Apple Farm Adventures

This last weekend, we went to Aamodt's Apple Farm. Abi & Max have really enjoyed all the farms in Minnesota where you can pick your own stuff. They have been dying to go to the apple farm and pick their own apples and couldn't get in the car fast enough when we told them we were going. We picked three different kinds of apples--Sweet 16, Haralson, Regent--and the kids had a blast choosing the best one from the trees. Max kept asking when we would get a ladder, but the trees were all pruned and no ladders were necessary. Not to worry, Max enjoyed eating the apples and soon the ladder was forgotten. Abi crawled through the trees to get the prettiest apple for Mom. We all enjoyed several apples (Max, one in each hand!) while in the orchard and even got to see a few hot air balloons take off. After we had picked a full bag (about 6 pounds), we bought some apple cider doughnuts and went home to enjoy them with some hot chocolate. It was a great afternoon.

Fall Canning Extravaganza!

I did it! I did it! I canned 17 pints of salsa and 23 pints of pizza sauce all by myself! Well, all by myself minus the 50 calls to Mom with questions--like what is a scant tablespoon? A lady from our ward brought by a 5 gallon bucket of hot peppers for us to use. What in the world do you do with that many peppers!?! I did want salsa, so decided to find some tomatoes and see how many peppers I could use for that project. Max and I went on another adventure and found a little man who had a few boxes of tomatoes left on his farm. He sold me a hefty 20 lbs. of tomatoes for $15! I reasoned if I were to can tomatoes, then I needed to look cute, so I decided to make me a canning diva apron. I found a great tutorial from Little Birdie Secrets (my dear friend Mandy's awesome site). Then I canned and canned and canned--I even helped my friend can a batch of salsa. Max loved playing with the peppers and hanging them from the counter, and I of course had to have my good friend Cherry Coke Zero help in the process. Now I have a great little stock pile of beautiful jars of salsa and pizza sauce, and a cute apron to boot! What's for dinner tonight? Soft tacos and salsa of course!

Adventures with Max

After a few days of canning salsa and pizza sauce and staying home all day, Max and I decided to go on our own adventure. I heard of a cool furniture store call Mudd Lake outside of Minneapolis so I thought we'd check it out. Mudd Lake ended up being an hour's drive away, but Max and I enjoyed the scenery and little farms that surrounded the store. The leaves were changing and you could tell fall was officially here. Max was excited to get out and explore all the old farm buildings that made up the store. I got a lot of great ideas for painting furniture and can't wait to start on my next project. We took pictures and had a fun time in the drizzly weather. Max is a funny guy and is always up for an adventure with me. The highlight of the day for Max was playing "I Spy". It went something like this:

Max: I spy something green.

Mom: Is it the trees?

Max: YES!

Mom: I spy something fluffy and white.
Max: The car?
Mom: No

Max: Me?

Mom: No, it's in the sky.

Max: It's got to be our car!

Mom: No, the clouds silly.

Max: Oh yeah. I spy something cloud and fluffy...

It's Here!

Fall has officially started. We can feel it in the air, the trees are changing, the kids are contemplating their Halloween costumes and now our decorations have gone up! As much as I LOVE summer and the heat, fall is one of my favorite seasons. It's a beautiful time of year, and I hear Minnesota has amazing falls. We are all super excited to see all the leaves change and take a boat ride down the river to see them, try a famous honeycrip apple and find an orchard to explore. It's a great harvest time to count our blessings and to thank those who have made our life better. So, thank you, Mom and Dad, for giving me the best gift, the gospel. Without it, I would not be anything that I am today. Thank you for giving me many opportunities to build a testimony and to know for myself who I am and that I have a purpose and role in the Great Creator's plan. I'm so excited to experience a new place with new friends during this awesome season! Fall has arrived and I'm here too!

To Utah and Back!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

We all just got home from a fun filled trip to Utah to celebrate Coray & Erica's wedding. We had a great time seeing family and friends and feeling like we never left. I don't think we had a day, minute or second of down time, but it was a blast! We aren't sure when we will get to come back to visit since we've been to Utah twice since July! We are spoiled. I guess all of you better start saving your pennies to come visit us in Minnesota! Can't wait to see you all again. Thanks for making our trip so fun and memorable. We have the best family and friends ever!!

Dinos in the Fridge...

The other day I opened my fridge to find a few of Max's dinosaurs in the fridge. When I asked him about them, he said, "They are just chillin', Mom!" That kid cracks me up!

