Hiking, S'mores & Shut your pie holes

For spring break our family made a trip down to Zion National Park for some good hiking, playing in the mud, roasting hot dogs and marshmellow fun. Despite twisting my ankle the first day of our vacation and not on a hike mind you... just walking to the bathroom with my girls... we did a few good hikes as a family. We went on the "Canyon Overlook" hike with all the kids which Eric and I tried to do about 6 years ago with my parents when Finn and Annie were 4 and 2. We ended up turning around because I kept freaking out about the drop-offs and I do remember envisioning my two children plummeting to their deaths off the narrow trails and into the canyon crevices. Here is a picture of us at about the point we turned around last time.

So needless to say I was a bit hesitant to try it again with 2 additional children that were about the same age. But this time we made it to the end of the hike. When we got to the actual "Canyon Overlook" I decided that the hike wasn't nearly as bad as I had remembered it. Plus the view at the end was definitely worth it. I was remarking about this to Eric and off-handedly said, "I must have mellowed over the past few years." He said, without hesitation, "Uh... yea!" He also offered this theory as to why I wasn't as worried about my kids this time. He said it was because the first time I only had 2 children and they were both precious to me. But now that I have 4, a few are dispensible. That makes sense too!:) Either way it was a hike we all enjoyed. I also noted to Eric that the supposed "scary" drop-offs I experienced the first time basically stopped at just about the point where we had turned around. Oh well, live and learn! Here we are at the end of "Canyon Overlook" where if you go just a few feet past where this picture was taken you would plummet to your death into the canyon!Another fun part of our trip was roasting marshmallows for s'mores. While watching my family enjoy this time-honored camping tradition, I couldn't help notice that there are two schools of thought when it comes to the actual roasting of the marshmallow. The first is to haphazardly stick your marshmallow into the flame and either expectantly hope it will catch on fire or ignore it until it bursts into flames and someone has to tell you that your marshmallow is on fire. This produces a "blackened" still chewy marshmallow that lends a charred flavor to the entire s'more once the flames are blown out. Not surprisingly it is the under 12 set that enjoy or embrace this method of marshmallow roasting. I also witnessed a peculiar subset of this school of marshmallow roasting thought that strangely only occurs to boys ages 9-12. It is to completely abandon any pretense of using a marshmallow for the purpose of a s'more and just throw it into the middle of the fire. And of course what follows is a barrage of "Wow"s and "cool"s and "Did you see that"s by all the "blackened" marshmallow devotees as they watch the marshmallow burn then expand then burn and expand over and over until it shrivels to its non-s'more fire ash death. Although its fire dance performance was enjoyed by all those under 12, I'm not sure it felt it meet the measure of its creation, not being in a s'more and all.

Of course the more mature s'more consumer adheres to the second school of thought when it comes to roasting a marshmallow. This thing of beauty consists of gently placing the marshmallow just above the flames reach and slowly rotating. You could also place the marshmallow in the sweet spot of the fire where the wood has stopped producing flames but is still smoldering a bright red. But this spot only comes after the fire has been burning for awhile. This method requires patience as the marshmallow slowly roasts turning a golden brown but the end result is a gooey, smooth lava flow of sugary goodness that compliments the chocolate and graham cracker much like a fine red wine compliments a steak... not that I know, but from what I've heard. You know the marshmallow is ready when it droops down from the roasting stick. Then you know your patience is just moments away from paying off. Of course once the 1st school of roasting participants taste the sweet nectar that results from the 2nd school of roasting they are easily converted.

And if you took the time to read a post mostly devoted to s'mores then you are worthy of receiving the following recipe. This recipe, courtesy of the previous post's subject, kicks a s'more up to a whole new level that they can't even be called s'mores anymore. These are deservedly called "Shut Your Pie Holes" and once you taste them you won't go back to a plain old s'more again! The trick is after you put a marshmallow on your stick to roast it, you then slide it down a little further and add a caramel. Roast the two together, preferably using the above-mentioned second method, then when you slide the droopy, golden brown marshmallow off it envelopes the caramel. Proceed to make a s'more like you normally would and then savor this sweet little campfire ambrosia.

