House Pics!!!!

I have been so mean to not post any pics of what has been going on at our house. It took me up until today to finally download the pics from the various places I had taken them to the computer, so now I have some things I can share with you! Of course, just for kicks, I am only posting the before pics. Only pics of demo, destruction, and disaster. If you can't handle it, or you have a sensitive stomach, please refrain from viewing (:

The night of our flood, the Service Master people came with their army of oversized dryers.

Every room got soaked. What you are seeing is the path that was walked on. It was like walking on soaking wet towels.

They immediately ripped out the carpet.

Holes in my kitchen hoping to dry everything out. As you know, we later had to rip out the entire kitchen (:

Master bathroom on the first day of demolition. Most of that mess was by choice, not from the flood!

Looking down the hall after paint.

Pretty much what every room in my house has looked like the entire time!

The way the kitchen looked the day we discovered it would all have to be ripped out!

Other hallway view.

I just thought this was hilarious. It sat here until the hall bathroom floor was completed. It really says "Welcome to my home." I guess it was a rather fitting way to welcome people in light of what was going on inside!!!!

More pics to come.......

Progress, progress, progress!!!

What a difference a day makes....that old adage is actually very true for us right now! Each day brings exciting new progress to smile and thank God for!

We are now about two weeks to completion. Things are moving fast now. The kitchen cabinets got put in Monday and Tuesday, the cabinet painter came and took the doors off so he can start the paint process Wednesday, the tile floor is being laid in the kitchen/dining/entry, and will be finished this week.

Next week, carpet goes in the bedrooms, the painting for the cabinets will progress, the master bath will be completed, and the hardwood will come in. My sweet husband, who said he would "never again" install hardwood, has been so kind to indulge me so we could save the labor money, which got our master bath remodeled. Isn't he sweet? We actually enjoyed doing that hardwood project together last time, and I am looking forward to doing it again. It will be much easier this time, since it is only going in the living room and down the hall, and the boards are much wider.

Soooo.....it's looking like we may be completed by Christmas, but may not have enough time to move back in by then. It's all up in the air, and we will trust God for the outcome! We are just so very excited that our Christmas present is a completely redone house! I am humbled and feel so undeserving of all of it. I love my sweet little home and cannot WAIT to get back in!

This week's progress

We made some progress this week! The kitchen estimate was approved, payment issued, and design began. Our contractor recommended a fantastic cabinet maker from our church, who came this week and patiently worked with me to design the most efficient kitchen I could possibly have! We are keeping our countertops, since they weren't in the budget for replacing at this time, so we worked in the same footprint as the current kitchen. Fortunately, it is laid out really well, so we just needed to tweak some of the cabinets to make them more functional. We added slideout drawers in some of the cabinets (yippee!), changed some cabinets to deep drawers for pots/pans/baking dishes (yippee!), and made the upper cabinets a foot taller (yippee)!!!!! Ooh, and crown moulding. Double yippee!!!! I am so very excited for the major reorganization of things that were haphazardouly placed. And ya know, for a little ole' homemaker like me, this is so VERY exciting, since the kitchen is my "office"!

I am also so very excited about my newly renovated master bath, that Dave and our contractor designed together. We knocked out walls, added a tub, and are making it a beautiful haven inside our master bedroom. I am not sharing any details yet, as I want to post pics when it is all done. Let's just say it will be magical. Today the tile in the shower is going in, the closet is being widened, and some other fun stuff!

The boys bathroom is almost completely done. Dave needs to install the vanity and countertop, and the moulding needs to be finished, and it will be completely functional again. I am extremely pleased with how the tile floor turned out, seeing as how I literally had to choose tile for that room in between hospital visits, and was in NO MOOD to pick out tile. It is beautifully neutral and will contrast well with the dark cocoa colored vanity and pale green walls. Oh, and the boys' vanity now has drawers. Woohoo!

Demo in the kitchen is coming up. That will be fun to watch! Stay tuned!

Plugging Along....

It's been more than five weeks since the flood! Little and much progress has been made, both at the same time. That doesn't even make sense, but I haven't been able to make sense of the last five weeks yet either. I am depending upon the Lord for His daily grace to tackle everything that needs to be tackled.


