True North

This was not planned.....

2010-05-17T21:35:00.001-07:00

This was a bit of a shocker to us. So now Anna and Baby#4 will be 14 months apart. I'll be needing a new brain.

Anna

2009-10-17T16:48:00.000-07:00

Our 7lb 1oz munchkin. We're totally in love and the kids just adore her...especially Ashlyn. She's really stepped up as a big sister. Recovery was painful and took much longer than expected. I'm pooped but we're all doing well.

Ashlyn's Soccer Team 2009

2009-09-23T23:02:00.001-07:00

.....yeh, soccer was something Ashlyn's had to get used to...I think she's finally starting to like it. Poor girl!

Ashlyn and Ethan Moments...no words can describe

2009-09-23T20:56:00.000-07:00

Cousin Devan's Birthday Party at Chuck Cheese

2009-09-23T20:48:00.001-07:00

I wish I had a pic of the kids with "Chucky" - but unfortunately, the oversized mouse freaked my kids out.

The last 6 months....

2009-09-23T19:31:00.000-07:00

....has it really been that long since I've blogged? Oh my goodness...and I hope I remember how to do it but then it may not matter since I probably don't have more followings. So here's a recap:

We celebrated Ashlyn's 4th and Ethan's 2nd Birthday with my family. Ethan got the egg free chocolate cake (it was seriously good!) and Ashlyn got a strawberry cake (yummy). They had fun being in the spotlight. We also did a birthday party for Ashlyn with the playgroup at a local part. Unfortunately, I didn't bring my camera - so no pics :(

My brother Jeong graduated!!..yeah for him. I'm so proud of all his hard work and willingness to just stick it out to the very end. And he passed his exam on the first try (a very rare thing). Your awesome Jeong!!

Playgroup!!..we have a fun group of moms and we love, love to get together and enjoy our time together. I love these women and I've gather's so much strength from them.

Little pool parties at my parents.

Family campout in the High Uintahs...the kids really had fun.

O.k. that's it for now...it seems like we didn't to a lot but seriously the summer has gone by so quickly. Even this pregnancy..so crazy how life just flies by. I don't think I'm taking advantage of every moment I have with my kids and family.

Baby #3

2009-03-16T08:48:00.000-07:00

Need I say more?

Ashlyn has been telling everyone that her "baby sister" is in mommy's tummy..oh, and her name is going to be Anna. Well, it's too early to tell what it will be (I'm only 9 weeks) so in about a couple of months, I guess we'll find out if it's going to be an "Anna."

Symon

2009-03-08T20:36:00.000-07:00

Our new nephew...congrats Sun and Steph!
http://rozephotography.com/blog/
It's gotten me a little baby hungry..uh-oh..

Sleepy head

2009-03-08T20:12:00.000-07:00

One day, I was doing some cleaning and I realized that I hadn't seen Ethan in awhile..so I started searching and finally, this is what I found:

Poor baby. He had fallen asleep on a piece of carpet right by the bathroom. What could I do but put a blankie on him and let him sleep.

The First Official North Family Vacation to Southern Cal

2009-02-28T18:30:00.000-08:00

Yeah, I know...I'm alittle late on posting this...post. In my defense, I got really sick the day after we got home and I just starting getting better last week..ugh...I feel like I'm playing catch-up. Anyway here's our recap.

Todd and I decided that it was time for Ashlyn and Ethan to visit the most happiest place in Earth...DISNEYLAND!! We got a condo in Carlsbad which ended up being a good neutral location between Disneyland and San Diego where Todd's dad and Myrna were residing.

It was raining and super windy on our first day - bummer. We really couldn't do much but stay indoors then Todd had a great idea. He found a Costco in Carlsbad so we made a trip out there. It was really fun to compare items they had there and all the fun stuff that we would like if we had that extra cash.

The next day, we went to the San Diego Zoo where we met up with Grandpa North and our friends, the Bows:

The next day, we were off to Disneyland. It was so fun!! Ashlyn loved all the rides...well, most of the rides. We went on the Snow White ride. Well, that was a bad idea because it freaked Ashlyn out. After that, she didn't want to ride anything that was "dark" or anything like that.

The next day, we went to Disneyland California Adventure and when we asked Ashlyn if she was excited. She said "no" - well, there goes Disneyland as the "happiest place on earth." We probably should have given the kids a day of rest in between the 2 Disneylands. Oh well. Too late. They had a good time. Ashlyn's favorite part was when we went to see Mickey Mouse Playhouse..she was in awe.

They were 2 crazy days, but so worth it and so much fun. Can't wait to come back.
We spent our 2nd to last day in La Jolla. We started the day with breakfast at The Cottage then met Grandpa at the San Diego Temple and to the Birch Acquarium.

We ended the day with friends, the Fellar's and the Romney's. We got pics with the Romney's but sadly, not with the Fellar's.

Thank you Erika and Todd and Miles and Amy and for spending time with us during our vacation. It was too fun catching up with you all. We hope that we can keep in touch with you throughout many years to come. We love you!
Last but not least, on the very, very last day we spent some time at the beach. Need I say more except "therapeutic?"

Happy Birthday Love...

2009-02-24T19:59:00.000-08:00

Honey, your so great. Your a wonderful dad. Your so awesome when it comes to playing with the kids. They love it when you do the 1-2-3 during bedtime. Ashlyn loves playing xbox with you and watching movies with you is never a dull moment-no matter how bad the movie may be (and we've seen some real losers!). And Ethan can spot your car a mile away and start screaming...dada, dada! And my heart always gets alittle warm and sentimental when I see you hangin' out with your son watch SportsCenter or ESPN. He's just as enthralled with sports as you are.

Well, 6 years and 2 kids later your still so wonderful. Raising a crazy family is just plain...crazy and fun with you. I definitely got more than I ever dreamed of in a hubby. I love you darling. With all my heart....Happy Birthday.

A new favorite blogsite

2009-02-18T14:42:00.001-08:00

So as some of you know, I'm a FoodNetwork junkie. Well awhile ago, they were doing the Ultimate Recipe Showdown and out of all the contestants, I totally adored Emily Hobbs. She's young and an amazing foodie whose recipes were simply amazing. I just found out that she has a blog site and I found it - yeah!!! So for those of you that may be interested in this budding culinary artist, here's her site: Visions of Sugar Plum

She also has a list of her favorite foodie sites. Good luck, have fun and happy cooking everyone!

So cute...

2009-02-03T21:10:00.001-08:00

He still has a hard time staying awake through dinner when he doesn't take a nap.

Ashlyn's sleeping habits

2009-01-22T20:29:00.000-08:00

So Todd and I always check on the kids before we go to bed. Well, one night, Todd went to go check on Ashlyn....

Huh????.....where did she go?....ahhh...got it....

...she decided to opt out of the bed and go for the chair.

Another night, she wanted to sleep in our bed, so we let her. Later that evening, Todd went upstairs to check on her and this is what he found:

She again opted out of the bed for the floor this time.

Ashlyn dear, you crack me up and I love you for it!!

Field Trip to the Fire Station

2009-01-21T22:54:00.000-08:00

Well, this was Ashlyn's first preschool field trip. I really thought she would be excited about it...and she was..until we got there and she wanted nothing to do with any of the firemen or the station or truck BUT Ethan just loved it!! He kept on saying...trrruck....vroom, vroom!!

December 2008 Recap (it's a long one!)

2009-01-11T20:32:00.000-08:00

December was sooo crazy!!..fun, busy but crazy. And unfortunately, I don't have pics of everything that happened. This will be like a journal entry for the Todd and Hyo North family so if your not interested in reading it, no worries :)

Saturday, December 6th: We started the Christmas holiday with a party at our place for my family, the Kim's. It was so fun and chaotic and crazy!! As always, there were tons of food, everyone ate till they were stuffed and then we just hung out and talked and played. One memory from this party was Ashlyn volunteering to say the blessing on the food. It started out with.....Heavenly Father, thank for this day. Thank you for Todd and Hyo (this was when Todd and I opened our eyes and looked at each other trying not to laugh) and Ethan and...she proceeded to name all of the family members that came (which was about 11). Then she was just about to end the prayer when Todd prompted her to bless the food. We all laughed. How cute. We also celebrated my birthday since some of the family members were going to be out of town till Christmas.

