A New Way to Bake Sugar Cookies!

I absolutely LOVE eating sugar cookies - the moist and crunchy cookie layered with thick, rich gooey frosting...perfection I say. However, as you all know, sugar cookies take forever to make and the kitchen is usually a huge mess! My kids love helping too, which of course adds to the mess. As much fun as we have making cookies together, I am finding that carving out several hours for making sugar cookies now only happens on Christmas Eve. Therefore, I am deprived of my yummy sugar cookies throughout the rest of the year.

That is until I discovered I recipe last week for bar sugar cookies! I made these in ....drum roll please...under an hour with not even a fleck of flour dust on my counter top!! Can you believe it? My friend called the morning I made them and said she was having a hard time getting motivated for the morning. I told her I was just about to make sugar cookies, so she should plan on coming over in an hour...that definitely motivated her, but she wasn't sure she had heard me correctly when I said sugar cookies, knowing full well it would take longer than an hour!

She and I were both shocked at how yummy and tasty these easy bar sugar cookies were. I tried the recipe I found on the internet, but I wasn't as satisfied with the cookie. Next time I am going to use my tried and true sugar cookie recipe I got from my sister-in-law that is just the right amount of crunch and softness (thanks Delores...yes your recipe is still my absolute favorite after all these years).

What Does a Barn Owl Sound Like?

Sorry this video is sideways...user error, and I can't figure out how to change it after the fact.

This is what a barn owl sounds like.



This guy let me pet his owl too, and it's feathers were softer than anything I've ever felt before.

Girls Redecorating Ideas

Beware when your two crafty girls come up to you and say, "Come check out our room...it's really cool!" It may look like this...


We have 9 a.m. church, so we have lots of hours to kill each Sunday afternoon. This Sunday was no exception. After the girls had spent a good chunk of time watching TV and playing Wii (atleast I got my nice quiet time in there), I banned them from all electronics. Of course, this sends Alicia into the usual whining mode of, "...but I have nothingggg to dooo...I'm soooo bored." I told them to play a game with each other. This lasted only a few minutes before they were fighting. They eventually found themselves cutting away with paper and using lots of tape. I had no idea what they were doing, but they weren't fighting and they were keeping busy, so I kept my butt out of the picture.

About an hour later, my kitchen table and computer desk looked like a hurricane had blown through and the kids started begging me to come check out their room. I have to admit, it is a new look for their bedroom. They call it the rainforest themed room.

I love that my girls are crafty. It keeps them busy, and they learn how to clean up after themselves too. Saturday was another craft afternoon for them. As happens on a very rare Saturday afternoon, none of their friends could play. This left them to their own devices and they decided they wanted to paint old lightbulbs they found in one of my closets (where do they get their ideas?!?). They tried watercolor paint, but of course it did not stick on the light bulb. I let them use my fancy paint, but only with strict instructions that they wear paint shirts and paint with the paint on paper plates outside. Their bulbs actually turned out pretty good, along with all the paper plates they painted as well.

I just remembered another craft project Kimberly did with her friend Evie on Friday. They made a really, really long paper chain, then went up and down the street asking people to guess how many links were on the chain. The one with the closest answer got a treat. I of course was not aware this was going on until my friends told me later that evening about the chain guessing contest. Apparently Melissa was the winner and recieved a yummy tootsie pop as a prize!

Anyway, back to Sunday. I should have taken a picture of the paper disaster. It was awful! I made the girls clean it up so we could get started on dinner. We had yummy crock pot pork chops with parmesan potoates. It was a new recipe I tried out and it was a hit with everyone. After dinner, we pulled out the game Risk. This is our new favorite thing to do on Sunday evenings after dinner - last week we played Yatzee and I think we played the Phase 10 the week before that. It's fun that the girls are both old enough to enjoy more adultish games now. Natalie usually rotates sitting on our laps throughout the game, which ended after she saw how funny it was to throw things (i.e. dice and her bear) at the game board to see how many people she could knock down. At that point, I plopped her in front of the fridge where she became occupied with magnets until the end of our game.

