# 20 Memories / Scrapbooks / Pictures / Quilts

I'm so thankful for my memories.  The are days that have been  hard and I'm so glad that l have pictures to go back and look at.  My kids have grown up tremendously these past two years.  I'm thankful for cameras that allow us to "capture the moment."  I'm thankful for Scrapbooks whether virtual or online that allow to go back in life and enjoy. Enjoy the happy, the funny, and even the sad.  I'm also grateful for the technology that we have to go on now.  My next goal is to do a quilt out of my dad's jeans and shirts.  Its been rough every time I have opened them.  I'm just lucky, and thankful I have the chance to make a blanket  on things that he wore everyday and to have him be close to me.  I'm thankful for the chance to get to make them.

# 19 Agency

I'm thankful for my agency that was given ro me. Its not chained me down but has made free. I'm also grateful for given a chance to teach and help me kids / young women with this lesson too. I'm also thankful to have the accountability that come with my life. I heard this on the radio and I liked the meaning..... "GC, GL, BC, BL." "Good choices, good life. Bad choices, bad life." I hope they remember and think about this one from me. And try to plan your day without wasted time.

# 18 Prayer

I'm very thankful for prayer!  I know by this means we have been protected and blessed!  After teaching the Young Women on a lesson a couple months ago, this sign has stayed posted on my fridge and as always, you can never pray enough (and why we start every trip with prayer also.)

# 17 A circle of eternity

I'm actually not going to say I'm thankful for my ring....

....but rather I'm thankful for what it symbolizes. The chance and knowledge of it lasting forever. "A circle." Plus I really do love my ring.

# 16 Smiles

Sometimes, its all about "Happiness with the little things."

These are trinkets that I have in my bathroom that bring me joy.  Everytime I look at them, they bring a smiles.  The top two are from a dear friend in Idaho. We are alike in many ways and were meant to be sisters.  The butterfly bookmark is what my dad bought me the last time he took my kids to Barnes and Noble to pick out a book.  The Garmin half marathon medallion symbolizes accomplishment and that "It's always earned, Never given." And the fact that "I DID IT!"

I'm thankful at the chance to be happy.  I'm thankful that I can smile.  It makes life so much better.

# 15 My sleeping angels

So thankful for sleeping angels (at this particular moment!)  It makes you love them all over again and forget about all the trouble they could have possibly caused during the day!  I can't wait for Jacob to come home tomorrow.

# 14 Great Education

I'm thankful for the great teachers that have (and will) influence my children.  They have had some really fabulous teachers and ones that have gone above and beyond.
My two oldest got straight A's this past quarter!  Yippee!  The youngest two got great marks as well - as they don't get letter grades yet.  I love my smart kiddos!

# 13 Eyesight

This picture is from almost a month ago of Cruz's rust spot in his eye.  He came home one afternoon from school and said his eye had hurt after recess.  We took him to the after hour clinic but the doctor there couldn't help him.  That next morning we saw a pediatric optometrist.  Come to find out, he had gotten a small piece of metallic embedded in his eye.  She was able to get it out but it left a small rust spot that was slightly irritable for a couple of days.  The rust spot came off on its on almost four days later. (Look at the 9'oclock position on his eye.)

I'm so thankful  for my eyesight!  I'm so blessed to have seen all the things I have seen in life.  The happy, the sad, the beautiful, and the scary.  I love my (green) eyes!

Although one thing I'm not very thankful (at least at the moment) are teeth.  I hate them!  Just look at what my poor kid inherited through his dad.  A small mouth and a need for braces.

#12 Fruits and Vegetables

I've been on a kick with salad's lately. If made right, they just taste so yummy!  (Made without onions that is.)  This past weekend we went out with some friends and I had a strawberry pecan salad for a side and it was soooo good.

So I decided to create one of my own for a side at our dinner tonight.  It was greens, strawberries, oranges, avocados, pecans,  a little bit of broken up bacon, croutons, and cheese topped with Raspberry Lime dressing.  (I should have went Newman's New American dressing, the raspberry lime was too much.)  But the taste of the fruits and vegetables was Amazing!  I'm THANKFUL for the good and healthy foods in my life.  I'm glad there is a balance.  I miss not having a garden of my own and growing some of my most favorite ones.  Sweet corn, banana squash, and sugar peas to name a few.  I miss the home grown peaches and raspberries that we had while growing up.  You don't realize how easy it was at my fingertips til its gone.  So now, I'm thankful for the fruits and veggies we have here.  (I think I'm going to have to make some fruit salsa tomorrow with strawberries, kiwis, mangoes, oranges, pineapple, a little bit of sugar and lemon juice and then cinnamon / sugar tortilla chips.  Yummy!)

