What the...?

Went in to kiss AJ goodnight. Found this:


Her (fairly large) Strawberry Shortcake blanket shoved up her shirt, and she's fast asleep. ??????????

Anyone else read this?

I'm dying to know what real people think of this. I can't figure out if I loved it or hated it. I think both. Anyone else have a review they would like to share?

TAG

AJ got the Tag Reading System by Leap Frog from her grandparents just before Christmas. I can not say enough about this toy. She loves it. LOVES IT. She will read for hours. She can play games on it. It tells her to do different activities, even dancing. Her reading is DRASTICALLY improving. It keeps track of how much time she spends playing and which activites she tends to do more than others. Then when we sync it with the computer, she earns rewards and it send me a report to tell me what are her strong areas and which things we need to work on. Her books range from I Spy to Dr. Suess. I think this is an invaluable learning toy for a kid her age and HIGHLY recommend it if you have preschool-age kids. TAG, you're it!

Happy Tunesday: Oxymoron

Sometimes the best songs have the worst titles:

Die Alone by Ingrid Michaelson
Gives You Hell by All-American Rejects
Tied Down by Colbie Caillat
Breakin' Up by Rilo Kiley
Slow Goodbye by Lesley Roy
(Why Don't You Go) Take A Hike by Thunder Power
You're a Cad by The Bird and The Bee
Lazy by Toby Lightman




And my personal favorite:

Recovery

A week ago today Craig had sinus surgery. Due to some major complications he had developed, it was quite an undertaking, including removing a walnut-sized polyp from inside his left cheek. (How it got that big in that little space, I'll never know.) It has been a long week for him, but an even longer year of suffering and breathing problems, so it was a blessing to finally have it done. We are happy to report that the surgery was successful and he is recovering nicely, due to this kind of TLC, of which he received plenty:


He was able to return to work today and other than a little soreness and swelling, he is feeling much better. Thank you to all our friends and family who showed love and support and offered help to us during this last crazy week.

Happy Tunesday: What The World Needs Now

Plenty of "Love" songs out there. Here are some for the upcoming weekend:

Love by Matt Warfield
Love by Sugarland
Love by Def Leopard
Love by The Sundays
Love by Ben Taylor
Love by Ben Lee
Love by Elefant
Love by Great Big Sea
Love by David Choi
Love by Corey Crowder

Take A Hike

We went on a little "hike" on Saturday. I use the word hike loosely, as there aren't many mountains in these here parts. But a neighbor directed us to a place where you can adventure down a path and eventually end up at a waterfall. It was fun and AJ did great.





We spent over an hour throwing rocks into the water. Why is that so fun? I think she would have sat there all day.








AJ is finally old enough to take a picture for us:


Craig standing on top of the waterfall:

He kept leaning over - I thought he was going to slip to his death.

This was fun and made me realize we need to do things outside more often. We live in a beautiful climate (most of the time) and it felt great to do something active as a family.

A Week Ago Today...

We woke up to this:



The pictures don't do it a lot of justice, but this is our poor little garden hose frozen to the patio. I physically could not get it off until it melted:


We don't get much snow, but when the ice hits, it's CRAZY!

Happy Tunesday: Whateva'

Some random listenings for this week:

So Natural To Love by Toby Lightman
Hope by Jack Johnson
Lucky by Jason Mraz & Colbie Caillat
Hymn #101 by Joe Pug
This Is Home by Switchfoot
I'm In Love With A Girl by Gavin DeGraw
Love Song by Third Day
All The Same To Me by Anya Marina
Pony (It's OK) by Erin McCarley
My Love by The Bird And The Bee

Don't Cha Wish Your Bread Was Hot Like Mine?

Don't Cha?



Honey White Bread

1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees)
2 packages dry yeast
1 tsp sugar
1 1/2 cups warm whole milk (110 degrees)
6 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 1/2 Tbsp honey
2 extra-large egg yolks
5-6 cups flour
1 Tbsp kosher salt
1 egg white, lightly beaten

Place warm water in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. Add yeast and sugar; stir and allow them to dissolve for 5 minutes.

Add the milk, butter, and honey. Mix on medium speed until blended. Add the egg yolks, 3 cups of flour and the salt. Mix on low speed for about 5 minutes. With the mixer still on low speed, add 2 more cups of flour. Raise the speed to medium and slowly add just enough of the remaining flour so the dough doesn’t stick to the bowl. Knead on medium speed for about 8 minutes, adding flour as necessary.

Dump dough onto a floured surface and knead by hand for a minute, until the dough is smooth and elastic. Grease a bowl with butter, put the dough in the bowl, then turn it over so the top is lightly buttered. Cover the bowl with a damp towel and allow to rise for 1 hour, until doubled in volume.

Grease two 9×5 inch loaf pans with butter. Divide the dough in half, roll each half into a loaf shape and place each in a prepared pan. Cover again with the damp towel and allow to rise again for an hour, until doubled in volume.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees. When the dough is ready, brush the tops with egg white and bake for 40-45 minutes, until they sound hollow when tapped. Turn them out of the pans and cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.

Freezer Paper Stenciling

This was my first attempt, after seeing the tutorial here. My friend had a baby and named her Ruby. I give you onesies a la Ruby:




(Pretty sure I think I'm more clever than I really am.)

Christmas Recap

Ya ya - it's almost Feb. This is for me, not for you.

Neighbor Treats:
Caramel corn:

Mulling Spices


Opening Presents Christmas Morning:




We Drove To Utah


Farmington, NM.

(Adult video store with billboard in parking lot that says "Jesus is watching you!)

AJ's First Snowman


Snow makes it a little bright - this is as far as she would open her eyes:


Cousins, AJ & Eisley


He has a way with children:


Temple Square



Sledding


AJ & Aunt Cici


Shooting

Noice-canceling earphone, not an ode to Princess Leia


Bowling

AJ & Grandpa Nielsen

AJ & Uncle Paul


The end.