Halloween Fun

We sure had a great Halloween and hope you did too! Here is a picture of my little Turtle this year! I think he is the cutest turtle I have ever seen!

Adam & I tried to find matching turtle costumes, but when it came down to it, they didn't make any cute turtle costumes for adults, so we just decided to be the ninjas!

Recipe Regatta!

Each month my friends and I get together to bring together some great new recipes to try. Usually 15-20 people come and only seven people bring something, but it is oodles and gobs of food and LOADS of fantastic fun! We have been doing it since January and I thought since I brought a desert this time that I would share the recipe with you!
Happy Fall ... and Have a Happy Halloween!

Carmel Popcorn

1 c. Karo Syrup
1 can Sweetened condensed milk
2 ½ c. brown sugar
1 cube butter

Melt everything together in a sauce pan until it reaches a soft boil. Pour over 4 bags of butter microwave popcorn.

Look what came!!!

It is here! After years and years I finally got it!

Here's to better pictures! YIPPEE!!

Page 4

I hope you are all enjoying these pages ... I want to make sure that you get the whole album ... so week by week you can get excited to make your own scripture album that defines you. Here is page four:

This is a picture from the day I was baptized. In the LDS church we are baptized when we are 8 years old. I was baptized on Feb 6, 1989. It was so snowy that all the freeways were closed and my grandparents couldn't come. My dad also was extremely sick! Regardless of the circumstances, I was baptized and given the gift of the Holy Ghost. It was one of the most important days of my life!

Ahhhh moment!

This is what I found snuggled up on my bed twice this week when I got home at 9:00 pm. Thanks babe for taking care of Bryson while I go about my busy schedule. My two boys are so exhausted that they fall asleep each night at 8:00 pm ... whether I am home or not. Sad, but true. Adam's job is killing him lately ... there is so much to be done on the resort in order to have it completed by spring. Love you my sweet boys!
Here is the third page of the 10 Scriptures album we are doing for our YW Wednesday night activities!

I chose these pictures because this is me when I was six years old playing the same piano that sits in my house today. Music has always been a HUGE part of my life!

I love Halloween ...

... for one reason, and one reason only.

SUGAR COOKIES!!!!
These are not just any sugar cookies. I feel confident in saying that pretty much any person I have made them for, has asked for the recipe. Not only that, but my Bro-in-law Erik BEGS me to make them every year. Sorry man, you'll just have to drive to Page to visit us if you want some this year ... he he he! Oh I can't go on without mentioning the GREATEST sugar cookie day in history! Hey and Maria, do you remember our day of making sugar cookies, taking your sister's car, and 80's music ... not to mention James and the Giant Peach? Oh yeah! I remember! (sorry to reminisce. but it was too classic of a day not to mention along with this recipe!)
This recipe may change your life! It makes a TON so make sure you share with friends :)

THEY WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE, SUGAR COOKIES

1 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 T. vanilla
1/2 t. salt
2 t. baking soda (dissolve in 2 T. of water)
2 t. baking powder
1 1/2 cups milk
7 cups flour

Mix together shortening, eggs, sugar, & vanilla. Add in salt, soda water, and baking powder. Alternate adding flour and milk. Bake at 350 degrees. Check at 6 minutes. (They don't look completely done when you take them out. Let them cook a little more on the pan. They should be a very light brown color on the bottom.)

FROSTING

1 cube softened butter
1 Lb. powdered sugar (2 1/2 cups)
1 t. Vanilla (I prefer Mexican vanilla)
2-3 T. Milk

Mix together until smooth. I start adding the milk last. You want it to be more thick than runny!

SO MUCH TO DO

So little time! Last week I was in Utah working and visiting my family, and if you all are like me ... you have a hard time getting back into the swing of things after coming home ... Here is the Lo-Down of the trip!

My parents came to visit and took me and Bryson home with them to Orem for a week! My parents were so great to watch Bryson while I taught some classes for AC at the Quickutz convention in Park City! It was SUCH a blast and I was so excited to meet so many AMAZING ladies from all around the world. Here are the projects of the classes I taught. I think the ladies had TONS of fun!




