Horlacher House

What have we been up to?

2011-07-17T16:05:00.000-07:00

Let's start with some birthdays. Sarah turned 8 this year and had a fun friends party. There was a lot of squealing going on with all those girls!

And of course, she was most excited about getting baptized.

And then our baby girl, Grace, turned 4 in March. I can't believe how big she's getting!

And then in April, after 3 years of sacrifice and hard work, Shawn graduated from Law School!

Then, we moved to Olympia, Washington, for Shawn to work at the Thurston County Prosecuting Attorneys Office and study for the bar exam. We are living in my parent's house while they are serving a mission in Switzerland. We are definitely enjoying the Pacific Northwest!

Grace and I tagged along on Anders' field trip to the Point Defiance Zoo. It was a pretty wet day, but the kids had a blast and it was the most exciting day I've had at the zoo, including wrestling polar bears, a dancing elephant and a birthday party for the 1 year old twin tiger cubs. Here's a few pics:

And then our sweet boy, Jacob, turned 6 in June and is enjoying his birthday present. Even with all his missing teeth :)

And then we finished the school year with Jacob "graduating" from Kindergarten. He is such a cutie!

Spring Break in Tillamook, Oregon

2010-03-25T19:38:00.000-07:00

We took a day trip to Tillamook, Oregon, with our good friends Kris and Emily and had a fantastic time touring this little coastal town. Our first stop was the famous Tillamook Cheese Factory. They have the best cheese and ice cream which we got to enjoy after our tour.

Lot's of cheese! These are 40 pound blocks that they cut down to the different sizes to sell. The kids had a blast at the Air Museum there in Tillamook - 1 of 17 sites along the eastern and western coasts that built humungous hangars that would hold blimps that would then patrol the coasts for enemy vessels during World War II. Sarah loved gettng soaked at the Oceanside Beach The Octopus Tree at Cape Meares Lookout Cape Meares Lighthouse

Happy Birthday, Grace!

2010-03-08T14:51:00.000-08:00

My baby is 3 years old!

Fun with the Nelsons

2010-03-06T14:58:00.000-08:00

My wonderful sister, Liz, and her family came to visit us this weekend. The kids had a blast playing together, the weather was perfect and we had some yummy food. We had a fabulous time and enjoyed some highlights around Salem. One of which was the beautiful carousel at the Riverfront Park downtown.

And while Liz and I were helping the kids go on the carousel for about the 10th time, Shawn and Tom were...

Oh, don't they look adorable?

Happy Birthday, Sarah!

2010-02-06T14:25:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it's been 7 years since you were born. We sure love you very much and we are so grateful to have you in our family!

Boy, did we have a fun party!

Recipe Link

2009-10-02T10:12:00.001-07:00

Ok, I thought I set up the last post with a link to the recipe, but I must have done it wrong, so just click here: Tomato Mozzarella Basil Recipe and hopefully it will work this time.

Tomato Mozzarella Basil Tart

2009-10-01T15:02:00.000-07:00

I have come to realize that those 3 things (tomatoes, mozzarella and basil) make the most delicious edibles. Add some garlic, olive oil and salt & pepper and you really can't go wrong. My good friend and cooking kindred spirit, Alexis, and I made this dish yesterday and pretty much ate the whole thing. It was AAAAMMAAAAZZing! It's not super labor intensive but it does take some time because you have to chill the dough for an hour but it is so worth it. You've got to try it!

End of Summer Fun

2009-09-16T23:42:00.001-07:00

Liz and I and the kids had a blast at Northwest Trek near Eatonville. We went on a cool, cloudy morning so all the animals were out. It was amazing!
"Oh, rise and shout..." These cougars were huge.

Check me out

2009-09-15T20:46:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I know some of you out there are further along in your culinary skills to get very excited about this, but this is an exciting accomplishment for me.Doesn't it look amazing? And it was so easy. Click here for the Caprese Salad recipe. It's delicious!

Summer Recap - Part 2 (July 4th, 2009)

2009-08-31T09:23:00.000-07:00

Firecracker Triathlon Group, from left to right: Lance, Mom, Dad, Lauren, Adam and Amy. This event was so much fun! I totally want to do it again, but hopefully with a different bike. :) Check out Adam's sweet ride!

My supportive family

These guys are the real competitors! They each came in 4th place for the men and women's groups. I love how they totally get into it. Good job, Adam and Lauren!

