Today was a first!

I have been a mom for almost nine years now and until today, I have never had one of my kids call 911.

When there was a knock on my door at 9:15am I had no idea who it might be. But as I approached the door I could see through the window that it was a police officer. My heart started racing. My first thought was that something had happened to Mark, he is out hunting. Then I thought he might tell me that we need to move our boat that is parked on the street. As I opened the door the officer was looking at me like "are you ok?" and then said, "we had a 911 call from this address, is everything ok? Your phone is still off the hook."

I am sure the look on my face was great because I had no idea what he was talking about. Hayden was standing there with me so I asked him, "did you play with the phone?" He smiles and says, "I push buttons, phone, over there." and points to the phone on the couch.
I walk over and pick up the phone, sure enough, the number on the screen are 911111111!!! Hayden is standing at the door talking to the officer, whom I sure is totally bugged at this point. I apologize over and over and assure him that everything is fine.

He turns around and looks at the toy gun laying on the front porch and asks Hayden if it is his gun. Hayden says, "no, it's Tam's gun, Tam at school." I then try to explain that we have two older boys and that it's just a toy gun, because I guess from a distance it could look like a BB Gun. Who knows what the officer was thinking as he said goodbye and walked away!!

Thanks Hayden. You broke my perfect record. I still love ya though.

Whats cookin'?

On Sunday's I like to bake.
This week I tried this new recipe for Pumpkin Orange Cake.

It was super moist and very easy to make. The flavor combination is different, not something your tongue is expecting, but really good. This one will definitely go into my recipe box.

recipe and photo from Taste of Home


CAKE

1/2 cup butter, softened
1-1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon grated orange peel
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 cup chopped walnuts




ORANGE FROSTING:
1/3 cup butter, softened
3 cups confectioners' sugar
3 tablespoons milk
2 teaspoons orange juice
4-1/2 teaspoons grated orange peel
Candied orange peel, optional
Directions: In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In another bowl, beat pumpkin, orange juice, milk and orange peel. Combine dry ingredients; add to creamed mixture alternately with pumpkin mixture, beating well after each addition. Fold in nuts. Pour into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. For frosting, in a large bowl, beat butter and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Beat in the milk, orange juice and peel. Frost cake. Garnish with candied peel if desired. Yield: 12 servings.

All Better

The house is scrubbed and disinfected.
The sheets and towels and pillows are all washed.
And everyone in my house seems to be back in good health!

Now maybe we can get out of the house and enjoy the beautiful fall weather.

**Under the Weather: UPDATE**

So I mentioned last night that Cameron went to bed saying that his tummy hurt.  At midnight he started throwing up and did so until about 3am. 

Mark left for the Mountains at 6am and I couldn't go back to sleep.

All three boys wake up at about 7:15am and Colby is complaining that his stomach hurts.

At 9am Colby starts throwing up and Cam says that his tummy still hurts a little.

All the while I am a tired Zombie and Hayden for some reason picks this morning to be Grouch of the Year.

Mark finally gets home at 10am.

At 10:30 Colby is still throwing up and Cameron seems to be feeling a lot better, he is whistling again, that's a good sign for Cameron.  He whistles all day everyday, sometimes really loudly!

It's now almost 11:30 am and I have been to the store for Sprite and Gatorade and movies from Red Box and am now ready to fall over asleep. 

Have A GREAT DAY!!!

Under the Weather

My husband started it all last week, when at 10pm I got a phone call from him saying that he was in the Emergency Room. That's pretty much all he said and hung up.

He and his friend Mike had been out hunting and I was starting to wonder when he would be home since he wasn't answering his phone.
Getting that phone call from him in the ER was part of one of my nightmares about him hunting.
I called his phone right back and Mike answered saying that yes they were at the ER here in town and that Mark was pretty out of it. He said that while they were out Mark got really really sick and could not stop throwing up. Amazingly Mark was very slowly able to make it back to the truck but was still so so sick.
Mike decided that Mark was probably dehydrated and needed some IV fluids. So after getting him to the ER and all checked in they called me.