Happy "Shut Your Pie Hole" season!

"A good friend will bail you out of jail, but a best friend will join you in jail and then talk about what a good time you had in there."

Have you ever had a friend who "gets" you? Have you ever had a friend who you can say just about anything to and you know they won't judge you or take it the wrong way? Have you ever had a friend who you can completely be yourself around? Have you ever had a friend who can bring out the silly, fun, ridiculous side of you? Well if you haven't I hope you do someday and if you do I hope you realize what a precious gift it is. My friend, Julie, is one of those people for me. We have only known each other about 5 years but our connection was so instantly strong that I'm pretty sure when we met it was just a reacquaintance from a previous relationship. (If you are LDS read: pre-existence; If you are Hindu or Buddist read: previous life.) I am not being glib or trite when I say that I truly believe our relationship was divinely guided. She came into my life at just the time when I needed a best friend like her. She has a gift to make people feel instantly comfortable and loved. I am always amazed to see how people transform in her presence.

She has truly become like another sister to me. In fact my younger kids think she is my sister. Just yesterday Katie was listing my sisters. She said, "There's Michelle and Natalie and Julie." I told that actually Julie wasn't my sister. She looked at me shocked and said, "She isn't?!?" But I do feel like she is a sister and
I have been accepted into her extended family as another sister too. (Even though only about half of her brothers and sisters recognize this!) It is a terrific arrangment because I get the benefits of another family... love, interest in me, including me in events, etc. and none of the responsibilities... if I don't want to go to said events I don't have to and I don't have to help anyone move. And speaking of moving that brings up the only problem with being a member of the family is they all love me and leave me. Julie's sister, Amber and sister-in-law Jen have both become good friends and then moved out of the state. And now even Julie is going to love me and leave me. She isn't moving out of state just probably about 20 minutes away. But that is really going to limit our leftover lunches, GNOs, hanging out at each other's houses and wasting time, and being able to drop everything and go to lunch. But I know 20 minutes won't change the great love and respect we have for each other.

So happy birthday to my sister from another mister! Thanks for joining me in my "jail" for awhile and then telling me what an awesome, amazing peron I was for making it through. And for making it sooooo much fun. I love you!

My Favorite March Arrival Arrived 11 years ago today!

So my all time favorite March arrival came 11 years ago today at about 3:15pm. My favorite son, Finn, was born and heralded in not only the spring season but also a new season in my life. So to commerate this occassion here are 11 things I love about Finn:

1. Unlike Charlie, see previous post and disclaimer, he WAS a pretty baby and 11 years later he is still a handsome devil.

2. He is so much like his father it is scary. A few weeks ago he was questioning me about why I was taking Suzie to have professional pictures taken of her. He was sure that our digital camera would do just as good a job as the photographer's camera and said that we should just take pictures of her at home. I informed him that on this subject he gets no opinion- a practice I have had to perfect with his father!;)

3. He is the consummate boy scout. He was born with the boy scout motto of "be prepared" running through his veins. Once when he was about 5 we were getting ready to go to a cabin for the weekend. He wanted to pack everything but the kitchen sink in his backpack. I weeded out several useless items but he insisted that he bring his flashlight. I tried to assure him we wouldn't need a flashlight because he were staying in a cabin with electricity. But he wouldn't part with it. And wouldn't you know it the power went out at the cabin just when we were getting ready for bed and whose flashlight do you think we used... yep, Finn's crayola one!

4. Not only is he prepared he is also extremely responsible. This past weekend I was running a race in Moab and he overheard that I had to get up at 6:30 am to get ready. At 6:35am he came into my room and woke me up saying, "Mom, its 6:35- you need to get up for your race."

5. He has worked really hard this year to keep his grades up.

6. Despite some standard brotherly teasing, he is a terrific older brother to his 3 crazy sisters.

7. He has a quick wit and a great sense of humor. (Warning: 11 year old potty humor coming up!) We were at a restaurant with Finn's cousins- Michael and Jeffrey and Eric asked the boys if they wanted refills on their drinks. Finn said he didn't need a drink refill but that he needed to go give the toilet a "refill."

