A Pinch of This and a Dash of That!

Morocco...can't you smell the yummy spices now?!?

2011-01-26T14:19:00.000-08:00

As I was sitting down to make my menu for next week...I've decided that I'll probably do 4 or 5 Disney dinners a week and on Saturday do a Disney Breakfast...I'm becoming addicted to these recipes!

This dinner (and the one from the other night) have carbs in them...but I have replaced the plain couscous with WHOLE WHEAT couscous, cut out fat and used good fats (coconut oil, olive oil) While I try to stay away from carbs at night, I have decided that I also want to enjoy my dinners...simply put - I LOVE food!

If you have seen the movie "Eat Pray Love" The part where Liz and her friend are eating pizza in Italy, Liz says "I have no interest in being obese, but I'm through with the guilt." That's how I feel...so carbs are back at night!

Here's what I had for dinner last night:
From Restaurant Marrakesh (Morocco @ Epcot)

Lamb Tagine - on a side not, Jay does not like lamb, so in the future I'll be doing something different for him...I, on the other hand, am beginning to love lamb :0)
Couscous
Hummus (my own recipe)

Lamb Tagine
Original recipe: http://www.allears.net/din/recipes/rec_lamtag.htm

1 lb. lamb loin chops (or chicken or beef)
1/2 medium onion finely chopped
1 handful of cilantro, finely chopped
1 handful of parsley, finely chopped
Salt & Pepper
1 t. ginger, finely minced
Couple cloves of Garlic
pinch of saffron
about 2 c. of water
1/2 can artichokes, quartered

Season lamb cubes with salt and pepper. In a skillet that can also go in the oven, brown the lamb in coconut oil. Add onions, parsley, cilantro, saffron, artichokes & water. Cook 2 hours or until tender @ 350 in the oven. Remove lamb from pot, put the pan back on the stove and reduce sauce until thick and serve over the lamb.

Couscous Salad

Original recipe:http://www.allears.net/din/recipes/rec_cous.htm

Olive oil
1/2 of a red onion
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
1/2 of a sweet red bell pepper
1/2 of a sweet green bell pepper
1/2 of a chopped zucchini
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Nutmeg to taste
Cinnamon to taste
1 whole can of chick peas
1 cup orange juice
12 ounces cooked WHOLE WHEAT couscous
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup tangerine segments or mandarin orange segments
Mint sprig for garnish

In a large nonstick skillet, sauté onion, garlic, sweet bell peppers and zucchini in olive oil. Season with salt, pepper, nutmeg and cinnamon. Add chickpeas and orange juice. Let the orange juice reduce down by at least 1/2. Toss vegetable mixture with couscous and pan juices. Add parsley and gently fold in citrus segments.

Hummus

1 can of chick peas

1 TB of Tahiti (sesame seed paste)

1/4 cup of FF half and half

1 garlic clove

2- 3 TB of lemon juice

salt & pepper

Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend! Add what you think you might need more of, like lemon juice or salt. If it's too thick, slowly add more half & half to thin it out. I served it with those pretzel crisps!

Tonight - where going to Animal Kingdom!!!

Disney Dinner Year!

2011-01-26T06:55:00.000-08:00

I recently had the opportunity to go on a girls' weekend with some of my great friends and went to Disney & Universal. (we really went to run a 5K but that was really the side note I think ;0) While at Disney, we went to Epcot to eat dinner. Becky told us France was the place for dessert, so of course we listened...Becky is the Disney QUEEN and so she would definitely know! Amanda got a croissant sandwich, Kim got a chocolate croissant and an eclair, I got an eclair and a napoleon (I had never had one before)...don't judge Kim & I...we ran a 5K the day before - we had to refuel ;0)
The eclair was ok...but the napoleon...I felt like I had entered a dessert haven, where the only thing that existed was me and my napoleon...It was one of the best things I have ever put in my mouth!

So when I got home I wanted to recreate the same thing here...but seeing as how I am not French and don't have any knowledge of how to make one...I did what I always do with ethnic foods and did research. I actually found the dessert on a website that I frequent quite often for Disney tips - www.allears.net
There they have TONS of Disney (from all the resorts and parks) recipes.

Which started my new thing for the year... I am going to replicate 3 Disney dinners a week.

The only problem with this was that most things are not very friendly for my already large hips (and thighs and belly and arms...you get the point) So I've adapted it for my lifestyle. I'm also going to post a link to the original recipe, if you want to try that as well. I'm starting with the park Epcot and then I'll move on from there...Hope you enjoy!

