Brahnson has had a pain in his hips for about the last three weeks. At first, Chad and I chalked it up to growing pains and told him it would go away in a few days. Well, it didn't go away. A week ago Sunday, he could sit through church and was okay. His pain was a little annoying, but no big deal. By Wednesday, he couldn't sit down without having extreme pain. We decided to take him to his pediatrician, who then referred us to an Orthopedic Surgeon, who then ordered an MRI, put Brahnson on anti-inflammatory medicine with heat and cold packs, after that the doctor had him go to Physical Therapy, and is now back to doing another MRI on Monday. Brahnson is still in pain and cannot sit down. The Physical Therapist thought that he was in too much pain to have him move him around. So now, they are going to do another MRI to look at his whole spine. The pain still might be from growing really fast that parts of his body can't keep up. They don't know right now and neither do we. Brahnson can stand for a period of time or he can be flat on his tummy. Either position, he has not been able to attend school. He has been doing his work at home by standing next to the counter in the kitchen. He has also been allowed to play way too much Wii. He doesn't have a problem standing for that! It is sad that he has to be in pain and nobody can explain why. He is a tough kid though. I have to admit that he and I butt heads quite a bit, but having him home with me hasn't been as bad as I thought it would be. He is actually a lot nicer to be around, than he was when he would go to school. We love him dearly and hope that we can figure out what is going on so he won't have to be in anymore pain.Thursday, June 4, 2009
Brahnson's Pain
Brahnson has had a pain in his hips for about the last three weeks. At first, Chad and I chalked it up to growing pains and told him it would go away in a few days. Well, it didn't go away. A week ago Sunday, he could sit through church and was okay. His pain was a little annoying, but no big deal. By Wednesday, he couldn't sit down without having extreme pain. We decided to take him to his pediatrician, who then referred us to an Orthopedic Surgeon, who then ordered an MRI, put Brahnson on anti-inflammatory medicine with heat and cold packs, after that the doctor had him go to Physical Therapy, and is now back to doing another MRI on Monday. Brahnson is still in pain and cannot sit down. The Physical Therapist thought that he was in too much pain to have him move him around. So now, they are going to do another MRI to look at his whole spine. The pain still might be from growing really fast that parts of his body can't keep up. They don't know right now and neither do we. Brahnson can stand for a period of time or he can be flat on his tummy. Either position, he has not been able to attend school. He has been doing his work at home by standing next to the counter in the kitchen. He has also been allowed to play way too much Wii. He doesn't have a problem standing for that! It is sad that he has to be in pain and nobody can explain why. He is a tough kid though. I have to admit that he and I butt heads quite a bit, but having him home with me hasn't been as bad as I thought it would be. He is actually a lot nicer to be around, than he was when he would go to school. We love him dearly and hope that we can figure out what is going on so he won't have to be in anymore pain.
Monday, June 1, 2009
End Of The Year Concert
Ever since Camren was little, he has always had a little song going on in his head. He would even dance a little when he walked. As he has gotten older, nothing has changed. Camren loves music. 
Camren has taken up the violin. His school that he goes to has a great Orchestra program. He has had orchestra twice a week with one of those times we have to take him to the Middle School at 7:25 in the morning and then they bus him to his school. He has enjoyed it and practices on his own. Chad and I were really surprised at how much he practiced and kept up on it. We really thought that he would have gotten tired of it and not practiced. He proved us wrong. He loves playing the violin. Hopefully, this summer, I will have more time and I can help him improve to get ready for next year at Glacier Creek Middle School.
This is Camren's friend Jordan Futch. He goes to a different elementary school, but in our ward. He is also in scouts and Sunday classes. We see him every time Camren has a concert.
Camren's teacher Mrs. Corry. She was so good with him. He was the only 5th grade orchestra student and so he got one-on-one lessons with her once a week. She said she was amazed with how quickly that he took to the violin. We are very proud of what he has accomplished in such a little amount of time.
Camren has taken up the violin. His school that he goes to has a great Orchestra program. He has had orchestra twice a week with one of those times we have to take him to the Middle School at 7:25 in the morning and then they bus him to his school. He has enjoyed it and practices on his own. Chad and I were really surprised at how much he practiced and kept up on it. We really thought that he would have gotten tired of it and not practiced. He proved us wrong. He loves playing the violin. Hopefully, this summer, I will have more time and I can help him improve to get ready for next year at Glacier Creek Middle School.
This is Camren's friend Jordan Futch. He goes to a different elementary school, but in our ward. He is also in scouts and Sunday classes. We see him every time Camren has a concert.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Sydnee's Birthday #2 and 2 New Callings
Sydnee turned two on May 24, 2009. We have really enjoyed having Sydnee in our family! She has certainly kept us on our toes! She has us all wrapped around her little finger. She has been a very bright and loud spot in our family. We love her dearly.
We went to our friend's house and had her birthday party. Their kids were so cute! They wanted to give something to Sydnee and so the looked around their house and wrapped up toys that they thought that she would like. She has been playing with everything that she has gotten non-stop!
