Birthday Girl

Annie turned three on Sunday!  She's still a little girl, though, as she so often reminds us.  Along with her third birthday, she has officially potty trained, little girl or not.  I procrastinated potty training with her for a long time because I had a myriad of excuses, but I finally decided it was time.  She was a champ.  It seriously took just a few days and was pretty painless.

Anyway, we celebrated with a party on Saturday.  She asked for a pink pony cake which I produced thanks to Family Fun, and I had leftover batter so I decided to experiment a little bit since I'm always so frustrated with my cake making ability.

For the first part of my experiment, I swirled jam into the batter.   

Then I frosted it without fear since my goal for this cake was to practice decorating.  Next, I made frosting dough by adding extra powdered sugar to the original frosting.  I rolled it out, colored some yellow, and used a cookie cutter to make the middle of the flower.  The white dots are also made with frosting dough.  It turned out okay I think, and the jam inside the batter enhanced the taste.

Here's the pink pony cake.  Her hair is made with fruit by the foot.

I saw some other fun ideas on the Family Fun website that I wanted an excuse to try so I also had some snacks for her party.

This one is apple pie dip with flower chips.  EASY!  I put a little bit of lemon juice, a spoonful of brown sugar, and some cinnamon in the apples, stirred, and chilled.  The chips are just tortillas that I cut out with a cookie cutter, brushed with butter, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, and baked for 10 min.  They were excellent!  It tasted a lot like apple pie, but better. 

After the kids played and we all snacked, we sang to Annie and cut the cake.  In the picture are: Hallie (sp?), Annie, Ariana, and Logan. 

Once the kids were wired on sugar, Annie opened her presents.  I let the kids take turns handing her the presents which was VERY exciting for some of them.

Jayson is handing her a present, and I caught Hallie's face in a picture.

After we were done with cake, this is how much was left.  We had to laugh because it looked like a girl pacman!

On Sunday we weren't planning anything for Annie's birthday even though it was the actual day, so we were pleased to be invited to dinner with a family in our ward.  It worked out nice, too, because I hadn't figured out what to do with the flower cake I'd made.  We took it with us, and Annie got to blow out candles a second time.  We had a really nice visit and made some new friends that night.

Today, all the kids enjoyed a little more birthday because a package arrived from Jim's grandma.  She went all out.  She sent Annie a really fun doll house, Logan a hex bug toy that is very cool, and Alex a pillow pet.

They all enjoyed the doll house first...it was a big hit with Alex even.  It's taller than he is and he likes to pull himself up to stand with it.

Here's Logan's hex bug toy.  These things are really funny.  We all had a good time playing with it.

Happy Birthday Annie girl!  We love having you in our family.

Just a Boy and His Dog

Belated Birthday

Last week, we received a lot of packages in the mail for the kids' birthdays.  So Alex had a few more presents after we celebrated.

The first package was very large and very exciting for these guys because it was for all of them.  Jim's parents sent a wagon!

Ready to assemble.

Alex helped the whole way.

It's ready, hooray!  I gave the kids a ride around inside before we put it out in the garage.  They've been dying to take it for a walk to the park, but we haven't had warm enough weather yet.

Then we discovered a last present for Alex in one of Annie's packages...also from Jim's parents.

Nap Time

New Blog

Today I started a new blog in an effort to record our journey with homeschool.  So, I invite you to check it out:

http://www.1-2-3-school.blogspot.com/

Bleeny Recipe

So bleeny are really just the Russian version of pancakes.  They differ from American pancakes in that they are so thin, and from crepes because they require a lot of milk versus a lot of eggs.  Russians like to roll them up and dip them in whatever suits (chocolate, jam, fruit, sugar, sweetened condensed milk, cottage cheese, etc...), then fill the leftovers with meats and vegetables and fry them.  One of us even had a host family that put ice cream in it and then fried it.  It's sort of like their tortilla because they use it with everything.  Here's the recipe that I use:

2 1/2 cups flour
3 eggs
4 TB sugar
1 pinch baking soda
4 1/4 cups milk
1 TB oil
1/2 tsp salt

Mix all ingredients well; the batter should be thin.  Pour small amount into a lightly oiled frying pan, flip when the top side is no longer sticky.  One side will be brown, the other will look like a tortilla.  (If you burn the bottom of it, turn down your heat.)  Bleeny will be very thin.  (A note: Whenever I make these, my first one comes out rather oily, but the rest come out fine...so don't use any more oil/ cooking spray after the beginning.)