EPCOT - United Kingdom

Chicken & Leek Pie
(served at Rose & Crown)
Original recipe: http://www.allears.net/din/recipes/rec_clp.htm

2TB of EVOO or EVCoconut Oil
1 small onion, diced
3 stalks of celery, diced (I also use the leafy part of the celery)
about 1 1/2 c. of leeks, whites only & diced (I used more because I cut more and I LOVE leeks)
2 chicken breast, diced
2TB flour
1 c. chicken stock
1/2 c. fat free half and half
3 TB dried parsley
1/2 ts. thyme
salt & pepper
Pie crust (2- 9" circles)
1 egg

In a large skillet saute the olive oil, onion, celery and leeks until tender. Add chicken and cook it through. Add the flour and stir (this is going to make roux and be the thickening agent in your sauce) Next add the spices and then add the chicken stock & half and half. Cook until it thickens, stirring it and watching so it doesn't burn.
Line your pie crust in a deep pie dish and make the chicken mixture. Place the 2nd pie crust on top. Piece holes on the top, brush with the egg and bake at 375 for about 30 min.

EPCOT - UNITED KINGDOM

Mushroom Medley
(served at Rose & Crown)
Original recipe: http://www.allears.net/din/recipes/rec_mm.htm

I served this with green beans - YUMMY!

2 TB Olive Oil or EV coconut oil (I used the coconut oil)
1 clove of garlic
1/4 of onion, diced
1 c. Button Mushrooms, sliced
1 c. Portabella Mushrooms,sliced
1TB flour
3/4 c. White Wine
1 1/3 c. fat free half & half

Using a large skillet, saute your onion & garlic in the olive oil. Then add your mushrooms to the pan...the trick to getting sauteed mushrooms and not steamed mushrooms, is making sure they have plenty of room to spead out and are not on top of each other. Also make sure you add more oil if they need it (they have a tendency to "drink" it up)
Once sauteed, add the flour and let cook a min. Then add the wine and let it reduce & thicken (cook all the alcohol out) Once thickened add the half and half, then let cook for just a minute. The FF half and half has a tendency to seperate when cooked too long, so get it off the heat before that...if you don't...no biggie - it tastes the same :0)
I poured this over green beans and it was delish!

Tonight I'm making dinner from Morocco!

SOUR CREAM vs. PLAIN YOGURT

2010-10-26T13:55:00.000-07:00

I'm going to post some healthy small changes that my family & I have made over the years. Things that I didn't really pay attention to until someone else told me. So I want to pass it forward...

My wonderful Aunt June spent the summer here with us a couple of years ago (she lives in Portland, Oregon). While we were eating baked potatoes for dinner one night, she said that she used plain yogurt instead of sour cream, it was much healthier...blah, blah, blah - things I didn't want to hear because I liked living in my butter, sour cream smothered baked potato world.

But because I have a weird thing about reading labels on food - I read it and right then and there I decided sour cream was no longer for me...thank you Aunt June for opening my eyes ;0) I'm not saying I don't eat anything that is not 100% healthy...I still love to eat my junk food every once in while.
It's all about balance - sour cream is not worth the extra bad stuff, like say a piece of Lindt chocolate IS!!!

Here are some of the things that are in fat free sour cream:
CULTURED PASTEURIZED GRADE A NONFAT MILK, DRIED CORN SYRUP, FOOD STARCH-MODIFIED, CREAM, LESS THAN 2% OF MALTODEXTRIN, ARTIFICIAL COLOR, XANTHAN GUM, NATURAL FLAVOR, VITAMIN A PALMITATE.
(YEEK!)

Here are the ingredients in my Stonyfield's Organic Fat Free Yogurt:
cultured pasteurized organic nonfat milk, pectin, vitamin d3, six live active cultures
(that's much better :)

As far as flavor goes, I love yogurt, so I had no problem going over to it. My whole family did great with the swap. I've been using it for 2 years now and don't miss sour cream at all!
I use it in my ranch dressing, dips, food - anytime you need sour cream.
Hint: When you're wanting to use it on a potato, FF yogurt is thinner than sour cream, so to make it thicker, you can let it "drain" in a cheesecloth or you can get Greek style yogurt - I just drain my yogurt because greek style is more expensive - and I'm a cheapskate :)

Fish Wraps - LATIN style!!!

2010-10-23T05:02:00.001-07:00

It all started with me wanting fish and some good ole' black beans for dinner. I have usually avoided the whole fish tacos at Mexican restaurants, mainly because I was kind of afraid of them (I don't know why - I'm usually pretty easy going with food - unless it's sweetbreads or some crazy stuff like that) But then I remembered my sister in law, I think Kimberly, had said one time that she had fish tacos and they were great...so I thought why not??? If it doesn't work the trash is right there!

