Eyeball cupcakes....

For Ian's birthday on Wed. he wanted me to make cupcakes for his class. I normally just use box mixes for my cake because they are so moist and you really cant mess them up but for some reason I wanted to do a batter from scratch. I got on this website called Cupcakes Take the Cake and she had posted a recipe for cupcakes from the Magnolia Bakery in New York. Oh - My - Heck (as they say here in Utah) I seriously could have eaten the entire bowl of raw batter. Unbelievable and so easy. Im going to post the recipe on my recipe blog too because I will have to use that one again and again and again.

I needed something easy for Ians cupcakes because I didnt have a lot of time so I stuck chocolate/caramel Eyeballs on each cupcake. I thought they turned out cute and he said his classmates loved them which is all that matters of course. It turned out when I started making them that I was out of just about everything so I ran to the corner market and bought a few things, came back and realized I was out of something else, ran back to the market for that, came back and couldnt find my cupcake liners, ran back to market for those. The girl that works there probably thought I had lost it because by then, I felt like I had......she asked me this morning as I was grabbing a sprite for Evan (who is sick) "hey, did you ever get those cupcakes made?" Yeah, rough day. The things we do for our kids.

Happy Birthday to my Little Man.....

Well, today is the day! Ian is officially 8 years old. Im at a loss for words when I try to describe how I feel about it. He is growing up so fast and pretty soon he wont be a little boy anymore. Ian has given me so much joy since his birth 8 years ago. It is hard for me to imagine what my life was like before he was in it. Nothing has ever come close to the feeling I had that night when they laid him on my chest. Nothing else mattered in the world at that moment......it was just amazing. I just want to write a few things about Ian that I love. It's only a few because Im sure I could write a book on this subject.

1. His witty sense of humor
2. His smile
3. The way he tells me he loves me and hugs me like Im the most
important person in the world to him.
4. His intelligence
5. His tenderness
6. His spirituality
7. His soft squishy ears
8. His negotiation skills

Those are just a few....... Ian is an amazing individual and makes me laugh daily. Here is a little bit of a conversation that still has me laughing! This took place yesterday.....

mom: Ian, who wrote this on your folder (it said "I am dork"...I was just curious)

Ian: That depends

mom: depends on what?

Ian: well, what answer would make you the most mad?

Always looking for the best answer, always wanting to please, never wanting to get in trouble. That is Ian for sure.

I love you Ian Kenneth....I hope your 8th birthday is the best ever and that you never ever forget how much your mom loves you!

YES! .....

I finally ran for 2 miles today! This is very exciting for me....nevermind how long it took me to do it, I'll work on that later. Im just happy to have actually done it. One more mile to go and I will reach my goal of being able to run 3 miles a day. After that my goal will be to complete the 3 miles under a certain time. Im not even sure what time I want that to be but for now I am running a 15 minute mile which is ssslllllooooowwww! Anyway, just wanted to share my good news!

Singing Makes Us Happy.....

I just had the last rehearsal for my choir performance last night..... it was kinda sad but I am excited to sing in the Tabernacle on Saturday. We have worked hard. Last night we were recorded for a CD which was cool. It was a bit uncomfortable as they crammed us into the chapel and shut all the doors in order to keep all the sound in. Normally we fill the chapel and the overflow but we all squished into the chapel last night. It was hot and someone close to me was not wearing enough deodorant.... Anyway, Im excited to hear the cd so I can hear how we actually sound. My parents will be in town this weekend so my mom is coming the hear us sing. Dad opted out...shock....but will be babysitting the babies so that everyone else can attend. Thanks Dad. We will be celebrating Ian's 8th birthday on Sunday with a big lunch here at our house. Ian has requested Broccoli Cheese potato soup so we are having a soup lunch. More on that later.

Speaking of Ian, it was brought to my attention at church yesterday that the musical gene has been passed on to him. For those that dont know, on my mom's side of the family my aunt, uncle, (aunt Debbie, uncle Barry) and at one time, my Grandmother all sing/sang in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. On my dads side, his biological father was a professional singer and one of his sisters (my aunt Alice) also sings professionally. His other sister (my aunt Chrissy) also has an amazing voice! Ok, so now that you know the background, the primary was practicing for their upcoming program yesterday and after Sunday School I went in the chapel to find a seat with the kids. Evan's teacher stopped me and said "Im Evans teacher, but I was sitting next to your other son (Ian) during the practice and I wanted to tell you that he has an incredible voice~ His pitch is almost perfect and he even sings with some vibrato!" I was stunned actually.....I mean Ive heard him sing and he is always on tune but Ive never heard him really sing like that. I was pretty proud. The funny thing is that I have heard Evan sing before when he didnt know I was listening and if he werent so shy about it, I have often thought that Evan sings pretty well too..... Im happy that they have musicality and a love for it as well. I have always wished I had done more with it.

I just wanted to remember this little morsel of information so that I can share it with Ian later in his life when he doesnt want to sign up for high school choir! Ha!

Boo.....A Week Early....

Here is a little preview of the kids Halloween costumes. Nothin fancy I assure you but cute nonetheless. You know, since the kids really don't get enough candy on the actual holiday, our church decided to do a "trunk-or-treat" the week before (tonight) to make sure that they all got enough sugar to justify using Ritalin. No really, it was just a little trunk-or-treat....only about 10 cars and now the kids are REALLY excited for the actual trick or treating they will enjoy next Friday. So here are a couple of pics taken on our way to the party....Unfortunately I wont get to do my before and after pictures that I normally take on Halloween this year, cause I'm working which I'm sure Ive mentioned more than necessary....

Got a busy week ahead as my parents are coming to town on Thursday, Ian's birthday is Wednesday so that means treats for class. Halloween on Friday of course. My choir performance Saturday and a big lunch for Ian's birthday on Sunday.....sometime in between my 3 "jobs" I have to find time to buy Ian's birthday gifts as well. Oh yeah and clean my house. Yikes. I may not be blogging much this week....sorry.

Here are a couple of random pictures I took this week while watching Soren...... Sweet thing!

Bunko Night....

Can I just say how much fun I had tonight? I was invited by Kristin, a girl that I go to church with, to come to her house for Bunko night. I had played Bunko a couple of times while I lived in Arizona. I was only a sub for my cousin Marcy's group so I only played when they were going to be missing someone. I remember it was a lot of fun so I was totally on board with going tonight. It was great fun and I even won a prize....legitimately! Thanks to Kristin for inviting me and I signed up to continue with the group which means I will have to host it one month. I feel like Im moving into a different catergory of life where I actually get to start having one (a life that is) outside of my house and children occasionally. Exciting stuff huh? Next game I'll take some pictures of the crazy ladies....