CATCHING UP!!!
(Part I of at least a Three-Part Series)

So the other day Laura told me to get my act together and catch up on my blog. Emily had mentioned that I had no excuses now because Momma had finally sent me the pictures I'd been waiting for. So I guess this posting is guilt-based. But I'm glad for the motivation. Plus, it makes me feel good that my blog is in such high demand!

So, back to the beginning of April. On April second, Emily came over with Autumn and Prairie for lunch and to take a look at our year's supply. Emily brought over a wide variety of leftovers, all of which looked exotic. I think there was everything from Indian cuisine to avocado salsa and pasta salad. I really admire Emily for fixing these kinds of foods, because her kids are used to eating different things! I have had lots of trouble with Vaughn lately being willing to try any variety.





Here's Emily feeding Prairie. I was amazed at how much Prairie had grown! And what about those cheeks?!? I can't take it! Anyway, it was so nice to have them over. We talked about everything it seemed. And Vaughn really enjoyed the company.









Vaughn finally got into an eating groove, thanks to the fine examples of Autumn and Prairie. Thanks you two!!!









Later that evening after Brian got home from work, we went on a walk through some neighborhoods up the street from us. During our walk we saw the nephew of the man we rent from. He was taking his horses out for a walk, and we stopped to say "Hi." Vaughn of course flipped out! He loves animals!






Brian and I are amazed that Vaughn has no fear of animals, especially the big ones. He is just not afraid! Brian had to hold Vaughn to make sure he didn't run under the horse's legs. Vaughn immediately tried to pet the horse, and wanted to feed him as well. He is quite the brave little boy.







The next evening we were outside again playing in the front yard. The weather had been so nice that the flowers in our yard had come up and were looking so beautiful. So I decided to take a few shots to prove that winter was on it's way out!























Since the weather had been weird for the previous few weeks, we played outside the next evening as well. Here is Vaughn just after being told not to destroy the flowerbed.








The temptation was just too strong for Vaughn, so we resorted to giving him a different option. We busted out Weezer and took turns giving Vaughn rides. Vaughn is so funny when he rides with us. He gets really excited when he sees the little motorcycle. But then when he gets on, he turns completely stone-faced and sits as still as can be. What a weirdo!







With the weather being off-and-on, I decided to make use of the bad days by doing some bottling. I decided to do some carrots. I think I did around 36 pints. I loved the bright orange color of the carrots after they were bottled. And although they are really mushy, the carrots are great in soups and stews, and for little kids.



We went up to my Uncle Gary and Aunt Kelly's place for Easter Sunday. We really had a nice time. Vaughn always really enjoys himself when we're there because everyone is so nice to him! He gets a lot of attention and a lot of playtime. It is helpful for us too, because we often run out of steam trying to entertain him! I think it's refreshing for Vaughn to have a change of scenery as well.







Another one of the great things about Gary and Kelly's house is that they have a lot of animals. They have bunnies, dogs, goats, cats, horses...the list goes on and on. So even though Vaughn has never been to a zoo, I think he gets a zoo-like experience when we're up there!








A few days after Easter, on the 11th of April, I'd had a little bit of a rough morning with Vaughn. When I finally put him down for a nap, I decided to get lunch. I took my time eating and reading something. I finally went in to check on Vaughn, even though I was sure he was asleep. I hadn't heard a peep from him for over 20 minutes. When I walked into our bedroom however, what I saw convinced me otherwise! Vaughn had been playing with a box of corn starch the entire time, and had managed to coat himself and our bed with it! He had dumped out the entire box and spread it in his hair, down his clothes, inside his diaper, in between the sheets on the bed, and everywhere else! I was so stressed out that all I could do was stand there in shock for about 30 seconds. It was enough time to help me calm down, and I got our camera and snapped this shot. Looking back on the situation, I can almost guarantee Vaughn thought he was being a good little boy by being so quiet during his nap time. But he must have known too that he was being naughty, because the picture shows a little guilt! All I can say is, WHAT A CUTIE!!!

Poopa, Lindsey and Laura arrived in town on Friday the 13th, just a few days later! (Momma arrived late that night on the train). I was so excited to finally have them here again! Both Lindsey and Laura were coming back out to school, so the van was loaded to the max with stuff. But somehow, Poopa managed to fit in a lawnmower for me and Brian! I was jumping out of my socks with excitement because the lawnmower he brought is my favorite mower in the entire world. It's like the Mercedes of lawnmowers!
We have such a big front yard that we've really needed one. And the 86-year-old man that we rent from is so stubborn that he won't let us mow it! So our only option was to go behind his back and get a mower and have the lawn mowed before he can get to it! So anyway, the very next day, Saturday morning, Brian and I were outside mowing the front lawn. It was like having a brand new toy, but way better! This mower is self-propelled, so it is so easy to mow with! THANKS POOPA!!!!





After the lawn was finished, we busted out Weezer again, and this time, Brian decided to let Vaughn "ride" it by himself. Vaughn was pretty proud of himself! I can't believe how big he's getting!









Over the next few days, Momma Poopa and Lindsey went up to Idaho to drop Lindsey off at college. So we went to Brian's sister Julie's condo for dinner on Sunday. It was nice to be over there, since we rarely go over! We had given talks in church that day, so we were glad to be able to relax that evening. (I'm taking the picture).





Just before heading over to Julie's we were changing out of our church clothes. We walked into the living room to find Vaughn standing in Brian's church shoes. It was so cute to see him standing there almost in a proud way. It was one of those special moments where you see a literal fulfillment of what happens to your children as they grow up. They will literally someday grow up to be like their parents and in a way, fill their shoes. It also made me realize how quickly Vaughn is growing up, and how soon he really will be able to fit into Brian's shoes!









