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Almond Roca
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Posted By: Allie
Dec 17th, 2010 |
We had a "baking" day today with my mother & sisters-in-law and it was so fun. We each decided on a treat we wanted to make and at the end we split everything. A great way to try new recipes and just have a good time baking. It was surprising how much can be made when everyone is helping. We made Oreo and egg nog truffles, date balls, homemade oreos, almond roca, and fudge.
Almond roca was my chosen recipe, I saw it on the Tasty Kitchen Blog and new I had to try it. I'm a big fan of almond roca. It was a little scarey because the recipe didn't have a set temperature to cook to, it just gave a visual guide. But it all worked out and is really yummy. I like how the blog gives step by step pictures.
4 sticks Butter
2 cups Sugar (rounded)
4 Tablespoons Water
2 cups Almonds, Chopped
1 cup Chocolate Chips
1/2 cups Almonds, Finely Chopped, For Sprinkling
Combine the first 3 ingredients and cook on high, stirring constantly through 3 stages:
1. Runny
2. Cheesy - it will look like melted white cheese
3. Runny and smooth, caramel brown color
Make sure you have the fan on your stove going, cause you'll probably set off the smoke alarm towards the end.
When it is runny, smooth and caramel brown in color, remove it from the heat and add the almonds. Stir until combined and pour the mixture onto greased cookie sheets. Spread it into an even layer. It will harden as it cools.
While it is still warm, sprinkle chocolate chips on top and let them melt enough to get soft. Spread the chocolate in an even layer across the candy. While the chocolate is still wet, sprinkle the finely chopped almonds on top.
At this point, while it is still warm and soft, you can score the candy with a butter knife to make it break evenly, or just let it harden and break it into rustic pieces.
Store in airtight containers. |
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Little Slippers
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Posted By: Allie
Dec 9th, 2010 |
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| melanie Wrote: |
Dec 31st, 2010 |
| NewYears1978 Wrote: |
Dec 22nd, 2010 |
| Allie Wrote: |
Dec 15th, 2010 |
| myndi Wrote: |
Dec 11th, 2010 |
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No More Crib
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Posted By: Allie
Dec 9th, 2010 |
I don't know what impulsed me to start putting kairi in her "big girl bed", I just thought; hmm, I wonder if she would take her nap in the bed. And she did, and she hasn't been back in her crib since. In fact, She has been in her bed for over a week now and we have already taken down her crib and given it away. So no turning back now, ha ha ha.
I think she loves being able to just get up in the morning and start playing with toys or come wake me up. She's really been growing up fast this last month it seems. She has started saying so many new words I dont even keep track anymore.
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| Jamie Wrote: |
Dec 9th, 2010 |
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Whoopie Pies
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Posted By: Allie
Nov 26th, 2010 |
Pumpkin and Cream Cheese Whoopie Pies
Ingredients:
Cakes
3 Cups Flour
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
2 Tablespoons Cinnamon
1/2 Teaspoon Nutmeg
1 Teaspoon Ginger
1 Cup Vegetable Oil
1 Cup Dark Brown Sugar
1 Cup Sugar
3 Cups Pumpkin
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
2 Large Eggs
Filling
1 Stick of Butter
1 8 oz Package Cream Cheese
3 Cups Powdered Sugar
1 Teaspoon Maple Extract
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat together the brown sugar, white sugar, and oil. Add the pumpkin puree and mix well. Add the vanilla and eggs and mix well. Slowly add in the flour mixture and mix until combined.
Using a 1 tablespoon scoop or a 1/2 tablespoon measure, drop the batter onto a baking sheet (lined, if possible, but not necessary), leaving about 1" between the batter. Try to keep the batter as circular as possible. Bake for 10-14 minutes or until the tops are done and a toothpick inserted into the middle of one of the cakes comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes on the pan and then transfer to a cooling rack.
To prepare the filling, beat the butter on high for 1-2 minutes until smooth and fluffy. Add the cream cheese and beat until smooth. Add the powdered sugar, maple, and vanilla and beat until combined. Transfer to a large Ziploc bag and cut 1/2"-1" off the corner.
Flip the cakes over on a flat surface. Squeeze about 2-3 tablespoons of filling per large whoopie pie (less if you used a 1/2 tablespoon measure) onto every other cake. Top each pie with the remaining cakes. Serve immediately if possible; otherwise, these can be refrigerated in an airtight container. Makes about 30 large whoopie pies.
Whoopie Pies
Ingredients:
Cakes
1 Box Chocolate Cake Mix
1 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil
2 Large Eggs
3/4 Cup Water
Filling
1 1/2 Sticks of Butter Room Temperature
1 1/4 Cups Powdered Sugar
1 1/2 Teaspoons Vanilla
1/8 Teaspoon Salt (Not Kosher)
2 1/2 Cups Marshmallow Creme
Directions:
For the cakes: Pre-heat oven to 375
Place two teaspoons in a small circle on to a baking sheet. Six cakes per baking sheet. Bake 8-10 minutes. Remove to cooling rack until ready to fill.
