SKATELAND!

Since there was no school on Tuesday due to Veterans Day, the kids and I met some friends at the Chandler Skateland! Since it was a holiday, it only cost $1 to get in if you were there before 10:30am. That is a deal, so off we went! Now, I remember going to Skateland when I was younger and LOVING it. I haven't been there in years. Going there today brought back TONS of memories. What I don't remember though is the cheesiness of it. HAHA! Was it always that cheesy and I just don't remember it being like that, or was it that cheesy but as a kid we think that stuff is cool? When they started playing YMCA, I instantly felt old. They even did the Hokey Pokey! I haven't done that in years! The music was really loud and when they turned the lights off and had the disco ball going, I thought, oh boy I'm at a 70's disco! It kind of made me dizzy skating around with the disco ball. The kids loved it though. Oh and yes, I DID rollerblade! I haven't in awhile, but yeah, I still got it. ;) I didn't fall once and I went pretty fast. The kids haven't really taken to rollerblading or rollerskating, so they fell quite a bit at first but they eventually got it and did pretty well. Jacob traded in the blades for skates and did much better with that. Cole stuck it out on the blades and in no time both of them got to where they didn't fall too much. It cracks me up that I grew up always going to Skateland and loving it and now years later our kids are enjoying that place. Ahh, great times there at good ole Skateland! Anyone else have fond, or not so fond, memories of that place? :) Is the one in Mesa even there anymore?

Here are some pictures. Some didn't turn out too great cause like I said it was dark most of the time so I had to do some photoshopping in a few.

Check out those sweet skates! They look the same as they did 25 years ago!

Cole is stylin' with Rollerblades. Those weren't around all those years ago when I was a kid.

It was a bit dark in there. Remember those painted walls? Yep, they still look the same! :)

They have their balance pretty well here.

Here comes Cole doing pretty well, then BAM! He starts to lose it and almost takes Jacob with him. Jacob was holding onto the wall pretty tight trying hard not to fall too! HAHA!

Good times had by all! :)

Monkey Bread!

So I asked a few weeks ago if anyone had a recipe for Monkey Bread. I'm happy to report that my good friend Amy came through for me. I'm posting it cause it is SOOO YUMMY and super easy. It's like cinnamon rolls, but better I think. I meant to post it sooner, but I kept forgetting. You all must make it for breakfast sometime. Jacob told me that I make the best cinnamon rolls ever after he ate it. That kid is easy to please though. Thanks Amy! :)

Monkey Bread
Amy Lunt

18 frozen dinner rolls (Rhodes)

½ C. brown sugar
1 small pkg. regular butterscotch pudding mix (not instant, it has to be cook and serve kind)
½ C. melted margarine

½ C. chopped nuts (I didn't use nuts cause I'm not a big fan of them)
sprinkle cinnamon on top (optional- I did this and I think it's better with it)

Place frozen rolls in greased Bundt pan. Sprinkle on dry ingredients. Pour melted margarine over all. Sprinkle cinnamon all over. Cover with foil, then a dishcloth. Let stand on counter overnight. In the morning, bake at 325º for 20 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes then invert onto plate. Best when served warm.

So GOOD people! Go now to get what you need to make it for Saturday morning cause you have to prepare it Friday night. ;)

Vote 4 Cole 4 VP!

That is what his poster said when he decided to run for VP at school last week. He gave a speech in front of the 4-6 graders and he was slightly nervous. For those of you who know Cole really well, you know that he has a reserved and shy nature about him. Speaking in front of people is not his strong suit by any means. I have to bribe him sometimes just to get him to bear his testimony. (is that bad?) He turns about 5 shades of red. He is actually a lot like me. I was terribly shy when I was younger and I would also turn shades of red whenever I had to speak in front of a large group of people. Getting out in the real world cured me of that. Now for those of you who know me really well, know that I'm no longer shy and I even like to speak my mind. My hope is that Cole will eventually grow out of his shyness too. I think it's sweet right now, but I know he's going to hate it when he gets older.

When he prepared his speech, he did it totally on his own. He didn't want any help. He practiced it in front of Nick and I and he did a really good job. When it came time to talk in front of his classmates, well he left a few things out. He even acknowledged that. He said he was really nervous. I knew that because his face was bright red! I think he did great and I'm glad I was there to watch it and record it. He didn't win, a 6th grader did, but for his 1st year at running for something, he did awesome! I think by the time he's a 6th grader, he might even possibly win! :) Way to go Cole! We're proud of you!

Here's some pictures with all the candidates. That dang sun, I couldn't get a decent picture. Cole's on the end.

Here's one after it was over. He looks relieved!

Okay, here's his speech. I bet people are sorry now that he didn't win. He promised to bring back pizza Fridays and dress down days every Friday meaning NO uniforms on Fridays! For those of you who don't know about this school, that is GOLD! He hates wearing uniforms everyday and there isn't a cafeteria at the school, so last year they brought in pizza every Friday for the kids that wanted it and paid for it. This year they aren't doing that so they have to bring a lunch from home everyday. The kids LOVE pizza Friday, and so do I! He also promised MORE parties that will be super fun and 5 minutes extra of recess and lunch! ;) Love ya bud! We think you're great and you're our pick for VP! :)

Celebrating 13 years of Marital....BLISS!

