There'll be days like this

Those shards used to be a bowl.

And this company ripped me off!

I am currently torn between taking pictures with my little kodak easy share digital camera or my nice Nikon film SLR. The problem is I need my pictures to be digital so that I can photoshop them, post them here, make photobooks, ect. I used to develop my film straight to a CD but that gets expensive and the quality isn't that amazing. Plus, last time my negatives got scratched by some inexperienced employee.

So I was really excited when I found this online company that I could mail by film to and in a few days they would have files for me to download from their website.

I thought I would try them out and sent in a roll of film from Will's birthday. When I got back the pictures I wasn't really happy. I don't know if the film got hot in the mail or they are developed wrong but it looks like Will turned 1 in 1970. Kind of a fun effect, but not something I want accidentally every time!

 Anyways, I thought lesson learned I won't do that again. So today I went to download them from the site so that I could at least have retro 1970 memories, but guess what? I had to have paid extra to get a DVD of the files in order to download them! Basically, I paid to have my file developed ruined and I don't even get the files! Whatever! So I ripped them off the site by right-clicking on the thumbnails so they are super high quality now! I feel like I'm stealing my own pictures.

This makes me want to eat ramen for 3 months so that I can spend our grocery money on a new camera! The sad part is I really do like my film camera, and I like shooting film. But, with all the digital now a days I can't find someone who can develop film right anymore unless I go professional :(

I'll leave you with another blast from the past.

Bittersweet Cookies

Will's still sick as you can tell by his eyes, but this cookie made him feel much better!

So Wednesday I received a new calling to be the Relief Society 2nd counselor. I was so excited! No more activity days (I had 15 girls with 9 coming in), planning and teaching a lesson every week, juggling Will during Sunday school. Well, today it turned a little bittersweet. I forgot in the newness of it on Wednesday how much I had grown to love my Sunday school class. They were working towards a class party this summer. I guess that won't happen now, so I made them cookies to make up for it. (I never bring treats). When I told them it would be my last week because I got a new calling they asked "do you have to?". Then, I got pulled into the Bishop's office to be set apart and never actually got to teach my last lesson.

Standing up in Relief Society on Sunday was weird! I think I am really close to being the youngest there. I have no idea what I'm doing in the presidency but I guess sometimes the Lord has a different plan for us then we have for ourselves. So here's to a new adventure! We do think it's kind of fun that Danny's the 2nd counselor in Elder's Quorm and now I'm 2nd counselor in Relief Society.

Grow Grass Grow!

 Say "hello" to my lil baby

All 3,500 of them!

This is try 2 to get grass in our backyard after we seeded last fall. We planted, no kidding, 3,500 little plugs of grass a little over a foot apart across the whole yard! Yes it took forever!

After, 2 weeks we're still watching them grow. I guess we're learning patience?

Finger Painting

Will has a little bit of a cold and has been feeling under the weather lately. Thus, he needs tons of distraction during the day or he's cranky, cranky! It was too hot for me to want to go on an afternoon walk (I know it's April) so we finger painted instead. It was going alright until Will started licking his fingers... then it went all downhill when he picked up the watercolors and started licking them. We were done really quick after that! (that would be why his mouth is black). His masterpiece now resides on our fridge. Our first refrigerator art!

Thursday Thoughts

 Always eat your Greens!

Never forget to Aspire to Something Higher!

Activity Days!

Today was my first and last activity days with my 8&9 yr. old girls.
We had a lesson on the Atonement and the Sacrament then, made bread to be used for Sacrament on Sunday. It was a lot of fun. I thought I would share my white bread recipe with you. enjoy!


