LOL...

Can someone please tell me that I am not alone here in my annoyance of the use of the word LOL? Now don't get me wrong, I am not a hater of this word completely. I have been known to use it now and again...lol. But it drives me crazy when people over use it. Take for example this little conversation I saw on Facebook the other day.

Person 1: Hey what kind of car do you have? I forget. I thought it was a Honda Accord, but someone told me they dont make them hybrid. lol

Person 2: Yeah that's what I have. I love it. It's a 2010. Why? lol

Person 1: hahahha someone told me that they dont make them. lol i was like yeah i know someone who has one. She said she asked for one & they said they dont come as a hybrid. I was like I swear that you had one lol.

Person 2: yep i do. lol

Honestly people, the use of the word LOL in this conversation is OUT.OF.CONTROL. I mean lets dissect this little Facebook conversation. The first person asks this friend what kind of car they have. Then says what she thinks it is and how someone didn't think that car existed. She ends this sentence with a LOL. I am confused what is so funny with that statement that it literally made you LAUGH.OUT.LOUD. The second person informs this friend that she does in fact have this car and then asks WHY (apparently she didn't read what her friend had said already). She too ends her sentence with a LOL. Again I am speechless as to why this is so funny to them.

Now for the kicker. Person 1 starts her next sentence with HAHAHAHA. She is already anticipating a funny comment but as if the HAHAHA is not enough she ends her first sentence with yet another LOL. I don't know about you guys but I am on the floor clenching my sides because they hurt so much from laughing at this ultra hilarious conversation. Needless to say Person 1 uses yet another LOL to end her sentence and then Person 2 simply says, "yep I do. lol".

My personal feelings on this LOL business is that you need to use it with discretion. LOL means....LAUGH.OUT.LOUD. So unless you literally are laughing at loud please do not use this very teenager word.
And don't even get me started on how awful teenagers are at spelling, especially on Facebook. I mean is it so hard for them to just spell the word AND instead of spelling it ND. I see ND and I think North Dakota. Is it going to kill you to put that one extra letter in. I mean really the word is only 3 letters. Shortening it to 2 letters doesn't really make sense. In fact all it does is make you look lazy and quite frankly stupid.

*Dont' Forget to enter our GIVEAWAY by clicking HERE

Boys Printable

Back in February, all us sisters took our annual sisters trip to St. George, UT.  While there we did a little shopping and one of the many stores we hit was a Deseret Book.  As we browsed the aisles Heidi and I came upon the cutest plaque for a little boys room.  It had the numbers 8, 12 and 19 (all milestones in an LDS boys life) with the words baptism, priesthood and mission written at the bottom. We loved it so much but weren't hip on the price tag.  I believe it was somewhere between $30-$40.  Being the cheapskate that I am, I refused to pay that much for something that I knew I could copy cat myself.  So I took a picture with my trusty cell phone (I have since deleted it otherwise I would have shown the original) and let it sit there for a few months.  I was going through my pictures one day and saw it and decided to make my own version of this cute plaque.  This is the version I made.  

I made the colors to match my boys room.  Once I printed it out I framed it and I have loved it.  It is so cute and the best part is it was so cheap to do.  I mean to print costs less than $1 (for me at least) and then I had this cheap Walmart frame ($3) hanging around.  Of course I do think it would be adorable to mod podge it onto a clipboard.  Anyways my boys have loved it as well.
And because we love you guys we thought we would share this cute printable with you all.  We have it in an 8x10 size but you could go smaller and do a 5x7 too.

And feel free to let us know if you want different colors and we might be able to change it up a bit to hopefully fit your decor. 

boys(8x10)

**Don't forget to enter our GIVEAWAY by clicking HERE




Link ups:
Sweet Peas & Bumblebee

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New Milestone Giveaway!!

We have reached a new milestone goal!!

100 followers on our blog

AND

over 200 likes on facebook!!

Whoot whoot!!

Thanks everyone for spreading the word to your family & friends...keep it up!

We appreciate each and every one of you who take the time to read our blog and especially those who take the time to comment!  

We love it!

Now, in honor of this milestone and all your support,

we are having a GIVEAWAY!!

Today's giveaway is a fun one brought to you by my friend Cailin over at Discovery Toys!

Here is a little info about Caillin and what she does...

Discovery Toys is an educational toy game and book company based out of Livermore, CA. There are 3 important things to remember about us: our products are educational, we call it layers of learning with multiple ways to play and learn with each toy. Second, they are developmental which means each product is designed to grow with the child and span multiple years. And finally, they all come with a lifetime guarantee and replacement available parts.

