Stagecoach 2010

Last weekend we went out to Indio and enjoyed the Stagecoach country music festival. We got to see Jason Aldean (my daughter's favorite), Billy Currington, Phil Vassar, Toby Keith, Brooks & Dunn, Sugarland (Hubby's favorite) and Keith Urban. We had a fab time and can't wait to go again next year.

Not Quite "High" Enough

This year is the first year that my little darling is participating in the youth track & field program. She is LOVING it. I have to say, I was a little choked up to see her run with the other kids and be able to keep up and even beat some of them (who are all at least a year older). It turned into a bit of comedy of errors though to see her barrel though the hurdles, without even attempting to jump over then and then, well, let's just say she's not quite big enough for high jump...

Breakfast on the Boat

Yesterday we had a great morning. We headed out first thing on the boat and there was no one else on the water but us. It was so warm that we slathered on sunscreen to keep from burning even! Since it was so early, we hadn't even had breakfast yet. Thus, we made a quick stop at Mc-D's and ate on the boat. By 10 AM it started to get a little windy but we had already been on the lake for a couple hours so were ready to move on to other things and we took off for other adventures. What a great way to start our day.

What's So Great About the Ponies?

We are often asked that very question from people who hear that we spent the day at Santa Anita Park with the kids. They no doubt picture a bunch of over-age male spectators, smoking, drinking and cussing at their losing fillies. Well, in our experience, a day at the races is quite far from that image. Although there is a playground on the infield, we have never taken the kids there. Why would we? They already have a spectacular time. The things that they like the best are going to watch the horses line up before their races, cheering on "their" horses (chosen, no doubt, based on the number or color of the jersey), eating snacks, enjoying the sunshine, and getting a full day of undivided attention from Mommy and Daddy. By far, their favorite part is playing on the grass with us around the fountain outside the stadium between races. Here's some shots from our last trip...

Mayday

Uh oh.

The summer squash didn't like being put back outside. Neither did the basil. I guess it's a bit cold out there at night still. Do you think my little man will notice if I get new seeds and replant them? Rats.

On a brighter note, today we have about 10 bean sprouts and at least 10 pea sprouts popping up. I may need to get a bigger pot.

What to Make

YES. I made this.

Yes, the queen of setting the smoke alarm off to let me know that dinner is ready MADE THIS!
Okay, to be fair, I still set off the smoke alarm but that's because the ooey gooey goodness overflowed the pan and dripped on the bottom of the oven (silly me for not putting in a cookie sheet to catch drippings). It was totally - TOTALLY worth the 2 minute clean up.

This recipe was pretty easy (if you have a bread machine) and SO SO SO delicious. I'm talkin' "I made my hubby take over half of it to work just so I wouldn't eat it all" delicious. It's not exactly her recipe but I got the idea from the Pioneer Woman, she's amazing. Here's what to do:

Mix water, milk, egg, flour, sugar, salt, butter, cinnamon & yeast in your bread machine on the dough setting. "That sounds like a recipe for doughnuts" you say? Yep, it was. I did this part last night and just covered it and kept it in the fridge to make this morning.

Then this morning I woke up and rolled the dough out, spread out some butter on it then sprinkled it with a mix of cinnamon sugar. Then I rolled the dough and cut it to make cinnamon rolls. Next I melted a stick of butter (I never said it was GOOD for you), 1.5c brown sugar, 1T corn syrup and 2T of cream then poured it into a cake pan. I sprinkled some diced green apple on the syrup and topped it off with the rolls of cinnamon dough. After about 20 minutes in the oven I took it out, inverted it onto a plate and voila!

Here's hoping that today your ooey gooey goodness runs over like mine has~

Garden Update

We currently have 10 peas sprouts, five bean sprouts and three summer squash sprouts. All of those pots are starting to show green! Now if I could just coerce up the carrots and flowers....