Along with Sydnee's birthday, Chad and I got new callings. Chad is serving as the Secretary in the Young Men's and I am serving as the Enrichment Councilor in the Relief Society Presidency. I have never served in the Relief Society Presidency, but I have been the Enrichment leader. I am excited to try some fun things and stir things up a bit in this new calling. I was sad to say good bye to the Cub Scouting program. I will miss seeing all those cute cub scouts every week. Chad and I are both grateful to be able to serve our Heavenly Father in anyway we can, even if it means that our lives are going to get more than little bit busier.
"MY PRESENTS!!!"
We went to our friend's house and had her birthday party. Their kids were so cute! They wanted to give something to Sydnee and so the looked around their house and wrapped up toys that they thought that she would like. She has been playing with everything that she has gotten non-stop!
Along with Sydnee's birthday, Chad and I got new callings. Chad is serving as the Secretary in the Young Men's and I am serving as the Enrichment Councilor in the Relief Society Presidency. I have never served in the Relief Society Presidency, but I have been the Enrichment leader. I am excited to try some fun things and stir things up a bit in this new calling. I was sad to say good bye to the Cub Scouting program. I will miss seeing all those cute cub scouts every week. Chad and I are both grateful to be able to serve our Heavenly Father in anyway we can, even if it means that our lives are going to get more than little bit busier.
"MY PRESENTS!!!"
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Choosing the Right
We are so very proud of Camren. Last Friday, a student brought in a movie that the teacher thought was rated PG for the class to watch. When Camren asked what the movie was rated, it was discovered that the movie was actually PG-13. Camren told his teacher that he was not allowed to watch PG-13 movies. The teacher and Camren tried to get a hold of us to see if it was okay, but was unable to. Even if they would have been able to get a hold of us, the answer would have still been no. The teacher asked the principal and he thought because there was no nudity that it would be alright. The entire class had their hearts set on being able to watch a movie in class as a reward for some class accomplishment. The teacher told Camren that they were going to watch the movie in class and if Camren didn't want to he could go into the library and do his homework or read. He chose to go to the library. He sat there for 21/2 hours by himself busying himself with different things. He told me later, tearing up, that it was hard to be in there, but that he just kept telling himself, " I know, I am doing the right thing. I know, I am doing the right thing." A couple of his classmates came up to him and told him that they couldn't believe that he couldn't watch PG-13 movies and that they could watch rated R movies. Camren also over heard a few of his classmates say that it was a funny movie, but that there was a lot of swearing. The movie was called "Get Smart". Chad and I have never seen or heard of this movie. Camren was glad that he didn't participate in that movie after he had heard about how much profanity there was in it. I felt bad for him that he had to go through that, especially at school.Chad was really upset! He was ready to go down to that school and give the teacher a piece of his mind. I told him that I would handle it, because I would be more tactful and wouldn't say things that I would regret later. I wrote her an email expressing our disappointment that this movie was shown to a bunch of 11year olds and made her aware of Camren's feelings about it. She called me that day and profusely apologized. She said it was the wrong choice to make and that it would never happen again. She told me that she just loved Camren and admired that he would always do what was right. I accepted the apology and assured her that we didn't bear any hard feelings towards her. She later spoke to Camren and apologized to him as well. She really is a great teacher and I hope that Tori gets her when she gets into 5th grade.
Chad and I took Camren to Chilies for dessert and let him have his own white chocolate molten lava cake for a reward. We told him that we were proud of him for standing up for what is right even when you are the only one. We teach and talk to our children a lot about this concept and emphasize how important choosing the right is. We also point out that sometimes making the bad choice will make us happy for that very moment, but will feel us with regret and bad consequences later. It would have been fun for Camren to watch that movie with his class, but when hearing all the profanity, it would have hurt his spirit. Camren was very glad that he was able to be strong and make the right choice. Love You Camren!
Thursday, May 7, 2009
A Whole Lot Of Just About Everything!!!
So, I haven't blogged for a long time, and I thought I would do just one big blog to catch up! First of all, I can't believe that it has been almost a year since we moved to Wisconsin! We really have adapted well. The most important thing to me is that my kids are totally happy here. They wish that we could see more family or that more family would come and see us, but they really do love it here.I kinda just uploaded pictures and then I was just going to write about the pictures, so I don't know what this is going to look like when I am done.
I am so shocked when I look at my kids and see how big and old they are getting! Brahnson is going to be a teenager in September! That is totally unreal to me!Jorden's favorite thing to do is smile at the camera!
Sydnee has been learning how to do her "happy face" and her "sad face"!
Easter was fun this year! We told the Easter Bunny to not go overboard with our kids Easter. We loved the idea that he chose to do buckets and shovels instead of baskets.
Sydnee really got into it! I think her candy was gone the first day!
Brahnson was happy to get his marshmellow Peeps! He traded a lot of his candy to get more. Mom likes them too, but dad can't understand why we do.
All in all, the Easter bunny did very well. We also invited a family from our ward that has two kids. We thought that we would ask the Easter Bunny to remember our friend Margaret too. That is why there are so many E
aster buckets!