For the filling: With electric mixer on medium speed, beat butter and sugar together until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in vanilla and salt. Beat in marshmallow fluff until incorporated, about 2 minutes. Refrigerate filling until slightly firm, about 30 minutes. (Bowl can be wrapped and refrigerated for up to 2 days.)
Dollop 1/4 cup filling on center of flat side of half the cakes. Top with the flat side of the remaining cakes and gently press until filling spreads to edge of cake. Serve.
(Whoopie pies can be refrigerated in airtight container for up to 3 days.)
*There are a lot of recipes for more "homemade" pies. But I like that this one just uses a cake mix, it really simplifies things. And I loved the pumpkin pies, the maple flavor in the filling really goes great with the pumpkin cakes.
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Kinect for Xbox 360
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Posted By: Jared
Nov 17th, 2010 |
So I decided to get the Kinect for the Xbox which uses a camera device to record movement. This way you can play games just by your body movement and no controllers. It doesn't seem as accurate as the PSmove which is a similar device for the playstation 3, but was still quite fun. We played the game, 'Dance Central' where you have to mimic the dance moves shown on the screen. There is a freestyle part where you do whatever you want and it then records the video and speeds it up or something, anyway here are 2 clips of it.
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Bobble Stitch Hat. . .and some others.
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Posted By: Allie
Nov 17th, 2010 |
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Kaden's First Video Game
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Posted By: Allie
Nov 9th, 2010 |
| Kaden playing his first video game.
 
He has been playing Peppa Pig on the Wii and is very good at it. Mostly it's just "point and push A" type of things, but he absolutely LOVES it. Ha ha, look at the concentration on his face, he isn't even aware that i'm taking pictures.
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More Hats
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Posted By: Allie
Nov 9th, 2010 |
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| Heather Wrote: |
Nov 13th, 2010 |
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New Cocoa Flavors
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Posted By: Allie
Nov 3rd, 2010 |
I LOVE hot chocolate. If you look in my pantry right now you will find at least 10 different flavors, most of them Stephen's. I am always on the look-out for new kinds to try and was so excited when I saw these at Walmart one day.
Well, the Peanut Butter Cup flavor I think I found a Macey's in January, but it's still kinda new. It has tiny peanut butter cups in it and is pretty yummy, but it's not usually my first choice when picking a flavor.
I LOVED Pumpkin Spice, perfect for fall.
The French Vanilla Milk Creme was a little different, I didn't even see it on the Stephen's website. It is malted, which is why it tasted a bit different than the regular french vanilla. But It has been one of Jared's new favorites.
And the Caramel Apple Cider. . .I was very dissapointed. By itself(made with water), I could barely drink it, but if you heat up some apple juice instead of water, and then add the mix, it tasted MUCH better. I wont be buying it again though.
Then there is this Raspberry Cheesecake flavor from their website that I really want to try. I havn't seen it anywhere, I may have to buy it from their website or something. If anyone comes across this flavor, please let me know.
And a tip on making hot chocolate, always use milk instead of water, it gives it a much creamier flavor.
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Carving Pumpkins
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Posted By: Allie
Nov 2nd, 2010 |
All of our pumpkins this year came from our garden, I think it may be a new tradition for us, as long as the pumpkins will grow. Kaden really seemed to enjoy the garden, watching all the plants grow, helping pick vegetables when they were ready, and seeing the pumpkins change from green to orange. I'm so glad we grew one.
We had Kaden help carve his own pumpkin, he told Jared what shapes to cut out and where. He thought of it as a type of puzzle and when all the peices where carved out he put them all back in their places.
Kairi didn't enjoy pumpkin carving so much. She just started crying every time a knife went into the pumpkin, much too violent for her. Funny thing is, when we were digging up patches us grass for my new garden area, she cried every time the shovel went into the grass, and the other night when we watched Jared's Crash Team video of him crashing his car, she cried when she saw him crash into the trees. What a sweet girl. I can't remember Kaden being that sensitive.
     
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Crocheted Hats
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Posted By: Allie
Nov 1st, 2010 |
I've been in the mood to crochet again. I'm surprised I remembered how; it's been so long. But now that it's getting colder I wanted to make sure the kids had hats that fit them, some of their old ones are too small now.
I saw a cute hat for Kairi while shopping a few weeks back but thought the price was much too high, so I found some free patterns online and went to work. This white hat was the first one I made and I just loved it so much I made one for myself and for my sister-in-law Heather's little girl for her birthday.
I then made this pink brimmed hat which the pattern was a bit confusing and I feel like the brim is too big, so I found another pattern i'm going to try that I may like better.
 
I made another one for Kairi that doesn't fit right, so when I re-do it i'll add that picture. And then I made this hat for Kaden and a matching one for Jared.
