Baby Beluga loves nack nacks

 WARNING: CUTENESS OVERLOAD AHEAD. PROCEED WITH CAUTION!

Wild Things

 We've been spending a lot of time at the soccer field cheering for the Wild Things (A's team) and the Green Fire Breathing Dragon Pythons (B's team).  Here are a few pictures of A from a tournament game last weekend. She's been playing so tough and has improved a lot this season. Go Wild Things!

I think she learned this move from her aunties. Click to enlarge.

Apples

 At our house when we say "make apples" what we really mean is "make caramel apples with white chocolate and cinnamon sugar" aka apple pie apples.  They are a crowd pleaser so I thought I'd share my tips for making them.  They aren't perfect or exceptionally beautiful, but they are yummy.
Start with apples, granny smith is my favorite to use but it's your choice.  Just wash and remove the stem.

 Most of the time I use store bought caramel, but sometimes I do go all out and make my own.  It just takes forever. Also, if you use cheap white chocolate it will be gross and lumpy.  I just found some Hershey's and I actually like it the best which surprised me.

 Stick the apples, put the stick right into the bottom.  Popcicle sticks work, but I prefer the round sticks,  they are easier for twirling when you dip them.

 Warm up the caramel.  I start with 30 seconds in the microwave and then stir.  (Also, I add a little water like is says to on the bag, I add extra because I don't love tons of caramel on my apples.) After stirring, warm it at 15 second intervals, stirring in between.

 Once the caramel is nice and melty, dip the apple in and roll it around until it is covered as much as you want it to be covered.

 Then twist off the excess.

 Set on wax paper to cool and start melting the chocolate.

 Same thing, start with 30 seconds.  Then stir for a while.  It will keep melting as you stir because the bowl is hot.  You really don't want to over cook the chocolate.  You will know if you do and you will cry.

 Keep stirring and heating for 15 seconds.

 When you get it nice and smooth just dip and twirl. Don't go to the wax paper this time.

 Instead, go to the cinnamon and sugar that you already mixed and put on a plate (sorry forgot to get you prepped for that one.)

 Roll and roll and roll all the way around the apple and then stamp it on the bottom.  The cinnamon sugar mixture keeps the chocolate from oozing out all over the place.  It also keeps it from sticking to the the wax paper or anything at all.  When they have cooled and hardened, cut with an apple slicer (or knife) and enjoy! You will love them, I promise!! Pretty or not, I have never met a person who doesn't love these apples.  Try it and let me know what you think.

"Sift you as wheat"

3 Nephi 18:18 says:
18 Behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, ye must watch and pray always lest ye enter into temptation; for ^aSatan desireth to have you, that he may sift you as wheat.

Remember that seminary video where they show you how wheat used to be sifted?  They would throw the wheat and the chaff into the air and the wheat would fall to the ground but the chaff would be blown away in the wind.  I think it was meant to illustrate another point, but we were talking about this verse of scripture in Sunday school last week and it really touched me.  I think working with the youth has made me extra sensitive to the way our society tries to make us feel divided.  We talked about the fact that Satan is the one that wants us to feel sifted, Jesus Christ wants us to be united, he wants us to be one, and we are one through him.  During election season it tends to be worse than usual.  If you don't vote for me, the country is doomed.  If you love your country, you will vote for me.  Politicians want us to feel fear and vote for them based on being afraid of their opponent.  Jesus Christ has told us that love casteth out fear and that through him we can let go of our fear. Also, I know that young women frequently feel inadequate.  They tend to see the things that those around them are really good at and to compare themselves constantly.  We all do that, but Jesus Christ has told us to come unto him the way we are.  He wants us to always be getting better, but he doesn't want us to not come because we feel different, like we have been sifted.
I am grateful for the teachings of Jesus Christ that  remind us that we are all brothers and sisters and have worth in his eyes.

A day in the life

I wanted to do a post last week to document our crazy day.  Every day is pretty action packed with activities and running around to field trips, appointments, after school activities, shopping, etc.  but last week was extra busy with reading to A's class, 4 parent teacher conferences, Patriot award assembly, and fall festival thrown in too. I know someday I will miss the pace of this time of life and will miss having little kids all over the place but sometimes I just get worn out! These pictures remind me why!

A and B won the Patriot Award for the first 9 weeks of school.  They are superstars.

The award assembly is right at 8:00 so after it was over I went home and grabbed A's class basket items and picked her up for her orthodontist appointment.  They finally took her palate expander out and a few days later she got a permanent retainer that goes across the top of her mouth. It's much less bulky and her teeth are looking so good.

She goes to the orthodontist at UAB (so Lewis can be actively involved in her treatment) and the only place we could find to park was right across the street from our favorite Asian market so I picked up the stuff for Tom Ka Gai for dinner. YUM!

I dropped A back off at school and went in to put together our class basket.  Now, you have to realize that this is one of the SMALLER baskets.  I think ours turned out great.  I got to spend some time with some of the other moms that I love and helped get a couple of other baskets wrapped before the baby let me know she needed a nap.

We ran home for a few minutes and she slept while I worked on pudding and other items for YW that night.  After about an hour we had to go back to the school to pick up our little bat, Cate the Great.

We just have about an hour between picking up Cate and picking up the kids so we ran to the store and then back to the school to get the kids and drive them to piano.  After I drop of A and B I take the other kids home that we carpool with and then back to pick the budding pianists up and home to make dinner.

When we got home from piano I made dinner, wrestled a whiny baby and worked some more on our dessert for YW.  We had pudding with danish dessert and crushed oreos on top plus gummy worms and meringue bones (that I did not make).

We headed out around 6 to pick up kids and get A to activity days.  I also had to get YW stuff set up, for the zombie games. One of the Apocolympic Games we played was the mummy wrap.

Another game we had was Brain Food.  Natalie found this awesome brain shaped mold and she made creamy peach jello in it.  It was full of gummy worms and gross fake bugs.  It was a super fun  night for the kids and I was ready to crash when I got home!

 

 

This is what we'll be doing tomorrow.

If you have ever wondered about what we believe, I invite you to join us as we listen to a prophet of God.
gc.lds.org
11-1 and 3-5 central time