Family
Saturday, May 2, 2009, by Leigh Anne
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There are lots of things I love about having my college kids home.
One of my top reasons is that there are more people around to help with Saturday chores! Yeah!
Here are the lists that were on the kitchen counter awaiting everyone as they got up this morning.
Of course the Honey Do one is for Jim.
The kid’s list is first come, first serve. As you can see there was a little negotiating going on as jobs were claimed but then traded around!
Cali got up last so she got stuck cleaning the kid’s bathroom - the biggest job!
While they were all at home working on their job list I snuck off to a plant sale at the Canby Fairgrounds and came home with these beauties…
These amazing coleus are going to look beautiful in my pots!
Poor Jim will probably only get one thing crossed off his list today - Fix the grill. After determining the grill was un-fixable he went out and bought a new one - eight hours later it is almost put together!
What was on your To Do list today?
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Categories: Family, Humor, Motherhood
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Friday, May 1, 2009, by Leigh Anne
I am having a dinner party and you’re invited!
I’d love to have you all over to my home for a dinner party but obviously that’s not possible so instead I am inviting you to my Facebook page every night for 31 nights for a dinner party.
Starting today and for the next 31 days I will be posting what the Wilkes household had for dinner on my Your Homebased Mom Facebook page. When possible a photo will be included and a link to the recipe if it is already on my blog.
I don’t promise gourmet fare every night - sometimes it may just be a Papa Murphy’s Take and Bake Pizza or pancakes!
I’d love for you to join in the fun by sharing what you had for dinner that night too (no picture or recipe required!) Just leave a comment under the wall post for that day.
Sound like fun?! I think it does - we’ll see how I feel about it in 31 days!
Do you have friends on Facebook? Invite them to the party too - the more the merrier. Just send them the url to this post and invite them to the party
So if you are already a fan of Your Homebased Mom on Facebook - great! If not just click here and then join the group and become a Fan. You can also click the Facebook badge on the homepage of the blog!
Please come to my dinner party!!
If you are not on Facebook yet - sign up! It’s easy!
So what’s for dinner tonight? It’s Friday so it’s date night and dinner out hopefully! Check back on Facebook later to find out!
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Categories: Family, Nourish
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Saturday, March 28, 2009, by Leigh Anne
Today is my parent’s 50th Wedding Anniversary.
Tessa and I are in Dallas Texas this weekend to celebrate with them. My nephew is also getting married today, on their anniversary day!
Here they are 50 years ago…
Yes I know, I look just like my mother. Thank you!
And here they are 3 children, 11 grandchildren, 1 great grandchild and 50 years later. Just as cute and still in love!
I love you mom and dad! Thank you for being such wonderful examples of love, dedication, and perseverance.
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Categories: Family, Inspire
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Monday, March 9, 2009, by Leigh Anne
I am hoping you will forgive my Mommy Moment today. One of those Mommy Moments when you just have to brag about one of your kids a bit and say how proud you are of them!
We have just finished “Show Week” at our house. We have been enjoying this week - really two weeks - for ten years now. Show week is the two weeks of the year that the Spring musical is being performed at our high school.
Every year for the last ten years, except for one, I have had a child involved in the musical. Show Week means lots of fun times spent at the high school helping with costumes, helping out at work parties, taking pictures at dress rehearsal, ushering, working in the box office, attending every performance, helping put together gifts for the director, etc. and helping with the cast party - I love it!
Two of my children, Logan and Cali, were both very involved with the high school theater department and Clark was very involved with the athletic department. When my youngest, Tessa, entered high school, to my disappointment, she announced that she was not interested in being involved in theater.
She had literally grown up in the shadows of the high school theater department but Tessa is my timid one, more reserved, doesn’t like the spotlight on her. I had somewhat sadly accepted the fact. I really enjoyed being involved with the kids and the productions, sewing costumes etc. and I must admit I love watching my children perform - whether it is on the stage or the sports field.
Last Spring I had a conversation with Tessa.
I wasn’t convinced that she really didn’t want to be a part of drama/theater in high school, there were inklings once in a while of interest. There were times when I could tell she was entertaining thoughts about it.
I explained to her that it was fine not to do something if she really didn’t enjoy it or have any interest but if she wasn’t trying out because she was scared that was not o.k. I shared with her that we all have fears and that we should not allow our fears to prevent us from trying something we really wanted to do. We shouldn’t let our fears win! We would live to regret it.
I had learned this from personal experience. There have been too many times in my life that I have allowed my fears to prevent me from trying something new, from taking a risk.
I have also learned that when fear is preventing one of my children from trying, the best thing to do is:
1. Look for an opportunity that would allow them to overcome their fear with very little risk at first. Last Spring Cali, Tessa’s sister, was directing a One Act play at school. Tessa was sure to get a part and of course she did.
