Does this frighten you? That makes two of us! :)

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Lazy Daisy Oatmeal Cake

Lazy Daisy Oatmeal Cake...My sweet, little widowed neighbor made me some of this cake, and it was heavenly.  She is a fantastic baker, so I called her up and got the recipe.  It is so extremely moist, and the German chocoloate-like topping is divine!  Try it!

creamed eggs and sugar

old-fashioned oats mixture

sifted dry ingredients

heaven on earth :)

Lazy Daisy Oatmeal Cake

1 c. old fashioned oats

1/2 c. butter

1-1/2 c. boiling water

Mix those together and let sit 20 minutes.

While that sits, mix:

2 well-beaten eggs

1 c. sugar

1 c. brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

and sift together (I just whisk around in a bowl):

1-1/2 c. flour (I used 1 c. white and 1/2 c. brown)

1 scant tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ginger

1/2 tsp. allspice

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. cloves

After the oats/boiling water/butter have sat for 20 minutes, just add everything together and mix just until moistened.  Bake in a 9 x 13 pan at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

TOPPING

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/4 c. melted butter

3 T. milk or cream

3/4 c. coconut

1/3 c. chopped walnuts/pecans

Stir together in small bowl and spread on top of the cake after it has cooled for about 1 minute. 

Put back in the oven under the broiler for about 2 minutes until it is bubbly and the coconut just starts to turn light brown.

We headed to Grassy Lake, Alberta for Christmas 2010.  We convoyed with my brother Mitch and my "sis" Chass, and arrived on the 23rd.  Dad and Mom's house was completely remodeled by my brother, Dave, and it was so fun to see all the awesome changes they had made.  It was more awesome though to get to visit with so much family!! 

the long trip north

four generations

Grandma and Grandpa's loaded mantle

snuggles with Daddy

Derek Christmas morning

Tess and her miraculous American Girl doll thanks to a special Santa Claus

Wipe out!

The little grandkids sang for us

Making memories with Great Grandma Torrie

my sweet cousin, former roommate, and kindred spirit, Liz

Mom and Aunt Colleen getting their eyebrows dyed.  Way too funny

the pedi's

Good times with Grandpa down at the barn

These two donkeys were so stinking mellow and cute.  The kids LOVED THEM!!

THE END (I didn't get my fingernails done.  Why the heck am I doing that?)

Must try Paula Deen Donuts

Sorry I haven't been a faithful blogger lately.  I've had so much on my mind that I've had to go inward instead of outward if that makes sense.  More on that later....

I'm going to slowly try to get caught up.  Maybe one of these days I'll blog some Christmas pictures!  For now, you really have to try these!

 ...These are the fastest, tastiest, easiest treats around!!  Yummy!!  We made them again last night and seriously in 5 minutes they are done.

You just use a can of refrigerated biscuits, pop out the centers with a bottle cap/lid, deep fry, and then glaze!  5 minutes folks and voila!!

For vanilla glaze:  2 tablespoons milk with 1 cup of powdered sugar and 1/2 tsp. vanilla.

go to foodnetwork.com and search "Paula Deen Donuts" for more pictures and detailed instructions on different glaze/cinnamon sugar dip ideas.

still alive

Hi!  Man, it's been a long time.  I'm too tired to go find my camera from our Canadian Christmas trip and post pictures.  Maybe tomorrow....Lots of crazy decisions to be made lately but more importantly lots of brilliantly beautiful memories spent with loved ones to end 2010 with a bang:  pedicures with the ladies (my first ever!), riding donkeys with Grandpa, late night Rook games with siblings, food, food, food, and more food, Christmas day with 24 grandchildren and 18 adults, birthday and New Year's Eve party with 50 family members (Great Grandma got some broccoli stuck in her esophagus and scared us all when she stopped breathing and slumped over in the chair!  Thankfully two doctors, two nurses, and an EMT were all in the group and after a blessing and rushing out to the garage to head to the ER the broccoli dislodged!  She credited the miracle to the prayer of all the great grandchildren and a priesthood blessing).  Had a blast swimming at the rec center and hotel with cousins, too many fun memories to even write down.  Love our adorable nieces and nephews to pieces!!  Oh, I forgot to mention the puke flu that is flying through our family!  I wonder whose turn it is tomorrow?!  Just thanking my lucky stars they have all managed to make it to the toilet and no one took their turn while we were driving in the car for 18 hours! 

Always An Adventure.

