Ava's 1st Birthday!

Hard to believe that our little baby, Ava Grace is now officially 1 year old as of today, November 30th! Aliza will turn 4 on December 9th, but we decided to combine their birthdays and celebrate both of their birthdays with both mine & Jason's family. We had everyone over for dinner (Cafe Rio style, see recipes on the next post) and then had cake & ice cream. A HUGE thanks to both of our families for coming & celebrating with us. THANKS for all of the presents, which Ava & Aliza both loved! We truly do appreciate your generosity & thoughtfulness! I was a little camera happy tonight, but it's not everyday that my 5th & final child turns 1!

It's been a fun year having a new baby in our family! Her smile truly brightens every day. The kids LOVE her so much and it's been so rewarding to watch them interact with her. I always say it's a miracle she's lived to her 1st birthday after the mauling she takes on a daily basis. Happy Birthday, Ava! We're so glad you're part of our family!

Ava loved the cake, especially the frosting!

Ava & Aliza's birthday cake/cupcakes. Aliza picked this one out from Sam's Club.

Ava & me. I'm loving my early Christmas present to myself (my new domestic diva apron) that I purchased from my friend, Amy! LOVE it!

Ava's been taking more & more steps each day. She'll take about 8-10 steps without falling.

Jason & Ava in front of the Christmas tree that we put up yesterday. Ahhh, one of the perks of throwing a party....having a clean house and all of the Christmas decorations are now officially up!

Thanks Kate for the cute shirt & Care Bear that you mailed to Ava. She loved it and wished you could have been here for the par-tay! Miss you all tons!

Some pictures of Ava's loot that she scored.....

Strawberry Shortcake ride on toy from Grandma & Duane. They also gave her a Barbie suitcase filled with lots of cute clothes. She also got more super cute clothes from Jeff & Missy, Jared & Marize, Grandma & Grandpa. Darling hair clips & Elmo toy from Steve & Margo & boys. Cute slippers & toy from Ellen & Angie. THANKS again for all of the great presents!

Musical Table from Jason & I. Ava & Ben had fun playing together with the light up toys.

Here's Aliza with the presents she scored. Tons of super cute clothes from Grandma & Duane.

Lots of Dora & Little Mermaid toys (both her favorites).

Love the cute dress that she got from Grandma & Grandpa H.

Cafe Rio Recipes

For Ava & Aliza's birthday party, I decided to make dinner & serve Cafe Rio chicken & pork salads. Here's the recipes I promised! ENJOY!

Cafe Rio Sweet Pork

6 lbs pork - I bought it at Sam's Club (pork loin, boneless)
2 16 oz jars of salsa
2 cans of coke
3 cups brown sugar

Place pork in crock pot and fill it with water. Cook on high for 5 hours. Drain liquid & cut off fat. Cut pork in thirds. Mix together sauce and pour over pork. Cook an additional 3 hours on high. Shred pork with forks. Leave on low until ready to serve.

Cafe Rio Chicken

1 bottle Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp cumin
3 Tbsp minced garlic
6 chicken breasts

Cook all together in crock pot on high for 4 hours. Shred meat and cook 1 more hour on high.

Cafe Rio Tomatillo Dressing

1 buttermilk ranch dressing packet (make as per recipe with milk & mayonnaise)
2 tomatillos (peel off dry skins/leaves)
1/2 bunch cilantro
1 clove garlic
juice of 1 lime
1 jalapeno (I removed the seeds, so it wouldn't be too hot)

Blend all ingredients in food processor or blender until smooth. Refrigerate.

Cafe Rio Rice

3 cups water
4 tsp chicken bouillon
4 tsp minced garlic
1/2 bunch cilantro
3/4 tsp salt
1 Tbsp butter
4 cups rice

Chop cilantro into fine pieces. Bring water to boil and add all ingredients. Simmer covered 30 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.

* I cooked my rice in the rice cooker and then added all of the boiled ingredients to the rice cooker. Our family loves rice in the rice cooker (so much better than Minute rice).

