Holiday Dance

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Dinner?

Rowan + Pots and Pans = One Happy Baby

Puzzle Guru

Chan is really into puzzles right now. I knew that he could do the 12 piece puzzles, but he surprises me everyday. He got a big dino puzzle for his birthday and it's about 25 pieces. I usually have to help him put it together. When Marsh & I went out on Saturday night, my parents were down here so they watched the boys. They said Chandler was putting the big puzzle together by himself! Sure enough, he is doing it all by himself! (Oh and I must interject - it was SOOOO nice going on a date! Marsh even liked Twilight and I liked it just as much the 2nd time. It was heavenly to go out to dinner, eat my food while it was still hot and be able to have a good conversation without interruptions. Not to mention my date was pretty darn handsome :) ) Anyways...back to the puzzle thing.
I also found an animal puzzle in the dollar spot at Target a few months back. It's between 25-30 pieces. I decided to get it out and sure enough Chandler did it like it was nothing. Yesterday he did puzzles for over an hour straight. Loves the problem solving challenge, I guess. Pretty impressive!

Twilight Movie :)

I LOVED IT!  The casting was perfect, especially Edward :)  Just got home from the midnight showing and feeling a little wired.  My SIL ended up having an extra ticket, so I guess I am going again on Saturday with Marsh.  I can't wait.  It was so good.  If you get the chance to see it - go!!

Just our luck

Since Marsh and I have been married we haven't had the best luck with electronics.  We bought our first tv right after we got married.  We paid a little more and got a Sony, thinking it was a great brand and would last.  We'd only had it just over a year when it started getting a mind of it's own.  It turned off whenever it wanted to making our viewing pleasure not so great.  Marsh would joke that it would turn off when we'd watched too much tv.  He was joking about this when it would do it every 10 seconds.  We finally tried to get it fixed and ended up having it in the shop for 6+ months.  The first month the tv was in the shop, it was in the dead of winter.  I was at home, with Chandler who was about 15 months at the time and no car.  Marshall was working and going to school full time so we didn't get out much.  I finally called the tv repair place and this is how the conversation went:

"I'm calling to find out when our tv will be fixed."

"Sure, what's your name?"

"Last name is Snedaker."

Silence.....

"I'm not really sure when your tv will be done, you'd have to contact the tv guy."

I'm mad at this point because our tv has been gone for a while already...

"Listen, I'm at home without a car, with a toddler running around, it's freezing outside, and I have no tv.  I'm tired of not knowing when our tv will be fixed and I've had it!"

He could sense how mad I was.

"We'd love to give you a loaner tv until yours is fixed."

End of conversation.  I was thrilled at the fact to have a tv and called to ask Marsh to pick it up on his way home.  Of course he walked in the house with a 19 inch tv that looked like it was from the 80's.  And come to find out the guy I chewed out over the phone was in our ward at church.  OF course.  It had flaps on the side you had to open to have sound and the color was horrible. We're talking everyone looked like green martians or like they were sunburnt. It didn't matter - it served it's purpose.

Many months later when our Sony was unfixable, we bought a big screen off Craigslist for $150.   Marshall and his brother and dad drove to Pocatello during a blizzard to get this ginormous tv that was extremely heavy. It worked ok, but started having issues too and since it was an older tv, you could only watch it if you were sitting straight on.  We sold that at my cousin's garage sale for $20.  When we moved down here to Lehi, we looked around for a new tv.  We wanted something that was going to last and ended up getting our 32" Samsung for just over $400.  (It was a store model, and we used some comcast mail in rebates and had a 15% off coupon.)  A steal of a deal, although we decided to put a 3 year warranty on it just in case.  Our Samsung has been kind so far, and I love having a tv mounted on the wall that neither of the boys can touch, and being able to watch shows in HD :)  My best friend.

It doesn't just stop with our tv either.  We recently bought our 4th dvd player.  Yes you read that right, 4th.  We've always bought cheap dvd players and they never seem to last.  Imagine that...

My mom gave us a portable dvd player last Christmas.  It lasted 7 months.

