Yes, I am outside.

Ray's friend let him borrow his sled for a few weekends, so we had a little family time a few Saturday's ago. I did drive the snow machine and it was fun for a little while, but I certainly was glad to go back into the house where it was warm. The girls, on the other hand, loved riding it with their dad and spending time with him. His mom even let Ray take her for a ride too. It really wasn't all that bad, and we were just in the field behind our church, so I knew I could go home whenever I wanted.

Look at the white spot on Ray's jacket, that was a snowflake in mid air.

Ray actually let both of the girls drive the snowmachine too.

It was a fun day had by all!!

Stay tuned this week for the Young version of a week in the life of Janel, Jerika & Kinlee.

If my last post didn't make you think I was crazy, this one might....

Sad news today, Corey Haim died.  I really had a crush on him in the 80's.  What is happening to Hollywood people and "prescription drugs"?  Anyway, I know silly me for posting, but R.I.P. Corey Haim, because your life on earth certainly was not peaceful!!

Oscar dresses

Okay, I have an opinion and I am going to share it.  First of all, I usually love my DVR, because I can record shows that I am interested in and then later watch them in way much less than their entirety.  Especially shows like the Oscars.  I love a good awards show, however, I love one even better without having to listen to the acceptance speeches.  That being said, my DVR totally let me down last night!!  It recorded all of the Oscars, except for the Best Female Actress and the last award, whatever that is, I forget.  So yes, I missed the only acceptance speech that I wanted to watch.  Thank goodness for the internet, I got to watch it today and it was very touching.  Anyway, I know most of you could care less, but that is my little story.  Also, I was even more impressed with Sandra Bullock's MODEST dress.  As I looked at all the other dresses, most of them were strappless and not very becoming.

Love, love, love her dress!!

I think that I like this one just because it is my FAVORITE color.  Sleeves would be nice though.

One of my other Faves!!  Once again needs something to cover her shoulders.

Okay, this dress is really not my favorite, but I do like it and it is modest too.  Go Nichole Richie!!

Yes, it is very likely that I need to get a life, since I am blogging about dresses at the Oscars.  However, I am having a big dose of stress in my life this week and I just wanted to think about something a little less taxing on my brain.  So, there you have it.

Superbowl Party at the Stoddards

I am pretty sure this is the first year EVER that I actually watched the whole Superbowl!! We went to our friends the Stoddards house and watched it. We had pizza for dinner and some yummy treats too. I broke my diet a little, but still lost weight that week. I was rooting for the opposite team as everyone else, except Kade. We actually rooted for the winning team. Go Saints!! I only did it to make it more exciting. Connor was the only one of the kids that actually watched the game with us. It was pretty fun!! Thanks Greg & Tiff.


Kade, Cort & Kinlee eating and being silly

Ciera & Jerika on the computer

Tiff & Connor on Tiff's new couch, it was so comfy!!

Greg, Ray and I. Tiff even let us sit on the new sofa also.

Girls Day Out

We decided a few weeks ago that us girls needed a girls day out, WOW I think it was in January, so it was a few weeks ago. Anyway, Nakia, Allisa and I took our girls Mya, Brayli, Kinlee and Jerika and of course baby Rylen to the Princess and the Frog. It was a pretty cute movie, even though it scared Allisa (yes she is an adult).


After the movie we went to our favorite place to eat, yes Olive Garden. We had gift cards from Christmas and Birthday, so it was even better!! We had so much fun!!

Thanks guys!! Wow, I look pretty scary in that picture, but I have lost 14.6 pounds since then. Yeah me!!

The article that was written with the recipes.

Okay, here is the write up that was in the newspaper with my recipes.
Some of the locations of interest have been deleted to protect the innocent – aka I don’t want to publish locations on my blog, it really makes me nervous. So, some of the wording is a little different than was actually published in the local newspaper. Which still made ma a little nervous even having it in the paper, I don’t know, I am kind of weird that way. So, here it is…..

Ground Beef is the Key

Our featured cook today, Janel Young of (you know where I live, I don’t want to put it on my blot) has shared several of her favorite recipes to give you a boost in the new year to try something new.

