Journey to Emma

Eastern Washington Weather

2009-04-19T13:24:00.000-07:00

It seems it has always been the saying here that if you don't like the weather, just wait a couple of hours! Less than 2 weeks ago we had snow.

Now today, the kids have decided to be engineers and they built a backyard Grand Coulee Dam complete with water. Of course you can't build a dam and fill it with water without wearing your swimsuits. So here's to life in our backyard!

Blast From The Past

2009-03-24T23:10:00.000-07:00

I sorted through the kids' books last month and gave them to Emma's teacher to use for her classroom, for her young son or to see if anyone else at school might like them. Mrs. Steinberger sent this photo home with Emma. Evidently it was in one of the books that we gave away. Wow! It is a photo of the last time that all of my brothers and sisters were together. The year was 1982. It was shortly before my father died - I was a senior in high school. From left to right: Tom, Janice, Helen, Susan, Dan (in back), Marjie, Judy & Dorothy.
Now, compare that to this one. It is the first picture of all of my brothers and sisters together. It was in 1964! From left to right in back row: Susan, Judy, Helen, Marjie - holding Janice. Front Row: Dorothy, Dan & Tom. I was just a couple of months old, my sister Helen had been married for a year!

Just One Word --- Yum!

2009-03-20T12:30:00.000-07:00

I found this recipe through a facebook entry from my friend Catherine. We all loved it. Another friend said she was going to try making bread sticks out of it - I think that would also be yummy. So for the weekend, here's a yummy recipe compliments of The Family Homestead. We also love this honey whole wheat bread recipe.

Italian Pizza Crust

2 T yeast
3 cups warm water
1 T honey
¼ cups olive oil
1 t. salt
2 T Italian seasonings
1 t. minced garlic from the jar
1 t. minced onion, dried
½ cup parmesan cheese
¼ cup gluten flour
6 cups whole wheat flour (I use hard white wheat)

For the Bosch:
Combine all ingredients in the mixer and when well blended, knead for 4 to 5 minutes.

For other mixers or by hand:
Mix water, yeast, oil, and honey and let sit for 5 minutes. Add seasonings and flours. Knead for 7 to 10 minutes.

Allow the dough to sit for a few minutes and then roll divide into 3 pieces and roll to fit 3 15in pizza pans (if you like thick crust you can make 2 pizza’s instead of 3)

Let the dough rise for 10 to 15 minutes. Pre-bake the crust at 425 for about 6 minuets and then top with your favorite toppings. Return to oven and bake for about 12 to 15 minutes.

If this is more pizza dough than you will use, freeze either the dough or roll the dough out, pre-bake and then freeze.

St Patrick's Day

2009-03-17T12:00:00.000-07:00

We got into the spirit of St Patrick's Day and decided that we would try and capture a leprechaun last night. First, we constructed a leprechaun trap. The theory is that the leprechaun would be drawn to the necklace on top of the box - he will climb up the handy ladder and then will fall through the top when he tries to get the necklace. We put some tissue in the bottom of the box to soften his fall - after all we want him to be able to tell us where his gold is.
This morning we found the trap sprung and the wily leprechaun had braided an escape rope from the tissue and had escaped from our trap. He must have been in a hurry to leave our house because he left behind some gold. He also played a few tricks. Everyone (including the puppy) has a green shamrock tattoo & the milk and butter have been turned green.
LOOK ITS SHAMROCKY!!!

Take Down

2009-02-26T20:46:00.000-08:00

Ethan started training for Little Guy Wrestling this week. He is really getting into it. I will try and get some better pictures but here are some of practice!

They're Warped

2009-02-18T21:23:00.000-08:00

Well, it has finally happened. I have finally managed to completely warp my children. A few of you may know of an evil plot that I thought up while I was in my 20’s. I had a plan to teach my children the wrong names for all of the colors so that when they went to school they would argue with their teachers saying things like – ‘But my Mama told me that was blue!’ – as the teacher holds up a pink balloon. I never really had the nerve to follow through on that evil plot but I did discover a new one.

Whenever the kids and I are in a good sized town and have some time to waste, we find a Goodwill store to peruse. Monday, Ben had a dentist appointment in Spokane so after his appointment, we did some shopping. We started at the Salvation Army store on Division, hit the Goodwill on 3rd, stopped for lunch at Old Country Buffet and then went to the Goodwill on Sprague. On the way home I hear the following conversation in the back of the van. Ben – "I love Goodwill, they have the best clothes!" Bailey – "Ummm…my sweater smells great – just like Goodwill!"

Some New Additions to the Family

2009-02-13T17:29:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to put up a couple of photos and introduce a couple new members of the family. No, we didn't go to China again. We now have Rocky the puppy and a new to us white Dodge Caravan. Love the Caravan - not so sure on the puppy! Maybe it will get better when he quits pooping on the floor.

Keeping Up With the Dennis'

2008-06-24T19:00:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that almost a month of summer has gone by. We've been having a great time here in Lind. The 14th was the annual Combine Demolition Derby in Lind. The kids decorated up their bikes and rode in the kids parade for Junior Grange. They were so excited. Then they got to catch candy and watch the "big" parade. It was a very good parade. My favorite part was the Viking group from Poulsbo that threw candy at the kids and then rushed the kids with their wooden boardswords drawn. Ben spilled half his candy and the girls latched onto our legs very quickly. It took us a few minutes to convince the kids that it was all just for "fun" and they weren't really "bad" men. Oh, how I wish I had a video of that!!! Here's a couple of pictures of the kids getting ready for the parade and a picture of my boss' wife with the Vikings.

We also had a trip to Seattle for another post surgery visit with Ben's surgical team. They took x-rays and examined his mouth. The graft looks good and he got the go ahead to eat corn on the cob! He was a happy boy! We made a fun day of it and went to the zoo after Ben's appointment. A good time was had by all at the zoo. Some of our favorite things were the birds and the butterflies. We got to get up close and personal with them. We also got to see the lions mating. Talk about an educational fieldtrip!!!
The last pictures on the slideshow are from one of our visits to the Ritzville pool. We went ahead and got season passes for the Lind and the Ritzville pools. I think the kids are part fish. They are so happy when they are splashing around in the pool. Emma is doing really well in the water. She still likes to have her tube float most of the time but has actually been jumping in and diving for things in the pool. She even got up the nerve to go down the slide at Ritzville by herself. Of course, Ben talked her into going down backwards and she tipped over and got a bit anxious but she dogpaddled out by herself. She needs to learn not to listen to big brothers. That is a lesson I learned pretty early in life. Probably the reason Dot & I are still alive - we had each other for back up against the boys!!!

Long Time No Blog

2008-06-07T18:34:00.001-07:00

Whew! Forgive me readers for I have sinned. It has been almost two months since my last blog. To catch everyone up: Ben was released from activity restriction after 5 weeks and has been constantly on the go ever since. He was able to play T-ball the last two weeks of the season and really enjoyed it. The kids finished school this last week. They will all be going to summer school this summer. Hopefully it will help them retain all the knowledge they have gathered and it will give them something to do so they aren't always bored. They will also have swimming lessons during summer school - something cool that the school does for them. They will probably spend every afternoon at the pool as the babysitter now lives in town - just two blocks from the pool. Rod is going to get a bike rack fixed up for my van so we can take their bikes to the babysitter's every morning. They are really bike riding fools.
Emma had a very momentous day today. Her top two front teeth were very loose and she asked me to pull them out - so I did. She only cried for a minute when she saw the blood. She just went outside with the boys and got out Ben's old bike. It is smaller than her bike and is a little easier for her to control. She got on it and rode it to the end of the street and back - very straight and controlled without training wheels!!! So two teeth out and riding a bike without training wheels - can't get much better than that.

Since I have been promising Aunt Melanie that I will post new pictures, I have put together the following slide show. It shows the kids helping Dad drive the Terragator, T-ball photos, our camping trip where the kids had a ball rolling down the hill and playing in the river, the spring concert at school & riding bikes. Just another normal month at the Dennis house! Hope you all are having a good spring and are as ready for summer as we are.

1 Week Down!

2008-04-09T20:27:00.000-07:00

Well, its been a week since Ben's surgery. I keep forgetting to take pictures of him - will have to get something tomorrow. His swelling has gone down - he looked like a lopsided chipmunk for most of the weekend. He is still showing some bruising - I'm sure it would look lots worse if he had light skin tone. Right now he just looks kind of green. He is eating really well - I had to send Rod back to the store the other night because we were running out of his special soft snacks! He is walking lots better and hasn't even been asking for any pain meds. Now it will be hard to keep him from over doing stuff. Bailey, Ethan & Emma are going to start T-ball next week. I'm sure that is going to be hard on Ben. We will have to think up something fun for him to do while they play. Only 5 more weeks of restriction for Ben!!! Hopefully they will go by quickly.

Children's Hospital

2008-04-03T22:13:00.000-07:00

Ben came through his surgery with flying colors. The surgeon said everything went very well. He is getting some antibiotics, steroids and some pain meds through an IV so he is still tethered but he is ready to get out of here. He is really sore. We were able to get him up last night and he made several laps around the hospital wing. He was really hungry and ate almost all of the dinner that they brought him last night. Then when we stood him up, he lost it all on the floor of his room!!! After he walked around, he was starving again so I made a few trips to the nourishment room. They have a little room on the hospital floor where they keep things like jello & pudding cups, soup, juice, ice & ice cream. He ate two single servings of chicken noodle soup, two jello cups, two pudding cups, a couple of cups of apple juice and two ice cream cups. The surgery certainly didn't slow down his appetite.
Bailey & Marjie came for a visit. They had a good visit with Chris, Becky & Sarah. Bailey looked worn out. I'm sure she didn't have trouble falling asleep last night. We also went to visit Paul's brother Tom yesterday before Ben's surgery. He is at Virginia Mason. He has been in the hospital pretty much since January. He didn't look too bad. They are hoping that he will be able to go to the hotel close to the hospital in the next week. I'm not sure what his exact diagnosis is but it has to do with his pancreas and the way that the bile is draining. He also has been fighting some infections. I know it is really hard for him to be there - he has always been really active and the farm must be weighing on his mind pretty heavily.
Ben will be getting out of the hospital sometime around noon today. We just have to wait for some prescriptions to be sent in and the doctor needs to sign off on the discharge papers. There is a really cool playroom here and Ben is looking forward to trying it out. The nurses are also looking for a portable game system for him and his roommate. There is a little boy in the other bed here that had some kind of operation on his leg. They have been asking for a game system all morning!!!
Bailey & I took some pictures around the hospital yesterday. They have some really cool sculptures and decorations around the hospital. It doesn't really look that much like a hospital, which is a good thing. It is really welcoming and bright. Not scary!

Seattle

2008-04-01T21:57:00.000-07:00

We made it to Seattle. We left Lind at about 2:00. I had a message on the answering machine to call the hospital to get Ben's surgery instructions - it took awhile to get ahold of a real person. His surgery is scheduled for early afternoon tomorrow. That will make for a long morning. He won't be able to eat anything after midnight tonight. He will be one hungry boy!
We are staying at the Silver Cloud Motel next to the UofW campus. It has a pool and vending machines. Both those things are fascinating when you are 6 & 7!!! The kids got in some serious swimming. Sometimes I wonder if they are 1/2 fish. Marjie's friends Chris & Becky are going to come visit tomorrow with their granddaughter Sarah. She and Bailey will have fun in the pool.

Recipes

2008-03-21T21:34:00.000-07:00

Ok - I haven't posted any recipes in quite awhile. So here is a link to a whole slew of Weight Watcher recipes. I read these several years ago for the first time with my sister Marjie. I think we were both rolling on the floor by the time we made it through the last recipe. Enjoy scrolling through the pictures!

A day of driving

2008-03-21T21:20:00.000-07:00

Ben & I spent Thursday on the road. He had his pre-surgery appointment at Children's Hospital in Seattle. The weather wasn't too bad, just a little snow on the pass. The appointment went well. The surgeon said that Ben's mouth looks very good - perfectly ready for the bone graft. The surgery is in two weeks and he will be on restricted activity and diet for six weeks after. That is going to be way too much fun. He won't be able to run and play - participate in recess or PE at school. He will be on soft food only, no chewing!!! Really looking forward to that.
I always get a deep reality check when I take one of the boys to Children's. I fuss about the kids at times and then we go there and I see the parents with the 1 or 2 year old child that has a bald head from chemo and is on oxygen or has a feeding tube and I think - wow, I really have it easy. It really puts everything into perspective. This surgery is just a little bump in the road. Ben has had his share - lip repair in China, two hand surgeries at Seattle Children's, a rhinoplasty at Seattle Children's and double hernia surgery at Spokane. It will be over soon and hopefully there won't be anything else for along time.

Future Seahawk?

2008-03-21T21:12:00.000-07:00

Look out Matt Hasselback - looks like you have some up and coming competition. Ethan is very excited - he figured out how to throw a spiral. He is pretty good at catching the ball too. I think this is one boy that is going to be a ball player.

The Lind Diamondbacks - Minor Minor League!!!

2008-03-16T11:09:00.000-07:00

This morning we started the day with a rousing game of baseball. Ben actually connected and hit one out of the yard!!! Everyone else got in the groove and hit quite a few. I'm sure it won't be long and we will have to start checking them for steriod use. I don't know if they will have a T-ball team here this year. Ben won't be able to play as he will be laid up from his surgery.
We also went to the Ralston Egg Hunt yesterday. The girls kind of stood around and watched - they thought it was too cold to pick up eggs! We had fun playing all the games and eating all the snacks inside the grange after the hunt. Ben ate 6 servings of fruit! I think everyone thinks that I starve my kids because they eat so much but I keep telling them that they eat like that at home too!!! In fact it frightens us to think about our food budget for the future - might be more than the mortage!!!

