December funnies

Dec. 5--After family prayer, and a pretty difficult day :), Elle wrapped her tiny arms around my neck and exclaimed, "I'm so glad I have a family!" Somehow, that one sentence erased everything that might have been off that day.

Dec. 6--Elle was very quickly potty trained during the daytime hours, but the nighttime has been another story. I think the bottom line is that any bladder small enough for that tiny body just can't make it through the night. Whatever the reason, she is still in diapers at night, but we make every effort to give generous praise for dry results in the morning. She always announces the unveiling with great anticipation, "Mom! Let's check out if my diaper is dry!" On this morning, she knew it wasn't, but still wanted to keep up the excitement, "I think I kept my wet diaper dry!"

Dec. 10--Ryn saw something she wanted to remember and held up her hand to her eye and made a clicking sound. "I used myself as a camera," she explained. I know just how she feels, since I'm almost always too slow getting the camera out to capture every picture my heart locks away for me.

Elle has been loving Eden more and more every day. She just couldn't contain it anymore and declared, "Eden is so cute that I can't believe her!"

Dec. 14--The girls loved every single decoration we had out for Christmas, including a singing/talking Santa my parents gave us several years ago. They were sitting around him, talking about how cute he was and Ryn explained, "We can't see Santa's mouth because it's snuggled all the way inside his beard."

Dec. 29--I had always heard of "I spy, with my little eye...", but Ryn changed it up a little and said, "I smell, with my big nose....a baby!"

Dec. 31--Eden is pretty possessive, even of things that are not hers. Does that just come with the territory of being the 3rd child who has to keep up with the bigger kids? I laughed out loud, though, when she saw a child eating a cookie on TV and exclaimed to that child, "MY cookie!"

Elle was being her little comedian self and asked me with those twinkly eyes I love so much, "Is the baby in your tummy? Did you eat him?"

November funnies

Nov. 1--Elle is really working on honing her powers of persuasion--especially with me. After I told her she couldn't have something she wanted, she said, "I'm going to count to 3 and you're going to change your mind."

Nov. 3--Kev made the funnies this time, for calling out to one of the girls with a classic Kevin mix-up, "Rapunzel! Where art thou?" :)

Nov. 6--Elle had a scratch that was getting better. As she passed her finger over it, she remarked, "Up hurts, down doesn't! It's a MAGIC scratch!"

Later, we drove past a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant with the picture of the well-known Colonel on the sign. Elle got all excited, "I just saw a sign with a picture of Joseph Smith on it!"

Nov. 9--I always try to get the older kids on my team, helping me teach correct principles and behavior to the younger ones. Now that Eden is old enough to really copy what Elle is doing, I've started stressing Elle's responsibility more, telling her how much I need her help teaching Eden how to choose the right, how to be kind, how to share, etc. Elle wasn't up for any extra jobs on this day--"I don't want to teach anyone." I know how she feels--sometimes you don't want to accept the fact that your actions influence the people around you for good or bad. Especially the mother. It's a heavy load some days, but like the sign in Mama KK's kitchen reminded, "If Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy."

Nov. 11--Eating is a race in our house, in an attempt to get them to finish a meal under 2 hours :). Elle is usually the slowest-- most easily distracted--and is always disappointed when Ryn calls out triumphantly, "I beat you, Elle!" On this morning, Elle woke up earlier than Ryn and Eden, and was eating an early breakfast alone when she realized the position she was in. "I'm going to beat Ryn and Eden because they are sleeping! YES!"

Nov. 14--Eden's voice and personality are coming through loud and clear now. Whenever she has installed herself on the couch with a book or at the table with playdough, she pats the place next to her and looks up with those huge blue eyes and commands, "Sit!"

Nov. 16--As explained above, Ryn had been trying to remind Elle of something she needed to be doing and followed up her counsel with this, "I'm your big sister so I'm teaching all of you how to be like Jesus."

Nov. 20--All of our girls love the snow--watching it fall, playing in it, eating it. We walked out of Walmart to find new snow covering the parking lot and Elle exclaimed, "I LOVE this!" I'll never forget the twinkle in those excited brown eyes.

Nov. 23--I'm not a big shopper. Kevin has that department covered enough for our entire family :). Especially when I'm pregnant, grocery shopping is usually all I'm up for. That should have explained Ryn's question at bedtime, "Mom, are there other stores in Utah besides Walmart and Sams?", but I still laughed out loud.

Nov. 24--We had hung 5 stockings up with our Christmas decorations and Ryn was counting off the members of our family. Standing by the stockings, she was pointing to each person--"1, 2, 3, 4....(for her, Elle, Eden and I)....5 is at work and 6 is in your tummy!"

Nov. 25--Ryn and Elle were giggling their little heads off in the back seat of the car when Elle sighed and said, "Ryn, I am going to have a lot of fun with you." :) I think that's how we all felt when we found out we'd get to be in families with our best friends.

They were so excited to be wearing their snow boots, but we were driving home in the dark after a fun Thanksgiving at Mom and Dad's. Elle was disappointed that she couldn't see her boots so Ryn suggested she just wait til we passed under each street light for a chance to see them :). Classic Ryn--always finding a way to help make everyone happy.

How very much I have to be thankful for! Every day with these girls and my angel husband is a gift.

October funnies

Oct 2--Ryn and Elle kept talking when it was time to go to sleep. After several trips back to their room to ask them to stop, I said in frustration, "If I hear any more talking, you're going to get spanks." Ryn knew that the person who would start the talking as soon as I left would be Elle and she didn't want to be punished for her sister's transgressions :) so she asked tentatively, "If only one person is talking, can only one person get a spank?"


