Mostly Pictures

I know it's been a very long time since my last post, but I'm finally done with spring semester grades (just posted the last ones half an hour ago!) and I'm already a little bored. So here are a few pictures of the last few months.

First, Aurora and Rayston blowing bubbles outside.


Aurora riding her bike, which she got for her 3rd birthday. She loves it, although on this particular day she was torn between the bike and the bubbles (see above).


Here is Aurora showing off her new Barbie, along with a dog she named Rainbow, just after her birthday...or before. I forget.


This is me and Aurora sitting in a helicopter at the children's museum at the Gateway in SLC during one of Aurora's SLC birthday trips (yes, there were two).


Aurora and Daddy on that same trip (which we took on the Front Runner).


Finally, Aurora checking out the view from the train just before we got going. Perhaps you can guess which train station we boarded on. :)


That's all for now. Now it's time to catch up on all of you!

Just Some Pictures

Aurora finally smiles for the camera:

Hanging on my treadmill despite my many warnings that she's going to fall (which she's done, lots):

Bothering Rayston while he's trying to play a game:

Aurora holding one of the Valentine's Day treat bags we made for her friends at her daycare. She doesn't look happy because she was crying right before this photo. If I remember correctly, I think she was sobbing over the shirt I wanted her to wear (the one in the photo) because it was pink, for V-day. That's a sticker on her cheek (yes, a bribe to get her to calm down).

Aurora's first photo. Obviously the balance is off and the hand was wobbly, but hey, it's not too bad for a 2-year-old.

A New Dinner: Tortellini with Asparagus

Some of you know that I like to cook. I really like it a lot when I have the time to mess around with new things. Tonight I really didn't have the time, but when I went to make egg rolls, I noticed my bean sprouts looked a little iffy. Then I noticed an unused bundle of asparagus... and a new recipe was born. For those of you who like to cook, this is a really easy, pretty quick, fun dinner.

Tortellini with Asparagus

1 bundle asparagus
1/2 medium white or yellow onion
2 roma tomatoes
2/3 package frozen cheese tortellini
1/2 jar Ragu alfredo sauce
1/2 cup chicken or turkey stock
1/4 cup milk
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375.

2. Chop asparagus into chunks (whatever size you want), onions into 1/2 inch squarish pieces, and tomatoes into 1/4 inch chunks. [Note: don't forget to chop off the ends of the asparagus based on where they naturally snap when you bend them--throw away these ends.] Toss all vegs in a cassserole dish and drizzle a little olive oil over the top. Grind some fresh salt and pepper overtop. Toss all together. Put dish in preheated oven.

3. Boil some water; cook tortellini according to directions.

4. Whisk 1/2 jar of alfredo sauce, 1/2 cup stock, and 1/4 cup milk together in a small bowl or large-ish liquid measuring cup.

5. Drain tortellini once cooked to al-dente.

6. Pull dish out of oven and toss tortellini in with vegetables. Drizzle sauce mix overtop and then stir up.

7. Bake again for about 15 minutes. Give it one more toss once it's done, then salt and pepper to taste.

I think chicken would also be really good in here, but I love cooking vegetarian dishes.

If you give it a try, let me know what you think. I've noticed sales on asparagus at Kent's and Smith's, so this might be the time of year to do this.

Don't forget to serve this in your favorite princess dishes with flower forks.

P.S. I don't really believe in recipes, but I do recognize the difficulty of replicating a dish without some guidelines--so enjoy my first attempt at writing down an actual recipe of one of my dinner concoctions.

It's Spring Time Here

... on my blog. I started gmail-chatting with Becca, and she walked me through the process of making my blog look crafty. Then she created my header--isn't she fabulous? I've rearranged a few things on here, and I think it's about time because I've been blogging for nearly two years (not that I've actually been blogging consistently for that long). I like the new look--nice and springy, even if my driveway is still mostly ice and my backyard is sloggy, frosty mud.

Me and J at our "Christmas" (actually December 27; thank you Old Man Winter) get-together with my fam

J, me, Rory, and Rayston at my b-day shindig with my fam

Mother/princess

The princess's solo shot

Catching Up

Isn't my kid cute?

I'm taking a break from writing a lecture for my online class (done), creating a strict syllabus for my high school boys to follow for English this semester (not done), and preparing my lessons for Tuesday morning and Wednesday afternoon (also not done) just to blog about my last couple of months. So here it goes.

Thanksgiving was fun. Lots of good food. I hate mashed potatoes and gravy, but I love turkey doused in cranberry goo.

(The pies I made)

The end of last semester was a huge pain in the @$$. Each of my 40-some odd students turned in between 4 and 6 papers at the conclusion of the course, so I had a huge pile of crap to grade.

(No photo available. Be grateful.)

It snowed a looooooooot.

(Our back yard, including the dog's kennel)

(Just some cool frost)

We went to some Christmas parties.

(Brave girl--not at all afraid of Santa)

(A little afraid of Santa)

On Christmas Eve, we read Aurora all of her Christmas stories, including the Grinch, a Sandra Bonyton collection, Frosty the Snowman, and this classic.

(Daddy's turn to read)

(Our new Christmas jammies)

Christmas day was super fun until we had to cancel our plans due to the raging snow storm. Both kids received their own 22-inch TV for their bedrooms from Santa (Daddy). Grandparents went totally overboard spoiling everyone.


(One of the new TVs)

We let Aurora have some sparkling cider from a plastic champagne flute on New Year's Eve. Doesn't this photo make it look like we're terribly irresponsible parents? Funny.

(She loved this)


(Yes, this was really midnight. Apparently our girl can party with the big kids just fine)

Then, finally, school started again. This semester I'm teaching an online class at SLCC, a face-to-face/satellite combo class at USU, and a high school English class at my residential treatment center. That's a lot of prep time, considering each class uses a totally different textbook and curriculum. Once again, no photo available. But here's a video of my cute little kid on Christmas Eve. Soon I will post some video of her singing, so Derek, stay tuned for a follow-up to "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."