YEA!!!!

Finally, my computer was fixed Friday. Well, it works anyway. It could definitely use a tune up... Anyway, I hope Thanksgiving was great for everyone. We had a great day. I am in a hurry, will post pics later, Thanksgiving and Sydney's birthday. Her party is tomorrow, so I will post after so they are all on the slide show. No worries for those who do not like music that starts up as soon as you go to a page, Syd does not have any favorite music yet (not even from me :))

Thanksgiving Favorites

I had so many recipes to post, but I forgot which ones! So here are the ones I can remember.

First off, Pie Crust. This recipe is from "Good Home Cooking: Highland 4th ward"
and the person who listed it (Dorte Anderson), said it was a Martha Stewart recipe for "Pate Brisee"

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp granulated sugar
1 cup Butter (2 sticks), cut into small pieces
1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water

Secrets to a good pie crust: Chilled ingredients and chilled dough. I have never done this, but I am sure it helps ;).
Put flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor. All ingredients should be cold. Add the butter pieces and process approximately 10 seconds or until it resembles coarse meal (I am old fashioned, I guess, and just use my pastry blender). Add ice water drop by drop while machine is running- just until dough holds together without being wet or sticky; do not process more than 30 seconds. Roll dough out on a piece of Saran Wrap; press down slightly. Chill for at least one hour. Makes two 8-10 inch tarts or single pie crusts.

My favorite pie is pumpkin and this is even better- Pumpkin Cheesecake.
My mom made this for many years. She told me she got it from the Deseret News a number of years ago, so being the lucky girl I am, I logged into Jody's system and searched until I found it. I do not know who the creator is.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

1 deep dish pie crust

A)1 8 oz pkg cream cheese
1/4 c sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 egg

B) 1 c plain pumpkin
1/3 c sugar
1/3 tsp ginger
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
dash of salt
2 eggs, slightly beaten
5 oz evaporated milk

Preheat oven and baking sheet to 350 degrees.
In a small bowl, combine ingredients 'A.' Beat until creamy, then spread in bottom of unbaked pie crust.
In a medium bowl (or if you are lazy, like me, rinse the other out), combine ingredients 'B.' Pour over (but slowly, so the layers stay separate) the cream cheese mixture.
Bake on the baking sheet for 50-55 minutes. Take out at 55 minutes, even if it does not seem done because it will set up after cooling down.


I don't really like apple pie, never have. But I love the Food Network, and I like Tyler Florence, and watched him make the Ultimate Caramel Apple Pie. So I tried it. My way. If you want to try his version, look up that recipe on www.foodnetwork.com.
I use his recipe as a basic outline and used my own caramel recipe, and added a secret ingredient. I could not tell exacts or anything, so if you want to try this, use his. I have to say that I ate half this pie myself. I also received many compliments the other times I have made it.

"Olive Garden" Spinach Artichoke Dip (who knows, I found it on the internet)

8 oz cream cheese
1 14 oz can artichoke hearts, chopped
1/2 c spinach, chopped and well drained
1/4 c mayonnaise
1/4 c Parmesan cheese
1/4 c Romano cheese
1 clove garlic
1/2 T dry basil (1 tsp fresh)
1/4 c mozzarella cheese
1/4 tsp garlic salt
salt and pepper

* I like the spinach and artichoke hearts to be almost pureed, no chunks.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (when ready to bake).
Cream together the mayo, cream cheese, Parmesan, Romano, garlic, basil, and garlic salt. Mix well. Add the artichoke hearts and spinach and mix until well blended.
Store in a container until ready to use.
Spray pan w/ cooking spray and pour dip in. Top with mozzarella cheese.
Bake for 25 minutes, or until top is lightly browned. Serve with toasted bread (or tortilla chips, crackers, whatever).

I get requests and usually end up making this year after year. I like to use my Pampered Chef food chopper to get the artichokes and spinach pretty fine, but still some texture. Otherwise, the food processor works fine. If you like it just chopped, then don't even worry about either of those!

Do I really talk like that?

Actually, I know the answer to that question. I guess it is more like "Am I willing to stop talking like that?" Well, not quite yet, but soon. Ethan is funny. We were at Target, getting into the car, and a car pulled into the stall next to us. They even puuled in slow. Ethan yelled "you scare me outta crap!" It actually took me a second to figure out what he said, and I about died laughing. The way heh said it was hilarious. Then I asked him if he meant, "You scared the crap out of me!" He said that the rest of the night. He even added a few "Oh my Gosh!"'s to the mix. Funny to hear from a three year old.

