yesterday morning

loving her new baby cousin

admiring his tiny hands

playing with Grama Bama

giving good-bye kisses

snuggling

and more snuggling

potpourri

I bought a swimsuit for the first time in 5 years. Before that one, I can't even tell you when the last time was that I bought a swimsuit. A decade ago. Maybe two. I wore my new swimsuit to the pool and a girl swam past me and told me she liked it. Then she gave me two thumbs up.

I was doing laundry at my sister's house a few weeks ago (because I'm super helpful). I noticed a book on her husband's bedside table (because I fold the laundry on their bed, not because I was snooping around). I don't remember the exact title but it was something about "What to say when...." It gave suggestions of what to say to people in sad/difficult/stressful situations. Some of the topics were about when your loved one gets a divorce, when your loved one experiences a death in the family, when your loved one's child is homosexual, and when your loved one criticizes you about your weight. Here's my favorite though: what to say when your loved one gets a face lift. And the advice: What she wants to hear is that she looks 10 years younger so indulge her! So now you all know what to say to me when that day comes. Indulge me!

Summer days are looooooooooooooooooong. (I hate it when people add extra letters to words like that. I did it anyway. That's how the days feel. Looooooooooooooooooooong.)

I don't like taking my kids to the park. Danny's ok there. Not Cate. She enjoys climbing on those funky twisty ladders. She has no fear. She gets mad at me for standing next to the ladder so I can catch her if her foot slips. All I hear is "Me first! Me first!" as she climbs to the top.

Cate's had a few too many nights of taking a really long time to fall asleep lately. I'm just glad it's mostly Dan's job to deal with that and not mine. Danny's happy with a book, a hug and a kiss. I don't know what's going to happen when Dan goes back to school next month and I have to put her down for naps again. Never mind. I do know what's going to happen. She'll go back to crying herself to sleep at nap time. Oh, I can hardly wait.

Whenever I see an earwig in the bathroom, the first thing I do is grab a tissue and squish the crap out of it. Then I flush it down the toilet instead of throwing it in the trash, just in case I didn't squish it hard enough and it survived. Then I have a little freak out session in my head wondering if it was just up in the cabinet laying eggs on my toothbrush. I hate earwigs.

A few weeks ago at the gym, I wiped down the bike next to the one I had been riding. The old guy that was sitting next to the actual bike I had ridden was watching me do it too. I didn't figure out that I was cleaning off the wrong bike until I tried to find my headphones and water bottle. I thought it was weird that they were on the floor next to the other bike. Then I made eye contact with the guy and he made some comment about me cleaning the wrong bike. I chuckled and said something about getting it ready for the next person. It was embarrassing. I need to stop going to the gym before 7:00.

Cate wanted me to put a band-aid on a scab on her leg. I told her it was all better. She pointed to the scab and said, "Dog. Poop. Leg." Apparently, a scab on her leg means a dog pooped on her. And apparently, dog poop on her leg warrants a band-aid. (There I go talking about poop again. Sorry.)

Grandma let me take home a few slices of some of her bread last night. It's called squaw bread. I was interested so she let me have it. On the ride home, Danny wanted to taste it. I gave him some. Then he stuck some up his nose. I freaked. I closed his other nostril with my finger and told him to blow out of his nose. That's no easy task for a three-year-old. He was blowing out of his mouth at first. After a few blows, the little bread blob popped out. Then he told me there was more bread in his nose and proceeded to stick his finger up there. I freaked again because that was just going to shove it up higher. After a few blows that one came out too. When asked why he stuck blobs of bread up his nose he replied, "Because it smelled like poo."

I was watching Cupcake Wars yesterday. The guy was saying something about the cupcakes satisfying their sweet tooths. Is that really the plural of sweet tooth? Shouldn't it be sweet teeth? It sounds kind of strange either way.

I bought a bag of dill pickle flavored cashews at Target a few weeks ago. They were on sale for 84¢ (marked down from 99¢). I can't pass up a good deal. It's a good thing too because they were quite yummy.

Sometimes when people say things to me like "enjoy them when they're young" and "don't wish them older" and "they grow up so fast" and other stuff like that about my kids, I wonder if it's ok for me to just wish for them to both be fully potty trained. That's ok, right?

I'm happy that it's supposed to rain almost every day this week. I like the rain.

pioneer recipe: washboard cookies

Danny has been asking me all week for cookies. He must have been craving them something awful. I almost never buy cookies since usually what I bake tastes better than anything you buy at the store (except maybe the chocolate chip cookies at Costco...those are excellent). With Pioneer Day approaching (and it's today! Hooray!), I figured I'd search for a pioneer cookie recipe and bake those. He loves to help me. I don't love for him to help me. I let him anyway because I'm such an awesome mom.