Next there's the ipod.  I bought Marsh an Ipod for Father's day 2 1/2 years ago.  About a year after that, Chandler decided to throw it in the toilet right before church....it doesn't work anymore, but I really didn't need to tell you that, right?   And last year for Christmas, I got Marsh a shuffle since we didn't have our ipod anymore.  Yeah, so I lost it working out about a month ago.  Way to throw $60 out of the window, right?

And then there's our Sony camera that got stuck behind the couch at my parent's house.  The lcd screen got shattered.  It still works, but you can't see anything or change the settings.  Sadly, we have added to our electronic deaths this last week and it was my own fault.  I'm doing diaper reviews for my babes and kids sites and have been buying every diaper I could find in the last couple months.  (Note to the wise, Target brand diapers have gone downhill)  Chandler blew out of a diaper, halfway up his back.  I decided to take a picture with our newly acquired Canon camera we've had about 3 months.  (A picture of his back, mind you.)  Marshall was yelling at me from the other room not to take a picture, and I didn't listen.  It didn't really turn out anyway.  I put Chan in the tub and started running the water while I went to change out the laundry.  Then I heard it, "I take a pic!"  I darted into the bathroom to see Chan playing with our camera in the tub.  Ugh....

The camera has dried out and it still works for the most part, but I can't get the flash to work anymore and I don't think the quality of pictures is as good.  The Sony actually takes better pictures, I just can't see the end result until I've hooked it up to the computer.

I don't think we are meant to have good electronics, or nice things in general.  I'm sure it wouldn't have anything to do with two little boys roaming the apartment ;) (And their spacey mom forgetting to put things up out of their reach.)

Fun Facts - November

Chandler

*Loves to color with markers and paint

*Wants to eat frozen gogurts all of the time

*Loves playing with his new Thomas toy grandma & grandpa Snedaker got him

*Likes to help cook and clean

*Last night we went on a drive by the temple.  Chandler has a pair of binoculars that he got as a freebie with a magazine that we subscribed to. He found them this last week and has been wanting to look at everything through his binoculars.  Last night as we passed the temple, he looked through them and said, "I see it!  I see the temple....whoa, so big!"  

*Officially 3 years old :)

Rowan

*Likes to snuggle

*Tries to bite everyone and everything

*Has 6 teeth (4 on the bottom, two on top) and is working on 2 more on the top

*Is cruising along furniture and attempting to walk (He'll take 1-2 steps on his own, but I don't consider this walking yet ;) )

*Loves to eat almost anything you put in his mouth

*He is always trying to pull my hair and eat my necklaces if I have them on

*Is interested in anything Chandler is playing with

*Loves the bathtub

*10 months old....TODAY!

Gratitude

Tagged by Avry

 20 things I am grateful for

1.  Family

2.  The warm cuddle of a baby

3.  A place to lay my head at night

4.  Sweets

5.  Good health

6.  The gospel and my Savior

7.  Hot bubble baths

8.  Sweat pants

9.  Friends

10. Laughter

11.  The miracle of life

12.  Kisses and Hugs

13.  The captured moment of a picture

14.  A hardworking, priesthood holding, handsome, incredible husband

15.  Exercise

16.  To be a mother

17.  My boys

18.  My education

19.  The smell of rain

20.  To be able to love and be loved

I am tagging EVERYONE who follows my blog to write 20 things you are grateful for on your blog.

