Sarah's tree thoughts

NO! I WONT LET YOU PUT MY PAGAMAS ON!!! -aspen

2012-02-01T18:09:00.001-05:00

NO! I WONT LET YOU PUT MY PAGAMAS ON!!! -aspen

Cedar's game was going to start an hour late today so Aspen and I took Linden ov

2012-01-28T14:18:00.001-05:00

Cedar's game was going to start an hour late today so Aspen and I took Linden over to the mall to wait it out. It was a really crowded day at the play place. Good thing Linden has such a great big sister to watch out for him!

Have I told you how much Linden likes wheels? I don't know why the obsession bu

2012-01-27T10:18:00.001-05:00

Have I told you how much Linden likes wheels? I don't know why the obsession, but if it has wheels on it, he's after it! We were at Cedar's game last night and Linden discoveres that the big garbage can had wheels! What fun! He pushed it around until I wouldn't let him any more. He will crawl around "pushing" any of his wheeled toys and playing trucks is his favorite game!

More interesting fact about my children: Aspen learned how to extract DNA from a banana! (ask her, she'll tell you how. She actually did it!)
Cedar can jump HIGH! We watch his basketball games and when the ball is up, out of no where you see this head and arms rise up above everyone else. It's amazing.
And did you know Olive has turned into some sort of super reader? Watch out Aspen and Cedar, your little sister is coming right up!
Another fun fact! Jonathon signed up to coach Olive's soccer team in the spring. We've been musing (is that the right word?) about wheat kind of a coach he will be. A fantastic one!

It won't be long until he's on his own!

2012-01-25T13:15:00.001-05:00

It won't be long until he's on his own!

Little St. Nick!

2012-01-24T22:50:00.010-05:00

It's a little late, but here's our family Christmas production.
For best results, watch full screen and click on the gear symbol to select full HD (720p) quality.

And he's off!

2012-01-21T09:25:00.001-05:00

And he's off!

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My little helper...

2012-01-20T11:14:00.001-05:00

My little helper...

2012-01-19T11:11:00.002-05:00

Yesterday when Jonathon read my post he said, "You forgot to say what your resolutions are!" It took a long time to convince him that I really just wanted to remember the quote. I wasn't asking for help with my resolutions.

This year I am keeping resolutions VERY simple. I have one resolution. I am not sharing it.

What I liked so much about that quote was it focused on the PURPOSE of the resolution, not the resolution itself. This year my goal is VERY doable. In fact, probably one of the reasons I am keeping it to myself is because it is likely laughably easy, you might think I have no ambition. I do, (have ambition, I think) I just feel like I would really like to look back at this year, when December 31st comes around and see my resolution fulfilled, and then look closer and see if the PURPOSE of that one resolution has been engraven in my being.

Over the years I have had MANY resolutions. Many of them are (were) on a 30 year run. (Keep my room clean.) and some of them were just things I thought would be fun, or more likely, I thought they were things I should be doing. (Write in my journal every day.) These were all good, though not many of them actually got done, and even fewer were remembered as far away as February.

I am a believer in goals. Setting them and working towards them. There is something magical in saying this is what I want to do, this is how I'm going to do it and then working really hard to get it done. There's a focus. But when there's a purpose, the work, though hard, is put into perspective.

So here's to 2012. Easy or hard, whatever your goals, may you find purpose!

Resolutions

2012-01-18T12:01:00.001-05:00

As we reflect on the value of resolving to do better, let us determine to discipline ourselves to carefully select the resoltuions we make, to consider the purpose for making them, and finally to make commitments for keeping them and not letting any obstacle stop us. Let us remind ourselves at the beginning of each day that we can keep a resolution just for that day. N. Eldon Tanner

I like this and don't want to forget it. I am sharing it with you. Will you help me remember?

High chairs are for eating right?

2012-01-17T10:29:00.001-05:00

High chairs are for eating, right?

Snow Day

2012-01-13T08:05:00.003-05:00

Aspen here, just to tell you about our snow day. Our school (and more than 5 others) was canceled because of this:

Crazy, right?!?

Post Edit: Hold on...

Snow's starting to stick...

You can almost see it in this picture but Linden has one very big tooth on top

2012-01-11T13:11:00.001-05:00

You can almost see it in this picture, but Linden has one very big tooth on top and an equally big tooth working its way out right next to it. Ouch! I also gave him a little trim since his hair was getting in his eyes! Such a big boy!

