A Grand Rapids Photo...

Took this picture awhile back. It was taken on my camera phone because I didn't have my digital at the time. I was getting off of work and snapped it while I was walking to my car. I park on this bridge sometimes. It overlooks the Grand River.

Crockpot beans

We are having a potluck for work on Tues and I decided to make Crockpot beans. If you don't have this recipe it's a must have. Worse yet, if you don't have a crockpot you must invest in one. It makes a really big batch so it's really good for get togethers.

1/2-1lb ground beef
3/4 lb bacon cut in small pieces
1cup chopped onion
2 cans (1lb, 15ounce size) pork and beans
1 can (1lb) kidney beans drained
1 can (1lb) butter limas drained
1 cup ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 TB liquid smoke
3TB white vinegar
1tsp salt
dash of pepper

Brown ground beef in skillet, drain off fat and put beef in crockpot. Brown bacon and onion, drain off fat. Add bacon, onions, and remaining ingredients to crockpot. Stir together well. Cover and cook on low for 4-9 hours.

Spanish Rice

Hey, if you are looking for a good side to your mexican dish try making some homemade spanish rice. We made enchiladas for supper tonight. We wanted some spanish rice for our side, so I decided to look up some recipes. I made one, and it turned out really good. It was really easy. It worked perfect for me too because we had everything in our kitchen except the parsley. I modified the recipe a bit because it had some weird directions, but here it is:

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups rice (I used instant wheat rice)
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 cup plain tomato sauce (I used canned diced tomatoes with green chilies)
3 cloves finely chopped garlic (I used pre-minced garlic that you can get in the jar)
1/4 of a medium onion
2 tablespoons oil
4 heaping tablespoons of finely chopped parsley (optional)
I also added a bit of black pepper

PREPARATION:
In a medium sauce pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add in the fresh garlic and onion. Saute for 1-2 minutes until softened. Add in dry rice. Stir for about 5 minutes until rice becomes a golden brown color.

When rice is golden, pour into a pot and add in broth and tomato sauce (Slowly into rice, not directly onto hot pot!) Add in the parsley if you're using it. Stir it up and bring to a boil. Once it starts boiling, turn the heat to low and cover. Let it simmer for 20 minutes and fluff with a fork.

*If you don't have fresh garlic or onions on hand you can use the equivalent in powder form. Do not saute the powder(I thought the sauteing the "powder" part was funny so I left it in there), just skip that step and add the garlic powder and/or onion powder when you add the liquids. If you don't have tomato sauce you can use unseasoned stewed tomatoes, or canned diced tomatoes with their liquid.

Finished at last

Well, I ignored my family all last weekend plus a couple more days so I could read the last Harry Potter book. I thought it was good, but a little slow in the beginning. I liked the final battle between Harry and Voldemort. Not the best book in the series, but still worth the read. On a somewhat related note, I'm going to make Torii a t-shirt. All it's going to say is Slytherin. Maybe I'll make a Gryffindor one for Fred Rion.

We had a family move in to the duplex on our block this week. It was kind of funny because it happened to be a family that was camping at Ft. Lincoln until they could move in. I had talked to the mom one day when their 4 year old fell off the monkey bars in the campground and broke his arm. Then the boys showed up at our door one day and wanted to play with Fred Rion and Torii. They are a rowdy bunch though. I'm so glad Torii fell asleep just a little bit ago so I had an excuse to not let the boys play with them tonight. They are over here all the time. One nice thing about that group is that when my kids play with them, I really see that my kids are pretty good kids.

I had a doctors appointment today. Everything went good. I had another ultrasound today to check out one thing, but it looked like everything was ok. I told them to double check the sex of the baby. It is for sure a girl. Then I had to take the worst test of them all today. They check for gestational diabates. You have to drink this 10 ounce solution that is really really sweet and then sit for an hour. Then they take blood. I have no problem with them taking blood but that solution you have to drink is awful. The other times I felt naseaus from it, but not this time. I did start to feel a little light headed by the time I got home, but felt better after I ate.

I can't believe tomorrow is already Friday. Thank goodness though. I'm ready for this baby to be here just so I don't have to work anymore. Work outside the home that is.

The C.D's are coming with pics

So, here's are some more pics for everyone. The roses are from my garden and I picked them about two days ago. They smell so nice. I wish I had more though, hint hint, brian. Ha ha!

