Blogging again...

Blogging again...

Life at Riley’s Ranch must be pretty boring if I only write once every six months! I have decided to try again and this time add a few things. Like if I try a new recipe I like and want to share it…Or have a new project I am working on etc. All summer long we have had a huge project it was called a yard. That was a beast to say the least. However I am happy to report that we have finally got grass, a rock wall, and lots more rocks. This weekend Gregory planted four more trees in the yard too. So I think for this year we are done …Maybe. I have some Iris’s that need to be split up and put in various places and some other bulbs my mom gave me over a year ago to plant too. I am hoping to put a picture or two of the yard in here. Sami and Benn lived with us for the summer; it was really nice to have them so close. We enjoyed them. We also found out we are going to be grandparents in February!!! We will have a grandson, and we are excited to meet him. They are in Pennsylvania; Ben is going to law school at Penn State. Sami is being the little homemaker. Nicholas has been getting up at 3:00a.m since he got another job working for UPS. He is very good about getting himself up and out the door. It is great to see him doing school and working two jobs. I often wonder when he sleeps. It must be in his car…? By the way he got a new car, it is a Chevy Malibu. He loves it. Taylor is doing well. She has started making duct tape wallets, and they are pretty darn cool. She went to Colorado this summer to visit the Charsley family and her grandparents. This week she is in Glenwood visiting her other grandparents. It’s good to see her getting better. Our hope is that her new medication will really finally help her. She is such a big help to me here at home. Greg was called into the bishopric and is now the 1st counselor. On top of that he still has the school thing that has him busier than ever. Work has only gotten busier too. How he is doing all of this is beyond me. Some days I think he would like all the stress and busy part to go away. Only 3 more yrs, and this school project could be over. Keep those fingers, toes and whatever crossed for him on that one. Me Well I have had both knees scoped and cleaned out under the knee cap. My right knee was first, and still is bothersome, but I am hopeful. I had the left knee done last Monday. They did more to that knee; I also had a lateral release so I guess my recovery time will be longer. Which leaves a big question mark in my mind since my right knee is still a pain… Why did I do it? To make my knees feel better when I exercise, walk, go upstairs etc. I am trying to come up with a good baby project. I have to do some looking around and figuring out what I can do. Anyway I made this yummy banana cake yesterday and I thought I should post it for anyone who might come across my blog if they wanted to try it. I think it is worth the try. Until next time…..

Buttermilk Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients
• 3/4 cup butter
• 2 1/8 cups sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 3 cups flour
• 1 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1 1/2 cups pureed ripe bananas

• Frosting
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
• 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
Preheat oven to 275°. Grease and flour a 9 x 13 pan or 10 x 15 jelly roll pan. In a small bowl, mix pureed banana with the lemon juice; set aside. In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking soda and salt; set aside. In a large bowl, cream 3/4 cup butter and 2 1/8 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, then stir in 2 tsp vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk. Stir in banana mixture. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake in preheated oven for one hour or until toothpick inserted in centre comes out clean. Remove from oven and place directly into the freezer for 45 minutes. This will make the cake very moist.
Frosting
Cream the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Beat in 1 tsp vanilla. Add icing sugar and beat on low speed until combined, then on high speed until frosting is smooth. Spread on cooled cake. Place frosted cake in refrigerator until serving. Store any leftover cake in refrigerator.
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Starting up ...Again

So I have decided that I need to be better at blogging. I cannot write like once every 6 months expect my blog to anything but boring. My daughter is a great blogger and I enjoy reading hers each time she updates it. I also have a sister who regularly blogs. It is how we keep up on her life in Texas.
Our family is still plugging along. Greg is going to BYU (yes a student) and thankfully working full time. He is very busy, but getting school worked on and some day out of the way is a huge goal. Sometimes I am amazed at all he is doing, and all the late hours he is able to keep to get in homework, and work. He has been playing a little basketball at church. Maybe that is his release??? Nicholas is doing school part time and working part time. AND…he is getting to help with coaching the Pleasant Grove High School baseball team. I think that is his favorite thing in life right now. Sami and Ben are happy, happy, happy! (That is the way I hope they will always be.) Life is not perfect for them, as they are both in their last year at BYU, and both are working. (STRESSFUL) Who knows where they will end up for Ben to go to Law school? I am proud of Samantha working on finishing her degree. I am also seeing many other talents popping up since she has been married. Ben must have triggered something in her! Taylor! She has had quite the past year with all her health issues. She is a strong person, in that she has not given up on herself, even when it seemed that things were not going to get better. Taylor has been seeing some of her goals happening and that is great! She does help me out with things around the house and we do get to go to her share of doctor appointments. In the end it will be worth it all. She does a good job in her calling with Activity Days at church. What is hard for me is I know she would really love to be out there doing all the things most other 19 yr olds are doing. It is hard to stay the course and know that your time will come. Then there is me…I feel very blessed to be able to be home at this time when many have to work. Sometimes I wonder what I do with all that time, but I seem to use it up doing something. I have become somewhat of an avid reader. Even have 2 different library cards!!!! It is much cheaper than buying books all the time. When I worked at Deseret Book I could afford books, but no more. I still love to exercise and Taylor and I do that together a few days during the week, then I do other thing by myself. That good old elliptical! I also have enjoyed making some photo books, but that does cost money and that is one thing I am trying to be careful about these days. Life is good when I look at everything that is going on with my family. We are blessed. I am thankful for the telephone, because I can call and talk with my parents who I do not get to see nearly as much as I would like. I am finding the older I am getting the little thing s in life really do matter most! Until next time…