I wanted to obviously keep it healthy and taco shells = not healthy! I also knew I was going to be eating some carbs (beans and tortilla wraps), so I knew I needed to keep my fat grams way down.
That's how I do it - higher fat content = lower carb intake / higher carb intake = lower fat content. (I am NOT a trained nutritionist, so please don't think thats the way to do it - it just works for me)
So thus the Fish Wraps - LATIN style were born! Enjoy :)

Fish Wraps
made 3 wraps - my girls split one b/c they were on the larger side

Flounder - 2 frozen pieces from the bag I get at Sam's
Onion - one small, sliced
Garlic - 2 cloves
Oregano - about one big pinch
Chili Powder - about one palmful
Cumin - about one big pinch
1/2 lime - juiced
Cilantro - small handful, chopped
Carb Balance small tortillas - they have 12 carbs BUT they have 8 grams of fiber!!!
Spinach
Sliced Cucumbers - these add a nice, cool, crunch - especially if you make the sauce spicy...my mouth is watering right now...

Jalapeno Lime yogurt (recipe down below)

To keep down on the fat, I used only about 1 teaspoon of EVOO and sprayed the pan with olive oil spray and threw my fish, onions, garlic and all the spices in the pan and chopped the fish up as it cooked. After it's cooked add the lime juice & cilantro...can't you smell it...delicious!

The reason I did it like this was because I still wanted my onions to have a little crunch at the end and I was being lazy, I was hungry and didn't want to have to wait - but the crunch of onion worked out nice in the wrap.

If you don't like crunchy onions - saute them them first then add everything else.

After it's cooked through - time to layer that bad boy tortilla!
I did tortilla, fish, spinach, cucumber, yogurt sauce...and it was divine! Jay loved them and said they were great! Hint: If you're fam doesn't like fish sub some shrimp or chicken :)
I served it with black beans and roasted broccoli...those will come later!

Jalapeno Lime Yogurt

FF Yogurt - about a cup
Pickled Jalapenos - chopped up (how many is up to you and your taste buds - we like it hot!)
Lime juice - about 1/2 lime
Cilantro - small handful, chopped
Garlic clove - mashed with salt on the back of your knife
Salt & Pepper

Mix all these beautiful ingredients together and enjoy! Again, my wonderful hubby loved it so much, he was eating the sauce like dip with cucumbers :)

Mashed Cauliflower...yes, cauliflower...not potatoes...

2010-10-22T03:11:00.000-07:00

Back in Jan. when I decided that carbs were not my friends at night (during the day I eat carbs- I don't believe in denying yourself of any food that you love - that'll make you just become a crazy person) I had to find some different solutions to things like yummy, buttery, stick to your ribs mashed potatoes.
Now I don't want you to think I'm saying the cauli is just like taters...it's not. BUT it is an awesome, healthy ALTERNATIVE - alternative being the operative word
My whole family loves it - that's right the picky little girls even eat this stuff up - that could be because I kinda told a little white lie to them about it maybe kinda sorta being mashed potatoes...hey, they're 3 & 5 - you tell them it's a mashed veggie - they run away!
I serve this at least once a week - if not more...whenever the occasion comes up for mashed taters - I use this.
Things I've put with it: pot roast, meatloaf, roasted pork, spinach artichoke chicken...etc.

Mashed Cauliflower
This will serve 2 adults and 3 little kids

Frozen Cauli - 1 1/2 bags
Skim milk
Water
Salt & Pepper
Butter*
2% Italian Cheese blend
FF Half & Half
FF Plain Yogurt**

*(I prefer butter, if anything I would use Smart Balance - but the list of ingredients is nice and short on the butter label - margarine, not so short)
**(yes, yogurt - I don't use sour cream - this will be on another blog, but you can use sour cream if you want)

Put the cauli in a pot with a combination of 2/3 milk & 1/3 water (you add the water to help the milk from scalding), salt & pepper. You want to add enough liquid so that it will go about 3/4 up the cauli.
Now boil the heck out of it, on med. high and watch it - since it has milk, it will boil over (happens pretty much every time) and scald (happens every other time). When you look in the pot and see that the cauli looks like mush - it's ready!
Drain out the liquid and then mash - take out all the stress from the day on the poor, helpless cauli...then make it happy by adding some butter, cheese, half & half, & yogurt. You add all these ingredients to your taste preference.
On a side note: If the cauli, is to liquidity, after you mashed it - then put it back on the stove and boil the liquid out - but make sure you stir constantly otherwise, well let's just say you'll have to start over (and yes, I'm talking from experience)

I hope you guys enjoy this!

Just another thing to do...

2010-10-21T10:52:00.000-07:00

I'm back!...well maybe a little back...as much as I can be back - ok...as long as Landon lets me type :)

This blog is not going to be what it use to be, it's transforming into something I have never thought it would be - a "recipe blog" - who would have thought right? (certainly NOT me!)
I'm mainly going to share my recipes that are healthy and some that are not so healthy because let's face it- sometimes a girl needs a chocolaty, gooey, yummy brownie. And a scoop of ice cream to go with it...I'm just sayin'

