Oh, Man

Hyrum has the wildest imagination and he really says the funniest things sometimes.  

(Here he is holding Cambry.  My friend Naomi's little girl.  She's SOOO cute!  Hyrum kind of LOVES babies lately!  He kept asking Naomi to hold her and carry her.  In fact, if you have a baby and don't want Hyrum all over her, you might just want to stay away:)

We had a little New Years Eve party with ice cream cookie sandwiches and a movie.  Hyrum is now obsessed with having New 'Ears' Eve Parties.  He asks for one several times a day.  Yesterday I gave in and said that we could have a Party, but we ran out of cookies and ice cream.  So, anyway I was busy doing something and Hyrum said, "Don't worry, Mom, I'll get the party all ready"  I came downstairs and he had two paper lunch bags out and put a fruit snack pouch in each for he and Noah.  What a nice big brother:)

Here are a few random Hyrum stories:

I asked Hyrum what he was doing and he just said, "Ok, Mom, you can play, but you have to share! Ok?!"

Last night we had the little girls from our youth group over at our house, since Brett's out of town.  The boys got to do a craft activity with them.  One of the girls had braces and when Hyrum saw them he just stared at them and then got really close to her face and said, "Wow! You have a pretty necklace on your teeth!"  

During Christmas we discussed the Wise Men and all Hyrum could talk about was how they built their houses on rocks:)

At JoySchool one of the other teachers said that she complimented him on a picture he drew, and he gave her a stern, "NO, you supposed to say: 'Wow, Hyrum, good job!'"  He frequently tells us what HE wants to hear.  

My favorite is when he yells at Noah for something and gets in trouble.  We tell him he has to use a nice voice, so he'll proceed to talk to Noah in a super high pitched voice. (I hope I don't sound like that:)

"There was a magic apple and all kinds of things, and they changed me into an elevator." . . . ? very interesting

Tried and True-sday

Don't be overwhelmed by how long this post is.  It's not a reflection of the difficulty of the recipe.  I just added extra stuff.  This is my all time favorite go-to recipe when I don't know what to make and we don't seem to have anything to eat.  We almost always have the ingredients to make rolls, and we usually have cheese and sausage in the freezer.  This does take some time because you have to make a yeast dough, but it's so easy and it's great to double the recipe and freeze the other half for another -don't want to cook- kind of day.  I probably make this once a month and Hyrum LOVES them.  (After I made this batch last week Hyrum ate FOUR for dinner!)  I wouldn't really qualify it as healthy, but considering my boys refuse to eat anything green this is a big step in the right direction. 

My mom made this frequently when I was growing up and it wasn't until later in life that I realized that it's not a typical, everyone knows what I'm talking about, kind of dish.  Although they're very similar to calzone's if you want it to relate to something.  They're called Peroski's and they are a Ukrainian dish.  I usually just serve them alone for dinner, because I'm not that fancy, but they can also be a side dish.  The great thing about Peroskis is that you can fill the dough with anything you want.  Hamburger, olives, and taco seasoning. Beans and cheese. Chicken with alfredo sauce.  I've written in my two favorite fillings I've created below. Happy Cooking!

Peroski

Step One: Make the filling ahead of time and store in the fridge.  You can't use it too warm or it will ruin the dough. Sometimes I make the filling in the morning or the night before just to have it done and out of the way.

Step Two: Make your favorite Roll recipe and let it rise the first time just like normal

Step Three: When done rising, roll the dough out onto a floured surface to be about 1/4 inch thick. Cut into squares.(tip: only use serrated knives when working with yeast dough) You can also cut into rectangles if you want them to be long instead of round.  Place a spoonful of filling into each square. Pinch the dough shut and lay pinched-side down onto greased baking sheet.

Step Four:  Let rise again for about 30-40 minutes (they will not double in size)

Step Five: baste with whisked egg whites if you want them to have a glazed look and then bake according to your roll recipe directions. Done and delicious!  

Creamy Goodness -Filling 1: (I don't measure, so this is a good estimate)

1 tube sausage (mild)

4-8 oz. cream cheese

1/2-1 cup brocoli florets

shredded cheddar cheese to sprinkle

Cook the sausage in a frying pan until brown and then turn the heat down and add the cream cheese and brocoli.  Stir and smoosh it up until the cream chease is all liquefied and immersed. Store in the fridge until ready to put on dough. When dough is ready put a spoonful of the mixture in the center of the dough, sprinkle with cheddar cheese.

