The Balloon Secret

Are your kids bored?

Are they whining that they have nothing to do?

Do you feel like their brains will go to mush if you let them watch tv
or play computer games for one more second?

Do they need some physical activity but it is way too hot outside?
(like 115*!)

Do you need an inexpensive solution to your woes?

Well have I got a secret for you...

BALLOONS!!

My smart sister shared this secret with me a couple of years ago and it has saved the day on many occasions.

Each time I go to a dollar store, I buy a couple packages of balloons. When times are desperate, I push back the couch, put on some fun music and blow up the whole package of balloons.

We all have so much fun playing balloon volleyball, or balloon boxing or whatever game the kids can come up with. Even more, as long as there is still a couple of balloons floating around your house, they will continue to have fun until they are gone,

That is if they can survive the popping contests!

So the next time you go to a dollar store, pick up a package (or 5) of balloons. You'll be so glad you did. :)

(Not sure at what age this grows old, but I have fun with them too so I'm thinking older kids might still have fun as well.)

Our Life (according to my camera)

Life has this way of happening every single second of every single day. Funny how that works. I try to always have my camera near by so I can snap pictures when I see something notable. I most definitely take too many pictures! :) What's a mom to do? I want a  microphone around Lizzy's and Ben's neck at all times to record all of the cute, silly, profound, thoughtful and surprising words that come from their lips. I want to video tape every cute face, every funny dance, every courageous action, every moment that reminds me that they are getting older. 

That isn't going to happen so for now I'll just have to make sure to add some more pics to the blog of random moments of joy...

Okay, so this wasn't a moment of joy but I had to take a picture of Troy and Lizzy sick on the same day. This was back in February. Lots of people were sick with stomach, throat, head, nose yuck. Somehow Ben and I escaped the illness but Troy and Lizzy were pretty sick for about three days. Troy NEVER gets sick so I had to take a picture. Ben and I nursed our two sickos back to health with love and care. :)

The beginning of March was still too cold to swim. Ben and Lizzy didn't let that stop them. They found their own pool. I heard hysterical laughing coming from the bathroom and I knew something out of the ordinary was going on. I had the clarity of thought to grab the camera before I peeked in. Look at those cute faces having the time of their lives in little bathroom sink. I love those two!

Lizzy insisted I take this picture of her back in February. She was pretty proud of herself as she read this entire book without a single bit of help from me.Way to go smartypants!!

Both Ben and Lizzy received new bikes for their birthdays. We have lugged those bikes to the park a few times so that the kids could ride as far and as fast as they like without their mother constantly yelling, "watch out for the cars!"

Ben ADORES his father. On Saturday mornings, Troy and Ben spend most of the morning together doing "guy stuff". This is not the first time Troy has put Ben on his shoulders while mowing the lawn. It isn't easy but he gets a good workout and Ben is in HEAVEN!!

 Ben is wearing the Spiderman cape I made for his birthday. Yes, you read that correctly, I, little old me who is terrified of sewing machines, made Ben a superhero cape. My friend Becky Crookston patiently sat beside me during the whole process. I didn't have to unpick a single stitch!! Ben loves his cape. Yay!!!

So, those are just some little snippets from our life recently.

Life is good! :)

Pizza Night at the Love Shack - the first post in a new series

As I have written many times before, both of my parents have passed away - my father when I was 5-years-old and my mother in 2000 when I was 27-years-old - 11 years ago, February 13th. Of course there are so many posts that could be made about these events in my life. For this post I want to focus on something I've learned that I DON'T want to do...I don't want to go on to the next life without leaving behind some specific information recorded and preserved for my children and those after them.

My mom wasn't the world's best cook (I am exactly like her in this respect). She wasn't bad, but cooking just wasn't her passion. There are a few meals, however, that she made of which I wish, wish, wish I could have a recipe. So many times, I have wished that I could just pick up the phone and say, "Mom, how did you make your beef stew?" or "Mom, my kids are sick and I remember how you would make chicken soup for us when we were sick. Can you give me the recipe?" etc. I also remember that my dad was a fabulous cook. Although I was young when he passed away, I can remember the roasts he would make on Sundays and other great meals. Oh how I wish I could have his recipes too.

