A Smoothie A Day...part 7

Well everyone, this is the last day of our 7 part series, A Smoothie A Day.  I've had a lot of fun searching my pantry, freezer and fridge trying to come up with some exciting new smoothie flavors.  I think the coffee one was by far my favorite, but that Almond Joy Smoothie is a very close second.

I wanted to call today's smoothie the "I am sick of winter in Utah and wish I was in the Caribbean instead" smoothie, but that seemed like quite the title for a smoothie so instead I'll just call it...

Put the Lime in the Coconut Smoothie (because I kept singing that line as I was making it)
makes 2 servings

1 frozen banana
1/2 cup apple juice
1/2 cup frozen mango
1/2 cup frozen pineapple
2 tablespoons shredded coconut
1 lime, juiced
handful spinach
1 serving protein powder
water



Calories (per serving): 261.5
Fat grams (per serving): 2.75

I'm really excited, this 7 part series has led me to another project altogether that I'm working on getting up and going.  It's just in the beginning stages right now so I won't spill the beans but I'm hoping to have it up and running in a about a month.  Stay tuned to this blog to find out what it is and when it's ready.

I think the little man was more excited about the new cups we bought yesterday then about the smoothie.  When I asked him what kind of smoothie he wanted today he said 'chocolate' but I figured everyone else might not be as excited about another chocolate smoothie as my little man was so we compromised on this concoction.

A Smoothie A Day...part 6

That's right folks, after this one there is only one more smoothie.  Any suggestions?  I have some ideas in my head but I'd love some other opinions and suggestions.  Today's smoothie I can't take complete credit for.  A friend, Brittany, shared this recipe with me, I've just made some slight variations.  Realize that this recipe makes 3 servings, they will be smaller servings than the previous smoothies.  There are a lot of rich ingredients in this smoothie so that's why I've made it 3 servings.  You could also cut out the almonds all together and cut out 5 grams of fat and 63 calories per serving.

Almond Joy Smoothie
makes 3 servings

1 frozen banana
1 cup almond milk
1 cup vanilla greek yogurt
4 tablespoons shredded coconut (my coconut is sweetened because I use it for baking, if yours is unsweetened I would recommend adding maybe a 1/2 tablespoon of honey or agave nectar to add some sweetness)
1/4 cup silvered almonds
16 dark chocolate chips
ice

Calories (per serving): 235
Fat grams (per serving): 9.2 (Remember a majority of these fat grams are coming from the almonds, which are a 'good' kind of fat to put in your body.  Plus that's with the sweetened coconut, it would be less with the unsweetened.)


Today is Saturday and little man's buddy/cousin was over so he was too busy playing to have some of this smoothie.  But this is not the first time I have made it, he loved it when I made it before.

Late last night I was up searching the web trying to figure out how to take better pictures...I was not a success, looks like I'll be up again tonight trying to figure it out!

A Smoothie A Day...part 5

Do you know what you make when you have a basket of oranges sitting there waiting to be used?  Well a smoothie with fresh squeezed orange juice of course.  I wanted to make a smoothie that tasted like an Orange Julius.  I haven't had one of those is so long and it sounded so good.  I looked online for a recipe to get me started but I had some issues with the recipes I was finding.  It seems that in order to get that frothy taste that you get from the original Orange Julius you need to add an egg white to the smoothie.  Well, I'm not really excited about adding a raw egg white to something I am not cooking, so I didn't.  I don't think Orange Julius uses a raw egg white but all the recipes I found mentioned using one, or egg white powders which I don't have.  Today's smoothie is....

                          Orangn't Glad It's a Smoothie
                               makes 1 serving
1 frozen banana
1 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
1/2 plain greek yogurt
3 vanilla soy milk ice cubes (about 5-6 tablespoons)
1/2 tablespoon agave nectar
1 large handful of spinach
ice

I bought a large bag, I'm thinking it was a 10lb bag, of oranges at the store a week ago. The little man loves oranges so it was a great deal at only $2.50 for the bag.  It took me 8 large oranges to get a cup of juice, I was surprised it took that many.  Maybe they weren't very juicy oranges.

Yesterday I was curious about the calorie count of my smoothie, now I'm thinking I will go back to the other smoothies and figure out the calories on those as well, and on all the smoothies from now on.

Calories: 367
(banana 105, yogurt 75, orange juice 112, agave 30, soy milk 25, spinach 20)
Fat: less than 1 gram!!!!
(the soy milk has 3.5 grams in 1 cup, I only used 5-6 tablespoons so it has to be less than 1 gram!)


As I said earlier, the little man loves oranges so of course he loved this smoothie.  Since my munchkin (my 8 month old) was also awake he got a chance to try it out and he liked it too.

A Smoothie A Day...part 4

I have to admit that I have been looking forward to this smoothie since yesterday morning.  And because my little sister couldn't understand why I kept putting spinach into my smoothies I left it out of this one...just for you Brannon :)  Honestly, out of all the smoothies I have made so far I'm sure this is the one my family would like the most, (a) because it doesn't have spinach, and (b) because it has coffee.

