Random Rantings

Introducing Baby Finn

2011-04-14T12:28:00.000-06:00

Gryffin Michael Peek made his debut Sunday April 3rd, 2011. He already has the entire family completely wrapped around his long skinny fingers...

He gets cuter by the day and I just can't believe he's mine.

I'm a little late to the party...

2009-09-16T02:55:00.000-06:00

I am FINALLY posting a few pics from Rylee's first day of school... I think I'm still in denial. I can't believe how fast this day has come along, and how excited my baby is to be, in her words, "getting so grown up, Mom. I'm barely a kid anymore!"

The good news is she LOVES Kindergarten... when we picked her up after her big first day and asked how it went, she said, "A-MA-ZING!" Let's hope she can keep that enthusiasm!

new outfit - she picked it out herself

new backpack (the reason she chose the outfit) and sparkly new shoes

ready to go

trepidation

teacher love - her name is Ms. Lovell and she is the reason we put Roo on D track

mini-Rylee

celebrating a successful first day with a little sugar love (we are still working with Kam on the swallowing before opening your mouth bit)

and one more -

this seriously seems like yesterday - nobody blink!

Um, yeah... I completely hate the clock.

2009-08-17T17:57:00.000-06:00

So apparently two years (and a few weeks... I'm such a slacker!) have passed since Kam, in Rylee's words, "escaped from Heaven." And although she is getting cuter by the day and her personality is like a freakin' supernova, I just want the clock to SLOW DOWN already! Life just keeps getting busier and busier and I feel like it's getting harder and harder to really experience each moment. I seriously want to lock my kids in a time-proof box so that I can quit worrying about how different they'll be the next time I blink. Anyone know where I can get one of those?

And yeah... she was a little STINKER for these photos, but I was going for personality shots anyway. She definitely has plenty of that, with an extra dose of attitude thrown in! I love this little girlie more than should be humanly possible, even if she did get into my make-up this morning and laugh an evil little laugh (yep, Ben taught her to cackle) while I scrubbed up the mess! Why do two year olds absolutely DELIGHT in destruction? Oh, well... only 11.5 months of two to go... and I'm honestly in no rush whatsoever for age three to come along!

CARNIES

2009-06-01T00:57:00.000-06:00

Rylee's preschool had an end of year carnival this weekend, so of course we had to go and represent.

She was so excited about it... she loved all of the inflatable and 70s throw-back rides (you know, the ghetto spinning type that are designed to make you puke). She even loved this wierd caterpillar thing that pretty much looked like it was pooping her out. Good times.

Kambrie slept most of the time we were there, and upon waking refused to go on any rides at all. Thank goodness for the cotton candy, which both girls loved, or the night would have been a total bust for little miss bed head.

Yeah, did I mention Rylee liked the cotton candy? Sheesh.

Oh, and here are a couple snaps from the back yard the other day. They may drive me a bit more than half crazy on a daily basis, but they really do take my breath away.

*I must mention that Kristi sewed the little dress Roo wore to the carnival. It is now her fave thing to wear and I'm thinking Kris should start her clothing line ASAP.

Peace!

Mr. E. Bunny

2009-04-16T00:03:00.000-06:00

Yep, he found us. Brought us flowers, dutifully ate the carrot we left him (it was actually pretty yummy!) and left us a ton of crap that we don't need. I think I've eaten at least 200 lbs of Reese's since Sunday. Seriously. I'm beginning to waddle.

Ben took this pic of the girls at Wheeler Farm on Saturday. It was FREEZING, and the poor kids had to wait for over an HOUR to take a little tractor ride. Still, the girlies had fun and that's what it's all about. I just love this pic because it totally captures their interaction lately - Rylee is so intense and Kam is such a stinker!

The girls had a full day Sunday. They were both so excited after they finally rolled out of bed - like around 11:00am - and saw all their loot.

K, when I was a kid, I was always up at the crack of dawn on gift-bearing holidays. How come I have to beg my kids to get up and come see all their candy/gifts? It's just not right.