Thanksgiving Pictures

We had a relaxing Thanksgiving. Good food. Good family. Good times. Here's just a few random pictures I took. We ate at my mom's this year. We alternate between my family & Jason's, but usually still see both families since they only live about a mile apart from each other. It's nice to show up with a small food assignment and enjoy a complete Thanksgiving meal. I'm sure it won't be for many years (since my mom's a mere 59 years of age) that I'll have to start hosting Thanksgiving, so I'm trying to enjoy it while I can.

Here's my nephew Ben (10 months old), always smiling & so happy.

Cute picture of Ben & Marize (my sister in law)

Aliza playing with cousin, Aaron

Jeff (my brother) & Missy (sister in law), a match truly made in heaven. Honestly, they are so perfect for each other. They even look alike!

Thanks for the great meal, Mom! We appreciate you having us over! Wow, I better get to bed, it's 3:40 am. Luckily, our church doesn't start until 2:00 pm!

Peaches 'N Cream Cheesecake

This is truly one of my favorite desserts. I just made it for Thanksgiving. It's supposedly one of my neighbor's family secret recipes and I lost the recipe. So, instead of calling her, I googled it and sure enough there were so many websites with the exact same recipe. Oh, how I love the internet. So much information at my fingertips! ENJOY! Hope you LOVE it!

Peaches 'N Cream Cheesecake

3/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 pkg (3 1/4 oz) dry vanilla pudding mix (NOT instant)
3 Tbsp butter, softened
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1 (15-20 oz.) can sliced peaches, well drained, reserve juice
1 (8oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
3 Tbsp reserved juice
1 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Combine in large mixer bowl first 7 ingredients. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed. Pour into greased 9" deep dish or 10" pie pan. Place drained fruit over batter. Combine in small mixer bowl cream cheese, sugar, and reserved juice (3 Tbsp). Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Spoon to within 1" of edge of batter. Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over cream cheese filling. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes until crust is golden brown. Filling will appear soft. Store in fridge.

Ava's first taste of chocolate

Jason bought some Pretzel Flipz (chocolate covered pretzels) and gave some to Ava. This was her first real taste of chocolate and she of course, LOVED it! Jason was so amazed that she could bite through the pretzel with her teeth and asked me if I knew she could bite so well. Ya think? Believe me, I know and have painfully felt every tooth that she has cut. Oh, the joys of nursing! Actually, it really is easier for me than making a bottle in the middle of the night and everytime she's fussy, I just hook her up...just call me the human pacifier.

Daddy's 4th little girl. See the resemblance? Everyone always says how much Ava looks like Jason. Maybe she'll be lucky and get his naturally curly hair (like Ashley & Aliza have).

Abbey's Thanksgiving Feast

Abbey's 2nd grade class had a Thanksgiving Feast on Tuesday. She was so excited about it and wanted me to come volunteer. Of course, I had to jump at the chance, since I'm sure it won't be long until she is too embarrassed to have me volunteer (like Alex & Ashley!) Abbey is our middle child and is our peacemaker. She's always the first to help when someone is hurt or crying. She's been a great big sister to both Aliza & Ava. Thanks for inviting me, Abbey! I love spending time with you!

The kids really seemed to enjoy their feast.

I'm so thankful for the great friends & teacher that Abbey has this year!

Aliza is thankful for...

Aliza came home from preschool on Thursday so excited to show me all of these art projects she made. She's been wearing her indian headband all weekend.

Picture taken from her book, "I am thankful for." She keeps saying all weekend, "Mom, Did you know the pilgrims and the indians became friends?"

Chicken & Broccoli Braid

I found this recipe in a Pampered Chef cookbook and used to make it all the time, but forgot about it. ENJOY!