The projects are using AC's newest products from the Romance, Christmas, and JUST RELEASED Teen lines. I also was sent a Silhouette from Quickutz to incorporate it somehow on these projects. If you don't have one, YOU NEED ONE! This thing ROCKS! I used it on the Tab for the cards, I cut out the blocks using it, and I cut out the circles and Library pockets on the page. If you love circles like I do, this machine will CHANGE YOUR LIFE!

In UTAH!

Hey! I am in Utah ... having a REALLY hard time getting an internet connection ... can't wait to tell you about my trip ... tell you about it when I get home!

Take Two

I mentioned that I am doing this AWESOME album about the 10 scriptures that define me with my Young Women. Each week I will be posting another page to the Album. Here is page two of the album.

I chose this picture because it shows that I believe that families can be together forever when married and sealed for time and all eternity in Gods holy temple. This was one of the best days of my life!

Sketch this!

I found this AWESOME website that continually gives amazing inspiration for Scrapbook pages and cards. Be sure to check it out!

http://janellerichmond.typepad.com/sketchthis/

Remote Syndrome

I don't know what it is about our little Bryson, but the child has a remote OBSESSION! It doesn't matter where it is, he can spot it!

Lets just hope this obsession doesn't turn into remote man syndrome ... flipping through channels and ending on Survivor-man as the only thing to watch, like daddy!

My parents are coming in town today and Bryson and I are leaving tomorrow with them to go to Utah. I will be teaching at a convention for AC for a few days. I will do my best to post some stuff for ya in Utah ... Can't wait to tell you about it!

Defining Mandy

So I am a leader over some of the Youth in our Ward. Each Wednesday night we get together for an activity. One of my girls came up with the concept for an activity to make an Album to learn to scrapbook and find themselves in the scriptures. So I designed an album and will be sharing my pages in the next couple of weeks. Here is the cover. I am REALLY excited about it, and the girls are loving putting together their album too!

The concept behind the Album is 10 Scriptures that define me. I loved making this album, because I have found myself thinking of new scriptures each day that I can see that match my life. PLUS I used American Crafts new EVERYDAY line of paper, and I have had so much fun. Can the products GET any cuter? I think not! Here is my first page. I will be posting all of the pages in the weeks to come! **

My first page is about my Mission. I took 1 1/2 years from my life and was a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Each day was filled teaching people of Jesus Christ and challenging them to read the Book of Mormon and to ask Heavenly Father if the things we were telling them are true. The scripture I chose was Doctrine and Covenants 4. Here is what it says about missionary work:

NOW behold, a marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men. Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day. Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God ye are called to the work; For behold the field is white already to harvest; and lo, he that thrusteth in his sickle with his might, the same layeth up in store that he perisheth not, but bringeth salvation to his soul; And faith, hope, charity and love, with an eye single to the glory of God, qualify him for the work. Remember faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, diligence. Ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. Amen.

We repeated this scripture each day before going out for the day. The pictures are from my mission and remind me of the great people I met, and served in Upstate New York.

Here is my Challenge ... Try it for yourself! Be sure to send me a link so I can see your album too! HUGS!

Mandy

**Please note, you're welcome to copy my design to use it for another youth group, or yourself, but PLEASE don't copy the idea for publishing or selling. Thanks :)

Running

For some reason, I have always loved to run. I know ... right now you are thinking, IS SHE INSANE? Well I promise folks, I am not! These are 10 reasons I love it:

1. Great form of exercise.
2. I clear my mind of what is stressing me out.
3. I feel GREAT when I do it. (other than an occasional scream from my horrible knees)
4. I feel like I am justified to eat as much junk food as I want.
5. I loose weight.
6. I always seem to be able to find friends that like to run too.
7. I get to listen to my IPOD.
8. Bryson is so content in the running stroller.
9. It gives me a reason to get my bum out of bed.
10. I get to explore places I would never drive in my car.

