Sharing

e are trying to teach Cannon the concept of sharing. He doesn't quite get it yet, but, I thought I'd give it a shot. Here are 3 of my favorite blogs. I'm sharing them because I enjoy them and I think others might also. So click these links and thank me later...

1. Sheye Rosemeyer Her story is painfully sad. Her photos are strikingly beautiful. She has a unique flair with words and always seems to find a beautiful way to express how she is feeling. One thing I love about her is that she started out in photography much the way I did and she gives me hope. She's from 'down under' and I love some of the expressions she uses. I have no idea how I happened upon her blog, but I'm glad I did. She is amazing.

2. Emily's Something
Unlike the other two, I know Emily personally. Kind of. Jarom met her during his Freshman year at BYU and they were friends. I'd like to think we would have been friends had I known her then. She's hilarious. She's lucky. She keeps it real. She has great taste. I always look forward to a new post from her. Oh, and her boys are adorable. Click here and here to read two of my favorites.

3. Marta Writes
This blog is a newer find. I've been reading Marta's posts for a month or two. I love her writing. She's got some great ideas and a fabulous eye for design. I LOVE that her photos are from a point-and-shoot. She does give-aways (who doesn't love those?). I'd love to jot my ideas in one of her fabulous mini diaries. She inspires me to bust out my craft supplies and do it the handmade way.

There you have it. Are there any that you LOVE that you feel like sharing? I'm always game for a blog well done.

A Tag {Fives}

Katy tagged me. I realize this blog has been awfully Cannon and Hazel-centered lately. So, here's a bit about me... well and still a bit about them...


5 Things I Don’t Leave The House Without

1. Phone
2. Purse
3. Wallet
4. Camera
5. Hazel's Binkie

5 Cartoons I Watched When I Was Younger

1. Rainbow Brite
2. My Little Pony
3. Jem
4. Strawberry Shortcake
5. Smurfs

5 Things That Terrify Me

1. Spiders
2. Public Speaking
3. Driving
4. Death or injury of family members
5. Germs

5 Things I Hate/Dislike That Everyone Else Seems To Like

1. Malted Milk Balls
2. Mushrooms
3. Black Friday
4. Gladiator Sandals
5. Halloween (I have to defend this by saying that I LOVE dressing up and trick-or-treating, but hate the gory/scary/gross decorations, movies, and haunted houses that come along with it.)

5 Things I Want To Do Before I Die

1. Go visit Jarom's mission (Montreal, Canada)
2. Take more pictures
3. Sing in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir
4. Train for and run some sort of race
5. Watch my kids grow up and be happy

5 Friends/Family I Tag

1. Emily (now you'll have something to post if you run out of ideas)
2. Jenny
3. Emity
4. Rashel
5. Kelly

One More

Hazel ~ 5 Months

here's that dang hat again. I need another one perhaps a white one that is as small as this tan one but I'm pretty sure that doesn't exist. So, she'll just keep her head warm with this one until then. The outfit is from my friend, Jamie. She sells them on her website With a Touch of Glitter. I'm in love with the tutu and darling onesie she custom made for Hazie-girl.

{For the record, Hazel does not sit on her own yet. This was a lucky shot I got right before she face-planted on the bed and consequently had a meltdown.}

I know I usually just gush and gush about her each month but it's the only way I can completely describe how much I love this baby girl. I might have my mommy-goggles on, but she's darling, precious, adorable, funny, smart, and cute. She's definitely my girl - attached to me at all times unless she's sleeping. But, just yesterday Jarom got to snuggle her during a nap and he just beamed that she finally let him hold her. I secretly like having a territorial infant but that may come back to bite me later. I love that Cannon realizes that he can make her laugh. She watches him all day and sometimes she catches his eye and she grins her crinkly grin. It makes me laugh every time.

5 Months brings these fun milestones:

• Rolling over both ways
• Grabbing toys and putting them in her mouth
• Sitting in her walker and exer-saucer
• Playing with her elusive toes
• Had her first road-trip to California and slept the whole time - no joke
• Taking 2 naps a day and mostly sleeps through the night
• Laughing at silly things
• Tolerating her crazy brother
• Giving huge slobbery kisses
• Surprising us with her ear-piercing banshee screams. She's definitely a soprano.
  