One would think it is an incredibly long game, but we like to play with the cards giving you specific tasks to complete. Once you complete all of your tasks, you are the winner. Alicia won and the game only lasted an hour and a half (versus the 3 hours it has taken us in the past).

Author Night at school

I met a real life children's book writer last night...he has had over 75 books published over the years, but guess how many rejections he had before his first ever got published? Hundreds...

For the record...

I thought I would jot down the progress I have made in the last month toward my new goal of writing for magazines. This way, I can actually see that I am making progress and I will be held accountable now that it is actually in writing.

As I suspected, this is a very daunting task. Many times in the last several weeks I have thought, this is just going to be too hard and the chances of ever getting printed in a magazine are really slim...why waste my time? I have also wondered if all the other journalists who have lost their jobs in the last little while are also flocking to the magazine industry as well...this of course does not leave much room for little miss dana.

However, I keep inadvertently getting little pick me ups along the way. For instance, I was chatting with my mom about our regular goings on and we were remembering what the last lecture guy said - something about walls being put up to see how badly you want something and if you do, you just have to figure out a way around it. This is definitely something I want very, very badly and have been dreaming about for many years, but I knew going into it what a hard road it would be along the way.

Anyway, as for my progress...I have finished reading my pile of books about writing for magazines, how to establish yourself in the freelance writing world, etc. I even took notes! This is quite a feat since I do not prefer reading information type books. I would much rather sit and read a good murder mystery novel.

Last week I sat down and listed out about 20 magazines I would be interested in writing for (mostly children's magazines), then went to their websites and began printing out writer's guidelines. Due to varying reasons, the list got widdled down to about 10. I then ordered sample copies of those magazines, and as soon as they arrive, I need to read, read, read, and then read some more. I have learned that writing for magazines is only part writing. The other part is marketing your product, and I just so happen to have a degree in Marketing! So, I am doing all of my market research up front - devouring the magazines to find out what kind of stories they accept, how long the stories are, how the stories are written, etc.

I am also starting to accumulate ideas I'd like to write about. I'm giving myself another month or so to do my research of the magazines and write up the perfect query (writer's lingo for a letter sent to the magazine listing your ideas, what research you have done, and samples of writing clips).

Once that is done, I can start sending out my queries to the different magazines. The only catch is that I can only do one at a time (it would be very bad if I sent out my ideas all at once to 10 magazines and more than one accepted the same idea, well bad from their perspective...at least I would know they liked my work!)

The waiting then begins. I have been prepped from my books about how to accept rejection, since that is a writer's main stay at the beginning. In fact, each book had a chapter on how to accept the rejection letters...this was a moment when I was wondering what I was getting myself into. However, all the books pointed out that even though there is only a 10 to 15 percent chance of ever getting published (hehe - not very good odds)...you'll never know if you are going to be one of those accepted writers down the road if you never try. They also so kindly pointed out numerous writers who were rejected time and time again, but persisted and eventually came out on top of their game.

As I read on my Aunt Linda's blog, "You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it come true. You may have to work for it, however." - Richard Bach

I think I love sandboxes

Natalie just got done playing for hours in our sandbox (no kidding). Now I get to clean off the layer of sand on her bum. I have since learned that baby wipes absolutely do not work in getting sand off sensitive areas of baby skin. It only grinds the sand pebbles into the bum making it red and irritated. Not good, especially when the painful cry comes with it. So, I will be putting her in the bathtub to get all the sand off. This is becoming a regular occurrence for us now that it has finally warmed up and Natalie loves playing in the backyard (yay for me!). I don't mind though because she is entertained for so long and I can sit on the back porch, prop my feet up, feel the warm breeze, and read a good book. Not that is what I call a good time.

