Labor Day Weekend

So to celebrate the end of a really good, fun Summer we wanted to have one more bang.  So we had another weekend with daily events.  We did not go camping this year but instead had a camp out on Friday night in Josh and Stacy's backyard.  I forgot my camera so Stacy should be blogging about the convenient campout.  It was really fun although a little chillier than I expected.   Sunday we celebrated Whitney's birthday a few days early. 

Whitney requested Strawberry Cake.  I used the recipe that Shelley blogged on Valentines Day.  My frosting ended up a little chunkier with the strawberry bits.  It was very moist and tasty

We had a nice Sunday Dinner after we all got home from our various church meetings.   Whitney even got her very own treasure hunt at her 26th birthday party courtesy of Maren.  I bet she did not plan on that happening.   

Kelsie came home for the weekend and brought her new pet.  I am not sure what she was thinking but she and her roommate bought a little bunny.  Stacy is worried that she will soon be owning said bunny.  His name is Shenanigans.  I think Kelsie has started her first 2 weeks with a big college shenanigan. 

Sunday evening we did a bit of Dance 2 Wii game or whatever it is called.  What an enjoyable workout.  It makes me kind of want to get a Wii so I could buy it. 

Then on Monday Stacy decided we should picnic at Silver Lake.  It is located at Brighton.  So we drove up the canyon with about half of Salt Lake Valley to spend a few hours in the mountains.  We took homemade fried chicken and potato salad and other picnic fixings.  It reminded me of the days of our Huntington Canyon picnics where Mom would fry up chicken for us.  It was fun to do.  I have not done fried chicken for years.  Jonas said he loved it. 

Essie found her a bag of chips and got comfy. 

We had to wait for a picnic table to open up because it was so crowded.  This was the wavy table next to our normal table. 

Whitney brought along a friend named Helaman.  I am not sure what he thought of our picnic but he seemed to enjoy himself. 

Jonas and Gabe take their posing very seriously as you can tell.

There is a boardwalk around Silver Lake that goes all around the lake.  It is about a mile walk.   A few of the family members decided it would be nice to run a race around the lake.  This was the starting line.  I believe Noah won the race. 

The rest of us decided to take a leisure walk around the lake so we could take nice pretty pictures of the scenery.  Or that was my excuse for not running.  That and I was lame for the weekend due to a foot wart removal incident gone bad.  At least it was a better excuse than Josh's shower slipping, knee twisting incident that left him also lame and unable to attend the picnic.  He missed out.  Here is the marshy area of the lake.

It does look like a silver lake does it not?

We stopped on the trail for a few photo ops.   When the racers took off, Jonas, Gabe and Maren took off after them.   We did not see them again for sometime.  We were a little concerned but just kept on walking since the trail is in a circle we thought if there was an issue we would run into them. 

Because it has been such a wet year it is still amazingly green.  This does not look like Utah does it.  Well it is.

Then we saw a small moose.  I had to have Les take this picture because she is taller than me and really zoom in.  It was after we saw the moose that I heard a little high pitched voice and knew that we had finally run into Maren.  Apparently Jonas had asked Arden to take Maren off of his hands so he could run fast with Gabe.  Good thing Jonas didn't just leave her behind and good thing Arden was around to help out.

I guess Maren also takes her posing seriously.  She wanted to get a picture on this big rock because she had seen other children doing it. 

So serious.

Not so serious.

Esme was so dirty that she had dirt streaks from her tear tracks down her face.  Not sure what she was so upset about.

But she was not sad for long. 

After the walk around the lake we were rewarded with Rebecca's yummy chocolate zuchinni cake and mini candy bars.  We had to eat them out of the back of the van because our picnic table was being used by someone else at that time. 

I think everyone enjoyed the day.  It was a very fun Labor Day weekend and was so nice to have an extra day off of work.  I only work 2 days this week because I am heading TO  IDAHO TO SEE AN AMAZING MISSIONARY THAT I HAVE NOT SEEN FOR 2 YEARS!!!  Hope to see many of you there.  It is going to be great!

Happy Birthday A.A.

It has been many years since I celebrated your birthday with you.  Hope you have a wonderful birthday with a delicious meal and hopefully a yummy cake and lots of good company.  Thinking of you a half a country away.  Hope all is going well with the Illinois folks.  I love this time of year, don't you? 

Blast From the Past

I wanted to share a blast from the past but I want to start with something different.  So I will get to that blast from the past in the near future. 

So I have had annoying things growing on the other side of my back fence and I don't like how it looks especially if those things are annoying Chinese Elm trees.  Whitney and I snuck into the neighbors yard last year and cut down the beginnings of the elm tree.  Then of course it came back with a vengeance this year.  So I was talking with Hannah and Jonas while we ate a little dinner on the back patio and we decided we would tackle it again this year.  Hannah did not want to go around the block and enter that way.  Instead she wanted to climb the fence.  So I helped the kids over the back fence to trespass into the neighbors yard.  We only had 2 crotch-a-doodle incidents, when Jonas became high centered on the top of the fence both going over and coming back.  So they worked on it for about 30 minutes under my direction from the other side of the fence atop some stacked lawn chairs.  They then threw the limbs over into my yard..

