4 Months

The time wheel just keeps on ticking by. It really does go so fast. Miss M had her dr's appt today to measure her progress and here's what the flawed nurse measurer and the not-so-flawed scale had to say:

Weight: 14 lbs, 5 oz - 60th percentile

Height: 24 inches (still mystified since she was 21 in at birth) - 35th percentile (poor thing, she really doesn't have much hope on the height spectrum)

Head: 16 something (60th percentile)

Just one question: Why was I so stupid as to make the appt at 1:30 in the afternoon (Mr. A's naptime)? Not doing that again (although he was extremely well behaved considering...).

Just one rant: Why does a PEDIATRICIAN appt take OVER an hour when I saw the dr for MAYBE 7 minutes and the nurse took AT LEAST 10 minutes to come give the shots to Miss M after the dr. had left the room? Why did I have to leave the exam room with my 1/2 naked child and toddler in tow to find the nurse after the aforementioned 10 minutes and ask her if she could please give my child her shots so that I could take my 2 very tired children home for naps? Goodness.

Yummiest Chicken Noodle Soup

Fall was in the air today and so I cooked up a batch of the tastiest Chicken Noodle Soup I know of and thought I would share it with anyone interested. It comes from an old family favorite restaurant and has been passed down through generations! Enjoy (I certainly did!!)...

Hot Shoppes Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:

5 cups chicken broth

5 tablespoons margarine

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

2/3 cup noodle rings, ¼” diameter

2/3 cup chicken, cooked and diced

Directions:Heat 4 cups of chicken brother to boiling in a 2 qt. pan. In a separate saucepan, melt the margarine over low heat. Add flour and stir well to blend. Do not allow this to brown. Now add the flour and margarine mixture to the boiling stock. Cook until thickened over moderate heat. (I usually add some of the hot broth to the flour/margarine mixture first to thin it out and better the chances of it not becoming lumpy.) Bring the remaining 1 cup of chicken broth to boiling in a small sauce pan. Add the noodles and cook until just tender, but not soft. Add the undrained, cooked noodles and cooked diced chicken to the thickened broth. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

If not served immediately, hold over low heat in a double boiler until time to serve.

Noodle Options: small shells, miniature bow ties or stars (Stelline 59), Ditalini 36 or Tubettini 39

Tips: Always double this recipe! One is never enough for leftovers! Enjoy.

Number Of Servings:6-8

Preparation Time:45 minutes

Talented

I can appreciate good talents when I see them, receive them, experience them, and even acquire them. The "acquire them" part doesn't happen all that often, but, again, I can appreciate it.

So, while out West last week I put some of my acquired-through-marriage relatives' talents to good use. And, I love them.

For those of you who live in Utah, visit Utah, might someday live in Utah, or happen to be passing through Utah, let me tell you where to get your hair cut - wherever Megan is. Right now she teaches other peeps to cut hair at the Taylor Andrews Hair Academy (in W. Jordan and soon-to-be in Orem) and does her personal coloring and cutting after hours. Go. She's awesome. She's been cutting my hair for many years now (she's my DH's sister) and I really wish she lived closer. It sure is worth the plane ride out there, though, just to have her put her scissors on my locks. Again - awesome. Find her.

And my pictures of Miss M. Where do I start? Lisa (DH's cuz) has worked to acquire her photo talents, and I so appreciate all that hard work and creativity! So, if you need a great photog in Utah, click here to see her work and then send her an email to sign up. She's great.

Thanks to both of you talented ladies for helping me out! I loved what you did.

Rolls

More info to come in a later post on these sweet pictures that Tyler's uber-talented cousin took, but I had to post one

We have several of them at our house right now - some in the freezer, some in a bag on the counter, some on Miss M's thighs, some on my belly, and we've just added a new one - Miss M went from back to front last night - tempted by our dear friend, Corduroy the Book. She loved that Red cover and just had to get a better look at it. Mr. A and I cheered her on to victory - 3 times.