Anyway, after church we...

Decorated eggs,

Hunted for eggs...

Kam got bored with the eggs and decided to play in the sand...

And Rylee shared some eggs since she ended up finding them all while Kam played in the sand (see, she really is a good sister when it comes right down to it!).

We even had a visit from the Ice Cream Man (I swear the girls were way more excited about that than anything else!) and a long, hot bath to clean off all the sugar and sand. Good day.

Check back for pictures of the girlies in their pretty little Easter Dresses! They are quite possibly my favorite thing about Easter...

So sick and so cute...

2009-04-01T19:24:00.001-06:00

Yes, Rylee is super sick. She had to stay home from preschool today because she woke up at 5am and has been carrying a bowl around ever since. The truly sick thing, though, is that I'm a little bit happy about it... I know, I'm evil. Of course I'm not happy that she doesn't feel good, poor baby, I feel awful about that. I'm just a little bit happy that we got to spend the day at home together, snuggled up on the couch, watching sappy kid movies and letting all the errands and other stresses go for the day. And just look at this picture - can you believe how CUTE she is, even when she's sick?

Now, Kambrie. She is not feeling sick. Not one little bit. She is a ball of constant energy and attitude. Take these pictures from last week (to read a little story about the woe that went into getting these pictures, and see a few more, visit http://danipeekphotography.blogspot.com/).

I happen to think these photos are pretty stinkin' cute. That said, TAKING THIS KID'S PICTURE IS A JOKE! Between working at Kiddie Kandids and my own photographic pursuits, I have taken pictures of quite a few kiddos. Rylee can be relatively difficult to photograph, but Kambrie takes the cake! She is SO hard. She refuses to pose, she refuses to look at me, she refuses to hold still whatsoever. My only friends are my fast shutter and my ability to act like a monkey to get her attention. Still, there is something to be said for the unposed, spontaneous expressions I am (sometimes) able to capture because of her camera-attitude. Despite the occasional, random ta-ta grabbing, I wouldn't trade these genuine bits of captured personality for a million posed, forced smile shots!

We're in Trouble...

2009-03-20T18:31:00.000-06:00

Oh, my cute little Kambrie. She looks sweet and innocent, right?

Yeah, not so much. This little girl has become SUCH a mischief maker lately! Today she stripped down and peed on the carpet; dumped her popcorn all over herself, the couch and the floor and then danced around on it to crunch it all in to the couch and floor; climbed onto her dresser and pulled all of the wetwipes out and decorated her room with them; and smashed girl scout cookies all over the place.

Probably sounds like she goes quite unsupervised. Not so. She simply recognizes the exact moment I am busy with something else, and then she strikes. If I'm cleaning up one mess she's made, she sees it as an opportunity to make another (I try to have her help me clean up, but let's be honest - all she does is smash the cookies and popcorn into the carpet even more!).

I swear, with this girl around, I live in fear of having to use the bathroom! I never know what I'll find upon coming out...

Yep, we're in Big Trouble with this one!

New Photography Blog

2009-03-13T19:31:00.000-06:00

My photography blog is up and going! The title to this post will link you, or you can click http://danipeekphotography.blogspot.com/. Please share the link and add it to your blog lists! You'll find a slideshow of some of my recent/fave work at the bottom. Check it out and let me know what you think!

Someone has a crush...

2009-03-10T17:15:00.000-06:00

Oooooh! Look how cute - a little boy in Rylee's class gave her this bear with a balloon and a heart full of candy at preschool today. When Ben picked her up she said, "Yeah, he's crushin' on me pretty bad!" She's way too young for crushes, but I thought it was kind of adorable... Ben has decided he should start carrying around that bat he thought he wouldn't have to bring out for a few more years!

*If you're wondering about the huge t-shirt she's wearing, NO, she didn't wear that to preschool! We have a deal that she can change into whatever she wants upon returning home, as long as she'll wear what I say for preschool. Sometimes works, sometimes doesn't.

