Hyde Happinesses

 It was a good week :) we’ve enjoyed having the missionaries over once or twice a week and this week was no different. It was excellent to have the elders here this time around. We have the sisters on Thursday which will be good. I’ve been trying to pry and ask them about their favorite foods and desserts from home. Last week I got a killer peanut butter bar recipe from Elder Taylor’s mom. This week I’m going to do cauliflower soup from Zupas for one of the new sisters. It’s been fun to feel like I can make a little difference for them. Cam and I often talk about how nice it was to go to members houses and have something familiar to eat and talk about life in general. It’s been so nice to reminisce and remember. 

We officially ripped out our garden. I have mixed feelings about it. It was a very plentiful garden and it was so great for us. We got some bottled tomatoes and salsa which is perfect for the winter! It was fun to try my hand at it and see some results :) 

We celebrated Stetson’s 9 months this week! Crazy! Time is going by way too fast! We celebrated by going to Harrogate to tour Lincoln Memorial University. Cam is thinking he’d like to go back to school to be some kind of doctor - animal or human :) tbd. They have a very nice vet program he wanted to check out. The town was very quaint and very very small. But the campus was stunning. Absolutely gorgeous. So that was very fun :) 

Massive caterpillar on our walk. Stetson so wanted to eat it

Cheddar jalepeno bread. 10/10

He’s a little bit of a flirt! He loves talking with Amilia during sacrament meeting. She’s about 3 months older than him, and about half his size 😂

Hyde Happinesses

 Stetson is having a hard time sleeping again, so I’m sitting in the rocker, writing on the blog. It’s good therapy. 

Not too much to say this week. We’re just living out here. Nothing too exciting. Probably the most exciting thing that happened this week was I got to go to a paint your own pumpkin night. One of the girls in the ward arranged it and I was delighted she invited me. I’m not very good at making friends so it was an honor 😂 I minister to her and she’s a sweetie. She invited several other people, but it ended up just being four of us which was perfect. We sat and chatted about anything. Really so enjoyable. I haven’t spent any time away from Stetson since I got my hair done in May, so that was a little exciting! Unfortunately Stetson was not a fan and I had to come home early to help put him down. But it was fun while it lasted. 

Other than that, we babysat the Hyde’s dog this week while they were in Florida. I don’t like her, but she behaved and really is sweet. I’m glad she’s back home now though. On the bright side, she’s really good with Stetson and gladly let him pull her hair and poke her eyes. She was so gentle and patient. 

Cam and I have enjoyed being able to put Stetson down a little earlier for bed and with small interruptions, we have been watching the Andy Griffith Show. Oh man. It’s so good. I didn’t watch the Andy Griffith Show as often as I watched I Love Lucy or Hogans Heroes, but I have come to really appreciate it! We watched one yesterday, Opie and the Hobo. If you’ve seen it, you’ll recall that the hobo teaches Opie to tell half truths and sneak gum balls from the gum ball machine and put off for tomorrow what could’ve been done today. Andy confronts the hobo about it and the hobo says something like “well, maybe I do think a little differently than most folks. But who’s to say your way is better than mine? Why not let the boy decide?” And Andy says “Nah, I'm afraid it don't work that way. You can't let a young 'un decide for himself. He'll grab at the first flashy thing with shiny ribbons on it, then when he finds out there's a hook in it, it's too late. The wrong ideas come packaged with so much glitter, it's hard to convince him that other things might be better in the long run, and all a parent can do is say, "Wait. Trust me," and try to keep temptation away.” Ahhh my mommy heart just near exploded. It hurts my soul to see all these attacks on families and children. There is such a thing as truth. And there is such a thing as parents being parents and teaching their children the right way to behave and live.  Needless to say, I was reminded of all the many reasons why I quite enjoy the old shows and movies. 

                     

Hyde Happinesses

 Always fun to see all of you on Family Matters :) and special shoutouts to both James and Yanny as they celebrate birthdays this week. We love a good birthday around here!

Stetson has been sleeping somehow better and worse since last week… what a roller coaster! Hats off to anyone who is still a nice human being after not sleeping for several months. I applaud you. 

