Randoms and drama from this stay-at-home-momma...

You know how it is when summer rolls around...

too hot and too tired to do much...

but it is my most favorite time of year...

I sit outside all day watching the girls play and working on my tan...

I love it!

It seems that when it's time to do the laundry or dishes or clean the house, I just don't even care cuz I would rather be outside with the kids...

sometimes when Chris comes home from work he pulls out a chair and joins me...

it calls for the 8 o'clock dinners and 11:30pm bedtimes...

but if you know me at all, you know I couldn't give a flying squirrel's A$$ about any of that...

I just love to be outside taking it all in!

This year for the first time in ten years, we attended the Bountiful parade for the celebration of the 24th of July...

they had planned for a very special ending to the parade that we had only heard about a couple of days before...

there were 2,000 boys dressed up as the stripling warriors from old time Mormon stories and it was breathtaking...

super cool to see...

I looked at Chris and asked to think about if this was all real, like when it was real and what their parents were thinking watching their boys all join together like that...

it was sorta surreal... 

apparently the span of the boys marching was 400 yards...

it was truly spectacular...

but to this little girlie...

it was just another loud and boring parade...

hahaha

my good friend and neighbor invited me along for a fabulous girls day...

it consisted of eating the very best cheeseburger ever for lunch and getting our tootsies pampered and rubbed and painted all cute...

it was heaven!

We were looking at oldies of Chris the other day and these were a couple that had us all in stitches...

sorry it's turned but it was on my phone and I couldn't right it out...

seriously...look at all those dimples

We spent a few days at my parents cabin and it was delightful...

but the very instant we got home and unpacked a few bags, miss Adders found my make-up and applied some mascara to her eyes all by herself...

it was pretty funny...

Our new favorite thing to do is paint ourselves with wet chalk...

it's so cool when it dries on your skin...

it's all bright and fun...

except I warn you to shy away from the blue chalk if you do this...

it tends to look like bruises on the skin and it stains your clothes...

poor Jenner still has a little bit of blue on her scalp...

and even worse than that, the next day her neck looked all bruised up and suspicious...

it was crazy looking, like someone had tried to srangle her...

so, stay away from the blue for sure...

Toodles!

Forf of July...

This was our last day of school party on July 3rd...

we filled 500 water balloons and had 3 hoses going...

it was so much fun!

Chris and Jodi trying out for the Olympics...

My two littles hangin on the side of the pool...

Love those super cheesey photo faces...

This girl stole my cheeseburger and devoured it almost completely...

we were laughing at how huge it looked when she was holding it...

I wasn't too upset cuz it saved me a bunch of calories that day...

I don't even know how I could give birth to a firework hatin' girl...

seriously...

Since I never take/post pictures of myself...

this is me and my niece Haley...

she's so pretty!

All tuckered out from a very, verrryyy long day!

all images from my phone

Granola bar cookies...

Remember my granola bars and how good they are...

well these are just like them but in cookie form...

they are sooo good and sooo addicting so I suggest you should try them this very instant!

pictures from my phone = low quality (phone pictures are just easier to upload)

Granola bar cookies:

Cream together:

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup sugar

1 cup peanut butter

Add:

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda 

1 tsp. baking powder

2 cups flour

2 cups oatmeal (I used quick cooking)

Mix well.

Add:

1 cup mini chocolate chips (or more if you like)

Use the medium pampered chef scoop and place them on an ungreased cookie sheet.  They don't spread so you can load up your cookie sheet pretty good, I did 16 to a sheet.  Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes.  They are better a little softer so adjust your baking time accordingly.  Makes approx. 3 1/2 dozen cookies.  

And don't forget to pace yourself...you will most definitely be addicted like we are!

Fact:

Fact:  I love my family.  They are truly the only thing that matters to me.
Fact:  I am figuring out myself once again on this path we call life.  How many times does one have to 'find' themselves in a span of 70 ish years.  I'm tired of 'finding' myself.  I'm tired of fake people.  I'm tired of feeling that we (in general) always have to one up each other.  I am a simple person living a very simply scheduled life and I don't need to feel like I am always in a competition...this is why I never participate in said competition...but I get sick of seeing everyone else compete.
Fact:  I'm tired.  So very tired.  I don't know if I have ever slept through the night un-interrupted since Taylor was born.  So tired.
Fact:  I miss my Mom.  I wish she lived right by me sometimes.
Fact:  I'm tough.  I act tough.  I give it to you how it is.  I'm rough around the edges.  I'm outspoken.  I'm aggressive.  But most of all, I'm very sensitive.  I just put up a tough exterior.
Fact:  I'm a wreck.  If you see me and my hair is disheveled and my eyes are a little red, don't ask.  Speaking of hair, I have decided that every day should be 'National go without product in your hair day'...has a nice ring to it don't you think.
Fact:  I love hangin with teenage girls.  They are so full of life and so fun to be around.  Their enthusiasm is contagious and they make me feel young.  I just love them.
Fact:  It's hard to accept how some other people deal with things because you deal with those same things differently.  I have learned to always try to see situations from all perspectives and respect how people handle things, but it doesn't make it any easier.  I'm always saying 'to each his own' but sometimes I'm not sure I really feel that way.
Fact:  I know what I know and I believe what I believe but I'm not sure I like the surroundings sometimes.

There are so many things I want to say but can't...
Fact:  I'm not sure I should even post all this...but it's how I feel right now.  And, I needed to write it down and get it out of my head.

Instagram...

Instagram...

We tried to go to the Air Show on Sunday the 27th but were denied access onto the base...

all because they closed off to the public at 3:00pm and we were at the gates at 3:12pm...

total bummer so we just found a nearby parking lot to hang out in and watch...

Air Shows are by far one of the coolest things I have ever seen...

On Memorial Day we visited with little Sagie and this is what Isaac did...

he found himself a little bench to rest on...

After the cemetary we ended up at Tyler and Sarah's for some swimming...

it was too cold for us wimpy adults but the kids really enjoyed themselves...

Jenner had a dance recital on the 29th and my Mamma came up to support her...

don't mind the blurry picture...

Dance Recital Story:

Jenner has only been in dance for a few weeks and she was so excited to dance on the stage for her recital...

that is until we got there and there was a million other people there too...

it freaked her out and I had to pull a fast one to drop her off with her class and she was not happy...

when her first dance came up they pulled the little girls accross the stage and she was bawling her head off...

I felt to bad I could hardly hold myself back from going up and getting her...

it was torture...

but when the music started, so did she...

we laughed so hard because she was still crying while she was dancing...

by the end of the song she thought she was on broadway and loved every minute of it...

whew...

I love this face...

Lazy Lasagna...

I'm going to be honest...
I don't have a picture of this because...

well...

it's really ugly and I didn't want to scare you away...

it's delicious and one of those foods that totally hits the spot...

trust me...

I love love love lasagna but it can sorta take awhile/be complicated...

so I created this little gem by combining a couple of different recipes and I loved it!

I really think that the egg noodles is what made it though...

the texture of those bad boys was perfect...

I hope you will at least try it!

Lazy Lasagna:

1 lb. hamburger, browned and drained

1 jar spaghetti sauce

1 lb. container cottage cheese

parmesan cheese, enough for your liking

cheddar cheese, about 1-1 1/2 cups

1 package egg noodles, prepared.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

 

Mix the hamburger and sauce together, add some parmesan cheese.  Layer the noodles in a greased 9 x 13 pan.  Spread the cottage cheese over the noodles and then spread the sauce over that.  Cover with shredded cheddar cheese.  Bake in the oven until cooked through and cheese is nice and melty...enjoy with your favorite garlic bread.

My kids don't like to see tomatoes in their dinner so I always blend up my chunky spaghetti sauce before I mix it in with the hamburger...also, I was afraid they would shy away from the cottage cheese cuz they don't like that either...so I blended it up with the sauce...this is why it looked soooo ugly and I couldn't fathom posting such a bad picture.  But it was good and that is all that matters...right?

See how easy...

Instagram love...

I really really like Instagram cuz it's super easy...

but I feel like it's kinda cheating on my blog...

so these are a few of my recent Instagram photos...

The above photo is my cutie bug Jenner in her dance costume...

she is so excited for her recital next week she talks about it every second of the day!

This is my water-a-holic Addy watering my mother's day flowers for the umpteenth time...

I hope they can survive my squirmy 2 year old...

 

We love to have fire's in our backyard...

in fact, Chris has big plans for said fire pit and also an awning structure that will span our entire house...

I am lucky he's so talented...

