I'm Back :)

Hello all,
I haven't been on in a long time. I got let go from my job in Nov. which set off a short anti social depression. It's all good now. It was a blessing in disguise. I was pregnant at the time and I was panicking because nowhere hires prego women. After the first couple weeks my husband started to notice we were doing better financially. After our taxes it confirmed our suspicion, it was costing us more money for me to work. Weird huh?! So heck, I stopped looking for a job and I'm now a stay at home mom. 

I feel busier than I was while I was working though but that's probably cause I've been having an awful pregnancy. I puked almost every day with my first but this one is topping the cake. I still vomit every day but it's constant nausea, headaches, bone pain to go with it. I just can't wait to have this baby.

I've been going back to church as well. I fell away when I was 13ish and only went to get my mother to stop screeching at me. Now that I've been attending again (18yrs later!) I actually have been enjoying it with my family. There was so much I thought I knew but actually didn't (thank you teenage brain that thought you knew everything). I think I just felt like - Well I screwed up too many times to go back to church, I was even convinced that the lord would inspire one of clergy to have me leave if went. LOL wrong! Found out he loves me even though I broke a grand portion of his rules. Now my husband and I are on track to be sealed in may/june ish! For those reading unfamiliar with that, our faith believes by being sealed together in a religious ceremony you can be together long after Till Death Do Us Part, in fact forever, and not just to your partner but to your children as well. That warms my heart to have learned that. :)

-Jen

Oops! Where did October go?!

Well I'm a slacker! Totally spaced posting for October. Things are going great, we are excited for the coming holidays. Miss Ava's 2nd birthday is coming up... too fast. We've been wanting to have another munchkin for a long time now but its just not happening for some reason. Wouldn't that be an exciting Christmas surprise!? 
You may have read that I'm trying to start my own soap business on KickStarter. I'm 17% funded as of right now! Yay!!! Hopefully on this coming payday I can order some more supplies. I'm going to give CPOP soap with peacock swirls a try next.  

This isn't MY soap, just a beautiful example of what I want to try :)

Gotta share a funny moment that happened in church last Sunday. Ava was playing with a toy and we asked her to come sit on our laps for the upcoming hymn. I asked her for her toy and she pulled back and said Say Please! LoL Wes and I were dying. I was just schooled in manners by my 1 yr old. 

Ava visited Mimi and Papa Z earlier in October. 

Wearing Grandma Burton's dragonfly glasses! Movie Star!

Ava and Daddy drove a tank at cousin Carter's birthday party.

Quick Snap for daddy :) Love our Little!

I have more photo's so as soon as I can get them off my phone I'll post! See you all next post!

-Jen :)

KICKSTARTER!!!!

How cool would this be! I would be so grateful!!!
Click on KICKSTARTER
or follow the link below :)
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1316656102/starting-a-specialty-homemade-soap-biz

Moto Man Soap

Hello All!
I needed some me time yesterday and decided to make M&P soap for the first time! I LOVED it! I could seriously do this for a living lol 

Spiced Ale & New Leather Motorcycle Hemp Soap :)

What do ya all think?! The Hubby said it smelled good so there is one good vote! Robby wouldn't even smell it cause he said it was weird that I would ask him to smell my soap.... coming from the adult man who collects pony dolls..... lol maybe ill make a MLP soap so he'll smell it..... ideas ideas ideas :)
-Jen

September Adventures!

Holy Farts Friends!

September was a bit crazy for us! Started out with the Labor Day weekend and ended with my sisters Wedding. Busy busy busy!

Ava wanted to do "homework" with April :) 8/27

Ava helping Grandpa buy turning up the radio full blast, turning wipers on and pushing all the buttons.

Made it to Starvation Reservoir. Love seeing family!

Love that tongue! The mini Michael Jordan of dunking sand! 

Snuggles with my little!

Happy girl! Loved playing with April.

Some cute quick shots.

Contained finger paints

Hats off to Goob!

And now uncontained finger paints for the first time! LOL

This Elmo lover got some new Halloween PJ's she is loving!

Look at those blues!

April and Ava are best of friends! April made her a car out of a box and pushed her around my folks house for probably a half hour!

Kim's wedding.