Bandit Man...

Bandit

Yesterday we let our brave little Bandit go. He went to the vet because he had injured his front left leg/shoulder doing one of his ”superman” jumps off a rock… It is hard not to keep questioning on whether the right thing was done. We did what we felt was best for Bandit. I hope….
His entire life has been one of so many hard things. He was born with some disabilities, both physical and mental. He was one of Tilli’s and Tybo’s puppies. Bandit was feisty from the start. Looking back he was always a little slower than the rest of the other puppies, and the smallest by the time they were big enough to go to different homes. Bandit went to my parents. However over time Bandit came back to our home to live.
Bandit had what is called Cortical Blindness. His eyes looked normal from the outside, but from his eyes to his brain the information did not connect. It was kind of like he was blind to his blindness. Over time even that seemed to get worse some how. He also had seizures that at times were really bad. We were never able to really potty train him. I never thought I could deal with a dog peeing or pooping in my house, but when you love the little animal you deal with it. We always called it Bandit leaving us "presents”. I know it sound gross, but it taught me to have patience, and humility with someone you really love. Each time Bandit would go up and down the stairs to go outside, I always thought he was so brave. He could not do stairs like a normal dog. He would put his front paws down on the step then twist his body to the side and then his hind paws would reach the same stair. It was that way with each step, each time, every day. The cool thing is, is that he did it!!! This taught me about being courageous and doing something even when you wonder how in the world you can do what it is you are trying to do. He is one of the little heroes in our family.
Truthfully we do not know all that was wrong with Bandit, and I could go on and on about the things that made it hard for him. The things that made it hard for us to take care of him, but I will not. If I had one wish for me it would have been that Bandit would have let us physically love him, and give him hugs, hold him in our arms. To be able to give him kisses, all the things like you do for a normal dog. It was hard, but we loved him how he would let us. We loved his cute pacing around the island in the kitchen. We loved how he loved the words “doggie treat”. He knew what that meant. We loved his big tail, and the way it would curl up in the air and he would almost prance when he would walk around. The way he got excited at dinner time, going around the table hoping he would get something to eat. He was our Bandit man….and we loved him.

One wish for him I have, would be to for him to run without any of the things that limited his life.
He is already missed. The house has a reverence about it. One of the little spirits that lived in it is gone. We placed him in what in time will be a flower garden. It will be a place where we can visit often. He is with our Tybo dog now, hopefully running and seeing without any more problems.

January 27, 2004 - September 22, 2010

Sami's Day

August 20, 2010 our 1st daughter married her sweetheart Benjamin Carter Van Noy for all time and eternity in the Oquirrh Mountain Temple. It was what I would consider almost a perfect day. At the temple where they were sealed the two of them had a glow about them that was just beautiful. Surrounded with friends and family they became a “family” of their own. It was a strange feeling when I thought about that. Sami would no longer be just Samantha Riley, but she was now Samantha Riley Van Noy, and would always have her best friend, and spouse by her side. Ben is a wonderful person. He is just perfect for her. He brings out the best in Samantha and that is how it should be. He loves our daughter, we could not ask for more.
After a long summer with a lot of decisions, changes and a few disagreements the day was finally here. There were family and friends gathered around. Her reception was just perfect. We had it outside, not too hot and the gardens at the reception area were really beautiful. Sami glowed….it truly was her day. She looked so grown up and was a gorgeous bride. Emma did her hair. It looked fantastic. With Emma you would expect nothing but the best. Her colors; aqua, teal and purple turned out to look great. Her bouquet was Hydrangeas (periwinkle and lavender) and white orchids. She actually ended up having two. The wind at the temple kind of trashed the first one. Their cake turned out to be quite pretty as well. It was all white decorated with fresh flowers. Her dance with her Dad was really a neat thing. Her Father chose the song “My Wish” by Rascal Flatts. It’s always been our “Sami” song. Then Ben took her and they danced their dance. “It’s Your Love” was the song. All in all it was just about as perfect a day one could have asked for. For me my favorite part was seeing them in the temple together being sealed.

One of the moments that does take your breath away!

4:29:00 PM by stephanie