Croup & Sillyness!

So this is old information... but figured I would still share it...

A couple of weeks ago I went to Safeway and they had these huge boxes of strawberries and the strawberries were huge so I bought 3 boxes since they were like $4 a box and made my first batches of strawberry jam! It is delicious. The entire time I made it though I was thinking about Monica from FRIENDS and her plan to get over her man! And how Joey would take a jar of jam with him to the movie theater... yeah you like it if you like FRIENDS!!!

It made 27 jars... 17 8oz, and 10 16oz... so dang good! All freezer jam. I gave some away to my ladies I visit teach and the rest is just awaiting to be eatten! Yummy!

Here is the sillyness... I have curtains instead of closet doors because in such small space it really does make a difference... well Daphne loves to play in them... if you look really close you can see her face through the curtain... she is so funny!

A few weeks ago it was nice outside and so I decided to find out how far away Zips was on my bike. So I loaded up the girls and we rode there, it wasn't half bad. I deserved the food after I got there...

The girls had popcorn chicken and I ordered a sandwich trying to be good and well... the chicken was just too good and the fry sauce... yummy!

Than I had found a new park and so I drove them up to it, and let them play...

Later that week I was reading a book where this girl has to pick out her wedding dress and it made me want to see if mine fit since I have been dieting and exercising and can see my back dimples again I figured why not..

it fit everywhere except the back would not zip up... least I have a goal! I love that dress it's a bummer I only wore it one day!

So pretty I couldn't resist!

So my kids have never had croup but one day Daphne was barking like a dog and so I pulled out my trusty kids sickness book and discovered she has croup and of course steaming her would be the best solution. So one night I turned on the shower and sat with her and the room filled with steam. It was working great... than she decided she wanted to look in the tub and before I knew it she had climbed it. She wasn't complaining and so I just let her stay in there until the water got to cold to be effective...

This girl is growing like a weed... but her hair is not... I can sometimes get it to stick up... but she is so cranky all the time and she used to be so good. Usually she will wake up from her nap and be happy... lately she wakes up I give her 10 min and than I put her back in bed... she falls back asleep so apparently she needed it!

Sami vying for my attention... so cute girl and so smart... I can't believe that she is 4 soon! When did that happen?

Things I love!

I decided to make a fun blog so maybe some of my lookers will do the same so we can all get to know one another a bit. I know that is what blogs are for, for us to share our lives with family and friends who we don't see or talk to very often, but it's always a beating around the bush getting to know you so I decided to be forth coming and just let you get to know me... BEWARE IT'S LONG!!!

#1 I love my husband #2 I love the temple!

I started with the most appropriate (well there actually is no order but this is a good place). This is the day I got married and sealed to my husband my best friend David Jeffery Mason. I got 7 new siblings and there 5 (now 6) spouses that day along with there children. I have gotten to know them a bit more over the 3 1/2 years I have been apart of the family and I love them more and more as time goes on, and look forward to getting to know them more and more.

I was 25 this day and turned 26 3 mo later, and I remember thinking the previous fall that I was never going to get married. Dave is everything I could ever ask for in a spouse. He always makes sure we have what we want and need and has the smallest ways but big ways of making the days better. We got sealed in the Columbia River Washington Temple in Richland Washington. I was at the dedication of this temple sitting 5 rows back shedding many of tears as our dear prophet President Gordon B. Hinkley dedicated our temple... it was amazing!

#3 I love the beach... Oregon Coast and Haystack rock are my favorite.

I can't tell you how many times I have been to this beach but I love this beach... It is most likely my favorite vacation spot ever. It's peaceful and breathtaking and I love walking down the beach with my toes hitting the sand and weather it's cold, hot, or just normal temperature(I've felt them all) it is one of my favorite feelings. I have gone here with my family, my friends, my husband on our honeymoon, and have so far taken one of our daughters... #4 I love my country

Even though our country has been lead by some sad excuses for presidents I still love our country. I love the history of our country and the people that put it together. I love the rocks, and mountains, and so much more... it is truly the best place to live. We do have our Freedom whether we want to believe it or not, any other country is not as good as ours! #5 I love pictures