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| Jamie Wrote: |
Nov 3rd, 2010 |
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The Living Planet Aquarium
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Posted By: Allie
Nov 1st, 2010 |
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Kaden's Birthday Party
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Posted By: Allie
Oct 13th, 2010 |
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| heather Wrote: |
Oct 29th, 2010 |
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Caramel Apple Cider
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Posted By: Allie
Oct 4th, 2010 |
I've seen a few versions of this drink online and even have a different one in my recipe section I have yet to try, but i'm going to post the version I just made cuz it was yummy.
Ingredients:
1 Envelope apple cider mix
Jarred caramel sauce
Whipped Cream
*optional: Caramel flavored syrup
Prepare cider drink mix (I only had sugar free cider mix, i'm sure it would taste even better using the regular kind).
Add 1 tsp caramel sauce. (This made it sweeter, but didn't give it enough caramel flavor IMO, so I added a splash of the caramel syrup which made a big difference)
Top with whipped cream and drizzle more caramel sauce on top.
mmmm, yummy. I had made this a few days earlier using regular apple cider, and I much prefer the drink mix to the real thing.
I wonder what it would taste like if i added this. . .
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Too Tired To Eat
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Posted By: Allie
Oct 4th, 2010 |
Kairi was having one of those days where she didn't want to take her nap, but the lack of sleep finally got to her when it came time for dinner. It amazes me that she can just fall asleep like that. You would think she'd at least cry or make some kind of fuss, but I just walk out of the room for a couple minutes and come back in and she's asleep.
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Finished The Painting
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Posted By: Allie
Sep 26th, 2010 |
Here it is. . .
I am so happy to have this finished, I think it turned out pretty well, maybe a little crooked in some areas, but that's just character. (dont ask me what that black part on top is supposed to be, it was just in the original drawing so i added it. lol) It'll look great on his wall. Now on to painting his room. . .
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Is this a phase?
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Posted By: Allie
Sep 26th, 2010 |
The last few weeks Kaden has insisted on sleeping on the floor. Is this just a phase he's going through or should i consider getting him a new mattress. ha ha. Or maybe he just likes sleeping close to the night light.
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Fire Truck Room
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Posted By: Allie
Aug 30th, 2010 |
I've been wanting to re-do Kaden's room for a while now, something a little more grown-up. It was either going to be cars, or dinosaurs. . . and then I came across some pictures for a fire truck themed room and knew that's what I really wanted to do. We gave Kaden the choice between the three options and he said fire trucks, so yay! And I've already completed my first addition to the new theme. . .
I found the frame at DI for $1 and just took out the picture so I could use the glass. And using my new cricut software I made the cross image and cut it out with vinyl and stuck it to the glass. Pretty cute I think. Some other pictures for inspiration. . .
I just LOVE this pottery barn room. My goal is to paint a fire truck on canvas just like that one, well maybe a different truck, but same concept.
 
I really liked the brick in this room, so I may attempt doing faux brick on one of his walls.
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Broken Toe
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Posted By: Allie
Aug 25th, 2010 |
Sometimes you stub your toe so hard it feels like you borke it, but in this case I know it broke. I heard the bone crack and could move it in ways I couldn't move my other. Ya, gross. And it still hurts. I'm not too worried about it though, there isn't much that can be done for a pinkie toe, just need to take it easy for 6 weeks.
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| Jamie Wrote: |
Sep 3rd, 2010 |
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Things Going On
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Posted By: Allie
Aug 19th, 2010 |
I just wanted to ramble a bit on things that have been going on. With our fence nearing completion, we (Jared) have been working hard on getting sprinklers moved and new ones installed where the fence will now be blocking previous sprinkler flow. We now have a big pile of dirt sitting on our patio, so it would be a good time to build my garden boxes. We will see what happens there.
Kaden has shown a big interest in being potty trained this past week. He tells me he no longer wants to wear diapers and is more frequently taking off his pants and diaper when he needs to go. It's a little hard for him to do, but I don't want to start buying pull-ups till I know he's a little further a long. If anyone has some tips I could sure use them since he's my first trainee.
Kairi just today has said two new words. Sippy and bubbles. Other recognizable words she's said : Dada (her first), ball (her second), car, all-done, and cracker. Though the last two she's only said once. I've yet to hear her say mama :( . . .unless i just didn't pick up on it. 'Dada' is very clear though, when she sees him in the morning her face will light up and she'll point to him and say DADA!. Last night while Jared was at work, I was talking to her about "when daddy gets home..." and she got excited and started looking around for him. She just loves him.
And I have been playing around a lot with my Cricut since finding the Sure Cuts A Lot program. It lets me cut any type of font I have installed on my computer. I also found Inkscape, which lets me create my own svg images for cutting. HERE is a tutorial I found useful on creating a simple svg word image.
