Themes from Halloween Past

This is probably a pretty self-serving entry. But I'm really enjoying this whole blog thing and since I write it, and I look at each day, it seems to me that it's okay to post pictures I love - even if they are from years past.

It's Halloween night and I ought to be posting pictures of the kids from tonight, but try as I did, we didn't get any photos of the kids together. They were too excited (Kaitlyn), too ornery (Cason) or too busy crawling (Jacob). But I did get some great shots of them last week at Target and I will post those pictures as soon as I pick them up later this week.

In the meantime, my favorite pictures from years past...since Cason's birth I have had the kids dressed in "themes". I love it. They are beginning to resent it. Next year they may revolt. So I'll highlight my cute kids and keep my fingers crossed for at least another year before they all do their own thing...

Halloween 2003 ~ Raggedy Ann and Andy

Cason's first Halloween and he actually left the wig/hat on his head.

Halloween 2004 ~ Dora and Boots the Monkey

(and uncle Mike as Benny the Bull)

We spent Halloween in Utah and it was cold! Cason was set in his fur lined costume. Kaitlyn, not so much, as my husband would say. But our KK has always been strong willed, and even back then she went the whole night without a coat because "Dora doesn't wear a coat". Oh the looks I got from other moms!

Halloween 2005 ~ Dorothy and the Scarecrow

Halloween 2006 ~ Football Player and Cheerleader

After the boots costume (scratchy fur) and the scarecrow costume (scratchy straw), I told Cason that this was his year to pick what he wanted to be and Kaitlyn would follow his lead. It was no surprise that he was a football player. I liked the costume as well because one trip to the BYU bookstore and we were done - no sewing this year! I like to sew, but at 7 months pregnant I was okay with taking the year off.

Creamy White Chili

Okay, so I don't claim to be any Smitten Kitchen (never been? check it out), but I do love to cook and I have a handful of favorite recipes that are tried and true. I pulled this recipe out today to take to a Halloween party tonight. I know how much I love to have a reliable recipe passed my way and so I guess I am giving back to many of you who have shared so freely with me. This is a recipe that I got years ago from Taste of Home, and I have yet to find a white chili recipe that is as simple to make and as yummy. With the winter close upon us, I hope you enjoy!

CREAMY WHITE CHILI 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into ½ inch cubes 1 medium onion, chopped 1 ½ tsp. garlic powder 1 Tbs. vegetable oil 2 cans great northern beans, rinsed and drained 1 can chicken broth 2 cans chopped green chilies 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. ground cumin 1 tsp. dried oregano ½ tsp. pepper ¼ tsp. cayenne pepper 1 C. sour cream ½ C. whipping cream In a large saucepan, sauté chicken, onion and garlic powder in oil until chicken is no longer pink. Add beans, broth, chilies and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in sour cream and whipping cream. Serve immediately.

Autumn in the Northwest

Rich and I went all the way to New England earlier this month with hopes of breathtaking fall foliage, but due to the unseasonably warm autumn, the colors were not as brilliant as we had hoped. We just returned today from spending the past five days in Portland, Oregon (and the surrounding area) and it turns out that that is where our breathtaking fall foliage was hiding. I'd forgotten how much I LOVE Oregon and how the simplest trip to the store is something to look forward to because of the unbelievable scenery. It didn't hurt that we had wonderful weather either.

The purpose behind the trip was to see one of Conner's football games, and as we planned the trip we just chose to make it a weeklong family vacation since we were going all that way anyway. It was a busy trip with lots to do - but isn't that always the case? We didn't get to everything we had hoped to, but some of the highlights:

• Conner's football game - Sherwood slaughtered their opponent
• Family pictures (thanks Anthony)
• Driving to Astoria to camp in a yurt
• Music class with grandma
• Meeting the real life "Butch" and "Booker" (thanks Jim and Dorothy)
• Driving by our old Keizer home and seeing where KK was born
• Experiencing downtown Portland in Matt and Kathryn's new home and the fabulous meal they served us (thanks Matt and Kathyrn)
• Meeting cousin Riley for the first time
• Going to Winco and just looking at all the bins - I'm a bargain nerd!
• Jumping on grandma and grandpa's trampoline
• Powell's Bookstore - where time stands still
• Noho's Hawaiian Cafe - Phil's Ono chicken is a must!
• Taking a morning walk and enjoying what Oregon is all about - the scenery!
• Sunday dinner with the Dougall family

What's a YURT?

That was my question to Rich's brother, Geoff, when he suggested a trip with his family to Astoria to go camping in a "yurt". So while we were in Oregon (for the past 5 days) we did go camping in a yurt, and let me tell you, this is the way to camp! It's kind of a combo tent/cabin - complete with wood floors, bunkbeds for the kids, futon for the adults, electricity and a heater - not to mention the sunroof to see the stars and the family of racoons living beneath the floorboards (really!).

