tied together with a smile

Thursday, June 17, 2010

LOST

Now that the series over, we're hooked. Thanks to Netflix, we can watch them one after another and not have to wait a week between episodes.

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Applebee's Oriental Chicken Salad

Dressing

3 T. honey

1 1/2 T. rice wine vinegar

1/4 c. mayo

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

1/8 tsp. sesame oil

Blend all ingredients together in small bowl. Chill.

Salad

2/4 c. veg. oil (frying)

1 egg

1/2 c. milk

1/2 c. flour

1/2 c. corn flake crumbs

1 tsp. salt

1.4 tsp. pepper

1 skinless chicken breast (I used 4 keeping the rest of the ingredients the same - and there was plenty!)

3 c. romaine lettuce, chopped

1 c. red cabbage, chopped

1 c. Napa cabbage, chopped

1/2 carrot, shredded

1 gr. onion, chopped

1 T. almonds, sliced

1/2 c. crispy chow mein noodles, optional

Preheat oven 350 degrees. In shallow bowl, beat egg and milk; mix well. In another shallow bowl, combine flour, corn flakes, salt and pepper. Cut chicken breast into strips, lengthwise. Dip each strip into egg mixture, then into flour mixture. Fry each chicken finger for about 5 minutes.

Prepare salad by tossing salad greens and carrots together. Sprinkle green onion on top of lettuce. Toast almonds in small skillet for 3-4 minutes; sprinkle over salad. Add chow mein noodles. Place chicken fingers on top of salad. Serve dressing on the side.

*I actually skipped breading and frying the chicken because I didn't have corn flakes. So, I sprinkled and rubbed in salt, pepper, & ginger on each side of the chicken breasts. Stuck them under the broiler for 7-8 minutes on each side. Ended up still really yummy without the calories of breading and frying. Although, if I had had corn flakes, I would have kept that step in because it's just so YUMMY!

My Mother-in-law made these next two recipes for us while she was up here. It is SO good!

Mushroom Rice

1 stick butter, melted

1 onion, diced

1 1/2 c. rice

3 beef bouillon cubes

3 c. water

1 can mushrooms, sliced

1/4 c. Parmesan cheese

1-2 T. rosemary leaves*

garlic to taste

Melt butter and saute rice and onions. Add water, bouillon, mushrooms, rosemary, and garlic to mixture. Sprinkle in Parmesan. Mix & cover with lid. For white rice, cook 20 minutes. For brown rice, cook 40 minutes.

*Great tip she gave me: use a metal tea-steeper for the rosemary leaves. Leave it in while it bakes, and take it out when ready to serve. That way, you have all the flavory without having to bite into twigs.

Parmesan Chicken

1 c. bread crumbs, Italian seasoned

1/4 c. parsley leaves

1/4 c. parmesan cheese, canned

1 1/2 tsp. seasoned salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

In shallow dish, mix together the bread crumbs, parsley, parmesan, salt and pepper. Set aside.

1/3 c. butter

8-10 chicken breasts

Melt butter. Roll chicken in butter, then in bread crumb mixture. Place in casserole dish. Bake, uncovered, 325 degrees for 30 minutes. Cover; reduce heat 275 degrees and bake for 1 hour.

ENJOY! (I know I did!)

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

chilhood crush?

So, the family we sat behind at church has a little boy in Laci's primary class. When he turned around to say hi to Laci, she gave him a big hug, which isn't rare for Laci. She loves everyone and always hugs her friends when she sees them. It's just who she is, ya know? He stayed turned around smiling at her then asked me, "Is Laci in a new class now?" I explained to him that Laci had been home with us for a few weeks until we were ready to bring the new baby to church, but that she was still in the same class. Apparently, he had really missed her because he never turned back around - for the entire meeting - and just stared at Laci. At one point, I leaned over to Jason and whispered, "Do you think someone has a little crush?" And, he thought I was talking about Laci because she certainly wasn't ignoring his attention.

At the close of the meeting, this little boy leaned over our bench and said quite timidly to Jason, hesitating between each word, "Can -- you -- tell -- Laci -- that" (pause)

Jason encouraged, "Yes?"

(quite emphatically) "she's BEAUTIFUL!"

Meanwhile, Laci walked around to his bench, grabbed his hand and said, "Come on, let's go!" And, off they went to primary, hand-in-hand!

Monday, June 7, 2010

recent - and not so recent - adventures

Yesterday was our first Sunday back to church since Cole was born. (I figured since it's not cold/flu season, it's safe to bring him out at 4 weeks.)

Here he is in his church clothes.

These were Jacob's church clothes, too. As I was dressing Cole in them, I remembered that a little old lady at church came to look at Jacob and scolded me for dressing him "so grown up and not like a baby." I think she was a little miffed that she misguessed his age.

We are told to dress in our Sunday best, are we not? Baby girls get to wear big poofy dresses, tights, and flowers in their hair. Why do baby boys get treated differently?

Frankly, I don't care what anyone says, I think he looks so cute!

(Oh, and how's this for your first Sunday back? We weren't there for more than 10 minutes and one of the bishopric members asked us to speak in two weeks! We're actually really excited because they gave us a really great topic: covenants. Welcome back...)

Spencer and Hilary recently moved to UT. This is their 4-month-old baby girl, Blayke. She is a beauty!