Love & Marriage

2008-03-11T23:01:00.000-07:00

Emma & Ethan are in Kindergarten together. Their teacher, Mrs. Steinberger, does some really cool stuff with the kids. She puts together books of their work and does some theme books too. The kids then get to take turns taking the books home and we get a real kick out of seeing their world through their eyes!!! Today, Emma brought home the Love & Marriage book. Mrs. Steinberger asked the kids, "What does love mean to you and how old do you have to be to get married?"

Ethan said: "Love means that like you hug people. I love my Mom and Dad. I know they love me too because they tuck us in at night, they read books, they let us play video games and they take us places. I think you need to be 20 years old to get married."

Emma said: "I love my sister Bailey and my brother Ben. I love Ethan. I love my Mom and Dad. They read to me and take me places. I love my Aunt Sashie, I love Sophie and Tristian. I kissed Tristian. I don't know if I'm old enough to get married. Bailey is almost old enough. I need to ask my Mom and she will tell me when I can get married."

And that's all I have to say about that!!!

Long Time No Blog

2008-03-09T22:01:00.000-07:00

Just a warning - this will probably be a long one! Not really sure why I have been off the blog lately. I think I just got sad and got out of the habit. We had some really bad news early in February. Our babysitter's mother Nana had a stroke and then died a week later. We were all very close to Nana. She was our back up babysitter and the kids spent alot of afternoons sitting around her kitchen table having tea. Nana was from England and was a very unique lady. Her first husband had been in the British Military and they had lived in Africa. She had amazing tales to tell about Africa, living in England during WWII and just life in general. She was a true force of nature and never afraid to speak her mind. We miss her every day.
Other news for February: Emma lost another tooth, Ben had 4 more teeth pulled and we survived filling out valentines!

We have Ben's bone graft surgery scheduled. We have a pre-op appointment March 20th and the surgery is scheduled for April 3. He will be on very limited activity and diet after the surgery for 6 weeks. We really wanted to get this over before summer. I just couldn't imagine telling him that he couldn't swim for 6 weeks! We got him a used gameboy so hopefully he won't feel too bad about not being able to ride his bike or participate in PE at school.
Yesterday, we went down to Pasco to visit and do some shopping. We hit Walmart right before we came home. There was a big display of slippers on sale for $1 ea. They were the fuzzy scuff kind of slippers. The boys were complaining because they were just girl slippers and I told them if they wanted, the girls could have the pink ones and the boys could have the purple ones. They all agreed - then when we were at the check out, Ethan piped up and told the cashier that the purple ones were for Ben and him. Ben just about had a conniption telling him to be quiet - that we don't tell people that the boys were going to wear girl slippers - that was just for home!!! Once we got out to the car - they all wanted me to cut the strings off the slippers so they could wear them. Ben took a good look at his and got all excited because he could read that they were "MADE IN CHINA" - he called out - "Hey, that's so cool - these were made in China." Then he said, "Hey, maybe Emma made these! Emma, did you make these slippers when you were in China last year!" Emma replied, "Yes, I think I did!" I just about fell out of the van laughing!!!

We cleaned up the garden a little - Rod and the kids hauled the cut up firewood out and stacked it up. Bailey was the number one helper on the project. She even went out after dinner and hauled another load. Quite the little Daddy's helper!!!

Another warning: I just got a new toy!! It's been here about 5 days and so far I've made a triple batch of chocolate chip cookies and a single batch of bread. It was so easy to mix up both of those that it was almost laughable. Can't wait to make more!!! I promise to post some recipes soon. Wish we could have smell a vision here - the house smells like fresh baked bread - yum!!! Oh, and there were 3 loaves of bread in the batch - 1 disappeared in about a 1/2 hour after it came out of the oven. Four little snarf mouths made short work of it.

Blog Fun

2008-01-24T12:30:00.000-08:00

I recently came across this List of wonderful plans to file away for that day when your children are grown and have their own homes. I love it!!! Especially the part about the legos. Maybe we could even add some jacks to the lego mix to make it even better!

Chinese Dumplings - Potstickers

2008-01-23T23:19:00.000-08:00

It's been along time since I have posted a recipe. Here is a yummy one. If you don't want to make your own dough, we often just use the dumpling dough from the Asian store or its also found in the fresh vegetable section of most stores. We also steam these sometimes in our bamboo steamer. It's all good!
Chinese New Year starts Feb 7 - it is the year of the Rat!!

Potstickers

Potstickers are one of the most popular types of Chinese dumplings. This
recipe includes a dipping sauce and instructions on making the dough.

Yields about 48 potstickers.

Ingredients:

* Dumpling Dough*
* 2 cups all purpose flour
* 1 cup boiling water
* Filling:
* 8 ounces celery cabbage (Napa cabbage)
* 3 tsp salt, divided
* 1 pound lean ground pork
* 1/4 cup finely chopped green onions, with tops
* 1 TB white wine
* 1 tsp cornstarch
* 1 tsp sesame oil
* Dash white pepper
* Dipping Sauce:
* 1/4 cup soy sauce
* 1 tsp sesame oil
* Other:
* 2 - 4 tablespoons vegetable oil

Preparation:

Cut the cabbage across into thin strips. Mix with 2 teaspoons salt and set
aside for 5 minutes. Squeeze out the excess moisture.

In a large bowl, mix the celery cabbage, pork, green onions, wine,
cornstarch, the remaining 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, and the
white pepper.

In a bowl, mix the flour and 1 cup boiling water until a soft dough forms.
Knead the dough on a lightly flour surface about 5 minutes, or until smooth.

Divide the dough in half. Shape each half into a roll 12 inches long and cut
each roll into 1/2-inch slices.

Roll 1 slice of dough into a 3-inch circle and place 1 tablespoon pork
mixture in the center of the circle. Lift up the edges of the circle and
pinch 5 pleats up to create a pouch to encase the mixture. Pinch the top
together. Repeat with the remaining slices of dough and filling.

Heat a wok or nonstick skillet until very hot. Add 1 tablespoon vegetable
oil, tilting the wok to coat the sides. If using a nonstick skillet, add 1/2
tablespoon vegetable oil. Place 12 dumplings in a single layer in the wok
and fry 2 minutes, or until the bottoms are golden brown.

Add 1/2 cup water. Cover and cook 6 to 7 minutes, or until the water is
absorbed. Repeat with the remaining dumplings.

To make a dipping sauce, in a small bowl, mix the soy sauce with 1 teaspoon
sesame oil. Serve with the dumplings.

Look Ma - No Teeth!!!

2008-01-21T22:09:00.000-08:00

Today we had dentist appointments in Spokane. The dentist office is really cool - they have video games in the waiting room and tv screens in the ceiling in the exam room - the kids get to pick what video they want to watch while they get their teeth cleaned. Wish I could go there too - they don't take anyone over 16 though! Ethan got a clean bill of health - Emma has two teeth coming in behind her lower front ones. They said she should wiggle her bottom front teeth and try to get them out on her own & if they haven't come out in two weeks we can take her back and they will pull them. Bailey needs a small filling and Ben has two more bottom teeth coming in with no room - so we need to take him back to get two more teeth pulled!
After we got home, we tried to talk Emma into wiggling her teeth but she wanted Mom and Dad to do it for her. We wiggled and wiggled on one of them until it was ready to just fall out - I was afraid that she might swallow it during the night so I pulled it! Mean Mom!! She was very proud of it though. We hid it from the tooth fairy so she could take it to school the next day. Now we just have to get the next one wiggled out!

Saturday

2008-01-19T13:30:00.000-08:00

Today is the Outdoor Show at the TRAC in Pasco. It has been a tradition for us to go and for the kids to all catch a fish in the fish pond. We were looking forward to it this morning but Ethan woke up with a fever. Everyone else was feeling fine, so Rod took Bailey, Ben & Emma and I stayed home with the sickie. We spent the day in our pjs, just lounging. Several times he crawled up on my lap and just let me cuddle him. It was a good day. I know that before long he will be too grown up to do that. The years already seem to be speeding by entirely too quickly.
I opened my email this morning and found one from Mimi - Julian's Mom. Julian died this morning. I probably held Ethan a little too tight after I read about that. I just can't imagine the total heartbreak their family is going through. Here is a poem she posted:

Fly high…

Fly high, lil man,
The sun and you are one.
You won’t ever be cold again,

I will always keep my eyes to the skies…
Today, the sunshine was a little warmer,
Tonight, the Milky Way a little brighter.

I feel your hand in mine and your face on my chest.
I feel you looking up at me,
Begging for a kiss.

“Just one more kiss, Mama…
One more dinosaur kiss,
Because I really like you “

Come closer baby, It is ok now,
You are done fighting ,
You are done hurting.

Give me one more smile,
One more silly face,
And one more hug…

You can go, now,you can go,
The boys will be fine,
Daddy and I will love on them for you…

My heart is shattered, baby,
But so much bigger,so full of love…
I will miss you forever…

So for now, Fly high, lil man…
With your brand new wings,
Fly high, all the way to Heaven…

Good night, sweet pea, sleep tight,
Your mama, the lil one...

Friday Night Lights

2008-01-18T22:43:00.000-08:00

Bailey got to be a little cheerleader and perform at the basketball game Friday night. She was so excited to show off her "moves"!!!

Feeling Nostalgic

2008-01-13T00:51:00.000-08:00

Word of warning - don't activate the playlist on the side of this blog if you are at work or within the hearing of a child!!! I was skimming through Project Playlist and started to feel a little nostalgic for my misspent youth!! I know that Melanie will definitely understand. If I close my eyes I can see the Seidel Bros doing Stray Cat Strut, Billy Bear singing Turn the Page, Mike Lee singing The Rodeo Song and Joe Mama reciting the end of Copenhagen. Wow! Hard to believe that was over 20 years ago. I couldn't find Dead Skunk In the Middle of the Road - that would have been too entirely perfect. So, if you are brave and have a good sense of humor activate the playlist and enjoy some crazy tunes from today and yesteryear!!!

Ravelry!!!

2008-01-12T23:33:00.001-08:00

I have a new obsession!!! Ravelry If you are a knitter, crocheter, spinner or any type of fiber enthusiast - check it out! It is still in beta and being tested so you have to sign up and wait awhile to get an invite. It is seriously cool though. All kinds of links to patterns and projects. It got me excited enough to pick up my knitting needles and make these fingerless mittens for Ben today. They were going to be regular mittens but he decided that he didn't want the ends on them. Bailey, on the other hand, said she wanted ends on hers so her fingers wouldn't get cold - guess it isn't such an issue for Ben.
I actually sorted through our knitting needles and got the double points all measured and in bags with sizes labeled. We have a tremendous number of size 2 double points. Maybe we should host a sock knitting class or something! Rod made me a new pair of wool socks this week too. They are nice and toasty warm.

Julian

2008-01-07T23:47:00.000-08:00

For awhile now I have been following a blog written by Mimi. She is mom to Julian. Julian is 4 and is in the final stages from medulloblastoma. They didn't expect him to live until Christmas. He has amazed everyone but is getting weaker. Today his breathing has become weaker and he is on oxygen. Mimi wrote the following and I just wanted to pass it on because it is so important to make sure that we let our loved ones know that they are loved - that we say the words and give the time and the hugs.
Mimi writes: My little man is now on oxygen. His breathing has slowed down. He doesnt stay awake much anymore and has a hard time talking. He is working so hard on his wings but yet holding back...
Do you have kids?
Do you ever lay down by them? Do they ever crawl up in your bed? Do you watch them sleep? You probably do , BUT , do you sit there and count how many breaths they take in a minute? Julian is down to 12 . Not enough.
Could you please start doing this if you dont already do it? Have one night a week or every two weeks , where your whole family gets in PJ's and let everyone fall asleep together. I know some of you have more than 2 kids...take turns. Let them sleep by you or on you , just really close. Let them talk to you about anything and everything until they fall asleep. And yep, you might not sleep well and wake up with the sore neck, but it will be a forever memory , a priceless gift you are giving your children and yourself... Dont listen to the "specialists " when they tell you it is not healthy to sleep with your kids, they have never lost a child obviously or they would know that not only it is healthy ,it is part of life. What I remember as a child and a teenager and a grownup is how safe I felt falling asleep in my parents bed, by my mom talking to her... Dont listen to the ones who say how sick it is to have your teenage son come to your bed and lay with you for a while before bed or in the mornings. They are your babies and that never changes... And always remember as they talk to you to respond to them in a loving way... Tell them about God, Jesus, tell them about angels, tell them about life and death... If you dont know about death ,it scares you. Knowledge is power. You can deal with things if you know what they are... And as much as we hate talking about it ,kids need to know ,it is essential for us to answer them and not dismiss them and their questions.
I really dont know where I am going with this... Just love your kids and tell them you do because they are special and because they are a gift...And also because you never know what life might throw at you...

Bailey's Birthday!

2007-12-26T23:34:00.000-08:00

Wow! How hard is it to imagine that Bailey is 7! Seems like just yesterday we were in China meeting a little 18 month old spud. Where does the time go. Bailey made her own birthday cake in the Easy Bake Oven. How grown up is that - to make her own cake! She actually got dressed to go out to lunch today. I think that Bailey's favorite thing about Christmas Vacation has been that she can stay in her pj's or nightgown all day.

