Waffles

I love waffles! In fact, Karen has nicknamed me "The Waffle Lady". There was a period of time when I fed my family waffles at least twice a week, more likely 3 or times! If I have the choice of pancakes or waffles, I will choose waffles every time. Often when I go to a restaurant that serves breakfast all hours of the day, I will order belgium waffles. What is it that makes waffles so yummy? I like them plain, with chocolate chips, with any flavor syrup, or my very favorite way to eat a waffle is with fresh strawberries and cool whip! My kids already share my passion, though admittedly, their passion is still blooming. My waffle iron hasn't been working properly for several months. This is so sad. I have missed being able to pull it out and whip up a batch of yummy, mouthwatering goodness. Not a lot of food is as simple and as good as a waffle. So, I have hit my limit. Today I pulled out the waffle iron, fiddled with it a little and mixed the batter while the iron heated. I told Andy that if it doesn't work today, he will be buying me a new one this coming week.

My waffle recipe is called Out of This World Waffles & comes from the Southern Living Ultimate Cookbook:

2 1/2 c. flour

1 TBLS., +1 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt

1 1/2 TBLS. sugar

2 large eggs, beaten

2 1/2 c.milk

3/4 c. oil

Combine first 4 ingredients in large bowl.

Combine eggs, milk, and oil; add to flour mixture,

stirring with a wire whisk just until dry

ingredients are moistened.

Cook in a preheated, oiled waffle iron until golden.

I think the critics approve!

Mawage, that bwessed awangement

Today is my Anniversary! Andy and I have been married 10 years today! We were reminiscing about the excitement leading up to the big day, about our whirlwind romance, and about the ups and down in the past 10 years. What fun!

I think I will share with you our story:

Once Upon a Time there was a beautiful maiden (just go with me here...) named Mindy. Mindy was a most peculiar girl, one that thought she could be different and never fall in love. Secretly Mindy wished for a Prince Charming to sweep her off her feet, but outwardly she was a girl with worldly ambitions. Mindy had a friend who wanted to go to the local meat market (singles ward) and begged Mindy to come along, so as not to be alone in her search for the rarest of meats. So, finally Mindy succumbed to the social pressures of her day. Once at the market, as Mindy was inspecting the same old meat, kinds she had all tried before, and knew she was tired of, she glanced something she did not recognize. "What is that?" she cried. Some kind soul told her that it was something called Fillet Mignon, hereafter referred to as Andy. Andy was the rarest and most delicious of all the meats, but some said too pricey. If only Mindy could find a way to talk to this Andy. As she sat musing, low and behold who should approach, but Andy! He had seen this fair maiden from afar and wondered at her flower like beauty (I said go with me...). Could this be the best of fruits he had always heard of? So sweet to the taste and delicious inside and out? He had to know, something inside him said that he must find out. This was the beginning of a short and sweet courtship. One that would take them on a whirlwind roller coaster ride. Three months later the two were joined in holy matrimony.

Little did they know that this was not happily ever after, but just the beginning of an eternal journey. One that would take them down unknown paths with many stops along the way. Things that were never heard of in the kingdom would soon fall upon this blissful couple. Pregnancy, hormones, babies, diapers, dirty diapers, spit up, sleepless nights, budgeting, etc... But other things, also uncommon in the magical kingdom. Breathlessly laughing, picnics, Priesthood blessings, homes, work. All things that brought this fairy tale into reality. Which brings us to the present. Here we are in modern day reality. Would we go back to the magical kingdom if we could? No way,(Back then I wished for a man to sweep me off my feet, now all I wish for is my man to sweep...) I love that we have grown and come to understand each other in ways no one else can. Andy is my opposite in many ways, which also makes him complete me. I am grateful for the journey of the past 10 years, and can only hope for 100 more!

Last night we went to the boy's school for the "Fine Arts Celebration", which included an Art Show and a concert. We were able to see some of the boys art work displayed, that was cool for them.

Then we sat through the 5th grade band as they played "Hot Cross Buns" over and over! Have you ever heard a 5th grade band that doesn't include your child? I ask because if your child is in the band you are biased and think it is awesome. If you are an innocent bystander and happen to hear them, it is quite a different story... Anyway, after the band we finally came to the part we were waiting for; Benson's concert!

