Jaxon's 4th Birthday

This INCREDIBLE MAN...

(Who has lost 40 lbs. By the way)

Did ALL THIS...

Bought all the presents, decorations, and food. As well as decorated, wrapped presents, and made the birthday dinner, and the cake.

All for THIS Birthday BOY!

He Even did THIS!

It was a great, happy birthday! Thank you to Peter for making it SOOOOOOOO great, (as I have had the stomach flu!!!) You are the best Daddy EVER! For more birthday pix, and a birthday video... see the links below!

In the Back Yarden

That is what I called it when I was a kid anyway. We did a video tour of our garden this year. It is our first garden ever, and since I had Wade March 16th, I thought I would escape it for one more year. However, I made the mistake of taking Abby with me to the nursery to buy other plants, and the woman helping us asked if Abby was going to have a garden.... to which Abby gave a resounding "YES!" How could I deny her?

It hasn't really been so bad. The prep part was definitely the worst, but it forced me to finish the back yard, so that was good. We have our garden on a hill side, something I will have to build up again next year because the run off from a very strong rain storm washed away many of our seeds... Lesson learned. Retaining wall next year.... We still ended up with a pretty great (small) garden! And it has given Abby a great sense of accomplishment.

Enjoy the video below! Oh, it cuts out just she explains that the green pepper is something we put in our food, but she can't remember the name of it. Then we look at our strawberries, which are not very plentiful because we live next to a bird/nature reserve.... not good for our strawberry growth! They love to eat them too!

Crib Notes

My sister told me my posts were too long... (she has a new baby) so, I am going to make it short for her. It has been a while since I have posted because we were,

• Out of town, in SLC
• My whole family was there
• Hillary's baby Ruby was blessed
• We went to Lagoon, and Raging Waters and did a million other things.
• Had lunch with childhood girl friends, so fun.
• It was lots of fun. (and crazy and exhausting at the same time)
• I will post pictures when I can find the CD I brought home

That is about it!! I cannot believe that we are in the middle of August. I have one last birthday to celebrate this summer, and it is Jaxon's... next week. Check back, because I am sure I will post that.

Here is my list of my guilty summer pleasures: In bullets, for my sister, of course.

• So You Think You Can Dance (I know, I know, but I have been dancing since I was 7, so, it is fun to watch)
• Harry Potter, and the Deathly Hallows
• *Twilight* By Stephenie Meyer- LDS Author, BYU Grad. (I know! Me read more than one book? It is true! It doesn't happen often, because I can't put them down, but Twilight was a fun easy read, teenybopper audience, but a romance (clean) I loved it.)
• Last but not least... Burn Notice- USA network. Funny, witty spy show. It makes me laugh, and fills a small spot in my heart when Alias when off the air. I look forward to Thursday Nights because of it!

Check back soon! I am going to photograph my garden (Don't get too excited, it is a first attempt)

To All The Guys I've Fed Before....

What a crazy week! It started Sunday with Peter's birthday, and Abby's birthday was Monday. We had party after party, and I cooked and cooked and baked! Tuesday I was up to my ears in other responsibilities, and Wednesday, we went to the lake...So, it has been a little while since my last blog. We are getting ready to head to Utah tomorrow to visit my family, so I am excited...

Today I checked my e-mail, and there was an e-mail from a friend of mine from BYU days. I cooked for him on occasion, and to my surprise, he had checked out the blog, and wanted HIS favorite recipe... POT STICKERS. Funny enough, if I had blogged everything I had cooked since my last blog, pot stickers would be one of them, as that is what my husband wanted for his birthday dinner. I didn't realize my blog could also provide wanted recipes that I had cooked for years.. but even so, I am happy to oblige. He mentioned that was about 14 years ago (sadly that is true) and the thought of them still makes his mouth water. My family has been making pot stickers much longer than that. My mom used a recipe out of a Japanese cookbook she had, and then my sister trumped her by one she found. It is still the one I use today. So, to all the guys I have fed before here is my sure fire Pot sticker Recipe!

POT STICKERS

1 lb. Ground Pork (NOT PORK SAUSAGE)-

and if you are feeling sassy, you can chop 1/2 lb. deviened raw shrimp, and combine it with 1/2 lb. ground pork, but it is usually too much trouble for me, but it is VERY good if you feel up to it.

1/4 Cup Green Onions (Chopped)
4 tsp. Ginger Root (I grate fresh, it is the ONLY way to go)
1/4 Cup Shredded Carrot (a cheese grater works great)
2 Tbs. Cooking Sherry
2 Tbs. Soy Sauce
1 tsp. Sesame Oil
1 Egg (beaten)
Won ton Wrappers (found in the produce section of most stores- next to the tofu) Round, or Square work fine.

Combine ingredients and put by spoonful into won tons. Do not overload, or you won't be able to close the won ton. Wet the edge of the won ton, and seal by pressing closed with your fingers. Fry the won ton on one side in oil in a fry pan on medium heat. You can cut down on calories by spraying the pan with Pam, instead of using oil. But if things get too "sticky" use oil. After the bottoms are browned, add 3/4 cups water, or chicken broth and cover. Reduce heat to medium low. Set the timer for 6 to 8 minutes, (until the water has cooked off for the most part) Remove lid and boil of the rest of the water.

Dipping Sauce:

1 Part soy sauce
1 tsp Ginger Root (grated)
1 Part Rice Vinegar
Green Onions

Serve over Japanese Sticky Rice (my favorite is Calrose, in the Oriental Foods dept.)

Make it SOUP! This recipe makes a enough for 5 adults, but sometimes I like to make won ton soup because it is an easy step from the pot stickers. I use chicken broth as my base, and a little bit of soy sauce. Add the won tons, and bring it to a boil. Add fresh mushrooms, and peas. (I usually just use frozen peas because it is what I have on hand) add a few of the green onions as well. If you want to get really fancy, add the BBQ pork in slices that you can find in the oriental department of the store as well.