I have also been doing a lot of digital scrapbooking; trying to get the kids' albums finished. If you are interested in starting I would suggest beginning with Memory Mixer, which can be found at Roberts Crafts. Just wait until they have a 50% off coupon. That program is good for basics, and it gets the job done, it's what I started out with. But it didn't have the capabilities I was looking for so Jared got me Adobe Photoshop and I absolutely LOVE it!
Here are my favorite scrapbooking sites:
Peppermint Creative : Super cute kits(I don't buy any but I look at them for inspiration), They offer a free kit download which is supposed to be updated regulary, but I have yet to see it updated. They have a lot of cute layout and vinyl craft ideas in their Gallery, and tonz of titles and phrases in their Phrases section.
Delicious Scraps : TONZ of freebies, from embellishments, to templates, photoshop actions, and mini kits.
The Shabby Shoppe : Cute layout ideas in their Gallery and offer some tutorials i've found helpful. they also have lots of free kits HERE.
Computer Scrapbook : Tonz of free kits.
Atomic Cupcake : You'll love this if you're familiar with photoshop actions. They offer a monthly free download, but if you know someone like Jared you can find more.
Free Scrapbook Fonts : Very cute fonts.
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Kairi's Mess
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Posted By: Allie
Jul 21st, 2010 |
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| myndi Wrote: |
Aug 2nd, 2010 |
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Kids Pages
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Posted By: Jared
Jul 17th, 2010 |
The kids sites are now done and Allie is working on adding content to their sites. You can view Kaden's HERE and Kairi's HERE. I am debating on whether I should make a site for anyone to register to and create their own online albums for their kids.
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Digital Scrapbooking
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Posted By: Allie
Jul 13th, 2010 |
I've been really into digital scrapbooking for the past week, since I got all of my files and programs back on my computer. I'm using a program called Memory Mixer which has made it very simple and there are so many free kits you can download that include paper, embelishments, and letters. . .it can get a little addicting.
I wanted to put together digital albums for my kids and stick with regular scrapbooking for my own albums, but now I just don't know anymore. Scrapbooking can be really expensive after all the things you have to buy; most of which you can only use once, and it takes up so much room. With digital it's just all stored on a hard drive and you can use everything as many times as you want. So . . .maybe I'll just scrapbook cards from now on and do everything else on the computer.
Here is a page I did; just playing around with the program.
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| myndi Wrote: |
Jul 15th, 2010 |
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Crockpot Chicken & Wild Rice Soup
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Posted By: Allie
Jun 22nd, 2010 |
1 can cream of chicken soup
5 C chicken broth
5 C water
1 C diced celery
1 C chopped carrots
2 C cooked chopped chicken
2 4oz. Pkgs long grain and wild rice mix with seasoning packets
Combine all ingredients in a large crockpot. Cover and cook on low 4-6 hours or until rice is done.
*I did mine a little differently but it still turned out yummy. I didn't have chicken broth so I just boiled some chicken legs in water until cooked. Then removed the meat and put the bones back in to continue boiling while i prepared everything else. I halved the recipe because my crockpot isn't that big but I still used a whole can of cream of chicken soup and I used my chicken stock instead of the broth and water (about 5 cups). I really liked this and so did the kids.
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Strawberry Days Parade
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Posted By: Allie
Jun 22nd, 2010 |
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| myndi Wrote: |
Jun 23rd, 2010 |
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Follow-up
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Posted By: Allie
Jun 15th, 2010 |
I took Kaden back to the Doctor for a follow-up. Yes he has asthma. I don't know a lot about asthma so I guess I'll be reading up on it for a while. Hopefully; now that we know, it will be a lot easier to avoid future scares like the last one. He has to take his inhaler twice a day until he is three. Then we will re-evaluate it and see if it's still needed or if we need to change anything.
 
Kaden with his inhaler and Kairi being cute.
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Peanut Butter Middles
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Posted By: Allie
Jun 13th, 2010 |
Cookies:
1-1/2 C Flour
1/2 C Cocoa Powder
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 C Sugar
1/2 C Packed Brown Sugar
1/2 C Butter
1/4 C Peanut Butter
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 Egg
Filling:
3/4 C Powdered Sugar
3/4 C Peanut Butter
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a small bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa powder, and baking soda. In a large bowl, beat together the sugars, butter, and 1/4 cup of peanut butter until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla and egg. Slowly mix in the flour mixture. Set aside.
For the peanut butter filling, combine powdered sugar and 3/4 cup peanut butter. Beat together well. Roll filling into 30 small balls. Try to keep the balls all the same size; around 1 inch.
For each cookie, use 1 tablespoon of chocolate dough and roll into a ball. It helps to flour your hands first. Squish the ball of chocolate dough flat and place a peanut butter ball in the center. Wrap the chocolate dough up and around the peanut butter ball to completely cover. Place 2 inches apart on a baking sheet. Dip the bottom of a glass into sugar and use the cup to lightly flatten the cookie balls. Bake for 7-9 minutes.
