I Know What Ya'll Been Waitin' Fer This

Here are the family pictures my neighbor Julie took of our family last September. We drove clear in the heck (what a great Utah phrase, huh?) to the back side of Squaw Peak - probably almost 2 hours of drive time, in total. But didn't she make us look pretty? She's very good at photography and a wizard down to the Photoshop and I really just want to BE her. THANK YOU, JULIE!

If you'd like Julie to take your family photo, come down to the ward YM/YW fundraiser service auction and bid on her family photo session. But be prepared with some serious cash, 'cause word's getting 'round that does does a body good. She took almost 500 pictures but I've shown restraint and only posted a few here. Come to my house to see more!

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

Do you want to eat this?

Too late. I already did.

Here's the recipe, which I can't really take credit for because I just altered the pumpkin cookie recipe that everybody uses these days.

1 box spice cake mix (I think Western Family has the best spice mix. It's much spicier than the name brands I've used.)

2 c. pumpkin puree (I actually made my own this year and it's really easy and good!) or one 15 oz. can pumpkin

1 egg, plus 2 egg whites

Mix ingredients together, spoon into cupcake tins and bake for 15 min. at 350 degrees. For frosting, I used this recipe, minus the nuts. Frost amply because there's plenty of frosting to go 'round.

Norma's Bean Soup

This recipe was obtained from my ward cooking group last March. Norma, a new member in our ward, is a great cook and this soup has quickly become one of our favorites!

Bean Soup

8 oz turkey smoked sausage or kielbasa cut into ½ inch slices (I use 16 oz., which is a full package of sausage)
1 c. chopped onion
1 c. chopped celery
2 tsp. minced garlic
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 ½ quarts reduced-fat chicken broth
2 c. peeled sweet potato, cubed
2 c. peeled potato, cubed
3- 15 oz. beans (navy beans, black and pinto or 3 combinations of beans that you like - I often use kidney for one of them), drained - I just use a combination of 6 c. of beans that I've made at home and stored in sandwich bags in my freezer
3/4 tsp. dried thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
1 ½ - 2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

In Dutch oven (or soup pot) sauté smoked sausage, onion, celery, and garlic in oil until sausage is brown. Add remaining ingredients and heat to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer covered, until potatoes are tender. (About 10 to 15 minutes.) If soup is too thick add more chicken stock. Makes about 8 1/2 servings.

Cake Wrecks Party

Last Saturday I had an little party with a few friends. The party's theme was based on two of my favorite blogs, and it was a lot of fun. Everybody was asked to bring a cake wreck cake, and boy did they deliver. Check it out!

Amy's cake

My entry

Cam's wreck dip, which was funny AND yummy

Megan's cake, which is a real cake wreck which happened to her years ago

Joel's cake, which I think was underappreciated by most

And finally, Marilyn's entry, blogged about here, was a beauty to behold!

Megs helped me out by bringing a yummy salad using butter lettuce, I think.

It was very classy.

She also made three dozen cupcakes and they were perfect in flavor and texture.

I especially liked how her cupcakes provided a substantial backdrop for the fluffy, salty, yummy frosting.

I provided bread, sausage bean soup (thanks, Norma) and tomato tortilla soup,

as well as more cupcakes and frosting.

My favorite aspect of the party was the cupcake bar, which included:

Cupcakes: Vanilla, Chocolate, Pumpkin Spice, Banana Caramel, Black and White Cupcakes

Frostings: Cream Cheese, Caramel, Cherry, Chocolate

Embellishments: Maraschino Cherries, Sprinkles, Jellybeans, Red hots

Everybody was SUPPOSED to take a picture of their cupcake creation, but I don't think anybody was too hip to the idea.

Thanks to whoever took a picture of this gem! Don't you want one of these?See, even a 5 year-old came up with an amazing cupcake creation!

Anyway, forthcoming posts will include recipes from the party. Stay tuned!

Life Lessons Learned from Church

-by Lincoln

Childhood Stories

You know how when you were a teenager there were so many times where you'd think, 'Man, my family is crazy!' or 'My dad is nuts!' Well, even though I'm not a teenager anymore I still think my family is crazy and that my dad is nuts.
Do you want evidence?
My brother, Wade, just started a blog devoted solely to our childhood memories. He started out with some posts about my dad. Just so you know, there is ENDLESS fodder for these posts, so keep checking it over and over again!
I'm hoping everyone in the family will pitch in with their own cherished/insane childhood memories.
My brother's GENIUS new blog