Benson has been in chorus all year and I have gone to several of his concerts. But, being the Mom that I am, I have always forgotten the camera. So last night I took pictures! I snapped one while Benson was getting ready and he said, "Mom, I'm not singing yet." I told him that I am the Mom and I can take pictures whenever I want. (that is true, right?!)

By the end of the night he was done with me taking pictures, as you can see by this photo:

It was a nice night and I'm proud of Benson for learning all those songs this year. He did a wonderful job last night and it was fun to hear his voice.

sesame street 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12

Can You Tell Me How to get to Sesame Street?

This morning I was going through the living room cleaning up, when the TV caught my attention. Sesame Street was on! I was mesmerized. I haven't actually sat and watched it in years and years. I used to love that show! Eli was thrilled to see me stop and immediately came to watch with me. We both sat and watched the entire episode! It is a great show. I love the little monsters and the songs. It certainly brought back lots of memories. My brother Josh and I used to watch it together. Did you know that they still show some of the same segments that they did 25 years ago? I loved it. I am happy that it is still around for my children. Good 'ole Sesame Street...

Bits and Pieces

I love shopping. I don't get to actually do fun shopping nearly as often as I would like to, especially if I want my husbands okay. But this week I have the heads up! Karen and I get to shop for all of the bathroom fixtures (faucets, toilets, showers, etc...) for our new house. Yes, we are getting closer and closer on finishing our house. We still have a long way to go, but we are making progress. You can check out our house progress at http://www.kitandkin.blogspot.com/ .

Anyway, it should be a lot of fun. Now I am just doing a lot of research online so we know where we want to go and what we want to get. Very fun, very exciting!


Another fun thing is this personality test my sister sent me. Check it out and let me know what you think. It is interesting. http://memoriter.net/flash/test.html


We have also had a nice Memorial Day weekend. Yesterday we had some friends come to our land to play and eat. It was so nice to share a place that we love with people that we love. I was cooking at the grill while most were off playing in the brook. Karen took the kids for rides in the kayak. (she had a spill and ended up soaked!) While others waded or swam, getting soaked on purpose!


Here are some picture bits from our weekend. Enjoy!

A Hunting We Will Go

This morning I was awakened just before 7:00 by Ethan talking to Andy. I hear, "Dad, is today a school day?" Andy tells him that it is and Ethan says, "Rats!" Later he tells me that he should just skip school because he needs to hunt for dragons with Eli! Skip school? Yep, I thought that wasn't supposed to start until high school or at least late in junior high. Ethan is only in Kindergarten, yet almost every day I struggle to get him to school. From forcing him to get dressed in the morning to the out the door and then back again to complain that he still doesn't want to go, or can't I please drive him...

But who can blame him when there is the ever important dragon hunting to do. We were at our land on Saturday. I had coiled up a rope which had left an imprint in the dirt. I pointed it out to the boys and told them it was a snake print. They raced to see it for themselves. While the were examining it they noticed a small little salamander. Immediately they picked it up and rushed it to me, exclaiming what they had found. Being the silly Mom that I am, I told them that I thought it was a baby dragon! Benson, ever practical said, "How can you tell? And besides, there's no such thing as dragons." I gave him a stare and explained that you could tell it was a dragon because it's eyes came out farther from its head than a salamander. They were all over this and loving it! They played with the creature to about an inch of his life before we convinced them to let it go. Since then our house has been full of talk about dragons. The swords have filtered out of the toy box and plans for the next hunt have been made!

While at the butterfly conservatory yesterday, Ethan got to pet an Australian dragon. We had to take pictures to prove to Benson that dragons are real! So, now all the boys are in on it. This Saturday should prove to be exciting and fruitful for the Dragon Hunters as there is no shortage of salamanders at our property. Soon they will be looking for the big dragon though... I hope they don't find a bear cave in the process...

Check out my Slide Show!

Butterfly Conservatory

Today I went on a field trip with Ethan and his Kindergarten class. Do you have any idea the amount of noise a kindergarten class can generate on the bus? Crazy. We had a great time though. The conservatory has over 3500 butterflies. It was pretty amazing and lots of fun when they landed on you!

After playing with the butterflies we had a picnic. While Ethan was eating his lunch he lost his first tooth!! So much excitement. He told everyone he saw all about it, including the bus driver and the janitor at school when we got back! Ethan said it was his best field trip ever.