Sorry I haven't been able to get to the post office to send out the pics to everyone. Work has been crazy. I have been working 7am until about 5pm or a little after that. My boss is out for the whole week for a family vacation so now i'm doing her job and mine. It's been so busy too. At least this week will and has been going fast, so that means one less week for brian to be home!!! Yaaaay.

Brian has been talking about Idaho Falls lately, as in a place to live next year. When he graduates in December he would like to work part time with his boss he is currently working with and maybe be doing part time for a master's degree. Either way he would like to work out there it sounds like. So, we may be moving in January or sometime in the next summer. We are not sure yet if we will move or not but it could be a possibility. I would be excited to move as a new adventure but I am going to miss my job the most and my friend Megan. I am starting to make some nice friends at work and I enjoy everyone I work with.

Well, not much else going on. I will get those pics sent out this week for sure. I will also keep everyone updated on Idaho Falls.

Love,

Kelly

I had a great time coming home this last weekend. What a fun time surprising everyone! Stacy, & Laurie, I have put C.D's together finally and I have put all pictures and video from the Dells and from when we came home. The c.d's seem to work this time and I hope they work for you. I will get them sent out by Monday at the latest. Lots of picures! :-)

Thank you Fred Rion and Torii for helping aunt kelly and uncle brian wash their car. We had so much with the water fight. Uncle Brian had fun racing down the hill also.

Take care everyone, and I can't wait to see everyone again soon!

I've always been a fan of graphic design...

I have always enjoyed looking at how companies choose to advertise their products, and I think I just found some of the coolest ads I have ever seen.
Check them out...

First fish

I know you already saw these pictures, but I'm going to post them anyway. They are so cute. Fred Rion got a certificate from Game & Fish with a spot on it to put his first fish photo. Then I'm going to get a frame for it.

The second picture with the boys wearing sunglasses is going to work with me. I have to keep updating my pictures there. I think it's time to take the snow picture out of the frame.

It was good to see everyone this weekend. We had a lot of fun. Fred Rion sure had a lot of fun with Uncle Brian. Hope everyone had a good trip back.

7-11

I forget whether or not there are 7-11s in Bismarck still, but if there are be sure to go get your free slurpee. July 11th is 7/11's birthday, and to celebrate, they are handing out free slurpees!! :) I'm drinking mine right now! hehe. Maybe the boys would want one!

To continue..

I didn't get done with my blog entry yesterday as kids were climbing all over me and I was also trying to talk to Kelly.

So anyway.. On Saturday it was really hot. We did some errands in the morning and stayed in the rest of the day. We spent most of the day downstairs. I started a project in the room the boys and I share. They have a play room and it's also my craft room. I ripped down the wallpaper and most of the styrofoam they had on the wall and ripped out the carpet. Now I'm going to put some stuff on the wall that will hopefully keep water out. Then I just want to redo the room how I want. Dad said he would help put up walls since I don't really know how to do that. Hopefully I can get this done before the baby gets here. We'll see.

Sunday was really nice so we walked to GG's house. The kids played outside and then ate chocolate like they always do there. No wonder I couldn't get Torii to take a nap when we got home. Then they picked and ate raspberries.

A big mess

On Friday I came home to the biggest mess ever. There was 3 boxes worth of cereal spread out all over the kitchen floor. Later when I went into the bathroom I also discovered Fruit Loops in the toilet. I was so mad. I guess the kids got up from their nap and daddy didn't. So while he continued to sleep the boys made a mess. I'm not that mad at the boys anymore, but I'm still a little peeved at Fred.

That night we went to a dance for Matt and Amber because they renewed their vows. Fred Rion was excited to go to a dance and he said he wanted to dance with Daisy. Torii said he wanted to dance with Dave. Poor Fred Rion kept asking Daisy to dance, but she kept rejecting him. Then Torii kept rejecting me. He danced with Andi and Amber, but wouldn't dance with me.