I found some pioneer recipes and chose the washboard cookies. I considered the hardtack because it sounds more pioneer-ish. The name just isn't very appetizing and I wasn't so sure Danny would accept it as a cookie. Plus, I actually had all the ingredients for the washboard cookies in my house, even the coconut. I have no idea why I had 2 full bags of the stuff since coconut's a take-it-or-leave-it kind of thing for me. I usually choose leave it.

The coconut taste isn't very strong in these cookies. Just a hint. And the little bits hanging out of the cookies got nice and toasty and were really quite yummy.


Washboard Cookies

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1 cup shortening
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup boiling water
1 cup shredded coconut
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 1/2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

Cream together sugars and shortening and beat in eggs. Dissolve soda in boiling water and add to above mixture. Blend in coconut and vanilla. Sift together flour, salt, baking powder, and blend into mixture. Drop by spoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet and flatten with fork. Bake at 375° for 15 minutes.

Don't bake yours for 15 minutes. It's too long. I burned the bottoms of some by making that mistake. Go for 12-13 instead.

I forgot to flatten a batch and they turned out cakier than the others that got flattened. I liked them a little better puffy.

I'm not a member of the DUP yet, but with the skills to bake a mean washboard cookie, I think I certainly should be.

If you're in Utah (or even if you're not) and you're looking for a good pioneer recipe to make to celebrate this day, try these cookies. They're good, even if there's not a speck of chocolate in them.

introducing...

my newest nephew


born at 9:15 this morning

added to the list of family members born on the 21st
including
his Grama Bama
his cousin Justin
his Aunt Jenny
his cousin Cate
his brother Kris
and
his cousin Abby

7 pounds 13 ounces
20 inches long

Congratulations to Judy, Dave, Jarrett and Kris!

He's a keeper!

ten things I really really want

1. to know why Danny does things like this to his sister's toys. What is going on in his little head?

2. a couple of bake even strips so the next time I make a flag cake, the layers don't look like I asked my two-year-old to cut them for me.

3. for my sister to go ahead and birth that baby! Sheesh. Danny was talking to me about it yesterday. He thinks they're going to name him either Knuckles or Nick. Then he asked me how Judy's going to get that baby out. I told him the doctors were going to help her. Usually that's enough and he moves on. Not this time. Double sheesh.

4. a few of these felt rock candies. I think they are just adorable. I have no need for them. I just want them. I don't even like real rock candy but these are too cute. I could just prop them up on my dresser and look at them every day.

5. raisins. I ran out a few days ago. I've been to Costco twice since then. Why are there no raisins for sale at Costco? Am I crazy? Am I missing something? I tried to improvise and make my oatmeal semi-edible by using mini chocolate chips. It sounded good in my head. It didn't taste good in the bowl. I want raisins.

6. to move to Santa Cruz. Here's the weather this week where I live:

and here's the weather in Santa Cruz. During the second to last week of July. JULY!

7. one more of the Nutella Gooey Butter Cookies I made on Sunday afternoon. I only ate one. I want to eat one more. I can't though because I gave most of them away. That's how I exercise self control. I made Dan's extra yummy by spreading a glob of Nutella on top. Then I contemplated eating the rest of the Nutella in the jar. I didn't though. I spread it on some graham crackers and fed it to the nephews yesterday.

8. to put my kids to bed at 7:30 every night. I did it last night. Danny went right to sleep. Cate stayed awake talking to her stuffed animals for two hours (that's after Dan rocked her for about a half hour and then put her in her crib, much to her dismay). I almost didn't know what to do with myself with so much free time before bed. It was beautiful...up until the part where Danny woke up at 4:49 this morning, bright-eyed and ready for the day.

9. to have the time and patience to make these Minnie Mouse silhouette cakepops for my mother-in-law. It's her birthday on Friday. She likes Minnie Mouse. I think she'd love these. I have no idea where to find heart shaped sprinkles in July anyway. Oh, well. It's the thought that counts.

10. to buy some school supplies. I saw them on display at Walmart last week. I love school supplies. Glue for 25¢? I love it. I just wish I had a kid going to school to make it worth the effort. Maybe I'll go to Walmart tomorrow and just browse the school supplies...right after I find me some raisins.

at the carnival

Danny has been talking a lot about the carnival lately. He gets paper and cuts little pieces to use as tickets. He draws things on paper that are supposed to resemble things found at a carnival. So last weekend we took him to the carnival.

He was excited. As soon as he got out of the truck, he stood in this ditch and told me to take his picture. So I did. I love that my little boy recognizes a good photo op when he sees one.


