Hi y'all

The sun is still shining here...go figure..
Yesterday we went horseback riding in the desert. Very beautiful, and a lot of fun. My rear-end is a bit sore today! LOL
Today is Monday, April 30th we are taking it easy. I am going to give mom a pedicure and maybe work on my tan a bit. I think today is an 11:30am Margarita day!! HEE HEE hey, I'm on vacation aren't I??

Cheryl and I went shopping last night and bought up a whack of glass beads and lockets etc.. for the girls to
make braclets and earrings.. I still have some "little" things to pick up for them. (and for lu, and louise, and Mary and and Trina.. and..and .. hee hee hee).

We might be going to Flagstaff tomorrow overnight. I think Mom and Dad are staying here. It's a bit hard on Mom travelling in the car for 2 or 3 hours.
Hopefully later in the week we are going to a science museum to see a German Artist that used human cadavors
as his art. It had caused quite a stir when he first opened in Germany. These people donated thier bodies
for art. WOW.

I am missing the kids terribly, Frank says that Lily is talking up a storm and is asking for mommy. awww

Messages

Hi guys,
I thought I would post a couple of messages for people from here, since Cheryl's computer is very old
and it keeps shutting down on me when I open up my e-mail.

Lu:
Sorry to hear that Ava had the flu again! That sucks. I was wondering where you were as I tried to get
ahold of you to meet up for coffee a couple of times.
You should of dropped by before I left, I was packed in about 15 mins. then watched TV. LOL
Do you want anything from here? I am bringing back goodies for everyone, but do you want any thing
special that we can only get in the states? I am bringing back some more Geber treats and Welch's
dried fruit treats.
As for cheesy lasagne?? ummm.. not sure, you might have to talk to frank. He "seems" to have things under control. He said to me last night "you right..you only have time to cook, clean and watch kids, nothing else" God I loved those words!! My mission is complete! LOL
Talk to you later
Krista

Carrie:
Thank god for you blog, it is the only way I can get to my blog for some reason. LOL
Moya (from Dianjiang international) e-mailed me with a pictures from the orphanage and that the CCAI
was there doing training. I will go to my brother in law's work tomorrow to post them onto the DJ international website.
Hopefully I will also be able to post pictures onto my blog from there.
Talk soon
Krista

Arizona Day 4!

Hello hot hot Hello!!

Holy freaking Hottness batman!! I love the heat, and even this is too hot for me!
You can sit in the sun for about 5 mins, and then have to run to the shade. I am getting "brown" but very slowly. I am being very careful, as it would be so easy to burn to a crisp in about 10mins.
Actually, it's soo hot that even my dad went into the pool just now, we all ran to get our cameras!
I haven't hit the pool yet, it has to be even hotter than this for me to get in the water. Because it's soo hot the water seems very very cold. (put your feet in and it gives you a headache in your feet cold)LOL
I'm sure it would feel refreshing, but so does a margarita in my hand!

We went into the Sonorian desert yesterday. It was so beautiful. We drove along side a mountain
on a very narrow road, that had rocks on one side and death on the other side. Death was about a 200 foot drop straight down!!
I thought my mom was going to have another stroke! LOL It was very scary, the road was full of hairpin
turns and was only 1 lane. I have some great video!

Today Cheryl and I are taking a jewelry making class. Isabelle and Abigail are right into glass bead braclets, and I have no idea how to make them. so I'm taking a class for them! LOL

Day 3 in Arizona

It's 9:00am here (11:00am), the sun is shining, and we're getting ready to go for a day trip to Tortilla Flats. It's kinda of like a mini Grand Canyon. (Sorry Andrea, I don't think I'll be making it to the Grand Canyon). I think we might do Vegas instead!
We went shopping quickly last night, and I bought 7 different types of swimsuits/swim tops and bottoms etc..
Thank God Frank never looks on my blog! LOL
The tops are really nice and I can wear them with skirts or shorts etc..
We're going shopping again tonight.
The scenery here is beautiful. I love the way people decorate thier houses. I wonder how much I can bring back???

Hello from Arizona

Well, I made it. The plane ride wasn't bad at all. Early, but not bad. Left Fredericton at 5:45am and arrived in
Toronto at 7am. Left for Arizona at 9:30am and arrived 4 1/2 hours later. Sat with a couple from the North Shore and they ended up knowing my uncle. Small world.
Its is quite nice here. The temperature was 32 yesterday afternoon and today at 9am, its 28. But it not
so uncomfortable. It's a very dry heat, I even had on a sweater yesterday!
Today we're taking it easy because tomorrow we're going to go to Flagstaff overnight to go sightseeing.
I miss everyone soo much!!
I miss you girls! Mommy loves you a whole bunch!!
I can't post any pictures, my sister computer is from 1912 !!! If I can get to an internet cafe I'll post some.
Love you!!

