Usual stuff:

Thanksgiving was awesome, as usual.

We were with my family up in Snowflake, as usual.

At one point, there were almost 80 relatives, not usual.

This year there were a few more DeWitt family members around because of my cousin, John, getting married a few days before Thanksgiving.

The food was great, as usual.

My Aunt Linda made many delicious pies, as usual.

One of them being an Almond Chocolate Cream Pie, which I hope will become one of her usual.

Friday night, while a volleyball game was going on, Kai played on the swing set with Griffin and cousin Lukas. I didn't hear what had happened but he ended up sitting on the stairs inside just crying/whimpering. After ten minutes I told him to stop crying or go finish in the bedroom. No change. So I helped him up to the bedroom where he continued to cry. I figured he was just really tired, but when he just wouldn't stop crying, I had my uncle (the Doc) check him out.

Kai kept complaining about his left shoulder area. We could see that it was red and Kai didn't like moving it AT ALL. My uncle said he couldn't feel a break, but that didn't mean there wasn't one. The next day, his pain was worse and there was some swelling. But since he could move his arm just fine, we figured the shoulder must have gotten jammed pretty hard.

From what I've heard, Kai fell off one of the swings and Lukas fell on top of him. Everyone around them when it happened, just told Kai to get up and "brush off". It would be a lot easier to know if something was definitely wrong with him if he wasn't whining ALL THE TIME and crying so easily about EVERYTHING.

Anywho. Sunday, he was still sore, but I had gotten really sick and didn't even think about it that day, sadly. Monday I felt a little better and Kai was getting some excellent mobility out of his left arm, so we debated again to take him in to the doctors or not. Rather than take him to our primary care, THEN to an x-ray facility, I just went straight to Urgent Care where they could do everything on the spot.

Diagnosis: Fractured collarbone.

Treatment: Arm in sling to help with pain.

Kai had already been keeping his left arm in "sling position" on his own. So I was happy when the doctors said, "It's probably not going to be easy getting a three year old to wear a sling. If he wants to, let him. If not, don't fight him on it. Basically if the broken collarbones are in the same room...... they'll heal together."

That left me, feeling like an awful mom, AS USUAL, finding out my kid really IS hurt, after telling him to just brush it off and stop crying!

Holiday recipe:

This recipe is one Jeff and I have made for a few years now to give out at Christmas.

I could eat a whole batch by myself!

--Not going to try, but I'm pretty sure. --

Up until Jeff got a job, we'd been approved for WIC, which basically gives you free food. Milk, eggs, cheese, cereal. The cereal was only certain types and one was Chex. So..... for a low cost (practically free) treat to give -- this was perfect!! And pretty delicious too.

GOOEY CHEX MIX

1 cup light Karo syrup

1 cup sugar

1 cup butter (not margarine)

1 dash imitation butter flavoring (optional)

1 pinch baking soda

12 cups Chex cereal (we use Rice Chex)

2 cups slivered almonds

2 cups coconut

**You can use any cereal/nut combination you please. This is what we like.**

Bring syrup, sugar and butter to a boil.

Let boil for 2 minutes.

Cool for one minute, then add butter flavoring and baking soda.

Pour over cereal/nut/coconut mixture in a large bowl.

Stir until combined, then spread out onto cookie sheet to cool.

-- If you'd like your mix to be a little more crunchy, bake at 250 degrees for 15-20 minutes. --

*recipe adapted from here

This post should have been an update

on my Thanksgiving, sister's engagement,

Kai's accident, etc. but that will have to

wait. Because I want this.

Halloween 2009

I'm usually pretty pumped up for Halloween and dressing up.

This year, for some reason, my attitude was: "EH."

The boys kept changing their minds about what they wanted to be so I knew I wasn't going to get a family theme like we've done in previous years.

The Sunday before, we had the Gardner Halloween Dinner:

Tom and Hope decorated the carport really well this year!

After dinner we had a cake walk along with a rockin' Monster Mash Dance.

It's always a good time!

Wednesday:

Brimhall Ward Trunk-or-Treat.

I have grown quite fond of these.

Friday:

Our friends Jennifer and Sterling Kellis threw a halloween/birthday party.

It was a bring-the-kids-deal wth a bounce house and all.

Saturday:

All week long I had been reading blogs about cute, spooky, festive food to make.

To make myself feel better for not full-out decorating for the holiday this year, I made these pancakes. Recipe found here.