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| heather Wrote: |
Jun 29th, 2010 |
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Bowling
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Posted By: Jared
May 29th, 2010 |
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So almost every Tuesday I go bowling with Morgan over at FatCats for their "all you can bowl" and we try to get in as many games as possible. I think that we have started to improve our game and finally decided to start tracking our progress. I created a bowling page to keep track of our stats easily and right now my average is 149 but we have only tracked one game so far. My highest score is 192 which I had gotten a couple weeks ago. I actually got that same score 2 games in a row! Anyway you can go HERE to see our bowling scores.
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Asthma?
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Posted By: Allie
May 28th, 2010 |
The kids are sick again. Having sick kids is the worst thing in the world to me. They are so miserable but you can't do much to help them, especially at this age. Kaden took it really hard too, could have been from his previous pneumonia and weakened lungs, or the possibility that he has childhood asthma, he really had a hard time breathing the first night. He was constantly coughing and sounded terrible when he breathed. He would fall asleep for 20 min and wake up crying and wouldn't stop for an hour, then he'd fall asleep for another 20 min and this repeated the whole night.
We got him into the Dr ASAP the next morning and they said his oxygen was low. They gave him a breathing treatment and he instantly started breathing better. He also had to get a chest xray which came back fine. He just has to continue using a nebulizer for a few more days and will start taking a daily inhailant. For now we are treating it as asthma and in a few weeks will see how things go from there.
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| Allie Wrote: |
Jun 15th, 2010 |
| Myndi Wrote: |
Jun 4th, 2010 |
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Growing Seeds
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Posted By: Allie
May 28th, 2010 |
There are a few spaces of dirt in our back yard that I havn't done anything with, so I've decided just to grow a garden in them for now. Im hoping that soon I can do something more permanent, but havn't decided what i want yet.
I don't want to take on too many plants with this being my first attempt at gardening, so I just chose a few. Roma tomatoes, cucumbers, cantaloupe, and pumpkins. No specific reasons for choosing these, except the pumpkins. I thought it would be fun for the kids to pick their own come halloween.
I'm letting Kaden help out and he has loved it. We planted the seeds and he watered them. I let him choose a seed that could be just for him and planted it in a separate cup. He chose cantaloupe. They started sprouting and he got really excited. He wants to water them all the time and got a bit carried away once and broke his plant. I thought for sure it was a gonner, but it's still growing.
 
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Some Pictures
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Posted By: Allie
May 24th, 2010 |
 
Taking pictures of these two together isn't very easy, but they still look cute. Notice Kaden got a haircut? His last one was probably over 6 months ago. I was planning to go for a longer hair look for him, but just couldn't stand it anymore. Plus, it's almost summer so I thought it would just be better short.
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Anyone up for a yummy drink?
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Posted By: Allie
May 19th, 2010 |
When we went to California we came accross a store that sold these Torani flavored syrups and we bought a bunch. When we came home we tried to find a local store that sold them, and when we did find a place, they only sold the flavors we already had or didn't want. We decided just to buy them off the website. They have so many different flavors we couldn't just pick a couple - we picked a ton, maybe went a little over-board even. . . .ya it was expensive, but i figure they will last a long time (Or maybe not, we will see).
 
Here are the flavors we have:
Black Cherry
Strawberry
Pomegranate
Peach
French Vanilla
English Toffee
Caramel
Blue Raspberry
Cherry Lime
Apple
Blood Orange
Chocolate Mint
Grape
Guava
Huckleberry
Kiwi
Mango
Mandarine Orange
Passion Fruit
Peppermint
Pineapple
Pink Grapefruit
Pumpkin Pie
Gingerbread
Watermelon
Mmmm, can't wait to try them all. In Sprite, lemonade, Hot chocolate, whatever else sounds good.
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Kaden is a Chatterbox
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Posted By: Allie
May 4th, 2010 |
I can't believe 6 months ago we were so worried about his speech. Maybe we are just luckier than most parents whose children are late in speech development. I remember being told "One day he'll start talking, then you wont ever get him to stop". Which at the time I found hard to believe, but it's so true. Kaden is such a fast learner, he catches on so quick. In just a few short months he went from 0 words, to saying 3-4 word sentences, it just amazes me. He's saying new words almost every day and sings along to songs. When we sing twinkle twinkle star, it sounds a lot like he's saying twinkle twinkle little car. Maybe he is, ha ha.
You really have to watch how you phrase things around him now because he will copy everything you say. It can be so cute when you say a big word and he tries to imitate but says it competely wrong. Or when I say a long sentence he will still try to repeat every word I said and will get the words mixed up. I think one of my favorites is when he wants to know where something is, he will say "Where Daddy is?" or "Where yellow truck is?". . . .It's cute to me anyway. ha ha.
