Funny Conversations with Rylan

Rylan is a great kid. He is super sweet and thoughtful. He has a great imagination and he always asks really good questions. You can tell he thinks a lot! Here are a few of our recent conversations that I never want to forget:

Sunday and the Sacrament

As we were in Sacrament Meeting on Sunday and as the sacrament was being passed, Rylan asked me why we eat the bread and water. He told me he forgot why. (I promise, we have discussed the importance of the sacrament before with the kids; however, I honestly think most of the time they think of it as snack time.) The bread was being passed at the time so I told him we eat the bread so we can think about Jesus and his body and remember he died for us. He then had the cutest, sweetest expression after he thought about that for a second and he said to me, "I don't really think about that, but I just really enjoy the bread." He was being totally honest and sincere and I loved it! I told him that was ok and just to remember Jesus loves him.

Jesus the Fighter

One day, Rylan asked me if Jesus gets into a lot of fights. I was a little surprised by that question. Don't the kids know Jesus isn't about violence at all? Where have I failed? :) I told him that Jesus doesn't fight. He loves everyone! He then said, "But he protects us. Doesn't he always fight the bad guy that wants us to choose the wrong?"

After his explanation, it totally made sense. I could totally see how a little kid would think that protecting someone might involve some fighting. They see stuff like that on tv all the time. I don't think Jesus is a street fighter out to get Satan, but I totally understand where Rylan was coming from. I also love how Rylan refers to Satan as "the bad guy that wants us to choose the wrong". The Primary theme this year is about Choosing the Right. Obviously they are doing a great job having kids remembering the theme and the differences between "Choosing the Right" and "Choosing the Wrong".

The Great Spiritual Discussion of Legos in the Pre-Existence

Rylan was telling me that before we came to earth, someone explained there would be something like legos on earth. He was excited that when he got to earth, there really were legos and he remembered hearing there would be. Can you tell this boy LOVES his legos? He talks about them constantly and he is a very good, creative lego builder. I bet you didn't know legos were an important topic of discussion in the Pre-Existence! I know I had forgotten about that! I'm surprised we haven't studied about them in the scriptures.:)

Jesus the Alien Killer

Rylan was talking to Mike while they were driving somewhere and he asked if Jesus kills Aliens. Mike told him that he didn't think Jesus would kill aliens. Rylan then told Mike he was pretty sure that Jesus would kill the aliens because aliens come to earth and try to kill humans. Oh dear! Mike is pretty sure this discussion stems from the mistake he made to let Rylan watch the Cowboys vs. Aliens movie several weeks ago. He had turned it on for the kids and Rylan and Gavin were the only ones that ended up watching much of it. I guess the girls had the sense to realize the movie was scary and left the room. Mike didn't even watch it until later and then he realized what a mistake it was to let the kids watch it. The kids should have never seen the movie. After Mike watched it, he knew why Rylan had so many nightmares about aliens that night. The thought of aliens must still really bother the poor boy! At least he is comforting himself by thinking Jesus will protect him from those evil aliens!

Rylan's favorite ant

Yep - I haven't blogged in forever. There are way more pressing posts I should be doing...like birthdays, summer fun, school starting, etc., but Rylan and I had this little experience the other day and it was too cute not to write down in my little "online journal".

We were out front and I was working on a project and watching him ride his bike in the driveway. Gavin and Alyssa were at school and Cambrie was napping (hooray!!). Rylan has become a pro on his bike and no longer needs training wheels. It is amazing to watch this little kid ride like he does. He has no fear and wants to ride like the big kids....complete with "action stunts".

Rylan was alternating between riding his bike and coloring with sidewalk chalk.

Soon he came over to me and said, "mom, I wasn't watching where I was going and I killed my favorite ant!" He was very solemn about it.

I tried not to laugh and wondered if I heard him correctly. We continued having a discussion about his favorite little ant. I learned the ant's name was Eaddy. He said Eaddy's mom was even watching and saw him get smashed. Rylan was sad he didn't watch where he was walking.

We had quite the cute little discussion about his ant buddy's sad demise. Rylan sure has one cute imagination and a sweet personality. I love spending more one on one time with him!

