Garden and Swingset

I officially have a garden... and even have a row of peas planted. My parents came over the other day and helped get the garden ready for planting. My Dad brought his tiller over and tilled up the garden with a lot of compost. I wanted some separation between the garden and our yard so we went to Lehi Block to find some pavers. The pavers we chose were "seconds"... not sure why but they only cost me $0.31 each. I spent a total of $12.00.

The garden looks amazing!!

A couple of weeks ago we bought a swing set from RC Willey. Cost us $100!! We got it all set up and Kade plays on it everyday. Here is a picture of Kade on the teeter-totter... he was having a lot of FUN... but by the looks of the picture you might think differently. This is how he poses for pictures.

Sunday Barbeque

We have been wanting to barbecue for some time now... but the weather hasn't been the greatest. Mike had mentioned that it would get to 70 degrees on Sunday so I planned ahead and marinated some Chicken. The chicken had been marinating for a couple of days... it tastes so much better when you give it time to soak in.

About 5:30 I went to the kitchen and started dicing the potatoes and put them into the oven... about 6:00 I told Mike that the chicken was ready to be cooked. He thought it was warm enough so we took Kade out onto the deck with us.

Imagine our surprise when we opened the barbecue and found this...

The nest was a bit more built up but we thought we could move it eggs and all. Mike grabbed the outside of the nest and lifted. All that came was the nest and the eggs stayed on the barbecue grill.

I called Mark and my Dad for advise... we really don't want to kill the birds but really need our grill back. Both said that if we touched them or tried to move the next that the mother bird would not come back. With that told to us we thought that the mother would not come back with what we already did. We watched out the window for about 15 min and the mother bird came back twice.

What do we do?? How long before the eggs hatch and do we really want baby birds in our grill?

Testing your Knowledge

Mike forwarded me this the other day... and while I try very hard not to forward emails...I could NOT resist. I am totally addicted to this one. I sent it to some immediate family and got a huge response so I thought I would post about it.

Give it a try and let me know your first score... and I want the truth.

Mike's was an 80%. Mine was 86%

http://jimspages.com/States.htm

YUMMY - Pizza Rolls

This last Saturday my sisters and I got together for another round of freezer meals. This time we made; French Toast Sticks, Shepherd's Pie, Parmesan Chicken, Pizza Rolls and Cinnamon Rolls.

Yesterday I took my Mom to visit our good friend Idaliz. After dropping off my Mom I didn't get home till about 3:30. Luckily I had thought about dinner early and pulled out some Pizza Rolls. I cooked them up... they were so so so GOOD.

These meals are such a good idea and so easy and cheap to make. Thanks GAYLA!!

Thankgoodness for DVR

Last year I had two procedures done to my neck called a radiofrequency neurotomy. One in March for the left side of my neck and one in June for the right side of my neck. A radiofrequency neurotomy is a type of injection procedure in which a heat lesion is created on certain nerves with the goal of interrupting the pain signals to the brain, thus eliminating pain.

I have been suffering from severe headaches for many years now and have tried many things to help. This finally worked!! I felt GREAT until November that is when my headaches starting returning. At first they they were small but have now gotten back to almost daily.

With all this said I will get to the purpose of this post. With my headaches returning I have had many sleepless nights and am not sure what I would have done without my DVR.

I love my DVR!!!

Here is a list of all the shows that are currently set in my DVR.

1. 24
2. Prison Break
3. Heroes
4. The Unit
5. House
6. Chuck
7. Ugly Betty
8. Lost
9. Ghost Whisperer
10. NCIS
11. Americas Next Top Model
12. Little Einstein’s
13. Wipeout
14. Greek
15. Secret Life of the American Teenager
16. CSI
17. Burn Notice
18. Monk
19. Kitchen Nightmares
20. The Mentalist
21. Chase
22. One Tree Hill
23. True Beauty
24. The Real World
25. The Biggest Loser
26. Game Show in My Head
27. Family Feud
28. Hell’s Kitchen
29. Survivor: Tocantins
30. The Amazing Race 14
31. Sober House
32. Tool Academy
33. I Love Money


I haven't seen a lot of new posts lately and I think it because no one knows what to post about. Here is a great idea... post on what shows are set on your DVR or the shows you just cant live without. If you read this post... tag you are it.

I look forward to reading a lot of new posts in the next week or so.

Kade's Allergic

On Sunday the 18th we had a few people over for dinner. Well after dinner Kade had a few bites of a peanut butter sandwich... HE LOVED IT... he begged for more. About an hour after he had the peanut butter his nose really started to run and he really began to cough. It was almost bedtime so I went to get his bottle. He was crying and acting miserable so I gave him some Benadryl... hoping to help with the draining from his nose and the cough. I gave him the bottle and took him into the other room to drink it. He laid down and started to drink except it was like he couldn't breathe very well so he could drink very well. We waiting another 15 min to see if it would get better.

After 15 minutes he wasn't getting better only getting worse. He was having a hard time breathing and he had scratched his ear to the point of bleeding. Mike and I were very concerned we decided to take him to the instacare right up the street. We put him immediately in the car and left.