Taylor was in the choir for her school this year and they just had an end of year concert...

this was their 'Footloose' performance and she looked so adorable in her old man suspenders...

Next year she will be on one of their competing teams and I am so excited!

Addy bug was making sure my frosting was as delicious as it looked...

I just love her hair in little piggy tails...

she is adorable...

Sometimes this is what happens around 10:30 pm around our house...

you see, these little girls are still in our room and they still don't have any kind of set bedtime and we sometimes (most of the time) can't stay up until they are ready to sleep...

so we set them up with a movie and wander back out to the front room sometime later and this is what we find...

so if you see lights on at my house at say 3:00 in the morning, it just means that we haven't rescued them from the couch yet...

move along...

My user name on Instagram is bartonfamilyco...

come follow me and I will follow you!

It's a date!

Oatmeal smoothie...

I heart Pinterest...

I pin all sorts of recipes and most of them have been a flop...

but I really like this one...

it sounded so weird but so good for you and filling that I had to try it...

my kids just die when they see me drinking it...

therefore I call it my sledge...

mmmmmm....

Oatmeal smoothie:

approx. 250 calories

1/4 cup oatmeal

3/4 cup milk (I used 1%)

1/4 cup yogurt, whatever flavor (I had yoplait light blackberry)

1/2 cup juice (I used grape)

3 Tbsp. dried fruit (I used cranberries)

Place the oatmeal in a blender, the bullet style one works really well.  Blend it's guts out till it resembles cornmeal.  Add the rest of the ingredients and blend away.  Let it settle for a minute so the fruit will re-assemble at the bottom and then blend again.  The fruit won't totally pulverize so don't worry if there are chunks.  This has to 'cure' in the refrigerator for a few hours so the oatmeal will soak up the liquid and get all yummy.  You could obviously substitute any kind of yogurt, juice or fruit...these were just what I had on hand. 

I make this in the evening so I can have it in the morning...I have to sorta shake it around and sometimes blend it up again cuz the oatmeal can settle in the bottom.  Just a heads up!

The original recipe called for Chia seeds and I am so intrigued by those little guys but I didn't have any so I continued on without them.  I am tempted to go and get some to see if they live up to their reputation.  They are supposed to expand a gajillion times their size in your stomach and make you feel super full so you can make through the in-between time of meals without being tempted to snack...or at least that's what I would hope they would do for me.  Interesting right?  Although, this smoothie really makes me feel super full and so maybe I don't need them...anyways, let me know if you try it and if you like it!

Sugar cookie bars...

These come to you courtesy of my friend Melanie...

if you like sugar cookies like I do, you will thoroughly LOVE this recipe...

but I warn you, they are super naughty when dieting...

I made them on Mother's Day where no calories were ever counted...

(well, they were but these weren't a part of it)

Sugar Cookie Bars:

Cream together until fluffy...

1 cup butter, room temperature soft

1 8 oz. package cream cheese, room temperature soft

1 1/2 cups sugar

Add:

1 egg

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Mix thoroughly.

Add:

3 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking powder

Mix well and press into a greased jelly roll pan.  Bake at 375 degrees for 18-20 minutes or until very lightly browned on the edges.  Frost with buttercream frosting.  

Buttercream Frosting:

10 2/3 Tbsp. soft butter

1 tsp. vanilla

4 Tbsp. milk

4 cups powdered sugar

Beat all ingredients until fluffy and add desired food coloring.  

Note:  I use about 10 Tbsp. butter and I also add Almond extract for more flavor.  Love Love Love!!!

Homemade French Fries...

I've never even attempted to make french fries before because they always sounded so difficult...

I found a few recipes that I was curious about and I decided to combine two recipes to see how they would work...

Let me just say...

THEY ARE AMAZING!

the kids' friends thought they were fast food fries...

SCORE!

Homemade French Fries:

Preheat your oil on the stove-top to 400 degrees...super super hot! On my gas stove, I had the dial on high.  Also, preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

Peel and cut your potatoes into strips...I tried to make mine pretty thin and they turned out perfect.  Dry them really good on either some paper towel or a dish rag.   When the oil is ready, drop in your fries in batches.  The oil bubbles violently and the fries will not brown...this is good.  Keep them in there for a couple of minutes unless they do start to brown, in that case, pull em out early.  Drain them on some paper towel. 

