Dogs getting to know each other

Griffy is the Chocolate Lab and Lady a Cocker Spaniel.  It's hard to see the size difference, but Lady is so short that she can walk underneath Griffy.

Melany was trying to teach Lady to lay down, using griffy as an example.  Lady didn't get it.

Here is a good picture that shows the size difference.

Lady protecting the money!

It wasn't very sunny, so the picture is darker than you'd expect, but Lady being black stands out nicely.

Here Lady is racing through the house with the girls.  I tried to get Griffy adn Lady together chasing the girls, but the view from behind wasn't pleasant.

Christmas

We had a great Christmas!  It started on Christmas Eve morning.  We opened gifts from Patty who is wonderful woman that Jason works with.  She was so generous and sweet!    We really appreciated the gifts! 

Then we went to Jason's cousin's house for Christmas Eve dinner and family get together.  Ben came along and it was nice to be with the family.  There was also the annual visit from Santa, and I got a picture of each of the kids on Santa's lap.

It's a tradition to sing a song while on santa's lap, you can't get a gift without you song.  All the kids chose songs that were typical, Frosty the snowman, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, and Jingle Bells, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, Jingle Bell Rock.  Excpet Madison, who wanted to sing, (to the tune of Jingle Bells) Dashing thru the snow with a pair of broken ski's,

o'er the hills we go smahing into trees,

the snow is turning red, I think I'm almost dead,

I woke up in the hospital with stitches in my head!

No one appreciated it, but J and I thought it was fun!

The Christmas Tree all lit up! It's so beautiful!  TJ and Coe go all out making the Holiday special for everyone!  They decorated the entire house and tree, just to have to take it down in two days!  They are leaving for Florida three days after Christmas, so they have 2 days to get it all cleared up and put away!

There were many smaller gifts this year.  So this picture is a little deceiving.  And some gifts were too large to be put on the floor infront of the tree. 

Here is some of the after math!  Paper packaging and toys everywhere!  And that's after throwing away one entire garbage bag of paper!  And not a small 14 gallon kitchen bag, an outdoor 50 gallon bag!

Taylor and Melany were playing with Bailey's Barbie dolls.  Taylor is 13 1/2 and Melany is 15!  As soon as they saw me Taylor covered her head and Melany threw the doll aside!  I promised them I'd post this image for them. 

Trimming the Tree, and the Dog?

 We went to Meme and Pepe's for Christmas tree trimming and while doing that we ended up trimming the dog as well!  Taylor hates her picture taken, but if I get the dog and a tiny bit of her she doens't mind so much!    Meme and Pepe have two trees, the small one which is fiberoptic, and in the image below.  And the real tree which I didn't get a picture of, because we kinda forgot the tinsel!  So we had to take everything down and start all over again!  That's okay, we had a great time anyway!

Lady with her Bling!











And this last image is a picture of what Ben is always doing to the kids!  He plays with them and usually not too rough.  Today Jordan ended up in a laundry basket.  You can tell by the smile on her face that she isn't bothered by her situation.

We Got A New Puppy

So this is a bit of a story, I'll try to make it short.

My friend was pressured into buying a dog she wan't so sure that she could afford.  But she did it anyway.  And now it's been 10 months and she just can't afford it anymore.  She asked me if I knew someone who'd be willing to watch her for a while until she gets a new apartment.  The apartment she is moving into doesn't allow pets.  So after a long time, a few months, of considering and trying to find someone else to take the dog, we finally decided to take her.  Neither J nor I really wanted her at first.  But I prayed about it and I got the answer that it would be best if we did.  I wasn't as objectionable to getting her as compared to J who didn't want her.  And when he prayed about it his said to Heavenly Father, "I don't want the dog, but if we should taker her let me know."  Well, we know his answer. 

So the dogs name was Lovey.  Because she has a wonky heart shape on her chin.  But according to everything I've read you should change the name when you get a new dog.  So we did, but we kept it close for my friends kids sake.  Her new name is Lady.  Like Lady and the Tramp.  As you can see from the picture she is a cocker spaniel.  She is a sweet little thing and she is very smart.  She sits and stays, fetches and comes on command.  The only issue we have is potty training, but that is because she didn't form good habits with her previous owners.  She was sometimes allowed to potty in the house.  Puppy pads should be out lawed!  LOL 

This is lady the day she got back from the groomer.  She was matted pretty bad, it took the groomer 3 hours to get all the mats off her.  Mostly it was her ears.  They went from these HUGE, HEAVY ears to the typical floppy ears of a cocker.A few days later you can see her face better in this image.

