Random Update about Life's Activities

Sometimes I wonder why I even have a camera. I am the worst at taking pictures. So much has happened in the past month or so and I have failed to get almost any of it on film. Plus, I think my camera is on its last leg. It is getting very temperamental. It only turns on and off when it feels like it. So, that is a whole other story.

Here are some of our happenings in April and May:

* My parents came to visit for 1 week together, during my kids Spring Break; my mom stayed an extra 2 weeks (I didn't take a single picture of my parents with my children- UGH!!!)

*My dad planted me a garden in the backyard. I told him if he planted it- I would take care of it. Currently, I have swiss chard, green and red leaf lettuce, carrots, onions, some green beans, zucchini, summer squash, green and red peppers, grape tomatoes and plum tomatoes, and a japanese eggplant growing like mad. The okra and cucumber didn't make it :(

* A hand weight fell off our 6 ft. pantry, directly onto my foot, smooshing my second toe. I couldn't walk on that foot for quite a while and even now, 4-5 weeks later, the blackness of my toenail and the surrounding area makes people squeemish. Who knew you actually needed those darn toes?

*Matt and I took a quick trip to Utah for a friend's wedding. I found cheap tickets and my mom extended her ticket so she could keep the children. Later, I realized why the tickets were cheap. We came back on Easter Sunday, on a 6 am flight.

* We have discovered and are currently, still discovering, that when you have 2 children playing baseball and Dad participating on 2 separate softballs teams, you spend the majority of your life at a baseball field. For the past 2 months we have had a baseball game at least 3/4 nights a week and at least 3 on every Saturday. Crazy.

* The Atlanta Temple Open House and Dedication took place. (Once again- where was my camera???!!!!!) I kept the kids out of school and we were able to take grandma & grandpa (My parents) with us. I also was able to go back and take my friend through the open house with me. It was a really neat experience. I'm so glad we have a temple closer to us that we can frequent more often.

* We picked strawberries at Washington Farms

* We had our dear friends come and stay the weekend with us

* The kids are participating in a Beatles Montage singing/dancing end-of-school presentation and have been practicing after school for a couple of weeks.

* I didn't feel good for 3 days. Too bad it was the week that I was making a wedding cake, catering a lunch, and making cupcakes for a birthday party.

* Ryanne started to feel sick the day after I started to feel better. I thought it was the same thing I had. It wasn't. She has strep throat.

*School gets out in 7 days!! (7 School Days!!) I don't know who is more excited- me or the kids!!

* We finally made the Bunny Buns that Ryanne requested that we make for Easter. My mom was going to make them the weekend she was here with the kids, but it didn't happen. We made them yesterday since Ry was home from school and for once in my life- I took pictures to prove it.
Ryanne wants to know when we are going to make them again. Ha. It was really fun. I let the girls mix up the bread dough and knead it and then we all got to shape them. They were really yummy and it made a ton of bunnies!! I will include the recipe at the bottom of the page with the few changes we made. They are basically just a cuter version of an orange roll.




Jonah made me the cutest Mother's Day breakfast. It was so fun. He spelled Love with Cheerios, but they moved, so you can't see that here. Ha ha. So cute.
The wedding cake I made. It was really nerve-wrecking and I wasn't very happy with the outcome and of course, my camera was having fits, so I didn't even know if I would get a picture of it.

Some cupcake toppers I made. Those, I absolutely love.

Until next time.

Bunny Buns

from The Friend Magazine
my changes in RED

1 package active dry yeast

1/4 cup warm water

1 cup SKIM milk, warmed not quite to boiling

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter never shortening

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

2 tablespoons grated orange peel

5 1/2 cups flour, sifted

Glaze: 2 cups powdered sugar, 1/4 cup hot water, 1 teaspoon butter

Orange glaze- 2 cups powdered sugar, fresh orange juice -enough to make a glaze (I didn't measure), fresh orange peel

1. Wash hands with soap and water.

2. Sprinkle yeast in the warm water and set aside.

3. In another bowl, blend milk, sugar, shortening, and salt. Cool until lukewarm, then add eggs, water with yeast, orange juice, and orange peel.

4. Stir in flour a few cups at a time to make a soft dough. Let stand for 10 minutes.

5. Knead dough 5–10 minutes on a lightly floured surface until dough is smooth and elastic. I had to add extra flour to get the dough to come together. Place it in a lightly greased bowl, turning once to grease surface. Cover bowl with a clean towel and put it in a warm place. Let dough rise for 2 hours, or until double in size. Punch dough down and let stand for 10 minutes.

6. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into a rectangle 1/2 inch thick. Cut dough into strips 1/2 inch wide and 14 inches long. Roll between hands into rounded snake shapes. Cut one strip into pieces 1/2 inch long, and roll into balls.

7. Place one long piece of dough on a greased cookie sheet. Place one end of the strip over the other to make a loop; bring the end that is underneath up and cross it over the other end. Place a ball of dough on top of the bottom loop.

8. Cover bunnies and let rise in a warm place for 45–60 minutes, until nearly double in size. Bake at 375ºF (190ºC) for 12–15 minutes.

9. For the glaze, stir powdered sugar, water, and butter together. Frost bunnies with the glaze while they are still warm.