Healthy Goodness -Filling 2: (Again, sorry for the lack of measuring)

1 tube sausage (mild

1/2-1 cup sour cream

1 cup-ish pico de gallo

shredded cheddar cheese to sprinkle

Follow the same instructions as the above recipe.

Extra, Extra!

This is one of my all time favorite sweet dinner roll recipes that also happens to be PERFECT for Peroskis because it almost always ends up making just the right amount of dough to match the filling.  Thank you Michelle for this awesome recipe!

Sweet Dinner Rolls 

In Kitchen Aid mix the following:

1/2 cup HOT water

1/2 cup milk (warmed)

1 egg beaten

1/3 cup butter (melted)

1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp. salt

Slowly add the following:

3 3/4 cup flour

1 Tbsp. yeast

Mix and Kneed for about 3 minutes. When dough feels kind of elastic-y pour it onto a floured surface, form it into a ball and then place in a large bowl.  Let rise until double (about an hour).  (If making Peroskis follow the instructions above).  When done rising pour it back onto the floured surface and using a serrated knife cut out small fist-fulls of dough and shape it into a ball and then place on baking sheets. Let rise again for about 30-45 minutes.  Bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. 

Long awaited. . . and long feared

Long Feared

   I don't think anyone grows up and thinks, "Someday I want to drive something hot, sleek, and thrilling like a . . . minivan."  For years I told myself, "I will never own a van.  I will NEVER own a van!"  Why?  Hmmm.  Well, because owning a van means the end to spontaneity, thrill, whistles from random men (not that I've ever had that happen to begin with), fun in general, and all aspects of coolness. Or at least that's what vans in general seem to generate in the world.  So, I will be one of those cool moms with a big honkin' SUV.  About a year ago I decided that I could potentially swallow my pride and consider a mini-van as a practical alternative to cool.  I've since done much more thinking and my heart has changed to realize that I don't need my vehicle to define me.  I define myself. . . or at least I'd like to think so.  We decided, with the recent accident, to use this opportunity to take the plunge and give into practicality, because if I'm defined as being practical by those around me than that's okay with me.  So, take that world of SUV's.  I may slightly still be jealous of you, but as for me I am still me, just now in a bigger car.  Goodbye Rodeo. Hello, our new Town and Country.
P.S. new Mini -Van you're pretty wicked awesome!

Long Awaited

I've been meaning to put this first clip up since Halloween.  Our boys are just so dang cute.  They really crack me up sometimes.  The first two are just hilarious.  The third one is super sweet and then super funny.  You have to turn the volume up for the third clip.  Hyrum was in a time out for something but when it was over he wanted to stay in the corner to 'practice singing a song'.  At the end I was trying to straighten the camera out so it's kind of bumpy, but you have to listen to what Hyrum is saying.  He has the funniest imagination.

Oh, and sorry for the funky color of the last video.  I have no idea what happened but the colors went crazy.

Tried and True-sday

There are a few side dishes that I have eaten that I literally need to give them away or I WILL eat it ALL! Today I'm going to share this one with you from Brett's Grandma Long. I am really not a big fan of Jello. I don't like making it, and it's not my favorite thing to eat, but this is DELICIOUS. I did just make it for New Years, but sadly I have no pictures because it's gone:) Enjoy, and happy baking!

Jello-Pretzel Salad

Step 1-Crust:

1 cup finely crushed pretzels (about 4 cups whole pretzels put into a ziploc bag and beaten/rolled with a rolling pin)

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup melted butter

Stir together and then press crust into a 9x13 pan. Bake @ 350 degrees for 10 minutes. I stab it with a fork all over a little while after taking out of the oven so that the crust doesn't get too stiff. Cool completely.

Step 2 (while crust is baking) - Jello mixture

1 large (serves 8) raspberry jello mix

2 cups boiling water 1 cup cold water

1 pkg. frozen raspberries

Whisk the jello packet into the boiling water until dissolved and then add the cold water and raspberries. Stir and then put in fridge until somewhat jelled (about 30 minutes). If it doesn't seem to be jelling fast enough for you then put it in the freezer for about 10 minutes for a quick jell.