Brittany and Diesel stayed with us for a few days, since her hubby is out of town for work. The girls LOVED having them here! They both absolutely adore Diesel, and he's SO good and tolerant with them. Kam likes to chase him around screeching, "Arf! Arf!" They went home this morning and we miss them already!

Just for fun...

2009-03-05T20:30:00.000-07:00

Just some fun ones of Brittany and Ben. They haven't had pics done since they got married! Still can't believe she's all grown up!

Devin & Rita

2009-02-24T22:23:00.001-07:00

Devin, Rita and I went up to the U last weekend to take some pics just for fun. I'm excited to do their engagements in a couple of months when the weather is nicer! We got some fun shots. Here are a few of my favorites.

In Loving Memory of John Williams

2009-02-21T09:49:00.000-07:00

Our dear family friend John Williams was killed in a fire yesterday. He was a machinest and was working when a machine malfunctioned and sent the building up in flames (the building is off of 3400 West and between 78th & 90th South). He almost made it out - his body was found only 30 feet from the door, burned beyond recognition. I can't seem to get him off my mind. He was one of the absolute sweetest guys I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. It's hard to accept that he is gone, just like that.

His amazing wife, Joy, says she feels strongly that he didn't suffer, that angels were with him and protected him. I am so impressed by her faith ans strength and by the example both she and John always set. I am so glad to know her, and to have had the opportunity to know John as well.

This kind of thing just shakes me up so badly - as I'm sure it does everyone. It reminds me how precious and fragile life is... those we love, and we ourselves, can be gone in the blink of an eye.

Today is our 6th wedding anniversary, and I am just so grateful to have Ben and to share such an amazing and true love with him. Having this tragedy occur makes today a bit bittersweet, but it also reinforces my appreciation for my husband and those I love. I want to live every moment I have with them to the fullest, and make sure they know how much they mean to me. Love you all!

FREE WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY!

2009-02-18T23:52:00.000-07:00

My sweet cousin JaiAnn got married last Friday. She asked me to be her photographer - I was really nervous, but it was actually really fun! We got some great shots and it was so nice to spend time with JaiAnn and see her so happy.

I've been a photo hobbyist for years (I worked as a photographer at Kiddie Kandids before I got married, and I've taken several photography classes and done lots of free shoots for family and friends).

I decided I'm going to take a bit of a risk and get into the wedding and family photography business. I want to build my portfolio before I actually launch my business, so for the next little while I'm offering FREE wedding photography! If you know anyone who wants fully professional photography without the expense, I would love to capture their day. Please help me spread the word and refer your friends and family!

I would also love to take senior/family/maternity/newborn pictures for any of my friends - I won't charge you a dime, I just want to build up my portfolio for the new website I'm working on.

My e-mail address is danidx11@hotmail.com - please pass it on to anyone you think might be interested! Thanks!

Bzzzzzz...... and opinions, please!

2009-02-05T19:11:00.001-07:00

Kambrie has SO much personality! I love watching and being included in all of her antics. She has always been a fan of making random noises. She thinks just about any sound she makes is pretty clever and funny. Her latest is to make a "Bzzzzzz" sound... CONSTANTLY. She just goes around the house playing and "Bzzzzzz"-ing all day long. It is so funny. At least I can always tell where she is!

She pretty much only stops "Bzzzzzz"-ing when she's getting into something or doing something she's not supposed to do - she tries to be as quiet as possible when she's being naughty. Unfortunately for her, the lack of the "Bzzzzzz" actually clues me in!

I love watching her amazing and HUGE personality develop. I hate that she is growing so fast, but 18 months is such a fun age!

OPINIONS PLEASE: do you like the picture of her above with or without the digital overlay?

Thanks for the input!

Precious Time...

2009-01-27T14:12:00.000-07:00

I've been going through some old pictures for a project I'm working on. Came across this one of Rylee, taken when she was about 5 days old... precious time, those baby days. They go by waaay too fast. Look how tiny she was!

She couldn't even talk back yet. Precious time, indeed.