Cate wanted to ride the "horsies" so the first ride we went on was the carousel. She wasn't so sure about it after she actually got on one. It seemed to take forever to get it loaded up with people. I was afraid she was going to change her mind. Check out Danny's face. Maybe he wasn't so sure about it either.

I love his face in this one...


and in this one too.


Cate warmed up to it once the horses started moving up and down. I'm not so sure about Danny. Sorry about the blur. That's the kind of pictures you get when you don't have a fancy schmancy camera that is big enough to warrant some kind of neck strap, a camera bag and lenses that actually come on and off (instead of one lens that still can't zoom properly because there's sand in it from the banks of the Green River).


Danny rode the flying saucers all by himself. I was a tad bit freaked out by it since that "seat belt" looks like it wasn't prepared to hold anything in, much less a three-year-old who is perfectly capable of standing up while the saucer was off the ground. I let him go anyway. If I thought that thing would have held me (and been able to lift off the ground while holding me) I would have gotten in with him.


He had fun. The kid who sat beside him looked a little bit ticked off that he had to ride with someone else.

Then there was the roller coaster shaped like a caterpillar. Danny rode that while I rode the carousel with Cate again. I had the camera in my bag. I really wish I had given it to Dan sooner. From where I was on the carousel, I could see Danny every so often. He was in the very last seat. Sometimes that's the bumpiest seat on a roller coaster. I think that held true for the caterpillar. The looks on his face were priceless. He didn't crack a smile. He just held on and let that thing whip him around and up and down.

Here he is at the very end when it was slowing down.


And then a nice little wave and a fake smile when it had come to a complete stop. I'm thinking we should have saved the caterpillar for the last ride. It kind of ruined him for the rest of our stay at the carnival. He said the roller coaster was not fun. He was not excited to ride anything else after it. We'll keep trying though. That kid is going to be riding Goliath, Ghostrider and Superman with me someday whether he likes it or not.


I made Dan shove his body into the train to take a ride with Cate. He looks excited, right? He certainly was. Cate's hiding on the other side of him.


She loved it. Looks like Dan did too (eventually).


I made Danny ride the train too. He was not happy about it. After that, we left the carnival and headed for home. We stopped and got the kids ice cream cones at Sonic. It's pretty blurry but those cones were ginormous. Cate did a good job of getting more ice cream on her face than in it.


See, we really do get out of the house and do fun things together as a family once in a while.


p.s. It was brought to my attention recently that writing about puke, boogers and poop is graphic. Sorry about that. Hopefully these carnival highlights are more acceptable. At least all I did was write about puke, boogers and poop. I could have posted the picture of Cate that I took right after she sneezed and ended up with a big booger bubble on her upper lip. Now that's graphic.

the things we do for love

As I was cleaning off the big chunks of puke from Cate's blankets this morning (thanks to a midnight puke session in her room), I wondered to myself why don't we have a dog in our family like everyone else because a dog might just eat these crusty chunks of hot dog, olives and curdled milk so I don't have to scrape them off these blankets before I wash them.

Then I remembered very quickly that we don't have a family dog because I don't like dogs. I'm scared of most of them. They're beasts. They eat things they aren't supposed to, like squirrels, shoes, small children and poop.

So I quickly then thought to myself where's Maggie (my sister's dog) when I need her? she would eat these crusty chunks of puke off this blanket for me so that I don't have to scrape them off with a paper towel and smell them and feel their texture through the paper towel. oh, the smell.

Then I remembered very quickly that Cate is scared of Maggie (me too). Plus, Maggie's probably in her own back yard right now eating her own poop.

So I finished cleaning off the blankets and put them in the wash, along with the jammies Cate was wearing last night and a few unfortunate stuffed animals that got in the path of the puke. And I thought to myself, the things I do for love. Sheesh. I hope she'll thank me for this some day. She'll thank me for it, right?

Then I went into my bedroom and noticed cat puke on the carpet. Seriously. I wished again for Maggie to be here so I wouldn't have to clean it. She's not here so I cleaned it myself. I did that for love too, but not for the love of the cats. Just for the love of Dan, so he wouldn't step in it.

A few minutes later I took Cate outside with me to water my flowers. She was a good little helper, filling up her watering can and spilling water all over the sidewalk. As she came over for a refill, she bent down next to me and sneezed. Snot came out of her nose and without missing a beat, I used the bottom of the shirt I was wearing (part of my pajama ensemble) to wipe it off her face. That was love, people. I could have used the hem of her nightgown to wipe it but I didn't. My first thought was to sacrifice my own shirt for her.