Anyway.... long story short, Mark stayed at the ER for a couple of hours until he could actually walk out to the car, then Mike brought him home. He got in bed and stayed there for three days.
AHHHH!!! Not GOOD!
We had just been planning our winter strategy for not getting sick in our family because Cameron can not have a Flu shot ever, for the rest of his life and is more prone to getting a bad case of the flu because of the Guillian Barre'. So we were all ready to keep the sick bugs out of our house and dad gets sick.

Just when we thought that Mark didn't spread his flu bug, Hayden throws up Sunday night. He only threw up once but just doesn't feel good and has no appetite.

Then the BOMB really dropped and now I AM SICK. Yesterday I thought I wanted to DIE. Today was a little better, I didn't actually throw up, I just felt like I was going to all day. Mom's aren't supposed to get sick right?

Now tonight Cameron says that his stomach hurts really bad. I covered his bed and pillows with towels and but a big bowl by his head.
Just in case.
Wish us luck.

**I have to give the BIGGEST thanks to my sweet husband who, thank goodness feels good now, has been taking good care of me.

**And another HUGE HUGE thanks to my mother -in- law for taking my kids yesterday and Hayden again all day today. You saved my life! Thank you so much

3rd grade romance

Mom, this year in 3rd grade a lot of the girls are chasing some of the boys and I am one of the boys getting chased. Lots of the girls like me.

Jocelyn and Harley like me but only Harley chases me. Except today, Mr.Campbell (the principal) told us that no one can chase anymore because he thinks someone is going to get hurt. So he ruined all our fun at recess. I guess we will have to go back to playing football or something.

This is what I heard from Colby today after school!

And he told me this too.... "today Pearl and Ricky broke up but then they got back together."

What?!?!?!?!?!?!? This is 3rd grade people. I am so not ready for this.

I told him that he didn't need start "going out" with people in 3rd grade and that he should just worry about playing football.

He says to me, "mom, we are growing up now, you are just going to have to change some of your rules."

Oh, man I really am not ready for this.

Although he is pretty cute!

Ohhhhh, I love it!

It's this time of year around here and I love it!
Fall is great, I loved it as a kid in St. Johns and I think I love it even more now. Of course Fall where I live is in a league of it's own. I don't know a soul who wouldn't love it.

Yesterday the clouds rolled in over Mt. Timpanogas and then it rained!
Lovely Sunday afternoon!

Today was the same. You could feel and smell Fall in the air and it rained again, all day.

I anticipated the call from my husband telling me how much he loves days like today and how he hears the mountains and the elk in them calling his name.
I was not disappointed. He called and said just that!

If any of you have never experienced Fall in Utah I highly recommend it. If you live in Utah you should take a drive up this way. You can even stay at my house!

The best Fall colors are yet to come and I will have pictures to prove it. Stay tuned

Some of my favorite Swiss Days items

Swiss Days was absolutely packed this year, just like every other year. It was almost a joke trying to see the inside of most of the booths so I did my best at gathering business cards from the busiest booths. I figured that if there was a line to get into the booth that I should at least get their card and check them out at home where I didn't have to wait in line! It never ceases to amaze me how many people there are and every year there is some new product that all the women want. This year it seemed to be headbands. Seriously, headbands that cost like $15 a piece for a little girl!! I didn't get any headband business cards and the only one I can remember is www.pinkbench.com. Below are some of the items that I found the most interesting.

Swiss Days was absolutely packed this year just like normal. It was almost a joke trying to see the inside of most of the booths, so I did my best to pickup business cards of the booths that were the most crowded. I figured that if there was a line to get into the booth that I should at least get their card!! It never ceases to amaze me that every year there are a million people there and always some new craze that all the women want!