More pictures

Here are some more pictures....I took close to 200 pics!!

CONCENTRATION

Here are 2 of my favorite pictures of this weekend!
Such concentration!!

2007 Atlantic Gymnastics Competition

We were away in PEI this weekend for Abigail's gymnastics. The 2007 Atlantics Competition.
This is where all of the Atlantic provinces come together to see which province fairs the best.
For the most part New Brunswick placed 2nd.
Abigial did GREAT, considering there was a much larger group of competitors.

She placed 2nd on Beam
(the apparatus that has been giving her such a hard time)
and 5th on Bars.

Overall for her level for Team New Brunswick she placed 5th!!!!

We are sooo proud!!

Of course Panda was there to cheer her on!!

This isn't quite what I had in mind...

when I started potty training...... She has given "port-a-potty" a whole new meaning.

1st she played with blocks,




















then she then she tried on the apron


















That potty never left her bum!!
She carried it between her legs all around the room. It was soo funny.

But I put an end to it when she tried to go down the slide!

sisterly love....

ahhhhh......Big sisters......

There fun to pose with.......






















And give me boobs way before my time!!!!


she kept patting her "implants" saying "boobies" "boobies"

she had just finished painting with her sisters, that is why her dress is so dirty and her hair is a mess!!

Abigail's time to shine!

We went away to Moncton at the end of March for the Provincial Gymnastics Competition.
Athletes that finish in the top 3 here are automatically chosen to join Team New Brunswick to represent their province in the Atlantic's Competition where they compete against the top gymnasts from the other Atlantic Provinces.
Abigail made us very proud!
She finished 1st overall for her level and age group in the province.
We leave next weekend for Atlantic's.
Here is a clip of her floor routine.
(Yes that is me screaming in the background! What can I say? I'm a proud mommy)



While in Moncton I got to meet my blogger friend Lisa. She and her husband Pierre are adopting 2 beautiful little girls from Ethiopia. It was so nice to finally meet her!
Thanks Lisa!!

Love the Laugh

Lily has the most contagious laugh ever!! Whe she gets going, she can hardly breathe, then she starts to hic-up!
I thought I should show the "non"-trantrum side of Lily!
By the way..she had another WILD trantum the day after the doctors visit. We had to leave the library, screaming, and she ended up in her crib for a time-out without her special "gluckie" (aka blanket).
She has now been trantum free for 3 days!! Hmmmm..Calm before the storm.....maybe???
ahhhh gotta love the terrible two's.

Look what the Easter Bunny brought me

Lily got a boyfriend for Easter!!
These 2 get along soo well. He is my future son in law!





Happy Birthday big boy!

Grrrrrrrr............

What a little bugger~~

You can't tell from the pictures but she had JUST finished a huge tamtrum at the doctor's office!


Wait let me back up....
9:40am doctor's appt (for me)
She wanted to walk around. Fine with me, I take her out of her stroller. No...she starts to yell..wants to be picked up. I pick her up. No.. yells again, she wants me to walk with her in my arms, I walk with her. No starts to SCREAM now wants me to sit with her as she stands on me.....wiggling and screaming..
At this point, I turn into "I don't freaking think so" mommy. Plop her into her stroller, buckle her in and walk around the office, all the while she is SCREAMING in her stroller "I'm stuck I'm stuck " "HEEELP MEEE...HEEELP MEEEEE!!! to the other patients in the room.
Finally I get my turn in the office (10:40), I am completely frazzled, pissed off and embarresed. I can hardly remember why I'm there!! Grrrr.......
When we leave, Lily (who is now happy) toddles behind me, blowing kisses and saying bye bye to everyone. Grrrrrr..........
Then I go the Superstore for groceries, and while I start to backup into a parking space, with my blinker on and reverse lights, some idiot drives AROUND me and into my spot!! Grrrrrrr...
I curse at him, and shout rude things (yes I did!!) then I drive around and find another spot and while I start again, to back up, blinker on, reverse lights on, some other idiot drives AROUND me and into my spot.
I "happened" upon them in the store, and almost hit them with my shopping cart. Actually the cart did knock the purse off her shoulder. I asked her to move but she was soo ignorant she just stood there, so I pushed my way by!!! The whole time muttering "learn how to drive...reverse lights...parking spot....blinker"....GRRRRRRRRRRR.............

Tea time

What's dessert without a "cuppa " tea??
Frank and I had chinese tea....the girls had Chamomile tea....

I collect tea pots and tea cups and we always have different cups with different teas.

Rocky Road Brownies...

You can't have supper without dessert!!
Rocky Road Brownies:
First you make topping:
1 1/4 cup mini marshmallows
1 cup Choc Chips
1/2 chopped nuts
(Set aside you'll use this after the brownies are almost cooked)
then you make your brownies:

1/2 cup melted butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
Beat with spoon till well blended. Add:
1/2 cup flour
1/3 cup coca
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
Blend well... (yes I am on the phone!! Talented eh??)