There’s not too much going on around here. We enjoyed watching conference. It was a lot of chasing Stetson around and making sure he didn’t get into anything he shouldn’t, but it was very nice to hear inspired words. Always a highlight for sure. 

Just wanted to say I love y’all and hope you have a great week! 

Cam got me some lovely Dutch ovens so I can make all the soups and sourdough breads to my hearts content ❤️ I love him (and not just because he buys me things).

Always helping his daddy

Caramel apple charcuterie board. Not featured: the caramel

Hyde Happinesses

 Well we’ve got a sick baby over here so I’m writing on the blog while I hold him. We’re not quite sure what he’s got but he’s pretty miserable and just wants lots of snuggles and nursing. He’s not super cuddly so while I’m sad he’s not feeling well, I’m loving all the snuggles. 

As usual, not too much happened this week. I’ve enjoyed spending a little bit of time in the kitchen canning and experimenting with sourdough recipes. We canned some salsa this week and made English muffins. We also meal prepped some breakfast sandwiches for Cam to take with him in the morning. I always feel like I have my life together when I meal prep something 😂 

Cam has been extra busy at work lately with a potential upcoming promotion and store audits. He’s still loving what he’s doing and especially enjoys the pressure of problem solving as a manager. He’s flying to Florida in the middle of October for an owners meeting so if anyone wants to come keep me company, you’re more than welcome 😃

We got to go to Eckerts again this week with some friends. It’s the same place where we go to pick blackberries and peaches. This time we picked some apples and pumpkins. We’re going to do a caramel apple bar with those same friends tomorrow which will be a blast. 

These two have been buddies lately which is so fun. Stetson learned to throw her ball, so now she’s thinking he’s good for something anyway 😅 we also discovered Oakley loves bubbles and Stetson loves watching Oakley pop the bubbles. 

Until….. she looks so unbelievably guilty in this picture 😂 I promise he just wore himself out filling up his diaper.

Salsita! We added smoked paprika to get a smoky taste and it worked!! 

DISASTER

English muffins 

Pt 2

Nilsson News

 I just have to give a huge shout out to Emma and Jenn on being super consistent posters on this blog!  Time just flies and I haven't posted anything in a very long time. 

Here are some highlights:

-Addy was asked to the homecoming dance next weekend!  We went dress shopping and found her a lovely black dress paired with a burgundy sweater.

-Harvested all our onions and watermelons, one of which was 34 pounds (the watermelon, not the onion)!  It sat in the fridge for a solid week and we ate though it every day.

-We went to the museum exhibit on prehistoric deep sea animals with the Harts.  It was actually slightly terrifying.  Huge creatures that preyed on whales- I will stay on dry land thank you.

-We bought an old go kart for the boys to work on and learn mechanics.

-Addy and I went to the Parade of Homes with Elise and Ian which was fun and inspiring.

-We still haven't officially started school.  We love summer too much to let it go.

-Emerson has been blacksmithing, Henry and Millie have been riding their bikes, and Eliza has been playing with her friend Ainsley.  Addy has started up her job as a clogging TA.  Dane is into all things and loves to figure out how things work.  He is sometimes sleeping.  Garrett is still working at BYUI but we think he might try to find another job- if possible.  As for me, I've been keeping the projects going and everyone else going.  That's a quick recap and here are some pictures.

Hyde Happinesses

 Hello everyone. I’ve got to say I was pretty jealous of Joe and Thomas hanging out this weekend but then I stopped being jealous after I saw the aftermath 😂 it’s pretty impressive though so hats off to the marathon runners 🫡

Not much to say this week. I got to go out with the missionaries and that was phenomenal. I loved it. They’re teaching a man named Vicente and I loved chatting with him in Spanish. Love those people and the language. Celestial. 

He keeps growing up so fast 

We still love our Oakley girl 

Goofing off with dad

Tippy tippy toes 

He doesn’t fall asleep on me often so this was a nice surprise 

More fun with dad!

WHO SAID HE COULD LOOK LIKE A TODDLER