A "Corny" Halloween

We had a very fun Halloween this year, especially because it was Jessica's first experience with the holiday! It's very true, that having children in your life gives you greater appreciation for holidays/traditions and makes things so much more fun! We dressed her up as a little Candy Corn Princess and isn't she just the cutest thing ever? Jessica totally rocked that costume.

We took her trick-or-treating for the first time and she was adorable. People just fawned over her and she soaked it up! I had a few people joke with me about taking her out to trick-or-treat because she wasn't going to eat any of the candy. Needless to say, Michael and I enjoyed all the spoils she received, and she sure made out like a bandit. Having a cute and sweet little girl surely helps to get lots of good candy on Halloween!

 Even though Jessica isn't in focus in this picture, I just love her happy expression while looking at her Daddy.

Yep, I learned how to create a gif, thanks to a free online generator. 

 This is one of Jessica's favorite things to do. Anytime I say "no" she shakes her head back and forth as if to say, "no no, no no" over and over again. It's adorable. Now all I have to do is be really serious when I'm telling her not to do something (which is next to impossible because she is just so darn cute when she does the head-shaking thing), otherwise she's going to think the word "no" is funny.

 I love those bright blue eyes looking up at me everyday.

 And what a sweet little expression. She is such a darling little candy corn.

Life is good.

Petersen Farms Harvest Festival

 A few weekends ago, we went to Petersen Farms in Riverton, UT and celebrated the beautiful fall weather at their annual Harvest Festival. I've been looking for something fun like this to do for quite a few years and I was so happy to find a great place to hopefully start a tradition each fall. The farm had animals, a pumpkin patch, corn maze, pony rides, corn pit, apple slingshot, and many fun booths to peruse. And, we got free lunch all for $10 admission. Pretty awesome, if you ask me!

Our friends, The Chandlers, were visiting from Missouri and they joined us also. We used to know them from living in Logan and it was so nice to catch up with them and see how their family has grown!

We had a wonderful afternoon, even though the weather was a little warmer than expected. We will surely be returning year after year!

9 Months {Jessica}

 While the weather has been nice and cool, we've been taking walks/runs outside in the mornings and on Sunday afternoons when church is over. One of these Sunday strolls was around the Cottonwood area, on a nice trail in the mountains. Michael has been on bike rides here before, so he wanted to take us there to show how pretty it is. And...he knew there was a gorgeous bridge that would make a perfect spot for us to take some photos of Jessica. What a happy surprise when we got there!

I'm not quite sure what it is about this photo that I love so much. Maybe it's the expression on her face, the way she kinda has her left arm at an angle to her leg, how she's sitting up so straight. But it's cute and full of her personality (drama queen, anyone?).

 I sure love to take pictures of this girl. I was just saying to Michael the other day that I wonder if now, being in the digital and smartphone age, if I'll take as many photos of our future children as I have of Jessica. You know that old saying that you never do take as much of your later children because you're just so busy and don't have time to pull out the camera as often. I'm not sure if that'll be as true today as it was then, because there's no hassle of remembering the camera/film as we always have a way to take pictures and share them through our smartphones. Guess we'll see how it goes someday!!!

 9-month stats:
17.86 lbs (32%ile)

26.3 in (13%ile)

She's our petite baby girl!

 Those eyes...they just kill me.

 And that fuzzy hair. It's out of control most days, but I kinda love it.

 This girl LOVES her "Dada". He is so much fun!

Exciting Updates:

We've been told by so many people how sweet her cry is. It's been described as "muffled", "muted", and "the perfect decibel for a baby to cry". And they are all true, she's not a very loud crier unless she's really scared or hurts herself. She's a bit more of a whiner, which is kinda adorable (at least for now!). Even though she talks a lot, we're predicting she's going to be a soft-spoken little girl.

She's crawling! It all happened within the course of a few days. She started trying to scoot on her belly while pushing her legs, then she got her arms more involved, then it turned into a bit of an army crawl. She can get around pretty quickly this way!

Jessica pushed herself up into a sitting position from her tummy the other day. We almost didn't realize it happened even though we were watching her at the time. It hasn't happened again since that first time, but what a big girl!

