Tissue Paper Pom Poms

We made some New Year's Eve party decorations from a Martha Stewart Kit I bought after Halloween on sale. I thought silver and black would work for the New Year. I love them. But you don't need the kit to make them. They are super easy, you just have to be careful not to rip the tissue paper (at least not too much)

Supplies: You'll need tissue paper and floral wire.

Here are the steps:

Stack eight 20-by-30-inch sheets of tissue. Make 1 1/2-inchwide accordion folds, creasing with each fold.

2. Fold an 18-inch piece of floral wire in half, and slip over center of folded tissue; twist. With scissors, trim ends of tissue into rounded or pointy shapes.

3. Separate layers, pulling away from center one at a time. (Be gentle and patient, the tissue tears easily)

4. Tie a length of string or fishing line to floral wire for hanging.

As you can see you can do any color. I think these would be darling for a birthday party!

Merry Christmas

I just wanted to wish everyone a very, Merry Christmas! We miss seeing our friends and family far away. We send our love and best wishes for a Christmas full of peace, harmony, and love. And may we all remember the wonderful blessing of the Savior's birth, His life, and His atoning sacrifice. Merry Christmas

All I Want for Christmas . . .

Is a broken arm? That's what Eliza got. Today we spent the morning at the doctor's office, who confirmed that Eliza's arm is indeed broken - both bones as a matter of fact. Fortunately, they were both a "greenstick" break. In other words, not bad and the doctor was able to cast her arm in the doctor's office. It all started this morning. I had a 9:00am Camp meeting at my house. Steve had not left for work yet, and Amy had a great idea. Amy gets lots of great ideas that she likes to try out on her sisters, mainly Eliza. Today it was doing "airplane". Eliza would lay on Amy's feet, who would launch her off and onto the floor. Unfortunately, the last landing was a crash one. I of course was oblivious to what was going on. Apparently, Ruthie tried to tell me that Zsha, Zsha (Eliza) was sad and Amy was sad. But, I was in a meeting and paid no attention. So after Eliza countinued to cry for over a half hour, Steve decided she was really hurt. When I finally realized what was going on, my meeting ended abruptly. Steve and I loaded a sobbing Eliza into the car and left a sobbing Amy at home, and drove off into the very, very, very snowy morning. (So glad Steve was home to drive). So you see, its nothing that a Jamba Juice and a trip to Blockbuster can't make a little better.

Pretzel Turtles

The girls and I made these delicious little treats. They are yummy. Instead of pecans (not everyone in my family is a nut fan) we used Christmas colored MnM's. You can make a lot of these quick.

Preheat your oven to 250

1. Upwrap your Rolos. Place pretzels on baking sheet. Top with a Rolo.

2. Bake in oven for 3-5 minutes, until the chocolate just begins to melt. The Rolo should be soft but not completely melted.

3. Remove from oven, place on cooling rack and immediately squish the chocolate with a nut or MnM.

4. Allow time for them to set by letting them cool for a couple of hours or by putting them in the refrigerator.

Ideas, PLEASE!

I recently got a new calling, Stake Camp Director. Not sure what they were thinking, but that is beside the point. This year we are going to a new camp and doing everything differently. They want the Girls Camp more stake oriented. We are going to be dividing the girls by levels. But they also want to schedule ward time.Has anyone ever done it this way before? Does anyone have any ideas on how to do certification, how to use ward leaders, etc, etc? Suggestions? ideas for a theme? I really am a little lost right now, so ANY thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Merry Christmas

Today I learned that our Christmas cards will be arriving from shutterfly on December 22nd. This means that if I send out Christmas cards, you would receive them after Christmas. Kinda defeats the purpose of a Christmas card, doesn't it? Oh well. So, I decided to post our Christmas picture on my blog and wish you all a Merry Christmas. (Just pretend you received this in the mail.) Thanks - I feel better now.

Hot Chocolate Cones

We have made these for the past three years. They are really easy and turn out really cute. They make great little gifts. I often get asked how to make these, so I thought I would post the steps. Here you go:
Supplies: (for one hot chocolate cone)
1/2 C hot chocolate - any kind you like

2 T mini chocolate chips
1/2 C mini marshmallows (aprx)
1 red Hot Shot candy (this is a generic brand candy at our grocery store, its like a giant red hot. If you can't find it a regular red hot will do)
2 cone shaped cellophane bags (I buy mine online)
2 clear hair rubber bands (you buy these on the same aisle in grocery store where hair clips, hair bands, etc. are. They work well because they are smaller than regular rubber bands and easier to conceal. )

Steps:

Fill cellophane bag with the 1/2 C of hot chocolate and tie off with one rubber band. Next, cut off the top of the cellophane bag just above the rubber band Next place the cellophane bag filled with the hot chocolate into the other cellophane bag Then fill with the 2 tablespoons of mini chocolate chips Top off with the marshmallows and the red hot Finish by securing with another clear rubber band, then add ribbon and/or tag, etc. Each cone serves at least two. You can make these super fast if you enlist the help of others and do it like an assembly line.