Mine and Nick's 13th wedding anniversary is today, Sunday. Last night we went out on a date, just the two of us, and celebrated. We went to dinner with no kids whining and embarrassing us at a nice restaurant and then we went to a movie. Today is the actual day and he unfortunately has to work. So, I've been reflecting on the past 13 years and I do have to say that they haven't been perfect by any means, but I wouldn't trade them for anything either. Sure we've had our ups and downs, who hasn't, but we've also had some really, really good times when it was just the two of us and of course since we've had kids. But, now that we've come this far, I LOVE where we're at. Nick is my best friend. I can tell him anything. After 13 years we have great respect for each other and I'm more in love with him now than I was when we first got married. He makes me laugh and he works hard every day for our family and that allows me to stay home and watch our boys grow. I'm so grateful for that. He is a terrific father and husband. Our kids adore him. I feel blessed that we are a forever family. This post is dedicated to him on our special day. Happy Anniversary honey! Thank you for all you do for us! I love you! :)

Here are some pictures, past and present, that I want to share. The past ones may be a little scary looking. My scanner is broken so I had to take a picture of them with my camera.

This is right before we got engaged. Boy do we look young! I don't think I will ever be that skinny again. After all this picture is PRE-Pregnancy weight!

This is our wedding day. The picture on the left isn't a very clear copy. Again, we look so different. I weighed 105 pounds when we got married. Yeah, pretty sure those days are gone. :(

These were both taken last night before we went out. Cole took the one on the left and Jacob took the one on the right. Not bad I must say. They take pretty good pictures. Nick is trying to look cool and I don't know what I'm doing. We're both a few pounds heavier, and a little more wrinkled around the edges, but more in love than ever.

Now that I've made you all want to barf, you are free to get up and go puke from all this mush if you must! ;)

UPDATE: After I started this post, Nick called and had car trouble on the way home from work and had to wait for 2 hours for roadside assistance. Not a fun way to spend our anniversary. At least we had a good time together last night! So sorry dear.

Crockpot Brown Sugar Chicken Recipe

Yes, this recipe calls for Brown Sugar. It's soooo good! Seriously, go to the store now to get the ingredients. You need to make this for dinner. Nick likes this so much that it almost beat out his most favorite chicken recipe that I make in the crockpot. The 1st one I listed. I found this recipe here. This lady uses her crockpot every day! I also have her link listed under my favorite websites.

Ingredients:
-12 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, or 6 boneless, skinless breast halves
-1 cup brown sugar
-1/4 cup lemon-lime soda (stay with me...)
-2/3 cup white vinegar
-3 cloves smashed and chopped garlic
-2 T soy sauce
-1 tsp ground black pepper

The Directions:
Plop the chicken into your crockpot. Cover with the brown sugar, pepper, chopped garlic, and soy sauce. Add the vinegar, and pour in the soda. It will bubble! Cover and cook on low for 6-9 hours, or on high for 4-5. The chicken is done when it is cooked through and has reached desired consistency. The longer you cook it, the more tender it will be. Serve over a bowl of white rice with a ladle full of the broth.

Here is the picture from her website.

The boys inhaled this. Nick raved all night about how good it is. It really is some of the best chicken I've ever made. The Crockpot lady, (that's what I call her) has some great recipes and I plan on trying more. I will post the ones that I like best on here. So go now to the store and get what you need to make this for dinner this weekend. It's awesome!

Trick or Treat!

We had such a good time this year on Halloween. We started the night out by going to our wards Trunk or Treat. Games, face painting, cotton candy, chili, cake walk, and did I mention Trunk or Treating for CANDY! Once we left there we headed to our good friends, the Stradlings neighborhood to go Trick or Treating with them. We don't get a lot of kids in our neighborhood and they had TONS of kids and TONS of houses passing out candy. Plus, they had a haunted house in the area that was small, but SCARED the boys a bit. People were jumping out at them at different houses as well. One guy was laying down in his yard with a scary mask on and I could have sworn it wasn't a real person. Jacob was brave and walked over to him and the guy almost GRABBED his leg and scared the crap out of Jacob. Those were his words, "He scared the crap out of me!" HAHA! Two of the Stradling boys are their exact same age and were also dressed up as Star Wars characters. We didn't even plan that but it was great cause they all matched and looked AWESOME together. Sparky had other plans for the costume I bought him. I struggled for 20min with that mutt trying to put the costume on him and I just didn't succeed. He wanted to chew it instead. He was so wiggly that I'm surprised I even got it halfway on him. I gave up and so we didn't have Yoda with us this year. Here are some fun pictures of the evening.

Here is Luke and Darth Vader before we left the house. I don't think the real Luke would be putting up with that blade so close to his throat from Darth Vader, do you?

Here they are in their fighting stance. I kept waiting for Cole to say, "Luke, I am your father", but he never did, LOL!

Here they are at the Trunk or Treat, Cole without a mask. We even found a Yoda! This is the Patton's little boy. He is so cute, I had to take a picture. He didn't want to have his picture taken though so I had to make it quick. Isn't he cute? Wise one he is! (In my Yoda voice) :)

Here they are with the Stradling boys at Trunk or Treat. Jacob as Luke and Ethan as Anakin. Dylan as a Clone Trooper and Cole as Darth Vader. How much cotton candy can Jacob eat? He has one in each hand. HAHA!

Here we are posing with some scary characters. Can you guess which one is the real person and which one is the statue? The one with me in the picture is the.... not telling!

And here are all four of the Star Wars kids in front of the Stradlings house after Trick or Treating. I think they all look so great together! Cool how that worked out. Cole and Jacob have been wearing their costumes and playing Star Wars since Halloween ended. These costumes are going to get a good workout, that's for sure. :) Halloween 2008 was a HUGE success!

Thanks everyone for a GREAT time!

This is what happens when....

I make cupcakes and my little chocolate lovers come in to devour the extra cake batter. I made chocolate cupcakes for the wards trunk or treat on Halloween for the cake walk and they just couldn't resist licking the bowl! Think they're going to be annoyed at me for posting this on the internet? Yep, probably! Do I care? Nope! HAHA! Who can resist posting such adorable pictures though? I sure can't! ;)

Look at those faces! They can't get enough and their faces were covered in chocolate! So funny! :)