8. He is so much like his father in several good ways that it just has to be mentioned again. He is Eric's "mini-me."

9. Even though he has started to be more reluctant about it, he is almost always obedient.

10. He is a great example to his family and friends.

11. He has a tender, kind heart that he can't hide from his mom... just like his Dad can't hide either as much as they both might try!

Love you Finn!

March Arrivals

There are a few things that are making their appearance in March that need mentioning.

First-place arrival- I am an aunt for the 18th time! Here is a picture of my sisters's 6TH BOY!

Charlie Paulsen Wood
Does she and her husband ever produce some manly babies or what? He looks very much like all his brothers and he is very cute, but not a very pretty baby! Don't worry- my sister was the first to say this. And all her boys are extremely handsome. I'm feeling so guilty about saying he is not a pretty baby that I have to include a picture of all her boys in case you don't know her.

When my sister found out she was having another boy, I think I was more shocked than she was. She had had a very distinct dream about a little, blonde girl in a pink sleeper even before she was pregnant with Charlie. I also have had a distinct dream about a little dark-haired girl who looks like Eric when I was pregnant with Katie. So since all my girls have very-red hair and all Michelle's children have very manly parts and faces, we have decided that her blonde-haired pink adorned little girl and my dark-haired female Eric are off playing together in the clouds. Just don't expect any appearances any time soon. They must be grand-daughters or something!

Tied for first place arrival in March:

These people are coming home this month! We are excited to have them back. And I think they are ready to come home. My Dad fell a few weeks ago hurting his foot and my mom worked herself into a week-long headache last week. So they are ready to come home and relax and of course resume baby-sitting duties!;)

A close second place arrival in March:

These are a close second to the birth of a nephew and the return of my parents because although I haven't seen my parents in 18 months, it has been a full year since I have seen these beauties! It always brightens my day when my cute neighbor shows up on my porch with a bag full of these. And I almost always forget that I have ordered them. And don't worry I ordered even more from another friend's daughter and they will be making their arrival around the middle of March. Of course I have to hide them from my children not because I don't intend to share them but because they come in like a swarm of termites and do this to a full box in 5 minutes flat!

I already have a special stash of Samoas in my bedroom for just Eric and I.

Isn't March grand?!?

The psychosis of my daughters

I absolutely love my sassy, creative, full of life daughters. Every single one of them. But at times even though we share the same chromosome structure and half the same DNA, I just don't get them. I don't mean to make light of psychological problems and disorders because I know they are real, but it is the only way to underscore how irrational they can be at times.

We, like most families with mutiple children, have had our fair share of ridiculous arguments in our house. Things like who has the most juice or whose turn it is to set the table or who knows the most Isaacs- (yes, this was a real discussion in our house because we know several Isaacs between friends, family and brothers of friends). Our latest ridiculous argument was between Annie and Katie the other night about this:

Yes, a chair and not about what you would think- not whose turn it was to sit in it. I had put the girls to bed. In the time it took me to go upstairs WW III had broken out. I heard wails, screams and gnashing of teeth that would have made the "Wild Things" jealous. By the time I got back downstairs Eric was desperately trying to figure out what was causing such a ruckus. This is how the conversation went:
Eric: "So you want the chair like this?"

Katie:"Yes, that is how I like it."

Annie:"NOOOOO! I don't like it like that!"

Eric to Annie: "So, you want to look like this?" (Eric turns chair.)

Annie (between sobs): "YES! That's the way I want it."

Katie:"No! She always has it that way and I want it the other way." (Eric turns the chair again and the conversation pretty much repeats itself.)

