Food Fun Family

Cousin Time #PSF

Lolli — Thu, 23 Jul 2015 21:30:23 +0000

The kids have been loving the time they’ve had with their cousins this week at Grandma and Grandpa’s house. Like last summer, when all 16 of us were living under one roof for the summer, the house is kind of chaotic, but it’s a good chaos.

Between the water park and the hot tub at home, the Museum of Natural Curiosity and hikes….we’ve been having a blast.

It’s cousin time!

What have you been up to? Link up your photo posts from this past week!

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Sponsored Video | The Family Kitchen: The Heart of the Home

Lolli — Fri, 01 May 2015 18:39:04 +0000

This post has been sponsored by GE Appliances but all thoughts and stories are my own.

When we were shopping for our first house, years ago, we knew that one thing above anything else about the set up of the house was important: it needed to have a roomy kitchen. Bedroom space and yard space and storage space were nice, but a good-sized kitchen that could accommodate a large crowd was at the very top of our list.

The kitchen is where everyone gathers – it’s the center of the home. The heart of the home.

Through a series of webisodes, GE Appliances taps into the lives of 6 real-life American families, touching upon the notions of “home” and “family” – which have always been hugely important in American culture.

This past summer, we drove across the country to drop our oldest daughter off for her first year of college. Since we had a pretty long trip (over 6000 miles clocked during the summer!) we wanted to make the most of our time out West, so we stayed at my parents’ house for several weeks. My sister and her family were in the middle of moving, so they were there as well….and eventually 2 of my other siblings and their kids joined us, too. Although we were still missing a handful of family members (my husband and daughter Necco had to travel back to Maryland and my youngest sister and her fiancé weren’t there) we still had a pretty significant group. And guess where we spent most of our bonding time?

That’s right. In the kitchen.

Last summer, I caught most of the family gathered in the kitchen, getting ready for a big family dinner (I made two full slow cookers full of our favorite Café Rio Copycat Sweet Pork and two rice cookers full of cilantro lime rice to feed everyone). I love the un-staged nature of our family gathered in the kitchen. And I love the next picture I caught just as much: Grandma and Grandpa with almost all of the grandkids.

Since this picture was taken, my sister adopted a little boy who I love more than I can describe. I loved the sentiments from the Richards family, who adopted their 5 kids. They said that their “family may not be bound by blood, but through the kitchen they’ve discovered a family can be built on love.”

We’ve got a mix of both in our family, and I’d have to say: we love each other no matter what. And we love the time that we can spend together, however rare that may be. No matter whose house we congregate at, I always know that we’ll end up in the kitchen.

Connect with GE Appliances:

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Easter 2015 With Cousins

Lolli — Tue, 07 Apr 2015 19:54:48 +0000

Easter 2015: We had a blast with the Pennsylvania cousins this past weekend. Lots of candy, lots of giggles, lots of good food.

On Easter Day, we drove over to the hill by the Hershey Gardens and had a fun (and windy) Easter Egg hunt. We missed having our oldest daughter there, since she’s off at college out of state. I really missed having her there to help stuff all of those Easter eggs (we do a LOT!).

Without further ado (because this IS Wordless Wednesday and I need to rush out the door to see Wicked in Baltimore…) here are a few shots of our fun time with family this weekend:

New Cousin #PSF Give Me Your Best Shot

Lolli — Fri, 13 Feb 2015 03:06:53 +0000

My sister adopted a sweet little newborn baby boy a few weeks ago. The kids and I were dying to meet the new cousin, so in the last 2 weeks, we’ve made 2 special trips to my sister’s house to spend time with the newest cousin.

It was love at first sight, and we simply can’t get enough of him.

Now if only they lived a *little* bit closer to us….

I think my sister and her older girls might have to fight my family over who got to hold him all the time. Her oldest daughter already complained to me that mom “hogs” him way too much! I’m sure, if she’s anything like my kids, the new baby phase will wear off and she won’t be begging to hold the baby so much!

Babies are wonderful things, aren’t they?

I love being the aunt who gets to hold and cuddle and kiss….but I don’t have the 24/7 baby duty anymore. I put my time in and loved it, but I love my big kids now!

What have you been up to this week? Feel free to link up in this week’s Photostory Friday/Give Me Your Best Shot.

And then have a fabulous weekend!

Hosted by Cecily and Lolli

To play Give Me Your Best Shot – Photo Story Friday, check this. Copy this code into your post and sign the link list:
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Ringing in the New Year With Cousins #PSF Give Me Your Best Shot

Lolli — Thu, 08 Jan 2015 22:56:54 +0000

The holidays didn’t feel like the holidays until my family drove up to Pennsylvania for a last-minute New Year’s Day party with my sister’s family. We pulled together a silly gift exchange (with a couple of real gifts mixed in there, too), threw together a traditional taco dinner on the fly, and had a fabulous time. After we celebrated with them, I could officially call the holiday season complete.

Ringing in the New Year with the East Coast extended family was the highlight of my holiday – along with my college-aged daughter’s return home for 3 weeks, of course! It was so nice to have her home for so long, despite the fact that we were all sick for half of that time. Sometimes lazy stay-at-home days are the best, anyway!

What was the highlight of your holiday season?

