Family & Missionaries

In the last month Birch and I have both had a brother leave on a mission. My brother McKay is in the MTC and will be serving in the Argentina Buenos Aires West mission (middle picture, pretty obvious). He's number five out of seven kids in our family and the second missionary. He is definitely ready to go!

Brooks is Birch's youngest brother (far right in the family photo, green shirt) and is now serving in New Hampshire. His fun fact is that he was born in his mission (Maine) but hasn't lived there since he was a baby. What a coincidence!

Another of Birch's brothers, Gabe, just got home from his mission in Oakland, California (far left, white shirt). Gabe and Brooks missed seeing each other by less than a month, but Brooks was given permission to spend a few days with Gabe in his mission before he came home and Brooks left. Both of these guys are amazing!

Spaghetti with Tomato Cream Sauce

We love pasta at our house and this is Birch's favorite, spaghetti with tomato cream sauce. I'm not even an onion lover and I think it's pretty tasty. Plus it's fast!

Thanks to Kelly for the idea for this post and to Maranda for sharing the recipe at a recipe swap!

Tomato Cream Sauce
Saute in a medium frying pan:
1 T olive oil
½ onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced

Add and bring to a boil:
½ can Italian-style diced tomatoes
½ T basil
¼ t sugar
¼ t oregano
1/8 t salt
Dash of pepper

Boil until most of the liquid evaporates. Remove from heat.
Stir in:
¼ c heavy cream or whole milk
½ T butter

Reduce and simmer 5 more minutes. Serve over spaghetti.
Makes 3 servings.

How to Trick Your Wife on Valentine's Day

Earlier this week we were all set with a babysitter so we could go out to dinner for Valentine's Day. Then Birch innocently suggested that we could go to the U of A game instead, since I haven't been in so long, of course. What a thoughtful guy!

Now he did hit a weak spot. The first few years we were married we never missed a U of A basketball game (back when they had the lottery system and Birch was drawn EVERY year--maybe he should be a gambler!) We were also faithful to football games and occasionally watched softball and volleyball.

This year our luck ran out. With Trevor in the picture, Birch studying for school and the U of A now scanning CatCards so they know I'm not a student, we have been sporting event dropouts.

So I agreed to a romantic basketball game instead of dinner without a baby. I think the guilt got to Birch a little and he took the three of us out to eat the night before, so I did get an evening with no cooking or dishes. I guess when you try to trick your wife on Valentine's Day everyone is happy!

Missionary Haircuts & More Sabino

Always Mr. Do-it-yourself, Birch learned to cut his own hair on his mission. (Very convenient now for the wife!) He bought a hair clipper and soon became the barber for the missionaries in every apartment he lived in. Birch's signature haircut was called the "Dego" (day-go). I'm not sure what the exact style was, but it was probably what you would expect from a Mormon missionary.

Trevor's little bit of hair was getting kind of shaggy so we gave him his first Dego haircut this week. As you can see, he's pretty terrified of this humming, vibrating machine we're pushing against his head. Can you blame him?

Trevor and I took another trip to Sabino Canyon, this time with a bunch of friends in strollers. We made it to the big dam where Birch used to take measurements for his job with USGS before starting med school.

Here's the group: Brittany's daughter Lizzie was the lucky girl surrounded by five boys!

Trevor was SO EXCITED to be surrounded by dirt, rocks and plants. Of course, everything went into his mouth. He has just started eating solid food this week...maybe we'll add dirt and rocks to the menu.

A Little Pick-Me-Up

Whenever I'm having a rough day I usually do two things. First I eat junk food, which means chocolate and/or bread. Lots of it! A little instant gratification never hurt, right?

I also listen to a talk online by Sister Julie Beck, our new Relief Society general president. Whether you are LDS or not, have children or not, her words are a great motivator for women! She helps me remember what is important in life and how much I have to be grateful for.

"Mothers Who Know"
http://broadcast.lds.org/genconf/2007/10/40/GC_2007_10_44_BeckJB__02381_eng_.mp3

"What Latter-Day Saint Women Do Best: Stand Strong and Immovable"
http://broadcast.lds.org/genconf/2007/10/60/GRSM_2007_10_61_BeckJB__02109_eng_.mp3

What do you do when you need a little pick-me-up?