Monday, December 8th: Had ANOTHER party at our place for the play group families which included Ernie and Emily Kim, the Ortons, Powers, Starbucks, Defudis', Bridans, Sumsions, Tanners, Browns, Wolds, Van Fleets. It was wild...we had about 20 kids running around rampant and everyone talking and laughing. It was so great. I loved it. And everyone loved it too. I find that I'm like my mom when it comes to social parties and feeding people. Two things she did when we were growing up. She seemed to always invite families or groups of people and sometimes the whole Korean Branch over to our home and feed, feed, feed. It was her way of serving those she cared about. I find great satisfaction in having people over too. I love the chaos, especially when there's good food and great friends. Thank you everyone for coming. We'll have to do it again.....in the summer!

Wednesday, December 10th: Ethan FINALLY had his tear duct surgery done. It was about time. He was the first one for the day and so we had to check in at 6:00 AM @ Primary's. Ethan was very good natured throughout the whole waiting period. There was even a boy about his age that was also named Ethan. They were so cute playing with each other. It got super sad when I had to hand him over to the Anesthesiologist who then took him into the surgery room. That was when Ethan knew something was up and started crying....it broke my heart. The whole process only took about 10 minutes. It wasn't very long. I got to finally go to him and he was just screaming. He was much happier when he realized that we were leaving the hospital and so was I.
(Sorry the pics are bad....forgot the camera and so these are taken with the camera phone)
Thursday, December 11th: Ashlyn's Preschool Christmas Program. Their class (the Polar Bears) sang "An Australian Christmas" and "Reindeer Pokey." It was so cute!

Saturday, December 13th: TraskBritt Firm Christmas Party at the Grand America Hotel. It was fabulous as ever. While many of the law firms had to cut their Christmas party from their budget, Trask was in great financial shape and we all benefited from it. And as always, we were given Vchocolates as a party favor...yummo!!

Sunday, December 14th: Stake Christmas Program. Turned out great. Our ward choir did "The First Noel/Pachabel's Canon." Bob Sullivan, one of the choir members and salesperson that he is, recruited a few more men from other wards to sing with us...as a result, the women recruited a few of their own (we are the smallest choir). So, it all worked out.

Sunday, December 21st: Ward Christmas Program with the Choir.....yeh, I was totally nervous. I've never done the whole thing by myself. The choir was awesome. I'm glad that it was all done, but at the same time, I started thinking about next year's program....call me nuts...

Thursday, December 25th: CHRISTMAS!!! It was great. We had the video camera rolling so we didn't have a lot of pics taken. Ethan's first present he opened up was some puzzles and he wouldn't let them go until he realized that he had other fun presents. He was all over them. Both he and Ashlyn were so excited to open all the presents from Santa, Grandpa and Myrna, friends, as well as from us. Afterwards, we had breakfast, cleaned up and got ready for Christmas dinner at my parents where there were more presents from cousins and from my parents. It was an amazing day.

Ya know, Christmas has gotten so much better with kids involved. But my favorite.......

...Yeah.....I cried...just like the day he gave me my first set of diamonds...for keeps....thank you my sweetheart. Love you tons...XOXOXO...LMM.

Disney on Ice

2008-11-18T21:48:00.000-08:00

My SIL, Alice, was able to get discount tickets to Disney on Ice (thanks to OC Tanner!) and we jumped at the chance to take the kiddies to it. There is simply no words to describe the absolute bliss that Ashlyn was experiencing. During the production, Todd and I would simply watch the reaction on Ashlyn's face as each of the Disney characters came on...she was smiling the whole time. I wish that it was something that I could have captured on camera.
These are just a couple of the pics before our camera was out of battery power.

The whole experience was so much fun, even for Ethan. The only thing that marred the jubilation was Ashlyn's meltdown. As soon as the production was over, she decided that she wanted an Ariel and we said..."no" and she flipped out. Poor girl, she was simply exhausted.

We Love Halloween!!

2008-11-18T21:13:00.000-08:00

One of our favorite holidays started out with cute cards from Grandpa North and Myrna. Ashlyn loved hers..the first thing she said when she opened her card was "Tinkerbell!!!..I love it!"

We then did a Halloween themed playgroup at our house and since some could only come in the morning and others only in the afternoon, we did 2 - one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Call me crazy, but I just couldn't bear the thought of a mom and kid missing out. Here are some pics:

In this picture, Ethan has found a new love...POPCORN!! I didn't take as many pics that I would have liked but we had so many fun kids all dressed up. I think we had a knight, a dragon, the incredible hulk and more that I just can't recall.

Halloween night was actually quite warm this year so we were out longer than before. At one of the homes (the McKinney's), they made this up...very clever!

Ethan was a pumpkin this year which was Ashlyn's first Halloween costume and Ashlyn was "Sleeping Beauty." They had so much fun and we did too!!

We hope that everyone had a wonderful and safe Halloween.

Tagged by Kari

2008-10-27T20:33:00.000-07:00

8 TV shows I like to watch:
Heroes
ER
Tyler's Ultimate
Semi-homemade by Sandra Lee
Project Runway (when it's on)
Next Food Network Star
Boston Legal (which is what I'm watching right now - very good episode, Utah's on center stage)
ANYTHING Food Network

8 Places I love to eat:
Cafe Molise
PF Changs
Martines
The Roof
Cafe Rio
TGIF/Chili's
Jamba Juice
Rumba

8 things that happened yesterday:
Woke up late for church
Practiced with the ward primary for their upcoming program
Sat through John Beckstead's talk titled "5 ways to become inactive" (this was seriously a topic given to him by the bishopric and he really was the perfect person to give it because he's is so dang funny)
Had choir practice in which we had a record number of people come - yeah!!
After lunch, took a wonderful 2 hour nap
Had dinner of sweet and sour meatballs with rice pilaf and steamed veggies
Did the FHE lesson on prophets
Put the kiddies to bed and chilled out with the hubby

8 things I look forward to:
Ethan's nap time
Bed time for the kiddies
Christmas
Thanksgiving
Birthdays
Time spent with my SILs
Shopping with my SILs
Girls outings and friends coming over to visit us and making us feel special (Can't wait to see your fam Kari!!)

8 things I love about fall:
The colors
The cool temperature
School for Ashlyn
Halloween!
Thanksgiving!
Planning for Christmas
I can start cooking comfort foods
My mom's apples and pears that turn into breads and desserts and juice!!

8 things on my wish list:
A second honeymoon that includes a personal chef
A day at the spa
Winning the lottery
That our children will be able to enjoy the blessings of the gospel (I know, cheesy..but true!)
That Todd and I will live a long and fulfilling life to see our children grow up
A third honeymoon???
A weekend getaway with my sweet hubby so that we can sleep in
Our own place

You were right Kari - this was a bit harder than expected....thanks though for tagging me :)

Ahhh...Pumpkin Carving...

2008-10-21T22:34:00.001-07:00

Aunt Steph and Uncle Sun (who BTW are expecting their 1st child next February) invited all of us for a housewarming party (except that Ethan and I had to stay home because he was sick). They had dinner and did some intense and artistic pumpkin carving. The first thing Todd said about the "ordeal' was that it was so hard!!...of course the kiddies just played while the dad's did their magic....so here they are, aren't they fun?!? I think we'll be doing this EVERY year, right hun?

You Know It's Autumn When.....