When we drove into the parking lot of the instacare we knew it was closed. We turned around and headed for the ER. When we got to the ER I took him in and told the front nurse that I thought he was having an allergic reaction to Peanut Butter. The nurse took us immediately back and before we could sit down the doctor was in the room taking off Kade's clothes. The doctor looked and Kade and said he didn't think he was having an allergic reaction but that he thought he had a virus. I told the doctor that he had only had the symptoms for about an hour. The doctor changed his mind and started treating him for an allergic reaction. The nurse gave him some IV Benadryl and within minutes he was breathing fine and asleep.

I took Kade to Dr. Glade a few days later and he gave me a prescription for an EpiPen Jr. and referred me to an allergist. I called the allergist he referred me to and found out they were scheduling to May. I really didn't want to wait... I felt like I needed to know if he was allergic to something that could be so dangerous. I called Gayla and she said to call an allergist down in Provo. I called his office and they got me appointment for today the 28th.

Kade and I just got back from the doctor where they tested him for several different things. We found out today that Kade is allergic to Peanuts and Eggs. This means no NUTS of any kind and nothing that is made with these products. He has also asked us to watch for things that are made that may have come in contacts with Peanuts.

I feel a bit stressed out... am I not the one that has to really deal with it for the rest of my life.

The doctor did say that there is nothing that we could have done differently... that should make me feel better but it doesn't really. He also said to get him retested in a few years that he may grow out of some of the allergy...

I guess we will see.

Laughing

Last night we were watching TV, I was lying next to Mike on the floor and Kade was climbing all over us. Kade sat on my head and out came a TOOT. It was pretty funny... Mike and I started to laugh... soon after Kade started to laugh. Kade kept laughing and all of a sudden he snorted... that made me laugh harder and in turn Kade laughed harder and then came snort after snort. It was really funny. Its like he couldn't help himself.

Happy Birthday Mike!!!

Mike's Birthday was on Wednesday (7th) and I decided to surprise him by taking him out to dinner. I took him to his favorite restaurant ... Olive Garden. We took Kade over to my parents house and they watched him while we went out... it was very nice to just have Mike and I there... Thanks Mom & Dad!!

I tried to talk Mike into going to the movie but he didn't want to because he had to be to work so early the next morning (5:00 am). After dinner we went and picked up Kade and then came home for presents and brownies. Kade picked out Mike's favorite candy bar... all by himself... well he chose from 3 different ones. We also got Mike a U of U sweatshirt, t-shirt and track pants. Mike was very happy and said that he can now wear a different U of U shirt everyday for almost 2 weeks.

Today we are celebrating his birthday with his parents. They are bringing pizza and I made a cake. I was very proud of the cake... even though it looks sorta funny. Here are some pictures...

I tried my best to make it look like a football... not as good as the cake we made for Kade's birthday... but still good.

I am so glad to have such a great husband. He works so hard to support our family which allows me to stay home and be with Kade. He his such a great example to both Kade and I. We both love him very much.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIKE!!!

Little Helper

The other day Mike and I were cleaning the house and to our surprise when we turned on the vacuum it made the most horrible noise. We looked quickly and saw a paperclip that had been sucked up and been stuck. It didn't take us long to pull the paperclip out but we quickly saw that we needed to de-hair the vacuum. I know it sounds gross... but it happens... look at your vacuum if you don't believe me. It took us about 30 minutes to get everything out.



Kade decided to help us out and held the vacuum down for us.

Christmas

On Christmas Eve Kade and I went and picked up Mike from work and then went to visit Mike's Dad in the Hospital. We were there for about 2 hours and in that time Kade learned a new trick... spitting on purpose. He was standing on one of the chairs and was drooling a bit (teething). When he saw the drool hit the chair he instantly knew it would be fun to play in. Wet just like the dogs water. He then continued to spit all he had onto the chair.

We left the hospital and went to Grandma's house. Kade dressed up like a Sheppard... he didn't like the outfit so much screamed the entire time just to take it off. I was able to get one picture before that.

By the time that Santa came it was already 15 minutes past Kade's bedtime and with the lack of good nap for the day he was very tired.

Christmas morning we woke up just like every other morning. When it was time to see what Santa had brought we let Kade discover for himself. Kade walked out of our bedroom and saw the trike that his Grandma and Grandpa Konopka gave him. I never seen him move so fast... he ran to the trike and proceeding to climb on. All morning that's all he wanted to do... sit on the trike. He opened his presents, played with his new toy cars and even ate breakfast sitting on it.

New Years Day

So... I have been thinking...

We need to plan another trip to the movies to see Twilight. I am done reading all the books and its about time that I see it again. So... with all the boys going on New Years Day... lets us girls go to the movie.

Thoughts??

Snow Day

On Saturday we went over to my parents house to play in the snow. We tied an inter tube on the back of a four wheeler and then a sled onto the back of that.

Here is Kade all bundled up... took us about 15 min... he had a lot of layers...