The Flu and a Really Lame Toothfairy

We have the flu going around at our house. It started with Lydia and now Ruthie has it. I started feeling achy Sunday night and have been fighting aches and coughing for a couple of days now. Fortunately, I don't have it as bad as Lydia or Ruthie. Now Steve is starting to cough too. Poor little Ruthie is kinda miserable, I don't get much done, but I get a lot of cuddling time with her since she just wants to be held. And Thursday night Eliza lost her front tooth. She was very excited and left her tooth under her pillow for the tooth fairy. Unfortunately, the tooth fairy was really tired that night, forgot about the tooth and fell asleep. So, the next morning I explained to Eliza that sometimes the tooth fairy gets pretty busy and needs an extra night. By that time the tooth was lost, but I reassurred Eliza that she could leave a note and the tooth fairy could find the tooth. So, she left a note Friday night, and the tooth fairy didn't come again! Well while we were at a 6:00am tithing settlement (no, that is not a typo - it was 6:00AM on a Saturday) The tooth fairy realized she had neglected to pick up Eliza's tooth again! So, the tooth fairy quickly went to her bank (aka Steve) got some cash and then enlisted the help of other fairies (aka Abigail). So, upon arrival home Abigail quickly darted out of the car and up to Eliza's room. When we got home I asked Eliza if the tooth fairy had come yet, to which she replied "No." (I was really hoping she hadn't checked yet.) So, I told her I thought she should check again, because sometimes things get lost in your covers. She did and the tooth fairy had finally come! We have a really lame tooth fairy. PS The Beehive Bazaar went great! And the girls are assurred a lot of spending money.

Sneak Peek

Here is a sneak peek of all the goodies the girls are selling. We set up our display at home to make sure it looked OK and we had everything we needed. Here is a list of what was made: Hot Chocolate Cones (Amy)$3.00 Hairbands(Abigail/Lydia) $3.00 Ornaments(Eliza)$3.50 Pocket Mirrors (Abigail/Lydia)$3.00 Magnets (set of four) (Abigail/Lydia)$2.50 Earrings (Abigail/Lydia)$3.00 Although the girls had their own items to sell, it really was a collective effort. And yes, I did end up helping A LOT! Tomorrow night the Bazaar starts. I will post some "how to's" in the next day or so, plus some other ideas I had, but just never got around to.

Quick Update

I figured I better post something so people would know we were still alive. We made it home safe from AZ, sans no wrong turns landing us in Wickenberg and no car problems. (Both which happened on the way down.) However, Lydia is still sick. We are going on four days of no school. Not good. But I do believe she is on the mend and I am hoping she will be able to make it tomorrow. She tried to go this morning, but taking a shower wiped out all of her energy. So, this means that I am taking her spot making all of their "stuff" for the Beehive Bazaar. I have been so busy "helping" that everything else has been neglected. I told the girls that they need to give me a large cut of the money they make. Let's just hope things sell or I will be sending you all earrings, pocket mirrors, magnets, rings, and hot chocolate cones for Christmas. My goal is to have enough finished today that I can clear off the dining room table, so we can acually eat dinner there tonight. Wish me luck. I promise to post pictures soon. Although my camera is still gone. . .starting to get worried. . .I will use my old one which means the pics won't be so great.

You Should Listen

The other day Steve and I listened to a BYU forum. The forums and devotionals are held every Tuesday at 11:00am at the Marriott Center. If its a visiting authority, they are called a devotional. If it is a professor they are called a forum. In October (Oct. 28th to be exact), they had a visiting professor from Princeton come and speak. His name was Robert George. His speech was entitled "On the Moral Purposes of Law and Government". It was excellent. You can listen to it here. I highly recommend it if you have the time.

I'm Back!

Yea! I finally have my computer back! There are still a few things I (really meaning Steve) needs to configure. I still can't send emails. And I can't find my documents or picutres. However, Steve reassures me they are there. I will take his word on it. Here are some pics of what we've been doing \: We have been raking and playing in leaves. Apparently, Eliza was doing more "playing" than helping because I don't have a picture of her. I think they are finally done! The few that are left won't kill the grass, so I think they may be mowed up in the Spring. Let the snow come! We have also been doing some sewing and making lots of crafts for the bazaar. I actually did some sewing and made new Christmas stockings! Yea for me! I feel so domestic! The toe looks deformed in the picture (maybe it really is)and I admit that I did use some fabric glue during the process. But I found the secret to sewing: patience and having a sewing machine that works! I am still working on the patience. I will post pictures of the girls items for the Beehive Bazaar soon. Eliza wanted to get in on the action, so we found some ornaments that she can make. They have turned out pretty cute! Now I want to make something for the boutique, but I have given away my best ideas to the girls! Maybe they will share. PS. Is any one else having problems with posting on their blog or is it just me? Its me isn't it?