While I'm on the subject of talking back, I should mention that Kambrie is learning new words like crazy lately. She is picking up more every day, seems like.

Maybe I should stop getting so excited as Kambrie learns all of these new words... would it be so bad if she stayed a baby and refrained from back-talking for just a little while longer? That precious time keeps ticking by, faster and faster. She is 18 months old today. A year and a half. I can't believe it. And she has the attitude to match... wants to do EVERYTHING herself lately. Time for lunch? I can feed myself, thank you very much. I need to be changed? I'll just climb on the hutch and get my own diaper and wipes... and undress myself, too (diaper included). We need to run errands? Hand over the keys, Mom (seriously, she climbs onto the table and grabs all the keys off the hook if she hears us talking about leaving; and then she doesn't want to give them back).

She is loving little games like patty-cake, tickle-monster and peek-a-boo. She's also doing pretty awesome with sign language.

Some days it seems like I can feel the time slipping through my fingers. Good thing my kids are so freakin' adorable, and therefore able to distract me. Otherwise I might be having some serious panic attacks.

Five Year Portraits

2009-01-23T17:17:00.001-07:00

Here are a few of Rylee's birthday pics. Loving Photoshop! She was so good for these, we got some really cute shots.

I still can't believe how big she's getting and how beautiful she is. Can't believe that's my baby. Crazy.

Where have the last FIVE YEARS gone??!!!

2009-01-18T16:26:00.001-07:00

Rylee turned five this past week and I am seriously struggling with it. How did the time fly by so quickly? I wish I could slow it down just a little bit, and keep her small and innocent and in the cute toddler sized clothes for as long as possible! Still, it's amazing to see her growing and developing into such an amazing little girl. This is going to be one milestone year... she's already sounding out words, so full on reading is just around the corner, along with Kindergarten. I can't believe my baby is going to be starting elementary school in less than nine months!

I have to mention that Rylee's top gift request this year was a camera of her own. Girl after my own heart! We got her a 5 mp digital camera to play around with, and she loves it. Glad we didn't go for the kid-tough variety, because she's already taken some very print-worthy shots. Love to see her discovering her talents and interests! On the evening of her actual birthday, she wanted to have dinner at Iggy's so she could see Daddy (he had to work). She was so tickled to be there and kept going over to wave and blow kisses to Ben.

For her birthday party this year, Rylee wanted to have a slumber party (with a Hannah Montana theme). Um, I thought those were for tweens? As a compromise, we let her have some of her girl cousins sleep over Friday night, gave them pedicures, played games, watched movies and ate junk. Saturday another one of her cousins joined us and we went to see Bedtime Stories (not too bad, if anyone's wondering). All in all, she had an awesome birthday.

Happy 5th, Princess Rylee. We love you to the stars and back!

Happy Valentines?

2009-01-08T17:55:00.001-07:00

Rylee noticed all of the Valentine's Day cake decorations yesterday, and BEGGED to make cupcakes. What better way to fight the post-holiday blues than to jump into another holiday prematurely, right? I frosted, Roo decorated and Kam devoured. So much fun. And you know what? It worked! The blues are long forgotten... now all I have to worry about are the kazillion cupcake calories I consumed...

Bring it on.

2009-01-06T17:16:00.001-07:00

You are probably assuming you know my New Year's resolution from this picture... get in shape, right? Not so much. That's definitely part of what I'm working toward, but only part.

I am going to complete a half marathon or a triathlon this year. That is my goal. I'm not so much into resolutions, but I think goals are great. I'm a little bit scared, but I think posting this goal will definitely add to my motivation...

I wish you all luck with your goals/resoultions for 2009!