The first recipe - I need to clarify before we go any further- I don't use recipes for dinner (baking yes...dinner no) so if I say some of this and some of that - it's to your personal taste. Cooking to me has always been (and hopefully will always be) a relaxing (yes, I said relaxing - don't judge...some people say exercising is relaxing...you can judge them) thing I have done since I was literally a kid. I use to cook all the meals growing up - not because my mom was into slave labor (maybe she was a little - I mean HELLO she had 7 kids...maybe I should have more just so I can stop doing all the laundry...hmmmm) where was I?!?, oh ya! I cooked because I LOVE to cook and I LOVE to eat...which brings me to my problem - I gained a lot of weight - it's a vicious cycle. In Jan. I decided that I had to do something about my weight - but I was not willing to give up my food ("Maria don't share food!" Friends lovers will get this, everyone else sorry) So therefore I have mostly changed the way I cook. Here's a recipe from last night that I'd thought someone out there would enjoy. This was enough to serve my family 2 adults and 3 kids - for those of you that are saying "3 kids" I thought Landon was a baby - he is - he just eats like a kid.

Spinach Artichoke Chicken

Chicken Breast - 2 (they were on the larger size)
Seasoned with thyme, basil, salt & pepper - pinch of each on each breast
Artichokes in brine -1/2 of a can, quartered
Onion - I used one small
Garlic - 3 cloves
Mushrooms - 4 large ones, quartered
Fresh Spinach - 2 handfuls
White wine - if you don't want to use this, you can sub chicken stock
FF (that's fat-free) Half & Half
2% Mozzarella cheese - small handful
Parsley - couple big pinches, chopped

Sear one side the chicken in about 1 TB of EVOO, then flip that thing over and sear the other side - don't let it cook all the way through. 1TB of EVOO is not enough, it will start to dry out - after you have seared both sides and it starts to dry out - I add a little water to let the chicken steam - not boil - steam, so maybe 1/4 c. of water. I do this until the chicken is cooked through.

After it's cooked, turn down to about med. high and add another 1tb. of EVOO and add in the mushroom, onions, & garlic. When the onions are translucent, throw those artichokes in.

At this point yummy, sticky, deliciousness is on the bottom of the pan - this is when you deglaze (yes, I used a big word- it will happen from time to time) the pan with the white wine. Let that reduce down, then add the spinach.

The spinach will wilt to almost nothing- add more if you want to.

When that happens, add the half & half - just enough to make it creamy - you may be tempted to add a little more - I was and I did, hey it's fat free!

Then sprinkle on the cheese and stir.

I served with mashed cauliflower - that recipe will come tomorrow (Landon is patiently crying for me) and Salad Boats - again will come later :)..it will be something else to do :)

Me??? A "Molly Mormom"???

2009-02-27T11:47:00.001-08:00

Normally my posts are all about my girls and are loaded with pictures...not today! Recently Jay & I have been really working on our food storage (72 Kit-not done with, 3 mon-I have about 2 -3 mon, 1 year-where the heck am I suppose to put that???) In the food storage, our church has told us that wheat is to also be included. I have never known what to do with wheat...it has always been a foreign thing to me. I remember as a kid when my parents had their food storage, that the wheat got tossed out with the things that never got used. I really have been wanting to use wheat and learn what I can with it, so I started the research...I can sometimes become like my moma with research, and get carried away :0) I have now discovered that I love wheat!!! My wonderful husband has even goten me a Wonder Mill wheat grinder...I got it yesterday and I can't wait to get my wheat to grind! I have converted a lot of my recipes and found a lot of new ones. I have started making my own bread (and cereal...I don't know how it will turn out, it's in the oven:0) I took the recipe from someone at my church and made it my own...those of you who know me know that I don't bake...but I have discovered I love to bake :0)
Who would have thought that I would have become a "Molly Mormon"...go figure ;0)
PS I'll post the bread recipe with the cereal later...the kids are driving me crazy :0)

A funny blog I want to pass along...

2009-01-29T06:12:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine posted a blog that he said was "Pure Hilarity", so I checked it out and sure enough, it is! It's called "My Religious Blog: The Substandard Works of a Utah Mormon" If you want a good laugh, check it out :0)
http://myregisblog.blogspot.com/

Finally updated!!!!

2009-01-26T14:42:00.000-08:00

Ok, so to say that I've been out of the blogging world for a little while might be a bit of an understatement!!! But I have finally put up everything I have missed (it took about 2.5 hours...ugh) There are a lot of pictures and I didn't really have time to journalize everything, but the pictures speak for themselves. Hopefully I won't get so far behind again....yeah right!
PS..there were so many posts, that you will have to go OLDER POST at the bottom to see the rest :0)

New Year's Eve

2009-01-26T14:35:00.000-08:00

We went to Kim & Rafael's for New Year's Eve and had a blast! When midnight usually approachs, I feel tired...but this year, we were having so much fun that time flew for me!

