The Holidays

Yes. The holidays are nearly over. Thank goodness. Both my body and mind are ready to call it a day. I figured since the holidays are nearly over I might post a few pics. to commemorate the good times we had.

I will have to apologize for the devil eyes. I am just too lazy to fix them this morning. So Mike and I decided to keep the tradition of letting the kids open one present on Christmas Eve. We keep it limited bed time gear. 

This year I made the kids pajamas. I don't think Penny really understood what all was going on. Poor girl was pretty tired.

 So, obviously the kids cloths are way to big. I am thinking the pattern I used must have been mislabeled (either that or I did a really crappy job cutting them out). The great thing (or the sad thing) about kids is they grow very quickly. So maybe by next Christmas they will fit perfectly.

Here is Abram and Penny Christmas morning. Those fruit snacks Abram is getting into are actually Penny's. It was kind of funny. Abram had so much fun tearing open wrapping paper that he just went to town on all the presents, whether they belonged to him or not.

Abram decided Dumbo needed to help him with the presents too.

We celebrated Penny and Mike's birthdays too. I am actually a good baker, but not when it comes to cake. I am horrible. I made the mistake of trying something new for Penny's birthday and it failed epically. My sister-in-law, who is amazing with cakes, thought it was because I used a denser cake for the balls and a regular cake mix for the rest. So in the future I will know better. In the mean time this cake looks really pretty sad next to the nice DQ ice-cream cake Mike got.

At least it tasted good. Or, that's what Penny thought.

There is a better shot of the cake. You can kind of see what I was trying to do. I wanted the inside to have colored dots like her outfit. It would have been cool if I had been a little more thoughtful. Oh-well.

Her out-fit was really cute. A pom-pom tutu, onesie, and crocheted crown.

Here is a side shot. I really need to get a better digital camera.

Well, we had a wonderful Christmas and had a great time celebrating Penny's and Mike's birthdays. Later that week we had a basketball get-together and some more Christmas parties. Now I am gearing up for a New Years Eve party at our house. I have truly love visiting with family and celebrating the holidays, but I surely ready to call it a day and take a break. I hope you all have had fun this year too and I wish you all a very happy New Year.

Weddings, Halloween, and Hair Cuts

So it feels like forever since I posted last. Mike has been away in Texas for two weeks doing a mandatory training and with him went our computer. So I have oodles of things stored up to tell everyone about.

First off weddings. My brother Jesse got married just over a week ago at his and his new wife's home in Arlington, Texas. I thought it was really considerate of them to schedule the wedding in the middle of Mike's business trip to that same part of Texas (I know that wasn't the reason, but it certainly made things so much easier on us).

Isn't my family so cute. Of course we are missing my youngest brother David, who is in Kansas serving a mission, and my little boy Abe who spent the weekend with his Grandma and Grandpa Scadden (thanks you two so much for watching him). The wedding was wonderful. I had so much fun meeting my new sister-in-law and her family. I love her already.

 

 It was a bit of a change having only one baby to look after, but I enjoyed the relief. Other than crying during the ceremony (eek!) Penny did really well during the whole thing. 

After Penny and I came home from Texas, I threw myself head first into the kids' Halloween costumes.

Abram went as a biker and Penny as Raggedy Anne. Not to brag or anything, but I think my kids were the cutest ones around that night.

I made the costumes myself, mostly. Penny's I did 100% myself. That stupid wig took me forever. but her cute 10x larger than normal head was worth it. The top itself turned out so cute I think I will have her wear it beyond just Halloween.

After Halloween, I finally caved and gave Abram a haircut. He desperately needed one (he had a total Hulk Hogan mullet thing going on). I hadn't planned on cutting it so short but the very first cut I made he twitched on and I scalped him. So he ended up with a nice... summer cut. He actually tolerated the cutting pretty well (until I cut his bangs and got hair up his nose and all over his sticky, candy covered mouth).

So far the fall is shaping up to be pretty awesome. We will be moving to a bigger place in a week+ and have a wonderful Thanksgiving to be looking forward too in a few more. Hope you all are having a great fall too!

Babies and Undies

We have had one crazy busy week here at the Scadden Home. This week-end we went down to St. George to attend Grandma Steven's funeral. The services were lovely. I especially loved hearing Mom and her sisters talk about memories they had of Grandma. The musical number "Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree" was sweet. I only got to know her for three years, but in that short time she earned an enormous amount of love and respect from me. She was a beautiful woman.

Earlier in the week, my cousins daycare person left for her brother's wedding. So I was asked to watch the babies. For two days I had five little ones packed into my 700sqft house. It was loud and crazy at times, but I loved it.

There were the three babies Payslie, Jordyn, and Penny. They were so cute to watch. Penny was ecstatic to have other little kids around. So much so that I think she scared Payslie a bit with her enthusiasm.