                          Cup of Joe Smoothie
                               makes 1 serving
1 frozen banana
3 coffee ice cubes (I'm thinking its about 5-6 tablespoons of coffee)
1/2 cup vanilla soy milk
1 1/2 tablespoons Kahlua Coffee Flavored Syrup (DaVinci Gourmet brand)
8 dark chocolate chips
1 serving of protein powder (I used vanilla soy protein today)
water

I was really curious as to how many calories and fat were in this smoothie so I calculated it for you (ok, I calculated it for me, but you know you were curious too!)

Calories: 365
(med banana 105, flavored syrup 0, soy milk 50, protein 170, coffee 0, chocolate 40)
Fat grams: 5...yes that says 5!
(banana 0, flavored syrup 0, soy milk 1.75, protein 1.5, coffee 0, chocolate 1.75)


Just think of how much better this is for you then a Starbucks blended drink...check out these numbers I found in an ABC Action News article

* A 16 ounce Starbucks Double Chocolaty Chip Frappucino will cost you 500 calories and 9 grams of fat.
* A 16 ounce McDonald’s McCafe Frappe Mocha will cost you 560 calories and 24 grams of fat.

* Panera’s frozen Mocha will also set you back with 570 calories and 20 grams of fat.
* Dunkin Donuts Mocha Coffee with cream which tips the caloric scales at 14 ounces, 260 calories and 9 grams of fat.


Don't worry, the little man's drink was made without the coffee and with extra chocolate...of course he loved it, he is a chocolate milk fan.

A Smoothie A Day...part 3

Today I was drawing a blank when it came to making my smoothie.  I looked through my pantry, my freezer and my fridge and nothing jumped out at me.  Well that't not entirely true.  I saw the coffee pot and coffee sitting in my pantry and thought a java type of smoothie would be pretty tasty, even though I don't care for coffee at all.  But you can't really make a frosty smoothie out of hot coffee so I brewed a pot and plan on using it tomorrow, I'll put it in an ice cube tray as soon as it cools so I have coffee flavored ice cubes...stay tuned.

This mornings smoothie, after lots of opening and closing of my pantry, freezer and fridge is....

Popeye's Blueberry Lemonade
makes 1 serving
1 frozen banana
1/3 cup frozen blueberries
juice from 1 lemon
1/2 cup vanilla soy milk
1 large handful of fresh spinach
1 serving protein powder (today's was a vanilla flavored whey protein powder, not too bad)
water or ice to make to desired consistency

As always, put into a blender and blend.


You may be noticing a trend when it comes to my smoothies...I always use a frozen banana and my veggie of choice is always spinach...why? you might ask.  Well let me tell you.  I like the texture the banana gives to my smoothies.  I started freezing them one time when I had tons of them sitting on my counter and noticed they were going brown.  Now I always freeze them, my ice maker on my fridge doesn't work so its a perfect way to avoid adding ice to the smoothie.  And spinach, well I like adding a veggie to my smoothie so I know that I am getting the required number of servings of veggies a day.  I have tried lots of different veggies in the past and spinach is the one that I can taste the least when it comes to my smoothies.

Oh...and of course...the little guy liked this one too.

Elvis Oats

Do you know what you get when you add all these things together?






Well Elvis Oats of course!  I always hear about how Elvis' favorite thing to eat was a peanut butter and banana sandwich.  So when I was eating my oats this morning I thought...hey Elvis would love this!

Elvis Oats
1 serving Steel Cut Oats cooked according to package directions
1 banana smashed
1 tablespoon peanut butter
6 dark chocolate chips
splash of soy milk

Mix all together and enjoy.

I really enjoyed it.  I thought my 3 year old would love it, he eats peanut butter by the spoonfuls but he doesn't really like the texture of oats.  He prefers Malt-O-Meal so maybe that was why he didn't gobble it up like I did.

A Smoothie A Day...part 2

Day 2 of our week long smoothie experiments is a little later today because my 8 month old decided that taking a nap could wait until 12:30pm instead of his normal 10:00am.  Which meant that I couldn't do my workout until his nap, which leads me to the fact that I'm just now enjoying my smoothie for the day at 1:45pm.

Getting Caught in the Rain Smoothie
makes 1 serving

 1 frozen banana
1/2 cup lite coconut milk
1 serving protein powder (today was rice protein and I am hating the chalky taste it is leaving in my mouth.)
1 8oz can pineapple chunks in pineapple juice (I added the chunks and juice)
1 1/2 Tablespoons shredded coconut
1 large handful of fresh spinach
ice

Put everything in a blender and blend.

You like that name of this one right?  "If You Like Pina Coladas..." you'll like this smoothie.  I would tell you that it tastes JUST LIKE a pina colada but you'd make it, try it, realize that it doesn't taste just like a pina colada and never try my other smoothies.  I think if you didn't add the spinach (and added some rum) it would taste pretty darn close (depending on the flavor of your protein powder).  But it does have that tropical taste to it like a pina colada has so give it a try!