Chicken & Broccoli Braid

2 cups cooked chicken, chopped
1 cup broccoli, chopped
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tsp dill seasoning mix
1/4 tsp salt
2 pkg (8 oz) each refrigerated crescent rolls
1 egg white, lightly beaten
2 Tbsp slivered almonds

Mix chicken, broccoli, cheese, mayonnaise, dill seasoning, and salt. Unroll pkgs of refrigerated crescent roll dough and lay side to side on cookie sheet/baking stone. Spread filling evenly over middle of dough. Cut stripes 1 1/2 inches apart, 3 inches deep. To braid, lift strips of dough across mixture to form a braid. Tuck ends under to seal at end of braid. Brush egg white over dough. Sprinkle with almonds. Bake 25-30 minutes at 375 degrees until golden brown.

Thankful THANKSGIVING Thursday

So true about Thanksgiving. As soon as Halloween is over, it's all about Christmas with every store filled with Christmas decorations and playing Christmas tunes. But in honor of Thanksgiving today, I want to pause & reflect on what we're thankful for. Here's what our family is thankful for:

Michelle - The important things: great husband, great kids, great friends, my testimony & faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ. The little things: caller ID on telephones, DVR to record my favorite shows, the internet, being able to work from home, our accounting & tax business & clients, a warm house & bed and heated leather seats.

Alex - family, Wii, friends, bacon, beef jerky, and guitar

Ashley - friends, soft blankets, electricity, yummy smelling lotion

Abbey - french fries, Santa Claus, Webkinz, American Girl Dolls, my pink, fuzzy blanket from my friend, Alexis

Aliza- Dora, my house, my sisters, my family

Ava - warm milk (luckily my mom has enough to feed me 24/7)

Rascal the Raccoon

Meet Rascal the Raccoon, the closest thing to a furry pet that we'll ever own. Jason is SO allergic to dogs and cats, which works out great for me! When the kids ask for a dog or cat, it's an easy excuse. "Sorry, but Dad's allergic!" I can't stand dog or cat hair. In fact, I was at the store the other day and saw a lady in the check out stand in a black sweatshirt covered in white cat hair and I wanted to dry heave! (Yes, you can guess where I was shopping at....Walmart. I'll have to save that for another post....my love & hate relationship with Walmart. Love the prices, hate the store.) And I can't stand how cats pounce around, cough up hair balls and constantly rub up to everyone. In fact, one of my things I'm thankful for this Thansgiving season, is that my mom no longer has pets at her house! It will be a great Thanksgiving with no dogs or cats running under the tables begging for scraps. Enough of my pet soapbox!

Aliza just brought home Rascal. Each one of the kid's in her preschool class has a turn bringing home Rascal for a couple of days and then they share pictures of them & Rascal and what they did with Rascal. She had so much fun taking Rascal everywhere she went. She was so sad when she had to give Rascal back!

Rascal came with Aliza to dance. She loves her ballet & tap class with Miss Lynell. She has five little friends in our neighborhood that go to dance with her, which works out great for carpooling reasons.

Aliza dressed Rascal in her doll clothes and had a sleepover. Love this picture of her sleeping with Rascal.

So for my few blog readers out there, how about you, are you an animal lover or h8r?

Be Still My McDreamy Heart

So, here's how my Friday night went down. The kids talked me into having a few friends over for a "late night." We don't do sleepovers. Jason went to Sportsman's Warehouse for a sale. He deserved a break after doing his share of "Mr. Mom" duties this week. So, I've been in my office working (& hiding from having too many kids here) and catching up on previously taped episodes of Grey's Anatomy. Not a bad way to spend a Friday night with "Dr. McDreamy." I know....I need to get a life!

I must say, he's living proof that some people just get better with age. Just like cheese, right? It's hard to believe he's the same guy that played the goofball in the 80's movie Can't Buy Me Love. Any other fans of Patrick Dempsey out there?

Which Gray's Anatomy Character Are You Most Like?

I just took the Grey's Anatomy personality quiz and am most like Cristina. I was surprised since she's not my favorite. Here's the profile of Cristina. "Very few people have, or can understand, the sheer determination and drive that propels you, but you're just as fiercely protective of your friends as you are of your own hopes and dreams. If they're smart, your friends already know that. They also know that you're more vulnerable than you seem and are only glad to offer a shoulder to cry on."