2. Enlist the help of others. I knew if Tessa’s sister and a few of her friends were encouraging Tessa to try out for the One Acts she was much more likely to try than if it was just her mother! I asked them to help out by encouraging her.
Tessa had an amazing time and thanks to that one positive experience she overcame her fear.
This Spring our high school did Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat. Tessa was part of the company and the featured dancer. It was so fun to watch her through the process as she did not allow her fear to prevent her from trying. She worked hard for her audition, pushed herself beyond her comfort zone, she embraced and loved the part she was given and worked hard to do her best.
She shone on stage and you could see in her face how much fun she was having
She also learned that she loves applause - especially when they are just for you. She had the part of the “featured dancer” in the show and quickly learned that she loved having people clap for her!!
We are proud of you Tessa and grateful that you chose not to let your fears prevent you from growing, from moving forward and from discovering the many opportunities that are available to you!
Do you have any tips or suggestions for helping overcome your fears or helping your children overcome their fears?
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Categories: Family, Inspire, Motherhood
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Friday, December 26, 2008, by Leigh Anne
Over the Thanksgiving break we had a family photo taken.
Having a family photo taken is a lot of work! Picking out what everyone is going to wear and making sure it all works together, making sure everyone has a good haircut, finding a time when everyone is available, including the photographer, and then in our case this year - dealing with the weather. A dense fog decided to move in the morning we were to have our outdoor picture taken. Fortunately our great photographer found a pocket of sunshine!
Last year I chronicled our family photo experience here. If you want a laugh, check it out.
For you mothers of young children who think having a family picture taken will get easier when they get older - think again! I use to bribe my boys with the promise of Happy Meals if they smiled good for the picture - now I just threaten!
But I have to admit that our family photo experience this year was one of our easier ones. I only had to threaten Clark not to make silly faces a few times!
Thanks to my friend Sarah who took these wonderful pictures. She is also the one who took the picture I use in the header for my blog. If you live in the Portland area and need a family photo taken I highly recommend her!
The Wilkes Family - 2008!
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Categories: Connect, Family
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Thursday, December 25, 2008, by Leigh Anne
Merry Christmas! Hope you are enjoying a wonderful Christmas day!
I wanted to share our family Christmas card with you.
Enjoy your day!
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Categories: Connect, Family
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Wednesday, December 24, 2008, by Leigh Anne
Do you have a favorite word?
A word that just speaks to your heart, a word that motivates and inspires you? A word that just seems to pop up every time you turn around?
That word for me is Joy - it’s not an unusual word this time of year. In fact, last year I added this to my holiday decorating….
I decided that Joy was not just for Christmas but it was something I needed to remember and focus on all year long so I left it on the wall - it is now a permanent part of my decor. A daily reminder that it is up to me to bring Joy to my world.
Because that is not always an easy thing to do - I decided I needed a few more reminders. I have an entire Joy tree (this one doesn’t stay up all year). The Christmas tree in our family room is decorated with Joy ornaments….
and a few other pieces of Joy decor…
Recently I came across the following quote that I have decided is my new mantra for 2009. I love it so much we put it on our Christmas card this year.
“Let us relish life as we live it, find JOY in the journey, and share our love with friends and family.” Thomas S. Monson
I have decided to tweak it just a little bit - I want to find JOY in MY journey. Life does not always go according to plan but it is up to us to find JOY in the journey that life gives us. I hope to find more JOY in my Journey in 2009.
Do you have a favorite word, a word that speaks to your heart?
I have had several requests for pictures of my holiday decorations. I recently posted pictures of some of them on my family blog - if you are interested you can check them out here, just click here. Enjoy!
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Categories: Family, Inspire
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Tuesday, December 23, 2008, by Leigh Anne
Back in 1985 a tradition was born.
In Portland, if you want to see the “real” Santa, you go to Santaland at Meier & Frank (now Macy’s).
So of course when we took our first baby to see Santa, off to Santaland we went. As a six month old Logan thought nothing of the funny, jolly old man and happily let Santa hold him for a perfect photo moment.
Well, it was a different story the next year Our cute little 18 month old didn’t think that funny, jolly old man was too great. Logan started screaming when we attempted to hand him to Santa so we could get a picture.
Being the smart man that he is, Santa invited mom and dad to join him. So all three of us piled onto Santa’s lap.
O.K. - so no comments about the hair - it was the 80’s!
Thus, a tradition was born! For the last 23 years the whole family -now six of us - visit the “real” Santa at what is now Macy’s. We all pile onto Santa’s lap for the traditional family photo!
Yes, each of my children, ages 24, 22, 19 and 15 still sit on Santa’s lap and tell him what they want for Christmas. And you know what - they love it!! You see the rule at our house is “You don’t believe, you don’t get!”