Very Merry

2008-12-29T17:25:00.000-07:00

We had a great Christmas this year. I'm a bit exhausted from all of the parties - we attended 7 between Saturday the 20th and Saturday the 27th (it was a bit out of control...), and even though I'm partied out, I'm still a bit bummed that Christmas is over. The girls had a GREAT Christmas, and their reactions were everything we could've hoped for. They were ECSTATIC when they emerged from the hall and saw all the loot Santa had brought them! I figured Rylee would run straight to the pink Barbie Power Wheels Cadillac Escalade Hybrid (she was very specific) Santa brought for both of the girls, but I was surprised when Kambrie came running across the room shrieking with excitment, and went straight for the Goldfish crackers in her stocking. Guess we didn't need to go all out - goldfish were all she needed to be happy Christmas morning! This holiday season has been so fun for the girls, from parties, presents and pretty dresses to friends, family and gingerbread houses. I'm glad that they were happy and that we took time to remember the reason for the season, too.

Happy Holidays, everyone!

Polar Express & Rylee's Dance Recital

2008-12-13T10:47:00.000-07:00

We took the kids on the Heber Creeper's little Polar Express ride Thursday night. Melanie came down with Katelyn & Tucker and went with us, and Britt came, too. It was neat to ride the train - our car was the caboose for the first half of the ride (on the way to the North Pole) and the first car on the second half (on the way back to the station). All in all, it was a bit budget, but the kids had a blast. They got to see Santa and Mrs. Claus, sing Christmas carols, read the Polar Express and talk with some elves (Roo & KK both thought this particular elf, Peanut, was soooo cute!).

Kambrie was TERRIFIED when Santa boarded the train to say hello, but she loved looking out the window and seeing Mrs. Claus. She wanted to sit with Rylee and Katelyn the whole time - sitting with Mommy is definitely not cool anymore. I don't know that we'll make this one a tradition, but it was fun, and I think it'll be a great memory for the kids!

Saturday afternoon Rylee had her dance recital. She looked so adorable, and was pretty darn cute on stage, too! She was more interested in waving and blowing kisses than dancing (I should NOT have gone up so close to the stage to get pictures!) but she did great. :)

Less than two weeks until the big day! I love Christmas...

Downtown Lights

2008-12-04T12:19:00.000-07:00

We went downtown to enjoy the lights last night, and to take some pictures for Devin & Rita's Christmas card. There is something so MAGICAL about Temple Square at Christmastime! The lights, the street musicians, the carolers, and of course the general atmosphere amazed us yet again. The girls both had a great time, though Rylee accidentally UNPLUGGED the lights on the big tree inside the visitor's center! We had some yummy cinnamon rolls inside the JSMB and got to show Rylee the room where we had our reception and reminisce a bit. That building is just SO beautiful! When I asked Roo what her favorite part was, she said, "Seeing the temple!" It was a really nice night to go, not insanely crowded and not too cold. Hopefully we'll get another chance to see the lights before Christmas is here - I can't believe how quickly the holiday season goes by - so that we can take a carriage ride, (we wanted to, but we ran out of time), but either way it was a really nice night! Another Christmas tradition continued this year, another memory shared with our kiddos.

2008-11-21T02:58:00.000-07:00

So yeah - Twilight was awful.

If you were wiser than I was and slept instead of going to the hyped-up midnight showing, do yourself a favor and SKIP this movie. The casting is AWFUL, the acting is laughable, and though the plot is loosely the same, the story does NOT follow the book. YUCK! I guess it's worth seeing if you really liked the books... but really, don't expect much! Kris and I still had fun getting dressed up for it and being dorks, and then making fun of the melodrama, tacky flashbacks and bad acting, so I guess the night wasn't a total loss...

2008-11-17T11:54:00.000-07:00

The Twilight series really is as good as the hype. Holy crap, who knew? So I decided to read the books this weekend, and WOW. Despite the hype, I wasn't expecting too much when I started reading Friday night, because I'm really NOT a romance novel type girl. I have to admit after the first book I was like, eh, they're pretty good but not that good. Yet I felt compelled to keep going, to see what would happen next. Now I'm on book four, and though the mushy stuff still makes me gag a bit, I'm chomping at the bit for more. So yeah, I'll be going to that midnight showing this weekend if there are any tickets left! Anyone else completely in love with Carlisle? He is my absolute fave. Thanks, Stephenie Meyer.