One of those days

I think we've had more than our fair share of being sick the last few months. Especially Rowan and now Chan is getting up there too. My sister is telling me my kids are always sick and I tried to defend it at one point. I won't anymore. You're right Avry :( We've got a house full of sickies. It all started last night with Chandler coming into our room. I went to put him back to bed and he just stood by his bed. Then I stepped in it. Need anymore of a visual? ;) I got Marshall up to get Chan changed and proceeded to start working on his room. Half hour later, I was ready to put him back in bed. He kept looking at Marsh and saying, "Oh no....so sad." I'd be sad too. Luckily we'd rented Kung Fu Panda and it was a great distraction at 4 am.
I finally got him back in bed only to have him throw up on everything 15 mins later. Into the tub he went. He sat in the tub for about a half hour and didn't want to get out. He finally stopped throwing up enough to fall asleep. Not 2 minutes after my head hit the pillow I heard Rowan crying. Why? Congested of course, (lucky boy has the little Nielson nasal passages so he gets congested extremely easily) and his asthma was flared up. He just finished up his 4th round of antibiotics and I bet he's working on another ear infection. I'm not going to be surprised if he ends up with tubes in his ears.
After almost 2 hours of being up, we all got some sleep. Chan woke up this morning, couldn't keep anything down, and had horrible diarrhea. Poor boy would start running around saying, "Oh no.....stop it! Oh no....!" everytime he got nauseated and threw up. Makes my heart ache. We stayed in our pajamas until it was evident that Chandler needed another bath (his 3rd in the last 12 hours.) Chan finally kept down some bread and powerade and both Chan and Rowan are finally napping and feeling a LITTLE better.
I thought I would start doing some deep disinfecting today, especially all the toys. It's been a few weeks since I'd gone through all of them and cleaned them well. I have been washing the small stuff in hot soapy water and wiping down the other stuff with disinfecting wipes. Lots of laundry today too, wiping down doors, handles, etc. Just wondering what kinds of disinfecting products you all are using and if there is some great product I need to be using? I have the lysol wipes and some Melaleuca botanical disinfectant. What else can I do? What do you do to help keep your home germ free? It seems hard to keep up with two little kids and I need some ideas. I don't want sick kids all winter.

Date Night

I just bought Twilight tickets for Marshall and I to go!!  I wish we were going opening night, but didn't get tickets in time and  don't want to sit on the front row, so we are going that Saturday it's coming out.  I'm SUPER excited and I'm sure Marshall will appreciate my choice of movie, lol. Maybe we'll do dinner beforehand. Another reason that I'm so excited about the whole thing?  It's been over 6 months since the two of us have been on a date together.   We are way past due.  Now to find a babysitter....

Rocket Soup

So any soup that we have is dubbed "rocket soup" by Chandler thanks to Little Einsteins. Today I had made hot and sour soup in the slow cooker to eat for lunch. When Marsh came home, we all sat down and asked Chandler if he wanted some rocket soup. Of course he was ecstatic about the whole thing.
He looked at his soup and started naming some of the ingredients in it:

"Oh chicken! Yummy..." He takes a bite and little does he know, it is really cubed tofu

"Oh a hotdog!" = carrots

"And noodles!" = bamboo shoots
He actually ate quite a bit of the soup. If we told him it really wasn't chicken and hot dogs, he wouldn't have eaten it. What's wrong with getting your kid to eat their food, right? You are probably thinking how disgusting it sounds, but it is actually one of our favorite soups. My sister Jer gave me a great slow cooker book a few years ago and I've loved it. (Fix it and Forget it Lightly)
Here's the recipe for those interested: (I've tweaked it a little to how I like it)

Hot & Sour Soup

4 cups chicken broth
8 oz can sliced bamboo shoots, drained
1 carrot, cubed
3 Tbsp. quick cooking tapioca
6 oz. can sliced mushrooms, drained
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. black pepper
4 ozs. firm tofu, drained and cubed
1 egg, beaten

1. Combine all ingredients, except tofu and egg in slow cooker.
2. Cover. Cook on low 9-11 hour or high 3-4 hours.
3. Add tofu
4. Cover. Cook 45-60 minutes
5. Pour egg into the soup in a thin stream. Stir the soup gently until the egg forms fine shreds instead of clumps.

