6 More Things to Add ....

I was tagged by my cousin Tiffany to list 6 unknowns about myself. I have done this in the past - the beginning of blogging for me ... so, here is another go. You will all know me so well now - I just hope you'll all still be my friends :)!

• When Tyler started his "diet" awhile back, we started buying only whole wheat/whole grain foods. So - no white bread, rolls, tortillas, white rice, regular pasta .... etc. I didn't mind the change a ton ... and really - I just didn't eat bread anymore, because the texture of wheat bread is too weird for me. But, I gradually started sneaking a loaf of white bread into the house every now and then ... just for me. That's horrible. I might as well eat a jar of sugar. :\ Anyway - I love white bread and tortillas and REGULAR mac-and-cheese (NOT wheat). That's something that will always be a temptation for me.




• I don't like to clean - but, I can't stand for things to NOT be clean. Does that make sense? Hence - I am very intrigued by cleaning products .... especially those that seem to make the job more quick and easy. Here are some of my VERY favorites:
  
  
  I wipe the bathrooms down every day with the Lysol wipes; clean the kitchen and tvs with microfiber + this awesome Windex; mop my floors + dusting with microfiber and Murphy's; and "spray and walk away" with Arm & Hammer's Clean Shower (which means I rarely have to clean the shower). What cleaning products do you recommend?




• I wear sweats ... A LOT. Is it really all that horrible?




• I have been the nursery coordinator/worker for a year now. Although I'm totally wiped out after church on Sundays - this calling has been my favorite (besides choir pianist). :)




• I often times "pretend" shop on-line ... filling my online shopping cart with everything I want ... and then, I can leave NEARLY satisfied without making a single purchase. :) O MAN - please tell me someone can relate to this - Plonnie? Help? haha.




• Well, tiff - 5 will have to do it. I've racked my brain. It IS fun to read about everyone ... and I certainly enjoyed yours. I tag: Heather M. and, let's see, Heidi? Have you done this yet? Twice? :)

Tuesday Treats #3

This treat I am about to share with you is perhaps my most favorite Christmas treat of all time ... and it really isn't a Christmas treat per-say. My Grandma Miller used to make it every December - and we would just gobble it up each Sunday we were at her house in December. So -- it has big Christmas feeling in it ... and we make it without fail EVERY December. I love it!

Corn Quickies

1 box corn chex
1 pound mixed nuts (optional)
1 cup coconut (optional)
Christmas color M-n-Ms (optional)

1 1/2 cups corn syrup
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup + 2 Tbsp. butter
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Bring bottom 4 ingredients to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes. Pour on dry cereal and optionals - mix carefully. Spread on was paper until set. Eat lots!

Other news: I finally got my copy of "Enna Burning" from the library - and it is pretty dang good! And ... Check out this cute picture of Krystal asleep with her hands in her pockets. She's been insisting on pants with pockets all week. Funny girl.

To Be ... or Not To Be ---> an original post by Tyler

1. Long hair vs. short hair: about a year ago, I decided that since I've never had long hair, I would give it a shot. So, the growing commenced. Then - I had it cut - on a whim. All that work at growth eliminated in 20 minutes. Back to normal. Should I grow it out again?



2. BYU vs. Uof U: Despite the fact that I graduated from the U - and wore the Ute hats diligently ... I am an AVID Cougar fan. You can take the boy out of Cougar town - but you can't take Cougar town out of the boy. And, let's face it - after last night's game ... who isn't a fan?



3. FHE vs. Monday Night Football: "Try to explain that", says my wife. Okay, here goes: I don't typically watch Monday Night Football, but folks --- John Beck is starting for the Miami Dolphins tomorrow. Need I say more?



4. Pumpkin Spice Eggnog vs. Regular Eggnog: that is the question.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

Well - I promised Kent and Leisy that we would take many pictures of the spectacular stuffing of ourselves over Thanksgiving ... however, I used Mom's camera all day on Thanksgiving - so we will all await her stupendous post :)! And then, of course - we always have such a blast with the Jenson clan ... that I totally forget to get out the camera. Did you happen to get any pics, Plonns? We loved playing lots of games and having lots of laughs Thanksgiving evening.

Black Friday morning - we all embarked on a shop until you drop extravaganza. As you can tell from the pictures - I was pretty much ready to drop before we had hardly even started ... seeing as we started by freezing our bums off in line at Circuit City for 2 hours. :) haha. We were all amazing troopers - and, even though I just payed full price for most of my purchases (we made it to each store just as the door crashers had sold out) - I DID get a beautiful Christmas tree for 1/2 off - and we drove to Thanksgiving Point for the ModBod sale (way late) - and got some TREMENDOUS deals. So - I would say ... huge success!

