Pioneer Day in the Mountains

We wanted to do something fun for Pioneer Day, and since Shannon had to be to work at 1:00, we decided to take a drive up into the mountains. Willard Peak was our destination. We drove up to Mantua, then joined several dozen 4-wheelers on the very rocky road to the peak. At times the road was pretty rugged and made mostly of boulders (it seemed!), but my 4Runner is a superior vehicle, and we made it up just fine. After about mile 10 we came to a saddle on the mountain where we had a great view of the Ogden Valley and Willard. There were wildflowers everywhere! It was a fun way to spend the morning, and we had just enough time to get Shannon back to work.

Willard Peak:

The view down to Willard Bay and some desolate salt flats:
Those wildflowers I told you about:

Caesar Chicken Salad Squares

Made these the other night- yummy stuff!!
Caesar Chicken Salad Squares

Filling:
2 c. cubed cooked chicken
1/2 c. mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 Tbs. Parmesan cheese, grated
1 Tbs. bacon bits
1 Tbs. Caesar salad dressing
1 Tbs. mayonnaise
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp. lemon juice

Crust: 1 can (8 oz) crescent dinner rolls

Heat oven to 375. In bowl, mix filling ingredients until well blended. Unroll dough, separate into 4 rectangles. Place on ungreased cookie sheet; press each into a 6x4 inch rectangle, pressing perforations to seal. Spoon about 1/2 c. filling mixture onto center of each dough rectangle. Fold dough over and seal to form a square. Bake 16 to 21 minutes or until deep golden brown. Garnish each with 1 Tbs. Caesar dressing and shredded lettuce.

The Nose Job

*WARNING* Don't look at this if you are squeamish!


This last spring, Bruce had a scab on his nose that just wouldn't heal. The Dr. checked it out and found some skin cancer. So last Monday, Bruce had those cancer cells burned out of his nose, which left a divot, which was fixed by a plastic surgeon on Thursday. No skin grafts were needed, (sorry Pete!), but lots of the skin already on Bruce's nose was stretched to cover the wound. All in all, it's been ok, and Bruce has been able to control the pain fairly well. The worst part was Thursday evening when the strong pain meds from the hospital upset his stomach. As we all know, there is NOTHING worse than a husband that doesn't feel good. Let's just say that I wish I got even a portion of that attention when I don't feel good. Anyway, he is on the mend and his nose should look good as new soon.

Here come the gross pictures!

Bruce's nose divot:The bandage he wore for a few days:Post-surgery stitches:We are just glad that all of that is over!!

Happy Pioneer Day!

Happy Pioneer Day to all of you Mormon-folk out there! Enjoy your possible day off! In my other life- you know, the life where I actually got things done and had time to research things, I discovered that I had many ancestors that crossed the plains. Thanks to them for sacrificing and doing such a hard thing for their descendants...that would be me.

Kids Grow Up, But I Don't Have To Like It.

That's right. Kids grown up, but I don't have to like it. My family seems to be in a state of flux right now. Things are changing fast! Brian is married, and moving to California with cute Lindsey. Shannon has graduated from college and is beginning to look for a job out in the Big World and Ben is going to be going to the U of U. Peter is leaving in 4 weeks for Utah State and then going on a mission. Brian ordained Peter to be an Elder last week before the wedding:
All of them are great kids, doing really good things, so I have no complaints, but all of this is kinda hard on a mom, don't ya think?

Copy-Cat Wedding!!

Two days after Brian was married, his best friend, Tyler got married too! Funny thing- he married Lindsey's roommate, Ruth, so roommates married roommates! Brian and Tyler have been best friends since the 3rd grade, then college roommates, and now they are both going to law school- Tyler in Oklahoma and Brian in San Diego.

Here are Brian and Tyler (and Derek!) at the 6th grade science fair. My, how times have changed! Wasn't that just yesterday?

Lindsey's Bridals

We were trying to keep Lindsey's bridal pictures a secret from Brian before the wedding, so now I can share them! She had them taken at Bear Lake, which made for some fun photo ops:

You'll have to bear with me for the next few days, as I share lots of wedding photos! Here are some of my favorites from the temple:

Peter always seems to get the bouquet-holding job:
Shannon and Ben are still a super cute couple!Catherine- cheezin' for the camera:
Ian brought work along:A rarely captured big Margaret smile!I thought this was a sweet picture of Lindsey's little niece, wearing the bride's veil:I have an awesome family!

Wedding Day!

When it's all said and done, wedding days are the best! Families are together, happy and looking their best! We had a great day on Thursday, and even if it was almost 100 degrees, things went smoothly for the most part. It was great to see so many people I love at the temple, and even greater to see how happy Brian and Lindsey were! They get "quick-change" points for getting to the luncheon in record time. Lindsey's dad was a good sport and joined in the Tahitian Wedding Dance- that was awesome! Luckily it wasn't windy so the reception tables cloths were still intact when we got back to prepare for the reception. Lots of good friends came, and Peter's pool garter catch will always be remembers in our family's story! Thanks for coming, everyone!

Fluffy Peanut Butter Pie

Just a note- with the wedding on Thursday, I'll probably be taking a few days off from blogging until I get my head on straight again! I leave you with a pie recipe. This one's for you, Amanda!