White Bread Recipe

Based off of bread formula from:
The Bread Baker’s Apprentice by Peter Reinhart

Ingredients:
4 1/4 cups bread flour
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
3 Tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 large egg (slightly beaten, at room temperature)
1/4 cup butter (at room temperature)
1 1/2 cups buttermilk or whole milk (at room temperature)

1. Mix together f lour, salt, sugar, and yeast.
2. Add egg, butter, buttermilk and mix (If the dough seems stiff add a trickle more buttermilk until the dough is soft.)
4. Sprinkle the counter with f lour. Knead adding more f lour if needed so the dough is soft and tacky, but not sticky. Knead for 6-7 min or until the dough passes the window test.
5. Lightly oil a bowl, put the dough in it, and cover with plastic wrap.
6. Wait 1 to 2 hours. until the dough gets twice as big
7. Remove the dough from the bowl and divide into loaves or rolls. 8. Shape the dough then put into a bread pan. Mist with oil and cover with towel or plastic wrap.
9. Wait for 60 to 90 minutes. until the dough gets twice as big
10. Preheat oven to 350* for bread or 400* for rolls
11. Bake bread for 35-45 minutes and rolls for 15 minutes.
12. Let loaves cool for at least 1 hour before cutting.

Practicing for Easter

I was looking for a distraction  enriching activity for Will so that I could get something done around the house. I came up with practicing for Easter by filling a couple of plastic eggs with some snacks. Will had fun pulling his snacks out of the eggs. Though he still needs to work on getting the tough eggs open by himself.

Monkey Bizness

While we were in Denver I was able to catch up with a friend at Monkey Bizness. Amy is actually my High School band director/ yearbook advisor's wife, but we went on all our crazy band trips together and became friends. She's been to my bridal shower, wedding, baby shower, you name it. It was great seeing her and her two adorable kids. I just wish we could have found some more time to catch up. I guess we'll just have to use the internet :) Thanks for coming though Amy I was really excited to see you!

On a Side note Will loved Monkey Biz! He particularly loved the inflatables. 

Aunt Crystal Spotings!

I promise my lil sister was in Denver too, but some how I missed taking a full picture of her. I guess I was too focused on the kids they grow up so fast. So here's the evidence I've collected that Crys did exist.

Thanks for a great trip everybody!

Prehistoric Times

The Mall in Denver has this awesome soft Dinosaur play area in the food court. Will had to go play there with Madi twice while we were visiting them.

How do you spell trouble?

Madi and Will had a great time playing together! ... at least when Will wasn't pulling her pigtails or trying to use her to stand up. Will even learned how to say Madi and baby while we were there. Here they are bonding over string cheese. Madi even let Will watch "stuck in tower" Tangled and play with some of her babies... some of them but not Lily :)

Instant Care :(

Will had his first insta-care visit while we were in Denver as well as his first round of antibiotics. While we were working on the yard he had been bit by a couple of fire ants on his thigh. I guess because they were really close to his diaper they got infected :( So I after I noticed the red rings around them we took him to the insta-care.
It was kind of funny because they were a little confused by what a fire ant bit was and how he had been bit when it was snowing outside. I kept explaining that fire ants are quite common in Texas and there it's 90 degrees. I still think they were a little confused when we left, because the doctor said that this type of infection happens when there's a wound, which 'could' have been an ant bit. :) oh well after a round of antibiotics everything is cleared up and Will's feeling better.

Naturally, he had to have some of Grandpa Don's ice cream once we got back home for being such a trooper.

Freddy's Steakburgers

While we were out shopping on Monday we started discussing favorite restaurants. I mentioned that we had a place by us in TX that had awesome hamburgers that we're thin and crispy on the edges. My sister said, "wait where is that?" Come to find out they had a Freddy's too and my brother-in-law had already talked about wanting to meet us there for lunch. Too funny of a consequence to pass up so here we are having lunch at Freddy's.  Will's very fond of their hot dogs and frozen custard.

Denver

 This little kiddo was the star of the week. We didn't have any delays on our flights so we managed to make his blessing. We did have to go straight from the airport to the church though. Talk about efficient no wasted time!

Did you know you can fit over 5 car seats in a Suburban? Good thing to know, now that kids have to be in car seats until they're 8! The kids had a blast sitting all snug like this. Will did have a habit of reaching over and stealing Caleb's blankets and toys though.

