Bloggers, We have a Problem!!!

There is something wrong with my computer, again. I guess that is one of the casualties of having 6 kids. I can get on Google Earth and then get on the web from there, but I don't have my favorite's list anymore, which means I am not visiting any blogs, because I don't remember exact addresses, and that's the only way I can do it, is to enter an address. Oh, it's fun...again. Unfortunately, I can still type in eBay and look at shoes, at the dismay of my husband:) Tonight is our ward's Christmas party. The kids and I have been relishing in the Holidays:) Lance has been busy, but happy. He is doing a rotation in ER, which is his residency field. He loves it. He is pretty darn good at it too. It fits him and that's a wonderful thing to know when they are working him like a pack mule on a mountain!!!! We are getting our tree tomorrow.Yes, it is late for us, but considering I am the one left for that part, I am less motivated:) There is no cutting this year, even though we live on 11 acres, we don't have a lot of Pine Trees. I am asking one thing of all friends and family who visit my site. Could you please email me with your address, so that I can send you a Christmas Card? I would really appreciate it! My email address is loriallen10@yahoo.com. I can get to my email, to check it. I am so grateful for friends and family. Just knowing I can carry you around in my back pocket (sorry for the squish and smell) it keeps me comforted. Happy Holidays!

Mellissa's Meme

and only she knows what the heck a Meme is. I guess it's like a tag, but fancier. Whomever reads my Meme is OBLIGATED to do their own, unless they have done one within the last week. If you accept these terms you may read further. If not you may click on the back button to leave this site (don't you dare!).

Things I have done before
1 worked a summer in a fish cannery and gutted fish and sorted more eggs than most people see in a lifetime (in Alaska)
2 danced the hula in my 6Th grade class (Hawaii) "Show me How to do the Hula" for Lief Erickson Day?
3 rode my horse bareback into a lake when I was 16 and we swam around for a while
4 showed reindeer to tourist in Alaska for a summer job. Auggie was the most popular one, he grunted all the time
5 accidentally killed my boys pet rat by feeding it sweet potato, who knew uncooked sweet potato had traces of arsenic?
6 going along with the rat theme I had one named Molly. In college I would sneak her in my pocket of my hoodie and her take to class with me!
7 I feel I should mention something that wasn't pre-marriage or pre-children. When my children were just mere babes I started teaching them to play dead. So then by the age of 1 to 1 1/2 they could die on command and then I would pretend to cry for them. Then I die and they pretend to cry for me. My husband thinks I am demented, probably so, but it's one of my proudest achievements to date.

Things I do now
1 Blog
2 Yell
3 Clean
4 Bite the sides of my mouth
5 Sing too loud
6 Eat too much chocolate
7 Goof off until I get a headache or pee pants

Things I Want to Do
1 Lose some more weight (on a chocolate diet, mind you)
2 Look Hot all the time but still retain a comfy level-going for the hot nurse that lives in her scrubs, maybe?
3 Since this is what I WANT to do, it doesn't have to fit into reality, because I would Like to vacation in the Bahamas, lay on a lawn chair, sipping (virgin) pina coladas, feeling the wind.....moving on...
4 Hire a maid, no, 3 maids!
5 Be one of those Barbie Dolls that when you want long hair you tug at her head and pull out hair. Then cut it when you want it short, then long again? no problem!-give it a pull!
6 Look outside and see mountains
7 See my family again, soon, real soon...

Things That attract me to the Opposite Sex
1 Confidence- not overconfidence
2 Good growin' facial hair ( my hubby rocks)
3 Burly mountain men
4 Guys in action, doing something really awesome like shootin a gun (and actually does a rock-awesome job) hunting, Or fighting crime as a spy- Bond, James Bond...
5 Guys in uniform, need I say more? WOWza, you could take a kinda good lookin chicken-necked guy, throw em in a Navy, Army or what not(anything but A Catholic Priest) uniform and he just became H O T !
6 I would like to think that he could pick me up without grunting!!!!
7 If he is attracted to me. Call me crazy, but that helps! Because if he can't see a hottie tottie when he sees one, then he's an idiot and Lori no likey the idiots.

Favorite Foods
1 I love all the food groups- chocolate, chocolate with nuts, chocolate with peanut butter, chocolate in a wrapper, chocolate not in a wrapper.
2 Chocolate chip cookies
3 steak
4 steamed veggies
5 Kalbi- Korean Dish, it would actually go before chocolate! I would have it as my last meal if I was going to be executed, and wouldn't even mind the lethal injection after. That's how good it is!
6 Dutch oven anything, after you ride into camp (on the deer hunt), and are exhausted and starving
7 Chili after you have walked back to camp (on the deer hunt) and are exhausted and starving.

Things I say Most Often
1 Oh Poop
2 Holy Crap (notice a theme?)
3 What the Heck?
4 Don't you dare
5 Knock that off
6 You are a dead man
7 Rider... (then repeat 1,2,3,4,5,6)

I tag 7 people that have read this. So if you just read this, just consider yourself tagged, unless you are Mellissa and then you have immunity (and I don't mean against the flu virus, so get your shot).