Oct 4--Kevin was singing along to the radio in the car and asked the girls if his song was beautiful. "No!" they cried in unison. "It was....handsome."


Oct 5--We grabbed some hot dogs and lemonade at the mall for the girls and I grabbed Elle's drink and took a sip without asking her. She let out a classic jungle puma scream that shook the food court. When Kevin sped her to the bathroom to stop the madness :), he reminded her that it's not OK to hurt people's ears and asked her why she screamed like that. She explained, "But sometimes moms just take things and I didn't even say 'sure'." It's true. I should have asked first.


Oct 7--Elle is usually great about getting to the bathroom in time, but got too busy playing and had an accident on this afternoon. I didn't look very happy about cleaning up, so Ryn asked me, "Are you going to call the police?"


Ryn had discovered the skill of gurgling her drinks and I had asked her to refrain from practicing every time she took a drink. At lunch she started up again, without thinking. I stopped eating and gave her a look and she realized what she was doing. With a guilty look on her face, she asked, "Am I giggling?"


Oct 9--We've started giving the girls a quarter on Saturdays if they do some small cleaning jobs around the house. They are so excited every time. This time, Ryn exclaimed, "I've been waiting all my life to get a quarter in my piggy bank!"


We went to McDonald's for dinner and a little boy threw up next to the play place. They came to clean up the mess, but the boy's dad just let him keep playing on the slides, even though he was sick. I'm not usually the germ freak in our family--that's Kev's department--but the idea of the girls climbing around up there and getting the stomach flu in the next day or two didn't seem very appealing to me. So we left. I was touched and humbled by Elle's sweet prayer that night before bed. "Please bless that little boy who was sick at the Old MacDonald's to get better." In my heart, my main thinking was how irresponsible that parent had been--not concern for the little boy who could use our prayers. Just one more example of how much I need to become more like these amazing children we've been blessed with.


Oct 12--Ryn and Elle aren't big fans of orange juice because of the pulp, but I was trying to sell it at breakfast since we were out of apple juice. "You'll like this kind," I assured them. Doubtfully, they both asked, "Does it have plum in it?"


Walking Ryn and Elle to Joy School at a house around the corner from ours, Eden tripped and fell down. Ryn helped her up and said in her loving big sister voice, "Eden, be careful when you trip."


Oct 13--Elle took a turn on the Whine Control Committee and asked Ryn with raised eyebrows, "Ryn, did I hear a whine?"


Oct 14--We were lucky to spend a few days taking pictures and going to Thanksgiving Point with Michelle and her gang and Eden was hooked. All day after they would leave, she would walk around asking, "Chelle? Chelle?"


Oct 15--We have 2 dust pans in our pantry. One that stays on the floor for the girls to use when they want to help me and the one I use that's hanging up high on a rack that they can't reach. I asked Ryn to bring me the one from the floor so I could clean up a mess in the bathroom, but she returned with the one from the high rack. "How did you get this dust pan, Ryn?" She didn't say anything at all for a few minutes while I cleaned up, so I asked again and finally she said, "Well...I don't really want to tell you how I got it."

Oct 18--Ryn and Elle have a night light in their room and as was getting up to leave after singing to them, it was casting my pregnant shadow on the wall by Ryn's bed. "Mom, I see your big, HUGE shadow!" Nothing like regular comments like that to remind you of how much weight you're gaining :).

Oct 20--Over the past week, our friend Michelle, the fabulous photographer, had come several times to take pictures of Eden and the other girls for a project she's working on. I told the girls they needed to hurry and eat breakfast so we could get ready because Michelle was coming that day. Eden excitedly ran to the door saying, "Pictures....me!"

Oct 22--Eden picked up a dirty napkin that had fallen and took it to the trash can without being asked. I praised her for doing it on her own and Elle shrugged her shoulders and said, "yep, she's a trash girl."

Oct 24--During sacrament meeting, I asked Elle to fold her arms and pay attention to the opening prayer, given by one of the men in the ward. When it was done, she looked at him and the other leaders in suits on the stand and said, "Are those President Monson's friends?"

Happy Halloween

Maybe it's because I need to learn a little more about budgeting my time and energy as a mother :), maybe it's just because I'm pregnant and extra tired, maybe it's because my turn to teach Joy School for Ryn and Elle fell on this week, maybe it's because I decided to make costumes instead of buying them, maybe it's because my kids are all so little---whatever the reason, this week just wore me out. It wore all of us out, actually, if the piles of wadded up Kleenex, runny noses and sore throats are any indication. But don't get me wrong. I loved it all. I loved seeing our 'rose garden' in full bloom... I loved having a grown-up costume game night with my family.......and seeing Mom's pure joy, being able to have some of her grand kids at her ward Trunk-or-treat and then at her house for an incredible Halloween lunch (complete with mummy hot dogs and spider web pizza).I loved the neighborhood dinner idea we got from Michelle's friend and how many people turned up in the rain to enjoy soup and veggies before braving the cold with their costumed kiddies. But I think what I loved most of all was watching our newest tradition bring smiles to every home on our hurried trick-or-treat route--Halloween caroling. The girls had learned these 2 fun songs in Joy School and shared them with every ounce of excitement that had been building all week. Adults and older kids in any room of every home hurried to the door to hear the adorable surprise. Cousins Brian and Caitie quickly picked up the catchy tunes and joined in with full voice after the first 2 houses.
In the rainy, windy cold I asked Caitie, Ryn, Elle and Brian if they wanted to go home and they replied with enthusiastic chanting, "More candy! More candy! More candy!" After another 20 minutes, Tom, Carma and Eden rushed home to get warm and I asked Caitie (who was slowing down a bit) if she was up for one more house. She said, "I'm up for anything! Lead the way, Ryn!" That last house was giving out full cans of soda and a full sized candy bar to each child which prompted Brian to sum up the night with this contented summary-- "This was the best Halloween ever!" So, yes, even with the lingering stuffy noses, it was a very happy Halloween.

