HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Today the kids and I made sugar cookies and frosted them! I found a great frosting recipe online for the kind that dries and hardens - it was so thick that they were able to just use paint brushes and paint their frosting on! They had fun! And I think ate so much frosting that they felt a little sick! There's nothing like a bowl full of sugar the day before Halloween! :)

Here's two that I made for Kylee while she was at school because I love her and she's so pretty! :)

Another Catch Up!!!

Ok, I finally got my photos back from my broken external hard drive :) so I will do a quick catch up here.

Now, this little story is probably going to put me in the dog house, but it is SOOOO funny to me, I just have to tell it. This happened a while ago but I needed the photo in order to have it be funny to anyone else! A little background...I will call Steve "Plumber" when his pants are riding just a little too low...if you know what I mean. :) It's kind of an ongoing joke that THAT is just what happens to daddys pants sometimes. Well, we are riding in the car and the kids were eating vanilla wafer cookies for a snack. However, they really like the mini size ones. Suddenly Brie yells out, "Hey mom! Look! It's Dad's butt!" I look back & she is holding this up:

:) I've said it before - I LOVE the things kids come up with! Oh they just crack me up!

Ok, here's a few photos of something the kids and I did together. They really like to help me bake and we went for a rainbow cake. They had fun each getting to color 2 bowls of batter. It was fun, but the cake turned out HUGE! I gave about half to my neighbor - who's son said "this cake is AWESOME!" It really was! And I finally have photos of the Heart Attack Cinn. Rolls I posted the recipe for earlier. Mmmmm...don't they just make your mouth water! They are SO good - try 'em!

Oh the things they say...

Yesterday my kiddos said a few funny things. It seems like I never remember to write them down and I always wish I had. So there's no better place then on the blog - I know I'll always have it there! :)

Kylee was holding Emmy and referring to the stork bite on the back of her neck and she says to me, "Hey mom, so when is this pelican's rash supposed to go away?" Oh my gosh I laughed so hard. She's too cute.

Brinkly was in the kitchen with me while I was trying to make dinner and she just kept doing things she wasn't supposed to. I kept having to tell her to stop. Finally she asked me for some sort of snack and I said, "not right now. I'm making dinner and we'll be eating that in a few minutes." She looks back at me, puts her hand on her hip and says, "Mom. You being in charge really isn't working out for me." :) Died laughing again.

I am so thankful for those kind of moments that my kids bring to me each day. They really do make it a little brighter!

Catching up...

Well...I have a ton of stuff that I haven't blogged due to lost files. However I found these on my other camera...so we're not at a total loss! :)

I went to Oregon the first week of September for a little "me" time and to see my friend Emily. It was SOOOOOO nice to be there - it's beautiful - and to talk with her, and just relax for a few days. So in this first photo is Jen - we went to high school together and she's SO cute - I have always loved her adorable personality and now I got to see her kids - and they are really cute also. It was so great to get to spend a little time with her.


Emily and I have both had a ton of "crap" to deal with lately - it's so nice to have a friend that understands what you feel, need, and think. I love her to death and know she is such a blessing in my life. The night I was taking photos we were talking about "stuff" and our attitudes weren't the best...so here's a photo of Emily showing us all just how we feel about life sometimes! :) I love her honesty.

On a better note, we went to get pedicures together and it was fun. The massage chairs were to die for. And I think the poor lady working on my feet thought I was crazy cause I couldn't stop laughing. Secrets out - I am SUPER ticklish!
SO pretty huh? :) We also went out to eat then shopping. Emily wanted to just look around in American Eagle but when we went in they gave us both a scratch off game piece to see what discount we would get. Emily opened hers and she had won a free $50 gift card! I was screaming for her! So she got new jeans and a T. GO EMILY!!!

Ok, here's a little game that Brie, Deagan and Daddy like to play. Brie made up the name all by herself! :) Listen and she'll tell you what it is! Last video is of Emmy who is 5 months old now.

