cardon christmas card 2010

honey pecan chicken

you really should make this tonight.

my grandma ginny fixed this up for us for sunday dinner...

so so good.

1. Soak 4 whole chicken breasts for 1 1/2 hours in 4 cups buttermilk (in refrigerator).

2. Coat chicken in: 

    1 cup flour

    2/3 tsp. salt

    1/4 tsp. garlic powder

    1/4 tsp. cayenne 

    Let stand 20 minutes or more

3. Fry in oil until brown. Drain.

4. Slowly simmer:

    1/2 cup melted butter

    1/4 cup honey

    1/4 cup chopped pecans

    Simmer for 15 minutes. Pour over chicken.  Enjoy!!!

and just for fun, my favorite picture of little g. this week:

6 months

just writing this makes me somewhat emotional.

my boy is 6 months...how did it creep up on me like this?

having little g in our home has been truly amazing.

what did we do without him?

thank you little guy for making life so enjoyable.

the little reader

two things i learned about my little guy this week...

1. he can sit up all by himself and 2. he loves books

so now that i know his love of books

i'm on the hunt for some fantastic children books for my little g.

{who doesn't love new books under the tree?}

here were some of my favorites growing up...

any suggestions?

3 year anniversary

happy three years to my handsome husband.

life is so much better with a side-kick.

a terrific thursday.

i came home from a long day of school, and this was waiting for me....

i  know what you're thinking....a vacuum?

this vacuum cleans carpets. i always thought you had to hire a carpet cleaner for that.

but now i can do it myself with my early anniversary gift.

i must say, i never though i would be SO excited for a carpet cleaner.

i was literally jumping up and down because i love nothing more than clean carpets.

and then, i had this delicious chicken for dinner that ryne made just for me.

want the recipe?

so very yummy. i promise

favorite video of the week

i have been following her blog for quite a while...

she just posted this a few days ago.

Postcards From Italy from ForYouLoveMe on Vimeo.

very cute.

our little chicken.

seriously, what a fantastic weekend.

 it started with visiting granny annie at work in g's costume.  

we then went to a trunk-or-treat/soup cook-off where ryne won the "most original soup" in our ward.

saturday night, us and our "little chicken" stopped off for clam chowder at ginny + po's

marin + chelsey were nice enough to watch our little guy while we went to dinner and a movie with the barkers.  

such a little trooper.

i love halloween....

for many reasons, but obviously my favorite part about halloween is the costumes

and there is one person who takes the cake when it comes to dressing up....

my dad.

last year he won the best overall costume at work. we were quite proud. 

they really get into the halloween spirit where he works. 

each "team" chooses a theme, and they all dress up according to their theme.

this year they decided to re-enact the whole tiger scandal.

can you find my dad?

who knew he had such sexy legs!

so guess who won best overall costume for 2010?

yep, my dad rocks.

david beckham

my favorite you tube video of the week....

enjoy!

what's for dinner?

ryne has been working nights since i've known him, and this past week he changed his schedule to just working during the day. at first i was excited, but then it hit me....

i have to cook dinner?!

my secret is out. i can't cook. my family jokes that i actually married a man who does what i should know how to do (lucky me, right?)

 so i need help! does anyone have any tried and true recipes that they would share?

my boys and i would greatly appreciate it :)

postcrossing

since i was little, i would always get super excited if anything came for me in the mail.

i'm still like that.

wouldn't you be thrilled if this was waiting for you in your mailbox?

 missionary letters from elder chase, to amazon orders, to my martha stewart living 

i patiently wait until 4 to see what i received in my mailbox.

i feel as though writing letters isn't cool anymore, and it makes me sad.

so when i came across this website, i signed up immediately.

i also love this idea.  if only i had photography skills.

and graham also says hello....

love him.

nana

while going through thousands of pics on my mom's computer

these three made me smile.

my sweet nana. she passed away three years ago, and i've missed her like crazy.

 

   obviously not nana, but on nana's couch with nana's silly glasses.

lucky for me, this grandma also knew how to cook.

and i may even post her flub dub recipe next week..

{think jell-o, but so much better}

yogurt melts

some may call this bad parenting...

but we were just experimenting.

since graham turned 4 months, we figured he could try something a little bit more exciting than milk.  turns out he's not quite ready for it.

sorry for the poor quality!

and if you're still interested in silhouettes, i could always use more!! 

a few tips...

1) the silhouettes turn out much more accurate if you are not smiling in your picture. 