Wii Play at Christmas!

2007-12-25T23:30:00.000-08:00

The big present this year was a Wii for the family. We all stayed in our pj's all day and the kids had a ball jumping and playing.

Emma's Birthday!!

2007-12-23T20:20:00.000-08:00

Emma turned 6 today. She was so excited that she finally had a day that was hers alone. We went to Grandma's house and had ice cream cake and played with all Grandma's fun toys. Emma got a baby Chou Chou - a baby doll like the one that Bailey has. They had a big time playing babies and then Aunt Judy gave them new rag dolls. It was a baby filled day and Emma was very proud and happy. We capped off the day by stopping by Walmart and the kids shopped for each other. It is so much fun to see how their minds work as they try to figure out the best thing to get each other.

Christmas Concert

2007-12-21T20:41:00.000-08:00

We made it through the annual Christmas Concert without any big bloopers. Emma waited until she was sitting next to me in stands before she pulled her dress up over her head! It was a very nice concert and the kids sang their little hearts out.

Sure Glad It's Digital!

2007-12-17T23:24:00.000-08:00

Well, we now know how many pictures it takes to actually get one where all 4 kids are kind of looking at the camera and Ben isn't smirking or acting like a twerp! I took pictures for about 30 minutes last night before I finally got something that actually looked decent. We are going to work on getting the cards out, but here is a preview! We also zipped into Moses Lake tonight and picked up Emma's new glasses. She kept asking about the windshield wipers on the way home - I don't think she could tell what they were before. I will try to get a picture of her posted tomorrow, it was just too late tonight when we got home.

Tonight's Project

2007-12-11T00:24:00.000-08:00

The news tonight is forecasting temperatures around 8 degrees for tomorrow morning. This morning we couldn't find enough mittens and gloves to go around when everyone was ready for school. Last Monday we had at least two pairs per kid! So tonight I sat down and cut out a pattern and whipped up 4 new pairs of mittens. Rod even jumped in and cut out a pair. I figure if we do that every night, we ought to be able to make it through the winter with all the rest of Ben's fingers intact!!
Tomorrow we have Emma's second visit to the Pediatric Opthamologist. They thought that she might need glasses. At least she will be able to understand a little of what is going on this trip.

Whew!

2007-12-09T23:12:00.000-08:00

Well, the weekend is over. Whew is about all I can say! We had the annual Grange Christmas dinner with a visit from Santa and songs from the Jr. Grangers last night and tonight was the annual Lind Christmas parade. We made it through and nobody froze their ears off. It was pretty cold tonight about 26 degrees but at least it wasn't as cold as it was the past two years. We changed from a nativity scene to Santa's Workshop. We won 4th place and yes there were more than 4 entries!!! Here are some pictures of the last two days.

Holiday Bustle

2007-12-07T23:11:00.000-08:00

I will start out by apologizing for the length of this post. I tend to get a little introspective late at night especially during the holidays!
The holidays have descended upon us! No denying it now. We have the Grange Christmas Dinner tomorrow night and the annual Lind Parade on Sunday night. Seems like we have something going on almost every night. We are trying to keep things in perspective and I think we have a good start with the kids. Every night we are opening a door on our Advent Calendar. Behind each door is a small candy treat and 4 quarters for each child. Every night they put the money in their new sectioned banks - 1 quarter in the save part - it will be put in their bank accounts; 1 quarter in the charity part - we will combine that money and either donate it or buy a toy for the sharing tree at school and 2 quarters in the store part - they will use that to get presents for each other. I think we are going to try to make some presents this year. We made hot cocoa cones for Junior Grange last week and the kids really liked that.
I have been thinking that they could do something like this for each other and for their friends. The kids are very excited about doing this and about getting things for kids that don't have all the nice things that we do. Tonight we watched Polar Express for the second time this season and Bailey told me that she knew what Christmas was really about - it wasn't just about us - it was about everyone in the world and was about giving and helping others. I think she is on the right track!
Rod is working on this song from Third Day. He is going to perform it at the Grange Dinner tomorrow night. It came out last year and absolutely brought us to tears every time we heard it. I will try to get it up on my music box but here are the lyrics (I think you will see it is very appropriate for us!).

There’s a little girl trembling on a cold December morn,
Crying for Mama’s arms,
At an orphanage just outside a little China town,
Where the forgotten are,
But half a world away I hang the stockings by the fire,
And dream about the day when I can finally call you mine.

It’s Christmas time again but you’re not home,
Your family is here and yet you’re somewhere else alone,
So tonight I pray that God will come and hold you in His arms,
And I’ll tell you from my heart, I wish you Merry Christmas.

As I hang the tinsel on the tree and watch the twinkling lights,
I’m warmed by the fire’s glow,
And outside the children tumble in a wonderland of white,
And make angels in the snow.
But half a world away you try your best to fight the tears,
And hope that heaven’s angels come to carry you here.

It’s Christmas time again but you’re not home,
Your family is here and yet you’re somewhere else alone,
So tonight I pray that God will come and hold you in His arms,
And I’ll tell you from my heart, I wish you Merry Christmas.

Christmas is a time we celebrate the Holy Child,
And we celebrate his perfect gift of Love,
He came to us to give His life and prepare a place for us,
So we could have a home with Him above.

It’s Christmas time again but now you’re home,
Your family is here and so you’ll never be alone,
So tonight before you go to sleep I’ll hold you in my arms,
And I’ll tell you from my heart,
And I’ll tell you from my heart, I wish you Merry Christmas.

I also wanted to share some thoughts that a friend of mine wrote out 2 years ago. Amy is the one who visited Emma in her foster home last December and sent us the wonderful pictures of Emma smiling!!! Her words really struck me because I have many of these same thoughts. It is hard sometimes to reconcile how much we have been blessed with while there are others in this world who have so little. I know we can't rescue the world but like the man walking the beach and throwing the starfish back - maybe we can make a difference with one life at a time. Anyway, enough of my holiday angst. Here is Amy post:
Can you believe we are ten days away from Christmas? Wasn't it just
summertime? Weren't we just carving pumpkins? Some days I feel like
I have stepped into a time machine that has caused my life to spin
in triple time. I remember those long lazy summer days when I was a
kid feeling so BORED and my mom wisely smiling and saying, "just you
wait until you are older and your life starts flying before your
eyes". Now I smile at my own kids and tell them the same thing. :-)

I am trying SO HARD to get into the "festive" holiday spirit, but
this year I am finding it more and more difficult. I remember not
that many years ago I would hear about the latest Neimann Marcus
catalogue and would laugh at the fact that someone would be buying
their child their own diamond encrusted pony barn, but now I turn on
the news and hear that some "lucky" child will be given her own
replica of the Eiffel Tower on Christmas morning and I want to cry
instead. I want to call the family and say "do you know how many
heart babies that would heal?" (I am a real downer at holiday
parties......ha ha)

This weekend I took my six year old daughter to see the Nutcracker
for the very first time. It was in downtown Oklahoma City, and all
the lights were twinkling around the square. Anna put on her red
holiday dress and was beyond excited. As we walked into the music
hall and we saw the 40 foot high tree, and all the beautiful
decorations, I caught myself once again thinking about all the
children who at that very moment were sleeping in rusted cribs, with
no heat. I do this to myself all the time, and I vowed that tonight
I would NOT think about China and I would just enjoy the evening.
And so I looked around at all the happy families, and everyone had
on holiday clothes and the little girls were all dressed up for
their night at the ballet. I will not think of China.....I will not
think of China........... and then a woman walked in with her
daughter and I broke that vow for the millionth time. Her little
girl was an absolute vision. She had on a floor length velvet gown,
with an underskirt that caused her dress to swirl out around her.
She had on a white fur coat, and her mom had curled her blond hair
into hundreds of ringlets. And on the top of her head she had a
diamond tiara. I think it was the tiara that brought the tears. And
not because it was expensive, but because this mom had obviously
spent so much time lovingly getting her little girl ready for a very
special night out. I could just envision her bringing out the
princess crown and saying "THIS is a magical night and you deserve
to look like a queen." They were laughing and holding hands, and as
they walked up the grand staircase it hit me once again full in my
heart the disparity that exists in the world with children. Why are
some children born to be treasured and others are born to know only
pain? How many children in the world NEVER have a momma to do their
hair and tell them, "today is a SPECIAL day."

Sometimes I think I must be crazy.....and I will look around me to
see if it looks like anyone else in the room is feeling like this.
Is it normal to cry when your little boy steps up to homeplate,
knowing that so many children around the world will never have that
simple pleasure? Is it normal to go to the park and have to choke
back tears watching children just enjoy the tiny thrill that comes
from being able to play outside or zoom down a slide? Oh I hope
so....because that is my normal now.

I so want to give my own children a feeling of JOY this season. But
I find my head has two thoughts running at the exact same time every
moment of the day.

Mom, can we bake cookies? *** 13 new babies were abandoned and we
have nowhere to put them.
Mrs. Eldridge, can you send treats for the holiday party? ***** She
has severe heart disease and might have lung damage.
Mom, can we go see Narnia? ***** Do you have the funds to help us?
She is so sick and we feel she needs to be in the hospital.
Mom, where are my band shoes? **** If we can build this school they
might be able to learn to read and rise above their poverty.
Where shall we hang the ornaments? ***** I am sorry but he passed
away......he was just too sick when we found him.
Can you take us shopping for gifts? ***** The aunties are
overwhelmed....there are so many babies......the babies keep coming
in........

The other night I turned off my computer and sat down to watch the
ending of Lord of the Rings: Return of the King. I remember when I
first saw it (pre-China), and I thought that they should have ended
the movie when Aragon turns to Frodo with the glorious backdrop of
the mountains and castle and says "you kneel to no man". After that
the movie goes back to the Hobbit's shire and I remember not really
liking the way it was wrapped up....I wanted the GRAND ending. :-)
So this time I was watching it and I jokingly said to my
husband, "maybe we should just stop it at the scene with Aragon and
not watch the rest." But of course we kept going, and then Frodo said
something that made me realize that it was indeed the perfect
ending. He said, "How do you pick up the threads of an old life? How
do you go on... when in your heart... you begin to understand...
there is no going back?
There are some things that time cannot mend. Some hurts that go too
deep... that have taken hold of you forever."

That summed up exactly what I have been feeling for so long after
experiencing all that I have in China........there is no going back.
You cannot see children in real need and then just "turn it off".
Their faces will be with you forever. And you will see that same
longing in every child around the world who needs someone to care
for them....whether it is on a news program about children in the
Sudan, or news pictures of children in Iraq, or in a new photo of a
child needing surgery from an orphanage saying, "please, can you
help?" You can't turn off that intense desire to want to help
them....because in your heart you know that the kids can't turn off
their sadness, or fear, or loneliness. But I have realized recently
that it is okay to have two thoughts always going at once. Because
when your daughter looks up at you as the Sugar Plum Fairy comes out
on the stage to dance, and whispers "isn't she BEAUTIFUL,
mommy?"......you can blink away the tears that come from knowing so
many children will never have such a moment of pure wonder.....and
remind yourself to CHERISH that very moment that God has put in your
life. Every child on this earth is a blessing.....and we should
never take for granted those little moments with our own children
that remind us how very lucky we all are to have each other as
family. THAT is what I am reflecting on this holiday season. How
blessed we are to have the gift of children in this world......and
how much they depend on adults to take care of them and make them
feel safe. So I will treasure every hectic moment and smile as we
hurtle towards Christmas day, while knowing that it is perfectly
okay to also cry on the inside, for all of those kids who still wait.

2nd Week of November

2007-11-13T12:10:00.000-08:00

Whew! Last week was one busy week. At work, we put on our annual Prime Rib dinner. We fed about 300 people with a menu of Prime Rib, seafood salad, baked potatoes, green salad, green beans, rolls & pie. We have some wonderful people come in and cook the Prime Rib, we buy the pie from Cyrus O'Leary and the rolls from Warden Hutterian Brethern but everything else we do ourselves. Makes for a busy week - especially since it is so close to the first of the month and I was still working on month end. We also had a little excitement Thursday morning and had several visits from the Sheriff's department here at work! Seems that someone had cut the locks on the mini storage units that we own and stolen things from our renters. The best thing I can say about last week is that at least it is over!!!

We've had some bad news in our family. My brother-in-law John's father passed away yesterday. Harold had been having some health problems and had a heart attack yesterday afternoon. I have known him my entire life and he will be missed by his entire extended family and his many friends. I don't think that Harold ever met a stranger. He was loved and admired by everyone around him. Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers. Even though we know that he is in a better place it is still hard. We also heard this past week that Melanie Mom's cancer has returned. She is upbeat and positive but she has another long road in front of her. Please keep Brenda in your thoughts and prayers.

It's been a long time since I posted a recipe so here is the recipe for the seafood salad that we serve at our dinner. We get rave reviews every year.

Here is the recipe as we prepare it:

Seafood Salad
10 large loves white bread
36 lbs crab/shrimp mix
2 bunches celery
2 bunches green onions
6 red peppers
1 #10 can sliced olives
3 qts mayonaise
3 bottles cocktail sauce
1/2 cup lemon juice
2 Tblsp dill weed

And here is the recipe scaled down to regular proportions:

Seafood Salad

1/3 of large loaf sandwich bread (approximately 7 slices)
1 lb. Imitation crab meat, shredded
1 lb. shrimp, cooked
2 large stalks celery, finely diced
1/3 of large red pepper, finely diced
3 green onions, finely sliced
1 small can sliced black olives
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1 tbsp. cocktail sauce
1 ½ tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. dill weed

Remove crust from bread and break into small pieces. Place in bowl and mix the bread, seafood, and vegetables. In a small bowl mix the mayonnaise, cocktail sauce, lemon juice and dill weed. Pour this dressing over the first mixture and mix all together. Refrigerate a few hours before serving.