Other than Cason (who got sick and will probably never eat hot dogs or chili again) we all had a great time and only wish we could have extended our camping trip. Thanks Geoff and Saralyn!

Let me just LICK that!

So in celebration of Jakes 10 month birthday today I thought I would recognize our little Jaker. He is growing up so fast and it seems that his "baby" time has come to an end. He is crawling at record speeds, constantly practicing his standing and wants to eat everything we eat. He simply doesn't have time to snuggle with mommy and be a baby anymore :(

One of his traits as of late is his little tongue sticking out - it's very cute when he is crawling around with his tongue peeking out the corner of his mouth, but I can't seem to catch a photo because he smiles when he sees me (awe!) But the tongue has become functional as he likes to stand up next to things, put his tongue out and walk along the item while licking it (kind of like that fish in the fishtank, I can't recall the species...) Anyway, here is a picture of his perfected technique on my bathtub, but he does the shower stall, the dishwasher, the oven, the refrigerator - he doesn't do walls so it must have something to do with the cool, smooth surface of appliances.

New England in Autumn

Okay, so our trip ended 2 weeks ago, but I just looked at the photos tonight and I thought I would share. Rich and I went on a cruise to New England/Canada in hopes to catch some beautiful fall foliage, but we were a little on the early end due to the warm autumn back there. But we did see a little color and enjoyed the getaway immensely.

Out first stop was Halifax, Nova Scotia. We walked through the city gardens and around the Citadel, but spent most of our time in a maritime museum (we are nerds, yes!) that was fascinating due to this little towns connection with the Titanic disaster and their rescue efforts.

Next stop was Bar Harbor, Maine. If it weren't for the fact that we were hoping for fall colors, we would have been in awe of all the lush green everywhere. In fact, Rich mentioned more than once how much Maine reminded him of home in the Northwest. We enjoyed a tour of Acadia National Forest and I would love to return one day to spend more time in Bar Harbor - preferable a day without quite so much fog!

Boston humored us a little bit and gave us a little color - but Boston also gave us 80+ degree weather as the trade off - hardly autumn weather! Rich and I took the Freedom Trail and rode the subway out to Harvard (Yard) where we wandered the beautiful grounds and pretended that we belonged there :)

Martha's Vineyard was everything I imagined. We rented a moped which allowed us to circle the entire island and get away from the tourist end and really enjoy the beauty and quaint offerings of this island - we even say sheep out grazing! I found an adorable red "cottage" that I think I'm going to start saving my money to buy.

Along with the cruise we enjoyed a couple of days in NYC prior to the cruise and a couple more after the cruise (thanks Rob and Laurel again for the place to crash!) We took NYC like tourists and took a bunch of tours that we have never done in our previous visits - and now I wish I'd had a week to follow up on all the things we learned about. I can never get enough NYC!

Oh, and just a quick clarification (this will make 2 clarifications, out of 4 posts) - this isn't a daily blog despite the name. The Dougall Daily just sounded better than The Dougall Whenever-I-Get-Around-To-It, which was the name Rich suggested (ha, ha).

Boys will be...twins?

Can you believe these photos of Jake and Cason? $10 if you can tell who is who. I sure have a lot of people tell me that Jake doesn't look like either Kaitlyn or Cason, but I would challenge that statement. We've really noticed as of late that Jake looks just like Cason did at this age - and of course by that I mean they are both incredibly handsome!

BTW - Cason is the top, Jake is the bottom. Do I owe you $10?

when (if) we move clarified

To clarify the comment I made yesterday about when/if we move. Yes, our house is for sale. No, we don't know when we are moving. No, we don't know where we are moving. We decided to list the house and then just "sit back and wait" as they say. The market is really not in favor of sellers right now so we aren't counting on anything happening too soon, but we can't lose anything by trying, right? If it sells then we will turn around and rent something here in Vegas while we come up with the "what next" plan. Having the home sold just gives us the freedom to be able to do whatever we want in the near future.
For what it is worth, here's a quick plug for my house. Our community is unbelievable ~ the rec center, the gym, the pool, the water slides, the golf course, etc. Oh, and the house is nice too! If you know anyone in the market here in Vegas, send them my way.....

A New Beginning

So I'm jumping on the blogger train (Rich mentioned something about being "a follower"). But as I explained to Trista when she asked why I didn't have a blog, I actually was a leader, starting a blog two or three years ago, I just can't seem to recall the site (after only one entry!). So if you stumble upon it, please let me know :)
I've thought that I would begin a blog someday soon - maybe at the new year, or maybe when (if) we move. I tend to strive for organization and structure so I would have to have a solid beginning to my blog, right? So this starting mid-year, mid-month is a huge stretch for me. But what better place to document such a leap for myself than my NEW BLOG!
Welcome and Enjoy!