The pictures just don't do her justice. And, no matter how many times I tried to turn his head, Cole insisted on giving us a profile at the last second.

Laci loves EVERY minute of being a big sister to a new baby!

So does Jacob.

Here we are at the Living Aquarium in Sandy. We went here when Jason's mom and sisters were here. It's been two weeks and I'm finally posting about their visit!

The kids LOVED the penguins - though, I think they didn't enjoy having to pose for pictures every few minutes.

This one looks like he's getting ready to take flight. We thought maybe he was going to dive in. Apparently not, because he stood like this for about 15 minutes! (You'd think his wings would get tired.)

It was so fun getting to see penguins this close up!

Here we are in the frog section. The kids also LOVED this area. They thought it was such a blast being bale to climb on a giant frog. (Jacob kept yelling out, "Princess and the Frog!", his new Disney favorite.)

And, here's more of what we got to see there...

Boa Constrictor

Piranha

There was also a shark tank and sting rey petting exhibit. I just didn't get pictures of those.

This was a fun area, too. The kids got to climb through make-believe tunnels of coral and sea animals.

I don't think Jacob was supposed to climb up here, but it still made a cute picture!

Hiding in a coral-reef cave.

From left to right: Holly with her son, Guess; Jacob, (yes, dressed in pink); Laci, Ashley, Cole, and Baba.

We had SO much fun with the Denham's here. (We really missed Papa and Sarah!) This is all I have pictures of, but we had a nail & Twilight party, visited Temple Square, and played LOTS of games. Great memories.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

stopping to smell the roses

is MUCH harder to do with a new baby!

A HUGE part of me wishes that all I had to do was take care of Cole. I could literally sit and stare at him all day! His little arms are plumper, his double chin rounder, his neck thicker, the creases in his skin deeper. I'm probably the only one who would even notice these minute changes. I know this should be something to celebrate...my baby is thriving, right? But, it still makes me well up with sentimental tears. How could my baby have changed so quickly?

But, such a wish is not realistic.

Reality is the kitchen floor that hasn't been washed since BEFORE Cole was born. Yuck! - and that's not the only task of housework that has been neglected so long, either. I have actually managed to wash and fold 4 loads of laundry today though.

Reality is that my older kids are feeling the neglect (maybe distraction is a nicer word, but I'm not sure that's how they see it) a newborn entails:

Jacob has been insisting on not just wearing, but twirling, in Laci's church dresses while announcing "Princess!" Classic middle child syndrome taken to a new level? This used to be an occurrence that Laci would instigate. I'm not sure how I feel about him taking the reigns. You know, 20 years ago, boys dressing in their older sisters' clothing could be laughed off. In today's society, however, I just don't think it can be anymore. Jacob needs to know he's a boy! As it is, I haven't put my foot down with him carrying Laci's doll around or playing with Barbies. And, as if that's not enouch, he's definitely mastered selective hearing to the max.

Maybe that's something he's learned from Laci. She literally ignores any orders I give. I feel like I'm repeating myself 100x before getting a reaction from either of them! Any suggestions for putting an end to this? I'm definitely going to go crazy or grey or bald from pulling my hair out during these LONG days while Jason attends school.

On the flip side, when I stop to smell the roses...

I can see that Laci and Jacob adore our little bundle as much as I do. It lights up on their faces each time they look at him.

Laci insists on pushing his swing (even though it has a motor to keep it going) or changing his diaper.

Jacob makes sure Cole has the necessities of pacifier, blanket, and toys around him at all times.

They instantly tell me if he starts crying, and get angry at me (or take matters into their own hands - which can be really scary!) if they feel like I'm taking too long responding.

During stories, they each hold Cole in their beds while I read: every day, Jacob asks to hold "Baby Cole" before I start reading. Laci begs - every time - for more stories just so she could hold him longer!

I mean, really, the roses just don't get any sweeter than that!

Monday, May 17, 2010

story behind the name

Sarah Cole is my great-great grandmother. We don't know much about her. What we do know is that she was born in England, and joined the Church there. After travelling to America, she met who would become her her husband, Edward Oakey.

We do know a little more about him, however. He was taught the gospel and baptized by Wilford Woodruff in England. Edward then sold his entire inheritance - much to the chagrin of his family members - in order to pay the passage to America for many LDS saints. He was completely broke after that. Through much personal sacrifice, he joined the saints in America. Upon meeting Sarah, the two married. Together, they settled in Nephi, Utah.

Sarah Cole's daughter, Ellen Lavelle, had deep brown eyes that looked almost black. Those eyes, I was often told from her son, my Grandpa Tew, I had inherited from her. With an affectionate smile, he would look deep into my eyes and say, "You're eyes are just like my mother's, Ellen Lavelle." Even as a little girl, I could tell it pleased him that those eyes were passed down to one of his posterity. So far, Laci and Jacob have also inherited those eyes...and it looks like Cole will have them, too.

Even though we don't know very much about Sarah Cole, we fell in love with her maiden name for this sweet new boy who has joined our family! We feel so honored to pass it on to him.

Hensley is also a family name. At age 18, my Grandma Tew - then Norma Hensley - joined the Church. She was always deeply spiritual growing up and upon hearing the missionaries, being baptized felt natural to her. She is an amazing pillar of strength, faith, and devotion to our family. We love her dearly, and it is in honor of her that we chose it for Cole's middle name.