Conference fun

This year I am trying a new approach to conference weekend. Bribery. I found this idea on Pinterest. You get some jars, check. Fill them with candy, check. Mark them with words that you will hear during conference, check. Done. Yes, that easy. Here is a shot of the "before".


I think they are so cute!


I know I will pay a little more attention this year :)


So with this and some bingo cards, here's hoping tomorrow and Sunday go off without a yelling, hitting or biting (and that is just Maddy)

Chopped!

So I needed a hair cut, and it wasn't in the family budget, so I looked up Salons that cut and donate to Locks of Love. Done. Now just coming to terms with the fact that I just cut ALL my hair (yes, 12 whole inches) off. Here ya go:

Love this!

Diamondback Game!!!

At the beginning of the Summer the kids received free vouchers to go to a Diamondback game. We were so excited we went down that day and redeemed them, the Diamondbacks ended up being in the pennant race with the Giants, and the game we had tickets to, was sold out. It was a blast! The kids were mesmerized by the size of the stadium, and they loved when the music came on that you clap along to.




All day long Maddy kept saying, "I go to ball game! I go to ball game!"


It's not a ball game unless you have foam fingers!


Cheering on a team I love! The last time I had been to a game was 10 years ago with David, it was fun to be back! (and the team colors are better now too!)


When things slowed down, this is what they did:

napping on Dad



Both kids playing on iphones:



As you can see the stadium is PACKED!





Yay! Riley is SO excited to be here!

General RS meeting

Our Church twice a year has a meeting for women called the "General Relief Society Broadcast" It's a wonderful night filled with advice, support, love and devotion. I missed it this year because our family was at a Diamondback game (see coming post), but lucky for me I was able to watch the broadcast from home the next day. I really love ALL the leaders of our church, especially President Uchtdorf. He is always filled with so much wisdom and love for the women of our church. Here is his talk, it's amazing, inspiring and so perfect for what so many of us are going through. Enjoy:

Maddy Mishaps

By the title of this post, it really should come as no surprise that it will be all about Maddy. I tell David that if Maddy had been our second child, we would only have 2! Not because we don't love her, we do, lots! But more because she can get into things faster than any other child we have. She has a talent to sense when Mom and Dad are not paying attention, and THAT is when we have results like the pictures below:


To set the record straight, they don't always happen on "Mom time" this "color all over my body" episode happened while Daddy was watching them (actually he was studying)



No big deal, right? Just climbed up her drawers, threw everything out then made a bed inside, fear of falling? Not this child. (all my insides scream when I see this... what if the drawer were to fall out? What if... what if... what if!


She raided the swim gear while I was in the shower :)

Yum!

I have been making some of the goodies I've found on Pinterest lately, as many of you know I used to have a cooking blog, but because keeping both blogs current became more of a chore than a hobby I have slimmed down (figuratively speaking :)) and just have our family blog... anyhoo, I thought I would post recipes on here, why not? Right? So here is what we have been eating (goody wise, that is)

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles, (oh yes, they're real!)



Makes approx. 3-4 dozen. Recipe from Love and Olive Oil.
Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup milk or soy milk
1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

14 oz dark chocolate candy coating (I used Milk chocolate)
Directions:

Beat butter and sugars in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add milk and vanilla. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt and mix on low speed (or stir by hand) until incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips.

Cover and chill dough for 1 hour.

When dough is firm enough to handle, form dough into 1″ balls and arrange on a baking sheet lined with waxed paper. Place sheets in freezer and let chill for 30 minutes.

Melt chocolate candy coating in microwave according to package directions. Using toothpicks as a dipping tool, dip cookie balls into candy coating to cover. Tap on side of pan to remove any excess coating, and return to waxed paper-lined baking sheets. Chill until set. Store, chilled, in an airtight container for up to 1 week.