Linden's first snow. He wasn't too excited about all the layers... Sarah

2012-01-02T18:24:00.001-05:00

Linden's first snow. He wasn't too excited about all the layers...
*Sarah *

The first snow of the year! We are all wondering if there will be school tomorro

2012-01-02T18:17:00.001-05:00

The first snow of the year! We are all wondering if there will be school tomorrow.
*Sarah *

Making pizza at the zoo play place! Sarah

2011-12-30T14:13:00.001-05:00

Making pizza at the zoo play place!
*Sarah *

Visiting the Oak Ridge children's museum. Sarah

2011-12-28T12:29:00.001-05:00

Visiting the Oak Ridge children's museum.
*Sarah *

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T16:52:00.000-05:00

Here's a little blast from the past!

This is OUR grahm cracker nativity set-its perfect!!! aspen

2011-12-19T18:46:00.001-05:00

This is OUR grahm cracker nativity set-its perfect!!!
*aspen*

Can You Find The Difference?

2011-12-18T16:41:00.005-05:00

Aspen here! My dad is teaching me how to modify these pictures to make them different! Try these:(I think 11 changes??)

Day 3. 3 smiling snowmen. They were sent on a scavenger hunt to find them. It wa

2011-12-16T14:21:00.001-05:00

Day 3.
3 smiling snowmen. They were sent on a scavenger hunt to find them. It was funny to see who "got" which clue. Hmm... I wonder what tomorrow will bring!
*Sarah *

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Thanks to netflix we don't have to wait for the classics to show on tv. (good th

2011-12-15T13:46:00.001-05:00

Thanks to netflix we don't have to wait for the classics to show on tv. (good thing since we canceled cable!)
*Sarah *

It is 12 days till Christmas! My kids have been religiously following Julies Chr

2011-12-14T14:44:00.001-05:00

It is 12 days till Christmas! My kids have been religiously following Julies Christmas count down so I thought we would do a slightly watered down version. The 12 days of Christmas has begun. If you do a very careful singing, it even mostly goes with the tune!
*Sarah *

Nativity Reenactment

2011-12-13T20:28:00.002-05:00

Here is our Nativity re-enactment this year:

For her birthday we asked Olive if ashe wanted to have a birthday party or do so

2011-12-12T18:57:00.001-05:00

For her birthday we asked Olive if ashe wanted to have a birthday party or do something special as a family. She said she wanted to go to Golden Corral for the chocolate fountain! Happy birthday Olive!
*Sarah *

How to make a six sided snowflake

2011-12-11T16:38:00.006-05:00

Its Aspen, here to show you a really simple and easy way to make a six sided snowflake. Grinch, I highly recommend this.

First, you start out with a plain piece of paper

then fold a corner over

and cut the excess off

and fold it in half again.

This is the hard part: fold to form a "half a kite"

then fold the rest over

and cut AT AN ANGLE!

Then you cat cut random cuts like this

and end up with this!

Note: the smaller, the more cool and realistic!

FWD:Aspen and Cedar getting ready for their piano recital. Sarah

2011-12-04T13:54:00.001-05:00

Aspen and Cedar getting ready for their piano recital.
*Sarah *

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This was taken yesterday. Need I say more? (except that it's finally moving in

2011-11-30T12:52:00.001-05:00

This was taken yesterday. Need I say more? (except that it's finally moving in the right direction!)
*Sarah *

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Cedar waiting to compete in the spelling bee. I am pretty sure that my kids didn

2011-11-30T12:50:00.001-05:00

Cedar waiting to compete in the spelling bee. I am pretty sure that my kids didn't inherit the spelling gene from me. It is so fun to watch them excell at something I am so bad at. Cedar won his class bee and was representing them in the school bee. Aspen was runner up for her class. (side note: the boy who won her class bee also won the school bee.)

I know my kids didn't get it from me, but Aspen and Cedar both did really well in their class spelling bees.
*Sarah *

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Newspaper People - Round 2

2011-11-27T16:44:00.004-05:00

Best Use of Thanksgiving Day Ads

2011-11-25T23:18:00.003-05:00

The kids had fun with all the Thanksgiving day ads today:

Happy Thanksgiving! This year Danny came. We bbq-ed the turkey and it was beauti

2011-11-24T20:41:00.001-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving! This year Danny came. We bbq-ed the turkey and it was beautiful and delicious. Then Danny took us to see the Muppets and we laughed through the show. Now we are finishing off the day with a roaring game of Monopoly. (it looks like Jonathon and I are getting beat soundly. I don't know who is winning, Olive is making a real run for it. Aspen is right in there and Cedar and Danny are haning tuff. 16 min to go and time will only tell!
*Sarah *

OLIVE IS THANKFUL FOR TEETH! She lost her first tooth today. (It's a good thing

2011-11-23T13:51:00.001-05:00

OLIVE IS THANKFUL FOR TEETH! She lost her first tooth today. (It's a good thing too, the adult tooth was coming in behind it!)
*Sarah *

