homemade cranberry sauce

This recipe is as easy as 1-2-3. It can be prepared a couple days in advance which is awesome. And the taste and texture compared to the monstrosity in the can, that somehow makes it way onto waaaay too many Thanksgiving tables, is incomparable. So please, just say no to ridged, gelatinous, canned cranberry sauce. You won't be sorry. Here's the recipe:

Larkins Family Homemade Cranberry Sauce

1 bag OceanSpray fresh cranberries
1 cup sugar
1 cup orange juice

Combine in a medium sized sauce pan. DO NOT COVER. (Trust me here, I speak from experience.) Cook until all cranberries have burst and mixture begins to resemble jelly and coats backside of spatula/spoon. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours. Serve!

Easy peasy. And fancy schmancy. And downright delectable. You're welcome.

giving thanks

before i whip up the cranberry sauce and yams in preparation for tomorrow, i wanted to write a few little thankful notes. aside from the "usual generics" (ie. family, church), i wanted to get down some specifics that at this time in my life are huge blessings.

1. my next-door neighbors. for the first time in my married life i'm actually hanging out with my neighbor! and of course it helps that she's awesome and has a little boy around the same age as J. she's been a gem and has helped me settle into life here in albemarle.
2. my yard. again, this is the first time in our married life that scott and i have a decent yard and can enjoy some grass!
3. quilts and fabric. kinda silly. but they're my latest obsession. i like feeling creative and that i have a skill at something. a bundle of lovely fabrics in my mailbox makes me happy. and i'm grateful for that.
4.elder cawley. aka my best brother. and only brother. he's changed over the past two years (maturity-wise:) but is still the same goofy guy i grew up with and love.
5. the relief society manuals. i don't get to mentally attend relief society much so being able to read the lesson the night before church really helps me a part of my ward.
6. scott's job. our family has been so blessed in that area. and in these current economic times we do not take that for granted.we are very thankful.
7. womanhood and motherhood.  i'm grateful that Heavenly Father has given me the chance to be a mother and experience the joys of raising J. he's one crazy, delightful kid and keeps me on my toes.
8. skype. life-changing. getting to actually see my family whenever i want is simply wonderful.
9. missionary experiences. there is no greater joy than sharing the gospel. when i talked to my hair stylist about the gospel of jesus christ i could feel the spirit and my own testimony growing by leaps and bounds.
10. my sealing. and the chance to see my sister Brittany sealed to Cardon this saturday! being in the temple with my sister will be amazing. Brittany is such a great person. feisty, yes. but she carries the most giving and humble heart. i love her dearly. and so i am most thankful for her this thanksgiving.

happy thanksgiving!

yesterday

yesterday was downright chilly. and i was feeling a bit hermit-like since i've been practically glued to the sewing machine the last couple of weeks. and i was still in pj's at 4pm. and so for all these reasons i was feeling extremely content about staying indoors. but j was bouncing off the walls. i swear his energy level/silliness has gone up tenfold lately. i blame it on the weather. he doesn't get his "run wild and free" time outdoors too much anymore since fall is in full swing.

but i can't deny that sweet face when he's pulling with all his might on the garage door handle, desperately trying to escape to the outside. so bundled up we get, and with his trusty shovel in hand--swinging it like a samurai sword--we went outside. hallejuah!!! i could almost here the words in j's head. running this way then that way then over to the neighbor's house, then over to the other neighbor's house, then calling to the dogs "uuuuhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!" cause that's the sound a doggie still makes. (we need to work on animal sounds :)

and you know what? it was really glorious to be out. you forget what a mood changer nature is. instant happiness, instant peace, instant clarity. it's perfectly lovely. the air was crisp, the leaves crunchy, and the company adorable. it makes me think, "i am thankful for everything." truly. life is good.

oh me oh my. november.

holy smokes. it's november. and i've been sewing like crazy to finish up the kaleidoscope string quilt i'm making for my sister. it's my wedding gift to them, so you know, it's gotta be finished! like in a little over two weeks! santa maria. but i'm loving it.

and today's election day. Romney vs. Obama. and i don't know about you, but i'm ready for a little R&R :) and literally a little R&R from all the facebook rantings. sheesh. people be cranky around election time. and super sensitive. and a bit ridiculous. usually i avoid contentious political convos altogether. but the other day, i caved. eh, whatever. i was in the right :)

but i'm glad i voted early. i'm glad i get to vote. period. we are blessed country. and i pray america will always elect righteous leaders who will uphold the rights and privileges that our inspired founding fathers established. otherwise, we're screwed. Mosiah says so :)

halloweenie 2012

besides J booking it out the door and down the driveway every time i opened the door for trick or treaters, we had a blast.  and i have to admit, its hard to be upset that your child is running away from you at top speed while his puppy dog ears and tail are wagging and his pumpkin bag is bouncing with every hard toddler step. he got the hang of trick-or-treating down real quick and licked probably about 80 suckers throughout the night. and i must say, he was looking pretty festive and downright adorable in his ghost-lighted push car.

 and you know your kid's had too much candy when they go track down the toothbrush and toothpaste and voluntarily brush their teeth for twenty minutes :)

pumpkin carving

wishing you a happy halloween!!!

xoxo

sixteen months

i don't know what i did to deserve such a great son. he's been sleeping 11+ hours every night. it's quite heavenly. and right now...he's on hour 13 of sleep. (i checked him--he's alive.) maybe j thinks he's 16 years old and not 16 months? but it doesn't matter. i'll take it. 

so besides being my little angelic sleeper (and i just know because i've said that he'll decide to not ever sleep again...) he's also a master climber and thinks he knows how to jump. j will move chairs, boxes, furniture, toys, anything and everything to climb higher. and when he does he stands proudly and lets out a high-pitched giggle--sometimes he even covers his mouth in disbelief over his accomplishments. cracks me up every time. i was making bread last night and he pushed the chair over to the counter and climbed on up to watch. sometimes i just stare in disbelief at his abilities. 

his favorite thing to climb onto is the coffee table and dining table--for different reasons and purposes. the coffee table=for jumping. the dining table=for snatching handfuls of halloween candy and touching the sewing machine (if it's out...which it is 95% of the time...pray i finish bert's quilt in time.) but the jumping is my favorite. right now he holds my hands and tries to jump up and down in the air. it's awesome and so adorable how much joy he gets from leaving the ground for a split second. he's become a bit fearless up there. he'll walk right off the edge because he knows mom and dad will catch him. soon he'll be jumping from the coffee table to the couch. such a boy.

talking more and more. bird, kitty, flag, binkie, no, oh no! that's probably my favorite...oh no!!! his voice is so sweet and soft and high. such a tender little guy i have. (when other kids shriek, he thinks they're mad at him and he'll instantly just fall apart...so sad.)

he snuggles and cuddles and loves to play and touch my eyes and stick his fingers up my nose. i love it all. i love that he loves me and wants to play with mommy and daddy. he loves wrestling and bouncing on scott's stomach. he loves "i'm gonna get you" chasing games. he'll raise his little hands to his face and run in place like he's gonna charge. love it. 

i love that he smells like maple and brown sugar oatmeal--his go-to breakfast. i love his independence and how he's starting to "run". i love how his eyes get all big and round when he first plugs that binkie in his mouth for some comfort. i love how excited he gets over a tray full of cheeseballs and then how concerned he becomes over his messy, orange, cheesy hands. 

he's simply the best. and he's still sleeping. bless him.