simple inspiration

Mexican Style (part two)

 Here is a view from the other end of the gym.  I love coming from a big family.

I wasn't going to bring the camera to the party because I wanted to just visit, but at the last minute I grabbed it and figured I would get a few fun shots and call it a day.  I wish I had brought a wider lens, but it had then I would not have been able to capture....

1.  The band

2. secrets

3. thoughtful moments

4. Details

 

5. silliness

6. tenderness

7. Anticipation

8. determination

9. eagerness

10. Frustration

Warning: farm post (rated PG-13)

This post is not for those who are sensitive so please move on to something else if you are worried.  I wouldn't let my children read this, except that they are the reason there is a post, but please be warned.

Meet Alfonso. He's our rooster.

We have a happy coop and egg producing hens. We have learned that you don't need a rooster in order to have egg production, but that is for another farm lesson.

Meet our hens (yes, they have boy names... not sure why)

Meet our neighbor. 

(We love living close to family) He has chickens as well, but they are currently not producing any eggs.  Thinking it would be a great idea, I mentioned that he could borrow our rooster and see if that helped in the egg production. 

Meet the daughter.
 
She is not pleased to hear me make this offer and exclaims, "Mom, you are pimping out our rooster!"

I try and explain, but suddenly everyone becomes involved and I've made our rooster a prostitute and there is talk of STDs. 

SERIOUSLY!  I'm having a conversation with my girls about whether or not chickens can pass an STD or if they even have them. The conversation went no where quickly and there was no resolution.

I'm still not convinced that worrying about the morality of our chickens is necessary. Besides he's already a polygamist.
 
On a happy note: Miss "E" now has her own watermark.

sanctuary

We have a little room. The darling father immediately claimed it as a sanctuary: a place of refuge from the chaos.  We stocked it with books, lamps, a writing desk, and a big comfy chair.  The children love to curl up with a book and a blanket.  This is how it looks most days, now that the boys have taken claim.

 

Leggos are the best! (Thanks Bunkers) They can spend hours building and playing.  The little babies love to dump out the bins. We might have to rethink the function of this room.

Thanksgiving... Mexican style

I almost didn't take my camera this year. I knew not only my cousins would be there, but many of second cousins as well. We all grew up together and it was so wonderful to spend time together.

 

Guelito celebrated his 90th birthday  with a surprise Mariachi band:  A bit of Mole, arroz, frijoles, flan along with the turkey, potatoes, stuffing, and pumpkin pie... more photos later.

stocking up

I have a bin in the closet where I keep gifts to have on hand, primarily receiving blankets.  I have neglected the gift box and found it to be empty when I received an invitation to a baby shower several weeks ago.  Hemstitched a few blankets and started crocheting (thus no applique photos as of late). I have not photos because I've finished them right in the nick of time.  Now I can concentrate on a filling the bin back up.... not to mention enjoying the long weekend with everyone home.  Happy Thanksgiving.

FHE or WWF

 

Monday's family home evening (actually it's every family home evening). I'm hoping the consistency of our lessons will eventually help because the lesson certainly wasn't fostering any additional growth.  After the closing prayer two of the girls (S and E) decided they needed a bit of fun as well, of course they both ended up in tears.

eggs

We have eggs.

 

They are so cute and tiny. They smell like the chickens. Still not sure about the chickens especially after they got out of the coop the other day, right after the children left for school.  I was not pleased to try and get them back in.  Waited until I got some help.  Little man "I" is our best chicken catcher.  He is fearless and quick and caught the first 2.

 

"S" commented that they are "pre-dyed" so Easter will be easy this year.

 

They are so tiny, I'll have to use two eggs for each egg in a recipe.

pork salad

It was "K" turn to help with dinner. She did a great job getting the pork in the crock pot before leaving for school, shredding the meat (tasting a bit more than necessary in the process), and heating up the beans. 

In the process she asked, "Mom, when the beans start to breathe does that mean they are done?"

I'm afraid my giggling prevented an immediate answer, but I said that yes once the beans (molidos) were bubbling they were done. One of the joys of being a mother, seeing the world describe through the understanding of a child.

One of my favorite salads. I've tried a few different recipes but my friend Mel's is my favorite. (Thanks Mel.)

Cafe Rio Pork
3 lbs pork roast (rump roast)
1 cup dark brown sugar
1 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp powdered ginger
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic power (or granulated garlic)
1 tbsp dried minced onions

Add all ingredient and cook in crock pot (start in the morning).  1 hour before serving, shred pork and dump out remaining juices.  Then add: 

1 cup dark brown sugar
1 cup red enchilada sauce

Heat for an hour and serve

Cafe Rio Dressing
3 tomatillos, quartered
1/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1 package dry ranch buttermilk dressing
1 cup fresh cilantro
6 green onions
2 cloves garlic
3 tsp sugar
1 fresh jalapeno (to taste
juice of 1/2 lime

In food processor blend all ingredients. Refrigerate until serving.

antics at church

We are not the most quiet family on Sundays (quite frankly that's a truth for every other day of the week as well), but I really do try and make a showing of reverence.  Some weeks it's utter failure.  For example the "quiet toys" have been know to launch through the air with extreme velocity hitting unsuspecting members of the congregation.

Little man "I" has a reputation in our ward. He is known as "THE RUNNER" (there are so many of us it's often hard to remember all our names.)  This is due to his extraordinary ability to sneak past his father and start running through the isles of the chapel. One particular Sunday he escaped not just once, but 3 times laughing in utter delight as he raced towards the pulpit.  Thankfully the darling father is fast and caught him before he managed too much confusion. John was later recruited for a neighborhood flag football team as he had demonstrated such speed and agility.

Despite all the noise and ruckus we cause we find that people want and choose to sit by us: on purpose.

Last week, as a family we were asked to sing part of the closing song. We all gathered at the pulpit, I was holding baby "J" and John had little man "I" and the remaining children poised for their performance.  The song began with the beautiful voice of the children singing Families Can Be Together Forever (found here), while we as parents tried to wrestle the babies into submission.   At one point baby "J" was hanging nearly upside down while trying to get out of my hold and little man "I" had a death grip on the pulpit, trying to either pull it down or fling himself over.

It wasn't the most spiritual experience everyone was hoping for, but thankfully sweet "E" had just finished giving a beautiful talk about our sealings and eternal families so hopefully that helped overlook the baby antics.

happiness

My grandparents.  The world is a better place because of their service and love. I am constantly learning of people they have helped, giving the shoes off their feet (literally).  So thankful we still get to have a bit more time with them.