We always get together for an after-shopping brunch on Black Friday ... which is so much fun. Marissa decided she needed a little "pre-breakfast snack" by the time we had hit the 5th store ... so, we gave her a little break :)!

And - the reason I love this time of the year the VERY most is that we get to be together SO MUCH! It is seriously the best - we party HARDY! Here we are having a very competitive Monopoly game ... the new electronic version. VERY cool ... and, seeing as Tyler and I kicked ... VERY fun! :) Aaron got to spend the day with his favorite pal and cousin, Kevin ... thanks again Jers and Plonns! And Marissee -roo went to the movies with Anaka and Lori! Do we have the best family, or what?!

Thank you - my awesome families - I sure love and appreciate each and every one of you so much. You make this time of the year the MOST WONDERFUL!

Tuesday Treats #2

I'm so excited for Thanksgiving this week! Tyler's family has lots of yummy tasting traditions over the holidays. One of them is DeAnn's cheese logs ... and they start Thanksgiving weekend. Whoo - hoo ... and yumm -O!! Again - I love easy recipes ... try and get easier than this:

DeAnn's cheese logs:

1 jar each : Kraft Old English cheese and Kraft Roquefort cheese (you know - those little jars that work as small glass drinking cups after washed?)
1 package 8 oz. cream cheese, softened

Mix all together.
Coat in chopped walnuts.

Serve with crackers and veggies.

On the same note ... Mom and Dad - how in the world are we going to survive without the Davies' annual cheese ball once you move? That is DEFINITELY a recipe you need to get and post. I'm pretty sure it's a complicated one - but, oh so heavenly ... and one we need to eat EVERY year! :)

Not on the same note ... my car passed it's safety/emmission test today. HALLLLLLLLELUAH! That is always good news. She just needs to hang on another year or two. :)

That's all folks! Happy Tuesday!

My Favorites

Is it any wonder why M is everyone's favorite? She is pretty much right in there with the kids ... rough housing, winding every one up, playing video games. Isn't she the best? We sure think so.

This pic below is a total winner for me. :D The Jenson tongue in the working! I very rarely get candid pictures of Aaron. He is way into coloring, drawing, and writing right now (hence, the ultimate tongue-al concentration). It is seriously the cutest thing ever. He is so fascinated with words - he'll see a word on a sign at the store - and write it down over and over again the rest of the day. The best one so far was when he wrote "Play All" on everything after helping Krystal with a Dora DVD. I love the kindergarten age - he is so excited about learning ... reading and writing in particular. I love it!

I totally forgot to post a Tuesday Treat last Tuesday ... and now we're only 3 days away. So much for that plan :\! Hopefully I remember this Tuesday, 'cuz another one of my favorites is treats.

Alleleluah!

Thanks to our awesome real estate agent (and long time friend), Lewis, who gave us a gift certificate (after selling our condo, no less) - Tyler and I had the opportunity of eating at Chef's Table this weekend. It is an amazing restaurant - and very fancy. I mean, "server pulling out the chair for me and putting the napkins on our laps" fancy. And good? The food was absolutely delicious! They had a live pianist playing classical music on a grand piano, a spectacular view, and to die for food - PLUS - I got to spend a wonderful night with my sweet hubby. VERY awesome date!


THEN - as if I weren't feeling happy enough - I got to go to choir practice on Sunday (after missing the past two weeks due to our lovely pink-eye craze)! I love, love, LOVE choir practice ... or maybe it's my ward - but, we have an InCrEdIbLe ward choir! Honestly - our ward Christmas program is pretty dang good (all music). AND - from now 'til Christmas - we're having 2 hour practices every week. Have I mentioned that I love Christmas music? Well, I do. I came home from that practice so full of joy and peace. Christmas PLUS music = heaven!

So, all in all - we had a great weekend. Today is the last day we own our condo. How strange is that? We are now renters ... for awhile, anyway.

Jump On It!

We went to this awesome place called Jump On It today. It's a place in Lindon that has lots of trampolines and a few blow up toys. The kids had a total blast. Well, I did too. Jumping on trampolines is a major work out. I had side pains and jelly legs within the first 15 minutes .... oh, and being a mom and jumping on trampolines equals multiple trips to the restroom. :)

Here's Aaron doing a flip ... NOT landing on his head. One of these days I bet he'll surprise us and land on his feet. Marissa continues to be as tricky as ever ...

All smiles! These tramps on the sides were really fun.

Aaron and I had multiple basketball tournaments. He actually made several baskets. More smiles!

Here's Aaron rolling 90 miles/hour down the bouncy slide:

for some reason the video won't download ... too tired to keep trying ... maybe tomorrow.