We haven’t missed a year. There have been years when someone has been missing in the photo - the years our boys were serving missions in Argentina and Chile and then there was the year Clark had a wrestling match (don’t start me on that one!).
But there has been a family Santa picture for the last 23 years! I have them all in an album if you want to see!
Well, if you have been watching the weather at all, you may know that the Northwest is now in it’s 9th day of Arctic Blast 2008! Yes, we currently have 10 inches of snow in our front yard and this morning all cars were being advised to only drive if you had chains. I don’t think the City of Portland owns a snowplow!
As a result of the weather our annual visit to Santa hadn’t happened yet.
Well, we were running out of time - only three more days until Christmas! I wasn’t about to let this be the first year we didn’t have a family picture with Santa.
So, we put the chains on the car, loaded in and headed downtown. It was no surprise but there was no line to see Santa and we got the photo! Guess I am the only mother in Portland willing to risk her children’s lives to get a photo with Santa!!
Taking a good family photo with six people can be a challenge. Every family has one - the one member who loves to make funny faces in pictures. You know the one - everyone looks great in the picture except for that one person - the one in the back sticking out their tongue or making rabbit ears. Well ours is Clark. See what I mean!
We have just learned that you never take just one photo - you take several.
You can imagine how we laughed when we saw this picture - Clark is the only one that looks good!!
But thanks to a persistent photographer we got it - we got a good one.
The one for the family album.
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Categories: Connect, Family
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Monday, December 22, 2008, by Leigh Anne
When my children were younger one of our favorite holiday traditions was to have Breakfast with Santa downtown at Meier & Frank each year. We probably did it for 10 years or so. It was fun to get dressed, eat breakfast in the beautiful Georgian Room, enjoy the entertainment and of course see Santa.
Sadly, my children have all outgrown the experience and the Georgian Room is gone but we decided our neighbor children hadn’t outgrown it so we started our own Breakfast with Santa at our house. For the last three years we have invited the three “cul de sac” families to join us for breakfast one Saturday morning before Christmas. But instead of getting dressed up, everyone comes in their pajamas!
We serve the same menu they served in the Georgian Room.
Pancakes…
But ours come with Cinnamon Syrup
Little sausages…
and hot chocolate with lots of whip cream!
The kids all have a great time decorating gingerbread houses together.
We use the kits they sell at Costco!
And then there is that special visitor…..
This year, because of the weather, Santa arrived via special delivery (Thanks Dave!!)
After visiting with each of the children and finding out what they want for Christmas Santa heads out…. until next year Santa!!
Now the confession…
I use Bisquick to make pancakes! I know, that may be hard for some of you to believe but I do - or at least I did, until this year.
Several months ago my friend Sherra had a Pancake Throwdown on her blog and shared a recipe for Buttermilk Pancakes. Well, of course, I had to try them! Since that day I have never used Bisquick to make pancakes again!
They are yummy! If you don’t happen to have buttermilk on hand you can make your own by putting 1 Tbsp of lemon juice or vinegar in a liquid measuring cup and then add milk to the 1 cup line. Let sit for 5 minutes and you have a decent buttermilk substitution.
Give them a try and you may never use Bisquick again either!
59 Diner Buttermilk Pancakes
- 2 eggs
- 2 C buttermilk
- 6 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 1-3/4 C flour
- 2-1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp sugar
Combine liquid ingredients and dry ingredients separately. Mix until smooth. Let batter rest for 10 minutes. Cook on a preheated, lightly greased griddle for 1 minute. Turn pancakes and finish cooking. Makes about 10 pancakes.
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Categories: Connect, Family, Nourish, Recipes
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Sunday, December 21, 2008, by Leigh Anne
We are having some unusual weather here in Portland - snow! A few days of snow once every couple of years is normal for Portland - not 7 straight days of snow! For the second Sunday in a row church has been cancelled.
As a result, our backyard has turned into a Winter Wonderland and we have had lots of time for baking! I thought I’d share a few pictures of the magic all the snow has created in our backyard and what we’ve been up to in the kitchen.
As you can imagine the kids have had a great time playing out in the snow - even my big kids. Snow is still considered a novelty around here!
We ended up with a house full of neighbor kids on Saturday as they came in to warm up and have some hot chocolate so I decided to put them to work - helping me bake cookies.
We made a batch of Lemon Drops, Snowballs, Snickers Cookies and Almond Sugar Cookies;
And if you get really lucky you will have a sweet five year old neighbor like I do who loves to do dishes!!
Of course, the big boys, were too busy to help with the baking….
There was ballgames to be watched and naps to taken!
Let it snow!
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Categories: Connect, Family
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