Rachael Eliker's Blog, page 57
July 12, 2016
Water Bugs
First day of swim lessons!By the time I was two, thanks to an annual family vacation involving a pool and a lake, I was swimming, face under water and all. Seeing as I was too young to remember learning how to swim, I've found it a challenge to teach my girls. So, lucky us, we found an intensive beginner swim course that would take all three of them at once. No more being left out for you, Kate!
Claire definitely had the biggest kick.We were at the pool, bright and early every morning for...
July 9, 2016
The Land of the Free
In keeping with tradition, we made our annual trek to Nebraska for the 4th of July and while it was a lot more tame than last year's explosive fun (quite literally), it was still enormously entertaining.
We learned new skills...
...ate a little too much...
...slipped down a water slide...
Messed up hair really bothers Kate at the moment....had a few bad hair days...(But hey, it was vacation! Who cares?)
...wore some silly hats...
...had a stare down between my sister's dog Ruby and Nova...
July 3, 2016
Released
SourceThe Relief Society of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the world's oldest, largest women's organizations and for the past three years, I've served as a voluntary president of a ward (think church congregation). In that time of dedicated--sometimes intense--service, my faith has grown, my hope in humanity has been strengthened and my resolve to be better has increased. The responsibilities of a Relief Society president vary widely, from overseeing the spiritual welfare...
June 30, 2016
Double Up
When one of our swings broke, the girls got into a few squabbles until I showed them that they could double up.
Turns out, sharing is fun!(Why doesn't anyone believe me every other time I tell them that??)
June 28, 2016
Asleep
Evelyn snoozing in the cool shade.As much as they say they don't like sleeping, the kids sure fall asleep in a lot of random places. Under trees...
...in theme parks, while sitting in the stroller...
Pink Vader had a busy day....at lunch...
...or on the bean bag chair.
Henry still takes the cake. He'll fall asleep while jogging...
...while driving...
I will never understand how babies don't constantly have cricks in their necks....in the high chair...
...on my lap...
...and with all the pl...
June 25, 2016
Belated Father's Day
Sharing a silly straw invention!Though Father's Day was nearly a week ago and we didn't pay homage to Jack and fathers at large on the blog, we spent plenty of time spoiling Jack with presents, homemade crafts and special meals in person.
Showering daddy with homemade artwork.Though I could go on and on about Jack's wonderful qualities, I think everyone knows how creative, intelligent, good-natured, hardworking, faithful, witty, humorous, patient, gentle and kind he is, and how hard he works t...
June 17, 2016
Empowered
I put up all those balusters!Recently, I've felt very empowered.
I put in that flooring tread, into a CONCRETE floor!
It's amazing how much changing a little outlet can improve and entire room!I learned how to replace outlets!
It was a surprisingly easy fix!I doubled the number of balusters on our staircase, so the railing doesn't leak kids!
Maybe I don't want to feel empowered...Now that I've mastered some new home improvement skills, I feel empowered enough to tackle the roof!(Which I...
June 15, 2016
Fluffy Fruit Dip
A friend served this at her daughter's birthday party and I instantly fell in love. It's light and fluffy and not as sweet as our cream cheese fruit dip. The best part is it can be put together in about two minutes, can be customized and is delicious with every fruit we tried. Even though it was a side dish, it could practically be a meal. Half a recipe is plenty for a family, a whole batch is party sized.Ingredients:
1 large container Cool Whip, thawed1 large container yogurt--try strawberry,...
June 14, 2016
Fun Run
I see some familiar faces at the start of the race!When we went back to Nebraska over Memorial Day weekend, we decided to sign the girls and their cousins up for a mile fun run race early on a Saturday morning.
I was a little concerned that the girls would struggle with the run (well, except Kate and Elsa, who did it right by cruising along in the double jogging stroller), but everyone ran like the wind. I think it was a combination of the cool weather, the excitement of the race and having th...
June 7, 2016
Snickerdoodle Bars
While I'm well aware that Jack loves snickerdoodle cookies, I'm not a super huge fan of them, because they seem to take more effort than your average chocolate chip cookie (I think it's the extra steps of rolling them, then dipping them in cinnamon sugar). There is a solution--Snickerdoodle Bars! They're just as sweet and chewy, but are really simple and will please a crowd!Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ba...