Our evening activities were held at Nelson's and Cramer's awesome neighborhood. Adam bought some killer, slightly illegal fireworks for the occasion. And Liz painted everyone's fingernails, even Rhett and Jacob's. Thanks, Liz :)

Cute Cousins!

As you can see, Jacob really enjoyed the festive cupcakes. Let's count how many Jacob ate...

Here's Cupcake #1

Cupcake #2

And here's Cupcake #3

Fun with Sparklers

Check out this pensive look. "Do I want to try a sparkler?"

"Oh ya, this is great!"

Ok, I like 'em too

Daddy's little girl

Sarah with the neighborhood girls

Megs and cute little Benjamin!

Summer Recap - Part 1

2009-08-30T23:22:00.000-07:00

Well, I kind of took the summer off from blogging, so I'm going to attempt to catch everyone up on our "fun"-filled summer. Mostly I'm just going to post a bunch of pictures (that's all everyone wants to see anyway, right?).

Fun at a Mariner's Game with Sarah and Jacob

Fun celebrating my 35th Birthday! Man, I'm getting old.

Fun at the Fort Lewis Military Museum

Fun making s'mores for Family Home Evening

Fun at Grace's 1st haircut!

Fun Day in Seattle with Grandma and Grandpa Horlacher

Fun at Burfoot Park

Fun at the Gilbert House

Happy Birthday, Jacob!

2009-06-10T23:00:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my sweet little boy is 4 years old today.

Wasn't he an adorable baby?

Kindergarten Program

2009-06-10T09:26:00.001-07:00

I can't believe Sarah has completed her kindergarten year. Her class put on a little program the other day where they sang several songs and then showed a slide show with pictures of the kids during their different activities over the year.

Here's a couple of the songs. Her good friend, Jackson, is the little boy in front of her. He's a character!

Don't worry, Sarah does have girlfriends too.

Family Update

2009-06-09T15:08:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I haven't blogged for a while, so I thought I would post some pics of things we've been up to the last few months.

We celebrated Shawn's Birthday in March with some yummy, mini chocolate pudding pies. Grace's birthday is also in March, but I can't seem to find any pictures of it. (Oops - typical 3rd child)

This is just a cute picture of Shawn walking with the kids to the Children's Hands on Museum in Olympia during our Spring Break.
After Shawn finished his finals to complete his 1st year of law school (Yippee!!!) we had some fun family time. We took a trip to Utah to visit friends and family, but unfortunately I forgot our camera, so I am unable to document it. We also went to this cute amusement park south of Salem, called the Enchanted Forest.

Humpty DumptyJack and Jill
Shoe Slide

We were eating our lunch and this squirrel came pretty close, so the kids threw some food for him and he got even closer and stuck around a while for more.

There were some fun rides for the kids Grace just likes to watch the carousel

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T20:15:00.000-07:00

Funny Car Conversation with Sarah

2009-03-12T09:49:00.000-07:00

I'm driving with all the kids to Walmart and we're listening to a children's songs CD and the song Jack and Jill comes on, and it gets to the part where "Jack fell down and broke his crown," and:

Sarah: (says to herself) Broke his crown?... Mom, is crown another word for head?
Mom: yes it is
Sarah: So he broke his head?
Mom: ya, I guess so
Sarah: wow...that's gotta hurt.

A-ward Winning Chili

2009-02-25T09:22:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I guess my chili recipe won the grand prize at our Ward Chili Cook-off last Saturday. I knew it was good, but I didn't expect to win since I'm on the Activities committee and kind of helped come up with the idea. Anyway, I'm glad so many people liked it, but I just wish I hadn't made a fool of myself when they asked me to say a few words from the microphone. I think I mentioned something about everyone being gassy because of all the beans we had eaten... embarrassing!

Anyway, here's the recipe if anyone wants it:

White Chicken Chili

½ stick butter
¼ cup flour
¾ cup chicken broth
2 cups half and half
1 ½ tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
½ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
2 small cans diced green chilies
3 cans Great Northern beans (Bush brand are best)
1 cup diced cooked chicken
½ onion, chopped and sautéed
1 ½ cup Monterey Jack cheese
sour cream for topping (optional)

In a large stockpot, melt the butter and then wisk in flour. Gradually add broth and cream and bring to a low boil over med heat until thick. Wisk constantly so it won’t burn. Turn the heat down to low and stir in the seasonings. Then add the rest of the ingredients and turn the heat back up to medium to heat through. If desired, top with a dollop of sour cream.