Good for nothing Chinese Elms.  I thought I was done with the elm nightmare ever since I moved from the old house.  They were the bane of my existence there. 

Hannah went out to take some pictures of the work we had done last night and I guess the quail in the neighborhood were gathered for a meeting on my back fence.  I have never seen so many grown quail all together at once.  I am sure that Jim has, but I have not.  SLC is full of quail this year.  Earlier in the Summer I saw a family of quail crossing the road.  Dad, then Mom and then about 6 or 7 babies all following in single file behind them.  The babies were about 2 inches high.  I had never seen something that small run so fast.  It was one of the cutest things I have ever seen.  And that is coming from a non-bird lover.

Here are a few latecomers.  I am wondering what the quail meeting was about and what they needed to discuss.   Probably something like, " It's about time someone took care of that crummy, annoying Chinese Elm tree."

The next comment by the birds went something like this..." The Rose of Sharon is looking ever so nice though"

This morning we made some lovely pancakes.  I think my pancakes are delicious.  Actually they are Betty Crocker's buttermilk pancakes with a splash of vanilla and a little water.  I love them with my mix and match of syrups.  I love Saturday mornings because I get to make them.  I have been especially obsessed eating them with....

This lovely coconut syrup that I have flown in from Hawaii.  Otherwise known as buying it on Ebay.

This afternoon I was invited to John and Rebecca's Stake Music Workshop.  I have never been to anything like this.  It was fantastic.  I took the chorister and choir classes.  They were given by a lovely instructor that Rebecca has known for years.  I learned a few things that I can hopefully retain and use.    I learned a new word  "Ictus".  We sang a beautiful song that I hope to be able to sing with a few other family members in the near future and then there was a little organ recital at the end with performances by Clara, the piano teacher to Arden and Gabe and then the sort of world famous Seth Bott.  I just sat and watched his feet as he played.  I really enjoyed it and am glad that I took the time to go. 

Then I came home to start on dinner.  This is were the Blast from the Past comes into play.  Remember the restaurant The Italian Place in Price and other various places.  Well as a child I had my first taste of the Steak and Everything sandwich and I was hooked.  SLC used to have one of their restaurants but it went out of business.  I have eaten at the one in Orem but I recently found out that there are others in Utah County.  I did some research to try and find a similar recipe because I did not want to have to drive 40-50 minutes to get my fix.  Well I found one on Pioneer Woman and I went ahead and tried it tonight and it was delicious.  Very messy, but very delicious.   

You can find it on her site and search for steak sandwich or MM sandwich PW style.  I did not use all of the butter she did, oh and I added tomatoes like they do at The Italian Place.   I also did a few Yukon Gold oven fries. I did them with olive oil, salt and pepper at 425 for 15 mins then turn them over and cook for another 15 minutes.   It was just as good as any restaurant could do or probably better and much more healthy.  

It took me back to the first time I had the Steak and Everything Sandwich from The Italian Place at some sort of evening picnic were were having at  the park in Price.  Do any of you remember that?  You know that I have a head for good food memories and a belly for good food. 

What Happened in August?

It has been awhile since I blogged.  August has been fun with lots of things to keep me busy.  I thought I would share some of them. 

Yes.  I went to the Utah Opera Festival again.  It has sort of become my August thing.  We had a bigger crowd that went this year.  We enjoyed watching "South Pacific" and "Oliver".  Emil De Beck had quite the voice.  Shelley was ready to swoon.  He was really amazing.  And then the little Oliver was very sweet and precious with his little voice.  He had the perfect little accent, as if he was from London.

Hannah enjoying the Logan Chrystal Inn. 

We made our ceremonial trip to The Bluebird.  Does anyone recognize this concoction?  Yes, it is a Lime Freeze.  They are yummy.  I hear that Banner's can revile what they serve at the Bluebird though.

We sat at the lunch counter.  I have not done that for years.  I ran into one of my old friends and we had a little "catch-up" right there in the middle of everything.

Slurrpy, slurp slurp!

I was invited to go to the Salt Lake County Fair with Josh's family.  They had a car show going on the night that we were there.  Cars of every color and make.  The kids enjoyed standing by their favorite car to have their picture taken.

Hannah liken the sweet ride of a Corvette.

Not sure what this is.  I should have looked closer.

This one was my favorite.  All of the owners were sitting quite close to their cars to make sure nothing happened with little or big hands.

This one also caught my eye.  Wouldn't it be fun to have an old souped-up car.