General Conference is always another holiday that we look forward to. General Conference has always been a fun thing in my family growing up and because I can't be there with my extended family we do everything they do plus some! One of the extra things we do is that we do a chocolate fountain. It has become a favorite with all members of my family. We also do our traditional "General Conference Breakfast" which includes; breakfast casserole, homemade scones with honey butter, and orange julius. We also do "General Conference Bingo" with candy for the markers and candy bars for the prizes. The minimum you have to have to get a candy bar is three bingos! One bingo is just too easy! It is an exhausting day, as you can see from Jorden's picture, but very fun. Sydnee totally loved it! I think she got more on her than in her
Everybody got into it! Having traditions like this make memories. My kids, with everything that we do for General Conference, actually sit through all four sessions quietly! Even Jorden! Chad and I think it is so important for them to hear the prophet's voice and then have them feel the Holy Ghost testify to their hearts that what they are hearing is true. We have a DVR now and we put General Conference on our DVR. For Family Home Evening each Monday we play one of the talks and discuss it. It has worked really well for our family. I am so happy that we have the gospel in our lives to help us teach our children the way that Heavenly Father wants them to live. We have also started to get up at 5:30 in the morning to read family scriptures together. We are doing it a different way this time. We have gone through the Book of Mormon cover to cover several times as a family. This year we are taking it verse by verse and pondering why Heavenly Father wanted that particular verse in the Book of Mormon. Sometimes we read three verses sometimes we read more or less. We started this I think in December and we are almost finished with first Nephi chapter 15. We have found a lot of things that we have never thought about before in our scripture study. Our family has really benefited from this.
We went to the Madison Children's Museum. It wasn't the best Children's Museum that I have been to, but my kids were glad to get out of the house.
Jorden liked the Dinosaurs!
The older kids liked the crane!
Sydnee liked it all and if you asked her to show you her teeth this is what you got!
Brahnson just liked being silly! Sydnee would not get into that fish's mouth!
Anyway, this was the biggest blog that I think I have done yet! We are so grateful for all our friends and family that comment and do blogs too. We are looking forward to a busy summer. I am so glad that the kids are back on the tradition school schedule instead of year round school. We are going to be spending about 5 weeks in Utah this summer and staying at different family's' homes. It will be over a year since our family has seen most of our family. We will be there from July 1-Aug. 10th. Chad will be there off and on during that time. Hopefully we will see you soon and hopefully I'll be better at blogging! Love you all!
Sydnee really got into it! I think her candy was gone the first day!
Brahnson was happy to get his marshmellow Peeps! He traded a lot of his candy to get more. Mom likes them too, but dad can't understand why we do.
All in all, the Easter bunny did very well. We also invited a family from our ward that has two kids. We thought that we would ask the Easter Bunny to remember our friend Margaret too. That is why there are so many E
aster buckets!General Conference is always another holiday that we look forward to. General Conference has always been a fun thing in my family growing up and because I can't be there with my extended family we do everything they do plus some! One of the extra things we do is that we do a chocolate fountain. It has become a favorite with all members of my family. We also do our traditional "General Conference Breakfast" which includes; breakfast casserole, homemade scones with honey butter, and orange julius. We also do "General Conference Bingo" with candy for the markers and candy bars for the prizes. The minimum you have to have to get a candy bar is three bingos! One bingo is just too easy! It is an exhausting day, as you can see from Jorden's picture, but very fun. Sydnee totally loved it! I think she got more on her than in her
Everybody got into it! Having traditions like this make memories. My kids, with everything that we do for General Conference, actually sit through all four sessions quietly! Even Jorden! Chad and I think it is so important for them to hear the prophet's voice and then have them feel the Holy Ghost testify to their hearts that what they are hearing is true. We have a DVR now and we put General Conference on our DVR. For Family Home Evening each Monday we play one of the talks and discuss it. It has worked really well for our family. I am so happy that we have the gospel in our lives to help us teach our children the way that Heavenly Father wants them to live. We have also started to get up at 5:30 in the morning to read family scriptures together. We are doing it a different way this time. We have gone through the Book of Mormon cover to cover several times as a family. This year we are taking it verse by verse and pondering why Heavenly Father wanted that particular verse in the Book of Mormon. Sometimes we read three verses sometimes we read more or less. We started this I think in December and we are almost finished with first Nephi chapter 15. We have found a lot of things that we have never thought about before in our scripture study. Our family has really benefited from this.
We went to the Madison Children's Museum. It wasn't the best Children's Museum that I have been to, but my kids were glad to get out of the house.
Jorden liked the Dinosaurs!
The older kids liked the crane!
Sydnee liked it all and if you asked her to show you her teeth this is what you got!
Brahnson just liked being silly! Sydnee would not get into that fish's mouth!
Anyway, this was the biggest blog that I think I have done yet! We are so grateful for all our friends and family that comment and do blogs too. We are looking forward to a busy summer. I am so glad that the kids are back on the tradition school schedule instead of year round school. We are going to be spending about 5 weeks in Utah this summer and staying at different family's' homes. It will be over a year since our family has seen most of our family. We will be there from July 1-Aug. 10th. Chad will be there off and on during that time. Hopefully we will see you soon and hopefully I'll be better at blogging! Love you all!