Ethan's Birthday

2007-11-05T12:39:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Ethan's birthday last week. A few of his friends came over after school and we decorated pumpkins, snacked, played and smacked a pinata! Can't have much more fun than that! We did officially change Ethan's birthday to June 28 but the court date was after June 28 so if we didn't celebrate now, he wouldn't have had a birthday this year! Talk about terrible! We will probably continue to celebrate in October - its fun to have it during the school year and a Halloween theme is also fun. He will just be turning his age + 1/2 on his October birthday! That ought to confuse everyone!!

New Love Without Boundaries Video

2007-10-30T23:48:00.001-07:00

I love this new video from Love Without Boundaries. As the Christmas season is fast approaching, I would like to suggest a perfect gift for all those people in your life who have everything. How about a gift of a full tummy for a baby in China. Emma was sponsored in Foster Care and Kindergarten through LWB - after reading through her paperwork, we can see that this program made a world of difference to her. Without LWB Emma probably wouldn't have been deemed adoptable. Here's a link to the holiday card that will be sent for a donation. LWB
If you would like to see some wonderful pictures and read some inspiring posts - here is a link to the LWB blog. The LWB team visited many of the foster programs and they are preparing for cleft surgeries. The post from Oct 29 is hilarious - in fact it reminds me of my friend Stacy. She told a great story about how her second husband gave her an ultimatum over their dog. It was either the dog or him. She looked him in the eye and said "You know, I always really liked that dog!" Guess we could file that away in the top ten ways to know your marriage is over.

New Book

2007-10-24T17:47:00.000-07:00

I found the coolest new book today. It is called Skipper's Revenge. It is funny and cute. It really hit home for me because I never owned a Barbie doll either. I had two Skipper dolls and they were definitely wallflowers!!LOL!! Anyway - take a look at the first chapter - its free and the whole Skipper's raft thing is way worth it!

Tuesday Musings

2007-10-23T19:09:00.000-07:00

Tonight I got a rotisserie chicken from Jim's for dinner. Foolishly I thought I would be able to use the leftovers to make soup. The kids were still asking for more chicky bone and all that was left was a bare carcass. Guess its time to start getting two chickens for dinner!
After dinner, the culinary crew took over to make some pumpkin pies. They worked very hard and the pies are now baking in the oven.

Here is a recipe that I am looking forward to trying. I found it on one of the yahoo groups that I belong to.

Slow-Cooked Chicken & Dumplings

Prep Time: 15 min
Total Time: 11 hr min
Makes: 6 servings, about 1-3/4 cups each

1-1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken thighs
2-1/2 cups fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth
1-1/2 cups each chopped onions, celery and carrots
2 cups frozen peas, thawed
1/2 cup (1/2 of 8-oz. tub) PHILADELPHIA Chive & Onion Cream Cheese Spread
1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Chicken
3/4 cup hot water
2 eggs, lightly beaten
COMBINE chicken, broth, onions, celery and carrots in slow cooker; cover
with lid.
COOK on LOW for 8 to 10 hours (or on HIGH for 3-1/2 hours).
ADD peas and cream cheese spread; stir until well blended. Mix stuffing mix,
water and eggs until well blended. Drop stuffing mixture, 2 heaping
tablespoonfuls
at a time, onto chicken mixture in slow cooker. Cook, covered, on HIGH 30
min. Gently turn over dumplings. Cook, covered, an additional 15 min.

Retakes

2007-10-20T22:23:00.000-07:00

I had Ethan and Emma do retakes for their school pictures. I went to school with them and made like a monkey to get them to smile. I am pleased with the results - these two photos look more like my young'uns!

How Many of Me?

2007-10-16T16:25:00.000-07:00

This is something kind of interesting that a friend of mine sent me the other day. I have a much more popular married name than single name. I think there were only 8 Janice Herold's listed! There is only one Bailey Dennis listed! How cool is that!

HowManyOfMe.com

There are
134
people with my name
in the U.S.A.

How many have your name?

Happy Peak of The Week!

2007-10-09T23:35:00.000-07:00

Tonight I made the most sinful, decadent cinnamon rolls. I used the recipe from the Pioneer Woman Cooks. I think I used up 3 boxes of butter. I am going to be really evil and send a couple in with Rod for Heather & Darla. I think they would count as 2000 points apiece on Weight Watchers!!! I made them to send with Rod to Deer Camp. The recipe made 4 cake pans full - I wonder if there will be anything left after the kids hit them for breakfast in the morning. I should probably send in cards to their teachers apologizing for all the sugar in the morning. Either that or I will give them some Diet Pepsi to go with the cinnamon rolls and send them off with an evil laugh.
My niece Jenni is having surgery tomorrow. We are thinking about you sister!!! We love you - the kids made you a get well card and I have a little pillow you can use as you heal up! Let me know if you want cinnamon rolls! We can whip up another batch just for you.

My Apologies

2007-10-03T22:00:00.000-07:00

Ok, its been almost a month since my last post. Trying to come up with a reason for not posting - so take your pick from the following: 1) I turned 43 and suffered a massive breakdown because now I am officially old; 2) Our family has gone through a torrent of disease - coughs, colds, runny nose, vomiting, upset stomach, diarrhea; 3) I dropped my laptop, broke it and have been in mourning; 4) I've fallen under a moutain of laundry and I can't get up! If you picked any of the above, you are a winner!!!! Actually my age really doesn't bother me - unless I look in a mirror, try to get up too fast or stay up too late. One good thing about the whole laptop thing is that I took out laptop insurance for a year because I was afraid that something would happen to it on our trip to China - after all I dropped my camera on our 2nd day in China during our first trip - right there on the Great Wall!!!
Since my last post, Ben turned 6. He had a great birthday. We had a little swim party for him with some of his little friends. He is getting so tall and grown up.
I also wanted to say Happy Birthday to my friend Judi. Her birthday was September 15. I am terrible with cards but I do think of you every year when the 15th roles around and I remember the "traveling birthday party." We went to school with a class of 9 kids. Three of us had birthdays close together and we would have sleepover parties first at my house, then at Judi's and finally at Lyndee's house. We were quite the little cliche! So Happy Belated Birthday Judi!!
Tonight we went to Open House at the Elementary School. The kids were so excited to show us their rooms and where they sit! They are all having a good time at school. Here are their school pictures. I am going to get retakes of Ethan and Emma - I think I will go to school with them and see if I can get them to smile!!!
Our newest obsession is with our bread machine! The kids are eating up the loaves of bread as fast as I can churn them out. Here is a recipe for a whole wheat loaf that I made yesterday. It lasted through breakfast this morning. Very dense and moist. So here is my penance for nonblogging. This recipe if from the Hillbilly Housewife website.

Honey Wheat Bread
2 lb loaf

1-1/2 cups warm tap water
1/2 cup honey
1 tablespoon oil
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons active dry yeast

Measure the ingredients into the bread pan in the order listed. Make a well in the flour and sprinkle the yeast into it. Set the machine to it's Whole Wheat Cycle. On my machine this lasts for 3 hours and 40 minutes. Press Start, and let the machine work it's magic. Remove the cooked bread from the pan after baking and allow it to cool before slicing. Makes a 2 lb loaf.

This is my kids favorite whole wheat bread. The honey makes it very sweet, and soft. This bread lasts longer than some machine made breads before going stale. The honey acts as a natural preservative.

Too Funny!!!

2007-09-12T22:03:00.000-07:00

Hey - look - I'm the same age as fake orange juice!!!
Today is my 43rd birthday! Rod took the kids to Walmart Sunday to shop for my birthday. I had a whole stack of presents - what a fun time. It really surprised me, I couldn't get any of them to tell me what they bought for me. When I opened everything tonight, I got a little stapler, an index card file, a file folder, a bunch of stickers that included car & mermaid stickers, a High School Musical pillow, a jar of peanuts and some candy corn.

Wednesday Recipe - Yogurt!!

2007-09-12T12:54:00.000-07:00

Today is another nod to the Hillbilly Housewife. I used her recipe to make yogurt and then the following recipe to dress it up. I used the instructions for making the yogurt in the cooler - very easy and no special equipment. The kids are wild for it - especially with the blue and green jello. I've made 5 batches of this in the past week & it has been slurped up so fast that sometimes they are using straws - not even waiting for it to set up. I think it would work really well with sugarfree jello and some sweetener - like splenda. I was thinking the green would be cool for Halloween with peeled green grapes in it! Imagine slime with eyeballs!!!

Custard Style Yogurt

1 package flavored gelatin mix (the four serving size)
1 cup tap water
3 cups yogurt (homemade is fine)
1/3 cup sugar (optional)
up to 1 cup chopped fruit (optional)

Oh is this stuff good! First heat up the tap water. When it boils, remove it from the heat. Add the gelatin to it and stir it with a fork for several minutes, to completely dissolve the gelatin. The gelatin will only dissolve if you stir it long enough. When the gelatin is dissolved, stir in the yogurt. If you like it very sweet you can stir in the extra sugar too. I don't like to add the sugar, but the kids like it pretty well with the extra sugar. If you like you can also stir in some chopped fruit. I like to add leftover canned fruit, cut into small bits, or sometimes bananas or frozen strawberries. The fruit should be cut up small, or it is difficult to chew. When everything is well stirred up, pour the yogurt into individual cups or small resealable containers. Place them n the fridge to chill. These are great in the lunch box, and also as a healthy snack. If you have homemade yogurt which didn't set up as well as you like, it can be used to good advantage in this recipe. Red flavors of gelatin seem to be the most popular at my house, but I think lemon and peach are also pretty good. Green is interesting, and appeals to kids who like to pretend they are eating slime.

Saturday Morning Antics

2007-09-08T12:17:00.000-07:00

First of all, this is my 101st post!!! WhooHoo!! Pretend you see the confetti flying!!! Wasn't that exciting!!!
Today the kids have a birthday party to go to this afternoon, so we decided to stay home and play instead of heading off to the big city. Rod loaded my new little MP3 player so that was good for a couple of hours of entertainment this morning. We played music and danced around the kitchen. Those kids of mine have some moves!!! Next we decided to play pick our future career. Here are some pictures - I will let you guess the careers:

Ok - Doesn't that first one just make you want to burst into a rousing rendition of Beauty School Dropout - Go Back to High School!!!
Next, we have Bailey. She is going to be a Pop Star/Mommy - she even practiced cutting her own hair - we're just lucky she didn't have a pair of clippers on hand like Brittany did.
Moving on, we come to Ben. He is going to be a secret agent 00-something. You know the cool guy who wants his martini stirred not shaken - always hanging around with the cool chicks and vanquishing the bad guy with a single Kungfu move.
Finally, there is Ethan. Don't know what to say about him except - Help Uncle Irvie!!! We see orange jumpsuits and visiting day schedules in our future!!!!

No Beauty School in Our Future!

2007-09-05T21:50:00.000-07:00

Well, it finally happened. I have always wondered when the kids were going to try cutting their own hair. Monday, while they were supposed to be taking a nap, Bailey & Emma tried cutting their own hair. Bailey just got a couple of little pieces but Emma really did a whack job.

Fair

2007-09-05T21:33:00.000-07:00

We had a very busy weekend. I am a superintendent for the Spinning, Weaving & Wool division at the fair. That means that I spend much of the week at the fair. We take exhibits in on Wednesday, judge and hang up the display on Thursday and then the rest of the time we usually have at least one person at our display to keep it from walking off and we also have our spinning wheels out to demonstrate. I actually got half a bobbin spun while I was sitting around - also just about finished a sock I have been working on for two years!! The kids entered their creature features and some seed pictures that they did for Junior Grange. We really need to get busy next year and put in some more entries. Oh, I entered a pair of handfelted ornaments that I made. I won best of class for them - there were only two entries but the other felted article was from Marie Gettmann - a nationally known fiber talent - so I actually felt like it was an accomplishment!

Wednesday Recipe - Magic Milkshake

2007-09-05T12:23:00.001-07:00

I got this recipe from the Hillbilly Housewife The kids really like it and it is easy and uses stuff that I usually have on hand. This is great because the kids usually decide they want a milkshake on Sunday afternoon or after dinner when our local store is already closed. This is also considerably cheaper than using ice cream. There are some notes below the recipe from the Hill Billy Housewife - including a virtually fat free version.

Magic Milk Shakes

1-1/2 to 2 cups ice water
1-1/2 cups nonfat dry milk powder
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 to 1-1/2 trays of ice cubes, as much as you can spare
2 tablespoons corn oil plus a 5-second squirt of non-stick spray for emulsification purposes

Place all of the ingredients into the blender, including the oil and the non-stick spray. Use less water for thicker milk shakes and more water for shakes that are easy on your blender motor. The blender should be about 3/4's full. Place the lid on. Process for a full 2 minutes. Pour into cups and serve. Makes 4 - 12oz servings. For preparation tips please see below.

Reader's Tip: A reader named Chris made these with Splenda replacing the sugar measure for measure and said they turned out perfectly. If you like Splenda, then this tip would be a great way to reduce the calories and make them sugar-free. Thanks for sharing Chris!