Why I love Discovery Toys is all of the above plus we are in an amazing stage of growth. The company, though around for 30 years, was recently purchased and repositioned for success by new owner, Jeremy Hobbs (2008). As a new young mom, I am hoping to be able to grow the business throughout California and beyond. Currently we only have 5 team leaders in our state and we don't have many in other states such as Nevada. My dream would be to be able to work exclusively for Discovery Toys as it combines all my interests and passions: education, children and sales. 

Cailin is generous enough today to be offering a super fun giveaway which includes

The Princess and the Dragon Book & CD

retail value $22.50

To enter:

1. Leave a comment telling us your favorite toy from 

Discovery Toys

2. Become a follower of {Junk in their Trunk} by clicking follow on the right hand side of our blog (you will need to click over to our actual blog if you are reading this in a reader)...if you already follow, tell us!

3. Like us on Facebook

4. Tell 3 people about our giveaway (call, text, facebook or blog about it) and come back and tell us you did!

Leave a comment for EACH ITEM YOU DO!

You have 4 chances to win!

Giveaway will close Friday, July 1st at 9pm PST

Thanks Cailin for the fun giveaway!  

If you have any questions about Discovery Toys contact Cailin directly at cailin.steinbach@gmail.com 

iPhone Camera Apps

I love to take pictures!

I am not that good at it, I don't know any of the technical terms or methods.

I just like to take pictures of my kids, plain and simple!

I don't think my camera is that good.  It is not even a year old but I am not a huge fan to say the least.

So I was very thankful to find 2 amazing apps on my iPhone that I use as my main camera!

Instagram and Camera+

Instagram was free and Camera+ was only $.99...sounds good to me!!

Here is a sampling of some pics using these apps...

As you can see there is such a wide range of editing that you can give your photos, all with just ONE touch of a button!  It is amazing!!

What camera apps do you like for your cell phone??

Are there any cool Droid camera apps out there?

Paul's Picks

We would like to introduce you all to Paul, our brother-in-law (he's Andrea's husband)!

He is the perfect person to do the MUSIC  segment on our blog!

He is always the 1st to know of any amazing songs out there.

He spends hours on YouTube in his free time, while his wife is busy slaving away over the stove making amazing dinners.

The main thing we love about Paul is that he is a PEOPLE PERSON!

There is always nonstop laughing when he is around!!

Hi everyone,
I was asked by my sister-in-laws to post my music picks every couple of weeks. I love all types of music, and will call this post "Paul's Picks".

The first song gets me excited for summer. It's called "Tonight Tonight" by Hot Chelle Rae


The next two songs are ones my daughters really like, "Kiss me slowly" by Parachute, and "Happily Ever After" by He is We.



Now a song for the rockers, "Awake and Alive" by Skillet.

I'm not usually a fan of Maroon 5, but their new song is catchy, "Never Gonna Leave This Bed".

The last song is a short song written by Greg Laswell entitled "Sweet Dreams". Read the words, their fun.

Pizookie Anyone??

So I have a friend and she was having a birthday...

AND

she really loves pizookies

*locally we get them at BJ's Restaurant--they are basically a giant cookie baked in a deep dish pan with ice cream and syrup on top!

AND

I wanted to give her something unique and out of the ordinary

BUT 

something that I knew she would LOVE and ENJOY!

Let me introduce you to the...

Pizookie Basket

Here's what you will need to create your own:

 * 4 pack of oven safe ramekins HERE

* 1/2 gallon of vanilla ice cream

*chocolate chip cookie dough (store bought or homemade)

* chocolate syrup & caramel syrup

Of course the possibilities are endless...

-peanut butter cookie dough, vanilla ice cream & a can of whipped cream

-oatmeal raisin cookie dough, vanilla bean ice cream & hot fudge sauce

What other possible creations can you think of?

My favorite to eat is the Cookies & Cream one, but not sure how to recreate that one!

My mouth is watering!

Chicken Quesadillas

Creamy Jalapeno Sauce
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp minced jalapeno slices (nacho slices)
2 tsp juice from jalapeno slices
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
dash salt

1 lb boneless skinless chicken
8 large flour tortillas (10-inch)
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
2 cups shredded monterey jack cheese

Prepare creamy jalapeno sauce by combining all ingredients in a small bowl.  Cover and chill so that the flavors develop.

Season chicken and cook in skillet or on grill until done.  Cut into very small pieces.

Preheat grill to medium low heat.  When the pan is hot, lay one tortilla on the grill.  You can spread a little vegetable oil under the tortilla.  Spread 2 tbsp jalapeno sauce on the tortilla.  Arrange 1/2 cup of the chicken over the sauce.  Arrange 1/2 cup of the cheddar cheese and 1/2 cup of the jack cheese on top of the chicken.  Cover with another tortilla and press down with a spatula.  Cook for about 4 minutes, then turn over and cook for a couple more minutes or until the cheese is melted.  Slice into 4 pieces with a cookie cutter and serve.  Repeat.

