When I saw this book at the thrift store last week, I knew I had to buy it. We all love the story of the boy going to the forest to collect nuts and how he relies on his woodland friends to help him get home when he loses his way. We are reading it daily....

I wonder if it is partly because he reminds us of another cute little boy in a red hat that loves the forest:)

I think maybe so:) Jen

Little artist/Little mama

Two of her favorite things in the world...painting and nurturing her babies:)






Isn't she lovely? Jen

The perfect weekend escape...

We had the whole farmhouse to ourselves and just settled in for most of Sunday and Monday. We took a walk to the river where the babes "fished" and threw rocks. We sat on the front porch rocking chairs while the sunshined. When the sun went down Sam and Amelia were riveted by their first viewing of Charlottes Web. The next day we just relaxed in the morning and then went "snowshoeing" (AKA, carrying children that have snowshoes on:). No really, they did great. You know, it's just different than snowshoeing with adult friends, who may feel like screaming and falling into the snow face first whenever their glove falls off again, but they don't. Toddlers do. They sure are adorable though, and boy do they make us laugh! All in all, in was a serendipitous weekend (to borrow the description from my mom-in-love) and one that I will always remember. Jen

Boy. Girl. Twins.

Sometimes when I think about the babes being boy/girl twins, I unconsciously assume they may not be as close as they grow older as same sex twins might be--especially identical twins. But as I watched them play today in their room today, he with his truck and she with her dollhouse, I thought about how they have been so different from the start and yet they usually choose to play together. They choose to play "together", side by side, even when they are playing with such different toys or what have you. They have done this for as long as I can remember. It made me smile to think of them as (gasp) teenagers. Sam playing the piano while Amelia dances, Sam drawing while she reads, separate but together. They will choose different passions I am sure, and that is good and healthy, but I just have a feeling they may just be each other's yin and yang for a long time to come. When I think of that, and what a gift it is, it just warms my heart.

P.S. Believe me, I know my ideals of them as teenagers may seem a little lofty:) I am well aware that two persons living their lives so closely together means not only more sweet times, but also more brushes against each other. I experience it daily!

Weekend Wanderings...

Salt Lake City has been so yucky lately with inversion (smog like polluted air) filling the valley. Last night Joel had had enough and said that we needed to get out! We are all feeling yucky with coughs and conjestion and I think the air just makes it worse, so I heartily agreed. At nap time today we put the babes in the car and set off. We didn't even know where we were going! So spontaneous, I know:) We found ourselves about an hour away in the clean mountain air. We had such a delightful time. !t was even warmish on our walk in the snow--it felt like summer to us at 46 degrees! Maybe that's why Sammy and I had the most fun of all, we are the warmer weather lovers. Even in my skirt and clogs, I just had a blast:) We were so forlorn as we drove back into the cloudy city, we decided to go back tomorrow and spend the night! I am so,so,so excited. Here are a few pictures of our day for ya:)









Hope you had some adventure in your weekend as well, Jen

What made this trip feel like a true vacation....

They slept. They slept well. Granted, some parents probably wouldn't consider it a great success. I still sit in the room while they fall asleep and that can take anywhere from 15min- upwards of an hour. It can be frustrating. Amelia still fights sleep like crazy. She (and sometimes he) still come to sleep with us half way through the night. But, from where we have come from (especially on our Texas trips), the sleep we all got on this trip was more than a success. It felt like a true vacation. We were rested and that makes me truly thankful.

With all that is going on in Haiti, it makes me look at these pictures with even more thankfulness and gratefulness. May we all hold our children a little tighter and with a little more perspective ,and pray with all of our hearts for those who have lost theirs so tragically.

Quinoa Casserole...yum,yum.

This is from the cookbook "Make it fast, Cook it slow"....
The Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups uncooked quinoa
1 TBLS olive oil
3 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup sliced or chopped almonds
1/3 cups dried unsweetened cranberries

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
handful of baby spinach

The Directions:
Use a 4- quart slow cooker. Rinse Quinoa and dump in crock. Add olive oil, chicken broth, salt and cinnamon, almonds and cranberries. Stir. Cover and cook for 4 to 6 hours on low, or 2-4 hours on high. Fluff quinoa with fork. Add remaining ingredients and stir. Cook on high for about 20 min or until spinach wilts. Easy Peasy!

Our little snow bunny...

What can I say? She is her father's daughter. Loves,loves, loves the snow and had such a wonderful time on her first snow shoeing date with her daddy. Sammy stayed home with me (" I don't want to play in the snow! I don't want to play in the snow!" )and we had a great time too, after I just gave up on the idea of getting house projects done and got down on the floor and played and played. Anyway, I just love these pictures. All for now, Jen

Glimpses...

I updated our Picasa albums with our trip pictures. I still need to download more (!) but this is a good start:)

Texas Christmas 09

Christmas joy...

Christmas day at Tara and John Mike's. Their house is so creative and calming. I can't even express how precious it was to see Sam, Amelia and Echo together. They really,really love each other and had SO much fun. There was lots of handmade goodness flowing around from Robin's calendars to Tara's tie dye to Mama's knitted Gnome hats...lovely,lovely,lovely.




We spent Christmas eve morning at my Granny and Papa's house. I think I'll always remember Sam's complete awe over his train set and Amelia sitting and stuffing a pack of gum in her mouth and looking like a little gopher. Oh my. Mmmmm, and Granny's Christmas dinner. Their tree is always so,so,so beautiful!





We celebrated with the Hunt/Zink clan on Christmas eve eve:) I just love the lodgey, homey feel of the Hunt's living room (and the Hunt's themselves:). We had fun singing carols and (quickly) reading the Christmas story together. Of course, I'll never forget Tim and Shanyn trying on their zip up jammies either!:)



So many moments of joy sharing this Christmas with family. Thank you everyone for making such special memories! Jen