Busy Weekend !

Well, soccer has started up again for the spring which means that for the next 8 weeks, our weekends are planned out for us. Gavin and Alyssa both are in AYSO soccer and love it - its good for them to get out and run around in the cold, windy weather (it always seems to be questionable weather for games...). The next day after church, we jetted on down to Mona and Spanish Fork to visit family - we visited with Grandma Sage, went to look at Grandpa Sage's headstone, and then stopped by to visit Grandpa & Grandma Harris, Janette and Kristin. It was a busy weekend with lots of time in the car - thank goodness for movies :) Here are some pics of the weekend:

Bountiful Baskets 3-6-10

This morning Mike went and helped volunteer at Bountiful Baskets. He had a good time and was glad he went to help out. He said he would probably do it again next week. One of the perks of volunteering in the morning is that you often get some extra produce. This was our haul this morning:

16 mandarin oranges
17 bananas
16 braeburn apples
2 bunches of asparagus
2 blueberries packs (6 oz each)
1 lb strawberries
5 english cucumbers
1 bunch of spinach
1 bunch of red leaf lettuce
2 heads of cabbage
5 concord pears
8 zucchini

We got a lot of extra today. The standard portion should have been 10 oranges, 10 bananas, 8 apples, 1 asparagus, 1 cabbage. I am sure there isn't always extra produce for the volunteers, but it was sure nice to get some extra today.

We also ordered the Mexican Cooking pack. In that pack we received, avocados, limes, garlic, cilantro, Mexican zucchinis, onion, green onions, jalapenos, some varieties of dried chiles.

Our total for today was $23.

We made blueberry wheat pancakes this morning using the fresh blueberries and the kids gobbled them up!

Family Ski Trip v2.0

So our second family trip to Wolf Creek Ski Resort was with better preparation, and a lot of excitement. Brad couldn't make it this time around, but Jamie and Cambrie came along to hang out in the lodge - which made for a fun evening out for the entire family.

Things got off to a great start - the magic carpet wasn't frozen, and the weather was warm but still cold to keep the snow in good shape. Six inches of fresh snow were put down the night before, so the slopes were soft packed powder, not rock hard like last time.

I did have a memorable moment where Rylan and I crashed just off of the magic carpet - and I was pretty stuck; it doesn't help when you are overweight and can't bend like you used too...

Alyssa did a ton better this time around. She worked hard and could make her wedge pretty good, and slow herself down quite well. I took her on the lift, and realized that she was still a bit too young to go down the big hill.

Rylan performed the same as last time - the first 2 or 3 times down the bunny, he did the "limp fish" and I pretty much had to hold him the entire way. Later on, after he polished off a cupcake that Jamie bought for him from the lodge, he did much better and was skiing down the hill all by himself - with the leash :)

Gavin did really good - he can fly down the hill faster than I can (I am trying to work on my tele technique, that's my excuse) so he usually waits at the bottom for me to catch up. He is going to be a speed demon skier !

Since our last family trip, we bought skis for Rylan and Alyssa, and got Alyssa and Gavin new boots - now the entire family has their own gear, which means no more waiting to get fitted in the rental area. Sweet...

Jamie was a trooper, carrying Cambrie in the kelty the entire night. At the end, Jamie went to bring the van up towards the lodge, and she left Cambrie in the trunk still in the kelty - Cambrie loved the fun ride.

All in all, it was a great day. The kids keep asking me when we are going again - i keep telling them "ask mom" :)

Bountiful Baskets 2-27-10

This is what came in our Bountiful Basket co-op today:

-8 bananas
-8 pickling cucumbers (I think that is what the little cucumbers are)
-7 braeburn apples
-2 lemons
-8 oranges
-2 bunches of asparagus
-bright lights swiss chard
-1 lb strawberries
-2 heads broccoli
-5 lbs ID potatoes
-2 lbs baby carrots
-bunch of romaine lettuce

The cost for the basket was $15 + $1.50 processing fee.....so all of this for $16.50! The kids are always so excited when Mike comes home after picking up our produce to see what we got. Today they were particularly excited about the strawberries and are eating them right now! :)

Homemade Wheat Bread

Last week I decided to finally clean out my wheat grinder and start making bread again. I used to do it all of the time....and then I stopped. It has probably been well over a year - maybe a lot longer - since I have made wheat bread. So, so sad!