Wanna play along? Click on this button to play.

Thankful Thursday

The weeks are flying by. Hard to believe it's Thursday again. A few random things I am thankful for:

1. Enjoying a completely quiet house while I type this (Alex, Ashley & Abbey are at school, Aliza's at preschool & Ava's taking a nap). No one's yelling "Maaaawwwwmm" right now!

2. My new flavor of choice: Diet Pomegranate 7up. It's been a hard change switching to diet drinks, but this one really is quite tasty. Thanks for the picture, Shaunte!

3. Girl's Night Out: So excited to play BUNKO with my friends tonight. And I'm so thankful it's not at my house. After hosting last month, I'm thankful to not worry about cleaning the house & cooking the dinner, but just showing up to play!

4. Ok, everything on my list is pretty trivial, except for this one. I am SO thankful for the FREEDOMS we enjoy here in the United States. I am thankful to be sitting here in my safe, warm house while others are fighting for us & our great country! I received an email from my friend, Janene, that helped me remember our armed forces that are fighting for us.

Here's a few thoughts & pictures from this email:

You take a warm shower to help you wake up.
He goes days or weeks without running water.

You talk trash about your 'buddies' that aren't with you.
He knows he may not see some of his buddies again

You go out to lunch, and complain because the restaurant got your order wrong.
He doesn't get to eat today.

You complain about how hot it is.
He wears his heavy gear, not daring to take off his helmet to wipe his brow.

You go to the mall and get your hair done.
He doesn't have time to brush his teeth today.

You're angry because your class ran 5 minutes over.
He's told he will be held over an extra 2 months.

You roll your eyes as a baby cries.
He gets a letter with pictures of his new child, and wonders if they'll ever meet.

You criticize your government, and say that war never solves anything.
He sees the innocent tortured and killed by their own people and remembers why he is fighting.

You see only what the media wants you to see.
He sees the broken bodies lying around him.

You crawl into your soft bed, with down pillows, and get comfortable.
He tries to sleep but gets woken by mortars and helicopters all night long.

Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas

I've been finding the best new recipes on recipe blogs. I added a few links to some of my favorites (see bottom of sidebar). Another quirk of mine: I have a hard time trying a new recipe unless there's a picture. So here's a picture to entice you to try this new recipe...I promise you won't be disappointed! Jason & the kids LOVED this dinner.

Here's the recipe for sour cream chicken enchiladas. Super easy. In fact, I made it with canned chicken & it turned out delicious! Enjoy!

3-4 chicken breasts, cooked & shredded (or 1-2 cans of canned chicken, depending on how much you like)

12 flour tortillas (I use the uncooked ones from Sam's/Costco)

2 cups shredded cheese (I use the Mexican blend)

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup flour

2 cups chicken broth

1 1/2 cups sour cream

2 (4 oz) cans diced green chilies (I didn't add these-our family doesn't like)

In a large bowl, combine cheese, 1 can chilies, and chicken. Set aside. Cook tortillas on stove top until golden brown. Spoon a good size portion of chicken mixture onto all tortillas, rolling them and placing them seam side down in 9 x 13 baking dish.

In sauce pan, melt butter then blend flour into butter to make a roux. Add chicken broth and cook until mixture thickens and bubbles. Stir in sour cream and 1 can green chilies. Be careful not to boil. Pour sauce over enchiladas and bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes. Immediately, set oven to BROIL and cook for another 5 minutes (be careful not to burn).

Enchiladas are done when sauce in the center is bubbling. Serve with side of rice or beans.

Weigh In Wednesday

Official weigh in: Lost 0.6 lbs. At least it's heading in the right direction. Hoping for more of a loss next week!

I have never...