The night before the flood, Dave's dad was rushed by ambulance to the hospital with breathing problems. After a two year battle with lung cancer, he passed about a week and a half ago. It became evident after a couple of weeks into his hospital stay that he was nearing the end, so Dave and his brothers made the decision to put him into hospice at the hospital. Many long days in a row were spent in the hospital, as I watched my husband so faithfully care for his dad day and night in his last days and hours. It was such an encouragement to my heart. We were being yanked in several directions, trying to deal with the necessary things we needed to do to keep the construction going, yet longing to stay at the hospital to care for his dad. God was very gracious, and He sustained us daily when we were weary and sad. He passed away in the presence of his three sons and I. We will miss "Papa Ed" very much. All the details are falling into place for a memorial gathering, which I, unfortunately, am not able to host at this time. My home is not exactly in the condition for a large party (:


With things calming down to the lower level of chaos, we are re-focusing on what needs to be done so we can get back into our house. There are so many decisions to make, our heads are spinning. I never thought about having to make design decisions for every aspect of our home all at once! It is both fun and overwhelming, all at the same time!

The latest development was found in the form of more water damage right as we were about to get flooring put in the kitchen and dining room. The kitchen cabinets sustained some water damage, so we have been in the process of having another estimate put together and submitted to insurance for the kitchen! If I have learned anything, it is that everything you think couldn't possibly take more than a day to resolve will take 2 weeks. Therefore, it has been a great lesson in patience, knowing that even every day that gets drawn out is God's plan for us! It should take another month or so to get everything completed, but I know at the end of all the chaos and destruction is going to be a beautiful new home! We are so thankful and so excited for all the things we are being given the opportunity to do with our home. I am especially excited for the remodel in my master bath....we added a bathtub! SOOOOOOO exciting! We are joking that after being completely uprooted from our home for two months, I may not want to get out of the tub, and we should install an intercom so I can just give instructions to the boys directly from the bath. Sounds perfect to me. I guess we should have installed a bigger hot water heater.

I am trying to document the process as much as possibly with pictures, so stay tuned for some before and afters. I hope to show the dramatic change from complete disaster to beautiful and serene! God is good, and I am working on fixing my eyes on heaven and not the things of the earth!

The latest "adventure."

It's a wonderful life, and often it seems like a roller coaster! I marvel at all the experiences we have had in such a short amount of time of being on this earth. I view each as an example to experience God's grace, mercy, love, and help in new ways.

The latest adventure, boys and girls, came to us in the form of a flood. Not the monumental proportions of the like we have seen in other countries across the world, but in the form of an inside flood. It began last Sunday afternoon as we returned home after an interesting 24 hours previous. The night before, Luke had been diagnosed with an ear infection, my father in law had been rushed to the ER by ambulance, and the crock pot that I needed to cook 20 lbs of ground beef in for a staff meeting at church decided to take its last breath. So imagine my surprise to come home, approach my front door, and see water coming out. "That's strange," Dave and I thought. Ha!

Then we opened the front door. At first when I saw all the water, my first thought was "Grab the towels!!! Lots and lots of towels." But as I walked further down the hall, it occured to me that this was WAY beyond the help of towels. Our toilet down at the end of the hall had been continually overflowing for what we think was about 7 hours straight. The water traveled into each room of the house, from one end to the other. The carpet was saturated the likes of walking on a sopping wet towel. I have to admit it was quite an interesting feeling on my toes. It made a nice squishing noise. Just a little weird that it was the carpeting in my house. Yeah.

So after the moments of panic diminished, we set to work. Dave got out his trusty Shop-Vac and began vacuuming up water. I called the homeowners insurance company. And within a couple of hours, the Service Master people were here setting up the fans. By the next day, my house turned from bad to worse, and they began to completely tear everything apart! I did enjoy teasing the workmen about getting water, mud and scratches on my wood floor. The joke is old now, though. Bummer.

We are starting to realize the extent of the damage. We have officially moved in to the trailer in the driveway, which we are so thankful for! It allows us to be here on the property while they work to answer questions, and also gives us the ability to still be able to prepare all our food. We may avail ourselves to a hotel somewhere in the midst of this, since the insurance company will pay for that. Who couldn't use a little swimming and a nice hot tub during a stressful thing like this?