A Princess Party

Last Saturday we had approximately 50 people over to our castle to help us celebrate our little princess turning FOUR! It was a very fun day and the kids had a great time. Thank you everyone for coming~

A Quiet Easter Morning at Home

Yesterday morning we woke up with no where to go. No one to call. Nothing pressing that HAD to be done. What a nice start to a quiet family Easter at home. The kiddos came in and crawled all over us in bed and we snuggled and cuddled a bit before Daddy headed down the stairs to make us all some waffles. After breakfast we all headed outside where it appears a rabbit had come to hide some eggs for the kids (and daddy) to find. There were 25 blue ones for a little boy, 35 pink ones for a little girl, and 45 green ones for the 30-something peter pan in our house. Much to her delight, and daddy's chagrin, my sweet daughter won the hunt by finding all of her eggs first. Her brother somehow lost two eggs (I'm guessing they were eaten) so we're not sure when he finally had all of his, but Daddy brought up the rear by finding his last egg after everyone else. What a very fun morning full of warm and cozy memories. I am so very thankful for our many blessings and the ability to spend days like this with such wonderful people.

Family Easter

We had a nice time yesterday visiting with our family down in Desert Hot Springs. Although the wind picked up later in the afternoon, the weather in the mid-morning and for our egg hunt was perfect. For those of you reading this from up north, feel free to come visit our beautiful sunshine any time.

Thank you Grandma Tanyon for having us all over to spend a day together. We had a great time.

What to Make

This is an Easter-style recipe: HOT CROSS BUNS!

I got the idea from The Pioneer Woman's Website. I modified the recipe for my bread maker and they turned out nicely. It was rather easy to do. Here's what you do:

1) Make cinnamon roll dough (sweet bread) in the bread machine, which requires some water, salt, sugar, flour, and egg.
2) Roll out the dough as you would for cinnamon rolls and sprinkle some cinnamon sugar and raisins over the dough then fold it in. Repeat this step twice.
3) Pull off bits of dough and roll them into balls then let them rise for 30 minutes.
4) Brush the risen dough with a wash of milk & egg white.
5) Bake the rolls for 16 minutes or so until golden brown.
6) Pipe frosting on top of them in the shape of a cross.

I made these the night before our family Easter party. I think if I were to do these again I would make a glaze to go over the whole roll and then pipe on thicker frosting or a colored frosting for the cross. The rolls were kind of plain without some kind of glaze. The flavor and texture were both good though and if eaten right out of the oven they would have been much better I am sure.

The Familliar Smell

There are few things in this world that are more recognizable of a smell than fresh cut grass or chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven. One of those things is the smell of dying eggs for Easter, more specifically, the vinegar used to help dye the eggs. All year long when I cook and a recipe calls for vinegar, I get comments from my hubby about the smell and how he thinks of Easter with just one whiff. Well, we're instilling that memory in our kiddos too. They had a great time making Easter eggs with Daddy tonight.

We Have Sprouts!

The peas have sprouted - The peas have SPROUTED!
Okay, there's only one, but it's sticking up out of the dirt and promises that it's friends will be here soon. If you look VERY close at the bottom of the picture in the center of the rectangular pot, there's a little green sprout. Look very VERY close....

Happy 4th Birthday Sweetheart

I know it's totally cliche to say, but I just can't believe it...where did the time go?

Can't We All Just Get Along?

Uncle seems to have finally found a common interest with my little man. They could even be heard laughing back and forth with each other. After a week of him avoiding the big burly guy, my son realized that he and his uncle both share an affinity for food. They sat down and broke bread together and all was right with the world if only for a moment. Now if they would just sit down to watch Dog the Bounty Hunter together then they might become inseparable.

Go Play Outside!

Yesterday we went down to the river to look for neat bugs and sticks and rocks with the kiddos. It was a beautiful day for a hike and we got to see lots of neat sights along the way. Of course, the kids' favorite part was stopping for snacks on our hike but my favorite part was seeing the kids get out and enjoy the day without interruption from phones or computers or televisions. Just good 'ol fashioned playing outside. Priceless.

Hanging on the Boat

Since Aunti and family are all visiting for the week, we took the boat out for a little cruise on the lake. It was a bit windy, but a nice day in general. My nieces had some fun getting to drive around since there were virtually no other boats on the water. We even got some fishing in and my little princess caught her first trout on her new fishing pole. She later reasoned with me that must have been a girl fish because it liked the princess fishing pole! I knew I put those stickers and that bling on there for a reason...