Insurance Frustrations

Aahhh...health insurance. You have to love it, you have to hate it. With John's new company, we have switched over to a new health insurance plan. It would have been nice it if kicked in the day John started, which just so happened to be the last day of our old health insurance, but no, health insurance is never made easy. We had to wait until this month to get added on. Thus - a one month insurance lapse for cobra to take effect. Let it be known that we did NOT have to go the doctor for one ioda of illness during the month of February, so one would think that we would not have to worry about paying the $1500 for one month of cobra privileges.

No, health insurance is never that kind. If we do not want to be slapped with John's $7,000 bill for Remicaid every other month for the next nine months, then we have to pay a mere $1500 up front to continue our coverage so don't get hit with 9 months of no coverage for pre-existing conditions. So, I sent off the very expensive check two weeks ago thinking that would be the last of our insurance problems.

As my new insurance laughed at my non-worries, it reared up it's ugly head by first telling me we need to preauthorize all of our treatments...what?! We have to call our insurance, get the doctor to fax in a signed form, etc. etc. before we can receive treatment!! Okay, this health insurance is really turning out to be a pain in the neck, until I got hit with problem number two...

A letter saying we needed to prove our continuance of health coverage. Okay, one minor setback I thought...I just need to call my old insurance. THREE phone calls and three different companies later, I finally got the information I needed, but it's a lengthy process of about three things I have to do with both our old insurance and cobra to prove to our new insurance we have continued our coverage.

Meanwhile, poor John was supposed to get his last Remicaid treatment a week ago, but with all of the preauthorizaton and certification of coverage mumbo jumbo, he hasn't been able to get it yet.

So, in conclusion - you can't live happily with health insurance, you can't live happily without it. Where is the justice in this?

New Experience

I had a new experience yesterday - I rode a horse! I can't claim that it is my first time, because I have ridden a horse one other time many, many years ago. Kimberly has been taking horse lessons for nearly two years, and her teacher wants to take her trail riding out on Antelope Island. I wanted to make sure I was able to go with her, so I am taking a few lessons myself to prep me for the trip. The current plan is for us to go out to Antelope with the horses in two weeks if the weather is good. I am looking forward to it, but not the horse bum part (you know, when you get bow legs after sitting on a horse for too long.)

After riding the horse, Kimberly and I came home to a house full of chores. Dreary, I know, but in the process of cleaning house, I got a call from one of our friends who said they were headed to the Salt Lake temple that night to do sealings and wanted to know if we could join them. Of course John and I were interested in going, as we haven't been to the temple in awhile, so we found a babysitter (rather quickly for such short notice - I was amazed) and planned to rearrange our Saturday afternoon schedule. We had promised to take the girls swimming, but didn't plan on leaving until 4ish. In order to make it to the temple, we would have to leave earlier.

After putting all of our plans in place, I decided I better check our temple recommends. I was pretty sure we had another year left before they expired because I remembered sitting down with our new bishopric with our temple recommends sometime after our ward split (summer of 2007). My heart dropped when I saw the date on our recommends had expired. Oh yah, we met with the bishopric to get them updated to the computer version. Sigh...we were not going to be able to go with our friends to the temple after all. Let me tell you, it is a very unsettling feeling to know that a group of our friends were headed out to the temple, and we had made all the necessary arrangements to join them, but in the end, we had not made the most important arrangement of all - the thing enabling us to enter the Lord's house. Guess you know what we'll be doing this week, huh?

In the end, we did have a lovely time swimming with the girls. The last time we went as a family, Natalie did not have such a good time. This time all the girls had a wonderful time, and we enjoyed some quality family time. Afterward, we picked up some yummy Mexican food from Bajio, then enjoyed some nice warm showers to clean off the chlorine.

All in all, a very eventful Saturday.

Not One, Not Two, But Three Finished Crafts!

I have recently finished three crafts....long pause here while I wait for you to pick up your jaws.

