walks and collecting sticks and flowers, I prepped our first day of fall meal.

I made a pepper tomato soup, garlic bread, ranch chicken and pumpkin cookies. Jane helped me mix the cookie dough and has fallen in love with chocolate chips. Just like her Bop and mama! It all turned out really yummy and was all finished right as Mister James biked in from work. I love making meals for my family! Right now it's a little hard and overwhelming to do them with two very needy kiddos but when I take the time to do it I am so happy.

How grateful I am that I can conjure up yummy meals for my family and that we are blessed to have food on our table. One thing I love about this time of year most is being THANKFUL. I am thankful all year long but this harvest season adds a special feeling of gratitude in our hearts. I have so much to be thankful for, every one of us do. There are blessings we receive daily in this world. Even when the going gets tough, we have air to breath, the sun comes up each day, the world keeps going round. When we count our many blessings, Angels truly do attend and life is more joyous! How thankful I am for the first day of fall!

Family Time = My favorite time!

Tonight we had dinner outside pit style! My FAVORITE! We roasted some Italian chicken sausages that were so good, made s'mores, and had grapes and veggies. It was a delicious evening of being together! I love being outside and especially when it's with my favoritest people in the world!

Jane was an excellent kindling finder. She got pinecones, dry grass and twigs to help daddy start the fire. Mister James is a pro fire builder. Little William loves being outside and enjoyed some good vitamin D sunshine. He's sure getting to know the world around him and is just adorable. He has a great grin and inquisitive eyes, I love watching him look around and listening to his cooing.

Lately we have been trying to take a really good long walk at the end of our day to tire energy ball Jane out. It's been a really special time when we do it. Tonight we did our little round. We cross over a canal on the way and throw rocks in it to make big splashes and then we run through a huge field to the playground at our neighborhood elementary. It's quite the distance for Jane's little legs but she goes the whole distance! She and William really are so amazing. Children are incredible!! They learn so much, have incredible amounts of patience, and teach us the most important things. How grateful I am for my little family and all the wonderful special times we share together. Life is made up of moments, tons of them, and these are the best ones!

Banana Nutella Cookies

Mmmmm! Go bananas go go bananas! We were headed up last minute to my brother and sister in laws last night and I quickly whipped up this batch of cookies to share. I combined banana bread style cookies with my favorite chocolate spread: Nutella. They were a yummy surprise, and a new recipe we'll be keeping on the shelf for all those ripe brown bananas. Try it out with some of yours!!

The Recipe is as follows;

Ingredients:

3/4 cup shortening or butter 

3/4 cup white sugar 

1 egg 

1/2 tsp vanilla 

2 mashed bananas (3 if they are small)

1/4 tsp salt 

1 tsp baking soda 

2 cups of flour

A sprinkle of chocolate chips if you desire

Nutella

Walnuts

Instructions:

Cream the shortening and sugar, add egg, vanilla and mashed bananas. Make sure that it is creamed very well. Add in salt, soda and flour slowly so it will be homogeneous. Add your sprinkle of chocolate chips here! The badder will be more like the consistency of brownie batter (don’t worry, they will hold their shape). Bake them in an oven heated to 350 degree for 8-9 minutes, until the bottoms are golden brown.

Then smear delicious Nutella on top and sprinkle some walnuts to add a yummy crunch. They are so scrumptious and will have you going bananas for more!!

Plum Fruit Leather

Plum fruit leather....we finally tried to make some. Our yard is blessed with a very fruitful plum tree that produces far more than we can keep up with. Last year we attempted canning and made jam and syrup. So this year we are attempting the world of dried fruits. The process is really easy, it just takes a looooooooooong time. Basically we washed, pitted and cooked the fruit at 400 for 15-20 minutes. Then we put hem all into the blender and added a teeny bit of sugar. Gooey liquid should be the result, and this you pour into a prepared jelly roll pan (we just bought a Silpat to use and it is awesome!!). This pan is then put into an oven heated at its low setting of 150 for 6-8 hours. Ours seemed to take longer but it was it wasn't quite thinned properly. There were thicker areas then some making it cook a little unevenly. So making sure it's roughly flat and all even is pretty important. It turned out pretty yummy and was a fun way to use up plenty of plums!

Yummies help the Grumpies

This weeks been full of yummy foods and special moments with each other, despite the chaos going on. It's been another rough week with no sleep and getting on edge with one another more than usual. Jane's getting 4 teeth, William's got lots of gas, Mister James has lots of work and school duties, and I'm writing my next batch of Cook'n articles, getting a RS Activity planned and am running on steam. So needles to say we're all a little stressed and capooped. But that doesn't mean we don't enjoy life still and each other!

We went out as a family for an ice-cream date with some birthday coupons my sweet family gave me. I had not been to 31 Flavors / Baskin Robins in forever. And it did not disappoint :), soooo yummy! I got a "snickers" and Mister enjoyed a "moms cookie dough." Oh I love ice-cream way too much and wish I could just eat it all the time and never gain a pound.

Other adventures and yummies have included our chickens. Jane loves "feeding them" rocks and collecting their eggs with me. She's so funny and adorable with them. We've been enjoying lots of mountains and scrambled eggs in the mornings! Thanks chickens!

Then tonight after a really rough day for mommy here, we had one of my favorite dinners! Chiabata bread with fresh mozzarella cheese, amazing home grown tomatoes, a dash of fresh basil and drizzled with balsamic. Oh it is heaven in every bite! The savory and delicious moments of life help us to get through the bitter or hungry times. How grateful I am to be blessed with good food to eat and a beautiful family to eat it with.