West Salem High School Cheer Camp

2009-02-07T20:51:00.001-08:00

As an extension of her birthday, Sarah went to a little cheerleader day camp at the high school. She had a great time and was relieved to see a friend from her class, Maddie, also there so she didn't have to be nervous. There were actually several girls from her class and from our ward there. It was pretty hilarious watching the routine that they learned. By the looks if it, I'm not sure many of the girls were actually paying attention to the instruction. I guess the point is that they had fun, right?

Jacob and Grace liked hanging out in the bleachers for awhile. Why is it so hard...

to get both kids to look at the camera...

and smile at the same time?

February 6, 2009 - Sarah's 6th Birthday

2009-02-07T20:39:00.000-08:00

I helped out in Sarah's class yesterday (her b-day) and she thought that was pretty special. I brought some treats for her to pass out to the kids in her class. The funniest thing was that as soon as we walked into the classroom, several of the children started wishing her a happy birthday and she looked up at me surprised that they would know that, until one of the kids reminded her that she's been telling them everyday for the past week that it was going to be her birthday on Friday. She is such a character.

This is Sarah with her Kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Feltz.

We played it pretty low key. I wasn't too excited about having a bunch of kids over for a party in our apartment, but we did invite a few families over for cake and ice cream so that was nice. So here's some video footage of singing and blowing out the candles.

She is such a sweetheart. I love you, Sarah! Happy Birthday!

Now you see it...

2009-01-15T16:40:00.000-08:00

Now you don't!Right after I posted that Sarah had her first loose tooth, I looked over and it had fallen out and she was holding it in her hand. Now she can't decide if she wants to give it the tooth fairy or not. She keeps asking how much she pays. Is that a bad sign?

Back to being a single mom...

2009-01-14T15:02:00.000-08:00

Thought I would post some recent photos of the kids. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. We sure enjoyed having Shawn around full time for a whole month. Shawn started back to school on Monday, so it's back to being a single mom. I love it though. The kids and I do have a lot of fun, and it helps to have a routine to follow.

Some exciting news though: Sarah has her 1st loose tooth. She asks me at least 20 times a day when I think it will come out. That's driving me a little crazy.

And Jacob is potty training and doing really well (don't worry, I won't include a picture of that). I've had 2 kids in diapers for almost 2 years and I can't tell you how nice it is to only have one now.

Nutracker Ballet

2008-12-16T09:29:00.000-08:00

We had a girls afternoon with my mom, sisters and our daughters on Saturday. We went to lunch at a Mexican place downtown and then went to the Northwest Ballet production of the Nutracker Ballet at the Washington Center in Olympia. We had a wonderful time and my favorite quote came from Claire immediately following the show, "That was WAY better than last year." After which Liz whispered to me, "It was exactly the same." I hope we can make this an annual Christmas tradition.

Grace's must have accessory...

2008-12-09T11:20:00.000-08:00

For the last couple of days, the first thing she wants to do when she wakes up is put on her sunglasses. And she pretty much keeps them on all day. I have to insist that she remove them to sleep, and she gets very upset about that. Do I really have to endure another drama queen daughter? Thanks a lot, mom.

I have the best sister in the world

2008-11-16T07:52:00.000-08:00

That's right! Mine is the best! I was up visiting my folks for a long weekend and my sister Liz was over with her family and could see that basically being a single parent is starting to wear on me. I don't think I was necessarily complaining, because I really try not to, but it does get hard sometimes without a break. So she offered to keep my two younger kids for the rest of the week and then we planned to meet up halfway on Friday so I could bring them back home.

And can I just tell you it was really a life saver. I had over 3 hours to myself in the morning after I got Sarah off to school, which meant I was able to shower every day and I even read a couple of books. And then of course dealing with one 5-year-old is a bit easier then all three kids. We were able to have some fun too. On Wednesday, after I picked her up from the bustop, we packed a lunch and went down to the law school and had lunch with Shawn. Then we went to see High School Musical 3 (confession: I really like those movies, and luckily Sarah does too). The coolest part was that we were the only ones in the theater, so Sarah got to dance in the aisles during the songs. It was so fun!

Anyway, Liz I can't thank you enough for your love and generosity. You're the best!

Happy Halloween!