Janel Sharp raised in (hopefully you know where I was raised what school I attended). She met her husband Ray Young at a country dance club in a city nearby. Ray was raised in that same city. Since their marriage we have lived in that city, another city 30 miles South of that city and purchased a home in the city they currently live in now about 8 years ago. Ray drives for Gould Trucking and Janel works at Alliance Title.

Janel can remember well having a good meal nightly made by her mom, Janice Sharp, when she was young. She has taken on the same traits and makes a good evening meal for her family. Her favorite part of cooking is making treats. It seems they always have Rice Krispie treats on hand for her daughters and their friends who visit. Ray and Janel have two daughters. Jerika is in the eighth grade at the local Jr. High. She lives to sing and takes voice lessons. She enjoys being with her friends, texting, laughing and styling hair. Her favorite food is cheese cake.

Kinlee is 9 and attends elementary school. She is in the third grade and likes art and science. She takes dance and loves all parts of it which includes tap, ballet and gymnastics. She loves riding her bike in the summer and Rice Krispie treats is a favorite treat.

Janel cooks from scratch and uses ground beef as a base in many of her dishes. Her family favorites include casseroles, hamburgers and tacos. Janel’s favorite food is steak and shrimp. Ray would choose steak. Ray is the griller in the family and they grill in both summer and winter. Janel uses her cooking as a way of teaching her girls how to share and show compassion to others. They, as a family like to share with friends and neighbors what they cook. Taking treats to work is also another method of sharing with others.

Janel enjoys people and associating with others. She belongs to a Bunco group and also is active with the youth in her church. She likes to have people in her home and entertaining with good food. If she ever gets any spare time, she likes to scrapbook, make jewelry that has become a little business called “Watch Me Bead”, where she makes necklaces, earrings and watches. Shopping is also on the top of her list of things she likes to do.

Ray is a hunter and fisherman. He has a dirt bike and loves biking. The girls like to ride with their dad on his motor bike. As a family they read scriptures together, have family parties, swim, grill outside and camp. They enjoy their home and in the past couple of years have made some exciting additions and upgrades which makes it a fun place to be.

Today we have great recipes from the family of Janel and Ray Young and their girls Jerika and Kinlee. We thank them for sharing.

Okay, there it is. For those of you who really know me, there are a few questionable things in this article. The biggest one is the camping thing. We were talking camping this summer with our friends and that counts, I guess. I guess everything else is on the up and up, but I really wonder if when the lady came to our house to interview us, she was disappointed that we weren’t very exciting, but she had to publish the article anyway. Anything else you may think is questionable, call me and we can discuss it.

The recipes from my one day of fame.....

Some of you have asked for the recipes that were in the newspaper, so here they are.  Enjoy!!!

Chocolate Cake
½ c. shortening
2 eggs
1 t. salt
1/3 c. cocoa
2½ c. flour
2 t. soda
1¾ c. sugar
1 t. vanilla
1 2/3 c. water.
Cream shortening, sugar and eggs together. Mix in rest of ingredients and pour into 9x13 inch cake pan. Bake at 375 degrees for about 30 minutes.

Frosting
2 c. sugar
2/3 c. evaporated milk
Cook until the mixture holds together when dropped into water (approximately 2 to 3 minutes). Take off heat and add 1 c. chocolate chips. Stir until smooth. If too thick, add a few drops of milk.

Sausage & Turkey Casserole
1 pound sausage
½ med. bunch or celery
1 onion (or minced onions to taste)
1 green pepper (optional)
1 pkg. Lipton chicken noodle soup mix
½ c. minute rice uncooked
1 c. turkey or chicken
3 c. boiling water
Brown sausage with onion, celery and green pepper. Add chicken noodle soup mix and rise to boiling water. Mix all ingredients and put into casserole dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Applesauce Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 eggs
2 c. sugar
1 c. shortening
2 c. applesauce
4 c. flour
1 t. salt
1 t. nutmeg
1 t. cloves
1½ t. cinnamon
2½ t. soda
1 pkg. chocolate chips (I like semi sweet the best in these cookies)
Mix as any cookie dough and drop by teaspoon on cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 10 minutes.