2008-10-21T22:16:00.000-07:00

So for FHE, we took a drive up to Little Cottonwood Canyon to see all the beautiful autumn colors. Aren't they amazing? It's so great to just be minutes away from both Big and Little Cottonwood Canyon. We were pointing out all the wonderful colors to Ashlyn like the reds, golds, yellows, browns and some green. We even went right above Alta and walked around...boy was it cooooold!!...after awhile, Ashlyn let us know that she was ready to go back to the car, however, Ethan was having a hayday and didn't want to leave (man that kid can scream like a banshee).

Well, today for lunch, I asked Ashlyn if she wanted to say the blessing on the food and she said "yes." Then she proceeded to thank Heavenly Father for the red, yellows, golds, brown and green (????). Then I realized that she was thanking Him for the fall colors (never mind the lunch!!). How right she was to thank Him for the beauty of this earth and especially, the beauty of autumn.

Another update from us because I'm too lame to be blogging on a regular basis.

2008-10-18T10:35:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's been over a month since my last entry!. Life in general is the same, yet, different. Ya know what I mean? I've at least been pretty good about taking pictures (on the hopes that I would use them to blog and keep my friends and family updated). I forget that this blog is kinda like a journal for our family - especially when it comes to the kiddies.

So, take a seat, relax and be prepared to be entertained with the happenings of the Todd and Hyo North family (hee, hee!!):

So Todd and I were doing some pre-fall cleaning when we happened to find "this!" O.k...so I hate spiders, especially hairy, grey and black ones that are larger than the size of a peanut...and this was so much bigger than a peanut. I would say that it was about 3 to 4 inches in diameter (curled up mode). When I saw this, the first thing that came to mind was that it was a tarantula and that was because our neighbors (The Harlins) found one exactly like this one but sooooo much bigger...I would say it was about 6 inches wide spread out...freak!!...where do we live???..oh, up near the mountains...of course, right? Well, we couldn't tell if it was "asleep" or "dead" so Todd poked at it a few times and we then concluded that it was "dead." I was relieved.

So Ethan has blocked tear duct issues and his first surgery was scheduled for August. So here he is in his cute hospital gown and people, please don't be fooled.....he may look like he's having a good time, but he wasn't. He was starving, in a foreign place, tired and was totally orny that he couldn't play with all the gadgets. To make a very long story short (our day began at 4:30 a.m.), the doctors opted to not do the surgery because they felt that he was not well enought (what the????) Not well? So he was alittle conjested for a few days ago and sometimes coughs in the morning!!...yes, we were mad. So either I'll be able to de-block his tear ducts the home remedy way or hopefully he'll be able to go through with this surger next Wednesday (pray for us please!!)
Our not-so-little-anymore Ashlyn started preschool this year at The Children's Academy which is just 5 minutes away from us. Here she is with her teacher Ms. Heidi. It took Ashlyn a couple of days to get with the curriculum. But now she's doing great and has made some fun friends that she comes home and talks about.
I thought this pic was funny. Here's Ethan just finishing his milk and Ashlyn imitating him but with her water bottle. She's really felt the need to do what he's doing, even sucking on her fingers and he, is the same with her...he's aways trying to do what she's doing. Ah siblings.
This basically encompasses the grocery shopping experience for my kids....they're so great!!

So there you have it. Nothing too extraordinary....but life with these two crazy, loveable, funny, out of control, hilarious kids make each and every day so very special and we are ever so grateful to have them.

CLAM Mission Reunion

2008-10-06T23:35:00.000-07:00

I never thought I'd go to another mission reunion again. Not because I didn't necessarily want to, I just thought that well, it's been over 10 years since I've been home, so no more mission reunions....right?....so wrong!! Over the summer, Nate Creer emailed a bunch of us saying that they wanted to put together a mission reunion for those that served in the California Los Angeles Mission (CLAM for short) under President Karl Farnsworth. My first thoughts were..."there is no way I'm going to my mission reunion....I won't recognize or know anyone." Well, I was talking to my dear friend "Kasper" and she talked me into going saying that she and a couple other ;sisters wanted to do kinda like a "girls getaway." Girls Getaway?...o.k., I'm so in!! So here we are over 10 years after coming home:

That's Jennifer Whitlow-Taylor; Me; Jessica Kasperian-Gomez; Julie Wilson-Meikle (did I spell that right?). We did dinner before the reunion, gossiped and then headed over to the reunion and finally finished the evening hanging out at Red Mango till it closed (midnight, or so).
This is a pic of us girls at the reunion PLUS Brian Taylor...he was our ever awesome District Leader. I just realized that I didn't get a pic of his beautiful and super cool wife Gina (sorry Gina!!..next time!)

And here we are over 10 years AGO in one of the sister's apartment on Temple Hill (right behind the LA Temple)...and yes, I had a short, A-line haircut then:
The three girls were called to be VC (Visitor Center) Spanish speaking sisters...so how did I get in with them since I was called as a proselyting, english speaking sister?....well, I was temporarily called to the VC to be with Sister Julie Wilson and to serve in a english speaking area and during that time, I got to know the best sisters ever. We had such crazy times!! This my beautiful greenie, Jill Smith-Judson, she's the mom of 5 kids: 1 daughter and 2 sets of twins (1 set of girls and then another set of boys)

...and of course, , my mission president: Pres. Karl Farnsworth and his beautiful and so sweet wife.

It was fun everyone, can't want to get together again!!

Some blogs to check out in regards to the Twilight Series

2008-09-10T22:44:00.000-07:00

I was "blog surfing" and came across a blog entry on Jen and Doug's site. She shared the following blog site and entries. So if your a Twilight Series fan, you'll have to check it out. It's pretty funny and the hilarious thing is.....the author is a "guy" - yep, and he's read and has blogged about the Twililght books. And as for me, I have to admit that I am alittle borderline obsessed over the series, although I do have to keep it in check since I am so busy with so many projects from family to Primary to Ward Choir stuff to HOA stuff....will it ever end??!?

http://mormonhusbands.blogspot.com/2008/02/twilight-series-for-dummies-and-totally.html

The Cold Hard Truth about Edward

He also wrote his own version of Breaking Dawn (don't worry, no spoilers here):

Part 1: http://mormonhusbands.blogspot.com/2008/07/breaking-dawn-spoof-part-i.html

Part 2: http://mormonhusbands.blogspot.com/2008/07/breaking-dawn-spoof-part-ii.html

Part 3: http://mormonhusbands.blogspot.com/2008/07/breaking-dawn-spoof-part-iii-dramatic.html

Have fun with the following and thanks Jen for sharing!!

Father-Daughter bonding...

2008-09-02T10:47:00.000-07:00

Ashlyn "hanging out" with dad while he's logging in some XBox 360 time.

Preschool

2008-08-26T22:39:00.000-07:00

Ashlyn did quite well on her first day of preschool. She was just a little hesitant at first but then got into the art project shortly after I left. I do have to say that I had a harder time leaving than expected of myself. Her teacher, Ms. Heidi, is super cute. She told me that Ashlyn kept on saying that she wanted to go to "college." Well sweetheart, you'll soon get that chance. We're so proud of you Ashlyn. We know that you'll learn so much and we hope that you'll continue to be enthusiastic about school and that you will reach your goal of going to college and hopefully, if your given the opportunity, continue your education.

Hide and Seek with Ashlyn

2008-08-14T22:29:00.000-07:00

Me: 1...2....3...
Ashlyn: Mom, make sure you come into the TV room!

Me: ...o.k....4....5....6....

Ashlyn: Mom, mom...make sure you come into the TV room!

Me: ....o.k sweetie.....7....8....9....

Ashlyn: Here I am!!

I love my daughter!!

I'm finally on the bandwagon...

2008-08-14T22:20:00.000-07:00

...after many blogs (of friends) that I've read on these books, I've finally caved. The first 2 books just came today...thanks to Amazon. I also found Stephanie Meyer's official website. And I'm also looking forward to the movie in December. Can't wait to do a girl's night out on this one.