So come along on this journey with us! I will try and post pictures of the progress. By the end of this week, we are hoping to know exactly what work will need to be done, and therefore be able to hopefully have a time frame as to how long it will all take. I told the kids that I would be surprised if it was done by Christmas!! It is exciting to see what blessings God is supplying us already through the prayers of so many of our friends, meals, etc. And the blessing of a freshly surfaced home! At this point, we know we will be getting new carpet, new hardwood flooring, new bathroom cabinets, a new armoire for the living room, and fresh paint throughout! Wow!!!! So fun!!!! God is so very good in all of this.

Carpinteria State Beach Camping Trip

We just returned from our Labor Day week of camping at Carpinteria State Beach with several other families. It is such a highlight of our year. I'm not sure if you've ever been to this campground, but it is pretty much the most amazing place. Your trailer is steps from the beach, steps from the fun, steps from watching the tide pools, and steps from gazing at the sunset while you eat your dinner. We had the most wonderful and relaxing time at the beach, and the boys played endless hours of foursquare and rode their bikes around the campground. Of course, we biked into the quaint little town for a visit to the old-fashioned candy store for some yummies. It was such a privilege to be alongside the most wonderful people I know, having great conversations and watching all our children play together and enjoy their time. I am so thankful for these sweet dear families and their sweet kids that my kids get to grow up with. The Lord is so good to allow us to enjoy these gifts from Him!



Some of the teens that were there. I love the reflection on the sand!

A group shot of most of the kids!

Vance found a little hermit crab in the tidepools!

Playin' around at the tide pools!

Austin exploring the anemones....

Luke looking for creatures!!!

Enjoying frozen chocolate bananas in the trailer! A group of happy kids!

They were having too much fun to act serious. Seriously!!!!

We miss Carpinteria already.....Lord willing we will get to do it again next year!

Summer Re-cap!

Wow, I'm sure my one reader has given up on me, I haven't blogged in so long! I have just been busy enjoying life, enjoying my kids, and enjoying our summer! What did we do this summer?

In June, we celebrated our oldest son's 13th birthday! Austin has grown so much in so many ways this past year, not to mention passed me up in height by several inches (which isn't hard). We rang in the teenage years with a sleepover with 9 boys. It was so much fun and so easy to please all those boys. Austin requested pizza, caesar salad, and a homemade pizookie for dessert with ice cream. They had a dart gun war of epic proportions at the park across the street, watched a movie, and then played video games all night. And by that, I mean they never slept. Not a wink. I slept all night, as they were out in the camping trailer in the driveway....works for me! It has been so much fun having a teenager and his teenage friends in our life. We have really transitioned into a new phase of life, and we are loving it so far! All the Junior High activities and events have really been a blessing to Austin, and he has jumped into everything with both feet!

We spent the rest of the days of summer at the pool, the beach, had a trip to Magic Mountain to use our free reading passes, a quick impromptu trip out to Mojave to ride dirt bikes, some trips to the shooting range, and a visit to Malibu Creek State Park for a refreshing swim in the water hole.

School has begun in full force this week! I am excited to embark on a new year, and have made some great curriculum changes that we are really enjoying so far. I look forward to what the year holds, and continue to give thanks to God for this precious freedom to school our boys at home, and for our homeschool group and all the activities we are blessed to participate in during the year.

Dave's new job is going well, and we praise God for both His provision and blessing! Dave is truly back in his element, using his gifts and talents, and really enjoying the work and the challenges. We are thankful to have both the provision and the enjoyment of work. The new company, Handmade, is thriving, adding employees, and gaining new projects in abundance. We will continue to trust in the Lord with how He chooses and sees fit to prosper the company.

With all that said, here's to a new school year! I hope to be more faithful to post the coming events as they happen. Starting with next week....our annual camping trip to Carpinteria State Beach! Woohoo!!!!

15 Years

I have so many posts I need to put up from the last few weeks, but today I wanted to blog on something special! Today Dave and I are celebrating our 15 year wedding anniversary! I SO wish I could scan in our wedding picture, but the computer attached to my scanner is not working, and I'm too inept to hook it up to this one.

In some ways, I cannot believe 15 years have gone by. In 15 years, there have been births, illnesses, deaths, moves, job changes, joys, difficulties, excitement, disappointments, and the list goes on. In 15 years, there has been growth and there have been setbacks. But one thing is the same: God has faithfully and continually worked in our lives through it all. Even our love for one another as husband and wife hasn't stayed the same. It has grown. I love Dave more today than yesterday, and I can't even compare how I love him today to how I loved him on our wedding day. All the things we have experienced as husband and wife have only taught us to love each other more, and taught us to love each other like God wants us to love each other.