So Cute!

Christmas

It's the most wonderful time of the year!  How true that song is!  I love Christmas.  I love the smell of a fresh cut tree and the joyous songs on the radio.  I love to listen to Christmas music even in July!  How lovely is it to have peace and love around all the time.  Ah, I wish the Christmas Spirit would last all year round.

This year I have noticed a lot more rudeness than usual.  Yes, I went shopping on black friday, but that's not what I meant. ;)  Mostly it is drivers.  People honking because the person in front of them didn't use their blinker when turning.  Though I'm sure they didn't use their's at their last turn.  I'm not letting it get to me.  I am going to put into Christmas what I want to get out of it.  And I think people forget that.  I think they concentrate on the shopping and the bad drivers and the lack of money, instead of the real reason for the season.  Which is living and loving in a Christ like way. 

My Christmas Prayer this year is for peace and joy not just through out the world, but through out my family and through out myself.  I will put very little money into Christmas this year, I want to put memories into it instead.  I want my kids to remember Christmas as a time for family and not gifts.  I want them to cherish the love they have as a family and not worry about how many gifts they are getting. 

We are sending a care package to my brother in Iraq.  We will be sending all sorts of games and treats.  I think the soldiers in his unit will be greatful.  We take for granted that things like candy canes aren't sold in the middle east.  I'm also sending hot chocolate, though, I don't think they will need it the way we do in New England!  But it should bring them the memories of Christmas day.

I don't have any pictures to post.  I'm trying to think of what I could post for an image, and to be honest, we are saving every dime, so we aren't putting up lights or a tree this year.  I have a nice picture of the neighbors yard after the snow.  It's only the 2" we got on Sunday, not the 6" we got on Wednesday.

I took this just before I got into the car to head to church. 

Happy Anni-Birthday to Us!

It's J and my birthdays this week, as well as our anniversary!  My birthday is the 24th, we were married on the 25th, sealed on the 26th and J's birthday is the 27th.  J took this week off to do some writing and try to get closer to finishing his book.  He read a few pages to me yesturday and it's very good.  I think it will be taken well by the public.  And my hope is we will become rich and infamous and be able to do more for the poor.  Meaning ourselves and our family and friends.  Sorry poor homeless guys, family and friends come first!

We took pictures for our Christmas card.  I will not be posting the final picture but I will post some taken from that same day!  The pictures were taken with my camera, but not by me.  The camera was set up on a tripod and the other photographer didn't want to touch the camera so he just snapped away.  I'll fix up the pictures later.

On Saturday I took pictures of J's cousin Kelsey.  They will be for her senior photo's.  She is beautiful!

Sunday Ben had a talk.  It was great!  I think he is learning to appreciate what he has.  He gave his talk on Thanksgiving and though he hates the holiday he gave a talk mostly about what he appreciates most.  I'm one of them!  ;)  Well, the family is anyway.  We are glad to have him as part of our family.  We love him and are so glad Heavenly Father put him in our path.  Yeah, it hasn't always been peaches and cream, but when is life ever all peaches and cream?
We had a nice pre-Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday with J's family. That was nice.  J's brother and wife, Chris and Jen, came all the way from Colorado!  So that was nice!  We don't get to see them often. 

Much fun was had by all!

Hi peeps! What up?

I'm getting a story published! Okay,so there's this writing club in my school, right? Well, I joined it and now I 'm getting a story published. It's called Mr. Fuzzbucket's Piano. I dedicated it to Mr. Fuzzbucket, our dead hamster. Okay, so like it's about this hamster ,right? And about a piano. I can't tell you any more because my mom will look at it and I want it to be a surprise.

My friend, Shannon, is writing a story about Mr. Fuzzbucket, too. Except he gets eaten by a flower who lives in space. Yeah, I don't know.

Here's a poem:

Squeak, squeak , squeak! What am I?

I have fur, and no feathers.

I sleep at day, but not at night.

I'm usually a pet, but I can be wild.

what am I?

Give up? I am a hamster!

Alright! I know it was short but I got to go! Bye, and hugs to all!