Kairi's starting to pick up on things too, she will say dada and mama on occasion and likes to copy sounds. When she plays with a car she will sometimes make driving sounds, and when she plays with a toy tiger or dinosaur she will say "grrr". She picks up a lot of things from Kaden, I can tell she really likes him.
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Back Home
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Posted By: Jared
Apr 29th, 2010 |
 We went on a vacation these past 5 days and got home very very early this morning. What a fun trip, we spent our first night in St. George at Jared's parents' condo. We went bowling which was quite expensive and watched a couple of movies in the awesome theater room. I can't wait to go back there, he he. We left the next morning and stopped in Vegas for a while and walked around, we rode the rollercoaster at the Adventuredome in Circus Circus and went to the Green Valley Ranch Feast Buffet before leaving. If you ever go to Vegas I highly recommend going to this buffet.
Rollercoaster at the Adventuredome
Green Valley Ranch buffet (Feast Buffet)
 We stayed in a hotel near Six Flags which wasn't too bad but was quite expensive compared to the Excalibur in Vegas. There was a guy in the room next to us that appeared to be living there, he had two cats that liked to peak out the windows. The first morning there, about 5am, there was a bird outside our room that started chirping, and literally didn't stop until 6am. The kind of chirping that drives you crazy and you can't sleep through. Just "chirp, chirp, chirp, chirp, chirp", no pauses between chirps, for a whole hour. I could never go back to sleep after it stopped. But anyway. . .
We went to Six Flags that same day, and it was the best! Make note, if you ever want to go to six flags and avoid long lines and wait times, Mondays around April 26th are perfect. We were the VERY FIRST people in the park. The weather and tempurature were perfect and most rides were no more than a few minutes wait. Some rides even let you get right back on when it was over.
The next day we drove to Hollywood to go to The Price Is Right. It was fun, and I'm glad I got to experience the whole thing, but I can't say I'd ever want to do it again. Around 10am, I think, we got to the studio and picked up our ticket for a place in line, then left and went to a few stores and looked around for a while. We had to be back at noon and they started calling people to get in line in the order of when you picked up your ticket. We were pretty close to the beginning of the line. They gave us cards to fill out where you write in something about yourself that might be interesting and they gave you a nametag. We then got our pictures taken went to wait in a different line where we had a short interview with the producer of the show. Afterwhich we went thru security and waited in another line until the show tapeing which was at 4. So the whole line process was 4 hours.
When we went inside to the set, it was smaller than I thought it would be, we got seated on the edge close to the front and got a lot of instruction from the annoucer (Rich Fields). They really encouraged us to chear and clap a lot. Drew Carey stayed on the set during commercial breaks and talked with everyone. The show itself was a little dissapointing because most of the contestants didnt win the prizes. But you can see for yourself if you decided to watch it, it airs on May 24th.
.jpg) After the show we started our drive back to Las Vegas, we were originaly going to go back to the hotel by Six Flags, but decided to spend some extra time in Vegas so Jared booked us a room at the Excalibur. Our Next day in Vegas we did A LOT of walking. Well, most of our trip involved a lot of walking, but this day especially. We looked around some of the casinos we'd never been in before and saw the lions at the MGM Grand, we wanted to go on the rides on the top of the stratosphere but it was too windy and we knew they would be closed.  We got reservations to see the Tournament of Kings dinner show and that was SO FUN! I'm so glad we decided to spend the extra time to see it. We played some of the carnival games in the lower level of the Excalibur and went on the Spongebob 4D ride which was VERY fun and would recommend it.
Lion at the MGM
After the show we started our long drive home. I couldn't wait to get back and see my babies in the morning. It was hard leaving them but I was glad for the break as well. Next time we take a trip down to Californie they should be old enough to really enjoy it too.
Edit By Jared - I am putting this under my name because I have added more details and pictures. I also fixed up my avatar which you can see to the left so it looks more like me, well maybe in my teenage years.
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Kairi falling asleep while eating
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Posted By: Jared
Apr 20th, 2010 |
| There isnt much else to say, just click on the video and wait for it to show up, then click on play. You can also see this and other videos in the gallery.
Also my avatar to the left does not look like me at all.... My profile was corrupted and I lost my avatar that I made so I had to re do one from scratch and did not want to take the time to make a better one so thats why he looks so ugly. When I have more time then I will make him look better. |
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| myndi Wrote: |
Apr 25th, 2010 |
| Jamie Wrote: |
Apr 22nd, 2010 |
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Easter Sunday
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Posted By: Allie
Apr 5th, 2010 |
We had planned to go to my parents' for Easter, but a few days before, Kaden's lingering cough started sounding a lot worse, so I took him to the Doctor and was told that he had developed pneumonia. I was a little shocked to hear that because he didnt seem that sick, just a bad cough. Good thing we caught it before it had a chance to get worse. So he's been on antibiotics and has been improving greatly, but we decided it was best to stay home for Easter.