I actually think these are easier to make than pancakes because they aren't messy to flip and each one cooks rather fast.

A Russian Moment

This post is dedicated to those lovely ladies who know that when I say Perm I'm not referring to hair: Trudy, Maria, Melissa, Lara, Pierco, Lorianne, and Christine.

We went to Russia together nine years ago to teach English and while there consumed many of these:

They are called bleeny and in addition to being fed them in our host families' homes, we made them on our own, and bought them from street vendors.  We used to joke about opening our own bleeny stands when we came home.  Anyway, it had been a while since I'd made them, so we had them for dinner recently.

Here is Alex eagerly waiting at my feet while they cooked.

A yummy stack.

Annie was a fan...

Logan was a fan...

Jim was a fan...

And Alex was a fan...

I guess I'll have to make them again soon!

Birthday Baby

Alex turned one on Saturday.  I can't believe how fast this year was!  Alex has been the sweetest and easiest going baby the whole year, with the exception of the last month.  He went from zero to seven teeth during that time and had at least two colds, though, so I think he had an excuse to be grumpy.  (It looks like he's got a couple more teeth coming in again too...sheesh!)  Anyway, we had a little party for him on Saturday night.  This was our first celebration without family, so we invited a family from our new ward over.  

Here are the cakes.  Thank you Family Fun!  I'm terrible at decorating cakes, so I can't complain too much about how they turned out.  They would have been even better if I'd realized I had the ears too high before I was finished decorating!  Almost everyone knew they were sheep.  Otherwise, I had one guess they were bears, and Annie told me they were piglets.  (?!) 

I didn't get pictures of anyone besides Alex, but since it was his day I guess that's okay.  Cake time!  We gave him the little cake and he decided he didn't like marshmallows.  He sucked on a few, and then started throwing them to the dog.

Demolished and full of sugar!

We did presents after our guests left, and it was really strange to have such a quiet time opening presents!  The first present...

...a swimsuit from grandma!  He examined it very seriously. 

What's in this bag?

A dump truck!

This really was a present believe it or not.  I saw this on a friend's blog when her baby turned one (thanks Arit!) and thought it was a fun idea.  He had a blast unloading that box of tissues. 

Happy Birthday buddy!  We are so happy you joined us a year ago!

My Loves

I think these kids are the best ever...it must be love!

This picture needs an explanation just in case it isn't obvious what Logan created.  Logan is the conductor who is pulling a chemical (he couldn't think of the word for engine right then) which is pulling two hot-tub freight cars in which Annie, the passenger, is soaking.  They played this game for three days and had a lot of fun.  I'm thinking that I'd like to ride in a hot-tub freight car!

Alex was wiped out after church yesterday and didn't wake up when we came in.  Jim said at that moment that "this is the best feeling in the world". 

Kids Say...

I've continued sending Jim text messages when the kids say funny things, and I'm loving having a log of it.  Here are some recent ones:
Yesterday we were in a public restroom waiting for Logan to finish up, and a little old lady walked in.  She stopped to say hello to Alex and Annie, and Annie looked up at her and asked, "Why are you old?"

Lately Logan's tummy has been sending him all sorts of signals.  For example, "My tummy is growling for some sleep!" and, "My tummy told me that I need a cord to pull that train."

Logan wanted to know what was bothering me one day, so I explained that I was frustrated about laws that make it difficult to find maternity insurance (no, I'm not pregnant...just wanting to be prepared).  I told him that there were bad men that make bad laws sometimes.  So he told me that when he grows up he is going to fight the bad men.  When I asked him how he'd fight them he said he'd yell at them.  I told him that probably wouldn't work, so he then said he'd throw stones at them.  Then he decided he'd talk to them, "We don't want you.  We want to have our babies and have them grow up."  In addition he would put bag clips on their fingers (?!) and do what Nephi did (although when questioned he didn't know what that was).  Finally, he decided to take them to jail, "I will throw them in my police car and drive them to the policeman and say, 'Here are some bad men.  They don't want us to have babies.  We want to have babies.'  Then I will consequence them."  Look out bad men, Logan is going to grow up someday and teach you a lesson!