So these shoes are cute, sexy and all but Crazy Kim wanted us non-heel wearing girls to wear these on GRASS and walk down a small hill..... Crazy Kim...... :) Yes, we all stumbled down the hill at the Ceremony... Sorry Kim, we tried!

This is the new Mr. & Mrs Hodgson

I'm waiting for Kim to get me more pictures, so soon to come!

Thanks all!
Jen :)

Steam Juicing Plums For The First Time - EASY 5 Steps

Hi All,
I'm new to steam juicing/canning and if you're new to it too hopefully this will help. (as far as plums go anyway. 

1.  Get Plums!......duh ;) Rinse them with water. I added a splash of vinegar to the water to help clean them. Remove leaves & debris. Try to get as many stems of as you can but it won't hurt if miss some. 

Warning!

The best type of oven for this is a gas stove because they can handle the weight, heat and time of canning. BUT if you're not rich (like me) thats probably why you are canning!! I have a glass top stove in my apartment. DO NOT CAN or STEAM JUICE ON GLASS!!! It can warp the glass and ruin the heating element underneath it. So next best option is the good ol coil top electric stove. but be warned, if you get into canning you'll have to replace the coils a lot sooner than normal cause they'll die as well from the combined heat, weight and time but hey, it's the next best option. (I used my mother's electric stove)

2. Make sure the bottom chamber is filled with water then set the juice collection part on then put the fruit basket in and dump your fruit in! My plums heaped above the rim just set the lit on top and as the juice is extracted the lid will come down, no worries. :)

3. Have a collection pot and put the tube in it. Occasionally the clamp isn't tight enough and will drip and with dark purple plum juice you can imagine the stains that could happen. UHG!!!

4. Set your timer for an hour and turn your stove on high. I like this magnetic one cause I don't misplace it lol See how the lid isn't quite on cause there is so much fruit.

And now the lid has gone down after some juice has been extracted.

5.After your hour is up, turn off the stove and release the juice into the pot. Some people release it into each bottle instead but it tends to be a lot messier than you'd think.

If you're not going to use it within the week, water bath can it. At my altitude I canned it for 25-30 min. Remember the juice is concentrated and doesn't have any added sugar. One of my favorites for the family is to make black cherry Kool Aid and substitute 1 of the quarts of water with the juice. 

What do you think? Request a DIY post! I'll try it out! 

-Jen :)

August Adventures!

Hello All,
I have hopped on the .GIF band wagon this month with my BLINK Windows Phone App. And why not?! 
Ava has been so flippin cute this month! That lil personality is blooming. She's been repeating pretty much everything she hears now and if she finds a crayon you better be prepared to color a picture FOR her lol.

Yes, she looks homeless lol I got home from work at 3pm and daddy was having a Lazy day. 

This is so fun, Wes and I sneak peeks in her room and find her in the funniest sleeping positions.

When Mama left the room she gathered her books to read but it must have been quite a task because she only halfway made it back to bed lol

I think she likes sleeping in this position lol

She has also been testing out the most comfortable places to read in the house. :)

Reading on the Shelby

She gives a new meaning to reading on the can!!!

Reading on the Goob

Uncle Blake also schooled her in the ways of the best Batman cartoon series. 

Wes is such a sweetheart!!! He brought me flowers, I love lilies!

We went to Lagoon on the 16th for the first time together! It was so fun. Mimi Z, her nephews, Sena and Robby went with us. 

You can't really tell but she is smiling :)

Ava with cousins walking down Pioneer Village! <3 We stopped to get ice-cream at the old pharmacy! Yum!  

Love these two! Haha and Chewbacca standing by them ;)

Ava loved the Swim park! She went down the water slides all by herself too. Wes and I had more fun watching her have fun... one of those parent moments where everything else stops in time and you just live in that moment :)

 

Love this little purple wizard baby

Cousin Wesley and Ava :)

Ava and Daddy in line to drive Jeeps!

Ava and Daddy playing Gears of War

 We gave Ava an old flip phone we found in some boxes. She loves to call Jakey and Sena.

I'm posting this early because I will be out of town for the weekend. Everyone have a great Labor Day weekend! Be Safe. :)
-Jen