September funnies

Sept 1--I was trying everything (in vain) to get Eden to eat and my last attempt was an airplane that Eden completely swatted out of the sky and onto the floor. To make me feel better, Elle remarked, "That was a cool plane, Mom." She never misses a beat--not in what I was trying or in how I was needing a little encouragement when it failed.

Sept 2--When I went into the bathroom to help Elle, my princess declared, "Welcome to my kingdom!"

Sept 10--Eden is talking more every day and on this day she added "cottage cheese" to her vocab (not just "cheese"). Plus, at breakfast, when she finished her cereal before Ryn and Elle, she threw up her arms and exclaimed, "I beat you!"

Sept 13--Ryn asked when we were going to do something she was excited for and I had told her we'd do it in about 10 minutes. Ever the optimist, she answered happily, "10 minutes is my favorite number." Oh, how I love that girl.

Sept 15--When Kevin got home from work, I needed him to run to the store for something before dinner. Speed was an issue since we needed to get the kids to bed, so he only took Ryn and Eden with him because they already had shoes on and were dressed. Elle, who is always between outfits (changing them every 3 minutes from different dress-ups to other dresses and skirts), wasn't dressed and so had to stay home with me :(. When we were all sitting down to eat dinner, together again, she asked, "Tomorrow, can we all go to the store together, like a family?"

Sept 19--Kevin always has the dream of a Sunday nap. On this Sunday, he was determined to make it happen--translation: all 3 girls needed to be sleeping at the same time. He put Eden down in her crib and grabbed Ryn and Elle to sleep in our bed where we could be sure they fell asleep. "I don't want to snuggle!" Elle protested. But when they were all waking up, she said, "Dad, I really liked that snuggle." And Ryn chimed in, "Me too, Dad, it was grrrrreat!"

Sept 21--Ryn got to have her first sleep-over with Brian and Caitie and it was obvious how much Elle missed her. As we were walking back into our house, I hugged her and said, "I'm so glad I'm your mommy and I'm so glad you're my Elle." She smiled and answered, "And I'm so glad Ryn is our Ryn."

Sept 23--Elle was climbing again, on and under her chair, at breakfast and I asked her to please sit up the right way.

But she assured me that there was a good reason for her position--"Mom, I'm like this so I won't get my pyjama's dirty."

Sept 25--Elle pointed out, "Look! There's a yellow star!" and Ryn congratulated her, "Good job, Elle! You used your sense of sight!"

Sept 27--For family home evening, we had a lesson on our need for repentance so we can be clean and worthy to return to Heavenly Father's presence. We talked about how sins make us dirty on the inside like mud or dirt make us dirty on the outside. Only repentance, made possible by the Atonement of Jesus Christ, can make us clean on the inside again. After reading in the scriptures to teach the principle, we were going to start on the object lesson, but Elle wasn't very excited about it and started to whine. Ryn started to worry about her, "Elle, you are getting dirty on the inside!"

We set up bowls and plates with mud along the "path" to our side gate where Kevin, acting as Heavenly Father, waited to welcome us to his "kingdom". When they stepped in the mud, or put their hands in it, (which Ryn really wasn't very excited about) I was there with a bottle of water to wash it off so they could keep moving forward (repentance), and eventually reach Kevin, clean and ready to go through the gate. Elle was the first one through since she thought the mud was pretty fun. While she waited for Ryn to make it through the gate, she pointed out to Kevin, "Daddy, there's a fly in your kingdom."

July and August funnies

Of the many excuses I could use to explain the huge lapse in blog posts this summer, the biggest (and most wonderful) is that we found out we are expecting our fourth miracle baby--due March 3. Close on the heels of the test result was the worst "morning" sickness I've ever had. Only now is it starting to reach a more manageable level of intensity. And so, here I am--I even showered today--ready to resume my role as family historian :). I'll just apologize now for the smaller number of funnies. The sad truth is that when you're spending most of the day running to the bathroom, you miss a lot of funny moments.

July 2-- Elle, expressing the kind of feelings we're hoping for in our kids, "I love everyone and I love myself."

July 5--Elle is never above telling us what kind of praise she's looking for. After some wonderful thing she did, she directed me, "Say, 'that's my girl!'"

Also that day, Elle wanted to tell me the story she wanted to tell Heavenly Father and Jesus "when they come down and get hugs". It was all about princesses who don't have princes. "They save themselves and then go back to their mommies and daddies and then a big tall man comes to their door--as tall as the sky, like our Daddy...."
Ryn chimed in to correct Elle's exaggeration, "He's as tall as Dee and Marcene's floor." (the ceiling of our basement apartment)

July 6--Ryn was thrilled when she saw my tummy sticking out. "Our baby is growing!!! Mom, your tummy is HUGE!" I tried to warn her that huge will take on a whole new meaning in a few months.

July 8--Our wonderful friend, Calli, who lives behind us was going to have a swimming birthday party and the girls were so excited to leave that they didn't want to brush their hair (not like they're thrilled to brush it every other day :) ). Ryn tried this reasoning with me, "We just want the swimming pool to brush our hair."

