Some of my latest favorites...

G is turning into one of the funniest kids! One of his latest quirks is that he excitedly says "yeah" to every question you ask even if it really may not be what he wants. He loves to be outside - I think he would live out there if he could. When I tell him it's time to get dressed in the morning he makes a run for the back door because he's sure that's where he's going next. G enjoys playing the piano and he's actually pretty good. He does some nice dynamics and incorporate the high and low notes as well. He also loves to turn the pages of the hymn book and play notes from each page. He LOVES breakfast and lunch, but it's like pulling teeth for him to eat dinner. I keep trying to feed him "other" foods, but he won't even allow them into his mouth to taste it. Silly boy! G has turned into a great sleeper lately. He goes down by 7 or 7:30 most nights and sleeps until 6:30. He knows sign language for "please," "more," and is working on "thank you." He knows what a cow says, but thinks that every animal should say the same thing :) One of his favorite things to play with is the circular plastic base that our exercise ball sits on - he loves to wear it around his neck. G stills gives B all the love he can handle and is such a good brother. Only 9 more Sundays until he gets to go into nursery!



Baby B is getting so big so fast. He's at least 16 lbs now and loves to be awake and happy. Blowing bubbles is his favorite hobby (and it G's favorite thing to come and eat his bubbles. After a quick hug he takes his finger, scoops up some bubbles, and sticks them in his mouth and says "mmmm...") One of the things I love the best about B is that he knows how to laugh now. That truly is music to my soul. It makes me so happy - I could make him laugh all day. His smile is infectious. B does a great job at going to sleep if I catch him at the right time - all I have to do is lay him down on his tummy with his bink and he goes right to sleep without even a whimper.

All in all... I love my boys and I love being a mom!

P.S. A few questions for you experienced mothers out there... What do you do to curb unwanted behavior such as throwing food on the floor from the high chair? Or high-pitched screaming? Or refusal to eat/try any new food?

A Tribute to Chef Jenny

If you're a follower of my blog, you'll know that I first tried "Chef Jenny" when I did her mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving. Since then I've tried so many more of her recipes and have LOVED them. Here are a few of my favorites.

Blackberry Cream Cheese Muffins With Sweet Berry Drizzle - great for Sunday morning YUM! (unless you have church at 9:00 and have babies :)
Spicy Chicken Artichoke Pasta
Chicken Enchilada Soup
Hearty Healthy Chicken Soup - Probably my FAVORITE soup!
Chicken Burritos - made these this week YUM!
Creamy Chicken Italiano
Spaghetti Bolognese - made this last night
Avacado and Egg Sandwich
Stuffed Shells
Cheesy Baked Stuffed Ziti
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Soft Gingersnaps -making these today
Homemade Rolls - Whole Wheat Goodness!
Million Dollar Peanut Butter Cookie EASY!!!
Delicous Balls of Heavenly Yum (My sister gave these this name)
Crunchy Almond Chicken Strips


These next two I haven't tried yet, but they're on the menu!
Creamy Fire Roasted Tomato Basil Soup -making this Friday
Chicken Corn Chowder with Cornbread Bites -making this tomorrow

I know it may sound trite... but she's changed my life and how I look at my role as a mother in providing a good meal to have together. Here is the "Ode to Chef Jenny" that I put on her blog as a comment, letting her know how wonderful I think she is.

"I have to credit my introduction to my cousins Myr and Cami DeWitt. THANK YOU!

I wouldn't call myself a "cook" in the loosest meaning of the word and actually dreaded making dinner because I had very few things that I could make well. My husband kept mentioning that we needed to broaden our menu. So I would try something out of my 10 cookbooks and it would either be mediocre or disgusting (yes, I've thrown away complete meals before... I know, wasteful). But now that I've found you, "Chef Jenny," I'm excited to try new things and love to hear my husband say dinner tastes great. In fact most days that I'm trying something new, he asks me if it's a Chef Jenny Recipe because 95% of the time it is :)

These mashed potatoes were my first adventure with "Chef Jenny" - we made them for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and a few other times too. D*E*L*I*C*I*O*U*S!!! I LOVE the Spicy Artichoke Chicken w/ Broccoli meal! I've also enjoyed the Stuffed Shells, Creamy Chicken Italiano, Gingersnaps, Chicken Enchilada Soup, etc. And can't wait to keep trying your latest and greatest creations.

I know this post is long, but I want to thank you thank you thank you for the changes that you've made in me even if we've never met. I appreciate the opportunity that having dinner as a family provides for good communication and am grateful that now I can add good eating as a plus to having dinner together too! Anyway, thanks again. HOORAY for CHEF JENNY! :)"

Family Picture

Here is a picture Holly took of our little family at Christmas time. I sure love my boys. And I love LOVE! We've been asked to speak in church on the 24th and the topic is Elder Wirthlin's Conference Address from Oct. 2007. If you haven't read it yet lately, read it because you will feel so uplifted. It speaks of the power of charity and love... without it, the things we do mean nothing. Love is powerful! I was really so moved as I read it... it's hard to even summarize, so here is an excerpt that I particularly loved.

"Love is the beginning, the middle, and the end of the pathway of discipleship. It comforts, counsels, cures, and consoles. It leads us through valleys of darkness and through the veil of death. In the end love leads us to the glory and grandeur of eternal life.

True love lasts forever. It is eternally patient and forgiving. It believes, hopes, and endures all things. That is the love our Heavenly Father bears for us.

We all yearn to experience love like this. Even when we make mistakes, we hope others will love us in spite of our shortcomings—even if we don’t deserve it.

Oh, it is wonderful to know that our Heavenly Father loves us—even with all our flaws! His love is such that even should we give up on ourselves, He never will.

We see ourselves in terms of yesterday and today. Our Heavenly Father sees us in terms of forever. Although we might settle for less, Heavenly Father won’t, for He sees us as the glorious beings we are capable of becoming.

The gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel of transformation. It takes us as men and women of the earth and refines us into men and women for the eternities.

The means of this refinement is our Christlike love. There is no pain it cannot soften, no bitterness it cannot remove, no hatred it cannot alter. The Greek playwright Sophocles wrote: “One word frees us of all the weight and pain of life: That word is love.”"

Happy Valentine's Day! Celebrate the LOVE in your life!