Our Father's Day Weekend

Our Father's Day weekend was very eventful with camping, playing, a BBQ, homemade cards and of course a new tie. Friday night we took the kids up into Veyo to a small reservoir and camped. There was no flushing toilets and the wind blew all night long so I think we really roughed it! I am not much of a camper and was completely out of my comfort zone but the kids had a blast. Katelyn, Matthew and I participated in an Activity Days Recognition night for most of Saturday night while Zack stayed home with the other boys and had a BBQ. We played games afterwards which is one of Zack's all time favorite activities. Sunday morning while Zack was busy at church meetings the kids made him some very nice cards. Joshua and William got busy placing stickers on their cards. William wanted to know what things Daddy really likes so he would like his card. Katelyn and Taylor got more into the other craft things and drew pictures for him. He almost spoiled the surprise getting home early but was a good sport and stayed in the front room while we finished. He really enjoyed all the attention from the kids. I thought the tie was the best though, a true University of Utah fan tie which he proudly to displayed for the rest of the day. After church we had a spaghetti dinner (Zack's personal favorite) and then headed over to my parents' house for dessert. Jennifer went crazy with all sorts of desserts to try out: strawberry shortcake, pineapple upside down cake, s'mores, cookies and jello cake with whipped topping. We all went home with tummy aches!


Zack is a great dad and provider for his family. He is amazing with the kids and loves them each so much. He is so patient and kind with them. They truly love him and I love his gentleness, he can wrestle with the boys, cuddle with the baby and play make believe with Katie all day long. I made a great choice in a daddy for my kids! I love him so much!

Matthew is 4 months old!

6/22/2009 - 4 month visit

16 lbs & 27 3/4 inches

Matthew is such a delight. He is really cooing up a storm and grinning. He loves all the attention he gets! Matthew is starting to roll onto his side. He is starting to actually play with toys so the kids are always giving him lots to play with. He sucks his thumb for comfort which is so cute. I know it will be hard to break him of the habit when he gets older but both of his parents were thumb suckers so we sympathize. We love him so much and are thankful that Heavenly Father has trusted us with such a wonderful child!

Recipes: Bread Making 101

Whole Wheat Bread--made by hand
http://safelygatheredin.blogspot.com
recipe by Jeri Shelton

1 Tbsp yeast
2 cups warm water
2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp honey (or 2 Tbsp sugar)
4 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup hot water
3 Tbsp oil
1 Tbsp honey (or 2 Tbsp sugar)
2 cups whole wheat flour

Dissolve yeast in 2 cups warm water. Add salt, honey and four cups of flour to yeast mixture. Mix together until smooth (will be a very thick batter). Cover with a warm moist towel. Let rise until light and bubbly--about one hour.

To this mixture add the hot water, oil and remaining honey and flour. Mix thoroughly--gradually add more flour (1 to 2 more cups) until dough becomes manageable to knead on counter. Dough should be soft and tacky (not sticky and not stiff or dry). When it reaches this point, knead for 10 minutes.

Put dough back into bowl and cover. Let rise another hour until double in size. Punch down and form into loaves. Put into greased loaf pans and let rise until doubled. Back at 350 degrees F for 25-30 minutes. Remove from pans and brush tops with shortening for soft crust. Eat. Groan with pleasure.

Enjoying the little things in life

I was telling the Katelyn how expressive little Matthew is with his eyebrows and so she got my eyebrow pencil so I could draw on his eyebrows. We just got a little carried away after that!

We took the kids over to the Hidden Valley Park to play and they loved it!

Katelyn woke up early Sunday morning puking so we spent the day much more low-key than usual. I kept the little boys and Katelyn home while Zack and Taylor were able to attend church. I decided to dress the boys in their church clothes in hopes that they wouldn't play so rough; it seemed to work. Matthew has become so expressive in the past few months!

Summertime bliss!

Our summertime as been very enjoyable and busy! We have had sleepovers, playtime, swimming, movies, visitors and lots of Otter Pops to stay cool. We had lots of family for Katelyn's baptism and then we have had visitors almost constantly ever since. My Uncle Mike, Aunt Terry, cousin Karen and her husband Spencer came the week after Katelyn's baptism. Memorial Day weekend my Uncle Richard came down with my cousin Mike, his wife Jen, their little ones Adeline and Cameron, my cousin Kara, her husband Bryan, and their kids Emily and Andrew and a special friend. Tim, Stephanie and baby Jaerick moved back to Saint George, then Jennifer came down with her kids to stay for the summer. This week my Uncle Jon and Aunt Rosa came down for a visit too. Brandon and Goldie have stopped by a few times too.

All these things have kept us busy, busy, busy! We are thrilled that we have been able to visit with so much family in the past month. I guess if I wasn't so busy visiting I would have remembered to take more pictures.