Going Commando!

Last summer a friend of mine came over. When she arrived Benson was in the driveway riding his bike in nothing but his Scooby Doo boxers! I had no idea he was even outside, how embarrassing! I figure at least he had his boxers on!... Eli on the other hand loves to go everywhere without his underwear on. I will help him get dressed in the morning, making sure he is wearing undies. But at the first bathroom break of the day he will strip down and leave his underwear lying on the bathroom floor. Luckily he puts his pants back on. You may think this is a small thing, but it happens daily, no matter where we are. At Target, at the gas station, or at a friends house. This past Sunday we had a Brother in the Ward bring us a pair of underwear that they found in their bathroom. He said, "I think these are too small for Mikey, are they yours?"

On Monday Eli climbed into my lap and then lifted his legs into the air to do 'tricks'. Much to my surprise, I could see right up the leg of his pants & you guessed it, no undies! Luckily I remembered to check before we went to gymnastics this morning. Can you imagine?...

The things we will do for Money $

Benson lost another tooth this past week. He knows the tooth fairy isn't real, yet he continues to pretend. Why? Is he being nice so his brothers won't find out the truth? I have told him not to spill the beans, so maybe... But my guess is more practical. He likes money! The tooth came out while on vacation, actually in the bathroom of a gas station somewhere in Pennsylvania! Benson very carefully cleaned it, saying he would get more money for a tooth that is completely clean. I tried explaining to him that usually the cleaning only counts if it is done while the tooth is attached. "Try brushing your teeth better buddy!" But he insists that it will help. He then put it away in the zipper compartment of my wallet, so that it wouldn't get lost. When we got home he almost immediately took the tooth and placed it in a cup of water near the sink. Well, the next day, Andy was loading the dishwasher and included the ever sacred cup! When Benson discovered this there was much weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. (at least the ones that are left) Once he got over it he decided to write a note the the tooth fairy. Direct quote:

"Dear Tooth Fairy,

My Dad dumped my tooth down the drain, but can I still get my money?

Benson"

Andy & I laughed and laughed at that. The entitlement of the younger generation?!

Ethan now has a seriously loose tooth. For him it will be a first. I think the tooth fairy is going to be broke after visiting our house over the next couple of months!

Child Abuse, or the Prevention of...

As a Mom I often wonder about certain things I do or don't do. I wonder if I should do other things and what I would do... As thinking often leads you to more thinking, I was thinking about when Benson was little. Benson used to be so hard to put to bed. Actually it wasn't the getting him there, it was the getting him to stay there! So, out of desperation, Andy turned the door knob around for me. Then, Benson would get a chance to stay in bed, if he didn't we would lock the door from the outside! Someone made the comment to me once that this was child abuse. I just laughed. Some parents have never had a child like Benson who was describedly "quite a boy". I could follow after him all day and still not keep up. He would go from one mess to another, not trying to be bad, quite the opposite in fact. Benson loved to be good. But out of sheer curiosity he would take things apart to see how they worked. Or rip apart a book and then tell me he knew how people made books now! So when this anonymous person said that it was child abuse at the end of the day to lock him in his room so he would be forced to slow down and go to sleep, all I could do was laugh and say, "No, it is the Prevention of Child Abuse!" After all, nobody has that much patience!

This picture is actually Eli, I guess all of my boys have been busy, are all boys?

"I Wish I had the nicest Mom in the World!"

"I wish I had the nicest Mom in the World!", yes this is an exact quote from Ethan. He will be 6 on the 4th and sometimes gets a little over dramatic. What happened was that we were driving in the car. Ethan wanted me to roll the windows down and I told him it was too cold outside. So he stuck out his tongue at me and said, "I wish I had the nicest Mom in the world!" He continued to say, "Someone kind..." Just then Benson, the ever controlling, I think I'm their parent even though I'm only a 9 year old boy, spoke up. "Ethan, Mom is!" Way to go Benson I thought, unfortunately he wasn't finished. "...sometimes." Yep, sometimes. Thanks alot. (we'll see if I let you stay up to play just one more game tonight)

The rest of the story, predictably, involves me telling him that my responsibility is to be a parent, not a best friend. That I am supposed to teach him things. "No mom, that's why I go to school..." Okay, I give up, but this conversation is not motivating me to be a nicer, kinder Mom if you know what I "mean".