I am so blessed to be Dave's wife. He is the man God chose for me, and he is the father God chose for our children. It is my desire to love Dave, serve him, and honor him for the rest of the days we have together, through whatever God in His sovereignty decides to do with our lives. I am thankful, and I prayerfully look forward to our future, as God directs our every step as we live our lives and in our marriage to honor and glorify God!

Winds of Change

I would be lying if I said the last two weeks weren't a challenge. It seems that when it rains, it pours, but I am thankful in the midst. There is so much to be thankful for.

Dave flew into international waters the day the volcano erupted in Iceland. He has never left the country before. And God knew that would happen before he left. God knew it would take him 4 days longer than expected to arrive at his destination in Kiev, 4 days behind on the installation of Balloon Rabbit, the project he has poured his heart into for the last year. He drove from Paris to Kiev since all airports were shut down, a grounding of airplanes on a scale not seen since 9/11.

God also knew that between the time Dave would leave America and the time he would return, his company would file bankruptcy and close its doors after over 30 years in business. It was a total shock, to say the least. My husband was on the other side of the world, for almost 4 days I did not even know his whereabouts, and then come to find out that his "what seemed to be promising" career was over. At the time I found all this out, I also had no guarantee of Dave returning any time soon. The airspace was still closed, and there was talk that it could take weeks to get all the backlogged flights cleared up and everyone out of all the countries they were stuck in. I am being honest when I say it was very hard for me.

By the grace of God, he was able to get out on a flight only two days after he was orignally scheduled to return. I have never been so happy to see my husband's face as the moment I heard his car pull up and he appeared at our front door at two o'clock in the morning. I almost didn't want to let him go after we embraced.

Facing the beginning of our first week of unemployment, I sat in the sanctuary of our church at the beginning of the Sunday worship service and heard a song that seemed as if the words were written just for me and what I am going through.


Still my soul be still
And do not fear
Though winds of change may rage tomorrow
God is at your side
No longer dread
The fires of unexpected sorrow

God You are my God
And I will trust in You and not be shaken
Lord of peace renew
A steadfast spirit within me
To rest in You alone

Still my soul be still
Do not be moved
By lesser lights and fleeting shadows
Hold onto His ways
With shield of faith
Against temptations flaming arrows

Still my soul be still
Do not forsake
The Truth you learned in the beginning
Wait upon the Lord
And hope will rise
As stars appear when day is dimming

Wow! No longer dread the fires of unexpected sorrows! Do not forsake the Truth I have learned in the beginning. God's word promises me trouble. It promises me hard things, difficulties, and things that are sorrowful in this life. But with God, my soul can be at rest with these difficulties, because God brings these trials to teach me and because of His great love towards me. I have come to a place in my Christian walk where I can say to God: "Bring the trials you see necessary to teach me the things I need to know, and to cleanse me from the sins I am entangled in and don't recognize, especially when things are going good in my life."

You see, I can say these things because God is for me, and not against me. By His grace, He has made me one of His, and promises to keep me forever in His care. So my soul can be still. So I can wait upon Him and what He will do to provide for our family and provide Dave with a new job, whenever that will be. And I will not be shaken. So I will not worry or trust in my own understanding. I can cast my burden upon the Lord, for He cares for me. 1 Peter 5:7. I can be anxious for nothing, but by prayer and supplication let my requests be made known to God, and the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension will guard my heart and mind in Christ Jesus. Phil 4:5-7. All of these riches are mine, and for this reason, I have a heart of thankfulness. Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift! 2 Corinthians 9:15!

Happy Birthday to my Sister!

Today is my sister's birthday! Karen is one of my greatest blessings on this earth. I don't think I realized her worth and value until I was all grown up. We are almost 7 years apart, so growing up we were always in a different phase of life. I mean, come on, who wants a 9 year old bugging you when you're a teenager? And I'm sure I was just SO pleasant to be around back then anyways (: Hehe.