This is another quick and easy recipe that my family loves and that does not heat up your house in the summertime.  If you are lucky enough to have any leftovers, they warm up nicely for a quick snack the next day as well.

Prepare your sauce a couple of hours before you want to eat.  Not entirely necessary in case you forget but it does make the flavor just a bit zestier if it's been allowed to steep in those juices.  You can find these jalapeno slices (if you're not familiar with them like I wasn't) in the pickle section of your grocery store.

My family is composed of a bunch of wannies who can't take too much heat so I usually remove most of the seeds while I'm dicing these little babies since the seed is where all the heat is.  2 tbsp is not a whole lot so a jar like the one above will last you for several batches of this recipe.  Just store the rest in the fridge until you're ready to use them again.

 As for seasoning the chicken, I like to cheat on this part.  Sam's Club makes the most delicious roasted chicken for around $5.  It's so much simpler to just buy one of theirs, pick off what I need for the meal, throw it in the food processor to make it nice and small and, voila, step 2 is done.  Plus, you don't need a whole chicken for this meal and so you can freeze the rest for another meal (you can't beat two great meals for $5).  If you are not a recipe cheat, feel free to cook the chicken in whatever way pleases you.  You can also dice as small or as large as you like.  I like it small because it makes the quesadilla nice and flat and uniform but if you are not picky, I suppose you could stick a whole drumstick in there if you like.  So here's my cadre of ingredients for the final step - assembly and cooking.

 Spread the sauce on the tortilla.  I don't like to go all the way to the edge because then it goops out and makes a mess while I'm trying to cook it.  Use your judgment here.
 

Next, sprinkle on your chicken.  I hate measuring anything when my eyeball is handy so I just do the "best guess" method on how much to add to each tortilla. 

Now you are ready for the cheese.  Again, why measure when you can guess?

 

Then slap another tortilla over the top and let it sizzle.  A couple of minutes is all it takes.

 Once one side is done, carefully turn over and cook the other side for a couple of minutes.  Then remove onto a cutting board and slice in 4 with a pizza cutter.  Serve and enjoy!

Never Ending Project

Have you ever started a project that feels like it is NEVER.GOING.TO.END????

Welcome to my world...

let's go back 3 weeks ago.  My 4 year old daughter decided to turn the bathroom sink on full blast, push the stopper down and then LEAVE the bathroom, closing the door behind her.  This probably stayed this way for close to an HOUR!  Gotta love kids!  Don't worry...she is still alive and well!  =) 

After the damage was surveyed and cleaned up we decided to just remove all the carpet that it had soaked and redo the floors.  Yes, thank you sweet 4 year old for flooding the downstairs...mama has been wanting new floors for awhile now anyway!  In fact my sweet endearing husband actually had the nerve to ask me while we were vacuuming up gallons and gallons of water if I had done this on purpose...yea, I flooded the lower level of our house so I could get new floors!  Sheesh why don't you tell me what you REALLY think of me??  =) ha!

We decided on wood tile flooring.  We love the look of wood but wanted the durability that tile offers.  And the TINY grout lines was a big PLUS for us too!

Well, my husband and his handy dandy friend volunteered for the job and said they would start on Saturday, work starting from 6am on and finish up on Sunday (we don't usually do projects on Sundays because of our faith but since his friend was available this weekend and it would be done we decided to go with it).  Here they are all bright eyed and bushy tailed on Saturday morning...

It's slow going but I am not worried, it looks beautiful so far!

I am starting to get worried when his friend leaves for a 4 hour chunk of time and this is all that is done...

This is late Saturday night with my husband working solo...

Now keep in mind that I have not had a washer & dryer hooked up for 3 days at this point already!!

He knows this, hence the diligent working late into Saturday night.

Fast forward to the NEXT weekend...

keep in mind that they worked Saturday, Sunday until noon when they had to go to work, Monday-Wednesday til noon when they had to go to work.

We are now on to 1 WEEK with no ability to do laundry...where is my water basin and washboard when I need one?  I could have been a pioneer and done it old school style, even hanging to dry on a clothes line!  But oh no...the laundry of 7 people just continued to pile up in every room!

Well ladies & gentleman...9 days later and I got my laundry room put back together after all THIS got scrubbed off...

It is such a MESSY job doing tile!  The mortar is a killer to scrape off and the the grout is so messy and leaves a film...so we ended up using WHITE VINEGAR mixed with WATER to properly clean it all up.  We then shined it up good with METHOD CLEAN & SHINE.  Lovely!