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Experiencing all the seasons
So, I have been here for about 10 months now. I have absolutely loved experiencing all of the different seasons. Las Vegas the seasons that you experience are extreme hot, hot, and mild. You also don't see a lot of variance in the color scheme either. I am so glad that I get to experience the changing seasons and the variety in colors!
I came here in June. The summer was incredible! I love it! My favorite part was the fireflies that came out at dusk. We have a field in our backyard and those little lighted bugs covered it! It was so cool! The worse thing was the mosquitoes. I didn't even mind the humidity all that much. We also have a pond in our backyard and the mosquitoes were unbelievable! I have never spent so much money on mosquito repellent as I have here. The temperatures were wonderful here. Being in Las Vegas for three years and three summers, was really taking a toll on me. I do have to say for Vegas, it is nice to be able to go to the park in February and only have to wear jackets.
The Fall here was incredible! The colors were so vibrant! There are farms all around and so you always could find fresh produce! There is a Farmer's Market right down the street from me and they have the most amazing produce. I don't think that I have ever tasted such good produce as I have here. There is a store here called Brennan's and they have these peaches that are so good. They call them "Chin Drippin' Peaches". They have all sorts of other peaches and produce there as well. They have these apples that are called "Honey Crisp" apples. They are not too sweet and not too tart. They have just enough crisp to them when you bite them.
The winter before I got here, Madison had over 100 inches of snow. Everybody told me that when I got here that the farmer's almanac was predicting an even worse winter. We didn't have near the amount of snow that was predicted. I was very grateful for that. We did have cold. I have never experienced cold like they have here. Snow pants are a requirement at school. We even got down to a windchill that was -35- -40 degrees! They also have freezing rain. It makes the roads so slick, it makes everything very slick! I kept telling my friends that it was so cold here and they would just smile and say "Not yet". That was in December. January was when we got very cold.
Well, now it is April. I really love Spring. Mother Nature plays tricks on you here though. It will warm up and just when you think that you are finally experiencing Spring, it snows! It looks very Springlike when you look out your window. Then, you go outside and it would be okay, but the wind makes it really cold still. They have a lot of fun outdoor free activities here and I am anxious to be able to do them again. I just want it to stop snowing and warm up! I looked at the weather for the week and we are supposed to hit mid sixties this week and then it drops again into the 40s by the weekend. Why can't it just warm up and stay that way? The winter was cold enough to last us another year! My friends here tell me that Spring really doesn't start until the middle of May! Spring is almost over by that time! My Las Vegas friends that are reading this are enjoying 80 degree weather right now at night! But, when they have 115 degree summer, I will be enjoying weather in the 80s. Oh well, there are pros and cons to everything!
I came here in June. The summer was incredible! I love it! My favorite part was the fireflies that came out at dusk. We have a field in our backyard and those little lighted bugs covered it! It was so cool! The worse thing was the mosquitoes. I didn't even mind the humidity all that much. We also have a pond in our backyard and the mosquitoes were unbelievable! I have never spent so much money on mosquito repellent as I have here. The temperatures were wonderful here. Being in Las Vegas for three years and three summers, was really taking a toll on me. I do have to say for Vegas, it is nice to be able to go to the park in February and only have to wear jackets.
The Fall here was incredible! The colors were so vibrant! There are farms all around and so you always could find fresh produce! There is a Farmer's Market right down the street from me and they have the most amazing produce. I don't think that I have ever tasted such good produce as I have here. There is a store here called Brennan's and they have these peaches that are so good. They call them "Chin Drippin' Peaches". They have all sorts of other peaches and produce there as well. They have these apples that are called "Honey Crisp" apples. They are not too sweet and not too tart. They have just enough crisp to them when you bite them.
The winter before I got here, Madison had over 100 inches of snow. Everybody told me that when I got here that the farmer's almanac was predicting an even worse winter. We didn't have near the amount of snow that was predicted. I was very grateful for that. We did have cold. I have never experienced cold like they have here. Snow pants are a requirement at school. We even got down to a windchill that was -35- -40 degrees! They also have freezing rain. It makes the roads so slick, it makes everything very slick! I kept telling my friends that it was so cold here and they would just smile and say "Not yet". That was in December. January was when we got very cold.
Well, now it is April. I really love Spring. Mother Nature plays tricks on you here though. It will warm up and just when you think that you are finally experiencing Spring, it snows! It looks very Springlike when you look out your window. Then, you go outside and it would be okay, but the wind makes it really cold still. They have a lot of fun outdoor free activities here and I am anxious to be able to do them again. I just want it to stop snowing and warm up! I looked at the weather for the week and we are supposed to hit mid sixties this week and then it drops again into the 40s by the weekend. Why can't it just warm up and stay that way? The winter was cold enough to last us another year! My friends here tell me that Spring really doesn't start until the middle of May! Spring is almost over by that time! My Las Vegas friends that are reading this are enjoying 80 degree weather right now at night! But, when they have 115 degree summer, I will be enjoying weather in the 80s. Oh well, there are pros and cons to everything!
