this is how ethan gets around the house nowadays...
4.29.2008
4.24.2008
more than you wanted to know...
sorry to rachel that it took me so long to do this tag...and amelia tagged me too, and they are almost the same, so two birds with one stone, proverbially speaking...
10 Years ago...
i was almost 16 years old, taking driver's ed, but not getting my license until i was one semester in college...
5 snacks i enjoy:
1. 100 calorie packs of anything
2. fruit, fruit and more fruit
3. cake
4. cookies
5. POPCORN!
5 Things On My To Do List Today (er...Tomorrow)
1. take the kids to the park
2. make sure i have everything set for teaching some sewing on saturday
3. hang out with friends on fri. night
4. mail a package to my niece who is turning 3 (ruby claire)
5. have my visiting teacher come over
If I were a Billionaire...
pay our loans, buy a new car for both of us that has no problems, buy a modest house, invest, make sure our kids have money we can loan them with interest for college;), pay back my parents and kendall parents for the plethora of help they have given and keep giving us, buy books
3 Bad Habits...
1. i eat alot, but i am on weight watchers now so that is getting better
2. sometimes i stress, but that is getting better too
3. getting overwhelmed, also, getting better (can you tell i am in recovery mode?)
5 Places I've Lived...
1. Bear Grass/Williamston, NC
2. Puyallup, WA
3. Provo, UT
4. Mesa, AZ
5. sorry...i have moved about 12 times since i was 10 though...just not that many different cities
5 Jobs I've had...
1. Box packer at KCDA
2. Manager at KCDA
3. house painter, for college works painting
4. Teacher at Center for Change in Orem, UT
5. Education Specialist, chauffer, chef, short order cook, entertainer, music specialist, nurse practioner, law enforcement officer, finder of all lost things...in other words...MOM
3 Things Most People Don't Know About Me...
1. I can fit my fist in my mouth
2. I graduated second in my class in college
3. I tend to drive really fast
if you feel you want to do this tag...please do!
now you know more about jen than you ever wanted to:)
10 Years ago...
i was almost 16 years old, taking driver's ed, but not getting my license until i was one semester in college...
5 snacks i enjoy:
1. 100 calorie packs of anything
2. fruit, fruit and more fruit
3. cake
4. cookies
5. POPCORN!
5 Things On My To Do List Today (er...Tomorrow)
1. take the kids to the park
2. make sure i have everything set for teaching some sewing on saturday
3. hang out with friends on fri. night
4. mail a package to my niece who is turning 3 (ruby claire)
5. have my visiting teacher come over
If I were a Billionaire...
pay our loans, buy a new car for both of us that has no problems, buy a modest house, invest, make sure our kids have money we can loan them with interest for college;), pay back my parents and kendall parents for the plethora of help they have given and keep giving us, buy books
3 Bad Habits...
1. i eat alot, but i am on weight watchers now so that is getting better
2. sometimes i stress, but that is getting better too
3. getting overwhelmed, also, getting better (can you tell i am in recovery mode?)
5 Places I've Lived...
1. Bear Grass/Williamston, NC
2. Puyallup, WA
3. Provo, UT
4. Mesa, AZ
5. sorry...i have moved about 12 times since i was 10 though...just not that many different cities
5 Jobs I've had...
1. Box packer at KCDA
2. Manager at KCDA
3. house painter, for college works painting
4. Teacher at Center for Change in Orem, UT
5. Education Specialist, chauffer, chef, short order cook, entertainer, music specialist, nurse practioner, law enforcement officer, finder of all lost things...in other words...MOM
3 Things Most People Don't Know About Me...
1. I can fit my fist in my mouth
2. I graduated second in my class in college
3. I tend to drive really fast
if you feel you want to do this tag...please do!
now you know more about jen than you ever wanted to:)
4.21.2008
Taquitos!
hey, i got this recipe from Picky Palate; they are seriously very easy and so so good, kendall wouldn't mind if we had them every night!
