Bountiful Baskets

*Update from last weeks Bountiful Basket! Everything was SO good, The Red Pepper soup was my favorite! It was so good! It was so flavorful! Defiantly a keeper. It was easy too!

The Caramel dip was so yummy too, and easy.

Like I said, everything was good except the onion rice. The recipe was all wrong, the rice needed to be cooked longer, and I added a lot more seasonings.

I don't plan on cooking too much this week, as it is going to be a very busy week! But, I am making the following!

Apples, Grapes, Lettuce, Cantaloupe, Green onions, Pomegranates, Cucumbers, Zucchini, Oranges, Broccoli, Carrots, and Bananas.
Broccoli with Pasta

Roasted Potatoes with Green onions

( No recipe, I just roast them with green onions, and butter. Its good though!)

I already made Carrot and Fennel Soup again, because I love it. I just froze it into several little dishes, so I can pull out my lunch whenever I need it.

I also made Bakerella's Bananaberry muffins again! It's under my recipes tab.

P.S. I found to fantastic blogs.

Food Gawker

Southern Whimsicality

Which reminds me, I came up with a Spaghetti Squash dish that is SO delicious, and pretty dang healthy. I came up with it after reading over several other dishes, and took a little bit of everything from my favorite recipes. No measurements of course, because I just start adding things, and go for it. But here were the ingredients.

Spaghetti Squash ( I microwaved mine(after puncturing it several times) for 12 minutes. It was actually the first time I used a spaghetti squash, and I'm hooked. )

2 Tomatoes

Basil, to taste, I LOVE basil

1/2 Onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

olives

Parmesan cheese

Salt and pepper

I'm not kidding, it is really good!

My Person

Seth is my person.

You know....... the person that I have whenever I need somebody.

I love him so much.

We bicker back and forth sometimes, and that's what we do.

I put my legs on him when I sleep at night. He lets me.

He's my person.

Rodeo. 2008
I love him.

Love YOUR body

Love your body 10k Run

Saturday, I ran my very first 10k. It was a lot of fun.

We got to sample bundt cakes after our run [from nothing bundt cakes!] but the lady in charge would only give me one. rude.

I retold stories of when I once hit a girl. I ~really~ need to stop telling that story. It's so 'ghetto'.

I got yelled at by some lady in charge because we were not at the starting line in time.

We laughed a lot.

Steph and I always had good conversations.

We got good bags, and baby water bottles.

The most important thing about this run though, is that it was a "LOVE YOUR BODY" run.

I love my body (usually)

I do.

All my imperfections and all. (and I have a lot)

Bountiful Baskets

Bountiful basket was great this week!

Artichokes, red peppers, kiwi, bananas, lettuce,onions, strawberries, grapes celery, carrots, tomatoes, and green apples!

Here's what I'll be preparing this week!

I LOVE THE FALL.

I LOVE SOUP.

I LOVE PUMPKIN. (But not pumpkin pie)

Caramel Dip for Apples (I don't enjoy green apples plain.)

Artichoke Chicken
Artichoke Dip (Secret Recipe. Ok, it's my friend Julie's but I'll have to add it later. It is pretty much amzing)

(Don't know how to eat an artichoke or cook one for that matter? See here!)

Onion Rice

Japanese Zucchini and Onions

Red Pepper Soup

If you like pumpkin, you have to make this Double Layer Pumpkin Pie. It is SO good!

So are these Pumpkin Pancakes. Almost a perfect 5 stars.

Carrot and Fennel Soup

This soup is so good. I have never used fennel before this, not had I seen it at the grocery store. But, it is there. It has kind of a black licorice smell ( I hate black licorice) but it doesn't taste like that in this soup! It is really, really good! I bet some orzo pasta would be really good in it as well. I may do that next time. We just ate it with a baguette!

And I'm going to add this with some chicken ... Bread and Celery Stuffing

Heavenly Tomato Basil Soup

This soup was to die for! We all loved it, it was so easy, and everyone had 2nds.