# 11 My calling

"Journeys through Life"

We had our Young Women in Excellence last night and we went with a shoe theme.  We have 30+ girls so I try to keep it simple.  We had our Laurel President take some fabulous shoes pictures.  We had them wear there favorite shoes or ones that had a "journey" or memory and we took a picture with them.  Then they wrote a story about it.  We also had shoe invitations that they made a couple weeks before.  But these plaques were our decorations on the table.  I painted boards in the value colors and matched them to colors so they were grouped (but yet got creative on a few so the colors would be represented.)  The parents and girls were able to share and read others.

(This was McKay's shoes / journeys)

In our program we sang,  "I Walk by Faith" and "Learn of Me."  It fit with the theme.  We had the girls that had accomplished a Personal Progress area (whether medallion, honor bee, or charm bracelet briefly speak on a value and then their own personal journey.  The spirit was so strong and bore testimony that this is what the girls should be doing but also should be incorporating into their daily life.  Reading the scriptures, writing in our journals, doing service, learning, and loving are all things we should be doing so they should be passing it off at the same time.

 I had two difference journeys this past year.  The first you would think had to do with my running goal.  It doesn't.  It deals with enduring.  How much I grew during the time my dad passed away and how I know he is still here by me.  The second represents that I love going to church.  I love seeing the girls faces and being able to be around them and the happiness they bring me.
I LOVE all of these girls!  People ask my all the time if I'm okay or if I'm going crazy.  I'm not.  Sometimes weeks are definitely busier than others but I'm not going insane.  I wouldn't change it.  I'm thankful for a chance to learn with them and to also share my testimony and knowledge.

# 10 A Washer and Dryer

Even though it's a pile of clean clothes that await folding.....

I'm still thankful I don't have to wash these by hand.  

But its not the best when I forget to switch my wash over during the day because I get distracted with all of my other "duties."  Then when I go to coach a volleyball game, I realize my coaching shirt is still wet in the washer, and you aren't allowed to coach on the sidelines without it on.  So my knight in shining armor (aka. my amazing husband) came to the rescue again!  He had three minutes to use the hottest blow torch at home and then a five minute car ride over to air dry it out the window. 

So by the time I had to put it on, it was only lightly damp.  What a life saver!

# 9 My health

And obviously more important, my kids' health.

I'm very thankful for my body!  And for my health that allows me to exercise and be athletic.  I'm also thankful my kids like to exercise and set goals. I know I have taken for granted many times how sports come natural (as I struggle in other areas) but its one thing that I have definitely loved.  Yay for Insanity, volleyball, running, and so much more.

# 8 Positive Peer Pressure

These girls are awesome! Today, they got me off my gluteus maximus and out of my house and together we all ran 10.1 miles! We are training for our next half on December 1st. (My hands were shaking as I took this picture.)

I'm so grateful to have such great friends and influences in my life.  Not only my "fabulous fit friends" (as Stacy would say) but my neighbors, family, young women, ward members, teachers, and everyone!  My list could go on and on.  Also not only my friends here in Texas but also back in Idaho and Utah or anywhere else that life may have taken them.  I truly have people that care and are fun and positive!  I hope they know that how much they all mean to me!
P.S.  Happy Birthday Lindsey (tomorrow!)

# 7 Where I crashed last night

So this is a day late. I had rearranged all the kids bedrooms the past few days and I finally hit the sack.....Literally.

I'm thankful for my bed.  I love my bed.  I love the size, the style, my mattress, and the color.  This also leads to another thing I'm thankful for; the roof over my bed.  I'm also thankful for sleep.  And for my husband getting up and driving (his first week ever!) for seminary this past week.  He's let me have an extra hour, which is huge considering how much I struggle falling asleep.  Another reason why I love him that much.

# 6 A Clean House

I'm definitely no Mary Poppins but this week, I put it on the calendar to deep clean each room.  Cruz's was the first and after I moved his bed and rearranged his room, I took a break and enjoyed the moment of a clean space.  And then I realized I didn't want to go out of the room and tackle the rest of the tornado wreckage.  I am thankful for having a clean house.  A clean house brings a happy mom, and a happy mom brings a happy family. 