She's eating all sorts of solids nowadays. Favorites are bananas, sweet potatoes, beans, and pretty much anything new. She gobbles up new flavors and has never turned her nose up at anything. I'm quite impressed and hope she continues to love food and exploring new flavors as much as her mother does.

The pincer grasp is pretty much mastered and she's quite good at picking up food and getting it in her mouth. That doesn't mean that her meals aren't messy, though! Oh, to be a kid again and to actually have an excuse to play with your food!

Still waiting for some teeth to pop up... :)

8 Months {Jessica}

 A few weeks ago, right around the time Jessica turned 8 months old, our little family took an overnight trip up to Logan to spend some time at our old stomping grounds. Michael had volunteered to do some recruiting for Intermountain Healthcare and so Jessica and I tagged along. We were able to stay one night free at University Inn, which was incredibly nice, especially since Michael upgraded us to the king-size bed in our room. Also, a stay at the University Inn gives you a free scoop of Aggie Ice Cream (Aggie Blue Mint is the best)! 

I was very impressed with how family-friendly the hotel was. The room was designed with an extra sink area outside of the bathroom (in addition to the sink also located in the bathroom). Our pack'n'play fit perfectly inside the bathroom. That made for a prime place for Jessica to sleep. I was able to hang out and watch TV while she napped and also, Michael and I were able to stay up later that night and have some time to ourselves without worrying about waking Jessica up when we eventually got ready for bed. It was meant to be!

 While Michael was doing his recruiting, Jessica and I walked around campus, and visited some old friends. It was beautiful weather, with crisp and cool temperatures. Made me miss the Autumn season there and brought me back to many memories while studying at USU. Michael and I made sure to get some pictures of Jessica on the "A" before we left. Our little girl is already an Aggie at heart!

 These pictures basically count as her 8-month photos. And aren't they just adorable?!?

 I love how she's looking at her daddy. Jessica just loves him.

That cute little baby body. And you can really see her chubby cheeks from the side. Her little nose and mouth kind of disappear in all the chunkiness!

Exciting Updates:

Her hair is growing longer and coming in thicker. And she is definitely a blondie!

Jessica has started "singing" during some of my voice lessons. The other day, she did it loudly and proudly while I was doing warmups with one of my students. We both started laughing and had to compose ourselves quite a few times. So cute...but a little disruptive!

Jessica will also try to imitate me when I sing sequences of high pitches. Her little vocal chords can hit those notes with great ease! My girl is on her way to becoming a great singer :)

She talks and uses the words "dadada" and "bababa" all day long. And these words are in all sorts of pitches, with inflection, and even sometimes in a whisper (which is my favorite). Can't you just hear a cute baby girl saying "dadada" in a quiet little whisper? One of the sweetest things ever.

This girl laughs all day long, and many times just to herself for funny things she does. She is so happy all. the. time. 

I love seeing how Jessica is learning new things. You can actually see the processing and comprehension in her eyes when she is focused on something. 

Still no teeth...!

Jessica is growing up so quickly, and into a beautiful and precious girl. We are so proud of her every single day.

Spiced Pumpkin Scones

 I've been making these scones since last fall, when I first discovered them on this blog, while looking for something fall-themed to bake. I had some extra pumpkin left over from a few other things and I really wanted something different. I am such a big scone fan, because of the bread and cake-like consistency, I knew I had to make them ASAP. Well, needless to say, the recipe has stuck with me and I brought it back out this year when the weather started to cool down!

 They have easily become a favorite and I figured it was time to blog about "my" version. It was Michael's idea this time to put some toffee bits on top of a few of them (you can see the one in the left of the pictures). The toffee bits were pretty good, but I prefer my scones with just the simple spice glaze. But, to each their own!

You should make these today. They are a bit labor intensive, but don't be afraid. Every time I've made them, they come out perfectly. And you can't beat those fall spices mixed with pumpkin. Brings the season right into your home!