I'm not like Dr. Laura. You can have 2nds at my house. It wasn't the 'Healthiest soup" but you can make it less tasty, and less fatty if you sub a few things. It was worth all the calories.

2 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes ( I used the one with spices added)

1 (14.5 oz) Can chicken broth

18 fresh basil leaves, minced

2 Tbls sugar

1 cup whipping cream ( I used half and half)

1/2 cup butter or marg.

In a large saucepan, bring the tomatoes and broth to a boil. Reduce heat to low; stir in cream and butter. Cook until butter is melted, Do not boil. Mix in basil.

I also added orzo pasta it. I wanted to make home made grilled cheese sandwiches, but didn't have time. We are taking a parenting class.

Seth and I are taking Love and Logic classes at Kel's school . I'm so excited for a refresher course on being a parent! Not to mention, Trey has been throwing some terrible fits, and we need to find another way to deal with them!

Conference Weekend

General Conference was pretty great once again.

I am so thankful for our Prophet, and feeling so blessed that we can hear what our Heavenly Father wants us all to know through him and the other speakers as well.

The day after Conference.... on Facebook, several people had lots of rude and disrespectful comments about the Church. Which makes me even more proud of who I am, and what our church stands for. We really are so lucky we have a guide to help us get through this trying life.

This life is a test for us all, to prove that we love our savior and our God. To show our faith, and our love for him. It is hard, and we have to work at it everyday, but the reward is going to be so amazing!

I have been thinking a lot about why some people have a hard time with our church, and why some of our members have a hard time from straying. Our church is strict. It has very strict guidelines for a reason. Our Lord knows so much more than we do, and he knows what is best for us. He does not make mistakes in his teachings.

Satan is everywhere, and wants us to be miserable like him.

Some people just don't see it either. We are told to LOVE everyone, and to be like Jesus Christ. We don't have to love the sins that others choose to do, but we are told to care for others and to love them and treat them with respect. Even people that hate us. That hurt us. We don't have to have them in our lives, but we shouldn't have hatred toward anyone.

My favorite things from Conference were:

Don't do anything you wouldn't want your own children to do. Including your books you read, television you watch, and clothes you wear.
Seek ALL your answers in the scriptures.

Live in Thanksgiving daily.

Pause to see your many blessings that God has bestowed upon you.

Live life as if Christ were standing next to you.

And another thing, that I have always said, was do not let your kids have sleepovers. Sometimes, it is setting your kids up for failure. I will stand by this. I always have.
Except for sleepovers at my house, and the most trusted family members :) I also really liked what(someone) said about waiting up for your children when they go out as teenagers. They are more likely to make good choices if their parents are waiting up to hear about the things they were doing, and how their night went.

Conference morning, I gave my kids conference kits. they had treats, coloring books, stickers and molding clay to play with while they listened to conference. We also had their Conference packets from Primary. They did great the first half, but they were bored the 2nd half. Either way, they did great!

We went up to Silver Lake as soon as it was over. It was nice, and cool. AND Beautiful like always.

and here is Swayz. She is just the sweetest, most relaxed baby! I'm so glad she is mine!

P.S. For those of you that knew Trent, my boyfriend in High School, I just heard he was baptized into the LDS church this last month. He married a girl from Utah, and they just had their first baby. I'm so happy for him and his wife. That's so exciting.

Happy Birthday Big Guy

Trey turned 4 on September 5th, and we let him choose what he wanted to do for his birthday. He chose to go to Wingers, and Hollywood Connections ( Boy has that place went downhill ) We had a blast though!

This is when they were singing Happy Birhtday to him. He was being so shy. He is trying to hide under the table.







He is such a Stud muffin, and I am so thankful he is my son. Even though he can be a stinker, he is the most loving little boy ever. He is always telling me how beautiful he thinks all 'his girls' are, and he is always kissing us! ( and everyone for that matter. Silly boy)