At college, one of our favorite party games to play, was "I have never." It's the classic game where someone says something that they have never done and those people in the room that have done that thing, get up and change seats before the person stating the thing can find an empty seat. I have never laughed so hard than when we played this my freshman year with a few Iranian guys (there were so many middle eastern guys at Utah State, probably here on scholarship and here as "sleeper cells"). One Iranian said, "I have never had ***." Everyone looked around and wasn't quite sure what to think. I'm sure there were a few in the room, but nobody dared to move. Then he said, "You know, I have never been kissed." Then most of the people in the room got up and changed seats.

I saw this on Cari's blog and thought it would be interesting to do. You are to BOLD the things on the below list that you have done. Wanna play along? Copy the list & bold the items below that you have done.

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland /world
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo (and never will, I'm a terrible singer!)
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo's David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business (too many times!)
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies (my favorite part of being a Girl Scout!)
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp (When our family lived in Germany, incredibly somber & life changing!)
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car (only used ones for us!)
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved some one's life (Alex's life many times when he was younger from choking & drowning)
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

*Guess I've got a lot of living left to do!

Weekend Update

Jason's sisters, Ellen & Angie, had the kids over for a sleepover on Friday night. We decided this made a good excuse for a date night, so Jason, Ava & I went to dinner at Rio Grande with our friends, Tracey & Kristy and their son, JM. We then went & saw the movie Eagle Eye. Luckily, Ava did great in the movie and even slept the entire last hour of the movie. We haven't seen a movie in the theater for about 5 months, since the last time we went, she was teething and screaming and I spent the entire movie in the hallway with her. Thanks Ellen & Angie for having the kids over.

On Saturday, we went to lunch at Pepperbelly's with Ellen & Angie, Dorothy (Jason's mom), Margo (sister-in-law) & cousin, Josh. I love their strawberry chicken salad with poppyseed dressing. Since they took forever to seat & serve us, they offered free fried ice cream for dessert. The kids LOVED it. They always have fun with their cousin, Josh. Josh & Ashley are both 9 years old and born only 6 days apart. Josh introduced Ashley & Abbey to Webkinz over a year ago and they have fun sending him messages & gifts.

Tooth Puller 4 Hire

One of my quirks: I love pulling teeth out. Forget tying a string around the tooth & slamming the door. I seriously love to get my fingernail under the tooth, break the suction & give the tooth a good pull. I don't know why, but I truly get great satisfaction in pulling out a tooth.

Meet my victim & oldest son, Alex. He came downstairs wanting a drink of water last night and I had him show me his teeth. He has an ortho appointment on Tuesday and his teeth are not looking so great. He has so many baby molars needing to come out because the adult molars are popping through the gums. After I put my finger in and broke the suction, I pulled out not 1, not 2, but 3 molars!

So if you need to save some money, bag the dentist, I'd gladly pull your kid's teeth out for free! Jake, come on over tonight, my finger's ready for you! Alex trying to amuse me. I'm sure he's thinking, "Here we go again...another picture for my mom's blog."

Check out these 3 molars we got out of his mouth.

Sweet & Sour Chicken

One of our family's favorites! I just made this yesterday for dinner. I personally have a hard time trying new recipes unless there's a picture, so I thought I'd include a picture with the recipe. Whenever I take a picture, the kids now ask, "Mom, are you going to put that on your blog?" If you want to score huge points with the hubby & kids, make this for your family. ENJOY!

4 chicken breasts
2 eggs, well beaten
1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. cornstarch
salt (a few shakes)
garlic powder (a few shakes)

SAUCE:
1 c. chicken broth
5 Tbsp. ketchup
1/3 c. vinegar
3/4 c. sugar
2 Tbsp. soy sauce

Whip eggs. Mix flour & cornstarch & salt & garlic powder. Dip chicken into eggs and then into flour mixture. Fry chicken in oil until golden brown. Mix sauce. Place chicken in baking dish covered with sauce mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

* Note: I usually double this recipe for our family, which gives us plenty for dinner and leftovers.