These are some of my favorite pictures. I didn't take them a good friend of ours took them on the grounds of BYU and I love these pictures. They are altered of course to sepia, black and white etc but I love these pictures.... these are our engagements. I put this collage together. #6 I love my daughter Samantha Ann

Samantha Ann or as I call her most of the time unless she's in trouble is Sami. She is pure delight, we lay in bed at night and talk about our daughters and even though she is a excellent button pusher she is such a good girl and I feel so blessed to have her here in our life. I love the way her mind thinks it is adorable. She has my sunday shoes on in this picture I love it! It is perfect! #7 New clothes and shopping #8 Holidays

Yes I know these aren't in order I will get to Daphne. This shirt she is wearing is the latest piece of clothing I have purchased for her or anyone else. it is such a cute shirt... it is pink and has gathered elastic sleeves and neck and has a light pink bow at the top with writting and and heart for Valentines Day.

I also love Holidays. I chose to use this picture for that to save room and to go with the holiday coming up. I love holidays. I decorate my house accordingly and get so excited when the holiday comes and all the new stuff comes out in stores. I have dressed my girls in holiday wear and I love it... #9 I love Daphne Jean #10 the letter 'A'

Of course I love my newest baby girl. She is of pure delight. I prayed for her to come out and have all the parts necessary and I got more than I wanted she was born with 3 thumbs. We had the one that didn't belong removed and she has a small mark to show where it was. It will be a funny story we will tell her when she is older. I named her with my middle name. It is perfect... and daddy picked out her name and it is the best I love the way is sounds and that the second letter is an 'A' I have issues about the letter 'A' as you can tell. David, Sara, Samantha, Daphne... I love the letter 'A'. Weird I know... #11 I love my piano.

I don't just love piano playing but I love playing this piano. I love this piano. My life was made when they figured out how to get it up the steps to our apartment. I have played on this piano my whole life. This piano is made how pianos used to be made with real Ivory keys... they don't do that any more. I have no clue how old this piano is... I looked in the inside to see if there was a date and I don't see one. If anyone knows in the Ransom family let me know. My dad grew up with this piano in his house and I don't know where it was before than but I know it's old... or maybe not I could be really wrong. In order to make it sound good there are jars in the bottom of it that I fill with water. I guess the water absorbs into the wood and makes it sound better I don't know but i love this piano. And if anyone is wondering if I play... of course I do I am what they would call a "closet pianist" I won't admit if I am good or if I can play but I prefer not to play for people I play for pure entertainment ... if you want to hear me come to my house... my favorite thing to play is Michael Buble, Beethoven, Church music, and with my daughter at my side playing along to another book..... usually The Little Mermaid.

My mom bought me this picture last year for Christmas and I love it... I have been wanting it every since I first saw it... and I discovered they had this small one at the church bookstore and my mom surprised me and bought it for me and had it framed for Christmas... it is my favorite! If you can tell it's a picture of two girls in dresses and they are sitting at a piano that looks a lot like mine... Greg Olsen.

#12 Cherries #13 the color Red

Of course I love Cherries... anything cherry I love... especially if I can put it in my kitchen... The top picture is one I spotted at Michael's and just had to have... and the other one is a cross-stich I did... it was hard to do at the time... it had a ton of colors.. but it looks better far away than close up. I submitted this to the fair... and got second... I guess there are some things I need to learn about cross-stiching.

The color red... I think it bounced off the whole cherry thing but I love it. It is so rich and warm and I am a warm color person... I love red... I painted my kitchen chairs red, my piano stool legs are red, I have red in my couch pillows, I try and be subtle but someday I will have a red wall... ceiling or wall I haven't quite decided I guess i will when I get the house. And I would also like to have a hutch filled with red dishes, just red dishes!

#14 CRAFTS...

