Our Anniversary

18 April 2014

Just thought I would share some pics from our anniversary trip.

This is Bearizona - a drive through wildlife park

 

Then we went to see Hoover Dam and the new bridge

 

On Saturday we hiked Angel's Landing in Zions

 

This is almost to the top

 

Hail the conquering heroes!

 

Checking out the view with our new binoculars

 

This is the 7 Wives Inn where we stayed

 

7 years to the day!

A recipe

Hey family!  I just wanted to share this delicious recipe with you!  We have tried it a couple of times and it is phenomenal!   Enjoy!

Baked Penne with Chicken and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

          6 tablespoons butter, plus more for baking dishes
          Coarse salt and ground pepper
          1 pound penne rigate
          1 teaspoon olive oil
          2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (8 ounces each), halved horizontally
          1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
          4 garlic cloves, minced
          6 cups whole milk
          10 ounces white mushrooms, trimmed and thinly sliced
          1/2 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and thinly sliced
          1 1/2 cups shredded provolone (6 ounces)
          1 cup finely grated Parmesan (4 ounces)

 DIRECTIONS

1.  Preheat oven to 400. Butter two shallow 2-quart baking dishes. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta 3 minutes short of al dente; drain pasta, and return to pot.

2.  In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high. Season chicken with salt and pepper; cook until opaque throughout, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Halve each piece lengthwise, then thinly slice crosswise.

3.  In a 5-quart Dutch oven or heavy pot, melt butter over medium. Add flour and garlic; cook, whisking, 1 minute. While whisking, gradually add milk; bring to a simmer, whisking frequently. Add mushrooms and tomatoes; cook 1 minute. Off heat, gradually stir in provolone and 1/2 cup Parmesan.

4.  Add chicken and pasta to pot; season with salt and pepper. Divide pasta mixture between baking dishes; sprinkle each with 1/4 cup Parmesan.

5.  Bake, uncovered, until top is golden and bubbling, about 25 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

COOK'S NOTE

To Freeze: Prepare through step 4; let cool. Cover tightly with foil, and freeze, up to 3 months.
To Bake From Frozen: Preheat oven to 400, and bake (still covered in foil) on a rimmed baking sheet until center is hot, about 1 1/2 hours. Remove foil; bake until golden, about 15 minutes more.

 

A Music Poster

I thought all of you might enjoy this!

Our New Bathroom!

Sorry it took so long to get this uploaded!

 

 

 

We put in a new floor and then painted the cabinets.  Now I just need to do a little decorating and it will be complete.

The Birthday Fun!

I am a super slacker when it comes to updating our life but it is never too late to repent!  Eliza celebrated her first birthday on the 30th of January.  I honestly think it is more of a celebration for the older siblings since Eliza didn't seem know what was going on.  She probably thought all of us had gone crazy!  I mean we were encouraging her to rip paper, push all the noisy buttons on her "cell phone," eat her cake, and we laughed when she threw it all over the floor, and she was never scolded for any of these!  Mom and Emma were able to join us and they helped to decorate the house so cute.  Emma did an awesome job at making the make and decorating it.  I highly recommend her although her prices are a little steep.  It was a fun day!  It is hard to believe the our baby is walking all over and getting into everything.  She knows how to hold her own especially against her big brother.  She is still an adorable Gerber girl.  Enjoy the pics of our 1 year old!

Opening the gifts

 First tastes of cake

 Her favorite spot

 Pigtails!

Random Doings

18 Feb, 2014 - If you were to look in my dining room today you would find a various assortment of doors, paint cans and plastic bags.  To get a closer look you would have to weave around drawers standing on end.  Why would these items be littering my kitchen you might ask...I'll tell you. 
Upon waking up to a no-work Monday, Scott innocently asked, "what would you want to do in the guest bathroom?"  I told him that it needs a face lift and so he walked into the bathroom and started removing cabinet doors, drawers and the bathroom door.  10 hours later the paint was dried and a new bathroom was born.  Now we need to find new drawer handles & a few other final touches and then I'll add pics so you can see my new guest bathroom!  So cute!!!

Small Town Joys

3 Feb. 2014 - On Saturday we woke up at 5:00AM to attend the annual Snowflake Groundhog Day Breakfast.  The firefighters cook & serve the food (biscuits & gravy).  On our way there it started to snow!  Not a lick of moisture the whole month of January but we were grateful for the little dusting we got.  The forcast has a little bit more rain in the next day or so.  It didn't get warm so it was able to soak into the ground.  I know it is cold & miserable but be grateful that you have snow to boost the moisture level.  There is always something to be grateful for.
On this gratitute kick...yesterday in church a few memeber of a sweet, big family (9 children & counting) stood up to thank the ward & the Lord for His mercies.  Their oldest son, 12 year-old Braden, was diagnosed with diabetes about 8 months ago after becoming very sick at scout camp.  They were finally able to get his blood sugar under control and then, at the first of the year he became ill again.  When the paramedics came to life flight him down to a hospital in Phoenix (the equivalent of Primary Children's I believe) the paramedic told the mother to kiss her son goodbye because they didn't think he would make it through the night.  The father, Boone, testified that his son was on death's door multiple times as he held his son & blessed him with priesthood power.  At one point Boone told the Lord that if it was his son's time to die, to let him die quickly so he wouldn't be in pain anymore. Miraculously Braden's life was spared.  It was a very emotional and touching testimony meeting.  Be grateful for every day that you have with your loved ones and don't forget that they are the most important.  Activities, errands, "have to" things can take over our lives but are they the most important?  Do the people who mean the most to us know it?  Slow down, de-clutter your "life" and, as Dad always says, "take time to sit under an apple tree."  Kiss your kids an extra time or two today. Hug someone a little longer today. 

Love you all!