Today, my sister is my best girl friend, my example, my encouragement, and one with whom I share all of life's joys and trials with. It never gets old, just her and me-whether we're hanging out by the pool, drinking coffee, sitting by the fireplace, donating blood together, eating and cooking, or just out and about. We are even together all the time at church. So much that people who don't know us well have to question whether or not we are related. We're always sitting together, wlaking down the halls together, in ministry together. What a joy and blessing. Like I said in the beginning of this post, Karen is one of God's greatest blessings to me. To know the love of a sister and friend, and know the peace and joy that we are both secure for eternity because of our mutual faith in Christ is an immense privilege, and one I do not deserve.

I love you, sis! I hope you enjoy your special day today! Enjoy being 29!

Vance Turns 9!!!!

I can't believe my "baby" turns 9 today! It just doesn't seem possible. The last 9 years have just flown by. This past year he has excelled in school, dirt bike riding, being an absolute kick in the pants, and keeps us all laughing regularly! He is very easy going, very generous, and very loving, while still maintaining his rugged male character. He's lost some teeth, broken a hand, split a lip here and there, and grown bigger and taller. He has a recent love of clay and making various creations out of it, loves rocks, crystals, and minerals, reading, and everything he can soak up with his brain. He's Vancey pants, Fuzzy, the Bubs, and we all love him to death.

Today for his birthday, we went to the local donut store for breakfast, did some shopping, had pizza at Dave's office for lunch, did some more shopping (he wanted a hat and new wallet at New Star skate and surf shop), Menchies for some frozen yogurt, and then to the Dollar Tree. What a fun day! We're saving his special birthday dinner for tomorrow when Dave will be home. We are having salmon, of course. Vance's very favorite food in the whole world.

Vance, you are so special to me and to your Daddy. We love you so much, and pray for you always. We have enjoyed watching you grow up thus far, and can't wait to see what God has for you in the future!


New clay for the birthday boy!

Vance sporting his new wallet and hat he bought with birthday money from Grandma.

Vance and his new MP3 player!

Hmmm....clay in one hand, music in the other???

Luke's Birthday Party at the Gorman Track

This past Saturday, we threw Luke a birthday party at the Gorman motocross track. We invited family and all of Luke's motorcycle riding friends. It was SO much fun. Luke requested chili dogs, and wanted a cupcake bar for dessert. Easy enough! Did you know that Tommy's sells their chili by the quart? I ran over to Tommy's and got a couple to serve over the chili dogs, and it was a hit! And who doesn't need an occasional Tommy's fix in their life? I think once a year is sufficient.



We suprised Luke with a BIG birthday present this year. A new (well, used) CR85 dirt bike. He was ready to move up, and so was Vance, so we pushed everyone up a bike, and were able to sell our smallest bike to buy the new one. I tell you folks, if you are ever considering getting into the sport, ALWAYS buy used. Hondas and Yamahas (and the other three brands as well) run and run and run, with very little work required. It's so cheap to buy them used, and then when you are done with them, you can usually sell them and get your money back so you can upgrade. The kids grow so fast and their skills increase, making it necessary every once in a while to do so. Dave decided to go with a CR85 two stroke for Luke, since he really is a great rider.



We made EVERY EFFORT to conceal Luke's gift from him until the day of his party. Dave went out and bought the bike, and we hid it in our friends' garage until Luke was gone at church one night. We brought it home, cleaned it up, and stashed it inside the back of our trailer. Luke never goes in there, so we thought we would be safe. I made every effort to refrain from sending the boy into the trailer for anything. When we were packing up the trailer for the party, I made sure to send the other boys into the trailer with food and such. Until it totally slipped my mind and I sent Luke out there to put something in the fridge. He came back into the house, speechless, yet talkative (if that's possible), and with excitement in his voice, began frantically asking about the "foreign bike" in the trailer. I tried to fabricate a story. FAIL. Austin tried to convince him it was my sister's bike. EPIC FAIL. Up until that moment he literally had NO CLUE he was getting a bike for his birthday. Yet, when he saw it, he was convinced it was his. And he was thrilled. So the cat was out of the bag a little early and I was disappointed, but the suprise factor was definitely accomplished, just a little early!



The day of the party, he was just so excited to ride his new bike, and he did AWESOME on that thing. Dave thought it would "scare the pants off of him" since it has significantly more power than the last bikes he has ridden. But he did amazing! Mission accomplished! We also had to give him a disclaimer: "No Luke, you will NOT be getting a gift like this every year for your birthday"....haha.