You know it I don't have to hide it but I love crafts... I bought this cabinet to put in the kitchen next to the kitchen table so I can easily access my craft supplies... we have lived in 2 or 3 bedroom since we have been married and so I haven't had my own craft room so I use it where I can... in the kitchen... if you come over and my kitchen table is covered in crafts... this is why. I get an idea and I have to do it up or it will escape my mind... it's an addiction, obsession I don't know but I dream about a craft room I will some day have... where everything will have it's place and it might not ever be clean but when something is clean it's hard to get into your funk... but our next Ransom made event is in April and so I am on a crafting mission until than! Ok well I like this picture... I found it and am going to try and get my hair cut again similar to this picture. But I love when my hair is short... but secretly envy people that have long hair. I love the color purple but would never decorate in it. I hate the color blue but love it since it is an ocean color and so my bedroom and bathroom are decorated in shades. I love Disney movies because they are happy, I have nightmares and I am almost 30. I love to drive but ground myself from doing so after a wreck... if I can... after this past one I will not be driving in the snow again for a long time. I love being a mom but don't think I will have more than 3 kids... I lack the patience. I love to feel the pain and the achievement from working out but I hate working out. I love new clothes but I hate shopping for them, for myself because I can never buy the right things. I love spending money and so that is probably why i never have any. I love my husband but wish I could have dated him sooner in my life since we have known each other for 12 years. I love it when it snows but hate to be in it. I love it when it rains but hate what it does to my hair. I love the summer time but I hate sweating. I am a cheap skate... If I find a look a like shirt of one that I love that was $20 more I will buy the look alike to save money. I love running on a track but hate running else where... I love going on vacations but that costs money and so it happens less. I love roller coasters but my husband doesn't. I love the ocean but don't like being in the water past my shins... I love swimming in a pool but not by myself. I love to eat mexican food but don't enjoy cooking it.

well enjoy and hopefully you made it through all the chaos... have a good day and if you do this about yourself let me know so I can read yours!

Playing Catch Up!

I am going to be playing catch up because of all the things that have been going on in our lives. We had Halloween, than the day after Dave's friend Tim Schalla got married, and than the next weekend we had our "Event" for Ransom.Made Design so here is a mixture of all our pictures from that past few weeks. Enjoy. Here's my pretty girl doing one of her favorite things, playing the piano. She loves to play the piano. Whenever I sit down to play the piano and her dad isn't playing with her I have to grab an extra chair for her to sit by me so I she can play too, or else I can't play. I will usually put her on the piano stool and than sit on a kitchen chair and put her up near the treble part of the piano so I can be around Middle C to hit the notes I want to hit, sometimes our hands overlap but usually we are ok. The Day that Tim got married, November 1, we were at the sealing and Barbara was watching Sami but than we went and picked her up so we could take her to the luncheon, it was so beautiful out there as you can tell by the trees so we got some great pictures of us. We are walking her down the planter edge, and she got distracted by her sleeve. This picture was Dave's suggestion, I think it's a great shot of the temple and us. This is Tim Schalla and his new bride, Dionne....(I guaranteed I spelled that wrong) they look so happy together, she looked so pretty. It was really funny the first time we talked to her was right before they took this picture that had a friend picture and we were in it, and I said congratulations and she was all, who are you.... it was pretty funny. As you can probably tell Tim was so busy courting his new wife he never introduced her to his friends... well at least us. But hey, that is what you are supposed to do, spend all your waking moments that is what being engaged is all about. Congrats again you too, Make each other happy! This is Dave and Tim, posing in a I want to say "Mortal Kombat" pose, yeah Tim's really into that... I believe.... everyone thought it was funny, I guess they all know Tim.

Dave and Tim, good friends. Dave met Tim when he worked at the arcade in the mall. Tim was the manager. So that is what they talk about when they are on the phone video games. Tim wasn't a member back than, Tim got baptized around the time that me and dave started dating. Tim was one of Dave's best men when we got married. When I first met Tim, he has changed so much since that day, I am glad that Dave and him are friends.

The week before Halloween we had a ward party and Dave wasn't feeling well and so we didn't dress up, that and he didn't like any of the suggestions I had for costumes, unless I wanted to be a ninja.... so don't get your hopes up for next year anyone. We took a few pictures of Sami and her cute costume. This is a special thing because I rumaged through my mom's costumes she has saved since we were kids and this is Torrie's costume she wore when she was 3 or something. So yes... (Torrie is the girl with Sami in the one pic). On Halloween we got a few trick-or-treaters and didn't really take Sami out we will do more next year when she has more interest in it. We took her over to visit a few family members and than called it a night because David needed to study for a big test.