Three word sentences

This is Jen.

She is awesome.
Super great photographer.
One talented lady.
A caring Mother.
Makes me laugh.
Nice to explain.
Supportive and enthusiastic.
I love her.
She is awesome.

Rain Time!

Allison took this shot of Ammon and I. She was loving the camera tonight.
But not being in the pictures.

Can't you feel Ammon's enthusiasm for the rain?

*****

Park Time

I just had to add a picture of some of the loot we are bringing in this year. This is by far my best garden eh-ver. I picked a nice big bowl full of beans today, two zukes, and four tomatoes. It makes me so so so happy. I love to garden.

Ick Ick Ick.
Now I'm going to have yucky spider dreams again.
This Orb weaver spider is in my front garden. Justin thinks it's awesome and won't squish it for me. I think he's chicken and doesn't want to hear it crunch.

*****

It's nice to have a park so close to our house. It would be nice to live in the era where it was okay to let your kids roam the neighborhood, but alas, that has come and gone.

Fun Family Home Evening

This was a fun night!
Justin home teaches the K's and they home teach us,
and Jen and I visit teach each other = some months we just have a nice mini-party with a message.

This month we decided that we'd combine with other families that we visit/home teach for a softball game at Long Lake. The playing field was great because it was all grass. No dusty kids! We played a few innings of softball, munched on watermelon, then played kickball.
Our bases were: a frisbee, baby blanket, and a diaper changing pad. The changing pad turned out to be a little slick. It was fantastic to watch people slide into base, even if they weren't expecting to.

1. Amelia
2. Allison
3. Jaeden
   
4. Marshall getting in the zone
5. Brandon and Katie
6. Josh and Jonah
7. Brandon and Benny
8. Jacob
9. Jen
   

It was fun getting to know these great families a little bit more. I'm glad they came.
Let's do it again next year!

A Day at the Beach

We've been having playgroup with our ward at several beaches this summer, but the favorite has been Lake Johanna. It's been fun for my kids to see some of their other church friends outside of Sunday meetings.

1. Katie striking a cute pregnant pose.
2. Beautiful Ameila.
3. Silly Allison in her goggles.
4. Ammon holding I believe just water...I hope.
5. Benny loves his mommy.
6. Miss Gracie
7. Isaac
8. Ammon and Isaac. Isaac got really into building this sand sculpture. He spent most of the two hours on it.
9. Rachel and Ed.

The best zucchini you'll ever have

This is a family recipe; well I think it is. I learned it from my Mom. We had it every year growing up and, boy oh boy, was it a treat.
If you had a plate of candy and a plate of zucchini, I'd be hard pressed on which one to choose. Now I think about it, I'd for sure pick the zucchini. I can get candy any time.

Preparation:
In blender, put in one sleeve of soda crackers. I like to use non-stick foil to line my cookie sheet. I also like to use squeezable Parkay, or you can melt about 1/4 cup butter and pour it in the cookie sheet. You need 2 medium sized zukes.

Slice zucchini into 1/4 inch slices. Beat two eggs in a bowl. In separate bowl, have crushed soda crackers (about 1/2 -1 sleeve). Dip slice in egg, then coat in crumbs. As you can see, Ammon and Allison are great little chefs.
Put in single layer on cookie sheet. When sheet is about 1/2 full, preheat oven to 350 degrees.

When you are finished coating the slices, you can either put squeezable Parkay, or dot the top of each slice with butter. Salt and pepper.
Bake 20 minutes. Turn slices; I like to use a fork. (If you would like to try the old school method, don't prep the pan with butter. After you flip the slices, you can put on another dot of butter. I find this to be hot!)
Bake for an additional 20 minutes.

This will be your end result:

A plate of oohs and aaahs.
It may be time consuming, but it is sooo worth it.
My mom likes to use a little lemon juice for a condiment.

A Humid August Outing

Could it possibly rain anymore than it did Saturday morning? I declare that it could not.
Which makes for an extremely humid day. It wasn't even that hot, but sweat was abounding.

Justin had a fun idea of driving to Taylors Falls. We have noticed that as our kids have gotten older, we don't get out and do as many things anymore. We were trying to decide the reason: I attribute it to we're busier, and it seems like our kids bicker more than they did. Maybe we've glommed into a homebody family. Regardless, it was a fun day.