Then we went in to see the animals, exhibits, rides, etc.  Then my camera died.  So no pictures or the rest of the night.  We saw and touched bunnies, pigs, sheep, cows, snakes, and chickens and probably more than that.    The kids enjoyed riding some of the typical fair rides.  Then we went in and saw the garden vegetables, canning and quilts.  There were some nice quilts but you definately see nicer ones at the State Fair.  I have decided that I need to enter something into the County Fair.  I am thinking I would start with canning and do the famous Raspberry Rhubarb Syup.  I think it is worthy of a blue ribbon. 

A few weeks back Jonas came to me and said.  "Wouldn't it be cool if I had a laser pointer?'  We then talked about the dangers of pointing them in someones eyes, etc.  He said the typical thing to me, "Maybe you could pay me to do things around your house and you could buy one for me."   We got on Ebay and saw one for $2.00 that would ship from China.  So I bought it and told him that he had to earn it by helping me clean my garage and then he could have it.   The garage has needed a good clean for a few years.  It has been on the "To Do List" for months.  So last week his laser pointer showed up and I new I could get some cheap labor and get the thing done.  Hannah joined us for the event.  Good thing she did or he would not have earned it.  Hannah organized while Jonas swept and I hauled things out.  We made a trip to D.I and the end result was great.

 

The 2 cars fit nicely and everything is in it's assigned place that Hannah gave it.  She really is an amazingly hard worker.  And she still finds cleaning at my house exciting.  I really appreciate her help.

This past week we had a Relief Society Meeting all about cupcakes.  We learned handy tips and did tasters table and then decorated these cute apple cupcakes.  I really prefer things to taste good instead of being all gussied up but it was fun to make it.  I never tried a bite.  I left that up to Leah and Lily.

Yes, Leah and Lily came for a visit.  Oh yah, and Morgan and Andrew were there too.  They were in town for Andrew's cousins wedding and stayed with me for a few days.  I fed Leah and Lily cupcakes  and Razzles for breakfast.  That is what happens when their mom and dad stay in bed and Sara lets them eat what they want.  I did slip in a little banana as well.

We were together for dinner on Friday night and Lily got a hold of the little pink twangy guitar.  She was loving it.  Tapping her feet, wiggling her hips and pretending to strum it.  We were entertained.

Then I got very brave and invited Maren and Esme over for a sleep over to be with their cousins.  I made a big geomatt bed and put on a movie and let them just hang out.  The movie might have been a mistake.  I thought they would be so tired that they would fall right to sleep.  No they had to watch all of the 3 Little Pigs.  I think it was 11:30 before they were all asleep.  It was Esme's first sleep over.  She did quite well until today when it was dicovered that she was sleep deprived from her late night.  She was invited to go home with her Dad this afternoon.

Can you guess who is who?

Here they are glued to the tube.

Then before I knew it Maren was waking me up and saying she was ready for her big breakfast. 

On the menu:  Fresh Huckleberry Muffins and Egg Scramble.

Morgan had brought me down some huckleberries.  I had wanted to make homemade blueberry muffins but I switched it up and did Huckleberry ones instead.  Delicious.  I told Morgan I would put the recipe up so here goes. 

Any Fruit Muffins

1 cup dry oatmeal

1 cup of milk

1/2 cup of brown sugar

1/3 cup of vegetable oil

1 T. orange zest.   (which I did not have)

1 egg

1 cup flour

1 1/2 t. baking powder

1/4 t. baking soda

1/4 t. cinnamon

fresh berries or fruit

Mix all of the above ingredients  except the berries.  Do not over stir.   Then spoon muffin tin half full then sprinkle berries in then add some more batter and then sprinkle berries on top.  We used a fair amount of huckleberries and it was just right.  Bake at 425 for 15-20 min. depending on your oven.  You can dust with powdered sugar.  We did not do that though.  They were yummy.  Not too sweet which really helped us taste the berry flavor.  For a muffin I think they were pretty healthful.

Speaking of projects.  I bought a shelf a few weeks back and painted it and needed to get it up on the front room wall above the couch.  Andrew helped me get it accomplished.  I am so glad that he loves helping me get projects done.  That's what he says anyway.    Thanks Andrew.

The little girls were out in the front yard in their jammies helping me pull weeds this morning.  I noticed that Lily didn't pull the flowers and seemed to know which ones were weeds.  It was pretty amazing.  Has someone started her early on the gardening skills or is it just genetics.   I will have to ponder that one.  Well anyway after pulling weeds in the sun they were in need of refreshment and asked for Otter Pops.  I told them they had to eat them in the kitchen and this is what they came up with.  They figured as long as the pops were over the kitchen floor that counted.  Little stinkers.

I just said goodbye to Kelsie.  She is making the big move to Odgen today.  Starting college is always a big thing.  So to all of you who are starting college or high school or middle school or just going back to school or whatever,  have a great first week of school and know that Auntie Sara loves you all.