It's the Lindon raptor. He crawls around my house roaring and trilling. He will

2011-11-21T10:27:00.001-05:00

It's the Lindon raptor. He crawls around my house roaring and trilling. He will even attack!
*Sarah *

Mom's blog isn't updating. Head

2011-11-08T20:40:00.001-05:00

Mom's blog isn't updating. Head over there to see a Wisconsin slideshow!
*Sarah *

Give me candy and no one gets hurt! It's been a week and we gave the kids each

2011-11-07T15:57:00.001-05:00

Give me candy and no one gets hurt!

It's been a week and we gave the kids each a bag to put their favorite candy from trick or treating into it. No one but them can have this candy. The rest went into the giant pumpkin. This is family candy and anyone can choose from it. (I'll try the diet again after Easter...)
*Sarah *

Dear Alex Thank you for asking to see Linden in his costume. If you hadn't have

2011-11-07T11:14:00.001-05:00

Dear Alex,
Thank you for asking to see Linden in his costume. If you hadn't have asked I might never have gotten a picture of him where you can see his costume. He wore his bat costume to our trunk or treat, but can you believe it? I didn't take ANY pictures of the trunk or treat. I almost didn't take him trick or treating because he had a stuffy nose. I even tried to bribe Aspen, Cedar and Olive with a movie and bag of candy from the store. (they didn't go for that at all!)

When we put Linden in his costume he just wanted to roll over and crawl away. I got a few pictures of his back! We tried again today and finally got one! He wasn't happy at first, but a trip outside to the swings fixed that. He loves to swing!

thanks for letting us come and visit you! We miss you already! Next time we see you Linden will be able to play more. Maybe he'll even be able to go down the hurricain with you some day!

We love you Alex!
*Sarah *

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Sarah

2011-11-07T11:00:00.001-05:00

*Sarah *

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Olive with the finishing touches. Sarah

2011-11-04T18:18:00.001-04:00

Olive with the finishing touches.
*Sarah *

Aspen helping jonathon make a leaf maze. Sarah

2011-11-04T18:16:00.001-04:00

Aspen helping jonathon make a leaf maze.
*Sarah *

I guess as long as this is what he's driving I guess I'm ok with him learning to

2011-11-04T18:10:00.001-04:00

I guess as long as this is what he's driving I guess I'm ok with him learning to drive.
*Sarah *

I turned around and linden had pulled himself up to standing all by himself! Oh

2011-11-04T14:40:00.001-04:00

I turned around and linden had pulled himself up to standing all by himself! Oh wow! He's getting so big!
*Sarah *

The gang ready to go. Sarah

2011-10-31T18:12:00.001-04:00

The gang ready to go.
*Sarah *

Happy birthday Aspen! I can't believe your 11! Sarah

2011-10-30T19:02:00.001-04:00

Happy birthday Aspen! I can't believe your 11!
*Sarah *

Dark chocolate cake with dark chocolate frosting with chocolate chips. Cake made

2011-10-30T18:09:00.001-04:00

Dark chocolate cake with dark chocolate frosting with chocolate chips. Cake made to order for the birthday girl.
*Sarah *

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Making lemonaid! Sarah

2011-10-30T18:01:00.001-04:00

Making lemonaid!
*Sarah *

The trunk or treat haul. They have already traded made castles and buildings an

2011-10-30T10:26:00.001-04:00

The trunk or treat haul.
They have already traded, made castles and buildings and now they are writing down everything they got. They did eat some too, but it is so much fun just to play with your food!
*Sarah *

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Tilt your head... The Linden trees on Linden tree lane! Sarah

2011-10-27T11:13:00.000-04:00

Tilt your head...
The Linden trees on Linden tree lane!
*Sarah *

Sarah

2011-10-27T11:12:00.001-04:00

*Sarah *

Watching Harry Potter on the road!

2011-10-24T13:15:00.001-04:00

Watching Harry Potter on the road!

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Playing on the beach of Lake Michigan.

2011-10-23T17:58:00.001-04:00

Playing on the beach of Lake Michigan.

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Chase the cat! Linden loves the cat. She drives us crazy sometimes but she's

2011-10-19T16:15:00.001-04:00

Chase the cat!