 2) girls should try to show their neck. if not, you look like you have a trunk for a neck from your hair :) (and who wants that!)

send them before friday to daniwcardon@gmail.com.

my four-month old friend

my little buddy is 4 months today.

i never thought i could love him more.

i finally found the time to do his silhouette.

if i can make one for charlie, baby g must be next.

so i have a small favor...

there's a project i'm working on for my portfolio

and i need your pictures!

if you're willing to help me out:

1. take a profile picture (you, your kids, or whoever you find special). try to make the background as plain as possible.

2. send it to my email: daniwcardon@gmail.com

3. i will use your pic to make a silhouette for my project, and then send back your very own silhouette to do as you please. make sure to add any specifications you may have (color, size, name, etc)

thank you thank you!

ginny's kitchen

one of the most treasured gifts i received for my wedding was my grandma ginny's recipes. she compiled a book especially for me with all of her favorite sides, entrees, and desserts. and take my word for it, this woman knows how to cook. 

thanks to ginny's recipes, i was able to whip up some last minute loaves of banana bread for our yw activity on wednesday.

there is nothing better than a warm slice of ginny's buttered banana bread.

1/2 cup margarine

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 cup mashed bananas

1/4 cup milk

1 tsp. lemon juice

2 cups flour

1 1/2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. baking soda

1/4 t. salt

1/2 cup nuts (optional)

Cream margarine and sugar. Add eggs and beat. Add bananas, milk and lemon juice. Sift dry ingredients and add lemon juice. Sift dry ingredients and add to banana mixture. Add nuts.  Bake in well-greased 8x4x3-inch loaf pan for 1 hour at 350 degrees.  Enjoy!

grahams new trick

we finally were able to record this after trying for awhile...

apparently graham is camera shy.

this girl...

is a bombshell...

and she's my sister.

how lucky am i?

lucky enough to try to teach her how to drive a stick....again

she will learn eventually :)

"happy birthday ryme"

this picture was taken a year ago yesterday.
ryne and i were in cancun for his surprise birthday get-away.

that was also the night where we had the best.fajitas.ever

another year older for my sweet husband.
i am such a lucky girl.

tada shop

now that it's getting colder, i'm desperately trying to find clothes for baby g.

i came across this online shop, and found many things that will work great for the fall/winter.

{they have toys also!}

where do you get clothes for your little one?

a day for birthdays

today is a special day for my sweet cousin tessa....

this girl always has a smile on her face

{i think it runs in the family}

and is such a good big sister.

happy birthday tessa!

it is also a special day for my boy....

 his 3-month birthday is bittersweet

considering he's not really a newborn anymore.

it sorta makes me sad...

but then i get over it when he gives us his graham grin

which is the cutest thing in the world.

it's a party!

Hooray! Kids Village is now doing parties!

We are doing our first wedding in a few weeks...

i'm excited!

go here for more info!

my favorite things..

since becoming a mom to baby g

there are a few things that i could not live without...

one would be his aden + anais blankets

he loves them, and they swaddle like a charm

two would be his bumbo

{thanks walker and haley!}

he loves to be involved in the party

and this makes it so he doesn't miss anything

three would be baby g of course!

i want to eat him...

sorry for the poor quality pics...

my silly sister

we just got home from a relaxing family trip to san diego.

ryne and i would be so tired at the end of the day....

but meggie was another story

her poor neighbors... :)

2 months old

our big guy turned two months yesterday...

and is already wearing 3-6 month clothes!

{graham's announcement i forgot to send out...whoops!}

we love our boy.

my chair

since becoming a mom to baby g

my most treasured gift is my chair

my sweet mom found me the most comfortable glider out there

as well as fabric to match the nursery.

it's now my favorite place in the house :)

La Jolla Groves

ryno switched restaurants about the time baby g was born.

his second home has become...

which is great for me because i love their food.

try their sliced beef tenderloin...

so good.

located in riverwoods across the street from shoots.

busy 4th weekend

we had such a great weekend surrounded by family...

as we speak graham is re cooperating after all the festivities.

dad and g chillin' at the hill reunion

sunset at stadium of fire

our little family at g's blessing

four generations

baby g and grandpa 

the siblings at aunt marin's

{have i mentioned how lucky baby g is to have such wonderful aunts/uncles?}

g after the family pool party
{i could seriously eat him he's so cute}

thank you to all who came to graham's blessing. we truly have such an amazing, supportive family. both ryne and i could not believe how many were there to see us. graham is definitely a loved little boy, and we feel so blessed to have such wonderful friends and family.  we love you all!