I cheated and used just regular pancake mix with orange food coloring because the boys were "so hungry Mom!".

They enjoyed the spooky theme, but since they were both obsessed with lions at the time, a graphic-specific pancake was requested for each:

Not my best work, I admit, but what the heck!! It's not Safari Day, for cryin' out loud!

It's HALLOWEEN!!!

Here's our pumpkins -- lions again.

By Saturday night the boys were pretty much done. What am I saying..... we were ALL ready for the week to end.

Notice their faces....... classic.

My Cross-Dressing Grape

When does a grape have it's day?

Every other fruit seems to be given a time to shine.

Peach season means peach pies, jam, peaches in jars for later.

Same with strawberries.

Bananas are made into bread and muffins.

Pumpkins bring Jack-0-lanters first, then for the rest of the year, people are making pumpkin bread, pie, cupcakes, cookies and even pancakes.

I love grapes. My kids do too. They stuff one in each cheek, smile and become the funniest looking chipmunks you've ever seen. A good grape will be just crisp enough to pop in your mouth, not mush, and have the perfect level of sweetness that wears off towards the end, making you want more.

However, unless you drink wine, buy grape jelly a lot, or include raisins on the list of a grape's talent ..... that's about it. No pies. No bread. No cookies.

This year I met a red-seedless who'd HAD IT with being a grape......

......and decided to be a pumpkin.

Bribery works.

Strange days.

I wake Griffin up for school, he's fine.

Make him some breakfast, he's fine.

Tell him to get dressed for school, fine, finer-ie!

I comb his hair, teeth get brushed, water bottle ready, backpack packed.

No complaints.

But when we get to the door of his classroom, meltdowns occur, tears are shed.

"I don't want to go! I want to stay home with you and clean the house!"

Really Griffin? Really?!

In steps bribery. I picked up some pencil top stampers from the dollar section at Target and each day he calmly goes into class without crying, he gets a new set to open after school.

Griffin is all for it!

He'd do anything for new art instruments.

The stamps are Halloween themed, similar to these:

Please notice the "RIP" graveyard tombstone.

While studying his new set of stamps today, Griff was planning out his masterpiece and I overheard him say, "Okay, so..... the bats will go first and then the cats under them. After that, the pumpkins will go next to the Ten Commandments.........with spiders everywhere."

I was too proud to correct him.

Trying not to laugh

Tonight as I sang songs to the boys, trying to be soft and reverent, I busted out with laughter in the middle of "Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam". I had to sing the rest of the song with my eyes closed.

Kai, knowing that he'd be told to lay down, did not get up and jump when "sunbeam" was said (which is the usual action, for those who don't know the song).

Instead, laying on his side, a single arm with pointer finger extended, SHOT UP to the sky each time, right on beat. As if getting rid of all his extra energy through a beam coming out of his finger. (You know, like at the end of Beauty and the Beast. ?? Anyone?... )

Well, I'm assuming Kai did it each time. Like I said it was so funny I had to close my eyes.

Maybe you had to be there.

Making the most of what I've got!

This past Saturday evening was our ward's Ice Cream Social.

I LOVE ME SOME ICE CREAM, especially homemade.

One of the directors called to see if I could bring some. She said "homemade is preferrable, but whatever". Since I don't have an ice cream maker, and forgot to borrow one from my parents, I did the next best thing.

YUM !!

Directions:

--Buy the best vanilla ice cream out there

--Add some milk for Dairy Queen Blizzard-like texture

-- Dice strawberries, add to mixture

-- Finish off with crushed Oreos

-- Mix well

This, now favorite, combination was introduced to me by the lovely Jillian, my sis.

Thanks Jill -- not only for the PARTY IN MY MOUTH!!........ but also for this:

That's right!!! The ice cream social wasn't just a social, it was a contest -- which I was not told about. I didn't say anything when we showed up because I thought, "There's NO WAY, with eleven other homemade ice creams on the table, that I will win something."

Turns out I was wrong. Strawberries and Oreos is a beloved combo for many (including the Stake President) who would have been too nervous to try it on their own.

P.S. -- I tried to give back the prize (Baskin Robbins certificates) but it was a four-way tie for third place, so I was told to go ahead and keep it. Some were impressed that I even concocted an offering semi-homemade without an ice cream maker.

Others just whispered "cheater" when I walked by.... for the rest of the night.

"Now we know how to win next year!", one voice said.