My blog is broken again...I'm at a remote location logging in to leave all of my followers a message (heehee)...Google has caught another virus and so I can't blog or comment if you don't accept anonymous...I am still stalking all of you and I want to wish all of you Happy Holidays! Who knows how long it will take for me to clean up my computer...Love you all!

Taylor Says...

It's November and this means that her Birthday is near...she is funny and silly and I wanted to share with you a silly story about a conversation we had with her last night...giggle a little!

Let me set this up: For the 3 years that we have lived in this house I can count on one hand the number of times our 2nd bath has been showered or bathed in by my children. For some reason, they have been showering or bathing in our bathroom and I for the life of me can't figure it out. It drives me absolutely batty and I want it to stop. I have asked them for reasons and they give me nothing...they just don't like it. So, last night I was trying to wheel and deal with them and offer some reward for a whole month of showering or bathing in their bathroom. I came up with this: 30 days of showering/bathing in their bathroom = A movie purchase of thier choice. Sounds fair right?...Then Taylor says (prepare to giggle) "Mom, I will shower in our bathroom every night for 2 years if you buy me a Nintendo Ds!" That means that on November 5, 2011, if she upholds her end of the bargain...I will buy a Nintendo Ds for her...hahahaha!!!! How funny is that...we even shook on it and everything...needless to say, I am excited for this deal! Something tells me that Taylor won't be the proud owner of her own Nintendo Ds in a couple of years....but she will be VERY used to showering in her own shower...heehee!!!

Addy is 2 month's old...

My cute little Addy bug is 2 months old already...UGH! She is now 9.6 lbs and 21 1/2 inches long. She is in the 15% for height and weight...doing well! Small but good...just like her sister! She is right on spot with her milestones and the Dr. couldn't be more pleased with her development...she is a perfect bill of health!!! Keeping her inside and away from everyone is working...not fun for those who want to see her and not going to church but nonetheless...it's working!

Jenner had a 2 year check as well and is only 23 lbs and 33 inches...super small...11% height and 4% in weight...she such a mini!!!

Flu Shot?

Just a lame post asking where you are getting your flu shots...my Dr. office is out of them and isn't getting any of the shot in any time soon...we have to get the shot instead of the mist...please help?

And...she smiles!

More Halloween Photos...

Here are some more photos of us...So Sorry to my fans...I just didn't have time to get in my costume...you'll just have to keep wondering what I was going to dress up as...hehehe!

Gene Simmons came to visit us tonight...Jenner especially loved him!

The Whole Fam-Damily!

A close up of my Miss Ann! Blurry but so CUTE!!!


This is too funny...
Chris - Gene Simmons
Jodi - Mad Scientist
Sherri - Green Chick
The witch in back is actually a statue handing out treats...

The Grandkids on the Barton side...good luck trying to get everyone looking at the camera at the same time...STRESS!!!!!!

Trick or Treat...

First Off...I Love Halloween!

We participated in a really successful Trunk or Treat this year at our ward building and it was so much fun...afterwards, Chris took the kids around our neighborhood. I was able to get a few photos in before they left and before Taylor took off her wig. Now people won't know what she is...

My 2 cute little Hippies!

Lady Vampiress!

The whole lot of them...minus Jenner's face...

Our cutest littlest Halloween Haunter...

Any tips on how to get this girl to actually LOOK at the camera?

BTW, this costume is mine from when I was a kid...my mom made it and I loved it when I was little...isn't it Genious!!!

Oh there she is! (She's looking because I stole her candy and dangled in front of the camera while I took the picture...not smiling but looking nonetheless!)

Halloween contemplation...

HELP - I don't know what to do...I still haven't figured out what to be for Halloween!!! Since my recent weight loss (3 lbs) I thought it would uber neat to show it off...my weight loss that is...and the only way to do that is to go Super Skimpy...or do I keep it real Molly Mormonish and cover it all up...I need your help in deciding which costume to wear...

Raggedy Ann...Jenner is being Raggedy so we could totally be twinners!

A tiny bit skimpy!

Sexy Witch...A little more skimpy!

Adam & Eve...Works great for both of us!

Covering it all up...totally!

Ketchup and Mustard...again for both of us!

This might be going a little too far with the covering it all up!

Bruno...for Chris of course! Because he secretly LOVES Bruno...

Rich Man's Dinner...

Hold the phone cuz I am posting again...I finally found something blog-worthy and I think you will agree.

This dish is called Rich Man's Dinner for a reason...it's expensive to make but super delicious. It's one of those meals that you make for special occasions or on February 29th! Ashley, you are considered a 'special occasion' in my book...Love Ya!

Rich Man's Dinner:

Spray a 9X13 pan with pam and lay in some sliced ham, good quality ham about a 1/4 inch thick.

Wrap desired amount of chicken tenders with bacon (uncooked) and lay on top of ham.