 

Spiced Pumpkin Scones
(adapted from Inspired Taste)

Ingredients:
For Scones
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp. ground ginger
3/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
3 tablespoons heavy cream
1 egg
2 tsp. vanilla

For Spiced Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1 tbs. pumpkin puree
1/8 tsp. cloves
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1/8 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 to 2 tablespoons heavy cream

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit then line a large baking sheet or two small baking sheets with parchment paper (you can also spray with non-stick cooking spray if you do not have parchment paper).
2. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and all the spices together.
3. Then, cut the cold butter into small cubes. Add butter to flour mixture then use a pastry cutter to “cut” the butter into the flour mixture – this should take about 5 minutes by hand. By the end, the mixture should look like coarse cornmeal or crumbs. (You could also use a food processor for this – if using, add flour mixture to bowl of a food processor then add the cold butter cubes. Pulse three to four times until the mixture looks like coarse cornmeal or crumbs).
4. Now, in another medium bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, heavy cream, vanilla extract and egg until blended. Stir pumpkin mixture into flour and butter mixture with a spoon just until a soft dough forms.
5. Transfer the dough to a floured surface then knead it three to four times until it comes together. Then, use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a 10 inch by 7 inch rectangle. Use a knife or pizza cutter to cut the rectangle in half lengthwise then cut into 4 even pieces crosswise, making eight rectangles. Now, cut each rectangle into two triangles.
6. Transfer scones to the prepared baking sheets then bake 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
7. While scones are cooling, make the glaze. Combine sifted powdered sugar, pumpkin puree, spices, and then add heavy cream. Stir and check consistency. Glaze should be thin enough that it will slowly drizzle back into the bowl when picked up with a spoon. 
8. Drizzle onto top of scones or dip scones into glaze. Wait about 15 minutes until the glaze has set then enjoy!

Yields 16 scones

Fall Wreath with Felt Rosettes

Well, last week I instagrammed a similar picture of this awesome fall wreath I made for our front door. I got my inspiration from this post and was actually a little nervous, because I've never made felt rosettes before and was a bit worried they'd turn out more complicated than anticipated. But, nope. They are super easy and so pretty with very little effort. For a tutorial, just click on the link from a couple sentences back; she does a great job at showing/explaining the particulars!

Anyway, did I mention how cheap it was for me to make this? I spent about $12 total on the materials for the wreath. Course, some of this was due to Labor Day sales at Joann Fabrics and also to some coupons I had for the store. So, if I didn't catch those good deals, I'd say it may have cost me $20, with the most expensive parts being the berries. But I think I may have gone overboard on those for some people's needs (but I wanted a lot of berry/bead presence in my wreath). Either way, this was much cheaper than if I went out and purchased a similar type wreath pre-made from the store. I've priced them out and they're always around $40!!!

I think it turned out so beautifully and I can be proud that I made it with my own two hands! It looks wonderful on our front door and really helps to bring the fall season to our home. I'm planning on sprucing up our Christmas wreath similarly and making another for maybe Valentine's Day. We'll see, now that I've got the wreath-making bug!

DIY: Wooden Halloween Decorations

 As you can see, I've been a bit busy lately making all sorts of fun decorations for the fall/halloween season. I guess since we're about to move into our home (we'll be first time homeowners in about a week!), I've had the crafty "itch".

I started off with these cute candy corn, or as my adorable 3 year old niece calls them, "tandy torn"! She walked in the house the other day and exclaimed that to her grandma (Michael's mom). She was so curious as to why there was candy on the mantel. Guess that's a compliment to me how well they turned out because she thought they were real. Okay, maybe that's a stretch for the imagination of a 3 year old, but it was cute nonetheless. She was a little saddened to find out they were only made of wood and paint. :)

  My wonderful hubby used a circular saw to cut the triangles, then my sis-in-law Janessa showed me how to use a jigsaw to round the corners. I then sanded and painted these cuties to my heart's content. It took a little while because I may have "accidentally" painted orange on the bottom at the beginning. Thanks to my bro-in-law Leland who thought that something looked weird, then proceeded to laugh heartily and repeatedly throughout the night as I white washed the entire thing to make up for the mistake. Oops! :) In the end, they turned out quite cute and adorable. They fit perfectly on a fireplace mantel or a side table!

 This past weekend my friend Dani and I decided we needed another craft to occupy our time while the boys were at the General Priesthood Meeting for Conference. So, Dani found this cute idea from the internet (not sure where) and we went to work. Michael cut out the boards before he left. (I'm still afraid to use a circular saw. Maybe I'll conquer that fear someday?) 