...Snow is Glistening...

What was I talking about? Winter Wonderland? That was just the opening scene. It has been snowing here since! It is beautiful! So far, it's not a far cry from Cedar City, I think I am just enjoying all the snow covered trees. Maybe I am reminiscing my days in Alaska... I love it when everything is covered. No brown in sight. Maybe except for the highways, right? I have quite enjoyed the view. It probably won't last long, so I took some pics this morning after I took Trapper to the bus stop.


I don't know that Lance likes driving 20 minutes to work everyday in it! Mainly he complains about the other people not knowing how to drive in it and reducing their speed to a steady 15 mph!


I had to add my boys havin' fun in the snow! They were dying to get out there, and they had a BLAST! I guess it's time to pull all the winter garb out! AWWWW!

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

We may just be walking to the bus stop, but oh, what a beautiful sight it is! We only got a skiff of snow, but with all the trees here, it changes the scenery dramatically!

The fall and upcoming winter season have been surprisingly mild. I don't think they give Utahan's enough credit for their winters (I can say that, coming from Alaska). They have been warning us about the winters here, but apparently we don't even get our first real snow system until after Christmas time! I am anticipating some fierce snow storms to pound us later. So far, I have been enjoying the weather.

When I took Shylee to early morning seminary, there wasn't any ice on the road, or my windshield. We have had cold nights and some icy windshields, but all in all better than expected. I do love the winter's, and a good snow storm, so I am great either way! I think I will hang my Christmas wreath today.

Too True

Trapper and I were driving (I was steering he was pushing the gas:) into the parking lot of Walmart. He was asking his "Is this true? Is that true?" series of questions. When out pops- "WHEN YOU FALL IN LOVE YOU HAVE TO START PAYING BILLS." I laughed my head off. Then I asked, "Who told you that?" Without a second thought, he said "Dad." It figures... This kid keeps me rolling! Just my one minute happy thought to share.

The Bread & Puddin' of Life

My mother-in-law has raised 6 children and a high-school on her delicious comfort food. My recipe box is made up of recipes from her recipe box! The two recipes my family founders on on a regular basis is her homemade bread and her rice puddin'. It can't be said to be "pudding." Trapper has always had a special place in his belly for "rice puddin'." He would incessantly ask for it and Grandma would deliver!I think as well as it warms his belly, it warms his heart to know that Grandma would take requests with pleasure! I have also tried to keep up with demand. I feel like the best mom in the world when Trapper is almost out of breath with excitement to have his rice puddin' made! Every time I make these recipes, I think of Deb (who I make sound like she is dead, but clearly, she is alive) and how feeding her kids wasn't just a chore...but a love.

Now, am I in the will? All this...I should be. We'll get to that later:) Today as I was making the puddin' I thought how pretty it was and I should make a post about it. As I was posting, my boys were jumping on our new trampoline, my orange couch. My husband teased that it would be played on, more than sat on. Gees, do you have to have a doctorate to be that witty? But he was right, or should I say, his diagnosis was correct? Anywaaaaay, it's a Craigslist special. I love it! But I do have to say I get a superior kick at the entertainment that comes from having it. Right now they are playing a Spiderman/helicopter/gun/pig enactment. So, the orange couch is a multipurpose sitting/playing piece of furniture/playground equipment!

Happy Halloween!

Are you wondering how I took these pictures? Well, I got over the loss of my other camera, and found a Kodak EasyShare, used, on eBay for 68.99 (includes s&h-for those that need it broke down). I am happy that I am back in action. I think it will do exactly what I need for now. I feel whole again....awwww...My husband use to say that he could put all the pics I have taken, lay them on top of each other, and flip them to have a picture show! Who needs a camcorder!! Moving on... We had a fun Halloween. We did trunk or Treat at the church on the 29th, the elementary school had a parade of costumes for parents and the school, and on Halloween we went to the park and visited Zoe and Elmo and the fire station. About the timestamp date on the pics-I figured out how to take the time stamp off, after the fact, so disregard the dates on the pics!
The other activity we have going strong is cutting and stacking wood. We have went back in time, here in Ohio, where everyone has oil, wood, and electric. We could get gas piped out to us, but out here gas is the same price as electric (3X's as much as Utah!)We have electric and a fireplace. So, to reduce electric costs we are cutting all the dead trees on our property for firewood. Most people buy "slab wood" from the Amish (which is left overs from running it through the planer), or cut themselves. So, my brutishly handsome husband, AKA Jeremiah Johnson, is reliving his logging days and cutting down the trees on our home front. It is so exhilarating to watch him fall a tree! He is awesome! The crazy thing is we are cutting mostly oak trees! They burn like coal (long and slow), it's crazy! There are so many hardwood trees here, which in Utah would be a rarity. I feel like I should be making furniture out of it, not burning it!!!

I thought I would throw in a picture of my hubby and me. I love his facial hair (not mine). I'm so grateful I had some boys get his bright blue eyes:) Sometimes I think we are suited for a Homestead in Alaska! So, instead, I'll take my Homestead (with a bit more technology) in Ohio!