I love the Farmer's Market

Since the summer is here I am trying to think of various ways to keep the kids busy and the house clean. I am succeeding at the first half rather well. One thing I decided to do was to take the kids to story time at the library and then to the Framer's Market where they play music. It was my first experience. I met my Grandma, my sister Katie, and her daughter Alani. It was fun to walk through the booths and sample fresh fruit. I found that the twins will eat about anything and so will Logan. Miranda on the other hand just likes to sample it then tell me she doesn't like it. We got to try white nectarines, peaches, apricots, blueberries, strawberries, and Bing cherries (I think that is what they are called). I had never tried a nectarine before and it was delicious. For $2 I got 2 nectarines, 2 peaches and 3 apricots. I also got some Mexican zucchini to make zucchini bread. The kids also got some flavored honey straws. My recommendation would be try the sour watermelon flavor and steer clear of the lime flavored ones YUCK! To top it all off Katie bought us some tamales and my Grandma treated us to some Kettle corn. It is so much better than the kind you pop in your microwave. Sorry Mr. Orville. As we were packing it in the cherry lady had three bags of cherries left selling them for $1/pound originally going for $3.25/pound. The only catch was you had to either buy 3 or 5 pounds. So I told my grandma they were $5 for 5 pounds of cherries, she told me I should get them, but I wanted to save my money to get $1 scoops at Baskin Robbins. So she said Here's $5 go get them, as I walk away she says here's another $5. So we ended up with 10 pounds of cherries. She took half to my uncle and Katie took about a third of the other bag and I got the rest. I felt like I got the best deal ever.

So know here's the treat for all you who are still reading. I made Cherry Pie filling. I didn't have a cherry pitter so someone suggested using a straw to push the pits out. It worked fabulous. I am not sure who to credit with this recipe I got at www.allrecipes.com. I then changed it a tad.

Cherry Pie Filling

4 c. Cherries, pitted

1 c. sugar (1 1/4 c. if using sour cherries)

1/4 c. brown sugar (I thought this sounded good so I added it, but it wasn't in the recipe I found)

1/4 c. flour

1/2 t. cinnamon

With some of the pie filling I made Cream Cheese Filled Coffeecake With Fruit Preserves and Crumble Topping. Of course substituting the preserves with my homemade pie filling. I also used the Bisquick coffee cake recipe for the cake part adding a little less milk and a little sour cream along with some cinnamon and again a tablespoon of brown sugar.

Then I made my very first fruit pie. I used Greta Cousins Recipe for the crust. I am not a crust fan but it turned out pretty good.

Pie Crust from Greta Cousins

2 c. flour

1 t. salt

2/3 c shortening

5 T. cold water

Cut together the first three ingredients, sprinkle water on top. Mix together wih fork until it forms a ball. Cut in half. Roll into ball and flatten on floured pastry sheet. Roll out into a circle to fit pie plate.

Having never made a pie before it was very easy and it turned out good enough to take a picture and post it here.

I look forward to getting some new fruit next week and trying something new. It is a wonder I have a hard time loosing weight. I wished exercising was as much fun and tasted just as good. Oh and thank you Grandma for the cherries, sorry I didn't bake the pie before you left. At least I know I can make crust so I will bake one when you come in the fall but with APPLES!

Blessing

It was a special weekend. My mom came to visit from Ohio. While she was here, along with my grandma, we decided to give Lauren her name and blessing. Jeremy gave a wonderful blessing. I always wonder if Jeremy will change the name on the church records so it will be different from that on her birth certificate. So far he has kept it the same. Ha-ha! The people in the circle were her uncle Chris, Chris Rossi, Tim Doll (who also gave a great talk that day), Matt Cook, and Max Cassie. Lauren was our first baby to cry during her blessing but it wasn't too loud that it could not be heard which was nice for me. Also aunt Katie was there to share this special time for Lauren. When we came home we took a few pictures so here they are.

Here is a picture of four generations.

Change is in the wind

It has been a little hard getting the kids switched around and settled down into their new bedrooms. Last week we set up the new bunk beds where Logan, Haylie and Hannah will sleep. We haven't got Miranda's bed frame yet so she is a floater right now. Today we finally put the twins' mattress in their bed frame. So tonight was the first night they slept in their new bed. It was a little rough getting them to sleep but no more difficult than when they were in cribs, in fact I was quite pleased. I went in to check on them an hour or so later and found the girls all crazy like in their bed. Hannah is laying sideways on Miranda. It is Miranda's leg coming out at the bottom. Haylie meanwhile is talking up half the bed with all measly 24+ pounds of her. AMAZING!



And just so you know Logan was not bothered one bi by sleeping in his own bed. He was the first one asleep, and seemed to be content with the new sleeping arrangements. While the girls were crazy n the bottom bunk he looked very peaceful on the top bunk.

WIld Thang...

My grandma went for a ride with her son, my uncle, on his motorcycle. They came by and we took a few pictures. It was fun pretending we were all hot stuff. All bark and no bite! Oh well it was fun to be a little rebellious. Some show it off a little better than others, Nana and Katie...what is with the tongue thing. Just kidding. Thanks Robert for letting us all sit on your bike.

When I was a little younger than Miranda is now (or a little older than Logan) I have a picture of me sitting on the back of my uncle's bike. It was cool to have the same picture with my daughter minus the wonderful colors of the early 80's. I guess it could have been the lovely oranges and greens of the 70's. Anyways here is a slide show of some of my crazy family.