TAQUITOS
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup finely chopped red pepper
1 tablespoon finely chopped jalapeno pepper
2 cups cooked, then shredded chicken breast
3 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 (14 1/2 oz.) can diced tomatoes with green chilies
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
burrito size flour tortillas (*Jen Note*: i actually find it works better with a soft taco size and if you steam them before you roll them it is infinitely easier! you can do that in a vegetable steamer, just put them in the basket when the water is boiling, or you can do them in the microwave, wet-paper towel style)
1. In 10-inch non stick skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper and jalapeno pepper; cook 3 to 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring frequently. Stir in chicken, 3 tablespoons cilantro, salt, cumin, pepper and tomatoes with green chilies; cook 5 minutes.
2. Place oil into large skillet over medium heat. Place about 2 large Tablespoons of chicken mixture into each tortilla. Tightly roll, securing ends with toothpicks. In batches, place taquitos into hot pan. Pan fry until nice and golden brown on each side. Remove, transfer to a paper towel lined plate to dry. Serve and enjoy!
TAQUITOS
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup finely chopped red pepper
1 tablespoon finely chopped jalapeno pepper
2 cups cooked, then shredded chicken breast
3 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 (14 1/2 oz.) can diced tomatoes with green chilies
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
burrito size flour tortillas (*Jen Note*: i actually find it works better with a soft taco size and if you steam them before you roll them it is infinitely easier! you can do that in a vegetable steamer, just put them in the basket when the water is boiling, or you can do them in the microwave, wet-paper towel style)
1. In 10-inch non stick skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper and jalapeno pepper; cook 3 to 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring frequently. Stir in chicken, 3 tablespoons cilantro, salt, cumin, pepper and tomatoes with green chilies; cook 5 minutes.
2. Place oil into large skillet over medium heat. Place about 2 large Tablespoons of chicken mixture into each tortilla. Tightly roll, securing ends with toothpicks. In batches, place taquitos into hot pan. Pan fry until nice and golden brown on each side. Remove, transfer to a paper towel lined plate to dry. Serve and enjoy!
4.17.2008
perspective...
i have come to the conclusion that all i need is a little bit of perspective every once in a while.
sometimes, i'll admit, i get frustrated with my children. why you might ask? i thought your kids were perfect! (ha, i say in retort) but really, i get frustrated when ethan yells at me for the 80 millionth time that day and i have to send him to time out and when avery will only sleep for 30-40 minutes at a time and is still grumpy when she wakes up...stuff. but it frustrates me that i get frustrated because then i feel like i am grumpy mommy and who wants grumpy mommy? no one, least of all me. ergo i need perspective.
for my perspective i should probably read Elder Ballard's talk once a day and listen to that song, "you're gonna miss this" which made me cry the first time i heard it.
i don't want to make myself cry, let's get that straight right now, but i DO want to remember that my children are small and cute and lovable and maddening at times, and that's how it's SUPPOSED TO BE! and let's get this out of the way too...where is the family or mom or children of the SUPPOSED land? for some reason, in my head, there are people who do things a certain way that i compare my sweet little children to as in, "well, he's SUPPOSED to put himself to sleep" or "she's SUPPOSED to take 2 naps a day for at least an hour" or "2 is SUPPOSED to be hard but three is SUPPOSED to be better"
you know stuff like that. and i have learned that you can't really do that, but in the back of my mind, it's still there. i know it's unrealistic as is the following, "as a mom i am SUPPOSED to get a shower every single day, have my house looking neat and clean and not ever get upset at my children"
supposedly.
but it's just not fair, not to me, not to my kids and especially not to kendall who has to deal with it when all my suppositions come crashing down on my head. and it's frankly not even okay to compare your child with themselves..."well she slept really well last month..." well, honey, that was last month and today is today and TODAY she doesn't want to take a nap! so there!