Friday, April 3, 2009
Recipes for April 3-9
I decided to post more recipes. I didn't do it last week because I was too busy dealing with Spring Break for my kids and I think I am only going to do this every once in a while and not every week. Anyway, this weekend is conference weekend and I like to make extra easy and good food for that so that my kids look forward to this weekend. My kids for the last 5 years or so have actually watched all of the conference sessions and stayed quiet so that Chad and I can watch them. Conference Bingo helps too, but having yummy food and snacks is the best. My kids look forward to it the same as they would a holiday. My family does the same thing in Utah and so I have to do it too, so I don't get too homesick.
Friday- Grilled Ham and Cheese Sandwiches
Saturday-
Breakfast
Bagels and cream cheese and cereal
Lunch
Croissant sandwiches and Queso dip with chips, fruit
Dinner
Pizza night
Sunday-
Breakfast- Breakfast Casserole, Scones, Honey Butter, Orange Julius
Orange Julies:
2 cups milk
1/3c. sugar
1tsp. vanilla
6oz. orange juice concentrate
Ice
Instructions:
Blend all ingredients in blender until well incorporated and you have no ice chunks.
Breakfast Casserole:
6 slices of bread
1# ground sausage (if you want it more meaty, do 2#s)
6 eggs
1tsp. dry mustard (I have used prepared mustard and that works fine)
dash of pepper
2cups of milk
1tsp. salt
Shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions:
Place bread in the bottom of a greased 9X13 pan.
Brown Sausage and put on top of bread, sprinkle cheese on top of sausage.
Mix everything else and pour mixture on top of cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.
Lunch/Dinner-Yummy Chicken salad
4cups cooked chicken breast cubed
1cup celery chopped
1/2c slivered almonds
1(16oz) can pineapple tidbits
2 c. red grapes
1 bunch green onions
1 can sliced water chestnuts
1 large can mandarin oranges
Chinese chow mien noodles
Dressing
2c. mayo
1/2tsp. garlic powder
1Tbs. lemon juice
1Tbs soy sauce
1tsp. curry powder
1/2 tsp. lemon pepper
1/2tsp. pepper
Instructions
Mix dressing ahead and chill
Mix everything else together except the noodles and oranges.
Garnish with the noodles and oranges just before serving.
Monday- Steak Fajitas
This is my husband's recipe. He won't let me in on how he makes them so good!
Wednesday- Strawberry Waffles
Use your favorite waffle recipe and serve with strawberries, whipped cream, and butter syrup.
Thursday- Zesty Chicken
3 chicken breast (can be frozen)
1 dry zesty Italian mix
1 cube butter
1 (8oz) pkg cream cheese
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese
cooked noodles (any kind)
Instructions
Put chicken, zesty Italian mix, and butter in a crock pot cook for 3-4 hours on high. The last hour add everything else except noodles. Mix well until cream cheese is melted. Heat through and add noodles.
Dessert: Munchie Stuff
2 boxes of chex corn or rice cereal or one of each
1c. brown sugar
3/4c corn syrup
2 cups butter
1tsp. vanilla
1tsp. baking soda
Instructions
Empty cereal into a large roasting pan. Mix everything in a sauce pan except for vanilla and baking soda. When the butter is melted and the sugar is dissolved remove from heat and add vanilla and baking soda. Stir until foamy and pour over cereal. Bale @ 250 degrees for 45-60 minutes. stirring every 15 minutes. Remove from oven and put in a large bowl to cool. Stirring every once in a while as it cools. If you don't do this you will end up with a hard brick of cereal. My kids and my husband like this as regular cereal too.
Friday- Grilled Ham and Cheese Sandwiches
Saturday-
Breakfast
Bagels and cream cheese and cereal
Lunch
Croissant sandwiches and Queso dip with chips, fruit
Dinner
Pizza night
Sunday-
Breakfast- Breakfast Casserole, Scones, Honey Butter, Orange Julius
Orange Julies:
2 cups milk
1/3c. sugar
1tsp. vanilla
6oz. orange juice concentrate
Ice
Instructions:
Blend all ingredients in blender until well incorporated and you have no ice chunks.
Breakfast Casserole:
6 slices of bread
1# ground sausage (if you want it more meaty, do 2#s)
6 eggs
1tsp. dry mustard (I have used prepared mustard and that works fine)
dash of pepper
2cups of milk
1tsp. salt
Shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions:
Place bread in the bottom of a greased 9X13 pan.
Brown Sausage and put on top of bread, sprinkle cheese on top of sausage.
Mix everything else and pour mixture on top of cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.
Lunch/Dinner-Yummy Chicken salad
4cups cooked chicken breast cubed
1cup celery chopped
1/2c slivered almonds
1(16oz) can pineapple tidbits
2 c. red grapes
1 bunch green onions
1 can sliced water chestnuts
1 large can mandarin oranges
Chinese chow mien noodles
Dressing
2c. mayo
1/2tsp. garlic powder
1Tbs. lemon juice
1Tbs soy sauce
1tsp. curry powder
1/2 tsp. lemon pepper
1/2tsp. pepper
Instructions
Mix dressing ahead and chill
Mix everything else together except the noodles and oranges.
Garnish with the noodles and oranges just before serving.