July 19--Somehow Ryn had a warped understanding of the nature of brothers that I had to fix. Elle had said 'no' to something Ryn wanted her to do and Ryn explained to her, "Elle, sisters say, 'Sure!' or 'OK!'. Brothers say 'no'." I said that wasn't true at all--that I have 5 brothers who are very nice and who I love very much. She wasn't quite sure if she believed that or not, so she asked for clarification--"Your brothers were all the way nice?" I was happy to respond with an enthusiastic, laughter-filled YES!

July 23--Reading the Book of Mormon, Elle tried to ask me something about "Laman and Lame-uel" :)

Later, when she wanted us to pay attention to her, she shouted, "Every creature, SIT DOWN!"

July 24--Ryn and Elle tried Lucky Charms cereal for the first time and this was Ryn's report: "It was a treasure hunt for yummy marshmallows and now they are all in my treasure chest tummy."

July 28--Ryn was wondering if we could make some "cupcakes with sprinklers".....

Elle wanted me to have a queen costume so I could be presentable as her mother when she's decked out in her princess gowns. I told her I wasn't sure where to go to find a queen costume. Her idea: "Go to Sam's. They probably have a queen costume in the middle of all the food."

August 3--Elle cried when I told her we weren't having the twins she was hoping for. "I wanted twins!!!" My first appointment's ultrasound showed only one little bean.

August 5--Tom's birthday--we had just left him a happy birthday song message. Sitting at the table, Ryn asked, "What are they doing up there?" "Dee and Marcene?" I asked, thinking she had heard some noise from their house above. "No, Heavenly Father and Jesus. Did they have 'zero' birthday parties for us there before we were babies?"

August 6--I had to record this one for future reference. We were driving home and I was asking the girls where they wanted to go or do for the rest of the day. Ryn had given her opinion and I asked Elle for hers, expecting to hear the opposite. Instead, this was her answer. "I want to go where Ryn goes. I have fun when I'm with Ryn."

August 8--On our way home from the Linkous', Elle asked hopefully, "Is it going to snow?" We had to explain that the snow wouldn't start for a few more months. Undaunted, she informed us, "It will. I wished on that star we just passed."

August 9--Elle is always someone else. Pocahontas, Angelina Ballerina, Tinkerbell....and this morning, she was John the Baptist. While eating breakfast, she told us, "After I eat, I need to go teach the people to get baptised."

August 11--We were reading the part in the Book of Mormon where a wicked king had many wives and concubines. Elle was shocked. "They had porcupines?!"

Later, dressed up like a princess, she came and gave me a hug and asked, "Are you the queen of my castle?"

That night we thought we'd have a treat and eat at Chick-Fil-A, where they have a play place (which the girls are usually really excited for). We get about half way through our meal and Ryn started crying!? "I wanted to eat at home! I wanted carrots and tomatoes and cucumbers and ranch...." How often do you hear that when they've got french fries and soda pop in front of them?!

August 18--I mentioned above that this round of morning sickness has been a bit difficult. Well, on this day, I didn't even bother getting out of my pyjamas. That was a little too much for my fashion expert 3-yr-old to handle. At about 5 pm, she pleaded, "Hey Mom, can you go in your closet and put on some other clothes?"

August 21--While Kevin was getting ready, Eden found a chap stick in the bathroom and decided to get ready, too. She took off the lid and started applying it to her underarms like deodorant :).

August 29--Elle was supposed to count for Hide and Seek so Ryn reminded her, "Elle, plug your eyes."

THREE!

A few days before the BIG day, we had a fairy fete for our little pixie. The best part was having so many people we love there to celebrate with us. Mark, Aup and Teairsa drove into town just in time. Elle's Nora comes from Grandma "Nora" Johnson and she had been visiting Tom and Carma for six weeks for some medical treatments. We LOVED having her here. In fact, Elle still asks every time we're going to see Grandma and Grandpa if Grandma Nora will be there, too, and cries when the answer is no :(. Tom, Carma and Ryan were there, too, as well as our good friends the Norris' and the Lehnardts. Below are pictures of everyone singing Happy Birthday and enjoying cupcakes....

... and making fairy herb gardens with tiny basil trees, rosemary and thyme, miniature fairy furniture, rocks, sticks and leaves. Look how sad Ben is that he didn't get to make one, too :(

On the actual day--May 29--we had all the family over at the Linkous' for dinner, birthday cheesecake and presents. Top right in the picture collage below, she's singing "Whistle While You Work" with her new little broom ("just my size!"), which she desperately needed because she always wants to help me. Below that picture she's giving Grandma Nora a special thankyou hug for such a perfect gift. It doesn't matter whether I'm sweeping, cooking, or cleaning toilets, Elle's right there with me, "but I want to help you!". Love it. Grandma and Grandpa Linkous gave her a play doctor set so she can practice being brave here at home before the next appointment :) (another story for Jungle Puma history). She also got a bike and a helmet so she and Ryn can get caught up in that department. It's so fun to see her tiny little body sitting up as tall and straight as she can, miniature legs pumping away, and her calling, "I'm doing it, Mom!" Joy and the Austin gang gave her the book The Little Engine that Could, with an inscription that said, "for our little can-do cousin". I thought (as usual, with my perfect gift-giving sister) it was perfect for this tiny package of determination that is Elle. I absolutely love to watch her little mind figure things out. Mark, Aup and Teairsa gave her some bubbles, a puzzle and a snuggly bunny that she takes with her everywhere. Michelle and Mary gave her a beautiful, metal, unbreakable, tea set which we really needed with Eden wanting to always be included in the tea parties now :). The Norris' came over a whole week early to give her some My Little Ponies because they thought they would have to miss the party. And Mom and Dad sent her some birthday money that she's trying to decide just what to do with....decisions, decisions :).