Make a sauce with a big can of cream of chicken soup, 1-2 cups sour cream and some milk for thinning. Add some salt and pepper to sauce and pour over chicken.

Cover with foil and bake in a 350 degree oven for 2-3 hours and serve over rice! So Good!!!

I wanted to throw in this adorable picture of Jenner enjoying her favorite meal from Taco Time...every day she wants "chips" for lunch and she can eat the whole thing too!!!

Adventures with Jenner...

While the kids are in school all day Jenner, Addison and I have been having some of our own adventures. I had to take them to the Dr. the other day and because Jenner had a runny nose they wanted her to wear a mask. She loved it! She kept it on the whole time and the nurses and Dr.'s all made comments of how funny it was...most kids won't leave them on for 30 seconds! Isn't she so cute!



The other night Grady was chasing Jenner around the house...well, Jenner pretty much trips on the tile every single day and this night was no exception...she slipped and slid right into the corner of the door jam to our bedroom. She ended up with this nice Frankenstein scratch on her cheek...



Addison has started to smile and it is so cute. I would love to share that with you but she seems to know when I get the camera out to take a picture and she won't perform at all. She is so cute too...she has dimples on both sides of her cheeks with the right side being more so...When I took her to the Dr. it was for her baby acne...I wasn't sure if having this much baby acne was normal but it turns out that it is. He said she has a very 'impressive' case of it and there isn't much I can do about it...I really hate it though...I feel like she looks like I don't bathe her and take care of her and it really bugs me...

On Wednesday the boys had their much anticipated Pinewood Derby at the church and they had a ton of fun! Too bad they didn't win...my dad was so upset that they didn't win, even more upset than the boys were...he keeps saying that he is going to produce a first place car one of these years, I think it will drive him nuts until he does! This is Rhett with Bishop Tueller before his first race!

Rhett and Grady waiting at the finish line for their cars...

Daddy and his boys!

Grady had a field trip at this really neat Pumpkin Farm yesterday and I was worried about his Asthma acting up so I drove over there to give him a couple of puffs...Jenner was in heaven. They have these fun slides that she couldn't get enough of...luckily Grady was there to help because I still had Addy to take care of...

Some outdoor fun...

First off...isn't this picture adorable...I was doing things around the house last night and I came upon this sweet scenario...Little Addy and Jenner sound asleep on their daddy! Notice the enthusiasm in Chris' face...hahaha!

Due to some circumstances beyond my control, we have to hold all of our family gatherings at our home for the time being...tonight we had a birthday party for my mother in law. We hydro seeded our backyard in May and we have been very careful with the growing grass all summer. Tonight we had a baseball game back there and it was so much fun to see...people actually playing in our backyard...it was so much fun!!!

Chocolate Chip Cookies...revisited!

Remember that perfect cookies recipe I found awhile ago...well, I have since then perfected it even more...if that's possible! These are sooooo good! The White Chocolate pudding adds the most divine flavor to the cookie and the milk chocolate chips are now a must!

Chocolate Chip Cookies:

Cream together:
1 cup butter (room temp)
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar

Add, mixing well with each ingredient:
1 small box White Chocolate pudding
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
2 1/4 cups flour
1 bag Ghiradelli Milk Chocolate Chips


Use a small or medium pampered chef scoop and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 11 minutes.

Soft Ginger Cookies...

These cookies are fabulous and they make your house smell like Christmas. I got the recipe from my SIL Sarah who is genious in the kitchen...and, my kids LOVE them. Sarah's kids call them..."those addicting cookies" because they are just that...ADDICTING!!!

Soft Ginger Cookies:

2 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
1/4 tsp. salt

3/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup molasses

Mix dry ingredients and set aside. Beat butter for 30 seconds and add sugar. Beat until fluffy and add egg and molasses. Mix in dry ingredients. Shape into 1 1/2" balls (medium pampered chef scoop) and roll in sugar. Place onto ungreased cookie sheet about 2" apart. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes (don't overbake).

First Smiles!

So...blogging isn't really working out for me right now...not only does my baby nurse pretty much all of the time but she also likes to be held all of the time! Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining but I seriously had 3 pictures on my camera that I thought I could blog about.

My sweet Aunt Helen brought dinner over the other night and while she was holding little Addy...she smiled! Really? I have been working on getting that first smile for some time now and she decided to give it to my Aunt...not to mention that Jenner pretty much did the same thing with her first smile...it's wasn't exactly her first one but she didn't give them away to just anyone but for my Aunt Helen she did! It's actually pretty cute and my Aunt thinks it's AWESOME! I was hurrying to get the camera and take a picture and of course, she stops smiling and wouldn't do it while I was picture ready...Really? I tell ya...these babe's are always so smart even from the get go...

