Pie auction

You know, stay-at-home moms have few places to really show off their skills.  I mean, we demonstrate our skills all the time when we're going places with our kids, bringing meals to potlucks, putting on birthday parties for our family, etc.  But when do we ever get recognition for our abilities? 

In our church, in our small Oregon town, we have an annual tradition called The Pie Auction.  The night before Thanksgiving, members of our church bring homemade goodies they have prepared and donate them to be auctioned off for donations to our local Cub Scout program.  It's quite a fun experience.  And, as I've learned over the years, it makes for good bragging rights when your item goes for plenty of moolah! 

Not that I'm in it for the praise and glory.... 

It's all about the scouts.... 

I think... 

Never mind, bring on the praise and glory!!

The last few years I've donated my homemade almond roca, which is always popular.  Last year and this, I made chocolate truffles which fetched $50 this year!  All in all, I think I raked in over $100 for the scouts this time.  It's a nice feeling to know people like to eat my edibles and are willing to pay for them!  Just a small amount of recognition for something I'm good at goes a long way for me.  It's a nice feeling.

Kitchen essentials

Some things I can do without: fine china, a toaster oven, a food processor. But, this, I can't do without. This, no one should do without.

It's a cheese knife. Not just any cheese knife--a Cutco cheese knife. And I LOVE IT! All my life I've struggled to cut blocks of cheddar without practically chopping off fingertips or whacking the countertop when the knife breaks loose. But, with this knife, cutting cheese is like cutting butter. It's totally amazing.

I had to go without this baby for a few weeks as it was getting warrantied. It broke when it was being used as a spatula for rock-hard-stuck-to-the-pan rice krispy treats (hmmhmmmm, it wasn't me!). While it was gone, I sure missed it. Aaaahhhh, but now it's back and now I'm back in love with it. This is a tool every person should have in their kitchen. It's spendy, but worth it.

How to impress your wife

1. When your wife calls on the phone, distraught with the crazy day she's had, tell her you'll gladly take care of the children while she asks to go grocery shopping by herself.

2. Be a trooper when she drops the five hooligans off at your workplace, waves goodbye, and speeds away for a few hours of quiet and calm.

3. Call her in concern when 9pm rolls around and she's still not home.

4. Don't be annoyed when the only reason she's still not home at 9pm is she wanted more quiet time.

5. While she's away, gather a lovely gift together for her when she returns home.

6. Put the lovely gift on the kitchen window sill where you know she'll see it often throughout the day--just to remind her of you.

7. Make sure to give her another gift soon that she'll appreciate more. Actually, never mind. Giving her some time alone to regain her sanity was enough.

Soccer

Both Mariah and Grant played soccer this year.  They had fun and learned a lot.  I always love seeing my kids grow and succeed in a certain subject.  Sports for our family is about learning new skills and having fun, with an emphasis on fun. 

This year was Grant's first year playing soccer.  He enjoyed it once he was on the field, but getting him there was another matter entirely.  It's a familiar scene with Grant and I can see it might just be the way things are with him.  Sigh.  I love watching him play sports, though.  He's so coordinated and capable.  Everything physical comes easily for him.  And he's so smiley and happy when he's playing.  He's definitely in his element. 

And let's not forget the all-important award at the end of the season.  This is what the little kids live for in sports.  The trophy!!!  This year, the kids received soccer medals.  They were so cute as the medals were hung around their necks!

This season was Mariah's second soccer season.  She has grown and developed a TON in the sport.  It has been a real joy to watch her and her teammates progress from last year to this.  They understand the game so much better and they really worked hard together.  Mariah moved from playing as a defender to consistently being a mid-fielder or forward.  I'm so very proud of her work and progress.  I hope she continues with the sport.

My girl

This girl has personality. Can you tell?

Halloween

This morning, as I was reading a friend's blog about Halloween, I realized I hadn't done my own Halloween post (Thanks, Jenny!).  I'm not sure what happened, but it might be that I forgot to download the pictures onto the computer where I would see them to remind me.  Anyway, here are some pics for you to enjoy.

Fall portraits

Yesterday I took advantage of the nice fall weather and shot some portraits of the kids.  I'm pretty pleased with the way they turned out.  It's not an easy task to get some of them to sit still, but I've found if I take a boat-load of shots, there is bound to be one or two worth keeping.  I'm excited that the pics were taken in my yard and they'll be cheap to print!  It beats paying for school pictures where you never know what you're going to get!


Mariah Lynn




Dallin




Grant




Kyle




Karina