Monday- Steak Fajitas
This is my husband's recipe. He won't let me in on how he makes them so good!
Wednesday- Strawberry Waffles
Use your favorite waffle recipe and serve with strawberries, whipped cream, and butter syrup.
Thursday- Zesty Chicken
3 chicken breast (can be frozen)
1 dry zesty Italian mix
1 cube butter
1 (8oz) pkg cream cheese
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese
cooked noodles (any kind)
Instructions
Put chicken, zesty Italian mix, and butter in a crock pot cook for 3-4 hours on high. The last hour add everything else except noodles. Mix well until cream cheese is melted. Heat through and add noodles.
Dessert: Munchie Stuff
2 boxes of chex corn or rice cereal or one of each
1c. brown sugar
3/4c corn syrup
2 cups butter
1tsp. vanilla
1tsp. baking soda
Instructions
Empty cereal into a large roasting pan. Mix everything in a sauce pan except for vanilla and baking soda. When the butter is melted and the sugar is dissolved remove from heat and add vanilla and baking soda. Stir until foamy and pour over cereal. Bale @ 250 degrees for 45-60 minutes. stirring every 15 minutes. Remove from oven and put in a large bowl to cool. Stirring every once in a while as it cools. If you don't do this you will end up with a hard brick of cereal. My kids and my husband like this as regular cereal too.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Glad my kids are happy!
I am just so glad that I have the kids that I have and they are happy. They make me and my husband happy. Each one of them has had a reason to be happy recently. Tori was so happy on her baptism day and she has been very careful that she keeps the covenants that she made with her Heavenly Father. She always helps me without complaint and loves doing "girl movie night with me." Camren is happy that he has a teacher that is so nice and treats him with kindness. She does so many good thing in that class and is preparing him for Middle school. He was very behind when he came and she just took him under her wing and has helped him with anything that he has needed. They have the most fun activities in their class and also rewards. I couldn't be more pleased with Camren's teacher and his class.
Brahnson is happy about being able to have so much fun in middle school. He has had a lot of new and interesting classes that have given him so much exposure to different things. The blue clip board that you see in the picture is a project that he did in his tech ed class. He totally made that all by himself. He has also had opportunities to learn a little Spanish, French, and German. He has decided that he wants to take French for his Foreign Language requirement for next year. He is also a big help with Sydnee. He will always take her whenever I need him to and she loves it too!
Jorden is happy about all the "girl friends" that he has here. He only has one little boy here that is his age that he has played with and gets along with. The other friends that he has are all girls and they will be going to kindergarten with him next year. He also gets to go to a speech preschool and ride a bus to get there. Very Exciting!
Sydnee is happy to be able to talk and use her words now in order to communicate. We went through a very frustrating time because she knew what she wanted, but couldn't tell us what she wanted. She is getting better and even saying three word sentences now. She knows how to get her way when she wants to with those bright baby blues and her bright smile. She is also happy because she is in Nursery. She absolutely loves it!Wisconsin has been such a perfect place for our family! Chad told me that he thought that we would still be on the west side of the Mississippi when we were thinking about moving here. He was wrong and I didn't know that until we passed it when we drove over the bridge to it. I wasn't so happy about that, but now that I am here, I can't imagine a better place for our family. Life here is lived in a lot slower pace than we have been used to. We love our ward, our neighborhood, and the schools that our kids go to. The only thing that would make it absolutely perfect is, to have all of our family move here too. I just know that they would love it too if they came here. Don't ya think? :) :)
Friday, March 20, 2009
This week's recipes March 20-26
So, I have had an overwhelming number of requests to start putting my recipes online. This blog is my family blog, but I thought that I could do this once a week. I can't guarantee that I will do it every week though. It depends on how busy my week is. I can put my recipes here, but if my husband is cooking, he is not as willing to share his recipes. Keep in mind that the recipes are not all "my " recipes. I get them from different sources and I will note the source. I figure out my menu either Thursday or Friday and go shopping every Friday, that way I don't have to go back to the store the rest of the week. It works well for me. I also usually do left overs on Thursday or Friday. I am only going to put the main dishes here. I almost always serve a fruit and vegetable with every meal and sometimes bread. FYI. Never substitute margarine for butter! Always cook with butter! So, we'll see how it goes to see if I continue next week....
Friday-Left overs
Saturday- Ham and Turkey Sandwiches
Sunday-Lasagna
Sauce:
Dry Spaghetti Mix
1# hamburger
2(6oz) tomato paste
2(60z) cans of water
onion, mushrooms, green pepper (chopped)
Cook hamburger and add veggies then everything else. Simmer for 20 minutes.
8oz. package of noodles Cooked according to package directions
1lb of shredded cheddar jack cheese (if you like it really cheesy add more)
Next Combine...
3cups cottage cheese
1/2 cup parm. cheese
2 Tbls. Parsley flakes
2 beaten eggs
2 tsp. salt
1/2tsp. pepper
Instructions:
Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.
Put a little sauce on the bottom of 9X13 pan. Put half noodles then half of the cottage cheese mixture then have of the meat mixture, then half of the cheese. Repeat. Cover with foil. It helps to spray the inside of your foil so that the cheese doesn't stick to it when it is done. Bake for 30 minutes and then let sit for 10 minutes before serving.