And, of course, Kevin had to get some close-ups of her in Carma's secret garden. Man, I love those brown eyes and pouty lips!

He even caught some semi-smiles. I really don't know why they're so elusive when we try to take pictures since she's laughing all the time in real life. Elle is our resident comedian. After every new funny face, silly dance or crazy voice, we hear, "was that funny, Mom?" And how I love to hear her giggle! She laughs herself to tears at least 10 times per day.

Life is beautiful with Elle, as the little "Elle" pants we got in France say. When we were reading in the Book of Mormon a few days ago, we read how men in the last days will not believe that miracles can happen anymore. I stopped reading and said as strongly as I could, "MIRACLES HAPPEN." I told Elle and Ryn and Eden how THEY are my miracles. How thankful I am that miracles have not ceased. Happy Birthday, angel girl.

This is DIVINE! And healthy....in moderation:)

These are WAY better than a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup and it better be better considering the quality of the ingredients. Think of it as a super high end version of a Reese’s cup, that also just happens to be darn healthy. What a sweet combination! The expense of getting quality ingredients is certainly a bit more, but so well worth it. Use Green & Blacks Organic Baking Chocolate for almost everything. If you can find it, get it. It comes in 5.3oz bars and is one of the best commercial chocolates. Also use the Green & Blacks Cocoa Powder when needed. The type of peanut butter to get for this would be the natural kind. Ugh, you know, the ones with peanuts in it, but just organic peanuts and salt. It’s amazing how much extra unneeded junk is in most commercial peanut butters, from hydrogenated oils to funky stabilizers and preservatives. You really don’t want that stuff in your body. Do you?
Also, the crust of these tarts are super rich and healthy as well. No refined carb loading here. You make these out of just almonds and cocoa powder, and they are far easier and faster to make then the white kind.

Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Tarts
Makes about 4-5 5-inch tarts

For the Crust:
1 Cup Almonds
1/2 Cup Cocoa Powder (Cacao Powder)
1/4 Cup Virgin Coconut Oil
1/4 Cup Raw Sucanat Sugar
2 TB Maple Syrup
2 TB Cacao Nibs
2 Tsp. Vanilla Extract
1/8 Tsp. Sea Salt
Step 1 Place the almonds in a food processor and process until coarsely ground. It’s ok if there are bits of almonds not broken down, this will add extra crunch and texture to the crust.
Step 2 Add the cocoa powder, sugar and salt and process to combine lightly, then add the rest of the ingredients and pulse several times until incorporated and slightly damp.
Step 3 Line your tart pans with saran wrap and then on top of it, gently press the crust mixture into the bottom and sides.
Step 4 Place them in the freezer while you prepare the fillings.

For the Chocolate Filling Layer:
1 Cup Young Coconut Meat
1/4 Cup Virgin Coconut Oil
2/3 Cup Maple Syrup
1/2 Cup Agave Nectar
8 oz Dark Bittersweet Chocolate (Green and Blacks)
1/4 Tsp. Sea Salt
2 TB Vanilla Extract
Step 1 Melt the chocolate by chopping it and melting it over a double broiler or make your own double broiler using a heat safe bowl over a pot of hot water. Set aside and allow to cool slightly.
Step 2 Scoop out and clean the meat from a young baby coconut (the ones with pointy tops and shaved white).
Step 2 Add the coconut meat along with the rest of the ingredients to a high speed blender and blend on high until everything is completely smooth and creamy with no lumps. Set aside to cool.
Note: One of the best coconut oils is Virgin De Coco Creme. If you can’t find it, get a virgin centrifugal coconut oil with a very light scent to almost no scent.

For the Peanut Butter Layer:
1 Cup Natural Smooth Peanut Butter
1 TB Virgin Coconut Oil
1/4 Cup Agave Nectar
1/4 Tsp. Sea Salt
Step 1 In a small mixing bowl, mix in the coconut oil, agave and sea salt with a large spoon.
Putting it all together:
Step 1 Take out the tart pans out of the freezer. On the bottom of crust spread a layer of Peanut Butter Mixture.
Step 2 Pour the chocolate mixture on top.
Step 3 Place these back in the freezer to set overnight. You can garnish them however you like. shavings and chocolate sauce.

ENJOY!

May funnies

May 1--Ryn: I'm He-man!
Elle: and I'm the guy who sings He-man! duh-duh-de-duh, de duh-de-de-duh, de duh-de-de-duh-duh, duh-duh (theme song)

May 3--Elle was once again gracing us with the He-man opening song, complete with narration this time--"....defend against the evil horses (original lyrics--forces) of Skeletor!"

May 7--Someone was at the door and Elle came to get me in my room, "Mom! Someone is ringing the Dora bell!"

May 8--Ryn asked me at breakfast, "Mom, is it OK if I do exercises?" I didn't know what in the world she was talking about until I looked at her arms, covered with goose bumps. "Sure, Ryn."
She jumped out of her chair, ran into the family room, did 20 jumping jacks and returned to her cereal a little warmer.

May 9--For Mother's Day in her class at church, Elle made me a card that had a little bag of Hershey kisses attached to it. When she brought it to me, she said, "Mom! I've got a treat for you! ...and for me, and for Daddy, and for Ryn and for Eden!"

Yep, she is one treat-driven gal. So we have tried to get them to stay in their own beds every night by offering a treat the next day if they do. Elle had a sure-fire plan to get two treats on this day. Kev had given her one and she came back, asking, "Can I have a treat for staying in my bed?" "I already gave you one." "No, that was for Elle. I'm Jaydna."