4th of July

Yesterday we went to the parade. We had a good time. The boys got a sack load of candy. Torii was sticking out his tongue because it was blue from a popsicle. After the parade we went home and tried to get naps in. Only Fred and I took naps. Then we went out to mom and dad's and brought some brats out to grill. We were going to watch the Capitol fireworks, but they started earlier than I thought they would. We parked on a hill and watched some of them. Then we went back out to Lincoln and sat in a parking lot and watched the fireworks there. It was really awesome. Everyone had big fireworks and they were going off nonstop. I think everyone went crazy this year since we couldn't shoot off fireworks last year because it was too dry. Watching the fireworks was a lot better than buying a bunch and having to light them all. Hope everyone else had a good 4th as well.

Weekend in Detroit

Hey everyone! I spent the last two days in Detroit with Lesley. We went to the Tiger's game on Friday and then the Zoo today. The Twins won 11-1!! Joe Mauer hit his first career grand slam. It was pretty exciting! It was fun to be one of the only twins fans there :) Comerica Park is really nice. I also saw Ford Field, which is just across the street from the ballpark. There were also fireworks after the game. Good time. I think we are planning to go to another game in August :)
The Zoo was a lot of fun. It was big, and really pretty. Some of the coolest exhibits were the Arctic Circle, The Outback Trail, The Butterfly House, and the Rain Forest House. The Arctic Circle is neat because you walk into a building that is basically an underground aquarium, and you can see the seals and polar bears swimming above you. The Outback trail featured kangaroos that roam freely in the trail. The Butterfly House is beautiful. It's pretty much a huge greenhouse-like building that has different species of butterflies that fly around the flowers and plants inside. Pretty much one huge garden.... grandma would have really enjoyed it. The rain forest house was really neat because when you walked inside of it, it was really humid and moist. It looked and felt just like a rain forest... or what I would think a rain forest would be like. This exhibit had a sloth inside of it:)
This weekend was really fun, and I'm glad I got our of Allendale for a few days:) If only I could come home now!! Oh well :) For now it's back to the daily grind.....

This is the ferris wheel that Lesley and I rode in the park.


Lesley and I.... I wish I had a better picture of the field, but maybe next time when I have my camera


These statues are at the main entrance into Comerica park. Very cool...and kind of intimidating.



The Zoo..

Lions, Tigers, and Bears....




This is a baby zebra with her mother. The baby is one week old! Sooo cute :)


I loved the Amphibian house!!!

This froggie faces two other frogs that spit out water. I had to fight the little kids off of them to get a picture. lol.

WOW! Sound like the boys have been having some fun. I like the shoot out picture from fort lincoln. It looked pretty neat. Well, not much going on here. Back to work for me and back to the garden. Work has been going well and I have been staying pretty busy with that this week. My boss is out of town all week so it's been kinda busy for me at work.
Besides work, I haven't been doing a whole lot. I was in Appleton for the weekend to visit my friend Megan and her man. We had so much fun. We went out to her boyfriends farm and went 4-wheeln' and then when out to a bachlorette party. We went to some small town bars which was fun. On sunday I brought the fur balls back home and they are back to normal. They are now licking each other and playing with each other instead of clawing and biting each other when they were at megan's.
Well, not much else going on here. The weather is very muggy here today and it's that sticky kind. eeeeeek. Talk to everyone later. Take care. Kelly

Relaxing weekend

Vicki took the boys on Saturday for an overnight. They didn't take naps today so they are already asleep. Sounds like they had a lot of fun. Last night I didn't know what to do with myself. Fred is on overnights again so it was just me. I bought Monty Python and the Holy Grail yesterday at Target. I almost didn't because I thought "when in the world will I get to watch it?" So Fred and I watched that before he went to work. Then later there wasn't anything on TV and knowing I could sleep in, I didn't want to go to bed. So I ordered Little Miss Sunshine and watched that. Steve Carrell and Greg Kinnear are two of my favorites and they didn't disappoint. It was a pretty good movie, the acting was really good. Then today I did some shopping. I had $10 to use at Old Navy by the end of the month so I went there. I found a bunch of little girl clothes on clearance, really good pieces that I know I will use. I think I have enough clothes for the first 6 months at least, but I will probably still buy more. I can't help it, I'm weak. Then I found some socks at TG Maxx, which I didn't have any of yet.

Fred said Norma and Hank are thinking of coming up in October. I hope they are here after the baby is born. It will probably be close, because I'm sure they will leave the second week of the month because Tenn usually takes the second weekend off before they play Alabama. I told Fred I hope the baby is born on the third Saturday in October (the day Tenn and Ala. play) so I can have a birthday party every year on that day. He told me I better not. He still complains that we had to go to a wedding once when they played. Southeners and football, I'll tell ya what.