Lemon Crinkle Cookies
Makes 2-3 dozen



Ingredients:
½ cups butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 whole egg
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
¼ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoons baking powder
⅛ teaspoons baking soda
1-½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cups powdered sugar

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease light colored baking sheets with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Whip in vanilla, egg, lemon zest, and juice. Scrape sides and mix again. Stir in all dry ingredients slowly until just combined, excluding the powdered sugar. Scrape sides of bowl and mix again briefly. Pour powdered sugar onto a large plate. Roll a heaping teaspoon of dough into a ball and roll in powdered sugar. Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough.

Bake for 9-11 minutes or until bottoms begin to barely brown and cookies look matte {not melty or shiny}. Remove from oven and cool cookies about 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

*If using a non-stick darker baking tray, reduce baking time by about 2 minutes.

Lauren Brennan; laurenslatest.com

The one and only...

The one and only craft project I will do this year:



I cut 2 x 4's at the same length and then painted, distressed and stained them and stacked them, then I cut a 2 x 6 a little taller, then a little smaller and those are the other two pumpkins.

easy as pie.

instagram

I just got an iphone (I know... I am a little behind) but let me just say, I LOVE IT! There are so many fun free apps that you can get. Instagram has to be my favorite. You can take a picture then photoshop it right then and there with different filters. Genius! Here are a few pictures from my phone:

Is this Fall?

I am so confused living down here in the valley of the sun. In Flagstaff it was obvious when Fall had arrived, the days cooled down, the nights were beautiful, there really was no guessing needed, but here, different story. So this week the weather dipped down into the 80's, is that Fall? I really want to put up all my cute Fall decor, but my AC is still on, all. the. time.

To say the least I am really missing a 4 season year. I am guessing from what I have seen so far that Phoenix has 2 seasons. Hot, and not so hot. I guess when winter rolls around and I don't have to shovel 4 feet so snow I will be loving this change.

Dr. Dad

David this past week got his "loups" they are the glasses that magnify 2.5 times the view so they can work on teeth, If I knew that is what the Dr.'s were wearing, I would have gotten facials before my dental appts! Anyhoo.... So he wears them every week in his SIM lab, but brought them home to poke around at the kids.








"Um, Dad, can you look in there and tell me if you see my shirt? I am always running around naked and Mom thinks I am eating my clothes! And I am sorry, do I get compensated for this little procedure? I would like to get paid in Candy corns (my favorite)"

Our house... in the middle of our street

Before:


This is what the house looked like when we bought it in March.

After:



much better, don't ya think? Now if I could just find a way to remove those ugly green blobs called bushes under the windows.

addicted

I am officially addicted to Pinterest. It's an amazing website that is put together of 'virtual bulletin boards' You can "Pin" anything you find on the internet, all those favorite recipes, style ideas, home projects, quotes, you name it. It is like crack for the every day woman. :) If you want me to send you an invite email me your email address, or leave it here. Believe me, you won't regret it. (Your husband might)

Here are some of my favorite things I have pinned:


{style ideas: this is where I have been finding ideas for outfits of things I already own}


{Raspberry Pastachio cheesecake...I don't know if it is any good, but it looks amazing}


{The caption for this picture says "This is why photoshop was invented. hilarious.}


{You can find all sorts of gadgets... doesn't this look like a fun way to start the morning?}


{do I have to say anymore? This is my FAVORITE quote}

School spirit

Keagan has a 'school spirit day' every week. This week Dad stepped in and created a shirt for Keagan to wear. Go Coyotes!

Horsin' around

This is what they do. They, being the Daddy and children of this, the Charon home. David comes up with these off the wall ways to make the kids laugh... and without fail, it works! Here is just another night, after dinner and before David hides away in the office. :)







**No children were harmed in the making of this 'memory' :)**

Rawlings

Rawlings is one of Riley's "class pets". The kids take turns taking Rawlings home and writing in a journal of what they do at your house. Riley took Rawlings to every store, play date and to bed. Here are some snap shots I got while the two slept :)