Monday- Cheese Enchilada Chowder
1small can green chillies
1(15oz) can black beans
1(14oz) can Italian seasoned diced tomatoes
1(10oz) pkg. frozen corn
small onion chopped
green pepper chopped
Sauce:
1(190z.) can of enchilada sauce (Roserita is my favorite, El Paso works well too)
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 c. milk
2c. shredded cheddar cheese
Toppings:
sour cream
guacamole or fresh avocados
more cheese
tortilla corn chips
Instructions:
In a 3-5 quart crock pot add all ingredients except for the sauce and toppings. In a large mixing bowl whisk together enchilada sauce and soup. Gradually add milk. Pour over ingredients in the crock pot. Stir and cover. Cook on low 6-8 hours or high 3-4 hours. Stir in cheese just before serving until cheese is melted. Ladle into bowls and top with desired toppings. We don't use spoons with this soup. We just use the Tortilla chips.
Tuesday- Beef Stroganoff (Rachel Ray)
1# beef cut in thin strips
salt and pepper
3Tbls. Butter divided
2Tbls. flour
2cups beef consomme'
2tsp. Dijon mustard
1/4c sour cream
1Tbls. olive oil
onion (Chopped)
Mushroom (Chopped)
parsley leaves
Egg noodles (cooked to pkg. directions)
Instructions:
Heat skillet and add 1Tbls. olive oil and 1 Tbls. Butter once melted add flour and whisk in consomme and thicken 1min. Stir in mustard and sour cream and thicken 2-3 min. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper. Brown meat in 1Tbls. olive oil and 1T butter and onion and mushrooms. Cook through and add sauce. Serve over noodles. My kids like me to shake a little of Parmesan cheese on top too.
Wednesday- French Toast
6 eggs
11/2c. milk
1/4c sugar
2 Tbls. Orange juice
1tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
2 dashes of cinnamon
Instructions:
Mix all together and dip the bread. Cook on heated griddle and serve w/ syrup and Strawberries.
Butter syrup
1cube butter
3/4c. sugar
1/2 buttermilk or sour milk
1tsp. baking soda
Melt butter and sugar and add buttermilk or sour milk stir until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and add the baking soda. Stir until foamy and serve.
Thursday- Sweet and Sour Pork (Lion House Recipe)
1# lean pork cut in 1/2 inch chunks
2Tbls. Cornstarch
1/4c. Soy Sauce
2Tbls. oil
1c. carrots cut in chunks
2 small onions cut in chunks
1green pepper cut in strips
1 can (20oz.) chunk pineapple drained, reserve the juice
3Tbls. cornstarch
3tbls. Brown sugar
2cups pineapple juice
1/4 c vinegar
1/3 c soy sauce
Instructions:
Mix 2 Tbls. cornstarch and 1/4 cup soy sauce and marinate for one to two hours or over night in refrigerator. Drain, reserving marinade. Stir fry meat in hot oil until evenly browned and tender, about ten minutes. Remove meat from pan. Stir fry carrots and onions in same pan using more oil if needed. Cover and cook on low heat until tender about 10 minutes. Add green pepper and pineapple. Return meat to pan, then stir in marinade.
Make the sweet and sour sauce by mixing cornstarch and sugar in small saucepan. Add pineapple juice, vinegar, and soy sauce. Cook and stir until thickened and clear. Pour over meat and vegetables; heat until flavors are blended. Serve with steamed rice, ham fried rice, or noodles.
Dessert of the Week:
Raspberry Peach Dessert
1 Large can of sliced peaches
1 (12oz) pkg. frozen raspberries
1 (3oz.) pkg raspberry jello (dry)
1 vanilla cake mix (dry)
1 cube melted butter
1-11/2c. water
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Drain the peaches and put them in the bottom of a 9X13 pan. Put the frozen raspberries on top of that. Sprinkle the dry jello mix on top of that. Put the dry cake mix on top of that. Drizzle the melted butter on top of that followed by the water. Take a fork and try to get what you can moist on top. You will not be able to get it all moist. That is okay. Bake in oven for 1 hour or until the top is golden brown . Serve with vanilla ice cream.
Friday-Left overs
Saturday- Ham and Turkey Sandwiches
Sunday-Lasagna
Sauce:
Dry Spaghetti Mix
1# hamburger
2(6oz) tomato paste
2(60z) cans of water
onion, mushrooms, green pepper (chopped)
Cook hamburger and add veggies then everything else. Simmer for 20 minutes.
8oz. package of noodles Cooked according to package directions
1lb of shredded cheddar jack cheese (if you like it really cheesy add more)
Next Combine...
3cups cottage cheese
1/2 cup parm. cheese
2 Tbls. Parsley flakes
2 beaten eggs
2 tsp. salt
1/2tsp. pepper
Instructions:
Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.
Put a little sauce on the bottom of 9X13 pan. Put half noodles then half of the cottage cheese mixture then have of the meat mixture, then half of the cheese. Repeat. Cover with foil. It helps to spray the inside of your foil so that the cheese doesn't stick to it when it is done. Bake for 30 minutes and then let sit for 10 minutes before serving.