Wierd Sleeper

I have no idea why that slide show is being dumb, but you can click on the view all images button and it will show you the whole slide show.
I was also thinking-- yesterday, the 18th, when I finally posted Ethan's slide show.... well that was actually the day he was going to be born. Let me explain. Oh, at like 36 weeks (not really sure), the doctor informed us that he was breech ( I had actually thought his head was up by my ribs for a while, turned out I was right). So, the next visit, she confirmed and we made an appoinment to try to turn him. I would go in, get an epidural, she would try to move him and if that worked, she'd induce me. If not, I would have a c-section. Either way, I would have him on November 18th. Well, his birthday is the week before, so he chose to come earlier. Kind of interesting, all the dates you get used to while you are pregnant.
If I had my normal computer, I would be able to post a photo and you could see what I am talking about. Every night before I go to bed, one of my nightlt riuals is to check on my kids. I look in on Syd then Ethan. Well, E is a goofy sleeper. He sleeps with goggles on, buckets on his head, half on the bed (with the rail of teh bed being the part under him...). He just sleeps wierd. Well, a good porion of the times I go check on him, he is under his bed! You could say there is obviously no fear of monsters under there! I don't know how he does it because there is not much space. So, every night, I go in and check on him and make sure he is in his bed, head on the pillow, with his blankets on him and whatever the attachment of the moment is by his side.

Three Years of Ethan

FINALLY! Happy Birthday, Babes!

Ethan is such a great boy. He has a fun personality, loves to laugh and have a good time. He is really smart and has a great memory-- sometimes it gets me into trouble! We are so blessed to have him in our lives. Having him in my life has required me to stretch and grow and be a better person. While that is not my favorite thing to do (ha ha) I am grateful for it, too.

What do you feel guilty for today?

I am happy to be able to get online, since my abilities to these days seem rare! Hopefully the tech to fix our computer will call Monday, cause this really sucks. Try not having your normal computer over two birthdays and a major holiday! I even had to go to Smith's on a Sunday because my camera's memory card was full and it was Ethan's birthday celebration- I needed to upload the pics to a CD in the photo lab so I could take pics of the rest of the night! What else was I suppose to do? These things are important... Anyway, I just need my computer back and I am not a very patient individual. Oh yeah, turns out I had to buy a new memory card (good thing they had some for $5) because most of my card was filled with video files, which do not transfer at Smith's or Costco, or wherever. So then I had to borrow my sister's laptop and upload my two memory cards and then burn a CD. The things that we do to preserve memories!
So I am sure some of you can relate to this one-- Sydney has a terrible diaper rash. My kids have toxic poop and when that chooses to come out, nothing makes their butts feel better. In fact, if you were outside of my house when I was trying to change her diaper, you would think I was torturing her. She was screaming SO LOUD! I felt terrible! So that is my guilty moment for the day, making my baby girl scream so loud that I felt like she was being tortured.

Exciting...

Yeah, not so much. I am so tired, I can barely keep my eyes open. My creative energy is zapped.

I guess I could report that Tres Chic now has a booth at the Provo Quilted Bear. One of these days maybe we will have a booth at the one in Midvale. We are looking into Las Vegas too. I need an excuse to go there a few times a year!
I have been working on some more picture frames and I am excited to get them finished. On that note, I have been working on a couple mirrors also. The glass was not cut small enough (for frames too) and sanding takes FOREVER. It is a very tedious thing and that has been cause for me putting it off, but I am almost finished.
I must give a shout out to those who have come and supported our efforts. Thanks!

I am working on a blog for our stuff, so I will have that link soon too. The next show we are doing is in Spanish Fork and that same weekend in Ephraim. This boutique life that we have been living has been crazy, hectic, and fun. I am so glad we have participated and hope we have all the kinks (or at least a lot) worked out and we will be even better at this next year.

Mac or PC

I have always thought PC. But the more I get to know this laptop, I like it! It is a MacBook Pro. Granted it is a $2000 company-issued computer. I do like it a lot. The most of all the laptops I have tried (which is really not that many!). SO anyway, I want to get myself a laptop one of these days (not so soon, if I get the same one as this!) and I am wondering which the three people who read this (hahaha) would choose-- Mac or PC?
Some day, when I get my computer functioning again, I will post pictures and hopefully soon I will be able to post that slideshow.