2008-11-01T20:55:00.000-06:00

Gratitude.

I think gratitude can make for a better, happier life. So, I am taking the challenge: photograph and record one thing you are grateful for each day in November. Today I am grateful for these two cute, full little Halloween treat bags. I am grateful for what they represent: two happy little kiddos who don't have to wear itchy costumes for another year. A super fun holiday (and the stress associated with it) that was enjoyed by all, but is thankfully over!

Speaking of Halloween, check out the adorable lil' witches. They both complained no end about the costumes (Kam squirmed and fussed and refused to leave her hat on her head; Rylee almost didn't even WEAR her dress, even though she begged for it because the skirt has fiberoptic lights...), but they turned out pretty darn cute and had a BALL trick-or-treating in the end. This was the first year that we didn't have a trunk-or-treat at the school in our neighborhood, and I wasn't sure how they'd do with the whole trudging through the neighborhood begging for candy bit, but they both LOVED it. Kam thought it was hilarious to go bang on people's doors with her open little hand, and Rylee was so excited to see all of her little friends walking around in their costumes, and to check out everyone's spooky decorations. However, she wasn't extremely interested in actually going up to many doors. We seriously skipped at least half of the lit houses we passed... anyone else have this problem with their kiddos? They got a ton of candy, anyway, and I was just happy to be along for their little Halloween ride!

2008-10-29T12:49:00.000-06:00

FREE ONLINE CLASS!

For those of you who blog, or scrapbook, or simply keep a journal for yourself or your kids, you should take this class with me! Jessica Sprague (http://www.jessicasprague.com/) is offering a free online writing class, which runs from November 9th through November 23rd. If you're not familiar with Jessica Sprague, she is one amazing hybrid scrapbooker, product designer and writer! I'm really excited to take this class and hopefully improve my writing ability and storytelling voice. If you want to sign up, the details are available at the link above, including registration information and a suggested materials list (you don't even have to buy anything if you don't want to - depends on how you want to approach it). Happy blogging!

2008-10-27T11:42:00.000-06:00

I went to an open house thrown by my good friend Sara this weekend. It was so fun to catch up with some of my best friends from high school! I keep in pretty regular touch with Sara and Lisa, but I hadn't seen Aimee or Natalie in YEARS! Amazing how those years seemed to melt away as soon as we all got to talking and reminiscing. Man, I have NO secrets from these girls! They have seen me at my absolute worst and loved me anyway. It was so great to see them and find out what they've all been up to. Love them!

I love Sara's open houses for another reason, too: multiple vendors! I got this great little "Prada" handbag, ordered a bunch of cute Stampin' Up! stuff, and they also had Scentsy, cute little tutus and girly accessories, and someone selling jewelry. Last time I got a great "Kate Spade" bag, Salt City candles, and a bunch of hair flowers for my girls. All this plus free drinks (mine were virgin, of course), great food and great conversation! So fun. Sara has these open houses twice a year... the next one will be her Spring Fling. When it's getting closer I'll post details in case anyone is interested in coming to the next one - it's an open invitation!

2008-10-23T19:19:00.000-06:00

Hello, my name is Danielle Peek, and I'm a Purell-oholic.

I was noticing how much of this stuff I have around today, and seriously, I have to give the makers of Purell a shout out - I go through this product like water. I keep a small bottle in my purse, one in my diaper bag, in my church bag, in the car, on the dresser, on the changing station (just to tie me over until I can make it to the sink and really wash), and a big bottle in the kitchen. And I have to say, the addition of Aloe and Vitamin E are quite welcome, as my hands are considerably less raw from using it lately. Rylee uses it so much she's developed her own term for applying it to her hands: "hanitizing." So thank you, Purell people. Without your product, I would feel much less at peace with this incredibly germy world we live in.