I have been running for years! It started by doing Track in 9th grade running the 1600 and 3200 races; Then it was to keep in shape for cheerleading during high school (yes I cheered and I am proud of it man ... but that is just between you and me); I ran down at SUU so I could get a hoot and holla from those cute boys at SUU; I ran with my AWESOME roommate who was on the BYU Gymnastics team; I have ran the freedom festival 10k for YEARS and YEARS on the fourth of July with my family; I ran on my mission (I served in Upstate New York); I ran to loose weight before I got married; I ran with my buddy Jodi (who kicked my trash I might add) after I got married twice a week at 5am; and I run now to loose baby weight and because I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!

This past weekend, my friend Kelly called and talked me into running a 5K race with her. Now being in the small town we live in, there were only 5 people in the community that showed up to run it, but HEY, we did it dang it ... and we feel GREAT! Here's a little TOOT out to Kelly, it was her first race and she did AWESOME.

Some crazy details about the race: It was on sand which made my quads BURN like no other; it was up and down hills; it over looked BEAUTIFUL Lake Powell; it started to rain RIGHT as we finished; we were DEAD last and loved every minute of it; we in fact, didn't even know where the finish line was, other than a friend of ours who organized the race yelled out great job when we passed through some gates! Here are some fun pictures to give you an idea of what it was like:

National Card making day

Happy National Card Making Day everyone!

I made these cards to post on the NCMD Website for American Crafts, but thought I would post them on my blog so you all could see them! Hope you like! (I apologize for the photography ... waiting to get my new scanner and camera!)

Pie contest!

Last night our Ward Chili Cookoff and Pie Contest. I got on a pie making kick yesterday and made THREE!

L to R Banana Cream, Key Lime, and Apple

They had three judges for the Chili and three for the pie contests.
Believe it or not I actually got FIRST PLACE!

The pie that won was my Apple pie!

I had so much fun making the pies and definitely didn't do it to win! There is just something about fall and pie making!

OH I wanted to share with you on what to do with leftover pie crust scraps. My mother-in-law taught me last thanksgiving. You take the scraps, spread butter all over them, pour cinnamon and sugar over that, and roll them up. Cook them in the oven until they slightly turn brown. THEY ARE SO YUMMY!

Ummm COOKIES

I don't know if all of you LOVED Sesame Street as much as I did, but I will tell you, that Cookie Monster and I were chums. I even had a Cookie Monster cake when I turned four years old! (I was going to attach a pict, but my scanner bit the dust! Hopefully soon I can get a new one and can post some old time photos!)

Well I got in the Cookie Monster mood this past Sunday and made some Chocolate Chip cookies for Adam to take to his home teaching families! Now these aren't just any chocolate chip cookies, but these cookies have a history. (How funny it is that I am making it look as if I never cook sweets ... ha ha)

When I attended Young Womens Activities in my church as a youth, I had this leader named Leslie. Now Leslie had 3 kids and each summer instead of setting up a cheesy Lemonade stand, she would get her kids together, buy all the ingredients to make multiple types of cookies, and sell them on the street. Now the catch was that her kids had to take part of their money they earned to put back into the expense of buying the ingredients. I KID YOU NOT, neighbors from all around would line up just to get these cookies. THEY WERE AMAZING! So the moral of the story, is that she taught us to make these amazing cookies, and I haven't veered from this recipe since! SO, you lucky folks get to try it out if you like! I promise you won't be displeased!

Amazing Chocolate Chip Cookies
Prehead oven to 325 degrees

1 Cup Butter (soften only by sitting out on counter ... DON'T MICROWAVE! This is the key to great cookies!)
3/4 Cup White Sugar
3/4 Cup Brown Sugar
2 Eggs
1 t. Vanilla (I use mexican vanilla, and it makes ALL the difference!)

Cream these ingredients together
Then add:

2 Cups chocolate chips (I am a fan of Milk Chocolate)
1 Cup nuts (optional)
2 1/2 cups flour
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt

Don't mix until you put all ingredients together. If you put the chocolate chips in with dry ingredients, it mixes them in more evenly, so you have a perfect mix of chocolate chips in each cookie! I use a cookie scoop so each cookie is exactly the same size. Cook for 12-15 minutes!

For CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHIP cookies add 1/2 c. cocoa to the dry ingredients.