Trunk or Treating

No I didn't misspell the title. Our church put on a program for Halloween where kids could go from car to car at church and trick or treat. People volunteered to decorate their trunks and hand out candy. Then we had all kinds of activities inside church. There was pumpkin decorating, toss a penny game, golf game, cake walk and costume contests. It was really well done and the kids had a blast.
There also was a puppet show. Arianna is on that team so she got to participate in it. She is the puppet that's a fisherman. She did a great job. Arianna went as an M&M and Halle ended up going as a princess.
I'm exhausted, but it was fun. Now to just quick sneak a little candy out of the bags and get rid of it so there teeth don't fall out.

Check out these cute kids!

Soup anyone?????

I'm sharing with you today my favorite soup ever!
I got this recipe from a co-worker years ago and have been enjoying it for over 15 years now. Even if you're not a huge fan of broccoli- I urge you to try this one. I wasn't a huge fan of broccoli soup but this one is absolutely delicious. Mark had me enter it in a soup contest and it won 1st place. On a cold day with home made bread- there's nothing better! Enjoy-

Cheese Broccoli Soup:

6 c. water
10 oz. frozen brocolli- chopped
3/4 c. finely chopped onion
2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon accent seasoning
1 teaspoon pepper (I use a little less)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
8 oz. american cheese
2 c. half and half
1/4 c. butter
1/2 c. COLD water
1/3 c. flour

Bring water to boil. Add brocolli and onion and boil 10-12 minutes. Add seasonings, and cheese. Stir until cheese melts. Add cream and butter. Stir and heat to boiling. Slowly add water to flour stirring until smooth. Add this to the hot soup mixture stirring rapidly. Cook and stir soup until it has the consistency of heavy cream.

Halloween Parade

Today was Halle's Halloween parade at school because it's her off day on Wednesday. She wanted me to come and see her parade so bad- I was glad it worked out and I was able to be there.
Here is Halle with her best friend Lyddy:



Here is Halle waving at the other kids when they went by:



Here is Halle's turn at making the rounds of the parade. It was a little chilly to have on the tights that went with her Angel costume- she'll get to wear the whole thing Wednesday because we aren't trick or treating- we are going to our church's get together where it will be warm and not rainy!

Baby laughing at the Wii

I posted this in 2007 and for some reason I thought of this clip again today.
I don't think you could get sick of watching this so I'm posting it again.
Enjoy!

Sewing Anyone?

Well I went on the hunt yesterday for some warm clothes for Arianna. Everyone else is pretty well set, but she really needed some more options.
I hit the mall and did find some good deals. JC Penny had things buy 1 get 1 for a dollar. I got 2 new sweat suits and 1 of them was "Bobby Jack!"
Bobby Jack is big for kids her age and they can be a little pricey so I was very happy to find these. The problem was that the sale was on sizes 7 and up. Arianna is a 6x and very tiny so I had a feeling we might have a problem. We usually have to have the waist adjustable pants so I can tighten them or else they fall off- oh what a problem to have!
When she got home I had her try them on and yes they were way too long and too big in the waist. I really needed them for this year so we had to make some adjustments. The sweat pants already had the little holes at the front of the waist so I just found some really cute shoe strings that matched and worked in through the waist then I got ahold of my seamstress Laura and she went to work. Take a look- I think she did a great job and I'm so thrilled that they now fit.

Slow Cooking Thursday

It's Thursday again and that means the opportunity to find some great slow cooker recipe's over at Sandras
This recipe makes a great quick meal or a wonderful side dish.
Enjoy!


Macaroni and Cheese in Crock Pot

1 large box macaroni- cooked and drained
2 Tablespoons oil
2 sticks margarine
1 large can evaporated milk
1 cup milk
1 large onion, chopped fine
3 cups grated Cheddar cheese
1 can Cheddar cheese soup

Oil crock pot, mix all ingredients, using only 1/2 of the grated cheese. Put mixture in crock pot and put remaining cheese on top. Let simmer in crock pot for 4 or more hours.