Family, family, family. 

That says it all.  Their overwhelming love and generosity is so uplifting and renewing. 

May 2011 bless us all with more joy, patience, faith, hope, and love.

Cheers!!

**Merry Christmas**

It has been a rather tumultuous month, but as I sit here this early morning thinking about the laundry I need to get done, packing that is calling my name, and the eager anticipation I am feeling about heading to Canada for Christmas, I just want to say Merry Christmas to everyone and say how grateful I am.  For all of you - dear friends old and new, sweet neighbors, and close-to-my-heart family members. 

I love December.  I love everything about Christmas - Christ, the humble Christmas story, the Christmas lights, the electric excitement that my kids infuse into the air, Christmas music, Christmas oranges, Christmas chocolates, and so much more. 

Grandpa Henrie has been here helping with our cabinet shop for the past two weeks, and he has been a Godsend.  He has lightened our load immensely and helped keep the spirit of Joy and Christmas in our home.  Truly we are blessed.

I have witnessed unforgettable kindess and "Santa" deeds that I pray I will be able to pay forward someday.  The beautiful people in Cedar City have become my family, and my heart is full.

Lastly and most importantly, I am so very grateful to my Father in Heaven for my sweet, patient, hardworking, loyal, and gentle husband, and my precious little (ok, not all so little anymore!) kiddos.  They have put up with my flawed mothering for a lot of years!  I have loved receiving their darling homemade Christmas notes and school projects.  Baking with them this holiday season has been a highlight! 

I love each of you sweethearts!

MerryChristmas!

Do You Have Room for the Savior? - Christmas Music Video

Singin' Sisters

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Third Place

Ry, Gramps, and Devon entered a coyote hunting tournament and were gone for a day and a half.  We did a little decorating while they were away...

Dallin wanted to photograph the nest he built for his dove

I bought that sign for Ryan for Christmas last year.  It somehow ended up in the Christmas decorations box, so we thought we'd hang it anyway

Grandpa gave the kids their Christmas money, and Tori has had a blast with her playdough bakery.  She created some stunning baked goods

Caught in the sugar bucket

And........the guys ended up taking

THIRD PLACE! 

Go Team Henrie! Ryan sweetly gave me his prize money....I think I'll let him go again next year :)

Thanksgiving by Pops 2010

 This year

Grandpa Henrie

put together

Thanksgiving breakfast/dinner

pretty much singlehandedly.  It was remarkable and delicious!  That guy is amazing!

Cousin time

Dallin showcasing Grandpa's styling table settings

Gearing up for breakfast

Chandler and his wicked awesome hair

and Devon half awake on flapjack duty

Riv and Dal chillin'

Sweet Makayla and Rayn

Cheese

Grandpa gets Great Grandpa Christensen's wooden shoe tradition all ready and stuffed with cash

Gramps explaining the three traditions: 
1.  Pine nuts and jerky because his grandfather died when he was 11 and his grandma had nothing to give her children for Christmas except pine nuts and deer jerky (imagine that--we are blessed!!). 
2.  Homemade bread the night before when we all showed up to remember Grandma Henrie and how she used to have hot bread waiting for the kids when they got home from school (it was the best dang bread ever, and Dad baked it all by himself!  Wow!!)
3.  The wooden shoe tradition.  In Denmark Great Grandpa Christensen used to set out his wooden shoe on Christmas Eve, much like our Christmas stockings today, to get treats.  We now (all the parents) donate cash to the shoe and then Grandpa bakes mini muffins and puts a penny with a hole drilled in it (or sometimes an almond) in one muffin.  All the grandchildren take turns picking muffins and the one that gets the penny gets all the cash out of the wooden shoe.  This tradition is to remind of us our heritage.

Sweet Henry wasn't feeling well, so Derek pretty much tortured him all day chasing him around and trying to talk him into playing.

After much suspense and to the dismay of many older cousins and siblings, the owner of the hole-in-one penny and lucky winner of the wooden shoe tradition!

As he put all his money into the zip-loc, he started to sing a little tune, "ALL MY MONEY, ALL MY MONEY, ALL MY MONEY!!"  Hilarious.

Whitney took all the girls into the hair salon (the bathroom) and gave them all some gorgeous up-dos!!  Thanks Whit!

Savannah ticked off that I took her picture!

Down time!

Then Grandpa wipped out eight beautiful pies that he baked all by himself.  They all looked splendid and tasted even better!!

Time to head south....