Monday- Cheese Enchilada Chowder
1small can green chillies
1(15oz) can black beans
1(14oz) can Italian seasoned diced tomatoes
1(10oz) pkg. frozen corn
small onion chopped
green pepper chopped
Sauce:
1(190z.) can of enchilada sauce (Roserita is my favorite, El Paso works well too)
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 c. milk
2c. shredded cheddar cheese
Toppings:
sour cream
guacamole or fresh avocados
more cheese
tortilla corn chips
Instructions:
In a 3-5 quart crock pot add all ingredients except for the sauce and toppings. In a large mixing bowl whisk together enchilada sauce and soup. Gradually add milk. Pour over ingredients in the crock pot. Stir and cover. Cook on low 6-8 hours or high 3-4 hours. Stir in cheese just before serving until cheese is melted. Ladle into bowls and top with desired toppings. We don't use spoons with this soup. We just use the Tortilla chips.
Tuesday- Beef Stroganoff (Rachel Ray)
1# beef cut in thin strips
salt and pepper
3Tbls. Butter divided
2Tbls. flour
2cups beef consomme'
2tsp. Dijon mustard
1/4c sour cream
1Tbls. olive oil
onion (Chopped)
Mushroom (Chopped)
parsley leaves
Egg noodles (cooked to pkg. directions)
Instructions:
Heat skillet and add 1Tbls. olive oil and 1 Tbls. Butter once melted add flour and whisk in consomme and thicken 1min. Stir in mustard and sour cream and thicken 2-3 min. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper. Brown meat in 1Tbls. olive oil and 1T butter and onion and mushrooms. Cook through and add sauce. Serve over noodles. My kids like me to shake a little of Parmesan cheese on top too.
Wednesday- French Toast
6 eggs
11/2c. milk
1/4c sugar
2 Tbls. Orange juice
1tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
2 dashes of cinnamon
Instructions:
Mix all together and dip the bread. Cook on heated griddle and serve w/ syrup and Strawberries.
Butter syrup
1cube butter
3/4c. sugar
1/2 buttermilk or sour milk
1tsp. baking soda
Melt butter and sugar and add buttermilk or sour milk stir until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and add the baking soda. Stir until foamy and serve.
Thursday- Sweet and Sour Pork (Lion House Recipe)
1# lean pork cut in 1/2 inch chunks
2Tbls. Cornstarch
1/4c. Soy Sauce
2Tbls. oil
1c. carrots cut in chunks
2 small onions cut in chunks
1green pepper cut in strips
1 can (20oz.) chunk pineapple drained, reserve the juice
3Tbls. cornstarch
3tbls. Brown sugar
2cups pineapple juice
1/4 c vinegar
1/3 c soy sauce
Instructions:
Mix 2 Tbls. cornstarch and 1/4 cup soy sauce and marinate for one to two hours or over night in refrigerator. Drain, reserving marinade. Stir fry meat in hot oil until evenly browned and tender, about ten minutes. Remove meat from pan. Stir fry carrots and onions in same pan using more oil if needed. Cover and cook on low heat until tender about 10 minutes. Add green pepper and pineapple. Return meat to pan, then stir in marinade.
Make the sweet and sour sauce by mixing cornstarch and sugar in small saucepan. Add pineapple juice, vinegar, and soy sauce. Cook and stir until thickened and clear. Pour over meat and vegetables; heat until flavors are blended. Serve with steamed rice, ham fried rice, or noodles.
Dessert of the Week:
Raspberry Peach Dessert
1 Large can of sliced peaches
1 (12oz) pkg. frozen raspberries
1 (3oz.) pkg raspberry jello (dry)
1 vanilla cake mix (dry)
1 cube melted butter
1-11/2c. water
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Drain the peaches and put them in the bottom of a 9X13 pan. Put the frozen raspberries on top of that. Sprinkle the dry jello mix on top of that. Put the dry cake mix on top of that. Drizzle the melted butter on top of that followed by the water. Take a fork and try to get what you can moist on top. You will not be able to get it all moist. That is okay. Bake in oven for 1 hour or until the top is golden brown . Serve with vanilla ice cream.
Monday, March 9, 2009
My poor little Leopard baby!
So, my Sydnee decided that she need to try about 5 cashews and this is what happened! It happened about a month a go. I was browsing my pictures and thought that this would make a good post. It took us a week straight on benedryl to get all the hives to clear up. Isn't this just soo sad? She kept pointing to herself and saying "Owie owie." So, she is the third one of my children that is allergic to nuts. She, by far, has had the worst reaction. Nuts aren't too bad to stay away from. We really don't have them around. Except during Christmas when I do my chocolates.That is how we found out that Jorden was allergic to nuts too. He had a small bit of a pecan and broke out into hives as well. So far, Brahnson and Tori are okay with them. The rest of them are okay if they don't eat the actual nut. If the label says that it was manufactured on a plant that uses nuts then they are okay. If they do slip up and have a reaction, Benedryl has taken care of them so far.
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