Goodbye Summer!

::SIGH::  The kids went back to school today!  I was not looking forward to it and I miss having them around.  The morning started with a potluck breakfast at the neighbors across the street. Every year they invite EVERYONE in the neighborhood over for breakfast. We bring our favorite breakfasty item and the feast commences until the bus comes!

 

Next it was off to Joseph's school!  He has a very nice teacher and his BFF Clayton is in his class so all is well for him!  Afterwards we took Annalina in to her class.  I did not embarrass her by taking any photos at school. See, I TRY to think of my kids....

Joseph and Clayton

 

Chicken, yummy chicken

In a couple months we will be getting another large order of Zaycon chicken, at least 80 pounds this time, perhaps as many as 160.  It only comes around every 6 months so we try to get a bunch and freeze it.  I like to fill all four of my crockpots on the day we get it and let the breasts cook until they shred easily. Then I package it up into freezer bags of about 3 cups or so.  This makes it easy to make some of my favorite meals like Colorade White Chilli, Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup, Chicken Nachos or Tacos, or our favorite BBQ Chicken and Bacon Stromboli. 

I also like to premake freezer meals for the crock pot.  I discovered this last fall and it is such a time saver!  I get out a meal bag from my freezer, pop it into the slow cooker and let it go all day.  In the evening we have a wonderful yummy meal with very little prep.  And the house smells great.  Here are a few of my favorite recips for Chicken crock pot meals.

Crock Pot Hawaiian Chicken(found on Saving You Dinero)(4-5 servings)

• 2-3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• ½ cup white sugar
• ½ cup vinegar
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 Tablespoons soy sauce
• ½ cup of pineapple juice (use what’s in the can)
• ½ can of large pineapple chunks (yuck, I crock with these in then remove them before serving)

Add all the ingredients to the bag. Cook 4-5 hours on high or 6-7 hours on low. Serve it over rice and enjoy. While I am cooking the rice I like to shred the chicken and put it back in the juice before I serve it.

Chicken Fajitas
( 5-6 servings)

• 2 peppers (your favorite)
• 1 onion
• 1 1/2 pound chicken breast
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• fajita seasoning packet
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1 tsp. salt

You will also need tortillas, cheese, cream, etc.
Directions

1. Put all the ingredients in a large freezer bag. (Make sure you label the bag with instructions.)
2. When it’s time to cook it, dump it all in your slow cooker and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-6 hours.
3. When it’s cooked, shred the meat and add it back to the pepper mixture and serve on warm tortillas and your favorite toppings.

Jacob's Call to Serve

Jacob put in his mission papers about a month ago. Most missionaries get their calls in the mail within 2 to 3 weeks.  In fact, I was worried that it would come while we were out of town and he would open it without us.  While we were out of town the Bishop called with some questions about Jacob and his autism.  Salt Lake had contacted him and asked him to talk to us. Richard happily answered these questions and we felt happy that they cared enough to find out more about Jacob. 

I never expected Jacob to serve a mission.  We never pushed him or pressured him about it. I know that every young man has been asked to serve the Lord, but I did not know if Jacob would be able to go out for two years on a mission.  I was okay with that.  But I have learned to never underestimate Jacob. He is an amazingly strong willed young man.  He can and will do everything he wants to, because that is part of who he is.  

We have had the missionaries over for dinner at lot over the years.  Every time the sheet went around at church, we'd sign up for a night or two.  We love getting to know the missionaries in our areas and have kept contact with many of them.  As Jacob got older he started getting invited to go out with them.  He was always excited to go out with the missionaries and they took such good care of him.  He told us he wanted to serve a mission.  This thought scared me as a mother.  How would he handle rejection or people being rude to him while he was out trying to preach the gospel?  We talked about that and Richard advised him to bring that up with the Elders the next time they went out.  They talked to him about it, took him tracting and it was no longer an issue.  In the Quatama Ward we had many sets of excellent Elders who came to get Jacob often. I know that is what got Jacob so excited about missionary work. When we moved to Idaho, Jacob stayed behind for a few extra weeks so he could go to Scout Camp one final time.  He was helping to teach a young man about the gospel and this young man asked Jacob to baptize him.  It delayed him coming to live with us by a couple weeks, but it all worked out and I know it was such a blessing for him to experience.  I know there is nothing Jacob will face on his mission that the Lord will not help him overcome.  He can and will do anything the Lord needs of him, because he has such great faith and that is just who he is.

