Canning beans and wheat and rice, do dah, do dah!

Mess in the kitchen = annoyingly common


Kids wanting to help = common and somewhat annoying




Being prepared with food storage = PRICELESS


I have to admit...I'm feeling a bit accomplished. I borrowed the stake can sealer, purchased beans, wheat flour and rice in bulk, bought cans, lids and boxes from the cannery and went at it (canning, that is). I helped a friend can her food and she stayed and helped me can some of mine. I had to make an extra trip to the store for more beans and rice; this gave the kids an opportunity to help me can. It was also a perfect opportunity to talk to them about the importance of food storage, being prepared, etc. So, today, I added 26 cans of food to my growing year supply. Yeah! My next task: more water storage. (I still have 25 lbs of white rice and 25 lbs of pinto beans to can - I ran out of cans and lids. I haven't mastered the art of counting cans per pounds of food or reading the recommended contents from the cannery's chart. Duh and darn).
For more info on family food storage, click here: http://www.providentliving.org

Diarrhea of the camera

I have a new camera! I am so excited about this that I have developed diarrhea of the camera. Symptoms include, but are not limited to: excess picture taking, children crying due to 'hold still' demands, husband getting impatient over wife's constant picture taking. I believe the symptoms are virtually harmless and, well, they're a small price to pay for documenting my kid's cuteness and youth. Germaphobes need not worry, this type of diarrhea is not contagious.
Enjoy this slide show of my family's Easter egg hunt, hanging out around the house and Sarah and the twins jumping onto and bouncing off the couch. Life is great!

Glad it was just the window

Here we go again. This time I am much calmer and thankful things weren't as bad as they could have been. I will explain: Our day was all planned out with errands, parties and such. Mike was headed out to the gym early this morning when he discovered that the back window of our mini van was totally smashed out/in. He came in and told me to get dressed because I will want to come outside. It was raining and cold and I didn't want to go outside but he kept insisting. It's then when I saw the damage. It appeared as though some idiot smashed the window (with a huge rock that is now in our driveway) and ran off. I thought of the last time our van was broken into and my purse was stolen, followed by the van being stolen 3 months later. Uhhh. Sigh. Expletive. Censored.
Mike asked me to check and see if anything was missing. I looked in the back window/hole and saw broken glass everywhere. I also saw my double stroller, the Easter treats I bought the kids and the two new light fixtures for our house in the back of the van. I checked the front and got out the 'valuables' I left in the van. Thank goodness nothing was stolen! I called the police and made a report (not that anything will ever come of it) and called the insurance company to make a claim. There is a crack in the moulding that can be replaced and the frame is bent (but I don't care about that) - I just want the window fixed.
I told Mike that we can only laugh about this: the window's smashed and it's raining (pouring) inside the van. What are the chances that would happen, seriously? Mike put a tarp over the hole while we cleaned out the van (not fun). Mike then taped the hole with black garbage bags for a more secure fit. Ghetto.
As I write this, Sam and Mike are off to get the window replaced (no mobile units will service glass because it's still raining outside). Did I mention that I am extreemly grateful there is a shop open today with the right size glass in stock!? I'm with the twins at home and my kind sister-in-law picked up Sarah for a cousin's birthday party. Even though it is raining, things could have been worse.

Conference good, kids not

Mike and I enjoyed watching conference today. The kids did not. They are excited that they don't have to go to church tomorrow...they don't realize that tomorrow is another day of conference. Life's good.

April Fool's Day Joke a Nice Try

This year's April Fool's day joke was a nod to an experience our family had back in December of 2006. It was a beautiful December Sunday morning and, as usual, we were rushing to get to church on time. The kids were bathed, Mike s s and s, and I even washed and blew my hair dry for church for the first time since the twins were born. The babies were buckled up in their infant seats (3 days before their 1st birthday) all cute and smelling great. Mike's job was to open the van doors, encourage the older kids into their seats and start the car. My job was to load the babies. With twins in hand (biceps burning) I headed for the door. Did I mention that we were actually going to be on-time for church that day (8:00am)!
Mike came back inside the house and asked, "Where did you put the van?"
I said, "What do you mean?"
He said, "You know, like, did you park it on the side of the house?" (we live on a corner)
I said, "No, why?"
He said, "'Cause it's not in the driveway."
I put the babies down and walked outside to see for myself. The driveway was bare. Yup, it was gone. The kids could feel the tension in our voices. The twins started to fuss and Sam and Sarah started to act like chickens with their heads cut off. Running around all weird and stuff - they were visibly upset.
Mike took the older kids to church and dropped them off with a good friend. I made a series of phone calls that I thought I would never have to make. Mike's parents provided us with a spare car until our insurance paid us for our loss (33 days later). Luckily, our claim paid out more than we paid for the van new off the lot (it was almost 2 years old). We bought another new minivan and have enjoyed this one more than the last.
So, today I hid our van around the corner and waited for Mike to come home from work. He came in the door and asked where the van was. I was busy dealing with Sarah and her eye, Sam yelled that it was stolen while I was at the gym. Mike kept asking me where the van was but I was being bombarded by toddler requests and just couldn't pull off a good reply that would cause him to really be concerned.
I walked in the kitchen and told him that I couldn't hear what he was asking. He said that he figured it out about the second time he asked about the van. He said it was then that he realized it was April Fool's day. Darn.
Maybe I will get him next year.