Conference Weekend Pictures







We
went to get pictures at Brian's favorite place. It also happens to be a
sanctuary for birds. One of the best things about it is that hardly
anyone knows that it exists. So we enjoyed the quiet wilderness Sunday
after conference. (Well, it was quite before we got there anyways). It
was nice to go where the boys could run and jump and yell and throw
rocks into a mud puddle without disturbing anyone else. It was such a
peaceful place that Jefferson slept in his car seat the whole time we
were there...hence his lack of pictures.






Lincoln
found this great rock to take pictures on where you can see the
Bountiful Temple to take pictures on and thus, theoretically, our house
is below. What he really wanted to do was walk through the bushes and
find all the birds that his Dad looks for when we come to the reserve.
This kid loves a good nature hike.






Here
is the little "Nini pants." Somehow we kept her out of the big mud
puddle because she is wearing her authentic Chilean sweater brought back
from Libbi's mission. McKinley also enjoyed sitting on the bench all by
herself.















Above is Brian's Favorite Scenic Picture of the Day









Some Others We liked...

Notice the Amount of Birds in the water in the picture on the left.

Choose McKinley's Halloween Costume

We are having a little trouble deciding which of these should be McKinley's Halloween Costume. Please let us know in the comments which one we should choose!







A Lady Bug

A Cow
A Bunny
A Giraffe
An Angel

What else can we say about McKinley





We blog her all the time because she is so stinking cute.

1st Birthday

It has been one year since we added a little ray of sunshine to our home! McKinley wanders around our house smiling, talking, singing and generally brightening whatever corner she may wonder into. She loves to follow around her brothers and greet Mom and Dad with a big hug.





Click here to see the post from a year ago today.




Click here to see some of the 460 pictures we have of her.




Click here to see MORE of the 460 pictures we have of her.



We are so glad she's been here for a year and we look forward to many more years and smiles in the future. We wish all of you (near and far) could enjoy McKinley on a daily basis as we do. Here is our little video of pictures in order from her actual birthday to her 1st birthday.



Truman's Profile





Name: Truman Young Duryea

Nick Name: Choo Choo

Birthday: May 15th 2004

Height: 3 feet 6 inches'

Weight: 40 lbs

Eye Color: Blueish Green

Teeth Count: 20

Binky: Never

Favorite Hobby: "Go to Sleep" and "Play Soccer"

Favorite Food: "Cookies"

Favorite Parent: Daddy

Secret Passion: Finding Cute Clothes for McKinley to wear

Most Embarrassing Moment: "When everyone stares at me"

Favorite Drink: Chocolate Milk

Favorite Game: Football

McKinley's Wedding Video



A Presidents' Blog Preview

Your speakers need to be on for this to make any sense. Grab some popcorn and enjoy a little trailer for our upcoming blogging event.


Curried Chicken Salad with Spiced Chickpeas and Raita





Brian came up with the idea of trying something fun we have never made before. Here is our attempt at Curried Chicken Salad with Spiced Chickpeas and Raita. The website described it as an easy mid-week dinner, to which I say, do you have any kids? But for a weekend activity it was pretty fun and manageable.



I also discovered a spice section of Smith's where you can buy whatever amount of the spice you are looking for instead of spending the big money on a whole bottle you may never use again. So I spent $0.06 on the teaspoon of turmeric I needed - awesome.




So the end result was delicious and we are planning on making it again when Abby comes cause she likes this kind of food, so be prepared!



Here is the recipe in case you want to try it...It is from epicurious.com



For curried chicken salad:
1 medium onion, chopped (1 cup)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced peeled ginger
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 medium tomatoes, chopped (1 cup)
1 cup plain yogurt
2 tablespoons cilantro
1 rotisserie chicken, meat coarsely shredded (3 to 4 cups)
1 cup red grapes, halved

For chickpeas:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 (19-ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed, drained, and patted dry (2 cups)
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon cayenne

For raita and topping:
1 cup plain yogurt
1 seedless cucumber, peeled, cored, and chopped (2 cups)
2 tablespoon chopped mint
1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted

Equipment: 4 (16-ounce) wide jars or containers with lids
Preparation

Make curried chicken salad:
Cook onion, garlic, and ginger in oil in a 10-inch heavy skillet over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add curry, cumin, and 1 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring, 2 minutes.
Add tomatoes and cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until sauce is thickened, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and stir in yogurt, cilantro, and chicken. Cool to room temperature.

Make chickpeas:
Heat oil in cleaned skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then cook chickpeas, stirring, 1 minute. Add cumin, turmeric, cayenne, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring to coat, until skillet is dry, about 2 minutes. Cool to room temperature.

Make raita:
Stir together yogurt, cucumber, mint, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

Assemble jars:
Divide grapes among jars and layer curried chicken, raita, chickpeas, and almonds on top.

Cooks' notes:
•Curried chicken salad and spiced chickpeas can be made 1 day ahead and chilled separately. •Assembled jars can be chilled up to 6 hours. Serve at room temperature.

Racing Day, its Racing Day.

When Lincoln was a baby Brian would say that he could not wait until he was big enough to really play with. Now that he and Truman are finally getting about that big it is really fun to see what games Dad comes up with that are as entertaining for him as they are for them.



One of his many hidden talents is making up fun games out of nowhere. King Seats, Bridge 10 and Robot 10 are three that frequent our living room. While I was grocery shopping yesterday he entertained them with yet another fun game involving racing around the house. This one was inspired by the Olympic fanaticism that has infected our home.



Here is some of the footage shot by our apprentice camera men...


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