Moonlight Serenade 2011

The Truth about Barbarians

Austin's sister, Brenae, has a fun way of honoring Friday the 13th-- she and her husband invite friends over to share a Barbarian Feast. The rules are simple: the messier the food, the better, and no hands allowed!

We've been waiting for Friday the 13th to roll around so we could steal this tradition from her. We invited some friends in our ward, and we had a blast. We ate rolls, pistachio pudding, fruit and dip, spaghetti, cole slaw, jello cheesecake, and of course, Dirt Cups-- the ultimate Barbarian delicacy (good thinking, Carly).

As we were eating, we tried to be as barbaric as possible, but it soon hit us: Barbarians weren't idiotic slobs, they were just limited in their choice of utensils. They probably utilized the eating tools were readily available to them: fingers and gravity.

So I say, Hoorah to the Barbarians! Hoorah for hand-eye-mouth coordination, opposable thumbs, incisors, and other God-given gifts that help us enjoy our food!!

Hey everybody! I'm beautiful!!!

"Good morning, Mommy!"

This is what Geneve looks like in the mornings when I go in and wake her up.

Angie makes Éclairs au Chocolat!!

I tried my hand at an éclair recipe that my french teacher gave me last year. They are surprisingly easy to make (easy enough that I managed to make them).

1 c. flour

1 c. water

1/2 c. butter/margarine

4 eggs

Heat water and butter to a boil. Reduce heat; stir in flour. Cook 5 minutes on medium heat until it forms a ball.

Let cool a few minutes and add in beaten eggs. Form into éclairs or puffs (see below: puffs on left, éclairs on right). Bake 20-25 minutes at 400 degrees.

The Crème

2/3 c. sugar

1/4 c. cornstarch

1/2 tsp. salt

3 cups milk

4 egg yolks, beaten

1 Tbs. butter

1 Tbs. plus 1 tsp. vanilla

Mix sugar, cornstarch and salt in a pot on medium heat. Add milk gradually; stir until thick, boil for 1 minute. Stir in eggs yolks, boil and stir for 1 minute (don't stop stirring!!). Remove from heat, add butter and vanilla. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Now is the fun part: getting the cream inside the éclairs. Most of the éclairs will develop small holes during the baking process (see the photo below).

Pick one of the holes, and poke a straw/stick inside to clear the way for the cream. The éclair will be hollow, so you don't need to remove the inside stuff. If you don't have a pastry syringe, you're gonna have to get creative. I cut the corner of a ziplock bag (tiny, tiny hole), filled it with the cream, and used it to inject the cream into the éclairs. It was very messy.

The next step is optional, but highly recommended: the chocolate topping!!

1/2 bag of chocolate chips

1/4 c. milk

I didn't follow this recipe exactly; I just melted a handful of chocolate chips and added some milk. Make sure you melt the chocolate chips evenly (double boilers). You want the chocolate to be thick enough that it can be spread over the éclairs. Put on as much as you WANT!

Voilà!

Vous allez manger comme un vrai français!

Mangez bien! Bon appetit!!

Geneve says, "Bye" to the binky

We were bored....

enough said...

You know you want to try it now...

FHE: The Rexburg Flood Museum

For over a year now, I've wanted to go to the Rexburg Flood Museum. Tonight Austin was in charge of FHE, so he surprised me with a spontaneous trip to the museum (thank you, thank you, Honey!). It was surprisingly very interesting. The museum does more than just talk about the flood of '73; it gives a simple history of the town. We found out all kinds of interesting stuff-for example:

• The US Navy commissioned a ship named the USS Rexburg which shipped out for the Pacific theater shortly after the end of WWII
• Rexburg's famous "R" Mountain is actually an extinct volcano
• Beaver Dick Park is named after an adventurous trapper who within a week lost his wife and all six of his children to disease.
• Approx. 80 billion gallons of water were released when the Teton Dam broke; while only 11 people were killed, the surrounding areas experienced one billion dollars worth of damage.

Rexburg isn't all that boring after all...

We're trying to get her to like museums at a young age.

