Yes I know this is a boogery picture...but its soo cute :)
My sweet little boy is 2 today. I swear it was just yesterday that he was stuffing his face with chocolate cake on his 1st birthday and now it is happening all over again.
He is such a sweet boy and we feel so blessed to have him in our family. To commemorate the day of his birth we watched his birth video. We all loved it but L was pretty freaked out by the noises I was making, so we had to fast forward to the baby part which he loved. His birth was a pivotal moment in my life as a woman. After I had him I finally felt like a real grown up mom.
L is such a sweet little mama's boy. He is always very concerned when things aren't just right and loves to help out, whether its cooking or doing laundry he's on it. (just like his uncle Hyrum, who is his twin)
L isn't much of a talker like his sister was at this age, but some of the things that he's learned to say in the past few months and a few that he started saying today are:
bike mama back fire truck- gaa guck fax machine chicken - kitta kkk peanut butter - butta brr get off the computer mama lock no more (today he just started saying more like "mo r" instead of ma) apple -abm abby -abm train constantinople
anyway, there are lots more...I swear he talks. And for everyone without kids, no he's not daft, he's still learning.
Some of the things he's learned to do this year:
Walk sleep on his own....yay! the dishes play by himself go to nursery. by himself...yay! take fish oil make a sandwich turn the blender on when mama's not looking hail a cab
Wow my kid is so smart. (and if you think I'm kidding...I'm not)
He loves to cuddle with his mama and go ni nites....(yes he is still doing ni nites, don't judge us because we both love it still) He always runs to his dadack when he gets hurt and anytime an injustice is done to his sister he lets us know about it.
When I was pregnant we didn't find out what we were having but we were sure that it was a girl. We felt it and KNEW it. So when the moment came to find out we just had a good laugh... I never thought I'd get used to a boy, but now I want 5 more. OK maybe 3 more.
We love you L and are so glad you are in our family!
I'm sure if any of you know me well you will know how much I despise Canola oil. (as well as any vegetable oil or shortening etc)
My friend Kirstin did a post on it tonight and since she is much more articulate than I am here is the link.
It is so frustrating to me that you can't walk into a Whole Foods and buy hmmm I don't know some dried fruit or nuts without finding Canola oil on the label. Why can't they just take some fruit, dry it and stick it in a bag? They've gotta toss it in some insect repellent repellent (yes I know I said it twice), chemically extracted Rapeseed oil...yum yum eat up.
Pick any item in their entire food bar and it all has canola oil in it....even the rice! No matter if its organic or not, popcorn, crackers, chips, dips it all has canola or some type of vegetable oil in it!
The best kind of oil to use are ones that have been around for hundreds and thousands or years. Olive and Coconut are my oils of choice and of course butter. GASP!
I LOVE Weston A Price!! Its a bit deep so if you don't want to read the whole thing at least scroll down and look at the Processing section.
Here it is in a nutshell:
"The oil is removed by a combination of high temperature mechanical pressing and solvent extraction. Traces of the solvent (usually hexane) remain in the oil, even after considerable refining. Like all modern vegetable oils, canola oil goes through the process of caustic refining, bleaching and degumming--all of which involve high temperatures or chemicals of questionable safety. And because canola oil is high in omega-3 fatty acids, which easily become rancid and foul-smelling when subjected to oxygen and high temperatures, it must be deodorized. The standard deodorization process removes a large portion of the omega-3 fatty acids by turning them into trans fatty acids."
Canola oil is totally unstable and goes rancid super fast which is why they have to process it so much. Coconut oil on the other hand has a long shelf life and can withstand high temperatures.
Oh and coconut oil can be used in place of yucky paraben, lauryl sulfate ridden lotions :)
Wow! My blogging life has been taken over by facebook. I am sorry to my loyal readers who are sick of seeing Can and I every time you check my blog...which I know is 3-4 times a day.
Facebook is nuts....people you never thought you'd see again, and never wanted to see again are begging to be your friend. I was never very popular in high school but one week into this and I have 111 friends! I feel so special. But mainly I am pleased to see people (mostly the guys who relentlessly teased me) still doing the same old thing only they're fatter and older.....sweet justice. Is that mean? Too bad, cuz its true.
It has been fun to see and chat with a lot of old friends though. Especially ones from my childhood...like elementary school. Also since Cannon served in my ward I know a lot of his old mission buddies and it has been fun catching up with them too.
So first things first...Christmas! We had a lovely Christmas. The kids were cute, Santa came and we enjoyed being together.
L got a trike (thank you Craigslist) and E got an IPOD shuffle (thank you 101 E 75th St) When L saw his trike he was very excited but the thrill wore off when he opened his train set from my mom.
I took 3 pictures but she would not look at the camera, she was too preocupied with her new bracelet.
