Welcome Home, Elder Chamberlain!

We were able to visit Kanab last weekend and celebrate Thomas's homecoming. Thomas has been on an LDS mission for the last two years in Houston, Texas. It was really nice to spend the weekend with the WHOLE family. Tom gained three new sisters and a nephew while he was gone, so it was a big deal to have everyone there. 

To start it all off, Ben and I wanted to do a session at the St. George Temple where both he and I were endowed (many years apart, of course). When we told the fam we wanted to do that, they said that Tom wanted to go as well, so Ben's parents and his brother met us in St. George for an afternoon session. We were also able to eat in the cafeteria beforehand which was kinda cool too. I wish I could just wander the halls of the temple(s) to see what kinds of rooms are in them... Then I remember that there is work to be done and I need to go do it! :) Here's some pictures after the session:

Thomas, Ben and Me

We asked Thomas if he would drive home with us so we could hear some mission stories and talk to him about life. We had a great time just talking and learning more about his mission. It's amazing to see the change in someone over two years. We are so excited Thomas is home, he has been such a great example to us. I hope we get to see him some more this summer before he goes off to college and gets his social life back.

On saturday we just hung around the house and helped get ready for Sunday. We were able to swim a little, tan a little, clean a little, eat a LOT, and just enjoy the Kanab sun!  On Sunday we were able to hear Katie bear her testimony as well as Thomas give an AMAZING talk in church. He did so well at teaching the gospel, but also incorporating examples from his mission. After church, we had a little shin-dig with friends and family. I didn't really know anyone, so Jami talked to me, we had a great time together. :) After we all ate and the friends had gone home, we took a few family pictures... I don't love my outfit or my hair, so you only get to see one. :) It also happens to be the only one were everyone is smiling... even Cal!

The WHOLE family... Rob, Jami, Cal, Thomas, Katie, McKay, Ronne, Daniel, Sharla, Me and Ben

SISTERS! (minus Sharla, she and Dan left to St. George)

While everyone watched THOR, I got to spend some time with mr. Cal! He is such a happy baby and just loves to laugh, giggle and drool! It's so fun to have a baby around the house!

All in all, a GREAT weekend! I'm excited to see everyone again for Cal's birthday in a few weeks. I'll post about that when it happens. Next up, "There's a Rooster in our Yard!" (Seriously, there was.)

Thanksgiving in April and the $100 Turkey

Back in early November I received a "Free" ($100) Turkey (story below) and it was taking up too much room in my freezer... So, I decided to try my hand at Thanksgiving dinner in order to celebrate the end of Finals, Tia's homecoming and Todd's departure to Alaska. It ended up being a great experience and I will definitely be cooking Thanksgiving dinner again very soon.... Well, maybe not until I get another free turkey. It will definitely save us the travel money of going to Kanab or California for Thanksgiving, and it is definitely it easier to stay home and eat delicious food instead of driving through the mountains full of Rain/Snow. AND...we can make Grandpa thanksgiving dinner and he wont have to drive either! (Unless he wants to of course, which he usually does.)

So, here was the menu: Salad, Stuffing, Rolls, Funeral Potatoes, Yams, Turkey and Gravy. It was delicious! and for dessert... Pumpkin Pie!

Here's the "free" $100 Turkey story:

Just like normal, I went to WINCO to do our grocery shopping. In order to stick to our budget, I don't like to go grocery shopping very often, I usually go either every two weeks, or at the very most, four times a month. So, when I go, it's usually a pretty big trip (spending roughly $100-$125 each visit). So, when I went to Winco to do my shopping in early November, they were doing their "spend $100, get a free turkey" promotion for the Thanksgiving season. When I checked out, I spent $103 dollars and the cashier said, "Where's your turkey?"

I replied, "Uhh, I didn't get one. What do you mean, Turkey?"

She said, "You spent over $100, you get a free turkey. Don't you want your turkey?"

Me: "I don't know what I would do with a turkey, it's just me and my husband."