May 13--I was pushing Elle on the swing in the backyard and she was closing her eyes for quite a while. "Are you sleeping?" "No, I'm just making funny faces so everyone will laugh and come out of their houses and it will be a big party! I like parties."

May 16--Elle: Dad, I'm going to do something nice for Jesus. It will make Him happy and He will give me his Spirit.

We were over at the Linkous' walking around in Carma's amazing garden. Elle tried to put into words how she felt about such a beautiful place. "Mom, this is a good land."

May 18--Kit: How about oatmeal for breakfast?
Elle: No! I want suckers!.... Suckers and eggs!

May 19--Ryn: Are you a princess?
Elle: No
R: A queen?
E: No. I'm a....people.

Elle had a blister on her foot and Ryn asked what caused blisters. I told her that they come from your shoes rubbing your feet the wrong way. She put it all together--my explanation, plus the fact that she didn't have any blisters on her feet. So when Elle asked Ryn one more time, "What's a blister?", Ryn gave her this: "You put your shoes on and it started scrubbing you the wrong way. My shoes are scrubbing my feet the right way."

May 23--Eden's favortie word is 'Daaaaaa-ddy'. I had her with me in Relief Society and she did great for the entire hour....until I started putting everything back in our bag during our announcements (our RS does them after the closing prayer). She assumed it was over and headed for the door, calling loudly in a 'I'm coming to find you' voice, "Daaaaa-dy......Daaaaaa-dy!"

May 24--We played a memory game for FHE and Elle picked 2 different cards on her turn. "Let's pretend it's a match," she suggested.

May 25--After drinking her OJ, Elle thanked me for the good juice. "I liked the orange feathers in it."

I love the teaching moments that happen any time and anywhere. Ryn asked me, "What am I doing here on earth?" as we were driving home from the store. Can anything in the world be more wonderful than teaching the gospel to angel children?! I LOVE THIS!!!!

May 26--We were making cupcakes for Elle's bday party (yes, I promise to post pictures soon :)) and I only have one pan. Thankfully, sweet Marcene had 4 more she could lend us. As she was leaving I thanked her for saving us from the "ten years it would have taken to make all those cupcakes with my one pan." A few minutes later, Ryn was filling Elle in on our situation "....it's not going to take ten months because of the things Dee and Marcene gave us..." I hadn't even realized I had said the 'ten years' part until I heard Ryn say that :)

Later on, Ryn and Elle were trying some new tricks on the couch that Ryn knew I wouldn't be too keen on. So she asked me not to look--"Mom, don't see me do such a thing!"

May 27--You know you're going to be in for some tricky teenage years when, at 2.98 years old, your daughter calls to you with this, "Mom! Come in here and watch how I kiss Hercules!" There was Elle, falling over trying to kiss her imaginary hero with one tiny foot lifted up behind her.

May 30--The girl who never sleeps gets lonely for her big sister during the night, so we were bound to hear this at some point, "Ryn! Obey me now! Wake up!"

au parc et au jardin

Every day we have nice weather, I try my hardest to get all the girls to the park--at least for a little while. And Monday, like every day, was so much fun! I took the camera because I knew I would want to remember their carefree happy faces and how much they love playing together. So their favorite game on Monday was trying to move too fast for the camera. Every time they saw me point the lens their way, they would sprint up the stairs or speed down the slide, laughing uncontrollably all the way.

Here are 2 of our favorite Eden looks--the scrunched nose...

...and the serious discussion mode....

By the time we walked home, we all needed a break from so much fun :)

Then we headed to the Linkous' to "help" with Grandma's garden for Family Home Evening.

I loved how close Ryn and Elle were sitting. In the middle of a huge room with 2 big couches, they wanted to be this close to each other, with their feet crossed exactly the same way. :) The perfect end to my perfect day.

lovely days of may

Perhaps I'm a little partial to this glorious month, but how can anyone not love May?! We have thoroughly been enjoying ourselves. Sunday we ate at the Linkous' and tried to coax some smiles from the girls outside. Seriously, we need some help with this...

...but we think they're pretty cute anyway.

And you're smiling in your heart when you stop to smell such beautiful blossoms (or take the picture :) )

stay tuned tomorrow for a lovely May Monday at the park ...

To my girls,

I want you to know about the happy things we did today. I want you to know how you fill me with joy every single day.

Ryn, today I loved watching you laugh and become instant friends with the kids at the park--a 6 year old boy and 2 younger girls. Heavenly Father has given you a gift for loving people. They are immediately drawn in by your uncontainable happiness (you have so much, you're constantly jumping up and down for the sheer joy of life). I loved watching your satisfaction as you learned more about reading, and I loved hearing you sing "Sur le pont d'Avignon" with me as we taught Bryn.

Elle, today I loved your excitement when you figured out how to pedal. "I'm doing it, Mom!!!" I also loved seeing how obedient you are becoming--going down for your nap, eating your food, and patiently waiting for the things you want so badly like movies and suckers :). I love what a sweet big sister you are to Eden, always giving her hugs and talking in your high, sweet voice. I loved hearing you encourage and support Ryn, too--"Great job, Ryn!" And I loved feeling your tiny, strong arms squeezing my neck as I held you--after your nap, especially.

Eden, today I loved watching you dance, swinging your hips from side to side, as you played our little keyboard. I loved your scrunched-nose smile, and how proud and big you feel when you sit up at the table with us (instead of in your high chair). I loved that you wanted to go in and help me get Elle when she woke up from her nap and how you hugged and kissed her awake. I loved holding you and having a serious conversation with you as we watched Ryn and Elle play outside.