And finally, 2 weeks later the furniture was ready to be moved back on and we were FINALLY ready to have our house back!  Now I need to redecorate and find a nice rug!

So you see...my moral of this story is this...HIRE A PROFESSIONAL TO INSTALL YOUR NEW FLOORING...EVEN WHEN YOUR HUSBAND INSISTS YOU WILL SAVE MONEY DOING IT YOURSELF WITH A "FRIENDS" EXPERTISE TO HELP!!!  Ha! =)

Using your blog as a Journal...

Can I say that one of the greatest things I ever was forced into was blogging.  Back in October of 2007 I was pestered by 2 of my sisters into starting a blog.  I fought and fought it.  I didn't see the need for one and I had no clue how to start or run one.  Plus I had just had my second child and had to move out of my apartment 2 weeks later.  I was feeling overwhelmed and stressed.  I felt I had zero time to devote to this 'blog' thing.  Plus who wants something else to be responsible for?
Shortly after having my 2nd baby my sister basically sat me down at a computer and set up my blog.  OK, I thought, maybe this will get her off my back about this blogging business.  I joked with her that I would invite all the family to view my blog, only to have it be nothing but a blank page.  But after she left I decided it wouldn't hurt to try doing one post about the birth of my newest baby.  Before I knew it a few hours had passed and I had done 10 different posts dealing with delivery, birthdays and trips.  I was instantly addicted. 
Of course I was not very consistent either.  It took me a good year and a half before I really started getting into my blog.  One day it just clicked with me that my blog was essentially a family journal.  After this realization I became so much better at blogging.  I went from 49 posts in 2007 to 107 in 2008 to 169 in 2009 to 217 in 2010.  Currently I have 100+ posts for 2011. 
Many people tell me that they don't know how I find the time to stay on top of my blog.  My answer is always the same....IT NEEDS TO BE A PRIORITY.  In the past I would get behind and that is the worst feeling.  It is so hard to catch up.  Here are a few things I do to stay current on my blog. 

HOW TO STAY CURRENT ON YOUR BLOG

1.  Every time I take a picture I try to download it onto my computer that same day (usually at night). 

2.  Once the pictures are downloaded onto the computer I then upload them to Picasa (this happens automatically when I download them onto my computer). If you don't have Picasa go to http://picasa.google.com/ and download it.  Again this is just what I use. 

3.  In Picasa I will make collages of my pictures.  Most of my posts have multiple pictures.  I find it easiest to put 4-6 pictures (that all correlate with each other) in a collage.  Remember this is my method.  To me it takes too much time to individually download each picture into blogger.  Here is an example of a collage made in Picasa.

4.  Once I have collaged my pictures I then download them into blogger and then write about what is happening in the pictures. 

5.  Now not all my blog posts have pictures but regardless if something happens during the day and I feel it is blog worthy I will get on blogger that night or the next day and write about it. 

6.  When we go on vacations and I don't have my computer with me or my cord to my camera to download the pictures I still like to sit down at the end of each day and write about what we did that day.  Usually I can't add the pictures til I get home but it is so important to write down these events right after they happen because it is amazing what you can forget in a short period of time, plus when there are emotions involved it is so vital to write those feelings down immediately because even one day will make those feelings decrease somewhat.  For example last summer I was fortunate to be able to see the prophet of our church (http://www.mormon.org/) plus his counselors and the 12 apostles.  It was a very spiritual experience for me but I wasn't able to write about this event until 2 days later.  It was amazing how much I had forgotten and my emotions were not as strong as they would have been had I recorded them right after the event. 

7.  If by chance you get behind I would always suggest that you not backtrack.  By this I mean you need to stay current on what is happening and if you are caught up then go back and try catching up.  If you try backtracking you will find yourself getting further and further behind.  I didn't start blogging until my oldest was 2.  Unfortunately I didn't keep a journal about his life for those 2 years.  Once I started blogging I would blog about the current events and then found myself on Fridays (I liked to call them flashback Friday's:) going back and accounting for an event in his life from his birth to the time he got 5 stitches on his forehead.  Obviously he will not have the type of journalling on his first 2 years that my other children will have but I have managed to recount a few big events of his first 2 years. 

Staying current on your blog is doable.  When you take the time to post about different events in your life, you will find that you are only spending roughly 15 minutes on average.  It is when I get behind that I find myself spending hours and hours trying to catch up.  We all have 15 minutes to spare.  And my kids are still very young but they absolutely love looking through their blog books.  To me it is one of the most priceless gifts we can give our children.