North Family Reunion 2008 in Sunny San Diego!!

2008-08-06T21:42:00.000-07:00

It was so great to be back at our old stomping ground. Todd and I had memory after memory of our 2 years in San Diego and all the friends we made and missed so very much. So coming back to San Diego was awesome....especially to see all the family we hadn't seen in so long. We first spent 2 days at Sea World. The shows were great, the rides for the kiddies were super fun and we got a chance to stay for the night time show of Shamu. Definitely awesome. I highly recommend it to anyone. The kids had a great time even though they were so dang tired! Sea World added a new kiddie play area in which there were rides as well as Elmo and friends coming out and singing as well as posing for pictures:

We also got a chance to spend some time at the beach....oh the beach. I've forgotten how calming and soothing it can be to just dig and play in the sand as well as play in the ocean. Well, maybe not for Ashlyn or Ethan. Neither one of them liked the ocean at all!! Oh well, maybe next time.

After the beach, we cleaned up, gave the kids a nap and met at the SDSU Institute for dinner, swimming and a fun activity for the kids...hitting a pinata. It was fun!!

The cutest part were the little kids trying to hit the pinata...they were great!!

On our last day, we had a kiddie talent show. We saw cartwheels, summer saults, piano and vocal duets as well as some pretty cool karate. The kids ended the talent show by singing "I Am a Child of God." They were amazing.
Thank you Grandpa and Myrna for putting it all together.

And to all the aunts and uncles and nieces and nephews....we miss you already! Love you tons.

So Yummy...

2008-07-29T00:18:00.000-07:00

...I just had to share my new favorite dessert. It's so worth it!! It's called a Lemon Curd Trifle with Fresh Berries by Tyler Florence. I found that to make the curd, I had to allow the bowl to touch the pot (double boiler method). I only used 1/2 the curd because I read the reviews saying that it was too lemony. It was perfect. If you get a chance to make this, I promise, it'll be a show stopper!! I do suggest using the pound cake from Costco. I've also added another header the right titled "Favorite Recipes" in which I'll list some of my tried and true recipes. Hopefully I'll figure out a way to add comments to each of the recipes I've experimented upon.

Let me know how the Trifle goes!!

Family Night at the Buzz Baseball Game

2008-07-28T23:56:00.001-07:00

Our good friends Todd and Kristie (yes, we have 3 "Todds" in our ward) invited us to a Buzz Baseball game....in the suite....Sweet!! The kids had a good time and Ashlyn loved the fact that she got to eat a whole box of popcorn (although it was intended for ALL the other kids too). They also invited some other friends from the ward too. Anyway, here's us with the "Buzz." Ashlyn got a little scared and wouldn't go near the mascot.

(Eddie, Amanda, Anabelle, Lilly, "Buzz", Damon, Me, Ethan)

Pioneer Day

2008-07-25T22:33:00.001-07:00

For Pioneer Day, we had my family over for dinner and for some swimming. We had a great time!

After they all left, we went up to the loft to watch the fireworks from Cottonwood Heights. We talked to the kids about why July 24th was so important. First, it's Pioneer Day and second, it's Grandma Ginny's birthday.

Ginny had just finished radiation for a brain tumor the doctors had found 7 months prior to our wedding. I found it to be absolutely miraculous that she was still with us when we got married. I was very worried about her stamina on the wedding day, but she did quite well and we have been so blessed to have pictures as well as videos of her on our wedding day. I can't say that I knew my mother-in-law as well as my other sister-in-laws but what I did know about her was that she was very, very kind.

I won't ever forget the first time I met her. I had gone over to Todd's parents place to meet him for a date. It was going to be one of our last ones before he left for Oregon to do a PhD program in Biology. She was on her way to a Mormon Tab Choir practice and she stopped to ask who I was and when I told her, she just lit up and was so happy to meet me. I adored her right then and there. She had a big heart. She LOVED Christmas and she LOVED her family and grandkids. Before she passed away, she told Todd that she wanted to be with the family....she just wanted to be around, here on earth with us.

I don't know why her time was limited on this earth or why she just couldn't be "around" but I do know that she was a big part in the success of all her kids. They all knew and felt of her big heart and her willingness to always, always help them in whatever circumstances. Family was a huge part of her focus and that has certainly passed on to her children.

A pioneer is defined as someone to be the first to open or prepare way, one to lead the way for a group. That was Ginny. I know that she lived long enough to prepare her children for life and to set their focus on the importance of families being together in this life and in the life to come. I hope that Todd and I can live up to that tradition.

Family Time

2008-07-25T22:04:00.000-07:00

I've been very fortunate to have all my family (parents and siblings) here in Utah. We certainly take full advantage of the closeness of our proximity as well as the closeness we have as a family. We love getting together for dinner and for fun. A couple of weeks ago, we had dinner at Jeong and Corrine's in celebration of Kailee's Birthday. Before dinner, Todd started a game of "Hide and Seek." It was hilarious!! And Todd was so awesome to teach them the game. Here are the kiddies "hiding!!" This is Ashlyn "hiding" with Devin peeking over the sofa for Uncle Todd

Ashlyn, Kaliee, Devin "hiding."

Another thing we love to do is have the kids play in the kiddies at my parent's. It's just their size.

Catching up...AGAIN!!

2008-07-14T22:14:00.000-07:00

We've been super busy...and I can't even tell you what has be preoccupying my time. Just life I guess with 2 kids that keep me busy, busy, busy. So forgive the 2 months of catch-up.

A visit from Emily and the kids

July 4 - July 8

Oh my goodness - we had such a fun, fun time with Emily and the kids (Hunter, Lynnsey and Rachel). They came in for Emily's dad's reunion but afterwards, we partied!! We took so many
pics, I don't even know where to begin...so here I go:

On Friday, July 4th, we went to Gateway to play in the water fountain. Hunter and Lynnsey had fun. Ashlyn - not so much. And Ethan, well they led him out to the water but when he got sprayed from the bottom up ... he was so done. Afterwards, the kids had snowcones and Ashlyn was the only one that finished hers - you go girl!! Then we did Temple Square. It was great to go the visitor centers for some relief from the heat and to have some nice cold water. The kids were super smart when it came to identifying the various pictures that depicted biblical stories. Now for the "grand finale" - and I do hope that I won't be offending anyone, but Ashlyn was bound and determined to see a "fountain" and I could not talk her out if it. SOOO...since our car was across the street from the Conference Center, we walked over there and let the kids put their hands in the fountain. Then, they were putting their feet in it....then, we noticed steps INSIDE the fountain leading into the water..so the kids got a little crazy and started diving in - oh my goodness!! The only signage Emily and I saw just said that the water was recirculated water. So we thought - what the hey!! Let the kids have at it. So...enjoy the slide show. Oh, and thanks Todd for the fireworks - they were great!!

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Saturday, we hit Kangaroo Zoo and the kids had so much fun with the different blow up slides and bounce houses. They had a super cool "black light mini golf course." Loved it!! I highly recommend this place. It may be a little far off, but so worth it.

Thank you Emily and cousins for coming and staying with us. It was sooo much fun to play, play, play. Can't wait to see you all again in San Diego!!

The "happiest" place on earth - or so they say.....

June 13

Todd has been wanting to take Ashlyn to an amusement park. And since we really don't live next door to Disneyland, we thought the next best place was...LAGOON...and why not? What Utahn doesn't have some crazy, fun memory of Lagoon back in the days??? So after weighing our options of whether or not we should buy her an all out pass...we decided to go ahead with it. Oh boy was that a big mistake. We started out "slow" - the bumper cars. She hated it:

By the way, she's screaming her head off!!
Poor girl, totally traumatized but nonetheless, she's asking for the carousal so we try that. She hated it:

Alrighty, we're getting frustrated. So we try the train. What kid doesn't like the train. Now I do have to say that I didn't get a pic of this experience, but I can assure you that she hated it...until she saw the animals. Then she calmed down. There were 2 rides that she actually liked - and I really thought that she would freak out again. The first was the Rattlesnake Rapids and the other, the kiddie Tidalwave. Ethan on the other hand had a ball. Not necessarily on the rides, but at this really cool water fountain.