Linden loves the cat. She drives us crazy sometimes, but she's amazingly patient with Linden. He chases her all over and sometimes she even lets him catch her. Linden sometimes pulls her hair or tail and she never scratched him. (yet!) } think she was one of his main motivations to start moving early!
*Sarah *

Olive made this cute sign for our front door. She makes some of the cutest pictu

2011-10-19T14:39:00.001-04:00

Olive made this cute sign for our front door. She makes some of the cutest pictures!
*Sarah *

Waiting for shots at the 6 month visit. He is 16.1 lbs and 28in tall! Sarah

2011-10-18T09:16:00.001-04:00

Waiting for shots at the 6 month visit. He is 16.1 lbs and 28in tall!
*Sarah *

Cedar working on his tricks. Sarah

2011-10-17T18:47:00.001-04:00

Cedar working on his tricks.
*Sarah *

Olive working on her cartwheels! Sarah

2011-10-17T18:34:00.001-04:00

Olive working on her cartwheels!
*Sarah *

Guess who started reading Harry Potter? Sarah

2011-10-14T17:18:00.001-04:00

Guess who started reading Harry Potter?
*Sarah *

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I tried. I really tried to make cut out sugar cookies. The problem is that I was

2011-10-14T16:22:00.000-04:00

I tried. I really tried to make cut out sugar cookies. The problem is that I was born without the "cut out cookie" gene. Seriously, I have never been good at sugar cookies. I uaually just buy the cookie dough in a tube at the store and roll it out. It usually burns. Today I made a much raved about recipe from online. But they forgot to mention that even if it's a great recipe, if you don't have "the gene" you will fail. And I did. Mostly. The dough was good. I refrigerated it all morning and went to roll it out. No luck. It stuck to everything. I tried again with a little more flower, and it still stuck. That's when I gave up ad dropped them right from the counter on to the pan. the taste good and we made the frosting that you paint on. The kids are having a ball and Linden is mostly cooperating.
*Sarah *

Movin' movin' movin! Sarah

2011-10-13T17:35:00.001-04:00

Movin' movin' movin!
*Sarah *

Someone is getting all to mobile! The wood floor slows him down quite a bit but

2011-10-12T13:19:00.001-04:00

Someone is getting all to mobile! The wood floor slows him down quite a bit, but he is getting better and better each day. He is just like the rest of the kids. He LOVES books. Nothing can make him move faster (except cheap old cups...) one day he might even be interested in something other than how they taste!
*Sarah *

What do you do on Sundsy mornings berfore church. Part 2. I looked up from mu b

2011-10-09T10:25:00.001-04:00

What do you do on Sundsy mornings berfore church. Part 2.

I looked up from mu book to find a sea of white. Thankfully it wasn't the white that so many of you had this week. Ours was of the indoor, kid made variety. Cedar and Olive must be wishing for the real cold white stuff because the spent the morning making paper snow flakes. Cedar made a 4 headed minion snow flake and Olive many many large minion snow flakes.
*Sarah *

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Today's activities are a 'reward day.' We did an incentive jar with dimes where

2011-10-08T12:54:00.001-04:00

Today's activities are a "reward day." We did an incentive jar with dimes where the kids would loose money (it doesn't pay to fight.) when they fought. As a family we decided what activity we could afford using the money that was left. The kids decided they wanted to go to Knoxville to the $2 movies and see cars 2. They each got $1 to spend on candy at walgreens and we got pizza to eat at the park that is on the way.
*Sarah *

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Going for a walk is hard work! Sarah

2011-10-07T19:05:00.001-04:00

Going for a walk is hard work!
*Sarah *

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We went on a hike between sessions of conference. Linden is a great little hiker

2011-10-02T16:27:00.001-04:00

We went on a hike between sessions of conference. Linden is a great little hiker and the other kids were troopers. It was a beautiful day here. Obviously my kids are from the south, they think the mid 60's is cold and got out the cold weather gear.
*Sarah *

Gotta love the swing! (even if it's cold!) Sarah

2011-10-01T14:52:00.001-04:00

Gotta love the swing! (even if it's cold!)
*Sarah *

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Linden is working on getting up on his hands and knees. (though most of the time

2011-09-30T17:53:00.001-04:00

Linden is working on getting up on his hands and knees. (though most of the time he only makes it onto his elbows and knees.) He can spin a full circle on his tummy and often looks like a beached whale when he stretches out on the floor.
*Sarah *

Cedar and Olive playing in a LEGO battle. They make their ships and then have a

2011-09-30T17:45:00.001-04:00

Cedar and Olive playing in a LEGO battle. They make their ships and then have a battle deploying any of the special fetures they put on their ships. Olive even had a potty. (I hear those are valuable in war...) After each battle they rebuild / add more stuff to their ships.
*Sarah *