There goes my little Energizer bunny...she just keeps going and going, unlike her sister and cousin! She tried to wake them up, but they didn't like that too much :0)

Christmas Morning

2009-01-26T14:29:00.000-08:00

As the girls are getting older, Christmas morning is getting better. I love to see them open a present and the pure joy that comes across their faces... Of course, as Evie is opening her presents, she is having to put them on! Elaina loved tearing anything open!

Christmas Eve

2009-01-26T14:24:00.000-08:00

We split up our Christmas Eve (as always) and I didn't get any pictures from the Phipps Christmas Eve...:0(
But here are plenty from Stacy's house! My grandfather, Elsy and Michelle from Miami and my grandmother from Panama were here with us this year for Christmas, which was great!

Our Christmas Tree and Evie showing off her new Chrsitmas pajamas (this tradition came from Cathy, she would give her kids new pajamas for Christmas on Christmas Eve, so that they would all look good for Christmas morning pictures...so we now do the same thing)

Ward Christmas Party

2009-01-26T14:17:00.000-08:00

At the ward Christmas Party, Santa will visit for the first part and as always, my kids will have nothing to do with him! Finally, Nana got Evie to go up there with her and that was Evie's first time to sit in his lap without screaming. She doesn't look happy, but at least she wasn't crying. Elaina on the other hand would have nothing to do with him!

Clean up time meant have fun time!

Evie's School Party

2009-01-26T14:12:00.000-08:00

This was Evie's first school Christmas party and while the pictures don't look like she had a good time, she really did. I think leaving with a canvas bag full of candy and presents helped!

Christmas Family Home Evening

2009-01-26T14:11:00.000-08:00

This year we had a couple of families and the missionaries come over for a Christmas family home evening and we had so much fun! As you can see, the poor missionaries shoulders were probably killing them by the end of the night!

Christmas Pictures

2009-01-26T14:07:00.000-08:00

I forgot to set up an appointment to get the girls Christmas pictures done, so as always I waited till the last minute possible (Christmas Eve morning, thank goodness the photo lab at Wal-Mart was open till six!) to take pictures for Christmas presents. I took about 100 pictures and I got 1 really good picture of Elaina...my little munchkin! I want a SLR camera so bad, but I have'nt quite convinced Jason to get me one yet...

A Day at the Meyers

2009-01-26T14:03:00.000-08:00

We went to the Meyer's house to go and see Carter. Since they have "moved", Evie has missed spending time with him. The animals were a big bonus for the girls. As you can see in the picture, the dogs were really friendly but Evie didn't quite trust them :0)
They are out in the country so the girls had fun running everywhere and getting dirty!
We'll be back Amanda...Evie still wants to feed the fish!!!

Happy New Ears Everyone!!!

2008-12-30T19:40:00.001-08:00

I hope everyone had a great and merry Christmas! I have been out of the blogging world for a while now, but hopefully when things semi-slowdown, I'll be back! I hope everyone has a great New Year :0)

Making Amish Bread!

2008-11-28T08:30:00.000-08:00

For those of you who know me, know that I don't like to bake (I hate having to be precise about my measurements). But Jennifer gave me an amish friendship starter for bread and I decided to do it (I got it about 5 years ago and I ended up throwing it away). So the girls helped me make the bread (more like helped make a mess ;0) and it was delicious!

We loved the bread so much that I decided to keep a starter for me (you give it away to your friends...hence the friendship bread). We'll be baking every 10 days, but the bread is definetely worth it. I'll be getting new starter to give away in 10 days, let me know if anyone wants some.

FYI: Evie took the pictures of Leah, Elaina & I in the collage above...I didn't crop or anything. She LOVES to take pictures and does a pretty good job :0) I think Santa might need to bring her a camera...

Here's the final product...the picture is kinda messed up because I took it with my phone

Twilight Midnight Show!!!

2008-11-22T08:43:00.000-08:00

Twilight has finally come out and of course, there was a group of us that had to be there to see it at the MIDNIGHT showing!!! Some of my good friends and I went...Amanda, Holly & Shelly. To start the night we went to Target to get some chocolate and decided that the jeans we were wearing weren't going to cut it, we needed comfort...so we bought pajama pants...ahhhh! We were literally getting kicked out of Target, so we changed in the parking lot of the theater :0) We then had almost 2 hours to kill in theater (we wanted the best seats in the house, so we had to get there early...good thing too because it was a sold out show!) so we had some fun with camera! We felt like teenagers again (and acted like it too!)

Midnight showing are always fun because you get all the obsessed, crazy people there. There was clapping and ohhs and ahhhs (when Edward came on screen I think every girl, and yes me too, had hot flashes!) I loved the movie...I may not be a good judge though because I absolutely love the books. I'm going again sometime soon (probably this week!). Not only did I have a great time seeing the movie, it was a great girls night out. We had so much fun and felt like teenagers again! Had a great time girls...we'll have to do it again at the "Phipps Theater" when the DVD comes out...(I'll have my cardboard Edward, hahaha ;0)

This is a picture of a sweet boy who thought we were all 19! We started to talk to them and metioned something about our kids and husbands and the teenageres behind us didn't believe that we had kids and were married, they thought we were all 18/19! They said we were such cool moms...that made our night (well it helped make our night...I mean Hello, we watched Edward on screen!)