Good old fashioned fun!

Halle has raided my hall closet and has a new love- the board game "Sorry".
Apparently her toys have gotten boring and she needed something new to occupy her time. It's great that she's a little bit older and can play alot more games that we have. She's pretty good at sorry- either good or lucky depending on how you look at it. The nice thing is that she's also a good sport about it when things don't go her way.
I love it that she's liking to play these games- it's a great way to spend time and she's not asking to watch TV!
So here's my question to all of you- what's your favorite board game that you remember playing as a child?

Mark and Nick's Great Adventure

This past weekend, Mark and Nick went on their annual camping trip with Mark's brother in law-Brett and 2 of his boys. This year one of the guys that Mark works with told him he should go up to the state land that is right next to some land that he owns. It was perfect because it was only an hour and a half away. We were a little worried about going this weekend because of the weather but it was perfect.
They left Friday around 5:00. It rained a little bit yet on Friday but by night it was done and the rest of the weekend was beautiful!
Mark told me he got some great pictures when he called, but I had no idea they would be this good. Usually a picture doesn't capture the scenery- well looking at these pictures, I can't imagine how beautiful it must have been up there. What great father son time they had: fishing and shooting at targets and spending time with cousins. Enjoy God's creation- I know they did!




Here is the whole gang together:


Nick, Garrett and Saul



One of my favorite pictures: My boys- aren't they handsome!!


Nick


Look at how the color of the trees is reflected in the water!


A little campfire to warm things up at night:


Some scenery for you:


All the boys together: Nick, Garrett and Saul:


Nick in the forest:


Some more scenery for you to enjoy:

New pictures

It was such a nice day today that I decided to take the girls to the park after church and take some pictures of them. Mark and Nick are up north for the weekend so I could only do the girls.
Here are some of my favorites. They are looking so old to me-especially Arianna.

Scary.....

I had a dream last night that was a little too real for my liking. I dreamed I just found out I was pregnant. It was so real. I remember thinking I'm really busy with the 3 I already have- how am I going to do this with 4. It amazes me how real dreams can seem. I woke up and it took me a minute to realize it was a dream.
I did a little research and here is what they say pregnancy dreams mean:

Your dream is a very common one and usually represents a new beginning or a new creation in your life. It is generally very positive and indicates growth in your life!


Well I don't know what the new beginning is in my life but I'm very relieved it's not going to be realized in 9 months!
Don't get me wrong- I love my kids it's just that I'm pretty sure 3 is all this mom can handle!

Storms

It sounds like it's going to be a night of severe weather here. Just praying for safety for Terri and her family as they are camping in this weather!

An update

I was going through some old posts from last year and came across this one:


The other night at supper, Arianna was praying- it went something like this:
Dear God,
Thank you for this day, thank you for this supper. Please be with Nick and me while we go to school tomorrow. Please keep us safe.
Please be with mommy tommorrow also while she stays at home and plays the computer!
Amen



What!!!!!!!! You would think she see's me on the computer or something!!
I'm going to have to have a talk with her about not giving me up in front of her father!


Well it's been a year now and I've been diligently working on it and the update for all that hard work is:
It's worse than ever- I have gotten some very dear friends through blogging and my list of blogs that I check every day has grown significantly!
However, Arianna has been trained well and hasn't given me up in front of Mark since the first post- good girl!!!!!!

Creation

Psalm 19:1-2 The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his handiwork. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make Him known.


And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. Genesis 1:9,10



While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease. Genesis 8:22


The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose. Ecclesiastes 1:5


Hope you enjoyed these pictures. These are some pictures of our trip to The Huron House that we took last year. I was looking through pictures tonight and came across some of these. Isn't God's creation beautiful?

Tuesday Tribute

Bonnie started doing Tuesday Tributes and I thought it was a great idea so I'm giving it a shot!