# 5 A Daughter of God's Values

We are daughter of our Heavenly Father who love us, and we love him. mm.

I'm very thankful for the Young Women values and how they are instilled in me.  I hope to say I posess a quality of each one of these and others can grow because of it.  

Faith:  I know Jesus is our Savior.  I have Faith we will see our loved ones again.
Divine Nature: We came from a Divine Place and have the chance to have everything plus more one day.
Individual Worth: I am me.  I like me and I'm okay with that!
Knowledge: I'm would like to think I'm smart but I do know that one day I would love to continue on my knowledge.
Choice & Accountability: I've learned this the harder way but I now believe I can say I would pick the smart choice.
Good Works: Service pays more than money ever could.  A smile is worth everything!
Integrity - I know what I believe in and I love it!
Virtue: This is still a value that I'm working on as well.  One day, I hope to be considered a women of virtue.

# 4 Reading Material

Books!  Good Books! 
****Percy Jackson Series, Matched, Fablehaven, and of course the Standard Works****

I'm thankful for the books my children have to read.  I'm thankful for the books that I have to read every once in awhile too.  There are many clean and books out there.  I'm also so grateful for the scriptures and the knowledge and guidance they give us.  I'm enjoying reading them as a family and using them to teach our new curriculum.

# 3 A car, my car

I'm thankful I don't have a smelly van.....

anymore.  My old van was on the outs and every week we were dealing with something else that was wrong.  Plus it had a "weird" smell that we couldn't get out.  This past week we finally found the new "one".   I'm also very grateful for means of transportation.  While at times, I like running to places to do my errands, I like having the convenience of an automobile.  

# 2 My Children

I'm sure you could tell this one was following my #1.

I love my kids!  We are so blessed to have them in our lives.  I'm glad for the chance to be a parent even though I'm still learning every day.  I'm also thankful for the many smiles my children have given me.  (Yes, there is one extra kid in this photo.  He's Cruz's friend but was adopted into our family for the day.)

# 1 Jacob!

Last year, I wanted to post a month of my most "Thankful" things. I procrastinated and it never got done. So this year, I'm trying! This list is in no particular order, just a list of what I count as my many blessings!

I'm grateful for my eternal companion!  Without him, life would be pretty dull.  I'm excited to be able to spend the rest of my life with him.

Can you guess what is inside?

A random post....

 I wash and fold all the clothes for our family (I'm a little picky on washing, folding, and wrinkles).  Anyway all I require is that my kids put the clothes in their baskets away and hang up the shirts.  Kirsten has always struggled with this.  The last time I saw a pile at the bottom of her closet, I threatened to take the clothes away and make her "buy" them back when she needs them.  So last week, while the kids were at school, I went in and straightened their rooms.  In this little jewelry box, I found 2 shirts and a dress STUFFED inside of it.  Sometimes I wonder what takes longer, hanging them up or thinking where to stash them and shoving them there.  : )  The joys of being a mom (and I enjoy every second.)

Another great find (recipe)

I was going to say, "Not much is going on in our lives to blog about", but that's not necessarily the truth.  We are busy in every aspect of our lives.  

I'm one that loves a good (and easy) recipe to try that comes well recommended.  Here is one of them.  I'm always very weary when it comes to Indian food because sometimes recipes don't come together.  We love the coconut curry at Tarka so I have been looking for a recipe that I could make at home. I was pleasantly surprised with this one.  It smelt good, was easy to follow, and tasted really good.  So I'm posting it to share.

Coconut Chicken Curry

from melskitchencafe.com

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch chunks

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 1/2 TBSP vegetable oil

2-2 1/2 TBSP curry powder

1 1/2 tsp paprika 

1/2 onion, thinly diced

2 cloves garlic, crushed (I used 1 tsp minced garlic)

4 medium red potatoes, cut into chunks

1 (14 oz) can coconut milk

1 (14.5 oz) can stewed tomatoes, Italian style

1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce

3 TBSP sugar

Hot cooked Rice (I used Basmati)

Season chicken pieces with salt and pepper.  Heat oil, curry powder, and paprika in a large skillet (wok) over medium-low heat for two minutes until fragrant, BUT don't let it burn.  Turn the heat up to medium and stir in onions and garlic and cook 7-9 minutes more until onions are clear.  Add chicken, tossing lightly to coat with curry oil and cook for 7-10 minutes.  Add potatoes, coconut milk, tomatoes (I crushed the Italian tomatoes in a bowl prior as my kids don't like eating chunks of tomatoes) tomato sauce, and sugar into the pan, and stir.  Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally for 30-40 minutes. **** I made this earlier in the day and got to this point and instead of simmering in the pan I made it and put it in a crock pot and let it sit in low heat for 4-5 hours.  This made it really easy come dinner time and the flavor was really good.  The sauce thickens slightly upon standing.  Serve with rice (and naan!)