We hid their Easter baskets and had the kids look for them, when kaden found his the first thing he noticed of course were the toy cars. I put some bunny ears on Kairi and she loved wearing them, which I thought was cute. Normaly when I try to get her to wear a headband she just takes it off, but with the ears, if they fell off, she would bring them to me and want me to put them back on.
 
 
 
We dyed eggs in the afternoon and Kaden had a lot of fun helping, he got to choose the colors for his eggs and he colored on them with the crayon and put stickers on them, he was very proud of the ones he did.
Kairi is starting to walk and has taken 4 steps before falling. She can stand by herself for long periods of time also. Right now she likes to get around by "walking" on her knees, which takes longer than crawling, but I think it gives her the same feel as walking so she likes to do it.
 
 
 
When we finished dying the eggs we had an Easter egg hunt with Kaden. He was very quick to find all the eggs and he even tossed other things that looked like eggs into his basket as well, It was cute.
 
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Some Cute Pictures
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Posted By: Allie
Mar 21st, 2010 |
Kairi was supposed to be taking a nap, I heard some noise from her room and went to check on her and Kaden had climbed into her crib to play with her.
Kaden loves to be in our bed. Sometimes when we are having quiet time he will get tired and crawl into our bed to take a nap. He looks so cozy.
I had put a movie on in the playroom for Kaden to watch, and he got tired and fell asleep in the chair.
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Korker Ribbon
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Posted By: Allie
Mar 20th, 2010 |
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| Jamie Wrote: |
Mar 26th, 2010 |
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This girl will fall asleep anywhere.
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Posted By: Allie
Mar 5th, 2010 |
It was so cute I just had to post about it. We were all eating lunch and Kaden finished so I cleaned him up and went to dish up some more for Kairi, one second she was awake and the next she was basically knocked out.
 
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| Jared Wrote: |
Mar 6th, 2010 |
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Teddy Bear Page
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Posted By: Allie
Mar 5th, 2010 |
I started up on the quiet book again and finished this page in an afternoon. The purpose of this page is for learning to tie a bow, I feel now that I should have used a thinner ribbon, maybe I can replace that later. Also the head looks a little small to me, but I wont re-do it. I sacrificed a stuffed bear that the kids don't play with so it would have the same teddy bear look and not just be fabric. I think he's pretty cute.
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Piggies
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Posted By: Allie
Feb 24th, 2010 |
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| myndi Wrote: |
Mar 3rd, 2010 |
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Oreo Truffles
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Posted By: Allie
Feb 22nd, 2010 |
I've had a couple requests for this recipe so here it is.
1 (16oz) pkg Oreo cookies, divided
1 (8oz) pkg Cream Cheese, softened
2 (8oz) pkgs Baker's Semi-Sweet Chocolate, melted
Crush 9 of the cookies to fine crumbs in food processor; reserve for later use. (Cookies can also be finely crushed in a resealable plastic bag using a rolling pin.) Crush remaining 36 cookies to fine crumbs; place in medium bowl. Add cream cheese; mix until well blended. Roll cookie mixture into 42 balls, about 1-inch in diameter.
Dip balls in chocolate; place on wax paper-covered baking sheet. (Any leftover chocolate can be stored at room temperature for another use.) Sprinkle with reserved cookie crumbs.
Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour. Store leftover truffles, covered, in refrigerator.
* It helped to refrigerate the mixture for an hour before rolling into balls.
If you want to know how to make them look like cupcakes as I did you can view Bakerella's tutorial HERE. I loved the idea of cupcake bites, but I'm not a big fan of mashed up cake mixed with frosting so I tried to find an alternative and I think these truffles worked.
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| myndi Wrote: |
Mar 3rd, 2010 |
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Cupcake Birthday Party
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Posted By: Allie
Feb 22nd, 2010 |
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| heather Wrote: |
Mar 13th, 2010 |
| Jamie Wrote: |
Mar 9th, 2010 |
| myndi Wrote: |
Mar 3rd, 2010 |
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My Little Girl Is 1 Today
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Posted By: Allie
Feb 17th, 2010 |
| Baby Kairi is one today, it feels like it came two months too early. I don't think I'm ready to leave all things baby behind, Jared and I planned on only having 2 children and I don't think I could handle the stress of another one anyway, but I wish I could hold onto the first year just a little bit longer. There are so many things I'm going to miss. . . and not miss.
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| Jamie Wrote: |
Feb 17th, 2010 |
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5 Petal Crocheted Flower
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Posted By: Allie
Feb 15th, 2010 |
| One of my newest hobbies is crochet, not so much recently, but it does get addicting. There are so many free patterns you can find online and a lot of them are really simple, you just need to know the basic crochet stitches (you-tube helps a lot with video tutorials). This is a pattern for the flower that got me started with the hobby. I thought it would make a cute hair clip for Kairi so I looked up how to do the basic stitches and with a little practice it became very easy. This is a card I made using the flower as an embelishment.
