BABY SHOWER!!

WARNING: LOOOOONNNNNGGGGGGG post! LOTS of pictures! :)

Today, Kenzi, Sammi, Maddi, and I gave Mallorie her first baby shower. It was a GREAT day!!

Our theme was "Mallorie's about to POP!" We centered everything on "POP" with POPcorn, LolliPOPs, POPcorn cupcakes, Oreo POPpers, and little water bottles with cute labels on them that matched the theme. It really was fun and was a total hit with those who came!!

We had six different flavors of popcorn (recipes to follow), cupcakes, homemade Oreos, and the lollipop topiary. It was really fun!

These popcorn cupcakes were a huge hit!

We set up the dining room with her big gifts and then surprised her with them.

High chair and swing from Uncle Zack and Aunt Kenzi;

stroller and car seat from Grandpa and Grammy.

 Maddi made a great blindfold-er!

SURPRISE!!!

Checking out all the tunes the swing plays.

Peeking under the car seat cover.

The diaper cake has a mere 222 diapers in it!! HUGE!

First books from Grandpa and Grammy! :)

Just the beginning of the gifts!

We had a TON of guests!!!! It was great and Mal got some amazing gifts!! We have THE. BEST. FAMILY. and FRIENDS!!! 

And the fun begins!!

Kenzi, Mal, Michelle, Julie Denson, Chris Cannon

 

So many cute outfits!! This is going to be one well-dressed baby! :) 

Pack n' Play from Grandma Forbes, Great Grandma Forbes, and Nicole

Seriously, the funniest story every about "bubble wrap"...Ann Sampson called to see where Mal is registered. She wanted to make sure she got her something Mal wanted instead of something she didn't need. I told her Mal was easy to please; she'd like anything. In the background, Mal said, "Give me bubble wrap and I'll be happy!" So...Ann bought her some super cute gifts and then...BUBBLE WRAP! It was hilarious!

Great Grandma Bunn and the afghan she made for Mal. 

Aunt Sherrie made a cute dinosaur quilt with minky!

Rosalie Millard and Ann Sampson...GREAT neighbors!

Great Grandma Forbes and Nicole.

Diaper bag from Aunt Maddi...(made by Mom)

Cute quilt from Aunt Joan and cousins.

Sammi and adorable Evie Monette

Aunt Chris, Kate, Great Grandma Denson

Kenzi with Evie, Maddi-Lou, and Mal

CUTE quilt Auntie Sammi made.

So adorable!!

Mal, Sammi, and cousin Megan Denson

Great Grandma Forbes, Mal, and Lillie.

(Lillie LOVES her "Mal-Mal")

WHAT A HAUL!!!!!!!!

It was so much fun! We can't wait to have him here to see him use all the stuff she got. 

THANKS EVERYONE!!!

POPCORN RECIPES

WHITE CHOCOLATE FRITO POPCORN

from YourHomeBasedMom

8 cups of popped popcorn

1 lb. (16 ounces) white chocolate or almond bark
2 cups Frito's, crushed
M&Ms
 Pop corn according to package directions. I used 2 bags of microwave popcorn. Put popped corn and crushed Fritos into a large bowl. Make sure to get all of the unpopped kernels ("grannies") out or someone will break their tooth. Melt chocolate in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second increments, stirring in between, until melted. Pour melted chocolate over popcorn mixture and stir to coat completely. Pour onto a wax paper or parchment paper lined cookie sheet and sprinkle with M&Ms. Allow to cool and dry.

PEANUT BUTTER POPCORN 
Crafty Dr. Mom

1/2 cup unpopped popcorn or 16 cups popped popcorn (I used 2 bags of microwavable popcorn)

1 1/2 cups dry-roasted peanuts

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup corn syrup

1 cup peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

Pop corn and remove any unpopped kernels. Place in a large bowl and stir in peanuts. (Jennifer pops hers in a 9X13 pan and keeps it warm in a 250 degree oven)

In a heavy saucepan, combine sugar, honey and corn syrup.  Bring mixture to boiling, continue boiling for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly.  Do not boil too long or your popcorn will be rock hard. Remove from heat.   

Stir in peanut butter and vanilla.  Immediately pour over popcorn and stir to coat. Serve warm or at room temperature.

TIFFANY'S SOFT CARAMEL POPCORN  
from The Girl Who Ate Everything

3 bags microwave popcorn, popped (NOTE: We used 3-1/2 to 4 bags...it wasn't as gooey as 3)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter (I like to use salted butter since the rest of the popcorn is so sweet)
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Pop popcorn according to package directions and make sure you get rid of any unpopped kernels. Kim prefers the movie theater popcorn but it's good with really any kind of popcorn. This seems like a lot of popcorn but trust me it will get eaten! Place popcorn in a large bowl...larger than you think you will need.

In a large saucepan melt together the butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup. Bring mixture to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, reduce to medium heat and add the can of sweetened condensed milk. With the rubber spatula, stir constantly for 5 minutes scraping the sides and especially the bottom of the pan to
prevent any burning. The longer you cook it the firmer the caramel will be. I like mine a little on the soft side so I like to cook it shy of 5 minutes...around 4 minutes and 30 seconds.

Pour caramel over popcorn and stir until coated. This will take a lot of stirring to get it all incorporated. It's great warm or at room temperature. Feel free to add in M&Ms, nuts, or drizzle it with chocolate. I like it plain and classic. Enjoy!