The paintings by the Winborg Sisters' Design were by far my favorite. They really were awesome. Check out their blog to see for yourself. http://www.winborgdesign.blogspot.com/

These vinyl wallets and bags were pretty cool too. You can see them at http://www.vinyliciousdesigns.com/

I LOVE family history so this booth from Stories By Me really caught my attention.

http://www.storiesbyme.com/

http://www.storiesbymeblog.blogspot.com/

Don't know that I would wear one of these hats myself, but they looked great on everyone else. They had so many great fabrics and a couple of great styles. Check them out.

http://www.caleandco.com/

If you are in the baby stuff market here are a few places to check out.

LOVE this outfit from Saranoni.

http://www.saranoni.com/

I really want one of these for the next baby. They are baby slings from Mod Mum.

http://www.modmum.com/

I know that these Minky blankets are everywhere there were even quite a few booths of them at Swiss Days. But I like them and these were pretty fancy.

http://www.babylaundryandmore.com/

They went back to school...

Finally. Well, I think that finally is to harsh a word to use, makes me sound like a bad mom. How can I say it and not sound like a bad mom?

Yesterday the boys went back to school!!

My excitement is real, Colby's however is apparent by the look on his face in the picture below.

Cameron was Super excited though!

Seriously Colby. All I could get out of him was a forced smile. He really knows how to play the part of sad miserable child, he's so good at it he worries me!

I wasn't sure how the day would be for Hayden without his brothers around to entertain/tease him. He was sad to see them go and glad to see them come home!

The BIKE BRIGADE on their way home from school. Colby was especially bugged that Hayden and I met them at the corner and that I had my camera. He would not even slow down to wave. Cameron gave us a big wave though!

When we all got home I tried to talk to them about their first day of 1st and 3rd grade. I was excited for them and really wanted to know how it went. All I could get out of either one of them was an "It was good." That's it! They just wanted a snack and then wanted to head out to play. When it came time for bed though, they were ready to talk. Anything to prolong going to bed!

One great thing for me about having two of my three kids in school all day.

My house stayed clean and I got to be really lazy while Hayden took a nap.

I love back to school!

Lazy Days

This week for us marks the last week of Summer. Am I sad? Not really. I am ready for the kids to be back in school. Our summer was extra long this year because they needed time to finish the new highschool. So, after an extra couple of weeks of Summer, and seeing how it is going to be September when they finally do start school, I am more than ready!

The kids however want it to be Summer Forever.

In St. Johns, my parents have a great yard that we spend pretty much all day in. The favorite day of the week though is Irrigation Day! Cam especially loves it. Hayden got in on the fun this year too.

After a long summer spent in the Sun this is what this little boy's tan lines look like. He asked me if his skin is dark enough that he will start to speak Spanish!!

I would not have survived three weeks in SJ w/o my mom. She rescued me from Hayden everyday. Her wagon was a life saver. Hayden would sit in it for hours. I would too if I could ride around in a wagon with pillows and cups of water and snacks!
Thanks Mom!

Oh, and can you send some of that garden's goodness up to us?

When we are in SJ we usually don't see to much of Colby. Especially when we are there in July. This year was no exception. Friends from Idaho and the Zielers provide Colby and Cam with endless entertainment. I am pretty sure that the week spent with these boys ranks as Colb's number one week of the year.

Garlic ginger sesame chicken

I'm on a roll here aren't I? Three blog posts in three days? Pretty good for me.

But, our dinner tonight was so good that I thought I would share.


Garlic Ginger Sesame Chicken

(that's just the name I gave it, not sure what it's really called)

Noodles, any kind you like. Cooked

Chicken Thighs, as many as you will eat.

Veggi's, any kinds you like. I used asparagus, broccoli and carrots. Steam cook them all.

Cook the chicken in a frying pan with Olive oil, save the dripping to make the gravy.

While the chicken is cooking mix up

3 tbs soy sauce

3 tsp fresh grated ginger root

3 cloves garlic, pressed

1 tbs Honey to sweeten

1/2 tsp Sesame oil (or as much as you like, or leave it out.)