Asher, my 3 year old who always drinks my smoothies with me, had his portion of the smoothie almost gone before I was even done taking pictures...that must be equal to two thumbs up...right?

Connor likes to move it

I took these cute videos of Connor dancing the other day.  I took them with my phone so they aren't the best quality, but I had to share them with everyone...so dang cute!

A Smoothie A Day...part 1

This part 1 of a 7 part series...7 smoothie recipes in the next 7 days.  I love smoothies and recently I have been on a huge smoothie kick, sometimes having two a day.  I always have one after my workout and sometimes I will have one as a late evening snack to ward off my sweet tooth that I tend to get after dinner.

Mean, Green, Fighting Machine Smoothie
this recipe makes 2 servings

1 frozen banana
1 kiwi
1/2 cup vanilla soy milk
6 frozen black berries
1 1/2 handfuls of fresh baby spinach
1 serving of protein powder (mine was vanilla whey protein today)
water if needed for your preferred consistency

blend all ingredients in a blender.  Note:  I have a Vita-Mix blender which will blend anything...its a monster of a blender!  If you don't have a Vita-Mix or other powerful blender make sure you cut your banana and kiwi up so that they will break down easier.



My favorite smoothie trick?  I buy tons of bananas (usually a bunch every time I go to the store, which is usually 3 times a week)  Once the bananas start to get a little brown I peel them and put them into individual ziploc baggies and pop them in the freezer.  Perfect for making that smoothie (or milk shake if you are my 13 year old son) smooth and thick.  Then you don't have to add any ice, at least I don't ever have to.  And yes, my 3 year old loves these smoothies, even packed full of spinach!  He always asks for his own cup full.

The protein powder I used is shown in the picture.  I went to my local health food store and they have several different types of protein powder in one serving packages.  I bought several so I could find a type of protein that I like.  I'm trying to find a brand that I can't really taste because sometimes I think the powder changes the flavor of my smoothies too much.  I didn't really like this powder.  It gave my smoothie an artificial low-cal sugar substitute after taste.  The other day I did have this same brand of egg protein powder which I could hardly taste in my smoothie.  But I still have about 5 more to try before I make my decision.  Also, I only put protein powder in my smoothies if I am drinking it after my workout.  If I was to make this smoothie just as a late day snack or for breakfast I would replace the powder with about 1/2 cup of low-fat greek yogurt, flavor of your choice.

Angels watching over us

I am grateful for the many angels that were watching over us on Monday, January 16, 2012.  The boys and I were driving back home to Cedar City, UT from Rock Springs, WY, we had been there for the weekend visiting James, who is there for his new job with Halliburton.  When we left Rock Springs around 9:30am the weather wasn't so bad, there were a few flurries coming down but nothing major.  We stopped in Green River, a little town about 10 minutes west of Rock Springs, to get fuel and some hot chocolate.  The roads were clear and the flurries had stopped.  We were all anxious to get home.  Evanston is about 85 miles west of Rock Springs, when we were about in the middle of that drive the weather started getting scary.  It had snowed the night before and the wind was strong, it was blowing the snow across the freeway.  New snow started to fall and I began to get nervous.  I'm not a strong driver when it comes to snow and for some reason my Excursion is really squirmy, even on a dry, clear day.  Connor was starting to get fussy, he hates riding in the car for any amount of time.  I had decided that I would pull over in Evanston and wait the storm out, even if it meant getting a hotel room for the night.  I also knew I needed to get my Excursion into 4-wheel drive so it would handle better in the snow.  I thought I needed to pull over, put the transmission into neutral before I could put it into 4-wheel drive.  I later found out that I could slow down to about 20 mph and switch it over, wish I had known that then!  I wasn't about to pull over on the side of the freeway, the roads were slick and the snow was coming down and there were a ton of 18-wheelers on the road, I wasn't going to put my kids in that kind of danger.  I was waiting for an exit, one that wasn't snow covered.  About 20 miles from Evanston I was following a semi-truck, it seemed a safe place to drive.  We were in the slow lane and up ahead was a snow plow.  The semi decided to move into the fast lane to pass him.  I was a little unsure if that's what I wanted to do but the snow plow was only driving about 20 mph and Connor was in the back screaming so I wanted to get to Evanston.  I waited for a few cars to pass and then moved over into the fast lane.  I passed the snow plow easily and moved back into the slow lane.  I was driving about 40 mph.  I don't really remember much after that except that the Excursion started to slide.  The back end started pushing forward and we were going down the freeway sideways.  The front end of the Excursion hit the snow packed median, then the center guard rail.  The back end passenger side also hit the guard rail and we were facing the wrong direction, the front end of the truck in the fast lane.  As fast as I could I threw the Excursion into 4-wheel drive and moved us from the fast lane into the median.  I would've lost it completely than but I knew I needed to stay calm for the kids.  I started asking if everyone was ok.  The little boys in the back were fine, I don't even know if they knew what was going on.  Bailey was scared, and covered in cold hot chocolate.  The major impact of the crash was on the passenger side of the truck so everything went flying towards him in the passenger seat.  I called 911, which I was lucky to get through to because I had no service.  Then we waited for the police and tow truck to show up.  The crash happened about 11:00am, we didn't get into Evanston, which was only 20 miles away, until 2:30pm.

