Saturday, July 9, 2011

Happy Birthday Hannah!!

this is the birthday cake, a giant cupcake

The birthday girl having fun on the swing

modeling her birthday shirt and matching tutu I made for her, it has a 4 and a ladybug(go figure, right?)

This is what she asked for, a ladybug girl doll, she also got a camera, a tangled dress, some books, and a movie

she was grinning the whole time we sang to her

make a wish....

kinda blurry, but maybe Grandma got a good one :)

A little piece of heaven...

Here in Morgan, UT, we are surrounded...

by mountains....

on all sides...

it is really nice compared to home, where it is flat and not green at all :)

Yummy treats

S'more Cups


The campfire is optional--these little treats can be enjoyed anywhere.

Ingredients:

7 whole graham crackers (1 cup/250 mL finely crushed)

1/4 cup (50 mL) powdered sugar

6 tbsp (90 mL) butter, melted

4 bars (1.55 oz or 43 g each) milk chocolate candy, divided

12 large marshmallows

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Place graham crackers into a large resealable plastic bag. Finely crush into crumbs using Baker's Roller®;. Combine graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar and butter in Small Batter Bowl. Using Small Scoop, place scant scoop of crumb mixture in each cup of Deluxe Mini-Muffin Pan. Press crumbs to form shallow cups with Mini-Tart Shaper. Bake 4-5 minutes or until edges are bubbling. Meanwhile, break two of the candy bars into rectangles. Remove pan from oven; place one rectangle into each cup.

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Place graham crackers into a large resealable plastic bag. Finely crush into crumbs using Baker's Roller®;. Combine graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar and butter in Small Batter Bowl. Using Small Scoop, place scant scoop of crumb mixture in each cup of Deluxe Mini-Muffin Pan. Press crumbs to form shallow cups with Mini-Tart Shaper. Bake 4-5 minutes or until edges are bubbling. Meanwhile, break two of the candy bars into rectangles. Remove pan from oven; place one rectangle into each cup.

2. Cut marshmallows in half crosswise using Professional Shears dipped in cold water. Place one marshmallow half, cut-side down, into each cup. Return to oven 1-2 minutes or until marshmallows are just slightly softened. Remove from oven to Stackable Cooling Rack; cool 15 minutes. Carefully remove cups from pan. Cool completely.

3. Break remaining candy bars and place in (1-cup/250 mL) Prep Bowl. Microwave on HIGH 1 minute-1 1/2 minutes or until melted and smooth, stirring every 20 seconds. Dip the top of each marshmallow in melted chocolate. Turn top-side up and let stand 40 minutes-1 hour or until set.

Yield: 24 cups

Nutrients per serving: (1 cup) Calories 100, Total Fat 6 g, Saturated Fat 3.5 g, Cholesterol 10 mg, Carbohydrate 11 g, Protein 1 g, Sodium 60 mg, Fiber 0 g

Cook's Tips: Dipping the Professional Shears in cold water before cutting the marshmallows helps minimize sticking.

The time it takes the chocolate to set varies depending on weather conditions and room temperature. You can refrigerate the cups briefly until the chocolate is set; store them at room temperature.

Store the cups in a single layer in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Freezing is not recommended.

For a richer chocolate flavor, substitute dark chocolate candy bars for the milk chocolate.

The Fourth of July

Liv didn't know how to hold the flag :)

We love the U.S.A.!

Hooray!

Proud to be Americans!

Sparklers!

Cheese!

Cache Valley Cruisin'!

I took a picture of some of our favorites...

a white mustang, with a blue stripe

a mater-like truck

Bumblebee, zoom in and you can see the Autobots symbol

the delorian

Kit, from Night Rider

some monster trucks

got some Porches for my Dad :)

Herbie :)

We had a lot of fun and the boys really enjoyed it!

Swimming fun...

We got to go swimming at my cousin's community pool.

Livy is ready to dive in!

If you look closely at Caleb, you can see his purple ring around his mouth.  He had a lot of fun with a gatorade bottle, and had a bruise for a few days :0)

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Bittersweet memories...

This was the first time I had been to my Dad's grave since he passed away.

It was also the first time to see the headstone.

It was really hard to see, usually being out away from my parents it was easy to forget that he wasn't still here.  Then you see the dates on there and it hits you.  It's still really hard.  When I think about him, I have a huge ache in my heart.  I love and miss you Dad!

Raindrops keep falling on my head

It rained while we were at my Mom's house, Livy couldn't quite figure out what to do with the umbrella.

But she sure was stylin in her new rain boots!

Isn't she so cute? :)

50th Wedding celebration....

My in laws just celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary, so we got together for a temple trip, pictures, and a nice dinner.  It's hard to get 10 kids and their spouses together at one time, in one place :)

We met at the Salt Lake Temple for a session, while we were there, Nate was able to go through for my Dad, it was the most emotional session so far in my life.

The kids also put together an open house for them.  It was a great party, this was the part where they gave them the memory book that Nate put together.

We got even more pictures while we were at the open house, there were better pics taken and I will most likely post them when I get some copies.

Fun riding a train and the children's museum....

Hannah was super excited to ride the "Dinosaur train"

Dad and Caleb

Hannah and Olivia

Grandma and Grandpa and Kylan

Mom, Hannah, and Olivia

The Museum had a cute store with tiny shopping carts

Hannah shopped til she dropped :)

Kylan stayed in this section for a long time, he worked hard on this.

Building with a friend

Livy wouldn't look at me for any pics, this is what I got

There was also a play house with a cute kitchen

There were also giant legos, they were a lot of fun.

We had a great time and would definately recommend that if you are in the Salt Lake area, you take your kids to the Discovery Children's Museum.