Thursday, December 23, 2010

Tuacahn live Nativity



The kids were able to be angels in a live nativity at Tuacahn.    It was really cool and they loved being up on stage!

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Happy baby


Oh, I just love new baby smiles!  I could just eat her up!  It is so fun to interact with her, we can't wait to see more of her personality. 

Thursday, December 16, 2010

Carmel apple cider

Caramel Apple Cider
To make the cider you need:
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 cups apple cider
1/2 cup water

Combine cream and brown sugar in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Add the cider and water, stir, and raise the heat to medium-high. Heat only until the cider starts to steam (about 4 minutes), stirring almost continually.

You can dress it up with whip cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon on top mmmmmm!

Friday, December 10, 2010

Ward Christmas Party

If you look closely you can see Santa behind all the kids!  :)

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

1 month old


I can't believe that my baby will be 1 month old in a couple of days.  She had already grown and changed.  She is a good eater and is still sleeping in 2-3 hour stints.  We are starting to get into a routine and are enjoying our baby girl!

Monday, November 29, 2010

Thanksgiving & Tilly's blessing




This year we went to my brother's house in Richfield for Thanksgiving.  We ate lots of yummy food and we got to show off Tilly to the rest of my family.  While we were there we had her blessed since my parents won't be traveling again until spring and the roads are good again.  It was a very personal, sweet blessing.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

GRANDMA & GRANDPA

My parents left today.  Sad to see them leave but so grateful for how much they helped me .  They gave all 4 (I'm still getting used to the way that sounds) of my kids lots of affection and attention.  My mom did countless loads of laundry & dishes, cooked yummy home cooked meals, and took good care of all of us!

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Tilly






She is just so sweet.  She is such a good baby.  She sleeps in 3 hour stretches, eats well, loves to cuddle and she sucks her thumb every time we give her a bath.  Her big brother and sisters can't get enough of her and neither can I!

Crazy hair day!

Sunday, November 14, 2010

SHE IS HERE!



Here are a few pics we took today.  Tilly Rae Welker was born 11/10/10 at 6:25pm.  She weighs 7 lbs 9 0z and is 19.5" long.   I went to my Dr.'s appt. on Tuesday and I had not dilated past a 2 or effaced anymore and I was getting very large so we decided to induce the next day.  I went in at 6 am and the induction went well.  I started having regular contractions right away and was progressing well.  After 5 hours they broke my water and I was soon dilated to a 7.  I then decided to go ahead and get an epidural.  Not too long after that I was dilated to a 9 but the baby just wasn't coming down the birth canal.  It was then discovered that she was posterior and we tried for hours to turn her and I even tried pushing to get her down and after 12 hours of labor it was apparent that due to the shape of my pelvis and size of the baby she just wasn't going to "fit".  So I had a c-section and by that point I had come to terms with it and was okay with have the c-section.  I just knew it was what was best.   She is here safe and healthy and we couldn't be happier!  We were able to come home yesterday and thank goodness my Mom is here taking care of EVERYTHING!  I don't know what we would have done with out her.  The kids are head over heels for her and we are just loving her.  She is sooo alert and is doing so well.  I am recovering well...it has been hard...but thank goodness for all the help from Ryan/my Mom/big brother and sisters.  She reminds us so much of Lexi when she was a baby and we couldn't be happier to have her in our home.  Oh, she is just so sweet!  Can't you just smell here through the screen!!!!

Saturday, November 6, 2010

The Nursery

The Nursery is all ready...now I just need a baby to put in it :)

Monday, November 1, 2010

Lexi's new desk!

My Dad made a desk to go in the girls' room.  My mom brought it with her when she came on Halloween night.  The kids are so excited to have her here and so am I!

Happy Halloween!!!



Friday, October 22, 2010

Lexi turned 9 today!




I can't believe my baby girl is 9 years old today!  Time is just going by too fast!  Lexi is such an awesome daughter I know she is going to be such a big help with this new baby.  She is so smart and has such a good heart.  Happy Birthday Lexi!

The last 9 months....

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Fish tacos

For the tacos, use a flour or corn tortilla that is slightly warmed (the fresh tortillas you cook over the stove are my favorite). Then add shredded green cabbage (and red if you like red), shredded cheddar cheese, diced tomatoes, green onions, and fresh limes for garnish (I love LOTS of lime!). Place a fillet on each taco and serve with a generous amount of dressing.   You can cook fresh fish , but I just used fish sticks.  YUM!!

Lime Dressing/Salsa:
¾ c. Ranch Dressing
½ c. salsa
1 1/2 tsp. dill weed
1/2 tsp. lemon pepper
3 T. lime juice
1 tsp. ground pepper
1/8 tsp. ground red pepper
½ tsp. horseradish (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
2 T. cilantro

Halloween party



Saturday, October 2, 2010

Welker Elementary

Yes, it is Saturday...but apparently our kids don't get enough of school during the week, so Lexi plays school with them on the weekends!

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Ham and Sweet potato hash

So, I wanted something different and kind of breakfastey for dinner so I tried this recipe and Ryan and the kids loved it! 
Ham and Sweet Potato Hash

*Serves 4-6
3 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
3 small sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 onion, minced
3 tablespoons heavy cream
10 ounces thinly sliced deli ham, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
6 large eggs
In a medium microwave-safe bowl, toss the potatoes with 1 tablespoon oil, salt and pepper. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a tight-fitting microwave-safe lid and microwave for about 6 minutes, until the potatoes are tender but not overcooked – they’ll cook a bit more in the skillet later. Stir the potatoes halfway through cooking. Drain the potatoes of any excess liquid and set aside.
Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until the oil is hot and rippling. Add the onion , stirring often, until they are tender, about 4-5 minutes.
Stir in the drained potatoes and the cream.  Let the potatoes cook without stirring them for about 2 minutes so they can start to get nicely browned. Flip the potato hash mixture, one portion at a time, and lightly repack into the skillet to let the potatoes brown on the other side. Continue this flipping process every few minutes until the potatoes are nicely browned, about 8-10 minutes.
Stir in the ham and lightly repack the hash into the skillet. Using a large spoon, make 6 shallow divots about 2 inches wide in the surface of the potato mixture. Crack one egg into each indentation. Season with salt and pepper and then reduce the heat to medium-low and cover the skillet. Let the mixture cook until the eggs are set to your liking, about 5-7 minutes. Serve.


I served this with toast and Orange Julies Smoothies
12 oz frozen orange juice concentrate
2 cups Milk
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
15-20 ice cubes
Combine it all together and Blend until smooth. ( My blender isn't big enough so I had to do 1/2 a recipe at a time)

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Belly photos

Tonight we went to the Botanical Garden and let the kids run around and took some belly shots.  We figured we had better take the pictures now before my belly gets any bigger and isn't "cute" anymore!

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Wildlife Museum

There is a Wildlife museum close to our house and the kids have been begging to go for a while now.  We finally decided we didn't have anything going on this weekend and took them.  They had a blast!