Turn down your oil not so that it reaches about 350 degrees...on my gas stove it was medium.  After they have all been through the oil and drained, put them onto a tin foil lined cookie sheet...if you have a ton you will need to do two sheets.  (with three medium potatoes, they all fit on one)  Put them in the oven for 10-15 minutes.  The very tips of them will start to brown just a little.  

Now, when your oil is ready start the frying all over...in batches.  They will brown up pretty quick so keep a close eye on them.  After they have cooked, drain them and salt them well.  Enjoy...I have just discovered via Paula Deen that french fries dipped in mayo are to die for!  Try it!

 

 She put on the famous wig again and asked me if she looked like Lady Gaga...

what does she even know about Lady Gaga?

The basement...

Remember how I told you we were getting close to getting the basement done...

well...

it's done and it's fabulous!

Glorious!

Wonderful!

I am so excited!!!

I promised pictures so don't be alarmed by the abundance of them...

Remember how I told you these bedrooms came to me in dreams...

well at first I really really wanted the boys room to have some grafitti in this corner...

and we had it all lined up to do...

then the kid who was going to do it for us ended up back in the big house...

so that idea was gone...

you can't have just anybody do grafitti for you...

it has to be someone with talent so I felt that my options were gone...

Dream # 2 for the boys...

the huge DC logo...

super excited about this idea!

I really wanted the boys to have their own closet...

and the bookshelf is behind the door so it was just wasted space that needed to be utilized...

insert genius!

Dream #3 was the stripes...

I was really pumped about this idea too...

I thought it would add just enough interest and color to the room to give that special something that I was looking for...

the chalkboard was an afterthought...

read on...

Here is Taylor's room...

she picked the bedding right off the bat and so I was in charge of dreaming up the walls...

this idea came to me to use some board to separate the two colors...

it looks so cool like that!

And the board serves a purpose too...

see those hooks...

they are going to line that whole wall at some point... 

The chalkboard idea was originally only supposed to be in her room...

but the piece of metal we got was huge and had to be cut in half...

so the boys decided that they wanted one too...

they are magnetic as well as chalkable...

now we just need to find some awesome magnets and chalk accessories!

Think of how cool this will be everytime her friends leave her notes and pictures on her board...

I'm dreaming of it now! 

The original plans of the house had a vanity in this room so we dubbed it officially as Taylor's...

what girl doesn't want a vanity in their room? 

This gem is the handywork of my super talented husband...

obviously the most beautiful bathroom I've ever seen this side of the Great Salt Lake...haha

we still need all the accessories like towels, curtain, MIRROR! 

I hesitated even taking a picture of the great room because of the hodge podge of CRAP in it...

the carpet was done yesterday morning and the kids started moving their stuff down there the second they walked in the door from school...

I couldn't wait for all of the toys to be down there so I ustilized their child labor energy and we moved everything toy related down there too...

hence the MESS! 



Ol' Fashioned Donuts...

Photo courtesy of Christie's corner 

I found this recipe on Pinterest and I had to try them...I even saved up my calories by not eating a regular dinner to have these instead...it was so worth it!  I adapted them slightly and I got the picture from the blog the recipe was on because I couldn't figure out my intsagram thingy to get my picture on here.  They are delicious when they are hot...we saved a few for this morning and they were just okay.  I doubled the recipe and ended up with maybe 3 dozen donuts so if you want to go smaller, just keep it as is.  But my neighbors were thrilled that we had so many...hahaha

Ol' Fashioned Donuts

2 1/4 cups flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup sugar

2 tbsp shortening

2 large egg yolks

2/3 cup sour cream

canola oil for frying

Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl, and set aside.

In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, mix the sugar and shortening for 1 minute on low speed, until sandy. Add the egg yolks, then mix for 1 more minute on medium speed, scraping the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, until the mixture is light colored and thick.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in three separate additions, alternating with sour cream, mixing until just combined on low speed and scraping the sides of the bowl each time. The dough will be sticky, like cookie/biscuit dough.

Transfer the dough to a clean bowl and refrigerate, covered with plastic wrap/cling film, for 45 minutes (or
up to 24 hours).