And I don't care what you say, baby talk is just fine and I love to do it! :P

Tara's Heart Attack Cinnimon Rolls

Ok guys...I know a few of you have been patiently waiting for this. I haven't blogged in a while 'cause my hard drive broke and I haven't been able to get any photos or info off of it. HOPEFULLY that'll change this week and we'll be able to retrieve all my stuff! So I had a yummy photo of these cinn. rolls but I'll have to add it later.

These are SOOOO yummy, better then cinnibon, and in NO way good for you. *Make at your own risk* :D

I adjusted the recipe just a little to make them even better. They take 4 hours to make...but you aren't working the whole time. Most of it is just rising and cook time, so it's not as bad as it sounds. And if you know me, I HATE spending time making things...but this was TOTALLY worth it! Also it makes a ton so be willing to share or make for a party or something. Here we go!

In a small bowl combine and set aside:
1 cup white sugar
1&1/2 cup brown sugar
4-5 Tablespoons cinnamon

In your LARGE mixer:
1 cup milk
1tablespoon cinnamon
2/3 cup sugar
2/3 cup melted butter
2 tsp. salt
2 eggs (already beaten)
Mix well.

In another small bowl:
2 - .25 pkgs yeast
1 tsp. sugar
1 cup water (110*)
Once this is combined, pour it into the large mixer.

Add 4 cups of flour and continue to add flour till dough is stiff. (I ended up using 8 total cups)

Put dough on a WELL FLOURED surface and knead for 8 minutes. (keep adding flour to surface when it gets sticky) Then put your dough in a large greased bowl, cover with a damp warm towell and let rise for 1.5 hours in a non-drafty place. Should double in size.

Prepare your pans while it is rising...you'll find pan directions below.

Punch dough (to let out air) then let rest for 5 mins. Then roll out the dough to an 18"x25" rectangle. With the side of a spatula, spread 3/4 - 1 cup of SOFT (not melted) butter across the rolled out dough. Sprinkle with the cinn. & sugar mixture you made first. Push this mixture down onto the dough just a little bit then roll the dough as TIGHTLY as you can. Roll it the short way so you have a very long roll once you're done.

Cut the roll into about 1-1&1/2 inch slices with either a knife or tie floss around and pull to cut.

Coat the bottom and sides of 2 - 9x13" pans with 1/2 stick of SOFT butter. (yep, that's a 1/2 stick per pan!) and sprinkle then sprinkle with 1/3- 1/2 cup of brown sugar...thin but enough to coat the entire pan. Lay slices in pan with edges touching but not tightly packed in...they need room to grow! :)

Let rise for 45 mins. in a warm place. (I covered mine with plastic wrap for the second half of the time) When ready, cook for 25-30 mins (will be golden on top) at 350*

Let cool for 10 mins then spread with frosting. Let stand 5 more mins then enjoy!
Leftovers are great in microwave for 12 seconds, and let sit for a few mins.

FROSTING
1/4 c. soft butter
2 oz. cream cheese soft
1 c. poweder sugar
1 teas. vanilla
(If you want enough to cover both pans of rolls you'll need to double this)

I know, that is a LOT of butter and sugar. Thats why I named them Heart Attack. :) Dont skimp on these items...it is truely what makes them taste so good. Have lots of milk handy! And be sure to comment if you make them and tell me what you think!

Emmersyn is 5 months!

I LOVE how full of smiles my little Emmy always is. She melts my heart (ok, all my kids do) and I just cant help smiling myself when I see her bright smile light up the room. I am so thankful she is part of our family.

She is 5 months old now! Time is going by much faster then I would like...but I am enjoying her as much as I can. The kids all love her also. She is starting to laugh a lot more for us - but she seems to be the quietest of all my kids. You don't hear a lot out of her unless she's needing something! WE love you Emmy!

The 7th grade Session

I took my cute Kylee and her friend out to do photos early one morning. They seemed to have fun. I get so many cute shots of Kylee because she isn't shy and just knows how to have fun. LOVE IT!!! She's such a cute girl...These are the ones she has hanging up in her room. I think the last one was her FAVE.