These are the basic stitches in the pattern and their abbreviations:
Ch = Chain
st = stitch
sl st = slip stitch
dc = double crochet
5 Petal Flower Pattern
Materials:
Any size hook (depending on what size flower you want, I generally use a size G hook)
Any weight yarn
Rnd 1: Ch 5, join into a ring w/sl st in first ch.
Rnd 2: Ch 3 (counts as first dc), work 9dc into ring, join to top of ch w/sl st. (10 sts total)
Rnd 3: **Ch 2, work 3dc in next st, ch 2 sl st in next st** five times. Fasten off.
For a different color center, try changing yarn colors after round 2. Experiment with different weight yarns and hook sizes. To layer a slightly smaller flower on top, go down one hook size from larger flower.
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Silly Faces
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Posted By: Allie
Feb 12th, 2010 |
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| myndi Wrote: |
Feb 12th, 2010 |
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Peanut Butter & Jam Bars
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Posted By: Allie
Feb 5th, 2010 |
These are yummy, I think they are a bit like putting a layer of jam between two peanut butter cookies. Just a side note: The glaze made a lot, but dont put all of it onto the bars like I did, just drizzle it on top and toss the rest.
½ C sugar
½ C brown sugar
½ C shortening
½ C creamy peanut butter
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 C flour
3/4 t baking soda
½ tsp baking powder
3/4 C strawberry or raspberry jam
Glaze:
1/4 C real butter, melted
2 C powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 T hot water
Cream shortening and both sugars together until light and fluffy. Mix in peanut butter. Mix in egg and vanilla. Add remaining dry ingredients. Mix well. Reserve one cup of the dough for later use. Take the remaining dough and press it into the bottom of an ungreased 9x13 pan. Spread jam evenly over the dough. Take the reserved 1 C of dough and use it to cover the jam layer. Take small pieces and press them with your fingers to create flat little piece of dough to lay on top or you can also crumble it. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes. The top should be set and just barely golden brown. Place on rack and cool completely. Mix all glaze ingredients together and whisk until smooth. Spread over cooled bars. Let glaze set a bit to harden and then slice bars into squares or triangles.
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Peanut Butter Crispy Treats
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Posted By: Allie
Feb 5th, 2010 |
AKA Chocolate Scotcheroos. This is a recipe we got from Jared's sister Jamie and they are soo chewy and yummy, I just want to eat the whole pan when I make them. Next time I'd like to try making them with cocoa rice crispies.
1 C Light Corn Syrup
1 C sugar
1 C creamy peanut butter
6 C crispy rice cereal
1 C semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 C butterscotch chips
Place corn syrup and sugar into saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until sugar dissolves and comes to light boil. Remove from heat. Stir in peanut butter. Mix well. Add cereal. Stir until well coated. Press mixture into 9x13 pan coated with cooking spray. Set aside. Melt chocolate and butterscotch chips together in saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Spread evenly over cereal mixture. Let stand until firm. Cut into bars when cool.
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| Jared Wrote: |
Feb 6th, 2010 |
| myndi Wrote: |
Feb 6th, 2010 |
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Sound Sleeper
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Posted By: Allie
Feb 5th, 2010 |
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| Allie Wrote: |
Feb 12th, 2010 |
| myndi Wrote: |
Feb 6th, 2010 |
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Heart Happy
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Posted By: Allie
Feb 5th, 2010 |
I know how Jared feels about spending money to buy decorations, so I usually try to be as thrifty as I can, especially with holiday decorations since they are only out for a few weeks. I decided to get creative and see what I could do for Valentines Day. I'm pretty happy with what I came up with, condsidering I only spent $2 for fabric and everything else I already had.
This first one was made from some scrap wood from finishing our basement which I spray painted pink. Using my cricut I cut out 'Valentine' in red vinyl and applied it to the wood. I then drilled some holes in the top and stuck in some wooden skewers. And I sewed some hearts with the fabric to put on top of the skewers.
This next one I just cut out the heart and wings with fabric and sewed them in place and put it in this cute frame.
I had another one in mind but have not yet finished it. We'll see if I get around to it. |
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| myndi Wrote: |
Feb 6th, 2010 |
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Another year gone by
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Posted By: Allie
Jan 1st, 2010 |
2009 went by so fast. A few highlights of 2009: Having a beautiful baby girl, finishing our basement (except for the bathroom), and getting Kaden to say his first real words (his vocabulary is expanding every day now!). A few goals for 2010: Getting Kaden to say certain sounds and speak in short sentences, build a fence around our yard, build up our savings account. As for personal goals, I'd like spend more time with the kids and my husband, go to church more often and work towards going to the temple, try not to loose my temper as much, and I'd like to cook more.
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