Heat up your oil in a large soup pot.  Roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thick and cut with donut cutter...you can use a drinking glass and then a smaller bottle lid to make the hole if you don't have a donut cutter.  Drop about 5 donuts into hot oil, after about 10 seconds they will float to the top, flip them at this point.  Let them brown on the underside and flip them again.  After they are totally brown, lay them on a cooling rack that has been placed on a paper towel lined cookie sheet.  Let them cool for a couple of minutes and then dip in glaze.  YUM

Glaze

Powdered sugar (about 2 cups)
water (start small, maybe 1/4 cup and then go from there)
1-2 tsp. Karo syrup
vanilla

Make a glaze the consistency of honey adding water if needed to thin it out.

Gelato...

For Christmas this last year, Chris' mom and dad gave us an ice cream maker...

we had one of those ones that you put in the freezer first and it worked fine but this new one is the old fashioned kind and can make way more...

I got a wild bug in me today and wanted to make some ice cream...

then I found some recipes via Pinterest for gelato and they sounded heavenly...

so we tried it and it was good...

I'm totally a texture eater and gelato is a bit different that ice cream...

it's got an icy crystal texture to it...

it seems a bit lighter...

it's made with milk instead of heavy cream which I like the flavor better that way too...

photo via google...

Vanilla Gelato:

4 cups milk

4 eggs

1/2 cup sugar

1-2 Tbsp. Karo syrup

vanilla

Blend ingredients in a blender until super creamy and pour into your machine to freeze.  When it's done, you can put it into the freezer to harden a bit more.  YUM

Chocolate Gelato:

3 cups milk

3/4 cup sugar

2 tbsp. cornstarch

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa (I sift the cocoa to remove any lumps)

Instructions:

Bring 2 cups of milk to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat; remove from heat. Meanwhile, combine 1 cup milk with sugar, cornstarch and cocoa in a bowl and stir into hot milk. Cook until sugar and cocoa dissolve. Allow to cool, then cover with plastic and refrigerate overnight.  Process mixture in an ice cream maker.  You don't need to churn it as long as you do ice cream - you want it to just be a custard sort of consistency, not completely frozen.  Store in the freezer in a container with plastic wrap pressed right on top. It's best the day you make it.  If it freezes hard, just remove it 10 minutes before you plan of serving it.

Recipe courtest of The Italian Dish blog

Note:  I haven't made the chocolate one yet cuz my kids are picky and only like vanilla...but trust me, I can already tell that it's going to be fabulous... 

I also found this recipe which I was going to make but didn't have sweetened condensed milk...it sound great too.

Vanilla Gelato:

2 3/4 cups whole milk
1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 tbsp vanilla extract

Mix ingredients in blender and mix until creamy.  Pour into ice cream maker and freeze.  Easy!

Tidbits...

My cable is out and my kids are bored so I have opted to update my blog...

and ignore their boredom cries...

Grady broke his elbow on Friday the 13th...

he has to be put to sleep so they can move the bone over a bit...

no cutting, just pushing...

Our basement is coming right along...

we are getting carpet in two of the rooms in a week...

so we can move 3 of the 5 down there...

so excited!

I planted about 100 tulips last year...

upside down...

but they found their way to the sun and they are looking so cute...

can't wait till there are like a bazillion of them...

We had a plumber come and hook up our downstairs bathroom...

I had him look at our water softener that hasn't worked the entire time we have lived here...

we now have soft water and it is lovely...

he also turned up my water pressure and can I just say AMAZING!

the first time I climbed into my shower I was assaulted by the strong water and I loved every minute of it...

he also looked at my kitchen faucet which is being weird and found some rust and corrosion inside...

he warranteed it for a new one...

yay me!

Had my first migraine ever on Easter day...

it was AWESOME...

not...

I don't wish one of those on anyone...

they are nasty...

I'm doing good on my calorie counting...

down a couple of more pounds but not sure exactly how many...

haven't been to the gym for a week cuz of migraine and a trip...

after the migraine I was completely useless for the next two days...

it was weird and I'm glad it's over...

Jenner had on a white shirt and some white knit shorts on the other day and proudly proclaimed..."now I have jammies like you and daddy"...

so funny...

almost died laughing...

I can't wait to get my two little girls into their own room and out of my bed...

I'm thinking it will take a few months to sleep train them completely but it will be worth it...

I'm doing a pink/gray/white color scheme in their new room...

so excited...

I'm weird in that I dream about how to paint and decorate my kids rooms...

Taylor's came to me right when we first started the basement and the boys came to me in steps...

I love the final product on both of them...

when we get the carpet in maybe I will take some pics to share...

until next time...