The next morning I decided to start in on bottling hamburger. We had planned to do it together when Momma and Poopa came out. But I had to get going on it because the 80 pounds of meat in my fridge was taking up all my fridge space!






Momma and Poopa arrived while I was in the middle of browning 20 of the 80 pounds of meat. After giving me a stern "talking-to" about not trying to tackle something this big alone, they immediately jumped in and helped. Poopa was very attentive to Vaughn and showed him the ropes of bottling. How cute! He was also helping to watch Vaughn because I had several people come to visit all at once. I tell you, the kitchen and our house was a "mad house." It was really hectic there for a while. But we finally got into a groove, and began to get a good system going.












After a few hours we turned out our first batch of bottled hamburger. It looked great! But I must admit, the house smelled like canned cat food. Yuck!












Here's Momma and me proudly observing the fruit of our labors!










During the "hullabaloo" (I spelled that completely wrong) Uncle Jared stopped by to say Hi. He was so kind to watch Vaughn while Momma Poopa and I were busy at work. Vaughn absolutely loves Uncle Jared, so he was very content to sit with him and watch a show. We bottled into the evening and then decided to take a break until the next day.









We bottled all day the next day. That evening was the Relief Society auction. We filled out a questionnaire to see if we had completed different things in the last several months. The questions ranged from things like writing someone a Thank You note, to "Did you bottle jam within the last six months?" For every question you answered "yes" to, you got a certain number of fake dollars. Then you used those fake dollars towards items up for auction. The items ranged from baked bread to coupons for someone to weed your garden for an hour. All of the items in the auction were either made or donated by ladies in the Relief Society. It was a wonderful way to display talents, and have the opportunity to get to know the ladies there better. Momma came with me, and we really enjoyed ourselves!



Okay, this is really cute. The next day Vaughn wasn't feeling very well, and I think it was a little too cold outside. Brian had gone outside to try to start Weezer to keep it in good condition. Vaughn heard Brian getting it started, and got really excited. I told him I didn't want him riding Weezer, and he started bawling! He cried so hard, you would have thought somebody just hit him! It broke my heart to see him so sad, so I told him he "could ride Weezer with Daddy." Even though I got him totally dressed and decked out in his riding boots, and even though we knew he knew he was going to ride, he still "cried like a baby." It was so cute, I had to get a shot! What a tender little kid!









By Thursday, the 19th, Momma Poopa and I had bottled exactly 100 pints of hamburger! We had a few bottles not seal, or break in the processing, but there were 100 bottles processed in all! It was three days of craziness, but it was worth it. And let me tell you, the hamburger tastes really good! It makes it super easy to throw a meal together when you don't have to defrost the meat and cook it. I've used it in spaghetti, tacos, tater-tot casserole, soups, taco salad, etc.








This is just a close-up of what bottled hamburger looks like. Lovely, isn't it?












This amazing woman on the right is Mae Roberts. She walks around the neighborhoods around here collecting cans. She turns in the cans to the recycling center down the road, and she donates the money she gets from those cans to the Primary Children's Hospital up in Salt Lake. She is one of the most remarkable women I have ever met. Over the last several years, Mae has donated over $11,000.00 in cash to the hospital. She is truly an angel. I have never met anyone like her. She is a great example to me of love and kindness. I asked her if I could take a picture of her, and I was so glad she said yes! You're the best Mae!








For dinner that evening we met up with my uncles (my dad's two brothers) and their families for pizza at a restaurant here called The Brick Oven. It was really good. In fact, Laura like it so much, that she decided to do a little dance in front of everyone! Go Laura!





I had to eat and run at dinner because that night I was in charge of a "Dry-Pack Activity" for our ward (or church). Dry pack means you take dry items like rice or wheat or oats, and seal them into large #10 metal cans. We do this to help the ladies in our ward build up a food supply for emergency situations, or for just a rainy day, like if someone loses their job. That evening we did over 400 lbs of rice for 7 or 8 families in our area. It is a lot of work organizing it, but it is really worth it. I really enjoy doing these activities. So far we have done rice, dried potatoes, powdered milk, dried onions and farina. We are hoping to have a huge activity in the next few months where we do wheat, sugar, whole oats, quick oats, and other items. I live for this kind of stuff!



If I remember this correctly, the next evening we went to Ben and Emily's place for some fun. Everyone had tried to come over to our place a few nights before, but the canning went a lot longer than we thought. So, it was really nice to be able to be around everyone, and not worry about bottling and junk.










Poopa decided to give me a "Wet Willie" (I totally misspelled that), so I decided to get some revenge......











I guess Poopa had forgotten that I haven't lost the baby weight yet, so I had a good 20 pounds on him. It was pointless for him to fight because I was going to get him......














.......... and I did!!!!!













Here's Bubby, being very smart and not getting involved in the "Wet Willie" War.













Autumn got Poopa's attention by telling him a joke....although by the look on Poopa's face I wonder how appropriate it was!!!













I don't want to embarrass Laura, but I think you're zits were a little out of control, don't you? For heaven's sake, they were blue!















Here's Poopa and Laura giving Autumn a swing-ride before dumping her onto the couch...












Here's me and Prairie. I have to tell you that she is one of the cutest little girls in the world! She has the chubbiest cheeks, and the most sparkling smile you've ever seen! I can't help but have spasms when I see her.














And here's Laura and Vaughn hamming it up! For some reason Vaughn felt really comfortable making weird faces for a snapshot. I think Laura was in shock that he was actually showing some guts and being weird like everyone else there that night!





We'll leave it at that for now. STAY TUNED FOR PART II of this series!

Love, Lisa