Hair Cut

Lately Samantha has been pulling out her hair. And I'm not talking about little strands of hair here and there. I'm talkin' hand fulls of hair. She's always played with her hair, but recently she twists and pulls, getting her fingers caught in her tangled hair. The other day I noticed that her hair had significantly thinned on top. So, we had to do it. We had to use the flowbee. We had to cut her hair so her fingers couldn't get tangled. No more sponge curlers for a little while.

Before

The Hairdresser/Stylist

During

After

After -- with Grandma

Tortillas (revised)

Big Oops! I'm so sorry. So, I made some tortillas this afternoon for dinner tonight, and in the process of doing so, I realized I wrote the recipe down wrong. I put in my one cup of water, and boy was it not mixing well. I don't know what I was thinking...but I just wrote it out from memory, and my memory failed me! So, here's the real recipe that I use.

I do make these from memory, but it's not usually a problem. I definitely don't use 1/2 c. oil. I just a couple tablespoons at best...and I do use 3 c. white and 3 c. wheat flour. Sorry about that folks. Happy tortilla making!

Tortillas

6 c. flour
1 t. salt
2 c. hot water
1/2 c. oil

Separate dough into individual balls. Roll out to desired thickness. Cook on hot skillet. When dough begins to bubble, flip over. Cook an additional 10-30 seconds.

Beautiful Spokane

To be perfectly honest, Spokane has been kind of a shock to me. When we found out we were moving here, we were told fabulous things. When we got here, we didn't see fabulous things. We got here the end of August. Fall was pretty, but most of fall was spent getting Samantha situated in therapies, getting insurance, just a lot of running around. Also, about 3 weeks after we moved here, I was extended a calling which takes a lot of my time from the time I don't have (but I do love my calling). So, I missed most of fall.

Winter came. And winter was a beast. I have never seen snow like this before. We had record breaking snow and it was pretty much the most insane weather conditions I have ever experienced. We were snowed in for days. It took Marcus about 2 hours to get to work everyday. It was just miserable.

Our beastly winter.
Model courtesy of Cat Tales cat zoo in Spokane. Callie loved the kitties!

In the meantime, we live in a not-so-great area. Our car was broken into. Our car was damaged by our neighbors. We've had a car accident. Our camera broke -- though that has nothing to do with our neighborhood. We've had our occasional extremely loud domestic fighting. There's been an exciting drug bust in our complex. We miss the family we lived by and our great friends. I continue to stay busy taking Sammy to therapy and trying to diligently fulfill my calling while attempting to be a good wife and mother. And I just can't lose this darn weight that I've been wanting to rid my body of! Grrrr Stress? Maybe. Extra cortisol levels in my body -- definitely.

So, I honestly and sadly say that I haven't had the best of feelings about Spokane. I have tried really hard not to let anyone know that it's been a struggle here for me. Is this sad or what? Yes. I've been really wanting to soak in Spokane. I was convinced that I'd love anywhere I lived because any situation is what you make it. But, darn it all, this has been a hard one for us. Not to say it's been all bad -- because that's not true at all. I've met some people here who I just love. I love Sammy's therapies. I love that Marcus is getting good assessment experience which will make him more marketable in the future. I love Greenbluff and look forward to picking fruit this coming season. I love that I learned how to can meat and actually do it, or did it with Cherie's help. I love that Julie and Greg are letting me share garden space with them. And I love that we'll have some fantastic stories for our kids.

When my parents came out, we went around Spokane a little bit. I saw a side of Spokane that made me change my attitude, for which I am grateful. We went down the the Bowl and Pitcher and walked across the swinging bridge. Sammy loved the loud rushing water underneath the bridge. She giggled in delight hearing the rapids underneath us. We walked around the trails a little and saw the gorgeous green trees, the rock formations, and the heard the sounds of nature. I love the sound of outside -- rushing water, birds, the crunch of leaves, and the grinding of rocks with each step. It's so peaceful.

Standing in front of the swinging bridge, that really did sway quite a bit.

We went up to Newport to our friend, Julie's, house where she grew up. It was gorgeous! Her parents live on a ton of land -- 100+ acres (I think 200) -- and the girls freely ran around. We saw cows, moose tracks, a little pond, streams, and "puppies" that Callie LOVED. It was really fun being up there with them.

Target shooting. How fun!

Julie taking the girls for a stroll in the wheelbarrow.

We went downtown and saw the waterfalls and since it was nice weather, there were so many people out jogging, riding bikes, and just being together with family and friends at Riverfront Park. It was wonderful. And I decided that Spokane wasn't so bad afterall, that it was beautiful, and that a place or situation really is what you make of it. I feel like I've wasted so much time here, but I'm not really sure how I could have squeezed anything in earlier. I guess I just needed to take time, drive around, and open my eyes in order to gain a better appreciation of where I live.