Step 3 (while jello cools) - Filling

8 oz. softened cream cheese

1/4 cup sugar

8 oz. cool whip

Mix and then smooth over the cooled crust. Spread the partially jelled jello on top of the cream cheese filling layer. Chill completely set.

Note: Strawberry Jello and frozen strawberries are also delicious!

In 5 years

5 years has gone by so quickly. It's hard to believe that much time has past. I love looking back to see where we've come. I remember when we felt on top of the world, like nothing wrong could ever happen to us. . . sometimes I still feel that way:)

After some time we both learned that a good marriage means that sometimes I carry you and sometimes you carry me. One of us is always strong enough.

There have been harder times when we have felt like we were just skimming by. We managed to stay balanced enough.

We made it through 2 graduations, 7 + jobs, 4 homes, 4 cars. . . or is it 5?

We've learned that the best way to solve our problems and differences are to dive into the issue and work it through.

Sometimes unexpected things have happened, but we've managed to scrub up and improvise.

One of our great blessings has been family and friends to support us and be there.

We've swam with turtles, seen unforgettable sunrises, argued, made-up, set goals, re-set goals:), created a home with two entertaining boys, done a lot of fixing up, made big decisions, seen some failures, seen many successes, relied on the Lord, and managed to go to sleep every night saying I love you. 5 years is such a small amount of time compared to our future, but I think we have a great start.

Tried and True-sday

I realize that I wrote last week that I was not going to post a recipe this week, but I just had to post our Christmas Breakfast. Cinnamon Rolls are usually my favorite Christmas morning tradition, but I decided to mix things up a little bit and make another breakfast favorite. It's so easy, fast, and delicious to make that it's really pretty shocking that I don't just make it every week. Anyway, here's to sharing something easy. Happy Cooking!

(No, this picture has nothing to do with the recipe. But Brett gifted this beautiful drink dispenser to me for Christmas, and it deserves a picture:) Isn't it beautiful!)

Dutch Babies

(this recipe is from Allrecipes(dot)com

• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup sifted all-purpose flour
• 1 pinch ground nutmeg
• 1 pinch salt
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar for dusting
• 
  
• Place a 10 inch cast iron skillet inside oven and preheat oven to 475 degrees F (245 degrees C). In a medium bowl, beat eggs with a whisk until light. Add milk and stir. Gradually whisk in flour, nutmeg and salt. Remove skillet from oven and reduce oven heat to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Melt butter in hot skillet so that inside of skillet is completely coated with butter. Pour all the batter in the skillet and return skillet to oven. Bake until puffed and lightly browned, about 12 minutes. Remove promptly and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Note: I made ours in a stoneware pan and it worked just fine. Don't use whole wheat flour-it's too heavy and won't puff up correctly.

Christmas Week

We sadly did not have any snow on Christmas but early in the week we had a lot to play with. I made an igloo in the front yard for the boys and when Brett got home from work he really wanted to make one in the back too. I was shocked when he asked me how to do it, I thought he was kidding until he reminded me that he grew up in Arizona. . . . oh, right. So we went to work building an igloo big enough for one of us and the boys.

Of course, Brett said he wanted to sleep in it that night and decided to pose scandalously for this picture.

This was our first Christmas without seeing extended family. With our families being far away we decided to have a low key holiday this year so we wouldn't have to worry about travel, packing, etc. We really did miss having fun with everyone, but it was still a perfect Christmas with our little family as we tried to implement some traditions. On Christmas Eve the boys each wrapped a present for each other and got to open it that night. Hyrum sat waiting on the piano bench and stared at the presents.

Decorating cookies for Santa. Hyrum used about one and a half tubes of frosting on those two cookies. When he was done you really couldn't see the cookies at all.

We decided that one tradition we would implement was decorating for Jesus' birthday with snowflakes. The boys loved it. (Yoda was there to supervise the work)

Another new tradition we started was to reenact Christ's birth story with the boys. We turned out the lights and made a path of candles to resemble the stars light leading the wise men.

Pretty much all of Christmas day was spent building, playing, reading, and playing some more. It was a great Christmas!