A sad, sad day!

While all the excitement of a New Year, Birthdays and Baptisms were going on, Grandma and Grandpa were dealing with some not-so-exciting events of their own.

During their visit here to celebrate with Emily, they received a phone call relaying the devastating news of what was going on in their own back yard! What a shock! In the middle of the last big storm in their area, these gigantic oaks were split and fell, literally centimeters from my parents' home. (One tree did get the corner of the roof).

After 30 + years of having these "old friends" in the back yard to provide shade, climbing entertainment, hours of pretend play to myself as a youngster, and homes to plenty of squirrels and birds, they are gone. I can hardly believe it. I guess I get sentimental, a bit, because I remember playing out there for hours with my brothers and friends. I am reminded of "The Giving Tree". So many years of wonderful giving.

I felt bad for Mom and Dad, they probably felt trapped being here when they had this crisis lingering in the background. We're so happy they stayed for Emily's big day. I know it's been a major event to have the trees taken care of and cleaned up.

As silly as it feels to get sentimental over some trees, I can't help but feel a bit sad knowing that they are gone. Many, many good times and so much beauty were provided through the years. This Post talks about some of the good times. I know the yard will look lovely again soon, it will just take some adjusting to look out the window and not see these great giants.
(Thanks to Ryan and Kasey's Picassa for providing the awesome pictures!)

What we have been up to...

Wow! What a busy, busy time! We have been having so much fun and enjoying our Christmas vacation to the fullest!
After the Christmas wrappings and ribbon had been put away, we brought in 2008 with a small party!
A last-minute party. A"hey-are-you-guys-doing-anything-for-New-Years...in-4-hours" party! Our friends, Dave and Angela, drove 90 minutes so we could eat delicious goodies, play some silly games and cheer in the new year with us! We are so glad they came. You can never get enough of "Mad Gab" and other games when you 're in good company! Evidently the night escaped us, as we stayed up until 4 a.m.!
I don't know the last time we've done that!!


A few days later, we celebrated Emily's 8th birthday! How is it that she is already 8 years old? I can't believe how quickly that flew by. We surprised the kids by taking them to the Wild Animal park for the day. We couldn't have asked for a better day! Not too hot and not rainy...the animals were quite happy and playful. Needless to say, my own little animals had a fabulous time! (thanks a MILLION Amy)! The "journey to Africa" tour was the best part...we were able to see so many animals roaming freely among beautiful terrain, with no fences dividing them. What a great sight! Even little Ezra couldn't keep his eyes off the Rhinos grazing in the grass. It would be a fun place to visit again. To top off the wonderful day, we were surprised to see my cousin, Ross, who lives 800 + miles from here! What a great treat! (sorry no pics).

Also, during this busy couple of weeks, we were able to enjoy the baptism of our daughter. We had family who drove a long way to celebrate this special day with Emily. Many family and friends came to show their support. Emily was so happy to see everyone, and to get the cards & phone messages from others who could not be there. Thank you to everyone for all your generosity!
We are now back into our regular "routine" (whatever that is, right?). We hope you all had a great Holiday break to celebrate Christmas and the start of this new year!!!

New Christmas Surprises.

Well, here we are! After all of our Christmas fun and busy weeks, we are home and happy to play! Santa came, and left everyone some great new things to keep us all very entertained.
Jaydon loves his marble track block set! He can build new tracks and watch his marbles roll for hours on end.Emily is completely happy to bake and decorate with her new cooking gear. Yummmmmmmy!

Little Ezra finally got over his fear of this battery-operated rocking horse (the neighs and movements scared him) and now he loves to rock as long as he can! Joel (a little camera shy) could build with his new Lincoln Logs all day and all night, if he didn't have to stop to do real life things (like eat and sleep).
We had a beautiful Christmas, and were VERY happy to be in our own home. We hope that your Christmas experience was one of joy and love.
Most of all, we were so happy to celebrate the birth of Our Savior, Jesus Christ. How peaceful life is, when our thoughts are filled with Him. I love talking about, singing about and celebrating Him. It was such a joy to start our own new family traditions and keep the Savior at the center of our Christmas.

"That's a BIG pile of rolls!" quote by my daughter

I finally set aside a day for ONLY baking (and tending to children...a little). We deliver a little Christmas cheer to our neighbors, 16 of them on our cul de sac, every year. I loved that tradition growing up, and I want to continue it with my own family; arguments, bad attitudes and all :) (my brothers will remember that well, I'm sure). So, all day, my boys and I made dough, let it rise, and rolled each butter-dipped piece into over 100 crescent rolls! The boys love to help me in the kitchen, so it was entertainment for all. When Emily was home from school, she helped wrap and put ribbons and name tags on each gift. I did not want let this family project become a "mom" project.
These recipes are simple and delicious! I highly recommend them. The rolls are a bit time consuming, but worth it, in my opinion.

Crescent Rolls:
(this recipe, compliments of my friend, Mary)
5 c. flour
1 cube butter, softened
1 c. milk, lukewarm
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 Tbs. salt
1 1/2 Tbs. yeast in 1/2 c. warm water

Mix flour and butter with pastry blender or hands, until crumbly. In separate bowl, mix milk, beaten eggs, sugar and salt. Add yeast & water combo. to the egg mixture. blend lightly. Combine wet ingredients with Flour mixture. Mix with hands until doughy.
Cover dough with plastic and a warm towel. Let rise double (about 3 hrs.). divide into 3rds. Roll out 1/3 into a circle and cut like a pizza. Melt another cube of butter. Dip each piece in butter, then roll from wide end. place on a baking sheet, let rise again, 30 min. Bake @ 400 for 10-12 Min. Repeat with each section of dough. Enjoy warm rolls with the delicious butter! YUM!

Cranberry Butter:
2 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. raspberry jam with seeds
1 can whole cranberry sauce
3 Tbs. powdered sugar.

add all ingredients in blender and blend 5 min. until butter is whipped and blended well.

So, after getting our hands a little doughy, we washed up, wrapped some up, ate a few, and wished each neighbor a Merry Christmas with our not-so-harmonic singing. It made for a great FHE activity.