a sneak Peak

remember my post a few weeks ago about taking a family Picture?? well, here are a few of the throw backs...Our Christmas Cards are coming soon:)))

a quiet celebration

There are so many milestones that a child goes through that mean so much to us as parents... But for me, a child's Baptism, is one of the most special and sacred....
Claire was radiant as she prepared for her baptism that day...She just couldn't wait to have her chance to enter the waters of baptism and be washed clean. But it was when her Daddy confirmed her that I saw the tears gently slide down her sweet little 8 year old cheeks...she was so touched by the prayer, so touched by the sweet spirit that had attended us that day that she began to truly feel the arms of a loving Heavenly father encircle her...and she was overwhelmed..The Bishop gently called her up and she walked up to the front with a little flower hankie and dabbed at ther eyes and It just took my breath away..
I am so grateful that we celebrate a baptism so quietly...we need to be able to hear the Spirit and listen closely so we can receive him. It could not have been a more peaceful, reverent day and I am so blessed to have celebrated this milestone with my sweet family...

Our Family...

Baptism Day

My sweet Claire-bee

the Joys of a Family Picture

Every year about this time the Dalands prepare for the yearly tradition of the family picture. Momma Daland apparently has alot of time on her hands because she thoughtfully scopes out the exact location for the event..Momma Daland frugally gathers the outfits together, trying to make the whites look whiter than they really are, the dresses look frillier and the wrinkles look smoother than the year before..( and I mean the shirts not me..I am getting younger every year..) Momma Daland knocks herself out trying to coordinate clothing without looking coordinated...no small feat with 7 people...And the boys..all TWO of them moan and groan and ask "why??" Momma Daland patiently states what she has been saying for the last 18 years to her sweet, but clearly clueless hubby..." Its tradition, get with the program, get the darn clothes on and get in the car!" The girls ..all 5 of us...couldn't be more thrilled. Fun clothes, a re-purpose with this and alteration with that.. chunky bracelets, dangling earrings, a scarf here and a belt there, a swipe of mascara for momma, and a glide of lipgloss for mommas' girls...the WORKS and all topped off with a good 2 minute spray of SUPER HOLD hair spray...our FAVE:))Seriously, its dress up time;)). With all the preparation complete, something changes when the front door closes and the Dalands head to the car...
" Where's my shoe??" look in the garage...
"we have no gas" We'll make it..
"She's touching me" Chloe, stop touching her..
"I need to go potty" hold it...
"Can I drive??" oh good Lord..
"I feel sick" don't throw up on your new dress...
" I don't know why we do this every year" Because we are a happy family and we want to document the joy....

The Daland's pull to a stop and unload the brood..Momma Daland can be heard through gritted teeth saying" Remember to smile and look happy!!" crickets in the background...

ahhh..the joys of taking a family picture...

To all the Momma's that gather together their families to document the joy...Here's Wishing you a Happy and Joyous Family Picture taking season.....let me know how it goes!

When did this happen and where was I?

Cj turned 16. I can't help thinking his feet are more than firmly planted on the closer side of 20...and I ask myself "When did this happen and where was I"? I used to get the cute" oh, enjoy these little ones, the time goes by so fast" kind of comments in the store and I would nod my head with a weak smile and look at my shopping cart that was more loaded with kids than groceries...fast forward a few years...here I am wishing time would slow to a crawl and let me rewind just a bit...He started driving...now let me just say here is a somewhat short list of things you should have handy when he gets behind the wheel for the first time...
1. Bike helmet( its a matter of time before we get hit)
2. Bull-horn...apparently, my yelling"STOP! USE the BRAKE" is not loud enough..use the bull-horn for your own safety.
3. super strong deoderant...I have never sweat before in my life until now.
4. Thesaurus- try to find substitutions for the truck driver language that you have somehow adopted..
5. tinted windows- No one can know its your child driving this out of control..oh, it helps not to have DALANDS on your license plate!!!really? what was I thinking?
6. "SAVE YOURSELVES!"should be your new family motto...
7. Good insurance on your garage door...not that I would know about that...
Lets just say if I skipped my next weave, my hair would be a snow white...

I really liked this book!!

One of this movies producers lives in our ward and he said the movie is going to be great! yay!!

I feel so much better knowing this.....

I saw this on good'ol Pinterest and thought what a great idea! At least I wouldn't spin my wheels as much as I usually do when it comes to taking care of the house.....I can use all the help I can get!!

Yellow and navy with chunky jewels are DIVINE for Fall...

fall style...yellow and gray...LOVE this combo...

I love a little Navy with gray and a hint of yellow too...

Its about that time of year for a family favorite....Pumpkin cookies...

Ingredients
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)




Directions
1. Combine pumpkin, sugar, vegetable oil, and egg. In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and salt. Dissolve the baking soda with the milk and stir in. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and mix well.
2. Add vanilla, chocolate chips and nuts.
3. Drop by spoonful on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for approximately 10 minutes or until lightly brown and firm.

to be or not to be...?

My hair is getting a bit long...however when I see this hairstyle...I feel like cutting it off....this is super cute..should I or shouldn't I?hmmm.

COUSINS

Turning ONE is a joy....baby Alice lights up our lives when she comes to visit and we had the priviledge of hosting her big ONE at our home...cousins are wonderful. we are lucky to be close so we can celebrate these precious milestones...

elegant nails

I used to have fake nails for the longest time because my nails just don't grow but I have ditched them and gotten gels...I love this nail color by Essie which is at Target! yay!BTW...those are NOT my nails!

love this for fall!

I love frilly skirts and of course I LOVE my boots...so why not put the two together...okay so I am attemping to make this skirt..IF and WHEN I can get it together, I will share a tutoral but that is a big IF..I am not sure I have the sewing skills for such a skirt but hey I WILL try!In the meantime check out PIPERLIME for the boots and a similar skirt! I cannot live without Piperlime!

more organizing

Yesterday I posted the awesome linen closet that I am aspiring to create in the hallway but today I found this fabulous picture of what an organized pantry should look like...needless to say this one does not look like mine ..I have some work to do!

Organizing

My constant pet peeve with this big family is the linen closet..how great would it be to replace the shelves with drawers?? the kids would be able to help put sheets and towels and blankies away much easier than the darn shelves...hmmm lets ask Peter if he'll go for it.

How to make it...

Brownie surprise is the perfect junk food for your labor day holiday...
spread cookie dough on the bottom of a 9x13" dish.
line Oreo's (or in my case I used Jo-jos from good 'ol trader Joes)over the top of the cookie dough.
spread a brownie mix over the top of those layers and bake for 25 min.
The secret weapon is to UNDERBAKE it a bit. the middle will be gooey and super yummy.
give it a try!