Therefore, I'm going to begin creating posts with my family's favorite recipes. Like my mother, I don't have a ton of great, memorable meals that I make, but there are a handful. Troy is a fabulous cook (as was my own father) so I will be adding his great recipes on the blog as well. These recipes may seem ordinary or not that exciting to anyone else, but for us, the Love family, they are important as they bring peace, comfort, joy and fun into our home.

I'm going to begin with Lizzy's and Ben's favorite meal of all which also coincides with their favorite family activity of all - Friday night is Pizza and a Movie Night at the Love Shack. This is an established tradition in our home. Both Ben and Lizzy look forward to our Friday night all week long. When I pick Lizzy up from school on Fridays, she often exclaims, "It's time to get ready for pizza night!"

We have experimented with several different pizza doughs and we think we have found a fantastic recipe - at least for our tastes that is. We have also made our own pizza sauce but have discovered that, once again, according to our tastes, the store-bought is just as delicious.

So here is the process...if we are planning on eating the time Troy comes home from work at around 5:30, I make the pizza dough around 4pm.

In my Kitchen Aid mixer I pour
2 1/4 teaspoon yeast
1 cup warm water
2 Tablespoons sugar
Mix these together and let sit for about 5 minutes.

Next add:
2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 - 3 cups flour

With the dough hook, mix everything together until it doesn't stick to the sides or bottom of the bowl. If you need to add more flour, add small amounts at a time, just until it is all in a dough ball. Continue kneading the dough in the mixer for a few minutes. If you do not have a mixer and you must mix by hand, do not add too much more flour as the dough is better if it is somewhat sticky when you set it to rise.

Let the dough rise until it is doubled in size. (I'll have to add the doubled picture later. I forgot.)

About 20 minutes before you want to eat your pizza, turn your oven on to 450* or 475* - the hot, hot oven is a restaurant secret.  Take the risen dough out of the bowl and divide in half. Form one of the haves into a ball, place it on a well floured counter and sprinkle with more flour. With a rolling pin, also covered with flour, begin rolling dough into a circle. If you rotate the dough as you turn, you will have a better chance of creating a pizza circle. You can even be daring and try tossing the pizza dough into the air! (I'll have to add that picture later as well) We like to roll the dough somewhat thin. It is going to rise a tad more before you get it in the oven.

Place the rolled out pizza dough onto your pizza pan. A pizza pan with small holes on the bottom or a pizza stone makes a big difference in the success of your pizza. If you are using a pizza stone, put it in the oven WHEN YOU TURN ON THE OVEN. Take it out when you are ready to place your pizza round on the stone. Placing the pizza dough on the hot stone sears the bottom of the dough and aids in a crisper crust.

We like to put a small amount of olive oil on the dough and brush it over the dough with a pastry brush. We then sprinkle oregano and/or garlic salt on top of the olive oil. It just seems to add that extra tastiness!

Next, add the pizza sauce, making sure not to leave too much dough on the end without sauce, or then you have too much crust on the edges. Generously sprinkle mozzarella, or any other cheese you desire, over the pizza sauce and then add any other toppings you like. Troy, Lizzy and Ben just want pepperoni - and lots of it! I am much more adventurous with ham, pineapple, green peppers, mushrooms, olives and any thing else I can think of!

Bake the pizza, making sure the oven is completely heated, for 9-10 minutes. This one was left a little longer than 10 minutes and you can see the edges were already getting brown. Let sit for about 5 minutes before cutting so the cheese will not be too melty (is that a word?)

This recipe will make two pizzas. We often double or even triple the recipe when we have friends over, which we love to do on Pizza Nights.

 On these nights I do not fuss about sitting in front of the television while we eat. I try to offer fruits and veggies with the pizza but the pizza is the star for sure.

We love our Friday pizza night. If Troy and I go on a date, we always go on Saturdays because Friday is sacred, just like Monday Family Home Evening night.

