Simply Hil

Little and Tiny at Michael's grave the day before we moved. Dear Michael, I am sitting here alone tonight, all of the boys are already in bed. Your brother's both have a nasty cold and your dad is exhausted from the weekend's activities. I should probably be in bed also since I know full well that I will be up most of the night with the two little ones. However I am unable to bring myself to go to bed just yet. You see, tomorrow will be the two year mark of the day I held you in my arms. It was a day full of so many emotions, but the one that sticks out to me tonight is one of love. It was the emotion that filled my entire body the second they laid you in my arms. Sadness soon accompanied it, but I will always remember that very first feeling of overwhelming love. You, along with your two brothers, taught me just how powerful a mother's love is. It is incredible how quick two years can fly by and how many things can change. We are in a new home now, a different p...

{pictured left: The Pie Pizzeria is not for the dieter but oh so good. pictured right: Beyond Glaze Gourmet Doughnuts (also not for the dieter) - one peanut butter chocolate swirl for me, one pumpkin chocolate chip for Little Guy and Tiny, one maple bacon for the hubs.} In honor of 11.11.11 here are eleven things I love about where we currently live. It has been quite the culture shock, so it's good for me to reflect on the things that I love about this latest move in our lives. It really wasn't that hard coming up with them as every place has so many wonderful things to offer! 01 :: close to siblings on both sides of the family 02 :: slightly warmer / less windy climate 03 :: living 4 hours away from my parents rather than 8 1/2 04 :: costco ! 05 :: the new H+M that just opened up 06 :: the pie 07 :: having more than just one temple nearby (we can see two-almost-three from our current home) 08 :: SUPER TARGET (just when I thought Target couldn't get any bette...

November is a big month in our family. It hasn't always been, three years ago it was just the month that we celebrated Thanksgiving and anticipated the arrival of Christmas. The very next year, however, that all changed. The next November was a month of trials, devastation and heartache. It is the month we gave birth to our stillborn son, Michael. Michael had been diagnosed with Ebstein's Anomaly just one week prior to us losing him. The following year November brought remembrance, reflection  and a sweet little addition just four days before Michael's first birthday. November is now a month we celebrate the birth of two of our sons and give thanks for our many blessings. We have turned our heartache into hope and faith that we will see our little boy again . In honor of our son Michael, I would like to raise money for the Ebstein's Anomaly Foundation once again through my design shop, Simply Yours Designs . It has been two years since finding out about our son's ...

On Halloween morning while skimming through my google reader, I came across Natalie's* blog post about " waging war against candy (and crazy) everywhere ". In the post she introduced to me the best idea ever. An idea that is known as "The Great Pumpkin". An idea that will forever change Halloween in this household in a very good way. The Great Pumpkin is the perfect way to get rid of all that candy once and for all without your kids protesting their little hearts out and having the whole ordeal end in tears. I was a bit nervous implementing it in our family, but it turned out incredibly awesome . When we told Little Guy about it he was all for it. We told him he had a choice and it just so happens that he was more excited about the mysterious Great Pumpkin than he was about his bucket full of goodies. I am happy to report that we are now candy free and happy again! Here is how we did it. First, we wrote a note to the Great Pumpkin: Next we placed the can...

Well November sure started off here with a bang. It was freezing cold today and I believe there were even a few snow flurries here and there. We are so glad it decided to come today rather than last night while we were trying to collect our goodies from the neighbors. When it's cold outside I always like having some sort of warm treat in the evenings to help me wind down from the day. Tonight we had left over apple crisp and it hit the spot. Last year I posted a recipe for Caramel Apple Crisp for Two . It is still a favorite of ours, but I hadn't made it in a while. When I found out we were going to be with family for Halloween I knew I wanted to use up some of the apples my mother-in-law sent home with us last weekend. So, I  quadrupled  the recipe for a bigger group and we all enjoyed it after a fun night of trick-or-treating. Enjoy! Caramel Apple Crisp Ingredients: 5 medium size apples 1/2 c. flour 1 c. brown sugar 1/2 c. butter 1 c. oats 1 tsp. cinnamon 3 to...

Please tell me this made you laugh as much as it did me. We have been quoting it all weekend. Episode 2 is my favorite, but 3 and 4 are pretty hilarious as well. Enjoy and let me know if it made you laugh. :) p.s. the serious/real preview to the show is almost as good as these spoofs. could this really have been a show that people watched?! be sure to check it out as well.

Oh Idaho how we love you and are going to miss you! Idaho is where we met, married and started a family together. It is where all of our first family memories were made. It is where we lived and learned . We experienced the joy of holding a new baby in our arms (twice) and unfortunately the devastating sadness of burying a baby . We made lifelong friends and came to the realization that even if you aren't related to someone they can still be family. We loved the slow and steady lifestyle that exists there and used it to our every advantage. We explored our surroundings, taught Little Guy (the little bit we know) about farming, visited my grandma's, played with friends and cousins, ate at Puerto Vallarta (which happens to be the best mexican food around) and the Snake Bite, shopped at the local farmer's market, drove to see the windmills, visited Michael, lived blocks away from Target, grew to love our neighborhood and ward members, discovered new parks, and just plain ...