anyway, all i'm saying is i need to have a perspective that helps me take it all in stride and remember that these children are beautiful and wonderful, and i know that's true, and pretty soon, sooner than i'd like they are going to be 14 and stuff and then i'll look back and wish i could hold my baby and run and blow bubbles with my son and make everything better with a kiss and maybe a band-aid.
so to all you moms out there, like Elder Ballard says, "First, recognize that the joy of motherhood comes in moments. There will be hard times and frustrating times. But amid the challenges, there are shining moments of joy and satisfaction" and as anna quindlen was quoted in that same talk: "The biggest mistake I made [as a parent] is the one that most of us make. . . . I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of [my three children] sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less”
so let's let our hearts be with our treasures and kiss the babies and blow the bubbles and leave the stress at the door.
thank you for hearing my public service annoucement...you may now go back to your regularly unscheduled children/lives.
sometimes, i'll admit, i get frustrated with my children. why you might ask? i thought your kids were perfect! (ha, i say in retort) but really, i get frustrated when ethan yells at me for the 80 millionth time that day and i have to send him to time out and when avery will only sleep for 30-40 minutes at a time and is still grumpy when she wakes up...stuff. but it frustrates me that i get frustrated because then i feel like i am grumpy mommy and who wants grumpy mommy? no one, least of all me. ergo i need perspective.
for my perspective i should probably read Elder Ballard's talk once a day and listen to that song, "you're gonna miss this" which made me cry the first time i heard it.
i don't want to make myself cry, let's get that straight right now, but i DO want to remember that my children are small and cute and lovable and maddening at times, and that's how it's SUPPOSED TO BE! and let's get this out of the way too...where is the family or mom or children of the SUPPOSED land? for some reason, in my head, there are people who do things a certain way that i compare my sweet little children to as in, "well, he's SUPPOSED to put himself to sleep" or "she's SUPPOSED to take 2 naps a day for at least an hour" or "2 is SUPPOSED to be hard but three is SUPPOSED to be better"
you know stuff like that. and i have learned that you can't really do that, but in the back of my mind, it's still there. i know it's unrealistic as is the following, "as a mom i am SUPPOSED to get a shower every single day, have my house looking neat and clean and not ever get upset at my children"
supposedly.
but it's just not fair, not to me, not to my kids and especially not to kendall who has to deal with it when all my suppositions come crashing down on my head. and it's frankly not even okay to compare your child with themselves..."well she slept really well last month..." well, honey, that was last month and today is today and TODAY she doesn't want to take a nap! so there!
anyway, all i'm saying is i need to have a perspective that helps me take it all in stride and remember that these children are beautiful and wonderful, and i know that's true, and pretty soon, sooner than i'd like they are going to be 14 and stuff and then i'll look back and wish i could hold my baby and run and blow bubbles with my son and make everything better with a kiss and maybe a band-aid.
so to all you moms out there, like Elder Ballard says, "First, recognize that the joy of motherhood comes in moments. There will be hard times and frustrating times. But amid the challenges, there are shining moments of joy and satisfaction" and as anna quindlen was quoted in that same talk: "The biggest mistake I made [as a parent] is the one that most of us make. . . . I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of [my three children] sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less”
so let's let our hearts be with our treasures and kiss the babies and blow the bubbles and leave the stress at the door.
thank you for hearing my public service annoucement...you may now go back to your regularly unscheduled children/lives.
4.14.2008
4.09.2008
Projects...
i am a project person. i like to have a project in front of me because then i like to finish them. does that make sense? i really like the process most of the time and the finished product is usually quite nice. i was especially pleased at how this dresser came out for avery. a vast improvement for the little lady's room, now she doesn't have clothes all over her floor:)
4.03.2008
Istanbul Not Constantinople
Turn the music off on the bottom! This is Ethan's favorite song right now. He wants to watch this Tiny Toons video about 8 million times a day...so this song is forever stuck in our heads...thought i'd share! Enjoy!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)