James was lucky enough to get out of training for the rest of the day and drive down to help me.  We have a friend who lives in Evanston, we had the tow truck take the Excursion to his house and we were going to leave it there until we could figure out what to do with it.  I had no idea how I was going to get home.  We tried to rent a car but there are no rental car services in Evanston.  We thought about going back with James to Rock Springs and staying with him until his day off (Sunday) and having him drive us back home and then him turning right around and coming back to Rock Springs, but that was crazy.

After looking over the Excursion we decided that I would drive it back to Cedar City.  Luckily it still ran well, the front end shakes considerably when you get going 70 but other than that it was drivable.  James put some lights in and duct taped them in place.  The boys and I stayed in a hotel for the night and then got up the next morning and headed home.  I will admit that I was completely panicked for the first hour and a half of the drive home.  The highway between Evanston and Park City is through the mountains so there are a lot of curves and turns.  Every time I saw that the roads were wet my heart would race.  By the time I reached Heber my hands were really sore from holding onto the steering wheel so tightly.  At one point my front tires hit a divot in the road and it pulled the truck to the right and I about had a heart attack thinking I was starting to slide again.  The Excursion is currently parked in the driveway, waiting for me to take it to the body shop for an estimate.  Although I drove it home James told me that I can't drive it around town, with the front end missing like it is the police would probably pull me over.

I am so thankful that none of us were hurt.  The Excursion sits up so high off the ground that I think if that guard rail hadn't been there the chances of us rolling would've been pretty high.  I don't know if being in 4-wheel drive would've helped and I don't know if giving the truck some gas would've pulled me out of the slide.  I do know that I'm scared out of my mind to drive in the snow again.  I see the front end of the Excursion when I go out side and the fear builds up again inside of me, fear that it could've been so much worse and then the gratitude comes because it wasn't.  We all walked away from it without a scratch.  I'm so thankful for the angels that were watching over us that day!

Asher's sleepy potty time

On Saturday (the 7th) James and I went to the movies.  James' parents came up to watch the boys for us.  The movie was a little longer than I had expected and when we got home both boys were fast asleep.  Apparently Connor had been asleep for 2 of the 3 hours we were gone and Asher had just fallen asleep about 15 minutes before we got home.  He had climbed up onto grandpa's lap and went to sleep.  I, of course, had to get a picture.

Isn't that the sweetest thing?  So we were all sitting in the living room talking, Asher still curled up on grandpa's lap asleep.  Now, Asher isn't 100% potty trained.  He still needs a pull-up when he sleeps and usually he doesn't take a nap so I was worried that he might wet his pants on grandpa.  I guess I didn't need to worry too much.  After being home about 30 minutes Asher started to move and wake up.  He climbed down off of grandpa's lap and walked into the kitchen.  He was still really sleepy so I wasn't really sure what he was doing.  He started messing around with the trash can and I asked James to check on him.  LOL! He was standing at the trash can, had his pants pulled down and was peeing! I guess he thought it was the toilet.  So funny!  After he was done he climbed up on my lap and went right back to sleep.  All of us just couldn't help but laugh.

I'm sure one day he will be really upset with me for posting this on our blog.  But it's actually what made me start blogging again.  I don't keep a journal, this blog is as close as it gets.  And I realized that so much is happening in our lives with the boys that we will want to share with them when they are older.  How will I remember it all if I don't write it down somewhere?  This blog is going to be it!  Sorry Asher...but I do love you! :)

Gratitudes from November 2011

I mentioned in my previous post that for the month of November I listed 3 things I was grateful for each day (I might have missed a few here and there).  I posted this little note before starting...


"And just to clarify, I am grateful for my family and friends EVERYDAY, especially my  hubbyJames Sherratt, but my list of gratitudes for the month will be silly and simple. Things that specifically I am grateful for on that day. I just wanted everyone to know that so they don't say to themselves "wow isn't she ever grateful for her husband who is 1200 miles away working constantly and missing his family??? Yes I am!"


So here they are....


November 1
The three things I am grateful for today are:
1. heating systems - on cold days like today I'm grateful that I can just flip a switch to bring heat to my house rather than having to chop firewood and then getting a fire started in a fireplace!
2. baby bouncy chairs - Connor is probably thankful for it too :)
3. my laptop computer - I would never be able to spend time online if I had to sit at a desk, Connor would not allow it :)

November 2
I'm grateful for 
1. Bailey giving Asher a bath, 
2. sleeping children 
and 3. my washer and dryer.