Variations:

Add 1 tablespoon of instant coffee for a mocha shake

Add 1 very ripe banana for a chocolate banana shake

Add a big spoonful of peanut butter for a decadent Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake.

Add a few broken red and white candy mints for a refreshing Chocolate Mint shake.

To make Vanilla Milk Shakes, omit the cocoa powder, reduce the sugar to 1/2-cup and add 1 tablespoon (yes a full tablespoon) of vanilla flavoring. For a french vanilla milk shake crack in an egg too.

P.S. In my original recipe I pointed out that for an almost fat free milkshake you may omit the oil and only use a squirt of nonstick spray instead. Many people were satisfied with this version and enjoyed it immensely. Since posting my rant, they have emailed requests that I include this option for others who may need it for dietary reasons. If you prepare milk shakes with this option and are not satisfied with your results, then try it with the oil added, to see if you like it better. After trying both versions you may write me and complain if need be.

Wednesday Recipe!

2007-08-29T23:27:00.001-07:00

Wow, I almost forgot the Wednesday Recipe. I have been trying to get back to doing some freezer cooking. I really need to get better about getting dinner on the table early! Here are a couple of my favorite dump chicken recipes.
DUMP TERIYAKI CHICKEN
1 Clove Garlic -- Crushed
1/3 cup Soy Sauce
2 Tablespoons Rice Wine (Or Sherry)
1 1/2 Tablespoons Cider Vinegar
1 1/2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
1 1/2 Tablespoons Minced Ginger
DUMP SWEET AND SOUR CHICKEN
1/4 cup Honey
1/4 cup Sherry Vinegar
1/8 cup Soy Sauce
2 Teaspoons Minced Ginger
4 Cloves Crushed Garlic
DUMP STICKY CHICKY
2 Tablespoons Oil
1 Tablespoon Soy Sauce
3 Tablespoons Smooth Peanut Butter
3 Tablespoons Ketchup
DUMP CHILI MAPLE GLAZED CHICKEN
2 Tablespoons Water
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 1/2 Tablespoons Maple Syrup
1 Tablespoon Chili Powder
DUMP HONEY GLAZED CHICKEN
1/4 cup Butter -- Melted
1/8 cup Soy Sauce
1/2 cup Honey
We call it "DUMP-CHICKEN" because you DUMP the mix into a 1 gallon freezer baggie with the chicken and freeze it. Then when you want to eat it, you thaw overnight in the fridge and DUMP it into a pan and cook it!

All the recipes can be made with 4-8 pieces of chicken (any pieces will do... wings, thighs, drumsticks, bone-in, skin-on, boneless, skinless, maybe even whole chicken), we use 5 boneless/skinless chicken breasts to keep it healthier. To cook the chicken, thaw completely in the fridge, dump into 9x12" pan, bake at 350 until done. For BL/SL breasts it is about 25-35 minutes. For chicken pieces, it runs closer to an hour. Enjoy! You can also use your crock pot for this too!

Wheat Land Communities Fair!

2007-08-29T22:22:00.000-07:00

It's fair time again! Last night the kids put together their Creature Features for entry at the fair. We used 4 large zuchinnis, a bushels of carrots & potatoes, a peck of baby corn, a couple of peppers and several apples! Oh, we also used a small forest of toothpicks and bamboo skewers. A good time was had by all.

First Day of School!!!

2007-08-29T21:57:00.001-07:00

I read this blog entry from Amy Eldridge the other day and it really struck me how far these children of mine have come. Even knowing the many details of the inner workings of the Chinese orphanage system, I know that I can't even begin to understand how my children spent the first years of their lives - the confusion and sorrow that must have been their daily companions. I think about these beautiful souls in these sturdy little bodies marching off to their first day of school today. The journey they have made is truly amazing. I think about the journey we have made together - 4 times now - to become a family and I am totally blown away by the twists and turns of fate or the hand of a higher power that brought us all together. What started out as a tiny little ad in the Tri-Cities newspaper for an adoption seminar has sprung into a family. I look at them all fresh and eager for the new year - I'm sure we will face trials and tribulations in the year ahead. I also know they make me proud and I love them with every last fiber of my being.

Stacy & Clinton - Where Are You When We Need You!!!

2007-08-27T22:51:00.003-07:00

Saturday we went up to the fairgrounds and cleaned up the area for the Spinning, Weaving & Wool display. The kids helped out by running and playing all over the grounds. Bailey & Emma dressed themselves all up for the occassion. I kept expecting the crew from What Not To Wear to jump out of the shadows and take us away!!!

New Blogger!

2007-08-22T21:18:00.000-07:00

Here is an actual ebay auction
This is entirely too funny! I think this woman is living my life!!! No wonder I always try to slip out sans children to go shopping! Here is Dawn's blog - I love her writing.

Wednesday's Recipe

2007-08-22T17:45:00.000-07:00

I am going to post an easy recipe today. We are getting ready for the fair next week. The kids made this for the fair last year - it was very easy & very good!

My First Fudge

1 pkg. white chocolate chips
1 can white frosting
1/2 t. peppermint extract
Microwave chips & frosting for 2 min. if not completely melted do 30 second
intervals. Add in extract & pour into a buttered 8x8 pan. Set in refrigerator for 1 hour.

This recipe works with all kinds of combo's but the peppermint is a favorite
You can do chocolate chips & choc frosting or we did peanut butter chips &
chocolate frosting too.

Saying Goodbye

2007-08-22T17:30:00.000-07:00

Christine
1972 - 2007
Christine, this niece of mine, was beautiful. Even as a child, with her gorgeous red hair, her big brown eyes, her delicate skin and her slight southern drawl that made you feel like honey inside. As a child, she loved my pig Abner, knock knock jokes, elephant jokes and ghost stories told while camping out in Grandma’s front yard. She extracted a promise from me that she could be a bridesmaid at my wedding and when she flew across the US by herself to be in my wedding - that made the wedding party complete.
She had a beautiful smile and a kind heart. Its hard to say goodbye to all that youth and beauty. Our hearts are heavy and it really hurts to say goodbye.

Brothers!

2007-08-18T18:28:00.000-07:00

I grew up with 2 brothers. They definitely knew how to push all of my buttons - I guess it is a natural thing and starts at an early age. This morning as we traveled down the road to the Tri-Cities, Ethan pipes up with "Bailey, I had a dream last night!" Bailey says, "What was it about Ethan?" Ethan returns, "I dreamed about pirates - they were killing the Little Mermaid!" Of course, this was all delivered with a really sly grin and then an evil chuckle!! It was met with a cry from the sisters!!! Oh the buttons we can push.

Another Funny Ben Story!

2007-08-17T12:15:00.000-07:00

Last night, right after the deputy came by and told us we should pack up and leave, I told the kids to get their pj's and a toy or two in case we had to go to Aunt Helen's for the night. They all ran in the house - 2 minutes later Ben comes out with 5 or 6 boxes of jello pudding. I asked him what he was doing with that and he said "Can't we take this with us? I don't want the pudding to burn up!!!" Ah, yes, all those toys & clothes & books & games and he wants to make sure he has pudding!!!

A Little Too Close For Comfort!

2007-08-16T21:43:00.000-07:00

These pictures were taken from our back yard earlier tonight! We had a bunch of fires that started around the railroad about 4 pm today. By 6 pm we had firetrucks surrounding our house and watering down the hill behind us. The sheriff's department came by and told us we should leave, so I took the kids and headed to Ritzville to get some dinner for us and Rod. Rod stayed to run the water. We had a flat tire just as we got onto Hwy 395 headed to Ritzville! What a great way to top off the evening!! Luckily I was able to get ahold of Rick from work and he came to our rescue! He changed the tire for us and we were able to go get dinner. By the time we got back, the fire was pretty much out and we could get back to the house. It smells pretty strongly of smoke but we didn't get singed. I could definitely live without this kind of excitement!!!

Wednesday Recipe - Cobbler!!!

2007-08-14T22:47:00.000-07:00

Ok - I am going to post a recipe from Ree. I made this twice this past week both times with fresh peaches and got rave reviews from my tribe of punks and dh Rod. It is wonderful and super easy - what could be better - also has fruit so it has to be healthy!!!

Cobbler

1 cup self rising flour
1 cup sugar + 1/4 cup sugar for top
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter (melted)
2 cups fresh fruit

Mix flour, sugar & milk - whisk. Melt butter and whisk it in. Butter a pan - pour in the batter. Sprinkle fruit over the batter - sprinkle 1/4 cup of sugar over the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Funny Ben Story

2007-08-14T22:36:00.000-07:00

This last weekend we went camping with Sashi & Paul. We got smart this time and hauled the kids bikes along. While we were there, Ben decided that he could ride without his training wheels and we decided that he was entirely too tall for the bike that he had. We went out and got a bigger bike for Ben and handed his down to Emma. They had a blast riding around but got a little carried away and rode out of view. Rod reeled them back in and had them put up their bikes for awhile so they could rethink the whole riding too far away thing. Ben started trying to make deals for riding again - Ben: Can I just ride here on the grass - Dad: No - Ben: How about on the gravel - Dad: No - Ben: Maybe just down by the restrooms - Dad: No. Ben gets the idea and sulks in a chair. Up pops Ethan - Ethan: Can I ride here on the grass - Dad: No - Ethan: How about on the gravel - Dad: No - Ben pipes up with: Welcome to my world Ethan!!!

20th Anniversary

2007-08-08T12:30:00.000-07:00

Today is a day to look back over our life together. Its been good. We've had alot of fun - been to some unique and exotic places. I love this quote from Through the Painted Desert by Donald Miller (if I ever get Emma's announcements out - it will be on the back of them). "And so my prayer is that your story will have involved some leaving and some coming home, some summer and some winter.... My hope is your story will be about changing... about learning to love a child... about learning to love others more than we love ourselves... We get one story, you and I, and one story alone. God has established the elements, the setting and the climax and the resolution. It would be a crime not to venture out, wouldn't it? And you will not be alone. You have never been alone. Don't worry. Everything will still be here when you get back. It is you who will have changed." I think that pretty much is the sum of our lives together - we left and came home - weathered summer and winter - we've learned to love deeply and we are still venturing out.
I looked up the traditional wedding gifts for a 20th Anniversary - it's China!!! Looks like we have given ourselves an Anniversary gift that just keeps giving. Wonder what the next 20 years will bring. I do know this, they won't be boring.
Who are these young'uns? Were we really ever that young! And what exactly was that caterpiller doing on Rod's upper lip - and is that a mullet under that veil.

And is he really throwing up into my hand - guess love conquers all!

Wednesday's Recipe

2007-08-07T22:47:00.001-07:00

Asian Chicken Salad

1/2 head shredded cabbage
4 green onions, chopped
3 stalks celery, sliced
1/2 green pepper (optional)
1 pkg. Chicken flavored Ramen noodles, crushed

2 T. sesame seeds, toasted
1/2 c. slivered almonds, toasted
1 cooked and cubed chicken breast
(I marinate in Yoshida sauce)

Dressing:
2 T sugar
3 T vinegar
1/2 c. salad oil
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
Pkg. of seasoning mix from Ramen noodles

Toss all ingredients together, then add dressing shortly before serving.

This is what I am planning on taking to the picnic Friday night. Although, since I couldn't follow a recipe if my life depended on it, I usually use a little more cabbage, a little less oil, no green peppers or onions! Rod often asks why I even bother with the recipes since I don't follow them - I tell him they are guide lines!! No hard and fast rules in cooking!!! Well maybe a few but they are mostly dealing with things like yeast and baking temperatures!!!

Twenty Years Ago

2007-08-07T22:13:00.000-07:00

What were you doing twenty years ago? If you were in diapers don't tell me!!! Twenty years ago tonight, my sister Dorothy & I were busily working on a wedding dress. I think Dot stayed up all night working on it. After all, the wedding was the next day and we had only cut it out that afternoon!!!! Ah, the memories!!! We weren't really that bad at planning - I was going to wear Dot's wedding dress but when she got to Moscow we decided that it just didn't look that good on me!!! What else to do but go to the fabric store and start sewing!!! My mom finished hemming the dress on the way to the church in Deary - we were 1/2 hour late for the wedding - everyone was in the church when I got there and Rod had to keep reassuring everyone that I was going to show. Ah yes, the memories!!! I guess if we made it through that wedding we figured we could make it through anything.

Exciting Day

2007-08-03T12:58:00.000-07:00

Most of the time I really like the fact that we live right on the edge of town. We only have neighbors on one side of us. Other times I am reminded of the fact that it means there isn't anything between us and a hill of dry sagebrush & grass!

Rod's Birthday!

2007-08-02T07:30:00.000-07:00

Today is Rod's Birthday - so if you see him today, give him a wave & ask him how it feels to be 42!!!!
If you've got a minute, check out Ree's cooking blog. Her shrimp look wonderful!!!

Wednesday Recipe: Baked Potato Soup

2007-08-01T22:21:00.000-07:00

The kids really love this. Sometimes I add corn to it. Bailey has been known to eat several bowls of it at one sitting!!!

America's Best Baked Potato Soup
Serving Size : 12
5 Medium baking potatoes
8 Slices bacon
1 Cup sweet onions -- chopped
2/3 Cup all-purpose flour
6 Cups chicken broth
2 Cups half and half (can use skim milk with 1/2 cup powdered milk added)
1/4 Cup fresh parsley -- chopped
1 1/2 Teaspoons garlic -- minced
1 1/2 Teaspoons dried basil
1 Teaspoon salt
1 Teaspoon coarsely ground pepper
1/2 Teaspoon hot sauce
1 3/4 Cups shredded cheddar cheese -- divided
1 Cup green onions, sliced -- divided
1/4 Cup fresh parsley -- chopped

Wash potatoes; prick several times with a fork. Bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour or until done; let cool. Peel potatoes, and slice crosswise.