While I was fixing my hair the other day, Logan looked at me and said, "You're really old.  Soon you'll die."  Thanks, bud.

Logan when in a sweet mood said to me one day, "When I grow up and am ten years old I will get you some roses."

Logan, "Mom, the neck of my toe hurts!"

Logan looked at me as we were reading stories one day and said, "You look like a man-girl."

I told Annie that she is my cute princess and she responded with, "No!  I'm your hot princess!"

The kids were watching snow fall and Logan said, "Heavenly Father and Jesus are doing it!"  To which Annied added, "Yeah baby Jesus!"

Logan was contemplating the sizes of things one day and he said to me, "Mom, this city is a big as your head!"

Annie, "I need shoes!"
Me, "Why?"
Annie, "Because of the snow!"
Me, "Where are you going?"
Annie, "Not anywhere!"

Logan, "Sam just looked at me and thought I was a human!  Is a human a people?  Why?  Because people are humans?  All people are a child of God!"

Logan, "I will buy you a pink firetruck, Annie."

I always love how my children understand the English language.  In Annie's mind a shirt and pants are clothes, but a shirt alone is just a 'cloh'.

Logan, "Can Heavenly Father and Jesus see our mac and cheese?"

Logan, "Personal space is usually like a bubble.  My bubble has two ear holes in it."

Logan, "We're playing bank account!"

Logan, "Elisa is maybe 4 or 5 feet long."  (He's talking about his aunt.)

Logan, "When I am a daddy and I have a wife I will want ten kids and I will always take care of them.  When we move I will make an attic and put my old toys inside for someone else.  And we'll take stuff down from there because I'll be big that time.  And there will be a spaceship with claws that swims underwater.  And when I am a grown up I will go to college and my wife will have a baby and she will nurse the baby.  That's what is going to happen when I am a grownup.  That's what is going to happen when I go to college."

The kids were pretending to get ready for bed, so they were also pretending to read scriptures.  Logan said, "And it came to pass the Lord said..." and Annie repeated.  They went back and forth like that for a while with a lot of scriptury sounding phrases.

A Few Pictures

Yesterday the kids and I made cookies.  Tonight we are going to take them around and meet our new neighbors.  Here they are ready to work play.

Cleaning up...that spatula looks clean right?

Today Alex discovered the joy of toilet paper...

And a few more house pictures for those who care to see.  This is the middle portion (AKA the family room) of our basement.  That bar came with the house and we really kind of like it.  The kids call it a "working table" and since we don't drink, the name has stuck.  To the left of where I took the picture is the play area, and to the left of the "working table" is the rest of this U shaped room where all of our boxed books currently are.  If we're here long enough I'll unpack them and that will be our library area.  There is also a large bathroom (the middle of the U), and a large laundry room (to the right) in the basement.

A couple of better pictures of our dining/ living room area:

This is probably the friendliest living room I've ever had.  I love it!  (The dog loves it too...)

Nauvoo and Carthage

On Saturday, we took the kids to Nauvoo and Carthage.  It was a cold wet day, but we really enjoyed our outing anyway.  In Nauvoo we first stopped at the temple, and then visited a couple of the pioneer places. 

Carthage was probably the highlight of our day.  Logan has been very interested in Joseph Smith lately, and especially curious about the Carthage Jail.  The moment we approached the jail, we could feel that we were on hallowed ground.  It was very powerful.

Logan really wanted his picture taken underneath the window Joseph fell from.

I didn't know much about the jail before we visited.  A large family lived in the majority of the house, while two rooms were designated as jail cells.  The family was very kind to Joseph and the others who were imprisoned there.  Because he felt one cell was unsafe from the mob because it was on the ground floor, and the other too hot because it had no windows, the jailer had the prisoners inside his own bedroom on the second floor.  That is where they were when the mob broke in.  The mob shot at his wife, who fled with two of her children, and proceeded upstairs where they killed Hyrum and Joseph.  This is the side where Joseph fell.

This is the front of the jail.