Delay

I was working on Ethan's slide show the other day, and my computer malfunctioned. So I tried to turn it off, and it would not do that, so then I turned the power source off (for everything) and when I tried to turn it back on, the pc would not work. Turns out, I need a new motherboard. LOVELY. At least we are still under contract with Dell -- thank goodness for those Costco warranties. Another thing is, Jody has been extremely busy and his laptop has been with him. SO I just wanted to say -- It is not my fault! I have a slide show and I am going to post it as soon as I get it finished, probably later this week, since my computer time will be limited. I am a date freak, so I will probably change the date on the post to be the 10th... so if you do not see it, check back to then, hahaha. Maybe I won't. But I was VERY disappointed when I was not able to get it up on his birthday. I spent a lot of time on it!
We had his birthday party and it was fun. He loves all the gifts he received. I am glad to be able to see people too, So thanks for coming!
Anyone have suggestions for clogged ducts in a nursing mom? A friend has a new baby and stuggles with constantly clogged ducts. The slightest change in schedule, and she gets a few. Anyone have suggestions?

a.k.a. (from Natalie)

1. My rock star name (first pet and current car): Sam 4Runner

2. My gangsta name (favorite ice cream flavor and favorite cookie): CC snickerdoodle
(cookies and cream)

3. My "fly guy/girl" name (first initial of first name and first three letters of last name): H Gen

4. My detective name (favorite color and favorite animal): Red Tiger (I would say cougar, but then people would think I am a BYU fan)

5. My soap opera name (middle name and city where you were born): Leigh SLC

6. My Star Wars name (first three letters of your last name and first two letters of your first name): Genhe

7. My superhero name (2nd fave color and favorite drink with “The” in front): The Green Water

8. My Nascar name (first names of your grandfathers): Raymond Brent

9. My stripper name (name of your fave perfume/cologne and your favorite candy):
Jhivago Skittles (haha I like a VS fragrance that is Body by Victoria-- so Body Skittles)

10. My witness-protection name (mother’s and father’s middle names): Rae Raymond

I wish my answers weren't so lame... oh well.

Tagged...

A. The player lists 6 facts/habits about themselves - try to find 6 you haven't already posted about!
B. At the end of the post, the player tags 6 people and posts their names, and then goes to their blog and leaves them a comment, letting them know they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog for the rules.

1. I like to cook. I like to try new things and I will even cook things I do not like, for people who do (except fish, I draw the line there-- no fish in the house unless I am not here!)
I would like to think I am pretty good at it too... hopefully no one is out there saying "if she only knew..." One thing I like to make the most is pie. I have a hard time buying pies because I just really like to make them (I should work at the Pie Hole!).

2. I love to read. I do have a hard time seeking new books-- I do get bored easy. I seek out the kind of books that I can not put down. I guess that is bad for my home life... But I can not read a book that is too detailed. I tried to read The Hobbit... twice. Love Lord of the Rings movies, but I can not do the books. And, since I have a hard time seeking out new authors (normally read Mary Higgins Clark, Clive Cussler, John Grishom, Dan Brown, and of course I LOVE the Harry Potter series... Thrillers, murder mysteries, and the like and I did enjoy the historical fiction church books), I would love suggestions (oh and I do have the Twilight books to read).

3. I am a freak and every time I leave the house or go to bed, I check (sometimes double) every door and window (well, only ones I open, in weather I would open them in) to make sure they are shut and locked. I guess I watch too much CSI & Criminal Minds and read to many thriller novels... and I keep my blinds by the door closed so that if anyone comes and I do not want to answer the door (solicitors), then I do not have to cause they cannot see me (even though they would have to be deaf to not hear the dog and children).

4.I love pumpkin. Many know this already, especially those who read Jody's weight loss column while I was pregnant with Ethan. While I have tried to stay away from Arctic Circle-- unless the playland is involved-- I love pumpkin ice cream. If you are like me and want to lose baby fat or just weight in general, the Dreyer's Slow Churned 1/2 fat ice cream is really good. I am an ice cream snob, I have NEVER liked low fat/low sugar ice cream. This one really is worth it, it is all I buy. I actually buy it on sale-- Smith's has great sales often-- and keep like 10 ice cream containers in my freezer outside. I hate to pay $5 for ice cream and I think it is worth it to get the GOOD low fat kind and help the waistline too. I served the pumpkin ice cream to my family and asked their opinion. They really had no idea it was low fat. The Dreyer's Loaded is good also (especially if you are looking for a lot of the cookie dough or whatever flavor).
Oh I love pumpkin anything, not just ice cream!

5. You could put any drink in front of me, but if you give me some good water, I will drink that over anything else, any day! I crave it and when I do not get enough, like the dad on Big Fish, I feel like I am drying up.

6. I love to host. I really enjoy having people over. It is a great thing for me, because it is the incentive I need to keep my house in good shape. I like to keep a clean house, but do not have the time or energy to keep it as spic and span as I would like. My floor gets mopped when I have guests. SO I guess I better have people over every week! Plus then I have people to cook for!