Hosted by Cecily and Lolli

To play Give Me Your Best Photo Story Friday, check this. Copy this code into your post and sign the link list:
<center><a href="https://foodfunfamily.com/tag/give-me-your-best-shot" target="_blank"></a><a href="https://mychaosmybliss.com" target="_blank"></a> Hosted by <a href="https://mychaosmybliss.com/" target="_blank">Cecily</a> and <a href="https://www.foodfunfamily.com" target="_blank">Lolli</a> </center>

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Cousin Power! #PSF Give Me Your Best Shot

Lolli — Fri, 12 Sep 2014 02:25:29 +0000

Cousin Power! While the kids and I were in Utah this summer, we spent a lot of time with cousins. My mom and dad have 14 grandchildren between the ages of 17 (almost 18) and under a year. Sadly, not all of the grandkids were together at the same time (we had one group of 12 together at the beginning of the summer, and then at the end of the summer, we had 13 together!). Here are just a few of our random big-group gatherings.

And if any of you heard me mention the craziness of having 16 people living in the same house, here’s a peek into one of our last meals together (and, yes, there were more than 16 of us there that night!). I made Cafe Rio sweet pork in the crock pot, whipped up some cilantro lime rice in the rice cooker, and chopped up some fresh pico de gallo (which I’ll be sharing the recipe for shortly). It was one of the best dinners of the summer!

Can you tell that these kids are all related?!

Hosted by Cecily and Lolli

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One Last Night with My Siblings #PSF

Lolli — Thu, 21 Aug 2014 22:00:05 +0000

Today’s post is going to be short because I’m currently packing up to make the return trip home to Maryland after being gone all summer.

My emotions are running high right now…I’ll be leaving my oldest daughter in this state as we drive across the country and I won’t be seeing her again until December. I’ve had a full, thoroughly enjoyable summer filled with cousins and aunts and uncles and Grandmas and Grandpas….and water parks and museums and conferences and movies.

I will miss our fun and relaxing and silliness and excitement. But I’m comforted in knowing that I’m taking home a summer-full of memories.

Last night, those of us still in town got together for dinner at my sister’s house. While the dog and the chickens and the kids ran free, my siblings and parents and I tried to grab a few last minutes of sibling togetherness.

And now I’m off, heading back to home and school and normalcy. Just without my girl.

What have you been up to lately? Been on any exciting adventures?

Be sure to link up your posts below!

Hosted by Cecily and Lolli

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Salt Lake City Temple Square #WW

Lolli — Wed, 13 Aug 2014 02:45:56 +0000

You can’t travel to or through Utah without making a stop at Temple Square. My sister and I took some of the kids to see the Salt Lake Temple and the Church History Museum, which is just across the street from Temple Square. We had a blast!

I wish we had had more time to spend at the Church History Museum! There were so many things for the kids to do and explore!

Playing along with Wordless Wednesday? Come link up!

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Ogden Temple Open House #WW

Lolli — Wed, 06 Aug 2014 05:37:03 +0000

Today, my mom and dad, 3 of my kids, and 3 of their cousins and I toured the newly completed Odgen Temple. What a beautiful temple Open House! If you ever have the opportunity to attend a temple open house in your area…do it! Even if you’re not LDS, go!

Ogden Temple Open House

And of course, we had to stop at Farr (Better) ice cream for some of the best ice cream any of us have had in a long time for a special treat!

Playing along with Wordless Wednesday? Link up below!

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Hiking to Silver Lake in the Uinta National Forest #PSF

Lolli — Fri, 25 Jul 2014 04:34:24 +0000

After driving over 3200 miles across the country and taking a day to rest (and to do lots and lots of laundry) we thought it would be fun to take a “quick” 5 mile hike with the cousins.

Let’s just say that 5 miles straight up and down a mountain is very different (and much more strenuous!) from hiking in Maryland.

We came home exhausted, covered in dirt, and thirsty beyond belief (again…we were prepared with enough water for a 2 1/2 mile each way hike at home, not in the dessert mountains). But we had a fantastic time, saw spectacular views, and created memories with cousins that will last a lifetime.

Silver Lake

Silver Lake Reservoir

For those of you considering hiking to Silver Lake in the Uinta National Forest here are a few things you should know:

The 3-mile dirt road drive is not regular car friendly. Drive a truck or SUV. Leave the minivan at home. It’s a rough road full of switch backs and large stones and holes…and our van barely made it. But we did make it.
The 2.2 mile hike that starts at the Silver Lake Reservoir and ends up at Silver Lake is straight up the mountain (or at least it feels like it). It is full of unbelievable views and plenty of shady spots to stop and rest (because you probably will want to stop to rest). It is not a hike for the weak. My tachycardia was going wild the entire hike up to the lake (my heart rate was between 120 and 180 for the whole hike…probably not the smartest choice for me!).
Going down the mountain is much easier and much faster.
We had kids from 2 to 18 in our group, and the two youngest had a hard time with the hike. All of the kids above 8 were just fine with the hike (but they were very tired).
Silver Lake is COLD, even in mid July when the air temperature is in the 90s and 100s. But after hiking in the heat, that cold water felt incredible on our feet. A few people even got in a little deeper…
Pack lots and lots of water.
Plan for a full day outing. The hike up to Silver Lake took us a few hours, where the hike down took an hour to an hour and a half, with a rest stop of about an hour at the lake.

And now, I need to sleep…That hike wore me out!

What have you been up to this week? Surviving the heat and the craziness of summer?

Be sure to link up your posts below!

Hosted by Cecily and Lolli

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