The kids got their grade card yesterday. Chick fil-a has a report card promotion

2011-09-27T15:38:00.001-04:00

The kids got their grade card yesterday. Chick fil-a has a report card promotion and the kids all got some free stuff. The place was packed and the kids had a great time!
*Sarah *

The great water clean up! After linden has his morning oatmeal (and if he's NOT

2011-09-27T10:38:00.000-04:00

The great water clean up!
After linden has his morning oatmeal (and if he's NOT screamin) I pour a little bit of water on his high chair tray and he goes to it! He will splash and play for a good 10 min. Enough time for me to get the dishes put away. By then he's all clean and ready to change and face the day!
*Sarah *

Taking the fire engine for a test drive! Sarah

2011-09-24T13:42:00.001-04:00

Taking the fire engine for a test drive!
*Sarah *

Crafty cats at the emergency fair. Sarah

2011-09-24T13:41:00.001-04:00

Crafty cats at the emergency fair.
*Sarah *

Not nearly as cool as grandpa's but still fun! Sarah

2011-09-24T11:52:00.001-04:00

Not nearly as cool as grandpa's but still fun!
*Sarah *

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We are at the emergency preparedness fair that the church is helping to sponsor.

2011-09-24T11:42:00.001-04:00

We are at the emergency preparedness fair that the church is helping to sponsor. The first thing the kids saw as we were walking up was trhe zip line and ropes.
*Sarah *

We got our first order of diapers from amazon mom.com today. Since I ordered som

2011-09-21T15:27:00.000-04:00

We got our first order of diapers from amazon mom.com today. Since I ordered some glutten free mixes too our stuff came in this big box. The kids walked in the door, saw the box and jumped right in!
*Sarah *

LINDEN AND cedar at lunch. Sarah

2011-09-21T11:39:00.001-04:00

LINDEN AND cedar at lunch.
*Sarah *

Linden and I went and had lunch with Aspen today. She loves picking Linden up an

2011-09-21T11:31:00.000-04:00

Linden and I went and had lunch with Aspen today. She loves picking Linden up and showing him off to all her friends and teachers. Today we even brought some applesauce for him. That was a hit. Aspen loves to feed him but doesn't get much chance since she is usually eating too. Now we are waiting for Cedar to come. He eats about 5 min after Aspen so it's easy to get with both of them in the same day.
*Sarah *

Of all the toys available in our house can you see which one is his favorite? T

2011-09-19T10:07:00.001-04:00

Of all the toys available in our house, can you see which one is his favorite? The old cup that one of the kids brought home from a party. We had been using it in the tub to pour water with, but Linden (who has found his voice) let us know in no uncertain terms that he wanted to keep that cup! It's funny, I set the box of toys in front of him and as soon as he sees the cup he's not interested in anything else. (at least until he's played with it for a few minutes.)

*are you sick of me yet? I'm sure the novelty of phone blogging will wear off soon enough, but since Linden isn't into sitting with me at the computer while I type one handed this is kinda fun for me. Though I do wish my phone had spell check...
*Sarah *

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Sunday night football at the English house. As soon as Linden is old enough to p

2011-09-18T19:28:00.001-04:00

Sunday night football at the English house. As soon as Linden is old enough to play it will be 3 on 3. Until then, Linden and I will cheer (and blog) on the sidelines.
*Sarah *

What do you do Sunday mornings before church? This is what it looks like this mo

2011-09-18T10:07:00.001-04:00

What do you do Sunday mornings before church? This is what it looks like this morning at my house. Jonathon was off early to speak in another ward and Linden chose to have a good long sleep this morning (as opposed to in the middle of the night...) so I joined him in some early morning slumber. When I got up the kids had fed themselves and were ready for something a little more active.

Olive and Cedar started gymnastics last week so they were excited to practice!
*Sarah *

Olive finishing her ribbon jump. Sarah

2011-09-18T09:58:00.001-04:00

Olive finishing her ribbon jump.
*Sarah *

I am loving the weather right now. Today has been crisp and cool and perfect! Th

2011-09-16T14:05:00.001-04:00

I am loving the weather right now. Today has been crisp and cool and perfect! There are a lot of things I love about summer, and winter and spring, but right now I am so thrilled that it is fall!

Sometimes it is just too hot to go outside in the summer. Heat stroke would probably be high on the list. My personal reason though is I don't like to be wet! Humidity + heat = big AC bills!

So bring on the fall! I am ready for long sleeves and jeans. (if I can fit into them...)

As you can see. Linden agrees that fall is fabulous! Especially when he can enjoy it in the swing!
*Sarah *

I LOVE SQUASH! Linden's been trying out solids for a few weeks. Peas are the lea

2011-09-15T20:23:00.001-04:00

I LOVE SQUASH!
Linden's been trying out solids for a few weeks. Peas are the least favorite veggie, but he likes squash and sweet potatoes. Oatmeal is much better than rice cereal and the only 2 fruits he's tried, peaches and applesauce were big hits!