7. I love Martina McBride. She seems like she stands for good and I just like her music. Think she sounds great on the radio? She is AMAZING live. Love her. So I was sad, but the last time around, she only toured small cities. What does that say about a person? She is from a small town in Kansas and I am sure was spreading the love to a bunch of small places across the country. She really does seem like a genuinely good person. On top of all that, she is gorgeous!


I Tag:

Natalie, Kendra, Shelly, Heather, Carrie, Becky and Kristen.

It was Kelli's idea to do 7 people, ps!

The City in Which I Live

I guess it is not just the city, it is the state too. I like living here. I like Utah. But I am really frustrated right now. I do not want to argue politics with anyone, I just want to vent my feelings.
Since I fell asleep, I did not get to see the news and get the results from votes, but I should have just know what was going to happen. Basically, our school district has people who want to split because they already have all their schools and do not want to spend $ on the new areas' schools that need to be built. Nevermind that most of us who freaking live here LIVED THERE too. So then it came to a vote, but what is unfair? Not everyone who that affects was allowed to vote. Oh yeah, just the people who would benefit. Of course, it was passed. Then, the whole school voucher idea gave me hope. I really feel that if people really took the time to get to know what it is all about, it would have passed. But no. Of course not. Something needs to be done. Our property taxes went up 47%-- yes, not a typing error-- forty-seven percent from last year. So all the other people in the area, well I am sure there's went up drastically as well. Here is the kicker: when the district splits and our property taxes are raised more than the yearly raise (which is proving to be quite ludicrous already), we will be forced to sell our house. In fact, I am sure no one would want to move out here once they realize that their new prop taxes will make a 2nd job a necessity, so we will most likely foreclose. I know that many people here just can not afford that. It will be a crisis. In my opinion, it was already nearing that anyway. But now, I just can not believe it.
To top things off, I was reading a small local newspaper and it had an article about one of our city's neighbors and them whining about us (I called the other city's manager and left a 3 minute voicemail on the matter). They were looking into making the two roads into our city toll roads for our residents.... umm, can we say ILLEGAL?! Unconstitutional?
Then a couple pages later, another neighboring city (one I already can not stand! I need to meet a nice person that I like from this place because I just detest it and have a hard time feeling anyone nice and decent could come from there...) was complaining their little heads off about an issue that stems from their issues. But alas, it is all our city's fault and now they reversed a couple of road approvals. They do not want to let our residents to drive through their city to get anywhere. In fact some dumb trash of an IDIOT suggested building a wall * A WALL! * Seriously, who are these people??? If you think stupid things like this, please, do yourself a favor and refrain from telling anyone, let alone someone who is going to put it in the newspaper for everyone to read what an idiot would say.
So my property taxes are going to skyrocket more than they already have and I will not be able to leave this place cause I will be broke and not be able to afford a toll road and the other way will have a wall blocking....
So I guess you can understand why I may be frustrated about living here!

OOPS...

Last night, I went to put Sydney to bed, and I fell asleep feeding her. Then I fell asleep singing Ethan his songs before he goes to bed. Then, I decided to lay on the couch for a few-- I had things I wanted to do before I go to bed. Well, I woke up at about 3 am to the sound of Sydney. But then she was quiet, so I got ready for bed and then logged on to do my blog and then she started crying. So I had to go in there and by the time I was done, I just wanted my bed.
I only lay on the couch when I am not ready to go to bed yet. I am the perfect patient-- my orthodontist told me to where my retainer EVERY NIGHT. Since I am an adult who had to endure wearing metal on her teeth when women already feel unattractive-- during pregnancy-- as well as being the adult who paid for them (as in not my parents), and that day I will not forget-- getting them off. I have sensitive teeth and I would rather not endure that again. So, needless to say, I have a great respect for retainers and I can honestly say that I have worn mine every single night since June 2005 except once when I forgot them and I went camping and maybe two other times. I also grind my teeth REALLY BAD and I can only handle sleeping now with my retainers on because my teeth do not hurt when I wake up.
So when I fall asleep on the couch, Jody is supposed to wake me up so I can go through my nightly dental routine, take my pills (one of which is keeping me sane... no, not an antidepressant, it is an anti pregnancy pill hahahaha), and check in on the kids (have to make sure they are breathing, hahaha, and check to make sure they are warm). He said he tried and I was mean to him (which is definitely likely) , so he gave up and went to bed. I guess he does not care if I get my pills....