 

CINNABON POPCORN
 by Our Best Bites

12 C popped popcorn (about 1/2 C kernels or around 1 1/2 bags of microwave popcorn for me)
1 cup pecan halves, roughly chopped
1 cup brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup karo syrup (or honey makes a good substitution)
1 stick real butter (1/2 cup)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 squares almond bark (about 4 oz) (NOTE: Evidently Almond Bark is "seasonal." Melting white chocolate from Winco is pretty much the same thing. It worked great for us!)

Preheat oven to 250 degrees

*You can use air popped or microwave popcorn. 
Place popcorn and chopped pecans in a large bowl and set aside. *Use a bigger bowl than you think you need.

Combine brown sugar and cinnamon in a 2 liter capacity microwave safe bowl. Mix well. Chop butter into chunks and place on top of sugar mixture. Pour corn syrup over the top of everything. Microwave on high for 30 seconds and then stir to combine. Return to microwave and heat for 2 minutes. Remove and stir and then microwave for 2 minutes more. *If you microwave it too much your popcorn will turn out really hard.

Remove from microwave and add in vanilla and baking soda. Stir to combine. Mixture will foam and rise. Pour caramel mixture over popcorn and pecans and stir very well so everything is well coated. *STIR MORE THAN YOU THINK YOU NEED TOO.

Spread popcorn mixture onto a foil-lined jelly roll pan. Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. 

Remove from oven and spread out on a large piece of parchment, waxed paper, or foil. 

Melt almond bark according to package instructions. Drizzle over popcorn mixture. When almond bark is hardened and popcorn is cool, break into chunks and enjoy!

POPCORN CUPCAKES

These were so fun and pretty easy to make; just time-consuming! We made regular cupcakes (courtesy of Betty Crocker Golden Vanilla). We frosted them with Betty's Whipped Whipped Cream frosting (quite heavily). Then take miniature marshmallows and cut a cross in the top (don't go all the way through the bottom). Actually, they look a lot like molars. :) Press the marshmallows into the frosting covering the top of the cupcake. Squirt a little water on the marshmallows (we used a squirt bottle) and then shake yellow sprinkles on top. Looks just like butter on popcorn!! 

My how time flies!

I can't believe it's April 1st already! It's supposed to hit 70 degrees today which is FABULOUS!!

 Unfortunately, it's supposed to snow Sunday with a low of 48 and a high of 49 the next day...OF COURSE! IT'S SPRING BREAK...MUST HAVE SNOW!

Anyway, a bit of an update since the last post...

• Sammi has been home for seven weeks! It's been amazing having her home. She's working at Busath Photography with Mal, which has been fun for both of them. She's getting reacquainted with a few friends and enjoying life.
• Mal is growing and growing! Our little baby Forbes (still unnamed but they say they're getting closser to a decision) is coming right along and I'm LOVING sewing all kinds of baby stuff and picking up a few little things for him. Yesterday, she posted on Facebook that she's officially in her third trimester. So excited to be a Grammy!!
• Zack and Kenzi are doing great. Zack's back continues to be a "pain" (no pun intended); he finally went to see Dr. Bean on Monday and he has a bulging disk. He's got the body of a 90 year old! It's pretty sad when you watch him walk and he's only 25!!  He's out of town a lot still which is good because it means there's still work out there for him. Kenzi is still at Tanner Clinic and loves it. She lined Sammi up with the cutest guy that she works with last week. She won the prize for the best birthday present ever (she gave Clint Sammi's phone number on her birthday).
• Maddi is still at Zions Bank and brings home amazingly creepy customer stories most days. I don't understand how some people (men) can think it's OK to hit on cute young girls...especially when they're old enough to be her grandpa! She's dating and loves to have FUN!!!
• Bob is busy at work but enjoys a "Wingman Day" every couple of weeks (they get half a day off for meeting some production thing or other). Would be rough working for the government...
• I can't believe we're two weeks into fourth term! It's been an interesting year but I can't wait for summer!!

I'll post pictures of sewing projects shortly...

Baby Burp Cloths

I've been having fun making baby burp cloths for friends, Mal & Kenzi, and an open house at Acute Angle. They are so cute and fun to make! The BEST baby burp rags!!

It's a BOY!!!!!

It's official!! 

It's a BOY!!!!!!!! 

(The Dr. said he'd personally come paint the bedroom pink if it comes out a girl.) :)

Ten days!

I can't believe this journey is about over. Honestly, I never expected to have these feelings: complete excitement that Sammi's almost home (OK, OK...that one I expected!) but at the same time,complete sadness that this adventure is almost over. We have received amazing blessings as a family, individually, and as parents watching our daughter grow into a wonderfully faithful daughter of God. Bittersweet is the best or only word we can come up with to describe the past few days and the ones ahead of us. I told a friend of mine who has a son out with six months left: "Be prepared! The last two weeks are almost as hard as the first two." When she asked why, my reply was back then, you wanted them to serve but didn't want them to leave. Now, you want them home but you don't want the experience to end.

Last night, Bob and I really struggled to write our last official email. Neither of us could think of what to say. He finally figured it out and wrote one of the sweetest, most touching emails I've read. Of course, as he let me read it, I got all teary-eyed. Then after I read it and looked at him, he was all teary-eyed as well.  We stood them and cried together. This morning, as Sammi and I 'chatted' during her email time, we both cried. It's been as hard for her as for us and for similar reasons. CRAZY!!

So,  the final details are being taken care of. All of the jobs on the last post have been completed and we've started several other lists,  crossed off the "Things to Do" and created even more lists. Now it's down to final cleaning, getting the carpets and couches cleaned, getting Charlie groomed and the other puppies bathed, finish baking, buy the rest of the food for her homecoming, get the signs put up, etc., etc., etc. It's all so exciting yet so surreal!

Ten days is not very long at all!