Here is Mike and Madison. As you have probably guessed I was driving with Kade on my lap.

Mike and Kade. Kade didn't like riding on Mike's lap because he was getting the brunt of the snow in his face.

I had a great idea to put Kade on the tube by himself. Mike was driving and I was recording. After watching the video you will be able to see that I am not very good at recording.

Simplify Supper

Okay... so I have started to watch Good Things Utah in the morning. I admit it probably isn't the best use of my time... but what can ya do.

Today they had a segment from Simplify Supper. They made Italian Crock Pot Chicken it looked so yummy... I kept rewinding and pausing so that I could write down the recipe. It only has 5 ingredients.

Toward the end of the segment they talked more about the website, Simplify Supper and I knew instantly that I had to check it out and share with others.


Here you'll find great recipes & articles, but you can also:
- Grab our recipes & organize them to the days of your week.
- Or, just check out the fully-planned calendar we post on the homepage every month.

Either way, this site AUTOMATICALLY makes your shopping list for you, no matter how many different recipes you save to your week. So print it off and you're good to go.

How COOL is that?!?

You have to register to use the site... but it is FREE!! They only ask for your name and email address.

Every week I find myself looking through all my recipe books writing down my menu and they making my shopping list. I spend hours a week and this site does it for free and so quickly.

Lastly, here is a quick blurb from their website, "We believe strongly that dinner time is ideal family time and we want to help you enjoy the event by taking away the stress of planning the meals and shopping list."

GO CHECK IT OUT!!!

Lehi Wind Storm

Anyone that has ever lived in or near Lehi know that the wind storms out here can be quite fierce.

This is where my story begins...

Kade and I left the house about 9:30 we had an appointment to get his haircut at the local hair school. (Not part of the story... but while there the girl cutting his hair cut his ear... it was bleeding) I drove home as quick as possible with the cries of an unhappy boy in the backseat. He was tired, hungry and just fed up of being in the car.

We soon arrived home and within seconds of walking in the door we were greeting by Chewy, she was ready to go outside and take care of business. I already had Kade in my arms and thought he would enjoy being outside as much as the dog.

We got outside and Kade frown turned right side up into a HUGE smile. The weather was quite nice considering it was the beginning of December. As they played the slight breeze starting picking up... I soon realized that we needed to get inside before we all blew away.

We got inside and immediately knew Kade needed a nap. I layed him down and within minutes he was fast asleep. I went to the family room and turned the TV on. I needed to catch up on my episodes of Scream Queens (VH1). I watched for a few minutes and then suddenly everything went dead. The wind had caused a power outage.

What to do...hmmm....

I thought about cleaning my house and how pleased Mike would be... then out of the corner of my eye I saw it...

TWILIGHT

I began reading and thought to myself I will read for a few minutes until the power goes back on. The beginning of the book was a lot like the movie... I had a hard time trying to image my own story as the movie was constantly in my head. I keep reading and suddenly the power came back and within minutes was crying from his room.

I looked at the thinking that was NOT a long nap and to my surprise an hour and a half had flown by. I marked my book and realized I had read over 100 pages. (This is a great thing for me as I havent read a book in 10+ years... sad I know)

That was the first night I dreamed of Edward...

I awoke the next morning with a list of errands that needed to be ran. I waited till after Kade's nap to go out of the house but kept busy all morning picking up the house.

We arrived home about 5:45 pm. Mike was already home and was past ready to eat. I quickly made dinner. We watched two episode of Heroes after dinner and then went to bed. Mike was out within 10 minutes. I flipped through the channels as I often did late at night. I soon realized NOTHING was on TV... then in the back of my it came...

TWILIGHT

I picked up the book and started reading. A while later Mike woke up and turned over to look at the time, blinded by the lamp he asked, "What time is it?" I looked at the clock and was shocked to see it was already 1:30 am. He rolled over and fell back asleep. At that point I told myself that I would only read for 30 more minutes... that would make it an even four I told myself. I looked at the page number and only had about 50 pages left... I thought to myself... I can make it.

I began reading again and soon I was turning the last pages of the story. It was 2:00. I turned out the light and went to sleep.

This was the second night I dreamed of Edward...



I apologize for the long story... but WOW! What a book! I loved it... every page. I am ready to go see the movie again.

Chewy

While Mike's dad is in the hospital we are helping out by watching their dog "Chewy". Chewy is a good dog and loves to play with Kade.

Kade will go out of his way looking for Chewy and will tease and play with the dog. While Chewy is a very good dog I am afraid that Kade doesnt know when enough is enough.

This short video is an example of what goes on all day long between the two.

A Whole New House

Mike and I have a new house... or our same old house that looks a lot different. We have found in the recent weeks that the outside of our front door and front beams were NOT treated correctly.

I hired a company to come out and refinish our door and beams. You can judge for yourself... but I think it looks GREAT!!!

The beams look a bit red... but I took the picture in the shadow of the house.

New and improved Front Door!!



Next Step: Convince Dad to help us put up some railing in the front!!