Enchilada Casserole
2 pounds hamburger
1 med. onion
1 can corn
½ t. rosemary
¼ t. oregano
¼ t. Marjoram
½ t. pepper
2 t. salt
2 8-ounce cans tomato sauce
1 large can enchilada sauce
6 tortillas
½ to ¾ pound cheese
Brown onion and hamburger. All corn, rosemary, oregano, marjoram, salt and pepper, tomato sauce and enchilada sauce. Layer tortillas (which have been torn into pieces), hamburger mixture and cheese. Bake at 375 degrees for about 30 minutes.

Hot punch
1 c. sugar
1 6-ounce can frozen lemonade
1 6-ounce can frozen orange juice
1 t. vanilla
1 t. almond extract
2 c. water
Mix above together and when mixed add 1 quart water and heat.

Foolproof White Chocolate Fudge
2 11 or 12 oz. packages white chocolate chips
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
Dash of salt
½ to 1 c. nuts
1½ t. vanilla
In heavy saucepan, over low heat, melt chips with sweetened condensed milk and salt. Remove from heat when smooth and stir in vanilla and nuts. Spread evenly into waxed paper lined 8 or 9 inch square pan. Chill until firm.

Frog Eye Salad (easy version)
1 lg. pkg. vanilla Jell-o instant pudding
1 pkg. acini de pepe pasta
2 t. lemon juice
1 large container whipped topping
2 can mandarin oranges with juice
2 cans pineapple tidbits, drained
1 pkg. mini marshmallows
Cook pasta and cool or rinse with cold water. Then mix all ingredients together and chill.

Facebook | In Memoriam: Gary Marc Farwell

The son-in-law of my sweet friend Linda was killed in a helicopter accident in Germany last week. Below is a facebook page set up in his honor. He served our country well!! I am so thankful for our troops and all they do so we can live in a free country. Click on the link below to see what an amazing man he was. He left behind 3 children and a beautiful wife. Please keep them in your prayers!!

Facebook In Memoriam: Gary Marc Farwell

Cook of the week - Yes me....

Our local newspaper has a cook of the week every week and this was just one more thing that I got to add into to my busy January.  But this was something fun to add to my busy month!! 


I know some of you may not think that I cook very much, but when I do, it is pretty good. Anyway, here is the picture that was in the paper of the girls and I. I will do a new post with the article about us when I can find the rest of it. There were 2 pages and I kept a copy of the 2nd page and now I can't find it, so when I do I will post it. And, if anyone is interested in the recipes, which are pretty amazing by the way, leave a comment on my blog with your email address and I will send them to you. And yes, I do use a lot of ground beef!

Happy New Year

In looking at my blog today, I decided I needed to catch up a little. It seems like this week I have a little more time on my hands so it is a good time to do it now. On Sunday my back went out and I am not happy about it at all!! Some of us at work are doing the biggest loser and so I have been exercising pretty consistently the last 4 weeks. Which includes going to Zumba, if you haven't heard of Zumba you should go onto Youtube and see what it is, it is a blast and it doesn't even seem like you are exercising because you are having so much fun. Anyway, since my back has been out, I haven't exercised all week and I can feel myself getting fatter. I started a book on Monday and finished it on Tuesday while I was sitting on the heating pad. I did feel better last night when I went to mutual, which was good, because we ended up trapsing through the snow. But, I still don't think I should be exercising just yet. So, that is why I have a little time on my hands.
Young womens has kept me pretty busy, especially in January. On new years eve Ray and I chaperoned the first half of the Stake dance. Before the dance we went to Carlsons to eat dinner. Then we went to the dance and then went back to their house to play some games until midnight when we went back to pick Jerika up at the dance. The pictures below are some from New Years Eve.
Brandon & Allisa

Mya & Jerika

Mya & Kinlee

Us

Also in January they asked me to speak in Sarament meeting about the 2010 Young Women's theme. Luckily they gave me two weeks to prepare, but I was still so nervous. I really hate to speak in church, but I guess after my 15 year break from speaking in sacrament meeting they are getting even with me. Then we had New Beginnings that we had to plan and do. If any of you know about the young women's program, you know all the personal progress stuff has changed, and we had to incorporate all of that into new beginnings. Anyway, we pulled it off, but I still wonder sometimes why I am the one in charge of these amazing women. I realize that I am not "the boss", but I just really think that some of the women that are in there with me could do a much better job than me. But, I realize that is just satan working overtime on me. Anyway, needless to say Young Womens has pretty much taken over all my free time.
One thing I did't give up though is my Bunco groups, yes I said groups, I have two of them. I have so much fun with my Bunco friends every month and I have made some amazing friends that I will have for a very long time because of that silly dice game.