Ben and Lizzy, I love our pizza nights. I love that you LOVE them and look forward to them all week long. I love sitting with you and daddy on the couch while we watch a movie and stuff our faces with pizza. I have no idea how long we'll be able to keep this up. If it were up to me, it would never end. I know you will be teenagers someday and things will change and maybe you won't think our pizza nights are as cool as you do now. I hope not. We'll adapt with the times and invite your friends over and play fun games and do all we can to keep it up.

This tradition makes me feel safe. Isn't that funny? I feel peace and safety and that all is well with the world on our pizza nights. I sense that the rest of my family feels the same. I think that is why we are encouraged to create family traditions...

"Family traditions are like spiritual and emotional cement in the foundation of a happy home. They create fond memories, and these memories bond us together as nothing else can."


Elder Richard L. Evans counseled, “Oh, parents, we would plead, give good and happy memories to your children—not pampering or overindulging, not satisfying everything they take a fancy to—but memories of love, encouragement, of peace and harmony and happiness at home—memories that will bless and lift their lives wherever they are, always and forever.” (Improvement Era, Dec. 1970, p. 128.)"Traditions Worth Keeping", Ensign, Mar. 1986, 37

Randomn Rays of Sunshine

I am so far behind in some posts that I'm just going to make one post of all the random pictures and tidbits I want to be sure to include in my book of remembrance for this year...

We had a lot of thank you notes to write after Christmas this year. I've learned that if I get Lizzy doing two a day or every other day, then the task is much easier to accomplish without too much whining and complaining. On one of our "thank you note days", Lizzy presented me with the above two notes written to Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus. She spells phonetically so it is tough to make out in spots but it is from her heart. I actually helped her address this and we personally gave it to the Main Carrier who said he didn't know if he had ever delivered a "thank you" note to Santa before but he knew exactly where to take it so that Santa would be sure to get the note. He didn't even make us put a stamp on the letter. :)

 That same day, Lizzy shocked me with this note thanking Daddy and me for her Christmas presents. Well, that made my day!! (This picture is not really on its side but for some reason every time I download it to the blog, it flips side ways no matter what I do. oh well.)

 On January 17, when the temps were somewhere in the upper 60's to low 70's, I dared Lizzy and her friend Hannah to jump in the pool. They were totally excited to try it out. The water was FREEZING! They are absolutely shivering in these pictures but they had fun for about 10 minutes. What kind of a mom does that? I'll think first before I issue another dare! :)

 On January 19th, my turn for preschool came again. We learned about the letter J. Here Dominick and Ben are painting a Jar to fill with Jellybeans. These two are a lot of fun together!

 While Grandma Love was visiting us, Ben and Lizzy smothered her with lovin'. They just couldn't get enough of her. Case in point...The above picture is of Ben sitting by the bathroom door while Grandma Love is taking a shower. He sat and called her name until I finally had to get after him pretty sternly to "give Grandma some space!"

 With Lizzy in all-day Kindergarten, my days have become very boyish. Our garbage is picked up twice a week and on at least one of those days each week, Ben will hear the garbage truck and run like lightning outside to see the truck do its thing. He and the driver have become good buddies. They wave at each other and the driver honks the horn for Ben. One of these days we are going to surprise him with some cookies or something.

 Ben loves to explore. We count each purple flower in our front yard to see if there are new ones each day. Our leaf-less tree gives us a good view of the 5 birds' nests in its branches and Ben is the master Potato Bug finder. He has one sitting on his thumb in the above picture.

Rocks and Sticks and Horses, Oh My!

I had an unexpected event this morning...NO COMMITMENTS! After getting Lizzy off to school, I didn't know what to do with myself. Fold laundry? Nope. Clean my bedroom? Nope. Clean out the garage? Nope. Start working on some Institute lessons? Nope.

Then Ben came in, "Mommy, will you pay wif me an my twain?"

"Oh Ben! I have a better idea! Let's go yondering!" (yondering was my Grandma's word for a walk in which one stopps as much as necessary to explore the environment.)

