BAPTISM DAY - SEPTEMBER 12, 2009

Our beautiful twins were baptized on September 12th. It was a wonderful and spiritual event for all.

Jim has twin sisters who are just 8 years younger than him. He had the privilege of baptizing them. We thought it would be neat if Zach had the opportunity to baptize one of the twins to carry on the tradition. We simply made the suggestion then left it up to the twins and Zachary. Hannah really, really wanted Zach to baptize her. It was really cute. Even though he was nervous he knew how important it was to her so he agreed. It was a touching and special baptism.

There was a very special guest in attendance at the baptism. Seth and Hannah's birth mother, Ginger. More than 8 years ago she asked me a question that I have never forgotten....."Would it be okay if I were to attend their baptism?" I invited her and she was able to make the trip from Idaho to attend the event. Seth and Hannah were really cute with her and went right up to her in the chapel and started chatting away. It was a special moment. They know what a sacrifice she made and they feel her love for them. We were able to spend the day and evening with her. Ginger and I snuck away in the afternoon and went to the Scrapbook Show at the South Towne Expo. That night we all went to Joe's Crab Shack for dinner along with Amy and her family. It was fun for Ginger and Mike to talk about old times and they entertained us with their stories. It was a fun and special weekend.

Seth and Hannah understood all about baptism and blew us away at their interview with the Bishop. They are truly righteous and special spirits who we are blessed to have as part of our family!

AHHHHH. SCHOOL PICTURE DAY

I guess the best way to describe picture day is as a necessary evil. You must do it. You feel extreme guilt if you don't. Especially when your children wear uniforms and can only have "free dress day" if they order pictures. Nothing discreet about that!

I just buy the fall ones. I mean, an official picture of that grade. Check. The springtime ones with the stupid props (i.e., a bunch of kitchen chairs in the background? Come on!) really chap my hide. "Send no payment now....". yea right. They hype up the kids and send cutesy unpaid things home like luggage tags, calendars, etc. that your child is dying to keep. Not to mention the offer of your child on a coffee mug, etc. And you know.....(as they know) that if you don't buy them your child's beautiful face will be shredded. SHREDDED I SAY!

Last spring I said to myself.....I will not buy them. I bought the fall pictures. I told the ahead of time. You may dress freely but I will not buy the pictures when they come home. End of discussion. Well guess what.....they were dang cute! I mean really cute! So I "pulled a Natalie" as Jim would say and picked 5 sheets from a combination of all 3 of my children's packets and sent a check for one 5 picture package at the low price of......can't remember. Probably a big n0-no but there was nothing in the small print about combining children to make a decently priced package. And they cashed my check. So there.

This year was a nightmare. The older ones are easy. I stopped picking their clothes and they are on their own to get ready. I prefer no logos but alas, a teenage buy feels naked without his logos. The daughter showed a bit more cleavage than I would have rathered (I don't think rathered is a word but alas) but.....could be worse. The pics here are from this year for the HS kids, and for last year from the 2nd graders.

I am so thankful for uniforms. I could never handle it otherwise with Hannah. Twice yearly picture days do me in. This year was no exception.

Hannah: "this shirt is squeezing me to death! I can't breathe" Why can't I wear a (bulky ugly) t-shirt under it so it doesn't scratch me?"

Curls are not even worth the battle. I would lose. I have always lost. One of the years I attempted it ended up in her sticking her head under the bathroom sink faucet, thereby making it so only half of her head had curls.

Evil curls my mother inflicted on me as well.

This year she ran back upstairs after getting ready, screaming and crying and not wanting to go to school because she had puffy eyes and everyone would know that she had been crying. I had no luck explaining to her that if she would simply stop crying then the evidence would go away and no one would know.

Well, I had to leave for work about 10 minutes before they left for school so Dad was in charge of getting them to school after I had the pleasure of getting them ready for picture day.

When Hannah came home from school (8 hrs later.....) I noticed something odd.....the little stinker had on purple eyeshadow....I asked the dreaded question....when did you put on purple eyeshadow?

Hannah: "This morning so I would look pretty for my school pictures. (maybe to cover up the puffy eyes). Hmmmm. If it was that noticeable 8 hrs later, imagine how it looked for pictures. Now I would never in a million years except my hubby to notice that but I am sure the teachers, photographers, etc. sure did. Funny thing about it is that she has always hated makeup. When she had to put it on for the Miss Utah pageant she fought me every time.

School pictures are so funny. My sister tries to coach her kids how to smile, so you don't end up with the typical silly straight smile. I have tried it too.....but at certain ages, they work too hard at it and it doesn't come out quite right.

My favorite picture day story: My little cousin came home from school with her school pictures. She was probably in 2nd grade or so. Her mother opened up the envelope and lo and behold there Ellie was in a tiara! Her mother later got the story from the teacher...."Ellie told us that you said she HAD to wear the tiara for the school pictures so we figured we better let her......" Good one Ellie! But I'll bet those pics are her mom's favorite.

Another favorite story is when my little sister went for the preschool portion.....she would only take the picture holding her ratty old doll. My mom, thinking she would outsmart them all, reached in to snatch the doll away, right as the picture was snapped. Walla! A great memory is captured.

Hope you have many happy school pictures both past and present.

Traumatic school picture for my little brother.....Boy could he pull faces!

BLUE BOX?

I love Red Box. I wish I invented it. It is one of the best ideas since sliced bread.

However, I am doubting their intelligence today..... I walked into Walmart today and GUESS WHAT? The RedBoxes were BLUE. Yes, Blue. Why? I have no idea. The signs above them were red and said RedBox. Everything else was blue. I am not sure if it was a Walmart ploy to match the store or what. What is the point of a blue RedBox?

