Beans!

This last weekend, we went to Boise for a family fun 4 day get away.  While living in Kauai, you may know that we developed many strong friendships.  These are friendships that I hope will never die.  Some of our best friends (Mandie and Holly Cook and their families) have moved from Kauai to Boise, so we love going to Boise to see these friends!

One problem is that my camera never came out while on this trip, I do not have a single picture of my little girls playing with their friends.  Hailey and Alyssa stayed in Kyleigh's room and they both love Kyleigh so much (they always cry when she leaves us or we leave them).  Abby and Kaitlyn are the same age, and so they play together wonderfully!  Naiya is a year younger, but makes that a fun trio.  Then Macey, she has Ridge (the only boy) and Aliya just a few months younger than her.  Really our kids work together perfectly.  While our kids are excited to go to Boise anytime, it's John and I that are the most excited.  We love Rusty & Mandie and Mike & Holly and are still much closer to them than others around us.

While there, Mandie (whom is a wonderful cook) made creamy chicken taquitoes with homemade refried beans.  She made the taquitoes beforehand and had them frozen in the freezer so that the meal could be quick and easy.  Everything tasted so wonderful and I wanted to share the recipe for the beans here.  They are a great way to use your food storage and also save by not having to buy cans of beans.

Refried Beans (without the Refry)

1 onion peeled and quartered
3 cups of dry pinto beans, rinsed
1 can chopped green chili's
2 T minced garlic
2 1/2 tsp Salt
2 tsp Pepper
1/8 tsp Cumin, ground
9 cups water

Place everything in the crock pot, stir to combine.  Cook on High for 8 hours, adding more water as needed.
When beans are cooked, strain them, reserving the liquid.  Mash the beans and add the reserved water as needed to attain desired consistency.

Relief Society

I never truly realized everything that the Relief Society presidency has to do until this week.  A few months ago I was called to be a councilor in the presidency, a councilor that I was previously while in a single college ward.  In the college ward, the presidency didn't teach lessons (to few callings with so many girls), we didn't have funerals, baby births, women in a nursing home, women falling and breaking a hip, and multiple surgeries.  We were all single girls 18-20 years old, not worried about a thing but ourselves and our future.  It was easy.
Our ward has a big variety of members.  The sisters in our RS range from 20 to 94.  One sister passed away last night, and she was only 62, but contracted the flu virus and pneumonia.  She was a very active sister that was loved by so many.  Her daughter is also is our ward, so we had a young mom just loose her mother.  One sister had her first baby this past week, and another is ready to have her 5th baby, anyday.  I love working with these sisters.  I loved this ward when we lived in it 10 years ago.   I just pray that I can help them in any way possible.  Trying to come up with activities to interest such a wide range of sisters seems impossible.  
I'll finish this post later

Snowman

Today and yesterday have been snowy days. Most people know that I really don't like the snow, I guess I should say really really really don't like the snow, but we do need it for the moisture.  So, I will be happy and thankful for this cold wet stuff that tracks all over my house.

My girls, Abby, Alyssa and Macey all wanted to build a snowman after school.  They really wanted hot cocoa and I told them they could only have some after they played out in the snow for half an hour.  Their energy levels were a little to high for my tolerance levels, this helped balance everything a little bit.  It ended up that they played out in the snow for an hour and a half and ended up loving every minute of it.  

Alyssa had her friend, Aubrey, over to play, and together, they had so much fun building "Mathew", mommy and "Molly".  Mathew is a boy in Alyssa's class that is 'huge', while she and Aubrey are little. The soccer ball represents the dodge ball that all are afraid of, at least when it is in Mathews hands. Molly is Aubrey's baby sister.

Macey is setting on the base of the mommy snowman.  She had fun until her mom made her go change into a snow coat and not her new soft coat.  

  

The girls had lots I fun playing and building.

Here goes the carrot into his face.

Childhood Christmas!

We had a wonderful Christmas holiday this year!  Their were wonderful Christmas programs.  John read our family moving Christmas stories every night.  Family was able to come visit and we were able to shortly visit some of our family.  Mos of all, we felt the Christmas spirit, the spirit of serving, loving, we felt  the Holy Ghost.  

On Christmas Eve we all went to grandpa and grandma Giles home to have a dinner and fun Christmas party.  We were able to read the story of our Saviors birth and have the children. All act it out.

Multiple people played the chimes as others sang the select Christmas carols.

Matt's baby Gavin is 8 months old now and my girls love I see him and assist him in his play time.

Children are always so excited for Christmas morning, wondering what Santa Claus will leave for them around the tree.  We have some early risers in our family but they are not allowed up until 7 am.  I'm wondering how much longer this little rule will last.  Probably not long at all.

Alyssa was so excited to get a bicycle from Santa!

Abby was excited to get a "real" American girl doll, Rebecca.  She has been wanting one of these for a long time.

Here are our little girls in their new stocking caps!

Macey got magnet toys and barbies, all she ever wants is barbies.  Where could she have gotten that love from?

Hailey received a new coat, shoes and razor!  She didn't want us to post a picture of her shaving her legs.

Here is Alyssa out going for a ride, in the freezing weather, on her new bike.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Frontrunner

Last spring, Utah transportation started their frontrunner train running from south Provo up to north Ogden.  There are multiple stops along the way and a few of them connect in with the Trax stations.  

We have been wanting to ride the frontrunner, but to ride to downtown Salt Lake it is a whopping $12.40 per person (round trip). Just for my family alone, it would cost $60, not really an option I would choose to take.  This month I found that 4 people could get a group pass for $15 and December had a special for a 6 person group pass.  Wow, we could now make the trip!

My visiting teaching companion and I decided to take our kids up after school one Friday to see the beautiful Christmas lights and the Church History Museum.  School gets out early on Fridays so it worked great!

My girls had so much fun, riding in the upper deck.  I think they changed seats 15-20 times!

Abby loved being able to play with Danielle and Rachel Kochenower.

Macey was just Macey happy to go anywhere!

Let's say the train is warm but we almost froze outside at temple square!  The lights were beautiful, but to cold to take a picture.

My parents came to visit for a few days before Christmas.  They too, wanted to ride the frontrunner and see the beautiful temple square lights.   We ate at the lion house, walked around temple square and almost froze again!

Dad and mom stayed with us until Christmas Eve, when the journeyed on down to Leslie's house in Richfield Utah. I'm so glad that they were able to spend some of this holiday season with us.

These are my sweet Christmas angels, although sometimes they don't act at all like angels.

Here are some other fun things we did this holiday season:

Went to Abby's ballet recital.

Quilted and quilted and quilted some more, on my parents Christmas quilt.

We attended band concerts for our flutist, Hailey.

Attended choir concerts for our little singer, Alyssa.  She really does have te voice of an angel.  They had tryouts at church for the solo at our ward party and Alyssa was selected.