"Otay Mommy!!!"

Off we went. I took along a bag just right for carrying treasures. I decided Ben was in charge completely and we would stop and look and touch and explore whenever his little 3-year-old boy heart deemed it necessary.

Our yonderings took us to the canal by our house. (Yes, I was very nervous while taking this picture and throughout our trek because of the canal but we were okay.)

Ben quickly found a way cool stick!

Next we saw some local wildlife. I thought I knew what kind of bird that was but now that I have searched the internet, I have no idea. Maybe Ben is right, it is "A Big White Bird".

We met lots of people walking their dogs who were more than willing to exchange a friendly "Hello" with Ben and let him play with their dogs for a bit. 

 Ben found a great writing-in-the-mud stick for me so, I of course, wrote what was written all over my heart at that moment.

Ben tried to write "I heart Mommy" (he wrote in a secret code that only I could read)

Big clods of dirt are so awesome!

So are huge pine cones!

We even found a small farm with horses and a farmer plowing his fields with a big blue tractor. Sorry no pics but we sat and watched the tractor for about 10 minutes. Ben and the farmer had fun waving back and forth to each other.

On our way off of the canal, Ben decided he wasn't dirty enough and so he rolled down the hill. His dirt level met the "All Boy" criteria for sure!

And of course, after covering himself with dirt, what would be more appropriate than jumping in puddles?

I LOVE this boy!!

Thanks for yondering with me Big Guy.

Let's do it again next week!

The New Year's Eve Adventures of the Loves

Our Disneyland passes which Troy bought for Christmas last year expire on January 6th of this year. We wanted to try to use them again but it is just not in the budget. That's okay, Disney year passes pay for themselves even if you just use them twice so we went our two times and we are grateful for that.

We still wanted to get away together as a family and do something fun so we accepted Troy's Aunt Gayle's invitation to spend some time with them up in Mesa, AZ. We are so happy we did!

First fun activity on New Year's Eve...Organ Stop Pizza (click to go to their website here) I didn't know if the kids would find this entertaining or not. I had nothing to worry about. They sat for more than an hour...LISTENING TO ORGAN MUSIC!! It was so fun! If you click on the link you can see better pictures. The organ has nearly 6000 pipes and with the push of a button the organist can control several different percussion instruments, lights, bubbles, flags that drop from the ceiling and even dancing animatronic cats (yes, dancing cats - the kids loved it) The organist (there are three on staff) can literally play ANYTHING! He was taking requests and amazed us all.

The organ goes down into the stage like an orchestra pit so the organist can take breaks. When we first arrived he was playing Disney music. No way! Ben and Lizzy went crazy! They actually said "Mom, we did get to go to Disneyland!" (well, if that is all it took...) We sang along to "It's a Small World" and the kids cheered when a flag of Mickey Mouse came rolling out of the ceiling and bubbles filled the room. Then the organist took a 10 minute break and so he and the organ disappeared into the stage.

10 minutes later, the two of them magically came up out of the stage and what was he playing? "Star Wars"!!!!! I thought Ben was going to have a heart attack, he was so excited! We had lots of fun and the kids are asking to go back again soon. (BTW the pizza was good too)

This is part of my New Year's resolution to be in more pictures. I am so stupid and think that I have to be skinny, skinny to be in any pictures. DUMB!! I'm just gong to swallow my pride so that my kids can have documented proof that I was with them while they were growing up. :)

Next we went to see the lights at the Mesa temple. We had wanted to go to see the Christmas lights earlier in the month but it didn't work out. We are sort of glad we waited. The children weren't focused on Santa coming and so we just concentrated on the real reason for the season.

I begged Ben to be in this picture of Lizzy and the Christus but he was mad that he couldn't sit on Jesus' shoulder so he refused to be in the picture. Ben, I'm sure if the Savior were really there, He would have let you sit on His shoulder.

Soon after the statue incident, Ben found this smaller statute of the Savior and immediately wrapped his arms around Jesus. I, of course, LOVED to see that.