Do I fit?

We finished planting the grass at around 8pm. That only left dinner, laundry, packing, and cleaning to be done before I had to leave for the airport at 4:30am! :) Needless to say, I think I got 3 hrs of sleep.

While we were waiting for the flight Will made friends with our pilots. So when they went down to get on the plane he wanted to go to. I would carry him over to the other side of the waiting area and he would hussle back over to the open door. Then, I would "catch" him and carry him back. We did this repeatedly  I figured he was tiring himself out so he would sleep on the flight. Well when that got tiring we started getting creative. Do you think Will qualifies as carry-on luggage?

The flight to Denver was awesome. I got the bulk head window seat and another lady with a 18 month old took the aisle. Needless, to say no one was over eager to sit in between us. So we blocked off the end and were able to let the kids play on the floor together most of the flight. They were happy and thus everyone else on the plane was happy.

I did qualify for "extra security screening" at the Austin airport... not really sure how I feel about that. Really? The lady with the baby? Traveling by herself? Really? I'm such a hardened criminal. They lady assigned to do it seemed really uncomfortable with the whole thing so I tried to be a good sport to make her job a little easier. :(

Sadie & Will's Tea Party

"Why, thank you Sadie."

"I don't mind if I do."

Will's getting better but we still have some work to do on the dog food vs. Will food topic.

Hello Ugly!

Isn't this the ugliest caterpillar? Maybe he'll make an exceptionally beautiful butterfly? I hope so because they're all over our yard.

Boat Gate

Yay! The boat is finally off the driveway and behind the fence. We still need to figure out a long term solution for it to sit on, it's just on grass, but the gate is done! We ordered a metal gate from online sunk some new posts, and we're able to pretty much just attach the old fence back on. It took all day and we ended up with almost no visible difference in the fence. (but we consider that a good thing)

Valentine's Day... the belated post

This is space saver post. I think Danny wanted to explain so I'll let him.
(edited by danny)
Ok so I have been supposed to be more active in this blog and I am now guilted into actually posting about this. I have been meaning to post about this for a while. Jenni awesome wife that she is decided to try and come up with something extra special for me. So she emailed my parents(unbeknownst to me) looking for pictures for the trip to taiwan and china and my Mom sent back a selection of photos. So Jenni selected one that looks cool and split the photo in three sections and then blew it up and sent it to costco to be printed off. I think this is the largest size print you can get at costco. She then glued the pictures to some MDF  and painted over it with mod podge so that it is all protected nice. I tell you what these are things are hefty and very nice. Anyway so I came home and she had put them up in our room and I was very surprised we are planning on putting them up in the bedroom along with some other chinese pictures and having an asian feel to the room. Anyway I recognized the place, one of the new members had taken me and my parents there when they came to pick me up after my mission. For those interested it was originally a fort(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Provintia) and is one of the oldest buildings in tainan which is one of the oldest buildings in taiwan as well as being the capital at the time of the fort. There are some beautiful grounds that surround it and this picture is of those though you can see a corner of the building in the one section. The two things that I most recall about this building were that on the grounds there is a small stone horse which has an almost arthurian legend associated with it. I believe that the horse is supposed to come alive if the right person sits on it's back and that person is supposed to free/rule taiwan?( I suppose I don't remember that clearly, but give me a break it was several years ago now). The other was that inside was a small section dedicated to the god of learning, where you could see prayers hung that students placed before going to take exams. Let me see if I can google something up for you.(http://dreintaiwan.blogspot.com/2009/05/fort-provintia-chih-kan-lou-in-tainan.html this guy has a picture of the prayers/offerings half way down on this post).  Anyway the whole of this is that I have an awesome wife and she made a cool thing for me.

Panic!

Why do they always make the panic buttons on keys a big red button? Will has discovered these buttons and loves to push them. The only problem is that they can make it through the house to the cars parked outside. I'm sure the neighbors wonder why our cars randomly start honking ALL the time.