On a side note, I was watching Nim's Island earlier (love that show!), and I have to say I can totally relate to Jodie Foster's character, Alex. I am certainly not afraid to leave the house, but I am borderline afraid to leave without my Purell!

Anyone else as addicted to this stuff as I am?

2008-10-21T13:51:00.000-06:00

It all started last fall, when Kambrie was brand new. Rylee wanted to have a Halloween party, and I foolishly told her, "Maybe next year." No way did I think she'd actually remember! Yet, as soon as Halloween decor items began appearing around the neighborhood, Roo was on it. "Mommy, you promised we could have a Halloween party this year!" Great. Fun. So we had a pretty crazy weekend... hosted two Halloween parties on Saturday (one for Rylee's little neighborhood friends - 14 of them, to be exact - and one for family/cousins). The kids had a blast playing spider toss, wrapping up some creepy mummies (with toilet paper... thanks to Ben, Devin and Alma for being such good sports!), whacking pinatas, decorating cupcakes, bobbing for apples and consuming WAY too much sugar. Not sure if it'll become an annual event (organization and event planning are not exactly my strong suits), but it was definitely fun!

2008-10-17T09:43:00.000-06:00

We made the requisite fall trip to the patch yesterday. The girls had so much fun! You'll have to excuse my blotchy redness in the photos above... had a facial yesterday and my skin had not quite recovered (thus no make-up...). Despite looking like I got beat with the ugly stick, I also had fun. Crazy how little outings like this can be just as much fun as an adult as they were when I was a kid! Rylee kept running out into the patch and bringing back pumpkin after pumpkin, each of which she would dump into our yellow wagon, and then she'd immediately run back out to select another. Kam, who sat in the cart most of the time (actually, stood in the cart - little stinker would NOT stay on her bottom!) was amazed by each new addition, and protested loudly every time I removed one (which was more often than not, as Rylee tended to select slightly misshapen, or even mushy pumpkins). I tried to take Kam out into the patch, but she whined to get back in the wagon- she thought it was pretty cool to have Daddy pull her around. Both girls were especially impressed by the small pumpkins, which Kambrie tried to eat, and which Rylee came home and painted immediately (oooh, how she loves to do anything messy!). Our new Aunt Sarah came along with us, much to the girls' delight. They definitely dote on her!

2008-10-16T13:08:00.001-06:00

For those of you who don't know, I am severely hair-styling challenged. Sunny sent me a link to this blog, thought I'd share for those of you who have little girls, and like me, have no clue what to do with their hair! This chick not only shares hairstyling tips, she's pretty funny, too!
Check her out at http://shedoeshair.blogspot.com.

2008-10-15T09:28:00.000-06:00

Got the itch to make Gramee's apple pie the other day. This is absolutely the BEST apple pie recipe EVER (slightly altered to my liking)!

8 cups shredded apple
1-2 cups sugar*
1-2 T flour**
1 t cinnamon
a little lemon, if apples turn excessively brown while grating

*depends on tartness of apples - I use granny smiths, which tend to be tart, and I usually use about 1 1/2 cups of sugar.
**depends on juiciness of apples - more juice, more flour

Mix together, spoon into pie shell (laid into 9-inch pie plate - I like glass for this pie). You can cook it with bottom shell only, or use a braided top crust or full top shell (which I prefer). I slice a little bit of butter randomly onto the apple before laying the top shell over the pie, then I cut the slits and pinch the edges.
Generously sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top before baking. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes, then turn down to 350 for 30-35 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream, or eat alone when cool (yeah - I love this pie for breakfast!).

I use Pillsbury pre-made refrigerated pie crusts when I'm feeling lazy, but if you want a super-flaky crust, try my Aunt Carrie's no-fail pie crust:

Sift:
4 C flour
1 T sugar
1 t salt

add: 1 3/4 C shortening

mix (seperately):
1 egg
1 T vinegar
1/2 C COLD water

So you mix together the flour, sugar and salt, THEN add the shortening in (I use a fork and add it a little bit at a time - you can also use a pastry cutter for this step). Once the shortening is mixed in, begin spooning the wet mixture in and knead till mixed. Refrigerate dough for 15 minutes, then roll out on a lightly floured surface. This will make 6 THIN shells (enough for three pies), or four slightly thicker pie shells (enough for 2 pies - this is what I do, and I end up with some extra dough...).