Happy 11th Birthday Luke!

Luke's Birthday Breakfast

Delicious Cinnamon Rolls...Recipe to come

Today our middlest, craziest, most energetic, most lovable, sensitive yet tough at the same time, athletically inclined, fast learning, talkative, friendly, people oriented, dirt bike riding, bike riding, skateboarding middle child turns 11!!!! That just blows me away. I still remember the day he climbed out of his crib and was standing on his dresser when I went in to greet him in the morning. He doesn't do that anymore.

Luke is a gift from God to our family. God chose Luke as our child and Dave and I as his parents. What a great responsibility and privilege we have!!! It has been both a blessing and a challenge, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. It has been encouraging to watch him grow and learn. I can't wait to see what the future holds for him, and even what this next year may bring. For now, I trust that the Lord has a plan for his life, and He continues to hold Luke's every moment is His very hand. I pray that the Lord would do a mighty work in Luke's heart, even if just little by little. For with God little is MUCH, and I will rejoice in little!

Today we are celebrating Luke's birthday with the following meals, personally chosen by the birthday boy himself:

Breakfast: Cinnamon Rolls

Lunch: Pizza with Dad at his office

Dinner: Steak, mashed potatoes and gravy, and a lettuce wedge salad with blue cheese crumbles and bacon bits

Tomorrow we will celebrate his birthday with family and dirt bike riding friends at the Gorman track, where he will open his presents. For now I will not reveal any details, but there will be pictures to come, courtesy of my beautiful niece Emma, who I'm sure will capture all the excitement of the day! Stay tuned. Excitement to come!

Field Trip to the Van Nuys Airport

Yesterday, some of the families from Lighthouse visited the Van Nuys Airport for a field trip. It was a really fun and informative trip! We boarded a tour bus and were driven around the hangars and down the runway, and given information about the airport itself and the planes and people who own them. Did you know that Amelia Earhart flew out of this airport? We also saw Jim Carrey's private jet, news helicopters, and planes belonging to various large corporations.

We were taken to the Fire Station's hangar, where they keep all the emergency fire response vehicles, helicopters, and the Super Soaker. We watched a trainee who was learning to make water drops circle around several times and drop the water. It was a great time! Here are some pics from the day.


Group shot in front of the super soaker .

Vance standing in front of a $13 million dollar helicopter.

The Fireman explaining info about the helicopters.

Very cool.

Luke and Jimmy checking out the Super Soaker.

A trainee making a water drop.

The boys in the Fire Station Hangar saluting the flag!

Vance in front of one of the emergency response vehicles. Note the size of the tire in relation to his height. That's one MEGA machine!

Tasty Tuesday {Potato Pan Rolls}

We had a great time of fellowship this past weekend with some of our Juniors staff. We attended two staff dinners both evenings and had a great time of food and fun. I brought one of my favorite bread recipes to one of the dinners, and I was asked for the recipe, so I thought I would share it here today. Sometimes I feel lazy, and when asked to bring rolls, I will buy the Kings Hawaiian rolls because they are good. But they can be expensive for a large group of people, so I always go to this recipe because it makes lots of rolls with minimal effort, and for very little cost. I am working very hard to be budget mindful, in light of my growing boys and growing food bill. I can't believe how much I spend on food, and how quickly it disappears! Anyways, one batch of this recipe turns out 36 deliciously soft potato rolls. It is an excellent recipe to use for Thanksgiving or Christmas meals where you need to feed a crowd. They also freeze really well, so you can make them ahead of time. Just make sure you cut the baking time back a couple of minutes and just undercook them slightly, so that when you reheat them, they don't dry out.