Cook bacon in a large skillet until crisp; remove bacon, reserving drippings in skillet. Crumble bacon, and set aside.

Cook onion in drippings, stirring constantly, until tender; add flour, stirring well. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Gradually add chicken broth; cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is thickened and bubbly. Stir in potato, half-and-half, and next 6 ingredients. Bring to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, 10 minutes (do not boil). Stir in 1 cup cheese and 1/4 cup green onions. Cook until cheese melts, stirring often.
Again freeze at this point. Some people do not like potato soup once it has been frozen... WE do...

Ladle soup into individual soup bowls. Top evenly with crumbled bacon. Sprinkle evenly with remaining 3/4 cup cheese, 3/4 cup green onions, and parsley.

My Foray Into Action Photography

2007-07-30T21:40:00.000-07:00

I am reminded of a story from a Patrick McManus book. He told of how he was setting out to be a famous wildlife photographer. He had a whole series of spectacular photos - a splash from an enormous rainbow trout - shot after it had disappeared beneath the water - a huge bear after it had disappeared behind the trees...etc.. Here are some of my famous action shots from our night at the pool!

Lesson Two - Action Photography

2007-07-30T21:00:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm A Nerd!

2007-07-26T23:05:00.000-07:00

I finished Deathly Hallows tonight. We took the kids to the pool - Rod played in the pool with the kids but I sat poolside and finished the book instead. I'm not so bad that I stood in line Friday night to buy the book - I preordered it from Amazon. Only problem was that we have a post office box and the post office is closed on Saturday, when the book was supposed to be delivered. All we got in the box was a notice that we had a package - so I didn't get to start it until Monday. I think it was probably the most satisfying book of the series. I really hope JK Rowling's reconsiders and puts out another book or two about Harry. Just for all us pocket protector wearers!

Wednesday's Recipe

2007-07-24T23:25:00.000-07:00

P.F. Chang's China Bistro Mongolian Beef recipe

Ingredients
For sauce : 2 tsp vegetable oil
½ tsp minced ginger
1 tbsp chopped garlic
½ cup soy sauce
½ cup water
¾ cup dark brown sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 lb flank steak
¼ cup cornstarch
2 large green onions
Preparation & Cooking Instructions
Make the sauce by heating 2 tspn of vegetable in a medium saucepan over med/low heat. Don't get the oil too hot or you'll get a major spatter when adding the other liquids. Add ginger and garlic to the pan and quickly add the soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches. Dissolve the brown sugar in the sauce, then raise the heat to about medium and boil the sauce for 2 to 3 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Remove it from the heat.
Slice the flank steak against the grain into ¼" thick bite-size slices. Tilt the blade of your knife at about a forty five degree angle to the top of the steak so that you get wider cuts.
Dip the steak pieces into the cornstarch to apply a very thin dusting to both sides of each piece of beef. Let the beef sit for about 10 minutes so that the cornstarch sticks.
As the beef sits, heat up one cup of oil in a wok (you may also use a skillet for this step as long as the beef will be mostly covered with oil). Heat the oil over medium heat until it's nice and hot, but not smoking. Add the beef to the oil and sauté for just two minutes, or until the beef just begins to darken on the edges. You don't need a thorough cooking here since the beef is going to go back on the heat later. Stir the meat around a little so that it cooks evenly. After a couple minutes, use a large slotted spoon or a spider to take the meat out and onto paper towels, then pour the oil out of the wok or skillet. Put the pan back over the heat, dump the meat back into it and simmer for one minute. Add the sauce, cook for one minute while stirring, then add all the green onions. Cook for one more minute, then remove the beef and onions with tongs or a slotted spoon to a serving plate. Leave the excess sauce behind in the pan.

Toothless Kids

2007-07-24T23:00:00.000-07:00

Here are the toothless Dennis kids. I waited a while to take the picture as Ben's mouth looked pretty gross at first - this was taken last week at just a week after he had 4 teeth extracted. It is amazing how fast these new teeth came in! He can actually eat corn on the cob again after only a week!!! Bailey tooth is starting to make an appearance also. Now she just needs to start wiggling the next one.
This weekend we had a fun time at the park and pool in Ritzville. Some of our friends from Spokane came down and we had a picnic and then played at the pool all afternoon. For the picnic, I made a flag cake - I got the recipe from one of my favorite bloggers. Check out Ree's cooking blog
I love Ree's blog too - here's one of my favorite posts.

Big Bug!

2007-07-20T12:30:00.000-07:00

A couple of days ago, I had to go get something out of the car after dark. I ran outside, retrieved the paper and when I got back into the house I felt something on my leg. It was stuck there and at first I thought it was one of the kids art projects - they seem to be really into wrapping everything in scotch tape. I reached down to pull it off - grabbed it and started to look at it when all of a sudden it hissed at me!!! I jumped and threw it - then it started to fly around the living room and finally it disappeared. I looked all over for it but didn't find it until the next day - it was just sitting in the doorway to the bathroom. I scooped it up and put it in a jar - where it kept hissing at me! I had no idea what it was and I won't repeat what Ron Jones told Rod it was!!! After a couple of searches on the Internet - it turns out that it is a 10 Striped June Beetle. Evidently it doesn't bite but it sure sounded ferocious.

Rice/Noodle Bowls

2007-07-18T12:30:00.000-07:00

I haven't tried these yet, just saw them on one of my yahoogroups. They look great. I think it would be fun to make them up and then have rice bowl night and let the kids pick which one they want - with my luck they would all want the same one and then we would have whining and crying and sniveling, oh my! But enough about Rod's behavior! I did see a great tip for using up leftovers. When you have little bits of different meals, you make up individual plates and then draw names and each kid then gets to pick what they want. I thought that would probably keep the sniveling down to a minimum.
Freezer "Bowl Meal" ideas

1. Five Spice Pork and Noodles
2. Ground Beef and Lentil Stew
3. Southwestern Rice Bowl
4. Creamy Chicken and Pasta
5. Curried Chicken and Rice Bowl
6. Thai Rice Bowl
7. Orange Chicken and Vegetables Rice Bowl
8. Ginger Noodle Bowl with Asian Meatballs

Five-spice Pork and Noodles
4 servings

3 tablespoons brown sugar (divided use)
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon five-spice powder (see note)
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper
1 pork tenderloin, about 1 pound
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) chicken broth
Juice of 1 lime
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon Thai fish sauce
1 pound capellini pasta, cooked according to package directions until
just al dente
1/2 of a 16-ounce bag frozen Asian vegetables, thawed
1 can (15 1/2 ounces) black beans, drained, rinsed
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1) Heat oven to 425 degrees.
2) Mix together 1 tablespoon of the brown sugar, 1 tablespoon of
the five-spice powder, salt and pepper to taste; rub over pork
tenderloin. Roast until browned but still pink inside, 135 degrees on
an instant-read thermometer, about 20 minutes; let cool. Slice into
1/4-inch slices.
3) Meanwhile, mix together remaining 2 tablespoons brown sugar,
remaining 1 teaspoon 5-spice powder, chicken broth, lime juice,
hoisin sauce, soy sauce and fish sauce in a small saucepan; heat to
boiling. Remove from heat; set aside to cool.
4) Divide pasta among four microwave-safe freezer containers.
Layer vegetables, beans, pork, cilantro and sauce evenly in each
bowl; cover with plastic or container lids. Freeze up to three months.

To serve: Vent plastic or remove cover. Microwave on High (100
percent power) 2 1/2 minutes; stir. Heat 2 1/2 minutes; stir. Heat in
30-second increments until mixture reaches desired temperature. Let
rest 1 minute before serving.

Note: Five-spice powder is a seasoning that is available in the Asian
food aisle of some supermarkets and in Asian food markets.

Per serving: 750 calories (13 percent from fat), 10 g fat (2.5 g
saturated) 65 mg cholesterol, 1,820 mg sodium, 115 g carbohydrate, 46
g protein, 11 g fiber.

Ground Beef and Lentil Stew 4 servings

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 pound ground beef
2 cups lentils
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) vegetable broth
1 box (10 ounces) frozen spinach
2 plum tomatoes, chopped
2 green onions, chopped
2 tablespoons minced pimentos
1 cup long-grain rice, cooked according to package directions

1) Heat oil in large heavy pot over medium heat; add onion.
Cook, stirring, until translucent, about 3 minutes. Stir in garlic,
pepper flakes, turmeric, cumin, coriander and cinnamon. Increase heat
to medium-high; add ground beef. Cook, stirring frequently, until
meat browns, about 5 minutes; drain fat.
2) Stir in lentils and vegetable broth; heat to boiling. Cover;
reduce heat. Simmer until lentils become tender, about 20 minutes.
Spread beef and lentil mixture on a sheet pan to cool completely,
about 30 minutes.
3) Meanwhile, chop spinach into 1/2-inch chunks with serrated
knife. Mix together spinach, lentil and beef mixture, tomatoes, green
onions and pimentos.
4) Divide rice among four microwave-safe freezer bowls; top with
vegetable and beef mixture. Cover with plastic or container lids;
freeze up to three months.

To serve: Vent plastic or remove lids. Microwave on High (100 percent
power) until hot, about 5 minutes, turning a quarter turn once during
cooking. Let stand 1 minute before serving.

Per serving: 465 calories (41 percent from fat), 22 g fat (6 g
saturated), 85 mg cholesterol, 975 mg sodium, 32 g carbohydrate, 38 g
protein, 12 g fiber.

Southwestern Rice Bowl 4 servings

1 pound top round or sirloin steak, sliced into 1/8-inch thick slices
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1 (4.3- to 6.25-ounce) package Spanish rice mix, prepared according
to packagedirections
1 (7-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (16-ounce) can stewed tomatoes, undrained Tabasco sauce to taste

1. Brown beef in oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add
onions; cook 1 minute. Add cooked rice, corn, tomatoes and Tabasco
sauce; cook until heated through, 2 to 3 minutes.
2. Divide rice mixture equally into four individual bowls.

Note: Individual rice bowls may be stored in the freezer for up to
one month. To reheat frozen rice bowls, cook on HIGH 5 to 7 minutes,
or until heated through. Let stand in microwave 1 to 2 minutes.

Creamy Chicken and Pasta 4 servings

3 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup flour
1 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon capers, drained
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) chicken broth
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons dried Italian herb blend
1 pound rigatoni, cooked according to package directions to just al
dente
2 boneless, skinless, chicken breast halves, grilled, thinly sliced
1 package (10 ounces) frozen peas

1. Melt butter in heavy pot over medium heat; stir in flour. Add
onion and capers; cook until onions become translucent and mixture
begins browning, about 3 minutes. Whisk in chicken broth; heat to
boiling, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to simmer; cook 5 minutes.
Remove from heat; stir in cheese and herbs. Cool completely, about 30
minutes.
2. Divide pasta among four microwave-safe freezer bowls. Top
with chicken, peas and sauce. Cover with plastic or a lid; freeze for
up to 3 months.

To serve: Vent the plastic or remove the lid and cover with a paper
towel. Microwave frozen containers separately on High (100 percent
power) until hot, about 5 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking
time. Let rest 1 minute before serving.

Per serving: 655 calories (20 percent from fat), 14 g fat (7 g
saturated), 40 mg cholesterol, 1,035 mg sodium, 99 g carbohydrate, 30
g protein, 8 g fiber.

Curried Chicken Rice Bowl 4 servings
Recipe by Nancy Hughes, "Relish Good Food Fast," May 2006

This dish gets a spicy kick from the curry paste. Look for it in the
Asian section of your supermarket.

Ingredients
1 (13 1/2-ounce) can light coconut milk
1/2 cup canned lower-sodium chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon green curry paste
1 teaspoon packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped basil leaves
1 pound frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 (10-ounce bag) frozen stir-fry vegetables, such as broccoli,
carrots, red bell peppers, water chestnuts and green beans
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 bag boil-in-a-bag rice
Fresh chopped cilantro
Lime wedges
1. Combine coconut milk, broth, curry paste, sugar and basil in
a deep skillet or Dutch oven; bring to a boil. Add chicken, return to
a boil, reduce heat and simmer, covered, 12 minutes, stirring
occasionally. Add frozen vegetables and salt; cook 10 minutes or
until vegetables are tender. Remove chicken, cut into bite-size
pieces and return to pot.
2. Meanwhile, cook rice according to package directions.
3. Divide rice among four 4 shallow bowls and top with chicken
mixture. Sprinkle with cilantro and garnish with lime wedges.
Nutritional Information
Per serving: 405 calories, 22g fat, 28g prot., 27g carbs., 2g fiber,
650mg sodium.

Thai Rice Bowl 4-6 servings

3 1/2 teaspoons Herb-Ox chicken flavored bouillon granules
3 1/2 cups hot water
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 cup chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 large jalapeno pepper, minced
2 tablespoons curry powder
3 cups diced, peeled sweet potato
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes & green chiles
1 (14-ounce) can unsweetened coconut milk
2 cups shredded or chopped cooked chicken
1 tablespoon lime juice
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
3 cups hot cooked jasmine or other white rice
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1. Dissolve bouillon granules in the hot water.
2. Heat the vegetable oil in a Dutch oven or large saucepan. Add
onion and saute for 3 minutes or until softened. Add the garlic,
jalapeno and curry powder; cook and stir for 30 seconds. Add the
sweet potato, prepared bouillon, tomatoes and coconut milk.
3. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until
potatoes are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Add the chicken, lime juice
and peanut butter. Stir until peanut butter is dissolved and mixture
is warmed through.
4. Toss the rice with the cilantro and spoon into deep soup
bowls.
To serve, ladle chicken mixture over rice.