November 3
Today I'm grateful for:  
(1) 100 calorie snacks, today I really needed some kind of little snack and the game allows us to have one 100 calorie snack a day.  I love how a lot of the cookie and cracker makers have packaged some of their tasty treats in 100 calorie bags.  
(2) recipes found online.  Sometimes I get so bored with the things I eat and I love that I can just get online to find something new and exciting, and I especially love when I find a recipe that is yummy, like I did today :) 
(3) Skype. with my hubby working so far from home Skype is a lifesaver.  Asher loves talking to his daddy on the computer and it makes it fun for James to watch the boys play and have fun.  Whoever invented Skype was/is a genius!


November 4
Today I am grateful for: 
(1) the wind finally stopping (at 7:30 tonight!), 
(2) Walmart, even though I secretly hate that place, I'm grateful its there with everything I need under one roof.  With a 3yo and a 5 month old that's a huge benefit! and 
(3) the excitement I am feeling for this holiday season, usually I dread it but this year I am feeling festive already.


November 5
Today I am grateful for: 
(1) Subway sandwiches...they are yummy and healthy and someone makes it for me :) 
(2) my Nook, because I can read it even in the dark when I am putting Connor to sleep, I can't do that with regular books! (3) movie channels on DirecTV, I've been watching them half the day!


November 6
Today I am grateful for: 
(1) free days on my Diet Game, I use my free day as a reward for working so hard the rest of the week and when I thought I wasn't going to get my free day because I wasn't going to make my weight I was really sad.  
(2) end of Daylight Savings Time, glad Bailey won't be going to the bus stop in the complete dark anymore.  Its kinda freaky sending my kid out to the bus when its pitch black out at 7:10 in the morning, and 
(3) my ability to bake/cook, I love doing it and I love trying new things, I'm really glad that most of the stuff I make comes out tasty otherwise I would be discouraged and probably wouldn't follow my passion.


November 7
Today I'm grateful for 
(1) my electric blanket...so warm and cozy. 
(2) cute sweatshirts, my favorite thing to wear during the winter is jeans, sweatshirt and tennis shoes, and 
(3) the fact that my hubby is coming home in 8 days!


November 8
Today I am grateful for 
(1) FedEx, they make it easy and cheap to send James goodies from home, 
(2) my DVR, I'd never get to watch a full episode of anything if it weren't for the ability to record it and watch it once all the kids are asleep! Plus the added bonus of being able to fast forward through commercials, and 
(3) the fact that my hubby is coming home in 7 days :)


November 9
Today I am grateful for 
(1) my ability to be a better person tomorrow than I was today, 
(2) Ibuprofen, and 
(3) the fact that James comes home in 6 days.


November 10
Today I am grateful for 
(1) mommy alone time, holy cow did I need that today, 2 1/2 weeks with no time to yourself will drive anyone crazy and I was really close to being there! 
(2) Iced tea, I love it!  and of course 
(3) the fact that James comes home in 5 days! (woohoo we are down to counting on one hand!)


November 11
Today I am grateful for 
(1) US Veterans for all the sacrifices they go through to fight for our freedom. 
(2) greek yogurt, I never realized how much I would like greek yogurt, wish I had tried it earlier!
 (3) the fact that James will be home soon!


November 12
Today I am grateful for 
(1) my washer and dryer, glad they work hard so I don't have to. 
(2) my Cooking Light cookbooks, so many yummy recipes I want to try and I won't feel guilty about eating them! 
(3) the fact that on Wednesday night at this time James will be home!


November 13
Today I am grateful for 
(1) the patience I managed to have with my kids today.  I'm hoping it will carry over to tomorrow, and the rest of the week for that matter. 
(2) losing weight rather than gaining it, even if it is a small amount and 
(3) the fact that James will be home in about 70 hours (that's a estimate, but I'm sure its pretty darn close to accurate!)


November 14
Today I am grateful for 
(1) Disney movies.  Asher just loves watching Finding Nemo right now and I'm glad that he has movies to watch that I don't have to worry about him learning something bad from. 
 (2) bananas, they are the perfect "on the go" food, and 
(3) the fact that James will be home in 48 hours!


November 15
Today I am grateful for 
(1) both of my little boys being asleep by 8:15 tonight! 
(2) the sunnier, warmer weather we had today that allowed me to get out of the house to run, and of course 
(3) the fact that James will be home in less than 24 hours!


November 16
Today I am grateful for 
(1) James finally coming home, 
(2) cheap hotels in Las Vegas and 
(3) Bailey for helping me with the two kids on the drive down to Las Vegas.


November 17
Today I am grateful for
 (1) being home, last night was miserable at the hotel with a 6 month old who is use to being in his own bed in a very quiet room, 
(2) airplanes and automobiles that make getting from one place to another a lot faster then it use to be, and 
(3) the Excursion making it to Las Vegas and back on one tank of gas, especially since it cost me $125 to almost fill it up!


