Nap Time Blues

Oh great...long gone are the days when I could just lay Brody down & sneak out of the room. Yesterday he realized that hey, he could lift his head up & watch me leave the room(cry,cry,cry). He just STARES at me with his puppy dog eyes.....pleading for me to pick him up. Could you resist those cute, CHUBBY cheeks?? So of course I pick him up, give him kisses, & take him out to the kitchen. Then his grumpy side starts showing & back down he goes....round & round we go...gotta love those nap times! He is growing too fast!

Raccoon Eyes

My sisters gave me this book for my birthday & I LOVE it!! (was it a hint?) I like it so much because Carmindy gives you tips on how to look your best in 5 minutes & you don't have to spend ooddles of dollars. Its all about using the RIGHT products in the RIGHT places to enhance your beauty! She also has a blog I like to read, check it out here.
ONE of my favorite make-up tools is this foundation brush. I bought it off e-bay for a fraction of the price (gotta love good deals).
This is a MUST have for me & my DARK circles....it helps get rid of them, so I look more like a human & less like a raccoon, yes!

Elder Scott Stauffer

Congratulations to my bro, Scott, who was ordained an Elder today! My Dad ordained him & gave him the sweetest blessing. The spirit was so strong, & of course all the ladies were crying. I love knowing that our family can be together forever. Scott is such a great example to me-he always follow his heart & is a HARD worker! He is a really good Uncle,too, just like my other brother, Ryan(who we love tons). My grandparents are down visiting, so we have basically been living over at my parents house (which is kinda crazy with 3 little kids). We went to Last Chance (my fav store) & my g-pa stocked up on shoes!!

I have the BEST grandparents in the world, I am so grateful for them. They are so giving, they go with out so others can have. They have NEVER once missed some ones birthday & let me tell you they have a TON of grandchildren who are all married & have spouses, too!

Layne Jr

Don't be deceived....this isn't baby Layne, but baby Brody (aka Brody Bear, Brody Bunches). Kathryn gave us two of Layne's outfits when he was but a wee one. I thought this outfit was so adorable, I couldn't resist.


Ignore the photography skills...I never took photo at good 'ol MHS! Oh, but I DO remember those days of Drivers ED!! What was the teachers name??? I can't remember....all of the boys in my car would get YELLED at because they would always turn the radio to music instead of listening to the teacher. LOL, fun times!!

Superman

Today, Carter was eating his yogurt & "spwinkles", aka chopped walnuts, on the counter. I walked out of the room to get the phone & when I came back in he was FAST asleep! Poor guy was tired! Much better & safer, too! Thanks Grandma for the Superman stickers, he loves them!

Sprinkles

So I am sitting here enjoying my peace & quiet....all 3 of my kids are in BED & ASLEEP(key word here) & it is only 8:00 pm! Never, hardly ever does this happen at our house. Layne is working late tonight, so I will bask in the glory of doing it all by myself. As I am sitting here lounging in my computer chair with nothing to do (ha-ha) I can't help but think about CUPCAKES(of course deserts are always on my mind, lol). I have been craving Sprinkles, a yummy cupcake bakery Oprah made famous. Well, do you know they sale boxes of their cupcake mix? I thought what a great Christmas present for all my friends....until I found out it was $14.00 a box, ouch! (sorry guys).

Here is the next best thing, their chocolate frosting recipe. Make them for yourself & you will love the frosting! Or if you need an excuse make them for a friend, or the ladies your VT. Yum!!

Sprinkles chocolate frosting:

6 oz. butter

pinch of salt

2 1/2 c. confectioner's sugar, sifted

1/4 tea. vanilla extract

3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled

Beat butter and salt in stand mixer until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed, gradually add the sugar, until incorporated, stopping the mixer to occasionally scrape the sides of the bowl. Add the vanilla and chocolate, mix until combined, careful not to over mix and incorporate too much air.

If you are not the chocolate type (like my hubby, how did I marry a guy who doesn't like chocolate??) here is the cream cheese recipe.

8 oz cream cheese
4 oz butter

3 3/4 c. confectioner's sugar, sifted

1/2 tea. vanilla extract

1/8 tea. salt

Cream the butter, cheese and salt in a stand mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually add the sugar until incorporated, then add the vanilla.

Oopppss..

Ooppps I forgot one of my fav pics from the vacation....it must be because it is SOOO Late & I have been up blogging for hours....Help!!! I can't step away from the computer & I have kids coming over to my house tomorrow at 7:00 am, yikes!

Newport Beach 2007

OH its so HARD to come home to 'real life' after a vacation. Its like I need a vacation from my vacation(poor me...I know, I know)....we had a BLAST in Newport! I sure wish Grant, Amy & their kids lived by us. They live far away in KY. My kids just LOVED playing with their cousins. It was so cute because Carter & Noah kept saying, "Where did my fwend go?" when they couldn't find each other. The kids played at the beach all day long- those sand crabs kept them entertained for hours. Why can't sand crabs live in my backyard??...sure would be nice. The kids didn't take naps because we couldn't tear them away from the beach. Instead we put them to bed early. Grant got us all hooked on the show "Heroes", we stayed up every night watching all the episodes.

We ate at some yummy places, Sprinkles, Roy's(my fav restaurant for now), The Rusty Pelican, and Chronic Tacos.

We also took the kids to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Longbeach & they loved seeing all the fish!

THANK YOU George & Kathryn for another fun trip!! I also have to give a shout out to my sister-in-law, Amy, who stayed home with baby Sam. The trip wasn't the same with out you! We missed seeing your blue Highland High jammy shirt....you will have to bring it next year...go Hawks!(but don't worry Jackrabbits always outrun the Hawks)

Newport

Well we are off to Newport Beach this morning....the trip I have been waiting for ALL year! I have a list of all the yummy places to eat (thanks to Amber, Suzanne & Crystal). Hopefully none of my kids will get sick. A mysterious thing happens when ever we go on a family vacation- someone always get sick, knock on wood! Last year, lets see, I think Carter got hand, foot, mouth...it was horrible! White sand beaches dotted with sea weed....here we come! PS-Amy we are going to miss you!!

Fun in the Sun

Yesterday Amber, Alisa, and Tanna came over the river and through the woods (I mean over the dried up canal and through the desert) to our house. We went swimming and ate some Gecko Grill for lunch. I miss getting together with friends, we need to do it more, we had a ton of fun!! Alisa & cute Ellie.....Alisa you NEED TO START A BLOG....no more excuses!!
This picture is proof Tanna was here, even though she is hiding behind a paper plate!

Amber & Maggie...Maggie was not to sure about going down the slide.

Happy Birthday Steph!!

I just wanted to wish my beautiful sister Steph a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY! She is the best sister (Andy don't worry you are to). She is the most thoughtful, tender hearted, beautiful person ever. Have a wonderful day & eat LOTS of cake!!