What kind of mother cleans puke chunks and boogers without thinking of herself? Me, that's who. The same kind of mother who kisses her daughter's boogers.



The things I do for love.

Now, where's my award?

she's with child

{on June 21st, one month before the due date}

This is Judy.
She's my sister.
I'm seven years older than her.
In our adult lives, I've always been able to fit her shoes.
Winter coat.
Sweaters maybe.
Never pants.
Sometimes shirts, but not usually.

But now.
I weigh 9 pounds less than my drivers license says and 5 pounds less than I did at the end of forty by forty.
Go ahead. You can hate me.
And my pretty much 9 months pregnant sister is wearing the pants I fit into 6 months ago.
My old pants are now her maternity pants.

How's that for making me feel like a Fatty McFattington?

She says the butts of my too-big-for-me-now pants are too big for her (not my fault she's got no junk in her trunk).

That baby's coming out any day now. Dan's guess is Saturday night, just so we can all be extra tired for church on Sunday morning.

Whenever he comes, I know my newest nephew is going to be a cutie. How could he not?

And I'm pretty sure Judy won't be needing my fat pants much longer. Any takers?

How can you resist an offer like that?

a little q and a

Does this mustache make my nose look fat?

The questions are real. I can't make this stuff up, people.*


What happens if you drink pee? from Danny, while he was sitting on the toilet

Why does Han Solo put Luke inside the animal? from Danny, because he's always thinking about Star Wars

If I was a big monster that was my mom's kid, what would you do? from Kris, and I have no idea what I would do

If I had four hands, what would you do? from Kris, because he's always thinking too, just not always about Star Wars

Remember when you caught my puke in your hands? from Danny, a few days after I caught his puke in my hands at our favorite Mexican restaurant

Did my mom fart a lot when she was a little girl? from Jarrett, and I can't really remember how much his mom farted when she was a little girl

Am I Cate's favorite human? from Jarrett, he thinks very highly of himself

Cousins can't marry each other, right? from Kris, maybe he needs to move to Alabama with Grama Bama


And finally, a little q and a conversation I had with Danny recently.

Why you got a lot of chocolate on your nose?

They're called freckles.

Pickles? Why they called pickles?



*Ok. So I made up the question about the mustaches. The rest of them really happened.

the musical fruit

I wonder if this post is going to show up in someone's Google search for the little poem about eating beans and toots. That would be funny.

I wonder if anyone ever searches Google looking for the little poem about eating beans and toots. Is there anyone who doesn't already have it memorized?

Anyway, here's the recipe for my famous bean dip. That's the name of it on the recipe I was given by Karen Peterson many years ago. I don't like that name for this dip though. It makes me think of that bean dip you find in a jar on the shelf by the chips at the grocery store, the brownish stuff that looks like smooshed beans. This dip isn't anything like that. Maybe The Musical Fruit Dip would be a better name for it. That makes it sound fruity though. Whatever.

I made this dip for the baby blessing luncheon a few Sundays ago. I also made it for Judy's baby shower this weekend. It's good stuff (except if you choose to add green onions because onions are gross and they ruin everything).

Bean Dip

2 green peppers
1 can black-eyed peas
1 can black beans
1 can shoepeg corn
1 package Italian dressing mix (you'll need oil and vinegar to make it)
2 green onions

Rinse and drain the beans, black-eyed peas and corn. Place in a bowl.
Dice the peppers. Add to the bean mix.
Chop the green onions. Add to the bowl.
Mix the dressing according to the package.
Pour the dressing over everthing in the bowl and stir. Refrigerate overnight to make it really yummy.
Serve with tortilla chips. My favorite are the ones flavored with lime. Corn chips are quite tasty with it too.

* * * * * * * *

I buy the six pack of peppers from Costco. It comes with two red, two yellow and two orange. I use one of each because they taste good. And because they're pretty. If I double the recipe, I also add one green bell pepper. If you're doing the math, when I make a single recipe I use 3 peppers. When I double it, I use 4. Maybe I'm the one not doing the math but that's what I do. I've never heard anyone complain about it either.

I leave out the onions because onions are gross. That's why I add the green pepper. It adds a pretty color without the yucky taste of green onions.

Don't make the mistake of buying black-eyed peas with bacon. I did that once. Chunks of bacon inside a can of black-eyed peas is not a pretty sight, especially the bits of bacon fat. Gag. I picked out the bacon and served it anyway. My guests were none the wiser.

I use Good Seasons Italian dressing mix. The original recipe says to not use the Zesty flavor. I have no idea why. I haven't been brave enough to do it anyway to find out for myself. Maybe some day.

Will one of you be daring and go Zesty and let me know how it tastes?