We went down to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. It is so pretty over there. And of course, if there are swings, we have happy girls.

Jump n' Party

It was so great having my parents here. Unfortunately, my mom was sick for a portion of it. One of the days she was sick, we went to a nearby "gym" called Jump n' Party. The girls loved it! Callie was leary at first, but soon fell in love with all the inflatable toys!

Sammy figuring out how to drink out of the fountain.

Callie and Grandpa -- who she calls "gpa", or "papa", depending on the urgency of the need for grandpa.

Calling climbing up the inflatable ladder and just about to go down the slide. She kept doing this over and over and over again once she figured it out.

Just hanging out together.

Oh the excitement.

Sammy and Daddy going down the big slide.

This place was so much fun. I wish that while the Greens were in town we'd be able to go, but they're just here over the weekend and open jump is during the week. Oh well. This place is great. You pay only for the kids but you get to do everything with them. There was an obstacle course we went through. I was with Callie and Marcus with Sammy. Callie was clinging on for dear life. She was just a little too nervous about the whole thing. With Sammy in hand, Marcus went over a large inflatable tube. He fell over and Sammy went with him. She thought that was just the funniest thing she'd ever seen, or experienced I suppose. She was laughing and laughing. Pure joy for all of us.

Granola Bars

And until blogger allows me to post pictures, here's my granola bar recipe. These are a big hit now in my ward and with Callie and Samantha. Callie all day is asking for "cookie, cookie"-- not that she gets them everyday. But hey, if she thinks these are cookies, great. Here we go.

2 cups oats
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup honey
Any dried fruit, nuts, seeds, chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, etc.

Mix all ingredients and press into greased pan, 11 x 13. Dough will be very dry and crumbly, but press until dough forms with pan. Bake at 325 for 20 minutes or until edges are browned. Take out, cut, and let cool entirely. Cut into strips and store in baggies.

These vary. First of all, the real recipe calls for 1 c. brown sugar. You can try that if you want, but they were way too sweet for me and plus, that's just a lot of sugar when you have honey in there too. So. I cut that way down. I usually add chocolate chips. I've added peanuts, coconut, and peanut butter. All yummy. I haven't ventured too far from these combination. One hint, I would cut the granola bars when they come out, or shortly thereafter. If you wait until they are cooled, they are really hard. Enjoy!

Wheat Tortillas

As per requested, here are my tortillas.

3 cups wheat flour
3 cups white flour
1 cup hot water
1 t. salt
1 T. oil

Stir together with hands to create dough. Take a small amount, roll into a ball. Then roll out with rolling pin on a floured surface. Roll out to desired thickness. Cook on hot skillet (no oil needed). When tortilla begins to bubble, flip over to other side. Cook an additional 30 seconds or so.


There's no exact science to this, but this is what I've figured out. -- If you use all wheat flour, it doesn't roll out as well. It's too tough. I've made them before without the oil. They're also good, but they don't roll out as well, and they aren't as soft when they are cooked. But, I frequently make tortillas without fat. This makes a large batch, but I just put them in a ziploc bag and eat them throughout the week. If you leave them on the countertop, they will mold more quickly. Try putting them in the fridge. These really don't take too long to make, especially once you've done it a few times. When one is cooking, you just roll out the next one. It goes pretty quickly. I also haven't perfected the perfect round tortilla, but I think that just adds to the homemade feel. It's all good.

Home Cookin'

Recently, my parents were here visiting us in Spokane. I loved it. And, as usual, I cried like a baby when they left. I can't help it. I guess I just can't cut the cord -- but I love having them around. They stayed with us in our tiny apartment, and it was great. (pictures to come)

While they were here, I realized that some things I do to save money on our grocery bill -- not everyone does. I guess I knew it before, but it all had become routine for us. So, here are some of those things:

* We eat a lot of beans in our meals.
* I never buy tortillas anymore. I just make my own wheat tortillas. No preservatives and they're hearty.
* I buy my spices, pasta, rice, sugar, oats, and flour from the bulk food section.
* I plan our meals for a month -- as I've mentioned before.
* I've started to buy dry beans instead of canned beans. (I'm looking for a good refried beans recipe if anyone has one)
* I don't buy granola bars anymore. I make them. (once again, no preservatives, and much cheaper)
* I've started to can meat. When there's a good deal on chicken breasts (recently $.99/lb), I buy a bunch and can it. Thanks Cherie for helping me.

These are just a few things I do, but it has really made a huge difference in our food bill. When I have money left over in our food budget, I've been stocking up for our food storage. I'm really trying to get a working 3 month supply going, and we are on our way. I get so much satisfaction from making good, nutritious meals, saving money, and getting our food storage going.

"'Cuz if getting food storage and eating healthy meals is wrong, I don't want to be right." -- Marcus Green