Don't worry, he's not going commando! He's shorts got so soaked that they just...fell off. The whole experience was hilarious. People would just stop and laugh at the sight - he was totally in his element.

I didn't have the heart to stop him so he just did his thing and it was awesome!

By the way, you should check out my SIL's blog. Devan loved Lagoon and did not want to leave. At least we had fun watching him have fun.

Murray Park for pics

May 30

Like so many grandmothers, my mother loves ANYTHING, and I mean ANYTHING that has to do with the grandkids. So for her birthday, we decided to take photos of the grandkids at Murray Park. Our thinking was, with 3 moms with 3 cameras....we're bound to get a few good shots, right? And I do have to say that we did alright.

Our 5 year Anniversary...we've come such a long way..

2008-05-22T09:51:00.000-07:00

From this...

To this...

Where did the time go? It seems like life has been flying by and we're hanging on by our fingernails. We're definitely older, with less energy but more in need of it. I think we're wiser and yet...it seems like we're not always sure if we're coming or going.

But there hasn't been a dull moment. And something tells me that life is only going to get crazier and sillier and well, out of control. Hon, you've really been great through it all. The schooling, the exams, the BARS (ugh!!) and everything in between. Thank you sweetie. I couldn't have asked for a more amazing husband. I know that you probably have forgotten that today is our anniversary since your going nuts at work, but that's o.k. I hope you do have a wonderful day regardless. I'll try to keep your dinner warm (depending on what time you get home)....other than that, I love you tons!! "LMM" (for everyone else, don't ask what it stands for - our "pet names").

Didn't we say that we'd never do this??...

2008-05-20T21:50:00.000-07:00

....yes hon, we did say we would never vote on American Idol, but we broke down. We couldn't help it, he's too good. And besides, he's from Utah!! Go Archuleta!!

"I'm The Mom!!"

2008-05-16T14:08:00.000-07:00

You gotta love YouTube for this. This makes me realize that us moms are in it together!!..and if ever our kids question our ways...well, we can always say "I'm the mom" and I say so!!

How much do you love me?...

2008-05-10T21:42:00.000-07:00

....A Mother's Day Story

Can you guess??...

2008-05-09T20:25:00.000-07:00

..so a few days ago, I was getting breakfast ready and in the midst of it all, I heard Ethan "squeal." Hmmmm...sounded like a "I'm in trouble and I don't know what to do about it" squeal. So I started searching our very small place and I seriously could not find him. I asked Todd if he'd seen him...."nope." So Todd and I started searching for him. The bathroom, no. The pantry, no. The closets, no. Kitchen?..no. O.k...now I was panicking. How could we have lost our son??? Then Todd found him. We were floored. So here's the pic. Can YOU guess where he's at?...and my family (who knows this story), are NOT allowed to answer!!

A Trip To The Dentist

2008-05-08T12:00:00.001-07:00

So Ashlyn had her first dental checkup today. And she did pretty good. We've been talking to her about going to the dentist and what he'll be doing. She seemed pretty excited to see the "tooth doctor." When we got there though, she got super shy and wouldn't even look at the nurses. The Dentist was great and when he saw that she wasn't ready to see him, he just left for several minutes and would come back to see if she was ready. Ashlyn finally started warming up to him (with the hellp of "mama" of course). She let him count her fingers, then her fingernails and then finally opened her mouth for him to count her teeth. It was fun and I think that she had a good "first" experience. I do have to say that my first dental experience was not a good memory and I really wanted Ashlyn's to be much better than mine. She did walk away with some fun treats:

The only think missing is a red ring...that got lost in the car (on the way home)...kinda knew that was gonna happen..oh well...

I just can't believe our "little girl" is growing up so fast. I feel old.

Day at the Park

2008-04-30T22:43:00.000-07:00

I found these pics that I failed to post. We went to the park on Ethan's bday to try out a new kite and play on the playset (is that what they call it??) Anyway, it was a little windy and overcast but fun. I had Ethan in his new sandals and he HATED them. He would just stand there and CRY and CRY. But a little later, he got over it.

Happy Birthday to "Princess" Ashlyn

2008-04-28T22:25:00.000-07:00

Dear Ashlyn...you have surpassed all expectations we've had in a daughter. You simply amaze us and at the same time, you test us to our limits....so happy birthday to you, our "littler girl forever." We love you so very much!!

Date night and a movie

2008-04-23T13:08:00.000-07:00

So Todd and I did our quarterly night out...just the 2 of us. We thought that we better do it quick before Vaughn and Myrna go off on their mission. It was great.....just the 2 of us. And then we went to look for Ashlyn's bday present. Hope she likes it!!

And then we came home, got the kids to bed and finally was relaxing while watching the Spurs vs. Suns game. Then at 9:22 p.m., Alice my SIL calls me up. She's laughing and saying that she's leaving work early and wanted to know if I wanted to catch a movie with her....huh???? O.k. I hadn't done anything "spur of the moment" like this since I was single!! At first I wasn't so sure, but Todd was like "go!" Soooooo, I went. We caught the 9:50 pm show of "27 Dresses" at the Dollar Theatres in Sandy. It was a cute movie. Some funny moments.

It made me think of all my friends that go married before me and then suddenly...it was my turn. So crazy. Seriously, I would love to relive my wedding day. So much fun, so much craziness.

All in all, it was a fun night...thanks hon and thanks Alice!! I need to do this more often :)

Happy Birthday Ethan!!

2008-04-21T11:58:00.000-07:00

I know I'm a bit late on this one...so sorry! We did Ethan's birthday the Saturday prior at my parents and unfortunately, the battery to the camera was out. So no pics, but we did do another birthday with Grandpa North and Myrna so I have a couple of pics of that.

Ethan has grown up so very much. He's walking, trying to talk and getting into everything. We did his well baby check up and he's at 19 1/2 lb...wow, compared to 6 1/2 lb when he was born...he's made strides. We look forward to the coming year and all the new adventures we'll be having with Ethan. Happy Birthday sweet boy of ours, we love you so very, very much!!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Costco bonding...

2008-04-10T21:04:00.000-07:00

(Kailee, Ella, Ashlyn, Ethan and Devin - both in same outfits!)

...we love Costco. Especially when we can ALL get together and have a great time shopping. This is definitely a play date for the mamas.

No "Mom of the Year" for me...

2008-04-10T20:57:00.001-07:00

So a couple of weeks ago, we were at my mom's for dinner. Todd was playing with Ethan while I was in the kitchen talking to my mom. Well, he had to move the car so he brought Ethan into the kitchen and asked me to watch him...and I was..until the girls (Ashlyn and cousin Kailee) said they had to go potty, so I took the girls to the bathroom.....when we were done....I hear commotion...oh man....Ethan had fallen down the stairs. And in the words of my brother, it went something like this: thump, thump, WAAAA, thump,thump, WAAA...all the way down the stairs. Now, I can't blame my mother because she was cooking dinner...I only fault myself...so dear sweet Ethan, I'm so sorry...

Now you may think that after this experience he would avoid the stairs like the plague...nope, so my parents finally bought a gate..and well, I better start teaching him about working the stairs, huh?

Catching up....so typical of me...

2008-04-09T20:30:00.000-07:00

I really am a lousy blogger. I'll take pics to blog about and then I just don't do it or I think it's too lame. But I shouldn't care right? So here I go...