Making other "Twilight" movies!!!

2008-11-15T12:19:00.000-08:00

I know this is obsessive, but whatever! I just read on my Hotmail page (anything right now that says "Twilight" catches my attention) that they have bought the rights to make New Moon, Eclipse & Breaking Dawn!!! Here's the web page for the article...

http://www.etonline.com/news/2008/11/67735/index.html

Yeah!!!!

I'm addicted to...TWILIGHT!!!

2008-11-04T08:54:00.000-08:00

Yes...I am totally addicted to Twilight...sad but true...
I have already bought the soundtrack and have been listening to it. Some of the music is a little too alternative for me (maybe it will grow on me after I've seen the movie)
and some is really good. The music video above is a good one,
especially since it has clips of the movie in it (which is the main reason I like it)!
If you want a better resolution video, go to this web address:

http://www.mtv.com/videos/paramore/294491/decode.jhtml#artist=1968732

I've looked up where and when the first show is in Dothan...it's going to be at the new theater...YEAH! Not sure about a midnight show yet, but if there's one I'll be there! There's one thing to say about a midnight show, all the people that are there, are there because they are also addicted freaks :0) (At least that's how it was for the Harry Potter midnight show)
I've started rereading Twilight, I figured if I have to stand in line for 2 hours or more to vote, I may as well have an awesome book to read to let time fly!
So yes I'm very addicted and can't wait for the movie!!!

Aloha from Chris!

2008-10-19T18:02:00.000-07:00

My brother Chris is attending school at BYU Hawaii and is having a great time (who wouldn't right???)
He has finally sent me some pics of it out there and so here they are! The top left pic is of him sitting on some rocks, the next pic is the same spot with a HUGE wave coming and yes it landed on him and he was soaked (he couldn't run away because the rocks are really sharp and jagged) The next is his Ninja motorcycle, Daisy. He said the one he is "hanging" sideways on the light pole was hard...I can do that all day with one hand (hahahahahahaha)

Return with Honor!!!

2008-10-19T16:39:00.000-07:00

Elder Stinson is home!!!
Ok, so I'm a little behind on the blog thing...he's been home almost two weeks (he got home Oct 7). But better late than never ;0)David served a mission for our church in the Riverside California mission. He looks the same,I think he's taller...or maybe I've shrunk (as you can see in the picture, he's over a head taller then me...no fair :0( and he acts the same. He was in a shock when he got home as I'm sure all missionaries go through when they get home. Not only have kids grown up since he left (Aaron, Adam - not so much ;0), Hannah, Leah, & Evie) and there were kids here that weren't before he left (Elaina). Mom was also diagnosed while he was gone and this the first time he has seen her since all that has happened. He is glad to be home and back in Alabama. He is actually here right now watching movies. He's trying to catch up on the good flicks...he's already watched 2 (Harry Potter 5 & Casino Royale) He will be returning to BYU (he attended before his mission for a semester) in May.

Some extra shots that I liked...and yes that is Kimberly getting Andrew off of the luggage conveyor belt thingy (I have no idea what it's called)...gotta love that kid! :0)

Got Tagged with Crazy Eights!!!

2008-10-08T14:23:00.000-07:00

Some of the things are not "eight" for me...sorry :0)

Eight TV Shows I Love to Watch (in no particular order)
1. Private Practice
2. Grey's Anatomy
3. Jon & Kate plus 8
4. What Not to Wear
5. Hannah Montana (I watch with Evie, but it's actually pretty cute!)
6. That's pretty much it...
7.
8.

Eight Things That Happened Yesterday
1. sewed up Evie's Halloween costume
2. Went shopping @ Sam's (yes, with children...I'm not very smart ;0)
3. went to airport to welcome home my little brother from his mission...Welcome Home David!
4. went to parents for dinner
5. oh ya...and chased my children around all day!!!
6.
7.
8.

Eight Favorite Places to Eat (in no particular order)
1. Kobe (sushi)
2. Top Thai
3. Olive Garden
4. HOME!!!
5.
6.
7.
8.

Eight Things I'm Looking Forward To
1. Going to Disney World's Halloween Party
2. Getting my living room finished
3. Date night with hubby
4. Twilight Movie
5. my facial
6. Right when the babies get up from nap time and we play (that's when they are the happiest...usually)
7. The holidays
8. Watching my babies grow up :0)

Eight Things on My Wish List
1. New living room furniture
2. New kitchen (yes, the whole thing...it did say this was a "wish" list ;0)
3. A camera that clicks literally right away, so I don't miss the "perfect" picture
4. To have a day where all I do is read ALL day...ahhh...wouldn't that be a great day
5. Have one more baby...some day
6. To grow old with my husband and watch my great grand children one day...
7. My mom to be healed...
8. PEACE, QUIET, & SANITY!!!