Yes, I know - this is highly unusual for me. But I have some extra time on my hands, and I wanted to declutter my laundry room where the half-finished projects were starting to accumulate. It all started about a month ago when I was hunting for some cute hair bows for Natalie (now that I am actually taking the time in the morning to make her hair cute with ponies and bows). I have a few leftover bought ones from Kimberly and Alicia's toddler days, but I needed to get some pink and purple ones. I have not been successful at finding bows anywhere unless they are the agsorbent priced ones at gourmet craft stores. My friend suggested we make them, and even found a website with mostly good instructions. We headed off to the store in search of cute ribbon, wire, and hair clips. We came home with an armload of supplies, and got to work. They were really quite easy! I made several, but set the rest on my dryer to be finished at a later date...last week when I got tired of pushing them aside to finish my laundry each week. They look so cute in Natalie's hair and I am so excited that I made a handful of bows for less than $5.

Next on my craft list was watch bracelets. My crafty friend took me with her to see another gal that sold these, and we each bought one and carefully examined how it was made. It didn't look hard at all, so we once again headed off to the craft store (this is starting to become a habit for us I see) for beads, clasps, and some stretchy string. They turned out to be way easier that we expected!! I finished two bracelets in under an hour. They were a little pricier than the bows - about $10, but still cheap compared to the $20 I spent on the first watch bracelet.

Lastly, I made this oh-so-cute purse for a night on the town or for my scriptures and hymn books. A neighbor of mine had one of these at church and I begged her to show me how to make one. It was so easy! It is simply a flower sewn onto a heavy duty cloth placemat, with handles I bought at the local craft store...so easy and way cute!! I can't wait to use it! I have to admit here that John helped me sew on the handles. I was going to use fish wire like my neighbor used to sew on the handles, but John cleverly suggested ribbon or a small piece of fabric to attach the handles. I let him do the sewing because I was having a hard time envisioning the process.

It was funny while I was finishing up the bows last week - I was showing John some of my work, and he said, "I'm not sure what to do with you now since you are this changed person crafting all the time!" The other thing John says has changed of late is how addicted I have become to the computer with blogging and facebook. I think we may have to buy a second laptop so John can actually have some computer time!

Gone to the birds

by John

I've been wanting to write this for the last week, but various Cub Scouting and family activities have taken my time. Now I have a few moments to bore you with my falconry. ;)

The falconry club in Utah hosts an annual competition for falconers to show off their falcons. Those of us with owls, eagles, and hawks get to watch. Whether or not you participate in the competition, you bring your birds to show, talk, and have a good time. This year was no exception, and there were quite a few uncommon birds. I thought I would share a few of them with you.

We have an Aplomodo falcon from South America. He's a bit larger than my American Kestrel, but equally beautiful. I love the orange and dark brown colors on this little guy; he's all ready for Halloween! Just like all falcons, this little guy is fast. The smaller falcons put on quite an acrobatic show when they are hunting. Their agility is amazing!

Next is a Tundra Gyrfalcon. These are from Canada and the Arctic regions of Earth, and are a little larger than a Peregrine falcon. Polar Bears are supposed to be white, but they always seem to be more of a cream color. The Tundra Gyr is most definitely white. The only other color is a little black on the edges of wing feathers. All Gyrs are aggressive; they will pursue their quary longer than other falcons. This Gyr was quite talkative; at first I thought someone had brought a Sea Gull.

A Saker is another falcon similar to the Gyr, except they are from the middle east. These are very popular in the middle east. Interesting enough, the owner of the Tundra Gyr also owned the Saker. These two received quite a bit of attention.

Last is the little lady. I love Screech Owls. They aren't allowed in falconry, so I'll need to add an educational license to have one. I first worked with Screech Owls at Ogden Nature Center. I always looked forward to working with the Screeches. Unfortunately, the raptor rehabilitation program was closed recently. This little lady was incredibly calm; she let the little kids come up and pet her.

Hopefully this encyclopedia entry wasn't too boring.