When I got my Nutrimill all cleaned out, I had Alyssa and Rylan come sit in the kitchen and we had some wheat-grinding, bread-making learning time. They had a blast. I wish I would have gotten pictures of them as we were doing it all. Alyssa didn't even remember what my wheat grinder was (what a bad, bad mom!). We talked about wheat and they loved touching the kernels and then pouring mugfuls of wheat into the grinder. They were thrilled to see and touch the flour that it made. They thought it was the coolest thing. I then got out my Bosch knockoff and I showed them how we make the bread dough (and they were excited to help add ingredients), divide the dough, and make the loaves. It really was a fantastic little morning adventure with them.



I was really happy with how the loaves turned out after being out of the bread making routine for so long.

This is the recipe I use:
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5 c. warm water
1/4 c. oil
1/4 c. dough conditioner (or 3 Tbsp dough enhancer)**I use the dough enhancer**
1/2 c. gluten
1/4 c. honey
1 Tbsp salt
6 c. whole wheat flour
3 Tbsp instant yeast **(I use SAF instant - usually 2 Tbsp normal SAF and 1 Tbsp double-acting SAF)**
6 c. whole wheat flour (approx)

Bake 25-30 minutes at 350.
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When I grind my flour - I do it on the finest setting in my Nutrimill and it makes the most awesome, fine wheat flour! I love it! I also usually use white wheat, but for a change, I will do red wheat and get the same results - just has a different, more nutty, taste.

I also have a metal bowl for my mixer with a bread dough hook that attaches at the bottom of the bowl. It works great!

I use hot tap water. I add the water, oil, dough enhancer, gluten, honey, and 6 cups of flour. I let it mix thoroughly and then usually let it sit 5-10 minutes or until it starts looking bubbly. I then add the salt (I didn't add the salt before since it can sometimes make the yeast not work as well). I then add the rest of the flour and I stop adding flour when the dough starts pulling away from the sides of the dough. I stop the machine and touch the dough. I like it to still be a little sticky, but touchable. I then put the lid on and let the machine knead the dough for me for 8 minutes (my machine has a timer). When it is done, I let it rest for about 10 minutes before shaping the loaves.

I use shortening to grease the counter and my hands (do not use more flour!!!). I weigh each of my dough chunks so my loaves are all about the same size. When I went to a kitchen store once where they demonstrated bread making, they spread the dough out into a flat rectangle, pushing out the air bubbles, and then they rolled the dough up tightly - like a jelly roll. They pressed the ends down with the sides of their hands and then tucked it under and pinched the seams closed. Pinching the dough is awesome - it really makes the dough seams invisible! They then put the loaves into the pans and then pressed down on them in the pan so they filled the pan completely (and it probably also reduces more air bubbles). I used to be diligent about following this procedure for shaping my loaves, but to be honest, I don't always do the whole rectangle thing as precise as I used to.

Once the loaves are in the pans, I cover them with a tea towel and let the loaves rise for about an hour - sometimes a little less. I then bake the loaves at 350 for 25-30 minutes. When it comes out of the oven, I like to rub butter on the top. I then remove the loaves immediately from the pan and let them rest on a wire cooling rack.

I have an awesome little bread slicing guide that Kathy got me years ago off ebay and I use it to cut each of my loaves with an electric bread knife and then my loaves are ready for sandwiches. The bread is so soft, light, and moist. I have never had a dense, dry loaf.

My kids are now asking for this bread all of the time. I am glad they will eat it. I remember when I was a kid and my mom pulled the "make everything out of wheat stunt" and I hated it!!

I had to make bread again yesterday. The last 4 loaves lasted 4 days! This is what it looked like fresh from the oven and before I rubbed butter on top:




I have one funky loaf where the top looks stupid, but I am so excited about the height of these loaves. They were so big, they barely fit in my bread slicer - I have to gently squish the sides in.

I have the cutest little bread-making assistant, don't I? :)

All sliced and ready to eat!