CHRISTMAS!!

She also had a dance recital

Isn't she cute? In most of the pictures she towers over everyone else in her class. But, she has so much fun
and her teacher is the best around. The girls just love her.

Oh, that girl looks about the same height as Kinlee. Their theme was a Christmas Carol and she did a really good job!!

December Catch Up

Kinlee was a busy girl during the month of December!! First she had her school Christmas program. It is something they do every year at the elementary school here in town. I must say that I am glad it was my last year attending!! The teachers really do a good job and pull off quite the accomplishment with all those kids, however I am just really happy I only have 2 children. Don't judge me, you know exactly how I feel!!


This is her dancing with a little girl in her class. There are only 6 girls in her class and 15 boys. Her teacher is pretty tough and I don't think having that many boys in class makes that all that fun at school. I keep telling her that next year will be much more fun, this year she is learning a whole bunch and she will go so smart when she starts 4th grade. However, they did a really good job at the program with their dancing and she was excited to perform.

The decorations were really cute too. It was kind of hard getting a picture, since that is what everyone else was trying to do.

Maybe that is why I got the State champion signs in the background.

2009 Young Family Newsletter

2009, Wow, is it really almost over? And a crazy one it has been. We did however go the whole year without a stay in the hospital and since the year isn’t over yet, I am sooooooo knocking on wood right now!!


We started out this year in search of a cure for whatever was wrong with Jerika. She was really struggling in school and yet they would not let her have any special help anymore. I know she is going to kill me for putting this in our newsletter, but it was one of our biggest struggles this year. Well, our first appointment was on January 19 and after several other appointments, meetings with the powers that be at the Jr. High (who I might mention don’t really love me anymore) we finally found out in the middle of June what was wrong with her. She has ADD and the reason it was so hard to figure out is because she didn’t have any of the hyper that usually goes with ADD. After trying a few different meds, we have finally found the right ones and she is now getting amazing grades in school, has lost roughly 30 pounds and is a much happier person. This summer she started taking voice lessons and loves it!! Also, this summer she spent her very first night ever in a tent. Our young womens had ward camp this year and the girls got to sleep in tents for 3 nights and had no showers, power, etc. It was a fun experience for both her and I. Jerika is my total right hand man around here and I don’t know what I would do without her. She has spent a lot more time away from home this year with her friends and we really do miss her when she is gone. I am not ready for this teenage stuff.


Kinlee is taking dance again this year and really loves it. She is in the 3rd grade and has 16 boys in her class with only 6 girls. That being said, she one of the smartest kids in her class. I go help at her class every other Friday and I am amazed at what she knows. She is one smart cookie. I have even heard Jerika asking her how to spell things on occasion. One of the highlights in her world is Activity Days every other Monday. She has really fun leaders and she loves to go. She keeps us on our toes here at home however. She was sick last week so I took her to the doctor and the nurse asked her if she was allergic to anything and she told the nurse she is allergic to cleaning her room. Which I am beginning to think really might be true. When her dad is home, she is joined to his hip and hangs out with him the whole time. I almost feel a little invisible sometimes. But, she sure loves her dad and misses him like crazy when he is gone.


We haven’t seen very much of Tyler this year. At the end of last year he wanted to move in with us, so we let him live here for about 4 weeks. He really did struggle with following the rules and suffering the consequences when he didn’t follow the rules. As a result, he moved back home to live with his mom. He got him a job and didn’t talk to us very much for the next few months. Long story short, he has gotten himself into some trouble and we are just constantly praying for him would love it if everyone else could pray for him also. We are hoping he will learn from his mistakes and make a better life for himself soon.