The loot
My kids never have candy...well almost never. I let them indulge their sweet tooth on Christmas and then when they weren't looking I threw it away. A Friend asked why "Santa" even brought candy, and I said it was because "Santa" never listens to me. Here L is triumphantly holding up his chocolate covered marshmellow santa....yuck.
Showing off her new slippers
Our time off was really fun and we spent a lot of time out and about. L got a haircut which I'm not happy with...I loved his hippy look. We went to the CMOM, Playgarden, Chuck E Cheese...twice. Oh and we got the chore thing goin...which is AWESOME!!!
The ball pit at Playgarden was a huge hit.
L's new haircut...not such a big hit with me. I went and got it cut but Can thought the back was too short and the front too long. So when I was out he cut L's bangs...sniff sniff. I am now thinking of buzzing it.
E had her 7th Birthday today...does that make me old?
Birthday celebration at school. She gets so shy when she is in the spotlight.
We celebrated today at Mars 2112 in Times Square. It was fun and the atmosphere was great, but it was such a RIP OFF!! But the kids had fun and that's what matters....right?
L was terrified when the aliens came around.
It wasn't any better when we were right up close.
But E was happy with it all....
and L was happy doing what he loves best...... groping mama.
The day ended with a house (apt) full of twelve 6 year olds, one 5 year old, a 4 year old and L. It was nuts but that's why it was only one hour! We love you so much E and are so happy that you are part of our family.
I forgot to add that we successfully killed the class stick bug (ok he was one of many but still we felt bad because really how hard is it to take care of a bug?)
Today is our 8th anniversary! I can't believe how time has flown and yet it seems as if we've known each other our whole lives...in my case that is sort of true.
Our Story:
Cannon and I met when I was...well to quote Miss Hannigan "Entirely too cheeky" I was fifteen and he was twenty. He came to our house for dinner as a missionary almost every week for the six months that he was in our ward. He thought I was a brat, and I thought he was dead sexy. He was very quiet....but I thought he was hot and you know as a fifteen year old that equals love...sigh. He changed areas and I saw him a time or two after that and each time my heart skipped a beat. I told my sister that I would marry Elder Anderson one day, so because my sister is the best she snagged a picture of him from his birthday party that my mom had for him (my parents are converts and adore the missionaries...lucky for me!!) I quickly put it in my journal so that no one would find it. (I found that picture after we were married when I was going through old stuff)
The face I fell in love with (he's the one with the tie)
So fast forward almost 3 years and I am at the ripe old age of 17 3/4 and I moved to SLC. I ended up at SLC's New Year's celebration called First Night. I hadn't wanted to go but because I didn't have many friends my options were very limited. Cannon was supposed to meet up with a friend earlier that night but decided to go with another group of friends to first night instead.
We always talk about what if we hadn't gone or what if this or that...would we have found eachother?
Anyways, I was standing talking to a friend (Sarah Mabey who is now a mom and married and beautiful...but thats beside the point) We had just finished eating some nasty cheese fries from the Cowboy Grub where I unfortunately worked, when this hot guy catches my eye. Well, he apparently liked the way I looked because we couldn't take our eyes off each other. I realized that I knew him from somewhere and said to Sarah "I know I know him...I'm going to talk to him" He had stopped as well because he wanted to talk to me.
So I went up to him as he was kind of standing around deciding what to do haha! I said "are you Elder Anderson?" and he's like "yeah are you a Stevens*?" *(name has been changed to protect the innocent....wink wink)
Man was I excited! We spent the rest of the night together and had a magical kiss at midnight that seriously, no joke produced a spark!
This was a few months after we met...we knew we were made for each other after 2 months but didn't want to spill the beans.
We literally spent everyday together and got married one year later (AFTER I graduated) I don't know what we were thinking, getting married so young.
We were so sick of pictures by the end of the night...this picture is screaming "my face hurts"
I love Cannon so much and don't know what I would do without him. He is my best friend and is sooooo patient with me. He loves me unconditionally and has proven that to me time and again. He never judges me when I don't cook, or clean or...shower. He is a wonderful dad and is so patient with our kids. He rarely gets mad and he ALWAYS gets up with our early risers! He is always willing to help me with whatever i need and is super supportive of whatever I want to do or try. I love that we have grown up together and have such a long history. I love that he is so righteous and loves the Lord and the Gospel so much, he is such an example to me. I love that he STILL finds me sexy after all this time. When we were dating we used to write long love notes to each other and say "I can't wait to grow old with you" Well the wait is over baby! That day has come...I hope that you love it as much as me : ) I love you Can and can't wait to see what the next 8 years will bring us!
PS these are pictures of pictures which explains the bad quality.