At this point Eric looks at me with a "They're your daughters" look. To which I just turn away and let him handle it because I have a strict clause in my motherhood contract that says I punch out at 9 pm. Unless someone needs a drink of water or is throwing up or having a bad dream or is sleep-walking- which Annie did a few nights ago- or I have tooth-fairy duty or someone suddenly remembers homework they didn't do or several other possibilities. BUT I do NOT deal with arguing over the position of a chair when I have been on duty for over 14 hours. So just to recap here is how Annie wanted the chair:

And here is how Katie wanted the chair:

Can you see the difference? Yeah... me or Eric either! When Eric came upstairs I asked him how he handled it. He said he put it the way Annie wanted it and told Katie to get over it and go to sleep. Sounds like perfectly reasonable parenting to me at 9:30 at night!

This Rag-a-Muffin's 3rd Happy to You

I can't believe my baby is 3 years old! This child is the most pleasant, friendliest, loving little munchkins you'll ever meet. And that's saying something coming off the "supposed" terrible twos. But in my experience three year olds are a lot harder than two year olds. So consider this- tap, tap- my virtual knock on wood. But in honor of Suzie's 3rd "Happy to You" I wanted to write down a few things about her.

* She gives the best hugs and sloppy kisses while saying, "I love you SOOO much mommy!"

* She is a food lover. She will eat just about anything and has very adult tastes eating things like fresh tomatoes and avocadoes straight from the skin. I am often guilty of cleaning up her food before she is done and she calls me on it almost every time. She will go off playing and I will clear it off or eat it myself! and she will come back asking, "Where's my food mommy?" She is very aware of what she has left. She also asks me everyday what's for dinner. Like her mom, she likes to have her mouth all set for what is in store.

*She is everyone's favorite- hands down. But being the baby may have something to do with this.

*She is really fun to give gifts to. You could give her a half used/chewed up eraser and she would think it was the greatest thing in the world. When she got the above pictured Princess teapot from her Aunt Jessica, she said, "OH, a Drinkpot!" with such enthusiasm and excitement.

*She says the funniest things. This morning I ran out of time before I had to go run errands, so I didn't get a chance to do her hair. (Me not doing my girls' hair...shocking- I know!) We were driving in the car and she said in frustration, "Mom, my hair is looking at me." I glanced back at her not understanding at all what she was talking about and saw her hair in her eyes. I said, "Oh, is your hair in your eyes?" She said, "Yeah, my hair keeps looking at me and I don't like it." Man I hate it when my hair looks at me!

So this picture is a 3 year old Suzie with her hair looking at her while holding her "drinkpot."

Happy Birthday!

New Year's Resolutions

I've decided that the key to being successful with New Year's Resolutions is to set really simple, attainable goals for yourself. For example my sister's new year's resolution last year was to floss every day. And even though she didn't accomplish it and I had to remind her that was her goal halfway through the year, it was a simple goal for a mother of 5+ children to have. I overheard another mom of 5 children say her goal this year was to moisturize everyday. Now that is a woman who understands her limits.
So in this spirit I am setting 2 New Year's Resolutions for myself. I allowed myself 2 because I only have 4 children and no one in diapers, so I have a bit more disposable time.
1. Use coupons more. I use to be extremely frugal and very careful about what I spent. I have gotten out of this habit, but I want to start it up again. I'm hoping to finally make back the 20 bucks I spend on Happenings books every single year!
2. Use my kids more. It has come to my attention that I do things for my children that they are perfectly capable of doing for themselves, but continue to allow me to do them because I will. Case in point- Last night I was serving up dinner for my kids and Finn asked me to pour him a glass of milk. I said, "Finn you are almost 11 years old. Back in the olden days, kids your age were traveling for days on horseback by themselves... having to find food for themselves and sleeping alone under the stars. I think you are old enough to pour your own glass of milk." Eric pointed out that also back in the olden days the life span was 30 years old so Finn would practically be middle-aged. True, but if the average life span is now 76 I still think Finn is at the point where he can pour his own milk. I just won't expect him to be traveling by horseback, scavenging for food and sleeping under the stars until at least his mid-thirties.
So my new mantra to ask myself when I am doing something is, "Is this something my kids can do?" If yes, then I will stop doing it and give them the opportunity to do it.
Also I know I haven't posted any new "boyfriend" recipes lately. But I am working on a few. It is my turn to host Cooking Club this month and I've got some good ones.