The Leftovers

I have started a new blog.  This one is dedicated to using my meal leftovers and creating new dishes from them.  I've listed it under My Blog List, check it out.

Blessings

Logan recieved the Aaronic Priesthood today. Ellie was baptized recently. We watched as my sister was sealed for eternity to her husband. Visited with grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles, and friends. Went to "The Happiest Place on Earth". We are so blessed, and so grateful.

Update

Ok, I know it's been a seriously long time since I posted anything, but we've been busy. So here's the quick version: Sam passed away. He was our first dog as a family and we truly miss him. Brent got a job for College of Western Idaho teaching Spanish. CWI is a new community college and, you guessed it, it's in Western Idaho, so.... WE MOVED TO IDAHO!!! Star, Idaho to be exact. We ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT HERE! Long trip, my parents so graciously helped us move. We arrived just in time for Brent and I to celebrate our 11th anniversary. I got a job for St. Luke's Hospital in Meridian working on the Telemetry Unit, and once in a while helping out in the Critical Care Unit. Kids are in school, a "real" school where children are allowed to talk at lunch time and burn off energy at multiple recesses. There are plenty of class activities, school get togethers, etc. And the best part is, most of their friends from church go to school with them. Logan is in soccer and loving it (as is Brent). Ellie is in soccer now too after deciding dance was not her thing. Avery is in ballet, but wants to play soccer in the fall (I'm trying not to influence her too much toward dance, but she's just so good at it). Update on the Update Brent has been promoted and is now over the Modern Languages department at CWI. I have completed my last day at the hospital and will now be teaching Certified Nurse Assistants for CWI. This enables me to be a mostly Stay-at-Home mom. Love it!!

The "Quiet" Game

Driving in the car to pick up Brent from work.

Logan: Let's play the quiet game. 1-2-3, Go!.......Time out, I mean everyone is playing. Go!......

Avery: Mom! Logan's pointing at me!

Logan: That's how I win. Okay, go!....

Avery: Mom! Logan's saying I pinched him, but I didn't. It was Ellie.

Ellie: Nah-uh.

Avery: Yah-huh. You reached over me and you pinched him.

Ellie: (Guilty as charged)Okay. And go!....

Dad enters the car.

Logan: Time out. Hi, Dad! We're playing the quiet game.

Mom snorts.

Dad: Sounds like fun.

Logan: Okay, go!

Ellie: Dad,(something about school). Okay, go!....

No one ever wins this game.

Ellie Graduates

I know I posted last year about Ellie graduating from pre-school. Actually she was just moving to a new pre-school/day care. So this time she really did graduate and she's moving on to kindergarten this fall. Here are some pics.



This was our favorite teacher, Dan.

Trip to Idaho (Warning: Long Post)

So this trip marks the first vacation we've taken in three years (thank you nursing school). The trip started off with a 24 hour drive straight through the night and next day to Idaho from Illinois. I'd worked night shift the night before, so after sleeping all day we loaded the kids in the car around 7pm and off we went. I thought for sure they would all sleep with a bed made up in the back. Oh no! Not my kids! "She's got her feet on me." "He won't share the blanket." Etc, etc. Brent, who doesn't sleep well in the car anyway, gave it up around 2am and played video games for a couple of hours. I put on my headphones and rocked out for 12 hours.

Leaving Illinois the temp was in the 90s. Arriving in Idaho we found we had packed the wrong clothes. The temp was often in the 60s and occasionally hit 70s. It rained for the first three days we were there, then we made up for lost time.

We went to the Zoo in town.






We went to a hot springs followed by a riverside picnic.


Another day we saw some waterfalls and had another picnic. Logan really liked the falls.



On our way to the first set of falls we passed a sign directing to a hidden falls. Pam and Brent said they'd never been, so we went to find them on our way home. They were far off the beaten path. We saw a bear on the road ahead of us, but by the time we caught up, the bear was nowhere to be found. The kids had a great time hiking the trail and touching the water along the raging river.



I made them pose for pictures on some rocks.





Logan found that he could milk money out of Gramma and Grampa by doing some chores. So he did the dishes and learned to mow the lawn.


Cousins came to visit and we hit some more sites. Craters of the Moon was our first stop- an expansive lava bed full of craters and caves. It was REALLY windy out there.






We hiked a butte.




Our favorite activity was going to an amusement park. Brent and Logan went on every rollercoaster they could. Avery barely made the height requirement, but she wasn't as psyched as Logan. Ellie was still too small, but she and I had some fun together. I got lots of video, which I'm not posting. Apparently I only got pics of the carousel.



And that was our vacation! Whew, I'm tired, I need a vacation at home.

Easter

Avery greeted me at the door on Easter morning as I returned home from work and fretfully informed me that the Easter Bunny had not delivered. I handed her the letter I had found taped to the door. According to the letter, rather than hiding eggs this year, E. Bunny, had hidden their baskets instead. He included their first clue, and they were off.




The kids took turns reading the clues and seeking out the next one. Eventually they found their way to the basement where the baskets had been laid out. Happy Easter!