We also had Abram's buddy Taylor with us. I use to watch her on a regular basis and they became pretty close. It was fun to watch them play together and get each other going. The house was pretty crazy for those days but I had so much fun. It made me feel good to know I could definitely handle five kids, though I don't think I would want them all to be under the age of three.

This week we also started putting Abram in undies. He still pines for his diaper (especially after this weekend with nothing but). He will at least put them on and he has only had three accidents while wearing them (that may not be good stats for some people but for me they are great).

We even attempted a short trip to Grandma and Grandpa's house in them. This pic is funny because my mom gave him a bowl of ice cream and, rather than sitting down to eat it, he took it into her room, laid down next to Grandpa, and ate it like he would have. Kids are like little mirrors.

I'm glad to see when my little mirrors reflect good things though. I'm so glad to see that my children love each other.

They seem to love each other so much they make spontaneous heart shapes in their sleep :)

Brides and Potties

A little bit ago I decided it was time to try potty training Abram seriously. In the past, I had made a couple of sad attempts only to conclude that he was not yet ready. This time I felt that he was really ready, but I wanted to go about it in the best way possible. So after story time at the library, I went in search of some potty training literature (hoping for something a little more scientifically grounded than tips on Pintrest). I found this book called Stress Free Pottytraining. It basically gives you the the universal strategies, the average ages certain skills are reached by boys/girls, and specific advice based on your child's personality type. (Abram fit almost perfectly the "impulsive child" personality).

So we went out and bought a little potty (Elmo is pretty popular around our house)stripped Abram out of his diaper and let him have some naked time. So far he is doing really well. He will go both number one and number two and has had very few accidents. The only down side I have found so far is, he doesn't like big toilets and he doesn't use it if I put him in a diaper. So we are still in diapers, but we are getting there. Eventually, Abram will be potty trained.

After a long day of potty training naked time, we got dressed and went out to the park to try and burn of  some energy (which he always seems to have a never ending supply). He was so sweet, he brought me a "flower" then he noticed Penny didn't have one so he brought her one too.

Today we had my cousin Katelyn's bridal shower. I was put in charge of games, which turned out to be more difficult than I thought it would be. I also was asked to bring bread to go with the chef salads.

These are the extra loaves (not as pretty as the ones I brought to the party). I made french bread (Thanks for the recipe Mom-Scadden). The other bread is a pumpkin pecan yeast bread. They both turned out very tasty. The whole shower was really nice.

I have to add a pic of my baby girl. She had had a rough day (she has started pulling up on furniture and trying to cruise, which leads to sever head bumps). Daddy had the day off so she claimed him for her cuddle buddy. So cute. (Just ignore the naked baby photo bombing here).

Play Dough

So Mike has fire training tonight and the kids went to bed at a decent hour (8pm which is weird because they normally wont go to sleep till 9:30pm). So I found myself with some unexpected spare time. Rather than do anything truly useful with this amazing gift like work on the new budget or read up some more on potty training, I decided to make some play dough. I made it for Abram so I can justify my waste of time. I got this recipe from an old ward cook book my mom had when I was a kid, so I have no clue where it originated from. It is a super basic recipe.

1/4 c flour
1/8 c salt
1/2 t cream of tarter
1/4 c water
1/2 t oil
2 drops food coloring

So first off, I saved up a few of those plastic baby food containers. They turned out to be the perfect size too. (I was a bit surprised).

You add all your ingredients in a small sauce pan. Then you mix over medium heat.

Keep mixing until it becomes stiff and pulls away from the sides of the pan (aka turns into play dough). I should of picked a different color to use for my examples, this looks like cream puff dough to me. Oh well.

After it turns to dough, lay it out on the counter and work it till the dough cools.

And there you have it. Play dough.

Just stuff it into the container (preferably an air tight one) and it will keep for up to 3 months unrefrigerated. I don't know how this recipe compares to the store bought variety (my parents never bought us any). This kind is soft and a little grainy, but it works great for the intended purpose. The way I see it, play dough is, by its nature, disposable so I don't see the point in spending more than a dollar or so on it.

Well I hope the kids reap  some enjoyment out of my bored night antics. I certainly did.

Budding Independence

It has been a while since I have posted, so there may be more pictures than normal. I've been working on a couple of projects, mostly Penny's Halloween costume. It is taking quite a bit longer than I thought it would. When I get it finished, I will have to show pictures. Hopefully it will look as cute in the end as I hope it will.

This is the night gown I made for Penny. It has raglan sleeves and a button down front (partially sewn up). The neck was a bit smaller than it should have been but it worked out well. Penny seems comfortable in it anyway.

Sorry the picture is so washed out on this one (I am not sure what was going on with the camera). This is just a basic tube with an elastic waistband. It really should be shorter than it is, but it works.

The fabric is awesome. It is denim with ribbons stitched in a swirly design. The ribbon had to be re-stitched in places, other than that, it was pretty easy. Looked good with very little effort.