The company Ray worked at for the last 8ish years told him in June they were going to go another direction in their business and let some of their truck drivers go. So, we were left without a job. He found one that day and we were really thankful for that fact, but I think that we were worse off with that job than not having one at all. It was horrible!! He worked there for 3 months and during that 3 months, we only saw him about 4 times. I am forever in debt to a friend who told me of a job opening in Teton, about 5 minutes from our house. After quite a few phone calls, he got a job at Gould Trucking and he loves it!! He is home every weekend and some weeks he comes home 1 night during the week also, so we love it too. This summer, he did ride his dirt bike a few times, but since he was working all the time he didn’t get to do that as much as he likes.  We are all really enjoying the extra time we get to spend with him!!


As for me, this year has been really busy. Along with running Jerika to doctors and helping at Kinlee’s school, going to girls camp, making watch bands, playing bunco twice a month and working, I have been to Utah twice. The first time to Women’s Conference at BYU, which was amazing, and once during spud harvest just to get out. My adventures through the year can be tracked in my blog, which I try update on a regular basis. The link to that is youngmom1220.blogspot.com, so feel free to look on there any time. In June they put me in the Young Womens as personal progress specialist, and then in October they put me in as the 1st Counselor in the Young Womens and then I guess they were just breaking me in, because the first week of December they put me in as the Young Women’s President. Nobody was more surprised than me!! I even asked the Bishop if he was sure, which Ray didn’t think was very funny at all. So, if anyone has amazing ideas for young womens, let me know, I need all the help I can get!! One other thing I have tried this year is Zumba which is Latin dance exercise classes, I have been a few times and if I am really ambitious, I will continue doing that next year too. So, as you can see it has been an amazing year and we have all kept pretty busy!!


Merry Christmas from our house to yours and we hope you all have an amazing 2010.

Amazing Bloggers and a few other thoughts........

A post without pictures just isn't a post, however, that is what this is.  I do have some pictures I need to download and post, but this week has been just a little bit overwhelming for me.  Trying to get a new young women's presidency and advisors all lined out was just one of my challenges this week.  Luckily all of those women are so amazing it didn't take much to get that accomplished. 

So, why am I posting you ask?  First of all, thanks to all of you who came to my house this weekend, it was a lot of fun hanging out with everyone!!  Second, I was reading some amazing blogs this week and I was thinking why can't I be an amazing blogger like those women.  It isn't that they are bragging or anything like that, but they are just deep thinkers and really make you think with a little more depth also.  I think I had several deep thoughts this week, however none I can really share with anyone (too close to Christmas).  Wow, I think I am rambling.  Anyway, from now on it is going to be my goal to post something a little more thought provoking, so it keeps people coming back for more.  So, stay tuned and we will see what I actually come up with.  I think one of my next posts is going to be my year end newsletter that I am too cheap and lazy to mail out this year.  I already started it and it really isn't too thought provoking or braggy, it is just the facts about 2009.  Hopefully worth reading though.

I usually post on Sunday's, but I will try to do a little better with that also.  Wow, next Sunday is my birthday and I will be 41.  That seems so old to me!!  Okay, I digressed a little.  Thanks for reading and try not to be too judgmental.

Putting up the tree

Thanksgiving weekend, Ray had the whole weekend off, so we put up the tree, which as you can tell is something he really loves.
This year he put the lights up and helped me put the ribbon on and the girls did the rest.

Aren't they precious, if I get a minute later, I will post the other pictures they took, they are quite silly!!

In this picture you can really tell how much fun Ray is having. We also took a few other pictures of him and will post those too.

The finished product. It really does look much prettier in person!! Especially because it is purple, the best color in the world. Maybe one of these days I will grow out of my big purple phase, but as for now, it is purple all the way!! And I guess if it makes me happy, then that's all that matters right?
Anyway, we had a really good night, I do love spending time with just the 4 of us. Love ya guys!!

Thanksgiving at mom & dad's

The important/cooperative people.  Well, dad was cooperative, but as soon as he finds out I put another picture of his cute face on my blog, he might not be so cooperative.  He keeps telling me that he is going to sue me if I don't stop.  So, here is another one isn't he cute?

Here are pictures of my siblings (minus Merrill) and their spouses.  I will post pictures of the kids later.  They really weren't very cooperative this year, but they were all having fun.  It was a really good Thanksgiving and I am so thankful for my family!!