After chicken is done cooking take it out of the pan and stir in the soy sauce mix with the chicken drippings to make a gravy. Add corn starch and milk to get it to a consistency you like. Let it cook until it is pretty warm, but DON"T burn it.

When everything is done cooking layer it all in a 13 x 9in pan starting with the noodles, then veggi's then chicken topped with gravy.

It's so GOOD!

For some reason I have a hard time eating meat that I have to prepare and cook myself, especially chicken. But with this dinner I love the veggi's and the noodles with the sauce so I have a full meal, and Mark really likes the chicken thighs for a change. Hayden and Cameron even liked it a lot too. SOOOO.....give it a try and let me know what you think.

I do need to give the credit for this recipe to my neighbor Wendy who brought us this dish when Cameron was in the hospital. Thanks Wendy!

IT'S A GIRL!!

Kendall Reece Heap

7 lbs 19 inches

Congrats to Kent and Lisa!!!

It's no wonder that I don't have any girls.

My brothers steal them all!

I forgot to mention.....

Tomorrow, my brother Kent and sis in law Lisa are having their fourth baby!!! We don't know what the baby is so I am so excited to get their call.

Neverland or Heap Reunion??

Could the mountains have been anymore dusty and dry?

I DON'T THINK SO!!!!

Dealing with the dusty dirt was the worst part though, and I would gladly do it over again for my boys. For the first time in SIX YEARS! Yes, six years, my kids and I went to the Heap Reunion. I still punish myself for letting six years go by w/o attending the reunion. My boys were in heaven. All three of them. And for me is was really nice spending some time with my awesome cousins that I really see to little of. Sadly Mark was at home working, we missed him tons.

My mom and dad were AWESOME and always make it so much fun to go. I know that it is a ton of work both getting there and getting home, but it is so worth it. THANKS SO MUCH MOM AND DAD!!

Colby and Cruise
HOLY DIRT!

This little boy was in heaven!

Of the 22 Great Grandkids that Nana and Papa Heap have 14 of them were at the Reunion.

EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM WAS A BOY !!

It was little boy paradise, they would have stayed forever and just turned Greens Peak into Neverland. I think Colby was already playing the role of Peter Pan pretty well. He is so so bossy!

If Uncle Boyd had not brought the Ranger, he would not have made so many little best friends! Boyd was such a good sport. He would pack them all on and go off riding for a couple of hours. It gave the moms lots of card playing time!

Thanks Boyd!

Me and my three.

We even got to see this little darling (Caroline) and her parents (Ryan & Julie) and brothers(Jacob and Nathaniel) for a couple of hours. My kids still get a little confused by the fact that their Davis cousins come to the Heap Reunion too. Who would have ever thought that Mark and his brother would marry cousins?
It's a small Mormon world.

Uncle Brant teaching Cameron how to drive the three wheeler.

The dogs had to go in the dog cage for some of the day, but the poor dogs were like animals in the ZOO. These little boys would not leave them alone. When the dogs were out, the boys went in. It was great!!!

Self Portraits at the Ranch

While in AZ Gpa Heap had some branding that needed to be done. Cameron always loves to go help Gpa and was not going to miss out on branding. We sent them off with some food and drinks knowing that it would be an all day event.

Cam was STOKED!!

I fully expected to get a phone call telling me to come and get him.

But I didn't. He lasted all day!

I sent the camera with Mark hoping to get a least one picture. I got lots more than one.

Here is what you get when you give a 6 year old the camera and tell him to take pictures!

Cam was so proud of himself and wanted to narrate every picture. See his gum in his mouth in this one? He was trying to take a picture of it!

Cam wanted us to play I-Spy with this picture.

this pic won't flip?

This BIG BULL and another one were the reason that Cam sat in the truck most of the day, he was scared to death of the bulls! Mark said that he would yell out the window at the Bulls "come get me now bully bully!"

I am actually really happy that Mark gave the camera to Cameron. These pictures are GREAT!!!