This dish is sweet with a little spice.  (None of my kids said it was spicy hot though).  Its definitely a must with naan!

Another Good Find....

Another reason I LOVE HEB.......

HEB has a in store coupon right now where if you buy there Fruit Spread (which is actually really good) you get a free Peanut Butter (creamy or crunchy.)

So we all know what happens when Jacob finds a good deal he buys "in Jacob bulk."  So when I came home with five cans, that night I found 17 in the pantry....which has now turned to even more.  I can't complain on this one during the "sack lunch season!"

Saturday is a Special Day...

Such a GREAT Saturday:
We started off by.....

 

listening and taking notes from this morning conference session with a bunch of McKay's friends (and my Beehives!)  

 

We play Conference Jeopardy this coming mutual activity....

 

"Ask a missionary!"

....hence the note taking.  Jacob even made the game so they get real buzzers!

After morning conference, I coached our first game.  McKay and her friend Julia, persuaded me into coaching their city league this season as they got bumped from the younger bracket because of their birthdays.  We won our first game, almost won the second (they gave a good fight at the end.) And the third one slipped away, so we lost the match.   They did awesome though and I know its the beginning of a good season! 

We finished with an even bigger group of girls coming over for the DVR'ed session of the afternoon session.  I've enjoyed the messages learned and I love and appreciate my own family more than ever!

Jacob's Baking Puzzle

There are three things wrong with this picture.  Can you find them?

Cruz's Special Day

Cruz turned eight a couple weeks ago so this past Saturday, he was able to be baptized. 

 

These two are the special men in my life!  I love them dearly.  (This picture above is personally one of my favorites.  I love what it shows.)

Cruz had his own special day since family members were going to be in town.   I've never seen him so happy and smiling.  He was baptized and confirmed out in Taylor by his dad.

He was able to choose who said the prayers, which songs were sung, who talked, and what musical numbers were played.

There were several neighbors and friends that came out too.  (Since it is about 30 minutes away, I was very impressed and grateful.)

(It was really a lot more exciting and fun than McKay lets on....)

The program went: Prayers - Aspen and Kirsten.  Jacob gave a talk on baptism and I gave one on the Holy Ghost.  We sang "I Know That My Savior Loves Me" and "I Am a Child of God."

Cruz asked his dad to give a talk on Baptism and me to give a talk on the Holy Ghost.  I tried to get him to change that last talk but he was definite on me doing it.  I based it off of this idea I found on the internet!  The kids loved it.  I handed out a traffic light signal that the little kids could follow along with and have as a reminder.

Aspen, McKay, and I played a trio of a number from Paul Cardall's "I Love To See the Temple" arrangement.  We had a day to practice and I must say it went amazingly well.  We also played some primary hymns while we waited for the "men" to dress. 

I'm very grateful that we had family members that came.  Betsy, Nate and their family made such a long drive for such a short time.  Mike & Mindy and Aimee also made it up from San Antonio even when they were dealing with sick ones at home!  I love you all!

The Grotto

While we were in Utah.....

Sunday late afternoon....

We drove up Payson Canyon and hiked up to The Grotto.  It's a little cave type setting with a waterfall.  In fact, I looked up the word "Grotto" and it means "a small picturesque cave."  We tried to get a picture of the grandkids with Grandma but it just didn't turn out they way we wanted it to.  What can you expect though.  Are pictures ever easy?  We took a couple of "group" pictures but my sister has those.

This is at the top of the falls.  Of course, Jacob always has to find a way up and stand at the top.

I tried to make friends with Korver.  It worked for a little bit.

We gave Russell and Elizabeth "Mormon" shirts and they wore them almost the entire time!  They loved hanging out and playing with the cousins.

We enjoyed looking at the fall leaves and colors up the canyons since we don't see it in Texas very much!