Another Graduation

Niko is a Kindergarten graduate.  Now on to 1st grade.

Graduation

Thomas graduated from High School.  I know.  I can hardly believe it myself.

Premier Jazz Roast

I got to hear Tom sing one of the last times with Premier Jazz at the Jazz Roast.  It has been one of my favorite things to do this school year.  I hope some of my other kids get the opportunity to enjoy being a part of this group.

The Pullman Pan

We have a new bread pan at our house, a pullman pan.  You bake the bread with the lid on to form an almost perfect square crust on all 4 sides.

I made pain de mie because the recipe was perfect for my size pan.

 When sliced, they make a perfect square sandwich bread.  Great for toast too.  Yummy!

More Parkour

And a few more pictures of Thomas doing his thing . . . 

Parkour

No photo shoot of Thomas would be complete without some parkour.

Thomas took these pictures and made them into . . . 

. . . this . . . 

. . . and then this.

Senior Pictures

I took some senior pictures of Thomas.  Please remember that I am new to this photography thing and I am still learning.  These are some of my favorites, but, I must add, they are not all Thomas' favorites.  But since this is my blog and not his . . . 

Thomas hates close ups of himself, but I really like this picture. 

Thomas does not like this picture at all.  He wanted to know why no one told him how stupid the hat looked.

This last one just makes me smile.  It may not be the best photo, but it means the most to me.  This is that look Thomas always gives me.  I can just hear him saying, "Mom, really?"

A Visitor

Guess who came to visit me this weekend?

Yes, she really is that cute.  No, there was no editing of her eye color.

Senior Recital

Thomas and Jared had their senior piano recital.  It was amazing.  Besides the great music, Thomas and Jared added their own fun and humor to the show.  I wish I could post the whole concert.  I am going to miss his music when he goes off to college and a mission, even the piano playing at 11:00 pm and midnight, which seems to happen frequently.  This is Thomas and Jared with their amazing piano teacher.

Homemade Corn Tortillas

I could hardly wait to make homemade corn tortilla when I got my new tortilla press.  The whole process is so simple.

First we mixed the masa with a little bit of salt and then some water to make a dough.  We rolled it into balls.

Then we pressed the balls in the tortilla press.  One would think you just put the ball in the center and press.  But actually the ball needs to be closer to the top, about a third the way down.

The whole trick on not having the tortilla stick to the press and make a mess is all in the plastic.  I cut 3 sides off of a heavy duty Ziploc bag and pressed the tortilla between the 2 sides.  It comes off the plastic so easy.

The tortilla spent a few minutes in a cast iron skillet.  And into a dishcloth to stay warm and soft until we were ready to eat.

 We stuffed the tortillas with sweet pork, lettuce, and cheese.

 Oh, my!  They were so yummy.  I made the corn tortillas 2 more times that first week and once again last weekend when Kim, Travis, and Allie were here.

Mother's Day 2011

These are the two fun gifts I received for Mother's Day.  Yes, I picked them out ahead of time myself, gave them to Todd, and he wrapped them up.

This is a new longer strap for my camera.  I actually made the fabric cover for the shoulder pad. I just love the material!

I have been wanting a tortilla press for a while.  We made our first batch of homemade corn tortilla that very day.

Prom 2011

Now days, Prom is a whole day event . . . 

The day began with 12 couples at our home for breakfast.

In the afternoon the group went to another home to play mud volleyball.

Almost everyone in the group wore converse tennis shoes, including the girls.

Then the evening began with pictures in the park, dinner, and the dance.