Pantry Play

Ethan loves, loves to play in the pantry and I really don't like that. He'll try and grab a can and then start gnawing on it...gross. So I'll close the pantry door, but then he'll have a fit about it so then I would just open it maybe 4 or 5 inches...just wide enough for him to put his arms through so that he can just touch things but not get IN the pantry...well...that backfired...

I just want to know how in the world he jimmied himself in that pantry???

Cooperative Play

This is my fave...Ashlyn and Ethan playing with each other. They are so funny!! One of his favorite things to do is to hold onto the back of Ashlyn trike while she's riding it in the house (still too cold outside). And if she stops, he starts screaming.

Ethan also loves to follow Ashlyn around. If she goes into her room, he's right behind her. If she's playing with megablocks or with her kitchen set, he's doing the same thing too. A few days ago, I overheard Ashlyn say to Ethan...I love you Ethan and then gave him a hug...sweet, huh?

Cooperative Play + Pantry Play = why not??

So that's that on my kids. They're great most times and bearable...sometimes. Regardless, we makes sure we do tons of hugs and kisses each day.

Reflections of Christ

2008-04-03T14:48:00.000-07:00

This is amazing, check it out:

Reflections of Christ

Easter

2008-03-25T22:33:00.000-07:00

My SIL Alice had a great idea to do a "Kiddie Easter Egg Hunt" which really wasn't a hunt but nonetheless, very fun and eventful for the kids. We just threw a bunch of plastic eggs filled with candy onto the backyard of my parents place. We also got them some fun little toys and even an easter book. Ashlyn, Devan and Kailee had a GREAT time "hunting" for all the goodies. I think this is going to be a tradition and I like doing the "fun" part of Easter on the Saturday prior so that we can focus on the spiritual side of Easter.

Ashlyn, Kailee and Devan (he was being a bit shy when we were trying to take pics)

He's a-walkin'.....

2008-03-22T21:52:00.000-07:00

He started walking almost a month ago and he's been so fun to watch! It was just last week that he would walk a few steps and then fall on his bum and then get up and walk a few steps and then fall on his bum again and so forth and so forth. Now, he's just a-walking!...and it's so darn cute!!..this is such a fun age...even him getting into EVERYTHING is just fun to watch. I love it.

And whenever he's walking, he's also pumping his arms....too funny.

Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point

2008-03-21T22:44:00.000-07:00

Ashlyn had such a fun time at the Dino Museum at Thanksgiving Point. She and Kyle just had a great time, especially at the Erosion Table where they got to play with the sand and water. I seriously think that we could have been there ALL day and the kids would never have gotten tired of it. Just some fun pics....

My kids do the darndest things..

2008-03-11T22:14:00.000-07:00

There are times when I don't know if I'm coming or going when it comes to my kids. Thank goodness for those moments when they make me laugh and I'm ever so very, very grateful that I am a blessed mother of Ashlyn and Ethan. So here are a few classic moments of my kids I'd like to share with you.

"But Why???"
Ashlyn: What's that boy doing?
Me: It looks like he's packing up his car
A: But why?
M: He's probably going on vacation
A: But why?
M: Maybe he needs a break.
A: But why?
M: He probably works really hard and need some time off.
A: But why?
M: Maybe he likes to play and wants to have some fun.
A: But why?

....get the picture? Yeh, Ashlyn does the "But why?" thing for everything. We got into the car from the grocery store and there was a bug on the outside of her window. She wanted to know "why" the bug was there and for the next 10 minutes, we went through the "but why's?" all over again.

Drive Thru

Ashlyn LOVES, LOVES to ride in cars at the grocery store. She pretends that she's driving (of course) and every time I stop, she's ordering:

Ashlyn: Uhmmmmm...I'd like chicken nuggets and salad, thanks!

At least she orders a salad!!

Open Wide!!

O.k. so when Ethan was about 6 months old, I took him and Ashlyn to get pics taken. And he kept on opening his mouth whenever we were trying to get him to smile. I still look at these photos and can't help but crack up at how comical the whole experience was. I so can't wait for when I can embarrass him with these pics!

Well, I know it's not much...I wish there was a way for me to catch all the nuances, funny phrases and silly dialogues we have in this home of ours...so your just going to have to take our word for it, our kids are funny crazy!

Happy Birthday Sweetie!!

2008-02-24T15:51:00.000-08:00

Oh somebody had a birthday
Among the children here
May Father in heave bless you
Throughout the coming year...
May you live a thousand years,
May you drink a thousand beers (not really)
And plaster you baaaaaad boy!! (hee, hee)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!

Well, happy birthday to my hubby. Now people, don't be fooled by the number of candles on the cake. Todd is NOT (and I repeat, NOT) 6 years old. Your simply amazing and I (as well as the kiddies) love you tons and tons.

Food Allergy

2008-02-21T22:25:00.000-08:00

Yep..it's official. Ethan's allergic to eggs.

Fun in the snow!!

2008-02-21T22:03:00.000-08:00

My parents piled a bunch of snow in their back yard and dug out a cave. The kiddies had fun with it and they even got a little creative and started climbing up the "cave" and would slide down it. Too fun.

We even taught them how to do "snow angels"...well, kinda...

Valentine's tag - well, a belated one that is....

2008-02-17T20:53:00.000-08:00

My friend Kari tagged me - so sorry that I'm finally doing it now. Well, better late than never so enjoy!!

All about my husband and me….

What is his name? The Todd (from Scrubbs!!)

How long have you been together? 13 months of dating/being engaged and 4 1/2 years of marriage (5 years this May).

How long did you date? Oops, I already answered this questions in the above but just in case you missed it...13 months of dating/being engaged and the crazy part is, that 10 of those months were long distance (Todd was doing his Ph.D program in at U of Oregon).

Who eats more? That's a toss up - sometimes me, sometimes him.

Who said I love you first? Todd

Who is taller? Todd

Who is smarter? Well, that's really good question...I think we both have our strengths in regards to knowledge, but when it comes to all that science and law stuff, Todd is...although I do have bio background (it was my major till my senior year and then I changed it to psychology because I didn't know what in the world I was going to do with a bio major but then..psych didn't help me too much either - well, in a way it did....) so I do understand a lot of the bio lingo and generally can understand a bio journal.

Who does the laundry? Me, hands down.

Who does the dishes? I generally do, but when things are absolutely crazy with the 2 kiddies and everyone has eaten dinner except for me, then Todd is really good about just helping out and doing the dishes - thanks hon!!

Who sleeps on the right? Todd

Who pays the bills? I do, with some input from Todd.

Who mows the lawn? We don't have a lawn to mow - but I have mowed before and I do enjoy it!

Who cooks dinner? Me, but Todd is a star when it comes to breakfast.

Who drives when you are together? Todd

Who is more stubborn? I'm ashamed to say - me

Who kissed who first? Todd

Who asked who out first? Well...officially, Todd did. But I was kinda hinting it at our high school reunion. Oh yes, for those that may not know...we both graduated from Cottonwood High in 1991 and yes, we had classes together and yes we were friends. And at our 10 year reunion, we just kinda hit it off and I kinda told him that I was doing a social event and he should come. He brushed it off and I didn't think he would call me, but he did!!

Who proposed? Todd did. He was really good about taking control of things...the "I love you part" which is a story in and of itself. The "we should go look for a ring this weekend." The "where do we want to go on our honeymoon and from there, decide on a wedding date." He was so great.

Who has more siblings? Todd does. He has 3 brothers and 1 sister. Me - 3 brothers.

Who wears the pants? I would say we both share the pants equally. Which is good.
.
So there you have it! Hope you all had a pleasant Valentines.

Going on week 2!...