Now that brings us to his mission call.  When Jacob heard the announcement about the new age for missionaries, he was ready to get out there and serve.  Fortunately, we have an amazing Bishop who has been working on helping Jacob prepare.  He meets with him every week and Jacob feels confident and ready now.  Yes, it has been a lengthy process, but it has been just what Jacob needs and for that I am grateful for a Bishop who cared enough to get to know Jacob and work with him so faithfully.

I have gotten a lot of questions from people who ask, when is he going, when is he going?  My response has always been, when he is ready.  There is no rush. I would much rather have him fully prepared and serve successfully than to have him get out there fast and come home early because he was not prepared.  

The Stake President called and told Jacob that Salt Lake wanted him to do an evaluation due to the autism.  He goes in to LDS family services tomorrow for that.  Originally the date was next week and it was in Idaho Falls. I was feeling a little impatient that they were making him wait two extra weeks just to get in for the evaluation.  I thought about calling and asking them to please, please, please move it up or put him down for any cancellations that might come up.  Then I realized it was not my place and that I need to trust in the Lord and his timing.  The next day they called to tell him there was an opening here in Rexburg a week sooner!  Yay! I think this evaluation is not so much about whether Jacob can go on a mission or not, but more so they know what kind of situation he would do best in. It really is all about Jacob and what is best for him!

I have been asked a couple times if I am angry that his call is taking so long.  His paternal grandfather was very indignant that they would want to do an evaluation on him, as if this should be offensive to Jacob.  All I feel is extreme gratitude that with thousands of missionaries going out, they are taking the time to find out all they can about my sweet son so that he goes to serve in a place where he can be most successful!  What a wonderful blessing!  They will learn that Jacob is a hard working young man. That he loves the Lord and has an amazing testimony for one so young and is willing to serve in whatever capacity he can. They will see that he never uses autism as an excuse for anything.  In fact, the opposite is true.  If he feels held back by his autism in any way, he just pushes himself harder to overcome those issues.  So, Jacob will get his call and Jacob will go and serve the people of whatever area he is called to.  Although it may be hard waiting for that missionary calling to come in the mail, I know it will be well worth the wait to know that Jacob is prepared and will be serving right where he needs to be.  

Hats, Hats, and more Hats

We love to look at hats. We have some fun ones at home for crazy hat days at school.  Lagoon has a lovely assortments of silly hats, so we tried some on before we left for the day!

Misc Vacation Pics

We found a toy store with clearance puzzles and the kids were so excited to get started on them in Eden.

The kids tried their first dippin dots ice cream.

 

The condo at Wolf Creek. The kids loved this one because they got their own bedrooms!

The drive home was pretty quick!  Just over 3 hours!

Lagoon - Part 2

 

  

  

Lagoon

We spent two days at Lagoon. A week earlier I went into Deseret Books to get some discount passes. Turns out you have to buy $30 worth of stuff to get 4 coupons. I bought one of their summer CD's for 1.99 and the guy told me that since it is the "summer of a million gifts", DB was going to give me all the coupons I needed just from that one less than $2 purchase!  Thanks Deseret Books!  You ROCK!

We went Monday and although it was super hot, there was little in the way of lines, so we got to ride a lot of rides and didn't have to wait around.  The kids loves the Tilt-A-Whirl, the Space Scrambler, the Sky Ride, the Paratroopers, the Mouse Trap and soooo many more!  We all got hungry and had terriyaki chicken bowls.  Then the kids went on some more rides.  Richard and I were worn out and tired and the kids were more than happy to go when we told them it was time.  I adore my kids, they are so easygoing!

We took the next day off and relaxed at the resort, swam in the huge swimming pool and fed the Koi. Then Wednesday morning we got up and left and made it to Lagoon right as they were opening.  We went directly to Lagoon-A-Beach and had a blast!  I spent a lot of time in the Lazy river with Joseph. He swam alongside me, or pushed my innertube into the waterfalls.  Richard and Annalina went on a lot of slides.  At one point I went on a couple too, it was fun!  After a few hours, the crowd grew and we got tired of being wet so we went out to Lagoon and rode the rides again for a while.  Then both Joseph and Annalina said they were tired and ready to go!  Perfect timing, as Richard and I were both ready too!  It was a fun couple of days!

Not so sure about the HUGE Ferris Wheel.

Super excited about the HUGE Ferris Wheel.

Relaxing on the HUGE Ferris Wheel.

Sneak Peek at Lagoon-A-Beach!!

 

 

 We ended day one with a run through the fountains!  The kids felt better after cooling off a bit!