We pretty much kind of love our Hazie.

Halloween Rundown

annon is finally old enough to really enjoy trick-or-treating. We took both kids in the wagon and he would run up to each house and yell "trick-or-treat" with extreme enthusiasm. Then he darted back into the wagon with a huge grin as we headed to the next house for a repeat. We headed home after about an hour and a half but he showed no signs of slowing - just freezing. Hazel did what she does best. Slept the whole time. We also got to hang out with Jarom's little sister or "Auntie Welly" who did not have the best day. She's a trooper and is a fabulous, doting Auntie.
We had a scrumptious dinner of monster brains and witch eyeballs before we left. When we got back we were greeted with cinamon rolls and hot cocoa to warm our fingers and toes.
Cannon loved his football costume - except for the helmet. He even had shoulder pads and knee guards and all that stuff. Thanks to Grandma Sheri and Grandpa who gave us this costume last year. Jarom was proud of his little Raider. Hazel was a BYU cheerleader. We had to represent both of Jarom's teams. I don't know of a BYU cheerleader with chunkier legs, but she was adorable. I didn't get any pictures of her besides the ones with all of us (sorry mom!). I'll try again later. She was not impressed by any of our Halloween antics.

The whole crew
I hope you had a happy and safe Halloween!

Writer's Block

ometimes I think writer's block doesn't necessarily mean not having anything to write about. Maybe sometimes it means that we just don't know how to go about sharing it. That's the kind I have today. I have something to say that I just don't know how to fit between my ramblings about apple cake and football games. I even feel conflicted about sharing this. It's so personal. But, if I don't share it I'll be lying about an important event. An important person in my life. So, I will be brief. I'll share a glimpse.

Baby Anu was our niece. We met her for a moment before she was gone. She is beautiful. Her parents are strong. Her family misses her. She'll always be remembered. Families are forever.

My Mother-in-law shared this poem and I love it.

Parable of Immortality

I am standing upon the seashore.
A ship at my side spreads her white sails to the morning breeze
and starts for the blue ocean.
She is an object of beauty and strength,
and I stand and watch until at last she hangs
like a speck of white cloud
just where the sea and sky come down to mingle with each other.
Then someone at my side says,
" There she goes! "
Gone where?
Gone from my sight . . . that is all.
She is just as large in mast and hull and spar
as she was when she left my side
and just as able to bear her load of living freight
to the place of destination.
Her diminished size is in me, not in her.
And just at the moment
when someone at my side says,
" There she goes! "
there are other eyes watching her coming . . .
and other voices ready to take up the glad shout . . .
" Here she comes! "

-Henry Van Dyke

The Perfect Fall Meal

all is the best season for cooking. The bountiful harvest always lends itself to comforting soups, pies, and ciders. I wanted to take beautiful pictures of the meal we had on Sunday after Conference. I forgot. I stink. But, I'll make an exception to my 'every post has a photo' rule for this one. It was good. I want you to try it.

I made this white chili. It's slightly spicy (just right if you ask me), creamy, and cheesy. The perfect compliment to the chili were these breadsticks. I let them rise and then form them into breadsticks. Let them rise again and then top with the butter, Parmesan and a sprinkle of salad supreme seasoning.

Then for dessert we had apple cake. I happen to have 2 bushels of apples from a generous teacher at Jarom's school. I posted a plea on facebook to help me use them up. This was one of the suggestions. I'm in love.

Apple Cake

Ingredients:
1 cup of sugar.
2 cups of diced apples
1 beaten egg.
1/2 cup of vegetable oil.
1 1/2 cups of flour.
1 teaspoon of baking soda.
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon.
1/2 teaspoon of salt.

Directions:
Mix in order. Pour into a greased 8*8 inch pan. Bake until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Bake at 350F for half an hour or so. *I baked it for 45 minutes.

It was heaven with a scoop of vanilla ice cream while it's still warm from the oven. Pure heaven. In my house, you can never go wrong with apples and cinnamon. I hope you try this meal sometime. It warmed us up and was the perfect combination of Fall.

A huge thanks to the friends who shared these recipes with me.