Thanks.

three sisters and a mom

nine on the ninth

took Cate to the doctor for her 2 year check-up
for the first time in her entire life, she's above the 50th percentile in all 3 categories
85th for weight (30 pounds)
76th for height (almost 35 inches)
70th for the circumference of her big ol' noggin

went to Costco with Grama Bama
saw this parked a few cars down

bought some swirly bread at the bakery on Main Street
totally unnecessary but I simply had to have it

collected more rolly pollies
they don't stand a chance of escaping with Cate on the hunt

spent time with my sister
flew in from Vermont last night

made a bunch of bean/corn/pepper dippy stuff
ruined an entire batch by putting onions in it just because other people might like to eat it that way

hung out with my future son-in-law
simply adorable

hosed down the front of the house
and then it rained

bribed this kid with a capri sun if he'd smile for the picture
it worked

flashback on a friday

Six years ago today, Dan went to the hospital to meet nephew number six.

Happy birthday, Ricky!

I'm sending Dan and Danny to visit Ricky and his family today.
Here's the birthday present they're bringing along with them.



I bought this Star Wars Trouble game many months ago.
I hid it under my bed so Danny wouldn't see it.
He found it. He wanted to keep it for himself.

I can't say that I blame him though.
Every time you pop the popper thingee, R2D2 makes little beepy R2D2 noises.
It's terribly cute.

I hope Ricky loves it.
I know Danny does.

the fifth of july

playing dress up

walking to the yellow park

finding an unopened box of poppers on the way

walking home from the yellow park

spending time with Uncle Harold
(he's a great great uncle to Cate)

making a mud potion

turning over rocks in search of rolly pollies

playing hopscotch with neighbor friends

relaxing in the shade

making silly faces

swimming in the back yard

posing for a picture

enjoying summer

the weekend in pictures

Dan and Danny went camping on Thursday (not technically the weekend but they spent the night and came home Friday and that is the weekend so it counts). It was Danny's second time sleeping away from home without me (the first time was the night I was at the hospital birthing his baby sister). He had a good time and actually survived the night so it's all good. I think he was a little disappointed that there were no bears in the caves and tunnels they were exploring. Maybe next time.


Grama Bama flew into town on Friday afternoon. We quickly hooked her up with a tall glass of diet soda with ice and kept the refills flowing. It's good to have here back where she belongs.


Cate kept the kisses flowing. Good grief, I have an adorable little girl.


I made oodles of cupcakes for the Hunsaker Clan's family outing at Judy's house.


Good grief, I have a handsome husband.


Here's a closer look at Cate's hair. I am thrilled beyond words that her hair is finally long enough to be brushed all the way up from the sides and made into two little piggies. Thrilled I tell you. I have been looking forward to this since we found out we were expecting a girl.


Have I mentioned lately that I have an adorable little girl? Well, I do. It's worth repeating.


I made a flag cake for the Hunsaker Clan's family outing to celebrate my sister's husband's sister's birthday. I'll be making this again. I need to perfect my cake making skills. Next time, the blue needs to be thicker and the red and white layers need to be cut in half a titch more evenly. They look like I asked my three-year-old to cut them for me.


Here's the inside. The layers are just pathetic. I can't believe I'm even showing this.


My adorable little daughter (who is growing up around a bunch of little boys...not that there's anything wrong with that) worked on her skateboarding skills after dinner.


Danny played with cousin Ethan (who flew in with Grama Bama).


Cate continued to perfect her skateboarding skills.


I tried to get a decent picture of my kids. It was windy. Check out Cate's bangs. She didn't quite understand me when I told her to close her mouth. We'll work on that.


Judy was kind enough to attempt to take a family picture for me. This is the best one of me so I picked it to share. Here are my feelings about it (since that's what Uncle Tim says blogs are good for...sharing your feelings).

Dan is handsome. Cate is cute. Danny is adorable.

I have lots of wrinkles, big bags under my eyes and rolls of blubber under that t-shirt. I need braces and some major teeth whitening. I hate my hair.

Despite all that, we're a pretty good looking family.


Today I woke up at 5:40 to make another cake for another family outing. We drove to Hooper for a baby blessing and then lunch in Dan's sister's backyard. All of it was lovely. I took exactly zero pictures. It's a shame too because I had been planning our coordinating red, white and blue outfits for well over a month.

Maybe I'll get a peek at the ones the real live photographer snapped of us, complete with mustard on my shirt, raspberry stains on Cate's dress and Danny's sleeve that he used as a napkin.

I'm pretty sure our family picture was taken before the bird pooped on my shoulder. It's a good thing too. Slimy grayish black was not part of our coordinating color scheme for the day.