All of you, I loved hearing your uncontrollable giggles at dinner over who-knows-what and seeing your reverence as we read scriptures and prayed tonight.

April smiles

April 1--Insight into Ryn's thought process, "I need Jesus to come down so He can teach me to be obedient cause sometimes I do mean things to Elle."

April 3--Mom and Dad had given the girls some books for Easter and as they were leaving, I reminded Ryn and Elle to "give them hugs and say 'thank you'." Elle said the words and hugged the books.

April 5--Elle: I'm a bad guy.
Ryn: No, you're one of Jesus' children.

April 7--After being taught by Elder Bednar's great talk in conference, I felt like I needed to read a chapter every day to the girls at lunch from the actual Book of Mormon in addition to the illustrated scripture readers that we read at night. It has been absolutely wonderful! On this day we were reading in 1 Nephi 7 when Laman and Lemuel had tied Nephi up with ropes, Nephi prayed for strength to break his bonds, and the Lord loosened the ropes so they fell to the ground. I asked the girls, "Isn't that amazing that the Lord did that for Nephi?!" Ryn asked, "Was that a miracle?" "Yes!" I answered. And then with a little knowing chuckle, she added, "I love that."

April 9--I warned Elle that she should stop climbing on the futon so she wouldn't fall..."I won't fall, Mom. I'm holding on to this iron rod." (the arm rest)

Ryn: "Zip your mouth!" (I can't remember who she said this to, but I was shocked to hear such forceful words from this gentle girl.) So I asked, "Who told you that?" Her reply shocked me even more. "Mama KK. All the time. She always tells me that." So Mom, I've got a few things we need to discuss..... ;)

April 11--On Sundays, we only watch church movies and one of the girls absolute favorites is The Testaments. They love it. When it showed Christ being baptized, they were jumping up and down, exclaiming, "Look! Jesus is getting baptized. He's 8!" Then, during another scene when a girl is crying as she listens to the gospel being taught and feels the Spirit, Ryn said, "Daddy, I know why she's crying--because she feels the Holy Ghost." Elle chimed in, "Yeah, that's just like Mommy at church when she's crying."

April 12--Matt, Nat, Sam, Ethan and Mia were staying with us for a wonderful week and Ethan and Elle were just chilling at the table when I heard Elle explain, "I'm a girl, Ethan." Ethan looked a little confused and asked, "You're a girl-Ethan?"

April 13--the day He-man was re-born for the next generation...When the opening song states that He-man "became the most powerful man in the universe!", Elle piped up excitedly, "Just like our Daddy!"

Ethan was concerned about the loin cloth modesty issue: "Does He-man have clothes on?"

April 17--I was painting the girls finger- and toenails per their request and Elle said, "My toe nails are saying, 'Why are you painting us?'" I asked if they liked it. "Yes, they're very happy."

April 20--Elle is always very quick to praise and thank me for every kind word and deed and it melts me every time. "Mommy? You're a good mom." I asked why this time. "Because you're happy."

Another killer when Ryn asked, leaning in really close, "Elle, do you know what I love more than chocolate?..... YOU!"

April 22--Since being exposed to He-man, it's one of the favorite games we play. I am always Skeletor, of course, so the girls can have a formidable foe :) and I love how serious they get when they threaten me. "We're going to take your power and kill your warriors!" Then I chase them and grab them and tickle them and show them that they'll never really beat me, but then they start me shaking in my boots with, "But wait! I have my capturing thing!"

April 24--Kevin took Elle with him to Sams, where they saw some cow tongues. Kev held one up to her and told her what it was and she flatly refused to believe him. "No, they're not cow tongues! Cows' tongues stay in their mouths! Except for when they go like this (and she did a big lick of her lips)."

April 25--Another Sunday viewing of The Testaments and they both were thrilled again when the Savior appeared to the Nephites. "That's our big brother!" Elle added, "And that's our Savior, too, because of the marks in his hands."

April 26--Ryn asked, "Elle, did you know that people in China like to eat with chapsticks?"

Elle asked, "Mom, who gave us this beautiful, wonderful house?"

April 28--During another He-man round (in an all-girl house), Elle asked me why Skeletor wanted to take He-man's sword. "I think he wanted to have He-man's power." "No, he wanted to be the fairest one of all."

April 29--Elle LOVES to help me clean. Lately I've been giving her clorox wipes and letting her clean any stray marks off the walls and doors. And she keeps me laughing constantly. "Look at this mark! It's so cute! It's a yittle tiny baby one!"

Happy Mother's Day

We are so thankful for the incredible mothers and grandmothers we have been blessed with. The longer I work at being the best mother I can be, the more I admire, love and thank Heavenly Father for these amazing women. Here is the painting we had a ball creating (Eden was giggling the whole time as I brushed paint onto her tiny hands)....

and the song Ryn and Elle sang for Mama KK, (great-) Grandma Turtle, Grandma (Carma), (great-) Grandma Nora/Johnson, and (great-) Grandma Linkous--we did lots of takes, trying for as much audible participation as possible. Here are the best 2, even though Elle's trying to "wash" her hands through most of the second :):



I love being the mother of these girls!!!!! (Even when they're not thrilled about taking a picture after 3 hours of church :)) They teach me so much every minute of every day. What an honor to be the one to guide them and help them become who the Lord needs them to be. And I love the sweet man who shares this amazing ride with me as their father. For this one day alone, he filled every window of our kitchen/living room with hanging flower baskets, fed, changed and took care of the girls so I could beat my entire family in online Settlers and talk to my mom after church, made nutella and cream cheese french toast this morning and his signature grilled salmon for dinner. Yes, I'm one happy Mama!