1. Cool leaf. Can this color be true so early in the fall? Tell me it isn't so!
2. Metal ring for tying up boats.
3. Allison by the St. Croix river.
4. JoAnne in the Sculpture Garden.
5. Isaac on a swing in the S. Garden
6. Isaac thought this was a cool natural seat.
7. Ammon climbing on the rocks.
8. Old tree.
9. Tiger Lily

Taylors Falls

Ammon fell down at the end of our walk in Taylors Falls. He was NOT happy about it.
Bandaids are a marvelous thing.
*****
Franconia Sculpture GardenWe haven't visited the Garden since it relocated. I didn't recognize any of the structures. Many were thought provoking. Some disturbing. Makes for a fun family outing. Best of all...it's free.

Isaac and Allison

Isaac and Ammon

Ammon

Sign in front of S. Garden

I was walking up the stairs and Ammon was at the top. He said to me, "I like you, Mom."
I heart Ammon.

Medicine Bow

Oh, how I love Medicine Bow, Wyoming. I make it a point to try and stop through here every year that I drive to Utah. This year, the kids and I had a little more flexibility. I stopped and bought a detailed map to show us all of the back roads. I love exploring off the beaten path. A couple of the roads were impassable due to snow...at the end of August. Isaac, my ever constant worrier, kept wanting to turn around. Our GPS and the map didn't agree on many of the dirt roads, which disturbed him.

We saw four male moose.
I love this picture of Isaac. He sat down on the log for me to take his picture, and a bug came buzzing right at him. I love the look on his face, plus that the bug is in the shot!

We had to turn around. This doesn't look like much snow, but where I'm standing, there is a LOT of snow on the road.

The air up here is so crisp and clean. I wish I could bottle it.

Camille's

It was a nice short stay at Camille's this year in the mountains near Boulder, Colorado. I'll explain the collage pictures...

1. Camille and I went for a short hike and found super D duper yummy wild strawberries.
2. Camille played tag with Ammon.
3. The 10 mph sign isn't kidding. This is a sign on the road to her house.
4. Mining cart on the road to Camille's.
5. Day lilies in Camille's garden.
6. Nancy Poo.
7. More lilies.
8. Camille pointing to a mushroom on our hike.
9. Camille made Ammon some glasses out of bristle blocks.

It didn't take long for Isaac, Tyler, and Jacob to get thoroughly
engrossed in their Nintendo ds's.

Another item on the road to Camille's.

Other Favorite Pictures from Utah

Dad and I saw Peter Breinholt in concert at Willow Park July 24th. He was awesome!

Uncle Shawn helped Ammon fish in his pond.

Grandpa and Grandma Cardon

Allison really really wanted to do the pony ride at the American West Heritage Center, July 24th. Her horse started braying, which she thought was hilarious.

Ammon wanted to have the smallest pony.

Brent is still around in Logan. He is awesome.
This is the Logan City July 24th parade.
My dad and I watched him riding his bike along, picking up candy, pocketing it, then throwing it to kids.

JoAnne waiting for the kids to ride by in the North Logan Pioneer Parade.

Vally S. has been one of my adoptive grandma's. She taught me how to crochet when I was about 5 or 6. I used to go over to her house, ring the doorbell, and ask for candy. She lives next door to my mom and dad.

Ammon after enjoying a chocolate cupcake.

This is now Grandpa's rock creation center. It started out as a chicken coop, then my play house, on to Shawn's wood making home; now it houses all types of rock beautifying machinery.

Ammon at the crack of dawn wanted to run through the sprinklers.

Can you guess where in Dad's yard this is?

Oh yummy.

Grandpa taught a class on how to make cabochons. He had the grandkids demonstrate how easy it was. This Jacob taking his job seriously.

Meggin, Spencer, and James.

Allison and her cousin, Tessa enjoying the water at Lake Jordan.

Great Grandma Thomson and Isaac. This is one of the few smiles we got that day.

Great Grandma Thomson, Allison, and Ammon playing Bingo. Probably the last type of game Grandma can play anymore.

Kevin, Erin, and Jude.

Baby Jude. What a fun happy baby.

Erin

Justin admiring a painting of Captain Moroni in the Conference Center.

Ammon by Ammon.

Justin and Allison on the Alpine slide in Park City.

Ammon and Grandpa. He's holding a tiny piece of his blankie. This corner has been lost, but he has one other large corner and a blankie to pacify him still.

JoAnne at Horsethief Lake.

Cute baby Jimmy (James).

Ginger and Gideon

Tostada from El Sol

Allison after the haircut. She got about 6 inches cut.

Last but NOT least, Tiny Spicy Chicken from Mandarin Garden. Nothing like it anywhere else.