First Day of School

I can't believe the summer is over and school is back in session. Abi started the first grade this week at Valley Crossing Community School. She was so excited to be a first grader. The best part of first grade? TWO recesses and lunch, of course! Abi is in Mr. Wallace's class. There are actually quite a few kids from the ward attending this school--pretty lucky for Minnesota!

Here's a little photo journal of Abi's summer! Lots of swim time and park time and of course those great milestones--lost teeth and no training wheels! I'll say we had a great summer and Abi has made some fabulous memories. Abi is one of the best girls anyone could know. She is so smart and friendly, and she even has a funny sense of humor. I love you, Abi Girl! Here's to a wonderful first grade school year!

The Summer Fun Continues

Here's a few pics of some of the Minnesota fun we've been having. It involves lots of swimming and treats and friends and, of course, adventure. Take a look at Minnehaha Falls, The Northwest Fur Trading Post, The St. Paul Cathedral and the Mirror Maze in the Mall of America. The weather all ready feels like fall is coming, and we are trying to enjoy the warmth while we've got it! This summer went too fast!

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Do you like the collages? I've really learned a lot from my photoshop class! There is still more to learn, and I definitely gotta get faster, but it's super fun never the less. I signed up for another one titled, "20 pages in 20 days"! I'll be posting some of the goodness I create soon! I might just be addicted!

Glitter Toes!

Abi & I have been having a lot of fun with our new found love--glitter toes! Becca sent us a fun package filled with flip flops and glitter for glitter toes. We couldn't break out the glitter fast enough to try it out! It's been super fun having glittery bling toes, especially at Lake Elmo. You gotta try it out! Thanks Becca!

Photoshop Day 2--Wall Quote

I'm learning a lot in my photoshop class. I can't wait to hang this in my craft room!

Summer Food and Fun Parks

I love summer food! I've been trying out some new recipes using all the great summer veggies. St. Paul has an awesome Farmers Market, so we've been trying to take advantage while we can. Featured today is Lime Cilantro Chicken Salad. The dressing is SUPERB! This salad is so full of flavor and I could eat it every day. I got the recipe off of the Recipe Club blog. Get the delicious recipe here. Aaron also tried a new variation of the Artisan bread. It's the master recipe with fresh basil, mozzarella and sun dried tomatoes in the center. Great combo. Yum! Yum!


This week, the kids and I also tried out the Hyland Park in Bloomington. It was awesome! There was a huge play area with a water feature and a lake nearby (of course!). We paddle boated on the lake and got a great workout. Max steered the boat and we were going crazy, but no tipping over! We've really been enjoying all the lake activities here in Minnesota. Each lake are is different and feels like you are far away from the city even if you are in the middle of businesses. It's pretty cool!

I'm also taking a photoshop class on Jessica Sprague's site, so hopefully I'll be posting some cool pics soon. We're learning about brushes, so here's my attempt with only 5 minutes into the class. Imagine what I can do after I complete the first lesson! Can't wait! Check out Jessica's site here. Lot's of cool stuff....summer is so much fun! I hope it never ends.

The 11 Day Party!

We just came home from an eleven day visit to Utah. We went because my brother, Kyle, was getting married. While we were there, we partied every day, went to a wedding and celebrated Abi's 6th birthday. We saw friends and family, went to the zoo, candy factory, Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House, attended a bluegrass concert, got pedicures, waterslid down a giant slide, broke a pinata and just had a blast! Thanks to our family for having us for so long and for all the great late nights and desserts. We loved being with you and can't wait to come back in September. We love you, Kyle and Breck, and wish you the best life together. Being married is the very best--the pictures below prove it!

Oh, Those Summer Days!

A couple of weeks ago, we went to the strawberry fields and picked strawberries. We gathered these....

Then made this! The jam is delicious!

Pleasant Valley Orchards lets you pick your own strawberries, and the kids were so excited to see the patch and pick their own berries. Abi and Max both said they wanted to come back everyday! Who knew work would be so fun?!

We took home 13 lbs. of DELICIOUS berries, and made 12 pints and 12 half pints of jam. The kids say the jam is "way better" than store stuff and have been asking for jam and bread for days. Next we're going to try picking our own raspberries!

Kids say the greatest things!

Yesterday the kids and I went to Culvers for lunch (it's kinda like Hires). Culvers cooks all their food when you order it and the kids insisted on fried chicken, so it was a little wait to get their chicken cooked. I explained that we would have to wait a bit because they make our food and cook it right when we order it. When it arrived, Abi & Max asked me to cut into the chicken so it could cool down. Here's the conversation that followed:

ME: Wow! This is super hot! Why is this so hot?
ABI: You know mom, they gotta make it so hot so it kills the chicken first then cooks it for us!

