Jared with a License!

This is Jared driving us home after he got his driver's license!

Halloween Decorations

Mark loves Halloween, and he particularly likes lots of decorations. This is our Halloween tree. It is a Christmas tree spray-painted black and has lots of Halloween things on it. Mark is great to put up the decorations; he and Kiersten did it while I went to the General RS Meeting last night. I really enjoyed the meeting; for some reason, the song "How Firm a Foundation" really hit home to me. We had soups and breads at the stake center after the broadcast and it was really nice.

Jared's Birthday ATV Ride

One of the really great things about Utah is the seasons!!

We managed to get Mark out having some fun!

Tanner had fun roaming around.

It's fun to go across this little creek. It's a lot higher in the spring!!

It was hotter than we expected; Kiersten had a great time wading in the creek.

They had fun on top of this big rock! Jared posted pictures on Facebook of Kiersten up there, too!

Mark's been out of town for two weeks! It is nice to have him home.

Great Pumpkins and 4-H

The 4-H girls came over today and they all thought those pumpkins were way cool!

The Great Pumpkin Part II

Grandpa and Grandma and I loaded the big pumpkins into the truck and strapped them down and I brought them home. When we unloaded them, I backed up to the front steps as close as I could get, and we laid down a ramp from the tailgate to the steps and rolled each one down very carefully! Grandpa says he thinks the big one might be 500 pounds. It took me and Mark and Jared to get the job done!

Guardsman Pass

Mark and I drove through Guardsman Pass from Big Cottonwood Canyon over to Midway with some friends of ours. The scenery was beautiful! We had dinner at Tarahumara, a mexican restaurant there. It wasn't amazing, but we had a really good time.

Oat Bran Muffins

I guess I'm just in a cooking mood. I bought oat bran at the grocery store this week because I've been wanting to try oat bran muffins. Found this recipe online, and they were so good!!

Oat Bran Muffins

1 cup all-purpose flour (I used half white and half fresh-ground wheat - yum!)

1 cup oat bran

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 cup milk

2 large egg whites, beaten (I just used one whole egg)

1/4 cup honey

2 tablespoons melted butter

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with baking cups. Coat with cooking spray.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine flour, oat bran, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Mix well; add milk, beaten egg whites, honey and melted butter. Stir to just moisten the dry ingredients. Do not over mix.
3. Pour batter evenly into baking cups and bake for 15 to 17 minutes. Tops should be golden brown and spring back when lightly touched in the center.

Makes 1 dozen muffins.

Oh, and I figured out there are 109 calories in each one. In case you wanted to know.

Bruschetta

I have tomatoes in the garden this year, and I didn't want to make salsa because we have lots left from last year, so I've canned most of the tomatoes. But I'm trying to learn to like fresh ones, too. I found a great recipe for bruschetta that is a great way to eat them without having problems with the texture!

1 1/2 lb tomatoes, put in boiling water for a minute to get the skins off easily

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 T olive oil

1 t balsamic vinegar

2 basil leaves, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

You dice the tomatoes and mix it all up.

I slice a baguette (or I like to buy a sourdough one already sliced up) and put butter and garlic salt on one side. Broil that in the oven just until starting to crisp.

Spread the tomato mixture on the bread and eat it up! It's great.

Tanner Mowing the Lawn

Tanner mows the front and Jared does the back. Tanner always has to get dressed up for it. Protection from the sun and any grass is important!

Uncle Joe's Cabin

We went to Fairview to see Uncle Joe and Marilyn at their cabin. It was beautiful! They have done amazing things with rockwork and wood. We rode around on our 4-wheelers looking at what was for sale in the area. It was such a nice day; cool and a little rainy.

Tanner likes to drive the ATV!

The Great Pumpkin

My dad is an amazing gardener. This year he decided to grow monster pumpkins for our kids to enjoy! Here is Kiersten with the biggest one a few weeks ago. I think he thinks he's going to get it in our car for us to take home sometime before Halloween!