I went out to mom and dad's today to look for a recipe. Not a good idea without mom there. Like looking for a needle in a haystack. Anyway, Winnie is mad. She meowed the whole time I was there. I was going to read today's paper and let her sit on my lap, but she just whined in the dining room the whole time. I stopped to pet before I left and she purred like crazy. Then she tried to get out of the garage when I got up. I got her back in, closed the door, and then heard her clawing at the door. Poor thing. Maggie went out to the lake with Dave so she's fine. Haven't heard from mom and dad. Tried to call once, but dad's cell was off, got a recorded message from one of you. Will probably have to call again because Torii wanted to talk.

Wow, for such a slow and relaxing weekend I sure had a lot to say. Hope everyone had a good weekend too.

Pictures

I got my pics developed today. There is a pic of a shootout that we saw at Ft. Lincoln. I knew Torii would be scared. Fred Rion wasn't too excited about it either.

Fred Rion had to have cotton candy at a recent zoo trip. I don't think he even ate half of it.

Torii on the slip and slide. He got the hang of it a lot faster than Fred Rion. We may have to bring it out again this weekend. They forecast in the 90's and when I stepped outside this morning it already felt hot. So we filled up the pool and let it get nice and warm and went swimming today.

I can't remember what town had this cheese and mouse, but we stopped for gas and then took a picture.

Thank you Auntie Laurie

The boys got your package this weekend and they say thank you. Torii really liked the ball because there were tree frogs on it.

This weekend is McQuades so I doubt we will do anything. I do need to run some errands but I don't want to do anything. Everything is going to be super crowded. I have some pictures to get developed so I will probably have new pics on here soon.

Cedar Point

Ashley and I went to Cedar Point yesterday. It was so fun! Their new roller coaster, the Maverick is so awesome!! By far the best coaster I have ever been on! It's so cool because it's actually not that high, and that's what makes it so neat. It rides close to the ground and twists, rolls, and turns throughout an obstacle of western-themed objects. The first hill is only 105 feet, but when you start the ride it kind of shoots you up the hill, so you go up kind of fast, but then (here's the kicker) you drop at a 95 degree angle! Before our ride started the announcer lady informed us of the drop, and I turned to Ashley and was like, "Is that possible?!?" There is also this cool part where you go into a tunnel and completely stop, and then it shoots you out at 70mph and you ride a whole bunch of twists and turns. It is SO fun! There was also this other coster that is 17 seconds long haha. It's call the Dragster. What happens is: you start at a stop light, when it turns green you shoot forward and straight up a hill, you twist and then come over a 420 foot hill, twist again, and then back to the beginning. That one was our second favorite. It's SO tall! We were there a total of 10 hours and still didn't get to do everything, but I think we hit the best ones. I just can not get over the Maverick! It was so cool. We are also very stiff and sun burnt today haha. Oh well it was worth it! :)

Weekend fun

On Saturday we went to Ft. Lincoln for the Ft. Lincoln Festival. The boys had a lot of fun. We went on a wagon ride. We also saw an Old West shootout. Torii ran behind me right away and didn't move. Fred Rion watched, but he wasn't so sure about what was going on.

Before going to Ft. Lincoln we stopped by the trolley and found some more "treasure" on a geocache hunt. The boys liked this also. We had to go through some grass that was taller than them, but they said it was a jungle. Then we took some pictures on the trolley bridge. I should have brought my black and white camera for that. It was fun, except that we had a few ticks on us after that. When we left Ft. Lincoln, Fred Rion fell asleep before getting to Mandan and Torii didn't make it to Bismarck.

Fred had to work yesterday so we didn't do anything for Father's Day. We made him steak on the grill. Then we were going to have his favorite dessert (warm brownies with ice cream and lots of chocolate syrup), but everyone was full so we were going to have some later. Then as we were starting to put the boys to bed, the tornando sirens went off so we hustled downstairs. After we were through with all the bad weather we went back upstairs, but the boys wouldn't settle down then. Finally they fell asleep as Fred and I did too and we never got our dessert. Guess we'll have to have it tonight.

More photos!

Views we seen on the way to the waterfall during our hike. Like I said it's "beautiful."