Past Few Days. . . . .

We've kept ourselves busy the past few days. We had Spring Break a couple of weeks ago. I was wishing I was in Miami or somewhere on the beach. So I decided to redo our bedroom with a tropical theme. I made new curtains. And, then I made some throw pillows for the bed with the leftover fabric. Aren't they cute? Now I feel like I'm living in luxury, and I imagine the waves lapping against the beach/bed as I sleep.

We tore down the rickety swingset that was left by the previous owners. Initially we thought it was going to be great. However, the more we used it the more apparent it became that the supports were cracked, rotten, and needed to go. So, now we're debating between getting another swingset or trampoline. The boys want a trampoline. So, we'll see.

Go Jayhawks!!! KU is going to the Final Four. . . . . .again.

That's all for now.

Weekly Recipe--Heidi's Cinnamon Rolls

I'm going to start posting a recipe every week. I always enjoy finding new recipes, and I think swapping them is great. A few years ago I had a New Year's resolution to try one new recipe per week. It was fun and I found lots of good ones. I ended up usually using 2 or 3 new ones a week. So, here's my latest find. I've been looking for years, at least 12, for a great cinnamon roll recipe. I've finally found it. So, I'm calling it 'HEIDI'S CINNAMON ROLLS'.

2 pkg. active yeast, or 4 1/2 tsp. active yeast
1/2 c. warm water (110-115 degrees)
8 c. all-purpose flour
1 pkg. (3.4 oz.) instant vanilla pudding mix
2 c. warm milk (110-115 degrees)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. canola oil--vegetable, corn, etc
2 tsp. salt

Filling:
1 c. packed brown sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 c. raisins--optional
1 c. chopped walnuts--optional

Glaze:
1 c. powdered sugar
2-3 Tbsp. milk
1/4 tsp. ALMOND extract

Dissolve the yeast in the water. Set aside for 5-10 minutes to proof it. Add the next 7 ingredients; mix well, but DO NOT KNEAD. The dough will be a bit sticky. Place in a greased bowl, turn over to grease the other side. Cover and let rise until double, about 1 hour.
Punch down. Put on a floured surface and cut in half. Roll each half into a rectangle, about 12x8--a little bigger is fine, too. Brush with butter. Combine the filling ingredients. Spread half of the filling on each rectangle. Roll up the long side and seal the seam. Slice each roll into 12 rolls. Place into 2 greased 13x9 pans. Cover and let rise until double, about 45-60 minutes.
Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Combine the glaze ingredients. Drizzle on top once the rolls have cool a bit. ENJOY!! They taste the best for the first couple of days. If you have any left after a few days, since there are 24 of them, just heat them in the microwave for a few seconds and they taste great.

Weekly Happenings

So, this is what's been happening this week.

We planted our lettuce. After getting all the top soil down on Saturday, Adam and I planted the lettuce on Monday.

On Tuesday, Adam had another appt. with the psychiatrist (for his OCD). We have to drive down to Liberal, 70 miles away, since she's the only child psychiatrist in southwest Kansas. We go every other Tuesday. He's now tackling the challenge of touching his underwear and not washing his hands. That might sound kind of weird. However, to him, his underwear is contaminated. And he HAS to wash his hands if he touches them. To be honest, I am surprised by how much progress he's made in the last two months. In December and January he thought EVERYTHING was contaminated. Anything that left our house was all of a sudden dirty and he couldn't touch it. He was washing his hands 50+ times a day and he didn't feel safe doing anything because he didn't want to get "dirty". At his appt. I realized he doesn't think that anymore. His underwear is the only contaminated thing now.

Matthew has started saying "what the?". When he sees something strange or confusing he says "what the?".

In Young Womens, I'm trying to get the girls excited about the general broadcast this Saturday. However, I'm not having much luck. We're also getting our camp fundraiser organized. I tell ya--I could do stuff for YW everyday--it never ends.

Easter Weekend

Matt and his friend, Amelia. They look so much alike they could be siblings.

Easter morning--going through their easter baskets!!

Adam and Matt waiting for the egg hunt to start.

We had a fun-filled weekend. We dyed eggs, like every year. The boys always have so much fun and always want to do more than the dozen allotted. However, they don't like eggs. So, Robert and I limit it to 12 eggs because we don't feel like eating five eggs a day. We took the boys to a couple of egg hunts and then had one at our house, too. Matt was old enough to do the hunts this year, so he was "egg-cited". We had some friends over for Easter dinner. The kids ate little and played tons. We had a really nice time.