She's gone from stomach to back before, but the back to stomach's taken a bit longer. We couldn't be more thrilled for her forward progress, though. Go M!

Don't Tell My Husband...

...but I really like to mow the lawn. My lines aren't straight (heaven knows I can't even CUT a straight line with scissors, so why should I think I can push a 20+ lb. piece of machinery in a straight line?), I missed a few spots, but there was something extremely satisfying in watching the uncut row next to the currently being cut row. I'm weird, I know. Maybe it's because I never had to do it growing up.

We had a small jungle growing in our yard due to all of the rain, warm weather, etc, and since DH has been gone so much lately I decided to take matters into my own hands. Mr. A was a dutiful helper/cheerleader. Thank you. I will not be starting my own lawn business, however.

And, DH just informed me that he will be mowing again on Monday ("just to get it to a lower cut length" - mmm, hmm. right. i'm not offended.)

Playtime

A few things we've been up to...

Mr. A found Miss M's bow - clearly

Mr. A on his "motorcycle" as he calls it
Everyone say "cheese"

Working on "sitting" skills

Hangin' Out

Move over, boys. We've got ourselves a new "swinger" in town! Miss M has taken quite nicely to her new pastime - hanging (and gently rocking). (In case you're wondering, her shirt says "My Mummy Rocks" - how cool is that?)

Rocky Mountain High

I went to Utah for a few days to attend my dear friend, Suzanne's (from b-school), wedding.

Congrats, Suz! (Jess, Suz, me)

The picture doesn't do the mountains leaves justice but they did not disappoint

Some of "my" former "Young Women" - Kara, Lindsay, and Becca (great to see all of you)

I threw in a few other activities as well - eating at Cafe Rio (3 times - mmm); a shake at the Creamery; a visit to the BYU Candy Counter (for the first time in my life I did not buy one thing from there-yes, you should be impressed - very impressed. I certainly was.); a photo session for Miss M; and visits with great family & friends.

That's a BIG One!

So I'm frantically trying to get all of my computer work done before finishing my packing. Our office is below Mr. A's bedroom. I put him to bed at 7:23 pm. I hear his voice as I sit down at my desk. And, this is what I heard:

7:48 - "Wow! That's a BIG one!"
7:50 - "'Nother one"
7:52 - (more jabbering that I can't quite make out)
7:53 - "Oh. That little one."

At this point I'm intrigued. So, I walk upstairs, open his door, and see his little feet on the floor poking out from underneath the curtains. I thought, "Maybe he's looking at one of our neighbors and commenting." Mind you, it's dark outside.

I pull back the blinds and have this conversation:
Me: "Mr. A, what are you doing?"
Mr. A: "Oh, Mommy! Look! 'Nother BIG one!"

I look out and can only see the passing/blinking lights of airplanes in a night sky.

Me: "Do you mean the airplanes, Mr. A?"
Mr. A: "Ya, Mama! I see Daddy's hairpane"

At this point I'm practically in tears from the realization that he was postponing sleep to watch for his dad, but pull him out from behind the blinds and guide him to bed.

Mr. A: "Mama, I wanna see Daddy's hairpane more."
Me: "Tomorrow when you wake up, you can look for Daddy's airplane some more, ok?"
Mr. A: "Ok, mom. Where's Baby Sis?"
Me: "She's sleeping."
Mr. A: "OH! OK! Love you, Mom"
Me: "Love you, Mr. A."

I love Little People. I especially love MY little people. Sweet dreams to both of them. May visions of airplanes dance in Mr. A's head.

The Boys of Summer and Mastercard

Gas to visit your childhood home: $20

Breakfast at the Way Station: $15

Surfing on Venice Beach: $20

Lunch at In 'N Out (three times): $15

Tickets to the Dodgers games (2) in the all-you-can-eat section (with Dodger Dogs included):$50

A weekend with the boys (dad and the brothers), a walk down memory lane, and creating new memories: priceless