.... and Taste!!





Pour into grease 9 inch pan and Bake 22 mins

















and taste again!!! After 22 mins sprinkle you choc chip mixture that you have set aside over top and bake another 5 mins or until the marshmallows have puffed slightly.


YUM YUM!! These are soo good and gooey!

Snow Day / Cooking Day

Today we had a snow day!! Yes, snowstorm in April!! So Isabelle and I decided to do some cooking.

I love cooking with my kids!! I have always included them, even when they were only little, I still made sure they mixed or tasted or played with dough. Some of my fondest memories are of cooking with my mother and I hope my girls will have memories like that to cherish.

Tonight Isabelle decided on Chicken in a bbq sauce for supper with asparagus, corn and potatoes and Rocky road brownies for dessert. Yum yum!!
She also wanted to take photos to journal our adventure....After a while I felt like a superstar, with the flashes and the posing...
So here are Isabelle's pics of our day. (with the recipe we made up of the BBQ sauce).

Isabelle's BBQ chicken:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic crushed
2 onions - diced finely
1 cup ketchup
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 maple syrup
2 tsp vinegar
14 oz can of diced tomatoes
Salt and pepper

1 whole chicken - about 3 to 5 lbs

Saute garlic and onions in large pot. Add remaining ingredients to pot bring to boil. Turn off heat, and puree (blender or hand held blender). Let cool.
Place chicken in roaster, pour sauce over chicken. Cook covered 1 1/2 hours. Remove cover and cook for another 1/2 hour basting often.

It makes a ton of sauce and it would be good to baste on ribs or steaks on the BBQ!













Lily wanted to cook with us... in her words "I make".."I make"
So here she is "making" a mixture of goldfish pretzels and Gerber Veggie Puffs. She has her measuring cup, cutting board and bowl.
Then, like mommy, tipped her cutting board into her bowl to dump her ingredients, however, hers didn't quite make it into the bowl! The dog was very happy Lily was cooking!

Cool Picture

We were in Moncton over the weekend, and the hotel we stayed in had bunk beds for the girls in thier own little room. The room even had a "window". Here is a neat picture of Abigail in the window.

My favorite " I need to have supper done in under 30 mins" recipe.

I seem to be on the run with my kids everyday!! Especially the 2 older ones and I need quick suppers that take little ingredients, little time and can sit on the stove until 8pm.

I have a few "stand-by" recipes that I alternate. These are recipes that I can have finished by 4pm, leave for the gym with 1 girl and Frank or the babysitter can feed the remaining girls.
Then at 8pm, the gym girl and myself can eat.

I've taken recipes and adjusted them for me...to use what I have on hand...and to make it easier
I don't measure the flour or the spices or weigh the chicken etc.. and it always turns out.
So trust yourself, relax and wing it!!
To make things even faster, I serve this with rice that is cooking in the rice cooker while I make the supper.

Here is my "easy, tried and liked" recipe for the week:

CHICKEN SKILLET DINNER
This takes about 15-20 mins to prepare and about 45 mins to cook.

1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp pepper
4 small chicken breast (bone in or out)
1/4 cup Zesty Italian Dressing
2 cups carrots, (baby carrots are easier and faster)
(I've used fresh green beans, and frozen veggies when in a pinch)
1 onion cut into wedges
1 can chicken broth or veggie broth
1/4 cup cream cheese

Heat the italian dressing in a large skillet or deep sided pot.
Mix your flour and pepper in a bowl and toss your chicken to coat it lightly. Add your chicken to the dressing. Cook for 5 mins on medium (actually time it...don't touch it till 5 mins is DONE!) It will be golden. Turn over and add your carrots, onion and 1 cup of broth. Cover and reduce heat to med-low. simmer 20mins. (till veggies are done).
Once the veggies are done, remove the chicken and veggies from the pan to a covered bowl.
Add the cream cheese and what ever broth you have left to the pot, increase your heat and cook till the cream cheese is melted and is well blended. Reduce heat and and cook till sauce is thickened slightly.
*At this point I taste the sauce and if I have lots of chicken I make more sauce, by adding more italian dressing, broth (or water in a pinch) and cream cheese to the pot.
Add the chicken and veggies back to the pot.
Take off heat, it can sit and wait till your ready or serve right away.

Enjoy!!

Lily and her China Sisters

Last week we invited some friends over for a playdate. Andrea appropriately called them
"China Sisters". What a great name!! Everyone played so well together! We can't wait to do it again very soon!
Some of these "sisters" had only been home 1 week!!
What a bunch of beautiful girls. (and the mom's weren't bad looking either!! LOL)