November 18
Today I am grateful for 
(1) all the birthday wishes I received today. 
(2) my in-laws for watching the boys so we could go see Breaking Dawn part 1 and 
(3) our family doctor, Dr. Allen.


November 19
Today I am grateful for 
(1) being able to celebrate my birthday with my family, 
(2) a delicious fish taco recipe that I crave (even though I'm not a big fan of fish) and 
(3) tasting a grocery store cake and knowing that I can do so much better! LOL


November 20
Today I'm grateful for
 (1) lazy Sundays, 
(2) infant Tylenol because my poor little guy is teething and the Tylenol certainly helps him feel a little better, and 
(3) a clean kitchen, having my kitchen a mess makes me crazy, I can't relax until its clean so I'm grateful that right now its nice and tidy.


November 21
....guess I missed this day....

November 22
....and this day....

November 23
Today I am grateful for 
(1) my Bountiful Basket Hostess pack that I purchased on Saturday, it has everything I need for Thanksgiving dinner including tons of fresh herbs which are next to impossible to find here in Cedar City, 
(2) Music! I love listening to music when I'm cooking, especially country music and 
(3) the Netflix app on my phone which is seriously keeping my 3 year old entertained!


November 24
Today I am grateful for 
(1) my family and friends, 
(2) having food on my table and 
(3) the fact that I'm going to bed and not waiting outside some store in the cold to shop with a bunch of crazy people ;)


November 25

Today I am grateful for 

(1) my kitchen being clean after yesterdays mess, 

(2) leftovers,

(3) the movie Christmas Vacation, which I watch every year after Thanksgiving.

November 26
Today I am grateful for 
(1) Christmas music on Pandora, 
(2) leftover turkey to make turkey pot pies out of...Yummy! 
(3) the butternut squash cake recipe I found online a week before Thanksgiving...that cake is so much better than the pumpkin pie I made, its definatly going in the recipe file to make again.


November 27
Today I am grateful for 
(1) lazy Sundays (yes, again),
(2) all of my boys' smiles and laughter and 
(3) my bed because I'm exhausted...good night all!


November 28
....guess I missed this day....

November 29
Today I'm grateful for
 (1) making it home from Las Vegas with help from Bailey, he is an awesome son and big brother! Always so helpful when I need him. 
(2) the way my heart melts when my little boys snuggled up to me when they are sleepy, and 
(3) for James' job interview on Thursday...keep your fingers crossed!


November 30
Today I am grateful for
 (1) having so many things in my life to be grateful for that I can list 3 things a day for 30 days, 
(2) James making it home safe and sound through a snow storm and 
(3) dinner with the girls.

Another year gone by...

As I grow older the years seem to rush by quicker and quicker.  How can it possibly be 2012 already??? Wasn't it just 2008 and Asher was just a tiny baby?  Ok, Asher was never a tiny baby (born weighing 9lbs 3oz), but you get my point right?  Now we have Connor, who actually was a tiny baby (weighing 6lbs 12oz), born in 2011 and just a real joy to have around.  Since its already 2012 and I hardly did any blogging in 2011 I thought I'd do a month by month recap...that is if I can remember what happened and what we did...I did just say I was growing older!

January 2011
Happy 2011!  Asher, James and I spent the new year in Southern California with my dad and Kimmie.  It was a quiet evening but lots of fun.  I had planned on going back to school for spring semester but after much consideration James and I decided that it would be better for me not to go because we were pretty certain we would be moving once James found a job.  On the 6th we found out that we were having another baby boy.  Sometime around the 5th of January (I'm thinking it was more like the 10th but I'm not sure) we went to Arizona to visit with my mom and Rocky in Kingman and then to Lake Havasu to celebrate my niece Cailin's 10th birthday.  What a great birthday party she had!  At the end of the month we headed back to Southern California because James was on the books for the union and a job came available.  After being down there for a week and looking for a new place to live the job ended up not working out so we headed back to Southern Utah.  It was nice being out of the colder weather for a week though.

February 2011

The first week of February James got a job operating a crane in Minersville.  He had to work 7 days a week and with the drive, about 12 hours a day but the money was awesome!  On the 9th James turned 43, for his birthday we celebrated with his parents and had prime rib at home, with some yummy cupcakes for dessert.  During February I started working on my website for my cakes and cupcakes.  I was doing a lot of baking and taking pictures and probably gaining a lot of weight since I was eating them all!  By the end of the month I had the website up and running, Cake It to the Limit was AWESOME! (now its not up so don't go check it out!)  I also attempted to start potty training Asher this month, he wasn't all that interested.

March 2011
Potty training is still going on.  Asher is getting better at it, thankfully.  Gas prices were at $3.47 a gallon and it seemed like every other day it went up another 5 cents a gallon.  James and I celebrated our 7 year wedding anniversary on the 20th.  James bought me a Cake Cricut, which was so exciting for me.  James really wanted something for his motorcycle so he told me to get him saddlebags for his bike, he LOVED them!  At the end of March Bailey came to visit us for his Spring break.  We spent one of the days at Zion National Park with my dad and Kimmie.  The weather was great while we were there!  The last day of the month we took the boys (Asher, Bailey and Kade) to the new aquatic center which has an indoor swimming pool and kid play area.  Asher loved it.  James' job in Minersville came to an end around the time Bailey came to visit.  Back to looking for another job!