Watching...

This is just a little vent because this is my online journal so feel free to skip it. It has been a rough week, I am glad to say it hasn't been my rough week per se. It is a time I hope will pass quickly but want to remember to be humble and know it can't be done alone. A very close person whom I love is going through a hard time. Just when you think it can't get worse it goes one step farther. I guess that is usually how a trial goes, you begin to feel like you must be made of rubber because you have to bend further than you thought was humanly possible. The term refiners fire come to mind. You need to be stripped down to barely hanging on than you get rebuilt in a way you didn't see coming before it all began. I guess that is how they purify gold or a similar precious metal. Burn away all the impurities then bend it, pull it and reshape it into something perfect, valuable and treasured. This person is struggling in so many aspects of her life but she is so strong. Sometimes these trials are to remind you how strong you are and let me tell you this young lady comes from strong, independent stock, that is for sure. The hard part for me is watching helplessly as she has to endure this for the most part alone. No one else can shoulder the pain except the Savior. As an imperfect being I can do nothing but show love.

It wasn't that long ago I watched someone else go through similar feelings of loss, who questioned their worthiness, usefulness, or even the decision that started the mess. Even though in both cases the decisions were honorable and filled with integrity. Things could have been a lot different had that initial choice been different but neither would come out better for having gone through it. I can say both have a testimony and that is what will get her through this time. Well, that and the love and support of those who truly love her and will be there to support her and catch her when times are rough. I hope they can make her laugh too, that is what gets me through my little rough patches.

Always have a spare...

I love my kids I really do...tonight Jeremy and a few friends are going to an A's game. I decided that we will have a kid friendly low dish meal. What can be easier than barbecue burgers and tater tots. So things are going great Lauren is still sleeping in her car seat and the rest of the kids are happily playing inside. As I am putting the cheese on the burgers the kids come out and play and like good mannered little children shut the door behind them. Can you see where this is going? As the cheese melts I go to get a plate and realize that all the doors are locked. That is right, tater tots are in the oven completely cooked and the burgers are on the grill with nothing to put them on. Miranda starts crying and says "See I told you daddy should have stayed home!" Sadly we have not, as of this post, given anyone a key to our house. I figure, well it is not a problem my mother in law lives about a two minute walk from our house, it will be cold cereal tonight and worst case scenario we hang out at her house until Jeremy gets home. Then I remember I have a sweet little one month old baby inside the house. Luckily we have great next door neighbors who happened to be home, I was able to call Jeremy and tell him to turn around. I can only imagine what the conversation went like when Jeremy had to tell a car full of guys that they had to turn around because April and the kids are locked out with the baby inside. They seemed to be good sports about it when he showed up. Our neighbors gave us a paper plate so the burgers were saved. The guys got here really fast so the tater tots, although well done, were not burnt and crispy on the outside and perfect on the inside. Oh and by the way Lauren was still sleeping peacefully when we opened the door. So my advice after this experience...make sure you have an accessible spare key!

The fun has arrived...

Well a few of us have made it through our pregnancies. This is a follow up picture to my My prego groupies blog entry. Here are the adorable babies and then a picture of the adorable mommies.


(l to r)Sophie April 12; Tyler April 18; My Lauren May 17; Alexandra March 12



Just a few more more babies to go, Natalie, Tara, Valorie!!!!!

Adults say dumb things too!

OK, I often share the funny things kids say, but as parents we sometimes have a lip of the tongue too, or a thoughtless moment. I had one I would like to share.

We have this really good friend. Jeremy and I were talking as he was reading their blog. I was commenting on how sad it was that his mom passed away when he was young and his dad is on his last leg. He himself is still young so to loose both parents before you are thirty is sad. Jeremy turned around and said that was a mean thing to say. I was confused, because his dad is an older man and health wise is not doing so well, they didn't expect him to live much passed Christmas. Then Jeremy kindly reminded me that his dad just had his leg amputated two or so weeks ago. He is literally on his last leg. Health wise he is doing good, my blunder was insensitive but it wasn't intentional. So I felt like a little kid speaking without thinking. Although it is a sad situation he married into a great family and has wonderful in-laws.

Funny quotes of the week

Logan was sitting at the table and asked "Why do we have Cabbages in our mouths?" I asked if he meant cavities and he said no Cabbages. So I asked what cabbages looked like and he described the filling Miranda just got in her mouth. So we got a little chuckle and embarrassed Logan.

Lauren was crying and Logan came to me in a concerned almost panicky tone and said Lauren is crying for her milk. Jeremy had been dying to ask this, he said "Where is Lauren's milk?" Logan without missing a beat said "In Mommy's milk thingies that hold milk!" I guess I have not been very modest while nursing.

I guess that is all for now. Life has been super crazy so I haven't had time to digest much and write about it. I can't wait until school is out...I guess that doesn't make life slow down, it just makes it hotter. Oh well.

Lauren's big weigh-in

We went to Lauren's two week check up. We just wanted to hear she is back to her birth weight. She is such a good eater. She weighs 10 lbs 10.8 oz. I was surprised she has done so well. Now I can let her sleep all she wants, I don't have to worry about her not eating. She is such a great baby. I guess she has to be...I don't have time for anything less. She cuddles well and sleeps wherever we put her. Who could ask for anything more!