A Night With Daddy

So, at some point last month, I was unable to get to the gym in the morning so when my hubby got home I asked him if I could go after dinner while he watched the kiddos. He agreed and I got a good workout that night. The best part of the night however, was coming home to a quiet (albeit rather messy) house and finding this on my bed:

Looking for Sunshine

In hopes of harnessing any rays of sunshine that might be falling our way, the kids and I have planted a small "garden" of vegetables. Okay, so we can't plant it in the ground, you saw what happened LAST summer with those pesky ground squirrels, but we planted them in several pots and put them up on the deck. Right now they're just a bunch of pots of dirt, so no pictures yet, but there hopefully will be some coming soon. On a related note, since I moved the roses off of the threshold to the deck and further up away from the dirt they have quadrupled in size, which is saying something since the stupid ground squirrels ate every darn leaf off of them last fall. We might even see flowers this year if I can keep them away long enough.

Has it Only Been 2 Days?

We all miss you so much already Daddy. We hope you're having a fun time in Mexico but can't wait to see you soon.

Happy Birthday Nana

We hope you're enjoying Mexico and getting spoiled on your big day.Love, 'stinky-britches' and 'miss sassy-pants'

Horsing Around

We took a short day trip to Santa Anita last weekend to watch the ponies run. Some friends joined us with their kids and we spent the afternoon enjoying ourselves while we were making bad choices on horses. Here's a few tips about betting the ponies in Santa Anita:
1) Don't take our advice on picks
2) Don't trust "Bob" either. His 'expertise' sheet is worthless.
3) If your husbands offer to take the kids to "see the horses", make sure to clarify (see below), just in case security decides to escort them out of the park (ours, luckily, avoided notice).
4) Bring a lawn chair, some snacks and prepare to have a good time whether you win or not.

Happy Birthday Old Man

Happy "more than 1/3 of a century old" birthday! Luckily, you get to ACT as old as you want. We all love you so much. You keep reminding us (especially Mommy) that it's not about what you get accomplished, but how much FUN you have doing it. We love you very much~

Snapshots in My Brain

I'm not sure what it was, either a movie or some television show I saw recently, but there was the best dialog about how these two people (a man and wife) took 'snapshots in their brains' of things that they saw and wanted to remember forever. It really captured that feeling I've been having for the last, oh, 8 years or so. I will see something and want to take a picture of it so that I can carry it with me forever but either I don't have my camera or didn't get it quite how I wanted to remember it. Luckily, sometimes it turns out that I DO get the picture on film (or jpg) so that my now-failing brain can look back in my scrapbook (assuming I get them updated) and fill in those blanks that may be missing from my brain and I can share the shots with our friends. I got one of those good ones on jpg recently. We went down to the beach in Santa Monica while on a business trip in LA. We had stopped to get the kids their very first ever corn dogs and walk in the sand. While down there, the sun was perfect, the ocean was glistening, there were seagulls gliding along the crests of the waves, there were even a few select sailboats far out in the water to add atmosphere. We had a wonderful afternoon together and there's a couple of the snapshots from my brain that I can now share with all of you.

Happy Kiss-Your-Honey Day!

I got a great gift from my valentines this morning. I got time all to myself to go to the gym - no kids in tow, no time schedule to be home. Then I went to church and got all heart-happy only to have it increased exponentially when I got home.

I walked onto the deck when I arrived home and could smell the yummy ribs my honey was cooking for us for lunch and my 3-year-old gave me a little suspicious grin that turned into shock when her brother came running from the house with a GIGANTIC heart that they had decorated for me. His sister quickly burst out "NO! That was supposed to be a SURPRISE!" and daddy added in "Buddy, you were supposed to leave it hidden and we were going to play 'hotter/colder' with Mommy until she found it". My little guy promptly returned to the house with it and re-hid it.

It was not to last however because as I wandered into the house with the other two, he ran and took it from it's hiding place (thus, revealing it to me) and ran to me to give it to me again. He was just so proud and excited for it that keeping it hidden simply wasn't an option. I thanked him (and his sister) profusely and closely inspected all of their beautiful artwork. My toddlers are awesome valentines (and so is their Daddy).