April 2011

On April 2nd our granddaughter Jade turned 2.  We celebrated by going to St George and having a BBQ at the park.  Her birthday officially marked a year since I started making and decorating cakes. (her first birthday was my first one!)  I had such issues with her cake, but luckily she didn't seem to care since the cake had a big Dora doll sitting on top of it!  The first week of April I had two cake (cupcake) orders from my website.  The same weekend I had a 8 year old boys birthday cake to make, it was Super Mario Bros themed and it turned out great!  I also had a 100 cupcakes to make for a baby shower, both events were in St George and of course the weather was awful (snow/rain/hail).  It all turned out really great though, and being 8 months pregnant I can't believe my feet weren't killing me by the time I was done.  By the end of April I was ready to be done with my pregnancy.  I wasn't due until the 27th of May but I was really ready to be done.  I decided to start walking every afternoon until Connor decided to make an appearance.  I guess I must've walked to hard one Friday afternoon because the Saturday before Easter I started to go into labor.  I just didn't realize it until later that day.  We took Asher to two Easter egg hunts that morning and I wasn't feeling well at all.  Afterwards I came home and took a nap, by about 4 I was getting worried and had James take me to the hospital.  They monitored me for a few hours and then decided to give me a few shots to stop the labor.  It was awful, I was shaky and ended up sick.  Sometime in April James started working for a company called Cleary.  They build those big metal barn looking buildings some people have in back of their houses.

May 2011

Mother's Day came and went and I sent out tons of cake pops to lots of wonderful mothers out there.  My c-section was scheduled for the 23rd and I was anxiously waiting for that day.  I was kinda depressed because it was the end of Spring semester for all those students at SUU and I was wishing I was there.  Crazy how we thought we would end up moving and how we ended up staying.  Bailey turned 13 on the 14th.  How insane is it to have a teenager and a new baby in the same month!  Lucky for me my c-section was switched from the 23rd to the 19th, I found this out on the 17th! On the 18th we had this freak snow storm roll through Cedar City.  Very early (4:30) I woke up on the 19th and got ready for the arrival of Connor.  I was at the hospital by 5:15 and in surgery by 7:00am.  Connor was born at 7:20am.  What an amazing day, we were so blessed to have this healthy little guy join our family.  On the 21st Connor and I were headed home from the hospital.  For Memorial day we stayed home with our beautiful new born baby.

June 2011

June was a pretty quiet month for us.  On the 20th Asher turned 3.  We celebrated his birthday with a visit to the park across the street from James' parents house.  We BBQ'd some hamburgers and hotdogs and had a Cars birthday cake.  It was so windy that the party wasn't actually much fun.  But the food and the company were great!  At the end of the month James got offered a really great job down in California.  He was going to be making an insane amount of money and we were really excited to finally get such a great opportunity after 3 years of crappy on and off again jobs.  But of course it turned out to be too-good-to-be-true and back up to Southern Utah we went.  Luckily for James he was able to go back to work for Cleary.  OH! And the last weekend of June (I think) we went over to Panguitch for their annual Hot Air Balloon Festival.  That was a lot of fun.  Sometime during June we also celebrated Sabelle's graduation from high school.  I can't remember the exact date, I blame it on post-pregnancy brain! :)  We also found out this month that Jared and his girlfriend Kimmy are expecting a baby in 2012, our second grandchild.

July 2011

Came home from Southern California just in time to celebrate the 4th of July.  We watched tons of fireworks from our front yard, we pretty much have a 360 degree view and there were fireworks on almost every angle.  Asher, unfortunately, decided that he was done with potty training and went back to needing a diaper (well pull-ups).  He had gotten a really bad cold in June and after that potty training went out the window.  The middle of July Bailey came back for his summer visit.  His visit proved to be pretty exciting, on the 20th he took a huge fall off of a scooter and ended up in the ER, luckily it wasn't anything serious, just tons of scratches and bruises, but it scared me enough to rush him to the hospital.  James was still working for Cleary and constantly out of town.  He was beginning to really dislike this job and constantly looking for something new.  The last week of July my mom, my sister and my niece came to visit us.  It was tons of fun having them here, we didn't do a whole lot but it was great having family here.

August 2011

What an exciting month for us!  Bailey decided that he wanted to move back to Utah instead of living with his dad in Indiana.  I was so excited.  We registered him for school and on the 17th he started going to Canyon View Middle School.  During the summer I found a new addiction to a game called Angry Birds.  I loved it so much I made cookies in the shape of the birds and pigs, Asher loved playing it too.  We even got my mom hooked on it when she was here visiting.  I started reading on my Nook again and found a book called "Skinny Bitches."  I made a post about this earlier in the year, you can read about it here.  The end of the month Bailey went over the Panguitch to hang out with Papa Rick (my dad) for the ATV Rally.  He had a great time Jeeping, fishing and just hanging out.

