Tamara Shannon

It's that time of year again!  Time to spend hours cooking/preparing, minutes eating (WAY too much food), all surrounded in the loud, wonderful chaos of family. The food, shopping and preparations can quickly and easily take over and  result in overlooking the real meaning of the holiday. Thanksgiving invites us all to reflect on our many blessings and remember to be grateful.  As you might expect, the things I am most grateful for are those that you can't buy.  This year we welcomed Brynlynn into our home and are SO GRATEFUL for her; that she is here, that she is healthy, that our family is forever.   I'm incredibly grateful for my knowledge of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  I'm grateful for the countless blessing He has bestowed upon me and my family.  I am grateful for Brent; for the man and husband that he is and more importantly the father that he is.  I'm so grateful for all of my immediate and extended family...I'm not under any false impression that it'

Where have the past 9 months gone??  I keep looking through her pictures/videos from the day she was born and the next weeks that followed...I can't believe how big she's getting.   She is so fun and full of personality.  She has always been an "easy" baby: she's slept through the night since about 3 months, usually follows a (rough) nap schedule , eats all the fruits and veggies that we send her way, she's healthy and generally a happy baby.  Oh, and she's about a 100 on the cuteness scale from 1-10.  She's not afraid to speak her mind; she's VERY vocal.  She is very curious and adventurous; she's crawling, and climbing and standing (unassisted-for a few seconds at least)...this girl doesn't miss a thing!  Every time we have a check-up the Dr. just laughs at how active and curious and vocal she is and says something to the effect of, "she's going to be  fun ."  ...bringing a whole new meaning to the word fun... I can't

For this week's FHE (Family Home Evening) we decided to make some crafts.  What better craft to make this time of year than a hand/foot turkey??  It was lots of fun, for us mostly.  Brynlynn enjoyed the paint and "painting" but, was quickly annoyed with us as we tried to create the perfect turkey.    The finger paint was homemade and completely edible.  I don't remember the website with the recipe, but there are several different ones out there.   Mine consisted of: 2 cups flour, 2 T salt, 1 1/2 c cold water, and  1 1/2 hot water. 1. Mix flour, salt and cold water. Mix until completely combined.  2. Stir in hot water. Mix completely. Bring to a boil. Allow to thicken, while stirring.  3. Allow to cool then add food coloring.  Here they are!  I saved some of her food containers...worked perfectly. She prefers to paint al natural...& I prefer to do less laundry. Notice how the "art" carries from the paper on to the table... Gobb