Halloween Time!

Amazing that it is Halloween! Thank goodness that the snow has melted and it won't be too cold for the fun! Still jacket weather! This morning was great! We had a fun pancake breakfast with Grandma and Grandpa Tate, headed to Sydney's last soccer game (in her purple Halloween costume) and are getting ready for the big night!


The past week the boys have been really sick, the doctor thought it was swine flu. The poor guys had temperatures, headaches, bad coughs and sick tummies! They were finally better and just in time for their school Halloween parties!
Here is a picture of Sydney and preschool teacher Ms. Brittany

Hunter with 3rd grade teacher Ms. Rollins

Finally, McKay with 5th grade teacher Ms. Simi

McKay is stil loving having so many neighborhood friends in his school class! There are four of them. Here is a picture of them at their school party.

Happy Halloween!

Fall Fun

With the warm weather we have tried to be outside as much as possible! When it was not a preschool day Sydney and I would visit as many places as we could. We went to Wheeler farm (again), Engs Gardens (Halloween fun) and many others (as you can see in former posts). Here are some pictures from Wheeler Farm. Sydney so loved the horses! I was amazed at how brave she was feeding and petting them! I am not so brave around huge animals that I am sure are going to try to eat my fingers!!!




Another day was the Engs Gardens! Such a fun place around Halloween! They have a huge pirate ship, Jack Sparrow, hay maze and decorations everywhere! Just wish my boys could have come with us!



Finally, we had such a fun "Witches Brew" with a neighbor we have become great friends with. The other mom, Kim, and I dressed up as witches and planned a great meal full of Halloween food. The menu included, brains (spagettie), mummy toes (little smokies), witches fingers (carrots with almonds as nails), monster mouths (apples with almonds as teeth), pumpkin juice (orange soda with dry ice), cat hearts (strawberries) and bones (breadsticks shaped like bones). It was so much fun! We then headed to the pumpkin patch and came back to my house to decorate cookies!

Fall Sports

The kids are loving fall and playing the sports that go along with it! We will begin with youngest to oldest! Sydney is playing soccer for the first year and can't get enough of it! I love watching her run circles around everyone that is huddled together around the ball. Literally...she stays on the outside...away from the chaos! Once she gets the ball she is amazing! Her first game she got one goal. The second game she scored two goals! It was so cute! I laugh half the game! She can get a bit frustrated...Things don't go her way so she runs off the field, gets a quick drink and runs back on! She doesn't care that her team is setting up for a throw-in or a kick-off. Adorable little princess!


Hunter loves Flag Football! Most of his team is one or two years older than him, but they are great and he feels tough! He goes after the ball, blocks great and even has a "Hunter Play". When they do the "Hunter Play" he is hiked the ball and runs straight through two linemen.

McKay can't get enough football! He plays everyday at school and a few days after school with his friends! He is getting into the plays, knowing the calls and working hard in his games! He can't wait to play tackle in a few years!

Love Fall!!!

Amazing that fall is here and winter is just around the corner! The colors are amazing and the weather is perfect...just a little cold at games. The other day we headed up the mountain behind our house...never been up there before. The colors were beautiful and it was brushed with a little snow on the ground. The kids loved going up there! The boys used my camera and got some great photos. Here are some of the kids.


The other day my sisters, Mom and I headed to Gardner village. It is all decorated with Witches, pumpkins and Halloween. We had a blast heading through most of the stores (not the ones where the kids could break everything), running through the hay maze and riding the donkies. It was so cute to see the kids laugh at witches and get into the Halloween spirit.



Tonight we had our annual Tate Family Halloween Party. Our family is so big that it is not logical to hold it at someones house! There are currently 20 grandkids and 12 adults. Therefore we hold it at one of our ward houses. This is one of the highlights of the year! This year we played Halloween Charades, played in the bounce house, played basketball and football. We had a great time having an Ichabod Crane(legand of sleepy hallow) walking contest!


We loved that Grandpa Tate dressed up in his Yo-Yo competition outfit (yes he won numerous awards in yo-yo contests). He even knocked an oreo off Steves finger!!! Amazing that he hit the oreo and that he fit into his vest he wore at age 12!!!

The costumes were great as always!!! I love seeing what people choose to dress up as! Here are some photos. Sorry I wasn't able to get pictures of the Williams family!!! If you get some send them over so I can add them!
Jonathan and Rachel Browning Family

Sarah and Chris Ames Family

Warren and Suzanne Tate (Grandpa and Grandma)

Dave and Julie Tate Family

Steve and Jamie Tate Family

Honey Lime Enchiladas

I have been sick of the same old things for dinner lately! There are always a few people who don't like what I have made and at times...not one kid likes what is for dinner! There is no way that I am going to fix five different things to please everyone! At times I think the only way everyone will be happy is if we all pick our own cereal to eat. There are many days that I decide that I will never make dinner again...until it's time to make dinner the next day. I have found a few blog sites that have some great meals. Here is a great one from The Sisters Cafe that we LOVED here Chez Browning. As a short cut, I cooked the chicken in a crockpot (with a crockpot liner for less mess)with the sauce.

Honey Lime Enchiladas

1.5 lbs pork or chicken, cooked and shredded

Sauce:
1/3 c honey
1/4 c lime juice
1 Tb chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder


2 (10 oz) cans green enchilada sauce

equal parts mixed together of:
mozzarella cheese, shredded
cheddar cheese, shredded
flour tortillas


Mix together sauce ingredients then add to shredded pork or chicken. Let the sauce soak into the meat for about 30 minutes.


Lightly spray 2 pans with non-stick baking spray. (I usually use one 9x13 and one 9x9 but it may vary with how thick you stuff your enchiladas) Pour green enchilada sauce into pans to coat the entire bottom. Fill tortillas with shredded meat and desired amount of cheese. Roll and place in dish.


Pour remainder of sauce over enchiladas and sprinkle more cheese on top - don't be stingy! (I sometimes use more like 1 1/2 cans- you can freeze left over enchilada sauce in a baggy.) Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Then turn on broiler and place enchiladas nearer the top of oven. Let it broil until cheese is slightly brown and crispy. It is now time to WOW your family!!

If you make this comment and let me know how you like it!!! If you have any others to mix up my routine please let me know!!