Thankful Thursday

A few random things I'm thankful for today:

1. I'm so thankful to have my voice back. I lost my voice last Saturday and could barely talk. I think I'm finally over this cold!

2. I'm thankful it's November! November & December are the slowest months of the year for our accounting business. I'm trying to enjoy the "calm before the storm" because come January, it's all about cranking out W-2's & taxes.

3. Our sweet ride that we've been enjoying the past few months: our Infiniti QX56. It has so many great features: love the comfy leather seats, seat warmers, the captain chairs (so the kids no longer have to climb over the middle seat) and most of all, the DVD player. This is the 1st vehicle we've owned that has a built-in DVD player and it is so worth it! When the kids watch a movie, we love the peace & quiet and enjoy our "SERENITY now."

4. Parent Teacher Conferences are over and luckily the kids are all doing great in school. There's always little things we can be more consistent on, but for the most part they have great teachers this year and are enjoying the school year!

* And thanks to Tiburon for the new "Thankful Thursday" logo!

So what about you, what are you thankful for today?

Oprah's Clean Up Your Messy House Tour + Peter Walsh + free gift!

I'm so glad I didn't miss Oprah yesterday. I hardly watch Oprah, because it's on at 4:00 pm (crazy time at our house with the kids home from school). I probably need to set it up again to record on the handy DVR. She had on one of my favorite's...Peter Walsh, the master of organization! I actually met Peter Walsh in person at a Home & Garden Show at the South Towne Expo center a few years ago with my sister-in-law, Missy. He always has so much excitement & energy about organizing your house and creating the vision for your home.

Peter will be traveling from coast to coast to towns across America, showing you how to kick that clutter out of your homes and your lives," he says. "I know the world outside your front door feels uncertain and unpredictable right now, but that's why it's more important than ever to transform your messy space into a comfortable and safe place that you can call home. No mess is too big and no task is too tall, but Peter knows change takes time. "Clutter robs you of so many things—of peace and harmony and focus and motivation," he says. "If you stick with us for six months, I guarantee that you will have a clutter-free, organized home that is the sanctuary and haven that you deserve." So for the next six months, Peter will be having homework assignments. I SO need this!

Overwhelmed by what to do with growing piles of your child's art projects? Peter has a great solution! "Take digital photos of their artwork, upload them to Snapfish.com, and they will send you back a beautiful, bound book of the kids' artwork. So, over time, you can build a library of your children's artwork—let the pieces go, but keep them in this form forever."To help you get organized, Snapfish.com is offering The Oprah Winfrey Show viewers a free 8" x 11" custom-cover photo book! I thought it could also be fun to make a photo book of one of our family trips. Click here for the details. Don't delay you need to get the coupon by tomorrow, Friday, 11/14.


Peter's homework assignments for this month:

1. Sign the pledge. Peter says, "Get on board because in six months, friends, you'll be so far ahead of the game." By visiting oprah.com you can download your clutter pledge & vision statement.

2. Define your vision for your life and space. "Here's the deal. The vision—what is it that you want from your space? I want peace. I want focus. I want a place where my family can gather," Peter says. "That then has to be the criteria for deciding whether something stays or goes. [Ask yourself,] 'Does this item help me create that vision?' If it does, keep it. If not, it doesn't belong in your home."

3. Commit to 10 minutes a day. Start small and start today with the Trash Bag Tango. "Everyone in the house gets two trash bags. Fill one with trash and one with stuff that's going to [charity] or garage sale. ... Do that for 10 minutes a day," he says. "It doesn't matter how big or how small the bag is, it's just small steps."

So, here's to conquering clutter and getting rid of the CHAOS (Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome) that me & my family are living in!

The Pretty Petal Giveaway

The Pretty Petal is giving away this adorable beanie that has this cute pink ribbon and a removable large pink flower clip, which you can detach from the beanie and use as a hair accessory. Click here to enter. Don't delay the giveaway ends today, Thurs, 11/13 at midnight!