We did go outside to see the Nativity scene but as you can see, we were FREEZING!! Luckily Aunt Gayle had helped us pack blankets. The temperature had to be in the 30's which is

negative 30 to us hot weather pros!

The Last Leaves

Almost all of the leaves from my Autumn leaf tree have fallen and it was time to do a final raking but not without some fun first. Ben's friend Jesse and his older brother Seth (along with their wonderful mother) came over to do something not a lot of Yuma kids get to do - jump and play in fallen leaves.

Lizzy babysat Seth's baby puppy while the boys played in the leaves. Lizzy was in heaven with this puppy in her arms.

Jesse and I buried Seth and Ben in the leaves.

After the fun Seth and his mom helped rake up all the leaves and stuff them into large garbage bags.

I know my neighbors hate my tree because they have to rake up a few leaves off of their lawns as well and they are positive I hate my yard filled with leaves.

They couldn't be more wrong. (wink, wink) 

(click here to read about why)

The Tree Which God Gave To Me

So remember when I felt like I needed to work on being more grateful? And then remember how the Lord opened my eyes to everything that I have and am blessed with on a daily basis? Well, then, during one of our institute lessons we read the verse, "And in nothing doth man offend God, or against none is his wrath kindled, save those who confess not his hand in all things, and obey not his commandments." (D&C 59:21) I challenged the class, and myself, to recognize the Lord's hand more that week, even in the little things, even in the things that we don't always think of as blessings.

So I went home from class with a determination to do this and as I was pulling into my drive way I noticed that the leaves on the Ash tree in my front yard had already begun to change colors and I hadn't really noticed it yet. I LOVE Autumn. Of all the seasons, I miss Autumn the most (because Yuma just has the hot and hotter seasons) Most leaves in Yuma do not change colors but I get to have a leaf-color-changing tree. Read on about why this is way cool...

As I was growing up my mother taught me the Parable of the Autumn Leaves: As the seasons change and there is less warm sunlight because the days are shorter and the winds blow colder, the amount of chlorophyll produced in some leaves changes and what is left behind is actually the TRUE color of the leaves. The brilliant reds, yellows and oranges are actually the TRUE color of the leaf. I'll let you put your own meaning to that - there are several everyday applications in this powerful lesson from Mother Nature.

So, I LOVE autumn leaves and when we moved into this house in July of 2007, I had no idea there was an autumn leaf tree in my front yard. But Someone Else knew, Someone who knows me very well and loves to shower His children with surprise blessings. Only He could have arranged for us to buy a house with an autumn leaf tree in Yuma, AZ.

So, back to that day after institute...I pulled into my driveway and there was my tree and that scripture popped into my head and I knew, I KNEW, God had planned it all and had put that tree there for me so He could tell me He loves me. I just hadn't noticed it yet this year but He had been saying it all along.

I've tried to be so much more grateful for my tree this year. I must report that I don't remember a year when this tree has been sooooo beautiful. Even others have noticed and pointed out its beauty. Amidst all of the green leaves on all of the other trees in the neighborhood, my tree has been breathtaking.

Still with some green leaves.

Look at my front lawn covered with leaves. This isn't Yuma!

The whole front lawn is covered! I think it is time for some serious raking!!

Lizzy jumping into one of the piles of leaves.

Ben running straight through the pile of leaves.

Lizzy even tried to make a "leaf angel"

We have had more fun this year with our tree than ever before. We have raked up several piles and yet the tree still has plenty of leaves left to fall. On Saturday as we were playing in the leaves, so many leaves were falling around us it was like snow.

Thank You Heavenly Father for my tree. When that tree was first planted, probably 15 years ago, You knew, didn't you? You knew that someday I would live here in this house and that I would love that tree. It is my reminder that You know me and love me and want me to have happiness no matter what may be happening in my life. It is a reminder that I want to have brilliantly beautiful true colors when life's cold winds blow. It is a reminder that I need to look for Your Hand in every single part of my life. What a wonderful gift! Thank You!!

(Someone tell me why I can't separate the paragraphs in this post... )