What in the world!? Ha ha ha ha ha!

Fun Times in Minnesota!

We've lived here in Minnesota for a little over a month--can't believe it! Time is flying! Before we left my mom gave me a scrapbook project. She made a fabulous book that has a spot for a journal entry and picture every day during Aaron's residency. A picture and journal entry a day! Whew that's a hard one for me, but I decided to tackle the project since I know it would be really cool and worth while in the end. The kids are getting to know the routine and now have just started asking, "What picture are we taking today." It's actually been fun, and "The Book" is looking very fun even just a month in. Today, I decided to post a few of the pictures I took for "The Book". We've had a great time and have a long list of things we want to see and do here in Minnesota. Thanks, Mom for the great idea!

This is Abi & Max at the Como Zoo. St. Paul has a FREE zoo! It was so cool! They had this awesome butterfly exhibit which featured HUNDREDS of butterflies. Here, Abi & Max are holding very, very still so a butterfly would land on them. I've never seen Max hold this still, ever! No such luck at a landing, but we did see some really awesome butterflies. The favorite was the Blue Morpho.

This is Lake Elmo! It's our summer hangout. We love this place and it's only 5 minutes from our house! The Lake Elmo park reserve is really big and actually consists of 2 lakes, a fishing hole, camping sites, 3 playground areas, horse riding and a million trails for bikers and walkers. As you can see we love the beach area and all the sand.

Here's the giant playground at Lake Elmo. Notice the long slides! I've never seen slides so long! Max thinks they are the coolest things and especially likes to get going fast then land in the sand afterward. I'm not too big of a fan of all the sand that comes home in his pants and crack, but what can you say, Max is a heathen and he's having fun!

This is a picture of our pattle boat ride on the Taylors Falls Princess. We rode the Princess for 80 minutes on the St. Croix river and had a great time. The highlight was visiting the captain and driving the boat. Max was a little "excited" aka crazy (no surprise) and the captain had to tell him he couldn't turn the "pirate's wheel" so fast!

Here' we are in Taylors Falls in front of our tent. Yes, we went camping! (You gotta click on the picture to view it a little bigger and see Aaron's face. I love that crazy guy and his funny picture faces!) We had a great time even after the monsoon that soaked us all the last night. I did miss Bishop Derksen not being there with his truck full of stuff we usually forget (the broom, wood for the fire, hatchet, etc). I did not miss, however, his singing bright and early in the morning to wake us all up! Ha ha! I love you, Bishop! We miss you!

So there is a little snipit of the fun things we've been doing. I do have more pictures that I've taken and put in "The Book", but you will have to come visit to see them all. Are you getting the message? We want visitors! Minnesota is a really cool place in the summer with a ton to do. We've enjoyed it and want to share! Get ready for more cool pictures coming soon...re-upholstering the couch ourselves, Minnehaha Falls, and more!

My Latest Projects

I have had the crafting bug lately! Here's a look at a few things I've been working on lately...

I have been making these fabric flowers. I found a little tutorial at wise craft and have just made a bunch of these cute things with Abi. They are so easy and can be used for a million things. You have got to try it!

Here's what the back looks like....

Here's what it looks like on a present. Abi has used them in her hair, on her clothes and on her purses. So cute!

I also used the flowers on these pillows I just made. Breck helped me refinish my dresser to a beautiful creamy yellow before we left Utah. I absolutely love it, but didn't have anything to really tie it into my room. I decided to make pillows! Here they are! It was so fun and now the room looks complete!

Here's the awesome dresser Breck helped me with. She is a furniture GENIUS! Check out her stuff here and start saving your pennies for one of Breck's awesome creations!

Here's the book I made for Aaron for father's day. I got the template from the fabulous ladies at House of 3 I really am addicted to their stuff! Their site is especially perfect since Minnesota doesn't have Roberts or any scrapbooking stores. They do have Michaels, but the scrapping section is as long as I am. Boo! Thank goodness for the House of 3 genius'!

This book lists 10 things we love about our dad...

The kids helped me with their hand prints. They thought that was really fun!

I even let Abi write in it. Her writing is so cute and it's fun to have it in a book.

I think Aaron liked it. I had a great time putting it together and can't wait to try a new Ho3 project out!

That's it! All the crafts I've been doing this last month. It's been super fun, and I have a few more in the line up for the month of July.