People I tag
1. Shelly
2. Amanda (have fun in DC)
3. Holly
4. Monique
5. Windy

DATE NIGHT!!!!!!!

2008-10-04T09:19:00.000-07:00

We had date night again!!! Whether we do our babysitting group with family or I hire my brother to watch the kids, I live for Friday night dates! In Dothan, we are kinda limited on the date options...go out to eat, movie, putt-putt, bowling or go out to eat! We did putt-putt a couple of weeks ago, so we (when I say "we", I mean the girls, the boys just go along ;0) decided bowling would be next! I'm sticking with putt-putt from now on. Of course in true group date fashion, we did boys vs. girls (big mistake!!!) To say the boys slaughtered us, would probably be an understatment! I do have to give credit to the girls that did good...pretty much everyone but me! Like I said I'm sticking with putt-putt!
Next date: Putt-putt again, and you boys should be afraid!!!

The whole gang...(us, Burke & Shelly, Joe & Amanda, & Chase & Liza)

Oh, how sweet!!!

Everyone has to love the good ole bowling shoe!!!
We thought if we had cool kick behind names (Wonder Woman, Superwoman, Storm & Catwoman), we might do good...maybe next time we'll stick to our own names...
For the record, every girl did get a strike and the scores you see on the picture were not the end result...I think Amanda won that game and Shelly won the first???

Since we were obvious competition for the boys, they decided to see who could throw the ball the fastest...Chase won with 25.59 (I think it's MPH) He also fell in the process and threw the ball about 10 feet!!! Watching the guys try to beat each other was great (they aren't competitive or anything, hahaha ;0)

We had a great night to say the least!

our never ending renovations...

2008-09-29T19:20:00.000-07:00

(the white spots on the pics are little sheet rock mud particles, to think that they are inhaling that...)

I know probably everyone that reads this blog can understand what I'm going through right now with our project. It always rights seems like there is always something to do. Whether it's with the home (which for me there is always something to do in our home), work, church or the kids. Our living room has been like this for about 8 months...we figured it was time to get our home in order (ya think???) Jason has been really busy with work (which I am SOOO grateful for right now), so when he's off, we like to do things as a family, not spend our precious time on sanding and painting. But there just comes a point when a girl needs to have some sanity (and her floor) back! So Jay enlisted the help of the missionaries and got to it. The first Sat. they came over, they primed the walls. This past Sat they painted! We still have a lot more work to do (i.e more mudding, sanding, laying down floors, trim) but at least it's getting started. We are still trying to figure out flooring. We wanted hardwood in the beginning and now I think we might be leading towards getting nice laminate. We've done the research and everyone that has kids, says laminate is the way to go. I just don't know what to do, so if anyone has any helpful tips, let me know...

and the color...almost like my last color but it has more gray/green in it

Moma's Home!!!

2008-09-29T18:12:00.000-07:00

Yeah she's home! So mom made it home on Thursday of last week, yes I know I'm a little late in blogging about it, but I got busy!!! Her and dad made it in at 6:30 am on Thursday! The girls and I went out there in the afternoon and spent the day with her. As soon as Evie went into the house, she called for her Dudu (it's suppose to be Mimi, but she will NOT call her that...I'm not sure how Dudu came about...)and was hooked to her! Elaina on the other hand was a little more hesitant. Pretty much since Elaina was born, mom has been sick and in and out of hospitals (Elaina was born April 18 and Mom was diagnosed at the end of May), so she doesn't know mom like Evie does. But by the end of the day, she started to go to her. Before mom came home Aunt June and I cleaned the house and I did some decorating for her, but in mom true fashion, she came and started to organize and clean the house...Now that she is home, it doesn't really feel like she left anymore. She will continue to make trips out to Houston monthly, but it's great to have her home with us! The pictures here are of Friday night, we went over to Stacy's house and had dinner there with the family.

Static hair...Elaina's hair was the best!

Here Elaina is having a fit and her Aunt Stacy rescued her from evil mommy :0)

Finally updated...