My Tuesday Tribute I'm dedicating to my sisters Mari and Terri

Everyone that knows me knows how much I love my sisters. I'm sorry but you're going to have to hear it one more time!
I looked up sister online and I found a couple of great quotes that I just loved!

In the cookies of life, sisters are the chocolate chips. ~Author Unknown


To the outside world we all grow old. But not to brothers and sisters. We know each other as we always were. We know each other's hearts. We share private family jokes. We remember family feuds and secrets, family griefs and joys. We live outside the touch of time. ~Clara Ortega

I love that last line- we live outside the touch of time.

Let me just tell you a little bit about my sisters. I have to include both of them because they are both just as special to me. My sisters are both incredible people. They are wonderful mothers- it's good to hear and see some of the struggles that they've had with their kids because I know I have someone to go to when I have struggles with mine and I can usually get good advice. They have huge hearts, they are kind and respectful, I love who you have become through the trials in your lives.
They are both strong women with strong faith.
Here's a huge compliment to both of you:
I see mom in you. We used to laugh about that and tell each other that we would warn each other if we started acting like mom- now that she's gone- it's an honor to see mom in each other.
It always makes me laugh that we can finish each other's sentences and we always know what the other is thinking- when I say that Mari and Terri steal my blog comments I'm not kidding!
They are family- I don't use that word lightly. So many families aren't close to each other over just silly things. We can be honest with each other and know that we will still be right where we belong- right by each other's sides.
When I need someone to talk to- they are there
When I want to share my joy- they are there
When I need someone to cry with- they are there
The beautiful thing is that it is my honor to do those same things for and with them too.
Two of God's biggest blessings in my life are my sisters- I love you both!

How to install a garbage disposal

Apparently at our house we like to take the round about way of getting things done.
I needed new sink strainers because one of them got melted in the dishwasher- they had the white plastic coating on them because my sink is white. Since I know a very good plumber I just emailed over to Brenda and asked if Nate could just pick 2 up for me from his work. He calls me the next day and informs me that if I want white they are $30 a piece!!!!! Apparently with the white ones you can't just get new strainers you need the whole piece that fits in your sink. I decided very quickly that silver would look just fine because our faucet is silver and it would match that. The silver ones were $12 a pice and we had a date to get together Saturday so Nate said he would bring them along and take care of it then. I am under the assumption that these also are just the strainers. Well we went out for supper and get back home and he says he's going to get the strainers. In he comes with the whole piece that he has to install. I'm feeling bad because that's not what he's supposed to be doing this night- work!
He starts to install them and runs into a problem with our set up and ends up having to run home to get some parts off of his truck. Now I'm really feeling guilty! He gets back and they start working again and my husband says to him- "since we're this far do you want to just do the garbage disposal too!" (Now in his defense they had talked about this before and it only took about 5 minutes to do) However I about died!!! I'm thinking- he's never going to come here again- all we do is put him to work! Well they finally finished and I have my garbage disposal so that's great.
Never in a million years did I imagine that just asking for new sink strainers would turn into this whole ordeal!

Thanks Nate- I love my disposal and I owe you big time and I'm documenting it here!
There will be something coming your way soon!

I've been tagged

I've just been tagged by Angela. So here goes....

My 4 favorite jobs:
Mom and wife
working at the Dr's office
planting celery- definitely not weeding
hopefully being a Real Estate Assistant- so far so good!

4 movies I can watch over and over:
Walking in the clouds
Top Gun
Cutting Edge (It's an ice skating movie)
Grease


My 4 favorite TV shows:
Dancing with the stars
Amazing Race
Survivor
Baby Story

My 4 favorite dishes:
Pizza
chicken pockets
chicken kabobs
lasagna

My 4 favorite vacations:
Russia- (saying this was a vacation is a stretch)
South Dakota
St. Louis
Maine

4 websites I visit daily
My real estate web page for work
many many blogs!!!
msn
Arianna's teacher's blog

4 places I'd rather be
bed- it's getting late (just to be clear- the time on my blog is not correct!)
Hawaii
church- singing along with the praise band
Huron House Bed and Breakfast

Favorite Ingredients Friday

Overwhelmed with Joy
invited me to join her "Favorite Ingredients Friday" recipe exchange so I thought I'd join in!
I just made this for supper last night and it was delicious- ALL the kids liked it which is always a beautiful thing!