Solids aren't a big part of his diet yet. Mostly it's to be a part of the family at dinner time and as a snack between feedings in the morning.

Just a side note, the high chair he's sitting at is the same one Jonathon sat at as a baby. His dad made it when he was born. (there is an old coat tied to the back to keep him from bonking his head. I had something better for the other kids but it molded in our garage.)
*Sarah *

The finished product! Sarah

2011-09-15T20:03:00.001-04:00

The finished product!

*Sarah *

What's for dinner? Turkey pot pie! I love this dinner for several reasons. 1

2011-09-15T16:34:00.007-04:00

What's for dinner?

Turkey pot pie! I love this dinner for several reasons.
1. It's yummy! (this is one of Jonathon's favorite dinners.)
2. It's easy. (sometimes this over rules yummy at my house...)
3. It's one of those comfort foods that makes you feel good.
4. The house smells good and home-y when this is in the oven!

The recipe:
1 or 2 crusts. (I use 2 -top and bottom- because I love the crusts)
1 16oz pkg of frozen veggies (you can use fresh.)
Cut up turkey or chicken. You can use ThNksgiving left overs, a chicken from the store or those pre-cooked and cut kinds that they advertise for salads. 2-5 cups total cut up.
1 can cream of chicken soup

put bottom crust down if you are using 2 crusts. Skip this if you are only doing 1.
Mix everything else together in a bowl.
Dump it in the crust / pan.
Put top crust on.
Cut several slits in the top crust.
Bake at 425* for 45-60 min. (remember to put foil around the crust to keep it from burning.)
Yummy!
Finished picture soon!

Lounging by Aspen

2011-09-15T16:34:00.006-04:00

look!

loungin'

Linden and I went and had lunch with Olive today. It's funny to me how much they

2011-09-15T12:06:00.001-04:00

Linden and I went and had lunch with Olive today. It's funny to me how much they like having me come. (They do eat with me twice a day!) I think the highlight these days is getting to show off Linden.
*Sarah *

This message has been sent using the picture and Video service from Verizon Wireless!

To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.

Note: To play video messages sent to email, Quicktime@ 6.5 or higher is required.

FWD:FWD:I am trying to get my phone set up so I can post from it. I think it mig

2011-09-14T15:49:00.001-04:00

i think this is ready now. I wrote this earlier but it wouldn't go through. Wonder if it'll work now...

I am trying to get my phone set up so I can post from it. I think it might be working...

Linden can sit up (sorta) by himself. He needs something behind him so he doesn't crash and something in front of him so he doesn't crash. This morning he was too exciced about playing to get dressed. Though he didn't really like it when he drooled on himself.

I hope this works! It may just save my blog! (and I can rationalize getting the more expensive phone with the good camera...)
*Sarah *

This message has been sent using the picture and Video service from Verizon Wireless!

To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.

Note: To play video messages sent to email, Quicktime@ 6.5 or higher is required.

Does this one work? Sarah

2011-09-14T15:42:00.000-04:00

Does this one work?
*Sarah *

2011-09-14T15:36:00.001-04:00

Why can I send texts but if I try to send a picture it's an invalid destination?
*Sarah *

2011-09-14T15:35:00.003-04:00

4 ???D ???? ???y?9l/??eP?????r???>?@?: ? ??? ?v?? ?? ??A?: DG?? ??\???r?? ????<??????2?^ ???q? ???u1?<w?\ ?j ???

2011-09-14T15:35:00.001-04:00

4 I??X????l?y Q? c?X? ATdr
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j?Ab?? ?? ?? ??????<w??t?<?????? v??n{??&??d??<??@Wt?
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2011-09-14T13:37:00.001-04:00

I just tried to send a picture. Didn't work. Will this?
*Sarah *

2011-09-14T13:27:00.001-04:00

This is a test.
*Sarah *

Random

2011-09-11T17:20:00.003-04:00

Aspen here. I don't have anything to blog about; can't find my vacation pics. I will just grab a few pictures, I guess.

2011-09-02T16:13:00.002-04:00

Cute cousins! How fun is it to have them just 2 weeks apart?
I know it's "up-side-down" but just imagine that you are looking through the camera lense with me. That's how I took it and I think it's so cute this way!
Whatever it was, it was interesting!

I wish I would have gotten more pictures of the two of them together! (I wish I would have gotten more pictures of everything, but I didn't...) It is really fun having a close in age cousin. I hope that they can grow up and be good friends too!