More Daily Life

Aaron is doing so good in gymnastics - and getting stronger by the week. This head stand, however, he has been practicing and practicing for his Grandma Pat. His coach at gymnastics hasn't been working on head stands at all. Yet - this is what Aaron practices day after day. Have you seen him recently, Mom? He can stay in this position for a good 30 seconds or more. He is very tight. Nice teaching! What am I paying All-American for? :) Krystal is up and coming (so she thinks) - and practices as much as Aaron.

Now - on to more daily life. Krystal has been going through a doll house craze. I didn't put the doll house in storage, because it is something that is played with a lot. But lately - doll house is ALL Krystal wants to play ... and she doesn't like to play it alone. So, needless to say, I am TOTALLY doll-housed out ... and so are Marissa and Aaron. This past week I have been bargaining with them .... "you can stay up Friday how ever many hours you play doll house with Krystal" ... or ... "I'll put away all of your clothes for you if you'll play doll house with Krystal for 30 more minutes" .... desperate times call for desperate measures, folks! Should I just put the damn thing in storage - or will she get on with life and play other things besides doll house .... things that she can do alone?!!!

We're all so glad when daddy comes home - 'cuz then he gets a turn at doll-house too.

I'm so grateful for my family!

Tuesday Treats

We have so many yummy treats that we make over the holidays (some that we only make DURING the holidays). So - I thought it would be fun to share with you the treats that have stuck for us over the years (usually the easy ones :)). From this Tuesday until the Tuesday before Christmas - I'm going to try to post the holiday treats WE make in our home. Hopefully you'll share some fun treats with me that I can try this year ... and then see if they stick! :)

TUESDAY TREAT #1:






Andes Mint Chip Cookies
(This is basically my Mom's ch.chip cookie recipe ... but with Andes added)

Cream well:
1 cup sugar
1 cub brown sugar
2/3 cup butter
2/3 cup canola margarine (in tub form)
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla

Sift together:
3 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda

Add all together with 1 bag Andes mint chips. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-16 minutes.

Really - these chips are ideal for that minty craving over the holidays. I put part of a bag in a brownie mix to give brownies a Christmas-y taste. My kids put a handful of these chips in their instant hot chocolate, and we all love that! YUM-O!

Good Food, Good Friends, Good Times

We always have a splendid time with the Jers and Plonns fam! Thanks for a super fun night, guys! We made breakfast foods for dinner - with THE most delicious homemade syrup in the world (see recipe below) - AND Jeremy's awesome Rotel eggs with string cheese (sounds different - but SOOOOOOOO good)!

Buttermilk Syrup

1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cube butter
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 cup sugar
1Tbsp. karo syrup
1 tsp. vanilla

1. Put all the ingredients in a 2 quart pan (except vanilla)
2. Boil for 5 minutes
3. Remove from heat and add vanilla

October Clean Out

At the beginning of each month, I make a new folder in which to store the month's pictures. The previous month's pictures gets copied to a cd and removed from my hard drive. Anyway - today I was going through our kazillion October pictures to delete the excess (I like all the pics from one month to fit on ONE cd). Krystal and Aaron get ahold of my camera a lot more than I ever knew .... so, needless to say, I had lots to delete. However, here are a few of their shots that I was quite impressed with. They are certainly camera happy ... just like their mom! :)

By the way...now that the Halloween candy is 100% gone as of yesterday... is it so unusual that Krystal woke up this morning saying, "I want candy"?

One Night ...

This AweshOme slide presentation is brought to you by everyone's favorite M Babe! Thank you, M!

It Has Begun ...

So - in my book, anyway - the holiday season is official as of today, November 1st! This means serious shopping, storage sorting (for decos), planning, and (to Leisy's complete disgust :)) CHRISTMAS MUSIC!! Actually, as a piano teacher, most of my students begin Christmas music early October. By November, they are pretty much playing Christmas music exclusively (as long as they are ready for Festival ... which isn't until February anyway.) I wonder what the parents think of that :)! I love it, so that's just the way it is! :) We've pulled out the Christmas cds - and we're in business for the next 2 months!

I started off the season with a total bang - and have a serious infection in my eyes. I was using Marissa's drops (from her mild pink eye from last week) - and my eye just wasn't getting better. Today, at the doctor, he read the ingredients of the drops to me and said, "Michelle, the main ingredient in these drops is sulfa ... which you are allergic to." Whoops. Anyway - I'm on some heavy duty erythromycin ointment now, which makes it difficult to see for awhile - but, hopefully I'll be cleared up soon. In the meantime - I do NOT leave the house - mainly because of how horrendous I look, but because I'm contagious too. :) So ... stay away! :)

ANYWAY - I'm looking forward to being up and running again - because, I really DO love the holiday season ... the hustle and bustle, the thick newspapers full of advertisements of great buys, the frost in the air, the music, and the lights - which will be coming on THIS month!! Happy Holidays everyone!