I have been pretty bored with Jenner's red hair lately and I finally found a stylist that would put extensions in it for me...it was tough to find someone willing to do it but if you search the internet enough and go 'underground' where the 'real' stylists are available, you can find pretty much anything you want...

Instead of red (so boring) we decided to settle on an average blond color...after all, there aren't too many blonds around and you can never have enough...right?

PSYCH!!!!!

Gotcha!!! Hahaha...seriously, we have been laughing for weeks at this little hollywood woman...she takes on a different personality when she puts this silly wig on...its almost like she knows how glamour she becomes. The best part is when she first puts it on, she shakes her head around so she can feel her long, luscious locks move around her shoulders...Oh if you could just see her! Her newest trick with the wig is to put it on backwards and try to navigate around the house...so funny! I'm telling you what...she is so full of it and we get the best laughs from watching her...she is so much fun!

My 2 little girls...

My genious neighbor/friend took some adorable pictures of my family the other day...we started out with the little girls in the morning and these are some of my favorites! They are so cute! Every picture she took of Jenner had a different expression on her face...Genious!

I will try and upload some of the whole family later...ENJOY!

Breakfast is the new Dinner...

This is what Chris and I had for dinner the other night (above photo courtesy of Flickr of course)...it was one of those nights where pay-day is still a few days away and there isn't much in the fridge or freezer to choose from. It requires a little creativity on my part and alot of trust on my husbands...the kids are always happy with Ramen or Mac N' Cheese. It's really quite simple and I scaled it down from it's original version that I made on Christmas morning a few years ago, and again for Rhett's Baptism brunch.

Breakfast Casserole:

Layer in the following order:

hash browns: Any kind but enough to cover the bottom of an 8x8 pan.

breakfast sausage or ham: brown the sausage (about 1/2 lb)

shredded cheese: about 1 cup

Make a mixture of:

4-5 eggs

a little milk

a dash of mustard

salt & pepper

Pour over the casserole...Cover with foil and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 35 minutes. Serve with salsa or ketchup.

Similarities?

We have realized that our sweet Addison does have some similarities to our kids...when she was born we didn't think she looked like any of us...but over the weekend we found some pictures of Taylor as a baby and now we think otherwise.

This is Taylor...I'm not sure how old she was in this picture...

And these are Addy...see the similarities?

Conference Krispy Kreme Donuts

I've been reading alot of nice stories of Conference weekend traditions and realized that we don't have any...traditions that is! Until today...we are now officially going to make these donuts for every Conference weekend until the end of time...or at least until we get bored of them...They are really good and taste like the Krispy Kreme's but with a little different texture...I increased the second rise time to maybe change the texture so it's a bit lighter. I found this recipe in the Worldwide Ward Cookbook...I slightly changed it so if you have the book, it doesn't read the same...sorry, it's what I do...I change recipes until I like them...Have fun!



Conference Krispy Kreme Donuts...

Donuts:

2 Tbsp. yeast
1/4 cup hot water
1 1/2 cups warm milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1/3 cup shortening
4-5 cups flour
Vegetable oil for frying.

Dissolve yeast in water. Add milk, sugar, salt, eggs, shortening and 2 cups flour. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds. Scrape sides, beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add the rest of the flour until smooth. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour. Roll out on a floured surface to 1/2 inch thick. Cut with a donut cutter or round cookie cutter. Place on a cookie sheet to rise for a second time, not so close that they will touch when they rise. Cover and let rise until at least doubled or a more, about 1-2 hours. Fry in hot oil and glaze while still warm.

Glaze:

1/3 cup butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
water

Melt butter, add powdered sugar and vanilla. Start with 2 Tbsp. water to make a glaze. Add more water as needed.

While we were watching conference Jenner was fascinated with the rain. She loves it...and loves to go outside and run around in it...crazy girl!

Addison...

Cute little Addison is doing well...she figured out she likes to wake up alot in the night to eat...the first 4 weeks she was sleeping through the night...now I'm tired! She is a sweet little baby and has me wrapped around her finger...she loves it when I hold her and seems to think it's the only way to be...I'm tired! My awesome neighbor took some pictures of her and the family last night, so when I get them from her I will post a bunch...they are ADORABLE of course! I can't wait to see them after she edits them...she's genious!

M&M Cookies...

This is a recipe I got from a lady I used to work with 12 years ago...and they are one of my favorites! They aren't like a chocolate chip cookie but more a sugar cookie. They are fun to switch out the M&M's for each holiday...this year the Halloween ones were especially adorable and I was excited to whip up a batch...

M&M Cookies...

Cream together:

1 cup butter (real, not margarine)

2 cups sugar

Add:

2 eggs

1 cup vegetable oil

1/4 tsp. salt

2 tsp. baking soda

2 tsp. cream of tartar

5 cups flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Use the medium pampered chef scoop and place on cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or just until one golden part. Cool and store in airtight container. Makes about 5 dozen.