Backyard Art

2011-08-22T17:38:00.000-04:00

While we were in Utah we got to join with Jonathon's sister Allison for backyard art. She taught a little art lesson followed by a project that went with the theme. The kids loved being able to spend some time with their cousins and being creative at the same time!

Making mono prints.

Birds, butterflies, and fish. There are so many things to be made with circles!

The Boys!
(You can only see part of Linden, but he's there!)

Olive tree

2011-08-21T19:38:00.002-04:00

The campground where we met my mom and Tony on the first day their Yellowstone adventure had some of the coolest trees in it. They are Russian Olive trees, which I found out is more like a weed in Utah, but personally it's one weed I wouldn't mind having in my yard. This one we are in screams "Build a tree house in me!!!"

It was an awesome climbing tree and a great way to start off Yellowstone!

Nevermind

2011-08-16T19:31:00.004-04:00

It's Aspen,sorry about that!! Our REAL part one is in South Carolina! Anyway,we had to drive to SC.Then we got a hotel! And there were some of Olive's friends that moved to SC. So they came swimming with us!C'mon, Cedar!! Really?

Sorry this was such a short blog!!

Our Trip: Part One

2011-08-14T17:31:00.002-04:00

Yellowstone

This is Aspen, and finally I have time to blog. WARNING: lots of pictures

Texas Donuts

2011-08-12T13:50:00.003-04:00

One thing I experienced this trip that I have never experienced before was Texas Donuts. Apparently Macy's sells them. Emily got me one when we were out together and I knew that my kids would go nuts over them! (That much sugar alone would do it!) Liz Suggested we introduce them on a swimming break. The hope being that they could swim off some of the sugar. It mostly worked. The kids couldn't even finish an entire one in a single sitting. But don't worry, they did finish them!

Some funny side notes:
Aspen is a faster swimmer than I am. Although I still want a rematch when my goggles don't fall off.
Em's daughter has no fear. She jumped right into a floaty ring in the deep end. (She was wearing a life jacket!) I think she surprised herself more than anything!
Aspen taught her very first put your face in the water school lesson for Liz's daughter. She tried it once and "Didn't love it."

ps
I didn't take as many pictures as I should have, and some of them are on my phone. So as I blog (if I blog...) it is in no particular order, with or without pictures.

$2k!

2011-08-10T11:59:00.002-04:00

Bags unpacked--check!
(but they aren't totally put away...)

I'm on break again. Maybe next break I better upload some pictures so you'll keep reading!

So Monday we were at the airport getting ready to go home. I wheeled the stroller up to the counter to get a gate check ticket when I overhear the ticket lady saying how much they were ok-ed to give out to people who were willing to get bumped to a later flight. So I ask. It was good! $500 each. When Jonathon came over he said he didn't think he could take any more time off, so he kept his seat and went home. The kids and I though got an extra day to play in Utah and a total of $2000 in travel vouchers! Woo Hoo! We're giving everyone a year to rest up, but then we're heading back!

It was a great day too. We used my dad's truck since he's off gallivanting in Alaska. My sisters and I lunched at Cristy's house and then hung out copying recipes at Grandma Loveridge's house. By the time we made it back to G&G English's house we were all pretty dead on our feet.

Tuesday we were back at the airport. We got on this time and made it home safely. The only casualty is that our car seat still hasn't caught up with us yet.

Sarah's tree thoughts

NO! I WONT LET YOU PUT MY PAGAMAS ON!!! -aspen

Cedar's game was going to start an hour late today so Aspen and I took Linden ov

Have I told you how much Linden likes wheels? I don't know why the obsession bu

It won't be long until he's on his own!

Little St. Nick!

And he's off!

My little helper...

Resolutions

High chairs are for eating right?

Snow Day

You can almost see it in this picture but Linden has one very big tooth on top

Linden's first snow. He wasn't too excited about all the layers... *Sarah *

The first snow of the year! We are all wondering if there will be school tomorro

Making pizza at the zoo play place! *Sarah *

Visiting the Oak Ridge children's museum. *Sarah *

Merry Christmas!

This is OUR grahm cracker nativity set-its perfect!!! *aspen*

Can You Find The Difference?