Fluffy Peanut Butter Pie
1/3 c. butter
1 c. semisweet chocolate chips
2 1/2 c. Rice Krispies
1 8oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
3/4 c. peanut butter
3 Tbs. lemon juice
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. heavy cream, whipped
2 tsp. chocolate syrup

To make crust: Melt butter and chocolate chips in the microwave. Stir in Rice Krispies and press mixture into bottom and up sides of a lightly greased 9 inch pie pan. Let chill 30 minutes.

To make filling: In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in condensed milk and peanut butter until smooth. Stir in lemon juice and vanilla, then fold in whipped cream. Pour mixture into pie crust. Drizzle syrup over top, gently swirl with a spoon. Cover and chill at least 4 hours. Refrigerate leftovers.

This pie is really good and really rich! A little goes a long way!! Enjoy!

I'm the Goat Queen!

I'm the Goat Queen- really, I am! I have a sash that says so. Yesterday Saltaire Farm brought horses (and a goat!) to Ogden to be in Ogden's Horse and Hitch Parade. I walked the parade route with Alvey, the goat, and Kari & Joy made the sash for me to wear. Alvey started out ok, but quickly faded, since he doesn't do anything at home except sit and eat. By mile nuber 1 in the 3 mile parade I was using all of my persuasive goat technics the keep him going. The poor guy was panting and exhausted by the time he was done. But on the bright side, Alvey was very popular with the kids! The Spanish-speaking folks seemed to think he was pretty funny too!

Happy 2nd Anniversary!

Happy 2nd Anniversary, Ben and Shannon!

We've been worried about Brian and Lindsey's car situation when they move to California. Both of their cars would be fine in San Diego, but we weren't sure how the whole drive-through-the-desert-to-Utah-and-back would be. So last Saturday we traded in the Big Red Truck on a nice new Ford Focus. It's red and cute! One less thing for long distance parents to worry about!

At The Temple

FDIL received her endowment last night at the Ogden Temple. It was a really special time for both our families- we are so lucky to have her join our family!!

Asian Chicken Salad

If you like any type of Chinese Chicken Salad, you have got to try this recipe. The dressing is SO good!

Asian Chicken Salad
2 Tbs. brown sugar
2 tsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. sesame oil
1/4 c. vegetable oil
3 Tbs. rice vinegar
1 c. chow mien noodles
1 head iceberg lettuce, chopped
3 green onions, chopped
Grilled Chicken (I used C's Sesame Chicken!)
Prepare the dressing 30 minutes ahead of time by combining the brown sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, vegetable oil and rice vinegar. Shake to combine. In a large bowl, combine the lettuce, chicken and green onion. Let chill about 10 minutes. Just before serving, add the chow mien noodles. Serve dressing on the side, or toss dressing with salad and serve immediately.

Gas Leak At Work!

What would you guess this is:It's a typical household gas line. With a hole in it. Youngest Son works for a landscaping company and yesterday he unfortunately nicked a gas line with a shovel. The fire department, county sheriff, the bomb squad and the newspaper came to investigate. It was an easy fix, and they even let YS keep the nicked line as a souvenir. Now the rest of the story: On Wednesday, another guy in YS's crew hit the gas line with a Bobcat. So actually, this was the 2nd time all of the emergency people had come to the work site. Also, Blue Stakes needs to man-up for the whole situation, because they didn't mark the lines correctly. Which is why the whole thing happened in the first place. (The fire department told YS that they go to 10-15 of these calls every day! Crazy.)

Mmm...Oatmeal

This is my favorite breakfast! Raisins and Cinnamon Oatmeal! I've been eating this since I was little, and nothing else quite hits the spot. :)

Asian BBQ Chicken

This was a really yummy recipe that got the "thumbs up!" at my house. I used chicken thighs and baked them at 375 for 45 minutes, then finished them on the grill. Watch them on the grill, because they will burn if you're not careful!

The Best Kind Of Package!

It's always fun when a package like this shows up on my doorstep! I watch the disneystore.com and disneyoutlet.com sites for big sales and clearances, then I stock up on fun things! In this package I had t-shirts, drawstring laundry bags (good for horsey stuff!), an outfit for my nephew's soon-to-be-born little boy, and some fun summer plates! AND, nothing here cost more than $5.00!

The Sasquatch Gang

Ok, here's a movie recommendation for you, especially if you have boys that fall in the 14 to 25 year old range. It's called the Sasquatch Gang, and it's made by the same sick, twisted folks who created Napoleon Dynamite. Like ND, you need to watch this movie at least 3 or 4 times. The first time you watch it, you will think, "Huh? What kind of pointless movie is this? It makes no sense." But then, with further watching, the wonder and sheer comedic genius of this flick will develop before your eyes. You too can start too say catchy phrases like, "No, Sparky, that's MY corndog" and, " Poke that piggy!" So track this little gem down!

Watching Fireworks

Last night we drove up above Weber State to watch the fireworks across the valley. We set up chairs in the back of DH's truck and were ready with our binoculars, blankets and treats. We should have brought some mosquito repellant! At 10:00 sharp the fireworks began. We counted 9 city displays going off from Farmington to West Haven, and plenty of the illegal variety shooting up too!

Happy 4th of July!

Rocko Watercolor

At the show last week, a girl from Cache Valley had set up a booth to do watercolor pictures. She could personalize a picture with your horse's name and color, and I loved them! I had her do one for Rocko with his show name- Caruso. I love it and need to get it framed!