Laundry and Trash

First off, I do not care if it is 12:36 am. It is still Monday to me. Hahaha. Anyway I suppose this goes along with Sunday papers. I was thinking today, as I took out some trash, how much I actually enjoyed it. Its like a cleansing- getting rid of excess in the house. If only everything were so easy, right? Put it in bag, take it outside so you don't have to look at it (or smell it) and then someone comes and picks it up every week.
My poor laundry room... well that is the opposite! I put all these dirty clothes in there, I wash them, but, unless they are to be worn immediately, these clothes can't seem to get out. I am goo at getting the clothes clean, but if I can't fold the stuff in 30 seconds or less, the stuff in the dryer just gets added to my counter space so I can dry the clothes waiting (you know, so they do not stink!). I worked on this today, too. My husband was out of clean underwear and I had to wash some (he has TONS- I hate washing whites), so I decided I would try to fold the whole load while I was cooking in the microwave. I was not fast enough, but at least I got it done and I put that load away. I actually do not mind doing the laundry, it is just easy to neglect because it is in a room and I can shut the door. But I absolutely love the feeling when my trash cans are empty and my laundry room is all clean.

Sunday Paper

So we get both newspapers-- The Deseret Morning News and the Salt Lake Tribune. I like the DNews because that is who signs the paychecks... but I loathe newspapers... really, for just one reason. Imagine 14 -- that is right -- 14 newspapers in your house each week. That is a lot of garbage. Especially to pick up. Arg. (We do recycle, by the way).
Something funny about Sunday papers is that Jody likes to read all the ads. I am not sure why, since we can not buy any of it, but he does anyway. Well, today, Ethan read the ads with Jody and many stores are advertising holiday gifts. TOYS. The sounds from the other room went something like this (while reading the Target ad):
I wanna be that. I want that, dad. Dad, that one, I want that one dad. Two dem. Two dem dad.
He had a great time- and now he thinks he is getting that whole ad. Look what Jody has done to our child! Hahaha, and so it begins.

a post a day...

Okay so maybe I will try this too, though I make no promises. That said-- the post that says November 3rd, I actually started before midnight, LAST night. So the Halloween slide show is November 1st and the after halloween slide show is for yesterday. That brings us to now.

If my sisters read this, like they are supposed to, then they will know I talked about them.. My sister Erica came up to help me today. She is a great helper, as are all my sisters and my little brother. Thanks to them for all their hard work (on my behalf)!

Jazz game a few years ago...2 years ago -- a pre-Thanksgiving dinner.

Sorry, this is not the best picture but I am so tired, I keep falling asleep.

After Halloween Fun

We decided to go to Target and see what we could get on clearance. We do not really have a stock of dress-up items, so I thought this would be a fun place to start. Ethan saw the pet costumes and had to get the superman one for Jake. I am so glad we did (though I am sure he is not!). We had a good time teasing Jake in his Super Pug costume today!

Halloween 2007

Halloween is such a fun time of year. This year, we bought Ethan's costume in AUGUST! We were on the way to a camping trip and stopped at Costco. You see it you buy it, or you do not see it again, right? Well we have learned that concept at Costco. I tried to buy Sydney the chicken last year, before she was even born, but they did not have any left. I am glad they decided to carry it again because she makes a darn cute chicken!

The Festivities began on Saturday, October 27th at 11 am- we arrived at the zoo, for what is becoming our annual trip to Boo at the Zoo. Fun, but reminding self (and husband) that if we do this next year, to arrive at 9:30 or 10:00 am. Very Busy. We went to a birthday party for our little friend Carter Wheatley, who turned one on October 30th. Then We made our way to our ward party-- a Trunk or Treat. I think this would have been more successful if it was on Halloween and combined with another ward. We had like 15 "trunks" to go to. It was fun though. We went to Grandma Genessy's house and showed off the costumes on Sunday night. Then for the next three days, Ethan asked to wear his costume... Halloween day we visited Jenni in Springville and made a few quick trick or treat stops. This was the first real Trick or Treating Ethan has done! Then we made our way to the Kenney's for dinner and TorT with them. It was a blast and I am glad that we were able to wear the costumes a couple nights and longer than an hour!

OH and I must explain the interesting adult costumes.... If you asked Ethan what people were going to be for Halloween, he'd have said: Papa- Barney, Joel- Cowboy, Ethan- Spiderman, Sydney- Chicken, Grandma- Herself, Jenni- mouse like mom, Jody- Lion, and me a mouse. Not sure where he got all that from, exactly, but Jody thought he would humor Ethan and on Halloween day went looking for a lion for him and mouse for me. The pics show what he came up with...