Day 3. 3 smiling snowmen. They were sent on a scavenger hunt to find them. It wa

Thanks to netflix we don't have to wait for the classics to show on tv. (good th

It is 12 days till Christmas! My kids have been religiously following Julies Chr

Nativity Reenactment

For her birthday we asked Olive if ashe wanted to have a birthday party or do so

How to make a six sided snowflake

FWD:Aspen and Cedar getting ready for their piano recital. *Sarah *

This was taken yesterday. Need I say more? (except that it's finally moving in

Cedar waiting to compete in the spelling bee. I am pretty sure that my kids didn

Newspaper People - Round 2

Best Use of Thanksgiving Day Ads

Happy Thanksgiving! This year Danny came. We bbq-ed the turkey and it was beauti

OLIVE IS THANKFUL FOR TEETH! She lost her first tooth today. (It's a good thing

It's the Lindon raptor. He crawls around my house roaring and trilling. He will

Mom's blog isn't updating. Head

Give me candy and no one gets hurt! It's been a week and we gave the kids each

Dear Alex Thank you for asking to see Linden in his costume. If you hadn't have

*Sarah *

Olive with the finishing touches. *Sarah *

Aspen helping jonathon make a leaf maze. *Sarah *

I guess as long as this is what he's driving I guess I'm ok with him learning to

I turned around and linden had pulled himself up to standing all by himself! Oh

The gang ready to go. *Sarah *

Happy birthday Aspen! I can't believe your 11! *Sarah *

Dark chocolate cake with dark chocolate frosting with chocolate chips. Cake made

Making lemonaid! *Sarah *

The trunk or treat haul. They have already traded made castles and buildings an

Tilt your head... The Linden trees on Linden tree lane! *Sarah *

*Sarah *

Watching Harry Potter on the road!

Playing on the beach of Lake Michigan.

Chase the cat! Linden loves the cat. She drives us crazy sometimes but she's

Olive made this cute sign for our front door. She makes some of the cutest pictu

Waiting for shots at the 6 month visit. He is 16.1 lbs and 28in tall! *Sarah *

Cedar working on his tricks. *Sarah *

Olive working on her cartwheels! *Sarah *

Guess who started reading Harry Potter? *Sarah *

I tried. I really tried to make cut out sugar cookies. The problem is that I was

Movin' movin' movin! *Sarah *

Someone is getting all to mobile! The wood floor slows him down quite a bit but

What do you do on Sundsy mornings berfore church. Part 2. I looked up from mu b

Today's activities are a 'reward day.' We did an incentive jar with dimes where

Going for a walk is hard work! *Sarah *

We went on a hike between sessions of conference. Linden is a great little hiker

Gotta love the swing! (even if it's cold!) *Sarah *

Linden is working on getting up on his hands and knees. (though most of the time

Cedar and Olive playing in a LEGO battle. They make their ships and then have a

The kids got their grade card yesterday. Chick fil-a has a report card promotion

The great water clean up! After linden has his morning oatmeal (and if he's NOT

Taking the fire engine for a test drive! *Sarah *

Crafty cats at the emergency fair. *Sarah *

Not nearly as cool as grandpa's but still fun! *Sarah *

We are at the emergency preparedness fair that the church is helping to sponsor.

We got our first order of diapers from amazon mom.com today. Since I ordered som

LINDEN AND cedar at lunch. *Sarah *

Linden and I went and had lunch with Aspen today. She loves picking Linden up an

Of all the toys available in our house can you see which one is his favorite? T

Sunday night football at the English house. As soon as Linden is old enough to p

What do you do Sunday mornings before church? This is what it looks like this mo

Olive finishing her ribbon jump. *Sarah *

I am loving the weather right now. Today has been crisp and cool and perfect! Th

Linden's first snow. He wasn't too excited about all the layers... Sarah

Making pizza at the zoo play place! Sarah

Visiting the Oak Ridge children's museum. Sarah

This is OUR grahm cracker nativity set-its perfect!!! aspen

FWD:Aspen and Cedar getting ready for their piano recital. Sarah

Sarah

Olive with the finishing touches. Sarah

Aspen helping jonathon make a leaf maze. Sarah

The gang ready to go. Sarah

Happy birthday Aspen! I can't believe your 11! Sarah

Making lemonaid! Sarah

Tilt your head... The Linden trees on Linden tree lane! Sarah

Sarah

Waiting for shots at the 6 month visit. He is 16.1 lbs and 28in tall! Sarah

Cedar working on his tricks. Sarah

Olive working on her cartwheels! Sarah

Guess who started reading Harry Potter? Sarah

Movin' movin' movin! Sarah

Going for a walk is hard work! Sarah

Gotta love the swing! (even if it's cold!) Sarah

Taking the fire engine for a test drive! Sarah

Crafty cats at the emergency fair. Sarah

Not nearly as cool as grandpa's but still fun! Sarah

LINDEN AND cedar at lunch. Sarah

Olive finishing her ribbon jump. Sarah

The finished product! Sarah

Does this one work? Sarah