ORANGE CHICKEN AND VEGETABLE RICE BOWL Makes 4 servings

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil, divided use
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into strips
2 cups broccoli florets
2 carrots, thinly sliced
1 medium onion, sliced
1 each yellow and red bell pepper, sliced
1 Tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1 can (14-ounces) low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup orange juice
1 Tablespoon grated orange zest
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
3 cups hot cooked brown rice

1. Heat 1 Tablespoon oil in a large skillet or wok. Stir-fry chicken
until lightly browned. Remove.
2. In same skillet, heat remaining oil. Stir-fry vegetables 4 to 5
minutes, or until vegetables are tender crisp.
3. Combine chicken broth, orange juice, zest, soy sauce and
cornstarch in bowl and stir until smooth. Add to
skillet, stirring constantly. Boil 1 to 2 minutes or until
thickened.
4. Stir in chicken and cook until heated through.
5. Spoon over or toss with hot rice.

Ginger Noodle Bowl with Asian Meatballs Makes 6 servings
This super-fast, light meal uses your prepared meatballs right from
the freezer--unthawed. Serve hot soup with stir-fried broccoli or bok
choy with sesame seeds.

Ingredients:
30 frozen Asian-Style Meatballs (one FoodSaver® Bag)
8 cups chicken broth or 8 cups water plus 3 tablespoons dry chicken
bouillon
1/2 inch piece fresh ginger thinly sliced
8 ounces dry angel hair pasta, broken in half
1-1/2 cups frozen peas
Directions:
Bring chicken broth and ginger to a boil.
Add meatballs, pasta and peas; return to a boil.
Boil 4-6 minutes or until pasta is done and meatballs are heated
through.
Freeze any leftovers, then transfer to a FoodSaver® Bag and vacuum
package to enjoy this meal another time!

Bowl tips
When stocking your freezer with make-ahead meals, consider the
following:
• Remember that it is best to slightly undercook such things as
rice, pasta and vegetables. They will have a chance to cook further
when the dish is reheated.
• Frozen vegetables from the supermarket tend to stand up
better in texture and color than fresh vegetables.
• One-dish meals can be stored in a variety of freezer-to-
microwave containers. Reheating time will vary depending on which
material you use and the size of the container.
• Food reheats fastest in plastic. Glass and ceramic containers
take longer.
• Choose a shallow container to speed up heating.
• Useful containers include Ziploc TableTop bowls, which come
with their own lids and can be put into the freezer, microwave and
dishwasher. Less-expensive alternatives are the Ziploc Brand
Containers, which also are designed for the freezer and microwave and
come in a variety of sizes.
• Rubbermaid TakeAlongs feature divided compartments — perfect
for recipes in which you don't want the sauce mixed with rice or
pasta too far ahead of time. They also have flexible lids.
• Pyrex Storage Deluxe microwavable glass containers have
vented lids with a large lip, so they're easy to remove.
• GladWare Containers are freezer-, microwave- and dishwasher-
safe.

Taco Soup

2007-07-11T19:00:00.000-07:00

I haven't tried this recipe but I am thinking it might be good sometime soon. Just don't tell Rod about the TVP - what he doesn't know won't hurt him!!!!

Taco Soup

1 c. dry TVP
1 8 oz. jar salsa
2 cans black beans
1 can corn niblets
2 cans diced tomatoes (I like the ones with garlic)
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 package taco seasoning

Reconstitute TVP in salsa. Open all cans and packages, put in Crock pot and stir. Cook on low in Crock pot for at least 4 hours. Or, put everything in a pot, bring to a boil, simmer for 15 minutes. This soup is best after it sits for a while, so the leftovers are usually better than the first batch. For this reason, I think it tastes best cooked in the Crock pot (plus it's easy to do in the morning and then let it go), but either way will do. The soup is best with tortilla chips.

We had a historic day at the Dennis house today - we lost 5 teeth!!! While we were on vacation Ben told me that his tooth hurt - when I looked in his mouth - there was a huge new tooth coming in behind his two bottom front teeth. I called the Dentist on Monday and got him in for early Wed morning. They ended up pulling 4 bottom front teeth as the new teeth coming in were going to be too big for just the room left by the 2 old ones. The dentist said that they will most likely have to pull 2 more teeth all the way around as new teeth come in. I think he is sending his kids to private school and just looking for financing!! Meanwhile back in Lind at summer school, Bailey pulled one of her bottom front teeth out all by herself! It had been wiggly since our trip to China but she just got serious about it coming out when she found out that Ben might get his out first!!!! I will take a picture of the toothless duo and post it tomorrow - batteries need charged in the camera!
The kids are all taking swimming lessons and doing really well. Bailey, Ben & Ethan are working on swimming across the pool - Bailey & Ethan are almost there - Ben is getting closer too. Emma is starting to put her head under water and blow bubbles and is kicking her feet like a pro. We will have a school of fishies in no time!!!

Week at the Beach!

2007-07-08T09:18:00.000-07:00

Whew! It's been a busy week. We left last Saturday for a week at Newport, OR. We shared a house with my sister Helen and her granddaughter Callie - then my sister Dorothy came on the 4th with her twin girls Becky & Katie. Marjie, Paul, Jenni, Wade, Erika, Jason, Margaret, Isabel & Jacob all shared another house that was just one house down from ours. We had a great time going to the beach, exploring the acquarium and the OSU Hatfield Center. We found the indoor pool at the Newport Community Center and had all kinds of water fun - we broke down and bought some personal fireworks and put on our own show! We even found a cool shopping area with some great pirate figures that made for some awesome photo opportunities.

2007-07-08T09:13:00.001-07:00

Wednesday Recipe

2007-06-27T18:02:00.000-07:00

I haven't seen any signs of life on Darla's or Heather's blogs so I will just post a couple of recipes that I have used recently:

Lemonade Pie

What you need:

1 8oz. container of Cool Whip
1 Keebler Graham Cracker pie crust
1 14oz. can Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk
1 6oz. can Lemonade Thawed
What you do:

In medium sized bowl mix milk and Lemonade. Carefully fold in the Cool Whip. After blending well, add mixture to pie crust and freeze.

We made these at work with lemonade and limeade and served them at our annual steak luncheon. We had lots of positive comments. I made 2 more pies last night at home using orange juice. The kids really like it. I thought it would also be good with raspberry lemonade or some of the other fruity flavors of frozen concentrate.

I am making these to freeze for the beach next week:

Enchiladas

1 - 10 3/4 oz can cream of chicken soup(mushroom, potato, etc)
1 - 26 oz can spaghetti sauce or tomato sauce (whatever is handy)
1 package dry enchilada seasoning mix
Combine these ingredients in a saucepan and heat until warm - stir to combine

1 lb ground beef - browned and drained
1 lb cheese sliced or shredded - cheddar, Monterrey Jack - whatever is in the frig
flour or corn tortillas - whatever your family likes best

Coat the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan with the sauce mix. Warm the tortillas in the microwave until they are pliable - 20 seconds or so on high. Put a couple of tablespoons of ground beef in a tortilla, add a couple tablespoons of sauce and top with cheese. Roll up the tortilla and put in pan - seam down. Fill the pan with the enchiladas - if you run out of ground beef - make a couple of all cheese ones. Top the rolled enchiladas with cheese and pour the remaining sauce over the top. Bake in 350 oven about 30 minutes until cheese is bubbly and enchiladas are heated through.
I have also used shredded chicken, turkey, TVP mixed with the gr beef, black beans mixed with gr beef and refried beans mixed with gr beef as a filling for the enchiladas. Experiment and use up leftovers. With the sauce and the cheese - chances are no one will notice a partial substitution!!! I had been mixing TVP in meatloaf, enchiladas, lasagna, spaghetti for months before Rod happened to see me reconstituting it one night and figured out what I had been doing!

Here is one of my favorite cream soup substitutions:

4 cups powdered milk
1 1/2 cups cornstarch
4 tsp dried onion flakes
2 tsp dried thyme
2 tsp basil - crushed dried
1 tsp pepper

Measure all ingredients into Ziploc bag - shake well.

To Use:
1/3 cup mix
1 cup water
Cook over low/medium heat until thickened.

Variations: Add 1/2 cup minced or chopped*
*Choose One: Onions, mushrooms, asparagus, broccoli, celery, cooked chicken, diced potatoes, tomato, etc.

Use as you would in any Cream of "Anything" Recipe

Tuesday Musings

2007-06-26T16:01:00.000-07:00

A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy
enough people to make it worth the effort. -Herm Albright
Hmm...very thought provoking!!!

Count down to the beach is on - 4 more days. The kids are getting excited. This year we are going to Newport, OR. So if anyone knows of some cool stuff to see and do around Newport - let us know.
I've been thinking that I need to get back into the swing of planning out meals and doing freezer sessions. I just sent for Shaleen Wilding's cookbook - here is her website: Wilding Family
I don't think I will ever be on the same level as she is - but it would be nice to get a month's worth of meals in the freezer again. Actually, I should probably start out with a pantry challenge and see how long I can go by just using what is in the freezer & cupboards. I think there are some things in the bottom of the freezer that are older than our children!!! This should be fun!!!LOL!!!

New PJ's & Ice Cream!

2007-06-24T20:50:00.000-07:00

Quite the way to wrap up a fun filled weekend - new jammies and ice cream cones!!! I hit the semi-annual sale at Disneyshopping.com and got new jammies for the crew. Love those sales!
We had a great weekend. We went camping with Marjie, Paul, Jenni, Wade and Erika at Potholes State Park. It isn't far away but that really doesn't matter - all that matters is that we have the tent, a campfire and room to play. Jason, Jacob, Helen, Dean, Callie & Blissa joined us for dinner Saturday night. We even met up with one of Marjie's best friends from her school days - Deanna. She and her grand kids where at the park for an outdoor church weekend. It was good to see her. We had fun making smores and playing with flaming marshmallows.
Emma just went with the flow - didn't seem fazed by sleeping outside in the tent. I often wonder what goes through her mind - like "Who are these crazy people - sleeping outside when they have a perfectly good house."
I was a bad mom and didn't take any pictures while we were camping - I asked Jenni to download and send her pictures to me - so will put some up when I get them!

Busy Week

2007-06-22T21:08:00.000-07:00

Last week we had Emma's first appointment with the Pediatric Ophthalmologist. Dr. Nye was very nice. She said that she didn't see any sign of Amblyopia and that Emma's Nystagmus is very mild. Emma's optic nerve looks very healthy and her vision is between 20/30 & 20/40. The only thing really affecting her vision is a slight astigmatism. Not a big deal at all! She may need glasses but they want to wait until she understands things a little better. Definitely good news!
Monday we had Ben and Ethan's annual cleft appointments at Children's Hospital in Seattle. We also took Aunt Judy to her Dr. appointment at the U of W hospital. It was quite a trip! On the trip to Seattle Ben decided that everything Grandma said was hilarious. I don't know how many times we heard - "That's a good one Grandma!" The cleft appointments went well. They think that Ben's bone graft will be next year. Ethan's will probably be a year after that.

Trying to Get Back in the Swing!

2007-06-20T16:15:00.001-07:00

I am going to try and be better about posting updates. I am going to join Darla and Heather and start a Wednesday Recipe post. Today they posted bread so here is my contribution:

Cinnabon Rolls
ROLLS:
1/2 cup warm water
2 packages dry yeast
2 Tbl. sugar
3 1/2 oz. pkg. vanilla pudding mix
1/2 cup margarine; melted
2 eggs
1 teas. salt
6 cups flour

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
8 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup margarine
1 teas. vanilla
3 cups confectioner's sugar
1 Tbl. milk

To make frosting, mix all ingredients until smooth.

In a bowl combine water, yeast and sugar. Stir until dissolved. Set aside.
In large bowl, take pudding mix and prepare according to package
directions. Add margarine, eggs and salt. Mix well. Then add yeast
mixture. Blend.
Gradually add flour; knead until smooth. Place in a greased
bowl. Cover and let rise until doubled.
Punch down dough and let rise again.
Then roll out on floured board to 34 x 21" size. Take 1
cup soft butter and spread over surface. In bowl, mix 2 cups brown sugar
and 4 teas. cinnamon. Sprinkle over top. Roll up very tightly.
With knife, put a notch every 2". Cut with thread or knife.
Place on lightly greased cookie sheet 2" apart.
Take hand and lightly press down on each roll.
Cover and let rise until double
again. Bake at 350 15 or 20 minutes. Remove when they start to turn golden.
DON'T OVER BAKE.
Frost warm rolls with Cream Cheese Frosting
Makes about 20 very large rolls

-It's been a couple of years since I made these - may have to make some to take camping this weekend!

Weekend Update!