First Day of School - A Little Late

So remember folks how I was going to use this as my journal? Well, this gives you a little hint at how good I am at keeping a journal. (note to myself.....hurry and catch up then go back and record the stuff you missed. There are ways to jerry-rig the computer so you think you posted it when you should have. No one will ever know.)

So, first day of school for the twins. I remember taking them of my high schoolers too but they must be on the other camera. Definitely a pitfall of having his-hers cameras.

I think the pictures in the school are so precious. You can read the trepidation in their little faces. I always expect the pictures to show Hannah as the nervous one but I usually catch Seth's nervous little face on camera.

Recap:

Twins did awesome and love 2nd grade. It is great having kids who adapt quite easily to new situations. Seth is so excited for the social aspects. His big excitement is always "making new friends and getting to know my teachers". It's all about the structure and academics for Hannah. She is very reserved with her "friend requests". Seth is less excited about the academics (or shall I say there is not a smidgen of excitement in academics!)

Where did YOU sleep when you were LET GO?

Hannah's mind is very abstract. I love whatever comes out of it and I love the randomness of her thoughts. Last week were driving in the car and she said, "Mom, where did you find to sleep when you were let go?"

Very confused.....I asked her to explain.

Hannah: "You know.....when you were let go!"

Me: "Let go from what?

Hannah: "Your mom!"

Me......still confused........I explained that mother's never let their children go in their hearts....and they are free to stay in the house as long as they want. Jim then amended my answer and said that past 25 and past college they are outta there. (good save Jim!).

Well.....despite much explaining it appears that she doesn't really believe us because she keeps asking more questions. I caught her asking my mom the other day......"Grandma, how old was my mom when you let her go?" My mom was equally confused and I prompoted her to just answer when I was married. That worked.

Today she was concerned that her best friend Cheyanne's brother still lives at home at 23 and has not been "let go" yet. I explained that he is actually living at college but still has a bedroom at the other house for holidays, etc. This was interesting to her. She said....."so he was just kinda let go?"

I give up. She firmly believes that letting go is a part of life. I refuse to believe it. It's a sad thought for a mother. Funny thing is.....she is fine with "being let go"..... being the independent stinker that she is. She probably thinks she's ready now!

ARE YOU COLOR BLIND TOO?

I was going through an old notebook in my purse and came across notes to this funny thing Seth did. It was probably almost a year ago but is still funny and I want to record it.

Hannah accidentally poked him in the eye and Seth began the usual dramatics of his personality....shrieking and screaming that he was blind.

Well, since he is old enough to realize that we weren't buyin' it and could tell that he could still see he paused for a minute then starting shrieking...."I'm color-blind, I'm color-blind!!

(disclaimer: this story in no way has intent of making fun of the color blind individuals in the family. I am fully aware that the genes have been passed through the family and that I am a carrier. )

WECIPE WEDNEDAY

It's that time again. And I am still cooking so here goes.......

Pesto Chicken Sandwiches: I kind of copied the recipe from Red Robin. I couldn't find the ingredients on their online menu so here is what I came up with. Everyone in the family, twins included, loved it.

Ingredients:

chicken breasts (enough for about 3/4 breast per sandwich)
Ciabatta sandwich bread from Costco
Pesto sauce*
white cheese of choice (I used Havarti)
freshly grated Parmesan cheese
diced tomatoes


Marinate some chicken breasts in a creamy-type Italian dressing. I used Vidalia Onion (jug from Sam's) In my family we usually use Benensteins Cheese and Garlic dressing but it is getting so dang expensive and the bottles are shrinking so it isn't the best way to go for a marinade that you discard anyway. Marinate them for however long works for your schedule. I just pour some over the frozen chicken and leave it in the fridge all day.

Grill chicken breasts til done. Let sit. Meanwhile, cut ciabatta bread in half. Spread both halves with Pesto sauce. Top both halves with a little Parmesan cheese. Broil in oven til lightly browned. Slice chicken breasts into strips (or leave whole if desired). Pile chicken on 1/2 of each sandwich. Top with a slice of Havarti (or Munster or Provolone) cheese. Broil again just til cheese is melted. Top other half of bread with diced tomatoes that have been lightly salted with Kosher salt. Put both halves together to form sandwiches. I served it with a green salad and fruit.

*We got the stomach flu once after Pesto so we are working up to being able to eat it again. When we do, it is in very small portions and is a hidden ingredient. (No more Pesto pasta). So buying the jar at Costco does not work for us. It would be wasteful. What I have done for the past two years is make my own and freeze it in very small containers (or use an ice cube tray). I grow a big old gargantuan basil plant in the backyard each summer (alas, I forgot this year!). At the end of the summer, pick it all and make Pesto! Any recipe works fine. They are all the same online. Basic ingredients are basil, olive oil, pine nuts, garlic and Parmesan cheese. Here is a recipe from the internet: I like the ice cube method. They say not to put the cheese in if you are going to freeze it, but I put the cheese in anyway. I think it freezes fine!

Fresh Basil Pesto Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan-Reggiano or Romano cheese
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup pine nuts or walnuts
• 3 medium sized garlic cloves, minced
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

• Special equipment needed: A food processor
  

Method

1 Combine the basil in with the pine nuts, pulse a few times in a food processor. (If you are using walnuts instead of pine nuts and they are not already chopped, pulse them a few times first, before adding the basil.) Add the garlic, pulse a few times more.

2 Slowly add the olive oil in a constant stream while the food processor is on. Stop to scrape down the sides of the food processor with a rubber spatula. Add the grated cheese and pulse again until blended. Add a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Makes 1 cup.

Serve with pasta, or over baked potatoes, or spread over toasted baguette slices.

Enjoy!