She told me to cook it or freeze it and after going back and forth about not knowing how to cook it and having no room in my freezer, she convinced me to get one. So I ran to the very back of the store and got the smallest turkey I could find... 14.5 LBS! It would have been a $30-$40 turkey, but I got it for a simple $100/Free. haha Anyway, that's the story. It's even funnier when your Dad (two years prior) went to the store with a $30 grocery list and wanted to spend $100 to get his "Free" turkey. It's kind of a running joke in our family.

Here's how we cooked the turkey: 

We followed Ben's mom's recommendation to brine the turkey. Brining is essentially marinating the turkey in delicious broth. So, we combined these two recipes, HERE and HERE.

After we got everything prepared, we put ice in the ice chest and the turkey in the bag. Once the brine was cool enough to put in the bag, we poured it in and tied off the bag. Then we added more ice on top/around the turkey to keep it cold overnight.

 The next day we poured out the broth and the remaining ice. Then we pulled the turkey out and stuffed it with parsley, celery, garlic and onion. 

Then we stuck it in the bag (thanks, Jessica!) and stuck it in the oven for about 2-hours. It was DELICIOUS!

I didn't get a picture of the after, but it was beautifully golden brown and delicious. And just to remind you how delicious dinner looked.... 

Feel free to join us for Thanksgiving this year! :)

Easter Cookies and Everyday Crafts

So on Easter Sunday, Ben and I decided to make sugar cookies with my new cookie cutters (we each bought one thing for ourselves to put in our "Easter Basket" (except we skipped the basket part and just used/ate what we bought--Ben got Lindor Truffles).

Ben Rolling out the Dough

 We baked TONS of cookies and I'm pretty sure we ate ALL of them without any help. They were delicious (but gross because we ate all of them instead of taking them to our friends like we planned). haha.

Anyway, the following weekend we made THIS for both Utah and California. I painted them to match the ottoman, but I'm not a fan of the green one anymore... oh well. I'm sure I can re-paint it later on. Here's the process:

 I put tacks on the back of the wood so that I could paint the edges and the wood wouldn't stick to the paper. The tacks slid around on the table which was annoying, but it worked out quite well.

Here are the boards painted and just waiting to dry. 

Once I got the shape of Utah cut out and ready to go, I taped it down with painters tape and started hammering. It took quite a while. Afterwards, Ben helped me string the string around the nails while we watched CASTLE. The next day while watching tons of episodes of BONES, I did the California one. I like it a TON better than the Utah one, mainly because it has more curves and it's smaller (on the board).

Here are the final products! Cute, huh?

YW General Broadcast - 2012

On the 23rd (of March), I was able to go with my cousins to the YW General Broadcast. Their aunt on the other side of the family is the chorister and she was able to get us tickets for the pre-broadcast fireside as well as some GREAT tickets for the broadcast. It was so much fun to be able to spend the weekend with Holly, Mer and Heidi. We took lots of pics and enjoyed the spiritual enlightenment. It was so much fun!

Our view and my paparazzi shot of Elder Anderson. :)

I also was able to meet Ben's Mission President's Wife, Sister Ashton. Ben always talks about how amazing these people are and when they thanked her (and the rest of the YW General Board) I recognized her name and made it a point to find her after the pre-fireside devotional. She was so sweet! I took the picture with her to show Ben that I actually met her and talked with her instead of just hearing her name announced.

Afterwards we checked out the new City Creek Center, but it was so crazy crowded that I didn't get any pictures. It's a pretty cool place though. Well, that's all for now. Many thanks to the Webb girls for letting me come along on to the wonderful fireside!

Mothers Day [late]

I love my mom so much! There are not enough words to describe how great my mom is, but this video says it all... I am who I am because of her (and my dad, but Father's day isn't until June). She has been there for me through everything! She has been so supportive throughout my life and I honestly have NO idea how she does it. she is so selfless, kind, honest, selfless, humble and strong. Did I mention she was selfless? She always is willing to help me, listen to me, talk with me, defend me, and so much more. I can't believe I got so lucky to be raised by her. Thanks mom, for all you do. You truly are AMAZING. You have been such a great example to me. I'll do my best to live up to the very high bar you have set on Motherhood. 

(That's supposed to be nice, not mean... I can't decide how it sounds from the reader's perspective.)

Love you mom.