2008-11-03T20:51:00.000-08:00

I wasn't very good about taking pictures over the weekend of my kids in costumes, trick-or-treating and all that jazz (Halloween is one of those hit and miss holidays for me - I have to be in the mood for it), but here is a little song about pumpkins performed by Sarah. Take care everyone!

Last weekend we went to.....

2008-10-21T20:27:00.000-07:00

Yippee!

Apparently, Jacob did not want his picture taken.

They had all these fun things to do for the kids.

Jacob loved this slide. We had a hard time getting him to leave.

And they even had a little petting zoo.

Isn't fall fun?

Don't look Grandpa...

2008-10-18T08:10:00.000-07:00

This lovely instrument at my parent's house is also a kid magnet, especially for those under the age of 2. Here are cute cousins Grace and Anders playing us a little tune.

This is where Shawn lives

2008-10-17T14:47:00.000-07:00

(It's not actually the law school building, because I couldn't find a picture online, so this is just one of the buildings on campus.)

He stays pretty busy, so the kids and I have been getting to know each other really well. I didn't realize how good I had it with so many wonderful neighbors with children my kids ages to play with back in Utah. There aren't very many kids in our apartment complex so we have to get creative. I do enjoy them most of the time. =)

I'm still here

2008-10-17T00:17:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the long absence. Good grief, I just barely started this thing and I can't seem to keep it up to date. One contributing factor is that my life is pretty boring right now. We have no money and Shawn is basically at the Law School all day everyday, so I get to hang out with the kids and do the mundane mom stuff. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining or anything I'm just stating the obvious. I guess I just need to pay more attention, I'm sure I can find interesting things to post. So stay tuned!

Sweet Sisters

2008-09-17T21:31:00.000-07:00

My sister, Becca, just sent me some pics from when we were all visiting in Washington at our parent's house a couple weeks ago. I had to post this one that was taken at the BYU vs. UW game on Sept. 6th. Aren't we adorable? I think we were just so happy because BYU was winning.

And then here are some shots of my kids at Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma.

Guess where I had dinner last night?

2008-09-14T17:52:00.000-07:00

Shawn and I went to our Ward's Elders Quorum BBQ Party at Jon Heder's (star of Napoleon Dynamite) house. Well, he doesn't actually live there anymore (I think he lives in LA), but his parents still live there and one of his brothers was mowing the lawn. I met his dad too. And saw his wedding pictures on the bookcase in the kitchen. Shawn even played tetherball in the backyard. Pretty cool, huh?

Sarah's 1st day of Kindergarten/Worst Mother Ever

2008-09-10T22:01:00.001-07:00

Here's Sarah posing outside the school before her first day of kindergarten. She was so excited, and I was so excited for her. I took her to school and walked her to her class (Grace was in a stroller and Jacob was on a leash - I know that sounds cruel but there was no way I could hold on to him otherwise). Sarah didn't even hesitate one bit, in fact I think she was happy to finally see me leave.
So I drive away with a list of a few errands to run. Everything was going according to schedule and I still had about 45 minutes until I had to be back at the school to pick her up. I was right by Walmart and needed a few items, so I checked the GPS to see how much time I needed to give myself to get back to the school which gave a good 30 minutes to shop. No problem, right?

Wrong!!!!

Let's just say I got in the wrong check out line. The lady in front of me had every issue imaginable. I kept thinking I should move, but I figured by the time I did the lady in front of me would be done. I stood in that check out line for 30 minutes. Can you believe that? I mean I know you can expect to stand in line for awhile at Walmart, but 30 minutes? Anyway, I was about 20 minutes late in picking up Sarah. I called the school as soon as I got in the car to leave the store and told them what happened. She was happily sitting in the office waiting for me. Hopefully no psychological damage has been done.

I can see the floor again

2008-08-17T22:26:00.000-07:00

Today I was able to see what the floor looked like again. It has been awhile. There's not much of it, we started with 1300 square feet, and added beds, couches, two tables (OK so one is very small and is only tall enough for those under 36 inches to use), I think we are down to about 300 square feet plus or minus. This means that we all have to take turns walking around so that we don't knock each other down, and if we have company well we may be visiting out in the hall but there is very nice breeze there so I don't think they will mind. The best part about having only a small area is that we are getting to know each other even better, because there is no play room to send the kids for that ten minutes of pure happiness. All in all we are loving this new little place. Amy has made it into a home.