2008-02-06T11:47:00.000-08:00

...of them being sick and I'm so done with it! This is a pic of both of them on our bed at 12:57...AM!! Yep, that's right.."A-M" as in "early, early in the morning." As in "they should both be ASLEEP in their OWN BEDS but no, let's keep mom and dad awake and hang out with them." And if you look very closely, you can see that I failed to wipe Ethan's nose and didn't realized it until Todd was a milisecond away from taking the picture. What a horrible mom I am. Anyway, I finally put Ethan to sleep and he whined for I don't know how long before he finally went to sleep. As for Ashlyn, well, she refused to go back to her own bed and so we relented and let her sleep with ME. Yes, Todd just packed up and slept on the sofa out in the living room. Hope you slept alright hon. Anyway, I do hope that Ethan gets over his miserable-ness and Ashlyn gets over her cough so that we can try to get back to some normalcy AND I hope that they don't keep giving each other the cold. I so didn't take that into account with multiple chitlens!!

He's standing!!...

2008-01-30T20:18:00.001-08:00

..well, he started crawling last month and then started to stand on his own just a few weeks ago - it's great and so much fun to see his excitement of trying to be just like his big sister.

Date Night...a long time coming...

2008-01-29T20:35:00.000-08:00

...finally, a night to ourselves. We've been planning this for a couple of months and the night finally came. It was fun. We went to The Melting Pot, a fondue restaurant. Dinner started out will a yummy spinach and artichoke and cheese fondue in which we got to dip fresh veggies and bread - very good. They also gave us apples to dip, but we weren't to hip on it. Then the entree of filet mignon, salmon, shrimp and chicken which we cooked in a savory vegetable broth. But the best part was the dessert. They gave us marshmellows, rice crispy treats, strawberries, bananas, pound cake and cheesecake

to then dip into our "yin and yang"
which was a swirl of white and milk chocolate....can we say YUMMO!! Overall, it was a fun experience, would we go there again?...maybe. As to another date night - a resounding YES!!..it was the perfect therapy for the both of us!!

Don't worry - we're still alive...

2008-01-25T08:49:00.000-08:00

... so sorry that I haven't been keeping up with my blog page. The holidays were so busy and crazy that I really needed to recoup and well...I think I'm still recouping. Christmas was great!! We were blessed to have Todd's siblings and their families for Christmas and New Years. The cousins had so much fun playing with each other and us grown ups had a great time catching up with the latest news in each other's lives. We look forward to seeing everyone again - whenever that may be.

Now for another matter. I can't remember the last time I made a New Year's resolution and this year has been no different. So when I read my friend's insightful blog, I realized that I had found my 2008 New Year's resolution. Dave has a knack for "thinking outside the box" and it's quite refreshing and every so often he'll share a part of his more serious side and this is one of them. I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I had. Thanks Dave, you've inspired me.

http://vogelsblogger.blogspot.com/2008/01/im-feeling-serious-today.html

Temple Square Lights...

2007-12-11T12:22:00.000-08:00

So for FHE (Family Home Evening), we went to see the lights on Temple Square and boy were they pretty. Ashlyn loved the lights and the pretty Christmas trees. But her favorite part, the Nativity scene - especially when they talked about baby Jesus. She didn't want to leave "baby Jesus" so we told her that we would be back - and much more prepared for the cold and I'm not talking about the kiddies (they were very well bundled up), I'm talking about Todd and I. We at least had coats but no gloves and our hands were freezing (thank you Utah winter). Afterwards, we had a little dinner at JB's. It was a nice way to get warmed up and enjoy some family time.

Pretzel Makers!!!

2007-12-08T00:09:00.000-08:00

So last year, we had this fabulous idea to do dipped pretzels for Christmas - ya know, the ones that are dipped in caramel and chocolate and more chocolate and more yummy stuff? Well, we were hooked. They were so darn good that we decided to do them again this year. Can I say YUMMO!! And it was so much fun for us girls to get together AGAIN over food.

We dipped the long pretzel sticks in caramel, then chocolate and then we sprinkled some with nuts and with others, we drizzled white chocolate. We also dipped the traditional twisted ones just in chocolate and then drizzled them with butterscotch - VERY, VERY GOOD!! It seems like this will be a tradition of ours - Corrine even commented that maybe we should do 10 lb of caramel rather than the 5 lb we did - all I can say is...that's a whole lotta caramel and a whole lotta pretzels to be made and given away!!

So, to the lucky people that live around me - you'll get to have some and I do hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed making AND sampling them!

Just for fun!!

2007-12-02T23:38:00.001-08:00

Girls Outing

2007-12-02T22:22:00.000-08:00

So my sister-in-laws and I (plus 2 kiddies) went out for lunch - just us girls and it was great fun! I have to say that this was the first time we've done this since babies started coming into the family and it may become a regular occurance. There's something very theraputic about "girl talk" especially when it involves your "sisters." I'm ever grateful for the diversity and positive influence that Alice, Corrine and Stephanie bring to my life. Thank you Alice for getting us all together - let's do lunch again!

Traditions

2007-12-01T22:54:00.000-08:00

I've always looked forward to establishing our own family traditions. When I asked Todd what he remembered about his mom during the holidays, he said that his mom always began the Christmas season AFTER Thanksgiving...so after Thanksgiving, we're going to being our Christmas holiday with the placing of a wreath on Grandma Ginny's gravesite. Ashlyn thought this was great fun and I think she sensed the importance of what we were doing. Afterwards, we got our little tree out and Ashlyn helped decorate it with "crackernuts" (nutcrackers) and "star of Bethlehems" as she calls them. She LOVES to sit by the Christmas tree and I can't blame her...I, myself, still find a decorated and lighted Christmas tree fascinating and special.

Are you Blue or are you Red?...

2007-11-25T22:50:00.000-08:00

..Todd is "blue" and I'm "crimson red" and I'm not talking about the personality test. I'm talking about the age old rivalry between BYU and Utah Utes (p.s...go Utes!). As always, my family AGAIN got together, this time at my brother's house, to watch the rivalry game held in Provo. And poor Todd, he's the lone BYU fan among us "Utes." But he's a trouper and will stand by his team through thick and thin and that's how the game seemed to be. Well in the end (sadly), BYU won with a last minute (literally speaking) touchdown. But that's o.k., at least I didn't have to go home with a crabby husband....Regardless, next year's game is in Salt Lake and the Utes better win!

So tell me, are you Blue or are you Red?

I am glad for many things....

2007-11-25T22:09:00.000-08:00

...anyone know that Primary song? Just learned it last Sunday. Well Thanksgiving was just great! Todd was wonderful to make breakfast for all of us, with a little help from Ashlyn.

And then we packed up the green bean casserole and cranberry-pear chutney and headed off to my parents for a wonderful and very bountiful Thanksgiving dinner. My favorite part is always the bonding we do as a family after such a big meal. The kiddies play, the guys have a hayday with the Wii and XBox 360..we even got the kiddies to play some bowliing on the wii. My cousin Devan would say "Here comes Devan" every time he would throw the bowling bowl down the stretch - too cute!!

The kiddies also had a great time playing "Ring Around The Rosies" with "Uncle Todd" and then hammered on the piano singing Christmas Songs or whatever came into their little minds.

All in all, Thanksgiving was great and I truly am glad for many, many things. We have been given so much and we hope that we as a family will remember all the tender mercies the Lord has shown us.

Shannon Hatch's Bridal Shower

2007-11-20T22:39:00.000-08:00

Well a couple of weeks ago, I had quite a surprise when a very dear friend of mine emailed me that I had not heard from in awhile. I got to know Shannon when I was RS Pres in the student ward she was a part of. It was so great to go to her shower and see other "35th Warders" and to remember all the crazy stuff we did. That was an amazing ward and we had such a great group of friends. We could have talked all night about all of the things we did together. Well, congrats Shannon and can't wait to go to your reception!!

(L to R) Robyn (Hostess), Haas with her 2 kids (Lucy, Jade), Rui, Shannon (bride to be), Sherlyn, Myself with my 2 kids.

Such a busy weekend, it was...