After walking 9 miles Saturday morning (I'm training for a half-marathon next month) Robert and I bought and put down 2000 lbs. of top soil for our garden. Robert was teasing me saying "the Leonard" was coming out of me, since I went from one big thing to the next without having a break. We're using the old dog-run for our garden. The previous owners had a dog that dug a big hole. Over 3/4 of the dirt went to fill the hole. Our yard seems to have been neglected for a long time. This morning I was clearing weeds out of an old flower bed. I found a rotten tree stump. I dug it all out. Now we have a three-foot deep hole in our front yard. So, I need to find out if it's okay to plant a tree in that hole, since it's already dug. So, that was our weekend.

Food for Thought

This past weekend we had Stake Conference. The Stake YW mtg.'s theme was "Bloom Where You Are Planted". They presented some really good messages. So, I'm passing them on.

"...wherever you live, whatever circumstances you live in, whatever your background or challenges might be, the gospel light has the power and purpose to bring blessings into your life and into the lives of those placed in your path. The gospel of Jesus Christ has been restored to bring blessings to our Heavenly Father's children. You are planted in your country, your community, and your family to facilitate these blessings. I urge you to bloom where you are planted."--Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf

"The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet."--James Oppenheim

The Myth of the Greener Grass:
God has called you to bloom.
He has called you for a particular reason to the set of circumstances you experience.
Have you been called to motherhood? Bloom!
Have you been called to fatherhood? Bloom!
Have you been placed in a less than desirable job? Bloom!
Have you been struggling with less than desirable health complications? Bloom!
Let your faith Bloom!
When you feel stuck, maybe you really aren't stuck at all.
You've been planted!

Heavenly Father has a special purpose for planting you where you are. Think of three personal reasons why you are there. Think of three spiritual reasons why you are there.


There--that's my sermon. Thought there was a lot of good stuff to think about.

Blessings of the Week

#1: Warm, sunny weather--at least 65 degrees everyday. I spent every afternoon this week doing yard work--raking, tilling the garden, cutting the grass and reseeding, pruning everything taller than four feet.

#2: OCD--Adam was diagnosed with OCD this past summer. He's been seeing a psychiatrist since the beginning of the year. He had an appt. this week. The blessing in all of this has been seeing him overcome and conquer this big challenge. It's really rewarding to see him doing something so difficult and coming out on top.

#3: The Library--I love the library. I love getting to read tons of books, for me and the boys, and not having to pay for them. It's great.

#4: Spring Break started on Friday.

#5: Matt loves to see pictures of his cousins, particularly Evan. He calls him Heaven.

#6: KU won their conference!! Which also means, Robert will be in a good mood tonight.

Did we buy the money pit?

It's been three months since we moved into our new house. Our projects, wanted and unwanted, seem to be neverending. Since we've been here, we've painted 13 rooms, put down wood laminate floors, changed light fixtures, tore out and put in new carpet in seven rooms, changed bath fixtures, tore out cupboards, painted other cupboards, put down vinyl floor. I think that's all. However, last night I was thinking about the projects were currently working on, and I don't think the list will ever be short. We're still working on the trim for the floor in the kitchen and laundry room(we could use your help again, Owen), putting more laminate in the entryway, painting the hall, laundry room and garage, changing the lights in the bathrooms, putting in a garden, landscaping the front yard, redoing the cabinets and hardware in the kitchen, etc........ We sure had a romantic notion back in October that this was going to be so much fun. Oh, well--I guess this is what we get for choosing to do it all by ourselves. The biggest thought in the back on my mind is--we better make money on this house when we sell. The picture is of our latest project. These are great cupboards. As you can see they cover an entire wall, in the basement, and are 3-4 feet deep. However, they used to be yellow, orange and brown with 60's style handles. Those who saw them in their original state know how ugly they were. So, we sanded them, primed, painted and put new pulls and handles. We also changed the flooring. Well, I'm off..............to Home Depot.

Are blogs a trend or a turtleneck?

I'm really not into trends. I don't think I'd be described as a trendy person. So, I've hesistated starting a blog because I've wondered if they're just a passing trend. I remember being 8 years old, playing at a playground with my mom, when we started talking about the fashions young girls were wearing. My mom told me the styles I was wearing were popular 20 years earlier when she was growing up. She said styles come and go. But, there were some clothes that were always in style, that were classics----like the turtleneck. Since then, I always ask myself, "Is this just a passing trend or is this a 'turtleneck'?". So, I guess I've come to the conclusion that blogs are here to stay. It's been a lot of fun reading the blogs of friends and family, and I'm hoping ours will be, too.