Technical Difficulties

My computer is sick. It doesn't want to turn on - at all. So, for the next few days I will not have my computer to check email, finances,post pictures etc. Its amazing how dependent you become on technology. Hopefully, I will have it back up and running soon. In the meantime I am using one of Steve's laptops.

The Beehive Bazaar

The girls are going to be selling their jewlery and things at the Beehive Bazaar again this year. If you are in Utah or will be in Utah on these dates, you really should come and check it out. I doubt you have ever been to a boutique like this before! We will post pictures of thier things later . . . when we get them finished.

Leaves, Leaves, & More Leaves

Although this picture was taken last year, this is a glimpse of what our yard looks like daily. Our trees' leaves are always the last to fall. We have begun our daily raking and mowing leaves routine. We blow leaves, we rake leaves, and we mow leaves . . . a couple of hours later it looks like this again. In the front and back yard. It won't be long before the leaves fall too thickly and we can no longer mow them up. That's when the serious raking starts. This can go on for weeks. However, it snowed today. This usually means that as soon as it warms up again and the sun hits the leaves - they ALL drop. Think raining leaves.

The Infinite Power of Hope

Hope is a gift of the Spirit. It is a hope that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the power of His Resurrection, we shall be raised unto life eternal and this because of our faith in the Savior. This kind of hope is both a principle of promise as well as a commandment, and, as with all commandments, we have the responsibility to make it an active part of our lives and overcome the temptation to lose hope. Hope in our Heavenly Father’s merciful plan of happiness leads to peace,mercy, rejoicing, and gladness. The hope of salvation is like a protective helmet;it is the foundation of our faith and an anchor to our souls. President Dieter F. Uchtdorf Second Counselor in the First Presidency General Conference October 2008

Halloween Review

A picture of the table before our Halloween Feast, which has become a tradition thanks to Grandma C. Abigail informed me that this was her favorite part of Halloween. We ate Goulash in pumpkin bread bowls, with veggies and dip, plus a warm artichoke dip for the bread from inside the bread bowls, and juice with dry ice. Steve had been out of town until 5:30pm Halloween Night. He got home at 6:30 and we quickly ate so they could be trick or treating by 7:00pm. Oh! and he did get my old camera working for me- see he is good at fixing things! And I did find the pedal and power cord for the sewing machine an hour before dinner. No, I did not get them finished, but I used them anyway! I finished them 2 days after. Oh well!

The girls having fun carving pumpkins. We decided to have a theme for all of our pumpkins. We chose to carve words into them instead of faces.

Unfortunately, Steve was out of town when we carved pumpkins, so no power tools were involved this year. (This was taken last October - and yes he really did use his power tools) An example of our "word pumpkins"

Eliza, who was Little Orphan Annie. She was the easiest one to please in regard to her costume. I said, "Eliza, how about you be Annie for Halloween?" Eliza said, "Sure, I don't care. Who's Annie?" Then I sang. She got it.

Somehow this is the only picture I got of Amy in her pirate costume, which is covered up with her jacket and backpack. All the elementary school children wore their costumes to school so they were ready for the Halloween Parade.

Ruthie's 1st costume for the day, before we left at 8:45am for the Halloween parade at school. The ponytails were gone before we arrived, but I do have proof that I really did try to do her hair. 8:45am is too early to put a Halloween costume on a 2 year old, by 11:00am it was dripping wet (she was trying to help me with dishes) and was dirty as well. It didn't get washed in time for trick or treating.

Ruthie's 2nd Halloween costume for the day.

Lydia was a Greek goddess. We had an impromptu party with a bunch of her friends Halloween Night.

Abigail who kinda dressed up. She didn't like the eyeliner that I helped her put on before school. She thought it was "too much", so she took it off. Then on her way to a party that night she called and said, "Mom! I'm afraid I didn't dress up enough!"

PS Sorry for all the sideway pictures. Too tired to figure out why my computer is not cooperating.