2008-09-18T08:24:00.000-07:00

It's been a while, but with life happening sometimes I just can't do it all ;0)
We are getting ready to *finally* get our living room in order. I'll be posting some of those pics later. As some of you know, our living room has been in shamble for about 8 months. This weekend Jay and the missionaries are going to start getting it done...yeah!!! I have the sewing bug back (I have different bugs, the scrapbooking bug, the sewing bug, the decorating bug and they all come at different times and last for about a month) Since I have the sewing bug right now, I'm sewing up a storm for the girls. Jay bought me a serger for Christmas last year and I have finally figured out how to use it. I LOVE it! I have made them each 3 pillowcase dresses with 4 more each in the works! I think I might get ambious and make them some overalls for Christmas :0) I'll post some pics, when I get time...
Jay has been very busy with work. Last week he was out of town Mon-Thur and this week is getting home late. I try not to complain (too much anyway) because it's a blessing that he's busy with work (especially with the economy) When he is home, the girls are attached to him like glue!
Evie is now starting to love school. She loved the idea of school before it started. but then it became a chore to drop her off (she cried every time) Now she is excited to make mommy art. I have started to hang her art on the cabinet on the kitchen and she loves to add new pictures to it when she comes home. It's a great way to remind her what they are learning that week in school (this week is the letter A).
Elaina is still my little baby! She is becoming a princess like her sister. At Parent's Day out, they tell me she is the sweetest baby and is always so good! She is growing up so fast! She loves to play with Evie and loves to play with things like Little People or babies. She is very much into imagination play. Evie is quite content with reading while Elaina needs something more hands on. Her vocabulary is becoming larger and she likes to use it!
Here are some more dance pics...I know that I already have some on the other blog, but these came out so cute i couldn't help but put some more up. Come Monday evenings, Evie is the happiest little girl! Evie takes this class with Lauren (her cousin) and Ellie (friend form church) and they have so much fun. On this day they all matched wearing pink (Ellie and Evie were in the same outfit :0)
I have also updated the Phipps Pics!

Look at Miss Sassy Thing Lauren!!!

Labor Day at the Lake House...

2008-09-04T15:01:00.000-07:00

This Labor Day we decided to go to the lake house. It was a FULL house and lots of fun. We went out on the lake Sat. and it was beautiful! The water was clear (well as clear as Lake Eufaula can get) and it didn't smell and have anything floating in it (yes, it has been a rather nasty lake lately...) The lake reminded me of what it use to be like as a teenager. We chilled at the island for a while and had fun there swimming and goofing off. Jay took Kim & I tubing and threw us off only once each...he says he went easy on us, Kim & I know it's because were just that good :0) He then took Holly and Jenn on a ride and those two were like gymnast! Jenn was rolled off and Holly went head over heels off (literally head over heels!) Dan then took the guys (Rafael, Matt & Jay) out for a ride and that was great to watch. Dan then took Holly, Kim & I for a power slide - that was scary and a blast!!! That night we watched the Alabama game...ok I'm not a fan but it was a great game and after seeing my team play Monday night, I'm a little worried...Sunday we went to the Eufaula ward for church and that night we did our tradition (It's becoming one anyway) - a Low Country Boil. Of course there was more food than we could handle and stuffed ourselves crazy. My daddy and brother came up for the boil and we went out on the lake for a ride, well not so much a ride but a good beating! With the Hurricane Gustav, the lake was great for a sailboat, bad for a boat. The wind was crazy strong. Some people left that night, but we stayed till Monday and had a great time. Evie loves being at the lake house, especially when her cousins are there with her...it's a weekend long slumber party for her :0) She's already asking when we are going back!

2008-08-26T06:50:00.001-07:00

Check out the picture blog, it's been updated...

I had no room for pictures...

2008-08-25T13:15:00.000-07:00

...so I created another blog. This stuff is too addicting. I'm starting to neglect my household duties (like that's a hard thing to do) and I really need to do laundry (I guess I should stop typing away and make sure my kids aren't running around naked :0) When Jay comes home, sees that the house is a mess and asks what I did today...I'll show him the pretty blogs I have...we'll see how that goes. So anyway, I created another blog that will show pics of the kids (i.e first day of preschool, dance, and everyday) and also of our past vacations and vacations to come. It will be a scrapbook of sorts. It's a working progress, but check it out!!!
the address is ourlifeinpics.blogspot.com

Get things started...

2008-08-24T15:21:00.000-07:00

To get things started, I want to give a brief history of our family. For those of you that I have lost touch with over the years, I'll start with the basics...
Jason & I got married in July 2000 in the Orlando Florida Latter Day Saint Temple. We have 2 girls...Evelyn Marie & Elaina Maria.
Evie (Evelyn) was born Feb 2005. She is a princess/diva. Evie is what we call head strong (nice way of saying stubborn, which she gets from her daddy:0). Evie has started preschool and loves it! She has also started ballet/tap. Her and her cousin, Lauren, are in the same class and they are SOOOO cute to watch. I thought it would be boring to sit in a dance studio for 45 mins. but it was great to watch them.
Elaina was born April 2007. She is a little different from Evie. I don't know if she will be as "high-maintenance" as her sister, but she can definitely hold her own. She is also what we call head strong...I thought maybe I would get a passive one (yeah right, huh???) Elaina is just now starting to say some words and is really becoming more expressive (such as running and calling "moma, moma, moma" when Evie is messing with her) Elaina thinks she is a big girl and loves to climb everything.
While our girls are a handful...they are our girls. I love watching them grow up and I can't wait to see what they will do with there lives...