Apple Cider Doughnuts Recipe

Makes 18 doughnuts and doughnut holes

For the doughnuts

1 Cup apple cider

3-1/2 Cups flour, plus additional for the work surface

2 Teaspoons baking powder

1 Teaspoon baking soda

1/2 Teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 Teaspoon salt

1/8 Teaspoon ground nutmeg

4 Tablespoons butter, at room temperature

1 Cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1/2 Cup buttermilk (low-fat or nonfat work fine)

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Vegetable oil for frying

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For the glaze

1 Cup confectioners' sugar

2 Tablespoons apple cider

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For the doughnuts:

In a saucepan over medium or medium-low heat, gently reduce the apple cider to about 1/4 cup, 20 to 30 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, in a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Set aside.

Using an electric mixer on medium speed (with the paddle attachment, if using a standing mixer) beat the butter and granulated sugar until the mixture is smooth. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and continue to beat until the eggs are completely incorporated. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl occasionally. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the reduced apple cider and the buttermilk, mixing just until combined. Add the flour mixture and continue to mix just until the dough comes together.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment or wax paper and sprinkle them generously with flour. Turn the dough onto 1 of the sheets and sprinkle the top with flour. Flatten the dough with your hands until it is about 1/2 inch thick. Use more flour if the dough is still wet. Transfer the dough to the freezer until it is slightly hardened, about 20 minutes. Pull the dough out of the freezer. Using a 3-inch doughnut cutter, cut out doughnut shapes. Place the cut doughnuts and doughnut holes onto the second sheet pan. Refrigerate the doughnuts for 20 to 30 minutes. (You may re-roll the scraps of dough, refrigerate them briefly and cut additional doughnuts from the dough.)

Add enough oil to a deep-sided pan to measure a depth of about 3 inches. Attach a candy thermometer to the side of the pan and heat over medium heat until the oil reaches 350 degrees. Have ready a plate lined with several thicknesses of paper towels.

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For the glaze:

While the cut doughnut shapes are in the refrigerator, make the glaze by whisking together the confectioners' sugar and the cider until the mixture is smooth. Set aside.

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To fry and assemble:

Carefully add a few doughnuts to the oil, being careful not to crowd the pan, and fry until golden brown, about 60 seconds. Turn the doughnuts over and fry until the other side is golden, 30 to 60 seconds. Drain on paper towels after the doughnuts are fried.

Dip the top of the warm doughnuts into the glaze and serve immediately. If you don't want to glaze your doughnuts, they can be dusted with powder sugar or shaken in a bag with granulated sugar or cinnamon and granulated sugar.

Apple picking

We went apple picking, and forgot the camera. So I took pictures of what we made from the apples.  I made apple sauce, apple bread, apple butter and apple cornbread.

This is our green pepper stitch. I was chopping a pepper for spaghetti sauce and took off the bottom.  Taylor said it looked like stitch so we thinly sliced a baby carrot and made the eyes, used two apple seeds for the eyeballs, a grape slice for the nose and a celery sting for the smile.

My favorite picture from OSV

This is my favorite picture, it took a few tries to get it just right, and I'm happy with it!

Family Emergency continued...

This post is a mess!  I just couldn't get the words where I wanted them!  Sorry!

The kids made candle holders, and Daddy helped.

Jordan is the only one who dressed up and pretended to work and lice in the home.

Madison makes all sorts of faces.  When taking pictures this is his favorite.  Trying to get a picture of him not being silly is almost impossible, unless he isn't paying attention.

 











This picture may end up being our Christmas card photo!  A sneak peek!  But I may change my mind.  That's why I posted it.

Family Emergency! We hadn't spent enough time together!

We called the school and told them we were having a family emergency.  Then we went to Old Sturbridge Village.
Here we are, minus Mom, Dad and Taylor!  Yes, Jordan wanted to be the father! LOL




The kids walked up to this lady and started to ask her questions.  She turned and posed for a picture, so the kid did too. Then I pulled out my camera, weird huh?



Jordan trying to make a friend.  The sheep were not interested.      

Piggy






The school marm.  Interestingly, in the old days parents would purchase books for their children, mini text books, with their lessons inside.  The teacher did no "teaching" but supervised.  Once the kids were done with their lesson they would bring it to the from of the class and sit quietly until the teacher was available.  Then they would show her or recite to her the lesson.  If they got it right they moved on, if they got it wrong they had to repeat the lesson until they got it correct.

Moo Cow

Black Smith

     My soldiers