Her Dad Would be Proud

Abigail came home from school today and said, "Mom, guess what happened on the bus today." Her eyes started to light up, so I knew it was something she was excited about. Apparently, on the way home from school today some kids began talking about poliitics. Now, Abigail's dad talks a great deal about politics to the girls. He feels like it is important for them to understand the different party platforms, as well as explain our personal political beliefs. Yesterday as the girls were helping me, politics came up again. Steve wasn't around, so I took the time to talk to the girls about our political beliefs and specifically about being courageous and standing up for one's beliefs - something that has been on my mind lately. I talked to the girls about the recent articles in the Ensign regarding abortion and gender. I thought it was a good discussion. Surprisingly, the girls listened rather intently and asked a lot of good questions.

The political views discussed on the bus were different political views than ours. Abigail bravely began talking to them about how she believed differntly and explaining to them why. She told me, "Mom! They didn't know what to say!" It turns out Abigail stumped them. Eventually, someone did pipe up and said, "But shouldn't homosexuals have rights too?" Again, Abigail explained to them that yes they should, but also explained how the prophet has counseled us to defend a traditional family and why it is so important. She also explained that we should support a candidate that shares our same moral values. I think it was a brave thing for Abigail to do today. Some of those who were in opposition to her were her very good friends. It wasn't just her political beliefs she expressed, but more importantly it was that she stood up for her moral beliefs. Her dad would have been proud, just like her mom.

Stressed

I am a little bit stressed. A few days ago my camera broke. I am trying to get it fixed, but of course that means I have to ship it far, far away and I won't see it again for at least two weeks. I found my old camera, but I can't get it to charge. So, that means that I won't be taking pictures of:

• our pumpkin carving
• all the beautiful leaves that are about to fall in our yard
• The Halloween Parade at school ( Yes, we still get a way with Halloween parties, and Santa even comes to school at Christmas!)
• Halloween Night
• Our Halloween Dinner that has become a tradition
• the 162 cans of wheat, flour, sugar, and oats I canned at home today
• And Ruthie's very dirty, sticky face from eating the sugar off the table that spilled as I filled the cans

So, to say the least I am disappointed. Maybe Steve can work a miracle for me. He's good at that. Then tonight I sat down to sew napkins to match my table cloth for the Halloween Dinner. (I know what your thinking - napkins?! Why?! But I really needed a creative outlet and decided to attempt sewing napkins) However, my sewing machine is very old and now broken. Abigail's sewing machine (yes, she has her own and yes she is a much better - I ask her for help. ) is missing the pedal and power cord. Can not find it anywhere! We took it to be serviced a few months ago and haven't used it since. It's possible it could be at the repair shop, but I doubt they will have a clue.) I Don't mean to sound like I am whining, but I suppose I am. Do you think I can make napkins with fabric glue?

Boo!

Okay, before I say anything about my silly cookies you really must see Melissa's cookies for Christian and Stephanie's benefit concert this Saturday. Most of you have probably seen them, but if not take a look. Unbelievable!

Anyway, if you are not quite as talented as Melissa (like myself) in the cookie department - try this. Steve's mom, a cookie master herself, made these with the kids one year. I thought they were so cute. Plus they were so easy. And if something is easy and cute, I am all for it! However, doing anything with a 2 year old really isn't that easy I've decided. My quick, clean, easy project turned into a little more time, mess, and work with the help of my dear, sweet Ruthie. Note the hands in the picture - she attempted to snatch the cookies while I took a picture. The little stinker! You gotta love her. So here it is:

Ghost Cookies

1 package of Almond Bark (could use white chocolate, or white chocolate chips - Almond bark is just cheaper)

1 package of Nutter Butter Cookies

Mini chocolate chips

Melt the Almond Bark according to package directions. Dip the Nutter Butters in the Almond Bark with a slotted spoon. Place on wax paper, parchment paper, or a cookie sheet (whatever you have) Use mini chocolate chips to make eyes and mouth. Allow to set.

What We've Been Up To

So Fall Break officially started Wednesday night. I had promised Amy she could have a "late nighter" with her friends for a loooong time. And Wednesday night she finally did. They decorated sugar cookies, laughed, watched a movie, and laughed some more. . . .

It wasn't long before Abigail and some of her friends joined in the cookie decorating and then Lydia. Abbey and her friends decided to "door bell ditch" some boys in the neighborhood. Shh....don't tell!

Then Friday late morning, Steve called from work and said, "how about we go up to Park City for the night!" I was game. So, I booked a condo, told the kids to pack, and in a couple of hours we were on our way. We went shopping, we ate dinner, spent some time in the jacuzzi, had ice cream and cookies, and watched a movie. The next day we shopped and ate again. Steve said he didn't know our get-a-way was going to turn into a shopping trip. Poor Steve, it is really becoming more and more apparent how out numbered he really is. He was a very good sport!

And then on the way home we stopped in Heber at Granny's for a famous Granny's shake.

Okay, I am a little embarrassed . . . It looks like all did was eat!

PS Sorry for the pictures, I don't know how to work my camera. The color is messed up.