Crescent pockets:
2 packages crescent rolls
1 pd. hamburger
4 oz. cream cheese
4 oz tomato sauce
shredded cheese

Brown hamburger and season with onion salt. Add cream cheese and stir till melted. Add in tomato sauce and shredded cheese to your liking.

Take crescent rolls 2 at a time and press out into a square. Put filling in middle and gather up edges and crimp together. Each package of crescent rolls will make 4 pockets. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.
(I also make this same recipe with a chicken filling: chicken and cream cheese- also delicious!)

Pick your candidate

This was interesting. According to my answers this was who I match the most closely with. I've never even heard of this man.
It's Shocking but Hillary was almost at the bottom of my match list-hee hee

Duncan Hunter
Score:

To take this quiz go here: Sorry for some reason the link isn't working-you're going to have to copy and paste
http://www.wqad.com/Global/link.asp?L=259460

Slow Cooking Thursday

I believe you can't have too much cheese in your life so here's something to aid you in your "cheese fulfilled" life!

Bacon-Cheese Dip

16 slices bacon diced, fried and drained
2 packages cream cheese (8-oz each)
4 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1 c. 1/2 and 1/2
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. dried minced onion
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 tsp. salt
1 dash hot sauce

Put all ingredients in the crock pot and cook on low, stirring occasionally until cheese melts, about 1 hour. Taste and adjust seasonings, add bacon and keep on low to serve.
Serve with cubed or slice French bread.

The project

Well, when I posted earlier this week about being very busy this week I left out one major reason why we were so busy. We were also building Arianna her own room. We decided to build a wall in the basement so she could have her own space.
I'm so proud of Mark- he did an awesome job. It's not quite done yet- we have to finish the trim, but it's done enough that she can use it. I'm so happy with how it turned out and more importantly- she's happy too. Bedtimes have been pure bliss that last few days (I know that it's still early.) Halle has adjusted well too- today she was vacuuming and cleaning up her own room. I think now that they each have their own space it'll really help them- and therefore me!!!
Don't look closely at the first picture- We have to finish the other side of the wall but I'm not feeling too ambitious right now about stripping more wallpaper. That might have to wait for a little while.
What do you think- pretty nice huh?!!!!

Selah-Precious Lord

I have a secret.... I love all kinds of music but I really love old fashioned gospel music. I know that's not very cool and hip of me but I can't help it- I just want to get up and dance when I hear this music (maybe somewhere down our genetic lines I'm related to Pastor Paul!!) Enjoy- and don't be embarrased if your toes start tapping along....

Lurkers - show your face

It has just come to my attention that it is a special day today.
It is National De-Lurking day.
So if you read my blog- Please Please just leave me a quick comment.
Thanks so much!

Birthday Party

We had Nick's and Arianna's Birthday Parties on Saturday on Mark's moms. They both had a good time. Nick got gift certificates because he's at that hard age to buy gifts for. Arianna got a new bike. I was so excited to see her face when she got it. It was priceless- total shock. Unfortunately my camera was 2 seconds too fast and I missed the shot. She's very happy with her bike.



This weekend was busy, we had a soccer game on Saturday- which by the way they finally Won!!!! Arianna was quite excited. On Sunday we had home groups over at our house which means a lot of cleaning for me and unfortunately it doesn't stay that way very long. This afternoon we watched the race and it was a good one! Jeff Gordon had a great move at the end and won the race. Mari- I think I heard you cheering all the way over here!!!