A swimsuit from the '20s

You can't tell, but I'm trying to mimic this mannequin's classy pose.

Check out this girl's smiles!!

Yep, Geneve has found two new hobbies:

1. smiling
2. choking herself with her finger

We're thrilled about the first one, but kind of confused about the second...

When Geneve smiles, she does it with every ounce of baby fat on her body!!

Yes, this flower is bigger than her brain, but it's CUTE and it matches her OUTFIT!!

Geneve's first piggy back ride

My BEEF with toys

I don't like big, fancy toys.

Maybe that's cuz I grew up playing with Tupperware lids, Lincoln Logs, and mud. I'm convinced that my kids don't need toys with batteries, small parts that can get lost, remote controls, On/Off switches, or a price tag over $1.

I know, I know.

I'm anal, and my children are gonna have a complex.

Whatever.

They'll be creative and resourceful.

So when we went to Mama's (my mom) house last weekend, I wasn't too thrilled about this toy that she'd found for Geneve. I was really skeptical, so I gave it a thorough examination:

Batteries? No. Good.

Small parts? No. Awesome.

Remote control? Negative. Fabulous.

On/Off switch. Nu uh. Miracle.

Price tag more than $1. Yes. Garage sale find. Maybe $2. Acceptable.

The toy passed my rigorous examination. 4 out of 5. Not bad! Thanks Mom.

Geneve loved the toy, and I have to admit that I liked it too.

....as long as next time you get her a gift, it's a large, refrigerator-sized box.

Kids love those.

God sends little babies...

“In 1809 men were following with bated breath the march of Napoleon and waiting with feverish impatience for news of the wars. And all the while in their homes babies were being born. Who could think about babies? Everyone was thinking about battles…. Yet which of the battles of 1809 mattered more than the babies of 1809? We fancy God can manage His world only with great battalions, when all the time He is doing it with beautiful babies. When a wrong wants righting, or a truth wants preaching, or a continent wants discovering, God sends a baby into the world to do it. While most of the thousands of precious infants born every hour will never be known outside their neighborhoods, there are great souls being born who will rise above their surroundings. One mother gives us a Shakespeare, another a Michelangelo, and another an Abraham Lincoln. When clouds of error need dissipating and spiritual darkness needs penetrating and heavens need opening, a little infant is born.”

H.M. Bareham, 1909

Carl Bloch and FHE

Last week for Family Home Evening, we took Geneve to see the Carl Bloch paintings (not original) that hang in the BYU-I center. They are HUGE and MAGNIFICENT! There were over a dozen, each one portraying scenes from Christ's life in chronological order. We took her to each one and explained the story. Did she understand? I doubt it, but I am convinced that this special girl can feel things that somehow escape adults. Babies are sensitive to the Holy Ghost in ways that I can only comprehend. So even though she had a blank stare and her fist in her mouth the whole evening, I'm pretty sure she got something out of it.

"Can we go home now, Mommy?..."

HANGING OUT with the Jones'

This is Austin's family- the Jones. Do I love hanging out with them? YES! They have a tradition of getting together at Grandma Jones' house after the Priesthood Session of General Conference. We were so happy to be able to attend this year... and the best part was introducing Geneve to the fam!

"Behold a royal army..."

Just a few of Grandma Jones' great grandkids... Geneve is on the far right on Fayth's lap.

Kallie, Denise and Janey... probably talking about Jenny (Denise's daugther), or should I say, Sorella Jones! Jenny had been in the MTC for a few weeks; she's bound for the Milan, Italy Mission. We're happy to hear that she is doing GREAT! I loved the MTC, and I'm so thrilled that she does too.

Geneve with her cute cousins, twins Averlee and Aisdon. I hope these three grow up to be good buddies; they're only 5 months apart.

Me and my love. I love seeing him glow when he comes home from Priesthood Session. I'm so blessed to have a righteous husband who holds and honors his priesthood.

Sitting around Grandma's kitchen, eating ice cream,

Trudi's breadsticks, and veggies (in that order).

Gathering around for family prayer. Cousin Jed was the last to kneel down, so the lot fell to him to offer the prayer.