oh christmas tree

This is our lovely Christmas tree this year. Don't ask to see the bottom third because it is void of decorations.

This was my grandma Allen's nativity set. When I asked for it my mom told me it was a long shot, but I guess nobody else wanted it. Score for me! The poor camel is missing its tail and back leg. Oh well.

child labor

We put up our Christmas tree and Corban went to town. He broke about five ornaments that night. I was vacuuming up the broken pieces of glass and had put the vacuum aside for a short while. When I came back, he was vacuuming the floor around him. We decided since he seemed to love what he was doing to take the cushion off the couch and have him vacuum something productive!

We're definately purchasing some shatterproof oranments at the end of season sale.

christmas project

This is our advent calendar counting down the days to Christmas. It took a lot of work, but it was kind of fun. I've found out that when I start a project Joe is right there to help out and give his opinion. He's usually right and his way is a lot easier than what I would have done. It's really quite aggravating to be wrong all the time.

ho, ho, ho

latest hobby

I've seen some girls wearing these beaded watch bands and wanted one. I got my grandma's old beads and made some bands.

utah wheelin' jazz

My brother Jeff played in a wheelchair basketball tournament this past weekend. Check out the new's story at: Utah Wheelin Jazz

hobby

I'm trying to find a hobby. I've tried crocheting ... I don't love it. I've tried sewing ... I like it well enough. I can't show what I've crocheted because they are for my in-laws for Christmas. Above are burp cloths. They were super easy to make and I'm now making blankets to go with them.

I got some beads from my mom and grandma, so I'm going to try my hand at those bead watch bands. I've also got an idea brewing in my head for a season display. I'll post pictures when I start.

Anyhoo, I'm trying to find something that I LOVE to do. What are your hobbies?

safety precaution

Corban has figured out how to open the toilet. His FAVORITE past time is to play in the toilet water, no matter what's inside. Gross, I know. So, Joe and I came up with a few safety precautions for our bathrooms.

First, the classy elastic around the TP. If Corban cannot get a piece going, he can't unroll the toilet paper. So far he's only gotten a few pieces torn off before loosing interest.

And second, the lid shutters (I'm not really sure what these things are called). It's a good thing I have a smart husband. These bad boys don't have installation instructions. I had NO idea how to put it on. To open the lid you have to push two nobs on the side and pull a lever out. I use all the coordination skills I possess just to open the thing before I pee all over the place. "Baby Mama" anyone?

halloween misc.

all hallows eve

We went trick-or-treating at the nursing home where my grandma lives. We based our costumes off of the "Princess and the Frog" fairy tale.

daylight savings?

Did anyone else forget that today was daylight savings? Why do they even have this stupid thing?

I had to teach primary today, so I was up in arms about getting there in time to get supplies from the library. I even threatened Joe that I'd leave him if he wasn't ready. We marched up to an empty church parking lot when Joe realized that today was daylight savings!

I'm going back to bed.

wild one

This was last year when he was one month old. We got some weird looks last year because he was so young.

This was this year. He's changed just a little right? He's actually smiling because he's checking out a little girl right behind me.

pumpkin walk

Every year North Logan City puts together a pumpkin walk. This year's theme is: Brought to you By. It was based on products and their commercials. These were some of our favorites this year.

pumpkins

For FHE (Family Home Evening) we carved our pumpkins. When we bought our pumpkins from a neighbor girl, Corban had his eye on one the entire time. When we finally payed for it and put it in his lap, he grabbed it and hugged it.

Our pumpkins: a trick-or-treater, camp fire, and jack-o-lantern.
Corban loved his pumpkin so much he pulled the stem off. We super-glued it back on so it looks like all the other pumpkins.
Corban grabbed, squished, and tasted the pumpkin innards and seeds. He promptly spit them out.

matrix muse

Wouldn't it be nice if we could tap into some "other" source and instantly be experts on apache helicopters or curing the hiccups? It's getting pretty lonely watching TV by myself, going to bed by myself, playing games with Corban by myself, eating dinner by myself.

One fine day I'll have three degrees hanging on the wall and a regular family schedule. One fine day I'll sigh, reach across the bed, and kiss my sweetheart goodnight. Every night. On that fine day, I'll look back on these lonely days and realize they weren't all bad.

Oh, fine day. Where are you?

oops

Imagine these all over the floor and in between your new couch's seat cushions! Apparently Corban needed a treat really bad. He grabbed his Cheerio container from his diaper bag and carried them to me upside down. He made it all the way to the couch, where I was sitting, before the lid popped off and spilled its contents.

On the flipside, I got to watch my son skate on Cheerio dust.

newish couches

We bought one couch from Ashley furniture. We waited two weeks for that thing and they sent us the wrong one! They told us we'd have to wait another two weeks for a new one, which we didn't want to do. We're trying to get our money back, but in the mean time, we bought these beauties! One small problem. The sofa is coming apart where the arm rest meets the bottom portion of the couch. You can see it in the picture.