My Three Kids

"Wait one gosh darn moment!" I hear you thinking..."you only have TWO kids"...well, you wouldn't have known it by the show they put on at Chuck E Cheese's recently. Of course, the place is designed to draw kids into their party & game atmosphere, but apparently it works on Dads too. Every spare moment that we waited for our pizza, my sweet husband spent playing games with the kids. Then he found a few that he insisted that he be able to play alone (in order to brush up on his Mickey Thompson off-road prowess, apparently). As usual, skeeball was a big hit, even though the two REAL kids have yet to make a single point and I believe that their goal is to just get them up the ramp into the gutter. Daddy was a bit frustrated at this fact and couldn't help himself from throwing a few balls to prove that he could get one in the 100 point pocket. By the time the pizza came, they had burnt through 1/2 of the coins and quickly devoured what they could in an effort to get back to the games. It didn't take long to finish off the remainder of the tokens. Ultimately, the grand prize for all of their work was a plastic 2" lizard, a pink sparkle flower ring, and two mini-tootsie roll pops. Job well done kids - all three of you.

My Super Kids

We recently went to a friend's house for his 4th birthday party with a superhero theme. It was a fun afternoon for all of us. It is so great to see my little ones grow into mini-people who are learning the ins and outs of the finer things in life - like birthday cake and pinatas. One of their prizes for their games at the party was a superhero cape for each of them. As it turns out, my kids are pretty super already. The did a super job of sharing their toys with the birthday boy's grandpa. They did a super job of whacking the pinata, and of course, they both at their birthday cake with superhuman speed! It certainly was a SUPER day~

What to Make

Parsnips.

Have you tried them?

I hadn't until a couple of days ago and don't know why I ever waited so long. I can thank Alton Brown for opening my eyes to this delicious vegi. I did two things: I made parsnip muffins and made parsnip chips. The chips are ridiculously easy and addicting and - get this - moderately GOOD for you. A cup of parsnips has almost 5 grams of fiber and are good sources of folic acid, calcium, and potassium. They kind of taste like carrots. Kinda sweet but not too much so.

Here's what you do: Slice the outside of the parsnip in thin strips (with the single blade side of the cheese grater). Don't slice the inside core because it's woody and not as good. Heat up some oil (I used canola) and toss in the parsnip slices. Let them brown and then transfer them to a paper towel-covered plate to drain. If you want you can sprinkle them with salt and pepper but they're good plain too. That's it. EASY.

Here's a link to AB's recipe for the muffins. They're awesome too.

My Little Girl's World

I recently downloaded all of the pictures from my little girl's camera. It had been about 4 months since I downloaded them so they were as old as last October. It's interesting to see things from her perspective sometimes. What she finds picture-worthy is very telling. Here's some highlights~

And Since We've No Place to Go....

Luckily, I got home from the gym this morning just in time. It's been snowing ever since and we got about 2-3" so far. No worries though. I stocked up on groceries yesterday and since we replaced the weatherproofing strips on all of our exterior doors last week, we're all nice and cozy inside. I hope you all are keeping warm in this winter weather too.

A First Time for Everything

Last weekend we went up to visit Aunt Lyss & Uncle Chris. We had a fun time playing with them but the big highlight of the weekend for our little girl was her first time on roller skates. She was a little wobbly at first, which is to be expected, but was soon moving along easily on her own. She made it all the way to the end of their block and back without help. What a big girl!
Meanwhile, her little brother tested out his new Lightning Mcqueen helmet while riding his radio flyer tricycle. He's not quite the daredevil yet that she is - but I can see it coming.

What to Make

Okay, this recipe is not so good for you - but better than doughnuts! Mix a 2c can of pumpkin with 1/2 cup each of flour & eggbeaters. Then add about 1t of any combination of cinnamon/nutmeg/pumpkin pie spice. Voila - the batter is done. Put it in a plastic bag.

Heat oil (I used canola) in a skillet until it is very very hot. Cut a small hole in a corner of the batter bag and drizzle it into the hot oil. Let it fry until it floats and it's dark brown on both sides. Remove and roll in cinnamon sugar or powdered sugar. Set on paper towels to cool and collect excess oil.

These are REALLY good, easy and also a great way to use left-over sweet potatoes (trade 1/1 for the pumpkin) after the holidays.

Cabo Day #2

Somehow I forgot to do all of Friday. We had such a good time that my days began to blend together I guess. This was the day that the other adults when on a hike while Heidi and I took the kiddos to the pool. Very relaxing and unscheduled - GREAT.

The Last Cabo Day

Finally! As it turns out - I skipped the "real" day #2 in there (excluding travel days) so actually there's still one more day to go. Either way, this was the last day we spent in Cabo. Chris & Kristin went on a little trip in the car and did exploring on their own. Daddy & Gary went on a hike and Heidi & I took the kids down to the beach. A nice relaxing close to a great week.