And here is the sticky chicken recipe that Lila asked for:

Sticky Chicken

INGREDIENTS

* 4 teaspoons salt
* 2 teaspoons paprika
* 1 teaspoon onion powder
* 1 teaspoon dried thyme
* 1 teaspoon white pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
* 2 onions, quartered
* 2 (4 pound) whole chickens

1) In a ziploc bag, mix together salt, paprika, onion powder, thyme, white pepper, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and garlic powder. Remove and discard giblets from chicken. I buy a chicken without the giblets so I don't have to deal with it. Place foil down on a counter and place chickens on foil. Rub each chicken inside and out with spice mixture. Place 1 onion into the cavity of each chicken. Place chickens in a resealable bag or double wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight. It is so important you do it at least the night before, otherwise it is no where near as good.

2) Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C).

3) Place chickens in a roasting pan. Bake uncovered for 5 hours, to a minimum internal temperature of 180 degrees F (85 degrees C). Start basting at 2 and a half hours every 30-60 minutes or so. Not mandatory, just makes the skin crispier and the meat moister. Let the chickens stand for 10 minutes before carving.

Enjoy!

Today I.....

*got up early

*ran errands around town for something exciting coming up (more details to come)

*thought about exercising.... ;)

*went to a playdate at Sara's

*got a few clearanced things for the boys at GAP

*talked to my mom and both sisters on the phone

*made sticky chicken (which was marinated over night and slow cooked in the oven for 5 hours.  Delicious!)

*did laundry and cleaned

*comforted both my kids

*donated blood

I guess somedays I get more accomplished than I thought....

Check ups

We went in for well child check ups today. Row's 9 month and Chan's 3 year. Chan was 32 lbs and 38 inches, and Rowan was 19 lbs 1 oz and 29 1/4 inches. They are both tall and skinny. Rowan's weight is really evening out. He weighed 5 oz less today than he did 3 weeks ago. I think it's because of how active he is. Chan looks great and healthy, and I wish I could say the same for Rowan. He's sick and has another ear infection. When he gets a cold it makes his asthma flare up terribly and he sounds like a dragon. We are trying another albuterol that has a steroid in it to see if that helps better with the wheezing. It's been pretty bad at night and I'm up a lot doing breathing treatments and not getting as much sleep as I'd like. I just hope he grows out of this asthma when he gets older. (Chan's b-day and Halloween pictures in the posts below)

Chan's Birthday

Chan's birthday was a lot of fun. I don't know why but birthdays seem like a big deal to me. Maybe because they seemed like a big deal growing up. It should be extra special right? A whole day dedicated to just you. We told Chan Happy Birthday around 100 times throughout the day. We tried to think of what he would like to do on his special day, so we went to eat at one of his favorite restaurants, picked one of his favorite activities, and then invited his best friend to come along.
That night we went to Panda Express, aka Kung Fu Panda. Maybe that's why Chandler likes this place so much. After dinner we went swimming and he was so excited when Carson showed up. I wish I had gotten a good picture, but they hugged many times that night they were both so happy.

After swimming the Birch's came over to have cake and ice cream with us.
I was going to make just a normal sheet cake but decided to go out on a limb. Thanks to familyfun.com I made this cute crocodile cake. I'm pretty happy how it turned out considering I don't have much artistic ability, just don't look too close. Chandler LOVED it and that's what matters.



It was a great day, and I'm sure Chan would agree.

Halloween

Halloween was fun as usual. We went to the trunk or treat at our church and were there about an hour. I handed out candy while Marsh took Chandler around. Chan really got Halloween this year and liked it a lot. Marsh changed out of his burrito costume and wore the blow up costume from last year while I wore the wolf costume.

This picture just looks funny...

After the trunk or treat we went to get dinner. So many of you thought that it was a cute idea that Marshall was a burrito for Halloween at work. Here's the real reason we dressed him up as a burrito - free burrito at Chipotle on Halloween if you are wearing tinfoil. So after the trunk or treat Marshall dressed back up while Chandler and I had foil wrapped around us as well. Worked like a charm - free dinner. Thanks Chipotle!

Bean Faced Rowan

Free Family Dinner (The workers loved Marsh's hat)

Chandler eating his burrito bowl

3 Years

Wow. Where have the last 3 years gone? Challenging, hard, fun and rewarding all at the same time.  Life is definitely sweeter because of this little guy.

Happy Birthday to our Chan Man!

We love you!