September 2011

On the 3rd Sabelle turned 18 and on the 10th Sabelle and Chad were married.  It was a lovely wedding held at a church in St George.  I made the wedding cake and stressed about it for several days before, wondering if I would get it done with a newborn who was so demanding.  Lucky for me James wasn't working that week and was able to really help me get it done by watching Connor and also by helping me roll fondant when Connor was sleeping.  I could not have gotten it down without his help!  September was a busy month for gardening too.  James' parents were bringing me buckets of tomatoes every other day it seemed like.  I made salsa, marinara sauce, tomato soup...all of which were YUMMY!  The middle of September my dad and Kim came up for a visit.  Kimmie took some wonderful family pictures for us.  Connor started eating rice cereal this month but I don't think he tummy liked it very much so I stopped feeding it to him for a few more weeks.  On the 27th James left to go work in North Dakota.  You can see a blog about that here.

October 2011

The first week of October brought our first snow of the fall/winter season.  That was really upsetting to me because I had started running in September and now couldn't do it anymore due to the weather.  Well I could do it on my treadmill but I have a strong dislike for running on my treadmill.  Finally, after 3 months of not being potty trained, Asher was back to using the potty again.  I was so darn excited.  The whole month James was up in North Dakota.  Halloween was pretty low-key for us.  Asher dressed up as the pumpkin he was suppose to be last year but got sick and never got to wear.  Connor was a cute little chicken (same costume Asher used his first halloween) and Bailey was a scary guy from a movie.  Bailey took Asher trick or treating for about 20 minutes before Asher was done.  My mom also came back to visit us around the 19th of October, she stayed for a week and it was awesome having her around to help out.

November 2011

Ahhh...my favorite month, and its not because its my birthday month, although that does help.  Its my favorite month because its my favorite season and my favorite holiday.  Jadeth turned 24 on the 8th.  James came home from North Dakota on the 16th, just in time to celebrate my 36th birthday on the 18th.  Thanksgiving was pretty mellow for us compared to normal.  None of my family came up like they usually do.  In fact, it was just the 5 of us and then James' parents.  James tried grilling a turkey this year and it was really tasty.  I decided to post on Facebook 3 things I was grateful for every day durning the month of November.  I'll have to make a separate post on this blog of all of those so I remember them years from now.  Went to see the 4th Twilight movie (Breaking Dawn part 1) on the 19th.  Connor also turned 6 months old on the 19th.  On the 29th James flew back up to North Dakota and then turned right around and drove back home because of a job interview a couple of days later with the City of Santa Clara, which turned out to be a bad idea.  Connor got his first tooth on the 14th and he really started rolling around on the floor this month.  He could go clear across the living room floor in just 3.4 seconds! LOL

December 2011

The first day of December brought a huge snow storm to Cedar City.  It was crazy because it was so windy during it that the backyard got around 8" of snow and the front got about 2".  Connor got his second tooth around the 9th.  Our Christmas tree, that we bought from Home Depot right after Thanksgiving was pretty much dead by the 10th.  Gas prices finally dropped below $3 a gallon and continued to drop the entire month.  Christmas was fun.  Christmas Eve we had dinner with our friends the Wellers, like we have for 3 Christmases now.  James and I woke the kids up around 7:30 to see what Santa had brought.  Bailey got a TV and a remote control helicopter.  Asher got a motorized Jeep (that he still hasn't gotten into) and also a remote control helicopter.  Connor got some books and a fun walking toy.  I decided to change things up a little this Christmas and hid a present for James, Bailey and Asher and then sent the on a scavenger hunt throughout the house to find them.  I really enjoyed it :)  For Christmas I got these really awesome cupcake shoes...so cute!  Christmas evening we had a house full.  All the kids and their significant others, James' parents and my dad came for dinner.  We of course had prime rib again this year because last year it was so tasty.  We played Apples 2 Apples and a fun game Josten taught us a year or so ago that we call the wolf game after dinner.  Every one left around 9:30.  It was a great day.  New Years Eve was quiet.  The Wellers, Josten and James' parents came over for dinner and a little bowling on the Wii, James' parents stayed until midnight and then we all went to bed.  Bailey had a friend, Eric, over and they had a bon fire in the backyard...great way to get rid of all those boxes from Christmas and the dead Christmas tree that apparently went up in flames really quickly.  Jared turned 21 on the 29th and Josten turned 22 on the 31st.  Jared and Kimmy got engaged on Christmas morning and Jadeth and his girlfriend Mandy got engaged New Years Eve.  And the biggest news of December...around the middle of the month James had a job interview with Halliburton and found out at the end of the month that he was hired and would be starting his new job in Rock Springs, WY on January 6th (which is after this post).

Looks like 2012 is going to be an exciting year for us!