Library Time

Our public library features story time for kids and right next to the library is a wonderful water feature for the kids to play in. We went there last Wednesday to enjoy some time away from the house. The kids loved it especially being able to run free. We met up with some people from the ward who do this all summer long. We are going to try and get there earlier next time around! Great way to entertain kids!

There is a stream that runs right through the park which the kids loved!

Matthew really did not seem to mind the water at all.

It is a blast!

Recipes: Pancake Cupcakes

I have been trying to do more with breakfast than the traditional cold cereal and milk lately. My kids love pancakes and this recipe is a definite keeper. I found this recipe on http://www.kitchendoughdough.blogspot.com/

Cupcake Pancakes - adapted from America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook's pancake recipe

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 cups buttermilk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare cupcake pan by spraying with non-stick cooking spray.

Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, melted butter, and then the buttermilk.
Push the dry ingredients to the side of the bowl, leaving a hole in the middle. Pour the buttermilk mixture into the center and whisk slowly until buttermilk mixture is just mixed in. America's Test Kitchen's tip is to "mix the batter minimally" and to "stop stirring the batter when there are still streaks of flour visible."

Your batter is done...now just put about 1/3 cup in each cup of your pan. Put the pan in the oven and bake about 10 minutes on 400 degrees. At 10 minutes mine came out perfectly. I was able to tell they were done by doing the toothpick test, just like cupcakes!

Maple Syrup Whipped Cream - adapted from America's Test Kitchen's whipped cream recipe

1 cup heavy cream, chilled
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons maple syrup

Whip the cream, sugar, and vanilla in a bowl with a mixer on low speed to dissolve the sugar. Increase speed to high. Whip until soft peaks form. Add the maple syrup and whip for about 10 seconds. It took me just a few minutes total to make the "frosting."

It's a bite out of heaven! Serves 6.

Baby Matthew is 3 months old!

My sweet baby boy is three months old now! He is such a great addition to our family. Matthew is very laid back and keeps things nice and relaxing even at three months! He loves all the kids and just beams when he sees them. He is getting much more interactive lately which is fun. He coos and smiles at everyone who pays attention to him. He is sleeping through the night which makes his mom very happy indeed! Matthew is such a blessing to our family. He does thoroughly enjoys the noises of a busy household and seems to be at ease around all the chaos. He is an angel baby to keep me sane!

Taylor's Kindergarten Graduation

Taylor is officially a kindergarten graduate! The teachers put on quite the little show with all these kindergartners. They sang, danced and had a good ol' time. My mom was able to make it which Taylor really appreciated. He felt quite proud of himself and he should; he has learned tons this past year, ABCs, 123s, rules and getting along with his classmates. Taylor has made several friends which he enjoys spending time with. There are several boys in our ward his age which he gets along with. Katelyn and Taylor have made many friends this past year and our house is always full of friends! It is fun to see how much they progress when you look back on things. Taylor has really grown as this year has gone on. He has really been a good example to his younger brothers. Ms. Tobler was a great kindergarten teacher and Taylor really liked her! I am glad that he enjoys school, we are going to play hard this summer before he starts 1st grade and we don't see him anymore.

Zack's 31st Birthday

We celebrated Zack's 31st Birthday in a very casual manner with just our "small" family. After all these birthdays in the past couple months we wanted to do something a little more simple for him. I served breakfast for dinner which is Zack's all time favorite thing. I got the recipe from PotsandPins.com a food and quilting blog that I absolutely love! I have included the recipe, it is a must do. I also made up my favorite garlic cheese biscuits to go with it.

Rocky Mountain Farmer's Scramble

1/2 stick butter, divided
6 red large red potatoes, diced, peels left on
1 lb. sausage

1 cup ham, diced
6 slices bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 medium onion, diced
6 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup grated Cheddar cheese
Optional: Additional toppings: Diced green onions, sour cream, chopped fresh tomatoes, ketchup

In a large skillet over medium-high heat add half the butter, sausage, bacon and onion. Cook until sausage is no longer pink and bacon is crisp. Add both potatoes. Put on lid, turn down heat to medium and cook for 10 to 12 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender. Add the ham, and stir to get up any browned bits that may have stuck to the bottom of the pan - the best part! Scoop everything to one side, add the remaining butter to the skillet and when melted, pour in the eggs. Scramble the eggs and cook until desired doneness. When eggs are done, combine everything in the skillet. Top with cheddar cheese, put lid back on and remove from heat. Let sit for two minutes to allow for cheese to melt. Add additional toppings if desired. Serves 6.

We got Zack a book that he has really wanted to read "Liberty and Tyranny" by Mark Levin and some nice basketball shoes; he plays basketball every Tuesday night at the stake center with other guys from the ward. Zack's birthday was very nice and especially when we all got to spray silly string on him.