The rest was pretty simple as all it requires is some paint and a bit of free-handing the faces. Not too shabby for a girl who can draw stick figures and that is about it, if I do say so myself! After the pain dried, I just hot glued burlap onto the cute mummy's body and used dowels to secure the boards to the bottom. Pretty easy, no?

I still think this needs something, like maybe painting purple stripes on the base. There's plenty of black, I think it could benefit from one more pop of Halloween color. What do you think? Any fun crafts you've been doing this year to get into the Fall spirit?

Peach Scones and Life Changes

 Lots of changes have been happening in the Black family this past month, and it seems like the changes seem to coincide with the changing weather and seasons!

We are nearing the end of our time spent living in Michael's parent's basement as we are UNDER CONTRACT with a house!!! I've hesitated to say anything to the general public (especially over the internet) as one never knows what may happen or if things will fall through, but we are very positive and sure that this will be our home. Things have gone smoothly and well throughout the contract phase and we should be in our new home by the end of October!

So, in the spirit of the end of summer and beginning of fall, I'm sharing a recipe that I have had stashed in my repertoire for a very long time and just never had a chance to bake, much less share here.  

Fresh Peach Scones. 'Nuff said.

Fresh Peach Scones
(adapted from Two Peas and Their Pod)

Ingredients:
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tbs. baking powder

4 tbs. sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

4 tbs. cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes

3/4 cup heavy cream

1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 tsp. almond extract

1 cup diced, peeled peaches
4 tbs. heavy cream, for brushing the tops of the scones

2 tbs. cinnamon sugar, for sprinkling on top

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl or food processor, mix together the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, and cinnamon. Drop the cubes of butter over the flour mixture. Cut in the butter using a pastry blender, or pulse the food processor. Work until the mixture resembles coarse meal.
3. In a small bowl or glass measuring cup, whisk together the heavy cream, egg, vanilla, and almond extract. Pour over the flour and butter mixture. Mix just until the dough comes together. Do not over mix. Place dough in large bowl, and with a spoon or spatula, carefully fold in the chopped peaches.
4. Transfer the dough to a heavily floured surface and gently form into a ball. Flatten the dough into a long rectangle, about 3/4 inches high. Using a pizza cutter, cut scones into triangle wedges and place on a baking sheet.
5. Lightly brush scones with heavy cream and sprinkle generously with cinnamon and sugar. Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Let scones cool on a wire rack before serving.

Makes about 14 scones

On another sweet note, work is picking up and growing and I'm LOVING it. I have about 10-11 patients right now and it just keeps growing and expanding. Access is definitely using me for marketing purposes, so I'm busy with those kinds of presentations out in the community. I actually never thought that my face would be out there so much as a music therapist for hospice. It's kind of interesting and scary that I am a huge representation of music therapy here in the state of Utah. 

I've had some really cute patient stories as of late and lots of fun experiences with them. What I love about music therapy is that it is an essential service for hospice to offer, as patients need something that is enjoyable and not just a nurse visit with poking and prodding. Music therapy is all about quality of life. I had a patient tell me yesterday, "You just made my day". And I believe it is true. It makes me happy to know that the patients are loving it so much so that they are mentioning it to other IDT members. I receive positive feedback from nurses and social workers at every meeting. 

We are truly blessed right now as my voice students have picked up also. Their styles are varying and I'm loving teaching a folk singer/guitarist, an R&B singer, and a young man who wants to be on the X-Factor. Another student to be coming soon. It is so much fun as I see them grow in their talent and enjoy that growth also!

 It seems like, once again, the Lord is in control and knew what would be the right time for certain things to happen and he made them happen so perfectly for our needs. Looking forward to moving into our home in a couple weeks or so and making it our own. We have some fun remodel plans and can't wait to show them to you on here. Be prepared, you might get bored with all the "house" posts that are forthcoming!

Hope you're all having a wonderful Saturday and those who are watching General Conference are enjoying it and getting answers to your questions and prayers. I love this time of year when spiritual inspiration is so strong and answered through the Lord's mouthpieces!