Weigh In Wednesday

Thanks for the picture Kristy! This picture of the scale says it best, "Help" we ate out way too much last week in St. George and did absolutely no exercising, so I should have known there was no chance of losing weight this past week. Here's the official results: I gained 1.2 lbs! Here's hoping for a better week!

Scrapbook USA Expo in St. George

We left last Wednesday for St. George to sell more scrapbook supplies at the Scrapbook USA Expo held at the Dixie Center. We've gone to 4 Scrapbook USA Expo's (all held at the Southtowne Expo in Sandy, UT), but this was the 1st ever show in St George. The kids came along with us and my mom and sister, Ally watched them while Jason & I worked the booth. We stayed at my mom's Worldmark timeshare.

Jason drove all through the night while the kids & I slept. When we arrived at the timeshare, we noticed one of the tires on the trailer had a hole and was literally held together by threads of the tire. What a small tender mercy that we didn't blow a tire in the middle of the night somewhere in the desert.

We had high hopes for this show, but what a disaster! At the Salt Lake show, they usually have about 10-12,000 people come. At the Salt Lake show, we run 2 cash registers and literally for 2 days straight have lines of people and ring up transactions all day long. This show only had about 1,500 people come. We sold our products dirt cheap, (Papers 10/$1 and stickers & rub-ons 3/$1), but the people weren't buying. Luckily, we covered our expenses and had a mere $246.19 profit after all expenses! How pathetic!

However, some of our other "carnie" friends (other vendors at the expo, we call them carnies because these expos are like a circus/carnival show) didn't make enough to cover their expenses and took a loss!

Oh well, at least we enjoyed sunny St George and had a tax-deductible family trip. Honestly, if we didn't have our family, friends and accounting clients up north, I'd be packing my bags and moving to St. George! We stood out because we all wore short sleeved shirts and everyone down there was in sweatshirts. A few people asked us if we were from up north. How'd you guess?

Abbey, Aliza & Ava loved swimming at the timeshare. They loved the kids mini-pool that was a mere 1 1/2" feet deep. The kids & I loved seeing palm trees everywhere we went.

Oh, the crazy things people do for free prizes. Here's some scrapbookers enjoying the toilet paper wrapping contest. They also had a dance off contest. Someone walked by our booth and said, "I didn't know they served alcohol at these events." You'd think these ladies were drinking to do these crazy things, but oh no, it's just for a free prize!

We entered Alex in the ice cream eating contest. It was just to see who could eat an ice cream sandwich the quickest. Alex actually took 2nd place! WTG, Alex!

I'm sure Alex was mortified with me screaming in the background, "Go, Alex. You can do it." Call me competitive but I'm all about the free prizes too! Alex scored himself a canvas tote bag and chipboard letter set! Just what he wanted, I'm sure!

While the scrapbook expo wasn't financially worth all of our time & effort we put into it, at least we enjoyed some great food! Let's see, we ate at Inn N Out burgers 3 times! Jason loves that place so he went there each day and got us lunch!
We went to the famous Pizza Factory and enjoyed their amazing bread sticks. Ashley & Abbey had to stand up to see their faces over these bread sticks. The Pizza Factory was a test of my mom's patience since she hates loud noise and big crowds.

And we went to our favorite Mexican restaurant in St. George, "Pancho & Lefty's." I LOVE their homemade chips & salsa and the chicken chimichanga was to die for! Seriously so tasty! None of the kids would sit by the Mexican dummy so of course, Ava had to be the lucky one. She was okay until she looked back to see whose lap she was sitting on.

Poor girl! He was a little freaky looking. I've probably scarred her for life. I still remember as a baby my aunt would lay me next to this mannequin doll named Danny. I have baby pictures of me staring at the freaky mannequin doll.

Abbey, Alex & Ashley at Pancho & Lefty's water fountain.

So all in all, it was a good break from the cold and always great to have a change in scenery. Thanks Mom for watching the kids & letting us stay at your timeshare!