While Amber and I were getting ready for our wreath making activity last week, Levi got SUPER bored hanging out in the kitchen for 3 hours so he decided to take a nap! He just laid down and was zonked...we were clanking and banging and...nothing! This is the kid who won't even take a nap in his crib and who wakes up if you sneeze :)
There are so many Christmas traditions around. Someone in relief society got up to bear her testimony and told about how they would set a place for the Savior at their Christmas eve table and after dinner they would think of gifts they could give him throughout the year (like goals) and put them on his plate. I love the idea of recommitting yourself to certain things in your life and giving that gift to Christ.
In our ward our annual relief society tradition is a wreath making activity. It was a lot of fun and each year we have more and more people coming...not sure what we'll do next year since the gym was mostly full!
My wreath...I know so creative right? And what better place to hang it then right next to the bathroom?
We finally started a tradition that we think is going to last. Every year we have high hopes and then get lazy and forget all about it. So this year Cannon came up with a fun one.
Since 6 ft Xmas trees across the street from us are literally $140 we just thought we wouldn't be getting one this year. But Cannon asked the guy one block down from the sneak thief and got ours for a much better price :) Each year we have a family night to decorate but this year we decided to make it our tradition to.....drum roll please....eat soup bowls, Christmas guacamole and pumpkin pie! Well we are pretty darn excited that we thought of one on our own. And if you know my family you know that all of our traditions are centered around food.
So we ate our food and then started the tree decorating. We had Sinatra going and even though L decides to start throwing all of the glass balls that we are putting the hooks in, oy, all was well and my visions of glass shards imbedded in little feet didn't come to pass. Phew.
We made our own star, out of cardboard and tinfoil...Cannon thinks we're white trash but then again I am from VA....
E had been so excited all night to put the star up, it was to be the highlight of the night. Too bad our little angel is a big wus..or is it woos? She was so nervous because the tree was too high. First Cannon tried to lift her but woah...too scary. So then he tries again and again....meanwhile I'm saying just lift her like a dancer, like an ice skater like a....a six year old who weighs only 50 lbs? Oh I mean she was too scared. (in his defense he was sick for 4 days)
Then Cannon gets the ladder from her loft bed that is just as high as the tree is but whatever works right? L and I both take a turn climbing it while Cannon holds it to show her that look its fun, after a while she finally gets on but no way its just too high for her taste. So then we show her how she can climb on the bookcase and stand up and be right there. Ain't gonna happen. Finally after another shot at the ladder she decides that she can do the bookcase. I get her up to the top but she won't stand up and actually starts freaking out when I am trying to show her how close the tree is....ahh! Then Cannon reminds me that this fun night could turn into a tradgedy. Truer words...never mind all the fun she'll end up in therapy over all of her horrible Christmas memories. FINALLY she decides that yes I can pull the tree to her and she will try and put the star on. So 30 min. later we have a star on the tree...put on by me.
The events as they happend:
E trying out the ladder
I'm trying to help E get up on top of the bookshelf...notice the look of what are you going to do to me?
Finally on top!
Pulling the tree while pulling her arm to meet it....
results in me putting on the star.
This is obviously pre star or there would be tear stained cheeks and...a star on top.
Also my Aunt Ceci and cousin Lory came last weekend and Ceci, who makes beautiful jewelry made this set for E with matching earrings that she didn't have on yet. You should have seen her this morning for church she was so cute and thought she was a princess with all the beautiful jewelry on. She sent Ceci a thank you note right away and enclosed some of her pearls because "you like pearls so much" Love it!
Here are the recipes (minus the soup because thats way too much work, we'll let whole foods do the hard work) Pumpkin Pie (from the Weston A Price cookbook):
Start with any flaky pie crust you like, WAP suggests making theirs from pg 557, but I think its a whole lotta work when Whole Foods makes a good organic whole wheat frozen one for a couple of dollars.
1 15oz can pumpkin puree
3 eggs
3/4 C Rapadura 1 Tbs freshly grated ginger ( I use powdered)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp powdered cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
grated rind of 1 lemon
1 C piima cream or creme fraiche
2 Tbs brandy ( hiccup...optional)
Cream eggs with Rapadura. Gradually blend in other ingredients. Pour into pie shell and bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 min or until firm in the middle.
This is the BEST!!
Christmas Guacamole:
ingredients
2 ripe avocadoes, well mashed
½ tsp. coriander
2 TBS lemon juice (use half as much if using bottled)
1/4 tsp. cayenne (can add more if you like it hot...but we usually use about 1/8 b/c even 1/4 is pretty spicy)
Seeds of one ripe pomegranate
2-4 TBS finely chopped onion (Blech...I hate onions, but I chop them VERY fine and only put about 2 tbs and it adds a lot of flavor)
1 tsp. salt
directions:
combine all ingredients except pomegranate seeds.Once guacamole is a good consistency stir in pomegranate seeds.
Enjoy!
Sorry about the jumbo font...something is going on with blogger, anybody know why my html cannot be accepted??
Yes I know this is a boogery picture...but its soo cute :)