I'm thankful for

modern revelation. Several bits of April's different conference talks keep coming to my mind at the very moment when I most need them. Sister Beck's talk was another testament to me that the Lord knows me, Kit Linkous, and knows exactly what I need to keep hoping when hope seems to be gone, to keeping giving when I feel like I have nothing left to give, and to keep smiling when all I want to do is cry.

Here are a few of my favorite parts:
"A good woman knows that she does not have enough time, energy, or opportunity to take care of all of the people or do all of the worthy things her heart yearns to do. Life is not calm for most women, and each day seems to require the accomplishment of a million things, most of which are important. A good woman must constantly resist alluring and deceptive messages from many sources telling her that she is entitled to more time away from her responsibilities and that she deserves a life of greater ease and independence. But with personal revelation, she can prioritize correctly and navigate this life confidently. The ability to qualify for, receive, and act on personal revelation is the single most important skill that can be acquired in this life."

Quoting Eliza R. Snow, "Women should be women and not babies that need petting and correction all the time. I know we like to be appreciated but if we do not get all the appreciation which we think is our due, what matters? We know the Lord has laid high responsibility upon us, and there is not a wish or desire that the Lord has implanted in our hearts in righteousness but will be realized, and the greatest good we can do to ourselves and each other is to refine and cultivate ourselves in everything that is good and ennobling to qualify us for those responsibilities."

"Good women always have a desire to know if they are succeeding. In a world where the measures of success are often distorted, it is important to seek appreciation and affirmation from proper sources. To paraphrase a list found in Preach My Gospel, we are doing well when we develop attributes of Christ and strive to obey His gospel with exactness. We are doing well when we seek to improve ourselves and do our best. We are doing well when we increase faith and personal righteousness, strengthen families and homes, and seek out and help others who are in need. We know we are successful if we live so that we qualify for, receive, and know how to follow the Spirit. When we have done our very best, we may still experience disappointments, but we will not be disappointed in ourselves. We can feel certain that the Lord is pleased when we feel the Spirit working through us. Peace, joy, and hope are available to those who measure success properly."

Heaven on earth....

is being with your family. I have loved, loved, loved being in Utah for the past 3 General Conferences and having Mom and Dad come up for an entire week each time. Even though they have lots of meetings--especially Dad--we are able to have so many great evenings, 2 family home evenings, fun and fully-packed days with Mom, and pure joy seeing the relationships being formed between them and the girls.

Serious swinging and Hungry, Hungry Hippo...

This spring snowstorm gave us the chance to make an Easter Snow Bunny! Eden was hilarious trying to walk around in those boots. Ryn and Elle worked very hard, lugging 'huge' loads of snow to contribute (huge=the size of their tiny fists), and Mama KK was determined that the snow bunny be taller than Ryn at the very least.

Once the bunny was complete, we headed over to "Michelle and Mary's" house to meet their four adorable chicks. Ryn was the only one who eventually worked up the courage to touch them--check out Eden's wary glance and Elle, who was only happy on Michelle's lap with a cupcake. Lucy, the cat, would have been more than happy to step in and say hello, but we kept a tight circle around the tiny birds while we visited and Mom clicked away with the camera :).

Blowing bubbles against the bluest of blue skies....

walking and playing in the park....

reading books....

decorating Easter cookies...

meeting and having dinner with 2 of Mom's cousins...(cousin Carol and her husband, Rob, on Tuesday and cousin Nancy and her beautiful daughter on Friday)

enjoying conference and Temple Square...

These are days to remember.

Masters of the Universe!

Normally I would post Easter and Mom and Dad's visit before Matt and Nat's, but there is a long-awaited movie that needs to be released....so lets talk about just how much fun last week was! After each day of watching the 6 kids loving just being together (Elle and Eden meeting Mia for the first time....) and playing with each other, Matt, Nat, Rae (for 2 nights--way too short, but we take consolation knowing she'll be here for school in a few months), Kev and I would stay up all night talking and laughing and watching Old Spice commercials :).

We loved seeing beautiful Abby and her knight in shining armor and celebrating with the extended Hogan clan. What a great family Matt married into! I was happy all the 'Easter' dresses were finally done (Eden's didn't make it til the week after Easter) and this was a fun occasion to wear them :).

We lounged around Thursday morning so it was the perfect opportunity for Rachel to get caught up on the last High School Musical movie she had missed on her mission. Ryn and Elle were happy to help break her in :).
One of the highlights of the week was when Matt introduced the old He-Man cartoons to the kids. Immediately, they were hooked--even the girls. Of course, once they were hooked, it led to hours of hilarious action. Matt instructed them on proper sword technique...

...and Kevin even found some of his old action figures down in his parents' basement! (Elle's holding Beastman and Ethan's got He-man)And finally, on our last night together, we made our own pilot He-Man--Cousins Season episode. Be sure to stay tuned after the show (the shortest pilot ever) for several worthwhile Masters of the Universe lessons.....

After looking through the pictures, it looks like we spent every minute just sitting around on the couch! Here's a video of one trip to the park to prove otherwise :). Even though it's mostly of Eden, there are quick shots of everyone else, as well as a good view of the temperamental weather that plagued us most of the week.

Thankfully, the one perfectly clear and beautiful day was Wednesday--Abby's wedding. What a lovely backdrop for Mia's baby blues...

Thanks for a great week guys!!! We're missing you terribly already. Since we've got more than half the family on their way here next year, now our focus is looking for leads for Matt, Darrell and Rob here in Utah ;)