Tip for extra dough: rub strips lightly with butter, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, roll up and bake at 350 until done! So yummy.

2008-10-14T15:04:00.000-06:00

So I am super frustrated. Apparently, Rylee's preschool picture day was TODAY. I got the note in her backpack when she came home TODAY. Guess they forgot to send it home... I'm wondering if any of the other parents got them? Anyway, I left a message for the studio who did the pictures, and I'll be sick to my stomach until I hear back from them. I NEED a class composite... seriously, I don't know what I'll do if we can't get her pictures! Can't believe this!

In other news, Kambrie thinks it is so cool to climb on the table. If I'm busy and she wants my attention, she heads right over and climbs on up because she knows I'll rush over to stop her/ grab her off. Yesterday she climbed up and I happened to have my camera handy, so I snapped this shot of her. She looked at me like, "Yeah, I'm on the table again. Whaddaya gonna do about it?" Little stinker!

2008-10-14T00:33:00.001-06:00

I decided I should seriously jump on the blogging wagon. Love catching up by checking out friends' blogs, so figured I should share, too (plus, everyone needs a place to dish!). Can't believe I haven't posted since 2006!

The girls are growing like weeds. Sometimes it still seems surreal to me that I am actually a mother. Being responsible for two entire little persons is amazing and overwhelming. I seriously think I'm the one in need of some parental guidance half the time... how did I get this old?

Anyway, wouldn't trade my job for the world. Here are some recent pics of the drama queens.

These were taken a couple of weeks ago (haven't uploaded pics for that long...I'm know, I'm a slacker). The weather has gotten super cold here over the last week... we're already missing playing outside! Hopefully it'll warm up again and give us a taste of fall before the killer Utah winter sets in.

2006-10-06T23:30:00.000-06:00

Here's another recent pic of the Roo. The weather here has been yucky, so we've been doing more indoor activities. She loves to listen to the rain outside. She is doing really well with learning to identify letters and their sounds. Love her to pieces.

2006-01-29T16:09:00.000-07:00

Just some more recent pics! The fam, and Rylee at her birthday party.

2006-01-29T15:23:00.000-07:00

Things have been super hectic and stressful lately, but here's what's been going on in our lives: Rylee turned two on January 12th, we had a great birthday party for her at Build-A-Bear. She loved it, it was so much fun. Ben is still looking for work, which has been rough, and I am still working nights. My job is really low stress, which is great. Ben got in a car accident this morning, he spun into a truck and was at fault. Luckily nobody got hurt and the guy he hit was really understanding. Next month is our 3 year anniversary!

2005-11-17T01:06:00.000-07:00

We have been busy, I just wanted to record a few things here. Ben is home, he seems to be doing well. He is currently looking for a new job and we're hoping the right one will come along. Rylee is talking non-stop, she is quite the demanding little 22 month old right now! She loves Teletubbies and giving "big hugs." She is the light of our lives. Ben and I were able to go to Wendover and stay in a nice Spa Suite last weekend to celebrate my birthday and Ben coming home. It was really nice, we had a lot of fun!

2005-09-28T15:19:00.000-06:00

Today has been fun... we were able to spend some time with Ben, then went to McDonald's for lunch and Rylee had a blast at the Play Place. There were some older boys playing there and they totally included her and showed her all the fun stuff. She especially liked shooting hoops (with a little help from Mom). I love to see her interacting with other kids, she is always so excited to have someone to play with!

2005-09-26T16:59:00.000-06:00

I am creating this blog as a message board and collective journal for our little family. I hope that it will be a place for us to record important thoughts, feeling and events in our lives, and also allow us keep our family and friends updated. This will also be a place I can just ramble about how amazing Rylee is... be warned!