More pictures

Discovering bubble wrap & wrapping the kitty

OK, this pic looks like Wayne lost his marbles, but Wayne is showing off his food throwing skills & teaching penelope: Throw cheese 3 feet in the air, catch in mouth. 

Cooking

Remember when it was so much fun to sit on a large multi-colored ball?

 Dad has lots of company when he tries to take a nap.

 Marshmallow Baby

 Our recent snow

Christmas 2012

We spent the Christmas season here at home with Grandma Cassens, Danny, Abigail and Duke (the dog). We had lots of fun and snow, and the snow is really coming down again today. Our visitors left today, so hopefully they can get through the roads back to South Dakota!

The annual Pretzel Dipping tradition.

Our Prime Rib Christmas dinner.

 Baby's gotta eat meat!!

 Good thing my family is normal. Especially Danny.

Peanut had an absolute blast entertaining everyone.

 Abigail and Penelope were the best of buds!

 Another one of my normal brother. And that is Duke the doggie.

 Puzzles...

 P kicking Abigail's ear. Me: "Just take the picture from the waist up!!"

 "Was anyone listening? Waist up!"

 We were pretty sad to have to say goodbye.

Fun with family

 P playing with mom's dog Duke

 Playing games - We were having more fun than it looks.

 Penelope and Abigail testing out some shoes

 Me and my baby.

 P was very seriously helping dad vacuum.

Playing in the snow!

Vaughan Cousins Visit

Tyler and Lisa and their kids stopped by to see us!

 Penelope eating a banana.

 Oh yeah, and my mom, Danny and Abigail are here too!

 Levi and Danny

 Eating dinner.

 All the kids - Andy, Levi, Brianna, Penelope and Abigail

 Penelope pushing Andy everywhere - I think he just wanted to do it himself though!

Andy is a sweet cuddler!

A field trip online

So, after I wrote about the naked man dancing in the field, I was wondering if any more feet had washed ashore in Vancouver. (See Something's afoot in Vancouver) So I Googled it, and apparently there have not been any more feet found.

Then I was intrigued by the headline "Missouri couple sues doctors for separating baby's head during grisly botched birth."  Which lead to "Boy dies after living without brain for three years"; "Evil nanny kills tot"; and "Sicko teen meets shocking end." I decided to stop reading grisly news stories.

Quite frequently, when I am online, I look at recipes. I get annoyed when I find something, then have to scroll down through one hundred pictures to actually see the recipe. Thanks to the Pioneer Woman, every blogger seems to think that since their cooking is the best, they need to prove it by adding countless pictures. They try to 'tweak' recipes to make them their 'own.' For instance, instead of adding 2 cups of flour, the recipe will call for 2 1/4 cups of flour, minus two tablespoons (And who ever uses 2 tablespoons, when it's the same as 1/8 cup?). As if someone wants to carefully measure out 2 1/2 cups, then un-measure two tablespoons of it. As if those extra tablespoons were the 'secret' to making their recipe great. Or maybe it's the fact that you preheat the oven to 335 degrees instead of 350.

What I really don't get is the picture fad. I guess if it looks good you want to eat it. True. But I really don't need a picture pictures of EVERYTHING. Every. Singly. Step. In case you don't know how to add one teaspoon of cinnamon, there is a picture. Turn the oven on? Picture for that too. I just want the recipe, is that too hard to ask?

Now, let's look at some of the comments. "This casserole is AMAZING! Like baked potatoes, only better!" Then you look at the ingredients: 5 potatoes, 2 cups heavy cream, 2 cups cheese, parsley, salt and pepper. Why is it you were surprised that it tasted amazing? (You did read that right, five potatoes, as opposed to five pounds of potatoes.)

Socializing

The annual Christmas party for Wayne's work is always interesting. People show up in anything from sweat pants to evening wear. Many will leave in a taxi cab because of their altered mental state - some even need one to get there. Most are just letting off a little steam and enjoying the evening. And there are a few officers of the law hanging around, just in case anyone is unhappy with their boss. 

Penelope had a fun evening with Auntie Jen and I got to go somewhere with a purse smaller than a Samsonite. 

A few tidbits from the evening:

"Is that Lou Jean?" ..."Well, it looks like her, but that is NOT Lou Jean's hair!"

"I won this little candy dish that I probably won't know how to use without breaking it."

Someone looked over to another table and pointed out that someone was sleeping quite deeply. Another person saw it and said, "Oh yeah, he's been sleeping for the last hour or so."

There were door prizes given, and this was overheard when someone won a Cal-Ranch (ranch store) gift certificate: "Yes!! I'm going to buy dog food!" His wife says, "NO, I want to get feed for the cattle!!" Must be a pretty exciting gift certificate.

The evening brought to mind a few other times we have been out socializing with business contacts. One evening, I was trying to make pleasant conversation with someone's wife. 

Me: "So what do you do?"

Wife: *lights up* "Well, I am really passionate about jewelry making! I enjoy finding different vintage stones and rubies and turning them into a piece of art that someone can wear!" 

Me: *Nod my head and pretend to be interested in the next 20 minutes of conversation.*

Another time, upon meeting someone for the first time, he pulls out a (embargoed) cigar.

Man: "Sheena, I would like to present you with this cigar, a gift from my wife and I to you." (I have never met is wife either.)

Me: "Aaa, hmm, well thank you."

Man: "Now, Wayne told me you don't smoke cigars, but I think you'll enjoy this one. It's very mild and fruity. I think you will really appreciate the light notes. I just have two suggestions: Don't inhale and don't smoke it all at once."

I hope I can find the restraint to not smoke it all at once.

Long Weekend in Utah

Wayne was away on business last week, so Penelope and I went to visit some of our favorite cousins. We had a blast. One highlight was driving through a neighborhood where someone had some decorations out, and Jentri said, "Oh, look, isn't that Beauty and the Beast?" It was a nativity scene!

The play strollers were a big hit. 

 I think Rexi thought she wouldn't get in the picture unless she got real close to Jentri:)

 Jaxon & Rexi

 Aren't Janell's kids photogenic?

 Rexi is such a good helper.

 Playing with Logan.

 Jentri is really good with the babies too!

 Wayne flew back Saturday so I got him and he impressed the kids with his drawing skills. It's amazing how stick figures and square trucks can make kids think you're talented!