Blue Eyes

Garrett came home with a Great Dane puppy yesterday. This dog has the bluest eyes...so we decided to name him Blue.

He is going to be huge when full grown. Blue is only 1 month old. Alex loves to hold him over her shoulder and put him to sleep. In a few months she won't be able to lift this dog.

Real Moms Love to Eat

 It is true...who doesn't like to eat? I know all of us moms out there are guilty of hiding that mug of hot cocoa behind the cook book while making dinner or stashing that candy bar in your sock drawer and sneaking a piece here and there without your kids noticing.  I am here to tell you that you need not be ashamed of the fact that you LOVE to eat. We all do. I've found a book that is for us Beth Aldrich’s book, Real Moms Love to Eat and Food Affairiates.
I believe that by making all things from scratch will save you calories and tons of preservatives, therefore, making your sweet tooth not as guilty to satisfy. Instead of running to the store for a box of Oreos, try making them yourself.
By eating six times a day you will keep your metabolism boosted and constantly working. That is good. We need our metabolism working at its best and this will help accomplish that. I've recently read that by starting your day with a large glass of lemon water will get your metabolism off to a great start and also by saving your glass of water for the END of your meal will also help in aiding digestion. Instead of diluting your digestive acids throughout the meal, save that drink for the end.
Whole food are another great way to taste on the lips without seeing it on the hip. Whole food are great for the whole family and it is a wonderful way to start your kids onto a healthy way of living. Don't get me wrong, I am a lover of all things DESSERT and I will treat myself now and then but I do have a few rules to abide by in doing so; 1. It has to be made from scratch. 2. If possible, substitute sugar for Agave Nectar or honey. 3. Try to use at least half whole wheat flour.
Real moms really do love to eat, so don't be ashamed. Pull out your aprons and start cooking. This book has great ideas and recipes for success in the kitchen and discusses "how to Conduct a Love Affair with Food, Lose Weight and Feel Fabulous (Penguin Books, NAL, January, 2022). This is a how-to book about learning to love and savor the foods that YOU like to eat, not foods on some crazy diet plan."

“I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Beth Aldrich - Real Moms Love to Eat blogging program, for a chance to get 3,000 My SocialMoms Rewards points. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”

Make your own Art Supplies

This is my first published article I wrote for Social Moms.com. Enjoy!

Make your own Art Supplies
Sometimes it’s more fun, feasible, and less-expensive to make your own art supplies, rather than running to the local store and stocking up again when your kids use the last bit of finger paint. Recently I hosted four little boys at my house and had to rely on my make-it-from-scratch skills. I was able to whip up homemade art supplies (some that are even edible) and they were a hit. These art supplies recipes can be made in only a few minutes, and you can get your children involved:

Edible Finger Paint

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Ingredients:

• 3 T sugar
• 1/2 C cornstarch (or flour)
• 2 C cold water
• Food coloring
• Blank paper

Directions:
Mix sugar and cornstarch together in a sauce pan. Add cold water and combine with a whisk. Cook on medium heat until the mixture thickens to a thin pudding consistency. I recommend stopping the cooking process a little before it’s the consistency you’d like because it thickens upon standing. Once removed from heat, COOL and then separate into bowls and color as desired. Pass out the paper and let the kids express their artistic abilities with their fingers and hands.
Another fun way to enjoy finger painting with your kids is during bath time. All you need are a few simple ingredients.

Bath Time Art

Ingredients:

• 1 can of shaving cream
• Food coloring
• Muffin tin
• Paint brush (optional)

Directions:
Spray the shaving cream into a bowl and mix with food coloring. Repeat in a separate bowl for each color. Separate the different colors of shaving cream into a muffin tin and it becomes a palate of fun for the bath. Include a paint brush or just use your fingers and let your kids be creative on your bathtub walls. The best part is it rinses off. Your children will want to spend hours in the tub with this idea.

Peanut Butter play dough

Ingredients:

• 1 C creamy peanut butter
• 2 C powdered sugar
• 1/2 C honey

Directions:
Mix either by hand or with the use of a stand mixer. Let your kids get in on the fun by using their hands. This is another great idea for you and your kids to have fun in the kitchen. The results are fun to play with and taste great too!

Her 1st

My baby is one year today. I remember the day she was born very vividly. I was extremely stressed out because EVERYONE had left town. My in-laws went to move Berkley from Arizona...Garrett had to run to El Paso to get my mom at the airport...my Doctor was out of town...and my "back-up" for the delivery room was with her mom and out of town as well.

I was left totally alone that day and Tori had two performances for a school play to top it off. I knew this baby was coming that day! No one believed me...and I was right! She came...and didn't mess around. She barely held on long enough for me to make it to the hospital and for Garrett to get back into town. Aunt Carol and Uncle Fred really stepped up and had a back-up plan ready to go for me. They were great but thankfully Garrett was able to get there...in the nick of time!

Adalyn Aspen was born...two pushes later. The Doctor barely had enough time to get his gloves on and catch her!

We love this girl. And so we celebrate with our traditional morning of presents and CAKE!

Happy Birthday my sweet little girl!

Adult Halloween Party II

Tom and Heather were the rock'n couple from the 80's.

Jeni and Cade...the nun and the nerd.

Quin and Shanell our couple from the 60's.

Tiffany and Travis...need I say more? Go Cougars!

Berkley and Margo went as Napoleon Dynamite and his girlfriend.

Garrett and I went Gothic. You can't see Garrett's "guy-liner" or all our piercings but they are there!

Greg and Kami were our Cowboy and Nurse. 

Randall...you decide!

Trent and Anne are representing the Taliban.

My kids' first time EVER door-to-door trick-or-treating! They got the concept down really fast and Benton thanked everyone about 14 times as he walked away with a new candy. It was fun to celebrate this holiday with family and friends. We had a great weekend.

Daddy and Adalyn.

Our spooky trick-or-treating cousins with all their loot.

You can help

I would like to reach out to you today and ask for your help with a campaign LDS Philanthropies has set up with the LDS Business College for the month of November. LDS Philanthropies has asked nearly 100 mommy bloggers to begin spreading the word about the necessity of scholarships for single mothers. What I'm asking is if you would go to my friend's blog HERE to read about the project, grab the widget and put it on your blog, and even write a short blurb about the initiative, then contact five of your favorite bloggers and ask them to do the same. If all of us will do this, our reach will be exponential and we can change the lives of scores of women who are struggling to work at jobs which offer no  advancement while caring for their children. We can help give hope and a bright future to these wonderful women!

So here's how you can help. Click the "GIVE" button on the above widget and donate via Paypal or credit card. Even just a little bit helps. A lot helps even more.

Thank you for your support!

Adult Halloween Party

We had our Annual "Young Married's" Halloween Party.

This year we did a progressive dinner by hayride.

It was so much fun.

We started out drinking hot apple cider while being driven to our first stop for potato soup in bread bowls.

The next stop was for taco salad, then on to dessert and games.

We all had a great time.

It is so fun because everyone participates and dresses up!

This year Garrett and I went as Jack and Jill.

Here we have Snooki and Ronnie from Jersey Shore

The personal trainer and his client.

The Cave Man and the Progressive Insurance Sales Women

The Dentist and his patient and the spooky couple.

The Jehovah's witnesses

The football player and the cheerleader

 "A day at the spa." The client and her masseuse.