Disneyland Race

Hyrum ran his first race in Disneyland! His favorite part was seeing the characters at the end... he picked off several flower pedals and gave them to Mickey Mouse! He was determined not to leave Mickey's side until the security guards escorted us away:)

Hope for the Children Event with Brooke White

Families for Orphans put on a contest where Brooke White and several other qualified judges chose two singers to be Ambassadors of Hope for the Children. I made it to the final five in my age group singing "The Greatest Love of All." This event benefited orphans and children in crisis in Arizona and around the world! Check out the Families for Orphans website to see how you can help orphans... it's easier than you think! I'm going to do the "7 Days of Nothing" where I'll be giving up things I don't need for 7 days and using the money to help orphans. Check it out on the website!

Nauvoo

We had the opportunity during spring break to visit my ol' mission stomping grounds when we attended the wedding there of one of Chris's friends! It was sunny for most of the time we were there. Then, on the last day it began to snow! I've always wanted to see Nauvoo in the white coat of snow that may have been like the snow which covered the ground there when the early latter-day saints left their beautiful homes. I couldn't even get out of the car... I wouldn't have survived that bitter cold day when the saints began their long treck west.

Signing for babies and toddlers

Last month I began teaching a signing class at my house for caregivers and babies/toddlers to learn signs to help build vocabulary and communicate better. It has helped Hyrum so much! His vocabulary is growing and he has learned how to speak better because of it. Signing with babies and toddlers is said to totally get rid of the TERRIBLE TWOS! So far, I believe it! Everyone is welcome to join us on Monday mornings at 10am. Let me know if you are interested! Learning sign language for babies and toddlers is as easy as getting on-line and typing in ASLpro.com. They have a specific link for baby signs which are the basic words you need to communicate with your baby/toddler.

Thankfulness

Today as I was sitting at the computer table reading my scriptures, the computer screen saver turned on showing a slide show of all our pictures. I stopped reading to watch and felt an overwhelming feeling of Heavenly Father's love for me. I thought of all the blessings he's given my family and me. All the hard times, worries, fears, and heartache drift away at times like these when we stop and think of our blessings. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! Take time to be thankful:)

Mr. Mischief

I know what you're thinking... no way, he's way too innocent! Yes he is innocent, but also mischievous!!! When we leave the room for a second, we come back to find him on top of the computer table with the mouse on his head, or playing in the dog's bowl of water and eating her food! To top it all off, when we tell him the doggy food is yucky, he laughs and puts more in his mouth!!! All we can do is laugh because he is just so darn cute no matter what he does! I am struggling about what to do when he bites me, however! I give him a stern face and a scolding "NO" and show him in sign language that it hurts... but he just giggles and tries to bite me again! We even do a 1-min. time-out and that doesn't work either. He doesn't bite Chris much because Chris just ignores the negative behavior. I have a hard time ignoring it because I'm a big baby and can't ignore pain, plus when he starts biting others, they certainly won't ignore the biting! I don't know what to do and am open to suggestions!!!

No veggies? No problem!

Do you have anyone in your family who doesn't like veggies? Well, here is an easy, freezable, recipe that will save the day! I got my idea from wholesomebabyfood.com but changed it so much that now I'm claiming it as my own...

Veggie Nuggets:

2 16 oz bags of frozen veggies, cooked, drained, and chopped
2 cups wheat germ or whole wheat baby cereal
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
4 large eggs

Preheat oven to 375
Coat baking sheet with olive oil
Combine ingredients and mix well
Make each nugget the size of a small fist full
Bake for 25 minutes

Recipe makes about 45 nuggets.

I put these nuggets in baggies with three in each bag and freeze them. Then when Hyrum needs some veggies with his meal I give him a couple of these nuggets. Or when I don't have time to cook, this is an instant healthy meal for him! His favorite veggie nuggets use a bag of frozen broccoli and a bag of mixed veggies (corn, carrots, peas, green beans).

THIS IS NOT ONLY FOR BABIES!!! Everyone likes them:)