So, to recap. We're trying to get our money back from Ashley's and we're trying to see what Palmer's can do about the crack.

free at last

We found out tonight that Vickie is cancer free! We bought some sparkling cider and some party poppers and headed over to their house to celebrate.
Some of us needed a little extra!

goodbye old couch

At last we are getting rid of this old couch. We bought a new one last week and it will be here by next week. I can't wait! We've had some good memories and good times on this old couch, but it's time to move on.

elephants on parade

We went to the USU homecoming parade this year. Corban loved the loud trucks, bands, police cars, and all the people. I was sitting on the road with him standing near me. I would wave his arms and then he would take over. We got a lot of candy thrown our way. Corban didn't quite understand that concept. He would pick up a piece of candy and throw it back to the ground.

jam on

My neighbor and I both serve in the Primary. We were walking home from an activity when she offered some raspberries to make freezer jam! She brought over the three cases of raspberries and a box of pectin! She even brought over her jam recipe. She and her husband have a really nice garden and orchard in their back yard. It's such a blessing to have such nice neighbors.

I finished the jam tonight and it looks loads better than my last attempt of peach jam. I hope this batch tastes a little better too.

look who's walking

Corban started walking a few days before his birthday. He's still more comfortable crawling, but he's getting better every day.

much ado about shoes

Corban has a shoe fetish. I'll put our shoes together in their pairs, neatly put in a row in our closet. Corban will then come along and either take one of the pairs or every shoe and put it in a pile or he will take random shoes and put them in the laundry basket. I find all sorts of stuff in there: cell phone, power cords, lotion, miniature bats, etc. Very weird, but very cute.

He even does it with his own shoes!

tp'd

Corban loves the bathroom and all the cool toys there are to play with in there! He especially loves to tear the toilet paper off the roll. He'll even tear the TP into tiny pieces. Things were too quiet one day so Joe went to investigate. He grabbed the camera and told me later that there wasn't enough time to stop him. The photos tell other wise! Oh, well. At least we have evidence for Corban to look at when he complains about his kids doing the same thing.

books, books, books

Two weeks ago, my cousin had a garage sale for her aunt and uncle. We really didn't need anything, but we ended up getting about 25 books to add to our collection!

birthday boy

My baby boy turned one on September 8!

He has eight teeth, is 30 inches tall, and weighs 22 pounds. He says mom and shakes his head no. He waves and blows kisses, but not on demand. He's mostly crawling, but will take a few steps on his own. He wakes up mostly happy from naps and sleeps through the night!

He loves blocks and cars. He separates mom's and dad's shoes, none of them can be by its pair. He is the modern-day godzilla, destroying anything taller than an inch. Corban loves bath time and even the occasional shower.

We love our little guy! We're looking forward to many more years with you!

salsa

My mom had extra tomatoes, green peppers, and garlic cloves from her garden, so I decided to make freezer salsa. My first bite consisted of pure jalepenos. I wasn't sure if we were going to eat all of our salsa. But, I dared to eat more and the more I ate the more I loved it!

Here is the recipe I used:

5 LG tomatoes

1 TBSP cilantro

1 MED onion

2 garlic cloves

2 jalapenos w/ seeds

1/2 cup green pepper

1/2 TBSP cumin

1 TBSP salt

1 TBSP vinegar

1 lime, juice

Peel & chop tomatoes. Chop cilantro, onion, garlic, green pepper and jalapenos. Add all together in a large pot.

Add cumin, salt, vinegar, and juice. Stir together.

Bring to boil and lower temperature. Keep at low boil for 2-3 or until tomato water has boiled down to about half.

Fill containers, leaving 1/2 inch clearance. Cool completely. Place lids and freeze. Keeps for one year. Makes 5 8-oz jars.

we're proud

bear lake 2009

This past weekend Joe, Corban, and I went to Bear Lake and stayed at my parent's condo. Bob and Liz were there too with their kids, Cole and Lexi. They invited us to go boating with them on Saturday.

This would be Corban's first time going on a boat and wearing a life jacket. I had my doubts of how long he'd last, but he did so good! He just sat on my or Liz's lap and just stared at the water spray and the people being towed on the tube. That tube was so much fun! There was a slow leak in it, so we either had to wait until someone bailed or the air leaked out. I haven't smiled that much for a long time.

When we got up to Bear Lake on Friday, Joe got us a tee time and we all went golfing. Again, I had my reservations on how well Corban would do for the 2 hours it took us to golf, but he did so good! He played with the golf balls we found, crawled around in the shade, and played with the cart. I ended up winning, but I cheated. I only counted how many strokes it took me to get to the green. I suck at putting.

summer projects

I've been hanging my necklaces from off the closet doors (classy, I know) until recently. Corban has gotten so he can stand up and reach for things about table height. He was pulling on my necklaces, so I moved them. Joe and I drilled holes in our armoire and screwed in hook-screws and this is what I now have to hand my necklaces from!

My parents have a peach tree on their old property. My mom helped me bottle 14 jars of fresh peaches. It was easier than I thought it was going to be, but that's probably because she was the one scurrying around making sure everything was working properly. I also tried my hand at peach freezer jam. I don't know how they turned out, so no pictures.

cheesy bath time

Corban loves bath time. I do a quick wash and then it's play time! The duck that's in his hand and mouth is one of his favorite bath time toys. I bought Corban some bath time alphabets that is made from some kind of spongey material (he was teething on my flip-flops). I make words and have them on the walls of the tub, but he acts like godzilla and smacks them all off the wall! Very cute.