2007-11-12T21:56:00.000-08:00

Ashlyn and her friend McKenna cooking

I'm so tired. It was a pretty busy weekend...which is pretty abnormal in the Todd and Hyo household. We like our weekends to be low key where we just hang out and take it easy. It all started last Friday. We had our friend's daughter, McKenna, over for a playdate while her mom manned a booth at the Christmas Gift Show held at the Southtowne expo. Ashlyn had so much fun with her. It was great! Later that afternoon, I packed the kids up and headed to the Gift show to meet up with her mom, Marcella, and to just walk around and see what was there. I really thought that I could handle a 6 month old in a bjorn and keep up with 2 girls. Right...McKenna had all the energy in the world and would be running ahead of me while my daughter (who refused to take a nap that day) was DRAGGING her feet 10 feet behind me and all the while she would say "I'm not tired." Oh dear. Well, we finally made it home from the show just in time to get dinner ready.

When Todd came home, I told him that I wanted to go back to the show with my SILs (Sister-in-Laws) the following morning since Marcella would be able to get us all in for free (gotta love that!..thanks Marcella). To my surprise Todd actually wanted to come along (I was planning on taking the kiddies with me so that I can give him some R&R). So off we all went Saturday morning to the Expo center to meet up with Alice, her son Devin and my other SIL Stephanie. It was fun and tiring at the same time. THEN, the DirectTV guy came that afternoon and he didn't leave until 7-ish so Todd stayed home with him while I again packed the kiddies up and headed off to my mom's for a family dinner. Todd later told me what a horrible experience it was to get DirectTV installed downstairs...poor honey...oh, and all the while, we had Melanie (my SIL on Todd's side of the fam) and the kids come for the weekend from WY.

Then on Sunday, we had the Primary Program (I'm the 2nd Counselor). That's always a little stressful but the children were amazing and I was very proud that my daughter of 2 years knew all of the songs to the program - way to go Ashlyn!!..oh..and did I mention that my kids are sick too, especially Ethan-poor dude, he's so miserable. So that's my story. As I'm writing all this, I'm wondering if I'm just being a whimp but really, the weekend was crazy. It was just nonstop. Todd did give me a break Sunday after dinner so that I could take a little nap - thanks honeybuns (hee, hee!!). So that's my story. I'm sure you all probably had a great weekend full of...funn-ness?!?! I guess at the end of the day, it's nice to know that moms are needed everywhere and that our job covers just about every aspect of our kiddies/family's life. I must agree with my SIL Melanie when she says that Heavenly Father has a great appreciation for Mothers. I really needed to hear that.

Pics of Ashlyn and Kyle (sorry Elise and Dallin that I didn't get you in the pics)

Trick or Treat!!

2007-11-01T21:41:00.000-07:00

Well this year, we invited my brothers and their fam to go trick or treating with us and the other kiddies in our playgroup. It was fun!! I got Ethan a little something to wear but it got too cold too fast and so he just ended up being bundled up. Ashlyn had a great time going up and knocking on the door with her cousin Devan (dressed as a pirate). But there were a few times when the decorations were all to real and Ashlyn would NOT go anywhere near the door, let alone the house. Thank goodness for a dad that was willing to carry her to the door so that he can have some candy - thanks honey! Afterwards, we went to grandpa and Myrna's home to showoff the costume and to trick or treat :) THEN went to my parents to trick or treat and have pizza. The whole thing was fun but so exhausting. I was totally feeing it today..actually, all of us were feeling it today. Now onto Thanksgiving and Christmas...

The costume is actually a 4T..so she gets to wear it for a couple more years!

Dad carrying Ashlyn because she's scared

Ethan with Aunt Steph

7 Random Things About Me..

2007-10-29T23:03:00.001-07:00

..well, my dear friend Erika posted 7 random things about herself on her blogspot and tagged me to do the same...so here I go!

1. I'm a popsicle freak. Love em, especially the blue ones!

2. One of my favorite movies: My Big Fat Greek Wedding. It reminds me of my fam.
3. I can seriously watch the Food Network channel ALL day.
4. I always order chili oil on the side at Chinese Restaurants.
5. I've got 2 toe rings
6. I have Christmas music playing as early as October, my fav: Kurt Bestor Christmas CD's
7. I don't get morning sickness when I'm pregnant.

So now I'm tagging Leslie, Emily, Sarah W. AND Sarah P., Erica J., Lynnsey

It's official...

2007-10-26T23:07:00.000-07:00

...we're now a 2 car fam!! But getting to that point was horrendous!!..we walked into the dealership at 3:00 and didn't leave until after 7:00. Ashlyn was very good...so long as she got to sit in the stroller. Poor Ethan was either strapped to his car seat or held by me. But he finally had had it and was just screaching because he was so tired. I almost walked into the sales office with him just to see if it would speed up the whole process. Ashlyn was busy playing in their kiddie play room and had a GREAT time with the toy animals (Note the zebras). Well, we won't be going through the process of buying another car for a LONG, LONG time!

Happy Birthday Dad....from all your kids and grandkids

2007-10-25T22:31:00.000-07:00

We just want you to know that your simply amazing. You are always making sure that we're o.k. and always willing to help out with whatever we may be going through. Thank you for your love and for being the best dad ever.

We love you!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

From The Mouth of Babes...

2007-10-24T22:16:00.000-07:00

..well, more specifically, from the mouth of Ashlyn. We go through the following dialogue about everyday (note: A is Ashlyn and M is mom):
A) Where's Jesus?
M) In Heaven.
A) Where's Heavenly Father?
M) In Heaven with Jesus.
A) Where's Grandma Ginny?
M) In Heaven.
A) Where's Heaven?

Alright, so she got me there. How am I to explain where heaven is without going into deep doctrine??..SO, the clever mom that I am (not always)I just said: Where Jesus is. Hah!

What Kind of Monster Are You???..

2007-10-19T21:43:00.000-07:00

...it's almost Halloween..so..what kind of monster are you?? Apparently, I'm a "witch."

You Are a Witch (or Warlock)

You are deviously brilliant and a perfect manipulator.
You somehow always end up getting what you want - without anyone knowing you're working behind the scenes.
Crafty and cunning, you can work your way out of any jam.
And it's easy for you to get people to do what you want, whether you're working for good or evil.

Your greatest power: Mind control

Your greatest weakness: Making people your puppets

You play well with: Ghosts

What Kind of Monster Are You?

TraskBritt

2007-10-19T00:00:00.000-07:00

Good news, good news!! Todd got a call from TraskBritt, an Intellectual Property Law Firm in Salt Lake, with an offer. We are so excited! Up to this point, Todd has been working on Engineering Patents, but now, he'll be able to start doing Biotech/Life Science Patents, which is what his degrees are in. We've waited so long for a break and it has finally come. Thanks to all our friends and family who have helped us along. We couldn't have done it without you and we are truly grateful for such a blessing as this to finally come. Your amazing, dear husband...best wishes!

My daughter...the mother

2007-10-13T22:22:00.000-07:00

Ashlyn (my daughter)seriously cracks me up. She is my pride and joy as well as my greatest challenge...and it doesn't help that she's going through the precocious 2's...ugh!! Lately, she's been fascinated with the adult world...."mom's and dad's world." She cleans house (and even asks if she can clean the house), helps change Ethan, cooks (not really), puts her "baby doll" in time out and even "goes to work." She tries to feed me, but I've put my foot down on that one....seriously, how do you tell a 2 year old that she's not 16??? Anyway, here are some pics of her changing her baby doll's poopy (not really) diaper and her taking her baby doll on a walk in her strawberry stroller. I love her!

To blog or not to blog...what a question!!..

2007-10-01T23:30:00.000-07:00

After some gentle prodding from a good friend of mine who is a "professional blogger" (thanks Leslie), I have decided to take our family to a more global level by creating a blog page. Hopefully, this will be a way of simply letting you know of "our world": what's up, what's down, what we like, what we don't like and what our hopes and dreams are.