2007-06-10T22:02:00.000-07:00

This was Lind's big weekend. We started out the festivities by visiting the evening medical clinic in Ritzville Thursday night!!! Didn't require stitches - just some super glue and a tetanus shot - oh and it wasn't one of the kids - it was Janice! I hit my foot on an evergreen root that was sticking up - got a pretty good puncture that took about 5 minutes to get it to stop bleeding. Almost didn't go to the clinic but the last tetanus shot I had was when I got gored by a bull at the U of I rodeo in 1989! Probably was about due!
Friday we took the kids to the car demolition derby. Emma did alot of whining - I think everything is still overwhelming to her. We sat next to Darla Mast and her family - it was good to see them. There were a few exciting moments. At the very end, one of the cars went up over another car and landed on its side. The boys thought it was AWESOME!!
Saturday we went to the parade. Emma didn't really get the whole pick up the candy until about 1/2 way through the parade. Then she got into the spirit wholeheartedly. There were alot of people in town on Saturday. The line for the BBQ stretched from the park almost back to town. We didn't stay for the BBQ or go to the Combine Derby - decided it would be more fun to go to Pasco and see Sashi, Grandma & Judy! Rod went by during the Derby and said he had never seen so many cars there. Hope they had a record crowd - I think there was something like 4,000 last year. Quite a feat for a town of 500!
Sunday we went to the coaster car races. They are like the old soapbox derby cars and they race them down the hill by the school. The boys told Rod that they definitely want to do that next year! Guess Rod better get busy and get some plans and parts coming.

Well Done Weekend

2007-06-03T20:30:00.000-07:00

Saturday the kids and I took off for the Tri-Cities. Emma got real excited when we pulled into Marjie's driveway. She loves our Sashi!!! I think we wore Grandma out - we left the kids with her to take a nap and took Judy out to buy a new computer! It was really cool to look at all the new computers - would love one of those 22 inches LCD screens!!!! We got home late so slept in a little this morning - had to hurry a little to make it to Warden for breakfast with Aunt Helen & Papa John. My niece Cherie was visiting from Southern Idaho with her family. The kids had fun playing together - we found a pool in the shed and they had hoses running most of the afternoon. Emma loved the pool and the water. Probably having a small pool was less threatening than the big ones we tried out at the hotels. I am starting to think that swimming lessons might not be a bust after all! Everyone but Rod took naps on the way home - good thing since he was driving!!
When we got home, we found the pool that Grandpa Dennis gave us. It didn't take long to set up and then Emma was Queen of the Pool. They should all sleep well tonight - they certainly ate well. Emma had 2 hotdogs, 2 large helpings of noodles, a bowl full of strawberries and 2 pieces of corn on the cob! I am really getting worried about those teenage years!!!

Blue Ribbon Day!

2007-05-30T20:14:00.000-07:00

This morning we had decided to try preschool again with Emma. I took Ethan and Emma to their room - another child was in the room with the teacher working on some pictures on a table. We put our backpacks away and sat down at the table. I helped Emma start a picture and she took it up to show the teacher as soon as she did just a little - then she pushed me toward the door and waved goodbye!!! I checked back in about 10 am and they said that she had a little melt down and cried for just a few minutes but had participated in all the activities of the day. After school, she rode the bus to the babysitters house. When they got there she came running off the bus very excited to show off the bottle of bubbles that they had given her at school! She has been happy and having a good time playing with her brothers and sister all night. We are seeing fewer behaviors - no hitting tonight and just a few pretend kicks. What a difference we have seen in just a few short days!

Holiday Weekend

2007-05-28T21:58:00.000-07:00

We didn't make any big plans for this weekend. We went to the park with Marjie, Paul, Jenni, Erika, Isabel & Jacob on Saturday. We had a big time on all the playground equipment and had a great picnic! Emma got to meet Grandma and Aunt Judy. She seemed to like them and really likes her new quilt that they gave her.
Sunday Rod & the kids worked on the flower beds and played outside and in the garage. Today - Monday - we went to Moses Lake - took the kids to McDonalds for lunch and to play in the playland. Emma just seems to take it all instride. If you don't notice that she is speaking Chinese - you would just think that she is an average American kid! We are working on some behaviors - she seems to hit, pinch and whine more than I remember anyone else doing. I'm sure most of it is frustration that we don't understand her. Her receptive language is really doing well. It is really surprising how fast that comes.

Home Again, Home Again, Wiggilty Jig!

2007-05-25T20:29:00.001-07:00

Wow! What a relief it is!!! We arrived home last Friday night - about 9 pm. The flights went fairly well - Emma had a little freak out during the last hour of our 13 hour flight from Hong Kong to LA but who wouldn't freak out after sitting in one little area for 13 hours!!! I can now recite the dialogue to the movie "Because I Said So" - I don't know how the airline can offer 20 channels of things to watch and have it all be crap!!!
We had a nice little welcoming party at the airport. Helen & John Preston; Cindy, Hannah & Abby Hays; Ted, Sheila & Lily Warne; and JoAnne, Irv & Levi Bailey. It sure felt good to see everyone and Helen rode 1/2 way home with Marjie to keep her awake.
We tried to get Emma to go to preschool on Monday - but she wasn't having it. She started her wailing cry so I took her out to the babysitters and she cried a little there but decided it wasn't all bad - they have a new puppy! This week has gone fairly well - I finished by fiscal year end stuff at work and we are starting to get caught up on sleep. Seems like anytime I am still for a minute - I fall asleep. Guess jet lag hit me a little harder than usual.
Tomorrow we are going to take Emma to the Tri-Cities to see Marjie again and introduce her to Grandma & Aunt Judy. Jenni & Erika will be there too so it should be lots of fun. We are going to take a picnic to Howard Amon park! Should be great fun!

We're Done!!!

2007-05-17T20:18:00.000-07:00

Well, it seems kind of fitting that I can't log onto our blog tonight. I won't try to post pictures - I will be lucky if this note posts.
WE ARE DONE!!! We had our visit to the Consulate this afternoon and Emma is now officially ours according to both the Chinese & the US! We are packing up and getting ready to vacate the White Swan. I wonder if we will ever be back? We have talked about bringing the kids back to China when they are older but we would really have no reason to visit Guangzhou & the White Swan. Who knows - maybe someday I will come to help adopt a grandchild!!! Wow - I would probably be close to 70 by then!!!LOL!!! It will feel good to get started on our way home. Tomorrow is going to be one long day, even though we leave at 9:30 am and get home at 9 pm - we will pass something like 25 hours in between.
We got to visit a Kindergarten this morning. It is a boarding Kindergarten - when both parents work, they often send their 3-6 year old children to boarding Kindergarten here in Guangzhou. The kids stay at the school Monday through Friday and then go home for Saturday & Sunday. Seems like it would be pretty lonely at home for Mom & Dad! The kids sang a lot of songs and did some dances for us. They also gave Bailey & Emma some necklaces and flowers. We found out that Emma likes to sing. On the bus, some of the other kids were singing songs and all of a sudden Emma started to sing. She did some kids songs and then she burst out in a really long involved song - our guide said it was from a Chinese Opera!!! Hmm...might have an opera star in our midst! We bought a CD of Chinese kids songs tonight and she really liked it. We will have to keep it handy because it helped calm her down tonight - the kids were getting a little hyped up because we were packing and trying to get all the last minute shopping done!
Hope to see you soon!!!
Signing off from China!!!!

Hanging Out in Guangzhou!

2007-05-15T06:44:00.000-07:00

Well, we made it to Guangzhou! The flight went really well. Emma squeezed my hand really hard as we took off and then again as we touched down. She didn't seem to be very scared - looked around and started to laugh! It is really warm and humid here - I had almost forgotten what real humidity was like! Bailey's hair doesn't even get dry here. It almost feels like coming home to get off the bus at the White Swan. After all, I know where everything in the hotel is and most everything on the island. There have been a few changes - the Noodle Shop is now another clothing store and there is a Starbucks just down the street from Jennifer's. We had breakfast this morning here at the hotel but the didn't get breakfast included with our last couple of days so will hit Starbucks early in the am! Breakfast at the White Swan is an event in and of itself. It is a little overwhelming to see all those families with new babies. Seems like every table in the restaurant has a high chair. We saw some really little babies this morning. They were probably about 10 months old. Yikes - I wouldn't know what to do with something that little!
Emma had her physical this morning and we finished with the Consulate paperwork. The physical is rather laughable. They take a temperature, height, weight - then do a hearing check by shaking a rattle behind the kid and if the kid turns around they mark down that he/she can hear!!! We had Emma's visa picture taken and they put a copy on her physical form. After we were back at the hotel, the Dr. office called and wanted information on Emma's birthmark on her eye! It was such a through exam that no one even noticed that it was a bruise!!! So glad that we had to pay 500 RMB for it!
We did a little shopping today and got the girls matching ladybug shirts and Chinese style cotton pj's. We will have to hit the shops a little harder tomorrow - we are going to have some sort of tour tomorrow afternoon - not sure what yet.
The pictures that I am posting are from the playroom at the White Swan. The last picture shows Bailey standing by a table in the room - she smacked her head on this same table when we were here adopting her 5 years ago - she was just barely taller than the table!!! How things change!

Leaving Hefei

2007-05-14T12:00:00.000-07:00

It's Monday morning here in Hefei. We are packing up to leave for Guangzhou. We check out of the hotel at 2 pm and our flight leaves at 4:30. We will get to Guangzhou about 6 pm. It will be nice to know that we are on our last leg of our trip. It will be fun to be in Guangzhou again. We will only be at the White Swan for 4 nights. We will have to make the most of our time there. Bailey is looking forward to the swimming pool and other kids to swim with. We will meet up with the other families from our group and several of them had older girls. It will be fun to see them again and see how their new additions are doing.
We asked our guide to explain the airplane to Emma. Not sure how that will go!! I'm sure she will do fine though. She has been game for almost everything so far. As long as there aren't any animals that might eat her!!!
We'll post again from Guangzhou!

Hefei Wildlife Park Slide Show!

2007-05-13T21:36:00.001-07:00

Wildlife Park

2007-05-13T21:05:00.000-07:00

Today we went to the Hefei Wildlife Park. It was very nice. The cages were alot bigger and nicer than any of the zoos that we have been to here in China. They animals looked like they were in better condition also. Emma was very scared at first. She kept asking our guide if the animals were going to eat her! Must have been read some scary fairy tales or something. We think she had an older foster brother that played rough with her and probably told her scary things.
Our guide also took us to her favorite tea shop. We had tried to go there the day before but were pretty hopeless in getting across what we wanted. This time was much easier!!! We tried some wonderful tea and got a couple of packages to bring home. We even got some teapots.
Tonight we went to dinner with the Blackburns - a family from our group. We had our guide write down the names of some good dishes that would be things that we would recognize. The food was very good. I cut dinner a little short as Emma was getting a little loud. We think she used to get her way whenever she whined - so we are working on it!!! We can pretty easily distinguish between her sad cry and her 'I want my own way' cry. Both are getting a little fewer and farther between.

It's All Fun & Games Until Someone Bonks Their Eye!

2007-05-12T16:43:00.000-07:00

The girls were playing with the office type chair in our room the other night. Emma fell off and bonked her eye on the corner of the desk. We were really glad that all the official stuff was done here in Hefei - They might thought we were smacking her around!!!

Snacks

2007-05-11T16:13:00.000-07:00

We bought Emma some more snacks. These are the same kind that she had in her backpack when she came to us. We aren't really sure if the flavor is crawdad or kitty kat!!!!

Lord Bao's Temple Slide Show

2007-05-11T15:54:00.000-07:00

Lord Bao's Temple & New Shoes!

2007-05-11T15:52:00.000-07:00

Today we went to visit Lord Bao's Temple. He was born in 999 and was known as a great incorruptible official. He was a judge who believed that everyone was the same under the law. There was a great wax museum - the figures were very lifelike - that shows some of the most famous stories of Lord Bao. He punished members of the royal family just as he punished the common man. One of our pictures shows three different implements for beheading people. Royalty were beheaded with the one that had the dragon head on it, government officials were beheaded with the one that had a lion head on it and the commoners were beheaded with the one that had the dogs head. I don't think I would have cared which as the result would be the same!!!

In the afternoon, we took a cab ride down to the shopping area. Both girls got new sandals that light up - they are very proud of their new shoes. Bailey said that they make her run faster!!!
It sounds like Ben & Ethan are going to have a fun weekend. Rod said they are going fishing!
Bailey is typing and she says hi!

Hui Gardens Slide Show

2007-05-10T15:38:00.000-07:00

Hui Gardens

2007-05-10T14:49:00.000-07:00

We visited the Hui Gardens today. It was very beautiful. Each county of Anhui had its own place in the garden - either a building or a statue. We had a good time walking around and looking at all the interesting buildings. We even met a group of school kids from Tibet who were in Hefei on a field trip. Their English was very good and they loved practicing it on us! Everything was going really well until Emma saw a vendor that had lollipops for sale. We had just had popscicles so I said no when she asked for a lollipop. Guess that wasn't the answer she wanted!!! She can throw a first class tantrum!!! I think we have entered the "let's see how far we can push" phase! Things were much better after we got back to the hotel and had a nap.
This afternoon we took a walk down the street to the square with the fountain again. On the way, we noticed that there is a cosmetic & plastic surgery clinic just a couple doors down from the hotel. Maybe we will get some work done while we are here!!!

New Dolls & Girls Having Fun!

2007-05-09T21:50:00.000-07:00

New Dolls

2007-05-09T21:41:00.000-07:00

Today we went shopping and Bailey & Emma got new dolls. We found some new shorts and skirts for the girls. It was fun - we just hopped into a cab and took off by ourselves. We only had one scary thing happen. There was a crazy man by the shopping area. He went out to the middle of the street and urinated into a garbage can in front of everyone - then he kicked the garbage can until it broke - yelling and screaming all the time. We hung pretty close to the shops until someone came and took him away! Oh well, it gave us some excitement!