Cabo Day #5

We headed back up to the shell beach again and this time took the kayak and more snorkeling gear (that had been fixed). After a morning at the beach we went out to some GREAT shrimp tacos for lunch and then hung around the house (and pool) that afternoon.

Sunday in Cabo

On day #4 we took the quads out and enj0yed playing on the beach on them then drove them up a wash to a waterfall where we had a picnic and played in the pools.

Day #3 in Cabo

We woke up and went for a walk on the beach then headed to a beach down the coast that has loads of shells. That evening we went for a ride on the quads. The third of MANY fun days.

The first day of the trip

Here's a small slideshow of our first two days in Cabo. Really, this is a travel day and then our first REAL day in Cabo. We actually had over 1500 pictures (NO KIDDING) for the trip since there were five of us with cameras but I've grossly abbreviated the list and this is only the first two of eight days so here goes:

We're OFF!

We leave today for Cabo until January 6th so don't expect updates before then. I'll be sure to post soon after we get back though so maybe you will all want to come with us next time!

Kids' Stories

Thank you to all of you who did a recording of yourselves reading books for the kids. So far we've gotten them from Aunts, Uncles, Great-Aunts, Great-Uncles, Cousins, Great-Grandparents and Friends. There is still time to get a recording done and included in the final copy. If any of the rest of you would like, I can visit with my video recorder and get the copy digitally too. We've still got some promised to be coming from other Aunts, Uncles, Cousins (and HOPEFULLY GRANDPARENTS, ahem) so this should be a great gift for them to keep forever. I will try to post some highlights when I receive the entire set. Thanks again to those of you who've already done it and keep 'em coming!

San Diego Zoo Lights

On Saturday we too the trek down to San Diego in the afternoon to see the lights at the zoo. There were all sorts of neat Christmas light displays and we got to ride the tour bus and skytram, had dinner, saw a bell choir, watched ice sculpting, and saw LOADS of animals. It was neat to be there that time of night because several animals (like the big cats) who are normally docile during the day were up and about in the evening. The tiger in particular was very vocal and the hippos were swimming laps around their pool. We renewed our membership so whenever you all come to visit, be sure to take the trip down there with us. It's a great way to spend the day (or night!).

Christmas with Nana

At some point on Christmas morning we headed over to Nana's house to visit with her, Grandpa, Great-grandma Tanyon, Great-grandpa Tanyon, Uncle Brian, Uncle Dennis, Aunt Nancy, Cousins Kyle, Jessica & Catie. Although I didn't get any shots of gift-opening (those were all taken with Grandpa's camera) here's some highlights of the rest of our day:

Good Morning

We had a fun Christmas Morning and hope you all did as well. Here's some highlights from ours.

Merry Christmas Ya'll

Hope your stockings, hearts, and glasses are full~

Cookies for Santa

We had a very cute experience tonight, leaving cookies and milk for Santa and carrots and water for the reindeer. My sweetheart wrote out a little note for the big guy in red while her brother stood watch over the cookies so that Daddy didn't swoop in and snatch one. Although her letters aren't exactly perfect yet, she did the whole note without Mommy helping one bit (well, except to spell most of the words of course). Both kiddos signed their names, with the little one needing some help, and we left them on the coffee table by the fireplace. This is definitely one for the scrapbook.

Be Careful What You Wish For

The other day I was thinking to myself 'this toy room is a pig sty, I can't wait for the kids to be old enough to clean it themselves'. I wished at the time that the room was clean so that I wouldn't have to deal with it. So you can imagine how surprised I was to find it neat and tidy the following morning after the kids had been playing and I was doing the dishes in the kitchen nearby. I was very happy with them and about to praise them for their job well done when it hit me....something was missing. In fact, a LOT was missing....
They had taken the majority of their toys from the floor of the toy room and put them on the landing in the middle of our upstairs staircase. You see, the staircase has many stairs and they resemble seats to a toddler...much like a bus has many seats. So the kids were "taking the bus" and needed to bring everything with them on their trip. I was speechless. The stairs were impassable without cleaning up the mess as it was somewhere in the vacinity of 3 feet high of toys. If only I could get them the direct this energy toward something productive - I could be a millionaire.