I tried one of the sweaters I knitted on Penny today. it looked pretty cute, though her little pot-belly filled it out more than it should have. She actually has thinned down some since she started crawling everywhere. I will really miss her rolly-polly self when she starts walking.
 

I made a new hat for Abram (his old one was getting too small and worn out). It actually is a bit too big and I don't think I like the seed-stitch brim, but the colors look great on him. (they match his eyes). Abram has actually been becoming more and more independent of late. He has started to insist on dressing himself, getting his own food, etc.

In fact, earlier today I heard someone in the kitchen to find Abram making himself a jam sandwich. He was so proud of himself, I couldn't even think about the mess. If you are wondering how he got up there, we have an empty bucket that he shuttles anywhere he wants. If he doesn't have it he finds more creative methods. (The other day I found him on top of my mother's baby grand piano. I haven't figured our how he does it yet. He is pretty sneaky).

Abram has also been building his own "towers" lately. This one is the biggest he has done, on his own, yet. (it got even bigger after the pic was taken). He says his colors and some of his letters now, too. I think I will take all of this increased development as a sign I should start potty training again. (Wish me luck!)

I can't resist sneaking in a pic of Penny's face painting today. How did I get such a stinkin'-cute baby?

Food Preservation

So our whirl-wind summer is over, but it seems like we are in for a whirl-wind fall now. (does it ever really stop?) Anyway, so here is the update. Mike is currently in D.C. (or Maryland rather) doing a firefighter training course through FEMA with their volunteer incentive program. I hate having him gone for very long, but he was so excited about the trip, I couldn't say no. So I have been trying to keep myself occupied while he is away, but I think I may be over doing it. I have made a new nightgown for Penny, a new skirt for me (I hope I can put together a tutorial on that one), cleaned my whole house (though you wouldn't guess it looking at it now), and I have been canning the harvest.
Mike and I have been a little tighter than usual with our finances that usual and so I have been trying to find ways to cut back. Lucky for me it is harvest time and I have family with big gardens.

My grandparents have one of the most incredible gardens I have ever seen. I was able to get lots of carrots and summer squash from them. (Best tasting carrots ever by-the-way). We also have been enjoying summer squash from my mother-in-laws garden. (I turn green with jealousy every time I see her garden).

Grandma and Grandpa D. were also able to give us some beats. I know some people think they are weird, but I love beats, and these are the best. They are in high demand so I tried not to take too many.

Were were also able to pick some onions. These ones are just sitting out to dry. I use onions so often that I wanted to pick more, but guilt over my greed held me back.

My mom bought me a box of Peaches from... I can't remember. Anyway, these went several ways. Some were baby food, others frozen for smoothies, and more for peach jam (yummmmm). I wanted to make some peach pie, but I ran out of peaches. If anyone has extras, you know were to send them.

We also were able to go out to Layton and pick tomatoes. I only got half a bushel this year (I still had some left over from last year and didn't need a whole one). The smaller jars in this pick are my peach jam jars.

I use a different kind of pectin than I usually use. I think it turned out okay, but I think I will save this kind of pectin for when I make jellies instead.
All in all it has been a very productive two days of food. I took a class through the extension office on freezing foods. I think I will give some of the things I learned there a try if I find the time. Well I hope you all are enjoying your own harvests.

St. George

Isn't it funny how, just when you think life is going to settle down and start getting normal, it sends you a few curve balls. Lately, Mike has been working on our cars. The Hyundai is currently engine-less and receiving a new clutch. The motorcycle looks like it has silly-string spraying out its front while it awaits Mike to figure out why the head light isn't working. And the wheel bearing in the Chevy is going out, along with the breaks. (When it rains it pours, right?)
As well as having car trouble, we got a call this weekend that Mike's Grandma was doing really bad and was not likely to be around for very long. It had been over a year since we had seen her and she had never seen Penny at all. So on our way to pick up Mom's car from the airport we made a spur of the moment decision to go down to St. George.
For the most part, the kids were really good during all the driving, but they were pretty pilly while we were down there. (It was miserable hot, and they were in a strange place).

 I am extremely happy we were able to go. She is a wonderful woman and I am so very glad we were able to see her again. Like I said, the kids were a bit antsy and I didn't want them stressing people out any more than they already were, so I tried to keep them outside, but the heat just killed me. We were able to find air conditioned refuge in the McDonald's Play Place and the hotel room.

I eventually was able to adjust a tiny bit to the heat and could spend a bit more time (about 2 min.) away from the AC. We drove out to see Aunt Judy and Uncle Steve's new house they are building, and on the way we visited a couple of the historic homes while we were passing through (I have a slight obsession with old homes).
So, our reasons for going down were a little sad, but I am so very glad we did. Ironically, going down to see Grandma and letting her know how much we love (and will always love) her made all of that other stress seem to just fade into the background for a while. When you think about it, cars and life are important, but love and family are so much more so that everything else seems like cold wisps of smoke.