Potato Pan Rolls

2 medium potatoes, peeled, quartered, cooked in 1 1/2 cups water, then mashed to equal 1 cup of potatoes, and also reserving 1 cup cooking liquid
4 1/2 tsp yeast
1 tsp sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup honey
2 eggs
1/4 cup oil
2 tsp salt
6 cups bread flour (or half white, half whole wheat flour)

Cool cooking liquid (should be 1 cup) from potatoes to 110-115 degrees. Set aside. Cool the 1 cup of mashed potatoes to same temp. In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar with cooking liquid. Let stand for 5 minutes (should foam up). Add mashed potatoes, butter, honey, oil, eggs, salt, and 1 1/2 cups of the flour. Beat until smooth. Add remaining 4 1/2 cups flour and mix until it forms a soft dough. Knead in mixer with dough hook for about 6-8 minutes, or until smooth and elastic. Place in a greased bowl, and turn once to coat. Cover, and let rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size. Punch down dough and turn onto floured surface. Divide the dough into three equal portions. Divide each portion into 10-12 pieces, forming each piece into a ball with your hands. Place each group of 10-12 into a greased round cake pan. Cover and let rise 30 minutes or until doubled. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Cool on wire racks.

Tasty Tuesday

Today's recipe is a new one I just tried for the first time, and WOW, were they good. They had the perfect texture, perfect crumb, perfect amount of sweetness, and they're healthy to boot! OK, well......somewhat healthy. Hey, it's got carrots in it, come on!

Carrot Cake Muffins

1 1/4 cups flour (I used half whole wheat)

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp EACH baking powder and baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup finely grated carrots

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce or sour cream (either works fantastic)

2 eggs

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup oil or butter

3/4 cup raisins

Combine wet ingredients, then add all dry ingredients except raisins, and mix well. Stir in the raisins. Spoon into greased muffin tins. Bake 20 minutes, or until done.

frosting:

powdered sugar

milk

vanilla

Mix a small amount of milk into about 2 cups of powdered sugar, adding more milk if necessary to get it to drizzling consistency. Stir in about 1/2 tsp vanilla. When muffins are cooled, drizzle the frosting over the muffins.

Disneyland

"Luke, I am your father."

"I am going to blow up the world with my X1-Z2 modulator."

Big Thunder Mountain!

Love the Toy Story ride....TOO much fun!

Ready with the 3D glasses!

Dave and his boyz.....

A is for Austin.....

F is for Fuzzy (well, there was no V)

L is for Luke!

Our friends gave us some Disney passes last year, and we finally found a good day to go. We went on a Friday, and it was the perfect day. Perfect weather, perfect crowds...We did both parks and just had so much fun together! Dave hadn't been to Disneyland as a patron since he was a teenager. He has done some special effects work there, but has not been there "for fun"! It is so different now, and he had never been to California Adventure. Now that the boys are older, it is so much fun to go on all the rides together. Long gone are the days when we would take one child on a ride at a time, while one parent waited. What a blessing and privilege to spend such a fun day together!

The Perfect Cheesecake

My husband's favorite dessert: Cheesecake.

Number of failed attempts to make the perfect cheesecake: Innumerable.

Until I found this recipe. This gem of a recipe was found on Recipezaar, the virtues of which I have extoled in the past. I love this website because you can search a recipe by ratings, meaning the highest and best rated recipes will show up at the top. After reading literally hundreds of rave reviews for this cheesecake recipe, I decided to give it a try. I had no idea it would come out this perfect. There is now no need to look any further. This is the one. Forever. If you follow the directions closely, you will end up with the most beautiful, perfectly creamy, perfectly cooked, crackless cheesecake, I promise you. I made this for Dave's birthday yesterday, and he raved about it. And if you know Dave, you know he doesn't rave. He's just not a raver. Is that a word? Anyways, I like to serve this cheesecake with strawberry sauce on top. I also think it would be equally divine with an oreo crust. Next time.

Suzanne's Cheesecake

15 graham crackers, crushed
4 tbsp butter, melted
4 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, soft
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup milk
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 tbsp vanilla
1/4 cup flour

Preheat oven to 350. Mix the graham cracker crumbs with the melted butter, and press into a greased springform pan. Set aside. Mix the cream cheese and the sugar until smooth. Blend in milk, then mix in eggs, one at a time, mixing just enough to incorporate. Mix in sour cream, vanilla, and flour and mix until smooth. Pour over crust. Bake for one hour. TURN OFF OVEN AND LET CAKE COOL IN OVEN WITH THE DOOR CLOSED FOR 5-6 HOURS. Chill before serving.

Strawberry Sauce:

1 lb frozen strawberries
2-3 tbsp sugar
1/4 cup water
1 tbsp cornstarch

Mix the first three ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Mix the cornstarch with a small amount of cold water, and add to mixture. Boil for about a minute or until thickened. Let cool, and then refrigerate.